An Opalline Tide

Game Master Patrick Curtin

The Mayana-Miqui:

Spoiler:

The Xoltec Empire saturated the ground so extensively with necromantic magic over the centuries that sometimes sentients who die will spontaneously rise up. This is especially true of bodies that suffered violent ends or were not interred. The Zapatecs call them Mayana-Miqui, the hungry dead. As they arise spontaneously, they have no other aim than to attack and eat living things. Usually anyone killed by such an undead rises as one unless countermeasures are taken. They can be controlled and ‘tamed’ by an accomplished necromancer just like any revenant.

This is a bit of history I worked up about the setting:

Arcaia Overview

Spoiler:

Arcaia:

A typical home brewed world I’ve been building off and on for the past 11 years. It features several continents

Dragora: The Dragon continent, although dragons are rare there these days. Far in the past, in what is known as the First Age, the continent was ruled by a cabal of dragons that founded a civilization built on the slavery labor of ‘lesser’ races. The dragons imported many of the current races from other worlds for a workforce or for gladiator stock (the dragons enjoyed bloodsport). Over the years, the subject races eventually gained enough power to revolt, toppling the dragons and ushering in the Second Age, the Age Of Concordance.

After toiling for years together under the lash of the dragons, the various races of Dragora created a confederacy that held the continent in a state of peaceful coexistence for centuries. Eventually, the Giantish races grew frustrated with the dwarves, who were extremely successful in their delvings and the humans who were busy outbreeding everyone else. Seeing the empty lands and mountains filling, the Giants forged a secret alliance with several races, such as the orcs, and began the Giant Wars. It ended badly for them.

The defeat of the Giant Alliance ushered in the Third Age, the Age Of Man. Although victorious, the non-human races that fought the giants were decimated. Many just didn’t procreate fast, and their populations never recovered. Mankind , although decimated, rapidly regained its numbers. Eventually the Dwarven realms retreated further into the depths. The elves mostly sailed for the continent of Beladris. The remaining humanoids and giants were exiled to the arctic continent of Fimbulia. The halflings built an insular civilization within the Kingdom of Garlan, basically becoming a semi-autonomous client people within that state.

The Third Age saw a fracturing Of Dragora’s human population. Seven kingdoms arose, allying and warring depending on the season. The non-human cities of the Concordance civilization were left to ruin, even the dwarves for the most part tunneled deeper into the Underdark, leaving the upper levels of their cities abandone. The few humanoid tribes that escaped exile to Fimbulia slid into barbarism, huddling near the shattered ruins of their forefathers’ cities.

Roughly four centuries ago, a band of adventurers stumbled upon an enigmatic bubble of force buried deep beneath the city of Aurialys. Aurialys has once been the site of a dragon city millennia prior. Experimentation caused the bubble to collapse, releasing a time-stopped red draconian Noble family and their retainers. They immediately set forth to capture the city, and once they regained their composure, they began to plot to rebuild the ancient glory of their civilization. Thus the Bright Empire was born.

It took several decades, but the dragons eventually conquered every kingdom in Dragora. This triggered a massive refuge exodus to Dragora’s tropical sister continent Mazatil. The Bright Empire has held Dragora in its scaly fist for over 300 years now unchallenged.

At the height of the Giant Wars, a guild of arcane artificers and smiths centered in a fire giant city decided to go into exile rather than betray their fellow guild members, who were primarily dwarves. The guild, both fire giants and dwarves, decamped via huge ships to a large island/small continent known as Hyrkmir. This island is a mountainous, heavily volcanic land, which suited the two ethnic groups well. They founded an insular hybrid culture. Over the next 1500 years the lines between dwarf and fire giant has blurred due to intermarriage (Fire giants are very similar in looks to dwarves save for size, and the two were inter fertile. There was also a lot of research into enlarge/reduction magic). These days an average Hyrkmirian is about 7 feet tall with a dark copper skin. They favor extensive tattoos and elaborate armor. They speak a language descended from both languages. Their cities are masterworks of engineering, many utilizing lava for heat and smithing. They are also the top weapon and armor smiths on Arcaia.

Mazatil:

To the West Of Dragora, across the Sea Of storms lies the tropical continent of Mazatil. Along its eastern coast is an expanse of thousands of islands of various sizes, the Eastern Isles. This archipelago is warded from the deep ocean storms by a chain of mountainous islands known as the Stormpearls. These forbidding islands act as a natural bulwark against the worst storms.

Mazatil itself has seen several civilizations rise and fall over the years. Before even the dragons came to rule Dragora millennia ago, the massive central Skyspear Mountains were home to the enegmatic race known as the Great race of Yith. These alien beings constructed immense subterranean cities high atop the 25,000-meter tall peaks. In fact, the cities were well above the breathable atmosphere.

Below in the humid jungle that surrounded the Skyspears the lizard man civilization known as the Sliss’pok evolved. An energetic race, with a gift for alchemy and biomamcy, the Sliss’pok built mighty semi-aquatic cities within the swampy borders of the regions mighty rivers.

History doesn’t record what started the conflict, but these two civilizations warred aeons ago. The Great Race disappeared, The Sliss’pok were cast back into a state of barbarism, and the western half of Mazatil was decimated by some sort of magic apocalypse, becoming the Blackwraith Desert.

Millennia later, explorers from the continent of Seng discovered the continent. The Sengenese settled on the coast, but lost contact with their mother continent. These colonists interacted with The Sliss’pok and began to evolve into several cultures. One culture within the deeper jungles became the Xoltec civilization. This civilization took a dark turn as they adopted the God of Necromancy, Xipe Totec as their patron. The Xoltec Empire waxed mighty, conquering all other Mazatil humans, and practicing a religious sacrifice and reanimation program which supplied them with undead minions and necromantic energy.

Fimbulia:

Straddling the Arctic Circle Of Arcaia is the frigid continent of Fimbulia. Once sparsely inhabited save for a few tribes of cold-loving creatures hunted for sport by the White Wyrms Of Dragora’s original civilization , Fimbulia remained a backwater until the end of the Age Of Concordance and the defeat of the Giant Alliance. The shattered remnants of the cultures that fought on the giant’s side fled in what is now called the Wailing Passage. Thousands of rickety boats were assembled and sailed to the coast of Fimbulia, carrying giants and their clients the orcs, goblins, bugbears, gnolls, hobgoblins, and others. They spread out across the tundra and into the central mountainous region. The first years were extremely hard, and many perished. However, these were warrior cultures, and the harsh environment was eventually overcome and the tribes thrived. The hobgoblins rose to command during this time, their organization and iron discipline allowed them to thrive. Eventually a Mongol-style of government evolved, with the hobgoblin clans on top. The Winter Horde now rules the plains, herding massive herds during the brief growing seasons and hunkering in subterranean cities during the long winters.

The giant clans took over the central mountains and tried to reconstruct their civilization. They have to a certain extent, but they are much more constrained by the environment. The frost giants have come to the fore, taking leadership positions.

A typical Fimbulian humanoid is much more robust than their counterparts on other continents. The Harsh cold environment and the harsh culture has bred a much fiercer breed of humanoid. They look their noses down at the giants, regarding them as dilettantes dreaming of past glories in their mountain fastnesses.

A subset of the Horde has taken to the sea in giant pirate fleets. These are the Sea Wolves, and currently they are raiding and colonizing the coast of the continent of Beladris.

Beladris:

The continent of Beladris was originally settled by bands of wood elves who declined joining the Concordance on Dragora, preferring a more isolated life. The continent was perfect for them, being a temperate mix of plains, forest , and gentle mountains. The elves and a few humans with similar insular desires evolved a civilization that worked with the ecology. They specialized in biomancy and specialized breeding of plants and animals rather than metallurgy and masonry.

Their civilization went on in a placid fashion until a few centuries ago. The Fimbulian tribes had begun to become restless on their cold, harsh continent and a bold group built ocean-going craft and sailed south searching for plunder.

Named the Sea Wolves, they fell upon the eastern coast of Beladris like a plague. The elves and their human allies were unaccustomed to battle, and the next decades saw their coastal settlements decimated

In despair, the Beladrins reached out to the Theranan Republic, requesting assistance. The Theranans agreed, and their fleet fought several engagements with the Sea Wolves. Unfortunately for the Beladrins, the Theranans were not doing this out of altruism. They wrung land concessions out of the Beladrins, stating they would keep any lands won back from the Sea Wolves to colonize. Now a three-sided war of shifting alliances has formed. The Seawolves now only hold the northeastern coast, and the Theranans hold the rest of the east. The Beladrins elves and humans have retreated into the interior of the continent, unable or unwilling to wage the type of war needed to drive the two other groups off their former land.

The city of Therana and the republic that rules it began as a refuge for slaves and political dissidents. The city was originally a morass of small swampy islands in the center of a tropical lagoon. The proto-Theranans hid from their tormentors in the thick jungles, learning the ways of the swamp. Eventually they started constructing boats and trading/raiding the nearby cities that they had once fled. They became very adept at both professions, devising magic and crafts suited to seamanship. They were fiercely independent, eschewing the rigid caste system of their patent civilization. In its early days a true meritocracy, Therana blossomed as its famed captains explored the vast oceans of Arcaia. Their small swampy islands were clad in marble and porphyry, becoming floating garden palaces.
Of course, these riches changed Theranan society. It had always had a piratical streak in it, but now it became rapacious. Its meritocratic society hardened into an oligarchy where a dozen important families ruled. The outward Democratic forms were kept, but nominees to the Wardens were usually backed by one family or another.
Still, Therana’s Fleet sails the seas, trading and fighting. Their fearsome Marines accompany every ship, ready for any danger. Their Guild of the Four Winds is the premiere weather mages in Arcaia.

Eastern Isles/Mazatil Map:

Eastern Isles Map

History of the Eastern Isles:

Spoiler:

The Eastern Isles have a varied and mish-mashed history down through the ages. During the distant aeons of the Old One's rule of the area, the islands lay empty for the most part, although certain ruins on Quetzal Island seem to originate with them or a similarly ancient race. There is also a theory that the Old Ones used some arcane ancient magic to raise up the forbidding Stormpearl Isles as a sheild from the many storms that rage in the open waters.

The Eastern Isles does have the distinction of having a native race, the Hadorzee, a species of simian-looking creatures with partigal flaps similar to flying squirrells. The Hadorzee are fantastic swimmers and can use their flaps to fly from treetop to treetop. During the ancient days, the primitive ancestors of the Hadorzee froliced among the atolls alone.

The ancient Lizardman race of the Sliss'pok were not represented in a major way in the Eastern Isles. There seems to have been a small trading post near the site of the city of Viridian on Taranta Island, probably to trade with the ancient Hadorzee who were numerous on that island. Taranta Island also is host to some of the animals and plants the Sliss'pok were famous for breeding.

During recent millenia as the ancestors of the Mazatilian humans migrated to the area, some of the migrants settled in the islands and developed an indepenent culture known as the Avveroe. They fished, farmed, and battled with the Hadorzee for centuries, living a fairly harmonious low-tech lifestyle until the Xoltec Empire rose on the mainland of Mazatil.

The Xoltecs were much more sophisticated than their island cousins, and they were always looking for sacrifices to their dark necromantic god Xipe Totec. They built war galleys and sailed for the islands, conquering the native Hadorzee and Avveroe alike. Much of both populations were taken back to fuel the blood sacrifices of Xipe Totec's temples. The city of Arratu on Taranta Island was so infamous for the cruelty inflicted on the Hadorzee that the word has entered their language as a curse. The islands suffered under the tyranny of the Xoltecs until the chaos of the Night of Bloody Bones allowed them to rise up and destroy the remaining surviviors and their dark cities. From that point on, the few remaining Avveroe and Hadorzee pledged to work together to defend their islands. Since then, both cultures have thrived, integrating well with the refugees arriving from Dragora and become sought-after crewmembers and navigators

During the following years, other groups began to arrive from other continets. During the consolidation of the Golden Empire on Dragora, many refugees from the conquered kingdoms sailed away rather than submit. These people found refuge among the islands, still recovering from the depredations of the Xoltecs.

Many of the refugees from the Kingdom of Vellasia setted in the south of Mazatil. A younger son of the slain King of Pyke led a group of his countrymen to the northern island of Chalmec, which they renamed King Island. They founded the city of Kingsport, and are quite succesful merchant-sailors. The merchant-nobles of Kingsport organize the annual Trading Fleet, which travels in convoy to the city of Amiran on the southern coast of Dragora.

A contingent of halflings who fled their homeland when the Kingdom of Garlan fell to the Empire settled on Parakeet Island, where they have become quite chummy with the local Hadorzee (they both have a fascination with fine food in large quantities).

A mixed group of refugees from many kingdoms settled the area that became the city of Viridian, the largest city in the islands. Viridian, much like its' sister city of Opal is a multi-ethnic stew, but without the rampant violence and undead menace that Opal suffers.

The climate of the Eastern Isles is very clement and tropical, but there are frequent storms that rush in from the Tempest Straits. Navigation can be tricky, and most captains stay along the deeper water channels known as Roads. There are many small coral atolls scattered about. in many places the water is extremely shallow, and many water-breathing sentients make their home under the waves as well. The are many unique and delicious foodstuffs that only grow in this environment, and long-distance traders come from all over Arcaia to dicker for them and the native hardwoods. The many ships have brought forth a large number of pirates.

Piracy in the Eastern Isles is fairly endemic. There is lots to steal, and many places to lie doggo with your ship until the heat is off. There is also a large "open port" city known as Argentum on the southern side of Avveroe Island. Argentum is a clearing house for dubious goods, and a place where pirates can give their crew shore leave without worrying about being strung up by the law. Most crews are local inhabitants, but there are ships looking for booty from Fimbulia, Therana, the Isles of Storm and almost anywhere with a maritime tradition. Argentum is the place to go to find or dispose of anything that might be dangerous, stolen, or both. Argentum is surrounded by shoals, and is difficult to navigate to unless you know the safest paths in.

Zapatec Calendar:

Spoiler:

Zapatec Calendar:

The Arcaian Year is 367 1/12 days long. The Zapatec civilization created the calendar based on the calculations of the high Quetzalcouatl priest Mictanlatl (Heart of Flowers). It is based on the earlier Xoltec Calendar, which was abandoned because of its ties to human sacrifice and necromancy.

Rather than a 30-day month standard, the year is broken up into 28 13-day ‘cycles’. The cycles are grouped into 2 sections of 14 cycles each. The ‘wet’ cycles are named for animals and fall during the winter rainy season. The ‘dry’ cycles are named for gems and fall during the summer dry season. Zapatec children are often called by their birthday as a common name, with their birth name kept secret as a ward against evil magic. Thus a Zapatec child can be called Seven Foxor Twelve Onyx in daily conversation.

Wet Cycles:

1. Fox

2. Bat

3. Gecko

4. Spider

5. Eagle

6. Horse

7. Bear

8. Rabbit

9. Leopard

10. Jaguar

11. Tiger

12. Turtle

13. Deer

14. Bison

Dry Cycles:

1. Jade

2. Ruby

3. Turquoise

4. Diamond

5. Emerald

6. Onyx

7. Sapphire

8. Obsidian

9. Amethyst

10. Pearl

11. Topaz

12. Opal

13. Moonstone

14. Garnet

The remaining four days are marked on the solstices and the equinoxes. They are the Days of the Couatl, and any children born on these days are known as One Couatl and considered very lucky. These children often enter the priesthood.

Every twelve years there is a leap day. This is the Day of the Skull, prophesised to be the day the Zapatec Civilization will fall. Any child born on this day is considered cursed, and known as One Skull. These children rarely live long happy lives

Map of Opal

Opal's Districts:

Spoiler:

The Shambles: District where much of themanufacturing in Opal is located. Rendering plants, tanneries, smithies and distilleries all are locatedhere. Points of interest include theHyrkmirian Embassy, the Shipworks and the Temple to Volund/Rava. Local Tavern: The Rusty Rooster

Eastfaring: A working-class district where many Shambles workers make their home. Points of interest include the Leatherworker’s Market, the Varranio Glassworks and the Dawn Market. Local tavern: The Glisterbank Brewery.

Central District:One of the original parts of Opal, the Central District still serves asthe administrative heart of the city. Points of interest include The Grand Temple of Quetzalcouatl, TheCaptain’s Guild, and the House of Convocation. Local tavern: The Zephyr’s Kiss.

Old City: The original hub of habitation inOpal. It is still occupied by many oldernoble houses. Points of interest includethe Carvacchio Amphitheater, the Temple of Gozreh, and the Grand Ducal Palace.Local tavern: The Foc’c’sle.

Driftwood District: The rowdy and rundown docks ofOpal. Points of interest include theBroken House Sanitarium, The Temple of the Shark Gods, and Larmer’s Coffee House. Local Tavern: The Purple Siren.

Longreach: A mixture of housing and shops. Points of interest include the Opaline LeaperBourse, the Palm Brandy Distillery and the Saddlery. Local tavern: The Dragon’s Tooth Inn.

Westfaring: Mixture of warehouses, middle classhousing and college buildings. Points of interest include the University ofOpal, Erd’s Antiquities and Oddments and the Temple of Oghma. Local Tavern: The Steel Quill.

Highwatch: Highest point in Opal, Highwatch is where the richest families build their palatial dwellings. Points of interest include the Cloud Ballroom, Gem Boulevard and the Founder’s Hall. Local tavern: The Red Rose.

River District: Warehouses and river docks. Most of the Uplands plantation produce isunloaded here. Points of interestinclude the River Keep, the Confectionary and Greff’s Jungle Outfitters. Local Tavern: The Levee.

Upper Opal: A collection of higher hills. Merchantsand well-to-do captains make their homes here. Points of interest include the Exotic Animal Souk, the Temple of Abadarand Boulevard of Relics. Local Tavern:The Hogshead.

Market District: The commercial heart of Opal. Points of interest include the OpalExplorer’s Guild, the Temple of CaydenCailean/Ometochtl , and the Opaline Chandlery. Local Tavern: The Golden Perch.

Opal Harbor: Harbor shielded by a large manmade breaker known as Arturo’sWall. At the edge is a large lighthouseknown as The Octogon Light.

Opal and Mazatil:

Spoiler:

Southwest of the continent Dragora, close to the Arcaian equator is the continent of Mazatil. It is a wild and forbidding continent, wrapped in jungle, desert and forbidding mountains known as the Skyspears.

Unlike Dragora's history, which began with a draconic civilization, Mazatil started much earlier as the home continent of the enigmatic race known as the Old Ones. High up on the slopes of the Skyspear mountains, which in some places top 50,000 feet, these otherworldly creatures built their domains. For eons this race continued to live and work high above the continent, until a new race began to develop beneath them in the eastern section of Mazatil.

This was a race of lizard men that evolved from the reptiles that ruled the humid jungle, and settled along the rivers and swamps of southern Mazatil. Calling themselves the Slisss'pok (with the ' standing for a click on the tongue), these lizard men were great builders and excellent animal breeders, and their civilization became quite advanced around the same time as the Draconic civilization reached its height in Dragora.

At some point there was a conflict between the Old Ones and the Slisss'pok in the Blackwraith Desert, which caused the Old Ones to disappear. Relatively soon afterwards the Slisss'pok civilization fell into savagery, which they never recovered from. To this day, tribes of lizardmen roam the jungles, barbaric, but wise and very knowlegable of the creatures and plants within their domain. Their once mighty cities are a lure to adventurers, but they are known as death traps filled with the decendents of the Slisss'pok's domesticated animals.

The Old One's civilization is a much more problematic venture. Very few have the skills to surmount a 50,000 foot climb and all that entails. Even the atmosphere is thin at that range (although not as thin as it would be in a normal physics scenario). The cold at that height and the shreiking winds make it a dangerous climb. The few accounts of explorers that suceeded in entering any of their habitations tell of cyclopean tunnels and lightless galleries that stretch far into the center of the mountains. The Old Ones dabbled in what can only be termed as bio-magical golem construction, and surrounded themselves with unearthly creations that served many bizarre purposes. Many of these creations were never truly alive in any sense we know, and they are still prowling the darkened depths.

About 3,000 years ago, a tribe of humans landed upon the shores of Mazatil, possibly from farther west towards the twin continents of Seng and Avmar and the Coral Sea. During the millenia that followed these humans interacted with the remnants of the Sliss'pok and began what became known as the Xoltec (shoul-tek) civilization.

The Xoltecs were dominated by a class of necromantic wizard-priests who worshipped the flayed god Xipe Totec. These priests refined and perfected the art of raising undead, animating the bodies of the many sacrifices they made to Xipe Totec, which they then used as cheap labor to construct their temples. As time progressed, they began to animate specialized undead minions to fight for them, and to keep the populace of the cities cowed. As the Xoltec priests grew in power and arrogance, a resistance movement known as the Jaguar's Shadow developed among those who would see Xipe Totec's priests cast down.

The Jaguar's Shadow was a mix of elite Arcanists and rogues who despised the priests for their iron control of the Xoltec cities and their taboo on exploring Sliss'pok and Old One ruins. In secret they began to explore the forbidden ruins, gaining knowlege over many forgotten arts. About 500 years ago, they decided to strike.

The Shadow War was brief but horrid. For roughly three years the battles raged among the Xoltec cities, with the Jaguar's Shadow (or Shadow Men as they became known) losing ground after a few brief victories. They simply didn't have the manpower to fight waves of fearless undead minions. In desperation, the Shadow Men unleashed a previously unknown magical effect which broke the priest's control over the undead. The vast Xoltec army of undead turned on their former masters and the surrounding populace in what became known as the Night of the Bloody Bones.

After the Night of the Bloody Bones the Xoltec civilization collapsed completely. Several other magical curses manifested themselves at the same time, transforming some Xoltecs into feral beast creatures or undead monstrosities. The main temple of Xipe Totec at the capital city of Chichen Ipec was abandoned to the swarming undead. A plauge of monstrous spiders followed soon afterward, scattering what few survivors there were.

Cuurently the remaining Mazatilians have formed a political body called the Zapatec Confederation, a collection of citystates that are strung along Mazatil's eastern coast. Opal is a member of this confederation, but due to its remote location and unique history it remains its own distinct culture.

the Free City of Opal:

Right on the Southeast corner of the Mazatil continent is a sheltered stretch of water known as Turquoise Bay. A city has grown there on the bones of far older civilizations. Opal is a city of outcasts, of refugee gentry from the wars in Dragora and the survivors of the Xoltec Empire.

Opal is a study in contrasts, old and new, rich and poor, civlilized but wild. In its present form Opal was founded by refugees from the Night of Bloody Bones when the Xoltec Empire fell. Relatively soon after refugees from the Wars of Consolidation in Dragora began arriving looking for somewhere to settle. The surrounding area was in need of brave settlers as there were still many rogue undead in the surrounding jungles to contend with. The melding of the two civilizations created the modern Opaline society.

Although the surrounding jungles are dangerous, there is much wealth to be had for the brave. Many Opalines and immigrants alike start farming communities. These farms are usually held in fief by a local feudal lord. There is a lot of undead/monster activity from the jungle and most freeholders know how to fight and recognize the need to underwrite a military class. The feudal gentry are very competitive as well as deadly and enjoy a lot of intrigue among themselves during the Opaline social season.

The city and most of the surrounding area is ruled by the Grand Duke of Opal, who traces his family back to both the Zapatec and Vellasian royal family. The present Grand Duke's ancestor Arturo, the second son of Vellasia's last king, fled his country after its fall to Auria during the formation of the Golden Empire 300 years ago. He mockingly called himself the Grand Duke of Opal after the title offered to him by Avros I's agents if he returned to administer Vellasia for him.

Arturo and his adherents were given leave by the Zapatecs to settle along the Opal River to help secure that valuable area and assist the people there in their constant fight against the hordes of undead still wandering the jungle from the Night of Bloody Bones. Although nominally a Zapatec city, the unique melding of Dragoran and Mazatil influences and its remoteness from the core of Zapatec society makes Opal its own unique civilization.

The land itself is intensely fertile, and lush farms of sugarcane, tobacco, chocolate, and oranges (among others) dot the Opal River's banks. West up the Opal River is the Uplands, a string of high hills/low mountains that are producers of Arcaia's best coffee beans and tea leaves.

Along with the fertile wealth of the farms there are veins of ore and gems to be had from the Uplands streams that feed the Opal River. Many prospecting teams hope to find wealth in the thinly settled Uplands, but it is not a journey for the faint at heart. The Opal River was first named that from the fantastic black opals that can be found in some of the Uplands and often wash into the neighboring streams.

The fishing is very good in the Turquoise Bay area as well, with the Kraken clan of aquatic giants ruling the undersea part of Turquoise Bay and bringing in huge catches. The Kraken clan is also known for their pearls, which they hunt in the depths from the giant oysters that thrive in the brackish waters where the Opal River empties into the Turquiose Bay.

Opal also does a thriving trade in antiquities from previous civilizations. The Sliss'pok and the Xoltecs also built at the very foundations of modern Opal, and Opal uses some of their original sewer layouts underneath its streets today. Most of the artifacts recovered in the jungles of southern Mazatil flow through Opal.

Opal is also the prime jumping off point for any exploration of the southern jungles. It is the only large city for any appreciable distance, and the only other city in Southern Mazatil, Threepenny Port, has a dark reputation. Opal is one of the few cities that has an actual guild for adventuring. Any new arrivals looking to explore the wilderness are encouraged to join, and there is always plenty of work for the strong of arm.

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