Knightfall's World of Kulan Campaign Development Thread (Last Update: Jul 16/03)

[Knightfall]

[KF - Second stage of the story hour begins now!]

A Mother’s Rage
Larea had known the instant that her daughter’s godsoul had been taken from her. She and Ramara had gone to Hunter’s Rest, to use Larea’s scrying mirror, in order to find out what had happened to the Peace Goddess. But they couldn't find any trace of her or the Scholar God, for that matter.

Bast had appeared in Larea's realm sobbing. She had felt her peaceful son die but didn’t understand why he had left the Upper Planes in the first place. Larea told her about the harsh words that were spoken and the apologies that followed. Bast had been mad, thinking Hansa had lead her son to his death.

Only when they finally learned what had transpired between Hela and Thera did Bast regret her harsh words. No one deserved to watch her daughter be tortured like that. Bast was sad that her son was gone but at least he had died quickly. Larea immediately began searching for Hansa but she could not find him either. Fearing the worst, she eventually came across Rel, Seraph, and Tu battling above the southern lands of Harqual.

They had not known that Tu had become involved. The three goddesses watched as Tu gained the upper hand, sending Rel’s Avatar crashing to the ground below, obliterated. Ramara cried out not knowing if her husband was gone. Then they watched Tu kill the Elf Barbarian God before Rel’s next Avatar could shift to the Prime Material Plane.

Not being able to watch anymore, fearing her husband might be next, Ramara dropped down on the ground sobbing. Bast wrapped her arms around her adopted sister.

“I can’t take this anymore, this has to end.” Larea was beside herself with grief. “Not only was Hela gone and Hansa as well, but now all her sister’s and adopted sister’s children were gone as well. The pantheon was dying.

A fire burned in her eyes that she thought she'd forgotten. “Bast, stay here with Ramara. I must go to Celestia and do my duty.”

The Battlefield on Lunia
Jaeger and Larea appeared in Lunia at the same time at almost the same spot. Larea had been following the battle’s progress as it had unfolded and everyone kept asking ‘where is Jaeger?’

Larea grabbed the God of Honor and shook him. “Where in Hades Underworld have you been!”

“I found something that can defeat Hiisi. I can’t say more than that but it could be the break we need.”

“Damn it Jaeger, it better be. While you’ve been traipsing around who knows where, we have been dying out here. Euphoria, Hansa, Hela, Truce, Seraph, and Zealot are all gone.”

The God of Honor didn’t know what to say. “Euphoria…“

Larea let Cronn’s godson go storming off into the fray to look for Cronn. Jaeger felt like he had betrayed everything he stood for. The God of Honor, how could he ever call himself that again?

Jaeger’s entire body filled with an unearthly fire that he had never felt inside before. “I make a new vow today, that I will avenge my fallen kin, even if it costs me everything that I am. Everything that I have ever aspired to be and that I have forgotten on this day. Honor demands my death!”

With that, Jaeger drew his sword, Honorbound, and charged into the battle, looking for the Lord of Darkness.

Across the battlefield, the other pantheon gods were holding their own. Cronn and Mayela fought back to back killing fiend after fiend. Almost all the mortals on both sides were dead. It had become a war of celestial against fiend.

Hades had arrived just after the third wave of fiends came. His dark form gliding over the battlefield slaying fiends was a disturbing sight to behold. The fiends didn’t like it much either, as Hades decimated entire legions of both evil mortals and fiends. ‘Come to me dark ones and we shall dance the Dance of Death’ had been the only thing he said when he arrived. Of course, Hades had seemed surprised to find Oberon and Titania fighting alongside but said nothing. Nothing distracted the Death God from claiming the lives of more fiends.

Cronn had sent Kuil out of the battle to find out how Hiisi seemed to know the pantheons every move and he had yet to return. Sanh and Garl fought side by side while Jalivier and Moradin did the same.

Corellon had not come. It was to be expected. The God of the North knew that the Elf Lord had to respect the wishes of his fellow gods in the Elven Court. They had never agreed with the two Patriarchs friendship. More then likely it was Seraph that was the key problem. The Elven Court would not accept the Barbarian Elf God with two fathers and an Outer Plane for a mother.

Surprisingly, Lokun was proving himself good in a fight. Something that Cronn hadn't expected. He had helped hold the line just as the fourth wave of fiends came though from the Abyss. Yes, Cronn just might make a good barbarian out of Lokun yet.

“Father,” Mayela’s voice was steady and Cronn knew that nothing endangered to her.

“Now is not a good time for a chat my dear.”

“I don’t want to chat, father. We need to switch places, you have to see something.”

“Can’t you just describe it to me.”

“Uh, no. Seeing is believing.”

The conversation had been more of a shouting match to be heard over the roar of the battle. Dozens of fiends came at them but you would never have known it from how calm they were. The two shifted places calmly.

Cronn though he was dreaming at first. But there she was chopping down fiends heading right for him. The Hunting Princess was unleashed from her sorrow. “Something has happened, Mayela.”

And then over the rise came Corellon with an army of elven mortals. The elf army swept a path through the fiends taken hundreds down for every dozen elves lost. Soon the fourth wave was pulling back. Larea joined the Elf Lord as they approached Cronn.

Cronn greeted Corellon with the Warriors Greeting. “Better late then never my friend.”

“After I heard what had happened on Kulan, I could stay my heart no longer.”

“What do you mean?” Cronn looked at Larea’s face and knew it was not good.

“Larea, what has happened.”

She told him the terrible news that almost all of the young gods were gone. She also told him that Jaeger had joined the battle and about the strange secret that he refused to tell her about. “I was a little rough on him, I hope it didn’t shake his confidence.”

“He can take care of himself.” Cronn took the deaths of his children hard. All but Mayela and Jaeger were gone. “Mayela, go and find your mother. Tell her what has happened then try to find Jaeger.”

“But father, you just said Jaeger could take care of himself. I want to fight with you.”

The army of elves had pushed back the fiends to the edge of Oceanus’s shore. The celestials had reformed their lines and backed the elves up; taking out stragglers that tried to slip by. Cronn’s remaining pantheon members in the area had gathered around their Lord to here the grim news.

“That will be kind of difficult since I won’t be here.”

That caused quite a stir.

“Father, you cannot leave the field.” Jalivier couldn’t believe it. “If you go, morale will suffer.”

“Damn it Jalivier, look around you! How will I help morale? The only one that provides morale around here is you. All the celestials here fight for you. All the mortals that died here fought for you. To them, I am just your barbaric father who rages across the field every once in a while. No, this is your fight Jalivier. You, Inanna and Mayela are why we have yet to be overrun. I am needed elsewhere. Rel won’t last long against Tu. He needs my help. I must go.”

And before any of them could argue, Cronn was gone. The celestials didn’t even notice that the Lord of the North had left. Mayela did as her father asked and went to find her mother. The other gods organised for the next wave of fiends.

 

[Knightfall]

Rogue vs. Assassin
Kuil had discovered Hiisi’s information network that kept the Lord of Darkness one step ahead on the battlefield in Lunia, as well as certain ambushes he had set up against the members of the pantheon. This is why Aegir had not shown up for the battle. A strike force of aquatic humanoid mercenaries had pinned down the Sea God’s forces in another region of the great river Oceanus. None of them had been able to reach the shores of Lunia.

Of course, Kuil knew that the Lord of Darkness would never have taken on such responsibilities himself. The most logical choice for such skulduggery was Vespin, the God of Thieves and Assassins. Tracking the Assassin God and his followers had not been easy. Vespin was good at what he did, but Kuil was better. After all, he was the God of Rogues and Illusion.

He had found one of the dark god’s Avatars skulking around Ramara’s realm, obviously intending to go after the Goddess of Love. Vespin had probably thought that the news of the death of Euphoria would make her vulnerable. He had not expected to find the Hunting Princess there and had stayed his hand, waiting for the Goddess of the Wilderness to leave.

That’s when Kuil had grabbed the Assassin God from behind and shifted both of them to his realm in Elysium. One there, he put his dagger, Shadowstealer, through the Assassin God’s Avatar. Vespin flashed out of existence and Kuil was sure that the dark god wouldn’t risk losing his last remaining Avatar by shifting back to face him again.

But Vespin was mad, real mad. He came back, spitting every blood oath and vile curse known. “I’m going to eat your godsoul!”

“You always were a fool Vespin,” the two gods had always opposed each other and competed for the same worshippers, except for assassins. Kuil didn’t accept assassins into his flock, considering them unpleasant mortals that didn’t understand the finesse of being truly stylish. Of course, Vespin had no such morality and relished each kill one of his assassins performed. “You’ll never stand a chance against me in my realm.”

“We shall see!”

Vespin lunged at Kuil with bloodlust in his pitted eyes. Kuil dodged him easily slapping the Assassin God with the flat of Shadowstealer. Several of Kuil’s followers gathered around to watch the two gods duel. They remained quiet in respect for their god and many were mentally taking notes.

Kuil was enjoying himself, as Vespin fumed and raged. The Rogue God knew that he could take Vespin without trying but toyed with him, like a cat playing with a mouse. Twice more did Vespin feel the flat of Shadowstealer, once against his back the other along his face.

Only when Vespin threatened a group of Kuil’s followers that had strayed to close to the fight did Kuil move in and destroy the Assassin God’s final Avatar with a flourish. Vespin screamed as Shadowstealer penetrated his back, sending the dark one to nothingness.

Kuil sheathed Shadowstealer and turned towards his flock of followers that had gathered to witness the destruction of the Assassin God. “And that, my friends, is finesse.”

Hiisi Arrives at Lunia
Jaeger waded through the battling armies of fiends and celestials with one goal - find the Lord of Darkness. At times he became embroiled in localised fighting, aiding celestials that were being hard pressed by Hiisi’s dark horde. ‘Where is he?’ This was the question that plagued Jaeger, as he fought his way across the battlefield.

Jaeger was overwhelmed by the carnage being wrought by the fiends. They claimed more and more celestials as the battle progressed. Only when things seemed lost did help arrive. Elves! Thousands of elves poured over the battlefield from every direction and Jaeger knew that Corellon had come.

Seraph, it had to be because of him. He was Corellon’s son as much as he was Cronn’s.

“Seraph,” Jaeger already missed his elven brother. “I will avenge you my brother and I will see you again soon, in oblivion."

Then the rage took Jaeger and he charged into the fiend army with celestials and elves following in his stead. He decimated the evil hordes, pushing them back further and further, driving them against the shore of Oceanus. Dozens of fiends were destroyed by the purity of Oceanus’s waters while Jaeger fought one against dozens of tanar’ri. The celestials and elves cheered as he destroyed several key tanar’ri commanders by throwing himself against them, taking the fiends deep into the pure waters with him.

The young god burst out of the water holding Honorbound high in the air roaring in defiance. The sight of this untamed barbarian god destroying their commanders sent the fiends into retreat mode and they started to leave the battlefield.

It was then that another wave of fiends appeared from the Abyss. Lead by the Lord of Darkness himself.

“Hiisi!” It was all Jaeger could say before the dark hordes pressed anew and he was forced to retreat against the onslaught. The fiends came in the thousands and all seemed lost as Hiisi played his final card in the gamble to destroy the Pantheon of the North. All thoughts of challenging Hiisi left Jaeger’s mind as he tried to survive.

On the other side of Lunia, the pantheon gods were in shock as the new wave of fiends destroyed all but the most powerful of the celestials and elves. Jalivier knew the day was lost without some sort of miracle. The fiends were too many and his forces were being decimated. His thoughts turned to Cronn and he knew that the Great Father had been right. The celestials would die for Jalivier but if he'd fallen, they would not have fought for Cronn. Maybe for Inanna but not for his father.

“I must not fall,” Jalivier spoke the words to himself and no one else. The thought of dying without seeing his wife Immotion, the Goddess of Magic, again made him all the more determined. “I will see you again my love, I swear.”

Jalivier knew that Immotion fought her own battle, as she sat in her realm, the Soul of Magic. She fought to keep her dark brother’s magic off the battlefield. Xuar was the God of Necromancy, as well as Jealousy and would have used his powers to raise the fallen as undead under his command. However, Immotion had known that her dark brother would try such sacrilege and she had dedicated herself to keeping her brother’s power at bay. It was difficult but not impossible. Xuar and Immotion had about the same power level but Immotion had more access to a variety of magic. It was working; Xuar couldn’t gain access to the dead.

“Hope, it is all we ever need.” Jalivier rallied the remainder of his troops and pressed forward into the chaos.

 

[Knightfall]

On Olympus
Apollo felt like a mortal. His beloved Hela had died a cruel vicious death and there had been nothing he could do to prevent it. The God of Prophecy had wept when he heard the news of her torture and demise. Not even he had seen this coming.

Hela had gone to see if the rumors about Gaoterlog being destroyed were true. That was the last time he had seen or heard from her. She had disappeared to visit her kin dozens of times before, being gone cycles at a time. But she had always returned and Apollo hadn’t given the war her pantheon was waging much thought.

But now, now he watched as her pantheon crumbled. “I feel like I am betraying her by not being down there.”

“You must not involve yourself in this conflict Apollo.” Zeus understood his godson’s pain but remained defiant towards the Light-Bringer. “No matter how much you loved Hela, she was not one of us.”

“I don’t care,” Apollo walked away from his Father’s scrying pool, his back to the Thunderer. “Hades fights with them because they have become more like family to him then us. He fights with passion, with a belief in something beyond the Outer Planes. He believes Cronn and his kin can make a difference and so do I.”

The Thunderer was enraged by his godson’s open defiance of everything that Zeus had provided for him. Yet he was also oddly proud of him as well. “If you go, you go alone. You may not take any of your followers with you and I will not intervene in this battle on your behalf.”

Apollo shifted out of Zeus’s temple without a word. He would avenge his beloved. He would destroy the evil witch Thera for her crime. Even if it cost him everything.

On the Prime
Rel was in trouble. One Avatar left, fighting a Greater God on his home plane, and no one to help him. Yep, he was definitely in trouble. And Tu knew it.

He had been toying with the rival cat god. Letting him find his feet and his strength, just to knock him down again. Rel didn’t stand a chance from the moment the fight had become just the two of them. Yet he refused to yield to the wicked patron of the Tabaxi. He would not surrender; he would die fighting for his people and for Cronn.

“Well Rel, had enough?” Tu was so smug. “Do you yield?”

“Never!” Rel rushed in against Tu once more and was slammed to ground of the Savanna of the Sun, as a reward for his bravery. The cat god was near his end. He could feel himself drifting towards oblivion, his power draining away. Tu was laughing at him, as the other cat god hovered in the air above the broken God of the Rakasta.

“Cronn…”

The word was a personal farewell to his Lord, not a request for the Barbarian God to come to his aid. Yet, there he was. He appeared some distance behind the two cat gods. Rel knew there was no need to play Tu for a fool a second time. Cronn would announce his presence in a moment.

The Lord of the North roared a barbarian battle cry and charged towards the God of the Tabaxi. Tu turned to meet the new challenger not realising it was Cronn until it was too late to get out of the way. The Lord of the North split Tu’s Avatar in half with North Rage and it blinked out of existence.

The vile cat god’s next Avatar appeared near the two pantheon members growling at the Barbarian God. Cronn beckoned the God of the Tabaxi to continue the fight. Tu howled coming at the Lord of the North with his spear in hand. The two thundered across the sky.

The next thing Rel knew the God of Rogues and Illusion was at his side. “You look terrible.”

“Thanks a lot Kuil.”

“Cronn sent an Avatar to find me so that I could get you out of here.”

“But we can’t just leave him here alone. He needs our help.” Rel wouldn’t just pick up and leave his Lord to face the God of the Tabaxi alone.

“Don’t worry,” Kuil smiled at his fellow pantheon member. “He can take care of himself.”

“But…”

Kuil picked up the cat god and shifted to Ramara’s realm. Kuil was right of course; Cronn could take care of himself. Ramara embraced the fallen cat god and her love made him glad to be alive.

 

[Knightfall]

Two Arrive in Lunia
The battle was not going well. Jalivier knew he lost the day as fiend after fiend poured from the Abyss. The portals had not closed and his forces were being overrun. Without help the pantheon would die in its infancy.

Hiisi had turned loose a horde not even the Lord of Darkness could control. The fiends ravaged the first layer of Mount Celestia and those gods with realms on the layer closed their borders, cutting off the fiend’s ability to access them, as well as the rest of the Seven Heavens. This also cut Jalivier off from his realm and his followers had rallied behind their Lord to protect him from the fiends. He was losing so many close friends and allies.

Fortunately, none of the other pantheon members had fallen during the initial onslaught of Hiisi’s latest horde. Corellon, Damh, Garl, Hades, Inanna, Jaeger, Larea, Lokun, Mayela, Moradin and Sanh were all fighting the good fight. Jaeger’s initial absence had been forgotten by all and he seemed possessed on the battlefield. He led charge after charge and Jalivier was worried that Cronn’s godson was actually trying to martyr himself.

Lokun had also become obsessed for some reason. He fought so hard that Jalivier thought Lokun was channelling Odin. A messenger from Asgard had arrived before the final wave of fiends had came. They had told Lokun something that sent the God of Trickery into a rage that would have made Cronn proud. He had refused to discuss the matter but pledged to Jalivier that he would always fight at the Sun God’s side against the Pantheon of Swords. He even got down on one knee while pledging so. Jalivier had been speechless.

But none of that mattered now, Hiisi was winning - slaughtering, really.

Druaga, Mussin, Nether, and Thera had joined their dark master on the battlefield and the five dark gods had the advantage.

Had. Just when Jalivier was sure that Hiisi would steal his godsoul, two things happened. The first was a huge shock. The Olympian Apollo appeared on the battlefield riding a giant Pegasus steed. He flew over the battlefield and started gutting fiends left and right.

Jalivier heard him call out a challenge to the Goddess of Violence. “Here me Thera! You have destroyed the one person I loved most, my beloved Hela! I have come to send you to oblivion where you shall remain for all eternity!”

Thera rose to meet the Old God against the wishes of her Dark Father. Apollo’s winged steed sped towards the dark goddess and the two clashed above the battlefield. Again and again the two gods swords met. But the Old God was too strong for the goddess. Apollo cried out as he delivered the deathblow. “For Hela!”

This event gave hope to the Army of Jalivier’s Light, as it was now being called across the Outer Planes. They fought more inspired at the presence of another Old God on the battlefield. But it was the second event that truly inspired the pantheon’s forces.

From the Great River Oceanus, an aquatic army of Asgardian petitioners and mortals rose from the water and took the fiends from behind. Aegir’s forces had broken the blockade sent by Hiisi to prevent his involvement in the Final Battle. The Old Man of the Sea rose from the billowing depths, his voice echoed over the land as he roared in defiance at Hiisi’s plan.

“Ha, you thought to keep an Old God down, did you Dark One. You will feel the wrath of the waves and it children! This I swear today before all present!”

Aegir conjured hundreds of water elementals from the depths of Oceanus itself. The water elementals fell upon the fiends, carrying with them the purity of Oceanus. The tanar’ri screamed in pain as the pure water burned their skins off.

Soon the hordes of Hiisi were in disarray and the Army of Jalivier’s Light swept across the battlefield. And one lone, young god renewed his search for the Lord of Darkness.

Cronn vs. Tu
The two Greater Gods of Harqual raged across the sky, both matching the others speed and intensity. They fought from the Savanna of the Sun to the peaks of the Greystone Mountains. Cronn knew that Tu was a formidable foe and used all his strength against the vile cat god.

Cronn was starting to feel the rage flow through his godsoul again but suppressed it concentrating all his energy on keeping Tu’s great spear at bay. His great axe, North Rage, wasn’t the most effective weapon against the cat god’s spear but he wouldn’t fight with anything else. North Rage was part of him, like an extension of his essence. Tu never showed any sort of emotion during the battle, except to hurl insults at the barbarian god.

“You pantheon is collapsing, Great Cronn.” His words mocking Cronn’s heritage and kin. “Soon I will send you to oblivion as I did Seraph!”

That did it. The rage took Cronn in a way he had never experienced and he roared a thunderous barbarian war cry and charged the cat god. Tu had never seen anything like it and actually wondered if he was afraid. Cronn’s Avatar grew to twice its normal size. He towered over the cat god, as North Rage smashed into Tu’s great spear, splitting it in half like a mortal weapon.

Yes, Tu was sure that what he was feeling was fear. He fled before the onslaught of the Lord of the North. Heading for the city of his people, Tattenger. There he would be at his strongest; there he could face Cronn on his own terms.

The cat god quickly outdistanced the raging barbarian god and reached Tattenger far enough ahead of Cronn to summon all his power. Tu’s great spear reformed in the presence of Tu’s greatest power and when Cronn finally arrived, Tu’s Avatar was almost the same size as the raging barbarian’s.

The two clashed above the streets of Tattenger for hundreds of mortal hours. Each gaining the upper hand and then losing almost as quickly. Tu’s essence started to dwindle and Cronn’s rage sapped his strength as well. Soon the two gods fought like mortals in the streets of Tattenger, brawling like two rivals for the same wench.

Cronn used North Rage to send Tu’s Avatar into a nearby building, destroying it completely. “Enough, I’ve had enough of this nonsense! I have no time for this!”

Tu pulled himself from the wreckage of the building only to be pinned to the ground by the barbarian god. Cronn held Tu’s Avatar down with all his strength and called out to the sky.

“Here me Mirella, I have defeated the God of the Tabaxi and petition you to grant me a request.”

The All-Mother appeared before the two gods and Tu’s people bowed down to the Great Mother of Kulan, awed by her presence. “What is your request, Great Cronn?”

“I request that Tu and his people be banished from Kulan for his crimes against my kin.”

“Why do you not just destroy him?”

Cronn shook his head and looked at the Tabaxi God. “I did not start this quarrel and will not destroy one who has yet to gain the wisdom to realise why his actions are wrong. If I destroy him, I would be no better then Hiisi.”

Mirella smiled at the barbarian god. “Indeed you have become wise through the ages, Great Cronn. I will grant your request.”

The cat god snarled and spit at the All-Mother but could not break free of Cronn’s grip. “You cannot do this. It is my destiny to rule.”

“Perhaps,” Mirella stood above the howling cat god. “But not yet. I banish you and your people as well from the lands of Harqual for a 1,001 years. Hopefully by then you will have matured a little.”

Mirella looked to Cronn and he nodded that he was satisfied. Then Mirella reached through time to find a place where Tu and his people could not escape. There she sent the cat god and his people to languish. Thus it was that the city of Tattenger left the mortal plane, forgotten in time.

“Thank you All-Mother.” Cronn dropped to one knee and paid homage to the Mother of Kulan.

“Now is not the time, Great Cronn. One of your kin is risking everything he is to break Hiisi’s power over Harqual.”

“Who?”

“Jaeger.”

“No!”

 

[Knightfall]

Ympyrä Ristiriita (The Challenge)
Hiisi knew the battle was lost, he had lost almost as much as Cronn’s pantheon. All his dark children were gone and there power with them. He had had to beg Thera to come to Lunia and add her power to the battle. But then the God of Prophecy had arrived and sent her to oblivion.

His blockade had fallen and Aegir had surprised everyone by rising out of the Great River with a battle ready army of followers. If Hiisi had received word of the event like he was suppose to then he wouldn’t have been caught between Jalivier’s & Aegir’s armies. Vespin was gone, he knew his godson would never have let this slip by.

His pantheon was broken but he refused to surrender. Better to retreat and regain his power then die needlessly in savage battle. Hiisi motioned to Mussin to call the retreat. The vile god laughed at Hiisi’s plight and he, Druaga and Nether shifted away.

“Damn you to the Abyss Mussin, you will suffer for this!”

“No!”

Hiisi wondered who would dare contradict him and turned to see Cronn’s godson Jaeger walking towards him. “Well, this is an unexpected pleasure. I feel like taking my frustration out on someone. It might as well be you, little god child.”

“You’ll have your chance.” The young god smiled like he had already won. Jaeger raised his voice calling out to the sky in the ancient tongue of the Old Gods. “I invoke the ancient tradition of the Finnish Pantheon. I call for the Ympyrä Ristiriita!”

“What, no, you can’t!“ Hiisi did not have time to finish his sentence. Eight Avatars of the Finnish gods appeared around Hiisi and Jaeger. Ahto, Ilmatar, Loviatar, Mielikki, Tuonetar, Ukko and Untamo!

“The challenge has been made Hiisi; do you accept or forfeit your station to the challenger?” It was Ahto that spoke the words.

“You can’t be serious, he isn’t one of us.” Hiisi was furious. As long as he was within the circle of Ympyrä Ristiriita, he could not leave Lunia.

“It doesn’t matter if the challenge comes from outside of the pantheon, you know that. Or do you forget how you came by your station amongst the Finns?”

“Don’t patronise me Mielikki. And yes, I will accept the challenge.” Hiisi looked at Jaeger laughing. “You little fool, you can’t defeat me. No one has ever defeated me in Ympyrä Ristiriita.”

“I don’t have to defeat you, I just have to trap you here long enough for the rest of my pantheon to finish destroying your army.” Jaeger looked passed the circle of Finnish gods noting that a growing number of Outsiders had seen the Finnish Gods appear and riders were already on their way to tell the rest of the pantheon. They would come eventually but not soon enough to save him. Not that they could, no god may interfere in this challenge. Not even his father could pass through the circle of Finnish Gods.

Jaeger’s words enraged Hiisi and the Lord of Darkness made the first move. Jaeger evaded him easily, as the Dark One was not thinking rationally. Jaeger tried to keep his foe off balance by noting that Hiisi’s allies seemed to have abandoned him. That really ticked him off and he almost caught Jaeger flatfooted. The God of Honor wouldn’t last long against these odds, even with Hiisi on Jaeger’s turf. Not that Mount Celestia was his home plane, the Prime Material was. But to Jaeger, Mount Celestia was like a second home.

Instead of dodging Hiisi’s next attack, he surprised the Lord of Darkness by meeting him head on, striking out with Honorbound against Hiisi’s torso. The first hit was his, which enraged the Dark One even more.

Hiisi tore into Jaeger, gaining four straight cuts with his sword. A great cheer rose up from one side of the circle as a group of fiends had gathered to watch the spectacle. Jaeger blocked the next blow and noticed that a group of celestials cheered him on from the other side of the circle. Law versus Chaos, Good versus Evil. This was what it was all about on the Planes. Jaeger did not care; this was for Harqual – for all the mortals that he had grown up with, fought beside, and watched die. That was what this was all about!

The rage took Jaeger and he fought with no regard for his own life. He took the fight to the Dark One, beating him back to the edge of the circle. Hiisi was battered by the time Jaeger's rage had subsided. Yet his strength was still greater than the young god's determination. He slammed into Jaeger, sending him sprawling to the ground. Jaeger was hurt bad by the blow barely getting up to his knees. The rage had sapped his strength and he could feel himself slipping away.

“You are beaten, young one.” Hiisi stood over Jaeger and raised his fist in triumph. The fiends roared at the sight while several of Jaeger’s pantheon members looked on, helpless to do anything.

Jaeger looked to see his sister Mayela standing outside the circle with his mother Inanna. Cronn was not there yet. It didn’t matter, he had lied to Hiisi - he wasn’t stalling. It was time for phase two of his plan. Something that the First One in the Halls of Twilight hadn't suspected he knew. Jaeger was not even sure it would work.

“I have fallen Hiisi but I am not beaten.” Jaeger’s words echoed across the lands of Lunia, as Jaeger grasped Honorbound at both ends. “Here me Old Gods of all the Planes of Existence, I convey my essence to the Outer Planes wishing only one thing in return. That Hiisi be banished to Carceri for as long as my Great Father watches over the lands and people of Harqual. This I do freely with no tricks or illusions.”

Hiisi’s eyes widened with fear and he reached out towards the young god. “No!”

Cronn appeared just as Jaeger snapped Honorbound with all his strength. Godfire erupted within the circle consuming Jaeger. The Old Gods of the Planes saw the young gods sacrifice and invoked the ancient Banishing that would trap Hiisi in Carceri for as long a Cronn watched over Harqual.

“Jaeger!” Cronn watched helplessly as his godson gave his life in the Banishing of the Lord of Darkness. A mist swirled around Hiisi and the Dark One screamed as his essence was transferred to Carceri.

The Avatars of the Finns left as quickly as they came, leaving Cronn’s pantheon to mourn the death of the godchild that would become known as Jaeger the Saint. Hiisi’s pantheon was broken they had won.

Jalivier returned to his realm and became known as Defender of the Light across the Outer Planes. The other gods of the pantheon also returned to their realms and took places of honor amongst the gods of the universe.

Cronn returned to the Prime Material to watch over the lands of Harqual and its people. He built a new realm in the farthest reaches of the North called the Heart of Ice.

Hela remains trapped as part of the seas of Harqual, while her brother Hansa has been trapped deep inside the earth. He struggles in vain to free himself, which causes seasonal earthquakes to rock Harqual. Cronn prays that Hansa will die soon, so that his grandchild’s suffering might end.

And a new star appeared in the night sky after Jaeger’s death and it became known as Jaeger’s Rest. It is said that Cronn spends many a night watching the star created by his godson’s legacy, in loving memory.

 

[Knightfall]

The Third Era ends...

Aftermath
The Divinity War had a huge impact on the mortals of Harqual, as well as their gods. Thousands of priests all over the continent lost the power to cast spells. More importantly, the loss of ones god can shake a person’s faith and whole civilisations turned away from them. Cronn’s faith disappeared south of the Greystone Mountains and the Empire dedicated to the Pantheon of Swords slowly deteriorated without its patron. This Empire was reduced to a few squabbling city-states on the Ragik Peninsula, as region after region secede from the Empire.

Entire tracts of farmland fell into disuse and hundreds of rural towns were ruined, claimed by the wilderness. It became more and more dangerous to travel from region to region as Imperial provinces became isolated countries and then even more isolated city-states. Petty dictators and warlords held sway over their isolated regions as few individuals had the power to oppose them.

Demihuman races became isolated from their human allies and in less then a hundred years relations between humans and other races deteriorated so much so, that old treaties and alliances were forgotten (mostly by the humans). Wilderness regions were left to dangerous creatures and the remaining faithful of Larea. (Many vicious hunters left Larea’s service for Uller (q.v.) when the god came to Harqual).

The Interloper Gods
The Aftermath of the Divinity Wars left huge holes in both the Pantheon of the North and the Pantheon of Swords. Key members were either destroyed or had their power base greatly reduced. Into this void came the Interloper Gods, a term used to describe all powers that gained influence on Harqual after the Divinity War ended. This term is still widely used today by priests of both pantheons and is almost always used in a derogatory manner; whether the god being referred to is evil or not.

The first god to come to Harqual after the Divinity War was the Olympian, Apollo. Of all the Interloper Gods, he is the most respected by the priests of the Pantheon of the North. Those priests never refer to him as an Interloper, even though he never officially joined the Pantheon of the North. He is looked at as an honored guest like Corellon, Moradin, and the other Greater Gods of the demihumans.

NOTE: The demihuman gods are not official members of the Pantheon of the North. However, they are always welcome in any pantheon god’s realm on the Outer Planes or in Cronn’s Heart of Ice in the far north beyond Harqual’s shores (Kulan’s North Pole).

However, the priests of the Pantheon of Swords do refer to Apollo as an Interloper. And he does fall into that category, as his power on Harqual came after the Divinity War. And this is true of all the following gods that came to Harqual as an independent power without ties to the to existing pantheons or their traditional pantheons on the Outer Planes: Ahto, Boccob, Calphas, Chaeon, Dionysus, Ehlonna, Erythnul, Gruumsh, Kord, Loviatar, Persana, Ptah, Ran, Uller, & Vaprak.

NOTE: Gruumsh and Vaprak have human followers, as well as monstrous followers. These Interlopers are despised by all the gods of the Pantheon of the North and are never allied with no matter what the situation. Gruumsh's faith is extremely influential on Harqual, while Vaprak's followers have been responsible for the start of both Ogre Wars.

Beyond Apollo, the gods that are somewhat tolerated by the Pantheon of the North, if not completely respected, are Calphas, Dionysus, Ehlonna, Kord, Ran, Persana, and Ptah. Calphas is a strange deity from another prime material world and is venerated almost exclusively in the lands just north of the Great Expanse. Dionysus is considered a good friend of the Pantheon of the North and is often found in Damh’s company or trying to cheer up Cronn in the Heart of Ice (he likes the challenge).

Persana and Ehlonna tend to avoid conflicts between the Pantheon of the North and the Sword Gods. However, Ehlonna's close ties with Corellon Larethian and Yondalla have allowed her to become a close friend with Daghdha and Larea. Kord is a popular god with barbarians north of the Greystones and even has gained Cronn's respect. Kord's faith isn't as well known south of the Greystones, except for in the Barony of Wolffire and is completely unknown south of the Great Expanse.

Ahto and Aegir tend to exist without strife but most of the pantheon would rather not have dealings with the Finnish sea god (because of you know who), regardless of his benevolent nature. Ran is Aegir’s wife and is grudgingly accepted by the most members of the Pantheon of the North. Immotion dislikes Boccob for his uncaring nature towards those that worship him. Erythnul attempts to steal worshippers from other gods, regardless of pantheon or alignment. This has made the followers of Erythnul enemies of almost everyone else on Harqual.

All of the members of the Pantheon of the North hate Loviatar and would love to destroy or banish the Goddess of Pain and Torture. However, she has never sent her Avatar to Harqual and because of her ties with the world of Toril she is too strong in her own realm. Loviatar has swayed a lot of Nether’s followers to join her faith, which has made her unpopular with the Sword Gods as well. Loviatar and Nether oppose each other in every situation, even if it means working with another god they usually oppose.

Chaeon, Ptah and Uller are enigmas on Harqual. Very few mortals worship these gods, yet they refuse to leave. Chaeon's worshippers are limited to the desert elves of the Great Expanse and the god never interacts with other deities unless the desert elves are at risk. It’s thought that Ptah might be after Mussin’s head because he destroyed one of Ptah’s favorite followers. Why Uller insists on taking a stake in trying to find followers on Harqual is anyone’s guess. He seems determined to try and sway Larea’s followers whenever he can. It is whispered that he might be trying to prove himself to her to try and convince her he’d be a suitable consort. (However, no one is stupid enough to ask one of Uller’s faithful about this, as they’d likely get a crossbow bolt in the forehead.)

The Empire of Swords
The Empire of Swords was a militaristic, despotic kingdom that held ultimate power over all of the lands of Harqual. (Not including the Great Forest of the elves, the Greystone Mountains of the dwarves, or the Storm Jungle of the tabaxi.) The Empire, at its height, controlled all the lands from the Ragik Peninsula on the western coast of Northern Harqual, to the Valley of the Spears near the eastern coast of Northern Harqual, to the northern edge of the Great Expanse in Southern Harqual.

The Empire paid homage to Hiisi’s dark pantheon. It is unknown whether the Empire took its name from the pantheon (likely) or if it was the other way around (not so likely). All that is known is that the Empire of Swords was the largest human empire to ever exist on Harqual. It ruins can be found all over Northern Harqual, lost to time and the ravages of war. For over 1,400 years, the Empire of Swords dominated the continent, no one able to break its dark power.

At the height of the Empire’s power, King-Priests of Hiisi controlled the Empire of Swords, with each successive King-Priest ruling for their entire lifetime. The power of the King-Priest was absolute and it was rumoured that each King-Priest was, in fact, a powerful proxy of the Lord of Darkness. However, this rumor goes against the Dark Ones very nature, as he loathed too give out power to anyone. The truth may never be known. What is known is that a King-Priest could destroy entire legions of soldiers with even the simplest spells and granted powers. They were a terror to face on the battlefield and were protected by incredibly powerful magical enchantments and armor.

Most of the names of the King-Priests that ruled the Empire of Swords during its existence have been lost to time. All that is left of their legacy are the ziggurats lining the Sword River from the Imperial city of Yösydän to the city-state of A’Harn. These ziggurats are the resting-places of the King-Priests of the Sword Imperium.

Hiisi’s banishment to Carceri left the Empire of Swords without their patron and the Imperium suffered as a result. The King-Priest was powerless against the combined clergy of the remaining Pantheon of Swords gods. Nether’s clerics of pain took great pleasure in torturing the King-Priest and his followers, while Mussin’s clerics spread disease and destruction throughout the Empire.

Mussin cared nothing for Hiisi’s mortal followers or the Empire they built and he took great pleasure in tearing it apart. Distant protectorates broke away from the Empire one by one and the Sword Imperium collapsed. The throne of the Empire passed from one petty dictator to another, along the lines of might makes right. However, ruthless warlords held sway over the remains of the Empire and the Emperors had little real power beyond the walls of Yösydän.

These Dead Emperors, as they were often called by the masses, usually didn’t rule long. Assassins loyal to the dead god Vespin slew Emperor after Emperor, as none of them were 'right for the throne' in the eyes of the followers of the God of Assassins. The Dead Emperors lived in fear for centuries of the Vespin assassins and most went mad. Most of their edicts were simply ignored by the populace, as the Emperor that proclaimed them would soon forget all about it.

Vespin’s followers weren’t the only ones that opposed the Dead Emperors, as dozens of ex-priests of the Pantheon of Swords banded together to form the society known as the Yosyntya or the Dark Reborn. Dedicated to raising the fallen gods of the Imperium, this society had little luck regaining worshippers for the dark gods. They still exist to this day but are hunted by the priests of the remaining gods of Pantheon of Swords, not to mention everyone else. Of all of the dead dark gods, only Vespin's loyal families of assassins refuse to convert to worship another god.

The Imperium Royal House is seen more as a bunch of squabbling fools and has little power over the continent it once ruled. The Empire, as it now stands, is limited to the Ragik Peninsula. The Emperor is quite mad and has been known to ride backwards through the city of Yösydän on a donkey laughing ‘I am all powerful, tremble before me!’

Unfortunately, an elite unit of mercenaries known as the Empires Blades protects the Emperor. The leaders of this army are the true power behind the Imperium. This unit has become more and more aggressive over the last few years and dozens of smaller townships along the fringes of Imperium lands have had to bow to the will of the Blades or be destroyed.

Many of the neighbouring city-states feared an invasion from the Blades and quickly signed a treaty that gave up tracts of wilderness to the Imperium in return for a pact of non-aggression. The Blades commanders readily agreed to the deal but have plans to have the Emperor declare the treaty broken when the opportunity rises annex the surrounding lands.

 

[Knightfall]

THE FOURTH ERA

The Black Wars
While the Empire of Swords self-destructed from within the rest of Harqual’s human population fell on one another like rabid dogs. For hundreds of years before the creation of the New Calendar (q.v.) and a few hundred after the rise of the Kingdom of the Jagged Peninsula (q.v.) did the city-states battle each other and anyone else who got in the way. This time was known as the Black Wars.

The dark warriors and priests of the Empire divided up the land and warred with each other until nothing was left of the Imperium's legacy. Old alliances and friendships were forgotten and city-state after city-state fell into the bloody conflict. It was almost like the mortal war during the time of the Divinity War never really ended. Human armies simply switched sides, formed new alliances and fought former allies.

New city-states rose to take the place of the fallen and then crumbled after years of war took its toil. The barbarians of the Northlands isolated themselves from the wars as much as possible but even they were forced to defend themselves from time to time. The elves of the Great Forest watched in horror as humans slaughtered each other for centuries. Most of the warlords were smart enough to not attack the elves but every dark time has its fools and madmen.

Roughly three decades before the creation of the New Calendar a truly vile warlord dedicated to Mussin took 5,000 troops into the forest near what is now modern day Thallin and proceeded to sack the elven lands of Amilynion before being overrun by the combined might of the remaining elves. The lands around Amilynion were burned and infested with disease. And all that remains of this region now is miles of vile, haunted swampland and the remains of the elven capital, now called Caer Amylinyon or the Ruins of the Grey.

Amilynion was the homeland of the grey elves on Harqual and it widely known that the elves were betrayed by one of their own. The betrayer was said to be a vile female necromancer that supposedly made a pact with Xuar, which would grant her eternal life. In return, she would use her influence and magic to distract her kin when the warlord’s army attacked.

Amilynion’s people were either butchered or fled to the lands of the silver elves in Silverleaf or left for other lands across the continent. Some believe that this is how there came to be elves in the desert wastes of the Great Expanse. However, most scholars believe that most of the remaining grey elves left Harqual altogether. Very few grey elves still live on Harqual now and most humans believe that there aren't any left.

The warlord died, yet the elven necromancer lives on to this day, her real name forgotten. Now, she is known by many names and aliases – Elrina the Foulsoul, The Betrayer, and The Enigma Sorceress being the most well known. If killed she rises from the dead the following evening by possessing the nearest elf’s body, male or female. Thus, she is impossible to recognise based on previous encounters. She is completely loyal to Xuar.

As the Black Wars continued to rage across the land, more and more demihumans fled or isolated themselves from the bloody conflict. The dwarves of the Greystone and Sunus Mountains withdrew into their mountain homes completely, denying entrance to all, even others of their own kind. The silver elves of the Great Forest placed high magic wards at the edge of their kingdom to prevent the humans from attacking their homeland. The forest elves living in the southern half of the Great Forest protected their forest home more militantly than their northern cousins did. Human warriors that dared enter the southern forest were usually never seen again.

The gnomes and halflings either joined the silver elves in the Great Forest or fled to Southern Harqual where the fighting was a little less widespread. In fact, almost all the gnomes left for the southern lands of the continent and settled in the Heverkent Forest and the Hinderfall Mountains. They became steadfast allies with the rakasta against the few human warlords that dared to ride across the savannas of the southern lands. Most halfling families weren’t as fortunate and those that didn’t seek safety with the elves or went south with the gnomes were soon either enslaved or killed. As a result, halflings make up only about 10% of Harqual’s population to this day, while gnomes are a little more stable at 15% (35% in the south).

The First Ogre War and the Eastern Council
In approximately 449 N.C., an event happened that would cease the Black Wars and bind humanity together. Hordes of humanoids rose from the deepest swamps and swept down from the desolate mountain peaks, to ravage the cities of the north. Lead by tribes of huge ogres loyal to the gods Gruumsh and Vaprak, these hordes of gnolls, bugbears, lizardmen, and orcs nearly swept humanity from the face of Harqual.

In fact, in some places they were successful in destroying entire city-states in less than a week. So busy fighting each other, the humans were taken totally by surprise. The strange part was that the hordes simply took what they wanted each time they attacked and then continued south past the Great Expanse. It was here that the hordes truly overwhelmed humanity as they wiped out human cities, towns, and fortifications in Southern Harqual.

For a hundred years the First Ogre War, as it was called, raged across the land and humanity hung on for survival. Only with the help of the dwarves of the Greystone and Sunus Mountains did humanity survive in north. The dwarves, who knew how to fight ogres better than anyone, helped organise the human city-states and scattered soldiers into a force to be reckoned with. Soon the humanoid hordes found themselves outmatched; they had spread their forces too thin and retreated to out of the way places to gain strength and seethe in anger (the First Ogre War officially ended in 551 N.C.).

The dwarven people had hoped that all of humanity would reunite and bring stability back to Harqual. Instead, most of the humans retreated to the coasts to distance themselves from the humanoid hordes and started to build and fortify new militant city-states. The dwarven Thanes shook their heads in disbelief and returned to their mountain homes, vowing that humanity would stand alone the next time the hordes came.

Only a small group of city-states on or near the eastern coast of Northern Harqual realised that an alliance amongst themselves would protect them all from another humanoid horde. Thus, in neutral lands in the west near the shores of an (then) unnamed lake did the city-states sign the Treaty of Nest Lake and form the Eastern Council. Binding them in honor and war against any that would threaten even one of them (including other members). No one knows why the lake was given that name by the council or why other city-states near the lake were not offered a chance to sign the treaty.

The current members of the Eastern Council are more like countries now than city-states and the Kingdoms of the Eastern Shores, as they are now called, is one of the most civilised areas of Northern Harqual. Dominated by a few remaining kingdoms, these states comprise of Minar, Stonn, Thallin & Wolffire. And while only two of the four are called kingdoms, they are all sovereign states.

Of the four that are currently on the current Eastern Council, only the Barony of Wolffire joined the council after the original signing. And only one major kingdom has resigned from the council peacefully, the Kingdom of Navirosov. All other city-states that originally signed the treaty are now either part of one of the four kingdoms or turned on their rivals in a bid for power and were wiped out. Oddly enough, the dwarves of the Sunus Mountains, who were offered a place on the council, decided against signing the treaty and disappeared from the mountain range altogether several years later.

An Strange, Uneasy Peace
The end of the First Ogre War brought peace to the continent, for the first time, for as long as even the elves could remember. Everyone knew it wasn’t going to last. The demihumans knew that the ogres would come again and the humans knew that if the ogres didn’t come soon they would start to fight amongst each other again. It was inevitable… for a 150 years it was inevitable.

No one thought that the ogres would wait that long and that humanity would war with each other way before that much time had pasted, rather than live in peace. Yet, for a century-and-a-half the continent was a quiet, tranquil place (for the most part). Still divided, yes, but peaceful. Old soldiers itched for battle, while younger ones wondered what all the fuss was about. If the ogres did come, they’d be ready for them. Why waste valuable resources and time fighting with each other? This was the viewpoint of the young and it should be remembered that the young decide the future.

In the Eastern Shores, harsh stability was the rule. As noted above, council members that did try to conquer the others were quickly defeated, their city-states annexed as a warning to other council members not to violate the Nest Lake Treaty. Soon city-states banded together to form countries and marriages between nobles of different countries cemented the Eastern Shores together.

In the west, it was a little less stable. Over a dozen minor skirmishes happened in 150 years but these conflicts never lasted long. No one wanted to fight a war in the middle of winter and there was always the threat of the ogres. Two major city-states rose to prominence in this region at the time, completely oblivious to the civilisation that was growing in the Eastern Shores. Onaway and Steins still stand to this day even though their names have changed countless times since then.

Even the decadent Empire of Swords lay quiet during this time. Sure they backstabbed and betrayed each other but they never invaded the surrounding lands once or fought any internal civil wars. It was eerie to behold if you lived south of the Imperium in one of the many struggling city-states. It was like the Imperium dogs were taking a long nap. And in the lands of the elves and the dwarves, they waited. 150 years was nothing to them. If the humans south of the Greystone Mountains stood together then they would join the fight. If not, they would mourn the passing of a barbaric people they once called friends.

The Second Ogre War
When the hordes came, they came in the thousands. In 701 N.C., ogre chieftains led the hordes of humanoids once again, descending on the remaining city-states and countries of Northern Harqual. And while places such as the Wild Plains and the Imperium were devastated by the war, the Eastern Shores held on for dear life. They pushed back the ogres to the fringes of civilisation and refused to give in as more humanoids poured out from desolate plains, high mountains and the desert known as the Great Expanse.

A group of heroes rose to fight the hordes. A young paladin of Jalivier named Jacard Winternight, a family of rogues and mercenaries named Tigerstorm, a stanch soldier named Travathian Dragonguard, a sorcerer named Heward Tallinson, a dwarven fighter-priest named Brekk Thunderstone, a silver elf priest named Menkhar Silversun, a humble forest elf named Minonus Redwater and a barbarian chieftain named Recmair Hault.

These adventurers turned heroes were key to stamping out the hordes of humanoids and the Second Ogre War lasted for less then a decade in the Eastern Shores. However, the war did not end in the western lands until 713 N.C.

The ogres and their followers fled back to most inhospitable regions on Harqual but some (most notably gnolls and orcs) stayed behind becoming regional bandits, whose descendants still raid the surrounding lands to this day. In time, the heroes would become prominent citizens of the Eastern Shores. Some would even become the rulers of their homelands.

NOTE: Jacard Winternight rules Navirosov, Travathian Dragonguard became king of Thallin, Menkhar Silversun was crowned High One of the Silver Leaves, and Recmair Hault built the barbaric lands of Wolffire.

In the west, all but Onaway and Steins fell to the ogres and the area is just starting to recover from the war. Cut off from the east for almost 200 year, the west is now reconnecting with the Kingdoms of the Eastern Shores. Elves are not as welcome in the west, as in the east, due to the fact that the city-states of the Wild Plains didn’t stand together against the ogres and the elves left them to their fate as a result.

The Imperium suffered the most from the Second Ogre War or one should say the citizens did. When the ogres attacked the rulers and nobles of the remaining city-states herded the people out into the countryside to sate the ogres’ bloodlust. In return, the ogres didn’t sack all the cities of the Imperium. Even some of the remaining dark gods turned away from the Imperium, fearing that the vile humans would drag down the Pantheon of Swords with them.

Several ogre tribes also tried to conquer the gnomes and rakasta of the south but met heavy resistance and were forced to flee north into the Great Expanse. However, once there they had to flee the mysterious desert dwelling elves of the Expanse, moving further north into the Sunus Mountains or across the waters to one of the many islands that dot the region.

For years after the war ended, the civilisations of Harqual rebuilt and fortified their lands, building new kingdoms and forming trade alliances with new neighbours. Hoping that the conflict and strife would finally end. They were wrong.

The Year of the Dawn (748 N.C.)
The year 748 on the New Calendar was a year rife with rumors and change. The spring began like any other over the previous decades after the Second Ogre War, a wild peace waking from its slumber. Into this peace came rumors that the Empire of Swords may be on the move again and that a third war against the ogres loomed on the horizon.

The High Thane of the Kingdom of the Greystones, Ulfgar Blackforge, was killed by a small band of ogres leaving his young, inexperienced daughter, Sannl Blackforge, as his successor. Brekk Thunderstone becomes the unstable child’s sole confidant and advisor as she refuses to listen to anyone else. Eventually, she seals off the dwarven kingdoms from the humans and elves, trusting neither race to the point of paranoia.

In the capital city of the Kingdom of Thallin, a young band of adventurers is chosen for a mission to travel to Onaway in the western lands and try to solidify a trade alliance with whoever might still be living there. This group of adventurers faces orcs, ogres and a mysterious foe during the journey. Once through the Wild Plains they reached the city-state of Onaway, make a pact with its ruler, Than LaMarche, for an alliance with the Kingdom of Thallin, and uncover a plot to assassinate him.

Then the forest elves in Woodknot shock their northern cousins and the people of the Eastern Shores by sealing off the southern half of Great Forest from all other races. All those forest elves that were currently away from Woodknot were ordered to return or become outcasts in the eyes of their people. Some did return home but others did not.

Decades earlier, a wild-eyed old priest of the Pantheon of the North preached the coming of an old evil back to the lands of Harqual. Very few listened or even cared. The people were tired of listening to the old stories, now was the time for change and peace. They should have listened because change was the least of their worries.

 

[Knightfall]

al la bump...

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EDIT - Geez, I totally forgot to include the following tidbits as extra backstory filler before starting my new thread on my campaign journal.

Jaeger the Saint and the Honorbound
Jaeger’s death has great religious significance to all of the priests of the pantheon but none so much as his own. It was Jaeger that brought about the end of the Divinity War by sacrificing his life and divine power to save all of Harqual from Hiisi’s evil pantheon.

His former clergy now call themselves the Honorbound and refer him to as Jaeger the Saint. Jaeger gave his godsoul to the universe and as a result a bright star shines in the heavens above Kulan called Jaeger’s Rest.

In honor of Jaeger’s death and sacrifice the second week of his month is celebrated by every faith in the pantheon as the Time of Honorbound. Many treaties have been ratified and reworked during this week of celebration and remembrance.

This week is also when all the companies of Honorbound gather for the annual rites of passage for new members and to honor those of the company that have fallen over the last year. It is considered blasphemous to miss your companies gathering unless you are a prisoner of a military power that doesn’t worship the pantheon. All faiths of the pantheon will release a Honorbound to be at his gathering. This helps prevent vendettas and blood feuds between the faiths and independent companies.

 

[Knightfall]

More tidbits...

The Calendars of Harqual
There are three distinct calendars on Harqual. The continent's most widely used calendar, or the New Calendar as it’s called, is also Harqual's most important one. Two hundred and fifty two years after the end of the Divinity War, a man named Gabriel Stonn came to power in a city-state, called Araig, on the Jagged Peninsula on the eastern shore of Northern Harqual. Gabriel was the first man to have a vision of what Harqual’s future should be without also wanting to oppress its peoples.

He reformed Ariag’s failing political and justice systems and introduced widespread change throughout the city’s military to weed out corruption. He put the power of rule in the hands of the citizens of the city-state. Women and even those over the age of fifteen had the right to voice their opinion, although one still had to be at least eighteen to vote. It was a radical change that would reshape Harqual’s history in the region. It was this that brought about the creation of the New Calendar.

Before this time the only method of tracking the days and seasons of the years was by using the archaic Calendar of Swords designed by the Imperium. The CoS, as it was abbreviated, was designed for recording historic and military achievements of the Imperium. It was never used to track the birth dates of the masses, festivals, or the changing seasons. The only birth dates ever recorded on the CoS were those of the King-Priests and a few of the more ambitious Dead Emperors.

Another problem with the calendar was that only a few individuals on Harqual knew how to decipher it. The CoS was written with strange archaic symbols that are still etched into the ziggurats. (The current year is 2459 CoS.)

Stonn knew his Kingdom of the Jagged Peninsula, needed a new calendar to track the seasons and the days. And since Gabriel was a humble man, he refused to name it after himself or the city-state he ruled. He would simply call it the New Calendar and be done with it. (The current year is 749 N.C., The Year of the Return.)

However, Gabriel was also a pious man and was true to the gods of the Pantheon of the North when so many others were not. He honored the gods by naming each of the months for one of the Divine Children that fell during the Divinity War. Thus, the twelve months of the New Calendar are named Anon, Zealot, Sialic, Thorn, Truce, Hansa, Hela, Seraph, Nessus, Euphoria, Tulle, and Jaeger, in that order. (See below for more details on the structure of the New Calendar.)

The New Calendar spread through the lands of the eastern coast and eventually to the west and even to the far south. Only the barbarians of the Northlands have never adopted it fully, as it is not in their nature to write things down. They simply track the passage of time the way they had since Cronn built the Hall of the Northlands. The barbarians of the Northlands do honor Gabriel Stonn for the pious life he lead and honor the celebrations and cycles of the calendar when visiting the southern lands beyond the Greystone Mountains.

The third calendar is not really a physical calendar at all. The abbreviation D.W. refers to the time that passed from the end of the Divinity War to the Year of the Dawn. Thus, it only spans from 1 D.W. to 1001 D.W. No one ever uses it to refer to events before or after these years and most never use it regardless. This abbreviation only came into use after the tabaxi returned to Harqual in 749 N.C., the Year of the Return. After it had occurred, their was finally a way for scholars to note when the Divinity War actually ended. (These years correspond to -253 N.C. to 748 N.C. Note that there isn't such a thing as 0 N.C., the calendar starts at 1.)

As for Gabriel Stonn, the man ruled Araig and the kingdom that was built around it for his entire lifetime. At his death in 52 N.C., the city and the kingdom were both renamed Stonn in his honor by the people that had grown to love him. Stonn's kingdom still exists and is the oldest human kingdom on Harqual (the silver elf Kingdom of the Silver Leaves is the oldest). Its birth is celebrated every 100 years from the 1st year after Gabriel’s death to the present. The next celebration is in three years.

The New Calendar follows a 12 months (365 days) per year cycle. Each month is broken down into roughly 4 weeks made up of 6 days per week. Each month is made up either 30 or 31 days. The year has 4 seasons that follow the same basic seasonal patterns of Earth - Springdawn, Summerfall, Autumnwind, & Winternight.

As noted above, the gods of Harqual are directly linked to the creation of Harqual’s calendar. Each month is named for one of the Divine Children, as they are now called, that died in the Divinity War against the Pantheon of Swords. All but three of these Children were lost to oblivion. Jaeger's legacy is noted above in the section on the Honorbound but more details are needed regarding Hansa and Hela.

Hansa was buried under the earth during a battle with Hiisi’s godson's, Deltum and Enduma. It was the cat god Tu that sent Hansa spiraling down into ground forming what would become the Twilight Valley. To this day, he struggles to free himself from his underground prison, which causes seasonal earthquakes that plague Harqual. However, he is slowly dying and each time the earth shakes, Cronn hopes it will be for the last time so that his grandchild may rest.

Hela’s is an even more tragic tale; Thera bound Hela's essence to the sea of the Sword Gulf so that Peace Goddess could never rest. Thus, when violent storms break against the western coasts near Onaway and Avion, they are storms of Hela’s sorrow, raging to be free of her living death. Lord Aegir can often hear her wails from his underwater domain of Hlesvang (beyond the island of Teverroot in the heart of the sea that shares his name).

The elements are also linked to Harqual’s calendar by way of the names of the days of the week and the moons of Kulan. The days in order of first to last are Moonsday, Earthday, Fireday, Seaday, Windday, & Starday. The four middle days are of course directly linked to each of the Four Elements - Air, Earth, Fire, & Water.

Elementalists all across Harqual perform special rites and prayers, each week, on their associated day of the week. If this is not done, then the elementalist loses one spell level for the remainder of the week. If the rites are missed again the next week the elementalist incurs a –1 penalty when casting any spells from their Elemental School (this continues each week until the Elementalist performs the rites on the proper day (this is cumulative, -2, -3, etc).

The first and last day are also linked to the elements but hold less daily significance to elementalists.

Moonsday, of course, refers to Kulan’s two moons – Novan and Lithe. Novan is a water world and is considered the source of power for Water and Air Elementalists. Lithe is a bare, mineral rich airless void that is considered the source of power for Earth Elementalists.

Starday is named for both the stars and Kulan’s sun. It is considered a special day for astronomers, especially during an eclipse or other celestial event (such as a comet). This day is also important to Fire Elementalists as it denotes the sun and the source of their power. Solar eclipses are considered ‘bad’ by these elementalists as this lessens their power for the duration of the eclipse [reduced by one level for 1d4+1 turns before eclipse, full duration of eclipse (including partial), and 1d4-1 turns after the eclipse].

Calendar Nomenclature
Anon (ah-‘nän)
Sialic (si-‘al-ik)
Hansa (‘han(t)-sah, ‘hän-(,)zä)
Hela (‘hel-ah)
Seraph (‘ser-ahf)
Nessus (‘nes-ahs)
Euphoria (you-‘for-ee-ah)
Tulle (‘tül)
Jaeger (‘yeh-gar)

 

[Knightfall]

And finally, tidbits about dragons on Harqual...

Dragons of Harqual
The dragons of Harqual are a little different than dragons on other worlds. Now, you’re probably saying ‘I’ve heard that one before!’

Ah, but they are.

You see dragons are linked to the gods and the elements. Dragons epitomise the Four Elements and the union of the beneficial powers of these elements. They also represent the paradox at the heart of being the mutual dependence of light and dark, creation and destruction, male and female. Dragons are the unifying force underlying these opposites and symbolise magical energy, neither good nor evil, that supports the physical world and which can be used for either good or evil purposes.

All this makes the dragons of Harqual an important part of the cycles of life and passing seasons. Amongst the members of Pantheon of the North, dragons are considered part of the natural world just like any other intelligent race or member of the animal kingdom. Thus, they are not hunted as monsters and are even considered special children of the gods. Daghdha’s druids will help dragons fit into the Balance and will even teach abandoned new-borns, of any color, to live in the bounds of the natural world. It is considered a great honor to have a dragon as a patron or to be given the title of Dragon Friend.

Note that not all Chromatics are evil and not all Metallics are good. In fact, most dragons of Harqual are either neutral in alignment or simply don’t live long. Many of the more radical aligned dragons (such as Black, Gold, Red and Silver) don’t even exist in great numbers on Harqual. Those that do are either young neutral dragons in the company of druids or older dragons that are hiding from the outside world. However, all colors of dragons do exist on Harqual, even Gem, Shadow, Yellow, etc. Almost all of them follow the Balance and it is considered a good omen to spot one soaring through the sky.

The oldest dragon of each color on Harqual is called The Majestic. Thus, the great blue dragon of the Great Expanse is known as Adamanditar, The Majestic Blue. The Majestics are always neutral and are the greatest protectors of the Balance. The Majestics gather once every 5 years for the Wyrmtide on the first day of Summerfall to celebrate the passing of the seasons and to discuss recent events that are endangering the Balance. These meetings are the draconic version of a Druids’ Circle. The last Wyrmtide was three years before the Year of the Dawn (748 N.C.).

It is considered blasphemous to kill a dragon that lives within the Balance but not so if the dragon is considered Rouge. The Majestics have often sponsored adventurers to hunt down rouge dragons endangering the Balance and have just recently (in the last 20 years) commissioned an elite group of adventurers known as the Knights Majestic. These groups of knights never refer to themselves as dragon slayers and will be insulted by any that call them such.

The Knights accept fighters, rangers, druids, sorcerers, rogues and bards. They do not accept paladins and most wizards into the Order due to those individuals extreme ideals. This includes elementalist because they rely on one or two particular elements instead of a balance of forces.

Now you are probably wondering ‘where in Hades were the dragons during all this war and death?’ And the answer is simpler than it seems at first. They were protecting the Balance during the wars that raged across Harqual. It was not their duty to get involved in the conflict but to minimise and repair the damage that was done during the wars to nature and its creatures.

Not even the few rouge dragons through the centuries would dare form an alliance with the Empire of Swords. For if they did, the Majestics would have got involved and wiped the evil mortals of the Imperium off the face of Harqual, as well as the rouges. The Pantheon of the North knew that widespread devastation would be the result from the dragons entering the wars and forbade them to get involved. It would not have been good for the Balance. Thus, the dragons remained on the sideline, helping the Priests of Daghdha and Larea protect the Balance from the ravages of war. This is why the land rebounded so quickly and the civilizations did not.