World of Kralis

Baronies of Vishraan

Regional Information
Population:	250,685 (90% Humans, 10% other)
Capital:	None
Government:	Tyrannical Rule by Dark Lords
Major Religions:	Azahak, Akiri, Kahel, Tir
Imports/Exports:	None
Area/Dimensions:	Total Area 975,000 sq mi; Length:1500 miles/Width: 650 miles
Elevation:	6,250 feet; Lowest: Sea Level/Highest: 10,500 feet

The Accursed Lands as they are often referred to are lands that have fallen into the dark hold of Azahak and Chaos. It is a horrible region of Ta Los that has felt the tremble of deities, the footfall of demons and other horrific beings. It is a land of harsh, dark extremes, unfriendly to visitors at best and at worst hostile to those that exist there.

The majority of people that live within the realms are a hard, untrusting people. That go about their daily lives looking over their shoulders. When the night rises, towns become deserted, only the light of candles can be seen in the windows, fluttering behind closed wooden shutters. Cities close and lock their gates and villages light huge fires around themselves, all in an attempt to keep back the dark and those things that still lurk in the dark hunting down souls.

The Baronies once ruled by mortal men are now ruled by undead creatures, demons and other unspeakable horrors that should not exist in this world. There are six baronies: Marchosias, Agares, Eligos, Vladac, Volak and Phryxis. The "U"-Shaped mountain range, known as the Baligrog Mountains divide the rest of the world from the Baronies. Every aspect of the Baronies, from its climate to the creatures that inhabit its borders are a reflection of the dark lord that rules over that Barony.

The Baronies are a realm unlike any in Ta Los, in many senses it feels like a constructed artificial other plane of existence built around the fears of not only this plane and world but those of countless others through out the Celestial Omniverse.

Within the borders of the Baronies magic, both divine and weave sourced, are muted and restricted in their usages. Often the common folk witness the supernatural and understand the weird, the bizarre and strange only through folklore.

The whole region is divided nearly in half by the dark waters of the Dhalag River. It is a slow moving, deep river that has a strong sulfur smell issuing from it. In the southwest portion of the realm making up most of Agares stands a dark, majestic forest of fir and pine trees, referred to by the gypsies of the region as the Dharagh Forest. In the north, nestled in the Baligrog Mountains surrounding Eligos sits the ancient Castle Dhulmac, home to the ancient creature known only as Tsiishchul.

The Baligrog Mountains, the only true barrier of the Baronies, are a wash in mist and vapors, filled with maze like passages, and dark canyons that lead to unexpected regions and are meant to confound travelers who attempt to venture into and out of the Baronies. The mountains and the mists assume a life of their own, acting like guardians keeping the chaos and evil in and the rest of the world out. Yet, there are cracks in this wall, that occasionally allow darkness, fear, chaos and evil to enter Ta Los.

Travelers that enter into the Baligrog Mountains hoping to reach the other side quickly find themselves engulfed in by mists, vapors and elements of the “netherworld” that obscure images, distort reality and invoke fears. Direction, distance and time become meaningless unless a traveler is escorted by native residents of the mountains such as the Armandu or the Tsingari, or has a reliable (though rare) map by which to travel the mountain range there is no hope for exiting the mountains and the mists.

In most cases, travelers that enter the mountains, never exit; there are however times that travelers are deposited into the Baronies unexpectedly with no control of where they exit the mountains and mists. Most lore scholars and sages believe that mists that pervade the mountains are a manifestation of remnants of Neter-Kheret, like strands of cobwebs that bind the Baronies to the rest of the world.

Each of the Baronies are ruled by tyrannical, cruel darklords. These are powerful individuals that have wholly given themselves over to the darkness, cruelty and evil of the world. Three are thought to be powerful undead, yaqu, one is believed to be a demon, and the fourth is a corrupted mystic.

Inhabitants

When Gishra sacrificed a portion of her divinity and the Vishraan was created, it trapped a great number of species within its borders. Most are human, though there a number of other species that inhabit the region There are populations of Aelwyn, Chovah, Kanus, and Rhakas. It is also home to other humanoid and monstrous humanoids that did not escape the region, even the depths of Tav Aeduhn are affected by the curse. There are communities of fir darrig that have been found living on the surface, breel are known to inhabit the Dharagh Forest, centaurs surviving in the Al-Ulzkar, formorians, gantu, goatmen, and oku.

Languages

Long before the War of the Accursed Lands the Plains of Guriish were like many other locations through out Ta Los home to various species, and home to numerous languages from common to iklahn to arctoban to rahvad to azhdehak. But now it seems that only common is spoken, but there is a great use of Curik ak Ta (Planar language) as well as Qui Roc Batak (Infernal Language). Other languages are looked down upon, and speaking them can bring about severe looks, if not out right violence or even death.

This has given rise to the use of pidgin languages that sound in context to that of common and Qui Roc Batak, but has been changed enough to have different meanings that allow those that use it to speak secretly, it is known as Phak Tak.

Life and Society

Those that life within each of the five baronies have very differing lifestyles and societies based on who rules them. At best it is simple neglect and the populace strives against the cursed lands at its worst they are placed under grueling and cruel conditions, what would be called slavery in other parts of the world.

While the lords of each of the baronies have a great deal to do with the harshness, hopelessness, and fear that is felt through out the baronies, the land itself is what ultimately give the dark lords their power and beats down the trapped souls here. The lands offers very little in support, its ancient scorched and blasted earth is hard to till, and very little grows in the soil. What land is not swallowed up by the Al-Ulzkar is arid, scorched, covered by low dark clouds, sprinkling with sour rain, dark twisted plants that tear at passer byes. Though there are regions within the Accursed Lands that survived the scorching and destruction caused by Azahak and his minions. These regions are hotly contested by the baronies that border them, they are seen as needed resources but must not be destroyed, lest the Dark Lords lose their control of their "citizens".

Roaming and adventuring in the Accursed Lands would be a simple matter if all one had to worry about was the weather and dark cloud cover.

The populace is continually fend off disease, hostile wildlife, horrific and terrible monsters. Hunters spend greater length of time hunting down prey that is not contaminated by negative energies or disease. Herders are constantly moving their livestock to find good grazing areas and avoiding predators and the horrors that stalk the lands.

Travel in any direction from a city or village and the desolation of the land and the region is driven home. Each of the baronies consists of small, isolated pockets of life separated by the scorched and barren land.

Most folk rarely travel more than a few miles from a town, hold or settlement at least alone. While there are no official roads between settlements, there are well accepted travel routes that mercenaries bandits and those few merchants use to move between the settlements.

Social Customs

The Baronies are home to several divergent cultures and societies with several specific species' customs that have survived in this harsh region. Many of the social customs that have taken root are reflections of the barony and which dark lord controls it as much as the species that live within the borders.

The vast majority of folk through out the Baronies live in poverty. Most are subsistence farmers and herders living day-to-day on the meager resources they can pull from the land. As harsh as life seems to be there is some joy to be found in the customs that each community share with each other and among themselves. There seems to be a great deal less of issues based on differing species than in other parts of the world, as most folk see survival as the most important custom here than any other difference or similarity they may have.

Despite the bleakness of the land, the harsh work conditions and the struggle of day-to-day for most, there are levels of citizenship and nobility that have survived through the ages, and in many cases have become source of power both for the families that have retained these titles and for the dark lords that rule over a barony.

Arts

One of the few things that those that live within the Accursed Lands have control over is the art that they produce. Indeed, the art that is produced here is highly sought after by those outside the Accursed Lands. They view the art as something a curiosity of the weird and the obscene, though most of the art here are simple items ranging from carvings, to small statues, to jewelry to pottery and the rare item made from red steel ore.

Literature and Education

Education is a rare commodity in the Baronies. Most education is handed down from parents to children and is predominately focused on surviving in the region and the responsibilities of the family. Most of this learning takes place in the fields, mines or other places where sons and daughters learn the ways of the farm, vineyard, herding or hunting. Very rarely is reading or writing thought to be important enough to be taught, and most of the time parents themselves are not educated enough to teach these skills.

As in most places those that have found favor with the darklord or have been able to establish themselves through wealth. This allowed the class system within the Baronies to continue.

Architecture

Architecture in the baronies ranges from simple stone and wood buildings to grand palaces made from granite with shale roof. Most homes are built with sanctuary in mind. Most are square or rectangle in shape, with thick walls, with heavy timbers, small windows, and nearly all built with a cellar.

Town buildings are built in similar fashion, but with more stories and are interconnected with groups of other buildings, narrow alleys, cobblestone streets.

The three major cities, again follow much of the same architecture style, but are much grander with great arches, towers and roofs made from slate.

Kingdom Law and Government

When it comes to government and law, each barony has its own set rules, or regulations that the dark lords have instituted. In nearly all cases the laws are bent to uphold the upper classes. Among the dark lords only two are thought of as "hands-off", the others are directly involved either with their personal vassals or selected administrators.

Technology and Crafting

There is very little that could be call technology or unique crafting within the Baronies that are not brought in by outsiders. Much of what is considered technology within the region is merely convenience in other parts of the world. While there are blacksmiths and metalworkers, as well as inventors and those that look to advance equipment with the use of alchemy, there is a stone age superstition living in the veins of those that live here.

In most of the communities artisans jealously guard their secrets of invention and art, mostly out of fear of retribution from the dark lords as much from their neighbors that attempt to stay out of the focus of the dark lords.

However, this has not been the case with simple crafting of windmills, water screws, glass windows, books, glassblowing, and other minor types of crafting.

Most trade is done through barter, as much of the coinage is brought in by those that daringly adventure into the Accursed Lands is scooped up by the dark lords regents.

Most crafting is done out of need of the various settlements and any that goes beyond their need tens to be sold to the few traveling merchants that brave the haunted realm, the monsters and the brigands.

The region itself is well known to have unabeden in its soil which has prevented technology that relies on thaumic energy, or dolakh crystals.

The region is also well known for its numerous mines, in particular red steel ore mines, which are controlled by the dark lords, their minions or the nobles though there are those few outcroppings and caves that many folk have hidden and kept hidden for generations. These few free-mines have allowed for a few towns to actually flourish.

Religion

Though the region felt the heavy foot of Azahak several millennia ago his church never gained the foothold he had attempted to gain. Though he is worshiped openly in many areas of the Baronies, in particular amongst the Dark Lords, his church has only recently established a physical location in Volak.

Most of the common folk tend to worship Akiri, and two lesser deities: Kahel (Goddess of Guardians and Protectors) and Tir (God of Oracles), both of which are deities native to the Accursed Lands that sprang up seemingly overnight around 650 B.F.A. There are many other demi-god cults that have arisen to appease the folk.

The folk of the region are superstitious and fearful of magic. Most believe magic is an evil, dark force, though they do differentiate between divine magic (called "miracles" ) and arcane magic (called "profanities"). Spellcasters must be careful about casting spells, lest their neighbors, militia, the watch or town guards (or worse) arrive with weapons readied demanding explanations. Many spellcasters hide themselves as priests and clerics of the various cults and churches of the region.

Features and Important Sites

Dharagh Forest

In the age before the War of the Accursed lands, the Dharagh Forest was once a vibrant, thick forest filled with giant oaks, walnut trees, and yew wood. It was home to many different animals, numerous beasts and several clans of sprite-kin and fae. When the Accursed War transpired, the forest became corrupted as several portals open in the center of the forest. Devils and fiends quickly made their home here, defiling every natural thing, turning it from a living forest into a dead and whithered place. When the War ended the forest slowly returned to a natural place, but it was cursed with knowledge and turned against mortals.

The Dharagh is now eerie and preternatural area were shadows persist through the day and wisps of fog cling close to ground. The ancient trees that make up the western portion are gnarled and grotesque, their branches and roots grasping at travelers. The ground is littered with toadstools and mosses carpet the muddy ground, weird bizarre sounds echo through the underbrush and even in the light of the day the forest is sinister and at night it teems with flickering shadows and yellow sparks of light dance in the darkness.

Al-Ulzkar

Dominating the central core of the baronies and overlapping the baronies of Eligos, Phryxis and making up most of Marchosias: the Wastes are a vast swampland, a festering wound of black pools, mires and scum covered waterways fed by many small rivers that flow from the Baligrogs. It is filled with reeds, black grasses, and thick floating islands of moss. Here the air is thick with mists and vapors, a strong smell of rot and sulfur. It is a hot, humid region with temperatures sweltering into the low hundreds for stretches at a time. Even the nights are hot and humid. The Wastes are home to birds, flies, tiny biting midges, and loud cricket-like insects as well as untold numbers of undead that float along the currents of the Waste.

It is a treacherous area with no permanent path through the region. The Wastes stretch from the northern slopes of the Baligrogs, to the black Dhalag River in the south, from the cliff edges of Volak and Vladac in the east to the high ground plateaus of Phryxis and Eligos to the west.

Bloodwell of Kazgor

Situated in the center of the Al-Ulzkar is a magical pool of water surrounded by a stone wall. These pool of water is called the Bloodwell of Kazgor and is a brackish pool of water that has a deep red color to it. Legend holds that this pool was formed when the Al-Ulzkar wastes were created and this pool was the last of the portals that Azahak created. It was later surrounded by a 3' high wall but no-one knows who built it. It is thought that the pool can be used to summon or create evil creatures, or even act as portals to other dimensions.

Organizations

Each of the Baronies are considered separate entities ruled by one the Dark Lords, this as stamped down most political strife between the five baronies. However, this has not stopped groups and organizations both within the Accursed Lands and those beyond the Baligrog Mountains from weaving their concerns and goals into the background in an attempt to move the baronies away from the influence of the Dark Lords or to further empower them and suppress the efforts of the folk.

The Sisters of the Blade

The Sisters of the Blade, or the Sisters, believe that one day the Baronies of Vishraan will be freed from the Curse of Gishra and Dark Lords will be slain and the free people of the Accursed Lands will take back the land. The Sisters have faith in the resolve and fortitude of the folk and in the ancient tales that foretell the salvation of Baronies from the clutches of the Dark Lords. The Sisters shun those that are only motivated by vengeance, preferring those that are willing to risk their lives for land from fear and darkness.

The Gray Wind

For as long as the Accursed Lands have existed the Gray Wind has worked to seek out and destroy the darkness that stalks the land. They are a devout group of priests that are in the service Gishra, Akiri and Kahel. Their mandate as established by Suri Padam, the first Gray Wind, a charge for the pure of heart to hunt down and slay the beasts of the Accursed Lands: Fiends and Demons. Within the Gray Wind there are the Harkers who are tasked with seeking out and destroying the undead and those infected with Negative Energy.

Nova Cross

While there are organizations whose goals are to protect those that live within Accursed Lands or those that work to free the folk of the lands from the Curse of Gishra and the tyranny of the Dark Lord. Then there are those that work towards profiting from the misery of the Accursed Lands. The Nova Cross are ruthless scavengers and salvagers that go to great means to export (and import) illicit goods from the lands, often at the expense of the folk.

Major NPCs

Following is a brief introduction to some of the major people of note within the Kingdom. Refer to Appendix B: NPCs for a detailed write up of some of them.

Iagno Ruphach

    Iagno is insane. He is a high priest in the name of Azahak, but is not associated with the Church of Decay.  Yet, he receives divine power from some source, it is thought it is the Lord of Death, but there are many believe that he receives his divine powers from another source, perhaps one from a different dimension.  Iagno's personality is stunted and immature, prone to temper tantrums and taking out his anger on his lower priests. 

Gryndahl

When Gishra's Curse fell across the Accursed Lands, one of the demonic generals of Azahak transferred its essence into a mortal human, which granted him the ability to avoid its destruction, but in doing so caused the human to transform into a powerful undead creature known as a yaqu, but retained many of the powers that demons are known to have. Gryndahl, as the creature became to be known as, is a sadistic creatures that rules over Agares with an iron fist, demanding tribute from the nobles that he allows to continue to exist.

Tsiishchul

Little is known the characteristics and traits that Tsiishchul was before becoming the Dark Lord of Eligos and a powerful ancient mummy. Tsiihchul is a extremely powerful and a formidable adversary for any being that dares to challenge him. He has a great wealth of knowledge of the arcane that he has gained over the thousands of centuries since his descent into becoming undead. Tsiihchul is thought to have been a firbog once. He has retained his very muscular form, standing almost 9 feet tall and seemingly invincible. His body is covered in aging lavish garments, specially created linen wrappings that has left his body in a state of animation of near-life. He is a cruel and distant ruler that takes no interest in the daily going-ons within his territory. He is the ultimate embodiment of death. He views Gyrndahl as a peer in undeath and power, but works against the half-demon in order insure that Tshiishchul is not destroyed.

Zelek Sokoloff

Of the various rules and Dark Lords that rule in the Baronies, Zelek (and all his ancestors before him) is the only mortal. He rules Phyrxis with an iron fist and is concerned with retaining his power at all costs as well as looking towards ultimately ruling all of the Accursed Lands. He is known for extreme grandiosity, overconfidence and is very self-absorbed. Which has rendered him incapable of empathizing with the pain and suffering of others. Which permits him to commit atrocities against those within his barony and his willingness to brutalize his enemies.

The Watcher

The Watcher is physically known to be a Chovah jinhuur, what is not really known is that the Watcher is actually a parasitic genalak yhuki that has taken control of a Chovah a millennium ago. It has survived in this hosts body through careful manipulation and magics to preserve its life. As far as it knows it is the only yhuki in all of Ta Los. Its true goals are unknown and may extend to attempting to rule not only the Baronies, but more beyond the Baligrog Mountains.

Uthalik

Vladac’s ruler is primarily interested in his power. He is calm, ruthless and manipulative. He wants to rule the more than just his barony, but is concerned with how to escape the Accursed Lands. He is relatively new to the region having made a tactical error in an experimental spell that teleported him to not only the world of Kralis, from an very distant world beyond, but into the one region of Ta Los that he cannot escape. He is quick to notice weaknesses in others, and even quicker to exploit it to his advantage. This is how he took control of Vladac from its previous ruler: Ghos Nhar.

Cities

Ghenna

• Population: 35,785
• Government: Iagno Ruphach
• Major Religions: Azahak
• Imports/Exports: Dark Dust, Granite, Oils, Slaves

Ghenna is Volak’s sole city. It is a dark, frightful place whose people are withered with starvation as most of the region is. The buildings are built from massive stone blocks roughly hewn and ashen gray in color. These building are made more grim as they nearly all adorned with carvings of monstrous beings, images of sacrifices, and the dark lord Azahak. Through out the city there are colossal pillars carved with intricate mosaics inlaid with polished bone.