Humans can be found throughout Sulos, and between the combined populations of the nations of L’Landra, Rhoenheim, Kashra, and Kesh, they now rival the goblinoids in raw numbers. Until the age of Enlightenment began approximately two centuries ago, humans played second fiddle to the more influential and militant culture of the goblinoid empire, Hazra’Ghalduur. In the modern age however, humans are widespread, and their nations have strong alliances based upon trade, and mutual protection. Only since they began to dominate the economics of Sulos, have the humans really come unto their own. Lead in spirit by the nation of L’Landra, and her merchant Syndicate, humans now wield greater power than any military ever could.

While humankind has had their own fair share of great kingdoms, most of those older than five centuries have not stood the test of time. Of the ancient nations both Sancrist and Leshaar have long since fallen and only the city-states of Kesh have survived since ancient times. The refugees of the two lost kingdoms scattered throughout Sulos after the goblinoids conquered their lands, and established the modern nations of Rhoenheim, Kashra, and L’Landra. The so-called “New Kingdoms” are not actually kingdoms at all. Rhoenheim is governed by a senate and their sorcerer nobles, L’Landra is governed by their merchant Syndicate, and Kashra is governed by her priesthood and knights. The New Kingdoms are so called because they share a collective ancestry to the “Old Kingdoms,” of Leshaar and Sancrist. This common ground has enabled them to put their differences behind them for their mutual military and economic welfare. When the Treaty of L’Landra was signed, forging powerful bonds between these three nations, and the city-states of Kesh, two centuries ago, the age of enlightenment began.

Culturally, ethnically, and morally, humans are as diverse as any race. This flexible outlook on life coupled with their ability to physically adapt to almost any environment, has significantly impacted the growth of humankind as a people and a world power. Humans will settle anywhere they can tame the land, feed their population, and find a niche. They are more tolerant and accepting than other races, willing to not only accept other sentient populations within their lands, but to learn from them and coexist as equals. While certain unavoidable prejudices do exist, humans tend to discriminate based upon social class, economics, and nationality. Hazra’Ghalduur and her goblinoids are only enemies because of their militant society which threatens the human way of life; there is very little personal race related prejudice in human lands.

Humans Have the Following Racial Traits

• Medium: As Medium creatures, humans have no special bonuses or penalties due to their size.
• Human base land speed is 30 feet.
• 1 extra feat at 1st level.
• 4 extra skill points at 1st level and 1 extra skill point at each additional level.
• Automatic Language: New Common or Old Common (Kesh). Bonus Languages: Any (other than secret languages, such as Druidic). See the Speak Language skill.
• Favored Class: Any. When determining whether a multiclass human takes an experience point penalty, his or her highest-level class does not count.



Humans are a diverse lot and human characters may elect to spend their first level bonus feat to become a scion of the nation of their birth. A scion is the exemplar of his national heritage and the epitome of his people culturally, ethnically, and professionally.

Scion of Kashra

The scions of Kashra are typically tall and well built with blonde or red hair, blue or green eyes, and muscular builds. They cone from hardy stock and are usually determined and hard working people, known for their kindness towards strangers and loyalty to their friends and families.

Benefits: A scion of Kashra treats heal, ride, and sense motive as class skills, regardless of which classes they take levels in, and they gain a +2 bonus to skill checks involving these skills. They also gain weapon familiarity with the saber. In Kashra the fighter is the most respected character class, and the scion of L’Landra treats fighter as their favored class.

Scion of Kesh

The scions of Kesh are typically dark coppery skinned, with thick dark hair, and dark brown eyes. They tend to short and wiry in build. The scions of Kesh are renowned for their undying devotion to their beliefs, adamant cultural independence, and familiarity with the markets and infrastructure of the city-states.

Benefits: A scion of Kesh treats gather information, knowledge (local), knowledge (religion) as class skills, regardless of which classes they take levels in, and they gain a +2 bonus to skill checks involving these skills. They also gain weapon familiarity with the Kalij. Clerics are the most respected character class in Kesh, and scions treat cleric as their favored class.

Scion of L’Landra

The scions of L’Landra are typically of average height and build with brown hair and hazel colored eyes. They are charming and clever people known for their business sense and cunning wit. They usually have a slightly greedy streak and love adventure, excitement, and games of chance.

Benefits: A scion of L’Landra treats bluff, diplomacy, and sense motive as class skills, regardless of which classes they take levels in, and they gain a +2 bonus to skill checks involving these skills. They also gain weapon familiarity with the rapier, pistol, and rifle. In L’Landra the swashbuckler is the most respected character class, and a scion of L’Landra treats swashbuckler as their favored class.

Scion of Rhoenheim

The scions of Rhoenheim are typically fair skinned, with black hair, and stunning feral eyes. They have an intellectual bent, and unlike the people of many other nations many have the benefit of a sound education. The scions of Rhoenheim are renowned for their study of magic and their relentless pursuit of knowledge.

Benefits: A scion of Rhoenheim treats knowledge (arcana), spellcraft, and use magical devise as class skills, regardless of which classes they take levels in, and they gain a +2 bonus to skill checks involving these skills. They also gain weapon familiarity with the saber. Wizards are the most respected character class in Rhoenheim, and scions treat wizard as their favored class.



While both humans and goblinoids began to settle the lands of Sulos at approximately the same time (around five millennia ago), the goblinoids and their empire have survived since its inception. The goblinoid war machine has conquered numerous lands, and the empire of Hazra’Ghalduur is the largest and most populous single nation in the known world. A full third of the continent and roughly half the total population of Sulos lay within the provinces of Hazra’Ghalduur.

Their rigid militant society is led by the seven dynastic clans and Emperor Volshuun VII. Their society is structured, regimented, and largely atheist. Their loyalties to their family clans and national ideals have held the empire together for 3,500 years, although since the beginning of the Era of Enlightenment, social unrest, failed military campaigns, and sweeping industrialization have torn their social structure apart. While the empire remains essentially united, they are struggling to feed their massive population, floundering on the edge of economic ruin, and searching desperately for a new cultural identity in a rapidly changing world.



Of the three sub-species of goblinoids who live within Hazra’Ghalduur, the goblins themselves are the most populous. They have long been treated as second class citizens within their nation, and but one of the seven dynastic clans is a goblin family. A telling sign (if ever there was one) of social inequality. Many of the activists for social reform are goblins, and they are the driving force for change within the empire. Since the beginning of the era many goblins have abandoned their farms and villages to seek employment within the cities of the empire in the factories and foundries that have sprung up at an overwhelming rate within the last century. Others have emigrated from the imperial lands, to seek new lives in the human nations where there is greater opportunity for equality and prosperity.

Goblins Have the Following Racial Traits

• -2 Strength, +2 Dexterity, -2 Charisma.
• Small size: +1 bonus to Armor Class, +1 bonus on attack rolls, +4 bonus on Hide checks, -4 penalty on grapple checks, lifting and carrying limits ¾ those of Medium characters.
• A goblin’s base land speed is 30 feet.
• Darkvision out to 60 feet.
• +4 racial bonus on Move Silently and Ride checks.
• Automatic Languages: Goblin. Bonus Languages: Demonic, Dwarven, Elven, Giant, Guldra, New Common
• Favored Class: Rogue.



The hobgoblins rule the empire. Six of the seven dynastic clans are hobgoblin, and there has never been a non-hobgoblin emperor. Most of the hobgoblins are quite content with their lot in life, but the last couple of centuries have been a strain. The dynastic clans have been divided for years, and they have been unable to put their differences behind them to unite their nation and push forward. The rapid pace of industrial change that has resulted in steam engines, coal furnaces, foundries, and mass production, has given them numerous new tools with which to revitalize their nation, but the social backlash of changing traditions has torn them apart as a people. Hobgoblins though firm in their traditionalist values, have begun to adventure, and explore during the last couple of centuries; while they remain loyal to their clans and their emperor, they have had no wars or battles in which to hone their skills, and earn their honor, therefore adventure has been the path many have taken to test their mettle, and prove their worth.

Hobgoblins Have the Following Racial Traits

• +2 Dexterity, +2 Constitution.
• A hobgoblin’s base land speed is 30 feet.
• Darkvision out to 60 feet.
• Weapon Familiarity: Hobgoblins may treat bastard swords and heavy repeating crossbows as martial weapons, rather than exotic weapons.
• +4 racial bonus on Move Silently checks.
• Automatic Languages: Goblin. Bonus Languages: Demonic, Dwarven, Elven, Giant, Ghuldra, New Common.
• Favored Class: Fighter.
• Level adjustment +1.

Racial Substitution Level (Fighter)

At first level a hobgoblin fighter may elect to forfeit his level one bonus fighter feat in order to buy off his level adjustment. From that point forward the character is treated as though he has a level adjustment of +0.



The bugbears of Hazra’Ghalduur have never seen themselves as part of the empire. They once had their own nation, and they were as war-like as their goblinoid kin, but they always saw themselves as superior to their smaller brethren. Ghuldra however fell apart nearly a century ago, after devastating conflicts with Kashra and internal strife ripped the bugbears apart as a people and a nation. They have since taken up refuge within Hazra’Ghalduur, and though it has been a few generations since they have had a nation of their own, they remain culturally independent, and still hope to one day reclaim their lost lands, and exact revenge against the Knights of Kashra.

Bugbears Have the Following Racial Traits

• +4 Strength, +2 Dexterity, +2 Constitution, -2 Charisma.
• Medium size.
• A bugbear’s base land speed is 30 feet.
• Darkvision out to 60 feet.
• Racial Hit Dice: A bugbear begins with three levels of goblinoid, which provide 3d8 Hit Dice, a base attack bonus of +2, and base saving throw bonuses of Fort +1, Ref +3, and Will +1.
• Racial Skills: A bugbear’s goblinoid levels give it skill points equal to 6 × (2 + Int modifier). Its class skills are Climb, Hide, Intimidate, Listen, Move Silently, Search, and Spot.
• Racial Feats: A bugbear’s humanoid levels give it two feats.
• +3 natural armor bonus.
• +4 racial bonus on Move Silently checks.
• Automatic Languages: Goblin, Ghuldra. Bonus Languages: Demonic, Dwarven, Elven, Giant, New Common.
• Favored Class: Goblinoid
• Level adjustment +1.

Racial Substitution Level (Goblinoid)

At first level a bugbear goblinoid may elect to forfeit his goblinoid special class ability to buy off his level adjustment. From that point forward he has a level adjustment of + 0, but his special class ability is forever forfeited, and cannot be advanced in any way.

Goblinoid Racial Class




The dwarves have lived hidden within their mountainous strongholds for thousands of years, rarely venturing beyond the borders of Thoth. But it has been more than two centuries since the last major wars ravaged Sulos, and a flourishing economic trade has lured them out of hiding. Dwarven merchants and craftsmen have begun to make their presence known, and they represent an important, though quite new, dynamic in the world trade of Sulos. A handful of young dwarven warriors have begun to adventure, beyond the lands of Thoth, and while dwarves remain a minority beyond the lands of Thoth, they are not so uncommon as to attract a great deal of suspicion or attention.

Dwarves Have the Following Racial Traits

• +2 Constitution, -2 Charisma.
• Medium: As Medium creatures, dwarves have no special bonuses or penalties due to their size.
• Dwarf base land speed is 20 feet. However, dwarves can move at this speed even when wearing medium or heavy armor or when carrying a medium or heavy load (unlike other creatures, whose speed is reduced in such situations).
• Darkvision: Dwarves can see in the dark up to 60 feet. Darkvision is black and white only, but it is otherwise like normal sight, and dwarves can function just fine with no light at all.
• Stonecunning: This ability grants a dwarf a +2 racial bonus on Search checks to notice unusual stonework, such as sliding walls, stonework traps, new construction (even when built to match the old), unsafe stone surfaces, shaky stone ceilings, and the like. Something that isn’t stone but that is disguised as stone also counts as unusual stonework. A dwarf who merely comes within 10 feet of unusual stonework can make a Search check as if he were actively searching, and a dwarf can use the Search skill to find stonework traps as a rogue can. A dwarf can also intuit depth, sensing his approximate depth underground as naturally as a human can sense which way is up.
• Weapon Familiarity: Dwarves may treat dwarven waraxes and dwarven urgroshes as martial weapons, rather than exotic weapons.
• Stability: A dwarf gains a +4 bonus on ability checks made to resist being bull rushed or tripped when standing on the ground (but not when climbing, flying, riding, or otherwise not standing firmly on the ground).
• +2 racial bonus on saving throws against poison.
• +2 racial bonus on saving throws against spells and spell-like effects.
• +1 racial bonus on attack rolls against elves and goblinoids.
• +4 dodge bonus to Armor Class against monsters of the giant type. Any time a creature loses its Dexterity bonus (if any) to Armor Class, such as when it’s caught flat-footed, it loses its dodge bonus, too.
• +2 racial bonus on Appraise checks that are related to stone or metal items.
• +2 racial bonus on Craft checks that are related to stone or metal.
• Automatic Languages: Dwarven. Bonus Languages: Elven, Giant, Goblin, Ilsen.
• Favored Class: Fighter. A multiclass dwarf’s fighter class does not count when determining whether he takes an experience point penalty for multiclassing



It has been millennia since the elves could realistically be considered a world power. In the past before the goblinoids and humans came to dominate Sulos, they were the unrivalled masters of most of the continent, but today they live in a self imposed isolation within the antediluvian forests of Sha’Irna. Young elves are however well known throughout the various lands of Sulos; it is not uncommon for the children of Sha’Irna to go through a century or two of wanderlust, before they mature enough to appreciate the peaceful quit of their homeland. During their wanderlust, elves are often explorers, adventurers, and thrill seekers, who live their lives in a manner considered reckless by their elders.

Elves Have the Following Racial Traits

• +2 Dexterity, -2 Constitution.
• Medium: As Medium creatures, elves have no special bonuses or penalties due to their size.
• Elf base land speed is 30 feet.
• Immunity to magic sleep effects, and a +2 racial saving throw bonus against enchantment spells or effects.
• Low-Light Vision: An elf can see twice as far as a human in starlight, moonlight, torchlight, and similar conditions of poor illumination. She retains the ability to distinguish color and detail under these conditions.
• Weapon Familiarity: Elves treat the rapier and light blade as martial weapons, rather than exotic weapons
• +2 racial bonus on Listen, Search, and Spot checks. An elf that merely passes within 5 feet of a secret or concealed door is entitled to a Search check to notice it as if she were actively looking for it.
•Automatic Languages: Elven. Bonus Languages: Demonic, Dwarven, Goblin, New Common, Old Common, Sylvan.
• Favored Class: Druid. A multiclass elf’s druid class does not count when determining whether she takes an experience point penalty for multiclassing.

The Demonborn

Some elves are born with a strange demonic taint. These Demonborn elves as they have begun to be called, live on the fringes of elfin society, feared mistrusted, and persecuted by their kin. They are prone to fits of violence and rage, and often struggle to keep their inner demons from clawing their way to the surface. Life for the demonborn is a challenge of self restraint, persecution, and numerous social and cultural hardships.

• Darkvision out to 60 feet.
• Damage Reduction: 4-11 HD 5 / magic and 12 or more HD 10 / magic
• Resistance to Cold and Fire: 1-7 HD 5 and 8 or more HD 10
• Spell Resistance equal to their HD + 5 (maximum 25)
• Rage (Ex): A demonborn can fly into a rage a certain number of times per day. In a rage, a demonborn temporarily gains a +4 bonus to Str, a +4 bonus to Con, and a +2 morale bonus on Will saves, but he takes a -2 penalty to AC. The increase in Con increases the demonborn’s HP by 2 points per level, but these hit points go away at the end of the rage when his Constitution score drops back to normal. (These extra hit points are not lost first the way temporary hit points are.) While raging, a demonborn cannot use any Cha-, Dex-, or Int-based skills (except for balance, escape artist, tntimidate, and ride), the concentration skill, or any abilities that require patience or concentration, nor can he cast spells or activate magic items that require a command word to function. He can use any feat he has except combat expertise, item creation feats, and metamagic feats. A fit of rage lasts for a number of rounds equal to 3 + the character’s (newly improved) Con modifier. At the end of the rage, he loses the rage modifiers and restrictions and becomes fatigued for the duration of the current encounter. A demonborn can fly into a rage only once per encounter. At 1 HD he can use his rage ability once per day. At 4HD and every four hit dice gained thereafter, he can use it one additional time per day. Entering a rage takes no time itself, but he can do it only during his action, not in response to someone else’s action.
• Level Adjustment + 3

Many of the technological advances are of Sulos are quite widespread and common place. Printing presses are common in both L'Landra and Rhoenheim, and the both Dastun Journal and the L'Landran Gazette are widely distributed throughout the world. In Hazra'Ghalduur the Imperial Press is controlled by the government, and particularly loaded and slanted; Free press is not legal within the empire, so neither of the major publications of the human nations is distributed in goblinoid lands. Water pumps, plumbing, and ventiliation, have revolutionized the mining and sewerage sytems throughout Sulos; Hazra'Ghalduur, Thoth, L'Landra, and Rhoenheim all benefit from these advances. Both L'Landra and Rheomheim light the streetlamps of their cities with whale oil, and the cities of these nations are busy long after sundown; the goblinoids of Hazra'Ghalduur have not yet embraced this technology, but as a species with dark vision, they benefit far less than humans from this to make it economically viable. Barometers are common enough that all major newspapers publish fairly accurate weather predictions. Last but not least numerous advances with clockworks have spread throughout the more civilized nations of Sulos; Thoth has made the greatest advances in this regard, but the capitol of goblinoid empire is renown for the enormous clock tower known as Vala'Gurn. Located within Hakuun, Vala'Gurn when lit at night, and can be seen from anywhere within the city.

Hazra'Ghalduur

In Hazra’Ghalduur the goblinoids have used technology to solve many of the issues that would otherwise destabilize their enormous empire. The transcontinental railroad, has enabled the goblinoid military to move massive armies with speed and efficiency across vast expanses of territory. Not only have the steam engines made troop movement easier, but for a simple fair, normal folks can book passage on the trains as well. The massive industrialized factories and assembly lines of the major cities could not realistically man their facilities, without the labor force drawn from the surrounding countryside and villages. Additionally the trains enable raw materials like iron ore and coal to flow into the cities in quantities previously seen as all but impossible.

Almost all urban homes now rely on coal furnaces for heat, cooking, and hot water. While the coal furnace is almost unheard of in the rural parts of the empire, the cities themselves depend upon them. As vast as the empire is, much of her lands have been deforested, and the coal furnaces have made the previously insufferable winters much more bearable. Many cold night is spent huddled around the furnace, and the goblinoids are quite happy to finally have an efficient source of heat.

L'Landra

In L’Landra advancements in navigation have catapulted the tiny nation from a poor fishing community to a world trade power. Their sextants, spyglasses, and cartographers have made the once vast and frightening expanses of the open sea, seem almost routine and in a sense smaller than they once were. In addition to the tools which make the seas more navigable, are the tools which make the seas L’Landra’s alone to control. Her cannons and pistols. L’Landra was first to developed and harness the power of gunpowder, and unlike many of the goods and crafts that L’Landra peddles throughout the nations of Sulos, gunpowder is a jealously guarded trade secret. The finest firearms are manufactured in L’Landra, and she is the only human nation producing gun power.

L'Landra has not completely forgotten or abandoned their roots as fisherman. In fact while they still troll the great banks, they have also pioneered the new and booming whaling industry. Oil, Ivory, and bone, fetch unreal prices in the markets of L'Landra. The precious oil is used both as a lubricant for many forms of tools and simple machinery, as well as feul for the street lamps of L'Landra and Rhoenheim. The whale bone is used primarily in women's corsets; no respectable noble women would dare leave the house without these shape sculpting undergarments.

Where blockades and tariffs fall short, cannons make the difference. Nothing puts a smuggler in place better than cannon balls blasting through his hull. Even though most foreign vessels are smaller and swifter than the great galleons of L’Landra, no ship can outrun her cannons. Though L’Landra has never been known for her military, they now have the great equalizer. The L’Landran pistol is a hand held, single shot firearm that requires little training, and packs a powerful punch. While not as efficient as a bow or repeating crossbow in its rate of fire, the pistol packs a wallop, and can easily drop a powerfully built man in a single shot.

Rhoenheim

Rhoenheim is well known for their advances in astrology, astronomy, and science. Some of their greatest inventions have been their telescopes, observatories, planetariums, and orreries. The scholars of Dastun University have charted the stars, planets, and heavenly bodies. They have mapped out the constellations and studied the seasonal changes within the positioning of the stars.

The scholarly nation has also revolutionized the jewelry business when they developed eye pieces and simple microscopes. The precision tools and flawless craftsmanship of the Rhoen people is well known by jewelers throughout Sulos, and even the dwarves of Thoth are impressed. Nobles throughout the lands of Sulos easily pay double the price for earings, necklaces, rings, and bracelets stamped with the Rhoen seal of authenticity.

Thoth

The dwarves of Thoth have only recently become involved in economic community, but already their engineers have impressed the rest of Sulos. Thier mining tools, water pumps, and especially their clockworks have all proven themselves very advanced and quite impressive. Long concerned with their national security, the engineers of Thoth have built numerous clockwork automotons for the defense of their nation. Clockwork Golems, complicated traps and draw bridges are all used in defense of their nation. While few outsiders are aware of the true extent of the technological advances of Thoth, just the simple clocks and pocket watches exported by the Thanes, hint at the capabilities of the dwarven craftsmen. The Syndicate of L'Landra in particular, has expressed great interest in learning more.

Thoth has long made use of black powder explosives in their mining operations. Explosives are still very dangerous, and without very cautious precise charges, mines are prone to collapse. However the time saved and the efficiency of of the dwarven miners has enabled Thoth to compete with even Hazra'Ghalduur and their ogre slave labor. It is doubtful Thoth could match the production of the goblinoids without their black powder, but with it they are a rival to be reckoned with. Black powder has also been pivitol in the construction of the massive halls and warrens of the underground metropolises of Thoth. While the dwarves have yet to put this volatile technology to work in the production of firearms, the Thanes have seen the pistols of L'Landra, and are beginning to develop prototypes.

GAME MECHANICS

The Font of the Arcane is the source of wondrous and terrible magical power. Arcane Knights, Bards, and Sorcerers harness the energies of the font in order to access many of their powers. Spells, bardic music, and arcane blasts are among the many powers they have unlocked that draw upon and shape the forces of the arcane; the Font of the Arcane is the source of their power.

The Font of the Arcane taps into the energies of the parallel plane of the Elseworld. The Elseworld is a dark place of fiery smoke and ash, and the ceaseless wars of the demons. The demons have long tried to exert their influence over the people of Sulos, but they seem to be unable to escape their heinous prisons in the Elseworld. They have been rumored to have utilized demonic possession, charms, and lies to achieve their ends, though few truly understand the methods of demonkind or the extent of their arcane might.

Arcane Knight

Arcane Knights are the spawn of mortals and fiends. While most people who have traces of demonic blood within their lineages ignore or remain blissfully ignorant of them, an arcane knight embraces her heritage. The latent unholy energies of the arcane flows through her veins, and the arcane knight harnesses and embraces the raw power. They are living fonts of arcane energy, who are gradually transformed by their clumsy attempts to harness and control their demonic blood, into the very creatures from whom they have descended.

Game Mechanics


Bard

Bards are common throughout the lands of Sulos, though they are held in the highest regard in the goblinoid empire of Hazra’Ghalduur. The goblinoid bards (also known as skalds) sing the praises of their greatest legends and heroes, and often themselves become great warlords and champions. Bards are also quite common in Sha’Irna where they frequently refered to as the Blades of Sha'Irna. Elsewhere bards are often merchants, adventurers, and performers.

Game Mechanics


Sorcerer

Sorcerers wield and shape the powers of the arcane, and weave them into spells as though the powers were an extension of their very being. It is sometimes said that sorcerers have traces of demonic blood coursing through their veins from which they draw the arcane powers they command. Sorcerers are uncommon, and most people do not understand the nature of their abilities. The nobles of the nation of Rhoenheim are reputedly master sorcerers, and they wield considerable power and influence over their people.

Game Mechanics




The Font of the Divine is the source of many powerful and miraculous magical abilities. Clerics, Divine Knights, and Favored Souls draw upon the power of the font in order to access many of their abilities. Spells, Domains, and the power to Turn or Rebuke Undead are among the many abilities those who command the font exercise.

The Font of the Divine taps into the energies of the parallel plane of Pholtus. Pholtus is a realm of soothing light, peace, clear skies, and home to the angels, archons, and celestials. It is said the the ancient gods who once walked the world of Sulos, have left to live within the peaceful realm of Pholtus, though they left behind many hints and relics that have enabled the people of Sulos to continue to command the power of the Font of the Divine.

Cleric

While in the past clerics were common throughout the world of Sulos, they have since faded into obscurity. When the ancient gods were forgotten, the clerics lost much of their influence and power in the lands of man. The one place where Clerics are still found is within the city-states of Kesh. These clerics worship their divine kings, and serve their living deities as bureaucrats, templars, teachers, and sages. The clerics of Kesh command a great deal of respect, responsibility, and power in their homeland and they rarely leave for any lengthy period of time. Adventuring clerics are usually sent abroad by their kings on missions of diplomacy, trade, or exploration; sometimes their journeys last but a few months, but at other times the cleric will be gone for years at a time.

Divine Knight

Divine Knights are the spawn of mortals and celestials. While most people who have traces of celestial blood within their lineages ignore or remain blissfully ignorant of them, a divine knight embraces her heritage. The latent holy energies of the divine flow through her veins, and the divine knight harnesses and embraces the raw power. They are living fonts of divine energy, who are gradually transformed by their vigilant attempts to harness and control their blood, into the very creatures from whom they have descended.

Game Mechanics


Favored Soul

The favored soul is an extremely rare person, who has been touched by the power of the ancient gods or the light of Pholtus itself. These special men and women often feel a direct connection to their patron source of power, and some say the blood of the gods courses through their veins. Favored souls are most common in the lands of Kashra where they are often called the Acolytes of the Light. Elsewhere the favored soul is usually a loner who keeps to himself, and tries not to draw too much attention. Life itself is an adventure for the favored soul, and they rarely find acceptance or a permanent home anywhere they travel. Their abilities are strange and they are mistrusted by most of the people of Sulos. Almost all favored souls take up adventuring careers.



The Font of the Mind is the source of numerous abilities channeled through the power of Thought. Lurks, Psychic Warriors, and Wilders harness the energies of the mind to manifest powers, augment their abilities, and to harness the power of psionic feats. While many believe the powers of the mind are inherent to all sentient creatures there is a greater power behind the source of psionics: The Mindscape

The Font of the Mind taps into the energies of the parallel plane known only as the Mindscape. The Mindscape is a chaotic formless world of writhing twisting terrain, unusual gravitational pulls, and boundless energies. The aberrations and gith are native to the world of the Mindscape, though other nameless and formless entities seem to dwell there as well.

Lurk

The lurk is common in most nations and places throughout the world of Sulos, though few actually know quite how common they are. Lurks blend into society and keep low profiles; they hone their skills as hired killers, spies, and informants. Lurks have a strong presence in L’Landra (particularly in House Al’Arach of the Syndicate), and they are equally common in the mountainous kingdom of Thoth (home of the dwarves), and the city-states of Kesh. Elsewhere lurks exist, but not in numbers quite as great. Lurks often adventure; they seek out treasures, hunt down bounties, and wander through the underbelly of society.

Psychic Warrior

The psychic warrior is soldier and a disciplined mental adept. While they are not as common as the lurk, they exist in almost all lands in some number or another. Many of the warriors of Thoth have begun to study the power of the mind in earnest, though they are often unwilling to completely part ways with their warrior traditions; these dwarves often become psychic warriors. In the blazing deserts of Ilsen, the wandering tribes of nomads often pursue the path of the psychic warrior, to better defend themselves against the terrible creatures and environment of their homeland. Elsewhere psychic warriors are quite rare. Many psychic warriors who adventure have come from the lands of Thoth to explore the world and test their mettle. Others are lone warriors from various lands who have developed their skills through trial and error.

Wilder

Wilders tend to pop up almost everywhere. Psionic ability is not limited to exclusive peoples or regions in Sulos, and youngsters who discover their wild psionic talents come from all nations, races, and walks of life. The Society (a psionic institute based out of L’Landra) was founded to help young talents harness and control their abilities, though it has since expanded to all parts of Sulos. Before the society began to regulate and control the power of psionics, wilders were feared and distrusted; today they are simply reported to the Society, and expected to adhere to the regulations of the psionic institute.



The Font of Nature is the least understood of the fonts of power, though of all the fonts it has been harnessed and controlled for the longest period of time. Druids, Rangers, and Scouts harness the energies of the font in order to access many of their powers. The greatest powers unlocked through the font are druidic magic and the ability to shift forms; the Font of Nature is the source of such powers.

The Font of Nature taps into the energies of the parallel plane of Arcadia. Arcadia is world of splendid and pristine wilderness, wild animals, lycanthropes, and fey. The elves seem to have some ancestral link to the realm of Arcadia, and scholars believe they may have come to Sulos (in times long since forgotten) from this unspoiled paradise; though their reasons for leaving are completely unknown.

Druid

The first people to learn the crafts of the Druid were the elves of Sha’Irna. For generations immemorial the elves have been ruled by the druidic circles, and they continue to be the most powerful and influential people in the elven homeland to this day. Druids are also common in the eastern reaches of Rhoenheim, though they seem to have a more sinister bent than the druids of Sha’Irna. Elsewhere druids are rarely seen in numbers, and they are generally wandering loners, adventurers, and mystics, who keep mostly to themselves.

Game Mechanics


Commando

The commandos of Sulos have learned to tap into the Font of Nature to shift forms into a more feral and wild creature, granting numerous useful abilities. They are also master skirmishers and hunters who move swiftly through any terrain, striking at their enemies, and mercilessly tracking their prey. They have keen vision and a wealth of knowledge about the environment and the natural world. They are the consummate explorers, and perfectly home in the wilds. Their numbers however are dwindling. As the world of Sulos is gradually settled and industrialized, and the wild realms are tamed and bent under the thumb of man, dwarf, and goblinoid, the commando is gradually becoming less important. In time there may be no need for his skills at all, though fortunately (for the time being) there still remain vast expanses of unspoiled tundra, deserts, and forests, where the commando remains active and vigilant.

Game Mechanics


Reconnoiter

The reconnoiters of Sulos have always played a critical role on the battlefields of the numerous skirmishes and wars to have ravaged the world. Often mounted upon their trusty animal companions, reconnoiters are quick and stealthy combatants, who are rarely seen unless they choose to be. Reconnoiters have an affinity for nature, a plethora of valuable skills, and a love for adventure.

Game Mechanics




The Font of Personal Aptitude is the source from which all sentient creatures can draw power. The strength of will, perseverance, skill, and mental and physical ability, are all drown from the Font of Personal Aptitude. While it is not considered a true font by many scholars, personal aptitude is an attribute that all determined men and adventurers have. Many people never unlock their full potential.

There is no alternate plane from which the powers of personal aptitude are drawn. The font is little more than ideal embraced by competent fighters, rogues, and swashbucklers, first and foremost, that defines the source of perseverance that drives them. All people have access to the font, though in a world with so many means of harnessing the supernatural, and bending it to one’s will, it takes guts to pick up a sword, pistol, or dagger, and wade into battle.

Fighter

There is no place in the world where the trained warrior is out of place. All nations in Sulos have fighters, and they usually have them in numbers. While certain nations such as Hazra’Ghalduur embrace the skills of the fighter, and have built an empire around them, one would be hard pressed to find a place where a skilled, highly trained, and competent fighter would seem unusual. Adventuring fighters come from all nations and all walks of life. They may have been nobles or peasants, humans, elves, dwarves, or goblinoids, but they all share a certain level of martial skill, unrivalled by any other class of adventurer.

Game Mechanics


Rogue

As common as the fighter is the rogue at least rivals them in numbers. The stealthy, skilled, and deadly rogue, is a staple of any urban environment. Form the cutpurse on the corner, to the merchant sailor, and beyond, the rogue seems to have their place. It is difficult to quantify a rogue by his appearance, skills, or profession; rogues are versatile, adaptable, and have a variety of different skills. While the rogue is common everywhere, they are no more influential and important any place in Sulos than they are within the merchant nation of L’Landra. Rogues dominate the merchant caste, and in L’Landra the merchant caste is the law of the land.

Swordsman

Swordsmen are common on the high seas, and within the nation of L’Landra, though are far more exotic in other lands. Swordsmen fight with flair and specialize in acrobatic movements, defensive capabilities, and opportunistic strikes. Swordsman adventurers are often explorers, duelists, and ladies men. They have finesse and a style of combat as entertaining to watch as it is deadly. Swordsmen are more at home in urban environments than they are in the woodlands, though as they roam the world of Sulos seeking a challenge, swordsmen frequently find themselves in unusual places and interesting situations.

Game Mechanics




The Font of Science is the source of many abilities which harness and control the various elements of Sulos, and even those channeled from other fonts. Through science many great achievements have been made in Sulos, from steam engines, to sewerage system, to firearms. Many of the modern convenience of Sulos can only be attributed to the work of science.

The greatest of the scientific marvels however, is that by studying the other fonts the powers man has learned how to harness the latent energies of the arcane, divine, and the mind without drawing upon their respective fonts at all. Thus far the Archivists have found ways to harness the powers of the divine, the Erudites have tamed the powers of the mind, and Wizards have learned to unlock the power of the arcane. While none have yet managed to harness the power of the Font of Nature in such a way, it is surely only a matter of time.

Archivist

The Sacred Cabal (and the archivists) have been scouring the world of Sulos for the last couple hundred years unlocking the secrets of the lost divine magic of the ancient gods. They can be found virtually anywhere, looking to uncover hidden secrets, barter for knowledge, and weasel their way into every nation in Sulos. They are most common in the lands of Rhoenheim from whence they have originated, but the Cabal is rapidly becoming a force in L’Landra as well. Elsewhere the archivists have less pull, but they are a presence that must be acknowledged non-the-less. Adventuring archivists are often archeologists, explorers, and missionaries.

Game Mechanics


Erudite

The Society welcomes people of all psionic classes, but it was founded by and is still run by erudites. They are the guiding force behind the psionic institute, and they often serve as agents of the Elder Council. Erudites seek as much contact with other psionic beings as possible to learn and study them, and unlock the powers of their psionic minds. Erudites do not see themselves as psionic manifesters, but as psionic scholars. Adventuring erudites often work for the Society as spies, explorers, and hunters of psionic power. Others follow their paths, though no erudite worth his power points can resist the lure of psionic knowledge shared by the society.

Wizard

Wizards were the first of those who utilize science to access the power of other fonts. While the elves had no idea what kind of power they have discovered when they first began the study of the arcane, they quickly lost control of it, and wizardry spread throughout the world. While wizards are a well known entity, it is not because of their frequency, but because of their history, and their effect on the world. Wizards are common in both Rhoenheim and Hazra’Ghalduur due to their often rivaled arcane universities, but outside of these two nations they rarely gather in numbers. A handful of lone wizards take up residence in towns and cities across Sulos, and adventure to broaden their horizons, and expand their spellbooks, but they are certainly not plentiful.

There are fewer people of true religious devotion in the modern era, but the people of Sulos are not completely faithless. Within the lands of Kesh, the divine kings rule supreme over their city-states, and their loyal priesthoods govern the nation and guide the populace spiritually, morally, and culturally. The Theocracy of Kashra is a land of devoted people who do not worship gods, but a benevolent sense of purity inherent in all men, known as Pholtus. Last but certainly not least is the Sacred Cabal; known far and wide as philanthropists, and scholars, the sacred priests uncover the knowledge of lost divine power from bygone eras, and share it with the world.

The Divine Kings

The priests of Kesh worship their kings as living sources of divine power. Both the kings themselves and their priesthoods have rivalries that date back to the foundation of their cities, more than 4500 years ago. Clerics of the divine kings may be of any alignment, though most mirror their kings and become lawful evil. It is believed that in the past there were dozens of city-states, and kings who ruled them, but today only the most powerful have survived the incessant wars that have long ravaged the lands of Kesh. Though these wars seem like distant memories today, the people of the city-states know that the potential for war to begin anew is always looming on the horizon.

Adventuring priests are almost unheard of. The very doctrines of the faith advocate that only close proximity to their divine kings will the mortal soul receive the blessing of the afterlife. The farther a native of Kesh drifts from the city-states, the farther one drifts from the power of divinity, and the blessing of his god. However some priests are asked specifically to undertake quests for their kings; these priests are promised divine blessing, and their missions are designated as holy quests.

Hashamara
Demi-Power
Alignment: Lawful Evil
Symbol: Silver Crescent and Ruby
City-State: Mara’Kesh
Domains: All
Favored Weapon: The Kilij

Ramotep
Demi-Power
Alignment: Lawful Evil
Symbol: Obsidian Orb
City-State: Khali’Kesh
Domains: All
Favored Weapon: The Kilij

Nalen
Demi-Power
Alignment: Lawful Evil
Symbol: Raised Palm with a Circle Tattooed Upon It
City-State: Aman’Kesh
Domains: All
Favored Weapon: The Kilij

Famatu
Demi-Power
Alignment: Lawful Evil
Symbol: The Desert Lotus
City-State: Ilsa’Kesh
Domains: All
Favored Weapon: The Kilij

The Light of Pholtus

The Light of Pholtus is the faith of Kashra, though almost none outside of her lands follow the teachings of this religious movement. Based largely upon the teaching of the Order of Light, combined with the knightly code of the paladins who founded the nation, The Light of Pholtus is unlike any other religion in Sulos. More akin a philosophy of good will, the pursuit of brotherhood, and the protection of the innocent, the people of Kashra have devoted their lives to the ideals of the light. They live by the proverb, “Pholtus is in all of us. I am one with the light, and the light will guide me.”

Mechanically speaking, there are no clerics devoted to Pholtus. The priesthood of Kashra is made up of men of all professions and adepts (who draw divine power from belief in their personal convictions and ideals). They are almost all lawful good, and even many of the commoners of the Kashra are pillars of virtue.

The Sacred Cabal

The missionaries of the Sacred Cabal have spread far and wide. Though still based out of the city of Dastun in Rhoenheim, the Cabal has established numerous churches around Sylescnia, and within L’Landra, though only a handful withinin the other nations of Sulos. They are generally well received in most lands as scholars, theologists, and archeologists, though as men of the cloth, they are not always embraced. The priests of the Sacred Cabal advocate the recovery of ancient texts and knowledge from the lost eras when divine magic was much more widespread. They claim that the power of divine magic does not actually come from gods, but from the convictions of the faithful. They seek to study and understand all religions, and use the powers of divine magic for the good of mankind.

Mechanically speaking the Sacred Priests are not clerics at all. They are archivists, who memorize their spells much as wizards do. The Sacred Cabal is devoted to recovering the religious texts, scrolls, and artifacts of various lost religions. They also conduct numerous charitable operations within oppressed or impoverished lands, and attempt to exchange divine lore with the peoples of these places.

Favored Souls

Throughout Sulos people are born who are said to have either the blessing or the blood of the gods flowing through their veins. These exceptional individuals seem to have some sort of connection to the power of divine magic that remains unexplainable to scholars and theologists alike. Many favored souls do not understand the nature of their own abilities, and try to hide their talents, rather than risk discovery.

Favored souls gain their power from the lost gods of ancient times. While they themselves know not from whence their powers come, a player of a favored soul must choose either one of the ancient gods, or the Light of Pholtus as their patron. The favored soul has a spiritual connection to this patron that may run in the blood, or perhaps comes from a spiritual affinity, or even birth in a place touched by the deity when it supposedly walked the world of man.



The ancient faiths of Sulos are gone but not completely forgotten. As the archivists and archeologists of the modern world uncover the ancient scriptures of lost empires, they uncover more and more of the hidden secrets of the past. The lost divine power of the Ancient Gods is coveted by the faithless men of today, but as the knowledge of these religions is uncovered, will the spark of life be rekindled in these supposedly dead deities?


Mernia
Greater Power
Alignment: Lawful Good
Titles: The Protector
Symbol: Folded Hands
Portfolio: Community, Hearth, and Home
Domains: Good, Law, Protection
Favored Weapon: The Long Bow

Kadrukar
Greater Power
Alignment: Lawful Neutral
Titles: The Sovereign
Symbol: A Golden Circlet
Portfolio: Leadership, Justice, and Kings
Domains: Knowledge, Law, and Strength
Favored Weapon: The Halberd

Roshun
Greater Power
Alignment: Lawful Evil
Titles: The Warrior
Symbol: A Heavily Worn Sword
Portfolio: Tactics, Determination, and Battle
Domains: Evil, Law, and War
Favored Weapon: The Bastard Sword

Cadrulon
Greater Power
Titles: The Wanderer
Alignment: Neutral Good
Symbol: A Walking Stick
Portfolio: Travel, Selflessness, and Wisdom
Domains: Good, Healing, and Travel
Favored Weapon: Quarter Staff

Orum
Greater Power
Alignment: True Neutral
Titles: The Watcher
Symbol: A Radiant Orb
Portfolio: Magic, Power, and Creation
Domains: Magic, Sun, Elements (All)
Favored Weapon: The Morning Star

Deschler
Greater Power
Alignment: Neutral Evil
Titles: The Destroyer
Symbol: A Clenched Gauntlet
Portfolio: Hate, Malice, and Violence
Domains: Death, Destruction, and Evil
Favored Weapon: The Flail

Kronis
Greater Power
Alignment: Chaotic Good
Titles: The Hand of Destiny
Symbol: A Pyramid
Portfolio: Providence, Chance, and Benevolence
Domains: Chaos, Good, and Luck
Favored Weapon: The Mace

Mugrinar
Greater Power
Titles: The Beast
Alignment: Chaotic Neutral
Symbol: A Talon
Portfolio: Nature, Chaos, and Independence
Domains: Animal, Chaos, and Plant
Favored Weapon: Natural Attacks or Unarmed Strikes

Shemeloth
Greater Power
Alignment: Chaotic Evil
Titles: The Deceiver
Symbol: A Cracked Mirror
Portfolio: Deception, Greed, and Murder
Domains: Chaos, Evil, and Trickery
Favored Weapon: The Dagger

The Exalted Order of Hazra’Ghalduur

Dieties: Kadrukar, Roshun, and Dreschler
Domains: Death, Destruction, Evil, Knowledge, Law, Strength, and War

The Exalted Order was once the principle faith of the goblinoids, though it has long since faded into obscurity. The general dogma of the Exalted Order was that only through conquest and war could the goblinoids get closer to their patron deities. The followers of the order were expected to ruthlessly combat the enemies of the empire, and loyally serve their warlords and emperor. Established during the foundation of Hazra’Ghalduur the church was supported and sanctioned by the dynastic clans as the official religion of the empire, and it remained as such for nearly five centuries.

The Clerics of the Exalted Order were respected men throughout Hazra’Ghalduur for their military expertise, and ruthless devotion to the empire. However when it was discovered that Kadrukar, the Sovereign, was also supporting the human kings of Sancrist, the goblinoids were infuriated. They felt as though their very own priesthood had betrayed them, and that their gods had intentionally mislead them. Already embroiled in a devestating war with Sancrist, for nearly four hundred years, the goblinoids questioned the commitment of their priests to victory at all.

Angry mobs burned the churches of the Order, and goblinoid soldiers, loyal to the Dynastic Clans turned on the priests. Within a matter of perhaps only a few decades, the entire faith was but a fuzzy memory within the empire, and it was considered treasonous not only to continue to practice the religion, but to even mention its existence. A handful of faithful followers continued to practice the dogmas of the order for a number of years, but in time the soldiers of the empire rooted them out and executed them one by one. The Exalted Order simply faded away, and was replaced entirely with a sense of national pride, and commitment to the emperor. The deities themselves were dismissed as traitors to the goblinoid people, and religion died in Hazra’Ghalduur.

The Order of Light

Deities: Kadrukar, Orum, and Mernia
Domains: Elemental (All), Good, Knowledge, Law, Magic, Protection, Strength, and Sun

The most important of the ancient faiths of Sancrist during the prime of this once magnificent and powerful human kingdom, was the Order of Light. The Order of light was devoted to protection of the human race, and her kingdoms. Though they were represented within the ancient republic of Leshaar as well, it was in Sancrist where the power of their following was greatest. Followers of the faith viewed themselves as the sculptors and builders of civilization, and the defenders of all civilized lands. They were constantly at odds with the Exalted Order of Hazra'Ghalduur, who sought to destroy all they had created.

It is thought that when Sancrist fell to the goblinoids some 500 years ago, the Order of Light was forever destroyed, but many of their most sacred scrolls were saved by the humans who fled to the lands now known as Rhoenheim. Additionally the paladins of the order led many of the refugees of Sancrist to the remote lands noerth-east of Sancrist, which are now called Kashra. The paladins did not have their scrolls or texts, but they did still have their ideals and determination. The Knights of Kashra very much resemble the ancient Order of Light in their methods and dogmas, even if they no longer swear allegiance to the deities of the ancient kingdoms.

The Sacred Cabal has put the scrolls and texts of this ancient church to use in the modern era, and if there is any faith to whom they would most likely trace their roots, it would be the Order of Light. Of all the lost faiths of Sulos more is known of this ancient religion than any other. Some whispers among those of the Cabal say that the ancient gods of the Order of Light, though theoretically only fictional manifestations of human ideologies, have begun to stir. A chosen few have started to develop the ability to spontaneously manifest divine power, and they claim that the gods of Order of Light are the source of this power. For now these individuals are quite rare, so they pose no substantial threat to the sacred priests, but there has been intense research into the phenomenon to unlock their secrets.

The Benevolent Guides of Leshaar

Deities: Mernia, Kronis, and Cadrulon
Domains: Chaos, Good, Healing, Law, Luck, Protection, and Travel

The Benevolent Guides were the peaceful order of clerics who wandered the lands of Leshaar healing her people, and curing their spiritual ailments. They were kind souls, with the divine support of the collective goodly aligned deities. No formal churches ever existed among the Benevolent Guides, and each was taken under the wing of a master who trained them in the aspects of morality, honor, and virtue.

The Guides were well known for their divination, and forecasting ability and they warned the rulers of Leshaar that even if Sancrist could hold Hazra'Ghalduur at bay, another threat would rear its ugly head. Their warnings were not heeded, and when Ghuldra invaded, the republic was stunned. The bugbears were vicious foes, who often struck at night, and assassinated generals and senators. They were the worst kind of foe, ruthless, blood-thirsty, and determined.

When Sancrist finally fell, the guides knew their time on Sulos would soon come to an end. While it would have been possible for them to flee, they could not bring themselves to leave wounded friends and families behind, squeezed between the forces of Hazra'Ghalduur and Ghuldra. The Benevolent Guides died with their brethren defending their nation from the unstoppable armies of two goblinoid nations, determined to tear Leshaar apart.

The Primal Triad

Deities: Cadrulon, Orum, and Mugrinar
Domains: Animal, Chaos, Elemental (All), Good, Healing, Magic, Plant, Sun, Travel

The actual name of the Primal Triad has been lost, but the church has been so dubbed by scholars of the Sacred Cabal, who sought some universal term by which to reference the most ancient of Sulos's recognized churches. The Primal Triad seems to have been the principle faith of an extinct race of humanoids known as the orcs, who inexplicably vanished more than 5,500 years ago. The Triad was the religion of nomadic tribal people, who seemed in tune with the harmonics of nature, and revered the power of deities whom they believed to have created the known world.

The orcs believed Orum created the world, the sun, and the magic which tied it all together. They believed that Mugrinar created the animals and plants who populated it, and that Cadrulon, the Wanderer, was a living being that traveled the world as a teacher and sage. In the eldest known tablets of recorded history, which are locked securely in the vaults of the Sacred Cabal, have been translated by the scholarly linguists of the Cabal, and appear to be records of interaction between the orcs and the Wanderer. It seems this deity was their living spiritual guide, who taught them how to harness the power of the gods, and shape the world to suit their needs. Commonly referred to as the Tablets of Cadrulon, the stone fragments of the orcs, are the only known reference that seem to imply that any of the Ancient Gods were actual tangible beings.

Whatever horrible twist of fate that happened to destroy the orcs, seems to have also destroyed much of their recorded history. What little can be derived from the Tablets of Cadrulon, seems to indicate that terrible fiends from another realm, known simply as the Elseword, attacked them wielding powerful magic. Their minions were not demonic creatures, but an earthly race of native people, who had been tragically duped into servitude. No mention of who these unfortunate souls were has ever been found, though the orcs clearly pitied their enemies, and sought not to destroy, but to save them. Apparently the orcs failed, and were eradicated in the process, a truly tragic end for both races.

The Cults of the Deceiver

The Deceiver has never formally belonged to any of the ancient faiths of Sulos, though he is mentioned in passing by almost all. The Deceiver has at times impersonated other deities, or twisted the words of his fellow gods. In the kingdom of Sancrist, the priests of Order of Light were known to have said, "Be ever wary of the Deceiver. He lives within the hearts of all men, and he twists the mind of the blackened soul."

Shemeloth was the patron deity of Ghuldra, and there was a time when the Assassins of the Mahk'Talaa swore their eternal pledge not to their nation, but to the service of the Deceiver. The priests of Shemeloth may have played a significant role in the collapse of the nation of the bugbears. Perhaps even more than the Kin War with Hazra'Ghalduur, or the battles with the Knights of Kashra combined.

Wherever the Ancient Gods have been, the Deceiver has followed. He was a devilishly clever entity, who recruited his minions from within the churches of other faiths, and turned them against one another. Ancient cults devoted to Shemeloth seem to have existed throughout the known world, from Islen to Bolshukaar, and from Sha’Irna to Leshaar. Though faith in the Deceiver has all but vanished from the world, the Sacred Cabal continues to find evidence that the cults of the Deceiver never really disappeared completely. There may still be clerics devoted to him, despite the common accepted belief that clerics and their ancient ways are gone.

Rumors among the Thanes of cults devoted to the Deceiver, have begun to trouble them. If the evil serpent-tongued devil has returned, there is no way they can trust anyone. Even the Dark Hand is more predictable than this ancient spirit of evil, and should he worm his way into Thoth, the Thanes would be challenged to root out his minions. The Thanes have even considered turning to the Hand for help, but what if Shemoloth got to them first?

The alignment and pull of the planes has a pronounced effect upon the world of Sulos. The parallel planes (Arcadia, The Elseworld, The Mindscape, and Pholtus) rotate and move around the prime material plane, crossing, and overlapping with the prime, and causing the power of the planes to wax and wane. When a plane is coterminous with Sulos the power of the plane is pronounced, and when the same plane is distant the influence of the plane upon the world of Sulos is weakened.

The planes that influence the world of Sulos are Arcadia, the Elseworld, and Pholtus (that rotate on smaller orbits that eclipse one another, wax, and wane in a consistent monthly cycle. Arcadia is strongly neutral, the Elseworld is strongly evil, and Pholtus is strongly good aligned, and when any one of them becomes coterminous with Sulos they impose their planar alignment upon the world. The Mindscape (unlike the other three planes) has an annual rotation that brings it coterminous for a period of 120 days (when Sulos becomes chaotic), and it becomes distant for 120 days (when Sulos becomes lawful). The periods in between are neutrally aligned.

People, seasons, and magic are all affected by planar alignment. People themselves who are born during certain periods of planar alignment are naturally inclined to adopt a philosophical bent, morality, or ideology that reflects the period of their birth. Those born during a period when Pholtus is coterminous will be largely kind hearted and empathic individuals, while those born under the coterminous alignment of the Elseworld are usually wicked and selfish individuals.

In game terms a person is assigned an alignment inclination based upon the planar alignment of their birth. A person born during a lawful good planar alignment is treated as a lawful good creature, and affected by spells and abilities that have effects upon either lawful or good creatures. Their personal behavior is naturally inclined to be lawful good, though the conditions of their upbringing and experiences have an equally important effect upon them. A person born during a chaotic evil planar alignment may be naturally inclined to be chaotic evil, but if they are raised in a peaceful town by moral and caring parents, they could just as easily grow up to be a good and moral person. Planar alignment determines game effects, but it does not strait-jacket behavior.

In addition to the planar alignment of their birth, a person can be affected by the changes in the planar alignment as they occur, though in a less pronounced ways. During the summer when the chaotic pull of the mindscape wanes, people are more disciplined and obedient, but when winter sets in and the mindscape becomes coterminous, lawless behavior becomes much more common. A person however is a free-willed individual, and his or her planar alignment can be repressed and overcome through the strength of their personal character. Planar alignment is but a simple inclination, rather than a defining trait in a person’s moral outlook and behavior.

The seasons themselves are affected by the alignment of the planes. During the winter months the chaotic pull of the Mindscape causes the weather to become unpredictable and swingy. However in the summer when the pull of the Mindscape is wanes, the weather tends to be predictable and regular. During the coterminous alignment of Pholtus the weather is mild and tame, but during the coterminous periods of the Elseworld the weather takes a turn for worse, and harsh storms ravage Sulos.

Spell-casting is influenced in a similar manner. Spells with the chaos descriptor are cast with more potency during the coterminous periods of the Mindscape, while they weaken during the waning alignment of the plane of chaos. In game terms spells are treated as though they are cast with a +1 level adjustment during coterminous periods, and a -1 level adjustment during waning periods of planar alignment.

The calendar of Sulos is not only used to monitor the passage of time, but to map the seasonal alignment of the planes. A year in Sulos is three hundred sixty days long. Each year is divided into nine months of forty days each, which is further broken down into four ten day cycles per month. Thus a character would refer to a date as the 3rd day of the 2nd cycle of Lerast, or in short 3/2/Lerast.



Lerast

Lerast is the first month of the year. During the month of Lerast, Arcadia eclipses the elseworld, and Pholtus wanes. During the month of Lerast, the Mindscape begins to drift away, but it remains strongly coterminous with Sulos. Thus the month of Lerast has a planar alignment of chaotic neutral, and so is that of the people born during the month.

Weather: the weather of Lerast is unpredictable. Temperatures fluctuate, winds shift seemingly at random, and days that begin sunny and clear can quickly and unexpectedly become cloudy and overcast. While the winter storms of Lerast are not usually very powerful, they are frequent, and blow in from out of nowhere.

Sunest

Sunest is the second month of the year. During the month of Sunest, the Elseworld eclipses Pholtus, and Arcadia wanes. During the first half of the month of Sunest the Mindscape (while drifting away on its planar orbit) continues to remain cotermonious. In the second half of the month however, the effects of the Mindscape upon Sulos gradually become less pronounced, and chaotic forces of the plane diminish. Thus for the first half of the month Sunest has an alignment of chaotic evil, though at the mid point and onward it shifts to neutral evil. People born during the month of Sunest have alignments that match that of period in which they were born.

Weather: the weather of Sunest begins as unpredictable and random as that of Lerast, but as the month passes it grows more consistent and regular. Usually the last few winter storms ravage Sulos during the month of Sunest, and they give way to cold rainy thunderstorms as the month progresses.

Note: winter ends on 5/1 Sunest and spring begins on 6/1 Sunest.

Monevan

The third month of the year is called Monevan. During the month of Monevan, Pholtus eclipses Arcadia, and the Elseword wanes. During the month of Monevan the Mindscape continues to drift farther away from Sulos, though it still has enough pull upon the world, to maintain a neutral alignment. Thus the planar alignment of Monevan and those born during the month is neutral good.

Weather: while the weather of Monevan does occasionally shift and change, during spring the weather of Sulos is far less random and wild as it is during the winter. During Monevan the stormy weather of Sunest gives way to bright sunny days, and spring flowers.

Xeriat

Xeriat is the fourth month of the year. During the month of Xeriat, The Arcadia eclipses the Elseworld, and Pholtus wanes. During the month of Xeriat, the Mindscpae finally drifts far enough away from Sulos for its power to completely wane. Thus the planar alignment of Xeriat and people born during the month is lawful neutral.

Weather: The weather of Xeriat is very predictable and consistent. The month is clear and hot, though Sulos is prone to very dry weather in the latter half of the month.

Note: spring ends on 5/2 Xeriat and summer begins on 6/2 Xeriat.

Innolus

The mid month of the year, Innolus marks the half way point in the calendar of Sulos. During the month of Innolus, the Elseworld eclipses Pholtus, and Arcadia wanes. The Mindscape is at its most distant point during the month of Innolus, and it has little effect upon the alignment of Sulos. Thus the planar alignment of Innolus is lawful evil.

Weather: The dry weather of Xeriat gives way to annual droughts in the month of Innolus. These droughts can be harsh and potentially cause fires or wither crops in areas without regular rainfall such as the valleys of Kesh.

Suval

Suval is the sixth month of the year. During the month of Suval, Pholtus eclipses Arcadia, and the Elseword wanes. During the month of Sulos the wide orbit of the Mindscape begins to bring it closer to Sulos, but it still has almost no effect upon the world. Thus the planar alignment of Suval is lawful good.

Weather: Suval is typically the most pleasant month of the year. The droughts of innolus give way to gentle showers and beautiful sunny days.

Note: summer ends on 5/2 Suval and fall begins on 6/2 Suval

Anilalon

Anilalon is the seventh month of the year. During the month of Anilalon, Arcadia eclipses the Elseworld, and Pholtus wanes. During the month of Anilalon, the Mindscape draw near enough to have effect upon the world, and the alignment of Sulos shifts from lawful to neutral. Thus the planar alignment of Anilalon is true neutral.

Weather: during the month of Anilalon the weather gradually begins to cool, and the regular predictable weather of summer begins to become slightly less consistent. The weather may rain or be sunny, and it has potential for both gentle effects and terrible storms. The full range of weather effects is possible during the month of Anilalon

Meninar

Meninar is the eighth month of the year. During the month of Meninar, The Elseworld eclipses Pholtus, and Arcadia wanes. For the first half of Meninar the pull of the Mindscape is just strong enough to have a neutral effect upon Sulos, however in the second have of the month it draws near enough to become coterminous, and the forces of chaos have a pronounced effect upon the world. Thus the planar of alignment of Meninar is netral evil for the first half of the month, and chaotic evil for the second half of the month.

Weather: During the first half of Meninar the weather is similar to that of Anilalon, though big powerful storms are more common. As the month progresses, the storms become less predictable and more powerful, though they seem to have no consistency. Some years Meninar is plagued by dozens of powerful storms, and during others it has none. In the more northern parts of Sulos, Meninar is often the first month of snowfall.

Note: fall ends on 5/3 Meninar and winter begins on 6/3 Meninar

Raemedir

Raemedir is the last month of the year. During the month of Raemedir, Pholtus eclipses Arcadia, and the Elseworld wanes. During Reamedir the coterminous pull of the Mindscape gradually strengthens until it peaks at the beginning of the next year, when it begins to gradually drift away from Sulos. Thus the planar alignment of Raemedir is chaotic good.

Weather: During the month of Raemidar the weather fluctuates from day to day, but it is rarely very bad. There is regular gentle snowfall, and occasional rain, sun, and varied temperature, as well as unpredictable wind, though few powerful storms or terrible weather conditions affect the world of Sulos during the month of Raemedir.



The archivists of the Sacred Cabal and the historian of Dastun University have diligently compiled historical data from throughout the known world. While almost every nation has had their own calendar and events of interests, with numerous contradictions, the two organizations have attempted to compile the information into a single historical account of the history of the world. Scholars within the Cabal and the University debate the exact dates and events of numerous periods and eras, and have been forced to admit numerous mistakes, and issued revisions on several occasions.

They have broken down the history of Sulos into distinct eras. The further back these eras reach into the past the less accurate they become, but their efforts have yielded the most complete and unbiased history compiled to date. What follows is a timeline of events within these eras. While some of the dates are quite accurate, others are educated estimates reluctantly accepted by historians, when documented accounts differ, or were never specifically mentioned in the records recovered from the past.

All the following timelines use the modern Rhoen Calendar, for the sake of cohesion, though the events covered were complied from around the world, and dozens of different sources. The records from which they have compiled the events of the timeline are shared by the University and the Cabal at the great library of Dastun, though the public is not permitted to access these priceless relics of historical lore.

The Era of Ancients

-20,000 to -15,000: The rise of the ancient civilizations begins. Among them the orcs of the north, and the yaun-ti of the south seem to have been the most powerful. Lesser power groups including the empire of Ilsen, the elves, halflings, gnomes, and dwarves, also came unto their own during this time.

-15,000 to -12,000: The empire of Ilsen enslaves mankind. It remains unknown who the principle force behind the empire was, but before they enslaved humans we were but simple hunters and gatherers, who had little impact upon this era. The slave labor of Ilsen pushes them to the top of the heap when it comes to power in the south, and tensions between Ilsen and the yuan-ti begin to mount.

-12,000 to -10,000: The first known record of the ancient gods is written by the orcs of what is now modern day Sancrist. It is entirely possible that the gods existed before this time, but there is no record of their existence that predates the orcish accounts of divine power. Perhaps we simply haven’t discovered them yet.

The Era of Darkness

-10,000 to -5,500: Wars begin to reshape the world. The yaun-ti battle against the empire of Ilsen in the south, and the other races including the orcs, halflings, gnomes, and dwarves begin to divide and conquer the lands of the north. This period of war has undertones of religious strife, and race related hate, but the nature of any alliances or specific enemies has not been found.

-8,000: The yuan-ti are driven from Sulos across the seas to the south. Ilsen claims their lands and becomes the most powerful nation in Sulos. Though they seem to have had little to no interaction with the races of the north, they are the uncontested masters of southern Sulos.

-7,500: The elves throw their weight into the wars in the north, and bring arcane magic to the battlefield for the first time. It seems as though the elves had the advantage in these wars, and that they had an alliance of sorts with some other powerful race or nation, but we have not discovered who the allies of the elves were.

-5,500: The wars in the north are concluded. The elves withdraw to their forests and the dwarves to their mountainous strongholds. The orcs, gnomes, and halflings were apparently destroyed, and the lands of their nations lay mostly unclaimed in the aftermath. The goblinoids emerge from their caves to explore, fight over, and settle the surface world.

-5000: The empire of Ilsen disappears. It seems to have been an unexpected and uncontrollable series of environmental disasters that destroyed their civilization. All that was left behind were the blazing deserts, sand storms, ruins, and the monstrous sandworms, that ravage the lands of Ilsen to this day.

The Era of Kings

-5,000 to -2,000: The ancient kingdoms were established by the humans and goblinoids who laid claim to the lands left behind by the wars of the Era of Darkness. Among those founded were the human kingdoms of Kesh, Sancrist, and Leshaar, as well as the goblinoid nations of Hazra’Ghalduur and Ghuldra. This was a feudal era of kings, nobles, peasants, and serfs. While the dwarves of Thoth and the elves of Sha’Irna continued to survive, they seem to have refrained from the affairs of the humans and goblinoids of this era.

-4,800 to -4,000: The first city-states and their divine kings rise to power in Kesh. It is said that there were dozens in this time, but that their rivalries and petty wars eventually destroyed most of them, and consolidated power around the four that remain today. The Scholars of Rhoenheim are not certain how long their wars lasted, but the tension between their kings is still evident in the modern age.

-1200: Hazra’Ghalduur declares war upon Sancrist, and the second most destructive age of Sulos begins. The war ravages the two nations for centuries, with neither side able to gain the advantage. Both peoples claim divine guidance in their actions, and neither will yield or submit to defeat.

-800: Ghuldra invades Leshaar, and now two wars commence simultaneously in the lands of central Sulos. Tentative alliances between Sancrist and Leshaar manage to hold the goblinoids at bay for many years, but the persistence of their foes does not waver.

-500: Elves settle the forests of Sylescnia. Weather they were driven from their homeland, or left under their own devices is not clearly known. They seem to have established numerous tiny villages and colonies throughout the eastern reaches of the lands that would eventually be known as Rhoenheim.

-400 to -353: The goblinoids of Hazra’Ghalduur discover their gods are one and the same with the human gods, and their emperor Sholaak II, declares the priesthood of Hazra’Ghalduur their enemies. A witch hunt tears through their nation, and all churches, priests, and records of the ancient gods are burned.

-300 to -248: Relations between Leshaar and Sancrist break down, and Sancrist is left to fend for themselves against the armies of Hazra’Ghalduur. Within decades Sancrist is destroyed and the empire of Hazra’Ghalduur claims their lands. Refugees from Sancrist flee to various parts of Sulos including what is now known as Kashra, as well as to the kingdom of Leshaar.

-222: Ghuldra is forced to contend with human invaders (led by the legendary knight Kashra) in their lands and divide their forces along the fronts of Leshaar, and the lands of the north east claimed by Kashra. Ghurldra requests military assistance from their kin in Hazra’Ghalduur, and the empire responds by declaring war upon Leshaar.

-210: The elfin colonies of Sylescnia vanish without a trace.

-201: Leshaar squeezed between Ghuldra and Hazra’Ghalduur, cannot resist the superior forces of the united goblinoids, and the kingdoms collapses. The humans of Leshar (led by the heroic Knight Rhoen), flee to south western Sulos and settle the lands of Rhoenheim and L’Landra. Hazra’Ghalduur lays claim to the conquered lands of Leshaar, and the bugbears of Ghuldra are infuriated. They had battled with Leshaar for nearly six centuries, and they were robbed of their prize by their goblinoid kin. Many skirmishes between the estranged goblinoids nations flare up over the course of the following century, which are collectively know as the Kin Wars.

-172: The first of many skirmishes with the elves of Sha’Irna are met with arcane resistance, and the goblinoids of Hazra’Ghalduur are repelled. These skirmishes continue for centuries, though the goblinoids continue to meet with little success.

-150: Kajduura is conquered by the finely honed war machine of Hazra’Ghalduur, and the goblinoids drive the humble fishermen from Kadjura bay to the south, where they settle along side the knightly orders of Kashra.

-128: The tundra of Ghazra is claimed by Hazra’Ghalduur

-100: L’Landra and Rhoenheim establish themselves as nations. L’Landra claims military neutrality and begins to develop advanced seafaring technology, while Rhoenheim establishes a strong army, and begins to study the arcane.

-100 to -75: The goblinoids of Hazra’Ghalduur invade Mabar’Hudraal, conquer the Iron Hills, and enslave the ogres.

-24: The frozen wastes of Meschlaar are claimed by the goblinoids of Hazra’Ghalduur, though skirmishes with the native frost giants persist to this day.

0: The Rhoen Calendar begins, and echoes Sulos into the Era of Enlightenment

The Age of Enlightenment

5: Tired of their failures along the front in Sha’Irna the goblinoids of Hazra’Ghalduur establish The Atra’Shakuur to pursue their own study of the arcane, and even the playing field with the elves.

10: Perhaps in response to the Atra'Shakuur, the University of Dastun is founded in Rhoenheim. Not likely to be outdone by the goblinoids in the pursuit of arcane learning, the people of Rhoenheim make certain that their university becomes the finest in all of Sulos.

11: The Sacred Cabal is founded and the Knights of Rhoen charge them with the protection of the Sacred Texts of Leshaar.

20: The first of many skirmishes along the border between Hazra'Ghalduur and Rhoenheim nearly lead to the collapse of human civilization once more. Rhoenheim’s nobles petition their fellow human kingdoms for aid, and manage to hold off the goblinoids.

28: L’Landra’s merchants and explorers establish the Syndicate as an alliance to govern their nation and coordinate their trade efforts across Sulos.

30: The heavy repeating crossbow is developed in Hazra'Ghalduur, and immediately embraced by her people.

34: The first advances in clockworks begin to see widespread use in Rhoenheim, Hazra'Ghalduur, and L'Landra, though Thoth seems to have had them for far longer.

40: Printing presses begin to see use throughout Sulos

43: Advanced in water pumps and drainage revolutionize sewerage systems and mining operations, harkening in a new era of manufacturing, smithing, and foundries.

51: Modern assembly lines change they way many products are produced, such as textiles, basic machinery, and tools. Untrained labor replaces many of the specialized craftsmen around Sulos, though hand-made products are still preferred for their higher quality and personalization.

53: L’Landra begins to establish diplomatic relations with the city-states of Kesh

59: Continued goblinoid aggressions against Rhoenheim, lead to the signing of the Treaty of L'Landra, and the pact which has help the peace between human nations to this day.

62: L’Landra begins trading with the yaun-ti of the Serpentine Jungles, and the crimson nomads of Ilsen.

77: L'Landra develops the first firearms and cannons, though it is more than 20 years before they are efficient, safe, and begin to find any acceptance.

81: The first reports of hidden ruins in the deserts of Ilsen begin to reach the ears of the scholars of Rhoenheim.

85: The Society is founded to train dangerous and undisciplined minds how to utilize their powers safely and effectively

102: L'Landra begins whaling, and the oil streetlamps of both their nation and Rhoenhiem are lit for the first time

105: The bugbears are driven from their homeland by the Knights of Kashra, and forced to seek refuge within the empire of Hazra’Ghalduur.

118: The power of coal is harnessed by the goblinoids, and the first coal furnaces begin to get manufactured in Hazra'Ghalduur.

121: The first Demonborn appear within the lands of Sha’Irna

125: Construction of the intercontinental railway begins in Hazra’Ghalduur, to help the empire better manage the massive land area of their territories.

135: The Sacred Cabal sends their first missionaries to L’Landra and beyond.

141: L’Landra shares their gunpowder and firearm technology with their fellow human nations. While Kesh refuses to embrace the new technology, both Rhoenheim, and Kashra quickly put them to use.

159: Construction begins on the wall of Holcrun in Kashra.

165: House Al'Arach from Kesh joins the Syndicate of L'Landra

166: The Kazuun’Drhaal is founded within Hazra’Ghalduur to fight for better wages, equal rights, and the social reform of their nation.

175: The intercontinental railway of Hazra’Ghalduur is finished

178: Dwarven merchants emerge from the mountains of Thoth to join the global economic community

183: Armortech is developed for the first time, though who developed it first, and how, is still uncertain.

186: Whaling vessels begin sailing the seas off the coast of Kashra

188: The Senate of Rhoenheim begins construction on a railroad of their own, though budget restraints and setbacks prevent much progress.

191: L’Landra begins to forge diplomatic relations with Hazra’Ghalduur

195: The current year

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Capitol: Hakuun (445,300)
Size: 3,000,000 square miles
Civilization: 420,000 square miles (14%)
Wilderness: 2,580,000 square miles (86%)
Population Density: 30 people per square mile
Total Population: 90,000,000 people
Rural Population: 73,800,000 people (82%)
Urban Population: 8,100,000 people (9%)
Isolated Population: 8,100,000 people (9%)
Races: 40% Goblin, 25% Hobgoblin, 15% Bugbear, 15% Ogre, and 5% Other

The mighty empire of Hazra’Ghalduur, who’s lands cover a full third of Sulos, is perhaps the most powerful nation in the modern age. The goblinoid empire is ruled by seven Dynastic Clans of noble goblinoids who claim to trace their family lineages all the way back to the foundation of the empire nearly 2000 years ago. The emperor is chosen from among these dynasties, by strength of will, power, alliances, and general worth. Only he who has the power to fend off his fellow dynastic warlords will rule for any significant length of time. The current emperor, Volshuun VII is young and ambitious. He hopes to unify the dynastic clans, and once again to exert the full military might of the empire to expand beyond the limits of her borders. He faces many challenges both from within the empire and from the growing power of their external enemies, but remains true to his convictions. He will not see the goblinoids fall from their pedestals to the human nations who are clearly growing in power, while the empire languishes under the yoke of stagnation, internal strife, economic destitution, annual food shortages, and general social unrest.

Goblinoid culture and society is built around the structure of their clans. Essential large extended families of fathers, sons, uncles, cousins, and their wives, sisters, and daughters, each family clan has traditional values, ideals, and specialties. Some clans are master craftsmen, others have strong military traditions, and some concentrate primarily upon teaching. The variables are numerous, but the central ideas remain the same. Each clan has their traditional place in goblinoid society, and most members of the clan are raised from an early age to embrace their family traditions, and carry on in their duties. Some clans have been stone masons or carpenters for generations. The trade or specialization of a clan is a matter of pride, honor, and prestige. The longer one has upheld these traditions, the greater the clan’s impact on goblinoid society. Each clan is lead by a patriarch who earns his position through the strength of his leadership, and the power to oppress his rivals. The patriarch is the unquestioned autocrat of the clan, and he rules with an iron fist. Within the noble dynastic clans, the structure is largely the same, though their patriarchs are more commonly referred to as warlords; they have the privilege and duty to command the armies of Hazra’Ghalduur.

The military tradition of Hazra’Ghalduur is founded in the roots of the empire. The goblinoids have earned every thing they currently have by riding on the strength of their armies. Their lands, their cities, and their culture have been built on the broken backs of the enemies they have conquered. The goblinoids live for war, and her armies are truly massive. However in recent times, goblinoid military action has been unfocused and undisciplined. Many of the warlords of the dynastic clans have focused their efforts on managing their provinces, and undermining the regimes of their rivals, rather than expanding the empire. Some of the dynastic clans of Hazra’Ghalduur whisper that she has already reached her greatest size, power, and glory. These thoughts are decidedly ungoblinoid sentiments, and tantamount to treason, though they may have a point. Even after the completion of the transcontinental railroad, the empire remains only loosely connected at best. Her bloated military budget, and government mandated industrialization have nearly bankrupted the country. Social unrest and rebellions cause constant pressure, and the military has been forced to put down angry mobs of their own people; in some places hundreds of goblinoid insurgents are executed daily. The dynastic clans are already stretched to their limits, and for the last couple centuries, they have acted almost completely independently of one another. The unified armies of all seven clans have not seen the battlefield together in their lifetimes. Perhaps they never will.

The style of dress is very unique to Hazra’Ghalduur. The goblinoids typically wear thick woolen breeches and shirts, with leather boots and gloves. Warriors wear leather armor, which is more flexible and easily insulated in the icy cold, than the heavier plate armor favored by the soldiers of warmer climates. Most goblinoids also wear fur caps known as ushankas, which are easily identified by their ear flaps. It is considered particularly un-masculine to wear the earflaps down, despite the absurdity, even in bitterly frigid conditions the male goblinoids usually wear a long heavy overcoat that hangs all the way to mid calf. Female goblinoids on the other hand, wear a closer cut overcoat that extends only to mid thigh. Jewelry of any sort is considered bold, ostentatious, and gaudy; at the very most a goblinoid may, if he’s feeling showy, wear a signet ring that bears his family crest, but little beyond that is seen as culturally acceptable. Many adult goblinoids carry the traditional weapon of the empire (the bastard sword) at their hip. Even in times of peace the goblinoids brazenly wear their swords, which symbolically represent their respect for military tradition and preparedness for combat at any time.

The goblinoids subsist mostly on a simple and bland diet of sheep mutton, cheeses, potatoes, bread, and beer. The principle dish in many households is a stew cooked with a few simple and inexpensive spices, potatoes, and some form of meat. Usually this stew is served with a pulpy cottage cheese and a mug of either beer or ale. Recently rice and rice pudding have begun to supplement the goblinoid diets, as the first shipments of inexpensive foreign foods have flowed into their lands; trade agreements with L'Landra though still in the works, and certainly not finalized, have at last begun to alleviate the winter food shortages.

Certain foods, though rare, are considered delicacies within goblinoid lands. Lean steaks cut from the flanks of equines, which are only lightly seared, and served bloody, are the favorite dish of many within the empire. Only the wealthiest goblinoids can afford such expensive meat on regular occasions, and many poor families save for months just to have a single serving of equine steak on celebrated occasions such as weddings or holidays. The goblinoids also enjoy liquor in many forms, but are only able to produce vodka, beer, and ale in any significant quantity. All goblinoids enjoy their ale, but few are privileged enough to ever taste the finer liquors of Sulos, such as dream wine, rum, or gin.

Hazra’Ghalduur is divided into seven distinct provinces each ruled by one of the dynastic clans. The provinces have remained largely under the control of the same clans for the last two centuries, though shifts in imperial power may lead to realignment from time to time. Generally speaking, the emperor moves his own clan to the Bolshukaar province, the seat of imperial power, and the home of the imperial capitol. This move causes a rippling effect that may cause significant shuffling for position in its wake. Certain clans retain their provinces, but others may be moved to domains of lesser importance. Despite the general tone of stagnation within the empire, there is political maneuvering, intrigue, espionage, and shifting alliances in abundance. Though these convoluted machinations may not be apparent at the surface.





The province of Bloshukaar is the heart of imperial power, and the ancestral homeland of the goblinoid people. 5,500 years ago goblinoids tribes emerged from their caves to hunt the game of these wild lands, and battle among themselves for territorial domain and dominance. While they were but primitive savages in those days long ago, they began to formulate the ideology and martial traditions carried with them to this day. Over the course of the next 3,500 years the goblinoids evolved. The weaker clans were gradually subjugated by the more powerful until a hierarchy was established, with seven dominant clans who constantly struggled for the leadership of the goblinoid people. 2,500 years ago the goblinoids began to build their first cities, and forge weapons, and armor for war. 2,000 years ago Volshuun I was crowned the first emperor of Hazra’Ghalduur, and the nation was born.

The climate of the province is unforgiving, but not impossibly so. Much of the province is made up of rolling hills, open fields, and mountainous foothills. What was once wild and untamed is now heavily populated and gradually moving towards complete industrialization. The great River Bolshukaar and her tributaries flows through the heart of the provincial domain, and many of her greatest cities including Hakuun, capital of not only the province, but the entire empire, lay along its banks. The fields of Bolshukaar are terrible farmland. The thin layer of top soil is rocky and unfertile, beneath which lays a thick layer of clay. Summers in Bolshukaar are short fleeting affairs, which give way to a long harsh winter, with heavy snowfall.

Bloshukaar is the center of industrialized manufacturing within the empire. The steel foundries which lay along the banks of the Bolshukaar River poor thick plumes of smoke into the air, coating all nearby buildings and people in a thick coat of soot. Masterful craftsman produce numerous fine goods, such as armor, swords, and tools. The province is also well known for her military institutions, and arcane study. If not for the River Bolshukaar, the empire would have no access what so ever to the shipping industry during the long cold winters. While it does freeze over from time to time, the flowing waters of the river do tend to break up the ice on warmer days. It certainly isn’t a sure thing, but when the river is clear, ships from L’Landra will sail up her waters from the sea, often heavily laden with vital food surpluses from Rhoenhein, or even as far off as Kesh.

Clan Krugaar has ruled Bolshukaar province for three generations. The Hobgoblins of this dynastic clan are well known for their academic and arcane expertise. Clan Krugaar has impressively put the last three emperors on the throne. Crafty alliances with the Mahk’Talaa, The Atra'Shukaar, and clan Mugaan have ensured a decisive edge over the competition. The Krugaar regime has finally completed the transcontinental railroad, and is moving towards forging strong diplomatic relations with L’Landra, and trying to unite the goblinoids in an offensive campaign to reclaim the lands of Ghuldra from the Theocracy of Kesh. Her greatest enemies are those of clan Jaager, who were displaced from the throne nearly a century ago, and forced to lay claim to the frozen wastes of the Meschlaar Province. Clan Jaager is renowned for their warriors and expertise in battle, and without their support the aspirations for a military campaign face significant hurdles.



It was more than 1,500 years ago when the goblinoid armies of Hazra’Ghalduur began the campaign to claim the lands of Sancrist from their human neighbors. Driven to turn their militant aggressions upon their enemies rather than each other, the dynastic clans united under the military genius of clan Jaager, to expand the empire and exert their dominance over the rest of the world. Little did they know how brutal and long the war would persist.

At the onset of the war the goblinoids were a devoted religious people who drew divine power from the reverence of the ancient gods. They communed with their deities and asked for the guidance of their deities to overcome the power of the humans of Sancrist. For a time the goblins were blessed, and as the campaign began they were victorious in numerous battles. They pressed further and further into the human empire, burning villages and executing stragglers in their wake. However the tides of war shifted, numerous times during the conflict. At one point the dynastic clans turned against one another, and the human armies of Sancrist rallied to drive them from their land. At another point the goblinoids took back the advantage when the bugbears of Ghuldra attacked the human flank, and squeezed the armies of Sancrist between them. These shifting tides dragged on for centuries, and the humans became a hardened military force in their own right. Both sides learned many of the finest skills of war during this conflict, and they became skilled tacticians, engineers, and generals.

The war finally got ugly when by an ironic twist of faith the goblinoids learned that the humans worshipped the same ancient gods as they did. The goblinoids were furious to learn their divine guides had played them as fools. They had no hope of winning the war if the gods were playing both sides, so Emperor Sholaak II made a decisive move to cast off the gods. The goblinoid people would no longer kowtow to divine forces. They abandoned the gods who had betrayed them, and reinvigorated to prove their own worth as a people rallied to defeat Sancrist. A millennium of war with the Sancrist and the Order of the Light finally ended with goblinoid victory. The humans were forced to flee. Some crossed the mountains to what is today known as Kashra, and others fled to the Republic of Leshaar, but Sancrist was absorbed into Hazra’Ghalduur and renamed in the honor of Sholaak, who proved the goblinoids needed no help from the divine powers of the world to prove their superiority.

The climate of Sholaak province differs little from Bolshukaar. Both have similar winters and summers, though the annual snow fall of Sholaak is even greater than that of the capitol province. Sometimes huge blizzards sweep through the province dropping several feet of snow, and burying her towns and cities. Sholaak was once a heavily forested realm, but during the course of the war, the goblinoids gradually cut them down to build massive siege engines, and after the war the province lay in such complete ruin, the remaining forests were cleared to rebuild the cities and towns destroyed by the conflict. Today much of the province is barren and inhospitable, and she hardly resembles the once fertile lands that Hazra’Ghalduur initially set off to conquer.

The primary resources of Sholaak are the rapidly depleting copper mines along the mountainous borders of Ghuldra, and the vast coal deposits of her central hills. She is well known for her miners, stone masons, and for the peat houses of her villages and towns. The hub of the transcontinental railroad lies in her central capitol of Sherach. The busiest train station of the empire, Sherach sees goods from all corners of the empire pass through her markets, and should the economy of the empire recover from this dreadful period of depression, Sherach is positioned to become very wealthy.

Clan Vegir controls Sholaak Province, and though they have no particular affinity for the domain, they are optimistic that if the emperor succeeds in rebuilding the economy of the empire they will be perfectly positioned to make a play for the throne, Clan Vegir is renowned for their engineers, and the brutality of their soldiers. Many within the clan become Skalds (or bards as they are known in foreign lands) who retell the stories of the great victories of the goblinoid people. They are the spiritual leaders of a community complete averse to the worship of divine powers. The heroes of the goblinoids are seen as saint-like guides who bless their kin in times of war. Clan Vegir is determined to ensure the goblinoids of Hazra’Ghalduur do not forget their roots. Even in times of peace they constantly remind their kin that peace itself, is not the goblinoid way, and only in war can they gain the honor and prestige to ascend to sainthood.



It took the goblinoids nearly a century to rebuild and regroup after the conquest of Sancrist, but they hungered for more. Sancrist was but a shell of its former self, by the time the goblinoids claimed her lands for their own, and still lacked the farmland to adequately feed their growing population. When the time was right they turned their attention to south. The human republic of Leshaar seemed ripe for the picking, and lay next within the path of the honed goblinoid war machine. Early reconnaissance revealed that Leshaar was already embroiled in war with the bugbears of Ghuldra, and Hazra’Ghalduur aimed to exploit their preoccupation with their kin from the highlands. When the armies of Hazra’Ghalduur marched on Leshaar the republic folded with ease. It took the armies of the warlords 1,000 to best Sancrist, but only 100 to claim Leshaar. In fact Lashaar was little able to resist at all. The bugbears however battled hard with their smaller kin for the right to claim Leshaar. They were inflamed by the audacity of their smaller brethren who sought to claim the prized lands of Leshaar, after they had already laid the groundwork to do so themselves. The so called Kin Wars that followed lasted for years, and hostilities between the bugbears that were robbed of their prize, and the hobgoblins who stole it, still lay hidden beneath the surface of both goblinoid species.

The weather of Leshaar is mild in comparison to other parts of the empire. Her winters are shorter, and her summers are warm and pleasant. The fertile fields of Leshaar province have been almost exclusively utilized for farming. Leshaar it seems feeds the empire, and the valuable province is essential for the continued survival of the enormous population of the empire. The farther east one travels in Leshaar the more wild and untamed her open fields and sparse woodlands get. These parts of Hazra’Ghalduur are still rich with game, such as wolves, foxes, bears, and elk. The hunters and trappers of Leshaar province still turn a pretty good profit in the markets of the empire, despite the much more valuable fur trade of Ghazra in the north.

Clan Volesch currently holds dominion over Leshaar province and with it responsibility for the many woes that go along with her. Her traditional clan skills in the wilds, and her fur trappers, are ill-suited to handle the escalating unrest of Leshaar. As the empire industrializes, many of the farmers of Leshaar abandon their clan traditions to seek their fortunes in the big cities; Leshaar has been left with little choice but to forge alliances with Clan Mheklaar of Mabar’Hudraal. The slavers of Mehklaar supplement the labor forces of Leshaar with numerous ogres to work her fields, but the farmers who remain are then forced to compete with the state sponsored slave labor, which has tensions rising. Many of the goblinoids who still value their clan traditions have been put out of work by the competing slave farms. They are not pleased with the situation, and have begun a powerful political movement to rectify the situation.



After the successful conquest of Leshaar, the goblinoids turned their eyes to the east. Their preliminary scouting of the region revealed that a huge bay and potential seaport lay in the lands of Kadjuura. While Hazra’Ghalduur was still deeply embroiled with the Kin Wars and ongoing conflicts with Ghuldra, the tiny barbarian tribes, and fishing communities present in the realm were hardly more than nuisance. 350 years ago Clan Zephruun was promised dominion over the realm if they could deliver it. This was the first time, the goblinoid armies of Hazra’Ghalduur were intentionally divided, and it set a dangerous precedent for the future. While Zephruun made quick work of the tiny tribes, exterminating them like insects, the lands and weather of Kadjuura itself proved much more difficult to overcome than her people.

The windswept marshlands of Kadjuura bay are treacherous indeed. Often frozen over in a thin layer of ice, concealed beneath windblown snow, many a goblinoid fell through and into the murky freezing waters below Even though the marshes are generally only a few feet deep, numerous cases of frost bite and hypothermia took a terrible toll on the ambitious conquerors. Frigid winds blow in off the massive bay from the cold northern seas, and the harbor they so greatly coveted proved only sustainable for the brief summer that free her ice locked ports for less than four months per year. During these summer months the population of the capitol city, Kadjuura Bay swells as merchants and craftsmen from L’Landra bring exotic goods from the distant lands of Kesh and Ilsen. Many of these seasonal residents however, return to their warmer homes in the southern provinces when winter begins to set in.

The principle resources of Kadjuura Province consist of fish from the great bay, and poisons derived from the plants of the swamps. The railroad which leads to Kadjuura Bay took twenty years to build, as even the finest engineers of Clan Vegir struggled to lay tracks through the unstable frozen marshlands. It’s truly miraculous that they were successful, and only through the marvels of their ingenuity was the process even possible. Emperor Volshuun hopes to now fully exploit the potential of the bay to join in the blossoming trade industry that is sweeping through Sulos. Until recently Hazra’Ghalduur has been primarily excluded from the potential markets of the world, and given her rich iron production it seems possible that the empire may be able to turn the corner and overcome their financial woes. Clan Zephruun is marvelously positioned to reap the rewards, should the venture prove successful.

Clan Zephruun once again holds dominion over the bay, after an extended period locked in the frozen wastes of Meschlaar. Zephruun had long sought to reclaim the province, and only by forging alliances with the Mahk’Talaa were they able to undermine the leadership of clan Volesch, turn the emperor against Clan Jaager, and make their move. Jaager was appointed domain over the hated lands of Meschlaar, and relocated from Leshaar (which they left in political ruin). The vacancy in Leshaar was filled by clan Volesch, who were happy to leave behind the cold bay for the warmer climates of Leshaar, and Zephruun was able to move back into the lands they coveted. Clan Volesch knew not how badly they had been swindled. The end result however, leaves Clan Zephruun indebted to the Mahk’Talaa, and should the summer prove too short they may not be able to pay the bugbears the money they promised. It’s dangerous ground they tread on. To make matter worse, the Mahk’Talaa has relocated from Hakuun to Kadjurra Bay, supposedly for reconnaissance purposes within the Theocracy of Kashra, but with the assassins in their midst, Zephruun is extremely worried.



The tundra of Ghazra was claimed by the empire without resistance 325 years ago. The inhospitable lands of the north were generally considered uninhabitable, but they held a strategic value militarily. Hazra’Ghalduur had set their sights on the mountains and hills of Mabar’Hudraal, but they were concerned that the tribes of ogres who controlled the mountains would be difficult to conquer head on. The lands of Ghazra were claimed by the empire so their armies could flank the mountainous realm and prevent the ogres from escaping. Only as an after thought were the lands of Ghazra considered potentially valuable in and of themselves. It was eventually discovered that within the province there was potential for a thriving fur-trapping trade, and hunters from Leshaar began to make seasonal trips to the sub-arctic plains to trap the wild hares, minks, and seal cubs of Ghazra.

Ghazra is the domain of Clan Dreloch. Of all the dynastic clans only Dreloch is non-hobgoblin. The goblin worg riders of Dreloch have long had their uses as scouts and skirmishers, and the larger hobgoblin soldiers were never as well suited to the task as their smaller kin. Dreloch earned their place early in the history of empire, by virtue of their stealth and speed, and have held their noble cast to this day. However among the dynastic clans Dreloch is often the odd man out. They rarely manage to forge any lasting alliances, and never in the history of the empire has a Dreloch claimed the imperial throne. They have however held onto Ghazra Province since the day the empire claimed it, and no other clan has retained possession of their favored domain for nearly as long as they have.

The goblinoids have tamed (in a manner of speaking) and bred worg wolves for thousands of years. They have always held a special military role in the goblinoid armies that truly have no other swift or mounted cavalry so to speak. Even when the goblinoids conquered the lands of Sancrist and Leshaar, rather than claim the mounts of the human knights, the goblinoids butchered and ate them; horses have never been seen as worthy or useful mounts, but their meat is still regarded as a delicacy in Hazra’Ghalduur, though it is far too expensive for any but noblemen and other wealthy goblinoids to afford.

The worg riders of clan Dreloch often spend time away from home, because unlike the other dynastic clans, their love of battle is greater than their personal agendas. No conflict in the history of the empire has gone without the support of Dreloch riders, and though they are largely dismissed by the other dynastic clans as inferior commanders and champions, nobody questions their devotion to the ideals and goals of the empire. In many ways they are the epitome of goblinoid mentality, and the true heroes of the empire.



The conquest of Mabar’Hudrhaal 300 years ago is considered by many among the empire, as the culmination of their military efforts, and the golden age of the empire. The mountains and hills of Mabar’Hudrhaal seemed initially like a place which held little to no gain, and potential for great loss. The cold ice-capped mountains and snowy hills were next to impossible to maneuver large armies through, and the hostile tribes of ogres who dwelt within them were foes unlike any the goblinoids had faced before. These massive brutes were single-handedly able to take on five or more goblinoid soldiers at a time, and even their women and children were formidable opponents. None-the-less the generals of goblinoid war machine felt that they were running out of potential enemies, and the pride of their warlords combined with the patriotism of their armies drove them to try to take Mabar’Hudrhaal none-the less.

The goblinoid warlords knew they needed to utilize infallible tactics to defeat the ogres and claim their lands. Not satisfied with simply conquering Mabar’Hudrhaal, the goblinoids ambitiously aspired to completely subjugate and castrate the power of the ogre chieftains. Too many times in the past had their enemies escaped them, and they wanted this victory to be one for the ages. Emperor Mehklaa himself led the campaign, and his exploits as a commander live on in the memories of all goblinoids to this day. The warlords of Clan Vegir are still widely regarded as the finest military commanders of the empire, largely due to reputations earned during the conquest of Mabar’Hudrhaal; despite the relative scarcity of their presence on modern day battlefields, clan Vegir still carry themselves with dignity, and their warlords command great respect.

Emperor Mehklaa had the worg riders of Dreloch claim the lands of Ghazra specifically for purpose of cutting off escape into the frozen north. His armies encircled the lands of Mabar’Hudrhaal and slowly moved in. The terrain was treacherous, and he was forced to divide his legions into much smaller battalions just to maneuver within the hostile and rocky lands. Somehow he managed to coordinate their efforts despite the distances between them. The emperor made extensive use of swift messengers and scouts to pass his commands to his divided armies, and they closed in with calculated efficiency. When his forces finally collided with the tribal barbarians, the goblinoids were unnerved by the ferocity of the ogre war hulks. These terrifying machines of destruction broke his columns and shattered goblinoid formations with ease, but Emperor Mehklaa kept his men focused on the job at hand. The casualties were horrendous, but with each drop of goblinoid blood spilled, his men grew more determined.

When the worg riders moved in from the north the ogres were caught completely by surprise. Many of their warriors were preoccupied with their engagement of the infantry from the south, and they could not withdraw to protect their families without losing invaluable ground to the south. The worg riders of Clan Dreloch were too swift for the lumbering ogres to get their mitts on them, and the skirmishers devastated ogre homes, and burned their villages. Though the ogres fought on valiantly, it was clear that their morale was broken. Within 25 years, they surrendered to Hazra’Ghalduur, and were led in shackles through the streets of Hakuun. At no point in goblinoid history were their people more convinced of their own superiority. When the emperor passed away, a city was built in the mountains of Mabar’Hudrhaal in honor of his name. If any place within the empire could ever be considered holy ground by the atheists of Hazra’Ghalduur, Mehklaa capitol of Mabar’Hudrhaal would be.

The lands of Mabar’Hudrhaal are hostile and frigid. Even in the months of mid summer the potential for heavy snow in the mountains cannot be dismissed. When winter descends upon the Province, the goblinoids buckle down in Mehklaa, for they know they will not see another soul for many months. Not even the railcars can reach the city during this time of year as her tracks are usually buried beneath several feet of snow and ice. The mountains are pock marked with caves and littered with boulders. Wandering monsters prowl the province, and it’s far too easy to get lost in the wilderness without an experienced guide.

Initial impressions about the worthlessness of Mabar’Hudrhaal were almost immediately proven false when the ogres were enslaved and rich iron deposits were found in the hills. The province is the largest source of raw ores and granite in the empire. Numerous quarries and mines dot the hills and mountains, and daily shipments of this precious cargo are shipped by railcar to the industrialized cities of Hazra’Ghalduur. In fact the efficient transportation of these ores, as well as troops and slaves was the entire reason for the construction of the steam engines, and the collective objectives of the last three emperors of Clan Krugaar.

Clan Mugaan holds dominion over the province, and seems to have no desire to put any of their kin on the imperial throne. Mugaan is the wealthiest of the dynastic clans and her slavers are widely respected throughout the empire. Mugaan has forged a strong unwritten alliance with Emperor Valshuun, and they have a mutual benefit from the pact. The industrialization of Hazra’Ghalduur and the ambitious construction of the transcontinental railroad make both clans fabulously rich, and will if things go as expected, form the foundation of the trade alliances Hazra’Ghalduur hopes to forge with L’Landra.



The final province conquered by Hzara’Ghalduur was the frozen wastelands of the Meschlaar Province. Unlike previous wars, the campaign for Meschlaar was not seen with the same fervor or approval. During the conquest of the frozen north, and the battles with the frost giants, the progress was not only slow, but almost meaningless. The casualties suffered during the course of the war by the goblinoid forces far outweighed those of their enemies. Even with the added muscle of the war hulks and technological advances that brought heavy repeating crossbows to the battlefield for the first time, the armies of Hazra’Ghalduur made little headway. The morale of the soldiers was broken as their armies were repeatedly laid to ruin, and the warlords turned to fighting amongst themselves.

In the end the ingenuity of the Clan Jaager generals prevailed and Meschlaar was absorbed into the empire, but scattered tribes of frost giants still roam the arctic realm. A large military contingent of Clan Jaager still mans the mighty fortress of Keblesch, but they are under regular assault from the giants. Meschlaar can only loosely be considered a true province, because many of her lands remain firmly under the dominion of frost giant kings. In truth she is a contested land; even 200 years after the goblinoids supposedly conquered her, the empire cannot realistically claim to have defeated the frost giants.

The weather of Meschlaar is awful. Terrible gale forced ice storms batter her coast year round, and the goblinoid soldiers who are forced to live within the province resent their posts. The lands are rocky, barren, and ice covered. Enormous snow drifts make marching across her lands challenging, if not completely impossible. It is the most hated domain of the empire, and were in not for the pride of the goblinoid people they would relinquish control over the province to the frost giants.

The one saving grace of the province of Meschlaar is the gold mines in her hills. Heavily fortified and immensely large contingents of bitterly cold troops oversee the mining operations, and watch for frost giant raids. The railcars make infrequent trips to the province; when the steam engines do arrive, they load their cars with gold, and drop off more troops to supplement the armies who continuously suffer mounting casualties. The profits of the gold mines barely cover the military expenses of the operation, and that doesn’t even take into consideration the value of goblinoid life. The whole operation is lucky to break even.

Clan Jaager currently holds dominion over the icy lands, fortresses, and mines of Meschlaar. Emperor Volshuun insists that he has not assigned his rival clan to the lands of Meschlaar due to the petty rivalries, or past vendettas between their families, but the hobgoblins of Clan Jaager certainly don’t see it that way. The emperor has explained that only the finest military commanders can hold off the skilled frost giant warriors, and defend the gold mines of Hazra’Ghladuur; any clan that has languished under the conditions of Meschlaar however, would argue that no price is worth a sentence on the front. Rumors abound that the emperor only holds onto Meschlaar to punish rival clans, and subjugate potential threats to his regime, and the rumors are not without merit.





Two hundred years ago the goblinoids of clan Krugaar were entrenched in a long series of skirmishes with the elves of Sha'Irna. Despite their best efforts they were unable to duplicate the arcane might of the elves. Elfin blade singers were the harriers of doom for the smaller goblinoid units who delved too deeply into the twisted forests of the Shadow Wood. A single blade singer could bring down an entire unit single-handedly with his magic, and as a direct result of this military shortfall and the prolonged and evident arcane weakness of his army, the emperor Lucius IV, established the Atra'Shukaar, the state sponsored arcane academy.

The academy today is primarily responsible for arcane research and regulation. They hone their skills studying arcane lore, scribing scrolls, administering the arcane libraries, and policing arcane magic. Most state arcanists operate out of the central headquarters in the city of Hakuun, capitol of the Bolshukaar province. However many are sent on missions to seek out potential threats, and recover lost arcane documents. Each major city has a chapter of the academy, and within their domain they are entrusted with the regulation of magic. Only cantrips can legally be conjured by those who haven’t received certification from the academy. Rogue wizards and sorcerers are considered very dangerous criminals.

Each member of the academy is expected to adhere to the orders of their commanding officers until he or she masters the ability to cast the fireball spell. Until such a time passes they are considered apprentices, with little free time of their own. However once they are promoted to officers themselves, they are much more liberated to pursue their own personal devices. At that point while they still must obey the orders of their superiors, the officers of the state academy are not only allowed, but expected to pursue independent research, travel the empire, and report their discoveries in detailed summations. Contact during extended absence is maintained via whispering wind or other magical communication.

During war however, all officers of the state are expected to devote their full time and magical aptitude to the efforts of the campaign. Officers are highly sought after on the battlefield for their unique specialized skills, and as counter-measures to the potential opposing wizards of enemy armies. While only a handful of arcanists actually see significant time on the field of combat, officers are held in reserve should the emperor require them. Very rarely however are the state arcanists assembled in force. Should they exert their full might, there is unlikely anyone who could realistically oppose them.



Goblins long treated as the whipping boys of their larger brethren, have finally been pushed to their limits. Recent social unrest coupled with increasingly difficult living conditions, only compounded by government programs supposedly designed to alleviate them, have lead to a fractolization of the goblinoid social structures, and build around traditional clans. The Kazuun'Drhaal has begun to take matters into their own hands. As slave laborers steal their jobs, and disgruntled soldiers kick them around, greater numbers of goblins join the ranks of the union. They are rapidly becoming a force to reckon within Hazra'Ghalduur that lobbies for changes to the structure and policies that have been implemented by the dynastic clans.

The union's primary objective is the abolishment of slavery, and the subsequent restoration of the farms to the rightful clans who have worked them for generations. The Kazuun'Drhaal is convinced that the ogres are the key. Should the slaves gain their freedom, they would no doubt require wages, which the government could not fund on such a massive scale. In turn the freedom of the slaves would result in more jobs for the goblin clans of Leshaar who have lost almost everything. The union fully intends to welcome the ogres into the Kazuun’Drhaal should they ever gain their freedom, and between their combined forces, they just may be strong enough to exert control over many of the major industries and trades of Hazra'Ghalduur. An ambitious goal for certain, but with significant sway over the economic power of the empire, the goblinoids suspect they might even be able to lobby their economic power into a movement to usurp the dynastic clans. If they can establish a regime that supports all goblinoids equally, the Kazuun’Drhaal will have met their ultimate objective. There are obviously numerous events that could factor into the equation, and interfere with ultimate designs of the union, but they have to start somewhere. Consequences are damned, the union isn't going to just sit by and wonder what could be.

Thus far many goblinoids (the clever ones at least) have been subtle in their methods. They have worked with the Mahk'Talaa, and even the more radical diplomats of L'Landra, to undermine the authority of the central bureaucracy, and turn the dynastic clans against one another. Emperor Volshuun however, remains almost untouchable thus far, but even he has taken notice of the unrest. While Volshuun fosters a rally of the dynastic clans to take arms against Kashra and reclaim the lost lands of Ghuldra, and diplomatically tries to forge good relations with L'Landra to ensure food surpluses sizable enough to last the winter, the Kazuun'Drhaal work primarily through the common man. They are trying to show their working class comrades and serfs that no matter how powerful Hazra'Ghalduur grows under the imperial regime, they will always get the short end of the stick.

Others within the union have attempted minor protests and work strikes, but they have of course, met with little success. Imperial soldiers make quick work of potential rebellions. The armies who are primarily composed of hobgoblins, remain staunchly loyal to the emperor and their clans, and look down upon their lesser brothers and sisters, as unruly children, with little focus in these "wretched peaceful times." However it seems that things are rapidly approaching the point of no return. Soon Volshuun will be forced to either acquiesce to the demands of the Kazuun’Drhaal, or crush their central leadership. Neither option appeals to him, as the latter will make martyrs of his brethren (only delaying the inevitable and fostering further unrest), and the former will significantly weaken his regime and the empire as a whole. He has been involved in intense evaluation of the escalating situation with his advisors, and clan Volesch who remain trapped in the middle and Volshuun may be forced to pick his poison. He hopes he can foster enough support to rapidly move his nation to war with Kashra, so that he can utilize the bolstered patriotism of his people to silence the cries of the union. There is little time to spare.



The Mahk’Talaa (loosely translated blade of silence) is a guild with roots within the fallen kingdom of Ghuldra, which crumbled under the weight of the combined effects of internal strife, and an ongoing war with the paladins of Kashra and the hobgoblins of the empire. A little over a century ago, as the last vestiges of the former bugbear kingdom were wiped from Sulos, refugees from their nation were forced to swallow their pride, and seek shelter within the empire of their long-time rivals the hobgoblins. Though they had long been opposed to the regime of their kin, their hands were tied, and the bugbears became beholden to the empire of Hazra’Ghalduur.

One hundred years later, the bugbears still operate as though they are not fully accepted members of goblinoid society. They continue to keep their opinions and agendas mostly to themselves. They have rebuilt the Mahk’Talaa in her original image, modeled after the guild that was largely responsible for completely undermining their own former government and leadership. The Mahk’Talaa is a mercenary organization of assassins, spies, and saboteurs, who offer their services to the highest bidder. They have no problem what-so-ever working both for and against the dynastic clans, and have become yet another valuable tool in the arsenals of ambitious warlords.

While they are loyal to the emperor first and foremost, their loyalty is not a matter of pride or tradition, but a matter of greed and power. They are paid for their services, and not considered citizens of the state, but rather as dignitaries of a defunct foreign power. Their sub-culture claims small sections of most major settlements, and remains somewhat independent and distant from their brethren. Like cities within cities, the Mahk’Talaa districts are almost alien places. They serve different foods, wear different clothes (preferring dark cloaks and fur boots to the heavy overcoats and polished leather footwear customary throughout Hazra’Ghalduur), and even their dialect varies significantly. The bugbears are out for themselves, and their own kind; loyalty and a sense of national pride is just as strong within their sub-culture as that of their kin folk, however they are loyal not to Hazra’Ghalduur and the hobgoblins, but to their lost homeland of Ghuldra and the gold in their pockets.

Recent progress along the former boarders of their nation has inspired unparalleled support from the bugbears behind the regime of the current emperor, Volshuun VII. While they still eagerly collect their wages, they are not very likely to conspire against him. Emperor Volshuun realizes that the support of the bugbears strengthens his stranglehold on the state, and he has made a concerted effort to reclaim the lost lands of Ghuldra. While progress has been slow, and only a finite investment of resources is practical, the empire has pressed ever cautiously into the lands currently held by Kashra. It’s a delicate affair, because too much aggression may bring the unified forces of the human kingdoms to bear upon them. The remote tracts of mountainous land seem to hold little value to the humans, other than the strategic military significance of the Ghuldra highlands (which over-look the valleys of Kashra). Thus far there has been little resistance at all. The humans clearly do not want a powerful foe to yet again hold dominion over this key territory, but they seem to think Hazra’Ghalduur is not planning a significant offensive as of yet. Volshuun realizes that a sovereign state could be established with the former lands of the bugbears, who could potentially be far more loyal to Hazra’Ghalduur that the current incarnation of the predominantly bugbear guild of Mahk’Talaa.



Hazra’Ghalduur’s slave labor force is debatably seen as the most valuable resource in the empire. Almost 300 years ago they conquered what is currently known as the province of Mabar’Hudrhaal (the Iron Hills), and enslaved the ogres who lived there. The slaves of the empire work her cold stony fields, haul heavy lumber and stones, and labor incessantly behind the lashes of their taskmasters in the mines of Mabar'Hudrhaal. Entire cities have been built on the backs of these physically powerful, nearly tireless, and durable slaves.

As was learned during the conquest of Mabar’Hudrhaal, the ogres are a terrible force on the battlefield. The goblinoids have fully exploited this on the fields of war whenever possible. Ogres can haul siege engines of epic proportions onto the fields of battle. They man the rams to batter down castle gates, and heave massive stones and iron balls into the buckets of goblinoid catapults and trebuchets. The ogre war hulks wade into battle in piecemeal armor wielding wicked exotic weapons like dire flails, spiked chains, and war mauls. The war hulks of Hazra’Ghalduur shatter the enemy columns, and stifle the charges of enemy cavalry with their battle roars. They are often beaten and tortured mercilessly by their masters, and only on the fields of war can they vent their bottled anger and rage.

Intensive controlled breeding programs have produced veritable armies of ogres. Far more ogres live within the empire of Hazra’Ghalduur in this modern industrialized age, than ever dwelt within the mountains of Mabar’Hudrhaal during the days of ogre freedom. Clan Mugaan maintains a stranglehold on the slave trade, and they have never sold the much more valuable females or studs to the competition. Outside of Mabar’Hudrhaal in fact, many goblinoids have never even seen a female ogre.

Capitol: None
Size: 3,300,000 square miles
Civilization: 0 square miles (0%)
Wilderness: 3,300,000 square miles (100%)
Population Density: 1/10 people per square mile
Total Population: 300,000 people
Rural Population: 0 people (0%)
Urban Population: 0 people (0%)
Isolated Population: 300,000 people (100%)
Races: 75% Human, 25% Elan

Nearly a third of the continent of Sulos is covered by the massive deserts of Ilsen. The sandy dunes of this land blow and shift with the winds, and temperatures by mid day soar to oppressive extremes often exceeding 130 degrees. There is virtually no water in Ilsen. There are no springs, rivers, or oasis in the desert. While deep below the desert sands there may be massive underground lakes and reservoirs, they seem unable to push their way to the surface. In the distant past it is said that Ilsen was a vast marshy plain shrouded in mist, and shielded from the powerful rays of the sun by perpetual dark cloud-cover. However around 5,800 years ago a sudden and nearly apocalyptic shift of global weather patterns, sea currents, and tectonic activity rapidly dried out the marshlands; or so the scholarly theories speculate. The moisture was sucked from the skies, and powerful sand storms blew in from the southern wastes, which almost over-night transformed the region into the desert she has become today.

Frequent and violent wind storms ravage the land. They whip up blinding, stinging sands, and at times spawn dozens of desert twisters. These storms usually last for only a few hours, but some are said to rage for days or even weeks on end, particularly deep within the heart of the blasted terrain, where few men have ever dared to explore. Rumors persist that sometimes, in the wake of one of these storms, ancient obsidian temples, and possibly even cities are exposed. These strange alien places are well preserved by the dry climate and the sand beneath which they lay protected and sheltered from the effects of serious erosion. There are those who’ve claimed to have seen strange runes and hieroglyphs carved into the monuments, but the shifting dunes reclaim them not long after they are discovered; scholars have been unable to examine the ruins of this most mysterious and ancient of civilizations, so the mystery surrounding them remains unanswered. The truth, though known only to a few, is that the ruins are the remnants of an ancient Illithid civilization that was shattered in the wake of rapid and cataclysmic climate changes. The mind flayers were forced to flee the realm in great haste. Some withdrew into the dark caverns beneath the deserts and mountains of Sulos, while others fled the continent altogether. They abandoned their slaves, their young, and even the briny pools of their elder brains in their panic-stricken flight. It took them nearly 20,000 years to build Ilsen, but only one for complete and utter destruction to befall her.

While very little plant or wild life flourishes in the desert, those that do live there can survive for months without water. Unique desert flowers, and cacti lay scattered sparsely throughout the desert, and pollinate by letting loose their spores into the passing sandstorms. When the skies do open up and rain falls, which is at most four or five times a year, the flowers and cacti soak up as much water as possible; it will be a long time before they once again get the chance to quench their thirst. In addition to these hardy plants, a handful of venomous lizards, scorpions, and snakes somehow manage to survive, by feasting upon the cacti and each other. Almost all the native wildlife is toxic, poisonous, or venomous. This strange evolutionary adaptation is simply survival based, however with proper preparation (or natural immunities) everything can and will be eaten. The process requires intimate knowledge of the native flora, fauna, and reptilian based creatures, and education in the appropriate preparation measures: outsiders are highly unlikely to learn these very pertinent survival skills.

There is however another creature which roams the deserts, and it is far more frightening a predator than any of these tiny venomous threats: the gargantuan sand worms that prowl the heartlands of the desert. These creatures lay in wait beneath the shifting dunes for passing victims, whom they ambush by either opening their massive maws, swallowing their prey whole from beneath, or by unleashing their 25’ long tentacles, with which they grasp their victims, dragging them beneath the sand. The sand worms seem to be nocturnal creatures, who hunt under the cover of nightfall, and beneath the darkened skies of the sandstorms. The sandworms are also known as neothelids in the language of the native nomads. These monsters are said to be the result of genetic mutation or evolution gone horribly wrong, and they may have some strange connection to the ancient empire buried within the blazing sands of Ilsen.

Given the in-hospitability of Ilsen why is it that people even go there? Well there are a few reasons. For one the desert lotus, which is one of the rarest flowers of the desert; known to bloom along a few of the infrequently found rocky outcroppings that thrust upwards from the sand. This strange violet lotus possesses numerous special characteristics. When burned as incense, it is a powerful hallucinogen, prized by the priests of Kesh, and used in their ceremonial rituals. The desert lotus can also be fermented into potent and delicious liquors that are brewed only in Kesh, and exported throughout the world. The desert lotus is essential to the people of Kesh, both spiritually and economically. The priests of Kesh burn the desert lotus derived incense in celebration of their arduous trek from the desert (from whence their people claim to have originally lived), to the chosen lands of their lush fertile realm. Economically, but single bottle of lotus liquor, also known as dream wine, will fetch as much money in the markets of L'Landra as an entire ship laden with rice. It has become a status symbol, among the wealthy nobles and merchants of the world, particularly those of L’Landra, to have at least one bottle on hand for important toasts, and holidays.

A second valuable resource is derived from the rich veins of adamantine in the hills along the southeast coast. Mining the adamantine is an arduous task; within the mines the temperatures may be even hotter than they are on the surface. Fresh water must be shipped in by merchant vessels in substantial quantities; hundreds of barrels each day arrive by sea, and the vessels upon which they arrive, leave laden down in unrefined ore. Should a ship run late or be lost at sea, the entire colony could be in grave jeopardy before the next arrives, as a single day without water can spell disaster. These mining colonies are owned by the merchant House Al’Arach of L’Landra, and are extremely expensive to maintain. The daily supply ships, brings tools, water, food, clothing, and fresh miners. They leave with the valuable unrefined ore, and exhausted men who have worked themselves nearly to death in the terrible heat. The mines themselves, dug into the soft limestone, are quite unstable, and frequently collapse. The adamantine is so hard that tools regularly break, or wear down in a matter of days to dull useless knobs. The wages the miners demand for the backbreaking work, under such terrible conditions is outrageous, but the demand for the rare adamantine is a substantial one. Usually the profit margin is quite small for raw ore, but the skilled craftsmen of L’Landra can easily double or even triple the profits, if they can work the adamantine into usable weapons, armor, and tools. Very few smiths however have the skills for this kind of craftsmanship, outside of Thoth, so aside from the dwarves buyers are not numerous.

For thousands of years the mind flayers ruled of the marshy, overcast plains of Ilsen. Where or when they came to settle these lands is knowledge lost to the passage of time, though the hidden truth may lie within the ruins of their buried cities. What is known however is that the mind flayers enslaved mankind shortly after they settled the lands of Ilsen. Human cattle served their psionic overlords as laborers, food, and vessels for their wretched offspring for millennia. The cataclysmic events that ultimately destroyed the empire, freed the humans from their illithid keepers, and as the marshes dried up and turned to dust, the humans fled Ilsen. Most of them who survived the long trek, settled the sub-tropical valleys of Kesh. Other more daring men chose to continue to move and crossed the mountains to settle the regions today known as Sholaak and Leshaar.

Kesh was established in the image of Ilsen, and the leaders of the exodus established themselves as kings, who lorded over their fellow men, with help from their most trusted advisors and allies. Conditioned as they were by thousands of years in forced servitude, these humans were ill-prepared to handle the personal freedoms of a civilized society of their own. Most of the humans were perfectly content to serve their new kings, and were happy to farm the fertile land, and raise their families in the new found paradise in which they had settled. In time the people of Kesh began to revere their kings as they had their Illithid masters before them, and soon a powerful faith grew around this worship.

The lands of Ilsen are tainted by the forces of the abberations of the mindscape. The aberrations who settled in the lands of Ilsen countless millennia ago, were once native beings to the mindscape, who themselves were prisoners of the entropic plane. Craving stability and a home where they could live in control of their environment, they reached across the planes and found the world of Sulos. At that time they were but briny pools of formless matter without bodies or the means to move about freely. These powerful psionic aberrations known as the elder brains were able to adapt to the environment of the prime material plane however; it was the adaptation of their species, and their use of the bodies of mortals native to the prime as hosts, that enabled them to survive in the normally hostile environment. The illithids were born of the union of the aberrations and the native creatures of the prime. For thousands of years the empire of Ilsen grew and prospered under the guidance of the elder brains, and their creations the mind flayers.

In order to perpetuate their species, the elder brains enslaved the primitive mortals of the prime, and harvested their bodies. The elder brains were cunning creatures, but unlike their creations the mind flayers, they were constantly deteriorating on the prime material plane. They were only able to survive by devouring the life force of their brethren, and forced their kin to sacrifice themselves for the good of the empire. The pseudo hive mind of the illithids and their loyalty to the elder brains that created them held the empire together for many thousands of years, but it would not last forever.

Eventually plague began to spread through the lands of Ilsen, and while the slaves seemed unaffected by the potent disease it hit the illithids and particularly the elder brains very hard. The plague seemed to feed upon the psionic energies of its victims, and gradually deteriorated their minds. As the elder brains lost their grip on reality, and began to loose control, the hive mind of the empire was broken, and chaos ensued. The broken minds of elder brains caused them to lash out seemingly at random with unbridled psionic energy; they tore at the very fabric of reality itself, warping the landscape, the skies, and global climate.

The Illithids tried to save their masters, but they could not combat the powers of their creators. Many of the illithids simply fled the empire, other tried to stay behind and help their masters, but as the powers of the elder brains lashed out across the empire it began to fall apart. The protective cloud cover parted unleashing the painful light of the sun upon the empire. The marshes dried up, and the deserts of the south blew in on the backs of terrible storms. Within only a year the elder brains were dead and so was their empire. All that was left behind were blazing sands and scattered ruins.

Few of the illithids survived the plague, and fewer still of the elder brains. Those that managed to escape hid in the darkened ruins beneath the sands, or fled into the subterranean caves in the mountains to the northwest. The elder brains left behind that actually survived the plague have degenerated into primitive (though immensely powerful) psionic beasts driven completely and irrevocably insane. The tadpoles that were left in the briny spawning pools if the ancient cities, were forced to survive without hosts, and tainted by the plague they themselves mutated and evolved; those that survived fed upon their own kin, the bodies of the dead, and the slaves who were trapped in the ruins with them. Over time they grew to immense proportions, and have become known as the neothelids or sandworms of Ilsen.





The only known people to live within the deserts are called the crimson nomads, by the merchants who trade with them. These tribesmen are known for their scarlet cloaks, loose-fitting silk clothing, flame red hair, and gleaming scimitars. How they manage to survive in the hostile climate is anyone’s guess.

The tribesmen are not giving away their secrets. They avoid outsiders, and are rumored to kidnap interlopers and steal supplies, from those who dare to venture into their territory. Rarely seen in large numbers, it is difficult to estimate how many of these people actually live within the thousands of square miles of desolate wasteland. Their interaction with outsiders is limited, and they seem able to completely vanish into the desert without a trace, when they choose not to be seen.

Though the nomads do indeed speak the trade tongues, most elect to converse in their native language instead, especially around outsiders. The native tongue of Ilsen is a very strange and alien language with many throaty gurgles, clicks, and hisses. Few people outside of the deserts have mastered this difficult language, though there are those in House Al’Arach who are quite fluent.

The crimson nomads have mastered the survival techniques required to live in the desert. Between their own natural resilience, their survival skills, and their psionic talents, they are the only humanoid creatures to have made themselves completely at home in Ilsen. They know where to find the hidden ruins (to take shelter from the storms), and how to evade, charm, or hide from the neothelids.

Unbeknown to outsiders, the many of the crimson nomads are not human. Despite their somewhat strikingly similar appearance, some are truly ancient creatures, who have lived for centuries or longer. By means of strange psionic rituals the tribal elders may transform their human kin into eternal guardians of the secrets of the desert. The precise mix of mortal and immortal tribesmen is unknown, but it is assumed that that most are human and only a few exemplars of loyalty are granted the precious gift of immortality.

The Elan as the immortals refer to themselves, were the creations of the Illithids. When the empire was still expanding, the mind flayers had an intense rivalry with the Yuan-Ti who also lived in the marshy lands of Ilsen. Their two cultures, each convinced of their own inherent superiority, could not coexist peacefully. As it became apparent to the Illithids after centuries of war, their human slave armies, no matter how numerous, were not able to match the potency of the abomination warlords of the Yuan-Ti forces. Their weak conditioned minds were far too susceptible to the psionic attacks of the serpent men, and neither could their frail human bodies match the physical power of their foes. Thus the illithids devised a method to create stronger humans, with inherently psionic abilities, by infusing them with a portion of their own aberrant life force. The Elan swung the tides of battle in favor of the illithid forces, and in time the Yuan-Ti were driven across the seas, and the empire of Ilsen was born.

When the empire fell to pieces the Elan remained loyal to their masters, and vowed to watch over the empire until they returned. They (unlike their masters) escaped the plague mentally intact and they (unlike the frail humans) were strong enough to adapt to the rapidly changing climate, swiftly evaporating moisture, and withering vegetation. The psionics of the Elan, and their naturally hardy bodies greatly assisted them in those few early years as the desert spread. Even as the first neothelids began to crawl from the sand, the Elan persisted. In those days there far more of both the élan and the sand worms, but the battles between them have drastically reduced both their numbers. The most powerful of the surviving neothelids grew into colossal beasts, while the most skilled of the Elan became powerful wilders. Today the two species are still foes, though the advantage seems to favor neither side of the ongoing conflict.

Today the élan are the leaders of numerous tribes of nomads, and they have begun to trade with the outside world much more than they ever have. They want to reach out to the world around them and extend their feelers to see if they can find their ancient masters. It has been millennia since the collapse of the empire, and still the illithids have not returned; the élan have begun to wonder if their masters will ever try to rebuild and reclaim their empire, or if they should simply rebuild Ilsen themselves.

Capitol: Byrnia (31,000)
Size: 250,000 square miles
Civilization: 37,500 square miles (15%)
Wilderness: 212,500 square miles (85%)
Population Density: 15 people per square mile
Total Population: 3,750,000 people
Rural Population: 3,450,000 people (92%)
Urban Population: 150,000 people (4%)
Isolated Population: 150,000 people (4%)
Races: 95% Human and 5% Other

In northeastern Sulos the small nation of Kashra lies in the valleys nestled between the Mountains of Holcrun and the Highlands of Ghuldra. Though the lands of the valley lay north of even the great cities of Hazra’Ghalduur, a warm sea current from the east, and high mountains to the north, shield the nation from the harsh cold common in similar latitudes of the world. Her summers are mild and rainy, and her winters though not oppressively cold, blanket the theocratic state in snowfall. Kashra, while certainly suitable for life, is a tiny nation unfit for the support of a large population. Her harvest is almost insignificant, and her fields are rocky and difficult to plow. Toiling out an existence in Kashra requires discipline, hard labor, and patience.

While the man power of Kashra is unimpressive, her small devoted populace works hard. The common folk of Kashra spend most of their time on their farms, in prayer, and involved in community activities. They are well known for their hospitality, their great feasts, festivals, and their knightly tournaments. The Kashrans are led in prayer by cloistered monks who are the revered elders of their culture. While each community is mostly self-sufficient, and they are very neighborly folks, who frequently trade their goods and services with near-by settlements. A typical Kashran will give his last piece of bread to a stranger in need, before he would even consider keeping it for himself. They are selfless, moral, and orderly folks, who work together, and take pride in the accomplishments of their community. They all pitch in to build a new home, or donate goods to families in need, and care a great deal for one another.

The one aspect of daily life shared by all the people of Kashra is their devotion to the Light of Pholtus. This little known religion is monotheistic in nature, and their deity is a simple spiritual force of positive energy, virtue, and morality. Pholtus does not have a physical embodiment, nor is he seen as a savior; Pholtus is simply is a sense of purity that exists in all men, and when embraced, can guide you in life through both good times and bad. The national motto of Kashra and that of their faith is one and the same; “Pholtus is in all of us. I am one with the light, and the light will guide me.”

This particular religious movement is not well known outside of Kashra. Founded by the knights who settled the valley five hundred years ago, The Light of Pholtus has roots in the paladin code and religious beliefs of Sancrist. While the nation of Sancrist has long since faded from history after she was conquered by Hazra’Ghalduur, many of her people fled to east to settle the lands that would eventually become known as the Theocracy of Kashra. The people of Kashra mainly keep to themselves. They are not too fond of travel or missionary work, and seem quite content to live within Kashra, in pursuit of a harmonious existence with Pholtus.

The Knights of Kashra are the guardians of the people, and the spiritual leaders of their people. They are not warmongers or violent men; they are exemplars of virtue, honor, sacrifice, and morality. Descended from the elite Order of the Light that once served the nation of Sancrist, they have since become the soldiers and priests of their new home. Their resolve to live on, forge a peaceful nation, and create a safe place for their people, has spawned the religion that has taken hold within the hearts of all Kashrans.

While theoretically there is no government in Kashra, the people turn to the knights for guidance and advice when the message of Pholtus is unclear. The knights train diligently in the art of war, knowing that they alone stand between the forces of evil, and the people of Kashra. However they are as much part of the community, as the farmer, baker, carpenter, or potter. When a helping hand is needed, the knights answer the call. When a family is down on their luck, the knights will collect donations. They are held in the highest regard. Retired knights often lay down their arms and armor, to lead the community in prayer. They often become mayors, healers, and cloistered monks when their bodies can no longer bear the weight of battle. The knights build temples; they teach the virtues of Pholtus, and they live selfless lives devoted to others.

While the people of Kashra have always been cunning fishermen, the demand for whale oil, ivory, and bone has gradually increased, and many have abandoned their nets to hunt the great mammals of the sea. The whalers of L’Landra have not met the needs of either their own country or those of Rhoenheim, and they have turned to the sailors of Kashra for help. The waters off the coast of Kashra are populated with numerous breeds of whales, and especially plentiful are the prized sperm whales, which beyond all known species are in the greatest demand.

Opportunistic L’Landran fishermen have begun to immigrate to Kashra to set up shop in her tiny coastal villages. This new industry has for the first time, given the tiny nation some clout in the economy of the known world, and brought merchant vessels to the Kashran harbors in droves. The new flow of wealth into Kashra has had both good effects, and negative consequences. On the positive side, many of the poorest people of Kasha have had more opportunities, but on the negative side the crime and greed of capitalism are seeping into their culture.

While Kashra is little more than a supply depot for the L’Landran fishermen, her people have begun to seek work on the vessels. A single twelve week journey upon a whaling ship often pays more than a year of work would at home, and young able bodied men are in great demand, for the labor intensive jobs involved in whaling. The competition for these employment opportunities is fierce, and only the finest fishermen and physically fit young men make the cut.

It seems as though it is only a matter of time before the native Kashrans begin to build or purchase more of their own vessels, and take a more assertive role in the industry. There are already many young entrepreneurs who have begun to take up donations from their communities to begin building, but worthy seafaring vessels are quite expensive. The local L’Landrans are getting quite concerned about the potential competition, but there is little they can do to stop it. Quite a few minor brawls have broken out in the tiny pubs and bars of the fishing villages over the issue. The Knights of Kashra have been obligated to increase the numbers of the local garrisons to keep the peace, which has hampered their ability to get the walls built at the border of Ghuldra.





The highlands of Ghuldra have been occupied by the Knights of Kashra for the last 100 years. Unlike many occupying armies, they have left the nation mostly intact. The old towns and villages of the bugbear cities, though abandoned and run down, are still completely intact. The castles and fortresses are very much in usable condition, and should the knights allow the bugbears to return, rebuilding their nation would hardly be a challenging matter. The knights don’t feel like they have the right to destroy or dismantle Ghuldra. Kashra doesn’t want to expand their domain into the highlands; all they want is to keep the lands of their own nation safe.

The highlands are mostly flat and dry. Hundreds of miles of plains lay surrounded by a ring of mountainous and almost impassible borders. In the southern part of Ghuldra an ancient forest crawls with dangerous creatures. Dire beasts of numerous types roam the woodlands, and rumors of lost tribes of humanoids thought long since extinct seem to crop up from time to time. In the cool northern steppes of Ghuldra many of the old bugbear strongholds are occupied by contingents of watchful knights. Though incursions of goblinoid forces are infrequent, recent sightings of worg riding scouts have the humans on edge.

The ancient forests of southern Ghuldra have been known by many names, though the knights who patrol the occupied nation have begun to call them the Forests of Twilight. While the knights have never thoroughly explored the forests, they have seen enough to steer clear of them. Lights dance in the forest after dark, and those few to have returned from their explorations of the woodlands claim hypnotic sirens of unearthly beauty lure intruders to their deaths. Of course it is entirely possible that rumors have been blown out of proportion, but the people of Kashra are not known for embellishing the truth.



Along the border of Ghuldra and Kashra, where the River of Holcrun separates the two nations, the knights have been building secure new fortresses and towers, equidistant along the eastern banks. Connected by a long and continuous wall, these self sufficient strongholds are meant to serve watchtowers over the lands of Ghuldra. The wall connecting the towers is a massive stone structure, ten feet thick, and forty feet high. The towers rise an additional twenty feet above the wall; each is equipped with a signal pyre, and should her guards spot encroaching danger they can set it ablaze. In turn those adjacent towers and their guards that see the flame are expected to set their own pyres ablaze, and so on down the line like dominos. Theoretically while it has never been seen in practice, and the wall is as of yet incomplete, it would take only a matter of minutes for each pyre along the 200 mile stretch of the boarder to leap with flames; the entire military of Kashra could in turn be mobilized within moments of any aggression along the border. This massive engineering project is the precursor to the withdrawal of Kashran forces from the highlands.

Numerous sightings of goblinoid scouts have the Knights of Kashra on edge. The wall has not been completed, and they are concerned that an offensive campaign is brewing on the horizon. Kashra has called for aid from Rhoenheim, but the journey by sea from the republic is a long and arduous one. It may be months before they receive help, and unless they manage to complete the Wall of Holcrun, Kashra will not have sufficient defenses to fend off the full force of the goblinoid armies. While the knights have their masons, engineers, and laborers working at a frenzied pace, their ultimate fate is unknown.

The Mahk’Talaa and the scouts of Hazra’Ghalduur for their parts are aware of their rapidly closing window of opportunity. They need to either move now, or face the prospect of a very challenging obstacle. They have sent word to Emperor Volshuun that the time to strike is now, lest they wish to contend with the Wall of Holcrun and potential reinforcements from Rhoenheim. Fortunately for Kashra the dynastic clans are not unified in their support for military action. Some wish to move on Rhoenheim itself, others want to bring the fight back to Sha’Irna, and there are those who feel that military action against Kashra could threaten potential trade arrangements with L’Landra. Hesitation and political indecision on the part of Hazra’Ghalduur play to the advantage of Kashra.





The Light of Pholtus is a religion born of the Paladin's Code of Sancrist. The Order of Light as they were called in those gone, but not forgotten days was empowered by the divine overlords of Sancrist. They were the elite soldiers of the old kingdom, who fought long and hard against the advancing goblinoid armies of the dynastic clans. While the tides of battle shifted back and forth between Sancrist and Hazra’Ghalduur for centuries, in the end the sheer numbers and relentlessness of the goblinoids became overwhelming. Combined with the refusal for aid from their neighboring allies in Leshaar, who were deeply embroiled in wars of their own, and the nation of Sancrist was overrun.

The Order of Light knew the battle was lost, long before defeat finally came, but they fought on none-the-less. They bought their people the time they needed to flee through Ghuldra pass, and on to the lands today known as Kashra. In those days the nation was no where near as peaceful as she is now. When the refugees of Sancrist first settled her lands, they were already populated with fierce bugbears, and the battles between them were fierce and relentless. While the common folk tried to build a new home, the Order of Light skirmished almost daily with their bugbear enemies. Only after the famous Battle of Holcrun, were the bugbears driven from the land, but at a terrible price...in the aftermath of the epic battle, the people learned that their heroic commander Kashra was slain by an assassin's arrow which lodged lethally within her neck.

Grief stricken but driven to survive and fight on, the settlers of the newly established nation, named their home after their fallen leader; the Order of Light too renamed themselves in honor of their champion, and thus the nation of Kashra and the Knights of Kashra were born. The martyrdom of Kashra inspired many to join the ranks of the knights, and the nation rallied around them. In time the ancient gods were forgotten, and all that remained of the ancient faiths of Sancrist was the knightly code of the Order of Light, henceforth known as the Light of Pholtus.

Over the next few centuries, the Knights of Kashra fought long and hard against the bugbears. Kashra’s death remained fresh in their minds (even as centuries rolled by), motivating and droving them on to vanquish their hated foes. It took more than three hundred years of war, but the Knights of Kashra prevailed. They pushed the bugbears and the hated assassins of the Mahk'Talaa from the highlands of Ghuldra, and for the first time in the history of Kashra, peaceful times reigned. They have continued to do so until today, nearly a century later, though there are many who are concerned that the peace will not last.

There are three important power groups within the church of Pholtus. The first are the knights who founded the religion. The second are the cloistered monks who lead their churches, and the last are the favored souls of Pholtus. Each has a specific role and a specific place within the hearts of their people. None is seen as more important than any of the others, though the knights do seem to have the greatest numbers, and the largest following of the three.

The Knights of Kashra

The Knights of Kashra are the military branch of the theocracy. They are also the largest and most influential force in the nation. It was the knightly code that spawned the Light of Pholtus, and the knights who founded and defended the nation while she struggled against her enemies. It is the knights who patrol the borders and the lands of Ghuldra, ever vigilant for goblinoid incursion, and it is the knights who the people of Kashra turn to when things look most dire. While the last century has been peaceful, the exploits of the knights have not been forgotten by the people of the theocracy.

Many of the Knights of Kashra are simple fighters, though others are divine knights, or even cavaliers. They serve the church and the people of Kashra and live by the principles of their code. They are however far from perfect, and many men who at first aspire to be knights falter along the way. It is easy to get caught up in ideas like vengeance, self righteousness, and anger, when one lives one’s life constantly preparing for war, and fighting against seemingly insurmountable odds. Many aspiring knights never make it through the grueling training and trial period required before they swear their oath of servitude. Those that serve valiantly within the military for five years, with flawless records, and devotion to their faith, are offered two options. They may join the knights, or they may retire with honor from the service of the military.

The Cloistered Monks

The monks of Pholtus are usually retired knights, who have outlived their usefulness on the battlefield. It is often difficult for a life long soldier, to accept that his time has come, but those that move on find that the people of Kashra need spiritual leadership at home as well as on the battlefield. These men often join the clergy, and become important community figures, beloved by their neighbors, and fundamental to the recruiting process of the knighthood.

While the life of the cloistered monk is certainly far less dangerous than that of the active knight, it is no less important. A cloistered monk continues to serve his people, his, nation, and his faith, but he no longer contributes his sword arm to the battlefield. He teaches the message of Pholtus in prayer and sets the example by his deed. He spins tales of heroic battle in public squares to children, who often grow up to follow in his footsteps. The cloistered monks organize the community to build homes, schools, and temples. They are as much a part of the community as the Light of Pholtus itself.

The Acolytes of the Light

Occasionally the Light of Pholtus touches a person in a way that is so deeply inspiring that they become favored souls. Many of these men and women become wandering priests who cure the sick, heal the wounded, and tend to the needs of their fellow man. Most favored souls swear vows of poverty, abstinence, and chastity, choosing instead to devote every once of their faith to the will of Pholtus. Favored souls or the Acolytes of the Light or Ascetics (as they are commonly called by the people of Kashra), wander not only through their own nation, but often beyond.

The Light of Pholtus acknowledges that the acolytes are clearly blessed men, but they remain independent of the greater organized faith of the theocracy. The stance of the nation of Kashra is that missionary work, while admirable, potentially stirs up bad blood within foreign lands. As a nation and a people Kashra cannot afford to alienate their allies. They stand on the brink of war, and Kashra cannot afford religious or political backlash from botched missionary expeditions, however they empathize with the personal mission of the acolytes, and feel a kinship of faith with them.

The acolytes for their part, understand the concerns of their nation, and do not fault their kin for the lack of support. An acolyte knows he has devoted his life to a personal quest for enlightenment, and a mission of the light. He does not expect the church to help him; in fact he would be personally insulted if the church gave him any support. An acolyte has chosen the arduous path of his pilgrimage, and he walks alone, proudly, fearlessly, and with divine blessing.



No other enemy is as devious or as dangerous to the nation of Kashra as the Mahk’Talaa. The bugbears that were driven from their homeland, despise the Knights of Kashra, and most hate humans (in general) equally as much. The bugbears cannot fathom how they were defeated, and they have suffered an enormous blow to their pride as a people. They want nothing more than to reclaim Ghuldra and restore their lost kingdom to its former glory.

Many assassins working for the Mahk’Talaa have begun to stealthily move into their old homeland, and hide among the ruins of their lost cities, fortresses, and strongholds. They pick off human scouts, track the movements of the patrols, and are very cautiously and gradually working their way closer to the River Holcrun. They do not have the man power or the resources to challenge the Knights yet, but they can certainly do their fair share of reconnaissance, sabotage, and assassination. If nothing else the Mahk’Talaa has delayed the construction of the Wall of Holcrun, and struck fear into the hearts of the knights who guard the borders of Kashra.

They are actively working with emperor Volshuun to formulate a battle plan and are fully prepared for war. The dynastic clans have been a major nuisance, and seem more intent upon settling their own petty differences, than actively pursuing preparations for the offensive to reclaim Ghuldra. The Mahk’Talaa is near to resorting to drastic measures. They have considered assassinating certain warlords who stand in the way of further progress, and may take matters into their own hands if a resolution is not reached soon.



The Syndicate has expressed greater and greater interest in the whaling industry of Kashra. The waters off the coast of L’landra are rapidly being depleted, but off the coast of Kashra in the cold northern seas, whales are as plentiful as ever. As the demand for whale oil, ivory, and bone grows ever more intense, the Syndicate has been forced to send their own agent to Kashra to step things up. Thus House Jorunda, the greatest of the seafaring houses has arrived on the scene.

The guildsman of House Jorunda have begun to build massive new ship yards along the coast of Kashra, and their money, power, and influence over the coastal settlements of the theocracy are increasing exponentially with each passing month. Entire towns have fallen under the sway of the mighty merchant house, and entire communities of fishermen, sailors, and deck hands have answered their calls. Jorunda holds as much power (if not more) than the church of Pholtus itself in these communities, and they have begun parlay their financial might towards establishing a new colony in the islands off the coast.

The Syndicate has sent numerous Denescni Attaches to woo the local authorities and the church. They plan to have a new trade port built and operational within the year, and little stands between them and eventual success. While the Syndicate has never had a strong foothold in Kashra before, they are starting to see potential in the nation. The theocracy is quite happy to have such reliable and helpful friends, as they have long had to stand mostly on their own.

City-States: Mara'Kesh (811,000), Khali'Kesh (115,000), Aman'Kesh (491,200), Ilsa'Kesh (504,800)
Size: 640,000 square miles
Civilization: 320,000 square miles (50%)
Wilderness: 320,000 square miles (50%)
Population Density: 55 people per square mile
Total Population: 35,200,000 people
Rural Population: 24,640,000 people (70%)
Urban Population: 8,800,000 people (25%)
Isolated Population: 1,760,000 people (5%)
Races: 90% Human, 2% Elan, 2% Elf, 2% Dwarf, 2% Yaun-Ti, and 2% Other

The lands of Kesh are a sub-tropical realm sandwiched between the two great rivers that have been the lifeblood of their people for thousands of years. The River Kesh on her eastern border flows from a source high in the mountains at the nexus of the Ghuldra Highlands, the blazing sands of Ilsen, and the Leshaar Province of Hazra’Ghalduur all the way to the sea almost a thousand miles away. Near her mouth the mighty river is massive and one almost has to squint just to see from one bank to the opposite. The River Kesh is fed by a powerful tributary called the River Arduin. This tributary is a powerful river in its own right that flows from the mountains of western Leshaar for five hundred miles before it merges with its larger cousin. Annually as the seasons change, and spring comes, the rivers bring great floods which heavily saturate the low lying lands between the two rivers. Endless fields of rice patties are planted and harvested in this damp soil. More than enough rice is grown to feed their people, and enough is produced in surplus, to easily support strong trade with the merchants of L’Landra.

The people of Kesh are mostly hard working serfs who farm the lands surrounding their mighty city-states. They have few personal freedoms, but seem perfectly content with their simple lives. They know only through devotion to their kings do they have any chance to garner his blessing. It is said without the blessing of the divine kings souls are cursed to languish in eternal purgatory and never reach the afterlife. The native people of Kesh pity the foreigners who visit their lands, for these poor souls know not of the damnation in their futures. Only senseless death awaits them, with no chance to join the blessed of Kesh in the afterlife. The priests have forbidden the discussion of such matters with the foreign men, because the lands of the gods are reserved only for the chosen of Kesh. These unfortunate souls are better off not knowing how meaningless and hopeless their mortal lives truly are, so they can enjoy their limited years in blissful ignorance.

The four city-states are independent nations so to speak. Each is ruled by their divine king and his loyal priesthood, and despite cultural similarities, they have little political affiliation with one another. The priesthood protects the people and leads them spiritually in matters of faith and knowledge that have been passed down for millennia. The priesthood commands the army in times of war, they govern the city, and they pass down the words and mandates of their divine rulers. The people of Kesh have the utmost respect and admiration for their priesthoods, who are their only direct contact with powers of the divine. Rarely if ever, do normal people get the chance to look directly upon their mighty rulers. Though they have little direct communication with their subjects (beyond their royal obligations) the divine kings will address immense throngs of mortal followers after great victories or on important festive occasions. From their elevated balconies and divine thrones, the kings of Kesh are adored by thousands of screaming devotees chanting their names, and hoping for but a glimpse of their god-like rulers. The faithful of Kesh are always impressed by these rare appearances, and they often work even harder than they normally would, after the inspiriting and momentous touch of the king's divine voice.

The grand bazaars of the city-states are particularly central to the normal working class people of Kesh. Here farmers barter their rice in exchange for clothes, tools, and other necessities. Craftsmen set up shops, or mobile carts from which they peddle their wares. Tumblers, jugglers, sword dancers, snake charmers, and fire breathers entertain the crowds for small considerations of coin or gold. Merchants bring in goods from around the world, and many rare and exotic commodities can easily be acquired within the bazaar. The market places are alive with activity, and the very soul of the economic might of Kesh, which is only surpassed by the merchant Syndicate of L'Landra, who sail the seas of Sulos trading with the various nations of the world.

Kesh's merchant class has themselves begun to sail the seas of the world. It's a dangerous venture however, for beyond the lands of Kesh House Jundora patrols the seas. The privateers of the house board ships and document cargo to ensure tariffs have been paid in full. Some of the privateers take additional considerations, just to line their own pockets, and should one get caught smuggling cargo, the chances of making it back to Kesh are slim indeed. However smugglers still attempt the process of running the gauntlet; the profit margin is tremendous and successful smugglers quickly become fabulously wealthy. Often House Jorunda tariffs are almost 50% of the value of the cargo. These ridiculous fees are stifling to the merchants who are just trying to turn a humble profit, and painful even to those wealthy enough to afford them. The smugglers have been trying to cut out the middle-man, and slip by under the cover of darkness in their small swift vessels.

The city-states themselves may be the centers power and culture in Kesh, but they are not the only settlements in the great fertile valley. Hundreds (if not thousands) of villages, towns, and farms lay scattered throughout the region, each of which swears fealty to one city-state or another. The territories claimed by the city-states tend to fluctuate however, and some towns have been conquered and claimed by enemy states dozens of times over the passage of centuries. Many have been destroyed and rebuilt time and time again, particularly those which lay at the edges of the territories between Khali'Kesh and Mara'Kesh. These two city-states constantly skirmish and dispute over the right to claim the farms and villages which lay along the banks of the River Arduin. Currently the banks of the River Arduin lie within the hands of Mara'Kesh, but the charioteers of Khali'Kesh raid and sack those on the western banks constantly.

The language of the people of Kesh is very different than that spoken by the rest of Sulos. The common tongue of Kesh (also known as Keshan) is an older language that has not been polluted by the terminology and regional dialects from the rest of the world. While the "new common" spoken by the humans of Kashra, L'Landra, and Rhoenheim shares many similar terms and words with the "old common" of Kesh from which it has evolved, the two dialects are so completely different, that they cannot be considered anything other than distinct languages. The language barrier has at times been a hassle, but many merchants have begun to learn both languages, and the attaches of House Denescni are fluent translators, more than willing to help facilitate communication should the need arise.





The ruins of this mighty city-state are spoken of in only hushed whispers, with tales of terrible restless spirits, and unforgivable crimes against nature. Sarna’Kesh is a tainted city of broken walls, and chilling silence. The lands surrounding her have been stripped of their moisture and lay cracked and baked by the sun. As one draws near to the crumbled city-state an unearthly chill seems to blow from within the dusty ruins, and few have ever dared to venture close enough to get a good look.

Sarna’Kesh is completely devoid of life, though it is haunted by a terrible presence. Withered husks roam the streets, and lurk in the hidden chambers of the temples and palaces to have withstood the test of time. These nightmarish creatures are still covered in the tattered remnants in their burial wrappings, and comb the ruins looking for answers to their eternal damnation. Their dried emaciated flesh is slowly flaking away as it gradually rots and peels in the blazing heat.

Located in the northwestern part of the of the region where the River Arduin flows from the mountains into the valley below, Srana'Kesh is isolated and avoided by the people of Kesh. The once splendid city-state was one of the most powerful in the entire region for centuries following the collapse of the imperial regime of Khali'Kesh. Three centuries ago however, the city-state fell apart, and collapsed in the wake of a terrible war. While all four of the remaining city-states claimed responsibility, it is unlikely that any of them played any part in the destruction of their sister state. It seems that the events which led to her ruin were entirely internal.

Sarna’Kesh was destroyed in an unspeakable battle with the very creatures that haunt the city to this day. It is said that they rose from the dead to exact their revenge upon their blasphemous king and his corrupt priesthood. They supposedly seek answers to their condition, and freedom to pass on the afterlife in peace. Why they have chosen to gather and remain within the ruins of Sarna’Kesh is debatable. They must believe the answers they seek lie within her ruins and they clearly know something that the living does not.

Most of the undead are mindless zombies, who’s marvelously preserved bodies have resisted total decay, but others are powerful mummies with abilities well beyond what would be typical of their kind. They have magical and psionic talents to rival any of the priests of Kesh, and their combined might is a force to be reckoned with. None have dared to approach the ruins for centuries, and wise adventurers would do well to follow their lead.

If legend is to be believed, the ziggurat in the heart of the city, in which the divine kings of one hundred generations were entombed, is from whence the dead arose to shatter the city from within. They first spread a debilitating curse which ravaged the population and slew the king of Sarna’Kesh. As the people of the city fled, the undead emerged from their tombs and slew the stragglers who foolishly remained behind. They exacted their revenge for some unspeakable sin, and claimed the city-state for themselves. Whatever the undead wanted or sought, they seem to have never found, and the peace they crave seems like it will never come.



Aman’Kesh

Aman’Kesh is located in the fertile heartland of the valley of Kesh. She is one of the oldest of the known city-states, and sits atop an enormous barrow mound. The city-state is flanked to the north, south, east, and west, by four massive symmetrical ziggurats. Unlike any other city-state in the valley of Kesh, Aman’Kesh has built her ziggurats close to the city itself, where her citizens have marveled for generations at the impressive mausoleums of their divine kings. The ziggurats of Aman’Kesh are the oldest and largest of their kind, and the model after which many rival divine kings have designed and built their own.

Aman’Kesh is itself a very well planned city. Her walls are perfectly square, her streets are wide, and her temples are centrally located around her inner sanctum. It is said that a great fire once destroyed the city, and she had to be rebuilt from the ashes; the truth of the matter is that Aman’Kesh has been rebuilt several times, but not even the priests of the city know how or why the city has been destroyed so many times throughout her history.

Well known for her harvest of wheat, barley, oats, and rye, the low flat fields around the city are fine land for raising crops, and during the flood season her soil is rich and damp with moisture. The city is also well known for her perfumes, silks, and textiles. These valuable crafts often find their way into the hands of merchants, and make their way by caravan back to Mara’Kesh, where they can be sold on the open markets.

The merchant class of Aman’Kesh is nearly as powerful and influential as the priesthood, and a strong alliance between them has led to an unheralded era of prosperity for the people of the city-state. House Al’Arach still maintains chapter houses within the city-state, from whence they originated, though they have long since shifted the center of their powerbase to the nation of L’Landra. They continue however to exert significant influence in the city, and members of the royal family have direct contacts within the powerful merchant house.

Ilsa’Kesh

The city-state of Ilsa'Kesh lay several hundred miles up the River Kesh, near the border of the blazing deserts of Ilsen. Along the banks of the river is a tropical paradise, but only a few miles to the east the lush vegetation gives way to the sandy dunes of the mighty desert. Ilsa'Kesh is a city of stark contrasting colors. Her buildings are built from mud bricks, and many are painted vibrant hues of azure blue, and crimson red. The lands surrounding the city are filled with groves of orange, mango, and date trees, and the luscious fruits are carefully picked by the delicate hands of passionate farmers.

Ilsa'Kesh is well known for her fruits and nuts, which can be dried and packaged for long voyages. The people of the city-state make many fine fermented liquors and incense from the fruits and flowers of their groves, though her most precious are derived from the fabled desert lotus of Ilsen. The priests of Ilsa'Kesh have maintained good relations with the crimson nomads of Ilsen, and they rely quite heavily on the profits of the dream wine made from the oils of the rare flower native only to the great desert.

The people of Ilsa’Kesh are often gifted in the psionic arts, and far more people within the city-state and the priesthood have embraced the powers of the mind than within rival city-states. In fact the Archpriestess of Ilsa’Kesh is herself a powerful woman gifted in the psionic arts, and she has established the ardents of the mind to assist her, and further the study of such things.

The city has regular contact with the crimson nomads of Ilsen who come to Ilsa’Kesh to trade their valuable desert lotus for various supplies such as dried fruits, tools, and clothing. They deal exclusively with House Al’Arach in such matters however, which could be potentially disastrous for the priesthood, should relationships between the merchants and the priesthood break down. King Famatu takes great care and personal interest in his dealings with the merchants, and has cultivated a comfortable and mutually beneficial relationship with them.

Khali’Kesh

The city-state of Khali’Kesh lay deep within the desert of Khal’Irach west of the River Arduin. The city itself is build around a lush spring and oasis that has provided essential water and fertile soil for the people of Khali’Kesh for millennia. The mud brick walls of the buildings Kahli’Kesh are earthy and cool to the touch, even during the hottest summer days, and numerous palm trees bath the city in comfortable shade. Her muddy fields are heavily irrigated by muddy channels that flow from the central spring of the city like the spokes of a wheel.

Khali’Kesh has very little interaction with the rest of the world, though merchants from House Al’Arach and the attaches of House Denescni seem to be at least tolerated within their lands. The city-state is well known for their fine stallions, leatherworkers, and pottery, but they trade very little of these precious goods with foreigners. The people of Khali’Kesh toil under oppressive conditions in the hot sun, and plow her muddy fields, with little more than their own back-breaking labor and primitive tools. Though life is hard in the desert city, the people are assured of their place in the afterlife along side their warrior kings, only if they earn their keep, and obediently obey their priests.

Khali’Kesh has a tradition of warfare unlike any of her rival city-states. Khali’Kesh has over the course of her existence destroyed three other city-states, and her current King Ramotep III, has his eyes once again fixed on war. Khali’Kesh at one point held dominion over all of Kesh, and was the glorious center of a united empire, however that was millennia ago, and the city has fallen far since her days of glory. Today they do not have the might to be a conquering nation, but they have the might to be a ravaging nation. They frequently raid the territories of neighboring city-states, and plunder them for valuables, livestock, and slaves.

Khali’Kesh is a warrior state, and her people have developed two distinct branches of their military that are both widely feared and respected. The charioteers are swift raiders who ravage the outskirts of neighboring villages and towns near the boarder between their nation and the territories of the other city-states. They rollout of the desert like a sandstorm, sack and destroy, pillage and burn, and rape and kidnap. They are terribly vicious and completely merciless. The dervishes have more finesse and style, and their whirling dance, is as mesmerizing and beautiful, as it is deadly. The dervishes are the guardians of the city-state, and the elite protectors of the nation. While the charioteers see far more action with the current offensive focus of Khali’Kesh, should the city-state ever be forced to defend itself, the dervishes stand ready to remind their enemies why none have dared to attack for centuries.

Mara’Kesh

The city-state of Mara’Kesh is nestled between the banks of the River Kesh and the River Arduin. Where the two mighty water ways merge lay the great walled city, most well known by the merchants of L’Landra, within the lands of Kesh. The fifty foot walls of polished limestone gleam in the sunlight, and can be clearly seen from miles away. The golden domes of her inner sanctum tower above the city, and reflect the powerful sunlight of the cloudless skies of Kesh like beacons of fiery divine power.

Mara’Kesh is the most populous of all the city-states and certainly the wealthiest. Hundreds of square miles surrounding the city are farmed by her people, and the white rice of Mara’Kesh is the most common export of the nation. The merchant fleet of the city-state has grown steadily over the past decade, and the ports of Mara’Kesh are only rivaled by L’Landra itself in the traffic and magnanimous volume of mercantile wares. House Jundora mans the docks, inspects the cargo, and collects tariffs. House Al’Arach loads ships full of Dream Wine, Rice, and the numerous treasures of the desert. House Tsalir issues notes of credit to merchants, and manages the exchange of entire ships of cargo. In many ways the docks of Mara’Kesh are little more than an extension of L’Landra. They mirror the merchant nation in style, function, and mentality.

The city itself is a splendid sanctuary of tropical plants, and hanging gardens which drape from the tops of the city walls. Lush vines cling to the buildings, and fountains and channels feed water throughout the city. The crowded markets of Mara’Kesh are well known for their street performers, cutpurses, and temptresses, who earn their incomes from the merchants of foreign lands. Mara’Kesh is best known for her glassblowers, rice, fruits, and spices, though all manner of goods flow through her grand bazaar.

The city-state is going through growing pains. Mara’Kesh is adopting the merchant ideals of L’landra, and the priesthood is divided. There are those who have remained loyal to the cultural identity of their nation, and those who are more interested in modern capitalist concepts. The population is growing at a profound rate, and she is already the largest city in the known world. Overcrowding, crime, and poverty are out of control, and the vast priesthood is heavily divided and embroiled in bureaucratic hierarchal turmoil. None-the-less Mara’Kesh is without a doubt the most powerful and influential individual city in all of Sulos.





The hierarchies of the priesthoods are extremely complicated with various levels of rank and specific duties pertaining to their roles, responsibilities, and orders from above. While the individual city-states have their own cultural, political, and social differences there are many aspects of their priesthoods that are strikingly similar. It is clear that the priesthoods have some common origin, culture, and ideals that clearly indicate that while they are independent of one another now, they were at some point part of a singular religious entity.

The lowest of the tiers of the priesthood is that of the templar. The templars are primarily responsible for the general management of the cities-states, such as law enforcement, bureaucracy, and public works. They direct construction projects, regulate the laws, keep general order. While the templars are the lowest ranking tier of the priesthood, they are none-the-less quite influential and powerful men within the city-states. They are the one group of priests to have regular contact with the people of the nation, and they are treated with great respect, and obediently obeyed by most of the populace. Most templars are either adepts or warriors; very few among them have actually trained enough to become clerics, and those that have are not destined to remain templars for very long.

The second tier of the priesthood is made up of the keepers of the word. These men and women are the spiritual elders of the people, and they lead the nation in prayer. They control the temples, libraries, churches, and holy ground of the city-states. The keepers of the word define the general moral stance and outlook of their people, and they are often consulted on matters of great importance like wise sages and community leaders. They conduct wedding ceremonies, mediate and facilitate business transactions, and tend to the sick, injured, or pregnant during their time of need. The keepers of the word are most often adepts and low-level clerics.

The next tier up from the keepers of the word, are the messengers (or soldiers) of the gods. These important individuals are often sent on various missions for the most powerful members of the priesthood, the divine-priests themselves. Skilled in matters of religion, combat, and channeling divine energy, the messengers are entrusted with important quests such as matters of diplomacy, commanding armies during times war, and the protection of the interests of the divine-priests. Almost all messengers of the gods are clerics, though a handful of fighters have also attained such exalted ranks.

Beyond the messengers lay the keepers of the dead. This tier of the priesthood is responsible for the mummification of important priests, and the divine kings themselves. They maintain dominion over the mighty ziggurats in which the bodies of the dead are kept, and protected for all eternity. The keepers of the dead are extremely important and respected men, who can divert massive resources to the restoration, maintenance, or construction of new ziggurats. They are responsible for ensuring that their kings and priests reach the afterlife, and are the only men permitted to enter the great tombs in which the royal mummies are buried. They are without exception clerics of significant power.

Above the keepers of the dead are the divine-priests or high priests as they are called in some circles. Within their city-state, the divine priests hold dominion over a single domain with complete autonomy. These high level clerics are empowered with duties over the various domains, such as protection, sun, and war. Each of the divine priests can grant or strip away access to the domain over which they hold power. They are granted the authority to control all aspects of their domain, and the divine-priests often embody the very heart and soul of the domain over-which they rule. Only clerics become divine priests, and they are personally appointed to their position by the divine king. They alone have regular access to the divine king, and generally serve as his voice within the priesthood.

Clerics who become divine priests forfeit access to their second domain, but they gain additional power over their appointed domain. They may use their domain ability at will, and cast spells on their domain list as though their caster level were five levels higher than it actually is. They are extremely powerful and extremely influential men, viewed as near god-like entities in their own right, and they alone are mummified along with the divine kings. They are not however buried within the mighty ziggurats that house the bodies of their kings. The divine priests are buried in separate smaller tombs known collectively as the cities of the dead.

Aman’Kesh

The holy symbol of the priests of Aman’Kesh is a simple circle on an upraised palm, and while they may carry an amulet with the symbol, they often simply tattoo the circle on their own palms and use their raised hand as a divine focus. They also wear tattoos of circular bands around their left forearm, representative of their rank within the priesthood; the more bands they have, the higher their rank. Most dress in fine silk robes without a left sleeve, so that their rank within the priesthood is apparent at but a glance.

The priesthood of Aman’Kesh seems to have much greater power in their city-state than they should. They appear to be loyal and serve the wishes of their king, but King Nalen has been a great disappointment to the people of his city-state. The priesthood has picked up the slack, but King Nalen has not lived up the standards set by his forefathers. At no point in history has such an incompetent king sat upon the throne of Aman’Kesh, and many among the faithful wonder why a young man with such potential has become little more than in introverted and self-absorbed ruler.

There are whispers among the priesthood that Nalen’s father refused to bless him with the power of true divinity before he passed on to the afterlife, and that the wisdom passed down through the ages has been lost. Others debate that the power of the priesthood itself is dependent upon the power of the king, and therefore Nalen must be divine or they would have no power. Only the uppermost echelons of the priesthood know with any certainty why things are as they are, and they aren’t discussing the matter with those below them.

The priesthood of Aman’Kesh has a strong relationship with House Al’Arach of the Syndicate. The merchants of the house trace their roots to the city-state, and it was less than half a century ago they left Aman’Kesh to establish foreign relations with L’Landra. It is said that members of the house may even have blood ties to the royal family, and that the patriarch of House Al’Arach was once considered as a potential heir to the throne of their city-state. There are those among the priesthood clamoring for his return, and a coup to usurp the powers of the divine from Nalen, though how (or even if) such a thing would be possible is unknown.

Ilsa’Kesh

In the city-state of Ilsa’Kesh the priesthood wears simple unimpressive monk-like robes, and carries the desert lotus as a divine focus. Some wear a silver amulet with the unique flower engraved upon it, while other carry phylacteries with lotus petals or incense derived from the sacred plant. They are generally peaceful philosophers and prophets seen more as wise guides and spiritual gurus rather than a governing body. Many within the priesthood have become ardents who focus the efforts of their philosophical faith on the psionic arts rather than divine magic; these ardents are no less loyal or important within the priesthood than the clerics.

Within Ilsa’Kesh the priesthood is completely aware of the psionic might of their divine king, and view him as the source of their divine and psionic powers. The divine priest of the mind is the most influential and powerful person in the nation other than King Famatu himself. The current divine priest of the mind, known as Nashatra, is equally talented in psionics and magic, and has immense influence over both the ardents and clerics within the priesthood, as well as the love of the people of the city-state. She has accumulated all this power despite the fact that she is not from Ilsa'Kesh at all; Nashatra is a defector from the enemy city-state of Aman'Kesh.

Though not one of his queens, Nashatra is rumored to have bedded with King Famatu himself. There is significant speculation within the priesthood that she could potentially become a grave threat to the stability of the royal family, and a recent bulge in her belly has many wondering. While the people of Ilsa’Kesh are unaware of this intimate connection between Nashatra and King Famatu, the divine priests have a very good idea of the kind of relationship between them. The rumors have trickled from the top down, and other priests throughout the hierarchy whisper among themselves.

Nashatra is an undeniably powerful woman, who has more say than any of the other divine priests combined, and she is worshipped by the people of Ilsa’Kesh. She is beautiful, charismatic, and incredibly cunning. King Famatu has proclaimed her his Archpriestess, a completely new position that grants her complete control over the entire priesthood. The only person to whom she is beholden is the king himself, and the divine kings fear that she has too much power over Famatu.

Nashatra has established the ardents of the mind who serve her directly, and protect her from potential rivals. The ardents of the mind have already thwarted numerous assassination attempts, and escort her throughout the city. Nashatra seems unfazed by the attempts upon her life, and dismisses them as the work of the enemies of Ilsa’Kesh; however she knows they are the work of rivals within the priesthood. The ardents of the mind would give their lives in service of Nashatra, and have been lavished with the accolades of King Famatu time and time again for their loyalty.

Khali’Kesh

The priesthood of Khali’Kesh typically goes shirtless and brands their bodies with intricate religious hieroglyphs. They wear numerous piercings and shave their entire body from head to toe. They revere the power of the sun above all other aspects of their religion, and the high priest of the sun is a man of power and prestige, rivaled by few other priests. The might of the high priest of war however, is gradually growing, and his power and following is rapidly increasing. The two divine priests have an intense rivalry encouraged by king Ramotep, who finds their petty differences highly amusing and entertaining. The holy symbol of the priesthood is a golden disk worn on a chain around the neck.

Khali’Kesh is the most militantly structured of the city-states and the priesthood is pivotal to this control. The city-state is starved for water, and struggles to support its ever growing populace in the heart of the rocky deserts of Khal’Irach. The slaves of Khali’Kesh work the muddy and heavily irrigated fields of their city-state, driven to extremes in the blazing sun, by the priesthood. Every citizen of Khali’Kesh is expected to pull their weight, and contribute their utmost effort at all times. The templars of the city-state tolerate no infractions, and expect complete obedience; those who refuse to obey them will find themselves working the fields alongside the slaves.

Khali’Kesh has two separate tiers unique to their city-state. The first are the charioteers, who lead the nation in times of war, and conquer or lay waste to smaller villages and towns loyal to the other divine kings. The charioteers are the ultimate warlords, who are responsible for constantly supplementing their city-state with new slaves; they are just as frequently fighters as they are clerics. While theoretically subject to the mandates of the entire priesthood, the charioteers are influential enough to realistically only answer to king Ramotep or the divine priests. The charioteers have all but completely replaced the messengers of Khali’Kesh, in the hierarchal structure of the priesthood. Only a handful of messengers still serve the city-state, and they are not seen with near the respect they would be in other city-states.

The second unique tier of Kali’Kesh is the taskmasters, who drive and control the slave force of their city-state. Outsiders of Khali’Kesh are not given many rights, and all are viewed as yet another potential source of slave labor. While the taskmasters (and the priesthood in general) realize that good foreign relations are critical to trade, they are more concerned with the survival of their people. Diplomats and merchants can expect a warm welcome, but unannounced visitors will find themselves captured and put to work in the fields under the omnipresent and oppressive heat of the sun.

Mara’Kesh

The priesthood of Mara’Kesh typically wears long white robes, sandals, and thick colorful turbans. They grow long beards, which they braid into elaborate weaves with colorful cloths and beads. The holy symbol of king Hashamara is a silver crescent shaped brooch with a ruby embedded within. Sometimes worn pinned to their turbans, but often carried atop a wooden walking staff. The chosen of Hashamaru wear black robes, studded leather armor, and brazenly carry their curving kalij with confidence and pride.

The priesthood of Mara’Kesh is divided along lines loyal to the divine priests, and those loyal to King Hashamaru. The division within the priesthood has escalated and torn at the city-state for nearly a century, and has significantly undermined the entire power structure of Mara’Kesh. Merchants, guilds, and the criminal underworld have all prospered in the presence of this instability. The people of Mara’Kesh are forced to choose between loyalty to the divine priests and loyalty to their king, and it has shaken their society to the core.

In addition to the previously mentioned tiers of the priesthood, the priests of Mara’Kesh have an additional important tier known as the chosen of Hashamaru, who directly serve their divine king. The chosen are a direct counter-balance to the divine priests who have repeatedly attempted to usurp control of the city-state from their king through various conspiratorial and subtle means. Whatever underlying reason exists for their treasonous behavior is not well known, but the divine priests of Mara’Kesh have almost completely divorced themselves from King Hashamaru. They have become powerful enough to name their own successors, and they have almost as much influence over the lower tiers of the priesthood as Hashamaru himself.

The chosen of Hashamaru are favored souls of significant influence who draw the power of their magic directly from Hashamaru himself. They do not wield domain magic subject to the control of the divine priests, and they are at least their equals politically. The chosen of Hashamaru scour the streets of Mara’Kesh, rooting out traitors and sympathizers who are suspected of conspiring with the divine priests, and execute them on the spot. They are feared like no other men, and their violent merciless behavior, strikes fear into the hearts of their fellow priests.



The kings of Kesh are not only the rulers of the city-states but the center of the cultural and religious beliefs of their people. It is said that the divine kings are able to draw power from his ancestors for knowledge, wisdom, guidance, and nearly omnipotent power. While they are born mortal men, and live normal human life spans, they live on forever in the spiritual realm of kings, where they watch over and bless their heirs. Each divine king has the cumulative power of countless of generations of kings from which they channel divine energies that empower their entire priesthood.

While most of the divine kings rarely leave their mighty palace compounds, they make enough public appearances to remind their people of the true force behind their kingdoms, and bless their followers with the divine favor of the eternal dynasty, that lives on in the realm of kings. Most maintain contact with their people through indirect channels, such as their powerful priesthoods, though there have been kings to walk among their followers as equals; kings such as these have been the exception rather than the rule however.

The inner sanctums of the palace compounds are home to a lush paradise of gardens, arts, and literature often consuming acres of the heart of the city-state. Exotic birds, fruit trees, and frog ponds are but a handful of the luxuries within the compounds, and the royal family lives in lavish luxury. The estate-like palaces are home to the many wives and children of the divine kings, who frequently take as many as a few dozen brides, and sire upwards of one hundred children. The inner sanctum is reserved for the family of the divine king, their personal servants, and the most trusted of priests. Important visitors and dignitaries are also occasionally welcomed within the palatial compounds.

The divine kings often assign their sons to important roles in the military or within the priesthood, to hone their skills and prepare for potential succession to the throne. While only one will ever assume the throne, the kings must choose from among them to whom he will eventually bestow his divine power. He often pits them against one another politically and militarily, to test their loyalty, talent, and strength. Only the finest among them will be chosen and the rivalries between them are often intense and bitter.

The divine kings rose to power shortly after the lands of Kesh were settled more than five millennia ago, and their legacies live on within their unbroken dynasties. Scattered ruins throughout the lands of Kesh seem to indicate that in the past there were many more divine kings, or at least many more great city-states. As countless eras have past however, many of the great city-states and kings of the past were destroyed in a long series of wars, known as the Wars of the Kings. The last of the city-states to have fallen however, was lost almost four centuries ago, and the four remaining kings have averted open war since that time. While numerous skirmishes over outlaying territories and valuable land have continued to have been waged between the divine kings, the city-states themselves have been untouched by the ravages of war for at least three centuries.

The kings of Kesh share a terrible secret that only they and their most trusted advisors know. While it is true that they have the power of countless generations of kings, it is not because of a communion or bond with their predecessors in the afterlife. There is no afterlife, and there is no spiritual source for their power. The divine kings have a much more sinister means of carrying on their legacies. The divine kings of today are one and the same with the divine kings who rose to power countless generations ago.

When a divine king chooses his heir, he has condemned him to a fate worse than death. As the king lies on his death bed, he calls his heir to him. Tradition states that his last breath is taken from him with a ceremonial dagger, and in doing so an eternal bond is formed between the heir and his father. However this is but a half truth. When the king calls for his heir, and embraces his son for the last time, they forge a powerful mental link, and the mind of the dying king exchanges with that of his child. The king (in the body of his heir) plunges his ceremonial dagger into the heart of his old body, killing his son, and living on in a young virile form.

After his supposed death, the king’s body is mummified by the priesthood and entombed within the monolithic ziggurats where his, “soul passes on to the spiritual realm of kings.” This is yet another of the long line of lies woven by the divine kings. The mummified bodies are used strictly as reserves for the inevitable resumption of war between the king and his rivals. Should the need ever arise the mummies can be animated and raised from the realm of the dead to serve their divine king as undead minions. While there is but one known instance in which one of the divine kings resorted to such a measure, the threat or potential to do so, has resulted in a tenuous peace between the remaining divine kings. Mutually assured destruction has been the only thing holding the ambitions of the divine kings in check against one another.

Each city-state has dozens ziggurats scattered throughout their territory, and they are watched over by the keepers of the dead who are charged with the responsibility of maintaining the security of the necromantic mausoleums. Hundreds if not thousands of potential mummies lay within the tombs, and contingent animation spells await the command of the keepers of the dead should they receive word from the king.

Nalen

The current king of Aman’Kesh is Nalen IV. Nalen took the throne almost thirty years ago, when he was but a child. He was at first lavished with praise as the fine young man of great potential, by the divine priests who ruled over Aman’Kesh as co-regents during his youth. Nalen was a talented archer, a cunning tactician, and a physically fit athletic young man. Nalen had the finest tutors, and was a brilliant scholar and artist. However shortly after he took the throne he fell into an inexplicable depression from which he has never recovered.

Nalen broods in his private compound, attended to by his servants and his wives, though he is said to have never heard the voice of the divine. He cannot understand why his ancestors have abandoned him, and what he did wrong. Nalen feels like a failure despite the fact that the Aman’Kesh has prospered under his reign. Spiritually he is little more than an empty vessel that turns to his own priests for help making decisions, and could care less what actually happens to his people. While the priesthood has picked up the slack in his stead, the brooding king has been a huge disappointment to his people, who expect their kings to live up to the embodiment of divinity; Nalen has not.

Nalen has been more than willing to abdicate many of the traditional responsibilities of the king to his priests, and spends long hours in personal meditation within the peaceful walls of the palatial compound. While he has been an excellent husband to his many wives, and father to his dozens of children, these are qualities of a good man, not necessarily the qualities of a good king. Nalen seems far too ordinary and mortal for his own good, and the priesthood has noticed.

King Nalen of Aman’Kesh is little more than a puppet. He is an imposter put in place by the divine priests of Aman’Kesh. While Nalen is indeed of royal blood, he was not selected as the heir to the throne. He was put in place to rule in the true king’s stead when he left his city behind to pursue matters of great spiritual importance. The whereabouts of the true king are unknown to even his most loyal priests, however he has empowered them to rule in his stead, and maintain the facade of Nalen’s rule.

Famatu

King Famatu is a renowned prophet just as all of those who came before him. He is said to see the ley lines of the multiverse, and to read the tapestry woven from them in ways no normal man ever could. Famatu can predict the future based upon his understanding of the unfolding events he sees within the tapestry, and his unprecedented foresight has ushered Ilsa’Kesh into an era of prosperity and security previously unknown. The Isla’Kesh of today is stronger than it has ever been in the 4,800 years since it was established.

Famatu’s people trust him, though recently he acted in a manner very uncustomary of his usual behavior. While he has always been a calm, cool, and calculated planner, who carefully chooses his actions, and allows the fabric of the tapestry to unfold as it should, he has been unusually passionate and ambitious over the past couple of years. While he has not been irrational or impulsive, Famatu has made many changes in recent memory to the ceremonial traditions of his city-state, and he has altered the traditional structure of the priesthood which had been relatively constant and unchanged for centuries.

The King has appointed the divine priestess of the mind to an exalted position, of his own design, known as the Archpriestess. She has been given control of the entire body of the priesthood, and allowed to establish an elite order of ardents loyal only to her. Archpriestess Nashatra has been given more power than any priest to have ever come before her, and the exact reasons for his actions seem somewhat unclear and undefined.

Famatu has been making far more effort to reach his people directly however, and despite the questionable sweeping changes he has made to the structure and hierarchy of the priesthood, his efforts among the people have been received with far less skepticism. Famatu has taken a personal role within the ceremonies of the keepers of the word, and he has fearlessly walked the streets of Ilsa’Kesh, interacting with his subjects, and blessing marriages, child births, and harvests. This unprecedented personal interest in his subjects may set the standard to come for generations.

Ramotep

Ramotep of Khali’Kesh is a tyrant in the purest sense of the word. He takes maniacal pleasure in tormenting his own priesthood and encourages bickering and rivalries between them. His people are oppressed, and those who even consider defying him find themselves bound and shackled in the slave pens. Ramotep makes few public appearances, other than criminal executions, and declarations of war.

It is said that insanity runs in the family, and even those who attain power with their sanity intact, soon succumb to the maddening dreams and nightmares. It isn’t long before the king begins to lose his grip on reality, and portents and messages from beyond the grave begin to haunt his waking thoughts. Ramotep has repeated claimed that he is not Ramotep, but that he is his grandfather, or another ancestor, rather than himself. He laughs maniacally from time to time as he seems to recall events from past lives or hear the voices of his ancestors.

The king is a violent and bloodthirsty man, who embraces the ideology of the warrior, and regularly attacks and raids the outskirts of territories controlled by his rival kings. Ramotep sees himself a master strategist and his armies as play things. He enjoys directing his generals and his charioteers much as a child enjoys playing with their toys. He will sacrifice almost any of them in order to win, could care less what his subjects think of him, and views people with complete personal detachment.

When Ramotep was known a Mehket I, he was truly the mightiest of the kings of Kesh. He was the first to discover the secrets of immortality and he shared the knowledge with his fellow kings. Mehket I united the city-states under his banner, through savvy politics, military conquest, and cunning use of psionic power. His regime held fast for several centuries before war tore the empire he built apart. After his regime crumbled, he slowly succumbed to madness, and has languished in mental turmoil ever since. While still perhaps the most powerful wilder to have ever lived, Ramotep is but a shadow of the man he once was.

Hashamaru

The king of Mara’Kesh is simultaneously the most powerful of the divine kings and the weakest among them. The power of his city-state is unmatched in Kesh, by any of his rivals. Mara’kesh is the most populous, and wealthiest of the city-states, and her ports are the gateway to the sea upon which Kesh has built their trade with the outside world. However he has lost a great deal of control over his own people due to the incredible power of his priesthood.

Hashamaru’s priesthood has grown power hungry and devious in their pursuit of furthering their own influence and connections. The capitalistic ideals of L’Landra have been slowly seeping into the hearts of the people of Mara’Kesh. The bustling markets and docks of the city-state are crawling with merchants, cut-purses, and smugglers, who have made themselves quite at home in the massive metropolis. The priesthood has made numerous alliances and contacts within the criminal underworld, and they have parlayed their influence into the smuggling industry.

Mara’Kesh is a thriving cosmopolitan port city, of magnificent splendor, and wealth unprecedented in any her sister city-states. It has grown so massive, populous, and difficult to manage that the priesthood has been forced to expand. They have more than doubled the number of templars in the priesthood over the last decade, and have greatly increased their influence. The divine priests have used their new found power to rebel numerous times, and they have managed to seize personal control over their domains, but they have not been able to wrench the city from Hashamaru's vice-like grip.

Hashamaru has established a new order of specially chosen followers to serve his will directly, and they fearlessly scour the city-state for traitors. The Chosen of Hashamaru tear through Mara’Kesh like an inquisition, busting up crime rings, and taking matters of justice into their own hands. Judge, jury, and executioner all in one, the chosen are empowered to go above and beyond the laws and the boundaries established by the priesthood. They are Hashamaru’s elite troops, and his one weapon against the divine priests.

Capitol: Deuschra (401,500)
Size: 300,000 square miles
Civilization: 75,000 square miles (25%)
Wilderness: 225,000 square miles (75%)
Population Density: 45 people per square mile
Total Population: 13,500,000 people
Rural Population: 3,375,000 people (25%)
Urban Population: 9,450,000 people (70%)
Isolated Population: 675,000 people (5%)
Races: 70% Human, 10% Goblin, 10% Lizard Folk, 2% Dwarf, 2% Elf, 2% Hobgoblin, 2% Bugbear, and 2% Other

The jewel of the south, the mercantile power of Sulos, and the cosmopolitan center of the world, L’Landra is all these things and more. While other nations have warred amongst themselves, and battled for supremacy, L’Landra has built an empire based not upon her armies, but upon her alliances. While other nations have worked with the natural resources and industries of their own nation, L’Landra has carved out her mark in the world with almost nothing, technological, natural, or otherwise she can claim as her own. L’Landra is but a tiny nation built upon the swampy islands at the mouth of the Longfellow River, whose people have a knack for creating wine from water, gold from lead, and influence from non-interference. L’Landra has wealth, and yet somehow she produces nothing of value. L’Landra has power, and yet her neighbors feel unthreatened. The nation of L’Landra has succeeded in ways the world can only marvel at.

Settled only three hundred seventy five years ago, by the refugees of the collapsed republic of Leshaar, the nation of L’Landra was built from the ground up by those who initially wanted nothing to do with the rest of the world. They founded small towns in the unsettled and unwanted lands at the mouth of the Longfellow, which took years of reclamation simply to pull from the marshy islands and swamps of the delta. Years of labor transferring earth, and dredging the swamps produced man-made islands upon which the greatest cities of the known world now stand. Her people drove huge pylons into the unstable earth to build piers, and framework into which her engineers poured concrete to make large platforms, market squares, and canals. Her numerous islands are connected by a series of channels, bridges, and docks. Other buildings stretch beyond her islands elevated upon stilts above the murky waters.

Her ships were initially built simply to harvest the plentiful fish of the great banks off her western coast, but in time the inventions of her sailors, compasses, sextants, and navigational charts, enabled her ships to explore realms far beyond her local waters. They have become the predominant explorers and merchants of the age. The L’Landran fleet has rapidly become an immense force of economic power. Her ships trade with the city-states of Kesh, the yuan-ti of the serpentine jungles, the theocracy of Kashra, the elves of Sha’Irna, and even desert nomads of Islen. No other nation comes close to L’Landra in naval power or foreign relations and alliances. Her diplomats and ambassadors are respected members within the halls of power in every nation, and everyone covets the precious cargo that flows through her ports. L’Landra has a virtual monopoly on the world trade markets, and even those with the ability to build vessels to rival her, lack the tenacity to challenge the savvy guilds and sailors of the mercantile Syndicate.

Every nation has something and every nation wants something. L’Landra aims to provide it. From the deserts of Ilsen they collect valuable adamantine and desert lotus, in exchange for wheat, rice, water, and tools (at a hefty profit). From Kesh they collect rice, silks, blown glass and more, in exchange for the desert lotus, and dried meats (at a hefty profit). From Rhoenheim they collect wheat, horses, and dried meats, in exchange for jewels and liquor (at a hefty profit). Every nation has goods that L’Landra purchases strictly for their superior value in other parts of the world. They are the consummate middle men who fuel the world economy, and bridge the gaps between distant lands.

Where the ships of L’Landra do not sail, her caravans march. There is no place on Sulos where L’Landra doesn’t at least try to establish contacts, and the entrepreneurial spirit of her people is only matched by her greed. Even the imperial states of Hazra’Ghalduur have invited her diplomats to discuss trade, and mutual prosperity. A pact between the military might of the goblinoids and the mercantile power of the Syndicate of L’Landra is rapidly nearing reality. Where once it was considered all but impossible to forge friendly relations with Hazra’Ghalduur, L’Landra has begun to do just that.

The people of L’Landra are particularly colorful, and diverse. When they first settled the marshes they brought with them the cultures, style, and accents of their homeland Leshaar. Today however their constant contact with other nations and their various people has led to a curious blend of diverse ethnicity, fashion style, and slang unique to their people. L’Landra is a melting pot of ideas and trends, and they seem to pick and choose their favorite aspects from every culture with whom they come into contact, and adopt them as their own. The L’Landrans believe that the very best aspects of every nation come together in their people.

Curiously many of the truly patriotic goblinoids are emigrating from Hazra'Ghalduur to seek better lives in L’Landra. The central values of the goblinoid clans make rebellion and political trickery seem purely repulsive in nature. In L'Landra small goblinoid communities have begun to spring up within the poor and run down districts. These immigrant clans hold true to the goblinoid ideology, but have been forced to put many their prejudices behind them; living among humans may be distasteful, but as the minority they are hardly in the position to loudly proclaim their self-righteous superiority.

The immigrant clans have begun to form into small tightly knit sub-cultures who are particularly motivated to prove themselves. Many have turned to crime, and some have even begun to organize into small thieves’ guilds, focusing their stealthy talents on smuggling and embezzlement, snubbing their noses as the Syndicate of L'Landra. It's certainly risky business, but they are loyal to their ideology, and the cut-throat survivors of Hazra'Ghalduur refuse to let humans dictate their lives. In many ways even if the empire crumbles under it's own crippling social, political, and financial issues, the nation will still live on in foreign lands, much as the bugbears of the Mahk'Talaa did when Ghuldra collapsed.

The lure of L’Landra is of course the immeasurable opportunities for prosperity and the chance to start a new life. However many immigrants are sorely disappointed when they find out the truth. Chances are they’ll end up living in boarding houses, working the docks, or signing on as deck hands for long ocean voyages. It’s very difficult to work one’s way from the bottom up in L’Landra, because the wealthy have positioned themselves to stay there. Property is where the wealth is at, and those who can afford to buy real-estate, ships, or large amounts of cargo can turn it over for a huge profit; however those who can’t front the initial capitol will never break through from the lower class brackets. None-the-less the lower class citizens of L’Landra certainly live better lives than those of many other nations. The poor goblins of Hazra’Ghalduur who struggle to feed their families and even survive the terribly harsh, cold winters, would happily trade places with a dockworker from L’Landra, whose greatest concern is if he’ll make enough extra coin this week to buy a few rounds for his friends at local the pub.

The next social tier beyond the lower class citizens are the wealthy middle classed property owners, such as businessmen, shop owners, and ship captains. These folks have the means to perpetuate their own incomes, and even enough income to hire common laborers to do most of the hard work for them. The middle class of L'Landra is a complete new concept that other nations have yet to duplicate. They live well, usually owning their own homes, attending the university for education, and they own most of the simple conveniences of life. However they too, lack the means to break through the class barriers, and transcend the limitations of their social class.

The upper tiers of L'Landra's social elite, made up of the aristocrats and a handful of very influential entrepreneurs, hold almost all the cards. They own the ports themselves, rather than the businesses and docks built upon them. They own fleets rather than ships. The nobility of L'Landra have the kind of wealth akin to the kings of other nations, and they live like it. The aristocrats of L'Landra spend most of their time in the courts and salons of high society. The social elite, whose family fortunes are almost inexhaustible, freely enjoy all the finest things in life with an almost blissful ignorance of the hardships of the lower classes. They wine, dine, and party. They shower their wives in gifts. Jewels, perfumes, and fine silk dresses are just the icing on the cake. Nothing in the world is beyond their ability to obtain, other than a seat upon the boards of the Syndicate that is.

Many of the aristocrats of L'Landra pick up skills in fencing. The agile and graceful sport of fencing has become a form of entertainment and competition that all self-respecting young aristocrats train diligently to master. The private tutors of House Vylunn make a pretty penny mentoring wealthy young men in the arts of sword play. Fencing tournaments have become very popular events. The social elite often place friendly wagers on the outcomes, putting entire businesses, property, and even business contracts on the line These wagers put a great deal of pressure on the young swordsmen, who often feel that failure or defeat are not options. Nothing makes a father more proud, than the success of his son, but nothing shames the family more than a lost duel. The brash young aristocrats also ceaselessly fight over matters of honor, to resolve petty arguments, or court young maidens. Occasionally unsanctioned duels outside of the lawful tournaments erupt between hot-headed rebellious youths with a private vendetta or something to prove. These duels frequently spill out into the streets of L'Landra, and draw crowds of curious onlookers who marvel at the spectacle. Though illegal affairs, the young aristocrats are given wide berth by the local authorities, and very rarely are they caught and prosecuted for their reckless behavior. It seems that the privileges of wealth have few limitations.





While most of the population of L’Landra is concentrated within her great port cities, there are isolated communities within the more rural and isolated lands of the bayou, and lizards folk who live within the wooded marshlands east of the great river Longfellow. The lizard folk sub-nation within the marshes is known among their kind as Vraak, though L’Landra doesn’t officially recognize them as an independent people.

The lizard folk lived within these lands long before humankind came to settle them. While at first they simply ignored one another, eventually the growing human population began to encroach upon their lands. The lizard folk considered resisting, but were intimidated by the not only the growing numbers of humankind, but their advanced technology, and weapons. For decades human simply expanded and lizard folk simply withdrew. While the lizard folk still control more land within L’Landra than the humans do, they do resent them, and hate the fact that they are impotent to protect their territory, from the inevitable expansion of the human settlements.

The humans for their part are completely unaware of this resentment, and are blissfully ignorant of the numerous problems between their nation and the lizard folk living within it. They are perfectly content with the arrangement, happy to trade with the lizard folk, and have never considered military action. L’Landra wishes to live in peace with all the peoples of the world, and the lizard folk of Vraak are no different to them, than any other culture with which they find themselves interacting with. It is ironic that House Denescni knows the cultures and customs of foreign lands intimately well, yet within their own country, the lizard folk remains largely misunderstood.

On the part of the lizard folk there is great division. The ranger tribes wish to have as little interaction with the humans as possible, but the more progressive tribes trade regularly with L’Landra, and some even live within the cities themselves. The lizard folk have a handful of trade wares like fresh water shrimp, cat fish, and willow wood, which are basics staples within L’Landra, though of no significant value on the open trade markets of the world.

Within the lands of Vraak, the lizard folk rely mostly upon their natural swimming ability to move around the marshy forests and bayou. However when they seek to trade with the human settlements, they make use of flat boats and poles to ease the transportation of their goods. The swamps are too twisted and overgrown for large or swift vessels, so these skiffs seem to be the only practical method available.

Culturally the Shssaarl (or rangers) are the principle guiding hand of the lizard folk. The Shssaarl are the usually the tribal leaders, elders, wise men, and ceremonial witch doctors of their kind. The lizard folk worship no patron deity, but they do recognize an ancestral relationship with ancient stone idols scattered throughout the marshes. These massive stone idols, some of which weigh upwards of twenty tons, are far older than humanity knows. Only a handful of creatures other than the lizard folk themselves, have ever seen these holy idols, and rumors of their supposed existence circulate among the Sacred Cabal. Dozens of archivists have attempted to hire lizard folk guides to lead them to these idols for study, and spiritual contemplation, but the lizard folk have not been cooperative.





L’Landra is governed not by a king or a parliament, but by a coalition of the most powerful merchants of the nation. Those who hold positions within the Syndicate manipulate, own, and run the merchant guilds. They are the men and women who hold the livelihoods of the poor, the middle-class, and the nobility within their hands. The Syndicate is very secretive about their membership. Few people who claim to be members really are, and those who actually are rarely state so openly; assassins, spies, and enemies are everywhere, and the syndicate knows they have far to much to lose to needlessly risk their necks. The Syndicate wields absolute power over the prosperity of not only their own nation, but many others as well. Should they decide to, their unified forces could bring potential enemies to their knees. L’Landra has become so pivotal to the economic success and prosperity of the nations of the world, that they cannot be opposed. The collective governments of the world really know little of the true power their merchant allies wield. While they may realize their own needs depend upon their friendly relations with L’Landra, few realize how dependant their enemies and allies throughout the rest of the world are upon the Syndicate. The L'Landran government remains selfishly neutral, and takes great care to keep their allies ignorant of the capabilities and needs of the rest of the world. They know that through times of peace or war so long as they play all sides equally, L’Landra will remain untouchable.

While the Syndicate is indeed a mysterious organization who’s total membership is unknown, it is widely assumed that since they control the merchant guilds of L’Landra, they are the guild lords themselves; there is little evidence however, to support the assertion that all who belong to the Syndicate are but simple merchants. It seems improbable that merchants, no matter how apt at skullduggery and business, could not only build an empire from the ground up, but manipulate her bureaucracy, and protect the nation from both external and internal threats. All evidence does seem to lead to the natural conclusion that there are numerous specialists within the syndicate who jointly administer certain fields of expertise, and who convene in secret councils to discuss pertinent matters of commerce, security, and governance. Why the Syndicate remains so secretive is largely open to debate. It would seem counterintuitive to hide one’s agenda from the world at large, when all eyes look to L’Landra for leadership and example. Perhaps the balance of power is tenuous enough that the Syndicate is afraid to reveal the secrets of their rapid ascension from almost nothing to near complete global domination in but a few centuries. Perhaps they have committed some grievous sin that they need to keep hidden. Or maybe, they just like to keep their numerous enemies guessing

The Syndicate has established numerous colonies, and guilds throughout the world, even within the very hearts of the capitols of other nations. They have amassed a powerful fleet of privateers by sea, and checkpoints by land, that control the major trade routes. No one passes without paying tariffs to the Syndicate. At sea her brazen privateers won’t hesitate to seize ships, and slaughter entire crews should someone dare to smuggle cargo through their blockades, though by land her agents must be far more cautious. Trade violations by land are diligently recorded (though not directly acted upon) along the caravan bound routes, and detailed reports are issued to the governments responsible, along with veiled threats of embargo should further encroachments upon Syndicate domain persist. L’Landra pushes the limits, but the Syndicate knows not to cross them. The façade of benevolent neutrality is pivotal to the strength of her diplomatic relations, and key to her extended prosperity.

The bureaucracy of the Syndicate is mind boggling. Numerous guilds and agencies compete for dominion over various aspects of the trade industry and government. While some have clearly gained monopolies on certain aspects of the economy, or niche roles within the nation, most cannot make such claims. The most important and powerful of these organizations follow.

House Denescni

House Denescni has become solely responsible for foreign relations. Their cunning negotiators often dictate the prices most goods can be bought and sold for in the various parts of the world. Denescni negotiators ensure that any product that passes through the hands of L'Landra, does so with significant profitable margins, and while many things are beyond their control (shortages, excessive surplus, or demand) they always find a way to guarantee that their own expenses are covered, with money to spare. The guild has ambassadors and emissaries in every nation, that diligently strive to meet the needs of their customers. If any nation faces fluctuating demand for certain products, House Denescni ensures they get what they need, without breaking the bank. They pride themselves on getting the best bargains and finest products available for their customers. Denescni has direct access to the halls of power, and they know the men who have the authority to make decisions, and get things done. They are responsible for communication between the Syndicate and her trade partners. Denescni ambassadors are masters of linguistics, etiquette, and politics. They never make ignorant mistakes that could lead to cultural snafus or cause potential problems.

Denescni ambassadors also serve as cultural attaches for visiting dignitaries or merchants throughout the known world. No self respecting man would ever set foot in the courts of foreign power without a Denescni Attaché to translate and inform him of the various nuances of foreign lands. If one happens to be traveling to Kesh, without your attaché you'd never know that shoes cannot be worn indoors, or that it is a punishable offense to wear priestly vestments. You'd never know without your attaché, that in Hazra'Ghalduur arcane magic is strictly forbidden without a proper license. House Denescni however knows all the laws, customs, and mannerisms of the peoples of the world.

House Tsalir

House Tsalir has gained authoritative control over the coin minting and banking of L'Landra. No nation has complete or plentiful access to all precious metals, and thus the value of minted coins would vary from nation to nation were it not for House Tsalir. Before the house rose to prominence, minted coins fluctuated so greatly in price that in some nations silver was worth more than gold, while in others it was worth less than copper. House Tsalir has taken it upon them to purchase all precious metals, and distribute them equally throughout the world, finally bringing stability to the prices, and enabled coin exchange as a viable substitute to bartering raw goods.

House Tsalir has also taken control of the coin minting industry. Any older currencies in circulation are meted down and re-minted as Tsalir coins of equal weight and dimensions that have a universal value throughout the known world. Most intelligent merchants and businessmen refuse to even accept coins minted by other nations. House Tsalir has also begun to issue gold notes, in exchange for coins. Large transactions are impractical affairs if they require the exchange of several thousand gold, so gold notes of denominations of 10, 20, 50, and 100 gold coins in value, have all but completely replaced the older methods which required heaping chests of coin, and estimations of value based upon weight. These days every major city, port or market has House Tsalir money changers and banks.

House Jundora

House Jundora is responsible for protecting the trade interests of the Syndicate. They have taken it upon themselves to patrol the seas, and man the checkpoints of the major trade routes. Jundora as the preeminent force among the shipping industry has firmly vested interests in maintaining the profitability of their principle source of funds. Jundora privateers are charged with rooting out smugglers and pirates, and hauling criminals back to L'Landra for trial. No crime is more heinous in L'Landra than trade violations and House Jundora with their significant influence in the shipping and receiving fields take the affronts very personally. The privateers are merciless in their pursuit of the enemies of L'Landra. They inspect all cargo that comes and goes from the major ports of the world, and they document almost everything.

Some of the Jundora privateers however have become over-zealous. Knowing full well that many criminals get off too easy, with little more than fines and impounded goods, they have begun to grow quite frustrated. The laws are theoretically harsh enough to convince would-be smugglers to just pay their taxes and submit to inspections. The fines are quite hefty, and the loss of an entire shipload of cargo will bankrupt a single smuggling ring, but for each one stopped, another five sneak through. The punishments are simply insufficient. They not only fail to stop the smugglers, but they actually seem to encourage them. The stark truth of the matter is that the smugglers who don't get caught, still turn significant profits; so significant in fact, that they are willing to take the risks. Thus the Jundora privateers have started to take matters into their own hands, burning ships, and even executing entire crews out at sea, long before they have the opportunity for a fair trial. If the laws won't stop them, intimidation just may. Rumors of their brutality seem to have found their way back to the Syndicate, but it seems as though the government of L'Landra is unwilling to investigate without substantial proof of the criminal behavior. Some seem to think that the Syndicate has turned a blind eye to the affair, and their silence and inaction is evidence of veiled approval. But what really happens far out at sea, or in the minds of the leadership of L'Landra is anyone's guess.

House Vylunn

House Vyluun is the mercenaries’ guild of L'Landra. They are responsible for negotiating the exchange of military good, weapons, armor, horses, and siege engines. Additionally they have significant influence over general matters concerning the exchange of troops, and helped forge many of the treaties and pacts that maintain the peace that has held firm for the last couple of centuries. House Vylunn has long been forced to walk a very fine line. The prosperity of L'Landra depends upon the continued peace, but the profits of the house depend largely upon the exchange of arms, and the threat of foreign military action. Only recently has House Vylunn come unto its own however.

When emperor Volshuun first contacted the Syndicate to discuss trade options he was not particularly receptive to the diplomats of Denescni. While they knew the language, and carefully observed goblinoid customs, he was not impressed with their lack of militant resolve, and he saw them as mere charlatans. He specifically requested House Vylunn accompany the ambassadors, so that he could continue negotiations with men he respected. The skilled duelists and cunning tacticians of the mercenary house were much more suited to the job, and House Denescni has in turn been relegated to the menial role of simple translation. The slight of their house and back-handed insult of Emperor Volshuun has been disastrous to the reputation of Denescni, and significantly weakened their power within the Syndicate. House Vylunn on the other hand has finally been earning some long over-due respect (and a bitter rival, the likes of which they've never before had to contend).

The house of course suspects that the emperor may have other expectations and a hidden agenda in his careful selection of Vylunn, over all other potential houses. They have been extraordinarily impressed with his knowledge of their work, and have begun to realize that the Mahk'Talaa clearly must have been keeping tabs on them for some time. The emperor makes no effort to hide that he has war on his mind, and the Vylunn emissaries are caught in a tenuous position. While war would clearly be a very profitable venture for the house, and alliances with Hazra'Ghalduur have made them far more influential within the Syndicate, they aren't certain that they should get too deeply involved in the affair. The nation of Rhoenheim in particular may not look kindly upon the good relations the house has begun to foster with her hated goblinoid enemies; House Vylunn knows the full potential of her military power, and the guild could become a grave threat to the national security of Rhoenheim. Until they got involved with Hazra'Ghalduur, House Vylunn relied heavily upon Rhoenheim for their profits, and they are reluctant to jeopardize the relationship. Even if Hazra'Ghalduur is potentially five times as profitable, the goblinoids are certainly not a sure thing. The emperor could very easily use the house until it no longer serves his purposes, and then unceremoniously sever his ties with them. Such a potential scenario could ruin House Vylunn. They aren't sure what to do next, and the attaches of House Denescni have been of little help.

House Al’Arach

House Al’Arach is the one merchant house that isn’t native to L’Landra. While initially the Syndicate was vehemently opposed to the inclusion of these alien merchants from the mysterious city-states of Kesh, the power of the guild has grown such that they cannot be ignored. Those among the Syndicate have concluded that even if these dangerous outsiders are truly more of a threat than they seem, it is better to keep one’s enemies close, than to allow them to conduct their affairs unsupervised. The merchants of Al’Arach seem to epitomize the L’Landran ideals of competitive, cut-throat business and merciless pursuit of commercial domination. The foreign merchants, have the only known contacts within Ilsen, and thus the only know access to the priceless desert lotus, and nearly equally valuable adamantine of the blazing sands.

Al’Arach is well known for their cunning and foresight. There are rumors that her merchants can even read thoughts, and manipulate the mind. If these rumors are true, the house has a significant edge over the competition, and a leg up on their rivals within the Syndicate. Bartering with the house is an exercise in futility; Al’Arach never gets less than their asking price on anything, nor will they part with their merchandise for anything less than full market value. Given the great prices their rare goods fetch throughout Sulos, this small guild is very wealthy in comparison to even larger more powerful guilds like Denescni.

Before they reestablished their mercantile operations in L’Landra, House Al’Arach operated primarily out of the city-states of Kesh. They have numerous contacts to this day in the foreign nation, and a fairly influential connections and allies within the priesthood of the divine kings. These particularly close foreign relationships have served the Syndicate well, but there are whispers that House Al’Arach’s true loyalties lay within those foreign lands. All challenges to their loyalty however are dismissed with little more than subtle smirk or wave of the hand. It seems almost as if they encourage the accusations. They may indeed be even better at the political mind games, and manipulation so prevalent among the members of the Syndicate than the native L’Landrans who claim to have invented them. For foreigners, they certainly fit right in.



Throughout the lands of Sulos the power of psionics is almost synonymous with the institution known as The Society. Founded 115 years ago in L’Landra by a wilder known simply as the elder, the Society began as little more than a small private school for children who showed a particular aptitude for psychic ability. Today the school has grown into an international institute with chapters throughout the nations of the world. Where ever the power of the mind is explored, the Society leads the way.

The Society operates with an unspoken, but clearly understood public sanction by the peoples and governments of the world. They police the use of psionics, and attempt to prevent abusive applications of the mental arts within the various vulnerable aspects of their community, such as market places, governing bodies, and institutes of law enforcement. Before the intervention of the Society, there was no force in the world capable of monitoring these potentially dangerous activities. They are seen as a necessity and a respected part of all civilized communities.

Recruits for the society come from all walks of life, but most are taken on at an early age. Children or young adults who experience their first wild surge or brush with psionic power are often frightened, and unable to control their latent mental abilities. The public menaces their abilities may potentially become, are not only dangerous for the community, but for the novice wilder as well. In the not so distant past, angry mobs would often chase them out of town, or even string them up to prevent any further threat to the public. Today however psionic talents are simply reported to the Society, whose tutors teach them how to control their powers, unlock their potential, and contribute to the community as any respectable citizen should.

The Society maintains a façade of benevolent neutrality better than any other organization on Sulos. They are welcome almost everywhere, and even in places where they might otherwise be mistrusted, a subtle application of psionic ability will ensure they are at least tolerated and allowed to pursue their own agenda in peace. Ironically the source of most of the propaganda pertaining to the danger of an uncontrolled psionic mind comes from within the Society itself. They have assured that any wilder who elects to avoid joining their institute is persecuted and distrusted wherever he goes. They have monopolized the industry so to speak, and their greatest foes are those who seek to pursue the study of the mind outside of their realm of control. House Al’Arach, the divine kings of Kesh, and the crimson nomads of Ilsen are among their greatest enemies, though the Society would never actually admit to their opposition of these groups.

The Society is run by a council of elders that have controlled the institute for 33 years. Since the assassination of their founder the elder, the council has ruled in his stead. There are those within the Society who who believe that it was the council themselves who assassinated their founder, though this group of suspicious detractors is in the minority, and viewed by the bulk of the organization as trouble makers and instigators. The council of elders is based out of the city of Deuschra within the nation of L’Landra. From there their reach extends across the nations of Sulos in a complex network of chapter houses, contacts, and spies, who diligently monitor and regulate psionic power throughout the known world.

Most members of the Society are upstanding citizens of the nations of Sulos who wear their simple gold signet rings with the emblem of the institute (a red inverted triangle) with pride. Many are adventurers, artists, explorers, or sages within their respective communities. A handful of members known only as the Agents of the Hidden Mind, operate in secrecy. The agents are unknown to even those within the organization itself, and report directly to the council of elders. Their purpose is unknown precisely, but they seem to have a very important mission, of the utmost secrecy and security.

The extensive network of the Society is very expensive to maintain, and without the collection of monthly dues from their members, or their dominance over the art trade (which infuriates the Syndicate to no end); the Society would be unable to sustain themselves. Even with these contributions, the Society often comes up short, and on occasion they hire out their members to perform certain tasks, like exploration, archeology, mercenary work, or as body guards, to supplement their coffers. As a result, there is no shortage of adventuring types within the membership of the Society.

The Society is made up of a mixture of psionic classes, including wilders, psychic warriors, and lurks; wilders however make up the bulk of the organization. The most influential agents within the Society and the Council of Elders themselves are primarily an usual and unique psionic class of erudites however. The erudites seek to satiate their craving for psionic knowledge, by making mental contact with various psionically endowed people from around the world, and siphoning psionic ability directly from the source. They are ruthless in their pursuit of psionic power, and some have even begun to debate contacting the divine kings of Kesh, to learn the secrets of their ancestral lineage, and the source of their unsurpassed psionic skill; the erudites have as of yet not had the nerve to attempt it.

Capitol: Dastun (353,400)
Size: 605,000 square miles
Civilization: 302,500 square miles (50%)
Wilderness: 302,500 square miles (50%)
Population Density: 35 people per square mile
Total Population: 21,175,000 people
Rural Population: 16,940,000 people (80%)
Urban Population: 2,100,000 people (10%)
Isolated Population: 2,100,000 people (10%)
Races: 90% Human, 4% Elf, 4% Dwarf, and 2% Other

The republic of Rhoenheim is a land of primal beauty, untamed wilderness, and metropolitan centers of learning. The eastern half of the nation is a place of majestic mountains, highlands, and wild game, and isolated walled communities. South of the highlands lay the dark and twisted forests of Sylescnia said to be haunted by banshees, and guarded by mysterious druids. The eastern half of the nation is divided between the rolling hills and pastures of the great ranches, and the golden plains of wheat, rye, barley, and corn, which feed the nation. Along the western coast large ports and towns have begun to blossom, though none holds a candle to the sheer size and influence of the capitol city of Dastun.

The people of Rhoenheim are a disciplined and hardworking lot, most which farm her lands, or raise livestock and horses on the great ranches. Others live in the isolated mining communities or walled villages of her eastern wilderness. However in recent years the population of the cities has been growing and Dastun has become one of the most populous and important cities on the L’Landran trade routes. The people themselves have the fair skin and blue eyes common to those who have descended from the people of Leshaar, and they usually have blonde or sandy brown hair. The nobles descended from Rhoen the Great, tend to have sharp features, angular cheekbones, dark hair, and hooked noses. Their eyes are often a feral orange or yellow color, that burn with a ferocity and intensity, clearly marking them as the heirs of Rhoen.

The typical citizen of the republic wears woolen breaches and shirts, with a sturdy pair of boots. Women wear simple hand-stitched dresses and bonnets without much jewelry. They prefer less presumptuous colors like grey, tan, brown, or black. Wealthier men wear button-up jackets, knee high polished leather boots, and top hats, and the women wear laced up corsets, and pastel colored gowns. No self respecting noble would be caught dead without his pocket watch and cane, though those of lesser wealth rarely have such expensive accessories. Certified wizards often carry staves in place of their canes, and they proudly wear the ruby signet rings, earned when they graduate from Dastun University with a degree in the arcane.

The people of Rhoenheim have the utmost respect for scholarly endeavors, and they pride themselves upon their public school system, and numerous private colleges and institutes of higher learning. They pursue knowledge in all forms and most of the population is literate and well educated. They enjoy philosophical, political, economic, and especially magical debate. Public libraries and booksellers are cherished parts of the community, and the rarer the tome, the more fascination it holds. Men and women who wear the ruby ring of Dastun, have a special place in Rhoenheim society, and they often get free meals, special considerations, and greater leeway from the authorities, than common folks. In the republic people are polite, intellectual, and disciplined, though they do have a bit of a pompous air about them, and a general unspoken disrespect of those from other nations.

Within the lands of the republic there are a handful of laws unique to the nation, that all visitors and merchants would be wise to learn before conducting business in Rhoenheim. First and foremost are the restrictions placed upon magic. No person is permitted to harness the power of the arcane without a degree from the University of Dastun or noble blood. Visitors can acquire a temporary permit, though such a certificate is quite expensive. This regulation pertains to both spells and magical devices. Weapons may not be drawn or brandished within the lands of Rhoenheim without a degree from the Military Institute of Dastun, noble blood, or a similar temporary permit. Thus far the regulation of the power of divine magic and psionics have been left in the hands of the Sacred Cabal, and the Society respectively, though neither art is common enough in the lands of the republic to have yet required the legislation of the Senate to control them.

Rhoenheim was settled four centuries ago by refugees from the lost kingdom of Leshaar. Led from their lands by Rhoen the great, the people of Leshaar sought to establish a new nation in the untamed wilds far to the west of their former nation, which was ravaged by the invading forces of Hazra’Ghalduur and her goblinoid armies. Rhoen is a man of legend said to have had brilliance with the blade, mastery of the arcane, and a powerful commanding presence. Rhoen was able to save the Sacred Texts of Leshaar, and many of his people, though he was unable to rescue the priests, king, or nobles of his former nation. Rhoen established three separate institutes before his death thirty years after he led his people to the lands of the republic. First he founded the Military Institute, which was charged with the defense of the nation. Then he established the University of Dastun, for the pursuit of arcane lore, and the Sacred Cabal, who were entrusted with the care and study of the Sacred Texts of Leshaar.

After Rhoen’s death his sons and daughters declared themselves the heirs of the nation. They assumed control of the nation and established a republic in his name. The nobles of Rhoenheim are naturally talented in the arts of sorcery, and they attribute their latent arcane abilities to the power of Rhoen’s blood flowing through their veins. They are respected not only for their magic, and their lineage, but for their willingness to establish a republic rather than war over the rights to claim dominion over the young nation. Despite the governing power of the Parliament who administrates the bureaucracy, legislature, and executive responsibilities of the nation, they remain beholden to the nobles. The nobles elect the representatives of the republic, and they can remove them if they feel compelled to do so. The relation between the two organizations is at times somewhat strained, but for the most part they seem to coordinate their efforts quite well.





While the republic fuels their economy largely upon an agricultural and manufacturing basis, they are also one of the principle silver suppliers of Sulos. The mines of the highlands are often surrounded with boom towns and prosperous frontier communities, though just as many ghost towns and abandoned mines riddle the foothills and bluffs. The miners go where the silver can be found, and entire communities uproot and move when the silver veins run dry.

Life in the highlands is difficult. Wandering monsters and brigands are a constant concern, and the lawlessness of the frontier inspired numerous shady activities. Casinos, saloons, gunfights, theft, and back alley deals are just part of everyday life. The roads are rocky and twisted, where they exist at all, and without a good horse, has little chance of getting from place to place with any expedience.

The terrain of the highlands is both majestic and treacherous. Bluffs, canyons, narrow mountain passes, thick woodlands, raging rapids, and rocky badlands, make the terrain beautiful to behold, yet nearly impossible to navigate with ease. When winter sets in and the highlands are blanketed in snow, the mountain trails and passes are lost, and cannot be found again until spring. It is said there are rangers and druids who know the highlands like the back of their hands, but these men are a rare breed, and not likely to be found when you need one.

The highlands have a substantial dwarven population. Bordering upon the lands of Thoth, the highlands are not only close to the ancestral homeland of the dwarves, but the mining colonies befit substantially from the expertise of the dwarven engineers. The dwarves have come with advanced water pumps, tools, drilling equipment, and the knowledge of how to use them. While Thoth has only recently opened their borders to outside trade, a handful of adventurous prospectors have lived within the highlands of Rhoenheim for close to a century.

Many of the mining colonies are owned and operated by the Syndicate of L’Landra. The merchant guilds are quick to lease property from their friendly neighbors, and set up shop within Rhoenheim. L’Landran merchant caravans, guild houses, and diplomats, are as much a part of the mining towns as the natives who live there. Their relationship is mutually beneficial, and neither could exist without the other.



The dark forests of Sylescnia are a tangled mess of brambles, whispering winds, and flittering shadows. They are rumored to be haunted by the groaning spirits of elfin settlers and colonies that were lost hundreds of years before the lands of Rhoenheim were settled by humankind. The truth of the matter isn’t precisely understood, but the arcane hierophants of the forests seem to have a fairly intimate familiarity with secrets of the dark forest.

There are scattered walled villages around and within the forest, though as one nears the heart of the shadowy woodlands, they become too dark and tangled for any but the most skilled druids to weave their way through. The people of these villages are superstitious and xenophobic. They fear the ghostly spirits that haunt the night, and steal away with their children after dark. Many ward their doors with ancient druidic symbols painted in the blood of chickens and goats.

The people of Sylescnia revere and respect the wandering arcane hierophants that protect them from the demons of the night, and are wise to the tricks and mysteries of the wicked forest. The power and influence of the Sacred Cabal is diminished in the lands of Sylescnia, where the superstitious folk often prefer the traditions of the druids, to those of the supposedly benevolent sacred priests. However as the years pass, the missionaries of the Cabal are gaining greater acceptance for the work within the community, raising barns, purifying foods, curing disease, and nursing the sick back to health. There is a noticeable religious division within the people of these lands, drawn along lines of tradition vs. transition.

There are undertones of wickedness in the villages of Sylescnia. The people of these towns fear the unknown, and often take matters of justice into their own hands. Angry mobs are not above hangings, and stake burnings, of those they suspect of cavorting with the denizens of the darkness. The local authorities give the arcane hierophants a wide berth when it comes to matters of spiritualism, and they will gladly step aside when matters must be addressed that concern aspects of the supernatural. The arcane hierophants are truly the law of the land in Sylescnia, and the power of the republic takes a backseat to their authority.

Within the forests and the surrounding towns of Sylescnia there is a considerable elven population. These elves are sovereign peoples of Rhoenheim, who have lived in the area long before humans claimed dominion over them. They have no allegiance to their forefathers from Sha’Irna. These elves seem to have put the past behind them, and live among the humans peacefully. Many of the elves join the ranks of the arcane hierophants, and become the guardians of the forest.





The greatest academic center of Sulos, The University of Dastun, is located within the capitol of Rhoenheim, and renown throughout the world. Though the university is very expensive, her admissions are few and far between. Despite the expense and a rigid screening process, the university has waiting lists that bar many aspiring scholars. The exclusivity of the school has only heightened the application process, and many noblemen throughout Sulos make massive donations of books, literature, artifacts, and of course money, hoping that special considerations may weight the applications of their sons and daughters.

The school teaches many subjects. History, science, astrology, philosophy, and economics remain her principle focus, but arcane study is what the University is known best for. In Rhoenheim, a degree from the university is required for the lawful practice of the arcane, and given that within the nation magic holds such cultural and spiritual significance, any who can afford to attend, will attempt to. Students from abroad often seek admission primarily for the opportunity to study the arcane under the true masters of the art, though many wealthy merchants have earned their degrees in economic theory at the University of Dastun.

While always willing to accept contributions from private philanthropists, the University is principally funded by the nation of Rhoenheim itself. Culturally Rhoenheim identifies itself by their scholarly endeavors, arcane superiority, and their diligent philosophy; the University personifies the identity of the nation, and thus the state and the school work together and mutually benefit from the success of one another. In many ways either can be seen as an extension of the other, and neither would probably last without the support of their counterpart.

The University has become the preeminent archeological institute of the world, and she sponsors adventurers in many quests. The university often finds itself at odds with the Scared Cabal in these endeavors, but the competition has only driven both of them to step up their operations. The university however has a leg up on the sacred priests due to its comfortable working relationship with the Syndicate of L’Landra. Often scholars or representatives charter passage on House Jorunda vessels and tag along with them to exotic locales. They have been to all corners of the world and the exhibition halls of the University are loaded with various artifacts from their adventures. They collect obscure texts, ancient pottery, priceless art, and even magical creations. Some whispers abound that many of the treasures of the University are stolen, or that they have hired smugglers from Kesh to avoid the hefty tariffs of the Syndicate, but the continued good relations between the government of L’Landra and the scholarly institute of Dastun seem to suggest otherwise.

The University considers their greatest enemy to be the Arcane Academy of Hazra’Ghalduur. These goblinoids have proven their skill, but their militant approach to the arcane turns the stomachs of the scholars of Rhoenheim. Magic is something to be treasured and loved, not abused for destruction. While the Academy remains either blissfully ignorant of the University of Dastun, or arrogantly dismissive, they none-the-less have a rival of great power in Rhoenheim. Curiously the arcane knights of Rhoen are not viewed by the university with the same level of distaste, for they have much purer intentions, despite their martial inclinations. It is a paradox based perhaps more upon the resentment of the goblinoids, than the actual philosophical approach to the arcane.



While the university focuses upon the arcane the institute focuses upon the art of war. They are a college of martial training, that teach the techniques of swordplay, the engineering of siege engines, and the skills of mounted combat. The teachers of the institute are often retired commanders and generals, who have seen the battlefields, and experienced the rush of combat in live action. They have an intimate understanding of the art of war, and their pupils had better learn to respect them, or they stand no chance of graduating.

Mounted combat is the specialty of the institute, and the cavalry of Rhoenheim is respected far and wide for their skill on the battlefield. While the days of heavy plate armor and the raw power of the cavalry is rapidly becoming obsolete, the intimidation and determination of the cavaliers is unchanged. While advances in firearms may soon change things, in Rhoenheim the knight in shining armor continues to have meaning beyond simple function and form.

After graduation from the institute a soldier is given the honorary and official title of Knight of Rhoen. He becomes a soldier of the republic, and defender of humanity. Many patrol the northern borders of Rhoenheim, watching for goblinoid scouts and potential threat from the empire of Hazra’Ghalduur. The knights feel that war with Hazra’Ghalduur is not a matter of if, but a matter of when. They expect to be prepared for the inevitable battle, and to survive where the nations of the past did not. They will not see Rhoenheim fall as the nations of Sancrist and Leshaar did before them.

The knights have not limited themselves to the defense of their people however. They have come to the aid of the other human nations, and they honor the Treaty of L’Landra as though all peaceful nations are their brothers. Many of the knights of Rhoen have begun to set to sea for the long voyage to the distant lands of Kashra, where the bugbears seem intent upon reclaiming Ghuldra. The Knights of Rhoen plan to fight side by side with the Knights of Kashra to repel the goblinoids should an invasion actually threaten their lands. Rhoenheim not only feels compelled by their kinship with humankind, but by the thrill of battle, and the opportunity to test their mettle in live combat situations.

A smaller elite unite of the knights have noble blood. These arcane knights are the penultimate exemplars of the ideals of Rhoen himself, and the heroes of the republic. They wield the power of Rhoen’s blood, his arcane talents, and his skill in combat. While quite rare, the arcane knights are the most powerful and dangerous weapon in the arsenal of the republic. Few other forces command as much respect as the mounted magic slinging knights of Rhoen. While they are not in any way beholden to the military of Rhoenheim itself, they often serve alongside their brothers in arms. The arcane knights are as free to pursue their own agendas as any of nobles of the republic, but they often adventure to hone their skills, or latch onto other military operations of the republic to keep their finger on the pulse so to speak.



The esoteric faith of Rhoenheim is known as the Sacred Cabal. These archivists have devoted their lives to the recovery of ancient texts and scriptures of the lost divine orders of the world. While not a religion in actuality, they serve the same approximation in this modern godless world. The Sacred Priests have unlocked the divine gifts of ancient faiths, and they have revived the lost divine magic of Sulos, and share it with the people of the world. The Sacred Cabal holds in their possession the most holy of all artifacts from the old kingdoms of Sancrist and Leshaar, the Sacred Texts. These scrolls and tomes hold the secrets of divine magic, and have been in their care for the last four centuries, when Rhoen himself entrusted them to their care.

The Cabal pays little more than lip service to the actual doctrines of the lost religions of the world. They view these ancient cultures as a people with primitive theological ideas that unlocked the powers of the soul and spirit, not through divine favor, but through the strength of their faith in the fictional beings they called gods. The Sacred Cabal has no such delusions. They know that through study and practice one can still channel this power, and if there were gods, the Scared Cabal would not have the power to do so.

The Sacred Cabal has roots within Rhoenheim, and the universities of the nation, but they are rapidly spreading throughout the world. Numerous chapters and churches have begun to spring up in L’Landra, and few have even worked their way into underground cults in Hazra’Ghalduur, Kashra, and Tair’Shola. The Cabal is hated by the people of Kesh, who feel the cult is absurd to dismiss the power of their divine kings. In Kesh the gods walk among them, so how could they possibly be frauds.

There is little consistency in the moral character of the priesthood. There are devious power hungry scholars in equal proportion to the number of benevolent healers and sages. All priests share a common expertise with all things ancient and hidden. They know many of the greatest secrets of the world, and their explorers and missionaries scour Sulos for more. Their hunger for knowledge is insatiable, and the priests rarely dismiss any lead or rumor as little more than here-say. This drive to unlock the mysteries of the world often puts the Sacred Cabal at odds with peoples and organizations with things to hide. The Syndicate of L’Landra is cautious when dealing with the Order, and the druids of Sylescnia have done everything within their power to drive them from their lands.

The churches of Rhoenheim are more like chapters of divine learning than gathering places for faithful followers. Rather than discuss matters of personal belief, they discuss theology and history as a whole. Fables and legends are dissected and analyzed to find the roots of the tale, and cultural purpose these myths held to the ancient peoples who believes in them. Philosophy and spiritualism have replaced blind faith and mythology. All people are welcome to join in the discussion, and debate the values of certain virtues and ideas.

The Sacred Cabal retains very strong ties to the University of Rhoenheim, and the two organizations often pursue joint archeological ventures into the serpentine jungles of the largely unexplored southern continent, or into the blazing sands of Ilsen. The major differences between them are twofold. While the University of Dastun is interested primarily in the power of arcane study, and the regulation of its use, the Sacred Cabal is interested in theology and its applications within modern society as a whole. The University of Dastun is state sponsored and works in conjunction with the Senate, while the Sacred Cabal is privately funded, and seeks to recruit the wealthy and powerful as benefactors.

Not surprisingly, depending upon the general outlook of each chapter, the membership in their church is varied. Many of the churches of L’Landra appeal to the wealthy nobles and merchants. They function as exclusive clubs and secret societies that mirror the ideology of the Syndicate. Where as in the poorer or superstitious nations of Sulos, the churches of the Sacred Priests have tried to integrate with common folk to get a feel for the customs of their people, and unlock the secrets of the various divine orders from whom they draw their odd religious ideals. The Scared Cabal is more than willing to adapt and evolve to fit in wherever they seek knowledge. They send missionaries who will be most able to uncover the roots of the faiths of these lands, and are more than willing to steal, buy, or barter for the knowledge they seek.

Often the Cabal utilizes their vast privately donated wealth to start great ventures of philanthropy in the communities in which they settle. They help rebuild war torn realms, and shelter those in need. They willingly draw upon the resources of the entire Cabal when the small local donations are insufficient to meet their needs. The Cabal has earned themselves a reputation as influential humanitarians throughout the lands of Sulos. Though often initially viewed with great suspicion and distrust, the sacred priests often become influential productive members of their communities; people warm up to them quite quickly.



The Senators of the republic are elected to the Parliament by the collective votes of noble class. Fifty men serve at a time, and each is elected for a term of ten years, though many serve multiple terms or even for the extent of their entire lives. While they remain beholden to the nobles, and can be impeached from office by the collective majority of a noble vote, the Parliament still wields immense power and influence within the republic. The republic after all wouldn’t even be a republic were it not for the Parliament.

The Parliament is a very bureaucratic organization with many sub committees and cabinets that handle the various aspects of the government of Rhoenheim. There are branches that handle legislation, judicial, diplomatic, financial, public works, and numerous other duties. Many of the committees employ sub-committees and cabinets of highly specialized individuals. Some of the more influential senators belong to several branches of the government, and have moles, pawns, and allies throughout the government. Many people remain blissfully ignorant of the complicated jockeying, maneuvering, and back room bargains that are part of the daily life of a Senator.

While the Parliament is extremely convoluted, they are surprisingly efficient. They know that certain national objectives cannot get lost within the red tape of the bureaucracy, especially those pushed by the nobles, and they are willing to put aside their differences to make things happen should the nobility demand it. However lesser objectives and agendas often get pushed to the back burner or completely neglected, when they do not have the political backing of the wealthy or powerful behind them. In a way it is kind of sad that money has as much influence over the political machinations of the Senate as it does, but the people of Rhoenheim take solace in the fact that their government is not as corrupt and secretive as that of their neighbors to the south in L’Landra.



The descendants of Rhoen are an influential and powerful group of men and women who carry within their veins a source of mysterious power. Rhoen himself was more than a powerful man; he was a man with demonic heritage that was the source of much of his arcane prowess and strength. Though their blood is diluted, his ancestors still have enormous potential to draw upon their heritage for strength. Not only do they have the potential to become powerful sorcerers, they are occasionally blessed with greater power such as the fiendish template, or even greater power of demonic origin.

The nobles usually have little more than subtle physical traits that hint at their heritage, such as feral eyes, sharp fingernails, or slightly pronounced canines, and they have not made the connection between these traits and the founder of their lines. Most have little to no knowledge of the source of their power, but a handful of particularly demonic patriarchs and sorcerers have a greater understanding, and jealously guard the family secrets.

The most powerful of the nobles often hunt down and slay young sorcerers, though the public and even many of the noble families are completely unaware of this secretive and demonic inquisition. The inquisition is well aware of the demonic blood from which the power of sorcery stems, and they will not see rogue bloodlines attain power or knowledge that may help them unlock the potential hidden within their blood. Were the secrets of sorcery to become common knowledge, the nobles of Rhoenheim would no doubt be greatly threatened by their own people, and attract undue attention from the other nations of the world, Sha’Irna in particular.

The demonic inquisition refers to themselves as the Chosen of Rhoen, and they have moles and agents throughout Rhoenheim. They carefully monitor the activities of the various power groups and influential organizations of their nation. The sacred Cabal, the Arcane Hierophants, the University, and the Institute are all very carefully watched and subtly influenced. They are steered away from exploring things better left hidden, and towards secrets that the Chosen of Rhoen wish to uncover and unlock for themselves. They are the most powerful force within the nation, though they are a complete and total enigma.

The Chosen of Rhoen count the hierophants of Sylescnia among their greatest enemies. They suspect that the hierophants may have knowledge of their demonic bloodline, and they are determined to root out and destroy them. The Chosen have been working with the extremists of the Cabal who call themselves the exorcists, feeding hints, and subtly luring them into a conflict with the hierophants. The exorcists already see the hierophants as a primitive cult, and they suspect them of cavorting with spirits; it should only take a subtle push for open hostilities to erupt.

The arcane knights are the shock troopers and soldiers of the Chosen, and they are sworn to go to their graves with the secrets of their masters. The knights and their physical might are the perfect tool for the Chosen. They are respected, loved, and heralded as the heroes of Rhoenheim, and they can easily infiltrate places otherwise difficult to approach by the truly demonic beings at the heart of the Chosen. It is almost certain that many of the arcane knights have absolutely no idea how potentially vile and corrupted their masters have become, though they are so unshakably loyal, that they would follow their lords into hell if commanded to; perhaps someday they will.



The arcane hierophants of the forests of Sylescnia are a powerful and influential organization in the more remote parts of the republic. While within the more advanced and civilized parts of western Rhoenheim, the University, the Institute, and the Parliament are omnipresent entities, in the east they far less prominent. Though their influence is limited within civilized lands, in their wooded groves the hierophants rule uncontested. They seem to at least pay lip service to the governing power of the parliament, but the truth of the matter is that the arcane hierophants are completely beyond their control. Many of the hierophants and most of their traditions predate those of the nation, and they feel no obligation to put their ancient ways behind them, in order to serve the new government. The people of the more remote towns, villages, and hamlets of eastern Rhoenheim, turn to the arcane hierophants for guidance and advice long before they would turn to republic. When the people of the east need help with their crops, midwives for childbirth, or wards for the frightful spirits of the night, they turn to those who have the power to help, and the arcane hierophants answer the call.

The hierophants trace their roots back to a time long before humans settled the lands of Rhoenheim. Ages ago the forests of Sylescnia were home to several small villages of elves. These villages were founded by outcasts from Sha’Irna that had refused to abandon the study of the arcane, when the druidic circles of their homeland sought to root out the corrupting powers of eldritch magic. Rather than resist their elders, or resort to civil war, the more progressive elves (who didn’t wish to abandon the arcane) chose the leave their homeland, and settle the forests far to the south, in what was then completely untamed and unsettled land. There they lived for centuries, where they studied the planes, the arcane, and the various mysteries of the universe that could only be unlocked with the powers of magic.

When Rhoen and his followers led the refugees of Leshaar to what would eventually become known as the republic, things changed for the elves. Rhoen and his soldiers destroyed the elves and their villages, and massacred their elders the arcane hierophants. The elves were completely unprepared to face an entity as powerful as Rhoen, and despite their hastily assembled resistance, he eradicated the elves, and the few survivors scattered throughout the eastern lands. The arcane hierophants however had forged unbreakable pacts with unknown demonic entities in exchange for their knowledge and arcane power. Even after their deaths, their masters held them to their oaths, and the arcane hierophants rose from the dead as groaning spirits who languished in despair, and festered with a burning hated for the men who had destroyed them.

It took nearly a century for the banshees to regroup and begin teaching their lost craft to the people who came to settle the rural parts of the republic. While they preferred to select elves as their pupils, the elves were but a minority, and they could not completely fill the ranks of the armies the banshees hoped to raise. Thus many humans began to get indoctrinated into the ranks, and today the numbers of the arcane hierophants are split almost evenly between the two races. The network of followers assembled by the banshees extends beyond their pupils however. The animals and magical beasts of the forests serve them, as well as the common villagers, and possibly even the lands themselves.

Only the most powerful of the hierophants know whom they serve with certainty, and many simply believe their organization is only a loosely affiliated brotherhood of like minded scholarly druids; most have never met the powerful and ancient spirits, and the commoners who serve the druids are most certainly unaware of the hierarchy that stretches back to the undead masters of the land. Not even the eldest, most loyal, and powerful of the living hierophants however, know of the ultimate goals and agendas of their masters; such things only the banshees and the demons themselves know with absolute certainty.

The Sacred Cabal, unlike the other major political powers of the republic, has begun to become a much more influential entity in these remote lands, and they threaten the authority of the arcane hierophants. Most people still rely heavily upon the hierophants, but as new churches devoted to the Cabal spring up, the power of the hierophants is gradually diminished. In particular the zealous exorcists of the Cabal have become a force in the eastern highlands and forests. They ward their temples, and hunt the monsters of the night with a vigilant fervor, that has earned them a great deal of respect and admiration from the locals. The arcane hierophants have begun to incite propaganda and spread the seeds of dissention among their followers, in hope that angry mobs and frightened locals will turn on the Cabal, and drive them from their lands. The exorcists of the Cabal are a true threat, wielding the power to not only destroy the banshees, but to banish and bind their demonic masters; luckily for the hierophants the exorcists are a minority of extremists within the Cabal, who do not receive the full support of the archivists.

Capitol: Shae'Malsir (27,500)
Size: 780,000 square miles
Civilization: 23,400 square miles (3%)
Wilderness: 756,600 square miles (97%)
Population Density: 4 people per square mile
Total Population: 3,120,000 people
Rural Population: 1,404,000 people (45%)
Urban Population: 312,000 people (10%)
Isolated Population: 1,404,000 people (45%)
Races: 95% Elf, 5% Other

The elfin homeland is known to the humans as the Shadow Wood, but the elves call the forests of their nation Sha’Irna. Though the languages are different the meaning is essentially the same. Sha’Irna is a dark forest, thick with vegetation, and a healthy mix of towering trees, and heavy underbrush. Very little sunlight trickles down through the thick canopy, and the deeper one moves into the primeval forests, the darker it becomes. In some places the shadowy forest is dark as midnight, no matter the actual hour of the day. It is a deathly quiet realm and only the occasional shuffling in the underbrush or raven cawing in the trees breaks the unsettling silence.

The elves live primarily by hunting and gathering. They collect many natural herbs, spices, berries, mushrooms, and greens which grow wild in the great northern forests of their homeland. The principle meats eaten in the elfin nation include mainly those that can be hunted, such as quail, deer, elk, and wild hogs. Most elves sweeten their foods with various honey based products, wild beets, and black berries. Elfin honey mead is not only popular within their own lands, but throughout Sulos; the sweet mild liquor fetches a pretty penny within the markets of the known world, particularly in L'Landra where most dining establishments and inns serve many different varieties.

The history of the elfin people is steeped in mystery. For as long any can remember the elves have lived within the antediluvian forest, and many of their great historical documents have been burned or destroyed to hide the diabolical secrets of their past. Whatever the truth may actually be, there are many among the elves living with unmerciful shame and self loathing for the past crimes of their people. It is whispered among the learned elders of the elfin druids that long ago, the insatiable craving for knowledge among their people, tempted them to commune with demons. The demonic beings of distant unspeakable realms, taught the elves the secrets of arcane magic, and shared their knowledge of the false gods with their elven students. Inspired by demonic influences, and perhaps even possessed by their masters, the elves sought to rid the world of the creatures that had forsaken the natural order to serve the false gods. This druidic lore however, is more here-say than fact.

The Druidic Wars, as they would soon be called, soon brought the elves into contact with the other sentient nations and peoples of those ancient times. The elfin blade bards (or simply blades as they are often called) and arcane hierophants battled fiercely with the clerics and warriors of the orcs, dwarves, halflings, and gnomes. However the elfin armies and their mastery of both druidic and arcane power had the tactical advantage. Combined with the martial skill of the elfin blades the armies of Sha’Irna cut through the other nations, and shattered their resistances. When the elves finally decided to end the campaign approximately 5,800 hundred years ago, they had successfully accomplished their mission. The orcs, halflings, and gnomes were no more, and the dwarves had retreated into the dark underground fortresses of their mountainous realm. No longer did the heretical followers of the false gods rule the lands of Sulos. The zealous crusade of the elfin people left much of Sulos in ruin, and as they celebrated their victory, the devastating price of two centuries of war finally began to sink in.

In the aftermath of the Druidic Wars the elfin people withdrew to their shadowy forests to contemplate the meaning of what they had done. While the heretics of the false gods had been defeated, the elves wondered if the extermination of their enemies was a necessary sacrifice, or if perhaps they had been mislead by their demonic teachers. The druids of Sha’Irna collectively decided that the power of the demonic gift (the arcane) was distorting the elfin vision, and that the demons had been manipulating their people. They destroyed the summoning circles, burned the diabolical texts that had been used for generations to contact the demons, and hoped that the world would one day forget the atrocity of the Druidic Wars.

For many centuries the druidic circles lobbied among their people to ban the use of the arcane, rather than tempt the demons to return. Their people were torn among those who claimed the secrets of the arcane could be mastered without demonic taint, and those that were unconvinced. In the end rather than face potential wars among their own kind, the arcane hierophants who were the leading proponents of arcane study left Sha’Irna and their brethren behind to establish new colonies where they could pursue academic and magical study in peace. There was little objection to their departure, though it left the blades in an unenviable position where they were quite alone, mistrusted by their own kind, and suspected of treachery far more than they deserved.

It was only when the goblinoids of Hazra’Ghalduur began to invade Sha’Irna more then 4,500 years later that the blades were finally recognized for their abilities. Were it not for their combination of magical and martial skill, the goblinoids would almost certainly have defeated them. The druidic elders of Sha’Irna, recognizing that they had misjudged their kinsmen, declared the blades the official guardians of the elven people, and the prejudices of the elven people towards the corruptive powers of the arcane began to fade. Today the elves are once again studying the arcane, and rapidly attaining a level of mastery unseen in thousands of years. The druidic circle of elders however, have begun to fear that the grievous sins of their past have been forgotten, and remind their kin to be wary of demonic temptation.

In this modern era the elves are a throwback to ancient ways and ideals. Having been withdrawn from the world for as long as they have, they are completely out of touch with how different Sulos has become in their absence. They really no longer fit into the greater picture of Sulos, and are rapidly losing their chance to have any effect upon the future at all. While some elves do trade peacefully with the merchant sailors of L'Landra, they for most part, have almost no other contact with the outside world. Young elves yearning for more excitement and adventure have been leaving Sha’Irna in droves. They run away from home or stow away on merchant ships, just to get away from the stagnant conservatives who rule their nation. Elfin adventurers are quite common, and many sail the seas on merchant vessels to wonderful far away lands and places, unlike any they had ever imagined. Wanderlust is only natural for a young elf, and the elders of the community generally don't worry too much about these free spirits, but they are concerned that the impetuous youths may return to Sha’Irna, with corrupted vile beliefs that seem so common in the barbaric lands beyond their forests.

Though elfin myth and history stretches back thousands upon thousands of years, all the way to the primordial creation of the world, the druidic traditions of Sha’Irna have always (as far as the elves can remember) been a part of the elfin culture. As a people the elves have tried to live in harmony with nature, and they have groomed the humanoids of the world to do the same. In their eyes Sulos is a place where all plants, animals, lands, and people should be able to coexist. Not all druids however, believe that the elves should be the benevolent overseers of the world. There are those who feel the elves should take responsibility for protecting the world as well; but protect it from what? There in lies the question that has caused so much dissention within their people for generations, and the motivation for the Druidic Wars which have horribly scarred the souls of the elves to this day.

Among the elves the very concept of worship is alien. They do not believe in deities or the divine hand of the gods. The world and the forces and energies of the planes are the source of all things, spiritual, physical, or mental in nature. Gods did not craft the elves in their divine images. The elves born of the primordial building blocks of the world, just as all creatures were. While an evolutionary view of the genesis of life and the creation of the world seems controversial, it is perfectly natural to them. The elves have never seen any evidence of gods, and yet they’ve seen goblins evolve from cave dwelling savages to an organized and sophisticated (though none-the-less brutal) people. The elves believe all divine power comes from the strength of one’s conviction to a cause or ideal. If you choose to personify that ideal in imaginary higher powers, so be it, but it will not change the truth.





Long ago when the elves still had contact with the denizens of beyond they summoned and contacted the demons by means of massive stone summoning circles. These unique locations built by the arcane hierophants, were the center of arcane learning, and the means by which the elves sought guidance and knowledge of their foes. The great summoning circles were places that radiated with demonic arcane energies. For centuries every elven community had a circle at its heart, and the elves revered their guides from beyond as powerful sages of unmatched skill and brilliance.

After the druidic wars, the elves changed their tune. Realizing that the demons were using them as a tool for evil, the druidic elders destroyed the circles, and executed those who refused to break their demonic pacts. It was a time of great fear and unrest, as the druids swept through villages burning heretics at the stake, torching arcane libraries, and shattering the circles. Many elves lived in fear that the demons would retaliate, but they equally feared the zealous druidic inquisitors, who could appear at any time within their community.

While the circles have been destroyed, the lands around them have been permanently tainted with demonic power. The trees are twisted dead husks; the soil has been reduced to lifeless ash, and the creatures that dwell too long within the area, become sinister insane monsters. Many of the old circles are gathering places for dark fey, twisted treants, and evil dryads. The elves stay far from these tainted circles, and warn their children never to venture too close, lest the demons claim their souls.

It is even said by some in hushed whispers that elves born within or near a tainted circle are touched by the powers of the demons, and born with horrible mutations, like gnarled claws, goat-like horns, forked tongues, and cloven hooves. These tainted children are actually becoming more and more common as time passes, and some of the revered elders of the druidic circles believe the power of the circles is growing, and the reach of the demons is extending further and further into the lands of Sha’Irna. Many of the tainted children are stillborn, though those that survive are often taunted and ganged up on by other children. Those that live to adulthood are usually introverted, violent, and even slightly deranged, though it is difficult to say weather their behavior is inborn or the result of a brutal childhood.

Many among the elves firmly believe that some of the circles survived the druidic inquisition, and that isolated communities of demonic possessed hierophants still dwell in the deepest and most impenetrable places of the immense forests of Sha’Irna. If these communities do indeed still exist, they have hidden themselves well. They may use powerful illusions or shadowy magic to mask themselves. They may prey upon those who come too close, or sacrifice them to demonic masters, as dead men tell no tales. It is also possible that these rumors have no actual basis in fact, and are little more than the product of paranoid imaginations run wild.





The leaders of the elfin people are the elder druids. While there are dozens of druidic circles, with numerous different philosophical beliefs, such as the Order of Balance, The Fittest, The Animal Lords, and the Guardians, all are lead by their eldest and most powerful member. These elders are the governing body of the nation, and the spiritual teachers of the elven people, and the caretakers of elven tradition, history, and legend. Rarely do the druidic elders completely agree on every course of action or direction they seek to lead their people, but they live by the majority vote, and have successfully for countless millennia

Among the druidic circles there have been many different chapters and philosophies over the millennia to have had an impact upon the elves and their homeland, though no other has had the earth-shaking influence of the arcane hierophants. It was the hierophants who first contacted the realm of demons, from which the elven people learned how to harness the power of the arcane. It was the hierophants who first proposed the druidic wars to purge the world of the tainting influences of those deemed unworthy of the air they breathed. It was the hierophants who nearly tore the elfin people apart, and who subsequently left Sha’Irna in shambles, when they finally left. While the other circles would prefer to forget the hierophants, the lessons of the past should not be forgotten, and they reluctantly remind their kin of the price one pays for power.

The elves celebrate the changing of the seasons, and revere the celestial movements of the heavens. Great celebrations during the winter and summer solstice, lead by the druidic elders are eagerly awaited by the elfin people. Feasting, dancing, and music are but a few of the common rituals. A sacrificial deer is usually the centerpiece of the festivity, and the elder druids hold the exclusive honor of slitting its throat, seasoning and cooking the deer, and carving the roast. During the full moon, the elves paint their faces in animal blood and dance naked under the luminous skies. During the waxing moon, the druids lead the elves in solemn chants. In recognition of their mortality and brotherhood, the elves draw blood from their wrists with ceremonial daggers, and pool it together into a communal goblet from which they all drink.

The elders of the druidic circles often wield great command over the primal forces of the elements. Many seem capable of summoning creatures from the elemental planes, and the greatest among the druids can themselves assume the forms of the elements. These raw untamed powers are the building blocks of the universe, and the druids command them and bend them to their will. The elementals are often tamed and bound for long tenures of service, for the construction and of great monuments, buildings, bridges, and more. Most of the elfin cities seem to flow naturally from the earth. There is no mortar, or stonework in elven towers and temples; they blend harmoniously with the trees, earth and stone, and seem to grow and evolve in and of themselves. The numerous pools and fountains of crystal clear water, are so pure and untainted, they seem to have been summoned from no earthly source. Eternal funeral pyres burn though the centuries in celebration of fallen heroes. Towers stretching thousands of feet into the heavens would crumble and fall were it not for the spirits of the winds who hold them aloft. These wonders would never have come to pass, were it not for the druidic circles and their command over the forces of nature and the elements.

The druidic circles not only command the powers of the elements but they have considerable command over the numerous wild beasts and creatures of the forests. They share a bond with their animal companions that in time borders upon an almost total sense of spiritual and mental unity. They can command and speak with animals as well as they converse with their own kind, and summon the creatures of the forests to serve them as easily as they command their druidic magic. The elves fear not the animals and beasts who wander among them knowing that their druidic elders can control them with ease. There is no reason within elfin villages to fear even largest and most terrifying of natural predators such as great bears, wolves, and wild boars. If they truly posed any threat, they would never have been permitted to wander within the elfin communities. So intimate is the trust between the druids and their followers that the elven children of the community play with the beasts like enormous pets.

In times of war the druidic elders draw their brethren together for war painting and battle song. During these preparations the blades and druids put their differences aside and join forces to rally their people and strengthen morale. The elves are unmerciful in combat, and taking prisoners is seen as a sign of weakness. The druids have long taught their kin that nature shows no mercy for her enemies, and neither should the elves. So long as their cause is just, the druids believe their people cannot be defeated, and they point to their numerous repulsions of Hazra’Ghalduur as exemplary instances of their righteousness.



The blades have harnessed the ability to weave magic through their songs, and their heavenly voices carry with them unearthly power. Combining swift agile swordplay, with the eldritch power of their songs, the blades weave a deadly tapestry of whirling steel and arcane power. No other elves strike fear into the hearts of their enemies like the blades. They have such elegant and misleading command over the power of magic that those who first encounter them are often mesmerized and frozen in fascination, without knowing how close they walk to the brink of death. It is often too little and too late that their foes realize the magnitude of the threat, and feel the deadly sting of the blade’s sword and spell.

Throughout their time in Sha’Irna the blades have been both the heroes and the scapegoats of their people. They were the generals of the elven forces during the Druidic Wars, but they were persecuted in the aftermath when the druidic inquisition swept through the nation. Yet when the armies of Hazra’Ghalduur invaded Sha’Irna, it was the blades who defended their brethren from the seemingly unstoppable juggernaut of the goblinoid war machine. The blades have remained loyal to their people through thick and thin, and despite a long history of such unshakable resolve, they have at many times been forced to deal with harsh criticism from their own people.

In the modern era the blade bards are once again the heroes of Sha’Irna. Their continuous battles with the goblinoids have cemented their place within elven society, and they are exploiting their time in the limelight to further the study of the arcane, while they have the window to do so. The blades have had few opportunities to pursue their arts without skepticism or second guessers doubting the sincerity of their intentions. In the last two hundred years they have refined their blade songs to unprecedented levels. As the goblinoids continue to perfect their own arcane crafts, the blades have been driven into a magical arms race. The two cultures push each other to their arcane limits, and the raw firepower loosed upon the battlefields has become staggering.



The children tainted by the power of the shattered summoning circles, have been growing in number as the years pass. Many have begun to unite together, for mutual protection and the betterment of their kind. While many have less than honorable intentions, there are just as many who wish for nothing more than the freedom and rights that are a given for other elves. Only time will tell which faction will win them over, but at the moment they are torn between those who crave revenge, and those who desire a peaceful resolution.

Calling themselves the Demonborn, the tainted elves are feared and hated by their own kind, and the abuses they suffer as children change them forever. Some become paranoid and introverted, while other become violent and reactionary. Compounded by the demonic taint within their souls struggling to free itself and take control, it is amazing that any retain control of themselves at all. It is a daily struggle for the demon born to control their violent feral urges, and in the company of their own kind they may actually stand a chance.

Most of the demonborn live within their own isolated communities far from their kin. They often share their techniques of meditation, spiritualism, or personal disciplines that help them control their instincts. They have attempted to recover some of the forbidden texts that were destroyed or burned during the days of the druidic inquisition, not for the power, but for the understanding of what they truly are. The lost lore of those eras however is almost nonexistent, and the druidic circles are quick to destroy what little turns up. The demonborn constantly find themselves at odds with the druidic circles, yet neither has taken any permanent stance against the other.

The power of the demonic blood flowing through their veins has unlocked potent arcane abilities within the demonborn. They are natural sorcerers and it seems as though all manifest at least a rudimentary understanding of the power inherent within them. Many however become truly mighty sorcerers that rival the arcane might of even the mightiest wizards and sorcerers of Rhoenheim. No other people seem to have such latent arcane power as the demonborn, but they are so few in number that few realize the power they may potentially unlock within themselves. The druidic elders have their suspicions, but even they do not know how powerful the demonborn really are.



While many young elves return from their wanderlust with tales of mysterious powers, places, and ideas, they rarely have any impact upon the general outlook or beliefs of elven society. The adventures of youth are an exciting period, but they are only a minor fraction of the elven lifetime. The elders and druids who lead the people of Sha’Irna understand that their children will return home excited and full of interesting new philosophies. They understand that their children will have seen wonders of technology and magic. They understand that their children will feel empowered by their discoveries, but they are still children who have not yet learned why the elves live as they do. The other races of the world are short-sighted, and blinded by their own mortality. They seek to bend the world to their will, because they fear they will be unable to have an impact during the time frame of their limited life spans. The elves inevitably learn however, that patience and natural harmony are a necessity for their people. Haste is synonymous with carelessness in the elven tongue, and all elves eventually learn to embrace the teachings of the druidic circles.

Generation after generation of wanderlust has time and time again given way to an understanding that the pace of the outside world does not harmonize with the culture of the elves. Many have returned home thinking they are adults, only to realize that despite their experiences, they are still children. However approximately fifty years ago a young elf adventurer returned home with an idea that could not so easily be dismissed. This young elf known to his brethren as Vasilius, returned to his people with a message that would not die. Vasilius had embraced the Light of Pholtus, and he returned to Sha’Irna as a messenger of the faith.

When Vasilius returned to home from his adventures, he refused to give up his beliefs, and acquiesce to the pressures of his elders. He had been touched by the light, and none among his kin could convince him that faith is something elves cannot believe in. Vasilius the Messenger, as he gradually became known, defied his elders, and began to teach what he had learned. While most elves were skeptical, the simple message of Pholtus seemed to in no way contradict or undermine the beliefs of his people. Vasilius taught those who would listen, that Pholtus is an internal force. All sentient creatures possess it in their souls and hearts, though only those of pure intention, kindness, and virtue can unlock the full potential of the light. Unlike other faiths that had come before, Pholtus was not a god, or an idol, or a totem; Pholtus was an idea and philosophy. The druidic elders could crush belief in a false god, but they found the idea of Pholtus much more difficult to dismiss.

Among the first to embrace the teachings of the Messenger were the demon born. Long treated as second class citizens, persecuted for their differences, and mistrusted for the evil brewing within their souls, they felt no obligation to adhere to the edicts of the elder druids. The demon born sought ways to control the primal urges that brewed within them and through Pholtus they found what they had longed for. Vasilius taught his tainted kin how to strengthen the good within them, and how to focus and direct their passions into less destructive things, like art, poetry, song, and community. The Light of Pholtus gave the demon born the focus and brotherhood they needed to feel that they were part of something bigger than themselves and the Messenger is still seen as a great man by their kind.

Tragically Vasilius was murdered within a decade of his return to Sha’Irna. Some say he was assassinated by druidic elders. Others say he was killed by his own followers among the demon born. Whatever the truth may be, his message touched enough of the elven people that the Light of Pholtus continues to grow. There are a few brothers of the light in almost every community of elves. Many of the demonborn who have not yet succumb to the taint of their souls embrace the light as a means of fending off the darkness. The most outspoken disciples of the Messenger continue to carry on in Vasilius’s name, and they travel the nation spreading the faith to those who willingly listen.

The Light of Pholtus has caused minor uproar within the druidic circles. While nothing inherent to the philosophy of Pholtus contradicts or undermines their beliefs or traditions, the growing power of the religion frightens them. Not since the rise of the arcane hierophants has any faction within the elven people had such an impact upon Sha’Irna, and while the religion is still in its formative stages, and only a tiny percentage of the elven population count themselves as converts, the elders are still quite concerned. Zealous faith is what caused the Druidic Wars so long ago, and they do not wish to repeat the mistakes of the past. The elders seek a way to slow the progression of the faith, without going to war against them. Ultimately the druidic circles do not feel that the Light of Pholtus is problem in and of itself, so much as they feel that the power and passion of organized religion is too easily corrupted; given that the most influential missionaries of the light are also demon born, clinging to their sanity, the potential for disastrous consequences or dangerous movements within the religion are almost inevitable.

Capitol: Tharizaar (398,000)
Size: 160,000 square miles
Civilization: 16,000 square miles (10%)
Wilderness: 144,000 square miles (90%)
Population Density: 95 people per square mile
Total Population: 15,200,000 people
Rural Population: 304,000 people (2%)
Urban Population: 14,592,000 people (96%)
Isolated Population: 304,000 people (2%)
Races: 90% Dwarf, 5% Illithid, and 5% Other

Thoth is a land of majestic mountains, so massive their ice capped peaks vanish into the clouds. While hidden passes and tunnels throughout the realm have enabled the dwarves to move to and fro without much difficulty, those who are unfamiliar with the terrain find it all but impenetrable. Colossal glaciers still scrape through the primeval mountains, and sudden gusts of wind blow through her valleys, crevasses, and canyons. Unexpected blizzards seem to sweep in without warning, and drop several feet of snow, even on what may initially seem like clear and sunny days. Those without knowledge of the dwarven passes have never found a means to navigate the lands of Thoth, and the impenetrable gates of their mountainous fortresses have been opened to outsiders for only a couple decades.

Beneath the mountains of Thoth vast networks of tunnels, mines, foundries, warrens, and halls run throughout the region connecting the numerous cities, towns, and mining colonies of the dwarven people. When the dwarves first withdrew to the mountains five millennia ago, Thoth was little more than a handful of mines and their adjoining colonies. The tiny settlements of the past have been replaced today by sprawling metropolises and an expansive labyrinth of connecting tunnels serve as the roadways between them. It is entirely possible to visit every city within the nation without ever leaving the protection of the tunnels, and most dwarves never do.

Technologically the dwarves are at least as advanced as the rest of Sulos. Coal powered steam engines have revolutionized their mining operations; heavy drills, conveyer belts, water pumps, and other amazing devices have increased both productivity and efficiency. Black powder has made blasting through rock just a matter of engineering and mathematics, where once it was matter of back-breaking labor and persistence. Complicated clockworks open colossal gates, move and power the lifts, and keep the foundries working on a timely and regular schedule. The foundries and factories of Thoth are immense sprawling maze of pipes, belts, pulleys, and huge cauldrons in which the dwarves melt down and refine their ores. Many of the dwarven cities are being completely overtaken by steam filled tunnels and the oppressive heat of the foundries, though the dwarves don’t seem to mind.

Most of the dwarves sleep within small cramped cubicles, though they live for work, celebrations, and crafts, so the somewhat simple confines of their living quarters do not matter to them. A dwarf spends most of his time hard at work in his shop, at the factories, mills, foundries, or in the mines. He celebrates a day’s work with plentiful spirits, good food, and good company in the great halls, taverns, or bars scattered throughout the cities. Only after a hard day of work and merriment will a dwarf retire to his quarters for sleep. The great steam whistles that blow at precisely the exact same times each day, signal the change of shifts, breaks, and important announcements. Dwarves adhere to tight schedules, plans, and repetitive cycles. Promptness is one of the defining characteristics of the dwarven people, and being late for an appointment, shift, or meeting is considered a grievous sleight.


The dwarves of Thoth have only recently begun to reveal themselves to the rest of Sulos, but their impact has been immediately felt across the continent. As the merchants of Thoth have emerged from their mountainous strongholds they have set out for L’Landra with efficient determination. Rather than wait for Denesni diplomats to come to them, Thoth sends their own emissaries to the mercantile Syndicate themselves. While taken aback by this sudden interest and unexpected move, the Syndicate has been most gracious to their new friends. Thoth and L’Landra have rapidly hammered out the details of a trade agreement suited to both their needs, and dwarven craftsmanship has begun to flood the marketplaces of Sulos. Five millennia of isolation have been undone within the past twenty years, and the dwarves of Thoth are once again a force to be reckoned with.

Many L’Landran craftsmen have felt the pinch of the unexpected competition, and prices have plunged as the amount of tools, armor, weaponry, and ores have rapidly increased in supply. The dwarves have almost completely undercut the competition, and there has been economic uproar within the merchant community. The Syndicate has ensured their people that when things settle down, all will return to normal, but the craftsmen of L’Landra are not so confident. Many have already begun to protest, and the Syndicate has simply ignored their pleas. While the Syndicate has suffered in some areas, they have gained in others. Since the arrival of the dwarven merchants, the demand for adamantine ore has skyrocketed. Strange requests for obsidian have House Al’Arach scrambling to find new sources of the rare igneous stone. Rumors of a potential source within Ilsen, have reached their ears, and the house has been involved in intense negotiations with the crimson nomads to meet the demand of the dwarves.

The Thanes of Thoth who were once little more than a warrior caste, have in essence become the principle guiding force behind the nation. They have decided to jump on the booming economic bandwagon, however unlike the nations and people before them, the dwarves have elected to join under their own devices and on their own terms. They decided not to give the Syndicate the opportunity to fully prepare for the scenario, and have enjoyed holding the upper hand. While their aggressive business tactics quickly earned the dwarves a reputation within L’Landra as men to look out for, they have also drawn the utmost scrutiny of the Syndicate. The Thanes are possibly just as cunning and just as devious as the merchants of L’Landra, which unsettles their new rivals. The merciless tactics and unbridled ambition of the Thanes, threatens to disrupt the stability of the delicate balance of power, the Syndicate has worked so hard to build and maintain; while the dwarves have earned L’Landra’s respect, the Syndicate will only permit so much, and the Thanes for all their accomplishments have no where near the economic or political muscle of their rivals.

Thoth’s line of kings stretches back thousands of years, unbroken while the dwarves have lived peacefully in their isolated realm. While the kings of Thoth are little more than symbolic entities, they are still important cultural icons, and beloved by the dwarven people. The Thanes have gradually stripped away the political and military power of their kings for generations. While it has been a subtle and bloodless coup, the kings of Thoth have become toothless figureheads, powerless to oppose the collective power of the Thanes. A clever King can manipulate the Thanes, and rally his people for support, but few kings have the charisma, intellect, and political savvy to accomplish anything of significance. Thus Thoth is a kingdom in name alone; the nation more closely resembles a military dictatorship.

Despite the many wars, and chaos to have gripped the world above the dwarves have prospered. They have grown as a people and a culture, and mastered the techniques of mining, masonry, and most forms of fine craftsmanship. Hazra’Ghalduur is not the only nation to have harnessed the power of coal, and dwarven furnaces fuel numerous technological devices that help them tunnel through the granite, and forge their tools. Indeed despite their absence from the general progression of the world, the dwarves of Thoth have kept pace just fine. Perhaps it could even be said that because of their isolationism, unmolested by outside wars, the dwarves have made at least parallel progression, if not debatably superior advances.

The dwarves have long been concerned with the security of Thoth. Millennia ago the dwarves faced the possibility of extinction. Nearly completely exterminated during the Druidic Wars by the armies of Sha’Irna, the Thanes led their few remaining brethren into the mines of Thoth to rebuild and prepare for the defense of their people. They carry on these traditions to this day, and have used their technological advances to protect Thoth. While their traps, gates, and draw bridges have been more than sufficient defense for their heavily fortified strongholds, the greatest weapons at their disposal are the clockwork golems.

Never particularly adept at magic, the engineers of Thoth have built clockwork golems instead. These almost mindless automatons can only follow simple commands and instructions, but they are powerful machines that can easily match the might of any wizard's iron golem. The gates and bridges of Thoth are protected by the golems, and even within the cities themselves they are a silent menacing presence. Seemingly lifeless sentinels, the golems stand motionless until trouble erupts and they spring into action. Before the dwarves began to incorporate psionically resonant deep crystal, the clockwork golems were very primitive and completely mindless, within the last fifty years however they seem to have developed a limited sentience all their own.





The network of mines within the mountains of Thoth is greater in scope and size than all other mining networks of Sulos combined. Thousands upon thousands of miles of tunnels and shafts run throughout the region. Complicated drilling, pumping, and ventilation systems run twenty four hours a day to keep the mines fully operational and efficient. More than half the population of Thoth work within the mines. Coal, Iron, lead, silver, gold, copper, and other valuable minerals are pulled from the tough stone, and used for the numerous industrial operations of the nation. Foundries refine and melt down the various metals and pour them into support girders, heavy machinery, and bricks for various smaller uses. Most machines are now coal or steam powered, and the dwarves have begun to rely far less on manual labor, as their technology advances.

The deeper the mines the more dangerous the operations become. Some of the finest minerals and ores lay literally miles below the dwarven cities, and despite the technological advances, the risks are still quite numerous. Frequent collapses, poor ventilation, and sudden flooding often result in injuries and casualties. Only the most desperate of men voluntarily resort to working within the deeper mines, and the bulk of the labor force is made of convicted criminals who have been assigned to work-release or community service programs. A sentence within the mines is often considered worse than death, and few of the convicts make it out alive. The martial law of the Thanes has ensured a steady supply of convicts to fuel the demands of the mining industry.

There are rumors among the dwarven people that strange beasts and monsters dwell within some of the abandoned mines that riddle the kingdom. Others say entire civilizations of subterranean creatures have been uncovered. Others have whispered that something living within the mines has been devouring the dwarves. Some dwarves seem to completely vanish while deep within the mines, and others have been found mangled and disemboweled. None can substantiate any of the rumors, and most dwarves simply dismiss them as ridiculous rumors, but not all are convinced. The casualty rate seems to be accelerating and the miners who inexplicably disappear have some of dwarves wondering just what really is happening down there.



It has been five centuries since the dwarves moved their capitol from Thasilidur to Tharizaar. While the dwarves would never have willingly abandoned a city with such important historical and cultural meaning, the move was made under duress. The city was abandoned when the mighty dragon Vespirithas shattered her mighty gates and made the city his lair. Though the dwarves at first attempted to fight of and resist the dragon, the Thanes soon came to realize that they were no match for the mighty beast. Dozens of valiant warriors willingly gave their lives so that their people and their king could escape. None have returned to Thasildur to recover the many treasures left behind or to attempt to drive the dragon from the city.

Mighty Vespirithas still lairs within the city, though today he is not alone. The mind flayers of the Dark Hand have made the city their home, and their principle base of operations within the heart of Thoth. They have struck a bargain with the dragon for mutual protection. The flayers guard the many tunnels and passages beneath the great halls and treasure vaults, where the dragon lairs. The illithids have no desire for the dwarven treasures, and the dragon desires not the damp flooded passages of the lower wards. They primarily stay out of each other’s way, and out of each other’s business. Neither truly cares about the other.

Vespirithas has strayed farther and farther from his lair in recent years. His forays into the surrounding wilderness for food, treasure, and perhaps a mate, have been longer and farther than ever before. At times he is gone for weeks, and rarely does he need to return to his lair to protect his treasures. It has been more than a century since the last foolish would-be dragon slayers attempted to steal from him, and he is confident that his traps, scrying devices, and golems will adequately delay any burglars until he can get back to handle them personally.

The mind flayers have selected Thasildur specifically for its reputation and security. They have moved their elder brains to the city, and established their largest and most important colony within her. The elder brains are powerful enough to control the dragon should they need to, and they have convinced him to allow them to live within his territory unmolested. They walk a delicate line with the fiery dragon, but the illithids trust their disembodied elders implicitly; they have no doubts that the dragon poses little to no threat to their kind.

The greatest obstacle the illithids have faced thus far has been the lack of a renewable source of hosts. They have plenty of dwarven slaves, but the stout little dwarves have proven time and time again unsuitable hosts for illithid tadpoles. The mind flayers desperately need a source of human hosts, and they hope that the influx of merchants from L’landra will provide them with a means of perpetuating their species. If not, they will be forced to begin raiding the eastern lands of Rhoenheim, which may draw far too much attention to for their comfort.





Thoth is governed by a military council of Thanes, who have gradually seized more and more power from the throne. While they have always been the generals of the dwarven military, only within the last couple centuries have they become truly powerful. The Thanes now control the guilds of the craftsmen and engineers. They control the prison system, and oversee the judiciary responsibilities of the nation. They have seized control of the merchant class, and the mines, and really the only power beyond their control is the throne itself, and the line of kings. It seem that it is only a matter of time before the Thanes remove their king from the equation, but for now their people still exonerate and love their king, even if he is little more than a figurehead and cultural icon.

The Thanes are a warrior caste first and foremost, and despite the lack of external threats to the security of the dwarven people there has been no shortage of conflict in which to hone their skills. For generations the Thanes and their clans warred among each other over various territory political disputes and personal differences. While many would consider their conflicts trivial and meaningless, among the dwarves war is in their blood, and the heat of battle itself is incentive enough; they have never needed an excuse to test their mettle and pit their skills against one another. The last two centuries however have seen an unprecedented era of peaceful cooperation between the Thanes.

The Thanes have shifted their focus from war among themselves to other more important issues. They are determined to make their mark economically, politically, and culturally upon the world. Their philosophical shift seems to coincide with the alliance forged between the thanes with their hidden allies. The Thanes were approached approximately two centuries ago by strange creatures known as the Illithids who call themselves the Dark Hand. The illithids have shown the thanes the secrets of psionics, and helped them bring order and peace to their people. Since the alliance was forged with the Dark Hand the Thanes have also managed to put their own differences aside, and resolve many of the petty rivalries that have divided them.

While the clans admire the Thanes for resolving the issues that have divided them for millennia, they wonder what inspired the shift in focus. The dwarven people are still unaware of the pact their Thanes have forged with the illithids, though it is becoming increasingly difficult to deflect inquiries about the rapid advances made in both psionics and technology. The Thanes are not certain that their people are ready to handle the truth, and they have been searching for a way to keep their alliance hidden for the time being.



The Dark Hand of Ilsen is the secret society of Illithids who have taken refuge within the mountains of Thoth and forged an alliance with the Thanes. These Illithids introduced themselves to their eventual allies during the vulnerable period when the people of Thoth were suffering from economic destitution, the king was a weak and cowardly man, and the Thanes were embroiled in a period of devastating wars. Thoth was on the verge of internal collapse, and while the Thanes were pondering what could be done to save their people and their kingdom from self-implosion, the Illthids extended their dark hand in an offer.

The Illithids told the Thanes that should the lands of Thoth fall into chaotic unrest, they would take control, but should the Thanes seize power for themselves, the mind flayers would share the secrets of their advanced psionics and technology, and help the Thanes restore their kingdom to her ancient glory. While at first the Thanes refused the offer, and dismissed the Illithids as shady monsters with a hidden agenda, it became apparent as time passed that Thoth was not going to recover from the terrible mismanagement of the monarchy and the terrible series of escalating conflicts between them.

The Thanes first took control of the mines and prisons and turned them over to the Illithids. The Thanes then seized those who would resist their secret coup and imprisoned them. The Illithids quickly conditioned and enslaved the prison population and set them to work in the dank tunnels and mines, which were soon restored to full working order, and the model of efficiency under the direction of the Dark Hand. Together the Thanes and the Illithids carefully usurped control of various businesses and guilds, one by one, and began to rebuild the structure of Thoth from the bottom up. The mines were run by their pseudo-slave labor force, and Illithid thrall-herders. The craftsmen’s' guilds were restructured and restored, with leadership loyal to the Thanes put specifically in place. Massive public works projects refurnished and repaired the lower wards and foundries, which helped boost economic recovery and public morale. When the Thanes and the Dark Hand elected to open their borders to new trade opportunities with the surface dwellers, all conflict and economic troubles were left behind, and Thoth was once again a world power.

The Dark Hand is perfectly content and more than willing to manipulate the minds of those who oppose their agendas, and work well in collaboration with the Thanes. So long as they receive their fresh supplies of slave labor and obsidian, the Illithids are quite happy with the arrangement. They are pleased with the situation and so long as they can keep the Thanes under control, they are able to continue to build and expand their colony hidden beneath the cities of Thoth.

The Dark hand of Ilsen though now centered in Thoth, where they can hide in the darkness, away from the painful light of the sun, is not entirely limited to mountainous lands of the dwarves. Their tentacles stretch out across the lands of Sulos to L'Landra, where they lay beneath the murky waters, and crawl under the docks, and piers. They have connections within Rhoenheim, where they have subverted important professors and teachers in the employ of the University of Dastun. The Illithids have obedient servants among the crimson nomads of the blazing sands. Indeed in some way or some form, the Illithids seem to have connections and informants all across the continent. Weather in the form of a simple snitch, or an entire mind flayer colony hidden amongst the populace, the Dark Hand touches all.



There are those among the clans of the Thanes who have become very talented in the psionic arts, since they first began to study them two centuries ago. While the Thanes themselves have held to their traditional warrior traditions, many of their brethren have chosen to pursue alternate paths to the fighter, such as those of the psychic warrior and even the wilder. A secret alliance of the most psionically talented of the dwarves has begun to take shape within Thoth. These dwarves who hail from multiple clans have begun to develop new skills that seamlessly blend the power of the psionic mind with the warrior traditions of the dwarves. They call themselves the War Minds.

The war minds have discovered the alliance of their Thanes with the sinister Dark Hand, and question the sanity of their leaders. It is quite clear to the War Minds that the Hand has ulterior motives, and that they have been manipulating the Thanes in some form or another. While the War Minds have not determined precisely what kind of arrangements their Thanes have worked out with the Illithids, they are certainly watching and preparing for the worst possible of outcomes. They sense a war coming and plan to tip the scales in favor of their own kind, rather than allow the mind flayers to subvert the Thanes and take control of Thoth.

The War Minds have agents within almost all of the clans, spies within the mines, and the mental tools to resist the influences of the mind flayers. They are just beginning to scratch the surface and uncover the lowest levels of conspiracy of the Thanes and the Dark Hand. They don’t yet know the extent of that which they are up against, though they are certain that they cannot trust anyone. Ultimately the War Minds hope to restore power to their king, disband the Thanes, and hunt down and destroy the illithids, though they feel it will be some time before they have the means to do so. For now all they can do is watch, study, wait, and hone their skills in the service of their Thanes.



The dwarves were once a devoted religious people, but those have long since passed. During the Druidic Wars the dwarves revered many different aspects, and churches of the Ancient Pantheon, but as the tides of war shifted against them, and their allies fell before the armies of Sha’Irna the dwarves gradually lost faith in their gods. By the time they withdrew to the mountains of Thoth most dwarves had all but given up on the gods who failed them in their greatest time of need.

For the first few centuries in which they lived within the mountains a handful of churches survived, though there were few men of faith keeping them alive. The Cults of the Deceiver however quickly undermined rival religions, and turned them against one another. They spread propaganda and eventually drove the churches to war with the Thanes. The dwarven people backed the Thanes, and the last of the churches were destroyed, disbanded, and forgotten. Only the secretive cults devoted to shadowy god Shemeloth remained.

In the modern era cults devoted to Shemeloth continue to live hidden within the shadowy corners of the dwarven cities. They have connections within most of the underhanded and criminal aspects of dwarven society, from the black markets, to the thieves’ guilds, and even among the Thanes themselves. The cults have lived hidden among the dwarves for generations, and yet they remain almost completely unknown. The shadowy deceiver lives on, where other of his kind have long since faded away. It is ironic that the one god of the ancient pantheon who wishes to be forgotten is the only god who is still remembered.

Most of the cults have no connection between them. They operate independently, and worm their way into various aspects of dwarven society. They admire the Thanes and the Dark Hand for their shadowy pact, and underhanded coup that has usurped control of Thoth from the monarchy, but they have not cast their lot in with either of these influential factions. Shemeloth and his followers have learned better than to put themselves in a position where they can be discovered. They suspect it is only a matter of time before either the Thanes or the Dark Hand slips up, and they don’t plan on getting dragged down with them.

Followers of the deceiver have joined the ranks of the dwarven merchants and begun to explore the world beyond the lands of Thoth. The Deceiver is beginning to discover that the world that lies beyond Thoth is ripe for the picking. The Syndicate of L’Landra embodies many of his ideals, and the secretive cults of Shemeloth have set their sights upon the nation. They hope to spread across Sulos once again, and twist the world in their vision. Where the cults take hold corruption, greed, deception, entropy, and murder soon follow. Should they gain a foothold within the Syndicate there is nowhere the touch of Deceiver would be unable to twist the people of Sulos into his image.