Heart's Dominion: The Fallen Wonderland | 5th Edition Micro-Setting (Patreon)

Hey, everyone! Just getting back home from my birthday weekend and ready to release June's micro-setting!

This one has been a blast to write! I'm still working on a good template for these settings as they're coming out a bit bigger than intended (I get too excited about settings, I fully admit) and they're cutting into time for adventure writing sadly. To that effect, I'm going to pump out a menagerie supplement that I'm almost done with that includes stat blocks for the Queen of Hearts, Mad Hatter, White Rabbit, and other twisted versions that fit into the setting, as well as a magic item supplement this week.

If there's something I missed or you want more details on, please don't hesitate to reach out and let me know! All comments, suggestions, and even criticisms are welcome!

~ TJ Phoenix

In a land where moonlight dances upon lakes of tears and forests whisper secrets, Wonderland beckons. The Ruby Citadel, a monolith of thorns and shadows, dominates the fallen dreamscape. Here, Alice, the Queen of Hearts, rules with an iron fist, amidst crimson-clad card soldiers and shadows forged of dark magic. The Tulgey Wood spreads its gnarled embrace, where the Cheshire Cat prowls, a phantom with ember eyes and a ravenous void for a grin.

Deep beneath the twisted dreamscape lies the Clockwork Warrens', a winding labyrinth that is home to the White Rabbit’s secret police. His clockwork and necrotic paws are synced with an ominous pocket watch, while spectral gears embroider the air with time’s fragments.

Welcome to Heart’s Dominion—a realm where childhood whimsy has turned to nightmare and madness weaves through thorny spires. Where echoes of laughter and despair entwine as  timeless wonders challenge the hearts of the valiant.

Introduction

In the days of yore, Wonderland was a realm of unfettered dreams and perpetual reverie. The fabric of this land was woven with pure imagination, where daisies whispered lullabies and stars could be plucked from the skies. Three Monarchs of Whimsy safeguarded the dreamscape in this enchanted world: The Luminous Jester, The Lady of Whispers, and The Guardian of Reflections. They resided in the Dreaming Spires, a kaleidoscopic palace that danced among clouds.

One day, a young human girl named Alice stumbled into this realm through the Dream Lattice. With her arrival and subsequent adventures, Wonderland flourished as her boundless imagination infused the land with whimsical splendor. However, her abrupt departure back to her world ripped a void that sent tremors through Wonderland's very essence.

Alice eventually returned to Wonderland as a young woman but as a different person; no longer the naive young girl, she had grown harsher and crueler. The hardships of life had created an empty void that nestled within her heart. This seed of darkness flourished, devouring her sense of wonder and hope. In turn, the Dreaming Spires began to dim, and a slow, palpable dread began to permeate the air.

The once-majestic Monarchs withered. The Luminous Jester's laughter turned to anguished wails, and his form twisted into shadows. The Lady of Whispers became a spectral wraith, her whispers turned to curses that carried despair. The Guardian of Reflections shattered, his shards forming an ever-reflecting labyrinth filled with entrapped lost souls.

The seed within Alice blossomed when she slew the Queen of Hearts in a fit of rage. Wonderland quaked as Alice was crowned the new Queen of Hearts, and her darkness spread to infect the entire world, creating Heart’s Dominion.

Heart's Dominion became a grotesque caricature of what Wonderland once was. The Blackroot, an eldritch, twisted tree with bark that seemed to pulse as if alive, erupted within the Ruby Citadel, where Alice reigned. It spread its gnarled roots throughout the realm, each carrying echoes of dark dreams and forgotten nightmares.

The former inhabitants of Wonderland were transformed into monstrosities of shadow and decaying flesh falling into eldritch madness. Cheshire Cat, now a shapeshifting shadow, feasts on the fears of the lost in Tulgey Wood. The White Rabbit, his ticking an eternal dirge, became the undead harbinger of the Queen’s wrath, leading an army of clockwork abominations. Only the Mad Hatter, his spirit preserved through a sheer force of will, mourned the loss of joy and became the somber leader of a resistance born from the remnants of wonder.

The once-vibrant and whimsical Wonderland became trapped in a shroud of madness. Here, amidst the decay and shadows, the essence of dreams curdled into the ink of nightmares. The struggle between the fragments of wonder and the ever-encroaching eldritch darkness continues, as characters brave enough to enter this twisted realm must navigate the remnants of dreams and the terrors of a nightmare sprung to unlife.

Explorer+ Patrons click HERE to get the Adventure PDF + Regional Map