Donatello
Explorer
Some of you may remember me as the creative force behind Living Imagination. Others as the one who split a pair of Queens at the blackjack table at GAMA '02. Well, this is my newest campaign world. After running a long Forgotten Realms campaign, as well as a couple of home-brews and variations to other game systems in the last 5 years, I've finally developed something I plan to develop through multiple campaigns. If you like what you see and want more, I will keep a story hour for either or both of my weekly game (usually Thursday nights) and my weekend game (run about once every 2-4 weeks, based on scheduling). Any and all feedback is appreciated. Thanks.
Warring Nations
A new substance was discovered just over twenty years ago when the shores of the new lands were first set foot upon. The resource is some sort of arcane substance that can be used in place of arcane material components. Scholars define it as “magically neutral”, able to channel all kinds of arcane energies without resistance. One pinch (about an ounce) can be used in place of any unvalued material component, or for ten gold of a component with value. In other words, one pinch could be used in place of a pinch of sand for sleep, or ten pinches can replace the pearl needed for an identify. The substance can also be used by engineers to make vastly superior gunpowder, compared to what they have produced in the kingdoms across the sea. The substance, though, has only been found on this one continent, causing quite a rush from the four nations to explore, settle and harvest this material. The dark forces of the world also have a vested interest in the material to fuel their sinister spells and rituals without the need to touch civilization in order to get them. The four nations primarily want the substance for their own ends. Funding their wars against one another, magical superiority, technological superiority, and simple greed all motivate settlers and sailors alike to make the dangerous journey to the new world. Plainly no government or organization wishes to be without it.
Ravenna is the largest of what are known as the four nations, with its origins dating back to the ancient empire that is thought to be the first civilization. When the empire began its decline, it is said that the Blackraven noble family struck out into the countryside to establish its own home away from the decadence and corruption of the political machine the empire had become. When the empire collapsed in on itself in a tornado of internal strife, rebellion and violent uprisings, Ravenna was already developing into a small city. Many citizens of the empire adopted Lord Lassiter Blackraven’s new code of laws, embracing the policies of freedom and justice over the previous tyranny of the empire. Within three generations, most of the old empire was reunited under the flag of Ravenna. The Blackraven family still rules Ravenna after twenty-six generations, the royal line unbroken since their secession from the old empire. Many of the laws originally laid down by Lord Lassiter still remain, even if only enforced in spirit, and guide the citizens to an existence free of oppression by its ruling class. While there is a noble structure, the noble house in charge of any section of the country can be removed by its citizens appealing to house’s superior (so a knight or local lord could be removed by a baron, a baron by a count, a count by a duke, and a duke by the royal house). Even the Blackraven family could theoretically be removed from power if all of the nobles below it presented a united front, but that has never even come close to happening.
Ravenna is a nation primarily made up of humans, with some of the other races mixed in that have emigrated over the years. There are sections of cities that have a certain racial flair to them, but the kingdom, on the whole, is human influenced. From the ruined cities of the empire to the pastoral hillside towns all the way to the capital of Ravenshold, the wood and stone structures reflect the humanocentric lifestyle of Ravenna. The palace is made of black and green marble, in the same site where the imperial senate once stood. Dissidents tore down all of the imperial government buildings after the collapse, leaving many empty, highly defensible sites for Ravenna to use for their own purposes. The lack of borders that need defending, though, have led to a development of a very peaceful, pastoral life without city walls and high fortresses. In fact, the only land-based military outpost is on the edge of a stretch of wilderness known as the Morazi Span. The Span is home to all kinds of monsters and other horrors, but so few ever come into the civilized lands that one outpost is sufficient for defense.
Once oceanic exploration began, Ravenna’s port cities became more and more prominent. As freelancers and government vessels alike discovered new exotic places and the precious commodities they contained, more economic traffic began to flow from the coast to the inland cities. As more and more money was dedicated to the naval effort, the coastal cities grew while the inland cities gradually declined. The racial diversity also occurs more on the coast, as immigrants from other nations and islands have come to Ravenna.
Tialis is a crescent of land comprised of a thick forest surrounding a volcanic mountain range. Widely thought of as the home of the Elves, no less than three elven nations trace their lineage back to Tialis. While the other two have been dispersed throughout the world (making up what most people outside of Tialis think of as “elves”), the final nation, Tia-Nuratha (who are fairer, taller, and more fae looking of the other elves), still resides here as a ruling caste. The Nuratha elves (or “High” elves) are very insular, keeping mostly to themselves in their home city, a cluster of crystal spires, hot springs and dense mountain foliage nestled between the volcanic peaks of the Sargaja range. The rest of the population of Tialis is made up of members from every race, including a fair number of Geranya elves (or “wood” elves) and Kelansha elves (or “sea” elves) though the latter tend to remain exclusively on the coast.
Tialis has a long, bloody history of war and attempted conquest of all of the neighboring nations over the course of the last thousand years. The high elves were some of the first in the world to develop oceanic travel, and began setting up settlements, colonies and fortresses all over the islands of the North Serpent (the ocean is divided into five parts, the North, South, East and West Serpents, and the center called The Maw). Until the elves encountered Kesengard and the Empire to the south, their expansion was pretty much unhindered. What they did not count on was the huge populations non-elven nations seemed to have, with armies, even though technologically inferior, outnumbering them one-hundred to one, or even one-thousand to one in some areas. Having no real allies, the military campaigns of the elves were pushed back to the edges of their territory, where they could do little more than sit and wait for the races they hastily went to war with to push back.
The next few decades saw the high elves losing island after island as their two neighboring empires pushed forward. Luckily for them, the Empire had begun to collapse from within and less support was being given to expansion to tend to domestic matters. Once the Empire’s navies faded over the horizons, the attacks from Kesengard were more easily defended against. The final battle between the two took place on a small, rocky island called The Shelf. It is here where the two Admirals met with a full diplomatic envoy, and finally hashed out an uneasy peace. The terms drawn up that day are mostly forgotten, but Kesengard has never extended their explorations north of The Shelf, despite the fact that the dozens of small islands between there and Tialis have long been abandoned by their former elven inhabitants.
These days Tialis is a quiet, mercantile nation ruled by the last remnants of the high elven nobility. They have changed their focus from war and expansion to research and enlightenment, having the most prestigious magical and martial institutions in the known world. They do not have many cities, rather, the entire southern coast of Tialis is dotted with towns and small ports linked together by canal and road alike. The abundance of building materials and arable land never forced the population to cluster, and local government is non-existent, instead relying on the decrees from Tia-Nuratha, enforced by its sizeable militia. Buildings are typically low, wooden structures with sloped roofs to let the frequent rain slide off into the street or canal they are built on. Tialis has no native horses or beasts of burden, so the canal network has been connected, expanded and re-directed to make the entire coastline look like a latticework of individual squares of rand connected by bridges. Gondolas, barges and ferries run from one end of the coast to the other bearing cargo and passengers.
The academies, magical and martial alike, are all spread out within the dense inland forests. Few citizens will direct anyone to one, even if its only a few miles from their home, as the tradition is finding the academy is the first condition of acceptance within its student body. Students pay nothing for their education, but must swear an oath of service to their academy for an agreed-upon period of time, usually five, ten or twenty years wherein they cannot profit from any of the fruits of their labor. The duration of their stay determines the extent of their education, and upon graduation, may do whatever they please with their lives. The vast majority of academy graduates still give a portion of their time each year back to their alma mater to serve as instructors.
Legend says Kesengard was once a single, large landmass of rolling hills, majestic mountains and vast grasslands. The natives, mostly dwarves and gnomes, lived in harmony with their surroundings, peacefully creating a communal civilization where everyone was free to pursue their chosen craft and contribute to society in whatever way they saw fit. The legend goes on to say that they flourished, but kept digging deeper and deeper under their mountains until they released some unknown evil force, some theorizing it was a gate to the underworld itself. The next centuries were nothing but bloodshed and war as the people fought against the invaders from below, their crafts and labors turning to the development of war machines and new technologies. The final blow that sealed off the tunnels the evil force was bubbling up from also shattered the continent into a thousand pieces, which is how we see it today.
Kesengard is a collection of small to large islands in a starburst pattern that dominates most of the West Serpent. Some of the islands are close enough to have large bridges build between them, miles across, while others are so remote that only by spending a day on a ferry will get you to their shores. The population is still mostly dwarves and gnomes, who live beneath the surface of the rocky crags trying to rediscover the enlightenment their society formerly had. Each island has a name, but is usually only known by the residents and those of neighboring islands. Each small island houses a number of people known as a “community”, governed by an elder called a Thane. The thane of each community are pretty much autonomous, paying only some heed to so-called “national” declarations passed down by the king. Three of the islands have names known outside of Kesengard, Hammer, Anvil and Forge. These three each house multiple communities, each with their own Thane, who live in direct service to the King, who has a feasthall on each of the three islands.
The King is not a hereditary title, rather a democratic position put in place by the council of Thanes. While every thane from the three islands gather for each council meeting, few from the outlying islands bother to make the journey, simply apathetic to the goings-on of what they consider to be a government that just doesn’t affect their lives. Kings, once voted in, are there for life, which has turned into a very uneasy political landscape. Many rumors about Kings being assassinated or rendered helpless so they could be removed from office have circulated, though no Thane would ever admit to such underhanded dealings.
Kesengard is relatively new to oceanic travel, the chain of islands leading north to the territories of Tialis allowing their shallow-bottomed ships to travel in relative safety without venturing more than a couple of days into open water at any given time. They are, however, the kingdom with the most experience with gunpowder weapons, having flintlock pistols and muskets as well as cannon in somewhat common supply. Many of the communities dedicated themselves to the perfection of warfare and destructive technologies rather than their former more peaceful crafts, leading to some big developments very early in their history. Kesengard does have a formal military, but they focus more on issues within the kingdom’s borders and its defense rather than outside affairs. This has led to the development of a very large fleet of privateer and mercenaries naval vessels so the kingdom can still have a presence on the waves.
Koris-Tahl is a small landmass that was unknown to the other three nations until fairly recently. Peopled mostly by orcs, goblins and other “greenskin” races, their civilization developed more slowly than the rest, often crumbling under the weight of internal conflict and clan disputes. A rigid hierarchy has always been in place, but has been rarely followed, leading only to more civil wars and minor rebellions against whomever claims the throne of Overlord. The last few Overlords have been powerful figures, though, and have kept the hundreds of clans and tribes mostly united. They have recently begun exploring the other nations, leading a campaign of looting, pillaging and ravaging against any non-greenskin they find. Rumors have begun to circle that the current Overlord is actually an evil tyrant from another plane, molding the greenskin hordes into a weapon of terror and death to sate his eternal bloodlust. A few rare Koris-Tahl ships have been seen with other-worldly allies on board, and while this could simply be the work of wizards or evil priests, it is only fueling the fires of rumor.
The landscape of Koris-Tahl is a tropical hell on earth, with thick jungles giving way to salt-flats and deserts with craggy cliffs and snowcapped mountains. Evidence of centuries of battle can be found everywhere, with bleached skulls and rusting weapons readily found just about anywhere that can sustain life. Hidden, ruined temples to forgotten greenskin patrons dot the wilderness, and tall fortresses make up the population centers, surrounded by vast sprawls of tents and mud huts.
The economy of Koris-Tahl is almost completely supported by piracy, their “navy” little more than marauding savages. The vaults of the Overlord are becoming rather swollen with plunder, though, with the stolen wealth of the other three nations. Many artifacts and relics of power have supposedly been lost to Koris-Tahl raiders alongside the masses of gold, silver and gemstones, making the prospect of raiding the treasure vaults of those fortresses very enticing indeed, though there has never been a known successful assault of this kind.
The new lands, which have yet to be named since no one has lain claim to them, is a large, craggy, untamed wilderness with a nearly impassable coastline of sheer cliffs and shallows cluttered with razor-sharp coral. So far only two navigable ports have been found on the ruinous coastline, one on the west coast that has been settled by Kesengard, and another on the east, which has been settled by Ravenna.
The new lands are rich with natural wealth, with bountiful minerals for mining, hardwood forests, and of greatest importance, the arcane substance known as Sentite. Of course, the wildlife here is more vicious, more dangerous, and more unpredictable than anywhere else in the known world. Lost ruins of unknown civilizations, unexplored cavernous depths, and other mysteries await travelers and explorers alike. Merchants are willing to take fairly large risks to establish trade from the new lands, and pirates and privateers skulk in the waters off of its shores waiting for treasure-laden vessels to brave the Maw to return home.
The lands were undiscovered until the last century for a number of reasons. Where the Maw turns into the North Serpent is the worst weather on the world, with great waterspouts and whirlpools occurring all-too frequently and hammering storms wrack the skies almost year-round. At the junction of the East Serpent lies the Dragon’s Reef, a long mass of coral dotted with the husks of sunken ships that spans almost the entire length of the coast of Ravenna. Sailors have claimed to see dragons of many colors playing in the waves around the reef, saying the great beasts created the reef to lure ships to their dooms so they can collect the treasure they carry from the ocean floor to add to their horde. The only way through is between two pillars of coral-encrusted rock called The Twins. Ocean currents between the sharp spires, though, are unpredictable, and many pilots have lost control of their vessels only to be smashed into one of them. The western approach is fairly safe, but the Kesengard naval vessels have had no way to cross the vast expanse of ocean. The southern approach is also somewhat safe, but the greenskins of Koris-Tahl have only bothered traveling the oceans recently.
Ravenna’s port, The Rookery, is a well-established coastal town protected by a wooden stockade and a regiment of soldiers. The soldiers spend a majority of their time keeping out hostile wildlife and repelling native attacks, so the town itself has come into a sort of lawlessness. Recognizing that they do not have the resources to maintain both civil order and repel hostiles, they have only really focused on the governmental buildings and a small cluster of government-owned docks, leaving the rest to the citizenry. The Rookery has become sort of a pirate haven and a center for smugglers and double-dealing merchants making their way from one nation to another and trading in the resources the new lands have to offer.
Kesengard’s port, Elgraz, is named for the dwarven word meaning “weak construction”. The dwarven settlers were not happy with the conditions of the buildings they erected, low stone and wooden shacks mostly, that they thought the first big storm would knock them down. Since then the town has grown outward, but is still mostly made up of single-story buildings with wide paths and roads between them, spider-webbing out from the docks. The docks, contrary to the name, are the sturdiest in the world, made of stone and hard wood by dwarven shipbuilders and gnomish engineers. Each dock has a crane for loading and unloading cargo, and each berth can house a ship at least twice as long as the biggest in the world (accounting for progress, their designers would tell you). Elgraz has become quite a popular trading post, guarded by a unit of volunteer soldiers funded by Kesengard gold. The city itself is quite dull most of the time, but once every two weeks it plays host to the Grand Market, when traders from all over the world bring their wares to sell from carts, stalls and right off the decks of their ships. Kesengard naval vessels patrol the water heavily on this day to protect the merchants (and buyers) coming to and leaving port laden with goods and money, and so far no pirate attack launched against the Grand Market has succeeded.
Both the Rookery and Elgraz have offices of the International Guild of Adventurers and Explorers, an organization dedicated to the exploration and mapping of the new lands, as well as the oceans beyond the four kingdoms. So far their naval success has far outweighed their inland, making contact with new nations and establishing known routes for possible trade and travel in the future. The newly contacted nations are the Sultanate of Almajiira (a mostly desert continent to the southwest dedicated to the worship of a single sun god), Kara Tur (an oriental-style nation far to the east), Motaru (a barbaric nation of warring tribes of humans in a primal landscape of jungle and volcanos to the far west) and Bae-Rel (a young civilization growing around the concepts of worshiping heroes ascended to godhood to the far north).
The people of Ravenna dedicate themselves to the worship of the Olympian pantheon, with Zeus being the most commonly followed among the populace. Kesengardians follow the Asgardian pantheon, with the worship of Odin being just as prolific. The high elves seem to have no gods per se, but venerate ancient scholars and champions as ascendant to divinity, while the population of Tialis have picked and chosen from between the Asgardian and Olympian gods as they see fit, creating a sort of pseudo-pantheon of their own (but do not deny the divinity of members of either pantheon, even if they’re not commonly worshiped). The greenskin hordes follow a host of evil powers from beyond this plane and vicious orcish gods, switching casually between them to beg for boons to succeed at whatever task may be at hand. There are rumors of lost gods followed by the people that once lived on the new lands eons ago, and many islands have been found with ruins of what seem to be temples or shrines of some sort, but not enough evidence has been collected to give any of these lost gods a name.
Warring Nations
A new substance was discovered just over twenty years ago when the shores of the new lands were first set foot upon. The resource is some sort of arcane substance that can be used in place of arcane material components. Scholars define it as “magically neutral”, able to channel all kinds of arcane energies without resistance. One pinch (about an ounce) can be used in place of any unvalued material component, or for ten gold of a component with value. In other words, one pinch could be used in place of a pinch of sand for sleep, or ten pinches can replace the pearl needed for an identify. The substance can also be used by engineers to make vastly superior gunpowder, compared to what they have produced in the kingdoms across the sea. The substance, though, has only been found on this one continent, causing quite a rush from the four nations to explore, settle and harvest this material. The dark forces of the world also have a vested interest in the material to fuel their sinister spells and rituals without the need to touch civilization in order to get them. The four nations primarily want the substance for their own ends. Funding their wars against one another, magical superiority, technological superiority, and simple greed all motivate settlers and sailors alike to make the dangerous journey to the new world. Plainly no government or organization wishes to be without it.
Ravenna is the largest of what are known as the four nations, with its origins dating back to the ancient empire that is thought to be the first civilization. When the empire began its decline, it is said that the Blackraven noble family struck out into the countryside to establish its own home away from the decadence and corruption of the political machine the empire had become. When the empire collapsed in on itself in a tornado of internal strife, rebellion and violent uprisings, Ravenna was already developing into a small city. Many citizens of the empire adopted Lord Lassiter Blackraven’s new code of laws, embracing the policies of freedom and justice over the previous tyranny of the empire. Within three generations, most of the old empire was reunited under the flag of Ravenna. The Blackraven family still rules Ravenna after twenty-six generations, the royal line unbroken since their secession from the old empire. Many of the laws originally laid down by Lord Lassiter still remain, even if only enforced in spirit, and guide the citizens to an existence free of oppression by its ruling class. While there is a noble structure, the noble house in charge of any section of the country can be removed by its citizens appealing to house’s superior (so a knight or local lord could be removed by a baron, a baron by a count, a count by a duke, and a duke by the royal house). Even the Blackraven family could theoretically be removed from power if all of the nobles below it presented a united front, but that has never even come close to happening.
Ravenna is a nation primarily made up of humans, with some of the other races mixed in that have emigrated over the years. There are sections of cities that have a certain racial flair to them, but the kingdom, on the whole, is human influenced. From the ruined cities of the empire to the pastoral hillside towns all the way to the capital of Ravenshold, the wood and stone structures reflect the humanocentric lifestyle of Ravenna. The palace is made of black and green marble, in the same site where the imperial senate once stood. Dissidents tore down all of the imperial government buildings after the collapse, leaving many empty, highly defensible sites for Ravenna to use for their own purposes. The lack of borders that need defending, though, have led to a development of a very peaceful, pastoral life without city walls and high fortresses. In fact, the only land-based military outpost is on the edge of a stretch of wilderness known as the Morazi Span. The Span is home to all kinds of monsters and other horrors, but so few ever come into the civilized lands that one outpost is sufficient for defense.
Once oceanic exploration began, Ravenna’s port cities became more and more prominent. As freelancers and government vessels alike discovered new exotic places and the precious commodities they contained, more economic traffic began to flow from the coast to the inland cities. As more and more money was dedicated to the naval effort, the coastal cities grew while the inland cities gradually declined. The racial diversity also occurs more on the coast, as immigrants from other nations and islands have come to Ravenna.
Tialis is a crescent of land comprised of a thick forest surrounding a volcanic mountain range. Widely thought of as the home of the Elves, no less than three elven nations trace their lineage back to Tialis. While the other two have been dispersed throughout the world (making up what most people outside of Tialis think of as “elves”), the final nation, Tia-Nuratha (who are fairer, taller, and more fae looking of the other elves), still resides here as a ruling caste. The Nuratha elves (or “High” elves) are very insular, keeping mostly to themselves in their home city, a cluster of crystal spires, hot springs and dense mountain foliage nestled between the volcanic peaks of the Sargaja range. The rest of the population of Tialis is made up of members from every race, including a fair number of Geranya elves (or “wood” elves) and Kelansha elves (or “sea” elves) though the latter tend to remain exclusively on the coast.
Tialis has a long, bloody history of war and attempted conquest of all of the neighboring nations over the course of the last thousand years. The high elves were some of the first in the world to develop oceanic travel, and began setting up settlements, colonies and fortresses all over the islands of the North Serpent (the ocean is divided into five parts, the North, South, East and West Serpents, and the center called The Maw). Until the elves encountered Kesengard and the Empire to the south, their expansion was pretty much unhindered. What they did not count on was the huge populations non-elven nations seemed to have, with armies, even though technologically inferior, outnumbering them one-hundred to one, or even one-thousand to one in some areas. Having no real allies, the military campaigns of the elves were pushed back to the edges of their territory, where they could do little more than sit and wait for the races they hastily went to war with to push back.
The next few decades saw the high elves losing island after island as their two neighboring empires pushed forward. Luckily for them, the Empire had begun to collapse from within and less support was being given to expansion to tend to domestic matters. Once the Empire’s navies faded over the horizons, the attacks from Kesengard were more easily defended against. The final battle between the two took place on a small, rocky island called The Shelf. It is here where the two Admirals met with a full diplomatic envoy, and finally hashed out an uneasy peace. The terms drawn up that day are mostly forgotten, but Kesengard has never extended their explorations north of The Shelf, despite the fact that the dozens of small islands between there and Tialis have long been abandoned by their former elven inhabitants.
These days Tialis is a quiet, mercantile nation ruled by the last remnants of the high elven nobility. They have changed their focus from war and expansion to research and enlightenment, having the most prestigious magical and martial institutions in the known world. They do not have many cities, rather, the entire southern coast of Tialis is dotted with towns and small ports linked together by canal and road alike. The abundance of building materials and arable land never forced the population to cluster, and local government is non-existent, instead relying on the decrees from Tia-Nuratha, enforced by its sizeable militia. Buildings are typically low, wooden structures with sloped roofs to let the frequent rain slide off into the street or canal they are built on. Tialis has no native horses or beasts of burden, so the canal network has been connected, expanded and re-directed to make the entire coastline look like a latticework of individual squares of rand connected by bridges. Gondolas, barges and ferries run from one end of the coast to the other bearing cargo and passengers.
The academies, magical and martial alike, are all spread out within the dense inland forests. Few citizens will direct anyone to one, even if its only a few miles from their home, as the tradition is finding the academy is the first condition of acceptance within its student body. Students pay nothing for their education, but must swear an oath of service to their academy for an agreed-upon period of time, usually five, ten or twenty years wherein they cannot profit from any of the fruits of their labor. The duration of their stay determines the extent of their education, and upon graduation, may do whatever they please with their lives. The vast majority of academy graduates still give a portion of their time each year back to their alma mater to serve as instructors.
Legend says Kesengard was once a single, large landmass of rolling hills, majestic mountains and vast grasslands. The natives, mostly dwarves and gnomes, lived in harmony with their surroundings, peacefully creating a communal civilization where everyone was free to pursue their chosen craft and contribute to society in whatever way they saw fit. The legend goes on to say that they flourished, but kept digging deeper and deeper under their mountains until they released some unknown evil force, some theorizing it was a gate to the underworld itself. The next centuries were nothing but bloodshed and war as the people fought against the invaders from below, their crafts and labors turning to the development of war machines and new technologies. The final blow that sealed off the tunnels the evil force was bubbling up from also shattered the continent into a thousand pieces, which is how we see it today.
Kesengard is a collection of small to large islands in a starburst pattern that dominates most of the West Serpent. Some of the islands are close enough to have large bridges build between them, miles across, while others are so remote that only by spending a day on a ferry will get you to their shores. The population is still mostly dwarves and gnomes, who live beneath the surface of the rocky crags trying to rediscover the enlightenment their society formerly had. Each island has a name, but is usually only known by the residents and those of neighboring islands. Each small island houses a number of people known as a “community”, governed by an elder called a Thane. The thane of each community are pretty much autonomous, paying only some heed to so-called “national” declarations passed down by the king. Three of the islands have names known outside of Kesengard, Hammer, Anvil and Forge. These three each house multiple communities, each with their own Thane, who live in direct service to the King, who has a feasthall on each of the three islands.
The King is not a hereditary title, rather a democratic position put in place by the council of Thanes. While every thane from the three islands gather for each council meeting, few from the outlying islands bother to make the journey, simply apathetic to the goings-on of what they consider to be a government that just doesn’t affect their lives. Kings, once voted in, are there for life, which has turned into a very uneasy political landscape. Many rumors about Kings being assassinated or rendered helpless so they could be removed from office have circulated, though no Thane would ever admit to such underhanded dealings.
Kesengard is relatively new to oceanic travel, the chain of islands leading north to the territories of Tialis allowing their shallow-bottomed ships to travel in relative safety without venturing more than a couple of days into open water at any given time. They are, however, the kingdom with the most experience with gunpowder weapons, having flintlock pistols and muskets as well as cannon in somewhat common supply. Many of the communities dedicated themselves to the perfection of warfare and destructive technologies rather than their former more peaceful crafts, leading to some big developments very early in their history. Kesengard does have a formal military, but they focus more on issues within the kingdom’s borders and its defense rather than outside affairs. This has led to the development of a very large fleet of privateer and mercenaries naval vessels so the kingdom can still have a presence on the waves.
Koris-Tahl is a small landmass that was unknown to the other three nations until fairly recently. Peopled mostly by orcs, goblins and other “greenskin” races, their civilization developed more slowly than the rest, often crumbling under the weight of internal conflict and clan disputes. A rigid hierarchy has always been in place, but has been rarely followed, leading only to more civil wars and minor rebellions against whomever claims the throne of Overlord. The last few Overlords have been powerful figures, though, and have kept the hundreds of clans and tribes mostly united. They have recently begun exploring the other nations, leading a campaign of looting, pillaging and ravaging against any non-greenskin they find. Rumors have begun to circle that the current Overlord is actually an evil tyrant from another plane, molding the greenskin hordes into a weapon of terror and death to sate his eternal bloodlust. A few rare Koris-Tahl ships have been seen with other-worldly allies on board, and while this could simply be the work of wizards or evil priests, it is only fueling the fires of rumor.
The landscape of Koris-Tahl is a tropical hell on earth, with thick jungles giving way to salt-flats and deserts with craggy cliffs and snowcapped mountains. Evidence of centuries of battle can be found everywhere, with bleached skulls and rusting weapons readily found just about anywhere that can sustain life. Hidden, ruined temples to forgotten greenskin patrons dot the wilderness, and tall fortresses make up the population centers, surrounded by vast sprawls of tents and mud huts.
The economy of Koris-Tahl is almost completely supported by piracy, their “navy” little more than marauding savages. The vaults of the Overlord are becoming rather swollen with plunder, though, with the stolen wealth of the other three nations. Many artifacts and relics of power have supposedly been lost to Koris-Tahl raiders alongside the masses of gold, silver and gemstones, making the prospect of raiding the treasure vaults of those fortresses very enticing indeed, though there has never been a known successful assault of this kind.
The new lands, which have yet to be named since no one has lain claim to them, is a large, craggy, untamed wilderness with a nearly impassable coastline of sheer cliffs and shallows cluttered with razor-sharp coral. So far only two navigable ports have been found on the ruinous coastline, one on the west coast that has been settled by Kesengard, and another on the east, which has been settled by Ravenna.
The new lands are rich with natural wealth, with bountiful minerals for mining, hardwood forests, and of greatest importance, the arcane substance known as Sentite. Of course, the wildlife here is more vicious, more dangerous, and more unpredictable than anywhere else in the known world. Lost ruins of unknown civilizations, unexplored cavernous depths, and other mysteries await travelers and explorers alike. Merchants are willing to take fairly large risks to establish trade from the new lands, and pirates and privateers skulk in the waters off of its shores waiting for treasure-laden vessels to brave the Maw to return home.
The lands were undiscovered until the last century for a number of reasons. Where the Maw turns into the North Serpent is the worst weather on the world, with great waterspouts and whirlpools occurring all-too frequently and hammering storms wrack the skies almost year-round. At the junction of the East Serpent lies the Dragon’s Reef, a long mass of coral dotted with the husks of sunken ships that spans almost the entire length of the coast of Ravenna. Sailors have claimed to see dragons of many colors playing in the waves around the reef, saying the great beasts created the reef to lure ships to their dooms so they can collect the treasure they carry from the ocean floor to add to their horde. The only way through is between two pillars of coral-encrusted rock called The Twins. Ocean currents between the sharp spires, though, are unpredictable, and many pilots have lost control of their vessels only to be smashed into one of them. The western approach is fairly safe, but the Kesengard naval vessels have had no way to cross the vast expanse of ocean. The southern approach is also somewhat safe, but the greenskins of Koris-Tahl have only bothered traveling the oceans recently.
Ravenna’s port, The Rookery, is a well-established coastal town protected by a wooden stockade and a regiment of soldiers. The soldiers spend a majority of their time keeping out hostile wildlife and repelling native attacks, so the town itself has come into a sort of lawlessness. Recognizing that they do not have the resources to maintain both civil order and repel hostiles, they have only really focused on the governmental buildings and a small cluster of government-owned docks, leaving the rest to the citizenry. The Rookery has become sort of a pirate haven and a center for smugglers and double-dealing merchants making their way from one nation to another and trading in the resources the new lands have to offer.
Kesengard’s port, Elgraz, is named for the dwarven word meaning “weak construction”. The dwarven settlers were not happy with the conditions of the buildings they erected, low stone and wooden shacks mostly, that they thought the first big storm would knock them down. Since then the town has grown outward, but is still mostly made up of single-story buildings with wide paths and roads between them, spider-webbing out from the docks. The docks, contrary to the name, are the sturdiest in the world, made of stone and hard wood by dwarven shipbuilders and gnomish engineers. Each dock has a crane for loading and unloading cargo, and each berth can house a ship at least twice as long as the biggest in the world (accounting for progress, their designers would tell you). Elgraz has become quite a popular trading post, guarded by a unit of volunteer soldiers funded by Kesengard gold. The city itself is quite dull most of the time, but once every two weeks it plays host to the Grand Market, when traders from all over the world bring their wares to sell from carts, stalls and right off the decks of their ships. Kesengard naval vessels patrol the water heavily on this day to protect the merchants (and buyers) coming to and leaving port laden with goods and money, and so far no pirate attack launched against the Grand Market has succeeded.
Both the Rookery and Elgraz have offices of the International Guild of Adventurers and Explorers, an organization dedicated to the exploration and mapping of the new lands, as well as the oceans beyond the four kingdoms. So far their naval success has far outweighed their inland, making contact with new nations and establishing known routes for possible trade and travel in the future. The newly contacted nations are the Sultanate of Almajiira (a mostly desert continent to the southwest dedicated to the worship of a single sun god), Kara Tur (an oriental-style nation far to the east), Motaru (a barbaric nation of warring tribes of humans in a primal landscape of jungle and volcanos to the far west) and Bae-Rel (a young civilization growing around the concepts of worshiping heroes ascended to godhood to the far north).
The people of Ravenna dedicate themselves to the worship of the Olympian pantheon, with Zeus being the most commonly followed among the populace. Kesengardians follow the Asgardian pantheon, with the worship of Odin being just as prolific. The high elves seem to have no gods per se, but venerate ancient scholars and champions as ascendant to divinity, while the population of Tialis have picked and chosen from between the Asgardian and Olympian gods as they see fit, creating a sort of pseudo-pantheon of their own (but do not deny the divinity of members of either pantheon, even if they’re not commonly worshiped). The greenskin hordes follow a host of evil powers from beyond this plane and vicious orcish gods, switching casually between them to beg for boons to succeed at whatever task may be at hand. There are rumors of lost gods followed by the people that once lived on the new lands eons ago, and many islands have been found with ruins of what seem to be temples or shrines of some sort, but not enough evidence has been collected to give any of these lost gods a name.
