True History:
For 199 years Glorious House Thrune was merely the most pure of the Noble Houses of Cheliax, the blood of Azlant truly flowing in her Line of Succession. While other Houses could boast a distant ancestor with a fraction of the ancient Bloodline, The House of Thrune was the true inheritor of the Azlanti.
For 199 years Glorious House Thrune was merely the most wise of the Noble Houses of Cheliax, deeply understanding that Asmodeus was the rightful master of The Planes, holding the Cosmology together as its Absolute Power.
How sad and pitiable were the other Houses of Cheliax, for 199 years, that they could only claim a tiny portion of the Blood of Azlant, and misguidedly followed the path of a mere mortal – A Great Azlanti though he was – after he raised the Astral Rock from the bottom of the Sea and founded Absalom. A great Azlanti mortal Aroden was, and his Blood flows in the veins of Almighty House Thrune, but a risen mortal is not worthy of worship. Merely respect and admiration. Asmodeus is the true Power.
Then, after 199 years, House Thrune ascended to its rightful place in Cheliax. It was 100 years ago, and the other Houses believed Aroden was returning to Westcrown from his starry palace in The Astral Sea, to bring back the glory of his ancestral Azlanti, and rule Cheliax into a new age.
But Almighty House Thrune, having stayed true and pure and wise for 199 years, joined with Asmodeus and cast Aroden down. It is Glorious House Thrune who, 100 years ago, began its rightful place and rules Cheliax into this new Age.
Westcrown:
It has been 100 years since House Thrune, together with Asmodeus, cast down Aroden and took her rightful place as absolute ruler of Cheliax. 100 years since Westcrown was the capital of Cheliax. 100 years since the grand Arodennama statue in Westcrown’s great park cracked asunder and lost its divine luster.
While House Thrune rules Cheliax from her mighty citadel, she allows her loyal vassals to manage the year-to-year affairs of the old city. House Arvanxi is most loyal to Thrune and therefore currently has the right to administer Westcrown through her patron, Grand Count Aberian Arvanxi, the Lord Mayor.
Four other Noble Houses in Westcrown have also shown great loyalty to Thrune, and have therefore been rewarded with additional management responsibilities over the old city. Should Arvanxi show any disloyalty, one of these shall be ready to wear the mantle of responsibility for Westcrown: (alphabetically)
House Drovenge ; House Oberigo ; House Phandros ; House Salisfer
Westcrown Map Westcrown Atlas:
The northwest corner is the Parego Dospera. It is half abandoned, crumbling and poor. The Homeless and the criminals and the heretics-in-hiding dwell here in hopeless despair. (mapped as 2 districts)
The peninsula is the Parego Spera. This is contemporary Westcrown where 95% of the population live, work and worship Asmodeus and House Thrune. The Arodennama is here. (mapped as 3 districts)
The river island is the Parego Regicona, wherein live the nobles. All the Noble Houses of Westcrown, as well as several other Houses throughout Cheliax, have fortified mansions like palatial citadels, separated by steep canals. (mapped as 3 districts)
House Thrune:
tba
House Arvanxi:
Grand-Count Aberian Arvanxi, Lord Mayor of Westcrown, Patriarch
House Arvanxi has the support of three minor Houses: Mhartis ; Ciucci ; Rasdovain
Westcrown Noble Houses:
House Drovenge:
Duke Vassindio Drovenge, Patriarch
Lord Bassianus Drovenge, his younger brother
Lord Sidonai Drovenge, his eldest son, recently returned from abroad
Lady Chammady Drovenge, his eldest grandchild (Lord Sidonai’s daughter)
House Drovenge has the support of three minor Houses: Imvius ; Lorialn ; Xerysis
House Oberigo:
Countess Tanith and Count Toran Oberigo
Lord Geryon Oberigo, their eldest living son (fourth-born)
Lord Eterian Oberigo, Countess Tanith's 'younger' twin brother
Lady Tandy, age 11
House Oberigo has the support of one minor House: Aulamaxa
House Phandros:
Grand-Count Marcus Phandros, Patriarch
House Phandros has the support of two minor Houses: Chard ; Nolmon
House Salisfer:
Duchess Viola Salisfer, Matriarch
House Salisfer has the support of two minor Houses: Chillarth ; Rustachas
Other Noble Houses with estates in Parego Regicona (with their supporting Minor Houses) are as follows:
House Grulios (Houses Ici ; Mironeth)
House Khollarix (House Nymmis)
House Mezinas (Houses Missepe ; Vitaron)
House Tilernos (Houses Etrovain ; Starnon)
House Dioso
House Rosala
The Council of Thieves:
100 years ago, as Glorious House Thrune through its wisdom, purity and manifest destiny, ascended to power by casting down Aroden with her alliance with Asmodeus and The Nine Hells, She simultaneously dealt a crippling blow to Cheliax's notorious mafia, The Council of Thieves.
In the decades since, the surviving remnants of rogues, vagabonds, rakes and ruffians of The Council of Thieves have fallen under the sway of various disloyal nobles of various minor Houses.
Today, The Council of Thieves is much more a Secret Society of a handful of Chelaxian nobles unsatisfied with their position in the feudal position under House Thrune and, disloyally -- and privately -- work against the goals of their Houses and potentially, even blasphemously against Her Infernal Majestrix, Queen Abrogail Thrune.
They organize and direct various thieves, rogues, rakes, vagabonds and ruffians as stooges, plotting from the shadows and pushing their agendas through gambits, both subtle and gross.
Westcrown's Children:
Westcrown's Children are an illegal group of goodly people in Westcrown who covertly want to bring their home back to prominence in Cheliax -- back to its glory-days in pre-Thrune Cheliax.
-OR-
Westcrown's Children are an illegal group of Neutral(?)ish people in Westcrown who covertly want to bring their home back to prominence in Cheliax -- back to its glory-days in pre-Thrune Cheliax.
(We will discuss before the Gameplay begins.)
The Darklight Sisterhood:
In short, The Darklight Sisterhood is the Cheliax version of The Pathfinder Society. Archaeologists, etc. loyal (at least somewhat) to Cheliax and House Thrune's rule that, you know, go out in search of lore, artifacts, relics, ancient stuff and, you know, adventure.
And then hand it all over to their superiors (and by extension, Abrogail Thrune & Gorthoklek). While the leaders (not necessarily a decemvirate of 10) aren't absolutely always female -- though it began as such -- they do all change their surname to 'Darklight.'
The Nine Hells:
My Homebrew Nine Hells is quite a bit different than the traditional D&D/Pathfinder Nine Hells but it doesn't have to interfere with anyone's head-canon. I can go into detail and you can like it or not. I'll try to keep it from seeping in to the campaign as much as possible -- shouldn't be too hard in most places. But you may see a spot here or there where the make-up of The Nine Hells contradicts gaming tradition.
