Welcome to Surface - ABYSM

Hi all!  While this isn't done yet, it's time for lore for Abysm!  This time dealing with the strange yet colorful world of Surface.  Abysm consists of two major locations:    The Abyss, which is the endless maze found inside breaches formed by surface storms, and Surface

Surface is a colorful land constantly raged by storms which are caused by the Abyss phenomena, both summoning breaches leading to the maze, spawning dangerous cubelike constructs, and entrapping the entire world under its impenetrable cloud cover which resembles the underside of ocean waves.  

The rodent-folk of Surface are constantly battling the storms which move across the battered landscape and to avoid the constant struggles, have created moving cities called Guilds (both hostile and neutral).  Since the sky is quite literally not navigable, all of the activity takes place on land.    Another drastic side-effect of the breach occurrence on Surface were the draining of the majority of the seas and oceans of Surface, with most of the water draining into the Abyss and forcing the denizens of Surface to dive into the Abyss for its resources to survive.  While most water is gone from surface, there are many locations in which it still can be found plentifully.  However, this has also caused much of the ocean floor and the massive trenches below the now-missing sea to become exposed.  Over the many hundreds of years much of the previously-seafaring wildlife and plants adapted to suit land conditions (another side effect of the Abyss).

To ward off the storms, guilds over many hundreds of years constructed giant repulsors in the shape of tetrapods, keeping most of the storms at bay and by extention any construct attacks or unpredictable Abyssal doorways.  This became known as the shoreline on maps and to travelers, dignifying the border between safety and immensely dangerous territory.

Pictured in the image above are several elements:  

Matilda and Juno (characters)

an ORCA unit used for safe traversal inside the Abyss as a robotic pack-mule of sorts assisting in carrying supplies and allowing for safe breach crossing,

Limpet spike mines (Limpet is a militarized guild which attempts to claim land and resources from the ocean floor and around Surface via superior tech)

Tetrapods (the giant line of repulsors which attempt to stave off breaches

The Mountains of Surface (left) with a city which will be addressed more with another character's introduction.


A contrasting piece of the Abyss is being made to help explain the different biomes also found within the maze.  You can read abyss here soon!  Working on a better viewing portal website and finishing up some writing.  You help the comic's progression here and as such you get access to fun lore updates that aren't made public.

~Dan