AD&D - Time of the Dragon - Box Set (2e)

SOUTHERN HOSK

THE GOVERNMENT these proxies divides the minotaurs into Although the Emperor and the Senate
different factions. rule the empire, the day-to-day issues are
With all its bizarre collection of races, dealt with by the appointed officials. The
temperaments, and attitudes, it is Each Loyal Family is allowed one Sena- greatest of these are the governors of the
amazing that the government of the tor. Again, the costs are prohibitive for provinces. Under them are the com-
League functions at all, let alone that it is many of them and the selling of proxies is manders of the garrisons, the revenue
able to function as efficiently as it does. It a common practice. agents, and the myriad of bureaucrats
is not a perfect system and evil emperors needed to make a large government
and incompetent governors often appear Finally the common citizens elect work. For the most part these officials do
under it. Still it is resilient enough to Publicans. Each of the Five Great Cities is their business with little interference or
withstand these abuses and continue to allowed one Publican. Since the costs of guidance from the capital. The Emperor
hold the empire together. these Publicans are borne by the state, issues edicts and determines the general
they are not allowed to vote by proxy. To course of policy. The governors imple-
At the head of the empire is naturally further ensure their honesty to the com- ment these policies and keep order in
the emperor. Each emperor is able to mon people, once a year each Publican their lands. Although the governors’ du-
trace his bloodline directly to the founder must appear among the common people ties are defined and limited by the volu-
of the empire, Eragas. Of course, the em- of his city without the protection of the minous legal codes of the Empire, the
peror is always a minotaur. The current law. This event is known as Publican’s actual working of the system is left to the
emperor is Ambeoutin XI. The emperor Day. individual leaders.
is the greatest power in the realm. All
laws and edicts are made in his name and On this day, the Publican is required to In keeping with the minotaur tradition
theoretically with his consent and ap- walk the streets of his city from sunrise to of justice, appointees to office must ap-
proval. Of course, few emperors have sunset. The event can be likened to a small pear in the Arena against their predeces-
time to see every law passed and so gener- war. The Publican parades through the sors. The winner of the combat has
ally confine themselves to sweeping pro- streets, protected by as many troops as he earned the right to the office. Unlike
nouncements that are then interpreted can afford. Meanwhile the people op- many arena combats, these challenges are
and implemented by under-secretaries posed to him attempt to amass their forces seldom to the death and are often purely
and minor functionaries. The emperor’s to overwhelm the guard and seize the ceremonial. In the latter case, the depart-
word is absolute law, within the limits Publican. Of course, factions loyal to him ing official simply submits to the incom-
presented by army mutinies, provincial may try to stop the mob and before long ing official as soon as the bell of the
rebellions, and armed mobs in the street. open street warfare begins. Sometimes the Arena is sounded.
enthusiasm of the rioters spills over into
Surrounding the emperor is his house- the night and next day. By tradition, the Although the assignment and removal
hold. In addition to wives and family, this army is loosed on any remaining mobs and of appointed officials is normally an or-
includes chancellors, secretaries, scribes, no mercy or quarter is given. Still Publi- derly business, the death of an emperor
stewards, and treasurers. Most of these can’s Day is the traditional spark that has results in a mad and bloody scramble for
positions are filled by Imperial princes, started open revolt in the cities. Attempts position. New emperors frequently sweep
dukes, and other family members. Wise to outlaw it have been futile, for the peo- out the old administration and post their
emperors allot these positions with great ple are far too fond of it. own appointees. The current office-
care, reserving the most powerful posts holders may not care to give up their posi-
for non-family members. A chamberlain The Senate’s power is more limited than tions and then the challenges in the
can have great influence on who can and that of the Emperor. First and foremost, Arena become quite real. Although it
cannot see the emperor—a powerful tool the Senate hears high court cases. For provides great entertainment for the
in the hands of an ambitious relative. those they can set the terms on (by mutual masses, one unfortunate effect is the loss
agreement), they settle and send to the of talented but physically weak adminis-
Even the Emperor is not all-powerful, Arena. Any cases that remain are deemed trators.
for he must work with the approval of the to be the jurisdiction of the Emperor.
Senate. Each minotaur family is allowed a Thus, the Senate screens the Emperor MINOTAUR JUSTICE
Senator. Since supporting a Senator at from a number of unnecessary cases. The
the Imperial Capital is a costly proposi- Senate can also propose new Edicts for the For the minotaurs and all those ruled
tion, most of the smaller families offer Emperor to consider. He is not required to by them, there is one overriding principle
their proxies to the wealthier households. follow their suggestions, although given of law—“Might makes right.” The
Some of these proxies are bought out- their ability to make his life miserable strongest is also the one with the legal
right; others are traded for some special (through their control of the caseload), it right. This, known as the rule of might,
consideration—a law providing tax relief is often wise to heed their words. Finally, forms the core of all law. The minotaurs
specifically to that family or a title to be the Senate can vote to censure any Edict of have followed this principle for centuries
the Emperor although this is best done in
conferred on the family. The amassing of only the most extreme cases.

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and have over time managed to refine The laws of due process carefully sepa- they are not trying to prove guilt or inno-
this system into a large body of law. rate violence done in the name of the law cence (that is left for the Arena), they are
from ail other types of violence. This is trying to show that laws have been broken
To others, this system would seem im- important, for it prevents anarchy and and that the case is worthy of going to
possible and unworkable with bullying mob rule in the streets. trial.
brutes slaughtering any who oppose
them. It is a credit to the ingenuity of the To enforce the distinction between After hearing their arguments, the
minotaurs that they have actually created proper and improper use of might, the Praetor rules on the fitness of the case. He
a system that works. To make it work, minotaurs have always made use of the must first decide if any laws have been
they have established two absolute Arena. This is the formal courtroom, the broken or if any party has sustained any
precepts—the laws of due process and the place where all cases are tried. Of course, injury (physical, property, or of reputa-
Arena. trial in the minotaur sense is vastly differ- tion). If he does find the law has been
ent from that held in other countries. For broken, he then sees if settlement can be
The first rule, the laws of due process, the minotaurs, guilt and innocence are reached. No one wants every case to go to
is that no action can be taken without le- fixed by who wins in the arena. Judges trial since the caseload would quickly be-
gal sanction (unless it can be shown that it and juries do not debate and decide guilt come unworkable. If at all possible, the
was violence taken in desperation). If a or innocence. This is decided by skill at Praetor and the citizens (or their lawyers)
man kills another in the street during an arms, strength, and valor. Within the reach a settlement. This may involve pay-
argument, it is a case of murder. The Arena, the plaintiff and defendant are ment of a fine, replacing damaged goods,
murderer cannot claim that by success- exempted from the consequences of their or a public statement of defeat (an apol-
fully killing his opponent he has rightly actions. No legal action can be taken ogy in a sense). If necessary, the Praetor
exercised the rule of might. The killing against anyone for the results of an Arena can impose a settlement on the two par-
was done without proper regard for the fight, even if the result is accidental, un- ties, without their agreement. This hap-
legal procedure. If a swindled man beats less the Praetor rules there is Contempt of pens most often when one or both are
the swindler until his money is returned, the Conditions. being stubborn and unreasonable about
he cannot claim the rule of-might, again a minor matter.
for the same reason. The swindler can file The Conditions of Trial are what keep
a claim of battery. (Of course, the other the empire from depopulating itself in If no settlement can be reached, the
can file a claim of fraud.) bloody lawsuits. Not all battles need be court begins a new process, the fixing of
fought to the death and setting the con- the Conditions of Combat. This is where
ditions of the combat is part of the legal lawyers truly earn their pay. The Condi-
process. Battles can be fought to the tions of Combat establish the rules that
death, first blood, first blow landed, un- will be followed in the Arena. They are
til unconscious, or even until one party is reached by a mixture of established law
pinned. Indeed, the majority of cases and negotiation. A smart lawyer can tilt
brought to trial are not fought to the the advantage of the combat toward his
death; this penalty is reserved for the client or at least prevent the other fellow
most serious capital crimes. from getting much of an edge.

Of course, not just anyone can walk There are four conditions that must be
into the Arena and claim the right to set before any combat can occur: Victory,
fight a case. There are procedures that Weapons, Armor, and Champions. After
must be followed before entering the these are decided and fixed in writing, a
Arena. Only after these have been fol- date is set for the appearance in the
lowed (part of the body of law that de- Arena.
fines due process) can the actual trial
occur. The first condition, victory, determines
what must be done to prove guilt or inno-
The first step is for the case to be filed cence. In civil cases, combats are rarely
before a judge, the Praetor. This is known fought to the death. Typical victories in-
as the Inquiry. Filing can be done by any clude first blood, wounding an arm or
citizen, but since it involves filing the leg, cutting the horn (if the opponent is a
proper papers, knowing who to bribe, minotaur), unconsciousness, or surren-
and how to behave before the Praetor, der. This last allows the contestants to
most citizens (or at least those who can af- fight to whatever extreme they wish; it is
ford it) hire a lawyer. Lawyers present ar- often used as a way to withdraw from a
guments pro and con for the validity of case—one person quickly surrenders to
the case presented to the Praetor. While the other before any harm can be done.

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The law does establish the range of victo- he has a contract dispute with a home- of his league. In these types of situations,
ries allowed for different types of cases. owner. Instead both parties will go out the lawyer would turn to one of the
For example, slander is limited to first and hire champions. Of course, for some Champions’ Guilds found throughout
blood, while theft can only be fought to crimes—murder, treason, and any of- the Empire.
cripple, at worst. Patricide can only be a fense against the state—champions for
fight to the death. the defendant are not allowed. If a man The Champions’ Guilds provide the
commits murder, he must personally ap- services of legal champions for anyone
Arms and armor allowed are used to pear in the Arena. who is willing to pay. Although the actual
balance out the inequities of the two functioning of the Guilds varies from
combatants, reduce the chance of death, Of all the champions, there is none place to place, they tend to operate along
and reflect the cruel or unwarranted na- greater than the Emperor’s Champion. the same principles. For a fee, the guild
ture of the case. A human is usually al- This minotaur or man is more than just a offers a selection of warriors. The cus-
lowed some armor if his opponent is a warrior. He is the figurehead of the Em- tomer gives a price range he is interested
minotaur and the case is deemed equal. peror’s right to rule. As the Emperor’s in and the guild provides a listing of reg-
A person who murders an official, how- Champion, he enjoys the special protec- istered champions that come within that
ever, must fight without weapons or ar- tion of his master and few willingly cross range. They maintain records of wins and
mor, while his opponent is equipped him. Underneath him are the Imperial losses, specialties and weaknesses. Using
appropriate to the station of the official Champions. These are warriors of all races this information the customer can make
slain. At the most extreme, a person who specialized in different weapons and his choice.
assassinates an emperor must fight un- styles of combat. There are experts with
armed and unprotected against a foe the bow, bulky wrestlers, sword masters, In accepting the fee, the guild prom-
wearing magical armor and wielding and spearmen. Each receives a yearly sal- ises to ensure the champion appears in
magical weapons. ary in exchange for being ready to enter the Arena on the appointed time, sober
the Arena at any time. Like the Emperor’s and ready for combat. Of course, the
Finally there is the issue of champions Champion, these warriors enjoy special guild must provide an alternate cham-
and this is what makes the minotaur jus- protection, They are a rough and danger- pion should the first become incapaci-
tice system truly work. In most cases, it is ous lot, paid to risk their lives in one-on- tated or be in less than optimum fighting
not necessary for the actual defendant or one combat. Normal citizens give them condition.
plaintiff to risk their own safety. Instead, wide berth.
they can hire someone to represent them To become a champion in a guild, a
in the Arena. This prevents the strongest There are more champions however warrior need only register with the guild
and most powerful from dominating all than the official ones maintained by the and demonstrate fitness for battle. Citi-
others. government. Governors and other high zenship is not required. Indeed, having
officials find it wise to keep a Personal Outlanders fighting in the Arena is tac-
The concept of championing comes Champion to defend or prosecute for itly encouraged as a good way to keep
from the official champions of the gov- them in purely civil cases. A wealthy mer- them under control and occupied. The
ernment. Certain cases are tried by the chant will keep one or more champions to warrior may be asked to list any special-
government, murder in particular. Since represent himself and his business in the ties, strengths, and weaknesses he has.
the government is a thing and not a per- Arena. Successful lawyers maintain sta- He is then placed on probation until he
son, it is necessary to have people spe- bles of champions to represent their cli- has proven himself. During probation he
cially designated to represent the ents in the Arena. When a person hires a acts as champion in minor cases, simple
government in the Arena. These are the lawyer he can also choose to pay an addi- and not deadly combats. The guild keeps
Imperial Champions. Over the years, this tional fee for the services of that lawyer’s all his fee at this time. If he does not lose
idea of champions has spread to the rest champion. Clients often shop around to any of these (or if his loss can be attrib-
of the people. Powerful nobles did not find the lawyer with the champion who uted to some other circumstance), he ad-
relish the idea of dying in the Arena over has the best record or who has the skills vances in the ranks of the guild. The more
some petty dispute and so applied for the that best suit the case. dangerous the cases he successfully cham-
right to use champions. In time, the pions, the more in demand he becomes.
wealthy merchants bought the right from Not all lawyers can afford to maintain a
the Emperor. This set the precedent for selection of highly skilled champions, Of course the guild always collects and
extending it to all who could afford it. however. A typical lawyer has perhaps keeps a portion of his fee, although the
one champion, a general-purpose type of amount becomes less with his growing
Champions are allowed for any type of fellow, on his staff. This champion is fame. It is not uncommon for highly suc-
civil case. It is not necessary for a mer- good for the everyday type of cases the cessful champions to leave the guild and
chant to enter the Arena when he is ac- lawyer may handle, but for a serious found their own stables.
cused of selling shoddy goods or crime or against high-power talent, the
overcharging his customers. A carpenter champion would quickly find himself out Of course, guilds do more than just
does not have to fight personally because connect warriors with clients. The draw-
ing power of a guild is the skill of its

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champions, therefore the guilds do all ise a relatively minor fight. If a defendant to bet seriously affects the odds given for
they can to train and improve their men. or plaintiff voluntarily chooses to appear each champion. Experienced champions
Guilds provide sword masters, armorers, in the Arena instead of using a cham- can tell from the crowd’s reaction just
healers, masseurs, and burial services for pion, public speculation increases (espe- how the betting is going and whether
free to their champions. Of course, the cially if he is facing a hired champion). their clients have any faith in them.
champion is expected to win. Lose too of- However, by far the biggest draw is a fight
ten and the warrior finds himself on the to the death between two professional The Praetors (who prepare the docket)
street. He certainly won’t be able find a champions. Professional death fights are are not blind or aloof to the drama of the
position with another guild as reputable. uncommon and rarer still are matchups Arena. Like good showmen, they care-
between highly rated champions. fully arrange the docket to build the ex-
Around the system of champions sev- citement throughout the day. The initial
eral other enterprises have sprung up. As A good Arena Day takes on all the trials are minor court cases. Depending
the number of champions increased, the trappings of market fair. Masters release on the size of the docket, several may be
best choice of champion for the money servants for the day. Peddlers line the fought at the same time, each battle oc-
became unclear. Professional handicap- streets to the Arena, hawking their curring in a different part of the Arena.
pers track the records of each champion goods, and food vendors congregate at As the day goes on, the importance and
and calculate the best combination of the entrances to sell fruits, roasted meats, deadliness of the cases increases and the
champion, weapon, and armor against a pies, breads, and drinks chilled with ice number of cases fought at a time is re-
given opponent. Lawyers often use their brought from the mountains. Itinerant duced. There may be a number of major
services to negotiate the best possible trial wizards put on shows for the public, hop- contests fought early on, to hold the in-
for their clients. ing to collect a bounty of coins for a few terest of the crowd, but the most exciting
hours of simple work. There are jugglers, case is held till the end of the day. This is
As ghoulish as the handicappers may acrobats, bards, dancers, pick-pockets, not always the most important case from
seem, even more unsavory types lurk and bawds—ail the things that make a a legal standpoint, but it is the one that
around the arena. Like a sporting event, festival colorful. has the best crowd appeal—the best
Arena combats are not above fixing. champions and the deadliest or the most
There are those who make a living fixing The Arena is built to accommodate exotic conditions.
(or claiming to fix) the fights. It is a haz- these crowds with tiers of seats for the
ardous business, since a suspected fixer common people and elaborate boxes for Once ail the contests are finished, the
must prove his innocence by a personal the wealthy and titled. As a method of results of the cases are announced and the
appearance in the Arena against one of raising revenue, the governor of the prov- victorious party is presented with a writ
the Imperial Champions (who are re- ince is entitled in the name of the Em- proclaiming his legal rights in the matter
puted to be incorruptible). He also risks peror to charge a tax for each seat. The at trial. Standing at the side of each man
the wrath of those who lost because of his price of the seat varies with the quality, is his champion (if he had one). The los-
fixed fights. Even more bizarre are those the most expensive being those closest to ing party is given his terms of punish-
who wait around the Arena to collect the the Emperor’s or Governor’s box and the ment before the crowd and is forced to
dead. Those unclaimed by the guilds or cheapest being the standing-room-only parade around the Arena bearing a sign
next of kin are spirited away by these ma- upper tiers. explaining those terms. In some rare in-
cabre phantoms for unknown purposes. stances, the losing party is executed on
It is rumored the bodies are used by wiz- To reduce the occasional riots in the the spot, if that is the penalty (although
ards for dark purposes. stands, men and minotaurs are carefully in most such cases, the party would be re-
segregated from each other. Were they quired to appear in the Arena person-
To show the people that justice is being seated together, there would certainly be ally). The justice given out is very severe
properly served, Arena combats are open outbreaks during the man vs. minotaur and is intended to discourage frivolous
to the public. Thus they also serve the matches. The tensions flare more than suits.
purpose of providing entertainment for enough with the crowd frequently di-
the masses. In the cities, the Arena is nor- vided into factions supporting different THE ARMY OF THE LEAGUE
mally opened once per month although champions.
this may be more frequent if the caseload One of the cornerstones of the Empire
is heavy. Once the docket is set, the cases, The action is intense with heavy wager- is its finely trained and highly efficient
the champions, and the Conditions of ing on the outcome of each trial. For the military forces. These have provided the
Combat are posted throughout the city. spectators, the betting is more important might needed by the Emperor to occa-
than the nature of the trial itself. The sionally enforce his will, to protect the
Public turnout then depends on the same handicappers who advise lawyers empire, and to expand its borders. With-
excitement level of the cases. Fights to the now make odds and take bets. Even this out the support of the Legions of Eragas
death are always good for a crowd, as is betting has formal traditions. The first (as the army is known), the Emperor
any appearance by a major champion bets down are made by the plaintiff and
even if the Conditions of Combat prom- defendant and the amount each is willing

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would be unable to control the far-flung properly used, they make excellent scouts 1,000. The legion, the strategic unit of
corners of his realm. and screens for the advancing legions, the army, varies in size according to the
warning of the approach of the enemy need, but normally comprises 1,000 to
The core of the army are the foot sol- well in advance. These men are wild, dif- 5,000 men of all units. (The exact per-
diers, the legionaries. These men form ficult to control, and considered unruly centages of infantry to cavalry, light to
the largest part of the army. The legion- by the army commanders. They will go heavy, varies according to need.)
aries are divided in turn into different home if dissatisfied or refuse to work if
categories according to the weapons and they take a disliking to the way they are Each legion has a particular identifying
armor used. The front line of troops are treated. symbol and name; within each legion are
men armed with short sword and shield separate units, each with their own titles,
or long spear and battle-axe. All carry two But the finest of the cavalry are the traditions, and history. For example, the
or three javelins that are thrown just be- heavy mounted riders. Composed in part Black Horns of Wallbreaker Legion (so
fore the enemy makes contact. These of the vain sons of rich noblemen and in named for its reputation in sieges) is one
troops wear heavy body armor—a breast— the other part of seasoned campaigners of the most feared units of heavy mino-
plate of bronze bands, a skirt of metal- chosen for their skill, the heavy cavalry is taur infantry.
studded leather strips, greaves, and a the shock force of the battlefield. Man
helmet. Supporting the heavy infantry and horse are armored in scales of bronze Most units are divided according to
are lightly armored bowmen and slingers. and the rider has the additional protec- race, in part to prevent difficulties within
These men wear padded or quilted armor tion of a large shield of wood and iron. the unit, but also to best exploit the
at best and carry a short sword in addition For weapons he carries several javelins, a strengths of that particular race. There
to their missile weapons. lance, battle axe, long sword, and per- are unit of minotaurs, humans, dwarves,
haps even a short bow and arrows. The and even a small contingent of dark elves.
However, the foot soldiers are not heavy cavalry, the mantari, is not to be However, one unit, the Black Cloaks of
alone in the army, nor could they alone wasted in battle. Most often it is the re- the Legion Imperius, are an exception to
win all the battles the army has fought. serve force used to break the enemy and this rule. This unit (of 5,000 soldiers)
The cavalry has been growing in impor- put him into rout with a crucial final consists of the finest warriors of any race.
tance over the years, particularly now that charge. Taken from their parents (many of whom
the League has settlements in the Tamire, consider it a great honor) as little chil-
where the Uigan horsemen rule. Al- The heavy cavalry is a glamorous arm dren, the Black Cloaks are taught from
though contact between the two armies and always leads the way in the triumphal that point on to surrender their lives for
has been small, the legionaries have been processions to celebrate the latest victory the Emperor.
helpless against the faster, more mobile over the barbarians of the frontier. In
horsemen. To provide adequate defense, wealthy families, if a son must enter the They receive the finest military train-
the Legions of Eragas have relied on the army, every effort is made to secure him a ing possible, beginning even before other
protection of fortifications and increasing post in the mantari. children have stopped sucking their
numbers of cavalry. thumbs. They live together, officers and
The soldiers are organized into groups men, recruits and instructors, as a single
League cavalry is of three different of ten, then 100, then 500, and then family. All their needs are seen to, so that
types. The most common is light cavalry.
These men (and those minotaurs who have
learned to be horsemen) ride unbarded
horses and wear no armor. They carry a
shield, a brace of short javelins, and a
sword. In battle, they gallop on the flanks
of the enemy, using their javelins to harass
him. They do not close with the enemy
and use their swords only when forced.
Even then, they are likely to dismount and
lock their shields for protection.

The second group of cavalry are the
Outlanders. Especially since the expan-
sion into Northern Hosk, the League has
recruited horsemen from the tribes on its
borders. Among the Legions of Eragas are
companies of Uigan horsemen, Tumesh
riders of the New Mountains, and the
Black Woodsmen near Thenol. When

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they will never want. They are kept care- other garrisons of the Empire as an object RELIGIONS
fully isolated from the politics of the Em- lesson.
pire, so as not to pollute their minds. Religion has never played an impor-
THE MERCHANTS OF THE tant part in the lives of the minotaurs of
The end result is a highly-trained le- Taladas and is even less so now that the
gion of soldiers, fanatically loyal to the LEAGUE power of the gods is no longer apparent to
Emperor. They will do anything he com- them. For the most part they believe in
mands of them. So long as the Emperor is Third in importance to the Emperor the power and might of the individual.
threatened they will not surrender or and the Legions of Eragas is the League of Nor, by their culture, will they willingly
flee—or at least that is what they would Merchants. Growing out of the pre- submit or admit inferiority to another—
have people believe. invasion Loyal Families, the Merchant including the gods of Krynn. Thus they
League is a strong guild of traders that have little use for organized religions and
Every legion is commanded by a “du- regulates and monitors most business the trappings that go with them.
ces ,” a general appointed by the Em- trade of the Empire. The Merchant
peror. This general is never of a social League does not control the production Over the years, the humans too have
rank lower than the Loyal Families and is of goods, but it is responsible for the lost much of their faith. With the Great
more often a minotaur or -iskis. When shipping and distribution throughout Trek, many came to believe the gods had
several legions are grouped under one the Empire and beyond. Its near total forsaken or cursed them. If this were so,
command, the supreme commander is monopoly gives it great power within the then they had no use for such cruel and
known by the title Imperator. Again the Empire. Although the guild has no offi- capricious gods. Denied the powers
Imperator is appointed by the Emperor, cial position, its merchants are able to in- granted by the gods, they denied the
drawn from the ranks of the dux. He fluence most official policies to its gods entirely.
holds the position only for as long as he is advantage.
needed, after which he returns to the In the centuries that have passed, little
command of his legion. The merchant guild also supplies unof- has changed to alter this view. Indeed,
ficial ambassadors and spies for the Em- the atheism of the minotaurs has rein-
To reduce the risk of an attempted pire. Their trading carries them far forced the views of the humans. Because
coup by his generals or his governors, the beyond the borders of the Imperial of this there are no large temples or state
Emperors have carefully regulated the League of the Minotaurs. They travel the religions in the Empire.
army. The dux and their legions come un- length of the Tamire, to the land of the
der the direct command of the Emperor. goblins, into the Ring Mountains, to Ar- Of course, faith is not entirely absent
The governor of a province has no power math and Thenol, even to the dark jun- from the Empire. A practical-minded
of command over the military in his area gles of Neron. They carry the seeds of the people, the citizens preserve their dead
unless the Emperor issues a specific proc- Minotaur Empire with them, making it on the chance that the gods will return
lamation empowering him with com- easier for the Legions of Eragas to annex and restore the dead. There are no cults
mand. At the same time, the legions are new territories in the name of the Em- native to the Empire, but the beliefs of
garrisoned in smaller units throughout peror. Outlanders have entered into the society.
each province. Only a few legions are gar- Thus there are small followings for such
risoned altogether. These are com- The merchant guild jealously protects gods as the Uigan Mislaxa, Qu’uan, and
manded by the most loyal dux the its position from all interlopers. Although Jijin. The beliefs of Thenol and Armach
Emperor can find. it is not an officially recognized monopoly, have recently started to appear among the
it does not brook any competition. Enter- common people. And of course, Hiteh
Even with all these precautions, there prising merchants who try to set up their has not ignored the opportunity for mis-
have been mutinies. Unlike the elaborate own operations are squashed if they are lit- chief. Particularly in such places as the
process of the Arena, mutineers are tle, driven out of business by the price- Old City of Kristophan, he has prompted
judged guilty by their act. The standard cutting practices of the guild. If the the creation of cults to follow him. These
practice is to send other army units to newcomer shows a particular talent for the have remained secret, as Hiteh does not
crush them. Care is taken to send rivals business (i.e., he survives the attempts to care to bring attention to his followers
within the army, if at all possible, to do drive him out of business), an invitation is and their evil activities just yet.
the job. The risk always exists that the extended to him to join the guild. If he
mutiny will spread to other units. There- refuses this, driving him out of business
fore, the most draconian punishments gets serious. Threats, beatings, arson, even
are handed out to mutineers. Normal killing will be used if necessary. Given this
men are beheaded and their bodies type of attitude, the League of Merchants
staked along the highways as warnings to has few competitors.
others. The leaders are tortured and then
publicly drawn and quartered. The parts
of their bodies are then sent around to the

54

SOUTHERN HOSK

THE CITIES OF THE LEAGUE ease is a close second, for the narrow, well enough alone. The back streets of
twisting streets are muddy with sewage the Old City have always been a good
By far the crowning glory of the Empire and the buildings are infested with rats. place to hire desperate men for a desper-
is the Five Great Cities. In the minds of ate task.
many citizens, the Five Great Cities are Once the heart of Kristophan, the Old
the Empire. The farmland and the Outer City is now a gloomy and dangerous Given the rough and dangerous nature
Provinces are only small backwaters of the ghetto. The majority of those who live of the Old City, it is not surprising that
cities. But which city is the greatest of the here are humans, elves, and dwarves. Few the city watch, the saiones, tend to leave
five is open to endless argument. A mino- minotaurs dwell in the Old City, prefer- that part of town to its own devices. They
taur of Kristophan will refuse to believe ring the company of their own kind in the tend not to be concerned about the
any other place is greater. A man of Thera New City. The majority of inhabitants are crimes committed within the Old City,
will extol the wonders of the pleasure gar- also poor and unskilled, making their unless they are of exceptional infamy.
dens of his home. In truth each has its meager livings at hard labor. At dawn The greatest reason for them to enter is
own character, different from the others. they leave their homes to work elsewhere, when a crime is committed outside the
returning at dusk to their bleak and boundaries of the Old City, particularly if
Kristophan dreary homes. Although their entertain- the crime was committed in the Imperial
ments are not grand, they go at them City. At such times, the saiones enter the
As the seat of the Empire, Kristophan’s withgreat gusto. There are numerous district in force.
claim to greatness is clear and obvious. cheap taverns, tea shops, coffee stalls,
Here is where the Emperor rules, the Sen- houses of ill-repute, gambling halls, and Their methods are not subtle and they
ate meets, and the Imperial Arena smoking dens. are unloved by most of the inhabitants
stands. Kristophan is the center of all therein. In times of extreme emergency,
government throughout the Empire. These are the meeting places of high- such as the frequent summer riots or a
Every soul seeking political appointment lawyers (bandits), versers (card cheats), rare imperial assassination, the Legions of
is drawn here. Every minotaur household nips (cutpurses), foins (pickpockets), ruf- Eragas join the saiones in their peace-
of consequence and every Loyal Family flers (muggers), charms (lockpickers), keeping duties. The army is even more
lives here close to the Emperor. jackmen (forgers), and anglers (burglars). brutal than the saiones and the rumor of
These gather into informal fraternities their deployment can trigger bloody riots
In terms of raw power, no other city of led by an upright man, a thief and co- of protest.
the Empire can rival Kristophan. It zener of such skill and authority that the
rightly boasts the finest champions, the others defer to him out of respect and Of course, the Old City is not all bleak-
most skillful lawyers, the most spectacu- fear. ness and decay. There are many things
lar buildings, and the largest population. that make it lively and exciting, an attrac-
It is gaudy, ostentatious, and domineer- The company will take orders from tive adventure for the wealthy to visit—
ing in its displays of power. their upright man, milling the gentry by day. There are the colorful open-air
cove’s ken (robbing the wealthy houses) markets. Plays, bear- baiting, cockfights,
It is not, however, a beautiful city. and spying out the conies (marks) for the puppet theaters, dog fights, and staged
Built around the old human settlement, crooked games. Although they speak the duels all provide popular entertainment.
the capital is divided into three districts: tongue of the Empire, these men fill it But with the coming of dusk, the markets
the Old City, the New City, and the Im- with words of new meaning, hiding their close down and the wise go back to their
perial City. trades, tools, and targets behind these ex- homes.
pressions. Each gang has its own laws,
The Old City district centers around customs, and territories, which are nor- Another feature of the Old City is the
the original human town of Kristophan mally respected and honored by others of small enclaves of wealth. Hidden away
and the neighborhoods immediately their kind. However this is not always the down back alleys, carefully concealed
around it. The buildings here are older case and sometimes bloody feuds break from notice, may be the private apart-
than anywhere else in the city. Most of the out between different gangs. ments of a powerful wizard or the rooms
buildings are of two storeys and built of maintained by a powerful noble for his il-
wood, except for the Old Armory and the When this happens, the upright men licit mistress. Of course, few openly dis-
Forest Gate that, though no taller than turn to others for help, particularly the play their wealth in a community filled
the rest, are all that is left of the stone for- disreputable and fallen champions that with thieves.
tifications that defended the town from fill the taverns. These men are always
land- based attacks. Most of the walls have willing to risk death for money and so Only the most successful and powerful
long since been torn down, and the stone provide a ready source of muscle for any of the upright men can freely show their
carted off to build the Imperial City. Fire, job at hand. The taverns they frequent wealth. These men, the dons of the crimi-
especially during dry summers, is the are rough places, for although a cham- nal community, disdain from showing
greatest danger to the inhabitants. Dis- pion may only want a quiet drink, his fear of robbery and with good reason.
combative nature seldom lets him leave Most Old City inhabitants know that to
rob such a man is to invite sure death.

55

SOUTHERN HOSK

Not only is his home likely to be well are found in the New City, built by the ferent Champions’ Guilds, dealers in an-
guarded and fitted with dangerous traps, minotaurs for the great ocean fleets. tiquities, sellers of rare cloth, goldsmiths,
he also has a network of informers and jewelers, and seamstresses.
killers to carry out his wishes. More than The preferences of the minotaurs are
once the hand of a foolish thief has been also reflected in the layout of the New At the farthest end of the Highroad,
found nailed to the door of his favorite City. There is no orderly pattern to the ar- where it becomes the Great Way, are inns,
tavern, an example to all others who rangement of streets. Avenues, alleys, and stables, horse dealers, farriers, cart-
might follow in his footsteps. lanes twist and turn almost randomly, wrights, wheelwrights, and grain dealers.
making the New City a dense maze of Nearer the Plaza of Champions (which is
Almost forgotten on the edge of the buildings. Apparently the minotaurs seem not far from the Imperial Arena) are the
Old City are the Tombs, catacombs dat- to like things this way, for most other cities city’s armorers, swordsmiths, trainers,
ing from the first settlement of Kris- of the Empire follow suit. Others (particu- surgeons, and doctors. A few of the
tophan. These are unused now, the dead larly the dwarves) find the system mad- Champions’ Guilds can be found in this
being buried in the necropolis outside of dening and frustrating. area.
town, but the catacombs have never been
filled in. The underground caverns, once As a concession to the sensibilities of The bulk of the New City, however, is
cool and dry, have become dank and non-minotaurs, the New City is pierced made up of the twisting lanes that run be-
clammy over the years. The bodies once by several straight boulevards that run tween the main boulevards. Here live the
buried there have decayed long since into from one major landmark to another. greatest part of the people of Kristophan.
crumbling gravemold. More recently de- The Breakwater runs from the docks to These are the homes of craftsmen, mer-
ceased are left there by assassins, hiding the Old City. The Emperor’s March chants, and minotaurs. On these streets
their crimes. The air is thick with decay crosses the New City from the Imperial can be found ship captains, carpenters,
and rot and only the homeless, seeking City to the Old City. The Highroad goes importers, respected champions, lawyers,
shelter from fierce storms, and fugitives from the Plaza of Champions to the clerks, scribes, shopkeepers, hostelers,
from justice or wrath choose to go there. Great Way, the major road leading from and more. They do their best to live their
Kristophan to Moldar. lives peacefully and without fuss. Unlike
Surrounding the Old City is the New the Old City, the New City is regularly
City. This section of Kristophan was built Major businesses line these streets, to patrolled by the saiones, who are gener-
after its conquest by the minotaurs and save customers from trying to find their ally respected and liked by the citizens
reflects their tastes and skills in architec- way among the confusing lanes of the in- there.
ture. Most of the buildings are low, of ner blocks of the New City. Each boule-
one or two storeys, and built of brick. vard attracts merchants appropriate to its The typical home in the New City is a
Only a few stone or wood buildings exist; nature. The Breakwater is lined with the small villa built around a central court-
stone is reserved for the Imperial City and warehouses of the League of Merchants. yard. At the gate may be a storefront
the forests were long ago depleted during At the seaward end are the shipchandlers, where the owner displays his goods or
the building of the Old City. The better provisioners, and sailmakers. Near the crafts for sale. Inside is the courtyard, per-
part of the docks and quays of Kristophan Old City there are taverns and grocers. haps decorated with a few trees (and for
the well-to-do, a private well). This is
Along the Emperor’s March are the dif- typically paved for appearances and the
ease of carts. Surrounding this courtyard
are the rooms of the house, facing in-
ward. Poorer citizens, nearer the Old
City, make do with single-storey homes or
share their houses between several fami-
lies. Wealthy families have two-storey vil-
las and may even have attached gardens
enclosed by a separate wall.

Within a wealthy villa will be more
than just the family. Also living there, in
separate quarters, are free servants and
household slaves. There will be grooms,
cooks, maids, and various assistants all to
see to the needs of the family. Although
there may be minotaur servants, it is
against the law to keep minotaur slaves,
except for those being punished for im-
perial crimes. Such prisoners are never

56

SOUTHERN HOSK

given positions as household servants, citizens of the Old and New City must At the edge of the palaces, forming a
serving their sentences in quarries, leave before the gates are closed or be ar- border between the nobles’ villas and the
mines, farms, and on board galleys. rested for breaking the curfew. Only palaces, are the Ministries, the bureaucra-
those bearing a pass, issued by the Office cies that make the Empire go. The Impe-
The citizens of the New City are per- of the Chamberlain of the Imperial City, rial Senate is part of this ring of
fectly aware of what tempting targets can legally remain within the walls after ministries, flanking the Emperor’s March
they make to the thieves of the Old City, dark. to the left. To the right stands the Impe-
and they take appropriate precautions. rial Treasury. Beneath it are the secretly
Villas and homes are built with no out- Of course, there are those willing to tunnelled vaults holding the riches of the
side windows, all views looking into the take the risk of discovery. The Imperial Empire. Short of the Emperor’s Palace,
courtyard or gardens. Gates are barred at City is the richest picking ground for no building is more heavily guarded than
night. Everyone who can afford it has a thieves—and also the most dangerous. this.
gatekeeper, a warrior, to keep watch at Here the saiones is particularly active, pa-
night. Guard dogs are loosed into court- trolling the streets and guarding public Also among the ministries are the bar-
yards or, more exotically, cheetahs are re- buildings day and night. In addition, the racks of the rest of the Legion Imperius,
leased into the gardens. The rich hire Dux’s Wall is manned by the Black the most trusted and best equipped of all
bodyguards to stand watch, although Cloaks of the Legion Imperius, the Em- the Emperor’s troops. Their placement
they do not approach the scale of the pri- peror’s elite bodyguard. These soldiers at- here is intentional, as a protection from
vate armies the noblemen maintain. tack to kill anything or anyone who the ambitions of the nobles. Of course,
attempts to cross the wall. The first great there is no guarantee that the Legion Im-
Finally, there is the expedient of buy- task for any thief is just to get into the Im- perius will remain loyal, so the Emperor
ing off the thieves. It is a common prac- perial City unnoticed. carefully monitors it at all times.
tice for powerful upright men to collect
protection money from the homeowners Once inside, things do not become any Outside the city are two other areas of
of the New City. These upright men then easier. The noble villas, larger and more importance. About two leagues away is
place their “mark” at the doors of the vil- lavish versions of those found in the New the vast necropolis of Kristophan. Here
las to show that they are protected and City, are also better and more danger- the dead are entombed to await the re-
who protects them. While the marks are ously protected. Instead of a mere gate turn of the gods. Early minotaur custom
supposedly secret, anyone willing to go to guard or handful of watchmen, nobles was to cremate their dead. After conquer-
a little effort could learn them. Some mi- keep up to 200 guards patrolling their ing the Styrllians, however, they adopted
sers have attempted to use counterfeit grounds, led by their personal champi- the practice of entombment. Those who
marks only to have their homes ransacked ons. Like the Black Cloaks, most of these can afford it pay for sturdy mausoleums
at the orders of the indignant upright guards attack without question, seeking to house their dead, in the belief that
man. As a result, counterfeiting marks is to kill any intruder. Most nobles maintain when the gods return those who have
a seldom- tried practice. one or more wizards on their staff and been worthy shall be restored to life.
part of their duties are to use their spells (This belief is unique to the lands of Sty-
The most isolated and secure section of to prepare magical traps. A few have even rllia and its conquests; it is preached, in
Kristophan is the Imperial City. Nestled employed master thieves to act as advisors one form or another, by all the temples of
in the center of the New City, this is sepa- for preparing precautions, although this the city.)
rated from all else by the Dux’s or Gen- is risky, given the chance the master thief
erals’ Wall. This wall not only keeps the will decide to use his knowledge against Some of the tombs are quite old, dat-
common people out of the Imperial his master. ing from the time of the human settle-
grounds, it also serves as the final line of ment. For centuries the necropolis was a
defense for the city. It is not a ceremonial Within the Imperial City are more popular site for a day trip, enlivened by
or decorative wall but a solid and well- than just the villas of the nobles. Con- the old tales of the undead things that
manned fortification. tained within the walls are most of the might be lurking below. In the absence of
functions of the Empire. At the far end of priestly powers, these were little more
Entrance into the Imperial City is the Emperor’s March is the Imperial Pal- than stories. Recently, however, unwhole-
through one of only four gates: The Em- ace, home of the Emperor (although he some things have been stirring there.
peror’s Gate, through which passes the spends most of his time at Thera). Ad- Cultists of Hiteh are rumored to hold cer-
Emperor’s March; The Oceangate, the joining this is the Queens’ Palace, where emonies among the tombs in the dead of
one closest to the sea; The Wood Gate, his wives live when he is present. Ad- night. Fewer and fewer picnickers choose
which faces inland; and The Bloody joined to these two palaces are the bar- the shaded glens and lonely retreats once
Gate, where the bodies of traitors are dis- racks of the Black Cloaks, the Emperor’s so popular with lovers.
played after death in the Arena. bodyguard. Radiating out from this are
the palaces of the other great households The second place outside the city is the
During the daytime, citizens are al- of the Imperial Family. Encampment. Located five miles from
lowed to pass through the gates, but at the outer city wall, this is a permanent
night they are closed to all. Furthermore,

57

SOUTHERN HOSK

barracks for the Bearkiller Legion and the With the coming of spring this all To the left of the Basilica, forming the
Marines. These legions, the greater part changes. As the snow- blocked roads clear, final side of the Forum, is the Palaestra,
of the Emperor’s elite troops, are sta- the advance guard of the summer season the public gymnasium. Here the citizens
tioned here as the strategic reserve of the begins to filter in. First to arrive are the of Thera indulge in their second great
army. It just so happens that they are close heralds and trusted servants. Their task is passion —sports. Daily, youths come to
by to deal with difficulties in Kristophan to inspect the villas, begin the prepara- wrestle or challenge each other in the jav-
itself. The two legions together maintain tions for the summer, and (to the terror of elin. Less bloody-minded than the
about 8,000 soldiers in readiness for com- those who have stayed all year) send back Arena, the gymnasium is popular with
bat. Portions of these legions are fre- reports on the activities of the winter care- summer visitors seeking a little diversion
quently sent to deal with disturbances takers. from the bubbling springs and grand vis-
elsewhere, so it is rare for all 8,000 to be tas. As is their habit in Thera, spectators
available at once. After them come the household ser- bet vigorously on these contests, just as
vants accompanying the baggage of their they bet heavily at the Arena. Scouts
Thera masters and mistresses. Then comes the from the Champions’ Guilds watch the
rush of courtiers and supplicants, scurry- exercises, always on the lookout for a
Where Kristophan radiates power and ing and jockeying for suitable rooms from likely recruit.
might, Thera gives the feeling of sophis- the innkeepers of the city. At last comes
tication and relaxation. Nestled in the the final wave, the summer residents. In the streets surrounding the square
hills of Eragalla, Thera is the playground Each year on the third moon of spring, the are wine shops, street-side cafes, smoky
of the wealthy. Not on any major trade Emperor and his household—wives, chil- taverns, bakeries, cheese shops, fruit and
route and far from the centers of power, dren, secretaries, undersecretaries, valets, nut sellers, and oil vendors. Farther away
Thera has gained its fame as the summer and ladies-in-waiting—arrive, surrounded from the center are the homes of the
resort of the nobility. It is blessed with by the Black Cloaks and a throng of hope- craftsmen—cabinet-makers, marble-
numerous medicinal hot springs. How- ful hangers-on. The minotaur nobles, the workers, tilers, dyers, mosaicists, gem-
ever, hot springs alone would not have iskis, and the Loyal Families arrive imme- cutters, weavers, cleaners, tinkers, and
been enough to distinguish it. Thera is diately after and in no time at all the city is more. Outside the gates are hawkers ped-
also blessed with rich, cool forests provid- filled to beyond bulging. dling melons, rib bon, sulphur matches,
ing both scenery and comfort. This com- grapes, charms, sandals, wild animals,
bination of hot baths, cool weather, and Thera naturally divides into two sec- caps, fish, and smoked meats. Wander-
scenery has made Thera the place to go tions, the city and the villas. This division ing through the streets, going from door-
during the hot season. was not intentional but was an outgrowth to-door, are bards, acrobats,
of the increasing number of summer visi- fortune- tellers, jugglers, and bear-
Where most cities grow in size from tors. The city, built first, clusters around a tamers. Thieves often disguise themselves
year to year, Thera’s population fluctu- group of hot springs near the floor of the as these wanderers, perhaps even making
ates wildly depending on the season. valley where Thera is nestled. These a modest living at some honest art, so
During the winter it is a small, sleepy city. springs were the easiest to reach when the they can case potential victims for return
Deep, gently-falling snows close it down, first settlers arrived. visits later in the night.
cut off from the outside world. Those
who remain are the citizens who make The city now sprawls across the narrow Running from the Forum toward the
their homes there year round, the crafts- valley floor, the oldest parts around the hills is the main street of the city. Unlike
men needed to build and maintain the hot springs with newer buildings farther the streets of many other cities, this runs
villas, the innkeepers who provide rooms and farther away. A public bath house has straight and true. It passes through the
for the lesser entourage that follows the been built over the old hot springs. It low city wall and then winds its way
nobles wherever they go, the provision- opens onto the Forum or main square, through the villas on the slopes until it
ers, the grocers, and the laborers. Of the the heart of Thera. Facing the baths from reaches the outermost gate of the Impe-
summer people, the only ones who re- across the Forum is the Basilica, the seat rial Villas. Although the villas were once
main are the caretakers and guards for the of the city government. Here the Praetors outside the walls of the city, today they
great villas. This is still no small number, and lawyers gather to deal with the cases are extensions of the city wall. Each villa
for the places, such as the Imperial sum- of the day. has its own walls and many of these join
mer villa, cannot be left casually un- at various points to each other and even-
guarded. During the cold months there is To the right of this, between the Basil- tually to the city walls. Thus the defensive
still a complete garrison, servants, crafts- ica and the baths, stands the Arena. walls of the city are a jumble of separate
men, painters, gardeners, cooks, and Compared to the majesty of the Imperial walls and gates.
scribes, all under the command of cham- Arena of Kristophan, this seems a modest
berlains and stewards. affair—but Thera has always been more Once, when Thera was much younger,
attuned to the relaxation and leisure of there was a need for strong defenses to
the baths, not the blood and anger of the protect the inhabitants from the savage
Arena.

58

SOUTHERN HOSK

creatures and peoples of the wooded raiders. Fortunately, most of these are (Just because the Empire is cultured
hills. Now the area is civilized and peace- easily contained. Sometimes though, be- doesn’t mean it is safe.)
ful. The tribes that lived in the area have fore things can be brought under control,
been conquered or have moved away. The the skirmish spreads throughout several Aside from violence, another problem
dangerous animals, hunted for sport, villas as others throw their support to one of Thera is the infrequent earthquakes.
avoid men and minotaurs whenever pos- side or the other. Aware of this danger, architects seldom
sible. With the passing of these threats, build higher than one storey. Stone and
the city walls have become more symbolic Each villa is more than just a summer brick, which are the common building
than functional, marking the boundary home. It is like a private community. materials throughout the rest of the Em-
between the citizens of Thera and the Within the grounds are a main house, of- pire, have proven too inflexible for use
summer people. Villa walls, however, are ten with wings for the wives and cour- here. Wood is the favored material both
strong and well-maintained. Their own- tiers. In addition there may be separate in the city and among the villas. How-
ers value their privacy and security. While guest houses, gardens, viewing ponds, ever, it is seldom left plain, for simplicity
riots of the citizens or the poor are rare in fisheries, orchards, servants’ cottages, has never been to the taste of the mino-
Thera, political plotting and assassina- barracks, granaries, stables, temples, and taurs. Buildings are lavished with carv-
tion is not. More than once a scheming or slaves’ quarters. There is almost always a ings and statuary. Beams are carved and
enraged noble has sent his private guards hot spring and bathhouse on the property painted in polychromatic colors. Wooden
on a raid to storm the villa of a rival. (this being the main attraction of Thera). panels are painted according to the whim
Some villas, such as the Imperial Villas, of the owner—hunting scenes, land-
Of course,’ the Emperor cannot allow are built with more than just leisure in scapes, tales of heroes, and amorous
such behavior to go unchallenged. Just mind. These places are small fortresses, scenes of the boudoir are all scenes of
within the gates of the Imperial Villas are ready to provide a haven should life else- choice.
barracks for the Legion Imperius and the where become too dangerous. These vil-
Black Cloaks. Should report come of las, sited not just for their hot springs and Wood, in turn, leads to the danger of
armed men on the march, troops are in- vistas, are hard to reach and are built fire. More than once disastrous fires have
stantly dispatched to the scene. Normally strong enough to withstand sieges, Incor- swept through the closely packed streets
it can be figured that once or twice a sea- porated into their design may be watch- of Thera, all but eradicating the city. Each
son the guard will be called to deal with towers, secret gates, moats, and keeps. time, the Therans have stubbornly re-
built their homes and started over.

59

SOUTHERN HOSK

Because their science is not up to it, the the wind and waves to find some safe har- culture of the Silvanaes. The humans, un-
Therans do not realize the scope of the bor. Several ships were crushed against able to overcome the better-trained elves,
danger earthquakes present. The hills the rocky cliffs as they worked their way eventually turned on each other. Those as-
and hot springs that have made the area up and down the coast, until finally, with tute leaders who shared borders with the
so attractive are also signs of a major fault the aid of an adrift fisherman they had elves turned to the Silvanaes. Alliances
that runs almost directly under the city. rescued from the sea, they sailed the se- were made and the culture of the elves
To date, even the most destructive trem- cret ways through the treacherous shoals gradually spread. Although the leaders
ors that have shaken the town are small of the Outer Banks to reach landfall in were only interested in the elvish arts of
compared to the major quake that is the Bay of Hoor. Here they came ashore. war, it was not long before other aspects of
building. Each year pressure increases on Asking the blessing of the landspirits, the elvish culture became sought after.
the fault and minor shocks ripple Silvanaes called the land Armach, Dry-
through the city. These do little to relieve land. As a result of this process, the Confed-
the immense strain underground. Some- eration of Armach was created and solidi-
time soon there will come an earthquake What they found in their new land of fied to the state it has reached today. As
that will irrevocably shatter the city. Armach was a disorganized collection of befits its foreign origins, it is different
petty tribes. The Silvanaes were amazed from any other nation of Taladas.
However, the danger has not gone to- at what they considered the primitive
tally unheeded. As noted, the science of state of the locals. They were accustomed THE PEOPLE AND SOCIETY
earthquakes and faults is not up to under- to the grand cities of Ansalon and the glo-
standing the exact dangers building. rious history of their own people and the Armach is divided between two dis-
However, those accustomed to the earth, human empires. Here they found people tinct groups— the elves and the humans.
particularly dwarves, have noted the fre- living at a level of barbarism almost be- There is occasionally cross-breeding, but
quency of quakes and their severity. yond their imagining. In Ansalon, the half-elves are rare and not well-received.
These and other telltales—the hot only creatures who lived such lives were
springs, for one—make them concerned. dark and evil. Humans, elves, even ken- The Silvanaes of Armach are the survi-
To their minds, Thera is not sited wisely. der had advanced past this barbaric state. vors and direct descendants of the Grand
Most, recognizing the futility of chang- Armada. In the few years that they have
ing things, merely note their reservations Thus, the Silvanaes at first saw the na- been here (by their standards) they have
and move away. Some feel compelled to tives as evil and dangerous and set about changed little. Like the Silvanesti of An-
give quiet warning and then move away. carving their own homeland. Fighting salon, they are slender with finely shaped
quickly broke out between the natives features. Their average height is slightly
A few zealously take up the cry of dan- and the elves, based on these misunder- shorter than that of a human’s
ger, warning anyone who will listen. Al- standings and confusions. However, the
though they try earnestly, they are superior equipment and training of the Men commonly dress in long robes,
universally regarded as fanatics and crack- Silvanaes quickly carried the day in such embroidered and decorated in bright
pots. Denied legitimacy by the magical, battles. Within a little time, the elves had woodland colors, when in city or town. In
religious, and scientific community, the established themselves as masters of the the woodlands, typical clothing is a jerkin
doomsayers haunt the Forum, gates, and Hoor Bay basin. and trousers of muted browns and
taverns of Thera. Here they do what they greens. Belts and scabbards are made of
can, preaching the truth. The laughter In setting up their new homeland, the finely tooled leathers, often dyed and
and mockery endured has pushed more elves did not seek to conquer and rule the varnished in elaborate patterns. While
than one beyond fanaticism and into natives. Instead they drove the humans finely-wrought pieces of gold and silver
madness. away, attempting to set up an empire of jewelry are the preferred ornaments,
elves only, just as they had in Silvanesti. most of these are heirlooms since the
ARMACH At first they were easily successful, attack- Silvanaes no longer have the contacts to
ing the humans and seizing their proper- the dwarven smiths they once had in An-
Resting in the broad valleys south and ties. As their own land expanded, the salon.
west of the New Mountains is the small task became more and more difficult.
country of Armach, ruled by the The elven warriors were few in number New decorative pieces—pins, buttons,
Silvanaes-Quarti, the Lost Silvanesti of and quickly reached the limit of what toggles, combs, and necklaces—are more
Ansalon. Blown off course from the they could defend. The tribes became often than not made of wood. Such
Great Armada that set sail around Ansa- larger and stronger, as the refugees from pieces may be intricately carved—a jacket
lon, the Silvanaes-Quarti (or Silvanaes, as the elf lands joined with the natives on toggle consisting of a ball of heartwood
they call themselves) were driven to Tala- the borders. Eventually growth of the el- trapped within an unbroken pierced fili-
das. Storm-shattered, they beat against ven lands came to a halt. gree cage carved from the same piece; a
man’s snuff box with elaborate moving
Here the situation would have re- pieces that must be slid, pressed, and
mained had it not been for the superior twisted before the box will open; a comb

60

SOUTHERN HOSK

with flame-cut teeth made from the iron- the superior elves, they have begun to ble), their advisors (which every tribe
wood tree; or a mirror-locket made by wear belted robes. However, traditional has), and their advantage in trade. They
polishing the purest beech until it shows decorations and colors are still used for use their skills to maintain dominance
a reflection, then hung by a slender chain these robes and the tooled leather belt over the other members of the confedera-
of carved wood. has been replaced by the bright tribal tion, but, with the exception of the First
sash. Elvish style moccasins and boots Edicts, they have avoided abusing their
The humans of the Hoor region all have also come more into favor. However, power.
come from the same bloodstock, thus the elven taste for decorative items has
there are no strong distinguishing charac- not been popular. The humans of Ar- The Silvanaes are themselves divided
teristics from one tribe to another. All math consider displays of wealth (such as into two factions. These are divided by
have black to brown skin tones with black jewelry) to be offensive to the gods, their occupations and outlooks on life,
hair. Their eyes are dark and the pupils whom they think still observe their lives. but not by their social standing.
tend to be large. Both men and women
have prominent cheekbones. Men tend In battle, the elvish dress and weap- The first group is the Nestiroml, the
to have broad foreheads and decidedly onry is favored. The typical warrior, one People Workers, made up of the sailors,
square jaws, while the women have faces of no great means, is a light infantryman. mates, captains, craftsmen, and their
that are much more pointed. Women also He wears a tunic of thickly quilted leather families—the actual laborers of the fleet.
tend to be heavier-boned than the men but no helmet. He carries a small shield, They are held in high esteem for the cou-
although the men are more muscular. long sword or spear, and a bow either rageous service they performed in bring-
The Hoor people are taller than average, short or long, according to his taste. He ing the fleet safely to shore. Now their
standing about 5’ 10” tall or more. may also have a variety of small members in council are noted for their
weapons—a dagger or hand axe are most pragmatic view of matters. They are con-
When first encountered by the elves, common—that are useful while on cam- cerned with knowing how, organizing
the people of Hoor wore simple tribal cos- paign. Each man carries his own kit on his the effort, and seeing projects through.
tumes. Each tribe could be identified by back or in a bundle slung around his From their ranks come many of the ad-
the colors and patterns of clothing worn, shoulder. This is of course left in camp ministrators, captains, and generals of
although the basic dress was the same during a battle. The army is entirely in- the Confederation; those who have a will
throughout the area. When the weather fantry, cavalry being unknown to these to get things accomplished.
was warm (most of the year), the man’s people.
costume was a simple vest and baggy The second faction is the Neskijir, the
pants, tied at the waist with a colored Socially, the people of the confedera- Robed People. Formed from the passen-
sash. When hunting, men wore only a tion are also divided by race. The elves gers of the fleet—the scholars, artists,
loincloth or went naked, painting their form the ruling class, although their di- heralds, squires, knights, and princes—
bodies with colored muds and dyes to rect power is limited to the Armach-nesti, these people are honored as the keepers
blend into the terrain. Women wore large the Land of the People. Their influence and protectors of the Silvanesti tradition.
sashes, one tied about the bodice and over the other tribes is limited to their This is no small task. The elves have al-
others tied to form a skirt. An unmarried diplomatic skills (which are considera- ways jealously protected their way of life
woman covered her head and shoulders and the Silvanaes, alone in a strange
with a heavy shawl, hiding her face be-
hind a veil. Again a brightly-colored sash
completed the outfit. Commoners were
normally barefoot, while town-dwellers
and the upper class people wore hard
leather sandals or soft slippers. In cold
weather, sheepskin coats were worn for
warmth.

Although elven dress has not replaced
the traditional garb, it is often imitated.
Workers in the field and those who do
hard labor still favor traditional clothing
(which is better-suited to working). Al-
though many hunters still go naked,
more and more are favoring soft leather
trousers in the elven fashion. The greatest
changes have occurred among the well-
bred and townspeople. In imitation of

61

SOUTHERN HOSK

world, are fanatical in this regard. The lands but worked the property of others the Confederation is that it is not sup-
task of preserving their old way of life is a in exchange for a portion of the crop. posed to interfere in the internal affairs of
solemn duty, a role the Neskijir take seri- They were not slaves (slavery being un- any ally. Thus, although the elves disap-
ously. known to these people) but they were not prove of slavery, they cannot ban it
free to do as they pleased either. throughout the Confederation. They
From their ranks come the leaders, cannot insist that taxes be applied equally
councillors, judges, and speakers. Under Since the founding of the confedera- to all inhabitants of the Confederation. If
their guidance laws are written, ambassa- tion, the elves have attempted to change one kingdom chooses to exempt certain
dors are sent out, and the Confederation this structure. Recognizing that talent is peoples from taxation (hoping to lure
is governed. The Neskijir like to see not confined to. a particular class, the merchants into its borders), it can do so,
themselves as wise and benevolent, and elves have instituted a system of examina- although this may bring protests from the
to most observers they are exactly that. tion and review to fill the posts in the ad- other lands that it is unfairly hurting
Faced by barbarians, they have stressed ministrative bureaucracy of the them.
the nobler and more ideal codes of con- Confederation. These examinations are
duct. However, they are not as perfect as open to anyone who has the necessary The Confederation cannot raise a sepa-
they seem, especially considering that training in the basic skills of reading and rate army, and is limited instead to issu-
they were the authors of the First Edicts. writing, which effectively reduces the po- ing a call to arms. Each kingdom is then
tential applicants to a workable number. supposed to provide a company or more
For the rest of the Confederation, the of men. The number and type of soldiers
type of society varies according to the Each year, just before the High Sum- provided is supposedly set by treaty.
kingdom or tribe. In general most follow mer Day, the exams are given and the ap-
the basic pattern of a hereditary ruling plicants are placed according to their The Confederation does have impor-
class and then various divisions of social performance. Currently the idea is still tant duties. It is responsible for keeping
classes underneath this. Some of the new to the people of the Confederation peace between members. Disputes are
kingdoms practice “benevolent” and so a dual system exists, one where sta- brought before the Magisterial Council, a
slavery—convicts, debtors, and heredi- tus is determined by birth and another select group of jurists, for hearing and
tary slaves—while others traditionally where it is fixed by skill. Those claiming judgment. Only the Confederation can
forbid it within their realms. In addition, birthright have a longer tradition than approve armed action by one member
there is a sub-culture that has arisen the examined and so frequently look state against another (most often to sup-
around the Confederacy itself, centered down on their peers who have attained press an attempt to secede). The Confed-
at the Council Town, Bok. their posts through placement. eration approves the extradition of
fugitives from one land to another. It al-
Here the society that centers around THE CONFEDERATION locates the tax burden among the king-
the elves is much more class-oriented. Al- doms, the money used for public works
though each tribe originally had minor The Confederation of Armach is tech- (roads and bridges), and the mainte-
differences, they all tended to divide into nically formed by treaties of alliance be- nance of a merchant fleet, which no sin-
classes based on birth. At the top were tween the Silvanaes and 16 tribes that are gle kingdom could otherwise afford.
those born into the nobility or ruling found on their borders. Thirteen of these
class. This class was closed to all others. A tribes are human-based. One is a group It alone is allowed to negotiate with
brilliant peasant could never hope to be- of dissident Marak kender, one is gnom- foreign powers—particularly the League
come one of the rulers of a tribe. ish, and the sixteenth is a tribe-herd of and Thenol. Any separate kingdom that
centaurs. Altogether, these people make enters into negotiations is guilty of high
Under them were those born into up the Confederation. treason to the Confederation if discov-
wealth, but not of the ruling class. These ered. Finally, the Confederation approves
included powerful landowners, mer- As indicated by its name, the Confed- the claim of any successor to a throne.
chants, and moneylenders. After this eration is not a nation of a single people While this is mostly a formality, it must
came the families of craftsmen. A son (as the Uigan), a country united under a sometimes to used to prevent civil war
born of a carpenter learned the trade of single ruler (as in Thenol), or even a bu- over a disputed throne. Stability and con-
carpentry. These families jealously pro- reaucratic government with appointed tinuity are more important than absolute
tected their dominance of the crafts, but leaders carrying out the wishes of a gov- justice (in this particular case).
a peasant could hope to become an arti- erning body. It is collection of indepen-
san if he were adopted by such a family. dent governments (petty kingdoms, The Confederation meets in full coun-
principalities, dukedoms, and manors) cil twice per year, although it can be
The small landowners came next. that meet to settle disputes and to act on called for an emergency session at any
Here, however, was a class a lowly peasant issues that threaten them all. Thus, the time. The day-to-day business of the
could someday hope to attain should he Confederation’s power is strictly limited. Confederation is handled by the Cabinet
ever have the opportunity to start a when the council is not in session. The
homestead of his own. Finally there was The greatest limitation on the power of
the peasantry, laborers who owned no

62

SOUTHERN HOSK

Cabinet has five members: the Chancel- is not part of any kingdom, its neutrality property or goods of any outsider.)
lor of Nations (the head of the council), established by the Charter of Confedera- “No heerikil shall be allowed as master
Steward of the Treasury (the controller of tion. It maintains its own guard (primar-
the Confederation’s funds), Grand ily elvish) and defenses to discourage a of a greatwater vessel, nor shall any heerikil
Knight of the Realm (commander-in- coup attempt by a member. However, claim title to captaincy of a command that
chief of all military expeditions), First Bok is not allowed any representation on may be of more than his own kind.” (No
Justicar (head of the Magisterial Coun- the council as this would compromise its outsider can be captain of a ship that sails
cil), and the Prince of Armach-nesti (the absolute neutrality. Even when the full beyond the Outer Shoals. No outsider can
leader of the elves). council is not in session, each kingdom command a force of troops from two differ-
maintains a representative, an Ambassa- ent nations. Only the Silvanaes can lead an
Of these five, the first four are ap- dor to the Cabinet, in Bok. Diplomats army with forces from all of Armach. )
pointed by the full Council. Their terms and agents of Thenol and the League also
of service are indefinite—they hold their make their homes here. With so many These laws were created with two pur-
offices until they die or the Council votes people from so many different king- poses in mind. First, the laws create a sep-
to remove them. The Prince’s presence is doms, Bok is the largest and most cosmo- arate land for the elves, just as they had in
automatic, an insurance that there will al- politan city in all of Armach. Silvanesti. Second, the laws keep the
ways be at least one elven representative non-elves (humans in particular) from
in the Cabinet, although there are usu- THE FIRST EDICTS becoming too powerful, limiting them to
ally more. positions unlikely to threaten the elven
Not all of the history of the Silvanaes powerbase. With these laws in the Char-
To carry out the decisions of the Cabi- has been bright with the glow of enlight- ter of Confederation, the non-elves have
net, each member has a staff of aides, sec- ened rule, and nothing shows this better found it difficult, if not impossible at
retaries, scribes, inspectors, and couriers. than the First Edicts. These are a set of times, to challenge the elves in council.
In short, each commands a bureaucratic four laws, enacted by the Silvanaes prior
arm of the government. This gives them to the founding of the Confederation. When the laws were first written, the
even more power, for not only do they These laws, written into the Charter of elves felt these harsh measures were nec-
make many of the decisions of Armach, Confederation by the elves, establish essary. Death to their minds was the only
but they are also responsible for seeing strict limits on the rights of non-elves. penalty suitable for the barbarians
that all decisions are carried out. The laws of the First Edicts are: around them. Since that time, both the
elves and their neighbors have changed,
In the weeks prior to council, there is a “The land of the Armach-nesti is the but the laws have not.
great deal of behind-the-scenes politick- sole possession of the People of Silvanos,
ing. In every session at least one nation their’s to use and dwell alone. Unto this Furthermore, these laws have been in-
will have some complaint with another. land may the Sons and Daughters of terpreted and expanded on over the
Zendas is excessively taxing the caravans Silvanos come alone and no other. Death years. What constitutes property that can
of Hoorbay that pass through on their is the punishment for all who trespass be legally taken? Does mental telepathy
way to the Centaurs. In retaliation, Hoor- upon these lands. (No one other than a constitute trespass into the Armach-
bay is exiling its criminals to Zendas, giv- Silvanaes elf is allowed to enter the land nesti? What is the status of a half-elf? An-
ing the Zendarians a new headache. of Armach-nesti.) swering these questions has strengthened
Tallmark has granted asylum to Arnhold, the inherent injustice of the First Edicts.
the False Prince of Vesterlund, a man who “No heerikil shall know a daughter of Now, even though many of the Silvanaes
attempted to overthrow the current King Silvanos, nor shall a man of our people feel the Edicts unjust, they have become
of Vesterlund. have relations with a heerikil. If it be ingrained into the society.
shown a Child of Silvanos entered into
There are also emissaries from foreign this pact foreknowing, the punishment is THE ARMACH-NESTI
lands, Thenol and the League particu- exile from Armach-nesti. For a heerikil
larly, who must be heard, debated about, who breaks this law through deceit or vio- The heart of the Armach Confedera-
and replies drafted for. There are reports lence, the punishment is death. (Inter- tion is the Armach-Nesti, the Dry Land of
from ambassadors and scouts to be con- marriage between the Silvanaes and the People. Nestled between the New
sidered. In some of the fiercest debates, outsiders [heerikil] is forbidden.) Mountains and the Bay of Hoor, this is
there are taxes to be assessed and quotas the private preserve of the Silvanaes, a
of soldiers for service to be assigned. “No heerikil shall bring suit against a homeland they jealously guard. No one is
These debates, negotiations, and votes Child of Silvanos for ruination of prop- allowed to enter and disturb the life of
last several weeks each session. During erty should that accused hold a letter of the elves. Those who have tried in the
that time, the council site is the most im- warrant for the deed from the Prince of past have been executed and their bodies
portant place in all of Armach. the People. (If an elf has secured the per- thrown into the sea.
mission of his Prince, he can seize any
Council is always held in the city of Bok Clearly, the Armach-Nesti did not exist
on the borders of the Armach-nesti. Bok before the elves arrived. Originally the

63

SOUTHERN HOSK

territory belonged to several of the petty arts for illusion and charm, they have mercy. Bound with elven rope, they are
kingdoms that filled the valley of Hoor. fashioned concealed homes among the brought to the chambers of. the Prince.
When they first arrived, the elves settled woods. One is built into the spreading Here they are presented to the Knight-
quietly in a corner of this area while they branches. Another disappears into a Protector, the guardian of Armach-nesti.
regrouped and struggled to survive. hollowed-out trunk. An open glade con- He hears the details of capture and passes
ceals a small mansion of grasses and the judgment. Intentional entry is pun-
During this time they were attacked flowers. There are no concentrations of ished by death and failure to know the
several times by the king on whose land houses; no villages, towns or cities. The borders is no defense. The only possible
they had settled. The raids and wars entire Armach-nesti is home of the elves. hope a trespasser has is to prove involun-
stretched out over many years, hardening At every point there is a hidden dwelling, tary trespass—that he was forced to cross
the hearts of the elves. Fearful for their in a tree, a low mound, behind the water- the border by another. This exception to
way of life, the concept of the Armach- fall of a rilling brook. Each is sited to take the hard and fast laws of First Edict be-
nesti was born. No longer content with advantage of the natural beauty. Each came necessary when the elves discovered
the idea of simple survival, the elves set home is unspoiled by development and their neighbors using the borders as a
out to conquer their neighbors, thereby construction. method of committing murder. A man,
ensuring their own security. With their wishing to eliminate an enemy, would
superior organization and administra- There are still blighted areas within the force him to enter the Armach-nesti (ei-
tion, their victories were swift and sure. Armach-nesti. The fields, once tended by ther through force or spells) and then let
The natives of the conquered lands were human farmers, are allowed to grow rank the elves perform the actual deed. Not
driven from their homes by fire and with weeds. Human villages, little more caring to be pawns of the evil desires of
sword and the Armach-nesti was de- than ashes and stone foundations, are the humans, the elves began taking more
clared. slowly succumbing to the advance of the care in their punishments. Still, this leni-
forest. The elves shun these places, for ency is rarely exercised.
At first, the elves attempted to recreate they are reminders of evil days, the atroci-
the land of Silvanesti, now referred to as ties they perpetrated on others. RELIGION
“The Land Not to Be Forgotten.” At the
heart of the land is New Silvanost, a jum- They have a better reason than just One would have expected the Flight of
ble of towers and palaces, half-empty and memories, however. Within these old vil- the Gods to have created upheaval and
forlorn looking. Here they futilely at- lages lurk unavenged spirits. They are change in the culture of the elves. This
tempted to recapture the glory of their normally confined within the barren was not the case. The elves have lived a
ancient capital in Silvanesti. However, grounds of their destroyed homes, but on long time and seen much. The chaos of
they had not the years nor all the master gloomy nights when the moon is dark, the Cataclysm, brought on by the hu-
craftsmen needed to raise the great towers they roam farther abroad seeking out mans, was just another event in their long
and palaces of their homeland. Nonethe- their persecutors. On these nights the history. The actual destruction of the Cat-
less, they persisted in trying, deluding Armach-nesti is lit with a thousand aclysm was more traumatic than the loss
themselves, rationalizing their accom- points of light, bonfires and torches lit by of clerical abilities. Although they had
plishments and efforts as necessary to in- the Silvanaes to keep the spirits at bay. clerics, the elves were never particularly
still the proper virtues into their children These are nights of quiet terror for the religious. It is their nature to be self-
and their children to come. elves. reliant, not looking to the gods for aid.
The flight of the gods only reinforced this
However, the whole effort has failed. By the tradition established by the First attitude.
New Silvanost is a town of ghosts, inhab- Edicts, the border of Armach-nesti is
ited by those unable to accept the fate of fiercely guarded. There are no roads into However, just because their powers
the People here in the land of Taladas. the land. Wagon-borne goods bound for (and their most faithful priests) disap-
The building has stopped and little effort this region are brought to the border and peared does not mean that religious life
is made to maintain those palaces that unloaded, kept in warehouses until elven has disappeared completely. The prac-
have been completed. Vines have begun bearers come to carry them away. Trade by tices, tales, titles, and all the other trap-
to wrap around window sills. Doors are sea is brought to small island just offshore pings have been preserved as an
blocked by trees. Flowers crack through and unloaded. From here it is carried into important part of the elven culture. The
the floors. Instead most elves choose to the Armach-nesti by elvish sailors. Just ceremonies are performed without partic-
live in the deep woods that make up most within the borders are a maze of paths. ular feeling, often for the edification of
of Armach-nesti. Some lead safely to the interior. Others the children and the amusement of the
are trapped with magical enchantments community. The attitude reinforces the
In the copses and glades, among the to lure and imprison the unwary. Patrols human prejudice that the elves are flighty
towering trees and flower-filled mead- of elven guards regularly sweep the bor- and irresponsible.
ows, the elves have found a new home, ders, checking for intruders.
not a pale copy of Silvanesti. Using their
love of natural things and their cunning Those that are captured can expect no

64

SOUTHERN HOSK

In spite of this attitude, two particular him that a new child can be born. At this call the Earthspirit. The faithful of those
cults have flourished among the elves. point, supposedly, the Sea Lord sends a who sought her she granted with powers of
The first cult, that of the Sea Lord, has soul to inhabit the silvaama and the ship healing and wisdom and sent them back
much to do with the circumstances of is born. Baby’s food is offered to the new- to their people. There they have sought to
their arrival. The Great Storm that blew born vessel. aid all people, not just the elves, and
them off course, the search for a safe spread the teachings of Ildamar.
landfall, the sailor who guided them Based on the omens observed during
through the Outer Shoals, and the sur- the birth, the ship is then named and its Priestesses of Ildamar (for the majority
vival they owed to the wealth of the sea in fortunes predicted. Although it seems of the followers are female) are an intense
the first years have all served to that the priests can always find good in group. They are strict vegetarians and
strengthen a belief in the Sea Lord. Previ- the worst omens, there have been times even then cannot eat without first asking
ously the elves had never had much in- when an ill fortune was predicted. Such forgiveness of the Earthspirit. They wear
volvement with the sea, so the Sea Lord ships are viewed as cursed, even evil; it is nothing made from the fruits of the soil
held a minor position in their beliefs. not unknown for the master to break the or the hides of dead animals, restricting
Now that their lives rely, in part, on the silvaama to release the evil spirit. Of them to scratchy woolens, chafing
bounties of the sea, the few priests of the course, a new silvaama must be found hairshirts, and silken soft spider threads.
Sea Lord have gained in importance. and the feast held again before it is ready They cannot use metallic items, for
to go to sea. All at the feast then salute metals are dug from the ground. Most of-
These priests (and priestesses, for the the child and the celebration begins. ten they have staves or clubs made from
Sea Lord has appeared as both a male and fallen tree branches. Because of these re-
female) wear the traditional light blue The priests of the Sea Lord have many strictions, they are most often barefoot
and green robes of their sect, the colors other, lesser tasks. Each day one goes to and threadbare. Their clothes are not cool
supposedly of the ancient dress of elven the beach, before the fishing fleet sets and during the hot summer months, they
seamen. Males crop their hair short, while sail, to pray for the generosity of the Sea wear as little as possible. By some they are
females wear theirs in a severe and unflat- Lord in the day’s fishing. They preside at considered mad, although few can deny
tering style. About their necks they wear the funerals of sailing men. They bless the existence of their powers.
a rosary of chain and shells. Each carries a fleets going to war and are often found in
fishing spear, a ceremonial weapon that the foremost ranks of warships. They call Ildamarian priestesses have two main
denotes their office. upon the Sea Lord to soothe raging tenets they attempt to follow. First, they
storms so that wives may see husbands attempt to ease the suffering and pain of
Since the Sea Lord had such a small role again or to rouse the waters to a fury so all living creatures, using their spells to
in the beliefs of the elves before the voy- that an enemy armada might be driven do so. Second, they act as protectors of
age, the priests have found it necessary to on the rocks. Lacking powers, they have the Earthspirit. This can make them diffi-
create rites and ceremonies to perform. no certainty their requests are heard or cult to deal with, for they are opposed to
This has not been too difficult, since the acted upon by their god, so anytime their such activities as mining, lumbering,
importance of the sea has increased since prayers are fulfilled they see it as a mirac- hunting, trapping, and the like. Al-
the landfall in Taladas. ulous intervention. though most members realize the neces-
sity of such activities and allow them so
Priests are integral to the building of The second religious cult never existed long as they are conducted with care and
any boat, invoking the Sea Lord when the before the Silvanaes arrived in Hoor. This respect for the Earthspirit, radical ele-
keel is laid and guiding the shipwright to is the cult of Ildamar the Earthspirit. Upon ments of the cult view all such actions as
the “silvaama” (heart-wood), a special their safe arrival, the elves asked the bless- wrong and evil.
timber cut from an equally special tree. ing of the earthspirit of this new land.
This beam will contain the soul of the Earthspirits, like those of wood and water, Prevented from using force against the
ship when all is done. The priest paints are common beliefs of the elves, who see transgressors, these priestesses will act in-
the eyes that adorn the bow of every ship many things animated or touched with the directly against the offenders. They steal
and through his visions selects the design glory of the gods. For most, this request tools, tear up trap lines, drive animals
that is dyed onto the sail. was sufficient; no more thought was given away, and even use their spells to mislead
to the matter. However, a few sought out and confuse their opponents. Such radi-
When the ship is finished and ready to the earthspirit to protect the people and cals are none too popular with the locals
be launched, the master invites the priest learn her mysteries. and most are shunned by more moderate
to the feast of welcome. For this meal, members of their faith. They take to liv-
part ceremony and part celebration, the What they found was not an earthspirit ing alone or in small groups in the woods.
master provides a banquet for the ship- (for there was no earthspirit proper), but At times when tensions are running high,
wright and all his workers. The food is Mislaxa seeking to ease the pain of those they have even been hunted and killed by
laid out before the bow of the vessel, un- suffering. Still charged with the need for those they torment.
der its eyes. Before the feast begins, the secrecy, she appeared to these seekers in
priest calls upon the Sea Lord, notifying the guise of Ildamar, whom they came to Because of the influence of the elven

65

SOUTHERN HOSK

culture, the humans of the region have ders of Armach. Those followers of Usa Initially a small knot of lands, Thenol
adopted one or both of these religions who are discovered are given the opportu- has grown by conquest to its present size.
into their own societies. The centaurs fa- nity to forswear their ways and curse their To the south it has expanded as far as
vor the cult of Ildamar, the humans on god or die.- The choice has proven effec- where the marshy Trillium River flows
the coast that of the Sea Lord. In the proc- tive even among a group noted for its into Blackwater Glade. Beyond this are
ess they have all added in rituals and in- treachery, for Hiteh is unforgiving of the lands of the dragonmen, who dwell in
terpretations unique to their own those who betray him in word or deed. the reedy jungles deep in the Glade.
cultures, perhaps incorporating the cere- None can hope to falsely repent and later Once dragonmen raided Thenol out of
monies observed for another earlier sea return to the fold. Indeed those who ac- the glade, now they are recruited for
god (and rationalizing the whole thing cept conversion often die by the hands of Thenol’s army.
away as a new incarnation of the god). their ex-fellows.
To the east, the borders of Thenol have
Local myth and legend become inter- There is a difference between banning been pushed up to the Steamwall Moun-
twined with that of the elves, so there are and defeating, however. Usa’s followers tains. Here further expansion has proven
many regional variations of the same be- have only gone underground and now impossible. The mountains are inhospi-
lief. -Although this has led to some dis- their role in things is harder to detect and table, home to hobgoblins and other
pute between the different temples, most expose. There is a tendency to blame creatures. Some of these too have been re-
are content to see their version as correct every evil event on them whether justi- cruited into the legions of Thenol.
and all others as well-intentioned but fied or not. Furthermore, their goals have
slightly errant. become more mysterious. Those in the To the west is the sea. Unlike the mino-
Confederation concerned with the threat taurs and the Silvanaes of Armach, the
Beyond these adopted gods, the hu- spend much time double-guessing the Thenolites have never developed the
man kingdoms of the Confederation actions of the Council, trying to decide skills of shipbuilding and sailing. All
have theirown, older beliefs. Like all oth- which decisions (if any) may have been their ships stay close to the coast, mostly
ers, they suffered the effects of the Flight Usa-inspired. Indeed, combatting the small fishermen trying to earn a living.
of the Gods and in many ways had the cult has become a paranoid’s dream and For Thenol, there is no future on the sea.
same reactions—astonishment, loss of nightmare.
faith, and rationalization. For the most North is the only direction left for
part, these cults are small, limited to a Because the cult is so secretive, the Thenol to expand its borders. However,
single kingdom or group of people. How- leaders of the Confederation are con- going in this direction has not been easy.
ever, one—the forbidden cult of Usa the stantly looking for new sources of infor- Near the Steamwall are thick forests that
Mighty—has developed a large following mation about the Usans. What little they resist the incursions of the Thenolites. In
throughout the Confederation. do know suggests some type of alliance these woods, shadowy forms, the hulder-
between the Usans and the Thenolian folk, slip through the ranks to strike sud-
Usa the Mighty is actually another king. This worries them and they want to denly and secretly. All attempts to claim
name for Hiteh the Merchant. His role (as know more. Just because they are leaders these dark forests have failed, and now
portrayed by his followers) is that of uni- does not mean they are above using spies the Lords of Thenol argue that the forests
fier of kingdoms, the god who shall bind or making midnight raids on suspected are worthless anyway.
all to his following. As befits Hiteh, this lairs. Indeed, in recent years there has
is primarily accomplished through cun- been a growing secret war between the Bypassing the lands of the hulderfolk,
ning diplomacy, although force of arms is two factions. Thenol’s armies have come up against the
always another possibility. His followers legions of the League. For the first time,
are fanatically dedicated to the goal of THENOL the Thenolite army has encountered seri-
uniting all of Armach (especially those ous opposition. Compared to the exact-
troublesome elves) and then neighboring Filling most of the lower arc of South- ing discipline of the Imperial Legions,
Thenol and the League under one ruler— ern Hosk is the bleak kingdom of Thenol. the Thenolites are nothing but an armed
the Grand Holy Knight of the cult. To Although it is the largest nation in land rabble. However, they have the advan-
this end, his priests attempt to influence area, it is not as mighty as the Imperial tage of mass. Their undead warriors are
kings, bring -about certain events, and League nor as fiercely defensive as the slow and lack initiative, but they are re-
even eliminate opposition to their goals. Confederation of Armach. While the lentlessly single-minded in the execution
All this is done according to Hiteh’s di- ruler of Thenol, Bishop Trandamere, of their orders. In the battles fought on
vine direction. lacks subtlety, he has more than his share the borders of Thenol and the Conquered
of ruthlessness. Under his leadership, Lands, neither side has yet scored a deci-
The Usa cult is not popular with the el- Thenol has become a kingdom of fearful sive blow. Each nation is mustering more
ven rulers, for it threatens their security citizens, slaves, and unholy armies. troops to the border and sending more
and the security of all Armach, especially spies into the enemy camp in preparation
the Armach-nesti. They have used their for the next major campaign.
power to have it banned within the bor-
Along the coast, Thenol has also met the

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SOUTHERN HOSK

soldiers of Armach. In this case, however, it THE THENOLITES
was the warriors of the Confederation who
pushed against the borders of Thenol. The Thenolites are a tall, straight-
Finding it lightly defended, they choose to limbed race, whose blood is a mixture of
expand across the border. At first they were the survivors of Styrllia and the natives
successful, but Thenol reacted quickly. The they found in their new homeland. Their
Confederation was shoved back, no match skin is reddish-brown, a blend of the
for the hordes of undead of Thenol. Indeed lighter-skinned Styrllian blood and the
all the warriors succeeded in doing was darker tones of the ancient Thenolites.
drawing the attention of Thenol to the rich Their hair is straight and red to dark
farmlands of Armach. The future looked brown in color. Their eyes are narrow and
hopeless for Armach. set far apart. They have long necks and
sharp, strong chins.
For a time it seemed that Armach was
indeed doomed. The armies of the Con- The clothing of the typical Thenolite is
federation were forced back in rout be- a combination of different styles. The cut
fore the advance of Thenol’s companies. and styling of the clothing is similar to
Each failure left a battlefield of dead that
only swelled the ranks of Thenol’s ghoul- that of the mountain people of ancient
ish legions. Styrllia. Men wear trousers, tied at the an-
kles and the waist, and large, loose
But the continued advance worked smocks. These have half-sleeves and
both ways. While the Armachians lost reach to the mid-thigh. The traditional
ground, they gained experience and belts (which were heavily embroidered)
time; while the Thenolites advanced, have been transformed into large, dyed
they stretched their lines of communica- sashes. During hot weather, field workers
tion and supply. Zombies may not re- change their trousers for loincloths and
quire much in way of feeding, but their dispense with the sashes. In the worst of
masters and the elite troops with them weather, the men wear nothing but their
did. The men tired and grew rebellious. loincloths. The women wear ankle-length
Defectors, lured by the better life Ar- dresses, slit to the thigh. The Thenolites
mach promised over Thenol, made have exchanged the heavy wools and
through the lines to betray their com- leathers of their mountain clothing for
manders. Eventually even minor Lords the lightweight cottons of the warmer
changed sides, taking full companies of Thenolian climes. Bright colors have re-
men with them. The resistance stiffened placed the dour browns and greens of the
and the pace of the advance slowed. Styrllians.

Although the situation was headed for The noblemen and women of Thenol
stalemate, with Thenol well inside the dress similarly in style to their everyday
Confederation borders, the balance was counterparts, but there the comparison
abruptly changed when elsewhere Thenol ends. The materials used are much more
reached the frontier of the League. The lavish, the colors brighter, and the orna-
battles against the League quickly drew in ments finer. Silk (which is made in cer-
all the men of Thenol. With no reinforce- tain parts of the land) is worn almost
ments, the army facing Armach was exclusively, dyed in dazzling yellows,
forced to rely heavily on its undead con- reds, blues, purples, and greens. Much
tingent. While good for the attack, these use is made of embroidered appliques,
mindless creatures fared poorly in the silver fastenings, and rare ivory pins. Sup-
more complicated defensive role. Thenol ple, dyed leathers are used to make slip-
has been forced to fall back at a painful pers, gloves, vests, and the like. At
cost for Armach. The old borders have formal occasions, a warrior-Lord may
been restored, but the armies have ex- wear a elaborately wrought suit of steel
hausted themselves and cannot fight fur- armor, something brought out only for
ther for the moment. parades and triumphs.

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SOUTHERN HOSK

HISTORY baron, or other titled man. These nobles tightrope are potentially as powerful as
made up the Senate of Lords, which was the Great Lords, One who has mastered
Thenol was the second land created by headed by the king. Even the Senate had this game is Bishop Trandamere.
exiles from Styrllia. Led by Guidan, the little power, since no lord would consent
Styrllians endured great hardships in to pay its taxes or raise troops to its com- Bishop Trandamere
their march to the coast. Like those on the mand. In the end, Thenol was a kingdom
other expedition, these Styrllians were a in name only. The danger that Thenol presents today
difficult and rebellious lot but, unlike would not exist were it not for the domi-
Kristophus, Guidan did not resort to Thus the lands of Thenol continued for neering spirit of Bishop Trandamere.
harsh measures. He viewed the malcon- several centuries. Fifteen kings, all of the With little more than a simple title, he
tents and rebellious with kindness. Al- blood of Guidan, have ruled since the has ruled Thenol for 40 years. In that
though he occasionally had to act to crush founding of New Aurim. There have time he has transformed the people and
an uprising, he often tried to hear their been changes in their fortunes, some the land. Supremely confident and su-
complaints justly and act upon them. more influential than others, but no king premely evil, Bishop Trandamere is the
has managed to wrest power from the chosen vessel of Hiteh’s plans to gain
While this was noble and commend- Lords. The kings have been suffered out power over all the people of Taladas.
able, it fatally undermined Guidan’s of respect for tradition and the moral
power, especially when he tried to ap- value they add to those who control When he first came to power as the
pease the powerful by granting them ti- them. The king has palaces, servants, head of the Temple of Hith (Hiteh), it was
tles and rights. By the time they reached bodyguards, titles, consorts, and a nothing more than a small cult, one of
the future land of Thenol, Guidan was in queen, but all his duties are ceremonial. many, that preached among the baronies,
command of his people in title only. The He brings the Senate to order, signs proc- principalities, and duchies that composed
trekkers were split between different fac- lamations, and appears at holidays to give Thenol. Trandamere, though, was marked
tions, each with its own prince, duke, or his blessing to whatever is asked. by Hiteh as his agent, even before the
baron. These nobles were the true rulers, Bishop was aware of his own role. Sud-
deferring to Guidan only for the sake of True power, such as it is among this denly, he received the blessing of his god,
appearances. quarrelsome group, is held by the Lords, empowered with abilities like the great
the Great Lords in particular. The Great priests of legend. With such clear sign of
Indeed, even the decision to found the Lords are largest landholders of Thenol. favor, Hith’s temple flourished. Under
city of New Aurim (the future capital of They alone have the power to make or Trandamere’s guidance, the cult quickly
Thenol) was not Guidan’s; the choice was break kings and are not hesitant to exer- spread throughout the lands of Thenol.
forced upon him by his nobles. Tired of cise it. What keeps them from total con-
endless journeying, they said enough was trol is their intense dislike of each other. The people were amazed—the Temple
enough and demanded an end to the Acting together they have the power to of Hith had actual priests, just as in the
trek. Although Guidan argued that a bull through any proclamation they wish, old stories. This was something no other
better and safer home would be found if but no one trusts any other enough to co- religion had. The priests of Hith could
the people pressed on just a little further, operate. Most often, the Great Lords split perform miracles. With this power, the
the nobles would have nothing to do with and the remaining Lords swing the bal- Temple of Hith easily attracted followers.
it. Many now wish the nobles had lis- ance one way or the other. Of course there Soon Bishop Trandamere could approach
tened to those words, for New Aurim is are times when the Great Lords do act to- the lesser Lords with something of value.
an ill-famed and grim place. gether. They are wise enough to band to- In exchange for support in the Senate,
gether in the face of a threat to them all Trandamere provided the Lord with sol-
With the settlement of New Aurim, and sometimes they act as a group to diers, taken from the ranks of his fol-
the nobles seized the lands around the show unity (even when not all agree). lowers; soldiers used to annex
town. In no time at all they fell upon each neighboring lands. He quickly became a
other, struggling for control of territory. The remaining Lords form the bulk of force to reckoned with in the Senate.
Each man sought to create his own coun- the kingdom. They hold small manors,
try and control the office of the king. Per- fiefs, and territories. Many aspire to the Still, at this point, he was less powerful
haps those who were wiser moved away ranks of the Great Lords and work to ex- than the Great Lords. He was a significant
from the center to find their own lands, pand their claims by expanding the bor- force and the Great Lords even made use
although such decisions may have been ders of Thenol. There are Lords who have of him in their own power struggles, but
motivated by fear. fixed their fortunes to one of the houses he was no threat to their position. Most
of the Great Lords. There are also inde- found him boorish and grasping, not a
Whatever the reason, the end result pendent Lords, playing a chancy game of peer of their level. Although they used
was the same. Tenuously united under balancing one power off against another. him, they snubbed him and constantly
the rule of a king, Thenol was founded, a Many who try are swallowed up by their reminded him of his place.
quarrelsome collection of manors and own schemes, but those who can walk this
counties, each under the rule of a duke, However, Bishop Trandamere had an

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SOUTHERN HOSK

entirely different idea from the Great the naive, gullible, or uninformed, it ap- is always the risk that some commander or
Lords of just what his place was. Others pears that Trandamere has no say in gov- priest will decide he can run things better
saw his selling of followers as a crude (al- ernment matters beyond that of a than Trandamere. Thus, Trandamere
though effective) bid for power and dis- friendly councillor. As in the past, all of- controls all appointments of officers. In-
missed it at this. However, Trandamere’s ficial functions are handled by the king deed, being an officer in the Thenolite
plan was even more sinister. In selling the and the Senate. army can be a dangerous business. Be-
services of his followers, Trandamere come even suspected of treason and exe-
spread his priests throughout the land, The king is as much a puppet as he ever cution is the reward. With his army,
gaining access to more and more courts. was, a ruler without power or influence. Trandamere is able to keep Thenol easily
At the same time, select followers gained The only real differences are that he is under his command.
experience in the arts of war, learning the now under the control of the Bishop and
lessons of battle. Their observations re- that he appears at a few less ceremonies However, Thenol is not the end of
sulted in changes; a cavalry force was than before the coup. Indeed, the only Trandamere and Hiteh’s plans. Indeed, it
trained, siege trains were assembled, and ceremonies he appears at are non- is only the start. Since stabilizing his rule
others were taught the intricacies of the religious or those favoring the Temple of in Thenol, Bishop Trandamere has sent
quartermaster’s corps. These things were Hith. The many other religious functions his armies against his neighbors, particu-
obvious to the Lords, but still did not re- the king once attended are banned from larly Armach and the League. At the
veal Trandamere’s true intentions. same time he has sent his priests to poten-
the state by Royal Proclamation. tial allies throughout Southern Hosk.
Finally, on the Dragon’s Night, a sol- Through the king, Trandamere has made Agents of Thenol can be found in the var-
emn festival in the dead of winter, the Hith the one and only god of Thenol. ious courts of the Confederation, among
forces of Hith acted. The priests of Hith the Marak Kender, and in the camps of
were skilled in the arts of necromancy, a The Senate is in the process of being re- the hobgoblins of the Steamwall. These
little something they kept secret from the duced to puppet status. Certainly the agents are attempting to build a coalition
uninitiated. On Dragon’s Night, they Bishop controls enough of the Senate to of evil to gain control of Southern Hosk
went to the cemeteries and graveyards have his way. The majority of the Lords and eventually all of Taladas.
and secret places where they had stock- have openly sided with him, attracted by
piled the dead and there worked their promises of wealth and domination over THE ARMY
dark arts. Coffins broke and the grave others. A few have been forced to join,
earth was pushed aside as the dead an- like it or not, since their lands are infested The Army of Thenol is Bishop Tranda-
swered the call. Suddenly, Bishop Tran- with followers of Hith. More than one mere’s instrument of diplomacy and ter-
damere’s army was immense, its ranks Lord has been butchered in the night, his ror. It is second only to the Temple of
swelled with unquestioning undead. Un- family massacred, and his titles dispersed Hith as a prop for his power. Without its
der the command of his experienced to loyal followers of Bishop Trandamere. support, it is doubtful Trandamere could
men, this mongrel army assaulted the It is through tactics like these that the keep his grip on the Senate of Thenol.
manors and castles of key Lords. By the Bishop has seized control.
dawn of Dragon’s Night, Thenol be- The army of Thenol has three distinct
longed to Bishop Trandamere. For 40 However, he is not without opposition. groups of warriors. Each supplies a differ-
years he has kept it under his control. Two of the Great Lords, Baron Markeides ent aspect to the overall structure of the
and Prince Raimos, have resisted Bishop army. First, there are the undead. These
THE GOVERNMENT OF Trandamere throughout the years. Al- warriors are under the absolute control of
though they do not oppose the Bishop in the Temple. Second are the fanatics.
THENOL the Senate, for this would be suicide, While willing to sacrifice themselves for
they labor behind the scenes to reduce his the cause, they can turn on the Temple
In forty years, Bishop Trandamere has power and increase their own strength. leaders if they feel their faith has been of-
changed the face of Thenol, although the There are times when the Bishop must fended. Finally, there are the Companies
land is still far from what he desires. He still deal by compromise and negotiation. of the Lords, the only part of the army not
has succeeded in altering the balance of As much as he would like to, Trandamere under the Bishop’s direct control.
power and reducing his opposition, but cannot crush these two outright lest he
he has not yet broken it. At the same lose the support he already has in the Sen- Trandamere is perfectly aware of the
time, new challenges to his power have ate. Thus, Markeides and Raimos repre- importance of his legions and has taken
come from unexpected sources. sent one threat to the Bishop’s power. steps to see that it always follows his bid-
ding and that of no others. Although he
Although Bishop Trandamere is essen- What gives the Bishop power in the claims no rank, he is the supreme com-
tially the leader of Thenol, he holds no Senate is his army—the hordes of undead mander of the army. He does not need a
office and works behind the scenes. To that unquestioningly do the bidding of rank. Through the Senate, he controls
their clerical commanders and fanatically the appointment of the few officers. He
loyal followers of Hith. However the
army also needs careful watching. There

69

SOUTHERN HOSK

sets the quotas of troops that must be These leaders, self-proclaimed seers, are a kill all living things before you,” al-
supplied by each Lord. He allocates funds great danger to the Bishop. He must take though there have been occasions where
from the treasury to support the army and care to see that none of them become too even this simple order has transformed it-
determines where they will quarter when popular or preach ideas contrary to his self into disaster. On the defense, they are
not on campaign. Finally he determines own. Sometimes such men are brought all but useless. The only effective order
were the army will go and what it will do. into the Temple hierarchy only to be they can be given is “Kill all who attempt
Such power tends to be self- shuffled aside, out of sight. Some men to pass.” This transforms them into little
perpetuating. Since he has control of the are cleverly discredited. A few conven- more than a wall. True, they form an im-
army, he can use it to squash any attempts iently die, martyrs to the cause of Hith. pediment to the enemy, but he can easily
to seize control away from him. For the confound them.
challengers, it is a no-win situation. Another problem is that the fanatics
are fanatics. They fight because they be- The priests are another weakness. Only
Although Trandamere rigidly controls lieve in certain things, the righteousness they can command the undead (or so they
the foremost command post, the army, of their cause in particular. The Bishop claim) and each priest can only practically
especially the Companies, is actually has to be careful not to offend the beliefs command a few. After a few encounters
rather lax about chains of command. This of the fanatics. At the same time, he can- with the undead, clever enemies order
is due, in great part, to the tradition of not allow himself to become captive to their men to hunt out the priests and kill
pride and stubbornness held by the them. Sometimes this is a very careful them whenever possible. This tactic has
Lords. Unlike the League, there is no offi- balancing act. proven effective at both crippling com-
cial organization like a legion. Troops are mand and slowing the speed at which the
collected, rearranged, and disbanded Lastly with the fanatics, there is the is- undead ranks are refreshed.
freely, without any regard for a perma- sue of failure. Fanatics are a fickle lot, fol-
nent arrangement. Commanders and lowing this person and that person, On campaign, the other troops keep as
rank are determined by seniority and hearing the voice of a god here or there. far as possible from the undead. Aside
agreement. Prestigious and powerful Each failure increases the risk that the fa- from their evil reputations and repulsive
Lords command large companies, while natics will decide the blessing of Hith has habits, the undead, especially the
junior Lords seldom have the chance to departed Trandamere’s expeditions. ghouls, are difficult to control. Some-
lead more than a file or squadron. Some- Once convinced of this, there is no re- times they grow hungry and take what
times overall command is wielded by ma- gaining their support. they want—other soldiers. Even their
jority, especially when there are many own priests have fallen prey to them.
powerful Lords present at the battle. At The Bishop must pick battles for his fa- Nighttime is the most dangerous, for that
all times, the Lords can be depended to natics wisely. He dares not use them is when they are most active.
obey orders only when it suits them. where the outcome is uncertain, but he
also cannot afford to waste them on cer- The second group are the Fanatics of
As insurance against the whims and tain victories. He tries to send them on Hith. While the fanatics have no uni-
treacheries of the Lords, Bishop Tranda- campaigns where their presence can make form, each has taken an oath of poverty
mere enforces a rigid discipline on the the difference between victory and de- (turning over all wealth to the Temple of
rest of the army. His strongest control is feat. For example, the fanatics were with- Hith). Thus the common soldier wears
over the masses of undead. These warriors drawn from the Armach long before the nothing but simple ragged clothes and a
can exist and fight only because of the situation began to reverse itself. brimless cap, both dyed yellow as a sign
Temple of Hith. The commanders of the of his devotion. Most use a sword or spear.
undead are all priests of the Temple, There is no standardized dress, armor, None carry bows, crossbows, or slings,
placed by the Bishop. Only they can give or weapons for any group of the army. Yet since they do not have the training or
orders to their host and only they can ani- each has certain common features that temperament to stand off and fire at an
mate newly fallen men to serve as replace- characterize the troops of that faction. enemy; they are best suited to mass
ments. The Bishop’s only risk is that one Some of these are grossly physical, such as charges. Leaders of the fanatics, usually
or more of these men will attempt to seize the rotten stench of the zombie encamp- warrior-priests, give the oath of poverty
his power. These men would be ambi- ments, while others are subtle differences lip service by avoiding ostentatious dis-
tious with or without the army and Tran- of personality. plays of wealth, but they are not about to
damere watches everything they do. forgo armor and high-quality weapons.
The undead forces are the most distinc-
The fanatics are more difficult to con- tive. Their ranks are composed of zom- Tactically, the fanatics are best on the
trol. The problem here is that they are bies, skeletons, and a few ghouls. No offense. They are good at following sim-
loyal to the ideas of the Temple of Hith concern is paid to their outfitting—the ple orders, since they are untrained in the
and not to the temple or the Bishop. Most commander-priests will let them fight lessons of war. When properly enthused
of their leaders rise from their own ranks, barehanded if necessary. Tactically, they by their leaders, they fight with berserk
charismatic men who inspire the others. are only good on the attack, when the fury with little regard for their own losses.
commands are simple. They do well- In these ways they are like the undead.
enough when ordered to “Advance and

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SOUTHERN HOSK

They are also headstrong and impatient, manders, although the larger files might mor and carry body shields. They carry
very much unlike the undead. It is diffi- have a number of lieutenants. long swords and spears. In battle they
cult to restrain them from the field, espe- fight in tight formations, shields overlap-
cially if things look like they are going While the Companies are far superior ping and advancing at a slow march.
badly. They cannot be held in reserve in training and ability to the undead and
since their fever pitch cannot be main- the fanatics, they still vary widely in qual- The cavalry is organized around the
tained. ity. Those whose masters are too poor to knights of the Lords. These knights form
outfit and train them properly or are just the heavy cavalry. They ride chain- barded
They share one final weakness with the incompetently led are average at best. horses and wear scale or banded armor. In
undead—their leaders. The fanatics fol- Most are veterans, seasoned in campaigns the charge, they use the heavy lance, flail,
low the most persuasive of their number, against the dragonmen and hobgoblins. and sword. The rest of the cavalry is made
not necessarily the wisest, best-trained, or Quite a few have been used to suppress up of their squires and attendants. These
even the sanest. Their leaders are not pro- rebellions in the lands of other Lords. men ride unarmored horses and wear
fessional soldiers but professional rabble- Some of these are crack troops, kept on lighter armor, typically leather or chain
rousers. Some are rare combinations of permanent duty. Some attain even mail. They carry any variety of weapons:
talent and charisma, wise enough to work higher, elite status. Indeed, poorly served javelins, swords, maces, flails, lances, etc.
with the professionals and well aware of is the Lord who cannot point to an elite
the limitations of their own followers. bodyguard, whether it be a whole com- The cavalry is supposed to perform two
Most are headstrong, domineering, and pany or just a few brave heroes. In the roles. First, the light cavalry is the eyes of
self-righteous. After all, the power of land of Thenol, bodyguards are more the army. But since the squires do not
Hith is on their side. than just showpieces. consider this task worthy of them, it is
difficult to get them to make effective re-
The third part of the army is the Com- In combat, the Companies provide the ports. They are also used to deliver the
panies of the Lords. This is the home of backbone of the Thenol army. They get important final charge to break the en-
the trained soldiers, men who view the fa- the pick of the tough missions, basically emy line. This the knights do with great
natics with professional scorn. Most re- anything more complicated that the un- gusto, so much that it is nearly impossible
gard the undead with disgust, at best as dead or fanatics can handle. The Com- to restrain them. Recalling them from the
tactical tools and nothing more. These panies are most often held in reserve charge is the greatest difficulty of com-
men chafe under the leadership of Bishop when the army is attacking, except for mand.
Trandamere and bristle at each other over tricky assaults. This rankles them, know-
old feuds between the different houses. ing they are missing their opportunity to Command of the Companies is an-
loot the enemy camp. At the same time other major problem. It is by right and
By law, each Lord provides a group of they take the forefront of any defense, a custom in the hands of the Lords and it is
men, a file or a squadron depending on difficult job for which there is no reward not something they intend to relinquish
the type of troop. A single Lord provides or recognition. to the clerics. Command is a matter of
200 to 1,000 or more men. The exact size honor. Thus no Lord relishes being given
depends on a quota set by the Senate, Since each Lord outfits his own men, orders and all desire to give orders. Su-
which in turn supposedly considers the there is little conformity of dress among preme command of a Company often in-
Lord’s ability to support his troops. (The the Companies. In general the infantry volves compromise and diplomacy more
levying of a sizeable troop quota is one of divides into three groups. The poor Lords than the issuing of commands. It is alto-
the Bishop’s tools to break an opposing supply light infantry, men dressed in long gether too common for the commander
Lord.), leather coats studded with brass bosses of a file, squadron, or Company to simply
carrying large shields. Swords, nine-foot- decide to do what he feels is best, regard-
Each Lord is assigned a certain number long spears, battle axes, and maces are less of his orders.
and type of men to provide, as set by the the commonly carried weapons. Helmets
Senate. Wealthy Lords must provide cav- of all types are worn. Command and control problems are
alry and infantry. Lesser Lords raise troops the greatest weakness of the Thenolite
of infantry. The men are then organized The second group consists of archers army. Their successes have come about
into larger companies under a single com- and crossbowmen. They are most often through their great numbers and their
mander. Within a company of infantry dressed in heavy quilted cotton tunics. ability to absorb grievous losses. While
will be files belonging to various houses, Aside from the bow or crossbow, each these assets have not been enough to
each file with its own commander, often a man carries a sword or other hand-to- overcome the superior professionalism of
noble of that House. Thus a company of hand weapon. They are not particularly the Imperial Legions of the League, their
1,000 men might have one file of 500 skilled at close-in fighting and more of- deficiencies have not been so serious as to
from Lord Vernol, a second file of 300 ten than not they break and run if guarantee their defeat.
from Lord Arghon, and a file of 200 from charged. The last group is the heavy in-
Lord Hepzibah. The company would fantry, raised by the wealthy Lords. These
have one commander and three subcom- men wear chain mail or brass-banded ar-

71

SOUTHERN HOSK

NEW AURIM forbidding, and dying. This last is more thought it best. Main streets turn into
accurate than most. dead ends, narrow lanes suddenly widen
Once, a long time ago, New Aurim was into circles, open sewage ditches flow to
the hope and dream of the people of Once New Aurim was not such a the river; all these things can be found
Thenol. Here was their new home, their haunted city, before the dominance of the within.
chance to rebuild the shattered Empire of Temple of Hith. Now the people live in
Aurim better and greater than it ever was fear of the Temple Inquisitors, the secret The wall that surrounds the city is ap-
before. police of Bishop Trandamere. Almost proximately 20 feet high. Once it was
weekly there are public executions of crim- kept in good repair. Now the battlements
The reality is that New Aurim is a de- inals. On unusual occasions these are real have crumbled and sections have started
pressing and secretive city. Some cities criminals, ones who cannot be induced to to collapse. Zombies and skeletons patrol
have colors; New Aurim’s is dead gray. It join the ranks of the Inquisitors or the fa- the walks. From the guard turrets they
seems to rain constantly in gray sheets of natics. More likely they are political pris- stare with empty eye sockets out over the
cold rain. The narrow cobbled streets glis- oners, unfortunates who have foolishly plain. The houses near the wall have been
ten dully with the gray of worn slate. The angered someone within the Temple hier- abandoned by the honest folk of the city.
buildings are gray with wormy wood and archy. The bodies are hung over the main Squatters and creatures of the night have
rotting stones. The mud is gray with filth gates and in the public square, left there moved into these buildings. Here among
and slime. The people—hunched, shuf- until all the flesh is stripped from the the deserted buildings and dark alleys can
fling, and suspicious—are gray with their bone. Vultures have taken to roosting on be found bodies, the victims of foul
lost dreams. Their clothes are gray, the the eaves of the old temples around the deeds, preyed on by their own kind.
color drained away. square. Once a bustling market, it is now
shunned by the locals. Farther from the wall there are more
Travelers to New Aurim cannot fail to homes, the strongholds of honest people.
note its character. The bleak desolation is Built on the banks of the Evole River, These are the folk who live in terror,
inescapable. Some travelers have noted New Aurim is a sprawling mass of un- afraid of the things that prowl at night,
the suspicious nature of the citizens; oth- planned streets and neighborhoods, all afraid of the Inquisitors, afraid of their
ers have been struck by the atrocious enclosed within a crumbling wall. The neighbors. At night all the doors are
weather. Words used to describe Aurim streets follow no pattern, twisting and heavily barred and the windows sealed
include ill-featured, cold, unfriendly, turning where some ancestral builder with thick shutters. Screams in the night

72

SOUTHERN HOSK

are not investigated and the windows re- and great serpents. The air is stale and HAWKBLUFF
main closed even on the hottest and most mildewed, even on the brightest of days.
humid nights of the year. Each dawn Within this moldering mausoleum of a Fifty miles away from New Aurim, in
brings relief and thanks for surviving an- home lives the King. the rugged hills at the lower end of the
other day. New Mountains, is Hawkbluff, site of the
For the King, the Palace is a prison. He Temple of Hith. This is the home of
At the heart of the city are the public is surrounded by guards and servants, all Bishop Trandamere and is the true power
buildings, or what remains of them. carefully chosen by Bishop Trandamere. center of Thenol. It is also a desolate and
Once there were temples to a multitude He cannot leave the Palace without spe- lonely place far from any city or town.
of gods at the heart of New Aurim. If cial consultation with his chamberlain
nothing else, the people enjoyed their re- Montiendo, the man who rules the Royal Hawkbluff is a jutting tor that stands at
ligions. Now these are abandoned, their Household. Montiendo schedules audi- the edge of a jagged valley. In and on this
doors closed by the edicts of the King un- ences with the Lords (a power he has used pillar of rock, the priests of Hith have
der the Bishop’s guidance. The Senate to increase his own wealth). Even the carved the First Temple of their faith. The
building is little used now, most of the king’s visits to his queen and children are rock has been honeycombed with pas-
Senators meeting at Hawkbluff, site of carefully staged and monitored. So accus- sages and chambers. At the very top is the
the First Temple to Hith and Bishop Tran- tomed is he to this treatment that he no main audience chamber of the faith. Just
damere’s home. longer protests or complains about the re- below this is the chamber where the Sen-
strictions. The walls of the Palace now ate meets, when Trandamere desires to
The only major buildings still in use mark the boundaries of his life. call it. Around this are the private recep-
are the city’s Temple of Hith and the tion halls and special altars used for pub-
King’s Palace. The Temple is a stately yet But all is not without hope in New lic and governmental affairs. Descending
sinister building. Its scale is massive, the Aurim. True, the people are oppressed farther into the rock are libraries, study
building upstaging the people inside it. and fearful, but there are a few willing to chambers, and private apartments. There
It is meant to inspire awe, but instead it is risk their lives to oppose Tyrant Tranda- are treasury halls where relics and won-
cold and heartless, inspiring fear in many. mere, as he is sometimes called. These ders are kept. There are chapels and pen-
The second largest temple to Hith in the rebels hide throughout the city, avoiding ance rooms. Going even deeper are the
land, it contains many secrets, though the eyes of the Inquisitors. In small bands practical chambers: kitchens, wells, lava-
maybe not those it is rumored to hold. they kill guards, rob tax collectors, and tories, storerooms, pantries, and armo-
Bishop Trandamere has perhaps foolishly free accused criminals. Some of their sup- ries. Below these are a small set of cells for
boasted that the Temple at Aurim holds port and aid comes secretly from the rebel- detaining heretics awaiting judgment.
more secrets than there are rumors about lious Lords. The rest comes from what they
the place. It is known that the temple was can take. But they are small, disorganized Around the base of the tor have sprung
built over an extensive series of old cata- groups. They oppose the Bishop, but have up outbuildings necessary for the
combs. There may be entrances deep no plan for bringing him down. At best priests —stables, granaries, workshops,
within the temple to dark places under- they try to build resentment and hatred to and sleeping quarters. Farther out are the
ground. his policies and his followers, a task that is residences of the Lords, small simple
far from easy. The Temple of Hith has the buildings. Their construction regulated
The other major building is the King’s power to heal or slay, appealing and terri- by law, these buildings are unfortified
Palace, actually a prison and not a home. fying choices to the common man. and built of wood. Their size and adorn-
Construction first began with the found- ment is carefully limited to prevent any
ing of the city and has continued ever Recently, the rebels have made contact house from eclipsing the majesty of the
since. The Palace is a sprawling jumble of by way of Armach with priests and priest- First Temple. They are far from luxurious
different architectural styles squeezed to- esses of Mislaxa. These men and women and so are not popular with many of the
gether with little sense or reason. In its are a revelation for them. Like the fol- Lords who must come for the Senate.
heyday, the Palace had a staff of several lowers of Hith, the priests of Mislaxa are
hundred caretakers and gardeners. Now able to heal the injured and cure the sick, Within the heart of Hawkbluff are the
there are only a few. but without the odious demands of the apartments of Bishop Trandamere. He
Temple. These priests are treasured and makes no secret of where he lives—close
The Palace has suffered greatly from revered by the rebels as a reason and cause to the Senate hall and the main
lack of attention. Weeds push up the pav- for hope. Many of the rebels have con- chambers—yet his rooms have secrets.
ing, breaking the mosaic tiles floors. verted to the word of Mislaxa, while still Unknown to all but the highest initiates,
Roofs leak and water runs down the walls, retaining their militant passions. They Trandamere has installed secret dungeons
rotting beams and floors. Entire wings see themselves as warriors of Mislaxa who and catacombs deep beneath his quar-
have been abandoned, left to the rats and will fight the evil of Hith to spread the ters. Secret viewing chambers and listen-
other vile creatures. The extensive cellars word of their goddess. ing posts, connected by these passages,
are all but forgotten, and secret dungeons enable the Bishop to know all that tran-
have become the lairs of carrion crawlers

73

SOUTHERN HOSK

spires within Hawkbluff. Hidden en- folk of ancient tales were all blamed. Pre- the Steamwall to feed the Blackwater.
trances throughout the complex give him cautions were taken but the children kept This water, warmed by thermal springs,
quick access to virtually any point. The vanishing. Soon the people began mutter drowsily eddies along reed-choked chan-
dungeons hold many enemies who have about dark goings-on at the Temple, nels into lakes covered with algae.
just “disappeared” from the face of the speculating to themselves. In return, the Shallow-rooted giant cypress trees hung
earth. The catacombs hold the bones of Inquisitors began to roam the streets, ar- with moss cling to the clumps of high
many who have crossed the Bishop and resting heretics and blasphemers. ground, barely above water level. Large
lost. Undead patrol these hallways, aided areas contain thick brambles of berries
by living guards of even more hideous Most villagers moved away in a virtual growing in marsh water. Along the coast,
and sinister natures. flood of humanity. Soon only the old and sea water mingles with the fresh in a belt
childless remained. Some died naturally, of saltwater marsh. Here mangroves
The land around Hawkbluff is de- but many others fell prey to the beasts slowly march out into the sea, extending
serted. Once there were a few villages in that were slowly reclaiming the valley un- the Blackwater delta.
the valley, but all have been abandoned til finally, the last family loaded its packs
for many years. Some existed here from and trudged out of this valley of decay Blackwater Glade is a sweltering, bug-
before the building of the First Temple, and death. Now all that remains is the infested place. Alligators and water
others were founded by the men who did Temple of Hith, untouched and uncaring snakes are the simplest of dangers a trav-
the work. After the Temple was com- of the horrors around it. eler faces here. Some dragons make their
pleted, livestock began to disappear. homes along its unexplored channels, less
Strange clouds and sickly lights were seen BLACKWATER GLADE than pleased should their peace be dis-
day and night over the top of the tor. turbed. Huge insects buzz between the
Crops grew poorly. Many families left in Filling the lower tip of Southern Hosk boughs only to be trapped by giant spi-
search of better fortune elsewhere. is a broad drainage basin. This part of the ders that spin thick webs in the tall trees,
continent has sunk with the Cataclysm to cunningly disguised to look like the
Then the children began to disappear. create an immense swamp watered by riv- moss, or struck by the sticky tongues of
Mass searches were made at first, the vil- ers, such as the Trillium flowing out of enormous frogs and toads. Strange crea-
lagers believing some terrible accident Thenol. More water comes down from tures hoot and howl at night, leaping
had occurred. Nothing was ever found. from branch to branch, their eyes glow-
Wild animals, gypsies, and the hulder-

74

SOUTHERN HOSK

ing dully in the moonlight. The Swampers only touch the edges of nized along family lines like most human
Men do not live in Blackwater Glade, Blackwater Glade. Even they are leery of tribes, for the bakali do not have a con-
probing too far into its weed-choked cept of family. Females lay eggs in the
nor are they ever likely too. The very air paths. Many a man has gone into the nesting grounds at the center of the vil-
reeks of disease. Many an explorer has deep country and never returned. The lage and when the young are born they
been wracked by fevers, chills, and pain- few who have braved it, once or even sev- are expected to fend for themselves.
ful spasms for years after a foray into the eral times, come back with tales of dark
swamp. The few settlements that have terror. These men are brave, but even The young keep to themselves, playing
been attempted have disappeared, swal- they only venture in-country for extraor- and imitating their elders, and for the
lowed by the verdant undergrowth. dinary reasons. One of these reasons is to most part the elders ignore them. Food is
make treaties with the dragonmen. thrown into the nesting ground for the
Still, a few hardy souls make their liv- young to eat and the young scramble for
ings off Blackwater Glade. These are a The dragonmen are the true rulers of whatever they can get. By this process the
close-knit group, the Swampers, as they the swamp. Called dragonmen by the hu- weakest starve and the strongest survive.
call themselves. They live at the edge of mans, they are the “Bakali” in their own
the great glade, close to their livelihood. sibilant tongue. The bakali are powerful, As the fry get larger, they begin their
In their canoes and flat-bottomed boats, humanoid lizards. The average male is lessons. At first they observe their elders
they paddle along the lazy channels. seven to eight feet tall from the top of the and imitate them making weapons,
Other men would quickly be lost in the head to the tip of the toe. They seldom cleaning kills, and battling for domi-
twisting byways and flows, but the stand fully erect, however, walking nance. This imitation reaches the stage
Swampers have not spent their lives on hunched over or on all fours. Their hands where they are making their own weap-
the swamp for nothing. They know the and feet have long, finger-like talons ons. Once a fry has fashioned his own use-
best routes and the finest hunting areas with webbing in between. Their faces able spear, he is allowed to go on the
for the alligators, giant toads and swamp have powerful lizard-like snouts. They hunt. Here his training continues, as he
cats that are their quarry. These are secrets have no noses, only breathing nostrils set learns where game is found, the methods
they keep to themselves. above their large, lidless eyes. Their of stalking, and how to make the kill. He
bodies are covered in thick alligator-like is still not considered one of the elders. To
Each Swamper has his own territory leather, ridged and spiny down the back, gain acceptance by the tribe, he must kill
and he knows the territories of his neigh- soft and supple on the underside. Their a bull alligator without assistance. Only
bors. The honest man stays out of his skin is various shades of greens, browns, after he has done this does he become one
neighbors’ waters and he expects them to and yellows, giving them a natural cam- of the elders. This method of growing up
stay out of his. An evil man pays no mind ouflage in the reedy waterways of the is hard and dangerous and many die in
to his neighbors and may even try to drive swamp. the process. Bakali females lay a lot of
them off. The swamp is a frontier and its
justice is that of frontiersmen. The bakali are an ancient race; those eggs.
alive are only degenerate reminders of Tribal size among the bakali is deter-
This can create problems, for the what they once were. Once they were
Swampers are Thenolites and come under powerful and terrifying as they raided all mined by dominance and submission.
the rule of the Lords and the Bishop. How- along the waterways of Taladas. But that Each tribe has a chief, a powerful male
ever, they are not ones to pay such things was long ago and their decline began long who rules over all others. His position is
any mind and so the government has only before the Cataclysm occurred. Indeed gained by force and he holds it only so
slight control over them, if any at all. the rupture of Taladas during Hiteh’s long as he defeats all challengers. The
Dealing with the Swampers is always a case Night actually aided them. For centuries chief has the largest harem, the choicest
of bargaining. For example, the Swampers the great swamps that had been their parts of the kill, and first claim to any
keep an eye on the dragonmen of Black- homelands were diminishing, drying out prize found. The males under him have a
water Glade, watching the border for the and being drained. The Cataclysm strict pecking order, established in the
Lords. In exchange, they pay no taxes. abruptly reversed this process with the same way—by who can terrorize whom.
creation of the Blackwater. Nonetheless, Rank determines all the privileges availa-
They will serve as woodsmen and by the time this occurred, the greatness of ble to the bakali males, from females to
scouts for the Companies, but refuse to the bakali had been lost. part of the kill. Males must either accept
be levied for service in the Companies their rank or leave the tribe. Invariably
themselves. They are fiercely indepen- In the present age, the bakali are a when the tribe becomes too large, males
dent loners who have little use for others, primitive race, barely above the level of leave. Those that survive on their own
except perhaps those of their own kind. mindless savages. They are intelligent seek to found their own tribes and often
Still, those of good heart cannot turn but are culturally undeveloped, even raid their birth tribe or other neighbors
their backs completely on others. The backward. They live in small villages of for females. This continual struggle
same cannot be said for those blackguards 20 or 30 individuals. These are not orga- strengthens the bakali people, making
who have fled to the frontier to escape them powerful warriors.
their past.

75

SOUTHERN HOSK

The villages of the bakali are simple af- known, the greatest treasures of all. caused them to abandon their towns and
fairs. Although the bakali are amphib- Other weapons include nets, clubs, and lose their skills is forgotten; even the ba-
ians, they build their homes on dry land, bone daggers. Spears are favored above kali have only a dim idea of what they
usually a low hummock or steep river- all else, for they work best in the watery once were.
bank. When sited on a hummock, the environment of the bakali.
village is a collection of simple reed huts, Not everyone is afraid of the saraki.
only about four feet tall. Inside, the floor The bakali are ferocious warriors, able Several of the ruins are now the abodes of
is dug out into a two-stage pit. The deep- to fight with their weapons and their dragons, Othlorx who seek solitude to
claws. Their hides are tough, giving them raise their broods, perhaps in hopes of
est part extends below the water level natural protection. Their greatest weak- someday sweeping back over the world.
(only a few feet). Here in the mud and nesses are that they are sluggish at night, Giant spiders and frogs skitter and hop
slime is where the bakali sleep. Next to slow to react, and that they cannot ven- about the ruins. Sometimes restless bones
this is a higher level where possessions are ture too long from their life-giving water. move, bones dead for more than a thou-
kept dry and food is stored. The huts are These faults notwithstanding, the bakali sand years.
built in a rough circle around the nesting are zealously recruited by the Thenolite
area, which is usually marked by a fetish- army. They are assigned to commands ad- Although shunned by the bakali, the
covered post. vancing along river lines or are posted to humans who have reached the interior
guard duties at places where abundant have been fascinated by these ruins. A
When the village is on a riverbank, the water can be assured. It is rumored that few attempts have been made to explore
homes are dug into the side of the bank. Bishop Trandamere keeps a special body- and study these, although such efforts are
The entrances are broad but low and the guard of bakali at Hawkbluff. fraught with danger. In particular, the
bakali crawl in on all fours. The tunnels wizard Amrocar spent the better part of
slope downward almost to the water line. Thenolite commanders have found the his life tracking down clues to the riddles
Here several chambers are dug out for bakali to be clever and eager to learn. the ruins posed.
storage. The sleeping chamber is again While they have difficulty controlling
half below the water line, creating the de- their savage natures, particularly in bat- This information, along with his maps,
sired mud pit. Dried reeds are pushed tle, their amphibian abilities give the sketches, deductions, and speculations he
through to the surface to create air pas- Thenolite commanders a surprising noted in writing. Upon his death, the
sages. The nesting ground is on the top of weapon when crossing rivers or breaching book passed into the Imperial Libraries at
the bank over the tunnels. The fetish post watery defenses. Kristophan where it has remained to this
that marks the nest area is set close to the day. Amrocar was able to name the build-
water, with the fetishes looking out over There are things in the Blackwater ers of the ruins and his maps are
the stream. Glade even deeper and more remote than accurate—as of 100 years ago.
the bakali. While some Swampers have
Whether hummock or riverbank, all dealings with the bakali and visit their His deductions concerning the size of
bakali villages are enclosed by a palisade. primitive villages from time to time, per- the Bakali Empire suggest that it must
Just what kind of wall the lizard men haps no more than one or two humans have once been very powerful and rich, a
build depends on the materials they have have penetrated deeper into the glade. sure lure to treasure seekers. Most inter-
at hand. Bakali build walls of woven There, in the thickest portions of the esting are his speculations. He surmises
reeds, thorn bushes, branches, or even swamp are low hills, cluttered with tum- the Bakali were exceptionally talented
skeletons. They never use boards or logs, bled ruins that march out into the water, wizards, fabricators of magical potions,
lacking the tools to fell the trees and slowly submerging from sight. These ru- pills, and powders from natural materi-
shape them. The palisades are flimsy and ins and the lakes around them are taboo als. Most audacious (and least supported)
can be pulled down easily. But then the to the bakali. They know that evil spirits, of his beliefs is that the bakali of his age
walls aren’t meant to keep determined “saraki,” wait to snatch up anyone foolish are not the same people as those of long
attackers out. They do discourage attacks enough to violate the waters. At the same ago. Instead, he maintains the dragon-
by wild animals and at least form a hin- time the lure of the ruins is irresistible. men were the creations of the original ba-
derance to raiders. Brave (and lucky) bakali that have en- kali, creations that survived and
tered the ruins and survived sometimes prospered when the empire crumbled.
The bakali lead very basic lives. Most of find great treasures—metal weapons and However, his findings and his specula-
their time is spent lounging in the sun armor that fits their bulky frames. tions have been long forgotten. His life’s
(they are cold-blooded after all) or hunt- work sits in a musty niche of a dark corri-
ing. Their weapons are wooden spears, There is a good reason the armor fits, dor, among hundreds of thousands of
fitted with sharpened bone or fire- for the ruins in the swamp are bakali- other books, waiting for someone to find
hardened to a point. Stone outcroppings built, dating from that time millennia it and take an interest.
are all but unknown in Blackwater Glade, ago when the bakali were powerful and
so stone-tipped weapons are a valuable great. Then the bakali had the skills to
rarity. Metal weapons are all but un- build towns and rule lands. Just what

76

SOUTHERN HOSK

THE HULDERFOLK result, their homelands have been stead- come with them. The invitation may be
ily shrinking and their efforts to drive out to join the others in games, share a meal,
The hulderfolk are elves, but not like the humans have become more and more or spend the night out of the storm. The
any elves who have lived for more than violent. Where they once were content to guests always tell of the fine hospitality
3,000 years. Found only in the small for- mislead and lure away, now they use their they receive. They are plied with marvel-
ests of Okami and the great woodland be- spells to injure or terrify. ous food and drink and no one says ill of
tween the League and Thenol, the them. Usually they are overcome by sleep
hulderfolk are secretive people. They do The second part of not being seen is the well before the others, exhausted by the
not freely reveal themselves to humans. masterful camouflage ability of the entertainments of their hosts.
They do not join armies. They do not hulderfolk. Living only in the deep
build villages (that anyone has found). woods, they are almost impossible to spot They awake to find themselves where
They do not go exploring to distant or hear. Indeed, bards describe their the stranger first greeted them. Some-
lands. They are the most mysterious of world as separate from the real world, times they have aged greatly. Their hair is
the elves. crossable only at unknown invisible bor- long, their clothing faded and the rest of
ders. While in truth it is not like this, the their gear worm-eaten and rusty. Other
The hulderfolk are elves who live by elves do seem to vanish before one’s eyes, times they awake and nothing seems dif-
the old ways, ways so old that even the using their camouflage and their elven ferent. However, in all cases more time
stiff-necked and tradition-bound Silva- cloaks. The hulderfolk are skillful has passed than a single night. Through
naes abandoned these practices long be- enough to walk around the farms of men some secret magic of the hulderfolk, the
fore they left Silvanesti. Only the without alarming the farmer or his ani- flow of time has been altered for that hu-
hulderfolk continue these practices, mals. Only dogs seem to be sensitive to man. Fortunate ones find they have been
refusing to change even though the times their presence. gone only a week; more often the victim
have changed greatly. comes back to discover he has been gone a
While shunning forbids dealings with year or ten years. There is a story told of
The hulderfolk gain their name from humans, it does not exclude tricking one man who entered the woods a cen-
the first and foremost of their them. In fact such tricks are encouraged. tury before the Cataclysm and came out
traditions—shunning. Hulderfolk means This is another strong tradition of the 200 years after it occurred!
“hidden people” in the tongue of an- hulderfolk. They take a great delight in
cient Taladas and that best describes luring hunters deep into the woods and Tricks of deception are much more sub-
shunning. Long ago the elves took slight leaving them there, inviting lost travelers tle. The victims of these tricks are usually
to some act of the humans. Who did it or to dinner or games, or posing as an absent young men and women, particularly those
what they did has been long forgotten. husband or wife. With the dawn the handsome or attractive. The hulderfolk
What came of it was that the elven nation hunter may find he has a stag’s horns. visits when the person is alone, usually
(for they were a united people back then) The lost traveler spends the night and is coming in the evening. The elf may pose
choose to forever forgo contact with the courteously guided back to his path the as a suitor come to court or a wife come to
world of men. For a long time the elves next morning, only to discover a decade visit her husband minding the cattle in the
disappeared from sight of man, not ap- has passed in the world of men. The hus- high pastures. The trickster uses his natu-
pearing in his records. band may learn he has sired a hulderfolk ral grace to charm the victim, lulling any
child. suspicions. Young women may be per-
Yet man’s inexorable expansion even- suaded to run away and marry the hand-
tually doomed this policy, as more and The exact reasons for these tricks are some suitor or maybe just spend the night
more contact was forced between the two unknown, but the effects are widely together. A wife may bear a child not at all
groups. The explicit code of shunning talked about, for they are bizarre and un- resembling her true husband, while a hus-
was forgotten, though the elves still kept usual. Most humans assume these tricks band may discover years later that the
the contact to a minimum, continuing are some type of capricious and malicious hulderfolk claim him as kin.
the tradition without even realizing it— humor. While other elves admit a certain
all except the hulderfolk. irony in the whole thing, particularly the Sometimes the victim is tricked into
ones involving time, they deny the hu- swearing an oath. Once sworn, the
At the heart of the hulderfolk shun- mor is somehow racial. hulderfolk consider the word binding
ning is the practice of not being seen. and they expect it to be fulfilled. Such an
First, the elves do not mingle with hu- The tricks of the hulderfolk can be oath may be as simple as moving a barn or
mans. If humans settle in a hulder wood, grouped into those of time, those of de- swearing not to cut a certain tree, or it
the elves first attempt to drive them off, ception, and those of gifting. The tricks may be more complicated such as leaving
harassing them by stealing tools, loosing of time all follow the same pattern. The the region or turning over the first-born
animals, and luring children into the human enters a quiet clearing or ventures child. Humans often foolishly enter into
woods. If these efforts fail or the hulder- deep into the woods. There he meets a these oaths, believing them easily bro-
folk fear discovery, they move away. As a strange man or woman, one of the ken, only to discover that the hulderfolk
hulderfolk, who invites the human to

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SOUTHERN HOSK

have magical methods of enforcement. matter of the elf should not break his They also visit the elfchild left behind,
Tricks of gifting are the rarest of all, for word. For the hulderfolk it is inconceiv- leaving special elven gifts for the child.
able not to honor an oath. It simply is not Nor do they forget the human families
they seldom start with that intention. In- done. Only some of the rules (and there- whose child has been taken. If the hu-
stead of whatever it intended, the elf fore methods of protecting oneself) are mans raise the strange changeling with
winds up giving the human a valuable known to humans. If touched by cold care and love, the hulderfolk see to their
gift. On some occasions, the gift is given steel (which is more than ordinary metal), success by secretly giving them aid when-
spontaneously by the elf. Sometimes the the elf must abandon any disguise and ever possible. The hulderfolk have a debt
trickster is struck by the nobility, honesty, flee. It cannot enter a place of worship. If to repay. However, if the humans treat
and spirit (the elves care little for human its name is spoken, it must flee and never the elf-child badly, their luck is as bad as
virtue) of the victim. He may be struck by return. Other laws of shunning may ap- the elves can arrange.
her grace and beauty, dazzling even to ply but they are known only to the
the eyes of an elf, or smitten by his pas- hulderfolk, who do not go about telling The elves can also be compelled to take
sion and romantic spirit. these to others. the changeling child back, although this
is rare and there is no certain method.
Gifts that are granted freely tend to be Shunning is not the only custom the Sometimes humans abandon the child in
particularly bittersweet, however, for hulderfolk keep alive. Another, more sin- the woods, whereupon the elves may re-
some price seems unavoidable. A man ister one, is the practice of changelings. turn the human child. Sometimes the
may be shown a treasure but denied ever For mothers living on the edges of the humans can make a bargain with the
seeing his elf-love again. A bard may gain hulderfolk lands, there is nothing more elves for the return of the child. There is
a wonderful voice, but go blind in the terrifying. The elves sneak to the cradle of no certain method of regaining a change-
process. A farmer may succeed at all his a newborn and take the child, leaving a ling child, however.
efforts, but only after he has lost a son to sickly elven babe in its place. It is a sight
the hulderfolk. For the fortunate the no mother wishes to ever see. The elves keep to the old ways in dress
price is not as steep as this, perhaps only a as well. Their clothing is reminiscent of
lost year or the effort of performing some Like shunning, the practice of change- the time when the elves were truly Chil-
deed for the hulderfolk. lings has customs the hulderfolk must dren of the Forest. The men wear cloaks
follow. Only newborn children can be of green leaves and wondrously supple
Sometimes the elf is trapped, caught taken and only sickly elven children can cloth of bark. The elven women wear di-
by an intended victim cleverer than it. be left behind, which is the whole reason aphanous gowns of spun spider silk and
There are tales of maidens who saw the switch is made in the first place. En- flowers, loosely draped in flowing forms
through their suitors’ disguises and then chantments are cast to disguise the child, around their slender bodies. Caps of
set a trap in return. There are mighty he- but no amount of magic can perfectly leaves and garlands of flowers are the only
roes (to the humans at least) who have hide the change from the mother or ornaments they wear.
gotten the better of the proud hulder- nurse. The stolen child is raised with love
folk, but such heroes are very rare. In and care by the hulderfolk, although it is They do not mine metal and forge it
these cases the elf is forced to bargain for never accepted fully as one of their kind. only seldom; most of their implements
its freedom. Just as they consider the are obtained in trade from the dwarves.
word of others binding, elves do not
break their own oaths. Once forced to
swear, they will abide by their own condi-
tions.

The hulderfolk respect their oaths be-
cause shunning has its own rules and laws
only vaguely understood by humans.
These rules all make shunning more diffi-
cult for the elves. Perhaps when the tradi-
tion was begun the elves felt the need to
give the poor humans a sporting chance.
Perhaps shunning is only a game, little
more than an exciting test of wits, of
which they have so much more than the
humans. Whatever the reasons, the
hulderfolk follow strict rules concerning
shunning.

A hulderfolk cannot break his word
when given to the shunned. This is not a

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SOUTHERN HOSK

Since the Cataclysm this trade has all but have no use for intruders. Since contact and simplicity that was destroyed centu-
ceased and now their swords and jewelry between the two has been infrequent, ries before the wrath of the gods de-
are of ancient design. This suits them just conflicts have seldom occurred. However, stroyed the rest of their world.
as well, for they have no desire to change. when the two races do meet, it is seldom
Those dwarves who know the hulderfolk uneventful. Aside from the tricks the THE STEAMWALL
dream of seeing the elven armory (which hulderfolk attempt, the humans, who
they are sure exists), for it surely contains consider the elves to be evil and danger- Blocking Southern Hosk from all of the
brilliant of examples of dwarven work- ous, treat them accordingly. east are the great volcanic mountain
manship done in the great styles of an- ranges collectively known as the
cient times. Ordinary peasants react in fear, not Steamwall. For man and elf, this is a hos-
wishing to risk the ire of the hulderfolk. tile, uninhabitable land. Clouds of corro-
Elven warriors dress for war as they do Braver or more foolhardy souls often at- sive steam roil up from the Indanalis
for daily life. The only concession to dan- tempt to capture or kill any hulderfolk topping the jagged rock peaks of the
ger that a hulderfolk might make is to they find. This in turn leads to retaliation mountains. Here the steam mixes with
don a shirt of light elven chain. Instead of by the elves, although they confine this ash and gas from the volcanoes of the
thick protection, they prefer to rely on solely to the offender and his family. It Steamwall to form a hellish brew. Chilled
their invisibility and their speed. They also confirms elvish opinion about hu- at these heights, the steam and gas form
are masters with the short bow and fine mans. This behavior has been going on rain clouds.
fencers, favoring lightweight blades to for decades, effectively preventing any
the heavy, slow swords of humans. Spears understanding between humans and the Most of the clouds are blown to the east
are also carried, being useful in all man- hulderfolk. to mingle with the poisonous fumes of
ner of situations. Hitehkel, but some amount of rain falls
The shunning attitudes of the hulder- on the mountain slopes, eroding away
Although the hulderfolk have a king folk apply almost exclusively to humans. the lifeless rock. These rivulets turn to
and queen, they have no obvious govern- Many other creatures share or enter the streams, black and poisonous, rushing
ment. There are no appointments, no woods of the hulderfolk and have little down gullies past steaming vents, fuma-
elected officials, no titles, and few of- trouble finding the inhabitants. They roles, and bubbling mud pots. Eventu-
fices. Those positions they do have don’t make no attempt (beyond practical cau- ally the waters form small rivers. These
even seem to relate to governmental du- tion) to hide from gnomes, goblins, hob- tumble down the mountains, spilling
ties. There are, for example, offices for goblins, even dwarves, nor do they view over waterfalls that reek of a sulphurous
the Tale-Spinners, those elves called to these races as necessarily enemies, al- stench. The banks of these rivers are dead
sing at the banquets or on other, more though they are not blind to the evil na- except for small clumps of red and gold
melancholy days. The king and queen are tures of some. Creatures such as mosses.
served by a court, but none of the cour- hobgoblins are tolerated so long as they
tiers bear titles of any sort. In general the cause no harm. Gradually these rivers run through the
hulderfolk seem to rule themselves with- strange and twisted forests that cover the
out the need for bureaucrats, ministers, Elves who enter their forest are greeted lower slopes. Here flowers, trees, and
police, or an army. Their disputes, more warmly as long-lost kindred and are al- even animals have been twisted and
along the lines of personal spats, are set- ways invited to stay. The gulf between the warped by the noxious air and water of
tled by custom or by the king himself. old ways of the hulderfolk and the mod- the land. Oaks, mighty trees elsewhere,
ern ways of other elves is too great to are gnarled and tortured. Brambles grow
The hulderfolk make no villages or cross, however. Neither can understand to immense size. Animals—bears, rab-
settlements. Their homes are carefully the other or accept what they have be- bits, squirrels, deer—sport strange de-
concealed by magic and are little more come. Thus, modern elves almost never formities and ulcerous patches on their
than sleeping quarters. They consider the come to live among the hulderfolk and skin. Temperaments change. The meek
entire wood their home, the sky their ceil- the hulderfolk fear their sons and daugh- become aggressive, the aggressive vicious.
ing, and the grass their carpet. As such, ters will be lured away by the “good” life The rules of nature are turned upside
the “home” of a hulderfolk may be noth- of their cousins. Marriages between the down.
ing more than a hollowed tree trunk or an two groups often end sadly, adding more
abandoned burrow. They do not live like songs to the repertoire of the bards. The rivers continue on through the
animals, however. These nests are care- land, carrying their poisons. Gradually
fully built and even decorated. They sim- It may be that the hulderfolk have the air and rain become cleaner, less nox-
ply view the necessities of life differently clung too long to a way of life that no ious. Still the flowing waters cut swathes
from humans. longer makes sense. Things have changed of death and distortion through the hills.
around them and they have refused to Gradually the small rivers gather into
Because of their customs, the hulder- follow suit. On the other hand, it may be large flows, forming the great deadly riv-
folk are not overly loved by human set- that the rest of Taladas has lost something
tlers. The feeling is mutual, as the elves the hulderfolk still have—an innocence

79

SOUTHERN HOSK

ers characteristic of the foothills of the shot. The males wear little the Marak kender and the dwarves of the
Steamwall. As these flow toward the sea, clothing—nothing more than a loin- area, both of whom have a fierce hatred
the deadly water is gradually diluted as cloth. Females dress only slightly more for the hobgoblins. Toward strangers such
the poisons leach into the soil and fresh modestly. Both sexes are fond of orna- as merchants or explorers, the hobgoblins
waters join the flow. Eventually these riv- ments. These are usually of bone— employ a slightly more tolerant ap-
ers, though brackish and sour-tasting, are fingers, hands, teeth, and toes from their proach. Although most expect them to
no longer lethal. victims. Other decorations include feath- attack on sight (having heard tales of
ers, bright bits of cloth, pieces of gold, their bloodthirstiness), the hobgoblins
Although hostile to men, the and beads. Most of their weapons are instead observe and greet strangers and
Steamwall and its foothills are not unin- spears and knives of chipped stone, al- even show them gracious hospitality. So
habited. Many creatures, animals and in- though they also have some metal weap- long as the guests take care not to offend
telligent beings live hidden on its slopes. ons taken from their victims. When their hosts they will be treated as well as is
Monsters of all types have chosen it as prepared for battle, they wear bits and possible for the hobgoblins.
their homeland. Already fearsome, these pieces of stolen armor or breastplates
beasts have been made even more dan- made of bones. In this way, the hobgoblins have man-
gerous by the harsh conditions of the aged to set up some trade with the out-
mountains. The hobgoblins once lived in the caves side world. Known merchants (who have
of the mountains, but the earthquakes dared to befriend the hobgoblins) ven-
Monsters are not the only creatures and volcanic activity of the mountains ture into the edges of the mountains.
found in the area. Intelligent beings have have made this impossible. Now they There they trade their useful goods for
also struggled to make a home here. They build simple long-houses, thatched and the rare products of the mountains gath-
are not pleasant beings. The most numer- set on stilts to keep out dangerous ver- ered by the hobgoblins, mostly exotic
ous are the hobgoblins that seem to thrive min. The long-houses are cold and drafty, hides and plumes, although there are al-
under the terrible conditions of the barely adequate shelter. Though cool in ways strange ingredients needed by wiz-
Mountains. Second numerous are the the summer, the houses, with their ards. Sometimes the merchants come
Marak kender, an off-shoot branch of poorly-made roofs, offer little protection with specific requests to be filled—a
that pestiferous race found in Ansalon. from the frequent rains. In winter, icy stone from a certain place or sap of a
Life in the Steamwall has hardened them winds cut through the flimsy walls and twisted tree. The hobgoblins haggle the
so they are much different from their kin. strands of ice hang from the rafters. More prices for their services and then venture
Finally, there are the ‘Traldor Dwarves, be- than one house has burned to the ground out to fulfill their tasks.
leaguered and struggling in the dark during a freeze as the hobgoblins care-
shadows of the peaks. They most of all lessly built fires inside to warm them- The hobgoblins have never had any
have been changed by the upheavals of selves. strong belief in a pantheon of gods, ex-
the Steamwall. cept for the spirits of their ancestors, They
The hobgoblins place great importance
THE HOBGOBLINS on their ancestors. After a hobgoblin have a simple belief in an afterworld (it is
dies, his skull is picked clean (large nests a land just like the real world only with-
The most successful of the Steamwall of ants are kept to do this). Then it is out the enemies of their people and of a
inhabitants are the hobgoblins. Under placed in a special niche at the front of
the most adverse of conditions they have the long-house. Old houses have entire
thrived and prospered, growing stronger front walls covered with the skulls of an-
and more dangerous in the process. For- cestors.
tunately for other races of the region,
their lackluster intelligences keep them Taking heads is a sign of valor and wor-
from exploiting the great advantage of thiness. In battle, the hobgoblins nor-
their numbers. Even though they are mally try to bring back the heads of their
generally stupid and disorganized, they enemies as trophies. These are also
are still a significant threat to travelers cleaned and then stacked in pyramids be-
and small communities of the moun- fore the door of the long-house facing the
tains. ancestors. The more ferocious the family,
the greater the pyramid of heads. Truly
Hobgoblins stand about six feet tall. valiant and long-lived families may have
Though normally burly and muscular, several stacks of heads outside their long-
the hobgoblins of the Steamwall are houses.
scrawny fellows, the skin hanging loosely
on their frame. Their skin is a deep red- Given this practice, the hobgoblins
brown. Their eyes are large and blood- frequently go raiding. Their favored tar-
gets (mainly because they are close) are

80

SOUTHERN HOSK

judge who decides the fate of all spirits. ouflage. When they do gird for war, their selves, believing their innocent trust had
Once this was Hiteh (Usk-Do in the hob- armors are amazing collections of stolen, somehow become wrongful pride. Not
goblin tongue), but since the gods began cast-off, and captured pieces—a helmet surprisingly, this view did not last as the
to return to Taladas the position has been from a League legionnaire, the breast- kender came to blame the gods and not
claimed by Erestem (Mwarg). The hob- plate of a Thenolite, a full suit of pre- themselves.
goblins don’t find this change confusing Cataclysm dwarven armor (liberally
at all, for it is obvious to them that Mwarg stuffed with pillows to fit the slimmer Today, their friendly cheerfulness has
overthrew Usk-Do in the after-world and kender), or a Hitehkel gnome’s breathing vanished, replaced by grim suspicion. Al-
thus became their new god. helmet and a bone breastplate taken though they remain incurably curious, it
from a hobgoblin. They present a tre- is the curiosity of fear and paranoia. They
THE MARAK KENDER mendously interesting and amusing spec- are curious not because they just want to
tacle when arrayed for battle. know but because they want to know
Living in isolated Marak valleys of the whether it will hurt or help them. If they
Steamwall, well down on the lower However, what truly makes these ken- meet a stranger, they want to know every-
slopes, are a cluster of small kender com- der different from all others is their phi- thing about him—who he is and what he
munities. These kender (a race that is losophies. Once the Marak kender were a has on him-to see if he presents a threat
somewhat rare in Taladas) are unique in carefree and happy-go-lucky race just like or danger. To this end they constantly
Taladas and perhaps throughout all of the rest of their kind. Their curiosity, hu-
Krynn. They, perhaps more than any oth- mor, and cheerfulness were quite remark- peek, poke, and pilfer.
ers throughout Taladas, have undergone able and infuriating. It seems they had Their understanding of morals, espe-
a distinct change in their way of life. retained the sense of innocence and
childishness from the day that Reorx cially regarding property, have not
Known as the Marak kender for the re- touched them to bestow his blessing, as changed. Anything not nailed down is
gion of their birth, these kender are phys- the Marak say. Others, particularly the theirs if they want it. The rationalization
ically like the rest of their race, though dwarves, agree that Reorx touched them has changed. Now they take things to
perhaps a bit longer in the face. In dress all right, touched their wits and made “check them out.” Caught with his hand
they favor grays and blacks, colors that them addled. in the pouch of a wizard, the Marak ken-
fade into the gloomy stone walls of the der says, “I’m only making sure nothing
canyons that make up their homeland. The Marak kender lived in a series of in there is dangerous. Of course I kept
The typical costume is a shirt, heavy trou- isolated and sheltered valleys. To the this wand I found in there. After all, you
sers, and hard-soled moccasins. A north were the humans of the Aurim Em- might decide to use it against me some-
hooded half-cape, permeated with wax or pire. To the east were the elves. Neither time.” The Marak naturally assume that
fat, is frequently worn since the weather threatened the kender nor came too close everyone and everything is a potential
is often foul and rainy. Although they to their safe lands. The hobgoblins pre- threat against them.
grow their hair long, they bind it in tight, sented only a minor threat. The kender
spiraling buns or head-hugging braids. believed they lived under the best of all Nor has their sense of humor totally
protections in the best of all times. The abandoned them. It has, however, be-
Their weapons, too, are very tradi- good gods loved them like children and come a very black humor. They still de-
tional for their people, although modi- protected them from all evil. Then came light in fun, defined as harsh practical
fied to their particular conditions. Living the Cataclysm. jokes and mischief. The preferred targets
in the rocky mountains, they are experts of these jokes are outsiders, particularly
at flinging stones. Lacking the stands of The Cataclysm unleashed on the cheer- non-kender. Failing that, the jokes are
straight-limbed wood needed to make ful, smiling kender horrors beyond any in used as a method of revenge and comeup-
the sling-like hoopak, the Marak kender their memory. Worse still, they were hor- pance among the kender. They have de-
instead use the springier twisted wood of rors wrought by the gods themselves. No veloped an elaborate system of face based
the Steamwall’s forests to make bows for man could rend all their homes or crash on who has last had the better of whom.
hoopaui or stone-bows. These weapons, down the walls of their valleys onto entire
similar to a crossbow, fire pellets carefully villages. No elf could cause rains of ash for Kender society is built around strongly
chosen for their size and shape. weeks, poisoning their water. No hobgob- knit families and relations. Generally all
lin could light the sky with the glow of vol- those within a valley are related, tracing
In addition to the hoopaui, they also canic fires, heralding the scouring flows of back to a common group of ancestors.
use short swords, spears, daggers, and lava. Only the gods could do such things. The Cataclysm has strengthened the fam-
axes. Perhaps because of their larcenous ily bond of the kender to the point of fa-
natures they seem to carry a great number Suddenly the gods the kender always naticism. Insults to the family are not
of magical weapons, Most of the time knew as protectors had turned their backs tolerated and have been the cause of
they wear no armor in particular, relying and betrayed the faithful kender. They more than one murder. Long-standing
on their natural ability to hide and cam- never imagined their punishment was ac- feuds have been started by the slighting
cidental. For a time they blamed them- comments of one kender against the fam-
ily of another. Meetings between the ken-

81

SOUTHERN HOSK

der of different valleys are strained and For days they will lay up in the hills Because the kender are known to be ex-
formal to avoid accidental insults by ei- overlooking the region, watching the traordinary collectors of things, it is as-
ther side. movements of the kender, trying to see sumed they have managed to collect great
the routes in and out of the village. Once treasures. If they have, they certainly do
The kender live by working their small they are satisfied, they move in. The at- not show it. They do not wear fine cloth-
farms. Good lands in the Steamwall are tack normally begins at night as the hob- ing, flash wonderful jewelry, or carry
rare. Fields close to the rivers needed to ir- goblins slip out of the mountains in small sharp steel weapons. This has led to the
rigate the fields are often dead, poisoned groups and encircle the town. Once the persistent rumor that the Marak kender
by those same rivers. Fields farther away ring is closed, they begin the dangerous are a race of misers, hiding their wealth
are dry and often ash-choked. It takes business of probing for the safest ap- away from all sight. Certainly their vil-
much hard work to grow even poor crops proach to the village. Scouts are sent out lages must have hidden storerooms filled
in the soil, but nonetheless the kender to search along the routes. More often with wonders beyond belief, or so the be-
try. This hardship too has added to their than not, the hobgoblins fail to see all the lief goes. Like all rumors, no one can ac-
bitter outlook on life. traps. In their villages, the kender can tually say he has seen these things, but
hear the screams of the scouts as they everyone has it on the best of authority
The fields are scattered widely “discover” undetected traps and by the that it is so. Even the kender have come to
throughout the valley floors, while the noise know that the siege has begun. believe these rumors, always thinking the
kender cluster in small villages for de- kender in the next valley are secretly hid-
fense. The Marak are no builders, so the What comes thereafter is a battle of ing some powerful item.
villages appear to be lightly fortified with wits. By night the hobgoblins probe and
a few simple walls of field stone. How- advance further along a safe route. Dur- Of course, what these rumors fail to
ever, the kender, following their natures, ing the day they lay up, ready to defend take into account is just what the kender
have prepared rings of devious traps, har- their newly won advances. By day and consider valuable. Even the hardships
assing and deadly. Many times the hob- night, the kender seek to slip out and that changed their views on the world and
goblins have made assaults on kender make new craps. By night the hobgoblins life could not alter this. True, they do
viiIages only to break and run before ever continue their probing, seeking out the “collect” magical items and weapons,
reaching the stone walls that mark the new traps and attempting to advance far- but only to prevent others from using
edge of the village. ther toward the town. these things against them. Bright bau-
bles, odd bits of information, unreadable
Aside from the attacks of lone crea- The security of the kender depends on scrolls, and other things (that just might
tures, hobgoblin raids are the greatest the effectiveness of these insidious de- be potentially dangerous) are treasured as
threat to the kender. Having learned by fenses. It is rare for a kender village to great finds. The treasure troves of the
painful experience, the hobgoblins at- have enough males to withstand a full kender are likely to be overlooked by oth-
tempt to make raids on workers in the hobgoblin assault. Once the hobgoblins ers who see only a pile of assorted junk.
fields, well away from the deadly traps of clear a large enough route through to as-
the villages. However, sometimes they sault in force, the outcome of the battle is THE FIANAWAR
become ambitious and lay siege to a vil- usually decided even before it begins.
lage, using special methods. The third major group of the
Steamwall Mountains are the Fianawar, a
tribe of dwarves found in the northern
ranges near the Tiderun. Unlike the
larger colony of Scorned Dwarves in
Northern Hosk, the Fianawar live on the
surface or at most just below it. They
make their living digging ores out of
open-pit mines and tending farms.

The Fianawar come from the same an-
cient stock as all the dwarves of Krynn—
creations of Reorx to learn his secrets of
the forge. When the Grathanich brought
about the Scattering of the People, the
Fianawar wandered south into the moun-
tains that touched the very edge of the
Aurim Empire. Here they carved their
homes out of the low mountains, slowly

82

SOUTHERN HOSK

expanding these as they dug the mines in from happy with life on the surface. They the floor, tidbits for the household pets—
search of valuable iron ore. Aside from do not like the bright sunlight, the open usually ferrets or tamed weasels. Clothes
occasional battles with the hobgoblins or expanse of sky, the cold rains, or even the are washed by beating them in the
creatures stirred from the bowels of the blooming flowers of summer. They have streams. The chemicals in the water only
earth, the lives of the Fianawar were little talent for farming, although they serve to make the cloth stiff, scratchy, and
peaceful and calm. must to survive. They still manage to sulphurous-smelling.
practice the arts of smelting and smith-
When the Cataclysm struck, it drove ing, digging open-pit mines to reach sur- Fortunately, most of their clothes are
the Fianawar out from their underground face deposits of ore, but this is little leather, sparing travelers the reek of their
world. The mountain plates tilted and comfort to them. garb. A male dwarf who spends most of
heaved. Fiery lava surged through the his day at the forge wears heavy leather
mine shafts scouring them clean. The The Fianawar live in small villages pants, thick boots, linen shirt, and a stiff
roofs of great caverns buckled, crushing built close to the cliff walls that mark leather apron. For men, the apron is more
entire communities. Vents spilt sulphu- their old homelands. Their houses are than a piece of work clothing. It is also a
rous fumes to roil through underground squat structures, solidly built from blocks sign of position and duty; as such, the
corridors, asphyxiating all caught within of stone in imitation of the caverns that apron is worn on almost all occasions.
them. The dwarves had no choice but to were once their homes. The roofs are Dwarven women wear long dresses of
flee to the surface. made of sod and the walls have few if any white linen, stained yellow-brown by the
windows. waters, embroidered with mythical
At first the dwarves lived in rude camps scenes. These are often smudged and
near the entrances to their old caverns. Each village is a cluster of houses, soiled, but the good wife or prospective
Certainly, they felt, things would settle workshops, granaries, and stables. Smelt- bride goes to great effort to keep her
down soon and they would be able to re- ers belch thick smoke as the dwarves stoke clothing spotlessly clean.
turn home. After a few weeks of volcanic the fires to work the ore. Streams are re-
displays, patrols ventured back in. They routed to flow through the villages. The For battle, the dwarves have one great
were never heard from again. The Fiana- flowing water turns the wheels that drive advantage over their neighbors—an
war were forced to wait even longer. the triphammers beating out the metal. abundance of skillfully made metal ar-
Farther down it carries away the effluents mor and weapons. Each village assembles
Over the next century, the dwarves at- and garbage of the villagers. Outside the and maintains its own armory, providing
tempted to return to the land under- towns are mounds of cinders and slag, the complete equipment for every able-
ground several times. A few of these tailings from the smelters. Beyond these bodied male of the village. A typical ar-
attempts met with immediate disaster— are the scraggly fields of the farmers. mory has a mixture of field plate and
the passages explored were still danger- Beets, turnips, rutabagas and other good, chain mail armors, along with leaf-
ously volcanic. Floors collapsed into pits solid root vegetables fill the rows of the headed boar spears and hefty swords.
of boiling lava. Scalding, poisonous gases fields.
suddenly spewed from burst fissures. At Rank generally determines who wears
other times the new settlements met with The Fianawar themselves are a dour what, although valor in battle is also rec-
slow and evil disaster. A child would wan- band. To non-dwarves they look like any ognized. The heavy (noble) infantry
der off, never seen again. Fire demons other of their kind, short-legged stocky dresses in elaborate plate mail, while the
leapt out of flaming pools to seize vic- fellows with long beards and unsmiling lowest soldier has no less than a suit of
tims. Attempting to reopen old mine faces. To other dwarves they are quite dis- chain mail. All use shields, the size de-
shafts, miners died in streams of lava acci- tinctive. They stand slightly taller and pending on the arms carried. Lighter in-
dentally released. It was more than the leaner than others of their kind, though fantry (those wearing chain mail) carry
Fianawar could take. Each time the survi- their muscles are gnarled and hard. They spears and small shields that can be
vors returned to the surface with new tales have fairer complexions than most, if strapped to the arm without interfering
of horrors underground. their skin can be seen under the layers of with the spear. The heavy. infantry wield
dirt and coal smoke. swords and large shields.
As a result, the Fianawar have been
forced to make a life above-ground. The Fianawar are not the cleanest peo-
Worse still, the failed attempts and the ple in the world. With the waters that
gruesome descriptions brought back by flow down from the Steamwall being
survivors have made instilled a mass ter- what they are, the Fianawar seldom
ror in the people. After several centuries bathe. Soap is almost unknown. Nor are
of failure, they have become afraid of the their table manners particularly good.
underground and no longer make major Knives and bowls are the only tableware.
attempts to settle it. The Fianawar are re- Most meals are eaten with the fingers
signed to life on the surface. from a common pot. Beards and aprons
are used as napkins. Scraps are thrown on
At the same time, the Fianawar are far

83



FISHERIES AND NERON HOSK

THE FISHERIES livelihood for the humans and human- into the Great Reed Delta, an uninhab-
oids who live among the islands, for the ited and unexplored swamp with which
AND NERON Fisheries are not completely deserted. no man is familiar. This coastline is con-
tinually battered by huge tropical storms
In the age before the Cataclysm, Neron Scattered throughout the islands are and hurricanes.
was famed as a great untracked wilder- small villages of fishermen. Most are hu-
ness. It was a place where men did not man settlements, men and women who And yet beyond this coast, resisting the
live. No man explored it, indeed no man trace their ancestry back centuries before onslaught of the waves, are the fiercely
even knew what might be found there. Its the Cataclysm. In those ages they were independent people of Baltch. Split off
coasts were only partially charted and no hunters and nomads, roaming the great from the rest of Neron in the Cataclysm,
maps at all existed of its interior. It was plain of Neron. Since the creation of the the Baltchians survived the nightmare of
known there were jungles and strange Fisheries, they have adapted to a sea- Hiteh’s Night on their own skills and re-
beasts, but beyond that there might be going life, learning the arts of canoe sources. They have stubbornly refused to
anything. building and fishing. Their skill has surrender and have turned their island
reached the point where they are daring into a fortress against the forces of nature.
Like all else of Taladas, Neron was shat- to venture beyond the sheltered channels Baltch is a low-lying island, barely above
tered by the explosion of the Cataclysm. of the Fisheries and into the broader ways sea level; great storms have more than
Like all the other lands it suffered the of the Windless Ocean itself. once threatened to sweep it away. It is
drastic changes of new mountains, volca- only through a series of massive engineer-
noes, and sunken lands. Of all these Not all the fishermen of the Fisheries ing projects—great dikes, breakwaters,
changes, the creation of the Fisheries are human, however. Other inhabitants and canals—that the people of Baltch
were the greatest. When the southern of the Neron plain were also forced to have managed to survive.
channel to the Indanalis was ripped adapt to the ways of the water. Thus,
open, the flooding waters from the among the channels are small popula- Inland, in the steaming forests of
Windless Sea swept through the widen- tions of hobgoblins, goblins, and elves. Neron, live the Wild Elves, dangerous
ing fissures that split the swampy plain Of these, the hobgoblins have been the but noble savages. Little is known of this
dividing Southern Hosk from Neron. most successful. Like their human neigh- people. Few travelers choose to venture
The massive tidal waves gouged out the bors, the hobgoblins have become skilled into the heart of the Neron jungles, nor
channels, driving great walls of mud be- builders of canoes and catamarans and are the few who dare welcomed openly by
fore them. The mud and debris snagged use their skills to fish and raid. The gob- the naturally shy and suspicious Wild
up on anything that would hold it. Grad- lins have been more hapless and timid in Elves. Thus contact with them is infre-
ually thick dams were created and the their sailing, making their efforts on the quent and dangerous. The culture of
Fisheries, a cluster of low islands, once water almost comical. While the elves of Aurim never reached into this vastness
part of Neron, were born. the Fisheries have the talents to be master and those peoples about to step out of
boat builders, they lack the ambition. their infancy and become kingdoms were
The Fisheries are now a group of sub- Most of the few elf villages look inland, cast down in the darkness of Hiteh’s
tropical islands, barely above sea level. the capricious elves fascinated by the riot- Night. Neron has reverted to barbarism.
The shorelines are thick mangrove ous and exotic abundance of nature.
swamps amid which rise silty mounds of In addition, travelers must contend
dry land. Sea water flows and mingles Neron, to the east, is all verdant jungle with giant poisonous spiders, huge liz-
with the streams of fresh water from in- and wild beasts. Of the empty lands of ards, snakes, hobgoblins, ogres, and the
land. Most of the islands are like this eastern Taladas, it is the most populous; sinister yaggol. The yaggol are only myths
throughout their area, treacherous mix- most of the inhabitants live deep in the and bogeymen to outsiders, used to scare
tures of dry land and bog, the boundary jungles of the western side. Rising children. Yet, the Wild Elves stoutly
between each vague and changing with quickly from the low coast along the Fish- maintain these evil creatures are quite
the monsoon rains. Tropical orchids, lil- eries, the heart of Neron becomes a rug- real and both fear and hate them with
ies, and other brilliant flowers fill the ged highland jungle. Though the land equal passion.
swamps and the trees, concealing deadly never reaches to great heights (except
serpents and brilliantly colored birds. along the backbone), the hills are steep THE PAYAN MAKO
and razor-edged, covered with thick for-
The lush jungle growth of these islands ests of mahogany and teak. The largest island of the Fisheries is
provides more than just a haven for exotic Syldar, home of the Payan Mako, the
birds and animals. The shallow channels Fast-flowing rivulets rush down the most populous of the human villages in
that run through the Fisheries are fertile slope, tumbling into the rivers that fill the Fisheries. Although there are other
spawning grounds for millions of fish. It the narrow valley floors. These rivers in settlements, both human and nonhu-
is these fish that provide the food and turn roar through the narrow gorges, man, on Syldar, the Payan Mako are con-
flowing to the lowlands of the east. Here sidered to be the de facto rulers of the
the collection of waters slows and eddies

85

FISHERIES AND NERON HOSK

island, although there is no government chief usually sends a canoe to meet the and only know of them through stories
as such. They control the selection of the boat and ascertain its business. Once this and legends. The only threat to the Payan
fishing waters, new settlements, and even is done, the ship is welcomed into the chiefs, as it is a threat to all the people of
the territories of the charcoal burners in harbor. Of course, this is only the way it is the Fisheries, are the shark men.
the forests. supposed to work. More than one captain
has met his end when the villagers didn’t THE SHARK MEN
The Payan Mako are a short people, av- care for his friendly overtures and came
eraging about five feet in height. Al- out to visit his small boat in force. A recent arrival in the Fisheries, ap-
though not large-boned, their bodies pearing only in the last three decades or
The villages of the Payan are typical of so, is the secret cult of the shark men.
have a generous layer of fat. Their skins all the villages of the Fisheries. The This evil group has managed to spread
are a deep bronze and are almost entirely houses are clustered on a low rise of land, like a cancer throughout the islands of the
hairless. Men shave their heads as a mat- close to the beach. Each house is set on Fisheries, attracting followers to its dark
ter of custom and hygiene. Women wear legs five to six feet tall. The posts are cause. Led by priests empowered by Eres-
studded with sharp pieces of shell and tern, the shark men seek to crush and sub-
theirs closely cropped. serve as protection from both high water jugate all the tribes of the islands.
Since the Fisheries are a tropical land, and the giant rats that come out at night. Unknown, even to themselves, they are
another branch of Evil’s efforts to rule
clothing is kept to a minimum. Men most The houses are built of various woods and and dominate Taladas.
often wear a simple loincloth of pounded thatched on the sides and roof with palm.
bark and fish skin. Women wear a larger The floor is covered with thick mats and a As a secret society, the shark men do
sarong of bark cloth, stamped with inked fire pit is built into the center. This fire is not advertise their presence in a village
designs and patterns. Young children are until they are in complete control. The
most often naked. Shoes or sandals are not used for cooking, which is done out- members of the cult come from all walks
not commonly worn. In battle the men side, but provides light and thick smoke of life, but are most often blackguards
carry rectangular shields of woven palm to drive away insects. Sometimes it also and ne’er-do-wells to start with. While it
fiber. Since most fighting is a result of sea provides warmth on the infrequent cold is impossible to identify a shark man in
raids, few wear any other armor. How- nights. A simple pole ladder is used to everyday life, they are easily identified
ever, those wishing to show off their enter. This is pulled up at night to keep when dressed in the trappings of their
wealth and prestige may have a breast- out rats, snakes, and enemies. Among cult. Each man makes a mask-headdress-
plate made of bone and shell or even a the sleeping houses are also granaries, war helmet in the shape of a killer shark,
suit of metal armor taken or traded from built in the same fashion. These store his own face looking out through the
an explorer or traveler. Spears and short dried fish and fruits, as very little else is fearsome jaws of the monster. Over his
bows, both of which use shark teeth or harvested on the islands. shoulders he wears a cape of sharkskin
sharpened shells for heads, are employed and instead of weapons he wears gaunt-
as everyday weapons, but each warrior The Payan are fishermen, seldom ven- lets set with razor-sharp shark teeth in the
also has a set of prized metal-edged weap- turing very far inland. Indeed, their main hand. Victims of the shark men are nor-
ons used for formal battles and special oc- reason for going inland is cut a large tree mally found washed up on the shores of
casions. for a canoe. These canoes, some up to 40 the lagoon, savagely ripped and shredded
feet long, are dugouts fitted with an out- by the claws.
The Payan Mako live simply. They have rigger or sometimes two. All are capable
few ambitions to conquer their neighbors of raising a simple sail of palm thatch. In In their goal to dominate the villages of
or explore beyond their known bounda- these canoes the men sail out long dis- the Fisheries, the shark men follow a basic
ries. This means, however, that they are tances into the channels of the Fisheries, pattern. As the cult spreads into a new
fiercely protective of those boundaries, as sometimes gone for a week or more. area, agents of the cult, usually men from
everything within them is their territory. Upon their return they bring back fish to a nearby village, begin recruiting new
Neighboring villagers (who are equally as be eaten fresh or dried and smoked for members. At first those recruited are the
defensive about their lands) know the later use. dissatisfied and the scoundrels of the vil-
limits and prudently avoid entering the lage. Lured by promises of power and im-
territories of the Payan Mako. Aside from the occasional disputes portance, such men are easily recruited.
with their neighbors, the Payan have no Once this is done, tales of the power, im-
Strangers who enter the villages of the rivals to contend with. Although they call portance, and wisdom of the shark men
Payan must be careful not to antagonize the hobgoblins “demon-men” (and the are spread. A priest-leader arrives and
the villagers, lest they prompt an attack. goblins steal their children), they are not holds secret meetings, using his spells to
Entering a village without warning, com- particularly afraid or hostile toward this demonstrate the miraculous power of the
ing in large numbers, or carrying weap- race. In turn, the hobgoblins are content cult and draw in new recruits.
ons are all likely to anger or upset the to raid other, more vulnerable villages
villagers. Experienced traders anchor and leave the Payan in peace. The elves of
their ships just offshore and enter the la- the Fisheries they have no contact with
goon of the village in a small boat. The

86

FISHERIES AND NERON HOSK

Once the cult becomes established, it These methods have enabled the shark ferent. They are a small race, averaging
turns to deal with dissenters through a men to spread quite effectively through- about 4’9” in height. Rare is the individ-
campaign of terror. Chosen critics are rit- out the southern parts of the Fisheries. ual who reaches five feet. Their bodies are
ually murdered, both to terrify the others They have managed to get a strong toe- slender and well-proportioned for their
and bind the local members closer to the hold onto Syldar, challenging the author- height. Their hair is dark brown to a dark
cult. The mutilated bodies are left for ity of the Payan Mako. However, here green-black and their eyes are deep forest
others to find with a shark tooth as a sym- they have met strong resistance. The green. Most notable is their skin, which
bolic threat. chiefs, wizards, and shamans of the seems to reflect the colors of the jungle
Payan, being all one people, have orga- from deep wood brown to shades of
After a few deaths, less vocal oppo- nized to fight back. No longer are the green.
nents receive ominous warnings, usually shark men preying on isolated, unsup-
a bloody shark tooth hung from the door- ported villages. For the first time they are A savage people living in the warm
post of the lodge house. Villagers are told attempting to overcome a network as or- jungles, the cha’asii wear little in the way
to hang shark teeth or jaws from their ganized as they are. The secret struggle of clothing and what little they wear is
roof-poles as a sign of allegiance or suffer between the Payan and the shark men similar to their kin the hulderfolk. Males
harm. Those who refuse are slaughtered will certainly last for many years to come. go most often naked or with a simple
or their properties are destroyed. This loincloth of woven leaves, while females
binds most of the people to the shark THE WILD ELVES OF NERON wear a barely modest covering of leaves.
men. Finally, when the majority of the During the rainy season, they weave sim-
population is cowed, the shark men Certainly the most secluded people in ple rain capes from grasses and palm
openly enter the village and challenge the Taladas and perhaps the most barbaric are fronds. Under the hot sun it is typical to
authority of the elders. Some chiefs and the Wild Elves of Neron. Although they improvise a quick, simple hat from a
elders readily submit, while others accept share the same designation as the Ka- palm frond.
the challenge. This usually results in gonesti of Ansalon, the Wild Elves of
death for the elders, but in some cases the Neron (known as the cha‘asii) make the In addition to their clothing, the
villagers (finally given a tangible target) Kagonesti seem like gentrified squires. cha’asii love bright decorations. Both
throw off their fear and drive the cultists sexes make and wear necklaces of exotic
out. Cha’asii appearance is startlingly dif- feathers, earrings of shells, and hair orna-
ments of carved bone. Along with steel

87

FISHERIES AND NERON HOSK

weapons, brightly colored ribbons and tices that draw out inflammations and cha’asii wizard who learns something
trinkets are prized treasures of the poisons, powders to relieve headaches, other than natural magic.
cha’asii. This is not because they are potions to bring forgetfulness, and subtle
simple-minded. Those who deal with the juices to bring sleep. They eschew the use Another aspect of their philosophies of
outside world are perfectly aware of the of poisons and the art of poison-making is magic is that every thing is imbued with
power of money; it’s just that they have taboo. However, they have no qualms hidden magical energy. A wizard does
no use for it. about dipping their darts in sleeping not create a magical item by instilling it
juice or building fires to carry sickness with energy, instead he invokes it by
The weapons of the cha’asii are partic- smoke (which causes fierce bouts of nau- bringing out the hidden power within it.
ularly suited to their world. The thick sea) into the camps of their enemies. Thus creating a magical item requires
jungles make most long-range weapons, that the wizard learn what power is
such as powerful long bows, impractical. The herbalism of the cha’asii is much within the item that can be tapped. The
The cha’asii use some small, light-weight more than just an minor, though interest- more aesthetically perfect the item, the
short bows but more often favor carefully ing, aberration because of their excep- purer and more powerful the magic. Per-
lacquered blowguns. Slashing weapons tional skill in the arts of nature magic. haps this is a better understanding of the
such as swords are also impractical for The cha’asii have mastered the arcane se- magical creation process, for the cha’asii
combat, since they are too easily tangled crets of their homeland. Many of their are masters of the art. Around the fires,
in the thick undergrowth. Throwing jave- people are able to cast magical spells and the chanters sing the old legends about
lins and heavy thrusting spears are the among them there is an almost universal the great wizards who could bring out the
weapons of choice for warfare. specialization in spells of nature. magic of a thing simply by touching it.

Large outcroppings of workable ore or This specialization is far different from Whatever the method, the cha’asii
hard stone are rare, so most of their weap- the “known” schools of magic, those di- make many magical items, most of them
ons (and tools) are made from the wood vided according to the theories of princi- unfamiliar to the outside world. A won-
of the irontree, elaborately carved, pol- ple. The cha’asii view magic differently drously shaped tree, a naturally veined
ished, and sharpened. Much use is made from all others, seeing the source of all and rounded pebble, a colored turtle
of other natural materials, too. Blowgun magical energy as either coming from na- shell, all of these can become magical
darts are made from the five-inch thorns ture or from unnatural sources. To their items in the hands of the cha’asii wizards.
of the inya vine, whittled to barbed minds, the differences of conjuration ver- The very forest around a cha’asii village is
heads. sus abjuration versus enchantment are alive with magical creations of the
nothing more than differences in meth- wizards—enchanted vines, stones, and
Throwing bombs are another favored odology. They instead key in on the flowers.
weapon of the cha’asii. A crude gas bomb source, use, or constructions of the magic
is made by stuffing the cleaned bladders cast and these identify it as natural or un- Of course, such an approach has its
of monkeys with certain noxious fruits. natural. The cha’asii have no use for un- limitations. Foremost of these, at least in
These are then allowed to ferment in the natural powers—something they equate the belief system of the cha’asii, is that
sun and swell up with the rotting gases. with the yaggol—and thus rare is the the wizard has no control over the power
Once ready they are carried in gourd cases hidden within the item; he can only
until needed. When it bursts, a bladder
fills an area with a foul stench intolerable
to nearly all animals and effective for foil-
ing creatures that track by scent.

Hornets’ nests, collected at night in-
side leather bags, are used to drive off
dangerous monsters, flush beasts out of
dens, and cast enemies into confusion.
Inya vines, woven into balls, are carried
on strings inside bags. These are used like
caltrops or are hung from low branches
and concealed by leaves to act as traps.
What metal weapons they have are prized
treasures, valued more often as tools than
actual weapons.

The cha’asii are also skillful herbalists
and have the pharmaceutical wonders of
the jungle at their finger tips. They can
prepare salves that speed healing, poul-

88

FISHERIES AND NERON HOSK

bring forth what was in it. Certain items Given the apparent simplicity of the created this responsibility themselves in a
may have relatively consistent properties, cha’asii, it is usually assumed that they complex web of taboos and awe. It might
but effects could also be widely different have always been a primitive and barbaric also be as they claim, that the last dwell-
between two similar items. people. Some, upon finding the strange ers in those halls charged the cha’asii with
ruins that crop up in the jungle, assume the responsibility of protecting the halls
Part of a wizard’s training is to learn that the cha’asii were once the masters of until they returned. Whatever the rea-
the different categories of things and these ruins and have culturally regressed. son, it is a duty they accept with great so-
what magic each is likely to contain. He The cha’asii singers have another answer lemnity and reverence.
must learn to recognize the different in their secret songs. (Through these the
types of plants, the small signs that dif- singers tap the power of nature to cast Many travelers have fallen prey to the
ferentiate between stones, and so on. It is spells and thus the songs are kept secret to lure of treasure the mysterious halls offer,
said throughout the League and else- prevent dilution and weakening of the but all have run afoul of the cha’asii.
where that great wizards are born with great magic they contain.) These songs Some have survived this encounter, most
the magic in their eyes; in the jungles of suggest the cha’asii did not regress but have not, but those who have sometimes
Neron it is said a great wizard is born able advanced, reaching the stage where they bring back strange magical items that
to see the magic through his eyes. chose to abandon the trappings of civili- made the risk worthwhile—swords with
zation to return to harmony with nature. great powers, magical cloaks in spotless
The cha’asii live in small groups in the It is certainly true that the cha’asii are condition after 2,000 years in mildew-
deep jungle. Since they live by hunting, more a part of the jungle than just vil- festering heat, or cups and bowls that
the groups are widely scattered through lagers trying to live in spite of or off of the when filled offer terrifying yet realistic
the jungle valleys. Nonetheless, the jungle. glimpses of other worlds.
groups all share a close feeling of kinship.
In their tales there are no accounts of one Sometimes the traders ask about the Because of this duty and because of the
family ever attacking another. Those in strange ruins found in the region, mas- threat of the yaggol, the cha’asii are a
the village are members of the same fam- sive halls of stone-like wood. Vines wrap hostile people. Strangers are not welcome
ily or sometimes several families. Males around fallen pillars, insects swarm over among them and winning their trust re-
and females are considered equal. Tasks eroded carvings, saplings crack through quires extraordinary patience and toler-
are divided between both and, with the the floors, steaming rays of sun shine ance for a human. Living the long lives of
exception of child-bearing, there is little through the fallen roofs. It is clear the elves, the cha’asii seldom hurry in any-
difference between the two sexes. Fe- cha’asii never built these places. To an- thing. A new trader attempt to contact
males are welcomed as warriors and swer the questions, the cha’asii shake them may have to wait for years, during
hunters and are often fiercer than their their heads and say they do not know, but which time they watch him without ever
male counterparts. their eyes belie their words. once approaching. Only after they are
satisfied will they approach.
From life the cha’asii seem to ask little. In truth the cha’asii know much more
Their homes are simple grass huts built about the ruins in the jungle, for these Fortunately most of the traders are car-
on the ground or in the broad spreading have an important place in their secret rying on work started by their fathers,
branches of trees that grow along the songs. These songs tell of a time when the simplifying things somewhat. Few new
streams and rivers. The huts are arranged ruins were home to the ancient ancestors traders can manage to do business with
around the central fire pit where the of the cha’asii. At one time the ruins were the cha’asii. Even after being accepted,
cooking and feasting is done. Some time part of a great empire, more enlightened strangers are always treated with extreme
each day is spent in hunting or tending and far older than the Empire of Aurim. formality. A trusted human visit to a
the small gardens nearby, but most of the It was an empire of the elves from the very camp means there will be dancing and a
day is spent lazing in the heat. During beginning of time. It ruled in a time be- feast, but there will not be familiarity.
this time they work on wood carvings and fore men began writing histories. Indeed
repair their equipment. it is so ancient that even the wizards of Those who attempt to force their pres-
the League, noted for their long memo- ence on the cha’asii, in numbers large or
Their carvings are works of art, combi- ries and curiosity about things long- small, are be greeted by death. The
nations of intricate detail and natural forgotten, do not know its name or cha’asii simply do not like strangers. Of
grains and curves. These carvings, along location. All that remains are the halls, course, there are exceptions. Should an
with the exotica of the forests, are desired built of a wood so strange that it has out- outsider save the life of one of the
by those few traders who have found and lasted stone and withstood the darkness cha’asii, he may be accepted by that fam-
befriended the cha’asii. In exchange the of the Cataclysm. ily. More importantly, any who fight
elves receive trade goods such as jewelry, against the yaggol earn the respect of the
knives, cloth, pots, and magical spells. The songs also tell of the cha’asii and cha’asii.
This last item commands great prices, but their duties as the protectors and care-
many traders have received interesting re- takers of the wood halls. It could be they The yaggol are the sworn enemies of
wards for the spells they provide. the cha’asii and the two races have been
warring in their own way for centuries.

89

FISHERIES AND NERON HOSK

The yaggol are a race of mind flayers, a field, men and women prefer floor- night. Thus the people have formed
isolated group that has slid into decadent length flowing robes of cotton. Headgear corps to repair and extend the works of
barbarism more savage than their already is most often a scarf or headband, al- the Seawall. Each corps is responsible for
depraved natures. They lurk in under- though brightly decorated hats of straw a certain area or a certain task and is held
ground colonies and in the thickest areas are also worn. The upper class wear sev- accountable for the success or failure of
of the forest where sunlight never reaches eral layers of loose cotton robes, dyed and the Seawall. To be the commander of
the forest floor. printed in clashing patterns. A sash such a corps is both a great honor and a
draped over the shoulders identifies offi- great responsibility.
Dressed in nothing but loincloths cials of the bureaucracy according to their
made from the hides of their victims, rank and office. But such things as Seawalls and engi-
they use only their formidable mental neering corps do not spring into existence
powers and their taloned hands to feed During the Cataclysm, Baltch was split by themselves. There has been a price,
their loathsome appetites. Driven by from the mainland of Taladas. At the perhaps more grievous to some than oth-
their desires to dominate and their con- same time, the continental plate that ers. The people of Baltch have had to sub-
tempt for all other life, the yaggol do not supported both the Reed Delta and mit to the absolute rule of the Master
just prey on the Wild Elves; they also ter- Baltch subsided a considerable distance. Engineer, the leader of the nation. Under
rorize and taunt them. Bodies are gro- What had once been upland plain sud- his guidance, life in Baltch is more con-
tesquely staked to trees or floated denly became swampy lowlands, barely trolled and regimented than anywhere
downstream past their home village. Vic- above sea level. Now Baltch and its peo- else in Taladas. Each inhabitant of the is-
tims are horribly tortured for days, their ple live in continual danger of being land is a citizen and the birth and death
screams floating over the jungle for fami- washed away in one of the ferocious hur- of every citizen is recorded in the Great
lies and relatives to hear night after night. ricanes that sweep out of the southeast. Registry. Here wizards use their spells to
The cruelty of the yaggol and the pleasure locate and record all the information
they derive from it is beyond description. Fortunately, the Baltchians are not to- needed to fuel the great bureaucracy of
tally defenseless in this war. Even before Baltch.
BALTCH the Cataclysm they were known for their
engineering skills. They supplied many Under the Master Engineer, the citi-
Separated from the mainland since the of the master builders who erected the zens of Baltch have submitted themselves
Cataclysm, the people of Baltch have monuments of Aurim, the great bridges to a thorough accounting of their lives. In
been forced into a battle for survival and roads that linked the distant corners
unique among all the lands of Taladas, of the empire. Their hands guided the
even Krynn. Their foe is not dragons, not building of the old capital, Amoushek
the fiery hordes of Hitehkel, nor even the the Golden, with all its towers and pal-
volcanic forces from the earth’s interior. aces. When disaster struck and the land
Their enemy is persistent, uncaring, and sank, it was not long before they realized
unconquerable. The people of Baltch are the need for protection from the sea.
locked in a never-ending battle against
the sea. Their solution has been to create the
Seawall, a system of dikes, canals, break-
The people of Baltch are an ordinary- waters, and levees. Beginning on the sea-
looking lot. Men and women are neither ward side, the Seawall has gradually come
tall nor short and tend to be a little on the to enclose all but a tiny portion of the is-
plump side. Their faces are tanned and land. This small gap remains as both a
weatherbeaten by the constant assaults of drainage flow and their largest port,
sun and salt air. Men grow full beards and opening into the strait between Baltch
mustaches and women wear their straight and the Reed Delta. The Seawall cannot
hair long and loose. stop the storms, but through careful
planning it blunts their force. The tower-
Clothing is made from cotton grown ing waves tear across the breakwaters,
on the island and brightly dyed in pat- slowly losing force while the canals drain
terns of yellows, reds, oranges, and blues. the water away from the settled lands.
A peasant’s dress in the field would be Dikes in series protect the farmlands that
short pantaloons, easily pulled up above lie below sea level.
the knee, and a loose, short-sleeved
jacket. Women wear a similar pair of All of this requires constant mainte-
pants when working, but wear a tight- nance. A lapse of vigilance can be fatal. If
fitting, high-collared blouse. Out of the a weakened dike is ignored, hundreds of
homes could be destroyed in a single

90

FISHERIES AND NERON HOSK

addition to births and deaths, each citi- ards attend special universities to learn this is a long and dangerous journey.
zen must register in the town where he their arts. Here they are taught to under- There have even been small sea skir-
lives, list his occupation, and the size of stand the effects of the moon gods on mishes between the ships of the mino-
his household. A citizen can move or their powers and to select their specializa- taurs and the Baltchians, though never
change jobs only by obtaining the appro- tions in much the same way others select serious enough to cause bad blood be-
priate permit. Land ownership is natu- master’s degrees. tween the two.
rally recorded and new land, cleared
forests or drained swamp, must be sur- Although many of the Engineers are Regular trade routes include voyages to
veyed and approved by the Engineers trained soldiers, there is no standing the Fisheries and the tribes of the
from the capital. Every citizen is assigned army. On an island far from other civiliza- Rainward Isles. Occasionally ships ven-
to a work gang and required to work on tions, they have had little need to defend ture to the southern coasts of Thenol, an
the canals for a set number of days each from invasion. On those rare occasions unpopular voyage as the Thenolites are a
year. when an army is needed, the Engineers dour and sinister lot. A few risk the dan-
raise the work gangs and arm them as mi- gers of the Storm Sea to reach the shores
The organization of the government litia. While the peasants are poorly of old Aurim. The risks here of the Storm
reflects this obsession with the Seawall. trained as soldiers, the experience gained Sea and trading with the temperamental
Some of the more powerful offices in- in mobilizing for storm repairs is equally hobgoblins outweighs the reward for
clude the Grand Surveyor, the Ministry of applicable to the muster of the gangs for most captains, so that most of these voy-
Excavations, the Ministry of Prediction troops. The Engineers may have poorly ages are done out of curiosity or the sense
(for weather), the Commander of the trained armies, but they can raise huge of adventure.
Quarrymen, and the Commander of the numbers and amass them in one spot in
Outer Dikes. There are also more normal record time. This has been enough to de- When trading, the fleets of Baltch fill
posts including the Admiral of the Fleet, ter or defeat any foe. their holds with bales of cotton and bags
the Lord Assessor, the Lord of the Trea- of rice grown in Baltch, rare woods and
sury, and the Steward of the Master’s On the other hand, as an island nation, spices taken from the forests of Neron,
Household. the people of Baltch have had need of a copper and iron taken from the moun-
strong navy. Here they lack the powerful tains of the Rainward Isles, silks from
The ruling class of the island is made resources of the League to assemble a Thenol, and exotic artifacts plundered
up of the Engineers. These men are huge fleet and so have had to rely on the from the ruins of Old Aurim. These they
trained at the university in various engi- quality of their ships and crews instead. carry from land to land, some to their
neering sciences. Beyond the arts of ge- The Engineers have applied themselves own shores and some to other places.
ometry, mathematics, reading, writing, to the task of ship design with the same Thus the sailors of Baltch form the links
and architecture, their training also in- vigor that they have given to the design of between the two peoples of Taladas, those
cludes more unusual topics, such as strat- the Seawall, resulting in stronger and of east and west separated by the flaming
egy, assessment, law, and rhetoric. faster ships for their fleet. Since so many hell of Hitehkel.
Engineers are expected to be more than of the island’s inhabitants make their liv-
just builders. They also serve as com- ing from the sea, there is no lack of able
manders of the armies, clerks, judges, seamen to man these ships.
heralds, tax collectors, and ambassadors.
The Engineers fill all the important gov- Materials to build the fleet are another
ernment posts. matter. Baltch has little in the way of for-
ests needed to build the fleet. Instead,
The Engineers are assisted in their du- workmen sail to Neron, sometimes up-
ties by the Recorders, wizardly assistants. river into the Reed Delta and sometimes
These men use their arts to handle most around the southern coast, to cut the
of the paperwork created by the bureauc- wood needed. Normally the ship is built
racy and serve as advisors to the Engineer there on the spot, with a temporary camp
lords. The advisors tend to specialize in built for the workmen. Some of these
greater divination; the wizards in the temporary camps have been revisited so
field are more often specialists in altera- often they are almost permanent. If
tion, an art useful in manipulating the things continue in this course, it will not
stone for the builders. be long before these camps become per-
manent villages, outposts of a fledgling
The wizards have such titles as Grand Baltch empire.
Registrar, Master of Storms, Assistant
Commander of the Outer Dikes, and With their fleet, the Engineers have
Finder of the Hidden (a master tax- traveled far and wide. A few have sailed
collector). Like the Engineers, the wiz- as far as the great cities of the League, but

91



OLD AURIM AND THE RAINWARD ISLES

OLD AURIM AND and moved on. With time they chose to Like the stories of lost dwarven gold
stay and expand their homelands. mines and wonderful gnomish machines
THE RAINWARD ISLES frozen into glaciers, there is more talk
But the hobgoblins are not alone, for than truth to most of these tales.
Thanks to the seething cauldron of Hi- Erestem has left behind a little something
tehkel, Taladas is a land divided into two for the people of Taladas. An integral The Rainward Isles, at the northern
halves. To the west are the towering part of her schemes to conquer the world fringes of Taladas, are covered with
mountains and vast plains of Hosk. Al- of Ansalon were the hordes of draconians gloomy pine forests and craggy outcrop-
though broken, these lands still teem she created to serve as her armies, but pings of rock. The islands are grey lands,
with life. To the east are the gray and they did not spring from nothing. The se- usually cold and misty. During the sum-
dust-choked lands of Aurim, as well as cret methods by which they were made mer, wet winds blow off the Storm Sea. In
the Rainward Isles. These lands, caught had to be discovered and perfected. Shat- winter, cold ocean breezes meet the
under the poisonous clouds blown from tered Aurim was the land she chose to warmer winds from inland, shrouding
Hitehkel, are the home to only a few conduct her experiments. Thus she has the islands in thick mists. The cold winter
brave and hardy souls. left behind traces of her handiwork. skies can suddenly explode in fierce
storms that come roaring out of the track-
Old Aurim, once the seat of a vast em- Scattered throughout Aurim are the less ocean wastes. The few sailors who
pire, is only a narrow shattered strip cov- results of her experiments. Only a few are venture into these waters fear sailing dur-
ered in ash and lava. There was a time true draconians. Most are twisted failures ing these times for the waters surround-
when it was larger, the greatest land of all or unsuitable aberrations. Most died ing the isles are strewn with jagged rocks,
Taladas. But that was before the stone quickly, others were infertile, but some often hidden just below the surface.
from the sky ripped the better part of the have bred and prospered. These evil crea-
land away and threw up the towering tures, calling themselves the traag, are a Yet the isles are inhabited. Humans,
mountains across the plains of Aurim. In breed of draconian unique to Taladas. Ig- dwarves, and kender—tough and fiercely
a single instant, the Empire of Aurim dis- nored by their makers up to now, their independent—have managed to build
appeared forever. success in the hostile land of Aurim has lives here out of the ruins of Aurim. Al-
once again piqued Erestem’s and Hiteh’s though the land seems inhospitable, it is
Still, there was worse to come for the interest in this line of draconians. Now rich in animal life. Elk, deer, and bear
people who survived that first blow as the they, the hobgoblins, and a few beasts are roam the forests. Otter and beaver play in
darkness of Hiteh’s Night descended the only dwellers remaining in Old the many streams that wind through the
upon them. Dark clouds of ash and gas Aurim. rocky valleys. Wild apples, pears, and
swept out of Hitehkel and scoured the re- plums grow in natural orchards. Sweet
mains of Aurim. Thick black rains fell, Still, Old Aurim does have its won- rasp berries, blueberries, and gooseberries
coating everything. Epidemics of plague, ders. The ruins of the old empire are still line the banks. Strawberries cover the
cholera, flu, dysentery, and others even majestic, sometimes rising in the most ground of open meadows. For those will-
worse swept through the remaining unlikely places. Greedy, foolhardy, or ing to look and hunt, the Rainward Isles
towns and cities. The people, accustomed brave men have ventured into the do- are a treasure trove of delights.
to the healing of priests, knew almost main of the hobgoblins hoping to find
nothing of the needs for sanitation. The treasures from that age. Just enough have The isles are not without their risks,
dead from the epidemics were piled in survived and returned with great wonders however. Just as it has an abundance of
the town squares while the coffins were to encourage others to try. shelter for wild game, it also provides a
made. The disease spread from them, in- hiding place for many creatures more
tensifying the epidemic all that much Even more fabulous is the rumored dangerous than even the great grizzly
more. Entire towns were emptied. A few Field of Dragons. Somewhere, perhaps in bears. Dragons, seeking solitude from
fortunate ones had the time and where- Old Aurim, is a concealed valley where the interference of men and gods, lair in
withal to flee; most died before they real- the oldest of ancient dragons go to die. remote corners. Wild centaurs, while not
ized the full danger. In the decades after The floor of this valley is said to be buried evil, have been known to attack in-
Hiteh’s Night, the remaining people of completely beneath the bones of the truders. Giant wolves have laid siege to
Aurim dwindled away until there were dead beasts. Surely, fortune hunters rea- lonely farms in the dead of winter. People
none. son, there must be among those bones who should have been dead, restless spir-
great treasures: gem-encrusted scales and its of Old Aurim, roam about at night
Now, Aurim is a land of dust, petrified heaps of treasures that once filled the giz- taking unwary travelers. Human, dwarf,
trees, ruins, and hobgoblins. These ubiq- zards of the old beasts. and kender have been forced to work to-
uitous creatures arrived over the years to gether to survive, creating a unique sense
claim what the humans had left behind. Of course, while there are many who of trust and cooperation among the three
At first they only looted what they could claim to have been there or who know races.
someone who was there once, there is no
one who can say precisely where it is or
just exactly what is to be found there.

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OLD AURIM AND THE RAINWARD ISLES

THE HOBGOBLINS built. Hides and thick leathers are most terrorize all the others without getting
common, often mixed with bits of metal killed in the process. The tribes have no
Although the traag draconians are in- armor, a shoulder piece here, a breastplate laws beyond this. Disputes, even minor
creasing in strength and numbers there. Full suits of metal armor are rare and ones, are settled by force. Experience has
throughout the lands of Aurim, the hob- are usually worn by the most powerful shown the hobgoblins that it is better to
goblins are still the major power of this members of the tribe. kill even for the slightest argument. An
blasted land and look to be so for a long enemy left to live will harbor a grudge
time to come. Blood- thirsty, merciless, vi- Pure power is the only concept the and might strike at any time. Dead heads
cious, feral, and homicidal, all words that hobgoblins understand. They are orga- hold no thoughts, dead hands hold no
have been used to describe them, are the nized into tribes, each tribe ruled by swords, so the hobgoblin saying goes.
very qualities that ensure their domi- chief. The tribal size is determined by
nance in the region. Their solution to a how many the chief can terrorize and This system leads to a clear pecking or-
threat or problem is to kill it. They do not keep under his control; family means der like a pack of animals. The chief
spare innocents, they do not wait to be at- nothing to the creatures, they have no bosses everyone under him, his underling
tacked, and they do not surrender. To be concept of it. Several chiefs are in turn defers to the chief and bosses those under
sure, a strong resistance can rout them, ruled, more or less, by a Great Chief. The him, etc., down to the lowest level. In
but they are seldom defeated for long. Great Chief is usually the chief of the every tribe there is one poor, miserable
largest tribe. He maintains his position hobgoblin terrorized by all others. No
The hobgoblins of Aurim have no dress by playing one chief off against another, one feels any sympathy for him, only sat-
but war dress. Every member of a tribe goes setting them to war upon each other any isfaction that they are of higher status.
about armed. Adults, male and female, time his power is threatened. Still, his The children, ignored by their elders,
typically carry spears, clubs, jagged-edged power is limited at best. His most fre- also follow this system among them-
swords, and wicked looking pole-arms. quent task is to assemble the tribes for a selves. Those hobgoblins who bother to
Even children are armed with knives and major raid, either on tribes of a neighbor- think about all this believe the whole sys-
daggers. Nor are they unwilling to use these ing Great Chief or, more rarely, to the tem is good since it promotes strength
weapons, even on each other. Armor re- lands outside Aurim. and weeds out the weaklings. After all,
places clothing, most of it scrounged from the strongest tribe will be the greatest.
ancient ruins, dead bodies, or crudely Becoming a chief is a fairly simple mat-
ter: Kill anyone who opposes you and While ferocity and muscle are the most

94

OLD AURIM AND THE RAINWARD ISLES

obvious ways to power, they are not the cess. Thus it is good to ambush the enemy sualties without breaking than those of
only ways. The only measure of power is and slay him. On the other hand, stealth other people because the hobgoblins are
whether the chief is able to. defeat his and secrecy are cowardice. The bush- accustomed to it by their tactics.
challengers. To this end, reputation, fear, whacker is afraid his enemy will kill him;
and cunning are other useful tools to gain he is afraid of dying. These tendencies are not absolute by
power. In general, the best chiefs com- any means. Many times hobgoblins sur-
bine warlike savagery with devious cun- To resolve these conflicting attitudes, prise their enemies by resorting to strata-
ning. Enemies who kill each other are the hobgoblins use ambush in situations gems normally unexpected of them. Most
better enemies than enemies you kill where the odds already favor them, not often this happens when the hobgoblins
yourself is another popular saying. the other way around. Since they are are under the command of a strong chief-
likely to win, the ambush is not a reflec- tain, one who combines ruthlessness with
With the high degree of violence tion on them being afraid of death but on cunning and can get his tribe to follow his
among them, the hobgoblins have a much guaranteeing victory. In situations where commands.
different attitude about death. Those who the battle seems more evenly matched,
die are not revered; they are failures. the hobgoblins are more likely to ap- Although Aurim is a desolate land
Death is not so much feared (although no proach openly and loudly, alerting their with few resources, the hobgoblins have
normal hobgoblin wishes to die) as held in enemies of their arrival. In this way they been able to eke out an existence. They
contempt. To be afraid of death is to be are not hiding from the risk of death and are carnivores and will eat any kind of
afraid of the taker of weaklings, some- their victory over their enemies will be all meat they can find. Enlightened tribes
thing no hobgoblin cares to admit. Thus that much greater. raise dogs to be butchered for meat, but
hobgoblins are reckless, taking chances most rely on hunting. Game is sparse and
greater than warranted and exposing Of course all this can lead to some pre- fiercely competed for, so it is not unusual
themselves needlessly to danger. posterous battle tactics. On the battle- for the hobgoblins to resort to cannibal-
field, the hobgoblins are likely to ism or even eating the tough, stringy hu-
The attitudes about power and death advance slowly while making a lot of mans they find. They claim that gnome
create a dualism in the way the hobgob- noise. Tactics that would be useful, such meat is tough and hard but that it keeps
lins fight. On one hand, stealth and am- as feints, reserves, or flank marches, are for a long time and has a good flavor,
bushes increase the chance of victory over often ignored in favor of the straight-on which makes the gnomes one of their
their enemies, their only measure of suc- attack. Hobgoblin armies suffer more ca- most popular prey.

95

OLD AURIM AND THE RAINWARD ISLES

On the plain the tribes live nomadic by the traag, who torture their captives that circle the island. Hideous creatures
lives, trudging from place to place. A for days or weeks before killing them. crawl out of the Storm Sea to ravage the
tribe remains in an area for as long as pos- Likewise, any draconian who ventures coast. Yet, against all odds, those living in
sible: until the hunting goes bad, the wa- onto the plain can expect to become din- the Isles are happy and consider their lives
ter dries up, or until they are driven off by ner for a gleeful hobgoblin tribe. to be good.
their neighbors. They carry all their pos-
sessions on drags pulled behind them. Those hobgoblins on the coast have There was a time when it was all suffer-
had some contact with human traders ing and hardship. The people cast up
Upon arriving at a new camp, they set and often manage to refrain from eating here fought the elements, fought the
up tents of crudely tanned leather, helter- them. This is usually accomplished by the fantastic beasts, and fought each other.
skelter about the area. The chiefs tent is trader showing up with a large enough Men and dwarves battled each other,
at the center of the village nearest the group of guards to discourage any at- while the kender taunted and tormented
great fire. Everyone else casts their tents tacks, but a few chiefs are wise enough to both of them. It was as if a madness, a
in the best spots around him. This is an realize trade (as opposed to robbery) will poison in the air carried over from Hi-
occasion for much fighting as the more make them more powerful than their tehkel, were infecting them all. The
powerful bully the weaker out of the neighbors. slaughter might have continued if it
choice locations. Hobgoblin camps are hadn’t been for Aethelred the Squat, a
bigger than those of most nomads since By hobgoblin standards the traders wise dwarven chieftain. Under his guid-
the stronger drive the weaker farther and seem willing to pay high prices, judged in ance the warring groups were brought to-
farther to the fringes of the camp. Once quantities of metal weapons and armor, gether as the People of the Isles.
settled each tent minds its own business. for useless artifacts taken from the ruins.
There is no attempt to organize sanita- The merchants pride themselves on dup- The People, or Islanders as they are also
tion or fresh water and community de- ing the gullible beasts, trading them known, are a mixed lot. There are hu-
fense is only accomplished by the chiefs cheaply made bronze swords and spear- mans able to trace their ancestry to the
bullying. In short, they live pretty heads for powerful ancient magical nobles of old Aurim and others whose an-
squalid and miserable lives. items. It is a risky bit of trading but the cestors were once the servants of those no-
profits from a single trip can make the bles. There are dwarves from the
As noted before, hobgoblins have no whole effort worthwhile. southern mountains and dwarves from
sense of family. They are a remarkably fe- the north. Old clans have been shattered.
cund race (it is the only way they have sur- Humans without trading goods and There are kender, and it does not matter
vived and thrived, given their murderous gnomes in general can only expect the where they came from since they are all
practices), but the children are virtually worst from the hobgoblins. Gnomes, no equally infuriating. Once separate, these
ignored once weaned. No attempt is matter what their business, are enemies diverse groups have now accepted new
made to identify parents or build a famil- to be slain. While sometimes humans are identities as the People.
ial bond. A female hobgoblin will kill a able to talk their way out of dangerous sit-
child that nursed at its breast as willingly uations (especially if they can do some- Once they laid down their swords, the
as it would kill any other. Children, in thing useful for the chief) they are much People discovered that the Rainward Isles
turn, will kill elders and this is often a rite more likely to end up in the dinner pot. were much more fertile and lush than
of passage for the child. Elves, to the minds of the hobgoblins, are they had ever imagined. True, there were
nothing more than funny-looking hu- dangers, but the riches of the land and
Yet the tribe is not without some com- mans; dwarves are tall, fat gnomes, while sea more than made up for these. It did
munity spirit. They are not so dumb as to kender are skinny ones. not take long before they were living
refuse to band together if attacked or if comfortable lives. This is the way things
cooperation is needed to accomplish THE PEOPLE OF THE ISLES have been for them ever since.
some goal, provided the chief can force it
upon them. Cast off into the cold, rain-swept The People live in small villages. and
northeastern corner beyond the Storm farms close to the coast, mostly on the
They have enemies, particularly the Sea, the Rainward Isles are almost like a eastern side of the isles away from the
traag draconians that also lurk in Aurim. different world from the rest of Taladas. winds of Hitehkel. Their homes vary
No love is lost between these two groups. Here one would expect to find hardship from race to race. The humans build one-
While the hobgoblins dominate the and suffering as the sole offerings of life. and two-storey houses of oak and pine
plains of Aurim, the traag dwell in the with shuttered windows and sod roofs.
ancient ruins. Because of this, the hob- The land is wet and gray. For weeks at a Granaries and barns are built up off the
goblins seldom venture into the old cit- time the shores are fog-bound. There are ground to keep the vermin out. Some-
ies, although they know there are great days when the air reeks of sulphurous poi- times the ground floor of the house is
treasures, metal armor and weapons in son and gray ash drifts from the sky, all given over to the family cow or swine.
particular, to be found there. Only the blown over from Hitehkel. Ships are
bravest or more power-crazed risk capture ground to splinters on the jagged rocks The kender follow this pattern of
building, although their houses tend to

96

OLD AURIM AND THE RAINWARD ISLES

be smaller and more haphazard. Their around the dangerous rocks of the coast openly,. working to help all of the com-
curiosity and whimsy cannot help but ex- to bring in rich catches of smelt, herring, munity, regardless of their race.
press itself in their buildings. They are cod, and other fish. The forests are filled
forever building on, remodeling, and re- with pines that grow straight and tall, Of course, all is not idyllic in the Isles.
arranging to accommodate the latest trea- making good lumber. Trappers bring The weather and the land are still harsh.
sures they have found. back pelts of fox, squirrel, beaver, and ot- Winters are cold with mighty storms lash-
ter, while the larders of huntsmen are ing the coast for days without end. The for-
The homes of the dwarves are most dis- hung with smoked deer haunches, pots of ests also harbor horrible monsters that have
tinctive. Forced by the unstable nature of bear grease, and salted fatback of wild no qualms about attacking the People.
the rock under the soil (which is rent with boars.
volcanic fissures and moving faults), they Denied a place in the hearts of the
have adapted their deep underground The dwarves have discovered large de- community are Hiteh and Erestem, who
dwellings to a more surface-like life. The posits of copper and slightly smaller veins have launched on a horrific revenge on
entrances to their communal homes are of fine grade iron, treasures beyond price the people. The two gods have begun to
marked by a wooden gate house built to their minds. The kender, ever curious revive the evils of the islanders’ past by
into the slope of a hill. Sometimes the en- and adventurous, constantly explore and using their necromantic powers. They
trance opens onto an entire street where try to convince sailors to take them over to have summoned up wights of those killed
all people come to shop and trade; other the lands of old Aurim so they can look in the wars fought before the coming of
times the dwarven shopkeepers build through the ruins. Amazingly enough, Aethelred the Squat. These evil spirits
their shops among the villagers outside. sometimes they do and even more only remember their old hatreds and seek
Beyond the entrance hall are windowless amazing, sometimes these same kender to continue the war. They stalk the dark
passages and tunnels dug into the earth. trails that wind through the forests and
These are driven as deep as they dare, but return bearing wonders and junk, though the little-used mine shafts waiting for
still not deep as the dwarves would like. it’s all wonderful to them. their victims.
Many dwarves fondly recall the old deep
tunnels they used to live in, the ones that Even the gods have been well thought Slowly the two gods are building a dark
coiled round the roots of great mountains of in the Isles. Despite the travails of the army with which they hope to overwhelm
and from time to time expeditions will set early years, the People never fully lost the weak and merciful priests of Mislaxa.
out across the water to see if these old their faith. They have remembered the Already outlying farms have fallen.
homes can be found and reopened once old practices and the old beliefs. Hiteh Sometimes human survivors arrive in a
again. To date none have returned. and Erestem have never gained a strong village with tales of ghoulish war bands of
foothold here, for the People know them dwarves seeking revenge for an ancient
The People make their livings in a vari- for what they are. Reorx is still venerated wrong; at other times dwarven prospec-
ety of ways. Although the land is rugged by the dwarves, who see his hand in all tors come back with tales of undead hu-
and heavily forested, there are those who their creations. Even before Mislaxa’s re- man warriors chanting war songs as they
have managed to clear areas for small turn, the people had built temples to her march through the forests on moonless
farms, raising vegetables and grain. honor. Here her mystery cult never flow- nights. The priests of Mislaxa are worried
There is ample pasture for herds of dairy ered, for here was the only place her and have been praying to their goddess
cattle and goats. Fishermen cast their nets priests could safely practice their arts. For for guidance or a sign.
decades her temples have been thriving

97