TEXT: — A — 
  
  — 1 — 
  Lands of Porphyra
  Project Lead: Perry Fehr
  Contributing Authors: Ken Austin, Thomas Baumbach, Carl Cramér, Daniel Denehy, Perry 
  Fehr, Mark Gedak, August Hahn, Noble Hays, John Hazen, Sam Hing, Sean Holland, N. 
  Jolly, Christopher Kaiser, James H. Lewis, Chris Longhurst, Liz Mackie, Josh McCrowell, 
  Christopher Mennell, Scott Messer, Angel “ARMR” Miranda, Julian Neale, Daniel M. Perez, 
  David Pryzbyla, Marc Radle, David N. Ross, Treyson Sanders, Justin Sluder, Todd Stewart, 
  Stefen Styrsky, Mike Welham, Jeremy Whelan, Patricia Willenborg
  Cover Artist: Rick Hershey
  Digital World Map: Tom Fayen
  Additonal Maps: Gary Dupuis, Kristen Richards
  Interior Artists: Tamás Baranya, Jacob Blackmon, Brian Brinlee, Gary Dupuis, Rick Her-
  shey, Maciej Janaszek, Matt Morrow, Brett Neufeld, Ryan Rhodes, Michael Scotta
    
  Editing and Development: Perry Fehr, Mark Gedak
  Extra Eyes: Keith J. Davies
  Layout: Mark Gedak
  Publisher: Purple Duck Games
  Compatibility with the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game requires the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game from Paizo 
  Publishing, LLC. See http://paizo.com/pathfinderRPG for more information on the Pathfinder Roleplaying 
  Game. Paizo Publishing, Inc does not guarantee compatibility, and does not endorse this product. 
  Compatibility with Ultimate Psionics requires Ultimate Psionics from Dreamscarred Press. See http://
  dreamscarredpress.com for more information on Ultimate Psionics. 
  Dreamscarred Press does not guarantee compatibility, and does not endorse this product.
  Ultimate Psionics is copyright 2013 Dreamscarred Press and is referenced with permission.
  
  — 2 — 
  Table of Contents
  Forward
  3
  Introduction
  4
  The World of Porphyra
  6
  Porphyrite Borders and Landed Territories
  8
  History of Porphyra
  9
  Lands of Porphyra (Advent Imperiax  to Wastes of Simoon)
  10
  Seas of Porphyra
  120
  Races of Porphyra
  122
  Religion
  137
  The New Gods
  138
  The Risen Gods
  143
  The Elemental Lords
  145
  The Protean Lords
  148
  Other Faiths
  151
  Life on Porphyra
  153
  Trade
  155
  Flora and Fauna
  157
  The Race of Giants
  160
  Languages
  161
  Holidays and Festivals
  163
  Weather and Phenomena
  165
  Lunar Bodies and Lunomancy
  166
  Magic
  167
  Domains and Subdomains
  172
  Psionics
  175
  Orders and Organizations
  176
  Prestige Classes
  180
  Regional Traits
  186
  Campaign Traits
  193
  Personages
  194
  The Ruins of Greencastle (Starting Adventure)
  197
  Other Works of Porphyra
  204
  Lands of Porphyra Index
  205
  Open Game Licence
  212
  
  — 3 — 
  Foreward
  Welcome to the Lands of Porphyra Campaign Setting!  This campaign setting has been in the 
  making nearly as long as Purple Duck has been in existence, and it has been become as in-
  tertwined with our products as chaos-ribbon in the Opal Emperor’s hair.  What began with 
  references to fantasy nations and characters in the Legendary series of scalable magic items 
  carried over into new player character races (drawn mostly from art for Monsters of Porphyra) 
  and got a full head of steam with the collective of over a dozen writers composing gazetteer 
  entries for the 50-plus nations of a new and fragmented world.  The Purple Mountain mega-
  dungeon and the Fehr’s Ethnology series was integrated into the legendarium, and so on, and 
  so on.  Ideas built upon ideas, such as “porphyrite” borders separating wildly different eco-
  systems, the absence of gods on a young world, orcs and elves in desperate alliance, a “World 
  Changing Conflict” in the past, Elementalists revering beings from the Realms Within 
  locked in a struggle against the Deist followers of the New Gods… we got to play with a lot 
  of cool new concepts, and share ideas with contributors.
  The name of our world and setting, Porphyra, comes from Mark’s favorite color and the 
  name of the company—namely, purple.  One can imagine the long violet twilights of the 
  disparate nations, colored by the omnipresent glowing ‘porphyrite borders’ of mystic maroon 
  crystal, the soughing sound of purple sage in the restless wind, the haunting calls of mawgriff 
  drifting across the plains… and we hope that the places, people, gods and monsters within 
  inspire you to great deeds and imaginations in your fantasy tabletop gaming.  We encourage 
  you to work with the material, add to it, make it your own, build on the races, nations, gods, 
  monsters, history, whatever piece of Porphyra makes your eye gleam, and enjoy.  
  A few special acknowledgements; the awesome cover, depicting the cosmic hands of Elemen-
  tal Lords and New Gods playing a game with the mortals of Porphyra, the traditional zendiqi 
  game of “arbakampsi”, by Rick Hershey—captured Perry’s vision perfectly.  Tom Fayen for 
  the full-color, downloadable digital map, which we hope you take full advantage of, print 
  the thing, its cool!  The works of Michael Moorcock (erkunae, Erkusaa) and Edgar Rice 
  Burroughs (xesa) and many other authors from our childhoods, whose characters and lands 
  dance through our brains.
  In the name of The Calling, and The Four, we bid you enjoy… 
  The Patchwork Planet of Porphyra!
  Mark Gedak, Perry Fehr, Purple Duck Games
  
  — 4 — 
  Introduction
  “One would think that a document of such import as an 
  eye-witness’s account of The Calling, the arrival of the New 
  Gods on the world of Porphyra, would find a storage place 
  of prominence... but all it is, a dry sheaf of mawgriff-hide 
  plainly visible as ‘M’...
  Year 1 
  You can see forever, Mythusa thought, gazing from the top 
  of the vast monolith.  In all directions was thick jungle, a 
  canopy, like a second surface of the world. Not like the can-
  opy back home, not like the Great Green, where Mythusa 
  was born. As a mere infant of twenty years, the memory was 
  as fresh as the breeze from the ocean, which was now many 
  leagues from where Mythusa stood, but visible as a line of 
  blue-green.   That line of blue-green was his responsibility, 
  with his exceptional eyesight, a fact which made Mythusa 
  proud.  
     All who were on The Task had jobs, all who could walk- 
  and some who could not.  From the watch-promontory, a 
  knob of coppery stone that marked the highest point of the 
  monolith, Mythusa could easily see the camp where Krek 
  Raagma, the “ancient” orcish runereaper, carried on a litter 
  by guard-bearers younger than Mythusa himself.  Ancient.  
  At the age of sixty-two.  Hrakath!  Mythusa understood his 
  job, though, as well as Kreg Raagma did.  He must watch 
  from the promontory, as that was the best task for him, 
  while the runespeakers and runereapers worked at The Task.  
     They wouldn’t tell Mythusa what The Task was, just that 
  it would help the elves against the Hairy Men- and help the 
  orcs, too.  Mythusa was kind of frightened of the orcs, their 
  pointy teeth and red eyes.  He was even more afraid of the 
  Half Elves.  Or Half Orcs. He wasn’t sure and didn’t want 
  to know.  He shuddered in the breeze, with its flavors of salt 
  and stone, rain and rot.  It all seemed so much, all of a sud-
  den.  I’m just little, Mythusa thought.  I haven’t even eaten 
  meat yet.  Why do I have to watch the stupid sea, stupid 
  blue line, it’s blue, it’s green, it has waves, nah nah nah n-   
  But it wasn’t all blue, or green any more.  There were dark 
  spots on the horizon, like flies on the windowsill, a line of 
  them.  
     Mythusa stared for a second, then dove for the satchel at 
  his feet, pulling out a circle of clear material- “glass”, Kreg 
  Raagma called it. It hurt Mythusa’s head to look through 
  the glass, but he did so now, and quickly focused on what he 
  had seen.  The spots jumped forward.  Black dots, with col-
  ored specks running around on them; overhead, specks flying 
  in the air- birds?  Mythusa remembered the word-shapes 
  of his father’s “voice”... speak in detail, sharp-eyed one, tell 
  what you see, not what you guess... They were not birds. 
  They were Men. Men on... flying blankets, and swooping 
  things above... djinn... living clouds- no!  
     Elementals...   
     Mythusa’s training kicked in again, and he bolted for 
  the camp.  He barely remembered to stuff the “glass” into 
  his tunic as his slender legs carried him across the bizarre 
  landscape of the top of the monolith, like a mote on the end 
  of a copper needle in a green giant’s eye.  The information 
  was relayed swiftly to Mythusa’s mother Tharesa, and father 
  Athak, and  both hard-faced elves strode to others- 
     Tharesa to the orcs and half-orcs, Athak to the busy elves 
  and half-elves, (Will I ever be able to tell them apart? 
  thought Mythusa) and fully half of the camp emptied in the 
  space of a few moments.  The orc elders screamed a bless-
  ing to their warriors, the elves placed motes of their magi-
  cal essences into jars held by the elders- and the half-orcs 
  (half-elves?) just armored up, pulled sword and left.  Most 
  climbed on the backs of three huge dragonnels, as Mythusa 
  knew the big purple “Da-na-sahrs” were called by the hairy 
  mahrog mercenaries.   
     Though Mythusa was just a sprig of twenty, he could see 
  that by the way most of those leaving looked at those stay-
  ing, that they did not expect to see them again.  Mythusa’s 
  incredibly sharp eyes saw a series of flashes of light make 
  their way through the jungle below, even, as he guessed, the 
  boats of the enemies- the Elementalists- were being towed 
  into shore.  He relayed what he saw to his father.   <i was 
  worried about that> read the glyphs in the air in front of 
  Athak.  He turned from Mythusa, cold and hard and a 
  little frightening.  
     <THARESA> his glyphs shouted. 
     His white-faced wife, in a slim bodysuit for better somat-
  ics, came over.  Mythusa sat on the coppery stone, hugging 
  his knees, all but forgotten. < the elementalists have a couple 
  of gangs of air elementals elders I would guess which we 
  expected and carpet-wizards which we did not>  
     “We need more time, Athak.  The distance is far, their 
  voices distant.  Elder Rayyn and Kreg Raagma grow tired 
  and-”   
     <SILENCE>   
     Even the scrambling Alliance members who had their 
  backs to Athak and Tharesa winced and turned around.  
  Athak drew himself up to his nearly seven feet in height and 
  deliberately began to form word-glyphs in the air- reflex-
  
  — 5 — 
  ively Tharesa spoke the glyphs for those who could not read 
  them...   
     <elves of the forest orcs of the mountains children of both 
  half elf half orc i will address you one last time before this 
  task is done our enemies come our oppressors those who 
  have stepped upon us with their heels of stone beat us with 
  their whips of fire withheld the waters of life and the air of 
  existence >   
     The glyph-filled air was clear for a moment, the silent 
  runespeakers turned and regarding Athak, pale, rare elven 
  sweat upon their brows.  The breath of the orcish runereap-
  ers was harsh beside them, but they regarded Athak, as well, 
  their blood dripping on the coppery stone, runes of power 
  glowing through their flesh.  The half-orc summoners and 
  wizards providing the fleshy fuel for the ‘reapers 
  were more suspicious. They had the 
  most to lose in this world, this 
  world dominated by men 
  and their cruel, alien 
  Elemental Lords.   
     <the task is near 
  done the place of 
  arrival prepared 
  the names of our 
  deliverers inscribed the 
  power to bring them 
  from the great be-
  yond at its peak this 
  has been done by 
  you my friends my 
  brothers all it is 
  our hour to live 
  all life in one 
  single second>   
     He bent and 
  placed a small 
  item at Mythusa’s 
  feet and the brassy 
  token expanded into 
  a hawk-headed lion.  
  Athak picked Mythu-
  sa up bodily and put 
  him on the griffon’s back.  
  Tears unbidden came to his 
  large, maroon eyes.  Over-
  head, there were multicolored 
  clouds beginning to form, like 
  Mythusa’s kaleidoscope toy, back somewhere, in the Green.   
     <our lives may be spent here now but i will tell you that 
  they will not end the ones who we Call will take us further 
  further than any of Porphyra have gone to places and reali-
  ties undreamed of by their petty dirty lords>   
     The runereapers, runespeakers, wizards and summoners 
  turned back to their work, and as Mythusa rose into the air, 
  he could see tears running down their faces, though some 
  laughed and cheered.  Like a clod of dirt on the surface of a 
  mirror... things... came into view, still far off in Mythusa’s 
  sight, but closing fast.  
     <for on this day this day of THE CALLING we will find 
  for ourselves something greater than our short mortal exis-
  tence we will be part of the realm eternal we will find>   
     Mythusa was flying now, but his ears were nearly 
  as sharp as his eyes.  
  The sky above 
  seemed to split, 
  somehow, and 
  there was some-
  thing beyond it
     <we will find 
  GODS> 
      <say now THE 
  WORD>
     And as masses 
  of foul winds and 
  snarling motes of 
  the four elements 
  reached the tower-
  ing promontory 
  of the Menhir, a 
  great, glowing 
  HAND reached 
  down from the 
  sky, and Mythusa 
  knew no more for 
  a time, rushing 
  on, and on, south 
  towards some place 
  of refuge, some place 
  of refuge before the 
  growing storm…
  
  — 6 — 
  The World of Porphyra
  Halan wasalan! 
  Khotlah bkda Erkusaa!
  Lena thani`n hi`y~     Azag’tor kraga!
  Welcome to the Patchwork Planet of Porphyra…
  Porphyra is a different sort of world, among the myriads 
  of worlds in the vast multiverse, even in that it contains 
  many of the facets that make other worlds singular, in 
  different proportions, but strange, all the same.  In the 
  beginning of things, when all things in all places began 
  (according to the scholars who spend their time think-
  ing of such things) Porphyra was a small world, spinning 
  alone around a small star, possessing one small moon.  
  Perhaps it was overlooked by the gods, perhaps that it 
  was spoken for by something far more dreadful than 
  gods. Perhaps life there started in some other, stranger 
  way.  But life there did begin, much like other worlds.  
  Few races claim to be the oldest of Porphyra, as many 
  state, with some pride, that they “came from somewhere 
  else” as though aspiring to be invaders or conquerors, 
  like the Landed Deists.  The sphinxes say that they were 
  the first thinking beings, brothers to the animals and 
  successors to their magically-engineered creation. They 
  also assert that who engineered their creation is none 
  of lesser races’ business, as they came after.  The various 
  sentient reptilian races have a strong claim to the title of 
  true first civilizations of Porphyra, namely the ancient 
  Saurian Empire of Jengu-Na, slowly declining but largely 
  unaffected by the events of the latter millennium; the 
  rare dragons of Porphyra were once their mounts and 
  engines of war, so the chants of the Scaled Empress say. 
  Elves orcs, erkunae, goblins, samsaran, all have apocry-
  phal stories of “The Great Journey” of their races, from 
  persecution, or outright Armageddon.  It would seem 
  that a young world like Porphyra served as a “sanctuary 
  world”, hidden from the view of cosmic disaster.  
     Native Porphyran humanity has a surprisingly long 
  legacy, having claimed always to have been present there, 
  but probably owing their origin to the enigmatic pro-
  genitor of the sphinxes.  Porphyran-native humans claim 
  the ancient Oliti River valley as their cradle, and have 
  been drawn to other ‘Mother Rivers” such as the Drool, 
  the Chiuta, even the Trollwater.  Brown-complected and 
  gray-eyed, they now comprise the zendiqi people of the 
  southern deserts, the clan-people of the Fourlands, the 
  Map of Porphyra?
  It turns out that long ago when we were first 
  working on the Lands of Porphyra Campaign 
  Setting we created a world much too large 
  to include a map of it directly printed in this 
  book. Fortunately, due to the advent of digital 
  technology we can point you directly to a 
  digital version of the map.
  Map: http://www.rpgnow.com/prod-
  uct/123108/Lands-of-Porphyra-Map
  Throughout this section you will see addi-
  tional regional maps that have been commis-
  sion as part of our work on the Heroes of... 
  line of regional supplements for players and 
  gamemasters. 
  Reedlanders of the Fenian Triarchy, and isolated mixed-
  blood tribes scattered throughout the lands. They were 
  staunch adherents of the Elemental Lords, a cadre of 
  godlike beings from the Realms Within- those of Air, 
  Earth, Fire and Water.  With these Lords’ support, the 
  Porhyran-human minority was the ruling force on Por-
  phyra for 25 centuries.  At that time, the assumption of 
  Porphyran-Elementalist power, the Kayanoi race arrived 
  in the world, minions of invading cosmic horrors known 
  as the Great Old Ones.  The Elemental Lords defeated 
  and exiled those unknowable alien powers, establishing 
  their presence and power on Porphyra. The odd, pale 
  humans that were the servants, armies, thralls (and likely, 
  the food) of the Great Old Ones were mostly ignored. 
  The Kayanoi were allowed to live in protectorates in the 
  undesirable cold northern lands, even forming petty 
  empires to be bullied around by the mercurial and mad 
  erkunae Opal Empire.   
     For 25 centuries the Zendiq order and the Elemental-
  ist Lords dominated Porphyra, quashing free-thinkers 
  like the Savants of the Fifth Element and pitting vassal 
  kingdoms against each other.  Humanoid and demi-
  human races were especially persecuted, with orcs being 
  used as forced miners and elves subjugated under a series 
  of puppet dictators.  Only the unlikely alliance of those 
  
  — 7 — 
  disparate races, and their secret study of the phenome-
  non of the Realms Beyond and “Gods” ultimately broke 
  the power of the Porphyran Zendiqs and the Elemental 
  Lords.  With the combined power of innovative rune 
  magics and rituals performed at a secret mystical site 
  at the nexus of all the natural power of Porphyra, the 
  Cormazog Alliance of orcs and elves created and spoke 
  THE WORD, which engendered “The Calling”, a 
  sundering of the transdimensional borders of the Mul-
  tiverse, and a summoning of those divine beings known 
  as Gods to Porphyra, where there were none before.  The 
  potential for Gods to enter Porphyra’s reality came to be, 
  and they did come, from other realities- many also were 
  Arisen from the will of Porphyra’s people themselves, 
  an eventuality made possible by The Calling.  The gods 
  Called to Porphyra brought Lands with them, from 
  dying dimensions, for sentiment’s sake, for preservation 
  from their own decline- for as many reasons as there 
  were Gods. They added them to the physical structure 
  of Porphyra, sealed and joined with the mystical mineral 
  porphyrite, preserving native climate, flora and fauna, 
  and culture, to a certain degree.  Some, like Fenris Kul 
  and the Jheriak Continuance, mostly abandoned their 
  transported Land, while others, like Aleria and the 
  Gardens of Meynon, maintain an almost physical pres-
  ence.  Even Risen gods got into the cosmological real 
  estate game, where Nemyth Vaar added a new moon to 
  the heavens, and Toma Thule, embodiment of Honor, 
  brought a fragment of Heaven to the Empire of the 
  Dead.  
     The inhabitants and rulers of Porphyra, the Elemental 
  Lords and the mortal Zendik Council and their many 
  vassal states were not pleased at the new arrival, and they 
  were not meant to be. The Cormazog Alliance intended 
  that there would be a great reckoning between the op-
  pressed people of Porphyra and the Elementalists.  They 
  were not exactly expecting a one-quarter increase to the 
  landmass of Porphyra, with its accompanying millions 
  of sentient worshipers, but the reality quickly came 
  upon all of those involved.  There would be war, world-
  spanning war.  It was dubbed the NewGod War by the 
  God-brought and the God-Bringers (known as the Deist 
  forces), the Second Invasion by the Elementalists and 
  their allies (as if to suggest that, like the first, it would be 
  repelled), and it grew to nightmarish proportions before 
  two winters had passed.  Armies of genies, elementals, 
  sorcerers and camel-riding cavalry clashed with angels, 
  inevitables, paladins and pikemen.  Leaders were assas-
  sinated, vassals changed sides, artifacts made and used, 
  Gods battled Elemental Lords in physical combat that 
  threatened to crack the world, like the magic-less waste 
  of Nor-Du-Mag.  It was two centuries of heroism and 
  craven cowardice, of genocide and pacifist retreat, of 
  magic beyond comprehension and thrown stones and 
  pointy sticks.  In the end, however, the final offensive 
  of the Elementalist armies was thrown back from the 
  gates of the Deist capital, Sanctus Templum, and chased 
  back to the sandy crucible of the Elementalist Zendiks, 
  Siwath, where a final treaty was signed, ending the war 
  and declaring the total victory of the expired Cormazog 
  Alliance and the Landed Deists, forced to fight to live in 
  their unwanted home.  
     And today?  Nearly eight-hundred years since sheikh 
  and paladin-general faced each other down on the dusty 
  lands south of the Oliti, where legend held the first two-
  legged life stood up in the sand, conflict is constant and 
  peace is precarious.  Many gods have no love for one an-
  other, without a common enemy.  Racism and prejudice 
  interfere with trade and learning, and old enemies lurk 
  in the background to take their place, when the time is 
  right.  Some equilibrium must be established, somehow, 
  but only beings with a stout heart, a strong hand, and 
  great will may make their mark- in the soft purple twi-
  light of the Patchwork Planet of Porphyra…
  
  — 8 — 
  Porphyrite Borders and Landed 
  Territories
  The Landed Territories brought to Porphyra by the New 
  Gods are, quite literally, pieces of other realities incorpo-
  rated into the body of that world.  The intrusion of these 
  lands is maintained by the gods themselves, through the 
  mystical substance of porphyrite, sometimes called god-
  stone.  All of the Landed Territories are surrounded by 
  borders of porphyrite crystal, usually in a rough hedge 
  of about 1’ in height, but that can vary.  This border 
  projects a pale, barely visible purple light into the heav-
  ens, making a wall, that prevents the movement of most 
  living beings, and most molecular movement, especially 
  weather. Thus, there can exist an arctic wasteland (The 
  Frozen ‘North’) beside a tropical jungle (Californ), a 
  magical mountain (Purple Mountain) can sit within 
  rolling fields, and a celestial castle (Digirn, the Celestial 
  Bastion) can exist within a nightmare land (Empire of 
  the Dead).  Moving physical objects lose half of their 
  velocity when passing through a porphyrite border- 
  this effectively halves range AND damage from missile 
  weapons passing through, but not magical ones. Many 
  beings on Porphyra call these ‘godswalls’ and dislike their 
  proximity, as their faint light disturbs sleep.  Undead 
  instinctively avoid them, and even incorporeal undead 
  cannot pass them.  
     Passage through godswalls requires a certain ritual, 
  taught to mortals by the god Shankhil. Porphyrite is 
  his creation and jurisdiction, as the god of doorways, 
  and certain of his priests administer border crossings at 
  designated places, changing money or goods for flakes 
  of porphyrite, known as ‘flakes’ in common vernacu-
  lar.  ‘Flakes’ are used as a a medium of exchange away 
  from the borders, as well, a flake of porphyrite being the 
  equivalent of 5 pieces of gold; platinum is not recog-
  nized as a trade metal on Porphyra, being ridiculously 
  rare and hard to smelt.  Flake can be obtained in other 
  ways than changing it with Khilite priests (colloquially 
  called ‘Methysti’); such as stray deposits in certain areas, 
  and naturally decay from some border areas.  A being 
  that holds a flake of porphyrite and walks through the 
  barrier may pass- Khilite priests encourage a prayer to 
  whatever god the holder reveres.  The flake ‘returns’ to 
  the prophyrite grid, and the traveler goes on.  Creatures 
  of intelligence less than 3  are usually sprinkled with 
  powdered porphyrite, one flake affecting 5 such animals.  
  Some species have adapted to ingest certain muds and 
  waters near godswall borders, and as such migrate when 
  it pleases them.  
     Godswall borders in a few areas (Karkoon, Creeper’s 
  Rift, Isles of the Lost) are said to be intermittent by 
  scholars, ‘blinky’ to laymen.  Due to otherworldly ener-
  gies, or conflict between the gods, certain porphyrite 
  borders ‘come and go’, often around islands, or in un-
  derground areas.  There seems to be no predicting these 
  ‘blinky’ areas, though Khilite priests often use augury 
  with some success.  Even at sea, where godswalls usu-
  ally appear 10-20 miles out in the ocean, purple Khilite 
  ships can be found facilitating passage and keeping an 
  eye on things; Khilites have a network of knowledge of 
  the comings and goings of sentients on Porphyra second 
  to none, rivaling the Divine Record for information.  
  Attacking a Khilite border-station is taboo, even among 
  most evil races, though most are fairly capable of defend-
  ing themselves.  It may be noted that in some cases, the 
  border of a Landed territory is not necessarily a porphy-
  rite border; in the millenium since the Calling kingdoms 
  have expanded and changed, so that they must negotiate 
  godswalls within their own lands.  Khilites are especially 
  welcome at such border crossings.  Finally, to further 
  facilitate large numbers of border-crossers, a divine spell 
  is available to convert channeled energy into a magical 
  porphyrite aura; the spell is listed below.
  Porphyrite Passage
  School transmutation
  Level cleric 1
  Casting Time 1 standard action
  Components V, S
  Range 30 ft. radius
  Target living creatures within the circle
  Duration 1 minute/level
  Saving throw Will negates (harmless); Spell Resistance 
  yes
  This spell converts channeled energy, positive or nega-
  tive, into porphyrite energy required to cross a ‘god-
  swall’ or porphyrite border.  During the spell duration, 
  whenever the cleric channels, each ‘point’ of healing or 
  damage equals one ‘flake’ of porphyrite conferred on a 
  living being within the spell radius.  Conversion of 5:1 
  for beings of intelligence less than 3 applies here as well.  
  Clerics of Shankhil gain +1 point per level when casting 
  this spell.
  
  — 9 — 
  History of Porphyra
  The for purposes of this history time is recorded using 
  the deist calendar and years are marked as BC (Before 
  Calling) and AC (After Calling).
  • 
  Naming of Dey Ayun Marek (2500 BC) The ap-
  proximate present location of Port Arkham in the 
  Boroughs of Dunmark is the site of a titanic battle 
  that begins the rulership of the Elemental Lords on 
  Porphyra.
  • 
  Breaking of Nor-Du-Mag (1550 BC)
  • 
  Founding of the Opal Empire (1497 BC) - Arrival 
  of the erkunae on Erkusaa and subsequent enslave-
  ment of dhosari.
  • 
  Completion of the Fortress of the Eye (1009 BC) 
  - Cyclopes of Kesh complete their fortress and hold 
  dominion over the region.
  • 
  Erection of Kadeg’s Pyramid (505 BC) - The pyra-
  mid of the ancient renegade wizard is erected in the 
  sphinx territory of northwest Siwath
  • 
  Height of the Opal Empire (104 BC) - The empire 
  of the Opal Throne stretches from the Isle of Erkusa 
  west to Parl Pardesh.
  • 
  Last Chapterhouse (100 BC) - The library of the 
  Savants of the Fifth Element is erradicated by the 
  forces of the Elemental Lords.
  • 
  Negotiations (80 BC) - Long thought impossible, 
  negotiations between elves and orcs began to for-
  malize an allied response against the tyranny of the 
  Elemental Lords.
  • 
  Cormazog Alliance formalized; Reign of the 
  Mummy King (23 BC)
  • 
  The Calling (0 AC) - The New Gods and their fa-
  vored territories join with Porphyra.  Environmental 
  upheaval is prevalent for at least two years.
  • 
  Edict of Aethys (4 AC)- Elementalist rulers in the 
  eastern continent sign a pact of cooperation against 
  the deist arrivals.  Purple Mountain is laid to siege.
  • 
  Battle of the Amethyst Plain (5 AC) - Deist troops 
  lift the siege of Purple Mountain.  Beginning of the 
  NewGod Wars. Codion Grimas IV declares anath-
  ema on all elementalism.
  • 
  NewGod Wars (5 AC-206 AC) - Porphyra racked 
  by global war.  Giants are bred by the elementalists, 
  commanded by genies and supported by summoned 
  elementals.  Deists employ celestial outsiders and 
  other planar beings.  A great surge in elemental-kin 
  and native outsiders takes place.
  • 
  Arrival of the Imperiax (33 AC) - Crash of 
  the mother vessel ‘Venusia’ in the Silent Moun-
  tains south of Iffud.
  • 
  Red Night of Ghadab (51 AC) - Empress 
  Shi’an XXI massacres her people and draws the 
  attention of Mâl.
  • 
  The Fall of Greencastle (88 AC) - Moun-
  tain fortress killing-ground of the Codionic 
  Knights falls from within in a day.
  • 
  Blackwater Plague (102-120 AC) - Avandrool 
  and Azagor are afflicted with a terrible plague 
  that kills or transforms thousands. 
  • 
  The Yellow Wall erected (116 AC) - Iffud, the 
  Fourlanders,and the Elven Nation race to con-
  tain the Blackwater plague, and the Elemental-
  ist agents implicated in the epidemic.
  • 
  Retreat to New Karkoon (191 AC) - The de-
  feated hobgoblin empire evacuates all remnants 
  and retreats to the stronghold of Kaderach Fel, 
  at the eastern end of the archipelago.
  • 
  Treaty of Siwath signed (206 AC) - Elemen-
  talist power is broken, the Elders of the Four 
  flee to their respective domains, and most cur-
  rent borders are set.
  • 
  Collapse of the Opal Empire (400 AC) - The 
  Emperor’s Nurse converts to Ithreianism, slays Yttic 
  LXV and recalls imperial erkunae forces, ending 
  their empire on Porphyra. 
  • 
  Artax-Kinser Treaty signed (499 AC) - Wars be-
  tween psionic and ‘normals’ ended on Sharira and 
  other associated areas. Council of Nine established.
  • 
  Hesterian Truce declared (601 AC) - End of the 
  Dreamer’s War between Ulian and Nerian factions in 
  Hesteria, the Wall of Sleep.  Free passage declared for 
  those who wish to access the Wall.
  • 
  Asterion the Tyrant falls (945 AC) - After sinking 
  the isle of Torl, the minotaur Asterion declares him-
  self ruler of the Seven Principalities, and held them 
  in terror until 984, when he was assassinated.
  • 
  Battle of the Red Moors (998 AC) - The cream of 
  the homeguard of Thame, capital of Geranland in 
  The Middle Kingdoms, is annihilated by Rolterran 
  rebels south of Weston.
  • 
  The Present moment (999 AC)
  
  — 10 — 
  Advent Imperiax
  “The known is obvious: this alluring female race, their 
  language, treasures, culture in general- are beyond anything 
  we’ve imagined.  What is unknown is, regrettably, every-
  thing else.” - Intercepted Fudi diplomatic missive
  History
  Nestled deep within a mysterious, impassable mountain 
  range, the existence – let alone the genesis- of the Advent 
  Imperiax is shrouded in mystery.  The other nations of 
  Porphyra see the Imperiax (as it is commonly called) as a 
  curious anomaly, allied neither with the ascendant New 
  Gods or the usurped Elemental Lords.  The dominant, 
  unique race of the Imperiax are the femanx, and their 
  leadership knows, as do some few foreigners, that the 
  origin if the matriarchal realm arose in the days of The 
  Calling.  A great femanx colonization vessel crash-landed 
  after it was thrown off-course by the appearance of Vaar’s 
  Moon in orbit around the Patchwork Planet.  So great 
  was the crash and so large the original vessel, it is said to 
  have caused the formation of the great vale it now oc-
  cupies, as it punched through the mountains and into a 
  previously subterranean lake.  Whatever the catalyst for 
  the crash, the remaining contingent-hopelessly stranded, 
  though with advanced technology and genetics- began 
  what has since become an intriguing realm on their new, 
  precarious world.
     The secret knowledge doled out by the Triumvirate 
  holds that the femanx vessel, the Venusia, attempted an 
  emergency “advent”, or calculated insertion, and entered 
  Capital: Myxhadriax
  Settlements: Myxhadriax (21,000), Yhadri-Fhas 
  (17,000), Yhadri-Izhaaf (27,000)
  Ruler: The Imperiax Triumvirate
  Government: Gynarchic Geniocracy
  Races: Dhosari, Erkunae, Femanx, Half-Orc, Hu-
  man, Squole
  Faiths: None
  Resources: Alien technology, intoxicants, godmet-
  als (adamantine, geranite), slaves
  Languages: Common, Manxic
  Border Conditions: Restricted (porphyrite north, 
  mountains all others)
  Porphyra’s atmosphere.  Terms that are almost holy to 
  the femanx-“matter displacement”, “particulate disper-
  sion” and “environmental control generation” occurred, 
  and three component vessels arrived at hasty coordinates, 
  becoming the three femanx cities.  When energy shields 
  were thereafter generated, the eerily beautiful, appar-
  ently exclusively female femanx emerged on the stage of 
  Porphyra.  The ‘Lost Home’ was then truly lost to this 
  enigmatic race, for good or ill.
     As the mountainous destination point of the Advent 
  was remote and nigh-inaccessible, the Imperiax was 
  virtually unaffected by the otherwise world-spanning 
  NewGod Wars, except for an apocryphal legend of a 
  reconnoitering battalion of stone giants and shaitan 
  obliterated by femanx forces.  They found no attraction 
  to either side in the conflict, and still do not, preferring 
  to study and watch their odd neighbors and world-mates 
  slaughter each other.  
  Current Events
  The Imperiax Triumvirate rules the realm and its people, 
  the femanx, with no whisper of revolt in a millennium. 
  The most learned and loyal of the Advent Imperiax, it 
  consists of two Mxyiir, and a titular head, the Mxyiax.  
  These Triumvirs are replaced only upon death, or more 
  often, when stumped by an issue posed by a citizen.  
  Though the femanx are tolerant of divergent views, they 
  do practice slave-keeping-though their slaves are treated 
  very well compared to those in other realms.  Due to a 
  very successful ambassadorial relationship of the Impe-
  riax and the Opal Throne of Erkusaa, a great number of 
  their slaves are dhosari, generally content with their judi-
  cious treatment while the bulk of their other slaves come 
  from human and half-orc stocks that have wandered into 
  Imperiax territory from Iffud.  Though intellectual in 
  nature, the edicts and rule of the Triumvirate are abso-
  lute in their realms, with instances of summary execu-
  tion via “particulate dispersion” not unheard of. Femanx 
  have a strict hierarchy and are not to be trifled with, but 
  otherwise tend toward being unwittingly condescending 
  rather than overtly haughty or callous.
     The natives of the Imperiax – and in recent decades 
  honored non-femanx residents—make routine use of 
  highly technological weapons and utilitarian items too 
  numerous to list.  Though their remote and largely 
  inaccessible locale has kept their realm nearly mythical, 
  “nearly” is all that’s needed for those who would go to 
  
  — 11 — 
  extremes to learn of their technology—even 
  more so to gain mastery over it.  The erkunae 
  have enjoyed the most benefit from this tech-
  nology, and 
  those of the 
  Clockwork 
  Lands are the 
  most envious of 
  it.  Boggles are not al-
  lowed in the Imperiax on 
  pain of death…
     Though still a very secretive so-
  ciety, in the last several decades the 
  Advent Imperiax has begun limited 
  interaction, trade, and in some cases 
  even cross-residency with other races 
  and lands.  The enclave of Ghlidra- 
  Yaam in the Rainbow Isles was the first in-
  stance of this, with small steps to follow.  The 
  manner in which the femanx bring visitors in 
  and out their cities is cause for much specula-
  tion by jealous explorers, doubtless part of 
  their advanced technology.  To this point, the 
  Triumvirate expressly forbids the trade of their 
  technology in all but items of the very basest 
  utility.  These “minor” items are considered 
  fabulous treasures by wealthy outlanders, and 
  even mundane items such as acro-fizz bever-
  ages, cerebro-fume smoking blends and the like 
  are very high quality and coveted by the rich Porphyrans 
  “in the know.”
  Settlements
  Each settlement’s center is the seat of femanx power, the 
  remnant of the antevocial Venusia.  It is encapsulated by 
  a spherical energy and/or substance of some sort, half 
  above, half below the surface, a spherical dome.
     Surrounding the settlement centre are two concentric 
  rings of colored energy, each serving as a barrier wall and 
  energy source for the city.  The two sectors created have 
  become indicators of status, with the privileged inhabit-
  ing the innermost.
     Myxhadriax is the capital of the Imperiax, with the 
  most powerful city and largest energy barrier.  Its name 
  means “supreme matron city” and holds the Hall of 
  Knowledge, seat of the Triumvirate.  Many artifacts of 
  the ‘Lost Home’ are on display here, and revered almost 
  as holy icons.  High-ranking families and their entou-
  rages of weird slaves stroll the exotic gardens, jockey-
  ing for social standing and intrigue.
     Yhadri-Fhas is the hub of industry in the 
  Imperiax, and the “first city” is a wonder of 
  moving sidewalks, flying machines, and robot-
  constructs producing and moving the goods 
  of the femanx.  Foreigners must be extremely 
  well vetted here, as the Clockworkers would 
  pay a humanoid’s weight in gold for de-
  scriptions of even a simple waste-elimina-
  tion probe.  The Stars of LostHome, the 
  military wing of the nation, is also head-
  quartered here.
    Yhadri-Izhaaf, meaning “outer city” 
  is where the highest concentration of 
  non-femanx call home, with a sizable 
  Foreign Sector.  It contains all manner 
  of general and specialty shops, pleasure 
  houses, tavern-like equivalents, and short, 
  conkscrew-patterned towers.  Moving 
  between energy shields is generally per-
  missible, but access to the city centre is 
  tightly restricted.  
  Intrigues
  • 
  An Imperiax matron covertly contacts the party 
  through an envoy, with a mission to recover several 
  items of femanx technology stolen by bogus ambas-
  sadors. If the problem is dealt with discreetly and 
  quickly, the PCs may earn access to some of the 
  items themselves.
  • 
  The race of the squole is odd in the extreme, and is 
  supposed by some to have some ecological connec-
  tion to the femanx home world.  If you could locate 
  a colony of ‘wild’ squole in the mountain ring of 
  the Imperiax, much valuable information could be 
  acquired.
  • 
  The Imperiax plans an invasion of a neighboring city 
  to flex their national muscles, and let Porphyra know 
  they are more than exotic pleasure-merchants.  Will 
  you join them, or oppose the alien race, facing their 
  deadly superior technology?
  
  — 12 — 
  Capital: Paradigm
  Settlements: Khambir (9,300), Low’Enath 
  (21,600), Paradigm (33,800)
  Ruler: Prime Minister Otag Nagen
  Government: Democratic Republic
  Races: Dhosari, Elf, Half-Elf, Half-Ogre, Half-
  Orc, Kobold, Orc, Taddol, Tengu
  Faiths: Ashamar Shining, Enor Ashlord, Tulis, 
  Yolana
  Resources:  Literature, precious metals (gold, iron, 
  silver)
  Languages: Common, Draconic, Elven, Giant, 
  Orc, Taddol, Tengu
  Border Conditions: Limited (porphyrite north-
  west)
  Azag-Ithiel, The Newlands
  “From your perspective the Newlands are an asylum. From 
  our perspective, the rest of the world is a prison.” – Kurabn 
  Ustam, Senator, Master Artificer
  History
  When the Elemental Lords were yet young, a meteor hit 
  Porphyra with such force that it cracked the surface and 
  pushed up a circular mountain range called the Abancoi 
  Nicn, which, translated from archaic Draconic means 
  “Pond Ripple”. A milennium ago, a kobold wizard 
  named Kurabn Ustam fled the New-God Wars into this 
  forbidden place, touched a glowing stone at the bottom 
  of vast crater, and, when he awoke, found himself to be 
  immortal. He decided to build his wizard’s tower on that 
  selfsame spot, and continue with his experiments in arti-
  fice. Fate had other plans. Refugees from the harsh (and 
  nearby) Jheriak Continuance, mainly half-orcs, began to 
  make their way across the high Abancoi Nicns from the 
  oppression they found at the hands of the Iron Crown 
  men. At the same time, elves and their orcish compan-
  ions came to the Abancois, pursued by elementalists of 
  Enor Ashlord bent on vengeance for The Calling. To  
  everyone’s surprise, the ancient, powerful, and benevo-
  lently good kobold welcomed them warmly. He saw a 
  new kind of artifice; the creation of a new state, one of 
  equality and democracy, and perhaps a mending of the 
  deist and elementalist schism.
     Stressing the need for education, Kurabn taught the 
  young half-orcs to read and write, taught them math-
  ematics, philosophy, sciences and art. More importantly, 
  though, he began to teach them their worth as thinking 
  creatures and that every sentient had rights and should 
  be seen as equals. Many generations grew wise under 
  his protection and tutelage, and the original settlement 
  around his tower, the town of Paradigm, spread, mi-
  grated and grew as more oppressed refugees landed on 
  Azag-Ithiel’s shores, the name being chosen from the or-
  cish and elven words for “Home.” The refugees spoke of 
  the Jheriak war machine—and Kurabn and his students 
  knew that it was time to put his experiment to the test. 
     A call was put out to all citizens of the Newlands, as 
  they were commonly called, to send  representatives to 
  help form a central government. They met in the city of 
  Paradigm, and with their own hands raised the All-Races 
  Senate, wizards, fighters, farmers, Newlanders all. These 
  brave gentlebeings met in chambers at the beginning of 
  summer and argued until the next spring. The results 
  of this first parliament were nothing short of a miracle: 
  the Newlands would be a democratic republic with each 
  citizen, from the richest merchant to the lowliest chim-
  ney-sweep would have an equal say in who would govern 
  and make the laws. At the suggestion of a cloister of 
  Yolandite clerics, they also wrote a declaration of rights; 
  that all sentients, no matter their species or country of 
  origin should be treated as equals, and have the right to 
  personal freedom. The Senate elected the half-orc ora-
  tor Inva Khambir (rumored to have been present at The 
  Calling) the first prime minister, the only time the head 
  of state was not elected by the people, and created a 
  people’s army—and none too soon, as the Continuance 
  was flexing its muscles to cruelly invade and destroy the 
  fledgling state. Kurabn Ustam and his arcane students 
  were as prepared as the army.
     The first attacks came came strategically from the west 
  and north. The Continuance had sent a massive army, 
  outnumbering the Azag-Ithiel forces twenty to one. The 
  defenders of the valley had several advantages, however. 
  The Newlanders were much better equipped; they had 
  several airships that they used to great effect; and their 
  magic arsenal was far superior. Then, of course, there was 
  the legion of ten-foot-tall steel golems, and the contin-
  gent of half-ogres and ogrillons wearing golem armor, 
  led by the ogre mage general Tharis Nal, who would 
  later take his turn as prime minister. Even with these 
  advantages, the fight was a stalemate, exacting a heavy 
  toll over many years. The war is  remembered on both 
  sides as the No-Win War, a grudging compliment on the 
  
  — 13 — 
  Continuance side, and a warning to later generations of 
  Newlanders: peace and equality comes at a price, never 
  become complacent in the maintenance of justice and 
  freedom.
  Current Events
  Azag-Ithiel, while not completely secure, is breathing a 
  sigh of relief. The national system of roads nears comple-
  tion, connecting all the cities, towns and villages. The 
  Newlands has had their first “peacetime” election in 
  decades, and while the proceedings were slightly com-
  bative, Prime Minister Otag Nagen—of half-orc/half-elf 
  heritage, was elected for a second term. 
     The Newlander government is adept at treaty-making, 
  good examples being those with the Clandoms of the 
  Fourlands, the Clockwork Lands, the Skandari, and even 
  a non-agression pact with the Red King of the North-
  lands. They are currently courting the Advent Imperiax, 
  though the dhosari contingent are at odds with their 
  slave-keeping habits, and their friendship with the Opal 
  Throne.
  Settlements
  The major settlements of Azag-Ithiel are:
     Paradigm is known as the Cradle of Democracy, a 
  marvel in red brick and polished stone. At the center of 
  the town lies Patriot Square and the tower and workshop 
  of Senator Kurabn Ustam. It is a vibrant place full of 
  merchants, smiths, and printers, and boasts three uni-
  versities within the city proper. It is as racially mixed as a 
  city could possibly be on Porphyra.
     Low’Enath has significant elven heritage, a racial off-
  shoot known as the Furnace Elves. They are grim mas-
  ters of industry and the forge, and mixing magic with 
  both. Factory towers rise like monoliths over the valley 
  floor around Low’Enath, and the iron deposits are of 
  very high quality, for some of the finest magic weapons 
  known to the world.
    Khambir is a military town, containing Fort Karaden, 
  which boasts Fourlander airships, half-ogre shock troops 
  and the crack half-orc legions known as Fists of the 
  Word. Their main focus is responding to border calls and 
  policing the multitude of races found in the Newlands’ 
  cities and villages.
  Intrigues
  • 
  Kurabn Ustam, after eight centuries in the Par-
  liamentary Senate, has announced his retirement 
  from politics, and will return full time to academia. 
  Recent polls of Ustam’s Unity Party were quite low, 
  coincidentally. With the father of the nation step-
  ping down, the Senate has called for external observ-
  ers to keep the peace until stability can be restored to 
  Azag-Ithiel.
  • 
  Reports are pouring in from the observer posts on 
  the border that the Continuance is massing forces 
  along the mountain roots. This provocation is wor-
  rying, but not as much as the disconnection with 
  Azag-Ithiel’s allies in the Clockwork Lands. Some-
  thing is blocking teleportation and messages, and 
  teams are being sent out to find what the Continu-
  ance is up to.
  • 
  Rumors are spreading about the Junior Representa-
  tive from Low’Enath, T’kree Chk’ka. She is the first 
  tengu to be elected from that area, a banker from 
  a wealthy merchant family, and a member of the 
  Conservative-Federalist Party, the largest opposition. 
  Some say she bought the election, some whisper she 
  sold her soul to Eshsalqua for power. She is seeking 
  aid from those who would help clear her name.
  
  — 14 — 
  Capital: The Jawed City
  Settlements: Barbledrum (21,000), Bugtown 
  (2,500), The Jawed City (9,000), Newport 
  (5,000), No Return (8,000), Sanity Lost (2,000), 
  Shadowlight (4,000)
  Ruler: Baron Octavius Vark
  Government: Barony
  Races: Fetchling, Human (Kayanoi), Orcam, Ser-
  pentfolk, Skulk, Zif
  Faiths: Great Old One (Bokrug), Najim, Shade, 
  Ul’Ul, Veiloaria
  Resources: Exotic wood (darkwood, gaspwood, 
  snakewood), mercenaries, relics (pre-Elemental 
  Lords), seafood, sky whales
  Languages: Aklo, Old Porphyran, Terran, Under-
  common
  Border Conditions: Restricted (porphyrite mem-
  brane on the Sea of Ithreia, Birdman Mountains to 
  the south)
  Barony of Tuthon
  “Oh, a sky whale ain’t so tough, once you toss a few dozen 
  spears into ‘im. I’d be more worried about choppin’ trees 
  that fought back!” - Gizen Hamik, mayor of Bugtown
  History
  Since time immemorial Tuthon has been a land of 
  the strange and the awe inspiring. Forests breathe and 
  writhe, stones bark, and men walk on the underside of 
  suspended mountains where the rain flows in both direc-
  tions. There is even a great sea of membrane that gives 
  off a purple glow. Some say that the land is a remnant 
  from the reign of “The Old Gods”, for the first Kayanoi 
  settlers built upon ruins, and are racially quite differ-
  ent from Porphyran aboriginals. Others think it a land 
  cursed by a forgotten war among the Elemental Lords. 
  No matter the case, Tuthon is a strange land where only 
  the brave or mad venture.
     Long ago, kayanoi humans that possessed both quali-
  ties settled the land. Using powerful magics they erected 
  walls around their cities, keeping the madness of the 
  land at bay. In that early age Tuthon was part of a larger 
  kingdom that lay claim to northern Iskandar, Dunmark, 
  and many of the valleys of the Birdman Mountains. Its 
  name was stricken from the history books, as is the name 
  of its capital, now ruins in the southern Wanderstones. 
  After its ancient fall, Tuthon became an independent 
  barony under the House of Strat. Their main trade was 
  in mercenaries, mentally hardened against the hor-
  ror and war by the strangeness of their homeland. The 
  soldiers of Tuthon could be given the grimmest of mis-
  sions—bravery their blood, and steel their flesh. 
     House Strat fell several centuries ago when the zif, a 
  likely race for the land of madness, erected their city on 
  the north-central shore and claimed the coast for them-
  selves. With only the Shadowlight enclave, the fortunes 
  of House Strat declined, with the result of House Vark 
  sweeping them aside, making treaty with the zif, and 
  building Newport. Unfortunately, they also brought a 
  fervent devotion to The Dark Mistress, a powerful succu-
  bus aligned with Shade. The aristocracy was neutralized 
  by means of debauchery and hedonism, skulks infiltrated 
  the barony in waves, and only the guidance of Veiloaria’s 
  omnipresent Xia way-priests saved the people as a whole. 
  The peasantry were encouraged to leave the slums of 
  the cities, and live off the peculiarities of the land: sky 
  whales, snakewood, zif-trade, and the odd barking 
  stone. The schism of sensibilities is actually rather apt 
  for Tuthon, and everyone, noble and serf, gathers for the 
  Festival of the Dancer, where they dress in masque to 
  honor Ul’Ul, patron of celebratory madness.
  Current Events
  The Calling seemed like just another war to the Tuthoni, 
  though the various invasions did spell the end for House 
  Strat’s military strength. The zif took advantage of the 
  chaos to exert their influence, and are still there today. 
  Today they trade with the odd inhabitants of the Ithre-
  ian isles; the monks of Owl Island, the savages of the 
  Isles of the Falcons, and the intrepid explorers of Whale 
  island. They also serve the Skandari and the penal colony 
  of Gulag Blue. As in ages past few come to Tuthon will-
  ingly, but there are exceptions. Many followers of Ul’Ul 
  and Veiloaria are present there—for devotees of The Mad 
  Maiden, Tuthon has become a holy land, second only to 
  the Wall of Sleep, and her Festivals are world-renowned. 
  Likewise Xia of the Wayfinder have found a home on 
  the strange roads of the region. Who else would be 
  braver or more curious than adventurers come to see the 
  horrifyingly wondrous sights of Tuthon? Many Flower 
  and Compasses have been built to accommodate those 
  seeking to test their mettle and mind in this mad realm. 
  These inns are prevalent in Barbledrum, where the zif are 
  
  — 15 — 
  pleased to meet so many interesting people.
     Not all the New Gods are as benevolent, though, and 
  House Vark’s patron, Dark Mistress, has a portfolio filled 
  with dark thoughts and acts. It is an open secret that 
  the arcane assassins known as the Evening Shades have 
  an agenda to help their Dark Mistress emulate Nemyth 
  Vaar and Toma Thule, ascended gods who brought their 
  own territories after The Calling. From their pleasure 
  fortress in Shadowlight, the  Evening Shades and their 
  fetchling and skulk minions plot, and plan, and wait in 
  the twilight.
  Settlements
  The major settlements of the Thuthon Barony are:
     Barbledrum is the capital of the zif snail-people, a city 
  of shells and canals, erected on the Purple Membrane 
  itself, on the Sea of Ithreia. Trading ships can sail directly 
  into the city itself. The buildings all resemble swirling 
  sea-shells, much like the ones the builders carry on their 
  backs.
     Bugtown is the largest settlement in the Reverse 
  Lands, home to the Sky Whalers in their balloon-ships. 
  Bugtown is precariously balanced in a range of hills 
  north of the Vale of Loss, and named for the vast swarms 
  of insects that plague the region and feed the sky whales. 
     The Jawed City is capital of Tuthon, and home to The 
  Baron’s Keep. This city on the edge of the Reverse Lands 
  is divided into two parts. The Keep, a high-towered com-
  plex that reaches high ”up” from the underside of the 
  largest suspended mountain. The City is on the side of 
  normal gravity, and the towers of its burgomasters give 
  the illusion, at a distance, that the split city resembles a 
  set of jaws coming up from the land itself.
     Newport is just that, a reaction to the zif migration, a 
  matter of necessity to utilize the Sea of Ithreia. The skulk 
  have taken to seafaring, oddly enough, giving the nick-
  name to seabound Tuthoni ships, “Empties”. 
     No Return was once just a sign left behind by shaken 
  peddlers, it is a sleepy city serving the farms of the 
  Eastmark, and the doomed miners and treasure-hunters 
  of the Graz Doep. One can often hear some Common 
  in No Return, as a few Enorian and Middlelanders have 
  timorously come to trade.
     Sanity Lost was once known as Sarnath, one of the 
  few names remembered from the Forgotten Kingdom. 
  The ‘city’ is actually the inhabited part of the vast ruin, 
  and its mildly mad people harvest  snakewood from the 
  like-named forest, and occasionally trade with Dunmark 
  and Iskandar. 
     Shadowlight is located on the Membrane itself, a city 
  of ill repute built within an island-chasm that the sea 
  flows around. Forever tinged in the purple light of the 
  sea, this is a city of hushed whispers and sharp pains in 
  the back. Fetchlings are common here, as are skulks and 
  like-minded humans.
  Intrigues
  • 
  Old grimoires speak of a pre-elemental relic located 
  in a catacomb in the ruins of Sarnath, next to Sanity 
  Lost. A zif archaeologist has a map, but would like 
  some protection while exploring the unnerving city.
  • 
  While in a tavern, a plot is overheard to disrupt the 
  Ulian Festival at No Return. If so many frenzied 
  dancers are all interrupted at once, the results could 
  be bloody.
  • 
  A whaling guild in The Jawed City has put out a 
  bounty on a great white sky whale that has been at-
  tacking their ships. Thar she blows!
  
  — 16 — 
  
  — 17 — 
  
  — 18 — 
  Capital: Harhold
  Settlements: Harhold (2,500), Old Deeps 
  (2,000), Ruin Spires (500), Screehold (1,500), 
  Vadenhold (800)
  Ruler: Flightmaster Vey of Clan Harfael
  Government: Tribal
  Races: Half-Harpy, Halfling, Harpy, Kestrel, Strix, 
  Urisk
  Faiths: Eshsalqua, Ithreia, Myketa, Pazuzu
  Resources: Metals (copper, iron, gold, uranium), 
  relics (xax)
  Languages: Auran, Halfling, Strix, Sylvan
  Border Conditions: Limited (porphyrite border 
  south)
  Birdman Mountains
  “I hate shadows. Shadows mean there’s either something 
  behind you or something overhead. Neither of those is good.” 
  – Igwald Fearfoot, halfling prospector
  History
  In the time before the NewGod Wars, the Birdman 
  Mountains were called Zirakur Ziur; which meant in 
  Protean (the moment the ancient map was labeled) “To 
  Scorn Heaven” or “By Heaven Scorned”. These impos-
  ingly tall mountains, of mixed volcanic and tectonic ori-
  gin became nearly hollow with the carving of the enig-
  matic xax people. Those strange beings were transplanted 
  here by the imperialistic Empire of the Opal Throne, as a 
  resource-generating scheme. Their vast mansions spread 
  from the mountains’ roots to their myriad peaks.
     Living alongside the xax in those ancient days were 
  halflings, a minority class of merchants and load-bearers. 
  Though never integrated into the alien conglomerate 
  that existed between xax cysts, they lived comfortably 
  and were treated well by their bizarre neighbors. A true 
  regret exists among the Ziur halflings, centuries later, in 
  the ancient loss of their inhuman masters. 
     When The Calling happened, the goddess Ithreia saw 
  the Zirakur Ziur mountain range, and desired its pre-
  cipitous peaks. She claimed it as her own in a dream that 
  was shared by every living creature within the moun-
  tains. She cursed the xax as spawn of elemental chaos 
  (which they were) and bid them crawl back to Erkusaa. 
  The xax were defiant. They set their wrongly-angled jaws 
  and dug in their heels against this new bird-goddess. 
     And then the harpies came.
     For years, the xax held off the harpies who flocked and 
  fluttered around their cloudy cities. The main turning 
  point was the halflings. They, too, had received Ithreia’s 
  vision and their hearts were more open to these new 
  gods. Led by a burgeoning devotion to the Old Mother 
  Owl, the halflings rose up against their old allies and 
  threw open the doors to the open air, allowing the harpy 
  forces free entrance.
     With feather and talon, and assisted by the retreating 
  flocks of the strix race from the south, the fall of the xax 
  cysts was inevitable. In time, even the old Protean name 
  was forgotten. Today, people look up at the jagged points 
  and only whisper the name, “Birdman Mountains.” 
  Current Events
  Today, much of the inner mountain range is empty of 
  earthbound inhabitants. The odd urisk gambols from 
  valley to valley, or wanders down into flat lands of the 
  west. They are keen guides, for the most part, and know 
  the ways of the flying ones and the halflings, both. The 
  harpies and strixes that call the Birdman region home 
  prefer the vertical cities as their homes, as they afford 
  direct access to the open air. Many other subterranean 
  and mountain-loving creatures that have crawled into 
  the many caves here, as well. 
     It is said that “The harpies won the Birdman Moun-
  tains, but it is the strixes who keep them.” The strixes 
  have taken over much of the largest and best vertical 
  cities in the mountains. They organize themselves into 
  clans which have good commerce between them, and 
  most intertribal conflict is resolved with exchanges of 
  tribal members or gifts.
     As a foil to the strixes, the harpies live on the fringes of 
  the strix cities. There is peace for the most part between 
  the two races, but harpies make poor neighbors and of-
  ten raid when they think they can get away with it. Still, 
  the strixes believe the harpies to be long lost kin, and 
  are disinclined to make war on them. The harpies have 
  largely fallen to worship of an avian avatar of Eshsalqua, 
  and the strixes seek to convert them back to worship of 
  Ithreia.
     Underneath these all, scurrying like ants, are the half-
  lings. Changed by their life among the feathered peoples 
  and their racial sorrow at betraying their long lost mas-
  ters, they are a bit different than their ground-dwelling 
  cousins. The halflings of the mountains can scramble 
  
  — 19 — 
  up cliff-faces and the handholds of the ancient xax, but 
  mostly live in old stone buildings, disliking the open air 
  and the domain of the hated harpies. They have learned 
  to fight when needed, though, and retreat once the point 
  has been made. Halflings often venture into old mines 
  to scrape out bits of ore, which they trade to the strix for 
  food and tools. The strix in turn trade with groups such 
  as the Nor-Du-Mag giants for slaves, beer, and weapons.
     The strix tribes form 
  the core of the civiliza-
  tion of the Birdman 
  Mountains, such as it 
  is. It is they who organize 
  the majority of trade 
  between the mountains 
  and other races, avoiding 
  humans if at all possible. 
  The harpies are too sav-
  age to carry out these 
  dealings, and the halfling 
  underclass does not have 
  the racial clout to do so 
  with authority.
  Settlements
  The major settlements of 
  Birdman Mountains are:
     Harhold is the seat 
  of power for the black-
  winged strixes. Tribe Har-
  fael makes its home in this 
  vertical city of honeycombed 
  stone. From here the flocks 
  of the strix fly over peaks 
  and valleys, imposing their 
  will as they see fit, as Flightmaster 
  Vey has notions of owning all that he 
  sees. And he can see a lot from Harhold.
     Screehold and Vadenhold are twin cities comprised 
  of abandoned xax fortifications built into the side of 
  a mountain. Great gardens have been planted on the 
  crumbling projections that jut outward from these cities. 
  They are home to the strix tribes of Scree and Veden’lo, 
  respectively. These tribes remember well the stories of 
  their ancestors being driven by men from the kinder 
  Calinsur Mountains, and hate men of all kinds.
     The Old Deeps are actually the upper portion of the 
  hollow insides of a mountain, but are probably ‘deep’ 
  enough for the halflings that live there. Inside these halls, 
  these close-knit people worship Myketa, the Patient 
  Lady, who helps them work together, hide from harpy 
  raids, and mine ore for trading. Deep halflings are prob-
  ably the best slingers on all of Porphyra.
     The Ruin Spires is a city inhabited entirely by harpies, 
  whose many clans fight for choice homes in  these blast-
  ed, ancient towers. Neither strix nor Halfling begrudges 
  the harpies their territory, which has
  become full of their pollution.
  Intrigues
  A party of dwarves has invited the PCs to come 
  on an unexpected journey to establish a 
  colony in the Birdman Mountains. They 
  speak of a halfling that knows a secret 
  entrance to an abandoned xax strong-
  hold, just ripe for repopulation. The 
  success of the mission may depend on 
  his willingness to enter the dark 
  depths.
  • During the NewGod-
  Wars, when the harpies drove 
  the xax from their ancestral 
  home, not quite all the xax 
  were destroyed. A hive in 
  the center of the mountain, 
  Krikoym, was shut tight early 
  in the conflict. Wards and 
  runes sealed the 400-some 
  inhabitants before the other 
  strongholds fell. It is assumed, 
  by those that knew of the doomed 
  beings at all, that they all perished 
  within, but no one has been able to 
  open Krikoym to verify this. What could 
  lie within? A lost race? Aberrant spirits? The xax were 
  known to be excellent miners- perhaps the treasures 
  of a lost era?
  • 
  Alachak Grym is a red dragon that invaded decades 
  ago, and ate so many harpies that he fell into a deep 
  slumber. This pleased the strix and halflings, but now 
  Grym is awake, too fat to leave the caverns, and is 
  intent on causing earthquakes and disturbing the 
  whole region. All the races of the mountains would 
  be grateful, if the wyrm were put down.
  
  — 20 — 
  Boroughs of Dunmark
   “I cannot be dead, I will eternal lie, for with strange eons, 
  it is Death that will die.” - Dunmarker funeral chant
  Capital: Port Arkham
  Settlements: Eel Marsh (330), Plainsmouth 
  (2,000), Port Arkham (20,000)
  Ruler: Governor Randalph Charteris
  Government: Republic
  Races: Human
  Faiths: Great Old Ones (cults)
  Resources: Agriculture, game, seafood, wood
  Languages: Aklo, Common
  Border Conditions: none
  History
  Little is known of Old Dunmark. The locals do not care 
  to talk or even speculate on the past. Instead, they are 
  content to live their safe, quiet lives, as they have “al-
  ways” done. According to records of the surrounding re-
  gions, Dunmark is one of the original lands of Porphyra. 
  The population is almost exclusively human of Kayanoi 
  stoack, and speak Aklo with a decided maritime—one 
  migh even say Aquan accent. The zendiqi lords of Enoria 
  named it Dey Ayun Marek, “Old One’s Defeat”, and old 
  tablets there recorded a great victory of the Four in eons 
  long past there, and regarded it a graveyard, a devastated 
  battleground fit only for salting. Both sides ignored it, 
  for the most part, though some few refugees from both 
  sides settled there after the NewGod war.
     It has always been secluded, and considered by outsid-
  ers, even Freeporters and Tuthoni, to be an unsettling 
  place. Gossipers and writers from the large cities of the 
  east have always found it trendy to pen tales of unspeak-
  able horrors and faceless terrors stalking Dunmarker vil-
  lages and ruling Port Arkham in secret. Such sensational 
  fear-mongering is foolishness, of course. Records from 
  visitors all describe a simple collection of towns and 
  villages having little fear of the wilderness. For reasons 
  only speculated at, foul beasts seem to steer clear of the 
  region. The worst things travelers have ever reported 
  encountering were bears and wolves.
     However, an obscure tome glimpsed in a Wathisi tomb 
  spoke of horrors in Old Dunmark in a different man-
  ner. The author spoke of the land as a sister to that of 
  Tuthon, claiming that they were both realms of the “Old 
  Gods” whatever they were- or are. He warned any fool-
  ish enough to consider entering Dunmark to slake their 
  curiosity to beware, and be grateful that the Elemental 
  Lords replaced what came before. Few have read this 
  tome, and those who have think the author quite mad. 
  Still and all, those who visit the Boroughs of Dunmark 
  speak of a strange atmosphere in the land. Though the 
  district boasts no monstrosities, and magic is rarely seen, 
  something in the air hangs wrong, and full of forebod-
  ing. 
  Current Events
  The inhabitants of Dunmark have lived in the same 
  way for generations. Some tend the fields, some fish, 
  and some speak in town halls. Most keep to their own 
  business, and none worship the New Gods, vaguely 
  claiming a tradition of neutrality in the clash of deist 
  and elementalist. In fact, very little religion can be found 
  on the village streets of Dunmark. There’s little risk of 
  missionaries gaining footholds because the populace 
  as a whole merely tolerate outsiders as the occasional 
  pest. It’s not that they hate foreigners, only that they are 
  cold and distrustful of them, as a rule. More often than 
  not, if an adventurer comes to town, their business is 
  taken, but practically shunned outside of shops. Some 
  foreign ships may find their way to the large harbor at 
  Port Arkham with rumors of strange things in the water, 
  but they always leave port rather quickly thereafter. The 
  one non-human race considered lucky amongst these 
  somewhat xenophobic people are the undines, probably 
  due to a not-so-secret smuggling operation that once ran 
  (and may still do) to the Rainbow Isles, quite under the 
  Governor’s nose.
     Things appear normal enough in the Boroughs. The 
  villages, on the surface, are just like all other small 
  secluded settlements. When one stops and really pays 
  attention, however, they begin to notice things, small 
  things that seemed insignificant only moments before. 
  For instance, though the citizens practice no organized 
  religion, nor do they practice magic with any notable 
  frequency, strange runes can be found painted over every 
  door; the weather is fouler-overcast and stormy- far 
  more than in lands just over the borders; and though no 
  monsters stalk the wilderness, strange calls and lights can 
  be observed in the night. The townspeople speak noth-
  ing of these things, practically denying their existence if 
  
  — 21 — 
  questioned.
     For those who are observant enough to lift the veil of 
  denial, they will find that something is not right in the 
  Boroughs of Dunmark.
  Settlements
  The major settlements of Dunmark are:
     Port Arkham is the only settlement in Dunmark that 
  could possibly be classified as a city, and is the capital of 
  the region. With cobbled streets and a fair sized popu-
  lation, it is considered the height of civilization in the 
  land. The Governor’s political office is located here, as 
  well as the Thurston Institute of
  Higher Learning, which actually boasts a few foreign 
  professors. There is an alarmingly sizable sanitarium, 
  the Howard House, a few miles out of the city. Lastly, 
  a finely built harbor lines Arkham Bay, though it is not 
  used for trade, but for the local fishing and diving fleet.
     Plainsmouth is a large farming town in the heart of 
  the Dunmark, known mostly for the surrounding large 
  corn fields and livestock ranches, and the markets that 
  serve both. The town itself is fairly small,
  with only the most essential of businesses, including a 
  single tavern, The Slaughtered Lamb. Otherwise, resi-
  dences are spread far apart, separate by the many fields. 
  Foreigners who have visited Plainsmouth often speak of 
  how they initially believed it was a dull place until they 
  witnessed “rather severe harvest rituals”. 
     Eel Marsh, lost in the mists of the large mire of the 
  same name, is larger than most villages in the Boroughs, 
  and hometown to quite a few past Governors. The vil-
  lage has little to offer beyond reluctant business owners 
  and cold stares. A scant few miles north of town, how-
  ever, where the ground grows firm, is a valley that sinks 
  low between a pair of hills. In the valley are the ruins of 
  a once vast city containing unusual structures. The vil-
  lage does not acknowledge that such a place exists, and 
  often treats those who speak of it as lunatics, running 
  them out of town.
  Intrigues
  • 
  The night after a harsh encounter with locals, the 
  PCs find their tavern empty and surrounded by a 
  mob of armed, robed figures. All means of escape 
  are blocked save a trap door once covered by a piece 
  of furniture. Going through it leads to a set of stone 
  catacombs built at odd angles...
  • 
  On a late night, a drunk regular of the tavern 
  rambles on about strange things in the fields sur-
  rounding the village. He is escorted home by a kind 
  patron, but he does not return to the tavern the next 
  night, or any after.
  • 
  A young woman working in Howard House seeks 
  aid when patients start going missing, and no one 
  seems to be doing anything about it.
  
  — 22 — 
  Bulwark of the Halfling Nations
   “Killing mâlites? Easy once you get the knack. Why do you 
  look so surprised?” – Nutley Butterbelly, halfling cavalier
  Capital: Quisay
  Settlements: Eremal (9,000), Faldon Town 
  (3,000), Maftya (5,000), Quisay (6,000)
  Ruler: Queen Aleanora
  Government: Monarchy
  Races: Eventual, Gnome, Goblin, Halfling, Ko-
  bold, Muse
  Faiths: Aleria, Eshsalqua, Mâl, Rolterra, Saren
  Resources: Agriculture, salvage, spices
  Languages: Celestial, Common, Draconic, Gob-
  lin, Gnome, Halfling, Infernal, Mâlite, Sylvan
  Border Conditions: Restricted (multiple Porphy-
  rite borders to the west, mountains to the east)
  History
  In antevocial times, Enoria was the strange garden of the 
  Elemental Earth Lord called Enor Ashlord, who tamed 
  volcanos to cultivate great spiraling towers of volcanic 
  glass and complex patterned ash mounds over vast mag-
  ma-carved caverns and swooping ridges. Enor’s servants 
  comprised a tribe of unusually cruel zendiqi elemental-
  ists who used their greater size to push around smaller 
  gnome, goblin and halfling slaves. The little folk pruned 
  the lush vines and brush that covered the unearthly 
  landscape and built temples and cities in Enor’s honor. 
  When The Calling brought new gods to Porphyra, Enor 
  was attacked on two fronts by the upstart gods. First, 
  Mâl, Destroyer of Worlds, used his influence to create 
  a spreading area of tainted jungle, called the Forest of 
  Gora, which crawled with mâlites. This dire place takes 
  up much of the western and central area of Enoria. This 
  affront prompted Enor Ashlord to abandon his land as 
  he futilely hunted the god responsible. Secondly, a large 
  piece of Landed territory manifested itself in the north 
  of Enoria, a vast ruin of urban area from a destroyed 
  world. This was the world of Rolterra, a revolution-
  ary deity followed by clans of surviving muses. A few 
  Landed kobolds and the muses immediately took Her 
  banner to the small slaves of Enor, and inspired them to 
  overthrow the slave-masters who dared use the gnomes 
  and halflings as fodder on the battlefield against roving 
  bands of mâlites. 
     Eventually, through stealth and guile, a group of slaves 
  managed to escape and trap the slave-masters’ leaders be-
  fore a horde of onrushing mâlites. Before their cruel end, 
  however, a young muse received a vision from the god-
  dess Aleria which bade her appeal to the rebels’ leaders to 
  remember why they rebelled—not to repeat the crimes 
  done to them, but to protect their families. The stripped 
  the zendiqi slavers of their treasure and branded them 
  villains, exiling them to the southern wastes rather than 
  leaving them to the mâlites. Soon, halflings and gnomes 
  had taken control of Enoria and mounted their own 
  campaign to slow the expansion of the Forest of Gora.
  Current Events
  Enoria’s current ruler, Aleanora, is a cunning descendant 
  of leaders of the old rebellion. Over the years of halfling 
  rule, their strategies have varied greatly, but generally fo-
  cus on intelligence-gathering and concealing their move-
  ments from mâlite eyes, by any means necessary. Their 
  gnome peers usually provide illusions and clockwork 
  contraptions that serve as artillery and heavy weapons on 
  the battlefield. Aleanora has amassed many magical allies 
  and stout rangers as the leaders of the Enorian military 
  units, helping the nation see a rare level of stability. 
  Her soft-defense strategy requires constant adaptability, 
  which is taxing for those near the war zone. These Enori-
  ans have been called upon many times to melt away into 
  the shadows as their homes were stolen, then wear down 
  mâlite invaders over time with traps and guerilla tactics 
  led by intrepid adventurers. 
     Although mâlites constantly harass Enorian territory, 
  the small folk refuse to seek any special aid from the “Big 
  People” neighbors in other lands, fearing attempts to 
  control them. They ask only for fair trade, usually with 
  their mercantile cousins in Blix, so they can fund the 
  war effort. The only big folk they allow to take part are 
  the muses, who have proven willing to sit back and offer 
  gentle advice rather than insisting on leading the charge 
  of giving orders.
     Goblins and kobold clans who have adopted the 
  blasted Faldon (fall-down) district in the north are 
  widely mistrusted, but their aid is essential in resisting 
  the mâlites which threaten them all. Leaders of the gob-
  lin clans follow Eshsalqua, whose foul teachings include 
  valuable lessons for predicting and thwarting mâlite 
  attacks, and the kobolds have had generations of experi-
  
  — 23 — 
  ence extracting materials from the Rolterran ruins and 
  supplying them to their eternal enemies, the gnomes. An 
  uneasy truce has remained in effect for almost as long as 
  the invasion has threatened, but is jeopardized by un-
  scrupulous thefts and raids by splinter tribes of goblins 
  and kobolds.
  Settlements
  The major settlements of the Bulwark of the Halfling 
  Nations are:
     Faldon Town is the general description of the largest 
  concentration of humanoids in Rolterra’s District, the 
  Landed territory of war-torn ruins in the north of Eno-
  ria. Occupied by goblins, kobolds, and the odd muse 
  devoted to Rolterra, it is a strangely ordered place, due 
  to the influence of The Fist of the People. The territory 
  has little food, and visitors can expect to pay heavy tolls. 
     Eremal is a major trade center of Enoria, downriver 
  from the Blixian guild city of Pult. It sits on an easi-
  lydefended island in the Almeera River near the na-
  tion’s eastern border, near the trade routes and ore-rich 
  Calinsur Mountains. Eremal is the only large Enorian 
  settlement which hosts numbers of “big 
  folk”- foreigners such as humans, 
  elves, and dwarves. Visitors are 
  treated well, as long as they do not 
  leave the foreign quarter. Eremal 
  is noted for its gnomish 
  production of inventions 
  of steam and 
  clockwork.
     Maftya 
  is a large, 
  heavily-for-
  tified town 
  often used 
  to resupply, 
  reinforce, 
  or evacuate 
  positions that 
  are threatened 
  with being over-
  run by mâlites. 
  The town has a 
  massive barracks 
  that houses and 
  trains a number 
  of soldiers who roam the Forest’s frontier.
     Quisay, known as the Windswept City, moves from 
  place to place on the Plains of Aish with the howling 
  winds that blow across Enoria, with the help of half-
  ling transmuters. It is also famous for its many brightly 
  colored pavilions and beautiful minarets, which can be 
  quickly camouflaged with a moment’s notice. The court 
  of Quisay is attended by many spellcasters, including 
  muse oracles and weird zif conjurers; all who help defend 
  the monarchy. The Windswept City hosts a large popula-
  tion of muses, who often act as medics for the war effort.
  Intrigues
  • 
  The ruins of elemental mage towers have been un-
  covered in the untamed woods in the no-being’s-land 
  near the Forest of Gora, offering the lure of ancient 
  elemental artifacts. The few survivors of expedi-
  tions to explore them mention elemental guardians, 
  magical obsidian blades, magma mantles that absorb 
  damage and boots that create earthquakes. The court 
  at Quisay desires them, of course, but the mâlites are 
  probably thinking the same thing…
  • 
  Mâlite invaders have recently been seeing through 
  Enorian stratagems with alarming speed, causing 
  grim thoughts of a spy in the military. The gener-
  als in Maftya are recruiting spy-catchers, before the 
  dreaded ones make a counter-attack.
  • 
  A cult of Eshsalqua has taken hold of 
  some young muses in Eremal, among those who 
  guide visitors. There have been complaints of 
  robbery and worse, and the competition 
  for notoriety and fashion is threaten-
  ing the well-being of that good town, 
  and may need rooting out.
  
  — 24 — 
  Californ, the Eternal Jungle
  “This ‘jungle’ as you hairy beasts call it, is a single living 
  thing. And it does not like you.” – Arn-Sko, xesa clan 
  leader of Yol.
  History
  Californ was once just a good-sized tropical island 
  between the Opal and Lost seas, dominated by a swift 
  river and the pestilential North Delta. Its trees were tall 
  and its undergrowth lush, but both were kept in check 
  by sea storms and sandy shores. The massive surge of 
  natural power that accompanied the arrival of the New 
  Gods struck the valley of the Cal, and flooded the region 
  with both life and death. Most of the life in the area was 
  slain violently, turning to rot and ash, while the forces of 
  nature reeled.
     When all had settled, the isle of Californ had become 
  part of the Land of Steam, a super-island of patchwork 
  nations from other dimensions, named so from the clash 
  of the sub-polar Frozen North and Californ’s tropical 
  heat. When nature recovered, (with added territory) it 
  did so with a vengeance. Trees and vines began to grow 
  at a phenomenal rate, their roots digging deep into soil 
  fertilized with the bodies of the dead. New life sprang 
  up, magic and madness drawing upon the distant past 
  to resurrect creatures long lost to the world. For the first 
  time in ages, dinosaurs and megalithic animals walked 
  the land again.
     Weeks became months of mad growth and months 
  stretched on into many green years before the flora of 
  Californ finally slowed in its resurgence. The entire 
  region became so massively overgrown that vines and 
  Capital: Verdigris
  Settlements: Ramble (1,000), Verdigris (8,000), 
  Yol (3,000)
  Ruler: Yorungar, Serpent of the Wilds
  Government: Tribal (mahrog), Councils of the 
  Undivided (xesa)
  Races: Human, Mahrog, Xesa
  Faiths: Moon cult, Saren, Sun cult
  Resources: Exotic plants, herbs, wood, woodcraft
  Languages: Common, Mahr, Sylvan, treespeak
  Border Conditions: Restricted (Porphyrite border 
  to the north and west; ocean to the east and south)
  myriad tree branches completely obscured the ground. 
  Ruins of strange old civilizations were platforms for 
  strange growth. As old plants died, new ones grew in 
  their mulch, creating a later of compost and fungus hun-
  dreds of feet thick over the region’s root-riddled earth. 
     For a time, the proto-human mahrog were the only 
  sentient life in Californ. They had to stay nomadic 
  because of their constantly changing and growing jungle 
  home. This bred agility, toughness and resourceful-
  ness within them, teaching them how to survive on the 
  move and make the most of their environment. Some of 
  the fauna in Californ proved capable of domestication, 
  providing beasts of burden and mounts for the primitive 
  race.
     The land’s only other primary intelligent life emerged 
  after the mahrog had already achieved dominance over 
  Californ. The xesa simply appeared into the world, 
  emerging from long-dormant seed pods engendered 
  from the merging of a long-dead human race and their 
  vegetable predators. Their arrival terrified the mahrog, as 
  the primitives believed that they were the vengeful plant 
  spirits of their ancestors. Perhaps they were right. A long 
  and vicious war broke out between the two sides, one 
  that has raged for years, with no clear victor.
     Fertility is a constant in Californ, ensuring fertile mat-
  ing and high, often multiple birth rates for the mahrog. 
  Xesa here reach their Time of Division much earlier here 
  than in their typical haunts. These factors provided con-
  stant meat and mulch for the grinders of war, ensuring 
  that neither side could win.
  Current Events
  What exists in Californ now is a tentative and fragile 
  truce between the two races, a tense pause in hostilities 
  that defines the entire region. The mahrog dominate, 
  to a certain extent, from the ‘city’ of Verdigris, while 
  the xesa have retreated from their front-line leaf camps 
  to their overgrown ruin-cities of the north. The under-
  standing of a ‘border’ is vague at best, and while there 
  is no longer an active war, conflicts and skirmishes are 
  ongoing.
     Recently Californ has been receiving a massive amount 
  of rain, even more than is normal during its months-
  long wet seasons. The rain has driven dangerous fauna 
  and flora out of the flooded river valley into xesa and 
  mahrog territory. At first this was welcomed as a hunting 
  boon, but the numbers are starting to become prob-
  
  — 25 — 
  lematic. A temporary solution applied by both races 
  has been to divert the streams of displaced life out of 
  their jungle homes into the other nations of the Land 
  of Steam through the natural gaps in Californ’s Porphy-
  rite wall. These diversions have so far proven to be only 
  oddities or nuisances for Californ’s neighbors, but it is 
  only a matter of time before something powerful and 
  dangerous crosses the crystal border and starts raging out 
  of control.
     A very few forward thinking members of both the xesa 
  and mahrog races started pondering the eventual results 
  of these unseasonably heavy rainstorms. All of their mus-
  ings lead to the same terrible conclusions. If the rising 
  waters and animals do not force the xesa and mahrog to 
  climb higher, the constant rain is going to wash down 
  life from the freezing upper branches of Californ’s mega-
  trees. In either case, they will soon have to deal with 
  swarms of their homeland’s most terrifying denizen—the 
  wooly mantis.
  Settlements
  The major settlements of Californ are: 
     Ramble is a large nomadic tent-camp that moves ‘with 
  the moons’ in southern Californ. Containing many 
  varied races but a majority of humans, the ‘Ramblers’ are 
  those that seek to avoid ‘civilized’ society, and practice 
  ultimate freedom of thought, action, and ingestion of 
  foreign substances.
      Verdigris exists within a gigantic monolith that ap-
  peared when the New Gods arrived on Porphyra. This 
  obelisk is riddled with passages the mahrog use as lairs, 
  creating a city of sorts that is constantly on the move, as 
  vines grow to fill tunnels and die off, freeing others. The 
  city-stone gets its name from the thousands of veins of 
  copper ore that cover its surface, tarnishing in Californ’s 
  humid air.
     Yol is the largest of the ruin-cities of the bizarre xesa, 
  Yol is home to nearly 3,000 of the plantfolk.
  The arcane skills of the xesa balance the mahrog’s greater 
  military prowess, and the Undivided Council
  there are very interested in magic items from the outside 
  world.
  Intrigues
  • 
  Bounty hunting outsiders (namely the PCs) might 
  not immediately be greeted with hostility upon 
  meeting with either of Californ’s sentient races. If 
  they seem powerful and competent, they may be 
  approached with an offer to attack the settlements 
  of the other race. The xesa and mahrog have a truce, 
  but nothing in that agreement says anything about 
  using others to pursue the war.
  • 
  There are plants and animals species in Californ that 
  have not existed on Porphyra in millennia. While 
  they would be valuable simply from a naturalist’s 
  viewpoint, many of these life forms have magical or 
  medicinal value. In the right hands, these plant and 
  animal components could be worth a fortune.
  • 
  The obelisk that houses the cave city of Verdigris 
  is more than just a titanic rock; some sages say its 
  concave pinnacle houses the fabled Theater of Ar-
  rival, which bears the keystones of the arrival of the 
  New Gods. As such, the Californ Menhir might hold 
  divine lore of unimaginable power, and wizards and 
  wise men will surely pay handsomely for someone to 
  investigate the claim.
  
  — 26 — 
  Calopia, Land of Heroes
  “When the time for heroism has passed, where do we, the 
  heroes, go?” -last words of Ingomar Ironhand, command-
  er of The Golden Quest
  Capital: Questown
  Settlements: Beacon (2,000), Crystalbridge 
  (4,000), Questown  (5,000), The Fence (1,500), 
  Towertown (1,234)
  Ruler: High Quaestor Bromellon
  Government: Syndicate council
  Races: Any Non-Outsider
  Faiths: Any
  Resources: Game, magic items, mercenaries, rel-
  ics, tourism
  Languages: Any
  Border Conditions: Restricted (Porphyrite border 
  bound to the Crystal Bridge)
  History
  When those mortals that came to Porphyra with the 
  Calling arrived on their new world, they had barely 
  begun to examine their situation when their lands were 
  engaged in war. The NewGod Wars were a struggle for 
  survival, a resistance of the new by the old, and heroes 
  were born, made, and perished in short order. The efforts 
  of bands of skilled adventurers played as big a part in the 
  victory of the gods as the clash of armies in the field. No 
  better example can be shown than that of The Golden 
  Quest, a heroic group from the Middle Kingdoms, 
  containing just four individuals: Ingomar, a titanic hu-
  man fighter; Azimuth, a half-elven wizardess; Girdo, 
  a halfling rogue; and Brother Franc, a human cleric of 
  Gerana. These iconic four breached secret elementalist 
  strongholds, recovered legendary items to help the deists, 
  sabotaged plans of the mighty genies, and slew many a 
  giant. When a last, desperate push by a genie/giant army 
  traveled through the Underdeep and attacked the gates 
  of Sanctus Templum itself, it is said they failed only 
  because of the efforts of The Golden Quest, and resulted 
  in the death of Ingomar Ironhand, in the arms of his 
  lover Azimuth, in the tower of the high priest of Gerana. 
  As he breathed his last, his arm pointed where his eyes 
  fell, to an island visible through the tower window.  Off 
  the coast of The Middle Kingdoms, it was a island of 
  mossy stone, sea breezes, and peace; the isle of Calo. In 
  anguish, Azimuth and Brother Franc combined their 
  divine and arcane powers to create the Crystal Bridge to 
  their new home; a thirty-mile span of porphyrite crystal, 
  anathema to their enemies. Warweary veterans of the 
  war, and later, veterans and survivors of long adventur-
  ing careers came to the new land, Calopia, now named 
  and held up as a shining memorial to those who fought 
  for their new land, the Land of Heroes. Though Crystal-
  bridge was the first settlement of the heroes, at the 
  landing place of Azimuth and Franc’s creation, it came 
  to be that each general discipline of the adventuring life 
  founded their own community, with camp followers and 
  hirelings settling small crofts and hunting camps in the 
  wildernesses inbetween the established towns. The shad-
  owy figure of Girdo, held to be the most skillful of his 
  craft, is sometimes said to be the father of the division 
  of Calopia. The truth is, though, that The Golden Quest 
  is held in almost divine status on the bridge-connected 
  island nation.
  Current Events
  The Middle Kingdom’s problems are a concern for the 
  people of Calopia, dependent as they are on their over-
  land neighbor and its status. The mercenary business is 
  booming, of course, but even the belligerent Bromellon 
  has the presence of mind to realize that peace is better 
  than war for his populace. The clerics of Beacon agitate 
  for interfering in the conflict at the Wall of Sleep, and 
  the Ullian, Nerian, and Rolterran embassies in that 
  divine enclave are hotbeds of intrigue, and the street 
  shouters have spread even to glittering Crystalbridge.
     Bromellon has found himself in the curious position of 
  being a military power without a cause to follow, having 
  no ax to grind in the surrounding nations’ difficulties, 
  but profiting from their need of arms. The Rolterrans 
  (so he thinks) have declared Calopia neutral ground, the 
  Shadelings and Rajuki stick to their quarters (with the 
  occasional assassination) and the Malites stay inscru-
  table. For a psionic being, he is rather insensitive, but 
  his right arm and mind-splitting powers silence most 
  persistent advisors.
  Settlements
  The major settlements of Calopia are:
     Questown is the capital of Calopia was built by 
  retainers of Ingomar Ironhand, on the partially ruined 
  walls of a deist fortified port on the east coast of Calo. 
  
  — 27 — 
  It is a militarily-oriented community, and boasts a small 
  navy and marine corp, quite independent from the 
  Middle Kingdom’s, especially now in its  troubles with 
  the Rolterrans. Duels, tournaments and lists are com-
  mon in Questown, and political decision-making often 
  turns on a well-placed blow. Nominally answering to the 
  four syndicates of the adventuring profession, the High 
  Quaestor is typically an experienced warrior, caring more 
  about pomp and circumstance, and the threatening of 
  military crusade.
     Calopia’s oldest settlement is a rather cynical town 
  named Crystalbridge, concerned with trade with the 
  mainland and turning the famous citizens of Calopia 
  into profit for the resource-impoverished island. The 
  wealthy non-adventurers of the land live here, as do 
  many bards and entertainers, and tourists coming across 
  the Porphyrite Bridge delight in the shiny pleasures 
  of Crystalbridge.
     The Fence is some-
  times described as a 
  suburb of Questown. 
  But, The Fence is a seedy 
  waterfront dive of a town, 
  spread out along the coast of 
  Calo. It is said that nearly any-
  thing can be sold or bought in 
  The Fence, including lives and 
  souls. Smugglers and fast ships 
  also leave The Fence in small, speedy 
  boats that have a great facility with 
  oceanic porphyrite borders.
     Towertown is the living legacy 
  of Azimuth, one of the most accom-
  plished wizards of Porphyra, carried on 
  in “The Conflagration of Magical Allies 
  of the Great Tower of Azimuth”, or, 
  Towertown. Any kind of arcane item or 
  research can be found here, and the Hall 
  of Artifacts is a tourist attraction the 
  world over. If Questown is the brawn 
  of Calopia, Towertown is the 
  brain, and the eyes; the 
  divination abilities of its 
  syndicate are second to 
  none. 
     Pilgrimages to Bea-
  con by the devoted 
  of an entire world lend a heavy presence to city, founded 
  by the tolerant, yet incredibly powerful Brother Franc, 
  said to be the first Codion (pope) of Gerana on Por-
  phyra. Though the seat of the church, and its Credons 
  (cardinals) is in Sanctus Templum, His Iron Will comes 
  to Beacon several times a year for ecumenical councils. 
  All faiths are represented here, even the dark ones of 
  Shade and Rajuk Amon-Gore, and the Malite embassy is 
  sure to shock unwary visitors.
  Intrigues
  • 
  Several very old retired adventurers have fallen to a 
  particularly vicious assassin. A Xia walking-priest has 
  passed the word to non-Calopian would-be heroes 
  urging help in this mystery, possibly an elementalist 
  plot. 
  • The old ruins beneath Questown were hastily cov-
  ered over in the expansion period. How ironic 
  would it be for the “City of the Sword” to have an 
  unexplored dungeon beneath it, with the map 
  in your hands?
  • 
  For the very first time, an artifact 
  has disappeared from the 
  Hall of Artifacts in 
  Towertown. 
  The Su-
  preme Curator 
  is beside himself, afraid even to ask for 
  divination. Since one of the party is his 
  cousin, could they look into it before 
  someone recognizes the replica in the 
  case?
  • 
  The smuggler 
  Holo Saan in The 
  Fence is supposedly 
  the best there is. Try 
  to find him in that den 
  of scum and villainy, and 
  get him to take you a hob-
  goblin holdout in the Sea 
  of Karkoon; Grand 
  Stallion Kaava of 
  Parl Pardesh has a 
  sealed (for now, 
  anyway) message 
  for the leader 
  there.
  
  — 28 — 
  City State of Iluriel
   “Iluriel? Never heard of it.” - Typical Porphyran.
  Capital: Iluriel
  Settlements: Iluriel (10,000)
  Ruler: Lady Aullia
  Government: Parliamentary
  Races: Elf, Half-Orc, Orc
  Faiths: Neria, Paletius
  Resources: Godmetals (dreamstone), metals (gold, 
  silver), seafood, woodcraft
  Languages: Elven, Orc
  Border Conditions: Restricted (A full porphyrite 
  border surrounds and isolates Iluriel)
  History
  Not even the Silver Elders remember a time when Iluriel 
  was not a gleaming gem peeking out from the rocks 
  above a foaming sea. The story is told that, when the 
  gods brought parts of their ancient homelands along, a 
  tiny enclave of elves devoted to Neria found a hold-fast 
  on the treacherous, windswept face of a seaside cliff. 
  There, seed-like, that enclave grew, digging roots into the 
  cold stone, channeling hidden rivers for both beauty and 
  industry, until it became the hidden city of stone, water, 
  mortar and gold.
     Iluriel’s nature has always held it apart from the world. 
  Becoming self-sufficient through hardship, the elves 
  managed to create a thriving civilization that provided 
  for both material and cultural needs. Glimpses of other 
  peoples from afar, however, eventually roused their 
  curiosity, and Iluriel sought to connect with the world at 
  large. It was repaid with mistrust and outright invasion, 
  Iluriel fought off the So’cha Fourlander invaders, and left 
  their camp an infertile, smoking ruin, and once more 
  retreated into isolation. Since then, the So’cha know the 
  place as the “Land of Ghosts” and are as afraid of it as 
  they are tempted by it.
     Centuries have passed since. Iluriel remains a secret to 
  most of Porphyra, unapproachable behind its godswall, 
  and revealing itself only to a handful of trusted outsiders, 
  such as a dignitaries from Sil’Arden and Meynon, and a 
  small number of merchants who supply the citizens with 
  trade goods from the outside world. In their time-con-
  suming way, the elves of Porphyra, and the mixed-bloods 
  of Azag-Ithiel (who have their own spies in the surface 
  camp) wish to include Iluriel in the world community, 
  for good or ill, and perhaps whether the Ilurians want it 
  or not.
  Current Events
  Iluriel is in a period of transition that is slowly taking 
  its toll on the population. Exposure to trade goods from 
  far-away lands, and a small group of orcs and half-orcs 
  living in the periphery of the city, has been enough to 
  awaken desires long thought put to rest. A growing 
  number of citizens favor ending the self-imposed exile 
  and making a new attempt at joining the world at large. 
  Though still a small movement, the faction is well-orga-
  nized and has representatives in all spheres of influence, 
  including some members of the Silver Elders. Though 
  not entirely opposed to the idea, Lady Aullia continues 
  to avoid the debate by retreating into her arcane studies 
  and day-to-day activities.
     Sheriff Janar the Swift is dealing with the practical fall-
  out from this new movement in Iluriel. His law-keepers 
  are stretched paper-thin as they patrol the city borders, 
  as well as the Wilder looking for wayward explorers 
  instead of keeping an eye out for potential enemies. 
  Janar has no opinion on hether the city should open its 
  borders or not, though he wishes Lady Aullia and the 
  Elders would come to a conclusion. In the meantime, he 
  will take all the help he can get to keep Iluriel safe, even 
  secretly  sending out spies into nearby settlements to 
  seek out intelligence and, perhaps, outside help.
     The number of Ilurians struck by wanderlust is grow-
  ing. Intrepid wanderers go further than the porphyrite 
  borders, by land, sea, or deep into the underground 
  tunnels. As Ilurians tend to get absorbed by their proj-
  ects for long periods of time, the disappearance of some 
  of these explorers has yet to be discovered. Should the 
  tunnels someday be connected to the Underdeep, that 
  world under the world, Iluriel would change even more 
  quickly.
     The clergy of Neria, traditionally upholding her role 
  as patron of the Sky, Land and Sea, have begun to see 
  a shift in their communion with the goddess. Dreams 
  abound with images of travel and exploration. Portents 
  and prophecies speak of a time of exodus. Sermons whis-
  pered behind closed doors by radical clerics of Linium 
  tell the people to embrace the unknown beyond the city. 
  Recently, even magical blessings from the goddess have 
  
  — 29 — 
  begun to take new forms, aligning to this new divine 
  message.
     The once-secret affair between an Ilurian lass and a 
  trusted merchant orc has become public knowledge, as 
  she prepares to deliver a baby any day now, making it the 
  first half-orc born in Iluriel. Seen as a major portent and 
  quite likely the spark that could ignite a fire, the couple 
  have been moved to Lady Aullia’s residence and provided 
  with a personal guard to protect them from both those 
  that would harm them, and those that would use them.
  Settlements
  The major settlement of Iluriel is: 
     Iluriel is a place of breathtaking beauty by any reckon-
  ing. The city has grown organically out of the cliff upon 
  which it found itself by the use of architectural ingenuity 
  and not a bit of magic. The result is a series of caverns 
  housing various sections of the city, from the vast cave 
  for the central plaza and marketplace, upon which all 
  crossing the Golden Bridge arrive, to smaller grottoes 
  where families make their homes. Marble columns are 
  used extensively to support the hole-ridden rock face, 
  with those out on verandas and balconies 
  decorated by expert sculptors and goldsmiths 
  into fanciful designs that lend the cliff walls 
  an air of the otherworldly.
     There are strict rules for dwelling on the 
  outer peninsula, called the Wilder; no per-
  manent structures, avoid all lasting marks, 
  and replace that which you take. Unsanc-
  tioned sentients are not tolerated, and 
  can expect removal or extermination, their 
  remains thrown into the sea. For hundreds of 
  years, prides of griffons have been encouraged 
  to lair on the Wilder, so much so that some 
  sailors call the peninsula Griffon Point.
  Intrigues
  • 
  Sheriff Janar is hiring adventurers to 
  boost the city guard’s reach. Though 
  necessary, not all Ilurian guards are hap-
  py with mercenaries in their ranks. Native 
  Ilurians are sent to patrol the outer 
  boundaries of the small peninsula, and 
  in the tunnels below. Foreign guards 
  are part of Janar’s spy network, tasked 
  with obtaining intelligence on what is 
  known of Iluriel in nearby settlements and lands.
  • 
  Fenian merchants need adventurers to guard cara-
  vans to Iluriel, after the last three were attacked. 
  The bandits have been identified as clansmen of the 
  So’cha settlement, destroyed centuries ago. Some, 
  however, whisper that the elves themselves are trying 
  to keep outsiders away, once and for all.
  • 
  A traveling orc (perhaps a PC) seeks to reach Iluriel 
  in time to witness the birth of the half-breed baby, 
  though he keeps his reasons a secret. Is he family, 
  friend or foe? A herald of hope, or a harbinger of 
  doom?
  • 
  While traveling the countryside, the characters 
  encounter an Ilurian patrol engaged in an altercation 
  with a small group of Fourlanders who bypassed the 
  city-state’s border. Can the characters help defuse the 
  situation and avoid bloodshed from happening? If 
  swords are drawn, on which side will they fight: the 
  accidental law-breakers or the ‘legitimate’ authority? 
  
  — 30 — 
  Clandoms of the Fourlands
  “The four truths of the elements, the twenty-seven truths of 
  the gods, the One Word- what are the clans to believe?” 
  - the 67th Kama Le
  Capital: None
  Settlements: Kama Rue (12,000; A’tez), Solimat 
  (18,000; M’linas), Vestin Za (15,000; I’nsian) 
  Ruler: Can Baniu (I’nsian), Gilna (S’ocha), the 
  Kama Le (A’tez), Tolinmar (M’linas)
  Government: Confederation
  Races: Anumus, Dragonblood, Half-Giant, Hu-
  man, Lizardfolk, Zendiqi
  Faiths: Chiuta, Lord Grunzol Firestorm, The New 
  Way, Toma Thule
  Resources: Agriculture, precious metals (gold), 
  spices
  Languages:  Common, Draconic, Giant, Old 
  Porphyran
  Border Conditions: Limited (porphyrite border 
  south and north-east)
  History
  The Fourlands are named for the confederation of 
  dominant clandoms that hold sway in the area, but it 
  was not always so. Once these fertile lands were the 
  home to the Grand Empire of Al’mahk, playground of 
  the genie khans to do with as they wished, a gift from 
  the Elemental Lords for their lieutenancy. The indolent 
  genies amused themselves by placing the Lizard Kings 
  in ascendancy, their Galleries of the Sun held as estates 
  and arenas of homage from lesser giants, zendiqi, and 
  erkunae overseers. But more wondrous even than these 
  were the Colossi—the Totem Shrines. The Colossi rose 
  from the land visible for miles, each Colossus in the 
  shape of the Wyrmlord within, an ancient and advanced 
  elemental Dragon held as the embodiment of power and 
  elementalism. The Colossi were monolithic elemental 
  constructs that, according to fragmentary records, had 
  the ability to move about the realm, literally a living 
  extension of the land.
     The chiefest of the fragments, the Book of Zarnu, 
  details the height and fall of the Grand Empire- from 
  the forbidden Anumi Fruit that the Al’mahk thought 
  they could use to become race-creators themselves, to 
  the Nine Trials of M’razzak the Hunter, a Lizard King 
  convert to Chiuta who was said to have brought low 
  the Lord Grunzol Firestorm and bound his spirit form 
  within the Heartshard of Emelt. The Book also details 
  the myriad giant tribes, the mutable soldiers of the 
  elementalists, that were twisted by the Seven Warlords 
  of Brom as engines of destruction, and even force-bred 
  with humans for a desperate edge over the deists from 
  Xoa, Iffud and overseas.
     In the end, the devastation of The Calling and the 
  NewGod Wars obliterated the already-decadent Empire 
  of Al’mahk, and drove the great Lords from the world. 
  The farmers, peasantry and administrative humans 
  stayed out of battle’s way, adapting the fierce beliefs of 
  the orthodox to a New Way, and ensuring their survival 
  by not stepping between the Elementals and the Gods. 
  The genie khans were imprisoned in powerful items, the 
  Lizard Kings’ gardens left shattered, overgrown and feral, 
  the people blasted back to a primal state; and the Wyrm-
  lord Colossi, the Totem Shrines were reduced to derelict 
  hulks. Many were buried for all time, humbled by the 
  devastation wrought by the new believers. The farmers 
  (M’linas), herders (S’ocha), administrators (I’nsian) and 
  artists (A’tez) bravely made peace with the conquerors, 
  built their cities on top of the pleasure palaces of the 
  Al’mahk, and began to follow the New Way of prosper-
  ity.
  Current Events
  Today the Fourlands are a more serene place, if no less 
  primal. It is said by many that visit the Clandoms that 
  the very pulse of Porphyra can be felt if one only takes 
  the time to stop and become one with the land. The 
  northeast shore of the western continent is now domi-
  nated by the four clans, the inheritors for which the 
  realm is named. Considered the grandest of these are the 
  golden ziggurat temple cities of the M’linas. Clinging to 
  the sides of sleeping volcanoes, the Temple Cities of the 
  M’linas are surrounded by rich and bountiful farms that 
  are often home to a tribe of half-giants that live hand in 
  hand with the M’linas.
     The plateau lands of the I’nsian are equally wondrous, 
  as the Mesa Arcologies house as many people as most 
  proud cities in the Middle Kingdoms. The I’nsian also 
  soar the skies from one Arcology to another in large ‘sky-
  ships’ decorated in luminous feathers and great wingsails, 
  emulating the Wyrmlords of old.
     The S’ocha are the most known to land travelers in the 
  
  — 31 — 
  realm, as they live a semi-nomadic existence upon the 
  Meridi Plains, following the herds of goats, horses, cattle, 
  even giant stags and glyptodons. They travel between the 
  Ancestor Mounds of their fallen, hunting as they go, and 
  winter within the Mound Cities at first frost, taking to 
  the migration paths at first thaw again. Some have sug-
  gested that the Mound Cities may be the remains of the 
  Totem Shrines of the Wyrmlords.
     Though insular by the standards of the other clans, 
  the A’tez are a peaceful people. They build tranquil 
  gardens along the shores of Mordeep Bay, incorporated 
  into sprawling cities with vast aqueducts and levees with 
  communal pools where many A’tez spend their time 
  in quiet contemplation. The A’tez are led by a spiritual 
  leader called the Kama Le, who never dies, it is said, but 
  passes into the body of a newborn child when the old 
  body passes.
     All of the races of the Fourlands trace their lineage to 
  the times of Old Porphyra and the rule of the elemen-
  tals, and most practice a progressive form of elemental-
  ism called The New Way, which preaches co-tolerance 
  of elementalism and deism. Chiuta is followed by the 
  lizardfolk and a few druidic humans, and cults of Toma 
  Thule are popular among the nobility of all clans. The 
  eastern Landed countries tolerate the New Way, but still 
  send missionaries to the Fourlands to sway them from 
  their elementalist faith.
     Tolerance is not felt by all races of the Clandoms, 
  though. Remnant tribes of zendiqi haunt the badlands 
  of the Fourlands, and are as xenophobic and anti-deist 
  as their eastern brothers, though with oddly divergent 
  customs and practices, such as their habit of hooding 
  themselves and learning to fight blind. Dragonbloods are 
  common in the Fourlands, and though suffered to live, 
  are accepted with no little exasperation—at least until 
  one reaches a station of power, whereupon his history is 
  lauded to all.
  Settlements
  The major settlements of the Clandoms are:
     Solimat, the Golden Temple, is the most widely 
  spoken of and sought-out city in the Fourlands. It serves 
  as the center of power of the M’linas, and uses gold as 
  other nations use tin or lead. Food is the true wealth 
  here, and many nations know of Solimati cuisine as rare 
  delicacy. 
     Vestin Za is the largest of the Mesa Arcologies, span-
  ning almost five hundred square miles, gently populated 
  according to guilds of interest and heritage. The Skyracks 
  are an impressive sight, holding dozens of ready skyships 
  for the Can’s wishes. 
     Kama Rue, on the shores of the Opal Sea, is the holy 
  spiritual center of the A’tez. Located near the Falls of 
  Xin, that empty into the sea after cascading over the 
  titanic fossilized skeleton of an ancient Wyrmlord, it is 
  interesting that the Kama Le never visits Kama Rue, pre-
  ferring to wander the land, visiting his folk as a humble 
  beggar or lama, holding court in tent gatherings.
  Intrigues
  • 
  A leader is uniting the scattered packs and clans of 
  anumus into a single force. Rumor is they follow an 
  ancient unbottled genie that survived the ruination 
  of the War and seeks to reclaim former power.
  • 
  A plague rampages through the East, and all divina-
  tion points to a cure within the Fourlands, within 
  an abandoned Mound City forbidden to even the 
  S’ocha.
  • 
  A new colony of missionaries has gone missing in 
  the western Fourlands. The buildings and animals re-
  main, but the people are gone, as if they disappeared 
  in the middle of their daily chores.
  
  — 32 — 
  Clockwork Lands
  “What was once a paradise has been transformed by greed 
  into a hell. This is what the corporations call progress.” 
  -Ovin Trastapotal, elan traveling bard
  History
  There is little known about the area annexed by the 
  Clockwork Lands before Linium brought his pride and 
  joy to Porphyra. Beyond that it was a verdant region 
  with tall cliffs that overlooked the sea, and a mild cli-
  mate. The arrival of the Clockwork Lands changed 
  that. Coming from a rapidly plundered jungle world, 
  it brought tropical breezes, cities, and an industrious 
  workforce ready to revel in the treasures that nature and 
  the new world, had provided them. The vast Red Cliffs 
  that overlooked the new Land were inhabited by a large 
  hive of dromites swiftly absorbed into the nation, as was 
  the rich iron, copper and tin deposits within. The new 
  territory provided hardwoods, coal, and petroleum to 
  fuel the factories.
     When it Landed, the Clockwork Lands were in tur-
  moil. The rigid caste system that had existed in the old 
  world was showing cracks, as workers, seeing new op-
  portunities, began to organize. The four major Corpora-
  tions, Gaytes Enterprises, Havacord Mechanics, Imperial 
  Dynamics, and Crucible Industries were at war. It is 
  thought that Linium’s Calling was a ploy to divert the 
  espionage, assassination, thievery and sabotage that was 
  Capital: Crucible
  Settlements: Beta (The Enclave, 1,000+), Crucible 
  (27,300), Gaytes (27, 900), Pyroness (29,600), 
  Havacord (28,900), Treadwell (11,200)
  Ruler: Dr. Heinrich Brandeburg, CEO of Gaytes 
  Enterprises 
  Government: Plutocratic Technocracy
  Races: Blue, Boggle, Dromite, Dwarf, Eventual, 
  Gnome, Goblin, Half-Giant, Human
  Faiths: Linium, Eshsalqua
  Resources: Fossil fuels, metals (copper, iron, tin), 
  machinery, robotics
  Languages: Common, Dwarven, Giant, Goblin, 
  Gnome
  Border Conditions: Restricted (Irregular border 
  within the Clockwork Lands; Enclave fully-en-
  closed)
  happening. Minor corporations were looking for blood 
  in the water, and Imperial Dynamics was dealing with 
  a feud between the CEO, Magnus Galwater, and the 
  largest stockholder, Emual Pyron. Linium’s Land helped 
  little with the NewGod War, and hard-line deist na-
  tions such as the Middle Kingdoms and Iffud have never 
  forgotten it.
     The tipping point came when Crucible unveiled the 
  Mark I Multipurpose Golem, a seemingly inexhaust-
  ible robot that could switch from worker to soldier 
  almost instantly. It put Crucible in firm control of the 
  Clockwork Lands, aided by the fact that they supported 
  Pyron in his takeover bid. Old Pyron, his native city, was 
  burned to ashes, but the new city of Pyroness became 
  the district government of the annexed lands to the west. 
  The Mark 1s became the police force for the nation, 
  and are also used to patrol the border with the nefarious 
  Empire of the Dead to the east.
     By the time the Mark 5s entered the market, most 
  menial labor and assembly was being done by golems. 
  The lower classes complained of lack of jobs and poor 
  living conditions, exacerbated by the influx of refugees 
  from Porphyra. A sorcerer from the worker caste, Ko-
  seem Treadwell, began to gather followers in the west 
  by demonstrating his Null Gauntlets, a magic device 
  that could make golems inert. For a time it seemed that 
  the days of the Corporations were numbered, but greed 
  would be the undoing of the Progressives. Treadwell and 
  his partner, the Blue artificer Xevid Gozen, sold the se-
  crets of the Null Gauntlets to the Corporations in return 
  for enough capital to get a city started in the west, and 
  Treadwell Industries off the ground.
  Current Events
  The Corporations keep heavy-handed control over the 
  Clockwork Lands. The streets are kept quiet by golem 
  sentries, and malcontents are threatened with being 
  shipped off to The Enclave, the black-box research 
  colony on the far-off Land of Steam. The Enclave is oth-
  erwise rarely mentioned anywhere, as there is a reason 
  for it being so far away. Of the many ships at the port of 
  Gaytes, ships bound for and returning from The Enclave 
  are blank white.
     The executive caste (Exec) is made up of the masters 
  and boards members of the Corporations. They are the 
  government of the Clockwork Lands, and their word is 
  law. The life of a citizen (Citz) is one of corporate spon-
  
  — 33 — 
  sored consumption and leisure where they are waited 
  on by golem servants that see to their needs. Psionic 
  negotiators (Sikes) are the public face of the Corpora-
  tions. They are psionically gifted and are both feared and 
  revered. They are currently in favor due to the favorable 
  treaty with Azag-Ithiel to the west. The artificers (Ficers) 
  are showered with praise and worship, true celebrities. 
  They are beholden to their employers, but tend to bend 
  and shape the rules as they see fit. The Worker caste 
  does demanding physical labor such as mining for little 
  reward, and may only advance by volunteering for the 
  army. The religious caste (Clerks) maintains Linium’s 
  balance of keeping their rich patrons happy, and see-
  ing to the well-being of the less fortunate. The casteless 
  (Grubs) make a living best they can, mostly at recycling 
  hazardous materials and doing “dirty work” for the Cor-
  porations.
  Settlements
  The major settlements of the Clockwork Lands are:
     Beta is the rumored name of the offshore research 
  facility in The Enclave, with a rotated staff of 
  bonded artificers and arcane specialists. Its 
  secrets are heavily guarded by all involved, and 
  no other information is forthcoming.
     Crucible is the capital of the Clockwork 
  Lands, HQ of Crucible Industries, and center 
  for golem design. It is the hub of the Rail Car-
  riage mass transit system, which always runs 
  on time, like everything in Crucible. 
     Gaytes, the City by the Sea, is a 
  beautiful metropolis of glowing 
  buildings, posh casinos, and spar-
  kling night life. It is the HQ of 
  Gaytes Enterprises, which makes 
  personal magic items for the home. 
  It is also the center for sports such as 
  golem fighting and arena dueling.
     Havacord is said to have three 
  golems for every citizen. This gleam-
  ing city of machines is the heart of
  education for the Clockwork 
  Lands. Havacord Mechan-
  ics produces tools and 
  information systems, as 
  well as educated specialists 
  in many classes.
     Pyroness, the Phoenix City, which rose from the ashes 
  of corrupt Pyron, is the new face of Imperial Dynam-
  ics. Pyroness is the forefront of alchemical and medical 
  research, and produces miracles in both areas. The larg-
  est temple to Forgefather towers here, visited by many 
  dwarves from all over Porphyra.
     Treadwell, called the City of Traitors by some, is a city 
  of hard smiles and wary attitudes. Treadwell produces 
  top of the line weapons and defense items, and military 
  magic gear. They will sell to any and all that can pay, and 
  are very unhappy with the Jheriak embargo.
  Intrigues
  • 
  There is a rumor that in the city of Treadwell there 
  was a golem that said ‘no’. An urban legend and a 
  trope of Linite scripture, the idea of golems evolving 
  both fascinates and terrifies the Clockwork Landers. 
  The city masters admit there was a theft of a proto-
  type golem, but will say no more on the matter.
  • 
  The Ultimate CEO, Brandenburg, secured leader-
  ship of the Technocracy by presenting an anti-gravity 
  auto-abacus called the Calculatrix. A development 
  period is expected after the prototype is presented, 
  but that time has ended... Sikes of GE have in-
  formed the PCs that the Calculatrix prototype 
  has been stolen, and Corporation employees 
  cannot be seen searching for it. The 
  party will have to disguise them-
  selves as Grubs to investigate the 
  theft and recovery.
  • Stories of cults are commonplace 
  in the Clockwork Lands, especially 
  those of Eshsalqua, who promises ad-
  vancement in the rigid caste system 
  for dark deeds done. A captured 
  Agent is being processed by zealous 
  Clerks in a Pyroness sanitarium, but 
  a dromite seer has come to the PCs 
  with the foreknowledge that it is all an 
  Eshsalquan plot, and the Agent is part of 
  a plot within the sanitarium itself. Time 
  is short before the grim vision comes 
  true. 
  
  — 34 — 
  Capital: Argentum
  Settlements: Argentum (11,500)
  Ruler: The Council of Argentum 
  Government: Oligarchy
  Races: Dwarf, Gnome, Human, Kripar
  Faiths: Ferrakus, Linium, Veiloaria
  Resources: Gemstones, metals (adamantine, cop-
  per, gold, iron, mithral, silver)
  Languages: Common, Dwarven, Gnome, Kripar, 
  Undercommon
  Border Conditions: Restricted (intermittent 
  within the rift allows access to the Underdeep)
   Creeper’s Rift
  “Some call the Rift the black vault of Porphyra, other say it’s 
  the last bulwark against the Underdeep. I call it home.”
  -Garret Undershaw, mine owner and merchant
  History
  In the time of the Elemental Lords, Creeper’s Rift was 
  little more than a crack in the northern Simooni Des-
  ert, from which dark things would scurry. It was in the 
  early days of the NewGod Wars that the Rift took on its 
  present form. The flaw on the face of the world became 
  Ferrakus’ practical demonstration of how, with enough 
  power and precision, anything can be sundered. Myriad 
  bits of Ferrakus’ dimensional domains were attracted 
  into this hole in reality before it eventually stabilized. 
  Many devoted gnomes came through the planar rift, 
  to live in the new physical realm. The crack became a 
  hundred mile long, ten mile wide, five mile deep chasm 
  that sent two of the Elemental Lords’ strongholds to the 
  bowels of Porphyra.
     For centuries, the Rift and the surrounding lands were 
  considered cursed, and only the gnomes and the odd 
  crook-backed kripars would travel from there to other 
  cities. This isolation came to an abrupt end when an es-
  pecially reckless gnome, Halugalom (Hal) Undercrunch 
  struck mithril on the eastern cliff, bragged of his claim 
  in nearby Junt, and the Rift Rush was on. Thousands 
  flocked to the Rift to plunder the treasures the rock had 
  to offer. What they found, in most cases, was death. 
  Adding to the danger of mining itself were attacks from 
  dark folk, morlocks, rogue kripar, shadows, and vilstrak, 
  not to mention fouler beings of the depths. Worse still 
  was the internal conflict, claim jumping, and outright 
  robbery. Through all the bloodletting and wildcat strikes, 
  Hal Undercrunch’s wealth grew. Within a year of his 
  first strike, he found a massive vein of gold. His original 
  mining camp became a gnomish boom town which Hal 
  named Argentum, after his eldest daughter. He hired 
  others to take the risks of the cliff and started selling 
  supplies and other mercantile goods to the other miners, 
  which made him one of the richest men in all of Porphy-
  ra. Others, following Hal’s example, found wealth and 
  power along the Rift. Each of the oligarchs employed 
  thousands of miners, and raised private mercenary 
  armies to keep the horrors, the miners, and their com-
  petitors where the belonged. This was the way of things, 
  until the Day of the Black Sunrise.
     The Day of the Black Sunrise was a mass attack from 
  the Underdeep against the surface dwellers of the Rift 
  that coincided with an eclipse. It was led by a shadow 
  called the Left Hand of Midnight. The attack took the 
  miners by surprise, but the hordes of the Left Hand were 
  equally surprised by the fierceness of the miners and 
  mercenaries.
     Of all the battles that day, none was as brutal as that 
  for the city of Argentum. A half-orc mercenary named 
  Aloysius Blackthorn led a ragtag army of mercenaries, 
  paladins, miners, xia, and priests in a counter-offensive 
  now known as Blackthorn’s Stand. Blackthorn himself 
  fought the Left Hand of Midnight, and sent the monster 
  screeching into the depths of the Rift cursing the house 
  of Blackthorn and swearing revenge. 
     It has been ten years since the Day of the Black Sun-
  rise, and new mining camps and towns have replaced 
  those that fell, but the scars of that day are etched forever 
  into the cliffs of the Rift.
  Current Events
  Creeper’s Rift is a hard place. It is populated by miners 
  either working for one of the major mining companies, 
  or trying to strike it rich-striving to duplicate Hal Un-
  dercrunch’s luck. The Rift is rich in mineral wealth, and 
  lacking in everything else. Almost all the sources of clean 
  water are owned by the oligarchs, and temperatures on 
  the surface can reach one hundred and twenty degrees 
  in the day, and minus twenty at night. Water and shelter 
  are power in the rift, but so is will. The Miners United 
  guild controls production in all the mines, and this cre-
  
  — 35 — 
  ates a level of tension rarely seen in the rest of the world. 
  It is Blackthorn’s Irregulars that keep the peace. The 
  Irregulars support the oligarchs as long as the miners are 
  treated fairly. It is a precarious peace, but it has worked 
  for the last ten years. If everyone keeps acting in their 
  best interests, the peace should last.
  Settlement
  The major settlement of Creeper’s Rift is: 
     Argentum is the only city of note on Creeper’s Rift. 
  It is built on mining, vice, and battle. It is, in truth, two 
  cities; Topside, and Low Town. Topside is the home of 
  the city’s elite. Its polished red walls beckon travelers 
  and traders to visit and leave their goods and money. It 
  is dotted with fine inns and mercantile stores offering 
  the finest of what Porphyra has to offer, sent by way of 
  the Consortium. The Grand Exchange, which sits in the 
  city’s center, is the largest market for rare metals, gems, 
  and precious minerals on the surface of the planet. Tow-
  ering above the Exchange is 
  Argentum’s Council 
  Hall where business 
  and the city is con-
  trolled by the large 
  mine owners and 
  their representa-
  tives referred to as 
  the Oligarchs. The 
  only building in 
  town larger than 
  the Council Hall is 
  the Ordered House of 
  Linium, that also serves as 
  the city’s courthouse.
     Low Town is the home of the 
  miners, soldiers, criminals and 
  priests that keep the city running 
  and safe. Low town is carved 
  into the cliff face, extending 
  nearly a mile into the chasm. 
  It too is surrounded by a red 
  brick wall, marked with 
  the words, “Here and No 
  Further” in Common 
  and Undercommon. 
  It has been a warn-
  ing that the things 
  below have learned to take seriously. The main wall 
  serves as both main line of defense, and as a Flower 
  and Compass wayhouse for Veiloaria. The other major 
  chapel in Low Town is dedicated to Ferrakus, erstwhile 
  creator and patron of the Rift and the miners within. 
  The largest compound in Low Town that isn’t a tavern 
  or casino belongs to Blackthorn’s Irregulars, who act as 
  Argentum’s police force and miltary.
  Intrigues
  • 
  A recent adamantine strike near Low Town has 
  brought an influx of dwarves, much to the chagrin 
  of the slum-dwelling goblinoids of the city. The 
  Irregulars are looking for fresh recruits to add to 
  stepped-up patrols.
  • 
  Captain Blackthorn has announced his retirement 
  in the coming year, leaving his children to compete 
  for position of leader of the Irregulars. The PCs 
  must pick a faction: that of Garfield, xia of Veilo-
  raria, Meranda, aberrant sorcerer, 
  and William, de facto darling of 
  the local Thieves Guild. Then, 
  the fun will start...
  • 
  A lone survivor of a 
  deep survey crew is brought 
  up to Low Town babbling 
  of horrors in the dark, and 
  the reclaiming of fallen 
  strongholds by things 
  that should not be. 
  He claims their 
  scout is the Left 
  Hand of Mid-
  night, and he and 
  his minions are 
  looking for some-
  thing, a treasure 
  of the Elemental 
  Lords. The one 
  thing that gives credence 
  to his mad words is his now useless 
  eyes are black as pitch.
  
  — 36 — 
  Capital: The Tent City of the Grand Wazir
  Settlements: Ar’Rak (300), Buktu (600), City of 
  Tombs (500), The Tent City of the Grand Wazir 
  (2,000)
  Ruler: Grand Wazir of the Siwathu Zendiqi, 
  Ha’aroun al-Rashid
  Government: Tribal Magocracy
  Races: Anpur, Enigmon, Gnoll, Ifrit, Oread, 
  Sylph, Undines, Zendiqi
  Faiths: Elemental Lords (all), Shankhil (anpur 
  only)
  Resources: Camels, dates, elemental gems
  Languages: Aquan, Auran, Ignan, Old Porphyran, 
  Gnoll, Terran
  Border Conditions: Restricted (porphyrite border 
  surrounds the Pyynian Coast)
  Deserts of Siwath
  “The anpur and the desert gnolls will fight each other to the 
  death for the right to torture you to death. If you’re unlucky, 
  they’ll kill each other. Then the zendiqi will find you.” – Ali 
  ben Ali, desert guide
  History
  Contrary to the romance of many deserts in the multi-
  verse, the Siwath was always a crucible of sand, gravel, 
  wadis, and mesas, with scant shade, little water, and 
  hard-bitten inhabitants. The ancient Porphyrans, when 
  the word ‘zendiqi’ meant no more than the word ‘ortho-
  dox’, found it a place of testing, of holy pilgrimage to 
  sites of elemental relevance, but no more than that. In 
  the aftermath of the NewGod Wars, the Deserts of Si-
  wath became the final, ironic, line in the sand. A name-
  less treaty was drawn up by Gerana, Yolana and Aleria 
  that allowed the survival of the remnants of the elemen-
  tal forces, and the reservation of the Siwath to them in 
  perpetuity. The bulk of the actual elementals were sealed 
  into gems, and scattered to the sands, sacred ‘jewels of 
  the fallen’ to the zendiqi, and not to be molested. The 
  border was drawn at the Oliti river, and the zendiqi were 
  discouraged from crossing the porphyrite borders to the 
  east and west, with the sea-bound south being known as 
  the ‘Coast of Bones’. In the 800 years since, the zendiqi 
  have stewed in the Siwath’s dry juices, waxing and wan-
  ing in their undying hatred of muhartik, the divine her-
  etics, and gaining a reputation for deadliness in combat 
  and increasing alienness of behavior.
     Due to intertribal friction and famines, there are oc-
  casional bands of zendiqi that emigrate from the Siwath, 
  notable in other lands for their blinders, earmuffs and 
  mouth-gags, so as to avoid corruption among the mu-
  hartik. Most outsiders think of the Siwath as a land of 
  hard life and harder people. They are mostly right. 
     The pilgrimage sites still remain, and expatriate ze-
  ndiqi return when they can, or by summons of the 
  Grand Wazir, especially when a new one is chosen—by 
  arcane duel. Famines come and go, as well as issues with 
  non-humans from time to time, but the Siwath, say the 
  zendiqi, is a teacher, a mother- and a sword.
  Current Events
  Though their reigns tend to last longer than kings, 
  grand wazirs of the zendiqi rarely leave dynasties, and 
  succession is seldom smooth. The current grand wazir, 
  Ha’aroun al-Rashid, is a noted progressive, and relations 
  have improved greatly, with no more than a handful of 
  ritual immolations of intruders each year. Al-Rashid is 
  94, however, and not as spry as he used to be. Courtesy 
  and patience have typically kept challenges from being 
  issued to one so venerable, but any desert mahlana could 
  walk in at any moment and change the face of Siwathu-
  Porphyran relations in a troublesome way.
     Though house warriors do seek outlander work from 
  time to time, especially at succession time, a dismaying 
  number have crossed the eastern border into the Wastes 
  of Simoon and the Plateau of Ghadab, camping in their 
  four-colored tents. The implication is either that they 
  will be given work, or they will extract payment from the 
  good people of the land. 
     The mysterious relationship between the anpur and the 
  gnolls of the desert is a topic best studied in books, as 
  neither race is particularly friendly, to outsiders or each 
  other. The why have gnolls been raiding the border, with 
  beautiful weapons of anpuri make? Are they stolen, or 
  have they joined forces? And how did they get across the 
  river/border?
     As the decadent citizens of Dravi Ankor and the even 
  more debased mixed races of the Pyynian Jungle usu-
  ally stay within their porphyrite borders, the zendiqi are 
  content to ignore them and avoid the godswall. Lately, 
  
  — 37 — 
  however, bands of humanoids too varied to quantify 
  have boldly crossed the border, striking from one of the 
  many jungle ruins. Their probable target is elemental 
  gems, though it is strange that the jungle races should be 
  so purposeful.
  Settlements
  The major settlements of the Desert of Siwath are:
     Ar’Rak is the largest of the ramshackle villages of 
  the southern Siwath, somewhat more clement than the 
  north. It is well-watered but in a badly defensible valley, 
  and living there makes for jittery citizens. Non-hostile 
  outsiders are usually treated fairly here, unless there are 
  numbers of desert zendiqi in town. Either way, the vil-
  lagers are entertained.
     Buktu stands in the northern reaches of the Siwath, 
  a necessary watchpost and rally-point against the anpur 
  settlements and roaming bands of gnolls. Its walls are 
  thick, its towers tall, and it people of a decidedly bunker 
  mentality. A sure way to gain entrance and a modi-
  cum of acceptance is to bring trade goods useful 
  for manufacturing, as the Buktuni excel 
  at recycling and crafting useful items 
  on a shoestring. No Wathisi may pass 
  by Buktu without permission of the 
  Grand Wazir (or so he would like to 
  think).
     City of Tombs is the best trans-
  lation of the anpuri phrase, refer-
  ring to the ancient construction 
  of pyramids and fortified walls 
  of the Oliti river in northern 
  Siwath. As the river comes 
  from the mysterious north of 
  New Wathis, and disappears 
  into the unknowable sea 
  past Kadeg’s Pyramid, the 
  anpur see it as a divine 
  highway, overseen by 
  Lord Ankh (as they call 
  Shankhil), their patron. 
  The lands north of the 
  City are the domain of 
  the sphinxes, and it is their 
  alliance that balances power 
  between the zendiqi and 
  the anpur, though there 
  is said to be a brisk border-crossing business between 
  mercantile zendiqi and less-than-pious anpur.
     The Tent City of the Grand Wazir is the mobile 
  seat of government and throne of the Grand Wazir, the 
  highest ranking arcane spellcaster in the land. The tents 
  bear the color of the four bayit and each philosophical 
  faction, as well as visiting tribal elders, compete for the 
  ear of the wazir. Visiting tribal factions must, of course, 
  bring gifts of supplies, which keeps the city supplied, in 
  turn. Spellcasters of all arcane types are found here in 
  concentration, and it is not unusual to see various races 
  of the genie species among its bazaars and pavilions. 
  A properly vetted and marked outsider could visit this 
  place, though proper chaperones would, of course, be 
  required. It rarely moves north of Buktu; when it does is 
  not a good sign.
  Intrigues
  • 
  Ha’roun al-Rashid grows old, and the Siwathu are 
  rightfully concerned over his replacement. Smuggle 
  an enhanced potion of longevity to the ancient 
  sorcerer, and keep the sands blood-free a little 
  longer.
  • 
  Gnolls, of all beings, have found an 
  elemental gem as large as a horse, in a par-
  ticularly barren corner of the desert, or so 
  says the scruffy dwarf. They just can’t stay 
  out of the Siwath! And what the Rajuk 
  is a ‘quartz elder’?
  • 
  A caravaneer has brought a 
  weapon from Buktu, made by a zendiqi 
  smith. So what? It is a masterwork 
  pepperbox rifle, scoped to 30 yards, 
  with black powder made out of 
  camel dung! Maybe that Buktuni 
  artisan could stand a visit from some 
  foreigners.
  • The pilgrimage sites that mark 
  the four elemental houses sit at 
  the corners of the great desert. If 
  an outsider can prove he visited 
  all four, the Society of Wander-
  ers would award the Grand Prize: 
  a ring of limited wish!
  
  — 38 — 
  Capital: Genhva
  Settlements: Digirn (10,000), Garme (8,000), 
  Genhva (9,000), Ghiz (6,600), Omerta (4,500), 
  Nod (7,500), Ryehk (3,100), Summa (8,000), 
  Zhule (6,200)
  Ruler: The Gallery of Lords
  Government: Federation
  Races: Aasimar, Avood, Dhampir, Living Ghoul, 
  Obitu, Skulk, Tiefling
  Faiths: Eshsalqua, Fenris Kul, Myketa, Rajuk 
  Amon-Gore, Shade, Toma Thule (Digirn only)
  Resources: Drugs (vitae sangua, vitae luce)
  Languages: Abyssal, Celestial, Common, Infernal, 
  Necril, Undercommon
  Border Conditions:Restricted (Border with the 
  Clockwork Lands; Digirn fully enclosed)
  Empire of the Dead
  “These, my children of the night, what beautiful music 
  they make for their dread lord...” - Dalve Carul, Lord of 
  Omerta, at the Obeisance Ritual
  History
  There are fairytale lands that reflect nightmares or child-
  hood stories told to frighten one into obedience; then 
  there are the lands where one may find these horrors 
  given substance -the Empire of the Dead.  Located on 
  the Cold Peninsula, the walls between reality and the 
  Negative Material plane grow very thin here, among the 
  collection of city-states that vie for control of the twisted 
  and broken land between them, in a shadow war.  This 
  ‘war’ is in the shadows, for after the coming of the Ce-
  lestial Bastion of Digirn and the creation of the Scroll of 
  Jus upon the Baelorian Rise, open warfare between the 
  races and factions within the Empire has been forbidden.  
     In the centuries before The Calling, those within the 
  Empire raged against one another, and at the seeming 
  peak of these conflicts, as these wars grew in scope and 
  brutality, the coming of the NewGods shattered the 
  world.  The waves of positive energy wreaked havoc on 
  the dark beings of the land for years, enough time for the 
  righteous godling Toma Thule to come into being and 
  will the Celestial Bastion to descend from the heavens, 
  in the midst of the blackened ruins of the Empire.  This 
  burning pyre of righteousness opened its walls, and from 
  it poured the aasimar legions, purging the broken hordes 
  of living ghouls and undead alike, and bringing to heel 
  the warbands of the dhampir lords in what has come 
  to be recorded as the Illumination Crusades.  Careful 
  negotiation and the allowance of regular crusades are the 
  accepted rule of the day, or else soul-searing war will take 
  place.
     The denizens of the Nightlands had been playing the 
  game of war for centuries, however, and the coming of 
  the crusades only served to escalate the conflicts, as both 
  ancients rites and new deist pacts were called.  Daemon-
  smiths unleashed new terrors, bands of cambion merce-
  naries corrupted the very ground they trod upon, while 
  Necrarchs released the fallen to fight again and again in 
  endless waves that threatened to destroy the very land 
  itself.  The coming of the gods was a two-bladed sword, 
  for certain, for Toma Thule’s dark twin Rajuk Amon-
  Gore, also born after The Calling, delighted in the new 
  dance floor of death.
     It was then that the Architect came.  He brought with 
  him a single and decisive message- the war would end 
  now.  He left upon the Baelorian Rise the Scroll of Jus, 
  upon which are written the Laws of Discord.  These laws 
  state that open warfare is forbidden in the Empire of the 
  Dead.  There is one simple penalty for violation: utter 
  annihilation.  To illustrate his point, the Architect blew 
  one short note on the Balehorn, and the demon-city of 
  Bhaal-aak ceased to be.
     The following day, in the shadow of the Scroll of Jus, 
  the Aecryptian Summit gave birth to the Empire as it is 
  today.  The Architect has not been seen since, and fear of 
  his return, even to those who are already dead or as good 
  as, is still strong, after all of the decades that have passed.
  Current Events
  The Empire of the Dead is a Federation of city states- 
  each holds sway over the lands that surround it.  The 
  borders of these lands are often contested, but open 
  warfare is never sought.  Instead, an invisible war is 
  constantly waged within the Empire.  Assassination, 
  betrayal and intimidation are the daily bread upon the 
  tables of the powers that be.  Borders, however, are only 
  part of the bounty to be had.  Trade with other lands of 
  Porphyra and the control of the commodities of ex-
  port and import alike are as valuable as the land which 
  provides them.  The Empire specializes in the exotic 
  and decadent, chief among these are Vitae Sangua and 
  Vitae Luce, drugs created from the blood of the living 
  
  — 39 — 
  dead and the life force of those who possess celestial 
  birthright.  The greatest import are slaves, most of which 
  are used as labor or fuel for the Nether Engines of the 
  greater city states.  The amazing presence of Digirn, the 
  celestial bastion, has forced many of the dark lords to 
  actually negotiate with the sickeningly powerful paladins 
  and clerics, which makes for truly strange politics in 
  such a death-dominated land.
  Settlements
  The major settlements of the Empire of the Dead are:
     Digirn is known as the Celestial Bastion, a piece of the 
  heavenly plane, within a porphyrite border- a jewel of 
  good within one of the darkest places on Porphyra.  The 
  rule of Toma Thule here is reputedly total, and paladins 
  are found in the same quantity as archers are elsewhere.  
  Entry is not easy; strong proof of one’s dedication to 
  good and the rule of law is required, by various means.  
  If Digirn were more cooperative with the outside world, 
  their sphere of influence might expand further.
     Garme, Omerta, Ryehk and Zhule form the city 
  states of the Dhampir Lords, the nations of the shadowy 
  cross-breeds of vampire and man.  Human visitors must 
  have certain documents and charms boldly displayed to 
  walk safely in these cities, outside of the Embassy and 
  Trade zones, designated by continual flame of sacred 
  blue.  Omerta actually contains a strong human 
  mortal crime syndicate that has fingers through-
  out Porphyra, and is often home to the Magpies 
  thieving competition.
     Genvha sits as the capital of the Empire, 
  though it holds no single seat of power, but the 
  Gallery of Lords, which can convene to receive and 
  settle grievances.  It is worth noting that though each 
  of the Great City States holds an embassy here, little if 
  anything is accomplished besides political pandering.
     Ghiz and Summa are the home bases of the twin 
  Lich Lords of the same names, and both lightly-ruled, 
  tower-filled cities are havens for magical practitioners of 
  the black arts.  The Concert Hall of the Black Dance is 
  infamously found in Summa, high cathedral of Rajuk 
  Amon-Gore.
     Nod is nominally under control of the Dhampir 
  Lords, but this island port is highly cosmopolitan 
  and independent, sending the Silent Ships with 
  their cargoes of Vitae all over the world.  The pres-
  ence of normal mortals is almost tolerated here.
  Intrigues
  • 
  A powerful stranger has been seen in the shadows of 
  the ruling halls of Genvha- rumors abound that the 
  Architect has returned!  Whether it is an impostor or 
  the frighteningly return High One must be immedi-
  ately determined.
  • 
  The Scrolls of Jus have vanished from their altar on 
  the Baelorian Rise, and tensions are high for war to 
  resume.  Both sides have factions that are keen on 
  interfering with their reinstatement-they must be 
  found!
  • 
  Vitae addicts to a new ‘cut’ product have spread into 
  bordering realms and overseas, and producers wish 
  to eliminate the ‘illicit’ dealers.  The PCs must de-
  cide whose side they are on, to support this strange 
  trade, or prevent deaths and sickness from adulter-
  ated product.
  
  — 40 — 
  Capital: G’sho’laa’n’rr
  Settlements: G’sho’laa’n’rr (1,200,000)
  Ruler: His Opalescence Ythyrku the 64th The 
  Opal Throne
  Government: Aristocratic Monarchy 
  Races: Dhosari, Erkunae, Human
  Faiths: Demon Lords (any), Elemental Lords 
  (any), Nise, Protean Lords (any), Ul’Ul, Vortain
  Resources: Magic items, mercenaries, slaves
  Languages: Abyssal, Common, Infernal, Protean
  Border Conditions: None
  Erkusaa, The Mist-Shrouded Isle
  “It is the purity of Chaos that the erkunae seek; not the 
  so-called ‘freedom’ of the barbarian hymn-singers, but the 
  Chaos of the unformed- the Chaos of all things, at all times, 
  forever unmade...” -Ykalakae the 19th, The Opal Throne 
  [AC 220]
  History
  Fragments of dhosari history recall when Erkusaa was a 
  rugged mountain range, riddled with caves and ancestral 
  home to their six-limbed, two-bodied race. Then, as they 
  say, “the waters came”, and what was once a highland 
  became an island, and with the waters came the erkunae. 
  The erkunae, perhaps once human but now miscegenat-
  ed with outsiders and strange blood, sensed the arcane 
  potential in Erkusaa’s location, and enslaved both the 
  dhosari and the dragons that slept in the myriad cata-
  combs beneath the misty proto-island.
     The erkunae, under their first king The White Fox, 
  were ambitious and powerful in those long-ago days of 
  Porphyra, when it seemed that the face of the planet 
  could be shaped by those with the will and the might. 
  From Erkusaa they waged wars of conquest and subjuga-
  tion, aided by the pacts they made with the Elemental 
  Lords, and the Powers of Chaos and Death they who 
  were most powerful on Porphyra before The Calling.
     They built a wondrous city of towers, piercing the 
  mist, and called it G’sho’laa’n’rr, which means The City 
  of Dreams. From here they subjugated nearby islands 
  and nations, took their people as slaves, and looted their 
  treasures and hoards of knowledge. None dared stand 
  before the shimmering opal-banner of the erkunae, or 
  face their two-bodied shock troops, the awesome dho-
  sari. Then came The Calling. And with it, other peoples 
  from other worlds, and the bond between man (and 
  man-like) and the Gods, many of whom preached revo-
  lution, freedom, rule of benevolent Law, and peace. 
     The Empire of the Opal Throne dwindled on both 
  the foreign front, where religious fervor countered their 
  perverse rule, and at home, where power-hungry aristo-
  crats vied for the attention of the new “Gods”. Forced 
  from the mainland at the end of the NewGod wars, 
  the erkunae live on memories and magic, their dragons 
  mostly sleeping now, waiting to discover their place on a 
  changed Porphyra.
  Current Events
  His Opalescence, Ythyrku the 64th is a young king, and 
  seems to be more ambitious than the majority of his pre-
  decessors. His is the blood of the White Fox, an albino, 
  tradition-bound to be obeyed without question and he is 
  not hesitant to demand that obedience. The dragon pa-
  trols fly once more, and the ancient magic-powered ships 
  have been repaired and brought out of drydock.
     The Dreamer’s Cult, as well as worshipers of Vortain 
  have been suppressed (and some whisper it has relocated 
  to the nearby Dhosari islands) and the Shadow Children 
  have been forcibly recruited into the Opal Legions. His 
  ambition has outstripped the military’s abilities and in-
  tent, however, and often these missions turn into reiving, 
  looting, and sheer piracy. Ythyrku will not be mocked, 
  and the City of Dreams dreams indeed, of empire once 
  more.
     The stirring of the Erkusaan nation has led to an 
  increase of erkunae expatriates on the mainland, and 
  even on the high seas. There are many of that nation that 
  prefer that empire be merely a memory for the erkunae, 
  either for selfish or altruistic reasons. Self-appointed 
  ambassadors urge kings and lords to show force in the 
  Erkusaan sphere, to curb the rise of militarism. Pros-
  elytes of strange erkunae faiths show more and more 
  in coastal cities, their fervent white faces urging every 
  action from capitulation to violent uprising, A dhosari 
  visionary known only as the Masiha has been agitat-
  ing the native dhosari population, and so far resisting 
  all attempts to be discovered by The Opal Throne’s 
  agents. Even non-dhosari slaves have been heeding his 
  pronouncements, and the aristocracy has been steadily 
  increasing their age-old, insular demands for comfort at 
  home rather than adventure abroad.
  
  — 41 — 
  Settlements
  The major settlement of Erkusaa is: 
     G’sho’laa’n’rr, The City of Dreams, takes up 85% of 
  the surface area of the island of Erkusaa, easily the largest 
  city by area on Porphyra. It is not, however, the most 
  populated, and large areas of the city are abandoned 
  to the elements, inhabited by escaped slaves or strange 
  monsters. Even so, G’sho’laa’n’rr is a truly awe-inspiring 
  city, given over to multicolored towers, few less than 200 
  feet tall. These towers are connected by halls, usually 
  stuffed with ancient plunder from imperial days. There 
  seems to be little rhyme or reason to what is where, and 
  navigation to find a service, a person, or even an exit can 
  drive a foreigner to madness. The basic hierarchy of the 
  populace is determined by height; The Opal Throne is in 
  the highest chamber in the highest tower, and hierarchy 
  descends from there, aristocrats quarreling 
  openly over living status. Skilled work-
  ers and artisans live in apartments in the 
  halls, and common folk in sub-halls or 
  slums on the periphery of the undevel-
  oped lands. The natural mistiness of 
  the island precludes much outdoor 
  activity, though military units, herb 
  gatherers, and misanthropes can 
  all be found wandering Erkusaa’s 
  rocky shores. The Dragoncaves be-
  neath Erkusaa are places of wonder and 
  danger, as the erkunae venture here 
  but seldom, and the sleeping dragons 
  become more and more wakeful, and 
  less and less obedient.
  Intrigues
  • 
  8th Most High, Jecerik the 
  22nd, is recruiting foreign 
  mercenaries to ‘sanitize’ some of 
  the lower halls and subhalls that 
  he won in a duel from a lower-lord. 
  His house retinue find it beneath 
  their station to root out vermin and 
  escaped slaves, though other houses’ 
  bravos would love to face a wild 
  dhosari in combat.
  • 
  A local village, afraid of erku-
  nae pirates, has pooled their 
  resources to put the adventur-
  ers on a ‘boat’ (of dubious buoyancy) to dissuade 
  the predicted attack. Swashbucking (and swimming) 
  awaits!
  • 
  A shipwreck (possibly as a result of the previous 
  Intrigue) has left the adventurers marooned on the 
  misty isle of Erkusaa, in an isolated, undeveloped 
  region. They can make for the City of Dreams and 
  expect charity from the Holders of the Pact, try to 
  find a pack of escaped slaves, or try their luck in the 
  Dragoncaves...
  • 
  Hired as bodyguards to a local nation’s newly-ap-
  pointed ambassador to Erkusaa, the party is in hot 
  water after an assassination attempt on an erkunae 
  higher-lord- can they solve the mystery and move the 
  blame from the foreigners? Explore the dusty sub-
  halls to find the Shadow Children, dispossessed 
  and disowned rogues that rule the disused pas-
  sages of the Dreaming City.  
  • 
  The court intrigue and shadowplay of 
  The Opal Court is legendary over Porphyra; 
  word of the characters’ abilities (or an erku-
  nae party member) comes  to an ambitious 
  lord who has many tasks, some savory, some 
  not so much for talented professionals. Some-
  thing about a personal demon of a rival?
  • Slavery is the vilest practice imaginable! 
  That the erkunae should have enslaved the 
  dhosari, an entire race (except for small 
  escaped pockets, possibly including a 
  party member) is an outrage that must 
  be remedied. Smugglers can get you to 
  Erkusaa, can you get at least some of 
  the downtrodden slaves of the Dream-
  ing Demons away from the Misty Isle of 
  Erkusaa?
  Temples to the Slithering Symphony
  The pantheon of Protean Lords, known to 
  their faithful as the Slithering Symphony, have 
  several temples within the City of Dreams and 
  many more in the wilderness.  These are often 
  located there to protect the passing citizenry 
  from strange beings that come and go at the 
  whim of the Chaos priests and noble 
  supplicants that attend there.
  
  — 42 — 
  Eternal Ice
  “You northerners speak of ‘land’ like it was a mother’s 
  breast, a soft bed of feathers.  We whose mother is the Ice 
  know a harsher milk, and deeper lessons.” - Grekk Black-
  eye, Ith’n yar’oo chieftain
  History
  Few can speak definitively of what people and cultures 
  exist on the Eternal Ice, the ‘lands’ of the Porpyran 
  South Pole.  It is presumed that no soil exists there, un-
  less one can penetrate to the ocean bedrock, and all is ice 
  and snow, malleable in form with the winds and seasons.     
     There are terrestrial countries fairly close to the Ice, 
  and seafarers frequently approach, especially to take ad-
  vantage of the whaling grounds that migrate around the 
  white shores.  Shipwrecks and flensing camps that come 
  ashore had better finish their business quickly, as there 
  are inhabitants of this frozen wasteland, and food is very 
  hard to come by. The undine servants of the elemental-
  ists were probably the first to use the Eternal Ice, as an 
  impregnable base camp for monitoring sea lanes, raiding 
  southern nations, and later, during the NewGod Wars, a 
  frequent staging ground for seafaring ice giant missions.  
     There are some few remnants of summoned stone and 
  other terrestrial materials in the Ice, and they make up 
  the seasonal camps of the main inland races, the ith’n 
  yar’oo and the polar offshoot (or throwback) of the enig-
  matic and psionic race of the qit’ar.  
     Primal creatures made, and still make, their homes in 
  the Ice, no doubt, before the arrival of humanoids, such 
  as polar bears, dire penguins, and the dreaded ice worm.  
  Legends persist of a possible hidden colony of aquatic 
  elves under the ice in the exact location of the South 
  Pole, a reclusive remnant of the genocide exacted upon 
  Capital: None
  Settlements: Yza’tor (500+)
  Ruler: Tribal chieftains
  Government: Tribal
  Races: Ith’n yar’oo, Qit’ar, Undine
  Faiths: Ice Tyrant, Ithreia, Nise, Wind of Jewels 
  Resources: Bonecraft, meteoric iron, polar wares, 
  whale products
  Languages: Aquan, Ith’n yar’oo
  Border Conditions: None
  them by the sahuagin.  In any case, with the advent of 
  The Calling and the NewGod Wars, the ever-desperate 
  elementalist forces, encouraged by the southern-dwelling 
  undines of their now-bereft empire, sought to breed war-
  riors that would defeat deist forces lured to the ice to die.  
     Strange experiments using yeti and human slaves pro-
  duced the race of ith’n yar’oo, the (ant)arctic beastmen, 
  and those throwbacks of the serendipitously arrived 
  qit’ar race who were resistant to cold were recruited, 
  probably for an aborted invasion of the psionically 
  prevalent Pinnacle Lands.  
     These newly-recruited humanoids wisely made them-
  selves scarce when the seaborne cetaceal forces of Veiloar-
  ia the Wayfinder, and the airborne owl-harpy forces of 
  Ithreia massed to the attack.  The legion archons slew 
  only giants when they came ashore.  A millennia later, 
  nearly every piece of metal, bone, or magic from that 
  isolated conflict is still used in some capacity in the 
  Eternal Ice, where resources are so scarce as to be a major 
  event when discovered.  The seldom-visited land is still a 
  source of bogey-stories, and sighting the spire of Yza’tor 
  is said to be an ill-omen for southern sailors.
  Current Events
  Little has changed on the Eternal Ice in the last eight 
  centuries, save for the inexorable growth of Yza’tor.  The 
  ith’n yar’oo squabble and skirmish with the nomadic 
  snow-qit’ar, both fight the plotting undine when they 
  get the chance, and every molecule of organic material 
  is put to use.  Rookery season is a time of relative plenty 
  in certain areas of the ice, when both the ice-cats and the 
  beastmen compete for birds and eggs, while being care-
  ful to preserve the viability of the flock.  Seal-hunting 
  is more dangerous and more profitable, as sometimes a 
  fierce seal can be a fiercer undine come up to stealthily 
  claim a victim.  That doesn’t account for incredibly dan-
  gerous ice worms, ice giants, and the odd white dragon 
  and ice drake that can mean death or bounty for the ice 
  people.
  Curiosity about the dirtlands to the north, likewise from 
  persons intrigued by legends of the southern frozen land 
  create a trickle of exchange of information and adventur-
  ers between the two.  Orthodox theology in the Middle 
  Kingdoms paints the Eternal Ice as a paragon of victory 
  over elementalism, but with the nagging suspicion of a 
  job not completed, as it is well known that that inhospi-
  table land was being groomed as a respite of last resort.  
  
  — 43 — 
  All of the ice-bound races know that there are fellows of 
  theirs in the warm north, and bear a natural curiosity 
  about them.  Magically-created viability may yet increase 
  the population in the Eternal Ice, as, strangely enough, 
  there are no known sources of disease in the entire place!
  Settlements
  The major settlement in the Eternal Ice is:
     Yza’tor is the ith’n yar’oo phrase meaning ‘blue spire’.  
  It has been built over the last 900 years from their 
  shamans using create water spells artistically, in fluting 
  passages, spiky towers, and long slide-ways the young of 
  the beastman race love to travel on. It is at least 50 miles 
  inshore, in summer, but is sustained by several clerics 
  and druids using spells such as abstemiousness, 
  create food and water, dream 
  feast and goodberry.  A small 
  fragment of polar agriculture 
  is carried out in chambers for 
  reclaimed waste.  Those who 
  think the ith’n yar’oo truly 
  beasts should visit this 
  ingenious place.  Ironi-
  cally, most northerners 
  think it a cursed castle 
  from a vanished ancient 
  race… you can’t believe 
  every rumor.
  Intrigues
  • 
  The polar folk make their weapons from 
  fragments of meteorites that crash with 
  a fair amount of frequency over the pole.  
  As any dwarf will tell you, this substance 
  makes the best weapons in existence, magi-
  cal or otherwise.  Bringing trade goods to 
  the isolated people of this land would be an 
  ideal way to obtain this precious 
  material.
  • 
  A ship bearing the royal fam-
  ily of one of the cities of the 
  Holdfast of Celestial Parishes has 
  run aground on the Ice.  Being 
  aasimars, they are in no dan-
  ger of freezing to death, but have likely been 
  taken by one of the three races of the Ice Eternal.  A 
  swift flight of griffons will take you to this forbid-
  ding land, but the fate of the precious leaders is not 
  known.
  • 
  As in days of old, the undines are plotting to raise 
  one or another of their lost Elemental Lords, and it 
  is rumored that many hid in the deep fastness of the 
  Ice, in secret camps left over from the NewGod War.  
  The spymasters of the High Codion of Pium is offer-
  ing dukedoms to whoever can bring evidence of an 
  expunged elemental tyrant.
  
  — 44 — 
  Capital: Greenwall
  Settlements: City of Boats (7,000), Greenwall 
  (17,000), MacCool (7,000), Siobhan (2,000)
  Ruler: Finnegan Sleveyn, Triarch of the Green, 
  Lord Protector of Sanctuary and the Reedlands, 
  Triarch of the Fens
  Government: 4-year limited Lordship with clan-
  elected representatives in council
  Races: Boggard, Feykissed, Grippli, Half-Elf, Hu-
  man, Lizardfolk
  Faiths: Aleria, Chiuta, Myketa
  Resources: Papyrus, peat, seafood, whiskey
  Languages: Boggard, Common, Draconic, Elven, 
  Old Porphyran, Sylvan
  Border Conditions: Limited (porphyrite border 
  in the Bay of Reeds near Iffud)
  Fenian Triarchy
  “Ever see a leprechaun wearing a sarong, sharing chopsticks 
  with a talking crocodile? Any old day in the Fens.” -Le- 
  Shauer of Iffud, merchant-bard
  History
  The vast swamp known to antiquity as the Sea of Reeds 
  was the food source of antevocial Porphyran nations 
  in milennia past, and often rulers of ancient kingdoms 
  would establish hot-season palaces in its territory. The 
  Calling was especially harsh on those traditionally liv-
  ing in the Sea, as its food sources were especially prized 
  during the NewGod wars. As invaders perpetually raided 
  their fish stocks, a leader named Chiuta led the previ-
  ously peaceful people against their Landed oppressors, 
  and in the doing, became their Goddess, the first raised 
  mortal to the pantheon on Porphyra. The titanic, world-
  changing forces of The Calling, and of Chiuta’s ascension 
  altered the Sea of Reeds itself, as well, and formerly small 
  shoals of land rose above the murky waves, creating 
  rain-shrouded highlands and incredibly fertile islands in 
  the Sea’s midst. The newness of these lands, blessed, it is 
  said, by the fertile hand of Aleria, attracted both Landed 
  human refugees of the NewGod Wars, and sylvan faeries 
  displaced by war, and attending on the Lover of Life. 
  The altered environment is a loose (extremely loose!) 
  coalition of the swamp-dwelling, Chiuta worshiping, 
  papyrus weaving Porphyran fisherfolk of the ancient Sea 
  of Reeds (now dubbed Reedland), the Landed human, 
  laid-back, peat-cutting whiskey drinkers of Greenland, 
  whose blood is undoubtedly mixed a little with the faerie 
  people of the offshore islands of Sanctuary, and the 
  main island enclave of Siobhan. Though the Reedland 
  and Greenland cultures could not be more different, the 
  Reedlanders acquiesce that much of the requirements of 
  international and technological life are beyond their abil-
  ity to deal, and both they and the faeries of Sanctuary 
  have embassies and clan-selected councilors in Greenwall 
  to speak for their respective peoples.
  Current Events
  The latest word from MacCool is that their candidate for 
  Triarch is a hard-nosed half-elf that (it is rumored) does 
  not drink! Needless to say, the citizens of Greenwall and 
  the southern villages are very concerned with the mor-
  als of Coolaghs these days. The Coolaghs are also busily 
  expanding their town, hoping that size will allow them 
  to compete more readily with the capital. Rumor has it 
  this means foreign immigrants, a dire situation. 
     The normally stoic, sarong-wearing Reedlanders are 
  looking smug these days, and are appearing in Green-
  land in larger numbers. The discovery of a sunken palace 
  in the swamps is attracting many treasure-hunters, but 
  the enigmatic Reedlanders are keeping a tight rein on 
  their borders, and access to the City of Boats is limited, 
  much to Triarch Sleveyn’s ire.
     ‘Walking the Green’ is a Greenlander saying for a 
  disappeared person, especially in the vicinity of Siobhan. 
  It is not as lightly said when 20 in the past fortnight, the 
  population of an entire hamlet, has ‘walked the green’. 
  Sanctuary councilors are uncharacteristically grim, and 
  some of them have been recalled to some of the more 
  remote islands of their small province.
  Settlements
  The major settlements of the Fenian Triarchy are:
    The City of Boats is the closest thing the Chiutan 
  Reedlanders have to an urban community, as most live 
  in small fishing villages, or in the ruins of mainlander 
  palaces, which poke up out of the mud like giant’s lost 
  toys. The City actually moors itself around the biggest 
  and oldest of these, the pinnacle of a sandstone pyramid, 
  brought to the swamps by some ancient magic. Apart 
  from the Lady’s Pyramid (as it is called) there is no solid 
  ground in the City, all services and residences are on 
  
  — 45 — 
  papyrus reed boats, and platforms of woven mats or (for 
  the elite families) Greenland-imported lumber. Concen-
  trations of eclectic magic users can be found in the City, 
  and are often sought out by needy Greenlanders and 
  foreigners alike.
     Greenwall is a fortified city from the NewGod days, 
  Greenwall is both sturdy and resistant to elemental mag-
  ic, a moss-covered fortress, with surrounding suburbs. 
  It is the largest city on the main island of Greenland, 
  and handles a surprising amount of trade, from Reed-
  land, Sanctuary, and other neighboring territories, as the 
  faeries and Reedlanders are reluctant to let foreigners 
  into their regions. That Greenlanders rarely travel to the 
  Sea of Reeds or the isles of Sanctuary is not brought up 
  often. Though it is a fortress city, Greenwall often echoes 
  with song, dance, and the sounds of merriment, as the 
  people have a natural aversion to work and aggression, 
  probably due to the astounding varieties of whiskey 
  made in Greenland, and the aforementioned fey blood 
  in the populace. Fey races and half-breeds are common 
  on Greenwall’s streets.
     MacCool, second largest city on Greenland, seeks to 
  emulate foreign cities and domains, and rejects much 
  of the fey-influenced culture of the land, and sneers at 
  the primitive Reedlanders as beneath notice. MacCool 
  is an important port, and receives news and visitors all 
  over the globe. 
  The Portmaster 
  of MacCool is 
  frequently se-
  lected as the new 
  Triarch, if only 
  to satisfy the 
  ambition of the 
  imperialist Coo-
  laghs; lucky for 
  Greenland that 
  a few glasses of 
  Greenwall Special 
  Green whiskey 
  puts all thoughts 
  of civil war out of 
  the new Triarch’s 
  head. 
     Siobhan is as 
  stereotypical a 
  faerie town as 
  one could hope to find outside the pages of a storybook. 
  Giant mushroom houses, singing trees, leprechauns on 
  street corners, the lot. The frequency of disappearance of 
  those who have traveled to the town can be interpreted 
  in... many ways.
  Intrigues
  • 
  A feystruck daughter of a powerful mainlander has 
  traveled to the port of MacCool to join with the 
  faeries at Siobhan. PCs have been hired to find her, 
  and prevent her from being another to ‘walk the 
  green’ Coolagh intrigues do not let foreigners move 
  about so easily, though.
  • 
  The Chiutan Reedlanders have had to be subservi-
  ent among the provinces of the Triarch due to their 
  poverty in metals, bought only dearly in foodstuffs 
  and papyrus. The PCs will be given a treasure map to 
  a hidden ancient swamp-palace if thy can smuggle in 
  quantities of metal weapons and other heavily-taxed 
  items.
  • 
  The boggard tribes of the Sea of Reeds has secured a 
  treaty of sorts from the nearby lizardfolk, who put a 
  token wall between them and the Reedlander fishing 
  villages. Shipwrecked or swamp-marooned PCs must 
  either skirmish with the approaching frog-men or 
  renegotiate with the lizardfolk before disaster strikes!
  • 
  Green-
  landers often 
  assume their land 
  holds no threats, 
  due to its young 
  age, and domi-
  nance by friendly 
  creatures. Drag-
  ons, however, like 
  to settle in new 
  territories as well, 
  and lack of oppo-
  sition suits them 
  just fine. Just how 
  tough are the 
  fabled mossy walls 
  of Greenwall?
  
  — 46 — 
  Freeport 
  “Steer towards crystal and hold fast the sails; nothing but a 
  pirate’s life will do for me…” – Nesteruk ‘Nobeard’ Noss, 
  Freeport smuggler
  History
  In the time before The Calling in a world far separated 
  from Porphyra,  Freeport was a trading and sailing port 
  city with a reputation for violence and avarice in a na-
  tion called Valossa on The Serpent’s Teeth. This nation 
  was one of the largest land masses on a world slowly 
  being flooded by its oceans.
  The nation was ruled by serpentfolk overlords and sahau-
  gin, savages with dark magic and a penchant for sacrifice. 
  Flesh fueled their necromantic studies and warm blood 
  fed their unholy appetites. The humans and other ‘lesser’ 
  races lived in constant terror.
     Much as the elves and the orcs of Porphyra called the 
  gods to relieve their oppression by the Elemental Lords, 
  the serfs of Valossa called on the ancient wargod Braal to 
  aid their cause. Though an underground of guerilla war-
  fare began to break down the serpentfolk’s stranglehold, 
  and the godling Nise taught shipcraft to the dock-slaves, 
  it was Lyvalia who spread the dark seed of treachery 
  among the educated servants of the cold-blooded bu-
  reaucracy, in an irony of using evil to destroy evil.
     The Great Serpent of Yig, motivated by whispered 
  rumors from fawning human slaves, summoned vile 
  creatures from dark dimensions and set them against its 
  Capital: Freeport
  Settlements: Farthing’s Deep (550), Freeport 
  (9,500), The Withering Isle (2,000)
  Ruler: The Sea Lord
  Government: Bureaucratic monarchy
  Races: Grindylow, Half-Orc, Human, Orc, Sahau-
  gin, Serpentfolk, Undine, Zif
  Faiths: Aleria, King in Yellow (Hastur), Lyvalia, 
  Nise, Poison Wave, S’sluun 
  Resources: Plunder, seafood, ships
  Languages: Aquan, Common, Orc, Old Porphy-
  ran, Symbolics
  Border Conditions: Restricted (full porphyrite 
  border)
  serpentfolk patrons in a soul-fueled rite of cataclysm that 
  sent the servant races fleeing to the boats and the sahau-
  gin enforcers returning to the safety of the depths. The 
  serpentfolk’s dark capital of Vsstak’koll was extirpated. 
  The extra-planar rifts opened by Yig began to consume 
  the land itself, to the alarm of the deific trio. To save her 
  dire works, Lyvalia removed Valossa from the watery 
  world, severing the rifts and keeping it in a demiplane 
  of water for many years. This act brought about the 
  condemnation of Braal and the start of the tragic epic of 
  love and hate brought to Porphyra from long ago. When 
  The Calling came to Lyvalia, she did not forget Freeport, 
  and brought it as the jewel in her dark crown. 
     After subsisting on the leavings of the serpentfolk and 
  fighting fiercely with the sahaugin for nearly a decade, a 
  new culture had been created from that subservient col-
  ony-Freeport had been born, from the ashes of Valossa. 
  Seeking to have a place in the new world, the elders of 
  the growing town declared their home an open sanctuary 
  for any traveler, regardless of race or creed. This carried 
  Freeport though the NewGod wars, but the taste of 
  money and blood was not to be forgotten by the priva-
  teers—now pirates—of the coastal port. Pirate gangs, all 
  seeking to seize the port for themselves, began vicious 
  battles just off shore. The conflicts spilled into the streets 
  of Freeport, and the ‘Wartime Peace’ came to an end.
     The new order came when Captain Velun Drac defeat-
  ed or betrayed all his rivals and allies, rising to the fore 
  as the city’s first Sea Lord. His was a reign of balance—as 
  he was a murderer and a scoundrel with a true gift for 
  statecraft, forging the Captain’s Council, an advisory 
  panel filled with seafarers, leaders and quite a few cler-
  ics of the Lyvalia. Backs were stabbed, and the shipping 
  news ran on time.
  The Drac bloodline has been the most prevalent one sit-
  ting the Coral Throne, neither has it been the best, as the 
  recent aborted reign of Milton Drac has shown. Corrup-
  tion, disease and poverty has taken its toll, and the city 
  has survived, though sometimes only by the leanest of 
  margins.
  Current Events
  There have been several swells in the undersea popula-
  tion since the coming of Freeport and the New Gods. 
  The energies unleashed with presence of submarine 
  porphyrite did not stop at the surface; as chunks of the 
  strange, charged crystal sank into the oceans, races long 
  
  — 47 — 
  thought lost became risen again, and new ones emerged 
  from the lightless deaths. Though the tales are old and 
  forgotten, the name of serpentfolk has appeared on the 
  lips of some sailors lost in drink. Rumors abound that 
  sigils of the King in Yellow and S’sluun, the Naga Em-
  press, have been appearing around Freeport with alarm-
  ing frequency.
     Despite their differences, the pirate alliances usually 
  cooperate against undersea threats such as sahaugin, 
  kraken, and grindylow, if only because slaying them 
  with help means fewer of them to fight when no one 
  else is around later. This common purpose has actually 
  helped some alliances grow larger, to the benefit of all. 
  The roughly-annual presence of Nise’s landed squall 
  of islands and storms, The Haunted Sea, is always an 
  occasion for opportunity and fear in Freeport. Nothing 
  is so brutal as pirates fighting freebooters, and with the 
  occasional contingency of their godswall borders, the 
  southern seas breathe a sigh of relief when Freeport and 
  Port Calist go to war. 
     The Coral Throne currently sits empty with the prema-
  ture, but much-welcomed, death of Milton Drac.
  SETTLEMENTS
  The major settlements in Freeport 
  are:
     Freeport is a vast port city 
  with most of its industry 
  centered on its harbors and 
  dry docks. Shipbuilding and 
  all things nautical are the pride 
  of Freeport; everything else is a 
  secondary concern. As condi-
  tions in some of the city’s smaller wards 
  can demonstrate, life can be very hard 
  for those who come to Freeport poor 
  or end up that way due to the designs 
  of others. Slavery, while not entirely 
  approved of here, is not illegal and 
  press ganging is commonplace.
     Farthing’s Deep is a sunken city 
  built entirely of shipwrecks and 
  the shells of thousands of crus-
  taceans, both tiny and gargan-
  tuan. The whole place is home 
  to a tenuous alliance of undersea 
  creatures, primarily the grindylow 
  and the sahaugin, both of which fight constantly for su-
  premacy. Undines fill positions for both sides, surviving 
  by their wits and will. As they frequently take ships that 
  stray from the policed lanes, no one knows what the rul-
  ers of this motley fortress intend to do with the wealth 
  taken –though there are hundreds of theories. 
     The Withering Isle is a barricaded village on an island 
  just barely within sight of Freeport. While its purpose 
  is not a pleasant one, it serves admirably for what it 
  is—a leper colony. Its founding was a matter of neces-
  sity a hundred years ago, when the sick outnumbered 
  the healthy and contagion threatened to end Freeport. 
  Nowadays, its population is just low enough to make it 
  easily ignored, and just high enough to keep the priests 
  of Aleria there busy.
  Intrigues
  • 
  The Onyx Claw has been a scourge on the open seas 
  for years, especially under the command of Cap-
  tain Suffer, a hobgoblin mariner with a flair for the 
  violently dramatic. After months away, the Claw has 
  been seen again- changed. The ship’s crew lookhag-
  gard and sickly and they have started eating the 
  crews of ships they take. The curse of undeath 
  is suspected… and the price on their heads is 
  uncollected.
  • The empty Coral Throne of 
  Freeport has allowed the Captain’s 
  Council more and more power, and 
  the Lyvalian patrons and supplicants 
  even more. Geranites working out of 
  Alerian missions on The Withering
  • The aquamancers in the Undine’s 
  Quarter have definitively said that 
  The Haunted Sea will be in station on 
  the next Vaar’s Moon, the godswall 
  will join, a once-in-a-decade phe-
  nomenon. All able-bodied adven-
  turers will get the call to boats, and 
  use all of their skills to repel the 
  inevitable attack of Nisians and 
  ne’er-do-wells.
  
  — 48 — 
  Frozen North
  “Some of the stone-hides speak of a place of no snow beyond 
  the wall-that-is-light. It may be so, but how could any-roo 
  live like that?” -Drek Blacktooth, ith’n ya’roo shaman
  Capital: Snorri’s Hold
  Settlements: Eriksholm (1,100), Ha’roo (925), 
  Night Axe Deep (450), Snorri’s Hold (900), Star-
  ish Vol (1,350)
  Ruler: Stonemistress Irri Diamonddottir
  Government: Tribal Alliance
  Races: Dwarf, Human, Ith’n Ya’roo
  Faiths: Animism, Ferrakus, Ithreia, Toma Thule
  Resources: Armor, black ice, bonecraft, godmetals 
  (adamantine, mawine), metals (lead, gold, steel), 
  weapons
  Languages: Common, Dwarven, Ith’n Ya’roo
  Border Conditions: Restricted (full border con-
  taining a sub-polar climate; border with Californ is 
  selectively-permeable)
  History
  The Frozen North is an anomaly on Porphyra, a polar 
  wilderness in the tropics, located on the Land of 
  Steam. The willful goddess Ithreia brought her beloved 
  land here as a base to battle the elementalists, though her 
  attentions have wandered elsewhere since. For centu-
  ries it was controlled by the dwarves of the Night Axe 
  Consortium, who kept trade flowing, and maintained 
  order, when needed. While the other groups living in 
  the North (as they stubbornly call it) did not always 
  agree with all of the Night Axe Consortium’s actions, 
  the improved roads, ports and fortifications provided by 
  the Consortium more than made up for the occasional 
  demands they made.
     The North drew attacks during the NewGod War, as 
  Ithreia was particularly hated by the Elemental Lords, 
  but the dwarves were expecting the waves of frost gi-
  ant marines, and repulsed them handily. Ironically, the 
  ancestors of the defeated giants maintain small seasonal 
  ports to trade with their ancient enemies. Almost con-
  currently with the Wars, the deep delving dwarves, by 
  elemental design or coincidence, released something, 
  something buried in the gold-bearing stone since the 
  beginning of time. The primary mine, Gold Axe Delve, 
  was swallowed up in one hellish week, with less than a 
  score of dwarves out of a thousand making it out alive. 
  The same was repeated across the dwarven holdings, 
  with only Night Axe Deep, the first hold established 
  back on the home-dimension, able to withstand the at-
  tacks and drive the otherworldly creatures back. Those 
  there know the ways of the most identifiable of the lot; 
  akata, gibbering mouthers, mimics, phrenic scourges, 
  and the dreaded seugathi. All of the garrisons and en-
  gineers were recalled and expeditions sent to the other 
  dwarven holds, and while a few survivors were rescued, 
  the cost was heavy and the other holds were sealed until 
  a proper expedition could be raised. No such expedition 
  has been raised, as the effort to defend Night Axe Deep 
  soon absorbed all of the colony’s resources, and many 
  fled to other lands, mostly Giant’s Retreat, far from the 
  North. 
     In the power vacuum left by the withdrawal of the 
  dwarves, the human and ith’n ya’roo tribes fell into a 
  short but brutal conflict made worse by the raids of the 
  seugathi and other creatures that slipped by dwarven 
  wards. They quickly turned to politics to sort out their 
  differences, resorting to a system of boasting, gifts and 
  personal achievements to select a leader who would rule 
  until they stepped down or were successfully challenged 
  in ritual combat.
  Current Events
  Today, the era of the Night Axe Consortium is remem-
  bered as a golden age of stability and prosperity among 
  all of the peoples of the Frozen North. Dwarf-make 
  buildings and roads are visible in almost all of the com-
  munities still used. Rumors of dwarf-treasure still bring 
  the odd gold-hunter from “the warmlands”, but the 
  locals know better, and don’t get attached. The surviv-
  ing holdout dwarves remain in Night Axe Deep fighting 
  a never-ending war with the terrors of the seugathi and 
  other hideous creatures. They trade with any who come 
  to the hold, as well as the giant-ports, and are always 
  looking for adventurers willing to raid the depths or ven-
  ture into the sealed holds. Armor made by Nightaxers is 
  said to be the finest on Porphyra, and unique kromagg, 
  or black ice weapons are also highly valued, especially in 
  neighboring Californ. 
     The humans and ith’n ya’roo tribes have come to an 
  uneasy alliance, cooperating against monsters and out-
  siders alike while jockeying for position among them-
  
  — 49 — 
  selves. Currently the loose tribal alliance is directed-ruled 
  would imply a level of control that does not exist by 
  Stonemistress Irri Diamondottir, a dwarven paladiness 
  who slew an ice worm and served it to a gathering of 
  chiefs to secure her position. She has been coordinating 
  ventures, raiding and trading into The Enclave and Cali-
  forn in order to build up the wealth and resources of the 
  tribes. Attacks by seugathi and other terrors is currently 
  at a low ebb, but everyone knows that they will return. 
  The ith’n ya’roo have had a renaissance of sorts, training 
  many adventurers to travel the world and bring back ar-
  tifacts and knowledge for the arctic beast-men. Defenses 
  and custom weaponry is being prepared by all groups, in 
  readiness for the next wave of  serious attacks.
  Settlements
  The major settlements of the Frozen North are:
     Eriksholm, the oldest of the human settlements and 
  one of the few with anything resembling arable land. 
  Hot springs and a shielding ring of high hills make it 
  one of the warmer areas in the North, with grain fields 
  and pastures (including beehives) making it the bread 
  basket of the North, and the center of worship of Ithreia. 
     Ha’roo is an ith’n ya’roo conclave adapted from a 
  dwarven outpost. The beast-men there have advanced 
  rapidly, and many explorers and adventurers from this 
  intriguing race take advantage of the whale and 
  seal hunt-
  ing areas, 
  and even 
  trade with 
  the ‘stone-
  skins’, as they 
  call armored 
  humans and 
  dwarves. 
     Night Axe 
  Deep, the last 
  of the dwarven 
  holds, is a fortress 
  of immense complex-
  ity and maintained by the 
  Night Axe Consortium 
  as a point of pride. It 
  is a dangerous place, 
  though mined products 
  are still found from the guarded but 
  extensive mines beneath.
     Snorri’s Hold is the most central of the settlements 
  and is the agreed-upon place for the high chief to or-
  ganize the territories directives. A fine dwarven keep 
  watches over the nearby harbor, with Ferrakan clerics 
  directing passage. An armory of fine weapons of dwarven 
  make is the Hold’s pride and joy, many crafted specifi-
  cally to fight aberrations and other horrors.
     Starish Vol, the southernmost of the towns and the 
  primary point of caravans to the east and Californ. Built 
  on a hot spring, many of the varied races here have expe-
  rience in both tropical and arctic conditions.
  Intrigues
  • 
  The dwarves are always in need of scouts and explor-
  ers to venture beyond Night Axe Deep to investigate 
  the wards and barriers in the abandoned holds. 
  Weapons, maps and other useful items will be pro-
  vided for future expeditions once a group has proved 
  itself effective and loyal.
  • 
  A trapper has found a seam of kromagg, black ice, 
  but it is near a seugathi ‘nest’ and he needs help to 
  retrieve it. He is willing to give those who help him 
  the lion’s share as long as he gets enough to help his 
  family. 
  • 
  A young chief is making a bid for the high chief-
  dom, and needs advice and allies to make him 
  a hero in the 
  eyes of his 
  people. He 
  has trail-
  maps and 
  legends 
  to follow 
  to build his 
  reputation and 
  wealth, which 
  will be shared by 
  those who help him.
  
  — 50 — 
  Capital: Paxia
  Settlements: Feydolm (4,000), Paxia (11,000), 
  Rhenhold (5,000)
  Ruler: Praetor Aresta Meynon
  Government: Theocratic Republic
  Races: Anumus, Elf, Gnome, Human, Oakling, 
  Xax, Xeph
  Faiths: Aleria, Lyvalia, Neria, Paletius, Yolana
  Resources: Agriculture, wine
  Languages: Common, Elven, Gnomish, Sylvan, 
  Terran, Xeph
  Border Conditions: Restricted (full porphyrite 
  border)
  Gardens of Meynon
  “First Love of Aleria; we are home.  For those who do not, 
  we are your ever pacific enemy.” - vow of the Praetor.
  History
  The Gardens of Meynon are the result of the devotion 
  and love of a goddess, and that devotion is returned by 
  the people she smiles upon. In The Divine Record of 
  Gerana it is written that the goddess Aleria felt the pull 
  of the Calling, but such was her devotion to her follow-
  ers that she could not bear to leave them behind, and 
  thus she brought the land of Enon to Porphyra with her. 
     The Record further claims that the goddess was once 
  a mortal, that she gave of herself selflessly to save those 
  she loved, and that the sheer primal outpouring of emo-
  tion of those saved gave birth to Aleria’s ascension. This 
  land was the land of Enon – her divine birthright—and 
  forever linked to the goddess.
     Origins aside, the land of Enon was a land of farms 
  and vineyards, long rolling pastures and  eticulously 
  tended orchards. There were also the Wilds, those areas 
  of the land left to the will of nature, for they offered 
  their own bounty. What Enon lacked was soldiers. There 
  were no war colleges, no marshaling grounds; the only 
  violence seen was that of hunting, and even then never 
  for sport, and never more than the land could sustain.
     So when the warbands of the NewGod Wars ap-
  proached from Enor, threatening to trod the cultivated 
  fields of Enon under elementalist boot, the people of 
  the land huddled in prayer, beseeching their goddess to 
  come to their aid once again. From their number a boy, 
  no more than twelve, stood up. While those around him 
  prayed, Mey ran, not in fear, but in haste to call the land 
  itself to defend against the hordes that would defile the 
  tranquil sanctity of his home. Some say his feet grew the 
  wings of the Meadowlark, that his stride was swifter than 
  the deer, that Mey ran day and night, through rain and 
  sleet, to sing his own Calling to the land. And the land 
  answered. Great trees, oak, ash, elm, yew, maple and 
  willow rose to defend the land. Some claim that even the 
  grapevines and ivy sprang to life to throttle the giants, 
  genies and zendiqi riders that sought to invade. Then 
  came the beasts of the Wild. Striking together they drove 
  away any that would spoil the land, and each time, Mey 
  was there to lead the defenders. So, the land of Enon was 
  spared.
     After the threat of the NewGod Wars had passed, Mey 
  felt the pull of the land. He had not slept or nourished 
  himself, for there was never time, and the need of the 
  land was first. So he sought to rest and found himself in 
  a small glade, now called the Heart of Meynon. There 
  he lay down beside a pool of spring water, and the tales 
  say a young woman cradled the boy in her arms, sing-
  ing softly to him until the last of his breath escaped his 
  exhausted mortal form.
     From that day on, the land of Enon was known as the 
  Gardens of Meynon, and it is said that if one journeys 
  to the Heart today, a stone the size of a young boy rests 
  beside a small pool, and if one is quiet and listens with 
  an open heart, they will hear the soft song of a Meadow-
  lark on the breeze.
  Current Events
  Today the Gardens of Meynon are still a thriving agricul-
  tural mecca. Vast farms, vineyards and orchards
  dominate the landscape. Though towns are numerous, 
  they are sprawling ordeals of hedgerows and gardens, 
  and each holds a preserve in its heart that is mindful of 
  the Wild. As the turbulence of the NewGod Wars faded 
  into memories, the land and its people began to wel-
  come outsiders with open arms, establishing places of 
  learning and respites of peace—for the mind is but one 
  more grove to tend. The newest immigrants are the xax 
  who fled the Birdman Mountains during the NewGod 
  Wars. Their inherent flexibility and memories of conflict 
  make them valuable both in the fields and in defense of 
  the Gardens.
     Chief among the laws of the land is that of peace. 
  Violence is a federal crime that has but one sentence: the 
  
  — 51 — 
  offender is stripped of all possessions and banished into 
  the heart of the Wild, a stark contrast to the peace of the 
  Garden. Should they survive a full year, their transgres-
  sion is forgiven, as the parolee is reborn. It is worth not-
  ing that it is rare for any to survive, and those few that 
  have, none have transgressed a second time. 
     The legend of the ‘Land rising up’ to defend them dur-
  ing the Wars is a pleasant myth, but most scholars qui-
  etly assert some inherent presence of beings such as tre-
  ants, shambling mounds, and assassin vines, with some 
  degree of collective sentience had a lot to do with it. This 
  is a forbidden topic in the arenas, and tantamount to 
  heresy within the theocracy. There are also more conven-
  tional defenses; hedgerows, levees, and border dams to 
  be released in case of invasion.
     Politically, the Gardens of Meynon are a 
  theocratic senate. Lack of devotion to 
  a deity is not well tolerated here, 
  and likely to result in the Mey-
  non custom of Shunning. 
  Conflicts are often settled 
  in the Arena of Debate, the 
  national pastime and obses-
  sion. As academic institutions 
  have grown in the Garden, 
  the art of peaceful resolution is 
  on the rise. In the communi-
  ties along the Rhenguld River 
  Basin, children who show aptitude 
  of mind are trained in the Sagia, 
  a school that focuses on the art of 
  discourse and debate.
  Settlements
  The major settlements of the Gardens of 
  Meynon are:
     Feydolm is a small town in compari-
  son to the plazas of Blix or the turreted 
  sprawls of the Middlelands, it rests 
  near the Heart of Meynon. Though 
  it lacks the typical preserve, it bor-
  ders the largest stretch of Wild in the 
  land, and its people are 
  slightly wilder as a 
  result. 
     Paxia is port to the 
  realm, largest city, and 
  capital. It is home to the Senate and the largest of the 
  Arenas of Debate, and Seat of the Praetor of Meynon, 
  the political leader of the Garden. Note that when a new 
  Praetor is chosen, they take the surname of Meynon as a 
  symbol of office.
     The ancient town of Rhenhold is home to the larg-
  est of the Sagia and sits at the mouth of the Rhenguld 
  Basin, a large, deep lake. Rhenhold is very conserva-
  tive  and religious, hosting large cathedrals to Aleria and 
  Paletius, and lesser shrines to Neria, Yolana, and even 
  Lyvalia in her role as a keen administrator.
  Intrigues
  • 
  A blight has laid ruin to a town in the west of 
  Meynon, causing death and disease among people, 
  animals and plants. If an outside source is causing 
  the outbreak, noble adventurers could help 
  solve the problem.
  • 
  Surges of violent behavior have 
  been reported in one of the 
  smaller communities- what 
  is causing it, and will it 
  spread? 
  • 
  An ancient spe-
  cies of bird native 
  to the Garden have 
  begun to vanish, but 
  are appearing in the 
  markets of neighboring 
  realms. The claims of their 
  special properties seem to have no merit- but the 
  poachers hunting them do not seem to care. 
  •     The weird race of the xesa have been appearing 
  in the fringe-lands of the Wild, agitating for the 
  freedom of cultivated plants... The clever beings 
  have even infiltrated the Senate! It is necessary to 
  find their leader and talk sense to him- er, it, and 
  avoid their possibly deadly plant allies.
  
  — 52 — 
  Ghadab
  “…And now, weak fools, you will see what true power and 
  glory brings: Immortality in the annals of history!” – The 
  Ghadabi Empress, true name unknown
  Capital: Ahahbi
  Settlements: Ahahbi (4,000), Dhuhi Oasis 
  (500+), Kamhamal (unknown), Shankhil’s Plea-
  sure (2,000)
  Ruler: None
  Government: None
  Races: Dwarf, Enigmon, Human, Zendiqi
  Faiths: Djinnlord Qarryn, Fenris Kul, Ferrakus, 
  Firelord Mal’eket, Mâl, S’sluun, Veiloaria, Wind of 
  Jewels
  Resources: Antiques, porphyrite, relics (elemental)
  Languages: Common, Dwarven, Giant, Old Por-
  phyran, Sphinx
  Border Conditions: Limited (porphyrite border 
  with the Middle Kingdoms)
  History
  The great sand-sea that is the Ghadab was once the lush-
  est part of a fertile crescent that ran between the Ghadab 
  Plateau and the desert nation of Siwath. Ghadab held 
  most of the arable farmland, while the Ashalu, cous-
  ins to the desert-dwelling Siwathu, only had the long 
  stretch of oases, and rich but dangerous banks along the 
  Ashaal River. As the saying lands went; “The Four hold 
  the Ghadab in their favor like a bejeweled dagger. The 
  Ashaal is merely its scabbard.”
     This phrase neatly held the sentiments of the countries’ 
  respective attitudes towards each other. When tensions 
  finally boiled over and the and the tribes of the Ashalu 
  rose up to raid the prosperous villages in Ghadab, the 
  result was a war that saw bloodshed, atrocities on both 
  sides and the eventual defeat and enslavement of the 
  Ashalu. The new nation had little time to prosper before 
  the arrival of the New Gods. Porphyrite rained down 
  and erupted from the earth, severing the flow of the 
  Ashaal River and separating the Ghadabi Empire from 
  the Simoon and Siwath deserts. The Ashalu, held in 
  bondage through the threat of invasion of the Siwathu 
  homeland, immediately rebelled against their masters. 
  Some died in rebellion, but most vanished into the cres-
  cent, looting garrisons and disappearing into the green. 
  The Ghadabi Empress resolved to hunt down every last 
  Siwath-Ashalu and feed their blood to the sands. Her 
  oath became a holy war, a private side to the NewGods 
  War, and the Ghadabi were infected with national rage, 
  murdering every traveler they came across, assuming that 
  anyone not like them was either an Ashalu or a Siwathu 
  sympathizer.
     The massive powers released by the NewGods War 
  brought the end of the Ghadabi Empire as well. The 
  Empress, drunk on power and bloodlust, gathered as 
  many Ashalu as her forces could capture into her great 
  city’s main square and held a mass execution called the 
  Red Night. This blasphemy, fueled by the pain and 
  blood of the Empress’ victims, drew the direct attention 
  of Mâl, the End of All Things, in the form of a black 
  skull-cyclone. The death storm tore the city apart and 
  cast blazing skulls out into every part of the Ghadab. 
  Where they landed, the fertile land died and the sands 
  beneath became ashen. In their wake, ancient horrors 
  rose up—long  dead savage beasts given new, terrible life. 
     When the storm subsided, the ruins of Hamun’kana 
  exploded like a volcano, spraying fire and ash. Where 
  once thousands of people lived in a rich, verdant land, 
  only nomads, scattered tribes and newly dedicated 
  zendiqi remained. The Ghadab Plateau became a barren 
  waste of sand and fire, populated by ghosts and mon-
  sters.
  Current Events
  Nations near the Ghadab have begun sending expedi-
  tions, some private and others open for volunteers, into 
  the lost nation looking for relics from its time of em-
  pire. There are many stories of the magical might of the 
  Ghadabi, and the weapon making skills of their Ashalu 
  slaves. These expeditions have had to contend with the 
  great beasts of the land, namely minotaurs, manticores, 
  behirs and others. While the chimera dens are deadly, 
  the roaming packs of cyclopes and ettin are worse. 
     The most dangerous hazard on the plateau is the cur-
  rent war being waged between hydras, lairing in packs 
  and fiercely intelligent, and the many forms of sphinx 
  living in the fallen empire’s old ruins. While there are 
  rumors that some of the sphinxes might be intelligent, 
  no one has been reported returning from parley with 
  them. This may be due to the flights of harpies that lurk 
  around the edges of said ruins, always glad for meals of 
  man-flesh that deliver themselves.
  
  — 53 — 
     The region of Ashaal is west of the Mountains of 
  Wrath, and not part of the Plateau proper, enjoying the 
  geographic independence its location offers. Swampy 
  and infested with pestilential insects, no other nation 
  has sought to conquer it, either. The power in this area 
  is nominally the minotaur clans, who squabble over the 
  hoodoo-labyrinths in the badlands, but they are frustrat-
  ed by the upstart dwarves who are attracted to the old, 
  unfinished mines of the previous era.
     These dwarves are achieving the only success explor-
  ing and rebuilding the wonders of old Ghadab, and they 
  attribute their success to their loyalty to Ferrakus. Using 
  clerical magic to ensure safe passage though the many 
  caves and lava pathways under the Ghadab, they have 
  been able to locate several sunken cities and being the 
  long task of restoring them. Though the dwarves are not 
  anti-social, they are fiercely protective of the new ‘cities’ 
  for their people.
  Settlements
  The major settlements of the Ghadab are: 
     Ahahbi is a mobile settlement com-
  prised mostly of wagons, and homes 
  built upon massive beasts of burden. 
  Ahahbi follows a set but winding 
  path through the plateau, stopping 
  at oases, but moving on before 
  overtaxing them, allowing them to 
  recover. It is as much a capital as 
  the Ghadab has, housing most of 
  the important Ashal’zendiqi 
  tribal leaders.
     The Dhuhi Oasis is notable 
  because of its size,  being the 
  largest in the Ghadab plateau. 
  It only shelters around 500 at 
  any given time, but they do not 
  fear raiders because of their ‘Great 
  Protector’, the Colossus of Dhu. 
  This immense, lion-headed statue 
  is capable of identifying any threats, 
  keeping the people of the Dhuhi 
  Oasis safe through both magical and 
  physical means.
     Kamhamal, also called the 
  Eye of the Storm, is a legend-
  ary city among the scattered 
  people of the Ghadab. Most consider it a legend, but it 
  does exist. When Mâl’s wrath fell upon the peninsula, 
  the zendiqi had just enough warning to pool their el-
  emental magic for protection. They formed a crystal and 
  sandstorm barrier that held back the devastation. After 
  the god’s fury passed, they found Mâl’s power made their 
  barrier storm permanent, and built a protected city nur-
  tured by the elements, where it remains today.
     Shankhil’s Pleasure is noted as the largest ‘settle-
  ment’ in the Ashaal region, west of the Ghadab Plateau, 
  separated by the porphyrite-ridden Mountains of Wrath. 
  It is a large dwarven colony, and the base by which the 
  intrepid folk delve into the mysteries of the Plateau. 
  Intrigues
  • 
  The Wrathmountain dwarves have finally discovered 
  the ruins they have been searching for since Ferrakus 
  drew them here- the lost city of Hamun’kana. Un-
  fortunately, they have been unable to enter because 
  many of its own wards are still intact and the whole 
  chain of ruins is still full of undead.
  • 
  The Ghadab Plateau has no real seasons, but there 
  are still expected periods of rain- until lately. With 
  water getting scarce and smaller oases drying up, the 
  tribes of the Ghadab are sending out search parties 
  to find new sources of water. Outlanders might 
  also be pulled into this hunt, with tempting 
  offers.
  • Some of the New Gods, especially Aleria, 
  Toma Thule, and Saren, feel a sense of 
  guilty responsibility for the fate of the 
  Ghadab, There were those in the 
  Empire that called out for aid, but 
  in their divine disgust the gods 
  turned their backs on the nation. 
  Now some of them would like 
  to make amends if they can. 
  Priests of the New Gods are 
  being ‘called’ to venture into 
  the Doomed Plateau and aid 
  its people; put down monsters that 
  plague the land, and do what they can 
  to restore what has been lost.
  
  — 54 — 
  Giant’s Retreat
  “Savages? You rule-makers preside with words and edicts 
  that kill just as easily as my sword. The Towerbound are 
  much more honest with their killing.” - Tuatha of the 
  Flame, Master of the Tower of Blood
  Capital: Bloodshadow
  Settlements: Bloodshadow (10,000), Hunter’s 
  Creek (800), Iron Mounds (1,000)
  Ruler: Master Tuatha of the Flame
  Government: Kratocracy
  Races: Half-Cyclops, Half-Giant, Half-Ogre, 
  Half-Orc, Human
  Faiths: Drothos, Enor Ashlord, Fenris Kul, Fer-
  rakus, Ice Tyrant, Lord Grunzol Firestorm
  Resources: Godmetals (adamantine, dreamstone, 
  geranite, hellstone, linite), iron, ivory,  mercenaries
  Languages: Common, Giant, Old Porphyran, Orc
  Border Conditions: Limited (porphyrite border 
  with Mount Xoa)
  History
  Long before The Calling, the region currently called 
  Giant’s Retreat was known as the Dagger Peaks. It was 
  named after a small range of mountains that cut into the 
  Opal Sea. Even in those times, it was a savage land, filled 
  with barbaric peoples. Orcs, humans, and even ogres 
  lived in tribes surrounding the Dagger Peaks, warring 
  with each other not out of hate, but out of battle lust. 
  For in this region, strength is all. Though the races kept 
  to tribal regions, all in Dagger Peaks were of one nation. 
  That is because there are only three laws in the region; 
  ancient laws that persist to this day:
  • 
     The strongest rules from atop the Tower of Blood 
  • 
     Do as you please, at the whim of the Bloodking.
  • 
     You may kill any whom you disagree with.
  There is no land more free, no land that marches to war 
  with more relish. When the NewGod War began, the orc 
  master of Dagger Peaks marched his tribes to battle, and 
  famously split his forces between the elementalist and 
  the divine forces, fighting one another to destruction. 
  When all was done, the survivors finally returned home 
  to compete once more for the Tower of Blood; they did 
  not do so alone. After the NewGod War many of the 
  giants that served the elementals were enslaved or killed. 
  Those that were not were welcomed by the barbarian 
  hordes, for old allegiances did not matter in the Dagger 
  Peaks, only that the three laws were followed. Now that a 
  porphyrite border cut off the peninsula, the competition 
  for the Tower was all the more fitting. Now, the region 
  was one giant arena, and at its center, the only prize that 
  mattered, the Tower of Blood. 
     Each year past that dire treaty, signed in the heat of the 
  Siwath desert, the giants’ numbers only grew in the Dag-
  ger Peaks. All over the world the remnant soldiers of the 
  elementals heard of this new land that welcomed them, 
  and they journeyed to reach this new home. So many gi-
  ant masters would take the Tower that soon the region’s 
  name changed to Giant’s Retreat.
  Current Events
  Religion has come to the Giant’s Retreat in the last few 
  generations, from the sinister church of the destroyer 
  god, Fenris Kul, Lord of the Burning Throne. The Break-
  er cast his covetous eye on the land of perpetual blood-
  shed, and his mad clerics followed the influx of former 
  dogs of the elementalists. He cast his influence over the 
  warriors of the land, and soon his name could be heard 
  bellowed from atop the Tower of Blood. The most recent 
  call of claim, came, interestingly enough, from a human.
     Born from the people of Hunter’s Creek, Tuatha of the 
  Flame honed his skills as a child, bringing down mam-
  moths. As he grew older, he would brawl with ogres, and 
  lead many raids into the rival city of Iron Mounds. One 
  day, while drenched in the blood of his comrades, and 
  face to face with a giant opponent, he heard the chant 
  of Fenris Kul. It cracked and roared from the fire of the 
  village around him. Taking up the chant, Tuatha brought 
  down the giant before him, and each successive fool who 
  challenged him on his march to the Tower of Blood. 
  When he was done, the last to challenge him was the 
  fire giant who was the former master of Giant’s Retreat. 
  Tuatha roared Fenris Kul’s name into the night and great 
  fires burned across the region beneath its echo. 
     The far-ranging frost giants in their enormous, slow 
  ships are seeking favor in the competition for the Tower 
  by finding and recruiting (or capturing) interesting and, 
  more importantly, powerful races to throw into the fray. 
  Some of their curious finds are the enigmatic qit’ar, the 
  ith’n ya’roo of the southern Eternal Ice, and the fear-
  
  — 55 — 
  ful gnarl of the far eastern mountains. These races are 
  sticking to their own, but they will eventually choose a 
  faction, for good or ill.
     Nearby nations are very nervous about the growing 
  numbers of Kulite priests in the Retreat, as they will 
  be able to bypass the protective godswall to the west, 
  and softer lands. The Methysti clerics of Shankhil are 
  scrambling to reassure everyone that the giants are too 
  concerned with their internal conflicts to march west. 
  Now, Tuatha of the Flame stands atop the Tower, await-
  ing his next challenger, praying to his god for a glorious 
  war against anyone foolish enough to challenge Giant’s 
  Retreat.
  Settlements
  The major settlements of the Giant’s Retreat are:
     Bloodshadow is at the foot of the Dagger Peaks, a 
  city of the strongest warriors in the Retreat. Above 
  them, on the tallest mountain peak stands 
  the Tower of Blood, the ultimate display of 
  strength. Every ambitious warrior of the 
  region eventually battles their way here, 
  in hopes that they will become the next 
  master by the slaying the incumbent. 
  Any outsiders here must 
  be very wary, for 
  battles spark in 
  the city at the 
  slightest provo-
  cation. Each 
  warrior, after all, 
  has something impor-
  tant to prove.
     Hunter’s Creek is a 
  tent-city that is indeed the 
  calmest major settlement in 
  the Retreat. Many have marched 
  to their doom to take it, as the 
  youth here are raised to the hunt, 
  by stealth and cunning. For if you 
  are raised hunting saber-toothed 
  cats and mammoths, what 
  challenge is a man? 
  The camp-town 
  carries a friendly 
  war with Iron 
  Mounds, but 
  sells mammoth ivory and live arena-beasts at the same 
  landings as their rivals.
     Iron Mounds is on the opposite side of the Dagger 
  Peaks and closer to the hated godswall. The iron mine 
  there that these foothills people have toiled in for genera-
  tions has produced all of the great weapons used in the 
  myriad conflicts of the region—or  so the belligerent folk 
  here would have you think. The tribesmen here often 
  do battle with their rivals in Hunter’s Creek, and sell ore 
  to cautious outlanders at beach-landings on the north 
  coast.
  Intrigues
  • 
  The PCs sit in a Bloodshadow tavern, admiring a 
  beautiful but foolish princess of the Imperiax declar-
  ing her wish to see if the stories of Giant’s Retreat are 
  true. Kulites can also be heard plotting the foreign-
  er’s demise in hopes that it might bring the 
  land to war...
  • A rich Blixian merchant intends to buy 
  the superbly made weapons of the Iron 
  Mounds and sell them for much profit 
  back in the Consortium. To achieve this, 
  he will need much aid in staying alive on 
  the journey, and he is willing to pay hand-
  somely.
  • Nervous Methysti clerics in Mount Xoa 
  are considering issuing a bounty on Ku-
  lite priests in the Retreat, even though 
  that would likely result in a nasty 
  holy war between the devoted of 
  The Twilight Man and The Breaker. 
  Would the PCs seek bounties, or 
  suggest a more diplomatic ap-
  proach?
  • 
  The Tower of 
  Blood is in the center 
  of the land, and 
  many obstacles 
  stand in your 
  way. Can 
  you dethrone 
  Tuatha of the 
  Flame and 
  become the 
  next Master of 
  Giant’s Retreat?
  
  — 56 — 
  Great Green
   “It has been a primordial sanctuary, a nurturing mother 
  and a lethal teacher. Solace can be found within the Great 
  Green, but it must be earned.” – Lathenola Galetine, 
  Warden of the East
  History
  Long before The Calling brought about the NewGod 
  Wars, long before the Elemental Lords rose to power, the 
  Heartwood, later known as Ele’Silvathiel, dominated the 
  world. Here the Elven Kingdoms rose, tree city expanses 
  that sprawled for square miles. In the diary of Milann 
  the Explorer: “…I’ve been a full cycle of the moon below 
  the boughs of the Heartwood and though I’ve traversed 
  miles of this magnificent kingdom, my feet have nary 
  touched the soil…”
     In the ancient centuries of the past, in the unspoiled 
  heart of the Green, sat the Oaken Throne, and upon it, 
  The Greenlord. The Elemental Lords saw the ancient, 
  powerful Treant King as a convenient viceroy, and he 
  was the ultimate authority within the living kingdom of 
  the Heartwood. For though the elves, gathlain and forest 
  saurians could manipulate or use the environment to ful-
  fill their needs, the Greenlord was the land. The treants 
  were to the earth and the forest what the servant Giants 
  were to the elements of Stone, Fire, Frost and Cloud. 
     The elves in those days had more passion, a slowly 
  burning desire to rule themselves, and decide their own, 
  long-lived destiny. Rebels and outcasts from the King-
  Capital: Sil’arden
  Settlements: Est’Arden (12,000), Galet’Arden 
  (14,000), Sil’Arden (25,000)
  Ruler: Queen Nisenlensia Qul’lenth
  Government: Monarchy
  Races: Anumus, Catfolk, Elf, Feykissed, Forlar-
  ren, Gathlain, Grippli, Half-Elf, Kitsune, Oakling, 
  Saurian, Taddol
  Faiths: Chiuta, Djinnlord Qarryn, Enor Ashlord, 
  Ithreia, Mâl, Poison Wave, Saren
  Resources: Furs, lumber
  Languages: Boggard, Catfolk, Common, Dra-
  conic, Elven, Sylvan, Taddol
  Border Conditions: Limited (porphyrite border 
  limits access to Iffud and Morah’silvanath)
  dom of the Treant went north to the forbidden Plague-
  lands of Azagor, and there created the race of half-orcs, 
  spurring the genesis of the world-shaking Calling. In 
  the Heartwood itself, shortly before the elves and the 
  orcs created the Calling, forces there began their own 
  rebellion. In the sacred tome, the Greenbook of Galen 
  Oakcast, the Silvathae lorekeeper wrote of the Elemental 
  Uprising, the Ash Wars, and the coming of Cormath 
  Qul. The elementalists of the southern Heartwood were 
  of a particularly violent schism opposed to the ways of 
  the orthodox zendiqi. Born of elven and a mix of all 
  four elemental-kin, the warlord Qul raised a great army 
  to march upon the Oaken Throne, and challenge the 
  Greenlord. The Elemental Lords were paralyzed with 
  indecision on the matter, which probably aided in their 
  own destined downfall. 
     In the final battle, Cormath Qul brought to bear the 
  Shalizur, the Spear of Living Flame, casting aside the 
  treant homeguard. He struck at the Greenlord, leaving 
  smoldering wounds that boiled the living sap of the great 
  Treant King. Cormath drove the Greenlord back, setting 
  alight the living throne. The ashen area is known today 
  as Cormath’s Keep, where the forest will never regrow; 
  Qul promised the burning would only begin with the 
  Throne and the King, even as the Greenlord begged to 
  spare the forest. It is then that the Greenlord reached 
  into his own chest and tore out his wooden heart, and 
  impaled Cormath with the living spear while Shalizur 
  spat and sputtered, unable to scorch the Heartwood 
  Spear. Thus ended the rule of the last Greenlord, and 
  made the great forest a no-man’s land for the two New-
  God War forces.
     The Heartwood would heal, become the nation of 
  elves, Ele’Silvathiel, under the leadership of the Qul fam-
  ily dynasty, all but the site of the Greenlord’s death, the 
  ruined framework that is visited by the monarch each 
  year. Elven memories are long, though, and some speak 
  of a return of the Greenlord, from the land of the Tree-
  Herds. They speak of a shard of the last Oaklord’s spear 
  remaining, the Heartwood Staff, that it will surface and 
  lead one worthy to the ruined Oaken Throne.
  Current Events
  The Great Green still dominates much of Porphyra, 
  providing a home to many sylvan peoples. The elven 
  nation of Ele’Silvanath is the largest, and races such as 
  the gathlain, catfolk and kitsune pay homage and trib-
  
  — 57 — 
  ute, gaining the ear of the Queen and the arms of the 
  Knights. The Ivy Throne wisely relegates lands near her 
  borders to the non-elven races, a buffer to aggression. 
  Each of the great cities of the elves is responsible for 
  the forest around it, and hold to the edicts of the Ivy 
  Throne.
     Though seeking to keep the Green as it was under the 
  fabled Greenlord, the elves are pressed constantly. In the 
  aftermath of The Calling and the NewGod Wars, many 
  new threats have arisen. Parl Pardesh constantly fells 
  trees for lumber on the south border, and their camps 
  are often a lure for skirmishes. The Fourlanders to the 
  east are less aggressive, but have no love of elves or sylvan 
  folk. Perhaps a more sinister invasion is that of necrotic 
  blight. Necromantic cults, typically of Mâlite druids, 
  have become a constant threat to the Heartwood, 
  as they seek to pervert and twist the 
  abundant life energies found within the 
  Green.
  Settlements
  The major settlements of the Great 
  Green are: 
     Est’Arden is the home to the 
  Order of the Green Wardens, 
  the rangers and hunters of 
  Ele’Silvathiel that are tasked 
  with patrolling the borders 
  and far reaches of the Green. 
  It is also the traditional win-
  ter home of the Knights of 
  the Holly. The Knights are 
  the elite of the elven mili-
  tary, and within the Order, 
  those who bear the Wil-
  low Bow serve the Queen 
  as personal bodyguard. 
  Watchtowers on the high-
  est trees keep close eye on 
  the Pardeshi, and report to 
  the high-walled city in the 
  wooded hills.
     Galet’Arden serves as a 
  center for scholarly pur-
  suits within Ele’Silvathiel, 
  and supplies the Queen’s 
  summer palace on the Green 
  Sea. Along with the colleges of arcane study, there are 
  many temples to the New Gods, as the long-lived elves 
  still see deism as a new fad. Galet’Arden is the city most 
  outsiders visit, and as such is more cosmopolitan and 
  foreign-influenced. 
     Sil’Arden is the home of the Ivy Throne from which 
  Nisenlensia Qul’lenth holds court. The elven queen is 
  served by the Sylvan Council, where any race within the 
  Green may give voice to their concerns. Sil’arden is pri-
  mal in its traditions, possibly being the oldest continu-
  ously inhabited city on Porphyra, even if a city of carved 
  trees and forest-bound towers.
  Intrigues
  • 
  A remarkably tolerant Siwathu ambassador has 
  disappeared from his quarters in Galet’Arden; if his 
  whereabouts are not discreetly discovered 
  and his person restored, the zendiqi 
  may cross the Scrublands to exact 
  vengeance.
  • 
  A gathlain vagabond has 
  brought rumors from the Herds 
  of the Treants of sightings of 
  the Heartwood Staff, that last 
  shard of Shalizur wielded by 
  Cormath Qul. The Ivy Throne 
  is very interested in confirming 
  these rumors- but to what 
  end?
  • 
  The northern 
  quarters of the Green is 
  seeing the genesis of a 
  grim conflict; elemen-
  talist cultists of the 
  antevocial Four Winds 
  sect against the Mâlite 
  druids of the Blighted 
  Coven. Though the Ivy 
  Throne is content to 
  let them destroy one 
  another, the priests of 
  Saren are frantically 
  trying to recruit 
  agents to sabotage 
  the apocalyptic strate-
  gies soon to be used by 
  both sides.
  
  — 58 — 
  Haunted Sea
  “If it is true, all things go to the ocean, the Haunted Sea is 
  the destination – and the journey — of hate, malice, and 
  evil.” - Elias Stern, seaman and cartographer
  History
  In another place, a primitive place where the waters 
  grew higher every year, there was an archipelago whose 
  name has been lost to time. Never a peaceful or a pleas-
  ant place, those who lived there were not, either. Storms 
  wracked the shores of the islands, and they were very 
  dear to the mercurial goddess of storms, ships and the 
  sea, Nise the Battlemaiden. When she brought the 
  transient islands to Porphyra during The Calling, the 
  Elemental Lords treated them no better than she had, 
  taking delight in the destruction and persecution of the 
  inhabitants. Nise’s bold strategy of making the islands 
  move with the moons aided their contribution to the 
  NewGod Wars, though it made it no better for the peo-
  ple. Storms intensified, volcanic islands sprang up, and 
  the waters became infested with unnameable horrors.
     Those who survived the transition and the war found 
  themselves subtly changed, and the seas around them 
  boiling with cruelty, unspeakable things, and the un-
  dead. They also found the mangled heaps of shipwrecks 
  from a thousand worlds, and treasure the likes of which 
  Poprhyra had never seen. As the battles of the gods and 
  Capital: None
  Settlements: Kormus (2,500), Port Calist (3,900), 
  Sthenno (2,800), Xebic (2,400)
  Ruler: None
  Government: Dictatorships
  Races: Forlarren, Half-Medusa, Human, Maenad, 
  Orcam, Obitu, Ratfolk, Satyrine, Tiefling, Undine
  Faiths: Kamus, Lyvalia, Nise, Rajuk Amon-Gore, 
  Shade
  Resources: Seafood, slaves, spices, treasure
  Languages: Abyssal, Aquan, Common, Maenad, 
  Necril, Orcam, Sylvan, Terran
  Border Conditions: Restricted (an irregular por-
  phyrite border surrounds the Haunted Sea). The 
  seas change location within the oceans of Por-
  phyra. A decipherable pattern of their predicted 
  location is known only to a select few.
  elementals ebbed, tales of the horrors and wonders of 
  the Haunted Sea began to spread and brought hardened 
  men, women of fortune, and treasure hunters from every 
  corner of the world. Pirate colonies like Port Calist and 
  Kormus grew to serve the growing ranks of buccaneers, 
  who prowled the local waters.
     One of the new islands, Sthenno, was home to a colo-
  ny of medusae and half-medusae, and quickly asserted its 
  power in the Haunted Sea by claiming the nearby islands 
  of Telmon and Rortuk, and enslaving the inhabitants. 
  Bridging the open sea between the islands they created 
  the first true nation state in the Haunted Sea. This new 
  power was quickly challenged by Xebic, an island city 
  that took its name from the titanic dragon turtle upon 
  whose back the island rested. The war between Sthenno 
  and Xebic shaped much of the latter history and politics 
  in the region. Necromancers on both side of the conflict 
  “conscripted” thousands of zombies, wraiths and more 
  dire forms, to crew privateers and terrorize their enemies. 
  The conflict escalated until the dark magi lost control of 
  their vassals: the ghost ships coalesced into what came to 
  be known as the Plague Armada.
     Led by a revenant known as the Black Goat, the Ar-
  mada threatened to wipe all life from the Haunted
  Sea. The monstrous fleet forced the powers of the re-
  gion and the pirate kings to work together to contend 
  with the threat, culminating at the Battle of the Vortex. 
  After the Plague Armada took the island of Kandul and 
  regrouped for an assault on Port Calist, the allied navy 
  formed a flotilla around the mystic turtle Xebic, coordi-
  nating their attack as an ambush at the Jadji Vortex, the 
  largest whirlpool on Porphyra. The Plague Armada had 
  other ideas, reanimating all of the poor souls dragged 
  down by the maelstrom over the years. The outlook was 
  bleak, but then the flotilla opened up with spell and 
  cannon, covering for the great turtle, Xebic, who had 
  prepared a monumental spell. No one is sure what Xebic 
  did that day, but both navies were surrounded by blind-
  ing green light, and when it faded, the shell of the turtle 
  was empty, the Black Goat had vanished, and the Plague 
  Armada was decimated. Mauled but victorious, the allied 
  navy split up and returned to slave trading and piracy.
  Current Events
  The unique mobile nature of the Haunted Sea and its 
  islands has served to make the vile ports there incred-
  ibly cosmopolitan, and the buccaneers that live there 
  
  — 59 — 
  extremely adaptable to the needs and possibilities of 
  the locale. When in the Eastern Cold Sea, they raid the 
  Brown Coast villages for slaves, or sell arms to the ze-
  ndiqi. When in the northern Opal Sea, they sell prison-
  ers to the gulags, and hire themselves out to the Jheriaks 
  as troop ships. Only in the Bay of Gods do they find a 
  single dedicated purpose; harry the fleets of Freeport, 
  and make them pay. Capturing a Lyvalian Patron is the 
  ultimate goal, and the bravo who does so will be well 
  rewarded.
     When not preying on other nations nearby, the nation 
  states and tribes of the Haunted Sea are in a state of un-
  declared naval war, and have been so since the Battle of 
  the Vortex. Most privateer ships carry multiple letters of 
  marque and act as pure mercenaries. Sthenno, Kormus 
  and Xebic are still the primary powers 
  in the Sea, but the wealth and pi-
  rate connections of Port Calist 
  have rocketed the once small 
  fishing community into a lo-
  cal power of great importance in 
  both trace and military might.
  Settlements
  The major settlements of the Haunted 
  Sea are:
     Kormus is a center of debauchery 
  and vice, the finest in the Sea. Boasting 
  dozens of casinos, brothels, and other pits 
  of sin, Kormus caters to those whose tastes 
  are too exotic to be sated by Port Calist 
  and Xebic.
     Port Calist, once a sheltered fish-
  ing village, ‘The Port’ became the 
  favorite port of pirates, adventur-
  ers and merchants looking for 
  extraordinary goods and 
  services. The calm-watered 
  docks welcomes any and 
  all who wish to spend 
  or sell, and is now quite 
  rich by Porphyran 
  standards.
     Sthenno, 
  called the 
  Viper’s Nun-
  nery by most 
  sea dogs, is an island-state populated almost entirely by 
  medusae, half-medusa, and their slaves. Little is known 
  about the inner workings of the place other than Queen 
  Antropda is the absolute ruler, a spellcaster and assassin 
  of great skill.
     Xebic is a city still in mourning of its vanished spiri-
  tual leader. The floating island is anchored six miles from 
  where the great turtle gave its life to save its people. Re-
  cently maenads have colonized the inner shell of the lost 
  Xebic. The port of Xebic is the chief producer of ships in 
  the region.
  Intrigues
  • 
  Reports of a white ship, 
  called The Reckoning, is at-
  tacking slavers and pirates in 
  the Sea. Crewed by archons, 
  divas and obitu, it is a huge dread-
  naught bearing uncountable cannon, and a 
  haloed captain with wings of fire. Queen Antropda 
  has offered a cask of gold for his head.
  • A new island, covered in thick jungle has ap-
  peared in the Cannibal Island chain. Nothing too 
  unusual, but ten empty ships are moored on its 
  shores- and there are rumors of the Black Goat in 
  the region. Several merchant companies 
  are offering rewards for a map of that 
  island, and answers to what hap-
  pened to the ships.
  • 
  Something off the coasts 
  of Kormus is stirring. Years 
  of cultic activity on Kormus 
  have been ignored by the 
  port-holders, until a purple-
  lightninged storm wrecked 
  the Liosalfar, a beautiful elven 
  barque captained by the local 
  Thieves’ Guild boss’s brother. In his 
  grief, he has sworn to shut down busi-
  ness in Kormus until the cult is ex-
  punged.
  
  — 60 — 
  Hesteria
  “No man may kill a cat in Olthar...” - a Dreamlands 
  proverb.
  Capital: Oracle or Qadath
  Settlements: Kelephae (3,000), Menar (5,000), 
  Olthar (3,000), Oracle (4,000), Qadathm (7,000), 
  Silkwood (2,500)
  Rulers: Duke Mr’rowwr Fit’th (catfolk, Ulian), 
  High Lucid Dell Brownlock (human, Nerian)
  Government: Feudal Duchy (Ulian), Theocracy 
  (Nerian)
  Races: Catfolk, Dhampir, Entobian, Fetchling, 
  Human, Living Ghoul
  Faiths: Neria, Ul’Ul
  Resources: Dreams, godmetal (dreamstone), 
  leather, nightmares, Realms Between access, silk, 
  tourism
  Languages: Aklo, Catfolk, Common, Necril
  Border Conditions: Restricted (The Wall of 
  Sleep)
  History
  Brought to Porphyra by the nascent goddess Ul’Ul, the 
  backwater of Hesteria (known to most as the Wall of 
  Sleep) found itself undergoing a surge of planar power 
  after the NewGod Wars when the Mad Maiden rose to 
  full godhood. The ruined land that was the battlefield 
  doorstep of the Middle Kingdoms became the home of 
  The Wall of Sleep, an extra-dimensional curtain rippling 
  through the center of the country. The Wall is a link 
  to the ethereal and astral planes, unstable at the best of 
  times, and prone to disgorging strange, alien, and hostile 
  beings, who stay or go at their whim. Dangerous or not, 
  those who seek vision, solace, escape or communication 
  with those gone on come in the name of pilgrimage, to 
  what is known on Porphyra as the Land of Dreams, that 
  curious, mobile portal through the multiple realities. 
     Slow to rebuild, the followers of Ul’Ul and refugees 
  finding peace or distraction at the Wall of Sleep founded 
  Qadath, the catfolk city of Olthar, and the port of 
  Kelephae, and set about, in an anarchistic way, follow 
  the ways of The Vortex. A gradual effort to build an ac-
  tual wall around the Wall began, mostly as a make-work 
  project for the indigent. It was then that refugees from 
  Beyond began to trickle into Hesteria, shadow-touched 
  fetchlings, gaunt dhampirs, and foul living ghouls, who 
  revered the site as sacred. The fetchlings found accep-
  tance with their importation of the highly profitable 
  shadow-silk trade, which has now become a byword 
  for the Hesterian land. Harvested from the cocoons 
  of tenebrous worms, the larvae of gloomwing moths, 
  shadow-silk is very valuable, due to the highly dangerous 
  monsters from which it originates. The queer town of 
  Silkwood is their headquarters. 
     The Nerian Pilgrimage of AC 592 changed Hesteria 
  greatly. Vast crowds of seekers from all over Porphyra, 
  predominantly human, came to Hesteria to contemplate, 
  and attempt to control, the Wall of Sleep. They rap-
  idly established the “holy city” of Menar near the Wall, 
  and the eastern clerical city of Oracle, seat of the Lucid 
  Council. Typically content to let beings do what they 
  want, the sitting duke objected to the blatant coloniza-
  tion, and a brief conflict took place, the Dreamer’s War. 
  Short, though bitter, each side used repellent tactics, the 
  Ulians with assassination, poison, and infiltration; the 
  Nerians with recruitment of extra-planar monsters, some 
  of which haunt the southern woods to this day. The 
  bloodshed eventually shocked both sides, being typically 
  non-warlike, and a shaky truce was established in AC 
  601. The Wall is the de facto border between the fac-
  tions, with slow progress on a containing structure. The 
  pilgrims still keep coming, and strange and wonderful 
  goods still ship out of the dark port of Kelephae.
  Current Events
  The Hesterian Fraction drags on, now in its 600th year. 
  The new catfolk Duke of Qadath favors renewed aggres-
  sion, and the lands west of The Wall teem with irregular 
  units and bragging bravos from many races. If Duke 
  Fit’th could create a cohesive military unit, the wob-
  bly peace of Hesteria could be threatened. The cynical 
  fetchlings doubt it highly, as the priest-dancers of Ul’Ul 
  tend to turn every drill session into a drunken bacchanal. 
  On the Nerian side, some preparation has been seen to, 
  in the hiring of mercenaries from the Northlands, and 
  harpy scouts, but the presence of The Wall distracts both 
  groups, as the High Lucid is no militarist. 
     With the groups based in this reality distracted by old 
  hatreds, the increase in strangeness beyond the Wall of 
  Sleep is going unnoticed, except by the Watchers of the 
  Wall, the priest-guards of Menar. Small groups of refu-
  
  — 61 — 
  gees, of races such as xax, numistians and taddol have 
  crossed the Infinite Spaces and braved the Seas of Night-
  mare to reach Porphyra, speaking little, but willing to do 
  most any work to grant asylum. A small tent-city called, 
  dismayingly, Freaktown, now sits outside of Menar, 
  though the snobbish Nerians avoid the newcomers.
  Settlements
  The major settlements of Hesteria are:
     Kelephae is a busy port that is held to be (mostly) 
  neutral ground for the Ulians and Nerians, the half-
  fetchling captains of the Shadowships travel all over 
  Porphyra. The wharf bars of Kelephae are places of 
  wondrous and frightening stories- even more frightening 
  than the strange inhabitants of this port on the Sea of 
  Karkoon’s western shore.
     The pilgrimage center of Menar deals with all of those 
  who wish to visit the Wall of Sleep, and also must deal 
  with the practical consequences of the simmering con-
  flict of the two Hesterian factions. On top of this, Menar 
  must keep the introspective community of Oracle fed. 
  No wonder the motto of 
  the town is “Reality is 
  nightmare, to dream is 
  life”.
     The catfolk town of 
  Olthar seems more alien 
  than Silkwood to some, being 
  a maze of wood, fabric, scented 
  plants, and cozy tunnels. Those 
  who get used to it and the enigmatic 
  catfolk enjoy it greatly, though hu-
  mans never stay long, for some rea-
  son. Olthar is primarily noctur-
  nal, and is the center for 
  aggression against the 
  Nerians; plotting is a 
  civic pastime in Olthar.
     Oracle is the base 
  of the Nerian theocratic 
  faction, observance of 
  any other deity is likely 
  to garner a beating by 
  zealous Augurs of the 
  Dreamspeaker. Glass 
  and dreamstone are the 
  primary components of 
  this strange town, making it a poor military headquar-
  ters, and if the truce ever broke, so would Oracle.
     Qadath is the center of the Ulian faction of Hesteria, 
  this old city is a bewildering maze of buildings, alleys, 
  statues, other art, and dance pavilions. Free-willed to the 
  point of anarchistic, anything goes in Qadath, as long as 
  you know the few taboos that bring about forced exile to 
  The Wall. The fact that these taboos change with every 
  new Duke make visiting somewhat hazardous.
     The fetchling community of Silkwood is creepy, 
  nonetheless industrious and busy, producing  shad-
  owsilk and capturing dreams and nightmares for export. 
  The surrounding countryside raises sheep, cattle, and 
  goats, primarily for worm-feed, but a secondary indus-
  try in leather goods and meat has taken hold. There are 
  dhampir and ghoul neighborhoods in Silkwood, as well, 
  disconcerting most visitors.
  Intrigues
  • 
  A Nerian Augur needs a bodyguard for a clandestine 
  meeting in an abandoned fortress in the No-Man’s-
  Land north of The Wall. Presumably the catfolk of 
  the Ulian faction have long memories of war...
  • 
  Passing beyond the Wall of Sleep is a 
  pilgrimage many Porphyrans take. Will your 
  trip be for knowledge, 
  gain, or something else?
  • 
  A shipful of Raju-
  ki assassins is bound for 
  Kelephae; your mission 
  is to stop them and prevent 
  open warfare in the troubled land 
  of Hesteria.
  • An entobian colony near the north 
  end of The Wall, on the Nerian side, is 
  threatening the shadow- silk trade with 
  dream-silk, spun by those queer people 
  while within The Wall. A fetchling 
  merchant-lord is giving contracts to 
  secure a cocoon of this material.
  
  — 62 — 
  Hinterlands of Kesh
  “I shot him down because he needed killin’. Oh, right- of 
  course, for the good of the Council, yes, yes, of course...” 
  -Eswut, elan gunslinger
  Capital: High Hill of Atiri
  Settlements: Bailyton (4,700), Dupressix (3,200), 
  Fortress of the Eye (1,500), High Hill of Atiri (0), 
  Valshol (13,300)
  Ruler: Disputed
  Government: Tribal, with appointed sheriffs
  Races: Elan, Half-Cyclops, Hobgoblin, Human. 
  Polkan
  Faiths: Kamus, Lyvalia, Neria, Ul’Ul, Veiloaria
  Resources: Agriculture, firearms, metal (iron, 
  lead), slaves
  Languages: Common, Giant, Goblin
  Border Conditions: Limited (Southern Kesh is 
  surrounded by a Porphyrite border)
  History
  Kesh is a frontier land of many clans and petty estates, 
  once unified under a High King who was elected and 
  ruled wisely from the High Hill of Atiri. What is not 
  widely known is that a secret society of immortal, 
  psionic elan manipulated the choosing of the High King 
  as well as serving as advisers among the various tribes. 
  With the guidance of the elan, the rule of the High King 
  was usually just and wise, and friction between the tribes 
  and clans was kept to a minimum.
     The human tribes were ascendant in the age of the 
  High King, but the NewGod Wars hit them hard. The 
  dusty, tumbleweed-ridden Land brought by Kamus the 
  Slaver was filled with fanatical hobgoblins who quickly 
  took up the deist cause, even though the Keshites did 
  not follow the ways of the cruel elementalists. The High 
  King was killed, along with many lesser chiefs and their 
  elan advisers, allowing the painted hobgoblins, riding on 
  horseback against the cattle-riding ‘cow-boys’ to a final 
  showdown called the Battle of Morrow’s Ford. It was 
  there that the last remaining free tribes, under the leader-
  ship of Kaja Steelidun slew the High Warlord Kovish 
  “Steelarm” and broke the back of his army with a single 
  volley of crude rifles. This terrifying display of destruc-
  tion caused the hobgoblins to descend into a decades-
  long  struggle for tribal dominance which ended in the 
  exhaustion of all.
     The half-cyclopes of the western Wagon Lands were 
  also quite powerful, when their Cyclopean forbears built 
  the Fortress of the Eye milennia before The Calling, 
  even. The appearance of Southern Kesh broke the land 
  trade routes for their mutton and wool, and the new-
  found resistance spirit of the Keshite people broke the 
  cattle-sheep rivalry that had been a constant on the open 
  ranges. With many factions demanding recognition, 
  including the half-cyclopes and semi-pacified hobgob-
  lins, the only progress in hundreds of years is the system 
  of sheriffs that patrol the trails. Their iconic firearms 
  and modified compass-stars of Veiloaria indicates the 
  dormant authority of the High King, and the potentially 
  united wishes of the regional chiefs.
  Current Events
  The Suns of Kamus Tribe of hobgoblins are the strongest 
  of the powers in Kesh, but they are reluctant to impose 
  their will on the other groups, fearing the same cost as 
  that paid at Morrow’s Ford. Instead, they impose tolls on 
  the roads and conduct raids for loot and slaves, though 
  other tribes are as often as the targets of these raids as 
  their neighbors. The hobgoblins are organized under a 
  matriarchal clan system, while the war chiefs are primar-
  ily male. The administration and organization of the 
  clans are controlled by the mothers and grandmothers, 
  as well as the priesthood; while Kamus rules all, Lyvalian 
  politics pulls the strings behind the scenes, and allows 
  for contact with other cultures, such as the network of 
  spies allied to Parl Pordesh. The arm of the Lyvalian 
  priesthood is the Sisterhood of the Black Glass, a covert 
  organization of witches that ensures that no vendetta or 
  feud among the hobgoblins is allowed to threaten their 
  unity in the face outsiders, and tries to shift the target of 
  the hobgoblin raids to people outside Kesh.
     The last holding of the long-degraded half-cyclopes 
  is the Fortress of the Eye and its surrounding lands. 
  To their distress, they have been forces to ally with the 
  Steelidun clan to fend off the encroachment of the far-
  ranging hobgoblins, and with that alliance came an end 
  to the long cannibalistic tradition of the half-cyclopes 
  peoples. While they occasionally consider breaking away 
  to return to return to their ancestral ways, their seer-
  priests of Neria remind them of the very real threat of 
  slavery at the hands of the hobgoblins; this keeps the 
  ‘cyclops-kin’ unhappy allies of the tasty humans. 
  
  — 63 — 
     The humans of the Hinterlands are loosely organized 
  under the banner of the Steelidun Clan, though they 
  exist in tribal groups ruled over by a variety of governors, 
  whose will is enacted by gun-toting sheriffs. The Clans 
  form a rather anarchic federation that meet twice yearly 
  for the Palaver, which is part negotiation, part country 
  dance and mostly, a drunken revel. What the Steelidun 
  do agree on is that an attack on one member of the 
  Clans is an attack on all, and that the right to bear arms 
  is a universal truth.
  Settlements
  The major settlements of Kesh are:
     The High Hill of Atiri comprises the unfortified 
  buildings that held the High Court, and the Akai 
  Corral, sacred cattle-pens of the ancient cow-
  boy days. Abandoned but maintained by an-
  cient magics, war and people both avoid this 
  place, partly from tradition and partly from 
  the efforts of the elan, who from the nearby 
  Tombstone Tower protect it as a symbol of 
  unity.
     Bailyton is a walled town, the clos-
  est thing the Steelidun have to a 
  city. On the wide river nicknamed 
  Old Man Baily, it is a major place 
  for trade with those foreign to 
  Kesh, and even the hobgoblins on 
  their painted horses come to trade 
  here. It is also the location of the 
  twice-yearly Palaver.
     Dupressix is a new town, a 
  frontier town of wooden buildings 
  and muddy streets over top of a high 
  quality seam of iron ore. Dupressix is 
  the hub of weapon manufacturing in 
  Kesh, especially fiearms. The town is 
  named after the first of the Steelidun 
  to walk the way of the gunslinger, the 
  infamous Cousin Dupress, and while it 
  has been the subject of multiple hobgoblin 
  raids, none of them have been successful, 
  and the Hill of the Boot bears the bones of 
  those who fell.
     The Fortress of the Eye is the most 
  fiendish and efficient fortification in all 
  of Kesh, but the half-cyclops are hard 
  pressed just to maintain the core fortifications. The slave 
  pens, now abandoned, are extensive and still figure in 
  many a Steelidun cow-boy ballad. 
     Valshol is the central meeting point for the hob-
  goblins, and the center of their slave trade. The city is 
  divided into walled sections by bands, and raids and 
  conflicts between them are endemic and reflect their 
  shifting alliances. The wailing cries of drummers and the 
  pounding of feet for the war-dance are enough to chill 
  hearts unto the north and south borders.
  Intrigues
  • 
  Brave young people of the Steelidun often prove 
  themselves by rescuing slaves from the hobgoblins, 
  and they are always happy to have aid on these mis-
  sions. Freeing slaves is somewhat frowned upon by 
  their elders, so the rebellion is twice as daring and 
  exciting!
  • 
  The hobgoblin matriarchy is always in 
  need of new information on its rivals, both 
  in Upper Kesh and beyond, and pays well in 
  horseflesh, slaves or magic. The Sisterhood 
  of the Black Glass has its witch-women in 
  many villages of the north, concealed as 
  love-potion brewers and hex-women, and 
  they will aid the network of scouts and 
  spies.
  • 
  The gunslinger known only as 
  the Tall Man has let it made known that 
  he is coming for one of the PCs- a chal-
  lenge and a mark that the unfortunate 
  target will have to deal with sooner 
  rather than later. 
  • The semi-centauroid Polkan people have 
  migrated south to parts of  Kesh, following 
  tales of their larger cousins, the centaurs, 
  and their  own prophet/stado leader Mak-
  luhan. Unfortunately they have caused
   friction with all they encounter.  Perhaps 
  Makluhan is the problem, a problem that 
  could be solved...
  
  — 64 — 
  Holdfast of the Celestial Parishes
  “A land suited for reflection, meditation, training, sheep 
  herding, and very little else.” - Ang McRohan, Captain of 
  the Parish Honor Guard
  History
  During the long days of the NewGod Wars, the land 
  was called Tir na Dafaid, elvish for ‘land of sheep’. It 
  was green, but not lush. The soil was rocky and unfit for 
  growing anything but grass. There were a few herdsmen 
  and gnomish villages that called these hills and woods 
  home, but as far as most knew the land was unclaimed 
  and untamed. After the fall of the Elemental Lords, the 
  gods looked to reward those who served them faithfully. 
  Of greatest concern were the armies of celestial scions 
  that came to Porphyra to fight for faith and honor, the 
  aasimar. These heroic immigrants needed a land of their 
  own to call home, and so Tir na Dafaid became the 
  Holdfast of the Celestial Parishes. Sadly, no one asked 
  the original owners their opinion on the matter.
     It began innocently enough. As the aasimar and their 
  allies, which included the avoodim, the kval, and scat-
  tered heroic dragonbloods took possession of the land, 
  odd things began to happen. Small household items 
  vanished; clothes left to dry on the line were dyed odd 
  colors; doors were unpinned- and other pranks became 
  commonplace. Things took a serious turn when live-
  stock were poisoned and wells ran dry. The night Jenna 
  Capital: Lios
  Settlements: Braigheach (4,300), Camershron 
  (3,210), Heavenhome (3,845), Lios (8,ooo)
  Rulers:  Judge Khan Mersenden (dragonblood), 
  Judge Merida Lowen (human), Judge Ceaniel 
  (avoodim), Judge Xang Sidheag (aasimar), Judge 
  Bran Feihung (human) 
  Government: Theocratic Judicial Council
  Races: Aasimar, Avoodim, Changeling, Drag-
  onblood, Eventual, Gathlain, Gnome, Human, 
  Kitsune, Kval, Urisk
  Faiths: Aleria, Gerana, Neria, Paletius, Veiloaria
  Resources: Agriculture, education, iron, peat, 
  spirits, wood
  Languages: Common, Celestial, Draconic, Sylvan
  Border Conditions: None
  Sidheag, the firstborn of the Sidheags born in the hold-
  fast and of the celestial bloodline of Paletius was taken 
  and a changeling left in her place, the newcomers had 
  enough. A small militia rode out of Lios, little more than 
  a farming town then, and divas, archons, and seraphim 
  rode with them. The subsequent battle would be known 
  as the Three Day War, or the Battle of  MacAndrol’s 
  Bridge.
     As the militia crossed the ancient bridge, they caught 
  sight of the Wild Hunt, the fey equivalent of Saren’s 
  annual gathering. Hosts of dryads, forlarren, gremlins, 
  korred and spriggans marched to the tune of satyrs; alien 
  creatures from the more humanoid gathlain, kitsune and 
  urisks the settlers were used to. The valley echoed with 
  with war chants and battle hymns as the forces charged 
  at one another. They clashed, and neither side gave an 
  inch. The armies were stalemated two nights and three 
  days. Blood soaked the battlefield, but neither side weak-
  ened or gave way. As the sun went down on the third 
  day, the unlikely god Saren wept to see kindred fighting 
  the faithful, and asked Gerana to arbitrate an end to 
  the conflict. The negotiations almost ended before they 
  began—Paletius arrived with a host and demanded the 
  return of Jenna Sidheag unharmed and unchanged. 
     Cooler heads prevailed, and, knowing that Gerana was 
  a just and fair goddess, both sides agreed. The result of 
  the negotiation was the return of the child, the creation 
  of the Judges Council that would  interpret law and ar-
  bitrate disagreements, and the demarcation of boundary 
  lines between fey lands and mortal holds. 
  Current Events 
  Over the centuries, portions of the Parishes have become 
  more settled, even urban, but most of the land is still 
  rolling hills, rocky crags, green valleys, and free flow-
  ing rivers. A majority of the population is concentrated 
  in the four major cities, with the rest living in small 
  farming villages or monasteries. The villages are quaint, 
  with hoofed urisks toting bales for farmers, and a cairn 
  stone in every field. The monasteries of the Parishes have 
  become quite famous for their charity, martial teachings, 
  advancements in education, and for creating some of 
  the finest beers and spirits to be had in all Porphyra. The 
  Highway of Heroes leads through the Ghadabi wastes to 
  the Middle Kingdom, should the call to war come again, 
  but those in power there would rather not deal with the 
  strange mix of heaven and Fey that has evolved in The 
  
  — 65 — 
  Parishes. Subsequently, relations with the elves of the 
  forests to the north grow more cordial, a strong defense 
  against the Jotuns and the Pardeshi.
  Settlements
  The major settlements of the Holdfast are: 
     Braigheach began as a monastery dedicated to Neria, 
  on the rocky shores of the Loch Braig. Soon a camp of 
  those  seeking enlightenment sprang up around the walls 
  of the cloister, eventually evolving into a town which 
  lived off the freshwater lake’s bounty. To serve the com-
  munity, the monastery began a school for the village 
  young, which today is now known as Braigeach Univer-
  sity. Known for its engineering, surgical, thaumaturgical 
  and clerical colleges, the university attracts some of the 
  finest minds on Porphyra.
     Camershron’s name comes from the southern elvish 
  dialect meaning two places, one soul. Camershron is said 
  to have been founded twice. The original settlement was 
  on the eastern bank of the river Lowen. It was a town of 
  fishermen and shepherds until Xia Jon Feihung, 
  the master of the local Flower and Compass 
  retired and opened a school to teach Open 
  Palm martial arts to the laity. Hundreds 
  flocked to the town to learn from the 
  master. Soon, the town was burst-
  ing at the seams, and due to fey 
  boundary lines they had to spread 
  to the other side of the river. The 
  western half of Camershron was 
  founded eighty years after that 
  of the east. Over five hundred 
  years later, Camershron boasts 
  over seventy martial arts 
  schools, all based on Master 
  Jon Feihung’s Open Palm 
  Style.
     Lios is capital of the Celes-
  tial Parishes, Lios is the seat of 
  law. It is a holy city dedicated 
  to Gerana and Paletius. The 
  monks and priests that call Lios 
  home serve the dual purpose of 
  mediator between worshiper 
  and god, and counsel for 
  aggrieved parties. Known 
  for its architecture and 
  polished granite walls, Lios is one of the most beautiful 
  cities of the world.
     Heavenhome was founded as a monastery and nun-
  nery of Aleria at the foot of Mt. Beatha, next to the Fion 
  Falls. The grounds were very fertile, and the nuns started 
  a small vineyard, and began making wine to support the 
  parish. Not to be outdone, the brothers found wild hops 
  nearby, and brewed beer and distilled whiskey. Tales of 
  the quality of the libations spread near and far, and now 
  Heavenhome is just that for wealthy tourists and pil-
  grims alike, to enjoy fine food, drink, and hospitality.
  Intrigues
  • 
  A few months ago a circle of cairn stones appeared 
  near the village of Erin. The local gnomish magis-
  trate was confronted by a gathlain prince claiming 
  that the site was fey land and the village would have 
  to be moved. Maps from the Days of Drawing are 
  inconclusive. Tensions are mounting between villag-
  ers and fey, and a call for a neutral party to look into 
  the matter has gone out.
  • 
  The School of the Falling Snow, a popu-
  lar martial school for both xia and laity alike, 
  has burned to the ground outside of Camer-
  shron. It is believed to be the work of Bahn 
  Ceann, a disgraced xia turned Agent of the 
  Dark Patron, and his followers. They are 
  said to have a school and monastery 
  deep in the hills beyond Camershron, 
  protected by dark fey and Agents of 
  Eshsalqua.
  • 
  Brewmaster Stephens has gone 
  missing, and a crudely written 
  ransom note has been tacked to 
  the monastery door; ten thou-
  sand gold pieces. The clerics of 
  Aleria are mostly pacifists, and 
  while the angry citizens mean 
  well, they will more than likely 
  get themselves and Brother 
  Stephens killed. They have 
  asked for skilled adventur-
  ers to rescue the portly monk 
  from his captors, who or what-
  ever they may be.
  
  — 66 — 
  Iffud
  “Better to lose with panache than win without flair...” 
  -Emperor Argan III, last words after a duel
  Capital: Berton
  Settlements: Berton (20,000), Bezir (900), Car-
  neton (8,000)
  Ruler: Emperor Argan IX 
  Government: Imperial monarchy/meritocracy
  Races: Elan, Eventual, Half-Orc, Human, Orc
  Faiths: Nemyth Vaar, Toma Thule, Tulis
  Resources: Agriculture, education, firearms, sea-
  food
  Languages: Common, Orc
  Border Conditions: Restricted (enclosed by an 
  irregular porphyrite border)
  History
  The ancient history of Iffud is one of warfare—not of 
  her own people waging war or defending themselves, but 
  of unrelated armies of a warlike world marching back 
  and forth across the damp plains that make up the ma-
  jority of the nation. With a population constantly cowed 
  by the rampaging soldiers and mercenaries and a royal 
  family little more than puppets for external interests, If-
  fud had a reputation for being other peoples’ battlefield, 
  the Fudi people of no consequence.
     Perhaps because its people raised many cattle, the 
  totem animal of Tulis, that the Martyred Maiden took 
  an interest in the sheep-like people, martyrs for no cause 
  whatsoever. She took the mild-mannered nation from 
  its world of subjugated complacency and relocated it to 
  Porphrya, forcing its people to fight or be annihilated.
     The NewGod Wars saw to that.
     Iffud was a strategic prize: it was well-located on the 
  north coast, easy to travel across, and its fertile fields 
  and pastures could produce food for many armies. The 
  elementalists saw this immediately, and their armies of 
  genies and giants were well-placed to attack Iffud and, if 
  necessary, scour it clean of life if they could not conquer 
  it for their own purposes. Toma Thule and Nemyth Vaar, 
  in a rare moment of accord, favored interception of the 
  army approaching from the east—but Bleeding Tulis saw 
  another opportunity.
     Her priests infiltrated Iffud on the wings of the wind. 
  They went among the people—the good, honest citi-
  zens who had turned the earth and ploughed up skulls 
  year after year—and spoke of great deeds. They told 
  the people of sacrifice and glory, and then they demon-
  strated it. Thulian crusaders performed awesome feats of 
  heroism. Tulite martyrs died so that hundreds might live. 
  And slowly, the people of Iffud came to believe. One by 
  one, then in a flood, they stood against the elementalists 
  and fought them—with divine power, with devotion, 
  with rocks, and with bare hands.
     Every crackdown in occupied territory produced a 
  more fervent response. Every martyr inspired a dozen 
  new heroes. Like a cresting wave, the Fudi threw off 
  their elementalist oppressors and cast off their useless 
  royal family. The new emperor was chosen by popular 
  acclaim: Argan, the First, was the greatest hero in a gen-
  eration of heroes, his deeds legendary in his own life-
  time. His first decree was that Iffud would no more be a 
  nation of meek farmers: lordships, mayorships, knight-
  hoods, any position of authority would be filled only by 
  those who, judged by Tulite hornbearers and Thulian 
  magistrate-knights, would be fit for the task by the proof 
  of the greatness of their deeds.
  Current Events
  Nearly a thousand years have passed since Argan’s decla-
  ration, but Iffud remains a nation governed by the great. 
  Every authority figure can recite a list of the great things 
  they have done, and conflicts in jurisdiction are handled 
  by comparing the deeds of the contesting parties. Bards 
  are greatly prized for their role in enhancing people’s 
  reputations, and anyone who can make a claim for great-
  ness has at least one as their permanent herald. 
     The Fudi are now known as a nation of showoffs and 
  competitors, seeking greatness in everything they do. 
  “Let’s give people something to talk about” is a tradition-
  al invitation to compete. Duels are common, whether 
  with rapiers, bare fists, or firearms—which are more 
  common here than in many other lands—and even a 
  loser can gain social standing if they do so with panache 
  and flair. Large weapons and heavy armor are frowned 
  upon as ‘dull’ or ‘unsporting’. Even in non-violent 
  pastimes the people of Iffud strive to do things with the 
  most style; local fairs often feature competitive vegetable 
  growing, preserve-making, greased pig-catching, and 
  other contests. It is often up to the underclass of semi-
  civilized ‘swamp orcs’ and their half-orc leaders to get 
  hard labor done without a lot of posturing.
  
  — 67 — 
     The system is not a pure meritocracy: expensive 
  schools for the children of the nobility teach them 
  everything they need to thrive in Iffud’s society: sword-
  play, gunplay, and unarmed combat feature prominently 
  on the curriculum alongside poetry, literature, and wit. 
  Skilled instructors can earn vast sums working for these 
  schools, but must be wary of wandering champions—it 
  is an accepted fact someone’s deeds can be tested at any 
  time, and a caste of outcasts and travelers has formed 
  who make it their purpose to rack up great deeds of 
  betrayal and put others to the test.
     An unexpected consequence of this arrangement is 
  that everyone in a position of power is extremely dan-
  gerous in personal combat. As a result, politics in Iffud 
  is a matter of excessive politeness, ceremony, and iron 
  fists in velvet gloves. No one wants to provoke an angry 
  response from someone who can single-handedly 
  fight thirty men-at-arms to a standstill—so 
  rudeness is a luxury of the lower classes.
  Settlements
  The major settlements of Iffud are:
     Berton is the capital of Iffud, seat 
  of the Emperor since the NewGod 
  Wars, beacon of taste and culture in 
  a land otherwise known for wander-
  ing vagabonds and root vegetables. 
  The walled inner city is a display of 
  ostentatious wealth, well-guarded, ev-
  ery inch owned by one of Iffud’s noble 
  families. In the myriad chambers of the 
  Imperial Palace politics is carried out with a 
  peculiar combination of delicate maneuver-
  ing and savage attack. The outer city is a 
  more freewheeling place, where wealthy 
  merchants and lesser nobility live closer 
  to the wall, with land values falling as 
  you get further out.
     Bezir is the stronghold of the elans. 
  Humans driven to seek perfection (or 
  simple superiority) over their brethren 
  come here seeking transformation into 
  something more—only those who show 
  mental and physical superiority are ac-
  cepted into the elan’s elite order. Bezir can 
  sell goods and has classed characters of a 
  city ten times its size.
     Carneton, also known as the City of Conflict, is domi-
  nated by the eternal competition between two schools 
  for the children of nobility: Drake’s Academy and the 
  Archon Scholarium. Students of the schools, known as 
  Dragons and Angels, play out the long-standing rivalry 
  back and forth across the city in every arena: drinking 
  contests in the taverns, games of skill in the parks, duels 
  in the streets. Countless smaller schools take the students 
  who don’t make the cut for the big two, creating an 
  intricate web of alliances, enmities, and lineages of both 
  blood and tuition.
  Intrigues
  • 
  Argan IX grows old, and soon the time of Imperial 
  Selection will begin: rumor has it that the pitiable 
  swamp orcs have been taking lessons from the Fudi, 
  and have bred and trained an awesome specimen 
  for the challenge, and seek ultimately to gut the 
  elitist system of Iffud to their advantage.
  • 
  The constabulary in Carneton is hiring at 
  double pay since an unfortunate ‘prank’ by the 
  Dragons has made half their force comatose. 
  It might not be worth it, as Arena Day is 
  coming up, and the competition is fiercer 
  outside than in…
  • 
  The gangs of Rackers, outcast 
  failures of the system of challenge, 
  have always been patronized by 
  Nemyth Vaar, but now actual clerics 
  have sprung up among their ranks, and 
  they have established bases, and orga-
  nized, after a fashion. Is there a darker 
  motive behind this unprecedented coher-
  ence?
  • 
  The Puritan Redemptors of the 
  Way of the Gun have a rogue in their-
  midst.  These noble “troubleshooters” 
  are skilled in magic and black powder, and 
  a skilled, renegade member of their number 
  is gunning for upstart adventurers, leaving 
  villagers to quake in fear.  Are you afraid of 
  slung lead, pilgrim?
  
  — 68 — 
  
  — 69 — 
  
  — 70 — 
  Jengu-Na
  “Dem Sauries think slow. Real slow. If y’aren’t about a year 
  ahead o’ the game, yer gonna make ‘em mad. An’ they ain’t 
  slow when a-mad…” – Korrit Sligo, Freeporter smuggler
  History
  The people of Jengu-Na like to say that their culture was 
  old when the world was young—and perhaps it was. It 
  is certain that the Empire of the Saurians once was more 
  extensive than it is now, but when the NewGod Wars 
  erupted, they withdrew from (or simply lost) their lands 
  outside the core of the Empire. The Walled Zone is all 
  that remains of their foreign possessions, though the 
  islands of the Dry Peninsula are usually considered to 
  be theirs by tradition. The Empire sealed its borders and 
  waited for the War to blow over… and waited. 
     By the time the world settled down into its current 
  pattern, the court of Jengu-Na had become comfort-
  able with their defenses and happy to ignore the outside 
  world. A network of fortresses, strong points, walls, wa-
  ter defenses in the Bay of Jewels, watchtowers and magi-
  cal wards guard the Empire from outside dangers. Natu-
  rally, these defenses have spawned their own garrisons 
  and bureaucracy which has every interest in portraying 
  the outside world as dangerous, full of barbarians, and 
  thoroughly unpleasant. A couple of ill-fated invasions, 
  one of Freeporter pirates and another of imperialist 
  Iskandari, has lent enough reality to the assumption to 
  make it widely held. 
     It was not until the reign of Emperor Roshal “Far 
  Sighted” that permission was at last granted to a group 
  of foreign merchants to trade, but they would only be 
  Capital: Estuary Palace
  Settlements: City on the Large Hill (29,000), Es-
  tuary Palace (54,000), Long Cape Port (21,500), 
  Thousand Generations Temple (18,500)
  Ruler: Empress Korasrah “Emerald Scaled”
  Government: Imperial Bureaucracy
  Races: Saurian
  Faiths: Cults (lawful), Philosophy, S’Sluun
  Resources: Art, rice, silk, spices, tea
  Languages: Draconic
  Border Conditions: Limited (irregular porphyrite 
  border with the Hinterlands of Kesh)
  allowed access to the Empire and its trade at Long Cape 
  Port and nowhere else. Emperors and Empresses come 
  and go, but the general progress of things is an ever-
  widening trickle of ideas mixing from one culture to 
  the outer world. Relations with the peoples of the Lotus 
  Blossom Steppes to the north are still rather strained, 
  due to the presence of the Walled Zone and carefully 
  orchestrated provocations by factions at court, all for the 
  support of isolationism. The fact that the two mutually 
  alien cultures have so much in common is due to prox-
  imity and curiosity, on the part of both nations.
  Current Events
  The Empire seems monolithic, but even the current 
  small exposure to foreign ideas has begun to disrupt the 
  status quo. Memories of the ancient Empire astride the 
  globe have inspired the most ambitious of the lords of 
  Jengu-Na to agitate for an expansionist policy toward 
  the outside world, and to recruit for their private armies. 
  They are pitted against the Court and the defense bu-
  reaucracy who wish things to remain as they are. The 
  philosophic orders, many of whom mix magic or martial 
  training with their philosophy, are divided over what 
  to do. All of the orders wish to learn from the outsid-
  ers, but only on their own terms and at their own rate 
  (which ranges from slow to glacial). A few cults of Esh-
  salqua, Toma Thule, and Paletius have sprouted up here 
  and there, to the chagrin of the highly traditional leaders 
  of the race. Nevertheless, some of the younger members 
  of the orders have slipped beyond the borders to learn 
  from the barbarians as they return, and as knowledge 
  from the outside world is imported, old certainties 
  are re-examined. Some examples of orders include the 
  Vortexians (wizards), Callers (summoners), Perfectionists 
  (monks), Weavers (bards), Aligners (elemental sorcerers) 
  and the Void-bound (witches). There are at least a dozen 
  lesser orders, and their shifting alliances create a subset 
  of politics in Jengu-Na that many civilians know nothing 
  about.
     The Empress Korasrah “Emerald Scaled” has only 
  recently ascended the throne and is still absorbing the 
  situation with outsiders. She has yet to decide what 
  to do, but she is likely to listen to the opinions of the 
  philosophical orders… if they ever come to a consen-
  sus. Much to the concern of all the factions, she has 
  expressed a willingness to meet with ambassadors of the 
  outlander nations to personally learn about them and 
  
  — 71 — 
  their lands. It is only a matter of time before Jengu-Na 
  becomes embroiled in politics as patchwork as the sur-
  face of the planet Porphyra itself.
  Settlements
  The major settlements of Jengu-Na are:
     City on the Large Hill is where the Imperial family 
  lives when not in the capital, and is noted as an impres-
  sive center of the arts, culture, and culinary expression. 
  Most of the Imperial staff is recruited here, and it is a 
  center of Imperial loyalists. Extremely conservative, it is 
  said that no non-saurian has ever set foot in the Palace of 
  Beautiful Scales.
     Estuary Palace is the capital of the Empire and a 
  shining beacon of Jengu-Na industry and service. Gov-
  ernment departments checkerboard the city with craft 
  plazas and centers of entertainment, while a strong 
  Imperial garrison cooperates with the civil magistrates to 
  keep peace. It is the heart of the Empire, where every-
  thing gets done, once the paperwork has been completed 
  properly.
     Long Cape Port is the one place in the Empire where 
  outsiders are allowed without special permission. Even 
  here they are confined to their own quarter and carefully 
  watched. Outlanders can acquire licenses to allow access 
  to the city—but not beyond—and they must be back 
  inside their own quarter by midnight.
     Thousand Generations Temple, considered one of 
  the newer cities in the Empire, having been around for 
  a mere five hundred years, is a place where the various 
  philosophical orders come to debate and dispute, with 
  the occasional brawl between such not being unknown. 
  It has also become a haven for smuggling outsider goods 
  in to the Empire, for the orders have an endless fascina-
  tion with such.
  Intrigues
  • 
  The Empress is more curious about the outside 
  world than she wishes to be known by her court, 
  government, and race. To this end she has employed 
  a clawful of her most loyal agents to gather first-hand 
  information for her, and they in turn have built a 
  network of foreigners to bring in rumors, goods, 
  books, and more.
  • 
  ‘Someone’ has come into possession of an ancient 
  Saurian artifact from the Empire’s heyday, when it 
  reached far past its current borders. That it is very 
  powerful is obvious, just as it is equally obvious that 
  it needs something—knowledge, sacred water, some-
  thing unique—from the Empire to make it work.
  • 
  Anyone who has been to Smuggler’s Rest knows 
  there is vast profit to be made by those willing to 
  break Imperial law and bring in items desired by the 
  Jengu-Na: religious works, histories, arms and armor, 
  exotic meats and medicines. In exchange they will be 
  paid in wonders of Jengu-Na. The deal is probably 
  the easiest part, getting in and out may prove more 
  difficult.
   
  
  — 72 — 
  Jheriak Continuance 
  “If you are stronger, take...if you are weaker, weep.” - Jhe-
  riak nursery rhyme
  History
  Jheriak Vul Wulfe witnessed the strength a mercenary 
  band can wield when, as a boy of thirteen he saw a 
  platoon of Talorian sell-swords lay waste to the Skandar-
  ian dragoons that his father commanded at a battle near 
  a nameless town on a forgotten world. For ten days the 
  dragoons hammered into the mercenary line, and for ten 
  days they were repelled. On the eleventh, the Talorians 
  counter-charged and broke the dragoons. In a matter of 
  minutes the Skandari were routed. Jheriak found him-
  self fleeing for his life as the mercenaries rode down the 
  scattered dragoons. The Talorians caught him and threw 
  him in a pit with their fighting dogs, and told him if he 
  wanted to live, then he would have to earn his life. Jhe-
  riak was twenty two when he killed the Talorian captain 
  and took the company for his own. He was twenty seven 
  when he killed his own father on the battlefield. For 
  fifteen summers he led the mercenaries through chal-
  lenging campaigns, each year growing richer and larger 
  than before.
     Finally, Jheriak grew weary of the continuous warfare. 
  The company had used the same winter camp for almost 
  a decade, and with each year it seemed to grow. Perma-
  nent structures were appearing, and by the fifth year of 
  the camps, small root gardens were becoming rugged 
  farms. Jheriak sent runners to the nearest cities and pro-
  Capital: Dunnal Moor
  Settlements: Dunnal Moor (12,000), Irul (3,000), 
  Port Khalen (5,000), Suland (2,500), Val Toresh 
  (8,000)
  Ruler: His Continuance Macza Vul Wolfe
  Government: Monarchy
  Races: Half-Giant, Half-Ogre, Half-Orc, Hob-
  goblin, Human, Ogrillon, Orc
  Faiths: Ferrakus, Fenris Kul, Myketa
  Resources: Armor, bloodsport, mercenaries, sea-
  food, weapons
  Languages: Battle-sign, Common, Giant, Orc
  Border Conditions: Restricted (porphyrite border 
  surrounds the Continuance)
  claimed the land surrounding the camp, to the sea itself, 
  a sovereign kingdom. If they wanted it back, they could 
  take it by force. This led to the three-year War of Iron. 
  In the end, the mercenaries had carved out their own 
  state, three times larger than their original claim. Jheriak 
  then wrote the Laws of the Talon, upon which his new 
  society was built. He lived until his eighty-third year, 
  and fathered five sons; their line still rules the Continu-
  ance today.
     The evolution of Jheriak and his Continuance in-
  trigued the Betrayer God Fenris Kul, so when He attend-
  ed The Calling, his cold eye fell on the Continuance. 
  Though barely acknowledged in that land, it appealed 
  to Him in many ways—especially that it shared a world 
  with precious Yolana’s vassal state of Iskandar. This suited 
  that bitter god, and the two nations hate one another—
  even though they are situated half a world away from 
  one another—made it all the more satisfying. Religion 
  is usually seen as a weakness to the Jheriaks, and depen-
  dence on non-warriors especially galling. Should Jheriak 
  adopt a state religion at some point, their neighbors, and 
  the world itself, should fear. Most nations that deal with 
  the Continuance try to focus their martial attentions on 
  the nearby Oncoming Wave of Mâl, a fitting target for 
  their warlike culture.
  Current Events
  Since Jheriak’s death, the Continuance has evolved 
  significantly along the lines of the Laws of the Talon. 
  Dunnal Moor has become the capital of the kingdom, 
  where Macza Vul Wolfe, direct descendant of Jheriak, 
  wears the Iron Crown. Politics do not exist beyond that 
  which can be settled at the end of a sword or axe. The 
  Iron Crown rules by might according to the Laws of the 
  Talon, and any who prove strong enough to take the 
  crown may challenge, and all challenges must be met, 
  with one outcome permitted. Alliances and promises 
  abound within the court, however, so the bloodletting is 
  kept to a minimum, and business moves ahead. In this 
  brutal society, all children are taken to schools called 
  Pits, where they prove their strength and right to live or 
  die. Each major clan, descended from Jheriak’s merce-
  nary band, has one or more cities that fly their banner, 
  and each of these clans has a number of houses sworn to 
  them either by blood or oath.
     Marriage in the Continuance has little to do with 
  emotion and more with breeding. A woman or man 
  
  — 73 — 
  may take a mate, provided they can. Interestingly, once a 
  bond has been formed, it is sacred, and none may violate 
  it. It is also worth noting that in the past few decades 
  many of the stronger clans have begun carefully choosing 
  mating pairs to ensure the strength of their bloodlines. 
     Many come to the Continuance to train, trade for 
  arms, or to purchase the services of the mercenary 
  houses. Additionally, gladiatorial blood sport has become 
  an increasingly popular draw, with many cities having 
  grand arenas—the latest craze is captured mâlites in the 
  arena menageries. Needless to say, there is no mâlite 
  embassy in the Moor. Slaves are an important import in 
  the Continuance, though a slave may simply demand to 
  fight his owner or his proxies to gain his freedom, so is 
  written in the Laws of the Talon.
  Settlements
  The major settlements of the Continuance are: 
     Dunnal Moor is the largest city and capital 
  of the Continuance. There lives the Iron 
  Crown, who presides daily in the 
  gladiatorial arena. Here, each 
  year, the Harvest of Blood and 
  Bone is held on the summer 
  solstice, during which the 
  lowest ranking members of 
  society gather and fight in 
  a brutal seven day spec-
  tacle of violence and gore. 
  Those alive at the end are 
  chosen by the ruling Clans 
  to join their houses as 
  blood bound.
     Port Khalen is on the 
  Sea of Karkoon, it pleas-
  es the Jheriaks that most 
  visitors to their kingdom 
  have to cross through 
  some of the most danger-
  ous waters on Porphyra. 
  A few Khilite ‘purple-
  ships’ allow passage for 
  foreigners and Jheriak 
  ships, though it is 
  better not to press the 
  issue in Khalen.
     Suland and Irul are 
  called ‘the dunashes’, these towns are not clan affiliated, 
  and cater to foreigners and non-humans. Their martial 
  yards are smaller than the larger cities’, but no less fo-
  cused on military prowess. 
     Most challengers to the throne come from modern Val 
  Toresh, where guile is often as useful as brawn. The To-
  reshi are known for innovation in warfare, which some 
  of the more orthodox Jheriaks see as a kind of heresy.
  Intrigues
  • 
  A Continuance mercenary has invoked the Law of 
  Mating, and claimed a party member as a mate. 
  • 
  The Skandari are hiring adventurers to conduct 
  raids- in pursuit of their age-old blood feud- even 
  from across the world. Could the native Jheriaks 
  truly be worthy of being called the most feared war-
  riors in the world?
  • 
  Slaves in the Continuance are in short supply- the 
  party has been captured, put in chains, and is 
  on its way to the Pits.
  • 
  The mixed races of 
  Azag-Ithiel have reports 
  that fire giant rebels in 
  the volcanoes of the 
  western Continuance 
  are intimidating the 
  underclass into prepar-
  ing an invasion. As the 
  small kingdom has few 
  resources to investigate, 
  perhaps a small strike 
  team could get to the 
  bottom of these terrors’ 
  motivation.
  
  — 74 — 
  Jotun Forest
  “Big tree guys eat plants, yeah. But dey still hit plenty hard. 
  Mebbe orcs try plants sometime…” –Derpen Bloodmoon, 
  Kurgan’s Fool
  Capital: Ironbough
  Settlements: Ashfield (500), Bloodmoon (650+), 
  Ironbough (1,200), Lathe (450), Razorback Ridge 
  (300+), Sequoia (400+), Woodcutter’s Axe (250, 
  seasonal)
  Ruler: Dacisandero, Chief of Chiefs of the Wood 
  Giants
  Government: Tribal confederation
  Races: Anumus, Elf, Half-Orc, Oakling, Orc
  Faiths: Drothos, Druidism, Enor Ashlord, Ice Ty-
  rant, Lord Grunzol Firestorm, Poison Wave, Saren
  Resources: Furs, herbs, lumber
  Languages: Elven, Giant, Orc, Treant
  Border Conditions: None
  History
  The Jotun Forest is an ancient forest of Old Porphyra 
  that lies between the frosty waves of the Western Cold 
  Sea and the wind-stripped plains of Parl Pordesh—cool 
  and mountainous and lorded over by the Jotund trolls, 
  for whom the forest was named. Predatory, cruel, and 
  constantly hungry, the trolls treated all other races in 
  the forest as prey. With the world-changing effect of The 
  Calling, the lands and weather altered, and the forest 
  grew warmer. The orcs, elves, and wood giants adopted 
  the worship of Saren and, aided by the Untamed God, 
  overthrew the Jotund, exterminating those that were not 
  driven out at the battle of Ashfield, where they burned 
  that part of the forest to the ground. The wood giants 
  are the nominal power of the region, but they are mostly 
  content to live in isolation. Most other racial groups live 
  as scattered tribes in the region, with an informal truce 
  to leave each other’s’ hunting grounds alone. Covens 
  of druids are allowed to worship nature in the woods, 
  and the residents make a living as hunters, trappers, 
  and woodsmen. Each summer, woodcutters are allowed 
  to cut selected and marked areas of forest, controlling 
  growth to prevent the sort of excessive buildup that can 
  lead to uncontrollable forest fires.
  Current Events
  The apparent façade of stability in the Jotun Forest is 
  beginning to crack. The arrival of oaklings, unhappy 
  in the Great Green, has upset the balance of power in 
  the woods, stripping old growth to replace it with their 
  own. Moss trolls stalk the canopy, feasting on the weaker 
  races, and marsh giants infiltrate the forest’s wetlands, 
  ambushing woodsmen and fellow giants alike. The 
  waters of Troll Bay are increasingly crossed by scrags or 
  other troll-kin, in violent punitive raids, seemingly heed-
  less of the troll-kin’s survival—possibly at the behest of 
  the elemental lords like Poison Wave.
     The Bloodmoon orcs and Bleeding Moon wereboars, 
  once close allies, have turned on each other, each accus-
  ing the other of treachery, and have begun to raid each 
  other’s territory with increasing frequency. The wood 
  giants lack the numbers and interest in restoring order, 
  and the whole region threatens to tumble into chaos. 
  Adding fuel to the fire, lone woodcutters, or even small 
  parties of foresters are being ambushed and brutally 
  murdered by unknown assailants, leading to cries for 
  retribution against the region’s humanoids.
  Settlements
  The major settlements of the Jotun Forest are:
     Ashfield is settled on the site of the extermination of 
  the Jotund trolls, where the ancient forest was burned 
  for their pyres. Ashfield remains the only permanent 
  large clearing in the Jotund Forest. As such, it is now the 
  home of refugees from other areas, a home to smugglers 
  and outlanders, rather than local tribes. Located along 
  one of the only roads in the forest, Ashfield is likely con-
  sidered to be the main settlement by outsiders.
     Bloodmoon is less of a settlement than a permanent 
  warcamp, where the barbaric Bloodmoon Orcs gravitate, 
  the central location in their territories. It is little more 
  than a tent city surrounded by various crude fortifica-
  tions, and is usually only half-occupied, as various clans 
  leave to hunt or raid or ravage. The chieftain, Kurgan 
  Bloodmoon, and his harem have the only permanent 
  structure in the encampment, an ironwood cabin no-
  table for the skulls of boars and wereboars decorating it, 
  as well as the acid-bleached skull of a troll mounted over 
  the door.
     Ironbough is the seat of the wood giant’s tribal lands, 
  in a dense grove of ironwood. While usually scattered, 
  each season and in times of emergency, the entire race 
  
  — 75 — 
  gathers in Ironbough, and several hundred live there 
  permanently. It isn’t a real city or town, but rather a col-
  lection of clan villages with a series of longhouses around 
  a massive central fire-pit altar. The Chief of Chiefs, 
  Dacisandero, resides here and both listens to and receives 
  council from the individual clan leaders. If the tribe de-
  cides to go to war, the Chief of Chiefs is their sole leader; 
  otherwise he is merely an arbitrator among the clans.
     Lathe, on the Trollwater river, uses a natural waterfall 
  to power a huge, gnome-designed sawmill. Lathe is a 
  vital component to the lumber industry in the Jotun 
  Forest. Here, logs are brought and cut into beams, 
  boards, and other components. Merchants pay off the 
  loggers here, and the Trollwater gives access to the sea 
  and foreign markets.
     Razorback Ridge is on the height of land in the Jotun 
  Forest, home to the Bleeding Moon wereboars. Most of 
  the time, they live off the land and 
  keep to themselves. During their 
  full moon transformations, how-
  ever, they are prone to vio-
  lence, and are known to raid 
  other parts of the forest. 
  As such, their settlement 
  is heavily defended, 
  from its hill-top vantage.
     Sequoia is the primary 
  elven settlement, notable 
  for being built high in the 
  canopy of the tallest trees 
  in the Jotun Forest. 
  They live in harmony 
  with nature, and wor-
  ship Saren and their 
  own ancestral spirits. 
  As they live in the 
  forest canopy, much 
  of their food must be 
  cultivated elsewhere, 
  which makes them 
  somewhat vulnerable.
  Intrigues
  • 
  After the last 
  full moon, the 
  area of cultivated 
  land used by the 
  Sequoia elves for cultivation has been decimated, 
  the torn earth covered with hoofed tracks, and dung 
  fouling the water. The Bleeding Moon wereboars 
  claim innocence in the spiteful attack. The elves do 
  not believe them, and they are ready to go to war 
  against the wereboars if it happens again. Elves and 
  orcs of Porphyra have not drawn arms against each 
  other since before The Calling.
  • 
  The wood giants have never denied their elemental-
  istic origins, as they rejected control of the human 
  wizards almost from their inception. Stories from 
  visitors to Ironbough tell of increasingly ‘elemen-
  tal’ worship being carried out by the usually mild-
  tempered wood giants. Is there something they’re not 
  telling the rest of the world?
  • 
  Recently a clan of sasquatch have been sighted in the 
  Jotun Forest. While most races consider the large, 
  hairy creatures to be a myth, the druids 
  have made contact with the mysterious 
  beings. Rumors at Lathe and Ashfield 
  say that the sasquatch have either 
  warned the druids of an impending 
  doom, or that they are planning to 
  attack the camps of the woodcut-
  ters and wipe them out.
  • 
  The seasonal logging 
  village of Woodcutter’s Axe 
  is filled with rumors about 
  a series of woodcutters who 
  have gone missing. Their 
  bodies haven’t been 
  found, and the only 
  eyewitness is an old 
  werewolf. According 
  to him, one of the vic-
  tims was talking with 
  a young girl wearing 
  a red cape, telling the 
  woodsman that she 
  had lost her way and 
  was looking for her 
  grandmother.
  
  — 76 — 
  Kingdom of Avandrool
  “Has the Last Dancer cast us away, that we should have so 
  carefully planned for legions of the lovely Dancing Dead, 
  to end up with... this?” - Fela-Teli, Bishop of the Black 
  Church
  History
  The Kingdom of Avandrool was once a colonial part of 
  the nameless empire that once held Tuthon, Dunmark, 
  and northern Iskandar. Known as a lush, forested region 
  and a bustling trade empire, everything changed when 
  a deadly plague befell the Drooli people, a century after 
  The Calling. Not even the king, Romdhas-Urlg survived 
  the pestilence, thought to have been brought on by el-
  ementalists for the crime of neutrality. Fearing the spread 
  of this plague, the neighboring realms worked together, 
  erecting a massive wall of yellow stone to seal off Avan-
  drool. Although several large copper gates were built into 
  the wall to allow entry, few have ever dared to attempt 
  access. Even with the passing of centuries, rumors still 
  abound of the strange death that kills quickly and makes 
  the skin burst with black nodules.
     Avandrool is not an abandoned kingdom, despite its 
  appearance. The walls which mark its borders are old 
  and cracked, their yellow surface invaded by sickly green 
  moss. The copper gates are also green, with corrosion. 
  The forest, once rich with giant timbers, is now a swamp 
  land, drowned by dark water that bubbles and oozes, 
  the smell of decay billowing from the mire. When the 
  Capital: Raavesh
  Settlements: Avan (1,500), Capital metropolitan 
  area (750,000), Drowned Cities (250,00), Kivesh 
  (17,500), North Gate (3,000), Ramadar (12,000)
  Ruler: King Ehren Romdhas-Poag
  Government: Theocratic monarchy
  Races: Gillmen, Grippli, Half-Orc, Human, Orc
  Faiths: Rajuk Amon-Gore, Rolterra
  Resources: Coral, copper, obsidian, seafood
  Languages: Aboleth, Old Porphyran, Grippli
  Border Conditions: Walled (the border of Avan-
  drool is secured with a yellow wall 20 feet high, 10 
  feet thick. There are at least four copper gates that 
  allow entry).
  pestilence first broke out in Avandrool, a fearful people 
  blamed witchcraft, a common enough belief in the 
  land. While King Romdhas-Urlg cowered in his holiday 
  palace, the secular people relented and allowed inquisi-
  tors of the Black Church, those of the Black Hood of 
  Rajuk Amon-Gore to enter and become established. 
  They performed a holy war upon those who worshiped 
  patrons and vague occultism, and stemmed the tide of 
  death somewhat.
     The literal disintegration of the land, however, could 
  not be stemmed, as the land changed, cities half-sank, 
  and mutations of beast and bird made the realm a 
  nightmare. Stilt-villages become prevalent as many fled 
  the cities and the unnerving rituals of the Doom Priests. 
  The western province, thinly populated by copper min-
  ers, was abandoned to the orcs who called the area their 
  homeland, and is still held by the Azagor Tribe of orcs. 
  Much of the eastern countryside was left to the grippli, 
  who were immune to the plague; their tree-cities house 
  thousands of the frog-men, who hunt giant insects and 
  mostly avoid human contact. 
     Within a century of the Mordant Vicars’ arrival, the 
  plague itself began to change; less widespread, but more 
  debilitating. The Black Church itself altered the plague 
  using ancient sahuagin rituals used to exterminate the 
  sea elves, the Blackwater plague. Their intent was to kill 
  vast numbers of the population and have corpses prime 
  for creating plague zombies to spread the curse of un-
  death across Poprhyra. Instead, the deceased reacted dif-
  ferently than those of the extinct elves, forming a black, 
  shiny cocoon. After several days, the cocoon would crack 
  open and release several dog-sized, tadpole-like creatures 
  that would immediately seek water. Within a week’s 
  time, the ‘tadpoles’ would metamorphose into the black-
  skinned, purple-eyed, gilled humanoids known as ‘mirk-
  dwellers’. The creatures congregated in the dark, dank 
  sewers beneath Kivash and Raavesh, and possess base 
  memories of their human existence… their numbers 
  have approached two-thirds of a million. They are widely 
  responsible for the spreading of swamplands throughout 
  eastern Avandrool, as they tirelessly burrow through the 
  Under-Quarters of the Drowned Cities, eventually open-
  ing up a passage to an underground freshwater sea below.
  Current Events
  King Ehren Romdhas-Poag splits his time between 
  Ramadar, indulging in his various addictions, the cur-
  
  — 77 — 
  rent one being Vitae drugs from the Empire of the 
  Dead, smuggled in at great expense. Royal control rarely 
  extends farther than the household Ehren is in, but fam-
  ily has always   controlled the secret of processing hoyati, 
  the life-elixir that keeps trade going in the derelict state.
  The court has also lately taken up safari in the Hanging 
  Fields, a vast mangrove swamp of drooping willows and 
  moss. Chuul or catoblepas are the favored prey, but any 
  bizarre creature will do. It is said that the ferrymen and 
  beaters that Ehren prefers are chatteled undead, or even 
  more blasphemous- undead grippli, the dreaded defidi.  
     The Black Church of Rajuk Amon-Gore is locked 
  in a deadly struggle for control of the Drowned Cities 
  with the mirkdwellers, whose numbers, intelligence, and 
  influence is growing. Previously rather less than sentient, 
  as their excavations expand and their knowledge of their 
  remote god, the aboleth avatar the Endless Eye, as aspect 
  of Rolterra, increases, they are becoming more a force to 
  reckon with. Rumors of Rolterran missionaries infiltrat-
  ing the country are driving the Black Bishops into a 
  frenzy, and inquisitions and purges are reaching as far as 
  the Hanging Fields.
  Settlements
  The major settlements of Avandrool are:
     Avan is a small, brave settlement in 
  between the Drymarshes and the 
  Wetmarshes, whose people trade 
  with the grippli and venture forth 
  to harvest coral at the Rana 
  Reef. Other nations’ ships 
  usually avoid or chase 
  their small boats, but 
  those who wish to enter 
  Avandrool usually start 
  here after hiring one of 
  the strangely robed ferry-
  men in the marshes.
     The Drowned Cities are 
  the territory of the mirk-
  dwellers, who roam through 
  the eons-old Under-Quarters, 
  and a remnant of Droolian hu-
  mans. A crude form of trade 
  exists, with the surface 
  people trading raw copper 
  that trickles in from the 
  west for fish and copper tools from the mirkdwellers.
     Kivesh is the location of the king’s Holiday Palace, and 
  possesses a few towers that are occupied by colonies of 
  aberrant sorcerers, whereas Raavesh has a large temple to 
  Rajuk Amon-Gore; the Raaveshi have less to do with the 
  mirkdwellers, concerning themselves more with the End 
  of Times.
     North Gate is an old mining town established at the 
  entrance to the old copper mines in the Inuiak Moun-
  tains. It has a high proportion of Azagor half-orcs. They 
  manufacture copper goods of very high quality.
     Ramadar is a far more functional city than the cursed 
  capitals, though closed and xenophobic. Perched on a 
  high bluff , it looks down on the ocean and the grip-
  pli tribes nearby equally. It is dominated by the Black 
  Church, but elements of The Endless Eye are infiltrating 
  even the heavily robed and masked citizens of this insu-
  lar city. The currency of Ramadar is a type of elixir made 
  from one’s life force, a grim medium of trade indeed. 
  Intrigues
  • 
  A good clerical order has recruited (or commanded) 
  the PCs to attempt a missionary expedition beyond 
  the copper gates, and bring new hope to the forgot-
  ten people within.
  • The fallen undine people of The Rainbow Islands 
  have communed with the elements, 
  and foresee that bringing the ‘mirk-
  dwellers’ into the light will restore 
  their kingdom. They are com-
  missioning ships to bring as 
  many of them to the tropical 
  isles as can be accomplished.
  • Crude coracles bear-
  ing hideous zombie-like 
  creatures are being towed 
  into the mouth of the 
  Bay of Plagues. Their 
  vaguely orc-fish appear-
  ance suggests that the 
  Azagor tribes are turning 
  the Blackwater plague to good 
  use, and may be trying to build 
  up a fleet of their own. The necroman-
  cer that cooked up the idea must be 
  eliminated.
  
  — 78 — 
  Kingdom of Iskandar
  “By Yolana’s Torch, are we Skandari? Are we not men? 
  Then let us fight like men, die like men, on the shores of our 
  lake, and be Lions in the face of the night!” - Iskandar the 
  Golden
  throat, the wound robbing him of his last words to his 
  son.
     Iskandar stood in shock over his father as he lay dead 
  before him. Then he took up his father’s blade and 
  charged into the dark. Those that lived through the night 
  said that the boy never cried out, he never screamed, and 
  that when they found him in the morning, he was kneel-
  ing in the ash and mud beside his father’s body, which 
  was upon a pyre built from the bodies of a dozen men. 
  Some say that they heard Iskandar utter a prayer to Yola-
  na, the Truthlight, that he would be given the strength 
  to do what his father could not do, that he would be 
  what his father could not be, and that he would live as 
  his father could not live.
     What followed of his life varies from tale to tale, but 
  what is written in The Divine Record is that by his death 
  at the age of twenty-eight Iskandar had created a beacon 
  of light in a dying world, expanding the tiny kingdom 
  tenfold. His rule was as absolute as it was just, and those 
  who bent the knee to the Lion of Battle did so out of 
  respect rather than fear. The kingdom wept for a month 
  when Iskandar died, and it was a divine mercy when 
  Yolana took the mourning kingdom to Porphyra, so that 
  its people had a new cause to fight towards, survival in a 
  hostile, foreign world.
     And fight they did, against an indigenous people that 
  made up a buffer zone between Tuthon and The North-
  lands, though some of the fighting was mitigated by 
  intermarriage with those Kayanoi natives who saw the 
  noble Skandari as an improvement to being an eternal 
  skirmish ground.  The northern third of the Kingdom 
  of Iskandar is conquered territory, though there have 
  been no uprisings or rebellions since the second century 
  after The Calling, and the people there are proud to call 
  themselves Skandari.  Some may grumble that Iskandar’s 
  Kingdom was placed in a contentious crossroads in a 
  hostile land, but Yolana likely knew that from adversity 
  springs strength.
  Current Events
  When Iskandar died, he did so with no heir, and though 
  his subjects held him in high regard, the erupting New-
  God Wars demanded a ruler. The kingdom’s leaders that 
  have followed Iskandar, from the first Lord Tiberius Au-
  gust to the current one, have sought to uphold the ideals 
  of their beloved king. Though the efforts of the August 
  line have expanded their Landed territories, and have 
  Capital: Alexandaria (Seat of the Lion Throne)
  Settlements: Aegyp’a (10,000), Alexandaria 
  (15,000), Maidenheim (7,000), New Gamien 
  (7,000), Ran’Esheen (6,000)
  Ruler: Lord Tiberius August the 34th
  Government: Monarchy
  Races: Human, Orcam
  Faiths: Gerana, Tulis, Yolana
  Resources: Papyrus, rice, seafood, venison
  Languages: Common, Elf, Dwarf, Halfling, 
  Gnome, Orc
  Border Conditions: Restricted (a full porphyrite 
  border lies within the kingdom)
  History
  The prehistory of Iskandar is mostly lost in the mists of 
  time, but it is known that it shared a dying world with 
  the lands now known as the Jheriak Continuance. This 
  noble kingdom was rescued from slow death by the god-
  dess of history, freedom, and protection, Yolana, who 
  brought it to Porphyra during The Calling. Iskandar was 
  the last noble light of that world, and its namesake the 
  last drop of heroic blood.
     Iskandar was twelve years old when he killed his first 
  man. A border raid came in the night. They were not an 
  invading army, nor was the attack a strategic attempt to 
  take a critical point along some tactical line. It was the 
  simple act of wanton destruction inflicted by a group 
  of desperate mercenaries with empty pockets, murder 
  on their minds, and a desire to make someone else as 
  miserable as they were.  The attack began with a harrying 
  distraction of arrow fire on the walls while they charged 
  the gate of the town’s meager palisades. Rather than 
  break through, the gates were barred from the outside. 
  That is when the fire began. In the panic that ensued, Is-
  kandar’s father was a beacon to the people. He rallied the 
  militia, created a breach in the walls, held the line while 
  those inside fled into the night and would not leave until 
  the last made it out. He also died with an arrow in his 
  
  — 79 — 
  created a bastion of justice, civilization and light, it is a 
  constant battle against those who would seek to subvert 
  the Shining Kingdom, and being caught between sinister 
  Tuthon and the aggressive Northlands of the Red King 
  does not make it a simple task. To add insult to injury, 
  the ancient enemy of the Jheriak Continuance has fol-
  lowed the nation here from their fading, dying world, 
  and the blood-feud continues at a distance. The beacon 
  of Iskandar needs constant tending to keep the flame 
  alight.
     Many pilgrims that visit the Lion Tomb (resting place 
  of Iskandar) upon the Isle of Gisset speak of a proph-
  ecy—that one will come from the darkness to lead the 
  people once more in Iskandar’s name, and unite the 
  entire world, the new world, the Patchwork Planet of 
  Porphyra. The nation of Iskandar is looking for such a 
  just crusade to give it purpose once more.
     This amounts to something of a religious revival, and 
  not just of the staid cult of Yolana; though the gods 
  involved are primarily good, the secular government of 
  Iskandar is a trifle worried at the implications of another 
  holy war.
  Settlements
  The major settlements of Iskander are:
     Aegyp’a is part of old-world Iskandar, the first fruit 
  of Iskandar the Golden’s founding campaign. It holds 
  monuments and halls ancient beyond imagining, as well 
  as the southern ducal seat. Gerana has a large temple 
  here that is part of the largest university in Iskandar, the 
  Iron College. There is a cobbled highway—the Scorpion 
  Road—between the old city and its modern Port of Ae. 
     Alexandaria, on the shores of the Lake of Torches, is 
  over a thousand years old, and still redolent of the cult 
  of personality that grew up around Iskandar. The church 
  of Yolana is strong here, with the twin-towered Temple 
  of Memory serving as the capitol and home of the latest 
  Lord Tiberius August. The Yolanites have a strong hand 
  in the policy-making and ruling of the nation proper, 
  and always have.
     Madienheim is the northern ducal seat, a city con-
  quered from the indigenous Northlander people, and 
  their bloodline is still strong here. The bluff and hearty 
  Maidenheimers’ raise tame deer in this region, the na-
  tional delicacy and staple. 
     New Gamien holds to the military tradition of Iskan-
  dar, watchful of the fearsome Red Host of the nearby 
  Northlands, who wiped out the original Camp Gamien; 
  the first loss of the Iskandari on Porphyra. As the sacri-
  fice of Camp Gamien saved the larger nation, Gaminers 
  worship Tulis as well as Yolana, and keep sacred cattle on 
  the grounds of the western ducal seat manor. Port Gam 
  is a military harbor, and patrols the northern Lost Sea.
     Ran’Esheen sits in the eastern duchy, as ordinary a city 
  as one could hope to live in, protected from the troubles 
  of the world by the capital to the south. It is also quite 
  cosmopolitan, boasting many racial quarters and districts 
  for intrepid dwarves, elves, gnomes and even erkunae 
  and saurians. 
  Intrigues
  • 
  It seems that the threat to the west, the Red King, 
  is finally negotiating for a lasting peace and set of 
  locks through the Lake of the Watchers to the Sea of 
  Ithreia. Does Tiberius trust the Northlanders? No.
  • 
  Calls from the western marches of Iskandar are go-
  ing out for teams of scouts to report on The Red 
  Host to the east. Troop numbers, armory contents, 
  movement patterns, all are worth good pay from the 
  Iskandari military.  What is the Red King up to?
  • 
  A drunkard was found dead in a tavern in New 
  Gamien, hardly worth noting except that it is said 
  that he had a missive in his possession that detailed 
  an assassination plot against Lord August.
  • 
  After a particularly violent overnight storm, the 
  morning found the Lion Tomb door open and the 
  remains of Iskandar gone. The Keepers are desperate 
  to maintain a facade of normalcy until they can be 
  located by an outside, discreet party. 
  
  — 80 — 
  Last Kingdom
  “From the plains we came, to achieve mastery over the 
  mountains- until we learned that truth can raise the former, 
  and lay low the latter.” - The First Truth of the Kingdom
  History
  The title of this mountainous nation can be seen as both 
  a prophecy and a warning. The great Shogun Toshiro 
  “Old Crane”, holder of the Rising Sun Banner of the hu-
  man tribes of the Lotus Blossom Steppes across the Bay 
  of Jade, announced that “When the new land across the 
  green waters has its first king, then it shall indeed by the 
  Last Kingdom on this world.” Those were his last words 
  on the Steppes, before his fleet of tribesmen and tengu 
  servitors made their colonization journey. It stuck in the 
  minds of the colonists as they strove to make a land that 
  included the contemplation of all viewpoints and poten-
  tialities.
     The colonists landed in the Shadowlands, a region of 
  broken hill and mountain-borne storm. They immedi-
  ately clashed with the races of oni that haunted the area, 
  and their oni-spawn and ratfolk underlings. The oni, led 
  by a Dark shogun of great martial skill, waged constant, 
  vicious war against the first settlement, nearly overrun-
  ning it on several occasions. If not for the whimsical kit-
  sune, who lived on the other side of the Rai-tao Moun-
  tains, the Last Kingdom would have breathed its last.
     The kitsune bravely sent emissaries to the forces of the 
  other four races warning of the approach of an elemen-
  talist fleet, the expelled forces of the dying Al’Mahk 
  Capital: Unity
  Settlements: Discord (350), Gemport (1,000), 
  H’sing Rao (5,000), Teng Rai (2,000), Unity 
  (18,000) 
  Ruler: The Fivefold Truths
  Government: Gerontocracy
  Races: Human, Kitsune, Ratfolk, Samsaran, 
  Tengu, Tiefling (Onispawn)
  Faiths: Kurofu the Shadow, Neria, Paletius, Shade, 
  Shankhil, Tulis
  Resources: Art, gems, textiles
  Languages: Giant, Samsaran (Samsariyu), Sylvan, 
  Tengu
  Border Conditions: Limited (the porphyrite fields 
  act as a natural godswall)
  Empire from the south, across the Opal Sea. The genie-
  powered ships, crewed by giants and elemental-kin with 
  nothing to lose, were described with such poetic and 
  powerful detail that the five races ceased their squab-
  bling, and actually came to a consensus. They selected 
  the oldest and wisest among them, from the ugliest, 
  scarred oni-spawn to the whitest furred kitsune, and 
  bade them tell the unified group what to do. The advice 
  from the old ones was nothing but truth: Five Truths. 
  • 
  Pray to the gods for deliverance. 
  • 
  Send the strongest to meet the strong. 
  • 
  Use the land to your advantage. 
  • 
  Flee if you cannot fight. 
  • 
  Use your enemy’s confidence to your advantage. 
  That the Truths were the summation of the philosophies 
  of the human, oni, kitsune, ratfolk and tengu races was 
  not lost on the Saigoto. The assault came the next day, 
  with balls of pitch and elemental fire burning defending 
  positions. The evil, but determined oni suffered greatly, 
  but met the first wave of attackers in a terrible clash. 
  Most of the spirit-giants met their end, and indeed are 
  rare even in the Shadowlands today. The shock action 
  allowed the other races to draw the invaders into their 
  own lands, and fight a guerilla war that wore down 
  the attackers. The prayers of the elders, in their far-off 
  mountain retreat, were then answered. 
     As if the universe itself was decreeing that their new-
  found unity was too precious to lose, the sky opened up 
  and the ’Rain of Heaven’ started to fall. This rain of raw, 
  magical porphyrite saved the  kingdom, wiped out the 
  elemental attackers, and sealed the isthmus to the Dry 
  Peninsula, allowing the new nation to develop on its 
  own, a coalition of five unlikely races, the Saigoto, who 
  made the top of the heavens, Unity, their capital and 
  spiritual center.
  Current Events
  Since the formation of the Last Kingdom, it has pros-
  pered due to its unusually strong spirit of acceptance and 
  cooperation. There are no castes or classes among the 
  people, with the sole exception of the Virtuous Mon-
  asteries. Those who abandon all worldly ways and train 
  as monks and sage-priests are regarded as enlightened 
  beings superior to other citizens. Only these wise ones 
  can serve in Unity as members of the Five Truths or its 
  
  — 81 — 
  advising body.
     The Five Truths, one elder from each race, rule and 
  guide the people of the Last Kingdom and keep their 
  representative race’s traditions alive. The word of the 
  Truths, once voted and upon decided, is law, and their 
  decrees are written on enchanted wind-chimes that hang 
  all over Unity. As the years have passed, these musical 
  edicts hang on every building in the city. The citizens call 
  themselves Lastfolk, which in their dialect of Samsariyu 
  is Saigoto.
     While the Last Kingdom enjoys peace few others can 
  even imagine, there are cracks in the peaceful façade. 
  Crime still exists (the tieflings and ratfolk are not en-
  tirely docile) and their nation is not completely cut off 
  from the world. More specifically, the Last Kingdom has 
  had to deal with Mâlite raiders along its hilly western 
  cape for decades. As a result, the Last Kingdom has an 
  advanced naval force and excellent, if almost entirely 
  defensive ground soldiers.
  Settlements
  The major settlements of the Last Kingdom are:
     Discord is a new settlement, little more than a village 
  comprised of those citizens who have begun question-
  ing their societies’ traditions. The Five Truths do not 
  force their teachings on others, but their tolerance has its 
  limits.
     Gemport is a pretty little place, overlooking 
  the green waters of the Bay of Jade. Mindful 
  of its dark predecessor, Blackport, beauty is 
  the rule here, and the junks that make their 
  way into the bay are in all shades of the 
  rainbow. Kitsune are more than half the 
  port’s population.
     H’sing Rao was founded very early in 
  the kingdom’s history. It houses the Shrine of 
  Many Paths, a multidenominational that embraces 
  the worship of all of the New Gods. The patron 
  of H’sing Rao is Neria, who provides visions of 
  the other gods to enlighten its citizens.
     Teng Rai exists as a living riddle, 
  a monastic enclave built one 
  building at a time against the side 
  of a cliff face more than six hundred 
  feet above the Rai River. Its buildings are 
  connected by rope bridges and narrow 
  walkways. Though Teng Rai is the largest, it 
  is not the only monastery in the nation, and its
  graduates are respected for their skill and wisdom. 
  Recently samsarans have begun to appear in number 
  around Teng Rai.
     Unity is a temple city with rings of villages around it, 
  all built atop the peak of the kingdom’s tallest  moun-
  tain. It is the capital of the Last Kingdom, and the center 
  of culture, wisdom, and learning, revered by all Saigoto. 
  Any visitor to the Last Kingdom is directed to come to 
  Unity as the approval of the attendant Five Truths is an 
  endorsement that will open any door in the land.
  Intrigues
  • 
  Though the power of the oni was broken during the 
  NewGod War invasion, the numbers of oni-spawn 
  tieflings moving north has military-minded Saigoto 
  worried. Are their demonic erstwhile masters return-
  ing to the Shadowlands?
  • 
  A cadre of revolutionary bards and Tulite oracles 
  has been stirring up trouble on the south shore. Is it 
  possible to stop or hinder them without resorting to 
  slaughter? Martyrs are even worse than revolutionar-
  ies…
  • 
  Hill giants from The Steadings with amulets made of 
  porphyrite have begun to raid farms around Hsing 
  Rao and the river delta. The mystery of where they 
  got them from is worth sending an investi-
  gative party used to dealing with 
  these powerful brutes.
  
  — 82 — 
  Lotus Blossom Steppes
  “The New Moon is a symbol of eternal renewal, eternal 
  destruction; even the gods themselves should see the lesson 
  there…” – Thukten, samsaran genealogist
  History
  The steppes have always been and always will be a sea of 
  grass across which the herds travel. What the herds in 
  the northern sector of the Dry Peninsula are composed 
  of has expanded and changed over the ages. Paletius, 
  The All-Seeing Eye, saw the empty plains as a place for 
  his chosen Lung people to expand and grow great upon, 
  and brought them there with The Calling. His hopes 
  to avoid war were futile, though, as the scattered half-
  rakshasa that wandered the plains made resistance, ironi-
  cally unallied with the elementalists of the south.
     With their thralls, the polkans, they harried the emer-
  gent hordes of the New Khan, but were all but extermi-
  nated in the Lotus War, which changed the landscape 
  with battling magics, changed in in odd and unexpected 
  ways.
     The most visible of the changes was revealed after 
  the rains that fell in the wake of the war, as there were 
  thousands of ponds scattered across the steppes and all of 
  them, it seemed, were home to lotus flowers in seeming-
  ly endless variation. It is from this occurrence in times 
  of legend, that the steppes gained their current name. 
  The political history of the steppes is a never-ending 
  litany of shifting alliances, battles and betrayals, with 
  Capital: Mobile City of Um
  Settlements:  Asp Fortress (800), Green Bay 
  (500), Mobile City of Um (125), The Nest (475), 
  Stone Ford (700), Three Pillars (2,300)
  Ruler: Khan Tiikeri “Claw of Anger”
  Government: Tribal chiefdom
  Races: Half-Rakshasa, Human, Nagaji, Polkan, 
  Samsaran, Tengu
  Faiths: Ithreia, Kamus, Paletius
  Resources: Cattle, horses, leather
  Languages: Draconic, Samsaran (Samsariyu), 
  Sylvan
  Border Conditions: Restricted (a full porphyrite 
  border surrounds the Lung Plateau to the west)
  the occasional great leader of exceptional ability rising 
  like Paletius’ sun to unite the tribes. When this happens, 
  great events occur, like Shogun Toshiro “Old Crane” 
  leading the Rising Sun Banner across the Bay of Jade to 
  colonize The Last Kingdom, or when Khan Gengau “Fist 
  of Fire” plundered Irontown under the Red King’s nose. 
  When these monumental leaders die, however, the na-
  tion breaks back down into squabbling tribes.
     The steppes have also ended up as a place for people 
  displaced by their homelands for many different reasons, 
  coming to lose themselves in the nomadic hordes. The 
  exception is the polkan, ancient race of manhorses, who 
  have prospered after winning their freedom when their 
  half-rakshasa masters were put down. They proudly take 
  no sides in tribal conflicts, though heroic individuals 
  might do so.
  Current Events
  The Steppes are a dangerous place, for nearly a thousand 
  years after the Lotus War, a child of the terrible rakshasa 
  is the Grand Khan, chief of chiefs. Khan Tiikeri is leader 
  of the Tiger Banner, and has a well-deserved reputation 
  as a cunning leader. He holds his power through military 
  and diplomatic favors owed him by other chiefs and het-
  mans, some of whom are deeply in his debt. His tiger-
  riders seek to direct the tribes into aggression outside the 
  Steppes, with varying degrees of success.
     The polkan are divided into three major herds, with 
  several sub-herds, and dominate the north-east, near the 
  Wyrm’s Quarter, and sometimes accompany dragonslay-
  ers into that dire place. They do their best to take votes 
  on important issues, but often resort to accepting noisy 
  tyrants when they need to get things done, or go to war. 
     The human tribes are organized under the Ten Banners 
  of the Horse, all interrelated and prone to squabbling. 
  While the most numerous, they are also the least orga-
  nized and most likely to fall out among themselves. 
     Nagaji follow the Banner of the Cobra and ride giant 
  lizards and snakes across the steppes, settling into defen-
  sive encampments at night. Though they dominate the 
  area around Asp Fortress, their winter hibernation camp, 
  they seek to return to the area known as the Wyrm’s 
  Quarter, which came to Porphyra a segregated land. 
  They are always seeking allies for a mission to re-conquer 
  that homeland, but get few takers. Freeporters have an 
  irrational fear of nagaji that is well known. 
     The samsaran, cultural paragons of the Landed hu-
  
  — 83 — 
  mans, ride under the Banner of the New Moon and use 
  their unique tie to their past lives to spiritually enhance 
  their mounts, hounds, and hawks. The Banner of the 
  New Moon is allowed safe passage through most other 
  areas, as they follow a mystical path that the other tribes 
  respect. They are often approached for advice on matters 
  magical and spiritual, for they do not typically get in-
  volved in politics. Some samsarans now venerate Ithreia, 
  exasperated at the competitive natures of the human 
  tribes. 
     The tengu, natives to ancient Lung ‘The Dragon Pla-
  teau’, are newcomers to the steppe and are still consid-
  ered outsiders. They are trying to find a place in Steppes 
  culture, and have been serving as mercenary scouts and 
  swordsmen with the other tribes.
  Settlements
  The major settlements of the Lotus Blossom Steppes are:
     Asp Fortress, the winter home of the followers of the 
  Cobra Banner, is built on a low bluff that contains sev-
  eral deep wells, it is not the most impressive of fortresses, 
  but the slopes are seeded with simple traps to hinder 
  attack. The nagaji carry on a brisk trade with the Sikoyan 
  nomads of the treeless tundra to the north.
     Green Bay is a small port town on the Bay of Jade, 
  remarkable as the offloading place for trade goods to and 
  from the Steppes. Its culture is more similar to that of 
  the Last Kingdom, as it was Shogun Toshiro’s birthplace 
  and social genesis.
     The Mobile City of Um, an innovation of the Khan 
  Tiikeri, has the most important yurts mounted on wag-
  ons, to be set up and taken down quickly. The entire city 
  can cover miles in a day, and is moved to wherever 
  the Tiger Banner needs to be seen.
     The Nest is perched on the side of the Lung 
  Plateau, an aerial town built from materials 
  scavenged near and far. It serves as the central 
  hub- and final fallback- for the tengu as they 
  explore their new land.
     Stone Ford is a main trade town on the 
  south border of the Steppe, maintained by 
  the Pale Horse tribe. It serves as a gateway 
  for goods and people to and from the north, 
  and is a good place to hire guides and mounts 
  for exploration of lands beyond.
     Three Pillars is the largest trade town in the 
  steppe, built on the site of a group of ancient 
  ruins- so ancient that only three pillars survive. It is here 
  that most internal trade takes place, and it is a lively 
  place, with much entertainment and no small number of 
  fights.
  Intrigues
  • 
  A samsaran seer has seen the PCs in a vision, and has 
  come to them for help in identifying and defeating a 
  spiritual threat emanating from the Plateau of Lung. 
  Refusal will mean being marked as anathema to all 
  the tribes of the Steppe.
  • 
  Unusual animals, many present on the Steppe, are 
  much in demand in the zoos, arenas, and armories of 
  lands far from the Dry Peninsula. Giant snakes, war 
  tigers, yaks, buffalo are only a few that would bring a 
  pretty penny.
  • 
  Il-Khan Teharis, 3rd heir to Tiikeri, is putting out a 
  call for brave adventurers to take the Challenge of 
  the Wyrm. Do you dare throw your sword into the 
  Ring of Acceptance?
  
  — 84 — 
  Middle Kingdoms
  Gerandland, Pium, Rotwald, Vinterre
  “Oh children of the True Arbitress, Gods-fearing men! Vic-
  tory is ours this day, over the forces of the elements them-
  selves! There is nothing greater than us, here now; Rejoice!” 
  - Codion Unus II, after the Battle of Siwath
  History
  The region known as the Middle Kingdoms came from 
  a world very different from Porphyra. The people of this 
  land came from a world inhabited almost exclusively 
  by humans, though outsiders and summoned races did 
  plague the land. It was not a particularly easy world, 
  but the lords and ladies that resided there had the god-
  dess Gerana to ease their woes. The word of the True 
  Arbitress in the Divine Record was ministered to the 
  people by a single great church that rightfully spread to 
  every corner or the land. No king’s law was greater than 
  Gerana’s, nor was any king’s power greater than the Co-
  dion- vessel of Her word.
     Of course, not all of the Middle Kingdoms’ people 
  were so fortunate to receive Lady Justice’s blessings, 
  for this was a feudal society. The might of each land 
  was built from the hierarchical components of royalty, 
  Capital: Sanctus Templum
  Settlements: Belle Ville (45,000), Dark Mill 
  (2,000), Klemt (7,000), Mazino (6,500), Nacht-
  burg (50,000), Port Kamar (8,000), Sanctus Tem-
  plum (75,000), Thame (60,000), Senthe (12,000), 
  Sowmoor (10,000), Vulfberg (11,000), Weston 
  (6,000) 
  Ruler: Codion Vindcitine VIII
     Pium – Regent Marcus Gedacius
     Vinterre – King Tonerre XXII
     Geranland – King Arturus the Bald
     Rotwald – King Groot von Stern
  Government: Feudalist Theocracy
  Races: Aasimar (Geralite), Avood, Human, Qit’ar
  Faiths: Gerana, Lyvalia, Rolterra
  Resources: Agriculture, livestock, lumber, wine
  Languages: Common, Celestial
  Border Conditions: Restricted (a full porphyrite 
  border surrounds the Middle Kingdoms)
  clergy, aristocracy, military, freedmen and, at the bottom, 
  serfdom. Certainly the church shared Her words with 
  the working classes, but it was “by her grace” that their 
  lords could feed and protect them. After all, such men 
  would not be given power over others if they were not so 
  chosen by Gerana herself. Such were the bleak terms of a 
  serf ’s life.
     Yet Gerana was not ignorant of how her priests inter-
  preted her word. When the orcs and elves of Porphyra 
  called for gods to grace their lands, Lady Justice was 
  inspired with a divine plan. She came to Porphyra in 
  The Calling, and brought with her the four nations most 
  in need of a lesson in ecumenism and racial and social 
  equality; Geranland, Pium, Vinterre, and Rotwald. In 
  the middle of fractious wars themselves, the Middle 
  Kingdoms were not prepared for what Porphyra had in 
  store for them.
     On this new world, the humans were surrounded by 
  many races, and the balance of the New Gods, peers of 
  Gerana. Almost immediately, the forces of the Midland-
  ers found themselves embroiled in the conflicts of the 
  NewGod Wars, attacked by genies, giants, elementals 
  and their kin - and their human, but hostile leaders; 
  Ghadabi, Siwathu, and Simooni as regular troops and 
  fanatical zendiqi. Harrowing battles such as The Siege 
  of Greencastle, the undead assault at the Field of Bones, 
  and the first turning of the tide at the gates of Sanctus 
  Templum itself - the Day of Graves, all called upon the 
  blood, steel and nerve of Midlanders to fight for the 
  right of the pious to exist. Fortunately, their great num-
  bers and ardent faith in Gerana guided the four king-
  doms’ knights through the NewGod War.
     When the conflicts finally came to an end, the Middle 
  Kingdoms had changed in three ways. First and fore-
  most, the True Arbitress’ divine plan came to pass, as She 
  relinquished her influence on the serfs in favor of Rolt-
  erra, the Boundless One. Now, the disenfranchised were 
  no longer happy with their lot, but whisper and pass the 
  word of uprisings against the nobility. Secondly, the no-
  bility of the four kingdoms grew to hate non-human rac-
  es, seeing them at the least as responsible for their shaky 
  exile from their previous – though no better- world. At 
  worst they are felt to be evil abominations not fit to live 
  on the clean earth. Lastly, and sadly an accepted conse-
  quence to her plan, a secret faith began to spread among 
  the highest orders of the land, even her own church; 
  Lyvalia the Throne-Shadow began to whisper her twisted 
  
  — 85 — 
  
  — 86 — 
  council to the morally weak who hold power.
  Current Events
  Though the Middle Kingdoms are largely held to be 
  the most powerful nation on Porphyra, there has been 
  much strife in this paragon of civilization. Serf uprisings 
  are increasing in number, and it is costing the lives of 
  more soldiers to stamp out the heretical dissension. This 
  poses a problem for the allied nations who have rallied 
  under the divine guidance of Codion Gaius Vindictine 
  VIII, who is encouraging his sub-kings to the brink of 
  war against the surrounding nations tainted with non-
  humans. The king of each nation fears to argue with 
  the Church of Gerana, for doing so would risk excom-
  munication, which would cause the other three rivals to 
  turn their lances on the heretics. To add more confusion 
  to the mix, Codion Vindictine becomes more under the 
  control of the whisperers of Lyvalia every day.
     Though trade in the Middle Kingdoms is brisk, with 
  demand for Vinterre wine, Rotwald lumber, Geranland-
  er crops, and marble from Pium, there are many situa-
  tions of interest in the countryside:
  • 
  The forbidden Forest of the Qit’ar is becoming 
  less forbidden, as trade routes from the Catmen 
  of Olthar pass directly past Senthe. 
  • 
  The Great Quarry of the Dome-Low hills is 
  agitating for annexation by Vinterre, as Pium 
  taxation on use of the Stone Canal is exorbitant.
  • 
  The Hundred Villages of Geranland, seen as 
  iconic Midlanders, are starting to depopulate for 
  independent homesteads on the Moors.
  • 
  The ambitious cities of Rotwald are agitating for 
  permission to build a new community on Lake 
  Kor, which has been the private site of noble vil-
  las for years.
  • 
  The monks of the Silent Monastery have sent 
  emissaries to all capital cities, communicating 
  by hands that dedication to Law is at an all-time 
  low in the nation, and they will not stand by.
  All in all, the situation is ripe for change in the Middle 
  Kingdoms, ten centuries after The Calling, and a change 
  in power in this large, powerful nation could change the 
  face of at least half of Porphyra, if not the entire planet. 
  The nobility is not willing to see the problem, wrapped 
  up in their own decadence and power struggles, the 
  clergy is secretive and divided, the serfs are rallying to 
  different gods and demagogues at every turn - but there 
  is sure to be a coin or two to be made when all the dust 
  settles.
     A legacy of the NewGod Wars and The Middle King-
  dom’s hand in the Deist victory over the Porphyran 
  Elementalists is their para-imperialist Serenity Guard, a 
  branch of the Codionic Knights.  Under the emblem of 
  the Dove, these ambassador-warriors watch over defeated 
  Elementalist region-nations and have broad powers of 
  interference, centuries after the Treaty of Siwath.
  Settlements
  The major settlements of the Middle Kingdoms are: 
     Belle Ville, capital of Vinterre is a city of splendor and 
  high society, second richest in wealth only to Sanctus 
  Templum. The wealthy nobility of the city enjoy lives 
  of opulence while their serfs toil in squalor. The Middle 
  Kingdoms have seen many great works of art come out 
  of Belle Ville, and bards from all over the world come 
  there to make their fortunes.
     Dark Mill is a small lumber town in Rotwal no-
  table only for the prevalence of non-humans and non-
  sanctioned magics practiced, for which the industry is a 
  convenient cover.
     Klemt, preferred port of Nachtburg products, is in 
  direct competition with the Codion-sanctioned port of 
  Kamar. Klemt is rife with smugglers, Rolterran opera-
  tives, and conttraband.
  Rolterra has made gains with the serfs 
  of the Middle Kingdoms
  
  — 87 — 
     Mazino, lonely city in the northern hills, processes 
  much of the raw foodstuffs of the farms of Vinterre, and 
  has many wineries, almost as many as Belle Ville. Mazi-
  no still bears many of the fortifications of the NewGod 
  Wars, as it was the fallback position after Greencastle 
  fell, so long ago.
     Nachtburg lies deep within the Forest of Rotwald, and 
  is the capital of that kingdom. Known throughout the 
  Middle Kingdoms as being far too lenient on the serfs, it 
  is city of industry and trade. Guild shops line the streets, 
  and competition between the organized guilds is sharp 
  and often fractious. Foreign lords may mock Nachtburg 
  for allowing the commoners to accrue wealth and status, 
  but unlike the foolish Thamemen, the local nobility see 
  profit in their methods. It is no accident that serf upris-
  ings are much lower in Rotwald than in other kingdoms.
     Port Kamar is sanctioned and rigidly controlled by the 
  Codion’s people, both sanctioned and in secret, a nest of 
  Lyvalian treachery and spies sent to all nearby nations. 
  The naval fleet of the Middle Kingdoms makes port here 
  regularly, from their patrols of the Bay of Sphinxes.   
     Sanctus Templum, capital of Pium, and center of the 
  church of Gerana, is by far the richest city in the Four 
  Kingdoms, and perhaps the whole of Poprhyra. Long 
  ago, when Gerana’s faith was spreading over Porphyra, 
  the churches of Pium lent huge sums of money to other 
  lands that wanted Geranite temples, and established 
  them as money-lending institutions, ostensibly for the 
  needy. In years of peace, these loans have been paid back 
  fourfold, making Sanctus indeed the ‘City of Gold’. The 
  city’s piety has also been held up as an icon for other na-
  tions - the question is, to which deity?
     Thame is built upon grand bridges across the River 
  Lon, and is city of learning, the seat of King Arturus, 
  a (once) great warrior. Many vine-covered institutes of 
  learning are established in its towers, even the prudent 
  study of wizardry.
     Senthe is a cosmopolitan town that does brisk trade 
  with Hesteria and the strange folk of the Birdman 
  Mountains. Exotic liquors and drugs are the trademark 
  of Senthe, and the aristocracy are perpetually intoxi-
  cated.
     Sowmoor, an insular town of unattractive people, 
  hosts a large garrison to watch the southern border, and 
  the threats out of the Salt Swamp and Yrwood. The 
  Treasure Hunters’ Guild has a large headquarters here, to 
  supply the adventurous and fleece the gullible. 
     Vulfberg is a dynamic city with a bad reputation. As 
  busy and industrious as it is in the day, at night the win-
  dows are shuttered and doors locked against the whis-
  pered threat of werewolves and other fabled creatures of 
  death and blood in the night. That the targets of such 
  boogies are typically troops out of Sanctus Templum 
  never seems to make it into the stories that are told. 
     Weston sees a lot of trade in ores and minerals out 
  of Nor-Du-Mag, and has a very large smelting facility. 
  Non-humans are not welcome here, nor are the haughty 
  northerners of Thame and their worldly ways.
  Intrigues
  • 
  An acolyte of a local countryside temple to Gerana 
  seeks aid in investigating the Archbishop of the 
  region. He believes that his superior has fallen to the 
  lies of Lyvalia, the Whispering Counselor. Rooting 
  out a cell of the Throne-Shadow will be difficult, if 
  not impossible.
  • 
  Whispers run rampant in the village taverns of Vin-
  terre. The time quickly approaches that the serfs will 
  raise arms against the nobility. A lone rebel comes 
  to the PCs pleading for help to postpone the attack, 
  claiming the knighthood is already aware of the plan. 
  Driven by passion, none of the conspirators listen 
  but will the PCs?
  • 
  The ancient ruins of Greencastle are often haunted 
  by runaway serfs cum bandits, pockets of hunted 
  humanoids, and cells of cultists forbidden by the 
  Church. Young Midlanders and even youth from 
  other nearby nations cut their teeth exploring the 
  ruins, and some even find interesting items or a stake 
  in recovered loot to start their careers as adventurers 
  in the larger world of Porphyra.
  • 
  Some amazing sights are said to be seen at the High 
  Nexus, an elemental portal from which water flows 
  to supply the Sen, Lon and West Rivers, not to 
  mention Lakes Kor and Gerana. Its proximity to the 
  extra-dimensional Wall of Sleep can generate any 
  imaginable vision or appearance, and usually stays in 
  the realm of dream... When the PCs visit for the first 
  time, though, it could be the moment of a bubble 
  of weird extra-planar creatures breaks through, and 
  have to be hunted down in the unprepared country-
  side. The weird beings include: akata, cacodaemons, 
  protean voidworms, small to medium elementals, 
  food dogs, or even dretch demons!
  
  — 88 — 
  Morah’Silvanath 
  “When Colothoria died, the old way of the elves died, by 
  the most ironical way... that abomination, that... ‘tree’...” - 
  Molgorian Spruceye, Colothor advisor-wizard 
  History
  When the elves helped summon the New Gods to 
  Porphyra they were not immune to the devastation that 
  they caused. The scrublands elves of Theriar suffered 
  in particular when a piece of the god Saren’s old world 
  manifested directly on top of the city of Colothoria, 
  their greatest settlement and the seat of the elemental 
  sorcerers who ruled their empire. The city was shattered, 
  the lands around it displaced into a ring of jagged hills 
  and mountains that time has done little to soften, shot 
  through with the ancient ruins – and treasures - of lost 
  Colothoria. The piece of Saren’s world that He brought 
  to Porphyra is  Morah’Silvanath, the World Tree, a tree 
  of such colossal size and aspect that it staggers compre-
  hension. Miles across at the base, it spears into the sky to 
  the height of a mountain - so high that among its upper 
  branches the air gets thin, and special magic or natural 
  adaptation is needed to reach the very top.
     The gigantic tree is ringed around by the 
  Canta’Silvanath mountains- the remains of Colothoria 
  - and beyond them a circle of porphyrite fields where 
  the purple crystal stands low and thick, a formidable 
  godswall. Between the porphyrite ring and the trunk of 
  the Tree itself lie many miles of Shadelands: areas where 
  the shadow of the great tree never lifts. Touched by the 
  divine power of Saren, the Shadelands are home to every 
  Capital: None
  Settlements: Heartroost (7,000), Pestilence 
  (2,000)  
  Ruler: Silvanath tribal leaders; King Rezarian the 
  Black rules the remnant Colothorians
  Government: Tribalism, Monarchy
  Races: Elf, Kech
  Faiths: Enor Ashlord, Kurofu the Shadow, Lord 
  Grunzol Firestorm, Lyvalia, Rolterra, Saren,  
  S’sluun the Naga Empress 
  Resources: Herbalism, woodcraft
  Languages: Auran, Elven, Sylvan
  Border Conditions: Restricted (a double-strength 
  porphyrite border surrounds Morah’Silvanath)
  kind of fungus known to scholars, and grown to sur-
  prising size. Intelligent fungal creatures prowl amid the 
  mushrooms, as do the inheritors of Colothoria - venge-
  ful, embittered elves who have grown pale and thin in 
  the shade of Morah’silvanath and would do anything to 
  topple the great tree if they could.
     The ‘Inheritors’ are not the only elves in the district... 
  When the World Tree arrived in Porphyra it came with 
  its own compliment of inhabitants, including the primal 
  Silvanath elves who live on, in and around the Tree and 
  worship Saren exclusively. The Silvanath at the base are 
  the most ‘civilized’ to external perceptions, tolerant of 
  outsiders but hardly welcoming. As an explorer ascends 
  the Tree the Silvanath become progressively more bar-
  baric and aggressive. Only elves may traverse the height 
  of the Tree with something approaching safety, and 
  even they are not guaranteed passage among the highest 
  branches.
     The Tree does have other, friendlier inhabitants. The 
  kech, for example. Kech can be found everywhere, and 
  will help those visitors who respect the Tree, and pay 
  them off.  If they don’t, they will happily eat them. Aid 
  may also be gained from the harpies and the harpidites, 
  their half-breed offspring; everyone knows they are not 
  to be trusted, but the harpies always seem to have exactly 
  what the traveler is looking for when they open the 
  bargaining.
  Current Events
  The World Tree is notable for its local gravity – wher-
  ever one stands, ‘down’ is towards the nearest branch, 
  with larger branches exerting a greater pull than smaller 
  ones, and the trunk exerting the greatest pull of all. This 
  strange effect allows those who live on the Tree to con-
  struct settlements around the places where branches split 
  off and make good use of all the available space. It also 
  creates surprising pockets of distorted gravity out where 
  the branches are thin and close together- which the kech 
  and harpies are adept at using to perform dramatic ma-
  neuvers in combat.
     The elves of Silvanath are an isolationist lot, content to 
  live in harmony with the World Tree and never interact 
  with the other inhabitants of the world. They have, how-
  ever, the greatest selection of natural products derived 
  from bark, wood, and leaves of the great Tree, which 
  makes them a key destination of merchants. They have 
  a pressing problem with the inheritors of Colothoria at 
  
  — 89 — 
  the base of the Tree and under the roots, which draws 
  occasional mercenaries and other heroes. Previously 
  known as equestrians and craftsmen, the Colothorians 
  have changed greatly over the centuries since the ar-
  rival of the New Gods. They are stalkers and murderers, 
  poison-coated knives in the darkness, adept at refining 
  the fungi of the Shadelands into all sorts of compounds 
  both beneficial and baneful. They wage a constant war 
  against the Silvanath and, while the Silvanath outnum-
  ber the Colothorians many times over, they are divided 
  by clan loyalties and other concerns - the Colothorians 
  have little to distract them from their single-minded pur-
  suit of vengeance.
     The other two prominent races of the World Tree, the 
  kech and the harpies, have their own approaches to the 
  conflict. The kech are servile and subservient, hiding 
  their true minds, but are known by the less gullible to be 
  fawning parasites who will take advantage of any slight 
  weakness to the ‘leaf-monkeys” benefit. The harpies are 
  more honest in their manipulation, playing both sides 
  against the middle, selling their services as spies and mer-
  cenaries to all factions.
  Settlements
  The major settlements in Morah’Silvanath are:
     Heartroost is the only settlement of notable size con-
  structed on the World Tree, a tangled and confusing city 
  of wood and leaves, grown from the tree itself to make 
  best use of its selective gravity. It is theoretically con-
  trolled by a council of elder harpies, but their hands-off 
  approach to rulership, their ever-shifting intrigues, and 
  their extended families make it a lawless place. The fact 
  of Heartroost’s unique permanency does, however, make 
  it the center of trade and politics on Morah’Silvanath - a 
  position the harpies would do much to hold onto.
     Pestilence is the only large settlement in the Shad-
  elands, resembling a fortified camp that stayed in one 
  place long enough to put down roots. This is the home 
  of the inheritors of Colothoria, where Rezarian the Black 
  lays his schemes and nurses his hate, where the displaced 
  Porphyran elves who still venerate the Elemental Lords 
  are raised to loathe the tree that blocks out the sun. This 
  is where they learn the arts of swordplay and poison-
  craft from elders with centuries of experience on both. 
  No kech or Silvanath are permitted in Pestilence, and 
  the occasional visiting harpidite is only tolerated for the 
  intelligence they bring. Other races are allowed but not 
  encouraged.
  Intrigues
  • 
  The Canta’Silvanath mountains are rich with trea-
  sure-filled ruins from the golden age of Colothoria,
  • 
  just waiting to be claimed from ancient traps, magi-
  cal guardians, and bitter inheritor elves. If ruins 
  aren’t attractive, the Tree itself has interbranch wil-
  dernesses with wonders to stumble on, as well.
  • 
  A group of foreign sword-blade diplomats could be 
  just what the two factions of elves need for peace. 
  Unifying the Silvanath and the Colothorians would 
  be a monumental task, especially with the opportu-
  nistic harpies to deal with, but if successful, bards 
  would sing their names for milennia.
  • 
  A less-than-savory employer the harpies might be, 
  but they are rather wealthy, and if their whims and 
  tasks are fulfilled, who knows where an agent of the 
  Daughters of Ithreia might end up? Outside of the 
  kettle, that is...
  
  — 90 — 
  Mount Xoa
  “The Road is...about the Road, you know. You know, The 
  Road!” - Mykas Tarth, sub-priest of Vortain
  History
  When Veiloaria entered Porphyra after the Calling, she 
  merely walked down from the heights of Mount Xoa, 
  which she brought (or some say, created spontane-
  ously) with her from her previous travels. The crossroads 
  spoken of in legend, where the Eternal Traveler calmly 
  rebuffed two aggressive gods, was probably one of the 
  many descending from The Great Road of Mount Xoa. 
  Indeed, this gently sloped, but titanic mountain, the 
  most massive on Porphyra, is encircled by a wide, well-
  kept road from top to bottom. No sentient beings came 
  with Mount Xoa, but in the millennia since its arrival, 
  many have taken up the challenge of the Road, and 
  some have stayed and settled in its environs. Their reason 
  for coming: the Road is not ordinary road, and Mount 
  Xoa is no ordinary mountain.
     The length of the Road seems far out of proportion 
  with its appearance, and the frequent caves and entranc-
  es into the Mount itself seem too often lead to places 
  that are not exactly on Porphyra...
     To travel The Great Road is to adventure, encounter-
  ing people and things of astonishing variety, overcom-
  ing peril and conflict between those who would profit 
  from the mountain’s uniqueness. Though humans bear 
  the most fascination with Mount Xoa, dwarves have 
  Capital: Sojourn
  Settlements: Sojourn (5,000), Waytown (1,000), 
  Zenith (rumored)
  Ruler: Finegar Dustyfoot, Lord Mayor of Sojourn
  Government: local only
  Races: Dwarf, Gnome, Human
  Faiths: Kamus, Linium, Rolterra, Veiloaria, Vor-
  tain
  Resources: Extradimensional trade, godmetals 
  (adamantine, geranite, hellstone, mawine, uliun), 
  metals (gold, silver)
  Languages: Common, Dwarf, Gnome
  Border Conditions: Restricted (a porphyrite 
  border, surrounding the mountain proper and a 1 
  mile corridor to a wharf on the Arm of Parl) 
  sought to plunder the minerals within the mountain, 
  and Veiloaria seems to tolerate their diggings. Gnomes 
  love the endless variety on the mountain as well, and 
  have taken on the role of chroniclers and mappers of 
  Mount Xoa, regardless of the persistent impression that 
  the mountain slowly changes its appearance, nature, and 
  direction over time. The most basic quest on Mount Xoa 
  is the reaching of Zenith, the fabled City of Gems said 
  to exist on the mountain’s mist-shrouded top, but access-
  ing the myriad cave/portals on the upper reaches is also 
  a common goal of adventurers. Though the weather on 
  Mount Xoa is commonly mild for such a tall peak, flight 
  is notoriously diffi cult, a phenomenon called “Veil’s 
  Wind” and accepted with the characteristic shrug and 
  smile of Roadians, the self-given ‘national’ name of those 
  who live and walk on the The Great Road of Mount 
  Xoa.
  Current Events
  Behavior on The Great Road is governed loosely by the 
  Rules of the Road, a code of conduct meant to keep 
  some degree of peace and comportment on the moun-
  tain. The Rules basically state:
  1. Up-mountain has right-of-way over down-
  mountain, in all affairs. 
  2. Blocking the road is forbidden. 
  3. Speak Common or keep your mouth shut.
  4. Truth is the honorable way; if you can’t be 
  trusted, get off the road.
  5. Robbing is for the weak, make your own find.
  There are more, less official Rules, but these define be-
  havior on The Road.
     The Mayoralty of Sojourn (see below) is coming to 
  term, and Finegar Dustyfoot is actually going up for
  re-election, astounding most residents of that rough-
  and-tumble town. Mutterings are afoot that he is too 
  ‘flatbound’ to run the show, but no one can argue with 
  his policies for improving the food supply of Sojourn. 
  There are several contenders, and things are likely to get 
  ugly.
     Up-Waytown dwarves, known for their zealous obei-
  sance of Linium, are becoming more and more reluctant 
  to trade in Waytown, and thus more isolated. Racial 
  tensions are rising, much to the delight of the clerics and 
  adherents of Kamus, who seem to be on Mount Xoa is 
  
  — 91 — 
  ever-increasing numbers.
     Another spate of ‘Zenners’, those who claim to have 
  made it to Zenith, are being seen on The Road these 
  days; the current bunch refuse to enter Waytown or So-
  journ, and all seem to be universally mad. Experienced 
  Roadians shrug and smile and say, “That’s what you get 
  on The Road,” but some are worried that it is bad for 
  business - especially with down Waytown mines increas-
  ing production.
  Settlements
  The major settlements of Mount Xoa are:
     Sojourn is a town trying to be many things; interna-
  tional face of Mount Xoa, (the border a mere score of 
  miles away) food provider for up-mountain, (difficult 
  on the dusty foothills) and fence and broker both for 
  wonders found on The Great Road. Very much a fron-
  tier town, the successive mayors of Sojourn have tried to 
  focus the populace on being like any other good-sized 
  community, but have always failed to eclipse the allure 
  of The Great Road. The current, and possibly recurrent 
  mayor, Finergan Dustyfoot, has been a breath of fresh 
  air, probably because of his halfling sensibilities. Knives 
  have used as voting tools in Sojourn before, though. The 
  largest Flower and Compass hostel on Porphyra is in 
  Sojourn, and is the only one to use the title, ‘Veiloaria’s 
  Favorite’; if the rumor exists that hasn’t been heard in 
  Veiloaria’s Favorite, it hasn’t been though of yet.
     Waytown is as far from Sojourn as “Until you get 
  there,” a rather variable distance. This variability has 
  been the downfall of some travelers on The Road, as 
  charity is not always forthcoming for the shortsighted, 
  unless you wish the charity of Kamusian slavers, Vor-
  tainian dealers, or Rolterran press-gangs. The popula-
  tion of Waytown is also fluid, and the shops along Way 
  Street, which does not block The Road, change owners 
  frequently. There are no illusions of Waytown’s status as 
  a frontier town, and the minimal peace and order there 
  is maintained by long-suffering Xia clerics, who come as 
  hardship duty from lighter work on the Upper Road.
     Zenith is a rumor that has persisted since the NewGod 
  wars, when the First Sword of the Keshite Steelidun led 
  a group of his finest warriors and their concubines on 
  a mission to the top, and, a few months later, a small 
  team came down with fist-sized gems, shards of a strange 
  egg (still on display in Sojourn) and tales of a town that 
  could, on a rare, clear day, see a large part of the entire 
  planet. Less than two-hands worth of further trips to 
  and from Zenith followed, and those that came from 
  there grew more secretive and ‘different’. No one in 
  living memory has seen Zenith, and those who speak 
  (or, rather, rant) about seeing this mystery are derisively 
  known as ‘Zenners’
  Intrigues
  • 
  Gold Rush at Waytown! The Methysti border-priests 
  have lifted their heavy tariff of Mount Xoa, and the 
  prospectors are flooding in. An inherited stake in 
  the down-Waytown mines is just the thing to get an 
  adventuring career started.
  • 
  Your pursuit of Vortainian zerk-smugglers has led 
  you to the road-camps of Mount Xoa, whose miners 
  will be top dollar for strength-enhancing poisons. 
  You intend to shut them down.
  • 
  The upcoming elections in Sojourn should be rife 
  with opportunity for talented bodyguards, promot-
  ers, and missionaries, especially of faiths uncommon 
  to The Road.
  • 
  No one has seen Zenith in living memory? A stout 
  adventuring party can change that!
  
  — 92 — 
  New Wathis
  “Speak when it is wise, listen when it is not.”- Telran prov-
  erb.
  Capital: Wathisia
  Settlements: Culbit (10,000), The Holy City of 
  Da’mulus (6,000), Jul’mase (12,000), Wathisia 
  (100,000)
  Ruler: Senmi El Eshiun, Queen of the Seven Veils, 
  Empress of the Nine Tribes, Keeper of the Sacred 
  Telran, Daughter to the True People, and Mother 
  to the World
  Government: Matriarchal monarchy
  Races: Elemental-kin, Enigmon, Human, Living 
  Ghoul, Ratkin, Zendiqi
  Faiths: Elementali Lords (all), Rajuk Amon-Gore, 
  Shankhil
  Resources: Linen, oil, perfumes, spices
  Languages: Aquan, Auran, Common, Ignan, 
  Necril, Old Porphyran, Terran
  Border Conditions: None
  History
  The southern Desert of Siwath was once contiguous 
  across the southern strand of the continent, unbroken 
  in its hot expanse. Here, the genie overlords held sway 
  from the early dawn of time, their original stronghold. 
  The Epic of Galgulesh tells of the Kingdom of M’harret, 
  whose very cities were lifted from the sands of the Siwath 
  and floated over the scorching desert at the whim of the 
  Djinn Lord Qarryn, fueled by the sacrificed lives of hun-
  dreds of slaves. Within the ruined Tomb of Tanghu, the 
  Epic tells of the titanic monoliths the Genie Lords raised 
  in their likeness, to watch over the expansive burial cities 
  where the Djinlord’s followers were entombed, so that 
  they could continue to serve after death.
     The word for ‘tomb’ in Auran is “tel ran”, and so 
  the living people that survived the depredations of  
  M’harret, and  served both the living and the dead took 
  on that name for themselves.
     It was into this world that Senmi El Sioban was born, 
  during the perihelion of a full solar eclipse. A daughter 
  of the black sun, Sioban was pale and beautiful beyond 
  words. Her exotic beauty soon caught the attention of 
  the Efreeti Firelord Mal’eket, and he came to claim her, 
  putting her parents to ash for the sin of weeping at her 
  leaving. Sioban’s life was no longer hers, if it had even 
  been, for those who served the Firelord never did so for 
  long.
     Then The Calling came to pass, and the NewGod Wars 
  erupted across Porphyra. The Siwath was  thrown into 
  turmoil, as the Elemental Lords’ power was now chal-
  lenged by the coming of the gods and the Genie Kings’ 
  hold on their realms began to falter. The watch-towers 
  over the Tel Ran were shattered and buried, and the 
  people beneath wondered if that were better for them, or 
  worse. During a climactic battle over the Furnace Palace 
  of Mal’eket, the Firelord’s forces clashed with those of 
  the New Gods. A winged aasimar crashed through the 
  ruby skylight above the Efreeti’s harem, its amethystine 
  armor emblazoned with the key and the doorway. A Fire 
  Guard salamander followed, it’s elemental heat and rage 
  setting the rich furnishings ablaze. As the creature raised 
  its molten spear to finish the celestial knight, a cold spike 
  thrust through its throat from behind, and it shuddered 
  and collapsed. Laying beyond the dead Guard, Sioban 
  had fallen, blistered and burned. The aasimar crawled to 
  her broken body, and placed his hand on her chest as the 
  light of his divine form faded.
     After the battle had passed, the Palace lay in ruins, 
  its Lord another ruin within. Sioban awoke to find her 
  body whole, and a single purple medallion on her chest- 
  bearing the sigil of a key upon a moon, and the outline 
  of a man in shadow. There was no sign of the winged 
  knight, and death lay all around her. She felt a nagging 
  voice calling her to the east, and so she went. Three 
  weeks she walked - when she thirsted, she found water, 
  when she wearied, shade found her, until she found a 
  cave in the Teeth of Calinsur, the great range stretch-
  ing to the northern shores of Porphyra. Oddly, the cave 
  possessed a door with a puzzle lock, matching the key 
  that she wore, and she entered. What passed within has 
  not been recorded, passed only down through the royal 
  family. When Sioban returned from the deep desert, she 
  began to gather her scattered people, and led them to 
  throw off the chains of the Genie Lords, and gain some 
  independence from their supposedly benevolent libera-
  tors - and to carve from the edge of the Siwath a state of 
  their own.
  Current Events
  New Wathis is not the most verdant of lands, but it 
  
  — 93 — 
  provides the last respite before the scorching maw of the 
  desert. Nestled into the rough foothills and stream val-
  leys, New Wathis holds many expansive cities, with their 
  white-washed walls, marbled plazas and hanging gardens 
  offering a memory of the once-paradise. However, all 
  that glisters is not gold. Though the secular, matriarchal 
  rule of New Wathis is not openly opposed, there are 
  those that would welcome a return to the Elemental rule 
  of old.   Though many temples abound, the gods that are 
  worshiped there are not clear, or are “family temples”, 
  not seeming to be dedicated to any New God at all. 
  Many still, on the equinoxes and solstices, see the offer-
  ings made as of old, tracing the rituals back to the days 
  of the Genies.
     Additionally, merchant guilds and trading houses  
  hold sway over entire cities, controlling the flax fields 
  of Jul’mase, the shipping of Cul’bit, and the subsidized 
  transport to the Holy City. All of this is under the direct 
  eye of the Mother of the True People, and it is said that 
  anything is available in Wathisia if one but have the 
  coin.
     Other remnants of the old have crept into the urban 
  underbelly of New Wathis as well. Ratfolk and living 
  ghouls, said to be the servants of the Mad Dancer Rajuk, 
  are known to prowl the gutters and twisted sewer mazes 
  of even the Holy City. And, if one chooses to see, mark-
  ings and graffiti abound, claiming territory in the name 
  of the secret societies of the shadow kingdoms.
  Settlements
  The major settlements of New Wathis are:
     Cul’bit is the busiest port on the Lost Sea, and has 
  the economic clout to prove it. It is home to the largest 
  number of Merchant Guild Houses and is the economic 
  powerhouse of New Wathis. One had best not brag of 
  the wealth of Blix while in its streets.
     Da’mulus, known as the Holy City rather ironically, 
  as its holiness is relevant specifically to those who engage 
  in elemental cultism. All that staves off a purge from 
  the north is the presence of the Doorway Cathedral of 
  Shankhil, and a plucky band of diplomat-Khilites that 
  try to keep the peace and suppress the more backward 
  rituals of the temple-ridden city.
     Jul’mase was one of the largest cities of the old days, 
  largely intact, and has an expansive urban sprawl. It is 
  also the seat of political power as well, being home to 
  the oldest families, including the current ruler who is a 
  direct descendant of Sioban the First.
     Wathisia is the capital of New Wathis, more compact 
  than Jul’mase but being ten times the population in 
  its irrigated towers. It is one of the newest cities in the 
  region, built with northern contributions to house the 
  defeated minions of the Elemental Lords. It is the heart 
  of the kingdom, both physically and metaphorically.
  Intrigues
  • 
  Rumor speaks of a child walking out of the deep 
  desert alone, into Jul’mase, during a sandstorm. She 
  spoke of the return of the Elemental Lords, and the 
  reclaiming of the ancient ways, before being spirited 
  away by the living ghouls of the sewers.
  • 
  Caravans to the Holy City are being raided – noth-
  ing particularly new - except that nothing is being 
  taken, and the mark of the Dark Mistress, whoever 
  that might be, is left at each site.
  • 
  There’s a run on spices in Cul’bit, and prices are 
  rising by the hour! Securing a wagonload of s’abarih 
  from the southern desert and getting to the port 
  before the full moon could make a quick party’s 
  fortune.
  
  — 94 — 
  Northlands
  “I done all four a’ the Red King’s gulags, and it never hurt 
  me none. Well, except maybe the fingers…” – ‘Thumbs’ 
  Johansson, thief for hire
  History
  The Northlands have always been a harsh and unforgiv-
  ing place. The NewGod Wars did not change that in 
  any positive way. The driving away of the Elemental 
  Lords only destabilized what passed for civilization 
  there, leading to a collapse of the tenuous links to the 
  south, not been completely restored to this day. Those 
  in the Northlands pursued a hardscrabble life, eking 
  out a living amongst the cold and rough terrain, try-
  ing to avoid predators, both two- and four-legged that 
  prowled the wastes. That all changed with the arrival of 
  the mercenary warlord who would become known as 
  the Red King. Moving carefully, the Red King betrayed 
  those who hired him and seized the Breakers as a base 
  of operations.   His forces, the Red Host, systematically 
  conquered the rest of the Northlands over the course 
  of a decade. Initially, settlements would resist and the 
  Red Host would slaughter the defenders and pillage the 
  place, but later, people just surrendered to the inevitable. 
  Irontown was the last major settlement to be brought 
  into the fold, capitulating when the Red King himself 
  hammered on the town gates.
     Powers of note that did not bow down to the Red 
  King were the Jarls of the Fire and Frost Giants, for even 
  the Red Host was not powerful enough to conquer the 
  Capital: The Red Tower
  Settlements: The Breakers (3,700), The Deeps 
  (4,050), Irontown (5,500), The Red Tower (850), 
  Salttown (2,800) The Gulags (100-300 each)
  Ruler: The Red King
  Government: Dictatorship
  Races: Dragonblood, Half-Orc, Half-Ogre, Hu-
  man, Ith’n Ya’roo, Orcam, assorted prisoners
  Faiths: Ferrakus, Ithreia, Myketa
  Resources: Dried fish, metal (iron, silver, zinc), 
  salt, stone (basalt, marble)
  Languages: Common, Giant, Ith’n yar’oo, Orc
  Border Conditions: Limited (Jheriak Continu-
  ance and Wyrm Quarter is protected by porphyrite 
  borders)
  Jarls in their fortresses. The Red King has shown them 
  his power, however, by destroying several small com-
  munities of giants that were isolated from their brethren. 
  Another area of curious defiance is the no-man’s land 
  known as The Wyrm’s Quarter, a porphyrite-barriered 
  region on the border with the Steppes that contains an 
  enigmatic extinct volcano and the surrounding hills, all 
  containing clear deposits of porphyrite. That a vastly 
  powerful dragon or clan of dragons has claimed this 
  territory is plain to all, but disagreements continue as to 
  its origin and nature. Some connect the dragons with 
  Paletius, who has a known affinity for the giant reptiles; 
  with an internal eruption of porphyrite (and the legend 
  of the Porphyrite Dragon); or with the erstwhile and 
  forbidden parentage of the Red King himself.
  Current Events
  Little is known about the Red King’s origin beyond the 
  obvious: he is an ogre mage with red draconic heritage, 
  massive and strong almost beyond imagining. His sheer 
  physical presence masks a cunning and varied intellect 
  that he rarely shows except to his closest associates. His 
  rule is distant for most of the villages across the land, but 
  harsh when defied - and the gulags are rarely less than 
  half-filled. The gulag system enforces the knowledge 
  that, as long as the taxes and proper respect are paid, the 
  Red Host does its best to keep the roads maintained and 
  safe, and keep giant raiders at bay. The mines, which 
  are the source of the Red King’s wealth and power, are 
  worked primarily by slaves, which the mines have con-
  stant demand for.
     The conflict with the giant Jarls continues at a low 
  level, with groups of giants raiding for plunder and the 
  Red Host trying to catch them before they can cause too 
  much damage. The people of the Northlands maintain 
  watch towers and hiding places to avoid being taken 
  unawares- and being taken as slaves. As the Red King has 
  finally seemed to age, after several hundred years, he has 
  begun to turn his eye outward from his obsessive control 
  of the Northlands to the Dry Peninsula; Kesh, Jengu-Na, 
  and the Lotus Blossom Steppes. The Sikoyan Tundra, a 
  natural muskeg-ridden barrier, has begun to see roads 
  built of basalt, and suppression of the nomadic Sikoy 
  people and their reindeer herds. If he decided to plunder, 
  say, the Yeti Wastes instead, the entire peninsula would 
  breathe a sigh of relief.
  
  — 95 — 
  Settlements
  The major settlements of the Northlands are:
     The Breakers, on the east coast of the Northlands, 
  has one of the very few good natural ports on the north 
  Opal Sea, but is located among a set of vicious rocks 
  and breakers. A pair of tall lighthouses, the Eyes of the 
  North, ensures that ships are guided safely into part. It is 
  the only trade-port out of the Northlands and it is home 
  to a considerable number of fisherman and merchants. 
  The Red Host maintains a strong navy here, with a wide 
  variety of shore batteries to defend against attack.
     The Deeps, probably the northernmost city on Por-
  phyra, exists to support a huge open pit mine that brings 
  up slabs of marble for export. Northland yaks pull the 
  stone to the Glace River where it is floated on rafts down 
  to The Breakers or unloaded under the Red Tower and 
  shipped by road. A Red Host fort, clad in marble frag-
  ments watches both the slave workers and for giant 
  raiders.
     The Gulags are prison camps used for disciplining Red 
  Host rule-breakers and civilian criminals alike: the rule 
  of slavery is for outlanders only. There are four of these 
  grim camps, and the price of parole after minimum sen-
  tence is leaving the gulag on foot.
  Gulag Black—For political and dangerous prison-
  ers, from all over the world, it is called the ‘Loneliest 
  Place on Porphyra’.
  Gulag Blue—More of a penal colony, holding debt-
  ors and families on the somewhat clement shores of 
  the Sea of Ithreia.
  Gulag Red—Almost exclusively for Red Host con-
  victs, it keeps an eye on the Jheriak Continuance, 
  and has twice been completely eradicated by would 
  be invaders.
  Gulag White—Built into a great calving glacier west 
  of the Continuance, convicts are roped up the sheer 
  sides, and slide their way out on sealskins that they 
  must hunt themselves.
     Irontown, source of the weapons and armor for the  
  Red Host, is completely walled, being the nearest major 
  settlement to the lands of the giant Jarls, within sight of 
  The Maw-volcanic capital of the fire giants and The Slab-
  glacial rift-home of the Ice Giants, land-bound cousins 
  to the maritime Frost Giants. Ballistae and catapults 
  festoon the ramparts of this Red Host recruitment town.
     The Red Tower is the home and headquarters of The 
  Red King, his trusted advisers, and his personal body-
  guard. Any ambassadors are met in outer buildings, as 
  the King keeps strange beasts and magic within.
     Salttown possesses an extensive network of tunnels be-
  neath it, with chambers, rooms, and even temples carved 
  out of the salt itself. The mines of Salttown are worked 
  by free townsfolk, using slaves for only the most danger-
  ous tasks. The Salttowners maintain a strong militia, led 
  by Ithreian rangers that cooperate with the Red Host in 
  defense of the town.
  Intrigues
  • 
  One of the few things the Red King needs is infor-
  mation, and it is something that he is willing to pay 
  well for. He is too cautious to trust any single source 
  of information, so reliable and effective spies will 
  find themselves well rewarded.
  • 
  The Red Host is always looking for brave scouts will-
  ing to locate and disrupt the forces of the Giant Jarls. 
  Those who prove themselves skilled in such tasks will 
  be provided with specialized anti-giant weaponry for 
  further missions.
  • 
  Gulag Black, the darkest hole on Porphyra, holds a 
  prisoner with information that is vital; so vital that 
  he needs to be found and rescued, from the ultimate 
  prison.
  
  — 96 — 
  Nor-Du-Mag
  “Here the world lived, here the world dreamed, here the 
  world bled, and here the world died.” - Travelogue of Muir 
  Zim the Mad 
  History
  In prehistory the Cloven Lands had another name; what 
  it was, or the origins of the kingdoms that were born and 
  died there are lost now even to the oldest of archives. 
  What does survive is the tale of how that realm became 
  known as the Dead Lands. In the Chronicles of Nox it 
  is recorded that Gormalgungrir, the Scaled King, the 
  Dreaming Serpent, came to power when he threw down 
  the Witchlord of the Cyclopes, Mo’ult, and devoured the 
  titan’s heart.
     Gormalgungrir fell into a deep slumber. At next day’s 
  dawn, a massive coliseum had appeared around the 
  Dragonlord. As time went on, the coliseum expanded, 
  and grand galleries, towering spires and sprawling ve-
  randas would appear. Pilgrims began to visit the resting 
  place of the venerable worm, for it was said that those 
  Capital: None
  Settlements: Dulguald (5000), Camp Trajere 
  (1000+)
  Ruler: None
  Government: Anarchy; clans within dwarf holds
  Races: Dwarf, Half-orc, Human, Squole, Zendiqi
  Faiths: Elemental Lords (any)
  Resources: Metal (copper, gold, iron, nickel, sil-
  ver), porphyrite
  Languages: Common, Dwarven, Giant, Old 
  Porphyran, Orc
  Border Conditions: Limited (A porphyrite border 
  surrounds the Middle Kingdoms to the east).
  Magic Conditions: A palpable ‘jolt’ is felt by 
  those who can cast spells when they enter Nor-
  Du-Mag. Magic items with continuous effects will 
  immediately fail. There is a full porphyrite border 
  to the east with the Middle Kingdoms. Magic 
  items and spells that bypass porphyrite borders will 
  work only to enter Nor-Du-Mag; they will not 
  facilitate leaving. Neither divine nor arcane magic 
  works within the borders.
  who spent time in contemplation within the Grand Col-
  iseum were gifted insight and inspiration. As the City 
  of the Dreaming Serpent filled, it grew, in spontaneous 
  response to the needs of its inhabitants. Artists, scholars, 
  sages, and practitioners of the arcane arts all came to 
  reside within the ever growing city. Towers of wizardry 
  formed, that spewed gouts of raw magic given liquid 
  reality. Libraries the size of city states held the collected 
  knowledge of the ancient world, defiant of the elemen-
  tal lords, and there resided the histories unnumbered in 
  arcane vaults designed to protect against the eons.
     As years passed, all that was once part of the realm 
  around the Grand Coliseum had been incorporated or 
  supplanted by the Living Arcology of Gormalgungrir, 
  until the land that existed beneath the vast structure was 
  remembered only in the Eldritch Vaults of the Obscure, 
  in tomes lost to the dusts of time. Rivaled in cataclysmic 
  scale only by the later The Calling and the NewGod 
  Wars, the Breaking would forever change the face of 
  ancient Porphyra. The why is lost, only that one who 
  bore a silver spear came to the Grand Coliseum not to 
  learn or seek quiet contemplation. Rather, to speak a 
  challenge. In the tongue of ancient Draconic, the flame-
  eyed stranger spoke words painful to all that heard. Such 
  were the power of the words that his jaw broke, and the 
  Ancient One, Gormalgungrir stirred.
     For the first time in strange eons the World Dragon 
  opened his eyes. The stranger staggered, his bones crack-
  ing under the weight of the serpentine gaze - yet he stag-
  gered forward and, in a blinding flash, drove the Spear of 
  Ul into the heart of the risen dragon lord.
     An observant librarian who teleported from the scene 
  gives us this fragment, and only accounts from neigh-
  boring kingdoms tells of what followed. A keening was 
  heard half a world away, and the sky whales of Tuthon 
  moaned in unison. The pitch rose until all that inhab-
  ited the Living Realm were struck dead, if not outright 
  vaporized. The whine was followed by a nova of light 
  and fire that rose into the sky to set the very heavens 
  ablaze. Those who looked upon the maelstrom for too 
  long were struck blind. In a heartbeat, it was gone. The 
  catastrophic eruption was over, the fire and light were 
  gone, the ear-splitting tintinnabulation was gone, and 
  the Living City was gone, everything that was once the 
  Gleaming Arcology of Gormalgungrir, and all who were 
  within were gone.
     Some of the most desperate campaigns of the elemen-
  
  — 97 — 
  talists, during the NewGod Wars, were held within the 
  borders of Nor-Du-Mag, but determined phalanxes of 
  Middlelanders ventured forth across the border to scatter 
  them, bloody skirmishes devoid of magical healing and 
  leadership. Many Middlelanders still call Nor-Du-Mag, 
  “The Bloodlands”. Small but ancient clans of zendiqi 
  hide in the canyons and wadis, and they, too, remember.
  Current Events
  Today the Cloven Lands are called Nor-Du-Mag, an 
  archaic elven word for ‘loss’. To look upon Nor-Du-
  Mag, it would appear to be a lifeless land, the world has 
  healed at least in part. Magic of any kind will not func-
  tion within the borders of the deadlands. Even after The 
  Calling and the coming of divine magic, Nor-Du-Mag 
  holds no succor for priest or faithful; a few charlatans 
  lead pseudo-cults to invoke the Elemental Lords, and the 
  shadows of deific memory. Yet even so, there are bas-
  tions within the broken land that offer shelter for those 
  desperate or foolish enough. Large deposits of shattered 
  porphyrite have lured many into the blasted landscape 
  in hopes of making a fortune. Remnants of giant tribes 
  make that hope rather faint, however.
     Dwarven mines and camps such as Whitehole and 
  Purplestone can be found scattered around the edges of 
  the edges of the realm, heavily fortified holds 
  welcome none but their own. Orc wargangs 
  from their own squalid tunnels prey on 
  those too eager and unprepared, or that 
  venture too far alone, Still, only the giant 
  clans and intrepid squole brave the far 
  reaches and heart of the dead lands and 
  they welcome none to their dim fires, 
  not even their former leaders, the 
  zendiqi. Ironically, these 
  northern peoples are 
  less xenophobic than 
  their erstwhile southern 
  brothers, probably due 
  to the removal of the 
  deist irritant. Nor-Du-
  Mag has also become a 
  haven for brigands and 
  outlaws, those that nothing 
  to lose, or have nowhere else 
  to run, especially from ecclesi-
  astic law. It is a land of lawless-
  ness, where one can have what one can take and has the 
  strength to keep. Nothing is given in Nor-Du-Mag, only 
  taken. That is the law of the Cloven Lands.
  Settlements
  The major settlements of Nor-Du-Mag are:
     Dulguald is the largest city within Nor-Du-Mag is the 
  dwarven mine-city of Dulguald. The heart of the hold 
  lies deep in the border mountains of the Cloven Lands, 
  yet the dwarves have tunneled a trade gate near the edge 
  of the dead lands. Dulguald is ruled by the Gold Coun-
  cil, rigidly legalistic in outlook, a far cry from the rest of 
  the dead lands.
     Several  mercenary leaders have set up semi-permanent 
  camps within the gravel shallows of southern Nor-Du-
  Mag; the largest of these is Camp Trajere, which can 
  trace its history to the NewGod Wars. As such, it bears a 
  sturdy keep and many siege engines to discourage giant-
  ish incursion.
  Intrigues
  • 
  A mercenary captain is claiming to possess the Spear 
  of Ul and is gathering a large number of follow-
  ers. What his target and goal is unknown, but the 
  Middlelanders are interested enough to put out a call 
  for adventurers.
  • 
  A druidic conclave seeks to 
  establish a bastion within the heart of 
  Nor-Du-Mag, with restorative magical 
  plans. They seek aid in reaching 
  their destination. 
  • 
  Rumors abound 
  that a great dragon, with 
  iridescent scales, has been 
  seen in the twilight skies 
  above the kingdom, 
  near Blix.
  
  — 98 — 
  Oncoming Wave of Mâl
  “You cannot stop the whispers when you get near those green 
  ichayaak, no matter what you do...” - Greyak the Earless, 
  hobgoblin marine
  History
  The hobgoblin empire of Karkoon was once a prosper-
  ous and thriving nation stretching across an archipelago 
  of a dozen islands in the Sea of Karkoon. Each island 
  thronged with well-armed and organized hobgoblins and 
  their various servant races; ‘domesticated’ goblins and 
  a few hives of dromites, the latter in a range of admin-
  istrative roles. Nominally at peace with their nearest 
  neighbors, Karkoon mercenaries were much in demand 
  especially their marines, as the island empire generated 
  hardened soldiers who were also at home on the water. 
     All of this changed when the NewGod Wars came to 
  Porphyra. When the elves and orcs split reality apart one 
  of the rifts opened in Karkoon, and through it came the 
  consuming forces of Mâl. Many of the surviving hob-
  goblins believe this to have been intentional: that the 
  ambitious elves feared their expanding civilization and 
  strong warriors and deliberately allowed one the most 
  hostile gods in the cosmos to gain a foothold in their 
  lands. This enmity continues to today. The elves them-
  selves vehemently deny this, and show as much revulsion 
  to Mâl as any race. Whoever is right, the end result was 
  the same: mâlites poured through the portal and brought 
  their sand-blasted, beetle-infested world with them. 
     The hobgoblins initially fared well against the mâlite 
  soldiers, but they failed to understand the purpose of the 
  glittering swarms of beetles that howled alongside them: 
  Capital: The Whispering City
  Settlements: Gateway (8,000), New Karkoon 
  (2,000), The Whispering City (12,000)
  Ruler: The Unknowable Concord of Mâlites
  Government: Druidic Theocracy
  Races: Dromite, Hobgoblin, Mâlites, Sahuagin
  Faiths: Ithreia, Lyvalia, Mâl, Nise, Poison Wave
  Resources: Resincraft, relics, shipcraft 
  Languages: Aquan, Common, Mâlite, Goblin
  Border Conditions: Inconsistent (Gateway is 
  surrounded by a porphyrite border. Other borders 
  change with the tides.)
  every mouthful the beetles took of Porphyra’s native 
  life was returned to Mâl and reformed into continually 
  adaptive war-beasts. As the hobgoblins began to fall in 
  battle the mâlite custodians devoured the corpses and 
  regurgitated them as more mâlites, and the tide began 
  to turn. With ever-increasing speed the mâlites spread 
  across the islands and where they went, their unnatural 
  weather went with them. Eventually the last survivors 
  of Karkoon boarded their ships and sailed for the open 
  Opal Sea, abandoning their homeland to the clutches of 
  the mâlite wave.
  Current Events
  The area now known as the Wave of Mâl—comprising 
  the territories of Karkoon and several miles of sea around 
  it—has been drastically transformed by the arrival and 
  work of the mâlites. The islands themselves have been 
  swathed in the green-gray sands of Mâl’s prison plane; 
  in some places the buildings of the old empire have been 
  completely buried, and in others they can be seen jutting 
  from the new terrain. The seas have become turbulent 
  and rough, with an unpleasant tinge—but aquatic life 
  continues to thrive. The sinister sahuagin are the most 
  notable sea race in the area, once the hobgoblins’ rival 
  for control of the place, and now are entangled in the 
  tension between the mâlites and the rest of the world as 
  neutral third parties loyal only to coin and their own sav-
  age kind.
     In the skies over the Wave an unnatural purple-green 
  storm blankets the sky at all times, allowing only fil-
  tered gray sunlight through during the day, and making 
  the nights pitch-black. No rain falls from this storm, 
  although lightning can be seen flickering from cloud to 
  cloud. The clouds only open at the behest of the mâlites 
  below, to facilitate the rain of the hard green resin that 
  the mâlites use to construct their buildings and weapons. 
  What the mâlites want is a mystery which the despots 
  of the other nations of Porphyra spend a lot of time 
  pondering. The alien creatures want the freedom of 
  their god, that much is clear, and they spread wherever 
  the armies and navies of other lands cannot drive them 
  back—but they are not relentlessly hostile, and can be 
  negotiated with under certain circumstances. In diplo-
  matic talks they show a hunger for knowledge of arcane 
  magic and its practitioners, perhaps due to the mâlites’ 
  own lack of skill with the arcane. Particularly unethical 
  slavers find that the mâlites pay well for sorcerers.
  
  — 99 — 
  Settlements
  The major settlements in the Oncoming Wave of Mâl 
  are:
     The Whispering City is the center of the mâlite infes-
  tation - a city of green resincraft buildings built directly 
  over the ruins of Kolat-Bal, the capital of old Karkoon. 
  Over ten thousand mâlites walk its streets, accompanied 
  by the swarms of beetles which are present wherever 
  mâlite corruption is heaviest. They are not, however, the 
  only inhabitants of the Whispering City – several other 
  nations, selected seemingly at random, have been given 
  leave to establish embassies there and treat with the 
  Unknowable Concord, the body of druids who interpret 
  Mâl’s will on Porphyra. Meantime, in the shadows, the 
  mâlites and the embassies probe each other in search of 
  weakness.
     Gateway is the site of the original tear in space which 
  allowed the armies of Mâl access to the world. The portal 
  remains, one of a very small number allowing transit to 
  Mâl’s prison. Now that the mâlites have a strong foot-
  hold on Porphyra the portal sees little use, but visible 
  on the other side are mountainous stacks of giant bones, 
  the biological material of the original mâlites. Gateway 
  is strongly defended by some of the most dangerous 
  mâlites yet created, but select arcanists have been allowed 
  to study the portal in exchange for their insights into the 
  ways of magic. Many do not survive but enough do for 
  knowledge of the prison of Mâl to trickle out.
     New Karkoon is little more than a heavily guarded 
  encampment populated by the last of the  hobgoblins 
  and dromites that refused to capitulate to the mâlites 
  and leave Karkoon. They developed alchemical processes 
  which ward off the omnipresent beetles. Powerful weath-
  er control magic keeps the storm from burying them 
  under mâlite resin. The mâlites vastly outnumber them, 
  but New Karkoon is entrenched in the mighty fortress 
  of Kadarach Fel, reinforced and redesigned in the face of 
  the extraplanar threat. Its scant thousands of guardians 
  could hold out against a force many times their number, 
  so the mâlites settle for keeping them contained. In the 
  meantime, the hobgoblins of New Karkoon gather their 
  strength and recruit mighty adventurers to their seem-
  ingly hopeless cause.
  Intrigues
  • 
  The PC’s ship, carried miles off course by a savage 
  storm is shattered on the rocks of an island now 
  controlled by the Wave of Mâl. The mâlites there are 
  hostile and unwilling to talk but the local sahuagin 
  are friendlier... for a price. They know where an old 
  Karkooni warship is moored in the ruins of a coastal 
  town - but what will they ask for in return?
  • 
  The nature of the Whispering City lends itself to 
  strange alliances and covert betrayals as nations 
  jockey for information and try to avoid the blunt 
  instrument of mâlite justice. As agents of one (or 
  more) of the national embassies there, the PCs are 
  up to their eyes in this shadow war.
  • 
  The hobgoblins of New Karkoon need allies, the 
  more powerful the better. PCs might be the ones 
  they seek, or they might be sent to carry messages 
  of friendship to distant potentates- perhaps even 
  beings on other planes. Of course, this is in between 
  defending the keep from mâlite aggression, strik-
  ing at targets in the Wave itself, and maintaining 
  a cramped keep of 2000 souls surrounded by the 
  enemy... There’s never a dull day in the resistance. 
  
  — 100 — 
  Parl Pardesh
  “A fast whip and a strong chain can make slaves of sover-
  eigns.” – Kaava-Ji, Stallion-Apparent
  History
  Parl Pardesh has seen many races and banners come 
  and go in the history of life on the steppes. The only 
  great change, before the coming of the New Gods, was 
  the race of the oppressors. The Parl has always been a 
  slave state, a nation where the strong rule the weak and 
  strength is defined as much by the quality of one’s horse 
  as by might of arms.
     In the misty centuries before and about The Calling, 
  there is a mention of a great nation from ‘across the sea’ 
  arriving with strange servitors and magic, bringing gaudy 
  gifts of tribute to subjugate the land to that ancient 
  empire - the erkunae of Erkusaa, and the Opal Throne. 
  The children of Chaos had a modest cavalry on their 
  invasion ships, and steel weapons - more advanced than 
  the foot travel and stone weapons of the shaggy hill folk, 
  who sometimes traveled the steppes in dog-drawn sleds. 
  En masse, the tribesmen of Parl Pardesh swarmed the 
  pale newcomers, killed but a handful of them and took 
  everything aboard their vessels. The people of the Parl in-
  tended to load the survivors into their ships and set fire 
  to them, sending their blood and blasphemies to their 
  lords of Fire and Water.
     In a move of surprising ingenuity, the warlord of one 
  tribe fought for the right to speak to the elders in charge. 
  After defeating three other warlords in challenge, he 
  presented his plan: “Let this little group take one ship 
  and leave. They have seen only a few of us, and when 
  they return to their homeland, many more vessels will 
  Capital: Ush’tahai
  Settlements: Ush’tahai (20,000), Ush’naar (2,000), 
  Ush’ograh (1,000)
  Ruler: Grand Stallion Kaava-Kamus
  Government: Totalitarian military state
  Races: Goblin, Grippli, Half-Ogre, Hobgoblin
  Faiths: Ashamar Shining, Enor Ashlord, Kamus, 
  Poison Wave, Rolterra, Tulis, Wind of Jewels
  Resources: Horses, livestock, porphyrite
  Languages: Boggard, Common, Giant, Goblin
  Border Conditions: None.
  come with soldiers and four-foots and weapons to scour 
  us from the world.”
     When the elders questioned this madness, the warlord, 
  who styled himself Stallion after the wondrous animals 
  they quickly came to use, revealed the rest of his plan. 
  All the tribes would be called to the spear, united by the 
  promise of steel, horse, and slaves by the thousand. If 
  they killed all of the newcomers now, all they would gain 
  would be a few horses and a wagon full of steel, if they 
  waited, they would have enough horses and slaves to 
  breed and create an empire. The elders agreed.
     The next season, the Erkusaans came in full force, and 
  faced the whole of the humanity of the steppes, and 
  were totally destroyed—this was the turning point in the 
  downfall of the Empire of the Opal Throne. The Stallion 
  became Grand Stallion of Parl Pardesh, a title that con-
  tinues to this day. The unity of the tribes survived two 
  centuries of war, famine and trials, depending on tradi-
  tion and honor, the rules of life in an animist state that 
  rejected the New Gods and elemental lords alike. 
     This led to their Horselords’ downfall, a combination 
  of equitable ruthlessness, and the backing of a god. The 
  displaced hobgoblins of Karkoon, skilled in war and 
  newly devoted to their harsh savior Kamus the Slaver, 
  landed in strength not far from the Bones of Erkunor, 
  and swiftly made alliance with the  secretive ogres and 
  their magi from the southern hill-caves. The power of 
  Kamus blinded the agnostic Pardeshi, and a war of races 
  began that continued for a century. By the time the war 
  fires faded, every last human in the Parl was dead or 
  enslaved, food and chattel for the humanoid hordes now 
  in command of their nation. Now the Parl is a human-
  oid kingdom with a hobgoblin Grand Stallion, wearing 
  a crown of porphyrite, and ruling from the Windswept 
  Throne in the name of Kamus the Slaver.
  Current Events
  After recovering and consolidating their own kingdom, 
  the hobgoblins, rarely content, are coldly eyeing neigh-
  boring nations and lands in preparation of invasion and 
  conquest. Fine weapons of porphyrite, trained horses, 
  and crack troops drill under ambitious generals, and the 
  fires of war begin to burn again.
     Growing discontent among the creatures lurking in the 
  hills has become a problem in recent years. The ogres, 
  largely happy to serve as enforcers for the hobgoblins, 
  have interbred with their ogre magi leaders for many 
  
  — 101 — 
  generations. This has slowly increased their average intel-
  ligence to the point where they have begun to question 
  the right to rule of the smaller despots. If strength of arm 
  is the whole of the law in the Parl, surely no hobgoblin is 
  as strong as even the weakest ogre. This mode of thought 
  is not limited to the ogrish folk.
     Hill giants, of whom there are several families living in 
  the porphyrite-buttressed steading halls near the Retreat, 
  are growing larger than the hobgoblins’ tribute of live-
  stock and grain can support. Eventually they will have 
  to negotiate for greater offerings, or arm themselves and 
  take what they need. The latter is more likely.
  Settlements
  The major settlements of Parl Pardesh are:
     Ush’naar exists purely as a necessity, a ‘breed 
  city’ overseen by Kamian clerics, a gathering 
  place for slaves, intended to ensure more gen-
  erations of servants for the tribes. It is here that 
  goblins and grippli are forced to mate, and their 
  offspring removed for fosterage and indoctrination 
  on other estates.
     Ush’ograh is a stone and cave city given to the ogres 
  as their reward for helping the hobgoblins defeat their 
  human rivals generations ago. While it is the ogres’ pri-
  mary homeland now and considered private, hobgoblin 
  shamans are allowed to visit if they are studying with the 
  ogre magi and learning the ancient ways of elemental 
  magic.
     Ush’tahai is a massive tent city visible for miles in 
  all directions because of its position at the heart of 
  the steppes’ widest plain, and its many bright-colored 
  banners. On a windy day, Ush’tahai looks almost afire, 
  burning in every fluttering color of the spectrum. As well 
  as capital, it is home to the Parl’s largest slave market, its 
  most advanced porphyrite forges, and all the best horse 
  ranches. The Grand Stallion of the Parl makes his home 
  here, along with the cores of all his armies.
  Intrigues
  • 
  The lessons of the past may be about to come back 
  to haunt the hobgoblins of the Parl. Kamus’ voice 
  is being heard in quiet whispers in the depths 
  of Ush’naar, urging the goblins and grippli to 
  make a play for their freedom. While this may 
  all be a test to see if the hobgoblins are still 
  fit to rule, it may soon result in an attempted 
  uprising among the slave races.
  • 
  While the hobgoblin hordes stayed within their 
  own borders, other gods were willing the leave them 
  be. Now that they are raiding, the truce is broken. 
  Forces inspired by Tulis and Rolterra, unlikely al-
  lies, are organizing resistance and incursion, and are 
  requiring many resources- especially heroes.
  • 
  Rumors persist that the ogre magi of Ush’ograh 
  have been twisting the native wyvern eggs with their 
  darkly shamanistic magic, creating larger beasts 
  called wyvrath. Though the process often ends in 
  failure, wyverns large enough for ogres to ride can re-
  ally mean only one thing. The Grand Stallion wishes 
  them stopped, but cannot do so openly - outside 
  agents are the preferable thing. 
  
  — 102 — 
  Pinnacle Lands
  “Heart of iron, mind of steel.” - Words spoken before each 
  Council of Nine Meeting
  Capital: Artax’s Stand
  Settlements: Artax’s Stand (6,000), Benvie 
  (2,500), Calicarn (950), Lissa (5,000), Riverhold 
  (2,500) 
  Ruler: The Council of Nine
  Government: Democratic council
  Races: Duergar, Elan, Human, Maenad, Xeph
  Faiths: Ferrakus
  Resources: Education, gems, iron, minerals
  Languages: Common, Maenad, Undercommon, 
  Xeph
  Border Conditions: None
  History
  For years, the island kingdom of Sharira was a land of 
  two distinct classes. About half of those born to the 
  human majority were psionics. It was generally believed 
  that heritage had a significant effect on the chances of 
  being born with psionic powers. Families of human 
  psionics were common, with servant houses of xeph and 
  trade houses of duergar and maenad creating power-
  ful alliances. It was considered a great dishonor to have 
  children with no psionic ability, with rumors that some 
  families would abandon those without to the maenad 
  ships or the duergar mines than face the disgrace. The 
  ‘mindless’, as they were called, were little more than 
  chattel to the psionics. Low-born children born with 
  psionics were often ‘bought’ and whisked away to be 
  placed with a family of minor nobility.
     There was, however, one man who believed that this 
  was wrong. His name was Gregory Kinser, from the 
  town of Riverhold. He was born with no psionic powers, 
  but a brilliant mind. He desired to become more than a 
  miner and a slave to people he had never met. In secret, 
  he planned an uprising. The first goal was to develop 
  something to reduce the advantage of the psionicists. 
  Years of study, design, and collaborative enchantment 
  came up with the copper signet. ‘Mindless’ men-at-arms 
  prepared an army ready to fight for freedom, while craft-
  ers prepared hundreds of signets; it is a miracle of either 
  caution or indifference that the copper was not missed 
  by the mine overseers.
     Some say the duergar had their own inscrutable 
  agenda... 
     The uprising was sudden, bloody, and harsh. Gregory 
  Kinser led thousands of men from east to west, capturing 
  half of the island before the psionics rallied. Hundreds 
  died in the first assault, but, at center of the nation, a 
  stalemate occurred. The psionics didn’t have enough 
  men to push back the assault, and the xeph and maenad 
  houses declared neutrality. Kinser’s troops were likewise 
  exhausted. The bloody middle ground remained for over 
  180 years, with skirmishers fought on and off, to try and 
  gain ground. Had the signets been totally effective, it 
  may have been the end of all psionics in the land.
     It was on a hill in this no-man’s land that a flag of 
  truce was finally raised. Artax Sands III went to meet 
  Bartholomew Kinser: one the Supreme Commander of 
  the psionic army and part of the ruling council, and the 
  other a descendant of Gregory Kinser, and current leader 
  of the Coppermen, as they styled themselves. They met 
  to discuss peace. Six months later, the Artax-Kinser 
  Treaty was signed. Rule of law was embodied in the 
  Council of Nine; 4 psionics, (typically human or elan 
  but occasionally xeph or maenad) and four non-psionics, 
  elected for four-year terms from the four cardinal direc-
  tions. A numistian company handles the elections.  The 
  Ninth member of council is one of “The One Mind” 
  psionic-immune monks from the Silent Monastery 
  whose sole role is to cast a deciding ninth vote on an im-
  passe. Though the island still keeps the name of Sharira, 
  the new accord was named the Pinnacle Lands, with the 
  goal of achievement through cooperation.
     Problems did occur. ‘Mindless’ citizens, desiring an-
  nihilation of their overlords, abandoned the amity of 
  the Coppermen and became The Bronze League, and 
  ever since have lurked in the lowest levels, brutish and 
  destructive. The psionicists still maintained places like 
  Hightower College, where surgical experiments were 
  carried out to improve psionicis. A terrible accident oc-
  curred two hundred years ago, causing a massive dimen-
  sional rift and causing unspeakable psionic monsters to 
  escape. All there perished. Though the Bronze League 
  has been blamed, it is still a sticking point in the way of 
  the Pinnacle Lands’ destiny.
  Current Events
  It has been over five hundred years since the ancestral 
  
  — 103 — 
  war. Non-psionics are now treated as equals, and the 
  war’s end is celebrated on Treaty Day as reminder of the 
  gains and losses. Some still cling to old hatreds, but few 
  dare cause tensions again. Both castes are now com-
  pletely dependent on each other, and the non-human 
  races have strengthened their positions even further. The 
  island’s economic survival depends on industry and min-
  ing, while government, diplomatic affairs, and handling 
  of psionic horrors are overseen by the psionic caste.
     Non-psionics are seen walking the halls of the colleges, 
  and it is not unusual to find proud psionic craftsmen. 
  A pride has blossomed between the two groups for the 
  hard-won success of The Pinnacle Lands - and eyes are 
  drifting to nearby shores in the name of conquest. No 
  solution has been found yet to close the rift that still sits 
  within Hightower- and until that source of psionic hor-
  rors is sealed, the country will just slowly grind forward. 
  It isn’t unknown for entire villages to be lost due to these 
  creatures, so much of the military is focused inwards 
  rather than indulge goals overseas. There are still those 
  who are sympathetic to the old ways on both sides, and 
  it is here that the Bronze League flourishes.
     The Council of Nine still holds strong, thanks to 
  the involvement of The One Mind, but 
  nobody is sure how the alliance would 
  hold, should they choose to step away. 
  No one is sure of their agenda, either.
  Settlements
  The major settlements in the Pinnacle 
  Lands are:
     Artax’s Stand is the major hub 
  of the island nation, the town was 
  built around the council chambers 
  that were built in the same spot that 
  Artax sat with Bartholomew Kinser to 
  bring peace to the nation. The Council 
  meets here and all of the government’s 
  administrative duties are completed 
  here. Due to the number of staff 
  required to keep a country going, 
  a rather large town has grown up 
  around Artax’s Stand.
     Benvie is one of the more famous 
  college centers in southern Porphyra, 
  it is known for studies in industrial, 
  alchemical, and mechanical devel-
  opment. While aloof to outsiders, there has been much 
  traffic between the Benviens and the secretive Clock-
  work-landers of the Beta Enclave as of late.
     Calicarn is a large mining center, and most of the 
  smaller camps and towns in the northern mountains call 
  here to sell their wares. There is a large duergar contin-
  gent in Calicarn, which lends the town a gloomy air. 
     Riverhold was once a minor town used a staging post 
  for the ancestral war, as the country starts to grow River-
  hold is becoming more and more industrial. Smiths flock 
  to this city for the knowledge of crafting and excellent 
  facilities provided there, and the town has the nickname 
  “The Furnace” due to the number of forges that run day 
  and night there.
     Lissa is the magical college hub of the south, if you 
  believe the Lissans. The town is built around the college 
  that stands in its center, and is known for the excellent 
  educational facilities there- even several ‘Centers of Con-
  centration’ for the development of psionic ability.
  Intrigues
  • 
  Reports from Calicarn say that a mine breach has 
  opened a new set of caverns, and the surrounding 
  porphyrite glow suggests an access to the Un-
  derdeep. The mine owners want adventurers 
  to investigate, as too many miners are going 
  missing.
  • 
  The Bronze League has resurfaced 
  in the northwest and have claimed a 
  small town in the foothills near Cali-
  carn. The Bronze League has never 
  attacked this close to a major city, 
  and the Council have called upon 
  mercenaries to investigate what 
  the Bronze League are doing, 
  and put a stop to their plans.
  • 
  A team of scholars have 
  supposedly found a solution to 
  the rift that was opened in Hight-
  ower and are looking for adventurers 
  to protect them while they close the rift, 
  The Council of Nine have insisted, how-
  ever, that four elans accompany the group 
  - three of which are guards to the fourth. 
  Their purpose on the trip is unknown.
  
  — 104 — 
  Purple Mountain
  “Elephys, the sacred mountain of The Twilight Man, the 
  towering crystal spire of enigmatic wealth and discovery… 
  or lonely death…” – fragment from an ancient elven 
  waysign
  History
  Before the time of The Calling, the lands between the 
  Stygus River and the Fireyes were a barren volcanic ta-
  bleland from which the Elemental Magma Lord Drothos 
  extended his power into the world. During the time of 
  the NewGod Wars, he visited earthquakes and volcanic 
  eruptions upon his deist foes. Too great a foe to ignore, 
  warlike Ferrakus and enigmatic Shankhil slew Drothos 
  in an epic battle that created the create the Crevasse, 
  shattered the Petrified Forest, and sundered Drothos’ 
  body with the rising of Elephys, Purple Mountain, as full 
  of mystery as the Doorman himself. With Drothos dead, 
  the connection to the elemental plane of magma was 
  gone, leaving an endless maze of empty magma tubes, 
  and the porphyrite badlands known as the Shard Wastes. 
  Within that violet moonscape, the gathered arcanists 
  raised Eleporphyrene, the Castle-City as a victory monu-
  ment for the subsequent settlers to inhabit. 
     With the destruction of Drothos, the land surrounding 
  Purple Mountain began to flourish, and many wizards, 
  Ferrakan dwarflords, and would-be kinglets came to the 
  mountain to plumb its otherworldly riches and claim 
  Capital: Eleporphyrene
  Settlements: Eleporphyrene (12,000), Elfport 
  (4,000), Luminarym (7,000), Mechius (6,500), 
  Oseer (6,000), Purple Hall (2,000) 
  Ruler: Eminaius the Old, Oligarch of the Synod 
  Government: Oligarchy
  Races: Boggle, Duergar, Elf, Erkunae, Half-Orc, 
  Hobgoblin, Orc
  Faiths: Djinnlord Qarryn, Drothos, Ferrakus, 
  Linium, Myketa, Najim, Tulis, Veiloaria
  Resources: Gems, megadungeon, mercenaries, 
  metal (iron, gold), porphyrite
  Languages: Dwarf, Elf, Goblin, Orcish, Protean, 
  Undercommon
  Border Conditions: Variant (Porphyrite border 
  around the mountain expands and contracts un-
  predictably)
  their little kingdoms. Vast forests grew in the volcanic 
  soil and the elves, who had previously shunned the area, 
  began to colonize the wild lands, as the reparations of 
  war; they took over Eleporphyrene, and have dwelt there 
  ever since.
     Others came as well, including expeditions from far 
  off lands in search of wealth and porphyrite. Among 
  the newcomers were orc tribes and bands of displaced 
  hobgoblins and erkunae from the shattered empires of 
  Erkusaa and Karkoon.
  Current Events
  A schism has been growing between the great elven 
  houses of Eleshurius, Galifrex, and Odallas for the past 
  dozen decades or so, that threated to tear the region 
  apart. House Odallas is building ties to the mountain 
  dwarves and duergar in an attempt to sway their sup-
  port. House Eleshurius has established a secret alliance 
  with the expatriate erkunae of Elfport to raise an army 
  of elementals, and House Galifrex has been breeding 
  hobgoblin super-soldiers for generations.
     The elven people are dwindling in numbers and losing 
  vitality. The younger generations of elves, indolent from 
  centuries of security, show little interest in civic duty and 
  instead invest their time and energy in decadent, pleasur-
  able pursuits, far removed from their primal forest roots. 
  The orc clans, meanwhile, despise the weakness that has 
  infected their old elven allies and are distancing them-
  selves in preparation for securing their own kingdom in 
  the west or retreating into the Shard Wastes and hinter-
  lands of the Petrified Forest to pursue their own goals 
  beyond the view of others.
     The duergar and lesser dwarves serve the Elven Synod 
  and supply porphyrite arms and high quality iron armor 
  to them. They are happy in their role as intermediaries 
  between the elves and the true source of genius, hid-
  den cadres of boggles. Many duergar youth are growing 
  rebellious and jealous of their elven benefactors, going 
  so far as to adopt elven styles and culture, much to the 
  consternation of their elders.
     The draw of the honeycombed halls of Purple Moun-
  tain has been a boon to the nation whose official name 
  Ele’Kireen, but the secret depths of the violet spire have 
  become more trouble than they are worth, attracting 
  foul acolytes of dire beings instead of stalwart adventur-
  ers to root them out. The people of the outlying com-
  munities have never been crazy about a ‘dungeon’ as a 
  
  — 105 — 
  draw for foreign coin, and may force the leaders to do 
  something, soon.
  Settlements
  The major settlements of the Purple Mountain are:
     Eleporphyrene, the fairytale castle-city in the midst of 
  the Shard Wastes, houses the Elven Synod, a chaotic mix 
  of clan leaders, arcane and divine spellcasters, and lob-
  byists for the three Houses of Ele’Kireen. Most supplies 
  and diversions are magically created here, and the city is 
  described as surreal in the extreme, self-contained and 
  introspective.
     Elfport is as seedy a seaport as ever has been seen on 
  the Bay of Smoke. Gritty, grubby, and densely built, in 
  the tradition of the erkunae that dominate the place, 
  ancestors of an exiled House of G’sho’laa’n’rr. Its trade 
  is mostly with adventurers, as Kelephae and Calopia are 
  more desirable ports.
     Luminarym is the ancient seat of the House Eleshur-
  ius. This city of stone rises from the domain of the fallen 
  Elemental Lord and extends out into the shattered Petri-
  fied Forest beyond. Elven youth from all over the region 
  flock to the dens of iniquity in the Dark District 
  of the city.
     Mechius, hewn from the cliffs of the Great 
  Crevasse near the Purple Mountain itself, 
  is known everywhere as a city of invention. 
  Wonders of artifice from the duergar flow 
  up and out into the world through its gates. 
  The city sprawls out eastward into the plains 
  above and the fortress of House Odallas sits 
  atop the city, as its crown. It guards the only 
  easy route from the west side of the Crevasse 
  to the east.
     Oseer—a city of commerce—is the 
  gateway to the prosperous 
  lands of the south. 
  Constant 
  activity 
  ensures this 
  city never 
  sleeps. It 
  is bus-
  tling with 
  travelers 
  and merchants 
  preparing for, or 
  recovering, from the long journey, thousands of whom 
  regularly crowd around the tall walls in vast tent cities.
     Purple Hall has long been the seat of House Galifrex 
  and the gathering point for those delving into
  Purple Mountain’s mysterious regions seeking fortune 
  and fame. The hobgoblin fortress of Thik-Khalis sits 
  athwart the western rim of the Great Crevasse leading 
  into the depths of the wild underworld of Purple Moun-
  tain. Three hobgoblin brigades maintain barracks and 
  training grounds around the fortress.
  Intrigues
  • 
  Myketan priests from House Galifrex recently dis-
  covered a cabal of erkunae elementalists operating in 
  Purple Hall. They are convinced that this is a plot by 
  House Odallas and are openly calling adventurers to 
  “investigate”. Signs point to the mines of Mechius, 
  but House Odallas has forbidden adventurers to 
  enter the mines on pain of death.
  • 
  Duergar youth have been disappearing and they 
  blame House Galifrex and its insistence that an 
  elemental incursion has occurred beneath Mechius. 
  The duergar elders have called on adventurers to 
  locate and return their youth and punish those who 
  stole them.
  • 
  The chief of the Bladesaber Orc tribe 
  died in glorious battle during an expedition to 
  the Petrified Forest. His guard was able to return 
  his remains but the magical totem he bore was 
  lost. The orcs are so desperate that they have 
  called on the Adventurer’s guild in Luminarym 
  to aid them in its retrieval.
  
  — 106 — 
  Pygmy Nations
  “These small ones have a remarkable facility for the art of 
  treachery- the so-called ‘big’ folk have much to learn from 
  them.” - Garn Shei-dei, Agent of Eshshalqua
  History
  Far from the eyes of civilization, on the savage Land of 
  Steam, is a Landed country that was once the pinnacle 
  of a world. Long before The Calling, this land had been 
  one of progress and technology. Towers of stone and 
  glass touched the skies; undrawn vehicles sped through 
  its streets - and a single weapon could destroy a city.    
  Marvels were so common that the people that lived there 
  began to take them for granted. Their caution towards 
  new advancements waned, and one day, they created a 
  marvel that they could not survive. The dromites believe 
  it was a power source, while the goblins hope it was a 
  weapon, and still is somewhere about.
     Regardless of purpose, the land and its people fell. 
  Something was triggered in this land of endless city that 
  left a deep scar in the heart of the earth. Some speak 
  of magic-dead areas, and fissures in the fabric of real-
  ity – the fast-growing jungle conceals all, until the last, 
  fatal moment. In the wake of this cataclysm, the city 
  was left abandoned. The metropolis filled to the brim 
  with marvels was empty, hollow - and nature is patient. 
  Doubtless encouraged by the bestial nature of the bizarre 
  god Eshsalqua, animals made their dens, stone cracked, 
  and plants grew forth. The endless city became entwined 
  within an endless jungle. Trees that put the towers to 
  Capital: Where the World Fell
  Settlements: Brik (6,000), Deep Den (3,000), 
  Highcroak (5,000), Throne (4,000), Where the 
  World Fell (1,500)
  Rulers: HiveQueen K’zt Rr’n’vzt (dromite), 
  Slaveboss Goad Forktongue (goblin), Arch-shaman 
  Kwi-Kwi (kobold), Chief Bullgup (grippli)
  Government: Tribalism
  Races: Dromite, Goblin, Grippli, Kobold
  Faiths: Chiuta, Dragons, Eshsalqua
  Resources: Dragon goods, lumber, metals (gold, 
  iron, silver), relics, slaves
  Languages: Boggard, Common, Draconic, Goblin
  Border Conditions: Limited (Surrounded by an 
  intermittent porphyrite border)
  shame spread their leaves, hiding the streets from the sky. 
  Lichen spread across steel vehicles as if they were nothing 
  more than boulders.
     Small creatures that were once pets and vermin 
  thrived, repopulating the hollow places where the lost 
  once tread. By the time of The Calling, when opportu-
  nistic Eshsalqua brought this fallen land to Porphyra, 
  four tribal races inhabited this land. There were the Gold 
  Lords, goblins who would trade discarded metal with the 
  world beyond in exchange for slaves to do their work for 
  them; the Red Claw kobolds, mystics who worshiped gi-
  ant scaled creatures that did not live on their own world; 
  the Seekers, a dromite hive-tribe living in ruins trying to 
  discover the secrets of their predecessors; and finally the 
  Quiet Ones, grippli pathfinders that lived in the trees 
  and marshes.
     The goblins were always slavers, but not always the 
  Gold Lords. A naturally selfish and lazy people, they 
  used to hunt and prey on members of other tribes and 
  races. It wasn’t until the curious Quiet Ones made 
  contact with the colonists of Californ and The Enclave 
  that the value of the shiny metal known as gold reached 
  goblin ears. Seeing opportunity in the oversized outsid-
  ers, the goblin tribe quickly traded the metal for bigger, 
  stronger slaves. Some of the merchant folk were secret 
  Agents of Eshsalqua, and injected that insidious faith 
  into the goblin society, as well. The goblins struck out 
  at other tribes, calling themselves the Gold Lords. The 
  shifting array of alliance and dominance has been the 
  reality of the Pygmy Nations ever since then.
  Current Events
  The Gold Lords are probably the most active and visible 
  faction in the Pygmy Lands, and are somewhat emblem-
  atic of the place; sailors will often refer to the place as 
  “The Goblin Towers” or “The Goblin Lands”.  This is 
  probably due to their wretched little egos and the fact 
  that they will pay handsomely for slaves, even to the 
  point of setting up crude piers for the purpose of obtain-
  ing them from passing ships.  The grippli, kobolds and 
  dromites would probably prefer that the goblins get their 
  slaves from outside the land rather than from their own 
  ranks, so they probably influence the practice, preferring 
  to buy magical and martial goods from passers-by, point-
  ing the slavers to the goblin piers.  The tribes are fairly 
  wealthy, so trade brings a fair amount of “big folk” to the 
  place.
  
  — 107 — 
     The Red Claws often try to ally with the goblins in 
  hopes of dividing the spoils, but the goblins usually 
  betray their erstwhile friends at some critical point. In  
  response, the Seekers constantly send embassy to the 
  Quiet Ones, but are regularly refused. The grippli prefer 
  to keep to themselves, and are more than capable of 
  avoiding any potential aggressors. Fortunately for the 
  dromites, they have the largest population in the jungle, 
  and their collective knowledge of the ruins they dwell 
  in make it easy to fortify or flee, as the need be. It has 
  proved impossible for any ‘big people’ wishing to enter 
  the region to do so without becoming wrapped up in the 
  war of politics—and blades—between the tribes.
  Settlements
  The major settlements of the Pygmy Nations are:
     Brik, capital of the dromite Seekers, is inside a tower 
  so tall it extends above the jungle canopy. Using their 
  mining and building skills, the dromites have forti-
  fied the tower against enemies without and below, in 
  the many tunnels they have dug for their HiveQueen, 
  searching for ancient artifacts of the past. Only she may 
  dwell on high and look from the myriad crystal win-
  dows.
      Deep Den is the preferred haunt of the kobolds, dark 
  and tricky. Though the jungle canopy shades all from the 
  sun, the tunnels beneath the surface fallen city are where 
  the ‘little dragons’ call home. Built from marble, and 
  containing odd metal tracks, Clocklanders muse that it 
  was once a transit center: whatever it once was, it is now 
  the center of the strange dragon-religion practiced by the 
  fervent kobolds.
     Highcroak is the hub of the Quiet Ones, who live in 
  the marshes where the jungle is drained by fertile pools. 
  The capitol combines the beauty of marsh and tree, us-
  ing a series of walkways and dwellings both in and out of 
  the water. The omnipresent ruins have long since sunk, 
  giving the grippli the impression that the jungle had 
  always been there.
     Throne, the domain of the Gold Lords, where they 
  fancy themselves the master of the region, building their 
  capitol atop the spindly abandoned towers. The paranoid 
  goblins like to look down on others, and it helps to see 
  potential prey or threats from afar. The name of the place 
  refers to what those who displease the goblin bullies will 
  “get...”
     Where the World Fell is a neutral ground agreed upon 
  by all tribes. Such a place was needed for times when 
  tribal leaders must meet without expecting ambush, and 
  for trading with outsiders-who find its location rather 
  unsettling; the enormous crater at the center of the 
  region. The jungle does not grow there, giving a bet-
  ter look at the surviving ruins. This area has become an 
  unofficial embassy, as visitors keep to the crater to avoid 
  local tribal wars.
  Intrigues
  • 
  The Seekers believe that the Gold Lords have found 
  a cache of weaponry left behind by the inhabitants 
  of the Old World. They are enthusiastically hiring or 
  coercing those brave enough to investigate. 
  • 
  A Red Claw shaman has enacted an elaborate ritual 
  to summon a dragon to Where the World Fell... 
  where did they learn such magics? Will the great 
  wyrm lead them to conquer the surrounding, ner-
  vous, tribes?
  • 
  An outsider of beautiful mien has taken up residence 
  with a group of dromites that believe he holds the 
  secret to unlocking the past; instead he has become 
  drunk on adoration, and power...
  
  — 108 — 
  Pyynian Coast
  “The Pyynian Coast did not land so much as it crashed, and 
  the inhabitants never recovered from the impact.”- Alba 
  Tangarios, maenad philosopher
  History
  It is said that long ago, before the Pyynian Coast came 
  to Porphyra, it was inhabited by an intelligent, inquisi-
  tive people who believed that the rewards of discovery 
  far outweighed any consequences. This was all that 
  Vortain, the Bringer of Chaos, needed. The god of 
  corruption and excess slowly but surely worked its way 
  into the moorings of Pyynian society and began to loose 
  them one at a time. The ancient culture descended into 
  decadence and madness so gradually that no one seemed 
  to mind. By the time Vortain had finished, a culture of 
  scholars and scientists had degraded into one of tribal 
  warfare, addiction, cannibalism, and sentient sacrifice. 
  As the incumbent plane of reality shattered from his fo-
  cused influence, Vortain decided to take his masterpiece 
  with him to his newest target—Porphyra—to show the 
  inhabitants what awaited them. Within hours of landing 
  after The Calling, the Pyynian Coast’s patron abandoned 
  its creation, leaving it a monument to overindulgence, 
  decay, and debauchery. From the jungles that surround-
  ed the dying civilization greedy eyes looked on with 
  interest, seeing not what was, but what could be. 
     Two factions existed before The Calling. In the north-
  ern swamps and bayous were the Children of Akuram 
  Capital: Dravi Ankor
  Settlements: Dravi Ankor (30,000)
  Rulers: Vhir Martaram the 28th, Raja of the 
  Pyynian Coast
  Government: Oligarchic monarchy, anarchic tribal 
  in the jungles
  Races: Anumus, Dhampir, Half-Harpy, Half-
  Ogre, Orc, Half-Rakshasa, Human, Skulk, Tief-
  ling
  Faiths: Mâl, Shade, Ul’Ul, Vortain
  Resources: Drugs, slaves, spices
  Languages: Abyssal, Common, Giant, Orc, Un-
  dercommon
  Border Conditions: Restricted (A full porphyrite 
  border surrounds the Pyynian Coast)
  Natal, a society of vampires and dhampir that subsisted 
  on the the local tribes. In the southern jungles was the 
  Adrani, a people composed primarily of half-rakshasa 
  and tieflings of particularly obnoxious parentage. Both 
  quickly took to the worship of Shade when that godling 
  manifested himself, and both wanted the intact part of 
  the Pyynian Coast. The architecture, with its step pyra-
  mids, lotus seed shaped towers, ziggurats and stone roads 
  were too beautiful and impressive to let the jungle claim, 
  and the inhabitants were too valuable as slaves and suste-
  nance to simply slaughter. As Vortain had done centuries 
  before, the Akuram Natal and the Adrani began to infil-
  trate the stationary power bases of the Pyynian Coast. 
     The two factions clashed at Dravi Ankor. It was called 
  the Shadow War, by those who knew of it; a series of 
  targeted assassinations and insurgent attacks using the 
  populace as pawns. Ajir Notan, a dhampir priest of 
  Shade studied the situation for some time, and came to 
  the conclusion that the war was a waste of profits and 
  time. The church of Shade brought both sides to the ne-
  gotiating table, and promptly assassinated the leadership 
  of the Akuram Natal and the Adrani, and established a 
  theocratic control structure of the jungle humanoids. 
  The Raja was instructed to deal only with secular mat-
  ters, at the beck of the jungle traders, and to focus on 
  mastering a populace grown restive and unfocused. In 
  the ruins and rotting husks of the jungle cities some 
  tribes discovered new gods to worship, others stayed true 
  to their original master, and plot chaos in the name of 
  Vortain.
  Current Events
  After the assassination of Vhir Martaram the 27th by 
  suicide sorcerer, the far less dim-witted Vhir Martaram 
  the 28th, a half-rakshasa of no small talent or ambition 
  took the throne of Dravi Ankor. The northern mires 
  are in the firm grip of the Akuram Adrani Alliance, but 
  the far less tracked southern jungle lands are held to be 
  almost completely wild. They are a place of constant re-
  ligious war, where tribes loyal to Mâl, Shade, Ul’Ul and 
  Vortain try to expunge the central government and one 
  another on an almost daily basis.
     Dravi Ankor and its constituent jungles have never 
  had to fear from foreign aggression, even during the 
  NewGod Wars; the Pyynians plead poverty and internal 
  fraction to avoid joining the war effort, while they served 
  well as battlefield vultures of goods and slaves, though 
  
  — 109 — 
  not violating the eastern border with Siwath. The zendiqi 
  have long memories and deep hatreds, however, and 
  some bloodlines have been tracked to slave genealogies 
  in the city. Perhaps it is a lack of war in their own region, 
  but the zendiqi have been sending tentative patrols into 
  the jungles, claiming border violations by jungle dwell-
  ers. The Raja has dismissed this as particularly ridicu-
  lous—the Siwath is the best protection the
  Coast has! External war certainly has all involved sweat-
  ing—and not just from the heat.
  Settlements
  The major settlement of the Pyynian Coast is: 
     Dravi Ankor is the only city on the Pyynian Coast, 
  all other urban areas being either absorbed in 
  its mass, or succumbed to the grasp of the 
  swamps and jungles. Warrior tribes of the 
  north and south either live in the ruins’ 
  outskirts, or built temporary structures in 
  the trees, to thwart some of the most deadly 
  predators on Porphyra. Dravi Ankor 
  is the largest port on Porphyra, and 
  an irresistible magnet for trade, as 
  decadent as it is. The Dravi Ankor 
  docks are the home of the Rav-
  agers of the South, who set out 
  monthly to the Lost Sea and the 
  desolate Brown and Bone coasts 
  to raid small villages for slaves. It 
  is also from these docks that the 
  great merchant ships of the Adrani 
  transport drugs, slaves and spices 
  to the rest of Porphyra. The great 
  step pyramids of Ogan Square 
  dominate the center of the city. 
  Once the temples of a forgotten 
  god of law from another world, 
  they now serve as the center of 
  government, the chief church of 
  Shade, and the residence of the 
  Raja and his servants. Beyond 
  the outer walls and moats of the 
  city lies Ragtown, home to those 
  deemed too freakish to live within the 
  city proper, such as skulks and some of 
  the more hideous anumus. There are some 
  visitors who openly wonder what standard 
  someone is considered ‘hideous’, considering the extreme 
  body modification, tattooing and piercing that is consid-
  ered the height of fashion in Dravi Ankor.
  Intrigues
  • 
  The Raja has been keeping odd company as of late. 
  Warlords and pirate kings from the Haunted Sea, 
  ogre mages, cultists of Kamus, barbarian tribes-
  men; even the black dragon Tharnaisis have been 
  his guests at the royal pyramid. Few know what the 
  young emperor and Shade’s priests are planning; 
  many more want to know, and are willing to pay 
  handsomely for the information.
  • 
  At the new moon a pillar of light was seen coming 
  from deep within the jungles of the south. Soothsay-
  ers and other fortune tellers say it is a light that bears 
  ill tidings. The light marks the resting place 
  of something that could spell disaster for the 
  Pyynian Coast and all Porphyra. The Raja has 
  offered a grand reward for the recovery of this 
  dangerous item before the cannibal tribes can 
  find it.
  • 
  A small merchant caravan was ambushed 
  in Ragtown, and was bearing a relic that the 
  church of Shade wants returned, and soon. The 
  leader of the bandits, a disfigured jackal anu-
  mus called Rial Rham has asked for two casks 
  of gems, one hundred slaves, and a seawor-
  thy man-o-war for its ransom. He has 
  managed to thwart every attempt, both 
  mundane and magical, used by the 
  church to retrieve it. The servants of 
  the Prince of Thieves are asking 
  for talented adventurers to enter 
  Ragtown and return with their 
  property - and Rial Rham’s 
  head. That the ‘best assassins on 
  earth’ are reluctant to do so is a small 
  concern... 
  
  — 110 — 
  Rainbow Isles
  “Get away from civilization in beautiful, exotic surround-
  ings, and observe the decadent locals and their savage 
  ceremonies. Bring appropriate weaponry” - Femanx holiday 
  brochure
  History
  To know the history of the archipelago known as the 
  Rainbow Isles is to know the meaning of beauty marred 
  by greed and death. Long ago, in the time of the elemen-
  tals, the elemental-kin undine built a great nautical em-
  pire on this string of tropical islands. Towering temple 
  cities were erected in the jungles, and sleek, marid-
  powered navies were amassed. While subservient to their 
  elemental masters -primarily the awesome underwater 
  power known as The Poison Wave - the undine had little 
  to fear, for water was indeed the most powerful of ele-
  ments. The empire was not meant to last.
     The NewGod Wars were not kind to the undines’ em-
  pire. As the wars raged on, the demands of The Poison 
  Wave grew harsher. The undine were forced to drain 
  their resources, clear-cutting islands of their trees to 
  build boats, and converting entire coral reefs to weap-
  ons. Then the fire of war came to the Rainbow Islands. 
  Several gods allied to topple the Undine Empire and The 
  Poison Wave, the most aggressive being Saren and Nise.
     Both gods established their clergies in the Isles, which 
  remain to this day. The servants of the water elementals 
  tried everything they could, even magically creating a 
  new race of soldiers known as the Relluk, but to no avail. 
  Capital: None
  Settlements: Apex (8,000), Ghlidra-Yaam 
  (10,000), Thunder Keep (9,000) 
  Rulers: Vicereine Xella Fezyd of the Femanx, King 
  Qanak Razortooth of the Lizardfolk, and Prince 
  Kog of the Sahauguin
  Government: Viceroyalty/monarchies
  Races: Femanx, Lizardfolk, Relluk, Sahaugin, 
  Undine
  Faiths: Chiuta, Eshsalqua, Ice Tyrant, Nise, Poison 
  Wave, Saren, S’slunn
  Resources: Dinosaurs, fruit, lumber, obsidian, 
  tourism
  Languages: Aquan, Common, Draconic, Manxic
  Border Conditions: None
  The empire was crushed, and the divine forces moved on 
  to other war-fronts, leaving the undine and their child 
  race to scatter.
     The fertility of the islands is well known to all, and the 
  centuries since the NewGod Wars have seen missionary 
  movements, colonial aspersions, genocide, proxy war, 
  and, sometimes, quiet. The fact of the islands’ strategic 
  location has also invited a lot of attention, from the 
  loathsome Pyynians, to the more benevolent Sharirans 
  from the Pinnacle Lands. All want a piece of paradise.
  Current Events
  In the time since the fall of the oppressive Elemental 
  Lords, the Rainbow Isles have known much beauty and 
  prosperity. The local lizardfolk race, once slaves, have 
  gathered their tribes together to form a single, great na-
  tion across several volcanic islands. From here, they ex-
  ploit the savage land, and trade its bounty. Further along 
  the archipelago, the technologically advanced Femanx 
  have built a gleaming pleasure resort for the wealthy of 
  their race, and other foreigners, and dabble in regional 
  politics and espionage.
     Yet the Rainbow Isles knows evil and tragedy as well, 
  in equal measure. When the nautical empire of the un-
  dines fell, the sahaugin, sent from their mid-ocean em-
  pire, built a colony nearby meant as a foothold for war. 
  Now, the forces under Prince Kog attempt to forcibly 
  annex the Rainbow Isles and their inhabitants under the 
  flag of the Deep Empire, and in the name of Sashalqua, 
  the aquatic avatar of Eshsalqua, the Voice of Corruption. 
  The undine and relluk that have remained have proved 
  easy pickings. The lucky ones have sought employment 
  with the Femanx or lizardfolk, while the unlucky have 
  resorted to isolated tribal lives that are all but defenseless 
  before the military might of the sahaugin war colony.
     The only forces that prevent the Deep Empire from 
  completely taking the Rainbow Isles for itself are the 
  technologically superior Femanx and the savagely pro-
  tective lizardfolk - the latter following canny priests of 
  Chiuta and Saren. Some of the smaller or more remote 
  islands remain a wilderness of ever-shifting borders, 
  within which many of the battered tribes find solace in 
  the temples of their ancestors, and the whispers of their 
  former elemental masters.
  
  — 111 — 
  Settlements
  The major settlements in the Rainbow Isles are:
     Apex is the seat of Prince Kog’s power, a military 
  colony built mostly beneath the waves. Located on the 
  edge of the sea shelf, it serves as a port of easy access for 
  the Deep Empire. Though the sahaugin have conquered 
  the nearby islands for storing slaves and sacked vessels, 
  the bulk of the Prince’s forces are housed within the sub-
  aqueous towers of Apex. Given its location, the sahaugin 
  believe that even the technologically superior Femanx 
  would have a hard time felling the colony. 
     Ghlidra-Yaam, which translates into Manxic as ‘Yard 
  of Happiness’, is a paradise resort dedicated to the enter-
  tainment and titillation of the elite. With their vast tech-
  nology and wealth, the Femanx worry more about how 
  to spend their free time than on mere survival. Boasting 
  crystal clear waters, lush land and luxury, lucky Femanx 
  and rich patrons of many other races can hunt dinosaurs, 
  ride waves and winds, or even dive below the surface to 
  inspect cultured ‘wrecks’. Those that attend have to deal 
  with the superiority of the resort’s owners, as well as the 
  undine and relluk that staff the resort. 
     Relluk Isle is the volcanic homeland of the bizarre 
  relluk, and is unofficially forbidden to visit, an attitude 
  encouraged by the local priests of the various religions. 
  Elementalists also avoid the place, so as to not be 
  reminded of their last-ditch failure. Femanx recruit 
  relluk here, though, and the stone creatures 
  have their secret ways of travel, as well.
     Thunder Keep, in the heart of 
  the jungle, is beyond a great 
  wall formed by the largest 
  trees in the lizardfolk do-
  main. It is the capital city of 
  King Razortooth, built of 
  canvas and volcanic rock. 
  Great lizards known as 
  dinosaurs have been tamed 
  as beasts of burden by the 
  locals, and have given the 
  place its name, for the many 
  loud sounds that fill the city. 
  Stomping behemoths, trum-
  peting war-mounts and the 
  rumbling of the island’s volcano 
  both intimidates and inspires 
  visiting folk.
  Intrigues
  • 
  Within the Ruined Empire, at the heart of the 
  Rainbow Isles is an undine water cult that has been 
  ignored by the three powers up to now. Lately, 
  however, their chants have grown more menacing, 
  and fierce elementals have been summoned to wreak 
  havoc. Has the cult found a method to contact their 
  vanished masters?
  • 
  On certain nights, while enjoying the blissful luxu-
  ries of Ghlidra-Yaam, a Femanx staff member has 
  been spied accepting a parcel form a hooded sahau-
  gin. Could this forebode a surprise attack on the  
  unprepared resort, or is it an admittedly odd liaison 
  between unlikely lovers?
  • 
  While on a trade mission with the lizardfolk, a Fe-
  manx trading vessel has gone missing. Not wishing 
  to create an incident, the security chief of Ghlidra-
  Yaam is recruiting unaffiliated adventurers to investi-
  gate the matter.
  
  — 112 — 
  Seven Principalities
  “Amazing how the niceties of politics can be used to seize 
  total power.” - Asterion the Tyrant
  Capital: None 
  Settlements: Aesik (4,000), Brun (2,500), Opal 
  (2,500), Huq (6,000), Laon (3,000), Mael 
  (4,000), Noen (2,500)
  Rulers: The Seven Princes - Huron of Aesik, 
  Latilde of Brun, Vyyzar of Opal, Rokurk of Huq, 
  Leon of Laon, Amitie of Mael, Quarg of Noen
  Government: Coalition of Principalities
  Races: Erkunae, Human, Lizardfolk
  Faiths: Ithreia, Toma Thule, Nemyth Vaar
  Resources: Herbalism, lumber (hardwood), sea-
  food, ships, spices
  Languages: Abyssal, Common, Draconic, Infer-
  nal, Protean
  Border Conditions: None
  History
  Over a thousand years ago an Erkusaan-backed expedi-
  tion settled the eight islands if Aesik, Brun, Hile, Huq, 
  Laon, Mael, Noen and Torl. The islands were rich in 
  both natural beauty and diverse exports, being home to 
  several heretofore undiscovered forms of plant and ani-
  mal life, and they boasted ancient ruins in the depths of 
  the jungle that attracted many well-funded expeditions.
     The islands flourished as tropical ports for Erkusaa 
  until the empire collapsed in AC 400, granting power 
  to the ‘princes’ who controlled each island. The struggle 
  for total control of the archipelago began immediately: 
  ships—and sometimes swimmers—raced back and forth 
  across the short stretches of water between the islands, 
  raiding and seizing in an ever-shifting battle for territory 
  and resources. The islands remained poised for war with 
  one another for decades until Romos, prince of now-
  sunken Torl, managed to persuade the other princes to 
  form a council. By giving the princes an arena in which 
  to wage their wars with words Romos managed to broker 
  an uneasy peace between them which, over the next two 
  and a half centuries, mellowed into today’s casual rivalry.
     Enter Asterion. No one knows where he came from, 
  but the minotaur was active on the islands for years 
  before he made his play for power. No bestial savage, 
  Asterion possessed all the mighty strength of one of his 
  kind coupled with low cunning, a gift for duplicity, and 
  a keen intellect. He declared that the inhabitants of Huq 
  had colonized an island which rightfully belonged to 
  him and demanded to make a case before the council 
  of princes. The council was dutifully assembled on Torl 
  to see what the minotaur had to say - and Asterion used 
  an ancient artifact to sink the whole island into the sea, 
  drowning everyone on it.
     With the council dead, Asterion declared himself ruler 
  of the seven remaining islands and threatened that any 
  who did not bend knee to him would feel the power of 
  his artifact. In chaos without their leaders, and dealing 
  with devastation caused by the waves of Torl’s sink-
  ing, the islanders capitulated. Asterion chose Huq as 
  his seat of power and began construction of a volcano-
  sized lair whose labyrinthine tunnels have never been 
  fully mapped. Asterion ruled with an iron fist. He had 
  swathes of jungle clear cut and brought cattle farmers 
  to graze the new land. He opened the island to pirates 
  and those fleeing justice, so long as he got a cut of all 
  His reign lasted for 40 years before a group of adventur-
  ers discovered that Asterion’s artifact was single-use only 
  and managed to sneak into his lair and assassinate him.  
  Only Huron, Latilde and Latilde survived, and they 
  became princes after Asterion.  Other princes emerged 
  from the squabbling on other islands, and the council of 
  was reformed.
  Current Events
  With the defeat of Asterion trade has stepped up and 
  wealthy travelers are once again coming to the islands to 
  experience the warm climate and relaxing atmosphere. 
  The trade in spices and exotic woods has picked up 
  again, bringing merchants and their wealth to all of the 
  seven islands. The lizardfolk keep to themselves in the 
  inner jungles, as they have always done, but are common 
  enough sights in markets around the islands.
     The islanders still bicker between themselves, but with 
  the memory of Asterion’s oppression vivid in their minds 
  it rarely escalates to more than a friendly rivalry. A more 
  serious problem are the Gray Blades, a large band of 
  pirates who were exiled from the Principalities following 
  Asterion’s death but have found moorings on other islets 
  nearby, joining forces for revenge and plunder. Those 
  willing to sign on as marines for the Seven will find 
  plenty of work.
  
  — 113 — 
     The island ruins, from the Erkunae Era or before, have 
  always drawn plenty of attention, and now adventurers 
  and scholars flock not just to them but to the old lair 
  of Asterion. They search for the supposedly vast wealth 
  he accumulated in his 40-year reign as tyrant king of 
  the isles. Among those who have the ability or magic to 
  breathe underwater, the coral-choked ruins of Torl are a 
  popular destination. Since the entire island sank, all the 
  treasure of its inhabitants likely remains below the waves 
  - if someone was brave enough to get it.
  Settlements
  The major settlements of the Seven Principalities are:
     Aesik is the second-largest settlement, although most 
  of its population are lizardfolk, rather than humans. 
  Tensions between races are higher here than on other 
  islands, thanks to some nasty pieces of work on both 
  sides. Huron rules with all the wisdom of a paladin of 
  Toma Thule but the history is too convoluted and the 
  bad blood too strong for a simple solution.
     Brun is situated at the far end of the archipelago, its 
  isolated location making it vulner-
  able to pirate raids. Latilde rules it 
  as a general, trying her best to keep 
  all safe. She and Huron used to be 
  lovers, but fell out over matters of 
  statecraft; she now watches the 
  disintegration of his society 
  with grim satisfaction.
     Huq is the largest island 
  and its settlement has the 
  greatest population. Under 
  the rule of Asterion and 
  then the half-orc Rokurk it 
  has become a place for hard 
  workers, hard drinkers, and 
  those who know to keep their 
  mouth shut. Suspicious of 
  outsiders, the people of 
  Huq are annoyed by 
  the endless parade of 
  treasure hunters enter-
  ing Asterion’s volcano labyrinth.
     Laon is overseen by the 
  laughing rogue Leon, who 
  changed his name to bet-
  ter suit the island. Under his 
  light-handed rule the town is an anarchic haven where 
  anything goes, so long as you’ve got the smarts to do it 
  where his thugs can’t see.
     Mael is a quiet town under the rulership of the mage 
  queen Amitie, who delegates most of her ruling duties to 
  her steward so that she may continue her arcane studies 
  of sunken Torl. Anyone who can bring her material from 
  the island will be rewarded, and may find themselves 
  pressed into leading the next expedition.
     Noen is also quiet, though unlike the contemplative 
  stillness of Mael, this is a silence born of fear. Barbaric 
  lizardfolk and humans run wild in the inner jungles, 
  worshiping the Outcast at ancient altars; every night the 
  lizardfolk vampire Quarg emerges from the jungle to 
  deliver her edicts and receive his tithe of blood. The set-
  tlers can sleep safe in their beds, so long as Quarg holds 
  his people back.
     Opal is the smallest settlement, although the island 
  itself is rather large and home to strange tribes of de-
  generate erkunae. Vyyzar the 89th, once a lieutenant of 
  Asterion, as been slowly descending into paranoia since 
  the minotaur was slain 
  and is seeking allies in all 
  the worst places: rumor 
  has it he treats with fiends 
  for power; an old habit from 
  his ancestral homeland.
  Intrigues
  • 
  A group of power-hungry PCs 
  might find the Seven Principalities ripe 
  for taking over - with all the political strife 
  there are plenty of cracks to exploit.
  • 
  Asterion had four decades to 
  work on his lair, constructing an elaborate 
  underground maze that still holds his greatest 
  treasures. Characters poking around down there 
  might find any kind of treasure, passages 
  connecting the lair to other islands, or 
  secrets of Asterion’s origins.
  • 
  Hunting the pirates of the Gray 
  Blades could be lucrative work for a 
  martially-inclined group of characters. 
  As an added bonus, the islets the pirates occupy 
  might be prime ground for expansion for the 
  current princes.
  
  — 114 — 
  Trade Consortium of Blix
  “Oh, but sir! You can find the wonders of the world, if you 
  have but the coin in your pocket. Wanna buy a pair of pock-
  ets?” - Anonymous Blixian merchant
  Capital: Terrin
  Settlements: Bossol (8,000), Calim (5,000), Daf-
  tin (5,500), Gelium (6,000), Junt (6,500), Mercst 
  (9,000), Netun (8,800), Pult (7,000), Sart (7,500), 
  Terrin (8,500), Urist (8,000)
  Rulers: Trade-Master Tammerillion Godscoin
  Government: Democratic Mercantile Senate
  Races: Boggle, Halfling, Numistian, Ratfolk, and 
  merchants of all races
  Faiths: Any
  Resources: Agriculture, trade goods
  Languages: Common, Goblin, Halfling
  Border Conditions: Limited (A porphyrite border 
  limits access to the Gardens of Meynon)
  History
  After The Calling, Porphyra was in upheaval, as the 
  world began to settle, and there were new races and 
  realms in abundance. There were also areas unclaimed by 
  the new powers or the old - one such area is where the 
  Trade Consortium of Blix grew into an economic power. 
  Previously inhabited by professionally servile agricultural 
  halflings, the Scrolls of Mercantile Interchange record 
  that the Consortium began as a gathering of halfling 
  clans. The clan chiefs decided that, rather than compete 
  with each other to supply the needy post-war world, 
  they would each focus upon a particular area of goods, 
  then pool their resources to further their collective inter-
  ests. Thus the Great Trading Houses were born and the 
  Republic of Merc was founded. The republic prospered 
  but soon the Houses found themselves becoming over-
  whelmed by the demand for their goods. Production was 
  failing to meet demand and trade routes were dwindling.
     That is when Blix found his way to the republic. Blix-
  ander Coinspun was a halfling that had been bit by the 
  wander-bug early in his life. After many adventures, he 
  grew soft in the foot, and began to long for home and 
  the pleasures of working through the maze of business 
  agreements. So, he returned to the ailing Republic. Blix 
  did not return alone, though, he brought with him the 
  salvation of the land - boggles. He had befriended a 
  clan of boggles in his travels, and found them a fasci-
  nating (and industrious) people. He then founded the 
  final Great Trade House of the Republic. Driven by the 
  industrious nature of the boggle clan he employed, Blix 
  prospered, and soon began to outsource his boggles to 
  the other Great Trade Houses. Before long, the entire 
  Republic was revitalized, as production soared. Trade 
  with the rest of Porphyra was never higher.
     Then, disaster. Known forever as the beginning of the 
  Great Depression, a plague swept across the Republic. 
  If it were simply a viral or bacterial pandemic, it might 
  have been contained. Rather, it was the Bon Flue, the 
  boggle primordial drive to propagate the species. In a 
  month, every boggle in the Republic had been affected. 
  The goblinoids were no longer focused on creating new 
  works, and their industrious natures had given way to 
  fits of fanciful performances, communal gatherings, 
  and massive amounts of unsettling noise. The records 
  of the halflings that lived through the Great Depression 
  emphasize that little sleep was had. The Republic was 
  faltering, production ground to a near-halt, and trade 
  was waning.
     It was then that the numistians arrived, from some-
  where in the southern sands. They brought with them 
  a proposal for the Republic, and, more importantly, a 
  cure for the Bon Flue. Elected by the council of chiefs to 
  represent the Republic, Blix himself negotiated the terms 
  at the Gelian Customs Accord (GCA). When the GCA 
  was ratified, the Republic of Merc was no more, and in 
  its place stood the Trade Consortium of Blix. Most of 
  the halfling Great Trading Houses remained, reformed 
  into the Eight Guilds, backed by the restored Boggle 
  Labor Unions and bolstered by the exotic Numistian Im-
  port Syndicates. Once again the hub of commerce was 
  restored to Porphyra, reaching even greater heights than 
  before.
  Current Events
  The Trade Consortium is the hub of commerce and 
  trade on Porphyra. It is said that no kingdom has deeper 
  pockets and that no pocket is emptied without the Trade 
  Consortium’s approval. Blix is ruled by the Mercantile 
  Senate, composed of democratically elected representa-
  tives from each of the Guilds, Unions, and Syndicates. 
  A Trade-Master is elected by the Senate to represent 
  the Consortium’s interest in global matters; this occurs 
  once every twelve years. The capital of the Consortium 
  
  — 115 — 
  changes with the seat of the Trade- Master; thus it is a 
  hotly contested position, and Election is a time of great 
  flux in Blix.
     Politically, the Consortium is staunchly neutral, some-
  times bravely so, for the northern kingdoms dislike the 
  equity with which the Blixians treat the southern ances-
  tors of the elementalists; the Siwathu, the Ghadabi, and 
  the orthodox zendiqi who are drawn from their number. 
  Even Pyynians are welcome in Blix, though slavery is 
  strictly forbidden within their borders. This pragmatic 
  equality is hardly a beacon to the world, but it is ironi-
  cally fairer than the kindest of clerical orders to be seen 
  on the Patchwork Planet.
     No religion holds particular sway in the Con-
  sortium, save the worship of Lord Coin, al-
  though the Boggles are rather fond of Linium. 
  No faith is banned, either, for all offerings are 
  welcome in Blix as long as there is profit to be 
  made. The tolerance of Mâl here is a major 
  bone of contention between the halflings of 
  the Bulwark and those of Blix.
  Settlements
  The major settlements of Blix are:
     The Guild Cities and Floating Syn-
  dicate Holds are strategically placed 
  so as to not intrude on each other’s 
  sales area. Who makes what and who 
  trades with whom are lively areas of 
  debate in the Mercantile Senate.
     Terrin is the current capi-
  tal, and has been for the past 
  ten years, being able to place 
  the Sanctum of Trade, a mo-
  bile trade-floor, in its city square. 
  The other Trade House cities are 
  Sart, Junt, Netun, Urist, Mercst, 
  Pult, and Bossol. Being cities con-
  ceived by halflings, their structures are 
  uniquely theirs, with holes and tunnels 
  as common as towers and halls, and 
  access somewhat difficult for big folk, 
  though there is a Tallman quarter in 
  each community, with appropriate 
  entertainments, inducements, 
  and fees. “Gobbog Flats” 
  is the term used for the 
  boggle quarter of each community, a noisy, potentially 
  dangerous place to be, but fascinating nonetheless. 
     Though not as large as the Guild cities, the Floating 
  Syndicate Holds of Daftin, Calim, and Gelium are said 
  to be able to sate the most exotic of appetites, adminis-
  tered by the enigmatic numistians. These three cities are 
  at the borders of Blix, and are hotbeds of intrigue and 
  trade with zendiqi, Mâlites (and Gardeners alike) and 
  the dangerous outlaws of Nor-du-Mag. The numistian 
  cities are very cosmopolitan, with virtually every race 
  known present and squabbling for profit. 
  Intrigues
  • 
  The Mercantile Senate has been infil-
  trated by some kind of shapechanger, causing 
  unrest within the Consortium both in the La-
  bor Unions and the Import Syndicates. Magic 
  use is illegal in the Senate, so subtlety will 
  have to suffice.
  • 
  Isolated outbreaks of Bon Flue 
  have been reported in the outlying 
  boggle villages of the Consortium. 
  Could a new Depression be loom-
  ing on the horizon? Do the 
  boggles even care?
  • 
  The sinister Tuthon Bar-
  ony has been exporting some 
  of the rare goods typically 
  found in the Consortium 
  via the Import Syndicates. 
  Where have the Tuthoni 
  been getting them? There 
  is likely a smuggler in the 
  midst of Blix.
  
  — 116 — 
  Underdeep
  “This one has seen that which is the surface; seas, skies, 
  trees. None of it all can compare with one single psi-infested 
  porphyrite mega-stalactite in a single hive, in a single com-
  mune...” - T’rn E’r, dromite chronicler
  Capital: Varies by kingdom
  Settlements: N’ndS’r (100,000, dromite), Morn 
  Dunmar (duergar, 6,000), Valenstae and Turgan-
  nal (5,000+, ophiduan)
  Rulers: M’dln C’tk, GeneArchivist Ascendant 
  of N’ndS’r (dromite), Lord Break-more (duer-
  gar), Clan Chiefs Seratt M’ar and Lem’csstra Tol 
  (ophiduan)
  Government: Varies by Kingdom
  Races: Dromite, Drow, Duergar, Kripar, Ophid-
  uan, Troglodyte
  Faiths: Ferrakus, Linium, Nemyth Vaar, Shade, 
  Shankhil
  Resources: Gems, godmetals (all), metals (all), 
  porphyrite
  Languages: Draconic, Kripar, Terran, Undercom-
  mon
  Border Conditions: Unpredictable (Porphyrite 
  pockets exist and move seemingly at random in 
  the Underdeep)
  Major Access Points: Creeper’s Rift, Mount Xoa, 
  Nor-Du-Mag, Purple Mountain, the Pinnacle 
  Lands, assorted islands in the Sea of Karkoon
  History
  The Underdeep is a vast collection of titanic caverns and 
  a threaded morass of tunnels that spiderweb beneath the 
  kingdoms of the surface world. Much of the Underdeep 
  is naturally occuring formations, lava tubes, under-
  ground waterways and tunnels cut from the bowels of 
  the world by tunneling creatures and races. Those haunts 
  of the common races have been carved by design over 
  milennia, and those places are fiercely competed over, as 
  valuable as life itself.
     It is said, though, carved in the Stone Scrolls of Scrap-
  er the duergar scribe, that the existence of the Underdeep 
  is the result of a far more apocalyptic design. The myths 
  say that the entirety of the Land Below is a prison; that 
  a being exists from long before The Calling, from before 
  the rule of the Elemental Lords, from a time immemo-
  rial, who must never wake. For if That Which Sleeps 
  Beneath should rouse from its god-sleep, the world will 
  suffer cataclysm that would make the Breaking of Nor-
  Du-Mag look like a landing of a butterfly. 
     The terrible Codex of Mar’dis hints that in some far 
  channel of the Underdeep is enscribed the name of
  The Sleeper, and to speak this name aloud would wake 
  the slumbering Entropy - or so say the ravings of the 
  madmen who have translated the text before taking their 
  own lives. Furthermore, in the biogum crystalline walls 
  of the dromite hive libraries, there lay, dormant, memory 
  - shards of the One Who Calls Now and Forever. To 
  share these memories is a heretical crime, punishable by 
  termination of the hive’s gene-heritage, and if any seeds 
  of the heresy occur again, the eradication of the hive-
  memory until non-contamination can be assured.
  Current Events
  There are a handful of cataloged ways into the Under-
  deep, other than those in Creeper’s Rift, but where once 
  only a few rogue fissures the Land Below existed, un-
  mapped, after The Calling and the landing of the alien, 
  porphyrite-bordered countries, a myriad of shifting paths 
  now lay open. As with any portal, though, they function 
  both ways, and as entrance to the Underdeep has been 
  gained, so has the Underdeep’s grasp reached the surface 
  of Porphyra. 
     The Underdeep holds almost as many nations as that 
  of the world it exists beneath, complete with its share of 
  fallen kingdoms, and ruins of ancient origin. Of these 
  nations, a few warrant note: 
  • 
  The dromite hive cities are some of the most spec-
  tacular creations a mortal can behold. Towering 
  geometric constructions of luminescent biogum 
  arcologies are home to millions of dromites. Their 
  caverns mostly dominate the northwest quadrant of 
  the globe. 
  • 
  There are the vast caverns of the Serpent Kingdoms, 
  ruled by the ophiduan clan houses. One must take 
  care when crossing clan cavernland, in the vicinity of 
  the surface equator, to avoid being caught up in the 
  House Wars.
  • 
  Duergar feudal holds span miles upon miles of the 
  deep caves of the sub-southern hemisphere. If one 
  can keep from becoming chained to a deepforge bel-
  
  — 117 — 
  lows, it is said that they hold wonders crafted from 
  the exotic ores of the deep.
  A constant hazard of the deep realms are the roving 
  hordes of troglodytes, unpredictable in their level of de-
  volution and savagery. Though primitive, they are said to 
  harvest porphyrite and shape it into weapons, following 
  the living veins of the precious mineral through the flesh 
  of the world.
     Rare but near unequaled in danger are the kripar hunt-
  ing lodges. The crook-backed hunters are as proud as 
  they are skilled, and fueled by a constant need to find the 
  most dangerous prey. They sometimes hire members of 
  other races as porters on grand hunts into the vast dark, 
  and it is said that a single successful hunt could yield 
  enough return to retire to a king’s life on the surface. The 
  kripar have no regard for weakness or failure, and one of 
  their employees could very easily find themselves playing 
  the part of bait. They have of late declared themselves 
  self-appointed ambassadors to Creeper’s Rift, and many 
  of the larger lodges are found near there.
     As for the long-vanished elder races of the underworld, 
  and the all-too present ruins and works 
  they left behind, beyond the 
  Dark Sea of Ur, to the sealed 
  lands beneath The Great 
  Green, are great pyramids of 
  pearl, towers of the jeweled 
  walls of cities that yet 
  bask in the light of a 
  perfect diamond moon. 
  Only the most intrepid 
  underdwellers dare to 
  roam there, as remnants 
  of strange allies to the 
  elementalists dwell here, 
  and hide, having paid 
  the price for trust-
  ing their dying 
  power to the 
  losers of 
  the New-
  God Wars.
  Settlements
  The major settlements of the Underdeep are:
     Morn Dunmar is gray and solid, like the duergar 
  themselves, and resonant with concentric chants and 
  odes to their weird patrons. They are said to trade in dire 
  arcane weaponry to the highest bidders of the under- or 
  overworld. It is closest to the isle of Sharira, but techni-
  cally under the south Lost Sea.
     N’ndS’r, the largest of the myriad dromite hive-cities, 
  is said to house a library of knowledge that would take 
  a lifetime of lifetimes to catalog, and that the Archivists 
  offer its use to those strangers willing to offer lore in 
  return, and that can become accustomed to the taste of 
  the biogum volumes and neurospeech. N’ndS’r is located 
  halfway between Nor-Du-Mag and Purple Mountain.
     Valenstae and Turgannal are fiercely competitive 
  ophiduan cities, and relatively open to outsiders, es-
  pecially if there are interested in mercenary work. The 
  clan-houses are at turns verging on civil war and joining 
  in some new psionic fad or discipline, “for the good of 
  the race.” These cities are in the approximate area of the 
  Land of Steam.
  Intrigues
  • 
  A recent rumor tells of a dromite hive city that 
  destroyed itself - perhaps the secret behind it’s self 
  destruction can be found in its remains.
  • A group of explorers have returned from 
  a deep delve with a device heretofore un-
  known. It bears symbols of an unrecorded 
  race and hints of dire power. What 
  does it do and where did it 
  come from?
  • A duergar ambassador 
  has gone missing in the 
  depths of a vast north-
  ern cavern. He held 
  information vital to 
  the prevention 
  of a holy war 
  among the 
  gray ones 
  that would 
  doubtless 
  spill into the 
  upper world.
  
  — 118 — 
  Wastes of Simoon
  “These praying beggars invade us? How can this dirty rabble 
  face the beautiful host of the Paradise of Simoon?” – Zafiq 
  Al-Reyahk, last Sheik of Old Simoon
  Capital: Korech the Vortex
  Settlements: Ashyim (2,500) Four (1,000), Ko-
  rech (8,000), Nomad City of Zyran (2,000)
  Rulers: Aal’arba’aa Wathkur (The Four who Re-
  member)
  Government: Tribal council
  Races: Elemental-kin, Enigmon, Human, Zendiqi
  Faiths: Elemental Lords (any)
  Resources: Glass, obsidian, relics, seafood
  Languages: Old Porphyran, Aquan, Auran, Ignan, 
  Terran
  Border Conditions: None
  History
  The Paradise of Simoon once covered all of the eastern 
  hemisphere of Porphyra: from the high peaks of Ada-
  mah, now called the Birdman Mountains, to the Bound-
  less oceans of Mayim; from the firelands of Aish, to the 
  windswept plains of Ruach. There the domains touched, 
  and the elemental children traded with one another, 
  sharing in the bounty of paradise under the watchful 
  eyes of the Four Who Are the Foundation, the Elemental 
  Lords. Ranging freely, carrying the word of The Four 
  across the domains, were the children of Zendiq. To hear 
  it said by the bearded historians, Porphyra never knew 
  another such golden age—all shattered with the arrival 
  of the New Gods.
     When the NewGods War was over, the paradise had 
  become a wasteland, fully two-thirds of it usurped by 
  invading territories, or wrested from elemental control 
  and settled by the victors. The domains were blasted by 
  magic, their borders redrawn, their elements mixed by 
  chaotic forces. The peaks of Adamah were seized by Ith-
  reia’s winged forces, Gerana’s Middle Kingdoms separat-
  ing all with vast armies, and Ferrakus himself, flush from 
  opening Creeper’s Rift, ignited the fires of Aish to burn 
  them to the Crumbs they are today, melting the sands 
  and the waters of Mayim into the Glass Sea, that glim-
  mering flow of magical crystal and sand. The Four left 
  a final gift before their exile: the city of Korech, at the 
  nexus of the elemental chaos of the region. The survivors 
  and their descendants call it the Vortex, for all elements 
  swirl around it—summon-bound elementals in a dance 
  of ancient adoration.
     The Wastes of Simoon still hold beauty unequaled in 
  Porphyra, but it is a savage beauty that only the strong 
  can enjoy. So while the New Gods may have claimed and 
  mangled the rest of Porphyra, the people of Simoon still 
  make their obeisance, and await the return of the Four 
  Who Are the Foundation, for then Porphyra will be as it 
  used to be, once more.
  Current Events
  Simoon is not quite a unified country, as others are. In 
  remembrance of the four domains of old, modern Si-
  moon exists as four distinct peoples eking out a living in 
  as much balance as they can muster. The elemental-kin 
  of Korech, with a good smattering of Landed humans, 
  stands as the center of urban civilization; the Zendiqi 
  roam the sands and occasionally convene to form the 
  Nomad City of Zyran; the Sailors of the Glass Sea of 
  Ashyim (Baha’ar Ha-Ashyim) guard the liquid crystal 
  ways and the secret to Simooni glass in their eponymous 
  town; and the Zephyri mystics who commune with the 
  elements, holding their sacred relics at the town of Arba 
  - in common, Four. 
     Each of these groups sends a representative to Korech 
  for a year where they become the Four Who Remember, 
  charged with administering the land to the benefit of the 
  majority. The identity of the Four Who Remember is 
  kept secret during their tenure, and after the sole allow-
  able term, their identities are revealed. All decisions must 
  pass by majority vote; if a tie sits for more than four 
  months, all members are executed and a new council 
  summoned. The current Aal’arba’aa Wathkur have been 
  locked in a tie for the past three months. This is the 
  longest tie in recent history and the people of Korech 
  are starting to get antsy about it. No council has been ex-
  ecuted in at least a hundred years—and the source of the 
  impasse is unknown.
     To the east Korech is bound by the endless sands 
  wherein the Zendiqi roam and the Zephyri wander. 
   The sands stretch, hot and unforgiving, to the Crumbs 
  of Aish and the border with The Ghadab. Cyclopean 
  sandworms believed by the Simooni to be guardians sent 
  by the Elemental Lords to guard their children, swim 
  through the sands to the edge of the Glass Sea, emerg-
  
  — 119 — 
  ing to punish those who have angered the Four. Of late, 
  the Zendiqi have begun to amass in the empty north, to 
  push at the borders of New Porphyra. Some believe they 
  are getting ready to pay back the invaders of Porphyra 
  for the defeat suffered by their ancestors centuries before.
     To the west, Korech is bound by the Glass Sea of 
  Ashyim, said to be bottomless and home to wondrous 
  creatures of living glass. The Baha’ri guard the secrets of 
  the Ashyim: they craft Simooni glass, said to be nigh in-
  destructible when shaped, wield magic that puts the glass 
  waters at their command, and travel to trade lands on 
  their bizarre Mirrorships. As the only Simooni who have 
  continuous contact with the outside world, the Baha’ar 
  are the eyes and ears of Simoon, trading information as 
  readily as they trade glass. Likewise, they are always in 
  danger, as their secrets are coveted by many.
     Zephyri mystics wander the depths of the wastes to 
  hone their minds and bodies, hoping to commune with 
  the Four Who Are the Foundation. In surviving the 
  desert, they develop their skills and achieve great power 
  over the elements. Some are even said to ride the huge 
  and fearsome desert sandworms as the Zendiqi ride 
  camels. Though few in number, the Zephyri are valued 
  and feared across Simoon, for they stand for an earlier, 
  more rugged and savage age, where the elements were 
  chaos unleashed, a thought that doesn’t mesh very well 
  with many who have grown accustomed to the civility of 
  modern life.
  Settlements
  The major settlements in the Wastes of Simoon are:
     Korech stands as proud as any city in Porphyra, home 
  to thousands of ifrit, sylph, oread and even a few land-
  bound undine. Its architects emphasized compact utility, 
  while showcasing towers, tunnels, fire vents and cascades 
  to honor the Four. In its center is the Tower of the Four, 
  where the Aal’arba’aa Wathkur live and hold court for 
  their tenure.
     The Nomad City of Zyran is a model of modularity; 
  composed of thousands of colorful tents, it bursts from 
  the sands overnight and stretches for mile. The Zendiqi 
  convene Zyran from two to four times and year, for 
  trade and socialization. Important issues are discussed by 
  the camel-lords, marriages sealed, and grudges settled. 
  When all is done, Zyran disappears like a mirage until 
  the next time.
  Intrigues
  • 
  According to a scroll found by the PCs on a dead 
  guard, the stalemate within the Tower of the Four 
  regards trade with the rest of Porphyra. Addressed 
  to a Baha’ar sylph named Yrmah, will the PCs get 
  wrapped up in Korech politics?
  • 
  Zyran has popped up a half-day’s ride from the walls 
  of Korech, gathering a large number of Zendiqi 
  hordes. The central occasion is a marriage between 
  a Zendiqi princess and an ifrit merchant-prince… 
  That is, until the father of the bride turns up dead 
  in an alley, burnt to death. The Four hastily recruit 
  adventurers to find out the facts and prevent war.
  • 
  A colossal sandworm has been spotted near Ashyim, 
  a previously worm-free territory. The Zephyri pro-
  nounce it a judgment on the free-trading Baha’ri, 
  and those glass-sea traders are hiring infidels to 
  destroy the creature before the ‘prophecy’ can come 
  true.
  
  — 120 — 
  Seas of Porphyra
  Much of the surface of Porphyra is ocean, and many 
  beings make their life upon and beneath it; virtually all 
  have some need of goods and information that moves 
  across it.  The oceans and bodies of water of Porphyra 
  were as much a battleground during the NewGod War 
  as the land above, and as much destruction, and leftover 
  mystery exists still.  
  Arm of Parl
  Though named for the famous horselords, the Arm is by 
  no means their domain, as the cultures around it are not 
  naval powers.  The West Arm is mostly fresh, and riv-
  ers from it water that horses of the Horselords, and the 
  Clans in the Fourlands to the north.  Past the Nishabe 
  Narrows, the Arm is salt, and prone to the depredations 
  of rock-throwing giants from the Retreat.  Ruins abound 
  all shores of the Arm, ripe for exploration, due to taboos 
  of the aboriginal peoples there.
  Bay of Gods
  A large bay literally ripped into the surface of Porphyra 
  during The Calling, the merchants of the Middle King-
  doms claim the Bay is open for trade, and closed to war 
  and piracy.  The Freeporters snicker when the distant 
  Midlanders lay down such pompous edicts.  Friendly 
  trade does abound, though, between the raw rocks of 
  the Bay, which still smoke with the injury done to them, 
  a thousand years ago.  The rocky islets of western Dun-
  mark are a cause for concern though, as the Borough-
  men see no ambassadors, and refuse to do anything 
  about the shadowy presences issuing forth from that 
  rain-soaked archipelago.
  Bay of Reeds
  An arm of the western Opal Sea between Iffud and the 
  Fenian Triarchy, this waterway is difficult to navigate, 
  due to its shallowness.  Ships of these nations are wide 
  and flat-bottomed, the favorite prey of seagoing villains. 
  Within the confines of the Bay, however, the Fenians and 
  Tulites are the masters.  Lizardfolk are extremely plenti-
  ful throughout this bay, as well.
  Cold Seas
  The East and West regions of the south polar Cold Seas 
  girdle the Pinnacle Lands and eventually freeze solid into 
  the Icelands, a shifting quilt of ice floes scoured clean by 
  the wind.  Stark though it may be, several clans of ith’n 
  ya’roo make a life here, with the unique tool of winds-
  kates, blades of bone that they wear on their feet, pro-
  pelled by the wind in their sealskin capes.  The Cold Seas 
  are patrolled by whaling ships of several nations, and 
  whalers have made a few bases, as well as predatory frost 
  giants, who also harass the ith’n ya’roo.
  Green Sea
  Bordered primarily by massive forests, this second-largest 
  Porphyran lake is unspoiled and barely developed or 
  utilized in any ‘civilized’ way.  The sparkling shores of 
  the loosely connected Emerald Shoals within the lake are 
  said to be the most beautiful places on the entire planet, 
  untouched by the horrible NewGod wars.  Primarily an 
  elven lake, the Green Sea is under no small threat from 
  the Horselord of Parl Pardesh, who have lately come to 
  understand the worth of clean water, tall timber, and the 
  lure of conquest.  
  Lost Seas
  This large sea is riddled with porphyrite borders, and 
  strange islands that seem to move regularly, and are dif-
  ficult to map.  Its waters are mostly warm and full of life, 
  and see many battles of seagoing nations.
  Opal Sea
  Claimed by Erkusaa as their national lake in antevocial 
  times, the Opal Sea is open now to all, and dominated 
  by none.  Its central reaches are extremely deep, and 
  you can travel from G’sho’laa,n’rr to the northern polar 
  shores without making landfall.  Crossing the midpoint 
  of the Opal Sea is a rite of passage for sailors, neophytes 
  being tossed into the sea (bound by ropes... usually) and 
  hauled out to great celebration.  Pirates prowl its south-
  ern reaches, and the ghastly skull-ships of the Empire of 
  the Dead clash with those of the intrepid Last Kingdom 
  in the north.
  Sea of Almuut
  This northward arm if the polar Cold Sea is sterile, heav-
  ily tainted with salt and wild magic, though certain ill-
  mapped parts of it are magic-dead.  What naval; power 
  the elementalists had met their total destruction here, 
  late in the NewGod war.  As with the grim land of Nor-
  du-Mag, outlaws and hermits seeking to escape magical 
  
  — 121 — 
  scrutiny sometimes set up camp within or on the “Sea of 
  Death”
  Sea of Ithreia
  This freshwater sea is the largest lake on Porphyra, kept 
  open in many ports by the warmth of the eastern Lotus 
  Blossom Steppes.  The Tuthons, Skandari, and servants 
  of the Red King constantly squabble upon it, making 
  the plentiful fish schools difficult to harvest.  Ithreian ad-
  herents do have a presence here, far from their mistress’ 
  home lands, and maintain neutrality in the three-way 
  conflict, seeking only to protect the wildlife and pris-
  tine beauty of the “Lake of Birds”  A group of intrepid 
  dwarves is proposing a neutral zone between the south-
  east Northlands and the Skandari Lake of Sighs to build 
  a set of sea-locks, to facilitate travel from the northern 
  Lost Sea and the Sea of Ithreia; this proposal may shake 
  enough coins in front of both sides to actually take place.
  Sea of Karkoon
  Once dominated by the Hobgoblins of Karkoon in 
  antevocial days, this sea is the domain of the Oncom-
  ing Wave of Mal, and their strange devices, ships, and 
  creatures can be found prowling it regularly.  A crowded 
  body of water, the Sea of Karkoon borders many jutting 
  coastlines, inlets and bays, difficult even for the Malites 
  to maintain a stranglehold.  Interal weather conditions 
  are very unpredictable, due to the effects of the irregular 
  porphyrite borders, and the gateways to the inimical 
  dimension of Mal.
  Straits of Ryumi
  Probably the liveliest body of water on Porphyra, the 
  ships of a dozen nations pass through this mid-world 
  strait.  Named for the iconic sea dragon of Last King-
  dom lore, the presence of fantastic sea beasts is certainly 
  easy to confirm in the Straits of Ryumi.  The Scaled 
  Islands of the southern coast of the Last Kingdom have 
  the largest concentrations of dragons on Porphyra, and 
  vague agreements between the dragons and the leaders 
  of that honorable land are in place to assure to misun-
  derstandings.  The metal steamers of the Clockwork 
  Lands, ornate junks of Jengu-na, Keshite warships, and 
  primitive canoes from Californ and the Rainbow Isles all 
  create a whirlwind of activity and wonder.
  The Coasts of the Haunted Sea
  Two lofty ships from The Middle Kingdoms came,
  Blow high, blow low, and so sailed we;
  One was the Prince of Weston, and the other Prince of 
  Thame,
  Cruising down along the coasts of the Haunted Sea.
  “Aloft there, aloft!” our jolly boatswain cries,
  Blow high, blow low, and so sailed we;
  “Look ahead, look astern, look aweather and alee,
  Look along down the coasts of the Haunted Sea.”
  There’s nought upon the stern, there’s nought upon the 
  lee,
  Blow high, blow low, and so sailed we;
  But there’s a lofty ship to windward, and she’s sailing 
  fast and free,
  Sailing down along the coasts of the Haunted Sea.
  “Oh, hail her, Oh, hail her,” our gallant captain cried,
  Blow high, blow low, and so sailed we;
  “Are you a man-o’-war or a privateer,” said he,
  “Cruising down along the coasts of the Haunted Sea.”
  “Oh, I am not a man-o’-war nor privateer,” said he,
  Blow high, blow low, and so sailed we;
  “But I’m a salt-sea pirate a-looking for my fee,
  “Cruising down the coasts of the Haunted Sea.”
  Oh, ’twas broadside to broadside a long time we lay,
  Blow high, blow low, and so sailed we;
  Until the Prince of Weston shot the pirate’s masts away,
  Cruising down along the coasts of the Haunted Sea.
  “Oh, quarter, Oh, quarter,” those pirates then did cry,
  Blow high, blow low, and so sailed we;
  But the quarter that we gave them – in the ocean now 
  they be,
  Coming down along the coast of the Haunted Sea.
  (Sung as a Sea Shanty)
  
  — 122 — 
  Races of Porphyra
  The lands of Porphyra are made of opportunity or trag-
  edy depending on who is telling the tale. Regardless, of 
  the storyteller none would disagree that the world was 
  irrevocably changed by the events of The Calling. Many 
  new races, hereafter referred to as Landed Races, arrived 
  along with the gods and older Native Races of Porphyra 
  were displaced or destroyed. Below is a description of 
  many of the races that figure prominently within the 
  Lands of Poprhyra Campaign Setting as well as a list of 
  their most prominent regions. This list, though exten-
  sive, is not exhaustive as it seems that more races arrive 
  or are created on Porphyra every day. 
  Aasimars (Landed): Before The Calling, access to 
  divine beings and the Realms Beyond was extremely 
  limited. Only a few powerful mages or the conjurers 
  of Erkusaa could breach the planar barriers and make 
  contact with those from outside of Porphyra. When the 
  planar barriers were breached during The Calling, and 
  the Gods of Porphyra gained access to the Patchwork 
  World, so did their celestial minions. Throughout the 
  NewGod Wars, mortals and celestials fought to over-
  throw the Elemental Lords. The first aasimar children of 
  their combined forces were born in the first years of the 
  war.
     Subraces: Geralites
     Regions: Empire of the Dead, Holdfast of the Celes-
  tial Parishes, Middle Kingdoms.
  Anpur (Native): The civilized race of gnolls known as 
  the anpur are native to the Deserts of Siwath. The City 
  of Tombs is where their dead are honored and their 
  ancestors are remembered.
     Regions: Calopia, Deserts of Siwath.
  Anumus (Native): The Empire of Al’mahk created the 
  anumus by feeding the supernatural anumi fruit to 
  lesser animals in the vain attempt to become god-like 
  race creators. When the empire fell, the various anumus 
  tribes were scattered throughout the Clandoms. Most 
  anumus tend to exist in small tribes of similar animal 
  heritage. Some have left the Clandoms as well including 
  many who emigrate to the Landed Territory called the 
  Gardens of Meynon.
     Regions: Calopia, Clandoms of the Fourlands, Gar-
  dens of Meynon, Great Green, Jotun Forest, Pyynian 
  Coast.
  Avoodim (Landed): In the NewGods War many 
  aspiring souls tested to become archons in the great 
  campaign against the Elemental Lords, but few were 
  worthy. Those souls unworthy to join the ranks of the 
  heavenly Archons, instead were returned to the mortal 
  realm in powerful bodies. These Lost Ones or avoodim 
  fought to regain their honor during the NewGod Wars 
  and now struggle to find a place in the mortal world 
  with their failure weighing heavy on their soul.
     Regions: Empire of the Dead, Holdfast of the Celes-
  tial Parishes, Middle Kingdoms.
  Boggard (Native): Boggards, or frogfolk, live through-
  out the wetlands of the world. In the time before The 
  Calling, most boggards were worshippers of the El-
  emental Lords as the boggards were given many gifts 
  for their service to the Naga Empress. Following the 
  NewGods War, boggards have lost much of their power 
  in the Fenian Triarchy which them blame on their grip-
  pli cousins. 
     Subraces: Grippli
     Regions: Calopia, Fenian Triarchy
  Blues (Landed): Blues are psionic goblins also from the 
  Clockwork Lands based in Pyoness. Longterm rivals, 
  but not enemies of the boggles, blue cryptics are often 
  involved in industrial espionage and sabotage cam-
  paigns against Crucible Industries.
     Regions: Calopia, Clockwork Lands, Purple Moun-
  tain.
  Boggles (Landed): Boggles are a landed race of tinker 
  goblins at home within the Landed Territory known 
  as the Clockwork Lands. Based mainly in Crucible, 
  Boggles were instrumental in the development of the 
  Mark I Multi-Purpose Golem (M1MG) by Crucible 
  Industries.
     Regions: Calopia, Clockwork Lands, Purple Moun-
  tain, Trade Consortium of Blix
  Catfolk (Native/Landed): While most catfolk are 
  nimble, capable, and often active creatures, there is 
  also a strong tendency among some catfolk to engage 
  in quiet contemplation and study. Such individuals are 
  interested in finding new solutions to age-old problems 
  
  — 123 — 
  and questioning even the most steadfast philosophical 
  certainties of the day. During NewGods War, the cat-
  folk of the Great Green remained neutral, much to the 
  chagrin of their elven neighbours, and worked to find a 
  peaceful solution to the conflict that ravaged the surface 
  of the Patchwork Planet.  
     Subraces: Cats of Olthar (Landed), Qit’ar (Landed)
     Regions: Calopia, Great Green, Hesteria.
  Changelings (Native): Changelings are the offspring of 
  hags and their lovers taken through magic or madness. 
  Dropped off on doorsteps of prospective foster parents, 
  changelings are raised by strangers. Typically tall, slen-
  der, dark haired, and attractive, changelings otherwise 
  resemble their fathers’ race. They are always female, and 
  their mismatched colored eyes and abnormally pale 
  skin hint at their true heritage. At puberty, changelings 
  receive “the call,” a hypnotic spiritual voice that beckons 
  them to travel and discover their true origins. Change-
  lings who ignore this call choose their own destiny; those 
  who heed it discover their “mother” and may come into 
  great power by transforming into hags themselves. At 
  the onset the NewGods War, hags abandoned their gi-
  ant allies and took up the banner of Mâl the Destroyer. 
  Changelings, sensing the winds of change as well, joined 
  the deist forces to help defeat the elemental Lords. It is 
  questionable how long their new loyalty will last or even 
  can last given their changeable nature.
     Regions: Calopia, Holdfast of the Celestial Parishes.
  Dhampir (Native): The vampiric spawn known as 
  dhampir live in greatest numbers within the Empire 
  of the Dead. Within this accursed land the half-living 
  humanoids can actually have some semblance of a nor-
  mal life. Outside of those borders, however they face 
  many of the same prejudices as dhampir commonly 
  face on other worlds except in the dream-like realm of 
  Hesteria.
     Regions: Calopia, Empire of the Dead, Hesteria, 
  Pyynian Coast.
  Dhosari (Native): The strange double-bodied dho-
  sari are one of the first races to walk or crawl the 
  surface of Porphyra. At a minimum, they are 
  the first race that was enslaved by the erku-
  nae. In the time before the NewGod Wars, 
  dhosari were found exclusively within the 
  company of their erkunae masters but since the war 
  many dhosari have seized their freedom and emigrated 
  from the Mist-Shrouded Isle to the New Lands of Azag-
  Itheil for a new start.
      Regions: Advent Imperiax, Azag-Ithiel, Calopia, 
  Erkusaa.
  Dragonblood (Native): In the Clandoms of the Four-
  lands, dragonblood cavaliers from the Order of Blood 
  help defend the region from sea drake attacks and 
  provide sound judgement to the civilian races of the 
  Clandoms. Though they possess no official power to 
  render such decisions, they are considered wise and fair 
  by many in the Clandoms.
     Regions: Calopia, Clandoms of the Fourlands, Hold-
  fast of the Celestial Parishes, Northlands.
  
  — 124 — 
  Dromites (Native): The psionic insectoid race of drom-
  ites is instrumental to the work of the Gaytes Founda-
  tion in the Clockwork Lands. They are industrious 
  workers who integrated quickly into the Landed Terri-
  tory of the Clockwork Lands. Dromites are involved in 
  the front-line defense of the Clockwork Lands against 
  the Oncoming Wave of Mâl as several of their island 
  colonies have already been consumed.
     Regions: Calopia, Clockwork Lands, Oncoming Wave 
  of Mâl, Pygmy Nations, Underdeep.
  Drow (Landed): The drow are as much a Landed race as 
  dwarves or mâlites. The restrictions of past scenarios do 
  not apply, and each of the seven sects of drow, though 
  somewhat physically and psychologically similar, come 
  with different loyalties and raisons d’etre, unchained to 
  one another. Drow serve many, wildly different masters 
  on the Patchwork Planet of Porphyra, and struggle to 
  survive after being dragged from their worlds of origin- 
  anything goes now, with the drow. 
      Regions: Underdeep.
  Duergar (Native): Duergar are the only native dwarves 
  found on Porphyra. In the Pinnacle Lands, duergar 
  operate a number of trade houses and tightly control the 
  movement of money and natural resources in the region. 
  Duergar never speak to others about the horrors they 
  have uncovered in their mines.
     Regions: Pinnacle Lands, Underdeep.
  Dwarves (Landed/Native): Dwarves never had any 
  intention of coming to the Lands of Porphyra, but like 
  many races swept up during The Calling they have made 
  do with the change. As devout followers of the Forge-
  father, the dwarves of the Clockwork Lands know that 
  there is no greater service they can render to their god 
  than their own hard work. Low Town, in the Creeper’s 
  Rift has suffered an influx of dwarven miners for Nor-
  Du-Mag intent on unearthing large lode of admantine. 
     Subraces: Duergar (Native)
     Regions: Calopia, Clockwork Lands, Creeper’s Rift, 
  Frozen North, Ghadab, Mount Xoa, Nor-Du-Mag, Pin-
  nacle Lands.
  Elan (Native): The naturally psionic elans of Kesh are 
  natural advisors and ambassadors. While humanoid in 
  appearance, these elans possess an internal anatomy (and 
  to a lesser degree, psychology) that is abnormal to most 
  creatures. 
     Elans are typically neutral in alignment, but can be 
  found in many numbers amongst the spectrum. Skilled 
  diplomats and mentors, their natural inclination towards 
  politics (and endless natural lifespan) means that for 
  better or worse, the elans of Kesh are at the source of 
  most every issue. Elans who engage in worship to di-
  vine beings are few and far between. Among these rare 
  dedicated, worship to Neria is most common, though a 
  scarce few revere Lyvalia and her poisoned politics.
     Their natural psionic abilities lead the majority of elans 
  to become well-practiced and powerful cryptics, psions, 
  and wilders, though any path that requires focus and 
  dedication while yielding deep and meaningful personal 
  rewards is especially attractive.
     Regions: Calopia, Hinterlands of Kesh, Iffud, Pin-
  nacle Lands
  Elementalkin (Native): Most elementalkin originally 
  came from zendiqi stock who deeply were deeply em-
  braced by the love of the Elemental Lords, or so they tell 
  it. Now with the power of the Elemental Lords defeated 
  the number of elementalkin seems to be in decline while 
  other native outsiders like avood and eventuals seem to 
  be on the rise. Elementalkin are generally poorly treated 
  by deists and have a tendency to be found in isolated 
  parts of the world or in areas of large zendiqi popula-
  tions like the Deserts of Siwath.
     Subraces: Ifrit, Oread, Sylph, Undine [Halinae]
     Regions: Deserts of Siwath, Eternal Ice, Freeport, New 
  Wathis, Rainbow Isles , Wastes of Simoon.
  Elves (Landed/Native): In the time before the New-
  Gods war, elves were slaves of the Elemental Lords and 
  their minions. It was the elves that first received dreams 
  of freedom from the Singer of Songs. Tossing aside an-
  cestral fears and hatred, elven runecasters reached out to 
  their former enemies, the orc runereapers, and set about 
  to enact an ancient ritual known as The Calling which 
  shattered the dimensional barriers that forbade travel 
  from Porphyra into the Realms Beyond and brought the 
  NewGods to Porphyra. In the aftermath of The Calling 
  and the NewGods War, elven populations were decimat-
  ed but they are beginning to recover in small enclaves 
  around the world. 
     Subraces: Colothorian (Native), Furnace Elves (Land-
  
  — 125 — 
  ed), Silvanath (Landed)
     Regions: Azag-Ithiel,  Calopia, City State of Ilu-
  riel, Gardens of Meynon, Great Green, Jotun Forest, 
  Morah’Silvanath, Purple Mountain.
  Enigmon (Native): The enigmon race was created by 
  powerful elder sphinx councils in ages past, as servants 
  rather than as slaves, to serve sphinx interests. Though 
  the centuries of time, and the dwindling of the influ-
  ence of sphinxes have loosened the traditional burdens 
  on enigmon, they still pursue the avocations of guard-
  ing sphinx lairs, searching for information to relate to 
  sphinxes, and preserving ancient sites. 
     Subraces: Guardian, Seeker, Teyori
     Regions: Calopia, Deserts of the Siwath, Ghadab, 
  New Wathis, Wastes of Simoon
  Entobians (Native): Entobians are a small race of insect 
  people that spend most of their lives as bipedal larvae, 
  looking somewhat like an upright walking caterpillar. 
  Despite their incredibly alien anatomy, they are prone 
  to familiar dispositions, friendly demeanors, and values 
  common to mankind. In addition, entobians are attract-
  ed to all walks of life. They harbor no favorite class or 
  profession, instead going where their desires take them. 
  Many entobians are hedonistic, wanting to get the most 
  out of life’s pleasures. Others thirst for high adventure,
  wanting a taste of every new experience. Most are a com-
  bination of the two. With experience comes opportunity. 
  Higher level entobians can undergo a metamorphosis 
  that will change their appearance and abilities forever.
     Regions: Calopia, Hesteria.
  Erkunae (Native): With their access to powerful chaos 
  magic and covenant magic at their disposal the erkanae 
  we not only able to resist the expansion of elementalist 
  and giant forces but they were able to control large ter-
  ritories of their own. Many native races of Porphyra fell 
  into the cruel and perverse servitude of the erkunae in 
  the time before the NewGod Wars. During the New-
  God Wars, the erkunae we forced out of many of their 
  colonies due to their own disorganization and internal 
  conflict. Erkusaa and the Seven Principalities are home 
  to the largest populations of erkunae.
     Regions: Advent Imperiax, Calopia, Erkusaa, Purple 
  Mountain, Seven Principalities.
  Eventuals (Landed): Eventuals fill the same niche as 
  aasimar and tieflings in most ways, though their exis-
  tence tends to more deliberate, and often results from 
  intentional outsider interference in the mortal races. 
  They attribute their abnormality to the outsider race 
  of inevitables, and their outer planar creators, the axi-
  omites. Though axiomites can presumably procreate as 
  archons and devils do, they rarely leave Regulus; it is 
  assumed that they sometimes create inevitables with that 
  ability, for their own complicated purposes. It is there-
  fore a fact that the axiomites, and their robotic creations, 
  are watching their hybrid progeny with some inscrutable 
  plan, which even the eventuals may not know.
     Regions: Bulwark of the Halfling Nations, Clockwork 
  Lands, Holdfast of the Celestial Parishes, Iffud.
  Femanx (Landed): Unlike many of the landed races, the 
  femanx were not intentional immigrants to the Lands of 
  Porphyra. There was no deity that consciously selected 
  them for habitation on the new world. Instead, when the 
  New Gods came to Porphyra the sudden appearance of 
  Vaar’s moon within the celestial spheres around Porphyra 
  caused the femanx colonization vessel to crash into the 
  mountainous region now called the Imperiax.
     Regions: Advent Imperiax, Calopia, Rainbow Isles.
  Fetchlings (Landed): Fetchlings emigrated to Porphyra 
  from the shadowy Realms Between through the Wall of 
  Sleep in Hesteria. Fetchlings are used to hostile wel-
  comes from other humanoid races, however the citizens 
  of Hesteria welcomed them along with their lucrative 
  and rare shadow-silk crafts that have become synony-
  mous with the dreamlands. Fetchlings also hold an 
  outpost called Shadowlight on the Purple Membrane in 
  the Barony of Tuthon. It is from this point that fetchling 
  and skulk anarchists on the service of The Mad Maiden 
  and The Dark Twin work to bring eternal twilight to 
  the world. Assassin fetchlings are often members of the 
  Evening Shades. 
     Regions: Barony of Tuthon, Hesteria.
  Feykissed (Native): Touched by the magic of the fey, 
  either through the enchantment of the fairy’s food or 
  by fey blood in the veins, the feykissed walk between 
  the lands of their human and fey kith. Many feykissed 
  feel a particular devotion towards Aleria. Her embodied 
  elegance, her virtue, and her affinity for well-tended 
  
  — 126 — 
  plants all resonate with the lovely feykissed. They tend to 
  practice her religion quietly and somewhat jealously.
     Regions: Calopia, Fenian Triarchy, Gardens of Mey-
  non, Great Green.
  Forlarren (Native): As volatile and sinister as they are 
  capricious, forlarren are the spawn of a wood nymph 
  and a nether fiend escaped from Erkusaa, a living conun-
  drum of grace and hate. Consummate loners, forlarren 
  are given to bouts of extreme malice toward all living 
  things followed by debilitating remorse. Forlarren are 
  nearly incapable of forming relationships that don’t 
  end in betrayal or murder. Though many forlarren rail 
  against the constant pull of evil, very few resist its seduc-
  tive call.
     Regions: Calopia, Great Green, Haunted Sea.
  Gathlain (Native): These strange fey creatures have a 
  symbiotic relationship with an ivy-like plant that serves 
  as their wings. The relationship is so close, it is impos-
  sible to separate fey from plant. 
  Gathlains are sometimes helpful, 
  often mischievous, and native to 
  deep primeval forests and jungles, 
  but are also prone to wanderlust and 
  adventuring.
     Regions: Calopia, Great Green, 
  Holdfast of the Celestial Parishes.
  Gillman (Native): The enig-
  matic and reclusive gillmen are the 
  aquatic descendants of a vanished 
  race. Physically, gillmen resemble 
  their ancient ancestors, with expres-
  sive brows, pale skin, dark hair, and 
  bright purple eyes. Three slim gills 
  mark each side of their necks, near 
  the shoulder, but they are close 
  enough in appearance to humans 
  that they can pass as such (for a 
  time) without fear of detection. 
  They are most common in the wa-
  ters around the cursed Kingdom 
  of Avandrool.
     Regions: Kingdom of Avan-
  drool.
  Gnolls (Native): Savage and territorial, there is no race 
  of creatures better suited to survive the unforgiving Des-
  erts of Siwath. Not that a gnoll will survive by the sweat 
  of their own brows, most gnolls are slavers who keep 
  larger stables of slaves to do the necessary work for them.
     Subraces: Anpur 
     Regions: Calopia, Deserts of Siwath.
  Gnomes (Landed/Native): Like all smaller races, 
  gnomes spent much of their time before The Calling 
  in slavery to other races. Long cut off from the Green 
  World, most gnomes have turned their studies to more 
  academic pursuits and the invention of wonderous 
  items. Under the banner of Rolterra, gnomes, halflings, 
  and goblins overthrew the Elemental Lord forces in 
  Enoria (now the Bulwark of the Halfling Nations) and 
  established a new territory for themselves. The Bulwark 
  is a besieged land, with constant threat of invasion by 
  mâlite and by corruption from the work of hags in the 
  region. 
     Many gnomes are new immigrants to the Clockwork 
  Lands where they work in the alchemist foundaries 
  of Pyroness, the Phoenix City. Far to the sourth, 
  gnomes in the Creeper’s rift provide engineering 
  and market solutions to a host of mining enter-
  prises. 
     Subraces: Forest Gnomes (Landed), 
  Tinker Gnomes (Landed)
     Regions: Bulwark of the Halfling 
  Nations, Calopia, Clockwork Lands, 
  Creeper’s Rift, Gardens of Meynon, 
  Holdfast of the Celestial Parishes, 
  Mount Xoa.
  Goblins (Native): Within the former 
  domain of Enoria that is now called 
  the Bulwark of the Halfling Nations, 
  goblins live mostly in the ruins of 
  Falden Town along with the ko-
  bolds that helped liberate them. 
  Though goblins, gnomes, and 
  halflings in the region all suf-
  fered from the same slavery and 
  subsequent rebellion against 
  the Elemental Lords, ancient 
  emnity between goblins and 
  gnomes has made their col-
  
  — 127 — 
  laboration very short lived.
     Subraces: Blue (Landed), Boggle (Landed), Grindylow 
  (Landed), Hobgoblins (Landed)
     Regions: Bulwark of the Halfling Nations, Calopia, 
  Clockwork Lands, Parl Pardesh, Purple Mountain, 
  Pygmy Nations.
  Grindylow (Landed): When the pirate nation of Free-
  port was transported to the Patchwork Planet by Lyva-
  lia, the aberrant, nasty, little goblinoid race of aquatic 
  grindylow came as well. Though brought to Porphyra 
  with Freeport they are not bound by its porphyrite 
  borders and have spread from the Haunted Sea to the 
  Opal Sea. Rumors abound that even traders as far south 
  as the Eastern Cold Sea have been attacks by schools of 
  grindylow.
     Regions: Freeport.
  Grippli (Native): Grippli are amicable frogfolk that are 
  cousins to the boggard. They are generally open and ac-
  cepting to new forms of civilization. Grippli are primi-
  tive in culture, and seem pleasantly baffled by advanced 
  technological or governmental concepts.
     They possess a gentle, simple wisdom coupled with 
  keen insight into the people around them. They can 
  intuit who is and who isn’t worthy of their trust – a gift 
  they do not give quickly. 
     Regions: Calopia, Fenian Triarchy, Great Green, King-
  dom of Avandrool, Parl Pardesh, Pygmy Nations
  Half-Cyclops (Native): Though the congress of humans 
  and cyclops seems unimaginable, in the of the Elemen-
  tal Lords, the half-cyclops existed in number far greater 
  than most people comfortable. Certain human cults 
  venerated the ancient cyclops race for its past glories 
  and innate powers of divination and prognostication. 
  These groups consider it an honor to bear the seed of the 
  once-mighty cyclops and venerate the children produced 
  from such coupling. These children are a minority. Most 
  cyclops are greeted with hatred, fear or outright hostility, 
  and must work long and hard to prove they are anything 
  but monsters.
     Those in the Hinterlands of Kesh eked out a society 
  of their own in the foothills. Brutish and cunning, they 
  were a major source of friction with the human inhabit-
  ants, viewing their “lesser” cousins as yet another source 
  of food—and a particularly delicious one at that.
     Regions: Calopia, Giant’s Retreat, Hinterlands of Kesh
  Half-Elves (Native): Half-elves are more prevalent on 
  Porphyra than elves but less prevalent than humans. 
  They are naturally curious about the world around them 
  and often suffer from wanderlust. Half-elves can be 
  found almost anywhere on Porphyra but rarely in large 
  numbers. Half-elves tend to be well-accepted in both 
  elven and human communities. The zendiqi tend to dis-
  like half-elves as much as they dislike elves. Kamians will 
  often attack half-elves and other bastard races on sight as 
  ordered by the Lord of Chains. 
     Regions: Azag-Ithiel, Calopia, Fenian Triarchy, Great 
  Green. 
  Half-Giants (Landed/Native): Native half-giants are the 
  result of giant occupation of humanoid lands during the 
  time of the Elemental Lords. Across most of Porphyra 
  they suffer the prejudice of others who also suffered 
  under the Elemental Lords. The Clandoms of the Four-
  lands is one region where no such prejudice exists. Half-
  giant tribes farm the region of the Clandoms known as 
  M’linas now. Landed psionic half-giants native to the 
  Clockwork Lands are often based in Treadwell where 
  they are involved in the production of psionics weaponry 
  and other gear.
     Regions: Calopia, Clandoms of the Fourlands, Giant’s 
  Retreat, Jheriak Continuance
  Half-Harpies (Native): Though many have heard tales 
  of harpies mating with captured humanoids to produce 
  more harpies, occassionally a half-harpy is born instead.  
  Half-harpies have no society or culture of their own. 
  A few who survive infancy manage to live with clans 
  of harpies, taking on the wild ways of their mothers. 
  Others are driven away from the nest and are found by 
  neighboring civilizations. As such, they often try as hard 
  as possible to appear fully human. 
     Regions: Birdman Mountains, Calopia, Pyynian 
  Coast.
  Half-Medusa (Native): With their serpent-eyed visage, 
  combined with a mane of living snakes, half-medusa cut 
  a striking form. Born of medusa and their humanoid 
  lovers, they deify the former and pity the latter, seeking 
  to elevate themselves in the service of their rulers.
     Half-medusa society is divided into clusters, each 
  
  — 128 — 
  presided over by a matriarch—typically a 
  medusa. These matriarchs style themselves 
  as rulers, each of which seeks to add 
  both numbers and wealth to her cluster 
  through conquest. The members of each 
  cluster form a bond of servitude, swearing 
  loyalty to their matriarch. 
     Regions: Calopia, Haunted Sea
  Half-Ogre (Native): Half-ogres are outcast 
  too savage for world of men, and too 
  soft for the world of giants. With the 
  exception of the half-ogre citizens of 
  Azag-Ithiel, most half-ogres live brutal 
  lives. They live by the axe with little 
  time for subterfuge, study, or supplica-
  tion; though some half-ogres are 
  known to pay token apprecia-
  tion to the Lava-Caller or the 
  Tall Tyrant.
     Regions: Azag-Ithiel, Calopia, 
  Giant’s Retreat, Jheriak Continuance, North-
  lands, Parl Pardesh, Pyynian Coast.
  Half-Orcs (Landed/Native): Native half-orcs 
  in the lands of Porphyra that existed before 
  The Calling possess both the blood of 
  elves and blood of orcs. Years of abuse 
  and subjugation by the Elemental Lord 
  drove these two races together both tacti-
  cally and physically. Even with the threat of the Elemen-
  tal Lords dimished many communities have large popu-
  lations of native elves and orcs living together. 
     Landed half-orcs often possess human and orc blood as 
  many of the landed orcs come from homeworlds where 
  their existed much animosity between the reclusive elves 
  and brutish orcs. Many half-orcs carry with them tradi-
  tional biases from their parent races and realms. Those 
  from the land of Freeport have a strong nautical and 
  pirate tradition.
     Regions: Advent Imperiax, Azag-Ithiel, Calopia, City 
  State of Iluriel, Freeport, Giant’s Retreat, Iffud, Jheriak 
  Continuance, Jotun Forest, Kingdom of Avandrool, 
  Northlands, Nor-Du-Mag, Purple Mountain.
  Half-Rakshasa (Native): Feared and hated even more 
  than other half breeds such as half-orcs and half-cyclops, 
  the half-rakshasa must work hard for acceptance. Their 
  forceful personalities and connection to strange, 
  supernatural powers make them natural 
  oracles, sorcerers, and
  witches. Half-rakshasa possess no culture of 
  their own. They adopt the laws and mores 
  of the creatures who raise them, usually 
  other rakshasa or half-rakshasa. Half-rak-
  shasa raised in a rakshasa clan are most 
  often slaves or laborers. The rare half-
  rakshasa raised in a humanoid set-
  ting are often only tolerated 
  because the half-rakshasa’s 
  true parentage is unknown 
  or 
  a secret.
     Regions: Calopia, Lotus Blossom 
  Steppes, Pyynian Coast.
  Halflings (Native): In ancient 
  times, the halflings lived as mer-
  chants and load-bearers amongst the 
  xax in the Birdman Mountains. During 
  The Calling, the halflings of the mountains 
  forsoke their ancient allies and welcomed 
  the harpies of Ithreia into the mountains. 
  This betrayal still haunts many of the 
  halflings that live in the mountains. To 
  the west, halflings that lived under the 
  oppres-
  sion of Enor Ashlord soon fell victim to the 
  destructive wave of Mâl. The halflings of the Bulwark 
  work tirelessly alongside gnomish forest to hold back the 
  expansion of Mâl’s corruption in the Forest of Gora.
     Subraces: Deep halflings
     Regions: Birdman Mountains, Bulwark of the Half-
  ling Nations, Calopia, Trade Consortium of Blix.
  Harpies (Landed): The harpies of the Birdman Moun-
  tains are the chosen people of the Seasinger. When 
  Ithreia came to Porphyra she gave the land known as the 
  Birdman Mountains to her followers, though she never 
  asked the original inhabitants their stance on the issue. 
  Though initially devotes to the Seasinger, many harpies 
  now worship and avian aspect of Eshalqua or the demon 
  lord Pazuzu. 
     Regions: Birdman Mountains, Calopia.
  
  — 129 — 
  Hobgoblins (Landed): Introduced to the Hinterlands 
  of Kesh during The Calling, hobgoblins are the embodi-
  ment of Kamus the Slaver’s will. Slavers by nature, the 
  Sons of Kamus believe in strict racial purity and superi-
  ority, inflicting unspeakable violence against any unfor-
  tunate enough to find themselves in their path.
     An incredibly jingoistic people, hobgoblins are in-
  credibly protective of their societal structure, founded 
  upon an ages-old union that brought together the first 
  warbands to form a massive military powerhouse. As a 
  means of preserving their cultural identity, hobgoblins 
  entrust their children to the matrons of their band. 
  The matrons quickly wean these offspring to encour-
  age physical strength, and are then responsible for their 
  instruction in both traditional warfare and religion.
     Regions: Calopia, Hinterlands of Kesh, Jheriak Con-
  tinuance, Oncoming Wave of Mâl, Parl Pardesh, Purple 
  Mountain.
  Humans (Landed/Native): The lands of Porphyra is the 
  home to many native humans as well as landed hu-
  mans. Humans live in almost all parts of the Patchwork 
  World but they are far from a homogenous group. Many 
  cultural groups of humans now exist in holds across the 
  world. They are sharply divided amongst themselves, 
  however, almost to the point of considering themselves 
  a species apart from one another, such as the feeling 
  between zendiqi and kayanoi. There is also a growing 
  group of humans, sometimes known as ‘Worlders’, with 
  a mixed human ancestry so that they cannot (or refuse 
  to) claim a specific human cultural group, and many of 
  these brave few are attempting to unite humanity, and 
  smooth out the racial, religious, and place-of-origin dif-
  ferences of the wildly diverse race of mankind.
     Subraces: Athelings, Erkunae, Kayan, Mahrog, Ze-
  ndiqi 
     Regions: Advent Imperiax, Barony of Tuthon, Bor-
  oughs of Dunmark, Californ, Calopia, Clandoms of the 
  Fourlands, Clockwork Lands, Creeper’s Rift, Erkusaa, 
  Fenian Triarchy, Freeport, Frozen North, Gardens of 
  Meynon, Ghadab, Giant’s Retreat, Haunted Sea, Hes-
  teria, Hinterlands of Kesh, Holdfast of the Celestial 
  Parishes, Iffud, Jheriak Continuance, Kingdom of 
  Avandrool, Kingdom of Iskandar, Last Kingdom, Lotus 
  Blossom Steppes, Middle Kingdoms, Mount Xoa, New 
  Wathis, Northlands, Nor-Du-Mag, Pinnacle Lands, 
  Pyynian Coast, Seven Principalities, Wastes of Simoon.
  Ith’n Ya’roo (Native): Ith’n ya’roo, singular yaro, their 
  young called yaroi, inhabit ice caverns, glacial caves, and 
  frozen shorelines of the world. Though they appear
  bestial, they are somewhat intelligent and quite wise,
  having been created from an amalgamation of human
  and yeti. Their fierce hunting skills, knowledge of bone-
  craft, and stalwart natures make them excellent frontiers-
  man.
     Regions: Calopia, Eternal Ice, Frozen North, North-
  lands.
  Kech (Native): Kech are monkey-like humanoids stand-
  ing about 6 feet tall and weighing about 150 pounds. 
  They make their homes in trees and prefer to move 
  through the trees rather than on the ground. Th ey have 
  an almost human organization and society among the 
  various tribes and clans. Family units dwell in a single 
  lair (usually a hollowed tree or small hut built among the 
  branches of a leafy tree). Except for a few adventurers, 
  most kech are found in the trees of Morah’Silvanath.
     Regions: Calopia, Morah’Silvanath.
  Kitsune (Native): Kitsune, or fox folk, are vulpine 
  shapeshifters known for their love of both trickery and 
  art. Kitsune possess two forms: that of an attractive 
  human of slender build with salient eyes, and their true 
  form of an anthropomorphic fox. Despite an irrepress-
  ible penchant for deception, kitsune prize loyalty and 
  make true companions. During the time of the Elemen-
  tal Lords they supported the elven and orcish resistance 
  by acting as spies within the ranks of the zendiqi.
     Regions: Calopia, Great Green, Holdfast of the Celes-
  tial Parishes, Last Kingdom.
  Kobolds (Landed/Native): Kobolds tend to come from 
  insular societies carved into the very rock of the earth. 
  Within these labyrinthine warrens, kobolds are able to 
  practice their customs, traditions, and faith without per-
  secution. While most landed kobolds and Red Claw ko-
  bolds worship dragons as though they were gods, native 
  kobolds have always revered a handful of archdevils with 
  whom they negotiated pacts. Most of the landed kobolds 
  are located in the Bulwark of the Halfling Nations where 
  they help the halflings hold back the incursion of mâlite 
  forces across the whole surface of Porphyra. 
     Subraces: Redclaw kobolds (Landed)
     Regions: Azag-Ithiel, Bulwark of the Halfling Nations, 
  
  — 130 — 
  Calopia, Pygmy Nations.
  Kripar (Native): Kripar are a monstrous race of human-
  oids that dwell deep underground. They try to minimize 
  contact with other races, but have been known to trade 
  with the dwarves and gnomes of the Creeper’s Rift par-
  ticularly for gunpowder weapons. Being natural inhabit-
  ants of the Underdeep they are very familiar with the 
  territories that new mining interests would find valuable.
     Regions: Calopia, Creeper’s Rift, Underdeep.
  Kval (Landed): One might be convinced a kval is a 
  wicked, wingless imp. It stands only about one-foot tall, 
  has goat-like horns, bright orange cat-like eyes, and a 
  long, spade-tipped tail. Its skin is pale blue, and its sim-
  ian mouth is full of sharp teeth. It even smells of fire and
  brimstone. Perhaps its most alarming feature, however, is 
  its large and disproportionate hands. 
     Kvals are often quick-tempered and ill-mannered, 
  though lack the selfishness and greed that would catego-
  rize them as truly deplorable. In fact, most view the kvals 
  as a force of good, as many kvals relentlessly stalk and 
  destroy evil at every opportunity. This tendency is 
  instinctual.
     Regions: Holdfast of the Celestial Par-
  ishes.
  Living Ghouls (Native): A forgotten tribe 
  of humans, the Gh’l surrounded them-
  selves with the finest jewels and silks 
  from the far corners of the world, yet 
  strode naked, too vain to cover their 
  beauty. Lesser men were useful, 
  however. The Gh’l feasted 
  on their slaves as other 
  men would on goats 
  and swine. Styling 
  themselves as gods, 
  generations of the 
  Gh’l tribe lived and 
  died amid a decadent, 
  incestuous and cannibalistic society.
     Cursed for their hubris by a capri-
  cious Protean Lord, the Gh’l became 
  twisted, feral creatures. With the 
  loss of their beauty came the loss of 
  their power and sensuousness, and 
  this new creature, the living ghoul, became more animal 
  than man.
     The race now thrives in the dark places the Empire of 
  the Dead, feeding off the weak and discarded. Forced 
  now to eat human flesh to survive, living ghouls disguise 
  themselves within human society, dwelling among the 
  cattle.
     Regions: Calopia, Empire of the Dead, Hesteria, New 
  Wathis.
  Lizardfolk (Native): Lizardfolk in the Clandoms were 
  once ruled by Nine Trials of M’razzak the Hunter, a wor-
  shipper of the River Mother. Now in the time after the 
  NewGods War, many lizardfolk in the Clandoms thrive 
  in So’cha as nomadic herders who make regular pilgram-
  ages to the Fenian Triarchy. Those in the Triarchy tend to 
  live in small villages and are known for their ferocity and 
  survivalist tendencies. They are distrustful of fey and will 
  openly war with boggards, but are willing to trade with 
  most other races.
     Regions: Calopia, Clandoms of the Fourlands, Fenian 
  Triarchy, Rainbow Isles, Seven Principalities.
  Maenads (Native): Wind-chafed and swarthy, 
  maenads are a people touched and toughened 
  by the sea. The sea-faring maenads were 
  among the first people to discover the 
  Haunted Sea. Born to the life of 
  sailing and nautical exploration, 
  they took to the treacherous 
  waters with both expertise 
  and zeal. Maenads decorate 
  their thick, braided hair 
  with beads of glass, gems, 
  and other semi-precious and 
  precious materials. These beads 
  not only complement the flecks 
  of glistening crystal that adorn 
  their bodies, but are representative 
  of each maenad’s personal accom-
  plishments and triumphs.
     Despite their stoic appear-
  ance, maenads are filled 
  with powerful—and 
  often overwhelming—
  emotions. Maenads are 
  taught from an early age how to keep 
  
  — 131 — 
  these emotions in check, allowing them to vent in only 
  the heat of battle. Consequently, maenads live highly 
  structured lives, and do not often consume alcoholic 
  beverages or mind-affecting substances.
     Regions: Calopia, Haunted Sea, Pinnacle Lands.
  Mahrog (Native): From the primeval Eternal Jungle of 
  Californ, an ancient species of humans still exist known 
  as a the mahrog. They living in isolation until The Call-
  ing when the xesa appeared and explorers from other 
  lands started to investigate the Land of Steam’s great 
  jungles. 
     Regions: Californ, Calopia.
  Mâlites (Landed): Perhaps the most disastrous side 
  effect of the Calling was the crack the formed in the 
  planar walls that imprisoned Mâl. When the prison walls 
  cracked the mâlites swarmed out and consumed all that 
  was once the island Empire of Karkoon. At the front 
  of Mâl’s legions stand the mâlite custodians and their 
  converted mâlites. Any creature that is transformed by 
  mâlite custodian is refered to as a mâlite. Their form is 
  now ever mutable.
     Regions: Oncoming Wave of Mâl.
  Muses (Landed): Muses come from a destroyed world 
  that was transported during The Calling along with the 
  god Rolterra to the northern part of Enoria, now the 
  Bulwark of the Halfling Nations. Upon arriving, muses 
  and kobolds from the Landed territory rallied the slaves 
  of Enoria against their oppressors. Muses often see them-
  selves as the embodiment of inspiration, ever-present to 
  offer advice and support to others while taking on little 
  risk themselves. 
     Regions: Bulwark of the Halfling Nations, Calopia
  Nagaji (Native): The nagaji are a race of ophidian 
  humanoids with scaled skin that mimics the dramatic 
  appearance of true nagas. Like serpents, they have forked 
  tongues and lidless eyes, giving them an unblinking gaze 
  that most other races find unnerving. Their physical 
  forms are otherwise humanlike, raising wary speculation 
  about their origins. It is widely believed that true nagas 
  created them as a servitor race, through crossbreeding, 
  magic, or both, and indeed nagaji revere nagas as living 
  gods. Nagaji often inspire awe and fear among other 
  humanoids, as much for their mysterious ancestry as for 
  their talent for both swords and sorcery.
     Regions: Calopia, Lotus Blossom Steppes
  Numistians (Landed): Hailing from the largest shop-
  ping mall in the multiverse are the numistians; a mer-
  chan race that specializes in making money. Originating
  from Mnol, the mysterious demiplane of commerce,
  these humanoids can vary their height, eat and bleed
  coins, and have a great eye for lucrative endeavors. With 
  The Calling ending the planar embargo of Porphyra, nu-
  mistians from across Mnol jumped at a chance to sieze a 
  new market.
     Regions: Trade Consortium of Blix
  Oakling (Native): From the deepest parts of the forests 
  and jungles come tales of trees that walk like humanoids.  
  Though many claim their origin lies in the chaos mael-
  stroms that were triggered by The Calling, ancient elven 
  text have records of oaklings long before the arrival of 
  the New Gods. The oaklings themselves have no tales of 
  their origin or record of their history as time has always 
  moved different in their minds. These treant-like beings 
  can be found in almost any major forest on Porphyra 
  including within the Landed Territories. 
     Regions: Calopia, Gardens of Meynon, Jotun Forest
  Obitu (Native): Redemption can come in many forms, 
  some more unsuspecting than others. With the rise of 
  clerical magic after The Calling, so to did the numbers 
  of mindless skeletons and zombies. To combat the rising 
  threat of undead hordes a magic positive energy plague 
  was created to decimate these foul creatures. However, 
  instead of destroying the undead it revitalized them 
  given them a second chance at life. Though skeletal 
  in appear, obitu are a living form of undead creature 
  harmed by negative energy. Most of these creatures are 
  found in the Empire of the Dead where the plague was 
  first released. They have a difficult time blending in to 
  other societies as most people can not see past their skel-
  etal exteriors.
     Regions: Calopia, Empire of the Dead, Haunted Sea
  Ogrillons (Landed): Ogrillons are a fierce half-ogre race
  born of a union between a female orc and a male ogre. 
  They tend to act like ogres, but they are far more violent
  and aggressive than their larger kin. Ogrillons are usually 
  only slightly taller than orcs, with features that strongly 
  
  — 132 — 
  favor their orc parent — so much so that most ogrillons 
  are indiscernible from normal orcs. Ogrillons love noth-
  ing more than combat.
     They are a race so inborn to be warriors that they seem
  almost depressed and dejected when they are not in-
  volved in melee. They only time an ogrillon laughs is 
  when it is the center of a whirlwind of melee and cov-
  ered in its opponent’s blood. Ogrillons do not care for 
  armor or weapons and in fact carry very little gear at all. 
  They do, however, like gold pieces and usually keep a 
  few in a filthy pouch with other shiny trinkets as lucky 
  charms.
     Regions: Jheriak Continuance
  Ophiduans (Native): Confused with lizardfolk by the 
  ignorant, ophiduans stand out among the other civi-
  lized nations in a fashion similar to the dromites, having 
  a more monstrous and distinct appearance than most 
  humanoids. Where other races share soft skin, flat teeth, 
  protruding ears, and a tendency to be partially or fully 
  covered in hair, ophiduans are distinct and very proud 
  of it. Organized and expansionistic in nature, ophiduans 
  view talent and skill, especially with psionics, as the key 
  component for social station, rather than wealth, heri-
  tage, or influence.
     Regions: Calopia, Underdeep
  Orcam (Native): These sea dwellers are carnivores that 
  prefer fish or seal meat, but their favorites are shark or 
  blood fish. They are mammals and are able to survive 
  underwater, even at great depths, due to their large lung 
  capacity. Orcam spend much of their time hunting for 
  food, preferring to snack several times a day instead of 
  eating fewer large meals. Orcam mate for life; when one 
  partner dies, the other never seeks another mate. Mated 
  couples produce off spring every few years and these 
  births are almost always of a single child. Twins are seen 
  as a sign of extraordinary luck. The whales they coexist 
  with are a vital part of their community and are treated 
  more as family than as pets. They are welcome in any 
  gathering or discussion and are often consulted on tribal 
  matters through the magic of the sea druids.
     Regions: Barony of Tuthon, Haunted Sea, Kingdom 
  of Iskandar, Northlands
  Orcs (Landed/Native): Giant enforcers of the Elemen-
  tal Lords held the orcs in slavery for 2,000 years. With 
  the formalization of the Cormazog Alliance, elves and 
  orcs were able to throw off the yoke of their oppressors 
  and bring a new form of divine magic to the land of 
  Porphyra. After the NewGods War orcs have worked to 
  reclaim lost territory or find new homelands free from 
  the oppression of others. Within the Landed Territories 
  of Freeport and the Jheriak Continuance are home to 
  savage orcs who are more likely oppressors of freedom 
  than they are saviors. The orcs of the Landed Territories 
  have ancestral emnity toward elves and view the native 
  orcs as laufshios or leaf-friends. 
     Subraces: Swamp Orcs
     Regions: Azag-Ithiel, Calopia, City State of Iluriel, 
  Freeport, Iffud, Jheriak Continuance, Jotun Forest, 
  Kingdom of Avandrool, Purple Mountain, Pyynian 
  Coast.
  
  — 133 — 
  Polkan (Native): The polkan are a nomadic semicentau-
  roid race. A polkan has an upper torso the same size as 
  that of a human and a shaggy-haired quadrapedal lower 
  body, like that of a pony. Wild and free, they reflect the 
  beauty and power found within both humans and the 
  natural world. 
     Each stado, or herd, of polkan can vary drastically in 
  size, ranging from a few dozen up to nearly a thousand 
  members. A willful and self-sufficient people, the mem-
  bers of each stado are inclined to heed the advice of 
  their sages and prophets as if the words were their own. 
  Though capable of learning tongues and written forms 
  of other people, each polkan is partially responsible for 
  the preservation of their history and collected wealth of 
  knowledge. Serving as living histories, sage pass down 
  this knowledge to each successive generation.
     Regions: Calopia, Hinterlands of Kesh, Lotus Blossom 
  Steppes
  Qit’ar (Landed): Qit’ar are psionic catfolk who arrived 
  on the planet of Porphyra by magical cascade of pla-
  nar energies that resulted from The Calling. Longtime 
  prisoners on their own world, the qit’ar escaped through 
  planar vortexs and ended up on Porphyra. Though they 
  had no direct link to The Calling, they quickly took up 
  arms against the Elemental Lords, who they saw as an-
  other oppressor, and became accepted as another one of 
  the new Landed races. Qit’ar tend to live in borderlands 
  and wild frontiers. 
     Regions: Calopia, Eternal Ice, Middle Kingdoms
  Ratfolk (Native): Ratfolk are small, rodentlike human-
  oids. They are often found in nomadic trading caravans. 
  Much like the pack rats they resemble, ratfolk are tinker-
  ers and hoarders by nature, and as a whole are masters 
  of commerce, especially when it comes to acquiring and 
  repairing mechanical or magical devices. Though some 
  are shrewd merchants who carefully navigate the shift-
  ing alliances of black markets and bazaars, many ratfolk 
  love their stockpiles of interesting items far more than 
  money, and would rather trade for more such prizes to 
  add to their hoards over mere coins. It’s common to see 
  a successful crew of ratfolk traders rolling out of town 
  with an even larger bundle than they entered with, the 
  whole mess piled precariously high on a cart drawn by 
  giant rats.
     Subraces: Bilgerats
     Regions: Calopia, Haunted Sea, Last Kingdom, New 
  Wathis, Trade Consortium of Blix
  Relluk (Native): The relluks were made by the Elemen-
  tal Lords to be stony protectors for the Rainbow Isles. 
  Unfortunately, they failed…their islands were overrun 
  in the first days of the NewGods War before the relluks 
  could even be activated. They stood in droves through-
  out the war only to spring to life years later. 
     Regions: Calopia, Rainbow Isles
  Sahaugin (Landed): Rare is the sea vessel that has not 
  suffered a sea devil raid since The Calling. Few coastal 
  villages live without the worry of a shark-man assault. 
  Barbarous and cruel, the sahuagin terrorize coastlands 
  and ocean-ways from their vast undersea empire.
     Undisputed rulers of the sea, sahuagin make war not 
  only against land dwellers, but against other oceanic 
  races, particularly their favored prey: sea elves.
     From blood sacrifices to appease Poison Wave to muti-
  lations at the slightest infraction, sahuagin society is as
  bloodthirsty as the sharks they rear and revere. Natural
  mutations, too, define sahuagin culture, whether an 
  extra pair of arms, the ability to breathe air.
     Regions: Freeport, Oncoming Wave of Mâl, Rainbow 
  Isles
  Samsarans (Native): Mysterious humanoids with pale 
  blue flesh and transparent blood like the waters of a 
  trickling brook, samsarans are ancient creatures even in 
  their youth. A samsaran’s life is not a linear progression 
  from birth to death, but rather a circle of birth to death 
  to rebirth. Whenever a samsaran dies, it reincarnates 
  anew as a young samsaran to live a new life. Her past 
  memories remain vague and indistinct—and each new 
  incarnation is as different a creature and personality as a 
  child is to a parent.
     Regions: Calopia, Last Kingdom, Lotus Blossom 
  Steppes
  Satyrine (Native): Satyrines are not a numerous race, 
  and do not seem to desire conquest or grand cities; for 
  them, plunder and adventure is all. Their ships are feared 
  on many seas for this reason, and the irresistible satyrine 
  captains frequently demand duels and combat for their 
  lusty underlings, regardless of the terms for surrender or 
  defeat. Their skills on the open sea are readily apparent, 
  
  — 134 — 
  as is their willingness to fight. Satyrine ships are often 
  stripped of weapons to facilitate speed, to accommodate 
  their desire for boarding actions. Any losses of their 
  smitten male crews can be replaced with newer victims/
  paramours.
     Regions: Calopia, Haunted Sea
  Saurian (Native): Saurians are an ancient, noble race. 
  The Saurian civilization was old when the other races 
  were born, having survived the catastrophes that periodi-
  cally cleanse the world. Ancient saurian scrolls tell of a 
  time when the world was covered in jungle and giant 
  reptiles stomped across the continents. Perhaps because 
  of this pedigree, modern saurians feel a bit out of place 
  in the modern world. While a proud, civilized people, 
  the saurians are slow to adapt and lost much of their 
  civilization during the reign of the Elemental Lords. 
  Now centralized within the Jengu-Na, saurians main-
  tain as much of their ancient traditions as possible while 
  acknowledging their status as a dying breed. The typical 
  saurian is stubborn, stoic, and resolute. His pragmatic 
  approach and willingness to accept the inevitable some-
  times and unfairly labels him as defeatist.
     Regions: Calopia, Great Green, Jengu-Na
  Serpentfolk (Landed): Devoted followers of the Great 
  Serpent Yig, through his servant S’sluun, the Naga 
  Empress, serpentfolk have sought to control the affairs 
  of man from the shadows. In the lands of Freeport their 
  foul machinations were thwarted before The Calling. 
  Defeated but not destroyed, serpentfolk are on the rise 
  again and they are looking to broaden their foothold in 
  the new world.  
     Regions: Barony of Tuthon, Freeport
  Skulks (Landed): Servants of the demon lord known 
  as the Dark Mistress, skulks inflitrated the Barony of 
  Tuthon from Realms Beyond. Within the Barony they 
  work with the fetchlings and the Evening Shades to 
  bring about eternal twilight. Outside of the Barony, 
  skulks only exist in small tribes that work behind the 
  scenes to fostor revolt or perform assassinations. Some 
  skulks have taken up piracy which has lead to tales of 
  ghost ships manned by “empties”. They are so alien in 
  appearance it is difficult for any race to give them fair 
  consideration.  
     Regions: Barony of Thuthon, Calopia, Empire of the 
  Dead, Pyynian Coast.
  Squoles (Landed): When the femanx crashed their 
  mothership into Silent Mountains to the south of the 
  
  — 135 — 
  Iffud alien matter from their engines and flight systems 
  seeped into the ground and the waters in the Lake of 
  Zax. From this polution and the elemental energies ex-
  pended in the NewGods War, the squole were born. This 
  half-ooze race  possesses a generally human shape, except 
  that they are somewhat translucent. Squole are not 
  plentiful in the lands of Porphyra but those that do exist 
  often take up adventuring to see more of the new world.
     Regions: Advent Imperiax, Calopia, Nor-Du-Mag.
  Strixes (Native): Strix were the first avian race on Por-
  phyra who served The Sand-Spirit in the time before 
  The Calling. With the arrived of the NewGods and the 
  distraction of the NewGods War, the strix were able to 
  escape the thrall of the Wind of Jewels and escape north 
  to the Birdman Mountains were they assisted the harpies 
  in taking the mountains from the alien xax. Content 
  with their home in the Birdman Mountains and far from 
  contact with other races the strix race has flourished in 
  their isolation.
     Regions: Birdman Mountains, Calopia. 
  Taddol (Native): Taddols have never been welcomed in 
  human or elven lands. The two-headed humanoids were 
  subject to persecution or enslavement whereever they 
  went, until they arrived in Azag-Ithiel, the Newlands 
  where they were granted full citizenship just as any other 
  sentient humanoid race. Chaotic in nature, taddols never 
  live in large, highly-ordered communities but instead 
  in small rural settlements far from the persecution of 
  others. Taddol farmers in Azag-Ithiel view their new life 
  a blessing granted by Amaelianesses the Lilting Song in 
  the Aftermath.
     Regions: Azag-Ithiel, Calopia, Great Green.
  Tengu (Native): Tengu were originally found in the Last 
  Kingdom and the Lotus Blossom Steppes where they 
  served as middle class linguists and negotiaters. With the 
  formation of Azag-Ithiel after the NewGods War, many 
  tengu emigrated to this new land for the chance to start 
  over as equal citizens. Ever aspiring to to do something 
  greater, to hold more power, to be better than all others, 
  many tengu have fallen under the sway of The Whisper-
  ing Councilor.
     Regions: Azag-Ithiel, Calopia, Last Kingdom, Lotus 
  Blossom Steppes, Last Kingdom, Lotus Blossom Steppes
  Tieflings (Landed): After The Calling there were many 
  semi-infernal births that resulted from the union of 
  humanoid and infernal forces against the giant minions 
  of the Elemental Lords. Prior to The Calling, planar 
  contact was very limited but with the return of access 
  to the Realms Beyond such comminglings of races have 
  become more likely. Still distrusted by many for their 
  semi-monstrous appearance, tieflings in the Empire of 
  the Dead are largely accepted by the general population 
  of dhamphir, living ghouls, obitu, and intelligent un-
  dead.
     Subraces: Deep-Spawn, Oni-Spawn
     Regions: Empire of the Dead, Haunted Sea, Last 
  Kingdom, Pyynian Coast 
  Troglodytes (Native): Troglodytes are thought of as fe-
  ral, savage cave dwellers. They are among the most popu-
  lous denizens of the upper reaches of the endless caverns 
  of the underworld. The troglodyte is one of the oldest of 
  intelligent races, and ruins found in some remote caverns 
  testify to the fact that their empire was once among the 
  largest in the world before The Calling. Since the devas-
  tation of the NewGods War they have begun to rebuild 
  and their ancient culture and society.
     Regions: Underdeep
  Urisk (Native): Urisks gambol through the wildest 
  places of Porphyra. They are normally solitary, and do 
  not like one another’s company. They do not avoid 
  each other, and meet briefly if they see another urisk to 
  exchange news or happenings, and move on. There are 
  no urisk communities. Females of the species will some-
  times cohabit the same cave system. Urisks congregate 
  at the same sylvan gatherings as other fey do, and vicari-
  ously enjoy the frivolity of pixies, grigs, and leprechauns, 
  and will even aid fauns and satyrs occasionally, but will 
  leave angrily if confused with either species. They can be 
  expert, though unpredictable guides. 
     Regions: Birdman Mountains, Calopia, Holdfast of 
  the Celestial Parishes.
  Xax (Native): Long before the rise of the Elemental 
  Lords, xax emigrated to the Material Plane from the 
  Realms Beyond and then became stranded. Here they 
  adapted to the mountainous region now known as the 
  Birdman Mountains and for time untold held abso-
  lute dominion over the region. With The Calling, that 
  
  — 136 — 
  dominion ended and the xax were routed by strix and 
  harpies that invaded the region. Now little more than a 
  legend in the Birdman Mountain, some small enclaves of 
  xax still exist.
     Regions: Birdman Mountains, Gardens of Meynon
  Xephs (Native): Xephs are psionic humanoids who live 
  in tight-knit monastic or artistic communes. At least, 
  that is what they do if provided with their freedom. Due 
  to some long-forgotten wrong, xeph in the Pinnacle 
  Lands live in virtual servitude to the human psionicists 
  that live there. Large numbers of xeph that have escaped 
  the Pinnacle Lands to the Gardens of Meynon to begin 
  again independent of others.
     Regions: Calopia, Gardens of Meynon, Pinnacle 
  Lands
  Xesa (Native): Xesa are plant-like humanoids native to 
  the Eternal Jungle of Californ. They were created from 
  the symbiosis of carnivorous plants and from an an-
  cient race of humans who worshipped the plants. Xesa 
  are eternal creatures that reproduce asexually except for 
  those that have transformed into the Undivided.
     Regions: Californ, Calopia
  Zendiqi (Native): There are two major sects of Zendiqi 
  within the lands of Porphyra. First are the traditional 
  Adherents of the Four who have held fast to their faith 
  in the Elemental Lords despite the Elemental Lords’ 
  defeat and banishment at the end of the NewGods War. 
  The most devout of these zendiqi live now in the Deserts 
  of Siwath, their traditional home, a land reserved for 
  them at the end of the NewGods War.
     Second are the more integrated followers of the New 
  Way which is slowly working toward a spirit of peace 
  and cooperation with the New Gods and the Landed 
  peoples of Poprhyra. The Clandoms of the Fourlands is 
  one such region of Porphyra where zendiqi embraced 
  the New Way and have become an accepted group with 
  the Fourlands. Many zendiqi live in I’nsian and work as 
  administrators under Can Baniu.
     Regions: Calopia, Clandoms of the Fourlands, Des-
  erts of the Siwath, Ghadab, New Wathis, Nor-Du-Mag, 
  Wastes of Simoon.
  Zifs (Native): When House Strat fell in the Barony 
  of Tuthon, opportunistic zif established the city of 
  Barbledrum on the southern shore of the Sea of Ithreia. 
  Fair-minded and resourceful, the snail-like zif are an 
  important aspect of the land of madness’s economic suc-
  cess. A secondary group of zif have settled in the landed 
  territory of Freeport. Here they do trade with all the 
  races equally providing some order to the raucous pirate 
  nation.
     Regions: Barony of Tuthon, Calopia, Freeport
  Porphyra Trivia
  In the regions of the world, such as the 
  Jheriak Continuance,  with Landed half-orcs 
  (that is half-orcs with human and orc descent) 
  the Landed half-orcs are called half-humans 
  by their orcish sires to demonstrate their lower 
  status and inferior bloodline.
  
  — 137 — 
  Religion
  The history of Porphyra being what it is, religion (or the 
  opposition of it) is a huge factor in life in that world.  
  Ancient legends tell of godlike beings trying to invade 
  Porphyra several milennia before The Calling, a vague 
  era that proposes the origin of the Kayanoi people and 
  several states and phenomena on Porphyra.  Whether 
  there have never been ‘gods’ on this small world is a 
  minor matter of debate in ecclesiastic halls, but the real-
  ity of the sudden incursion of twenty-seven Gods and 
  Goddesses literally overnight turned the native culture 
  of Porphyra topsy-turvy.  Being inserted into a ‘godless’ 
  world was also upsetting to the pieces of other realities, 
  known as “Landed Territories”, as it implied that the 
  gods were not omnipresent, and that there were those 
  that could reject Deism and lead normal lives within 
  empires and humanoid social structures.  
     The ‘Landed’ gods, twenty-one in number, were al-
  ready established in pantheons in other dimensions, even 
  the same dimensions in the case of some of them, and 
  brought selected nations, peoples and lands with them, 
  to be forcibly incorporated into the being of Porphyra, 
  bordered by the mystical substance porphyrite.  This 
  suggests that it is the will of the gods themselves that 
  maintains them in the planet, in this reality... suggesting 
  some interesting consequences to those who would lay 
  the gods low.  The ‘Risen’ gods, six of them so far, have 
  spontaneously risen or been created in the century since 
  The Calling, and have no less power than the twenty-
  one Landed deities, and some have even made alliances 
  within the older pantheon.
     Pantheism, or worshiping more than one deity, is more 
  common on Porphyra than on other worlds, due to the 
  ‘banding together’ of the New Gods during that epony-
  mous war.  The tales of how thoroughly evil gods such 
  as Fenris Kul and Rolterra fought against the indigenous 
  Elementalists for the ‘good’ of all Landed peoples seems 
  very strange to many dimensional travelers.  A lawful 
  good pantheist who worships the trinity of Aleria, Ge-
  rana and Toma Thule is a paragon of right and goodness, 
  while a chaotic evil pantheist who worships the dark 
  triad of Mal, Rajuk Amon-Gore and Vortain is a rather 
  succinctly complete example of foulness.
     The practice of Elementalism is not precisely a religion, 
  but a more complex concept that is dealt with in its own 
  section of this gazetteer.  There are those that attempt 
  to hold both Elemental Lords and New Gods in equal 
  esteem, a burgeoning movement that is sometimes called 
  The New Way, but it is small and fragile, most evident 
  in some progressive groups among the zendiqi and some 
  remnant mixed-blood isolates in the Landed territories.  
  Faint, vague rumors of a being that seeks to reconcile the 
  two philosophies are rarely but definitely heard, and are 
  regularly quashed by the autocratic leaders of both sides 
  of the smoldering conflict.
  Pantheist (Cleric Archetype)
  In realities where many gods hold sway over the domina-
  tion of creation, these deities may often cooperate with 
  one another, even across the lines of alignment.  There 
  may be enough collegiality for them to even share wor-
  shipers and clerics, and promote the idea of pantheism, 
  devotion to  many gods at the same time.  Keeping the 
  tenets of many gods is a heavy task, but the rewards are 
  often worth keeping devotions to more than one deity.
  Pantheist Domains: A pantheist may select three do-
  mains from all of the domains of their selected deities, 
  and is proficient with all of the favored weapons of their 
  selected deities.
  Multiple Patrons (Su): A pantheist can select up patron 
  deities that have different alignments, as long as her own 
  alignment is no more than one step away from the align-
  ment of the two deities.  A pantheist  may alternatively 
  select three patron deities, as long as their alignment 
  matches the alignments of the three patrons.  
     Violating alignment proscriptions applies to all patron 
  deities, and all spell and clerical abilities will be lost until 
  atonement is made.  They must possess holy symbols of 
  all of their selected deities; many pantheists have a holy 
  symbol of metal that incorporates the forms of all indi-
  vidual holy symbols.
  Spells: A pantheist can cast one fewer spell per day than 
  is listed in the table Cleric: Spells per day, and may not 
  spontaneously cast cure or inflict spells by substituting 
  other spells.  They have access to all of the domain spells 
  of all of the patron deities they have selected.
  
  — 138 — 
  The New Gods
  In the aftermath of The Calling there were 21 new 
  deities on the planet of Porphyra. They were originally 
  detailed in Gods of Porphyra but appear here as well.
  Aleria, the Love of Life  
   
  Alignment: Lawful Good
  Domains: Charm, Good, Healing, Plant
  Subdomains: Archon, Growth, Love, Restoration
  Land: The Gardens of Meynon
  Aleria is a goddess of life, love and nature, beloved by all 
  who are unconsumed by evil.  Her favored weapon is the 
  starknife, and her symbolic animal is the meadowlark.
  Eshsalqua, the Dark Patron
  Alignment: Lawful Evil
  Domains: Animal, Art, Law, Trickery
  Subdomains: Deception, Devil, Feather, Sound
  Land: Pygmy Nations
  A strange and unknowable being that thrives on the cor-
  ruption inherent in all thinking life, Eshsalqua is a mas-
  ter tempter and promises many dark gifts.  Its favored 
  weapon is the switchblade, and its symbolic animal is the 
  mockingbird.
  Fenris Kul, the Breaker
  Alignment: Neutral Evil
  Domains: Destruction, Evil, Strength, Trickery
  Subdomains: Daemon, Ferocity, Rage, Thievery
  Lands: The Jheriak Continuance
  A god of the End Times, Fenris Kul works toward the 
  end of everything, by any means.  His favored weapon is 
  the battleaxe, his symbolic animal the vulture.
  Ferrakus, the Lord Beneath
  Alignment: Neutral
  Domains: Earth, Fire, Luck, Strength
  Subdomains: Ash, Caves, Curse, Ferocity
  Lands: Creeper’s Rift
  Primal god of stone and the world’s heat, Ferrakus di-
  rects the making and unmaking of material goods.  His 
  favored weapon is the heavy pick, his symbolic animal 
  the mole.
  Gerana, Lady Justice
  Alignment: Lawful Good
  Domains: Community, Earth, Glory, Nobility
  Subdomains: Archon, Heroism, Honor, Leadership
  Lands: The Middle Kingdoms
  Possibly the most powerful and widespread of the New 
  Gods, Gerana promotes the spread of civilization and 
  the respect of encoded law.  Her favored weapon is the 
  warhammer, her symbolic animal the warhorse.
  Ithreia, Old Mother Owl
  Alignment: Lawful Neutral
  Domains: Air, Animal, Water, Weather
  Subdomains: Feather, Ice, Storms, Wind
  Lands: The Frozen North
  Proud nature-goddess of the cold lands, Ithreia protects 
  animals and brings the storm to where it will test men 
  and other humanoids.  Her favored weapon is the pilum 
  (or harpoon, to some), and the triad of her symbolic 
  animals are the gyrfalcon, snowy owl, and the whale.
  Kamus, the Pure
  Alignment: Lawful Evil
  Domains: Artifice, Law, Sun, Travel
  Subdomains: Light, Slavery, Toil, Trade
  Lands: Hinterlands of Kesh
  Domineering tester of all races to a strict standard, 
  Kamus promotes survival of the fittest, where the strong 
  and clever rule.  His favored weapon is the spiked chain, 
  his favored animal, the horse.
  Linium, Forgefather
  Alignment: Lawful Neutral
  Domains: Artifice, Fire, Law, Rune
  Subdomains: Construct, Inevitable, Language, Smoke
  Lands: The Clockwork Lands, Beta
   
  Wise and industrious dweller within the smoke of 
  manufactory, Linium always encourages his followers to 
  use the laws of physics to their developmental benefit.  
  His favored weapon is the light hammer, his symbolic 
  animal the spider.
  
  — 139 — 
  Aleria
  Eshsalqua
  Fenris Kul
  Ferrakus
  Gerana
  Ithreia
  Kamus
  Linium
  
  — 140 — 
  Lyvalia, Throne-Shadow
  Alignment: Neutral Evil
  Domains: Charm, Knowledge, Nobility, Trickery
  Subdomains: Deception, Leadership, Love, Memory
  Lands: Freeport
  A two-faced goddess embodying court intrigue, ven-
  geance and politics, Lyvalia’s clerics are masters of the 
  backroom deal.  Her favored weapon is the fighting fan, 
  and her symbolic animal is the viper.
  Mâl, Destroyer of Worlds
  Alignment: Chaotic Evil
  Domains: Chaos, Destruction, Evil, Plant
  Subdomains: Catastrophe, Decay, Protean, Rage
  Lands: Gateway (The Oncoming Wave of Mal)
  An alien terror from a dimension outside of mortal com-
  prehension, Mâl seeks to remake Porphyra in his home 
  plane’s image.  His favored weapon is the scorpion whip, 
  and he holds no animal sacred.
  Neria, Dreamspeaker
  Alignment: Neutral Good
  Domains: Art, Good, Luck, Knowledge
  Subdomains: Agathion, Fate, Memory, Sound
  Lands: City State of Illuriel
  The Oracle of Fate is a mysterious, benevolent entity, 
  dealing with dreams and prophecy and things unknown.  
  Her favored weapon is the sling staff, and her symbolic 
  animal, the wolf.
  Nise, Battle Mistress
  Alignment: Chaotic Neutral
  Domains: Air, War, Water, Weather 
   
  Subdomains: Blood, Ice, Storms, Wind
  Lands: The Haunted Sea
  A violent goddess of warfare, especially on the wild, 
  wind-whipped seas, Nise is as unpredictable as the travel-
  tide of her mobile archipelago, The Haunted Seas.  Her 
  favored weapon is the cutlass, and her symbolic animal, 
  the seahawk.  
  Paletius, He Above
  Alignment: Neutral Good
  Domains: Knowledge, Magic, Rune, Sun
  Subdomains: Arcane, Divine, Thoughts, Wards
  Lands: The Lotus-Blossom Steppes
  Sun-god of magic and words, the goal of Paletius is 
  education of the masses, so as to avoid the repetition of 
  the apocalypses that ended the worlds the Landed came 
  from.  His favored weapon is the morningstar, his sym-
  bolic animal, the eagle.
  Rolterra, the Boundless One
  Alignment: Lawful Evil
  Domains: Liberation, Magic, Time, Travel
  Subdomains: Arcane, Exploration, Future, Revolution
  Lands: Faldon Town (Bulwark of the Halfling Nations)
  An ambitious goddess of political aspiration, Rolterra 
  urges her faithful to push for strong government, by any 
  means possible.  Her favored weapon is the scythe, her 
  favored animal, the barn owl.
  Saren, the Untamed 
   
   
   
  Alignment: Chaotic Good
  Domains: Animal, Charm, Chaos, Plant
  Subdomains: Azata, Fur, Lust, Growth
  Lands: Morah’Silvanath, the World Tree
  A wild god of wilderness and unbridled passion, Saren is 
  best worshiped in the untamed places of the deep forest.  
  His favored weapon is the greatclub, his symbolic animal 
  the boar.
  Shankhil, the Gatekeeper 
   
   
  Alignment: Lawful Neutral
  Domains: Darkness, Repose, Sun, Weather
  Subdomains: Ancestors, Day, Moon, Seasons
  Lands: Purple Mountain
  Though Gerana is the most visible deity, Shankhil is 
  the most often thought of, controlling the porphyrite 
  borders and much of the underpinning of the cosmos’ 
  movement.  His favored weapon is the scizore, his sym-
  bolic animal, the dove.
  Tulis, the Martyr
  Alignment: Chaotic Good
  Domains: Liberation, Nobility, Protection, Strength
  
  — 141 — 
  Lyvalia
  Mâl
  Neria
  Saren
  Nise
  Shankhil
  Paletius
  Rolterra
  
  — 142 — 
  Tulis
  Ul’Ul
  Veiloaria
  Vortain
  Yolana
  
  — 143 — 
  Subdomains: Defense, Freedom, Martyr, Purity
  Lands: Iffud
  The informal goddess of heroes and causes, Tulis rewards 
  those who sacrifice for others.  Her favored weapon is 
  the longsword, her symbolic animals, cattle.  
  Ul’Ul, the Vortex
  Aignment: Chaotic Neutral
  Domains: Art, Chaos, Madness, Weather
  Subdomains: Insanity, Movement, Protean, Storms
  Lands: The Wall of Sleep (Hesteria)
  Mad goddess-patron of those who walk the line between 
  creativity and insanity, Ul’Ul’s Land is a swirling hole to 
  other dimensions.  Her favored weapon is bladed scarf, 
  her symbolic animal, the butterfly.
  Veiloaria, Wayfinder
  Alignment: Neutral Good
  Domains: Air, Earth, Travel, Water
  Subdomains: Clouds, Exploration, Oceans, Trade
  Lands: Mount Xoa
  Ageless traveler on the roads of the Universe, Veiloaria 
  has been everywhere and knows all, helping heroes thrive 
  and fight evil.  Her favored weapon is the quarterstaff, 
  her symbolic animal, the common swift.
  Vortain, Bringer of Chaos
  Alignment: Chaotic Evil
  Domains: Chaos, Madness, Travel, Trickery
  Subdomains: Deception, Demon, Insanity, Trade
  Lands: The Pyynian Coast
  Perverse ruiner of all that is good, pure, and worthwhile, 
  Vortain’s favorite sin is ruining mortal’s minds and bod-
  ies with drugs and poisons.  His favored weapon is the 
  flail, his symbolic animal, the hyena.
  Yolana, the Truthlight
  Alignment: Chaotic Good
  Domains: Knowledge, Liberation, Protection, Time
  Subdomains: Defense, Memory, Revolution, Past
  Lands: The Kingdom of Iskander
  The Truthlight is a harsh mistress, and few hold up to 
  her standards of dedication, preparation and ability in 
  learning from lessons of the past, in remote monasteries.  
  Her favored weapon is the sai, and her symbolic animal 
  is the scorpion.
  The Risen Gods
  Destined to be part of the twenty-seven by the Theatre 
  of Arrival, the six Risen gods spontaneously arose from 
  a collective planetary will, or, in some cases, cosmically 
  transformed mortals, to be part of the New Gods of 
  Porphyra.  At least two of these have been successful in 
  obtaining territory on their own, adding to the patch-
  work nature of Porphyra.
  Chiuta, River Mother
  Alignment: Neutral
  Domains: Animal, Plant, Repose, Water
  Subdomains: Ancestors, Decay, Feather, Souls
  Swamp-risen protector of the wetlands, Chiuta demands 
  respect for her scaly and feathered children, providing 
  access to the circle of life for her followers.  Her favored 
  weapon is the sickle, her symbolic animal, the crocodile.
  Myketa, the Patient Lady
  Alignment: Neutral
  Domains: Community, Darkness, Time, War
  Subdomains: Family, Loss, Tactics, Past
  Like Nemyth Vaar, Myketa was born of war, of the 
  generations left behind by conflict, the comforter of 
  those who have lost battles and loved ones.  Her favored 
  weapon is the longspear, her symbolic animal, the dog.
  Nemyth Vaar, Nemesis
  Alignment: Chaotic Neutral
  Domains: Chaos, Death, Earth, Madness
  Subdomains: Demon, Metal, Murder, Nightmare
  Lands: Vaar’s Moon
  A deity of mistrust, betrayal, and mercenaries, Nemyth 
  Vaar represents the corrupted values of a world ravaged 
  by war.  His favored weapon is the bastard sword, his 
  sacred animal, the raven.
  
  — 144 — 
  Chiuta
  Myketa
  Nemyth Vaar
  Rajuk Amon-Gore
  Shade
  Toma Thule
  
  — 145 — 
  Rajuk Amon-Gore, the Dark Maw
  Alignment: Chaotic Evil
  Domains: Art, Chaos, Death, Evil
  Subdomains: Demon, Devil, Movement, Undead
  Created from the foul murder of an infant godling, the 
  capering foulness that is Rajuk and his undead Dancers 
  gives nightmares to all Porphyrans.  His favored weap-
  on is the short sword, and his symbolic animal is the 
  death’s-head hawkmoth.
  Shade, Prince of Thieves
  Alignment: Neutral Evil  
  Domains: Darkness, Death, Luck, Trickery
  Subdomains: Fate, Murder, Night, Thievery
  Born a mortal elf, some say, Shade elevated to godhood 
  through thievery, murder and deceit, and his followers 
  do the same in his name.  His favored weapon is the 
  curved kukri knife, his symbolic animal the rat.
  Toma Thule, the Lion
  Alignment: Lawful Good
  Domains: Artifice, Community, Law, Nobility
  Subdomains: Archon, Home, Leadership, Toil
  Lands: Digirn, the Celestial Fortress (Empire of the 
  Dead)
  The incarnate collective of the goodness of the Por-
  phyran people, Toma Thule embodies fearlessness and 
  virtue, no matter the odds.  His favored weapon is the 
  warhammer, his symbolic animal, the lion.
  The Elemental Lords
  The Elemental Lords of Porphyra were once the ascen-
  dant powers of that world, not exactly gods, but more 
  primal powers of the world, controlling its substance at 
  the expense of the mortal life there, and thus attributed 
  the epithet ‘evil’.  Most were rulers, in the truest sense, 
  concerned to a certain degree with the livelihood of their 
  subjects, but alien to most mortal life to the extent that 
  they identified more with monsters than men, a likely 
  motivation for the widespread abandonment of them 
  during the cataclysmic conflict known as the NewGod 
  Wars, which ravaged Porphyra for nearly two centu-
  ries.  Though most were banished to one outer plane or 
  another, cults to all still remain, hunted and secret, still 
  dreaming of reestablishing their dread masters.
  The Lords of Air
  Djinnlord Qarryn, Kurofu the Shadow, and the Wind of 
  Jewels are the Elemental Lords of Air.
  Djinnlord Qarryn, Master of M’harret
  Alignment: Lawful Evil
  Domains: Air, Animal, Evil, Law
  Subdomains: Cloud, Feather, Loyalty, Slavery
  Traditional Territory: New Wathis
  Lofty lord of the conflicted race of djinn, Qarryn ruled 
  from flying cities above huge necropolises, using syrinx 
  as his agents.  Cities destroyed, defeated, Qarryn lan-
  guishes in a windy corner of Hell.
  Kurofu the Shadow, Oni-lord
  Alignment: Chaotic Evil
  Domains: Air, Darkness, Death, Evil
  Subdomains: Loss, Murder, Night, Oni#
  Traditional Territory: Lotus Blossom Steppes, The Last 
  Kingdom
  Virulently evil presence existing across the dimensions, 
  Kurofu was and is not especially loyal to the Elemental 
  Lords, preferring his own agenda of doom and the com-
  pany of non-human evil beings.
   
  Wind of Jewels, The Sand-Spirit
  Alignment: Neutral Evil
  Domains: Air, Evil, Luck, Repose
  Subdomains: Ancestors, Curse, Fate, Wind
  Traditional Territory: Ghadab, Siwath, Simoon
  Embodiment of the dry southern winds, known as Ael-
  Rashabar to the zendiqi, this ancient spirit is said to still 
  be widely revered by the nomadic desert warriors among 
  the sands and hidden elemental gems.
  
  — 146 — 
  Air
  Kurofu
  Djinnlord Qarryn
  Wind of Jewels
  Earth
  Drothos
  Enor Ashlord
  Najim
  Fire
  Water
  Ashamar Shining
  Firelord Mal’eket
  Najim
  Ice Tryrant
  Poison Wave
  Naga Empress S’Sluun
  
  — 147 — 
  The Lords of Earth
  Drothos, Enor Ashlord, and Najim are the Elemental 
  Lords of Earth.
  Drothos, Lava-Caller
  Alignment: Chaotic Evil
  Domains: Earth, Evil, Fire, Magic
  Subdomains: Arcane, Arson, Caves, Fear
  Traditional Territory: Eleoporphyrene, Hesteria, 
  Tuthon
  Massive elemental brute of primal lava beneath the 
  earth, Drothos was more to be feared than revered, pla-
  cated with sacrifice for the reward of raw magical power.  
  Defeated and destroyed by Ferrakus.
  Enor Ashlord, Master of Vines
  Alignment: Lawful Evil
  Domains: Earth, Evil, Law, Plant
  Subdomains: Ash, Growth, Home, Tyranny
  Traditional Territory: Bulwark of the Halfling Nations, 
  Blix
  Fecund lord of the blasphemously artistic fields of the 
  Eastern continent, Enor was supported by Qarryn and 
  Mal’eket but undone by the vast numbers of slaves and 
  servants freed by the Deists.
  Najim, the Starfallen
  Alignment: Neutral Evil
  Domains: Artifice, Earth, Knowledge, Void
  Subdomains: Dark Tapestry, Metal, Stars, Thought
  Traditional Territory: None (The Enclave)
  Alien superbeing from a far-off dimension, Najim was 
  ambushed before joining the NewGod Wars, his people 
  and lands taken, and buried in some secret location, 
  dreaming of freedom from his prison.
  The Lords of Fire
  Ashamar Shining, Firelord Mal’eket, and Grunzol Fire-
  storm are the Elemental Lords of Fire.
  Ashamar Shining, Lady of Aish
  Alignment: Neutral Evil
  Domains: Artifice, Evil, Fire, Protection
  Subdomains: Construct, Defense, Retaliation#, Toil
  Traditional Territory: Simoon, Ghadab
  A powerful goddess in the south, Ashamar was over-
  whelmed by massed Deist attacks, even to the extent 
  of changing the landscape of her homelands; still wor-
  shiped devotedly in some comminities.
   
  Firelord Mal’eket, Master of the Furnace
  Alignment: Chaotic Evil
  Domains: Chaos, Charm, Evil, Fire
  Subdomains:  Entropy, Fear, Lust, Smoke
  Traditional Territory: New Wathis, Birdman Moun-
  tains
  Rapacious and lusty overlord of the element of Fire on 
  Porphyra, Mal’eket was the de facto military leader of 
  the Elementalists, leading dire antipaladins. He was 
  destroyed and banished to The Abyss.
  Lord Grunzol Firestorm, Emir of the West
  Alignment: Lawful Evil
  Domains: Evil, Fire, Law, Sun
  Subdomains: Day, Fear, Light, Loyalty
  Traditional Territory: Clandoms of the Fourlands, Gi-
  ant’s Retreat
  Grunzol forged an alliance with the Erkusaa, made a 
  regency of the elves, but squandered his power in display, 
  until overthrown by homegrown rebels and imprisoned 
  in stone.
  The Lords of Water
  The Ice Tyrant, Poison Wave, and the Naga Empress 
  S’Sluun are the Elemental Lords of Water.
  Ice Tyrant, Jarl of Jarls
  Alignment: Chaotic Evil
  Domains: Evil, Strength, War, Water
  Subdomains: Blood, Fear, Ferocity, Ice
  Traditional Territory: The Northlands
  Primal and primitive Elemental Lord, the Ice Tyrant de-
  lighted in war and brutality, testing the survival skills of 
  the races that inhabited his lands.  Defeated at sea by the 
  Deists, he retreated to the northern pole of Porphyra.
  
  — 148 — 
  Poison Wave, Ur-lord of the Undines
  Alignment: Neutral Evil
  Domains: Evil, Travel, Water, Weather
  Subdomains: Exploration, Oceans, Seasons, Trade
  Traditional Territory: Californ, Rainbow Islands
  Known by many names by natives and aberrant beings 
  above and beneath the sea, the Poison Wave is a secretive 
  being, both in appearance and in activity, revealing little 
  to those not in its confidence.
  Naga Empress S’Sluun, Queen of Serpents
  Alignment: Lawful Evil
  Domains: Evil, Nobility, Scalykind, Water
  Subdomains:  Devil, Dragon, Leadership, Naga
  Traditional Territory: Freeport, Jengu-Na  
  Bitter remnant of an entire reptilian royal line, S’sluun 
  joined the Elementalists to try and rebuild her lost 
  power, and gained a foothold among the evil aquatic and 
  cold-blooded races of Porphyra.
  The Protean Lords
  The Protean Lords of Porphyra rank among the primal 
  Elder Powers that controlled the world prior to The 
  Calling. Similar to the Elemental Lords and the powers 
  of Death, they straddle an ephemeral line between gods 
  and not exactly gods. The so-called Slithering Symphony 
  never sought to rule and exploit the physical world and 
  its mortal inhabitants. Unlike the Elemental Lords, their 
  interactions are best described as fleeting and whimsi-
  cal. The Protean Lords operate by their own supremely 
  fickle interest, dabbling in the mortal world according to 
  alien, unfathomable unreason, or when mortals deliber-
  ately called out to them, drew their primordial eyes, and 
  somehow were found to be of sufficient interest. Unlike 
  many of the Elemental Lords, none of these inscrutable 
  entities of Chaos were actually banished during the 
  NewGod Wars, but departed on their own terms, pre-
  sumably so at least. As such, their cults remain, and so 
  too their tenuous but ever lurking interest in the physical 
  world.
  Amaelianesses 
  the Lilting Song in the Aftermath
  Alignment: Chaotic Neutral
  Domains: Chaos, Healing, Protection, Sun
  Subdomains: Day, Defense, Protean, Restoration
  Amaelianesses is uniformly remembered for acts of cre-
  ation and healing. Farmers and peasants still recall tales 
  of her aid in returning life to scorched and blood-soaked 
  fields. His favored weapon is the longspear, his symbolic 
  animal, the king snake.
  A’sevelix, the Devouring Obsequies
  Alignment: Chaotic Neutral
  Domains: Chaos, Death, Destruction, Scalykind
  Subdomains: Catastrophe, Dragon, Murder, Protean
  A’sevelix was one of the first Protean Lords to come to 
  Porphyra. He dragged his scythe across the earth, leveled 
  mountains, and blotted out the noon-day sun with dust 
  and ash. Dragons and executioners give prayers to the 
  Lord of Entropy. His favored weapon is the scythe, and 
  he has no symbolic animal.
  Jassisifrax of the Echoing Emptiness
  Alignment: Chaotic Neutral
  Domains: Charm, Chaos, Knowledge, Sun
  Subdomains: Light, Love, Memory, Protean
  By song, graffiti, letters and lies; followers of Jassisifrax 
  espouse the virtues of Chaos primarily through words 
  rather than blades or earthshaking cataclysms. His 
  favored weapon is the bladed scarf, and his symbolic 
  animal is the butterfly.
  Kekissendri the Bladed Cadence
  Alignment: Chaotic Neutral
  Domains: Chaos, Community, Liberation, War
  Subdomains: Family, Mayhem, Protean, Revolution
  Kekissendri’s followers were key in aiding those mortals 
  who dared rebel prior to the arrival of the Gods. Less 
  interested in gaining followers of its own than in liberat-
  ing the shackled subjects of the Elemental Lords, with a 
  specific hatred of Djinnlord Qarryn the Oppressor. His 
  favored weapon is the scimitar, and his symbolic animal 
  is the red wolf.
  
  — 149 — 
  Amaelianesses
  A’sevelix
  Sessenaileama
  Ressiheksis
  Jassisifrax
  Kekissendri
  Solekniamendra
  Vestrivissia
  Y’malikorim
  Y’Tinasni
  Zaelendris
  Zelasindrillis
  
  — 150 — 
  Ressiheksis the Sybil’s Song
  Alignment: Chaotic Neutral
  Domains: Chaos, Knowledge, Rune, Void
  Subdomains: Intuition, Isolation, Language, Protean
  To early dreamers she was a thing of majesty and terror, 
  a creature of primordial wisdom and madness. Known 
  for extreme asceticism, devotees starve themselves and 
  imbibe hallucinogens, perform hesychastic prayers, 
  and engage in profound self-mortification. Her favored 
  weapon is a quaterstaff, and her symbolic animal is the 
  locust. 
  Sessenaileama 
  the Deafening Howl in the Exordium
  Alignment: Chaotic Neutral
  Domains: Chaos, Destruction, Fire, Darkness
  Subdomains: Ash, Night, Protean, Rage
  For all that is spoken of whimsy, freedom, and creation, 
  Chaos is never complete and whole without destruc-
  tion, loss, and sacrifice. This dark vision of Chaos was 
  the creed of Sessenaileama the Deafening Howl in the 
  Exordium. His favored weapon is the greatsword, and 
  his symbolic animal was the coral snake.
  Solekniamendra the Rapacious Hymnody
  Alignment: Chaotic Neutral
  Domains: Chaos, Darkness, Destruction, Earth
  Subdomains: Catastrophe, Caves, Loss, Protean
  The Rapacious Hymnody’s followers congregate below 
  ground and out of sight, insinuating themselves amid 
  unknowing, unsuspecting populations. Great ruptures in 
  fault lines shake cities to the ground and wells and oasis 
  are soured and poisoned by her followers’ devotions. Her 
  favored weapon is the knuckle axe, and her symbolic 
  animal is the rat.
  Vestrivissia the Mocking Cantice
  Alignment: Chaotic Neutral
  Domains: Chaos, Trickery, Scalykind, Luck
  Subdomains: Curse, Deception, Heroism, Protean
  A whispered word of warning here, a rumor fed to a 
  high priest, a subversive song penned in the name of 
  another and distributed to the masses, all of these cor-
  rupted the power base of those that wield it. The Mock-
  ing Canticle’s followers make the churches of other gods 
  their own, entering by stealth and conducting their own 
  illicit ceremonies, or penning their own prayers into the 
  liturgies of other faiths. His favored weapon is the rapier, 
  and his symbolic symbol is the Mockingbird.
  Y’malikorim the Silent Susurrus
  Alignment: CN
  Domains: Chaos, Trickery, Artifice, Magic
  Subdomains: Arcane, Construct, Deception, Protean
  Y’malikorim the Silent Susurrus however is no axi-
  omite, inevitable, but somehow, inexplicably a creature 
  of Chaos at home within their rigid and artificial en-
  vironments. The Ghost in the Machines manifests as a 
  metal keketar made of multiple smaller versions of itself 
  welded together into a larger whole, with ghostly after-
  images moving in and out of itself like a puppet master 
  tugging upon ethereal strings. His favored weapon is the 
  light hammer, and his symbolic animal is the crow.
  Y’Tinasni the Inchoate Exultation
  Alignment: Chaotic Neutral
  Domains: Chaos, Madness, Water, Void
  Subdomains: Insanity, Ocean, Protean, Stars
  Alone in this among her kind, Y’Tinasni the Inchoate 
  Exultation has never physically manifested upon the face 
  of Porphyra. Unlike her lesser kindred, the Lord of Mad-
  ness instead reaches out to receptive minds and those 
  who –in their vanity, ignorance, or desperation– call out 
  to her, having seen her name whispered in their dreams 
  or penned, emergent in the Pareidolia of the randomness 
  of the world. Her favored weapon is the morningstar, 
  and her symbolic animal is the jellyfish.
  Zaelendris the Lament of Whispering Wounds
  Alignment: Chaotic Neutral
  Domains: Chaos, Repose, Magic, Death
  Subdomains: Divine, Murder, Protean, Souls
  The protean lord of the spectral dead and perhaps all of 
  necromancy itself, Zaelendris the Lament of Whispering 
  Wounds seems to embrace the newly dead with the in-
  tent of allowing them revenge for transgressions against 
  them in life, and succor for their pain. His favored 
  
  — 151 — 
  weapon is the light pick, and symbolic animal is the 
  whippoorwill.
  Zelasindrillis the Unplaced Harmony
  Alignment: Chaotic Neutral
  Domains: Chaos, Travel, Magic, Air
  Subdomains: Exploration, Protean, Wild Magic, Wind
  Not only popular among the erkusae, the cult of Zelasin-
  drillis remains popular among tengu and humans. 
  Firmly associated with wanderers, bards, and flying 
  creatures, Zelasindrillis’s faith is not one of churches, not 
  one of cathedrals, not one of rites and liturgy, but one of 
  laughter, song, and –in this age– joy. His favored weapon 
  is the longbow, and his favored animal is the dragonfly.
  Other Faiths
  Other belief systems exist outside of the dichotomy of 
  Deist and Elementalist, less pantheon-based or even 
  based in the Realms Beyond or Within.  Most are pecu-
  liar to a specific race or culture, though assimilation and 
  appropriation are spreading some of them, or suppress-
  ing them, as well.  Faith traits for these systems follow.
  Animism
  This ancient system of belief grants souls to objects in 
  nature, to animals, to areas and regions of land, and to 
  certain fetish objects of reverence.  It is not god-based, 
  nor is it elemental in nature, though it has concepts 
  common to both. As such, its primitive practitioners- 
  primarily arctic dwellers in the Frozen North and among 
  the Sikoyan people of the Northland border steppes, but 
  existing in remote pockets of wilderness as well- are per-
  secuted by Deists and Elementalists alike.  That one of 
  those regions is Landed and the other pre-Elementalist 
  native to Porphyra is an intriguing theological question.  
  Demon Worship
  A relatively new practice on Porphyra, as access to mortal 
  souls has only been possible for less than a thousand 
  years for those denizens of the Abyss.  Most chaotic evil 
  beings, skulks notwithstanding, have allied themselves 
  with Elemental Lords, the Landed gods Vortain and Mal 
  or the risen darkness of Rajuk Amon-Gore; they either 
  ignore demons or set them to strictly subservient posi-
  tions.  Demons being what they are, some powerful de-
  mon Lords such as Pazuzu, Dagon and the elusive Dark 
  Mistress have made inroads on Porphyra, probably due 
  to their semi-elemental nature. By that token, however, 
  it is no small secret that any nascent cults of Kostchtchie 
  in the frozen regions of Porphyra are wiped out without 
  a trace.  Demon worshiping divine spellcasters choose 
  from listed domains for each demon lord. 
   
  Dragon Worship
  Primarily practiced by kobolds, atavistic saurians, a few 
  cabals of dragonbloods, and the odd tribe of humanoid 
  subjugated by one of the enigmatic metareptiles, dragon 
  worship is less a religion than an abject abasement to 
  the will of the proud lizards, playing to their enormous 
  vanity.  For simple worshipers, they are unaffected by 
  a dragon’s aura of frightful presence (unless the dragon 
  wishes for them to be) but cannot be affected by positive 
  morale effects of spells or abilities.  Divine spellcasters 
  that profess dragon worship must take the Scalykind 
  domain or the Dragon subdomain, further receiving 
  immunity to frightful presence and the ability to speak 
  Draconic, if they did not already possess it. 
  Druidism
  Though druidism on Porphyra is frequently simplified as 
  worship of nature, it is a highly complicated faith system 
  with many facets, difficult to define with simple terms of 
  good and evil or gods.  Druidism exists as a faith of con-
  gregations, but also as that of individuals pursuing a call-
  ing from of Porphyra itself- or from the fractured hearts 
  of Landed pieces of other dimensions. Some mad druids 
  claim that the ultimate goal of every druid is to purge 
  Porphyra of its divisive borders, drive off the invader 
  gods and unify the world… Both the Landed god Saren 
  and the risen native goddess Chiuta are closely associated 
  with druidism, and Ithreia, in her aspect as Seasinger is 
  revered through druidism by aquatic races such as the 
  orcam, and as the Blinding Wind by the ith’n ya’roo.  
  Druidism has become the faith by which many ‘Giant’ 
  races have risen out of oppression and barbarism, as well.  
  That being said, the druidic leaders of the Mâlites, fol-
  lowers of Mâl the Destroyer of Worlds balance all of the 
  good or restorative deeds of the rest, in their relentless 
  campaign to obliterate the existing animal life on Por-
  phyra.  Druids and druidical worshipers typically have 
  to walk a narrow neutral ground between Deists and 
  Elementalists, being quick targets for persecution.
  
  — 152 — 
  Great Old Ones
  Two and a half millennia ago, a great incursion of 
  godlike cosmic beings brought strange creatures and 
  minions to Porphyra, in the name of conquest, but the 
  Elemental Lords drove them off.  Cells of their cults still 
  remain, secretly, planning and hoping for their return- 
  even though most Porphyrans, Landed or otherwise, 
  know not of their existence.  Of those that are known 
  and named, Dagon is most prevalent, but now associ-
  ates almost exclusively with demons.  Hastur, Yig and 
  Bokrug work behind the scenes in Freeport, Dunmark 
  and Tuthon, limited in effect due to barriers erected by 
  the Elementalists long ago… but the Elementalist Lords 
  are gone now, these 800 years, and the walls are starting 
  to slip. The faith traits of Defy Madness and Unnatural 
  Presence are readily available for cultists  of the Great 
  Old Ones, as is a new trait, When the Stars are Right.
  Moon/Sun Cult
  Peculiar to the xesa people of Californ and other verdant 
  pockets, these cults are a peculiar example of “good” and 
  “evil” being allowed, even encouraged, to coexist within 
  a society.  The genderless xesa being fascinated by the 
  concept of division, they treat the twin cults much like 
  political parties, with the ruling Undivided unswayed by 
  either.  The Moon Cult is made up mostly of witches, 
  evil clerics that worship Evil as a dry, abstract concept, 
  and the odd anti-paladin, while the Sun Cult is primar-
  ily low-level clerics who putter about espousing Glory, 
  Good, Knowledge and Law like salesmen, lead always 
  by a paladin and a council of deformed oracles.  It is 
  possible that some oaklings and gathlain have become 
  adherents of this strange faith, taught by adventurous 
  xesa “missionaries”.
  The New Way
  A secret movement within the zendiqi is slowly trying 
  to bring peace and acceptance of the New Gods and 
  Landed peoples. An extensive underground exists with 
  sympathizers in the north and Deist regions, some of 
  whom also hold to New Way beliefs.  One of their doc-
  trines is a belief in messianic being, divine or mortal that 
  will come to unite the two factions.  Zendiqi characters 
  have an alternative racial characteristic (The New Way, 
  see Fehr’s Ethnology Collected p 116) to indicate their 
  belief; sympathizers of other races and nationalities may 
  take Rainbow Underground as a faith trait.
  Faith Traits
  These are available to those practitioners of non-main-
  stream worship systems, who cannot take religion traits 
  for their object of worship.
  Faithful of the Demon Lords (Demon Worship): We 
  stand armed and dangerous before the bloody fields of 
  history!  Your traffic with demonic power grants you a 
  +1 racial bonus to Intimidate and Spellcraft, and one of 
  those skills is always a class skill for you.
  Tundra Spirit Follower (Animism): The Sea of White; a 
  crucible for testing, a purifier of fools… Once a day you 
  may cast know direction as a spell-like ability.
  Obeisance to the Scaled God (Dragon Worship): O, 
  Great Scaled One, do not eat me, but bless me with your 
  power!  Spells cast upon you by Dragon type creatures 
  add 1 appropriate time unit to the duration of the spell.
  Secret Green Unitarian (Druidism): Someday the 
  purple borders will be gone, and Porphyra will be one!  
  Once per day you can bypass a porphyrite border with-
  out using a spell or porphyrite flake.
  Relativistic Morality (Moon/Sun Cult): One cannot 
  have dark without light, one cannot have good without 
  evil.  Once per day you can make a Will saving throw 
  against a detect good or detect evil spell to give a neutral 
  result to the caster if successful.
  Seekers of The New Way (The New Way): The blood-
  feud of Deist and Elementalist must stop- our call for 
  a savior, The Child, goes on… You gain +1 to save vs. 
  divine spells, and to spells with an elemental descriptor.
  Rainbow Underground (The New Way; Sympathizer): 
  And you shall know us by the sign of the rainbow, how-
  ever small.  You gain +1 to two of the following; Bluff, 
  Knowledge (local), Knowledge (religion) or Stealth.
  When the Stars are Right (Great Old Ones): Twenty-
  five centuries have passed since the Old Ones left us… 
  our time is coming soon.  You gain 1 Hero point (see 
  Advanced Player’s Guide), to be used during a 24-hour 
  period of your choice.  This trait can be regained by use 
  of the Additional Traits feat, once it has been used.
  
  — 153 — 
  Life on Porphyra
  - From The Divine Record of Gerana, Book of Transi-
  tions I 2: 1-4
  “And so it was that The Middle Kingdoms did leave that 
  world the World-That-Was, and no longer existed within it, 
  as a nation contiguous with its fellows.  For Divine Gerana 
  has heard a Call of great power, from a different world, a 
  world devoid of any divine presence, a world without Gods.  
  Those who made the Call needed Gerana,* and those of the 
  Middle Kingdom needed to know the humility of a world 
  that was not theirs to command, and so the Transition was 
  made.  The land from the World-That-Was came to a new 
  world, and that world was called by those that inhabited it, 
  Porphyra.”
  *some versions expurgate “and the other gods,”
  Some more dimensionally well-traveled beings refer 
  to Porphyra as a ‘world of worlds’, a reference to the 
  patchwork-quilt nature of the Landed territories come to 
  that planet, and the odd and unique mix that has created 
  with the cultures already there.  Those travelers also note 
  the divergent ways in which iconic races of the Multi-
  verse differ on Porphyra- but they do not wonder too 
  much, as the Multiverse is wide and strange, indeed, and 
  Porphyra’s quirks are no more odd than the Rabbit-Elves 
  of Nerr’wa.  Humans are not in the majority on Porphy-
  ra, though that minority has narrowed since The Calling, 
  with the coming of the Landed territories, and human-
  dominated nations such as The Middle Kingdoms, the 
  Kingdom of Iskander, and Iffud.  
   
  Measurement of Time
  Worldwide Porphyran culture, deist and elementalist 
  and everything in-between (that are capable of keeping 
  records), recognizes a timekeeping system of a 24-hour 
  day, and ten 30-day months; adding the four Seasonal 
  Feasts makes a 304-day year.  Each month is divided 
  into four weeks of 7 days each; the “leftover” last two 
  days of each month consist of what are typically referred 
  to as ‘High Days’- regular work and business are sus-
  pended for the primary activity of that specific area.  In 
  an agricultural area, that would be a showing of agricul-
  tural goods, a feast, some marriages and perhaps some 
  child-namings.  Other areas might have jousting lists, 
  gladiatorial contests, human sacrifices, or interminable 
  church services.  When coincidental with seasonal feasts, 
  this can result in longer festivals for up to four days- the 
  wealth of the area usually determines the degree of rev-
  elry that is experienced.
     There are 10 months of 30 days each, Solstices and 
  equinoxes count in no month, for 304 days of the year.  
  The names of the months are:  
  Firstmonth
  Domonth
  Tremonth
  Formonth
  Fimonth
  Simonth
  Eimonth
  Nimonth
  Temmonth
     
  
  — 154 — 
  Legend of the Seven Days
  Before the Calling, even in the not-yet-Landed territories of 
  other dimensions and planes, the names of each individual 
  day was largely unimportant, except to officiant clerics and 
  cultists of some Gods and Lords that demanded a regular 
  day of worship.  “Three days hence” or a “week and three 
  days ago” seemed to suffice.  Stylings such as “The Fourth 
  Day of the Week” was not uncommon, if it was necessary.  
  During and after The Calling itself, survival seemed more 
  pressing than keeping track of such days.  But in the after-
  math of the war, after treaties and provisions, after military 
  units and beings were relocated to their postwar homes, 
  there remained, in a refugee camp in The Middle King-
  doms, two children.  The camp was within sight of both the 
  badlands of Nor-du-Mag, and the relatively fresh ruins of 
  Greencastle, and it was likely that those of the losing side 
  would be expelled to the former, and those of the ‘winning’ 
  side would be sent as far as possible from the latter.  It is 
  difficult to say what specific race the children were, as both 
  were very dirty and covered with as many rags and bits 
  of clothing as possible, to keep out the wind- they could 
  have been fair-skinned, dark-skinned, even half-orcish or 
  dwarvish children.  One of the children said, predictably, “I 
  wish there were no more wars and bad things,” to which the 
  other child, more world-weary said “How could that be?”  
  The other looked to the south, to the mists that surrounded 
  the Western Nexus for miles.  “See that brightly colored 
  bridge in the sky?” he said, and indicated the rainbow 
  created by the weak sun through the mists.  “I see it,” said 
  his companion. “It has seven parts.”  as everyone knew.  
  “Let us tell everyone that each color is a day, like the days 
  of the week, and that each color of each day is a promise, 
  from the gods and the elements, that there shall be no more 
  war.” And the other child took his hand and smiled; but 
  the people of the camp laughed and jeered that the children 
  should tell such stories.
   
  But as they laughed, soft rains came, warm rains 
  that filled the barrels of the camp, washed the dirt from 
  the downtrodden, and caused the camp’s meager crops to 
  grow.  And the bow in the sky came closer, until it was upon 
  the camp, and a voice was heard, a child’s voice from the 
  north with, perhaps, the suggestion of a face in the clouds; 
  the voice from the face said- “It shall be so, the seven colors 
  of the seven days shall remind you of the promise of peace- 
  for all...”  And so, from that nameless camp, the refugees 
  decided on a hodge-podge of names for the seven days of the 
  week, many from the dialect of Vinterre, where the refugee 
  camp was, and some of the Old Porphyran language.  For 
  want of a better, most literate peoples of Porphyra have ad-
  opted the names, and most everyone knows the legend- but 
  the identity of the Voice is still unknown- though the source 
  of its power has been proven to exist in the form of The 
  Rainbow Promise.
  Days of the Week (from first to last): 
  Ruday
  Tholaday
  Jaunday
  Verday
  Bluday
  Inday
  Porday
  Note: Though different regions ascribe significance to 
  various days, Porday, the last day of the week, is aligned 
  with the violet color of porphyrite, and is the most 
  commonly chosen day of the week for religious services.   
  Elementalists and non-deists typically choose Tholaday 
  as their day of rest and observance.
  Rainbow Promise
  School universal; Level alchemist 2, antipaladin 2, bard 
  2, bloodrager 2, cleric 2, druid 2, inquisitor 2, magus 2, 
  paladin 2, ranger 2, rook 2, shaman, sorcerer/wizard 2, 
  summoner 2, witch 2 
  Casting Time 1 standard action
  Components V, S
  Range 20 ft. radius, centered on caster
  Duration 1 round
  Saving Throw none; Spell Resistance no
  While this spell is fairly simple, the origins of the magic 
  are not; many arcane colleges and religious groups ban 
  it and threaten serious consequences for its blatant use.  
  When cast, the caster emits a rainbow-colored blast of 
  light that forbids any caught in it to take any actions 
  other than normal speech and movement for the 1 
  round duration; even ‘movement equivalent’ activities 
  and ‘verbal-only’ spells cannot be cast—only normal 
  speech and normal movement.  Only unintelligent 
  constructs are immune to rainbow promise, and no sav-
  ing throw is allowed; spell resistance is not effective. An 
  individual spellcaster cannot cast rainbow promise more 
  than once in a 24 hour period.
  
  — 155 — 
  Trade
  The commoners of the nations of Porphyra are not well 
  traveled, as is usually the case, but there is a certain curi-
  osity even the lowliest peasant has, in the darkest back-
  water, for other lands.  To know that across the strange 
  purple border might be a land of ice and snow, or tropi-
  cal jungle, or alien strangeness to weird to contemplate 
  stimulates the imagination, and those who adventure are 
  often motivated by no more than this.  The anomalous 
  placement of climates and cultures creates a stronger 
  flow of international trade, regardless of any isolation-
  ism that might exist, and wealth is slightly more evenly 
  distributed that one would expect in a roughly medieval-
  level world.  Food prices are slightly higher, so that 
  farmers are that much more prosperous; crafts and goods 
  that are exotic are easier to get, and thus trade is brisker, 
  and hugely profitable trade companies exist, supplying 
  demanding markets.  
     With increased wealth for the industrious, there inevi-
  tably exists a gulf between the ‘civilized lands’ and those 
  that operate on a more tribal or hunter-gatherer exis-
  tence, and this can create conflict.
     Herders, farmers, miners, craftsmen; all must be wary 
  of raiders from near and far, and many communities 
  have systems of tribute and bribery in place to placate 
  occasional armed plunder-seekers.
     The sentients of Porphyra are races used to war, as sup-
  pression of subject nations was common in the days of 
  the Elementalists, and tribute nations were encouraged 
  to squabble among themselves.  The Landed nations 
  also knew war on their worlds of origin, and war was 
  often the reason or the catalyst for their exodus.  The 
  two-century NewGod war was planet-spanning in scope, 
  exhausting to whole nations, and devastating to ecosys-
  tems and economic systems alike.  It continued on for 
  as long as it did for the core reason of why it was fought; 
  allegiance to beings from the Outer Planes.  When 
  whole armies could be composed of elementals, fight-
  ing against armies composed of outsiders (both drawn, 
  ostensibly, from the souls of previously fallen faithful) 
  campaigns were difficult to win decisively.  Nearly every 
  community on the planet has stories passed down gen-
  eration after generation of their involvement in the War, 
  hoping that the battles and armies would pass them by, 
  hiding children to carry on families drawn up as fighters 
  and ‘cannon fodder’ for unimaginable forces fighting one 
  another.  
     With the centuries of ‘peace’ following, international 
  trade has been deemed by most royal houses as the best 
  method of ‘getting to know one another’ and promoting 
  economic, rather than military competition.  Defeated 
  southern peoples eager for reconstruction (among the 
  zendiqi, Siwathi, and Ghadabi) and the clerical orders of 
  Shankhil, Veiloaria and Linium aggressively have sup-
  ported this direction; unfortunately, so have the clerics 
  of Rolterra, Shade, Eshsalqua and Vortain, all of whom 
  have strong motives for encouraging brisk trade.   In that 
  vein, religious life has a different flavor on Porphyra, as 
  well.  Agnosticism or godlessness, difficult on any world 
  with deities that play an active role in their followers’ 
  lives, is extremely risky on Porphyra, for many reasons.  
  In the Landed territories and converted nations, ambiva-
  lence to worship is akin to Elementalism, which in some 
  lands (Middle Kingdoms, Iffud) is a jailing offense!  In 
  the southern lands, Siwath and Simoon especially, the 
  opposite is true, and wary clerics have been known to 
  suffer The Four Deaths; being dropped off a low cliff, 
  burned and drowned, each time being healed back to 
  consciousness, before being buried alive! In a world 
  where the footprints of gods and elemental lords have 
  been filled for cattle-dugouts, church services are seldom 
  places for a bored child to nap...
  Medium of Exchange Equivalencies
  10 copper/ 10 
  ‘simbi’ [seashell]
  1 silver
  5 silver
  1 ‘black’ [obsidian]
  2 ‘black’
  1 gold
  5 gold
  1 ‘flake’ [porphyrite]
  2 ‘flake’
  1 ‘marble’ [low-quali-
  ty gemstone]
  3 ‘marbles’
  1 ‘argent’ [1 oz. 
  mithral]
  2 ‘argent’
  1 ‘node’ [1 oz. ada-
  mantine]
  1 ‘node’
  60 gold or 600 silver 
  or 6000 copper
  In antevocial times, coins were not common, and found 
  primarily in capital cities of the various regions, filter-
  ing out into the countryside and hinterlands.  Far more 
  common were exchanges of commodities, which had a 
  intrinsic value unto themselves, which soon led to use 
  
  — 156 — 
  as currency. “Simbi” is Old Porphyran/Aquan argot 
  for a specific type of shallow-water cowrie shell used as 
  body decoration and a currency medium for the coastal 
  peoples of the southern hemisphere, from The Seven 
  Principalities to the Brown Coast; they have invasively 
  entered Pyynian waters, and are enthusiastically used 
  there.  Obsidian, or ‘black’ is produced mostly in the 
  Crumbs of Aish bordering Ghadab and Simoon, with 
  plentiful deposits in many other places in the north and 
  south.  Like simbi money-shells, obsidian is also a com-
  modity, as the sharp shards can be used to make weapons 
  or household tools.  Porphyrite ‘flake’ is a commodity 
  item, too, with the double purpose of allowing cross-
  godswall travel and of creating weapons and items that 
  bypass elemental damage reduction.  Some commonali-
  ties with Landed and native nations have been alluded 
  to with the propensity for using silver as a medium of 
  exchange, especially in places like Nachtburg in The 
  Middle Kingdoms, who prize silver above gold, due to 
  the prevalence of lycanthropes in that arboreal kingdom.  
  Erkusaan Spellscrip
  Originating on the mystical island of Erkusaa during the 
  early days of the Opal Empire of the erkunae, spellscrip 
  was created as a medium of exchange of spell-casting 
  services.  Spellscrip appears as a small parchment certifi-
  cate, color-coded to the level of spell capable of being 
  cast by the bearer- but quickly being abstracted into 
  a non-commodity medium.  It was and is a currency 
  used by the upper classes, as the lowest denomination 
  is the equivalent of 5 gold pieces/ 2 obsidian ‘flake’; 
  this naturally resulted in rampant inflation of common 
  goods and services and a strange subclass of non-magical 
  barter where payment was done in actual physical labor, 
  counted off in divisions of an hourglass.  In many parts 
  of the world, the phrase “His hour won’t buy bread” 
  refers to a lazy person.
     Since the fall of the Opal Empire on 406 AC, 
  spellscrip is only issued upon the inauguration of a new 
  Emperor or Empress of the Opal Throne, but old certifi-
  cates still exist, as a small amount of oil of timelessness 
  is included in the ink used to print them, giving them a 
  very, very faint magical aura of transmutation.  Spellscrip 
  is still commonly used on Erkusaa, the Fourlands, the 
  Seven Principalities, Jengu-Na, and the Last Kingdom.  
  It is recognized amongst the zendiqi peoples of Siwath, 
  Simoon and Ghadab- less so the further one moves east.  
  Possession of spellscrip in Parl Pardesh or the lands of 
  the Giant’s Retreat is punishable by flogging.  In lands 
  other than these, spellscrip is commonly boiled down for 
  its magical traces, 100 pieces yielding the equivalent of 
  an oil of timelessness, should the processor make a DC 
  11 Craft (alchemy) check.  
  Level of Spellscrip
  Value
  0th level spellscrip 
  5 gp equivalent
  1st level spellscrip 
  10 gp equivalent
  2nd level spellscrip 
  60 gp equivalent
  3rd level spellscrip
  150 gp equivalent
  4th level spellscrip 
  280 gp equivalent
  5th level spellscrip
  450 gp equivalent
  6th level spellscrip
  660 gp equivalent
  7th level spellscrip
  910 gp equivalent
  8th level spellscrip
  1,200 gp equivalent
  9th level spellscrip
  1,530 gp equivalent
   
  Other Alternate Currencies
  Specific commodity needs, or lack of other, specific com-
  modities often results in other, informal mediums of cur-
  rency being used in specific regions.
     Empire of the Dead: Valuable metals mean little 
  to the strange beings of the various cities of this land, 
  though enough of every type of currency exists for 
  trade with other nations.  A freshly-drawn container of 
  blood (1 Con) is the broad equivalent of a gold piece, 
  with tokens available for lesser denominations, once the 
  donation has been rendered.  The celestial city of Digirn 
  mostly operates on promissory notes of various denomi-
  nations, or to a system of promised military indenture 
  quite similar to that of the Jheriaks.  For large transac-
  tions, measured quantities of Vita Sangua and Vita Luce 
  (q. v.) are also legal tender, as are slaves (or promises 
  thereof).  
     Holdfast of the Celestial Parishes: Porphyrite ‘flake’ 
  has largely been replaced by ‘points’: arrowhead-like 
  pieces of cold iron.  This currency evokes hostility in any 
  fey that might be encountered in that region, to say the 
  least!  
     The Haunted Sea: Though ships’ clerics often can 
  handle any arrangements, there are always those craft 
  and individuals that require porphyrite to ‘pass the wall’ 
  as the pirates say.  ‘Flake’ is traded at 1 ½ times value 
  
  — 157 — 
  there, approximately 8 gp equivalent.
     The Jheriak Continuance: Perhaps the most unusual 
  commodity of exchange on Porphyra exists in this highly 
  martial state; the ‘stroke’.  A stroke is equivalent to one 
  attack with one’s weapon of preference, which must be  
  made against the target of the possessor’s choice. This 
  is often crudely recorded on a wooden tab by means of 
  knife marks over a fighter’s mark, though seasoned com-
  manders have an amazing propensity for remembering 
  which of his troops owe how many ‘strokes’.  Though 
  difficult to translate to a non-Jheriak, a ‘stroke’ is equiva-
  lent to a coin, on a sliding scale; each point of “base 
  attack bonus” equal to a copper piece.  Thus, a 5th level 
  fighter, should earn 5 cp per legitimate stroke, and an 
  11th level, 1 silver, 8 cp.  Fees are often charged for food, 
  board and healing, but these are keenly negotiated with 
  a ‘tabmaster’, a aide to a commander with high skills in 
  Appraise and Sense Motive.  Lying or cheating about 
  one’s strokes is a serious offence, punishable by flogging 
  and stripping, and being sent walking to the Red Gulag.
     The Pyynian Coast: This torrid haven of drug-in-
  duced oblivion and decadence sees so much exchange of 
  illicit goods that coin has largely become irrelevant, hav-
  ing one-tenth their outerworld value.  ‘Flake’ is always 
  accepted and prized, and spellscrip, though forgeries are 
  all-too common.  Simbi is used for mundane items such 
  as food (a risky enterprise in Dravi Ankor) and a bewil-
  dering array of bundles of herbs and drug ingredients for 
  denominations in-between the lower and higher values.  
  One must be either a native of The Pyynian Coast of 
  make a series of Appraise, Knowledge (nature), and Craft 
  (alchemy), all at DC 10, to make sense of it all.
  Flora and Fauna
  As with most biological issues on Porphyra, the question 
  of mixture of natural species, invasive species, and those 
  plants and animals engineered during the NewGod Wars 
  is paramount to investigating what a given ecological 
  zone looks like.  Native vegetation on Porphyra has held 
  its own, however, by the fact that many of the dominant 
  plant species have aggressive defensive capabilities, such 
  as internal acid, poison, thorns or concealment.  Agricul-
  ture of native species on Porphyra consists of such crops 
  as corn, potatoes, mushrooms (especially in forested 
  areas), and orchard fruits- grain crops were rare, and any 
  kind of ‘bread’ was made out of cornmeal, pre-Calling.  
  Flora
  Below are descriptions of some more unusual and char-
  acteristic forms of plant life on Porphyra, some of which 
  are common enough on other worlds in other dimen-
  sions to be recognized by dimensional travellers.
     Darkleaf Cloth: Darkleaf cloth is a special form of 
  flexible material made by weaving together leaves and 
  thin strips of bark from darkwood trees, then treating 
  the resulting fabric with special alchemical processes. 
  The resulting material is tough as cured hide but much 
  lighter, making it an excellent material from which to 
  create armor. Spell failure chances for armors made from 
  darkleaf cloth decrease by 10% (to a minimum of 5%), 
  maximum Dexterity bonuses increase by 2, and armor 
  check penalties decrease by 3 (to a minimum of 0).
  An item made from darkleaf cloth weighs half as much 
  as the same item made from leather, furs, or hides. Items 
  not primarily constructed of leather, fur, or hide are not 
  meaningfully affected by being partially made of dark-
  leaf cloth. As such, padded armor, leather armor, stud-
  ded leather armor, and hide armor can be made out of 
  darkleaf cloth (although other types of armor made of 
  leather or hide might be possible). Because darkleaf cloth 
  remains flexible, it cannot be used to construct rigid 
  items such as shields or metal armors. Armors fashioned 
  from darkleaf cloth are always masterwork items; the 
  masterwork cost is included in the listed prices.
     Darkwood: This rare magic wood is as hard as normal 
  wood but very light. Any wooden or mostly wooden 
  item (such as a bow or spear) made from darkwood is 
  considered a masterwork item and weighs only half as 
  much as a normal wooden item of that type. Items not 
  normally made of wood or only partially of wood (such 
  as a battleaxe or a mace) either cannot be made from 
  
  — 158 — 
  darkwood or do not gain any special benefit from being 
  made of darkwood. The armor check penalty of a dark-
  wood shield is lessened by 2 compared to an ordinary 
  shield of its type. To determine the price of a darkwood 
  item, use the original weight but add 10 gp per pound 
  to the price of a masterwork version of that item. Dark-
  wood has 10 hit points per inch of thickness and hard-
  ness 5.
     Falseweb (Sheet-Fungus): An accidental result of 
  the arrival of the World Tree in the area of The Great 
  Green known as Colothoria in antevocial times, falseweb 
  developed in the shade of that mighty king of the plant 
  world, from simple fungi that existed on the forest floor.  
  Years of feeding on the decaying matter killed by denial 
  of the sun caused these simple organisms to grow large 
  and cover wide areas with mycological  tendrils and nets, 
  resembling nothing so much as a spider’s web.  In the 
  centuries since, spores of the sheet-fungus has spread 
  throughout Porphyra, even to Landed territories, grow-
  ing where there is death and decay, above ground and 
  below, most specimens being no larger than 10 ft. by 20 
  ft.  Though falseweb superficially resembles the webs of 
  large spiders, it has none of its qualities; if struck with a 
  melee weapon, each 5’ by 5’ section  disintegrates into 
  spores that coat skin and lungs of any within 10 ft., 
  doing 1 point of Constitution damage to any who fail a 
  DC 12 Fortitude save.  If subjected to flame, the entire 
  growth is consumed and turns to a fetid smoke, mak-
  ing those that inhale it (failing a DC 14 Fortitude save) 
  dizzy and nauseous (actually inflicting the nauseated and 
  dazed conditions for 1 minute).  It is probable that sub-
  terranean dwellers have found methods of cultivating the 
  stuff, as a barrier to intruders and such- though moving 
  through falseweb is no more debilitating than moving 
  through a cobweb.  It is otherwise a fragile and useless 
  fungal menace.
     S’abarih (Seeker Cactus): Mockingly called ‘the 
  evangelist’ by some desert tribesmen, the s’abarih is the 
  king of desert vegetation, handsome on the horizon with 
  its dark green flesh, conical, armless trunk, and almost 
  crystalline thorns, up to 2 inches long.  When struck or 
  disturbed, pressurized seed pockets shoot 1d10 thorns 
  at all targets within 10 ft., with a ranged attack of +10.  
  Each thorn does 1 point of damage, which cannot be 
  healed until a DC 11 Heal check is used to prise each 
  one out.  A battle amongst a seeker grove will undoubt-
  edly increase the population, as seeds bloom amongst 
  the corpses there.  Zendiqi bear seeker scars with pride, 
  as proof of their contempt of pain.  The flesh of the 
  s’abarih is extremely nourishing, fulfilling water and food 
  needs for 10 men, if it is a full-grown specimen.  Such a 
  s’abarih has a hardness of 10, and 1d10+10 hit points.  
  A tea can be brewed from recovered seeds that is said to 
  restore lost vitality- some say, even ability score damage 
  and drain.
     Snakewood: A sinuous, deciduous hardwood that 
  grows primarily in the Snakewood Forest of the west-
  ern Tuthon Barony, this odd-looking plant rarely grows 
  straight, and has scalelike bark.  Its leaves vary in shades 
  of green upon each plant, and it is not molested by 
  animals or most insects, as its wood is poisonous.  Slow-
  growing snakewood is prized because it stay flexible after 
  being harvested, from one to two weeks, depending on 
  the latest rains before being cut.  Amazing sculptures, 
  wheels, and window-frames can all be made from this 
  amazing wood.  Carefully made arrows, darts and blow-
  gun splinters (triple price, Craft +8) deal 1 point of Con-
  stitution damage if a DC 11 Fortitude save is not made, 
  though only a skilled fletcher will make the attempt.  
  Snakewood will grow in other areas, but will not tolerate 
  heat, and thus will not be found south of Meynon.
  Sourroot: Sourroot is a modified tuber crop plant 
  modified to both feed hungry humanoids, and to deter 
  burrowing menaces in plain-lands, such as the equally 
  engineered burrow-mawts, and the invasive ankheg.  
  Sourroots look like bloated, brownish-purple carrots two 
  feet long and a foot around, with a hairy, acidic rind.  
  The above-surface leaves are purplish-green, reaching 
  about three feet high at harvest time.  They are a staple 
  crop in the Fourlands, Giant’s Retreat, and occasionally 
  in Parl Pardesh, by farm-slaves of the hobgoblins there.  
  They are less popular in the eastern continent, but are 
  occasionally grown in Enoria, Blix and Vinterre.  Sour-
  root is not supposed to be able to grow wild, but enough 
  examples have been seen in wilderness areas to verify 
  sightings- sometimes large specimens...
     Sourroots have helped curb the rapacious spread of 
  burrow-mawts (and have helped protect crops against 
  ankhegs) as mere contact with the rind, or consumption 
  of the leaves does 1 point of acid damage per round.  
  Consumption of the unpeeled tuber does 1d8 points of 
  acid damage, and 1d4 point of Constitution damage.  
  A thick crop of sourroots generally dissuades burrow-
  
  — 159 — 
  ing creatures from entering a settled area.  Preparation 
  of  sourroot for consumption is somewhat dangerous, 
  as the processors must wear waxed leather gloves while 
  peeling the tubers.  Harvesting teams of marunites and 
  oreads have been known to offer their services to sour-
  root farmers, putting their acid resistance to good use, 
  and zendiqi of the -ard bayit grow them in desert oases. 
  The taste of the tubers is said to resemble pickled beets, 
  and the leaves, which must be boiled and skimmed, sour 
  cabbage.  Over-consumption of either is bound to bring 
  heavy indigestion.
     Other products of the sourroot, especially the dis-
  carded rind pulp, are avoided in polite conversation.  
  Alchemists prize the stuff, mostly for making simple 
  acids; Fourlanders charge syringe-spears with it for fight-
  ing marauding beasts.  Then, there is sourroot rindwine, 
  or just “rind”, a fermented concoction that irritates the 
  stomach, brain, and most every other organ.  A pint of 
  the stuff lowers Intelligence, Dexterity, Constitution 
  and Wisdom by one for an hour, but increases Strength 
  and Charisma by 1; it is mildly addictive [Fort save 12], 
  and each month spent addicted to it, the user must save 
  again or have the decreases become permanent. A bar 
  that serves sourroot rindwine is no bar that any person 
  of standing wants to be in!
     Whipwood: Woodworkers craft this extremely flex-
  ible material in a time-consuming process. Whipwood is 
  actually a composite of several bendable wooden fibers 
  woven and fused together to form a flexible but sturdy 
  unit. Only wooden weapons or weapons with wooden 
  hafts (such as axes and spears) can be made out of whip-
  wood. A creature wielding a whipwood weapon gains a 
  +2 bonus to its CMD when defending against sunder 
  attempts against the weapon. A whipwood weapon’s hit 
  points increase by +5. Whipwood loses its special quali-
  ties if under the effect of an ironwood spell. Whipwood 
  weapons cost 500 gp more than normal weapons of their 
  type.
  Fauna
  Many ‘normal’ species of animals are standard on Por-
  phyra, though marsupials did not seem to have devel-
  oped anywhere in the world. Cattle, horses, and other 
  hoofed ungulates were only introduced by Landed 
  territories.  Goats were the mainstream livestock (tumble 
  oxen in the mountains) and camels were the mount of 
  choice for almost all regions- the cold north being the 
  exception, where reindeer were domesticated by the 
  Kiyanoi people in the distant past.  It is no coincidence 
  that the horse and the cow are sacred animals to two of 
  the Landed Gods, after all.  
  Unique and Endemic Species
  A fairly young and dry world, Porphyra was not blessed 
  with an abundance of ecological diversity, compared 
  to some worlds, until the The Calling happened, and 
  the subsequent NewGod Wars.  Invasive species from 
  Landed territories clashed, and sometimes interbred with 
  Porphyran species, and both sides of the War engineered 
  and created new species as living weapons, many of 
  which survive today.  
     These species include crystalline horrors, painshriekers, 
  reapers, sarrenel, and, worst of all, burrow-mawts.  
     Burrow-mawts: Burrowing, weasel-like scourges of 
  farmers all over Porphyra, they quickly adapt to perme-
  able strata such as snow and sand.  The packs of these 
  miniature horrors often have a bounty on their ears- up 
  to a gold  piece each!
     Crystalline Horrors: These bizarre, incomprehensible 
  and usually hostile subterranean beings seem to have 
  spontaneously come about due to the presence of por-
  phyrite, true ‘sons’ of the planet itself.
     Painshriekers: Aberrant killing machines that approxi-
  mate humanoid appearance but have no social qualities, 
  painshriekers seemingly reproduce by fission and wreak 
  havoc for havoc’s sake, fulfilling the purpose of their 
  long-ago creation.
     Reapers: It is unknown who engendered these misbe-
  gotten, single-eyed monstrosities, that can  easily oppose 
  magical power- perhaps engineered to be a mage-killer.  
  They are attracted to freakish phenomena like extra-
  planar portals and reversed gravity.
     Sarrenel: Sarrenel are to water what burrow-mawts 
  are to land, even so far as to infesting city reservoirs and 
  sewer systems.  Something like a cross between piranhas 
  and electric eels, to some races, “to swim” is the same 
  phrases as “to bleed.”
     Sunbat: High-flying photovores engineered by the 
  Elementalists, these beasts need blood to reproduce, and 
  thus are useful in denying land and shore to invaders, 
  by ‘mining’ the airspace above with these sharp-beaked 
  creatures.
  
  — 160 — 
  The Race of Giants
  The true giants of Porphyra were, before The Calling, 
  strictly segregated, elementally-connected megabeings 
  bred from human and elemental stock in aeons past.  
  Their purpose was straightforward and limited; they 
  were bodyguards and symbols of power for the elemental 
  lords’ favorites, and shock troops for suppressing insur-
  rections.  They were few in number then,  whispered 
  about between adults, and threatened to bad children.  
  With the coming of the gods, the servants of the elemen-
  tal lords feverishly started breeding programs and train-
  ing of the pampered behemoths for formation combat.  
  Though a charge of giants was an awesome force, and 
  won many battles for the elementalists, there were also 
  serious setbacks to the embattled  native Porphyrans.  
  Certain terrain-specific breeds refused to comply with 
  orders, notably the wood giants, who fled into the forests 
  they grew to love, or the tumorous ash giants, who re-
  fused to obey anyone.  The creation of the storm giants, 
  thought to be the pinnacle of elemental humanoids, was 
  their greatest failure.  The willful titans thought them-
  selves second only to the new-come gods themselves, 
  and would not fight them, turning on their masters in 
  the disastrous Battle of the Three Mountains.  Difficult 
  to control, quick to betray or flee, and with increasingly 
  personal agendas, giants were part of the downfall of the 
  elemental empire, and their reluctant turning to even 
  more difficult geniekind did not, in the end, save them.  
  The giants scattered where they could, and remain, living 
  weapons without a true war to fight, trying to overcome 
  their martial reason for being, or embracing it, in their 
  own way.
  Greater Breeds
  There are four greater breeds of giant on Porphyra.
     Cloud Giants (Rishoni): These handsome air-linked 
  giants developed a constant feud between those who 
  selfishly sought treasure and domination, and those who 
  wanted solitude and contemplation.  Neither wanted to 
  fight in groups and would frequently disappear while on 
  mission.  Today they are still reclusive, but the rivalry 
  remains.
     Fire Giants (N’arun): To the N’arun, the war never 
  ended.  They crave a resumption of hostilities, with their 
  heavily armed warriors at the forefront.  Unfortunately, 
  few of the other races can stand them.  They love to 
  build forts, forge weapons and plan battles- that seldom 
  take place.  They are competent miners, or enslave others 
  to do it for them.
     Frost Giants (Talgar): The Talgar love fighting as 
  much as the N’arun, but have drifted into a culture of 
  individual prowess, deeds, and achievements instead 
  of massed armies.  They are philosophically similar to 
  the N’arun, but the presence of each makes the other 
  sick.  The Talgar were intended as a naval power, and are 
  feared pirates as well as high mountain and glacier dwell-
  ers.
     Stone Giants (Ard’dru): The Ard’dru were competent 
  fighters in the NewGod war, acting as devastating artil-
  lery and were known to be very hard to kill.  With the 
  elementalist forces’ defeat imminent, they quietly re-
  treated to the mountains and embraced deist philosophy, 
  commonly worshiping Ferrakus, whom they understood 
  implicitly.  They have no quarrel with ‘small things’, but 
  one had better have a good reason or a better bribe when 
  traveling in their territory.
  Lesser Breeds
  All other giants of Porphyra are considered to be lesser 
  breeds.
     Ash Giants: Probably a crossbreed of fire and decadent 
  cloud giants, they thrived in the aftermath of the Wars, 
  due to the widespread devastation of the land and the 
  increase in vermin and wasteland corruption.
     Cave Giants: a crude crossbreed, probably of fire and 
  stone giants, coming into being long after the war.
     Desert Giants: Loyal servitors to the Porphyran lead-
  ers, the desert giants followed them in retreat.  They do 
  not follow the zendiqi way of kafir, and a great sadness 
  sits between them and the fierce desert nomads.  Hermit  
  druids often act as go-betweens for the two races.
     Hill Giants: Favorite pawns of the N’arun, those that 
  aren’t too dim call themselves the Jabbal, and crudely 
  claim status as descendants of front line fighters in the 
  War.  In all likelihood, the ‘Jabbal’ were either an inter-
  nal cross with humans, kept by the giants as servants for 
  themselves, or a later mixture with ogres.  Hill giants will 
  spread to whatever terrain will support their small com-
  munities, and are not as territorial as the true breeds.
     Jungle Giants: A terrain-specific breed, the ancient 
  elementalists used nature spirits to create these jungle 
  fighters, not exactly orthodox, and not exactly what was 
  intended.  Jungle giants would only fight if their per-
  sonal territory were threatened, easily avoided by supply 
  
  — 161 — 
  caravans and scouts, once contact was made.  If a jungle 
  giant chose you as prey, however, your affiliation would 
  not save you.
     Marsh Giants: another terrain-specific breed, the 
  marsh giants were terrifying skirmishers, assassins and 
  all-around menaces, used to bloody effect in the Reed-
  lands, the home and genesis of the goddess Chiuta.  
  Marsh giants have been known to cooperate with Frost 
  giants, especially in migrating to new hunting grounds.
     Storm Giants: The story of the storm giants’ rebel-
  lion against the elementalists is legendary, as any storm 
  giant will tell you.  Afraid of nothing, storm giants have 
  specific preference in lairs, regardless of previous inhab-
  itants.  Several clans have claimed small islands in the 
  Rainbow Isles chain in the east.
     Taiga Giants: To suggest within the hearing of these 
  enigmatic wanderers of the Sikayan Tundra that they 
  are the engineered creations of the Elementalist Em-
  pire is to invite swift death and a fate as bait for their 
  whale-hooks.  The rumor that they may be the template 
  for other, engineered giant races may have some merit, 
  however.
     Wood Giants: As with the jungle giants, the ancient 
  elementalists combined unorthodox forces to create 
  prefect forest fighters, probably elves in this case.  They 
  heavily favored their mortal parents, and left the Porphy-
  ran forces as soon as was prudent.  They shun organized 
  conflict to this day, and are staunch worshipers of Saren.
  Other Races
  Other, rare giant races are either one-off experiments 
  that got loose from their handlers, or later crossbreeds or 
  even adaptations to specific terrains or conditions.
  Languages
  This list and attached descriptions detail the languages 
  of Porphyra, both native and as introduced by Landed 
  nations.  If a dialect is deemed different enough by the 
  GM, a DC 10 Linguistics check should be required to 
  be able to understand the language by a speaker of the 
  parent tongue.
  Prevalent
  These are the most prevalent languages in the Lands of 
  Porphyra. 
     Common: The language of the Landed humans, 
  spread as a lingua franca throughout Porphyra in the 
  milennia since the Calling.  The New Gods made a uni-
  versal decision to meld, unify and coalesce all languages 
  from their chosen territories into a ‘Common’ language, 
  and by the time their people had Landed on Porphyra, 
  they had all but forgotten that they had spoken anything 
  else.  There are, here and there, fragments of words, 
  phrases, and documents from the ‘old worlds’, which in-
  trigue scholars and collectors, but most “chosen people” 
  are content to heed the wishes of their ruling deities.
     Elemental Tongues: Spoken by devotees and deriva-
  tives of The Four, the arcane elements of magic: Aquan, 
  Auran, Ignan and Terran. Commonly spoken in Zendiqi 
  lands, and available to wizards as a choice of bonus lan-
  guage, instead of Draconic.
     Elven: The ancient forest people have several different 
  dialects of their language, due to Landed elves coming 
  from other dimensions; a DC 8 Linguistics check is 
  needed to understand one from the other.  Different dia-
  lects hold sway in The World Tree, Iluriel, and Meynon.
     Giant: An economical, direct language evolved from 
  the elemental tongues, the language of Giants (called 
  Artaganar in that tongue) is spoken by many races as-
  sociated with these huge beings, such as ogres, trolls, 
  cyclopes and ettins.
     Goblin: The language of the goblinoid races, including 
  bugbears, goblins and hobgoblins, as well as variant races 
  of these.  The language (and the humanoids themselves) 
  has resisted influence by deists and elementalists, staying 
  apart and neutral in most areas.
     Old Porphyran: spoken by the aboriginal humans of 
  southern Porphyra before the Calling, and still today by 
  the Zendiqi, Siwathu, and Ghadabi.  Many old ruins 
  contain script in this writing.
     Orcish: Sounding like Elvish spoken with a mouthful 
  Porphyra Trivia
  Hags in Porphyra once supported the gi-
  ants in their evil work, however they received 
  warning of The Calling and the fall of the 
  Elemental Lords from their divinations and 
  auguries. Never wanting to be on the losing 
  side, they abandoned their former allies for 
  the worship of Mâl the Destroyer of Worlds.
  
  — 162 — 
  of broken teeth, the connection between the languages- 
  the connection between the races themselves- is lost in 
  the mists of Porphyra’s ancient history.
  Uncommon
  Though not universal, these languages are often heard in 
  many regions of the world.
     Aboleth: Spoken by the fearsome deep-sea creatures 
  and those of similar ilk, it can also be heard in a highly 
  debased form in certain dark corners of the Rainbow 
  Isles, for reasons best not looked into.
     Aklo: The northern, pale-skinned peoples of Porphyra 
  speak dialects of this language of strange aberrations, 
  common in Tuthon, Dunmark, Hesteria (The Wall of 
  Sleep) and the Northlands.  Their dialects use one of the 
  elemental languages for all nouns (Auran, Aquan, Ignan, 
  Terran) and Aklo for the balance of the tongue, speak-
  able and understandable by those that understand both, 
  with the specific element of the language retrievable by 
  those that understand only one.  Sikayans and North-
  landers speak Aklo-Aquan, Tuthoners speak Aklo-Auran, 
  Dunmarkers Aklo-Terran, and Hesterians Aklo-Ignan.
     Celestial: Spoken in patois in the Holds of the Ce-
  lestial Parishes, and the ecclesiastical language of The 
  Middle Kingdoms and Meynon.  Clerics of good deities 
  often use it for private conversations.
     Draconic: An ancient, but highly mutable tongue 
  spoken not only by the elusive, magnificent dragons, but 
  by reptilian humanoids such as kobolds, troglodytes and 
  serpentfolk.  If dialects differ, truces are held until the 
  variances are ironed out, in true cold-blooded fashion.
  Wizards on Porphyra cannot substitute Draconic as a 
  bonus language.
     Druidic: The druids, who kept a middle road between 
  the warring deists and elementalists, use this tongue be-
  tween themselves and their naturalistic spiritual forces.
     Dwarven: Dwarves are exclusively Landed peoples, 
  with a rigidly common language between the various 
  clans.
     Gnoll: There are two dialects of this highly vocalized 
  tongue; the more complex dialect of the civilized anpur, 
  and the common yapping version of gnolls found across 
  Porphyra.
     Gnomish: A mishmash of dwarven nouns and elv-
  ish verbs, it has been suspected, but not proven, that 
  gnomes had small colonies on Porphyra before the Call-
  ing, from dimensions unknown.
     Halfling: The halfling tongue has spread mostly from 
  ancient Enoria, where the halflings served elemental 
  masters and overthrew them to establish the Bulwark. It 
  is a quick language, conveying much.
     Sylvan: Heard among many forest-dwelling beings and 
  sentient plants, the xesa are the only race to have at-
  tempted to place it into a readable script.
     Undercommon: The patois of the Underdeep, based 
  mostly on the dwarven dialect of the Duergar, but 
  spoken by others such as hhundi, morlocks, and some 
  intelligent beasts.
  Rare
  These languages are spoken within small cultural groups 
  or tiny pockets of the world.
     Abyssal: Spoken in dark chambers where demons are 
  summoned, and by those who wish to deal with those 
  foul beings.  Heard sometimes in the gutter halls of 
  G’sho’laa’n’rr.
     Boggard: The xenophobic frog-folk have their own 
  unpleasant-sounding language distantly related to Dra-
  conic.
     Catfolk: Simply going “Meow, meow” to a catfolk will 
  likely end up badly.  Qit’ar and other sentient felines 
  often also speak this tongue.
     Dark Folk: Insane-sounding mutterings of the many 
  clans of dark folk people of the Underdeep.
     Kripar: An ugly, hissing and clicking language of those 
  mercenary and secretive underworld folk, xenophobi-
  cally spoken by few else but themselves.
     Infernal: The bureaucratic language of the acquisitive 
  devils, and those who would sell their souls for power.  
  Sometimes used as a court language in the cities of the 
  Empire of the Dead.
     Mahr: The ancient language of the Mahrog, the primi-
  tive proto-humans of the forests and subterranean lands.
     Malite: The hateful alien speech of the invaders from 
  another dimension, those in the diplomatic corps are 
  required to learn its rudiments.  Somewhat similar to 
  Protean.
     Maenad: A beautiful, expressive language from the 
  Maenad Isles of Sharira, many sailors learn this tongue as 
  a matter of convenience.
     Manxic: The truly alien language of an alien people, 
  this strange tongue is the home language of the Femanx, 
  rulers of the Advent Imperiax.  They guard it closely, as 
  much of their technology depends on detailed instruc-
  
  — 163 — 
  tion in that technical tongue.
     Ophiduan: Long separated from their draconic breth-
  ren, this sibilant tongue is useful to know in the Under-
  deep, to minimize misunderstandings common in their 
  endless House Wars.
     Protean: The court language of Erkusaa, and of some 
  few extremely chaotic races and beings.
     Sign Language: A communication form for the deaf, 
  and for those who wish to communicate silently.  Quite 
  common in the Jheriak Continuance, even in ordinary 
  households.  Note that this language is useless in situa-
  tions where the ‘speakers’ cannot see, such as darkness.
     Sphinx: An ancient scholarly tongue heard mostly 
  in their territories in Siwath, or on ancient tomes and 
  tombs in the south.
     Strix: The hissing, chirping language of the airborne 
  strix and syrinx people of the Birdman Mountains, 
  knowing this tongue rarely spares humans their hatred-
  fueled wrath. 
     Tengu: Another avian language, Tengu us nearly im-
  possible to speak for other humanoids; found mostly in 
  the Lotus Blossom Steppes.
     Xeph: Found spoken by the xeph of Sharira, the Pin-
  nacle Lands, it is known for having no punctuation, 
  being spoken very rapidly.
     Zif: The chittering language of the gastopodic zif 
  people; for politeness’ sake, they rarely speak it around 
  others.  The written form resembles swirls of sand.
   
  Holidays and Festivals
  This section deals with those holidays and festivals that 
  are widely observed on Porphyra, unlike local remem-
  brances or those holidays specific to individual religions 
  (Gerana’s Dawn being the exception).  Note that some 
  specific regions may not observe all holidays and festi-
  vals, and various regions certainly observe them in dif-
  ferent ways, but these listed are the most important and 
  widespread.    
  Gerana’s Dawn
  The first day of the calendar year, 1st of Firstmonth.  
  This world-spanning festival predates The Calling, and is 
  most prevalent in The Middle Kingdoms and its neigh-
  boring Landed territories.  Tournaments of jousting and 
  melee, contests of skill and wit, along with feasting and 
  sensible merriment are held anywhere that Gerana is 
  honored.  
  The Rides of Nise
  On one of the three last days of each month, 10 times 
  a year, the Landed region known as The Haunted Sea 
  moves to the next station in its circuit through the seas 
  of Porphyra.  Which specific day or time of day is never 
  predictable by normal means, but magical methods such 
  as augury have been known to reveal the time with some 
  accuracy.  As The Haunted Sea is a dangerous den of 
  pirates and monsters, seaside nations take precautions 
  when ‘The Rides are upon them...”
  Spring Equinox (Springdance)
  Follows the 15th of Tremonth, and is the first of the sea-
  sonal feasts that mark the solstices and equinoxes of Por-
  phyra.  The observance of ‘Springdance’ is a particularly 
  joyous one, and is traditionally the day when debts are 
  forgiven, prisoners pardoned, and new ventures started, 
  all with the oversight and approval of elders and clerics.
  The Day of Calling
  The anniversary of the Arrival of the New Gods is rec-
  ognized in all lands, for good or ill. Both Deists and the 
  pious, and Elementalists and those that disparage the 
  Gods pass this day in a state of trembling wonder, as the 
  practice of magic becomes more powerful and unpredict-
  able, and strange events almost always come to pass.  The 
  day is usually spent indoors with family, but the ambi-
  
  — 164 — 
  tious and intrepid go to places of arcane or divine power, 
  to see if the Day will bring them to their destiny.  The 
  Day of Calling is on the 21st day of the 6th month (21 
  Simonth) , as determined by the diviners of the elves and 
  orcs in the days of the Cormazog Alliance.
  [In game terms, there is a (3% x spell level) cumulative 
  chance per spell cast during daylight hours of The Day 
  of Calling for that spell to be modified as on the table 
  below, roll d8:]
  d8
  Effect
  1
  +1 caster level
  2
  +1d3 caster levels
  3
  +1 caster level, and changed to a divine/arcane 
  spell (opposite) of the same school, selected by 
  the caster.
  4
  Spell becomes a summon monster spell of +1 
  spell level, with a duration of minutes instead 
  of rounds. If the spell is a summon spell, +2 
  spell levels.
  5
  Whatever the spell cast, it becomes a tongues 
  spell.
  6
  Whatever the spell cast, it becomes a legend lore 
  spell on the oldest object within 30 ft.
  7
  Whatever the spell cast, it becomes a rainbow 
  promise spell.
  8
  The spell fills the air with whooshing noises and 
  color, but has no effect whatsoever.
  Summer Solstice (Signing Day)
  Observed on the 30th of Simonth, Signing Day (refer-
  ring to the Treaty of Siwath) is a great holiday in the core 
  deist countries, a celebration of the victory of the “cho-
  sen of the gods” over the antitheistic Elementalists.  In 
  zendiqi lands, and in those places that disdain the gods, 
  it is a day of mourning, of soured memories, a concen-
  tration of the resentment and betrayal the defeated peo-
  ple bear.  “Signing Day” is a mild term meant to soothe 
  divisions; it is commonly called “Surrender Day” by
   braggarts in the north.  The Old Porphyran term 
  “Tawba al-Arba” means ‘Retreat of the Four’, which is 
  a blunt statement, and a cryptic prediction; those that 
  retreat can counterattack at any time...
     In observant deist countries, Signing Day typically has 
  contests of arms, magic, wit and riddle, and clerics wear 
  pilgrim’s robes and humbly serve the common people for 
  the day.  Even the Codion himself chooses a beggar, and 
  washes his feet in the Great Square of Sanctus Templum.  
  Elementalists observe the day with ‘The Great Wail-
  ing’ of sorrow and anger, tithe to causes to improve the 
  south’s standing, and furiously play at arbakampsi as if 
  to find a secret key to the defeat of the arrogant northern 
  deists.  
  Fall Equinox (Day of Sighs)
  This seasonal feast follows the 15th of Eimonth, and is a 
  somber affair where confession is made by all, both El-
  ementalist and Deist; debts come due and the poor come 
  forward to take alms to survive the winter/wet season.  
  Some isolated communities still practice an ostracism 
  lottery on this day, a communal vote to expel undesir-
  ables from the community for a year.
  Arg-Ryeth Cormazog 
  (Freedom Day, Day of the Orcs’ Invitation)
  Observed and celebrated on 9th Nimonth as both the 
  victory of the Mummy King over the hobgoblin forces 
  on the Great Green/ Pardesh border, and as a general 
  celebration of Freedom- some would say the coalescent 
  power of Chaos.  A very important holiday to elves, who 
  arrange elaborate demonstrations of martial and magical 
  prowess in parades and festivals.  Even the orcs declare 
  a cease to fighting on this day, and hold what limited 
  non-martial celebrations as they can muster.  Human 
  communities see it as a minor holiday where pardons are 
  given and ‘Fool’s Parades’ are held with varying degrees 
  of merriment, foolishness, and exchanging of roles of 
  commoner and noble.  Notably not celebrated in The 
  Middle Kingdoms.
  Winter Solstice
  The last of the seasonal feasts, on the last day of the 
  Porphyran Calendar year.  Winter solstice, the shortest 
  period of sunlight upon the planet follows the 30th of 
  Temmonth.  Gifts are exchanged, wards are reset that 
  guard communities, and traditional ‘Parades of  Light’ 
  are performed at midnight, with magic, pyrotechnics, 
  and simple beauty on display.
  
  — 165 — 
  Weather Phenomena
  The presence of porphyrite borders, and the relatively 
  small size of the planet Porphyra creates some interest-
  ing phenomena on that world.  Some of the Landed 
  territories on Porphyra operate quite independently of 
  the planetary weather system, and even the more ‘nor-
  mal’ landed territories can experience radically different 
  weather patterns than their immediate neighbors.  Cross-
  ing a porphyrite border from Iffud to the Great Green 
  can be a matter of leaving a drought and entering a mas-
  sive lightning rainstorm.  
     This confluence of climates, combined with an im-
  balance of ‘returned’ porphyrite shards, can result in 
  a strange and rare phenomenon known formally as a 
  porphyrite tornado, known colloquially as an ozwind, 
  or rijah-urzwani in Old Porphyran.  They occur within 
  10d10 miles of a porphyrite border, and can move up 
  to 50 miles per hour; they cover a 50 ft. area of effect, 
  but do little harm to physical objects or terrain, often 
  just subtle cracks and fissures.  They do, however, take in 
  living creatures and transport them to other porphyrite 
  frontiers (10d10 miles from a distant porphyrite bor-
  der) without a saving throw.  It is rumored that certain 
  charms or spells will resist or influence an ozwind, but 
  few have put in the time for research or experimentation.
  Winter
  Natural winters are mild on Porphyra, though the polar 
  and sub-polar areas of the planet experience deep cold 
  and quite a lot of snow precipitation.  The natural areas 
  of the Eastern continent see more wintry climate than 
  the Western, which is an uptick in conflict as plant-
  ing and harvesting stop and raiding begins.  The Great 
  Green has a ‘Winter Line’ (Krillayanos) where evergreens 
  hold sway over deciduous trees, though the temperature 
  increases somewhat in the Fourlands, which still can be 
  very chilly and snowbound in season; the So’cha stay 
  close to their herds at this time.  The desert lands of the 
  Southeast see their wet season at this time, comprising 
  flash floods and swift lightning storms that can change 
  the desert’s face in a short time.  Remnant magics from 
  Ghadab can also create strange phenomena during win-
  ter storms, like creating elemental portals or teleporting 
  the unwary, a la rijah-urzwani.
  Hurricanes
  Large oceanic storms that begin at sea and tend to move 
  inland, some natural scholars believe that it is the move-
  ment of The Haunted Sea that generates the friction that 
  creates hurricanes, but there is archived evidence that 
  they occurred in pre-Calling days, albeit less frequently.  
  The most prevalent zone for hurricane occurrence is 
  from the Pyynian Coast to the Seven Principalities, 
  and occasionally north to the Fourlands.  Pirates of the 
  Haunted Sea dream of being able to ‘ride’ a hurricane or 
  use them to travel vast distances, and encourage magic-
  users to find some way to make this so.
  Magic-Dead Areas
  Due mainly to ancient catastrophes that have disfigured 
  the flow of magic over the face of the world, there are ar-
  eas on Porphyra where magic, whether divine or arcane, 
  does not work.  Magical effects cease at the border of a 
  magic-dead area, and expire normally; permanent magi-
  cal effects, and magic items themselves, cease to have 
  any magical abilities, and resume working once out of 
  the magic-dead area.  A magical effect will even cease to 
  exist at that particular border, where, say, a lightning bolt 
  will simply not be there at the line of a magic-dead area.  
  Spell-like abilities (Sp) of characters and monsters will 
  not work, either, nor will supernatural (Su) powers.  Ex-
  ceptional abilities function normally.  All psionic items, 
  effects, and abilities are similarly suspended and canceled 
  in magic-dead areas, and psionic creatures avidly avoid 
  magic-dead areas; most monsters with magical abilities 
  do the same, including creatures of the ‘magical beast’ 
  type.  
     Apart from small areas created, ironically by magical 
  affects (which are usually temporary) the largest magic-
  dead areas on Porphyra are the region of Nor-du-Mag, 
  and several ill-defined regions in the Ghadab, primar-
  ily on the Almuut Peninsula.  The vast rocky wasteland 
  that is Nor-du-Mag predates The Calling by milennia, 
  and is a haven for apostates, outlaws, and many physi-
  cally gifted monsters that can carve out a living in that 
  harsh land; it is also the site of many rich mines held by 
  stalwart dwarves.  The Ghadab was ravaged by apoca-
  lyptic magics during the NewGod Wars by its psychotic 
  Empress, but the most stable magic-dead areas are in 
  the ancient, dead lands of the Almuut Peninsula, which, 
  again, precede The Calling and the Wars.
  Glass Seas
  A result of titanic magical and elemental energies during 
  
  — 166 — 
  the NewGod Wars, glass seas are large swaths of desert 
  sand fused into fantastical vistas of glass.  The largest 
  is between Siwath and Simoon, a glass sea the size of 
  Geranland known as “The” Glass Sea (al-Barzojai in Old 
  Porphyran), the lesser called The Glass Sands in northern 
  Ghadab.  There are other, smaller glassfields here and 
  there, but few larger than a good-sized pond.  Though 
  seemingly sterile and useless, glass seas have become 
  resources for those that live near them, carefully carving 
  and forming fragments into implements (the substance 
  has the same qualities as ‘glassteel’), traveling upon it in 
  bladed windships, using glass-trapped pockets of magic 
  to amplify certain spells, and hunting weird creatures 
  that have learned to live upon these freakish phenomena.
  Lunar Bodies and Lunomancy
  Documents and legends from antevocial times tell of the 
  complex attitudes of the various races towards Porphyra’s 
  single, irregular moon.  Named differently by the vari-
  ous races, it was called Ragol Suq- the Falling Man- by 
  elementalist humans, a defiant king turned to stone 
  and thrown in the sky by the Elders. The elves called it 
  Kerith Nanai, the Jewel Out of Reach; the orcs Karka 
  Unak, which means the same in their language.  The 
  erkunae had a better grasp of its nature, naming it The 
  Door, but always describing it in its various positions, 
  such as The Door Ajar, The Door Wide, The Closed 
  Door, or at least half-a-dozen others.  On Porphyra, a 
  “month” is indicated by Kerith Nanai leaving the sky for 
  a night, and appearing in the east to travel its past from 
  east to west, every 3 sets of positions, 27 days.
     Landed peoples typically call it First Moon, Shankhil’s 
  Chair (or just Shankhil) to the chagrin of native peoples, 
  and are woefully ignorant of Lunomancy, the traditional 
  science of moon-position interpretation practiced by 
  such Porphyran cultures as zendiqi, elves, orcs, elemen-
  tal-kin, and the Erkusaan races of erkunae and dhosari.  
  What little is known about Porphyra’s moon itself comes 
  from fragments of the Ritual of Calling, in which the elf-
  orc alliance used Kerith Nanai/ Karka Unak as a beacon 
  for the gods to find Porphyra in the Eternal Dark, hav-
  ing gleaned some of its properties as a gateway to other 
  worlds.  Primitive astronomers tell of glowing “craters” 
  in its surface that are thought to be gateways to other 
  dimensions, worlds, and realities.  As such, it is much 
  brighter a celestial body than its size would suggest.  
  During The Calling, it is also known that Ragol Suq 
  shone brighter than ever before or since, and changed 
  its hue from bluish-white to faint purple, indicating 
  to those honoring the gods that it was now the sacred 
  domain of Shankhil, the Twilight Man, the Doorkeeper 
  of Eternity.  This desecration turned the zendiqi largely 
  away from lunomancy, though some less-proud indi-
  viduals use the old ways, with the altered moon.
  For a brief period Shankhil’s Chair sat alone, amethys-
  tine in the sky, brooding over the NewGod Wars.  
  Though it likely appeared at least a decade before the 
  final defeat of the elementalists at the hands of deists 
  and the subsequent Treaty of Siwath, there appeared 
  another orbiting body.  A fiery red moon, like a burning 
  eye; it coincided with the appearance of the Outcast god 
  of Vengeance, Nemyth Vaar.  Known as Vaar’s Eye or 
  simply Vaar, this crimson ball has a long elliptical orbit, 
  and appears in the vicinity of Shankhil only three days 
  a month.  These nights, known as Nemesis Nights, are 
  considered ill-luck, and if Vaar appears on Dark Night, 
  when Shankhil is absent, no peace-minded being stirs 
  from their home.  It is on the Nemesis Nights that lycan-
  thropes are forced into their change, and it is his influ-
  ence that is credited with their origin- the werebeasts are 
  outcasts, even the benevolent werebear, solitary in his 
  home in the deep woods.
     The moons of Porphyra do not have particularly strong 
  tidal effect, noticeable chiefly on  The Door Wide, the 
  Porphyran high tide.  When Vaar’s Eye is together with 
  Shankhil’s Chair, the tide is very high, and currents run 
  strong- pirates consider this optimum sailing weather.  
  They name Nemesis Nights as Sailor’s Moon, and relish 
  the purple-red shadows that fall on their sails.
  Lunomancy
  You have learned the old way of reading the positions of the 
  First Moon, as the ancients did in the days before The Call-
  ing.
  Prerequisites: Wisdom 12
  Benefit: You can precisely interpret the position of the 
  First Moon, and receive the effects of its astrological 
  focus.  Roll on the table below.  Each effect counts as 
  a supernatural effect, a feat bonus or penalty, affecting 
  only the reader, and lasts 24 hours.
  
  — 167 — 
  d10
  Erkusaan
  Elven
  Orcish Effect
  1
  The Door 
  Wide
  Thema
  Brak
  +1 to skill 
  checks
  2
  The Door 
  Ajar
  Mesth
  Craak
  +1 to lowest 
  ability score
  3
  The Closed 
  Door
  Sha-
  math
  Drova
  +1 to all saves
  4
  The Locked 
  Door
  Chikal
  Lokka
  -1 to skill 
  checks
  5
  The 
  Opened 
  Door
  Oralo
  Brey-
  ach
  +1 to caster 
  level
  6
  The Door 
  Cracked
  Timal
  Uucha
  +2 to Percep-
  tion
  7
  Half-Closed Ra-
  shae
  Narg
  Reroll one odd-
  numbered roll
  8
  Half-
  Opened
  Ra-nae
  Garn
  Reroll one even-
  numbered roll
  9
  The Moving 
  Door
  Mathae M’raak +1 to AC
  10
  Absent
  Zeth
  A’barr
  None
  Special: When combined with a divination spell, Luno-
  mancy gives no effect, but adds 10% to the success roll.
  Shadow-Sail
  Aura moderate transmutation; CL 5th
  Slot none; Price 60,000 gp; Weight 60 lbs.
  Description
  This ensorcelled sail appears as a 20 ft. square piece of 
  purple-black canvas, dull in the light, but with twinkling 
  highlights in darkness.  A ship fitted with a shadow-sail 
  gains the following bonuses during hours of darkness 
  (see the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game: GameMastery 
  Guide): +10 feet to movement, +1 to ship Reflex saves, 
  +1 to captain’s initiative, and it can change direction at 
  the end, instead of the start, of the turn.  
  Construction
  Requirements Craft Wondrous Item, darkness, burst of 
  speed; Cost 30,000 gp
  Magic
  The realm of magic on Porphyra is held with a certain 
  degree of awe by the general population, and with good 
  reason; the divine magic of the gods sundered and re-
  made the world, and the arcane magic of the Elemental 
  Lords spurred two hundred years of warfare, conflict, 
  and dire monsters upon the stunned planet.  Depend-
  ing on where you live, the use of magic is seen with 
  very different lights: in the Jheriak Continuance, it is 
  seen as a tool of weakness; in the Clockwork Lands, an 
  outmoded,old-fashioned curiosity; in the Landed territo-
  ries of the north, arcane magic is extremely suspect, and 
  wizardry is highly policed; in the zendiqi lands of the 
  south, divine clericism is anathema, and met with knives 
  in the dark.  In the largely nonhuman lands of the west, 
  the lines are more blurred, and magic is seen to more of 
  a natural outgrowth of one’s being, a sentiment of the 
  orcs and elves who dominate that continent.  Their ways 
  of magic are ancient and traditional, largely overlooked 
  or dismissed in more urban, outward-looking society.  
  In the erkunae’s competitive, unpredictable society, 
  anything goes, and they have studied magic for so long, 
  they greedily seek to discover the underpinnings of the 
  composition of the universe itself...
     The less common classes of spell-users largely avoid the 
  controversy, with bardic, inquisitor, and oracular magic, 
  as well as that of paladins and rangers serving more 
  narrowly into their fields, and note evoking the need 
  for research and mystic exploration.  The sense in the 
  modern day of “there are things that sentient-kind is not 
  meant to know...” is rather strong.  Summoners straddle 
  a strange line, for they manipulate outsiders for their 
  own uses, but those outsiders can have elementalist, dei-
  fic or any number of characteristics that are controversial 
  in this fractious world.  Though they definitely possess 
  power, they also tend to isolate themselves, a club of in-
  dividuals.  Witches, as well, have a reputation for perse-
  cution, and are the favorite target for crusading paladins, 
  inquisitors, and other self-described “witch-hunters”.  
  They are rather more collective and organized, as the 
  Sisterhood of the Black Glass can attest.  Apart from 
  these, magic has taken several different and strange paths 
  on Porphyra, as various factions, races, and agendas vie 
  to find the most useful, stimulating, or power-granting 
  form of magical art, all to succor the unknowable powers 
  of the Beyond.  Below are some of the more intriguing 
  paths of magic on the Patchwork Planet of Porphyra.
  
  — 168 — 
  Chaos Magic*
  Chaos magic is a line of magical practice that mostly 
  hinges on two forces; trading choice of magical effect for 
  wider access of effects, and manipulating the potential of 
  the forces that move and shape actions of mortals.  Apart 
  from the ancient and typical divine domains of Law 
  and Chaos, and the arcane spell subtypes of order and 
  entropy, there are likewise two affiliations for the explo-
  ration of chaos magic; the Illuminates of Chaos* and the 
  semihuman erkunae people of Erkusaa.  The abilities of 
  each are somewhat similar, and there is overlap between 
  them, as illuminati exist as a matter of course within 
  the Opal Empire, and chaos sorcerers are spawned or 
  engendered with purpose in the Landed and Porphy-
  ran nations of the mainland world.  Totemic barbarian 
  cultures expressing a near-worship of chaos exist in many 
  wilderness areas of the world, and items such as chaos 
  emeralds and rods of wonder, and beings such as pro-
  teans and chaos beasts give rise to the bubbles of chaos 
  and chaos magic that exist just outside the perception of 
  law-abiding peoples.
     * see Legendary Classes: Illuminatus for more about the 
  illuminati and chaos magic.
  Chaos Sorcerer (Sorcerer Bloodline/Archetype)
  More than a bloodline, a chaos sorcerer gives over the total-
  ity of his being to tap into the primal forces of pre-creation, 
  to the bubbling cistern of protoexistence that is Limbo itself.  
  More than a pawn of the proteans, your personal journey 
  to the heart of chaos gives you freedom like no other magic-
  wielder in creation!
  Class Skill: A chaos sorcerer can add any 1d4 skills to 
  his list of class skills.
  Bonus Spells: A chaos sorcerer does not gain any bo-
  nus spells, and does not use the ‘Spells Known’ table for 
  sorcerers. At each spell level that a sorcerer gains access 
  to a new spell level, he chooses one spell, plus a number 
  of spells equal to his Charisma modifier.  These spells are 
  formed into a random array that is called upon whenever 
  the chaos sorcerer wishes to cast spells.  See the table 
  below:
  +1 modifier: d3 
  1) spell 2) spell 3) choose a spell
  +2 modifier: d4
  1) spell 2) spell 3) spell 4) choose a 
  spell
  +3 modifier: d6 
  1) spell 2) spell 3) spell 4) spell 5-6) 
  choose a spell
  +4 modifier: d6
  1) spell 2) spell 3) spell 4) spell 5) 
  spell 6) choose a spell
  +5 modifier: d8
  1) spell  2) spell 3) spell 4) spell 5) 
  spell 6) spell 7-8) choose a spell
  Bonus Feats: Any feats except metamagic feats.  
  Bloodline Arcana: Whenever you cast a spell with the 
  chaos descriptor, you cast it at +1 caster level.  
  Bloodline Powers: As you gain in power through your 
  exploration of chaos magic, you grow more competent 
  in manipulating the strings of existence to shape the 
  universe to your will.
     Influence Effect (Su): At 1st level, you can choose to 
  reroll a non-d20 die roll that you have just made that 
  is the effect of an action you have just taken, such as 
  the damage from a spell or attack, or some other non-
  d20 roll that you specifically are allowed to make.  You 
  can use this ability 3 times per day plus your Charisma 
  modifier.
     Influence Cause (Su): At 3rd level, you can choose to 
  reroll a d20 die roll that you have just made, such as 
  an attack roll or a saving throw.  You can do this once 
  a day at 3rd level, twice at 9th, and three times at 15th 
  level.  You must accept the new die roll, or use the ability 
  again, if you are able.
     Rod of Power (Sp): At 9th level, your studies lead you 
  to be able to transform your lowly sorcerer’s staff into 
  a fabled rod of wonder, identical to the magic item of 
  the same name. It possess this power as long as you are 
  wielding the staff.
     Limbo-Wave (Su): At 15th level, you gain the ability to 
  unleash a warpwave once per day, identical to the power 
  of an imentesh keketar (Pathfinder Roleplaying Game: 
  Bestiary 2).
     Chaos Lord (Su): At 20th level, you are the apex cham-
  pion of chaos.  You resist acid, cold, electricity, and fire 
  10, gain spell resistance equal to your Charisma score, 
  and may unleash a second warpwave each day.
  
  — 169 — 
  Covenant Magic*
  The realm of covenant magic deals with the risky busi-
  ness of mortals negotiating with spirit creatures, outsid-
  ers, undead and even stranger, unnatural beings that 
  exist outside of the natural order.  Before The Calling, 
  covenant magic on Porphyra was a minor branch of 
  mystical study, with some fringe practitioners known as 
  ‘mediums’.  Elemental beings from the Inner Planes that 
  were out of favor with the Elemental Lords, and a few 
  other strange ‘spirit’ creatures kept the narrow tradi-
  tion going. But with the advent of The Calling, and the 
  opening up of the Outer Planes, the amount of beings 
  that were willing to become patrons for foolish mortals 
  increased exponentially.  For the price of a little (or a lot) 
  of study of the field, some costly specific oils and incense 
  for a purification ceremony, and, with a ceremonial of-
  fering, the promise of service to an immortal, inscrutable 
  being, most anybody could increase their personal power 
  and gain advantages over their rivals and enemies.  This 
  process is part of making a ‘covenant’ and so the branch 
  of mystical effort and magic is called Covenant Magic.  
     The erkunae of Erkusaa were the first to enter into 
  covenants with spirits- even beings that may have inhab-
  ited dimensions and planes other than the Inner Planes.  
  Many of the traditions of covenant magic that exist on 
  Porphyra today are as a result of Erkusaan colonialism, 
  in places like the Fourlands, who enthusiastically pursue 
  it, and all down the east coast of the Western continent, 
  in Giant’s Retreat, the Jotun Forest, and north to the 
  semicivilized lands of the Dry Peninsula.  Mediums and 
  covenant magic are not seen in a positive light in the 
  East, and many Landed territories will persecute those 
  that practice it as charlatans at best and elementalists 
  at worst, as they seem to bypass devotion to the divine 
  arts, and are not quite controllable arcane spellcasters- a 
  dangerous combination.  
     The simplest form of this magic is the amateur cove-
  nant- which, in game terms, is a feat that allows a mortal 
  to bond with a spirit creature or an otherworldly being 
  that is willing to share its power in exchange for gifts of 
  sacrifice and promises of obedience.  A spirit trumpet is a 
  device that is sometimes used by mediums to earn a little 
  money by enabling ‘speaking’ with the beloved dead in 
  some communities, and further to facilitate less costly 
  covenants with appropriate creatures.
  Amateur Covenant
  With sacrifice and promise, you can gain power from a 
  powerful extraplanar being.
  Prerequisites: character level 3, 100 gp per level worth 
  of oils and agents for purification, 120 gp per level of 
  offerings appropriate to the specific being, the willing 
  presence of a being of the outsider type possessing no 
  more hit dice than you possess.
  Benefit: You gain one of the following: one of the Patron 
  being’s spell-like abilities, of a spell level no higher than 
  your character level, able to be used once per day; one of 
  the Patron being’s racial bonuses to skills; or one of the 
  Patron beings resistances, of no higher amount than you  
  have hit dice.  Once the decision is made, it cannot be 
  changed, unless removed by the Patron.
  Special: The patron being can, at any time, remove its 
  patronage and divest the covenant taker of his or her 
  benefit.  The patron being also gains the ability to know 
  where the covenant holder is at all times, even if they are 
  on a different plane. If the patron is slain, the covenant 
  holder  loses all benefit.
  Spirit Trumpet
  Aura faint necromancy; CL 5th
  Slot none; Price 10,000 gp; Weight 5 lbs.
  Description
  This otherwise regular-looking instrument glows with an 
  eerie green light on command, (as a light spell), and its 
  owner may use mage hand at will, but only on the spirit 
  trumpet.  The owner may also use speak with dead once 
  per day, with the responses emerging from the trumpet 
  itself.  The speak with dead effect can be used at a range 
  of 10 ft., even through dirt and stone, so long as the 
  speaking dead’s remains are in range.
     A medium or possessor of the Amateur Covenant feat 
  may include a spirit trumpet as part of their dedication 
  ritual, lowering the offering price by 10%.  The item 
  may be used once per week for this purpose.
  Construction 
  Requirements Craft Wondrous Item, light, mage hand, 
  speak with dead; Cost 5,000 gp
  * see Legendary Classes: Covenant Magic and Legendary 
  Classes: More Covenant Magic.
  
  — 170 — 
  Elementalism
  That beings should demand worship – and deserve wor-
  ship- is not necessarily the description of a ‘god’, and 
  that practice is not exactly described as ‘religion’.  That 
  is perhaps the gulf that separates the Deists and the 
  Elementalists on Porphyra, and that world is waiting 
  for someone, some being to help the two sides come to 
  some sort of realization of the others’ nature.  Elemental-
  ism is just that- subservience to the ‘elements’ that make 
  up the world, the universe, all that is.  Breathing air, 
  feeling the earthy solidity of one’s body, the fiery warmth 
  and liquid components of it, all speak to the reality of 
  The Four and the duty that mortals have to give them 
  worship.  To an elementalist, the Elemental Lords did 
  not just create the world, they are the world, are living 
  composites of the planetary substance and existence.  For 
  them to assume even mildly humanoid shapes is a great 
  gift to mortal life, as they are, literally, air, earth, fire and 
  water.  Rather than the notion of some kind of ethereal 
  ‘people’ that gods are, robed and clothed with the con-
  cepts of humanity, and going on to an eternal frisking 
  about in an imagined paradise/hell, adherents of elemen-
  talism await a glorious rejoining with the composite 
  forces of the makeup of the universe- though whether 
  individuality and consciousness remain is for different 
  sects and mahdi-followings to decide and debate.
     An available archetype “Mahdi (plural Mahdeen)” for 
  zendiqi and other elementalists, which allows for the use 
  of the ‘cleric’ class.  They do not have auras, cannot use 
  spells that utilize evil, good, chaos or law, or that sum-
  mon outsiders other than from the elemental planes.  
  Mahdi are implacable enemies of northern paladins, and 
  the Invincible Order of the Code of Gerana has orders to 
  slay them on sight.  Serenity Guard vary according to the 
  individual’s attitude towards the zendiqi; a zealot might 
  call for a purge of a village harboring a mahdi, whereas 
  one with sympathy for the oppressed southerners might 
  tolerate a mahdi engaged in helping the desert people.
  Mahdi (Cleric)
  The xenophobic, antideist zendiqi have struggled as a 
  people with the disadvantages of lacking a clerical caste, 
  but the fierce will of the people has generated another; 
  the mahdi.  They serve  the absent will of the Elemental 
  Lords and provide healing for the people, or death to 
  outsiders, as the “Will of the Four” dictates. They can be 
  identified by the ornate earmuffs, veils and gags that they 
  wear at all times outside of their personal tents, shutting 
  the tainted world outside, and focusing their powers 
  inward.  
  Aura (Ex): Mahdi do not have a clerical aura, and can-
  not use any spells or abilities that require  
  the pos-
  session of one.
  Channeling (Su): Mahdi can select, at will, whether to 
  channel positive or negative energy as a cleric, but re-
  ceive one fewer channel than they are entitled to, accord-
  ing to their Charisma,  class, and feats.
  Spells (Sp): Mahdi cannot cast spells with the good, evil, 
  law or chaos descriptors, or summon or negotiate with 
  outsiders other than those with the elemental subtype.  
  When casting spells with the air, earth, fire or water 
  descriptor, mahdi cast them at +1 caster level.
  The Shields of Faith (Ex): The earmuffs, veils and gags 
  of the mahdi enforce a penalty of -1 per two levels of 
  cleric to Appraise and Perception.  Mahdi are consid-
  ered flat-footed for the first round of any combat.  The 
  Shields also confer a +1 bonus per two levels of cleric to 
  saves vs. all mind-affecting effects.
  Collective Will: A mahdi can select, daily, any one do-
  main he wishes, except for Good or Evil. They may not 
  select subdomains.  They also may cast one fewer spell 
  per level, thus, 0 spells  at 1st level (plus a domain spell, 
  and any spells granted by high Wisdom).
  
  — 171 — 
  Word Magic*
  Porphyran historians of all camps and philosophies agree 
  that the magic that caused The Calling to take place 
  was rooted in the ancient tradition of word magic, for 
  as the legend says “The Word was spoken, and The Call 
  was made...”  Further legends, some barely out of liv-
  ing memory for the elves of Azag-Ithiel and the Great 
  Green, speak of a great congregation of the arcane elven 
  traditionalists known as Runespeakers, and an even 
  larger contingent of mystical orcish barbaric warriors 
  called Runereapers.  The combined power of those who 
  trade their voices for runic power and those who mortify 
  their flesh for the power of runes sundered the veil of 
  the dimensions and brought forth the Age of the Gods.  
  Word magic still has an honored place in the lands of 
  Azag-Ithiel and The Great Green, and even in Azagor 
  runereapers command respect for the old ways.  
     Word magic has not been ignored in the larger world 
  either, for oracles of the sigil mystery, tapping the power 
  of ancient runes of bygone eras, have been known to 
  command great respect among the zendiqi and less affili-
  ated Porphyrans.  There are petroglyphs in hidden desert 
  places that seem to predate even the semilegendary 
  conflict between the Elemental Lords and the whispered-
  of masters of the Kayanoi, from so long ago.  Even the 
  unpredictably occuring and enigmatic dragonbloods, 
  accidental scions of that even more enigmatic draconian 
  race have inborn skills with word magic, hinting at con-
  nections that the larger body of metareptiles refuse to 
  even acknowledge.  
     The choice to become a wordcaster, among the various 
  arcane and divine disciplines on Porphyra, has somewhat 
  more gravity there than it would on a world where the 
  Word had not been spoken.  Wordcasters, especially 
  elven runespeakers, are likely to be seized and staked out 
  for the sand-mawts in Simoon or the Siwath.  In Land-
  ed, deist territories wordcasters are seen in the same light 
  as apocalypse oracles and prophets, possible harbingers 
  of great change and moment, and possibly presumptu-
  ous would-be rallying points for radical cults and cabals.  
  In more chaotic lands like Hesteria, the Pyynian Coast, 
  the Jheriak Continuance- even Iffud and Iskander, wild-
  eyed followers   flock to charismatic wordcasters, hoping 
  to learn the secrets of the making and unmaking of the 
  universe.  To choose a discipline that has a reputation for 
  changing the face of the Cosmos is not a choice made 
  lightly.  Should a wordcaster dare to tap the word magic 
  power source that was the Word  that triggered The 
  Calling, they may choose to learn a subschool of Sum-
  moning Words, by taking the following feat, which gives 
  access to the word magic subschool of Calling Words:
  Words of Calling
  You dare to emulate the Cormazog Alliance and learn 
  words of Calling.
  Prerequisites: Ability to cast wordspells, ability to cast 
  meta words of 4th level or higher
  Benefit: You can cause your servitor (summoning) word-
  spells to instead be spells of the calling subtype.  Calling 
  subtype wordspells use the next highest level on Tables 
  10-1 and 10-2 in the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Core 
  Rulebook for the spell summon monster/summon nature’s 
  ally, though the creature summoned is not under the 
  control of the caster, and is randomly selected from the 
  table, with the most appropriate die for doing so, a d20 
  if there are more than 12 selections, rerolled if  necessary.  
     If the wordcaster is able to cast servitor IX (calling), he 
  may select any creature from the summon monster IX/
  summon nature’s ally IX table that he wishes.  If the codex 
  of the infinite planes is present within a circle of at least 
  twenty-seven copper monoliths prepared with words of 
  dimensional gate, and calling IX is cast, well, then...
  * For more on runecasters and runereapers, see Legendary 
  Classes: Rune Magic.
  
  — 172 — 
  Domains and Subdomains
  The religions of Porphyra possess a number of domains 
  and subdomains not found in the Pathfinder Roleplay-
  ing Game Core Rulebook. They have been reprinted here 
  from Gods of Porphya (GoP), Elemental Lords of Por-
  phyra (ELoP), or Protean Lords of Porphyra (PLoP).
  Art Domain
  Granted Powers: You can make the mundane magnifi-
  cent with ease and create masterpieces of the artistic 
  form. In addition, you treat Perform as a class skill.
     Masterwork (Sp): You can temporarily transform a 
  mundane object into a masterwork one, as per the spell, 
  for a number of minutes per day equal to 3 + your cleric 
  level. 
     Masterpiece (Ex): At 4th level, you gain access to the 
  masterpiece class option commonly reserved for bards 
  (see Ultimate Magic). Instead of spells known, master-
  pieces occupy spell slots. You may select a masterpiece 
  whenever you gain a new spell slot. Once a masterpiece 
  is selected, that spell slot is lost.
  Domain Spells: 1st—attention joltGoP, 2nd—eagle’s 
  splendor, 3rd—breath of ecstasyGoP, 4th—philanthropist-
  GoP, 5th—music of the spheres, 6th—mass eagle’s splendor, 
  7th—steal the painful memory, 8th—euphoric tranquility, 
  9th—convert foe
  Time Domain
  Granted Powers: You can stop time momentarily, and 
  can shift backwards in time briefly as well.
     Moment of Pause (Sp): As a melee touch attack, you can 
  stop time for one creature briefly, freezing them in place. 
  For one round, the creature can take no action and ex-
  periences time as if that round never took place. Because 
  the target of this ability does not experience the flow of 
  time it cannot be affected by any event, attack, spell or 
  effect as per the time stop spell. You can use this ability a
  number of times per day equal to 3 + your Wisdom 
  modifier.
     Time Shift (Sp): Beginning at 8th level, three times per 
  week and no more than once per day, you can briefly 
  shift time backwards. You can shift back no further than 
  1 combat round or 1 minute of noncombat time. Any 
  actions that took place during the time you shift back 
  before are considered to have not taken place yet, and all 
  actions pick up at the point you shift back.
  Domain Spells: 1st—deathwatch, 2nd—one track
  mind, 3rd—delayed reaction, 4th—haste, 5th—hold
  monster, 6th—contingency, 7th—lesser time stop,
  8th—temporal stasis, 9th—time stop
  Purple Duck Note: Abilities that affect the flow of time 
  can be troublesome for GMs to manage. Replace this ability 
  with another if you wish.
  Scalykind Domain
  Granted Powers: You are a true lord of reptiles, and 
  your gaze can drive weak creatures into unconsciousness.
     Venomous Stare (Sp): As a standard action, you can ac-
  tivate a gaze attack with a 30-foot range. This is an active 
  gaze attack that can target a single creature within range. 
  The target must make a Will save (DC = 10 + 1/2 your 
  cleric level + your Wisdom modifier). Those that fail 
  take 1d6 points of nonlethal damage + 1 point for every 
  two cleric levels you possess and are fascinated until the 
  beginning of your next turn. You can use this ability 
  a number of times per day equal to 3 + your Wisdom 
  modifier. This is a mind-affecting effect.
     Serpent Companion (Ex): At 4th level, you gain the ser-
  vice of an animal companion. Your effective druid level 
  for this animal companion is equal to your cleric level 
  –2. You may choose either a viper or a constrictor snake 
  as your companion.
     Domain Spells: 1st—magic fang, 2nd—animal trance, 
  3rd—greater magic fang, 4th—poison, 5th—animal 
  growth (reptiles only), 6th—eyebite, 7th—creeping doom  
  (takes the form of Diminutive reptiles), 8th—animal 
  shapes (reptiles only), 9th—shapechange.
  Void Domain
  Granted Powers: You can call upon the cold darkness
  between the stars to gain f light, travel to other worlds, 
  or summon monsters from beyond to do your bidding.
     Guarded Mind (Ex): You gain a +2 insight bonus on 
  saving throws against all mind-affecting effects.
     Part the Veil (Su): At 8th level, you can lace spells you 
  cast with the raw madness that waits in the outer dark-
  ness. Activating this ability is a swift action that you 
  must use as you cast a spell that targets a single creature 
  and that allows a Will saving throw to negate or reduce 
  the spell’s primary effect. If the target fails to resist the 
  spell, the target is also confused for a number of rounds 
  
  — 173 — 
  equal to the spell’s level as visions of the void cause 
  temporary insanity. The victim can attempt a new saving 
  throw each round to end the effect—these additional 
  saving throws apply only to the additional confusion 
  effect and not to the original spell effect. Part the veil is a 
  mind-affecting effect. You can use this ability a number 
  of times per day equal to 1/2 your class level.
  Domain Spells: 1st—feather fall, 2nd—levitate, 3rd—
  fly, 4th—lesser planar binding, 5th—overland flight, 
  6th—planar binding, 7th—reverse gravity, 8th—greater 
  planar binding, 9th—interplanetary teleportUM.
  Future Subdomain (Time Domain)
  Replacement Power: The following power replaces the 
  moment of pause power of the time domain.
     Insight (Su): As free action, you can immediately gain 
  a bonus to your initiative count equal to your cleric 
  level (minimum 1). You can use this ability can be used 
  a number of times per day equal to 3 + your Wisdom 
  modifier.
  Replacement Domain Spells: 2nd—augury, 4th—divi-
  nation, 5th—opportunity, 8th—forewarning
  Intuition Subdomain (Knowledge Domain)
  Replacement Power: The following granted power 
  replaces the remote viewing power of the Knowledge 
  domain.
     Blind Luck (Sp): Starting at 3rd level, once per day 
  you can make a skill check in an untrained skill, with a 
  bonus equal to half your divine caster level.
  Replacement Domain Spells: 3rd—skill-thief’s touch, 
  4th—Limbo’s fickle blessing, 5th—chaotic breach
  Mayhem Subdomain (War Domain)
  Replacement Power: The following granted power re-
  places the weapon master power of the War domain.
     Adaptive Strike (Su): At 8th level, as a swift action, you 
  may infuse all of your attacks with adamantine, silver, 
  or cold iron, thereby allowing it to overcome damage 
  reduction of those types. You may use this ability one 
  round per day plus one round for every two additional  
  cleric levels. These rounds do not need to be consecutive.
  Replacement Domain Spells: 3rd—fleshbreak touch, 
  4th—Limbo’s grip, 8th—voidworm swarm
  Movement Subdomain (Art Domain)
  Replacement Power: The following granted power re-
  places the masterwork power of the art domain.
     Dancing Touch (Su): You can imbue the target with
  the urge to dance as a melee touch attack. For the next 
  round, the target must use its move action to move 
  directly away from you at their base speed. This move-
  ment is graceful and stylish and does not provoke attacks 
  of opportunity but it may force the target to dance into 
  other hazards. If the target’s path is blocked they will 
  turn 45 degrees clockwise and continue moving. You can 
  use this ability a number of times per day equal to 3 + 
  your Wisdom modifier.
  Replacement Domain Spells: 1st—expeditious retreat, 
  2nd—touch me not, 4th—freedom of movement, 6th—ir-
  resistible dance
  Naga Subdomain (Water Domain)
  Replacement Power: The following granted power re-
  places the icicle power of the Water domain. Naga are
  serpent-headed beings that often live in watery areas.
     Fascinating Caress (Su): You can cause a living creature
  to become fascinated for 1 round as a melee touch at-
  tack. Creatures with more hit dice than your cleric level
  are not affected. You can use this ability a number of
  times equal to 3 plus your Wisdom modifier.
  Replacement Domain Spells: 2nd—detect thoughts, 
  4th—poison, 6th—geas/quest
  Oni Subdomain (Evil Domain)
  Replacement Power: The following granted power re-
  places the scythe of evil power of the Evil domain. Oni
  are a race of evil native outsiders.
     Tenacious Evil (Su): At 8th level, as a swift action, you
  can trigger fast healing 2 for half as many rounds as you
  have cleric levels, ie. 4 rounds at 8th level, 5 rounds at
  10th. If you are below 0 hit points, this ability will be
  triggered automatically.
     Replacement Domain Spells: 1st—enlarge person, 
  3rd—nature’s exile, 6th—planar binding (oni only)
  
  — 174 — 
  Past Subdomain (Time Domain)
  Replacement Power: The following power replaces the 
  moment of pause power of the time domain.
     Do-Over (Su): You may immediately reroll a failed skill 
  check, saving throw or attack roll. You must accept the 
  second roll regardless of its value. You can use this ability 
  a number of times per day equal to 3 + your Wisdom 
  modifier.
  Replacement Domain Spells: 2nd—ancestral advisor, 
  3rd—ancestral dream, 4th—commune with the ancients
  Retaliation Subdomain (Protection Domain)
  Replacement Power: The following granted power re-
  places the aura of protection power of the Protection
  domain.
     Aura of Retaliation (Su): At 8th level, you can emit a
  30-foot aura of retaliation, lowering your enemies’ resis-
  tance to your righteous attacks. All enemies within this
  aura suffer a -1 penalty to AC, and have their resistance
  to the elements reduced by 5 (acid, cold, electricity and
  fire)
  Replacement Domain Spells: 2nd—retributionBoDM, 
  4th—greater retributionBoDM,  6th—unwilling shield
  Sound Subdomain (Art Domain)
  Replacement Power: The following granted power 
  replaces the masterwork power of the art domain.
     Song of Courage (Su): Your singing grants allies 
  a +1 bonus to saving throws against charm and fear 
  effects and on attack and damage rolls. You can sing the 
  song of courage a number of rounds per day equal to 3 + 
  your Wisdom modifier. This power is otherwise similar 
  to a bard’s inspire courage ability.
  Replacement Domain Spells: 1st—silver tongue, 3rd—
  sculpt sound, 6th—sympathetic vibration
  Wild Magic Subdomain (Magic Domain)
  Replacement Power: The following granted power 
  replaces the hand of the acolyte power of the 
  Magic domain.
     Wild Surge (Su): As a swift action, you can 
  invoke the powers of chaos and alter the effec-
  tive caster level of a spell you cast that round. Roll a 
  percentile die and determine the effects using the follow-
  ing chart, and alter the spell’s effects to match your new, 
  temporary caster level. If the caster level drops below the 
  minimum caster level to cast a given spell, the spell fails. 
  You can use this ability a number of times per day equal 
  to 3 + your Wisdom modifier.
  Roll
  Effect
  01-24
  -2 caster levels
  25-49
  -1 caster levels
  50-74
  +1 caster levels
  75-95
  +2 caster levels
  95-100
  +3 caster levels
  Replacement Domain Spells: 3rd—befuddling infusion, 
  4th—inflict warpwave, 5th—greater befuddling infusion
  
  — 175 — 
  Psionics
  The ability of some to harness the power of their minds 
  to complete awe-inspiring tasks falls into the realm of 
  psionics. These talented individuals are able to harness 
  this power without the need to traffic with spirits like 
  covenant mages, begging divine creatures for spells, or 
  toiling away in dusty libraries of forgotten lore. Psionic 
  power has always been a part of the Patchwork World of 
  Porphyra, however before The Calling most of its reach 
  was limited to the Pinnacle Lands. 
     The forces of the Elemental Lords possessed few psion-
  ic individuals and struggled combat this strange power, 
  so the Pinnacle Lands were ignored and isolated. Travel 
  to and from the Pinnacle Lands is no longer restricted, 
  so native psionic races as well landed psionic races can be 
  found almost anywhere except Nor-Du-Mag.
  Purple Duck Note: Porphyra utilizes the psionics rules 
  created by Dreamscarred Press in Ultimate Psionics if 
  you do not have access to that incredible book here is briefly 
  what you need to know. 
  Combining Psionic and Magical Effects
  The default rule for the interaction of psionics and magic 
  is simple: Powers interact with spells and spells interact 
  with powers in the same way a spell or normal spell-like 
  ability interacts with another spell or spell-like ability.      
     Psionics–Magic Transparency: Though not explicitly 
  called out in the spell descriptions or magic item descrip-
  tions, spells, spell-like abilities, and magic items that 
  could potentially affect psionics do affect psionics. When 
  the rule about psionics–magic transparency is in effect, it 
  has the following ramifications. 
     Spell resistance is effective against powers, using the 
  same mechanics. Likewise, power resistance is effec-
  tive against spells, using the same mechanics as spell 
  resistance. If a creature has one kind of resistance, it is 
  assumed to have the other. (The effects have similar ends 
  despite having been brought about by different means.)
     All spells that dispel magic have equal effect against 
  powers of the same level using the same mechanics, and 
  vice versa.
     The spell detect magic detects powers, their number, 
  and their strength and location within 3 rounds (though 
  a Spellcraft check is necessary to identify the discipline 
  of the psionic aura), while detect psionics detects spells, 
  their number, and their strength and location within 3 
  rounds (though a Spellcraft check is necessary to identify 
  the school of magic).
     Dead magic areas are also dead psionics areas. Unless 
  specifically mentioned in a power’s description, a power 
  cannot be counterspelled when it is being manifested, 
  nor can powers be used to counterspell a spell as it is 
  being cast.
  Psionic Disciplines
  The six psionic disciplines are:
  • 
  Clairsentience powers enable you to learn secrets 
  long forgotten, to glimpse the immediate future and 
  predict the far future, to find hidden objects, and to 
  know what is normally unknowable.
  • 
  Metacreativity powers create objects, creatures, or 
  some form of matter. 
  • 
  Psychokinesis powers manipulate energy or tap the 
  power of the mind to produce a desired end. 
  • 
  Psychometabolism powers change the physical prop-
  erties of some creature, thing, or condition.
  • 
  Psychoportation powers move the manifester, an 
  object, or another creature through space and time.
  • 
     Telepathy powers can spy on and affect the minds 
  of others, influencing or controlling their behavior. 
  Most telepathy powers are mind-affecting.
  
  — 176 — 
  Orders and Organizations
  There are definitely organizations that have strong roots 
  in one particular country or region, but there are also 
  those that have spread their beliefs and memberships to 
  many nations and territories, showing the universal ap-
  peal of their philosophy.  
  Bertoni Choristers
  Choristers are bards and lorekeepers that observe great 
  deeds and regale the masses, with chapters in all major 
  cities.  Any bard that can create a Masterpiece or spell-
  caster that can cast enthrall or major image can apply for 
  membership.
  Requirements: The petitioner must accompany an 
  adventuring band on an ‘epic’ mission, and tell the tale 
  to the High Choristers in the Chapterhouse in Berton, 
  capital of Iffud.  
  Mark: A cloak pin of a bronze note
  Benefits: The aid of ¼ your level of bardic NPCs when 
  in a city with a chapterhouse, as well as magical lore 
  equivalent to the bonus feats Spell Focus (enchantment) 
  or Spell Focus (illusion)
  Bronze League
  A somewhat informal affiliation of ‘normals’ (non-psion-
  ics) that resent psionic interference, and psionics of any 
  type.  This has developed into angry reaction against any 
  kind of mind-control, even of the magic or mesmeric 
  type.  Historically founded in Sharira, The Pinnacle 
  Lands; there are chapters in other nations, mostly in 
  large cities.  They prefer angry mob-style activities.
  Requirements: May not be psionic or of a typically 
  psionic race; magically typical races are suspect, as well.  
  Must purchase a copper bracelet (below) and contribute 
  300 gp to ‘the cause’ per year, which is dubiously distrib-
  uted by longer-held members.
  Mark: The copper bracelet, a magic item made by the 
  League.
  Benefits: Receives a copper bracelet, and can (eventually) 
  count on their level in Bronze League aid for confront-
  ing or protesting mind control or psionicism.  This often 
  brings attention from the Meridian, as well.
  Shariran Copper Bracelet
  Aura faint abjuration; CL 3rd 
  Slot wrists; Price 1,000 gp; Weight –
  Description
  A shariran copper bracelet is a membership insignia to be 
  a member of the Bronze League, an anti-psionic brother-
  hood in the Pinnacle Lands of Sharira.  As a protection 
  device, the copper bracelet allows the wearer, once per 
  day, to roll twice when called upon to make a saving 
  throw vs. a psionic power.  
  Construction 
  Requirements Craft Wondrous Item, guidance, protec-
  tion from chaos/evil/law/good; Cost 500 gp
  Brothers of the Blue Star
  An ancient league of cultists seeking to return pre-ele-
  mentalist beings to Porphyra, inimical to both Elemen-
  talists and Deists, though infiltrating both.  They often 
  maintain storehouses of lore masquerading as benign 
  libraries or “lodges” whilst gathering magical power and 
  items, waiting for circumstances when “all is right”.
  Requirements: Members must have at least a +3 bonus 
  in Bluff, Disguise Self, and Knowledge (planes) and 
  subject themselves to an awful ritual that permanently 
  drains 1 Constitution point. Prevalent in Tuthon and 
  Dunmark, rituals performed in Aklo-Kayan dialects.
  Mark: Blue star tattoo somewhere on the body
  Benefits: +2 to Diplomacy with aberrations, and brain-
  washing equivalent to the bonus feat Iron Will; at 9th 
  level this increases to Improved Iron Will.
  Codionic Knights-Errant
  A lesser rank from the Impervious Knights of the Code 
  of Gerana, Codionic Knights-Errant serve as a reserve 
  army to form units or command militia, or be elevated 
  into the Codion’s bodyguard.  Knights-errant can count 
  on deference from sheriffs or other authorities, and swift 
  obedience from commoners, but are expected to act as 
  troubleshooters, bandit-hunters, and monster-slayers 
  when required by the citizenry.  They have a well-earned 
  reputation for heavy-handedness, and some consider 
  them bullies, but they feel it is this rigid strength that 
  
  — 177 — 
  holds the line between the vulnerable people and a myri-
  ad of terrors, such as the Sandmen and other threats.
  Requirements: Must have at least 3 ranks in Knowledge 
  (nobility), a total of +5.  Must own a masterwork sword, 
  heavy mace, or morningstar.  Must pledge fealty to the 
  Codion in front of a cleric or Impervious Knight of Ge-
  rana; may not be chaotic.  Must report to the Church of 
  Gerana in every community they enter that has one.
  Mark: The gilded chains of the Codionic Knights on 
  helm or epaulets.
  Benefits: May not be detained by local authorities, and 
  can order their Charisma as a number of Commoners to 
  perform duties of their choosing.  +2 AC vs. critical hit 
  confirmation, and can cast virtue as spell-like ability 1/
  day.
  Evening Shades
  Supported by House Vark, the ruling house of Tuthon, 
  the Evening Shades are trained by demons and led by 
  the Dark Mistress, the succubus patron of the house. 
  Operating out of the pleasure-fortress of Shadowlight, 
  their ultimate goal is nothing less than the ascension of 
  their demonic mistress to the ranks of the divine. They 
  combine pleasure and death, working the sex trade to 
  gain access to both information and victims.
  Requirements: Members must be female with at least 3 
  ranks in Craft (alchemy).
  Mark: Grey crescent moons painted on fingernails
  Benefits: + ½ point of sneak attack damage per level
  Fraternal Order of the Wyrm
  Mostly a “men’s lodge” type of group, giving excuses for 
  secret handshakes, drinking and camaraderie, the Frater-
  nal Order of the Wyrm occasionally band together for 
  ill-planned missions, such as invading the Wyrm’s Quar-
  ter in the Northlands.  Applicants ‘pledge their sword’ 
  and promise to be ready for the call;
  Requirements: Membership fees vary according to 
  venue, typically 1 to 5 gp, and the same upon joining a 
  mission, to a ‘Wyrm-master’ who organizes events. They 
  are usually fighter/wizards of levels 5-9.  Members must 
  have their own sword and armor, and be in good stand-
  ing with a religion willing to bury them.
  Mark: Arcane mark of the order (a purple dragon) upon 
  their weapon
  Benefits: Benevolence from fellow-brothers, +1 to 
  Knowledge (local) and Gather Information when brag-
  ging of exploits.
  Houses of Convention
  A necessary cliché of city life, Houses of Convention 
  (what rich folks call the Theives Guild) attempt to 
  regulate, to a certain degree, the crime that goes on in 
  the environs of that jurisdiction.  There are certain vague 
  rules that loosely apply to all Guilds, namely 1) Don’t 
  get involved with religion (followers of Shade have cleri-
  cally-run cloisters) 2) Fleece the public, abide your own, 
  and 3) Highest Magpies gets run of the Guildhouse.  
  These rules are, naturally, bent, broken and ignored as 
  frequently as possible.  Fences make brisk use of Guild-
  houses, and are often sacrosanct (but see above).
  Requirements: Visiting a city’s Guildhouse (if you 
  can find it, at least a DC 15 Knowledge [local] check), 
  solving a DC 20 Disable Device puzzle box, and pay-
  ing from 10 to 50 gold pieces- cash or magic items 
  only!  Guilds reserve the right to insist on renewal every 
  Magpies.
  Mark: A colored lifebead, shade of which each city guild 
  chooses.  A lifebead goes clear if the individual it is keyed 
  to is killed.  Thus, you can steal one, but you can’t kill to 
  get it.
  Benefit: You won’t get robbed or ratted out in the city 
  the Guild controls.  If you have suitably impressed or 
  paid off factors, they may throw a job your way, or hook 
  you up with an adventuring party.
  Purple Duck Note: Lifebeads can be made using magical-
  ly-blown glass and a deathwatch spell, then dipped in the 
  blood of the new Guild member.  
  Illuminates of Chaos
  A rather nebulous association containing all of those 
  who practice chaos magic, known as illuminati.  Seen 
  
  — 178 — 
  with contempt by chaos sorcerers, who answer to no 
  master, the Illuminates often take up causes against 
  oppression and arbitrary force, sometimes simply by 
  pulling strings and spending money to get others to do 
  the work.  Probably an offshoot of a darker fraternity on 
  Erkusaa, the illuminates love mystery, arcane symbolism, 
  and the effect of being perceived as a string-puller in the 
  grand scheme of things; they are nothing if not creative 
  publicists and self-aggrandizers!  The various cities of If-
  fud, Giant’s Retreat, and the Seven Principalities all serve 
  as shifting locations of their lodges.
   
  Requirements: At least one level of illuminatus.
  Mark: possessing an illuminating implement, instantly 
  recognizable by other illuminati
  Benefits: Mutual benevolence, infrequent summons to 
  lodge-meetings by magical means.
  Magpies
  The Magpies is a septennial, seven-day competition of 
  thieves, burglars, and other robbers, with registered com-
  petitors; don’t go looking for it, you’ll be found if you 
  are worthy!    Winners and competitors are also called 
  by the name.  Magpies at the same job must vacate the 
  premises and cooperate to escape, if necessary; no holds 
  are barred ‘after hours’.  To speak or ask of it directly in a 
  guildhouse is a banning offense.  
  Requirements: A quick hand and a sharp knife.  Acqui-
  sition by military might or outright slaughter is forbid-
  den, and will result in quick and painful assassination.
  Mark: Black magpie tattoo on one’s neck for every entry; 
  ranking nicknames—1st entry  fledgling, 2nd true mag-
  pie, 3rd black crow, 4th raven, 5th—onward 2nd, 3rd 
  raven etc.  The ‘winner’  has a tiny gem imbedded in the 
  tattoo’s eye.
  Benefits: +1 to leadership score per tattoo, + ½ to In-
  timidate per tattoo.
  Meridian
  A very secretive organization of psionically-talented be-
  ings, that have taken upon themselves the direction of 
  mundane society, with the goal of increasing the domi-
  nation of civilization.  Led primarily by elans, lesser races 
  come and go from their secret councils, identified only 
  by psionic communication and other mind-signs.
  Requirements: Must be psionic, must possess an identi-
  fying power; ectoplasmic trinket, crystal light, or mis-
  sive; must possess some level of recognized office, or be 
  part of another organization.  Petitioners must locate a 
  Meridian training ground (typically a small ‘dungeon’ 
  complex) and overcome puzzles and placed monsters and 
  survive to the central chamber, where a Meridian mem-
  ber will grant them entrance (or not…)
  Mark: Members must know the ‘Split-circle’ symbol and 
  reproduce it with the required abilities, or know that 
  pass-word.
  Benefits: A complex mental surgery gives you a bonus 
  power point, and a type of bonus feat similar to En-
  dowed Mind, but only with regards to Will saves.
  Prefects of Ametrine
  A globe-spanning organization closely allied with the 
  religion of Shankhil, seeking to promote the progress 
  of civilization and peaceful order.  Elves and barbaric 
  peoples rarely join, but they do ally themselves with the 
  Prefects if the situation demands.  The Ametrine Coali-
  tion is a pact made by various national rulers to share 
  information and concerns, which are passed on to the 
  Prefects by the clerics of Shankhil.  Various alliances of 
  Prefects and their friends are then dispatched to deal 
  with problems, especially if they are best dealt with by 
  “foreigners” for political reasons.  Levels include Prefect 
  Initiates (less than 5 levels since they joined), Spheres (6-
  10) and Pyramids (over 10 levels since they joined).
  Requirements: Cannot be evil, must have an aristocratic 
  patron, who has them swear an oath on a crystal ball 
  made of porphyrite, which links them to it.
  Mark: An amethyst solitaire ring on the left little finger.  
  For higher level members, (“Spheres”) this is a ring of 
  protection +1, for “Pyramids”, an added property of in-
  teresting and unique (if not particularly powerful) ability 
  is added.
  Benefits: “Free” passes at porphyrite borders manned 
  
  — 179 — 
  by Khilite clerics, can commune (as the spell, 1 question)  
  with their patron 1/week per Prefect ‘level’.
  Sandmen
  A ubiquitous, originally zendiqi-dominated antideist 
  organization, making inroads from the south into the 
  Landed territories of the north and west. Motivation 
  of individual cells varies from altruistic opposition of 
  evil religions to malicious pursuers of mass murder.  No 
  central organization that can be definitively identified, 
  though rumors abound.  They are extremely secretive 
  and suspicious, usually meeting in cursed places.  
  Requirements: Recruits must take the Sand Sympathiz-
  er social trait, which may require taking the Scorn for 
  Deists drawback (see Daamati) if not at 1st level or if the 
  Additional Traits feat is not taken.
  Mark: Ritual scarring made to look ‘normal’, immedi-
  ately recognizable by a fellow
  Benefit: May demand aid from racial zendiqi as a Diplo-
  macy 10 + HD check, subject to retroactive approval by 
  the local Sandman cell.  A further +1 to saves vs. divine 
  spells.
  Savants of the Fifth Element
  A legendary cabal of non-aligned wizards and sorcer-
  ers, in the days before The Calling, most consider the 
  Savants to be a myth, and it may be that they are; only 
  strange ghosts, enigmatic dragons, and odd rumors 
  speak with any definitiveness about them.  No written 
  account of their dealings exists from any later than 100 
  BC, yet whispers persist that they watch, and perhaps 
  even influence the lives of intellectuals and humanists 
  on Porphyra- certainly disdained by both Deist and 
  Elementalist alike.  
  Requirements: Extremely high intelligence or wisdom, 
  allegedly proven in a series of puzzles, games and conun-
  drums, administered without the ‘applicant’ even know-
  ing it.  One does not  find the Savants, they find you.  
  The final test is spoken in legend of being disintegrated, 
  and reconstituted!
  Mark: Many are rumored; a rent somewhere in one’s 
  clothing, a tattoo of the number “5”, a book whose cover 
  is a color that cannot quite be described—among others.
  Benefits: Though many are spoken of in legend, the one 
  that comes up the most is the ability to assume gaseous 
  form at will.  Others are said to be immunity to magic, 
  the ability to commune with oneself, etc.
  Sisterhood of the Black Glass
  One of the most open secrets of Porphyra, everyone in 
  the magical community knows of the Sisterhood but it 
  still manages to stay off of discussion scrolls at the gov-
  ernment level.  Nominally neutral, law-abiding witches 
  tend to dominate the Sisterhood, though there are fac-
  tions and machinations in myriad formats.  The Highest 
  (or oldest) of their order lives in the Corkscrew Tower in 
  Calium, in Blix, though the Sisters meet everywhere and 
  anywhere.
  Requirements: Must be female, must be able to cast 
  arcane spells; fealty and obedience to higher-level Sisters, 
  must win a mystic duel with one’s double from a special 
  mirror of opposition, “The Black Glass”.
  Mark: A blue-black hourglass tattoo somewhere on the 
  body.
  Benefit: Aging slows to one year in two; at 10th level 
  (“Motherhood”) aging slows to one year in three.  Fealty 
  and limited obedience from higher-level sisters who pro-
  mote feminine rights and the sharing of magical power.
  Vortician Guild
  This loose confederation includes wizards and other ar-
  cane casters that have been to, or are interested in other 
  planes, dimensions, pockets of reality, or traveled in 
  time.  Centered in Hesteria, the Wall of Sleep, but many 
  pyramidal towers found in large cities.
  Requirements: A short ceremony of confirmation (via 
  a zone of truth)  of one’s extradimensional claims, and 
  a sliding scale of 100 plus 50 gp per level guild fees per 
  year guarantees entry.
  Mark: A pin, badge or amulet showing interlocked “V”s.  
  Benefit: +1 per level to hit points of summoned crea-
  tures, and to % success in augury spells.
  
  — 180 — 
  Prestige Classes
  The Impervious Knights of the Code of Gerana, Puri-
  tan Redemptors of the Way of the Gun, and Tearsman 
  Shayk of the Sandmen prestige classes are detailed below.
  Impervious Knights of the Code of Gerana 
  (The Impervious)
  This elite level of paladinhood was the core of the Deist 
  forces during the NewGod War; generals, commanders, 
  Chaplains-Supreme and swords of the faith.  Today they 
  are hardly less powerful, being advisors and bodyguards 
  to the Codion in Sanctus Templum and the Regents in 
  the four secular Kingdoms.  They maintain a heavy hand 
  in the running of the Serenity Guard, and from this 
  and other ventures have a well-earned reputation from 
  grimness,implacability, and a swift guantleted fist.
  Hit Dice: d10
  Requirements
  To qualify to become one of The Impervious, a character 
  must fulfill all of the following criteria.
  Alignment: Any lawful.
  Base Attack Bonus: +5
  Feat: Combat Reflexes
  Skills: Intimidate 5 ranks, Ride 5 ranks
  Special: must be able to cast divine spells, must worship 
  Gerana
  Race: Must be aasimar, avoodim, or human
  The Impervious
  Level
  BAB
  Fort 
  Save
  Ref 
  Save
  Will 
  Save
  Special
  1st
  +1
  +0
  +0
  +1
  Impervious, smite the enemy
  2nd
  +2
  +1
  +1
  +1
  Authority, +1 divine spellcasting class
  3rd
  +3
  +1
  +1
  +2
  Impervious +5, smite elemental
  4th
  +4
  +1
  +1
  +2
  Aura of menace 1, +1 divine spellcasting class
  5th
  +5
  +2
  +2
  +3
  Scriptorian guard
  6th
  +6
  +2
  +2
  +3
  Aura of menace 2, +1 divine spellcasting class
  7th
  +7
  +2
  +2
  +4
  Impervious +5, Aura of menace 2
  8th
  +8
  +3
  +3
  +4
  +1 divine spellcasting class
  9th
  +9
  +3
  +3
  +5
  Impervious +5, retaliate
  10th
  +10
  +3
  +3
  +5
  General of the Deists,+1 divine spellcasting class
  Class Skills
  The impervious’s class skills (and the key ability for each 
  skill) are Handle Animal (Cha), Intimidate (Cha), Ride 
  (Dex), Sense Motive (Wis), Survival (Wis).
  Skill Ranks at Each Level: 2 + Intelligence modifier
  Class Features
  All of the following are class features of the impervious 
  prestige class.
  Weapon and Armor Proficiencies: Impervious knights 
  are proficient with all simple and martial weapons, with 
  shields (except tower shields) and with light, medium, 
  and heavy armor.
  Impervious (Su): At 1st level, an Impervious Knight of 
  the Code gains resistance 5 to acid, cold, electricity and 
  fire. Every two levels of Impervious he adds 5 to one 
  of those resistances. These resistances do not stack with 
  other sources.
  Smite the Enemy (Su): Impervious levels stack with 
  paladin levels with regards to all rules pertaining to the 
  smite evil class ability; thus non-paladins get smite evil at 
  this level.
  Authority (Ex): At 2nd level, an Impervious Knight of 
  the Code can use Intimidate to demoralize a creature as 
  a move action.
  Smite Elemental (Su): At 3rd level, an Impervious 
  Knight of the Code can use their smite evil power on be-
  
  — 181 — 
  ings with any of the air, earth, fire or water subtypes.
  Aura of Menace (Su): At 4th level, an Impervious gains 
  an aura of menace identical to that of an archon, except 
  that it is only -1 to effects at 4th level, and reaches -2 at 
  6th level.
  Scriptorian Guard (Ex): At 5th level, the Impervious 
  Knight of the Code becomes eligible to be a personal 
  bodyguard to the High Codion of Gerana in Sanctus 
  Templum.  They gain the Bodyguard feat, and an ad-
  dition of either a +1 value, or a +1 ability equivalent to 
  their personal suit of armor.
  Retaliate (Ex): At 9th level, once per round when a 
  creature threatened by an Impervious attacks and hits an 
  ally adjacent to the Impervious, he may make an attack 
  of opportunity against that creature.
  General of the Deists (Ex): At 10th level, an Impervi-
  ous Knight of the Code gains Leadership as a bonus feat 
  (if they do already have it) adds their Strength bonus to 
  their Leadership score, and adds +1 to the levels of all 
  followers indicated.  
  Song of the Righteous Warrior
  (The Paladin’s Hymn)
  Eternal Mother, strong and wise, 
   
  Whose voice rings through the endless skies, 
  Who bidd’st the mighty oceans be 
   
   
  as still and calm as inland sea-
  Oh, hear us when we sing to thee, 
   
  when battling evil, tirelessly.
  Oh Law!  The order of the world, 
   
  a calm when dev’lish pipers skirl,
  Your hand stays mountains, shaking down, 
  the earth is still when you but frown-
  Oh, help us when we call to thee, 
   
  when saving poor ones, selflessly. 
   
   
  Oh Goodness! Mercy, hands of weal, 
   
  Your touch, through mine, makes others feel 
  no pain when fire burns from below, 
   
  and quenches flame with goodness’ snow-
  Oh, save us when we’ll join with thee- 
  Our last reward, eternally. 
  
  — 182 — 
  Puritan Redemptors of the Way of the Gun 
  (Redemptor)
  The long-ago days of the NewGod Wars were a trying 
  time for all peoples of Porphyra, and the worldwide crisis 
  gave rise to many lawless frontiers, defiant cults of bul-
  lies, and profiteers in vile practices.  One of many groups 
  that rose up to defy this backward, selfish behavior were 
  the Puritan Redemptors of the Way of the Gun, (typi-
  cally called redemptors) originally from the heroic land 
  of Iffud. They grimly decided to fight the fires of barba-
  rism with a different fire- gunfire- and supplement this 
  deadly art with magic, even if it was magic of a sketchy 
  sort.  Combining primitive magic, modern gunplay, and 
  a grim, noble spirit,  black-hatted redemptors often show 
  their unsmiling faces and gruesomely carved juju sticks 
  in situations that demand violence be met with econom-
  ical, versatile violence.
  Hit Die: d8
  Requirements
  To qualify to become a redemptor, a character must fill 
  the following criteria.
  Alignment: any non-evil
  Skills: must have 5 ranks of Spellcraft and either Knowl-
  edge (arcana) or Knowledge (religion)
  Spells: Must be able to cast 1st level spells
  Special: Must have the Grit class feature or Amateur 
  Gunslinger feat.
  Class Skills
  The redemptor’s class skills (and the key ability for that 
  skill) are Acrobatics (Dex), Craft (Int), Escape Artist 
  (Dex), Handle Animal (Cha), Intimidate (Cha), Knowl-
  edge (arcana), Knowledge (local), Knowledge (religion), 
  Perception (Wis), Ride (Dex), Spellcraft (Int), Survival 
  (Wis), Use Magic Device (Cha)
  Skill Ranks at Each Level: 2 + Int modifier
  Class Features
  All of the following are features of the redemptor pres-
  tige class.
  Weapon and Armor Proficiencies: Redemptors are 
  proficient with all simple and martial weapons, and with 
  light armor.  They are not proficient with shields.  They 
  are also proficient with all normal firearms, such as pis-
  tols and rifles.
  Bonus Feat (Ex): At 3rd, 6th and 9th levels, redemptors 
  gain bonus feats from the combat, grit, or metamagic 
  feat lists, provided they qualify for them in all ways.  
  Redemptor levels count as qualifying levels for any class 
  level requirements.
  Combined Combat (Ex): If a redemptor has multiple 
  attacks per round, he may use one or more of them for a 
  firearm attack, and one or more for a spell attack, as long 
  as the spell has casting time of less than a full round.
  Deeds (Ex):  At 4th level, all redemptor levels count as 
  gunslinger levels -3 when calculating a redemptor’s abil-
  Puritan Redemptors of the Way of the Gun
  Level
  BAB
  Fort 
  Save
  Ref 
  Save
  Will 
  Save
  Special
  Spells per day
  1st
  +0
  +0
  +0
  +1
  Combined combat, juju staff
  —
  2nd
  +1
  +1
  +1
  +1
  Fearless
  +1 level of existing spellcasting class
  3rd
  +2
  +1
  +1
  +2
  Bonus feat
  +1 level of existing spellcasting class
  4th
  +3
  +1
  +1
  +2
  Deeds
  +1 level of existing spellcasting class
  5th
  +3
  +2
  +2
  +3
  Gun training
  —
  6th
  +4
  +2
  +2
  +3
  Bonus Feat
  +1 level of existing spellcasting class
  7th
  +5
  +2
  +2
  +4
  Smite shot
  +1 level of existing spellcasting class
  8th
  +6
  +3
  +3
  +4
  Seek the unworthy
  +1 level of existing spellcasting class
  9th
  +6
  +3
  +3
  +5
  Bonus Feat
  —
  10th
  +7
  +3
  +3
  +5
  Smite shot 2/day, spell resistance
  +1 level of existing spellcasting class
  
  — 183 — 
  ity to use gunslinger grit deeds.
  Fearless (Su): A redemptor gains +2 to all saving throws 
  vs. fear effects.  This stacks with Bravery and other abili-
  ties.
  Gun Training (Ex): At 5th level, redemptors add their 
  Dexterity, Wisdom, or Intelligence modifier, whichever 
  is the highest at the moment, to their damage rolls with 
  a firearm.
  Juju Staff (Su): All redemptors carry a strange, wooden 
  staff that they must receive from a supposedly immortal 
  witch-doctor in the swamps of  Avandrool.  The staff 
  allows them to cast cantrips and/or orisons as a move 
  action, and to select cantrips and orisons from and all 
  class lists, such as inquisitor for divine spells or bard for 
  arcane lists.  The staff otherwise works as a masterwork 
  quarterstaff that qualifies as adamantine for the purposes 
  of overcoming damage reduction.
  Seek the Unworthy (Sp): At 8th level, a redemptor adds 
  all detect spells to his list of possible cantrips/orisons that 
  can be cast with his juju staff, being able to cast any of 
  them at will.
  Smite Shot (Su): At 7th level a redemptor can declare 
  a target to smite with firearm or juju staff, in a manner 
  identical to a paladins.  He can do this once per day at 
  7th level, and an additional time per day at 10th level.
  Spell Resistance (Su): At 10th level, a redemptor gains 
  spell resistance equal to 20 + his Wisdom modifier.
  Porphyra Trivia
  Most scholars believe that firearms were cre-
  ated by the cyclopes that dwell at the Fortress 
  of the Eye in the Hinterlands of Kesh. These 
  “heroic” redemptors stole the technology from 
  the one-eyed giant-kin during the first days of 
  the NewGod Wars. 
  
  — 184 — 
  Tearsman (Daamati)
  “Tears of sand for the wounded land/ Blood I spill 
  ‘gainst the demon’s will/ for my Porphyra!”  These” are 
  the opening words invoked in clandestine meetings of 
  this very clandestine group, so secret that it does not 
  meet or organize in its own homelands, the deserts 
  of Siwath and Simoon.  The Daamati are pledged to 
  oppose the rampant run of Deist rule, through means 
  overt and subtle.  Sabotage and destruction are one way, 
  conversion and recruitment another. They are by nature 
  a fatalistic lot, but they also have the freedom of true 
  fearlessness of death.  Naturally, the organization is heav-
  ily proscribed by all Landed religions, and a Tearsman 
  would only associate with deist clerics in a covert fash-
  ion, to lead them to their doom.
  Hit Dice: d8
  Requirements
  To qualify to become a Tearsman, a character must fulfill 
  the following criteria.
  Feats: Sand Sadiki, Stealthy
  Skills: Bluff 5 ranks, Stealth 5 ranks, Craft (alchemy) 5 
  ranks
  Special: Must not be able to cast divine spells; must be a 
  member of the Sandmen; must speak Old Porphyran
  Race: Cannot be elf, half-elf, half-orc, or orc
  Class Skills
  The tearsman’s class skills (and the key ability for each 
  skill) are Acrobatics (Dex), Bluff (Cha), Climb (Str), 
  Craft (Int), Disable Device (Dex), Disguise (Cha), Es-
  cape Artist (Dex), Intimidate (Cha), Knowledge (local), 
  Knowledge (planes), Knowledge (religion), Linguistics, 
  Perception, Sense Motive (Wis), Sleight of Hand (Dex), 
  and Stealth (Dex).
  Skill Ranks at Each Level: 4 + Int modifier
  Class Features
  All of the following are features of the daamati prestige 
  class.
  Weapon and Armor Proficiencies: No additional 
  weapon or armor proficiencies are provided for daamati.  
  Fire and Blade (Ex): Levels of daamati stack with rogue 
  levels with regards to sneak attack damage, and with 
  alchemist levels with regards to bomb damage.
  Tattoos of the Four (Sp): At 1st level, a Tearsman can 
  use elemental magic almost at will; Four times a day, a 
  Tearsman can cast any combination of acid splash, ray of 
  frost, mage hand, and spark as a move action, using his 
  character level as his caster level.
  Delayed Explosions (Su): At 2nd level, daamati gain 
  the delayed bombs alchemical discovery. A daamati with-
  out the bombs class feature gains it as though a 1st level 
  alchemist.
  Eternal Sandman (Ex): At 2nd level, and every three 
  daamati levels thereafter, a daamati adds 1 to their 
  DR/— granted by the Sand Sadiki feat, to a maximum 
  Table X.X - Tearsman Shayk of the Sandmen (Daamati)
  Level
  BAB
  Fort 
  Save
  Ref 
  Save
  Will 
  Save
  Special
  1st
  +0
  +0
  +1
  +0
  Fire and blade, tattoos of the four
  2nd
  +1
  +1
  +1
  +1
  Delayed explosions, eternal sandman +1
  3rd
  +2      
  +1        +2
  +1
  Elemental defiance
  4th
  +3
  +1
  +2
  +1
  Infidel infiltrator
  5th
  +3
  +2
  +3
  +2
  Eternal sandman +2, sandman strike
  6th
  +4
  +2
  +3
  +2
  Defy the gods
  7th
  +5
  +2
  +4
  +2
  Cell of the sandmen
  8th
  +6
  +3
  +4
  +3
  Eternal sandman +3
  9th
  +6
  +3
  +5
  +3
  Sandman cell zeidh
  10th
  +7
  +3
  +5
  +3
  Glorious death, sandman strike x2
  
  — 185 — 
  of DR 4/— at 8th level.
  Elemental Defiance (Su): At 3rd level, a daamati can 
  apply his damage reduction to positive and negative en-
  ergy damage; this stacks with the Sand Sympathizer trait.
  Infidel Infiltrator (Ex): At 4th level, a Tearsman gains 
  the Deceitful feat as a bonus feat. They gain a +2 compe-
  tence bonus to Disguise as well.
  Sandman Strike (Sp): At 5th level, the magical tattoos 
  that enable daamati cantrip use treat all cantrips cast 
  from the tattoos to do maximum damage, with a critical 
  range of 18-20, and doing triple damage on a critical hit.  
     At 10th level, he can use all tattoo cantrips 8 times a 
  day.
  Defy the Gods (Su): At 6th level, a daamati applies 
  his damage reduction to damage from divine spells cast 
  from divine casters and outsiders.
  Cell of the Sandmen (Ex): At 7th level, a daamati 
  begins his own cell to fight the heretics.  He gains the 
  Leadership feat as a bonus feat, and another cohort of 1 
  level less than his appropriate cohort if he already has the 
  Leadership feat.  
  Sandman Cell Zeidh (Ex): At 9th level, a Tearsman 
  is the prime link in a Sandman cell.  He gains a bonus 
  Teamwork feat, and can grant that feat to the members 
  of his cell (no more than 4 members of the Sandmen) up 
  to a number or rounds a day equal to his Daamati level, 
  in consecutive rounds.
  Glorious Death (Su): At 10th level, when a Daamati 
  reaches -1 hit points, or 0 ability points in any ability, his 
  body explodes in a torrent of glasslike sand-shards, doing 
  10d6 slashing damage to anyone within 30 ft., DC 20 
  Reflex save for half damage.  
  Drawback (Optional)
  Scorn for Deists: Your contempt for the heaven-mum-
  blers cannot be concealed, no matter how hard you try.  
  You suffer -1 to Charisma-based checks involving beings 
  that have a patron deity.
  Social Trait
  Sand Sympathizer:  You have been convinced by 
  heritage or propaganda that the Elementalist cause is 
  righteous, and should rise again!  You take 1 less point 
  of healing or damage from positive energy and negative 
  energy.
  Sand Sadiki
  You are a full-fledged Daamati of the Sandmen, pledged to 
  the cause.
  Prerequisites: Sand Sympathizer social trait
  Benefit: Through an elemental, alchemical ritual, your 
  body gains some of the consistencies of the sand itself, 
  giving you DR 1/—.  This procedure also ensures you 
  will not be taken alive, as your body and your non-
  magical goods dissolve into sand when you reach -1 hit 
  points.
  
  — 186 — 
  Regional Traits
  Traits were introduced in the Pathfinder Roleplaying 
  Game - Advanced Player’s Guide. In most campaigns, 
  players are allowed to select two different traits to help 
  flesh out their characters. Below is a selection of regional 
  traits for characters to select if they were raised in a par-
  ticular region.
  A Merchant’s Eye (Blix): Most Blixians can tell the 
  value of an item with the merest glance, and are rarely 
  out-bargained. You gain a +2 trait bonus to all Appraise 
  checks.
  A Mind for Small Print (Blix): A mercantile  mind can 
  be useful in almost any situation of negotiation. You 
  gain a +1 trait bonus on Sense Motive and Bluff checks 
  when in negotiations.
  A Miner Born (Creeper’s Rift): Your family were min-
  ers for generations. Gain a +2 trait bonus to  Perception 
  checks when looking for gems or precious metals.
  Animal Ken (Lotus Blossom Steppes): You have lived 
  around and with a variety of animals since birth and 
  your travels have allowed you to develop an intuitive 
  touch. You gain a +1 trait bonus on Handle Animal 
  checks and on Knowledge (nature) checks dealing with 
  animals.
  Arboreal Acrobat (Morah’Silvanath): You grew up 
  treading the bark of the World Tree, and are accustomed 
  to its strange gravity. You gain a +2 trait bonus to Ac-
  robatics checks for keeping your balance, jumping, and 
  falling.
  Aspirant to Glory (Calopia): The stories of retired 
  heroes has lit you blood on fire for adventure. Once per 
  day, you can gain an additional +1 to a morale bonus 
  you receive.
  Backstabber (Freeport): You have learned to keep your 
  knife out, but hidden when at parley in Freeport- it’s 
  only prudent. You gain a +1 trait bonus to sneak attack 
  damage, or damage done to a flat-footed target.
  Baha’ri Glassmith (Simoon): The ways of the incredible 
  Glass Sea of Ashyim are born to you, (or the Baha’ri have 
  adopted you) and you must protect them well. You are 
  eligible for the feat Shape Simooni Glass, and are always 
  considered to possess Simooni glass as a material compo-
  nent for spells that require it.
  Blood of Iskandar (Iskandar): You have been raised on 
  Skandari legend, and believe that perhaps the blood of 
  the Lion flows in you. You gain a +2 trait bonus to all 
  saves vs. fear.
  Blood of the Earth (Bulwark of the Halfling Nations): 
  The touch of the ancient magic of the earth grants you 
  sturdiness and resistance. You gain a +1 trait bonus to 
  CMD against bull rush or trip attempts, and a +1 trait 
  bonus to saves against spells with the earth descriptor.
  Blood of the Four (Calopia): You claim, through circu-
  itous bloodlines, to be a distant descendant of one of the 
  Four, The Golden Quest. If you choose fighter, rogue, 
  wizard or cleric as your favored class, you gain an addi-
  tional skill point or favored class bonus at first level.
  Born on the Road (Xoa): You were born practically 
  walking on The Great Road of Mount Xoa, and enjoy 
  living on a journey. You gain a +1 trait bonus to Percep-
  tion, increasing to +2 when waking up to encounters 
  outdoors.
  Cavern Climber (Iluriel): In bustling community un-
  derground, moving up and down is as common as mov-
  ing back and forth. You gain +1 to Acrobatics and Climb 
  when below ground.
  Center of Excellence (Pinnacle Lands): You have had 
  some of the best education the world can offer. Gain a 
  +2 trait bonus to one knowledge skill of your choice.
  Chaos Purist (Erkusaa): To embrace Chaos is to seize 
  the weave of reality, wherever it may take you. Roll a die, 
  choose odd or even. If your choice is rolled, you gain 
  a +1 trait bonus to one roll today. If your choice is not 
  rolled, the GM may subtract 1 from one roll today.
  Child of Dravi Ankor (Pyynian Coast): You grew up 
  in Dravi Ankor, and you look the part. You gain a +1 
  trait bonus to Intimidate, and, once per day, you can 
  Intimidate to demoralize foes as a move action.
  
  — 187 — 
  Citizen of Sanctuary (Fenian Triarchy): Humans are so 
  curious, they want to see the real face of the Green. You 
  can show it to them. Spells you cast from the Illusion 
  school are +1 DC versus creatures of the human subtype.
  Clovenlander (Nor-Du-Mag): The harsh environs of 
  Nor-Du-Mag rival the southern desert wastelands; once 
  per day you may re-roll a Survival check, and you may 
  always re-roll a ‘1’ on a Survival check.
  Cold Lesson (Eternal Ice): Life on the Ice is the harsh-
  est imaginable, and allows only the very tough to live.  
  You gain DR 1/— vs. nonlethal damage.
  Crypsis (Jotun Forest): You are skilled in the art of 
  blending into one’s background, using shape, shine and 
  shadow for concealment. You gain a +2 trait bonus to 
  Stealth checks.
  Deadborn (Empire of the Dead): Your exposure to 
  the magical fallout of centuries of arcane warfare 
  within the Nightlands grants you a +1 trait bonus 
  to all saving thows versus spells.
  Dedicated Philosopher (Jengu-Na): 
  You are deeply devoted to a philosophic 
  order and such devotion focuses your mind 
  more than any upstart religion. You may se-
  lect any Knowledge skill as a class skill 
  for you, or gain a +1 trait bonus to 
  any one Knowledge Skill.
  Destined for Greatness 
  (Iffud): Iffud produces 
  heroes of exceptional 
  caliber on a regular basis. 
  Once per day you can reroll 
  a single attack roll or skill check 
  that is not a 1. You must choose 
  to use the reroll before you 
  know whether the original 
  roll succeeded, and accept it 
  even if it is lower than the 
  first.
  Dreamland Visitor (Hesteria): You were raised near the 
  Wall of Sleep, and it holds no terror or mystery for you. 
  You gain a +2 bonus to Knowledge (planes) checks, and 
  that skill is a class skill for you; you also receive a -1 trait 
  penalty to saves vs. sleep effects, but gains the use of a 
  guidance spell upon awakening.
  Dryblood (Ghadab): Considered a boon from birth, a 
  blessing of the dunes—you are capable of withstanding 
  the worst the desert can throw at you. You only need half 
  as much food and water as normally needed, and gain a 
  +1 trait bonus to saves vs. exhaustion.
  Elan Taught (Kesh): You were one of the fortunate few 
  to have been taught my a mysterious elan tutor, who 
  prized clarity of thought above all. Choose two: gain a 
  +1 trait bonus to saves against mind-affecting attacks; +2 
  trait bonus to Sense Motive vs. Bluff attempts; or a +1 
  trait bonus to one Knowledge skill.
  Fearsome Foe (Giant’s Retreat): 
  In a land of constant battle, it is 
  natural for he strong and fearsome to 
  prosper. Gain a +2 trait bonus to 
  Intimidate checks.
  Friend of the Ice (Frozen 
  North): Raised in the harsh cold 
  and barren terrain of the Frozen 
  North, you have learned how best 
  to thrive in such conditions. You 
  gain a +1trait bonus to saves vs. cold-
  based effects, and gain a +2 trait 
  bonus to Survival in condi-
  tions of snow and/or ice.
  Gearhead (Clock-
  work Lands): You 
  grew up tinkering with ma-
  chines both magical and mun-
  dane. You gain a +1 trait bonus to Disable 
  Device and Use Magical Device. One 
  of these skills is a class skill for you.
  
  — 188 — 
  Giantsbane (Jotun Forest): In a forest ruled by large 
  creatures, knowing how to deal with a massive opponent 
  is a matter of survival. When fighting creatures of at least 
  1 size category larger than themselves and a minimum of 
  Large size, the character gains a +2 trait bonus to CMB 
  and CMD.
  Goatborn (Last Kingdom): The term ’goatborn’ is a 
  compliment in the Last Kingdom, given to those who 
  have taken to the challenges of mountain life. You may 
  take 10 on Climb checks, even if a penalty follows fail-
  ure.
  Greensense (Great Green): The dangers of the Green 
  require keen vigilance, so as to not be caught unawares. 
  You gain a +2 trait bonus to Initiative when in the forest 
  or jungle.
  Grim-Heart (Barony of Tuthon): Growing up among 
  the surreal sights of Tuthon have dulled your sense of 
  shock, and marked your features. You gain a +1 trait 
  bonus to saves vs. fear, and Intimidate skill checks.
  Green Thumb (Gardens of Meynon): Your life spent 
  near among the fields and groves of the Garden grant 
  you a +1 trait bonus to any skill check relating to plants.
  Greenblood (Californ): While your blood might not 
  necessarily be green, you are acutely tied to plant life 
  and used to dealing with the jungle. You gain a +1 trait 
  bonus to Acrobatics and Climb checks when moving on 
  trees or vines. 
  Gulag Survivor (Northlands): Not many are tough 
  enough to walk out of the gulag, but it makes those few 
  even tougher. You gain a +1 trait bonus to Fortitude 
  saves, and cold resistance 1.
  Gutterborn (Empire of the Dead): Your life in the 
  harsh underbelly of the myriad cities of the Empire 
  grants you a +2 trait bonus to Stealth checks.
  Harried (Bullwark of the Halfing Nations): Growing 
  up with the constant threat of attack, you developed the 
  habit of noticing threats and hiding from them quickly. 
  Gain a +1 trait bonus to Perception and Stealth, and a -1 
  penalty to initiative.
  Herald of Iffud (Iffud): Those with talent in words 
  or song can earn a pretty penny praising the rich and 
  famous. You gain a +2 trait bonus to one Perform skill, 
  and add one coin to the result when using that skill to 
  earn money.
  Hierarchy Manipulator (Advent Imperiax): You don’t 
  do this well among the Femanx without knowing a bit 
  about how best to speak to this sort, or this type – or 
  know when to keep silent.  Choose any two of the fol-
  lowing: Bluff, Diplomacy, Intimidate, Sense Motive.  
  Gain a +1 trait bonus in that skill.
  High Noon Duelist (Kesh): You were taught to face 
  your enemy in the open street, draw, and put him in the 
  dirt. Once per day, if you win initiative in a combat, you 
  gain a +2 trait bonus to damage if you hit with your next 
  firearm attack.
  Horseblood (Parl Pordesh): You were practically born 
  in the saddle. You possess the ranger’s class feature of 
  wild empathy, but may use it only with horses and 
  equine creatures. If you have Wild Empathy from some 
  other source, gain a +2 trait bonus to rolls used to influ-
  ence horses and equine beings.
  Hunted (Erkusaa): When such as the erkunae are look-
  ing for you, one learns to hide well. Once per day, you 
  can roll twice for a Stealth check when outdoors, taking 
  the better roll.
  Inner Peace (Last Kingdom): Contemplation of the 
  Five Truths has given you inner harmony and enlight-
  enment, leaving you centered and balanced. You may 
  ignore one point of Wisdom or Intelligence damage per 
  day.
  Iron-Handed (Parl Pordesh): Your ambition cannot 
  easily be denied or broken. Choose one: gain a +2 trait 
  bonus to Intimidate or Diplomacy skills used from a 
  position of power, or add 2 to the DC of enchantment 
  spells cast on a target with a racial history of servitude.
  Isolationist (Iluriel): You are wary of outsiders to your 
  closed community. You gain +1 on Sense Motive checks, 
  and on Perception checks to notice details about indi-
  viduals.
  
  — 189 — 
  Jungle Islander (Rainbow Isles): The lost islands of the 
  archipelago are covered in jungle and ruins, and most 
  have their small colonies of intrepid races. You gain a +2 
  trait bonus on Survival checks in jungle terrain, +1 in 
  forest terrain.
  Karkoon Marine (Mâl): The original Karkoon Marines 
  have long since been scattered to the corners of the 
  world, but their teachings live on. You gain a +2 trait 
  bonus to Profession (sailor) checks and can always take 
  10 on Acrobatics checks to keep your footing on a roll-
  ing deck.
  Keep Your Own (Dunmark): Many secrets lie under 
  the surface of life in Dunmark, for very good reasons. 
  You’ve grown quite proficient at keeping secrets from 
  others. You gain a +2 trait bonus to Bluff checks.
  Land’s Child (Nor-Du-Mag): You have been touched 
  by the sundered soul of the dead lands from birth. You 
  gain a +1 trait bonus to saves versus all spells and spell-
  like effects.
  Legacy of Plague (Avandrool): Your family has avoided 
  the various epidemics in Avandrool for centuries. You 
  gain a +2 trait bonus on saves vs. disease or infection.
  Lizardfriend (Seven Principalities): One way or 
  another you have managed to befriend the lizardfolk of 
  the Principalities, and they have taught you their ways. 
  You gain Draconic as a bonus language, and a +11 trait 
  bonus on Diplomacy and Sense Motive when dealing 
  with Lizardfolk.
  Long Pig Hunter (Pyynian Coast): You are a child of 
  the southern tribes and know how to track the most 
  dangerous game. Gain a +1 trait bonus to Survival; this 
  trait bonus becomes +2 when tracking humanoids.
  Lore of the Mountain (Purple Mountain): You have 
  listened to countless tales from adventurers who have 
  plumbed the depths of Purple Mountain. Once per day, 
  you can gain a +3 trait bonus to a skill check for Knowl-
  edge (dungeoneering), or Knowledge (history).
  Lover of Birds (Birdman Mountains): Birds of all types 
  and kinds nest in the crags of the Birdman Mountains, 
  and you have learned their calls and habits. You may use 
  Diplomacy on birds and avian creatures as though they 
  were humanoids; if you have a similar ability already, 
  you gain a +1 trait bonus to that ability.
  Made to Cleanse (Geranland): Many elements of the 
  militia and army are trained to slay the heretical non-
  humans, and you are trained in their methods. You gain 
  a +2 trait bonus to critical damage when fighting non-
  humans.
  Maelstrom’s Child (Haunted Sea): You were born 
  aboard ship in the Haunted Sea, and have a touch of the 
  mystical about you. You gain a +1 trait bonus to saves 
  versus electricity, and add +1 to the DC of spells you cast 
  with the water descriptor.
  Manifest Destiny (Pinnacle Lands): The inhabitants of 
  the Pinnacle Lands are the chosen of Porphyra, and can-
  not be stopped! Once a day, gain a +1 bonus on any one 
  saving throw or ability check.
  Merchant of the Canton (Jengu-Na): You are a mem-
  ber of a family licensed to trade within the treaty city, 
  with the Jengu-Na saurian- under strict supervision, of 
  course. You gain Draconic, and the Saurian dialect, as a 
  bonus language.
  Monotheistic Piety (Pium): Gerana the True Arbitress 
  defend me, highest deity of all, aid me now with your 
  power, I pray! You receive a +1 trait bonus to one of your 
  saving throws, and you may choose which each morning. 
  Your other trait must be a Faith or Religion trait.
  Multilingual (Azag-Ithiel): The multiracial and proudly 
  multicultural nation of Azag-Ithiel requires a quick mind 
  for languages. You gain a +1 trait bonus to Linguistics, 
  and that skill becomes a class skill for you.
  Nature’s Bounty (Morah’Silvanath): You have spent 
  enough time with the Silvanath elves of the World Tree 
  or the   Colothorians of the Shadelands to learn some of 
  their techniques for refining the essences from natural 
  things. You gain a +1 trait bonus to Craft (alchemy) and 
  Knowledge (nature) checks.
  
  — 190 — 
  Old Blood (New Wathis): Your lineage is of the old 
  kingdom, somehow intermixed with the children of the 
  elements. You gain a +1 trait bonus to saves against spells 
  that have an elemental descriptor.
  Oligarch Scion (Creeper’s Rift): You are the child of an 
  oligarch or leader of a major merchant house. Gain a +1 
  trait bonus to Knowledge (Nobility) and a +1 trait bonus 
  to Diplomacy checks versus those of your social class.
  Natural Nomad (Californ): You thrive while traveling 
  and cannot truly prosper if you remain in one place too 
  long. As long as you never rest within one mile of any 
  place you have slept in the last week, you gain an extra 
  1d4 hit points from resting, and need an hour less sleep 
  that usual.
  New Way Pacifist (Clandoms of the Fourlands): You 
  are a member of the dominant New Way philosophy, 
  which holds elementalism and deism in equal standing, a 
  fine line to walk. Once a day, if you take last initiative in 
  a battle, the first spell you cast adds +1 to the save DC, 
  or you add +1 to the first Intimidate check to demoral-
  ize.
  Night Axe Guardian (Frozen North): You have trained 
  and hardened in Night Axe Deep to fight the horrors 
  that threaten your home and the regions beyond. You 
  gain a +1 trait bonus to damage when fighting aberra-
  tions and magical beasts.
  Pirate’s Jib (Freeport): There is something about you 
  that speaks to the buccaneer in all sailors, a sympathy 
  for the life on the treacherous waves. You gain a +1 trait 
  bonus to all Charisma-based checks with anyone who 
  has ranks in Profession (sailor).
  Pit Born (Continuance): You survived the pits of the 
  Continuance, where violence was your sustenance. You 
  gain +1 to Intimidate, and increase the duration rounds 
  of demoralization for every 4 by which you beat the DC, 
  instead of 5.
  Privation Proof (Eternal Ice): Food is hard to come 
  by on the Ice, and your body uses it economically.  You 
  need half as much food as normal, and you are immune 
  to the spell feast of ashes.
  Product of the Sagia (Gardens of Meynon): You spent 
  your youth training in the Sagia, granting you a +1 bo-
  nus on Diplomacy, Bluff, and Sense Motive checks, one 
  of which will always be a class skill for you.
  Psycho-Physics (Clockwork Lands): Once you under-
  stand the Unified Theory of the Universe, everything is 
  just a matter of the applied physics. Once per day, you 
  may use Knowledge (engineering) in place of another 
  skill in a skill check.
  Rage Touched (Ghadab): Mâl’s wrath cursed your 
  entire bloodline, subjecting you and all your kin to bouts 
  of terrible rage. Once per day you can Rage as the bar-
  barian class feature, or add 1 round to your daily rounds 
  of Rage.
  Red Host Training (Northlands): Those that serve 
  with the Red Host are hardy and learn tricks for fighting 
  the giants that raid the Northlands. You gain a +1 trait 
  bonus to Survival, and gain a +1 trait bonus to confirm 
  critical hits against giants.
  Reedlander (Fenian Triarchy): Hardlanders assume 
  what is under their feet is theirs. We borrow our foot-
  ing from Mother Chiuta. Possessors of this trait gain a 
  +1 bonus to Reflex saves and initiative when on boats or 
  floating platforms.
  Sandborn (New Wathis): You know the ways of the des-
  ert, born and bred on the fringes of the stubbornly held 
  greener lands. You gain a +1 trait bonus to Survival, and 
  that skill is a class skill for you.
  Sandspeaker (Siwath): You have learned the complicat-
  ed rituals required to interact with the zendiqi nomads. 
  You gain a +1 trait bonus to Knowledge (nobility), +4 
  with zendiqi.
  Sea Devil Survivor (Rainbow Isles): You have battled 
  your whole life against the sahaugin, and know a thing 
  or two about seaborne warfare. You gain a +1 trait bonus 
  to AC when in or under water, and wearing light armor.
  
  — 191 — 
  Shadow of the Blood Tower (Giant’s Retreat): Life is 
  harsh in the Retreat, you must convince others that try-
  ing to kill you would not be in their best interest. You 
  may rage, as a barbarian, one round per day, or add one 
  to your daily number of rage rounds.
  Skinchanger Hunter (Rotwald): The wolf is among 
  us in human form... there are ways of finding out 
  who it is! You gain a +1 bonus to hit opponents of the 
  shapechanger type.
  Silkman (Hesteria): You have worked with the highly 
  dangerous tenebrous worms of Silkwood, and lived to 
  collect your pay. Choose one: +1 trait bonus to any saves 
  vs. paralysis, or +1 trait bonus to any saves regarding 
  confusion effects.
  Silvathiel Native (Greet Green): The Green is all, the 
  forest provides and holds no secrets for you. You gain a 
  +2 trait bonus to Survival in Forest terrain.
  Skyship Rider (Clandoms of the Fourlands): 
  You have studied, and perhaps ridden on the 
  skyships of the I’nsian, though many may 
  not believe you. You gain a +1 trait bo-
  nus to Fly skill checks, and Knowledge 
  (engineering) checks.
  Slimefriend (Avandrool): Not too proud 
  to associate with mirkdwellers, you have 
  adopted some of their ways. You gain a +1 
  trait bonus to Stealth or Swim, and one of 
  those skills becomes a class skill for you.
  Social Climber (Vinterre): Just 
  because you don’t have money or 
  status doesn’t mean that you can’t 
  hobnob with high society. You 
  gain a +1 trait bonus to Disguise and 
  Knowledge (nobility).
  Sojourn Frontiersman (Xoa): Many 
  fortune-seekers come through the 
  largest town of Mount Xoa, and it 
  pays to keep your eyes and ears 
  open. You gain a +1 trait bonus to 
  Appraise, and to Knowledge (local) 
  when in a town of more than 500 people.
  Stone Slinger (Birdman Mountains): The Birdman 
  Mountains have nothing if not an abundance of crum-
  bling stone. You are counted as always having ammuni-
  tion when using a sling (stones).
  Strong Swimmer (Seven Principalities): The islands of 
  the Principalities are not far apart and the water is warm, 
  so it is not unknown for brave souls to swim from one to 
  another. Swim is a class skill for you, and you can always 
  take 10 on Swim checks.
  Student of the Faiths (Celestial Parishes): You grew up 
  in a religiously diverse community. Gain a +1 trait bonus 
  to Knowledge (religion), and Knowledge (religion) is 
  always a class skill for you.
  Students of the Open Palm (Celestial Parishes): You 
  have had martial training in the style of Master Jon 
  Feihung. Gain a +1 trait bonus to Reflex saves when 
  unarmed.
  Superstitious Buktuni (Siwath): Heretics from 
  the north speak deceptive words- don’t trust 
  them! Once per day you may roll two dice 
  when making a Will save, and take the best 
  roll.
  Survivor of Mâl (Mâl): One way or 
  another, you have faced the devouring 
  engines of the mâlites and walked away - but 
  the memories of what you have seen will haunt 
  you forever. You gain a +2 trait bonus on Will 
  saves against effects to read your mind or alter 
  your memories and must roll a save against 
  the effect even if it is beneficial for you.
  Sword of Iskandar (Iskandar): You strive 
  to emulate Iskandar, legendary king of old. 
  You gain a +1 trait bonus to Intimidate 
  and Ride while in combat. One of these is 
  also a class skill for you.
  
  — 192 — 
  Take What You Can (Continuance): Life within the 
  Continuance is harsh, you have learned to make each 
  strike count. You receive a +2 trait bonus to damage 
  dealt in the surprise round.
  Technosophist (Advent Imperiax): Deism and elemen-
  talism are merely structures for parlor tricks; technology 
  is the true strength.  Gain a +1 trait bonus to saves vs. 
  spells, and once a day you may reroll a Knowledge (engi-
  neering) check.
  The Blessing (Purple Mountain): Due to the massive 
  amounts of porphyrite dust in the environment, some 
  children are born with violet-tinted eyes, called The 
  Blessing. They gain darkvision 30 ft. and can detect raw 
  porphyrite within 30 ft. once per day.
  The Power of Denial (Dunmark): There are things in 
  this world that mortal minds are not meant to know. As 
  such, once per day, you may negate any fear effect that 
  you fall under, but doing so causes you to ignore the 
  source of the effect completely.
  Tiny, Mighty (Pygmy Nations): There are titans among 
  the smaller races, as well, and those who stand firmer 
  than most. If you are small, gain a +1 trait bonus to 
  either CMB or CMD.
  Tongue of Madness (Barony of Tuthon): The Tuthoni 
  are a race apart from Old Porphyrans, and have spoken 
  dialects of Aklo and Undercommon for milennia. You 
  gain either language as a bonus language.
  Tower of Will (Underdeep): Your concentration is un-
  matched, a requirement of the hazardous environs of the 
  Underdeep. You gain a +1 trait bonus to concentration 
  checks and to saves versus fear.
  Underland Adept (Underdeep): The gloomy fairyland 
  of the Underdeep frightens topsiders, but to you it is as 
  fascinating as the cities and farms of the upper world. 
  Once a day, when making Knowledge (dungeoneering) 
  checks, roll twice and take the best result.
  Ustam Artisan (Azag-Ithiel): You graduated from the 
  Ustam School of Artisans and are handy with a wrench 
  and hammer. Gain a +2 trait bonus to any appropriate 
  skill when repairing a machine or mechanical artifact.
  Wearing of the Green (Fenian Triarchy): Though your 
  family doesn’t talk about it much, grandad looked a lot 
  like a leprechaun. You gain a +1 trait bonus on Diplo-
  macy checks with elves, gnomes and fey.
  Wharf Brat (Haunted Sea): You grew up on the docks 
  of the scum-havens of the Haunted Sea, and know a 
  thing or two about the pirate’s life. You gain a +1 trait 
  bonus to Sleight of Hand and Swim, and one of
  those skills is a class skill for you.
  Wind on the Steppes (Lotus Blossom Steppes): You 
  are exceptionally in tune with the grassy steppes, noting 
  its moods and easily spotting anything out of the ordi-
  nary. You gain a +1 trait bonus to Perception and Sur-
  vival when in plains terrain.
  Whispers of the Past (Pygmy Nations): Having seen 
  so many ruins in your life, you’ve a bit of a knack for 
  interpreting the meaning behind such places. Gain a +2 
  trait bonus to Knowledge (history).
  Zendiqi Nomad (Siwath): You can sleep when you are 
  beneath the sand; for now, stand wary. When outdoors, 
  you gain a +1 trait bonus to initiative, and a +1 trait 
  bonus to Perception to avoid being surprised.
  Zephyri Mystic (Simoon): The Four Who Are the 
  Foundation have always called to you, and some day, 
  you will find them. You gain Terran as a bonus language 
  and a +2 trait bonus to Knowledge (arcana), but may 
  not put skill ranks into 2 selected Knowledge categories.
  
  — 193 — 
  Campaign Traits
  Porphyra is a fractious world, born of conflict and fac-
  tion, of playing one side against another and hoping to 
  escape down the middle.  To reflect this worldview, this 
  is a suggested set of campaign traits for Gamemasters to 
  use with campaigns set in Porphyra, especially if they use 
  the cornerstone nation setting of The Middle Kingdoms.
  Burning Curiosity: A thousand years ago, a coalition of 
  elves and orcs performed a ceremony that brought Gods 
  to Porphyra, where there previously were none (it is be-
  lieved).  Due to a deep intellectual or spiritual need, you 
  have an insatiable curiosity to find out how that event 
  came to be.  You may, once per day, make a Knowledge 
  or Spellcraft check untrained with a +2 trait bonus.
  Conspiracy Theorist: You are not exactly paranoid if 
  they really are out to get you - and on Porphyra if some-
  one isn’t out to get you, you aren’t trying hard enough.  
  Secret organizations are at the heart of everything, you 
  are sure... You gain a +1 trait bonus to one Knowledge 
  skill, and Sense Motive is always a class skill for you.
  Cult Escapee: The cult members promised power when 
  you were powerless, refuge from a sea of troubles, and 
  insight into the unknowable, especially just for you.  The 
  sacrifices and glimpses of horrors from beyond came 
  later, and then the “Coven” didn’t seem quite as attrac-
  tive as before.  So you left, and now you try not to think 
  about the shapes in the shadows.  You gain a +1 bonus to 
  saves vs. divine spells, and a +1 bonus to Perception. 
  Forbidden Magic: As the Elementalists were free to 
  delve into the depths of arcane magic, and the Deists 
  call on their gods for all things, so you should be able to 
  pierce the veil of hidden powers, right?  You may have 
  gone a little too far, as your power can transcend the 
  rules of magic- and those that know of such things prob-
  ably see you as dangerous, and fit for the Gulag!  Choose 
  a spell that you can cast; you cast it at +1 caster level.  
  You can change the spell that you can modify at 5th 
  level, if you can acquire (permanently) documents from 
  a place of magical learning.
  Marked by the Sandmen: The Sandmen are, accord-
  ing to rumor, a criminal organization among the de-
  feated Elementalist forces, primarily the zendiqi people.  
  Known for poisons and magic that draw all the water 
  from the body (their signature execution/ suicide), you 
  have offended one of their cells, probably by foiling 
  some scheme of theirs.  Members of the Sandmen can 
  tell you by sight- you have been ‘marked’, somehow.  
  Your heightened anxiety gives you a +1 trait bonus to 
  Initiative and Reflex saves vs. traps.
  Runaway Slave: Whether by the erkunae, the hob-
  goblins of Parl Pardesh, drudge of the Pynnians, or the 
  fighting pits of the Jheriaks, you spent years as a slave, 
  with their mark branded in your flesh.  Seeing your 
  chance, you fled, taking the means to survive with you.  
  There might be a bounty on you, there might not... You 
  possess 10 porphyrite ‘flake’ and gain a +1 trait bonus to 
  your Fortitude save.
  Target of the Codionic Knights: Arrogant and oppres-
  sive hands of the High Codion of the Geranite church, 
  the Codionic Knights brook no challenge. You may sim-
  ply have met the gaze of one of the haughty paladins in 
  parade and not backed down, or have actively opposed 
  them.  In any case, you don’t back down easily, and add 
  2 to your CMD to resist bull rush and overrun, and add 
  2 to your defense number for Intimidate.
  Toy of the Savants: The enigmatic, semilegendary Sa-
  vants of the Fifth Element have fascinated you for years- 
  people often laugh at you about your obsession.  Hints 
  of their presence have dogged and frustrated you, but 
  you feel you are getting close, if only you could find the 
  next clue.  Once per day you may use any mental-based 
  skill or Sleight of Hand (pickpocketing or stealing) in 
  the place of Diplomacy (gather information), Knowledge 
  (local or history), Sense Motive or Perception.
  Thieves’ Guild Enmity:In your travels, or in your 
  hometown, you have either ‘ratted’ on a Thieves’ Guild 
  member, or stolen from the Thieves themselves.  A 
  sketch is definitely in circulation... you start with a re-
  ward/ plunder of 400 gp.  
  
  — 194 — 
  Personages
  Below is a listing of intriguing personalities that char-
  acters can meet and interact with on the Patchwork 
  Planet of Porphyra.  Information and location can be 
  manipulated as the GM sees fit, and the items represent 
  the most important the character might have.  Note that 
  some races and classes are detailed in other Purple Duck 
  Game products, mentioned in the appendix.
  Aelithar Relithane (Elf)
  Class/Level Fighter 8
  Community/Country Est’Arden, The Great Green
  Items of Note Shy Lady’[+1 holy short sword], composite 
  longbow (+3 Str)
  Notable For 
  Commando missions against monstrous threats to the 
  forest, somewhat of an inflated celebrity in that area.
  Keys to Adventure 
  Being drafted into his retinue for a favor, debt or duty, 
  putting up with a great deal of arrogance- and a chance 
  at treasure.
  Benthaine (Undine)
  Class/Level Druid 7
  Community/Country Colichan Island, The Rainbow 
  Isles
  Items of Note +3 eelskin armor, masterwork cold iron 
  daggers
  Notable For 
  Elephant seal companion “Rawnulf”.
  Keys to Adventure 
  As master of her island, she will hunt shipwrecked for-
  eigners with summon nature’s ally unless they dispatch 
  a threatening beast- and communication can be estab-
  lished.
  Br’ka Kaaw (Tengu)
  Class/Level Rook 8
  Community/Country Port Kalist, The Haunted Sea
  Items of Note hat of disguise, +3 short sword
  Notable For 
  Surviving stealing from bloodthirsty pirates, and having 
  encyclopedic knowledge of them
  Keys to Adventure 
  If freed from a gaol in Port Kalist, can lead an intrepid 
  party to a beached ship containing unusual treasure... if 
  you don’t mind cannibals.
  Brother Lumsden (Landed Human)
  Class/Level Monk 6
  Community/Country The Silent Monastery, The 
  Middle Kingdoms
  Items of Note a ring of 1 wish
  Notable For 
  Never speaking, being in love with a she-werewolf from 
  Nachtburg.
  Keys to Adventure 
  Will exchange his ring for being delivered of his love to 
  him (and convincing her that Brother Lumsden is in 
  love with her...)
  Caemarg’garlagg (Taddol)
  Class/Level Covenant Mage 7
  Community/Country Paradigm, Azag-Ithiel
  Items of Note flying carpet, wand of major image
  Notable For 
  Being both a swindling charlatan and a noble freedom 
  fighter, depending...
  Keys to Adventure 
  A being of multiple plans and machinations, will try to 
  entrap foreigners into performing spying missions on the 
  Jheriaks, with promises of extradimensional knowledge 
  and power- they may even get it.
  Chanitia Artax (Elan)
  Class/Level Psion 8
  Community/Country Lissa, Pinnacle Lands
  Items of Note lesser domination psicrown, bracers of 
  armor +4
  Notable For 
  Arrogantly flaunting her immortality and great beauty.
  Keys to Adventure 
  A master at the webs of politics, will try to manipulate 
  adventurers into removing her enemies by planting sus-
  picion of evildoing, even mentally controlling them.
  Compsog Nathus (Saurian)
  Class/Level: Alchemist 7
  Community/Country:  Long Cape Port, Jengu-Na
  Items of Note: amulet of proof against detection and loca-
  tion; literally dozens of potions
  Notable For
  Buying black-market alchemical ingredients, making 
  ‘risky’ preparations for  wealthy patrons: Buys and sells 
  potions for wildly varying prices.
  
  — 195 — 
  Keys to Adventure
  Willing to pay top dollar for dinosaur organs, which are 
  highly illegal and immoral to trade in the Dry Peninsula; 
  will fund a smuggler’s boat to take hunters to the Dino-
  saur Islands.
  Eoral the Loud (Polkan)
  Class/Level Gunslinger 6
  Community/Country High Hill of Atiri region, Hinter-
  lands of Kesh
  Items of Note +1 musket, horseshoes of a zephyr
  Notable For 
  A pair of pixies that act as spotters for him; killing cyclo-
  pes.
  Keys to Adventure 
  Will pay substantial amounts of treasure for cyclopes 
  bounties.
  Gamusz (Dragonblood)
  Class/Level Sorcerer 8 (Draconic)
  Community/Country Qadath, Wall of Sleep (Hesteria)
  Items of Note bracers of armor +3, wand of silent image
  Notable For 
  Member-at-large of the Vortician Order, recruiting ad-
  venturers for a foray into the wall.
  Keys to Adventure 
  May offer membership in the Order for joining his quest 
  for the strange and valuable beyond the Wall.
  Jibber Lungwell (Halfling)
  Class/Level Rogue 6
  Community/Country Freeport
  Items of Note ring of blinking, ring of water breathing
  Notable For 
  Winning the Magpies tournament for the second time 
  in five years.
  Keys to Adventure 
  Wants to hire the party to help him win it a third time, 
  they get the reward, he gets the glory (maybe).
  Khana Ru (Dhosari)
  Class/Level Wizard 9 (Conjuration)
  Community/Country Southern plains, Clandoms of 
  the Fourlands
  Items of Note wand of summon monster IV, eyes of 
  charming
  Notable For 
  Collecting weird and strange monsters in his subterra-
  nean complex.
  Keys to Adventure 
  Khana Ru may ‘collect’ the adventurers, whereby they 
  must escape their captivity and face the bizarre mage 
  himself.
   
   
  Kkarl Breakstone (Half-Orc)
  Class/Level Paladin 6
  Community/Country Headwaters of the River Drool, 
  Avandrool (Azagor)
  Items of Note +2 warhammer, full plate armor
  Notable For 
  Leading a group of reformist orcs and half-orcs that 
  strive to live by Gerana’s principles, yet annihilate Van-
  druli wherever they are encountered.
  Keys to Adventure 
  Will give aid and succor to friendly adventurers they 
  encounter, as long as they do not support Droolians 
  (citizens of Avandrool).
  Kosman Patrek (Human)
  Class/Level Ranger 8
  Community/Country Bloodshadow, Giant’s Retreat
  Items of Note boots of speed, +2 bastard sword
  Notable For 
  Surviving The Wave of Steel, a fire giant invasion of 
  western Giant’s Retreat, holding the line when others 
  fled.
  Keys to Adventure 
  Promises an enormous gem to those who will help him 
  infiltrate the fire giants’ sanctum, to recover a talisman 
  he lost at the Wave of Steel.
  Lieutenant Zarpartar (Hobgoblin)
  Class/Level Cavalier 7 (Order of the Cockatrice)
  Community/Country Bonelands, Eastern Parl Pardesh
  Items of Note adamantine battleaxe, trained mawgriff 
  mount
  Notable For 
  Running a successful mercenary company of disaffected 
  Pardeshi hobgoblins and the occasional giant, while still 
  keeping in good standing with Ush’Naar.
  Keys to Adventure 
  Equal-opportunity employer of any races, even elves, 
  always knows of a nearby military action to profit from, 
  and has a few troop transport ships as well.
  
  — 196 — 
  Moshiach Clan Lef B’nai (Zendiqi)
  Class/Level  Barbarian 6
  Community/ Country Mount Nar territory, Deserts of 
  Siwath
  Items of Note advanced celestial camel, heavy mace +1
  Notable For 
  Smuggling clerics into the southern deserts, for a price: 
  claims to worship all gods simultaneously.
  Keys to Adventure 
  Though he does not love the Wazir, he spreads rumors 
  of lost Deist artifacts in the desert, and then abandons 
  treasure seekers in the trackless waste...
  Qallimuka (Human)
  Class/Level Witch 6 (Elements)
  Community/Country Sikayan Tundra, Northlands
  Items of Note boots of the north, headband of intelligence 
  +2
  Notable For 
  Challenging travellers in the Tundra to contests of magic 
  and mind, helping those who are successful, plundering 
  those who are not.
  Keys to Adventure 
  With her arctic fox familiar, she roams the North and 
  is very knowledgeable of its secrets; if impressed she can 
  lead to buried barrows or caches of weapons.
  Parqael (Avoodim)
  Class/Level Inquisitor 7
  Community/Country Phoenix, The Clockwork Lands
  Items of Note +1 pistol, +1 warhammer
  Notable For 
  Taking extreme offense at anyone in ‘his town’ exhibiting 
  possible allegiance to chaos, to the extent of even having 
  that alignment; fanatically lawful.
  Keys to Adventure 
  Develops an obsession with a chaotic-aligned PC, uses 
  legal and governmental engines to ruin their lives.
  Prophet Cohlan Drigjer (Landed Human)
  Class/Level Cleric 6 (Healing, Plant)
  Community/Country Rhenhold, Gardens of Meynon
  Items of Note ring of swimming, wand of cure light 
  wounds
  Notable For 
  Worshiping Neria in a very Aleria-prime area; claims 
  visions of doom coming to the land of peace on a regular 
  basis.
  Keys to Adventure 
  Begins to have public visions of an invasion; evidence 
  points to either prophetic ability or massive deception 
  and manipulation of the naïve priest.
  Ykalicor the 66th (Erkunae)
  Class/Level Magus 8
  Community/Country G’sho’laa’n’rr, Erkusaa
  Items of Note ring of blinking, Black Blade [+2 long-
  sword] 
  Notable For 
  Being second in line for the Emperor’s Nurse, possibly 
  ‘good’ tendencies.
  Keys to Adventure 
  Seeks asylum on the mainland, which would result in 
  a huge price on his head and considerable diplomatic 
  repercussions.
  Yrrep Brehf (Landed Human)
  Class/Level Bard 6
  Community/Country Carneton, Iffud
  Items of Note eyes of charming (slightly cracked , +2 to 
  saves)
  Notable For 
  Running the Chorister chapterhouse in Carneton; 
  claiming knowledge of virtually everyone in the Western 
  Continent (sketchy...)
  Keys to Adventure 
  Can get guns, wands, maps, blades, even an airship-
  but always in a roundabout and inconvenient way that 
  exhausts his favors quickly.
  Zhaddiq zan Sibarri (Ifrit)
  Class/Level Oracle 7 (Flames)
  Community/Country Korech, Wastes of Simoon
  Items of Note staff of fire
  Notable For 
  Pursuing the mystery of flames, and the concept of a col-
  ony of ifrit in the nearby Crumbs of Aish; will zealously 
  request donations of time, money and participation.
  Keys to Adventure 
  He and his followers will promise treasure, anything, to 
  get his burgeoning colony off the ground; actual reward 
  will be less forthcoming.
   
   
   
  
  — 197 — 
  The Ruins of Greencastle
  An adventure for 1st level characters in the Middle King-
  doms.
  “The walls of Greencastle are calling to me,
  Though tumbled they are and broken-
  Many a young man has tarried there,
  Who knows what great evil awoken?
  Wind and fire, stone and rain,
  So fell the walls of Greencastle...”
  - The Walls of Greencastle, popular tavern ballad
  The taboo history of the fortress of Greencastle is well-
  known, with help from the famous, forbidden ballad 
  and ghost stories around the fire.  After two devastating 
  invasions of The Middle Kingdoms, heart of the Deist 
  alliance, certain factions of the Codionic Knights made 
  decisive action; give the elementalists something obvious 
  to attack, and crush them at that killing ground.  At a 
  natural stone formation in western Vinterre, the for-
  tress was built in a fortnight, rumor has it with captive 
  elementals as the workforce.  “Fight the Four with the 
  Four” was a whispered motto, and its commander, Lord 
  Thrush vowed to stop at nothing to destroy the hated 
  enemy. Nothing.  From his impregnable fortress, this 
  War would be ended quickly.
     But Greencastle fell.  Over one terrible night it fell, 
  with no survivors to tell the tale of its falling.  No army 
  was in siege, no assassin evident.  The Palatinate Com-
  mander removed all of the garrison from the records of 
  the Codionic Knights and forbade from that moment 
  that the name of Greencastle be nevermore spoken in 
  The Middle Kingdoms under pain of exile.  But the 
  shell of Greencastle still stands, near the western border, 
  halfway between Belle Ville and Thame, attracting the 
  eyes of young adventurers and outlaws, the former for 
  that which they are named, the latter for the utter lack of 
  attention the fortress gets from authorities.
     Greencastle protects itself, to some degree, as the 
  villagers of Domino nearby know.  Flickering lights, 
  rumbling earth, flash floods and weird winds all tend to 
  occur within sight of the dark castle.  And lately, those 
  phenomena have come to life, manlike life!  Manlike 
  beings of earth, air, fire and water have destroyed crops 
  and homes for a league around the castle, leaving flee-
  ing peasants and nothing salvageable in their wake.  It 
  has been a generation since young men dared the halls 
  of Greencastle looking for adventure; why not the party 
  that just came into town?
  Castle Ruins
  Entrance to Greencastle is not obvious; the northern 
  entrance was always more of a killing point than an 
  entrance, and is concealed, as is the horse sally-port in 
  the south.  Climbing the towers to enter a window is an 
  option (DC 15 Climb, DC 12 Acrobatics to enter), and 
  the southwest tower is obviously breached.  However, 
  a copse of four xtabay carnivorous plants inhabits the 
  walls, one on each tower, making the attempts danger-
  ous.  It can be assumed that a climber or those entering 
  the breached tower will encounter the resident xtabay.  
  Note that treasures of the NPCs are listed in their rule-
  book entries.
  1. Southwest Tower (CR 1)
  Most of this tower, which appears to be the largest of Gre-
  encastle’s four towers, is smashed and broken, creating a 
  large, ivy-covered rubble pile at the bottom of the mount, 
  thirty feet beneath.  You can see a flickering light coming 
  from deep within the tower.
  A DC 15 Knowledge (engineering) check will glean that 
  the tower was burst from inside, rather than be siege 
  weapons.  The tower chamber itself is bare, except for a 
  large coal-fire near the north door, and a large coal-pile 
  beside it.  A small fire elemental lives within the fire, and 
  will aggressively attack those that approach the door. 
  Small Fire Elemental (CR 1; XP 400)
  hp 11
  XtabayB2 (CR 1/2; XP 200)
  hp 8
  2. Northwest Tower (CR 1)
  Some of the inner structure of this tower remains intact, 
  with a wooden staircase following the southern wall to 
  a platform bearing a machine pointing out the upper 
  windows.
  The rickety stairs lead up to an ancient ballista station 
  
  — 198 — 
  
  — 199 — 
  XtabayB2 (CR 1/2; XP 200)
  hp 8
  5. Concealed Entrance
  Something catches your eye amidst the scrub the surrounds 
  the mount’s base- a heavily rusted iron gate, and beyond, 
  in the gloom, a wide staircase carved into the native stone.
  The concealed entrance is discovered with a DC 15 
  Perception check while searching the base of the fortress 
  mount.  The gate is heavily rusted and will make a hor-
  rific screech when opened, alerting the guard station at 
  area 6. At the top of the stairs is a rusty, cobbled-together 
  suit of  armor (with a functional breastplate) holding a 
  flask in its gauntlet.  The flask contains a tincture of bel-
  ladonna, which has the effects of consuming that par-
  ticular herb. 
  6. Guard Room (CR 2)
  Past the slot-fronted door is a sparsely-furnished room, 
  bedroll and lantern, a small cask and pewter cup; what 
  looks like a ball and jacks, a child’s game.
  The bandits at home take turns guarding the entrance, 
  and will be fairly alert.  The bandits dress to scare civil-
  ians, wearing masks and robes of red, blue or brown to 
  emulate “elementals”.  If intruding  PCs come towards 
  area 6 the guard will take a shot through the slot-door, 
  gaining surprise but being -4 to hit for the awkward 
  angle.  He will brace the door with a chunk of timber, 
  requiring a Strength check of 15 to breach, and retreat if 
  that is accomplished.
   BanditGMG  (4) (CR 1/2; XP 200 each)
  hp 11
  7. Sleeping Area (CR 1)
  An obviously lived-in chamber littered with personal pos-
  sessions, weapon cleaning materials, cups and plates and 
  dirty clothes.
  The other two bandits will be lounging here or nearby, 
  and will grab their costumes if alerted.  If combat gets 
  fierce, they will shout for Carbonak, who will arrive 
  in three rounds.  One will cover the other with a bow, 
  while he charges with his sword.  A fighter’s kit can be 
  that the bandits have been tinkering with; it may (50%) 
  successfully fire a ballista bolt at -2, or it may just break.  
  There are 5 bolts there, but the small air elemental that 
  inhabits this tower will attack as soon as party members 
  are on  the staircase. 
  Small Air Elemental (CR 1; XP 400)
  hp 13
  XtabayB2 (CR 1/2; XP 200)
  hp 8
  3. Northeast Tower (CR 1)
  Though the outside of this tower seems intact, the inner 
  chamber appears to be full of rubble, with bits of wood 
  and metal visible amongst the stones and piles of dirt.
  Entering the rubble field, of course, invites attack 
  from the small earth elemental that inhabits this tower.  
  Searching afterward will find 1d20 copper and 1d12 
  silver pieces, and a crushed suit of white enameled plate 
  armor holding a small object in its gauntlet, what ap-
  pears to be a crude doll clothed in red, blue, yellow and 
  brown.  This is a token, perhaps eventually a holy  
  symbol of the infant godling-to-be Aat’f’aal, the Reconciler.  
  Though likely not immediately recognizable, the token 
  gives its holder the ability to cast guidance once a day.
  Small Earth Elemental (CR 1; XP 400)
  hp 13
  XtabayB2 (CR 1/2; XP 200)
  hp 8
  4. Southeast Tower (CR 1)
  Only the top step of a short flight of stairs is above water 
  in this tower chamber, filled to the windows, about three 
  feet deep.  No other objects are visible.
  Should the party remain for any length of time, they 
  will be attacked by a small water elemental, which will 
  seek to drag them under and drown them.  If the water 
  is searched thoroughly (DC 20 Perception) a small ivory 
  brooch worth 20 gp will be found.
  Small Water Elemental (CR 1; XP 400)
  hp 13
  
  — 200 — 
  put together from the various things the bandits have 
  accumulated.
   
  BanditGMG  (2) (CR 1/2; XP 200 each)
  hp 11
  8. Junk Room
  It is unclear what this room’s purpose originally was, but 
  iron hooks are still attached to the walls.  Every corner is 
  piled liberally with junk, chunks of wood, old armor bits, 
  and discarded refuse.
  The garbage here is strategically placed, as the bandits 
  have prepared niches by which they can hide and/or 
  prepare ambushes.  One can use Stealth in plain sight in 
  this room, and gain +2 to the any Stealth checks.  Noth-
  ing more useful than an improvised club can be found 
  here.
  9. Hall of Glory (CR 4)
  This very martial room contains weapon racks on the 
  north wall, most of which look in good order, and suits of 
  armor standing at attention in alcoves in the south.
  The bandits avoid this area at all costs, though they 
  have not blocked the doors. Normal weapons hang on 
  racks on the north wall, one of each martial and simple 
  weapon as described in the CRB, though there is a 1 in 
  6 chance that any weapon is not fragile, and will shatter  
  on a to-hit roll of 1.  Four suits of heavy armor stand in 
  alcoves on the south wall, equivalent to half-plate.  Two 
  of them are animated by the spirits of disgraced paladins, 
  and are now phantom  armor guardians.  One suit bears 
  a longsword, the other fights with 2 slam attacks.  They 
  will not pursue past this area.
  Phantom ArmorB4 (4) (CR 2; XP 600 each)
  hp 13
  10. Sorcerer’s Quarters (CR 1)
  Geometric patterns adorn the walls of this room, and car-
  pets shaped and colored as jewels cover the floor.  A straw 
  pallet and a pewter dish holding what looks like gems sits 
  in the southwest corner. A faint murmur can be heard 
  coming from somewhere.
  Leader of the bandits, Carbonak is a greedy dwarf  that 
  has tapped into an evil that he is only  beginning to 
  comprehend.  He has discovered the process of making 
  lesser elemental gems in  the cursed chamber below, but 
  uses them only for his raiding depredations, so far. He 
  accesses the chamber through the concealed door in 
  the floor, under the rugs (DC 15 Perception) via a rope 
  under the pallet.
   
  CarbonakNPCC (CR 2; XP 400)
  Dwarf sorcerer 2 (gem sorcerer)
  hp 18
  11. Chapel
  This vaulted chamber seems to see a lot of traffic- the fur-
  niture is long gone but the north wall seems to have borne 
  a large fresco of an armored woman, now largely defaced, 
  chipped, and splattered with filth.
  Once the chapel of Gerana (identifiable with a DC 12 
  Knowledge (religion) check) it is now  just a crossroad 
  to access the southern part of the fortress.  Some basic 
  cleaning, followed by an offering and a prayer to Gerana 
  will result in the party being blessed for 1 minute.
   
  12. Pantry
  Past the thick wooden door, this room contains shelves, 
  barrels and bags, apparently of foodstuffs and other provi-
  sions.
  The contents of this pantry are well stocked and of good 
  quality, consisting of wine, dried fruit, hard biscuit, 
  cheese and the like.  They could support four humanoids 
  for several weeks.
  13. Cursed Chamber (CR 1)
  For both doors
  This door has rough boards hammered over it, and is 
  splashed with a large X in what appears to be red paint.
  Inside
  Whatever this room was, it has been blasted beyond recog-
  nition, the walls charred and dirty, dirt and stone fallen 
  from the walls, breeze blowing through the cracks.  Unrec-
  ognizable bits of metal and bone are piled here and there.
  
  — 201 — 
  Leaving immediately will incur no ill effects, but search-
  ing or staying for more than a round will result in 
  the trespasser(s) becoming shaken until they leave the 
  fortress.  A DC 12 Perception check will find a tarnished 
  silver holy symbol of Gerana worth 5 gp.
  13a. Statue of the Test
  In the west alcove stands a statue of a smiling, long-haired 
  knight in white marble.  His arms are upraised and 
  jointed, with symbols on the palms; an arrow on the right 
  hand, four crossed lines on the left.
  Pulling down the right arm grants the tester a cure light 
  wounds spell, 1d8+1 hit points.  Pulling the left triggers a 
  poisoned dart trap;
  Poisoned Dart Trap (CR 1; XP 400)
  Type mechanical
  Perception DC 20; Disable Device DC 20
  Effects
  Trigger touch; Reset none
  Effect Atk +10 ranged (1d3 plus greenblood oil)
  
  — 202 — 
  14. Mountaintop Access (CR 3)
  You climb up 50 ft. of dusty stairs to a level 40 by 40 ft. 
  leveled area that once held a small tower, now all shat-
  tered ruins and scrub trees. A draconian shape circles in 
  the sky above you.
  What was once a staging area for flying knights is a 
  smashed, overgrown ruin, now the nesting area for a  
  pair of pseudodragons. Their nest contains an egg and 
  two 25 gp gemstones. The tiny draconians are quite 
  wild, but will respond to kind treatment positively. 
  Pseudodragons (2) (CR 1; XP 400 each)
  hp 15
  15. Cellar Access
  A foul smell of damp dust and steam wafts up from this 
  descending staircase; strange, faint sounds echo up from 
  the darkness below.
  A DC 12 Perception check will clarify the smells as hot, 
  wet earth borne upon a light breeze.
  Dungeon Level
  These dungeon halls are cramped with debris and bear a 
  foul smell of ancient death.
  1. Echoing Chamber
  The strange smell is stronger in this subterranean chamber, 
  though the doors south and east are closed.  A red X, and 
  the letter L is splashed across the south door, in what looks 
  like faded red paint.
  A DC 15 Survival (tracking) check shows traffic to the 
  south door, fairly recently.  The symbols remind the ban-
  dits to stay to the right, avoiding the poltergeist’s domain 
  on the way to their horses.
  2. Skeleton Ambush (CR 1 to 2)
  Two side chambers on either side of the hallway beyond 
  the east door have sundered, splintered doors- and rat-
  tling through them are several bony horrors holding rusty 
  swords!
  The facing chambers with the broken doors hold noth-
  ing but broken trash and the decayed good-bye letters of 
  the doomed defenders as they smothered to death.  The  
  skeletons are three to a room, and will follow and fight 
  intruders until destroyed.
  Skeletons (6) (CR 1/3; XP 135 each)
  hp 4
  3. Zombie Lair (CR 2)
  The scent of the grave permeates this chamber, which 
  may have held fragments of maps on its gritty walls.  The 
  smell comes from the shambling living corpses that shuffle 
  forward, their decaying hands reaching for you.
  More undead remnants of the fall of Greencastle, these 
  doomed unfortunates will pursue and attack until 
  destroyed.  Though the zombies have nothing, search-
  ing the walls with a DC 15 Perception check will find 
  a scrap that says “Cavalry Sally tunnel- southeast 150 
  yds.”, obviously referring to area D7.
  Zombies (3) (CR 1/2; XP 200 each)
  hp 12 
  4. Well of Doom (Varies)
  The smell and sound get louder as you enter this circular, 
  vaulted chamber- and see their awful source: four hu-
  manoids, with skin of various hues, are suspended several 
  feet over a dark pit ringed with glowing metal.  They 
  are suspended by nothing, it seems, as is a large egg-sized 
  gem- they and the gem rotate slowly, their eyes staring at 
  nothing, their mouths working, soundlessly.
  This is the secret, sinful heart of Greencastle, a well of 
  elemental energy discovered by Lord Thrush and har-
  nessed to summon elementals and create elemental gems 
  of his own.  The well is powered by the life-essence of 
  mortal outsiders, thus the kidnapped genie-kin that are 
  trapped within. The lesser elemental gem beneath them is 
  complete, and can be easily removed by hand.  Touch-
  ing any prisoner does 1 point of appropriate elemental 
  damage per round, and a combined Strength of at least 
  20 must be exerted upon them to remove them from 
  the well.  Any outsiders, even native ones, lose 1 point 
  of Intelligence per round in contact with the emana-
  tions from the well, no saving throw; victims recover lost 
  ability points normally.  The genie-kin are barely clothed 
  and have no possessions.
  
  — 203 — 
  IfritB2 (CR 1/2; XP 200)
  hp 8
  OreadB2 (CR 1/2; XP 200)
  hp 12
  SlyphB2 (CR 1/2; XP 200)
  hp 9
  UndineB2 (CR 1/2; XP 200)
  hp 8
   
  5. Haunted Labyrinth (CR 2)
  You can almost hear the screams and footfalls of the de-
  fenders of Greencastle in their last moments in these wind-
  ing, shelved  halls- perhaps for food storage, perhaps for 
  receiving the bones of the nobly departed.  Scraps of junk 
  are everywhere, and a cold wind blows from somewhere...
  These halls are patrolled by the undead spirit of the 
  ambitious Lord Commander Thrush, who enslaved 
  elementals and sucked the life out of innocents to pursue 
  his military dream.  It will attack the party relentlessly 
  within 1d4 rounds of entering the catacombs.  If the 
  poltergeist is (temporarily) dispatched, a thorough search 
  of the halls will find a scroll that lists his lieutenants; 
  “Urich Longarm - Loyal, Gastar- Loyal, Menoch 
  -Cowardly, FraciloWhiteplate - traitor to the 
  cause...”
  Poltergeist (CR 2; XP 600)
  hp 16
  6. Collapsed Chamber
  There is only enough room for one person to enter, and 
  barely that.  You hear a soft tic tic behind fallen beams 
  and stone slabs.
  Moving enough material to investigate the sound re-
  quires a DC 12 Knowledge (engineering) check and an 
  hour’s work.  Without the check it takes 2 hours, with a 
  25% chance each hour of a small collapse setting work 
  back an hour and doing 1d4 damage to all those work-
  ing.  The noise comes from a feather token (bird) trapped 
  there, bearing Lord Thrush’s confession.  If it gets free, 
  (flying to the Codion of Gerana) the poltergeist   
  will disappear, having found its final rest.  The result of 
  that message (see area 5) will likely rock the Iron Basilica 
  and cause much unrest in The Middle Kingdoms...
  7. Secret Exit
  Beyond the crude concealment is a wide, airy tunnel that 
  immediately smells of farmyard.  You hear whinnying 
  ahead.
  The indicated chamber holds the bandits’ horses, tied 
  and well watered and fed, with full tack and saddlebags.  
  The sally-tunnel exits in a small grove of trees 100 yards 
  further to the southeast, virtually invisible from the out-
  side. 
   
  New Items
  The following new items are mention in the adventure.
  Lesser Elemental Gem
  Aura moderate conjuration; CL 7th
  Slot none; Price 1,250 gp; Weight —
  Description
  These large, rough gems behave exactly as an elemental 
  gem except that they bring forth a medium elemental, 
  not a large elemental.  
  Construction
  Requirements Craft Wondrous Item, summon monster 
  IV or summon nature’s ally IV; Cost 625 gp
  Token of At’f’aal
  Aura strong universal; CL 20th
  Slot none; Weight —
  Description
  In the chaotic, last desperate days of Greencastle, a few 
  spellcasters that were trying to oppose the evil doings 
  there stumbled upon the mention of At’f’aal, a nascent 
  being that was known to the ancient Zendiq order but 
  was constantly rejected by them.  If At’f’aal is recognized 
  for what it is (through further adventures) he will be 
  proven to be a God-Lord to reconcile the Deists and the 
  Elementalists.  
     At’f’aal has the domains of Air, Earth, Fire and Water, 
  and treats Chaos, Good, Law and Protection as subdo-
  mains, though he possesses the alignment of True Neu-
  tral.  His favored weapon is the unarmed strike, and his 
  favored animal the rabbit.  His token/holy symbol grants 
  anyone, regardless of class, the following abilities 1/day, 
  
  — 204 — 
  graduating by level:
  Level
  Spell
  1-2
  guidance
  3-4
  cure light wounds
  5-6 
  rainbow promise
  7-8
  speak with animals
  8-9
  legend lore
  10-12
  dream
  13-14
  irresistible dance
  15-16
  resurrection
  17-18
  antimagic field
  19-20
  miracle
  Should miracle be cast, At’f’aal would become a God 
  and fully enter Porphyra’s reality
  Destruction
  The token of At’f’aal can be destroyed, and At’f’aal barred 
  from Porphyra forever if the token is immersed in the 
  tears of one hundred and one children.
  Other Works of Porphyra
  The Patchwork World of Porphyra is ever-changing. Sev-
  eral books provided background and hints to this world 
  long before it was released, several books were written 
  during that production of this book, and going forward 
  we will further expand what is know about the Patch-
  work Work of Porphyra.
  Assassins of Porphyra (Carl Cramér): Seven assas-
  sin orders are introduced, as well as the base assassin 
  class.
  Barbarians of Porphyra (Perry Fehr): Contains ra-
  cial barbarian archetypes for avoodim, dragonblood, 
  erkunae, human, and ith’n ya’roo races, as well as a 
  number of other barbarian options. 
  Bards of Porphyra (Perry Fehr): Six new bard 
  archetypes, seven masterpieces, and other assorted 
  options for the bard class. 
  Cavaliers of Porphyra (Perry Fehr): Five cavalier 
  orders, and three cavalier disorders (for those less 
  than lawful cavaliers), magic items, feats, and a 
  plant-based mount.
  Chi Warrior (N. Jolly): A full base attack bonus 
  martial arts class. 
  Drow of Porphyra series (Patricia Willenborg): 
  This series examines the seven subraces of drow that 
  live in the Underdeep. This series is in development 
  as of 2015 with some parts released.
  Elemental Lords of Porphyra (Perry Fehr): This 
  introduces the 12 Elemental Lords providing infor-
  mation on the legend, church, and spell preparation 
  rituals for each. 
  Fehr’s Ethnology Collected (Perry Fehr): This book 
  collects information from the Fehr’s Ethnology series 
  including information on avoodim, dhosair, dragon-
  blood, erkunae, eventual, ith’n ya’roo, kripar, polkan, 
  qit’ar, urisk, xesa, and zendiqi.
  Heroes of... series (various): This is a series of re-
  gion supplements for both players and gamemasters 
  that explore one country in the Lands of Porphyra in 
  greater depth. So far we have released:
  • 
  Azag-Ithiel
  • 
  Birdman Mountains
  • 
  Deserts of Siwath
  • 
  Fenian Triarchy
  • 
  Middle Kingdomes
  Legendary Classes: Covenant Magic, More Cov-
  enant Magic, and Further Covenants (David 
  N. Ross, Julian Neale): This trio of supplements 
  introduces and provides options for our covenant 
  mage class. Orignally the class was called a medium 
  but now that there exist a medium class in Occult 
  Adventures future support for this class will refer to 
  it as the covenant mage.
  Legendary Classes: Illuminatus (David N. Ross): 
  This supplement introduces a chaos mage class for 
  the Porphyra setting. 
  Legendary Classes: Rune Magic (Josh McCrow-
  ell): Runecasters and runereavers (two alternate 
  
  — 205 — 
  classes) that play pivoted roles in The Calling are in-
  troduced. Runecasters use word spells as introduced 
  in Ultimate Magic, while runereavers are barbarians 
  with magical scars.
   
  Godmetals of Porphyra (Mark Gedak): This was 
  created when 3PPs were told that the skymetals from 
  the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game wer considered 
  product identity and we could use their names. They 
  were renamed in this book so we could continue to 
  use the mechanics. 
  Gods of Porphyra (Various): A multi-author proj-
  ect that set the initial tone for the campaign world 
  and provides details on all 27 of Porphyra’s new and 
  risen gods. 
  Legendary Races: Sphinx (Julian Neale, Perry 
  Fehr): Expands the mythology of sphinxes and 
  introduces the enigmon race. There is also an addi-
  tional faith in here not chronicled in this book.
  Monsters of Porphyra (Mark Gedak, Perry Fehr): 
  This 196 page full-color monster book is an invalu-
  able source of creatures that populate the Patchwork 
  Planet.
  Nobles of Porphyra (Carl Cramér): A reworking of 
  the noble scion prestige class into one of nine noble 
  class designs.
  Oracles of Porphya (Perry Fehr): A single oracle 
  archetype with four additional mysteries.
  Paladins of Porphyra (Perry Fehr): Six paladin 
  archetypes keyed to a variety of the New Gods, and 
  seven new paladin oaths.
  Protean Lords of Porphyra (Todd Stewart): Infor-
  mation on the twelve protean lords that make up the 
  Slithering Symphony.
  Puppets of Porphyra (Perry Fehr): A book on pup-
  pet magic and magic items. 
  Purple Duck Storeroom: Arbakampsi (Perry Fehr): 
  A boardgame that is played to memorialize the con-
  flict of the NewGods War.
  Purple Mountain I-IV (Various): Purple Mountain 
  is a megadungeon adventure that is being written 
  one level at a time. 
  Rangers of Porphyra (Perry Fehr): Five archetypes, 
  three plant companions, and a bit of new magic 
  items and spells.
  The Kingpin (Angel R. Miranda): A skill-using 
  class that supports a gang of allies.
   
  Older Works
  The following books were involved in the creation of the 
  Porphyra campaign setting by providing initial ideas and 
  concepts.
  Legendary I-X (Various): Many of the countries, 
  villains and treasures mention in this series migrated 
  wholy are by piecemeal into the setting. In some 
  ways the legendary treasures series acted as a first draft 
  for much of Porphyra’s geography.
  Legendary Races: Cyclops, Medusa, Rakshasa 
  (Various): Form the basis for our half-cyclops, half-
  medusa, and half-rakshasa races. 
  Legendary Races: Harpy (Josh McCrowell): Lays 
  much of the groundwork for the development of the 
  region known as the Birdman Mountains. 
  Memorable Townsfolk (David N. Ross): This refers 
  to several cities within Porphyra as well as provided 
  the basis for half-orcs in Porphyra being (elf/orc 
  hybrids).
  Monstrous Races I-III (Various): This book pro-
  vides early drafts for many of the non-traditional 
  races in Porphyra like grippli, skulks, living ghouls, 
  and sahuagin. 
  Monstrous Bloodlines for Sorcerers I-IV (Perry 
  Fehr): The series started to make us considered pro-
  ducing class books for Porphyra. It is also probably 
  why Perry will not write a Sorcerers of Porphyra.
  
  — 206 — 
  Specific Nomenclature of Porphyra
  The following nomeclature is used by Landed and Native 
  Porphyrans to refer to religious orders and nationalities.
  Religious Orders
  Religion
  Nomenclature
  Aleria
  Alerian
  Chiuta
  Chiutan
  Eshsalqua
  Eshsalquan
  Fenris Kul
  Kulite
  Ferrakus
  Ferrakan
  Gerana
  Geranite
  Ithreia
  Ithreian
  Kamus
  Kamian
  Lyvalia
  Lyvalian
  Linium
  Linite
  Mâl
  Mâlite
  Myketa
  Myketan
  Nemyth Vaar
  Vaarian
  Neria
  Nerian
  Nise
  Nisian
  Paletius
  Paletian
  Rajuk Amon-Gore
  Rajuki
  Rolterra
  Rolterran
  Saren
  Sarenite
  Shade
  Shadeling
  Shankhil
  Khilite
  Toma Thule
  Thulian
  Tulis
  Tulite
  Ul’Ul
  Ulian
  Veiloaria
  Xia
  Vortain
  Vortani
  Yolana
  Yolanite
  Elemental Lords
  Being referred to in different language systems (Old Por-
  phyran, Elemental languages ie. Auquan, Ignan, Terran) 
  devoted of the Elemental Lords use phrases that trans-
  late best as “servant of” or “beloved of” (in the case of 
  Ashamar Shining and Mal’Eket). Thus, instead of “The 
  Ithreian temple” one would say “Temple of the Servants 
  of Drothos”, or instead of a “Rolterran cleric” one would 
  say “Beloved of Mal’eket” or “mahdi of Mal’eket”, with 
  the capitals required.  Deists frequently invent terms for 
  Elementalist devotees, such as “burners” for followers of 
  Mal’eket, or “drowners” for those of Poison Wave, so as 
  to not invoke the name of the ‘defeated’ elemental lord.
  Protean Lords
  The language of Chaos, Protean, is extremely mutable, 
  and terms of reference extremely unspecific.  The system 
  of nomenclature for followers and reference terms to 
  the Slithering Symphony are much the same as those 
  for the Elemental Lords, but with a sliding scale of term 
  or rank, according to the status the individual has with 
  the Symphonist has at the time. For example, an act-
  ing High Priest of A’Sevelix might be “Very Beloved of 
  A’sevelix”, a berserker follower a “Son of A’sevelix”, and 
  an occasional tithe-giver a “trembler before A’sevelix”.  
  Holy texts to the Slithering Symphony are almost all 
  completely unique and individual, with no specific text 
  or codex for the ‘faith’.
  Nationalities
  Country
  Nomenclature
  Advent Imperiax
  Imperiax; ie. The Imperiax 
  Embassy, an Imperiax vessel
  Azag-Ithiel
  Newlander
  Barony of Tuthon
  Tuthoni
  Birdman Mountains
  No formal or consistent term 
  exists
  Boroughs of Dunmark
  Dunmarker
  Bulwark of the Halfling 
  Nations
  Enorian
  Californ
  Califern
  Calopia
  Calopian
  City-State of Iluriel
  Ilurian
  Clandoms of the Four-
  lands
  Fourlander or specific tribal 
  designation
  Clockwork Lands
  Corporate, along with caste 
  designation
  Creeper’s Rift
  Argentine (as from Argen-
  tum) or Rifter
  Deserts of Siwath
  Siwathi or Siwathu (the dif-
  ference does not translate to 
  Common) 
  
  — 207 — 
  Empire of the Dead
  Imperial or Celestial (Digirn 
  only)
  Erkusaa
  Erkusaan
  Fenian Triarchy
  Greenlander, Reedlander or 
  Islander (Sanctuary)
  Freeport
  Freeporter
  Frozen North
  Coldlander
  Gardens of Meynon
  Meynoni
  Ghadab
  Ghadabi
  Giant’s Retreat
  Bloodlander or Giantlander
  Great Green
  Ardeni
  Haunted Sea
  Pirate; they take issue with 
  all others who call them-
  selves such
  Hesteria
  Hesterian, or a specific term 
  such as Nerian Hesterian or 
  Olthari Hesterian.
  Hinterlands of Kesh
  Keshite
  Holdfast of the Celes-
  tial Parishes
  No formal or consistent term 
  exists
  Iffud
  Fudi ie. Precision Fudi fire-
  arms, Fudi ambassador
  Jengu-Na
  Jengan (Common) 
  Jheriak Continuance
  Jheriak
  Jotun Forest
  Jotun
  Kingdom of Avandrool
  Droolian
  Kingdom of Iskandar
  Iskandari, Skandar, or Skan-
  dari
  Last Kingdom
  Lastfolk
  Lotus Blossom Steppes
  Steppelander or Menguyan 
  (in Samsariyu)
  The Middle Kingdoms
  Middlelander, with Piuman, 
  Rotwalder, Vinterrish, and 
  Thamian.
  Morah’Silvanath
  Silvanath or Colothorian
  Mount Xoa
  Xoan or Mountaineer
  New Wathis
  Wathisi or New Westerner 
  (collaborationist only)
  Nor-Du-Mag
  Clovenlanders
  Northlands
  Northlander
  Oncoming Wave of 
  Mâl
  Mâlite; hobgoblins of New 
  Karkoon are Karkooni
  Parl Pardesh
  Pardeshi
  Pinnacle Lands
  Shariran
  Purple Mountain
  Elekireeni (rarely used), 
  whereas Delver is common 
  slang
  Pygmy Nations
  No formal or consistent term 
  exists, often call Goblinland 
  by sailors
  Pyynian Coast
  Pyynian
  Rainbow Islands
  Islander or Dark Islander
  Seven Principalities
  Council Islander
  Trade Consortium of 
  Blix
  Blixian
  Underdeep
  Underman (uncommon)
  Wastes of Simoon
  Simooni
  
  — 208 — 
  Index of Porphyra
  Generally, references do not include information in race 
  descriptions or nation stat-blocks.
  A
  Advent Imperiax, 10, 13, 162, 192
  Aasimar, 43, 64, 92, 122
  Agriculture, 43, 157-159
  Aleria, 7, 21, 36, 44, 47, 50, 65, 138
  Amaelianesses, 135, 148
  Animism, 151
  Anpur, 36, 122
  Anumus, 109, 122
  A’sevelix, 148
  Ashamar Shining, 147, 206
  Avoodim, 64, 180, 122
  Azag-Ithiel, the Newlands, 12, 28, 171, 173, 189, 192, 
  194
  Azagor, 9, 76, 77, 171
  B
  Barony of Tuthon, 9, 14, 76-79, 115, 121, 158, 161, 
  176-177, 188, 192
  Birdman Mountains, 14, 18, 50, 118, 189, 191
  Blue, 32, 122
  Boggard, 45, 122
  Boggle, 11, 104, 114-115, 122
  Borders, see Porphyrite
  Boroughs of Dunmark, 9, 14-15, 20, 76, 120, 189, 
  192
  Bulwark of the Halfling Nations, 22, 115, 140, 186, 
  C
  Californ, the Eternal Jungle, 8, 24, 48-49, 106, 121, 
  152, 188
  Calling, The, 4-9
  Calopia, Land of Heroes, 26, 105, 186
  Catfolk, 56, 60, 122
  Changeling, 123
  Chiuta, 6, 30-31, 44-45, 110, 143, 151, 190
  City-State of Iluriel, 28, 161, 187
  Clandoms of the Fourlands, 13, 30, 122, 189
  Clockwork Lands, 11, 13, 32, 121, 167, 190
  Creeper’s Rift, 8, 34, 116-117, 186, 190
  Currency, 77, 155-156
  D
  Dagon, 151, 152
  Dark Mistress, 14-15, 93, 134, 151, 177
  Deserts of Siwath, 7, 9, 36, 52, 57, 84, 92, 109, 115, 
  155-156, 163-166, 171, 184, 190-192
  Demon Worship, 40-41, 128, 151-152, 177
  Dhampir, 38-39, 60-61, 108, 123
  Dhosari, 9, 10, 13, 40, 123, 166
  Dinosaurs, 4, 24, 111, 195
  Djinnlord Qarryn, 92, 145, 147-148
  Domains (clerical), 137, 151, 168, 170, 172
  Dragonblood, 31, 64, 123, 151, 171, 204
  Dromite, 32-33, 98-99, 106-107, 116-117, 124, 131
  Drothos, 104, 147
  Drow, 124
  Druidism, 151-152
  Duergar, 102, 104-105, 116-117, 124, 162
  Dwarf, 19, 23, 33, 35, 37, 43, 48-49, 53, 79, 90, 97
  104, 121, 124, 165
  E
  Elan, 62, 67, 102-103, 124, 178, 187
  Elemental-kin, 9, 36, 56, 80, 110, 118-119, 124, 166
  Elemental Lords (list), 145
  Elves, 3-13, 23, 28-29, 42, 46, 56-57, 65, 74-79, 88-89, 
  98, 104, 124, 147, 161, 164, 166-167, 171, 178, 189, 
  192-193
  Empire of the Dead, 7, 8, 32, 38, 71, 120, 156, 162, 
  187-188
  Enclave, The, 32-33, 49, 103, 106
  Engineered creatures, 159
  Enigmon, 125
  Enor Ashlord, 12, 22, 128, 147
  Entobian, 61, 125
  Erkunae, 3, 6, 9, 11, 30, 40-41, 79, 100, 104-105, 113, 
  125, 156, 166-169, 188, 193
  Erkusaa, the Mist-Shrouded Isle, 9, 10, 18, 40, 100, 
  104, 112, 120, 122, 156,  163, 166-169, 178, 186, 188
  Eshsalqua, 13, 18, 22-23, 33, 65, 70, 106, 110, 138, 
  155
  Eternal Ice, 42, 54, 187, 190
  Eventuals, 124, 125
  F
  Faldon Town, see Bulwark of the Halfling Nations
  Feats (new), 166, 171, 184
  Femanx, 10-11, 110-111, 125, 134, 162, 188
  
  — 209 — 
  Fenian Triarchy, 6, 29, 44, 120, 122, 130, 187, 190, 
  192
  Fenris Kul, 7, 54-55, 72, 137, 138
  Ferrakus, 34-35, 53, 104, 118, 138, 160
  Fetchling, 15, 60-61, 125, 134
  Feykissed, 125
  Firelord Mal’eket, 92, 147
  Flake, 8, 152, 155-157, 193
  Forlarren, 64, 126
  Freeport, 20, 46, 59, 70, 82, 120, 127-128, 132, 134, 
  136, 152, 186, 190
  Frozen North, 24, 48, 151, 187, 190
  G
  Gathlain, 56,-57, 65, 126, 152
  Gardens of Meynon, 7, 50, 188, 190
  Gerana, 26-27, 36, 50, 64-65, 79, 84-87, 118, 137, 
  138, 153, 163, 170, 176-177, 180-181, 189, 200-203, 
  Geranland, 9, 84, 86, 166, 189
  Ghadab, 9, 36, 52, 64, 84, 115, 118, 155-156, 165-
  166, 187, 190
  Giants, 9, 10, 19, 26, 30, 42, 44-45, 48, 50, 52, 66, 73-
  75, 80-84, 94-97, 101, 120, 123, 125, 127-128, 132, 
  151, 160-161, 190
  Giant’s Retreat, 48, 54, 101, 120, 156, 169, 178, 187, 
  191
  Gillman, 76, 126
  Glass Sea, 188-119, 165, 186
  Gnome, 22-23, 32, 34, 75, 79, 90, 126, 130, 193
  Goblin, 6, 22-23, 35, 98, 101, 106-107, 114, 126
  Godmetals, 10, 28, 48, 54, 60, 90, 116, 205
  Grunzol Firestorm, 30, 147
  Great Green, 4, 56, 74, 117, 158, 164, 165, 171, 188
  Great Old Ones, 6, 20, 152
  Grindylow, 47, 127
  Grippli, 76-77, 101, 106-107, 127
  Gulag, 14, 59, 157, 188, 193, 95
  H
  Half-cyclops, 62, 127
  Half-elf, 4, 127
  Half-giant, 30, 127
  Half-harpy, 127
  Half-medusa, 59, 127
  Half-ogre, 12-13, 128, 132
  Half-orc, 4, 10, 12-13, 28-29, 34, 56, 66, 77, 113, 128, 
  184
  Half-rakshasa, 82, 108, 128
  Halfling, 18-19, 22-23, 26, 91, 114-115, 128, 129
  Harpy, 18-19, 42, 60, 128
  Haunted Sea, 47, 58, 109, 156, 163, 165, 189, 192
  Hesteria, 47, 60, 109, 156, 163, 165, 189, 192
  Hinterlands of Kesh, 9, 62, 91, 94, 121, 124, 183, 
  187-188
  Hobgoblin, 9, 27, 47, 62-63, 98-99, 100-101, 104-105, 
  121, 128, 158, 164, 193
  Holdfast of the Celestial Parishes, 43, 64, 156, 191
  Holidays, 163
  Humans, 24-26, 31, 44, 46, 48-49, 54, 60, 62, 77, 80, 
  82, 84, 90, 102, 113, 118, 129, 136, 151, 153, 160, 
  161, 164, 170, 187, 189; see also Erkunae, Kayanoi, 
  Zendiqi
  I
  Ice Tyrant, 43, 128, 147
  Iffud, 9, 10, 30, 32, 44, 66, 120, 153, 155, 165, 171, 
  176, 178, 182, 187-188
  Ith’n ya’roo, 48-49, 54, 94, 120, 129, 151
  Ithreia, 9, 14-15, 18, 42, 48-49, 79, 83, 89, 95, 118, 
  121, 128, 136, 138, 151
  J
  Jadji Vortex, 58
  Jassifrax, 148
  Jengu-Na, 6, 70, 94, 121, 134, 156, 187, 189
  Jheriak Continuance, 7, 12, 33, 59, 72, 78-79, 95, 
  136, 156-157, 163, 167, 171, 193
  Jotun Forest, 65, 74, 169, 187, 188
  K
  Kamus, 62, 90-91, 100-101, 109, 128, 138
  Kayanoi, 6, 14, 20, 78, 137, 162, 171, 176
  Kech, 88-89, entry 129
  Kekissendri, 148
  Kingdom of Avandrool, 9, 76, 126, 183, 189, 191
  Kingdom of Iskandar, 12, 14-15, 70, 72, 76, 78, 121, 
  153, 171, 186, 191
  Kitsune, 56, 64, 80-81, 129
  Kobold, 12, 22-23, 106-107, 129, 131, 151
  Kripar, 34, 117, 130
  Kostchtchie, 151
  Kurofu, 80, 88, 145
  Kval, 64, 130
  Languages, 189, 192, 161-166
  
  — 210 — 
  Last Kingdom, 80, 82-82, 120-121, 135, 156, 188
  Linium, 28, 32-33, 35, 90, 115, 138, 155
  Living ghoul, 38, 60, 93, 138, 135
  Lizardfolk, 31, 45, 110-113, 120, 130, 189
  Lotus Blossom Steppes, 71, 80, 82, 94, 108, 121, 186, 
  192
  Lunomancy, 166
  Lyvalia, 46-47, 51, 59, 62, 84, 86-87, 140
  M
  Maenad, 59, 130
  Magic, 164, 167-174, 193
  Magic-dead areas, 96, 97, 106, 120, 165
  Magic items (new), 167, 169, 176, 203
  Mahrog, 4, 24,-25, 131, 162
  Mâl, 9, 22, 52-53, 72, 98-99, 108, 115, 121, 123, 128, 
  140, 151, 189-191
  Mâlite, 22,-23, 26-27, 57, 73, 81, 98-99, 115, 121, 
  126, 129, 131, 151, 191
  Mal’eket, see Firelord Mal’eket
  Methysti, see Shankhil
  Middle Kingdoms, 9, 26, 30, 32, 42, 60, 84, 118, 120, 
  153-156, 163-164, 193, 197
  Mirkdwellers, see Gillman
  Monasteries, 65, 80-81, 86, 102
  Money, see Currency
  Moon/Sun Cult, 152
  Moons, 6, 7, 10, 58, 75, 143, 166
  Morah’Silvanath, 88
  Mountains; Abancoi, 12, Birdman 18-19, Calinsur, 
  19, 23, Canta’Silvanath, 88-89, Dagger Peaks, 54, 55, 
  Fireyes, 104, Inuiak, 77, Maw, 95, Pinnacle 103, Purple, 
  8, 9, 104, Rai-Tao, 80, Reverse Lands, 14, Silent, 9, 10, 
  Wyrm, 94, Zirak Ziur. 18
  Mount Xoa, 30, 55, 90, 186, 191
  Muse, 22-23, 131
  Myketa, 19, 105, 143
  N
  Nagaji, 82-83, 131
  Najim, 147
  Nemyth Vaar, 7, 10, 15, 66-67, 143, 166
  New Gods, 138 et al.
  NewGod War, 7, 9, et al.
  New Wathis, 37, 92, 190
  New Way, The 30-31, 136-137, 152
  Nise, 46-47, 58, 110, 140, 163
  Northlands, 13, 60, 78-79, 94, 121, 177, 188, 190
  Nor-Du-Mag, 7, 9, 19, 87, 96, 115-117, 154, 166, 175, 
  187, 189
  Numistian, 61, 102, 114-115, 131
  O
  Oakling, 74, 131, 152
  Obitu, 59, 131, 135
  Oceans, see Seas
  Oncoming Wave of Mâl, 72, 98, 120, 124
  Ogrillon, 12, 132
  Ophiduan, 116-117, 131
  Orcam, 132, 151
  Orders and Organizations, 86, 176
  Orcs, 4-7, 9, 12, 28-29, 46, 54, 56, 66-67, 74-77, 97, 
  104, 124, 132, 136, 164, 166-167, 171, 184
  P
  Paletius, 51, 64-65, 70, 82, 94, 140
  Parl Pardesh, 9, 27, 57, 65, 100, 120, 156, 158, 164, 
  193
  Pantheist, 137 
  Pazuzu, 18, 128, 151
  Personages, 194
  Pinnacle Lands, 42, 102, 110, 120, 136, 175-176, 180, 
  189
  Pium, 43, 84, 189
  Plant life, unusual, 24, 157
  Poison Wave, 74, 110, 133, 148
  Polkan, 63, 82, 132
  Porphyrite 7, ~Borders 8, 25-28, 36, 39, 46, 52-54, 
  80-81, 88, ~Dragon 94, 97, 100-104, 116-117, 12-121, 
  127, 137, 140, 152, 154-156, 159,  165, 178, 192, 193
  Prestige Classes, 180
  Protean Lords, 40, 148
  Psionics, 102-103, 127, 132, 175-176
  Purple Mountain, 8, 9, 104, 117, 189, 192
  Pygmy Nations, 106, 126, 192
  Pyynian Coast, 36, 108, 110, 115, 156, 157, 165, 171, 
  186, 189
  Q
  Qarryn, see Djinnlord Qarryn
  Qit’ar, 42, 54, 86, 133, 162
  R
  Rainbow Isles, 11, 20, 110, 121, 133, 161, 189, 190
  
  — 211 — 
  Rajuk Amon-Gore, 26-27, 38-39, 61, 76-77, 93, 137, 
  145, 151
  Ratfolk, 80-81, 93, 133
  Relluk, 110-111, 133
  Ressiheksis, 41, 150
  Risen Gods, 7, 143
  Rivers; Almeera, 23, Ashaal, 52, Chiuta, 6, 44, Drool, 
  6, 76, Glace, 95, Lon, 87, Lowen, 65, Old Man Baily, 
  65, Oliti, 6, 7, 36-37, Rai, 81, Rhenguld, 51, Sen, 87, 
  Stygus, 104, Trollwater, 6, 75, West, 87
  Rolterra, 9, 22-23, 26-27, 77, 84, 86, 91, 101, 126, 
  131, 137, 140, 155
  Rotwald, 191, 84
  S
  Sahaugin, 46-47, 110-111, 133, 190
  Samsaran, 6, 81-83, 133
  Saren, 53, 57, 64, 74-75, 88, 110, 140, 151, 161
  Satyrine, 58, 133
  Saurian, 6, 56, 70-71, 79, 134, 151, 189
  Scrublands, 57, 88
  Seas, 47, 58, 98, listing 120
  Serenity Guard, 86, 170, 180
  Serpentfolk, 46-47, 134, 162
  Sessenaileama, 150
  Seven Principalities, 9, 112, 125, 156, 165, 178, 189, 
  191
  Shade, 14-15, 26-27, 108-109, 145, 155, 177
  Shankhil, 8, 37, 53, 55, 93, 104, 140, 155, 166, 178
  Sharira, see Pinnacle Lands
  Sikoyan Tundra, 83, 94, 151
  Skandari, see Kingdom of Iskandar
  Skulks, 14-15, 125, 134, 151
  Solekniamendra, 150
  Spells (new), 8, 154
  Squole, 11, 97, 134
  S’sluun, 47, 122, 134, 148
  Strix, 18-19, 135
  T
  Taddol, 61, 135
  Tall Tyrant, see Ice Tyrant
  Tengu, 13, 80, 83, 135, 157, 163
  Teiflings, 81, 108, 135
  Time Measurement, 153
  Timeline, 9
  Toma Thule, 7, 15, 31, 28-29, 53, 66, 70, 113, 137, 
  145
  Trade, 155
  Trade Consortium of Blix, 114
  Traits; campaign 193, faith 152, regional 186-192, 
  social 185
  Tulis, 66, 79, 101, 140
  Trogolodyte, 116, 135
  Ul’Ul, 9, 14-15, 26, 60-61, 143
  Underdeep, 26, 28, 34, 103, 116, 162, 192
  Urisk, 18, 64, 135
  V
  Veiloraria, 14, 35, 42, 62, 90, 143, 155
  Vestrivissia, 150
  Vinterre, 84, 86-87, 154, 158, 191, 197
  Vortain, 40, 90-91, 108, 137, 143, 151, 155
  W
  Wall of Sleep, 9, 14, 26, 87; see also Hesteria
  Wastes of Simoon, 34, 36, 52, 84, 118, 155, 166, 171, 
  184, 186, 192
  Weather, 8, 20, 74, 90, 98-99, 121, 165-166
  Wind of Jewels, 135, 145
  World Tree, see Morah’silvanath
  X
  Xax, 18-19, 50, 61, 128, 135
  Xeph, 50, 102, 136
  Xesa, 24-25, 51, 152, 136
  Y
  Y’malikorim, 150
  Yolana, 36, 51, 72, 78-79, 143
  Y’Tinasni, 150
  Z
  Zaelendris, 41, 150
  Zelasindrillis, 41, 151
  Zendik Council, 7, 203
  Zendiqi, 6, 20, 22, 30, 31, 36-37, 50-53, 56-59, 84, 97, 
  109, 115, 118-119, 129, 136, 137, 145, 152, 155, 158-
  160, 164-167, 170-171, 179, 190-193
  Zif, 14, 15, 23, 136
  
  — 212 — 
  OPEN GAME LICENSE Version 1.0a
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  Quick, Sean K Reynolds, F. Wesley Schneider, Leandra Christine Schneider, David 
  Schwartz, Amber E. Scott, Stan!, Owen K.C. Stephens, Todd Stewart, James L. Sut-
  ter, Greg A. Vaughan, Jeremy Walker, and JD Wiker.
  Pathfinder Companion: Sargava, the Lost Colony. Copyright 2010, Paizo Publishing, 
  LLC; Author: JD Wiker.
  Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Advanced Race Guide © 2012, Paizo Publishing, 
  LLC; Authors: Dennis Baker, Jesse Benner, Benjamin Bruck, Jason Bulmahn, Adam 
  Daigle, Jim Groves, Tim Hitchcock, Hal MacLean, Jason Nelson, Stephen Radney-
  MacFarland, Owen K.C. Stephens, Todd Stewart, and Russ Taylor.
  Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Bestiary © 2009, Paizo Publishing, LLC; Author: Jason 
  Bulmahn, based on material by Jonathan Tweet, Monte Cook, and Skip Williams.
  Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Bestiary 2 © 2010, Paizo Publishing, LLC; Authors: 
  Wolfgang Baur, Jason Bulmahn, Adam Daigle, Graeme Davis, Crystal Frasier, 
  Joshua J. Frost, Tim Hitchcock, Brandon Hodge, James Jacobs, Steve Kenson, Hal 
  MacLean, Martin Mason, Rob McCreary, Erik Mona, Jason Nelson, Patrick Renie, 
  Sean K Reynolds, F. Wesley Schneider, Owen K.C. Stephens, James L. Sutter, Russ 
  Taylor, and Greg A. Vaughan, based on material by Jonathan Tweet, Monte Cook, 
  and Skip Williams.
  Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Bestiary 3 © 2011, Paizo Publishing, LLC; Authors: 
  Jesse Benner, Jason Bulmahn, Adam Daigle, James Jacobs, Michael Kenway, Rob 
  McCreary, Patrick Renie, Chris Sims, F. Wesley Schneider, James L. Sutter, and Russ 
  Taylor, based on material by Jonathan Tweet, Monte Cook, and Skip Williams.
  
  — 213 — 
  Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Core Rulebook © 2011, Paizo Publishing, LLC; 
  Author: Jason Bulmahn, based on material by Jonathan Tweet, Monte Cook, and 
  Skip Williams.
  Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Ultimate Combat. © 2011, Paizo Publishing, LLC; 
  Authors: Jason Bulmahn, Tim Hitchcock, Colin McComb, Rob McCreary, Jason 
  Nelson, Stephen Radney-MacFarland, Sean K Reynolds, Owen K.C. Stephens, and 
  Russ Taylor.
  Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Ultimate Magic. © 2011, Paizo Publishing, LLC; 
  Authors: Jason Bulmahn, Tim Hitchcock, Colin McComb, Rob McCreary, Jason 
  Nelson, Stephen Radney-MacFarland, Sean K Reynolds, Owen K.C. Stephens, and 
  Russ Taylor.
  Pathfinder RPG GameMastery Guide, © 2010, Paizo Publishing, LLC; Author: 
  Cam Banks, Wolfgang Buar, Jason Bulmahn, Jim Butler, Eric Cagle, Graeme Davis, 
  Adam Daigle, Joshua J. Frost, James Jacobs, Kenneth Hite, Steven Kenson, Robin 
  Laws, Tito Leati, Rob McCreary, Hal Maclean, Colin McComb, Jason Nelson, David 
  Noonan, Richard Pett, Rich Redman, Sean K reynolds, F. Wesley Schneider, Amber 
  Scorr, Doug Seacat, Mike Selinker, Lisa Stevens, James L. Sutter, Russ Taylor, Penny 
  Williams, Skip Williams, Teeuwynn Woodruff.
  Psionic Bestiary, © 2013, Dreamscarred Press.
  Psionics Augmented, © 2013, Dreamscarred Press
  Psionics Unleashed, © 2010, Dreamscarred Press.
  Remarkable Races: Compendium of Unusual PC Races, Pathway to Adventure Edi-
  tion. Copyright 2009, Alluria Publishing; Author: J. Matthew Kubisz
  Swords of Our Fathers, Copyright 2003, The Game Mechanics.
  The Book of Experimental Might, © 2008, Monte J. Cook. All rights reserved.
  The Genius Guide To: Feats of Psionic Might. Copyright 2011, Super Genius 
  Games. Author: Owen K.C. Stephens
  The Iconic Bestiary: Classics of Fantasy, © 2005, Lions Den Press; Author Ari 
  Marmell
  Tome of Horrors © 2002, Necromancer Games, Inc.; Authors: Scott Greene, with 
  Clark Peterson, Erica Balsley, Kevin Baase, Casey Christofferson, Lance Hawvermale, 
  Travis Hawvermale, Patrick Lawinger, and Bill Webb; Based on original content from 
  TSR.
  Ultimate Psionics, © 2013, Dreamscarred Press
  Unearthed Arcana, © 2004, Wizards of the Coast, Inc.; Authors Andy Collins, Jesse 
  Decker, David Noonan, Rich Redman
  Assassins of Porphyra. Copyright 2015, Purple Duck Games; Author Carl
  Cramér.
  Barbarians of Porphyra, Copytight 2014, Purple Duck Games; Author
  Perry Fehr.
  Bards of Porphyra, Copytight 2014, Purple Duck Games; Author Perry Fehr.
  Cavaliers of Porphyra. Copyright 2014, Purple Duck Games; Author Perry Fehr
  Chi Warrior © 2015, Purple Duck Games; Author Brian Jolly (N. Jolly). 
  Covenant Magic: Further Covenants. Copyright 2015, Purple Duck Games; Author: 
  Julian Neale.
  Drow of Porphyra - The Karza © 2015, Purple Duck Games. Author Patricia Wil-
  lenborg
  Elemental Lords of Porphyra © 2013, Purple Duck Games; Author: Perry Fehr.
  Fehr’s Ethnology Complete, Copyright 2015, Purple Duck Games; Author
  Perry Fehr.
  Godmetals of Porphyra ©2013, Purple Duck Games; Author: Mark Gedak.
  Heroes of the Azag-Ithiel. Copyright 2015, Purple Duck Games; Author: Treyson 
  Sanders.
  Heroes of the Birdman Mountains © 2015, Purple Duck Games; Author Mike 
  Welham.
  Heroes of the Fenian Triarchy © 2013, Purple Duck Games; Author: Josh McCrow-
  ell.
  Heroes of the Middle Kingdoms, Copyright 2014, Purple Duck Games; Authors 
  Perry Fehr, Mark Gedak.
  Heroes of the Siwathi Desert, Copyright 2014, Purple Duck Games. Authors Perry 
  Fehr & Josh McCrowell.
  Legendary Classes: Covenant Magic, © 2013, Purple Duck Games; Author: David 
  Nicholas Ross.
  Legendary Classes: More Covenant Magic, © 2014, Purple Duck Games; Author: 
  Julian Neale.
  Legendary Classes: Illuminatus © 2014, Purple Duck Games; Author David Nicho-
  las Ross.
  Legendary Classes: Rune Magic, © 2013, Purple Duck Games; Author: Josh
  McCrowell.
  Legendary Classes: Sacredote. © 2015, Purple Duck Games; Author: Carl Cramér
  Legendary Classes: The Rook © 2011, Purple Duck Games; Author Thomas Baum-
  bach.
  Legendary Races: Cyclops. © 2010, Published by Purple Duck Games; Author: 
  Stefen Styrsky.
  Legendary Races: Harpy © 2012, Purple Duck Games; Authors: Josh McCrowell. 
  Additional Writing: Perry Fehr, Sam Hing.
  Legendary Races: Medusa. © 2011, Published by Purple Duck Games; Author: 
  Stefen Styrsky
  Legendary Races: Rakshasa © 2011, Published by Purple Duck Games; Authors: 
  Mark Gedak, Stefen Styrsky
  Legendary Races: Sphinx. Copyright 2015, Purple Duck Games; Authors Perry Fehr 
  and Julian Neale.
  Memorable Townsfolk. Copyright 2012 Purple Duck Games; Author David Nicholas 
  Ross.
  Monsters of Porphyra, Copyright 2014, Purple Duck Games. Author Mark Gedak.
  Monstrous Races, copyright 2011, Purple Duck Games; Authors: Mark Gedak,
  Stefen Styrsky
  Monstrous Races: Second Horde, copyright 2011, Purple Duck Games; Author:
  Thomas Baumbach.
  Nobles of Porphyra © 2015, Purple Duck Games; Author Carl Cramér
  Oracles of Porphyra, Copyright 2013, Purple Duck Games. Author Perry Fehr
  Paladins of Porphyra, Copytight 2014, Purple Duck Games; Author Perry
  Fehr.
  Protean Lords of Porphyra. Copyright 2015, Purple Duck Games. Author Todd 
  Stewart.
  Puppets of Porphyra. Copyright 2014, Purple Duck Games. Author: Perry Fehr.
  Purple Duck Storeroom: Arbakampsi © Purple Duck Games; Author Perry Fehr.
  Purple Mountain: Temple of the Locust Lord © 2011, Mark Gedak; Published by 
  Purple Duck Games.
  Purple Mountain II: Desolate Dwarven Delve. Copyright 2012, Purple Duck Games. 
  Author: David Nicholas Ross.
  Purple Mountain III: The Feasting © 2012, Purple Duck Games; Author Perry Fehr.
  Purple Mountain IV: The Magmadome. Copyright 2013, Purple Duck Games; 
  Authors: Ken Austin, David Pryzbyla.
  Purple Mountain V: The Descent © 2013, Purple Duck Games; Author Josh Mc-
  Crowell.
  Purple Mountain VI: The Well of Stars © 2013, Purple Duck Games; Author Perry 
  Fehr.
  Purple Mountain VII: Domain of the Hidden God. Copyright 2014, Purple Duck
  Games; Author Perry Fehr.
  Rangers of Porphyra. Copyright 2015, Purple Duck Games.; Author Perry Fehr.
  Random Encounters Remastered: Porphyra, Copyright 2015, Purple Duck Games. 
  Author David N. Ross.
  The Gods of Porphyra © 2012, Purple Duck Games; Authors: Christopher Kaiser, 
  Perry Fehr, Mark Gedak, August Hahn, John Hazen, Sean Holland, Sam Hing, 
  James H. Lewis, Chris Longhurst, Scott Messer, Sean O’Connor, David Nicholas 
  Ross, and Jeremy Whalen
  The Kingpin. © 2015, Purple Duck Games; Author Angel “ARMR” Miranda
  The Grand OGL Wiki, http://grandwiki.wikidot.com Copyright 2008-2011 Purple 
  Duck Games; Authors: Mark Gedak, Alex Schroeder, Joel Arellano, George Fields, 
  Yair Rezek, Mike Whalen, Shane O’Connor, Mike Rickard, John Whamond, Bill 
  Browne, Eric Williamson, Slatz Grubnik, Charles R. Wenzler Jr, John Fraser, Jona-
  thon Thompson, Thomas Boxall.
  Lands of Porphyra © 2015, Purple Duck Games; Authors: Ken Austin, Thomas 
  Baumbach, Carl Cramér, Daniel Denehy, Perry Fehr, Mark Gedak, August Hahn, 
  Noble Hays, John Hazen, Sam Hing, Sean Holland, N. Jolly, Christopher Kaiser, 
  James H. Lewis, Chris Longhurst, Liz Mackie, Josh McCrowell, Christopher Men-
  nell, Scott Messer, Angel “ARMR” Miranda, Julian Neale, Daniel M. Perez, David 
  Pryzbyla, Marc Radle, David N. Ross, Treyson Sanders, Justin Sluder, Todd Stewart, 
  Stefen Styrsky, Mike Welham, Jeremy Whelan, Patricia Willenborg.
  Pathfinder is a registered trademark of Paizo Inc., and the Pathfinder Roleplaying 
  Game and the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Compatibility Logo are trademarks 
  of Paizo Inc., and are used under the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Compatibility 
  License. See http://paizo.com/ pathfinderRPG/compatibility for more information 
  on the compatibility license.
  Open Game Content: All Text is Open Game Content
  Support our Monsters of Porphyra patreon at: https://www.patreon.com/
  PDG?ty=h&u=51630
  
SOURCE: textdata/thevault/Pathfinder/1st Edition/3rd Party/Purple Duck Games/Porphyra Campaign Setting/Lands of Porphyra - Campaign Setting.pdf