Geography and Ecology
The Dethic Domain is mostly mountainous with a splash of the Mirage Desert to the East and the massive Ros’ Treant Forest on the western border.
There is little life North of the 60-degree latitude mark. That’s not to say that there is no life. The Valley elves have maintained a lush subtropical zone thanks to their large circle of Druids who keep the cold weather and glaciers at bay. There are also harsh, nomadic tribes that wander through the Wind Wastes. The Wind Wastes are tundra that only the sturdiest of stock can survive.
Byetport is a seasonal Hobgoblin port. In the severe winter months the port is closed. But in the spring and summer it is thriving with trade.
Six Hobgoblin tribes surround the Magubyet March. For many years these tribes have warred against each other, only recently have they known a modicum of peace.
West of the March is a peaceful Gnomish village called Snohomish. Here the mountains relax into hills and has a temperate climate suitable for growing tobacco and similar crops.
Just South of Snohomish is HillsGuard. This was once a Sylvan Elf settlement but has grown to be an eclectic town and a major trade point.
To the west is the Ros’ Treant Forest. It is a vast deciduous forest filled with Elves, Faerie Folk, and even Treants. Though the latter has not been seen in generations. Many a wanderer has entered the forest, never to be seen or heard from again. On the Southern tip of the forest is the Elven metropolis, Dwyn’ Allyn. All manner of elf folk can be seen here, High Elves being the majority. Other races can be found here too, Dwarves come from the mines in the mountains to sell their precious metals and ore. The Gnomes sell their tobacco and the Hobgoblins make the far trek in the winter with their animal furs.
Across the mountains, running into the Reef Sea is the Mirage Desert. Life is sparse here. It is populated with a rare race of Lizard Men that have acclimated to the climate. There is also rumor of an unseen, rare race of Desert Elves.
Heading down the coast is the isolated port of Tharjak. It is mostly a pirate haven and no legal trade is done here. It is a stop over for some legitimate traders who need provisions. However, it will be skipped if possible.
To the West over the mountains is Skullport, the known entryway to the Underdark. No one who goes here comes back. Yet, some Dwarves do their trading here.
Hundreds of miles South of Tharjak is the port of Vespa. It is often used as a stop over for intercontinental travel. It is well fortified and has it’s own navy and militia.
On the inner coast of the Dagger Peaks peninsula one might look up and see Grimly’s Observatory. A famous yet reclusive Tinker Gnome, Grimly studies the stars and planets high above the coast in his well fortified sanctuary. It is said he can see into your soul 100 miles away, and if you are of pure heart he may invite you to see him.
Across the bay is Opal’s Keep. A once booming economic port, it is the first to be under siege by the Port of Lords.
Races in the Dethic Domain
Hobgoblin:
There are 5 Hobgoblin clans that surround the Magubyet March. They have warred aginst each other for centuries, but only recently known a modicum of peace.
About 50 miles South of Byetport is the Va'ok Clan. They are pretty nuetral and busy themselves with trade, fishing, and trapping. They had been attacked in the past because of their strategic location at the end of the Deep water River and proximity to the Reef Sea.
About 75 mile SW, or up river from Va'ok is the foul Fecrid Clan. They are warmongering, hateful, superstitious, and just all around mean. They have forsaken the traditional Hobgoblin God, Maglubiyet. (See pg.94 of Deities & Demigods) And have taken up with worshiping one of the Lords of the 9 Hells. Exactly which one, no one knows. The other tribes suspect that they have agreed on peace just so they can amass their own army. However, recent events in the last 40 years have all but wiped Fecrid from the map. (See a Brief History)
About 200 miles West, up river, is the Tovis Tribe. They are a bit savage, but more balanced than Fecrid. They are greatly superstitious but and have little logic and reason about them. (Think classic Klingon) They are great warriors and are proud to die on the battlefield. They don't go to war for no reason, but won't hesitate to defend their interests. Their Shamans and Witchdoctors dictate peace and war.
About 75 miles North of the river are the Thurcrom Clan. These are the most "civilized" of the clans. They do trade with all races and clans, (except when Fecrid or Tovis is out of pocket). They are a nobler people of the Hobgoblin race. They have a direct land trade route to Va'ok and ship their wares from their port. If you were to see a denser population of Hobgoblins anywhere else in the Dethic Domain, chances are they are from Thurcrom.
200 or so miles West of Thurcrom is the Etheron Clan. The Etheron shun all but a few. They have been allies with Thurcrom in many battles. But unlike their cousins to the East, they pretty much stay to themselves. They are considered intelligent and evolved, but few would know it. The only other outside races they will deal with are the Mountain Dwarves. They are secluded and keep to themselves, rarely venturing outside of their territory unless at war or of some dire situation.
Elves:
All types of elves can be found in the Domain. The most peculiar of which are the Valley Elves. They are self-sufficient, self-reliant, and need little to no contact to the outside world. Even though they reside above the 60-degree latitude mark, their druids have kept the cold and glaciers at bay. Unlike the Hobgoblins of Byetport, they have no real winter.
More common types of elves include: High, Grey, and Sylvan (or Grugach). Drow can be found around Skullport and in raiding parties of the surrounding areas. There is also Desert Elves, much like the Athasian Elves of the Dark Sun Campaign world. They are never seen and are only rumored to exist. On the other spectrum are the Wind Wastes Elves; these are a nomadic tribe that follows big game across the tundra and hunt seals on the coast of the Glacier Sea. They are like the Grugach of the North, primal and stout. Their existence has been verified, but they have little contact with the Southern world.
Half elves are not uncommon in the Domain; Human and Elf relations have been stable and good for some time.
Dwarves:
There are a plethora of Dwarves in the Domain. There are Hill Dwarves around Opal’s Keep and South of Maglubyet March. Mountain Dwarves are the most common, with mining tunnels weaving their way all through the region. The most powerful Dwarven clan is that of the Orcsplitter Clan, of which most are devoted to Clanggedin Silverbeard, the Father of Battle. They maintain a careful truce with Hobgoblins of the Maglubyet March. The dwarves hold the hold the Hobgoblin race in suspicion due to the chaos they unleashed on the land generations ago. Normally isolationists, they Dwarves have been known to aid the other races of the Dethic Domain in times of great peril.
Gnomes:
The largest concentration of Gnomes can be found in Snohomish. They have settled this fertile valley and grow crops of tobacco, wheat, barley, and hemp, among others. There is a peppering of gnomes by Dwyn Allyn and Opal’s Keep. Adventurous gnomes can be found across the continent.
Humans:
Humans live all over the continent of Solterra. In the Dethic Domain they tend to settle near HillsGuard, Opal’s Keep, and even Dwyn Allyn. They also tend to settle by all the trading posts in the region. The human population in the Domain is not as extensive as it is in the Western part of the continent. However, humans are humans, and will slowly invade a region and populate it as their own. King Voldos is a human. He is as fair and wise as humans go. He moves his Court around the Domain seasonally, with no permanent castle or residence.
Halflings:
Halflings are peculiarly absent in the Eastern part of the continent. There is a healthy population of them in the West, North of Crystal Loch. It is a rare sight to see a halfling in the Dethic Domain.
Other Humanoids:
There is no shortage of other humanoids in the Domain. There is a pocket of Lizard men in the Mirage Desert that tend to keep to themselves. Mostly, this is due to the propensity of other races to attack them on sight. The domain is speckled with pockets of humanoid races. Some are evolved and some are not. That’s probably why humans tend to attack anything they don’t understand on sight. It is rare to see a human and an orc NOT attacking each other.
A Brief History:
The Dethic Domain is still recovering from an unnatural Ice Age forty years back. Though the glaciers have retreated back to their natural area and the flora and fauna have now stabilized, the land still bears the scars.
It appears to those that are learned and listen to sages that it was the Fecrid Clan’s entire fault, in a way…
The Arch-Devil Mephistopheles had wanted to expand and take over another plane of Hell. To do this, he thought he would draw power from the Prime Material plane. He devised a portal to temporarily let flow The River Styx beneath the Fecrid Citadel. The head priest was charged to investigate this disturbance and was splashed by the water of the River, thus forgetting his God entirely. And so Mephistopheles took advantage and the conversion of the Fecrid Clan began. Through his newly gained followers’ devotion, he created a conduit from his icy plane to the Prime Material Plane. An ice age followed, known as “The Time of Eating The Young”.
During this hard time a small band of adventurers turned hero from necessity. As the sages tell it, it starts in the small town of HillsGuard. Back then it was just a backwater Sylvan village with two very special young elves that lived within. Antigone, a wizard apprentice, and a druid acolyte named Drusilla, among others. The descending ice age had forced marauding orcs and other humanoids to raid HillsGuard. Fortunately, with ingenuity and will, the massive invasion was beaten back. This set the party off on an adventure find the source of these unwarranted attacks. Upon reaching a trading post they found it over run by a Hobgoblin force carrying the black banner of Fecrid. They waited and ambushed a patrol, taking one Hobgoblin prisoner in order to glean information. This Hobgoblin’s name was Thurcrom Stonefist. It was fortunate that the party did not kill Stonefist, for he turned out to be a legendary leader for his people in the years to come.
The young adventurers, with the addition of Stonefist beseeched the Valley Elves for help. At first the Valley Elves were not interested. That is, until Fecrid sent dragons to destroy their Griffin Aerie. Now allied with the Valley Elves and an underground hobgoblin Resistance, the party marched towards the Magubyet March.
A terrible and bloody war followed with many casualties on both sides. Eventually, they were able to liberate Byetport. But they didn’t stop there. They caught up with the retreating army and decimated it’s ranks. Eyewitnesses report that two circles of fire encircled the infantry, one violet, shimmering with ancient arcane wizardry and one yellow-green glowing with druidic power. This held the infantry at bay and eventually consumed them in fire while Stonefist and other Resistance fighters surprised the cavalry.
The details change with each telling, but one thing is clear. The entire retreating Fecrid army was decimated.
Eventually the main members of the party managed to infiltrate the Fecrid Citadel and used an arcane artifact to destroy the portal. Thus ending the age of “Eating the Young”.
Stonefist returned to his people a hero. Antigone retreated to a keep that the party had captured, that was raised by the Fecrid priests from the surrounding mountains. She keeps an extensive library there and dedicates her time to research and knowledge. Every twenty years or so she may take on an apprentice. Drusilla returned to HillsGuard and took on the mantle of Hierophant in her Druidic Circle.
Being forty years ago, only tales remain. Only some elves, dwarves, and gnomes actually recall these events. The rest is left up to legend. Even the great King Voldos was just a boy and humans aren’t ones to remember the past. The great Stonefist is dead, but his unique fighting style lives on through his Clan. The Fecrid Clan was all but wiped out, but they are rebuilding, slowly and deliberately.
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"The Empire has a legion of loyal soldiers that are in endless supply." ―Darth Vader
Here is the map of Solterra. Please keep characters to the EASTERN side as Vitus is using the West for another game on this site.
I will add inset maps as needed. http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/j...Solterra-1.jpg
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"The Empire has a legion of loyal soldiers that are in endless supply." ―Darth Vader
An Excerpt from Antigone's memoirs, Our Time of Dying
Chapter 8 - The Seeds of Resistance
When we first met Stonefist Thurcrom I was not impressed. He looked like every other hobgoblin I had seen before. We had ambushed his patrol, killed everyone else and taken him captive. He woke up tied to a chair in the barn of some locals that had taken us in. He had a weird expression in his eyes, like a mix of relief and sadness. He was not as terrified as I hoped he would be. I was ready to torture him for information, but something told me to go about it a different way. We gave him some food and water, and then I asked him nicely for information on the occupying hobgoblin army. He was hesitant at first, and then I guess he figured we were his best option out of a horrible situation.
He explained to us that it was the Fecrid Clan that was leading the occupation. They had kidnapped the women and children of the other clans to conscript the adult males into their service. He explained that he and a handful of others were in an underground resistance, but were afraid to make a move for the sake of their loved ones.
We warily made a deal with Stonefist that if we attacked a local trading post, he would rally his resistance allies.
It was a bloody and unforgiving battle. We lost some good people to the Winter Wolves, Ogres, and Frost Giants, but in the end we prevailed. Stonefist held up his end of the bargain and kept the Fecrid clan at bay while we dealt with monsters.
That battle was the beginning of the Stonefist Legacy. We parted ways; he was determined to contact Resistance members in other Clans and fight from the inside. We went on our way to beseech the Valley Elves for help. Little did we know that we would meet up with Stonefist again sooner than later. But that is for another chapter.
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"The Empire has a legion of loyal soldiers that are in endless supply." ―Darth Vader
BeastMen of Cutthroat Pass
An excerpt from a book by Hierophant Druid Drusilla- Strange Circles of the Realm
Chapter 12- The Beast Men of Cutthroat Pass
Connecting the Gods’ Falls and the Mirage Desert is the strange and Savage Tribe of Gwaryl. Unlike other humans, they don’t move into settlements or expand into great cities. As far as scholars know, the Gwaryl Tribe has existed at roughly the same size for generations.
Terribly superstitious, this tribe trusts all it’s major decisions to their highest-ranking shaman. A Grand Druid of sorts, this ancient (as far as humans go) man consults runes and bones to determine the fate of the tribe. He is revered as the wisest among them and even their tribal king will not contradict what the old man says. It is said that in dire and desperate times the tribe resorts to human sacrifice and even cannibalism. This rumor is believable as reports come in that the perimeter of their village is littered with decapitated bodies of fallen foes. They adorn their temple and hearths with the heads of the enemy, believing it honors their god and brings much favor.
Fortunately for the rest of the Dethic Domain, this tribe rarely wanders out of their territory. Once, and ONLY once, the Drow tried a raiding party from Skullport. Of the few that survived and returned, it is said they went mad with horror. In this humble Druid’s opinion, if it scares a Drow elf, it must be horrific indeed.
However a few Gwaryl have been seen outside the territory. Back during the era called “The Time of Eating the Young” it was reported that the tribesmen were spotted on the Omen River. Supposedly doing horrible things to refugees escaping to The Port of Lords.
It is said that if you were to meet up with a Gwaryllian, do not stare, or let your gaze linger. They take this as both an insult and a challenge. It is a primitive culture indeed.
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"The Empire has a legion of loyal soldiers that are in endless supply." ―Darth Vader
Here is an inset map of the Magubyet March. the red dashes are land routes. The G's are Griffin Aeries. The two little squares are pill box guard posts.Skull Keep, where the great wizard Antigone resides keeps it's gates open so trade can pass through. http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/j...tMarch_NEW.jpg
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"The Empire has a legion of loyal soldiers that are in endless supply." ―Darth Vader
Here is an outside view of Skull Keep. I have a more detailed one but it's on graph paper and a crappy image to scan. As you can see, it is wedged in a ravine. Two skulls facing opposite directions. The eyes are like windows, but on the opposite side are giant crossbows, (what are they called scorpions?)
There is a gate that is composed of two half discs that raise to the left or right. There is an observation deck on top of each skull that serves as a landing platform for griffins, dragons, what have you. There is a parapet that spans between the two skulls. There are lot's of arrow slits below the parapet and in the walls themselves. At one time this was a WELL fortified location. Unfortunately for the previous occupants, Antigone, Drusilla, Stonefist and others really wrecked it. Antigone moved in and hired tinker gnomes to fix the damage. AND, they have never left, much to her dismay. http://i273.photobucket.com/albums/j.../skullkeep.jpg
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"The Empire has a legion of loyal soldiers that are in endless supply." ―Darth Vader
Vespa is an independent city-state. The port city sits up in the cliffs, (think like ancient Greek cities). They have their own culture and have little to no need to trade with the rest of the Dethic Domain except maybe by sea. They are a mix of Sparta and Athens, not as fierce as Spartans but they do hold their own in their walled off city. The island of Damijaca off the coast is a pirate haven, but they have learned not to mess with Vespian trade. Vespa has an awesome Navy. They are also pretty culturally advanced, like Athens.
The population is full of tinker gnomes and dwarves. There are a few humans and elves.
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"The Empire has a legion of loyal soldiers that are in endless supply." ―Darth Vader
09-02-2009, 11:25 PM
