ADVENTURES IN

THE KNOWN WORLD

Written and Illustrated by

Mark Smylie
Based on the

Fuzion RPG System

TABLE OF CONTENTS
INTRODUCTION........................................................................ 6
Map of the Known World...........................................................6-7

PLAYING THE GAME: ACTIONS & MOVEMENT............. 166

A HISTORY OF THE KNOWN WORLD................................. 10

THE AGE OF CREATION..................................................... 10
THE GOLDEN AGE.............................................................. 12
THE AGE OF LEGEND......................................................... 21
THE BRONZE AGE............................................................... 27
THE AGE OF IRON AND FIRE............................................ 32
The Last Twenty-Five Years .................................................38-39
A Map of the Known World in the Present Year.......................40-41

PLAYING THE GAME: COMBAT........................................... 168

MODIFIERS to COMBAT ACTIONS................................. 172
DAMAGE.............................................................................. 172
Hit Location Table.................................................................. 173
WEAPONS............................................................................ 173
RANGED ATTACKS............................................................ 176
ARMOR................................................................................. 177
WOUNDS............................................................................. 182
NPC MORALE...................................................................... 186

THE KNOWN WORLD TODAY............................................... 42

THE MIDDLE KINGDOMS................................................. 43
A Map of the Middle Kingdoms.............................................44-45
DARADJA............................................................................... 50
A Map of Lost Uthedmael........................................................... 54
THE ISLIKLID KINGDOMS................................................. 56
PALATIA.................................................................................. 58
THE LEAGUE......................................................................... 61
THE EMPIRE.......................................................................... 64
THE UNKNOWN WORLD.................................................. 66

PLAYING THE GAME: MAGIC............................................... 188

INCANTATIONS ................................................................ 192
RITUALS .............................................................................. 196
The Available Power of Magical & Sacred Sites....................... 266
ENCHANTMENTS.............................................................. 210
RUNES & SIGILS................................................................. 215
MAKING POTIONS............................................................ 219
Addictive Substances............................................................... 222
ALCHEMY............................................................................ 223
DIVINATION....................................................................... 230

CHARACTER SHEET............................................................70-71

PLAYING THE GAME: RELIGION......................................... 234

THE CULT OF YHERA........................................................ 236
THE CULT OF ISLIK........................................................... 240
THE CULT OF ADJIA ........................................................ 244

PLAYING THE GAME................................................................ 72

CHARACTER BASICS........................................................... 73
YOUR CHARACTERISTICS................................................. 74
YOUR SKILLS......................................................................... 74
CHARACTERISTIC TESTS AND SKILL TESTS................ 81
DIFFICULTY RATINGS......................................................... 81
WHAT AFFECTS MY ROLL?................................................. 85
MODIFIERS to ACTIONS & SKILL USE............................. 85
YOUR RELATIONS .............................................................. 86
The Relations Table................................................................... 89
YOUR GIFTS.......................................................................... 90
YOUR BINDINGS.................................................................. 96
POLLUTION.......................................................................... 97
Rolling the Dice: Critical Success . .................................... 100
...and Failure (The Fumble)..................................................... 101
THE BOOK OF DOOMS: EXPERIENCE & CHARACTER
IMPROVEMENT....................................................................... 102
TRAINING POINTS............................................................ 102
THE ARCANA...................................................................... 103
THE BOOK OF DOOMS.................................................... 105
CREATING YOUR CHARACTER........................................... 131
LifePath Step One: Your Culture &
social class.................................................................... 132
LifePath Culture Table ........................................................... 132
LIFEPATH STEP TWO: YOUR LINEAGE & BIRTH........ 144
The Star Signs......................................................................... 146
The Celestial Calendar............................................................ 147
LifePath sTEP three: YOUR FAMILY &
CHILDHOOD..................................................................... 150
LifePath STEP FOUR: YOUR PREVIOUS
EXPERIENCE....................................................................... 152
Occupations List..................................................................... 153
LifePath Events Table ............................................................. 158

A Map of the Cosmos................................................................ 246

THE WORLD AROUND YOU................................................. 247
THE INNER WORLDS . ..................................................... 248
THE OTHERWORLD......................................................... 251
THE DREAMWORLD......................................................... 253
LIMBO.................................................................................. 255
THE UNDERWORLD......................................................... 257
THE HEAVENS.................................................................... 261
THE CALENDARS . ............................................................ 263
The Dran Lunar Calendar................................................... 264
The Imperial Avellan Calendar................................................ 265
A BESTIARY OF THE KNOWN WORLD.............................. 266
NATURAL BEASTS.............................................................. 268
SUPERNATURAL BEASTS.................................................. 272
SPIRIT MATTER ................................................................. 274
DREAM MATTER................................................................ 281
UNNATURAL THINGS....................................................... 282
UNIQUE THINGS .............................................................. 286
Hit Location Tables................................................................. 288
FOR THE GUIDE: ADVENTURING IN THE KNOWN
WORLD...................................................................................... 290
THE WITCHS PRICE.............................................................. 292
A Map of Western Erid Dania................................................... 297
An Illustration and Map of the Village of Belward..................302-303
THE WITCH OF BELBOG................................................. 313
NON-PLAYER CHARACTERs............................................ 320
FINAL NOTE............................................................................. 331
APPENDIX A: LINEAGE TABLES............................................ 332
A Map of the Isliklid Kingdoms...................................................... 281
APPENDIX B: AN ENEMY CULTURE.................................... 346
APPENDIX C: THE ECONOMY OF THE KNOWN
WORLD...................................................................................... 348

INTRODUCTION

his book, Artesia: Adventures in the Known World

(hereafter referred to as Artesia AKW), is a roleplaying
game. In it, you can take on the persona and guise of
characters in the Known World, struggling to affect the fate
of the world around you. This notion might lead to some
questions:
Who or what is Artesia?
Artesia is both a who and a what. Artesia is the title of a comic
book, from which this game derives its name; Artesia is also
the name of that comic books main character. Artesia also
happens to be the name of a couple of cities in California and
New Mexico, but they dont have anything to do with either the
comic or the game. With any luck one day Artesia will also be
a movie, and youll be able to go see it in theaters; its prequel,
a film called The Barrow, is already in the works, so keep your
fingers crossed.

Artesia is a young woman who was raised as a witch
and a priestess, who saw her mother burned at the stake. So she
has chosen to follow a different path, that of war and violence.
And she has chosen the right time to do it, for her world (like so
many worlds) is on the verge of a great change, and that change
is giving rise to conflict and disaster. And conflict and disaster,
whether we like to admit it, are also often what drive roleplaying
games.
What is a Roleplaying Game?
A roleplaying game lets you pretend to be a Character in a
story, much like being in a play. Each player takes the role of
a different Character in the story, making the decisions and
saying the things that the Character would say in the situations
that happen along the way. Roleplaying is a form of shared,
collaborative storytelling, with the rules along to make sure
everyones on the same page; and like many kinds of storytelling,
roleplaying tends to thrive best when Characters are confronted
with conflicts and adversities to overcome. This particular
roleplaying game allows you to play Characters in the setting of
the comic book Artesia, though it is also true that its rules can be
used for just about any setting or that its setting can be used
with other rules.
Do I have to read the comic to play this game?
Nope. It might help give you some ideas about where the Known
World is headed, but no, you dont. A lot of the background
information in this book is cultivated from the previously
published material in Artesia and its Annuals.
What is the Known World?
The Known World is the setting of the comic book Artesia, and
of this game. Some settings to fantasy books and games have
strange, unearthly names; this one does not. The inhabitants
of this world usually just call it the Earth, as we do our own
world, or they call it the Known World. They started calling it
that a long time ago in their history, when people first tried to
fix their place in the world with word and deed and map, and
so they started to distinguish between a Known World, a place
familiar and describable, and an Unknown one, a place beyond
the horizon that existed but was as yet undiscovered. This book
is about the people that live in the Known World, and about
how you can pretend to be one of them.

A History of the Known World

THE AGES OF
THE KNOWN WORLD

he Scholar-Magicians of the Golan Great Schools were the

first to outline the Ages of the Known World; in their studies
and lectures they divided what they knew of history into an
Age of Creation, or an Age of the Gods, when Genich, the Earth
Goddess, ruled and walked the world, and three Ages of Men that
followed her departure for the Underworld. The Golan ScholarMagicians were the first to describe the period following Genichs
withdrawal from the world and the establishment of rne Dr as
The Golden Age of Man, and they drew distinctions between the
world of the Golden Age and the period that had followed after Isliks
ascension to the Heavens. The Golan Scholar-Magicians believed
that they (writing circa the year i900) were living in what they called
the third or Bronze Age of Man, and they successfully predicted a
great change in the Known World that would usher in the fourth Age
of Man, which turned out to be the current Age of Iron and Fire.

V THE SACRED TREE OF YHERA

The World Tree had two great branches intertwined, one

made of gold and the other of silver. The fruit of the golden
branch granted immortality, while the fruit of the silver
branch granted wisdom and knowledge. Most legends
say the Tree is now somewhere in the Otherworld or the
Underworld.
Act II

THE AGE OF CREATION

efore the first Age of Man comes a time usually called the
Age of Creation; it is never spoken of as an Age of Man, as
the great moving forces of the world were not men, but gods.
Yhera, the Queen of Heaven, first made the skies, the waters of the
Deep, and the Earth, and gave birth to the first of the immortal gods.
How long ago this happened is a matter of debate; for what marked
the difference between the Age of Creation and the first Age of Man
was the absence of time. The Sun, Helios, did not rise or fall by a
schedule, nor did he yet wane in the winter; but rather, he came
and went from the skies as was his wont. This was Paradise, when
the world lived in bounty and joy, only occasionally marred by the
shadows of darker things to come, and the notion of days or years
would have had little meaning. Some say the Creation Period lasted
for a period of time equivalent to a thousand years; others say that
Men lived in the Gardens of Genich and Geteema for a thousand
generations. Either claim is purely speculation.

Based upon the writings of the Corpus Divinica Dra
and their own book of prophecies, the Oracallum, a framework for
describing the Age of Creation was devised by the Oracle Queens of
Khael for use in explaining the beginning of the world. They divided
the events of the Age of Creation into 22 Acts, keyed to the 22 pages
of Yheras Sacred Book: 21 pages that she wrote and numbered, and
then the 22nd page that was left blank and unnumbered and only
later filled in. The Age of Creation ends after Yhera has completed
her work and is well satisfied, when someone from the Race of Men
commits a crime against the world, a crime that causes Genich to
depart and pronounce the First Law of Death: that all born of her
Earth must follow her into the Underworld. With the First Law, a
part of the world became fixed, and time was born.

Act I

12

Yhera dreams, and in her dream she struggles with

the darkness, which becomes a great Dragon. She
overcomes the Dragon, and from its blood and skin
begins to write a Book. She creates 22 pages to her
book, and holds them in her hands, and from the
book grows a Sacred Tree.

Adventures in the Known World

Act III

Act IV

Yhera creates the sky over the Sacred Tree, and begins
to place the stars in the Heavens of the Night. She
makes a cauldron, and breathes life into her sisters
Adjia, Goddess of the New Moon, and Djara,
Goddess of the Dark Moon, and together they place
more stars in the Heavens and create the Moon.
Yhera tips over the cauldron and pours out the waters
of the world, the endless Deep to match the Night.
Yhera begets the Graces, spirits of wonder, and they
begin to sing their praise and love for the new world.
Yhera begets the Ashaliel, bright spirits who guard
Adjias virtue. Djara begets the Kheribeal, the spirit
guardians of Yheras Sacred Tree. And the stars beget
the first Archai: celestial spirits that become Yheras
first messengers.
Yhera raises the Earth up from the Deep. She
breathes life into her sisters Genich and Geteema,
the Goddesses of the Earth, and they give shape
to the world, and raise mountains and high peaks,
and make the oceans and seas. At the center of the
world they make the World Mountain, and on that
mountain Yhera plants her Sacred Tree. Yhera begets
the Ariel and the Urfanim, guardian spirits that watch
over her Throne and Mount. Yhera begets Urige, the
First Queen. Genich begets the Mountain Spirits,
the Muses, and they begin to sing. Genich begets
the first Nymphs, the spirits of earth and stone that
breathe life into the world; the Nymphs become the
first Companions of Adjia, as she bounds through the
world unfettered. Genich begets the Seraphi, celestial
spirits of great beauty, and they begin to sing.
The songs of the Muses and the Seraphi fill Yhera
to the brim, and she begets Helios, the Solar Disc,
in pain and agony. Helios scorches the earth as it
bounds, until Yhera commands it into the Heavens
to become the Solar Lion. Yhera begets Agdah, the
Cosmos King, and he becomes her first consort to
soothe and comfort her. Yhera begets Heth, God of
the Sea, who becomes her consort in the Deep.

Y THE WORLD MOUNTAIN

From the pinnacle of the great mountain of the world,

Yhera would look across the expanse of her creation. Some
say the mountain was the Dess rne of the Dain duins,
others that it was Mount Baras of the Baragh Metras.
Others say that she took the World Mountain with her into
the Heavens, and that she made her Labyrinth Palace in
Heaven from it.

A History of the Known World

Act V

Act VI

Yhera begets Daedekamani, God of Magic and

Knowledge. Daedekamani becomes the first priest,
using word and gesture to imitate his mothers power.
He borrows her cauldron, and learns from her the Art
of Words.
Yhera lies with the Solar Lion and begets Ami
and Dieva, the Stars of the Morning and Evening.
Genich creates her Garden, and beautiful trees and
flowers spring from its black soil. Genich begets the
first creatures of the Earth: spirits and faeries that sing
songs to the trees and tend them. Ami and Dieva
beget the Aereffim, guardian spirits that watch over the
faeries.

a GENICHS GARDEN

The Gardens of Genich, and that of her sister Geteema, were

a paradise, a wondrous world where Dreams and Men and
animals lived in harmony and plenty, without want or pain.

Act VII

Act VIII

Act IX

Act X

Act XI

Geteema in jealousy creates her own Garden in

her Mountains, and fills it with beautiful trees and
flowers. Geteema begets the second creatures of the
Earth: dragons, titans and giants, great misbegotten
creatures ill formed and not yet ready for the world.
Yhera begets Irr, the Black Goat, who roams outside
the Gardens. Ami and Dieva begin walking separate
paths. Ami lies with Agdah, and begets the Dhurleal,
spirits that now guide mortals in their wanderings
between the worlds. Dieva lies with Daedekamani,
and begets the Ghazharab, spirits that guide those that
pursue the arts of magic.
Yhera begets Ariahav, her brightest daughter, who
would become Goddess of Civilization. Yhera begets
Bragea, God of the Tamed Fire. Ariahav begins to
shape and spin the world around her. Bragea makes
the first forge, and makes the first salamanders and
lets them live in the fire. Bragea forges a great chariot,
and gives it to his brother Agdah.
Genich begets Seedr, her most devoted son. Dieva
lies with Irr, and begets Hathhalla, who would
become Goddess of Vengeance. Hathhalla fashions
Nemesis. Dieva lies with Seedr, and begets the
Golodriel, sharp-clawed angels of justice.
Djara begets the Fates. She makes for them a
cauldron and a spinning wheel, and the Fates begin
spinning a binding for the pages of Yheras Book.
Genich begets Ammon Agdah, the Protector, who
looks after the creatures of her Garden. Genich lies
with Irr, and begets the Sharab Deceal, sharp-clawed
spirits of fury. Geteema lies with Ammon Agdah and
begets vulture-headed Vani, who becomes King of
the Mountains. Geteema lies with Irr, and begets the
Bharab Dzerek, brazen spirits of fire and wrath. Ami
lies with Agdah, and begets Illiki the Bull, who would
one day become a Sun God.

Act XII

Act XIII

Act XIV

Act XV

Act XVI

Act XVII

Act XVIII

Act XIX

Djara has a dream about the future, and doubles the

world, and makes it Other. In the Shadows of the
Otherworld, Djara begins to give birth to a Dark
Brood: Death, Dream, and Sleep come first, and
they begin to sing. Djara lies with Seedr, and begets
Lifare, the White Lady who walks before Death.
Death meets Genich and Geteema in the Garden,
and whispers to them a secret. Genich begets the
first animals, and fish of every stripe and size, and
soon her Garden is busy and full. Genich begets the
first mortal women. Geteema begets the first mortal
men. The first Daughters of Genich and the first
Sons of Geteema have children, and the Race of Men
begins, and spreads far and wide in the Gardens of the
Earth.
Yhera tries to heal Genich and Geteema of the touch
of Death. Genich begets Cyrus, God of Frenzies,
who develops a fondness for drink. Geteema begets
Ligrid, who would become Queen of Temptation.
Agdah lies with many mortals, and they beget satyrs
and centaurs. Agave lies with Ammon Agdah and
begets the first mermaids.
Djara begets the Sphinx, who asks questions.
Genich begets Thula, who becomes a Queen
amongst the Snakes. Geteema lies with Daedekamani
and begets Amaymon, Prince of Intrigue, who would
become his fathers rival. Agave lies with Irr and
begets the first sirens. Ligrid begets the Nephilim,
spirits that spread uncertainty and doubt. Ligrid lies
with Irr, according to some, and begets Ishraha the
Beautiful, destined to become the Rebel Angel.
Djaras Dark Brood grows darker, and she begets Din
and Discord, spirits of doom, nightmares, furies, and
lamias. Djara begets three sisters, made and mad
before their time: Mdre, Hal, and Mogran, who
in turn beget spirits of fury and madness, who in turn
beget lions, wolves, and hyenas. Geteema begets the
great monster Leviathan. Geteema begets the great
monster Rahab. Ligrid lies with Irr, and begets the
Gamezhiel, a horde of spirits, succubi and incubi, that
tempt the flesh of Men.
Ariahav, as the champion of Civilization, asks Yhera
to allow some of the Race of Men to eat of the fruits
of her Sacred Tree, and Yhera allows them to do so
when they have proved themselves worthy.
Yhera, Adjia, and Djara make the Moon into the
Door through which the Otherworld can be reached.
Adjia adopts the fairest of the mortal children of
her Companions, the Amans, and calls them
the children of the New Moon. Urige begets the
Numans, and calls them the children of the Full
Moon. The three Mad Sisters beget the Galans, and
call them the children of the Dark Moon.
Hathhalla tames the Solar Lion, and harnesses it to
Agdahs chariot. Agdah takes up the mantle of the
Sun and becomes Agdah Cosmopeiia.

Adventures in the Known World

13

A History of the Known World

Act XX

Act XXI

Act XXII

Yhera looks about the world, and is content. The

whole of the world comes to her Mountain one by
one, and greets her with joy, and their names and
deeds and wants and dreams are scribed into her
Book. Genich begets her youngest son, who would
become the Black Hunter.
The Fates finish the binding of Yheras Book, and
Yhera closes it, and with a great cry begets a great
Dragon, the World Dragon, in fact. Djara lies with
the Four Winds and begets four daughters, the
Witch Queens of the Compass: Annaft, Hemwayne,
Memyra, and Urgrayne. Djara sets her daughters as
the Guardians of Yheras Book.
The Race of Men, favorites of the gods and goddesses
of the world, commits a grievous crime.

c THE CRIME

Different cultures have different myths of the Crime that

ends the Age of the Gods, but most believe it was Theft,
Rape, or Murder: something that was taken, rather than
received as a Gift. Genich, Yhera, and Hathhalla curse
the criminal with Horns as a mark of his crime, and ever
since the Horned Man has been a popular scapegoat in
myth and legend.

THE GOLDEN AGE

he First Age of Man began with the imposition of the Law

of Death. Most scholars of history say that even with the
coming of the Golden Age the telling of years and dates is a
haphazard thing at best; for while Time had been born, she was still a
young goddess. The Drans were the first to see a value in marking
the passage of time, and began with their Calendar to mark the
passage of 13 Lunar Cycles, and called that a year, and made history
possible. The Scholar-Magicians of the Court of Hashuwaht, called
the First King of Men, also saw in the cosmos another pattern, that of
the shifting of the stars, and so they too created a calendar, a Celestial
Calendar that followed the night sky. The Dran and Celestial
Calendars were similar, but the Dran seemed to have the advantage
of more predictability, for the goddesses of the Moon seemed to share
their rule of her with equal partnership, while the stars in the sky
were still being born and made, and they did not always follow the
Celestial Path. The Constellations of the Heavens were not fixed until
the end of the Golden Age, and indeed that was one of the changes in
the world that announced the start of the second Age of Man (more
info on the Dran Lunar Calendar can be found on page 264, and
the Celestial Calendar on page 147).

The Drans
In the difficult years following Genichs abandonment of the Earth,
amongst the peoples of the world wandering lost in confusion were
three tribes of the Moons descendants. They were the Amans,
descended of Adjia Lunas Companions; the Numans, descended of
Urige, daughter of Yhera Luna; and the Galans, descended of the

14

Adventures in the Known World

Gorgonae, the triple daughters of Djara Luna.

As he did to all the peoples of the world, Ammon Agdah
showed each of them how to survive in the harsh new wilderness that
had overtaken Genichs gardens. Later in his wanderings, Ammon
Agdah found Ariahav alone building three great thrones of wood
and metal on an island hilltop. He asked her what she was doing,
and she told him that Yhera had asked her to build three seats of
power, so Ammon Agdah told her about the three tribes of the Moon
he had encountered. Ariahav then set out into the wilderness and
one by one brought the three tribes across the sea to the island. First
she brought the Numans, then the Amans, and finally the Galans,
who refused to follow her until she showed them that she too carried
the key to the Gorgonaes chains.

Ariahav then taught them the arts of the world, and
showed them many of her mothers secrets: beauty and magic, love
and war, building and unbuilding. They built a great city on the
isle, and planted great gardens in its palaces. The three tribes of
the Moon named the isle rne Dr (roughly translated as either
Mountain of Thrones or Heart of Thrones), and in time they were
called the Drans.

For a thousand years, rne Dr was the greatest and
most beautiful city on the face of the Earth. The Queens of Dra
were fabled for their wisdom, beauty, and knowledge, and men and
women came from every corner of the world to learn from them.
The Drans sent explorers and colonists to found cities and build
great palaces of marble and clay. Bragea the Smith came to live in
rne Dr, and set up his great forge there, producing wonders for
the Drans. Illiki the Bull saw the city from the Heavens, and came
to live there for a time. He ruled from rne Dr as the Bull of
Heaven, and the Drans built temples to him wherever their ships
went.

B THE GIFTS OF BRAGEA

The god-smith Bragea built many wondrous items in his

earthly forges and gifted them to the Queens and Kings and
heroes of the Golden Age. Enchanted spears and helmets,
guardian statues that talked and moved, brass animals, and
magic thrones were amongst his gifts. He also invented
magic runes that only he could use, but which can still be
found as marks of his creations. Bragean artifacts today are
priceless, regardless of their usefulness.

An Old Dran Tale

In the Golden Age, when the Drans recreated Genichs Garden
on their isle, rumors of their wealth spawned jealousy and greed
amongst many outlanders. The strongest of the barbarians came
together, and conspired to build a fleet, and sail to rne Dr, and
rob the Drans of their wealth. The oracles of Dra dreamed dark
visions and learned of this raid, and they turned to their predator
goddess, to the great consumer of sacrifice, to Dread Yhera, for
deliverance, asking her to show them how to defend themselves from
the raiders.

Yhera called the other devouring beasts first Adjia and
Irr, the sun-masked archers, the huntress and the hunter, the javelinwielding killer of women and the bow-bearing killer of men; then
Hathhalla, the Devourer, the goddess of grief and vengeance; and her
hunter and animal keeper, her consort Ammon Agdah. And she set
them and their Companions to defending the Drans. The raiders

A History of the Known World

came and many died, stalked by Adjia, and Irr, and Agdah, but still they
pillaged the Isle of many of its treasures and left triumphant with slaves
and booty. Yhera looked down with sadness at the destruction they had
wrought, and was filled with the grief of her children. Hathhalla came to
her then, and whispered in her ear, and awoke the secret in her heart.

Yhera summoned Ariahav, her brightest daughter, and bade
her make unbreakable chains, and sent her to capture three of the fiercest
half-mad daughters of Djara, who were the mothers of the Galans and
called the Gorgonae. So Ariahav searched the dark places of Dra, and
found the Gorgonae hidden in their daughters shame, and bound them,
and brought them to Yhera: Mogran, the Riot Goddess and Queen of
Discord; Hal, the Goddess of Rage and Fury; and Mdre, the Cunning
One. And Yhera consumed them, chains and all, and then she gave a
great cry and she disgorged them from her belly, and Yhera gave bloody
birth to War.

Soon the raiders returned, unsatisfied with their first plunder.
Yhera unchained the Gorgonae and they went amongst the Drans, and
taught them the secrets to transform themselves and become warriors,
the ways to harness din and discord, rage and cunning. They danced,
and drummed, and drank potions, and marked themselves and donned
masks, and the Drans armed themselves to war. And they greeted
the raiders with the howls of lions and the speed of serpents, and drove
them back across the sea. The Drans pursued them into the outlands,
and slew their families, and freed the slaves they had taken. And when
they had returned to Dra, the Gorgonae showed them how to purify
themselves and take off their masks and stop being warriors, and become
themselves again.

So the Gorgonae were the first goddesses of War and Battle, the
goddesses of warrior transformation, who invoked war and ended it, and
first made it an art. Yhera held their chains, and became Yhera Anath,
the Queen of War and Victory, Dread and Unconquered. Adjia and Irr
came and learned from them, and Adjia became the initiator, the first to
take a child and show them the ways of war, and Irr became Lykeios, the
old wolf, the destroyer prayed to by gray-haired veterans. Agdah and his
hunting band came too, and they learned to become a warrior band, the
Consort-Defender and his companions.

But Ariahav, the goddess of civilization, had been midwife at
the birth of War, and she learned better than them all. She went to her
forge, and made skins and scales of metal for the Drans to wear, and
made the first sword, and shared her secrets with Bragea. She taught them
the arts of forage and supply, so that warriors could go where they wanted
when they wanted. She taught the Drans how to take the dances that
they loved so much, and turn them to war and give battle a rhythm: how
to make many move as one, and make one part of many, how to make
warriors into soldiers. And for all these things Yhera made Ariahav her
general, and gave her the chains of the Gorgonae for safekeeping.

e THE GREAT PALACE PERIOD

The Drans built their cities in a style that came to be

called the Great Palace Style, full of columns, arches, arcades,
balustrades and plazas, and that style of building was exported
from rne Dr and spread throughout the region of the
Mera Argenta. Evidence of that style can still be found most
heavily on the Dskdran Coast, the lands of Galia and
Thessidia in the Empire, the city-state of Palatia Archaia, and
in the Queendom of Amora. In some places they have been
built over or buried beneath sand and earth and forgotten; most
Dran-style palaces in Hemispia, for example, were destroyed
long ago.
An ancient ship off the coast of rne Dr.

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A History of the Known World

A TALE OF THE BLACK HUNTER
After Genich abandoned the Earth and withdrew into the
Underworld, the Earth became a dangerous and desolate
wilderness, and the creatures of the world wandered lost in
confusion. Some amongst Genichs children followed her into
the Underworld. The first was her son Seedr, who was appointed
by his mother to greet the dead at the place of their judgment and
listen to the accounts of their accusers, and thus became Judge
of the Dead. Many of the spirits of the Earth followed after, as
did beasts great and small, and parts of the world were no longer
fertile. And many of Djaras Dark Brood followed her also, darkhearted spirits who became Death Guides and furies, nightmares
and carrion eaters.

Some amongst Genichs children did not follow her,
but instead stayed behind to help the peoples of the world in
their struggles, such as Ammon Agdah. Others stayed behind to
hurt them. One such was her youngest son, who grew angry that
the world had driven his mother into exile. His brother Ammon
Agdah may have forgiven the world, but Genichs youngest
child could not forgive them. He looked up into the sky, and
saw Hathhalla sharpening her great axe, and prayed to her for
guidance. She whispered in his ear, and he fashioned a great
barbed spear out of an ancient oak, and summoned a great steed,
and began to hunt across the Earth.

Wherever he went, he would fall upon the lost peoples
of the Earth with a great roar, taking the still-living heads of
those he speared as trophies to dangle from hooks, and casting a
compulsion upon others to make them join his vengeful quest.
In time his first name was forgotten, and he came to be called the
Black Hunter, and his mad entourage was called the Wild Hunt,
and they were a plague upon the desolate world.

The Wild Hunt raged across the Earth for long centuries,
and one day the Black Hunter spied three tribes gathering upon
an isle, and sought to hunt there. The Wild Hunt jumped the
Silver Scale Sea and landed upon the shores of rne Dr, but
the goddess Ariahav leapt from the skies and drove them back
across the sea, barring the Hunt from returning. Ariahav taught
the way to defeat the Black Hunter to the Drans. They in turn
taught Achre and Thula, and Ceram and Oloma. King Hashuwaht
and Agall together, Cewert, Surep; in time, a thousand heroes
from across the world defeated the Black Hunter one by one,
until he roared only in the dark places of the Earth where people
rarely went. Finally, the Dran queen Hannath Hammergreia
sought him out, and banished him to the Underworld.

THE ISLE OF KHAEL & PALATIA

While Bragea, the first smith, lived in rne Dr, he fell in love
with Surtara, a Galan Queen. Surtara was also an oracle, and
tradition forbade her from taking a consort, so they left Dra
and with their followers eventually settled on the island of Khael
in the year d577. It was there that Bragea created the Book of
Dooms for his Queen, 22 brass plates based on images he had
seen in Yheras Celestial Book. Peridia, the daughter of Bragea
and Surtara, ritually give up her eyesight to become the next
Oracle Queen, and then she lay with her father and bore him
a daughter. This rite was repeated with each generation, and in
short time the daughters of Bragea became known as the greatest
oracles of the Known World. This continued until d819, when

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o IN THE FAR WEST

Legends and stories would occasionally reach the lands

around the Mera Argenta of great heroes to the Far West. The
greatest of these was Surep, son of Yhera and the King of the
Samarites and a man of great wisdom and wealth. After Surep
founded the city of Hir Serak and married Sarita, Princess of
the Mahalians, they had a son, Jala. To celebrate the birth
of his heir and his rule over the Arap Valley, Surep created
the Celestial Court, a royal palace of beauty and grace to
rival anything built on rne Dr, and he invited the gods
themselves to be a part of it. Yhera was well pleased with her
son, and so she came to visit his court, and often took the
throne that he made for her. The other gods followed her,
and they too took their thrones in the halls of Hir Serak. The
First Celestial Court came to have twelve recognized members,
and was known as a Heaven on Earth to match the days of
Genichs Gardens. The First Celestial Court:
Surep the King
Sarita the Queen
Jala the Good Prince
Parvenah the Jewel of the West
Nymarga the Magician
Yhera the Creatrix, Queen of Heaven
Agdah Helios, the Sun King
Adjia the Dreamer
Geteema the Earth Mother
Illiki the Sun Bull
Djara the Judge
Seedr the Shepherd

A History of the Known World

Achre, due to become the twelfth Oracle Queen, refused to undergo
the ritual and be blinded. Always a rebellious girl, she had been
tutored in secret by Ariahav, who had come to Khael in disguise.
Achre crippled her father in their battle over the ritual, and drove
him into the Underworld.

Achre and her followers were exiled at the order of her
sisters, and they went to the nearby Pallithane Peninsula, a wild and
mountainous land. She brought the native Hskdran barbarians
under her rule and in time she slew the Great Dragon of the
Pallithane Mountains and bound its spirit to her own with strong
and powerful magics. She bore to the Dragon a child, pregnant for 3
years to bring her daughter Archaia into the world in d933. Archaia
received the tutelage of Ariahav as her mother had, and later became
a Companion to Adjia Luna on her hunts, along with her half-sisters
Dall and Pulma. Archaia founded the city of Palatia in d977 (which
the Palatians mark as p1, the first year of their calendar), and built its
Seven Gates. From her consorts amongst the Hskdran princes she
bore three daughters, Divinhrada, Vargate, and Basa, who founded
the three Great Houses of Palatia. Achre and Archaia and her three
daughters slew monsters, moved rivers, built roads and bridges, and
in so doing tamed the Pallithanes.

One day from the West came a great raider from the
wilderness named Thula, who was the Snake Queen of the
Tthdrans. She raided the Dran colonies of the Dskdran coast
first, and enslaved the people there. She invaded the mountainous
land of Daradja and killed Queen Dara, who had been renowned for
her beauty and wisdom, before being driven off by Daras daughter,
Druxada. From those she conquered she learned of the wonders of
the isle of rne Dr, and Thula slipped across the sea and climbed
its walls. She stole the secrets of civilization from the Drans, and
during her raid she seduced Illiki Helios, and bore a child, Ceram,
who became the Storm King of the wastelands. She later emerged
from the wastelands to raid into Palatia, and Achre confronted her
there. They dueled first with weapons, then to prove who was the
better dancer; both duels were a draw, and so Thula left Palatia alone,
and some of her Tthdran followers were given dominion over the
valley of the Great Serpent River, and were called the Tgoonai.

B THE STARLIGHT SPEARS

Thula returned to the Sea of Grass and gave birth to

twins, Dall and Pulma, soon after her raids on the
Palatians. Dall and Pulma used their mothers stolen
magics to bind horses to their will, and ever afterwards
the Thulamites (the children and subjects of Thula)
have been skilled riders and breeders of horses. Dall
and Pulma fashioned a pair of great spears tipped with
starlight, and later ascended to the Heavens as the Twins
Constellation. Some Thulamite and Palatian legends say
that Thula knew secret magics that allowed her to have
a child with Achre, and that Dall and Pulma were their
progeny.

AN AGE OF HEROES
rne Dr was rivaled only by the cities of the Gola founded by
Hashuwaht the First King, where Daedekamani taught alchemy to
his worshippers and descendants. Hashuwaht is credited with the
creation of the Celestial Calendar and the first set of written laws
for Men, inscribed in what is today called the Corpus Camalegalus.

His court attracted almost as many visitors as the courts of rne

Dr. Amongst them were Oloma, a Queen of the Sabutans (from
the Unknown World deep in the south), and Agall, son of the King
of Galia and often called the First Hero, who helped Hashuwaht bar
the Black Hunter from the Gola. Agall was perhaps most famous for
defeating the monstrous titan children of Geteema, and of skinning
her at the end of their war.

I THE HUNDRED KINGS PERIOD

After the death of King Hashuwaht of the Gola, the Tabla

Basilia (the Roll of Kings) records the names and deeds of
one hundred Kings that followed him, each ruling for seven
years as the earthly consort of Queen Yhera, after which
they would be ritually killed by their successor.
The arrival of Agall was often greeted with a great deal more
ambivalence than such a title as First Hero might suggest. He sacked
many cities, and often killed people from ambush, and was well
known for a great and consuming rage. Agall sacked rne Dr, in
fact, after several tries, finally succeeding after Thula had weakened
its defenses. So while Agall might have been the First Hero, the title
of greatest Hero of the Age is usually given to another, even in Galia,
land of his birth and that he ruled for many years. Myrcalion, a
King of the land of Thessidia who defended many cities and peoples
from the depredations of Agall and his brazen companions, freed
the Cavalonians from the King of Brass, and was content to rule his
people from a common shepherds home until he ascended to the
Heavens the first mortal to do so, at least by legend is usually cited
as the greatest of the ancient Heroes.

e THE RETHET THESA

After Agalls raid on rne Dr, the Drans

entered a period of more bellicose relations
with their neighbors, waging war with any that
threatened their Isle or harbored the hated Agall, a
period called the Rethet Thesa, or Time of Troubles.
The Queens of Dra who led its armies were
called the Carrion Queens, and they wore helmets
crowned with vulture feathers.

N THE CIRCLE OF
THE DRAGON

Another great Hero of the Age was Cewert, who

founded the Kingdom of Telesia and helped
Myrcalion free the Cavalonians. Cewert slew
the Daurus Dragon, the ancient dragon of the
Hemispian Mountains, and was said to have gained
great power from doing so. Cewert was the first to
be called a Dragon King, and legends say he was
filled with a dragons power and presence. Cewert
taught his fellow heroes: Who Kills the Dragon,
Becomes the Dragon. They used his teachings to
hunt dragons and giants and gain great gifts for
themselves.

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A History of the Known World

THE NINE LIVES OF
HANNATH HAMMERGREIA
While the different peoples of the Silver Scale Sea might claim Myrcalion,
or Cewert, or Agall, or perhaps Achre or Thula as their greatest Heroes,
for the Drans at the end of the Golden Age there was one Heroine who
stood above all others: Hannath Hammergreia, last of the Carrion Queens
(though she never wore a vulture-feathered helmet). The sons of Cewert
taught her their fathers secret and inducted her into the Circle of the
Dragon, and she undertook to rid the world of its greatest dangers. The
ancient tales are not clear how, but Hannath Hammergreia knew a secret
about Death that allowed her to escape its clutches. She was killed the first
time by the Brass Lion of the Varsa Rune Mountains, but later returned to
kill it and stalk its master, the King of Brass. He killed her for the second
time and bound her spirit into slavery, but she freed herself and bound his
spirit instead. The third time she was killed by the monster called the
Hundred Handed, the fourth by the Sea Beast of the Mera Verta,
the fifth time by Thula, the sixth time by Ceram, the seventh time
by the Black Hunter. Each time she returned to complete her task, either
killing or binding or driving away the danger that had taken her life. She
was the last Hero to bind the Black Hunter, and she drove him into the
Underworld (though his mother, Genich, pleaded with Yhera to allow the
Black Hunter one night of the year to return to the world and hunt, and
Yhera granted her request and the Night of the Wild Hunt became a part
of the annual cycle of life).

Hannath Hammergreia died twice more in defense of rne
Dr, and only her ninth death turned out to be permanent. But many
claim that Hannath Hammergreia never had the kind of power over death
that legends ascribe to her, and that there was more than one woman
named Hannath Hammergreia, or that it was actually a title given to
Dran heroines whose real names have been lost to history.

THE SIEGE OF RNE DR

After a thousand years had passed since its founding, the Queens of rne
Dr awoke to a great vision: Geteema, Goddess of the Dark Earth, had
looked upon rne Dr and had been filled with jealousy, and she was
sending her children to destroy it. Despite the long war of the Rethet
Thesa (or perhaps because of it) and the actions of Hannath Hammergreia
and other Dran heroines, the defenses of rne Dr had weakened,
and a rising tide of resentment and anger rose up against them. Geteemas
children raised a great army led by a dark and fiery Dragon, and they
crossed the sea to destroy the Isle and its defenders. The Mountain King,
Vani, joined his mothers army, and Agall did so as well (in a fit of madness,
perhaps, as he had long fought against Geteema and her mountain
children). Delamon and Nyrius, who had both been students of Ariahav
and once were friends to Dra, turned their back upon the isle and joined
Geteemas army.

Warned by their visions, the Drans summoned aid, and from
across the seas came hundreds of heroes and warriors, including Achre
and Archaia and the hero consorts of Palatia; Islik, King of Illia and son
of Illiki Helios; Nicodamus, the luckiest hero in the world; the Hundred
Daughters of Oloma, Queen of the Sabutans; and even Thula and her
Tthdrans. Some of the gods themselves responded: Agdah Cosmopeiia,
Illiki Helios, Irr, Ami and Dieva all descended from the Heavens to take
up the defense of the city.

A great siege began, and lasted for thirty-one years, but the
Last Queens had already foreseen their fate. The defense of the city was

Hannath Hammergreia, last Carrion Queen

of the Rethet Thesa of rne Dr.

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A History of the Known World

robust and spirited, but the rage and strength of Geteema and her
children did not ebb with time. In the end Geteema consumed
Agdah Cosmopeiia and Illiki Helios returned to the Heavens to
become the Sun King. Nyrius, the traitor Hero, killed Nicodamus
and then Hannath Hammergreia, but she was able to return from
her eighth death and use the captured spirit of the King of Brass
to avenge herself upon Nyrius. The freed King of Brass turned
on Hannath Hammergreia and killed her a final time, and her
ninth death was her last. Agall killed Archaia, daughter of Achre,
as she defended the body of Hannath Hammergreia from the
clutches of Geteemas hordes, and the King of Brass escaped in
the confusion. Achre was so distraught by her daughters death
that she returned to Palatia and entombed herself in the earth
beneath their city with her daughters body.

w THE INVENTIONS
OF NICODAMUS

Nicodamus was a minor but very lucky hero of the

Golden Age until the Siege of rne Dr. While
acquitting himself honorably during the war, he became
famous for inventing the game of dice and the game of
cards to while away the long hours, days, and years of the
siege between battles. His luck ran out when he fought
Nyrius, the traitor Hero.
The defenses of rne Dr crumbled, and finally Geteemas
army swept triumphant over its great walls. The Last Queens
bade Divinhrada of Palatia and Thula of Tthdr and Oloma of
Sabuta to take the last of the Drans with them across the sea,
out of the doomed city, and they did as the Last Queens requested.
The three Last Queens Nma, Queen of the Nmans, Evaka,
Queen of the Galans, and Hercyna, Queen of the Amans
stayed behind, defended to the last by Irr, the Black Goat of the
Wilderness. Even as Irr and Vani grappled at the door to their
throne room, the Last Queens performed a final enchantment,
and the isle sank beneath the waves of the Mera Argenta, dragging
Geteemas rioting army with it. Only two figures returned to the
surface: Agall, alone of the armies of Geteema, and later Irr, the
Last Defender, who surfaced after trapping Vani in the Deep, in
the Halls of Heth the Sea King. rne Dr was lost forever
beneath the sea, and the Drans scattered into the world.

C THE DRAN DIASPORA

After the Fall of rne Dr, the people of Dra

scattered to the Four Winds. Those that remained of the
Hundred Daughters of Oloma led many of the Nmans
south, first to Amora, where many stayed, and then on to
Sabuta in the Unknown World. Divinhrada, daughter of
Achre, shepherded many of the Galans north to Dania,
Daradja, Labira, the Dskdran Coast, and Palatia. Islik
took many of the Amans to Illia and Khael, while others
sailed to Dania and Daradja, or north into the Panoch
Sea and the Unknown World. Dran lineages can still
be found throughout those regions, particularly in Labira,
Amora, and Khael.

Y THE VEILED QUEENS

OF PALATIA

After the fall of rne Dr and the deaths of

Achre and Archaia, the Queens and citizens of
Palatia donned veils and isolated themselves
from the rest of the Known World, shunning all
contact with outsiders.

THE WAR IN HEAVEN

AS TOLD IN THE HIGHLANDS OF DARADJA
After the death of Agdah Cosmopeiia at the hands of Geteema, his
son Illiki the Bull left the embattled walls of rne Dr and rode the
Moon Path into the Heavens. There he assumed the Sun Throne and
was hailed as Illiki Helios, the Sun Bull, the new god of the Sun, and
he took over the solar duties of Agdah Cosmopeiia, seeing that golden
Helios followed its route along the Sun Path each day. But Yhera, the
Queen of Heaven, did not greet Illiki as the new Sun, so gripped by
mourning was she for the loss of Agdah. For nine years Yhera grieved,
even as rne Dr fell to Geteemas jealous children. Yhera grieved
until Hathhalla came to her and woke the anger in her, and guided her
to where Geteema hid in her Garden, mourning her own losses. Yhera
and Geteema fought and the world roiled with their battle, until Yhera
drove her sister into the Underworld and imprisoned her there. But
Yhera too experienced death of a sort, and she wandered lost in the
Underworld clothed in ashes, seeking the spirit of her lover, Agdah.

THE CLAIM OF IRR

While she searched the Underworld for twenty-seven years, the War
in Heaven began, for not all accepted the new order. Irr the Black
Goat, the Locust of the Wilderness, had been the last consort of Yhera
to stand on the walls of rne Dr, and the exiled Drans now
held him as the Last Defender, who had brandished his courage at
the howling hordes of Geteemas children. And Irr looked about the
Heavens and did not like what he saw. Agdah had been consumed, but
death to a god, even at the hands of another god, is not a final state,
and he should have returned from his sojourn in the Underworld; but
Irr instead saw Illiki on the Sun Throne.

Irr came to the Heavens wrapped in a mantle of dark fire
and smoke, and came to the Court of Heaven and stood before the Sun
Throne itself, and there he accused Illiki of abandoning the defense
of Dra. Illiki freely admitted doing so: the Sun Throne had been
vacant, and needed to be filled, and so he had taken the seat of Helios.
And then Irr used these words from Illikis own mouth to condemn
him further, saying that Illiki had seized the Sun Throne improperly
and was a Usurper, as it was Yheras right to appoint the next Sun God,
and that Illikis haste to claim power had sealed the death of Agdah
Helios, his own father, by preventing his return.

Illiki at first laughed, thinking Irr insane to come and
accuse him of such things in his own Court, but then he realized that
very few were laughing with him. Irr had done his work well, as
had Amaymon the Whisperer, the Prince of Intrigue, and many of
the Court had already had their hearts poisoned against Illiki. Fear
and anger gripped Illiki then, and he cried out for his guards to arm
themselves, and he flung himself off the Sun Throne at Irr and they
battled in the Court of Heaven.

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A History of the Known World

For a year and a day they fought, and around them battled
the Celestial orders; on Illikis side fought many of the angels of light
and the celestial spirits of fire and air, but many of them also fought
on Irrs side, as did many of the Star Dragons and the spirits of storm
and thunder, even nightmares and angels of death who came up from
the Underworld. And finally Irr prevailed, and sent Illiki the Bull
crashing down from the firmaments of Heaven into the pit of the
Underworld, where he was imprisoned. Irr took the Sun Throne
then, and it was a Black Sun that rose the next day, and for the next
twenty-two years. But the spirits and angels that had sided with Illiki
refused to accept Irr on the Sun Throne, and so the War in Heaven
continued unabated, as angel killed angel and star hunted star across
the turbulent Heavens.

A WAR ON EARTH
On Earth the reign of Islik, King of Illia, grew troubled; his father had
been cast out of Heaven, and now a Usurper rose each morning in
his place. In anger Islik renounced Irr as a murderer, and renounced
the gods for allowing Illikis ouster, and he ordered that sacrifice
be withheld from the gods until they restored his father to the Sun
Throne and the Cosmos to its rightful order. Yhera had been silent for
some years, and many of the priests and priestesses had already begun
to doubt her return, so most accepted his law. But some did not, and

o THE COURT OF DEEPEST NIGHT

In the Far West, the arrival of the Black Sun also heralded
a period of turmoil. Nymarga the Magician, a member of
the Celestial Court, poisoned Surep the King and usurped
his throne, and drove Sureps son and heir, Jala, into exile.
Nymarga remade the Celestial Court into a mockery of its
previous incarnation. Where all had once been light, Nymarga
made it dark; Ligrid, Goddess of Temptation, became his
Queen, even though she was rumored to have been his mother,
and her perversions became a mark of the Court of Deepest
Night, and she brought her lover Amaymon with her. Varask,
the Warrior Captain who had aided Nymargas usurpation,
was made his right hand. Irr was invited by Nymarga to
take Illikis place on the Court, but some confusion exists as
to whether he did so. Masked priests and priestesses took
the places of the other absent gods. Sarita, Widow to Surep,
was forced to watch her daughter-in-law, Parvenah, become
Nymargas prostitute and a slave to the perversions of Ligrid.
The Second Celestial Court:
Nymarga the Magician-King
Ligrid the Queen
Varask the Warrior
Sarita the Widow
Irr the Black Sun
Djara the Judge
Yhera the Creatrix, Queen of Heaven (absent)
Agdah the Cosmos Ghost (silent)
Amaymon the Dreamer
Geteema the Earth Spirit (absent)
Seedr the Shepherd (absent)
Parvenah the Concubine

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they began to speak out against the King on Earth. Amongst his
Court was a general named Ishraha, a prideful half-angel born of the
blood of Ligrid, who had come down from the Heavens to serve in
Isliks army. Ishraha was displeased with Isliks renunciation of the
gods and he wished to side with those that wanted to keep to the
old ways, and Amaymon knew this and began to whisper to Ishraha:
Had not Islik sat idly by while his own father was thrown down from
Heaven? And as Ishraha thought on this he realized that if Islik had
not aided his father during his time of need, it was because Islik did
not have the strength or the knowledge or perhaps the courage to
travel any of the Paths to Heaven himself.

And so Ishraha came to suspect that the real cause of Isliks
anger at the gods was Isliks own shame and weakness, his own failure
to aid his father in his time of need, and Ishraha found delight in
this, and a great hate for Islik and his weakness was born in him. He
conspired with others in the Court of Illia and with other spirits of
the Celestial Realms, and he overthrew Islik, and cast him into exile.
Ishraha reinstated sacrifices and offerings to all the gods, beginning
with Irr as the Black Sun.

Islik wandered for twenty-one years in the wilderness,
and during this time the War in Heaven came often to the Known
World, as the angels and spirits seeking to depose Irr also turned to
war against Ishraha on the Throne of the World, and men and angels
fought side by side and against each other under the visage of the
Black Sun.

THE TEN VICTORIES OF ISLIK

WHILE IN EXILE FROM HIS EARTHLY THRONE

In the temple lore of the Divine King, Islik achieved Ten Great
Victories while in exile from his throne that marked him as worthy
of the Sun Throne of his father. The main text of the Divine Kings
cult is the Islikinaem called Timit Tes Ashvail Islik by the Phoenix
Court which is composed of the screed The Ten Victories of Islik
and then the appended King Cycles, the lists of Hemispian Dragon
Kings and their Deeds that followed in the centuries immediately
after Isliks ascension. According to the Islikinaem, these are the Ten
Victories of Islik:
HIS FIRST: OVER THE LIONS OF TELESIA
After being exiled from Illia, Islik journeyed south into Hemispia,
to the ancient kingdom of Telesia and its capital of Agrapios. He
sought aid and allies against the Rebel and Usurper Ishraha, and
petitioned King Buradis of Telesia to withhold tribute from Ishraha
and sacrifice from the gods until he was restored to his throne and
his father to his. But instead the lion-headed sons of King Buradis,
each of whom had the strength of a dozen men, challenged his fitness
as King and sought to imprison him as a prize for Ishraha, to whom
they had sworn secret allegiance. Islik defeated them in ceremonial
combat, and realizing that he had few allies amongst the traitor
Kings of the south, he left Hemispia with their lion heads on the
prow of his ship.
HIS SECOND: OVER THE SIRENS OF THE SILVER SCALE
SEA
Islik crossed over the Mera Argenta with his friend and companion,
Agall of the Black Sail, once King of Galia, who renounced sacrifice
and became the second of the Four Kings in Exile, and a handful of
vassals who were loyal to him as the True King of Illia. The sirens of
the Silver Scale Sea called to them with their enchanted songs, and

A History of the Known World

Agall and the others on board their ship were overcome and would
have sailed their ship into danger, but Islik heard the songs of the
sea-spirits and was not moved. He saved his companions from being
lost forever in the mists of the Sea.
HIS THIRD: OVER THE CRUELTY OF THE DANIAN
KING
Islik and Agall landed in Dania, where they were taken prisoner by
the warriors of the mad Danian King, Myrad, lord of Therapoli.
They were imprisoned in his dungeons, from which none had ever
escaped, and therein met two other Kings who were in Exile, Jala
the Good, Prince of distant Samarappa, and Coromat, once King
of Vanimoria. Islik convinced them to renounce sacrifice, and they
joined him as blood brothers. Islik solved the puzzles of King Myrads
dungeons, and led the other Kings in Exile to their freedom.
HIS FOURTH: OVER THE TEMPTATIONS OF THE
DARADJ QUEEN
The Four Kings in Exile crossed over the mountains into the
Highlands of Daradja, and there they were enchanted by the charms
of the Daradj Queen, Arathea. They lingered in her Court for
many moons, and one by one they were seduced by her lies and
honeyed words first Jala, then Agall, and then Coromat until she
attempted to compromise Islik. He alone amongst his companions
saw through her disguise and her glamours to the ugliness within
her, and he exposed her to his fellow Kings, freeing them from the
spells she had cast upon them.
HIS FIFTH: OVER THE TRICKERY OF CERAM
The Kings in Exile fled Daradja and its Spider Queen into the
brightness of the Suns Anvil. There they found the camps of a
fifth King in Exile, Ceram the Storm King, the Thunderer. Ceram
invited them to share his fire, and they sought to convince him to
renounce sacrifice and join their wandering life, but in the morning
Ceram revealed his base nature and set them as the sacrificial prey
to his hunt. Ceram hunted them across the Suns Anvil and into
the Sea of Sands, and they despaired of his pursuit, but Islik found
Cerams Gate into the Dain duins, and there the Four Kings hid
among his trophies in the Vale of Bones until Ceram had thundered
into the distance.

HIS SIXTH: OVER THE DANGERS OF THE SEA OF

SANDS
The Four Kings in Exile went back out into the Sea of Sands after
Ceram departed, having failed in his hunt, and headed West,
hoping to reach lands close to Jalas former home in Samarappa.
But the Sea of Sands is a vast and trackless waste, full of curses
and traps, and they were brought close to the brink of death.
But Islik would not let the ill will of the Dead Earth overcome
him, and he found great wells of strength within himself, and
these he shared with his companions. He persevered and led
them out of the Sea of Sands when it seemed as though they
would at last perish.
HIS SEVENTH: OVER THE MAGICS OF THE KINGS OF
THE WEST
When the Four Kings in Exile came out of the trackless wastes,
they were set upon by the evil Warlock-Kings of the desert
peoples of the West, the Rajiks and the Khaghals, who barred
them from crossing the Ferras Nash, the Mountains of Iron,
into the valleys of Lake Hazrat. Each of the Four Kings in Exile
attempted to cross the mountain passes, but only Islik was able
to lead the others to the green pastures and waters of the lake.
When they saw their magics had been overcome by his purity,
the Warlock-Kings of the Rajiks and the Khaghals slunk into the
mountains, and the Four Kings in Exile came to rule the Lands
of the Lake, outlawing sacrifice and taking wives amongst the
Rajiks and Khaghals.
HIS EIGHTH: OVER THE TREACHERY OF THE
BLOODED
Their peaceful reign lasted for nineteen years, until some amongst
their Rajik and Khaghal subjects rebelled and made sacrifice
once more to the gods. The rebels, called the Blooded, strove
against the Kings in Exile with sword and magic and argument.
Jala was convinced by trickery to join with the Blooded, and he
fell into sacrilege and fled back to his homeland, abandoning the
other Kings in Exile; Coromat killed many of their attackers, but
was driven insane by their magics, and fled into the wastes; great
Agall lost his legendary strength and was slain by the enemy.
Islik fought to the very end against the Blooded, and though
they had ended the Four Kings in Exile, he was able to drive
them from the battlefield and stand there alone, protecting the
body of his friend and stalwart companion, Agall.

c THE KINGS
IN EXILE

Popular lore says the Four

Kings in Exile were exiled for
their own tragic flaws: Islik
was exiled for his pride, Agall
for his rage, Coromat for his
negligence, and Jala for his
condescension.
Left to right: Islik, Coromat,
Agall, Jala

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21

A History of the Known World

HIS NINTH: OVER DEATH
Standing over the body of his boon companion Agall, Islik
swore an oath not to be conquered by Death, and he swore that
he would save those that had been loyal to him from the cold
embrace of the Underworld. Islik followed the spirit of Agall into
the Underworld, pausing once past its Gates to curse the Blooded
so they could not follow him, and in the depths of Hell he came
to grips with the Queen of the Dead. He learned her secrets and
his mind became illuminated by forbidden knowledge. While
in the Underworld he saw two great Leviathans fighting, and in
the belly of one he spied the spirit of his father, and he freed
his fathers spirit while the dark Leviathans were in combat. He
found and freed Agall from the clutches of the Queen of the
Dead, and brought his spirit back to the Known World.
HIS TENTH: OVER ISHRAHA THE USURPER
Having gained the secrets of the Underworld and gathered the
spirit of Agall into his keeping, Islik returned to Illia in disguise
and came before Ishraha upon his usurped throne. Ishraha and his
traitorous courtiers did not recognize him until he threw off his
disguise and burned them with the fury of his righteousness and
the illumination of his spirit. Despite his hurts Ishraha assailed
Islik with sword and claw, but Islik was infused with the power of
Death and the strength of the spirit of Agall, and he tore Ishrahas
wings from his body and hurled him into the Underworld. Those
at the Court that had supported the Rebel Angel fled, but Islik
and those that had remained loyal to him while he was in exile
hunted many of them down.
These are the Ten Great Victories of Islik that he performed while
in exile to prove his worth, so he could reclaim the Throne of
Illia and the title of King of the Earth, and his divinity, so that he
could enter the Heavens as the true heir to the Sun Throne of his
father and receive the title of the King of Heaven.

G THE MYSTERY OF
THE BLOODED

Divine King texts describe the Blooded only vaguely as

upstart warlords from amongst the Rajiks and Khaghals.
But the Isliklidae claim that the Blooded were the sons
and daughters of the Kings in Exile, who turned against
their fathers and made forbidden sacrifice to the gods.

THE RETURN OF THE QUEEN

Yheras wanderings came to an end in the Court of her sister
Genich, who initiated her into the mysteries of death and loss
and showed her the path back to the Heavens. But Yhera could
not leave without Agdah, and naked and unveiled she bowed
down before her sister and pleaded for Agdahs release. Genich
relented, and revealed the secret of where Agdah was imprisoned.
Guided by a small but bright light Yhera quested deep into the
Underworld to find Agdah in the belly of Geteema, and they
battled once again until Yhera had Geteema pinned within the
Earth. Yhera held her sisters gaping maw open and reached in
and plucked Agdah out, and to her surprise she found Illiki had

22

Adventures in the Known World

been swallowed too, and so she freed both of her consorts, and left
Geteema chained and bound in deepest darkness.

Yhera returned to the Heavens with Agdah and Illiki to
find the Celestial World aflame with war, and Irr upon the Sun
Throne. As Yhera gazed upon the angels of Heaven their fighting
stopped. Irr rose and greeted his Queen and his King, but at first
he would not step down from the Sun Throne, for neither Agdah nor
Illiki had returned from the Underworld by their own power. Yhera
saw the hatred that had grown in the Heavens during Irrs reign,
and did not want to confirm him as the Sun, and she despaired until
there was a clangor of trumpets, and Islik ascended to the Heavens.

For Islik, too, had been recently in the Underworld, where
he had journeyed to free his companion Agall from the clutches
of Death, and he had returned in triumph to reclaim his Throne
on Earth from Ishraha. He had finally seen the Way to Heaven,
and after setting his earthly kingdom in order he had ascended the
Sun Path, and stood to claim the Sun Throne of his fathers. Yhera
welcomed him then, and Irr acquiesced before his brightness, and
Islik became a King in Heaven, as he was a King on Earth. Agdah
became Cosmopeiia again, the Cosmos King, and Illiki became the
Sun Bull again, and Irr too still laid a claim to the Sun Throne on
some days, but none was truly the Sun King anymore; instead, they
shared that title in turn.

Irr returned to the dark parts of the world from whence he
came. Many of the angels and celestial spirits that had fought with
him did not much like the new King in Heaven, and they followed
Irr into darkness and fire, and became the orders of the dark angels
of the Underworld, the Rahabi: the Dhurleal and the Golodriel,
the Bharab Dzerek and the Sharab Deceal, the Gamezhiel and the
Ghazharab, and the Nephilim. And many of the Rahabi remained
armed for war, and still fight the War in Heaven when they think
Yhera is not looking.

THE THOUSAND-YEAR HERO

Historians studying the Golden Age are immediately

confronted by a problem of age and dates; for while a
number of well-recorded texts (the Cyclia Haralabirine, the
Tabla Basilia, the Oracallum of Khael, the Halat Adrdine)
seem to provide a framework for Golden Age chronology,
most legends and stories of the Golden Age also have many
of the same heroes and heroines at its beginning as at its
end. Modern historians generally divide into three camps:
either they take the dating as accurate, and believe that
the great men and women of the Golden Age, touched
by the proximity of the divine, lived great life spans; or
they believe the dating is accurate but believe that (as
with theories of Hannath Hammergreia) the names of
many ancient heroes are more accurately titles, or perhaps
members of a lineage that claimed the name of their
forebears; or they believe that the concept of the year itself
was different then.

A History of the Known World

THE AGE OF LEGEND

AFTER THE FALL OF rne

Dr

he Age of Legend marks the transition of a world touched

routinely by the divine to a world increasingly dominated by the
acts of Men. It begins with the journeys of Islik and the Kings
in Exile during the War in Heaven, and this transitional period results
in the finalization of the year as we know it. Helios had been bound in
his daily schedule and rose and fell with regularity during the Golden
Age, and the Moon had shifted through her many faces in a predictable
cycle, but the deaths of Agdah Cosmopeiia and Illiki Helios, their
sojourn into the Underworld, and their restoration into the Heavens
by the intervention of Yhera mark the transition to the seasonal year.
And just as his fathers did, Islik Sun King after his ascension into the
Heavens now grew strong in the summer, and weaker in the winter,
when he had to perform once again his Journey into the Underworld
and his Victory over Death. Islik remade the Heavens to create his
Palace, and Yhera decreed that the Constellations of the Celestial Path
would be finally bound to their schedule, so the telling of time finally
became reliable at the beginning of the Age of Legend, when the Lunar,
Celestial, and Seasonal Years all came together.

The Scholar-Magicians of the Golan Great Schools first
referred to the second Age of Man as the Silver Age, and to the one
that followed it as the Bronze Age, as they believed that the Ages of
the Known World reflected a loss of divine power and presence in the
world, a growing distance between the Earth and the Heavens, and a
decrease in the strength and longevity of Men as the divine blood in
their veins grew thinner. But the Silver Age became more popularly
known as the Age of Legends, as the figures that moved across the Earth
during that Age such as the Spring Queens of An-Athair, the Black
Arrow Queens of Palatia, Nymarga the Tyrant, and Dauban Hess, the
Golden Emperor of the World still had the mark of the divine upon
them, and seemed to belong to or come from an earlier Age than the
one they lived in.

The Known World was a tumultuous place after the fall of rne
Dr. Irr ruled the Heavens for a time, and the Black Sun was
harsh; for many, it seemed as though the desperate and hard times
that wracked the world after Genich left the earth and imposed
the First Law had returned. In a few spots civilization and wonder
remained, and one of those places was in Daradja, where Queen
Lanys, descended of lamented Dara, invited Dran exiles to
settle, and though this displeased some of her subjects she foresaw
the benefits the civilized Drans could bring her mountain
realm. Queen Lanys daughter Arathea grew to power tutored
by Dran priestesses and warlords, and word of her beauty and
the strengths of her realm reached the ears of the wandering Four
Kings in Exile, and they visited to vie for her hand and win her
aid in regaining their thrones. She saw greatness in each of them
and she desired those qualities for her own realm as well, but she
also saw in them jealousy and possessiveness; they were Kings,
after all, and each wanted to claim her for himself. So she secretly
took each of them as consorts without telling the others, and bore
them each a daughter, before the Kings in Exile discovered her
ploy and continued on their way.

Eventually Yhera returned from the Underworld and
commanded Irr to relent his place, and Islik assumed the mantle
of the Sun King, and the world, though still struggling, rejoiced,
though sorrow and despair and hardship lingered. Aratheas
daughters grew in power and might, but in the end the jealousy
Arathea had seen in their fathers was their undoing, and Goatis,
daughter of Agall, grew jealous that her sister Damara, daughter
of Islik, had been granted the citadel of Dara Dess as her keep.
Damara came to visit Goatis at her citadel of Athark, and Goatis
murdered her in a drunken rage. The bright future Arathea had
sought for Daradja disintegrated in a civil war from which the
land never fully recovered.

e THE DAUGHTERS
OF ARATHEA

According to Daradjan tradition,

the four daughters of Arathea were
Damara, daughter of Islik; Goatis,
daughter of Agall; Leda, daughter of
Coromat; and Hetha Basi, daughter
of Jala. Arathea gave to Damara
rulership of the citadel of Dara Dess;
to Goatis, she gave the citadel of
Athark; to Leda, she gave the citadel
of Finleth; and to Hetha Basi, she
gave the citadel of Heth Moll. Those
citadels became known as the Great
Citadels of Daradja, and Dara Dess
was held to be the greatest of them all.
From Left to Right: Damara, Leda,
Goatis, Hetha Basi

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23

A History of the Known World

Daradjans and Drans alike sought refuge amongst their
neighbors from the bloody wars that wracked the Highlands. The
Danians, who had paid tribute to Daradja since Daras time, no longer
did so after the death of Damara, and they did not wish to allow
exiles in their lands, fearing they might be drawn into the wars of the
mountain citadels; all of the Kings and Queens of the Danians turned
the refugees away. But the Athairis, the Danians who lived in the great
Erid Wold, invited those fleeing the mountain wars to settle in the
spirit-filled woods of their domain. So Daradjas plight became AnAthairs fortune, for in exchange, the Athairis learned many secrets.

THE Spring QUEENS &

THE GOLDEN REALM OF AN-ATHAIR
Amongst the Dran refugees were priestesses descended from those
who had held the Great Garden Temple of Genich in rne Dr,
where the Queen of the Underworld had still been the Queen of the
Earth, and they knew secrets of the natural world long since lost. They
showed the Athairis how to reawaken the Earth abandoned by Genich,
where to find power in it, where to draw strength. And they showed
the Athairis how they could make the land resemble the lost Paradise
of Genich once again, at least to some small degree. The Athairis built
a wondrous temple out of living tree and carved rock, a Green Temple
that nourished, refreshed, and healed all who entered it, and the High
Priestesses of the Temple came to be called the Spring Queens. The
Erid Wold grew green and lush, a bounty for those that lived there, and
the land and the people lived in balance and in harmony, and the sheen
of Paradise lay upon them both.

The neighboring Kings and Queens of the Danians marveled
at the beauty and wealth of An-Athair; some made tribute, and
became part of what came to be called the Golden Realm. Others,
however, sought to take the wealth of the Athairis by force, but here
again Daradjas plight was An-Athairs fortune, for amongst the exiled
Daradjans and Drans were many veterans of the mountain wars
and the descendants of those who had fought at rne Dr. They
knew war well, and they taught their secrets to the Athairis. And the
Athairi knights of the Golden Realm fought not only with secret war
knowledge but also with magical vigor to protect the Queens of the
Green Temple.

The exploits of the knights of the Golden Realm became the
stuff of Danian legend: Gyrfryds single-handed defense of the castle of
Hyrval, Penwyrds rescue of Queen Tara, Dyrks capture of the Wyvern
King, the duel between Benreuth and Ferne for the still-beating heart
of the Maiden of Abeuth. Just as legendary, if not more so, were the
feasts and celebrations in their honor and at the Green Temple, where
the fertility of the land was ensured by the ritual union of the Spring
Queens of An-Athair with local heroes who wore golden Sun Masks to
invoke Islik, the returned Sun King. Women came from far and wide
to serve as Spring Queens, and heroes, knights, and woodsmen came
too to do their duty and bless the land, and with every union the land
grew greener and the Golden Realm grew brighter.

THE COMING OF THE SEA BULLS

A shadow soon fell on An-Athair, from the sails of the Sea Bulls: the
Aurians, the descendants of Heth the Sea King. Raiders and pillagers
from the far north, they had been fought off, if barely, by the Veiled
Queens of Palatia, and after that sharp and bloody welcome had
instead found safe landing on the unpopulated eastern coast of Dania,
which they called the Gift of Heth. Soon they came through the pass

24

Adventures in the Known World

Athairi Spring Queens, an Athairi Golden

Knight, and an Aurian Golden Knight (near
right)

A History of the Known World

of dain, and they conquered portions of the Danian lands and
subjected their peoples, until they came to the borders of An-Athair.
They marveled at the plenty of the Plain of Horns, and sought to
make it their own, but the knights of the Golden Realm rode from
the Erid Wold to disrupt their hunts and war parties, and the Aurians
retreated to the east. Some amongst the Aurians became enchanted
with the knights of the Golden Realm, and sent emissaries to the
Green Temple, and lay with the Spring Queens and were granted
domain over lands on the eastern borders of the Wold.

However, most of the Aurians were not enchanted, and were
still instilled with the fury and rage of their ancestor and god, Heth,
who embodied the hurricane and the tidal wave. Their magicians
sought ways to fight the knights of the Golden Realm, and one day
a Horned Man visited one of them, and told him how to make an
axe and enchant a stone that could cut down an Erid Wold tree and
prevent it from growing again. The Horned Man explained that the
trees were the source of the knights power, and once they were cut
down the knights would be made weak and vulnerable.

So the Aurians brought axe and fire to the Erid Wold,
and began at the river Abenbrae. They burned and cut down the
trees of the wood, and on the each stump they placed an enchanted
stone, and as the Horned Man had promised the trees did not grow
back. The knights of the Golden Realm fought valiantly, but once
the Aurians knew this trick their fate was sealed; the knights of AnAthair became weaker and weaker as the forest disappeared, and one
by one the knights of the Golden Realm fell.

THE SACK OF THE GREEN TEMPLE

With the Erid Wold being destroyed acre by acre and the knights
of the Golden Realm falling, the fate of the Green Temple became
inevitable, though it took years of pillage to bring about the end.
Eventually the Aurians weakened the knights defenses enough to
strike directly at the Green Temple, and the trees and stones of the
Green Temple were pulled down and ruined, and the Spring Queens
were raped and then drowned in the Eridbrae, and the paradise of
An-Athair faded in an instant.

The Aurians moment of triumph was short-lived, however,
for the bodies of the Spring Queens floated down the Eridbrae to the
sea, and there they were found by Heth; and Heth the Sea King
had been a lover of Genichs, and he knew that the Earth and the
Sea were one, and that Yhera was Queen of both. Further, he saw
something that his children had not: that Amaymon the Whisperer,
who forever seeks to undermine all that is fair and beautiful, had
sent the Horned Man with the secret of axe and stone. Heth has
always been fickle and arbitrary, for such is the Sea, and though he
too destroyed without pity it enraged him that his children had done
so dark a deed at the Whisperers behest, even unknowingly. So he
turned his back on them, and withdrew his blessings, so that when
the Aurian lords put to sea to continue on their pillaging, the waves
crushed their boats and water spirits dragged them to the depths.

The end of the Golden Realm left a rent Dania and the
dispirited, land-locked Aurians open to the arrival of Dauban Hess
and the Thessid-Golans, who came and subjected the land with
ease, bringing with him the teachings of the Sun Court, which were
embraced by the Aurians in particular, as they had lost their patron
and ancestor, Heth. The Erid Wold in time recovered, but is a place
of dark memories and vengeful spirits; the Aurian lords of the east
destroyed a vast part of the forest, and the trees never returned,
and that land became the Plain of Stones. To this day, Aurians are
considered cursed at sea, and rarely leave the land.

o THE THIRD CELESTIAL COURT

In the Far West, the Reign of Nymarga was comparatively

brief, though the horrors of his rule were a stain on the
Samarappans for generations. Jala returned from exile and
drove out Nymarga and his followers, killing Varask the
Warrior for his treachery. Jala and his sons freed Sarita and
restored her to her proper place, and they freed Parvenah from
her bondage to Nymargas desires. Parvenah underwent rituals
of purification, and emerged as the Jade Queen, and took her
rightful place at Jalas side. The gods and goddesses of the
First Celestial Court were invited to join the new Court, but
a different age was upon the world, and the gods stayed away.
Instead, as had been the practice in Nymargas Court, priests
and priestesses wore masks and took the places of its divine
members. The Third Celestial Court:
Jala the Just King
Parvenah the Jade Queen
Sarita the Queen Mother
Cyrus the Consort
Bhargata, the First Son
Janadarta, the Archer Son
Gha-Hauri, the Sword Son
Asurta, the Loyal Heart
Yhera the Creatrix, Queen of Heaven
Agdah Cosmopeiia
Adjia the Dreamer
Geteema the Earth Spirit

THE BLACK ARROW QUEENS

The great women of Palatia were amongst the first to respond to the
summons of rne Dr when it came under siege. Archaia died there
in d1111, slain while defending the fallen Hannath Hammergreia, the
last great Carrion Queen. The Last Queens ordered the abandonment
of rne Dr the next year, and Achre returned to Palatia with her
daughters body. In grief she sealed herself in the earth in her daughters
tomb, and left her granddaughters to rule Palatia. So began the cycles
of the Veiled Queens in Palatia, when the city was in mourning and
withdrawn from the world. The Veiled Queens ruled for over two
hundred years, until the migration of Aurian invaders from the north
threatened to overcome their isolation.

The Aurians were barely driven off, and later settled on the
Danian Peninsula, where they accepted the Divine King and became
part of what is today the Middle Kingdoms. The Veiled Queens of
Palatia at the time of the Aurian invasions Alkaia, Vargate Vul, and
Tamara looked about the Known World after their victories, and they
saw the rising dangers of Dauban Hess and Nymarga in the south, and
threw off their torpor, and became known as the Black Arrow Queens,
as their armies were armed with black-feathered, black-shafted barbed
arrows. The Black Arrow Queens founded the first legions and the first
Sea Houses, with which began the great Palatian fleet. They fought
Dauban Hess to a standstill, though in truth he thought the city so
poor that he could barely be bothered, and were in open warfare with
the Worm Kings long before most suspected the extent of the evil at
the heart of the Phoenix Court.

Adventures in the Known World

25

A History of the Known World

DAUBAN HESS
& THE DRAGON KINGS
Peace came to the Isle of Illia and the nearby Hemispian Peninsula,
where the reign of Isliks descendants brought stability and an end to
the long struggles of the earthly War in Heaven. Isliks sons were called
Dragon Kings, for they seemed to have in them the powers of the
ancient followers of Cewert, the great hero of Hemispia, but without
having to kill dragons and giants to gain them; such power was simply
their birthright as the heirs of Islik. In time, however, the Dragon Kings
of Illia and Hemispia fell to squabbles amongst themselves, and war
rent the land again for many years until Dauban Hess, a descendant
of Islik, unified them under his own banner and was hailed as the
Conqueror King. Some claimed that Islik had descended from Heaven
to sire Dauban Hess himself, so great was his power.

Dauban Hess consolidated Illia and Hemispia, and then
struck out into the world. He conquered Amora with ease, and then
the ancient courts of the Gola welcomed him with open arms, and

O Nymarga & MAELFESS

Born when the world was young was Nymarga, a great and
powerful magician who came out of the wilderness and served
in the Celestial Court of Samarappa as Vizier to King Surep.
Nymargas heart was dark some say he was born evil, others
that he listened to the whispers of Amaymon the Spider, others
even that he was the Horned Man that committed the crime that
brought Death into the world and he plotted against his King.
Surep was poisoned, and Nymarga broke the Celestial Court
and remade it in his own image, casting Jala the Good Prince,
son of Surep, into exile. Nymargas dark rule cast a shadow over
Samarappa, and eventually his influence even reached into the
Heavens, and Irr the Black Sun replaced Illiki the Sun Bull for
a time. But Jala returned after long years in the wilderness, and
with his sons and daughters and new allies he drove Nymarga
from Samarappa and remade the Celestial Court anew. Nymarga
fled east into the mountains, and there he took on a new guise
and name, that of Maelfess, and he befriended Coromat, King
of Vanimoria, who was lost in madness. He pretended to be
Maelfess until his plots were ready, and then he removed his
mask and revealed himself. Nymarga killed Coromat and
usurped his throne and shaped his own empire, coming in time
to rule the Metic Kings and the Princes of Vanimoria, Thessidia
and Thessure, Galia and the great city-states of the coast of the
Mera Argenta as well, all with the aid of powerful magicians and
sorcerers a vast magical empire, unparalleled in history to that
point.

Divine King seers proclaimed Nymarga a son of Ishraha,
the hated Rebel Angel, and Ligrid, the Temptress Queen. So in
i221 Dauban Hess led his armies out of the Gola into Thessidia,
and began a great war, the war between the Conqueror King and
the Worldly Tyrant. Years passed in bloody conflict on a scale
not seen since the War in Heaven, but Dauban Hess skills as a
general and warrior proved Nymargas undoing in campaign after
campaign, first in Thessidia and Galia and finally in Vanimoria
itself. In i240, Nymarga was slain by Dauban Hess in his capital
of Tir-en-Tiel and his body cursed by priests of the Divine King
and entombed in salt.

26

Adventures in the Known World

Dauban Hess accepting the surrender of

the Metic Kings after the Battle of Kirt in i244.

A History of the Known World

he established his court at the city of Seker. There he was told of
Nymarga the Tyrant, the great lord of Thessidia, by rumor a son
of Ishraha. Nymarga had taken power in the West, and was being
hailed as the Worldly Tyrant.

Dauban Hess conquered Thessidia and Vanimoria, far into
the West to Metea and Ramora and the edge of Samarappa. There
he expected to find the lands of the Celestial Court, but instead of
the descendants of Jala the Good Prince, he found the people of
Samarappa ruled by overlords who called themselves the Isliklidae.
They had emerged from the Lake Hazrat region and had extended
their rule over the peoples of the Western Midlands, the Rajiks
and the Khaghals and the Urghals, and eventually over parts of
Samarappa, challenging and eventually deposing the princely sons
of Jala. The Isliklidae ruled with an iron grip until the coming of
Dauban Hess and his army. Hearing that Dauban Hess claimed
descent from Islik, they greeted him as their brother and cousin, for
they too claimed to be the children of Islik, born in the Far West
during his exile. But Dauban Hess and the priests of the Divine
King denounced the Isliklidae and their false claims, saying they
were the children of Ishraha and Irr, and condemning them for
sacrifice to the gods and other unseemly and degenerate practices.

c THE SUCCESSOR KINGS

According to historical rolls, Dauban Hess left behind 212 Dragon

Kings of the lineage of Islik and several hundred generals in
charge of his vast armies and territories. Dragon Kings were given

For sixteen years the armies of Dauban Hess and the lords of HazratGhal fought throughout the west, until at last Dauban Hess drove
the Isliklidae into exile, in the year i262.

Dauban Hess was then welcomed into Samarappa as its
savior and High King, and the Celestial Court was reconstituted.
He ruled there for a time, before returning to the east to conquer
Dania and the newcomer Aurians. He received tribute from Khael
and the cites of the Dskdran coast, and in the whole of the Known
World only a minor city-state, Palatia, refused to recognize him as
the Golden Emperor of the World. Dauban Hess moved the Sun
Throne of Illia (a gift of Bragea the Smith to Islik when he was King
of Illia) to Millene and established his own political court in Avella,
capital of Thessidia, ruling over the largest empire in history. He
tired of court life, however, and in i275 he gathered a great fleet and
left on an expedition to the east to find the Isles of the Dawn, where
Helios the Sun rises each day. He was never heard from again. He
left behind an Empire that stretched from the Isle of Illia in the
east to the Spice Isles in the Far West, a series of new cities (all of
them named Daubia), roads, canals, schools, and legal codes, and
everywhere he spread the worship of his ancestor, Islik the Divine
King of Heaven and Earth.

rule over Illia, Telesia, Cavalonia, Hemispia, Amora, Mercria,

and the Danias; generals were given rule over Sekeret, Thessidia,
Thessure, Galia, Vanimoria, Metea, Ramora, Samarappa & the
Spice Isles, and Hazrat.

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THE WORM KINGS
After divinations in i281 were rumored to confirm the death of
Dauban Hess on his journey to find the Isles of the Dawn, his generals
began to whisper that they, and not the Dragon Kings of Illia and
Hemispia, deserved to rule the Golden Empire by right of Dauban
Hess trust in them. And so the Empire he left behind broke into
many pieces, as his Successor Kings squabbled amongst themselves
about the proper mode of succession heredity or appointment,
kingship based on blood or trust and the Dragon Kings of the East
broke all contact with the Imperial Court and reestablished the Sun
Court in Heliopolis. The Dragon Kings of the Sun Court advocated
inheritance as the proper transmission of power, while the Imperial
Court in Millene advocated the appointment of power to the loyal
and virtuous.

The Imperial Court in Millene took the name of the
Phoenix Court in response both to symbolize the rebirth of a
trusted general as a King, and the rise of the Court from the ashes of
Dauban Hess disappearance and the betrayal of the Dragon Kings.
At first the Phoenix Court outshone the Sun Court of Illia; it was
influenced by the Great Schools of the Gola and was the model of the
civilized, imperial court, as the educated and the ambitious sought
appointment to seats of power. But in time, the Phoenix Court grew
darker and dimmer. Since rule by appointment could not guarantee
the lasting legacy of an inheritance passed on to descendants after
death, some of the rulers of Phoenix Court lands grew increasingly
interested in magics that could prolong life. Practitioners of alchemy
and sorcery, arts with long traditions in Thessidia and the Gola,
gained many new patrons, and Nymargas old advisors and adjutants
began to reassert their power in what some called the Return of the
Magicians, making themselves useful in this pursuit of long life and
even immortality. The underground worship of dark and ambitious
gods grew slowly but steadily, as secret temples to Amaymon the
Whisperer and Ligrid the Temptress and Ishraha the Rebel were built
throughout the cities of Thessid-Gola. In i360, Larisa, the Oracle
Queen of Khael, cried out that Nymargas spirit had been released
into the world once more, and rumors spread that his tomb had been
opened and plundered.

The Phoenix Court was in open warfare with the Sun Court
by i380. Wars were launched against Amora, Illia, Hemispia, Dania,
Palatia, and Khael; cities were sacked or conquered, the Kingdom of
Telesia centered at Agrapios was destroyed, and slowly the deaths of
Dragon Kings began to mount in number. The Kings of the Phoenix
Court withdrew into seclusion, even as they sponsored intrigues
in neighboring lands, sent their fleets and armies out to sack and
despoil almost indiscriminately, and sought out gold and slaves for
the darkening city of Millene as rebellion spread through overtaxed
and depleted provinces. After almost a century of conflict the reason
for their seclusion was revealed, when in i475 emissaries from Amora
bearing tribute finally gained an audience with the Phoenix Court,
and fled in terror at the worms that dripped from the rotting, stillliving flesh of the depraved Kings and Lords of Thessid-Gola, some
of them kept alive since Dauban Hess time by strange rituals and
bloody human sacrifices. Word spread quickly throughout the
Known World, and the damned rulers of Thessid-Gola became
known as the Worm Kings.

Once their secrets were finally discovered, the Worm Kings
lashed out at their remaining enemies, sending their fleets to destroy
and pillage in a campaign of destruction that culminated in the
sack of the Oracle City of Khael in i498. The Oracle Queen Adiya
Worm Kings in the halls of the
Imperial Phoenix Court in Millene.

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A History of the Known World

was raped and left for dead, and as she lay dying she called up omens
of destruction, and pronounced her last prophecy as a curse. Seven
days later, the city of Millene, capital of the Worm Kings empire, was
destroyed in a great volcanic explosion: a maelstrom that buried the
entire city, drove back the sea, and turned the sands black for a hundred
miles in every direction.

THE BRONZE AGE

he Scholar-Magicians of the Golan Great Schools characterized

the third Age of Men as one without the direct intervention
of the gods; it begins with Hathhalla holding her Veil over the
Sun, so that even the Heavens seemed to draw further away from the
Earth in shame at what the greed and avarice of Men could produce.
And the heroes and heroines of the Bronze Age, though they often came
from divine lineages, nevertheless had a distinct air of the mundane
about them, as they used tools and not divine power to shape the world.
The line of the Dragon Kings ended in wars with the Worm Kings, the
Black Arrow Queens passed into history, and those that were left turned
to building and making with hands and sweat and furrowed brow. The
ships and metalwork of Palatia, the invention of alchemical fireworks
by Akine Mog, the world of trade and finance; the work of Men for an
Age of Men. Or at least thats how the Scholar-Magicians of the Great
Schools described it. They predicted a fourth Age, though they were
unsure whether it would be marked by a return of the gods, as some
hoped, or a further march away from them; and the rise of Akkalion,
the Emperor of Thessid-Gola, seemed to signal that change of Ages was
about to happen.

THE WINTER CENTURY

The destruction of Millene came to be known as the Catastrophe. For
while most of the Worm Kings were destroyed in the explosion, so was
the Phoenix Court, countless other lives, the ancient city of Millene,
and even the original Sun Throne, brought from Illia to Millene by
Dauban Hess when he established his capital there. The world was
colder and darker for almost a hundred years afterwards, and that time
came to be called the Winter Century. Further, some of the Worm
Kings had taken up holds in Galia, Vanimoria, Hemispia, and Sekeret,
and so survived the curse of Adiya, and a great hunt began as the Known
World sought its vengeance on them. The Dragon Kings and their allies
sought them out and slew them wherever the Worm Kings or their dark
servants hid, whether in tomb or cave or disguised on a throne. And
when they had purged the east of the taint of the Worm Kings, the last
Dragon Kings set sail into the great southern sea of the Mera Verta and
into the Far West in their pursuit of the last of their fleeing enemies.

c THE VEIL OF HATHHALLA

The gods of the Sun hid their faces in shame after the death
of Adiya and the Catastrophe, and Hathhalla took the Sun
Throne until the Worm Kings were destroyed. Her Veil hung
over the Sun, and the light of the world was dimmed, and
the world was cold beneath a layer of snow and ash. Food
was scarce and travel difficult during her reign as the Sun
Goddess.
Dragon Kings on the march during
their Hunt for the Worms.

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o THE LAST CELESTIAL COURTS

Jalas Celestial Court had lasted less than sixty years before the
Isliklidae and their warlords swept down from Lake Hazrat.
The Isliklidae did not bother recreating the Celestial Court in
their image, as Nymarga had done. But when the Isliklidae
were finally driven out by Dauban Hess, the Celestial Court
was remade once again, this time by the Golden Emperor. His
inclusion of both Islik and Yhera, once again represented by
masked stand-ins, is viewed by most as an accommodation to
local preferences, as was his inclusion of the hero cults of Jala and
Parvenah. The Samarappans apparently also conflated his name,
Hess, with the Samarite word of the same sound, which means
King or Kingdom. The Fourth Celestial Court:
Dauban Hess, the Golden Emperor
Islik the Sun King
Upahlat Hess, the Regent-King
Arkham Hess, the Warrior Prince
Pherex Hess, the Opal Prince
Aman Asura Hess, the Black Prince
Phyrus Hess, the Blood Prince
Yhera the Maker
Agdah Cosmopeiia
Geteema the Earth Ghost
Jala the Just King and Hero Ancestor
Parvenah the Jade Queen
The Last Celestial Court changed again when Princes of the
Lineage of Jala reasserted their dominion over Samarappa and
removed the Successor Kings, becoming for all intents and
purposes a Court like any other and losing whatever mythical
or magical power it might once have had in the first Ages of the
Known World. The formal structure of twelve members was still
kept as a mark of tradition and history, but the Court was simply
filled with the most powerful Princes and priests of the moment.
The only exception was the seat reserved for Dauban Hess, the
Golden Emperor, who retained an honorary spot on the Court
even though his generals and his god, Islik the Divine King, were
long banished from Samarappa.

I THE KINGDOM OF
THE DMGHAL

For a time after their defeat by Dauban Hess, the Isliklidae

disappeared from the Known World. According to their own
histories, they took service with the Emperors of Califa in the
Unknown World for several centuries. They reappeared in the
Far West in the Winter Century, leading an army of warlords and
thralls through the Valley of Hooves. They first reconquered the
Lake Hazrat region, driving out or enslaving the Kessite lords,
then the entirety of Samarappa, destroying the Celestial Court
and ending the direct line of descent of the sons of Jala the Good
Prince. None have come forward in recent centuries to claim
descent from Jala, and neither the Samarappans nor their current
overlords, the Kessite Khans, have bothered to rebuild Sureps
Palaces. The Isliklids proclaimed their lands as the Kingdom of
the Dmghal, and they ruled Samarappa for four dark centuries.

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GITHWAINE

The Last Worm King

For a time, only one known Worm King in the east escaped
unseen from the questing Dragon Kings who took Hathhalla as
their guiding light and sought to destroy those that survived the
Catastrophe: Githwaine, a young Uthed Danian lord of Na Caila,
who joined the armies of Dauban Hess after the Golden Emperor
had conquered the Danias. He was but 26 when Dauban Hess
made him Lord of Tir-en-Tiel in i275, a position of great honor and
trust as it included guarding both the sacred fields where Dauban
Hess had defeated Nymarga the Tyrant and the secrets of Nymargas
final resting place, his cursed tomb.

Proximity to such evil is not without its costs; despite the
trust of the Golden Emperor, Githwaine later grew close to many
of Nymargas old magicians as they returned to advise the Phoenix
Court, and he is thought to have become a corrupted Whisperer
devoted to Amaymon and beholden to the spirit of Nymarga. He
was away in Tir-en-Tiel when the Catastrophe destroyed Millene,
and crept back to Uthed Dania while his fellows perished in the
Dragon Kings hunts. The last Dragon King of Uthed Dania,
Heraud, had left behind a Council of Kings from amongst his
Danian and Mael subjects, and Githwaine began by whisper and
intrigue to grow a secret network at their Court in Sanas Sill. He
introduced the worship of corruption amongst his followers, and
human sacrifices and unspeakable rites were performed in hidden
catacombs and temples in the name of dark and forbidden gods.

Erlwulf, Dragon King of Dania, of the blood of Islik the
Divine King and the last known of his kind, returned to his realm in
i648. He and his entourage thought to find a peaceful rest, having
completed their task of destroying their Worm King enemies, but
instead to his horror he discovered the telltale signs, now lost to
history, of a Worm Kings presence amongst his neighbors. He
raised an army of Danian, Aurian, and Daradjan knights, and
sent word to the Sun Court seeking whatever help they could
provide. The Winter Century had marked a growing isolationism
in the lands of the Silver Scale Sea, but small bands of heroes from
the cities of Hemispia and even Sekeret and Thessidia responded
to Erlwulf s call. With the nominal aid of the Uthed Council of
Kings, Erlwulf began searching through Uthed Dania for the source
of the corruption he sensed, but the allies of Githwaine fought a war
of stealth and cunning against him, never warring openly but only
through disguise and ambush and poison. This was a cruel war,
with none knowing who was friend or foe, and Githwaine and his
allies preyed upon the noblemen and common folk of the country
alike, visiting grievous dooms upon those that aided Erlwulf against
them.

True Dragon Kings could see into the hearts of men, past
guile and disguise and sometimes even enchantment, and Erlwulf
sensed the corruption in the heart of the Council of Kings, and so
never trusted them fully, instead making as his chief bases the Erid
Maelite citadel of Warwark in the south and the Daradjan citadel
of Heth Moll in the north. Erlwulf was returning to Heth Moll
through the Vale of Barrows in i657 with his closest aides when a
force of Djar Maelite warlords and Daradj brigands led by Githwaine
himself ambushed him. Through nine years of their war, Githwaine
had heretofore avoided direct confrontation with Erlwulf, but he
chose to strike when hard campaigning had finally exhausted the
Dragon King and his entourage. From their heights the knights of
Heth Moll saw the attack, and sent a strong relief party, but they

A History of the Known World

I THE SIGNS OF A WORM KING

No one is really sure anymore, but a wide number of folk beliefs

exist about how to detect the presence of a hidden Worm King.
Curdled and spoiled milk, the buzzing of unseen flies, six ravens
perched on the same branch, cattle or horses that have suddenly
lost control of their motor functions and cannot stand or walk
properly, and the sudden death of infants for no apparent reason
are all considered signs of a nearby Worm King. These are
remarkably similar to folk beliefs about detecting witches and
spirit possession.

arrived too late to do aught but save the body of Erlwulf from the
clutches of their dark enemy. The body of the last Dragon King was
brought to Heth Moll, and he was interred there as a bulwark against
the evils of the Vale of Barrows.

The danger and strength of the Worm Kings had been their
powers of corruption and sorcery and poison, as they struck with
honeyed words and magic spells and a touch that brought disease
and decay; their battles with the Dragon Kings had been fought
with mortal proxies, for the powers of Isliks blood in the melee were
unrivaled. But the knights of Heth Moll and the few that survived of
Erlwulf s entourage reported Githwaine had sought out Erlwulf on
the field of battle and slain him undisguised, armed, and face-to-face,
and this turn shocked and worried many.

SWORDS OF NAME & POWER

Divinations were performed, and though a veil of shadows lay about
Githwaine a secret was gleaned: the Worm King had armed himself
with an enchanted sword, the fell and infamous Ghavaurer, made by
Nymarga himself to have special powers against the blood and lineage
of Islik. Nymarga had wielded it against Dauban Hess at Tir-en-Tiel,
and when tested against the Golden Emperors famed Daybringer, that
great heirloom of the Sun Court forged of sun-metal by Daedekamani,
Ghavaurer was found to be lacking. Though perhaps the weakness had
been in the hand that wielded it, for now Githwaine held Ghavaurer,
plundered from Nymargas tomb when he had been its guardian, and
he used it to end the known line of Islik.

The death of Erlwulf was a disaster for the forces arrayed
against Githwaine, but even in their disarray he chose to remain in
the shadows, a phantom preying upon the weaknesses of men. New
generals took up Erlwulf s banner and rallied those that did not slink
from the search, and though their numbers were greatly reduced by
fear and corruption and battle, those that continued the fight against
Githwaine did so with almost fanatical zeal. Chief amongst those
who hunted the Last Worm were Gavir the Runner Lord of Heth
Moll; Daurus Tull, the Vanimorian Knight-Captain of the Company
of Sails; King Gwyrfyr of Dania; and the Aurian hero-knight Fortias
of dain.

In i666, after more years of this shadow war, the lords of the
Middle Kingdoms called for a great council in Sanas Sill, and there
many of the Kings and lords of Uthed Dania gathered. The magisters
of the University of Therapoli and the priests of the Sun Court had
prepared a secret ritual at the behest of Fortias of dain, and when the
Uthed Court had gathered they performed it suddenly, and Githwaine
was unmasked, and he was revealed in all his horror. But his foes
had underestimated the depths of corruption in Sanas Sill and did
not realize they were outnumbered there, and once Githwaine was
revealed, his followers in the Court drew arms against his enemies and

slaughtered many of them.

Fortias was amongst those that escaped, and he rallied
the last uncorrupted Uthed and Mael lords and with knights of
Dania, Auria, and Daradja led them into war against the Last
Worm. Githwaine took as his seat the citadel at Liss Dyved, and
ruled openly and without disguise, and nine years of dark and
haunted war followed as Uthed Dania was contested. Githwaine
would raise his slain soldiers as Hathaz-Ghl to fight his enemies
even in death, and he called up wights and ghosts from the
Barrow-Vale to stalk them in the night.

Against Ghavaurer and the unnatural foot soldiers of
Githwaines army Fortias sought a counter, but Daybringer had
been lost with Dauban Hess, and for a time he despaired. But
Gobelin, the great Daradj smith of the Bodmall clan, brought
him Gladringer, a sword forged in the ruins of the Green Temple
and quenched in the pools of the Spring Queens blood that
could still be found there, along with harnesses of bronze plate
enchanted against the unquiet dead. With that the tides turned,
and fire and sword were brought to all those that aided Githwaine
in Uthed Dania, until Fortias sacked Liss Dyved and hunted
Githwaine to his death, piercing his magics and illusions and
finally his corrupted body with Gladringers enchanted blade.

A full and final victory eluded Fortias even then, for
loyal Djar Mael lords spirited away Githwaines body even as
the knights of Heth Moll had recovered Erlwulf s, and it is said
they buried it in secret and protected it with grave glyphs, bound
ghosts, and warriors who accepted the curse of undeath to guard
the body of their master. Some believe it was interred beneath
Holl Ari, as an icon against the body of Erlwulf at Heth Moll;
others that it was returned to his birthplace at Na Caila; others
that it was taken deep into Djar Mael; and still others believe
that his body was buried in an unmarked barrow in the Vale,
the location amongst hundreds of other anonymous barrows lost
now even to the Djar Maelites.

The cursed Ghavaurer was never found and is believed
buried with Githwaines body. Four centuries later Gladringer
was lost in the Black Day Battle (see page 31) when it fell from
the hand of the High King Darwain Urfortias, ever afterwards
called the Fumbler, the one sour note to the resounding victory
of the Middle Kingdoms over the Thessid-Golan Empire. None
know who recovered it from the field, or where it is today.

I LOST UTHEDMAEL

The Sun Court pronounced a great curse upon Uthed Dania

to scour it of the Worm Kings taint, and Uthed Dania
became a vast and ashen wasteland, ever afterwards called
the Wastes of Lost Uthedmael. It is filled with ghosts and
evil spirits, corpse eaters, bandits, jackals, and vultures, and
many that enter it seem to meet ill ends To protect his
subjects from the evils of Lost Uthedmael, the High King
Fortias the Brave built a great wall that stretched from the
Gulf of Galia to the hills of the Bale Mole, an enchanted
barrier that held back the sands and creatures of the cursed
wastes. Those amongst the Erid Maelites who had remained
loyal and free of the taint of Githwaines evil rites were
given the wall and the lands of the southern coast as their
domain, which was called Maece, and they were called the
Watchtower Kings, in honor of their vigilant guard against
the threats of Lost Uthedmael.

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A History of the Known World

Audra the Voyager

After the destruction of Millene and the deprivations of the Winter
Century, Audra of the House of Basa was the last of the Black
Arrow Queens, and where once three Queens had ruled, now she
rules Palatia alone. She set sail to Khael, to see for herself the ruins
of Oracle City. Even as the Palatian rebuilding of Khael began,
she descended into the Underworld and spoke to Adiya, the last
Oracle Queen, to learn if their line continued. The spirit of Adiya
whispered secrets to her and opened her mind to many hidden
things, and armed with her new knowledge, Audra quested for and
found the original copy of the Book of Dooms made by Bragea,
and then set sail into the east, and found Ursula, the heir to the
throne of Khael, in hiding in the Isles of the Dawn (and in so doing
performing a feat at which Dauban Hess had failed, something that
Palatians delight in pointing out). Audra returned with Ursula and
instated her as the Oracle Queen in p812 (i644).

Audra then embarked on a series of expeditions to
Hemispia, and south to Amora and beyond to the Golden Coast
and the Mountains of Gold, where she treated with the Ivory Queen
of the Sabutans. She traveled to the cities of the Dskdran coast,
to Daradja, and then north past Magaras Land into the Panoch
Sea. Her voyages marked the true end of the Winter Century,
reconnecting many parts of the world that had grown distant under
Hathhallas Veil, and establishing the network of sea trade that
would make Palatia a formidable power in the coming centuries.
She established the Arsenal of the City, the great dockyards of the

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Palatian fleet, and created new ships and sail designs unmatched for
centuries. Audra is commonly called the last of the Black Arrow
Queens, and the first of the Copper Queens. The Palatians credit
Audras Voyages with having reestablished the reality of the Known
World, and they claim that the very fabric of the world would have
frayed and fallen apart had Audra not sailed to find the new Oracle
Queen of Khael; at the very least, she revealed new parts of the
Unknown World that had never been seen before by those from the
Mera Argenta.

The Copper Queens of Palatia that followed Audra ruled
over a period of growth and plenty for the city, as the shipping fleets
and mercantile Houses of Palatia, protected by the warships of the
Arsenal, slowly became the center of the Known Worlds economy.
Their primary competitors were the cities of Hemispia and Cavalonia,
which banded together to form the Hemispian League of Cities
after being bereft of their traditional rulers, the Dragon Kings, to
better challenge Palatias growing success as a sea and trading power.
The city of Hemapoli slowly emerged as the First City of the League.
The rivalry between Palatia and the League led to three major but
inconclusive wars during the Bronze Age, each ending with treaties
that were later broken by both sides. But much of the Bronze Age
was spent in rebuilding and recuperating, not only in Palatia and
Hemispia but throughout the Known World, as the wounds of the
wars against the Worm Kings and the Winter Century were healed.

Audra returning from the Isles of the Dawn

with Ursula, heir to the Oracle Throne of Khael.

A History of the Known World

THE LION EMPEROR

In time a new power rose in Thessidia, the young emir Akkalion, scion
of a princely house untainted by a Worm King past. A great warlord,
he led his armies into Grand Sekeret, but after conquering the land he
submitted himself to the testing of the Golan Great Schools, and so
was hailed as the Thessid-Golan Emperor, and he reconstituted the
Phoenix Court in Sekeret. He then turned west and waged a long but
decisive campaign to conquer Vanimoria, Metea, and Ramora, intent
on reestablishing the Golden Empire of Dauban Hess.

By i1037, Akkalion had finished his conquest of Ramoristan
and established a temporary court at the City of Opals. He sent
emissaries to the Isliklidae in their Kingdom of the Dmghal,
proclaiming his ancient right to the lands of the Kessites and
Samarappans, but the Isliklidae sent back the bones of his messengers.
Akkalion launched campaigns against the Isliklidae for ten years, and
despite some victories was thwarted at every turn, and in the end he
was unable to duplicate Dauban Hess feat and drive the Isliklidae once
more from the land of Samarappa. So he returned to the East having
learned humility, and spent some years moving his capital to the city of
Avella and remaking it as the Immortal City, a city to rival the wealth
and splendor of upstart Palatia Archaia.

It was not long before Akkalion returned to war, however,
and in i1058 he conquered Mercria and invaded Amora, prompting
the Palatians to begin sending aid to its embattled rulers. That aid
stretched the war out and expanded it to the Cities of the League and
sea battles with Palatian ships, but eventually Akkalion conquered most

King Cynan of Dara Dess charges Akkalions guard as

they remove him from the field at the Black Day Battle.

of Amora and eventually received tribute from even the Sun Court
cities of Illia and Hemispia. The capitulation of the Sun Court was
a major triumph for Akkalion, though its offer of tribute was made
under the terms that Akkalion could not himself set foot in the Sun
Court itself except by invitation.

He turned then to the land of Dania, now called the Four
Kingdoms of Dania, Auria, Atallica, and Maece, where the High
King, Darwain Urfortias, refused the Sun Courts order to send
tribute to the Empire. Akkalion landed with a great fleet in Maece
in i1066, and there was met by the Defender Kings of the coast,
backed by inland allies from Dania, Daradja, and Atallica. The
night before they were to join battle, Akkalion went to sleep in his
tent and was overcome by a fitful dream. In the morning his aides
and adjutants tried to wake him but they could not, and as rumors
of his condition spread, Irr, the Black Sun, rose in the sky as a
terrible omen. Akkalions sleeping body was carried to his flagship
by his guard and put to sea, even as the combined forces of the
Four Kingdoms and their Daradjan allies attacked. Bereft of their
Emperor, the demoralized Thessid army was destroyed piecemeal.

The Black Day Battle, as it came to be known, marked
the end of the Empires expansion. Akkalion was taken back to
his capital, Avella, but his mind remained trapped in his dream.
The Sun Court lands of Illia-and-Hemispia, organized now into the
Hemapoline League of Cities, ceased their tributes, and the Queens
of Amora, backed by the upstart city-state of Palatia, threw out
their Thessid overlords.

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A History of the Known World

THE AGE OF
G
IRON AND FIRE

I THE CULTS OF THE GRAY DREAM

lmost all agree that the fourth Age of Men begins with
Akkalions Gray Dream; the Emperor of Thessid-Gola
had been on the verge of recreating the Golden Empire of
Dauban Hess, when he fell into a dream from which he has not,
after over four hundred years, awakened. With Akkalion suddenly
vanished from the political landscape of the Known World while on
the precipice of his greatest triumph, a new Age certainly seemed
to be upon the world, but not one with the clarity that the scholars
of the Golan Great Schools had predicted or hoped for when
they championed Akkalion as Emperor. Where they had thought
there would be an Age of Enlightenment and Reason, in which
Man would step forth from under the shackles and shadow of the
divine and magical forces of the world, instead they have found in
this past Age one wracked by Iron and Fire, war and disease and
disaster, and the resurgence of old gods and troubles, and yet at the
same time remarkable progress in the science of alchemy and in the
technological underpinnings of the world. The printing press, the
galleon and the galleass, the first banks, the first experiments with
optical lenses, new farming techniques, new methods of learning;
this has been an Age of invention and change and turmoil. And
yet the Old Religion is as strong as it has ever been, and rises to
challenge the would-be hegemony of the Cult of the Divine King,
and the Forbidden Cults have grown stronger in the shadows.
Akkalions sleeping body has been the mark of this Age, the specter
hanging over it, an Age in which rather than stepping forward into
an Age of Men entirely without gods, or backward into another Age
of Legend, the World stepped sideways, as the Lord Mott of Palatia
put it once.

A True Account of the Gray Dream, as Related by the Emperor

to Lord
A description of the dream of the Emperor, purportedly related
by the Emperor himself during a lucid moment on his flagship
after the Black Day Battle to one of his adjutants. First published
anonymously throughout Illia in the Eastern Tongue in i1109 as
the translation of a smuggled, hand-written text, and now banned
by both the Sun and Phoenix Courts. This was the first text to
refer to the Emperors Dream as the Gray Dream, and the name
has stuck ever since.

THE LONG WAR OF NIGHT

HORRORS
At the Black Day Battle against the Middle Kingdoms, Akkalion fell
under the spell of what would come to be called the Gray Dream.
A great deal of confusion rent the eastern world, as the powers of
the Empire and its tributaries and allies struggled to determine the
nature of what had befallen the Emperor, and the consequence to
the social relations of the east. Power in the Empire fell first to the
Phoenix Court and the priests of the Emperors own cult, though
eventually a Sultan was appointed to speak in the Emperors stead
and lead the Imperial emirs, and for a time the armies that Akkalion
had built were able to maintain a period of wavering stability.

When accurate word of Akkalions condition reached the
Isliklidae, they abandoned the Kingdom of the Dmghal, leading
their warlords and thralls into Ramora. They conquered the City of
Opals by i1083 and invaded Thelea and the Sea of Sands, warring
against both the Empire and the Ceraic nomads of the Midlands
deserts. The Isliklidae fought a vicious, interminable, and ultimately
victorious campaign against the Phoenix Court that came to known
as the cruelest war in the history of the Known World. The Isliklidae
came slowly east in a relentless march at a snails pace, spreading
darkness and death and pestilence and slaughter: first Thelea, then
Metea, then Pfalk, until by i1150 they had invaded Vanimoria.
For over fifty years, the Empire poured the armies of the east into
Vanimoria to fight off the predations of the Isliklidae, and this led

34

Adventures in the Known World

The contents of the Emperors Dream have never been known.

The Phoenix Court states unequivocally that the Emperor has
never regained consciousness to communicate the contents of his
dream, and none have ever been able to pierce into his mind to
share it; but nonetheless secret cults claiming to know the truth
about the Emperors Dream have spread throughout the Known
World, offering to reveal its Mysteries to the worthy. Both the
Phoenix Court and the Sun Court have banned such cults, which
became increasingly popular after the publication of a number
of books about the content of the Gray Dream. The two most
common references are to:

The Revelacio
Extensive description of a strange semi-erotic dream published in
Avella without explanation, and while nowhere in the text itself
is the dreamer identified or is the phrase Gray Dream used, it
was widely assumed to be an accurate account of the Gray Dream
after the Inquisition of the Phoenix Court banned it.

B THE FIRE WAR

Akine Mog, Sorcerer-King of the desert realm of Setine,

invaded the Gola in i731, and alarmed the world with the use
of alchemically produced fire machines during the siege of the
city of Mirat Mata. His attempt to conquer Sekeret marked
the first use of bombards and cannons, enchanted vessels of
bronze and brass filled with an alchemical black powder that
produced fire and short objects over long distances and with
increasing accuracy. Akine Mog and his armies were finally
defeated at the hands of Prince Abayyad of Seker, with the
aid of a Palatian fleet and legions sent by Queen Theda Basa,
daughter of Audra the Voyager.

W THE RETURN OF THE KESSITES

After the Isliklidae abandoned their Kingdom of the Dmghal

in Samarappa to invade the Empire, the peoples of Samarappa
were briefly free of foreign domination. But their long
suffering under the rule of the Isliklidae left them vulnerable
and exhausted, and shortly the war bands of the Kessite horse
nomads, who had been driven from the Lake Hazrat region
by the Isliklidae in centuries past, returned and conquered the
Samarappans. The Kessite horse khans have ruled the western
edges of the Known World ever since.

A History of the Known World

many of their eastern allies and tributaries to abandon them or throw

off the chains of Imperial rule. Finally in i1206 the Isliklidae sacked
the ancient city of Tir-en-Tiel and were on the verge of invading the
lowlands of Galia and Thessidia.

The Empire sent emissaries offering the Isliklidae any price
for peace. For six years, the Isliklidae were silent, but they held their
warlords in check, poised above the Thessid-Golan lowlands, until they
finally assented to a truce and alliance with the Treaty of Tir-en-Tiel.

In i1212, soon after the Peace of Tir-en-Tiel, the Isliklidae
crossed the Red Wastes with their Dmghal army and appeared in the
southern reaches of the Dain duins. By i1214 they had conquered and
pacified those most barbarian kings of the Djar Mael and proclaimed
three Kingdoms of their own: Ugeram, Boradja, and Morica. No great
love existed between the Middle Kingdoms and the subjected Djar
Maelites, but the Defender Kings of Maece roused themselves into
a crusade to rid the mountains of the new arrivals, who were said to
make heretical claims about their relationship to the Divine King. For
over thirty years the armies and heroes of Maece and Dania crossed the
horrors of Lost Uthedmael and the Vale of Barrows to reach the western
mountains, only to be defeated time and again by the Dmghal and
Djar Mael warlords commanded by the Isliklidae. In i1239 the last
of the Kings of Maece, Gwyrfyr Brightstar, and his chief warlords
reached the furthest into the Isliklid realms of any of their kin, but were
massacred attempting to besiege the plateau tower-gate of Cir Attor.
No heir to the throne of Maece survived, and the High King, Fergus,
elevated no other worthy to the throne, signaling an end to the realm of
Maece and their wars against the Isliklidae.

Dmghal executing prisoners for one

of the Isliklidae in Metea.

c THE TREATY OF TIR-EN-TIEL

The Phoenix Court pledged to support the Isliklidae in their

campaign against the Mael Kings of the Dain duins, and
to give the Isliklidae positions at the Court. The Isliklidae,
in turn, promised that they would not invade the lowlands
of Galia, Thessidia, and Sekeret, nor return to their former
conquests in the mountainous west of the Empire. Fouler
bargains are whispered of, and no one has ever been able
to figure out why they would settle in the inhospitable
mountains of the Dain duins, amongst such cursed and
barbaric peoples as the Djar Maelites.

D THE FIRE CRUSADE

The Metic hero Hamarat, called the Night Fire,

had a secret way to purge the land of the taint
of the Isliklidae that he taught to his knights
and priests, and they followed in the wake of the
Isliklidae. He was rumored to be the bastard son
of one of the Isliklid Kings.

Adventures in the Known World

35

A History of the Known World

THE WARS OF
THE THRONE THIEF
The throne of the Kings of Maece, like the thrones of the other
sovereign kings of the Middle Kingdoms, had been built in imitation
of the Dragon Throne of Therapoli, itself based on the original Sun
Throne of Illia made by Bragea himself and lost in the Catastrophe.
Great power resided in it and in whoever rightfully took its seat, and
some of that power was conferred into the thrones that were modeled
after it and given to the petty kings of the Middle Kingdoms. Not
as much as in a Dragon Throne, for sure, but enough for the minor
thrones to be considered relics of great power and authority. With
no King left in Maece, the throne of that bygone kingdom was
ordered returned from Angora to Therapoli in i1240. On the West
Kings Road on the way to Truse it vanished from the procession in
the middle of the night. A great hue and cry was raised, and a search
of the Plain of Stones begun, but no sign of the throne or who had
taken it could be found. Talk of witchcraft and treachery began
how else could a throne of power disappear from within an armed
camp? but the priests of the Divine King could find no proof of
either in their divinations. The disappearance of the throne was a
considerable loss, but seemed destined to become a minor mystery
of legend, retold over tankards of ale and wine until the throne of
Dain Dania disappeared as well.

That throne disappeared from the very throne room in the
Dain Kings castle at Aprenna; it had simply vanished by morning,
though the Kings Guard watched over the hall during the night.

Fergus, High King of Therapoli and Atallica

36

Adventures in the Known World

Once again a great search was conducted, but no trace of the throne
or who had taken it could be found. With two thrones now missing,
the courts of the Middle Kingdoms soon abounded with rumor and
innuendo and speculation about who could be taking them and why.
The King of Erid Dania, Dyvryn, had last seen charge of the throne
of Maece as it made its way to Truse, and was quickly suspected
of its theft, as were the witches and warlocks said to reside in the
haunts of the Erid Wold. But accusations against the Erid King
were dismissed as the lingering resentments of Danias split into two
kingdoms, Dain Dania and Erid Dania, and the witches of the Erid
Wold were a common bogeyman. Some suggested brigands from the
Highlands, or cultists of Nymarga seeking some secret power in the
thrones, or a secret cult of Ishraha the Rebel seeking to undermine
the Seated Kings, or the new threat from the west, the Isliklidae,
sending their hidden hands forth to rob those who had so recently
warred against them. Others dismissed it as coincidence, or even
suggested that the Dain King had hidden his own throne to divert
suspicion from his involvement in the theft of the throne of Maece,
which he had long coveted. An emissary of the High King was sent
to the Danias to question the Dain and Erid Kings, and while the
emissary was in royal Westmark in conference with the Erid King
Dyvryn, the Ivory Throne of Dainphalia disappeared.

This caused great consternation in Therapoli, for up to
that point the problem was to some extent assumed to be a Danian
problem; but now whoever was taking the thrones had reached past
the capital to pluck the Ivory Throne, though a minor one, from the
hall of Urphalia while the Phalian Duke hunted in the Marek Mole.
There was no longer any question in the courts of the land but that
some intelligent design was at work, an evil intent at play. A year of
searching yielded no clues, however, and in i1241 the minor thrones
of Huelt and dain disappeared.

The next year, the princely throne of Auria in the city of
Loria disappeared; but this time, the guards caught someone in the
castle who wasnt supposed to be there: an Umati merchant. The
merchant forswore any knowledge of the disappearance of the
throne, but died in the custody of the guards before the Divine
Kings priests could question him. Prince Theodric of Auria and
King Cawal of Umat exchanged heated barbs, and soon Aurian
knights were raiding across the Dyer Moors, though King Cawal
swore oaths before the Sun Courts emissaries that he had no part in
the taking of the thrones and the High King Fergus ordered an end
to the attacks. Within a year full-fledged war broke out between
Umat and the lords of Auria and Dainphalia, both pressing for the
return of their thrones, and soon the Dain King Chidric had moved
against the Erid King, laying siege to Westmark. The High Kings
marshals took the field to stop these minor wars lest they spread like
contagion, but the fear that gripped the land proved too strong.

Once started, the wars did not seem to end; nor did the
theft of the thrones. The throne of Erid Dania disappeared from
the royal hall of Westmark in i1246, though the Dain King accused
Dyvryn of simply sneaking it off into the Erid Wold. Umat lost its
war with Dainphalia and Auria by i1247, and the capital of Lysias
was sacked and the Silver Throne carted off to Loria as booty; it
disappeared from the throne room in Loria the next year, prompting
King Cawal to renew hostilities with an army of mercenary knights
from the pirate holds of the Barren Coast. The secondary throne of
Umis in Caven disappeared in i1248 as well, and the chairs of the
magisters of the University of Truse disappeared the same year, though
some werent sure if it wasnt just a student prank, and scholars from
the University of Therapoli started turning up dead at an alarming
rate in apparent retaliation. The throne of the Watchtower King of

A History of the Known World

Warwark disappeared in i1249, though it was not enchanted like
the thrones of the Seated and minor Kings, and on it went, until a
general paranoia had become the standard way of life for the entire
Middle Kingdoms, and not a chair was considered safe anywhere.

The region exploded in i1250, when the heavily guarded
Dragon Throne in Therapoli disappeared. The High King Fergus
ordered the city turned upside down; foreigners, vagrants, and
criminals were put to the sword wholesale, but no trace of the
Dragon Throne was found. Soon search parties spread out from
the capital, and knightly hosts hunted through city streets, sleepy
villages, and wooded copses alike, questioning everyone from the
highest noble to the lowliest peasant. Witch burnings, already on
the rise, began in earnest; over a thousand were burned in An-Athair
alone over the next decade. Every rumor of the secret worship of
Nymarga, Amaymon, Ligrid, and Ishraha was taken as truth, and
hundreds put to death by emissaries of the Sun Court. Renewed
fighting broke out between Umat and the other Principalities and
Kingdoms, between the Danias and the High Kings host, and
between the Middle Kingdoms and the Highlands, as search parties
sought access to the citadels and brigand camps of the mountains.

By i1253 attention shifted to Umis; alone amongst the
Seated and minor Kings of the Middle Kingdoms, Golgosyn,
the Stone King of Umis, had retained his original kings throne,
because it was carved from the very rock of his hall in Caven More
in what was called the Daradjan style; the throne in Caven, stolen
years before, was not the true seat of his power, as Caven More
was the true Kings hold in Umis. The Umisi were well known
as a strange and barbaric people who held themselves aloof and
separate from the rest of the Middle Kingdoms, and the High King
formally accused the Stone King of orchestrating the throne thefts,
though he presented no proof, and he led a great host against him.
But this was Fergus undoing, for though they sacked Caven, the
wild territory of the Umis Mole proved beyond their control, and
each campaign to take Caven More or the other hill towers proved
disastrous. The High King Fergus was killed besieging Hardagh
in i1266 on his sixth campaign in Umis; his oldest son and heir
Fairal was killed attempting Rhodia from the sea only six months
later, and his second son Fergrain was slain by Golgosyn himself in
hillside ambush.

Q THE THRONE THIEF

Several theories have persisted to this day as to the identity of

the Throne Thief. The first and most prevalent continues to be
King Golgosyn of Umis, despite the Sun Courts vindication
of his defense; the relative isolation of the Kings of Umis only
emboldens the talk that the halls of Caven More hold a secret
room with a circle of stolen thrones. The second popular
theory blames witch powers in the Erid Wold, who reportedly
buried the stolen thrones in a magical pattern to increase the
enchanted powers of the wood. The third popular theory
blames the Isliklidae, who have come to be seen as bogeymen
in the eyes of the Middle Kingdoms, though like theories
of the Erid witches this seems more to result from popular
prejudice than any suggestive evidence. A fourth theory now
increasingly popular is that the thrones were stolen by agents
of the High King Fergus himself, seeking to diminish the
powers of his subject Kings, and that the theft of the Dragon
Throne was orchestrated to justify the invasion of Umis and
the destruction of the Stone Throne in Caven More, the last
great throne outside his possession. Proponents of this theory
claim that the thrones are held in the catacombs beneath the
High Kings Hall in Therapoli. The reward for the return of
the stolen thrones still stands to this day.

NEW KINGDOMS APPEAR

Fergus third son, Forwain, called the Wise, became High King next
and sealed off the borders of Umis, but made no further attempt
on its interior. Instead he began the painstaking task of bringing
the various wars and general mayhem in the Middle Kingdoms to
a halt. Thirty years, it took him, before the last Wars of the Throne
Thief came to an end in exhaustion and futility.

With the blessing of the Sun Court he elevated the
Watchtower King of Angora to become the Seated King of
Angowrie, and elevated the minor kings and nobles of Umat, Umis,
Huelt and Dainphalia to be Seated Kings as well. The Sun Court
pardoned King Golgosyn of Umis for his part in the deaths of three
High Kings, as he swore his innocence in the throne thefts before
the Sun Courts emissaries, and so was held to be acting in defense
of his rightful Kingship. A general amnesty was issued for crimes,
war deaths, and murders during the Wars of the Throne Thief by
both the High King and the Sun Court, and a reward posted for
the thrones return in the hope that the Throne Thief would come
forward, but no evidence was ever found of the identity of the
Throne Thief and the stolen thrones were never recovered.
Golgosyn, King of Umis

Adventures in the Known World

37

A History of the Known World

The Assassin Cycles

OF PALATIA
The Copper Queens, who were also called the Queens of the
Arsenal, ruled during Palatias first great expansions. Labira,
Haralia, and the Tgoonai Kingdoms became Palatian provinces,
and the Copper Queens expanded on Audras voyages, sponsoring
fleets south to the Gold Coast and Sabuta and north across the
Panoch Sea to the Wood Kings, and sent the first caravans across
the Midlands to the West, establishing the Spice Road. For over
six centuries, the Copper Queens solidified their hold on the north
of the Known World, and ruled the sea lanes with little rivalry,
even from Akkalion, until Queen Pherusa died in p1426 (d2402)
with no clear heir amongst the Great Houses. Palatia plunged into
a period of chaos and upheaval, as wealthy Houses struggled for
control over Palatias thrones the Queens Throne, traditionally

Y THE WARS OF THE ROAD

A network of forts and oases built by the Palatians, the Spice

Road across the Sea of Sands from the Dskdran cities to the
Kessite Kingdoms of the West, became a testing ground for
the Palatian and Imperial legions. The first War of the Road
was a longer struggle than the second; the Isliklid King Ceryx
even reportedly joined the Imperial armies on campaign in the
deserts during the siege of Illagos, when it was widely rumored

held by a woman of a Great House, descended of Archaias daughters;

the Ducal Throne, held by a male of a Great House; and the throne of
the Countess Palatine, held by a woman of any House. The bloody
period earned the name of the Assassin Cycles, as over the next one
hundred and twenty-eight years over ninety different throne-holders
and hundreds of minor political figures met unnatural ends.

The Usurper & the Lord Mott

The early sixteenth century (by the Palatian calendar) saw the rise
of Hamellus of House Devarra, who became a great power in the
House of Lords and in the Archaiate, the Palatian Council of War.
He led the legions to victory in the north against uprisings amongst
Palatias allies amongst the Lycinians. Though he was not from a
Great House, Hamellus was made the Duke of Palatia in p1551 by
dispensation of the House of Lords. Hamellus soon stretched for
more power, and in p1553 he declared that since the Queens throne

that the Usurper had disappeared while traveling in the Far West
amongst his Kessite allies. Illagos was on the verge of falling
when the Usurper and his aides returned; two whole Imperial
regiments were lost, and Ceryx fled back to the Dain duins.
The second War of the Road lasted less than a year; Thessid raids
on the Spice Road caused Palatian fleets to sack the Thessid cities
of Daubia, Lephdros, and (most embarrassingly for the Empire)
Thalos, one of the home ports of the Imperial Fleet .

The Usurper amongst the Palatian legions at the siege of Illagos in p1585 (i1417).

38

Adventures in the Known World

A History of the Known World

was vacant and without candidates, he would become King of Palatia,
and end the Assassin Cycles. The populace, weary of the bloodshed
and turmoil of the preceding years, accepted his proclamation, and
some even whispered that Hamellus had the powers of one of the
ancient Dragon Kings. But on the eve of his coronation, one of
Hamellus most trusted lieutenants, Urech Aiths of the Sea House
of Aiths, led a violent and bloody coup, and he killed Hamellus in
the Great Temple of Palatia Archaia. With the help of the legions
and the acquiescence of Hamellus Grand Vizier, the Lord Mott
of the House of Arkida, Urech imposed his own rule over Palatia,
and though he was not from a Great House he sat upon the Ducal
Throne (or perhaps more accurately, on a wooden folding campaign
chair placed before the Ducal Throne), and came to be called the
Usurper.

With Akkalion still trapped in the Gray Dream, many
consider Urech to be the most dangerous man in the Known World,
though the Lord Mott a renowned alchemist and creator of the first
Indexes of the ancient texts is often rumored as the true power in
Palatia. In the last eighty-five years Urech has annexed the cities of
Lycinia and the Dskdran coast; fought two wars against the Thessid
Empire for control of the Spice Road across the Midlands; and signed
the Stone Treaty with the Thulamites and fought their enemies, the
Lokhite barbarians of the West, during the Twilight War that drove
the Lokhites back into the Unknown World (at least temporarily).
He courted a Thulamite Queen, Nihagen of Desmagria, during
Palatias war with the Lokhites, and she bore him twin daughters
before she was slain by assassins. His daughters Hannath HAgria
and Tamara NAgria of the House of Aiths are being raised amongst
the Thulamites, and have never seen their fathers city.

Y THE KING-IN-WAITING

Some of the Lord Motts disciples claim that the Gray Dream
of the Emperor was a vision prophesizing the rise of the Lord
Mott to the throne of the Philosopher-King, and that the
Lord Mott will one day rule over an Empire of Reason that
will rival the Golden Empire of Dauban Hess in scope and
glory. Much of this seems to result from two unusual texts,
the first an ancient one called the Khodex adan Qaresh and
attributed to Maelfess, the mask of Nymarga during the Age
of Legends while he usurped Coromat of Vanimoria (this
book is rumored to be itself no more than a copy of an earlier
book by Nymarga written in Old duinan called the Adr
Malefiri Necris of which no known copy exists, if it ever
did). It describes a series of prophetic dreams concerning a
future Empire of Reason, and though banned because of its
occult content its ideas (or parodies of them) have circulated
amongst scholars and philosophers for centuries. Some
thought it foretold the rise of Akkalion, who was considered
a proponent of philosophy, but his tumble into the Gray
Dream caused a reevaluation of that theory. A more recent
text, the Vella Mal Illusia, has rekindled interest in the
coming Empire of Reason. It is an esoteric and presumably
allegorical Palatian treatise; its anonymous author describes
encounters with the Dreaming Emperor and the Lord Mott
in which the illusory nature of the world is revealed and the
coming triumph of the Lord Mott as the Philosopher-King is
predicted; this book is translated into the Middle and Eastern
Tongues as The Veil of Lies.

Y THE
TWILIGHT
WAR

The Thulamites had

long been quarrelsome
neighbors with the
Palatians, stretching
back to the first contests
between Thula and Achre,
but those differences
were put aside when the
Thulamites showed the
threat of the Lokhites to
the Usurper, and they have
been strong allies ever
since. Many veterans of
the Twilight War returned
to their homes with claims
that the Lokhites were not
human, but were demonic
creatures half-human and
half-animal that would
wear clothes and masks
made from the skins and
faces of men.
Top: The carving of the stone treaty. Bottom: The Battle of the Two Serpents. Inset: Nihagen, Queen of Desmagria.

Adventures in the Known World

39

A History of the Known World

THE LAST TWENTY-FIVE YEARS

Focusing primarily on the Middle Kingdoms
Year

Auria

Dania

Watchtowers

The Athairi

Daradja

The World

Artesia

i1446

The Battle of Reinvale:

Gores Lis Red, Duke
of Har Misal, is killed.
Owen, son of Gores,
becomes the Duke of Har
Misal.

The Battle of Reinvale:

bandit knights of the
Neris Wold surprise a
punitive expedition sent
against them; death of
Fiowyd Aelfrod Thurias,
King of Erid Dania;
his son Eolred Elfram
becomes the Erid King.

The Battle of Brig Ferrod:

death of Derune, King of
Warwark. His son Derrek
becomes King.

Strange storms and

wild omens are seen
throughout the region,
particularly at the ruins
of the Green Temple.

Death of the wife and

sons of King Alexus of
Finleth.

The Lord Mott begins

compiling his Cyclopaedia of
the Known World. Helian
founds a secret Mottist
College at the University of
Hemapoli (d2590).

Birth of Artesia,
daughter of Argante and
Byron of An-Athair.

i1447

Owen Lis Red, Duke of

Har Misal, weds Ilyana,
daughter of the Baron of
An-Ydain.

Birth of Fionne, son of

Eolred, the Erid King,
and Sioma, his wife.

King Leonas of Barras

More leads a small army
against the bandit knights
of the Neris Wold.

Faerie Spirits are seen

throughout the Erid
Wold.

The Black Wolf terrorizes

Apala Pass and the Myr
Gara.

Omadarius becomes High

Priest of the Emperors Cult.
Hemispian City War between
Hemapoli and Pelia.

Odrue leaves Therapoli

and becomes advisor to
Eolred, the new Erid
King.

i1448

Owen Lis Red drives the

bandit knights of the
Neris Wold out and into
the Manon Mole.

Owen Lis Red drives the

bandit knights of the
Neris Wold out and into
the Manon Mole.

Owen Lis Red and King

Leonas drive the bandit
knights of the Neris Wold
out and into the Manon
Mole.

The Battle of Bonetyne:

feud between Earls of
Heer and Gailbury leads
to bloodshed.

The Black Wolf terrorizes

the Myr Gara.

Hemispian City War between

Cassapios and Daubia
(d2592).

i1449

Birth of Bern, son of

Owen Lis Red and Ilyana;
grand feasts at Har Misal.

Oracular dreams sweep

the cities of Westmark,
Lysias, and Caven
(capitals of Erid Dania,
Umat, and Umis).

The Battle of Genwyd

Hill: punitive raid from
Nomath meets disaster at
hands of bandit knights.

Inquisitors arrive in AnAthair, sent by Patriarch

Alhere, and arrest
heretics and idolaters.

King Alexus of Finleth is

ambushed near Volkova
by unknown assailants but
survives.

First printing of The Veil

of Lies, by Anonymous, in
Palatia Archaia. Assassins try
to kill the Usurper (d2593).

i1450

Birth of Guielin, son of

Owen Lis Red and Ilyana;
grand feasts at Har Misal.

Holy men and prophets

preach about the coming
end of the Age of Iron
and Fire.

Peasant unrest in
Angowrie prompts
massive crackdown.

Etarinas Lovers kill

Orvaine, Earl of AnAthair; his son Orphin
becomes Earl.

Battles and skirmishes

between the forces of Dara
Dess and Finleth.

The Third HemapolinePalatian Sea War begins with

the Hemapoline blockade and
siege of Savaris (d2594).

i1451

Death of Cole Phalia,

King of Dainphalia; his
nephew Colin Corvin
Phalia becomes King.

Prophet cult is revealed as

a front for worshippers of
Amaymon; purge begins.

King Caewyd of Erid

More traps the bandit
knights of the Manon
Mole in old Boar Fort, but
they escape.

Worshippers of
Amaymon are rumored
to be in An-Athair.

Death of Coromir, King

of Dara Dess, ambushed
by Highland brigands of
the Silent Band; Branimir,
son of Coromir, becomes
King of Dara Dess.

The Third HemapolinePalatian Sea War: Blockade

and siege of Savaris lifted
as Palatian galleasses
overwhelm the smaller and
slower Hemapoline warships
(d2595).

i1452

Feud between knights

of Auria and Dainphalia
leads to several small
battles.

Amther, Earl of
Uthmark, weds Uthella
of Westmark. Birth of
Fiona, daughter of Eolred
and Sioma.

Watchtower ships battle

Imperial raiders off the
coast of Derc Abrage.

Amther, Earl of
Uthmark, weds Uthella
of Westmark.

King Bran of Dara Dess

almost traps the Cyr Faira
Mal at Myr Uras.

The Third HemapolinePalatian Sea War: The Battle

of Farapoli: A major fleet
action within sight of Farapoli
sinks a hundred Hemapoline
ships (d2596).

i1453

An assassination plot
against King Colin of
Dainphalia is uncovered
and foiled.

Pollock of the Three

Kings, an Umisi bandit
lord, is captured and
executed.

A Black Winter: dark

things come across the
Great Wall of Fortias.

Pillaging mercenaries
kill Gil, Earl of Abeuth;
his wife Rallia becomes
Countess-Regent for
their son, Domigil.

A Black Winter: dark

things come across the
Vale of Barrows.

The Third HemapolinePalatian Sea War: The

Usurper sacks Agos for a
second time (d2597).

i1454

Plague at the University

of Therapoli decimates
Highwall College and no
others.

The Erid Kings knights

slaughter a band of
pillaging mercenaries.

A poor harvest in
Angowrie drives up prices
for grain goods.

The Erid Kings knights

slaughter a band of
pillaging mercenaries.

The Rape King begins

plying the Barren Coast,
sailing out of Kar Bramin.

The Third HemapolinePalatian Sea War: The

Usurper sacks Pelia (d2598).

i1455

Edrick, son of Awain, is

invested as the Crown
Prince of Auria and dain.

Sioma, the Erid Queen,

succumbs in childbirth,
and the child is stillborn.

Nightmares befall many

on the southern coast,
requiring priests and
magicians to exorcise
many possessing dreamspirits.

An oracle makes
predictions about the
coming end of the Age
of Iron and Fire.

Renham, warlord to
Govarius, King of AnAthark, betrays his lord
and usurps his throne;
Govarius and his family
die in the citadels
dungeons. Vlado, King of
Kir Doss, ends tributes to
An-Athark.

The Third HemapolinePalatian Sea War: The

Usurper begins blockades
of Heliopolis and Hemelos
and lays siege to Hemapoli;
Olander, Prince of the City
and Prime Minister of the
League, is killed in battle
(d2599).

i1456

Bandit knights from the

Manon Mole raid the city
of Vesslos.

A summer-long war
between Umat and
the pirates of the
Barren Coast ends
inconclusively.

Derrek, Watchtower King

of Warwark, wins the
Grand Tourney at Bessiter.

Domigil of Abeuth
disappears into the
Otherworld.

King Renham of AnAthark lays siege to the

citadel of Glamwark
without success.

The Third HemapolinePalatian Sea War ends when

Belerin of House Nisander
becomes Prime Minister of
the League and sues for peace
(d2600).

i1457

A great fire ends the

Grand Tourney at Loria.

Countess Uthella
Uthmark wins the
Tournament of Flowers
in disguise; she is
banished from the
High Kings Court and
confined to Uthmark.

Elgias, eldest son of King

Adelwen of Angowrie,
dies during the joust at
the Tournament of Stones
while riding against a
knight of Warwark.

Countess Uthella
Uthmark wins the
Tournament of Flowers
in disguise; she is
banished from the
High Kings Court and
confined to Uthmark.

Civil strife in the Av-Ruad

clan leads to outright war;
the clan splits into two
clans, the Av-Ruad of the
Black and the Av-Ruad of
the Red.

Assassins try to kill the

Usurper (d2601).

i1458

Famine.

Famine, and witch

burnings sweep Dain
Dania, encouraged
by Agallite templars.
The Rape King of Kar
Bramin raids Nas Bessin,
prompting Umati
reprisals.

Famine, and a Black

Winter: dark things come
across the Great Wall of
Fortias.

Domigil of Abeuth
returns from the
Otherworld. Famine.

Constant skirmishes with

raiding lowland knights
and Umati warships, and a
Black Winter: dark things
come across the Vale of
Barrows.

Lord Tyrander of the

Hemapoline merchant House
of Lagrid becomes Prince of
the City and Prime Minister
of the Hemapoline League;
Belerin is exiled to Therapoli
as a guest of the High King
(d2602).

i1459

Envoys of House
Tallander arrive to seek
support for their claim on
the kingship of Telesia on
behalf of Prince Tereus.

Plague strikes Dain

Dania.

Plague strikes the

Watchtower Coast; witch
burnings spread in its
wake, encouraged by
Agallite templars.

The knights of Abeuth

and Heer engage
in cattle raids until
Countess-Regent Rallia
puts an end to it.

King Bran of Dara Dess

hosts King Alexus of
Finleth and King Renham
of An-Athark, but the
feast is disrupted by
Highland brigands from
the Pogues Twelve.

House Tallander, a royalist

house in Agrapios, begins
agitating for the return of the
Kingdom of Telesia, claiming
its Prince, Tereus, is of the
line of Telemon and Cewert
(d2603).

40

Adventures in the Known World

Lysia leads Branimir

to the lair of the Black
Wolf of the Myr Gara,
and he kills it and
becomes known as the
Wolf of Dara Dess.

Birth of Justin, son of

Argante and Byron of
An-Athair.

Odrue, advisor to King

Eolred of Erid Dania,
leaves Westmark and
becomes advisor to
Orphin the Bull, Earl of
An-Athair; he begins to
tutor Stjepan and Justin,
the sons of Byron of
An-Athair.

Orphin the Bull, Earl

of An-Athair, sponsors
Stjepan, son of Byron,
to the University of
Therapoli for studies.
Stjepan falls in with the
wrong crowd.

A History of the Known World

i1460

The War of the False

Book: student rivalry
between the Universities
of Therapoli and Truse
erupts into armed warfare.

Witch burnings sweep

Erid Dania, encouraged
by Agallite templars.

Knights of King Leonas of

Barras More capture and
execute Orlin, captain of
the bandit knights of the
Manon Mole.

The Highland brigand

Etarina and her Lovers
visit Countess Uthella
at Uthmark, causing a
scandal.

Giants spotted in the

Vale of Skulls; killed by
warriors from the Bodmall
clan.

Hemispian City War between

Lacrasa and Agrapios; the
Prince of Lacrasa is revealed
to have begun the war at the
behest of Prince Tyrander
(d2604).

Stjepan of An-Athair,
Harvald, son of Leonas
of Barras More, and
Gilgwyr of Truse are
involved in the fighting
against the University
of Truse.

i1461

Lord Palain of Hylos

makes his mistake, and
takes to sailing a pirate
ship out of Turach.

Birth of Pargas Aramus,

son of Aramo, King of
Dain Dania.

The Horned Company

takes service with Derrek,
Watchtower King of
Warwark.

Witch burnings sweep

An-Athair, encouraged
by Agallite templars.

King Renham of AnAthark lays siege to the

Citadel of Glamwark
without success.

Agameen tep Marahet

becomes Sultan of ThessidGola; Imbrus is selected as his
Grand Vizier (d2605).

Argante of An-Athair
is burned at the stake.
Byron of An-Athair is
cursed with madness
and flees into the Erid
Wold. Artesia and
Justin are placed as
wards in the household
of Odrue, advisor to the
Earl of An-Athair.

i1462

Witch burnings begin in

Atallica, but Owen Lis
Red forces the Agallite
templars to desist.

The Erid King lays siege

to Westmark until the
city capitulates on a onetime tax.

A Black Summer: dark

things come across the
Great Wall of Fortias.

Fighting breaks out

between knights of
An-Athair and Agallite
templars; Orphin bars
them from An-Athair
and becomes known as
the Bull of An-Athair.

A Black Summer: dark

things come across the
Vale of Barrows.

Wait Marchers begin raiding

the Spice Road. Tereus of
House Tallander becomes
Prince of the City of Agrapios
(d2606).

Artesia finds a dead

womans sword and
crosses the Djar duins
into Daradja. She is
found by Lysia, and
joins the household of
King Branimir of Dara
Dess.

i1463

Owen Lis Red wins the

Grand Tourney at dain.

Knights and lords loyal

to King Aramo must put
down a feud between
the Earls of Keeton and
Greenwall.

Derrek, Watchtower
King of Warwark, and
his knights rout the
Highlander brigands of
the Night Watch in the
Bale Mole.

A prophet of doom
appears in An-Athair,
foretelling the end of the
Age of Iron and Fire in
constant war.

Feud between Renham

of An-Athark and Vlado
of Kir Doss is settled
amicably, and a feast
is held.

Prince Tereus of Agrapios

allows Helian to found
a Mottist College at the
University of Agrapios. Priests
of the Sun Court seeking
cultists of Nymarga are barred
entry into Agrapios (d2607).

Stjepan of An-Athair
becomes a cartographer
for the High Kings
Court. Ulin, son of
Ulwyn, becomes the
chief Warlord of King
Bran of Dara Dess.

i1464

The High King imposes

a special tax, leading to
unrest. Witch burnings
sweep Huelt, encouraged
by Agallite templars.

The High King imposes

a special tax, leading to
unrest.

The High King imposes

a special tax, leading to
unrest.

The High King imposes

a special tax, leading
to unrest. Prophet of
doom is driven from
An-Athair.

King Renham of AnAthark restarts feud with

Vlado of Kir Doss and
lays siege to the Citadel
of Glamwark, without
success.

Cultists of Nymarga are

uncovered in Berrina by
priests of the Sun Court.
Hemispian City War between
Hemapoli and Agrapios
(d2608).

Gilgwyr of Truse opens

an establishment of ill
repute in Therapoli.

i1465

Owen Lis Red puts

down a peasant rebellion
in Huelt and southern
Atallica.

Gray Dream Cultists are

uncovered in Essenvey.

Derrek, King of Warwark,

and his knights put down
a rebellion by the Kings
of Har Gail, Derc Dalved,
and Derc Abrage.

Countess-Regent Rallia
steps aside and her son
Domigil becomes Earl
of Abeuth.

A prophet of doom
appears in Daradja,
foretelling the end of the
Age of Iron and Fire in
constant war.

Supporters of Prince Tereus

are arrested in Hemapoli and
executed for idolatry; Prince
Tereus threatens to withdraw
Agrapios from the League of
Cities (d2609).

Aspara of the Bod

Mall renounces her
clan rather than marry
Geldrys, chieftain of the
Kar Kodac; she joins the
Bronzehearts.

i1466

Royal marriage of Crown

Prince Edrick to Merriel,
daughter of King Colin of
Dainphalia.

King Caslav of Umat sails

to Palatia and treats with
the Usurper.

Death of Adelwen Jaraslas,

King of Angowrie; his
son, Euwen Derc Jaraslas,
becomes King.

Domigil raises taxes

in Abeuth, leading to
unrest.

Feud begins between the

Rape King and the Sea
Hag, Leahhadra of Derg
Mal; the Sea Hag lays
siege to Kar Bramin but
must withdraw.

Gray Dream Cultists are

uncovered in Lephdros by the
Inquisition of the Phoenix
Court (d2610).

Gawin, son of Lewin

the Ancient, leaves the
Highlands to study
at the University of
Newgate.

i1467

A poor harvest drives

up prices and leads to
fighting amongst the
students of the University
of Therapoli.

A poor harvest drives up

prices and leads to unrest
and banditry.

Derrek, Watchtower
King of Warwark, and his
knights rout Djar Mael
brigands encamped at Lost
Brig Ferrod.

A poor harvest drives

up prices and leads to
unrest and banditry.

King Becir the Highlander

of An-Taral ceases tribute
to Dara Dess; skirmishes
begin.

Cultists of Ishraha are

uncovered in Lacrasa by
priests of the Sun Court.
Hemispian City War between
Hemapoli and Agrapios
(d2611).

i1468

Guielin Lis Red wins the

Tournament of Flowers.
Bern Lis Red wins the
Tournament of Gavant.
Liam, bastard son of
Owen Lis Red, wins the
Grand Tourney of the
Gold Coat.

The Kings of Erid and

Dain Dania sponsor a
special Tournament at
the city of Newgate to
celebrate the Danian
nation.

The Battle of the Pavas

Road: dozens of knights
are killed in a battle
between knights of
Warwark and those of
Angowrie.

Domigil, Earl of
Abeuth, is assassinated.
His mother, Rallia,
becomes Countess and
lowers taxes.

The Battle of Volkova:

King Bran leads his army
against King Becir of
An-Taral at Volkova and
into a minor disaster.
Vaslav son of Dereus
forms the Blackwings Free
Company.

Lord Prime Minister Tyrander

attempts to have Agrapios
banned from the League of
Cities, but is rebuffed by its
Senate (d2612).

Artesia becomes a War

Captain in the army of
King Branimir. The
Battle of Volkova:
Artesias company
breaks, but rallies in the
night to ambush King
Becir, who flees.

i1469

Taxes are lowered in

Atallica and raised in
Auria, leading to unrest.

Gray Dream Cultists are

uncovered in Newgate.

The Battle of the

Mael Marsh: Derrek,
Watchtower King of
Warwark, and his knights
rout a Thessid regiment
with Maelite Hor
chieftains encamped at
Lost Av Lin.

Faerie Princes of the

Golden Court visit
An-Athair, Abeuth, and
Dain An-Athair.

The Battle of the Myr

Gara: Ulin, son of Ulwyn,
leads the army of Dara
Dess against the army of
King Alexus of Finleth.
The Rape King of Kar
Bramin sinks the Ironside
from the fleet of the Sea
Hag and almost the Bara
Mar, but the Leatherskins
come to her aid.

Cultists of Nymarga are

uncovered in Ramada by the
Inquisition of the Phoenix
Court. Panagh merchants
from the north report hordes
of Lokhites on the move
against the Wood Kings
(d2613).

Death of Lewin the

Ancient; Gawin returns
from Newgate and
becomes advisor to
King Bran of Dara
Dess. Hymachus, a
Palatian armorer, takes
service with King Bran,
and begins making
blue-black armor for
his army.

i1470

Centus Draco, Baron

of Abenton, disappears;
the bandit knights of the
Manon Mole are blamed
and the hills are scoured.

Rebellion of Porloss,
Earl of Blackstone; he is
driven from Orliac by
Danian knights and takes
refuge in the Manon
Mole. King Eolred
installs a new Earl of
Blackstone, Ser Kyrick
of Nop.

Derrek, Watchtower King

of Warwark, raids up the
Falshara river and into the
lands of the Hor chieftains
of the Cora Gara.

Rallia, Countess of
Abeuth, marries Justin,
Lord of Hammill; they
have a son, Gildom.

The Battle of Teppin:

Artesia leads the army
of Dara Dess against the
Bloody Hundred and the
Collectors brigand bands
laying siege to Teppin,
routing them. Sylus,
Lord of Tel Lorat, swears
fealty to Dara Dess. The
Citadels of Moran and
Dor-Dorodin become
tributaries of Dara Dess.

Lokhites are reported on the

western edges of Thulamite
and Thalyar lands, scouting
and preparing for raids
(d2614).

Justin, son of Byron of

An-Athair, arrives in
Therapoli to begin his
studies; Odrue returns
to the University of
Therapoli and takes his
place in the High Kings
Court.

i1471

The current year.

The current year.

The current year.

The current year.

The current year.

The current year.

The current year.

i1472

Events of the Artesia

series begin.

Adventures in the Known World

41

A History of the Known World

N
42

Adventures in the Known World

A History of the Known World

Adventures in the Known World

43

The

KNOWN
WORLD
TODAY

E
The Known World
stands poised at the
end of an Age. The
events of the Artesia
series, and this initial
game book, are
set in the Middle
Kingdoms, a crucible
in the turmoil that
will mark the end of
the Fourth Age of
Men in the Known
World. The term
Middle Kingdoms came
into popular use after
the end of the Four
Kingdoms because
of an increasing
sense of geographical
entrapment being
surrounded, as it
were, by the Empire
of Thessid-Gola to
the south, the League
of Cities to the east,
the legions of Palatia
to the north, and the
Isliklid Kingdoms and
the vast wastes of the
Midlands to the west.
But perhaps the name
has also taken hold
because of a growing
unconscious sense
that not only is the
region in the middle
geographically, but
is also in the middle
of a transition from
something old and
familiar to something
new and stranger.

The Known World Today

THE
MIDDLE
KINGDOMS

n the lowlands between the Harath duins and the Mera

Argenta are the Middle Kingdoms. Once this region was simply
Dania, the home of a fierce and proud people, but over the
centuries invaders and partitions have divided the land again and
again. Soon after the fall of rne Dr, the realm of An-Athair
thrived for a time, centered in the great Erid Wold. The Aurians,
seafaring raiders from the Unknown World, settled in the east after
a long and bloody war, in what came to be called Auria, and ruled
over Danian subjects. Dauban Hess conquered the region and it
became part of his Golden Empire and was ruled by Dragon Kings
from Illia and Hemispia. They brought the worship of the Divine
King, which was quickly adopted by the Aurians, and more slowly
by the Danians.

Uthed Dania split from Dania and allied itself with
the Mael Kings of the Dain duins, and fell under the spell of
Githwaine the Worm King, and was eventually blighted and
became Lost Uthedmael. The Mael Kings who fought Githwaine
became the country of Maece, and Fortias, who slew Githwaine,
became the King of Atallica, and with Dania and Auria they were
the Four Kingdoms and Fortias was their High King. In time the
Four Kingdoms passed: the Kings of Maece spent themselves in
crusades against the Isliklids, and became a series of petty kings,
each holding his own Watchtower, except for the King of Angora,
who was granted the Kingdom of Angowrie; Dania split in two,
becoming Erid Dania and Dain Dania; the baronies of Huelt
and Dainphalia rose to the status of kingdoms during the Wars of
the Throne Thief; the Danian kingdoms occasionally allied to the
Aurians finally broke away once and for all and became Umis and
Umat; and Auria was reduced to a principality held by the heir to
the High King.

The High Kings Hall in the city of Therapoli.

Therapoli was considered one of the great cities of the
ancient world, and was blessed for many centuries with one of the
precious Dragon Thrones copied from the original Sun Throne
built by Brage for Islik the Divine King. The Throne was stolen
in i1292 at the height of the Wars of the Throne Thief, and is
still missing. Therapoli is the undisputed economic capital of the

THERAPOLI
The political capital of the Middle Kingdoms is the ancient city
of Therapoli, built in the Golden Age by the Danians some two
hundred years before the sinking of rne Dr. It is ruled by
Awain Gauwes Urfortian, a man with many titles, including the
High King of the Middle Kingdoms, King of Atallica, and Dragon
King of Therapoli (though this is merely a formal title and not an
indication of great power, as it was in ancient days); he is one of the
Seated Kings of the Sun Court, blessed with the Patriarchs favor.
Descended of the Aurian hero Fortias, who slew the last known
Worm King and thus gained the title of High King, Awain has lived
to a ripe and seasoned old age presiding over a period of relative
peace and prosperity. The attention of the Empire has been focused
on internal squabbles and its unsuccessful wars with Palatia over
the control of the Spice Road, allowing the Middle Kingdoms a
respite from the predations of their larger neighbors. Though his
rule has certainly seen its share of minor wars and troubles, the
Middle Kingdoms have largely flourished, and he has fully expected
to be able to pass along a healthy legacy to his son and heir, Edrick,
Crown Prince of Auria. While he retains the right to the title of
Dragon King, he possesses neither the powers attributed to the
Dragon Kings of old.

Awain, High King of the Middle Kingdoms,

and Tenreuth, Duke of Korr Elbeth, rear.

Adventures in the Known World

45

The Known World Today

THE MIDDLE KINGDOMS

46

Adventures in the Known World

THE MIDDLE KINGDOMS

The Known World Today

Adventures in the Known World

47

The Known World Today

Middle Kingdoms; no other city in the region can match it
in cosmopolitan airs or sheer wealth. In addition to the glory
and splendor of the High Kings Court, the city is a bustling
port and center of industry, and its University is one of the
greatest in the Known World. Therapoli is considered a royal
city, the personal property of its High King; other royal cities
can be found in the various Middle Kingdoms, but the fastest
growing urban centers of the region are its Free Cities, which
have been granted charters allowing that any citizen may own
property, not merely those of noble or knightly birth. This has
caused the Free Cities to attract bright, self-motivated people
that have brought industry and income to their streets; this
entrepreneurial spirit has attracted the attention of the noble
powers of the region, and many royal and baronial cities now
have Free Quarters or Foreign Quarters where non-feudal
property laws are allowed.

E MIDDLE KINGDOM CITIES

(Free Cities) Truse, Newgate, Nomath, Westmark.

(Baronial Cities) Essenvey, Soros, Collwyn, Hylos,
Enlos, Misal Ruth, An-Ogruth, An-Athair, Har AnAthair, Dain An-Athair, Vesslos, Chesterton, dain,
An-Ydain, Loria, Ismat.
(Royal Cities) Therapoli (Atallica), Lysias (Umat),
Berrina (Huelt), Caven (Umis), Aprenna (Dain Dania).

The Universities
The oldest University in the Middle Kingdoms is the University of
Therapoli, which maintains a rigid independence under free charter
handed down by the ancient King Erginus of Dania, who founded it
in the Golden Age as a Great School in the style of those of the Gola.
The University attracts visiting scholars and academics from around
the Known World, and it has grown large enough over the centuries
to now have several subsidiary Colleges. The University of Therapoli
has long been bound into the politics of the Middle Kingdoms; it has
always provided training and education to the nobles of the region
regardless of background, and provided them with their councilors
and advisors. A cadre of Magisters governs the University, and each
Magister holds one of its Chairs; they are often said to rival the Kings
of the High Court in power and influence, and University-educated
advisors are often said to have two masters.

Other Universities and Colleges have been granted charters
over the years, beginning with the University of Truse, which was
established by Iala, a Spring Queen of An-Athair, in i207. When the
city of Truse fell under Aurian control, the Magisters of Therapoli
argued their charter gave them a monopoly on lordly education in
the region and they managed to have the University of Truse briefly
disbanded before King Orfewain decided he preferred to have a second
opinion. Ever since then the Universities of Truse and Therapoli have
had a long and bitter rivalry, which has included arson, assassinations
and outright warfare between mobs of heavily armed students. Some
of the heat in this rivalry went out after the Danian King Cilad

The city of Abenton, at the mouth of the Abenbrae.

48

Adventures in the Known World

The Known World Today

E Owen Lis Red

A descendant of Fortias the Brave, Owen Lis Red comes

from a royal house and so has the title of Duke as the lord of
the great castle of Har Misal. He is by reputation one of the
greatest and most feared warlords of the Middle Kingdoms,
and serves as the High Kings Earl Marshal, and so also has
the title of Grand Duke. A veteran of many tournaments
and campaigns throughout the Middle Kingdoms, Owen has
attracted a sizeable body of household lords and retainers, well
over two hundred in number, including a number of bastard
sons, and with a dozen vassal lords and their retinues can thus
field a personal force second only in size to the High King
himself (and unmatched in quality, at least by reputation).
His two eldest sons by his wife Ilyana, Guielin and Bern, serve
as his squires and deputies.

The Bell Tower at the University of Therapoli.

established the University of Newgate in i1070 without opposition

from the High King, and since then a number of smaller colleges
have also arisen in other cities.

E Duchess

E THE

Ilyana

CHARTERED
UNIVERSITIES
The University of Therapoli
(Drewsons College, Highwall
College, the College of the
Globe, the Mottist College of
Therapoli).
The University of Truse
(Armandive College, the Mottist
College of Truse).
The University of Newgate.
The Gray College of
Westmark.
Foret College of Berrina.
The First College of Loria.
Seabright College of Loria.

Owen Lis Red, Grand Duke of Har Misal and Earl

Marshal to the High King, and his brother Austin (left).

A University Magister.

Ilyana is the daughter of

Hurian, late Baron of AnYdain, and wife to Owen Lis
Red, Grand Duke of Har
Misal. She has born him three
sons (the youngest of which,
Justin, is but ten) and two
daughters. She has oracular
dreams which hint to her
of the future, and rumors
of her abilities have spread
throughout the realm over the
years, but such powers and
gifts as she has which might
get other women condemned
as witches have been ignored
by the temple priests, as she
is discreet and her position
as the Grand Dukes wife has
protected her.

Ilyana Hurias de Lis Red,

Duchess of Har Misal.

Adventures in the Known World

49

The Known World Today

E THE HIGH KINGS EASTERN BARONS

The Kingdom of Atallica:
Grand Duchy of Har Misal, Duchy of Korr Elbeth; An-Andria,
An-Ogruth, Misal Ruth, Vesslos, Collwyn, Soros, Dyn Cail, Tilfort,
Abenton, Araswell, Whitebridge, Dusavale, Fasavale, Bessiter,
Grawton, Bainwell.
The Principality of Auria:
Duchy of Enlos; Hylos, Loria, Ismat, dain, An-Ydain,
Chesterton, Cermore, Harpbridge, Derg Juret.
The Kingdom of Dainphalia:
Djarfort, Murray, Karsiris, Cervallos.
A Knight of
The Kingdom of Huelt:
the High Kings
Gallos, Daliwell, Silverbridge, Nagria.
Royal Guard
The Kingdom of Umat:
(left), and a
Ad Amas, Nas Bessin, Us Bessin, Derg Ustam, Uthage.
Knight of Enlos
The Kingdom of Umis:
(right).
Thur, Ceol, Turey, Rhodia, Caven More.

The Aurian Kingdoms

The bulk of the eastern Middle Kingdoms is divided into the
Kingdom of Atallica, its subsidiary principality, Auria, and
the now independent Kingdoms of Dainphalia and Huelt.
Most easterners come from Aurian stock, though a substantial
minority of Danians coexists peacefully after centuries of
Aurian rule. The Aurians were the seafaring descendants of
Heth, the Sea King, but after adopting the worship of the
Divine King many have avoided the sea and settled into the
lives of country landlords. Atallica is held directly by the High
King and is administered by his vassals, most notably the Earl
Marshal Owen Lis Red, Grand Duke of Har Misal, a distant
relation of the High King and a descendant of Fortias. The
Crown Prince Edrick, widely considered a cavalier sportsman
with little interest in politics, holds Auria as his realm. He is
somewhat unpopular, particularly compared with his well-liked
father, but Edrick counts the conservative King Colin Corvin
Phalia of Dainphalia and his templar allies from the Order of
Agall as his strongest supporters. Huelt is an unusual Kingdom
in that its citizens and subjects are predominantly Aurian and it
is considered an Aurian Kingdom, but its ruling family from the
royal city, Berrina, is Danian. The line of King Gavant Peliate
was raised to royal status during the Wars of the Throne Thief
because of their loyal service to the High Kings of Therapoli.

Umat & Umis

Two ancient Danian Kingdoms swore fealty to the Aurian
invaders and were granted rights and privileges under Aurian
rule, Umat in the north and Umis in the south. Somewhat
separated from the rest of the Middle Kingdoms by the Harath
duins, Umat has always looked to the north, while the rest of
the Middle Kingdoms have looked south and east, so Umati
culture is heavily influenced by Palatia and the decadent cities
of the Dskdran coast, with whom it was once allied. The
Umatis are considered the best sailors in the Middle Kingdoms.
The current ruler, King Caslav Persislau Argus of the House

50

Adventures in the Known World

of Argus (also called the Silver King and the King of the North
Shore), claims descent from Myrius the Sane, an ancient King of
Dania (and one of the few sane sons of ancient King Myrad). He is
well known for his friendliness with the city-state of Palatia and in
particular with its ruling House of Aiths, and as a consequence his
reputation amongst his fellow Seated Kings has suffered.

Umis, in the south, is a much wilder and more barbaric
land dominated by the rough highlands of the Umis Mole. The
lords of Umis are also known for their independence, but unlike
their isolated brethren in Umat they have no excuse other than
their naturally surly temperament. Ships routinely avoid the Umisi
coastline, preferring to sail north to the Aurian ports or into the
Givenwain and Therapoli, and most land traffic ends at the royal
city of Caven. The King of Umis is Fionne Merislas, called the
Stone; he is a direct descendant of King Golgosyn, an infamous
villain (or hero, if you are Umisi) from the Wars of the Throne
Thief, and he seems as cagey and aloof as his ancestor. He rarely
visits either the High Kings Court or the Sun Court on the isle of
Illia, though he is a Seated King.

E THE HIGH
KINGS
WESTERN
EARLS
The Kingdom of Erid Dania:
An-Athair, Har An-Athair,
Dain An-Athair, Heer, Erid
More, Uthmark, Abeuth,
Gailsbury, Blackstone.
The Kingdom of Dain Dania:
Hartford, Gil-More, VoleMore, Rosemont, Bluewall,
Keeton, Tamatra, Essenvey.
A Knight of Uthmark.

The Known World Today

The Danias
The western Middle Kingdoms never fully gave themselves to the
Divine King in the way that the east has. The Danians in the west
hold two kingdoms that split apart peacefully in i1137 when the
twin children of King Coric of Dania couldnt agree on who had
been born first. Dain Dania lies furthest west and is centered on
the river Volbrae, while Erid Dania lies further east, centered on
the Erid Wold and the Eridbrae. The exact borders between the
two kingdoms have never been settled, though this was the cause
of armed conflict only during the Wars of the Throne Thief. The
city of Newgate lies roughly between them, and as a Free City is
considered neutral territory for all partisans.

The Dain King, Aramo Aramus, and the Erid King,
Eolred Elfram Thurias, are both descendants of King Coric (of the
lineage of Cilad, hero of the Black Day Battle and founder of the
University of Newgate) and therefore distant cousins. Both kings
seem content with their current kingdoms, and little is said about
reuniting the two halves of Dania except amongst the Magisters of
the University of Newgate, who seem to think it a fine idea. King
Aramo is constantly distracted by the looming nearby presence
of Lost Uthedmael and the petty squabbling of his Watchtower
neighbors, while King Eolred must deal with being a minority in
his own country, as the majority of his subjects consider themselves
Athairi and not Danian. His most famous vassals are Amther
Drien, the Athairi Earl of Uthmark, and Amthers Danian wife,
the Countess Uthella, who once won the Tournament of Flowers
while disguised as a man and for her troubles was confined to their
estates by order of the High Kings Court. She is widely considered
a dangerous woman with a reputation of the most sordid type,
which makes her enormously influential even though she hasnt
traveled beyond the borders of Uthmark in over fourteen years.

An-Athair & the Erid WoLd

Early in the Age of Legends, from about i20 to i240, a wondrous
and magical realm centered on the Erid Wold came into being when
the Golden Knights of An-Athair married the Spring Queens of the
Green Temple. The realm of An-Athair was renowned as a place of
beauty and grace, of joy and plenty, and eventually grew to include
Har An-Athair, Dain An-Athair, An-Ogruth, An-Andria, and the
Daradjan citadel of An-Athark. Popular folk tales are still told of
its beautiful women, otherworldly sights, never-ending feasts, and
heroic knights, but the realm was lost to history in wars against
the invading Aurian sons of Heth, the last Spring Queens drowned
in the Eridbrae and the original Green Temple pulled down to its
foundations.

Such is the hold of An-Athair on local imaginations that
though over a thousand years have passed, some Athairi traditions
are still followed; marriages are still performed in one of the Green
Temples, toasts to the Spring Queen are common, and Athairi titles
(such as Earl, a variation on the archaic Erl) are still used and invoked
throughout the Danias. The Erid Wold itself has remained an odd
and spectral place; still touched by the magic of the lost Spring
Queens, but now with more than a hint of menace, as though from
a long festering memory. Ghosts and spirits are commonly reported,
magicians and witches are known to find refuge in its dark hollows
and in the ruins of old An-Athair scattered through the woods, and
the Athairi are broadly tolerant of and familiar with folk lore and
the Old Religion, if not as much as they once were. Witch-hunt
hysterias occasionally sweep the region, usually at the prompting of
imported Agallite templars.

The Great Wall &

The Watchtowers
After he slew Githwaine the Worm King and was made High King,
Fortias built a Great Wall between the Middle Kingdoms and Lost
Uthedmael, which had been cursed and blighted by the Sun Court.
To watch against the return of the Worm King and the Thessid Empire
from which it had sprung, he installed the Mael Kings who had
fought Githwaine in Watchtowers along the Wall and the southern
coast, and granted them the Defender Kingdom of Maece in gratitude
for their service. Maece stood against Akkalion with the aid of the
Middle Kingdoms and Daradja, but fell into disaster in a series of
futile crusades against the Isliklids, who occupied the Dain duins in
i1214. Maece ceased to exist by i1300 though the people there still
call themselves Maecites (to distinguish themselves from their cursed
Maelite kindred across the Wastes) and the Watchtowers became
simply a loose collection of allied petty kings ruling over barren,
windswept and rocky seaside holds.

The greatest of the current kings is thought to be Derrek,
son of Derune, King of Warwark; he has built a reputation as perhaps
the most popular and seasoned military commander in the whole
of the Middle Kingdoms, having led his knights and those of other
Watchtower Kings on repeated excursions into Lost Uthedmael
to combat Djar Maelite chieftains, Highlands brigands, and even
Imperial regiments that have wandered too close to the Great Wall
for comfort. The port-citadel of Warwark has traditionally been the
anchor of the western Watchtowers, along with the gated citadel of
Pallanwyn, and almost every Watchtower King west of Angowrie owes
their life to King Derrek and his knights from one battlefield victory
or another.

He has a political rival in the young King of Angowrie,
Euwen Derc Jaraslas, a Seated King who has increasingly cultivated
the support and attention of both the High Kings Court in Therapoli
and the Sun Court in Illia. Unlike the more rustic Kings in the
Watchtowers to their west and east, the Maecite nobles of Angowrie
have developed an aristocratic culture in imitation of urban life in
Therapoli and other eastern cities; their martial reputation has suffered
as a result, though King Euwen
seems to be a dedicated student
of the arts of war.

E THE MAECITE
WATCHTOWERS
Mizer, Warwark, Moiragh,
Pallanwyn, Wael and Derc
Shanas, Har Gail, Derc Goll,
Derc Cynan, Derc Salam, Derc
Taranic, Derc Dalved, Derc
Abrage, Lewin Mav, Barras
More, Morath, Ivid More, Derc
Cill Ogh, Taran More, Braega
Din, Ablach, Calan Toss.
The Kingdom of Angowrie:
Enid More, Derc Tannin, Herta,
Biers Glory, Firetop.

King Derrek of Warwark.

Adventures in the Known World

51

The Known World Today

DARADJA

he high mountains and valleys of the Harath duins were

once the seat of the Queendom of Daradja, founded
by Dara, daughter of Yhera, whose domain reached
even into the Danian lowlands to the shores of the Gala Galia.
That great, if isolated, realm passed into history long ago, and
the nobles and petty kings who vie for rulership in this rough
land are a pale echo of its one-time power and influence. The
current inhabitants, though called Daradjans, are often not of
the lineage of Dara, for the descendants and followers of Dara
have been joined over the ages by waves of immigrants seeking
refuge or adventure. Long ago Queen Lanys had accepted the
first immigrants, Drans fleeing the sinking of their Isle who
returned with her army, into her realm with open arms, and
since then many immigrants have fully established themselves
as Daradjans. Daradjas immigrants are generally connected by
one thread, a rejection of the rule of the Divine King, though
his missionaries are grudgingly tolerated; Daradja has long been
known as a stronghold of the Old Religion and the worship
of Yhera, the Queen of Heaven, and her entourage, and all of
its immigrants have brought their old gods to its temples and
shrines.

e THE HIGHLAND CLANS

The Northern Clans of the Harath duins:

Bodmall; Kar Kadoc; Av-Dare; Sion Fer More; Gamanrode;
Av-Amain; Kar Galam; Mag Sheela; Cern Abrat; Av-Ruad,
of the Black; Av-Ruad, of the Red; Av-Tenved; Av-Faelen.
The Southern Clans of the Djar duins:
Cill Nas Emrys; Feramore; Dorn; Kar Gorta; Amadan More;
Amadan, of the Red; Amadan, of the Green; Anid Av-Hash;
Fer Brig.
The Eastern Clans:
Fallas Av-Tane; Fallas Av-Invis; Ban Bres; Av-Ari; Liss More;
Daven Una.

Highland Clans
Scattered throughout the mountains and more remote valleys of
Daradja are the Clans of the Highlanders, who all claim descent
from the original Daradjans who were subjects of Queen Dara
and her descendants. There are twenty-eight current clans,
though that number is in question; several of them are actually
factions that have split off from larger clans, and so are not
universally recognized. The Amadan More clan, for example,
has two factions, the Green faction and the Red faction, who
have long gone their separate ways, and the Av-Ruad clan is split
in two and engaged in a long-running and vicious civil war.

A chieftain rules each clan, with the help of a council
of elders and a small coterie of priests and shamans dedicated
to ancestor worship called Spirit-Talkers. They are dedicated
hardscrabble farmers and sheepherders for the most part, and
generally hold themselves aloof from the rest of Daradja. No
clan would ever pay tribute to a Citadel King, though informal
alliances exist; as they tend to live in desolated areas they are
usually left to their own devices. Most of the clans do not possess
any sort of standing military, preferring instead to rely on fastforming militias. Most of the military strength of the Highland
Clans has been in their Free Companies, bodies of Highlander
mercenaries who seek service either with clan chieftains in times
of war or with one of the various Citadel Kings. The oldest Free
Companies were formed around i1065, when King Cynan of
Finleth held sway over Daradja and raised an army to aid the
Middle Kingdoms against Akkalion and the invading ThessidGolan Empire. Since that war a few of the Free Companies have
sought service outside Daradja; the Leatherskins and the Black
Swords have taken service as corsairs for the Dskdran cities and
Palatia, and the Marauders and Ironclads once served the High
King of Therapoli during the Wars of the Throne Thief.

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Adventures in the Known World

A Chieftain of the Amadan More clan (left), and a

warrior of the Av-Ruad Clan, of the Red (right).

e THE FREE COMPANIES

The Marauders, the Silverwings, the Blackhearts, the Long

Claws, the Leatherskins, the Bronzehearts, the Blackwings,
the Ironclads, the Silver Spears, the Steelhearts, the
Grayfeathers, the Wolfrunners, the Stonecrushers, the Black
Boots, the Steel Claws, the Steeltooths, the Black Swords.

Samples of metal
Highlander Clan insignia,
usually worn next to belt
daggers (left to right):
Ban Bres, Av-Tenved,
Feramore, and Bod Mall.

The Four Great Citadels

Dara built the four Great Citadels of Daradja sometime in the Golden
Age; legends say she learned the arts of building in the courts of Dra
from Ariahav herself. The first was Dara Dess (the Throne of Dara),
which according to legend was built in d529 (some controversy exists
about the age of the citadel) and which served as her capital. Dara
Dess, oft mentioned in old Dran tales as a place of beauty and power,
was sacked in d620, when the great Snake Queen, Thula, raiding from
the north, killed Dara before being driven off by her daughters; the
citadel may have been rebuilt soon afterwards. The other citadels built

The Known World Today

A mounted party approaches the Citadel of Dara Dess.

by Dara were Heth Moll, which held the roads to the west; Finleth,
which held Vokodj Pass south into western Dania, which at that
time was a Daradjan tributary; and Athark, which held Har Kamas
Pass south into Eastern Dania. Until the end of the Golden Age
the Queen of Daradja held all four Citadels directly, but after the
fall of rne Dr, Queen Arathea instead granted one Citadel
to each of the daughters she had borne to the Kings In Exile. To
Damara, daughter of Islik, she gave Dara Dess; to Leda, daughter
of Coromat, she gave Finleth; to Goatis, daughter of Agall, she
gave Athark; and to Hetha Basi, daughter of Jala, she gave Heth
Moll. Arathea had apparently intended that they rule Daradja as
equals, but jealousy stirred in Goatis heart that her sister Damara
had been given Dara Dess, the greatest of the Citadels. One night,
in a drunken rage like those that made her father infamous, Goatis
murdered her sister while Damara was her guest at Athark. Daradja
fell into a long and bloody civil war, and has never fully recovered.

Dara Dess has gone through a succession of different
rulers including brigand and bandit lords, Highlander chieftains,
and foreigners though it has had no Queen since Damara. Its
current ruler, King Branimir, is called the Wolf of Dara Dess, a
sobriquet he earned after killing a great Daradjan Black Wolf
that terrorized the surrounding countryside during his youth.
King Brans house traced its lineage to the Middle Kingdom of
Huelt. Brans grandfather Morovic, Lord Baron of Gallos, was the
younger brother of the Crown Prince Pelias, and he fled during a
dispute over the proper succession to the throne after the death
of King Ranier in i1396. Morovic, his wife Nora, his 5-year-old
son Coromir, and his loyal household and vassals arrived in the

Highlands and with the help of King Darius of Finleth, they took
Dara Dess as their own hold from the petty bandit king, Jaspar the
White, that then held it. Morovic and Nora were slain by assassins
from Huelt in i1408, and Coromir renounced his fathers claim
to the throne of Huelt. Coromir later bore his son Bran from
Ella, the daughter of one of the original Huelt vassals, in i1430,
and died in i1451. King Bran, his war captain Ulin, and his lover
Artesia have built one of the largest armies in recent Highlands
history, almost a thousand swords strong, and Bran has succeeded
in returning Dara Dess to something closer to its ancient power
and glory [note: a part of their story is told in the first volume of
Artesia]. The surrounding lands are some of the richest earth in
the Highlands for farming and mining.

The Kings of Heth Moll have long been isolated from the
rest of Daradja; they hold the western frontier against incursions
from the cursed things that crawl from the blighted land of
Uthedmael. The current King, Gavagh, is a descendant of ancient
Dran and Vanimorian lines long established in Daradja, and is
reputed to be a powerful magician and priest, but has had little
interest in the politics of the other citadels, being more concerned
with the persistent and corrupting presence of the Isliklidae in the
Dain duins. He has had the longest lifespan of any ruler of Heth
Moll in recorded history; the citadel has long been associated with
unusual and strange deaths, to ruler and visitor alike, due to the
dangers of the nearby Vale of Barrows, and is considered cursed,
despite being the final resting place of Erlwulf, the last of the
Dragon Kings.

Adventures in the Known World

53

The Known World Today

Finleth is now held by King Alexus, who claims
descent from Queen Leda and is cousin to Branimir of Huelt
by marriage (his mother was Brans aunt). He has become
wealthy through controlling Highland trade with the Danias,
and has used his wealth and position to spread his influence
throughout the Highlands. He is widely respected, in part
because of his lineage Finleth is the only one of the Great
Citadels held by a line descended of its original Queen,
unbroken except for a brief period in the Age of Legends when
they were driven from the citadel by Dauban Hess and his
supporters have often used it to suggest his elevation to King
of all Daradja. Needless to say, these suggestions have gained
little support amongst the other citadel lords and Clans.

The citadel of Athark has been called An-Athark
since it became part of An-Athair early in the Age of Legend,
and its time as part of the Golden Realm is popularly thought
to have removed the stain of Damaras murder from its halls.
The current King of the citadel is Renham, who seized the
citadel from its former King (and his former liege), Govarius,
who was a popular figure with everyone except his own
bannermen, and so Renham has suffered somewhat from
public censure, particularly from the priestesses of the Great
Temple of Yhera at Usparas. King Renham, like Alexus of
Finleth, has benefited from his control over trade routes into
the south, and he has tried to cultivate connections in the
Middle Kingdoms, though this has also been in part because
his ambitious attempts to extend his lands further across the
Hs Gara seem to have reached their limit, barring a change
of fortunes in his costly and largely unsuccessful military
campaigns.

Tributary Citadels & Towns

In addition to the four Great Citadels, dozens perhaps hundreds
of smaller citadels, castles, and forts have been built over the years
to control the mountains and valleys of Daradja, beginning with
those built by Daras grieving daughter Druxada, who fortified the
mountains against Thulas return and the raids of the Djar Maelites.
Almost all of the towns and temples of the Highlands have been
fortified as well, and even farmhouses can seem like small forts.
Many have been laid to ruin over the centuries, but fortifications
of one sort or another still dot the landscape in abundance. Each
of the four Great Citadels has a number of dependent holds,
smaller citadels held by banner lords sworn to their service; Dara
Dess under Branimir currently has the most, at seven. In addition,
Dara Dess, An-Athark, and Finleth also have a number of tributary
dependents either citadels held by nominally independent petty
kings or towns that have offered tribute and alliance in order to
gain the protection of a more powerful lord. Dara Dess and AnAthark each have three tributary citadels, and Kings Bran and
Renham are vying for the loyalties and tribute of a number of
citadels and towns in the Hs Gara and the Devin Gara through
threats, intimidation, warfare, bribery, and charm. Heth Moll has
no direct tributaries, but in recognition of their constant struggle
against the cursed things of Uthedmael on behalf of the Highlands,
every citadel in Daradja traditionally sends an annual gift, though
this is often observed more in the breach.

Over the centuries different minor citadels have risen
to greater status, often to fall back into obscurity. Currently two
Citadel Kings have grown powerful enough to challenge the rulers
of the four Great Citadels, and operate without having to pay
tribute. The citadel of An-Taral is ruled by King Becir, descended
of an old Daradjan line and sometimes called the Highlander King.
He holds the northern end of the North Road, which leads to the
Kdran Gulf, and controls what little trade makes its way through
the difficult Witch Pass; he was once a tributary of Dara Dess under
Bran, but ceased payments years ago. The citadel of Kir Doss, in
the east, similarly controls trade through the Valley of Claws to
the Umati coast. Under King Vlado, a descendant of Dskdran

e THE CITADELS

The Great Citadel of Dara Dess: (holds) Har Homa,

Myr Iras, Bellova, Niras Point, Myr Lamas, Bose Bridge,
Tel Lorat,
Tel More; (tributaries) Moran, Dor-Dorodin, Ilrus.
The Great Citadel of An-Athark: (holds) Kamas Tower,
Juvic Tower, Lamat Hs, Tier Pausca; (tributaries) Har
Agia, Daubark, Tir-en-Tull.
The Great Citadel of Finleth: (holds) Bissin Bridge,
Saras Lowe, Apala Pass, An-Maras Bridge; (tributary)
Gordine.
The Great Citadel of Heth Moll: (holds) Har Dumat,
Enedkova, Orvisa.
An-Taral: (holds) Sess Pogue, Vells Mat, Volkova.
Kir Doss: (holds) Glamwark, Har Sarissa.
Disputed tributaries or empty citadels: Umis Karat,
Gail Palwark, Har-Moran, High Falen, Tel Pass.
The GreatCitdel of Finleth,
ruled by King Alexus.

54

Adventures in the Known World

The Known World Today

and Aurian adventurers, the bannermen of Kir Doss have successfully

fended off King Renhams attempts to draw them into the control
of An-Athark. Renham has laid siege several times to the citadel of
Glamwark, one of Vlados holds, and their bannermen regularly hunt
each other for sport.

Brigands & Pirates

Many consider the Citadel Kings and Free Companies of Daradja to
be little better than brigands and pirates, and indeed many of them
have either risen from such pasts or slunk into those careers in times
of trouble and want. The Highlands have long been a gathering
ground for bandits and worse, in particular for criminals and exiles
from the Middle Kingdoms, as banishment over the mountains
is a common punishment handed down in their noble courts. An
unknown number of nameless brigand bands operate in the hills and
mountains, but some of them have elaborate and storied histories.
The Cyr Faira Mal is a band that has haunted the Vale of Skulls as
long as anyone can remember, and they are said to ride with the Black
Hunter when he comes calling. The charismatic Mountains Own is
infamous for stealing the first bride of a young King Alexus from the

e BRIGAND
BANDS of
NOTE
The Bloody Hundred, the
Cyr Faira Mal, the Claws
Companions, the Night
Watch, the Pogues Twelve,
Etarinas Lovers, the Silent
Band, the Collectors, the
Mountains Own, the Iron
Band.
A brigand of the Silent
Band, from the Vale of
Tears (left), and a pirate
from the Hounds Tooth
out of Derg Tamas (right).

Despite its reputation for violence, Daradja is a land of

bucolic landscapes and a hardy, industrious people.

wedding ceremony; Alexus second wedding is widely recalled

as the most heavily guarded affair in recent memory.

Seaside citadels and fortified ports can be found
along the Barren Coast; these have long been the home bases
of pirates that raid the shipping traffic throughout the Mera
Argenta. Sharptooth Bay, found behind the isle of Mal Irama
and difficult to navigate, makes for a natural defensive harbor
that the pirates can retreat to when pursued by other ships, and
if worse comes to worst many can simply fall back inland into
the Harath duins. Each pirate citadel or port usually has at
least one captain who claims to be its King or Queen, some with
sizable retinues, and a number of ships that regularly dock; the
two most infamous are the Rape King of Kar Bramin, insane
captain of the Golgosia, the Barren, and the Chained Bitch; and
Leahhadra of Derg Mal, sometimes called the Sea Hag, who
commands the Revenger, the Hunger, and her flagship, the Bara
Mar. The Rape King and the Sea Hag hate each other, and
have been seeking the others death for many long years.

e PIRATE PORTS &

INFAMOUS SHIPS
Derg Mal: the Revenger, the Hunger, the Bara
Mar, the Crown of Skulls.
Derg Tamas: the Hounds Tooth, the Druxsana,
Genichs Axe, the Swift, the Sword of Fallas.
Kar Lialinn: the Ivory Neck, the Lost Highlander,
the Timber Shark, the Karas Morefain.
Amain Point: the Fallen Star, the Alkaia, the
Black Reaver, the Last Chance.
Kar Bramin: the Golgosia, the Barren, the
Chained Bitch.
Kar Corcova: the Raven, Sheelas Avenger, the
Belina, the Floating Corpse, the Dancing Shark,
the Dread.
Turach: the Sword of Murius, the Eel, Lord
Palains Mistake.

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55

THE WITCH-QUEEN

I LOST UTHEDMAEL

The Wastes of Lost Uthedmael are dark, barren,

and malevolent lands, a constant presence to the
west of which all who live in Dain Dania, Daradja,
and the Watchtowers are aware. Much of the land
seems coated by a layer of ash and dust; living
things are rare, except only the hardiest and most
poisonous of plants and animals. Jackals, vultures,
and the occasional wolves or hyenas are the most
common animals seen. Ghosts and evil spirits are
commonly encountered, and corpse eaters and other
undead things are known to lurk in its barrows and
ruins. Bandit and brigand bands from Dania and
Daradja sometimes know secret ways through the
lands that take them through it in safety, and they
have on occasion found refuge there when pursued
by zealous enemies. Ash-covered ruins are still
accessible in many spots, and there is a great wonder
in the Davwold, the old forest of Uthed Dania, now
petrified and seemingly turned to stone.

I THE VALE OF BARROWS

In the highlands of Lost Uthedmael can be found

the Vale of Barrows, a great, broad, largely flat valley
dotted with barrows and cairn mounds. Up until
the curse of the Sun Court, the Vale of Barrows
was used as the burial place for the people of
Dania, Daradja, and Djar Mael, and it is the final
resting place of almost all of their ancient Kings
and Queens, as well as many common folk. After
the curse of the Sun Court made Uthed Dania
barren, a touch of that curse seemed to befall the
Vale of Barrows as well, and now it is as barren
and dark as Lost Uthedmael itself. It is a separate
region, however, and is considered easier to traverse
than Lost Uthedmael itself, so brigand bands,
Highlanders, and Djar Mael chieftains can be found
moving along the Old Road on occasion. Many
magicians come here to use the power of the dead in
their charms and enchantments.

O BLACK WINTER,
BLACK SUMMER

Once or twice a decade, ghosts, ghouls, and other

dark things come creeping out of the Wastes of Lost
Uthedmael to plague western Daradja and the lands
along the Great Wall of Fortias. The Watchtower
Kings and the lords of Heth Moll in Daradja are
charged with the defense of their eastern neighbors,
but by tradition they may call upon others to aid
them against such threats by declaring a Black
Season. For whatever reasons, the dark things of Lost
Uthedmael seem most active in winter and summer.

The one constant in the history of the Harath duins has been Urgrayne,
called the Witch-Queen. A daughter of Djara, the Goddess of the Dark
Moon, Urgrayne has haunted the mountains throughout human memory.
Daradjan peasants claim that she lives in a foreboding castle hidden in the
mountains highest peaks. Legends report that Urgrayne has three sisters:
Annaft, who dwells on an isle in the Golden Sea off the coast of Amora;
Hemwayne, also called the Sand Queen, who dwells in an oasis of the
Hylik Desert; and Memyra, who dwells in the mountains of Metea. Some
chronicles indicate that Urgrayne was welcome in the courts of rne Dr,
but she has rarely meddled directly in the lands around her lair. Only once is
she recorded as appearing in the courts of the Middle Kingdoms, when she
slew Ogwin, third King of Dania, for daring to claim the mountains as his
own domain. His blackened bones are kept displayed before the entrance to
the Kings Crypt in Therapoli as a reminder to his heirs of his folly.

When she appears, she rides an ornamented sled drawn by a team
of black horses, accompanied by armed and armored knights who never
speak or show their faces. Folk tales claim that her bodyguard is made up of
men who have gazed upon her face and form and become enchanted by the
sight of her, leaving their former lives to live forever solely on the sustenance
of her presence. Several ballads based on such tales are popular throughout
the region.

Amongst the Highland clans, by both legend and local report, are
self-proclaimed members of the Witchs Host, who claim some connection
to Urgrayne; they claim her blessing is a mark of fortune for their chieftains,
captains and priestesses (and the practice amongst the Citadel Kings of
having a seer or enchanter as advisor and counsel arose from this tradition).
She is described as their patron and protector, though no clear benefit seems
to result from this association. Some outsiders claim she directs the actions
of her Highland followers in secret, but no evidence of this has ever been
found. The warlords who fought Dauban Hess legions long ago and the
leaders of the Highland companies that fought the Empire at the Black Day
Battle were all from the Witchs Host, according to popular lore.

Of even less certainty is her influence upon practitioners of
magic throughout the Middle Kingdoms. The Divine King order of Agall,
dedicated to their hero-patrons hatred of witches, have long held that
Urgrayne is the titular and actual head of a vast network of evil-doers. They
have blamed her and her agents as the frequent cause of disease, pestilence,
drought, rebellion, and sedition throughout the Middle Kingdoms.

The Known World Today

NEIGHBORS TO THE WEST:

THE ISLIKLID
KINGDOMS

hile the exploits of the Kings in Exile are part of Divine

King lore, no mention is made in traditional Sun
Court or Phoenix Court texts of Islik having children
while in the Far West. The Ten Victories of Islik includes a Victory
over the magics of the Kings of the West, and a Victory over the
treachery of an enemy called the Blooded prior to his descent into
the Underworld and his victory over Death, but no mention of
descendants.

But according to Golan scholars of the Great Schools
who have studied them, the Isliklidae make this claim: that the
four Kings in Exile, while pursued by Ceram the Thunderer,
came across the Midlands to lands near Jalas Samarappa, where
they dwelt in safety amongst the Rajiks, and took wives and bore
children. Islik, who called himself the son of the True Sun, was
greeted by the people of the desert West as the son of Irr, who
blazed black in the sky, and they conquered the nearby Khaghals
for him, and for a time he ruled the Kingdom of the Sun by Lake
Hazrat. But in time his sons and daughters asked why they made
no sacrifice to the Black Sun, as was considered proper elsewhere;
and Islik revealed his true paternity, and revealed to them his
rebellion against Irr. His children and the other children of the
Kings in Exile gathered in great dismay, and they took their own
counsel and chose to sacrifice to Irr and the other gods, and so war
broke out between the Kings in Exile and their own children. Jala
was persuaded by his sons and daughters to return with them to
Samarappa, and there he became King, and made sacrifice to the
gods; Coromat killed his children, and lost his mind in horror at
what he had done; and Agall was slain by his sons. Islik fought his
progeny but such was their strength that he could not kill them.
When he saw Agall dead, he mourned his great companion, and
descended into the Underworld to save his friend, and while in the
Underworld, Islik cursed his rebellious children so they could not
follow him.

f The Isliklid King Ceryx

The current King of Ugeram, who makes his abode in the old Djar
Mael citadel of Ferabis, is known variously as either Ceryx or Cereliel
in the Courts of the Empire, though none are sure if either is his real
name; very little is known about him, other than his title. He has
never made a public appearance at the Imperial Court, and none of
his allies in the Empire have ever admitted to actually seeing him
face-to-face. He is reportedly the most active of the three Isliklid
Kings, but this isnt really saying much; he was last known to be
abroad during the First War of the Road (i1411 - i1417), when the
Usurper of Palatia disappeared in the Far West for a time and the
Thessids were able to briefly press into the Dskdran Protectorate.
The King of Ugeram was reported as part of the Thessid host
besieging Illagos, before the Usurpers return ended the siege and the
Thessid campaign. The men of Heth Moll, closest of the Daradjans
to Uthed Mael and the lands of Ugeram, have had some dealings
with him and his Dmghal; they call him the Bloody Footprint.

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Adventures in the Known World

Isliks descendants -- the Isliklidae -- held thrones in the
West despite the curse of their father, though they called their
domain the Kingdom of Hazrat-Ghal. Dauban Hess drove them
out when he encountered them while building his Golden Empire,
and for a time, the Isliklidae disappeared from the Known World.
According to their own histories, they took service with the
Emperors of Califa in the Unknown World for several centuries.
They reappeared in the Far West in the Winter Century, leading an
army of warlords and thralls through the Valley of Hooves. They
first reconquered the Lake Hazrat region, driving out or enslaving
the Kessite lords, then the entirety of Samarappa, destroying the
Celestial Court and ending the direct line of descent of the sons
of Jala the Good Prince. The Isliklids proclaimed their lands as
the Kingdom of the Dmghal, and ruled for four dark centuries
before beginning to migrate east after learning that Akkalion had
fallen under the spell of what would come to be called the Gray
Dream. Their invasion of the Empires western emirates would
eventually bring the Empire to the verge of collapse, until they
mysteriously acquiesced to the Treaty of Tir-en-Tiel. With the help
of the Empire, they crossed the Red Wastes to the Dain duins and
subjugated the wild Kings of the Djar Maelites, who then ruled
in the far reaches of the mountains. By i1214 the Isliklidae had
proclaimed three kingdoms Boradja, Ugeram, and Morica. The
Defender Kings of Maece, who had led the Middle Kingdoms
against Akkalion, sought to aid their distant Djar Mael cousins
against the conquering Isliklidae, and launched a series of crusades
to liberate them. Their wars were in vain, and over the course of
the next fifty years the strength of the Defender Kings was broken
in Lost Uthedmael and the Dain duins, and Maece ceased to
exist.

Over time the Isliklids warlords, the Dmghal, were
granted places in the Emperors court, and became the chief generals
shaping the Empires military might, displacing the Vanimorian and
Thessidian princes and warlords who had held those positions. In
the western reaches of the Empire, where the Isliklidae carved their
path of depredation, a period called the Fire Crusade is sometimes
spoken of, when the lords of the West purged all remnants of their
passage, but given the Isliklids place of power in the Empire they
are not openly criticized. Their goals and interests in the east are
a matter of great speculation, even in the Empire amongst their
nominal allies.

The Isliklidae sometimes also called Isliklids or Islikids
are usually called the Pretenderai, or Those That Claim to be of the
Line of Islik, in the official pronouncements of the Sun Court, and
amongst their Mael subjects they are called the Wankhirmael, or
Conquerors of the Mael in Maelite. But most people call them the
Isliklidae.

DJAR MAELITE HOLLS & HORS

The Djar Maelites are the original inhabitants of the Dain duin
Mountains; they are distant relations of the Daradjans and
Danians, and once made tribute to the Queens of Dara Dess during
the Golden Age. Even then the Djar Maelites had a fearsome
reputation; they destroyed the neighboring Kingdom of the Valley
so thoroughly that virtually all trace of it has disappeared (even
its original name), and the blood-soaked sands have remained red
ever since. They were frequently enemies of the Golden Knights
of An-Athair who traveled into western Danian lands, and their
warlords sided with Githwaine during the wars that spelt the doom
of Uthed Dania, giving them an evil reputation ever afterwards.

The Known World Today

A Djar Mael scout in the Vale of Barrows.

But still, when the Isliklidae and their Imperial allies arrived to
claim the mountains, their eastern cousins in Maece organized a
failed and self-destructive crusade to aid them.

The Djar Maelites today have a sad lot in life. They
are ruled over by the Isliklidae and their warrior-servants, the
Dmghal, and lead lives of misery and cruelty, but the region is
also well known for its melancholy, dirge-like music and martial
dancing; if normally they wear dark earthen tones and leather for
travel, they have surprisingly festive and colorful under-clothes.
They are a hardy people, well versed in mountain craft, hunting,
and campaigning. Most are followers of the Old Religion. As
the only contact with them recently has been through brigand
bands and foolhardy traders, very little is known about their
recent history and culture, other than their conquest by the
Isliklidae.

The Isliklidae brought with them many slaves and
servants from their travels through the Known World, and now
they intermix with the Djar Maelite natives of the region. The
Djar Maelites have traditionally held slaves, but today there is
perhaps less distinction between slaves and their masters now
that the Isliklidae rule over them all. Large mesas mark much
of the central plains of the Dain duins, and the Djar Maelites
have traditionally built their stone villages and citadels into their
sides or atop them. Some of the rulers of their forts and citadels
have sworn direct allegiance to one of the three Isliklid Kings
in dark and bloody oath rituals; they are usually referred to as
Hor chieftains. Chieftains that have retained some nominal
independence are referred to as Holl chieftains, but all Djar
Maelite warlords and war chiefs are beholden to one Isliklid
King or another.

f THE KINGDOM OF UGERAM

Citadels Held by the Isliklidae: Ferabis

Citadels Held by the Dmghal: none
Bound Citadels: Hor Caria, Hor Khetia, Hor Dhan, Hor Kheb, Hor
Gebet, Hor Helkhari, Hor Dragacea
Allied Citadels: Holl Ari, Holl Udra, Holl Guyan, Holl Godin, Holl
Foria, Holl Gahar, Holl Daguk, Holl Sahar, Holl Brak, Holl Aratta

f THE KINGDOM OF BORADJA

Citadels Held by the Isliklidae: Ardeal

Citadels Held by the Dmghal: Caak, Malestos, Tgutzk, Cir
Attor, Cir Aktor
Bound Citadels: Hor Garduk, Hor Boyd, Hor Hage, Hor Bit, Hor
Sagoza
Allied Citadels: Holl Gezer, Holl Deve, Holl Udom, Holl Tora, Holl
Rodarab, Holl Ansham, Holl Daut, Holl Marat, Holl Marukh

f THE KINGDOM OF MORICA

Citadels Held by the Isliklidae: Cimria
Citadels Held by the Dmghal: Harga Lin
Bound Citadels: none
Allied Citadels: none

A detail map of the region can be found on page 345.

c THE DMGHAL

The warlords, warriors, chief servants, and spokesmen for the Isliklidae are called the
Dmghal. The name is usually translated as either The Doomed of the Ghal or The Dooms
of the Ghal, and is generally believed to be a reference to the origins of the Isliklids warlords
amongst the Khaghals and Urghals of the Lake Hazrat region. The ranks of the Dmghal
currently also include the descendants of Samarappans, Ramorites, Theleans, Ceraics,
Metics, and Djar Maelites who chose to serve the Isliklids as warriors rather than as slaves
and thralls even by rumor Califans and others from the Unknown World. No Isliklidae
have been seen in public since they ensconced themselves in the Dain duins; while they are
reported to travel the Empire in secret, their public affairs, even at the Imperial Court, are
conducted entirely by the Dmghal.

Adventures in the Known World

59

The Known World Today

THE WORLD BEYOND

THE MIDDLE:

PALATIA

he city-state of Palatia Archaia was founded in the

Golden Age by Achre, rebel daughter of Abrage, and
has grown from a marginal backwater to the most
powerful city in the Known World with an empire that rivals
that of Thessid-Gola. The sprawling city is a true wonder; no
city besides Avella, the Immortal capital of Akkalion, provokes
more awe. Artisans, smiths, engineers, architects, sculptors,
and musicians fill its streets. Decadent, beautiful, and cultured,
Palatia Archaia stands at the center of the economy of the Known
World, and its huge and teeming marketplaces are open all day
and night, filled with foreign merchants buying and selling
in dozens of tongues. Trade is dominated by the Houses of
the City, extended clans usually headed in the ancient Dran
tradition by a matriarch, along with their supporters, clients,
servants, slaves, and dependents. Each House holds property
and interests throughout the Palatian world: urban palaces,
country villas and estates, businesses and ships.

The heights of the city are dominated by a series of
great plazas, which start in the north with the sacred temple
precinct and the Great Temple of Palatia Archaia; the Palatians
are followers of the Old Religion, and make city-wide sacrifices to
Yhera and other gods and goddesses along with a wide variety of
hero-ancestors, putting them directly at odds with the followers
of the Divine King who populate the southern Mera Argenta.
The plazas wend south past the Great Plaza of the precinct of the
City with the High Court, the Queens Palace, and the Palatine
Palace. The primary political body of the High Court is the
House of Princes, which is dominated by the three Great Houses
that trace their ancestry to the daughters of Archaia. The House
of Princes normally chooses who will hold the three thrones of
the High Court the Queens Throne, traditionally held by a
woman of a Great House; the Ducal Throne, held by a male of a
Great House; and the throne of the Countess Palatine, held by a

Y THE USURPER

Urech Aiths of the Sea House of Aiths was born in p1521 (i1354)
and rose to power as a legionare and a sea-captain under the wing
of Duke Hamellus of House Devarra. Urech was widely known
for his actions during the Guerra de Guerra Lupa, or the War
Dog War, when he commanded the Long March retreat after the
fall of Brunia that saved the bulk of the northern legions, and
eventually he was rewarded with a position in the Archaiate. But
when his mentor Hamellus announced plans to become King
of Palatia, Urech organized a coup during preparations for the
coronation. Most of Hamellus faction was slain during one
bloody night, and Urech himself killed Hamellus even though the
Duke claimed sanctuary in the Great Temple of Palatia Archaia.
Mysteriously, the priestesses who witnessed the slaying condoned
this act of sacrilege; by some report, Urech even used Achres
spear from the cult statue in the temple to strike the final blow.

60

Adventures in the Known World

The Archaiate, great Temple to War in Palatia.

woman of any House. No suitable candidates for the Queens Throne

have come forward since the Assassin Cycles, so the highest single
power in Palatia is Urech Aiths of the Sea House of Aiths, also called
the Usurper, who holds the Ducal Throne after a bloody coup against
the last recognized Duke. The current Countess Palatine, Ydiema
Divinhrada of the Great House of Divinhrada, is sometimes spoken
of as a potential Queens candidate, but she is considered loyal to
Urech.

The Archaiate &

The Arsenal
The plazas end in the southern part of the city with the Ducal Palace
and the Plaza of Trophies, where the Black Arrow Queens built the
Archaiate, a great Temple to War, to Yhera Anath and the Gorgonae,
and there installed their Council of War and founded the first legions
of the Palatian war machine. The Archaiate overlooks the Arsenal,

Urech imposed his own rule over Palatia with the acquiescence
of the Lord Mott, Hamellus Grand Vizier. Urech draws
his support primarily from the Archaiate, the legions, the
Sea Houses, and the outlying city-states and provinces of
Greater Palatia; he may be least popular in the city itself. He
is roundly condemned in Divine King lands, specifically
for his usurpation and more generally for preventing Palatia
from finally accepting the proper model of kingship. Urech
is widely considered an adventurer, and has led Palatia on a
robust expansion, fraught with war and internal strife; barely a
year has passed without at least one attempt on his life, and six
major wars have been fought in the eighty-five years of his rule
two with the Empire, three sea wars with the League, and
the Twilight War with the Lokhites. Urech is one hundred
and seventeen years old, though he is reportedly still blessed
with the vigor and appearance of youth.

The Known World Today

Y THE

Y THE MAJOR

LORD
MOTT

HOUSES OF
PALATIA

Great Houses: Divinhrada, Vargate, Basa.

Palatia Archaia: Pherusa, Hecale, Hala,
Pallena, Uri-anza, Goatis, Dehaven,
Casria, Merops, Ceryx, Golgos, Pylon,
Arkida, Ergane, Paraclea, the Risen Sun,
the Horn.
Allied City Houses: Bara, Hammergreia,
Ityla, Amatamate, Asteria, Casria, Dameia,
Erythia, Ursula, Aveida, Druxsana, Hiera,
Thersander, Nephalion, the Spear, Leda,
Ulytus, Mormo, Megara, Myrina, Hypeia,
Polemusa, Sterope, Saluna, Avisia, Orisa,
the Red Bell, the Silk Worm, Taramusa.
Sea Houses: Russela, Aiths, the Red Sail,
Pargante, the Sea Horse, the Four Winds,
Peranger, Nicodamus, Hestra, Argus, Irus,
Periphas, Teledamus, Erginus, Athamas,
Hylas, Upis, Otreus, the Silver Sail.

A Princess of the
House of Pallena.

the great shipyard and ironworks of the city originally built by Audra
the Voyager, which produces the material that outfits the citys fleets and
legions. A period of legion service is required of every full House citizen,
and a legion at full strength stands at just over 3000 legionares, cycling
from different active duty postings to reserve status; the generals of the
Archaiate currently have 48 active legions at their disposal and 18 legions
in reserve, as well as seven major fleets of galleys, galleasses, and caravels
located at the Arsenal, Savaris, Infill, Labira, Lagapoli, Bergen, and
Brunia to facilitate the transportation of the legions. The Sea Houses
of Palatia and of other coastal cities also provide corsairs, heavily armed
privateers who use fast caravels and galleons for raiding and scouting and
are the scourge of Imperial and League sea traffic.

Born to the House of

Arkida, but not to its
ruling line, the Grand
Vizier of Palatia, the
Lord Mott, is reputedly
one of its most brilliant
men. He rose quickly
through the ranks of
the Magisters of its
The Lord Mott,
University, and still
Grand Vizier of Palatia.
holds one of its Chairs,
that of Philosophy; a renowned alchemist, he has been
head of their Guild for over seventy years. He was
part of Hamellus faction, and became Grand Vizier in
p1549 at the remarkably young age of twenty-nine, and
he has held it ever since. He is known as a great power
at Court and in the House of Princes, with reputed
control over Palatias chancery, treasury, and network
of spies and assassins; indeed, many believe him to be
the true power in Palatia, with some claiming he even
orchestrated Urechs coup and is his puppet master.
Much of his influence comes not from his political power,
however, but from his works. The Lord Mott created
the first Indexes to the ancient texts, revolutionizing
(for better or for worse) the very nature of learning
at Palatias Universities, and he has written influential
treatises on the conduct of Princes and alchemical secrets
of enlightenment and self-knowledge. Devotees of
the Mottic school advocate freeing students from the
drudgeries of rote memorization through the use of his
Indexes, and despite resistance from traditionalists they
have spread throughout halls of learning far and wide.
Some followers refer to him as the King In Waiting, with
a few even claiming that the Emperors Gray Dream was
a prophecy of the coming of the Lord Mott to the throne
of the Philosopher King, bringing an age of reason and
enlightenment to Palatia and the Known World. He is
even slightly older than Urech.

Y THE MOTTIST COLLEGES

The Lord Mott preaches the use of his Indexes to free

students from the drudgery of rote memorization, the
standard teaching technique in most of the Known
Worlds halls of learning, and colleges and schools
devoted to his methods have been established by his
disciples in many Universities and Great Schools.
Students and magisters at all Mottist colleges (and a
handful of select others) have been invited to participate
in the creation of the Lord Motts Cyclopaedia, a
vast compendium on the history and contents of the
Known World, purportedly to include descriptions,
illuminations, and articles on every important person,
thing, and event in the Known Worlds history. Some
consider these colleges to be little more than a cult of
personality built around the Lord Mott.
The Countess Palatine, Ydiema Divinhrada
of the Great House of Divinhrada.

Adventures in the Known World

61

The Known World Today

The Provinces
& Barbarians
The legions and corsairs of Palatia protect and mind
a diverse empire. The House of Princes now includes
representatives of the Houses of many allied city-states
such as the Hskdran cities of the Peninsula, or cities
such as Labira and Herescryx founded by Dran refugees
as well as from the provincial Houses of Haralia and
Bergenia, the barbarian Tgoonai Kingdoms (Thulamite
lords who stayed behind to hold safe the path to the city
of Necropolis after Thula returned to the Midlands),
and the Lurgheride Kingdoms of Lycinia (settled by
northerners from the Unknown World). Palatia holds
the Thalyar Kingdom of Urthia and the cities of the
Dskdr as protectorates, with their military governors
appointed by the Usurper; they are expected to become
provinces soon. The Dskdran coast has long been
known for its sensuous liberality, and even the decadent
Palatians were reportedly shocked by what they found
in Lagapolis infamous temples of Dieva. Palatian
legions and Oceraic tribesmen currently hold the forts
of the Spice Road across the Midlands to their allies in
the Kessite Kingdoms, and with the Stone Treaty now
stand with the Queens and Kings of the Thulamites
against common enemies. The Thulamite citadels are
right now counted as Palatian allies, but many believe
that the Usurper, who had twin daughters with Queen
Nihagen of Desmagria, intends to win them a place in
the House of Princes.

Y THE CURRENT LEGIONS

1st Achre, 2nd Archaiate Guard, 3rd Black Arrow Guard, 4th Black Arrow
Horse Guard, 5th Black Arrow Guard, 6th Audraner, 7th Audraner Horse,
9th Audraner Guard, 10th Copper, 11th Copper Lancers, 12th Urban
Copper, 13th Herescrine, 14th Nacine, 15th Pavarite, 16th Urban Savarite,
17th Thurian, 18th Urban Infilli, 19th Poratine, 20th Heduran, 21st
Copper, 22nd Fennan, 23rd Ferusian, 24th Hirassan, 25th Bazinian, 26th
Verucan, 27th Ostalian, 28th Copper Horse, 29th Scarrite Lancers, 30th
Palamaxi, 31st Haralian Highlanders, 32nd Haralian Highlanders, 33rd
Parsusian, 34th Gedran Highlanders, 35th Pallithaners, 36th Pallithaners,
37th Appalitane Horse, 38th Thargooni,
39th Agrothi, 40th Copper Guard, 41st
Copper Horse Guard, 42nd Labirine
Hammergreias, 43rd Labirine Guards,
44th Varcinian, 45th Tgoonai Horse, 47th
Northern Guard, 48th Northern Horse,
49th Northern Lancers, 50th Urechi, 51st
Urechi Horse, 52nd Frontier Guard, 53rd
Frontier Horse, 54th Frontier Lancers, 55th
Frontier Guard, 56th Urechi, 57th Urechi
Lancers, 59th Urechi, 60th Lurgheride,
61st Lurgheride Guard, 62nd Hypernian,
63rd Urban Brunia, 64th Baratrean, 65th
Dskdran, 66th Dskdran Lancers, 67th
Urban Lagorian, 68th Urechi Guard.
Bold indicates an active Legion; the standards
of the 8th Audraner Guard, 46th Northern
Guard, and 58th Urechi were retired after
actions during the relief of Seker during the
Fire War, the Long March of the Guerra
de Guerra Lupa, and the Battle of the Two
Serpents in the Twilight War, respectively.

N THE THULAMITES

A legionare of the 6th Audraner.

A Queen of the Citadel of Dozer.

The descendants and followers of Thula, the

Snake Queen, came to be called the Thulamites,
and they and their distant cousins, the Ceraics,
still occupy a large and expansive territory on
the edges of the Midlands. They are legendary
horsemen and build great stone citadels out of
the rock and limestone of the Sefir river valley.
Dancing and music are almost as important to
them as their horses.

N NECROPOLIS

Ever since the Golden Age, the dead of the

Thulamites have been floated down the Sefir river
to a great high-walled island plateau in the Gala
Lira called Necropolis. A great rock-cut temple
complex devoted to Yhera, Genich, and Seedr
is located there where the bodies of their dead are
prepared. A winding procession of priestesses carries the bodies up onto
the high plateau of the island, and there they are buried in barrows or in
rock-cut graves and barrows in the plateaus sides. Traveling down the
river seems to aid their spirits in reaching the Underworld.

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Adventures in the Known World

A Palatian corsair galleon of

the Sea House of Aiths.

The Known World Today

The
LEAGUE

he cities of the Golden Isle of Illia and

the Hemispian peninsula were long
patroned by Ariahav the Civilizer, and
produced many heroes in the Golden Age. With
the rise of Islik first to the throne of the Golden
Isle of Illia and then to his fathers Sun Throne
in the Heavens, many of the Kings of Hemispia
abandoned the old ways, and adopted the new
worship of Islik as the Divine King. The cities
of Hemispia had been royal cities, and from
them rose the lineages of Islik and his sons: the
Dragon Kings, the greatest of them Dauban Hess,
the Conqueror King whose Golden Empire
was the largest the Known World has ever seen.
But in time the Dragon Kings were doomed to
extinction by their just war against the Worm
Kings, and though lesser kings rose to take
their places on the Dragon Thrones, many of
the ancient kingdoms disappeared (as often did
their enchanted thrones). The only remnant of
the great ancient kingdoms is Cavalonia, ruled
by descendants of hero-knights who followed
the last Dragon Kings into the Far West. Absent
the Dragon Kings, many Hemispians came to
rely on the Sun Court and its patriarchs and
priests in divine matters, but in material and
legal ones many came to prefer reliance on their
own judgment. Various forms of republicanism
have arisen over time in the place of the missing
Dragon Kings; town councils, senates, and guilds
have become the primary political and legal
powers of many Hemispian cities, all of them
influenced by the economic power of the many
competitive merchant Houses of the region,
though here and there a king or two still rules.

The cities of Illia and Hemispia once
formed the backbone of Dauban Hess Golden
Empire and they have long banded together in
a variety of alliances with a number of names, the
current incarnation being the Hemapoline League
of Cities. The League is currently run by a Senate composed of
senators from every constituent city, and advised by the patriarchs
of the Sun Court; the cities are supposed to be on an equal footing,
but this is a polite fiction at best. The League is named, after all,
after the greatest city of Hemispia: Hemapoli Magni, a first amongst
equals and the seat of the League Senate itself. Hemapoli has risen
as an ambitious port of trade and industry, intent on challenging
Palatia to the north and the Empire to the south. Lord Tyrander
of House Lagrid is Hemapolis current Prince of the City, and he is
also Prime Minister of the League. Though deferential to the Sun
Court, he zealously protects the rights of his supporters amongst the
cutthroat mercantile powers of Hemapoli. Royalist factions have
mounted campaigns to reinstate monarchies in several republican
cities, most particularly in Agrapios, where attempts to restart

Morning in the City of Hemapoli Magni.

c THE CITIES OF THE LEAGUE

Royal Cities: Agrapios, Daubia, Megos, Cavaile, Terria,

Lorne, Falamaria, Leyras.
Sun Court Cities of Illia: Heliopolis, Agos, Lumaria,
Adolan, Iridos, Isahedris.
Republican Cities: Hemapoli, Hemelos, Cassapios,
Farapoli, Pelia, Lacrasa, Tilla, Bradain, Borisia, Guivress,
Gesse, Inosia, Draibeck, Dumapoli, Salmeria, Senorisse,
Mane, Randes, Astavia, Corelia, Audeche.
The Kingdom of Cavalonia: Tuscella, Luceria, Gares,
Chevress, Parthe, Lancara, Lacave, Millois, Hauria-Bares,
Vadienne.

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63

The Known World Today

c TEREUS,
PRINCE OF AGRAPIOS

The merchant House Tallander, in Agrapios, has a long

and storied history, and began recently to put forward the
claim that the Prince of the House, Tereus Tallander, was
a scion of the line of Cewert, the greatest king of ancient
Telesia and son of the founder of Agrapios. Tereus
became Prince of the City in i1462 and though he does
not publicly advocate it, he is widely thought sympathetic
to the suggestions of his kinsmen that the Kingdom of
Telesia should be recreated. This has put him in direct
odds with Lord Tyrander; the two cities have fought
recently over it, and Hemeliner mercenaries now guard
Prince Tereus day and night.

c THE GREAT MERCHANT HOUSES

Hemapoline Houses: Lagrid, Ver Vallard, Ver Hoven, Terander,
Nisander, Stryander, Isander, Lyrander, Myrander, Devarra.
Other Major Houses: Gausmont, Malmont, Langalade,
Amarsine, Dumares, Dhiriste, Augurine, Ver Vermis, Trapice,
Meritanio, Pergander, Ver Paiger, Vedogio, Ver Dolo, Ver
Amadi, Ojardine, Vesser, Batteria, Analeyden, Ver Vale, Lippici,
Maider, Colomont, Sarazzi, Roder, Rolandolo.

c THE SUN COURT

the ancient Kingdom of Telesia have begun; but

though veneration of Islik the Divine King is the
rule, the general cultural trend of Hemispia has
been a further embrace of self-reliance and selfdetermination. Most Hemispians would argue
that there is no contradiction to be found there,
that while Islik is the Divine King of Heaven and
Earth and that all men are his subjects, that every
man is also a king unto himself.

Illia
& The Sun Court
The Sun Court is the body of the highest religious
authority in the eastern Divine King world. The
Sun Court is located in Heliopolis, and against
the heretical positions of the Western Court of
the Phoenix it champions the hereditary model of
kingship: the passing of property, lineage, and kingship from father
to son, as was shown in the descent of the Dragon Kings from Islik
and his sons. The highest position in the Sun Court hierarchy is
now the Patriarch of Heliopolis, and he appoints the patriarchs
and archpriests of all Divine King lands that recognize the Sun
Court; the patriarchs are the highest religious authorities in Divine
King lands, and serve the rulers of those lands. Absent the Dragon
Kings that were supposed to rule them all, lesser Kings have been
given powers and privileges at the Sun Court, so that the Kings of
the royal cities of Hemispia hold their thrones as Seated Kings of
the Sun Court, as do the various Kings of the Middle Kingdoms.
Though the Sun Court is perhaps more broadly influential and
powerful than it has ever been, the current Patriarch of Heliopolis,
Ibaride, sees threats everywhere. Ibaride issues strong warnings
against the spreading outlook of republicanism in Hemispia;

The Seated Kings: Cavalonia, Atallica, Dainphalia, Huelt,

Umis, Erid Dania, Dain Dania, Angowrie, Agrapios, Daubia,
Megos, Cavaile, Terria, Lorne, Falamaria, Umat, Leyras.
The Great Patriarchies: Heliopolis, Illia Minor, Hemapolia,
Cavalonia, Telesia, Hemismaia, Guirense, Amora, Meretia,
Euchalia, Amaca, Varsarasi, Atallica, Auria, Therapolia, Umat,
Umis, Huelt, Erid Dania, Dain Dania, Angowrie.
A Divine King symbol, a golden headpiece on a staff of ash (left),
and a Sun Court Patriarch from the Kingdom of Cavalonia (right).

The Golden Dome of the Sun Court, in the

city of Heliopolis on the Isle of Illia.

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Adventures in the Known World

The Known World Today

c GUILLARD,
KING OF CAVALONIA

Some have suggested that to say that Ser Guillard Dompascella

is King of Cavalonia is to engage in a bit of fiction; indeed, he
comes from no royal line, and his own personal estates are fairly
small. But for some centuries, the Cavalonians have allowed
a body of knights to determine their next king through feat of
arms during a tournament held when the last king dies; the best
champion at lance and sword is made king. Though republicans
in other Hemispian cities scoff at the notion, it doesnt seem to
have produced a significantly worse record of accomplishment
than any other method of selection. Ser Guillard handled himself
well during the Third Hemapoline-Palatian Sea War (as he had
little to do with a series of disastrous League fleet actions) and
there have been no wars between his own cities during his reign.

preaches against the growing Cults of the Gray Dream, devoted to

exploring the mysteries of the Emperors vision; and warns of the
return of worshippers of dark gods such as Amaymon, Ligrid, and
Ishraha the Rebel Angel amongst those that seek their own advantage
and gain.

Amora-and-Meretia
Ancient Amora was a Dran colony, settled during the Golden Age
of Dran palace culture. The land was a favorite of Illiki the Sun
Bull, who when he first came to the Known World first set foot on the
white beaches of its shores, and he has loved it above all other places
ever since the sinking of rne Dr. The Old Religion was strong
there until the coming of Dauban Hess, who conquered Amora and
introduced the worship of his ancestor, Islik the Divine King. Since
Islik was the son of Illiki Helios, the cult of the Divine King had
some appeal to the Amorans; but the Old Religion was never fully
abandoned. Civil wars and internecine strife often resulted from
attempts to stamp out the worship of Yhera, the worst of which
occurred during Akkalions swift reconquest of Amora and the wars of
independence that followed his fall into the Gray Dream (and which
also netted the Amorans the nearby Kingdom of Meretia, as a buffer
with the Empire). Though tension still exists between the Kingsmen
and followers of the old ways, the Queens
of Amora have enforced a broad religious
tolerance, in part by emphasizing their
ancestor Illiki the Sun Bull, who is
venerated in both the Divine King and
Yheran cosmologies. The current High
Queen is Ifare, and she has long warned
of the new Sultans ambitions. While she
is on good terms with the League and the
Sun Court, she is also considered an ally
of Palatia (which helped the Amorans
win their freedom from the Empire) and
so her warnings about the Sultan have
largely fallen on unsympathetic ears.

An Amoran sailor, from the

Bright Star out of Amaca.

B THE MERCENARIES OF
HEMELOS

The Cavalonian city of Hemelos has a reputation

of producing some of the best mercenary
companies in the Known World. They are
usually trained to fight in pike formations, and
even the Palatians give them a grudging respect.
Hemispian men of all ages will flock to Hemelos
in the spring in the hopes of being recruited for
the summer campaign seasons by one company
or another. Usually theyre
hired by Hemispian cities
involved in city wars, but
many companies have even
served in foreign lands,
either for the High King in
Therapoli or the Queens of
Amora-and-Meretia.

B WARS
OF THE
HEMISPIAN
CITIES

The city-states of
Hemispia, Cavalonia,
and the former Kingdom
of Telesia often engage
in brief seasonal wars to
settle their differences. The armies of the
two cities involved in a dispute meet for
a prearranged battle after the harvests are
over for the year.

A mercenary
pikeman from
Pazars Pikes,
out of Hemelin.

c MYRINA
OF AMORA

Myrina is a Minor Queen

of Amora, one of a halfdozen daughters to its
High Queen, Ifare. Though
not first-born, she is widely
believed to be the most
amibitious and capable
of Ifares daughters, and
has a large personal force
of almost a thousand
mounted Amoran knights,
each caparisoned in gold.
She has spent a great deal
of time traveling abroad,
representing her mothers
interests and seeking allies
against the Imperials, about
whom High Queen Ifare
has long raised warnings.

Myrina, daughter of the High

Queen Ifare.

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65

The EMPIRE
R

The Known World Today

he Golden Empire of Dauban Hess was the greatest in the

history of the Known World, stretching from Golden Illia to
the Celestial Court cities of Samarappa. Dismembered into
Successor Kingdoms in the civil wars that followed his disappearance,
the Empire had faded into a memory until the coming of Akkalion to
the throne of Thessidia. Akkalion became the first man since Dauban
Hess to be proclaimed Emperor of Thessid-Gola, and he set about
restoring the Imperial Court of the West, the Phoenix Court, to its
former glory through both charm and conquest. He was well on his
way to succeeding when on the eve of a battle against the armies of the
Four Kingdoms he was felled by a dream from which he could not be
woken, leaving the Empire in tumult and confusion.

The Empire that Akkalion was rebuilding has evolved a
great deal since he fell into the Gray Dream; indeed, he might not
even recognize it. The Phoenix Court has organized the Empire
into a series of interlocking Principalities and Emirates, the ruler of
each being appointed by the Court itself. Two regions have allied
themselves with the Empire, at least nominally: one, the ancient
jungle kingdom of Ramoristan (historically called Ramora) and
its independent city-state, the City of Opals, was once part of the
Empire. The rulers of the Isliklidae Kingdoms of the Dain duins
have also allied themselves with the Empire as a result of the Treaty of
Tir-en-Tiel, even though historically they were never part of it (and
indeed the ancient Isliklidae fought Dauban Hess with considerable
vigor during the Age of Legends). Ceraic tribes from the Sea of Sands
known as the Wait Marchers have also settled in citadels along the
northern edge of the Thelean Plateau, guarding its entranceways
against the Palatians and their allies on the Spice Road.

d THE PARTS OF THE EMPIRE

The Great Principalities: Grand Sekeret, Setine, Thessure,

Thessidia, Galia, Vanimoria (Ur-Ciril, Merduraga), Pfalk, Metea
(Arvat, Barak, Aradin), Thelea.
The Emirate City-States: Avella, Seker,
Camathune, Deganos, Thalos, Alesia,
Delia, Melos, Tir-en-Tiel, the City of
Opals, Gharros, Mezeret, Alakkah,
Gadine.
The Allied Kingdom of Ramoristan.
The Allied Isliklid Kingdoms: Boradja,
Morica, Ugeram.
The Citadels of the Wait Marchers:
Hathwait, Bethwait, Ghewait,
Benwait, Pethwait.

d THE IMPERIAL
CALENDAR

The Empire of Thessid-Gola uses the

old Golan Celestial Calendar as its
official calendar, though it also uses the Avellan
Calendar as its liturgical calendar. The current
year is dated from Akkalions ascent to the Imperial
throne; this is the 445th year of Akkalions reign as
Emperor, and the 406th year of the Gray Dream.

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Adventures in the Known World

A scholar of the
Great School of
Mirat Mata,
in the Emirate
of Grand
Sekeret.

The Emperors Throne Room at the Phoenix Court.

The Emperors Cults

The best efforts of the priests and magicians of the Phoenix Court
and the scholars of the Golan Great Schools, the oldest halls of
learning in the Known World, could not rouse the Emperor
Akkalion after his sleeping body was brought back to the Immortal
City of Avella. The vigil for his wakening became over the years
a cult dedicated to his worship, and the Divine King priests who
have devoted themselves to him wield enormous political power.
By a170, reports began to appear of the Gray Dream, mostly just
feverish accounts by visionaries and seers who claimed to have
shared Akkalions dream, but in a183 an anonymous book appeared
in Illia, claiming to be a report of the Emperors description of his
visions during a lucid moment on his flagship after the Black Day
Battle. In a210, at the urging of the Emperors priests, the Phoenix
Court banned false reports of the Gray Dream. Public proclamations
were made that Akkalion had never regained consciousness and that
neither Phoenix Court seers nor members of the Emperors own
cult had ever been able to share the Emperors Dream or interpret
the occasional dream-inspired words he utters. But Gray Dream
mystery cults promising secret knowledge and enlightenment have
become a permanent and powerful presence throughout the Empire,
even reaching abroad into the cities and universities of Palatia, the
Middle Kingdoms, and the League, where they may be even more
popular than in the Empire itself.

The Known World Today

has long been charged with rooting out the cursed vestiges of the
Worm Kings and the dark gods that they followed, and in recent
years they have also persecuted the Gray Dream cults, albeit
without violence.

The Sultan
The Empire eventually began the election of Sultans, chosen by
the full Imperial Court, after it became clear that the Emperor
would not soon awaken. The Sultans were vested with the power
to act in the Emperors name, and several have even claimed to
commune with him in their dreams. Agameen tep Marahet is the
ninth Sultan and is widely seen as the most active and ambitious
so far; scion of an old Sekereti noble line, he had been Emir of
Grand Sekeret before his selection to be Sultan in a432 at the
age of 36. A warrior by instinct and a product of the ThessidGolan military schools, he made his first priority the rebuilding
of the Empires armies after their demoralizing losses to Palatia
over the various Wars of the Road. He has drawn heavily on
the experience of the Empires former enemies, the Dmghal
warlords of the feared Isliklid Kingdoms, but has also brought the
old mountain princes of Vanimoria and Golan generals back into
favor somewhat to the consternation of the Great School viziers,
who have been increasingly forced to turn to Imbrus tep Parisa, the
Imperial Vizier, as their chief voice at Court. Agameen has begun
to express a public desire to finish what the sleeping Emperor
began: the full restoration of the Golden Empire of Dauban Hess.
This has largely gone unnoticed outside the Empire.
The Inner Courtyard of the Phoenix Court, in the Immortal City of Avella.

The Phoenix Court

The Phoenix Court of Avella is both the highest Divine King authority
in the West and, as the Imperial Court, also the political center of the
Empire of Thessid-Gola. The Phoenix Court stands in opposition
to the Sun Court of Illia, advocating a model of kingship based on
appointment or election rather than one based on heredity, as befits
a Court that arose out of the Successor Kingdoms of generals and
viziers appointed by Dauban Hess. So unlike in the east, where Islik
himself is the paramount Divine King figure, in the west the hero cult
of Dauban Hess is dominant. Indeed, the Court takes its name both
from the rebirth of a trusted general as a King, and the rise of the
Court from the ashes of Dauban Hess disappearance. The Phoenix
Court has a broad religious tolerance in true imperial fashion, and
argues that while Islik forbade sacrifice to himself, traditional sacrifice
to local gods and goddesses can be allowed, so long as the supremacy
of the Divine King is acknowledged and his position as King of
Heaven venerated. The Old Religion is therefore still popular in some
form or other in many places, notably in the Gola, Vanimoria, and
Metea, and this has only deepened the divisions between the Phoenix
Court and the Sun Court.

The Emperor is himself the head of the Phoenix Court,
even if he is no longer in a position to benefit from their service. After
the Phoenix Court itself, the primary political elements of the Empire
are the Great Principalities, ruled by military governors called emirs
who are appointed by the Phoenix Courts highest Imperial tribunals.
Emirs are also appointed to rule the largest of the city-states, and to
command the nine official armies and their dozens of thousand-man
regiments, and they do so with the aid of the patriarchs, magistrates,
and priests of the Court. In addition to testing the fitness of all
candidates for high office throughout the Empire, the Phoenix Court

d THE ARMIES OF THE EMPIRE

The Imperial Army of Greater Thessidia
The Golden Army of Grand Sekeret
The Western Army of Ramoristan
The Blue Army of Thelea
The Red Army of Metea and
Pfalk
The White Army of Vanimoria
The Green Army of Gallia
The Marcher Army of the
Midlands
The Rainbow Guard of the
Phoenix Court
---

The Black Army of the Isliklid

Kingdoms and the Djar
Maelites

d THE FLEETS
OF THE
EMPIRE

The Imperial Fleet at Thalos

and Melos
The Golden Fleet of the Gola
at Seker
The Southern Fleet at Thesseret
The Western Fleet at Gaden,
in Ramoristan

A Soldier of the Line,

16th Regiment,
Imperial Army of
Thessidia.

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67

The Known World Today

THE
UNKNOWN
WORLD
On the edge of the Known both near
and far lie lands unknown, places of
mystery and magic with ways into the
Worlds beyond. At the entry to the
Silver Scale Sea is the Isle of Khael,
where Brage established his last worldly
forge. Though they no longer undergo
the ancient rituals of their ancestors,
the Oracle Queens of Khael are still
the preeminent seers of the Known
World, and the Isle is an enchanted and
magical place. The streets of Oracle
City are filled with those seeking an
audience with the Queen, from the envoys of Kessite khans
to the humblest Aurian serfs seeking a look into the Book
of Dooms; each must wait until they are summoned, and
some must wait a long time, giving the city a desperate and
despairing undertone. The Palatians rebuilt the city after the
Worm Kings sacked it, and to this day the Isle is guarded by a
full Palatian legion (currently the 9th Audraner Guard).

Further east, across the Golden Sea, the Isles of the
Dawn lie awaiting the rising Sun, and there each day Ami the
Morning Star comes to open the Gates of Heaven. Dauban
Hess disappeared trying to find his way there, and he was
neither the first nor the last to do so, but certainly he was the
most famous. The heir to the throne of the Khael Queens hid
amongst the Isles during the Winter Century, and the Palatian
Queen Audra the Voyager quested to the Isles of the Dawn
to bring her back to the Known World. The peoples of the
Blessed Isles, united in their worship of the Dawn Maiden, are
known as the friendliest in the World and claim to have never
known war or want.

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Adventures in the Known World

Palatian and Thulamite scouts in the Sea of Grass, seeking the Twilight Realms.

South across the Ulik Desert can be found the Queendom

of Sabuta, founded in the Golden Age by Oloma the Lioness, whose
daughters came to the aid of rne Dr and returned with refugees
from that lost land. Tales describe Sabuta as a land of wealth and
considerable mystery, sitting as it does in the almost unreachable
Mountains of Gold. Traders and adventurers brave the dangers of the
vast desert and desolate jungle coasts to reach its treasures, which are
guarded by the warrior-consorts of the legendary and beautiful Ivory
Queen of Sabuta.

Up the coast of the Golden Sea to the north are vast forested
isles and jagged coastlines held by the barbarian Panaghians. The Sea
Kings and Wood Kings have a temperament and lifestyle to match the
rough terrain of their homelands. Though given to hospitality, they are
a fickle, adventurous, and deeply passionate people with no law save
the rule of the strongest, and are just as likely to raid the Palatians, their
closest neighbors in the Known World, as trade with them.

Masked and armored hordes first began coming out of the far
north into the western Midlands about a hundred years ago; their vicious
raids forced the Thalyars to migrate to the southern Panoch Sea (and

Left to right: a Dawn Maiden Priestess from the Isles of the

Dawn, a Dawn Isles sailor, an Oracle Queen of Khael, an
Ennenite nomad from the Ulik desert, a Royal Guardsman of the
Ivory Queen of Sabuta, and a Panaghian raider.

The Known World Today

Lokhite warriors from the Twilight Realms.

into a series of wars with the Palatian provinces there), and soon brought
pressure on the Thulamite citadels of the Midlands. The Thulamite
Kings and Queens summoned Urech the Usurper, and showed him the
threat from the north. They entered into a great pact called the Stone
Treaty, and with their combined might were able to drive off the masked
barbarian hordes, who were discovered to call themselves the Lokhites,
from the Twilight Realms. These heartless and cruel barbarians worship
no gods but instead offer human sacrifices to demons, and some believe
they are the direst threat in the future of the Known World. They are
amassing again, but by report are raiding eastward against the Panaghians
now, rather than south against Palatia and the Thulamites.

To the west beyond the Midlands and the Thessid-Golan
Empire are the ancient lands of Samarappa. Once the seat of the
Celestial Court, Samarappa was a place of learning and culture to rival
rne Dr and the cities of the Gola, but the people of Samarappa
have suffered much over the centuries. Nymarga the Magician first came
to power in the Celestial Court, slew King Surep to take the throne,
and ruled it for a time. Samarappa was later twice conquered by the
Isliklids and their Dmghal warlords, and kept in abject subjugation.

Left to right: a Samarappan herbalist, a Samarappan noble from

Samar Kess, a Kessite Khan from Arkham Kess, a Kessite horse
archer from Jakat Kess, a Lokhite warlord, and a Califan sorcerer
from the household of the Emperor of the West.

And after the Isliklids left for the east, the

Kessite khans of the Valley of Hooves swept
down into Samarappa, and have ruled there
for over three hundred years. The people of
Samarappa and the nearby Spice Isles are
still considered some of the most beautiful
and cultured in the World, and the Kessite
horse-lords rule over a colorful land of
spices, music, and sensuous magic. Several
of the major Khanates, seeking naval aid
against the Empires fleets, have allied with
Palatia and now anchor the western end
of the Spice Road. A handful of Palatian
corsair captains are rumored to round the
cape of the Mountains of Gold and sail into
the Mera Verta to Kessite ports each year.
At the furthest reaches of the Far West on
the shores of the great Western Sea stands
the ancient realm of Califa and its decadent
Emperor, who is said to hold the Gates of
the Dusk for Dieva the Evening Star. Califa
is reputed to be vast, but no known map of
it exists, even in the Califan Emperors own Court, and some
say the geography of the realm is still not fixed in place. Every
member of the Califan Court is said to be a magician, and
some of the people of the Far West are said to have animal
heads. The Isliklidae served in the Califan Court for a dark
period in its history, and because of this the Usurper journeyed
there during the First War of the Road, seeking magic to use
against them. By rumor he passed through the Gates of the
Dusk seeking the Star Road to Yheras Palace in the Heavens
at the Califan Emperors urging. Travel far enough into the
Unknown, and the very borders of the World can be found,
the edges of time and space that lead to the Otherworld of
great spirits, the Celestial World of the Heavens, the worlds of
dream or nightmare, and the Underworld and secret Hells of
Genich; but then, a little bit of the Unknown World can be
found in every dark corner and hole in the Known, wherever
secrets still hide from the light of reason.

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69

The Known World Today

THE SHAPE OF THINGS TO COME

hat an Age is ending seems all but certain; enough prophets and oracles pronounce this
as truth every day to make even the most skeptical person consider the possibility. And
certainly many strange and troubling things are afoot:

The Sultan of Thessid-Gola has begun to stir, driven by his ambition to complete the
Emperors goals and restore the Golden Empire of Dauban Hess; some claim this will
awaken Akkalion and rouse him from his Gray Dream, or perhaps may even bring Dauban
Hess back from the east, returning him to his Empire in triumph after having found the
Dawn at last
The heralds of the Isliklidae are moving in the halls of power of the Empire with hidden
aims; their masters are dark memories of Isliks time on earth, and their purposes in coming
east and settling in the Dain duins have never been divined
The Lokhite barbarian hordes that have appeared out of the Unknown World to cast a long
and horned shadow over the north are spoken of by Thulamite and Palatian veterans with
fear and furtive glances; some say they are not even human, but are demons seeking human
sacrifices
The competing economic powers of the Mera Argenta are on a collision course: the merchant
Houses and ships of Palatia and the League of Cities and the Empire jostle over lucrative
trade routes, taking the treasures of the Unknown World and bringing them to the regions
teeming markets
The Cult of the Divine King still stands riven in two, between Sun and Phoenix, and both
Courts look with wary eye on the growing might of idolatrous Palatia Archaia, whose
strength and decadence embody the fear and fascination for the Old Religion that still runs
in Divine King lands
The Usurper has ruled Palatia for almost a century, blending the Old Religion with the stateof-the-art arms, armor, and ships of the Arsenal, while relying on the keen mind and sharp
scholarship of the Lord Mott; but increasingly the talk of the Lord Mott as the King-inWaiting can be heard in the streets of the city, and perhaps one day an assassin will succeed
where so many have failed before, and the Usurper will be dead, and his rule will turn out
to have been either but a pause in the Assassin Cycles, or a precursor to a mighty Empire of
Reason, or both
Awain, High King of Atallica and the Middle Kingdoms, is aging, and in the wings stands
the Crown Prince Edrick, a man of cavalier and indifferent attitudes about the niceties of
politics, and rumors are flowing that maps are appearing: maps to the true location of the
ruins of the Green Temple of An-Athair; maps to the Barrow of Githwaine, the Last Worm
King, and to the hiding place of his sword Ghavaurer; and maps to the hiding place of the
Throne Thief, where the thrones of the Middle Kingdoms await to be discovered
Three of the four Kings of the ancient Great Citadels of Daradja are plotting to reunite the
land for the first time in fourteen centuries, while the fourth, Gavagh of Heth Moll, turns
his worried eye to the west and the cursed lands of Lost Uthedmael
Things are stirring there, in the Wastes, and Black Seasons are coming more frequently, when
corpse eaters and ghosts climb over the Wall and the mountains to prey on the living
Plagues, wars, disasters, witch burnings, strange omens and nightmarish visions; each day
brings more troubling news to those that listen for such things
The Gray Dream is almost over, according to some, and everywhere hidden Cults
worshipping forbidden things and sating forbidden desires are spreading, and they all seem
to be whispering: something is coming, something strange and wonderful and never seen
before, and the Emperor knows what it is

Exploring the end of this Age of the Known World and the beginning of the next is the purpose
both of this game and of the Artesia series itself. Artesia daughter of Argante, the witch of AnAthair, and descended of the lineage of Arfane, the Queen of Ghosts, now become war captain to
King Branimir of Dara Dess is fated to have a hand in this; so too may you.

70

Adventures in the Known World

ADVENTURES IN THE KNOWN WORLD

CHARACTER SHEET PAGE 1
CHARACTER _________________________________________________ PLAYER __________________________________________
CULTURE ___________________________________________________ BIRTHPLACE _____________________________________
PARENTS SOCIAL LEVEL _____________________________________ CURRENT SOCIAL LEVEL __________________________
MOTHERS LINEAGE _____________________________________________ MOTHERS OCCUPATION ______________________
FATHERS LINEAGE _______________________________________________ FATHERS OCCUPATION _______________________
BIRTH SIGN _______________________ SIGN INFLUENCE ____________________________________________________________
BIRTH OMENS ___________________________________________________________________________________________________
SCORE
APP
STR
STAM
DEX
TECH
Body
SKILLS
Awareness
Persuasion
Athletics
Teaching
Local Expert
Etiquette
Wardrobe & Style
Hand-to-Hand
Evade
Native Tongue
Cult Lore

MODS

CHARACTERISTICS
SCORE
MODS
PER
WILL
MEM
IMAG
REAS
Mind

SCORE

MODS

WOUNDS

PRE
CONV
COUR
EMP
WIS
Base MOVE _____

Spirit

ENC Binding _____

Fatigue Binding _____

GIFTS

Current MOVE _____

BINDINGS

POLLUTION ________

ARCANA
MAGICIAN
G. PRIESTESS
EMPRESS
EMPEROR
G. PRIEST
LOVERS
HERMIT

PTS

THE BOOK OF DOOMS

ARCANA PTS
SWORD
JUSTICE
WHEEL
STRENGTH
HANGED MAN
DEATH
TEMPERANCE

ARCANA
SPHINX
RIVEN TOWER
STARS
MOON
SUN
L. JUDGMENT
WORLD
FOOL

PTS

ADVENTURES IN THE KNOWN WORLD

CHARACTER SHEET PAGE 2

MAGIC & BOOKS

MEM

WEAPON/SHIELD

M/S

Damage

ARMOR

Reach

CUT

PCT

Block

WT

IMP

WT

OVERALL
EXPOSED
WEAK
STRONG
RELATIONS

INVOCATIONS

POSSESSIONS

WT

FREE MEM _______

PTS

TOTAL WT. CARRIED _______

COINS

your LifePath
YEAR OF BIRTH _________ CHILDHOOD ____________________________________________________________________________
AGE
YEAR
OCCUPATION
EVENT
HISTORY/NOTES
16

PLAYING
THE GAME

s mentioned in the introduction, this book, Artesia:

Adventures in the Known World (hereafter referred to
as Artesia AKW), is a roleplaying game. In it, you can
take on the persona and guise of characters in the Known World,
struggling to affect the fate of the world around them. This
notion might lead to some questions:
What is a Roleplaying Game?
A roleplaying game lets you pretend to be a Character in a story,
much like being in a play. Each player takes the role of a different
Character in the story, making the decisions and saying the things
that the Character would say in the situations that happen along
the way. One player, the Guide, acts like the author or director of
the play; he sets the stage, telling the players where they are, what
is happening, and what other Characters in the story (called NonPlayer Characters, or NPCs) are saying and doing. The Guide
guides the action but does not control it; the results of the game
depend both on the players and the Guide. Roleplaying is a form
of shared, collaborative storytelling, with the rules along to make
sure everyones on the same page.
How do I play?
In a game using the Artesia AKW rules, one player becomes the
Guide and decides the specific setting of the adventure, the rules
to be used, and any starting restrictions for the other players
Characters. The other players get their Characters ready based
on what the Guide tells them about the rules and the adventures
in total, the campaign that they are about to run. The Guide
either gives you a Character, lets you pick one thats already been
written up, or lets you create one.
What else does the Guide do?
The Guide prepares a story (or uses one already written for him
in a pre-published adventure book), and begins to tell the players
what their Characters see and hear, and starts asking the players
what their Characters will do next. When something comes up
where the result isnt obvious (like whether or not you hit someone
or whether you can pick a lock), the Guide also adjudicates what
the result will be, based on the rules youre reading now.
How do I be a Guide?
The best way to understand how to be a Guide is simply through
trial and error. Read through the rules completely, and read
through the campaign setting provided. Theres also an adventure
at the end of the book to get you started. The most important
part is to be a good storyteller to try and vividly describe the
world you are guiding people through, and to pose problems or
situations that will challenge your players to do their best.
Almost as important is the need for you as a Guide to be an
impartial judge of the rules and the effects of the game on your
players. Remember; if you arent interesting and you arent fair,
no ones going to want to play in your games

74

Adventures in the Known World

THINGS YOU MIGHT NEED

TO PLAY THIS GAME

In addition to the rules and scenarios, Characters and people to play

them, there are some other things that might come in handy to help
play this game.
Dice: Like most roleplaying games, Artesia AKW requires the use
of dice. Dice allow you to apply random chance when a Character
attempts to do something according to the rules. The primary kind
of dice used in Artesia AKW is a ten-sided dice that generates a
number between 1 and 10 (sometimes marked as 0 on the dice,
and sometimes as 10). A ten-sided die is referred to in the text of
these rules as a d10, so if you see an instruction or suggestion to roll
d10+2, then that should be read as roll a ten-sided dice plus 2
and would sure enough mean to roll a ten-sided die and then add 2,
giving a final number between 3 and 12. If you see an instruction
or suggestion to roll 2d10, then that should be read as roll two
ten-sided die and would mean to roll a ten-sided die twice and add
the results together, giving a final number between 2 and 20. Other
kinds of dice commonly used in the game include 6-sided die (d6),
twelve-sided die (d12), and twenty-sided die (d20). A bit more rare
in this game but still commonly available are four-sided die (d4) and
eight-sided die (d8). You can also use these basic dice to generate
other random number samples; for example, a six-sided die can also
be used to generate a number between 1 and 3 by dividing the actual
number rolled and rounding up, so that a 1 or a 2 becomes a 1, a 3
or a 4 becomes a 2, or a 5 or a 6 becomes a 3. Finally, the last dicerelated number concept is generating a number between 1 and 100;
while rarely called for in these rules, its still a handy trick to know. In
case a d100 roll is called for, you can roll a ten-sided dice twice, with
the first roll representing the 10s and the second roll representing the
1s. So if you rolled a 6 and a 4, the first roll would be read as 60 and
the second as 4 and the two added together to get 64. A 10 or a 0
is read as a 0, so that a roll of 10 and 6 on two ten-sided die is read
as totaling 6 (0 + 6). The exception to that is a roll of 00 a ten on
both d10s which is read as 100.
Paper: Lots of paper. Handy kinds of paper to have around include
big sheets of paper for maps (graph paper with grids can be quite
helpful for keeping track of scale, or hex paper with hexes on them)
or for battle boards (see below), and paper for keeping notes. Then of
course stuff to write on the paper with.
Time: Roleplaying games can take a lot of time, so try to set aside as
much time as you and the other players can afford
Miniatures: Sometimes it can be helpful when playing a roleplaying
game to use small markers to help indicate where your Character
is in relation to other Characters and NPCs. Large pieces of paper
can be used to draw out a detailed region to scale (say, the entrance
to a temple, or the room of a castle) as a battle board and then
the markers can be placed and moved around on the board to help
you keep track of where everyone is; this can be especially crucial
in combat, when a step or two to the left or right can make a big
difference. The favorite kind of marker for many players is a small
miniature figurine, usually made of lead or plastic, to help represent
and visualize a Character.

Character Basics

PART ONE:
CHARACTER
BASICS

E
Or, how we play.

oleplaying is a form of shared storytelling in which you enter a

story created for you by your Guide, the outcome of which you
can affect through your actions and choices and behavior as a
Player. The persona you take in the game is your Character its a role
that you are playing. The narrative is not fixed by a single author but
is determined by the interaction of the Guide and the Players. Those
interactions need rules, however, so that you and the Guide know how
the world and story that you share works, and what your Characters can
do in that world and story. You interact with your surroundings and with
other Characters either other Players Characters (PCs, for short), or
Non-Player Characters (NPCs) controlled by the Guide through both
dialogue (simulated between you and the other Players and the Guide,
each pretending to speak for your respective Characters) and actions.
The dialogue in the game is essentially a form of dramatic improvisation,
and doesnt really require a lot of rules. But actions, on the other hand,
since they are really only occurring in our imaginations, have to have
rules so you and the Guide can agree on whether a Characters actions
succeed or fail. Each Character is therefore described through four
basic categories of names and numbers: Characteristics, Skills, Gifts,
and Bindings.
Characteristics:
Your Characteristics compare and measure a
particular facet or ability of your Character in relation to everyone
else in the universe. All people and creatures can be described using
Characteristics. Characteristics are generally rated from 1 to 10 but can
go higher based on a characters background and development in the
game, and they describe your most basic and elemental building blocks:

your Body, Mind, and Spirit, the things that make you who
you are. This lets you compare one person to another, which
is often important in the game. For instance, a person with a
Characteristic of 5 might be better off in that category than a
person with a Characteristic of 4, but not as good as a person
with a Characteristic of 6. Your Characteristics will be tested in
the course of your adventures.
Skills: Your Skills measure your learned or acquired specialties,
talents, abilities, or knowledge sets; these are the things you
learn to do in school, on the job, or as a result of day-to-day life.
For example, you might have a Skill in Swimming, measuring
how good you are at swimming in and under the water, or a
Skill in Oratory, reflecting how good you are at public speaking.
Skills are combined with Characteristics to give you a chance of
successfully completing a task or Test, and Tests of your Skills
will be common throughout the Game. Skills begin at 1 and
go higher, with 10 indicating a high level of mastery; but as
with Characteristics there is no actual limit to how high a Skill
can go.
Gifts: Your Gifts are boons, abilities, and powers that other
people dont necessarily share, and that therefore give you an
advantage in the cosmos. A Gift gives you a bonus when you
attempt certain actions or face certain Tests using your Skills and
Characteristics, or a Gift can cause an effect in other Characters
or in the world around you. For example, you might have the
Gift of an Enlightened Tongue, which gives you a bonus when
you try to convince other people to do something by using
logic and rationality, or you could have a Gift like Terrifying
Mask that makes other people afraid of you when you use it. A
Gift can come from many places, but most likely comes from
inheriting it as part of your Lineage; receiving it from some sort
of divine force; or earning it through your experience, through
your actions on the paths of the Arcana, the symbolic paths of
power in the Known World. Gifts begin at a level of 1 and go
higher.
Bindings: Your Bindings are burdens, flaws, obligations, and
curses that make things more difficult for your Character, giving
you a penalty when you attempt certain actions or use certain
Skills and Characteristics. Bindings are a natural part of life,
and almost everyone has one or another at some point in their
life; for example, you might have a Binding of Hate Imperials,
which would be triggered anytime you tried to deal with
someone from the Empire of Thessid-Gola, and which would
give you a penalty on your attempts at interacting with them
socially. Bindings can come from your Cultural background,
your Lineage, or your life experience and events in the game;
many Bindings result from curses, magic, or interaction with
other Characters Gifts or the supernatural. Bindings begin at a
level of 1 and can go higher.
In addition, youll also want to keep track of the Incantations,
Rituals, and Invocations you know; your Social Level and
your Relations to other people and the Gods; your Characters
Possessions, including your armor, weapons, and enchanted
items, if any; and your experience on the paths of the Arcana.
Therell be more on all of these later.

Adventures in the Known World

75

Character Basics

YOUR Characteristics

Your Characteristics measure your Body, Mind, and Spirit. There are five basic Characteristics in each category, and these basic Characteristics are
totaled to give you a final number representing your strength of Body, Mind, and Spirit. These Characteristics, 18 in total, might seem like a lot
to keep track of; but with practice and use it should get easier to remember them. You begin the game with default Characteristics of 5, which is
assumed to be the human average.

Physical
Characteristics
The five Characteristics that measure your Body
are Appearance, Strength, Stamina, Dexterity,
and Technique.
Appearance (APP): Your physical appearance
and form at its most reductive, this is a measure
of how attractive you appear to other people (no
one likes to admit that this is important, but it is),
but this also entails how well formed your body
is as a measure of your overall physical shape.
This Characteristic could just as easily be termed
Form, but well use Appearance as a less abstract
concept.
Strength (STR): Your muscle mass and how
effective it is for exerting force. The higher your
strength, the more you can lift, drag, etc., and the
more powerful the blows you can strike with your
hands or with weapons.
Stamina (STAM): A measure of your endurance,
and how healthy you are, how resistant to shock
effects, poisons and disease. You can be a really
big, tough, strong guy and still get winded by
running a short distance if you havent worked on
your endurance as well as your muscles.
Dexterity (DEX): Your gracefulness and agility, as
pertains to balancing, leaping, jumping, combat
and other athletic activities. In standard Fuzion
this would be either the Dexterity or Reflexes
Characteristic, so it also covers your response time
and coordination. Perhaps most importantly, this
Characteristic is the standard used to hit things
and avoid being hit.
Technique (TECH): Your ability to manipulate
tools or instruments (including at times your own
body), to use your hands to create and manipulate
objects. This is not quite the same thing as
reflexes, as this also covers the knack of using tools
and applying skills; but some element of handeye-body coordination and a measure of physical
precision is indeed involved here.
Your five Physical Characteristics add up to your
Body (BODY) Characteristic. In other RPGs
this would be your Hit Points, the total measure
of your current physical condition. When youre
hurt, either by combat or by some other action
in the World, you take damage to your Body
Characteristic. Sometimes you can take damage
directly to a Physical Characteristic, too. If your
Body drops below 0, you fall unconscious. If
your Body falls well below 0, you may die (more
on this later). In Artesia AKW, your Body
characteristic is also the basis of your speed; when
added to your Athletics Skill, it represents the base

76

Adventures in the Known World

number of feet you can move in a single phase.

Yes, this does mean that your Appearance and
Technique Characteristics impact your movement;
Appearance here contributes a measure of how
well your overall form functions, and Technique
complements Dexterity to help round out the
measurement of your reflexes and coordination.

Mental
Characteristics
The five Characteristics that measure your
Mind are Perception, Willpower, Memory,
Imagination, and Reason.
Perception (PER): Your ability to observe details
and nuances in the world and people around
you. This is primarily the physical aspects of
perception, such as keen eyesight or hearing. Your
Perception gives you surface clues to other peoples
behavior, while your Empathy and Wisdom give
you insights into their inner motivations.
Willpower (WILL): Your determination and
discipline. This Characteristic represents your
strength of Mind, your ability to remain focused
in the face of distractions.
Memory (MEM): Your ability to remember
things. You can be very intelligent but still be
forgetful (think of the archetype of the absentminded professor, someone of high intellect who
cant remember where he put that one important
book).
Imagination (IMAG): Your ability to think
creatively. As opposed to Reason, your Imagination
is what allows you to think in a clichd phrase
popular at the moment outside the box. This
is your ability to create new things and ideas, as
opposed to your ability to understand an idea that
already exists.
Reason (REAS): Your ability to think critically,
to analyze and process information or ideas that
already exist. Essentially, this is how bright you
are. As a rule, this is more than sheer intelligence,
but also includes cleverness, mental awareness,
critical thinking, and your ability to learn. Mental
deficiencies for a low score dont become apparent
until you hit the 1-2 range.
Your five Mental Characteristics add up to your
Mind (Mind) Characteristic. This measures your
current mental condition and your sanity. You can
have your Mind be affected by stress, shock, magic,
or even a physical attack, and damage can also be
done directly to your Mental Characteristics. If
your Mind drops below 0, you fall unconscious.
Drop far enough below 0, and you may die (more
on this later).

Spiritual
Characteristics
The five Characteristics that measure your Spirit
are Presence, Conviction, Courage, Empathy,
and Wisdom.
Presence (PRE): Your ability to impress and
influence people through your temperament and
charisma; how well you get along with others; how
you come across in social situations. Many people
might appear attractive but be ugly and unpleasant
in Spirit; others might be ugly in appearance, but
have a sweet disposition and winning personality.
Conviction (CONV): Your faith in your ideas,
beliefs, and Gods. Many people pay lip service
to principles or to deities; this Characteristic
measures how well you walk the walk. This is
important for successfully invoking the Gods in
prayer and ritual.
Courage (COUR): Your inner strength and ability
to face danger and/or stress. This Characteristic
represents your nerve, bravery, and cool, and gets
tested a lot in combat and when facing ghosts and
spirits.
Empathy (EMP): Your ability to understand
where other people are coming from and what
theyre going through, to sympathize with their
situations.
Presence measures your charm;
Empathy measures your sensitivity to other people
and can sometimes lead to more lasting and deeper
relations than your Presence. A person might be
quite charming, but still be cold-hearted.
Wisdom (WIS): Your insight and intuition, the
measure of your deeper spiritual understanding of
the world and your fellow man. Your Wisdom
measures how well attuned you are to the world
around you, to the things going on underneath
the surface of the cosmos. Empathy, for example,
can tell you that someone is hurting; Wisdom can
often reveal why they are hurting.
Your five Spiritual Characteristics add up to your
Spirit (Spirit) Characteristic. This measures your
current spiritual condition, and during the course
of your adventures magic, spirits, ghosts, or ill
fortune can all affect your Spirit or one of your
Spiritual Characteristics. If your Spirit falls below
0, you fall unconscious and may become open
to possession by immaterial and Otherworldly
creatures such as Spirits (q.v.). If your Spirit
falls well below 0, your Spirit may die, possibly
leaving a possessed or animated and dangerous
undead corpse (more on this later).

Character Basics

6-7 Points: Able. Most healthy adults have one or two Characteristics
that fall into this range. This indicates a fairly average persons typical
strengths.

developed individually should you so choose. For example, the

Trade Skill of Shepherding is a Skill that includes the Specialties
of Camping, Herding, and Animal Handling. So if you know
the Shepherding Skill, you can be assumed to know a bit about
camping outdoors, herding livestock, and the basics of animal
handling. But you might want to know more about, say, Herding,
than about the other aspects of Shepherding, and so if you want
you may develop it as a Specialty. But you dont have to; its just
an option to help detail your Character even further should you
want to do so.

Some Specialties can be part of more than one general
Skill. For example, Camping is a Specialty that is part of the
Campaigning, Fieldcraft, and Shepherding General Skills, since all
of those general Skills involve a Character spending time outdoors,
sometimes for long stretches. But theres only one Camping
Specialty Skill; there isnt a Campaigning Camping Skill and a
Fieldcraft Camping Skill and a Shepherding Camping Skill,
theres just Camping. So if you develop a Camping Specialty,
you can use it with any of the general Skills to which its usually
associated without penalty.

Technically speaking, you can develop a Specialty on its
own, without developing one of the general Skills that it belongs
to, but most Characters will benefit from first developing an
overall general Skill first before going on to develop a Specialty
(the reason will become apparent in later discussions of how you
improve your Skills through Training and Experience).

8-9 Points: Strong. This indicates a strong level in this ability. Most
ordinary people would not have a Characteristic at this high a level.

CAP SKILLS

10 Points: Phenomenal. A Characteristic at this value would indicate

a stunning example of human capabilities.

Some Skills are Cap Skills Skills that act as limits on the Levels
of other Skills that you can use at a given moment. Sometimes
you will be using two Skills at once, and one of those Skills will
usually act as a Cap on the other Skill. For example, Riding is a
common Cap Skill; its very difficult to perform complex actions
on horseback, so your Riding Skill acts as a Cap on your use of
other Skills when youre on a horse (or a camel or other riding
mount). So if you have a Riding Skill of 3, then any other Skill
that you tried to use while riding around on horseback (from
Melee Combat to Oratory) would be limited to the same Skill
Level 3, even if under other circumstances you were much
better at it. In some cases your Guide may rule that some Skills
are impossible to use with certain Cap Skills or under certain
circumstances (for example, trying to forge a sword while riding
around on a horse is clearly impossible).

The various languages of the Known World and the Skill
of Writing are also common Cap Skills; your Spoken Languages
Skills are a Cap on your verbal Social and Performance Skill
Tests, and your Writing Skills are a Cap on any Skill involving
the production or comprehension of written materials.

P HOW GOOD IS GOOD?

All of your Characteristics are assumed to begin at a default

value of 5, which represents the average Characteristic value of an
adult in the Known World.
Less than 1 Point: If you have less than one point in a Characteristic,
youre either dead or something really strange has happened to you.
1-2 Points: Weak. This is an indication of a fairly serious deficiency
in this ability. A character with 1-2 points in a Characteristic is likely
to face serious challenges when called on to use it.
3-4 Points: Low. This is reality on the mundane side. People in
this range are generally out of shape, unremarkable, and not super
bright, but they can get along in everyday life just fine. Many
ordinary characters in the Known World are likely to have some
Characteristics in this value range. Its enough to get by on and to do
most things (though not very unusual or stressful tasks).
5 Points: Average. This is the bedrock average for the Known
World, and typical people will have a value of 5 points in most of
their Characteristics. Your Character begins the LifePath Character
Generation process with a 5 in all Characteristics.

More than 10 Points: Heroic. This is a level that very few ever
reach, indicating divine parentage, enormous luck, hard work, or the
blessings of the cosmos. At this point, you have essentially crossed
into the realm of the supernatural.

your Skills
In addition to your Characteristics, you will begin building your Skills
while creating your Character. Skills are things you know or can do;
they represent your level of knowledge and accomplishment. Skills,
like Characteristics, are measured from 1 to 10 but can go higher
through diligence and luck. You begin with 0 Levels in almost all Skills
(except your native language, which you start with Skill Level equal
to your MEM), but you get to add Skill Levels during the LifePath
process of Character creation and then may also increase them during
the game itself. You use your Skills and Skill Levels in combination
with your Characteristics to attempt to successfully complete a task
or overcome a test or obstacle. In regular Fuzion, there are dozens of
Skills divided into nine basic Skill Categories, but in Artesia AKW,
there are only eight Categories: Awareness Skills, Body Skills, Fighting
Skills, Social Skills, Performance Skills, Trade Skills, Scholarly Skills,
and Lore Skills. More info will follow in the Skill Descriptions on the
next page.

SKILL SPECIALTIES
Some Skills have Specialties that are part of the overall Skill but can be

P SPECIALTIES & CAPS AS

OPTIONS

While the rules will continue to assume youre using both

Specialty and Cap Skills, the author notes that both rules add
a complicating layer to Skill use in the game. Your Guide may
choose to simplify matters by ignoring the Specialty and Cap
rules in their particular campaigns, so check with your Guide
first to find out if you are using those rules, or if there are other
House Rules theyve added.

Adventures in the Known World

77

Character Basics

YOUR SKILLS

Compiled on the next couple of pages after this introduction to Skills are descriptions of the basic skills in Artesia AKW. They are listed and
organized by Skill Category. Most of these Skills are hopefully self-explanatory. A handy List is provided in the back of the book for reference
purposes. Skills named in italics have Specialties; Skills listed in all capitals are, well, Cap Skills.

AWARENESS SKILLS
These Skills measure your awareness of your
environment and ability to noticing clues in the
people and places you observe. They are most
often combined with your PER Characteristic.
Awareness
This is your awareness of the world around you, your
skill at observing or detecting clues in your environment
through your senses. This will be one of the most
commonly used Skills for most Characters. In addition
to the straightforward use of Awareness in determining
the nature of your surroundings (through PER and your
five senses), you can also use it to evaluate the emotions
of other people (with EMP), the reasonableness or
wisdom of a plan of action or a proposal or a claim (with
REAS or WIS). Awareness is also a Cap Skill that can be
used with other Skills if you wish to evaluate an object or
an action. For example, if you want to make a guess at
how good a swordsman a prospective opponent is, you
could make a PER/Melee Skill Test with an Awareness
Cap while watching him fence; if youre trying to figure
out how much a particular piece of jewelry is worth,
you could try a PER/Craftwork Skill Test with an
Awareness Cap, or perhaps a PER/Commerce Skill Test
with an Awareness Cap. Awareness Specialties: Seeing,
Listening, Tasting, Searching, Smelling.
Follow
This is your skill at shadowing someone on the move
without being detected. Anyone can walk down the street
right behind someone else if youre just going to be
obvious about it; this is being able to do it without them
ever realizing youre there.
Track
This is your skill at following a trail by observing tracks,
marks, broken twigs, and so forth. Unlike the Follow
Skill, which relies on keeping your target within sight,
Track allows you to follow a trail of inadvertent clues
that someone has left behind (or those left on purpose,
for that matter), even if youve never actually laid eyes on
the person youre tracking.
Watch
This is your skill at conducting surveillance on a place or
a person that is in a fixed location without being detected.
Simply observing a place or person without caring
whether they notice you or not is handled by a simple
Awareness test; the Watch Skill is watching something or
someone without them realizing theyre being watched.
You can watch a hideout, a potential target, a group of
spies in a meeting, etc.

BODY SKILLS

These Skills involve physical tasks, feats of

strength, endurance, and other physical activities,
and will usually be combined with Physical
Characteristics.
Acrobatics
This is your skill at performing flips and rolls like a circus
acrobat. It does not mean you are or were in the circus,
just that you could be, if you wanted to.

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Athletics
This is your basic physical skill, reflecting your body
control and development. In addition to using Athletics
as a regular Skill, Athletics is also added to your Body
score to determine your basic MOVE score. Specialties:
Running, Jumping, Climbing, Throwing, Rowing,
Sport (by type and Culture).
Contortionist
This is the ability to manipulate your body to get out
of ropes and similar bonds. You may also contort your
body to fit into generally inaccessible places or spaces.
Riding
This skill enables you to ride a living creature under
difficult circumstances. A Riding Skill must be
developed for each basic type of riding animal (usually
a horse, camel, or elephant in the Far West), though
they are also considered related Skills. Its a Cap Skill,
as doing other things while youre trying to control a
mount can be difficult. A Skill Level of 4 or higher
allows you to Aim a missile weapon from horseback.
Stealth
This is the skill of hiding in shadows, moving silently
or avoiding detection in most situations. Use this Skill
to sneak up on people and set ambushes. This Skill
applies when youre trying to be stealthy outside of
the Awareness Skills of Follow and Watch, which have
elements of Stealth in them. Its a Cap Skill when youre
trying to perform another task without being noticed;
for example, if youre trying to wriggle out of the bonds
youve been placed in without the guards noticing, your
Contortionist Skill would be Capped by your Stealth
Skill.
Swimming
This is your skill at moving in the water. More
information about swimming can be found in the
Environments section.

FIGHTING SKILLS

These Skills measure your abilities at fighting

in combat, with or without melee weapons, or
at using a ranged weapon such as a bow. Every
weapon category can be considered a possible
Specialty, and then used in combination with
various Fighting Skills. For example, if you learn
the Sword Specialty, you can use it with either
your Close Order or Melee Skills, depending on
how you are fighting. See the Combat Rules for
more information about using these Skills.
Armor Training
This is your skill at moving while in cumbersome armor;
your Skill Level reduces the penalties for heavy armor.
More information can be found in the section on Armor
and Weight.
Close Order
This Skill allows you to fight while in a formation with
others who have the same Skill, as part of an organized
military unit; this gives you an advantage with Reach
Weapons and Shields.
Specialties: Axe/hammer,

Poleaxe, Club, Dagger, Shield, Sword, Spear, Pike,

Two-Weapon Fighting.
Evade
This is your basic skill at getting out of the way of
someone who is trying to hit you. This skill may be
used for defense when someone is attacking you using
the Hand-to-Hand, Close Order, Melee Combat,
Marksmanship, or Skirmishing Skills.
Hand-to-Hand
This is your basic skill at fighting with your hands and
other body parts. Animals may use the Hand-to-Hand
Skill as well. Specialties: Punch, Kick, Grapple, Claw
(for nonhumans), Bite.
Marksmanship
This is the basic skill of ranged combat, used for striking
a target from a distance. Specialties; Archery, Crossbow,
Sling, Javelin, Thrown Axe, Thrown Dagger, Thrown
Spear.
Melee
This is your basic skill of weapons use and training and
experience in mortal combat. Specialties: Axe/Hammer,
Poleaxe, Club, Dagger, Flail, Shield, Sword, Twohanded Sword, Spear, Rapier, Two-Weapon Fighting.
Siege Artillery
This is your skill at operating and firing large weapons
of war, usually as part of team; while this is considered
a Fighting Skill it largely involves the manipulation of
large machines and calculations about distance and
velocity. Use this primarily with TECH and REAS.
Specialties: Ballista, Trebuchet, Catapult, Gunnery.
Skirmishing
This Skill allows you to fight at a distance alongside
others who have the same Skill, keeping your distance
from an enemy during combat while part of a team or
unit; this gives you an advantage in Ranged Combat.
Specialties: Archery, Crossbow, Sling, Javelin, Thrown
Axe, Thrown Dagger, Thrown Spear.

SOCIAL SKILLS

These Skills measure your aptitudes in

communicating with others, avoiding social
blunders, and showing style and grace.
Etiquette
This is your understanding of whats appropriate and
inappropriate in a particular Culture. As the standards
of different Cultures regarding what constitutes proper
behavior vary a bit, you have to learn this Skill anew for
each Culture. Some Cultures will have Etiquettes that
are fairly close, allowing you to use a related Etiquette at
a penalty (see Situational Modifiers Table). For example,
all Sun Court Divine King Cultures (Auria, Dania, the
Watchtower Coasts, the Sun Court of Illia, Amora,
and the Hemapoline League) have a similar basis of
Etiquette, and so Etiquette in one Culture can be used
as a related Skill in other such Cultures. The various
Cultures of the Empire of Thessid-Gola can all be
considered to have related Etiquettes, as can the various
parts of the Palatian sphere of influence. Etiquette is a

Character Basics
common complementary Skill, used to improve the use
of other Social Skills.
Inquiry
This is your skill at getting information from other people.
Use this Skill whenever youre trying to get information
out of someone directly (as opposed to the Awareness
Skill, which you could use to gather information about
someone through observation). Using STR with this
Social Skill would indicate the administration of physical
abuse or torture to get someone to reveal information.
Intrigue
This is your skill and knowledge of how to influence
individuals and organizations secretly, and how to plan
and organize clandestine operations. Youll probably
use this most often with REAS or IMAG to analyze,
anticipate, or cook up a plot; you might use a PER/
Intrigue Test to detect the stirrings of a plot against
you, perhaps Capped by your Awareness Skill if youre
actually trying to pick up cues between conspirators.
Leadership
This is your skill at getting people to follow you and
act as a group. Most Characters will lead through
looks (APP), charisma (PRE), reason (REAS), empathy
(EMP), conviction (CONV), or wisdom (WIS); some
will insist on using STR to lead others, which once
again involves coercing and physically abusing others
to get them to obey you. This might be problematic
as regards both Morale and Loyalty; see the sections on
Your Relations and Loyalty Tests, following this.
Persuasion
This is your skill at convincing, persuading, or influencing
other individuals. Persuasion is a one-on-one Skill,
while Leadership and Oratory are Skills best used with
groups. This is another Skill that Characters will use
frequently. Once again, using your STR to persuade
someone indicates physically abusing or threatening
them to get them to agree with you. See the section on
Your Relations, following this.
Seduction
This is your skill at achieving influence or a goal by
offering, or seeming to offer, companionship or sexual
favors. This is most often used with APP and PRE, but
other Characteristics can be used as well.
Streetwise
This is your knowledge of the seamy side of civilization:
how to find the black market, talk to thugs with streetappropriate slang, gain illicit information, and so on.
Teaching
This is your skill at imparting information or training
to others. For more information on the use of the
Teaching Skill, see the Training & Experience Section
of the Book.
Wardrobe & Style
This is the grasp of fashion, wardrobe, and personal
grooming as appropriate to a particular Culture. As
with Etiquette, each Culture has its own peculiarities
about dress and fashion so you have to learn this Skill
anew for a new Culture. Some Cultures might well also
have Specialties for Sub-Cultures of Style, particularly in
urban regions where fashions come and go more quickly
than in the countryside. This Skill is frequently used as
a complementary Skill to make a good first impression,
and may be a Cap Skill, if you are dealing with someone
sensitive to appearance.

PERFORMANCE SKILLS

These Skills measure your training and aptitude

in acting, musicianship, singing, makeup or other
performance arts. When you are performing an
already prepared work (either something that
you created previously or that someone else
made), then two rolls should be made: first a
complementary MEM-based roll to make sure
you remember it properly, and then a second roll
for the effectiveness of the actual performance
itself.
Acting
This is the skill of assuming a role or character, faking
moods or emotions, or hiding your identity. Its both
a technical Skill, in the sense of theatrical training and
stagecraft, but also a more general Skill in that it can also
just mean that youre a good liar.
Composition
This measures your skill at putting words together
in new ways, to create new kinds of creative works
involving words. If youre going to create a new song to
sing, for example, you have to compose it first with this
Skill before you use the Singing Skill. If youre making
a speech before a crowd, as with the Oratory Skill, you
might want to in effect compose an Essay first, which
becomes the text of your speech, though you can always
speak extemporaneously. Composition is usually used
with IMAG. Specialties: Poetry, Epic, Essay, Song,
Ballad, Theater.
Dancing
This is your skill at moving with grace and to music.
Many Cultures of the Known World have a variety
of dancing styles, usually divided into Folk Dances
(performed by commoners) and Courtly Dances
(performed by nobles and aristocrats). Specialties: Folk
Dancing (by Culture), Courtly Dancing (by Culture).
Disguise
This is your skill at changing your physical appearance
through make-up, wardrobe, and behavior. This should
be used primarily with TECH; a MEM/Disguise Test
might allow you to make yourself up to look like
someone else that you once saw.
Musicianship
This is your skill at playing musical instruments, both
alone and with a group. Primarily thisll be used with
TECH (for technical proficiency), IMAG (to make up
a new song), or EMP (to tug someones heartstrings
with your playing). Specialties: Pipes, Drums, Horns,
Harps, Fiddles.

Sleight of Hand
This represents your ability at skillful hand and finger
manipulations, so as to palm items, fool the eye, perform
tricks, etc. The Sleight of Hand Skill should be used
mostly with TECH. This Skill is not Capped by Stealth,
as a degree of stealth is already involved.
Storytelling
This is your skill at telling a story in an entertaining way
and holding the attention of your audience. PRE (to
hold your audience with charisma), MEM (to remember
a story just right), and EMP (to sway with emotions)
are once again primary Characteristics to combine with
your Storytelling Skill.

TRADE SKILLS

These Skills measure your training and aptitude in

vocational skills and craftsmanship. Most of these
Skills will be primarily used with your TECH
Characteristic.
Animal Training
This represents the skills of animal handling, training,
and care. Training horses for riding and dogs and hawks
to guard and hunt are the primary uses of this Skill. All
training tasks are considered Opposed Rolls, pitting
your Animal Training Skill against the animals WILL
roll. Tasks involving danger to the animal for example,
training a War Horse or training an attack dog should
be considered Really Hard Tests. Specialties: Falconry,
Animals by Species.
Artistry
This is your general level of artistry and your artistic
sensibility. This is a Cap Skill, used whenever you are
trying to make or do something aesthetically pleasing.
It is most suitably used to Cap the use of Skills like
Blacksmithing, Craftwork, Drawing, Engineering,
Housework, and Writing, but can also be combined
with Performance Skills such as Acting, Composition,
Dancing, Musicianship, Singing, and Storytelling. Most
unusually, Artistry can also be applied to Fighting Skills
(see the Combat Rules).
Blacksmithing
This is your skill at working metals at the forge.
Specialties: Armoring, Weaponsmithing.

Oratory
This is your skill at speech making and public speaking,
addressing an audience and delivering a convincing
presentation based on rhetoric. Success with this Skill
can change peoples minds and sway them to your cause.
Usually its used with PRE (to inspire and charm) or
perhaps REAS (to convince with logic).
Singing
This is the skill of using your voice for musical
performance and entertainment. Use this Skill primarily
with PRE, which perhaps best represents the ephemeral
qualities inherent in most singers, though EMP (to tug
someones heartstrings with your singing) is also a useful
Characteristic.

Blacksmiths at work; note a small fire

elemental in the foreground.

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79

Character Basics
Campaigning
Your skill at moving long distances through harsh terrain
as part of a group. This Skill is usually learned in military
or paramilitary contexts, and is similar to Fieldcraft but
should be considered more limited. If you have the
Campaigning Skill, then you are comfortable on the
move, and can rough it on the march, forage for food
when necessary and set up defended and sometimes
hidden camps. If you have the Fieldcraft Skill, youre a
woodsman. Specialties: Camping, Cooking, Foraging,
Camouflage, Teamstering.
Craftwork
This is your handiness with the construction and repair
of a wide range of material objects. Most crafters will
specialize in something; its very rare to find a true
general craftsman. A general craftsman is usually called
a jack-of-all-trades. Specialties: Metalwork, Woodwork,
Ceramics, Clothwork, Tailoring, Leatherwork,
Masonry, Wainwrighting, Glassblowing, Perfumery.
Drawing
This is your skill at creating and recreating twodimensional images. Forgery is a Really Hard Test of
your Drawing Skill. Specialties: Painting, Illumination,
Cartography, Printmaking.
Engineering
This is your understanding of mechanics and your skill
at building. This includes both the design elements of
construction and the grunt work of knowing how to
translate someones design into an actual structure with
your hands and tools. This should be used most often
with IMAG (when trying to create a new design), PER
or REAS (if trying to understand or duplicate a design
that someone else has created), or TECH (when youre
actually building something). Specialties: Mechanics,
Clockworks, Mining, Construction, Shipbuilding.
Farmwork
This is your skill at growing crops, handling domestic
animals, and working on a farm. This is probably one of
the most widely known Skills of all. Specialties: Animal
Handling, Herding, Teamstering, Gardening, Farming,
Brewing, Winemaking, Cheesemaking.
Fieldcraft
This represents your general outdoors skills. With this
Skill you can live off the land, find food and water, identify
dangerous plants and animals, and so on. Specialties:
Camping, Cooking, Foraging, Fishing, Trapping,
Orienteering, and by Environment: Woodcraft, Rivercraft, Desert-craft, Mountaineering.
Gambling & Gaming
This is your knowledge of games that require some skill,
such as dice, blackjack, poker, chess or checkers. This
Skill includes Specialties for any game of chance or skill
(not including Sports, which are Athletic Specialties)
in the Known World. Cheating at most such games is
most properly the realm of the Sleight of Hand Skill.
Specialties: by Game.
Healing Arts
This skill enables you to stop someone bleeding, heal
wounds, treat diseases, and generally keep someone
alive. More information on its use can be found in the
Combat Rules section.
House Keeping
This is your skill at running and maintaining a household
or business and its records, if any. This Skill does not

80

Adventures in the Known World

refer to the actual physical trade of cleaning a house as

a physical structure (most properly contained in the
Housework Skill), but refers instead to the administrative
and interpersonal skills necessary to managing a staff
and tracking income, expenses, and inventory. These
could be considered the day-to-day operations of the
Commerce Skill.
Housework
This measures your skills at maintaining a clean and
orderly home. Like Farmwork, this is a widely known
Skill. Specialties: Cooking, Cleaning, Gardening,
Mending.
Midwifery
This is your skill at watching over a pregnancy and
helping an expectant mother deliver a healthy child;
it includes all aspects of fertility, contraception, and
prenatal care. More information on its use can be found
in the chapter on The World Around You.
Sailing
This is your skill at physically steering and maintaining
any boat that has sails, most often used with TECH.
Actually being able to figure out where youre going
should either be an Awareness roll (if youre going by
sight) or a Navigation roll (if you are using the Stars or
other tools to navigate). Rowing a boat is essentially a
part of the Athletics Skill.
Shepherding
This is your skill at managing livestock in open pasture
or in the open field. Another common skill, usually
used with TECH. Specialties: Camping, Herding,
Animal Handling

youre trying to say, youre liable to be less successful in

communicating with them.
Letters
This is a measure of your basic knowledge of the Known
World and its records (written records if you are literate,
oral records if you are not). Specialties: Ancient
History, Recent History, Geography, Natural History,
Literature, Philosophy, Law, Architecture.
Local Expert
This is your knowledge of a particular geographic or
political area; whos who, where things are, general
customs, schedules, and peculiarities of the environment.
You must learn this Skill anew for each major region.
In the Middle Kingdoms area, the major Local Expert
regions are: Auria, Atallica, Umis, Umat, Dain Dania,
Erid Dania, the Watchtower Coast, the Daradjan
Highlands, An-Athair, the Wastes, and the Isliklid
Kingdoms. You may take a Specialty as you like, so
you can have a Local Expert Skill for a region and then
a more detailed Local Expert Specialty of a particular
barony, town, or city in that region.
Navigation
This is the Skill of knowing how to take sightings, use
maps and charts, plot courses, or work out your location
from star positions, wind, weather, and other guides. It
is primarily useful when you dont have a lot of visual
landmarks to go by, at sea, in the desert, in a forest, or
deep underground.

Writing
This is your skill at writing using a particular alphabet.
You must learn this Skill anew for each kind of alphabet.
See the following section on Language for more
information.

SCHOLARLY SKILLS
These Skills measure your knowledge and training
in formal fields of study and schooling, literature,
or research.
Commerce
This is your understanding and knowledge of business
matters, trading, and theories of finance. This Skill is
used to influence how much money you can make from
investments and occupations.
Heraldry
This is your knowledge of the signs and symbols used
by the noblemen and organizations of your Culture
to identify themselves and their allegiances. You must
learn this Skill anew for each different Culture. As with
Etiquette, there is some shared basis for the Heraldic
insignia of some Cultures, in particular amongst Sun
Court Divine King Cultures, so if you have learned one
Sun Court Cultures Heraldry you can use it as a related
Skill for other Sun Court Cultures.
Language
This is your grasp of a single spoken or written language.
You have to learn this Skill anew for each different
Language (see the following section on Languages).
Language is a Cap to your verbal Social and Performance
Skill Tests; if your audience doesnt understand what

Checking
a map
to avoid
getting lost.

Research
This is your skill in using written records to discover
or uncover information you seek, at being able to
parse through large amounts of written material to
track down a single item of interest. The Letters Skill
represents knowledge that you already have; your Skill
at Research is for uncovering something you dont
already know as quickly as possible. Still, time spent
in Research must be measured in days or hours.
Tactics
This is your skill at managing a large-scale battle
effectively and efficiently, and deploying and
maneuvering military forces to maximum effect on
the battlefield. This Skill is mostly a wargaming Skill
(to be used primarily in forthcoming Mass Combat
Rules), but can be used in Artesia AKW to represent
Tactical Surprise. See the Combat Rules. Sharp-eyed
readers will note that there is no Strategy Skill as a
companion to the Tactics Skill; this is because strategy
is something that has to be decided as a matter of
deliberation by you and the other Players or your
Guide acting for NPCs, rather than be represented by
a die roll.

Character Basics
LORES
These Skills measure your knowledge and training
in areas that have magical efficacy; these are the
skills that allow you to perform spells, rituals, and
prayers. More information on how to use Lore
Skills can be found in the Magic section beginning
on page 188.
Alchemical Lore
This is the art and practice of Alchemy and the
understanding of Alchemical writings, symbols,
and theory, concerned at its basest level with the
transmutation of one substance into another (most
commonly found in the pursuit of formulas that will
transform base metals into gold) and at its highest levels
with the transformation of Mind and Spirit. Alchemical
Lore is used to create Alchemical Formulas that produce
certain magical materials Elixirs that are then used in
Alchemical Operations to alter some part of the World.
Cult Lore
This is knowledge of the beliefs, stories, ritual practices,
and prayers associated with a particular God, pantheon,
or Mystery Cult. The primary religious Cults of
the Known World are the Cult of Yhera, the ancient
Creator-Goddess and Queen of Heaven, and the Cult of
Islik the Divine King, a semi-divine Hero from the end
of the Golden Age who conquered Death and created a
Heaven of his own making. Yheran Cult Lore can have
Specialties based on individual Gods and Goddesses,
and Divine King Cult Lore has Specialties based on the
two schisms of its worshippers, the Sun Court and the
Phoenix Court, and on Sects devoted to worship of a
God or Hero that has followed in Isliks path. There
are also several Mystery Cults, such as those devoted
to Hathhalla the Avenger and the Gray Dream, which
require special initiations involving the comprehension
of Mysteries in order to become members. The Cult
Lore of each Great and Mystery Cult is considered a
separate sphere of knowledge and practice and must be
learned individually. Cult Lore is used to interact with
the Heavens and the Underworld through Offering and
Sacrifice Rituals, thus gaining the attention and favor of
divine and chthonic powers that can be called upon with
Invocations.
Folk Lore
This is your knowledge of the folk tales, superstitions,
and the traditional rituals and lore of common folk;
while the folk tales and superstitions of different
Cultures may vary, the actual practice of Folk Lore is
surprisingly the same throughout the Known World, so
there is only a single Folk Lore Skill rather than many
different Cultural Folk Lores. Folk Lore represents
the inherited wisdom of generation after generation of
people who have observed the workings of the Known
World and gleaned some idea of how to interact with the
magic that flows through it. Magicians and common
folk alike raised in the tradition of Folk Lore manipulate
the inherent magic of the world around them, both
the visible physical world and the normally invisible
Otherworld of Spirit, through Incantations, Rituals,
Charms, and Amulets.
Herbal Lore
This Lore is closely related to Folk Lore and is concerned
with herbs and other natural magical elements in the
Known World. This Lore is used to identify and harvest
herbs and other natural ingredients for use in potions
and draughts created through potion and poultice
formulas called Herbal Recipes.

Hermetic Lore
This is the study of hermetic magic and the traditions
of hermetic writings and symbols (the science of
magic, if you will), the path of Sorcery first created
by Daedekamani and passed to his followers and
descendants amongst the Golans. Whereas Folk
Lore seeks to understand the magical workings of the
Known World through intuition, Hermetic Lore seeks
to understand and manipulate them through study and
the sheer force of the individual Mind. Of all Lores,
Hermetic Lore is most closely tied to written magical
texts: the Hermetica, the body of magical knowledge
jealously passed from Magister to Pupil stretching all the
way back to the Emerald Tablet of Daedekamani himself.
This emphasis on texts also means that Hermetic Lore is
most closely tied to the use of Runes and Sigils, magical
Alphabets that allow the writers will to be inscribed
into the fabric of the world. You can use these Runes
and Sigils along with Incantations, Rituals, Charms, and
Amulets to affect the world around you.
Occult Lore
This is the shadowy underside of Hermetic Lore the
occult arts discovered when Sorcerers tread too far into
places they should not go, into black magic, necromancy,
and other forbidden lore, mostly concerned with the
manipulation of Death and the magical control of the
Dark and Angry forces of the seething Underworld.
Occult Lore, like Cult Lore, can also be applied to several
specific forbidden Cults amongst them the secret Cults
of Amaymon, Ligrid, Nymarga, and Ishraha but unlike
with Cult Lore, the Occult Lore of each forbidden Cult
is considered part and parcel of the Occult Lore Skill,
so the different Occult practices of the Forbidden Cults
are not learned separately. The practice of Occult Lore
is often banned, though amongst Magicians the theory
may be well known as you can have Occult Lore Skills
without learning or Casting Occult Incantations or
Rituals.
Star Lore
This is your knowledge of the Celestial World and the
signs and symbols written in the skies above, and is
used almost exclusively for the purposes of Divination.
The Fates are the only powers to know the future with
certainty, but Yhera allows a glimpse of the future in the
Celestial World for those who know how to look. Star
Lore is used to reveal and invoke the potentialities of the
future through Divinations (q.v.).

LANGUAGES
Your Language Skills act as Caps to your verbal
Social and Performance Skills (its a lot harder
to persuade someone to do something for you if
they cant understand a word youre saying) and
sometimes to Trade and Scholarly Skills in which
a limited ability to read might affect your success
(for example, trying to do Research in a Library
when you cant read). Some Languages are related
to each other, and you can use them to puzzle
through a similar language, at the usual 2 penalty
for using a related Skill as a substitute.

To read and write a language that you
speak, you must know both the Language itself
as an individual Skill, and the Writing Skill of
the Alphabet used to write that language; each
Alphabet (or Rune System) must be learned
separately. The use of Runes is detailed in the
Magic section, beginning on page 215.

ALPHABETS
Celestial Script
This is a non-magical alphabet attributed to the Archai,
the Celestial Messengers of the Goddess Yhera.
duinan Alphabet
This is a non-magical alphabet invented by the ancient
Drans, and used throughout the lands around the
Mera Argenta. The duinan Alphabet is related to the
Maelite Alphabet.
Golan Alphabet
This is a non-magical alphabet invented by the ancient
Golans, and used throughout the Thessid-Golan
Empire.
Maelite Alphabet
This is a non-magical alphabet created during the Golden
Age by the Maelites of the Dain duins; a barbaric script
little used today. The Maelite Alphabet is related to the
duinan Alphabet.
Samarite Alphabet
This is a non-magical alphabet created in the Celestial
Court of Samarappa, and used amongst the peoples of
the Far West.

RUNES (MAGICAL ALPHABETS)

Brages Runes
This is a set of magical symbols created by the god
Bragea (Abrage or Brage); while some may read them,
none may inscribe them.
Daedeki Grammata
This is a set of magical symbols created by Daedekamani
and recorded in the Hermetica Daedacti, the first text on
the practice of sorcery.
Imperial Sigils
This is a set of magical symbols created in the courts of
the Golden Emperor, Dauban Hess. Also called Thessid
Sigils or Daubanite Sigils.

A Priestess of Geteema who uses Cult

Lore (left), and a Priestess of Ligrid who
uses Occult Lore (right).

Labira Grammata
This is a set of magical symbols inscribed on the cult
statue of Djara Luna in the Great Temple of Labira.

Adventures in the Known World

81

Character Basics
Dran refugees brought the statue with them to Labira
after the fall of rne Dr. Also called Riven Runes or
Witchs Runes.

and the Daradjan Highlands. The Middle Tongue is

related to Old duinan, Old Aurian, and the Eastern
Tongue, and is written with the duinan Alphabet.

Panagh Runes
This is a set of magical alphabets and runes used
throughout the northern Known World north of the
Panoch Sea (therefore beyond the scope of this Book).

Old Aurian
This was the ancient language of the Aurians. Old
Aurian is related to the Middle Tongue. It originally had
no written form, but after the Aurians conquered the
eastern Danias they began writing it with the duinan
Alphabet.

LANGUAGES OF THE KNOWN

WORLD

Old Daedekine
This was an ancient language of the peoples of the Gola,
created by Daedekamani. It was related to Old Golan,
Sekereti, and Thessidian, and was written with the
Golan Alphabet.

Agalian
This is the ancient and modern language of what is today
the Imperial Emirate of Galia. Agalian is related to
Thessidian and Old Emmetic, and is written with both
the duinan and Golan Alphabets.
Amoran
This is one of the modern languages of the Queendom
of Amora-and-Meretia. Amoran is related to Old
Emmetic, and is written with the duinan Alphabet.
Ceraic
This is the ancient and modern language of the Ceraics.
Ceraic is related to Thulamite and Old Tthdran, and is
written with the duinan Alphabet.
Dskdran
This is the ancient and modern language of the cities
of the Dskdran coast. Dskdran is related to Old
Emmetic, Old Tthdran, Thulamite, and Old duinan,
and is written with the duinan Alphabet.
Eastern Tongue
This is the modern language of eastern Sun Court lands
(Illia, Hemispia, Cavalonia, and Amora). The Eastern
Tongue is related to the Middle Tongue, Old Illian,
and Old Hemispian; it is written with the duinan
Alphabet.
Haralian
This is the ancient and modern language of Appalitane,
Haralia, and the Palatian Highlands. Haralian is related
to Old Hskdran, Tgoon, and Palatian, and is written
with the duinan Alphabet.
Kessite
This is the modern language of the Kessite Khanates.
Kessite is related to Samarite and Old Rajiki, and is
written with the Samarite Alphabet.
Khaelite
This is the modern language of the Isle of Khael.
Khaelite is related to Old Emmetic, Old Hskdran, and
Palatian, and is written with the duinan Alphabet.
Lycinian
This is the modern language of the Lycinian Provinces
of Palatia. Lycinian is related to Thalyaran and the Sea
Tongue, and is written with the duinan Alphabet.
Maelite
This is the modern language of the Mael Kings. Maelite
is related to Old duinan, and is written with the
duinan Alphabet.
Metic
This is the modern language of Metea, Thelea, and
Pfalk. Metic is related to Old Metic, Old Morian, and
Vanimorian, and is written with the Golan Alphabet.
Middle Tongue
This is the modern language of the Middle Kingdoms

82

Adventures in the Known World

Old duinan
This was the ancient language of the Danians, Daradjans,
and Maelites. Old duinan was related to Old Emmetic,
Dskdran, Maelite, and the Middle Tongue, and was
written with both the duinan and Maelite Alphabets.
Old Emmetic
This was the ancient language of Dra, and it is still
spoken and read throughout its former colonies as an
academic language; sometimes incorrectly referred to
as Dran. Old Emmetic is related to Old duinan,
Dskdran, Palatian, Old Hemispian, Khaelite, Amoran,
Thulamite, and Old Hskdran, and is written with the
duinan Alphabet.
Old Ghali
This was the ancient language of the Ghals, spoken
today by the Dmghal servants of the Isliklidae. Old
Ghali is related to Samarappan and Old Rajiki, and is
written with the Celestial Script.
Old Golan
This was the ancient language of the people of the Gola,
and the modern language of the kingdom of Setine. Old
Golan was related to Old Daedekine and Sekereti, and is
written with the Golan Alphabet.
Old Hemispian
This was the ancient language of Hemispia. Old
Hemispian was related to Old Emmetic, Old Illian, and
the Eastern Tongue, and was written with the duinan
Alphabet.
Old Hskdran
This was the ancient language of Palatia and Haralia.
Old Hskdran was related to Old Emmetic, Palatian,
Haralian, Tgoon, and Khaelite, and was written with
the duinan Alphabet.
Old Illian
This was the ancient language of Illia, and is now the
official religious language of the Sun Court. Old Illian is
related to Old Hemispian and the Eastern Tongue, and
is written with the duinan Alphabet.

Alphabet.
Old Rajiki
This was the ancient language of the western Rajiks. Old
Rajiki was related to Old Ghali, Samarite, Samarappan,
and Kessite, and was written with the Celestial Script.
Old Tthdran
This was the ancient language of the Thulamites and other
inhabitants of the Great Midlands. Old Tthdran was
related to Thulamite, Tgoon, Ceraic, and Dskdran,
and was written with the duinan Alphabet.
Palatian
This is the modern language of the city-state of Palatia
and its empire. Palatian is related to Haralian, Khaelite,
Tgoon, Old Emmetic, and Old Hskdran, and is
written with the duinan Alphabet.
Ramorite
This is the ancient and modern language of Ramoristan.
Ramorite is related to Samarite and Old Metic, and is
written with the Samarite Alphabet.
Rappani
This is the ancient and modern language of Mahalia.
Rappani uses the Celestial Script and the Samarite
Alphabet.
Samarappan
This is the ancient and modern language of Samarappa.
Samarappan is related to Samarite, Old Ghali, and Old
Rajiki, and is written with the Samarite Alphabet.
Samarite
This is the ancient and modern language of the cities of
the Persamas Valley in Samarappa. Samarite is related to
Samarappan, Old Rajiki, Ramorite, and Kessite, and is
written with the Samarite Alphabet.
Sea Tongue
This is the modern language of the Panaghians, and the
common tongue of the northern Known World. The
Sea Tongue is related to Lycinian and Thalyaran; writing
is rare, but some have adopted the duinan Alphabet.
Sekereti
This is the modern language of the Emirates of Grand
Sekeret and Setine. Sekereti is related to Old Golan,
Old Daedekine, and Thessidian, and is written with the
Golan Alphabet.
Tgoon
This is the modern language of the Tgoonai Provinces
of Palatia. Tgoon is related to Thulamite, Palatian,
Haralian, Old Hskdran, and Old Tthdran, and is
written with the duinan Alphabet.
Thalyaran
This is the modern language of the Thalyar Provinces
of Palatia. Thalyaran is related to Lycinian and the Sea
Tongue, and is written with the duinan Alphabet.

Old Maelite
This was the ancient language of the Maelites, essentially
a dialect of Old duinan that fell out of usage after the
war against Githwaine. Old Maelite was related to
Old duinan, and was written with both the Maelite
Alphabet and the duinan Alphabet.

Thessidian
This is the ancient and modern language of Thessidia,
and Thessure, and the official language of the Phoenix
Court. Thessidian is related to Agalian, Old Daedekine,
Old Morian, Vanimorian, and Sekereti, and is written
with the Golan Alphabet.

Old Metic
This was the ancient language of the Metics. Old
Metic was related to Metic, Ramorite, Old Morian,
and Vanimorian, and was written with the duinan
Alphabet.

Thulamite
This is the ancient and modern language of the
Thulamites. Thulamite is related to Old Tthdran,
Dskdran, Ceraic, Old Emmetic, and Tgoon, and is
written with the duinan Alphabet.

Old Morian
This was the ancient language of the Vanimorians. Old
Morian was related to Vanimorian, Old Metic, Metic,
and Thessidian, and was written with the duinan

Vanimorian
This is the modern language of Vanimoria. Vanimorian
is related to Old Morian, Old Metic, Metic, and
Thessidian, and is written with the Golan Alphabet.

Character Basics

CHARACTERISTIC TESTS
AND SKILL TESTS
The main way you will use your Characteristics and Skills is by
attempting an action or task in the game that must be resolved
through a Test. In the Test, you will make a die roll and compare
the result against a target number decided upon by your Guide
called a Difficulty Rating, or DR. If your die roll is equal to
or higher than the DR, then youve succeeded in the Test and
you may affect the world or other Characters around you. If you
lower than the DR, then you have failed to achieve your goal.
For a Characteristic Test, you roll d10 and add the appropriate
Characteristic (STR for a Test of Strength, for example), trying to
reach or exceed the DR of the Test. For a Skill Test, you roll d10
and then add an applicable Characteristic plus your Skill Level
to match or exceed the DR of the Test. You must also apply any
modifiers, bonuses, or penalties to your roll that result from the
specific situation you are in and any Gifts, Bindings, Wounds, or
Magics that affect you during the Test.

The Difficulty Ratings of Tests in the game are
determined by your Guide based upon how hard it would be for
a normal person to achieve a positive result in whatever task or
action you are attempting. Standard Fuzion provides a wide
range of DRs for Tests, beginning at 10 for Challenged Tests and
going up to DRs of 70 for Legendarily Cosmic Tests. In Artesia
AKW the range of Tests will generally be smaller, beginning at
the same base DR of around 10 for Easy Skill Tests and going up
to around 30 for Tests that should be considered very difficult to

P HOW GOOD IS GOOD?

When measuring and comparing Skills, a Skill Level of 1-2 can

be considered typical for the skills of most Characters.
1 Point: Novice. This indicates a beginner or amateur at a Skill,
with only a rudimentary understanding of how to use it.
2 Points: Basic. This indicates an adequate level of training and
experience in a Skill. Many people will never get much beyond
this Skill Level.
3-4 Points: Skilled. This indicates a marked degree of
competence, training, and experience in a Skill, requiring more
than a minimal effort to gain. Characters who have dedicated
themselves to a particular Occupation with some diligence will
usually have some Skills in this range.
5-7 Points: Expert. A high level of Skill, indicating dedicated
learning and experience resulting in a great deal of knowledge and
ability. Exceptional Characters will have a few Skills in this range.
810 Points: Master. Most ordinary Characters will not have a
Skill at this high a level during their lifetimes. At this Skill Level,
you would be widely recognized as demonstrating exceptional skill
or ability in this area, and might well be sought out as a teacher or
mentor, even by experts in your field.
More than 10 Points: Heroic. This is a Skill Level that very few
ever reach, indicating years, even a lifetime, of hard work and
experience. You have few peers and your Skills would be the stuff
of tales, myth, and legend.

D For example, Gildom

succeed at. Even a Character

of Heroic abilities is unlikely
to have more than a handful of
Skills or Characteristics higher
in Level than 10, meaning that
a d10 + 20 roll is the best that
even Heroic Characters will
ever be able to routinely score
on a Test, so Tests with DRs of
30 or higher should be rare.

Of course, if a Guide
decides that a given action is
impossible and cant be done,
no die roll in the world can
change that

son of Gilder wants to build a

wooden bridge over a stream. If
the stream isnt very wide and is
shallow and slow moving, the
Guide might set that as an Easy
Test of Gildoms Engineering
Skill (DR 10). On the other
hand, if the stream was wide
and deep, the Guide might set
that as a Hard Test (DR 14). If
the stream was not just wide
and deep, but also filled with
rapids and sharp rocks, the
Guide might declare it a Heroic
Test of Gildoms Skills (DR 22).

DIFFICULTY RATINGS
Difficulty Description
Easy
Average
Hard
Really Hard
Heroic
Legendary
Mythic

Characteristic
Test DR
8
10
12
14
18
22
26

Skill Test
DR
10
12
14
18
22
26
30

For a Characteristic Test, roll d10 + requisite Characteristic +/Modifiers (if any) and see if the total is equal to or higher than the
DR of the Test.
For a Skill Test, roll d10 + Characteristic + requisite Skill Level +
Specialty Level (if any) +/- Modifiers (if any) and see if the total
is equal to or higher than the DR of the Test. The Level of Skills
and Specialties can be Capped by other Skills depending on the
circumstances.

OPPOSED TESTS
Sometimes a Test must be resolved that pits one or more Characters
against each other. These are called Opposed Tests, if youre
going directly up against another Character in a comparison of
Characteristics or Skills. In such cases there is no predetermined
DR for the Test; rather, whichever of the Characters rolls the highest
roll has succeeded and the other has failed.
An Opposed Characteristic Test means each Character rolls d10 +
requisite Characteristic +/- Modifiers (if any) and the higher roll is
the successful one.
An Opposed Skill Test means each Character rolls d10 +
Characteristic + requisite Skill + Specialty (if any) +/- Modifiers (if
any) and the higher roll is the successful one.
A tie is a tie, if the situation allows it, or the Guide may make you
roll again to break a tie. The exception to this is in Combat or other
situations in which one Character can be designated the Attacker

Adventures in the Known World

83

Character Basics
and the other is the Defender. In such cases, the Defenders
roll becomes in effect the DR of the Test for the Attacker; if the
Attacker equals or betters the Defenders roll, then the Attacker
has succeeded. More information about this can be found in the
Combat Rules.

D For example, Gildom, having finished building his

bridge, heads to the local tavern for a celebratory pint

and discovers that an arm-wrestling contest is going on.
He enters it, and finds himself across the table from Iron
Arms Arden, the local champion. Gildom and Arden
will roll an Opposed Test for their arm-wrestling contest,
adding their STR Characteristic to a d10 roll with the
higher roll winning. In this case, neither of them is
considered an attacker or defender, so a tie will result
in a reroll. Gildom rolls a 6 plus his STR of 6 for a 12;
Arden rolls a 3 plus his STR of 7 for a 10. Gildom wins,
much to Ardens (and the crowds) surprise. This leads
Arden to accuse Gildom of cheating. Gildom, sensing
that Arden is being motivated by a bruised ego and being
a levelheaded sort, tries to persuade Arden that he just
lucked out; this requires Gildom to make an Opposed
Skill Test with Arden, pitting his Persuasion Skill against
Ardens Awareness Skill. Gildom uses his PRE with
his Persuasion Skill, and Arden uses his PER with his
Awareness Skill; they roll, and Gildoms roll is higher.
His charm manages to convince Arden that it was just a
lucky break, and Gildom buys him a drink at the bar in
consolation.

What Characteristic
do I Use?
In both regular and Opposed Skill Tests, youre combining one
of your Characteristics with a Skill you know, and then adding
the two of them to a die roll. So the first step in using a Skill is
determining which Characteristic youre going to use. In general,

84

Adventures in the Known World

common sense should tell you which Characteristic to use for a

particular task, or the Guide can decide if theres a dispute. Here are
some general guidelines that should cover many eventualities:
If the Situation involves
making a first impression, or trying to make an
impact on someone based on what you look like
a matter of raw physical strength
a matter of endurance over time, or resistance to
pain, disease, or shock
engaging in physical movement using hand-eye
coordination or agility (athletics, evading, using fists
and blades)
manipulating tools or instruments, building or
making something, or having technical affinity
trying to see, smell, taste, hear, or feel something
resisting the influences of another person
trying to remember something
trying to be creative
an issue of understanding, or problem-solving
interacting with someone through your charm and
force of personality
expressing or defending your core beliefs
facing danger, fear, or stress
feeling an emotional connection to other people
gaining an insight into the world around you or
into the deepest motivations of other people
...an issue of speed, such as a foot race or a swimming
race

Use Your
APP
STR
STAM
DEX

TECH
PER
WILL
MEM
IMAG
REAS
PRE
CONV
COUR
EMP
WIS
MOVE

The task that you are trying to perform should determine the most
applicable Characteristic to add to your Skill. One side effect of this
method is that you may often find the same Skill being combined with
different Characteristics, depending on circumstances and the way in
which you want to use that Skill. For example, if youre playing a piece
of music and trying to make it technically perfect, you might use your
TECH Characteristic in combination with your Performance Skill.
But if you were trying to sway an audience with animal magnetism

Building a really big bridge, such as the one at

Tauria over the Abenbrae, could involve many
different Skills and Tests...

Character Basics
or move them to tears with the beauty of your playing, you could
instead use your PRE or your EMP Characteristic, respectively, in
combination with your Performance Skill. Each uses the same Skill,
but each choice stresses very different aspects of using that Skill.

Not all Characteristics will have a use or application
with all Skills. For example, its hard to imagine how your STR
Characteristic can be applied to most Scholarly Skills, like, say,
Research. Or in another example, trying to apply your COUR to,
say, your Swimming Skill probably wont make a great deal of sense;
how far you can swim has very little to do with how courageous
you are, though you might have to make COUR Tests to swim near
something dangerous or fear-inducing (like a giant sea monster).
But in a case like that, the COUR Test is a separate issue from the
DEX- or STR-based Swimming Skill Test itself.

Both Guides and Players will have to be on the lookout
for the desire to apply advantageous Characteristics to every Skill
Test imaginable; for example, if you have a very high PRE you
will probably try applying your PRE to many Skill Tests that you
undertake essentially trying to use your charm and charisma to
make your way through life. Thats not entirely inappropriate
(indeed, examples of that kind of behavior can be found around us
all the time) and would be a good expression of what kind of person
you are. However, the temptation will be for you to overreach and
try using your PRE to solve every Skill Test you undertake. PRE will
simply be inappropriate as a basis for some Skill Tests (for example,
say, a Follow Skill Test or a Riding Skill Test or Heraldry Skill Test).
In such cases, remember that the Guide always has the final say
about whether a particular Characteristic and Skill combination is
appropriate or not.

The Table on the following page provides some suggested
guidelines for appropriate Characteristic and Skill combinations,
by Skill Category. WILL and COUR are rarely used with specific
Skills and so are not listed here.

What Skill Do I Use?

Most Skill Tests encountered in the course of the game should
require a specific Skill to be used in the task or Test. Common
sense is the best guideline to determine which Skill is suited for
which Test. Most of the Skills in Artesia AKW are (hopefully)
designed to be as simple to understand as possible. If youre using a
weapon, your Skill choice should be pretty simple; use the Skill that
best describes the weapon and situation youre in (Sword Specialty
and Melee, for example, if youre wielding a broadsword and are in
the midst of a brawl). But if its an interpersonal issue, you may be
able to convince your Guide to give you a lot more leeway; maybe
your Streetwise Skill may be far more useful in convincing the pirate
captain to release her hostages than your Persuasion, especially if
you can call upon a little-known pirate code that requires she honor
your request. But as always the overriding rule here is that the
Guide will always be the final arbiter of what Skill should be used
to attempt a task.

In some cases, if you dont have a Skill called for in a
particular Test, you can use a related or similar Skill as a substitute,
but youll perform the Test with a 2 penalty. For example, if a Test
to find a good defensible campsite for your company called for the
Campaigning Skill and you didnt have it, you could probably use
your Fieldcraft Skill instead, but with a 2 penalty to your roll.

You might find yourself without any applicable Skill to
use in response to a particular Test, not even a similar or related
Skill. In some such cases the required Test might be simple or

generic enough to allow a neophyte to try it, so you can apply

one of your Characteristics to the Test but dont get any Skill
Levels added to your roll. For example, even if you dont have the
Leadership Skill, you might still be able to try and lead a group
based purely on your PRE (using charm and charisma to try to
get people to do what you want) or perhaps your REAS (trying to
use logic to convince them to follow you). You might be lacking
formal training or experience in what youre doing, but you can
try relying on a Characteristic and dumb luck to wing your way
through it.

However, there will be times when you cant use even
a basic Characteristic to try to succeed at a Test; for example, if
youre trying to forge a sword and have no Blacksmithing Skill
whatsoever, then youre pretty much (as they say in regular
Fuzion) Outta Luck theres no way youd be able to just reason
or guess your way into forging a useable sword, so you dont get
even a Characteristic-based roll to attempt that Test.

D In our previous example, Gildom son of Gilder had

set himself the task of building a wooden bridge over a

stream. Building something is a situation that normally
calls for the TECH Characteristic, and particularly for a
simple bridge thatd be the best Characteristic to use. The
basic Skill Test for actually building the bridge is going to
be his Engineering Skill, and/or its Construction Specialty.
But building a bridge could be considered much more than
just the actual construction of the bridge, and Gildom
could actually face several different Tests when building his
wooden bridge.. Designing a complicated bridge would still
be an Engineering Skill Test, but could require using IMAG
(for a new kind of design) or REAS (for applying age-old
bridge building lore to the design). Actually drawing a set
of plans that had to be read by others would require a Test
of Gildoms TECH/Drawing. If Gildom had to scout a
proper place to build his bridge, the Guide might require
a Test of his PER Characteristic with his Engineering Skill
capped by his Awareness Skill. If Gildom has to convince
his neighbors or his local liege lord to let him build the
bridge, then the Guide might require Persuasion and
Etiquette Tests. If the project was large enough to require a
crew of workers, then Gildom might be called upon to use
his Leadership Skill, to keep the crew working diligently,
or his Housekeeping Skill, to make sure the project was on
budget and properly organized. And if the stream was wide
and dangerous, Gildom might be required to make a Swim
Test or two at some point during construction.
As a general rule, Guides should keep things simple if the action
being contemplated is straightforward or isnt central to the
main narrative of the story. If Gildom building his bridge in our
example above is just a minor incident in an adventure centered
on, say, his quest to join the local Mystery Cult of the Gray Dream,
then the Guide can keep it simple and restrict the Tests called for
to the actual building Test using his Engineering Skill. But even a
seemingly simple task like building a bridge could take on a much
more epic feel if different steps and obstacles in the task all require
Tests, as suggested above, allowing Guides to find storytelling
possibilities even in relatively mundane activities.

Adventures in the Known World

85

Character Basics
SOME SUGGESTED CHARACTERISTIC & SKILL COMBINATIONS
Characteristic
APP

Skill Category
Body Skills
Social Skills

Applicable Uses
Use to perform a physical task in an aesthetically pleasing way.
Use to perform a Social task based on your appearance or physical grace.

Performance Skills

Use to base a performance before an audience on your appearance and comportment.

Body Skills
Fighting Skills

Use to perform a physical task based on muscle power and strength.

Not directly useable, though see the All-Out Attack Option in the Combat Rules.

Social Skills

Use with Inquiry, Leadership, or Persuasion to physically intimidate others.

Performance Skills

Use with Dancing to perform difficult dance moves requiring strength, such as lifting a partner.

Trade Skills

Use to make or manipulate something with muscle power.

Body Skills
Body Skills
Fighting Skills

Might be required if endurance is being tested during a physical action.

Use to attempt a physical task requiring grace or agility.
The most common attacks are DEX-based attacks; see the Combat Rules.

Performance Skills

Use with Dancing or Sleight of Hand for agility-based actions.

Trade Skills

Use to perform a physical task based on agility.

Body Skills
Fighting Skills

Use with Riding if action requires manipulation of horse tack or gear.

Can be used to perform certain special moves; see the Combat Rules.

Social Skills

Use with Wardrobe & Style to alter or improve your wardrobe or appearance.

Performance Skills

Use with Disguise, Musicianship, or Sleight of Hand to apply makeup or manipulate tools or instruments.

Trade Skills

Use to make an object or manipulate raw material; use with Writing to write something.

Lore Skills

Use during Enchantments and when preparing Alchemical and Herbal Recipes (see the Magic rules).

PER

Awareness Skills
All Other Categories

MEM
IMAG

All Skill Categories

Social Skills
Performance Skills

Use to perceive details in the World and behavior of people around you.
Use when attempting to perceive something interesting about the use of a Skill, or to evaluate Quality in an
object or in a task performed by another with your Awareness Skill as a Cap.
Use to remember something involving the use or knowledge of a Skill.
Use to interact with others creatively, or come up with a new plan of Intrigue or a Wardrobe style.
Use to compose, perform, sing, or tell something new or in a new way.

Trade Skills

Use to make something new.

Scholarly Skills

Use with Heraldry to create a new symbol or in Tactics to make a new plan.

Lore Skills

Use to create a new Incantation or Ritual.

Awareness Skills
Social Skills

Use with Awareness when trying to judge the rationality of a person, suggestion, or course of action.
Use to interact with others on the basis of reason or rational argument.

Performance Skills

Use with Composition, Oratory, or Storytelling to present a rational argument or position.

Trade Skills

Use to solve a problem rationally and logically.

Scholarly Skills

Use to solve a problem rationally and logically.

Lore Skills

Use to learn Alchemical Formulas and Hermetic and Occult Spells and Rituals.

Social Skills
Performance Skills

Use to impress or influence others using charm and charisma.

Use to base a performance before an audience on your charm and charisma.

Trade Skills

Use with Animal Training to persuade animals to learn a task.

Scholarly Skills

Use with House Keeping to run a household or business based on charm and charisma.

Social Skills
Performance Skills

Use with Leadership or Persuasion to influence others on the basis of beliefs and convictions.
Use with Acting, Composition, Musicianship, Oratory, or Storytelling to convey belief or conviction.

Lore Skills

Use with Cult Lore to Learn and Cast Cult Invocations and Rituals.

Awareness Skills
Social Skills

Use with Awareness to determine what emotions others are going through.
Use to interact with others by appealing to others emotions.

Performance Skills

Use to base a performance before an audience on an appeal to their emotions.

Awareness Skills
Social Skills

Use with Awareness to psychoanalyze a person, or judge the wisdom of a suggestion or course of action.
Use to influence others through insight and wisdom.

Performance Skills

Use with Composition, Oratory, or Storytelling to present insights or wise arguments.

Trade Skills

Use to solve a problem through insight or intuition.

Scholarly Skills

Use to solve a problem through insight or intuition.

Lore Skills

Use to learn Herbal, Star and Folk Incantations and Rituals, and Cast Folk Incantations and Rituals.

STR

STAM
DEX

TECH

REAS

PRE

CONV

EMP

WIS

86

Adventures in the Known World

Character Basics

WHAT AFFECTS MY ROLL?

Your roll during a Test may be affected by a number of factors, some
already mentioned. The general circumstances that you find yourself
in will provide modifiers to your Tests; the more comfortable and
secure you are in your surroundings, then the better off youll be
when attempting a task. Your Gifts and Bindings may give you either
bonuses or penalties to your rolls during Tests, as may any Wounds
youve received, or any magic spells, rituals, or enchantments that affect
you during the Test.

MODIFIERS
to ACTIONS & SKILL USE
Condition or Situation
Youve never attempted this particular
task before
You lack of instructions for an unfamiliar
task
Youre using unfamiliar tools or weapons
You dont have the right tools or parts
Youre under stress or attack (this does
not apply to the use of Fighting Skills in
combat)
You take some extra time
Youre trying to perform a task secretly,
without being noticed
Youre in a hostile environment
(underwater, in the middle of a raging
fire, etc.)
Youre blinded by light or dust
Youre using a wrong but related Skill
or Language to perform a task or
communicate with another person
Youre resisting a request for aid/help
Your Relation to subject
You have a higher Social Level
You have a lower Social Level
Youre not a local.
Youre from a different Culture.
Youre from an Enemy Culture.
Youre trying to convince someone youre
of a different Social Level than the way
youre dressed
You have a Gift that applies to the use of
a Characteristic or Skill
You have a Binding that applies to the
use of a Characteristic or Skill

Modifier
1
2
2
4
3

+1/extra block of time

Stealth Cap to Skill
5

4
2

+2
See Relations Table
+1/Level difference
1/Level difference
2 to Social Level
4 to Social Level
6 to Social Level
1/Level difference
between your Social
Level and your outfit
+ Gift Level
Binding Level

More modifiers can be found for Combat situations, on page 172, and
for the performance of Magic, on pages 208-209.

Improving YOUR Skill Use

Besides the basic ways of using Skills, there are a few other variations
that can improve your chances of succeeding at a task or a Test.

Trying Again
If you fail a Skill Check, you cant try again until your bonuses to
the die roll have improved for some reason; you improved your Skill
Level or Characteristics Level, took longer to attempt the action, used
a better tool, or made a complementary Skill Check. For example, if
you have a Characteristic of 5 and a Skill of 4, you would normally be
adding a +9 to your die roll to complete a Test. If you fail a Test, you
cant try again until youve changed your modifier to +10 or more,
either by improving your Characteristic or Skill Levels or by doing
something to materially alter the circumstances under which youre
attempting the Test (such as spending more time, using a better tool,
etc., all of which would give you bonuses to your roll).
Complementary Skills
A Complementary Skill Check is where the use of one Skill directly
affects the use of a subsequent Skill. For example, if you were a singer
and needed to sway a crowd, a very good Singing check would make
the swaying (Persuasion) a lot easier. So at the Guides discretion, a
good roll in one Skill may have a bonus effect on the subsequent
use of a related Skill. This bonus will be in a ratio of +1 additional
bonus point to your roll for every 5 points of success of the related
Skill roll, or fraction thereof. As a rule, this bonus will usually affect
a single subsequent Skill Test.

D For example, Auralee wants to convince Saverio to invite

her to the Tournament Dance (a Persuasion Skill Test). By

making a really good Wardrobe & Style roll first, she could
increase her Persuasion by catching Saverios eye with her
attractive clothing. The Guide sets a DR of 12 for her Wardrobe
Test; she makes an APP-based Wardrobe roll, adding her APP
of 6 and Wardrobe & Style (Erid Danian) Skill of 3 to her d10
roll, which is a 9. She succeeded by 6, enough for a +2 bonus on
her Persuasion roll with Saverio. One really high Wardrobe &
Style roll wont affect her Persuasion rolls throughout the whole
evening, if Auralee later wants to Persuade him to rescue her
father from the Barons dungeons; in this case, it just helps on
her initial roll to see if she gets invited to the Dance. She could
try other ways of getting bonuses to subsequent Persuasion rolls,
including more attempts at using Wardrobe & Style, but in each
case she has to roll the Complementary Skill Test and the actions
Skill Test anew.

Taking Extra Time

Taking extra time can also give you a bonus to your Skill Roll. Most
actions will have a base amount of time necessary to complete a
particular task, which can be determined by common sense applied
by your Guide if no specific time units are mentioned in the Rules.
If you spend at least double the time above and beyond the amount
of time the Guide assigns to the task, you can add +1 to the Skill Roll
for every extra amount of time equal to the basic time required.

D To save Auralees father from the barons dungeons,

Saverio wants to disguise himself as a Highland Brigand, and

the Guide says that putting on such a disguise would usually
take 5 minutes. If Saverio take 25 minutes to affix the disguise,
he gets a +4 bonus to the Skill Roll (+1 for each extra block of
5 minutes). If the Guide says a different disguise would usually
take 1 minute, then spending 5 minutes on the task would get
Saverio the same +4 bonus to the Skill Roll (+1 for each extra
minute).

Adventures in the Known World

87

Character Basics

B ACTIONS & TIME

Many actions will take minutes, hours, days, or even
weeks, months, or years to complete, and can be
described in those timeframes. In some cases rounds
and phases must be used, when the exact order of events
becomes very important; the most obvious such case is
during combat (physical or spiritual).
One phase is approximately 3 seconds of time.
4 phases (or about 12 seconds) make a round.
5 rounds make a minute.
60 minutes make an hour.
24 hours make a day.
7 days make a week.
28 days make a Moon (a single lunar cycle).
13 Moons make a Lunar Year.
364 days make a Year.

YOUR RELATIONS
As a Player Character, though your LifePath will almost certainly
have produced friends and family that are part of your Characters
life, you generally have the luxury of deciding for yourself what
your attitude is to the other Characters and NPCs you meet in the
course of the game. A die roll should not determine whether you
like a Character you meet, except when they possess Voice, Mask,
or Aura Gifts such as those that that cause Dread or Fear or Lust.
For NPCs, however, their response to you will often be determined
by die roll, in particular how they respond to your use of Social and
Performance Skills.

When you interact socially with another Character, you
should first determine their Relation to you. Most of the time
it should be fairly obvious: most people you encounter will be
Strangers they dont know who you are, and you dont know
them. Many other people will be Skeptics; they are people who
are reacting to you with some element of suspicion because theres
likely something not quite right about you, but theyre not going
to come out and be confrontational about it. For example, if youre
one of the mountain folk come to town for the first time youre
likely to get a lot of the local townsfolk treating you with some
suspicion even if you havent done anything. Professional guards
will often be Opponents if youre trying to talk your way past them,
but they might simply be Skeptics if youre not obviously doing
something wrong and theyre pretty relaxed about things and are
confident in their security. But some amongst the world will be
Adversaries and Enemies, out to disrupt your goals or even wishing
you harm, and others will be Friends or Allies who wish you good
fortune and will try to aid you when they can.

Trying to impress, influence, or sway the opinions of
an NPC or ask them for information or aid requires an Opposed
Social or Performance Skill Test. They might try to resist your
attempt at influence, information gathering, or request for aid with
a PER, REAS, or WIS Test combined with the Awareness Skill to
see if they figure out what youre trying to do (if youre being subtle
about it), or perhaps with an IMAG/Intrigue Roll if theyre trying
to pass you false information in response to your queries, or with

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a WILL-based Loyalty Test (see below). Suitable Modifiers apply, of

course, and any such Opposed Test has a Bonus or Penalty based on
the category of their Relation to you. These Modifiers can be found
on the Relations Table following. The less they know you and the
less they like you, the less likely they are to help you; the more they
know and like you, the harder it is for them to turn you down. Its
more difficult to get someone to actively aid or help you than it is to
just get some information out of him or her, so asking for aid rather
than just info gives them a +2 bonus to their Opposed Roll. These
penalties and bonuses can also be applied to Performance Tests as
well as Social Tests; theres a reason your friends and parents always
think youve got a great singing voice

LOYALTY TESTS
But sometimes such attempts at influence will boil down to what
could be considered a Loyalty Test, in which one Characters sense of
duty, honor, or loyalty to another is being challenged. For example,
if youre trying to convince a Baron to aid your rebellion against the
King, the most obvious Test is a WILL Test on the Barons part, not a
PER Test (assuming youre not lying to him) or a REAS or WIS Test
(since hes not really evaluating the merits or wisdom of your plan)
instead this is a Test of his Loyalty to the King. A Loyalty Test is a
WILL-based Test, but as there is no such Skill as Loyalty, this would
normally leave the tested Character more vulnerable to someone
using a Characteristic and a Skill such as Persuasion. However, those
resisting a Loyalty Test may add a Loyalty Bonus based on their
relationship to the person they are being asked to betray (found in
the Relations Table following), and a bonus equal to that persons
Leadership Skill.

So a Loyalty Test is an Opposed Roll, of your d10 +
Characteristic + Persuasion (or other) Skill +/- Modifiers Roll
against the other Characters d10 + WILL + Loyalty Modifier + 3rd
partys Leadership Skill +/- Modifiers Roll. As before, included in
the Modifiers for such a Roll is also their relation to you, so if youre
trying to influence someone you know in a Loyalty Test related to a
third party, then they might get bonuses and penalties to their Roll
based on both their relation to you and their relation to the other
person.

D For example, Aspara the Bloodless, Captain of the

Bronzehearts Highland Free Company, is trying to convince

her old friend Halswell of the Cill Nas Emrys, Captain
of the Wolfrunners, to break his contract with Becir, the
Highlander King of An-Taral, and sign up with King Bran
of Dara Dess. The Guide determines that her Persuasion
Roll is opposed with Halswells WILL-based Loyalty Test, as
she is asking him to betray his word to King Becir. Aspara
and Halswell are indeed old Friends, giving him a 1
Penalty to attempts at resisting her influence. His relations
with King Becir have never really progressed beyond the
contract, so hed be considered a Hireling of the Kings,
with a +1 Loyalty Bonus. However, King Becir is a man
skilled in the arts of Leadership, and his Skill Level of 6 is
also added as a bonus; the net effect on Halswells WILL
Roll is (1 + 1 + 6 =) +6. Not so bad, but Aspara is lucky
that King Becir has not tried to befriend Halswell or make
him into an Ally

Character Basics

SOCIAL LEVELS
Most of the Cultures of the Known World are hierarchical to one
degree or another so all Characters (Player Characters and NPCs)
are assigned a Social Level to indicate where they stand in their
home Culture. Social Levels are ranked from 1 to 14, though Social
Levels from 1114 are essentially for distinguishing the various
degrees of hierarchy amongst the noble-born of a Culture and so
you can think of it as being ranked from 1 to 10. Your starting
Social Level is determined by who your parents are, as discussed in
the next section on creating your Character.

The difference between your Social Level and that of
other Characters you encounter in the game will impact your
attempts at persuading and influencing them. As a general rule, its
easier to influence people who are of lower Social Level than you
are, and harder to influence people who are of higher Social Level.
If your Social Level is higher than the person that youre trying
to influence, then add the difference as a Bonus to your Roll. If
your Social Level is lower than the person that youre trying to
influence, then subtract the difference as a Penalty to your Roll.

There are a couple of ways that this can get wrinkled; first
off, this assumes that you are dressed in a manner appropriate
to your Social Level. Clothing in Artesia AKW is purchased
according to the Social Level of the outfit (see the chapter on The
World Around You for notes about the Material Culture of the
Known World), and most Characters will probably wear clothing
appropriate to their Social Level. If you are not wearing clothing
commensurate with your Social Level, then the Guide should feel
free to have another Character react to the Social Level of your
clothing, rather than your actual Social Level. This can work
both ways, as a Character of high Social Level forced into wearing
peasant gear in an emergency or as part of a disguise might have
trouble convincing others of their high station, or a Character of
low Social Level who came into some money might buy clothing
well above their usual station in life and try to pass as a nobleman.

In either case, you might have to succeed at Etiquette or
Wardrobe & Style Tests, either to convince others that your dress is
not truly representative of who you are, or to continue to fool them
that the clothes really do make the man. Guides should feel free
to assign a penalty to such Tests based on the difference in Levels
between your actual Social Level and the Social Level you appear to
be or are trying to appear to be, under the theory that the bigger the
difference between your dress and your social standing, the harder
it is to pass as someone of a higher Social Level; the worse your
clothes, the harder it is to convince someone that youre really not a
poor peasant.

A second wrinkle is changes in your Social Level. Guides
can use an increase in Social Level as a material reward that you can
gain by consistently demonstrating to the Culture around you both
financial and social success; conversely, if you routinely commit
crimes, lose money, or cause problems for your neighbors then a loss
of Social Level can also be inflicted as societal punishment. Theres
no hard and fast rule about this sort of thing, so Guides will have
to use their best judgment, though a common example of Social
Level change in the Game would be someone being Knighted (and
gaining Social Level 9 in most Cultures) after performing valuable
service to a liege Lord.

Some people might remember your original Social Level,
however, and so their reaction to you might be based on your old
Social Level rather than your new one. This can work a lot of
different ways, both in your favor and against you. If you were

once a Commoner but have become a Knight, you might still

find snobs at the Court treating you as though you were a peasant
farmer; and on the flip side, some of your old neighbors might
still treat you like a Commoner rather than recognizing your new
status. On the other hand, if youre a noble brought low, you
might still be able to get respect from those that remember your
old titles and position.

Finally, sometimes theres a penalty to your Social
Level if youre not a local. Outsiders and strangers will be kept
at arms length by many conservative Cultures, even if politely,
and you will find your Social Level of less use to you if you are far
from home or out of your element.

Appeals to Empathy
A final wrinkle to the use of persuasion and influence is the
Appeal to Empathy, when you specifically try to play on
someones emotions during a Social or Performance Skill Test
in order to trigger the use of their EMP as a penalty to their
Opposed resistance roll. To do so you must first use your own
EMP as the Characteristic at the basis of your Skill Test, then
specify that you are making an Empathy appeal or playing on
the targets emotions (some good role-playing might help to
convince the Guide that an Empathy penalty is warranted).
The Opposed roll of the resisting Character, which is a usually
either an Awareness Test or WILL-based Loyalty Test against
your Social or Performance Skill, is rolled normally, except they
have to apply their EMP Characteristic as a penalty to the Roll.
Thus, the higher your EMP score, the more vulnerable you are to
those that tug on your heartstrings.

D For example, Seth the Bandit is cornered in the

hills of the Manon Mole by a heavily armed and armored

Danian knight in the employ of the Sheriff of Westmark;
thinking fast, Seth throws down his weapon and, falling to
his knees with tears streaming down his eyes, begs to be let
free, claiming that the only reason he was part of the evil
Bandit Kings host was because he has a family of ten to
feed and the harvest had been awful this year. What will
become of my poor children if I am hung by the Sheriff?
he cries plaintively. The Danian knight, a kind-hearted
lad who has not seen too much of the World (EMP 6),
considers his request. Seths EMP/Persuasion roll could be
opposed by the Danian knights PER/Awareness roll (to
see if he realizes hes being suckered), or could be handled
as a Test of the Danian Knights Loyalty to the Sheriff,
but in either case he will attempt his resistance roll with
a 6 penalty from his EMP. Given the fact that hes an
Opponent of the Knight (giving the Knight a +4 bonus to
resist), playing on the Knights empathy might be the only
way Seth can talk his way out of this one
The Appeal to Empathy is based upon your ability to emotionally
connect with another person (even if you are doing so falsely),
so if you do not have a high EMP you will find it much more
difficult to appeal to the empathy of others; nonetheless, high
Skills in Persuasion, Seduction, Acting, or Oratory might still
make this a useful ploy even for those with low EMP.

Adventures in the Known World

89

Character Basics

CHANGING YOUR RELATIONS

If youd like to change someones relationship to you, you have
to succeed at a Relations Roll. This is an Opposed Social Skill
Test, applying a Characteristic, a Skill (usually either Intrigue,
Persuasion, or Seduction), and any appropriate Gifts of your choice
against their resistance roll. You must subtract a penalty to your roll
based upon the Category Difficulty of the Relations Category you
are attempting to achieve (see the Relations Table), and they also
add (or subtract as the case may be) the Resistance Bonus of their
current relationship with you to their roll. You may not attempt to
persuade someone to become a Follower or Worshipper until you
have acquired the appropriate World Gifts.

D For example, if you are trying to introduce yourself

to a Stranger and convince him or her to be a Contact,

thats not too difficult; neither the Contact Category nor
their current relation to you gives a bonus or penalty, so
a straight Opposed Test should be enough to convince
someone to become a Contact. If youre trying to
convince a Compatriot to become an Ally, youd apply
a 3 penalty to your roll for the difficulty of the Ally
Category but theyd subtract 2 from their roll because
theyre already a Compatriot of yours; if you were trying
to convince a Friend to become an Ally, thatd actually be
a bit more difficult, a 3 to your roll for the Ally Category
DR and a 1 to theirs for the fact theyre a Friend of
yours. But if youre trying to persuade an Adversary to
become an Ally, thatd be much more difficult; youd apply
a 3 penalty to your roll for the difficulty of the Ally
Category and theyd gain a +5 bonus to their roll since
theyre currently an Adversary of yours!
You can deliberately seek to turn someone into an Enemy, Adversary,
Opponent, Rival, or Skeptic though most of the time this is either
an automatic Category, as when soldiers on opposite sides of a war
meet, or the result of making a social blunder. You can deliberately
engage in boorish, aggressive, or insulting behavior to achieve such
a result. The mechanics of the Relations Roll remains the same.

If you fail a Relations Roll or any other Social or
Performance Skill Roll, for that matter then your relationship
remains unchanged. If you fumble any kind of Social or Oratory

Skill Roll, including an attempt at changing Relations Categories,

then youve committed a faux pas and bad things happen to your
relationship with that person or persons. See both the Relations
Table following and the section on Critical Success and Failure
(Fumbles).
The Relations Table includes the following entries:
Their Attitude Towards You: A brief explanation of what someone
in this Relations Category thinks of you.
Category Modifier (Cat. Mod.): This lists the penalty to your
roll should you try to persuade someone to accept this Relations
Category with you. The Category of Compatriot is missing this
entry, as you gain Compatriots by joining groups or associations.
You can recruit other people into a group or organization, but
as the attractiveness of doing so will vary widely, its left to the
Guide to determine how difficult it is for you to recruit others
into a group.
Resistance Modifier (Resist Mod.): The bonus or penalty
someone in this Category gets on their Opposed Roll if they try
to resist your attempt at influencing them or asking for aid or
information.
Loyalty Modifier (Loyalty Mod.): The bonus or penalty someone
in this Category gets to their rolls opposing a third partys attempts
to get them to betray you, either through action or information.
Faux-Pas Result: What happens to the other Character if you
commit a serious faux pas while using a Social Skill with someone
of this Relations Category.
Tragedy DR: Should anything really bad happen to someone in
this Relations Category (for example, they die), then this is the DR
of the WILL Test to avoid gaining a Grief (or some other kind of )
Binding. Avoiding Bindings involving Family members are more
difficult; add +2 to the Tragedy DR of a Relation if that person is
also a Family member (for example, the death of a Family Friend
would provoke a WILL Test DR 14 to avoid a Grief Binding).
Binding Level: Should you develop a Binding related to this
person either through your own conduct (for example, a Guilt
Binding for betraying them) or his or her fate (for example, they
died tragically), then this is the suggested beginning Binding Level
you acquire. Some suggested Binding Levels are listed as EMP
with a modifier; in such cases, your own EMP is the base Binding
Level to which the suggested modifier is applied. For example,
if a Friend dies and you fail your Tragedy Test, youd gain a Grief
Binding equal to your EMP minus one (on average, a Grief 4
Binding). As always Guides have final discretion in such cases.
You may note that there is no category for Family. Family
members may have a wide variety of attitudes towards you, and
so should be tracked based on their specific relationship to you.
Most Family members will be Family Compatriots (for distant
relatives), Family Friends, or Family Allies (usually for immediate
family), but you could have a Family Skeptic, for example, or
even a Family Adversary or a Family Enemy. Youll determine
the specific relationships you have with your family during the
LifePath portion of your Character creation.
A merchant tries to persuade his Contact, Hueylin,
Lord of Myr Iras, to become a Friend...

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Adventures in the Known World

Character Basics

THE RELATIONS TABLE

Relations
Category
Enemy

Adversary

Opponent

Rival

Skeptic

Stranger
Contact

Hireling
Friend
Compatriot

Ally

Lover

Agent or
Lieutenant

Follower

Worshipper

Cat.
Mod.

Resist
Mod.

Loyalty
Mod.

Faux Pas Result

Tragedy
DR

Binding
Level

+6

They gain another Level

of Hate towards you;
they might well attack
you immediately.

+5

+4

They gain a Level of

Hate towards you and
become an Enemy.
They become an
Adversary.

+3

They gain a Level of

Hate towards you.

12

EMP2

+2

They become an
Opponent.

They become a Skeptic.

They become a Skeptic.

1-2

+1

10

1-2

+2

12

EMP

An associate in a group that you belong to who

shares your goals and aims, but might not be
familiar with you personally (for example, a
fellow soldier in a large military unit or the
member of a Cult to which you belong).
They share your goals and aims and also like you
personally, so they are willing to go above the call
of duty to aid you.
They love you, and have taken a Love Binding for
you.

--

+3

They quit and become a

Skeptic.
They gain a Level of
Fury towards you.
They become a Rival.

10

EMP2

+4

They gain a Level of

Fury towards you.

14

EMP1

+5

16

EMP

They are willing to make your goals and aims

their own not because of money or shared
purpose but out of personal loyalty, and will
actively think of ways to help you achieve your
goals independent of your input.
They have made your goals and aims their own
and have abandoned any goals or aims of their
own, and will do your bidding and follow your
orders and directions out of their loyalty to you.
They believe that you are or will become divine or
semi-divine, and they are willing to worship you
in a Hero Cult.

+6

They gain a Level of

Jealousy and a Level of
Fury towards you.
They gain a Level of
Fury towards you.

14

EMP1

+7

They gain a Level of

Doubt.

12

+8

They gain a Level of

Doubt and a Level of
Despair.

14

Their Attitude Towards You

They detest you with an almost irrational passion,
and will do anything they can to harm you or
interfere with your plans; they will have a Hate
Binding towards you (though not all people that
Hate you are Enemies).
They oppose your activities and dont like you
because they dont think that you share their
values or goals.
They oppose you because they feel they are
obligated to, but theres nothing necessarily
personal about it; indeed, they may harbor
some positive feeling for you, but feel that
circumstances still require that they stand against
you.
They belong to a group that you belong to or
share your goals and beliefs, but dont like you
and have become a competitor. Normally they
would resist helping you, unless the situation
clearly advances your shared cause, in which case
they act as a Compatriot.
Theyre suspicious of you and may not like you,
but dont necessarily have a good reason for it and
are unlikely to act on it.
The default, neutral relationship you will have
with most people you meet.
They know you and might be willing to provide
you with information or maybe help you if given
the right encouragement.
They work for you for money or some other form
of compensation.
They know you socially and like you.

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91

Character Basics

YOUR GIFTS
In addition to your Characteristics and Skills, you will also have
a chance to gain Gifts, both in your use of the LifePath during
Character Creation and also during the game as you gain glory
and renown in the Known World. Gifts are blessings, abilities, and
powers that give you an advantage in the Cosmos, and generally
they give you a bonus equal to your Gift Level when you try certain
actions or use certain Skills or Characteristics. You can have a
number of Gifts at one time equal to your WIS score. So if you
have a Wisdom score of 5, you can have up to five Gifts.

TYPES OF GIFTS
Gifts come in a handful of basic types. Aura Gifts affect people
around you through your mere presence; you generate a field of
influence that causes an affect on others. Mask and Form Gifts
manifest in your appearance, and affect anyone that sees your face
(or in some cases body). Voice and Tongue Gifts affect others when
you are speaking. Touch Gifts require you to touch someone in
order to affect them. And finally there are Personal Gifts that dont
directly affect others, but cause some sort of change in you alone.

D Drace, a wandering knight-scholar from the

Watchtower Coast, has as Wisdom of 5 and has managed

over the years to accumulate his maximum complement of
Gifts. He has taken one Gift of each basic type (though he
need not have done so), and so he has a Heroic Aura 3 Gift, a
Mask of Command 2 Gift, a Golden Tongue 3 Gift, a Cleansing
Touch 1 Gift, and a Memory Trick 2 Gift. If he wants to gain
another Gift, he will first have to raise his WIS.

Generally speaking, other people around you are first affected by

either your Aura or by your appearance (Mask or Form), and then
by your voice (Tongue or Voice), and finally by your touch, though
that can change if youre speaking very loudly, for example, or if
they cant see you, or your Aura is very small. You may have several
Gifts that produce the same or similar results if you want, but each
Gift must be treated separately regardless of the similarity in their
affect (for example, an Aura Gift and a Mask Gift that both create
Fear Bindings must still be handled as two separate Gifts, rather
than one large Fear-causing Gift).

ACTIVATING GIFTS
Most Mask, Aura, Voice, and Touch Gifts must be activated in
order for them to have an effect. Many Gifts are quite powerful,
and as such they require the expenditure of your energy in order
to use them. A Gift may be used, revealed, or activated by a Use
Gift Action, a Move Action that can be combined with other Move
Actions on your Characters turn (see Actions & Time). A Gift can
be hidden away or turned off using the same Action. To use a Gift,
you must use your Body, Mind, or Spirit Points to fuel the Gift
you are, in effect, draining yourself of physical, mental, or spiritual
energy to manifest your Gift. A Gift costs 1 Point of Body, Mind,
or Spirit to activate, and remains active for a number of rounds
equal to your Gift Level. Using your Body, Mind, or Spirit in this
way can be dangerous; for example, if you used your Body Points to

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fuel a Gift, its the same as bleeding or taking a wound. Youve been
damaged or drained, and have to recuperate the Points that youve
lost. See the Combat Rules for more information on regaining lost
Body, Mind, and Spirit Points.

D Draces Heroic Aura 3 Gift gives a +3 bonus to the rolls

of his compatriots who are within his Aura while it is active. He

and his compatriots wander into a bandit ambush, and so he
activates his Heroic Aura by expending 1 point of Spirit. The
Aura will last for 3 rounds (or 12 phases), during which his
compatriots gain +3 to their rolls. At the end of that time, the
Gift becomes inactive, though Drace can always reactivate it
by spending another point of Body, Mind, or Spirit. His used
Spirit Points will return to him over time.

While you may have several different Gifts of a particular type (more
than one Mask, Aura, Voice, etc.), if a Gift must be active, then only
one active Gift of each type can be activated at any one time. For
example, if you have an Imperious Mask Gift and a Mask of Command
Gift, both of which have to be activated for use, then you can only
have one of the two Masks active at any one time. But if you have
an Animal Mask Gift, which need not be activated, and a Mask of
Command Gift, then you can activate the Mask of Command and
have it cause an affect at the same time as your Animal Mask.

Some of your Gifts will distinguish between friend and foe;
for example, the Courageous Aura Gift only affects your associates
of Hireling or higher status. However, others do not make such
distinctions; for example, the Aura of Madness Gift affects everyone
within your Aura, not just your enemies, and you will likely lose
your friends with some frequency if you keep driving them insane.

Many Gifts, as noted, can impart Bindings or Hexes to
other Characters. In such cases, the strength of the Binding or Hex
is equal to the Level of the Gift being used. So if you have a Dreadful
Voice Gift Level 4, you will be imparting a Dread (of you) Binding
Level 4 to those that hear your voice and fail their resistance Test.
Gifts, like Skills, begin at a Level of 1 and can increase higher; a Level
of 10 could be considered mastery of a Gift, indicating a high level
of power, but there is no upper limit on how high your Levels in a
particular Gift can go. Each Gift entry also includes the number of
Arcana Points (q.v.) that must be spent per point of Gift Level that
you wish to obtain.

If you have the same Gift as another Character and they
attempt to use it against you, then your Gift Levels cancel out their
Gift Levels on a one-for-one basis. This is true whether or not your
Gift is active at the moment of the opposed Test.

D Jeriss of Nomath has a Warlike Visage 3 Gift. When he

encounters the cruel bandit lord Mercilias, he activates it and

charges into battle; however, he rapidly discovers to his chagrin
that Mercilias has his own Warlike Visage, and it is at Level 5.
So Jeriss Warlike Visage has no effect on Mercilias; on the other
hand, if Mercilias activates his own Warlike Visage, then it would
only affect Jeriss as though it were Level 2.

Character Basics

YOUR GIFTS

Gifts that must be activated through the expenditure of Body, Mind, or Spirit Points are listed in italics. Gaining a Level in a Gift requires the
use of Arcana Points (more information on them can be found in the next section on The Book of Dooms).

AURA GIFTS

These Gifts cause effects through your mere Presence,

and can affect anyone within a certain range. These
Gifts are referred to as Aura Gifts, as they create an aura
or field of influence around you. The size of the Aura
is based upon both your Gift Level and your Presence;
multiply the two together and thats the range in feet
of your Aura. For example, if you have an Aura Gift of
Level 3 and a PRE of 6, your Aura would have a range
of 18; an Aura Gift of 6 and a PRE of 8 would produce
a 48 Aura effect.

Aura of Fury
AP Cost per Level: 3
You can cause your companions to become enraged
as though they shared your Berserkir Gift. You must
already have Levels in the Berserkir Gift to gain this Aura,
which act as a Cap to your Levels in this Gift, and your
Berserkir Gift must already be active. When this Gift is
active, any companion of Compatriot or higher standing
within range acts as though they have an active Berserkir
Gift equal in Level to yours. If your companions resist
you, they must overcome your PRE roll plus your Gift
Level with a WILL roll of their own.

Aura of Madness
AP Cost per Level: 4
Your mere presence can drive people into madness. When
this Aura is active, anyone within it must successfully
overcome your PRE roll and Gift Level with a WILL
roll of their own or gain a Madness Binding equal to
your Gift Level.

Aura of Truth
AP Cost per Level: 3
Others have great difficulty lying to you when this
Aura is active; they must overcome your PRE roll and
Gift Level with a WILL roll to attempt a lie, and must
deduct your Gift Level from any roll opposed to yours
in matters of deceit or fakery.

Auspicious Aura
AP Cost per Level: 5
You make others feel lucky. When this Aura is active,
anyone within range may add your Gift Level as a bonus
to any Test they undertake.

Awaken Appetites
AP Cost per Level: 2
Your presence whets appetites in others. When this Gift
is active, anyone within range must resist the triggering
of their Ambition, Desire, Lust, and Vanity Bindings with
your Gift Level as a penalty to their rolls.

Aura may resist by overcoming your PRE roll and Gift

Level with their WILL roll.

Test.

Charismatic Aura

AP Cost per Level: 4

Your presence calms others, making them more difficult
to excite or anger and more harmonious in their dealings
with you and each other. When your Gift is active,
anyone within range must subtract your Gift Level from
their rolls to resist you in Social Skill Tests and must
add your Gift Level to their rolls to resist gaining or
triggering any kind of Binding.

AP Cost per Level: 3

The charisma of your associates of Compatriot and
higher status benefits from your presence, and when this
Gift is active they add your Gift Level to their roll in any
Social Skill Test.

Courageous Aura
AP Cost per Level: 4
Your presence fills others with courage; when this Gift
is active, your associates of Hireling or higher status
may add your Gift Level as a bonus to their roll in any
COUR-based Test.

Enchanted Aura
AP Cost per Level: 5
You seem to be magical, as does everything around you;
when this Gift is active, add your Gift Level as a bonus
to the rating of all enchantments & runes within range.

Enlightened Aura
AP Cost per Level: 4
Your mere presence seems to bring comprehension and
understanding to those around you. When this Gift is
active, anyone within range may add your Gift Level as
a bonus to REAS- and WIS-based Tests.

Fortifying Aura
AP Cost per Level: 4
Your presence acts as a source of stability and strength for
all around you. When this Gift is active, your associates
of Hireling or higher status within range may add your
Gift Level to their current Body, Mind, and Spirit Points
(without exceeding their regular maximum, so this only
applies to allies that have been wounded or drained). If
an affected associate leaves your Aura while the Gift is
still active, they retain their extra Points; but when this
Gift stops being active, the extra Points disappear from
your associates regardless of where they are at the time.

Heroic Aura
AP Cost per Level: 5
Your presence makes the people around you greater.
When this Gift is active, your associates of Compatriot
and higher Status within range may add your Gift Level
as a bonus to their rolls in all Skill and Characteristics
Tests.

Immaculate Aura

AP Cost per Level: 4

Everyone around you can perceive the world more
easily; when this Gift is active, anyone within range may
add your Gift Level as a bonus to PER- and WIS-based
Tests.

AP Cost per Level: 5

Others around you benefit from your purity of heart and
purpose; you must already possess an Immaculate Gift
(of Body, Mind, or Spirit) to gain this Aura, and that
Immaculate Gift Level acts as a Cap to your Levels in this
Gift. When this Gift is active your associates of Ally and
higher status within range may add your Gift Level to
their resistance rolls as though they had your Immaculate
Gift (Body, Mind or Spirit).

Chaotic Aura

Resolute Aura

AP Cost per Level: 4

All those around you have difficulty perceiving the
world; when this Gift is active, anyone within range
must apply your Gift Level as a penalty to Awareness,
PER- and WIS-based Skill Tests. Those within your

AP Cost per Level: 4

Others around you are made more determined by your
presence, and when your Gift is active, your associates of
Hireling and higher status within range may add your
Gift Level as a bonus to their roll in any WILL-based

Bright Aura

Serene Aura

Unveil
AP Cost per Level: 3
Your mere presence may lift glamours and reveal things
in their true appearance; when this Gift is active, your
Aura gives all within it a bonus equal to your Gift Level
to their rolls in Awareness Tests to detect glamours and
illusions. Any such illusory magics may be undone by
your Aura; roll d10 + PRE + Gift Level, and if your roll
is higher than a DR of 10 + the number of points of
energy (Spirit or Mind Points) involved in creating the
glamour, then it is dispelled. Unveil also cancels out the
Shape-Shifting Gift.

MASK & VISAGE GIFTS

Some Gifts are based upon your appearance and how

people see you, and are usually referred to as Mask or
Visage Gifts. They affect your appearance and in turn
affect the way other people respond to you for example
as bonuses or penalties to Social and Performance Skill
Tests, or by triggering a Test for another person to receive
or activate a Binding (which, once again, will impact
their use of Skills and Characteristics).

Animal Mask
AP Cost per Level: 1
You are accepted by animals and birds as one of them,
and gain a bonus equal to your Gift Level on any Test
to train, befriend, and communicate with them. Wild
animals and birds will not flee from you as they would
most other humans. This Gift is always active, at no
cost.

Blush of Love
AP Cost per Level: 2
You are in requited love, and others can see it; you add
your Gift Level as a modifier to your APP and PRE
when others can see you. This Gift is always active, at
no cost.

Brazen Body
AP Cost per Level: 3
You can inspire lust and sexual desires in those around
you through your body and skin, but some may find
you off-putting. When this Gift is active, add your Gift
Level to your roll in any Social or Performance Skill Test,
but a failure is an automatic Fumble. Anyone that sees
you when this Gift is active must overcome your APP
roll and Gift Level with a WILL roll to avoid a Lust
Binding equal to your Gift Level.

Charismatic Mask
AP Cost per Level: 3
You are filled with an almost supernatural charisma.
When this Gift is active, you may add your Gift Level
to your roll in any Social Skill Test, and any associates of

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Character Basics
Compatriot or higher status that can see you may add
your Gift Level to their Morale and Loyalty Tests.

may add your Gift Level to their Morale and Loyalty

Tests.

Cryptic Mask

Otherworldly Visage

AP Cost per Level: 2

You are surrounded by an aspect of mystery, giving you
a bonus to attempts to deceive or charm others by word,
deed, or spell. When this Gift is active, you may add
your Gift Level to any Social Skill, Performance, or
magic Test aimed at deceiving or charming those that
can see you.

Dreadful Visage
AP Cost per Level: 3
The mere sight of you can cause dread, fear, and
discomfort in those that see your face. When this Gift
is active, anyone that looks at you must overcome your
APP roll and Gift Level with their COUR roll or gain
a Dread Binding against you equal to your Gift Level.
Your associates of Compatriot or higher status are
immune to this Gift.

Evil Eye

AP Cost per Level: 3

You are marked by the Otherworld. When this Gift is
active, you may add your Gift Level in all Social Skill,
Performance, and magic-related Skill Tests in dealings
with otherworldly and supernatural creatures and spirits.
In addition, you do not age as quickly as others do, with
your Gift Level added to your rolls to prevent the effects
of aging (q.v.); this anti-aging effect applies regardless of
whether the Gift is active or not.

Spellbinding Form
AP Cost per Level: 3
You are alluring and beautiful and easily attract the
attention of others. When this Gift is active, you may
add your Gift Level to all APP-based Social Skill Tests,
and anyone who sees you must successfully overcome
your APP roll and Gift Level with a WILL roll or gain a
Desire Binding equal to your Gift Level.

AP Cost per Level: 3

You may place a Hex on someone with a glance; they
must overcome your PRE roll and Gift Level with their
COUR roll or gain a Hex Binding of your choice equal
to your Gift Level. Unlike most Bindings that result
from Gifts, the Hex Binding from an Evil Eye lasts only
so long as the Gift is active.

Terrifying Mask

Face of Madness

Unearthly Form

AP Cost per Level: 4

The sight of your face can drive someone mad; when this
Gift is active, those looking at you must overcome your
APP roll and Gift Level with their REAS roll or gain a
Madness Binding equal to your Gift Level.

Ghost Mask
AP Cost per Level: 3
You bear about you the touch of the grave, and may
scare others by your appearance. When this Gift is
active, anyone that sees you must successfully overcome
your APP and Gift Level with a COUR roll or gain a
Fear Binding equal to your Gift Level. Your associates of
Friend or higher status are immune to this Gift. Ghosts
and spirits treat you as one of their own when this Gift
is active, and will not attack you (unless you attack them
first).

Imperious Mask

AP Cost per Level: 3

The mere sight of you can fill people with fear. When
this Gift is active, anyone that you direct your anger
towards and sees your face must successfully overcome
your APP roll and Gift Level with a COUR roll or gain
a Fear Binding equal to your Gift Level.
AP Cost per Level: 5
Your body is marked by the Heavens, and does not age as
quickly as others do, with your Gift Level added to your
rolls to prevent the effects of aging; this effect applies
regardless of whether the Gift is active or not. When the
Gift is active, those who see your undraped form must
successfully overcome your APP roll and Gift Level with
a WIS roll to avoid an Awe Binding equal to your Gift
Level. You are immune to disease.

Unearthly Mask
AP Cost per Level: 4
You are marked with the beauty of the Heavens, and
when this Gift is active you may add your Gift Level
to all Social Skill and Performance Tests; in addition,
those who see your face must successfully overcome your
APP roll and Gift Level with a WIS roll or gain an Awe
Binding equal to your Gift Level.

AP Cost per Level: 4

You appear naturally dominant and commanding,
and others have a hard time resisting your will. When
this Gift is active, anyone that can see your face must
subtract your Gift Level when they attempt to use their
WILL to resist you in a Test.

Warlike Visage

Implacable Mask

AP Cost per Level: 4

Your appearance triggers dormant Dread, Fear, and
Shame Bindings, even if you are not their usual Trigger.
When this Gift is active, anyone with such a Binding
that can see your face must resist triggering their
Binding with your Gift Level as a penalty to their roll.
In addition, when this Gift is active anyone with a Guilt
Binding that can see your face must subtract your Gift
Level from any roll opposed to yours.

AP Cost per Level: 3

You appear relentless and unforgiving to those with
guilty secrets. When this Gift is active, anyone with a
Guilt or active Shame Binding must subtract your Gift
Level from any roll opposed to yours.

Mask of Command
AP Cost per Level: 3
You are a natural commander and leader, and others
obey you instinctively. When this Gift is active, you
may add your Gift Level to your roll in any Leadership,
Persuasion, Oratory, or Tactics Skill Test, and any
associates of Hireling or higher status that can see you

94

Adventures in the Known World

AP Cost per Level: 5

You appear intimidating, and when this Gift is active
anyone that sees your face must deduct your Gift Level
from any roll opposed to yours.

Wrathful Visage

Gift causes different effects in listeners when employed,

usually either through bonuses or penalties, or by
triggering a Test or imparting a Binding.

Brazen Tongue
AP Cost per Level: 2
You can inspire lust and sexual desires in those around
you with your voice alone, but some may find you
off-putting. When this Gifts is active, you may add
your Gift Level to any roll in a verbally based Social
or Performance Skill Test, but a failure is an automatic
Fumble. Anyone that hears you speak while this Gift
is active must successfully overcome your PRE roll and
Gift Level with a WILL roll or gain a Lust Binding equal
to your Gift Level.

Dreadful Voice
AP Cost per Level: 3
You can cause dread and fear with your voice. When
this Gift is active, you may add your Gift Level when
making attempts to scare or intimidate others through
any form of speech, and your listeners must successfully
overcome your PRE roll and Gift Level with a COUR
roll or gain a Dread Binding equal to your Gift Level.

Enlightened Tongue
AP Cost per Level: 2
Yours is the very voice of reason and wisdom, and you
may influence others with your enlightened tone; when
this Gift is active you may add your Gift Level as a
bonus to attempts to teach, persuade or influence others
through any form of speech. This Gift lasts longer than
other Gifts when active; instead of remaining active for
1 round per Gift Level, it remains active for 1 hour per
Gift Level.

Feral Tongue
AP Cost per Level: 2
You may understand and speak any animal or avian
language, with your Gift Level as your basic Language
Skill Level. This Gift is always active, at no cost.

Forked Tongue
AP Cost per Level: 4
Your voice is supernaturally persuasive. When this Gift
is active, you may add your Gift Level to your roll in any
Test to persuade, influence, convert, tempt, or subvert
others with any form of speech; you may also add your
Gift Level in any Test to invoke a Binding. When this
Gift is active, you may talk someone into an Ambition,
Desire, Doubt, Fury, Hate, Jealousy, Lust, or Vanity
Binding equal to your Gift Level with a successful
Persuasion or Seduction Skill Test. If they already have
such a Binding, then you may increase its Level by your
own Gift Level with a successful Persuasion or Seduction
Skill Test. Both Tests are Opposed as appropriate, but
you may add your Gift Level to your roll.

Ghost Tongue
AP Cost per Level: 2
You may see and speak with the Dead with ease, with
your Gift Level acting as your Language Skill Level,
even if they dont speak the same Language that you do.
While this Gift is active, you may add your Gift Level
as a bonus to your Social and Performance Skill Tests
with the Dead.

Glorious Voice

VOICE GIFTS

Other Gifts affect the way you speak to people, and

are usually referred to as Tongue or Voice Gifts. Each

AP Cost per Level: 3

Your voice bears the mark of the divine. When this
Gift is active, you may add your Gift Level to all verbal
Social and Performance Skill Tests, and all who hear

Character Basics
you must successfully overcome your PRE roll and Gift
Level with a WIS roll or gain an Awe Binding equal to
your Gift Level.

Golden Tongue

Binding equal to your Gift Level. Anyone who can hear

you while this Gifts is active must subtract your Gift
Level from any opposed roll they make against you (not
including that to resist a Fury Binding).

AP Cost per Level: 2

Your voice is touched by divine inspiration and awakens
ideas and desires in others. When this Gift is active,
you may add your Gift Level to any verbal Social or
Performance Skill Test, and once moved by your speech
listeners may add your Gift Level to any TECH, IMAG,
or WIS roll made in connection to the subject of your
speech for a number of days equal to your Gift Level.

Voice of Madness

Haunting Voice

TOUCH GIFTS

AP Cost per Level: 3

Your voice is filled with a beautiful melancholy, sadness,
and world-weariness, and others are instinctively
fascinated by it. When this Gift is active, listeners must
successfully overcome your PRE roll and Gift Level with
a WILL roll or be forced to subtract their EMP from
their subsequent rolls to any opposed Tests against you.
You may also add your Gift Level to your roll in any
verbal Social or Performance Skill Test while this Gift
is active.

Honeyed Tongue
AP Cost per Level: 2
Your voice is naturally seductive and you are very
persuasive, able to talk people into just about anything.
When this Gift is active, you may add your Gift Level
as a bonus to any verbal attempt at Intrigue, Persuasion,
Leadership, Seduction, or Oratory.

Imperious Tongue
AP Cost per Level: 2
You speak with a voice of surety and command, and
when this Gift is active you may add your Gift Level to
your roll in any verbal Social or Performance Skill Test
to command or compel others.

Many Tongues
AP Cost per Level: 3
You may understand and speak any human language,
with your Gift Level as your basic Language Skill Level.
This Gift is always active, at no cost.

Serene Voice
AP Cost per Level: 3
You can calm and soothe others with the sound of your
voice. When this Gift is active, you may add your Gift
Level to any attempt at diffusing violent situations or in
ending a triggered Binding.

Silver Tongue
AP Cost per Level: 2
You have a convincing and persuasive voice, and when
this Gift is active you may add your Gift Level to your
roll in all verbal Social Skill Tests.

Tongue Afire
AP Cost per Level: 2
You speak with inspiration and cosmic lucidity; when
this Gift is active, you may add your Gift Level to any
verbal Performance Skill Test.

Voice of Fury
AP Cost per Level: 3
You can cause anger in others by encouraging them
with your voice; when this Gift is active, anyone that
you exhort to anger must successfully resist your PRE
roll and Gift Level with a WILL roll or gain a Fury

AP Cost per Level: 3

You can cause madness in others by encouraging them
with your voice; when this Gift is active, anyone that
can hear your voice those must successfully overcome
your PRE roll and Gift Level with a REAS roll or gain a
Madness Binding equal to your Gift Level.

Some Gifts require that you touch someone to cause an

effect. These Gifts are called Touch Gifts, and they allow
you to change something about someone that you come
into contact with while the Gift is active.

Brazen Touch
AP Cost per Level: 2
Your sensuality and allure rubs off on your paramours;
you must already possess the Brazen Body or Brazen
Tongue Gift, and their Gift Levels act as a Cap on your
Levels in this Gift. Your lovers act as though they
have your Gift Levels in Brazen Body or Brazen Tongue
(whichever is higher) for a number of days equal to your
Brazen Touch Gift Level after your encounter. This Gift
is always active, at no cost.

Cleansing Touch
AP Cost per Level: 4
You may attempt to lift a Binding or Pollution from
others by touch alone. When this Gift is active, you may
touch someone with a Binding or Pollution Levels and
then roll d10 plus your PRE plus your Gift Level against
a DR of 10 plus the current Level of the Binding or
Pollution you are trying to remove; if you are successful,
then you may expend Body, Mind, or Spirit Points to
reduce a single Binding or Pollution Levels by a number
of Levels equal to the amount of energy you expend.
Your Gift Level acts as a Cap to the amount of energy
you can expend; so if you have Cleansing Touch 4, you
can spend up to 4 Points and reduce a Binding by up
to 4 Levels. You may only make one attempt to reduce
a single Binding or Pollution during a single activation
of this Gift.

Healing Touch
AP Cost per Level: 5
You may heal anothers wounds by touching them with
your hands. When this Gift is active, you may touch
someone that has taken physical, mental, or spiritual
damage, and heal them of that damage; in addition to
the activation cost of the Gift, each touch costs you one
point of Body, Mind, or Spirit (depending on the type
of damage you are trying to heal), and restores a number
of lost Points equal to your Gift Level. See the Combat
Rules section for more info on healing.

Oracular Touch
AP Cost per Level: 4
You may sense the future of living beings or objects
that you touch. When this Gift is active, you may
touch another person or object and make a Foretelling
Divination Roll (q.v.) with your Gift Level as a bonus.

Sensitive Touch
AP Cost per Level: 2
You can detect magic, enchantments, or the presence of

spirits by touching an object or person. If you touch

any object or person that bears an enchantment or spell
upon them, or is being possessed by a spirit or ghost,
while this Gift is active, then you may attempt to detect
the magic using a PER/Awareness Test with your Gift
Level as a bonus.

PERSONAL GIFTS

The final type of Gift is a Gift that gives you an internal

power that affects you alone. These Gifts can be
considered Personal Gifts.

Ascension
Cost: 5 Arcana Points per Level
When you die, you may attempt to enter the Heavens
or the Underworld as a God; this requires that you have
accumulated Worshippers and a Hero Cult. More info
about Ascension can be found in the section on Death
in the chapter on The World Around You.

Beautiful Mind
AP Cost per Level: 3
Your Mind works in amazing ways, giving you a bonus
to solve problems using your REAS, but you must also
apply your Gift Level as a penalty to all of your Social
and Performance Skill Tests. This Gift is always active,
at no cost.

Berserkir Ekstasis
AP Cost per Level: 3
You can become filled with a supernatural rage. When
this Gift is active, you must add your Gift Level as a
bonus to any STR- or COUR-based Test and to any
Hand-to-Hand or Melee Skill Tests during combat.

Bonds of Love
AP Cost per Level: 3
You are in requited love, and have a connection with
your partner that transcends distance; you always know
where they are and have a general sense of whether they
are safe or in danger, but you must also share their pains.
You take physical or spiritual damage done to them
onto yourself as well, up to your Gift Level in points per
wound (this does not apply to the voluntary loss or use
of Body or Spirit Points, as for example in fueling spells
or Gifts). This Gift is always active, at no cost.

Bound Hearts
AP Cost per Level: 3
You inspire loyalty in those sworn to you; your Gift
Level is added to rolls during Morale and Loyalty Tests
for your Hirelings, Friends, Compatriots, Allies, Lovers,
Agents, Lieutenants, Followers, and Worshippers. This
Gift is always active, at no cost.

Clear Mind
AP Cost per Level: 2
You are clear in sight and purpose, and are not easily
fooled by magic or illusion; when this Gift is active,
you may add your Gift Level to any attempt to resist
any magic involving glamours or illusions, or any Aura,
Mask, Visage, or Voice Gift.

Create Followers
AP Cost per Level: 5
You may attract followers who will do your bidding;
you may attempt a Relations roll to change the attitude
of someone you know into that of a Follower. See the
section on Relations in the previous section for more
information.

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Create Gift
AP Cost per Level: 5
You may create a new kind of Gift, one appropriate for
any one Arcana Path (q.v.) that you have mastered. You
are considered to have mastered an Arcana Path once
you have accumulated at least 100 Arcana Points in
that Arcana Path, and have Level 10 in at least one Gift
linked to that Arcana Path. At that point you may use
this Gift to create a new Gift, converting your Levels in
Create Gift into a new Gift of your own design. The
new Gift should be created in consultation with your
Guide, who remains the final arbiter of whether the Gift
is appropriate. Gifts should basically add a bonus to a
Test or Test category, or present others with a Binding
or penalty. See the section on the Arcana following this
for more information about Arcana Paths and Arcana
Points.

Create Worshippers
AP Cost per Level: 5
You may attract worshippers who believe that you are
or will become divine or semi-divine; you may attempt
a Relations roll to change the attitude of a Follower into
that of a Worshipper with your Gift Level as a bonus
(therefore you must have the Create Follower Gift as
a prerequisite). If you are successful, then they may
create a Hero Cult around you or join one that already
exists. In that Hero Cult, your Worshippers may make
you offerings and give you Invocation Points, up to
your Gift Level in Invocation Points per Worshipper
per offering. These Invocation Points may be stored as
reserve Spirit Points that you can use on a one-time basis
to cast Incantations and Rituals, fuel Gifts, etc. See the
section on Relations in the next Chapter and on Magic
and Religion later in the book for more information.

Dream-Flight
AP Cost per Level: 5
Your Spirit may leave your body during sleep and travel
to other places; your Gift Level determines the amount
of time you may travel outside your body during sleep.
This Gift must be activated, but remains active for
one hour for every Gift Level rather than one round,
as with other Gifts. See the section on traveling to the
Dreamworld later for more information.

Dreaming Oracle
AP Cost per Level: 5
You can have prescient and divinatory dreams while
sleeping. You may activate this Gift before falling
asleep by expending a number of Body, Mind, or Spirit
Points equal to your Gift Level. During sleep, you will
be allowed to make a single Foretelling Divination Roll
(q.v.) with your Gift Level as a bonus.

Ecstasy/Ekstasis
AP Cost per Level: 5
You are filled with bliss and rapture, and may commune
with Nature, the Otherworld, the Underworld, or the
Heavens. You may activate this Gift by expending a
number of Body, Mind, or Spirit Points equal to your
Gift Level; this triggers a trance that lasts a number of
hours equal to your Gift Level. During that trance,
you may perform a single Divination Roll (q.v.) with
your Gift Level as a bonus; or you may attempt to learn
something new such as a Mystery. A Mystery normally
requires an Initiation Roll using your Mystery Cult
Lore Skill and guided by someone who has the Initiate/
Mystery Gift or knows a Mystery Cult Initiation Ritual.
When this Gift is active, you may add your Gift Level
as a bonus to your Initiation Roll; further, you may
also attempt to initiate yourself into a Mystery without

96

Adventures in the Known World

the aid of another Characters Initiate/Mystery Gift or

Initiation Ritual (see the sections on Magic and Mystery
Cults for more information).

Hero Lineage
AP Cost per Level: 5
Normally when you have children, they inherit the
stronger of the two Lineages that you have inherited
(your mothers or your fathers). The Hero Lineage Gift
allows you to better the prospects for your progeny.
Normally the maximum bonus to a single Characteristic
available from one Lineage Effect is +1. For every Level
of the Hero Lineage Gift, you may add a +1 bonus to
your Lineage Effect for a Characteristic that you have
at Level 10 or higher, and that does not already have
a bonus on the Lineage Effect you want to affect. Or
you may decrease a Characteristics penalty or Binding
Level by one Level, or add a bonus Gift Level for a Gift
that you possess at Level 10 or higher. You can find
more on Lineages in the chapter on Character Creation,
following, and in Appendix A, where there is also an
example of using this Gift.

Illuminated Mind
AP Cost per Level: 5
You have had a brush with divine or cosmic forces and
your Mind is filled with a supernatural understanding
of the cosmos. When this Gift is active, you may add
your Gift Level to any PER, IMAG, MEM, or WIS Test,
Initiation Test, or Test to comprehend a Mystery.

Immaculate Body
AP Cost per Level: 5
You are unpolluted and pure in flesh, and may add your
Gift Level to any attempt to resist Pollution, disease, or
poison. This Gift is always active, at no cost.

Immaculate Mind
AP Cost per Level: 5
You are unpolluted and pure in thought, and may
add your Gift Level to any attempt to resist influence,
persuasion, or magic spells. This Gift is always active,
at no cost.

Immaculate Spirit
AP Cost per Level: 5
You are unpolluted and pure in Spirit, and may add your
Gift Level to any attempt to resist possession or spiritual
attack. This Gift is always active, at no cost.

Initiate/Mystery
AP Cost per Level: 5
You can open other peoples minds to the unknown,
showing them a Mystery about the Known World at
large that you have already come to understand by being
initiated into the Mystery. To comprehend a Mystery
normally requires an Initiation Roll using your Mystery
Cult Lore Skill during an Initiation Ritual, but it may
also occur under the tutelage of someone with this Gift.
So when this Gift is active and you are attempting to
initiate others into a Mystery you understand, they may
add your Gift Level to any attempt to succeed at such
an Initiation Roll. This is one basis for a Mystery Cult.
This Gift lasts for one hour per Level after activation.

Iron Body
AP Cost per Level: 5
Your body is resistant to harm; your Gift Level acts
as natural armor, preventing damage and preventing
wounds. Your Gift acts as equal protection against Cut,
Puncture, and Impact damage; see the Combat Rules for

more information about the function of armor. Note

that this Gift does not protect against the loss of Body
Points from self-administered Points loss (for example,
the use of Body Points to fuel an active Gift). This Gift
is always active, at no cost.

Iron Mind
AP Cost per Level: 5
Your Mind is resistant to harm; your Gift Level acts
as mental armor, preventing damage from madness or
magic. Your Gift acts against damage to your Mind
in the same way that physical armor protects against
physical damage, by reducing the Points of damage done
by your Gift Level. Note that this Gift does not protect
against the loss of Mind Points from self-administered
Points loss (for example, the use of Mind Points to fuel
an active Gift or magic). This Gift is always active, at
no cost.

Iron Spirit
AP Cost per Level: 5
Your Spirit is resistant to harm; your Gift Level acts as
spiritual armor, preventing damage from magic or spirits
and ghosts. Your Gift acts against damage to your Spirit
in the same way that physical armor protects against
physical damage, by reducing the Points of damage done
by your Gift Level. Note that this Gift does not protect
against the loss of Spirit Points from self-administered
Points loss (for example, the use of Spirit Points to fuel
an active Gift or magic). This Gift is always active, at
no cost.

Keen Sight
AP Cost per Level: 1
You have especially strong eyesight, and may add your
Gift Level as a bonus to your roll in any sight-based PER
Test. This Gift is always active, at no cost.

Loves Grace
AP Cost per Level: 3
You are in requited love, and are blessed by love with
protection; you may add your Gift Level as a bonus to
any roll you make to avoid or resist harm or Bindings.
This Gift is always active, at no cost.

Memory Trick
AP Cost per Level: 5
You know tricks and techniques to expand your Mind
and remember more than others do; you may add
Memory Points equal to your current MEM times your
Gift Level. This Gift is always active, at no cost.

Mind Afire
AP Cost per Level: 4
Your Mind is filled with the inspiration of the cosmos;
while this Gift is active, you may add your Gift Level to
any creative endeavor you undertake, or to any Skill Test
involving understanding facts or ideas.

Mothers Grace
AP Cost per Level: 2
You have given birth, and are blessed by that birth with
protection; your Gift Level may be added as a bonus
to any roll to avoid or resist harm or Bindings. This
Gift is always active, at no cost, until your child reaches
puberty, at which point you lose this Gift.

Open Heart
AP Cost per Level: 2
The goddess Dieva has blessed you with an understanding
of human nature, and you may add your Gift Level

Character Basics
to your rolls to resist gaining or triggering a Jealousy
Binding. This Gift is always active, at no cost.

Open Spirit
AP Cost per Level: 3
You may act as a natural medium for ghosts and spirits,
allowing them to speak or act through you without
harming you. Your Gift Level acts as a spiritual shield
against the damage normally caused by possession,
allowing you to ignore the physical damage caused by
possession for a number of hours equal to your Gift level.
If you have allowed a Spirit to possess you voluntarily
and have this Gift, you may cast the Spirit out at will.
If a Spirit tries to possess you against your will, you may
add your Gift Level as a bonus to your rolls in Spirit
Combat (q.v.). This Gift is always active, at no cost.

Oracular Sight
AP Cost per Level: 4
You may sense the future of living beings you look at.
While this Gift is active, you may focus your gaze on
one Character per activation and make a Foretelling
Divination Roll (q.v.) about that person with your Gift
Level as a bonus.

Rebirth
AP Cost per Level: 5
When you die, your Spirit may attempt to be reborn
into the World immediately rather than pass on to the
Underworld. See the section on Death in the chapter
on The World Around You. This Gift is always active,
at no cost.

Renown
AP Cost per Level: 3
You have a reputation and are blessed with fame or
infamy, and may add your Gift Level to any APP or
PRE-based Social or Performance Skill Test. This Gift is
always active, at no cost.

Serene Body
AP Cost per Level: 4
You are physically at ease and supernaturally healthy,
rarely showing the effects of fatigue, disease, or your
environment. You may ignore the first Fatigue Points
that you would normally receive from labor, travel, or
sleeplessness, up to an amount equal to your Gift Level
(after which you begin to accumulate Fatigue Points as
usual). You may add your Gift Level to any roll you
make to resist Disease Bindings or damage from an
environmental cause (fire, drowning, extreme cold or
heat). This Gift is always active, at no cost.

Serene Mind
AP Cost per Level: 4
You are calm and unruffled, difficult to excite or anger,
holding great control over your emotions; add your
Gift Level as a bonus to any roll to avoid receiving
or triggering an emotional (as opposed to Physical)
Binding. This Gift is always active, at no cost.

Shape-Shift
AP Cost per Level: 5
You may change your physical form into that another
creature. This may also be gained as a Curse, in which
case there may be triggers or conditions that cause the
change and limits on the shapes you may take. While
this Gift is active, you may change your physical form
into any creature of your approximate size or smaller;
your Physical Characteristics become those of a typical
member of the species, to which you add (and subtract)
your Lineage, Star Sign, and Birth Omen bonuses, if
any (q.v.). You may make one such transformation into
another form (and back) during a single activation of
this Gift. When this Gift ceases being active, you revert
back to your original form automatically.

Share Gift

AP Cost per Level: 2

You can see into the Otherworld, opening the hidden
world of magics, spirits, and enchantments to your
inspection. While this Gift is active, you may look into
the Otherworld as though it were part of the regular
world around you, and you may add your Gift Level as
a bonus to your roll in any Awareness Skill Test to see
magical or invisible things or spirits.

AP Cost per Level: 5

You may choose one Gift you have that you may share
with Worshippers in your Hero Cult in exchange for
their Invocation Points, with your Share Gift Level as
a maximum on the Gift Level they receive. You must
activate this Gift in order to share the chosen Gift with
them; you may fuel the activation with your own Body,
Mind, or Spirit Points, or you may use the Invocation
Points that Worshippers have donated to you through
Offerings. This Gift may be taken again in order to
share other Gifts.

See Guilt

Spirit-Walking

Second Sight

AP Cost per Level: 3

You may see Guilt Bindings in others when this Gift is
active. They may try and hide their Guilt from you by
successfully resisting your PRE and Gift Level with their
WILL, but they must take a penalty equal in strength to
their Guilt Binding.

See The Path

AP Cost per Level: 4
When uncertain about how to proceed in an endeavor,
you can envision the proper way forward. When this
Gift is active, you may make a Foretelling Divination
Roll (q.v.) with your Gift Level as a bonus.

Sense Lies
AP Cost per Level: 3
You often know when people are lying to you. You
may add your Gift Level as a bonus to your roll in any
Awareness or Inquiry Skill Test to detect lies.

AP Cost per Level: 5

You can send a part of your being into the Otherworld.
This Gift must be activated, but remains active for one
hour for every Gift Level rather than one round, as with
other Gifts. When this Gift is active, your Mind and
Spirit may discorporate from your body even while
awake, and you may then travel the Otherworld as a
Spirit creature for a number of hours equal to your Gift
Level. See the section on the Otherworld in the chapter
on The World Around You for more information.

Stone Heart
AP Cost per Level: 2
You are highly resistant to charm, either magical or
otherwise; add your Gift Level to your rolls to resist any
magical attempt at charming you, Persuasion, Seduction,
or Oratory attempts, EMP-based Test, or EMP Appeal.
This Gift is always active, at no cost.

Sustenance
AP Cost per Level: 1

You do not need much food or drink, and may add

your Gift Level to all rolls to survive the deprivation
of food and water. More information can be found in
the Environment section of the chapter on The World
Around You. This Gift is always active, at no cost.

True Love
AP Cost per Level: 5
You and your partner have found True Love (you must
both take this Gift at the same time), and you may add
your Gift Level to any roll you make. Your Gift Level
also serves as a natural Ward against all forms of harm to
your Mind, Spirit, and Body. Should your partner die,
you automatically gain both Grief and Despair Bindings
equal to your True Love Gift Level (in addition to any
other Bindings you might receive). This Gift is always
active, at no cost.

Unmask Desire
AP Cost per Level: 2
You may see Desire, Love, and Lust Bindings in others
when this Gift is active. They may try and hide their
desires from you by successfully resisting your PRE roll
and Gift Level with their WILL roll, but they must
take a penalty to their roll equal to their strongest such
Binding.

Veteran
AP Cost per Level: 4
You have seen the thick of battle before and have been
blooded. You may add your Gift Level to your Initiative
roll, to COUR-based Tests, and to your rolls in any
Tactics Test or Morale Test in battle. This Gift is always
active, at no cost.

D OPPOSED GIFTS
IN ACTION
Bryce of Teppin, a young Magician, has a
Terrifying Mask 2 Gift. One day, two street
thugs come upon him, and they seem eager
to part him from his cash. He activates his
Gift. He has an APP of 6, and rolls a 5; so
with his Gift Level his final roll is (5+6+2=)
13. The first thug has a COUR score of
5 and rolls a 6 for an 11 total; the second
thug has a COUR score of 6 and rolls a 6
for a 12 total. Barring any other Modifiers,
neither thug was able to better Bryces
roll in this Opposed Test, and so each of
them is stricken with a Fear Bryce of Teppin
2 Binding and they run off as quickly as
they can. Later, Bryce runs into a fierce
Daradjan Witch named Golo the Hag, and
they argue over whos the better Magician.
Bryce once again activates his Terrifying
Mask 2 Gift, but discovers that Golo has
a Terrifying Mask 6. Golo is unaffected by
his Terrifying Mask, and when she activates
hers, he must try and avoid her Mask as
though it were Level 4. He rolls a 4 and
adds his COUR of 5 for a 9; her roll is a
4 and she adds her APP of 2 and working
Gift Level of 4, for a 10. Bryce flees with a
Fear Golo the Hag 4 Binding.

Adventures in the Known World

97

Character Basics

YOUR BINDINGS
In addition to Gifts, you will also acquire Bindings on your
LifePath and during the game. Bindings are physical, emotional,
psychological, or social complications that put limits on your
abilities. While Gifts act as bonuses or aids to your rolls during
Tests and actions or give you some special or extraordinary ability,
Bindings bring penalties to your rolls or trigger certain kinds of
automatic behavior. Despite the negative connotations, you may
nonetheless pursue some Bindings; Love, for example, is a Binding
that many Characters might desire.

You may acquire Bindings from your Lineage (in which
case your Lineage is considered Cursed) or during your turn
through the LifePath, and then will go on to gain other Bindings
from your actions (or inactions) during the game. Bindings are
often gained from an encounter with another Characters Gift
(such as Dreadful Voice), or can come as a result of a failed or
fumbled Test (see Critical Failure, in Die Roll Results following
this). The Guide may sometimes call for you to make rolls to
avoid Bindings based on the action of the narrative or the events
that occur in your shared story. A common example of such an
event would be the death of one of your associates (your Friends,
Allies, family, etc.), in which case you must roll a WILL Test or
gain a Grief Binding. The DR of such Tests is determined by their
relationship to you, as described in the Relations Table. For other
Binding Tests, the Guide can determine the DR.

And a Guide can always impose a Binding on you
because of your role-playing, though its suggested that this
occur only rarely and in obvious and demanding circumstances
(for example, if you are continually bragging in bars about your
sexual prowess, it seems fair for a Guide to assign you a Vanity
Binding).

ACTIVE OR DORMANT
Bindings have Levels just like Skills and Gifts, and the higher
the Level the stronger the hold the Binding has over you.
Bindings may be Active or Dormant. Both Active and Dormant
Bindings can result in involuntary actions, or in penalties to your
Characteristics or to certain kinds of Skill Tests, or both. The
strength of your Binding in Levels is also the penalty that is
applied to your Characteristics or Skills during Tests when that
Binding is or becomes Active.

An Active Binding is one that is operational on you
at all times, usually applying a penalty to one or more of your
Characteristics that you have to factor in during Tests. Vanity is an
Active Binding, for example; your belief in your own superiority is
ingrained, and only conscious effort can reduce it over time (using
Arcana Points see the section on the Book of Dooms following
this for information on how to reduce Bindings).

A Dormant Binding is one that normally doesnt affect
you, but becomes Active when you are confronted with a trigger
and fail a Characteristic Test. For example, if you have a Greed
Binding, thats a Binding which is normally Dormant, but
should you be suddenly confronted with an opportunity to gain
something valuable a treasure map you spot in a shop window,
an unattended purse left on the bar, anything that can trigger your
desire for material gain you will have to make a Characteristic
Test (in the case of Greed, a WILL Test) to ignore the Binding
and not act on your desire for wealth in the examples just given,

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Adventures in the Known World

buying (or stealing) the map, or pocketing the abandoned purse. The
DR of the Test is equal to 8 plus the Level of the Binding, so the
higher the Binding Level the more difficult it is for you to resist its
effects. Active Bindings that are constantly impacting your abilities
will be easy to keep track of (just note the penalties down in the
Modifiers column on your Character Sheet), but you and your Guide
will have to remember your Dormant Bindings and what might
trigger them to see if they become active during the game.

Dormant Bindings can be triggered by accident or on
purpose; indeed, triggering another Characters Binding can be to your
advantage. You must somehow offer a trigger to their Binding, and
then they must resist their Binding or have it become Active, which
can then result in that Bindings Levels being applied as a penalty
during your later opposed rolls. For example, if you were trying to
persuade someone with a Dormant Greed Binding to do something,
you could appeal to their greed by telling them how much they could
make if they helped you, by promising a reward, or offering a bribe.
By appealing to their hidden desire for wealth, you attempt to trigger
their Binding and they have to make a WILL roll; if they fail, their
Binding has become Active and they take a penalty on their roll to
resist your offer equal to their Binding Level. Usually this lasts until
the trigger is no longer present.

Active Bindings always stack i.e., you add up your Levels
in an Active Binding, so if you have a Despair Binding Level 3 and
later gain another Despair Binding Level 1, you add it to wind up
with a Level 4 Despair Binding.

DORMANT BINDINGS
Stack
Fury
Grief
Lust
Shame

Dont Stack
Addiction
Awe
Desire
Dread
Envy
Fear
Hate
Jealousy

Dormant Bindings have triggers, but some of them stack and some
of them dont stack. For example, Grief is a common Binding in a
dangerous world, and its a stacking Binding that becomes Dormant
after the passage of time. Its triggered by things that remind you of
the dead: the mention of a person youve lost, finding a memento
of them, finding yourself back in the place where they died, etc.
When your Grief is triggered, however, its the whole Grief Binding,
not a specific Grief attached to that one person (largely because the
author assumes that the act of grieving for one person that youve lost
will rapidly remind you of others in your life that you have lost, as
well). Each time you lose someone and again gain new Grief Levels,
it triggers your Dormant Grief Binding and so Grief becomes harder
to live with over time (unless reduced through the use of Arcana
Points). The same is also true for Fury, Lust, and Shame; each of these
Dormant Bindings stacks, becoming stronger and stronger regardless
of the individual triggers that can set them off.

On the other hand, some other Dormant Bindings dont
stack and only apply to a specific person or persons, place, or thing
that acts as a trigger for that particular Dormant Binding. You can
have two or more of the same non-stacking Dormant Binding as
long as they have different triggers. For example, you might have a

Character Basics
Fear Dragons Binding resulting from a bad encounter with a Dragon
that ate half your party and which can be triggered by anyone even
mentioning the word Dragon, and a Fear Uthgar the Malignant
Binding, resulting from running away from Uthgars Terrifying Visage
Gift, and which can be triggered whenever you hear hes back in
the neighborhood. But they arent added together to create one
large Fear Binding; theyre two different Bindings, each triggered by
separate circumstances and conditions. Your Guide always has the
discretion of ruling when and how different Dormant Bindings are
triggered.

SUPPRESSING Bindings
Once a Dormant Binding has been activated through a failed
Characteristics Test in the presence of a trigger, the Binding will stay
Active as long as the trigger (be it a person, place, or situation) is
present. Once the trigger is no longer present, you may attempt
to snap out of it and suppress the Binding once per minute by
succeeding at another Characteristics Test with a DR of 8 + the Level
of the Binding. When you succeed, the Binding is now Dormant
once more and you may act normally.

In addition, you may attempt to calm, soothe, or reason
with a Binding-influenced Character, pitting your Persuasion Roll
against an Opposed Roll of d10 + WILL + Level of Binding +/Modifiers to see if you can convince a distraught or emotional
Character to relax.

PHYSICAL BINDINGS
In addition to psychological and emotional Bindings, there are also
Physical Bindings. These include Addiction and Amnesia both
of which can obviously have strong psychological components as
well, though it seems most appropriate to consider them Physical
afflictions as well as poor senses and the major Diseases of the
Known World.

Also included in this category are Grievous Wounds, for
very serious Wounds are the equivalent of Physical Bindings. More
information about Wounds and the process of healing can be found
in the Combat Rules; more information on Diseases and other
elements of the environment that can affect you (such as Poisons)
can be found in the chapter on The World Around You.

POLLUTION
Included on the list of Bindings is Pollution, which is a form of
temporary Spiritual Binding resulting from your actions and behavior
in the world; simply put, some actions tarnish the Spirit and make
you unclean, at least from the perspective of attempting to perform
sacred acts or enter sacred places. You can gain Pollution Levels as
you go through your daily routines and adventures. A Pollution acts
as a penalty to your roll for any religious, sacred, or Cult Ritual you
attempt (unless the Ritual is specifically described as being unaffected
by Pollution). And your Pollution can be transferred to any sacred
space that you enter, with enough Pollution causing a sacred space
to become defiled or desecrated (unless, once again, that space is
specifically described as being unaffected by Pollution). However,
a simple Purification Ritual usually removes the taint of Pollution,
and so you can properly prepare yourself before performing a sacred
ritual or entering a sacred place.

When you enter a sacred space while Polluted, your Pollution
Levels are added to any others already in that sacred space. If a sacred
space such as a Temple, Shrine, or sacred natural site such as a sacred
glen or lake gains more Pollution Levels than its current base of power
(see the section on the Available Power of Magical and Sacred Place in
the Magic chapter), then the site becomes unclean and can no longer
be used for any Cult Lore Rituals until enough Purification Rituals are
performed to return the Pollution Level to 0. However, Purification
Rituals can reduce or remove the taint of Pollution, and so you can
prepare yourself before performing a sacred Ritual or entering a sacred
place.

CAUSES OF POLLUTION
Situation
Contact with animal blood
Contact with human blood (including
menstrual blood)
Contact with dead human or animal flesh
Sexual contact with another person
Laboring with the earth (e.g., farming,
planting, digging)
Eating un-sacrificed meat
Taking a life
Breaking a Cultural Taboo
Partaking in an unwilling Sacrifice (human or
animal)
Fumbled Sacrifice Test

Pollution gain
+1 Level
+2 Levels
+2 Levels
+1 Level
+1 Level
+1 Level
+2 Levels
+1 Level
+10 Levels
+10 Levels

Most people can easily have 23 Pollution Levels by the end of the
average day (given that the most people work with the earth in some
fashion). And since Pollution Levels are cumulative from day to day,
Characters that do not perform an occasional Purification Ritual can
very quickly get to very high Levels of Pollution. Some Gods do not care
about some kinds of Pollution. Gods of War tend to be unconcerned
about Pollution garnered from contact with human blood or corpses.
Gods of Sex are usually unconcerned about Pollution garnered from
sexual contact with other people, and may even encourage it as
part of the Cults Rites. And ultimately the forbidden Gods who
are worshipped using the Occult Lore Skill are uninterested in the
question of Pollution at all (indeed probably preferring that their
worshippers be Polluted rather than not) so Pollution Levels have no
impact on Cultic Rituals (Offerings, Sacrifices) that are performed
with the Occult Lore Skill.

Yheran temples usually have basins for

Purification Rituals set up nearby.

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99

Character Basics

YOUR BINDINGS
ACTIVE BINDINGS

Active Bindings affect you at all times.

Ambition
Effect: You receive a penalty to your EMP and WIS
equal to your Binding Level.
You are driven by the desire for success, fame, or power.
You are more likely to view other people as tools you
can use, and to act unwisely when a goal is within reach.
Family upbringing and childhood circumstances often
produce Ambition. If your Ambition Binding Level is
higher than your WIS score, you gain Levels in a Vanity
Binding equal to the difference.

Hex
Effect: You receive a penalty to a specific Skill or
Characteristic equal to your Binding Level, as specified
by the originating spell caster.
Someone has put a hex on you. This is the result of an
Incantation or Ritual by a Magician.

Love

Cruelty
Effect: You receive a penalty to your EMP equal to your
Binding Level.
You are vicious and mean, deliberately seeking to cause
pain in others. This often results from a fumbled EMP
Test. If your Cruelty Binding Level is ever higher than
your EMP score, you gain Levels in a Hate Binding
aimed at all living people equal to the difference.

Curse
Effect: A specific effect determined by the originating
spell caster; for example, impotence, blindness, or
another kind of Binding.
Someone has put a curse on you or your Lineage.
This is often the result of an Incantation or Ritual by
a Magician. While this is usually an Active Binding,
sometimes it may be Dormant if the Caster has attached
a triggering condition.

Despair

Effect: You receive a penalty to your WILL, IMAG,

CONV, and COUR equal to your Binding Level.
You have lost faith in yourself and your friends and
cause, and lack motivation, imagination, or courage to
move forward in life. Usually this comes as the result
of failing a mission of some sort or being confronted
with what seems an impossible problem to solve, or you
fumble an IMAG Test in a dangerous situation.

Doubt

Effect: You receive a penalty to your CONV equal to

your Binding Level.
You are unsteady in your beliefs and convictions, and are
questioning your faith. This often results from fumbling
a spiritual task or a CONV Test, or from having a
disturbing truth about your gods or religion revealed to
you. If your Doubt Binding Level is ever higher than
your CONV score, you gain Levels in a Despair Binding
equal to the difference.

Ennui
Effect: You receive a penalty to your WILL, IMAG, and
CONV equal to your Binding Level.
You are bored with the world or want to pretend that
you are. You find it very difficult to be motivated to
do anything. Enormous wealth and lack of a challenge
can lead to Ennui; fumbling an IMAG Test during
an otherwise safe situation can as well. If your Ennui
Binding Level is ever higher than your IMAG score, you
gain Levels in a Despair Binding equal to the difference.

Guilt
Effect: You receive a penalty to your WILL, MEM,
PRE, and COUR equal to your Binding Level.
You did something wrong and feel guilty about it;

100

you failed to act when you should have, failed another

person, or broke a code or vow at a critical moment.
Others can sometimes sense your gnawing guilt and it
makes you less sure of yourself. If your Guilt Binding
Level is ever higher than your WILL score, you gain
Levels in a Despair Binding equal to the difference.

Adventures in the Known World

Effect: You receive a penalty to all opposed rolls against

the person you love equal to your Binding Level.
You are in love with someone. This is usually by choice,
but as love is often unrequited a Love Binding need
not be reciprocated. However, in order to qualify for
Love-based Gifts (such as Bonds of Love or True Love),
your Love must be requited and both parties must take
a voluntary Love Binding. Your beginning Love Binding
Level is equal to your EMP. If you betray your Lover,
you gain a Guilt Binding equal in Level to your Love
Binding. Sometimes Love is caused by magic.

Madness
Effect: You receive a penalty to your REAS and EMP
equal to your Binding Level, and a similar bonus to
IMAG.
You are insane, and have a warped and confused
understanding of the world around you. Madness
distorts you ability to think clearly or connect with other
people. Usually this results from failing a Test against a
Gift that causes Madness, or fumbling a WIS Test.

Pollution
Effect: You receive a penalty to performing any Cult
Ritual equal to your Pollution Level.
You are temporarily stained and unclean, having
performed certain kinds of behavior or made contact
with a taboo substance or object. Your Pollution is
passed on to any sacred area you enter. See the preceding
description of Pollution and its sources.

Promise
Effect: While trying to keep your promise you gain a
bonus to your rolls equal to your Binding Level.
You have made a promise to someone else; this isnt
the same thing as a Vow Incantation made to a God
or an Oath sworn during an Oath Ritual (q.v.). Its
just between you and the person to whom you made
the promise. Your beginning Promise Binding Level is
equal to half your CONV. You gain a Shame Binding (if
breaking the promise merely causes you embarrassment)
or a Guilt Binding (if breaking the promise causes harm
to someone else) equal to your Promise Binding Level if
you break the promise.

Vanity
Effect: You receive a penalty to your PER, PRE, EMP,
and WIS equal to your Binding Level.
Youre egotistical, vain, and narcissistic, and other people
can often tell. You dont perceive yourself or others
quite as sharply as you should, and this undermines
your relations with other people. This often results from
fumbling a PRE Test.

DORMANT BINDINGS

Dormant Bindings only affect you when they

become Active, in response to a Trigger of some
sort. Some Dormant Bindings attack and
are triggered in whole by any of the triggers
attached to it; other Dormant Bindings do not
stack, and each trigger is attached to a specific
Dormant Binding of varying Level.
Addiction
Effect: When this Binding is active, you receive a
penalty to your STR, STAM, REAS, and WIS, equal to
your Binding Level. You must also succeed at a STAM
Test DR = 10 + Binding Level or develop a case of the
Shakes equal to half your Binding Level.
You have become addicted to the ingestion of a physical
substance. This often results from failing a WILL
Test during the use of an addictive substance (all such
substances have different Difficulty Ratings see the
Environmental rules of the chapter on The World
Around You). Addiction is part physical, part mental.
Addiction is usually triggered once each day you go
without ingesting the substance (some substances may
be more or less addictive than the standard of a daily
fix). You may resist the triggering of this Binding with
a WILL Test. An Addiction becomes Dormant when
you get a fix.

Awe
Effect: You receive a penalty to any opposed Test against
the subject of the Binding equal to Gift Level; you gain
a bonus equal to half your Binding Level to Tests you
perform while doing something they want you to do.
You are overwhelmed and stunned by the power and
glory of another person or being, and seek to please them
at every opportunity. Usually this results from failing
a Test against a Gift that causes Awe. This Binding is
triggered by the presence of the person or being that you
are in awe of; you may resist the triggering this Binding
with a WILL Test.

Desire
Effect: You receive a penalty to your REAS and WILL
equal to your Binding Level.
You are filled with longing and desire for the love,
attention, or approval of another person. This is not
the same as actually being in love; Desire is a broader
Binding, having nothing to do with physical needs,
gender, etc. You wish to please the object of your desire,
and win their approval. This Binding is usually gained
from failing a Test against a Gift that causes Desire, and is
triggered by the presence of that person. You may resist
the triggering this Binding with a WILL Test. If your
Desire Binding Level is ever higher than your EMP, you
gain Levels in a Lust Binding equal to the difference.

Dread

Effect: You receive a penalty to your WILL, CONV,

and COUR equal to your Binding Level, but a bonus
equal to half your Binding Level to Tests you perform
while doing something they want you to do.
You feel a mix of fear, apprehension, and awe about a
person or place. You have a hard time confronting the
object of your Dread. This often results from failing a
COUR Test against a Gift that causes Dread, or against a
places power. This Binding is triggered by the presence,

Character Basics
possible presence, or mention of the individual, group,
or situation that you dread, or from entering a place that
you dread. You may resist the triggering of this Binding
with a COUR Test. If your Dread Binding Level is
ever higher than your COUR, you gain Levels in a Fear
Binding equal to the difference.

Envy

Effect: You receive a penalty to your CONV and EMP

equal to your Binding Level.
You are envious and spitefully competitive with another
person, often a Rival; you believe that the fame, fortune,
or attention that they receive should rightfully be yours.
This Binding is triggered by the presence, possible
presence, or mention of the individual or group that you
envy. You may resist the triggering of this Binding with
a WIS Test. If your Envy Binding Level is ever higher
than your EMP, you gain Levels in a Hate Binding aimed
at the same person equal to the difference.

Fear
Effect: You must run away from the object of your fear
or surrender if you cannot run. You receive a penalty
to all rolls opposed to the object of your fear equal to
your Binding Level.
Youre really scared of something a person, group, place,
or situation. Often this was something or someone that
caused you great harm. This Binding is often gained
from failing a COUR Test against a Gift that causes
Fear. This Binding is usually triggered by the presence,
possible presence, or invocation of the individual, group,
place, or situation that scares you. You may resist the
triggering of this Binding with a COUR Test.

Fury
Effect: You receive a penalty to your REAS, WIS, and
EMP equal to your Binding Level.
You are filled with anger towards a person, group, or
situation, or a simple urge to destroy and kill. Grief
or Guilt or Jealousy can give rise to Fury, or you or an
associate can be the victim of a perceived injustice. You
may fly into Berserker Ekstasis, acting as though you have
the Gift of the same name. This Binding is triggered
by the presence or mention of an offending individual,
group, or situation, or by remembering the originating
act. You may resist the triggering of this Binding with
a WILL Test. If your Fury Binding Level is ever higher
than your Love Binding Level towards someone, you
gain Levels in a Hate Binding towards them equal to
the difference.

Greed
Effect: You receive a penalty to your PER, WILL, and
EMP equal to your Binding Level.
You greatly desire wealth and material fortune and you
will try to get your hands on money or treasure even at
great risk to yourself. You have trouble seeing the risks
and dangers when theres money to be made. Class envy
and poverty often gives ride to Greed. This Binding is
triggered by the presence or invocation of wealth, money,
or valuable objects. You may resist the triggering of this
Binding with a WILL Test. If your Greed Binding Level
is ever higher than your WIS score, you gain Levels in an
Ambition Binding equal to the difference.

Grief
Effect: You receive a penalty to your WILL, COUR,
and CONV equal to your Binding Level.
You have lost someone or something that you loved or
cared for. This Binding is often caused by the death of

a Lover, Family member, or associate of Compatriot

status or higher. Sometimes Grief may be caused by
the destruction or loss of symbolic places or objects (a
family home, a cherished heirloom). Grief is an unusual
Binding, as it is Active for a number of Moons equal to
its Binding Level and then after that becomes Dormant.
Once Dormant, the Binding is triggered by the memory,
mention, or invocation of the person or thing that you
have lost. You may resist the triggering of this Binding
with a WILL Test. If your Grief Binding Level is ever
higher than your CONV score, you gain Levels in a
Despair Binding equal to the difference.

Hate
Effect: You receive a penalty to your PER, REAS, EMP,
and WIS equal to your Binding Level.
You dislike another person or group with an irrational
intensity. At low Levels this could be considered a bias
or dislike rather than full hatred. This can sometimes
be a product of your Culture or upbringing, but usually
someone does something bad to you or a loved one. It
is possible, however, to have Love and Hate Bindings
towards the same person. This Binding is triggered by
the presence or mention of the individual or group that
you hate. You may resist the triggering of this Binding
with a WILL Test.

Jealousy
Effect: You receive a penalty to your PER, REAS, EMP,
and WIS equal to your Binding Level.
You are suspicious of a loved ones behavior and true
intentions. You may confront people you think are
attracted to your Lover. You must be in Love, and then
fumble a PER Test while in the presence of your Lover;
or you may gain this Binding through a failed Test
against an appropriate Gift. This Binding is triggered
whenever you see (or think you see) or hear of your
Lover in contact with a person of the opposite sex with
APP equal to or higher than yours. You may resist the
triggering of this Binding with an EMP Test. If your
Jealousy Binding is ever higher than your REAS score,
you gain Levels in a Fury Binding aimed at the same
person equal to the difference.

Lust
Effect: You receive a penalty to your PER, WILL,
REAS, and WIS equal to your Binding Level.
You are filled with sexual desire. This Binding is often
gained from failing a Test against a Gift that causes it,
and it blinds you to just about everything except sating
your Lust. While this Binding is active, you will attempt
a Seduction Skill Test on the object of your Lust. This
Binding is triggered by the presence of a person of
suitable gender of APP 6 or higher. You may resist the
triggering of this Binding with a WILL Test. If your
Lust Binding is ever higher than your EMP score, you
gain Levels in a Cruelty Binding equal to the difference.

Shame
Effect: You receive a penalty to your WILL and COUR
equal to your Binding Level, and an Active penalty
to your Social Level if others know the cause of your
Shame.
You embarrassed, disgraced, or humiliated yourself in
public. Usually this comes about because you failed
or fumbled a Test before an audience, either publicly
before a large group or in private before someone you
care about (an associate of Friend or higher status). The
penalty to Social Level is Active if other people know
who you are and know what you have to be ashamed

about. Otherwise the trigger for the Shame Binding

is encountering someone that witnessed your original
humiliation. You may resist the triggering of this
Binding with a WILL Test. If your Shame Binding Level
is ever higher than your REAS, you gain a Hate Binding
against those that witnessed your humiliation.

PHYSICAL BINDINGS
All physical Bindings are considered Active.
Amnesia
Effect: You receive a penalty to your MEM equal to your
Binding Level that is applied when you are trying to
remember personal, as opposed to general, knowledge.
You have trouble remembering who you are, or details
about your personal life. You can still function properly
as regards Skills. This Binding often results from a blow
to the head, a Curse, or a magic spell. If your Amnesia
Binding Levels are ever higher than your MEM score,
you should be considered to have full amnesia in
other words, you have no recollection of any personal
details about yourself and your life prior to the Binding
surpassing your MEM score.

Encumberance (ENC)
Effect: You receive a penalty to your MOVE equal
to your Binding Level as well as to your rolls in all
physical Tests.
Youre carrying a lot of stuff on you, and the weight and
encumberance of your gear and armor is interfering
with your ability to move and perform physical actions.
Rules on determining your Encumberance Binding can
be found in the section on Combat and Armor in the
chapter on Playing the Game.

Fatigue
Effect: You receive a penalty to your MOVE equal to
your Binding Level as well as to your rolls in all Tests.
Youre really tired and exhausted, either from exertion or
from lack of sleep or sustenance. This affects your ability
to move and perform any kind of physical, mental, or
spiritual action. Rules on gaining and removing Fatigue
Bindings can be found in the section on Combat and
Armor in the chapter on Playing the Game.

Grievous Wound
Effect: You receive a penalty to a Characteristic based
on the hit location of the Wound equal to your Binding
Level.
You have suffered a serious injury to part of your body
that affects one of your Physical Characteristics; this
usually results from a Critical Hit in combat or a very
serious injury from an accident or fall. See the Combat
Rules for more information.

Fever
Effect: You receive a penalty to your STR and STAM
equal to your Binding Level; you lose one point of
STAM per week for as many weeks as your Binding
Levels, unless you die or the Binding is lifted.
You develop a high fever and chills. This Binding often
results from a Curse or from failing a STAM Test when
exposed to a carrier of a Fever Binding. Most carriers
will be encountered with Fever Bindings of Levels 2-3.
You are contagious for one week after contracting the
Fever, and anyone that comes in contact with you must
make a STAM Test with a DR = 8 + your Fever Binding
Level or gain a similar Binding.

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101

Character Basics
Plague
Effect: You receive a penalty to your all of your Physical
Characteristics equal to your Binding Level; you lose
one point of STAM per day for as many days as your
Binding Levels, unless you die or the Binding is lifted.
The Plague is one of the great killers of the Known
World. You develop a fever, nausea, and chills, get black
spots on your body, and bleed from your orifices. This
most often results from a Curse, or from failing a STAM
Test when exposed to a carrier. Most carriers will be
encountered with Plague Bindings of Levels 5-6, but
stronger Plague Bindings are known to appear in bad
years. You are contagious while you have the Plague,
and anyone that comes in contact with you must make a
STAM Test with a DR = 10 + your Plague Binding Level
or gain a similar Binding.

Poor Hearing
Effect: You receive a penalty to your PER equal to your
Binding Level whenever you are trying to hear a noise
or listen to someone.
You have trouble hearing. This can be the result of
physical damage or a Curse. If your Binding is greater
than your PER, you are deaf.

Poor Sight
Effect: You receive a penalty to your PER equal to
your Binding Level whenever you are trying to see
something.
You have trouble seeing. This can be the result of
physical damage or a Curse. If your Binding is greater
than your PER, you are blind.

Poor Smell
Effect: You receive a penalty to your PER equal to
your Binding Level whenever you are trying to smell
a scent.
You have trouble distinguishing smells. This can be the
result of physical damage or a Curse. If your Binding
is greater than your PER, then youve lost the ability to
smell.
Effect: You receive a penalty to your PER equal to
your Binding Level whenever you are trying to taste
a substance.
You have trouble registering tastes. This can be the result
of physical damage or a Curse. If your Binding is greater
than your PER, then you can no longer taste anything.

Poor Touch

Shakes

Effect: You receive a penalty to your PER equal to

your Binding Level whenever you are trying to feel
something, and a penalty to your DEX and TECH
when you are trying to handle an object or make
something.
You have trouble feeling. This can be the result of
physical damage, disease, or a Curse. If your Binding
is greater than your PER, then youve lost all feeling in
your extremities.

Pox
Effect: You receive a penalty to your APP and STAM
equal to your Binding Level.
Your flesh erupts in boils and infections. This is most
often the result of a Curse, or from failing a STAM

ROLLING THE DICE

In Fuzion, die rolls in most Tests are considered open-ended. If you
make a d10 die roll that results in a 10, you may roll again and add
your second die roll to that 10 to get your final die roll. If the second
roll is a 10, you can keep rolling and adding, so theoretically if luck
holds and you keep rolling 10s you could get quite a high die roll.
Conversely, if you roll a 1, you must roll again and subtract your new
die roll from your first die roll of 1. Once you have begun to subtract
by rolling that first 1, you are now being funneled ever lower, so the
situation as regards rolling a 10 reverses. If your second roll after a 1
is a 10, now you must subtract 10 from your 1 (leaving your roll at
9) and roll again and continue to subtract.

After youve figured out all the Modifiers that might apply
to your die roll resulting from the Situation youre in and the Gifts
and Bindings at play, you can make your die roll and determine
whether you were successful in your Action or not. If you hit the
target number specified by the DR of the Test or roll higher than your
opponent in an Opposed Test, then youve succeeded and successfully
performed the action or won the Test. If you roll under the target
number specified by the Test or roll below your opponent in an
Opposed Test, then youve failed to perform the action successfully,
or lost the Test to your opponent. If in an Opposed Test you both
roll the same number, you tied (which might necessitate a second
roll, depending on circumstances), unless the Test involved one of
you attacking the other in some way. In such cases either a physical
attack or the impact of a Gift or a bit of magic, in which one of you

Adventures in the Known World

Rot (Leprosy)
Effect: You receive a penalty to your STR, APP, and
PRE equal to your Binding Level; you lose one point
of STAM per Moon until you die or the Binding is
lifted.
Your muscles and flesh are being eaten away. This is
most often the result of a Curse, or from failing a STAM
Test after making physical contact with a carrier. Most
carriers will be encountered with Rot Bindings of Levels
4-5.

Poor Taste

102

Test when exposed to a carrier. Most carriers will be

encountered with Pox Bindings of Levels 2-3. You are
contagious for one week after contracting the Pox, and
anyone that comes in contact with you must make a
STAM Test with a DR = 8 + your Pox Binding Level or
gain a similar Binding.

Effect: You receive a penalty to your DEX and TECH

equal to your Binding Level.
You are afflicted with twitchy or damaged nerves and a
wasting disease affecting your body control. This is most
often the result of a Curse, or from failing a STAM Test
when exposed to a carrier, of from becoming overcome
by an Addiction. Most carriers will be encountered with
Shakes Bindings of Levels 2-3. You are contagious for
one week after contracting the Shakes, and anyone that
comes in contact with you must make a STAM Test with
a DR = 8 + your Shakes Binding Level or gain a similar
Binding.

is trying to directly affect the other the defenders roll is in effect

considered the DR of the Test and the attacker need only equal it to
succeed in the attack. In other words, the attacking party does gain a
slight advantage in some kinds of Opposed Tests.

F For example, if two Characters are competing in a race

and both roll the same MOVE roll, then theyve tied. But if one
Character is trying to drive another Character insane with a Voice
of Madness Gift and they both roll the same number, then the
attacking Character with the Voice of Madness has succeeded,
and the resisting Character has gained a Madness Binding.

Critical Success
If your roll is more than 10 points higher than the number you
needed for success (either the DR of the Test or the roll generated by
an Opponent), then youve scored a Critical Success i.e., some sort
of spectacular or noteworthy result. In many cases, this wont actually
have an impact on the game and can simply be noted as a interesting
aside, but in other cases a Critical Success can have a material impact
on the results of the die roll. For example, a Critical Success in combat
results in a Critical Hit, which does a different kind of damage than a
regular Hit (see the Combat Rules). In other areas of the game, it will
be up to the Guides to elaborate special results from a Critical Success
scored by a Player. For example, if youre doing Research on the history

Character Basics
of a ruined Castle and scored a Critical Success, you wouldnt just
find the usual info on the ancient lords that owned it; you might
find a secret map to the Castle, or stumble across a forgotten
legend about something buried in its crypt in one of your books.
A Critical Success in the process of making something will result
in a more beautiful, valuable, or sturdy product, etc.

...and Failure (THE FUMBLE)

If your roll is 0 or less, even after the application of a Characteristic,
a Skill, and all Modifiers, then youve scored a Critical Failure
i.e., some sort of disastrous and highly undesirable result. In many
RPGs this is called a Fumble. Simple failures will sometimes have
bad enough consequences to make a Critical Failure result moot;
for example, if youre trying to jump across a 250 deep ravine and
fail, then theres not much worse that can happen to you besides
plunging to your death, so a Critical Failure there is unlikely to
be any different from a normal failure. However, at other times a
normal failure during a Characteristic or Skill Test simply means
there was no effect, in which case a Critical Failure triggers a very
bad result instead. For example, if you try to convince a Guard to
let you in to talk to the King and fail your Persuasion Test, then
he refuses and sends you on your way. If, however, you were to
Fumble your Persuasion Roll, then something really bad happens
on top of the Guards refusal to let you in to see the King (for
example, he arrests you).

Your Guide might be able to think of appropriate results
of a Fumble according to the situation. Guidelines are presented
here in the following Table for suggested Fumble results based
mostly on the Characteristic being used during the roll. More
than one entry may apply to the same Fumble (apply all relevant
results). Some entries will suggest a resulting Binding. In such
cases, the Binding Level should be determined by how bad the
roll was. A roll of 0 results in a Binding Level 1; then for every
5 points below 0 or fraction thereof, add another Binding Level.
So for example, if you roll a 6 while a CONV Test, youd gain a
Doubt 3 Binding.

F The Divine King priest Palabrus is performing a

Ritual Offering to his patron. He rolls a 6 and Fumbles

the Skill Test. Performing a Ritual Offering is a CONVbased Test (see the chapter on Magic for details), and so he
gains a Doubt 3 Binding.

F For example, the wandering knight-scholar Drace

meets an attractive young woman at a feast and tries to woo

her with an APP-based Seduction roll. He rolls a 4 and
Fumbles the Skill Test. As this was a Social Skill Test, hes
made a faux pas and alienated her, and hes also gained a
Shame 2 Binding for having used his APP.

FUMBLE TABLE
You Fumbled A
APP-based Test
STR-based Test

Suggested Fumble Result

You look foolish and gain a Shame Binding.
You pull a muscle; gain a self-inflicted
Grievous Wound to a STR-related body part
(see the Combat Rules for hit locations).
You strain yourself and gain a self-inflicted
Grievous Wound to a STAM-related body
part.
You trip and fall. You receive a self-inflicted
Grievous Wound to a DEX-related body part.
You hurt your hands and receive a selfinflicted Grievous Wound.
You misidentify someone or something.
You gain a Jealousy Binding towards your
Love.

STAM-based Test
DEX-based Test
TECH-based Test
PER-based Test
PER-based Test
while a Lover was
present
WILL-based Test

You lose control of yourself, triggering a

random Dormant Binding. If you do not
have any Dormant Bindings, then gain a
Fury Binding triggered by whatever situation
you were in at the time of the Fumble.
You remember something incorrectly,
though youre convinced youve got it right.
Your failure of imagination leads to despair
and you gain a Despair Binding.

MEM-based Test
IMAG-based Test
during a dangerous
situation
IMAG-based Test
during a safe situation
REAS-based Test
PRE-based Test
CONV-based Test
COUR-based Test
EMP-based Test

WIS-based Test
Social Skill Test with
another person
Social or
Performance Skill Test
in front of an audience

Your failure of imagination leads to boredom

and you gain an Ennui Binding.
You make a mistake or error in judgment,
or come up with the wrong solution to a
problem.
Youve convinced yourself of your own
beauty, intelligence, or infallibility and gain
a Vanity Binding.
You have suddenly started to question your
beliefs and convictions and gain a Doubt
Binding.
You become frightened and gain a Fear
Binding triggered by whatever situation you
were in at the time of the Fumble.
Your empathy towards your fellow human
beings (and indeed the whole world) has
been undermined, and you gain a Cruelty
Binding.
You have a mistaken insight about the world
or other people and gain a Madness Binding.
You commit a faux pas in addition to a
result based on the Characteristic you are
using (as in entries above); see the Faux Pas
column in the Relations Table.
You look foolish and gain a Shame Binding
in addition to whatever else may happen
based on the Characteristic you are using (as
in entries above).

F AN OPTION FOR FUMBLES

Fumbles in this system will usually only result from a really unlucky open-ended 1 roll, or in situations where you are attempting something
with a lot of penalties to your roll. Some Players and Guides might prefer to have Fumbles occur with more frequency, in which case any
roll which is more than 10 points less than the desired target number can be considered a Fumble. Note, however, that this means that in
Opposed Tests that a Critical Success for one Character will automatically mean a Critical Failure for the other, which some Players might
consider too punitive.

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103

The Book of Dooms

The

BOOK
of
DOOMS
EXPERIENCE
& CHARACTER
IMPROVEMENT

E
Or, why we play.

probably want to find a horse and a corral in

which to practice. Each week you spend training
and practicing, you gain a Training Point.
Training Points only apply to the specific Skill or
Characteristic in which theyve been earned. You
cant get a lot of Training Points working out with
weights and then improve your Singing Skill with
them. So as you spend time training, youll have
to keep track of what youre training in and how
many Training Points youve accumulated in that
Skill or Characteristic.

You improve Skills with Training Points
by purchasing the next highest level of Skill that
you would like to acquire. You must accumulate
a number of Training Points equal to the next
Skill Level you wish to acquire (cost = next Skill
Level). So to improve a Skill from Level 5 to Level
6 would require 6 Training Points (six weeks of
practice, study, and training).

Characteristics are harder to improve than
Skills. You have to accumulate 3 Training Points
for each point of the next Characteristic Level you
wish to acquire (cost = next Characteristic Level
x 3). So to improve a Characteristic from Level 5
to level 6 would require gaining 18 Training Points
(eighteen weeks of practice, study, and training).

You cant earn Training Points to improve
a Gift or lessen a Binding; those can only be
improved or decreased by Experience, by gaining
Arcana Points.

INSTRUCTION

fter your Character has been created using the LifePath system, you
then enter a story created for you by your Guide, the outcome of which
you can affect through your actions. As you explore the Known World
(or another setting youve decided to play in) through this shared narrative,
your Character doesnt remain static, but changes (hopefully for the better) as
you have adventures, gain experience, and learn more about the Path you are
traveling through the world.

There are two basic ways that you can improve your Skills,
Characteristics, and Gifts, and decrease or lessen your Bindings. The first
method of improvement is Training, in which you dedicate your time to
consciously working on a Skill or a Characteristic to gain an increase in its
Level. Such time spent dedicated to study and practice gains you Training
Points. The second method of improvement is Experience, which in Artesia
AKW is represented by the accumulation of Arcana Points. Arcana Points are
rewarded by the Guide for actions you take and decisions you make during the
course of your adventures.

Training Points
Training Points are gained by spending time doing nothing but practice or
train on a Skill or a Characteristic. For example, to improve your STR you
could spend time lifting weights, while to improve your Riding Skill youll

104

Adventures in the Known World

Your weekly rate of Training Point gain can be

increased if you are being led in your practice and
training by an experienced instructor or teacher.
To qualify as your teacher, the other Character
must possess both a Teaching Skill Level and a Skill
or Characteristic Level that are higher than your
Level in the Skill or Characteristic you are training;
for this purpose, their Teaching Skill Level acts as
a cap on their Skill or Characteristic Level. For
every point of difference between your Skill or
Characteristic Level and theirs, you can earn an
extra Training Point per week of instruction.

INTERRUPTED
TRAINING
For game purposes, interruptions to training are
immaterial. If you spend time to gain Training
Points in a Skill or Characteristic but the game
prevents you from reaching the next Skill or
Characteristic Level before you have to go do
something else (as in the example of the knight
Guiles, previously), then you can always return
to your training with your Training Points intact
from before. Some might find this unrealistic, but
for simplicitys sake thats the official rule.

The Book of Dooms

D For example: In preparation for the

upcoming Tournament of Flowers, the young

knight Guiles, vassal to Earl Kyrick of Blackstone,
wishes to improve his Courtly Dancing; hes
confident of his skills-at-arms, but he has only
Courtly Dancing Skill Level 2 and he knows
that half the available women in Dania will be
at the Tournament and he wants to make a good
impression off the field as well as on. If he were to
practice his Courtly Dancing by himself, hed gain
1 Training Point a week, meaning it would take
him 3 weeks to gain Level 3, and then another 4
weeks to gain Level 4. But hes only got 5 weeks
before he has to head for Newgate, so he decides
to find a teacher (far more fun that way anyway).
The town of Orliac, seat of the Earl of Blackstone,
has only a few candidates that he can find on
short notice. His cousin Desmona offers to show
him a few steps, but while she has Teaching Skill
Level 6, shes got the same Courtly Dancing Skill
Level 2; theres nothing Desmona can teach him.
Guiles finds out that the expert entertainer Theo
of Nop is in town, but while Theo has a Courtly
Dancing of 6, his Teaching Skill Level is only 1,
capping his effective Dancing instruction to Level
1 only; Theo knows a lot more about Courtly
Dancing than Guiles, but isnt particularly good at
imparting what he knows. But luckily for Guiles,
the renowned dancer Countess Rowena hears of
his plight, and offers to instruct her husbands
young vassal. She has a Courtly Dancing Skill
Level of 8 capped by her Teaching Skill Level of 6,
so she makes a fine teacher. The initial difference
between their Skill Levels is 62=4, so he earns
5 Training Points the first week (the standard 1
Training Point per week plus 4 Points for the
difference in their Skills), quickly bringing him to
Skill Level 3 with 2 Training Points left over. A
second week earns him another 4 Training Points
(remember his Skill Level has changed) bringing
him to Level 4 and still having 2 Training Points
left over. A third week earns him 3 Training
Points, enough with the 2 left over from the week
before to earn him Skill Level 5. If he were to
continue training with Countess Rowena in the
two remaining weeks before he has to leave for the
Tournament, hed earn 2 Training Points per week
for 4 Training Points total; theres not enough time
for him to get to Skill Level 6, but he could always
return for the final week of training to get those 2
Points (or train elsewhere, even on his own, to earn
those final 2 Courtly Dance Training Points). Of
course, by this time young Guiles might be better
off spending his available moments assuring his
liege the Earl that he doesnt have a crush on his
wife

THE ARCANA
The Arcana are the basic building blocks of the Known Worlds
mythology and mystical life. The Arcana are symbols of the Paths of
Life, born from the Great Book in which Yhera inscribed the secrets
of the Known World and known to the inhabitants of the world as
the pages of the Book of Dooms. Each of the twenty-two Arcana
represents an archetypal Path of power and achievement: a style, a
mode of behavior, or a philosophy of life that you may pursue, though
there is no mandate that you must follow any of these Paths, and
following one Path does not restrict you from following others at the
same time. You may follow as many Arcana Paths at the same time
as you like. You are unlimited in the range of actions you may choose
(short whatever beliefs or moral systems you have), but only actions
that conform to one of the Paths of the Arcana can be rewarded with
Arcana Points. Arcana Points represent the steps you have taken
down one of the Arcana Paths; you earn Arcana Points in each of
the individual Arcana, so in effect there are twenty-two varieties of
Arcana Points that you can accumulate during the Game.

In the game, you earn Arcana Points as decided by your
Guide, who rewards you with Arcana Points depending on how you
behave in the Game and what you do in the course of achieving
your goals. Arcana Points are earned by adventuring by setting out
to achieve some sort of goal, by taking actions to further a narrative,
though you also begin the game with a small pool of Arcana Points to
represent your previous life experience. As you earn Arcana Points,
you can gain Gifts, increase Characteristics or Skills, or decrease
Bindings that youve acquired. Different Arcana Points can be used
for a different set of Gifts, Skills, Characteristics, and Bindings; each
of the Arcana represents a very specific Path through life, so its Arcana
Points can only be used on things that are related to that Path.

By way of quick introduction, the Arcana are generally
numbered and named as follows:
I.
II.
III.
IV.
V.
VI.
VII.
VIII.
IX.
X.
XI.
XII.
XIII.
XIV.
XV.
XVI.
XVII.
XVIII.
XIX.
XX.
XXI.
(--)

The Magician or The Minstrel.

The Great Priestess.
The Empress.
The Emperor.
The Great Priest.
The Lovers.
The Hermit or The Seeker or The Lover.
The Sword or The Chariot.
Justice.
The Wheel of Fortune or The Fates.
Strength.
The Hanged Man.
Death.
Temperance or The Circle.
The Sphinx.
The Riven Tower.
The Stars.
The Moon.
The Sun.
The Last Judgment or The Rose.
The World.
The Fool.

Adventures in the Known World

105

The Book of Dooms

As you adventure in the Known World, you and your Guide
should keep track of what you do and how you act as you try
to achieve your goals and explore the world. This shouldnt be
every little thing you do, but rather should be acts that contribute
to moving the story forward and help you towards your story
goals and personal goals. When youve reached an appropriate
moment, your Guide should sit down for a moment and parcel
out Arcana Points as rewards for your actions. At that time you
may also expend those Arcana Points on Skill, Characteristic,
or Gift acquisitions or increases, or decrease Binding Levels; or,
you can hold on to those Arcana Points and wait until youve
accumulated more of them before you use them. Deciding when
to award Arcana Points is up to each Guide; some might prefer to
hand them out the moment you take an action clearly destined for
Arcana rewards, but others might prefer to bestow them only after
the conclusion of a narrative story arc, when youve achieved some
sort of goal or finished a portion of the games story.

You cant simply repeat one of the actions listed on the
Arcana Tables that follow in the hopes of automatically gaining
Arcana Points. In order for the action to qualify for an Arcana
Points reward, it must occur as part of the games narrative, as
a reaction or contribution to the events, goals, and activities put
forward by the Guide or generated by the Players themselves. The
Known World rewards activity with purpose, actions taken towards
a goal (paradoxically, even a goal of passivity), rather than mere
activity itself.

D For example, if you happen to be a blacksmith, you

wont gain Magician Arcana Points every time you forge

something. At the most mundane level, forging stuff is
just part of your job. But should making something at your
forge become part of a broader narrative for example,
you make a new sword as a gift to the Baron to gain an
important favor, or forge a metal box to serve as a trap for
an evil Spirit plaguing a nearby village, or forge enchanted
armor so that you and your companions can travel into
Lost Uthedmael and recover a kidnapped friend then
that relatively mundane act of making something takes on
a deeper significance in the Cosmos and can be rewarded
with Arcana Points.

MORAL JUDGMENTS
It should be noted that Arcana Point rewards are not intended as
a way of rewarding particular kinds of moral behavior. A close
inspection of the Arcana Tables should reveal that some acts of
what could be termed evil receive Arcana Point rewards. The
cosmological structure of the Known World perceives dark and
destructive acts as part of the framework of the universe, and
there are Arcana Paths notably that of the Sphinx and the Riven
Tower that many peoples of the World consider to be Paths of
wickedness and malevolence. And culturally speaking, if you
follow those Paths, you will often find yourself cast out by your
neighbors and roundly condemned for your immorality.

However, the cultural reaction to acts of wanton evil is
not necessarily reflective of the cosmological understanding of those
acts. The Cosmos of the Known World rewards, as has already
been mentioned, activity with purpose. So from the perspective of
earning Arcana Points, the act itself is not necessarily as important

106

Adventures in the Known World

as there being a purpose behind the act. For example, the Magician
Arcana rewards the making of beautiful and useful objects. From the
point of view of the Cosmos (which is really another way of saying
from the perspective of the structure of the game rules and hence,
hopefully of your Guide as well), whether or not a blacksmiths act
of making a beautiful silver-handled dagger deserves to be rewarded
with Magician Arcana Points should be decided on whether that
act of creation had some guiding purpose which contributed to the
game narrative and advanced the craftsmans Character towards
some goal, not based on a moral evaluation of that purpose. It
shouldnt matter what the goal is if you made the dagger so that
you can stab a fellow blacksmith and get rid of the competition,
then you could still receive a Magician Arcana Points reward for
making the dagger, even though your motive was an evil one. You
made the dagger with a purpose that affects the game, and for that
the Cosmos will reward you. Your punishment for the act of evil, as
it were, is cultural if you are discovered (imprisonment, execution,
or exile) or ultimately sacred in nature (in that your victims ghost
may well be waiting for you at the Place of Judgment when you
die).

Mundane acts and random acts particularly (given that
this is an RPG) random acts of violence should not be rewarded
with Arcana Points. An act performed in the normal course of your
life as part of your regular day would not rise to a level of cosmic
attention. And random acts that do not further you down a Path
should not be rewarded either.

D For example, an Arcana Points reward would be

inappropriate if you go out and kill someone at random just

to defeat an opponent in combat, which normally earns 2
Sword Arcana Points. You should only earn those 2 Sword
Arcana Points if defeating your opponent furthered some
cause or goal or was part of a specific narrative in the game.
Hence, killing the Guards of good King Eolred as part of a
plot to overthrow him and install yourself in his place would
get you Sword Arcana Points for defeating opponents (and
Death Points for taking lives). If youre a Guard to good King
Eolred and confront some assassins sent to kill him and/or
you, you would get Sword Arcana Points and maybe Emperor
Points as you were acting in defense of a lawful King. But
challenging someone to a bar fight because youre bored and
you want to earn some quick Arcana Points would not get you
Sword Arcana Points

USING ARCANA POINTS

Arcana Points may be used to improve Skills, Characteristics, or
Gifts that are linked to that Arcana Path, or to decrease Bindings
that are linked to that Arcana Path. Skills and Characteristics are
increased with Arcana Points in the same manner that they are
increased with Training Points, at the rate of a number of Arcana
Points equal to the next Skill Level you wish to acquire for Skills
(cost in AP = next Skill Level) and at a rate of three times the next
Characteristic Level you with to acquire for Characteristics (cost in
AP = next Characteristic Level x 3).

Outside of the process of Character Creation, Gifts can
only be gained or improved by spending Arcana Points. The cost
of gaining a Level in a Gift varies from Gift to Gift, from 1 to 5
Points times the Level you wish to acquire (cost = next Gift Level x

The Book of Dooms

variable); the variable point cost are listed in the Gift Descriptions
directly after the name of the Gift. For example, the AP Cost per
Level of the Berserkir Ekstasis Gift is 3 AP per Level; so to gain Level
4 in the Gift would cost 12 Arcana Points.

For Bindings, to get rid of a Level of a Binding requires
the expenditure of a number of Arcana Points equal to three times
its current Level (cost = current Binding Level x 3). For example,
to lower a Dread the Sultan Binding Level 5 to Level 4 would cost
(5 x 3 =) 15 Arcana Points from an Arcana Path linked to the Dread
Binding, such as The Hanged Man or Death Arcana.

Unlike with Training Points, you do not have to dedicate
Arcana Points to a specific Skill, Gift, Characteristic, or Binding
as you acquire them; you simply accumulate them and then spend
them as you wish when the Guide allows you to. Increases due to
Arcana Points are instantaneous.

THE BOOK OF DOOMS

Many people in the Known World are conscious of the Paths of the
Cosmos, and at a minimum all of the inhabitants of the Known
World are aware of the Book of Dooms. Created by Brage as a gift to
his beloved Oracle Queens, the Adr Mal was his copy of the pages
he saw in Yheras Great Book. It has been copied and recopied ever
since as the Book of Dooms, an aid to Divination that can reveal the
past, present, and future of all living things. Everyone in the Known
World knows what the Book of Dooms is, even if they dont personally
consult it. It seems appropriate, then, to so title the section of the
Character Sheet upon which you will track your Arcana Points; each
of us has our own Book of Dooms, in effect, a symbolic map of where
we have been and where we are likely to go.

As you earn and expend Arcana Points in the various
Arcana, you should keep track of how many youve earned that
you have yet to invest in a Gift, Characteristic, or Skill, and also
how many you have earned in each Arcana in total. The more you
earn in a particular Path, the more identified you will become with
that Arcana, and as you become more identified with an Arcana
the greater the amount of power and control you will have in the
Known World. This is represented most concretely by increasing
your Gift Levels, but ultimately it can be seen in gaining World
Arcana Points, which can be used to become a Hero and prepare for
possible Ascension to divine status.

THE ARCANA DESCRIPTIONS

Following this you will find one page devoted to each Path of the
Arcana. Each page will include an image from the Book of Dooms
to illustrate the Arcana, and then also the following:
Description: An outline of the meanings and symbolism of this
particular Arcana and what it represents.
From the Book of Dooms: A description of the card or page from the
Book of Dooms illustrating this Arcana Path, and a few references to the
possible interpretations of its symbolism.
Takers of the Path: A description of the kinds of Characters,
Occupations, and personalities that will find themselves pursuing this
particular Arcana Path.

Characteristic Links: These are the Characteristics linked to the

indicated Arcana Path. If you gain Arcana Points in this Path, you
may use them to improve any of the three linked Characteristics at a
rate of 3 Arcana Points per Level that you are attempting to gain. No
training or time is required. Each Arcana is linked to one Physical,
Mental, and Spiritual Characteristic.
Gift Links: These are the Gifts that are associated with this Arcana
Path. You may use your Points from this Arcana Path to gain or
improve any of the Gifts listed, at a variable rate based on the Gift
(see the Gifts Descriptions).
Binding Links: These are Bindings that can be reduced using this
Arcanas Arcana Points, at a rate of 3 Arcana Points per Level of
Binding you are trying to get rid of.
Skill Links: These are the Skills that are associated with this particular
Arcana Path. You may use your Arcana Points from this Arcana Path
to begin or improve your Skill Level in any of the Skills listed, at any
time, at a rate of 1 Arcana Point per Skill Level you are attempting to
acquire. No specialized training or explicit research is required.
Actions Table: A list of the actions appropriate to this Arcana
Path, for which you may earn Arcana Points. These listings are
really only Guidelines, and you and your Guide should feel free
to interpret the Arcana in your own fashion, and add or subtract
acts as you think appropriate. Guides should remember to inform
Players beforehand, however, if they are altering these Tables, so that
everyone is on the same page, so to speak, when thinking of the
Arcana Paths.
AP Reward: A suggested guide to how many Arcana Points you
should be rewarded for a particular Action, though it should be
noted that all Arcana Point rewards are ultimately the decision of the
Guide. In addition to the basic reward values listed, Guides might
want to consider factoring in a Multiplier depending on the context
in which an act was performed. Overcoming great difficulties in
order to perform an act, or doing something at a crucial moment
in the game, or doing something before an audience these are the
kinds of situations that might call for increasing the Arcana Points
rewarded for an action. However, Guides should be more wary of
applying these Multipliers to rewards whose base value is over 10,
as rewards with such high values attached are usually assumed to be
more difficult or more significant to begin with.

REWARD MULTIPLIERS
Context of Action

Multiplier

Your action was performed in the face of

grave difficulties (dedicated opponents or
significant Modifiers against you).

X 1.5

Your action was performed publicly before

witnesses (the Cosmos takes more notice
if people see and talk about your acts; this
should be the result of NPC witnesses, not
members of the same party).

X2

Your action was absolutely crucial to

achieving a goal or furthering the game.

X3

Adventures in the Known World

107

The Book of Dooms

I. THE MAGICIAN

he First Arcana, the Magician, is the Path of creation,

creative power, and the creative process, when the Self
first puts a name to the world and begins to perceive and
shape it with the senses, partaking in beauty and imparting
meaning. This Path symbolizes both invention and discovery,
and is a manifestation of the first expressions of culture, in
particular the power of language as seen in magic, poetry,
and song, and indeed this Path is sometimes also called the
Minstrel and in crafts the creation and shaping of things
conceived in the Mind and made real by the hands. This
is the Path that Yhera first tread as the Creatrix, making
the Known World out of her own dreams in the First Act
of the Creation; this was the first page she created in her
Great Book, and from it sprang the Sacred Tree of wisdom
and immortality. The Magician is more rarely associated
with Daedekamani, as he is often called the First Magician,
and with Ariahav the Civilizer, who first taught the arts of
Civilization to the peoples of the world to bring them out
of darkness.
From the Book of Dooms: The first page of the Book of Dooms
shows a crowned woman, bare-breasted and standing behind
a cauldron of brass and before a halo of light and of leaves.
Her crown is made of gold and surmounted by three Sphinxes.
In her right hand she holds an ivory wand, and her left rests
upon the hilt of a sword wrapped with a pentacle (Daedekine
Ward Rune) talisman. Her left finger appears to be pointing
downward. Serpents are wrapped about both her wrists, and
in the background can be seen inscribed the motif of the
Daedekine Rune of Making. The woman is usually thought
to be either Yhera or Ariahav, though some Books of Dooms
show the figure as a male, thought to be Daedekamani.
Takers of the Path: The Path of the Magician naturally
attracts Magicians of all sorts, particularly Folk Magicians,
Herbalists, and Enchanters. This is also the Path of wordsmiths, especially bards, writers, and singers; blacksmiths
and other craftsmen; and weavers, tailors, and dyers. Anyone
who works creatively with language particularly through
their voice or makes things with their hands out of the base
elements of the world will be inclined towards this Arcana
Path.
Physical Characteristic Link: TECH
Mental Characteristic Link: IMAG
Spiritual Characteristic Link: PRE
Gift Links: Enchanted Aura, Golden Tongue, Many Tongues,
Mind Afire, Otherworldly Visage, Second Sight, Sensitive Touch,
and Tongue Afire.
Binding Links: Despair, Ennui, and Grief.
Skill Links:
Artistry, Awareness, Blacksmithing,
Composition, Craftwork, Drawing, Engineering, Folk Lore,
Herbal Lore, Housework, Language, Musicianship, Singing,
Star Lore, Storytelling, and Writing.

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MAGICIAN ACTS
Action
Create a useful object.
Create a beautiful object.
Create a beautiful and useful object.
Create (write or recite) a new poem.
Create (write or sing) a new song.
Create (write or recite) a new epic.
Learn a non-Cult Incantation or Ritual.
Cast a non-Cult Incantation or Ritual.
Awaken a natural enchantment in an object.
Impart an enchantment to an object.
Brew a potion or make a poultice.
Make a magical inscription.
Use something old in a new way.
Invent something new and useful.
Discover something new (animal, plant, etc.) in
the world and name it.
Create a new Incantation or Ritual.

AP Reward
1
2
5
2
3
7
1
1
1
3
1
3
4
7
12
21

The Book of Dooms

II. THE
GREAT PRIESTESS
The Second Arcana, the Great Priestess, is the Path of wisdom
and the first Path of the external relations of the Self when
the Self wonders where it and the world came from, and uses
intuition and imagination to pursue insight into the source
of the world around the Self, and discovers that Others exist
outside the Self and constructs relations with them. The first
such relation comes from recognizing the role of the Mother
from whom the new Self emerged, and so the Great Priestess
is the Path of family. And beyond the Mother is found the
Great Mother, Yhera as the source of creation, externalizing
parts of herself in the Night and the Waters and her GoddessSisters of the Moon and the Earth. In recognizing her as
the Great Mother, this becomes the Path of worship and
Cult, in which the Self creates a relationship with the divine.
And finally, it is the first Path of community and sanctuary,
which rise from the acts of motherhood and worship the
community of family, and the community of worshippers,
and the protection of them both.
From the Book of Dooms: The second page of the Book of
Dooms shows a crowned woman, face veiled while barebreasted and seated upon a stone chair before an open door
flanked by two columns, one dark and one light. Her crown
is made to resemble the plumage of a peacock, and in most
Books her veil is made of silver talismans. Her right hand
rests upon an open Book (usually thought to be Yheras Great
Book), and her left hand is open, showing two keys, one of
gold (the key to immortality) and one of silver (the key to
wisdom). The legs of the stone chair are in the shape of lions,
and it is inscribed with the motif of the Riven Ward Magic
Rune.

GREAT PRIESTESS ACTS

Action
Give comfort to a family member in distress.
Give sanctuary to or protect a family member
in need.
Give wise counsel to a family member in need.
Put your family before yourself.
Choose your familys desires over your own.
Learn a Cult Invocation or Ritual.
Invoke a God.
Make an Offering to a God.
Make a Sacrifice to a God.
Participate in a Festival or Cult ceremony.
Dedicate yourself to serving a Temple.
Purify a Shrine.
Purify a Temple.
Build and dedicate a Shrine.
Build and dedicate a Temple.
Give birth.
Give birth to Twins.
Raise a child to adulthood (age 16).

AP Reward
1
2
3
4
5
1
1
1
4
3
7
1
3
3
9
10
21
16

Takers of the Path: The Path of the Great Priestess is taken by

those who find strength and solace in a relationship with the
divine forces of the world, most particularly those who follow
a calling and become Priestesses or Priests in a Cult. Women
who give birth are often on this Arcana Path, called to it by
their connection to the life growing within them. And those
who dedicate themselves to the safety and sanctity of their
family and clan such as protective older brothers, doting
mothers and fathers, heads of households, and clan elders
are also often on the Path of the Great Priestess.
Physical Characteristic Link: STR
Mental Characteristic Link: IMAG
Spiritual Characteristic Link: WIS
Gift Links: Enlightened Aura, Glorious Voice, Illuminated
Mind, Mothers Grace, Serene Aura, Serene Mask, Silver Tongue,
and Unearthly Mask.
Binding Links: Doubt, Fear, and Grief.
Skill Links: Artistry, Awareness, Composition, Cult Lore,
Etiquette, Folk Lore, Healing Arts, Herbal Lore, House
Keeping, Housework, Midwifery, Farmwork, Musicianship,
Oratory, Singing, and Star Lore.

Adventures in the Known World

109

The Book of Dooms

III. THE EMPRESS

The Third Arcana, the Empress, is the Path of sovereignty and
the principle of rulership over both the Self and the Other.
It is the first Path of control independent control over the
Self, and control over and connections with Others exercised
in your own independent name. It is an allegory for the
power of persuasion, the offer of patronage and protection
to other people, and fealty outside the immediate family (to
the tribe or to the domain). The Path of the Empress is the
Path of splendor, beauty, and generation in all the worlds
of existence, and in that splendor can be found vanity and
seduction. Yhera tread the Path of the Empress when she
established her Throne upon the World Mountain as the
Third Act of Creation; gave birth to her daughter Urige, its
First Queen; and filled the world with the beauty and songs
of the Nymphs and angelic Seraphi.
From the Book of Dooms: The third page of the Book of
Dooms shows a crowned woman, unveiled, bare-breasted,
draped in red, and seated upon a golden peacock throne.
Her crown has twelve Stars upon it, thought to prefigure the
twelve Star Signs of the Celestial Path. Her right hand bears
a wand of ivory and gold, and her left rests upon a Shield
marked by an eagle, an ancient symbol of Dominion. The
woman is often said to be Urige, Yheras First Daughter and
the First Queen of the World, though others say it is Yhera
herself, unveiled and taking the form of Flesh.
Takers of the Path: Those who seek independent and
sovereign power over their own lives or the lives of others
take the Path of the Empress; in particular, those who rule
themselves or others through splendor and magnificence,
indulging themselves or others in luxury and pleasures, are
called to this Path. Those who rule or treat themselves or
others through love and not through fear are on the Path
of the Empress, as are those who dedicate themselves to the
safety and sanctity of communities beyond simply their own
families and relations (the tribe, the alliance, the realm).
Many Kings and Queens, nobles, exemplars, seducers,
courtesans, entertainers, and talkers are upon this Path.
Physical Characteristic Link: APP
Mental Characteristic Link: PER
Spiritual Characteristic Link: PRE
Gift Links: Awaken Appetites, Bound Hearts, Brazen Body,
Brazen Tongue, Brazen Touch, Charismatic Aura, Charismatic
Mask, Honeyed Tongue, Open Heart, and Spellbinding Form.
Binding Links: Vanity and Shame.
Skill Links: Acting, Awareness, Dancing, Etiquette, Heraldry,
House Keeping, Inquiry, Intrigue, Leadership, Local Expert,
Oratory, Persuasion, Seduction, Singing, and Wardrobe &
Style.

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EMPRESS ACTS
Action
Persuade someone to do something for you.
Persuade someone else to choose the good of a
group over their own self-interests.
Choose the good of a larger group over that of
yourself or your family.
Sway a crowds opinions through speech.
Persuade someone else to choose your interests
over his or her own.
Seduce someone.
Have sex with someone else for pleasure or
influence.
Befriend a stranger or outsider.
Offer sanctuary or protection to someone
outside your family.
Host a stranger or outsider with feasts and gifts.
Become someones patron or sponsor.
Have someone swear an oath of fealty to you.
Form an alliance or coalition.
Claim a sovereign domain as your own.
Proclaim yourself a King or Queen.
Proclaim yourself an Emperor or Empress.

AP Reward
1
2
3
4
5
1
2
1
2
3
4
5
7
9
12
21

The Book of Dooms

IV. THE EMPEROR

The Fourth Arcana, the Emperor, is the Path of power and
dominion. In this it is a variation and expansion on the
preceding Path of the Empress, but whereas the Empress rules
by persuasion and the seductions of splendor, the Emperor
rules by the force of majesty, domination, and subjection. The
Emperor is symbolic of the control of the Self and the Other
through the imposition and the enforcement of both rules and
Law. It is the Path of loyalty and submission, and through
rules also becomes the first Path of Initiation, in which the
individual is transformed into a member of a group through
their understanding of its Laws. Yhera tread the Path of the
Emperor when in fear and pain she ordered Helios, the Solar
Lion, to take his place in the Heavens, and indeed the Sun has
become the symbol of the Emperor for many Cultures.
From the Book of Dooms: The fourth page of the Book of
Dooms shows a crowned and armored man, draped in red and
seated upon a throne of gold. His crown is marked with the
Daedekine Runes of Fire, Earth, Water, and Air. Behind him
is the mark of an Imperial Eagle. In his right hand he holds a
scepter with a Riven Illumination Rune, and in his left hand
he holds a globe of the world surmounted by a cross which
is believed to have later inspired the Imperial Dominion
Rune. The throne of gold is believed to be the Sun Throne of
Helios upon which the Gods of the Sun sit, but some Books of
Dooms depict the throne as made of stone. The seated figure
is thought to represent Agdah, Yheras First Consort. Some
Books of Dooms show the figure as a female, representing the
angered and imperious Yhera.

EMPEROR ACTS
Action
Show loyalty to a leader.
Command loyalty in another.
Join a closed group.
Become initiated into a closed group.
Initiate another into a closed group.
Enforce the Laws of a closed group.
Punish a member for breaking a groups Laws.
Punish yourself for breaking a groups Laws.
Punish a non-member for breaking a groups Laws.
Become the leader of a closed group.
Accept a mission from an authority figure.
Complete a mission from an authority figure.
Make an oath of fealty to another.
Be given a rank or title by another.
Be given a domain by another.
Conquer a domain for yourself.
Be proclaimed a King or Queen.
Take the Title of King or Queen by force.
Be proclaimed an Emperor or Empress.
Take the title of Emperor or Empress by force.

AP Reward
1
3
2
3
5
2
3
5
7
4
1
3
2
3
5
7
8
12
13
21

Takers of the Path: The path of the Emperor is favored

amongst those who use strength and force to impose rules and
the Law upon themselves or others. Those upon the Emperors
Path may pledge themselves to the safety and sanctity of wider
communities outside their family (the group, the tribe, the
realm) but ensure that safety and sanctity through the policing
of the groups behavior and internal cohesion. Those who join
or lead groups, taking power over others or submitting to force
and hierarchical structure, are on the Emperors Path.
Physical Characteristic Link: APP
Mental Characteristic Link: WILL
Spiritual Characteristic Link: COUR
Gift Links: Bound Hearts, Courageous Aura, Imperious Mask,
Imperious Tongue, Warlike Visage, Mask of Command, and
Resolute Aura.
Binding Links: Awe.
Skill Links: Animal Training, Athletics, Campaigning, Close
Order, Etiquette, Hand-to-Hand, Heraldry, House Keeping,
Inquiry, Intrigue, Leadership, Local Expert, Melee, Oratory,
Persuasion, Riding, Shepherding, and Tactics.

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The Book of Dooms

V. THE
GREAT PRIEST
The Fifth Arcana, the Great Priest, is the Path of reason and
intelligence used to determine the moral law and fabric of
a society. This is the Path of tradition, in which duty and
conscience dictate the behavior of the Self, rather than the
impulses of desire. The Great Priest pursues an awareness of
the inherited structures and laws of the world through study
and reflection. Like the Great Priestess, this Path is symbolic
of organized religion and Cult, and like the Emperor, this
Path is symbolic of the making of Laws, though now through
the application of Reason rather than Will or force. This
Path symbolizes the life of the Mind, the accumulation and
interpretation of information, and the rigors of philosophic
discourse. Daedekamani, the first Priest and Sorcerer, is the
divine paradigm of this Path.
From the Book of Dooms: The fifth page of the Book of Dooms
shows a crowned man, seated upon a stone throne flanked by
two columns. His elaborate crown is made of gold, and nearly
overwhelms his head (to symbolize the weight of reason), and
he is swathed in red (to symbolize activity). His right hand
is upraised with two fingers pointed up in a magical gesture,
and in his left hand he holds a golden scepter surmounted by
a Daedekine Rune of Making. On the floor before him are
two crossed gold keys, which are usually said to be the keys
to the doors of the Mind, unlocking reason and imagination.
The keys are between two kneeling disciples, one mostly in red
and the other in blue. The seated male is usually interpreted
as Daedekamani.
Takers of the Path: The path of the Great Priest is taken by
those who find strength and solace in the activities of the
Mind in reason, analysis, and the pursuit of illumination.
Those who seek answers to the problems of their lives and
of society through the application of reason lawmakers,
magistrates, and fair-minded nobles are travelers upon this
Path, as are those who seek to protect and pass on the inherited
traditions of a Culture and people, such as Magisters, bards,
and teachers. Some will actually be Priests of a Cult, such as
that of Daedekamani, but many will also be members of a
community of reason a university, a college, a lodge, or a
guild of scholars and philosophers.
Physical Characteristic Link: TECH
Mental Characteristic Link: REAS
Spiritual Characteristic Link: CONV
Gift Links: Beautiful Mind, Clear Sight, Enlightened Aura,
Glorious Voice, Golden Tongue, Illuminate/Mystery, Initiate/
Mystery, Memory Trick, and Stone Heart.
Binding Links: Ambition, Desire, Doubt, Lust, and Madness.
Skill Links: Alchemical Lore, Commerce, Composition,
Cult Lore, Drawing, Farmwork, Heraldry, Hermetic Lore,
Inquiry, Language, Letters, Oratory, Research, Teaching, and
Writing.

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GREAT PRIEST ACTS

Action
Listen to reason.
Make someone else listen to reason.
Engage in philosophic debate.
Gain a Scholarly Skill Level through study.
Gain a Lore Skill Level through study.
Consult a Book or Library.
Memorize a Book or cultural epic.
Begin a Library of your own.
Share your Library with another.
Write a Commentary on a Book.
Write a new Essay.
Write a new Book.
Do your duty to society.
Convince someone else to stick to tradition.
Uphold the traditions of your Culture over your
own self-interest.
Give reasoned counsel to a ruler.
Enforce a Law upon a domain.
Write a new Law for a domain.

AP Reward
1
3
3
2
1
1
2
5
3
2
4
7
2
3
5
2
3
5

The Book of Dooms

VI. THE LOVERS

The Sixth Arcana, the Lovers, is the Path of union the union
of the Self and the Other, not through worship or rulership
or dominion or even through a community of reason, but
through love, harmony, compassion and fellowship. This
Path is symbolic of the loss of the Self in a greater identity,
as Two Lovers become One. This is also one of the first
Paths concerned specifically with the process of choice in the
formation of the world choosing one other person to share
your Self with above all others, even if briefly. This Arcana
Path is identified with the Twin Goddesses Ami and Dieva,
created by Yhera in the sixth Act of Creation. Ami, the
Morning Star and Dawn Goddess, is the Goddess of Love
and Fellowship (the bonding of two beings in Spirit), while
Dieva, the Evening Star and Dusk Goddess, is the Goddess
of Sex (the bonding of two beings in Body). It should be
noted that this is not necessarily the Path of seduction or sex;
that Path is more rightly that of the Empress, though this
Path speaks to physical passion as well as spiritual bonding.
From the Book of Dooms: The sixth page of the Book of
Dooms shows three figures a winged woman, unveiled
and bare-breasted in the Heavens above a naked man and
woman. Behind the man is a tree of gold leaves (the keys to
immortality) and behind the woman is a tree of silver leaves
(the keys to wisdom). The winged woman is half-white, and
half-red; the white half is said to represent Ami the Morning
Star, and the red half Dieva the Evening Star, officiating
over the union of two individuals. The man and woman
are reaching for each other with one hand, but they are not
usually depicted as touching.

LOVERS ACTS
Action
Nurture a secret and/or unrequited Love.*
Declare your Love for another openly.*
Be loved in return.*
Do something solely for Love.
Give a gift out of Love.
Aid a pair of Lovers in need.
Aid the cause of Love.
Follow your beloveds desires above your own.
Place your beloveds interests or safety before
your own.
Be in a secret Love Affair.
Formally join in union with your beloved, as a
Consort or in Marriage.
Consummate a Love.
Choose Love over Marriage.
Become jealous of your beloved.
Betray or hurt your beloved.
Seek your beloveds forgiveness for some hurt.
Forgive your beloved.
Find True Love.
* Requires a voluntary Love Binding.

AP Reward
3
5
5
1
2
3
7
3
5
3
5
5
11
3
5
5
7
21

Takers of the Path: The Path of the Lovers is taken, however

briefly, by anyone who falls in Love during the course of their
life. This moment in life is most often demonstrated by the
voluntary acceptance of a Love Binding. The Path of the
Lovers recognizes that sometimes Love is unrequited, and
that above all Love is a tricky and sometimes passing thing;
the longevity and stability of a relationship is not the issue,
and merely seeking the Love of another is enough to mark
someone as on the Lovers Path, not success or failure.
Physical Characteristic Link: APP
Mental Characteristic Link: IMAG
Spiritual Characteristic Link: EMP
Gift Links: Blush of Love, Bonds of Love, Brazen Body,
Brazen Tongue, Brazen Touch, Honeyed Tongue, Loves Grace,
Spellbinding Form, and True Love.
Binding Links: Despair, Fear, Grief, and Hate.
Skill Links: Acrobatics, Acting, Artistry, Athletics,
Composition, Dancing, Disguise, Drawing, Etiquette,
Intrigue, Musicianship, Persuasion, Seduction, Singing, and
Wardrobe & Style.

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The Book of Dooms

VII. THE HERMIT

The Seventh Arcana, the Hermit, is sometimes called the
Seeker, for it is an allegory for the act of choosing as a virtue,
for seeking a choice based on the intents and inclinations of
the Self, for making up your own Mind. Continuing on from
the theme of the Lovers, in which the Self chooses the Shared
Path, the Hermit is the Solitary Path of the Self. This Arcana
is also sometimes called the Lover to invoke the notion of
someone who, having lost their individual identity in union
with another in Love (or with over-identification with a
group), must now deliberately choose a Path of solitude to
maintain the integrity of the Self. The Hermit is the Path
of self-reliance, decisiveness, moral beauty, vocation, purpose
and struggle in the face of uncertainty, temptation, passivity,
and the acquiescence to external pressure. This Path opens
the Self to true self-awareness, but is also fraught with the
dangers of narcissism and vanity; it is often identified with
Geteema, who chose in the Seventh Act of Creation to walk
her own Path and create her own Garden to rival her Sisters.
The Path of the Hermit is not concerned with the rightness of
a choice, only that a choice was made at all.
From the Book of Dooms: The seventh page of the Book of
Dooms shows a cloaked and hooded man bearing a staff in
his left hand and a lantern in his right. He is standing upon
what appears to be a mountain peak, but rather than looking
out upon the vistas before him, his gaze is instead cast down,
intent upon the step before him. In some Books of Dooms,
two serpents are entwined about his staff. Some interpret
the figure as Daedekamani, foreshadowing the Path of the
Dead that he would later walk as the first Guide of the Dead.
Other Books of Dooms depict the figure as female, and identify
her with Geteema.
Takers of the Path: The Path of the Hermit is for those who
follow their own counsel and reject and refuse inherited
wisdom. Hermits, wanderers, critical-thinkers, free thinkers,
philosophers, proud individuals certain of themselves and
their own judgment, and iconoclasts of all sorts will find
themselves walking the Path of the Hermit, usually alone.
Physical Characteristic Link: STAM
Mental Characteristic Link: MEM
Spiritual Characteristic Link: CONV
Gift Links: Clear Sight, Enlightened Aura, Enlightened Tongue,
Illuminate/Mystery, Illuminate/Truth, Illuminated Mind,
Initiate/Mystery, Open Heart, See the Path, Serene Body, Serene
Mask, and Sustenance.
Binding Links: Ambition, Anger, Desire, Fear, Greed, Hate,
Love, and Rage.
Skill Links: Athletics, Awareness, Composition, Fieldcraft,
Healing Arts, Herbal Lore, Hermetic Lore, Inquiry,
Language, Letters, Local Expert, Navigation, Research,
Sailing, Shepherding, Storytelling, Teaching, and Writing.

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HERMIT ACTS
Action
Leave a group.
Leave a Loved one (must have a Love Binding).
Abandon your family.
Spend a day fasting.
Spend a Moon in solitude.
Go a Moon never sleeping in the same place
twice.
Take a decisive action on your own.
Set a goal for yourself.
Resist diversions from your goal.
Refuse to be swayed by anothers persuasion.
Hold an opinion in the face of evidence to the
contrary.
Choose your own counsel over that of another.
Make a difficult choice.
Make a difficult choice against advice to the
contrary.
Make a difficult choice that you know will cause
harm to a Loved one or family member.
Choose a Path for yourself.

AP Reward
1
7
5
1
10
5
1
4
3
3
6
5
5
9
12
21

The Book of Dooms

VIII. THE SWORD

The Eight Arcana, the Sword, is also called the Chariot. The
Sword Arcana is the Path of victory and triumph, in which
the Self demonstrates skill and self-control, progress towards
success, valor in word and deed, action, and movement
towards victory. This is the Path of the Contest, in which
the Self seeks to prove itself on the field of competition, and
in so doing better itself. This Arcana Path is often associated
with Ariahav, both as the Patroness of Civilization and as
Yheras General, as Civilization is at its roots fundamentally
about progress, and War is perhaps the sharpest example of
the conflict and competition so identified with this Path.
The Sword is also symbolic of weapons and to some extent
tools the sword, the chariot, the loom, the saw, the hammer,
the forge as devices of power and success, as the method by
which the individual Self manifests and interprets its Skills
in the world around it.
From the Book of Dooms: The eighth page of the Book of
Dooms shows an androgynous youth riding a golden chariot
drawn by two horses, often before a great city. The youth
wears a cuirass of steel affixed with five gold studs and with
crescent moons at the shoulders, and bears in one hand an
upright sword. One horse is red and the other is white,
which is often interpreted as an alchemical symbol denoting
the Red and White Elixirs. Above the youths head, or in
some Books of Dooms inscribed upon the chariot front,
floats a winged and golden globe, usually interpreted as a
representation of triumph over the material world. While
the gender of the youth is uncertain, most believe it to
represent Ariahav.

SWORD ACTS
Action
Train a Characteristic to the next Level.
Train a skill to the next Level.
Be trained by another person.
Teach an animal a skill or trick.
Train another person in a Skill.
Reduce a Binding by one Level.
Rid yourself of a Binding.
Enter a contest of skills.
Win a contest of skills.
Participate in a team victory.
Make a weapon or a tool.
Seek an opponent in combat.
Defeat an opponent in combat.
Win a contest or fight with the guardian of a
place, path, or person.
Refuse to accept defeat.
Win a contest or fight with someone who has
defeated you in the past.
Lead a side to victory in a battle.
Lead a side to victory in a war.

AP Reward
1
2
1
2
3
1
4
1
3
2
4
1
2
3
7
5

Takers of the Path: The Path of the Sword is for those who
dedicate themselves to the mastery of Self and Skill. Some
on this Path will be philosophically drawn to it by the quest
for virtue in struggle; others will be upon it for the visceral
thrill of victory and its mundane rewards. Craftsmen,
artisans, entertainers, soldiers, and performers dedicated to
the perfection of their Crafts and Skills will take this Path,
as will those who are seeking fields of competition in which
they can demonstrate their personal prowess over others
such as athletes, knights, and politicians.
Physical Characteristic Link: TECH
Mental Characteristic Link: WILL
Spiritual Characteristic Link: COUR
Gift Links: Keen Sight, Mask of Command, Resolute Aura,
and Veteran.
Binding Links: Desire, Dread, Fear, and Fury.
Skill Links: Acrobatics, Animal Training, Armor Training,
Athletics, Blacksmithing, Campaigning, Close Order,
Craftwork, Engineering, Evade, Farmwork, Gambling &
Gaming, Hand-to-Hand, Housework, Marksmanship,
Melee, Riding, Siege Artillery, Skirmishing, Swimming, and
Tactics.

9
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The Book of Dooms

IX. JUSTICE
The Ninth Arcana, Justice, is the first Path of judgment, for
out of the competitions of the Sword Arcana arise the first
disputes over determining a victor, over finding out who
won. This Path symbolizes the search for fair evaluation
and fair verdicts, balance, and equilibrium in the wake
of the imbalance of victor and vanquished inherent in
the Sword Arcana. This verdict is achieved through the
application of the senses, inner judgment, and the guidance
of conscience. This is the first Path of Self-criticism, in
which the Self is asked to evaluate the upholding of its
own behavioral codes, and it is perhaps above all else the
Path of the Judge intent upon determining guilt though
the assignment of guilt here is less an issue of criminality
than it is one of psychology, in the Self s recognition of its
transgressions against itself and others. Guilt, in a sense,
has nothing to do with Law. The Justice Arcana is often
closely identified with Hathhalla, the Lion-headed Goddess
of Justice and Vengeance, and her sword-Spirit Nemesis.
From the Book of Dooms: The ninth page of the Book of
Dooms shows a crowned woman, blindfolded and barebreasted and seated upon a stone chair flanked by two
columns. Her crown is made of iron lances and is fronted
by a Riven Illumination Rune. Her right hand holds an
upright sword, often described as the form of Nemesis, and
from her left hand dangles a set of golden scales. Between
the two pillars behind her is a red drape, and she is swathed
in red as well. The figure is usually identified as Hathhalla
as the Goddess of Justice; behind the red curtain is said to
lurk either Hathhalla as in her incarnation as the Goddess
of Vengeance or her pack of harpies, which she keeps on
hand to drive the guilty mad.
Takers of the Path: The Path of Justice is tread by those
who seek to fairly judge themselves and others, and who
seek Truth in judgment. Those who have been aggrieved,
and feel themselves to be the victims of an injustice, walk
this Path, as do those that have themselves committed
injustices but have been pricked by conscience, and so it
is the Path of those who seek justice and atonement alike.
Criminals, cheats, judges, law-breakers and law-enforcers,
avengers, vigilantes, the hurt, and the guilty are all upon
the Path of Justice.
Physical Characteristic Link: STR
Mental Characteristic Link: REAS
Spiritual Characteristic Link: CONV
Gift Links: Aura of Truth, Implacable Mask, See Guilt, Sense
Lies, and Wrathful Visage.
Binding Links: Anger, Grief, Guilt, and Hate.
Skill Links: Awareness, Follow, Hand-to-Hand, Inquiry,
Local Expert, Melee, Persuasion, Streetwise, Track, and
Watch.

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ACTS OF JUSTICE
Action
Counsel someone who feels guilty of something.
Engage in reasoned deliberation over a judgment
or verdict.
Judge a contest of skills.
Stand in judgment over anothers act.
Stand in judgment over an act of your own.
Refuse to accept anothers judgment of your act.
Pursue someone guilty of a crime or offense.
Punish someone guilty of a crime or offense.
Defend and protect someone falsely accused.
Defend and protect someone rightfully accused.
Punish someone who has harmed you.
Forgive someone who has harmed you.
Feel guilty about something you did (with a
Guilt Binding).
Submit yourself to the judgment of others on a
question of your guilt or innocence in some act.
Submit yourself to the judgment of someone
you have harmed.
Seek the forgiveness of someone you have
harmed.

AP Reward
1
2
3
3
5
5
3
5
3
12
6
12
3
4
9
21

The Book of Dooms

X. THE WHEEL
OF FORTUNE
The Tenth Arcana, the Wheel of Fortune, is also called the
Fates, as it indeed symbolizes the persons of the Three Fates,
who spin the past, present, and future of both Gods and Men
in the Known World at the behest of Djara and Yhera. If the
Ninth Arcana is the Path of Justice found in the judgments of
the Self and of others, the Tenth Arcana is the Path of those
who seek a divine or cosmic judgment, placing themselves in
the hands of the Fates as the personifications of the Cosmos
as Witness the Three Sisters who see all and hear all, and
who may reveal both Truth and Possibility. This is the first
Path with an inkling of time, as the Self realizes that it has
a future as well as a past and a present. It is the Path of
the Celestial and Cosmic Wheels, spinning to determine
the future of the individual in the Known World, and is
symbolic of fatefulness, irreversibility, equilibrium, mystery
and discovery, and both the constructive and destructive
potentialities of the future. And so this is the Path of the Self
when it is first consciously aware that it possesses a Destiny,
and wishes to know what that Destiny is.
From the Book of Dooms: The tenth page of the Book of Dooms
shows three hooded women turning a great spinning Wheel.
A crowned and sword-armed Sphinx is perched upon the
Wheel, and clinging to the Wheel are two figures; the figure
clinging to the ascending side of the Wheel has the head of
a dog or jackal, and the figure clinging to the descending
side of the Wheel is a serpent. The three women are usually
depicted as a young woman, a woman in the prime of life,
and an older woman (if not an outright hag). In some Books
of Dooms, the Wheel is a flat surface and is inscribed with the
names or symbols of the twelve Star Signs.

WHEEL OF FORTUNE ACTS

Action
Consult a fortuneteller or oracle.
Have a dream vision of the future.
Perform a Folk, Cult, or Herbal Reading about
someones past.
Perform a Folk, Cult, or Herbal Reading about
someones present.
Perform a Folk, Cult, or Herbal Reading about
someones future.
Perform a Folk, Cult, or Herbal Reading about
your own past.
Perform a Folk, Cult, or Herbal Reading about
your own present.
Perform a Folk, Cult, or Herbal Reading about
your own future.
Fulfill an oracular prediction.
Make a vow or swear an oath by the Fates.
Fulfill a vow.
Make a prediction (the outcome of which cannot
be preordained) about the future without a
Reading.
Fulfill a prediction of your own making.
Discover your Destiny through Divination.

AP Reward
1
3
1
2
3
2

Takers of the Path: The Path of the Wheel of Fortune is

for those who seek divine guidance in their daily lives and
seek to use divine and cosmic judgment to determine their
destinies, rather than their own. Fortunetellers and their
clients and Priests and Priestesses are always on this Path, as
they seek in the signs of the worlds around them approval
and disapproval of the course of their actions, and as they
seek to uncover the mystery of their eventual fates.
Physical Characteristic Link: DEX
Mental Characteristic Link: PER
Spiritual Characteristic Link: WIS

Gift Links: Auspicious Aura, Dreaming Oracle, Oracular

Sight, Oracular Touch, and Second Sight.

Binding Links: Despair, Fear, and Vanity.

9
4
7
3

Skill Links: Awareness, Contortionist, Folk Lore, Gambling

& Gaming, Persuasion, Sleight of Hand, Star Lore, and
Storytelling.

9
13

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The Book of Dooms

XI. STRENGTH
The Eleventh Arcana, Strength, symbolizes the mastering,
harnessing, and channeling of the instincts and desires,
as well as the first conscious attempt by the Self to gain
dominance over the material and mundane worlds. The
Strength Arcana is the Path of vigor, mastery, command,
and fury not indulged in a destructive fashion, but rather
directed at the service of the Self and its goals. As such this
is also the Path of Strength used by the Self to shape and
control the world around it. Some interpret the Strength
Arcana as the Self s reaction to the revelations of the Wheel
of Fortune: unbridled anger and rage in rebellion at the
unkind Fates, coupled with the harnessing of those energies
to achieve or alter the Destinies of the Self and the shape
of the world. Yhera and her Sisters tread this Path when
they used their will and wiles to tame and harness their
Consorts energies, turning them from wild forces of nature
into Guardians and Lovers.
From the Book of Dooms: The eleventh page of the Book
of Dooms shows a woman clothed in refined garments
drawing an open-mouthed lion to her bosom. She wears
victory laurels about her temples, and above her head is
seen a halo figured as a Riven Change Rune. The woman is
usually interpreted as either Genich or Geteema, though
sometimes Yhera or Ariahav, and the lion is said to be
Ammon Agdah. In some Books of Dooms, the figure is not
a lion but a bull, said to be Illiki, and in a few rare Books
of Dooms from the Empire, the figure is a chimera with the
head of a vulture and the body of a lion, a common folkrendering of Vani. In any case, the image is said to represent
the taming of a potent male power by the strength of the
Earth Goddess.
Takers of the Path: The Path of Strength is for those who
seek to control the world through force and sheer Will.
Warriors, brigands, criminals, and nobles will be often on
the Path of Strength, as will builders, craftsmen, architects,
farmers and engineers who shape and alter the form of the
world with plough and pick and spade. Those who are
quick to anger and short-tempered will often be on this
Path, as they try to dominate others through force.
Physical Characteristic Link: STR
Mental Characteristic Link: WILL
Spiritual Characteristic Link: COUR
Gift Links: Aura of Fury, Berserkir Ekstasis, Courageous
Aura, Fortifying Aura, Warlike Visage, Terrifying Mask, and
Voice of Fury.
Binding Links: Awe, Dread, and Fear.
Skill Links: Acrobatics, Animal Training, Armor Training,
Athletics, Craftwork, Engineering, Farmwork, Fieldcraft,
Hand-to-Hand, Housework, Leadership, Marksmanship,
Melee, Riding, Shepherding, and Swimming.

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ACTS OF STRENGTH
Action
Perform a feat of strength.
Perform a feat of endurance.
Cut down a tree.
Plough a field.
Construct a building.
Build a bridge.
Dam or alter the path of a river.
Resist a temptation or outside influence.
Strike someone in anger.
Lose your temper and fly into a Fury.
Resist losing your temper (a Fury Binding).
Tame a wild animal.
Break something useful.
Break something beautiful.
Break something useful and beautiful.
Compel others against their will.
Direct someones rage or anger by suasion.
Show courage in the face of danger.

AP Reward
1
1
1
2
3+
5
10
3
3
4
5
5
1
2
5
5
5
3

The Book of Dooms

XII. THE
HANGED MAN
The Twelfth Arcana, the Hanged Man, is an allegory for
mystical isolation and the desire for transcendence in the
wake of the failure of the Self to dominate the mundane
world. The Hanged Man represents the Self being freed
from the mundane world for the first time, seeing its
surroundings in a new light, and perceiving the Otherworld
and Underworld with preternatural clarity. The Hanged Man
is the Path of self-sacrifice, mysticism, magical illumination,
and the mastery of the Otherworldly Self. It is commonly
identified with Djara, who first dreamed of and then created
the Otherworld as the Twelfth Act of Creation, and with
Daedekamani, the archetypal Magician-Trickster who seeks
to travel into the Otherworld for knowledge and power. This
Path is also associated with magical spirits and gods that guide
and accompany the spirits of the dead, such as Daedekamani
and the Dhurleal.
From the Book of Dooms: The twelfth page of the Book of
Dooms shows a man suspended from one foot by a rope from
a crossbar, which rests upon two leafless trees. His free leg is
crossed behind him. He wears white and red clothing (once
again, thought to be a sign of the White and Red Elixirs of the
alchemists), and his hands appear to be tied behind his back.
A golden halo glows around his head, and from his pockets or
a coin purse comes a shower of golden coins. The suspension
of the figure is said to show the separation of the Self from
both the Earth and the Heavens, where one gains insights into
the nature of the world and gets a glimpse of the inverted
Otherworld. The two trees show the ruin of the Earth from
which the suspended man seeks solace.

HANGED MAN ACTS

Action
Summon a Spirit.
Talk to a Spirit.
Bargain with a Spirit.
Gain a Spirit Friend (or better).
Gain a Spirit Opponent (or worse).
Bind a Spirit as a Guardian or Guide.
Entrap a Spirit.
Create a Spirit Bond with a Spirit.
Aid a Spirit in need.
Exorcise or free a Spirit.
Make an Offering to a Spirit.
Make a Sacrifice to a Spirit.
Look into the Otherworld.
Leave your body and Spirit-Walk.
Cross over into the Otherworld while in Spirit
Form and return.
Cross over into the Otherworld in Body and
return.

AP Reward
1
1
2
3
3
5
3
5
3
9
1
3
1
3
7
12

Takers of the Path: The Path of the Hanged Man is for those
who seek power and knowledge in the exploration of the
Otherworld. Those who spend time with ghosts and Spirits
are often on this Path, gaining glimpses of the enchanted
world beyond our own as their Spirits become attuned to
things normally hidden from mortal eyes. So Magicians,
Witches, and Shamans in particular will often walk the Path
of the Hanged Man, as they seem to belong less and less
to this world and more and more to the shadowy, magical
Otherworld into which they travel and with whose residents
they bargain.
Physical Characteristic Link: STAM
Mental Characteristic Link: PER
Spiritual Characteristic Link: WIS
Gift Links: Dream-Flight, Ghost Mask, Ghost Tongue, Glorious
Voice, Open Spirit, Second Sight, Serene Body, Serene Mask, and
Spirit-Walking.
Binding Links: Ambition, Awe. Dread, Fear, and Vanity.
Skill Links: Artistry, Awareness, Composition, Cult Lore,
Folk Lore, Healing Arts, Herbal Lore, Language, Letters,
Occult Lore, Persuasion, Shepherding, Singing, Storytelling,
and Teaching.

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The Book of Dooms

XIII. DEATH
The Thirteenth Arcana, Death, is the Path of transformation
and liberation revealed by the glimpse of the Hanged Man
into the Otherworld and the Underworld. Djara gave
birth to Death as part of her Dark Brood in the Twelfth
Act of Creation, and as part of the Thirteenth Act of
Creation Death revealed its secret to Genich and Geteema
and introduced mortality into the world. This Path is a
manifestation of the mortality of the Body and with it
decomposition, destruction, and the inevitable end of
all determinate and specific things, but it also represents
resurrection and rebirth, evolution and necessity for
Death is not an ending, only a stage in the cycles of life, a
necessary step allowing for the growth of new things. In
time it was Genich who first passed beneath the Gates
of Death and entered the Underworld, and there she
pronounced her Law, the first universal Law, that all those
who are born of her Earth must follow her into Death,
and so this Path has come to symbolize the Earth (from
which all things came, and to which all things return), the
Underworld, and Genich, the Goddess who rules them
both.
From the Book of Dooms: The thirteenth page of the Book
of Dooms shows a naked woman, unveiled and bearing a
great scythe. She stands proudly before the descending Sun
over a field of black earth sown with heads and body parts.
The heads and body parts do not appear dead, but rather
still seem to have the bloom of life upon them. The female
figure is usually identified as Genich, but portraying her
as unveiled rather than veiled is considered improper, and
so some have suggested the alternative explanation that she
is Dieva the Evening Star, acting as Deaths Herald and
sending the Sun off on its journey into the Underworld.
Takers of the Path: The Path of Death cannot be avoided if
you are born a mortal, of course; but those most often on its
Path are those that see Death in their daily lives. Warriors
and soldiers are often exposed to Death and its reminders,
as are farmers and shepherds, Priests and Priestesses of
sacrificial Cults, physicians, healers, midwives, Magicians
and Shamans who deal with ghosts and Spirits, and of
course gravediggers. The Death of a loved one often sets
one upon the Path of Death, particularly if it happens at
an early age.
Physical Characteristic Link: STAM
Mental Characteristic Link: MEM
Spiritual Characteristic Link: COUR
Gift Links: Dreadful Visage, Ghost Mask, Ghost Tongue,
Haunting Voice, Open Spirit, Rebirth, Second Sight, and
Terrifying Mask.
Binding Links: Doubt, Dread, Fear, and Vanity.
Skill Links: Awareness, Cult Lore, Folk Lore, Gambling &
Gaming, Healing Arts, Occult Lore, and Persuasion.

120

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DEATH ACTS
Action
See a corpse or corpses.
Handle a corpse or corpses.
Witness the death(s) of a living creature or
creatures.
Kill a living creature.
Witness the death of a Compatriot (or better).
Witness the death of a Family member.
Witness the death of a Lover.
Mourn and grieve for a loved one.
Console someone else while they mourn.
Attend a burial or cremation.
Pray for the Dead.
Pray for the newly Dead during their Seven
Days.
Exorcise a Ghost or Spirit of the Dead.
Make an Offering to a Ghost or to a Spirit of
the Dead.
Free or save the Spirit of an Ancestor.
Die.
Cross over into the Underworld in Body.
Return from the Underworld in Body.

AP Reward
1
2
2
3
3+
5+
6+
3
1
1
1
3
9
2
12
13
12
21

The Book of Dooms

XIV. TEMPERANCE
The Fourteenth Arcana, Temperance, is sometimes also
called the Circle, and following after the Path of Death
represents the renewal of the energies and possibilities of
Life, the moment in which the reborn Spirit and reborn
Self, emerging from Death, reclaim their place in the
material world but in a new form. With the end of the Self
in Death and the rebirth of the new Self that follows, the full
nature of Time first revealed in the Path of the Wheel the
past, present, and future of the Self is now revealed in the
Self before Death and the Self after Death, so Temperance
is the second Path of Time, symbolizing the full cycle of
mortality in life, death, and rebirth and its manifestation in
the yearly cycle of the Sun and the Seasons. This is the Path
of harmony, formation, self-restraint, and regeneration, as
the Self is renewed and sets forward with purpose into the
world as a counter to Death. This Path evokes the moment
when Yhera sought to heal Genich and Geteema of the
touch of Death, and the world gave rise to such wonders as
mermaids, satyrs, and centaurs.
From the Book of Dooms: The fourteenth page of the Book
of Dooms shows a winged woman, unveiled and naked
besides a pool of water. In one hand, she tilts a silver
chalice (the Chalice of the Heavens) and pours water into a
golden chalice (the Chalice of the Earth) held in her other
hand, symbolizing the renewal of matter with the mixing of
Spirit. The Sun rises in the distance behind her, once again
symbolizing renewal and return. The figure is often said to
be Ami the Morning Star, heralding the return of the Sun
from its sojourn through the Underworld.

ACTS OF TEMPERANCE
Action
Forage for products of the wild.
Grow something useful.
Grow something beautiful.
Grow something useful and beautiful.
Harvest something that youve grown.
Nurture an animal or herd.
Make use of the death of an animal or bird.
Befriend an animal or bird.
Heal yourself of your injuries.
Heal another living thing of its injuries.
Cure yourself of a disease.
Cure another living thing of a disease.
Attend or observe a birth.
Be midwife to a birth.
Become pregnant.
Seek harmony in your relations with others.
Make a kind or friendly gesture to an Opponent
(or worse Relations Category).
Befriend an Opponent (or worse Relations
Category).

AP Reward
1
1
2
3
2
4
1
4
1
2
2
3
1
3
9
1
3

Takers of the Path: The Path of Temperance is the Path

of healing, and so those that seek to cleanse themselves of
wound and worry and emerge renewed and reinvigorated
into the world will find themselves traveling upon it.
Healers, midwives, physicians, Priests, and Priestesses
will often be traveling the Path of Temperance, as will
many Magicians, whose experience of the Otherworld
and Underworld leads them to seek renewal. Those who
are attuned to the natural cycles of the world farmers,
shepherds, hunters, and herbalists also gain a glimpse of
the Path of Temperance.
Physical Characteristic Link: DEX
Mental Characteristic Link: REAS
Spiritual Characteristic Link: EMP
Gift Links: Animal Mask, Feral Tongue, Immaculate Aura,
Immaculate Body, Immaculate Mind, Immaculate Spirit,
Serene Aura, and Serene Voice.
Binding Links: Cruelty, Hate, Jealousy, and Shame.
Skill Links: Artistry, Blacksmithing, Craftwork, Drawing,
Engineering, Etiquette, Farmwork, Healing Arts,
Housekeeping, Housework, Midwifery, Persuasion, and
Teaching.

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The Book of Dooms

XV. THE SPHINX

The Fifteenth Arcana, the Sphinx, is also sometimes called
the Dragon or the Devil, and it is the Path of desire and
the unfettered instincts, in which the Self regresses and
abandons self-restraint and stagnates in self-indulgence,
but in its revels finds both power and influence. This
is the Path of Magic in its darker, chthonic, and more
mysterious aspects, in which Magic is turned to the service
of the Self and its most hidden desires. The Sphinx Arcana
also represents the dream turned nightmare, the fall into
perversion, the pursuit of commerce and eloquence, and
the riches of the Earth and the hidden Underworld. This
Path recalls the Sphinx itself, the original Adversary whose
piercing questions open the Mind to the undermining of
assumed truths and to the greater Mysteries of the world,
as well as mysterious or sinister divine figures such as Thula
the Fire-Stealer, Cyrus the Lover, Amaymon the Whisperer,
the sirens, and the dread Nephilim, all of whom seek to
deceive Men and lead them astray with honeyed words and
the promise of fulfilled desires.
From the Book of Dooms: The fifteenth page of the Book
of Dooms shows a Sphinx perched upon an anvil to which
a pair of naked humans have been chained. The Sphinx
is a chimera, possessing the body of a lion and the upper
torso and head of a beautiful woman. In some Books of
Dooms the Sphinx is wearing a bronze mask, and in some it
has eagle or vulture wings. The man and woman have iron
chains looped around their necks, and are often depicted
with horns growing from their foreheads (symbolizing their
submission to their animal instincts).
Takers of the Path: The Path of the Sphinx is for those who
choose to pursue their own desires, even at the expense of
the people and the world around them. Criminals, artists,
spies, nobles, politicians, aristocrats, and warlords those
who either pursue their own selfish goals without regard to
law or propriety, or who rely on an understanding of how to
play upon the desires and needs of others to gain power and
influence for themselves or their causes are often drawn
to this Path, as are many merchants and traders who seek
profits and gain from even the most mundane and petty
aspects of life. Usurpers and betrayers often begin their
mutinies here, when they put their own desires before their
duty.
Physical Characteristic Link: DEX
Mental Characteristic Link: IMAG
Spiritual Characteristic Link: PRE
Gift Links: Animal Mask, Awaken Appetites, Cryptic Mask,
Evil Eye, Feral Tongue, Forked Tongue, Haunting Voice, and
Unmask Desire.
Binding Links: Awe, Dread, Fear, and Shame.
Skill Links: Acrobatics, Commerce, Cult Lore, Disguise,
Etiquette, Folk Lore, Gambling & Gaming, Inquiry,
Intrigue, Leadership, Occult Lore, Oratory, Persuasion,
Seduction, Sleight of Hand, Stealth, Storytelling, Streetwise,
and Tactics.

122

Adventures in the Known World

SPHINX ACTS
Action
Make a deal.
Persuade someone with trickery, lies, or deceit.
Trick a Rival (or worse Relation Category) with
lies or deceit.
Trick a Friend (or better Relations Category)
with lies or deceit.
Give in to or act on your desires.
Sate one of your desires.
Sate someone elses desires.
Send someone else a Nightmare.
Persuade someone else with magic.
Defeat an opponent with magic.
Hex a rival or opponent.
Curse a rival or opponent.
Tempt someone into indulgence.
Corrupt an innocent.
Break a vow.
Betray a friend or patron.
Commit an act of treason.
Persuade another to an act of treachery or
treason.

AP Reward
1
1
2
3
3
4
6
3
2
3
2
6
3
9
4
6
9
13

The Book of Dooms

XVI. THE
RIVEN TOWER
The Sixteenth Arcana, the Riven Tower, is the Path of pride,
vanity, and overconfidence, in which the Self though filled
with activity and energy is led by its own actions to danger
and disaster. This Path signifies destruction and weakness,
the sudden subversion of the natural and political order,
horror, confusion, and the disordering of the Mind, Spirit,
and Body. This is the Path of the dark and destructive forces
of the cosmos: war, disease, pestilence, drought, earthquake,
and the plague, in which all of the great efforts of Men to
control themselves and the world around them are suddenly
laid bare for the illusions that they are, in which the thin
veneer of civilization is stripped away to reveal a heart of
barbarism. This Path is guarded by Din and Discord and
the spirits of Doom, by the Goddesses of War, and by the
great beasts and Dragons of the chthonic world, but is
manifest perhaps the most in Irr, the Locust God of the
Wilderness and the Black Goat, who brings calamitous ruin
in his wake.
From the Book of Dooms: The sixteenth page of the Book
of Dooms shows a Great Citadel or Tower being struck by
lightning while two figures plummet from it, presumably
to their deaths. The Tower has three windows and its top
is in the shape of a crown, but it is the top that is being
struck by lightning and blown off the rest of the Tower. The
man falling on the left is clutching a drawn plan, revealing
him to be the architect of the Tower; the man falling on the
right bears a crown, indicating that he is the King that had
commissioned the Tower.

RIVEN TOWER ACTS

Action
Commit a selfish act.
Steal something.
Break or ignore a Law.
Cause fear in another person.
Spread a disease by accident.
Spread a disease on purpose.
Attack someone by surprise or from ambush.
Kill someone from ambush.
Murder someone with poison.
Ruin anothers plans by accident.
Ruin anothers plans on purpose.
Compel others to your will through fear.
Subvert or undermine an authority in secret.
Defy an authority openly.
Destroy a building.
Seize land or property not your own by force.
Participate in the sack of a city.
Overthrow the ruler or government of a domain.

AP Reward
1
1
3
2
1
3
1
3
4
1
4
3
3
6
3
4
9
13

Takers of the Path: The Path of the Riven Tower is a

rough and difficult one, for misfortune often befalls those
upon it. Those who pursue wild ideas, or abandon reason
or embrace over-confidence through a misplaced faith in
their own abilities, will find that they are upon the Riven
Path by accident. Those that deliberately seek to subvert,
undermine and destroy other people or things will find
this Path on purpose. Warriors, soldiers, warlords, artists,
engineers, coup plotters and conspirators, spies, thieves, and
assassins will often walk the Riven Path, either knowingly or
unknowingly.
Physical Characteristic Link: STR
Mental Characteristic Link: WILL
Spiritual Characteristic Link: PRE
Gift Links: Aura of Fury, Aura of Madness, Berserkir Ekstasis,
Chaotic Aura, Dreadful Visage, Dreadful Voice, Evil Eye,
Face of Madness, Terrifying Mask, Voice of Fury, and Voice of
Madness.
Binding Links: Love.
Skill Links: Acting, Armor Training, Artistry, Athletics,
Blacksmithing, Campaigning, Disguise, Engineering,
Evade, Gambling & Gaming, Hand-to-Hand, Intrigue,
Marksmanship, Melee, Musicianship, Siege Artillery,
Skirmishing, and Tactics.

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The Book of Dooms

XVII. THE STARS

The Seventeenth Arcana, the Stars, symbolizes the Self in
the wake of the disaster of the Riven Tower finding solace
and hope in the intercommunication of the various worlds,
and in particular the influence of the Celestial, Heavenly
realms upon the material world. It is the Path of the Spirit
in search of guidance and inspiration in the Night Sky and
in dreams. This Path is often associated with grace and the
beauty of movement, reflecting the gift of Celestial power
and beauty to material elements and the effects of cleansing
and purification. As the Seventeenth Act of Creation,
Ariahav convinced Yhera to give worthy Heroes the gift
of the golden fruit of her Sacred Tree, and so this is also a
literal Path, that of the Star Road taken to immortality and
ascension, in which the Self first realizes it may transcend
the material world and take its place as a divine force in the
Cosmos.
From the Book of Dooms: The seventeenth page of the Book
of Dooms shows a woman, naked and unveiled, crouching by
a pool of water. In her right hand she holds a golden vessel
from which she pours water into the pool; in her left hand,
she holds a silver vessel from which she pours water upon
the Earth. Behind her blooms a rose bush with a blooming
rose, and in its branches is perched a singing bird. In the sky
behind them is a single large star, said to represent the Great
Star, surrounded by seven smaller stars, which are said to
represent the Herald, Morning, Evening, Midnight, Dark,
War, and Conqueror Stars that take their turns appearing in
the Heavens. The identity of the female figure is generally
thought to be Ariahav, who brought the gift of Heroism to
the peoples of the world; though some say it is a Celestial
Spirit descended from the Heavens bearing great gifts, and
others still a Dran Heroine who has ascended and gained
divinity.
Takers of the Path: The Path of the Stars is taken by those
that seek divine and Celestial guidance in their lives, such
as Astrologers and Fortunetellers that read the Stars to find
Omens for the future and their clients, as will dreamers and
poets. This is the Path of Purification, and so those who
seek to cleanse themselves and emerge reinvigorated into
the world will be on this Path. And finally, Heroes seeking
Immortality will also be on this Path to gain a touch of the
grace of the Heavens.
Physical Characteristic Link: DEX
Mental Characteristic Link: MEM
Spiritual Characteristic Link: EMP
Gift Links: Dream-Flight, Illuminated Mind, Immaculate
Aura, Immaculate Body, Immaculate Mind, Immaculate Spirit,
Spirit-Walking, Unearthly Mask, and Unearthly Form.
Binding Links: Anger, Despair, Doubt, Hate, and Rage.
Skill Links: Acrobatics, Athletics, Awareness, Composition,
Contortionist, Dancing, Evade, Folk Lore, Navigation,
Persuasion, Singing, Star Lore, Stealth, and Teaching.

124

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STAR ACTS
Action
Perform a dance by yourself.
Perform a dance with others.
Give a gift.
Give a beautiful gift.
Give a magical gift.
Spend a night beneath the stars (no shelter).
Purify yourself of Pollution, a Curse, or a Hex.
Purify someone else of Pollution/Curse/Hex.
Purify a dwelling of a Pollution/Curse/Hex.
Purify a temple or shrine of Pollution/Curse/
Hex.
Purify a sacred natural site of Pollution/Curse/
Hex.
Bathe in a sacred or thermal spring.
Commune with the Celestial World.
Consult an astrologer.
Perform a Reading of the Stars for someone else.
Perform a Reading of the Stars for yourself.
Journey upon the Star Road, even for a time.
Cross into the Heavens in Body and return.

AP Reward
1
4
1
2
5
1
1
2
3
4
6
1
5
1
2
3
9
21

The Book of Dooms

XVIII. THE MOON

The Eighteenth Arcana, the Moon, symbolizes its namesake
as the Queen of the Unknown World who rules the Gateway
between the different worlds of existence; for the Moon
is simultaneously the Gateway to the Dream World, the
Otherworld, the Celestial World, and the Underworld,
allowing mortals to leave the confines of the Known and
Unknown Worlds and travel anywhere else in the Cosmos
that they might desire to visit. According to folklore, the
New Moon marks the open Gate to the Underworld, and
the Full Moon is the platform from which journeys on the
Star Road begin. This Path also celebrates the Moon as the
ruler of material forms and the ever-changing world of visible
appearances, as its phases control water and the seas and
reveal to the earthbound the changing nature of all things.
This is the Path of Dreams (which are said to sometimes dwell
in the Moon and enter the World from there), intuition,
imagination, symbolism, inspiration, and illusions. The three
Goddesses of the Moon Adjia, Yhera, and Djara walked
this Path when as the Eighteenth Act of Creation they made
the Moon into the Door and the Gate between the various
worlds.
From the Book of Dooms: The eighteenth page of the Book
of Dooms shows the Moon rising in a Night Sky over two
square towers between which runs a road. The Moon is
depicted as having the face of a woman (presumably one of
the Goddesses of the Moon) reflected in its surface. Inverted
drops of water seem to be floating in the air as though they
were flowing from the earth to the Moon. Two dogs often
said to be guardians of the Dead, seeking to prevent the Dead
from escaping the Gate are barking at the Moon, and a
crab is clambering out of a pool of water, drawn by the Moon
(usually interpreted as the Self awakening to the connection
between the worlds).

MOON ACTS
Action
Follow an intuition.
Use your imagination to solve a problem.
Have a Dream vision.
Visit another place in a Dream.
Visit another person in a Dream.
Visit another world in a Dream.
Spend a week at sea out of sight of land.
Change your appearance.
Change your appearance with magic.
Pretend to be someone or something youre not.
Create a temporary glamour.
Create a permanent glamour.
Take a form other than your own.
Change someone elses form.
Visit the Moon in Spirit form or in a Dream.
Step foot on the Moon in Body.
Use the Moon as a Dream or Spirit Gateway.
Use the Moon as a Gateway in Body.

AP Reward
1
2
1
2
3
4
1
1
2
3
3
4+
6
7
7
9
12
14

Takers of the Path: The Path of the Moon is a difficult one

marked by illusion, but Magicians, Shamans, Priestesses
or Priests that have business that takes them into the other
worlds of existence will often take this Path. Dreamers and
astrologers that seek not merely the guidance of other worlds
but seek to travel to them as well will often be on this Path.
Physical Characteristic Link: APP
Mental Characteristic Link: IMAG
Spiritual Characteristic Link: WIS
Gift Links: Animal Mask, Aura of Madness, Chaotic Aura,
Dream-Flight, Immaculate Spirit, Second Sight, Shape-Shift,
and Voice of Madness.
Binding Links: Dread and Fear.
Skill Links: Acting, Awareness, Composition, Cult Lore,
Disguise, Fieldcraft, Follow, Navigation, Sailing, Sleight of
Hand, Star Lore, Stealth, Storytelling, Swimming, Track,
Wardrobe & Style, and Watch.

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The Book of Dooms

XIX. THE SUN

The Nineteenth Arcana, the Sun, symbolizes the summit of
existence and the fires of Heaven and inspiration, when the
Self reemerges from its journey through the Gateway of the
Moon and the Road of Stars, bearing upon it the mark of
the Heavens. Unlike the Moon, which reveals the changing
aspects of the material world, the Sun reveals the constant
and unchanging aspects of the world; the light of the Sun
pierces darkness and surface appearances to reveal hidden and
higher truths about the world around the Self. Though both
the changing and unchanging aspects of the world are as real
as the other, the Path of the Sun is usually described as the
Path of reality and the Real, while the Path of the Moon is
often denigrated as the Path of Illusion and falsehood. The
Path of the Sun is that of revelation, illumination, glory,
spirituality, objectivity and constancy, fire and light. As the
Nineteenth Act of Creation, Hathhalla tamed the Solar Lion
and yoked it to Agdahs Chariot, allowing Agdah to take up
the mantle of the Sun, and so this Path is connected to Agdah
and Hathhalla, as well as the other Gods of the Sun Illiki
Helios, Islik, and even Irr.
From the Book of Dooms: The nineteenth page of the Book of
Dooms shows the implacable mask of the Sun shining down
upon a young couple in a green field. From the Solar disc
appear alternating straight and wavy, flame-like rays, and a
shower of golden droplets. The young couple clothed in gold
stand before a low wall made of stone. The Solar disc depicted
in the Book of Dooms is always associated with Helios as the
Solar Lion and its burden, the Solar Chariot.
Takers of the Path: The Path of the Sun is a glorious but harsh,
unforgiving, and sometimes fruitless Path, often taken by
those that pursue truth and revelation regardless of the cost to
themselves or to others. Inquisitors, judges, magistrates, and
investigators who seek to uncover the secrets of both friends
and foes without mercy or forgiveness will travel the Path of
the Sun, as will idealists and zealots of all stripes. Mystery
Cult Priests, Magicians, alchemists, and philosophers who
seek the Path of Enlightenment to discover the hidden truths
of the world will also be upon this Path, seeking to cast a light
on great Mysteries.
Physical Characteristic Link: STAM
Mental Characteristic Link: PER
Spiritual Characteristic Link: CONV
Gift Links: Aura of Truth, Bright Aura, Clear Sight, Glorious
Voice, Illuminate/Mystery, Immaculate Aura, Immaculate Mind,
Implacable Mask, Keen Sight, and Unveil.
Binding Links: Desire, Despair, Dread, Fear, and Grief.
Skill Links: Awareness, Cult Lore, Follow, Healing Arts,
Heraldry, Inquiry, Leadership, Oratory, Riding, Shepherding,
Track, and Watch.

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SUN ACTS
Action
Refuse to show mercy to someone else.
Keep to a principle even at cost to yourself.
Keep to a principle even at cost to another.
Refuse to change, even when change is in
your interest.
Detect and see past a glamour.
Reveal a glamour to others.
Dispel a glamour.
Detect a lie or see past a charade.
Reveal a lie or falsehood to others.
Discover something another person wants to
keep secret.
Reveal another persons secrets to others.
Discover a hidden secret about another person
that they themselves are not aware of.
Reveal a hidden secret about another person
to him or her.
Reveal a hidden secret about another person
to others.
Discover a secret about the world.
Reveal a secret about the world to others.

AP Reward
1
4
7
4
1
3
4
2
4
1
2
6
7
6
9
12

The Book of Dooms

XX. THE
LAST
JUDGMENT
The Twentieth Arcana, the Last Judgment, is an allegory for
the final awakening of the Self, when the light of truth and
revelation as represented in the previous Arcana of the Sun
is turned not outward, but inward, and the Self sees itself in
full for the first time. In many ways this is a continuation of
the Path to immortality begun on the Path of the Stars, seeking
illumination, spiritual regeneration, healing, and ecstasy, but
now the Self for the first time comprehends the possibility
of breaking the circle of life and is freed from all limits to
confront its own secrets. And seeking the truth within, the
Self can also now seek enlightenment in the Mysteries of the
world. Yhera invited the whole of the world to partake in
the Last Judgment, when as the Twentieth Act of Creation
she summoned the world to scribe its Names (both open and
secret) and Deeds and Desires in her Great Book, making
manifest the highest (and, it must be said, basest) thoughts
and aims of the world. Some say the Last Judgment belongs
to every individual in judging oneself, while others associate
this Path with Seedr as the Judge of the Dead. Others say
that Seedr is the most properly represented by the Justice
Arcana, and that the Last Judgment belongs to Yhera alone.
From the Book of Dooms: The twentieth page of the Book of
Dooms shows a glorious winged Celestial Spirit appearing in
the Heavens, and sounding a great horn over a field of graves.
The Celestial Spirit bears a Riven Illumination Rune upon its
forehead and a halo about its head; a pennon bearing a cross
upon it flutters from the horn, usually interpreted as a mark
of the Horn of the World. The graves are opened, and naked
men and women are emerging joyously from the ground.

ACTS OF JUDGMENT
Action
Make a judgment about yourself.*
Submit yourself to others for judgment.*
Submit yourself to the judgment of divine or
cosmic forces.*
Discover something new about yourself.
Discover a hidden secret about yourself.
Reveal a hidden secret about yourself to others.
Be initiated into a Mystery of the world by
someone else.
Comprehend a Mystery of the world on your
own without help from someone else.
Initiate another into a Mystery of the world.
Create a New Mystery.
Initiate someone else into a New Mystery.
Discover your Destiny on your own, without
Divination or the help of someone else.
Decide your Destiny for yourself.
Write your Destiny in Yheras Great Book.

AP Reward
3
4
9
3
9
12
4
7
6
9
12
21
33
66

Takers of the Path: The Path of the Last Judgment is said

by some to be a Path that every person has already tread and
will tread again, for the Great Book of Yhera on which
the Book of Dooms is based already has the Names, Deeds,
and Desires of every creature that has ever lived or will live
already inscribed within it by their own hands.
Physical Characteristic Link: TECH
Mental Characteristic Link: MEM
Spiritual Characteristic Link: EMP
Gift Links: Cleansing Touch, Ecstasy/Ekstasis, Glorious Voice,
Haunting Voice, Illuminate/Mystery, Illuminated Mind,
Immaculate Spirit, Initiate/Mystery, and Serene Aura.
Binding Links: Anger, Cruelty, Desire, Grief, Guilt, Jealousy,
Lust, and Shame.
Skill Links: Alchemical Lore, Awareness, Cult Lore, Folk
Lore, Healing Arts, Herbal Lore, and Occult Lore.

* Not about your acts, but about your nature.

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127

The Book of Dooms

XXI. THE WORLD

The Twenty-first Arcana, the World, is the culmination of
all the Arcana Paths that preceded it, which have produced
and described in their interactions the sum total of the
manifest World, culminating in the revelations of the
secret and hidden Self in the Last Judgment. This now is
the Path of Mastery, when the True or Secret Self embarks
on the final journey of the Hero and, having pierced the
endless circle and bane of mundane existence, is now free
to attempt to exert its Will upon the Known (and indeed
Unknown) World and alter and shape the cosmos as and
if it can. The Arcana of the World is symbolic of the
Elements, the Body as the vehicle of transitory life, the
senses as the means of receiving and interpreting that life,
and the manifest realities of all the Known World. This
is the Path of the macrocosm, the cosmic whole, in a
state of permanent creation, forever being generated and
regenerated by the creative energies and activities of its
inhabitants and Heroes: the Living History of the world as
the Book that is already written, and is always being written.
From the Book of Dooms: The twenty-first page of the
Book of Dooms shows a woman, naked and running or
dancing in the center of a garland. In each hand she bears
a Daedekine Rune of Becoming. In the four corners of
the page are four common symbols of the manifest World:
a winged Faerie (symbolizing the intuitive grasp of the
Truth), an Eagle (reason in the service of activity), a great
Bull (labor, self-control and self-sacrifice), and a great Lion
(strength and movement) together being symbols of the
Four Elements, the Four Directions, and the Four Winds.
In some Books of Dooms, a great Dragon (the World
Dragon, presumably) replaces the garland, forming a semicircle around the dancing woman by biting its own tail.
Takers of the Path: The Path of the World is the Path of
the Hero, who turns victory and success in the struggle
of the Self within and against the material and mundane
world into victory in the struggle over the failures of the
Self; this is the Hero who conquers both the world and
the Self, and whose mundane acts have been elevated to
the realm of the symbolic. The Hero seeks to hold back
Chaos, preserve the world, and at the same time impart his
or her own stamp upon it, and shape it to his or her design
and desires.
Physical Characteristic Link: any
Mental Characteristic Link: any
Spiritual Characteristic Link: any
Gift Links: Ascension, Create Followers, Create Worshippers,
Hero Lineage, Heroic Aura, Iron Body, Iron Mind, Iron
Spirit, Renown, and Share Gift.
Binding Links: any except Vanity.
Skill Links: Any.

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WORLD ACTS
Action
Gain Level 10 in a Skill.
Gain Level 20 in a Skill.
Gain Level 10 in a Characteristic.
Gain Level 20 in a Characteristic.
Gain Level 5 in a Gift.
Gain Level 10 in a Gift.
Gain Level 15 in a Gift.
Gain Level 20 in a Gift.
Reach 50 accumulated Arcana Points in one
Arcana Path.
Reach 100 accumulated Arcana Points on
one Arcana Path (and can be gained again for
every 100 more Points earned on this Path).
Achieve a difficult goal you set for yourself.
Achieve an ambition.
Complete a Quest.
Fulfill your Destiny.

AP Reward
3
7
9
18
4
9
14
21
10
21

4
9
21
101

The Book of Dooms

. THE FOOL
The final and unnumbered Arcana, that of the Fool, is
paradoxically a symbolic representation of things that
cannot be part of any symbolic system; it is the Path of the
irrational Self and the unconscious Self. A symbol of the
microcosm and a companion to the Arcana of The World
in its role as symbol of the macrocosm, the Fool Arcana
symbolizes the Self outside: outside of or on the fringe of
systems, orders, and even its Self. It is representative of
multiplicity, incoherence, schizophrenia, paradox, and
therefore above all else, Man and the sacred child within the
Man. There are those that claim that the Path of the Fool
is properly speaking the first Path, and should be marked
and numbered as 0, rather than unnumbered and placed
following the Arcana of the World. But others defend its
placement as the final Arcana, noting that the revelations
of the Fool Arcana are generally those that can only come
from hard-won experience, from the gnawing fear that can
occur even to the Hero, the fear that failure is inevitable
and triumph impossible: the glimpse of the Cosmic Joke,
the self-recognition of the Pawn in the Great Game of the
Cosmos begun by Yhera.
From the Book of Dooms: The last and unnumbered
page of the Book of Dooms shows an androgynous youth
approaching or about to step off a cliff. The youth wears a
coat of many colors, and is oblivious to the danger before
him or her, for instead of looking down to see where he or
she is going, the youth looks upwards to the glory of the sky
and the wondrous vistas of the world. Laurels grace his or
her temples, and a stick is slung over one shoulder, dangling
a bag. A white lynx is biting at the youths left calf, trying
to stop him or her from stepping off the cliff, but seemingly
without effect.

FOOL ACTS*
Action
Make other Players laugh.
Stump the Guide.
Excellent role-playing.
Bring a costume or use a neat prop.
Make a full-color picture of your Character.
Bring food or beer for the gaming group.
Voluntarily take a Binding, per Level of
Binding.
Do something that is consistent to your
Character that you know may get yourself
killed.

AP Reward
1
2
3
4
5
1
3
7

*Obviously, this Table, like all the Acts Tables of the Arcana Section,
is just a suggested guide, but perhaps more so than with the others.
Actions that earn Fool Arcana Points are largely left to the Guides
individual discretion, to reward the actions of the Players, rather than
that of their Characters. However, Guides should try not to play
favorites and try not to become too predictable in giving out Fool
Points; nor should they use the rewarding of Fool Points as a way of
extorting goods or favors from Players.

Takers of the Path: The Path of the Fool is a universal one,

taken at some point or another by all mortals, for none can
escape the fate of the individual Self. A Character may be
born with Fool Arcana Points, revealing a preternatural
understanding of the Cosmic Joke, but most will gain it
through the actions of the Player, not the Character.
Physical Characteristic Link: none
Mental Characteristic Link: none
Spiritual Characteristic Link: none
Gift Links: None.
Binding Links: None.
Skill Links: None.
NOTES: Fool Points may be used as Luck Points, to alter
a die roll by adding any available Fool Points as a bonus to
the roll (or a penalty, if desired); most uses of this feature
will be to change a failure into a success or a success into a
critical success, but the opposite can be just as easily done.
Once they are used in this fashion, the used Fool Points
are lost.

Adventures in the Known World

129

The Book of Dooms

C AN EXAMPLE OF
THE ARCANA IN ACTION

The following is an example of how Arcana Points can be used to

reward Player Actions in the game.
John, Andy, Robin, and Heather have a group of new Characters
adventuring in the Known World: Josephus, a wandering Danian
bard; Killian, a neer-do-well originally from Therapoli; Essa, a Daradj
warrior-woman; and Aca, a Maecite folk magician from the Watchtower
Coast. Sela of Westmark, a potion-maker of great reputation (and
considerable beauty), has asked them to help her son and daughter,
Angelo and Hannah, investigate why a source of Faerie Mushrooms
for her shop has suddenly dried up. Sela used to buy the Mushrooms
through intermediaries from some bandits in the Manon Mole, who
were driven from their Keep (and the rare Mushroom supply) by a
Sorcerer named Gezreb. She doesnt know where the bandits who
used to peddle the Mushrooms are or where the Keep used to be, so
Divinations seem to be in order. Sela and Aca attempt Gleanings to see
if the Cosmos can provide them clues (and Aca gains 4 Wheel Points
for 2 Folk Readings about the bandits and Gezreb), and they find a
few things out: the bandits new lair is near or on a burial site of some
kind with some sinkholes, and the old Keep is by a pond and somehow
associated with mallards, of all things. However, neither clue is really
immediately helpful, and they are uncertain how to proceed further.
Josephus has the idea of consulting with the Library of the Gray
College of Westgate, and Killian remembers there are some recently
captured bandits in the city jail and it occurs to him to question them
about the two locations, so while Angelo and Hannah prepare for their
expedition the others split into two teams and head off into the city (so
Josephus and Killian each get 1 Moon Point for following intuitions).

The sages of the Gray College are a bit snooty, but with some
persuasion Josephus and Aca are able to talk their way into the public
portion of the Library (1 Empress Point each for persuading someone).
They spend the afternoon searching through various Middle Kingdom
histories and records, and they are able to find a couple of references in
the Athairesian to a place in the Manon Mole called the Mallard More, a
hold of one of the Talon Knights sworn to the Wyvern King during the
time of the Golden Realm of An-Athair (gaining 1 Great Priest Point for
consulting a Library or Book). The Mallard More seems to have fallen
into disuse in the intervening centuries, and they can find no map or
details of its location in the books to which they have access.

Killian and Essa persuade one of the guards at the jail with a
small bribe to let them into the dungeons to talk to one of the bandits
held there, a fellow named Ollas (1 Empress Point each). They explain
to Ollas that they want to go rid the Keep of Gezreb the Sorcerer, and in
the end hes willing to tell them how to get to the bandit camp (1 Empress
Point each again). Ollas tells them they can explain to his Bandit King,
Heuros, that they want to help get rid of Gezreb, though Ollas is not
sure that he will care; Heuros only recently became their leader after
their last King, Ilind, met his death at the hands of Gezreb, and Heuros
seems more interested in raiding than in selling Mushrooms. Only the
bandits Warlock, an old and odd fellow named Thimple, still yearned
for the old Keep. But in exchange for this information, Ollas asks
them to take a message expressing his love and sorrow to his lady Love,
a camp follower named Tarina, and Essa promises him that she will get
his message to his Lover, swearing by the Fates to do so (4 Wheel Points
for a taking a vow by the Fates and 3 Fool Points for voluntarily taking
a Promise Binding 1).

Josephus, Killian, Aca, Essa, and their new compatriots,
Angelo and Hannah and a mule named White-Ear, head off southeast
to Reinvale, where it turns out the local inn produces some pretty good
ale. Josephus has the idea of buying some and using it as a gift to the
Bandit King. The next morning they strike out into the hills of the
Manon Mole, using routes that Angelo knows, and after another two
days theyve found the bandit camp. They are spotted as they approach
and surrounded, but theres a quick exchange of guarded pleasantries,

130

Adventures in the Known World

and in the end the bandits agree to take them to see Heuros under a banner
of hospitality (since the NPC Angelo did most of the talking, no AP for the
Characters).

They make their way over a few hills to the current camp of the
Bandit King Heuros, and there he greets them with a mix of pompousness
and suspicion, with the Warlock, Thimple, standing by as his advisor. They
explain their mission and offer to clear the old Keep of the Sorcerer Gezreb
for the Bandit King, if he will just point them the right way to the old Keep.
But their argument doesnt seem persuasive, and Ollas was right; Heuros
claims he doesnt much care about the old Keep and its Mushrooms. Heuros
professes direct descent from the Wyvern King himself, and feels hes more
suited to raiding and pillaging than selling stuff you pick from the Earth
with your hands. Josephus steps forward with a flourish and presents him
with a keg of Reinvale ale, and makes a great show of obsequiousness, in
passing mentioning that the Keep itself used to belong to one of the Wyvern
Kings knights. While Heuros seems to be unmoved by this news, his vanity
is sufficiently stroked that he announces a feast for his guests (and Josephus
gets 3 Fool Points for amusing role-playing).

The feast goes well. Angelo and Josephus take turns regaling their
host with songs, and Josephus sings a ballad in tribute to the bandits and
their raiding prowess (3 Magician Points for creating a new song, doubled to
6 Points for singing it publicly) that seems to help put them at ease, and soon
they are getting rowdily drunk and a lot friendlier. The others mingle and set
out to find the old coot of a Warlock, who seems to have slipped away from
the festivities. They learn Thimple is squirreled away in the sinkholes, where
he has his Warlocks lair, and the stealthy Killian sneaks off to find him.
Thimple, as it turns out, remembers the beauty of Sela of Westmark quite
well, and the sight of her daughter Hannah had brought a tear to his eye;
Killian, thinking fast, claims he brings a direct appeal for aid from Sela to
Thimple, whom she remembers with great fondness, and the old man falls
for it (1 Sphinx Point for tricking him). Thimple tells him how to get to the
old Keep, but warns him that Gezreb is a crafty and dangerous foe, and that
the disinterest that Heuros shows for the Keep isnt because he doesnt care,
but because hes deathly afraid of Gezreb (1 Sun Point for discovering a secret
of Heuros)(plus 2 Moon Points for Josephus for having used his imagination
to come up with the whole get-the-bandits-drunk scheme).

In the meantime, Essa realizes shes fallen in Love with the
handsome and dashing Angelo. Once hes out of the sinkholes, Killian
notices the way shes looking at Angelo and is struck by Jealousy, though hes
not really sure why, given that before he has also conceived a great Desire
for Hannah. Confused, Killian tries to seduce Hannah, and is demurely
rebuffed, ending the evening as drunk as the bandits (3 Lovers Points and
3 Fool Points each for voluntarily taking an unrequited Love 1 Binding and
6 more Fool Points for Killian for his Desire Hannah and Jealousy towards
Essa 1 Bindings, plus 3 more Fool Points each for some good role-playing by
Robin and Andy, and 3 Sphinx Points to Killian for attempting to act on a
Desire!).

While Killian gets drunk, Essa seeks out Ollas beloved, Tarina,
and passes on word of the imprisoned mans fate. Tarina is grateful, and
warns that Heuros will almost certainly send men to kill them once they
have left the camp and are no longer under the protection of the rules of
hospitality. She asks Essa to free Ollas for her, and Essa, perhaps a bit tipsier
than she thought she was, makes another promise, swearing upon the Fates
to free Ollas from Westmarks dungeons (11 Wheel Points for discharging
one vow and taking another, plus 3 Lovers Points for aiding a pair of Lovers
in need).

Forewarned of Heuros potential treachery, the next morning
before Dawn our intrepid adventurers load Killian on the back of White-Ear
and slip out of the camp while the bandits sleep off their hangovers. They
move as fast as possible to put some distance between them and the bandits
who might follow, and make their way to the old Keep at Mallard More,
tucked into the hills about a days fast march to the southeast at the head of
a boggy, marshy valley. As the Sun sets, White-Ear is tied to a low tree and
a discreet camp is made out of sight of the Keep. As they are about to enter
a Sorcerers Lair, Aca prepares a locus and performs a simple Summoning
Ritual, binding a willing Rahabi Spirit as a Guardian (6 Hanged Man Points
for Summoning and Binding a Spirit).

The Book of Dooms

The party slips off and finds gaps in the walls where they can
enter the terraced courtyards of the bailey; lights and smoke alert them
to inhabitants in the main Keep, and the party works its way to its main
entrance in the dark. Steps leading up and in are lit by fire, and they can
hear voices within the Keeps entry chambers. Aca urges caution, but Essa is
eager for the fight and urges quick action, and Killian seconds her idea out of
Love (for 1 Lovers Point), and so a rush up the stairs after a flurry of arrows
and crossbow bolts is undertaken, and the party finds itself in a make-shift
and evil-looking Shrine amongst three black-clad thugs, a couple of men who
seem to be masked Priests, and a lordling in three-quarter plate with a pair of
squires! They seem to have interrupted a meeting between the Priests and the
unidentified lordling.

Their initial rush allows them to fell one of the thugs and a squire
(2 Sword Points for Essa and Killian for defeating opponents, plus all the
fighters get 1 Sword Point for seeking opponents in combat and 1 Riven
Tower Point for attacking by surprise), but soon they find themselves locked
in dangerous close-quarters combat with the remaining group. In the midst
of battle Killian notices that Angelo fights surprisingly well for an herb trader.
Aca and Hannah and the Priests cast a few Hexes and Incantations at each
other, some successful and some not, as they all seem to be fairly well guarded
by Wards of one sort or another (2 Sphinx Points for one successful Hex for
Aca), until suddenly two Guardian Spirits appear and attack Hannah, intent
on possessing her. Aca is surprised when another Guardian Spirit appears,
apparently under the command of Hannah, to fight off one of the attacking
Spirits. Killian fells one of the thugs (2 Sword Points), and Angelo stuns the
other squire, but the Priests leap into the fray, and one stuns Angelo with
a Grievous Wound to his stomach. Essa flies into a fury at this (4 Strength
Points for going into a Fury), and slams her axe-head into the exposed face of
the lordling (2 Sword Points) before leaping at the Priests, dropping another
within a few heartbeats (another 2 Sword Points). Despite Hannahs and
Angelos troubles they seem to be doing well, until a darkly garbed figure
appears on the stairs leading up into the higher levels of the Keep. He steps
into the light, revealing a face twisted into a Terrifying Mask, and begins
chanting a Ritual.

Killian is struck through with Fear and runs screaming from the
building. Aca, Essa and Josephus are more stalwart (3 Strength Points for
showing courage), and Essa and Josephus make a concerted effort to fight
through to the staircase and interrupt his Ritual while Aca tries to Hex
him, but the remaining Priest and thug manage to bottle up their approach
despite taking several bad wounds, and the Sorcerer seems warded to Acas
Hex and he completes his Ritual; a wave of Sleep comes upon the three of
them, and they must resist his Entrapment. Josephus fails to resist, and he
drops into an enchanted Slumber, but Aca has a lucky roll, and with Essa
the Sorcerer apparently made the mistake of underestimating her WILL, and
she is unaffected by the Ritual. But suddenly Aca and Essa are the only ones
standing against the Sorcerer and his minions! Aca smartly chooses to unleash
the Rahabi Spirit to challenge the Sorcerer upon the stairs, and he flees, the
hungry Spirit in pursuit. Essa kills the last Priest with a cruel overhand blow
(2 Sword Points and 3 Death Points). The last thug, realizing hes alone, fails a
Morale Check and manages to run past them out of the Keep. Aca pulls out
more Poultices to aid Angelo, and perhaps not thinking properly, the furious
Essa bounds up the stairs after the Sorcerer, despite Acas warnings (and Essa
earns herself 1 Hermit Point for taking a decisive action on her own). She has
to bash through several locked doors before she reaches the highest chamber,
before which the Rahabi Spirit is lurking, apparently stymied by Spirit Wards
placed around the room. She smashes a door down and enters, but to her
surprise its empty (1 Strength Point for a feat of Strength).

Aca reclaims her Guardian and she and Essa survey the damage;
Essas and Angelos wounds are the most easily dealt with (4 Temperance Points
for Aca for healing the injured), but Exorcism Rituals must be performed over
Hannah and Josephus to free them from a possessing Spirit and from Sleep.
Luckily, Aca knows the Ritual and so they drag their limp bodies outside to
a safer place where she can perform the Rituals. Essa is still very angry and
so she dispatches the wounded to their graves (another whopping 12 Death
Points), though the pleadings of the wounded squire finally sink in and she
spares him, tying him up and dragging him out into the courtyards.

By the arrival of the Dawn, Aca has freed Hannah from the clutches

of the Shrines Guardian Spirit after a difficult Ritual (9 Hanged Man

Points for Exorcising a Spirit), and Hannah who apparently also
knows the Exorcism Ritual herself helps Aca perform it on Josephus
to wake him from Sleep. Killian also turns up, somewhat sheepishly
(with a Shame Binding now, on top of his Fear the mysterious Sorcerer
Binding). And Angelo has recovered enough thanks to Aca and his
mothers Poultices, though hes still wounded and seems paler than
before.

Theyre all exhausted but they enter the Keep and warily
search it, finding no sign of the missing Sorcerer, though they find the
secret passage leading down through the walls that he used to escape;
he is now long gone, and none in the party are skilled at Tracking.
They find no evidence of the Faerie Mushrooms or the Potions that
they make; instead they find Monkshood, and a strong and potent
variety at that, which can be made into a powerful poison! A careful
search of the room yields a possible clue; a few books left hastily behind
(including a Grimoire of Hermetic Spells and Rituals) are all marked
with the name Danvaros. One book, a quasi-diary, yields some notes
on the process of making a powerful enchanted dagger to carry the
Monkshood poison by Tapping into the power of the Ruin, with a note
that It is complete and ready for my Lord to claim it! As close as they
came to disaster, Josephus notes that the Sorcerer they fought did not
seem that hard an opponent, so perhaps this wasnt the feared Gezreb
after all, but an associate named Danvaros, left behind to prepare a
poisonous dagger? They try to question the captured squire; despite his
situation, the squire spits at them. We will be avenged! The Whisperer
knows who you are! he screams before subsiding into frothing grunts
and hisses. Our heroes are surprised by his outburst, not expecting to
hear someone invoke the common name of Amaymon, the Forbidden
Prince of Intrigue!

And so our party is left to ponder their next move. Theyve
successfully liberated the Keep at Mallard More from the grip of the
(or a) Sorcerer, at least for the time being, and may have uncovered a
hidden nest of Whisperers. Theyve earned the following Arcana Points
so far:
Essa: Empress 2, Lovers 6, Hermit 1, Sword 9, Wheel 15,
Strength 8, Death 15, Riven Tower 1, Fool 6
Killian: Empress 2, Lovers 4, Sword 5, Sphinx 4, Riven Tower
1, Moon 1, Sun 1, Fool 12
Josephus: Magician 6, Empress 1, Great Priest 1, Sword 1,
Strength 3, Riven Tower 1, Moon 3, Fool 3
Aca: Magician 3, Empress 1, Great Priest 1, Wheel 4, Strength
3, Hanged Man 15, Temperance 4, Sphinx 2, Riven Tower 1
Essa, as befits a warrior, has gained many Sword, Strength, and Death
Points, but her willingness to take vows before the Fates has opened up
the Wheel Path for her. Both Essa and Killian have started down the
Lovers Path, and Andys willingness to take on Bindings has earned
Killian quite a few Fool Points that should come in handy in a tight
spot. Josephus is showing a preference for the Magician (or Minstrel,
in his case, as he has earned those points from singing); and Acas use
of Spirits and Hexes has earned her many Hanged Man Points, as befits
a Magician.

So now our adventurers are at a bit of a crossroads: Do they
think they have time to properly dispose of the bodies of the Dead,
or are they worried that Heuros might have sent some of his banditwarriors after them? Will they try to purify themselves and the Keep
and rid it of the foul Shrine to the Whisperer? Whats in the tombs
that the bandits are camped over? Will they save Ollas from prison as
Essa swore to Tarina? Can they get their prisoner, the insane squire,
to the Sheriff at Westgate? Who was the young lordling, and why had
he come to this foul spot? Who was the Sorcerer in the Keep, and
why he was preparing a powerful poison? Will Essa confess her Love
to Angelo? Will Killian declare his for Essa, and can he conquer his
Desires for the beautiful Hannah? How they answer each question will
lead them further down their Arcana Paths, on a journey to becoming
Heroes of the Known World

Adventures in the Known World

131

Creating Your Character

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Adventures in the Known World

Creating Your Character

CREATING YOUR CHARACTER:

THE LIFEPATH
E
Or, how to fill out your Character Sheet.

he LifePath is a system of Character background development first

created by R. Talsorian Games for use in games like Cyberpunk 2020
and Mekton; a modified version is presented here, and used with their
permission. Essentially, this is a series of tables and charts that help answer
some basic questions about your Character: Where do I come from? Who were
my parents? Whats my life been like leading up to this moment? Youll start with
your birth, and work all the way up to your present age; the LifePath will
determine your starting Characteristics, Skills, Gifts, and Bindings, how much
money you have, if you have any friends or enemies, and give you an idea
about what might motivate you as you travel through the Known World.

The Basic Steps of the LifePath in Artesia AKW are as follows:
Step One: Your Culture and Social Class: Where were you born, and
under what circumstances? And where in the social hierarchy of your
culture did your family belong?
Step Two: Your Lineage and Birth: From whom are you descended
and what happened to your parents? When were you born, and did the
Cosmos respond to your birth?
Step Three: Your Family and Childhood: What was your upbringing
like?
Step Four: Your Previous Experience: What have you been doing as
an adult?
At each Step, you can either choose one of the options presented on the
tables, or you can roll to create a random Character. Your Guide will let
you know which is the preferred method for his or her campaign. If you are
choosing your options, be aware that your Guide may have to place limits
on your choices, as a determined player could easily create a very powerful
Character by cherry-picking their options at each stage of the LifePath, and
not all campaigns will have a place for such Characters. On the other hand, if
youre rolling randomly, Guides should be willing to cut you some slack if you
have a string of bad luck; though its suggested that a Player should only be
allowed up to three re-rolls during Character Creation. Or you can mix it up,
choosing in some places and rolling in others; its up to you and your Guide to
determine whats best for your individual Campaign.

At each Step, you can increase or decrease your Characteristics, gain
Skills, Gifts, Bindings, or gain or lose lovers, friends, enemies, or treasure.

Most of the gains or losses you achieve through the

LifePath are cumulative; in other words, at each LifePath
Step, whatever gains or losses you receive are added
to the gains or losses from your previous Steps. Your
Characteristics begin at a level of 5, which is the average
for an adult human in The Known World. Youll then
add a bonus or penalty based on your mothers and your
fathers Lineages, reflecting the traits that you received
from your parents. Your Birth Sign as determined in
Step Two will then give you a gain or loss to your base
Characteristic levels depending on the influence of the
Stars on your birth. At the same time, your birth may
have been attended by Omens, also as determined in the
same LifePath Step; any gains or losses due to Omens are
added or subtracted to your Characteristics as modified
by your Birth Sign. And on you will go through the
LifePath, adding and subtracting until you reach your
final Characteristics, Skill Levels, etc., with which you
can begin play.

And a Characteristic cant drop below 1 during
the course of your LifePath (which would mean your
death or something similar), so once you drop to 1 you
can ignore any further loss to that Characteristic.

A LIFEPATH CHECKLIST
YOUR CULTURE AND SOCIAL CLASS
o Your Culture
o Your Family Situation
o Your Languages
o Your Cultural Everyman Skills
o Your Birthplace
o Your Parents Social Level and Class
o Your Parents Occupations
YOUR LINEAGE AND BIRTH
o Your Mothers Lineage
o Your Fathers Lineage
o Your Birth Sign
o Your Birth Omens
Full Lineage Tables in Appendix A
YOUR FAMILY AND CHILDHOOD
o Your Parents Attitudes to You
o Your Siblings (if any)
o Your Siblings Attitudes to You
o Your Childhood
YOUR PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE
o Your Starting Skill Points
o Your Starting Inheritance
o Your Starting Occupation
o Your Annual Skill Points
o Your Annual Arcana Points
o Your Annual Earnings
o The Events of Your LifePath

Adventures in the Known World

133

Creating Your Character

Q
Your Culture
LifePath Step ONE:

& social
class
The first Step in your LifePath is to determine where you were born.
This Step will give your birth a geographic location in the Known
World and a Culture and Social Class from which you come,
giving you the first inklings about your family and society. In this
book Artesia AKW, the starting Cultures available to Players are
the various parts of the Middle Kingdoms and the neighboring
Highlands of Daradja. Future books will include expansion
background Cultures, including the Hemapoline League, the
Thessid-Golan Empire, Amora, and Palatia.

LifePath Culture Table

for the Middle Kingdoms region
Roll d10 or choose.
Roll
1
2-4
5-7
8
910

Culture
Middle Kingdoms: Athairi
Middle Kingdoms: Aurian
Middle Kingdoms: Danian
Middle Kingdoms: Watchtower King
Highland: Daradjan

Everyman Skills
In developing your Character, the main method of increasing and
bettering your Skills is through Step Four in the LifePath, which
deals with your Previous Experience in an occupation, with every
year of experience giving you Training Points that you can use to
buy Levels in your Occupations list of available Skills. However,
you also get a free starting group of Skills to begin with, the sorts
of Skills that we all get a chance to develop in our everyday life
regardless of specialized training. In Fuzion these are called
Everyman Skills. These skills are things generally common to
everyone in all Cultures and in all walks of life:
Awareness
Persuasion
Athletics
Teaching
Local Expert (knowledge of your area)
Etiquette (for your Culture)
Wardrobe & Style (for your Culture)
Hand-to-Hand
Evade
In addition, each Culture of the Known World has a small selection
of Cultural Everyman Skills, to reflect the different milieus in
which you can grow up and the Skills you might be exposed to
in your homeland. One of these Cultural Skills is your primary
Language, the language you grew up hearing and speaking during
everyday activities. Some Cultures (most, actually) will also have
other Languages besides your primary Language that are commonly

134

Adventures in the Known World

known in that Culture and can be considered Cultural Everyman Skills

for your Character. It should be noted here that most Characters are
assumed to be illiterate in most Cultures. If you would like to read
(and lets face it, thats a handy Skill to have), then make sure that you
learn some Writing Skills.

Another one of these Cultural Skills is always a Cult Lore
Skill, representing the religious beliefs and practices of your home
region. Cult Lore is generally either Yheran Cult Lore the worship of
the Great Goddess Yhera and associated Gods and Heroes or Divine
King Cult Lore the worship of Islik the Divine King of Heaven and
Earth, which is divided into two rival schisms, the Sun Court of Illia
and the Phoenix Court of the Thessid-Golan Empire. There are other
smaller Cults, particularly Mystery Cults, for which you can gain Cult
Lore, but these two are the biggest and most common. Cult Lore lets
you know how to behave in religious situations, and lets you know
Prayers and Rituals that allow you to invoke the powers of your Gods.
More information on this can be found in the chapters on Magic and
Religion.

PERSONAL Skills
In addition to your Everyman Skills, Cultural Everyman Skills, and
those Skills later associated with your Occupation, you can choose
one Skill as a Personal Skill. This is a hobby or interest that you can
develop in the LifePath as though it were an Everyman Skill. Your
Guide may want to put restrictions on what Skills are available as
Personal Skills. You may also gain access to other Skills through lucky
rolls during your yearly LifePath Events in Step Four.

SOCIAL LEVEL
AND SOCIAL CLASS
Your Social Level (SL) is based on a d10 roll, but with Modifiers
based on your Birthplace you may wind up with a Social Level
below 0 or as high as 14. A roll for Social Levels below 1 should be
considered SL 1 (the lowest Social Level). Your Guide might want to
put a maximum on your starting Social Level, so check to see if there
are any restrictions. Social Levels are grouped in each Culture of
the Known World into five Social Classes; the Social Classes in each
Culture vary a bit in name and in terms of the kinds of Occupations
that are associated with each Class, but at the bottom of each Culture
can usually be found Outlaws and other undesirables, and then
at the top of each Culture are that Cultures politically and socially
powerful. Social Levels 9 and higher are usually grouped in most
Cultures into a Noble Class or something similar; household Knights
will usually have SL 9, with Landed Knights, Lords, and Ladies at
SL 10, High Lords at SL 11, Barons and Earls at SL 12, Princes and
Dukes at SL13, and Kings at SL 14 at the top of the social hierarchy.

Your Social Level will change over the course of the Game,
but you should keep a record of your starting Social Level as sometimes
it might matter more than your current standing.

STARTING CIRCUMSTANCES
Next you should determine whether theres something unusual about
your parents and your childhood environment that you should know
about before you begin your LifePath. Roll d10; a roll of 10 indicates
there was something unusual about your parents or upbringing and
you should roll on the Table below. Where applicable, you may also
roll d10 or choose to see which parent the situation applies to: a roll
of 1-3 indicates your father, a 4-6 your mother, and 710 indicates
both parents.

Creating Your Character

Unusual FAMILY SITUATION

Roll d10 or choose.
Roll
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8

10

Situation
You were abandoned and raised as a foundling. You lose
a point of EMP*.
You were separated from your parent(s) at a young
age by war or disaster and dont know where or even
possibly who they are*.
Your parent(s) are in exile, banished by your local ruler.
You gain a Hate 1 Binding aimed at the person who
exiled your parent(s)*.
Your parent(s) are involved in a conspiracy or plot. Gain
3 Training Points in the Intrigue Skill.
Your parent(s) are involved in a longstanding feud. Gain
an Enemy family or clan.
Your parent(s) sent you to live with relatives, and while
you know where they are, you havent seen them since.
You lose a point of EMP.
Your parent(s) went missing in the local forest or
wilderlands. You gain a Fear 1 Binding of the place that
took your parents.
Your parent(s) were actually spies or agents of an
Adversary to the rulers of your home. Choose their
patron in consultation with your Guide, and you can
secretly take Spy as your starting Occupation.
Your parent(s) fled from another region or Culture and
live in the Culture you rolled either secretly or under the
protection of the local ruler. Gain an Enemy (from your
true home) and an Ally (here)*.
Your parent(s) were secretly involved in a Gray Dream
Mystery Cult. Gain Cult Lore (Gray Dream Mystery
Cult) as an Everyman Skill and you may secretly take
Priest (Gray Dream Mystery Cult) as your starting
Occupation.

If your Unusual Family Situation indicates that you have been raised
in the household of someone other than your parents (either because
you dont know who your parents actually are or because something
happened to them and you were raised by foster parents), then when
you are rolling on the Culture Tables that follow you are actually
determining the Social Level and Occupations of the relatives or foster
parents who brought you up. It is their Social Level and Occupation,
and not the Social Level and Occupation of your secret, missing, or
exiled true parents, that will determine your starting Occupation in
Step Four of the LifePath.

THE CULTURE TABLES

On the next pages are a series of entries on the individual Cultures
of the Middle Kingdoms and its immediate neighbors, the area of
the Known World at the focus of the Artesia AKW Game. If you
are rolling your Culture randomly, then you can turn directly to
the section on your particular Culture and ignore the rest of them.
Otherwise, you might want to take a moment to glance over the
Cultural summaries and Tables to see which one you like most before
proceeding. After a general introduction, the pages on each Culture
include the following entries:

Cultural Languages: The first language, listed in bold, is the primary

spoken language of your Culture. You automatically begin the game
with a Skill Level equal to your MEM in your primary language. The
other languages listed are both common and uncommon languages
spoken or read in your Culture on which you may spend Training
Points in the final LifePath Step.
Everyman Skills: Three additional Everyman Skills that are specific
to your Culture are listed here, and they may be added to the
standard list of Everyman Skills. Also, you will find listed the Cult
Lore Skill common to your Culture. If there is more than one listed,
you can choose which religion to follow; the first one listed will be
the dominant Cult of your Culture, and any others listed are minor
or even persecuted. You may spend Training Points from the final
LifePath Step on both Everyman Skills and Occupation Skills.
Birthplace: This Table determines what sort of environment you
were born into. For the most part this is kept fairly general, but each
Birthplace Table should still impart a sense of what the Culture you
come from is like. If you would like more specific information about
where your Character was born, you can consult the maps descriptions
of the region where you were born and choose a site with your Guides
help. Your Birthplace will likely give you a Modifier to your roll for
your Social Level.
SL (Social Level) and Social Class: This portion of the next Table
determines your parents Social Level and Social Class. The specific
Classes that exist within each Culture will vary, but will ascend from
the lowest, often Outlaw, Class, to what is considered the highest Class
in your Culture. Write down both the Social Level (114, barring
restrictions) of your parents and their Social Class.
Parents Occupations: After determining your Social Class, the next
part of that Table helps determine the Occupations of each of your
parents. Roll an Occupation for each parent; begin each of your
rolls in the same Social Class. Your parents may have Occupations
outside of their Social Class; in cases where this happens, then you
and your Guide should come up with an interesting explanation about
why your parents are in Occupations above or below their Social Class
(suggestions include personal connections or patrons, or some sort of
humiliation or social exile).

Gender plays a role in all of the Cultures of the Known
World to some extent or another. In each Culture, Occupations
that are considered suitable for women are listed in bold. In many
Divine King Cultures, such as most of the Middle Kingdoms, women
are generally not accepted in military Occupations, though a few
exceptions exist. If you and your Guide prefer, you can always ignore
that rule, though it might give you something to struggle against.
If youre rolling for a parent and get an inapt Occupation, then roll
again.
Lineage: This Table will tell you which Lineage Table to consult in
LifePath Step Two, where you will determine the lineages your parents
have bequeathed to you along with more information about your
birth.
Names: This section will describe the naming conventions of each
Culture, and list names that are typical for men and women. In
addition, information will be provided on traditions for family and
surnames as appropriate.
Cultural Items: This Table is used in case you receive an heirloom
during your LifePath; it lists common enchanted items that might be
passed down from your parents and ancestors. Apply the bonus from
the entry in your LifePath that garnered you a roll on this table.

Adventures in the Known World

135

Creating Your Character

THE MIDDLE KINGDOMS:

THE ATHAIRI

he Athairi are a subculture of the Middle Kingdoms,

the remnants of the people of the Golden Realm of AnAthair, which flourished in the great (and once much
larger) woods of the Erid Wold at the beginning of the Age of
Legends. While the Athairi can be found throughout the Middle
Kingdoms and Daradja (as reflected by their presence on the
Lineage Tables of each region), An-Athair proper is found in the
Erid Wold. The Athairi have a reputation as being superstitious,
given to old ways, and touched by ghosts and the Otherworld.
They are sometimes looked at as half-Faerie or worse by other
Middle Kingdomers. On the other hand, the Athairi also have a
reputation as a freewheeling and playful people, given to music,
singing, and dancing, and their bards are thought some of the best
in the Middle Kingdoms. They are a courteous people, though
they also have little use for ceremony, and Social Class holds less
sway here than in other parts of the Middle Kingdoms.

Politically An-Athair is considered part of Erid Dania,
and the Erid King has often claimed direct rule of the Castle of
An-Athair, though currently that ancient Keep is held by Orphin
the Bull, the Earl of An-Athair and himself a great power and
rival to the King. Most Athairis consider themselves Athairis first
and Danians second, though their allegiance is not to any of the
Earls of the wood; rather, they all still secretly consider themselves
subject to the ancient Spring Queens, and hope for the day when
the Green Temple is fully restored. They still hold to the Old
Religion, though mostly in private; before outsiders from other
parts of the Middle Kingdoms, they will make proper gestures to
the Divine King.
Athairi Cultural Languages: The Middle Tongue, the Eastern
Tongue, Old duinan, Old Emmetic, Old Illian, Old Aurian.
Athairi Everyman Skills: Folk Lore, Singing, Dancing/Folk;
Yheran Cult Lore or Divine King Cult Lore.

Left to right: a witch from the Erid Wold, a Priestess of

the Spring Bride from the Green Temple at Har An-Athair,
and a typical Athairi woodsman (a hunter, in this case).

136

Adventures in the Known World

Athairi Birthplace
Roll d10 or choose.
Roll
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10

Birthplace
Bandit Camp
Haunted Ruin
Foresters Camp
Pleasant Forest Hovel
Woodland Village
Woodland Fort
Small Town
Small Woodland Castle
Borderland Castle
Earls Hold

Social Level roll modifier

Outlaw
-3
-4
-2
0
0
+1
+2
+3
+4

Bandit Camp: A small woodland camp, home to a group of

outlaws and their families. If you are born in a bandit camp, you are
automatically from the Outlaw Class, and probably moved around
a lot as a youngster.
Haunted Ruin: One of many ruins found in the Erid Wold, usually
uninhabited and avoided by most people, except for witches,
bandits, and sorcerers solitary individuals or small family groups
at best, who choose to live amongst ghosts and spirits.
Foresters Camp: A small woodland camp, home to a group of
foresters and their families. They might be sworn to a local lord,
or they might consider themselves Children of the Wood, and
therefore beholden to no master. Such camps move a lot.
Pleasant Forest Hovel: A small, isolated home or hamlet, tucked
away in the woods, and rarely visited by outsiders. The families
that live in such out-of-the-way places prefer peace, solitude, and
independence.
Woodland Village: A decent-sized village in the woods, on or near
one of the major roads that cross the forest. The folk that live in
such villages are subjects to a local lord or knight, who in turn is
a vassal to one of the Earls of An-Athair. Such villages are usually
unfortified, and the residents will flee into the woods to ancient
hiding places in times of trouble.
Woodland Fort: A small, fortified wooden enclave in the forest,
home to a minor Knight, vassal to one of the Earls of An-Athair.
The walls and palisades of the fort are made of thick timber
gathered from the dead trees of the forest over the years.
Small Town: One of a number of small towns in the woods, on
one of the major roads that cross the forest. A minor Knight or
Lord will hold the town for one of the Earls of An-Athair. Such
towns will have strong but squat walls of stone.
Small Woodland Castle: A small castle in the woods, made of
stone, and home to a Knight or Lord who is a vassal for an Earl of
An-Athair. There will be a village or town to support the Knight
and provide him income, sometimes walled and sometimes not.
Borderland Castle: A small castle on the borders of the Erid Wold,
guarding one of its approaches, and held by a Knight or Lord who
is a vassal to one of the Earls of An-Athair. Usually these are larger
and more extensive than the castles in the previous entry.
Earls Hold: A castle or fortified town held directly by one the
Earls of An-Athair: An-Athair, Dain An-Athair, Har An-Athair,
Heer, Uthmark, Gailbury, or Abeuth. These castles and towns are
large and impressive stone fortifications, some thousands of years
old. Most support populations of up to two thousand people.

Creating Your Character

Athairi Social Class &

ParentS OccupationS

Roll d10 and add your Social Level Modifier from your Birthplace,
or choose Social Level and Class; then toll d10 or choose each
Parents Occupation.
SL
1

2-3

4-6

7-8

9+

Social Class
Outlaw

Forester

Commoner

Merchant

Noble

2nd Roll
1-3
4-5

Parents Occupation
Bandit
Thief (urban only)

6-7

Thug

8-9

Witch

10

roll as Forester

1
2

roll as Outlaw
Fisher

Herder

Hermit

Hunter

6-8

Laborer

Scout

10

roll as Commoner

1
2

roll as Forester
Farmer

Fortune Teller

House Servant

Innkeeper

Magician

7
8

Midwife or Priestess (Bride Cult

-- as Priest/Divine King)
Trader

Warrior (Mercenary or Vassal)

10

roll as Merchant

1
2

roll as Commoner
Artisan

Bard

Entertainer

Householder

Merchant

Priest (Divine King)

Sage

Scribe or Cartographer

10

roll as Noble

1
2

roll as Merchant
Guard

Herald

4-5

Knight

6-7

Lady

8-9

Lord

10

Seneschal

Athairi Lineages

Roll d20 once on the Table to determine your Mothers Lineage,

and then again to determine your Fathers Lineage, or you may
choose. Then see the specific Lineage Tables in Appendix A.
Roll
1
2-6
7
8-9
1016
1719
20

Lineage Table
Maelite
Daradjan
Aurian
Danian
Athairi
Archaic Dran
Unusual

Athairi Names

The Athairi show a mixed influence in their choices of names.

Many of their ancient traditional names are Dran in origin,
or Danian, or even Daradjan. The Athairi will sometimes refer
to a clan or House name if they have an illustrious-enough
ancestor.
Mens Names: Moiragh, Armagh, Amther, Elfram, Elfyr,
Aelfred, Byron, Stefan, Stjepan, Justin, Cuelias, Galrode,
Galwyn, Cellwyn, Cerwyn, Lyrian, Gyrfyrd, Galfyrd, Penwyn,
Benreuth, Galreuth, Urien, Dyrk.
Womens Names: Ursula, Anara, Tibra, Mara, Megara, Megesia,
Hesia, Herla, Hestra, Iala, Leda, Sylvia, Artesia, Argante, Ymaire,
Erithaire, Cellwaire, Moraire, Moraine, Morgaine, Morfane,
Yrgaine, Erin.
Family Names: none; to the Athairi, your specific Lineage is
most important, so individuals are described as son of or
daughter of, along with as many generations as necessary to
identify a key or important ancestor. Birthplaces are also used
as identifiers, as in of Abeuth or of Verdyr. Clan or House
Names are simply the given name of a famous ancestor, for
example House Moiragh or House Urien.

Athairi CULTURAL ITEMS

Roll d10 if you gain a Cultural Item from your LifePath, and
then apply the bonus from the entry that gave you the Item as
appropriate. See the chapter on Magic and Enchantments.
Roll
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10

Item
Unicorn Horn spear
Cauldron for brewing potions
Lynx Stone amulet
Amber amulet, with fossil
Moss Agate amulet
Hyacinth amulet
Labiran Ward Harm Rune amulet
Labiran Hex Rune amulet
Folk Charm to Ward a Person from Ghosts
A Spring Queen Heirloom (roll again to
determine exactly what; triple normal value)

Adventures in the Known World

137

Creating Your Character

THE MIDDLE KINGDOMS:

THE AURIANS

he Aurians hold the eastern Middle Kingdoms, having

come from the far north in the Age of Legends and settled
(largely by violence) in what were once Danian lands. The
Aurians were a sea-going folk that claimed descent from Heth,
God of the Sea, but they are now considered cursed by Heth
and so are widely considered unlucky on the open water. They
are an athletic and physical people, but while historically given
to outdoor pursuits, in recent years they have spent more time
cultivating the intricacies of the worlds of finance and politics
than those of the field. An urban and sophisticated aristocratic
culture has become a hallmark of Aurian cities. The Aurians were
enemies of the Spring Queens of An-Athair and are responsible
for the destruction of that golden realm; even modern Aurian
Culture is quite chauvinistic, and roles for women are greatly
restricted in their society. The worship of the Divine King has
been embraced in Aurian Culture almost totally; adherents to
the Old Religion of Yhera are rare and frowned upon. Unlike
most of the Danians and Daradjans, Aurians have light to golden
hair and paler skin than the native inhabitants of the land.

The Kings and Barons of the East rule over both Aurian
and Danian subjects. The region under the sway of Aurian
Culture includes the Kingdoms of Atallica, Dainphalia, and
Huelt (though Huelt is ruled by Danians), and the Princedom
of Auria, once a Kingdom but now held by the Crown Prince of
Atallica as his personal demesne. Awain, the King of Atallica, is
also the King of Therapoli (the capital city) and High King of the
Middle Kingdoms.
Aurian Cultural Languages: The Middle Tongue, the Eastern
Tongue, Old Illian, Old Aurian.
Aurian Everyman Skills: Commerce, Inquiry, Intrigue; Divine
King Cult Lore.
Aurian males gain a Hate Women 1 Binding.

Left to right: an Aurian serf, a Templar from the

Order of the Conquering Sun from the city of Loria,
and a neer-do-well from the city streets of Therapoli.

138

Adventures in the Known World

Aurian Birthplace
Roll d10 or choose.
Roll
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10

Birthplace
City Slum
Woodland Hovel
Fishing Village
Country Village
Small Town
Small Castle
Free City of Truse
Baronial Castle or City
Ducal Castle or City
Royal Castle or City

Social Level roll modifier

-4
-3
-2
1
0
0
+1
+2
+3
+4

City Slum: A squalid tenement in the city of Truse, Therapoli, Loria,

Berrina, or Soros. These cities are all large enough to have a moreor-less permanent urban underclass.
Woodland Hovel: A small dwelling in either the Sare Wold or the
Hada Wold, and usually home to hermits or outlaws who are trying
to escape the rule of some local Lord or Knight.
Fishing Village: A small village on the Bay of Guirant or the Bay of
Hersog, often inhabited by people of Danian descent but considered
part of the estates of an Aurian Knight or Lord. Aurians do not like
the sea anymore, so the coasts are often ceded to Danian subjects.
Country Village: A small village on estates owned by a Noble, and
held by a vassal Knight or Lord. Many of the inhabitants will be serfs
of Aurian and Danian descent, who work the farmlands of the rulers
estates and who are basically considered his property.
Small Town: A small town, usually located on a road through estates
owned by a Noble, and held by a vassal Knight or Lord. In Auria,
such towns are usually not protected by walls, though the central
hall or manor of the ruling Knight or Lord will be made of stone
and high-walled.
Small Castle: A small stone castle and its estates, home to a Knight
or Lord who is a vassal to one of the Barons or Royal Nobles. The
Aurians have a long tradition of hill-forts so many of these stone
castles are built on the grounds of an older wooden hill-fort.
Free City of Truse: A large city on the West Kings Road that has
been granted the status of a Free City by Royal Decree, meaning
that its citizens may own property and run their own affairs
so long as the pay the High Kings taxes and provide a City
Company for the defense of the City. Truse has a large
University.
Baronial Castle or City: A castle or city held by a Noble
who owes his allegiance to one of the Eastern Kings or
Princes. Unlike a Free City, a Baronial City is the property
of its ruling Nobleman.
Ducal Castle or City: A castle or city held by a Noble who is
related by blood to the High King of Therapoli (and hence,
of the lineage of the hero Fortias, at least in theory). These
are the castle of Har Misal (hold of the Grand Duke Owen
Lis Red), the castle of Korr Elbeth (home of Duke Arvin),
and the city of Enlos (ruled by Duke Orfewain).
Royal Castle or City: A castle or city held by one of the
Eastern Kings or Princes. The greatest is Therapoli itself,
capital and most populous city of the Middle Kingdoms;
but this also includes the royal city of Berrina, and the castles
of Urphalia and the Crown Princes castle at Loria.
More information on the castles and cities of Auria is available in the
previous chapter on The Known World Today.

Creating Your Character

Aurian Social Class &

ParentS OccupationS

Roll d10 and add your Social Level Modifier from your Birthplace, or
choose Social Level and Class; then toll d10 or choose each Parents
Occupation..
SL
1

2-4

5-6

7-8

9+

Social Class
Outlaw

Serf

Commoner

Lettered

Noble

2nd Roll
1-2
3

Parents Occupation
Bandit
Beggar (City only)

Hermit

5-6

Thief (City only)

7-8

Thug

Witch or Fortune Teller

10

roll as Serf

1
2

roll as Outlaw
Fisher

Herder

4-5

House Servant

6-7

Laborer

8-9

Tenant Farmer

10

roll as Commoner

1
2

roll as Serf
Artisan

Entertainer or Courtesan

House Servant

Householder

Hunter (Nobles Huntsman)

Innkeeper

Midwife

Trader

10

roll as Lettered

1
2

roll as Commoner
Alchemist

Aristocrat (City only)

Magister

Merchant

Physician-Healer

7
8

Priest Divine King or

Inquisitor or Templar
Scribe or Cartographer

Spy or Assassin

10

roll as Noble

1
2-3

roll as Lettered
Guard

Herald

5-6

Knight

7-8

Lady

Lord

10

Seneschal

Aurian Lineages

Roll d20 once on the Table to determine your Mothers Lineage,

and then again to determine your Fathers Lineage, or you may
choose. Then see the specific Lineage Tables in Appendix A.
Roll
1-2
313
1417
1819
20

Lineage Table
Daradjan
Aurian
Danian
Athairi
Unusual (often Mermaid)

AURIAN Names

The Aurians use both given names and family names for
identification. Aurian Culture is a bit more insular than Danian
or Daradjan Culture, and so names from other Cultures are
rarely used for Aurian children.
Mens Names: Oslac, Oswin, Owed, Owen, Austin, Tomas,
Hugh, Conrad, Clodin, Colin, Guiton, Galbroke, Leon, Goar,
Reiner, Gerard, Arbier, Aragon, Theodras, Renart, Arain, Awain,
Darwain, Garin, Baldwin, Alefric, Smitt, Lars, Hurias.
Womens Names: Gail, Gailbas, Elisabeta, Elisa, Eliza, Eva,
Lizette, Gloriette, Henriette, Illyana, Ilona, Sigalla, Silga,
Silbeta, Freyda, Freya, Frallas.
Family Names: Urwed, Torgis, Urtomas, Wain, Clodias,
Lis Red, Urgoar, Urfortias, Uraelfric, Theodrum, Theodur,
Theowain, Thorodur. Many Aurian family names can be made
with the addition of the prefix Ur before a male given name.

AURIAN CULTURAL ITEMS

Roll d10 if you gain a Cultural Item from your LifePath, and
then apply the bonus from the entry that gave you the Item as
appropriate. See the chapter on Magic and Enchantments.
Roll
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10

Item
Helmet with Auroch Horns
Griffin Egg drinking cup
Crystal amulet
Garnet amulet
Ruby amulet
Coral amulet
Imperial Strength Rune amulet
Divine King Cult Charm to Ward a Believer from
Danger
Divine King Cult Charm to Ward a Believer from
Magic
A Sea Migration Heirloom (roll d6 to determine
exactly what; triple normal value)
An Auroch horn helmet from the
Sea Migration period of Aurian
history.

Adventures in the Known World

139

Creating Your Character

THE MIDDLE KINGDOMS:

THE DANIANS

he Danians hold the western Middle Kingdoms and

marginalized portions of the eastern, and are the original
inhabitants of the lowlands of the Harath duins. In
their somewhat languid temperament the Danians lie somewhere
between their wild Daradjan and Maelite neighbors and the
more formal social and political structures of the Aurians, whose
embrace of the Divine King has been much more total. Danians
are widely considered to be freewheeling and talkative, and their
culture is dedicated to language, words, and wordplay. They
have long-standing traditions of hospitality to strangers, and are
given to frequent feasting and banquets, cooking with cauldrons
and spits over open fires. Danian Culture is much more open
towards both women and outsiders than Aurian Culture, and
Danians are much more likely to have ties to their Daradjan or
Athairi neighbors.

Danian lands include the Kingdoms of Erid Dania
and Dain Dania in the west, and Umis and Umat in the east.
The Umisi are much more wild and barbaric than their Danian
cousins or Aurian neighbors, and can be considered the collective
black sheep of Danian Culture.
Danian Cultural Languages: The Middle Tongue, the Eastern
Tongue, Old duinan, Old Emmetic, Old Illian, Old Aurian.
Danian Everyman Skills: Storytelling, Composition, Singing;
Divine King Cult Lore or Yheran Cult Lore.

Left to right: a Royal Huntsman from the

household of the Erid King, a Tenant Farmer
from the Barony of Rosemont, and a Danian
Handmaiden (house servant) from a rich
merchants household in Aprenna.

Danian Birthplace
Roll d10 or choose.
Roll
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10

Birthplace
Umisi Hill-fort
Pleasant Country Hovel
Umati Sea Port
Riverside Village
Country Village
Small Town
Small Hold
Free City
Earls Hold
Kings Hold

Social Level roll modifier

-4
-3
-2
1
0
0
+1
+2
+2
+3

Umisi Hill-fort: A fortified stone citadel in Umis, home to one of that

lands many quarrelsome and troublesome minor Warlords. These are
rough-hewn places with a certain wild beauty, but they are also stout
and often virtually impregnable.
Pleasant Country Hovel: A small dwelling on a noblemans lands,
sometimes occupied illegally.
Umati Sea Port: A fortified village or town with a port on the Umati
coastline, and the frequent target of pirate raids. The Umati build
small stone watchtowers some 20 feet high along the coast to watch
for pirates, and will light signal fires to warn nearby villages.
Riverside Village: A small fishing village on either the Volbrae or the
Eridbrae rivers, home to fishermen and farmers. These villages are
rarely fortified. A Knight might hold the village for a nearby Lord or
Earl, or the village might be too poor to support one.
Country Village: A small village on land owned by an Earl, and held
by a vassal Knight or Lord. While the village itself is not fortified, the
Knight or Lords hall will be a tower or small keep, and will act
as the gathering point of villagers during times of trouble.
Small Town: A small town, usually located on a road through
land owned by an Earl, and held by a vassal Knight or Lord.
The town will hold a weekly market for the villages in the
area.
Small Hold: A small stone castle and its environs, home to a
rich Knight or Lord who is a vassal to an Earl or King. A village
will usually exist to provide income for the owner.
Free City: Newgate or Westmark, cities that have been granted
the status of a Free City by Royal Decree, meaning that their
citizens may run their own affairs without an overlord and own
property, so long as they pay the High Kings taxes and provide
a City Company for their defense. Newgate is the largest city
in the west, and sits directly between Dain Dania and Erid
Dania as neutral territory.
Earls Hold: A castle or city held by a Danian Earl sworn to
one of the Danian Kings. Technically, the only Danian Earls
in Erid Dania are Erid More and Blackstone (at Orliac); all
the other Earls of Erid Dania are Athairi. In Dain Dania
this category includes Hartford, Gil-More, Vole-More, Rosemont,
Bluewall, Keeton, Tamatra, and the city of Essenvey. In Umis this
includes Thur, Ceol, Turey, Rhodia, and Caven More. In Umat
this includes Ad Amas, Nas Bessin, Us Bessin, Derg Ustam, and
Uthage.
Royal Hold: A castle or city held by one of the Danian Kings: Aprenna
(capital of Dain Dania), Westmark Castle (hold of the Erid King),
Lysias (capital of Umat), or Caven (capital of Umis).
More information on the Danian Kingdoms is available in the previous
chapter on The Known World Today.

140

Adventures in the Known World

Creating Your Character

Danian Social Class &

ParentS OccupationS

Roll d10 and add your Social Level Modifier from your Birthplace,
or choose Social Level and Class; then toll d10 or choose each
Parents Occupation.
SL
1

Social Class
Outlaw

2-4

Commoner

5-6

7-8

9+

Artisan

Lettered

Noble

2nd Roll
1-2
3
4
5-6
7-8
9
10
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
1
2
3
4-5
6-7
8-9
10

Parents Occupation
Bandit
Beggar (City or Port only)
Hermit
Thief (City or Port only)
Thug
Witch
roll as Commoner
roll as Outlaw
Fisher
Herder
House Servant
Laborer
Sailor (Port only)
Scout
Tenant Farmer
Warrior (Mercenary or Vassal)
roll as Artisan
roll as Commoner
Artisan
Astrologer
Entertainer or Courtesan
Householder
Hunter (Nobles Huntsman)
Innkeeper
Midwife
Trader
roll as Lettered
roll as Artisan
Alchemist
Bard
Magister
Merchant
Physician-Healer
Priest Divine King
Scribe or Cartographer
Spy or Assassin
roll as Noble
roll as Lettered
Guard
Herald
Knight
Lady
Lord
Seneschal

Danian Lineages

Roll d20 once on the Table to determine your Mothers Lineage,

and then again to determine your Fathers Lineage, or you may
choose. Then see the specific Lineage Tables in Appendix A.
Roll
1-2
3-5
6-8
915
1617
1819
20

Lineage Table
Daradjan
Maelite
Aurian
Danian
Athairi
Archaic Dran
Unusual

DANIAN NAMES

Danians will sometimes use Athairi, Daradjan, or even old

Dran names for their children, reflecting long-standing ties
between their Cultures and shared cultural values. Family
surnames are usually only used by landed families (i.e., nobles)
and will have some connection to either the family land or an
illustrious ancestor.
Mens Names: Llew, Liam, Duram, Fulric, Sayle, Eolred,
Fionne, Moraine, Malcolme, Mowbray, Mobray, Elbray,
Hektor, Colin, Cole, Colus, Corbin, Ishal, Maris, Garrett,
Gause, Naeras, Siobras, Gwyrfyr, Giordus, Gable, Gawer,
Geller, Feawode, Fearam, Derc, Wilhem, Pellas.
Womens Names: Hilla, Beltria, Ninava, Nina, Amina, Aila,
Anisa, Vanisa, Fallia, Siovan, Siobella, Silva, Illira, Illia, Illiama,
Seelia, Elessia, Sadha, Salma, Jaila, Efraine, Lysara, Tara,
Tamara, Amara, Camidha, Mina, Minah, Mona, Marisa.
Family Names: Myradim, Brigadim, Thurias, Oerthig, Tain,
Fesswin, Petrayd, Gargaine, Gower, Eridaine, Volbrayd,
Fleurdis. Otherwise most individuals are described as son of
or daughter of, with birthplaces also used as identifiers, as in
of Valost or of Westmark.

DANIAN CULTURAL ITEMS

Roll d10 if you gain a Cultural Item from your LifePath, and
then apply the bonus from the entry that gave you the Item as
appropriate. See the chapter on Magic and Enchantments.
Roll
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10

Item
Blood Agate amulet
Crystal amulet
Amber amulet, with fossil
Turquoise amulet
Silver dagger
Daedekine Rune of Making amulet
Hyacinth amulet
Wyvern Scale target shield
Folk Charm to Ward a Person from Ghosts
An Heirloom of either the War against Githwaine
or the Black Day Battle (roll again to determine
exactly what; triple normal value)

Adventures in the Known World

141

Creating Your Character

Q
THE

THE MIDDLE KINGDOMS:

WATCHTOWER
KINGS

he Watchtower Kings of Maece are the descendants of the

Maelite Kings of Uthed Dania that sided with Erlwulf
and later Fortias against Githwaine, the Last Worm King,
and who were given lands and titles as a reward for their service.
They are a rough and hardy people, though bearing upon them
the burden of their Maelite cousins guilt for standing with the
Last Worm. To distinguish themselves from the Djar Maelites
of the Dain duins, the peoples of the Watchtower Coast refer
to themselves as Maecites, and many take offense if referred to
as Maelite, even though they share the same Lineage as their
distant cousins. Most people refer to them as the people of the
Watchtowers.

While the Kingdom of Maece, once their demesne, no
longer exists, the Watchtower Kings still maintain their vigil along
the Great Wall and the rough southern coast against the Isliklid
Kingdoms, the horrors of the Wastes of Lost Uthedmael, and the
Empire. They are a martial people and are comfortable outdoors,
though the increasingly aristocratic culture of the Kingdom of
Angowrie, the only full Kingdom of the Maecites with a Seated
King of the Sun Court at its helm, is now producing more urban
and sophisticated generations of Maecites. The lords and ladies of
the Kingdom of Angowrie have largely abandoned their country
estates, and instead live in the royal capital of Angora, and leave
their lands to seneschals and stewards. Indeed, many of them
maintain houses in Therapoli, and this rather expensive habit has
begun to spread amongst the Watchtower Kings of the Coast.
The petty kings of the Watchtowers look somewhat askance at
their citified cousins, who seem to them soft and poorly suited
for the constant vigil that they hold as a sacred duty. The lords
and ladies of Angowrie in turn
look down on the Watchtower
Kings as country hicks stuck
in unglamorous piles of rock.
The champion of the old-school
Watchtower Kings is Derrek,
King of Warwark.
Watchtower Cultural
Languages: The Middle
Tongue, Maelite, the Eastern
Tongue, Old duinan, Old
Illian.
Watchtower Everyman Skills:
Swimming, Marksmanship,
Fieldcraft; Divine King Cult
Lore or Yheran Cult Lore.

A Watchtower Knight
from Derc Dalved.

142

Adventures in the Known World

Watchtower Birthplace
Roll d10 or choose.
Roll
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10

Birthplace
Seaside Hovel
Inland Village
Seaside Village
Small Town
Small Keep
Coastal Keep
Wall Keep
Port City
Earls Keep
Royal City of Angora

Social Level roll modifier

-4
-3
-2
1
0
0
+1
+2
+2
+4

Seaside Hovel: A small hovel overlooking the sea and shore, often
home to a family of smugglers or struggling fishermen. They will
use small but agile ships called luggers or sea-hunters, vessels equally
useful for fishing, trading, or smuggling.
Inland Village: A small decrepit village in the hills of the Pavas Mole
or the Manon Mole, or perhaps the Dentyn Moors. The hardy,
independent people that live in such villages usually prefer to be left
alone, but will often come at the call of a Watchtower King.
Seaside Village: A small fishing village along the rough coastline,
home to fishermen and farmers. Many of the fishermen will use
their luggers and other small vessels for smuggling.
Small Town: A small town usually located on the coast road or just
inland and beholden to the nearest Watchtower King. Such towns
will be fortified with stone.
Small Keep: A small stone castle away from the coast, home to
a Warlord (SL 8) who is a vassal to a Watchtower King. Such
Warlords would be perhaps poor Knights in other Cultures, but the
Watchtowers lack any kind of formal order or procedures that could
be associated with initiation or acceptance into knighthood.
Coastal Keep: A large stone Citadel on the coast road or overlooking
the seaside, home to a Watchtower King. Within or near the
Citadel will be townsfolk who provide the King with income. A
Watchtower King is like any other Warlord, just with a SL of 9, a
bigger Citadel, and a grander title. Coastal Kings maintain old but
trustworthy cogs to patrol the seas.
Wall Keep: A large stone Citadel along the Great Wall of Fortias, a
military installation home to a Watchtower King. On the eastern
side of the wall might be pasture or farmlands to support the King
and his garrison. They will sometimes patrol into the Wastes of Lost
Uthedmael on horseback.
Port City: A city or Keep with an active port, either the Free City of
Nomath or the southernmost Wall Keep of Warwark (Angora has a
port but is listed separately).
Earls Keep: A castle or city in the Kingdom of Angowrie held by
a Maecite Earl (former Watchtower Kings elevated to the title and
status of Earl) sworn to its King. This entry would include Enid
More, Firetop, Derc Tannin, Herta, and Biers Glory.
Royal City of Angora: The city held by the King of Angowrie as his
personal domain. The city has a surprisingly urbane air to it, though
it could be considered mere surface appearance done in imitation of
the Aurian cities to the east.
A full listing of the various holds of the Watchtower Kings is available
in the previous chapter on The Known World Today.

Creating Your Character

Watchtower Social Class &
ParentS OccupationS

Roll d10 and add your Social Level Modifier from your
Birthplace, or choose Social Level and Class; then toll d10 or
choose each Parents Occupation.
SL
1

2-4

5-6

7-9

10+

Social Class
Outlaw

Commoner

Freeman

Watchtower

Patrician

2nd Roll
1-2
3

Parents Occupation
Bandit
Beggar (City or Port only)

Hermit

5-6

Smuggler (as Pirate)

Thief (City or Port only)

Thug

Witch

10

roll as Commoner

1
2

roll as Outlaw
Fisher

House Servant

Hunter

Laborer

Sailor (Port only)

Scout

Tenant Farmer

Warrior (Mercenary or Vassal)

10

roll as Freeman

1
2-3

roll as Commoner
Artisan

Bard

Fortune Teller

Innkeeper

Midwife

Scribe or Cartographer

Trader

10

roll as Watchtower

1
2

roll as Freeman
Guard

Herald

Householder

Scout

Seneschal

Spy or Assassin

Warlord*

Warrior (Sworn)

10

roll as Patrician

1
2-3

roll as Watchtower
Aristocrat

Entertainer or Courtesan

Lady

Lord

Merchant

Physician-Healer

Priest Divine King

10

Sage

* A Warlord from a small Keep is SL 8, a Warlord from a Coastal

or Wall Keep is a Watchtower King and SL 9.

Watchtower Lineages

Roll d20 once on the Table to determine your Mothers Lineage,

and then again to determine your Fathers Lineage, or you may
choose. Then see the specific Lineage Tables in Appendix A.
Roll
1-2
3-5
6-8
916
1718
19
20

Lineage Table
Daradjan
Aurian
Danian
Maelite
Athairi
Archaic Dran
Unusual

WATCHTOWER NAMES

Because of the shame and guilt associated with much of the

Maelite past, the peoples of the Watchtower Coast will often
give their children Danian names, and modern Maecite names
have a slightly different sound and feel than the names common
amongst the Djar Maelites across the Wastes.
Mens Names: Lewin, Lewyr, Gaebril, Maelfir, Salafir, Dras,
Drace, Trace, Urian, Ulbraece, Ulwyn, Pallan, Pallas, Bragas,
Dyllam, Angiss, Bier, Cadier, Dyfed, Derrek, Derc.
Womens Names: Gal, Gala, Gaebrilla, Gabriela, Ariel, Airgalla,
Airfal, Pal, Cirissa, Morghita, Ferna, Enid, Anid, Aliss, Lia,
Liacill, Tannia, Caila, Kay, Nica, Nicala, Anicca.
Family Names: The Maecites do not use family surnames,
generally, though a fashion for it can be found amongst the
aristocrats of Angora. Most individuals are described as son of
or daughter of, with birthplaces also used as identifiers, as in
of Derc Dalved or of Moiragh.

WATCHTOWER
CULTURAL ITEMS
Roll d10 if you gain a Cultural Item from your LifePath, and
then apply the bonus from the entry that gave you the Item as
appropriate. See the chapter on Magic and Enchantments.
Roll
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10

Item
Helmet with Horsehair plume
Coral amulet
Amber amulet, with fossil
Hyacinth amulet
Silver dagger
Wyvern Scale target shield
Labiran Ward Magic rune amulet
Labiran Fear rune amulet
Folk Charm to Ward a Person from Ghosts
Lost Uthedmael Heirloom (roll again to
determine exactly what; triple normal value)

Adventures in the Known World

143

Q
DARADJA

Creating Your Character

THE HIGHLANDS OF

ust north of the Middle Kingdoms in the Mountains of the

Harath duins is the land of Daradja, once a great Queendom
in the distant past of the Golden Age and now a collection of
warring Citadels, petty Kings and tyrants, brigand chieftains,
ancient Highland clans, and even pirate holds along its rough
northern coastline. It is a rough and dangerous land, filled with
an independent and scrappy people with a strong outlaw streak;
many are indeed exiles and criminals from other lands, or their
hardy descendants. Because of the constant dangers of wild
animals, brigands, and warring neighbors, almost all homes in
Daradja (even the poorest) are made of stone, and usually entered
on the second floor up a flight of stairs (or even by ladder).
Nonetheless, Daradjans have strict traditions of hospitality and
guest-rights, and banquets and feasts are held even amongst
blood enemies; breaking the rules of hospitality is a serious taboo
and a black mark on ones reputation. While not as sophisticated
as their lowland neighbors, Daradjans possess a well-developed
material culture, with enormous natural resources and strong
traditions of craftsmanship amongst its prized artisans. Some of
these traditions are inherited from Drans and other refugees
and immigrants that settled amongst the ancient Daradjans.

Some Daradjans consider themselves the true
descendants of the original Daradjans (as opposed to more recent
immigrant arrivals), and call themselves Highlanders. They live
in Clans, and while courteous and civil they remain suspicious of
outsiders. Highlander Clans usually refuse to offer tribute to any
of the Citadel Kings that claim to rule the rest of Daradja; indeed,
throughout Daradja such tributes are usually observed more in
the breach (a constant complaint of the regions petty Kings
and Warlords). The violence in Daradja is prevalent enough
that virtually all its inhabitants have experience and training at
handling weapons of war.
Daradjan Cultural Languages: The Middle Tongue, Old
duinan, Old Emmetic, Maelite.
Daradjan Everyman Skills: Melee, Fieldcraft, Storytelling;
Yheran Cult Lore.

Left to right: a household farmer from the Citadel of Myr Iras, a herder
from the Ban Bres clan, and an artisan from the town of Halwark.

144

Adventures in the Known World

Daradjan Birthplace
Roll d10 or choose.
Roll
1
2
3
4
5-6
7
8
9
10

Birthplace
Brigand Encampment
Barren Coast Pirate Hold
Decrepit Country Hovel
Highland Clan Hold
Fortified Village
Fortified Hill Town
Tributary Citadel
Independent Citadel
Great Citadel

Social Level roll modifier

Outlaw
Outlaw
-2
Highlander
0
+1
+2
+3
+4

Brigand Encampment: A camp or fort that is either the seasonal or

permanent home to one of the Highlands many infamous brigand
bands and its camp followers. A list of some infamous Brigand Bands
can be found on page 53. If you are from such a camp, you are
automatically from the Outlaw Class.
Barren Coast Pirate Hold: A Stone Citadel on the Barren Coast,
the homeport for one or more pirate captains and their ships. A
list of the pirate holds of the Barren Coast and the ships that call
them home can be found on page 53. If you are from such a place,
you are automatically from the Outlaw Class (though you need not
be a pirate, as such holds have small self-contained economies based
largely on criminality).
Decrepit Country Hovel: An isolated, ramshackle house, home to the
struggling, desperate, or mysterious. The inhabitants will be almost
completely out of touch with their neighbors, except perhaps for
occasional trips to a market or furtive meetings in the fields.
Highland Clan Hold: The fortified village or stone and wood fort
of a Highland Clan and its supporters, usually found in the harsher,
more mountainous parts of Daradja. If you are from such a hold,
you are automatically from the Highlander Class. A list of Highland
Clans can be found on page 50.
Fortified Village: A small, walled village and its immediate environs,
either independent or beholden to a nearby Citadel King. Someone
might claim to rule the place, but its just as likely to have no clear
authority figures except its priests and priestesses.
Fortified Hill Town: A large, walled hilltop town and its immediate
environs, almost certainly beholden to a nearby Citadel King as a
tributary. Such towns are the economic mainstay of the region,
and it is unlikely for them to remain independent for long.
Tributary Citadel: A large castle or tower-fort and its immediate
environs, which pays tribute to either one of the Great Citadels
or to an Independent Citadel. Stone towers are found almost
everywhere in Daradja, and whoever lives in them will usually
claim to be a King or a Queen or a Lord or a Lady.
Independent Citadel: A large castle or tower-fort and its nearby
environs that does not pay tribute to one of the Great Citadels.
There are currently two Independent Citadels: An-Taral (held
by King Becir) and Kir Doss (held by King Vlado).
Great Citadel: One of the four Great Citadels of Daradja, great
castle-forts built by either Queen Dara or Queen Druxada in
the Golden Age. They are Dara Dess (held by King Bran), AnAthark (held by King Renham), Finleth (held by King Alexus),
and Heth Moll (held by King Gavagh).
A list of major Daradjan Citadels and their interrelations can be
found in the previous chapter on The Known World Today.

Creating Your Character

Daradjan Social Class &

ParentS OccupatioNS

Roll d10 and add your Social Level Modifier from your Birthplace, or
choose Social Level and Class; then toll d10 or choose each Parents
Occupation.
SL
1-2

3-4

5-6

7-8

9+

Social Class
Outlaw

Highlander*

Freeman

Artisan

Citadel-born

2nd Roll
1-3
4-5

Parents Occupation
Brigand, Highland
Hermit

6-7

Pirate

8-9

Thug

10

roll as Highlander

1
2

roll as Outlaw
Chieftain or War Chief

3-4

Hunter

Scout

Shaman

Soldier (foot) (Free Company)

8-9

Warrior (Clan)

10

roll as Freeman

1
2

roll as Highlander
Farmer

Fisher

Herder

House Servant

Laborer

7
8

Priestess (Mystery Cult:

Hathhalla)
Priestess (Yheran)

Trader

10

roll as Artisan

1
2

roll as Freeman
Artisan

Bard

Courtesan

Entertainer

Fortune Teller

Householder

Midwife

Magician

10

roll as Citadel-born

1
2

roll as Artisan
Bannerman (War Chief )

Bannerman (Warlord)

4-5

Guard

Herald

Legionare (Dara Dess only)

Noble

910

Warrior (Citadel)

Daradjan Lineages

Roll d20 once on the Table to determine your Mothers Lineage,

and then again to determine your Fathers Lineage, or you may
choose. Then see the specific Lineage Tables in Appendix A.
Roll
1-3
4-5
6
716
17
1819
20

Lineage Table
Maelite
Danian
Aurian
Daradjan
Athairi
Archaic Dran
Unusual

DARADJAN NAMES

In addition to traditional Daradjan names, many inhabitants

of the Highlands use names from other Cultures, particularly
Athairi, Danian, archaic Dran, and Maelite names, often
reflecting where they came from originally.
Mens Names: Dragomir, Branimir, Mutimir, Radomir, Magnus,
Alexus, Constans, Mercer, Mirsed, Miso, Malik, Malar, Becir,
Pavel, Zdelav, Caslav, Vaslav, Vlado, Umar, Urs, Istvn, Bela,
Borna, Demetrius, Jon, Miklos, Mikhail, Brancovic, Usanovic,
Janovic, Zunic, Saban, Daut.
Womens Names: Dahlia, Fara, Farrah, Nora, Mara, Venera,
Sava, Sela, Ella, Iva, Isola, Isole, Iolande, Yolande, Anastasius,
Aspara, Juras, Gabeta, Gabija, Lysia, Leda, Ferris, Ferise, Erce,
Evaka, Arraca, Russela, Radegasta, Igrath, Yrgrath, Mahte.
Family Names: Daradjans do not use family surnames, generally.
Most individuals are described as son of or daughter of, or
a Lineage will be invoked if an ancestor is illustrious enough to
be identified. Sometimes birthplaces or homes are also used as
identifiers, as in of Dara Dess or of Glam Aras.

DaraDJAN CULTURAL ITEMS

Roll d10 if you gain a Cultural Item from your LifePath, and
then apply the bonus from the entry that gave you the Item as
appropriate. See the chapter on Magic and Enchantments.
Roll
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10

Item
Helmet with Horsehair plume
Galactide amulet (empty)
Amber amulet, with insect fossil
Hyacinth amulet
Silver dagger
Crystal amulet
Labiran Ward Magic rune amulet
Labiran Motion rune amulet
Folk Charm to Ward a Person from Danger
Golden Age Heirloom (roll again to determine
exactly what; triple normal value)

* Gain a Hate non-Daradjans 1 Binding

Adventures in the Known World

145

Creating Your Character

LifePath STEP TWO:

YOUR
LINEAGE
& BIRTH

aving determined where you were born and under

what circumstances, you should now have the first
basic information about your parents their Social
Level, Social Class and Occupations and the names of Lineage
Tables to consult to determine the bloodlines of your mother
and father in other words, their ancestry and yours. If you
havent already done so, refer to your Cultures Lineages and
make two rolls, one for your mother and one for your father.

The Lineage Tables are in Appendix A. There are
a lot of them, and rather than fill up a big part of the middle
of the book with table after table of Lineage information, the
Tables have been placed in the back in the first Appendix. Go
to the Tables indicated by the rolls or choices youve made,
and either roll or choose a bloodline for your mother and then
one for your father. Most of the Tables will actually be a series
of sub-Tables, separated by a dark line, and if youre rolling
randomly then you will first have to determine which section
of the Table you use with a d10 roll, then make a second d10
roll to determine your actual Lineage. The subsections of each
Table will usually group Lineages together by time period.
Each Lineage will provide you with the following information
about your bloodline:
Ancestor: The name of a primary ancestor, who will be the
most recent Hero or person of note in your Lineage, if any.
Some Lineages are Common Lineages, indicating that you do
not come from notable or Heroic stock, but rather that your
ancestors were from the common bloodlines that runs in the
veins of your people. Even a Common Lineage will have an
effect on your starting Characteristics.
Hero Path: Some brief (very brief ) information on how your
illustrious ancestor earned their fame and renown for good or
ill. You might be able to find further information about an
ancestor in the history and background sections of this book
or in the forthcoming book Artesia: The Middle Kingdoms
Sourcebook, or you can flesh out this information on your own
in consultation with your Guide.
Lineage Effect: This is the effect that your ancestry has on your
starting Characteristics. On your Character Sheet there are lines
for your Mothers Lineage and your Fathers Lineage where you
can note any bonuses or penalties to your Characteristics that
result from their Lineages. Note as well any Gifts or Bindings
that you might have inherited as a result of your ancestry. Then
add your Lineage bonuses and penalties from both your parents
Lineages to your starting Characteristics, except when both your
parents are from the same Lineage. If both your parents share
the same Lineage, then their Lineages dont stack, and you only
apply the bonuses and penalties once.

146

Adventures in the Known World

C Both of your parents come from the Danian Common

Lineage, so each of them would have a 1 STAM, +1 PRE,

and +1WIS Lineage Effect. Youd write those down on your
parents Lineage lines on your Character Sheet, but since
theyre the same Lineage you dont add the two together to get
a total of 2 STAM, +2 PRE, and +2 WIS. Instead you simply
apply the modifiers a single time, applying 1 STAM, +1 PRE,
and +1 WIS as modifiers to your stating Characteristics.

C Your mother was of common Danian stock, with a

Lineage Effect of 1 STAM, +1 PRE, and +1WIS, and your

father was a descendant of the Danian Hero Petraeus, with a
Lineage Effect of +1 STR, +1 PRE, +1 COUR, and +1 WIS.
Since these are different Lineages, you add them together and
you would wind up with modifiers of +1 STR, 1 STAM, +2
PRE, +1 COUR, and +1 WIS.

C Your father was a descendant of Petraeus with a Lineage

Effect of +1 STR, +1 PRE, +1 COUR, and +1 WIS as in the

example above, but in this case your mother was a descendant
of the Athairi Spring Queen Ymaire, with a Lineage Effect
of +1 APP, 1 STR, +1 DEX, +1 PRE, +1 WIS, and the Gift
Spellbinding Form 1. You add the two Lineage effects together
to get modifiers of +1 APP, +1 DEX, +2 PRE, +1 COUR, and
+2 WIS, so those are the modifiers you would apply to your
Starting Characteristics. In this case, your mothers 1 STR
Effect cancels out your fathers +1 STR Effect. And then you
would also gain the Gift Spellbinding Form 1. If your father
had also had that Gift as a Lineage Effect, you would have
added their Levels together.
Lineage History: Finally youll learn a brief history of your
ancestors bloodline in the event that they themselves come from
the Lineage of another Heroic figure of note (descendant of Perein,
son of common Danians). Most of the time, this sort of bloodline
information is common knowledge in the Known World, and its
inhabitants routinely cite their illustrious ancestors.
Your Lineage is the most basic building block of your Character, at
least as regards your Characteristics, but your starting Characteristics
can be raised or lowered by the influence of the Stars, your Omens,
your experiences, and ultimately by hard work and the game, so you
shouldnt necessarily be worried if you roll or choose Lineages that
dont leave you with high bonuses.

When (or perhaps if) you have children, you will
pass along to them the more powerful of the two bloodlines,
your mothers Lineage or your fathers Lineage, as determined in
consultation with your Guide. The easiest way to determine which
Lineage is more powerful is to total the number of bonus points it
gives. The Hero Lineage Gift from the World Arcana allows powerful
and heroic Characters to better the prospects for their progeny. When
you come from a line of Heroes, each of your Heroic ancestors has
made changes to the Lineage Effect that they inherited, so that over
time the cumulative Lineage Effect for your bloodline has improved.
Conversely, a Lineage may be impacted negatively by Curses, which
can sometimes be passed along to your descendants.

Creating Your Character

SECRET LINEAGES
Under some circumstances, you might be unaware of the details of
your Lineage History; perhaps you grow up as a foundling, or the
person you think is your father really isnt, or the details of your
ancestry have been lost to time and you dont know anything about
your family prior to a few generations ago. If youd like that to be
the case, ask your Guide and if they think its okay, your Guide can

Your Birth Sign

In the Known World, the stars above turn in the sky in a predictable
pattern called the Celestial Path. The Star Signs of the Celestial
Path are markers on the road to Heaven, and they can bring
fortune, both good and ill, to those born under their influence.
That influence can be described as Mild, Moderate, or Strong;
the stronger the influence of the stars, then the greater the impact
on your Characters starting Characteristics. No one is sure what
causes the influence of the stars to wax or wane upon those being
born; children being born on the same day and even in the same
household may still feel the touch of the Celestial Path to different
degrees.

roll or choose your Lineages for you and tell you the Effects on
your starting Characteristics, but you can then remain ignorant
of the details of your ancestrys Lineage History until you do
some investigating in the game. Given the ubiquitous nature of
Divination and the cultural emphasis on Lineage, however, this
should only occur in the sort of unusual situations produced by
the occasional roll on the Unusual Parental Status Table.

The Celestial Path is actually used as a calendar amongst
the peoples of the Empire of Thessid-Gola and the Queendom of
Amora-and-Meretia. Some parts of The Known World still use the
Dran Lunar calendar, which tracks the phases of the Moon, or
the Imperial Avellan calendar created by Islik the Divine King,
and long the official calendar of the Sun Court. In the Middle
Kingdoms, the primary calendar is the Imperial Avellan calendar,
but in neighboring Daradja, a mix of the Imperial Avellan calendar
and the old Dran Lunar calendar is used. Your specific date of
birth has no real impact on your Character Creation, but if you
want to decide on a specific date of birth, more information on
the calendars of the Known World can be found on pages 147 and
263-265.

LifePath Star Sign Chart

Roll d12 or choose Star Sign, then roll d10 or choose Influence.
Roll
1
2
3
4
5
6
7
8
9
10
11
12

STAR SIGN
The Ram
The Sun Bull
The Sky Twins
The Scarab
The Sun Lion
The Maiden
The Scales
The Sphinx
The Archer
The Dragon
The Star-Child
The Serpent

1-6: Mild Influence

7-9: Moderate Influence

10: Strong Influence

+1 STAM, 1 WILL
+1 STR, 1 REAS
+1 EMP, 1 STAM
+1 TECH, 1 IMAG
+1 COUR, 1 WIS
+1 APP, 1 CONV
+1 MEM, 1 PRE
+1 PER, 1 EMP
+1 DEX, 1 EMP
+1 PRE, 1 APP
+1 WIS, 1 STR
+1 IMAG, 1 TECH

+1 STAM +1 STR, 1 WILL

+1 STR, +1 PRE, 1 REAS
+1 EMP, +1 CONV, 1 STAM
+1 TECH, +1 REAS, 1 IMAG
+1 COUR, +1 MEM, 1 WIS
+1 APP, +1 REAS, 1 CONV
+1 MEM, +1 REAS, 1 PRE
+1 PER, +1 WILL, 1 EMP
+1 DEX, +1 PER, 1 EMP
+1 PRE, +1 WILL, 1 APP
+1 WIS, +1 CONV, 1 STR
+1 IMAG, +1 WIS, 1 TECH

+2 STAM, +1 STR, 1 PER, 1 WILL

+2 STR, +1 PRE, 1 REAS, 1 DEX
+2 EMP, +1 CONV 1 STAM, 1 COUR
+2 TECH, +1 REAS, 1 IMAG, 1 DEX
+2 COUR, +1 MEM, 1 WIS, 1 TECH
+2 APP, +1 REAS, 1 CONV, 1 PER
+2 MEM, +1 REAS, 1 PRE, 1 STAM
+2 PER, +1 WILL, 1 EMP, 1 APP
+2 DEX, +1 PER, 1 EMP, 1 IMAG
+2 PRE, +1 WILL, 1 APP, 1 CONV
+2 WIS, +1 CONV, 1 STR, 1 COUR
+2 IMAG, +1 WIS, 1 TECH, 1 WILL

The night sky over Cuir Keep, west of Abenton.

Adventures in the Known World

147

Creating Your Character

THE STAR SIGNS

The Sign of the Ram

Dran Lunar Calendar: 3/27 5/1

Imperial Avellan Calendar: 3/21 4/20
This Sign is associated with Ammon Agdah as
the herald of spring. Those born under the
Sign of the Ram are full of vigor and strength,
but perhaps not particularly disciplined, being
easily distracted by the pleasures of life.

The Sign of the Scales

Dran Lunar Calendar: 10/14 11/16

Imperial Avellan Calendar: 9/21 10/21
This Sign is associated with Hathhalla, the
Goddess of Justice and Vengeance; the scales are
a symbol of her Cult, as is the sword. Those
born under the Sign of the Scales have excellent
memories, cataloguing the good and the bad in
those around them, but often come across as
aloof and distant.

The Sign of the Sun Bull

Dran Lunar Calendar: 5/2 6/4

Imperial Avellan Calendar: 4/21 5/21
This Sign is associated with Illiki Helios,
another seasonal deity, though the Aurians
associate it with an ancestor-god named Hekor
who is no longer worshipped today. Those
born under the Sign of the Bull are strong in
body and presence, but can be a bit slow on
the uptake.

The Sign of the Sky Twins

Dran Lunar Calendar: 11/17 12/18

Imperial Avellan Calendar: 10/22 11/20
This Sign is associated with the mysterious
Sphinx, who appears when unlooked for to pose
unsettling questions. Those born under the
Sign of the Sphinx are sharp-eyed and attuned
to the world around them, but often look on
other people as puzzles to be understood.

Dran Lunar Calendar: 6/5 7/6

Imperial Avellan Calendar: 5/22 6/20
This Sign is associated with Dall and Pulma,
the twin Thulamite heroes of the Starlight
Spears who ascended to the Heavens. Those
born under the Sign of the Sky Twins connect
easily with other people and with divine forces,
but are often frail, as though they share their
energy with an unseen counterpart.

The Sign of the Archer

The Sign of the Scarab

The Sign of the Dragon

Dran Lunar Calendar: 7/7 8/9

Imperial Avellan Calendar: 6/21 7/21
This Sign is associated with Daedekamani,
who sometimes took the form of a scarab
when he went amongst the ancient Golans.
Those born under the Sign of the Scarab are
good with their hands and at making things,
but surprisingly are not very imaginative,
instead being better at repeating something
others have done first. They are builders, but
not originators.

Dran Lunar Calendar: 12/19 13/21

Imperial Avellan Calendar: 11/21 12/21
This Sign is associated with the Dran heroine
Hannath Hammergreia, who had nine lives and
was reputed the greatest archer of the Golden
Age. Those born under the Sign of the Archer
are full of grace and agility, but are often cold
and impersonal in their dealings with others.

Dran Lunar Calendar: 13/21 1/24

Imperial Avellan Calendar: 12/22 1/21
This Sign is associated with the great Dragons
that still lurk in dark corners of the World and
the Heavens, and with the ancient hero Cewert,
the first Dragon King of old. Those born under
the Sign of the Dragon have great presence and
strength of character, but are often thought to
be less than pleasing to the eye.

The Sign of the Star-Child

Dran Lunar Calendar: 8/10 9/11

Imperial Avellan Calendar: 7/22 8/20
This Sign is associated with both Helios, the
Solar Disc who takes the form of a lion. Those
born under the Sign of the Lion are impetuous,
brash, and full of courage, but often charge in
where cooler heads might argue for caution.

Dran Lunar Calendar: 1/25 2/24

Imperial Avellan Calendar: 1/22 2/18
This Sign is associated with the Archai, the great
Spirits of the Heavens. Those born under the
Sign of the Star-Child often have great insight
into the world around them and the Cosmos
above and below, but just as often weak, as
though they have trouble affecting the material
world.

The Sign of the Maiden

The Sign of the Serpent

The Sign of the Sun Lion

Dran Lunar Calendar: 9/12 10/13

Imperial Avellan Calendar: 8/21 9/20
This Sign is associated with Urige, the First
Queen of the World; she is mostly worshipped
in the south, in Amora and the Gola, and in
other regions a local heroine-goddess will be
associated with this sign. Those born under
the Sign of the Maiden are beautiful, but often
self-involved and oblivious to the forces in the
world around them.

148

The Sign of the Sphinx

Adventures in the Known World

Dran Lunar Calendar: 2/25 3/26

Imperial Avellan Calendar: 2/19 3/20
This Sign is associated with the Cosmic Serpent
that encircles the World, and which is both
Yhera and her greatest enemy. Those born
under the Sign of the Serpent are creative and
open-minded thinkers, but often have trouble
making their ideas into reality.

Creating Your Character

THE CELESTIAL CALENDAR

The Ram
Nisanu

The Bull
Ayargu

The Sky Twins

Hasiggisah

The Scarab
Damuzu

The Sun Lion

Lebargu

The Maiden
Urigu

The Scales
Tashru

The Sphinx
Djarahsvan

The Archer
Hanunat

The Dragon
Tiamet

The Star-Child
Shebetae

The Serpent
Adaral

1
8
15
22
29
5
12
19
26
2
9
16
23
30
7
14
21
28
4
11
18
25
2
9
16
23
30
7
14
21
28
4
11
18
25
2
9
16
23
30
6
13
20
27
3
10
17
24
3
10
17
24

2
9
16
23
30
6
13
20
27
3
10
17
24
1
8
15
22
29
5
12
19
26
3
10
17
24
1
8
15
22
29
5
12
19
26
3
10
17
24
31
7
14
21
28
4
11
18
25
4
11
18
25

3
10
17
24
31
7
14
21
28
4
11
18
25
2
9
16
23
30
6
13
20
27
4
11
18
25
2
9
16
23
30
6
13
20
27
4
11
18
25
1
8
15
22
29
5
12
19
26
5
12
19
26

4
11
18
25
1
8
15
22
29
5
12
19
26
3
10
17
24
31
7
14
21
28
5
12
19
26
3
10
17
24
31
7
14
21
28
5
12
19
26
2
9
16
23
30
6
13
20
27
6
13
20
27

5
12
19
26
2
9
16
23
30
6
13
20
27
4
11
18
25
1
8
15
22
29
6
13
20
27
4
11
18
25
1
8
15
22
29
6
13
20
27
3
10
17
24
31
7
14
21
28
7
14
21
28

6
13
20
27
3
10
17
24
31
7
14
21
28
5
12
19
26
2
9
16
23
30
7
14
21
28
5
12
19
26
2
9
16
23
30
7
14
21
28
4
11
18
25
1
8
15
22
1
8
15
22
29

7
14
21
28
4
11
18
25
1
8
15
22
29
6
13
20
27
3
10
17
24
1
8
15
22
29
6
13
20
27
3
10
17
24
1
8
15
22
29
5
12
19
26
2
9
16
23
2
9
16
23
30

1/1 New Years Festival of the Ram

1/2 Spring Equinox Festival

2/1 Festival of the Sun Bull

2/11 Day of the Dead
2/12 First of Summer Fire Festival
2/13 Festival of the Summer Moon
3/1 Festival of the Sky Twins

3/30 Midsummers Eve

4/1 Summer Festival of the Scarab

5/1 Festival of the Sun Lion

5/11 First Festival of Autumn
5/19 Autumn Moon Festival
6/1 Festival of the Maiden

7/1 Fall Festival of the Scales

8/1 Festival of the Sphinx

8/12 Night of the Wild Hunt
8/13 Day of the Law, First of Winter
8/14 9/26 Days of Ashes
9/1 Festival of the Archer
9/10 Festival of the Winter Moon
9/27 10/7 The Twelve Days
9/28 9/30 Festival of the Dead
9/31 Feast of the Winter Solstice
10/1 Festival of the Dragon
10/8 Festival of the Dawn
10/11 Day of Helios Return
11/1 Festival of the Star-Child
11/11 First Day of Spring
11/18 Festival of the Spring Moon
12/1 Festival of the Serpent

Almost as old as the Dran Lunar

Calendar (see the section on Calendars
on pages 263-265) is the Golan
Celestial Calendar, based upon the
cycle of the Star Signs. The appearance
of a new Sign in the Heavens marks the
beginning of a new month. The Golan
calendar year begins with the first
appearance of the Ram (which appears
on the 27th day of Axe Moon in the
Dran Calendar), so the Celestial
New Year comes several months after
the Lunar New Year.

For many Characters the
most useful element of this Calendar
will be in determining the current
Star Signs for Readings in Astrology;
festival names marked in bold indicate
a festival associated with one of the
12 Star Signs. The monthly names in
italics are the old Golan names for the
months, still in use in the Empire and
even by many Astrologers.

The Celestial Calendar fell
out of official use after Dauban Hess
instituted the Imperial calendar, but
beginning with Akkalion it returned to
official favor in the Great Schools of the
Gola (having never left popular favor in
the South and the Gola in particular).
Eventually the Celestial Calendar was
reinstated as the official calendar of
the Thessid-Golan Empire, and also in
the neighboring Queendom of Amoraand-Meretia, though they both use the
Imperial Avellan Calendar as the official
Divine King liturgical calendar.

The dating of Celestial years
began with the institutionalization of
the calendar by King Hashuwaht, but
Golan scholars dispute whether the
current date is c2431 (the generally
accepted number, marked with a c
to indicate the Celestial Calendar) or
c2831 (making the calendar older than
the Dran calendar). Official Imperial
annals in Thessid-Gola are dated from
the ascent of Akkalion to the Emperors
throne, 445 years ago, though some
date it from when he fell into the Gray
Dream, 405 years ago.

12/30 New Years Eve

Adventures in the Known World

149

Creating Your Character

Your Birth Omens

Sometimes the World responds to a birth by giving a sign or
Omen indicating the nature of the newborns future. Many
parents, midwives, and priests will watch for Omens upon the
birth of a child, and so most of the time it would be common
knowledge if your birth were accompanied by an Omen. Your
Omens help dictate how other people treat you and react to
you when youre younger, so its almost impossible not to grow
up knowing what Omens you were born under (unless no one
knows what they were, or had a reason to hide them from
you).

Omens are generally Good Omens or Ill Omens,
indicating a future filled with the possibility of good fortune, or
one cursed with ill fortune. Some Omens are considered kind
of Tricky; some cultures might consider them Good Omens,
but other cultures might consider them Ill Omens, as they
indicate both good and bad things for your future. All Omens
will provide you with bonuses or penalties to your starting
Characteristics that you may add at this time, and some may
provide you with Gifts or Bindings.

Either roll randomly or choose from the presented
options on the Birth Omen Table, and then from the Good
or Ill Omen Tables; if your Guide is letting you choose and
you choose a Doomed, Tricky, or Great Destiny (and who
wouldnt?), you should probably roll the number of Omens
randomly anyway (just to prevent a campaign from having
all of its Characters running around with four or five Birth
Omens). For Tricky and Great Destinies, roll first to
determine the number of total Omens you received, and then
roll or choose each Omen from the Omen Tables indicated;
you can mix and match, so if you have a Tricky Destiny you
could have Omens from both the Tricky Omen and Ill Omen
Tables.

If you choose or roll a Rare Omen, roll or choose
one from the Rare Omen Table, and then roll or choose again
on the Birth Omen table, so you will have one Rare Omen
and then at least a chance of another Omen taken from one
of the regular Omen Tables. Rare Omens should be used only
sparingly; a rare omen might happen only once or twice a year,
perhaps even once a generation.

Most of the cultures of the Known World, though they
believe in the Fates, also believe that individuals can alter their own
destinies; ones Birth Omens are considered an indication of whether
the Cosmos will aid or oppose your endeavors in life, as opposed to an
ironclad guarantee of how your life will turn out. So dont be worried
if you get Tricky or Ill Omens, as you will have plenty of chances to
avoid the end the Fates are signaling for you. As always, your Guide
has the final say about what Omens are being used in your campaign,
how many you can have, and which you can have.

LifePath Birth Omen Table

Roll d20 on the Heroic column or choose; or roll d100 on the Mundane
column or choose. Your Guide will let you know which column to
use in your campaign. The Mundane column presents more realistic
odds for getting unusual or rare Omens, so use the Heroic column in
campaigns aimed at producing lots of potentially powerful starting
Characters.
Heroic
1

Mundane
1-2

3-6

3-4

71 5

5-6

16-25

716
1718

26-75
76-95

19

96-99

20

100

Destiny
Doomed! Roll or choose d3+1 times
on the Ill Omen Table.
Tricky Destiny! Roll or choose d3+1
times on either the Tricky or Ill Omen
Table.
Ill Omen. Roll or choose once on the
Ill Omen Table.
Tricky Omen. Roll or choose once on
the Tricky Omen Table.
No Omens. A typical birth.
Good Omen. Roll or choose once on
the Good Omen Table.
Great Destiny! Roll or choose d3+1
times on either the Good or Tricky
Omen Table.
Rare Omen! Roll or choose once
on the Rare Omen Table, then again
on this Table, ignoring a roll of 20
(or 100), so you cant have two Rare
Omens.

LifePath Good Omen Table

Roll d10 or choose.

150

Roll

Omen

Common Interpretation

The Great Star is seen in the night sky.

You are meant for great things: +1 WILL, +1 PRE.

The Herald Star is seen in the night sky.

You will be greeted with courtesy wherever you go: +1 PRE, +1 IMAG.

The Morning Star is seen in the night sky.

You will be fortunate in love: +1 EMP, +1 APP.

An auroch or great bull is seen nearby.

You will lead a life of vigor: +1 STAM, +1 WILL.

A white stag is seen nearby.

You will lead a noble life: +1 CONV, +1 PRE.

A rainbow is seen overhead.

Yours will be a life of joy and plenty: +1 PRE, +1 TECH.

A lion is seen nearby.

You will be strong and valorous: +1 STR, +1 COUR.

Flowers bloom nearby, even in winter.

You will lead a life blessed by the Earth: +1 STAM, +1 WIS.

A dove alights nearby.

You will bring harmony to those around you: +1 EMP, +1 WIS.

10

An eagle is seen overhead.

You will grow up to be sharp-eyed and swift: +1 DEX, +1 PER.

Adventures in the Known World

Creating Your Character

LifePath Tricky Omen Table

Roll d10 or choose.
Roll

Omen

Common Interpretation

An owl watches your birth.

You will be blessed with insights no one else will have: +1 WIS, +1 PER, 1
MEM.

The Evening Star is seen in the night sky.

You will lead a life filled with beauty and sensual pleasures: +1 APP, +1 PRE,
1 WILL.

A satyr is seen nearby.

Your life will be filled with trickery: +1 IMAG, +1 PRE, 1 WILL.

The Conqueror Star is seen in the night sky.

You will become a leader of men: +1 PRE, +1 WILL, 1 EMP.

Archai (Star Messengers) are seen in the sky.

The Heavens have taken note of your birth: +1 PRE, +1 APP, 1 EMP.

A red stag is seen nearby.

You will lead a life of danger: +1 STAM, +1 COUR, 1 WIS.

The Midnight Star is seen in the night sky.

Youre born lucky: 10 Fool Arcana Points to spend as you wish.

A wild boar is seen nearby.

You will be headstrong and brash: +1 WILL, +1 COUR, 1 WIS.

A griffin is seen nearby.

You will lead a life of invention and change: +1 TECH, +1 IMAG, 1 WILL.

10

A Star Dragon is seen in the sky.

Your life will be marked by mystery: +1 IMAG, +1 WIS, 1 REAS, Cryptic

Mask 1.

LifePath Ill Omen Table

Roll d10 or choose.
Roll

Omen

Common Interpretation

The Red Veil falls upon the Moon.

Bloodshed is in your future: +1 STR, +1 COUR, 1 EMP.

The Eye of Ishraha is seen in the night sky.

You will be treacherous and troublesome: +1 WILL, +1 PRE, 1 CONV.

The War Herald is seen in the night sky.

Your life will be marked by war: +1 STR, +1 WILL, 1 EMP.

A great storm accompanies your birth.

Your future will be unsettled: +1 IMAG, 1 COUR, 1 WILL.

Crops are spoiled nearby.

You are cursed, and will grow up to be sickly: +1 PRE, 1 APP, 1 STAM.

Dead animals, birds, or fish are found nearby.

You are cursed to hard times and misery: +1 PRE, 1 APP, 1 EMP.

Wolves and carrion birds are seen nearby.

Your life will be filled with violence: +1 DEX, +1 COUR, 1 EMP.

A vulture witnesses your birth.

You will not be a stranger to death: +1 STAM, +1 COUR, 1 EMP.

A black stag is seen nearby.

You will lead a cursed and cowardly life: +1 PRE, 1 COUR.

10

A ghost is seen nearby.

You are touched by the Underworld: +1 WIS, 1 STR, 1 STAM, Ghost Mask
1.

LifePath Rare Omen Table

Roll d10 or choose.
Roll

Omen

Common Interpretation

A Spirit visits your birth.

You are touched by the Otherworld: +1 PER, +1 WIS, 1 STR, 1 STAM,

Second Sight 2.

Hathhallas Veil descends over the Sun.

Your birth is an act of revenge: +1 STR, +1 PRE, 1 EMP, See Guilt 2.

The Wild Hunt rages nearby.

You will cause tumult and chaos wherever you go: +1 STR, +1 IMAG, 1
WILL, Voice of Fury 2.

The Sun Eater tries to consume the Sun.

You will lead a life of great misfortune: +1 PRE, 1 STAM, Doubt 2 Binding.

A flood or earthquake occurs nearby.

You will be surrounded by great disaster: +1 PRE, 1 STAM, 1 DEX, Evil

Eye 2.

A Dragon is seen moving in the Earth nearby.

Great powers will manifest in your life: +1 PRE, +1 COUR. Heroic Aura 2.

A monster is spotted nearby.

Your life will be filled with insensibility: +1 STR, 1 REAS, 1 WILL, Fury 2
Binding.

You are born with a caul.

You will be a magician: +1 WIS, +1 WILL, +1 IMAG, 1 APP, Second Sight 2.

A wyrm or wyvern is seen nearby.

You are destined to be a treasure-seeker: +1 PER, 1 WILL, Greed 2 Binding.

10

The Great Shadow falls upon the Moon.

Your life will be darkened by confusion and doubt: +1 IMAG, 1 PER, 1

CONV, 1 WILL, Chaotic Aura 2.

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151

Creating Your Character

LifePath sTEP three:

YOUR FAMILY
& CHILDHOOD

n this Step of the LifePath youll find out more information about
your family and then figure out what your childhood was like.
You should already know your parents (or foster parents) Social
Level, Social Class, and Occupations, and their and your ancestry.
Now you can find out whether or not you have any brothers and
sisters and what it was like growing up.

First roll a d10 to determine the number of brothers and
sisters you have or choose a number up to 7 siblings. A roll of 17 tells you the number of siblings in your family. A roll of 810
indicates that youre an only child. Then, roll d10 to determine your
place amongst your siblings; so a 1 would mean youre the firstborn,
a 2 would mean you were second-born, etc. An 910 indicates that
youre a twin (roll again to determine placement, with further rolls
of 910 indicating a triplet, a quadruplet, etc.). Finally, roll a d10 to
determine each siblings gender, with an odd roll indicating a brother
and an even roll indicating a sister.

Finally, for each parent (or foster parent) of whom you are
aware, roll on the Family Attitude Table to determine how they feel
about you. Sympathetic Guides may wish to give parents a bonus or
+2 or so on their roll for Family Attitude, if they are uncomfortable
with the notion of a parental Enemy or Rival. Then for each sibling
you have, roll once to determine their relationship to you. This can
mean a lot of rolling to flesh out your family, so if it seems like too
much trouble you can always choose to be an only child.

FAMILY ATTITUDE TABLE

J YOUR FRIENDS & ENEMIES

Your childhood and your year-by-year passage through the LifePath in

Step Four may produce Friends or Enemies; if they come from outside
your family, you can roll on the Social Class and Occupation charts to
determine whom they are and what they do. In the case of Enemies,
Adversaries, Rivals, etc., the reasons for an enmity may be included
in the appropriate Table entry, but in some cases no reason will be
given. You can roll on the Table below and use the entry as a basis for
explaining your new Enemy.

THE WHY OH WHY? TABLE

Roll d10 or choose.
Roll

One of you

caused the death of a loved one. Either by accident

or on purpose, one of you was in some way responsible
for the death of someone the other person loved. If
you caused a death, gain a Guilt 1 Binding; otherwise
gain a Grief 3 Binding and a Hate 2 Binding aimed at
the other person.

made a false accusation against the other. One of

you got the other in a lot of trouble with your family,
your community, your employers, or the law. The
falsely accused party gains a Fury 1 Binding against the
one who made the false accusations.

caused a loss of standing or reputation. Whether

by gossip or direct action, one of you blackened the
reputation of the other and caused a loss of social
standing. One of you loses 2 Social Levels, and the
other gains a Guilt 1 Binding.

caused a major humiliation. One of you must

accept a Shame 1 Binding, caused by the actions of the
other.

caused a physical disability. One of you must

accept the loss of one point of a Physical Characteristic,
caused by the actions of the other, who gains a Guilt 1
Binding.

deserted or betrayed the other. One of you left the

other in the lurch, and gains a Shame 1 Binding.

Roll d10 or choose.

Roll

Relation

Explanation

Family Enemy

They hate your guts, or you hate

them, or both. If you want to know
why, you can roll on the Why Oh
Why Table found in the sidebar to
the right.

Family Rival

They constantly compete with you

and may be quite envious of your
success, or vice versa.

caused the exile of the other. One of you caused

the other to be exiled from your home and region, and
gains a Guilt 1 Binding.

Family Skeptic

They distrust you for some reason,

though they will not actively seek to
undermine you.

4-5

Family Compatriot

They are cordial in their dealings

with you, but have no special
affection for you.

foiled the others plans. One of you interfered with

the romantic, business, or military plans of the other,
either for just cause, for sport, or by accident. The
injured party gains a Hate 1 Binding towards the other.

just plain rubbed the other the wrong way. You

have opposite personalities and one or both of you
thinks the other is a complete jerk. You might have a
Hate 1 Binding towards the other person, or you might
not feel bothered enough to react: your choice.

10

hasnt a clue. Youve got no idea why you have

become foes. You might have a Hate 1 Binding
towards the other person, or be a befuddled victim of
someone elses irrational hatred: your choice.

6-7

Family Friend

They like you and you get along

well.

8-9

Family Ally

Youre very close and they will almost

always take your side in family
arguments.

10

152

Family Agent

They think youre great and will do

just about anything you ask, and will
sometimes actively seek to help you
out even when you dont ask.

Adventures in the Known World

Creating Your Character

YOUR CHILDHOOD
Roll d10 or choose to determine what the central and pivotal event
of your childhood was. A roll of 1-4 indicates you should roll on
the Childhood Ill Fortune Table, a roll of 5-8 indicates a roll on the
Childhood Good Fortune Table, and a roll of 910 indicates that
you should roll once on each Table. If you prefer, you can always
choose to have led an entirely uneventful Childhood and not roll
on either table. If you grew up in An-Athair, Daradja, amongst the
Watchtowers (outside of Angowrie), or in the Danian Kingdom of
Umis, you will have belonged to the Mystery Cult of Adjia as a
youngster (see The Mysteries of Adjia on page 245).

Childhood Ill Fortune

Table
Roll d10 or choose.
Roll

Ill Fortune

Accident. You lose one point of a Physical

Characteristic of your choice after a terrible
childhood accident.

Maltreatment. You were mistreated in the hands of

a parent or family member; you lose a point of EMP,
and gain a Fury 1 Binding and a Hate your malefactor
1 Binding.

Disease. You survived a brush with the Fever,

Plague, or Rot, but lose a point of STAM.

Dropped. You were dropped on your head while an

infant, and lose a point of REAS.

Parental Loss. One or both parents died during

your childhood.* Roll d10 or choose to determine
which parent was lost; a roll of 1-4 indicates your
father, a 5-8 your mother, and 91 0 indicates both
parents. You gain a (now Dormant) Grief Binding
equal to half your EMP score.

Family Loss. One or more siblings died during your

childhood.* Roll d6 or choose to determine the
number of siblings you lost. You must gain a (now
Dormant) Grief Binding equal to half your EMP
score.

Torment. You were tormented by the mockery of

other children who liked making fun of you. You
lose a point of EMP and you gain an Ambition 2
Binding.

Homeless. Your childhood home was destroyed

either by natural disaster or by the hand of man.*
You may not receive an inheritance or heirlooms
during the LifePath or in the game.

10

Ghost. You had an encounter with a ghost or angry

Spirit. You gain Second Sight 1 and gain a Fear
Ghosts (or Spirits, as appropriate) 1 Binding.
Prying Eyes. You saw something you shouldnt have,
lose a point of COUR, and gain a Shame 1 Binding.

* In these cases, you can choose whether the cause was natural or manmade; if a human hand was involved, you gain an Enemy and a Hate
the responsible party 2 Binding.

Childhood Good Fortune

TABLE
Roll d10 or choose.
Roll

Good Fortune

Dreamer. You were a precocious, creative, and

inquisitive child. You may add one point to both
IMAG and COUR.

Childhood Patron. You attracted the attention of

strong forces and patrons in your Culture, and may
begin Step Four of your LifePath with any Occupation
from the next higher Social Class.

Active Youth. You were an active, physical young

person and may add one point to any two Physical
Characteristics.

Apt Pupil. You were an attentive and responsive

student. You may add a point to REAS and begin Step
Four of the LifePath with 10 additional Training Points
to spend.

Save a Life. Your quick actions and thinking saved

someones life. Gain a Friend, and you may add one
point to COUR.

First Love. You found love early. Gain a Lover, and

you may add one point to EMP. You may take a Love
your childhood sweetheart Binding up to your EMP in
Level if youd like.

Childhood Friend. You had a childhood best friend

with whom you are still close. Gain a Friend, and you
may add one point to EMP.

Heirloom. A parent or relative has bequeathed to

you an item of note, enchanted at +2. Roll on your
Cultural Item Chart to determine the actual object.

Spirit Blessing. You had a wondrous encounter

with a faerie or earth Spirit of some sort. You gain
Otherworldly Visage 1 and you may add one point to
WIS.

10

Temple Assistant. You were chosen to assist the priests

or priestesses of a local Temple (dedicated to a God
appropriate to your Culture and religion). You gain 3
Training Points in Cult Lore (for your God), and you
may add one point to CONV. You may take the Priest
or Priestess Occupation as your starting Occupation if
you choose.*

*In Palatia, Amora, the Isliklid Kingdoms and the Daradjan

Highlands, for young girls who make an APP Test DR 10, this
could be the jackpot:
Adjias Companions. During your youth you are chosen to be
a member of Adjias Companions, the chaste entourage that
accompanies the goddess Adjia in her hunts and journeys in
the wilds. You gain Glorious Voice 1, Unearthly Mask 1, and
may add a point to APP, STR, DEX, STAM, and CONV, but
also gain a Fury at Men 1 Binding.
See the Cult of Adjia on page 244 for more information.

Adventures in the Known World

153

Creating Your Character

LifePath STEP FOUR:

YOUR
PREVIOUS
EXPERIENCE
Your adulthood on the LifePath begins in Step Four. Beginning at
the age of 16 you begin to accumulate experience in the world as a
(more or less) functioning adult up until your current year. Your
starting age is 21, giving you 5 years of Previous Experience.
You dont get Previous Experience for your 21st year, as thats the
current year and start of your campaign.

B ALTERNATE STARTING AGES

Your Guide may decide that rather than having everyone

start out at the same age that a mix of experience is
desirable. Your Guide may impose different starting
age ranges, depending on what kind of campaign he or
she wants to run. For a good standard range, roll 2d6
and add 14 to determine your starting age, giving you a
possible age between 16 and 28. With this die roll, you
should get an average of around 22, giving you 6 years
of Previous Experience on average (remember you dont
earn Previous Experience for your current year, thats
what the game is now for). For a younger campaign with
less experienced Characters, roll 1d6 and add 15 (for
an age range of 16 to 21). For an older group of more
experienced Characters, roll 3d6 and add 14 (for an
average age of 24-25 and a max starting age of 32).

At the start of your 16th year, you receive some starting Training
Points and an Inheritance of money donated to your adult
endeavors by your parents or family. Then you begin an adult
Occupation in which to gain Previous Experience, and for that
year of your life and every year after it (up to but not including
your current age), you will gain Training Points with which to gain
or improve Skills or Characteristics; Arcana Points with which to
improve Characteristics, Skills, and Gifts; and some Earnings from
your Starting Occupation, with which you can eventually buy your
starting possessions. In addition, each year you also roll on the
LifePath Events Table to determine what happened to you in that
particular year for better or for worse.
Starting Training Points = MEM x 3.
You begin with Training Points equal to three times your
MEM. These Training Points can only be used to improve your
Everyman Skills, Cultural Everyman Skills, Cultural Language
Skills, or your Personal Skill.
Starting Inheritance = SL x PRE.
You begin with starting money equal to your Social Level of
your parents Occupation (114) times your PRE in gold coins
(g). This is money (or more likely goods, as represented by what

154

Adventures in the Known World

you buy with the money) that your family has saved for you as a
kind of dowry or gift.
Annual Training Points = MEM + REAS.
Every year, you gain Training Points equal to your MEM plus
your REAS. These Training Points may be used to improve your
Occupational Skills, Everyman Skills, Cultural Everyman Skills,
Cultural Language Skills, or your Personal Skill. They may also
be used to increase any Characteristic. The process of increasing
Skills and Characteristics was described in the preceding section
on game basics.
Annual Arcana Points = WILL.
Every year, you gain Arcana Points equal to your WILL. These
Arcana Points may be earned in any or all of the Arcana that
are linked to your Occupation (see the Previous Experience
Occupation Table). They may be used to acquire or improve Gifts
linked to those Arcana, or to improve Skills or Characteristics
linked with those Arcana. The Arcana and their linked Skills
and Characteristics were described in the preceding section on
game basics. They may not be used to improve Occupational,
Everyman, Cultural Everyman, or Cultural Language Skills
(except where your Skills on those lists overlap the Skills linked
to the Arcana).
Annual Earnings = based on SL Table below.
Social Level

Annual Earnings

1g10s

1g10s

3g

3g2s

3g2s

4g11s

7g12s4p

12g2s

27g6s

10

78g18s

11

185g

12

291g4s

13

397g8s

14

540g

Your annual Earnings are based on your Social Level (details

on coinage and how this Table was determined can be found in
Appendix C), and may be multiplied by your House Keeping
Skill and your Commerce Skill, if any. If you come from an
Outlaw Occupation such as the Bandit, Beggar, Brigand, Pirate,
Thief, or Thug Occupations then you may gain an additional
2d20g per year (roll each year) from criminal activities. The total
Earnings that you have at the start of the game must be used
to purchase your current inventory of possessions, including all
of your clothes, armor, weapons, and transport, as well as any
permanent investments you might have made for example,
buildings, furnishings, businesses, equipment, ships, or land.
Most people rarely see or handle anything more valuable than a
silver coin, and sometimes not even that, so you should have 90%
of your total Earnings in possessions and property, with only a
small amount of actual coinage.

Creating Your Character

YOUR STARTING OCCUPATION

OCCUPATIONS LIST

In most of the Cultures of the Known World, you are prepared to

enter the adult world in one of the Occupations that your parents
hold. Gender can impact this, depending on which Culture you are
in and how strictly your Guide wants to interpret those Cultures.
For example, in the dominant Cultures of the Middle Kingdoms
the Aurian, Danian, and Watchtower King Cultures a child is
expected to follow the Occupation of the parent of the same gender.
Boys follow their fathers Occupations, and girls their mothers.
Indeed, in the Middle Kingdoms women are not normally allowed to
enter many martial or laborious Occupations, and would commonly
be expected to become a House Servant, Householder, or Lady
instead (depending on their Social Class). However, exceptions do
exist (such as the Countess Uthella of Uthmark, who was trained in
swordplay and the joust as a small child by a loving and contrarian
father) and so a Guide can discard or explain away exceptions to
such gender-biases if they choose, and Guides are encouraged to
show leniency in this regard.

If you do not want to have the same Occupation as
either of your parents, you may attempt to begin in a different
starting Occupation from the same Social Class by succeeding at a
PRE Test DR12. If you received Attention from a patron in your
childhood (see the Childhood Good Fortune Table, entry 2), you
may choose an Occupation from the next higher Social Class.

The PRE Test DR 12 is also the same Test used should you
decide later in your Previous Experience to change your Occupations
in a given year. After your first year of Previous Experience you can
normally only change your Occupation to another Occupation in
the same or lower Social Class for your Culture. Note, however,
that some of your rolls on the Events Tables may allow you to take
an Occupation in a higher Social Class, or may force you into a lower
one.

The Occupations List following this includes information on the Arcana

to which that Occupation is linked (a reflection of the kinds of activities
youve been performing and thus the life-paths towards which you are
being shepherded) and in which you may gain Annual Arcana Points, and
the Skills towards which you may devote your Annual Training Points.
On this Table you will find brief descriptions for the various Occupations
available to you as part of your Previous Experience, beginning with the
traditional name of the Occupation and the following entries:

Arcana Links: These are the Arcana that a Character engaged in this
Occupation may gain Arcana Points in each year.
Trained Skills: These are the Skills that a Character engaged in this
Occupation may improve with their Annual Training Points. The Listings
may include the following notations:
Language: This indicates that you can spend your Annual Training
Points on any Language Skill, including those that are not normally
available to you as part of your starting Cultural Languages.
Local Expert: This indicates that you can spend your Annual
Training Points on any Local Expert Skill, including areas outside
your home region.
General Skills/Specialty Skills: In some cases, you will be restricted
from spending Training Points on a general Skill and instead must
spend them on a Specialist Skill that is part of the general Skill.
For example if an entry lists Melee/Dagger as a part of its Skill
list, it means that rather than spending your Training Points on
the general Skill Melee, you can only spend those points on the
Specialty Skill Melee/Dagger (and therefore your Skill Levels can
only be used when you are wielding a dagger or knife).
And finally a general description of the Occupation is included.

PREVIOUS EXPERIENCE OCCUPATION LIST

Alchemist

Artisan

Arcana Links: Great Priest, Last Judgment, Sphinx

Trained Skills: Writing, Drawing, Letters, Language,
Research, Commerce, Craftwork, Hermetic Lore,
Alchemical Lore, Herbal Lore, Healing Arts, Occult Lore,
Housework
An Alchemists specialty is obviously Alchemical Lore,
but its rare for Alchemists to not dabble in Hermetic
Lore, Herbal Lore, or Occult Lore; indeed, Alchemy
essentially grows out of the path of Sorcery, so
Alchemists are what Sorcerers often become. They tend
to be very bookish, so they often pursue the Grimoires
and Apothecary Books of other traditions as well as their
own Alchemical writings. In Palatia, and increasingly
elsewhere, Alchemists are often members of the Mystery
Cult of the Alchymical Theater.

Arcana Links: Magician, Sword, Temperance

Trained Skills: Craftwork, Engineering, Housework,
Drawing, Blacksmithing, Artistry, Folk Lore, Herbal Lore
An Artisan is a trained and skilled craftsman, usually
working in wood, metal, ceramic, leather, or cloth. Most
Artisans will specialize in one field above all others.

Aristocrat
Arcana Links: Empress, Sphinx, Sword
Trained Skills: Leadership, Intrigue, Seduction, Inquiry,
Oratory, Heraldry, Singing, Dancing, Commerce, Riding,
Melee
Aristocrats are a relatively new phenomenon in the
Middle Kingdoms; they are nobles whose position and
influence comes not from owning land or having martial
duties to a sovereign, but from possessing wealth (often
in investments) and wielding political influence.

Assassin
Arcana Links: Sphinx, Justice, Riven Tower
Trained Skills: Stealth, Acting, Streetwise, Intrigue,
Disguise, Sleight of Hand, Tactics, Campaigning, Inquiry,
Follow, Watch, Track, Local Expert, Melee, Marksmanship
Many Cultures have experts trained at taking lives
surreptitiously. Usually they work for the ruling
elements of the Culture that protect them from discovery
in return for their services.

Astrologer
Arcana Links: Great Priest, Wheel of Fortune, Stars
Trained Skills: Star Lore, Storytelling, Composition,
Heraldry, Language, Letters, Research, Writing, Hermetic
Lore, Folk Lore
The Astrologer is found mostly in the Courts of Sun
Court lands, professional Stargazers hired to provide
Nobles and their hangers-on with Celestial guidance.

Astrologers tend to know a smattering of Hermetic

Lore (writing Star Charts leading them naturally to
the Hermetica, where many Star Charts are sometimes
included) and Folk Lore (as the wisdom of the Stars is
often infused into folk traditions).

Bandit
Arcana Links: Sphinx, Hermit, Sword
Trained Skills: Stealth, Streetwise, Disguise, Gambling,
Fieldcraft, Local Expert, Melee, Marksmanship
A Bandit is a common highwayman who makes a living
by robbing other people of their money.

Bard
Arcana Links: Magician, Lovers, Great Priest
Trained Skills: Storytelling, Composition, Artistry,
Language, Singing, Dancing, Musicianship, Intrigue,
Letters, Heraldry, Acrobatics, Folk Lore
Some Cultures have Bardic traditions, in which highly
trained and skilled singers and word-smiths act as
repositories of folk traditions. Bards are generally
thought a cut above entertainers of other stripes, and are
often reputed to have magical powers.

Beggar
Arcana Links: Hermit, Last Judgment, Justice

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Creating Your Character

Trained Skills: Storytelling, Streetwise, Follow, Watch,
Folk Lore
A Beggar is someone who makes what passes for a living
by asking for handouts from passers-by. Many are
reputed to work for criminal gangs. Beggars are largely
an urban phenomenon, though sometimes roadside
beggars can be found in the countryside, at least on
well-traveled roads.

Brigand, Highland
Arcana Links: Sphinx, Stars, Riven Tower
Trained Skills: Stealth, Disguise, Gambling,
Campaigning, Musicianship, Swimming, Navigation,
Melee, Skirmishing, Marksmanship, Folk Lore, Star Lore
Unlike the more ubiquitous Bandit, the Highland
Brigand is a storied figure, belonging to one of Daradjas
infamous brigand bands alternately dashing, cruel,
chivalric, and bloodthirsty.

Cartographer
Arcana Links: Great Priest, Hermit, Magician
Trained Skills: Drawing, Writing, Heraldry, Artistry,
Language, Inquiry, Navigation, Research, Fieldcraft, Local
Expert
Map-making is an important role in the Middle
Kingdoms, which have both a University tradition
and an apprentice tradition that produce well-trained
Cartographers.

Chieftain
Arcana Links: Empress, Sword, Strength
Trained Skills: Leadership, Seduction, Oratory, Singing,
Dancing, Intrigue, Inquiry, Melee, Armor Training,
House Keeping, Campaigning, Fieldcraft
In many Cultures, clans and loose organizations of
men and women have leaders called Chieftains. Unlike
other nobles and rulers, Chieftains must often rule by
consensus, asking their followers to do something rather
than telling them, so a Chieftains power comes from
their ability to persuade and cajole others.

Corsair
Arcana Links: Sword, Moon, Empress
Trained Skills: Campaigning, Sailing, Navigation,
Swimming, Housework, Melee, Armor Training,
Marksmanship, Tactics, Stealth, Seduction, House
Keeping, Star Lore

In some Cultures, paramilitary privateers called Corsairs

act as an arm of the ruling governments navies. Corsairs
are essentially professional pirates commissioned by a
ruler to raid a rival powers shipping fleets and lanes.

learning Yheran Cult Lore. Many Fortune Tellers are

said to be of Dran Lineages. An Oracle is a Fortune
Teller with a Dreaming Oracle, Oracular Sight, or
Oracular Touch Gift.

Courtesan

Guard

Arcana Links: Lovers, Empress, Stars

Trained Skills: Seduction, Intrigue, Acting, Singing,
Dancing, Artistry, Acrobatics, Midwifery, Musicianship,
Housework, House Keeping, Herbal Lore
In all Cultures, both men and women may make a living
by offering sexual favors to others for money. In some
Cultures, these men and women hold places of some
degree of honor and respect and may do so with some
public approval, and are called Courtesans; but most
Courtesans know societies are fickle with such honors.
In other Cultures, Courtesans must operate in secret.

Arcana Links: Strength, Emperor, Riven Tower

Trained Skills: Melee, Armor Training, Close Order,
Marksmanship, Tactics, Riding, Animal Training,
Intrigue, Inquiry, Local Expert, Heraldry
Guards are trained warriors who have dedicated
themselves to protecting an important employer, sponsor,
or liege. They are usually elite troops and usually have
very high social standing, often with a SL of 9.

Arcana Links: Magician, Riven Tower, Strength

Trained Skills: Engineering, Blacksmithing,
Campaigning, Craftwork, Drawing, Housework, Star
Lore
An Engineer is someone trained to build; this
Occupation includes architects, machinists, and skilled
construction crews.

Arcana Links: Emperor, Great Priest

Trained Skills: Oratory, Inquiry, Heraldry,
Campaigning, Composition, Writing, Letters, Language,
Research
A Herald makes a living as the bearer of messages and
news from an important employer, sponsor, or liege. As
they are often present when their masters are in counsel,
they must be trustworthy and usually hold places of
great honor in their masters households. Heralds will
usually have a Social Level of 9.

Entertainer

Herder

Arcana Links: Magician, Lovers, Moon

Trained Skills: Storytelling, Composition, Artistry,
Language, Acting, Disguise, Singing, Dancing,
Musicianship, Acrobatics
All Cultures include Entertainers, people who make a
living by entertaining others with story, song, music,
or dance. This includes minstrels, musicians, poets,
acrobats, clowns, fools, actors, and the like. This is often
considered a scandalous Occupation in conservative
Cultures, though that usually does nothing to lessen the
demand for it.

Arcana Links: Strength, Moon

Trained Skills: Shepherding, Fieldcraft, Navigation,
Animal Training, Marksmanship, Track, Follow, Watch,
Star Lore
A Herder is someone skilled at spending long amounts of
time outdoors controlling, protecting, and shepherding
livestock across pasture lands.

Engineer

Farmer
Arcana Links: Strength, Temperance, Great Priestess
Trained Skills: Farmwork, Craftwork, Housework,
Animal Training, House Keeping, Watch, Singing,
Dancing/Folk, Herbal Lore
The Farmer is the economic base of almost all of the
Known Worlds Cultures; they grow food and raise
animals, for themselves, their households, and for local
markets.

Fisher
Arcana Links: Sword, Moon, Hermit
Trained Skills: Fieldcraft, Craftwork, Sailing,
Navigation, Watch, Singing, Herbal Lore
From the side of streams and rivers or on sea-going boats
with nets, Fishers catch fish and bring them to markets
for others to eat.

Fortune Teller

A cartographer from Newgate

(left) and a courtesan from the
Citadel of Sule Gail (right).

156

Adventures in the Known World

Herald

Arcana Links: Great Priestess, Wheel of Fortune, Stars

Trained Skills: Folk Lore, Storytelling, Sleight of Hand,
Singing, Dancing, Musicianship, Housework, Yheran Cult
Lore, Star Lore
Unlike the Courtly Astrologer, those that claim to be
Fortune Tellers tend to look to the Book of Dooms or
the Reading of Palms and natural Omens, rather than
to the Stars, so their primary focus is Folk Lore. They
usually do know Star Lore, however, and many are
secretly (or openly) Priestesses of Yhera or her Cults,

Hermit
Arcana Links: Hermit, Last Judgment, Great Priest
Trained Skills: Storytelling, Composition, Letters,
Navigation, Teaching, Herbal Lore, Folk Lore, Language,
Writing
In almost every Culture there are people who choose
not to participate in the traditions and mores of that
Culture, or are barred or exiled from doing so. These
people usually become Hermits or criminals.

House Servant
Arcana Links: Temperance, Great Priestess
Trained Skills: Housework, Farmwork, Craftwork,
House Keeping, Artistry, Midwifery
Every household requires someone to do the fundamental
work of maintaining that household cooking,
cleaning, mending, etc. Many people do this sort of
work voluntarily, others for wages or other recompense.

Householder
Arcana Links: Empress, Temperance, Great Priestess
Trained Skills: House Keeping, Farmwork, Housework,
Inquiry, Intrigue, Leadership, Oratory, Local Expert
Any household or business needs a Householder to
run smoothly; this is someone capable of running
the logistics of a business or collective enterprise by
marshaling resources, allocating work, and supervising
projects to completion.

Hunter
Arcana Links: Hermit, Justice, Sword
Trained Skills: Fieldcraft, Craftwork, Animal Training,

Creating Your Character

Healing Arts, Navigation, Marksmanship, Melee/Spear,
Track, Follow, Watch
Hunters are trained and skilled at seeking, tracking,
finding, and then killing wild animals. In Cultures of
the Old Religion, most Hunters learn Yheran Cult Lore
and give Offerings and Sacrifices to Adjia the Huntress,
and the Hunt is considered a sacred act.

Innkeeper
Arcana Links: Temperance, Magician, Sphinx
Trained Skills: Housework, House Keeping, Commerce,
Craftwork, Intrigue, Streetwise, Storytelling, Gambling,
Sleight of Hand
Most Cultures have people who make a living by
providing food and lodging to travelers or neighbors.
These people are Innkeepers (regardless of whether
they run an inn, hostel, boarding house, tavern, or
restaurant).

Inquisitor
Arcana Links: Emperor, Great Priest, Sun
Trained Skills: Inquiry, Divine King Cult Lore,
Heraldry, Writing, Letters, Language, Campaigning,
Tactics, Leadership, Oratory, House Keeping
The Divine King Cult produces Inquisitors, trained
Priests whose job is to enforce religious laws against
heresy and idolatry. In Phoenix Court lands, their
primary duty is stamping out the Mystery Cult of the
Gray Dream. In the Middle Kingdoms, only Aurian
Culture produces Inquisitors (though many arrive from
the Sun Court in Illia), and they are usually the landless
sons of Knights and Lords.

Knight
Arcana Links: Sword, Emperor, Lovers
Trained Skills: Riding, Melee, Armor Training, Close
Order, Campaigning, Tactics, Leadership, Oratory,
Seduction, Singing, Dancing, Heraldry, House Keeping
A Knight is a trained and skilled warrior who has joined
a martial order or been initiated into a special rank or
fraternity by the rulers he or she serves (usually he). Not
all Cultures have Knights. Knights will usually have a
Social Level of 9.

Laborer
Arcana Links: Strength, Temperance
Trained Skills: Farmwork, Craftwork, Engineering,
Blacksmithing, Fieldcraft, Artistry
Laborers make their living primarily from the use of
their muscles. This can require a great deal of skill, or
not it includes miners, construction workers, ditchdiggers, porters, teamsters, etc.

Lady
Arcana Links: Empress, Temperance, Lovers
Trained Skills: Leadership, Intrigue, Seduction,
Singing, Dancing, House Keeping, Craftwork/Clothwork,
Craftwork/Perfumery, Housework
The women of noble classes in most Cultures can be
referred to as Ladies, though a variety of titles proliferate.
Some are pampered nafs or decorative companions;
others are resolute leaders of household, estate, and
realm; others crafty conspirators and seducers who relish
the game of politics. A Lady will have a Social Level of
9 or higher.

Legionare
Arcana Links: Sword, Great Priestess, Riven Tower
Trained Skills: Melee, Armor Training, Close Order,

Skirmishing, Marksmanship, Campaigning, Tactics,

Farmwork, Leadership, Oratory, Siege Artillery,
Engineering, Healing Arts, Yheran Cult Lore
The term Legionare is originally Palatian, and is
used most often to refer to the trained soldiers of that
Culture. However, in recent years the term has also been
applied to the warriors of the Citadel of Dara Dess in
Daradja, who have been trained in warfare and logistics
by a Palatian fieldmaster.

Lord
Arcana Links: Emperor, Sword
Trained Skills: Leadership, Inquiry, Oratory, Intrigue,
Heraldry, Tactics, Gambling, Riding, House Keeping,
Melee, Armor Training, Local Expert
The men of noble classes in most Cultures can be referred
to as Lords, though a variety of titles proliferate. Some
are pampered nafs or decorative companions; others are
resolute leaders of household, estate, and realm; others
crafty conspirators and seducers who relish the game
of politics. A Lord will have a Social Level of 10 or
higher.

Mage
Arcana Links: Great Priest, Hermit, Magician
Trained Skills: Writing, Drawing, Oratory, Letters,
Language, Research, Hermetic Lore, Herbal Lore, Inquiry,
Occult Lore
The term Mage is usually used for a master Sorcerer, one
whose knowledge of Magic has extended beyond the
bounds of Hermetic Lore and into Occult Lore. A Mage
doesnt necessarily practice the Occult, but they are aware
of the possibilities of that tradition, and their advice is
often valuable to those that wish to combat it.

Magician
Arcana Links: Magician, Great Priestess, Moon
Trained Skills: Oratory, Storytelling, Singing, Dancing,
Folk Lore, Yheran Cult Lore, Star Lore, Herbal Lore,
Healing Arts, Craftwork, Midwifery, Farmwork,
Housework
The term Magician is often meant most generically
as any practitioner of Folk Magic, but usually means a
male practitioner. They also usually learn Herbal Lore,
Star Lore, and a smattering of Yheran Cult Lore, as well,
though not as much as those Folk Magicians called
Witches.

Midwife
Arcana Links: Great Priestess, Hanged Man, Moon
Trained Skills: Midwifery, Healing Arts, Farmwork,
Housework, Singing, Folk Lore, Herbal Lore, Yheran Cult
Lore, Star Lore
The Midwife is a healer specializing in the care of women
in pregnancy. As with the Magister, the Midwife is not
usually considered a practitioner of Magic, but almost
all know Folk Lore and Herbal Lore, and a smattering
of Star Lore (to read the Omens of a birth). Many
Midwives are also secretly (or openly) Priestesses of
Yhera or her Cults, and in Divine King lands they are
often the primary priesthood for her secret Temples.

Noble
Arcana Links: Emperor, Sword
Trained Skills: Leadership, Inquiry, Oratory, Intrigue,
Heraldry, Tactics, Riding, House Keeping, Melee, Armor
Training, Local Expert
Some Cultures do not have separate Occupations for
Lords and Ladies, or have not developed to the point
of being able to support Aristocrats. In those Cultures,
those men or women who rule others are simply called
Nobles.

Physician-Healer
Arcana Links: Sun, Hanged Man, Great Priest
Trained Skills: Healing Arts, Writing, Letters, Inquiry,
Herbal Lore, Midwifery, Farmwork
In most Cultures, Physician-Healers are valuable assets
to any community lucky enough to have one. They
learn to do heal the sick and injured with knowledge and
training. Healers learn Herbal Lore to help them find
natural remedies to Wounds, Poisons, and Diseases.

Pirate
Arcana Links: Sword, Moon, Sphinx
Trained Skills: Fieldcraft, Sailing, Navigation,
Swimming, Housework, Melee, Marksmanship, Tactics,
Stealth, Streetwise, Star Lore
A Pirate is a sea-born Bandit, someone that makes a
living by robbing the people and cargo of other ships or
raiding seaside communities. Unlike Corsairs, Pirates
do not generally have a political motive for their actions,
only a financial one.

Magister
Arcana Links: Great Priest, Hermit, Last Judgment
Trained Skills: Writing, Letters, Heraldry, Language,
Research, Composition, Inquiry, Local Expert, Storytelling,
Hermetic Lore, Alchemical Lore
The Magisters of the Universities of the Middle Kingdoms
and the League are masters of erudition, Letters, and
obscure Lore. They are not considered practitioners of
Magic, but in their studies most have encountered the
Hermetica or Alchemical treatises. Magisters usually
teach and study at the Universities, but in the Danias,
Atallica, and at the High Kings Court, Magisters also
serve as advisors and viziers to royalty.

Merchant
Arcana Links: Great Priest, Hermit, Temperance
Trained Skills: Commerce, Gambling, Local Expert,
Intrigue, Inquiry, House Keeping
Merchants are business people who manage far-flung
investments and operations from a central locale. They
engage in commerce and trade, but usually at a remove,
as investors and planners rather than as laborers.

A miner (laborer) from the Feramore

clan (left), and a merchant from the
town of Dara Ramat (right).

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157

Creating Your Character

Priest Divine King
Arcana Links: Great Priest, Sun
Trained Skills: Divine King Cult Lore, Oratory, Writing,
Letters, Language, Leadership, Inquiry, Heraldry, Tactics,
House Keeping
Priests of the Divine King are practitioners of Cult
Magic, performing Offering Rituals to Islik, the King of
Heaven. The Divine King priesthood is organized and
hierarchical. Almost all Divine King Priests are male,
though in some lands Priestesses of the Bride Cults
(sub-Cults that worship the various brides of the Divine
King) are allowed.

Priest Mystery Cult

Arcana Links: Great Priest, Hanged Man,
Last Judgment
Trained Skills: Mystery Cult Lore, Cult Lore, Oratory,
Singing, Writing, Letters, Language, Leadership, Inquiry,
Heraldry, Tactics, House Keeping, Alchemical Lore
Priests of a Mystery Cult have a religious function as
other Priests do, but their primary purpose is to initiate
others into their Cult and the Mystery it purports to
reveal. The primary Mystery Cult for male Priests in
the Middle Kingdoms is the Mystery Cult of the Gray
Dream; this Cult will be detailed in a forthcoming
volume.

Priestess Mystery Cult

Arcana Links: Great Priestess, Hanged Man,
Last Judgment
Trained Skills: Mystery Cult Lore, Yheran Cult Lore,
Oratory, Singing, Herbal Lore, Star Lore, Musicianship,
Folk Lore, Leadership, Inquiry, Occult Lore
Like their male counterparts, Priestesses of a Mystery
Cult have a religious function, but their primary
purpose is to initiate others into their Cult and the
Mystery it purports to reveal. The primary Mystery
Cults for female Priestesses in the Middle Kingdoms
are the Mystery Cult of Hathhalla (to be detailed in a
forthcoming volume) and the much simpler Mystery
Cult of Adjia.

Priestess Yheran
Arcana Links: Great Priestess, Stars, Empress
Trained Skills: Yheran Cult Lore, Oratory, Singing,

Herbal Lore, Star Lore, Musicianship, Healing Arts,

Midwifery, Folk Lore, Leadership, Inquiry, Dancing/Folk,
House Keeping
A Priestess of the Old Religion is a practitioner of Cult
Magic, performing Offerings and Sacrifices to the
Goddess Yhera and the other gods of her pantheon.
Yheran Priestesses will usually be familiar with Folk,
Herbal, and Star Lore, as elements of their Goddess
can be found in all those traditions. In addition, they
may specialize in any God, Goddess, or Hero in the
pantheon.

Oratory, Inquiry, Artistry, Healing Arts, Language,

Leadership, Folk Lore, Yheran Cult Lore, Herbal Lore,
Occult Lore
Also called a Spirit-Talker, Spirit-Walker, Ghost-Rider,
or Dream-Walker, a Shaman is Folk Magician who has
or is seeking to gain the Spirit-Walking, Open Spirit,
or Dream-Flight Gifts, allowing them to leave their
Body and travel to the Otherworld or into the World
of Dreams. Many Shamans have encounters with dark
forces, and so learn Occult Lore as well.

Sage

Arcana Links: Sword, Temperance, Riven Tower

Trained Skills: Close Order, Melee, Armor Training,
Skirmishing, Marksmanship, Campaigning, Tactics,
Farmwork, Siege Artillery, Healing Arts
A Soldier is someone who has been trained to fight in
organized units and has Levels in the Close Order Skill.
Foot Soldiers usually fight in phalanxes, shield walls, or
pike squares. Not all Cultures can produce Soldiers.

Arcana Links: Great Priest, Hermit, Last Judgment

Trained Skills: Writing, Letters, Language, Research,
Composition, Inquiry, Hermetic Lore, Alchemical Lore,
Star Lore
A Sage is a person of learning who is not affiliated with
a University or College in the same way as a Magister,
but is instead an independent scholar. They are usually
solitary or perhaps organized into a small group or guild.
As with the University Magister, the Sage is not strictly
speaking considered a practitioner of Magic, but almost
all study the Hermetica, Alchemical Lore, or the Lore
of Stars.

Sailor
Arcana Links: Sword, Moon
Trained Skills: Fieldcraft, Sailing, Navigation,
Craftwork, Swimming, Housework, Gambling, Melee,
Marksmanship, Star Lore, Local Expert
A Sailor makes a living on a ship, usually transporting
cargo from one port to another. Sailors travel further
than just about anyone else in the Known World.

Scout
Arcana Links: Sword, Hermit, Justice
Trained Skills: Fieldcraft, Melee, Skirmishing,
Marksmanship, Campaigning, Armor Training, Tactics,
Navigation, Animal Training, Follow, Track, Watch, Star
Lore
A Scout is someone who makes a living by exploring
and discovering, usually in a military or paramilitary
context. Like the Spy, the Scouts primary function is
gathering information, though in times of war Scouts
will serve as raiders and rangers.

Scribe
Arcana Links: Great Priest. Magician
Trained Skills: Writing, Drawing, Heraldry, Artistry,
Letters, Language, Inquiry, Research, Composition
In any Culture that has writing, the Scribe will occupy
an important position. Scribes are professional writers
and transcribers, often hired to write or read letters or
books by those who are illiterate.

Seneschal
Arcana Links: Emperor, Temperance, Great Priestess
Trained Skills: House Keeping, Inquiry, Farmwork,
Housework, Riding, Leadership, Oratory, Local Expert
A Seneschal is a steward, someone who manages a
household or estate for a noble master, either while they
are away from home or to free them from such boring
work. Seneschals will usually have a Social Level of 9.

Shaman
A Divine King priest from Berrina (left) and
a Yheran Priestesss from the Temple of Yhera
Daradja at Usparas (right).

158

Adventures in the Known World

Arcana Links: Hanged Man, Death, Empress

Trained Skills: Singing, Storytelling, Composition,

Soldier (foot)

Soldier (horse)
Arcana Links: Sword, Temperance, Riven Tower
Trained Skills: Melee, Armor Training, Riding,
Skirmishing, Marksmanship, Campaigning, Tactics, Siege
Artillery, Healing Arts
Horse Soldiers are trained cavalrymen; they ride in units,
though the Close Order Skill is not applicable to horseborn combat. Horse Soldiers are often the equivalent
of Knights, and think of themselves as superior to Foot
Soldiers.

Sorcerer
Arcana Links: Great Priest, Hermit, Magician
Trained Skills: Writing, Drawing, Oratory, Letters,
Language, Research, Hermetic Lore, Herbal Lore, Inquiry,
Healing Arts
A Sorcerer is the most basic kind of Hermetic Magician,
who has been dedicated to learning the Hermetica as a
way of exerting magical power over the natural world.
Sorcerers often also learn Herbal Lore as an extension
of that pursuit.

Spy
Arcana Links: Sphinx, Justice, Riven Tower
Trained Skills: Stealth, Acting, Seduction, Streetwise,
Intrigue, Disguise, Occult Lore, Sleight of Hand, Tactics,
Campaigning, Inquiry, Follow, Watch, Track, Local
Expert, Melee, Marksmanship
Spies have been trained to gather information secretly,
either in Cultures outside their own or in places where
they are not wanted. Urban Cultures or Cultures
frequently in civil conflict will produce Spies; other
Cultures will produce Scouts.

Templar
Arcana Links: Sword, Emperor, Great Priest
Trained Skills: Riding, Melee, Armor Training, Close
Order, Campaigning, Tactics, Leadership, Oratory,
Heraldry, Divine King Cult Lore, Writing, Letters, House
Keeping
A Templar is a religious warrior, someone who has
dedicated themselves to the protection of a Cults
religious sites and leaders. In the Middle Kingdoms,
only the Divine King Cult in Auria produces Templars,
who are often the youngest and landless sons of Knights
and Lords.

Creating Your Character

Tenant Farmer
Arcana Links: Strength, Temperance, Great Priestess
Trained Skills: Farmwork, Craftwork, Housework,
Animal Training, House Keeping, Watch, Singing,
Dancing/Folk, Herbal Lore
Tenant Farmers are Farmers who work lands that belong
to someone else, usually a Knight or Lord.

Thief
Arcana Links: Sphinx, Justice
Trained Skills: Stealth, Streetwise, Intrigue, Disguise,
Commerce, Gambling, Sleight of Hand, Follow, Watch,
Melee/Dagger, Melee/Club
A Thief is a person who makes a living by stealing
from other people, often surreptitiously or by means
of trickery. Unlike the Bandit, who uses force of arms,
a Thief s primary tools are eyes, ears, and quick hands.
The Thief is a largely urban Occupation, and includes
con men, cat burglars, and pickpockets.

Thug
Arcana Links: Strength, Sphinx
Trained Skills: Melee, Armor Training, Intrigue,
Gambling, Inquiry, Streetwise
Some people make a living by beating other people up,
usually for hire but sometimes just for sport. These
people are Thugs. They can be found just about
anywhere.

Trader
Arcana Links: Hermit, Temperance, Sphinx
Trained Skills: Navigation, Storytelling, Local Expert,
Commerce, Streetwise, Intrigue, Seduction, Gambling,
Fieldcraft, House Keeping
A Trader is someone that engages in trade by traveling
from place to place with goods, wares, or even services.
A Merchant will usually stay in one place of business,
while the Trader travels from market to market.
Merchants will often invest in Traders or have Traders
working for them.

Traveler
Arcana Links: Hermit, Stars, Sphinx
Trained Skills: Navigation, Storytelling, Local Expert,
Language, Streetwise, Intrigue, Seduction, Gambling,
Fieldcraft, House Keeping, Star Lore
In some Cultures, people are lucky enough to be able to
be able to spend time doing nothing but wander around
and inspect the world. You cant get this Occupation
except through a fortunate Life Event.

A Warlock is a Magician who has begun a dedicated

study of Occult Lore, pursuing power over the dead or
over the Underworld. Most are considered evil, though
it should be noted this is largely a cultural definition of
the Warlock, and need not reflect on their personalities
or actions.

Warlord
Arcana Links: Emperor, Sphinx, Sword
Trained Skills: Melee, Armor Training, Close Order,
Marksmanship, Campaigning, Tactics, Leadership,
Intrigue, Inquiry, Local Expert, Heraldry, Oratory
A Warlord is a master of war and combat, an experienced
leader of men and women in the thick of battle. Their
sole purpose is waging war. Not all Cultures produce
Warlords.

Warrior
Arcana Links: Strength, Sword, Riven Tower
Trained Skills: Melee, Armor Training, Campaigning,
Tactics, Animal Training, Marksmanship
A Warrior is someone who is skilled and trained at
using armor and weapons in combat and in the melee.
Warriors are not necessarily trained at fighting in units;
theyre just trained at fighting. Warriors are usually
either Vassals, in which case they are sworn to a leader
and are part of that leaders retinue or household, or they
are Mercenaries, serving whoever pays them.

Witch
Arcana Links: Great Priestess, Magician, Moon
Trained Skills: Oratory, Storytelling, Singing, Dancing,
Folk Lore, Yheran Cult Lore, Star Lore, Herbal Lore,
Healing Arts, Craftwork, Midwifery, Farmwork,
Housework
A Witch is essentially a female Folk Magician. Unlike
most male Magicians, who generally only learn a
smattering of Yheran Cult Lore, Witches usually
study it with enthusiasm and most are secret or open
Priestesses of Yhera and her Cults. Indeed, in Divine
King lands, while Midwives and Fortune Tellers make
up the majority of the priesthoods of her secret Temples,
Witches are most likely to operate as open (and outlaw)
Priestesses in defiance of Divine King law.

War Chief
Arcana Links: Empress, Sword, Strength
Trained Skills: Leadership, Seduction, Oratory,
Singing, Dancing, Intrigue, Inquiry, Melee, Close Order,
Armor Training, House Keeping, Local Expert, Tactics,
Campaigning
In some Cultures, communities will have War Chiefs,
who are essentially Chieftains who are in charge of the
community during wartime. Chieftains and War Chiefs
will often be at odds.

Warlock
Arcana Links: Magician, Hanged Man, Death
Trained Skills: Storytelling, Composition, Oratory,
Inquiry, Artistry, Healing Arts, Language, Leadership,
Housework, Folk Lore, Yheran Cult Lore, Herbal Lore,
Occult Lore

A Highlander shaman from the Av-Tenved

clan (left) and a Templar of the Order of
Agall, from the Barony of Murray (right).

Q CHANGING
OCCUPATIONS &
SOCIAL LEVELS

As noted previously, you may change

Occupations during the course of
a LifePath. Generally, its easier to
change to an Occupation in a lower
Social Class than to change to one in a
higher Social Class. Your Social Level
is initially determined by your die roll,
as reflected in the Social Level of your
parents or foster parents. You retain that
Social Level as long as you remain in an
Occupation from the same Social Class
as your parents, and avoid any Shame
Bindings (which act as a Binding penalty
to your Social Level). A short time in
another Occupation will not change your
Social Level for example, a year spent
on campaign as a soldier, or a hard year
that drove you temporarily to become
a Healer or an Outlaw so long as you
return to your original Occupation the
next year. However, should you change
Occupations for more than a year, then
your Social Level will change 1 Level for
every year spent in the new Occupation
after the first, until you have reached a
Social Level usually associated with that
Occupation.

D Dras is a Danian Trader from

the Artisan Class with a Social Level

of 6, and he finds himself caught
in a war during a year of Previous
Experience (see the Great Adventure
Table, entry 1). He wishes to take a
military Occupation to help him get
through the year and season himself
up. According to the Table entry,
he can only go up or down a single
Class to find a military Occupation,
so the only Occupation open to him
is the Warrior (Mercenary or Vassal)
Occupation from the Commoner Class
i.e., he has to either join a mercenary
company or swear fealty to a Danian
lord. If he remains a Warrior for only a
year and returns to his old Occupation
as a Trader once the war is over, then
theres no change to his Social Level.
However, if he stays a Warrior, then
every extra year after the first would
reduce his Social Level by 1, until he
reached Social Level 4 (Commoner
Class).

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159

Creating Your Character

LifePath Events
So, for every year after age 15 you will gain Annual Training
Points, reflecting your diligence in learning your Occupation;
Annual Arcana Points, reflecting some element of your life
experience while pursuing your Occupation; and Annual
Earnings, indicating a little money you may have set aside. In
addition, you will roll once on the LifePath Events Tables to tell
you what sort of important event, if any, might have happened
to you that year. This will hopefully give further shape to your
life, give you motivations for adventuring, complications to
overcome, and personal Friends and Enemies to help and hurt
you as the game begins.

If you begin the campaign at age 21, then you should
gain five years of Previous Experience. For each year, first consult
the LifePath Events Table and roll d10, or choose if your Guide
allows it. If something happened that year, turn to the indicated
Table and roll d10 again to find the specifics.

LifePath Events Table

MINOR ILL FORTUNE TABLE

Roll d10 or choose.
Roll

Event

Financial Loss. You lost a small amount of money,

either through a bad business investment, gambling, or
carelessness. Roll d10 x 10 to determine how much you
lost in g. If you dont have enough g at the moment from
previous earnings to cover the loss, then you are in debt
until the loss is covered. Gain a Shame 1 Binding.

Crime Victim. You are waylaid and robbed by a bandit,

brigand, thief, or trickster. Lose all your current starting
cash and earnings (not including this years earnings).
Gain a Shame 1 Binding.

Illness. You are overcome by the Fever for part of this

year. Lose a point of STAM.

Disfigurement. You were injured or wounded in a

particularly nasty way. Lose a point of APP.

Gossip. You are (falsely?) accused of something: bad

behavior, a crime, responsibility for an accident, etc.
Gain a Shame 1 Binding.

Lose a Friend. A Lover, Friend, Compatriot, or Ally dies

of natural causes. Gain a Grief 1 Binding.*

Family Loss. A member of your family dies of natural

causes. Gain a Grief 1 Binding.*

Accident. You are in an accident at home and are badly

hurt. Lose a point of a Physical Characteristic (your
choice).

Wounded. You are injured in a fight or hurt at work.

Lose a point of a Physical Characteristic (your choice).

10

Faux Pas! You commit a social blunder and lose a

Contact, who now becomes a Skeptic.

Roll d10 or choose.

Roll

Event

Nothing Happened

Major Ill Fortune

3-4

Minor Ill Fortune

5-6

Minor Good Fortune

Major Good Fortune

8-9

Romance

10

Great Adventure

Some Guides will prefer that your entire LifePath be determined

randomly; others may allow you to pick and choose, and others
may mix it up and make you roll, but then allow you to roll again
if you get something that doesnt seem to fit. Ultimately these
Tables should just be considered suggestions. If you have ideas
about what kind of past you want to have, your Guide should
be willing to accommodate you as long as youre not going
overboard. Your Guide might well place limits, however; for
example, being able to choose more than one Great Adventure
might be restricted unless you can come up with a really good
explanation for why youve had such a busy life.

Many of the entries for this and previous Steps in
the LifePath include the appearance of Allies, Friends, Lovers,
Enemies, and other NPCs in your life. In some cases their Social
Class or Occupation will be specified by the table entries, but in
others their exact identities will be left unspecified, and you may
determine their identity by simply rolling on the Social Class &
Parental Occupation Tables for your Culture as appropriate, or
by discussing the situation with your Guide to come up with
interesting NPCs for you to be involved with. Re-roll any event
that cant apply to you (for example, losing a Contact if you
havent already gotten one).
Left to right: A freelance enchanter from
Izris, a smith from the citadel of Tir-en-Tull,
and a priestess of the Dead from the temple of
Genich at Har Damat.

160

Adventures in the Known World

*Relations Categories and Grief In the game youll get a chance to

avoid a Grief Binding with a WILL roll, but in Previous Experience
you dont. In addition, normally the Grief gained is based on
the Relations Category of the lost person. However, in Previous
Experience, the Grief Binding Level which is cumulative will
be generally kept to a minimum Level 1 in each incidence, partly
to reflect the opportunities you might have had to overcome your
Grief, and partly just as a mechanic to prevent you from entering
the game so overburdened by Grief as to render you ineffective.

Creating Your Character

MAJOR ILL FORTUNE TABLE

Roll d10 or choose.

MINOR GOOD FORTUNE TABLE

Roll d10 or choose.

Roll

Event

Roll

Event

Financial Disaster. You lost a lot of money, either

through a bad business investment, gambling, or
carelessness. Roll d10 x 25 to determine how much you
lost in g. If you dont have enough g at the moment
from previous earnings to cover the loss, then you are in
debt until the loss is covered. Gain a Shame 2 Binding.

Small Treasure (cash). You find or receive (perhaps as

a reward or gift) a small amount of money. Roll d10
x PRE to determine how much you found.

Blacklisted. You somehow screwed up in your

Occupation and are barred from practicing it ever again.
You must take a new Occupation next year from the
next lower Social Class. Gain a Shame 2 Binding.

Small Treasure (item). You find or receive (perhaps

as a reward or gift) an object of note enchanted at +1.
Roll once on your Cultural Item Table to determine
what you received.

Addiction. You struggle with an addiction to a drug

or substance. You lose a point of STAM and gain no
Earnings this year, and gain both an Addiction to a
Culturally appropriate Drug 1 Binding and a Shame 1
Binding.

Merchant Contact. Make a Contact among your

Cultures Merchants or Traders, who can usually get
you a 10% discount on all items available to your
Culture, and a 5% discount on items imported from
outside your Culture.

Public Failure. A large and very public project of yours

goes sour. Halve your income for this year and every
following year, and you gain a Shame 2 Binding.

Outlaw Contact. A local bandit or gang of thieves

takes a liking to you. Gain 3 Training Points in
Streetwise and an Outlaw Contact you can call on for
illicit favors.

Teacher. You find a teacher who is willing to put up

with you. Gain a Contact, and you gain 3 Training
Points for any one Trade, Martial, or Lore Skill (even
if not normally on any of your available lists).

A Favor. A highborn member of your Culture (from

your Cultures Social Level 5) owes you a Favor. You
gain them as a Contact, and one time only they may
be treated as an Ally.

Group Contact. You gain the attention of a powerful

group in your Culture a guild, Temple, Order,
fraternity, merchant House, etc. You may treat any
member of that group as a Contact.

Temple Assistant. You are selected to become a

temple assistant at a local Temple. In addition to your
regular Skills and Arcana Points for this year, you gain
3 Training Points in a Cult Lore Skill appropriate
for your God, 3 Arcana Points in the Great Priestess
Arcana, and you gain a Priest or Priestess as a
Contact. You may attempt to take the Priest or
Priestess Occupation as your Occupation next year
with a +4 bonus to your roll, even if it is of a higher
Social Class.

Visitor. You meet a visitor or traveler from another

Culture or region. Gain a Contact from another
Culture.

10

Reunion. An old Lover (someone from the Romance

Table) reappears in your life as a Friend.

Imprisonment. You are (falsely?) convicted of a crime,

and must spend 2d6 moons imprisoned this year. You
lose your income for the year and gain no Skill Points,
but you may earn Arcana Points in the Hermit Arcana.
Next year you must succeed at a PRE Test DR 12 to
remain in your chosen Occupation; if you fail, you must
select a new Occupation from the next lower Social
Class. Gain a Shame 2 Binding.
Lose a Friend to the Enemy. A Lover, Friend,
Compatriot, or Ally is killed at the hands of one of your
Enemies. Gain an Enemy if you dont have one already,
gain a Grief 2 Binding and a Hate 2 Binding against the
Enemy responsible.

Family Loss to the Enemy. A member of your family

is killed at the hands of one of your Enemies. Gain an
Enemy if you dont have one already, and gain a Grief
2 Binding and a Hate 2 Binding against the Enemy
responsible.

Accident. You cause an accident that injures or kills

someone else. Gain an Enemy (the victim or a surviving
relative) and a Guilt 2 Binding.

Rat. You betray someone close to you, either

accidentally or on purpose. A Friend or Ally becomes an
Enemy (your Guide chooses which Friend or Ally), and
you gain a Guilt 2 Binding.

10

Betrayal. You are betrayed by the actions of someone

close to you; a Friend or Ally becomes an Enemy (your
Guide chooses which Friend or Ally), and you gain a
Fury 2 Binding towards them.

Treasure! See Appendix C for

info about coinage.

Adventures in the Known World

161

Creating Your Character

MAJOR GOOD FORTUNE TABLE

Roll d10 or choose.

162

ROMANCE TABLE
Roll d10 or choose.

Roll

Event

Roll

Event

Great Treasure (cash). You find or receive (perhaps

as a reward or gift) a considerable sum of money.
Roll d10 x PRE x 10 to determine how many gc you
get.

Busy year. You are very active socially this year, but
your affairs are of little lasting consequence. Gain d4
Contacts and d4 Skeptics.

Great Treasure (item). You find or receive (perhaps

as a reward or gift) an object of note enchanted
at +2. Roll once on your Cultural Item Table to
determine what you received.

Short affair. You had a short affair that was enjoyable

but didnt really go anywhere, and you havent seen
your former Lover since then and have no idea what he
or she might think of you.

Musical Friend. You meet and befriend an

entertainer from your Culture a bard, singer,
musician, or perhaps a courtesan who can help
you socially, either by introducing you to the right
people or perhaps even composing and performing
works about you. Gain a Friend, and as long as he
or she is your Friend you may attempt to take an
Occupation in the next higher Social Class at a +4
bonus on your roll.

Bad Affair. You had an affair that ended rather badly

and in spectacular fashion; you may decide whether it
was your fault or not. You gain an Enemy regardless.
If it was not your fault, then you gain a Hate 1 Binding
towards your former Lover. If it was your fault, then
you gain a Guilt 1 Binding.

Fine Affair. You had a pleasant affair that ended, but

ended well, and you are still fairly close to your former
Lover. Gain a Friend.

Competition. You had an affair that seemed to be

going well but ended when another suitor stepped in.
Your former Lover may still be a Friend if you choose
(an Opponent if not), and you also gain either a Rival
(if you actively dislike the competition) or a Skeptic (if
you dont mind one way or the other), your choice.

Tragic Affair. You had an affair with someone that you

greatly loved, but it ended tragically; either they died,
or somehow you were separated and can never see them
again. Gain a Grief 2 Binding.

Loved. You have an affair with someone that genuinely

loves you. You gain a Lover who is willing to take a
Love Binding; you may reciprocate if you want.

Love a Rival. You have an intense affair with someone

that becomes a competitor. Gain a Rival, and gain
both a Jealousy 1 and either a Hate 1 or Love 1 Binding
towards them (your choice).

Two-timed. You gain a Lover but discover them

cheating on you with a Friend or Family member.
You choose whether your Friend or Family member
becomes a Rival, Adversary, or Enemy, but you gain
a Hate 1 Binding towards your (former) Friend and a
Jealousy 1 Binding towards your Lover (if you end it,
theyre now a Skeptic).

10

Missing. You had an affair that seemed to be going

great, but then your Lover went missing, and their
whereabouts are currently unknown. Gain a Grief 2
Binding.

Outlaw Ally. A local bandit or gang of thieves

has made a blood pact with you. Gain 3 Training
Points in Streetwise and a single Outlaw Ally and d6
Outlaw Compatriots (gang members) that you can
call on for illicit favors or muscle.

Mentor. You find a mentor and a patron who takes

an interest in your future. Gain an Ally, and you
may add 3 Training Points to any Trade, Martial, or
Lore Skill (even if not normally on your available
lists) every year.

Noble Ally. A highborn member of your Culture

(from your Cultures Social Level 9 or higher)
has taken an interest in your future. You gain an
Ally, and as long as he or she is your Ally you may
attempt to take an Occupation in the next higher
Social Class at a +4 bonus on your roll.

Group Invitation. You are invited to join a

powerful group in your Culture a guild, Temple,
Order, fraternity, merchant House, etc. If you join,
you may treat every member of that group as a
Compatriot. As long as you belong to this Group
you may attempt to take an Occupation in the next
higher Social Class at a +4 bonus on your roll.

Temple Ally. You find a patron in a local Temple

who takes an interest in your future. You gain a
Priest or Priestess as an Ally. You may attempt to
take the Priest or Priestess Occupation next year. As
long as he or she is your Ally, you may also attempt
to take an Occupation in the next higher Social
Class with a +4 bonus to your roll.

Visiting Friend. You gain the trust of a visitor or

traveler from another Culture or region. Gain a
Friend from another Culture.

10

Change of Heart. Thanks to your resolve and good

nature, an Enemy (your choice) becomes a Friend.

Adventures in the Known World

True love can

be hard to find,
particulalry in
the midst of
war...

Creating Your Character

GREAT ADVENTURE TABLE

Great Success! You have some sort of great achievement,

victory, or success that brings you to the attention of great
powers. You receive d10 x PRE x 10 in g in addition to
your regular earnings, and gain an Ally at the highest levels
of your Culture. You may take any Occupation from the
next highest Social Class this year without rolling. You
must also gain a Vanity 1 Binding.

Plague! The plague and evil spirits come calling to your

home region, and tragedy has struck close to you. You
survive, but 1d3 Friends or Family die during the plague.
You gain a Grief 1 Binding for every Friend or Family
member that dies during the plague. If you so choose,
you may take a Culturally-appropriate Occupation related
to healing, magic, or religion such as Healer, Midwife,
Witch, Magician, Shaman, Warlock, Sorcerer, Mage,
Priest, or Priestess. You gain your CONV in Death Arcana
Points in addition to your usual Occupation-related
Arcana.

Bloody Feud! You, your Friends, and your Family are

caught up in a deadly and bloody feud with a neighbor,
rival family, or local ruler. You survive, but 1d3 of
your Friends and Family are killed at the hands of
your Enemies. You gain an Enemy (or Enemies, more
accurately) if you do not have one already, and you also
gain a Grief 1 Binding and a Hate your Enemy 1 Binding
for every Relation that died. You may take a military
Occupation of your Social Class or lower (not from a
higher Social Class) or you may become an Outlaw this
year.

Persecutions! You get caught up in some sort of mob

violence that sweeps your region, either witch burnings or
Gray Dream Mystery Cult or Forbidden Cult persecutions.
You may choose whether you and your family are the
victims or are part of the mob. If you are a victim of the
mob, then you survive, but 1d3 Friends or Family die
during the mass hysteria. You gain a Hate your Tormentors
1 and a Grief 1 Binding for every Friend or Family
member that dies during the persecutions. You gain
double your Arcana Points this year. You lose your current
Occupation and must take an Occupation from the next
lower Social Class; if this makes you an Outlaw, then you
have been driven into exile. If you are part of the mob,
you gain 1d3 Levels in a Guilt Binding, but you also
double your Earnings this year.

10

Brigandage! Your home region is plagued by widespread

banditry and brigandage, as heavily armed thugs wander
the area looting and pillaging. You may aid the bandits,
hinder the bandits, fight the bandits, or join the bandits.
If you aid the bandits, you may double your Earnings
for the year and gain an Outlaw Contact but also gain
a Shame 1 Binding. If you hinder the bandits, you lose
your Earnings for the year but gain an Ally amongst the
local rulership or law enforcement hierarchy. If you fight
the bandits, you may take a military Occupation of your
Social Class or lower (not from a higher Social Class) if
you havent got one already. You gain Outlaw Enemies
and you also gain Compatriots amongst the local rulership
or law enforcement hierarchy. If you join the bandits, you
take an Outlaw Occupation and may not return to your
previous Occupation. You gain 10 times your Earnings for
this year and 2d6 Outlaw Compatriots, but you also gain
an Enemy amongst the local rulership or law enforcement
hierarchy and may well have a lot of explaining to do with
Friends and Family.

Roll d10 or choose.

Roll

Event

Great conflict! You, your Family, and your Friends are

swept up in a military conflict: a war between great powers
or perhaps just some petty noblemens feud (see the Recent
Events Timeline Table on pages 38-39 to see if there is
something appropriate for this year; if not, then its just
a small local conflict). 1d3 Friends or Family are killed
during the event, and you gain a Grief Binding Level for
each person killed. You may take a military Occupation
(appropriate to your Social Class; you may go up or down
by one Social Class if there are none in your Social Class
category, with an upward move requiring a PRE Test DR
10) for this year, or you may become an Outlaw for this
year only. If you want to remain in a Military Occupation
in subsequent years, you must make a PRE Test DR 10.
If you are already in a military or Outlaw Occupation,
double your Arcana Points and Earnings for this year.

Traveling! You get a chance to go off exploring and

traveling. You may take the Trader, Traveler, or Scout
Occupation, automatically gain 3 Training Points in Local
Expert in each of two regions of your Choice, and gain a
Contact and a Friend in those same two regions. If you are
already a Trader. Traveler, or a Scout, then you may double
your Arcana Points and Earnings for the year. After your
year of travel, you can keep your new Occupation if you
took one this year.

Famine! Your home region is struck by famine and

drought, and tragedy has struck close to you. You
survive, but 1d3 Friends or Family die during the drought,
either from starvation and malnutrition or as a result of
banditry and brigandage. You gain a Grief 1 Binding
for every Friend or Family member that dies during the
famine. You earn no money this year, but gain your
CONV in Death Arcana Points in addition to your usual
Occupation-related Arcana. If you choose, you may take
an Outlaw Occupation this year, in which case you may
gain Annual Earnings as per normal for your Outlaw
Occupation. However, it will take a PRE Test DR 12 to
return to a non-Outlaw Occupation the following year.

Learn a Secret! You learn a secret that has been hidden

either by the actions of time and history, or by the desire
and will of others. This secret could be anything you and
your Guide find suitable: the secret location of a treasure
or hiding place, the true Name or identity of someone
who is not who they claim to be, or perhaps a secret of
History, such as who really killed the last Baron of Dyn
Cail, etc. The secret should gain you either a Rival (who
wants to learn the secret for themselves) or an Enemy or
an Adversary (who wants to protect the secret). You gain
double your usual Arcana Points this year no matter what
your Occupation is.

Witness! You witness or get a chance to participate in

a major event for your Culture; choose an event for this
year from the appropriate column in the Recent Events
Timeline Table on pages 38-39, and decide with your
Guide whether you observed or participated in the event
and how. Depending on your involvement, your Guide
may assign you Contacts, Friends, Allies, or Enemies, and/
or Bindings. Double your Arcana Points and Earnings for
this year.

Adventures in the Known World

163

Creating Your Character

B ON ROMANCE AND CULTURE

On the previous Romance Table, you will have had the

opportunity to become involved with Lovers. It should be
noted that there is no expectation or implication that the
relationship is physical and consummated; thats entirely up
to you to decide such details. A Lover here is interpreted as
someone with whom you become intimately involved, but
that intimacy can be interpreted as platonic and chastely
romantic if you so choose. Indeed, more to the point, there
are many Cultures in the Known World that would frown
upon open and unregulated intimacy between Lovers and
in some places entire communities will closely supervise
contact between prospective Lovers, shepherding them
towards an eventual civic union such as a Marriage or
Consort ceremony.

The Aurians and the Danian realms of Dain
Dania and Umat all frown upon intimate contact outside
of wedlock and marriage. In Erid Dania, Umis, An-Athair,
amongst the Watchtower Kings and in the Daradjan
Highlands, many communities will expect Consort (binding
commitment) rituals. Should you come from these Cultures
or regions, you should decide whether your affairs produced
by the Romance Table were conducted secretly, were
sanctioned by the official community in which you lived
(in which case you got married or have formally submitted
yourself as a Consort or have accepted one), or ended before
reaching consummation or civic recognition. Should you
have more than one Romance, feel free to mix and match,
so that some might have been officially recognized and some
conducted in secrecy (an excellent explanation of affairs that
end badly).

Some of the Romance Table Events, if rolled in
subsequent years, can apply to the same person; for example,
you could roll Loved one year and gain a Lover, and then
roll Bad Affair another year and lose the same Lover. Its
up to you whether subsequent rolls on the Table apply to
the same or to different people.

B ON INHERITANCES

As a result of the various Events of your LifePath, you may

well wind up losing both of your parents (and potentially
all of your siblings to boot). If that happens, then you gain
an inheritance of some kind. This s consists of a number
of minor heirlooms equal to your parents Social Class (not
Level, so 15), and items, goods, and property worth their
Social Level x d100g and which are appropriate to your
Parents Culture and Social Level. A minor heirloom should
be considered an object of note enchanted at +1, or worth
5d20g; unless your Parents were Magicians or from your
Cultures highest Social Class, you shouldnt receive more
than a single enchanted heirloom. If one or both of your
parents were from a Magic-using Occupation, then up to
3/4 of your heirlooms may be magical in nature. If your
parents were from your Cultures highest Social Class, then
up to 1/2 of your heirlooms may be magical in nature.

164

Adventures in the Known World

A SAMPLE CHARACTER
Lets begin with my Culture. A d10 roll generates a 5: an Aurian
from the Middle Kingdoms. I decide to be a male Aurian, though
you can always decide that by a die roll. Turning to the Aurian
Culture Tables, I find out that being an Aurian means I speak the
Middle Tongue, and can choose to speak the Eastern Tongue, Old
Illian, and Old Aurian if I want to spend my Everyman Training
Points on them. The Everyman Skills for Aurian Culture are
Commerce, Inquiry, and Intrigue, and if Im religious then I learn
Divine King Cult Lore, so I note those on the character sheet even
though I dont know if Im going to put Points into them. I also
find a note that all Aurian males gain a Hate Women 1 Binding, a
result of their Cultural upbringing.

The next step is my Birthplace; a d10 roll generates an
8. I was born in a Baronial Castle or City, giving me a +2 on
my Parents Social Class roll. A d10 roll generates a 7+2=9; pretty
good, a Social Level of 9 and my Parents were from the Noble
Class! A roll of 4 results in a Knight for a father, and a roll of 5
indicates a Knight for my mother, but as Aurian Culture is kind
of misogynistic its unlikely my mother was really a Knight, so I
go ahead and say shes a Lady, which is really the only Occupation
suitable for a woman in the Noble Class anyway (in Aurian Culture,
at least).

Rolling next for their Lineages, I roll for my mother first.
A d20 roll this time generates a 9, indicating an Aurian Lineage
on my mothers side. A d20 roll for my father generates an 8,
also an Aurian Lineage for my fathers side. So both appear to be
from good Aurian stock so far, nothing potentially unseemly for
a noble Knights background. I flip to the Aurian Lineage Tables
in the Appendix and roll a d10 for my mothers side of the family,
and its a 1: the Aurian Common Lineage, meaning that theres
no one particularly noteworthy in her ancestry. I write down the
Lineage Effect on the character sheet: +1 STR, +1 STAM, and 1
EMP. I then roll for my fathers side of the family, and get a 9: a
Later Aurian Line. A second d10 roll generates a 3, the Aurian
hero Aethelias, described as a Bronze Age Umisi Hero who bound
ten Wyverns to his service. I write down his Lineage Effect of +1
STR, 1 STAM, +1 DEX, +1 PER, +1 PRE, and +1 WIS. I also
note that his Lineage History indicates that Aethelias had a Faerie
Spirit for a parent, so it sounds like Aethelias father or mother fell
in with a local Spirit and Aethelias was the result. Since Umis is
technically a Danian realm, then it sort of looks like my ancestors
might have gone native (though obviously not as far as the Aurians
who became Golden Knights). Because theyre different, the two
Lineage effects stack, so adding the two together I get: a +2 STR,
+1 DEX, +1 PER, +1 PRE, 1 EMP, and +1 WIS. The +1 STAM
and 1 STAM modifiers cancel each other out.

Next I roll for my Birth Sign, and a d12 roll generates a
7: I was born under the Sign of the Scales. A second d10 roll is
a 6, indicating only mild influence, so I note down the influence
of the Stars on my birth, a +1 MEM and 1 PRE. Next I roll my
Birth Omens, and a d20 roll generates a 5: a Tricky Omen. A d10
roll on the Tricky Omen Table generates an 8: a Wild Boar was
seen nearby, and the local Priest tells my parents this indicates I
will be headstrong and brash! I note down the effect: +1 WILL,
+1 COUR, and 1 WIS. So as I begin my Childhood my current
Characteristics of note are STR 7, DEX 6, PER 6, WILL 6, MEM 6,
COUR 6, and EMP 4. My PRE wouldve been 6 except the Scales
lowered it back to 5, and my WIS wouldve been 6 except the Wild
Boar Omen lowered it to 5 as well. All my other Characteristics are
average (5). Not bad, not great.

Creating Your Character

I begin looking at my Childhood with a roll to see if I grew up
in an Unusual Family Situation, and a d10 roll produces a 10, meaning
that I did! A second d10 roll is a 6: my parents sent me to live with
relatives, and I havent seen them since. This lowers my EMP to 3,
and means I should roll for the Occupations of the relatives who raised
me. I use the same Social Class as my parents, and I roll an 8: a Lord
(and presumably once again a Lady). My parental attitude rolls reveal
my mother is a (10) Family Agent, my father a (1) Family Enemy, my
female foster relative a (6) Family Friend, and my male foster relative a
(6) Family Friend. Hmm; so either my father sent me away because he
hated me, or perhaps my mother sent me away to some of her relatives
to protect me from my father. If I cant think of a reason later then Ill
roll on the Why Oh Why Table. I then roll to determine the number of
siblings I have, and on a d10 its a 2, so I have two siblings: a 3 means
I was born third (and last), and I roll evens next so theyre both older
sisters. I decide for the heck of it to see if I had any foster siblings, and
roll an 8, so no, I didnt. My two sisters are a (6) Family Friend and a (9)
Family Ally. So I seem to get along well with the women in my family
(despite my cultural bias).

There seems more to explore there at some point, but for
now I note this down and move on to my actual Childhood and roll a
d10 for a 1: Youthful Ill Fortune. On that Table I roll a 7, indicating
Torment: the other kids made fun of me, probably because I was an
outsider fostered with the local Lord. I lose a point of EMP (down to 2
on my way to being a pretty cold-hearted bastard!) and an Ambition
2 Binding. All those years of the other kids at the castle making fun of
me have made me want to show them up

So Im ready to begin my Previous Experience. My foster
relatives wouldve prepared me for the Lord Occupation (maybe thats
why my father is so angry), and at the tender age of 21 that means
I begin with 5 years of Previous Experience. I start with MEM x 3
Training Points to begin, so thats a 6x3=18, and a Starting Inheritance
of SL x PRE, so thats 9x5=45 gold coins worth of stuff. I buy one point
each in Awareness, Persuasion, Athletics, Local Expert (Auria), Etiquette,
Wardrobe & Style, Hand-to-Hand, Evade, Commerce, Inquiry, Intrigue,
and Divine King Cult Lore (costing 12 Training Points) and a second
point to Etiquette, Persuasion, and Athletics (costing the remaining 6).
I speak the Middle Tongue at Skill Level 6 (equal to my MEM).

The starting year of the campaign is 1471ia, so I figure out I
was born in 1450ia. Ill roll year by year to see what happened:
In 1465ia at the age of 16, I roll d10 for a 3: Minor Ill Fortune. A
second d10 roll of 8 indicates I had an Accident and lost a point
of a Physical Characteristic, so Ill deduct a point of TECH so my
TECH is now 4.
In 1466ia at the age of 17, I roll d10 for a 5: Minor Good Fortune.
A second d10 roll of 4 indicates I gained an Outlaw Contact, which
gets me 3 Training Points in the Skill of Streetwise, which brings me
up to Level 2. Since the local kids kept making fun of me, maybe I
hooked up with some Umisi bandits.
In 1467ia at the age of 18, I roll d10 for a 6: Minor Good Fortune
again. A second roll of 3 indicates a Merchant Contact that I can
use to get a 10% discount on goods and 5% on imports.
In 1468ia at the age of 19, I roll d10 for a 10! Its a Great Adventure.
The second d10 roll is a 1, Great Conflict! I got caught up in a war
and I have to roll a d3 and find that 2 of my Family and Friends were
killed; I randomly determine that my older sister and foster father
were killed in the fighting. I gain a now-Dormant Grief 2 Binding.
As Lord is already a Military Occupation, I will earn double my

Arcana Points and Earnings this year, reflecting the fighting

and looting I did during the war.
In 1469ia at the age of 20, I roll a d10 for an 8: Romance. A
second d10 roll is a 1, a Busy Social Year but without lasting
Love, so rolling d4 twice I gain 2 Contacts and 3 Skeptics.
Apparently I tried to deal with my Grief by playing the field
(what do you expect for a guy with an EMP of 2?).
And that brings us to 1471ia, the current year.

Ill start with my Skills next; I earned MEM+REAS
Training Points every year for five years of Previous Experience,
so thats (6+5)x5=55 Training Points. I look over the Lord
Occupation Skills list and decide to take 1 Level each in the
Skills I doesnt have a Level in already (cost 10 Training Points,
as a couple are Cultural Everyman Skills for me and were already
made Level 1), add a second Level to all of my Occupation Skills
plus Local Expert (Auria), Evade, Commerce, and Hand-to-Hand
(cost 32 Training Points), and raise Etiquette, Evade, Melee, and
Armor Training to Level 3 (cost 12 Training Points). I have a
single Training Point left, and buy a Level in Local Expert for the
Umisi hills.

The Arcana linked to the Lord Occupation are the
Emperor and the Sword, so thats where Id earn my Arcana Points.
I had 5 years of Previous Experience and earn WILL Arcana Points
each year, so thatd be 6x5=30 Arcana Points. But one year my
Arcana Points were doubled because I was fighting in a war, so I
add another 6 to get 36 total Arcana Points. The Emperor Arcana
is linked to APP, WILL, and COUR, while the Sword Arcana is
linked to TECH, WILL, and COUR. Ill call upon my COUR
in fighting a lot, so I raise it to 7 (costing 7x3=21 Emperor Arcana
Points). Ive got 15 Arcana Points left. Im picturing myself as a
would-be Knight Commander (with some seamy connections),
so I put 9 Arcana Points in the Emperor Arcana and take Mask of
Command 2 (3 points for Level 1, 6 points for Level 2), and then
put the remaining 6 in the Emperor Arcana and take the Emperorlinked Campaigning Skill at Level 3 (1 point for Level 1, 2 for
Level 2, 3 for Level 3), to reflect my year of active-duty war. I
put all 36 Arcana Points in the Emperor Arcana, so Im already
showing my Character inclinations.

My Occupation, Lord, is technically an SL 10
Occupation (though I was born at SL 9). My Annual Earnings
are 133g10s a year, and I have House Keeping 2 and Commerce
2 and my earnings were doubled one year, so I wind up with a
whopping 4405g10s! Thats a bit high, probably, as I did it as a
quick calculation rather than reflecting his actual rise in Skills, so
I can probably knock it down to around 4000g even. 90% of that
will be in property and goods and perhaps some of it set aside to
hire some servants or Knights for my household, but Ive got no
money worries.

There are a lot of details left to fill in about my past,
but this is more or less where I stand as I ready for play. My
Characteristics of note are STR 7, STAM 6, DEX 6, TECH 4,
PER 6, WILL 6, MEM 6. COUR 7, EMP 2, and WIS 6, and Ive
got some Family members who care about mewell, except my
father, who really cant stand me. My low EMP is a concern, and
I could have tried to alleviate it by spending Training Points, but
felt I needed all of those Training Points dedicated to Skills. Im
illiterate, but Writing wasnt on my Everyman, Occupation, or
Arcana-linked Skill Lists, so Ill just have to wait for the game to
address that. Not that a rich young Lordling needs to know how
to read, mind you

Adventures in the Known World

165

ADVENTURES IN THE KNOWN WORLD

CHARACTER SHEET PAGE 1
Gilead Ohelias of Ghart
CHARACTER _________________________________________________
PLAYER __________________________________________
Aurian (from the Principality of Auria)
Baronial City of Enlos
CULTURE ___________________________________________________
BIRTHPLACE _____________________________________
SL 9: Noble
SL 10: Noble
PARENTS SOCIAL LEVEL _____________________________________
CURRENT SOCIAL LEVEL __________________________
Lady
MOTHERS LINEAGE _____________________________________________
MOTHERS OCCUPATION ______________________
Aurian lineage: +1 STR, +1 STAM, -1 EMP
Knight (forstered by Lord)
Athelias:+1 STR, -1 STAM, +1 DEX, +1 PER, +1 PRE, +1 WIS
FATHERS LINEAGE ______________________________________________
FATHERS OCCUPATION _______________________
The Scales
Mild: +1 MEM, -1 PRE
BIRTH SIGN _______________________
SIGN INFLUENCE ____________________________________________________________
Tricky: Wild Boar appeared (+1 WILL, +1 COUR, =1 PRE
BIRTH OMENS ___________________________________________________________________________________________________
SCORE

MODS

APP
STR
STAM
DEX
TECH

Body

27

7
6
6

SKILLS
Awareness 1
Persuasion 1/2
Athletics 1/2
Teaching
Local Expert (Auria/Enlos) 1/2
Etiquette (Aurian) 1/2/3
Wardrobe & Style 1
Hand-to-Hand 1/2
Evade 1/2/3
Native Tongue Middle Tongue 6
Cult Lore -- Divine King 1/2

CHARACTERISTICS
SCORE
MODS
6
PER
6
WILL
6
MEM
5
IMAG
5
REAS

PRE
CONV
COUR
EMP
WIS

28

Spirit

Mind

SCORE

MODS

WOUNDS

If he gets wounded, Ill

write the wounds here, for
example:

5
7
2

-1

-1

Cut to head -3
29

Base MOVE _____

24

-2
ENC _____
0

Fatigue Binding _____

GIFTS

27
Current MOVE _____

Mask of Command 1/2

add Gift Level to Leadership, Oratory,
Persuasion; Relations of Hireling or better

BINDINGS

status add Level as Morale bonus.

Ambition 2 (active)
-- applied to EMP and WIS and
rolls opposed to things that could
aid him.
Grief 2 (dormant)
-- applied to WILL, COUR, and
REAS when active, triggered by
memory of sister and foster father

Commerce 1/2

killed in border war.

Inquiry 1/2

Hate women 1 (dormant)

Intrigue 1/2

-- applied to PER, REAS, EMP,

Leadership 1/2

and WIS when active, triggered

Oratory 1/2

by having to deal with women.

Heraldry 1/2
Tactics 1/2
Gambling& Gaming 1/2
Riding 1/2/3
House Keeping 1/2
Melee 1/2/3
Armor Training 1/2/3

0
POLLUTION ________

Local Expert (Umisi hills) 1

Campaigning 1/2/3
Streetwise 1/2

ARCANA
MAGICIAN
G. PRIESTESS
EMPRESS
EMPEROR
G. PRIEST
LOVERS
HERMIT

PTS

0/36

THE BOOK OF DOOMS

ARCANA PTS
SWORD
JUSTICE
WHEEL
STRENGTH
HANGED MAN
DEATH
TEMPERANCE

ARCANA
SPHINX
RIVEN TOWER
STARS
MOON
SUN
L. JUDGMENT
WORLD
FOOL

PTS

ADVENTURES IN THE KNOWN WORLD

CHARACTER SHEET PAGE 2

MAGIC & BOOKS

M/S

Damage

Reach

Block

WT

Divine King Offering Ritual

MEM
1

WEAPON/SHIELD
Sword of War (2h)

+12 Cut/+11 Puncture

3.5

DK Prayer of Invocation

Dagger

+3 Cut

--

.75

Heavy flanged mace (1h)

+5 Impact

3.5

ARMOR

CUT
PCT
IMP
11
6
6
OVERALL
Sun Court knights
0
0
0
three-quarter harness, EXPOSED face (visor up)
custom fitted; with
2/3
2/3
2/3
WEAK legs/feet
visored sallet
---STRONG
RELATIONS
POSSESSIONS & PROPERTY3

WT
47

WT

Silia Perhart, Mother (Agent)

Small clothes, gilded belt

Garan Ohelias, Father (Enemy)

Silver ring

---

Belle, Older Sister, RIP

Gold brooch

.5

Virgis, Older Sister (ally)

Belt purse with coin

Sara Tils, Foster Mother (Friend)

Sear Perhart, Foster Father, RIP
Gire Cutter, Umisi Outlaw (Contact)

4
FREE MEM _______
INVOCATIONS
PTS

Around 3600 g in property

Ren Guiles, Merchant (Contact)

Mera of Ghart, ex-Lover (Contact)
Hilla of Ghart, ex-Lover (Contact)

Here Ill list the Gods and their

Lara of Ghart, ex-Lover (Skeptic)

aspects/epithets that he makes

Olga of Ghart, ex-Lover (Skeptic)

offerings to during the course of

Saran of Ghart, ex-Lover (Skeptic)

the game, and how many

Invocation Points hes got
available in each; for example:
Islik, King of Heaven

Islik, Conqueror of Death

7
.25
TOTAL WT. CARRIED 57
______

COINS

300 g or so locked in chests.

your LifePath

Tormented by other children, for -1 EMP and an Ambition 2 BInding

i1450
YEAR OF BIRTH _________
CHILDHOOD ____________________________________________________________________________
AGE
YEAR
OCCUPATION
EVENT
HISTORY/NOTES
i1466
Lord
Accident: -1 TECH
Parents sent him to live with his relatives
16
17

i1467

Lord

Outlaw Contact, Streetwise 2

and he hasnt seen them since.

18

i1468

Lord

Merchant Contact: 10% discount

He was raised in Ghart by his now deceased

19

i1469

Lord

Great Conflict: Grief 2 Binding

foster father Lord Sear, his uncle on his

20

i1470

Lord

Busy social year

mothers side. His foster father and sister

21

i1471

Lord

Current year

Belle were killed during conflict over taxes

in i1469. Is there someone he blames for
their deaths?

Playing the Game

probably rule that you were moving through Rough
Terrain that phase.
In Very Rough Terrain, a Guide may wish to
occasionally call upon a Character for a DEX or STR
Test to avoid an injury from trips, falls, frostbite, etc.
(try d10 damage to a single body random body part as
an example of a typical injury; armor doesnt protect
against most such injuries).
Avoiding getting lost in the Material World is largely
a matter of Navigation rolls. If youre following a road
you dont need to make such rolls, but if off a road and
in the wilderness, your Guide may occasionally ask for
a Navigation check to make sure youre on course.

PLAYING THE GAME:

ACTIONS

& MOVEMENT

A STEP

E
Or, how we do stuff.

our movement is measured by your Move rating, which is equal

to your Body score + Athletics Skill Encumberance Binding
Wounds. Your Move rating is affected by the amount of weight
youre carrying, so you must subtract any Encumbrance Binding resulting
from such weight from your Move score, and by any Wounds youve taken
to your body.

Your Move score can be used both in the close time-frame of
Combat, when you are tracking action phase by phase, and also at the
other end of the spectrum, to measure distance traveled per day when
you are primarily worried about moving about the World. At its smallest
increments, your Move rating represents the number of feet you can
move in a standard Move Action taken during your turn in a Combat
phase. At the other end of the scale, your Move rating is the number of
miles you can travel overland during a rigorous day. If you are moving at
a more leisurely pace, or trying to be careful not to walk into an ambush,
then halve your Move rating.

Your Move rating can be affected and slowed by the Terrain that
you are walking on or through. Terrain should also be taken to include
Weather and its effects on Terrain is rated as Easy, Rough and Very Rough
and reduces your overall MOVE rating in the following Table.
Terrain
Easy

Rough

Very Rough

Example
Grass, plain earth,
clear skies and low
wind
Light brush, choppy
waves (if at sea),
strong winds or rain
Mud, heavy snow,
ice, thick brush,
storm

Effect
No effect
Halves MOVE
Quarters MOVE

The Terrain type is decided on by the Guide, and is based on the majority
of Terrain you will be crossing over that phase. For example, if you ran
over 4 yards of Easy terrain and 6 yards of Rough, the Guide would

168

Adventures in the Known World

While most of the movements and distances involved

in the game will be described in feet, yards, or miles
(I prefer the old English system of measurement as a
more naturalistic system in feel than the metric), some
movements and distances particularly in combat
will be described as Steps. A Step is essentially just
that, a single stride or step that you can make. The
exact length of a Step is left purposefully vague, but
it should essentially be around 3 to 5 or so. Its
meant to represent when you make an incremental
but recognizable shift in position, so that you might be
required in the game to take a Step forward, or Step backward,
or take a Step inside the Reach of a long weapon.

MOVEMENT ACTIONS
DURING A PHASE
During a single phase (3 seconds) of time, you may take one
or more Actions. If an Action is a Full-Phase Action, then
it takes up the full phase and you cant do anything else that
phase. Otherwise, your Action can usually be combined
with one other Action during the same phase e.g., moving
forward while drawing a weapon.
Abort
If you are already engaged in an Action (for example, a Wait
Action see below) but are being attacked but have yet to take
your turn during a phase, you may choose to abort to a Specific
Defense (see Combat Rules in next section) by forgoing your
current or upcoming Action.

Aim

This Full-Phase Action allows you to improve your chances to hit

with a ranged weapon (only). Each consecutive Full-Phase Action
taken Aiming adds +1 to your attack. You can aim for up to three
consecutive Actions, so your maximum bonus from aiming is +3.
Aiming assumes a steady, braced position, no movement unless
you are on horseback and have a Riding Skill of 4 or higher, and
a clear chance to track your target.

Draw

This Action allows you to ready a sheathed, slung, or hidden

weapon or shield for attack or defense. It may be performed with
another Action in the same phase.

Get Up

Use this Action to get up from a prone position, for example

Playing the Game

after being knocked down. Note that usually you can do this without
having to resolve a Test; however, in combat, if you are being attacked
or you are within the Reach of an armed and aware opponent (someone
not surprised, stunned, or unconscious), you must succeed at a DEX/
Athletics Test DR 14 to stand up with the 3 penalty for attempting
a task while under attack to the roll. This penalty represents the
possibility of slipping and scrabbling under pressure from an attack.

Defense Rolls during a Run. Run is a double Move Action so you

cant do anything else during the same phase that you are Running.
Running is hard work; you may Run a number of minutes equal to
your MOVE rating plus your Run Specialty, and after that for every
minute you spend Running you gain one Level of a Fatigue Binding
until you are too fatigued to run further.

Move

At full-phase Sprint Action lets you take three Move Actions strung
together, once again with your Run Specialty factored in, so you can
move (BODY + Athletics + Run ENC Wounds) x 3 in feet this
phase. However, you may not take a Standard Defense Roll during
your Sprint you are assumed to be putting all your energy and
concentration into a flat-out burst of speed. Note that your high
MOVE for this turn will make you a harder target to hit. Sprinting
is very tiring, and you may sprint for a number of phases equal to
your MOVE rating plus your Run Specialty. For every phase you
spend Sprinting after that, you accumulate one Fatigue Binding
Level until you are too fatigued to sprint any further.

This Action allows you to move up to your MOVE rating (BODY +

Athletics ENC Wounds) in feet of distance as affected by Terrain,
and perform one other Action, except for Run, Sprint, Recover or
any Action the GM rules takes a Full Action (or longer). Two Move
Actions in the same phase is essentially a Run Action (see below), and
three Move Actions in the same phase is a Sprint Action (see below).

Mount (or Dismount)

This is a full-phase Action that allows you to get on or off a horse or

similar mount. You may not perform another Action while mounting
or dismounting. The Dismount Action does not include actually
tethering your mount or otherwise securing it, which would have to
be handled as an Other Action in the following phases.

Other Action

Use this Action for anything not covered by the other specific Actions
on this list, like tethering your horse, taking off your shirt, opening a
door, or anything else you can think of. How long an Other Action
takes is up to your Guide, as they have to make a judgment based on
what you want to do; they may well decide that what you describe
takes several phases or even rounds to perform, or that it may be
performed quickly but only with penalties applied to your roll, etc.

Recover

Recovering is a round-long (four phase) Action that removes one Level

of a Fatigue Binding. You may remove a number of Levels of Fatigue
Binding equal to your STAM using this Action over consecutive phases
once after any period of exertion; if you still have Fatigue Bindings left
over after that, however, their removal requires sleep or sustenance
to recover. Drinking water restores 1 Fatigue Binding Level, eating a
full meal restores d3 Fatigue Binding Levels, and you regain 4 Fatigue
Binding Levels per hour of sleep. If you choose Recover for your
Action, you can do nothing else that phase.

Q Haggis the Spry runs all the way to town to warn

them of oncoming bandits. He has to run ten minutes
longer than his MOVE and Run score would normally
allow, meaning he gains 10 Fatigue Binding Levels.
His STAM is 5, so he can take a Recover Action for
5 consecutive rounds to catch his breath, resulting in
a Fatigue 5 Binding; but to remove those remaining
Binding Levels, hell have to get a drink, eat some food,
or sleep for a couple of hours.

Sprint

Use Gift
A Gift be it an Aura, Mask, or Voice Gift, or one that doesnt
affect other Characters but only yourself may be used, revealed,
or activated by a Use Gift Action. This Action can be combined
with other Actions on your turn. A Gift can also be hidden away or
turned off using the same Action.

Wait

A Wait Action allows you to interrupt another players Actions

during their turn. Waiting is best used when you want to wait until
an opportunity presents itself. To Wait, you must announce that
you are planning to Wait when your part of the phase comes up.
The important word to include in this announcement is until,
stating what condition must be met before you will act. An example
might be, I wait until Gharros the Black-Hearted moves, or I
wait until I can see the whites of his eyes. If the conditions of
your Wait are not met, you must stand there, waiting, until the next
phase. When the specified condition has been met, you can elect to
interrupt someone elses action immediately. After all, this is what
you have been waiting for. An example would be: I wait until my
opponent pops his head up from behind the wall, then Ill shoot.
The moment your opponent pops up to shoot at you (his action),
you could then interrupt and fire. You need not roll to interrupt;
its automatic.

FATIGUE
Fatigue and exhaustion in Artesia AKW is essentially represented
as a Binding. Whenever you are tired or are pushing yourself
physically, you gain Fatigue Binding Levels. They are applied as
negative Modifiers to your MOVE rating and affect your rolls
during all Tests. Thus, as your Fatigue Binding and Encumberance
Binding increase in Levels, your MOVE rate slows and your
effectiveness in combat will be reduced.

Reloading

This Action allows you to reload or ready a Ranged Weapon for firing. If
you are Reloading a Bow or readying a Javelin, Dagger, or Sling, you may
combine your Reloading Action with a Move Action.

Run

A full phase Run Action is essentially two Move Actions strung together,
to which you get to add your Run Specialty Skill if any. So you can
move (BODY + Athletics + Run ENC Wounds) x 2 in feet this
phase. You may continue to have your full DEX available for Standard

Q FATIGUE AS AN OPTION

Tracking Fatigue obviously adds a layer of

bookkeeping to the game that some Guides and
Players may find unnecessary. Feel free to disregard
the rules on gaining Fatigue Binding Levels if you find
them too cumbersome.

Adventures in the Known World

169

Playing the Game: Combat

PLAYING
THE GAME:

COMBAT
E
Or, how we fight.

he Known World is a dangerous place, and you will often

find yourself in situations where you have to fight for your
life, and combat will be the situation in which your phaseby-phase activity is at its most important. The initial questions
that need to be answered as you approach combat are Was anyone
surprised? and Who goes first?

SURPRISE & AMBUSH

When two Characters or groups of Characters are approaching each
other with hostile intent, its possible for one to get the jump on the
other and gain an advantage in combat. Who first becomes aware
of the other party is the main element of this question; a comparison
of PER/Awareness Tests is called for, and if you get the highest roll
then you hear or see the other side first, and get a +3 bonus on your
Initiative Rolls (see below). Thus its possible for some Characters
in a group to spot opponents before others do, and theyll have
an advantage when it comes to determining the order in which
Characters act. In large open fields or when considerable distance
exists between the Characters, this may be a moot point.

Sometimes you might try to deliberately surprise your
opponents in an Ambush; a successful Ambush results when you
successfully use your Stealth Skill to either hide or sneak up on an
opponent without detection. Either would require a successful
Stealth Skill Test against the PER/Awareness Roll of your opponents.
It is possible for both sides in a Combat to try surprising the other,
requiring simultaneous Stealth vs. PER/Awareness Tests, perhaps

170

Adventures in the Known World

resulting in individuals on both sides being surprised

(e.g., two groups of warriors are skulking through the
woods, and both sides were successful in using their
Stealth Skills against the others PER Test, and so neither
side was aware of the other until they were on top of each
other).

If you are successfully surprised in an Ambush,
you automatically lose the ability to Act during the first
phase of combat; this also means, amongst other things,
that you cannot take any kind of Defense during that phase and are
considered defenseless. Then at the beginning of the next and each
following phase, you may attempt a WILL Test DR 10 to see if you
snap out of your surprise; subtract 2 from the WILL Test DR each
phase, so eventually you should be able to snap out of your surprise.
Once you have succeeded at the WILL Test, you may roll Initiative
regularly and act in that phase on your turn. Being surprised, therefore,
is a situation that you will want to avoid as much as possible.

INITIATIVE
During a phase when more than one Character is trying to take an
Action, itll be necessary to figure out who goes first. The order in
which you get to act is based on your Initiative, which is determined
by an Initiative Roll at the beginning of a combat. This roll is a simple
d10 + DEX + Modifiers comparison.
Initiative:
d10 + DEX +/- Modifiers
Whoever has the highest Initiative goes first, followed by whoever has
the second highest, and so forth. You go in the same order during each
phase of combat (to make matters simple), but Initiative does not carry
over from one battle to the next; you have to re-roll your Initiative if