Okay, so we wrapped up our two year campaign of the Curse of the Crimson Throne Adventure Path, and we're starting this Sunday with the final Pathfinder rules.

I looked at running another adventure path, but I'm reluctant to do so. First, the adventure paths that I have don't totally grab me, and secondly I find the last two adventure paths I've run start high on roleplaying, but by the end are heavy on grinding through combat.

So, I've decdied I'm now the master of my own destiny.

I liked some of the concepts of the Second Darkness campaign, and I'm trying to bend that into my overall arcing campaign plot. Basically, I've decided my cthuloid alliance of abberation races (the Shebeleth) who reside underground have decided they've had enough of skulking, and to restart the Summoner's War, they're going to take a meteor and slam it into Theras, wiping out the Gith and ending their watch over the Theld, starting the Longest Night.

I also want this campaign to involve pirates, derring-do, and explore the history of my world, and the Verdraaken Empire (which fell the last time a meteor struck the center of their realm, wiping out most of humanity several hundred years ago).

I need a starting adventure, and I've decided the best way to do so is get all the party members to sign up for service on the ship the Wild Raven, captained by the fierce pirate Captain Erasmus Kreeg. The party won't meet the captain yet, just his fussy bosun/recruiter Thevenin Prust. They're signing on for service, when the waterfront tavern where the recruiting is happening is attacked by street urchins lobbing vials of alchemists' fire ...

Ideas? Thoughts? Suggestions?

Archade

So, I've been lagging a bit on my creativity for my campaign world, but I decided last night to flesh out my creation myth of the world.

I was able to explain quite a few things. First, why the campaign world is different from the rest of the universe (it can't be owned or changed by the whims of powerful beings), why souls go to 'heaven' or elsewhere in the afterlife, and how the different pantheons originally started together.

I'm interested if anyone has comments or suggestions on how to flesh this out. I'd love to include a paragraph explaining how giants, titans, elementals, or the like had bearing on the world in the early days.

So, without futher preamble ...


The Alabaster Scrolls Tell of the Beginning

Aarishem, the Allfather of the Court of Voices, called his prophet Manphares to him in the legendary city of Namphare from the tribes of mankind, and had him set down the earliest days of Celestia, and revealed the truths of the gods to mankind.

Aarishem says before the Court of Voices came together and raised their voices, there was dischord. The Thousand Pits of Shabel-Mar raged and the Ethereal Sea burned with such fury that none could venture forth from their worlds. From Shabel-Mar great and powerful beings waged war, stretching forth to devour worlds, drawing all life back to The Thousand Pits.

The Elder Gods stood astride worlds, the blood of all creatures upon them. They were Dagon, Bolthomogg, Nycorn, Obox-Ob, and more. Their forms were incomprehensible, and their spawn without number.

Against the ravages of Shabel-Mar stood the Gray Lords. They were led by Aarishem the White Eye, and standing with him were Karkath the First Flame, Minderhall the Stonemaster and Uarthos the Ethereal, and others who followed their banner. They could not defeat the foul creatures of Shabel-Mar, for they were without end, but they raised many warriors from across many worlds and railed against the Elder Gods. This was the First War.

The First War raged for countless millennia, until Uarthos stole from Dagon’s deep lair secret lore – he used this lore and sacrificed himself to create a realm protected far from Shabel-Mar, unmutable by the will of great beings, only by the hands of mortal creatures. This realm he called Theras, and those who followed the Gray Lords came to dwell in Theras.

Aarishem then called forth the greatest and noblest of the host of the Gray Lords now of Theras to dwell apart and raise their voices as one, to shroud this realm from the eyes of the Lords of Shabel-Mar. Their song formed the bastion wall about Theras, a shining realm of light that echoed with its celestial choir of voices. The song and the shining realm of light were named Venya, and Aarishem decreed that as long as the Court of Voices sang, this Fortress would stand fast. Another song was sung in Venya, to call forth to the Court of Voices souls that ended their time on Theras, as long as Aarishem found them worthy, and they joined the celestial choir.


Tales of the First Days of Theras

Astaroth was a powerful fiend who dwelt in a realm known as Baator, and his following had become diminished in the defense against Shabel-Mar. He knew his realm would not stand long if he did not have creatures to guard Baator’s borders. So he whispered to those in Venya and offered them a place in his court to those who would teach him the song that called souls to their choir. The song could not be sung by the harsh voice of Astaroth, and so it was instead a whisper of temptation, that mortal souls could choose to follow. Aarishem heard the whisper, and knew he had been betrayed. He exiled from his court Triel and Mephistopheles and others who had hidden their treachery. Astaroth called them to Baator, and this exile as known as the First Falling

Archade

I'm looking for ideas to flesh out my deities of my campaign ... here's the first. Anyone care to chime in?

AANYAR

The god of storms, lightning, and the sea. He is worshipped, or his name is invoked to avoid poor weather, by farmers, sailors, foresters. As well, he is seen as a healer and a giver of life by bringing rains and rivers to the land, and wells often are capped with a small shrine-roof depicting his image to keep them from drying out. He is depicted either as a giant kraken or a windswept old man with one eye.

Aanyar, the Storm King is worshipped heavily in Tamris, a religious state ruled by the Theocrat of that church.

Aanyar’s church was comprised of rural chapels during the era of the Verdraaken Empire, and now it has grown to fill the need of worshippers seeking comfort and protection from weather, or the dangers of the land.

Alignment: N
Domains: Destruction, Healing, Water, Weather
Favored Weapon: Falchion
Symbol: An eye

MAGIC OF AANYAR

Clerics, rangers and druids of the Storm King may prepare whispering wind as a 2nd level spell and clerics and rangers may prepare call lightning as a 4th-level spell.

Clerics of Aanyar channel positive energy and spontaneously convert memorized spells to cure effects.

Aanyar’s Blade
Evocation [electricity]
Level: Clr 2, Drd2 (Aanyar)
Components: V, S, DF
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: 0 ft.
Duration: 1 minute/level (D)
Saving Throw: none
Spell Resistance: Yes

A 5-foot bolt of electricity springs forth from your hands. You may wield this bold of lightning as if it were a falchion. Attacks with Aanyar’s blade are melee touch attacks. The bold deals 2d4 points of electricity damage +1 point per two caster levels (maximum +10). Since the bolt is immaterial, your Strength modifier does not apply to the damage. A bold can ignite combustible materials such as parchment, straw, dry sticks, and cloth.

Archade

So, my one player prodded me to include half-orcs in my campaign, and I did so, finding a good social niche for them. He then went on to prod me on kobolds (since he likes playing them for some reason). I'm not big on mini-dragon kobolds, but I did find a good place for them to exist ... feedback, anyone?

KOBOLDS
The kobolds, whose name in Khoteshali translates to "slave of magic", are unusual in the world because of their origins; they are not a natural race, but a crafted form of life.

Many centuries ago, the rising civilization of Khotesh had a plague that all but wiped out their slave caste. With the great need for slaves, the nobles of Khotesh appealed to the Temple of Apollyon for reprieve from the ravages of their dread lord. Given pressure from the state, the church researched spells to create the kobold, crafting their bodies from the remains of desert lizards and their souls from criminals who are sacrificed to Apollyon. As the divine magic came from the Horseman of Pestilence, these creatures are pitiful and wretched, often covered with sores and cursed with a short lifespan. The first of the kobolds were little more than bestial creatures, but over the march of years, they have gained cunning and intelligence, to avoid punishment and curry favor with their human masters.

Kobolds cannot breed, and are constructed magically. They live in underground warrens below the cities of Khotesh, and are left to fend for themselves until the need for a slave arises, at which point they are bound by a ritual to a master, and a bound kobold can be unmade with a single word from their owner. Kobolds resent their masters, but live in fear of the unmaking. Kobolds are driven mercilessly to build the great architecture of Khotesh, and hundreds of kobolds work to death or fall from great heights to their doom in the construction of the Black Towers.

It is said that in the underground warrens, there is a kobold of a great age, having lived nearly 60 years. This aged kobold claims to know the secret of freedom and wards against unmaking, and he is revered as a divine servant sent to Khotesh by Apollyon to free the kobolds from their slavery, and his name of Kurtulmak is whispered in warrens everywhere.

In the warrens, kobolds live in communal harmony, like a nest of rats. Unless fed by their masters (who often forget), they live as scavengers, feeding on scraps and corpses and defenseless desert creatures. As kobolds live a great deal of their lives in the darkness, they find sunlight repellent, and abhor it, but fear the lash of their masters more.

Kobold Characters

Kobold player characters are almost always descended from feral kobolds that have escaped their Khoteshi masters. Use the standard Kobold entry in the Monster Manual or Pathfinder Chronicles with the following additions:

· Creatures of Apollyon: Kobolds are naturally resistant to diseases, gaining a +4 racial bonus to Fortitude saves to resist such.

ANIMATE PLAGUE SERVANT
Necromancy (Evil)
Level: Clr 3, Sor/Wiz 5
Components: V, S, M
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Touch
Targets: One corpse touched
Duration: Indefinite (D)
Saving Throw: None
Spell Resistance: No
This spell turns the body of a humanoid corpse formerly of evil alignment into a large egg that will hatch into a fully mature kobold within 1d4 days.

Note that these kobolds as created are humanoids, but are also indefinite magical effects, and radiate faint necromancy magic, and can be dispelled (a targeted Dispel Magic DC to dispel a kobold is 15 + the kobold’s HD + the kobold’s Cha modifier) or hedged out by appropriate magical wards. Kobolds are asexual creatures, and cannot reproduce.

This kobold is not necessarily loyal to you, but at a command word, the spell will end, and the kobold will cease to exist, which is a powerful incentive for cooperation.

Clerics of 11th level or higher can add the Daemonic or Draconic template to all kobolds created.

Material Components: The corpse of an evil humanoid, scales of a lizard scattered over the corpse, and a piece of jade placed in the corpse's mouth worth 25 gp.


BLESSING OF APOLLYON
Conjuration (creation)
Level: Clr 4
Components: V, S, M
Casting Time: 1 standard action
Range: Touch
Targets: Kobold touched
Duration: Instantaneous
Saving Throw: Will negates (harmless)
Spell Resistance: No

Upon touching a kobold, it transforms the creature from being sustained by a magical effect that can be dispelled into a truly existing humanoid. As well, the Blessing confers upon the target creature a +2 inherent bonus to Charisma as the gaze of Apollyon is upon it.

Material Components: Specially prepared incense worth 500 gp per HD of the kobold to be transformed.
- Show quoted text -

Archade

Hey all,

My campaign is going to eventually be heading into the territory of half-orcs. That's right, a stable half-orc kingdom.

You see, half-elves get it easy -- established kingdoms of their own, social acceptance, and all sorts of positive elven influence, while the half-orcs end up being the gardeners or cooks or lower tier of an existing society, or they are lieutenants to an orc warlord.

In my Western Marches campaign, one of my players lamented the lack of half-orcs as a player choice. I pointed out I had created an alternative that was mechanically identical, but then he suggested that orcs represent the savage tribal human, and to not represent that would be a shame. I gave it some thought, and looked to my campaign map.

I had a North-East corner of the map marked "The Black Ice of Kozeh". Thinking of half-orcs there cast my mind back to the Erokese novels, and gave me inspiration for a half-orc kingdom. I could see a series of clans of humans interbred with orcs now long gone, riding in sleds of wrought iron pulled by dire bears, carrying bone-carved halls with them as nomads.

So here's what I did -- comments and suggestions are always welcome!

==================================

The Black Ice of Kozeh: North of the Theld lies the frozen waste of Kozeh. It is a blasted wasteland of rocks and dark ice and eternal cold, where the scars of the Summoner's War can still be found frozen in the ice.
Kozeh was originally home to the Mor'Urak over a thousand years ago, a warlike race that were in tribute to the Verdraaken Empire, and enemies of the Linnorm. This ended with the coming of the Shebeleth and the Summoner's War, when the Verdraaken Empire was destroyed, and Kozeh nearly with it. The black ash of the Theld was cast as far north as Kozeh, freezing in the ice and snow, turning it black.
Kozeh's temperatures are usually below freezing, except in the all-too-brief summer season. Annual precipitation is minimal, and usually is seen as black snow. The region is home to very little vegetation, which grow only in the most southern reaches where sunlight and warmth are slightly more than fleeting. The rest of Kozeh consists of permafrost, low wind-eroded mountain ranges, roving glacial packs or ice-choked seaways. In the winter months, raging blizzards of black snow can rage across Kozeh, and these blizzards often can dampen, limit, or even negate magic use, causing a great threat to those who depend on magic for warmth and food.
The animal life that manages to eke out an existence on The Black Ice are necessarily some of the heartiest stock in the Western Marches. Confronted with sparse food and biting cold, almost every creature sports an extra thick coat of fur and/or blubber. Roving herds of dire elk, wolves, bears of all types, and birds of prey live above the ice, while fish and whales live below. Many small artic mammals and birds survive on the scraps left by their larger cousins.
In this unnatural arctic world, some magical beasts and exotic creatures call the Black Ice home. Remorhaz are a threat to herd animals and hunters alike on the open tundra, as are frostworks on the glacial planes. Roving packs of worgs harass travellers in the southern regions, while small colonies of yeti live out an isolated existence in the low mountain ranges.
In recent centuries, a small flight of githwyrm dragons has established itself as the top predators. These mighty creatures are both feared and worshipped by the local clans of Kozehk, as well as gith and Theldane that have made their way to the Black Ice.

The Kozehk: The Kozehk are a nomadic barbarian culture of their own true-breeding race descended from the same cultural stock as the Theldane, as well as the Mor'Urak.
While they have many parallel cultural similarities to the Theldane, they are physically distinct. Their features are bestial, with pointed teeth and animalistic eyes. Their hirsute bodies are covered in thick, coarse hair, not dissimilar to that of a wolf. Their senses of scent are heightened from that of a normal man. They are tall and powerfully built and sport many tattoos, which they conceal under their thick fur clothing. Unlike the Theldane, they prize their hair, both beards and long tresses. Kozehk men insulate their faces with great thick black beards and both men and women wear their hair long; decorating it with intricate braids and decorations of bone, ivory, and even gold.
The Kozehk are continually migratory, travelling across the Black Ice in search of fish or hunting grounds. They travel on sleds of wrought iron, pulled by wolves, bears, or even other beasts they have tamed. With them, they pull their Sledge Halls, large clan-buildings of carved bone pulled on massive sleds, hauled by the largest bears they can tame. These Sledge Halls define power within the Clans, and serve as homes and fortresses against the cold and dangers of the north. However, during the long night of winter, that lasts three months, the Sledge Halls halt their travels, and the Kozehk defend their homes against the predations of winter and strange creatures that find the dark to their liking.
Not surprisingly, the Kozehk are master herdsmen and have domesticated a wide variety of animals and dire beasts that provide serve as mounts, draft animals and even war machines. Almost every Kozehk clan keeps a wolf or two as a domestic pet and hunting companion. The most feared and revered beasts are bears, which pull the great Sledge Halls of the Hetmen and warlords, and are used as great warbeasts as well, wearing armor and some rare times serving as mounts.
In the short but relatively warm summer season, the Kozehk people migrate south to the most hospitable part of their tribal grounds, and clerics of all clans work together to use magic to plant, cultivate, and harvest plants for food and linens, all within a matter of a month or two, and trade their furs, bone and ivory goods with the Theldane in exchange for steel weaponry. Food is plentiful and almost festive for these normally stoic and harsh people. It is at the height of the warm season that the Kozehk celebrate their Bloodmoot and Bearfeast days. Here, marriages are performed, clan treaties ratified and trade occurs.
In the darkest days of winter, far to the north, the Kozehk travel to the Amber Hall, and solemnly celebrate the Days of Amber. All of the clans gather at the last standing cathedral of the Mor'Urak, a massive and permanent stone hall lined with amber, to celebrate for three specific days in midwinter. This is where the disciples of the enigmatic Mor'Urak travel from their places in the mountains to trade their goods of much coveted metal, magic, and wisdom with the Kozehk in secret gatherings in the Amber Hall.
Kozehk culture is organized around clans of extended family units ruled by a Hetman, whom holds their position until someone within the clan is strong enough to wrest it from them. The harsh environment easily weeds out the sickly and timid, so weak leaders are almost unheard of. The day-to-day spiritual needs of the tribe are seen to by the bear-priests; who are usually a cleric, although there are some druids who worship the Ghostwind or (red) dragon shamans who worship Karkath, although they live isolated from the clans.
Kozehk clerics worship a unique pantheon – their ancestors. The Mor'Urak are said to live in the mountains, and all Kozehk acknowledge they are descended from their blood. These creatures hold great sway over their nomadic cousins because they alone control the magic and coveted weapons and cultural secrets of the Kozehk. Their goods, each a work of art no matter how lowly an item, command high prices at the Days of Amber. It is unwise to slight a priest, as their magic keeps animals and biting winter at bay and creates the summer crops - If these priest's feel slighted or their advice is ignored, then they will exile someone from the clan, regardless of station, with nothing but their fur garments and a single blade to protect themselves. Needless to say, they are shown great reverence and respect.

Kozehk Characters: If you wish to play a Kozehk, they are played as half-orcs from the PHB, with the following minor exceptions.

• Gain a +2 racial bonus to Handle Animal checks
• Gain low-light vision as well as darkvision.
• Clerics choose a named ancestor to worship, and choose any two domains that reflect that ancestor's traits. Common domain choices are War, Strength, Destruction, Evil, Chaos, Community, but are not limited to those choices.

Archade

Hey all,

Something I would love feedback on, as my campaign world firms up through play, is my historical time line.

Nothing bugs me more than a fantasy world that's stayed the same over 10,000 years. Things should change. Technology should be developed, empires rise and fall, religions spring into existence, magic be discovered, and so on.

For my world, I made a conscious decision to keep my timeline compact, and show a few trends:

TECHNOLOGY

The development of technology (ie something that mirrors real history, where better metallurgy developed better swords, which caused the creation of chain mail, which caused the rise of impact weapons like maces and morningstars, which was responded to with plate armor, which incited thrusting weapons and firearms).

A DARK AGE

The big thing I wanted to shamelessly steal from Paizo's Golarion campaign is that the world was a more developed place, until Bad Things Happened (tm) and the world fell into a dark age, with a reduction in population, a reason for abandoned dungeons and ruins, and treasures and magical items waiting to be found. My Bad Thing was the Summoner's War, where the Shebeleth (an alliance of Mind Flayers and Aboleths and other aberrations) invaded, and toppled the Verdraaken Empire, causing people to go crazy and cities to burn.

A SALVAGED RENAISSANCE

I wanted my pre-Summoner War world to be a place of firearms and mechanical golems and pocketwatches -- almost steampunk. Not exactly Eberron, but more like Stardust. When the world was cast into darkness, those advanced wonders were lost, and now they are just being rediscovered and the means to build them is being rediscovered. Actually, that sounds a bit like Warhammer 40K, and that's okay too.

THE EBB AND FLOW OF HISTORY

I wanted other events, such as the Elven Court leaving the world, leaving a few fey behind (and making elves, halflings, and gnomes watered down fey), I wanted lycanthropes to be the former servants of the fey, I wanted a sect of mages delving into golem-making. I wanted faction states of the lost Verdraaken Empire to be struggling along.

SO WHAT DO I WANT HELP WITH?

Here's my timeline below. I'd love suggestions to help flesh it out -- random history bits, names of kings and religious leaders of days gone by, things that could have happened. Any feedback from the people who read these blogs would be greatly appreciated. I also have items I want to have happen below without dates, and advice on where to insert these events in would be wonderful as well.

Western Marches Timeline


-6000 u Dwarves emerge from Khadenhall and are seen by humans for the first time.

-6000 w Aarden discovers the Alabaster Scrolls and the worship of Aarishem, and takes them to the people

-5800 u The dwarven hold of Morrighal is discovered.

-5220 w The White Council is formed, and the Dawn Princes all agree to adhere to the Alabaster Scrolls and the worship of Aarishem.

-5200 w Aarden is ascended to Venya, and becomes a Throne Angel for his service to the Allfather.

-5000 u Acererak the lich is destroyed, and his soul is sent to Baator.

-5000 u The Elven Court leaves Glanting Isle, and sails to Avalor, led by their Queen Ehlonna.

-4708 0 MR u Malacisti Empire is founded, and all the Dawn Princes swear allegiance to Pramus Oriasini, the first Malacisti Emperor to sit the Malacite Throne.

-2105 n Half-plate armor developed by the Verdraaken Empire to combat morningstars and other piercing weapons

-1850 2858 MR n Rapiers raise to prominence in the Malacisti Empire, and their popularity is carried north to the Verdraaken Empire.

-1700 3008 MR n Firearms are developed by the Verdraaken

-1601 3107 MR u The Verdraaken Empire falls to the depradations of abberant outsiders summoned by arrogant Verdraaken runemages.

-1592 t The Summoners War begins when the remaining members of the Runebound gather, and using the last great magics of the Verdraaken Empire, their gods the Sword Spirit and Karkath, and their dragon servants, open a Gate to the Pale Realm, and summon the githyanki. The githyanki come through the gate with five flying citadels, and forge a pact with the Runebound to strike at the Shebeleth. The cost of this summoning is the magic and sanity of most dragons, the souls and lives of all the priests of Karkath and the Sword Spirit, and most of the runemages and their artifacts, and the death of the semi-divine son of Karkath

-1591 u Cuthbert dies.

-1580 t The devastation of Morrighal, when the earth splits. Morrighal is abandoned by the dwarves, who flee to Khadenhall, led by their last king Daern Blacktower.

-1560 t The Summoners War ends, and the Shebeleth flee into the underground vaults beneath the Theld. The githyanki leave with the last functional flying citadel, leaving behind half-breed children on foundered citadels floating above the Theld.

-1558 u Cuthbert is canonized by the White Council, becoming St. Cuthbert.

-1400 u Vecna rises as a lich and forges her own empire, soldiered by the undead and other foul creatures, and many people are enslaved.

-1260 u Vecna is defeated by Kas, and her empire crumbles.

-465 u Baligante, the first of the Malacisti Protectorates, is founded when the corrupt Margrave of Tellmarch offers land in the Blackfens to the Malacisti Emperor for an obscene sum of money. With magic, a large portion of the Blackfens are drained, and the boggards are driven deeper into the marshlands.

-350 n The Golemworks of Baligante are founded by Kwalish the Mad

-301 4407 MR u Goethe founded on the Jewel Fields by Patrician Janthian Goethe and some Malacisti Lancers, defeating some Theldane and taking their fortress.

-280 u Humans from Goethe settle ruins of Morrighal. Verden Blacktower is outraged, and war nearly breaks out between Goethe and Khadenhall.

-266 w The Edict of Deviltry is issued by the White Council in the Malacisti Empire, proclaiming that all arcane magic is a machination of Astaroth, and that all wizards and sorcerers are accursed to burn in Baator for using such magic, and their souls are in danger by their ignorance. The White Crusade is proclaimed, and inquisitors travel to the Protectorates from the Empire to expunge the evil from the Jewel Fields. Many sorcerers with fiendish bloodlines are put to death.

-263 w Wizards, sorcerers, and other arcane casters flee the Malacisti Protectorates in the face of the White Crusade. Several cities on the southern coast of the Protectorate Sea offer sanctuary, becoming known as the Magelands (and the Protectorate Sea becomes known as the Heretic’s Ocean)

-102 4606 MR w Aarishem dies, throwing the Malacisti Empire into civil disorder, and causing the Protectorates in the Western Marches to be abandoned.

-88 w Tenser is taken into the custody of the White Crusade by Deacon Ultrafer, and is kept for two years in the capital of Malacist. When he returns to Baligante, all priests are turned out of the Golemworks and made unwelcome.

-87 u Count Daroche Oriador proclaims himself King of Arcavia, and the city-states of Heux and Aro swear their allegiance to him.

-44 4664 MR w The White Council, now led by the Archdeacon of Aarden, quietly revokes the Edict of Deviltry, as it has fallen into disuse, confirming that the practice of arcane magic is not a theological practice, and that the White Council cannot judge it to be immoral or evil.

-25 u Mordenkainen Hoenott becomes the Headmage of the Acadaemae in Goethe

0 4708 MR The Present

??? ??? Stirrups taken from Galivesh
??? ??? Shortswords developed
??? ??? Longswords developed
??? ??? Chainmail developed
??? ??? Morningstars, maces, and hammers improved to work against chainmail
??? ??? Greatswords developed
??? ??? The fall of the Verdraaken Empire – much technology and craft skills are lost …
??? ??? Gear-clocks rediscovered
??? ??? The first airship flies from the Ashport docks …
??? ??? Cortine develops a new method of forging steel
??? ??? The wizard Igannazzar discovers an extraplanar realm of fire, and the City of Brass
??? ??? The lost secret of crafting shot powder is discovered and communicated across the Protectorates
??? ??? The Elven Court retreats from Glanting Isle and The Realm of Aldharweir (later becoming the island-kingdom of Gnelland)
??? ??? Ashport outcasts found the Styes
??? ??? The githyanki wizard-warrior Ioun …
??? ??? Monks and monk weapons are shared with the human cultures …
??? ??? The Theld becomes a barren wasteland, and the Firecrown Uplands are formed …
??? ??? The gith migrate to the land, across the Theld, Firecrown Uplands, and Graven Hills
??? ??? Plague hits Khotesh, kobolds created by Temple of Apollyon

Archade

So, my players are reaching the lofty heights of 9th level, and they are starting to get in synch with the campaign world.

I'm hearing comments of Vadani solidarity ("us Vadani gypsies need to stick together") and referring to history ("hey, that sounds like something left over from the Verdraaken Empire"). That makes me very happy.

Last session, I got a chance to pull a Peter Jackson moment, and have them wander through a magnificent cultural scene, where they travelled to the lost dwarven city of Morrighal, now claimed by human Forgecandlers and a place of trade on the edge of the Ash Plains of the Theld. Whoo! The players enjoyed it, and the world felt a little more real.

Archade

So, the next thing I looked at are the names that D&D has 'hardwired' into the system. Some campaign worlds, like the Forgotten Realms, turn a blind eye to why there is a spell called Mordenkainen's Lucubration. Or they assume the spell wafted over the ether to get to the world.

It's my thought to adapt those names to my game. I haven't finished everything, but I've given most of the names a place in my world. If this were a television series, it might be considered a 'reboot' of the characters, because while I have a Mordenkainen, Rary, and Tenser, there is no Circle of Eight, and in fact, some of these personages lived in totally different times. But at least the players can say 'hey, Mordenkainen, he's the headmaster of the Acadamae in Goethe!'.

Here are some of my fleshed out characters ...


Bigby: More popularly known as the Iron Arcanamarch, Bigby was the foremost Evoker of the Verdraaken Empire, and one of the Runebidden.


Bilarro Vengerre: A malacisti wizard and leader of a cult of Zandrathius in Baligante. Bilarro is said to have once possessed the Eye of Vecna, having plucked out his own eye to do so.


Bucknard Tallender: A noble lord of the Verdraaken Empire famed for his wealth and generosity. He was well loved by his people, but unfortunately perished during the Summoners’ War.


Ehlonna: The previous Queen of Avalor. She lived a long life and was famed for her beauty and love of the hunt. Her daughter is Laerith.


Gruumsh: One of the Mor’Urak who occasionally steps forth from the mountains to speak with the Kozeh. One of his namesake forefathers was famous for his slaying of a Shebleleth beast, but lost his eye in the conflict. To keep the name of Gruumsh strong, all his descendants pluck out their right eye.


Heward Hakthorne: A Marchlander wizard, brother to the Golemworker Tenser. and ally of the Drakentaaler. He travels in secret, defending the ancient realm of the Verdraaken Empire with his warrior allies. He is particularly close-lipped, and knows many secrets, but speaks rarely, and often travels in disguise.


Mordenkainen Hoenott: The Acadamae is the most prestigious school of magic in the Western Marches, and as its Headmagus, Hoenott is one of the region’s most respected and powerful wizards.


Rary: A runebound wizard of the Verdraaken Empire, known for his transmutation magic that enhanced the mind. Rary often served as the herald of the Dragon King, and traveled to many distant lands. He is often depicted wearing purple.
Rary also was known for his clockwork golems, often mechanical songbirds that served as messengers, or great iron hounds to guard noble homes. Kwalish uncovered Rary’s research, and with it and the knowledge of other wizards from olden times founded the Golemworks.


Tasha the Black: A vadani enchantress who is a friend of the Elven Court, and unlike her brethren, dresses without ornament in head to toe black. However, her sense of humor is dark and complex. She travels with the Dsalti clan and can be found most often in Aldermarch.


Vecna: A Vadani witch purported to dwell within the Vallenwood and cause harm to those who trespass near her lair.
The histories of the Verdraaken Empire that survive state she was once a beautiful and charming Vadani noblewoman whose mother was a nymph, who was taken as a bride by a Verdraaken Prince, and bore him a son. However, one of her sisters grew jealous of her mortal husband, disguised herself as Vecna, and played a cruel and malicious trick which accidentally slew him. Consumed with grief and rage, Vecna used forbidden Vadani magic to call upon The Raven Witch and proceeded to slay her sister. The good fey in turn cursed her, and her beauteous form was transformed into a twisted crone.
The Empire heard of the death of the Prince, believing Vecna to have betrayed and murdered her husband. In response, they cast out all Vadani from the Empire and forbid them from dwelling within their city walls or own land. When the Empire fell, the banishment of the Vadani ended, but prejudice continues to this day.
Vecna dwelt in the forest as a witch with her son, Kas for many years, wreaking havoc and suffering on all that she could reach, until the good and noble Cuthbert quested forth from the Empire and slew her. Yet death could not end her rage and suffering and she rose again as a lich with Maglaura’s divine blessing. During the aftermath of the Summoners’ War, with no Empire remaining, she forged her own realm that reached from the Vallenwood, across the Theld and south to the Marchlands. Dark beasts roamed openly, fey were hunted and slain by undead legions, and those close to her became creatures of utter evil, her son Kas becoming a nosferati vampire. However, evil turned on itself and Kas betrayed her, attempting to wrest control of her kingdom from her, and in a epic battle, cut off her hand and removed her eye before being slain by Vecna. Twisted with rage and sorrow, she fled into the darkness, leaving everything behind.
Vecna’s empire crumbled shortly thereafter, and the land returned to nature’s stewardship. Vecna is said to dwell within the Vallenwood, the forest itself becoming cursed and dark by her very presence. She has hidden there since. It is said that her hand and eye are artifacts of evil that cannot be destroyed, and they are found by the evil or unlucky.

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In the ongoing saga of bringing by 3.5 D&D campaign world to life by reviving my old AD&D campaign world ...

So, in digging out my original AD&D campaign notes for my 3.5 game, one thing I had was a list of places ... now place names are very important to me, so I wanted to salvage all these place names if at all possible. And you know, it doesn't matter if these places are 20 years old in my imagination or not, they're still cool places where the name evokes something cool ...

Lin Carter wrote a book called Imaginary Worlds that talked about the importance of a name that can evoke feelings of a place by the very sound of the word itself. Now, she might have had a small coronary in the book about Michael Moorcock's lost city of R'lin K'ren A'aa (and who wouldn't?) but I think she was right about that. I remember putting a lot of thought into coming up with place names.

Now, either back 20 years ago or more recently, I've fleshed these places out, but I'm interested to hear what you guys think these places might represent.

Aldermarch
Aliconte
Arcavia
Argandy
Aro
Baligante
Benden Wood
Cortine
Cimmerium
Dalvishahn
Galivesh
Gemelote
Gemelrene
Glanting Isle
Gnelland
Goethe
Heux
Ilzmagorti
The Jewel Fields
Khatrep
Khotesh
The Magelands
The Malacisti Empire
The Marchlands
Nordell
Oriador
Shabel-Mar'u
Tellmarch
The Theld
Vallenwood
The Verdraaken Empire
The Weirlands
Wymarch

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So, the first thing I wanted in my world was an Elven Court. Like the one in Ellen Kushner's Thomas the Rhymer, or Midsummer Night's Dream, or even the one described in Through Countless Doorways by Malhavoc.

So I started with the idea of a mythical plane of Avalor, which would not only be the realm of the Faerie, but also double as my campaign's plane of shadow. Since the Shadow realm is supposed to be a fractured reflection of the Material, and it's magic is illusion turned reality, it seemed like a good fit to me. And I decided that the elves, gnomes, and halflings are the weaker, watered-down cousins of the true elven court, the true fey.

The next thing I wanted to do was have these Elven Lords not be gods per se, but nobles of the Elven Court worshipped as gods. To me, these Elven Lords make great druidic gods for humans, elves or what have you. So, I took a couple of my original AD&D deities, and then the model from Countless Doorways, and created an Elven Lord for each season, and a Queen to rule over them. I also then read up on Paizo's Caiden Callaine and decided he'd make a great human hero living amongst the fey, in a Chu Cullain meets Thomas the Rhymer. Here's what I made ...

Amon (the Red Archer) is the fey spirit that embodies war. He wears burnished gold armor and bears a burning longbow into battle. His spirit is mercurial and hot-tempered.
Alignment: CG
Domains: Celerity, Fire, Sun, War
Favored Weapon: Longbow
Symbol: A burning or red arrowhead

Avalor: The otherworldly realm of the fey, also known as the Empyrean Wood or the Plane of Shadow. It is said the Elven Court now dwells here, in castles of glass amongst emerald forests, where fey creatures seek refuge from mankind on the Material Plane.
Avalor is divided into Seasons, and ruled by each of the Fey Lords. Kelael, the crystal castle of the Silver Queen, is said to move amongst these realms, appearing and disappearing at her mistress’ whim.

Caiden Kallaine: Known as the Hawk of Nordell, and the God of Bravery, Ale, and Freedom. Caiden was a mortal warrior-hero of legend, and the tales of his defeat of many evil creatures, great feats of strength, foes of the Nordic people, and his drunken revels are long and varied, and are quite popular among the bards and skalds of the north.
Legend says that Cayden fought to rescue a dryad queen from a fiendish worm, and upon doing so, the maiden, Dendrelass, rewarded him with eternal life, and took him to the Empyrean Wood, where he was never seen again on mortal soil.
Cayden is the only mortal human to go dwell among the fey of Avalor willingly, and while he is worshipped by those humans who revere the Elven Court, he is not serene or sylvan, and it is said that in his drunken state, eternal crystal fountains have been shattered, fey maidens have been deflowered, and the quiet hum of the forest realm is often shattered by off-key singing and the sounds of mayhem and destruction.
Members of Cayden’s faith make excellent guides and explorers, quick to smile at danger and always willing to have fun even in the direst of circumstances. His temples are nothing more than ale halls with a shrine to him upon the bar. Formal raiment is a simple brown tunic or robe with a wine-red stole bearing his ale-mug symbol (adventurer-priests of the faith sometimes carry a magical stole that doubles as a rope). His simple holy text is the Revel Blessing, condensing his divine philosophy into a few short phrases suitable for hanging on the wall. His faithful recite the Revel Blessing upon the commencement of any festivity or evening of drinking, and his clergy are often called upon for their knowledge of songs and riddles.
The faithful of Cayden Cailean often carry tankards with them for luck, or pause before a particularly dangerous or stressful task to drink holy water from their tankards. Caiden shows his approval through his holy water tasting of fine ale, but in cases where a mortal has instead drawn his ire, such drinks invariably taste of vinegar or sewage.
Alignment: CG
Domains: Chaos, Charm, Good, Strength, Travel
Favored Weapon: Club
Symbol: A tankard

Churcainn (the Green Rider) leads the wild hunt, wearing leaf armor and a helmet adorned with great horns of a stag. He often attempts to make bargains with mortals that never end to their benefit. Churcainn is also worshipped as a keeper of animals by farmers and others who use domestic creatures, and his followers are encouraged to wander, much as a river wends its way through the land.
Alignment: CN
Domains: Water, Chaos, Animal, Travel, Trickery
Favored Weapon: Longsword
Symbol: ???

Kelael: The moon, named after the crystal spired castle of the Silver Queen in Avalor. It is said that the moon is her scyring device that watches the world that they fey have left, searching for something unknown to the people of the Western Marches.

Laerith (the Silver Queen) dwells in a silver-spired city called Kelael at the center of the Empyrean Wood, and the moon itself is named after her crystal-spired castle. She rules over the Elven Court.
Alignment: CG
Domains: Magic, Healing, (Moon?), (Light?)
Favored Weapon: Star Knife
Symbol: ???

Maelbine (the White King) is the father of the giants, and holds the secrets of the mountains. His followers cannot be moved by snow or weather, and they command the strength of the giants.
Alignment: CN
Domains: Air, Strength, Cold, Strength, Weather
Favored Weapon: Any spear
Symbol: ???

Maglaura (the Raven Witch) lives deep in the forests, calling all sorts of dark spirits and unnatural creatures to do her bidding. It is even said that she can raise the corpses of the dead and bend them to her will.
Alignment: CE
Domains: Earth, Plant, Darkness, Corruption, Death
Favored Weapon: ???

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So when 4th edition was announced, I decided to step away from my 3.5 Forgotten Realms Campaign and start over.

It was in my head at the time to be less beholden to the rules as written, and start expanding my house rules to clean up a lot of the clunky items in 3.5. Just as I finished, Pathfinder was announced, and since then I've superceded a lot of my house rules with their mechanics.

But as far as the campaign world went, I had done FR to death, so I went and dug up my AD&D campaign world from my university days. Now, it was a whopping 30 pages of notes, but a lot of those ideas were still good, and I started to upgrade it to 3rd edition. And something good happened -- I was making my own campaign! I begged, borrowed, and shamelessly stole from all the supplements I've owned for years but never used, melded ideas with my campaign, and so on.

And then I started seeing the adventure paths put out by Paizo. Now, I find their campaigns and adventures very compelling and full of flavor, but their world Golarion just doesn't grab me. There are neat ideas in there which I grabbed wholesale. Actually, a lot of their ideas paralleled with my AD&D campaign world (collapsed empire, no man's land to the northeast, somewhat renaissance atmosphere, etc), so it was easy to transplant them.

In organizing my world, I've separated most of the mechanical stuff from the fluff of the world, and I've started a gazeteer to put my random ideas, or flush out ideas as I have them. This blog on ENWORLD seems like a good place to share those ideas and get feedback ... hopefully ...

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