The World of Eras

The Basics
World of Eras is a role playing group, heavily inspired by Shadowrun, which attempts to combine the elements of a fantasy world and that of a cyberpunk world, in which members of four different races (human, elf, troll and dwarf) join one of two factions, mages or engineers, to compete against each other for access over the continent of Skydall. The continent is divided in smaller parts, special districts. These districts contain bonuses (for example: extra exp earned per submission, etc.). On top of that, special areas on which players can build their own shops or clubs are also located in these special districts.
The easiest way to get control over Skydall is through Faction Points that are earned through completing monthly missions. On top of getting a reward for your character, you will also be earning extra points for your faction as well. In case you don't feel like doing any of the missions, you can still earn points by submitting any art, writings or other creations related to the group but you will only earn a fraction of the points you would by completing missions.
At the end of the month control of Skydall will be given to which ever faction collected the most amount of Faction Points. A faction is only allowed to hold control of Skydall for 2 months. If after 2 months the opposing factions still couldn't take control of Skydall, control will be given to them automatically for one month. But if that is the case, the extra bonuses won't apply. To find out more about the bonuses and districts regarding Skydall see this map and the details in the description. Note that if you own a business in Skydall, you will get the income bonus from it.
In case the two factions acquire the same amount of Faction Points by the end of the month, the faction that did not have control over Skydal over the past month will be the one considered the winner.
The world currently contains 3 continents: Rezurus, Kataria and Skydall.
As a mage you start off in Kataria and as an engineer you start off in Rezurus.
Skydall is divided into 12 districts. 5 out of those belong to the engineers and 5 to the mages as well as one off shore district owned by each faction permanently, built over the water for living purposes. Mages can only open businesses in the mage districts and engineers in their own districts and only one of the factions can hold control over Skydall at a time. The faction that controls the island will get +50% to their earnings from owned businesses. Living districts are not affected.
The living districts are situated on artificially created small islands that are connected to Skydall through a long bridge. These islands contain luxurious homes of different sizes.

Magic
Magic is the kind of power that a character can acquire by tapping into the Essence of Nature. This essence seeps into the world of Eras from a whole different dimension: the Astral Dimension. Some characters are more sensitive to the Essence of Nature, this is something they are born with or they acquire by exposing themselves to sights of power and mastering magic through learning. Once a character taps into the Essence of Nature they are automatically drawn to one of 12 elements - this is what will decide what kind of element your mage uses. The element is important because it will put your mage into one of 3 categories (summoner, fighter or support) and will determine the fighting style of your character. More about that here.
The Astral Dimension is also home to certain very powerful magical creatures - they are the closest to a deity in this world. These creatures can not cross into Eras but can come in contact with the mages. The real form of these magical deities are beyond human comprehension but those that came in contact with them said they resemble some sort of mythical creature - this is due to their brains oversimplifying these deities to something comprehensible and as such giving them the form of dragons, angels, demons, and so on - they come in many forms. Those mages that managed to contact one of these deities became more powerful as a result of a pact they made. It is important to note that not all deities are good. Most of them are in fact evil and in exchange for making a mage powerful they enslave them, twist their minds and drive them crazy turning them evil or forcing them to do evil deeds against their will. Caution is advised when dealing with these deities. They are cunning and hard to resist and very few mages that came in contact with them actually manage to resist their temptation.
For those who wish to cut their connection to the Essence of Nature and as such to the Astral Dimension, the easiest way to do that would be to turn themselves into a cyborg - get as many implants as possible. That, or try to live in places where there are no Sights of Power or where any magical essence is disrupted and weakened due to electric circuits. Basically surround yourself with technology, buildings of concrete and anything that is artificial, metallic. Such a place is Rezerus. There is absolutely no trace of any magical essence in Rezerus, while Kataria beams with it. Skydall on the other hand is between the two worlds. The magical essence there is not as strong as in Kataria, but it is still present.

The factions
The core difference between the two factions lies in their views regarding magic and its use. One of the factions thinks magic is dangerous and evil while the other thinks it is good and represents their connection to nature and her elements. Because of this difference of opinion the two faction don't always see eye to eye. Keep in mind that just because the two factions don't agree and are prone to conflict, it doesn't mean that characters in opposite factions automatically hate each other. Friendships/relationships can form though they might be a bit difficult.
Engineers
Engineers fear the Magical Deities that live in the Astral Dimension. Because magic increases the risk of coming across one of these deities,
the members of this faction consider magic to be extremely dangerous and try to avoid it as much as possible. This doesn't mean engineers can't use magic -some of them can - they just chose not to, or only use it if they absolutely must. Rather than rely on magic, however, they focus exclusively on technology, trying to improve and develop it as much as possible. They do this to be able to defend themselves against mages that become evil while also eliminating the need to use magic to do so.
Mages
In contrast to engineers, mages think magic is an important connection to nature. Nature is what nurtures us and breathes life into us, like a mother, and as such they respect and protect her and view magic as her gift. Mages generally love forests and wildlife, there aren't many that don't. They think that by destroying natural biomes and turning them into concrete blocks, by cutting off the Essence of Nature, the engineers are not only defiling nature but also turning their backs on her and her gifts. While mages don't entirely reject technology (some do), they still try to limit their contact with it because they fear that they will damage their connection to the Essence of Nature and lose their powers, which they rely on completely for protection.

Housing
Each mage character starts out with a basic hut that is situated in Kataria's living district. Engineers with a basic house in Rezurus. Once enough gems/credits are earned, the characters can chose to move to one of Skydalls luxurious homes or expand their already existing ones. Note that you can not own both a basic home and a luxury home.
Moving to a luxury home in Skydall will provide permanent bonuses to attributes. It will also give the character a buff called Knowledge Spy which will open up access to the Black Market and as such certain magical wares to boost weapons, among other things. More about owning luxury homes here. Note: Luxury homes can not be expanded.
Expanding base homes give you the opportunity to craft a set number of consumables every week. Not only will this save you from the trouble of having to buy them, but if you have excess you can always sell them at a local store and earn gems or credits for it. It will also unlock a buff called Strong Community which unlocks a special community spell every month. More on basic homes and home expansions here.

Currency
Credits are the currency in this world. Each character has a credit stick they store them on.
Credits are acquired by doing missions, selling consumables or owning a shop or any other business. A boost to earning credits can be gained by making sure that your faction has control over Skydall.
Note: Submissions that are not related to missions or events will not earn you any credits, only Experience and Faction Points.
Experience is a form of currency used to create spells and abilities.

World Events
During world events there won't be missions and Skydall will be controlled by both factions. World events will be conducted in group RP's and everyone who participates gets the same rewards. Faction points will still be earned individually through submissions and at the end of the month things go back to normal and the faction with the most points will gain control of Skydall in the coming month.

What you can add to the world
You may open your very own shops or clubs to earn some extra gems or credits on top of what you get from completing missions. And you may chose where in Skydall, within your factions districts, you want it placed. Keep in mind that for your bonus to be active, your faction must have control over Skydall. More about owning a business here.
You may also introduce NPC's to the world. NPC's can be mercenaries or hirelings who help you with your everyday tasks. They can also be criminals who exist to stir up some trouble and make things more fun. Or they can be simple citizens that are just there to make the world feel more alive. Owning shops or businesses also allow you to create a staff member/employees who run your business while you are away on a mission (or doing what ever it is that you are doing). More about NPC creation here.

Gifting
Gifting among factions is allowed, but keep in mind that a mage, while they can receive a cyborg implant as gift, might not appreciate it very much and may even take it as an insult. When gifting, keep that in mind.
The gifting of Black Market merchandise is strictly forbidden! Only those that live in Skydall may own any of the Black Market's goods and by giving them to others you violate the trust these merchants place in you. As a result they will either raise their prices for a few months or temporarily ban you from entering the Black Market. If you repeatedly betray their trust they will permanently raise their prices for you (and expect it to be unfair).