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[Let's Read] Midgard Worldbook
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<blockquote data-quote="Libertad" data-source="post: 7578950" data-attributes="member: 6750502"><p style="text-align: center"><img src="https://i.imgur.com/ajN5nhu.jpg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" /></p><p></p><p>The Grand Duchy of Dornig, also known as the Domain of the Princes, is an expansive forest kingdom in Midgard's northwest. It is flanked by the oceanic Neidar Straits to the north and the reavers who prow its waters, the Wasted West and Ironcrags to the southwest and south, and the Blood Kingdoms of Morgau, Doresh, and Krakovar to the south and east. In spite of being surrounded by dangerous lands Dornig's been stable for most of its history thanks to the oversight of its Beloved Imperatrix Regia Moonthorn Kalthania-Reln vann Dornig. One of the elder elves who refused to follow the Great Retreat, she carved her kingdom out of a tiny barony and brought stability to the turbulent, fractious times in the near-500 years that followed. The great noble houses of the Duchy are her descendants either by blood or marriage.</p><p></p><p>I should note that Dornig's majority population is human, with the upper classes having higher than normal amounts of elves and elfmarked. This is because most of the elven population left during the Great Retreat, but the human majority more or less chose to preserve cultural elements of their rulers in contrast to the Septime cities or western magocracies. The biggest examples manifest in favoring elven blood in its rulers, the most popular religion being the Church of Yarila and Porevit which pays homage to the many-faced elf deity, and the fact that Dornigfolk are multi-lingual in both Common and Elven. The elves who did not or could not make the Retreat were members of the lower classes and social outcasts among their own people (the Imperatrix an exception) and either became small barons in what would become the Grand Duchy or retreated to their own communities in the River Court of the Arbonnesse. Humans in Dornig number around 3 million, elfmarked two hundred thousand, and actual elves less than 10,000.</p><p></p><p>For some reason I really like this touch. Too many fantasy worlds treat culture as being immutable and inseparable from one's heritage. It plays around with the "elves as a dying race" concept by making their society not really gone so much as inexorably changed as it now lives on in the adoption of a younger, dominant culture. The use of elves as an "elder race ruler" for a human culture, that is also non-human in influence, is far more approachable to gamers than being ruled by cyclopean aliens or other equally distant precursors.</p><p></p><p><strong>METAPLOT:</strong> Things are about to get a lot more interesting in Dornig now that the Imperatrix has fallen into a coma which no mundane medicine or magic seems able to heal. Her body is still alive and taken care of in the city of Reywald, but her soul lives on as a white deer (a form she could project to scout the forests). Unable to return to her physical form for unknown reasons, she is trying to lure warriors from both Allain and Dornig to repel the Dread Walker Y'gurdraketh. Unfortunately the Black Prince of the shadow fey and other evildoers seek to hunt this White Hare as a prized trophy. And that's not counting the three noble houses and church struggling to fill the power vacuum. or the two aspirants seeking the Copper Sphinx Throne!</p><p></p><p>Dornig's socio-political structure is a feudal collection of lesser noble holdings of varying size and rank who pledge loyalty to the Imperatrix or the three Major Houses. Otherwise all other land within its borders are the Imperatrix's private holdings. The actual boundaries are almost impossible to keep track of due to the ever-shifting nature of favors and land deeds, and more than a few mapmakers literally went insane in this pursuit. The Imperial Court has the final word on governmental affairs, but rely on the three Houses Major for advisory capabilities along with smaller vassals for tribute. The Court in question was mobile and used to move between the three largest cities. This purpose was threefold: to prevent invaders from seizing a capital too easily, for propaganda purposes to show that the Imperatrix's reach is not confined to a single city, and to encourage good behavior and bolster the local economy by gracing a city for a time. Conversely it is used to punish disfavored Houses by denying this. But alas, Her Beloved Majesty lies in Castle Grauburg of Reywald, which as the years pass looks to be Dornig's unofficial capital.</p><p></p><p>We then cover the members of the Imperial Court as well as other high-ranking figures of the Duchy. There's quite a few of them, but some are explained later on, particularly the 3 major houses so I'm going to include a fraction of people instead of the whole list. There's the sleeping Imperatrix, who was a fair and just Chaotic Good ruler who's also the highest-level NPC in the Worldbook (bard 10/rogue 10/wizard 10)*; the crooked Lord Arcane Heronimus Abysin Aldous-Donner, an elfmarked wizard who's the ruler in the Imperatrix's stead and monitors arcane and magical affairs as part of his original job; Saintmistress Rowanmantle, the high priestess of the Church of Yarila and Porevit whose relationship with the Northlander barbarian settlements in Donnermark puts her at odds with House Aldous-Donner; Kalvora Moonsong, a full-blooded elf from the Summer Lands who wishes to claim the sleeping Imperatrix's throne and has the bloodline to prove it; and Queen Urzula of Krakova, leader of the refugees of that nation who's gathering what allies she can in the Duchy.</p><p></p><p>*This seems frankly unnecessary on account that nobody else breaches the level 20 cap.</p><p></p><p>We also cover religion in Dornig, which is dominated by the Church of Yarila and Porevit. The faith has a hierarchical system of government based out of a Twinned Cathedral, and supplementing this faith are various Gods common in the Crossroads regions. We have a sidebar on the Lords Arcane, a semi-secret government agency of arcane spellcasters headed by Heronimus Aldous-Donner. Their goals are to retrieve magical items and secrets from the ruins in the Arbonesse forests (and "unofficially" in the Tomierran forest), deal with and consult on magical threats, and wear rings which grant magical powers depending on appropriate roles and missions.</p><p></p><p><strong>METAPLOT:</strong> There's a recent revival in the worship of other elven deities due to the return of elves from the Summer Lands. Baccho, god of poetry, revels, and wine is quite popular but there are rumors connecting him to the Dread Walker which shown up on Arbonnesse's borders. The mother goddess Holda is gaining in popularity, and given her hierarchy above Yarila and Porevit is a growing concern to Saintmistress Rowanmantle and the Church.</p><p></p><p>As you can tell, one of Dornig's major themes is political intrigue and alliances. There's even a minimalist system later to encourage PCs gaining their own baronies. A lot of the conflict and adventure opportunities are less dungeon-delving and more domain management or helping out a faction to gain favors, territory, etc. This is not exactly my cup of tea as I don't feel that this is Pathfinder/5th Edition's strong suit, and the barony-building is a bit too restrictive, but we'll get to that later.</p><p></p><p>The shadow roads of Dornig are well-maintained and reliable, and more commonly known as fey roads. Every major city has well-secured portals controlled by the ruling House which can take all manner of sizes and forms. The shadow fey are doing their best to claim as many roads as possible within and without Dornig, but the Imperatrix made a deal with them to not bother her Court or traveling groups smaller than 20 people. What this means is that the shadow roads of Dornig are a safe, well-known, and popular means of travel provided that you're in the good graces of the appropriate House.</p><p></p><p>Now we get to the cities of the Grand Duchy. They are the central locations for a Major House's government, surrounded in turn by subordinate baronies and vassals which connect to the main city by fey roads. The Houses who control Hirschberg, Reywald, and Bad Solitz are known as the Major Houses for their power and influence, while three "crown" cities have respective exceptions: Donnermark is a Northlander colony, Salzbach is technically autonomous but under charter of the Imperatrix, while Courlandia is not in Dornig proper and instead situated on a peninsula north of Niemheim and east of Krakovar.</p><p></p><p><strong>Hirschberg</strong> is the most industrialized city in Dornig thanks to its position as a trade haven and is managed by House Hirsh-Dammung. Prince Octabian Hirsh-Dammung is an old warrior of Perun who agitates to move the Imperatrix's body back to Castle Reln. The city long ago exhausted the nearby hills of ore for its forges, and now these caves are inhabited by all manner of unsavory beings. This prompted more active mines to open up farther along the sprawling territory. Most buildings are three or four story affairs, with residential space on the upper levels and tradecraft on the bottom. The city's proximity to the Ironcrag canton of Grisal and the vampire-ruled territory of Krakovar necessitates a large standing army. The Imperatrix's old home of Castle Reln is currently empty and well-maintained by the Hirsh-Dammung family, although some of its passages and wings remain sealed for centuries and likely have new, unknown occupants from the fey roads.</p><p></p><p><strong>Reywald</strong> is a beautiful city built around a lake and managed by House Aldous-Donner. Princess Lyndosa Aldous-Donner is the older sister of the current Regent of Dornig who often sleights her sibling by sending spies and adventurers to steal precious magical treasure from the Arcane College. Being home to the current Imperatrix's Court and the Twinned Cathedral, is sees all manner of well-to-do ambassadors and nobles, and Princess Aldous-Donner is looking for any reason to move the Court out and rule in peace. Whether it's by finding a cure or staging a "state funeral" matters not. The city's Arcane College is tasked with aiding armed forces in times of war and helping the Treasury of Antiquities recover elven magic from the ruins of the nearby Arbonesse forest. The High Platz in in Grauberg Castle holds the Imperatrix's sleeping form, and all manner of healers both legitimate and not can be found here waiting in a long queue. The lower halls are filled with well-wishers who hope for the Imperatrix's speedy recovery, so the place is always crowded.</p><p></p><p>Halflings and gnomes are a common servant class and have their own neighborhood called Little Reywald. Considering that gnomes cannot go outside Niemheim before Baba Yaga's forces track them down, this seems like a bit of a plot hole unless House Aldous-Donner has something to keep away the witch or Halivimar the Charred's sproutlings are growing throughout the city. The book does not infer either option, so I have to wonder what's up with that.</p><p></p><p style="text-align: center"><img src="https://i.imgur.com/FUaEHiL.jpg" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" /></p><p></p><p><strong>Bad Solitz</strong> is perhaps the least hospitable city environment-wise and is managed by House vann Rottsten. Located in the Tonder Alps, a great wall surrounds the valley nestling Bad Solitz's inhabitants. The Archon Court of the elven empire favored it as a location spot for its mud baths. Now its fertile ground produces some of the best winery in the Grand Duchy. No volcanic eruptions have plagued the region during the entirety of the Imperatrix's reign, which is of great concern to the locals now that she's in a coma. Bad Solitz's other claim to fame is a vibrant artistic community and the largest library in the country. Said center of learning has a rivalry with the Great Library of Friula for who has the greater collection of lore. The nobility lives in apartments rather than castles or keeps, with more than a few secret doorways and hidden galleries connecting them together.</p><p></p><p>The van Rottstens do not have a good reputation as far as nobles go: their family patriarch was literally dragged into the gates of Hell by summoned devils, and his illegitimate son Dimitor took the Houe's reigns at the tender age of six (and was also a level 6 Aristocrat at the time in the 2012 edition). Not one to let the threat of hellfire scare them away, the vann Rottstens are involved in all manner of backroom deals and not above making overtures to the Blood Kingdom or Grisal.</p><p></p><p><strong>METAPLOT:</strong> Demalla Ravensblood was the ruling regent in Dimitor's stead, but when Dimitor came of age at 16 she disappeared and nobody can find her body or contact her spirit. Dimitor's official story is that she's making a pilgrimage to Ishadia, but many suspect the spoiled teenager to be behind her death.</p><p></p><p><strong>Donnermark</strong> is a port city whose inhabitants share similarities with the lands and culture of the Northlands. In fact, they are the descendants of the crew of Hakon, a plundering viking who sought to raid Dornig. He gave a good fight and established a colony on the northern beaches, but the Imperatrix's forces were ultimately victorious. Instead of executing him, she invoked the wergild to make Hakon and his descendants pay for the damages. In exchange they gained control of the settlement that became known as Donnermark along with managing maritime trade. Now the people of the city are between worlds: viewed as barbarous and uncouth by the Houses, but too soft and foreign by Northlanders. Yorick Hakonsson is seeking to marry off his daughters to a great House, but neither find the idea appealing and would rather go on adventures.</p><p></p><p><strong>The Free City of Salzbach</strong> lairs in southeast Dornig near the Ironcrag Mountains. It was home to a fourth branch of the Imperatrix's family before abominations from the Wasted West demolished the town. With the fall of the House came lots of political friction over who inherits what territory...which was rendered a moot point when said land was being made uninhabitable by monsters. The Imperatrix stepped in and offered baronies to any group able to drive back the abominations. This offer worked in recruiting many capable men-at-arms, and now Salzbach is ruled by guilds who elect their leader in lieu of a House.</p><p></p><p><strong>METAPLOT:</strong> The position of lord guildmaster suffered a high turnover rate within the last 10 years. Three died of unknown causes, two were found guilty of corruption and executed, one married into nobility and had to step down, and one fled the country for Zobeck with several bags full of embezzled jewels. The current lord guildmaster is Michoda Swanne, whose company is barely better than a thieves' guild who sells "discovered artifacts." Now Salzbach is a den of thieves and the most well-to-do citizens have their homes guarded by private armies. The agents of the Lords Arcane heavily monitor this city as a result.</p><p></p><p><strong>The Barony of Courlandia</strong> is on a peninsula to the east of Krakovar. In the years of upheaval following the Great Retreat, the Imperatrix called in a favor from a red dragon adventuring partner known as Zennalastra to take control of affairs. Unwelcome among the Mharoti dragon lords, she relished the opportunity to set herself up as the Red Queen. Ever since she ruled the province as a benevolent tyrant. Retired adventurers make up her personal bodyguards, who more than have their hands full in keeping up with their flying mistress as she hunts bison on the plains or dives for whales in the Niedar Straits. Krakova's occupation has been on her mind as of late; although the vampires currently give her a wide berth the dragon struck up an unlikely alliance with Queen Urzula to gain informational advantages on her new neighbors.</p><p></p><p><strong>Other Cities</strong> include 11 other Houses and their territories. They are typically elfmarked and more rarely humans awarded territory by either the crown or three major Houses. The deed is not inheritable and lasts only for the lifespan of the recipient. However, good service can extend this into a proper feudal lineage where one's land can be inherited by offspring. Some of the more interesting houses include House Fratzon, looking over the merchant city of Gemport. The Fraztons swear fealty to the vann Rottstens, but may break away from this family due to Dimitor's unreasonable demands and other Houses seek to fund a rebellion. House Mervant holds the smallest territory in Dornig, specifically one tavern in Salzbach known as the Serpent's Ward. Merv VI is the first woman to inherit the title, and her tavern is a favored location by exiles and runaways. Hose Rhodewaldt has dubious elven heritage, whose ruling noble Magrave Jannis Rhodewaldt is the only elfmarked family member. He seeks to fund further discovery of elven geneology and hopes to marry his heirs into the larger family. His wife is a spy for the vann Rottstens who wish to add his territory to their holdings. If he dies, she'll be regent until the sons come of age. Jannis is aware of this but has no definite proof of treachery at the moment.</p><p></p><p style="text-align: center"><strong>Gaining a Dornitian Barony</strong></p> <p style="text-align: center"><img src="https://i.imgur.com/td9bFFc.png" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" /></p><p></p><p>We have a discussion on Dornig holiday festivals and social seasons, the greatest of which occur during the winter months. Such occasions are accompanied by presentations of new songs and plays along with masquerade balls and feasts among the nobility. During this time various Houses mingle, so there's intense competition in settling scores and making alliances; although duels are outlawed they still occur, and Saintmistress Rowanmantle prepares healing spells in the rare event of assassinations (but only for the benefit of the Major Houses). A peculiar tradition in Dornig banquets is the position of salt shakers in the middle of the table. A person's seating arrangement indicates social status the closer they are to the host, while those "below the salt" are seat-warmers to make the hall seem less empty.</p><p></p><p>But how can the PCs interact with this? Well we now get to the nitty-gritty details for how a player can gain a barony in the Grand Duchy! The requirements are actually rather steep: only humans, elves, or elfmarked can be granted a deed, they must be level 10 or higher, and are recommended to have a Charisma 15 or better (never below 9). If using the Status optional rules they must have at least a 20. Beyond mechanical requisites, they must have the favor of a Major House or the Imperatrix to grant the deed, which is gained by valuable service and deeds within the Barony (foreign deeds do not count). An oath of vassalage must be made during court season to the Imperatrix or her representative the Lord Arcane via a <em>geas</em> spell.</p><p></p><p>So what do you gain for this? Well there's no hard and fast rules, but you get a castle, keep, or manor next to a community with some form of agricultural industry along with a fey road gate connecting to other towns. You can lose a title for failing to turn a modest profit on the land in tax revenue, not providing soldiers to the army for times of conflict, not providing your talents to the Imperatrix or sponsoring Major House, as well as committing crimes against the Grand Duchy such as treason or spying for foreign powers. We get a one-page description of common complications and adventure hooks to give to a PC baron, ranging from peasant uprisings, nearby monster-filled dungeons, political corruption, and contested land grabs from nearby nobles.</p><p></p><p>There isn't really much in the way of sample revenue generated or mechanical benefits, <a href="https://www.d20pfsrd.com/gamemastering/other-rules/kingdom-building/" target="_blank">but Pathfinder has extensive kingdom-building rules already.</a> There are some 3rd-party supplements for kingdom/domain management in 5th Edition, but I do not know of anything in the way of official material beyond the gp cost for stronghold buildings during Downtime. Swords & Wizadry already has domain management built into its classes by 9th level.</p><p></p><p>So if you're playing Pathfinder or Swords & Wizardry you already have a useful set of tools for managing a barony. If you're playing 5th Edition...well, let's hope that <a href="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/255133215/strongholds-and-streaming" target="_blank">Strongholds & Followers</a> turns out to be a good book!</p><p></p><p style="text-align: center"><strong>Forests of Dornig</strong></p> <p style="text-align: center"><img src="https://i.imgur.com/YBMyINI.png" alt="" class="fr-fic fr-dii fr-draggable " style="" /></p><p></p><p>Although the Grand Duchy claims territory of the remnants of the empire of Thorn beneath the forest canopy, there are significant sections of wood which lay beyond the safe reaches of the Imperatrix or the Houses. The Arbonesse and Tomierran forests are primeval woodlands occupying the western Duchy, the latter holding the lost city of Thorn.</p><p></p><p><strong>METAPLOT:</strong> The Tomierran has been declared sacred ground by the Church of Yarila and Porevit, and thus no longer grante access to the Lords Arcane. Small communities of elves are popping up within the two forests in the form of small villages. They appear more or less overnight and its inhabitants act like they always been there. The borders between Midgard and the Summer Lands are murky in this region, so they may very well be right.</p><p></p><p>Most elves in Midgard are either the shadow fey or live in the Arbonesse Forest. In the case of the latter, they are known as exiles who for various reasons could not or would not answer the Last Horn for the Great Retreat. They live in small subsistence-based communities which number no greater than a few hundred at most. Although they swear fealty to the Imperatrix, they are more or less autonomous and whose leadership is located among a series of white stone citadels known as the River Court. The Court is ruled by an elven wizard named Ulorian the First, whose power is waning as of late due to the influx of elves from the Summer Lands. The newcomers are tight-lipped as to the circumstances of their return, and the growing power of the Shadow Fey's Black Prince makes him wonder whether resistance or acquiescence is best for his people in the long run.</p><p></p><p>Other interesting locations in the Arbonesse Forest include the Tilted Tower, once home to elven sorcerers who gave their lives to prevent the human magocracies from sinking their land entirely. Their mile-high structure now bends at an angle over the nearby shore. The Shadow Fey hold a nearby Court of Scandal beneath a barrow mound where they force prisoners to dance never-ending for them until they die or commit suicide...at which point their corpses are animated to continue the dance until they fall apart. A single golden throne sits unoccupied due to deep infighting, but legend says that one who can sit in it continuously for a year and a day will become ruler of all shadowy fey and lead a march to conquer the lands of their elven cousins. Finally there's the Gentle Rest, a rustic inn whose location continually shifts to be near travelers fleeing a great danger or on the brink of starvation.</p><p></p><p>The Tomierran Forest is abandoned, unpopulated even by the new elven arrivals. It is a dangerous realm home to a rotting World Tree full of unrealized creatures due to the weaves of fate running threadbare. Warped fey and plants from elven experiments roam as free-willed former guardians along with elementals, owlbears, and perytons. The Forest attracts many treasure hunters in spite of its dangers, and in the past the Lords Arcane conducted official expeditions. Now the Church is in charge of guarding its borders, and looters caught must hand over their gains and share all that they learned. Lord Arcane Heronimus Abysin Aldous-Donner still lets "independent contractors" slip past ecclesiastical authorities in return for a portion of treasure. Looters will remain looters, so you may as well ensure that a portion of their ill-gotten gains fall into the Duchy's hands rather than a foreign trader's.</p><p></p><p>The Ruins of Thorn are an eerie place. Abandoned meals are still warm, and mundane pets which should have died of old age still await their masters' return. Old runes and spells serve as magical traps, and in many areas time flows differently. An explorer may one day spend years surviving in Thorn only to leave and find out a day has passed. The lost Mithral Mines still hold entire caverns full of the precious metal, and explorers miraculously discover new hidden passages in the once-thought-completely-plundered ruins of the Raven Tower. Traps reset, buildings shift locations, and unknown tombs appear where there was but wilderness. Crows, ravens, and magpies infest the Tower and worshipers of Wotan consider it a holy site. There's a Stone Gallery near the Krakovan border containing basilisks and medusae, which has done little to turn away undead scouts. Finally, the wave-washed forests of Lost Arbonesse which sank during the Great Mage Wars hold many artifacts...provided that one can brave the ghosts and sahuagin lurking underneath the lightless waters.</p><p></p><p><strong>METAPLOT:</strong> The petrifying monsters were once a scourge in Krakova, to the point that the crown of that country threatened to take matters into their own hands if the Grand Duchy could not do the job. Now it looks like that point's moot on account of the vampires and all.</p><p></p><p>We end our time in Dornig with a brief discussion on the Summer Lands, the plane of existence on the opposite side of Midgard. Here elves still rule and gnomes, goblins, and halflings are their servants. The royal court is overseen by a good-natured King Valeshi IX and whose wife Queen Haldifelli III has a great love of archery and ale. The Imperatrix of Dornig is one of their nine grand-children, and due to elven longevity the court's home to dozens upon dozens of great-grandchildren, great-great-grandchildren, and so on and so forth who serve various roles ranging from generals, nobles, and priests. Visitors to the Court will be ignored and sent on their way after a nice meal unless they are famous or have a great offering to give. The elves of the Summer Lands are deeply enmeshed in their own concerns and so do not have much time for idle visitors.</p><p></p><p><strong>Thoughts so far:</strong> My thoughts on the Grand Duchy of Dornig are mild. The realm is themed heavily towards adventure hooks involving the various noble families, and the barony rules will not kick off unless you have the right kind of party and are barred from lower-level PCs. In comparison to the Seven Cities and Wasted West there's not as much variety in sociopolitical setups or potential dungeon crawls. Many members of the Imperial Court and lords of the Major Houses are verging on the extremely high levels (14 to 19), so the ability of outsmarting/challenging them to combat is unlikely for PCs unless they're nearing the endgame point of D&D/Pathfinder.</p><p></p><p><strong>Leave the sea of trees behind as we set sail for the Northlands in our next chapter!</strong></p></blockquote><p></p>
[QUOTE="Libertad, post: 7578950, member: 6750502"] [CENTER][IMG]https://i.imgur.com/ajN5nhu.jpg[/IMG][/CENTER] The Grand Duchy of Dornig, also known as the Domain of the Princes, is an expansive forest kingdom in Midgard's northwest. It is flanked by the oceanic Neidar Straits to the north and the reavers who prow its waters, the Wasted West and Ironcrags to the southwest and south, and the Blood Kingdoms of Morgau, Doresh, and Krakovar to the south and east. In spite of being surrounded by dangerous lands Dornig's been stable for most of its history thanks to the oversight of its Beloved Imperatrix Regia Moonthorn Kalthania-Reln vann Dornig. One of the elder elves who refused to follow the Great Retreat, she carved her kingdom out of a tiny barony and brought stability to the turbulent, fractious times in the near-500 years that followed. The great noble houses of the Duchy are her descendants either by blood or marriage. I should note that Dornig's majority population is human, with the upper classes having higher than normal amounts of elves and elfmarked. This is because most of the elven population left during the Great Retreat, but the human majority more or less chose to preserve cultural elements of their rulers in contrast to the Septime cities or western magocracies. The biggest examples manifest in favoring elven blood in its rulers, the most popular religion being the Church of Yarila and Porevit which pays homage to the many-faced elf deity, and the fact that Dornigfolk are multi-lingual in both Common and Elven. The elves who did not or could not make the Retreat were members of the lower classes and social outcasts among their own people (the Imperatrix an exception) and either became small barons in what would become the Grand Duchy or retreated to their own communities in the River Court of the Arbonnesse. Humans in Dornig number around 3 million, elfmarked two hundred thousand, and actual elves less than 10,000. For some reason I really like this touch. Too many fantasy worlds treat culture as being immutable and inseparable from one's heritage. It plays around with the "elves as a dying race" concept by making their society not really gone so much as inexorably changed as it now lives on in the adoption of a younger, dominant culture. The use of elves as an "elder race ruler" for a human culture, that is also non-human in influence, is far more approachable to gamers than being ruled by cyclopean aliens or other equally distant precursors. [B]METAPLOT:[/B] Things are about to get a lot more interesting in Dornig now that the Imperatrix has fallen into a coma which no mundane medicine or magic seems able to heal. Her body is still alive and taken care of in the city of Reywald, but her soul lives on as a white deer (a form she could project to scout the forests). Unable to return to her physical form for unknown reasons, she is trying to lure warriors from both Allain and Dornig to repel the Dread Walker Y'gurdraketh. Unfortunately the Black Prince of the shadow fey and other evildoers seek to hunt this White Hare as a prized trophy. And that's not counting the three noble houses and church struggling to fill the power vacuum. or the two aspirants seeking the Copper Sphinx Throne! Dornig's socio-political structure is a feudal collection of lesser noble holdings of varying size and rank who pledge loyalty to the Imperatrix or the three Major Houses. Otherwise all other land within its borders are the Imperatrix's private holdings. The actual boundaries are almost impossible to keep track of due to the ever-shifting nature of favors and land deeds, and more than a few mapmakers literally went insane in this pursuit. The Imperial Court has the final word on governmental affairs, but rely on the three Houses Major for advisory capabilities along with smaller vassals for tribute. The Court in question was mobile and used to move between the three largest cities. This purpose was threefold: to prevent invaders from seizing a capital too easily, for propaganda purposes to show that the Imperatrix's reach is not confined to a single city, and to encourage good behavior and bolster the local economy by gracing a city for a time. Conversely it is used to punish disfavored Houses by denying this. But alas, Her Beloved Majesty lies in Castle Grauburg of Reywald, which as the years pass looks to be Dornig's unofficial capital. We then cover the members of the Imperial Court as well as other high-ranking figures of the Duchy. There's quite a few of them, but some are explained later on, particularly the 3 major houses so I'm going to include a fraction of people instead of the whole list. There's the sleeping Imperatrix, who was a fair and just Chaotic Good ruler who's also the highest-level NPC in the Worldbook (bard 10/rogue 10/wizard 10)*; the crooked Lord Arcane Heronimus Abysin Aldous-Donner, an elfmarked wizard who's the ruler in the Imperatrix's stead and monitors arcane and magical affairs as part of his original job; Saintmistress Rowanmantle, the high priestess of the Church of Yarila and Porevit whose relationship with the Northlander barbarian settlements in Donnermark puts her at odds with House Aldous-Donner; Kalvora Moonsong, a full-blooded elf from the Summer Lands who wishes to claim the sleeping Imperatrix's throne and has the bloodline to prove it; and Queen Urzula of Krakova, leader of the refugees of that nation who's gathering what allies she can in the Duchy. *This seems frankly unnecessary on account that nobody else breaches the level 20 cap. We also cover religion in Dornig, which is dominated by the Church of Yarila and Porevit. The faith has a hierarchical system of government based out of a Twinned Cathedral, and supplementing this faith are various Gods common in the Crossroads regions. We have a sidebar on the Lords Arcane, a semi-secret government agency of arcane spellcasters headed by Heronimus Aldous-Donner. Their goals are to retrieve magical items and secrets from the ruins in the Arbonesse forests (and "unofficially" in the Tomierran forest), deal with and consult on magical threats, and wear rings which grant magical powers depending on appropriate roles and missions. [B]METAPLOT:[/B] There's a recent revival in the worship of other elven deities due to the return of elves from the Summer Lands. Baccho, god of poetry, revels, and wine is quite popular but there are rumors connecting him to the Dread Walker which shown up on Arbonnesse's borders. The mother goddess Holda is gaining in popularity, and given her hierarchy above Yarila and Porevit is a growing concern to Saintmistress Rowanmantle and the Church. As you can tell, one of Dornig's major themes is political intrigue and alliances. There's even a minimalist system later to encourage PCs gaining their own baronies. A lot of the conflict and adventure opportunities are less dungeon-delving and more domain management or helping out a faction to gain favors, territory, etc. This is not exactly my cup of tea as I don't feel that this is Pathfinder/5th Edition's strong suit, and the barony-building is a bit too restrictive, but we'll get to that later. The shadow roads of Dornig are well-maintained and reliable, and more commonly known as fey roads. Every major city has well-secured portals controlled by the ruling House which can take all manner of sizes and forms. The shadow fey are doing their best to claim as many roads as possible within and without Dornig, but the Imperatrix made a deal with them to not bother her Court or traveling groups smaller than 20 people. What this means is that the shadow roads of Dornig are a safe, well-known, and popular means of travel provided that you're in the good graces of the appropriate House. Now we get to the cities of the Grand Duchy. They are the central locations for a Major House's government, surrounded in turn by subordinate baronies and vassals which connect to the main city by fey roads. The Houses who control Hirschberg, Reywald, and Bad Solitz are known as the Major Houses for their power and influence, while three "crown" cities have respective exceptions: Donnermark is a Northlander colony, Salzbach is technically autonomous but under charter of the Imperatrix, while Courlandia is not in Dornig proper and instead situated on a peninsula north of Niemheim and east of Krakovar. [B]Hirschberg[/B] is the most industrialized city in Dornig thanks to its position as a trade haven and is managed by House Hirsh-Dammung. Prince Octabian Hirsh-Dammung is an old warrior of Perun who agitates to move the Imperatrix's body back to Castle Reln. The city long ago exhausted the nearby hills of ore for its forges, and now these caves are inhabited by all manner of unsavory beings. This prompted more active mines to open up farther along the sprawling territory. Most buildings are three or four story affairs, with residential space on the upper levels and tradecraft on the bottom. The city's proximity to the Ironcrag canton of Grisal and the vampire-ruled territory of Krakovar necessitates a large standing army. The Imperatrix's old home of Castle Reln is currently empty and well-maintained by the Hirsh-Dammung family, although some of its passages and wings remain sealed for centuries and likely have new, unknown occupants from the fey roads. [B]Reywald[/B] is a beautiful city built around a lake and managed by House Aldous-Donner. Princess Lyndosa Aldous-Donner is the older sister of the current Regent of Dornig who often sleights her sibling by sending spies and adventurers to steal precious magical treasure from the Arcane College. Being home to the current Imperatrix's Court and the Twinned Cathedral, is sees all manner of well-to-do ambassadors and nobles, and Princess Aldous-Donner is looking for any reason to move the Court out and rule in peace. Whether it's by finding a cure or staging a "state funeral" matters not. The city's Arcane College is tasked with aiding armed forces in times of war and helping the Treasury of Antiquities recover elven magic from the ruins of the nearby Arbonesse forest. The High Platz in in Grauberg Castle holds the Imperatrix's sleeping form, and all manner of healers both legitimate and not can be found here waiting in a long queue. The lower halls are filled with well-wishers who hope for the Imperatrix's speedy recovery, so the place is always crowded. Halflings and gnomes are a common servant class and have their own neighborhood called Little Reywald. Considering that gnomes cannot go outside Niemheim before Baba Yaga's forces track them down, this seems like a bit of a plot hole unless House Aldous-Donner has something to keep away the witch or Halivimar the Charred's sproutlings are growing throughout the city. The book does not infer either option, so I have to wonder what's up with that. [CENTER][IMG]https://i.imgur.com/FUaEHiL.jpg[/IMG][/CENTER] [B]Bad Solitz[/B] is perhaps the least hospitable city environment-wise and is managed by House vann Rottsten. Located in the Tonder Alps, a great wall surrounds the valley nestling Bad Solitz's inhabitants. The Archon Court of the elven empire favored it as a location spot for its mud baths. Now its fertile ground produces some of the best winery in the Grand Duchy. No volcanic eruptions have plagued the region during the entirety of the Imperatrix's reign, which is of great concern to the locals now that she's in a coma. Bad Solitz's other claim to fame is a vibrant artistic community and the largest library in the country. Said center of learning has a rivalry with the Great Library of Friula for who has the greater collection of lore. The nobility lives in apartments rather than castles or keeps, with more than a few secret doorways and hidden galleries connecting them together. The van Rottstens do not have a good reputation as far as nobles go: their family patriarch was literally dragged into the gates of Hell by summoned devils, and his illegitimate son Dimitor took the Houe's reigns at the tender age of six (and was also a level 6 Aristocrat at the time in the 2012 edition). Not one to let the threat of hellfire scare them away, the vann Rottstens are involved in all manner of backroom deals and not above making overtures to the Blood Kingdom or Grisal. [B]METAPLOT:[/B] Demalla Ravensblood was the ruling regent in Dimitor's stead, but when Dimitor came of age at 16 she disappeared and nobody can find her body or contact her spirit. Dimitor's official story is that she's making a pilgrimage to Ishadia, but many suspect the spoiled teenager to be behind her death. [B]Donnermark[/B] is a port city whose inhabitants share similarities with the lands and culture of the Northlands. In fact, they are the descendants of the crew of Hakon, a plundering viking who sought to raid Dornig. He gave a good fight and established a colony on the northern beaches, but the Imperatrix's forces were ultimately victorious. Instead of executing him, she invoked the wergild to make Hakon and his descendants pay for the damages. In exchange they gained control of the settlement that became known as Donnermark along with managing maritime trade. Now the people of the city are between worlds: viewed as barbarous and uncouth by the Houses, but too soft and foreign by Northlanders. Yorick Hakonsson is seeking to marry off his daughters to a great House, but neither find the idea appealing and would rather go on adventures. [B]The Free City of Salzbach[/B] lairs in southeast Dornig near the Ironcrag Mountains. It was home to a fourth branch of the Imperatrix's family before abominations from the Wasted West demolished the town. With the fall of the House came lots of political friction over who inherits what territory...which was rendered a moot point when said land was being made uninhabitable by monsters. The Imperatrix stepped in and offered baronies to any group able to drive back the abominations. This offer worked in recruiting many capable men-at-arms, and now Salzbach is ruled by guilds who elect their leader in lieu of a House. [B]METAPLOT:[/B] The position of lord guildmaster suffered a high turnover rate within the last 10 years. Three died of unknown causes, two were found guilty of corruption and executed, one married into nobility and had to step down, and one fled the country for Zobeck with several bags full of embezzled jewels. The current lord guildmaster is Michoda Swanne, whose company is barely better than a thieves' guild who sells "discovered artifacts." Now Salzbach is a den of thieves and the most well-to-do citizens have their homes guarded by private armies. The agents of the Lords Arcane heavily monitor this city as a result. [B]The Barony of Courlandia[/B] is on a peninsula to the east of Krakovar. In the years of upheaval following the Great Retreat, the Imperatrix called in a favor from a red dragon adventuring partner known as Zennalastra to take control of affairs. Unwelcome among the Mharoti dragon lords, she relished the opportunity to set herself up as the Red Queen. Ever since she ruled the province as a benevolent tyrant. Retired adventurers make up her personal bodyguards, who more than have their hands full in keeping up with their flying mistress as she hunts bison on the plains or dives for whales in the Niedar Straits. Krakova's occupation has been on her mind as of late; although the vampires currently give her a wide berth the dragon struck up an unlikely alliance with Queen Urzula to gain informational advantages on her new neighbors. [B]Other Cities[/B] include 11 other Houses and their territories. They are typically elfmarked and more rarely humans awarded territory by either the crown or three major Houses. The deed is not inheritable and lasts only for the lifespan of the recipient. However, good service can extend this into a proper feudal lineage where one's land can be inherited by offspring. Some of the more interesting houses include House Fratzon, looking over the merchant city of Gemport. The Fraztons swear fealty to the vann Rottstens, but may break away from this family due to Dimitor's unreasonable demands and other Houses seek to fund a rebellion. House Mervant holds the smallest territory in Dornig, specifically one tavern in Salzbach known as the Serpent's Ward. Merv VI is the first woman to inherit the title, and her tavern is a favored location by exiles and runaways. Hose Rhodewaldt has dubious elven heritage, whose ruling noble Magrave Jannis Rhodewaldt is the only elfmarked family member. He seeks to fund further discovery of elven geneology and hopes to marry his heirs into the larger family. His wife is a spy for the vann Rottstens who wish to add his territory to their holdings. If he dies, she'll be regent until the sons come of age. Jannis is aware of this but has no definite proof of treachery at the moment. [CENTER][B]Gaining a Dornitian Barony[/B] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/td9bFFc.png[/IMG][/CENTER] We have a discussion on Dornig holiday festivals and social seasons, the greatest of which occur during the winter months. Such occasions are accompanied by presentations of new songs and plays along with masquerade balls and feasts among the nobility. During this time various Houses mingle, so there's intense competition in settling scores and making alliances; although duels are outlawed they still occur, and Saintmistress Rowanmantle prepares healing spells in the rare event of assassinations (but only for the benefit of the Major Houses). A peculiar tradition in Dornig banquets is the position of salt shakers in the middle of the table. A person's seating arrangement indicates social status the closer they are to the host, while those "below the salt" are seat-warmers to make the hall seem less empty. But how can the PCs interact with this? Well we now get to the nitty-gritty details for how a player can gain a barony in the Grand Duchy! The requirements are actually rather steep: only humans, elves, or elfmarked can be granted a deed, they must be level 10 or higher, and are recommended to have a Charisma 15 or better (never below 9). If using the Status optional rules they must have at least a 20. Beyond mechanical requisites, they must have the favor of a Major House or the Imperatrix to grant the deed, which is gained by valuable service and deeds within the Barony (foreign deeds do not count). An oath of vassalage must be made during court season to the Imperatrix or her representative the Lord Arcane via a [I]geas[/I] spell. So what do you gain for this? Well there's no hard and fast rules, but you get a castle, keep, or manor next to a community with some form of agricultural industry along with a fey road gate connecting to other towns. You can lose a title for failing to turn a modest profit on the land in tax revenue, not providing soldiers to the army for times of conflict, not providing your talents to the Imperatrix or sponsoring Major House, as well as committing crimes against the Grand Duchy such as treason or spying for foreign powers. We get a one-page description of common complications and adventure hooks to give to a PC baron, ranging from peasant uprisings, nearby monster-filled dungeons, political corruption, and contested land grabs from nearby nobles. There isn't really much in the way of sample revenue generated or mechanical benefits, [URL="https://www.d20pfsrd.com/gamemastering/other-rules/kingdom-building/"]but Pathfinder has extensive kingdom-building rules already.[/URL] There are some 3rd-party supplements for kingdom/domain management in 5th Edition, but I do not know of anything in the way of official material beyond the gp cost for stronghold buildings during Downtime. Swords & Wizadry already has domain management built into its classes by 9th level. So if you're playing Pathfinder or Swords & Wizardry you already have a useful set of tools for managing a barony. If you're playing 5th Edition...well, let's hope that [URL="https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/255133215/strongholds-and-streaming"]Strongholds & Followers[/URL] turns out to be a good book! [CENTER][B]Forests of Dornig[/B] [IMG]https://i.imgur.com/YBMyINI.png[/IMG][/CENTER] Although the Grand Duchy claims territory of the remnants of the empire of Thorn beneath the forest canopy, there are significant sections of wood which lay beyond the safe reaches of the Imperatrix or the Houses. The Arbonesse and Tomierran forests are primeval woodlands occupying the western Duchy, the latter holding the lost city of Thorn. [B]METAPLOT:[/B] The Tomierran has been declared sacred ground by the Church of Yarila and Porevit, and thus no longer grante access to the Lords Arcane. Small communities of elves are popping up within the two forests in the form of small villages. They appear more or less overnight and its inhabitants act like they always been there. The borders between Midgard and the Summer Lands are murky in this region, so they may very well be right. Most elves in Midgard are either the shadow fey or live in the Arbonesse Forest. In the case of the latter, they are known as exiles who for various reasons could not or would not answer the Last Horn for the Great Retreat. They live in small subsistence-based communities which number no greater than a few hundred at most. Although they swear fealty to the Imperatrix, they are more or less autonomous and whose leadership is located among a series of white stone citadels known as the River Court. The Court is ruled by an elven wizard named Ulorian the First, whose power is waning as of late due to the influx of elves from the Summer Lands. The newcomers are tight-lipped as to the circumstances of their return, and the growing power of the Shadow Fey's Black Prince makes him wonder whether resistance or acquiescence is best for his people in the long run. Other interesting locations in the Arbonesse Forest include the Tilted Tower, once home to elven sorcerers who gave their lives to prevent the human magocracies from sinking their land entirely. Their mile-high structure now bends at an angle over the nearby shore. The Shadow Fey hold a nearby Court of Scandal beneath a barrow mound where they force prisoners to dance never-ending for them until they die or commit suicide...at which point their corpses are animated to continue the dance until they fall apart. A single golden throne sits unoccupied due to deep infighting, but legend says that one who can sit in it continuously for a year and a day will become ruler of all shadowy fey and lead a march to conquer the lands of their elven cousins. Finally there's the Gentle Rest, a rustic inn whose location continually shifts to be near travelers fleeing a great danger or on the brink of starvation. The Tomierran Forest is abandoned, unpopulated even by the new elven arrivals. It is a dangerous realm home to a rotting World Tree full of unrealized creatures due to the weaves of fate running threadbare. Warped fey and plants from elven experiments roam as free-willed former guardians along with elementals, owlbears, and perytons. The Forest attracts many treasure hunters in spite of its dangers, and in the past the Lords Arcane conducted official expeditions. Now the Church is in charge of guarding its borders, and looters caught must hand over their gains and share all that they learned. Lord Arcane Heronimus Abysin Aldous-Donner still lets "independent contractors" slip past ecclesiastical authorities in return for a portion of treasure. Looters will remain looters, so you may as well ensure that a portion of their ill-gotten gains fall into the Duchy's hands rather than a foreign trader's. The Ruins of Thorn are an eerie place. Abandoned meals are still warm, and mundane pets which should have died of old age still await their masters' return. Old runes and spells serve as magical traps, and in many areas time flows differently. An explorer may one day spend years surviving in Thorn only to leave and find out a day has passed. The lost Mithral Mines still hold entire caverns full of the precious metal, and explorers miraculously discover new hidden passages in the once-thought-completely-plundered ruins of the Raven Tower. Traps reset, buildings shift locations, and unknown tombs appear where there was but wilderness. Crows, ravens, and magpies infest the Tower and worshipers of Wotan consider it a holy site. There's a Stone Gallery near the Krakovan border containing basilisks and medusae, which has done little to turn away undead scouts. Finally, the wave-washed forests of Lost Arbonesse which sank during the Great Mage Wars hold many artifacts...provided that one can brave the ghosts and sahuagin lurking underneath the lightless waters. [B]METAPLOT:[/B] The petrifying monsters were once a scourge in Krakova, to the point that the crown of that country threatened to take matters into their own hands if the Grand Duchy could not do the job. Now it looks like that point's moot on account of the vampires and all. We end our time in Dornig with a brief discussion on the Summer Lands, the plane of existence on the opposite side of Midgard. Here elves still rule and gnomes, goblins, and halflings are their servants. The royal court is overseen by a good-natured King Valeshi IX and whose wife Queen Haldifelli III has a great love of archery and ale. The Imperatrix of Dornig is one of their nine grand-children, and due to elven longevity the court's home to dozens upon dozens of great-grandchildren, great-great-grandchildren, and so on and so forth who serve various roles ranging from generals, nobles, and priests. Visitors to the Court will be ignored and sent on their way after a nice meal unless they are famous or have a great offering to give. The elves of the Summer Lands are deeply enmeshed in their own concerns and so do not have much time for idle visitors. [B]Thoughts so far:[/B] My thoughts on the Grand Duchy of Dornig are mild. The realm is themed heavily towards adventure hooks involving the various noble families, and the barony rules will not kick off unless you have the right kind of party and are barred from lower-level PCs. In comparison to the Seven Cities and Wasted West there's not as much variety in sociopolitical setups or potential dungeon crawls. Many members of the Imperial Court and lords of the Major Houses are verging on the extremely high levels (14 to 19), so the ability of outsmarting/challenging them to combat is unlikely for PCs unless they're nearing the endgame point of D&D/Pathfinder. [B]Leave the sea of trees behind as we set sail for the Northlands in our next chapter![/B] [/QUOTE]
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