The Thornhaven, War of Shadows Campaign
Click here for a Setting Guide for the Chronicles of Arn Game Setting.
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Location[]
The town of Thornhaven , Barony of Briarwood , North Marches during the War of Shadows.
Setting[]
One of the more common time periods to set a game for the Chronicles of Arn is that of the War of Shadows , the cold war that breaks out between the North and South Marches when human wizards become available as true weapons of war. This is a time when assassinations are common, when war is not waged in open fields with archers and lancers but in bedrooms and ballrooms with a knife in the dark. The two regions are charged and ready for open war but no one has a firm target for their aggressions - only accusations and rumor. This is a period of time when fear and suspicion hangs like a cloud over day.
This gives characters a range of time between 858 KR and 889 KR. For this Chronicle it will be 879 KR
Politics[]
This time is filled with political squabbles, petty battles, trade wars and more intrigue than one could stir with an oar. The Kels have become somewhat isolated - leaving the Marches to deal with their own problems for the most part. The Order of the Blazing Sun continues to grow and find support in the South Marches while the Green Wardens patrol the North Marches in search of goblins and Withers.
The chief political border is the Black River , a wide and winding waterway that stretches from the Shield Mountains in the East to the Sentinel Sea to the west. The river is the main artery of trade in the marches connecting every main river town to the Kels and to the the dwarven city of Daedan.
Magic[]
Arcane[]
Humans have been dabbling with arcane magic for nearly a century but none have been able to rise above novice-level (level 1) spells. None of the other races permitted the secrets of arcane magic beyond that skill to be taught. Arcane magic was something demonstrated at parties and such it was not a weapon wielded in war or in open hostilities. The reason for this was the Blue Laws , a series of restrictions placed upon the teaching of arcane magic to humans by the Gizerad ; the Gnomish High Council of Wizards.
After the King of Kel Arn , the capital of the human kingdom on the eastern shores the Sentinel Sea , came to the rescue of the Provinces , the Gnomish kingdom on the western shores of the same sea, the Blue Laws were amended to allow some humans to study the higher magics at the Arcane Academy at Tor Gizad if they passed the Test of Gizad. The test is administered only once a year in the human capital of Kel Arn by members of the Gizerad. They take only nine candidates each year.
With the change in the Blue Laws and humans being able to learn higher magic, a schism began to form within the arcane practioners of the Kels. Do you follow the King and his Order of the Golden Sun that monitor and serve the crown with their magic or do you follow the Azure Council that place the importance of magic and discovery above all political concerns? The Order of the Golden Sun invited any and all arcane workers to the capital where they can be employed by the crown in some aspect or another. Each swore alliegance to the crown and was given a metal bracer to wear upon their left arm. The bracer, emblazoned with the seal of their order, was unable to be removed from ther wearer through any means. It became part of them and ensured that they would never, could never use their magic against the crown or the leaders of the Order. When the opportunity came to increase their power through advanced training at Tor Gizad, naturally the Order assumed that the Gizerad would choose the nine from their ranks. When the Gnomes allowed members of the Azure Council, originally formed as a trade guild of wizards, to test for admittance it was beyond insult.
Divine[]
After the Great Silence which took all divine healing away from the humans for a period of a hundred years, human clerics and paladins were few and far between. Even now, some two-hundred years later, the faith of humanity in the Kels and the Marches seems to be slowly gaining some stability. With the return of the Pentos , the five main gods who protect the world and their lesser kin, the Guardians, most people are respectful of any servant of the faith. That being said - the Great Silence taught humanity a lesson; servants of the faith SERVE their gods rather than the other way around.
Nearly everyone in the human kingdom of the Kels follows one or more gods. Each person has a patron deity that they worship in some form for without a protector they can receive no divine magic. That is to say, should they fail to believe in one of the ten gods (the five greater and the five lesser) they are unable to receive even the slightest of divine magic.
Since Arn , the god of Strength and the Sun, was the first to return to the humans after the Great Silence, he became a dominant figure within human culture. Temples of the Sun out number almost every other god in the human settlements in the Kels and the Marches. Arnan followers, wearing their white tabbard emblazoned with the sun disk upon it, are seen walking in almost every town and major settlement. Arn, The Father, is seen as protector and law-giver within the human settlements and the Order of the Blazing Sun has been tasked with maintaining a sense of justice and law within the human lands. In the years following the Great Silence, the OBS has slowly started to rebuild its numbers and create a presence within the human world but after the Burning Times the paladins of Arn have a lot to account for.
The Order of the New Sun , based in the city of Kingsbridge , attempts to repair that damage by bringing law, order and peace throughout the North and South Marches.
Though the Pentos is a council of all five of the greater gods, the others are not equally represented amongst humanity with perhaps one exception; Amara - the goddess of the moon, waters and of healing. Amarites, as followers of The Mother are called, often wear blue tabbards with her white crescent moon symbol stitched onto the chest. Generally her followers are women and never has one of her clerics and paladins been chosen amognst human men. They provide a much-needed balance to the divine landscape within human society.
Gorm, Gizad and Huran each are found within human settlements but not to the degee by which one finds an Arnan or an Amarite. Worship of Gizad , the god of knowledge, began to spread through the human towns during the Great Silence, his temple-schools, called Priories , offered any the chance to educate themselves in reading, writing, and the basic skills of a literate person. It was the Priories that helped spread the knowledge of alchemy to the humans - a science of potions and elixirs that was, for a time, the only means of medical treatment during the silence. Admittance to the lessons was free but this meant that only those people who lived near a priory could take lessons without paying for living space within the temple walls. Mechants and nobles alike were educated by Gizadi, the title of a follower of Gizad.
Gormundi, the followers of Gorm - the god of craft and the forge, tend to be less vocal about their faith within human settlements. They are tradesmen and the like who errect small shrines to Gorm in their shop or their forge. Few, if any, temples to Gorm have been created in the human lands and those that have are usually in settlements with a strong dwarven presence.
Hurani, followers of Huran - the god of the hunt, are the least represented in the human lands. Favoring the open forest to settlements, Huran followers venerate their god at small shrines in the forest isolated and away from most human towns. Those few Huran temples in the human lands are found in settlemens with a strong elven presence.
Natural[]
Natural magic, the magic of life, is rare within the human lands. As there are no fully-human druids (there are some who are half-born to the Dwarves and the Elves) knowledge and practice of life magic is limited to those who do not fully understand it. During the time of the Great Silence, a large number of Witches - amateur dabblers with life magic - were found scattered in the Marches both north and south. Normally, if found in a settlement, these witches are healers who use herbs and such to perform minor acts of life magic. Those who use "the craft" for their own ends and at the expense of others are shunned from human settlements and must live deep in the forest.
As life magic is the draining of life energy from one source to use in some way upon another, witchcraft became the only means of true healing during the time of Great Silence. Lost limbs could be regrown, sickness could be cured and injury repaired - for a price. Most commonly this came in the form of a sacrifice of an animal to release its life energy and use it for either the benefit of the witch or their patient. This magic was also used to wither limbs, infect whole villages and corrupt the land for those willing to become a Wither , an evil witch.
Because of the spread of Wither-kind the Order of the Blazing Sun spead out to the Marches and would, occasionally, conduct house-to-house searches for the Wither. It is during this time when the line between a witch and a wither became blurred by the Arnans and most people feared both equally but none so much as the OBSwho would burn those condemed of Withercraft and any who sheltered them. The period of time when wither-hunting was at its peak was the fifty-year period prior to the start of the Great Silence known as the Burning Time. Paladins of the Blazing Sun still operated, though without their divine magic, during the Great Silence, punishing any and all who seemed like a likely cause for the removal of their powers.
Technology & Trade[]
Technology:
At this time the trade of goods between the Humans, Elves and Dwarves is fairly lucrative and it's possible to possess an item from any of the two older races if one can afford it.
Books are still copied by hand in the human world but the production of good quality paper has started to speed up their production at the Gizadi Priories. Gnomish, wood-block printed books can be found in most book shops in larger towns and on the occasional trade caravan. Alchemy is still a widely practice science creating everything from hair soap (shampoo) to moderate pain killers and even, in some cases, narcotics.
Steam power and gun powder is unheard of within the world. Swords and bows are still the weapons of choice for most militaries with a few sprinklings of arcane magic here and there.
Gnomish Air Ships are only found traveling between Kel Arn, Tor Gizad and the Provinces. Few, if any, human has ever set foot upon one. Most trade and travel occurs on foot or on hoof unless you happen to be heading to a destination linked by water whereby you will probably be found on a trade ship or a river cog.
Trade:
Gold coins are rare and is almost never seen in great number within the Marches. The primary means of economic trade is the Copper Penny, Silver Penny and Silver Mark.
See also: Currency
Cultural Restrictions[]
Click here for a more detailed description on the Culture of the game.
Religion[]
For a more detailed description on Religion click here.
One's patron's symbol is often worn as a necklace or other symbol. Knowledge of the Forgotten, Ancient and Hidden is restricted in chargen. The Order of the Blazing Sun is constantly on guard for any cult activity for the followers of the Corrupted. A GM should be consulted before any character attempts to claim one of the Corrupted as a Patron.
Nobility[]
Membership in one of the noble houses is possible but this will affect how 'free' the character is to leave his area. Noble houses are fairly tied to their region and leaving it to go off on an adventure isn't always possible.
Click the following links for a detailed description of the Noble Houses of the North and South Marches.
Guilds[]
Membership in one of the trade guilds is possible but this will also effect how 'free' the character is to leave the area. Some guilds may allow greater flexibility with the character and what obligations they might have within their community or region whereas others have more restriction.
Click the following links for a detailed description of the Trade Guilds of the North and South Marches.
Character Restrictions[]
All characters should either be from the Barony of Briarwood or from any contiguous region .
Race[]
- Elf: Sylvanari (possible but rare), Quenari (possible)
- Dwarf: Barzul (possible but rare), Zulner (possible)
- Halfling: Hanabril (possible)
- Gnome: Gizaryl (Rare), Ulevon (Even more Rare)
- Human: North Marches (common)
- Half-Dwarves and Half-Elves are also possible.
Racial Merits:[]
Dwarven & Elven Heritage and Blooded merits are also possible.
Class[]
- Common Classes: Warrior, Ranger, Wizard, Cleric
- Uncommon Classes: Witch
- Rare Classes: Paladin, 'Fighter
Details[]
- Warrior: A warrior is different than a trained fighter. Warriors are people who have advanced in a single weapon's style rather than a fighter that has been trained in multiple styles. So a person could have been trained in a primary weapon such as a sword, mace or and a secondary weapon such as a bow or sling where as a fighter trains in types of weapons. Warriors are also limited as to the types of armor available to them. Essentially they are able to function in light and medium armor. Warriors, typically, are people who have a trade or profession but also have been trained in some kind of weapon style to either defend themselves or, in the case of a bow, hunt.
- Ranger: Rangers are essentially similar to that of a warrior but they are limited to light armor and a primary weapons plus two additional secondary weapons. The primary difference between a ranger and a warrior is their familiarity with the wilds. Trained to track, hunt, and be familiar with the ways of a variety of creatures, rangers are their own profession where as warrior is, inititally, a secondary profession.
- Wizard: Wizards are people who have dedicated themselves to learning how to use arcane magic usually at a Priory . They are often educated in a number of different topics of study including history, alchemy, magical theory, arcane lore or even artifice. The cost of this education does not come cheaply and unless the character is part of a noble family he will most certainly owe the family that sponsored him at the priory for the years they spent at the priory.
- Cleric: Any cleric is going to be attached to their local church or the Pentarch of the town since the moment of their Revelation. This may limit what they are able to do as an adventurer unless they receive permission from their High Priest. Since most clerics receive their blessings from their god to serve the people - running off with some friends on an adventure might end with the cleric loosing their powers.
- Witch: Witches are still around but they tend to live outside of the towns in smaller communities like villages and hamlets. Though many witches will conceal their powers in the guise of a healing profession such as alchemist or herbalist. Witches often have their families to thank for their abilities - having been trained by one of their own. Some, however, learn the craft from a witch outside their family and are then obligated to serve them in their tasks.
- Fighter: Fighters are people who have been trained to fight in a multitude of styles with a variety of weapon types in almost any form of armor. Similar to gladiators, fighters tend to be ex-arena combatants who have either earned their freedom through victories, repaid the debt owed to their retaini training school or escaped and are on the run from their owners. As a starting character, this would probably mean that they were enrolled in a fighting school since the age of twelve and left the school before they entered the arena professionally; a possibility usually only found in the schools of the north marches.
- Paladin: Paladins are fighters or warriors who have sworn to live their life by a set of oaths in respectful serviece to their god. Similar to a cleric in that they have some divine powers, they differ in that they chose to serve the god rather than the god choosing them to serve. Paldins are always lawful in nature and their rigidity in alignment often will not set well with others. Almost all Paladins and especially those of Arn are attached to either the Order of Paladins for their god (Order of the Blazing Sun , Amazulu , etc.) or have chosen to serve a specific temple.
Backgrounds[]
Professions[]
Characters should look here for a list of professions. Any profession that the character chooses must be maintained by at least one parent or be explained in their history.
Common Professions[]
- Alchemist
- Blacksmith
- Bookbinder
- Carpenter
- Guard
- Herbalist
- Penny Monger
- Scribe
- Silver Smith
- Tailor
- Trader
- Weaver
- Woodsman
- Farmer
- Baker
- Horse Breeder
- Butcher
- Potter
Uncommon Professions[]
Rare Professions[]
Gear[]
Characters begin with 50 silver marks (considered their life savings) plus a small amount based on their class.
- Warrior: +20 silver marks. Primary weapon purchased at 50% market price.
- Ranger: +5 Silver marks. Primary weapon purchased at 50% market price.
- Wizard +20 Silver marks. All scribal gear purchased at 50% market price.
- Cleric: +10 silver marks. All divine gear purchased at 50% market price
- Witch: +5 silver marks.
- Fighter : +30 silver marks. All armor / weapons purchased at 50% market price.