Shattered Twilight is a Dark Fantasy, post-apocalyptic setting about a world slowly going to hell.
The gods are dead, destroyed in a cataclysmic event known as the Shattering; the shattered minds of the gods still respond to formal rituals, but as thinking beings, they no longer exist.
The Shattering also released a tide of dark creatures all across the world; there are hints that the creatures existed before the Shattering, but since the world lost the protection of the gods, they have run rampant.
There is currently only one story using the setting: The Farmer's Wife is a Web Serial Novel, updated daily, following a novice priest and three priests of the (now-vanished guards) and a woman whose son has been taken by "shadows"(demons) as they try to rescue him. The story starts here
and updates are posted here; the other pages of the blog, accessible from the sidebar, give more details about the setting.
Shattered Twilight contains examples of:
- Blood Magic: In the very beginning of The Farmer's Wife, Anya uses blood in a ritual to summon a Shadow to bargain with for her son's life.
- Carry a Big Stick: The Purgatori (demon-hunting priests) carry maces.
- Church Militant: Of the three priests we've seen (excluding one novice, who isn't supposed to carry a weapon due to his rank), one is armed with a mace and another with a sword. Justified, given that the world is being overrun by what are basically demons and they are the first line of defence.
- Crapsack World: The entire setting is one. The Farmer's Wife begins with a child being kidnapped by demons, and the investigating priests treat it as though it's not uncommon in the slightest.
- Dark Is Evil: Averted in the backstory, played straight in the current setting; the god of night is described as having been benevolent and protecting the world against evil, but during the Shattering, he vanished entirely, and now darkness is a strong motif for evil.
- Deal with the Devil: Anya makes one in the beginning of The Farmer's Wife, bargaining something for the return of her son.
- God of Darkness: In the book's backstory it is mentioned that there was once a benevolent god of the night who protected the world from evil. He vanished during the Shattering, leaving darkness to be haunted by evil.
- Insists on Paying: The de facto leader of the group of priests in The Farmer's Wife decides that as clergy they are entitled to shelter and food, and leaves without paying, but Brother Anat sneaks a few coins onto the table before following.
- Silver Has Mystic Powers: The mace the demon-hunting priest carries is described as "silvered", though it's not clear exactly what this means.
- White Mage: The Beneficari seem to follow this archetype.
