Then, the semester ended, and we took a break. All of the sudden, TSR came up with a wonderful campaign called "Birthright" that simplified a lot of the ideas I had been working on. I decided to use the rules and try to adapt them to my own game. (In the end, there were quite a few difficulties, but I did get a good list of campaign changes that I made to personalize the game.)
This page is dedicated to the past campaign which determined the setting in which my current campaign is set in. Some of this information is vital for understanding some of the specifics of my current campaign.
The land if Idellian is a small country on the eastern side of a continent. Most people do not have much information about the lands past the boundaries of the country. Idellian was not intended to "fit in" with the rest of the Birthright maps, but it could easily be adapted so that it does.
And, without further ado.....
Major characters of Idellian (the King and PCs)
This is the written history of the lands of Idellian. For
game-specific imformation, follow the links of specific people,
etc.
The lands of Idellian had always been a peaceful land. The two Human races of the Rjurik and the Anuirean had always lived together in harmony. The great Anuirean nobles had always taken care of the land, until the beginning of the Great War where gods died. After the chaos had been calmed, a great monarch from the old nobles named Aedron Manchester wanted to revive the rule of his great and noble lineage. Summoning together some of the most notable people in of his times, he gathered all the provinces of Idellian under his rule. Under his guiding hand, the lands of Idellian were ruled with unsurpassed grace and nobility. Aedron Manchester was one of the greatest rulers of the all time. Under his enlightened leadership, he and his group of trusted nobles ruled the land in times of unsurpassed prosperity.
Lady Sif Greyhawk was a noble Rjurik Cleric of the Philosophy of War. She ruled the cold northern lands of Novlund with a firm but gentle hand. Sif controlled many of the temple holdings of the norhtern lands since the Church of War was one of the most influential clergies in this area.
Bjorn Iceblade was a powerful Rjurik Ranger of the lands of Novmar. He was a very solitary person, taking care of the tribe he had grown up in instead of always involving himself in court politics. His hated enemy were the brutish Ogres that marauded the northern lands. Bjorn guarded his village with passion against this beasts.
Cormac Sparhawk was a powerful Anuirean noble of the lands of Warmplains. Due to an awakening in his inner soul, he heard the calling of the Philosophy of Death. He dedicated his life to this philosophy, becoming a mighty Paladin while ruling his lands.
Chadrick Lighthands was a minor Halfling noble ruling over the lands of Rhunbosque. He was in good standing with the elves of the area, many of who hated the Humans. Chadrick was the head of a great school of Magicians which he started in order to teach common people the ways of magic.
Evan Brightmantle was a wealthy Brect merchant who controlled many of the commercial centers in the south of Idellian. The center of his empire during much of his career is in Windscop, but due to the advancement of Elves, he had to occasionally relocate to the King's province of Lordsmere.
Absolam was an Anuirean Wizard in the court of King Manchester. He had many dealings with the Dwarves of the Dwarven province. He was the only Human wizard in the area, his magic contested only by the Elves of the Western province of Rhunbosque. He was a major factor in battling against their magic.
Other personalities in Idellian (NPCs)
There are many other people that helped to influence the history of
Idellian. Here is a listing of the major ones.
Paul Wyvernspur was a simple ruler in the northern lands of Novmar. He kept his people happy and protected, but was being worn down by the constant attacks by Ogres and Undead. He felt betrayed and ignored by the King, so he decided to declare the lands he ruled his own and took up the mantle as a Paladin of the Philosophy of Leadership. After much negotiation and understanding, the King extended help to Wyvernspur and declared him the successor to the Throne of Idellian.
Miriam Brightleaf was a Cleric of the Philosophy of Nature, also know as a Druid. She was impartial to the Elves, respecting them for their ability to live peacefully with nature. She was a rather influential force with the King. Later in life, she became romantically involved with Evan Brightmantle making an unlikely but powerful alliance between the Druids and the honest merchants of southern Idellian.
King Ironwood was a benevolent king of the Elven House of Ironwood. He was one of the weakest of the Elven kings and always sought to make peace with the humans. He notified the humans about the great abominatione called Carlos Nimblefoot was a Halfling Cleric of the Philosophy of Commerce. He was only mildly powerful, staying mostly to the background. It was rumored that he had many connections to the thieves of the area.
Stephen Darkgold appeared to be a Cleric of the Philosophy of Death; however, he was nothing more than a charlatan. He controled a few temples and used them solely for monitary gain. He used a whole network of crooked priests to make the temples look legitimate. He lived in continous fear of being discovered by Cormac Sparhawk, the True Paladin of the Philosophy of Death.
Thurgeld was an unknown thief operating many of the illegal activities in the southern part of Idellian. Along with his hired assassian "Scar", he inspired terror on many of the inhabitants of this region. His nemesis was the honest merchant Evan Brightmantle who always strove to bring down Thurgeld's illegal empire.
The Aurumvorax was a new abomination that was beginning to form through the corruption of his blood power. He desired to rid the lands of the Elves for the terrible things they did to his village. He felt that becoming an abomination was the only way he could defeat the elves.
The Necromancer was an unknown menace from the lands north of Idellian. He sent many Undead to attack the northern provinces, giving the rulers there much to worry about. After a few adventures into the northern lands, the rulers of Idellian found out the Necromancer was actually an insane Dracolich, seeking to destroy all life. This foe has caused many, many problems for the rulers.
Events during the rule of King Manchester
The kingship of Aedron Manchester was anything but boring. There were
many important conflicts that required resolution by the rulers in order
to bring order to the lands.
The Elves were always a major threat. They were the original race inhabiting the lands and were displaced by the Humans many, many years ago in the history of Idellian. This, however, did not make much difference to the Elves since they lived for a very, very long time. The elves were always looking for a way to expand their territory. Many skirmishes were fought, particularly with Cormac Sparhawk over the province of Warmplains.
When the Elves quieted their attacks, the players got suspicious. Absolam, the King's mage noticed a reduction in his magical power. This obviously worried him and he began to investigate. Through some divination, he was able to learn about the existence of the The Aurumvorax, one of the first Abominations the players had ever known about. About this time, the Elves sent a "sacrificial lamb" in the form of King Ironwood to "help" the humans deal with the Aurumvorax. This served two purposes: To eliminate the Aurumvorax from the lands before he could become a threat to the Elves and to distract the humans from their homelands while the Elves mounted an attack.
King Ironwood led his troops to the Towers of Sif, the capital city in Novlund, the province of Sif Greyhawk. He showed his faith in the alliance between Elf and Human by giving Sif one of the greatest Elven Artifacts ever known, the Elven Mace of Ironwood. Within this mace was bound the essence of one of the first elves, the Elven Mother of Memory. She was a nearly omniscient being and made a strong bond with Lady Sif.
The King lead the advisors and their armies to the Brect lands of Morphany to the south of Idellian. The ruler there was a kind monarch known as the Sorcerer-King of Brect. He was unable to give much direct help because his magic was fading just as Absolam's had. He directed them to the lair of the Aurumvorax.
Once there they talked to the Aurumvorax. They found that his transformation from a Human to an Abomination was what was affecting the magic of the lands. They also found out why he wanted to become such a beast: He hated the Elves. They had killed most of his family on one of their "raids", and he desired revenge. He especially despised the mysterious Elven Abomination named Rhobe Manslayer, an incarnation of Evil that killed humans everywhere.
Several of the advisors favored attacking the Aurumvorax before he had time to complete the transformation. A few even dared an assault upon his keep, which resulted in their capture (and eventual release). King Ironwood then found out about his betrayal by his Elven "brothers" from the Mother of Memory's essence in the Elven Mace of Ironwood. He learned that the other Elves had siezed his lands and attacked the Human lands, taking control of important commercial centers.
Suddenly, the Aurumvorax became a much less important threat.
The King and his advisors then returned to Idellian to meet the threat the Elves posed to the lands. After a series of brief campaigns, King Manchester and his advisors poised to strike at the heart of the Elven lands, hoping to decisively win the battle between the Elves and the Humans forever.
As the Humans struck at the Elves, some of the Elves revolted against their power-hungry nobles. They rose up and helped the humans fight against the blackest of Elven killers: Rhobe Manslayer. With the added help of The Aurumvorax, the humans won a decisive victory against the Elves whose hearts had been poisoned by hate.
The Elven King Ironwood brought all the elves together under his rule and made a pact with the Humans. They agreed to help each other out whenever they were in need. Thus ended the great Human-Elf wars that spanned several Human generations.
Then a new threat reared its head to the north. The Undead attacks that appeared random seemed to gain an almost fierce power and driving force behind them. All eyes turned to the north to see what evil power was manipulating the Undead forces.
An adventurer that braved the icy north came back to tell a grim tale. The power to the north was more than just the fabled Necromancer, it was one of the legendary Dragons that endured past Death....it was a Dracolich!
The adventurer told his chilling tale about the evil plans of the Dracolich to manipulate the weather to create an eternal winter to lay waste to all life upon the continent. The Dracolich needed vast power, such as the power found in the blood of nobles. The adventurer went on to say that he had lost his own blood power to the evil Dracolich.
The King and his advisors then decided to travel to the north to face the Dracolich Necromancer. The Elves sent some of their most skilled warriors to aid the Humans.
The brave heroes never returned.....