Lots of History
Thanee said:
Whole districts in Geoff are deserted, small bands of humanoids are still causing trouble on the borders, while petty nobles squabble over the spoils in Sterich.
I wan't sure if you were saying this or not, but I wanted to make it really clear that much of Geoff is in fact still occupied as of CY 591. It's only Sterich that has been mostly cleared of its invaders, with only some of the border forts remaining in giant hands.
Actually, because I seem to think that the history of all this is so important, I will take a little time and give you a bit more recent history of the area (Sterich, Geoff, and Keoland just so that I don't have to spend forever doing this!
) This is all coming verbatim from the
Living Greyhawk Gazetteer which WotC published back in 2000 (heh, I almost said CY 2000!), and material from the more recent
Dungeon magazines.
I'll put in in spoiler tags to conserve on space. I know, it’s incredibly long. I hope to begin posting the adventure summaries this evening (I’m working all day).
BTW, if you want an INCREDIBLY exhaustive timeline of Greyhawk history, you can go to a great site called Canonfire! and this page in particular:
http://www.canonfire.com/htmlnew/ghchrondex.php
STERICH
[SBLOCK]
STERICH
Sterich is a land rescued from nonhuman occupation only to find itself embroiled in struggles between returning nobles. The boundaries of the reclaimed territory generally extend from the western banks of the Javan River to the east, through the lowlands of the Stark Mounds, down to the Davish River and around, in the south, to the Jotens (where fighting continues). The mountain lake, the source fo the Javan River, remains a hive of evil activity, and the villages and mines nearby are completely abandoned
.
The distant western Crystalmists were once the home of several competing clans of mountain dwarves. When the nonhumans invaded in 584 CY, many clans withdrew into their strongholds, while others fled the hills to warn their human allies. Since the nation has been reclaimed, five different clan holds have failed to send representatives to the court in Istivin.
The military of Sterich, though blooded badly in the reclamation campaigns, has emerged as a well trained force with a handful of canny generals experienced in battling (and beating) nonhumans. A strong contingent of 1,500 halberdiers fors the heart of this force, which is supplemented by light infantry and renowned light cavalry. Unfortunately, the military’s division of power declares that most units are under the control of a lord. Since the lords are now squabbling among themselves for regained land, soldiers once united against a common enemy have turned upon each other.
History:
Settled in as a client state of Keoland by relatives of the Grand Duke of Geoff, Sterich was founded as an earldom with the primary purpose of creating a stable political power with easy acess to the mines of the surrounding hills and mountains.
Sterich existed for centuries in the shadow of the great western mountains, and faced countless dangers spawned above and below those frozen peaks. Incursions of giant raiders were a constant problem, but always one the Border Companies could handle. That is, until organized giant attacks began in earnest in 577 CY. These attacks overwhelmed the Border Companies, and a foul curse fell upon the capital of Istivin. The entire citadel of the earl and a good portion of the city was swallowed in an immense black hemisphere. This black dome was part of a plot by the demon-queen Lolth to absorb the world of Oerth into her layer fo the Abyss. It took the timely intervention of a stalwart band of adventures to defeat the giants and avert Lolth’s plans.
In recent years, Sterich had grown distant from the Keoish crown, and had been allowed, in most cases, to care for its own affairs. King Skotti had for years treated the earl of Sterich, the proud Querchard, more as a favored relative than a vassal. The two often spent holidays in each others’ capitals, visits celebrated with much more vigor in Istivin than in Niole Dra.
Perhaps because king and earl shared such strong bonds of friendship, it came as a surprise to most Sterish folk in 584 when, with ranger reports of looming nonhuman activity in the western mountains, King Skotti failed to send any troops to Sterich’s defense. In truth, the king had long despaired over Sterich’s virtual independence (a relic from the reigns of his predecessors), and implored his friend to swear fealty to Keoland, conceding much of the mine take to Niole Dra. Querchard refused.
The earldom paid in blood. Within a score of weeks, uncounted legions of nonhumans, seemingly led by powerful giants, surged from mountain strongholds, quickly overwhelming Sterich’s petty baronies. Istivin was abandoned within days fot eh first attacks. Most other towns were put to the torch; stragglers were butchered and cooked on flames fueled by whole villages and towns.
Many Sterish followed their earl to Keoland. Others, angered by the lack of Keoish action (but oblivious to Skotti’s opportunistic offer) fled to the Duchy of Ulek or Gran March. In the latter, many joined the nascent Knights of Dispatch and planned the recapture of their lands. Regardless of where the Sterish fled, most believed the occupation to be but a brief era in the history of their great nation.
In early 585 CY, King Skotti (perhaps realizing the terrible cost of his opportunism) promoted the exiled Querchard to the rank of marquis. Reasoning that a semi-independent subject added more coin to the treasury than a wasteland controlled by ogres and gnolls, the king of Keoland promised rich rewards for each recaptured barony, and mustered troops in the city of Flen, intent to recapture lost lands. These soldiers were joined by mercenaries and knights, all of whom hungered for a decisive victory in a decade that had provided so many grim defeats.
The first gains came in late 585 CY, when the Keoish force freed the town of Fitela from a fierce enclave of orcs and their kin. Much to the surprise of those who had fought inconclusive battles in Geoff, the armies discovered few giants in Sterich. Interrogations revealed, however, that the occupying forces were loosely aligned under the banner of once King Galmoor, reputedly a powerful giant in residence of Istivin. As the armies marched west to the capital, past depressing smudges of ash and ruin that had once been villages, all prepared themselves for the worst.
When finally the army gained Istivin, in Readying 586 CY, no trace remained of King Galmoor, or indeed of any destruction after the initial raids of 584. In striking contrast to all other liberated towns, which had been destroyed, most buildings in Istivin remained in perfect repair.
Patchwall 587 CY, saw the liberation of all the cities of the heartlands, providing the army with a stable base from which to mount village-by-village attacks upon the nonhuman holdings to the west. By Coldeven 588, the whole of Sterich had been reclaimed.
The march is now controlled by Marchioness Resbin Dren Emondav, a dark-skinned, large-framed woman who took her husband’s role upon his disappearance in 590 CY. The marchioness is reclusive, emerging from Krelont Keep only to announce new laws intended to shield the citizenry from the chaos outside the city walls and protect themselves from each other.
Beyond Istivin, supernatural terrors are few. Mundane problems exist in abundance. Though King Skotti’s promise of wealth for each freed barony enticed many minor nobles to take up arms against Sterich’s oppressors, it also generated a dangerous greed in the populace. This has resulted in several legal (and sometimes physical) battles with multiple claimants to the same property. As the marchioness rightly supposes and Skotti fears, many of the contesting nobles are not nobles at all, but opportunistic con artists hoping to carve land and a rich reward from the misfortunes of a largely deceased aristocracy. In some cases, evil men have harbored designs upon still-living nobles; assassination is now relatively common throughout the countryside. While for a brief period in 588 CY it looked as though Sterich had rebounded from invasion, the country remains threatened by its internal disorder.[/SBLOCK]
