Barazi, CN female wood elf Druid (Circle of the Moon) [Thron]
Argyri Katrakis, CN male human Barbarian [Gyrfalcon]
Ruach Ceallaigh, XX male half-elf Warlock (Hexblade) [Jelani]
Belbajak Sweetwater, NG male forest gnome Cleric (Knowledge) [Jubal]
________________Starting Region Info________________________
NPCs:
Arden Goldenhill: a halfling merchant, likely the most prosperous merchant in Thornleaf. He has multiple businesses but they include logging and shipping, and holds the contract to supply the royal navy with hartholz timber.
Bürgermeister Hademar: A middle-aged human man that has proven to be well loved and respected by the community. He has an impressive mind for politics and a practiced manner of speech that makes whoever he's speaking to feel important. He might enjoy his position a little too much, but his excesses have not negatively impacted the town's coffers enough (so far) to affect his popularity.
Garraíodóir: an elven Archdruid that tends the Grünweald. Tensions with Thornleaf are strained at present, as the druid insists the townsfolk are breaking a long-standing pact regarding the rate of hartholz logging the Druids can abide.
Papi Sweetwater: Patriarch of the Sweetwater burrows; figurehead for message-running network.
Organizations:
The Eldrunai: Small collection of tribes occupying the wildland forest-islands in the southeastern hemisphere.
The Red Hand: Prolific slaver/smuggler/bad-stuff mercenary company—highly active within the Cleftlands. In Estfalk, they have been given dispensation to transport and trade, but no authority to store "cargo" in any permanent or semi-permanent capacity.
The Reclaimers: A sect within the faith of Ghab with a more hard-line approach to liberty. They have a strong presence in Estfalk, and actively oppose the Red Hand.
Settlements:
Thornleaf (Small Town; Pop. ~1200)
Named for the leaf of a locally abundant source of timber—mostly in the Grünweald—with unique properties, especially when smoked. Thornleaf is an idyllic village by most measures—a rare thing in the often wartorn locales of the Cleftlands. The small mountain range that closes off Nordefalk from much of the world has afforded the region a bit of a lazy, peaceful reputation that is often missing in much of the Duchy.
Murder Manor: isolated home of Gaddock the carpenter, who was implicated in (but never found guilty of) the mysterious disappearance of his wife Aloena 30 years ago. Most give the place a wide berth due to the gossip that surrounded the entire ordeal, which has forced Gaddock into an existence not unlike that of a hermit.
A Lira ar Lilt-o-Angaina, "The Cragworks": An elven owned smithy that operates along the eastern shore of the Fletterfluss River in Thornleaf. Goods made and sold here cost more time and money than usual, but the quality justifies the mark-up.
Thornleaf Market: Far from a bazaar proper, the market in Thornleaf is more than enough to serve the needs of the town. Occasionally, traveling merchant caravans are given dispensation to set up stalls or booths, which is typically a great source of excitement with the locals.
Der Graf's Turm (The Count's Tower): A large and fortified stone structure that towers over the market in the center of Thornleaf. Previous Counts or Countesses that deigned to visit the rural haven would make use of it regularly in days long past, but it has seen little such use in recent years. Nowadays, it mostly serves as a meeting hall, mayor's office, and barracks for the Thornleaf Militia.
The Crown Inn: This Inn operated under a different, lengthier name in times past, but "the Crown" was a shorthand reference that became the actual name. The Crown is Thornleaf's biggest and finest inn and restaurant. It has ample, comfortable rooms, and a direct line to the Count's Tower for those few occasions when officials visit the town. Perhaps most importantly of all, The Crown's food quality is widely acknowledged to be without equal in the region.
The Bubble-Boilery: Primarily the residence of a family of apothecaries, the ground floor of this structure is a shop that specializes in all manner of brews, potions, and various other alchemy goods. Occasionally the shop deals in other minor curios or oddities, but such things tend not to see a lot of traffic in Thornleaf.
Thornleaf Chapel: This large church is open to the worship of many faiths, and several shrines to most of the deities can be found within. A grizzled old priest of Fendrith tends to the place officially—Purifier Hrodgert—and treats supplicants of all faiths impartially within the sanctuary.
Rotstein Bridge: This red brick and wood bridge over the Fletterfluss serves as Thornleaf's northern gate. The bridge commands the water below, and features a small guard tower. There is a heavy hartholz portcullis which can be lowered from a mechanism in the tower to block the river below the bridge. The tower is manned by four guards with crossbows and halberds at all times during daylight hours, and two at night when the gate is closed after curfew. This tower also serves as an ancillary barracks and armory for Thornleaf's militia. Any barge which wishes to pass the bridge is required to dock and pay a fare, and any merchant entering the town over the bridge must pay a toll. The taxes are used to help maintain the town militia and to keep the bridge itself in good repair.
Sweetwater (Small gnome Clan; Pop. under 30)
A series of gnomish burrows that serves as home to the Sweetwater Clan, the burrows are a short jaunt away from Thornleaf through well-traveled hills.
Grünburg (Small City; Pop. ~8000)
Seat of the Gräfin of Nordfalke, Dagmara Messerfalke. Grünburg is a compact city of winding cobblestone streets and multi-storied structures that occupy an immense bluff that overlooks the eastern tip of Sea Lion Bay. Virtually all of the city's roofs are shingled in a rich, red-orange that lends it something of a uniform appearance. The lowest reaches of the city are enclosed by large, well maintained wooden walls and palisades near the fringes of the Grünweald, accessible only by one large, central gatehouse. The rest of the city's sprawl gradually rises along tapering real estate to the Gräfin's keep, a modest castle that dominates the very edge of the bluff that plays host to the city. The upper quarter of the city is partitioned off by a well-manned stone wall, breached only by a single gatehouse with an iron portcullis.
Other Sites/Locations:
Kadgaarin's fist
On a clear days the children of Thornleaf run to the beach to skip stones into Sea Lion Bay. They point in awe at the massive butte rising from the highest escarpment across the water, just barely visible in the hazy distance.
The karstic limestone and granite formation towers almost a mile into the sky, riddled with countless holes and tunnels wrought by erosion's steady hand. The tales say that Kadgaarin's Fist has been there as long as there have been people on Estfalk to remember it. They say the butte is named after an exiled dwarven king who came to these lands long ago, before they were kleft. He and his clan had no hive of their own. They were forced to the surface after losing a civil war. Shattered and desperate they turned to nature's work for shelter, moving into the warren of natural caves in the Fist. Soon enough dwarven graft and diligence transformed the Fist into the seed of a new hive.
Kadgaarin's clan expanded downward, and discovered veins of mithril deep beneath the fist. The valuable metal secured the clan's position in their new home. During the age of orcish agression, the Clan of Kadgaarin (Khadgaar-Khuz in dwarven) continued to expand their hive, growing in strength and regional power. Generations passed, and none were able to dislodge or threaten them.
Then, something happened. One day, ore shipments stopped flowing from the great gates at the base of the Fist. Messengers could gain no entry. The Khadgaar-Khuz effectively disappeared overnight. Groups who entered the caves in search of answers or treasure never returned. With the missing and presumed dead piling up, the Fist quickly earned a black reputation as a cursed and dangerous place, best left to the dead. That was centuries ago.
The shepherds who graze their flocks near the base of the fist report that sometimes, on the darkest nights, they can still hear the grief maddened howling of the dwarves on the wind. Others say it's just the wind whistling in the caves. In either case, everyone on Estfalk knows that only a fool with a death wish enters the Fist.
The Bloodfield
Twenty-seven years ago, there was an attempt to unite the Cleftlands under a single banner, as has happened many times before. However, few have had battles as bloody as the Battle of Esterland.
Esterland wasn’t really a point of strategic value. It was a small town surrounded by a few large farming families. But this war had waged longer than most in the region, and forces from both sides began making moves on the area for food supplies. Things escalated quickly as each side called in reinforcements when scouts would report new troops for the enemy had arrived, and before long, both factions had gathered the bulk of their armies at Esterland.
The battle was short, but furious. Casualties were so heavy that the armies of both sides were completely shattered and broken, resulting in an end to the war a week later. But longer lasting has been the damage to the fields on which the battles were held. The ground was soaked so thick with blood that the crops died entirely.
For twenty years, nothing would grow back in their place, and Esterland has since become a ghost town. But in the past seven, a strange new grass has begun growing and spreading out from the sites. Grass as red as one could imagine. It grows to only about a foot high, and its edges are sharp enough that if you move quickly through them, the can cut skin. Since then, they have earned their new moniker as The Bloodfields.
Grünweald Spire (the lonely tower of the Grünweald)
Trappers and woodsmen some time gossip of the lonely tower of the Grunweald. Near one of the edges of the ancient forest, a tower sits on a small hill surrounded by impenetrable thickets of thorn bushes. Stories usually involve strange lights and sounds during the evening or unusual beasts sighted during the day. Sometimes, these beasts chase people away. Sometimes, hunters find that their quarry disappears into the thorny thickets. All stories of anyone actually touching or entering the tower are met with laughter.
Historians debate the origin of the tower and who was the last noble resident, that is which noble family, seneschal, or ducal prisoner. However, they all agree that the last lord ran afoul of a druid who besieged the tower and caused the Grunweald to envelop the tower. While magic has diminished over the years, the momentum of nature has sustained the druid’s apparent intent, which was to isolate the tower forever.
Fletterfluss River:
The Fletterfluss river flows from the upland hills south east past Thornleaf and into Sea Lion Bay. Thornleaf is a mere half a mile from the river's estuary. The river frequently carries furs and timber to the town and to Goldenhill's facilities at the Bay. The barges are poled up and down the Fletterfluss by several families of flatboat dwelling orcish gypsies.
The river is home to various fish, crawfish and mussels which supplement the town's diet. It is also the town's main source of water (aside from a few wells) and the destination of the majority of the town's waste.
The Flickering Crags:
Once known by another name when the continent was intact, The Flickering Crags was coined in the tumultuous time that followed the empire's sundering. As various houses vied for dominance in the wake of disaster, Norfalk in particular proved to be a staging ground for many great battles between duchal armies.
North of where Thornleaf now rests is a labyrinthine maze of narrow canyons, gorges, ridges, and tunnel networks that sprawl for several miles along the north and northeastern horizon. These days, the treacherous terrain sees more traffic from brigands, slavers, smugglers, and other bands of ill repute. It earned it's name, however, from the large duchal armies that used the crags as a staging ground, their camps and torches dotting the crests of the rocky hills that comprise it for as far as they eye could see.
The Estertors:
Three small mountain peaks barely visible along the northern horizon (from Thornleaf) form a natural barrier around a mountain lake (from which flows the primary source of water feeding the Fletterfluss). There are several cave systems along the banks of the lake where the mountains and hills meet the water. In long forgotten times, the place was a vast warren for a (mostly) peaceful tribe of werebears, but they have not been seen in that place for many centuries.
These days, it's a favored fishing spot for those brave enough to risk the climb. Most stick to the flow beneath, however. Although uncommon, there are still worse things than a treacherous climb to threaten folks who wander too far off the beaten path.
Addily Titles: Farseeker; The Godschild; The Tempest Tantrum
Symbol: A teardrop bisected by lightning
Alignment: Chaotic Good
Portfolio: Air, Capriciousness, Storms, Travel, Wanderlust
Worshipers: Adventurers, gypsies, sailors, vagabonds
Cleric Alignments: Any non-Lawful
Domains: Tempest
Favored Weapon: spear or javelin
Worshiper Titles: Stormdancer (Cleric), Stormknight (Paladin)
Depiction: Representations usually center around a child, typically upset or in distress. Examples include a cloud-swaddled infant shedding tears as rain, or a defiant toddler grasping bolts of lightning.
Cerleshen Titles: Der Grüne Mann; Green Jack; Lord of the Forest; Woodwose
Symbol: A humanoid face formed out of bark and leaves with branches for antlers
Alignment: Neutral
Portfolio: Animals, Druidry, Nature, Life
Worshipers: Druids, elves, farmers, fey, rangers, woodsmen
Cleric Alignments: Any Neutral
Domains: Life, Nature
Favored Weapon: club or quarterstaff
Worshiper Titles: Boughsinger (Cleric), Green Keeper (Druid), Warden (Paladin)
Depiction: A large man-like figure, at least fourteen foot high, very sturdy, with a tall head, hardly any neck, and a green and grey bark hide. Branches or vines may sprout from his mouth, nostrils, or other parts of the face and these shoots may bear flowers or fruit. Leaves replace hair, and bare branches thrust up from his crown like the antlers of a mighty stag.
Cŷrlaer Titles: Ashbringer; Sacred Flame; The Summer Song
Symbol: A burning stone
Alignment: Chaotic Neutral
Portfolio: Fire, Rejuvenation, Summer, Volcanoes
Worshipers: Eldrunai, healers, fire-based creatures
Cleric Alignments: Any Chaotic
Domains: Life, Light
Favored Weapon: glaive
Worshiper Titles: Fireborn (Cleric), Flame Lord (Paladin)
Depiction: Cŷrlaer embodies a cleansing flame, a terrible destructive force that makes way for new life—new beginnings. As such, the form of the deity is one that starts anew with each coming summer, though he or she is always represented in a vaguely elf-like persona. Cŷrlaer's hair is always as writhing tendrils of flame, eyes of molten lava, and skin of cracked obsidian, beneath which roils an endless swell of magma. Despite such a visage, each step Cŷrlaer takes awakens a small bloom of flowers.
Delgnes Titles: The Charlatan; Master of Mischief; The Hidden Current
Symbol: A mummer's mask, half submerged by water
Alignment: Chaotic Neutral
Portfolio: Concealment, Deception, Thievery, Water
Worshipers: Halflings, sailors, thieves
Cleric Alignments: Any Chaotic or Neutral
Domains: Tempest, Trickery
Favored Weapon: shortsword
Worshiper Titles: Grifter (Cleric), Wavewaker (Paladin)
Depiction: An androgynous halfling garbed in robes formed out of murky water. In either hand, it holds a mask.
Fendrith Titles: The Betrayed; Emerald Eye; Lord of Redemption
Symbol: White wolf's face with one missing and one emerald eye
Alignment: Lawful Good
Portfolio: Community, Family, Justice, Leadership, Loyalty
Worshipers: Rulers, knights, nobility, paladins
Cleric Alignments: LG, NG, CG, LN
Domains: Life, Order, Protection
Favored Weapon: longsword
Worshiper Titles: Purifier (Cleric), Redeemer (Paladin)
Depiction: A lean white wolf with one vibrant, green eye and one missing eye. Sometimes depicted in humanoid form as a venerable knight with a white wolf's pelt cloak.
Gahm Titles: The Mistress of Magic; Dweomerkeeper; Voidgazer
Symbol: Nine-pronged star atop a staff
Alignment: Neutral
Portfolio: Knowledge, Magic, Power, Spells
Worshipers: Sages, spellcasters
Cleric Alignments: Any
Domains: Arcana, Knowledge
Favored Weapon: quarterstaff
Worshiper Titles: Lorekeeper (Cleric), Lorewarden (Paladin)
Other: An initiate or layman within the faith would be referred to as a Loreseeker.
Depiction: Aged woman with silver hair spilling out from a heavy cowl that shrouds her face, robes replete with a radiant shimmer. She carries a bleached ash wood staff in one hand, and a thick, clasped tome in the other. Nine-point wheels of pure magical energy rotate around her wrists and brow.
Depiction: Ghab is often likened to a jolly innkeeper as a default, but his divine presence is often attributed to great freedom fighters and rebels of the past—folk heroes and reformers who have earned a measure of unofficial sainthood among those who offer prayers to the Holy Inebriator. In that, his presence is seen more as a sort of impetus that might spur others to accomplish great things against otherwise oppressive regimes or entities. Ghab tends to be a popular choice among the common folk, predictably.
Heldni Titles: Coffer Queen; The Patient Lady
Symbol: Crossed ink quills, one inked and one bloodied
Alignment: Lawful Evil
Portfolio: Ambition, Cunning, Politics, Revenge
Worshipers: Assassins, merchants, nobles
Cleric Alignments: LE, CE, NE, LN, N
Domains: Knowledge, Order, Trickery
Favored Weapon: two daggers
Worshiper Titles: Consigner (Cleric), Executor (Paladin)
Depiction: Heldni typically cuts a very ravenesque visage or general representation, always pale of skin and dressed in an extravagant black dress. More often than not, and despite her regal (if macabre) bearing, she is depicted as sitting behind a desk with two quills gripped in her left hand as if preparing to attend to a ledger.
Kauth Titles: The Defiled; Sapphire Eyes; Despoiler
Symbol: Black wolf face with blue eyes
Alignment: Chaotic Evil
Portfolio: Corruption, Defiance, Savagery, Treachery
Worshipers: Cultists, monstrous humanoids, necromancers, oathbreakers
Cleric Alignments: Any Evil
Domains: Death, War
Favored Weapon: greatsword
Worshiper Titles: Defiler (Cleric), Blightbringer (Paladin)
Depiction: An immense, black wolf with fiery blue eyes. His jowls and legs are infested with some terrible affliction not unlike tumors, or the mange. Like his twin, Fendrith, he is sometimes represented as a humanoid figure, though always covered in wicked looking black armor with a bloody wolf's head helmet.
Kolg Titles: Crowfeeder; Ragepyre; The Lord of Slaughter
Symbol: A bloodied weapon (any) ablaze
Alignment: Chaotic Neutral
Portfolio: Battle, Destruction, Strength, War
Worshipers: Warriors
Cleric Alignments: Any Chaotic
Domains: Forge, War
Favored Weapon: any
Worshiper Titles: Warbringer (Cleric), Ravager (Paladin)
Depiction: As terrifying as his legacy, Kolg's depictions are that of a castle-sized effigy constructed out of armor, corpses, and siege weapons. Rivers of blood leak from every inch of his body, while immense plumes of smoke and flame spray at irregular intervals from seams along his misshapen form. The weapon he wields at any given time seems to vary with no particular rhyme or reason, though Qrom is thought to have been one such weapon that Kolg "gifted" to the mortal world.
Lysda Titles: Our Beaming Lady; Forgefury; The Godsmith
Symbol: Smith's hammer on a golden disc
Alignment: Chaotic Good
Portfolio: Beauty, Creation, Light, Love, Passion, Sun (Orange)
Worshipers: Artists, bards, smiths
Cleric Alignments: CG, NG, CN
Domains: Forge, Life, Light
Favored Weapon: hammer
Worshiper Titles: Blazebraid (Cleric), Forgeknight (Paladin)
Depiction: Always portrayed with long hair bound up in two laughably long braids that drag the ground. Her hair glows hot like iron left overlong in the forge. Her eyes, nostrils, and mouth emit light not unlike the sun she embodies, and as she speaks her words alight on the air as sparks scattered from a smith's hammer. Perhaps unsurprisingly, her appearance often favors that of a dwarven battlemaiden in burnished, golden armor, with a massive hammer in one hand and tongs in the other.
Depiction: Nachttrinker is depicted wearing a flayed human skin, usually with the flayed skin of the hands falling loose from the wrists. He has a yellow shield in his raised right hand and carries a container filled with seeds in front of him in his left. The flayed skin represents the cycle of life-death-rebirth, the yellow shield the sun, and the container of seeds nature's bounty.
Neyth Titles: The Unknowable
Symbol: None (A black circle is sometimes used)
Alignment: Unknown
Portfolio: Darkness, Despair, Entropy, Oblivion, Void
Worshipers: Cultists, monks, warlocks
Cleric Alignments: Any neutral or evil
Domains: Arcana, Knowledge, Trickery
Favored Weapon: none (unarmed)
Worshiper Titles: Voidseekers or Voidwalkers (All)
Depiction: None.
Tód Titles: Everyman's Judge; The Reaper; That Which Waits in Silence
Symbol: Human skeleton clutching a scythe
Alignment: Neutral
Portfolio: Afterlife, Death, Fate, Judgement
Worshipers: Undead hunters, undertakers
Cleric Alignments: Any Neutral
Domains: Grave, Death
Favored Weapon: scythe
Worshiper Titles: Undertaker (Cleric), Corpse Watcher (Paladin)
Depiction: A human skeleton clad in dark robes, wearing the cap of a magistrate, and clutching a scythe in one hand and a noose in the other. Tod rides a black bullock.
Tod is a psychopomp, serving to sever the last ties between the soul and the body, and to guide the deceased to the afterlife. Its scythe cuts the souls from corpses, and its noose drags them to his hall for judgement. After weighing the deceased soul, Tod guides it to its final resting place. Any violation of death's natural cycle is anathema to Tod's doctrine.
Tor Titles: The Indomitable Mountain; The Stone Watcher
Symbol: A mountain peak emblem upon a shield
Alignment: Lawful Neutral
Portfolio: Earth, Defenders, Duty, Order
Worshipers: Dwarves, earth creatures, guards/soldiers
Cleric Alignments: Any Lawful
Domains: Order, Protection, War
Favored Weapon: shield
Worshiper Titles: Stalwart (Cleric), Bulwark (Paladin)
Depiction: As indicated by his name, Tor is depicted as an animate mountain, with features that vaguely represent those of an armored dwarven male, complete with ample beard protruding from a squat helmet. His arms terminate in two immense, spiked shields, upon which still twitch the ruined remains of otherworldly entities comprised of veiny flesh, irregular eyes, and grasping tentacles.
Vetha Titles: Hearthdrinker; The Seething Cold; The Winter Hag
Symbol: A fire encased in a shard of ice
Alignment: Neutral Evil
Portfolio: Cold, Hatred, Murder, Spite, Suffering, Sun (Blue), Winter
Worshipers: Hags, winter creatures (frost giants, white dragons, etc.)
Cleric Alignments: NE, CE
Domains: Light, Tempest
Favored Weapon: bow
Worshiper Titles: Balewarden (Cleric), Baleknight (Paladin)
Depiction: While some remote cults and hag covens have taken to likening Vetha's form to that of a decrepid rime-sheathed old crone, she is classically represented as a blue flame sealed by a beveled orb of glacial ice. Canonically, Vetha is considered to be kept in check—perpetually—by her larger sister, Lysda.
Xarmos Titles: Corpselord; Lichgod; Tyrant of the Festering Pit
Symbol: Rotten mindflayer head, eyesockets dripping ichor.
Alignment: Lawful Evil
Portfolio: Decay, Lichdom, Necromancy, Undeath
Worshipers: Intelligent undead, necromancers
Cleric Alignments: Any Evil
Domains: Death
Favored Weapon: darts
Worshiper Titles: Necrophant (Cleric), Hand of Decay (Paladin)
Depiction: Xarmos, by means unknown, was a mindflayer that achieved lichdom then demilichdom before ascending into godhood. In that respect, he is the only mortal creature to have risen to divinity. His manifestations and likeness are that of a grotesque mound of pulsing, bleeding viscera that issue forth from a pale, rotten mindflayer head.
Depiction: Gwelgysh is depicted as an enormous church grim, usually with the likeness of a black deerhound or wolfhound with a shaggy coat of fur. He conjures fog about him wherever he lopes, and is able to run along said fog as easily as if it were solid ground. Gwelgysh is a servant and faithful companion to Tod, charged with keeping the peace of the grave and bringing swift justice to any who would defile the eternal rest of those interred.
Lundra Titles: Mistmaiden; Mistress Moon; The Veridian Lady
Symbol: Green crescent moon
Alignment: Chaotic Good
Portfolio: Fog/Mist, Hidden Places, Moon, Portals
Worshipers: Conjurers, elopers, elven ancestors
Cleric Alignments: CG, NG, CN, N
Domains: Arcana, Trickery
Favored Weapon: axe or halberd (crescent head)
Worshiper Titles: Shrouded (Cleric), Watcher of the Threshold (Paladin)
Depiction: Lundra is a tall woman with a slender build, ivory skin, and hair of veridian fog that billows about her (largely concealing her). Her smile is all that is visible of her face. She embodies the mist-shrouded moon that orbits the world, and those elves who tread her surface treat her with great reverence.
________________General World Info________________________
Calendar Info:
There are 10 days to a week. 4 workdays, a midweek day, 3 workdays, a week's end.
There are 8 months, and 4 holiday weeks, totally 360 days to a year.
Lysdan Calendar Mothersmoot (10 days; New Years festival celebrating the return of Lysda)
Wintersfall (40 days)
Springsmeet (40 days)
Nachtsmoot (10 days; Night-time festival emphasizing the bonds of community and honoring of ancestors, as the dead grow restless and stalk the living world)
Springsfall (40 days)
Summersmeet (40 days)
Cŷrlaersmoot (10 days; Summerfest, usually featuring lots of bonfires and marriages)
Summersfall (40 days)
Autumnsmeet (40 days)
Ghabsmoot (10 days; Brewfest—an entire week of people getting sauced throughout alcoholic competitions)
Autumnsfall (40 days)
Wintersmeet (40 days)
Vethan Calendar (seasons are notably milder than normal; unpredictable and brief heat waves)
Cronesmoot (10 days; New Years wake mourning Lysda's departure and Vetha's return)
Wintersfall (40 days)
Springsmeet (40 days)
Torsmoot (10 days; Spring festival celebrating solidarity in the face of darkness, emphasis on warding away evil, purging sins, fortifying homes)
Springsfall (40 days)
Summersmeet (40 days)
Kauthsmoot (10 days; Harvest festivals. Massive bonfires, including the burning of effigies to Kauth)
Summersfall (40 days)
Autumnsmeet (40 days)
Ghabsmoot (10 days; Brewfest—an entire week of people getting sauced throughout alcoholic competitions)
Autumnsfall (40 days)
Wintersmeet (40 days)
The Dominion of Resk:
Massive continent dominating the western reaches of the world. The Dominion of Resk is an orcish empire whose rule has remained unchallenged for nearly a thousand years. The Dominion is ruled over by the High Orcs—orcs tracing their lineage to the original conquering chieftains—who in turn answer to a divine emperor who descends from the High Chieftain that originally conquered the western world: Resk.
While the savagery of the orcs was beyond words in ancient times, the roll of centuries has seen the Dominion molded into the largest center of civilization in the known world. Slavery is no longer so common, and what slaves do remain are often treated fairly and given direct routes toward earning their freedom (usually involving fighting in some manner). This wasn't the case initially, of course, and the current (overwhelming) population of half-orcs is testament to the rampant crossbreeding that took place in the aftermath of the Dominion's founding.
There are, however, still orcish clans that keep to the old ways. These were granted ancestral homelands with immunity to the politics and goings-on of the rest of the Dominion. In practice, these are massive reservations—the orcs that live within mostly fight among themselves. The few times they have mustered the numbers or courage to stage attacks on lands outside their reservations, the Dominion has proven quick to disperse the orcish hordes with a hopelessly overwhelming display of military superiority.
Most of the world has long since moved on from any grudges or ill will harbored towards the orcs of the Dominion, save for the elves in Mithromar who are old enough to remember and possess grudges that burn for millennia.
Mithromar:
A continent whose surface is almost entirely shrouded by a canopy of forest, Mithromar is where the ancient elven empires fled to when the Dominion of Resk shattered the allied races that failed to halt their advance in the west. It was a bitter pill for the fair folk to swallow, and it has only exaggerated their xenophobia in the roll of centuries since. Few are permitted within the borders of their forest realms—even half-elves are subject to this insularity.
The Hrimlands:
A largely untamed land of hardy northfolk, massive mountains, endless fjords, and sprawling taigas home to savage winter elves. Few willingly venture to the Hrimlands, though Hrimlanders seem eager enough to raid foreign ports of call at their leisure with massive fleets of longboats.
Hinata:
The unapproachable lands at the center of the world, Hinata is virtually impossible to reach by outsiders. Any ships drawing near to the mist-shrouded landmass are immediately and unfailingly thwarted by spontaneously inclement weather that either sinks vessels or rebuffs their attempts to approach.
Hinata is a land of draconic origin. The population is made up entirely of dragonborn, who themselves belong to one of many greater or lesser clans that trace their bloodlines back to a divine (an ancient wyrm). While these clans often made war upon one another, recent times have seen them banding together under the leadership of Most Divine Emperor Hiromasa III to confront a threat from their southern reaches.
Hinata is a place dominated by a rigid caste system, where the lords and their retainers execute their authority based on divine mandate. The peasants they rule over are not always treated well, and a great uprising has begun from the southern half of the nation. While putting down rebellious peasantry would normally be a laughably easy task, someone or something has discovered the means to produce gunpowder (and in turn, cannons and firearms) and begun arming the southern resistance with such weapons. The end result has been a stalemate lasting several years, with the Empire claiming the north half of the country and the rebellion the south.
The Cleftlands:
Once a continent itself, long ago pulverized into a collection of more than a dozen large islands by some ancient cataclysm, The Cleftlands are one of the few areas in the world where humankind still holds dominance. Each of the islands are part of a federation prone to squabbles and in-fighting, but they can be depended upon to set their differences aside for the sake of mutual survival when outside invaders threaten their way of life.
It is on the easternmost island-nation, Estfalk, that Thornleaf and Grunburg are located.
Vetha's Altar:
A massive sprawl of ice and glaciers around a small continent that crown the southern pole of the planet, Vetha's Altar is incapable of sustaining life by any conventional means. What few creatures or beings that exist tend to be creatures of wintry disposition, save for those that make their homes deep beneath the earth beneath the continental mass itself.
Some other setting info:
"Age of Awakening": Spells above 3rd-4th level haven't existed/worked for centuries (we can decide why later--maybe the God of Magic was killed or went missing or something), but have begun to resurface in the last few years. Spellcasters were a bit of a dying breed for a while, so they're few and far between. Magic items aren't common in the civilized world since people have not had the means to create them, but artifacts and relics of past ages still lie forgotten in ancient dungeons, crypts, and tombs.
Magic with consequences: To cast a spell is to change the fabric of reality itself. Most of the time this has no lasting impact, but sometimes it leaves a sort of echo on the site where the magic was worked: A necromancer's lair might become steeped in necrotic energy from prolonged applications of necromantic spells, causing corpses and spirits to stir of their own volition; Druid groves are verdant refuges swelling with an excess of nature magic, where the forest itself seems alive; Prolonged use of abjuration defenses might seep into the trees surrounding the warded structure, making them as sturdy/hard as iron (and a new, highly desired resource).
Ability Score Increase: Your Charisma score increases by 2, and your Constitution score increases by 1.
Age: Forn'Orcs mature a little faster than humans, reaching adulthood around age 14. They age noticeably faster and rarely live longer than 75 years
Alignment: Famously levelheaded unlike Eldin'Orcs, Forn'Orcs tend towards Lawful alignments.
Size: Though not as bulky, Forn'Orcs still are imposing owing to their orcish ancestry. Your size is Medium.
Speed: 30 ft.
Darkvision: 60 ft.
Canny Diplomat: You gain proficiency in the Insight and Persuasion skills.
Clear Thinker: You have advantage on saving throws against mind-affecting spells and effects, and you have resistance against Psychic damage.
Languages: Common and Orcish.
5E System Stuff
A couple of us haven't played 5e before, so I'll try to add pertinent information here as it occurs to me to help give a quick reference to some subtle and not-so-subtle differences re: Pathfinder and 5E.
Combat
5-Foot Step isn't a thing.
Attacks of Opportunity have been greatly simplified. You only provoke an attack when you move away from a square that something threatens (apart from special abilities/feats granting otherwise). Approaching something will not draw an AoO, and you can run circles around them every round without drawing an AoO. If a creature threatens 15 ft., you can move within those 15 ft. without drawing an AoO.
Movement can be taken before, during, and after an attack.
Dual wielding does not incur any penalties for main-hand or off-hand attacks. Your off-hand weapon just needs to be light (unless you have a class feature or a Feat that allows you to do otherwise). Attacking with your off-hand is a Bonus Action that does not apply your ability modifier to the damage roll.
Some spells can be cast as a Bonus Action. You cannot cast a spell with an Action in the same round that you have cast a spell with a Bonus Action (or vice versa). The exception to this rule is Cantrip Spells, which you can use in the same round. So, a Cleric is able to cast healing word as a Bonus Action and then cast a light cantrip in the same turn.
Ritual Magic: some classes gain access to Rituals. These spells can be cast using a spell slot normally, or they can be cast as a ritual by extending the casting time by 10 minutes. Doing so allows the spell to be cast without consuming a spell slot. Wizards don't even have to memorize the spells, they just need access to their spellbook.
Concentration: Some spells require Concentration. You can only concentrate on one spell at a time. Casting a second spell requiring Concentration will cause the first spell to end immediately. If you take damage while concentrating on a spell, you will be forced to make a Constitution saving throw to keep the spell (DC = 10 or 1/2 of the damage taken, whichever is higher). Exceedingly hectic situations might call for one as well, like a wave crashing over you on a storm-tossed ship.
All of the players will have a hand in shaping the world the game takes place in. We'll keep the scope limited at first, focusing on a small location to populate with places of interest, including general geography. I'll present a barebones foundation for us to build upon, and we'll try to cover a few bases to inform the setting enough so that we can actually play in it.
Inevitably, things will come up in game where we need information that hasn't been dreamed up quite yet. When this happens—and it will vary depending on the situations in question—I'll make a call between fleshing things out further by myself, or we'll slide over to the Discussion tab and invent new pieces of lore as a group that satisfies the table as a whole. The goal here is that everyone will have their own little stake in the setting, but if the on-the-fly inventing process bogs down gameplay so much that we hit a gridlock I may end up asserting a little more direct control. Everything that happens won't be by committee, obviously, and coming up with new bits of lore will never be a self-serving device: "There is a tomb of an elven hero with a +20 holy avenger that conveniently only works for the elven paladin I'm playing!"
For a working example to kind of set the stage, if any of you end up picking a Cleric or a Paladin, I would ask the player to create the God their character worships (names, portfolios, alignment, dogma, etc.) which would become a permanent fixture in the setting at large. I'll probably have some of us bounce ideas around to come up with a small handful of greater deities just as a basis to build the world around as well.
Long story short, world-building stuff will tend to be done as a group.
