A really long post

So lately I've been working on a D&D campaign I'm going to be running over Ventrilo for some people from the PAA forums. Since I'm always looking for feedback on my campaigns, I'm going to post the background information I've written up for it here. I'm fairly sure this will end up as one of my longest posts.

The Big Picture Stuff

Representing the basic facts commonly known, and the beliefs commonly held.

Geography

A subject the average person has only a limited grasp of beyond their local area. Still most people know that wizards and sages refer to their world as a whole as Ainwaith (long “a” in both syllables). The concept of continents is also a bit shaky for the average person, but again most know that wizards, sages, and other learned types call their landmass Tirith, or more commonly western Tirith. Most know that Tirith stretches far to the east where the wild barbarians of Kesh and other even less civilized people make their homes. Most have heard that to the west across the vast ocean lies another strange land, the exact details of which vary by who is telling the tale, but usually boil down to monsters out of your worst nightmare live there. It is widely known that far to the south beyond the Great Middle Sea lies a vast land of fire that even the mighty Vodaccian Empire dared not explore too deeply. To the north is a land of ice and home to the Thrain barbarians, although most just call them Northmen.

History

Once long ago, farther back than mortal minds can easily comprehend, before the gods decided to populate the world with its current abundance of thinking peoples, there were the four first born races: the elves, the dwarves, the giants, and the dragons. For countless ages these four races were masters of all the world, until gods brought forth the younger races (more than one dwarf has been heard to lament the passing of this golden age in a tavern after his 20th ale or so).

Naturally once the younger races showed up things started getting interesting. Most importantly the human city of Vodacce (vo - dauch - cha) was founded on an island in the Great Middle Sea just off the southern coast of Tirith. It was here that humans figured out the secrets of civilization that the elves and dwarves had been reluctant to share with them. The people of Vodacce felt quite compelled to share the glory of civilization with other the humans (and the halflings and gnomes) of western Tirith. And after about three centuries Vodacce found itself in command of a vast empire covering most of western Tirith (as well as some lands to the east, and holdings on the northern shores of the lands of fire across the Great Middle Sea).

For the next 800 years or so the people of western Tirith prospered under the Pax Vodacia until the terrible Vash Khan drove his hordes of barbarian Keshian horsemen westward from the empty plains of eastern Tirith and pillaging half of western Tirith, laying siege to, and finally sacking the city of Vodacce itself forever sundering the Vodaccian empire some four centuries ago. Most humans stop the story at this point, elves and dwarves go on to point out that the Vodaccian empire had been in decline for nearly three centuries, and in steady decline for just over one century prior to the Keshian invasion. Even then the Vodaccian empire likely would have survived and even greatly limited the Keshian damage had it not been preoccupied in a particularly nasty civil war stemming over succession to the imperial throne. They also point out it was the elves and dwarves who rallied the sundering Vodaccian provinces to limit the Keshian’s pillaging to only half of western Tirith, and and led them to eventually drive the Keshians back to eastern Tirith.

With all major claimants to the Vodaccian throne dead at the hands of the Keshian horsemen the empire broke apart into numerous successor states usually along provincial lines. Although some of the farther flung areas of the empire reverted to barbarism. The Vodaccian empire did leave behind a great network of roads, a common human language, and its fair share of ruins (the latter being of most interest to those adventurer types).

The more immediate picture stuff

Geography

The campaign will start in the Elvish Kingdom of Myhree (My - hree, like hurry but without the u). The bulk of the kingdom is found in the Shalto river valley which is mainly comprised of great forest of Lonthalas. It is ruled by King Malgalad, Elfking of the Seelie Court of Myhree, Lord of the Glittering Throng, Defender of the Forest of Lonthalas, Blessed of the Moon, Protector of the March of Adarond. Myhree is bound to the north by the mountains of Durnhold and the dwarven kingdom of the same name - at least that is its name in the common tongue. The dwarves have basically given up correcting the pronunciation, but in their tongue the kingdom and mountains are called Dernharad (DERN - ha - rad) which translates into common as rock home, and both dwarves and humans will sometimes refer to the kingdom (but never the mountains) as Rockholm. The elves call both the kingdom and the mountains Basa Ashvae (BA - sa ASCH - va), which also translates into common and rock home. Myhree is bound to the south by the Wulfspeak mountains, or in elven Warga Basalon (WAR - ga BA sa lon) which translates into common as wolves’ mountains. The denizens of these mountains are far less friendly than the elves' neighbors to the north, and are comprised mainly of various goblin tribes, and a few particularly antisocial tribes of stone giants. Myhree is bound on the west by the ocean.

Myhree’s traditional eastern border was the eastern edge of forest of Lonthalas with the lands beyond being home to scattered tribes of humans and halflings, which later became the Vodaccian province of Adarond. Since the partitioning of Adarond Myhree’s eastern border now continues northeast upstream along both sides of the Shalto river until the Kron hills (foothills of the Durnhold mountains). From this point the lands north of the Shalto belong to the dwarves of Durnhold. Myhree’s lands continue northeast long the southern banks of the Shalto as it runs the southern length of the Kron hills. At the southeastern edge of the Kron hills the Shalto turns west (well really since the Shalto runs from the east to the west it hits the Kron hills and turns to the southwest before flowing into old Myhree, but we are following the river upstream so bare with me) and marks the northern boarder of Myhree’s new territory (the Machland of Adarond). Northwest of the Shalto is the County of Adarond the Dunhold’s equivalent of Myhree’s March of Adarond. North and northeast of the Shalto the lands were only nominally under the control of the Vodaccian empire and as such after its fall they quickly reverted to wilderness with scattered independent freeholds. Far to the north are found the cruel Northmen and the land of ice they call home. There isn’t any real geographic border to Myhree’s east. The Elf kingdom lays claim to all the land within a weeks ride east by horse from the edge of the Lonthalas forest (in reality more like 10 days ride unless you feel like killing a few horses during the trip). Beyond the eastern reaches of Myhree lies wilderness - peopled by scattered tribes of different races and a few independent minded freeholds - for a good weeks travel by horse before another surviving successor state of the Vodaccian empire is found. The southern border of Myhree’s expanded territory follows the old provincial boundary and the Duchy of Sohma (a human power and obviously a successor state) lies to the south. A journey from March of Adarond’s southern border to its northern one would take about five days by horse.

History
About 380 years before the start of the campaign the Vodaccian empire broke apart for reasons described above. Aside from providing aid to their southern and eastern brethren in halting and driving out the Keshian invaders the elves and dwarves of Myhree and Dernharad didn’t pay this event too much heed. So long as humans remained reasonable trading partners, and otherwise left them alone, they were content to leave the humans alone. Had Adarond followed the example of most of the other provinces Myhree would still enjoy its original borders, and its state of pseudo insolation. However Adarond broke up into numerous fiefs composed mainly of bandits, brigands, and other petty warlords (with just enough of the local Vodaccian nobility managing to protect their own personal fiefs to provide the bandit lords ample raiding targets). This state of affairs continued on for about 50 years until a particularly successful bandit lord named Mallory changed everything. Mallory managed to take over the holdings of six other petty lords and looked like he was well on his way to reuniting Adarond when for reasons lost to history he decided to shift his focus west to the kingdom of Myhree. He sacked the village of Elengalrion (EL - en - gal - rion)- which means Evening Star in common - putting most of its nearly 800 members to the sword and burning the Lonthalas forest for ten miles in every direction.

The elves, as can be expected, were furious. Their dwarven neighbors saw this as an opportunity, while they had suffered no signal massacre to equal the horror visited upon Elengalrion, the dwarves were always more focused on trade than the elves, and fifty years of trying to move goods to the markets in the south through bandit infested lands (yes they have an ocean on the western border of their kingdom, but dwarves do not sail) had more than tried their patience. The dwarven ambassador in Myhree offered the Elf King his peoples sincere condolences for their loss, and a plan to prevent it from happening again. Dernharad and Myhree divided Adarond in half (mainly along the Shalto river) and each conquered and pacified their half. The campaign lasted about ten years, but elves and dwarves are nothing if not patient. Mallory and most other bandit lords were hauled away to Myhree proper to face the Elf King’s justice; for two generations after the annexation humans whispered among themselves that the lilies at the Elk King’s court bloomed red from the blood of the executed bandit lords (to this day the elves of Myhree consider it a great insult to be presented with a red colored flower by any other race as they feel it is akin to being called a murderer). To the northwest the dwarves handled the justice in a much more direct manor, when they bothered to accept the surrender of a defeated bandit lord, they simply found the local people he had most preyed upon and let them decide the prisoner’s fate.

The Marchland of Adarond

Margrave Landon Spellsword is the current ruler of the March, and is a controversial figure both there and back in Myhree proper as he is a half elf and the first person to command the fief who wasn’t a full blooded elf. He is the acknowledged bastard child of the previous Margrave Saranathal Mithedel (SAR - an - a - thal MITH - e - del) who abdicated the March to him in a surprise announcement about six years prior to the start of the campaign. Why he did so, and how he convinced King Malgalad to approve such an action is a topic still subject to intense speculation both by peasants and nobles alike. Strangely Saranathal left the kingdom shortly after abdicating and his current whereabouts are not common knowledge (and thus another topic ripe for wild speculation among both the peasants and nobility). Saranathal’s legitimate son Gilthalion (GIL - thal - ion), prior to Saranathal’s surprise abdication the heir apparent to the March, remains and serves Landon as his chief advisor and court wizard. As if his parentage were not source enough for controversy, the margrave - as his chosen surname indicates - was a mercenary prior his accepting his peerage.

In addition to the Margrave’s direct holdings the March is composed of 32 baronies: 14 ruled by human barons, 17 by elven barons, and 1 by a half-elf baron. Ten of the human barons can trace their reign back to the days of the Vodaccian empire. For administrative purposes most barons divide their fief up into between four and eight shires overseen by various constables, bailiffs, and reeves. The city of Dortmund (approximately 6000 residents) is the March’s capital, and only true urban area. The northern and eastern areas of the March are mainly plains broken up by the occasional woods while the southern and western areas grow increasing more hilly especially as one travels southwest towards the Wulfspeak mountains. Most streams and rivers in the March flow north and west out of those hills and into the Shalto river.

The Barony of Umbria

The campaign will start here. The barony is March’s most northeasterly territory, and its only one ruled by a half-elf. The baron, one Archer Witherwind - a former mercenary colleague of the margrave, has held the barony for the last five years. He was installed as baron after the previous lord, a human named Kanto, died without heir. While he suffered the standard reaction most half-elves get, too human for elves and too elven for humans, his rule has begun to win the people over. Kanto, and both his father and grandfather before him, had all be unremarkable barons. Not incompetent, nor corrupt, but neither were they driven, nor particularly interested in doing anything beyond maintaining the status quo. Archer has undertaken a long list of improvements to the barony’s infrastructure and financed it all out of his own pocket a move that not surprisingly has proved most popular among the residents of Umbria. Persistent rumors state that Archer suffered a grievous injury (or possibly a horrible magical malady, or terrible curse) that forced him to retire from his mercenary work. He politely changes the subject when questioned about his days as a mercenary.

Umbria’s largest population center is the village of Alesbury located near the baron’s keep alone the banks of the Shalto river. It has some five hundred residents; about 80% human. Archer’s most recent project is converting the village’s defensive outer wall from a wooden stockade to proper stone work (his words). Alesbury itself is overseen by a council of elders.

To the west and southwest of Umbria is the barony of Zephon ruled by the elven baroness Eladil Calamdel (EL - a - dil CAL - am - del). Relations between the baronies are polite, but formal. Eladil has been baroness in Zephon since before Archer’s last three predecessors ruled Umbria and it is a widely known secret that she exerted considerable influence over Kanto. Acher seems unlikely to allow Eladil’s opinions to hold as much sway in Umbria, although all of her public statements to date have been extremely generous towards Archer a few have even come remarkably close to criticizing the rule of Kanto.

To the south of Umbria is the barony of Tamsyn (TAM - zuhn) still ruled by the human family of the same name. The family Tamsyn can trace their nobility back to the vary founding of Adarond as a Vodaccian province, and boasts a history as one of the few Vodaccian noble families to be largely successful in defending their holdings and peasants from the worst of the banditry during the days after the fall of the empire. While the family was certainly grateful to Myhree for ending the threat posed by the bandits, they were never particularly receptive to the idea of elven rule over Adarond. The current baron is Ahthelrad Tamsyn (ah - thel - rad). It is common speculation that the baron is sympathetic to the aims of the Wind Dukes.

Points of Interest in and around Umbria

The Akaya Marsh
A marshland along the northern banks of the Shalto river located about a day and a half east of Alesbury (by horse). Lizardmen are known to inhabit the marsh.

Alesbury
The largest village in Umbria (around 500 people). The nearby presence of the baron’s keep makes it the defacto capital. It is located along the southern banks of the Shalto River and is generally considered to be the eastern border of Umbria (and thus Adarond).

The Blackfang tribe
A nomadic goblin tribe that has been driven south by the events to the north. They launch occasional raids into the northern and eastern baronies of Adarond.

The Daven River
A river that flows out of the Vulture Hills northwest across Umbria and into the Shalto River at Elmshire.

Davenford
A mostly human hamlet (300 people) located just northwest of the Vulture Hills along the Daven river, near the border with Tamsyn. The ford for which the hamlet is named as long since been replaced with a bridge. Davenford is a local trade way stop. Most goods from Tamsyn and points farther south pass through Davenford and either continue north to Alesbury, or northwest down the river to Elmshire. Much trade also heads back upstream from Elmshire or south from Alesbury to Davenford and then into Tamsyn and beyond.

Elmshire
An predominately halfling hamlet (about 250 people) located along the southern banks of the Shalto river where the Daven river flows into it and against the border with Zephon. Elmshire is a trade way stop. Most goods headed for Myhree go there via the Shalto river, so most trade headed west is either brought to Elmshire for shipping or arrives there from Alesbury or Davenford via river travel.

The Shalto
A major river that marks the northern border of Umbria (and much of the March of Adarond). It eventually flows into Myhree.

The Tanglewood
A very old growth forest whose southern border is not quite a days ride north of Alesbury. It is so called because the trails and paths through it seem to shift and change location. Peasants routinely declare that it is haunted. It is also known that an ogre named Thulak makes his lair in the southern Tanglewood. Strangely King Malgalad has decreed that Thulak posses no danger to Adarond and should be left alone.

The Vulture Hills
A rocky bunch of hills that mark the eastern and southern border of Umbria. So named both for their large population of vultures, and for Vulture point. The hills periodically become infested with Kobolds until an expedition is mounted by either Umbria or Tamsyn to route them out. The last one was undertaken 10 years ago by the late baron Kanto.

Vulture Point
A rocky outcropping atop the largest of the hills that comprise the Vulture Hills. It bares a striking resemblance to a vulture with wings outstretched. Some speculate it may have been carved, perhaps by the kobolds.

The Dragon Kingdom

About ten years ago Myhree, Dernharad, and other lands first started noting the rumors coming down from the far north. Whispered stories of a half-orc warlord rallying orcs, hobgoblins, barbarians, and even, in some of the more wild stories, dragons to his side. These sorts of rumors crop up from time to time, and most dismissed them as nothing more than a tavern tale. Then the first of the refugees arrived in the south. Thrain peasants fleeing their Jarldoms, displaced barbarian tribesman, scattered bands of orcs, and even whole tribes of goblins made the journey south out of the lands of ice. The tales they told confirmed much of whispered rumors of this half-orc. He had united the Yellowdeath, and Twospears hobgoblin tribes with the Severedhand orc tribe and then raided several and eventually conquered a Thrain Jarldom. His success attracted more tribes of orcs, hobgoblins, and even a few barbarians. Over the next five years his army conquered another three Jarldoms before he halted his advances, presumably to consolidate his holdings.

In the four and a half years since he stopped his conquests little more has been learned of this warlord. It is believed that his name is Garthag, of his origins nothing is known, but the most popular of recent rumors is while one of his parents was an orc, the other was clearly something a bit more demonic than a human. Shortly after his conquests halted his forces started using a battle standard depicting a two-colored, two-headed dragon: black on the right side, red on the left. It is from this that people started using the name Dragon Kingdom to describe Garthag’s holdings. Many with experience in politics and/or warcraft think Garthag must soon resume raiding, if not attempt more conquests, or risk his disparate army splintering apart.

The Wind Dukes

The lands of southwest Tirith along the shores of the Great Middle Sea were among the first acquisitions of the emerging Vodaccian Empire, and so long were they held that their people enjoyed a standard of living equal to that of the residents of the city of Vodacce itself. This area was also spared the mercies of the Keshian invaders at the fall of the Vodaccian Empire. By all rights this area should have been the wellspring for western Tirith’s recovery from the Keshian invasion; the rulers of this area, however, proved to be far more interested in pursing personal political gain. The first century after the fall saw the worst of the outright warfare between the former provinces and once they had exhausted themselves militarily their infighting became more political while all sides rebuilt their armies. Things would likely have eventually erupted into another round of free for all open warfare were it not for events in a small county.

About two hundred years ago (about 80 years after the outright warfare had ended) Kestral, Count of Avavil (Av - a - vil), was pressing his feudal master Darius, Duke of Bonham for greater autonomy. Every Avavilan count since the fall of the empire had been making similar demands to the Bonhamer dukes, but Darius, who fancied himself a skilled general, saw this annoyance as an opportunity to give his army a little experience and perhaps as a stepping stone towards some future conquest of neighboring territories. The Duchy’s army launched a surprise attack on its rebellious province, but things quickly took a surprising turn. The Duke of Bonham’s estimation in his own military prowess proved to be grossly inflated, while Kestral revealed himself to be military mind the likes of which humanity hadn’t seen since the dread Vash Khan drove his Keshian horseman to the gates of Vodacce itself some 180 years prior. Once Darius’ ill-advised assault on the County of Avavil stalled the lukewarm support his other vassals had provided his efforts quickly dried up, and without a clear numeric advantage the Duke’s forces proved to be little obstacle to the Avavilan army. Particularly impressive was Avavil’s aerial cavalry of griffon riding knights built around a small strike force of warrior mages (lead by Kestral himself who was equally skilled with sword and spell). A short year later when accepting the surrender of his former feudal lord, Kestral declared himself the Wind Duke of Bonham and Avavil.

Flush with success and leading freshly blooded troops Kestral launched a series of campaigns and carved a kingdom for himself out of the successor states in southwestern Tirith. By the time of his death, he had altered his title to Sky Marshal and oversaw a council of seven Wind Dukes; one for each of the six territories he had conquered plus his original holdings of Avavil. Kestral’s military genius is not a trait often repeated. While his successors have all proved to be quite competent in military matters, over its 200 year history the Wind Dukes have come to rely less on straight military conquest and more on advantageous alliances, carefully worded treaties, political opportunism, and economic domination to arrange for the proper circumstances for a well timed annexation as their main tool of expansion. The current Sky Marshal, Gimlyr Ramesh, commands a council of 14 Wind Dukes.

The Marchland of Adarond’s immediate neighbor to the south, the Duchy of Sohma is little more than a client state for the Wind Dukes, most in the Kingdom of Myhree think within a human generation (or perhaps two at the outside) Sohma’s newest ruler will the 15th Wind Duke. The current relations between Myhree and the Wind Dukes are polite, but decidedly neutral. It has not escaped the notice of King Malgalad that every Wind Duke emissary, ambassador, or trade delegation that passes through the March finds opportunity to discuss the benefits of Wind Duke rule with the human nobility and peasantry alike.