| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
I'm prepping a Kingmaker campaign to start in the next couple of weeks. I've got a pretty good handle on the region and the scope of play, but I do have one question that I can't seem to find the answer to.
Who are the Swordlords of Restov? Are they an actual political organization? Are they a collective of Aldori duelist who wield political power? Do they have any relation (official or unofficial) to the Lord Mayor?
Basically, I need to know who gives the charter to the PCs. Any suggestions?
IIRC they are a bunch of mercenaries with strong ties to the area. They also seem to hold political influence
|
IIRC they are a bunch of mercenaries with strong ties to the area. They also seem to hold political influence
On a related note, the description of the Aldori deuling sword sounds very similar to a katana. (3.5' blade, slightly curved, sharpened on one edge, bonus damage if wielded in two hands with the feat) Anyone else get that impression?
|
| 1 person marked this as a favorite. |
They are a group of independant warriors who attended/graduated etc from the Aldori Swordfighting school - set up initially by the first Swordlord Aldori. The first settlers of Rostland were colonists from Taldan - under the leadership of Baron Sirian First.
The hand-picked members swear to a Swordpact where it is forbidden for them to teach the fighting techniques to those who have not sworn to the swordpact.
The group were feared throughout the continent and ruled Rostland until the Surtovas arrived.
Afterwards, most of the swordlords wandered elswhere as sell-swords etc, but some remain and the school remains.
To the people in the south, they are viewed as heroes or champions and they hold political power only via their heralded celebrity status or put another way - they are a hero of the people, but are not officially in charge; they just have a lot of influence over the people of Rostland. They oppose the Surtovas (and Choral for that matter), but do not have the capability or armies to overthrow them (yet).
Which is precisely why they're wanting the PCs to help expend their influence and kingdom via the Kingmaker path. With that in place, it is assumed they'll have their ally and strength and power to make a vie for the thron of all Brevoy or at least re-liberate Rostland as independant from Issia.
This info I got from the Pathfinder Campaign Setting book. There's feat in there called Aldori Dueling Mastery that has these feats as the prereqs:
Prerequisites: Dex 17, Greater Weapon Focus (Aldori
dueling sword), Weapon Finesse, Weapon Focus (Aldori
dueling sword), Weapon Specialization (Aldori dueling
sword), base attack bonus +12, proficient with Aldori
dueling sword, member of Aldori school.
So needless to say that Aldori Swordlords were badass hombres with a sword.
Robert
IIRC they are a bunch of mercenaries with strong ties to the area. They also seem to hold political influenceOn a related note, the description of the Aldori deuling sword sounds very similar to a katana. (3.5' blade, slightly curved, sharpened on one edge, bonus damage if wielded in two hands with the feat) Anyone else get that impression?
yup, jedi with katanas
The hand-picked members swear to a Swordpact
What does the Swordpact involve besides not teaching its techniques? Is it an oath of loyalty? Are all its fledgling students automatically "Swordlords" as soon as they join, or only those in the top echelons of the... guild? order?
It's all still a bit vague I'm afraid.
|
The hand-picked members swear to a SwordpactWhat does the Swordpact involve besides not teaching its techniques? Is it an oath of loyalty? Are all its fledgling students automatically "Swordlords" as soon as they join, or only those in the top echelons of the... guild? order?
It's all still a bit vague I'm afraid.
It would be really great if we had a Prestige Class available with more background and specifics.
Shane
Who are the Swordlords of Restov? Are they an actual political organization? Are they a collective of Aldori duelist who wield political power? Do they have any relation (official or unofficial) to the Lord Mayor?
Basically, I need to know who gives the charter to the PCs.
I think one way to perceive the Swordlords - at least based on how it applies in the Kingmaker books - is that Brevoy is really two countries - Issia and Rostland. The two were forced together by Choral the Conqueror into the nation of Brevoy.
In the past, the Aldori Swordlords were essentially the nobility class of Rostland that followed it's founder - Sirian Aldori. The swordpact became a trait of their rulerships. Rostland is seen as being the more defiant region because it was nearly destroyed and their rightful rulers (the Aldori) killed and scattered by Choral - a captured state as opposed to Issia's submissive acceptance.
The result is as mentioned above - some became mercenaries; others founded the bandit kingdom of Mivon, and few others remained in the free-city of Restov, the last stronghold of their power and the school. The swordlords are sort of the noble folk-heroes of southern Brevoy; recalling the country's history and still wielding influence, if not direct control. They are definetly a political entity in Restov - working to weaken their ties to Brevoy and House Surtova. As a result, one can probably surmise that the Lord Mayor sympathzes with them while showing fealty to the Surtovas.
So their charter can probably come from the Lord Mayor. But I think you could perceive it as the paper has a rubber stamp of Brevoy's rulers, but it's the Swordlords who are paying the money to support the PCs endeavours with the idea of expanding their influence.
|
The highest level Swordlord in Restov is Jamandi Aldori, a CG Female Half-Elf Fighter 14. She's actually the one who sends the PCs a letter asking them to go explore the vanishing of Varnhold in volume 3, though it's the Lord-Mayor of Restov (Ioseph Sellemius, NG Male Human Aristocrat 3/Expert 2) that signs the initial charters in volume 1 and 2 to send them into the Greenbelt.