Threshold issue 11 v2

The Mystara Magazine

#11

The eleventh issue of the Mystara Magazine,featuring the

Empires of Thyatis and Alphatia, and their colonies.

pandius.com thepiazza.org.uk

Thyatis and Alphatia

THRESHOLD: The Mystara Magazine Issue #11

Previous Issues

Previous Issues

#1Karameikos

#2Vaults of Pandius

#3The Sea of Dread

#4Return to Dread

#5ExploringDavania

#6The Northlands

#7ExploringNorwold

#8Warlords

of Norwold

Previous issues of THRESHOLD - the MystaraMagazine, are available for download from theVaults of Pandius website.

Also available at the same location are higherresolution versions of the maps that wereincluded in the issue’s PDF, allowing greaterdetail to be viewed.

#9Hollow World

#10Elven Realms

http://www.pandius.com/thrs_mag.html


Issue Contents

Threshold: The Mystara Magazine is a non-commercial, fan-produced magazine. There is nointention to infringe on anyone's rights, and in particular not on those of Wizards of the Coast,which holds all rights to the original material on which the magazine is based.

Issue #11Editorial....................................................................................3

This Issue s Contributors.........................................................4

Call for Contributors................................................................6

Once Upon a Time in Ar—Part Six...........................................7

From Alphatia to Calidar........................................................11

Atlas of Mystara - Thyatis........................................................17

Thorfinn Tait Interview..........................................................22

The Elemental Evil in Mystara...............................................33

The Thyatian Language...........................................................53

The Judicates of Carytion.......................................................63

The Forester Class..................................................................81

The Foresters of Thyatis.........................................................86

Imperial Explorers!...............................................................106

Lost Civilizations of Thyatis and Alphatia............................112

Alphatian Alphabet...............................................................136

A Gazetteer of Limn..............................................................141

Warbirds Add-Ons.................................................................159

20 Years of History in the Sea of Dawn................................163

An Atlas of the Isle of Dawn.................................................174

Koskatep level 9: Krystallac, crystal heart...........................205

Time’s Travels.......................................................................225

Artwork Sources and Credits................................................227

Next Issue.............................................................................236

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Editorial

Threshold Editorial Team:

Allan Palmer (AllanP)Francesco Defferrari (Sturm)Giampaolo Agosta (Agathokles)John Calvin (Chimpman)Simone Neri (Zendrolion)Thorfinn Tait (Thorf)HåvardJoseph Setorius (Julius Cleaver)Robert Nuttman (RobJN)Leland (Argentmantle)LoZompatoreSeer of Y'hog

Editors Emeriti

AshtagonAndrew Theisen (Cthulhudrew)Jesper Andersen (Spellweaver)Troy Terrell (CmdrCorsiken)Angel Tarragon (The Angelic Dragon)Micky

THRESHOLD logo designed by Thorf

Editor-in-Chief, Issue 11:Francesco Defferrari (Sturm)

Layout:Allan Palmer (AllanP)

Art:John CalvinI. CalvinNathan Park

Cartography:Thorfinn TaitBruce HeardEpik TeamFrancesco Defferrari (Sturm)Giulio CarolettiRobin D

Additional Reviewers & Proofreaders:Shawn Stanley (stanles)Harri Maki (hihama)Robin D.

Editorial Credits

Thanks To: The Mystara Community, for your support, hard work, and dedication to Mystara.

The aims of Threshold magazine:▪ to provide a venue for community members to present material▪ to promote the Vaults of Pandius and the material there▪ to increase the exposure of existing and new articles▪ to encourage authors to revisit and revitalise existing articles▪ to motivate interest in Mystara in general

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Editorial

This issue starts with a real treat for Mystaranfans, an exclusive short story by Bruce Heardset in Alphatia, sixth installment of his "OnceUpon a Time in Ar" that he is publishing onhis blog. Even if Mystara has not beenofficially published in the last 20 years, thefact that the man many of us consider themajor game designer of the setting is stillactive in the community, and this fanzine hasnow reached its 11th issue, is proof enoughthat our favorite gaming world is as vibrantand alive as it could be.

The recent inauguration of the DungeonMasters Guild by Wizards of the Coast,official publisher of Dungeon & Dragons,allowing individuals to publish D&Dmaterial, could be good news for our hobby.At the moment the possibility exists only forthe Forgotten Realms and Ravenloft settings,but it could be opened for other settings too.

Obviously we are already publishing newMystara material here, on The Piazza forumand the Vaults of Pandius official website, yetan official sanction by the D&D publishercould be able to bring a better knowledge ofthe wonderful Mystaran material to theyounger generations of gamers.

In the meantime we are doing our best hereto keep Mystara alive. This issue alsocontains ideas on how to use Calidar, thenew setting developed by Bruce Heard, withMystara. The Atlas of Mystara by Thorfinn

Tait, featuring Thyatis, and an interview withthe very same world famous (in Mystarasurely) cartographer. We will then move to aconversion of one of the newest D&Dadventurers, the Elemental Evil storyline, toset it in Mystara, at the fringe of the AlphatianEmpire, in the untamed lands of Esterhold.Then to Thyatis, with a treatise on theThyatian language and a Gazetteer ofCarytion, and two articles about theForesters: a revision of the class and detailsabout the Order. Two more articles aboutthe most famous explorers of the twoempires and the lost civilization hidden intheir mainlands, bring us from Thyatis toAlphatia. We will learn something about theAlphatian Alphabet and we will visit theKingdom of Limn. Then to examine themight of the Heldannic Warbirds with newblueprints. We end our voyage through theEmpires with an atlas and a recent timelineof the Isle of Dawn. Finally, to the lastinstallment of the Koskatep megadungeonand the charms of the fairy folks. A GrandTour of Mystara indeed. In the next issue, inwhich Threshold magazine will reach themilestone of three years of publishing thefanzine, we will delve into the mysteries ofAges Past!

Francesco Defferrari (Sturm)Editor-in-Chief, Threshold Issue 11

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This Issue s Contributors

This Issue’s Contributors

Bruce Heard is a game designer and anauthor of several products for the Dungeons& Dragons fantasy role-playing game fromTSR. Bruce authored key products for theMystara setting, including (among manyothers) two Gazetteers, The Principalities ofGlantri and The Orcs of Thar, and the well-loved Dragon Magazine series, The Voyage ofthe Princess Ark. Bruce has recently comeback to the setting in his blog, and createdCalidar, a new campaign setting that recentlycompleted its second successful Kickstartercampaign. More information on his recentworks and his complete profile can be viewedat his blog: http://bruce-heard.blogspot.it/

Thorfinn Tait hails from the Orkney Islandsin northern Scotland, though he has lived inJapan for many years now. Growing up withBECMI and the Known World, he learnt totype by compiling a database of Mystara’stimeline. He joined the Mystara onlinecommunity in 1997, but his truecontributions began with the Atlas of Mystaraproject starting in 2005. Recently he hasmade the jump to become a published fantasycartographer, working on Bruce Heard’sCalidar series. You can follow his work on hiscartography site (www.thorfmaps.com) andthe Atlas site (mystara.thorfmaps.com).

It all started with a blog(https://entirepartykilled.wordpress.com/) butbefore that it started with THE roleplayinggame: Dungeons and Dragons. We all at EPKCentral have more or less 25 years of playingeach and we all love this game. With all these"experience levels" under the bridge westarted throughout the years to make ourbrand new stories, our brand new settingsand our brand new rules. With the 5th

Edition our love for the game was somewhatrekindled and brought us to convert some ofthe most famous adventures to the newruleset. On our blog you can find the thingwe have already done, the recount of someof the campaigns we are playing and variousposts on the game we love.

The EPiK team is:

Giuliano: the Mind - he is the DungeonMaster, in his waking hours designs somecomplex plots and adventures, but whenhe sleeps then the horror comes. In thatquiet time his mind works on creaturesand monsters.

Davide: the Hound - he is our master playtester, he follows the plot to its tiny bits,leaving nothing behind and alwayschoosing the right side. But, it always ishis right side, do you understand?

Stefano: the Joker - when in dire straitswhat is better than a laugh and somemadness. Well it usually works to throwoff everybody else’s plans. And nerves.And both. At the same time. Then, always,Chaos ensues.

Andrea: the Writer - He knows the rules,he knows the stories, he writes themdown. And he remembers, always, all themistakes you have done, and all thefumbles you have rolled.

Even though Sturm (a.k.a. FrancescoDefferrari) loves any alternate world, hebelieves Mystara is incomparably the best forits vibrant community endlessly delving intoethnography, linguistics and history just to

http://bruce-heard.blogspot.it/


www.thorfmaps.com

mystara.thorfmaps.com

https://entirepartykilled.wordpress.com/

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This Issue s Contributors

make a little sense of it. Something like thereal world, but with dragons.

Giulio Caroletti started playing in Mystarawith the old red box in 1992, and hasn'tstopped since. He went "internet" on theMML as Captain Iulius Sergius Scaevola in1999, and has since written mostly aboutThyatis and Dwarves. When not busypretending to be a Thyatian officer, he lives aboring life as an atmosphere physicist fromRome, Italy. His main interests are light-eyedgirls, soccer (he's an AS Roma fan) and rockmusic (especially 70s progressive rock).

Craig Antoun (a.k.a. Irondrake) was firstintroduced to D&D by a friend in 1981, whichbegan for him a long and rewarding journeyas a Game Master that continues to this day.Having experienced most editions of theD&D game, Craig has always been drawnback to the BECMI/RC edition, which he findselegant in its simplicity, yet rich inpossibilities. In early 2014 he returned tomanaging his first Mystara campaign, whichpreviously ran from 1984 to 1993.

Korro Zal lives on the west coast of Japan,where in addition to teaching and writingtextbooks he designs reams of material forMystara campaigns (which, once in a rarewhile, he actually gets to use in a campaign!)and answers his six-year old's incessantquestions about who is stronger, Darth Vaderor Kylo Ren. Having decided that since hecan't actually make use of all the content he'screated for Mystara over the last 25 years orso, why not publish it in Threshold in casesomeone else can?"

Andrew Tyrus Wieland, known on thePiazza as Jacques Riesling, visited the Cavesof Chaos and Castle Amber when he was inelementary school or junior high, he doesn'tremember the exact year. He continued toexplore Mystara and other worlds likeGreyhawk and Ravenloft. He moved on tonear-future paranormal worlds and sciencefiction worlds. He sees Alphatia as an oddlymodern island set down in the middle of apre-industrial world. He has lived inPortland, Oregon for 14 years.

Alexandre de Luna is a brazilian doctorand has been playing D&D since the early90ies, mainly Dragonlance and ForgottenRealms, having been introduced to Mystaraonly in 2007. It was love at first sight. Hisfavourite settings are Alphatia, Norwold andThyatis and he has mastered Mystaracampaigns since 2010.

Hausman Santos is an art educator anddrawing professor. An enthusiast in Mystarasince 1995 when he met in Brazil the AD&Dboxed set of Karameikos.He has narrated campaigns for game groupsin Thyatis, Alphatia, Rockhome and Glantriand keeps some of these groups since 2002.He manages a page for Mystara Brazilian fanson the internet. Currently he has gatheredmuch of the material that he developed intogame sessions with his group from projectslike the Mystaran Almanac and discussedwith the members of the Old Almanac Teamabout the old and unfinished plotlines(around AC 1016-1017) in order to resumethem.

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Call for Contributors

The Threshold editorial team invites all fansof the Mystara setting to submitcontributions to the next issues of themagazine.

We are looking especially for contributionsfitting the following themes:

Issue 12 - Ages PastThe editorial team will accept proposalson Mystara's past ages: Y'hog, Blackmoor,Mystara 2300 BC, Taymora, Nithia, or anyculture or location existing before presentday Mystara.Proposal Deadline: Expired on March31st, but proposal could still be submittedif the author is confident that the articlewill be completed by the below deadlineManuscript Deadline: April 30th, 2016Issue Published: By July 15th, 2016

Call for proposals for main themes offorthcoming issues (2016):

Issue 13 - A Crucible of CreaturesMonsters, humanoids and other inhumandenizens of Mystara! The editorial teamwill accept proposals on any kind ofcreature which could live in our favoritesetting.Proposal Deadline: June 30th 2016.Manuscript Deadline: July 31st, 2016Issue Published: By October 15th, 2016

Issue 14 - The Great Waste and beyondTo the unexplored lands of central andwestern Brun! The editorial team willaccept proposals on Sind, Hule, Yavdlom,the Midlands, Borea and Hyborea, the Yaluriver, the Endworld line, the Arm of theImmortals and the Savage Coast.

Proposal Deadline: September 30th 2016.Manuscript Deadline: October 31th, 2016Issue Published: By January 15th, 2017

Articles about other topics are stillwelcome and the editorial team willevaluate their publication in an issue,taking into account space availableand that issue's theme.

Threshold accepts (and invites) thesubmission of extended or revisedversions of works having appeared on ThePiazza or the Vaults of Pandius.

Contributions may include, but are notlimited to, articles (short stories, shortadventure modules, NPCs, historicaltreatises and timelines, geographicalentries, new monsters and monsterecologies, etc.) and illustrations (portraits,maps, heraldry, illustrations, etc.)

The Threshold editorial team strives foredition neutrality, but edition specificarticles (e.g., conversions) are alsoaccepted. Statistics for new monsters andNPCs may be included in articles (e.g.,adventure modules, new monsters orNPCs) in any version of Dungeons &Dragons. The editorial team also offershelp in providing conversions to somespecific rules set (including BECMI/RC,2nd Edition, 3rd edition/Pathfinder).However, they should be limited to theminimum -- for most NPCs, it is sufficientto mention class, level, and alignment. Forimportant NPCs, a one or two line statblock could be included.

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Once Upon a Time in Ar—Part Six

His mind abuzz with Syphonean’s revelation,Dardaniel approached a door that lookedlike the torture chamber’s exit. It wasn’tlocked. A sliding panel in it revealed abarred opening just large enough for Keekoto have slipped through. A glance informedDardaniel that no one stood in the corridorbeyond. The wizard could, however, hearsomeone speaking in another chamber.Cautious, he pulled the heavy door open asquietly as he could. With the old palacecourtier close behind him and his diminutivefriend perched on his shoulder, he steppedthrough. A door on the far right opened ona larger cell—unoccupied. Satisfied that noone else was behind them, Dardanielapproached a corner at the corridor’sopposite end, and peered around it.

A short distance beyond lay a large circularchamber with a fire pit in the middle andpairs of roughly hewn columns standing nearits outer perimeter. Dancing shadowsclaimed the far edges. Standing close to thefire, several sinister-looking characterslistened to another dressed in dark leathercoveralls, facing them. A female, possiblyone versed in the fine arts of the arcane,stood at his side, quietly watching.

“Fine,” he said. “Gart and Frunkles, you tworide to Archon and have the messagedelivered to the Haakens.” He tossed a smallobject to them, which one of the two caughtin mid-air. After examining it for an instant,he slipped it into his pouch. Dardanielsuspected it might be his own family ring,now missing from his hand. “Include it withyour letter,” continued the somber fellow.“We might get more gold out of his familyyet, but do not linger there. If they don’trespond right away, get out and do notreturn here until you are certain no onefollows.” The two nodded and walked away.

A large and fat character raised a hand. “Andwhat of the old one?” he asked. Dardanielrecognized his jail keeper’s gravelly voice.

“He’s well-born that one, and with an accentfrom down south. His kind don’t normallycome hiding in our woods without goodreason. Someone’s looking for him. I’llknow what to do with him by the morrow.”

Dardaniel winced at the revelation. They hadto get out. He looked back at Syphonean,brought his index finger to his lips, andmotioned him to follow. Slipping into the

Once Upon a Time in Ar—Part Sixby Bruce Heard

If you missed the earlier episodes,you can read them on Bruce Heard’s blog

http://bruce-heard.blogspot.co.uk/search/label/Ar

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shadows, he began skirting the edge of thechamber toward a nearby corridor. Keekotook off and vanished through a passage onthe chamber’s opposite side. An instantlater, everyone’s eyes turned toward amuffled screech coming from the directionthe familiar had taken. The wizardunderstood at once what Keeko was up to,and quickly moved to the next closestcorridor.

The man in black leather pointed a finger atanother. “Korfen, go find out what’s goingon. I told those oafs over there to keep itquiet.” The man, a wiry, rat-like fellow,darted toward the direction of the odd noise.

Worried that his small companion’s diversioncould put it in trouble, Dardaniel duckedinto the other corridor with Syphonean. Atthe sound of objects hitting a surface at theopposite end of the corridor, the twosqueezed into a recess in the wall. Unsure

9



what to make of what lay there, Dardaniellistened instead to what was happening inthe previous room, until his old friendtapped him on the shoulder, pointing at adoor behind them.

“I wager your companion is clever enough tohide in nooks and crannies,” Syphoneanwhispered. “Maybe we should have a look atwhat lies behind this here portal, eh?Perhaps there’s a way out.”

Reluctantly, Dardaniel nodded. Carefully,they pushed the door open enough to peerin: another hallway lay ahead. The twoslipped inside and closed the door behindthem. At the other end stood another door.A cautious check revealed what looked likean office, with a desk and chair, a glowingcrystal, and miscellaneous chests. A largemonstrous face was carved on another wall,having a strange green mist billowing in itswide-open mouth—perhaps a portal,thought Dardaniel.

“I didn’t expect this,” he said. “Keep watchat the door while I look around.”

His search of the desk revealed a fewinteresting things, among them a stack ofscrolls listing a number of payments,including some of the names he’d heardearlier. Judging from the nature ofcompensations, two names stood out, Taranand Aleea, leading Dardaniel to assume theybelonged to the leader and his consort. Alsolisted were collected ransoms and disbursedbribes, along with the names of certainhouses of Ar and Ambur with which he wasvaguely acquainted. He was shocked whenhis index finger reached the name of hisfather’s consort, showing a sizeable sum paidby her for “services rendered.” He ponderedthat with growing concern. What didEthrenielle have to do with these unsavorypeople, and how did it concern the House ofAr? Or himself, perhaps. The answer wasnot included.

Dardaniel turned to the chests sitting nearby.One was filled with a large amount of coppercoins and a few pouches of silver. Inanother, he discovered his personal effectsand a number of other objects. He pickedup one of the books and glanced atSyphonean who responded with a surprisedexpression and a big smile. WhileDardaniel’s search continued, the courtierwinced and hunched toward the hallway,listening more carefully.

“Someone’s coming,” he warned, closing thedoor.

Dardaniel looked back at room before gazingback at Syphonean. “We’re going to have toleave through that portal there.”

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The courtier grimaced. “I don’t much likethe looks of it.”

“There’s nowhere else to hide. We’ll have tochance it. Come!”

Dardaniel pocketed a few more things, shutthe chest, and dashed toward the portal.Holding his breath and cringing, he jumpedthrough the thick, green mist, withSyphonean hot on his heels.

Oddly, fearing a fate worse than death or atleast unfathomably excruciating pains provedwholly unfounded. Perhaps this portal wasan unfinished enchantment or a ruse of somekind. The two stood in a bedchamber litwith two levitating orbs. The glow revealeda large bed, a closet, and of particularconcern to the intruders: no other exit. Theyglanced at each other with dismay when thesound of voices approached the other side ofthe mist.

Without another moment of hesitation, thetwo dove toward the bed and crawledunderneath—not a moment too soon. Theyfroze and held their breaths as best theycould as they watched two pairs of bootsappearing through the portal.

A male voice sighed. “Alone at last! Ithought that palaver would never end.”

Dardaniel recognized the voice of the man inblack leather, and decided this was Taran.He watched the second pair of boots, of finerand more elegant make, face the first.

“The night is young, and I feel adventurousstill,” said a woman’s voice, soft and inviting.

“I have in mind a special kind of magic foryou.”

Dardaniel wondered if this could be the onecalled Aleea. His thoughts were quicklyinterrupted when boots, breeches, robes,and other garments dropped on the stonefloor. Amid giggles and kissing sounds, thetwo latecomers hastily climbed onto the bed.Dardaniel glanced at Syphonean and rolledhis eyes. The old man responded with anamused, if fatalistic, smile. Patient, hepropped up his chin on his wrists and waitedwhile the wooden structure above creakedand groaned.

Increasingly annoyed at their forcible andindiscreet detainment, Dardaniel dug into hispocket and pulled out a small spellbook. Henudged it against his companion of fortune,who responded with a gleeful nod. He thenretrieved his own travel grimoire andconcentrated on studying useful spells asbest he could while the upstairs performancegrew even more raucous.

To be continued.

http://bruce-heard.blogspot.com/

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From Alphatia to Calidar

A quick voyage between Mystara andCalidar the two fantasy worlds settings thatBruce Heard has been involved with; andsome ideas on how to use both settingstogether.

Bruce Heard is a very important gamedesigner, and probably the most importantfor the Mystaran community. He Joined GaryGygax’s TSR back in the early eighties andlater he became Product Manager of BasicD&D (the BECMI edition which is closelylinked to the Mystara setting). He was indeed(and still is) one of the main developers ofMystara as we know it now.

Tom Moldvay in 1981 and then FrankMentzer from 1983 were the authors of BasicD&D, later the Basic, Expert, Companion,Master and Immortal Boxed Sets or BECMID&D. In those products first appeared theoriginal Known World campaign setting1,that would become Mystara, where heroescould carve dominions and becomeImmortals. Aaron Allston (1960 - 2014),author of the first Gazetteer, The GrandDuchy of Karameikos, the sixth one, TheDwarves of Rockhome, the Dawn of theEmperors, Hollow World and Wrath of theImmortals Boxed Sets, and compiler of the

Rules Cyclopedia, was also a major developerof the setting. The work of Bruce Heardhowever is undoubtedly what gave Mystaraits definitive shape and feel. From hisadventures, CM7 Tree of Life and M1 Into theMaelstrom, to the beloved Gazetteers 3 and10, The Principalities of Glantri and TheOrcs of Thar, and The Voyage of the PrincessArk published in Dragon Magazine, Bruceopened players to whole new regions ofMystara and new perspectives on the setting.He was also for several years the Basic D&Dline Product Manager.

1 Previous edi t ions of D&D, as the or ig inalby Gary Gigax and Dave Arneson and theone edi ted by Er ic Holmes in 1977 did notcontain a campaign set t ing except forexample dungeons.

by Francesco Defferrari (Sturm)


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After TSR, Bruce did not join Wizards of theCoast, and stopped working on gamedesigning for a while, but he remained anactive participant in the Mystaran communityfor some years, as can be seen from theimpressive list of his articles stored at TheVaults of Pandius, the official Mystara fan site.

As Bruce wrote in his blog, his writing yearswent on hiatus while he explored otheravenues, but in 2012, Bruce began his blog,returning to the Mystara community with abang! He started writing articles whichupdated some of his old Mystaran material,such as the Nagpas and the Goatmen, andthen proceeded to developing the Kingdomsof Alphatia as they were never developedbefore.

Even if Alphatia was one of the subjects ofthe Dawn of the Emperors boxed set,together with Thyatis, the sheer size of thecountry allowed for little detail on theindividual kingdoms which form the Empire.

In 2012 and 2013 Bruce Heard wonderfullydetailed in his blog almost all the AlphatianKingdoms, from Arogansa in the south toFrisland in the far north, including coats ofarms, maps and adventure ideas, makingthem much more detailed and interestingplaces for adventurers.

Given the success of his blog in the Mystarancommunity, Bruce queried Wizards of theCoast about the possibility of continuing thePrincess Ark series. As the reply was negative(see Bruce’s announcement) he decided todevelop his own, new fantasy setting.

And so Calidar came to be!2

A first, very successful Kickstarter campaignwas completed on January 10th, 2014,raising about 300% of its initial goal andallowing the production of Calidar: InStranger Skies, a 130 page book detailing thecampaign setting, including beautifulillustration by Ben Wootten, John Dollar andSavage Mojo, a contribution by EdGreenwood for the city of Glorathon, and thewonderful maps and deck plans of ThorfinnTait.3 The first Kickstarter campaign alsoallowed the production of a promotionalbooklet of 63 pages, Under the Great Vault,containing stories only available toKickstarter backers.

2 An interview with Bruce Heard, about hiswork on Mystara and ant ic ipat ing Cal idar,was a lso publ ished in the f i rs t i ssue ofThreshold magazine (page 82) back inOctober 2013.

3 Also Great Cartographer of Mystara, Edi torof Threshold magazine and interviewed inthis very issue!

http://bruce-heard.blogspot.com

http://pandius.com/bheard.html

http://pandius.com/bheard.html


http://bruce-heard.blogspot.it/2013/04/OSK.html

http://bruce-heard.blogspot.it/2013/10/Calidar.html

https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/ambreville/world-of-calidar

http://pandius.com/Threshold_1.pdf#page=84

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A second, likewise successful Kickstartercampaign was recently completed on January7th, 2016, raising almost 200% of the initialgoal. The campaign will fund the productionof a second Calidar book, Beyond the Skies,a book of more than 220 pages unveiling thegods of the Calidar universe. A promotional60 page PDF containing adventures and newstories, Skies of Fury, will also be available toKickstarter backers.

Bruce has not abandoned Mystara either, asin December 2015 he returned to Alphatiawith the story “Once Upon a time in Ar”,whose latest installment, first appearing inThreshold magazine, you have just read inthe previous pages.

Readers of this magazine are probablyalready familiar with Bruce’s work both in

Mystara and Calidar, but let’s briefly reviewthe main features of Calidar for anyone whomay not be familiar with the setting, then wewill see how it could be used with Mystara.

Calidar is a systemless setting4, but severalguidelines exist for conversion to existingrule systems.

It’s hard to describe Calidar in just a fewsentences as the setting is wonderfully richwith original themes and distinctive features.It’s not just a world, but a whole solarsystem, the Soltan Ephemeris, wheredifferent cultures interact and clash. It hasmagical flying ships, but the magic power totravel between worlds is not cheap, and thecompetition to acquire it is fierce. It has acentral world, the namesake Calidar, with afew developed nations and a huge expanseof wild lands, where the World Soul of theplanet is ready to react with hostility to anyexploitation. It has, indeed, living planetswith complex ecologies. It has dragons,obviously, and draconic knights serving themand eager to conquer new worlds and lands.It has steampunk dwarves and imperial elves,gnomes with a special connection to thenatural world and savage halflings calledfellfolk, who in some places have embracedthe gifts of civilization. It has humanoids,who come periodically from the alien worldof Ghüle to raid and take prisoners for theirdark gods. It has heroes, who can literallybecome immortals and even gods, if they areable to earn a lasting fame.

And, as it seems from the previews of Beyondthe Skies, the whole Ephemeris and the gods

4 For more informat ion, see “Cal idar &Game Mechnics” and “Playing in Cal idar”(both at Bruce Heard’s nlog).



http://bruce-heard.blogspot.it/2015/12/ArStory01.html

http://bruce-heard.blogspot.co.uk/2015/07/Mechanics.html

http://bruce-heard.blogspot.co.uk/2015/07/Mechanics.html

http://www.strangerskies.com/bbforums/viewforum.php?f=5

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have to face a terrible menace from anotheruniverse.

But the important feature of Calidar which isparticularly relevant for the scope of thisarticle is the Vortex. A mysterious andunexplained tear in the fabric of time andspace, the Vortex is a strange phenomenonthat often brings into the Calidar universepeople and flying ships from many otherplaces. Often, the people who experiencethis passage have their memories altered, andcan no longer remember the place fromwhich they came.

In the setting, this is obviously the perfectexcuse to bring to Calidar player characterscreated for other settings, and also a way toexplain why some Calidaran cultures, as alsohappened in Mystara, closely resemble somecultures of our real world.

In the world of Calidar in fact both thenations which now lie around the GreatCaldera, a geographical feature created by anancient asteroid, and the colonial powers ofthe Calidar moons from which theyoriginated, have some clear resemblanceswith real world cultures, and with theMystaran ones. And that gives us the first ideaon how to use Mystara and Calidar together.

OPTION ONE: PORTALS

Magical portals have always been a feature offantasy worlds. Such portals could randomlyopen into any Mystaran nation and lead tothe parallel Calidaran nation. If such a Portalshould open in the Five Shires in Mystara, forexample, it could lead the players to theRepublic of Belledor in Calidar, similarly

inhabited by halflings. Even if at thebeginning the players could fail to realizethey are in another world, the moons in theskies should soon give them a clue. Thecivilized fellfolks and gnomes of Belledorshould also have many subtle differencesfrom the classical halflings of Mystara.

The same idea could also be valid for theKingdom of Nordheim in Calidar, whichcould contain portals to the NorthernReaches of Mystara. Or the Magocracy ofCaldwen, which could contain in its territoryportals to Glantri or even Alphatia. Or theKingdom of Bellayne in the Savage Coast,inhabited by cat-like Rakasta, which couldhave an hidden portal leading to Felix Minor,the planetoid in the Fringe of the SoltanEphemeris inhabited by the cat-like Feliseans.

Some cultures of the Calidar universe, suchas the Munaan Empire in the namesakemoon and their colony of Ellyrion in theGreat Caldera, could correspond to morethan one Mystaran culture, like Thyatis andMilenia, or even Narvaez in the Savage Coast.

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It’s up to the DM to decide if playersstranded in Calidar will be able to return toMystara, and maybe create some sort ofpermanent portal, with many possible andinteresting consequences. How could theCalidar World Soul interact with the planetMystara? How would the Calidar gods andthe Mystara Immortals interact? What if Synnand Wulf Von Klagendorf5, probably the mostfamous villains created by Bruce Heard inThe Voyage of the Princess Ark, ally withSayble the Black Queen and her DraconicKnights?

Or, remaining in the territories recentlyexplored by Bruce Heard, how could thechurch of the seven archons of Bettelyninteract with the gods of Calidar? How wouldRandel’s dragons react to Draconia? Andmany similar examples could be done forevery Alphatian kingdom that Brucedeveloped in his blog in the later years.

Fans of both settings have obviouslyspeculated that Haldemar of Haaken, thecaptain and protagonist of The Voyage of thePrincess Ark is the same person as CaptainIsledemer d’Alberran of the Star Phoenix,arrived in Calidar through the Vortex, butwhat if they are not? Could the two captainsally against common enemies?

Such an interaction between Calidar andMystara would certainly create someinteresting adventures.

OPTION TWO: THE

VORTEX

Another option is obviously the “default” onein the Calidar universe, a Mystaran skyshipcaptured by the Vortex and sent to Calidar,as happens to Captain d’Alberran and hiscrew in the first Calidar book. The crewcould suffer from amnesia but slowly be ableto recall from whence they arrived, and finda new determination to discover a way toreturn to their original world. If an Alphatianskyship (or a Thyatian one, as Thyatis beganbuilding its own skyships in the PoorWizard’s Almanacs) is able to return toMystara, it could bring back knowledge ofthe Calidar universe. By the way, the Vortexcanonically exists in the Mystara universetoo, as the supposed dimension inhabited bythe Old Ones, mythical beings much morepowerful than the Immortals. The Vortex ofMystara is detailed in the Immortal BoxedSet by Frank Mentzer and the Wrath of theImmortals Boxed Set by Aaron Allston.

And besides the above canon Vortex, Brucerecently detailed another one, complete withits wormhole, which also could become agate to Calidar, in the Kingdom of FloatingAr6 in Alphatia.

It’s up to each DM to decide how MystaranImmortals, or even the Old Ones, may reactto a skyship returning from the Vortex. If leftalone, such a vessel could report back to theMystaran empire from whence it came, andAlphatia (or Thyatis) could decide to fundfurther explorations of the Calidar universe,

5 For more about this topic, see “Synn andWulf von Klagendorf” at The Vaul ts ofPandius

6 For more detai l s , see “Ar: Through theVortex” at Bruce Heard’s b log

http://pandius.com/wulfsynn.html

http://pandius.com/wulfsynn.html

http://bruce-heard.blogspot.co.uk/2013/04/Ar15.html

http://bruce-heard.blogspot.co.uk/2013/04/Ar15.html

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at least if they are able to locate a spot wherethe Vortex occasionally appears.

It’s also worth noting that in the PoorWizard’s Almanacs by Ann Dupuis anImmortal named Gareth began proselytizingin Sind from the Mystaran Year 1010 AC,saying to his followers he had “returned fromthe Vortex”. The common interpretation inthe community has always been that Garethshould be Benekander, the new Immortalcreated during the Wrath of the Immortalsadventures, but what if he is insteadsomeone who came from Calidar?

OPTION THREE:

SPELLJAMMING

Calidar has some affinities not only withMystara, but also with Spelljammer, even ifthe way in which skyships “work” in the twosettings are quite different. But a DM coulddecide that the Crystal Spheres (as SolarSystems are called in Spelljammer)containing Mystara and the Soltan Ephemerisof Calidar are quite near, or connected withsome sort of wormhole.

In this case natives of the Soltan Ephemeriscould discover a way to travel in the Void formuch longer distances than those previouslypossible, leading to a contact with Alphatia,Myoshima or some other Mystara nation.Would the first contact be peaceful orhostile? What if Lao-Kwei skyships reachMyoshima, and start a trade route with theRakastan Empire on the Mystaran moon ofPatera? What if Alphatian skyships reach theKingdom of Meryath in Calidar? Exploringthe consequences and ramifications of such

a collision of worlds could keep the DM andplayers busy for quite some time.

To find out more about Calidar, visit

Bruce Heard’s blog:http://bruce-heard.blogspot.it/

the official Calidar site:http://strangerskies.com/

the Calidar forum:http://www.strangerskies.com/bbforums

http://www.thepiazza.org.uk/bb/viewforum.php?f=33


http://strangerskies.com/

http://www.strangerskies.com/bbforums

http://www.strangerskies.com/bbforums/index.php

17


Atlas of Mystara - Thyatis

“The nation of Thyatis is made up of thesoutheast corner of the western continentand several nearby islands. North are theAltan Tepes mountains, which protectThyatis from desert winds and raids by theYlari warriors. West is the thick DymrakForest, haven of elves and goblins. Southand east is the sea — a shield from foreignground-troops but a road for Thyatianvessels.”

from Dawn of the Emperors Book Two,by Aaron Allston

Sources

● Dawn of the Emperors (1989)● TM1 The Western Countries (1989)● TM2 The Eastern Countries (1989)● Rules Cyclopedia (1991) (PDF at

DriveThruRPG)● Karameikos: Kingdom of Adventure

(1994)● Joshuan’s Almanac (1995)

Comments

The hills in the western Imperial Territorieshave been changed to mostly forested hills,in line with the changes to Karameikos. Theirproximity to tree-loving Vyalia also suggeststhat they would most likely still be forested.

I also redrew some of the dominion bordersto follow the rivers where they were doing soanyway. Rivers tend to form natural borders,and there is no need to conform strictly tothe hex grid when these are available.

Notes

Acestes Village — on Joshuan’s Almanacpage 222a, Klarmont 15 entry, the text says:“Triumphant, a young stallion owned byPriam Iphisius of Acestes Village, wins theKerendan Derby by 10 lengths (at 30 to 1odds). Priam refuses an offer of 100,000 gpfor the horse.” As per Simone Neri’ssuggestion, the Atlas places Acestes inKerendas.

The Atlas of Mystara aims to present a comprehensive set of maps for Mystara, in twoflavours: “replica maps”, which faithfully recreate the printed maps as-is; and “updatedmaps”, which are based on the Atlas’s consistent model of Mystara, and include additionsfrom other sources which include all published products as well as select fan-created works.

This column presents the updated map of Thyatis, current as of March 2016. For changessince publication, visit this article at the Atlas site.

THYATIS, 8 MILES PER HEX by Thorfinn Tait

http://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/17171/DD-Rules-Cyclopedia-Basic?affiliate_id=137189

http://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/17171/DD-Rules-Cyclopedia-Basic?affiliate_id=137189

http://mystara.thorfmaps.com/

http://mystara.thorfmaps.com/thyatis-8/



18



19



Altan Tepes Mountains — the word“Mountains” was dropped from the label onTM2.

Battle of Tel Abdallah, AC 827 — theDawn of the Emperors Thyatis map adds thislabel to the Thyatis-Ylaruam border, albeitwithout a battlefield symbol. The symbolitself was added in TM2. However, the labelwas also changed, and now reads “Battle ofTel Abddallah”. The change was carried overinto the Rules Cyclopedia, but it seems likelyto be an error. The Atlas considers theoriginal “Tel Abdallah” spelling correct.

Bayville road — Bayville in the Duchy ofKerendas is the only mainland town notconnected to the road network. This seemslike an oversight, so a coastal road has beenadded, leading from the main Kerendas-Thyatis road to Bayville, then back to themain road.

Blackpoint Citadel — “…the fort ofBlackpoint Citadel … sits opposite fromKarameikos’ Rugalov Keep.” (Dawn of theEmperors DM’s Sourcebook page 14c)Blackpoint has a label on the map, but thesymbol next to it is Rugalov Keep across theborder. While it’s possible that the two keepsare in the same 8 mile hex, this makes themap unnecessarily complicated. Thereforethe Atlas marks Blackpoint in the hex southeast of Rugalov Keep, where the road meetsit on the Thyatian side of the border. Thepopulation of 1,250 dictates the use of a fortsymbol.

Borydos Island — Dawn of the EmperorsPlayer’s Guide to Thyatis page 7a: “…arocky, hilly island…” The terrain has beenadjusted to reflect this.

Case Discrepancy — while most settlementson the Dawn of the Emperors map werelisted in Title Case, the following weredisplayed in capitals: CUBIA, TAMERONIKAS,TORION. These have been standardised toTitle Case for the Atlas.

Central Thyatis — generic as it is, this nameis used in Title Case in Dawn of theEmperors‘ Player’s Guide to Thyatis (page6b).

Century Hills — the hills of central Hattias,which had no name marked in Dawn of theEmperors, are named the Century Hills onTM2.

Coastal Waters — Dawn of the Emperorsdidn’t show shallow and deep water on anyof its maps. TM2 showed coastal waters forthe first time for Thyatis.

Cubis — this Emirates town was incorrectlylabelled Cubia on the Dawn of the Emperorsposter map. The error originated on GAZ2’smap, and was repeated here.

Fort Nicos — TM2 spells this “Fort Nikos”.However, the Dawn of the Emperors Thyatismap, and the DM’s Sourcebook (page 8a-b)both use “Fort Nicos”. The Atlas accepts theoriginal spelling as the correct one.

Greendale River — this tributary of theKerenda River was renamed to GrendaleRiver on TM2, and this was then repeated inthe Rules Cyclopedia. Located close toGreenheight, it seems reasonable to acceptthe original Greendale spelling.

Grey Bay — while Dawn of the Emperorslabelled this Hattian town “Grey Bay” using

20



the British English spelling, TM2 changed itto the American English spelling “Gray Bay”.The Atlas uses British spellings throughout,and therefore keeps the original Grey Bay.

Imperial Territories — the bracketed “andfuture dominions” which appeared on Dawnof the Emperors’ map was removed from thelabel for TM2. The Atlas adopts fansuggestions to name these regions, with thewestern region named Tarsia after MountTarsus, and the central area called Alteniaafter the Altan Tepe Mountains. Both retaintheir Imperial Territory designations, leavingthe contents of these regions open.

Kantridae and Kerenda Rivers — theDawn of the Emperors map has “KantridaeRiver” and “Kerenda River”, while TM2 andlater the Rules Cyclopedia both use theinverted forms “River Kantridae” and “RiverKerenda”. Presumably both versions areextant uses of the names, probably usedinterchangeably. The Atlas adopts theMystaran standard of placing “River” after thename.

Kerendan Plains — “The western region ofmainland Thyatis is called the KerendanPlains.” (Dawn of the Emperors Player’sGuide to Thyatis, page 6a) The descriptiongoes on to mention three main communities:Foreston, Greenheight, and Kerendas itself.It seems therefore that the Kerendan Plainsstretch from Vyalia and Machetos in the westto the eastern limits of Kerendas.

Kerendas — with its population of 100,000(Dawn of the Emperors DM’s Sourcebookpage 14b), Kerendas is a metropolis. Itssymbol has been changed accordingly.

Kerendas Outpost — Bruce Heard pointedout that this is likely a fort rather than anoutpost. It has therefore been renamed toFort Kerendas on the updated map.

Lighthouses — TM2 added six lighthousesaround the coast of Thyatis: Abukir Watch,Cuneus Tower, the Hold of Euglenos, Nortis,Portus Pilum, and the Tower of Aes.

Makrast — this dwarven town is marked asMarkrast on TM2 and the Rules Cyclopediamaps. Dawn of the Emperors has it asMakrast both on the poster map and in thetext (DM’s Sourcebook page 8c), where it islisted as “Makrast (Broken Mountain)”.Moreover, GAZ6’s Dwarven LanguageGlossary (pages 28-29) includes both “mak”(meaning broken) and “rast” (meaningmountain). Both books were written byAaron Allston, so it seems very likely thatMarkrast is a mistake. This Atlas uses theoriginal Makrast.

Mesonian River — Dawn of the Emperors’Player’s Guide to Thyatis (page 6b) spellsthis “Mesonion”. However, the poster maphas Mesonian, and this spelling was used onTM2 and in the Rules Cyclopedia. In theabsence of further references, the Atlas hasgone with the map’s Mesonian spelling.

Mines — Dawn of the Emperors DM’sSourcebook (page 9b) mentions CountyHalathius’ famous gold mines, and also itsproductive iron mines. The updated mapmarks three gold mines and an iron mine torepresent this. Page 8c also mentions goldmining in the dwarven Barony of Buhrohur.Two gold mines have been added here, too.

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Mountain names — TM2 marked two newnamed mountains in Thyatis: Mt. Tarsus, Alt.11,380 ft., and Mt. Legio, Alt. 935 ft..However, Mt. Legio’s altitude is surely amistake. The updated map amends it to Alt.9,350 ft.. Thanks to Fabrizio Paoli forspotting this.

Mount Mositius — “A famous adventuress… investigated Mount Mositius anddiscovered the truth: The volcano was longdead…” (Dawn of the Emperors DM’sSourcebook page 15). Mount Mositius wasnot marked on the poster map, but appearedon the map for the first time on TM2.

Piceno — Poor Wizard's Almanac III page157 mentions this village in Central Thyatis.Slaves from the slave revolt some days priorwere found in this village, so it has beenplaced in the direction of Karameikos, off themain road.

Sclaras Cliffs — “Sclaras is an inaccessibleisland — it is a rolling, deeply forested landsitting atop cliffs, cliffs which face the sea atevery point.” (Dawn of the Emperors DM’sSourcebook page 22a).

Stegger River — this river was changed tothe River Stregger on TM2, and the samecaption then appeared in the RulesCyclopedia too. The updated map usesStregger for now.

Thyatis City — the capital, called ThyatisCity on Dawn of the Emperors’ poster map,was relabelled “City of Thyatis” on TM2, andthis change was repeated in the RulesCyclopedia. It seems a trivial change, andboth names are likely in use — as well as thename “Thyatis” on its own.

Trade Routes — page 22b-c of the Dawn ofthe Emperors DM’s Sourcebook providessome amendments to trade routes: “First, theisland of Terentias is on the Vorloi-to-Kerendas stretch; most ships hug thenorthern coast, while many jump down fromRugalov to Terentias and then up toKerendas. Also, the Minrothad-to-Gaptonroute continues on to Terentias and then toKerendas.” I have therefore added a routefrom just off Rugalov down to Crossroads onTerentias; another from Crossroads up toKerendas; and another coming from Gaptonup round Terentias to Crossroads.

Trevonian River — this river was changedfrom the Dawn of the Emperors poster map’sTrevanion River; the A and the O wereinverted. This change puts it in line with thenearby Mesonian River, therefore the Atlasaccepts TM2’s version as most correct. TheRules Cyclopedia repeated the changedcaption, Trevonian.

Villages — no villages were marked onDawn of the Emperors’ poster map. This isperhaps an indication of the populationdensity, but it would be good to add somevillages.

Ylaruam — the sections of Ylaruamappearing on the Dawn of the EmperorsThyatis map are largely undeveloped. Theplateaus and other details do not appear, andthe terrain is radically different from GAZ2’smap. Clearly it should be ignored.

(Continued on page 32)

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Thorfinn Tait Interview

THRESHOLD Magazine:What originallygot you interested in fantasy and science-fiction?

Thorfinn Tait: One of my earliest memoriesis of my brother saying it was the twenty sixthtime for us to watch Star Wars. And Returnof the Jedi was one of the first films I saw atthe cinema. We were crazy about Star Wars— we had most of the action figures andeven some of the bigger vehicle toys. OneChristmas we asked for an AT-AT walker, andour parents were able to get a good deal onthem, so we ended up with one each.

That and all the cartoons back then meant Iwas familiar with science-fiction from anearly age. My beginnings with fantasyprobably came from children’s books mymother read to us. We went through all ofRoald Dahl’s books, Edward Lear’s nonsenseverse, and Eric Linklater’s Pirates in the DeepGreen Sea.

Later I read a lot more myself. I particularlyremember reading The Hobbit, and thenspending six months slowly crawling throughThe Fellowship of the Ring. After that cameTerry Pratchett's Discworld series. It wasn'tuntil I was 17 that I took another crack at TheLord of the Rings, and ended up reading thewhole thing in a few days, followed by TheSilmarillion — which was hard going at thestart, but eventually turned out to be anabsolute masterpiece.

Community Interview

The idea for this interview with ThorfinnTait, the master cartographer famous in atleast two worlds, Mystara and Calidar, andpillar of the Mystaran community, wasintroduced in this thread at The Piazza byforum member and Threshold editor JuliusCleaver. The questions were decided bymembers of the Mystaran community.

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/903793.The_Pirates_In_The_Deep_Green_Sea

http://www.goodreads.com/book/show/903793.The_Pirates_In_The_Deep_Green_Sea

http://www.thepiazza.org.uk/bb/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=14629

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As you can see, I'm a huge Tolkien fan.

What was your first introduction to RPGs?

At the same time as I was reading andwatching fantasy and science-fiction, I alsogot into computer games. My first computerwas a Commodore 64. I was three years old,and my father brought it home, set it all up,and turned it on. Then I knocked the powerplug out, and zapped the power supply. Hehad to get it replaced before we could usethe computer! After that first incident, mybrother and I grew up pottering around onthat computer, playing all sorts of games.Later we graduated to an Amiga, then to PCs.

My mother also got us into board gaming,and we played something with her everyweek when we were younger — Cluedo,Monopoly, Game of Life, Pay Day, and so on.So we were very much into gaming from ayoung age.

I came to RPGs first through Steve Jackson’sFighting Fantasy books. I still remember TheWarlock of Firetop Mountain well. At aboutthe same time, we started collecting CitadelMiniatures, and our grandparents gave usFrank Mentzer’s Dungeons & Dragons Basic

Set. (Much later we found out that our auntin Oregon had bought us it some timepreviously, but they had held onto it untilthey thought we were ready for it.) We oftenused some dungeon floor plans withminiatures to explore dungeons using thered box.

After that, my aunt sent us a new rules setevery Christmas, until we had everything upto the Master Set. I devoured these rulebooks… The expanding possibilities and thecool new stuff each set introduced fascinatedand delighted me. I quite literally grew upwith this series.

We also got into Games Workshop’s games,including Warhammer Fantasy Battle, BloodBowl, Space Hulk, HeroQuest, and so on.With so many great new games coming out,we were spoilt for choice in what to play.

I’m not really sure when precisely Idiscovered Mystara, although I do know thatit was later in the publication of theGazetteer series — probably around 1990.This was also the year I started secondaryschool, and gained a whole new set offriends who were into D&D — one of whomintroduced me to Mystara.

I quickly became a fan, and regularlypersuaded my father to order books for mefrom TSR Hobby Shop UK, starting with theGazetteer series, then the Creature Cruciblesand all the rest. (There were no shops inOrkney that sold D&D, so never saw thesebooks for sale in a regular shop — and I stillhaven’t.) I remember excitedly awaitingGAZ13, and I became a regular reader of TheVoyage of the Princess Ark in DragonMagazine.

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The end of the Princess Ark series was ablow, although I did enjoy the Known WorldGrimoire almost as much. But when that toocame to an end, the change of Mystara to anAD&D campaign setting boded ill for me.Devastated by the loss of my favouriteproduct line, I drifted away from D&D for afew years.

What is your favourite nation or region ofMystara?

Tough question… I think the answer wouldhave to be the Shadow Elves, although I alsolove Serraine, Nithia, Alfheim, andRockhome. As you can see, I have a greatliking for demi-humans, especially gnomes,but also elves and dwarves.

GAZ13 was an amazing book for me, becauseit held such secrets, and the setting seemedso alive from the lowliest slug wrangler up tothe Radiant Shaman. The fictional elementssurely helped a great deal to create this image.

But I never wanted the Shadow Elves to go tothe surface world like they did in Wrath ofthe Immortals — on the contrary, I alwaysfelt that they had made their subterraneandomain their true home, and that they wouldbe much diminished without it. I’m sure thewonderful map of their realm had aninfluence on me in this.

How did you become involved with theMystara community?

I returned to D&D and Mystara near the endof my first year at university, in early 1997. Istill have the e-mails from the MystaraMailing List back then, and I remember firstbeing amazed how many other people loved

Mystara, and second how great most of thosepeople were. By that point I had beeninvolved with various online communities,but Mystara’s was the friendliest and mostpleasant by far — and of course it still is.

I got involved with work on the Almanac,with the Hollow World team. I rememberhaving a great time with the Azcan Empireand the Schattenalfen with Fabrizio Paoli andothers.

Unfortunately life got in the way, and Iwasn’t able to keep a consistent presence inthe community over an extended period.This always seems to be how things work forme, but at the time I’m sure it caused sometrouble for Fabrizio and the others, which Istill feel bad about almost twenty years later!

When did you begin to work on Mystara’smaps?

I’ve never been good at drawing, but I’vealways liked working with computer drawingprograms. So making digital maps wassomething I had been wanting to do foryears. Then in October 1999, my fatherbought a copy of Adobe Illustrator 8. Itnaturally came to me to learn how to use it,and it didn’t take me long to realise itscartographic potential.

I actually still have the file I worked on backthen: it was Northern Iciria, and I started inthe top left of the map — but not beforedrawing all the basic hexes in Illustrator.Looking at them now, some are completelycringe-worthy, but surprisingly I still use allthe major settlement icons from 1999 stilltoday, with only a few minor tweaks.

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In any case, I started on Northeast Iciria’sice floes, only I had decided to use thefancy icon from the Gazetteer seriesinstead of the blank white one from theHollow World Set. The trouble was, mycomputer at the time was incapable ofhandling this, and I ended up shelving thewhole project after creating a truly pitifularea of the map.

Why did you move to Japan?

Orkney may be a small place, with apopulation of just around 20,000, but wehave a great tradition of going out into theworld. Who knows, perhaps it goes backto Viking times, when Orkney was a stagingpoint between Norway, Britain, Ireland,and Iceland. Whatever the case, during mythird year at university I heard about theJET Programme, and decided it was for me.

My interest in Japan began with Zelda andFinal Fantasy, and then expanded intostudying kanji and learning how to speakthe language. So in July 2000 I found

myself on a plane to Tokyo, and shortlythereafter to Akita in rural northeasternJapan.

And I’ve been here ever since. Along theway I met my wife, got married, became afull time English teacher at a local highschool, bought a house, and had a family.

How did the Atlas of Mystara project start?

In late 2004 I discovered Wizards’ (nowdefunct) Mystara Message Board, andstarted to get involved with Mystara onceagain. Many of the familiar names from theMML were around, and I really felt like I hadnever left. I was also enthused to see BruceHeard, who I had missed in the early days ofthe MML.

Naturally, I fished out the file for my oldmapping project, and started to see if Icould do anything with it on my computerof the time. This was January 2005, and theanswer was a definite yes.

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So I got to work, revising my old symbols,and working up map after map in a flurry ofactivity that lasted for a few months, untilonce again life got in the way (in this case, itwas my wedding). From 15th February, Iposted a map every day to my Thorf’s SecretProject, Stage One thread on the Wizardsboards. This was the beginning of the Atlasof Mystara project, although I didn’tannounce the true name and scope of it untila few years later.

Since then, I’ve come back to it every fewyears, before drifting away again to otherthings. These times away are actually a greathelp, as I often find that I come back to theproject with renewed motivation andinterest, and can see previouslyinsurmountable problems with a newfoundclarity.

The Atlas of Mystara is now hosted here:http://mystara.thorfmaps.com/

How did you wind up being acartographer?

It’s really all thanks to Bruce Heard. Whenhe returned to the community in 2012 withhis new blog, he began to detail Alphatia in anew series of 8 mile per hex maps. NaturallyI was overjoyed at this development — newhex maps for Mystara, from the masterhimself! — and I approached Bruce aboutremaking his maps as part of the Atlasproject. I assisted him with some earlyteething problems, and started to workthrough his maps, recreating them in theAtlas style.

Life (the birth of my second child, to beprecise) got in the way, and I fell behind, butI kept in touch with Bruce, and continued toremake his maps piece by piece.

Then everything changed in March 2013,when it became clear that Bruce would notbe able to get the Mystara license, and Bruceannounced this, together with his intentionto create a new setting of his own to writeabout. I wrote a rather emotional responseto this, which you can still find on Bruce’s

http://mystara.thorfmaps.com/

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blog; it was at once a moment of greatsadness, but also great potential for the future.

A couple of months later, Bruce asked for myopinion on his fledgling new setting, Calidar,which led to a series of discussions. Finallyin July, he asked me to do Calidar’scartography, and I accepted.

What is it like working with Bruce Heard?

Bruce is a man with a vision — when he asksfor something, he already knows what hewants. Of course it’s not always the samething as I have in mind. After doing maps onmy own for so long, working on Calidar’smaps has been a lesson in compromise forme, which is really an invaluable experience,because being able to compromise andcommunicate frankly but diplomatically areessential skills for a cartographer.

I’m continually amazed at Bruce’sproductivity and creativity. He’s also verymuch on the ball when it comes to usingtechnology and the Internet. He draws all ofthe deck plans for Calidar, and his stylecontinues to evolve as he has branched outinto floor plans and heraldry.

I can’t help but feel that it’s an honour and aprivilege to be working and talking withsomeone whose work I have admired for solong. It’s no secret that I’m one of Bruce’sstaunchest supporters, and I would love forhis work to be more widely read.

What was your first publishedcontribution?

The first Calidar book, CAL1 In StrangerSkies, includes more than ten maps I created.

There are also two poster maps: one in mynew topographical style, the other a Mystara-style hex map.

It took me the better part of a year to do allof these, during which I learned how to do alot of new stuff. I spent a long timefollowing tutorials, reading websites andbooks, and asking questions in forums,learning all the new skills I needed. The restof the time was spent creating maps. The 3Dmodel for the main area of Calidar, the GreatCaldera, took me six months to do. It’s thebasis for all of my topographical maps inCAL1, and it contains enough detail to mapout the whole Great Caldera for years to come.

The hex map of course was a lot easier, butafter all my experience with Mystara I wasdetermined to make things as accurate as Icould from the very beginning.

What area or topic would you like to mapnext in either Mystara or Calidar (or evenelsewhere)?

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For Mystara, I’d love to do some moreunderground realms — especiallyRockhome’s underworld. Aside from that,I’m determined to get Mystara to a level ofaccuracy that satisfies my tastes, with fullgeoreferencing — consistent latitude andlongitude coordinates throughout the world.I realise that not everyone is interested insuch accuracy in fantasy mapping, but it hasbecome my hallmark.

Ultimately, I would like to do for Mystarawhat I have done for Calidar, but on a globalscale, with a 3D height model of the entireworld — yes, inside and out. It’s a massiveundertaking.

For Calidar, my long term goal is to map outthe rest of the world in 3D. This is partiallyunderway, but the techniques I used to dothe Great Caldera don’t really scale up. Ican’t spend three years on a model for theworld! So for this as well as Mystara I’mlooking into new ways to generate theterrain, sculpt it as I want it, and erode it tomake it look real.

In the short term, I’m eager to see more hexmaps, starting with Meryath’s provinces.We’re considering doing these at 2 miles perhex, to go with the 10 mile per hex poster map.

I’d also love to map out Kumoshima, themoon with a feudal Japan-style culture.Bruce has had no need of it yet,unfortunately, so I’m still waiting for thischance.

What kind of techniques and/or softwaredo you use in your mapping?

My hex maps are all done in AdobeIllustrator. Lately I use Adobe Photoshop tocomposite smaller maps together into largerchunks. Photoshop is far more able to dealwith large images, and you can link theIllustrator files when you place them, so thatchanges made in Illustrator will automaticallybe reflected in the Photoshop file.

For my topographical maps, I use mainlyPhotoshop, with Illustrator for vector andtext elements. I have Avenza’s amazingMAPublisher and Geographic Imager pluginsfor these programs, which add GIS features,allowing me to georegister maps. Thismeans I can change the projections used,which is vital for mapping with accuracy.

I do my 3D modelling of terrain inPhotoshop, with Wilbur for erosion. But Iam looking into replacing this workflow,likely with World Machine. I need to moveinto procedural terrain, which has greatpossibilities for mapping a wide range oflandforms.

What do you do when you get stuck onsomething?

As I mentioned earlier, taking time away isoften a big help. With the really bigproblems, talking to others can also lead to asolution. They don’t have to be experts; justtalking the problem through can do the trick.

There’s a huge amount of tutorials for allsorts of mapping things available around theweb. These can be invaluable in solvingproblems. My mantra has always beenlearning by doing, and tutorials cut to thechase and present exactly how to do things.For me, the advent of video tutorials on

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YouTube and lynda.com has been reallyempowering.

What challenge do you hope to address nextin your cartographic endeavours? (i.e. isthere any technical ability or limitation youhope to overcome? or even any graphiclimitations or capabilities you are hoping areresolved in future software versions)

Every map presents some sort of newchallenge. Tackling these is immenselysatisfying, although also time consuming.

The main one on my plate at the moment ishow to create 3D terrain, and specificallyhow to erode it, in a more reasonabletimeframe. I’m very proud of my work onthe Great Caldera, but I need to be able toproduce a whole world in a much tightertimeframe. And I want to do it better, too.

In many ways, I find myself working inparallel with Anna Meyer. We both seem tobe treading very similar paths; we havesimilar styles and design choices; and weboth started out mapping our favouritecampaign setting extensively over the courseof many years. She has been able to use thatas a springboard to become a successfulfantasy cartographer, and I’m hoping tofollow in her footsteps. I’m a big fan of herwork, and in many ways she continues toshow me the way forward.

The other big challenge is with mappingMystara. The Hollow World and its polaropenings present a unique challenge that’sprobably amplified by my desire to map withgreat accuracy. But I’ve been making a lot ofprogress in this lately, which you can followin my Lining Up Mystara series of articles.

Name some maps that have inspired you.

Mystara’s Trail Maps have always been a greatinspiration, and continue to be something toaspire to. I especially like the way the tablesaround the outside complement the maps.But perhaps you meant non-Mystaran maps?

Tolkien’s Middle-earth and Beleriand mapsare firm favourites. I love Tolkien’s art, too.His clear, elegant style looks deceptively easy.

Google Maps and other satellite map servicesare a constant inspiration, because the realworld is often far more fantastic than wemight think in our everyday lives.

Finally, I love old maps of all kinds. Workingto recreate the style of a map is something Ihave great experience in with Mystara’s hexmaps, so it’s only natural that I’d want to doa similar thing with other old maps.

http://www.thorfmaps.com/lining-up-mystara/

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Of the maps you’ve made, what is yourfavorite map?

It has to be Calidar’s Great Caldera map.One of the benefits of being the cartographeris that I have the full resolution version. Mycomputer has a really nice 5K monitor, and Ihave a shrunk down version as my desktop.

For Mystara, usually it’s whichever map I lastfinished. But the best is definitely still to come.

Which of your maps did you most enjoymaking?

I enjoy them all, or I wouldn’t have made somany. But the close-up map of Meryath’sRoyal Domain was probably the mostsatisfying, since it allowed me to use the 3Dmodel of the Great Caldera at full resolutionfor the first time.

I also had a blast collaborating with GeoffGander on Selhomarr1, and of course withBruce Heard on everything Calidar. Theconstant back and forth, striving to satisfyyou both, and working towards acompromise where you disagree — for me,working on maps together is just far more fun.

Which was the most challenging Mystaranmap, and why?

Shahjapur’s map comes to mind, as it wasone of the very few maps done withhorizontal rather than vertical hex rows.This occurred because the map had east atthe top of the page. Of course it had to bechanged to a standard hex orientation, which

involved a madness-inducing overlay of anormal hex grid onto that map.

Otherwise, I’d have to say that Bruce’sAlphatia maps are all pretty challenging, dueto the sheer volume of their content. It’s alltoo easy to miss something!

What do you like — and dislike — mostabout the hex map style so iconic toMystara?

Great question!

I love the overall look, the hex map aesthetic.It’s funny, this seems to be very much amatter of taste, because I’ve heard people saythey think hex maps look ugly, but I don’tsee this myself.

I really like how it makes it easy to map anarea without worrying about details toomuch. The symbol on a hex represents itsmain terrain features, so that it’s alwayspossible to have something unexpectedhidden in there if you want it to be.

I dislike the impression they give of perfectdistance, shape and area throughout a map.No projection shows all of these aspects

1 Maps of Selhomarr are s tored at the Vaul tsof Pandius


http://pandius.com/m_slhmrr.html

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without distortion, and most show only one— and often imperfectly, at that. The bestway round this that I’ve found so far is to usehexes on top of an equal area projection,which retains their accuracy for demographiccalculations.

How do you manage to find a balancebetween mapping, family, and a full timejob?

With great difficulty, I’m afraid! I wouldprobably be a far better father if I spent allmy time with my kids instead of mapping.But I’m also determined to show my kidsthat working hard on something you careabout is one of the best things you can do inlife, so it’s not all bad, I suppose. My son hasinherited my love of maps, that’s for sure.

I do enjoy my work teaching at a high school.It’s true, a lot of times I would far rather bemapping — especially when it comes toexam time, with my two least favourite jobs,invigilation and marking. But it also gives mea life, with lots of human contact outside the

house. If I was a full time cartographer, Imight actually become a hermit!

What are your plans for the future?

Long-term, it may be a pipe dream, but I’dlove to turn cartography into my full timework. Everything I do these days is with thatin mind. For the same reason, although on apersonal level I am quite happy to give all mywork freely to the community, I’m alsoconscious of the fact that I will never attainmy goal by doing so. If I could breakthrough more fully on to the professionalstage, I would be able to produce a lot morematerial.

Short-term, I have four main goals: continueto map for Bruce Heard’s Calidar; worktowards completion of my Atlas of Mystaraproject by executing occasional shorter mini-projects; broaden my cartography skills andenlarge my toolbox; and do moreprofessional maps in addition to Calidar.

The recent opening of the DM’s Guildsuggests to me that I may yet be able toproduce one of my dream projects, a printedAtlas of Mystara. But of course this isdependent on Wizards of the Coast addingMystara to the list of settings allowed there,and there’s no telling if or when this mayhappen.

Regardless, I will keep moving forward, andkeep on mapping. Thank you to everyone inour wonderful community for yourcontinuing support! I wouldn’t and couldn’tbe doing this if it weren’t for you all.

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Visit Thorf’s blog to see more of his fantasticmaps, here:http://www.thorfmaps.com/

Many of his Mystara Maps are also stored atThe Vaults of Pandius:http://pandius.com/ttait.html

And in the Piazza’s Geographical mappingforum

References:

Thyatis at the Vaults of PandiusThyatis map thread at The PiazzaBattle of Tel Abdallah, AC 827 — discussionthread at the Piazza.Mapping Issues: Towers, Keeps, Forts andCastles at The Piazza

Thanks to:Bruce Heard, Simone Neri (Zendrolion),Fabrizio Paoli (‘Brizio), Andrew Theisen(Cthulhudrew)

Visit the new Atlas site here:http://mystara.thorf.co.uk/

ATLAS OF MYSTARA

(Continued from page 21)

http://mystara.thorf.co.uk/

http://pandius.com

http://www.thorfmaps.com/

http://pandius.com/ttait.html



http://pandius.com/thyatis.html





http://mystara.thorf.co.uk/

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The Elemental Evil in Mystara

The original adventure, The Temple ofElemental Evil® by Gary Gygax, amilestone for Dungeons&Dragons®, wasset in Greyhawk®.

The same goes for the Wizard of the Coastadventure written by Monte Cook in 2001:Return to the Temple of Elemental Evil®.

In Princes of the Apocalypse®, the latestedition of the Elemental Evil, the authorsopted for something completely different.

Apart for the name, this adventure hasnothing in common with the two previousproducts and above all its setting is different:Abeir-Toril, the world of the ForgottenRealms®.

The editorial choice was also to help DMs tobring this story in all the others Wizardsettings, with the introduction of anappendix at the end of the huge 256 pagesbook-adventure-campaign.

Obviously Mystara® was not amid theconsidered settings and this explains the aimof the present work: closing an unforgivablegap.

To use this conversion the original modulepublished by Wizard of the Coast isnecessary. The Elemental Evil Player’sCompanion can also be downloaded as freepdf from the Dungeon Masters Guild:http://www.dmsguild.com/product/145542/Elemental-Evil-Players-Companion-5e.The Princes of Apocalypse onlinesupplement is also free and available here:http://media.wizards.com/2015/downloads/dnd/PrincesApocalypse_AdvSupplementv1.0_PrinterFriendly.pdf

The Elemental Evilin Mystara

by the EPiK Team

http://www.dmsguild.com/product/145542/Elemental-Evil-Players-Companion-5e

http://www.dmsguild.com/product/145542/Elemental-Evil-Players-Companion-5e

http://media.wizards.com/2015/downloads/dnd/PrincesApocalypse_AdvSupplementv1.0_PrinterFriendly.pdf



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SETTING

As I said, the original adventure is set in theForgotten Realms, in the Dessarin Valley, aquite populated area and a connecting routeto the northern cities of the Sword Coast.

I consider the best location in Mystara to bethe Esterhold Peninsula specifically thesouthern coast facing the Zamara Sea. (SeeMap 1 on the following page.)

Keep in mind that for the last twelvecenturies, from the annexation to theAlphatian Empire until today, this land hasseen a slow but progressive developmentand a demographic growth, so I do notbelieve that there are only the two cities ofPort Marlin and Rock Harbor, as per PoorWizard's Almanac III.

I do believe that a territory so vast and rich ofmerchant routes, mostly for mining, shouldhave a network of roads and more developedcities connected with routes, along thecoastline and in the inner territory, to thecities of Faraway, Skyfyr, Port Marlin, andRock Harbour with Minaea Reign and thecity-states of Tresa, Markos and Thanasis.

Forgotten Realms' city of Luskan becomesPort Marlin.

The nameless mountain chain, north of thecity, nearly 500 km long, faces the EsterholdSea and becomes The Spine.

I think that the existence of a coastal cityfacing the Dobar Bay halfway between PortMarlin and Rock Harbor, is not only possible,but also very likely. A city with a catchy name,Eversummer, to underline a hot climate,never cold, to stand for Neverwinter in theForgotten Realms. The presence of a big citybetween Port Marlin and Rock Harbor makesthe construction of land routes and the risingof carriage commerce inevitable. Both coastaland inland routes grow around one of them,connecting Eversummer to the Long Road(Rock Harbor-Anchorage way), the DessarinValley and Red Larch.

Rock Harbor takes Waterdeep’s place andSinbad's Gate perfect location is midwaybetween the Harbor and Tresa City State, onthe northern shore of Chiontar river andfacing the Zamara Sea. Sinbad’s Gate is reallythe gate between the north and the south ofthe Esterhold Peninsula connecting, throughland routes, Port Marlin, Rock Harbor,Anchorage and Faraway to the cities of theMinaean coast and internal territory.

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The inland territory, a huge and desertedland in the original map, is in realityinhabited by little human communitiesgrown and made rich by the miningdevelopment of the area.

Red Larch, Westbridge, Triboar, Yartar,Longsaddle, Mirabar and Everlund are justlittle communities, few hundred souls, leftbehind by the first Alphatian colonistspassing by and by the Jennites slaves that theAlphatians used to own.

The main location for the adventure is stillDessarin Valley, north of Rock Harbor.

This way, the Dessarin Hills will findthemselves in the West, the Sword Mountainsin the South-West, Sumber Hills in thecenter, will be the heart of the adventure.

Finally, in the East, there will be Forlorn Hillsnear the north-south Rock Harbor-Anchorage route.

WARNING, SPOILER ALERT: the Map 3 isGM-only, so don't look at it if you are a player!

BACKGROUND:

The adventure can be set either in the AC1000-1009 period or in the following years.The first is the time of the Wrath of theImmortals and of the global war between thelargest nations of the Known World. Thesecond is when the Alphatian Empire justsunk, while the Thyatian Empire, in itsdefeat, is not strong enough to get hold ofthe old Alphatian colonies.

In this time, in the northern coast domainsfacing Thorin Bay, like Blackrock and VerdanKingdoms and also the independent cities inthe southern coast of Esterhold and Zamaraseas (Port Marlin, Eversummer, Rock Harborand Sinbad's Gate), starts a liberation processthat will end with their independence, afterthe end of the world and Alphatia'sdisappearance.

These are the years during which the Egg ofCoot, whose conscience has woken up aftermore than four thousand years, starts to actto get again a physical form to continue itsplan of total conquest from the point it left ita long time ago.

Following the events in The Return of theEgg (explained in the next number ofThreshold Magazine) the Egg of Coot, hit bya huge energy wave, lost its physical formand its conscience became prisoner of aminhir1.

1 A minhir i s one of the communicat ion andmind control towers (a very pol ished blackstone obel isk no more than three meters ta l l )bui l t by Blackmoor sc ient is ts .

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After the planet shift, kilometers of water ofthe new pole sea submerged the monolith, inwhich the Egg conscience had foundsanctuary.

Today, from its watery grave, and thanks todreams and visions it can reach the entireworld using various monoliths strewn onMystara, survived to the holocaust. The Eggcan thus corrupt the Wu Benares2, convincehim to forge four weapons imbued of theElemental Evil energy, and actually kick offthe plan for its large-scale return to Mystara.

The origin of the Elemental Evil cult is deeplyrooted in the long gone Evergrun ElvenRealm era and in the rebellious endeavors ofthe being that would later become theImmortal Idris3.

The damned elf plays a very important rolein the Elemental Evil cult development eventhough the goddess-to-be does not realize atfirst the real nature of the same Dark Power,that counseled and moved her actions.

All began when Idris started hearing in herhead a flattering voice that lead her withfalse promises to challenge openly Ordanaand to try to destroy the Unique Tree, thegoddess's gift to her beloved people.

After defeating Idris, the furious Ordanacursed her to live again and again her pain ina long chain of reincarnations ... forever!

After several years, in her first reincarnation,Idris got in touch with the fascinatingBlackmoor civilization and created the firstcult of the Elder Elemental Egg, neverrealizing that she contacted the evil Egg ofCoot.

Her masterpiece, completed with the help ofother corrupt elves, was the construction ofElemental Evil Temple, in what are now theSumber Hills.

When Idris had to flee and found her death,the cult somehow survived her demise.

The newly reincarnated Idris always lostmemory of her past lives, as per Ordana’swill, so she had forgotten the cult created byher.

2 Tr ic lops and Wu: see New RacesAppendix. Redesign for D&D 5 t h Edi t ionbased on the race created by MarcoDalmonte. They do not appear nei ther inthis insta l lment nor in the or ig inaladventure. I have s imply subst i tuted DeVirthe drow with a Wu named Benares.

3 Idr is ’ s tory is found in “Codex Immorta l is”by Marco Dalmonte.

http://www.pandius.com/codeximm.html

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It is also possible that after the Great Rain ofFire and the Jennites' Invasions, the cult waseradicated from the area and with it all theremembrance of its rites.

In the following years, the ones of the falloutfrom the nuclear explosions ravagingMystara’s surface, some Kogolor dwarvenfamilies4 under Belsimer clan's bannerarrived in the area from the Blackmoorterritory.

These people, after a lengthy exodus throughdry Jen steppes, chased by its warriors andhumanoid tribes, reached the Sumber Hills,found the old underground complex andchose to remain there.

Sheepherders and miners, they burrowed inthe earth nonetheless and found the oldtemple built by Idris’ elves but were unableto clear the dungeons from dangerouscreatures and simply collapsed and shutdown the old tunnels.

Tyar-Besil Kingdom, from the Belsimer city’sdwarven name, was little and did not livelong .

A few years after the completion of theconstructions in Sumber Hills, trolls andgiants came and forced dwarves to leave thearea.

Few survived the diaspora and just a fewlucky ones found sanctuary in the HollowWorld.

During the following years, sparseadventuring parties and Jennites avant-gardes

came to the buried Tyar-Besil fortress andthe elven temple underneath.

Unfortunately, no one had the idea ofcompiling an account of the exploration andso names of places and cities went lost in themeantime.

Only in the years of the Alphatian invasion,twelve centuries later, an adventuring party,devoted to the Immortal Ixion, by the nameof Knight of the Fire Wheel5, found theremains of the old dwarven city and startedto explore its ruins.

They returned many times to Tyar-Besilresolved to eradicate the evil dwelling thereand, to this end, they built a fortress on eachaccess point to the old Kogolor city.

They feared the presence of somethingextremely evil, that felt deep under theSumber Hills and ready to act: to face it theyorganized a sort of permanent guard on thearea.

Borderland stories do not agree on the fateof the Knights of the Fire Wheel party.

The most trustworthy tale claims that afterless than fifty years, they were caught anderadicated by the biggest Jennite incursionever seen in the area.

For centuries, the towers stood alone and thelocals started to call them the HauntedFortresses, at times empty, at times occupiedby monsters.

4 Ancient Kogolor Dwarves. “Races ofMystara” by Marco Dalmonte.

5 Knights of the Wheel of Fire takes theplace of the Knights of the Si lver Horn.

http://ddmystara.altervista.org/


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The lost towers and the Kogolor Reign wouldhave completely been forgotten if not for thecoming of a mysterious stranger: Benares theWu.

The cult survived for some centuries, eventhough it had changed into a very differentthing from the religion created by Idris.

Waking up from its millennial sleep, theElemental Evil Egg became the ElderElemental Eye and the seat of the cult wasrenamed the Fane of the Eye.

The memory of its origins and nature longgone, the Egg of Coot saw a perfectopportunity to begin anew its operations inthe area in a more quietly and cautiousmanner.

After a while, it also realized that forging anew physical form for itself required that ittapped directly to the four elementsprimordial energy.

To this end, it would not need commonelemental material but Primordial Elements,only found in very powerful and extremelyold elemental creatures, which existed intimes before any mortal reached theElemental Plane and tamed the firstelemental: a time when the Elemental Planeswere wholly uncontaminated! Then itneeded to taint these four ElementalPrinces, corrupt their Primordial core withits vile powers, and summon them to theFirst Material Plane through fourpassageways called Elemental Nodes,created just to this end.

For this purpose, the Egg corrupted Benares,a Wu from Sanctuary, the legendary city on

Sagarmatha Mountains, in the northern partof Skothar continent.

The Wu was chosen because he was quiteversed in the magical arts and prone to usingBlackmoor era items.

He undertook a very long journey thatbrought him, through the Jen Steppes andThonia kingdom, to the Esterhold peninsulaand to the Fane of the Eye.

Driven by the Egg’s visions, Benares the Wubuilt four mighty apocalypse weapons,imbued with the power of the four corruptelements.

So he forged: the air lance Windvane, thefire dagger Tinderstrike, the water tridentDrown and the earth war pick Ironfang.

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After the end of this feat Benares left withouta trace, leaving the four apocalypse weaponson the Elemental Evil altar.

These weapons were soon claimed by thefour Elemental Evil Prophets, which came afew months ago, from the far ends of theworld, to reinstate the old cult.

Today their aim is to open the fourElemental Nodes to help the Egg topursue its plan: in the next episode wewill see how their devotion to theElemental Evil shapes the world for thebad!

THE ELEMENTAL EVIL IN

MYSTARA –

PART III: THE CREED

Elemental Evil Cults in Mystara and theirProphets.

The Elemental Evil disrupts the fourelements inner nature, focusing their powerto just destruction. For each element, aprophet full of charisma has been summonedto prepare a platform for an organized cult.Each cult act alone from the others, withdifferent modes and aiming different ends.

Each one is sure to be superior incomparison to the other cults and to besomewhat the beloved of the Elemental EvilEye.

Despite these differences, amply described inthe original text, the cults are connected oneanother through a force they fail to fullycomprehend.

Black Earth Cult

A medusa called MarlosUrnrayle guides the BlackEarth cult. He possessesIronfang, a war pick, imbuedfrom the power of Ogrémoch,the Evil Earth Prince.

Marlos is a vain being, cruel and extremelynarcissist, that loves to surround himself withluxury and beautiful items. Beneath this sureand selfish behavior, a self-loathing sadcreature hides looking at others with hateand contempt.

Marlos was born as a human aristocrat in anoble family of Arogansa from southwestAlphatia and grew to be a complete posh. Hewasted his family wealth in a hedonistic lifeduring which he indulged in kinky andpeculiar behaviors. Urnarayle mansion waswell known for bizarre dinners, wild partiesand kinky orgies. Marlos forced his guests towear horrendous monster masks to beabsolutely certain no one could put hisbeauty in the shade.

When he started to grow old, Marlos got intoarcane arts studies, in which he neverexcelled, to prolong his youth. During theseresearches, that costed him years, he found a

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ring with the vital essence of an innocentcreature from the Fairy People. Instead offreeing the spirit, Marlos started to use itspowers, halting for some years his body’snatural decay. But one day, the fairycreature’s soul died and thus came a cursethat transformed Marlos in a medusa.Overtaken by horror and madness, Marlosfled Arogansa and Alphatia, carrying alongjust his large mask collection.

After some years traveling around Isle ofDawn, Ochalea and Bellissaria, he ended upin Sinbad’s Gate in west Skothar. Here hestarted to get dreams and visions that urgedhim to move to Esterhold Peninsula and theSumber Hills. A long staircase under awrecked monastery brought him in an oldcavern with a freaky altar on which an ironwar pick rested. When Marlos took upIronfang, his mission became instantly clear.He set his dwelling in a nearby undergroundcomplex and started building the Black EarthCult.

Howling Hate Cult

Aerisi Kalinoth, a noon elf6

guides the Howling Hate Cult.Tall and fine looking, she sportssome illusory wings that movesthe air with delicacy.

Aerisi talk in a gentle whisper that reachesloud and clear her people' hears. Sheconsiders her followers not as cultists but as

her noble courtiers. In front of them, she is aProphet and a Queen. Musicians andcourtiers flatter her and revere her, warriorsriding hippogriffs are as knights to her.

She was born in the far Eusdria reign, on theSavage Coast, in a noble family, surroundedby history, legends and magic. She passedthe youth playing and dreaming to emulatethe legendary Aeryl, the ancestor of thewinged elves, Ee'Aar. Her ever-vigilant familymade her character frail and gentle with theirprotective behavior.

But when her parents chose to let her have alook into the world and into the society theyrecognized the big mistake they hadcommitted. They grew a spoiled girl, not amature woman. She was accustomed to haveeverything she wanted, bursting in hystericalmadness whenever she was denied thesmallest of things. These childish behaviorsmade her unwanted in Gundegard court, theking himself appeared unsatisfied of herdemeanor and could not stand her any more.Nonetheless, her talent for the enchantingmagic continued to grow but she seemed tofeel out of place in that environment. At thattime, the first dreams came to her and sheenvisioned herself like one of the winged elfthat roamed legends and stories from whenshe was a child. She started to dream shecould master the air and with it, she couldpunish the ones that offended her.

Then the childish dreams started to evolveand to become some obscure vision in whichshe was able to dominate the storms and theair itself. Until one day, during a dream, abrown-skinned white haired mystic appearedto her promising he would teach her all heknew. The creature in her dream was Yan-C-

6 From the “Razze di Mystara” a lmanac ofMarco Dalmonte. The Fair Elves (see El foChiaro in Dalmonte’s work) have a fa i r sk inwith golden t ints , brown or dark hair , andthey are rare ly b lond or red-haired. They areas ta l l as humans (average 175 cm) and withan athlet ic bui ld.

http://ddmystara.altervista.org/RazzeMystara.pdf

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Bin, the Evil Air Prince. Aerisi changed hermagical studies moving to the study of theAir Element. This endeavor brought her fromEusdria to Alphatia. Her arts grew even finerin Floating Ar and as her studies deepenedalso her dreams became more intense untilone day, following their suggestions, shefound a cavern in the Sumber Hills with analtar in it. There lied Windvane the lance,waiting for her. Driven by her mentor Yan-C-Bin, she named herself Queen and with herpower, she started luring followers at her side.

Breaking Wave Cult

Gar Brokenkeel, once a sailor,commands the Breaking WaveCult. He possesses Drown, thewater elemental weapon: atrident imbued with the essenceof Olhydra, the Evil WaterPrincess.

Gar is a silent and surly man who prefers tospeak with actions instead of words. He issure the world and life have wronged himand this brought him to hate deeply all thepeople with the sole exception of those asunlucky as him. Gar despises others'weaknesses.

He was born in a little village on the Minaea’ssouth coast and was nothing more than alittle boy when his village was attacked by theshark people. Sea devils slaughtered hisfamily and everyone he knew. As an orphan,he embarked as ship's boy on a merchantship sailing for Spearpoint in easternBellissaria. Despite his young age and hislack of experience, Gar got the toughest jobsand the way his masters abused himbordered slavery. His service on the ship

ended abruptly when pirates attacked themerchant ship. During the fight, Gar wasstunned and drawn overboard into the sea.He survived for days clenching on a shipwreckage, until a shark attacked him and cutoff his left arm. Sensing his impending endfeeling that all was lost, Gar left himself go tohis final destiny. A strong stream quickly roseand, as if listening to his prayers, broughthim away from the predator. In less than anhour, he found himself on the beaches ofGaity Island. Thinking that the saving wavewas a water elemental sent for his safety, hechose to set himself on oceans study and onlearning their secrets. During the next yearshe travelled a lot, visiting Alatians Islands,Bellissaria, Isle of Dawn and wherever hewent he tried to learn all the knowledge onsea and its magic. He never stopped tomistrust and loathe the other people,remembering the ill deeds he suffered frommerchants and pirates. One day he realizedhe was chosen for something more, he hadto rally other men like himself and teachthem the power of the sea.

He got some visions immediately afterunderstanding the real purpose of his lifeand he slowly reached the Sumber Hills.There he found a temple in a hidden cavernand a bizarre altar on which he found amagic trident. Sensing its power Gar took itand with it, he gathered the cultists of theBreaking Wave.

Eternal Flame Cult

Driven by a burning ambitionand by the urge to punish all thepeople obstructing her dreams,Vanifer the thiefling has risen toguide the Eternal Flame Cult.

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Her apparent coolness carefully hides apointy blade forged by loathing and pride.

Going deeper, under her pride, lies amayhem and a desire for chaos. In Vaniferboils a strong hate towards those who thinkthey are superior to her and there is nothingshe would not dare to do to appear terribleand respectable.

Vanifer, probably the daughter of a humanwoman and a diabolus, grew in the filthieststreets of Sayr Ulan, using just her wits as aweapon. Since her youth, she learned todance for money and slowly she built herselfa name from the lowest taverns of themerchant district to the chambers of thenobles' houses. She also taught herself somefire magic tricks that helped her to be uniqueamongst the other dancers. Her talent grewand this brought her to a pasha's attentionand he asked her to join her concubines. Shehated her position because she understoodthat she was just a trophy for the pasha. Thisarrangementdid not last long: Vanifer left thepalace but not before "relieving" the masterof some precious gems and burning downthe palace.

She found sanctuary in Slagovich but thepasha's followers did not take long to findher. She fled again, this time embarking in along journey by sea to the other side of theworld. As she came to Sinbad's Gate, shefound home in the poorer districts where shestarted a school for dancers that in a littletime started to gather other disciples. Shebecame the charismatic guide for a group offire apprentices. She remained in Sinbad'sGate until a few months ago, when dreamsand visions pushed her to go to the north, tothe Esterhold Peninsula. In a lost temple, on

an altar, she found the dagger Tinderstrike,imbued with the power of Imix, the Evil FirePrince. With this brand new and powerfulweapon, she decided to write a new chapterfor his cult under the Sumber Hills.

We only need to see the last part, after the“what”, “when” and “why” of the ElementalEvil: the “where”! We will examine in detailthe locations of the Dessarin Valley inMystara and also speak about the different“neutral” factions that can affect your playingexperience.


MYSTARA – PART IV:

THESTAGE

Dessarin Valley in Esterhold:

places and encounters

All the locations in this description are, as awhole, devised on the rules and the specificdepictions of the original adventure. Weneed some corrections and integration toadapt them to play in the EsterholdPeninsula campaign in the Skothar continent.

The chosen area spans 340 miles (550 km),east-west, and 300 miles (around 480 km)7.

7 The map of page 32 must be rotated 90degrees counterc lockwise. The North of themap, then, becomes the West , the North, theEast and so on.

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Amphail

It is a little town just three days from RockHarbor, on the Long Road. Founded by anoble Alphatian mage, Amphail the Just, thatnamed it after himself and protected it fromthe humanoids and Jennites for the entireduration of his life and beyond, according tolegends his ghost is still riding on theSumber Hill.

Fascinated by the Jennites mastership inusing horses, especially in battles, he made

horse breeding the more lucrative activity intown, famous all over Waerhold even todayfor its breeding farms. Since the time hisfounder was alive, Amphail has become amedium-sized town (a bit bigger than in theoriginal adventure): it is on the intersectionof two big routes and the carriage commerceis flourishing, so it serves as a way stationtoo, for fresh horses and provisions.

Many Alphatian nobles possess lush villas onthe hills surrounding Amphail in which theyoften reside during the autumn in Alphatia.

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Bargewright Inn

A simple inn for passers-by on a hillside, it’sname today is simply Bargewright and it hasbecome a little community living in old woodand mud structures, surrounded by wallsthat slowly encompassed the hill aboveWomford village. For a few years thiscommunity has been controlled by the SkyfyrGuild of the Fallen (or Order of the FallenDragon) that placed allied merchants andbusinessmen in the city’s key positions.

The community leader is Chalaska Muruin,an alphatian-jennite half-breed female,probably born from a jennite slave raped byher Alphatian master.

The innkeeper Nalaskur Thaelond is theboss of the Fallen in the city.

Beliard

Surely, it is one of the most beautiful villagesin the Dessarin Valley, thanks for its trees. It'sthe main cattle market in the area and theinhabitants are mostly shepherds andherdsmen. It is also the last place where thelost delegation was seen and thus it is morethan an apt place to start the research.

Goldenfields

Goldenfields is a huge temple-farm, circledby thick walls and sacred to Ninsun, theagriculture goddess. When, twelve centuriesago, the first alphatian conquerors arrived inEsterhold, they decided to preserve this cultplace, mostly used by the Jennites thensubdued and enslaved, either because thiscult was a pacific one, or because the

produce of the area were important for thecolonies' upkeep.

Abbot Ellardin Darovik now rules it, andGoldenfields is an important outpost for theEmerald Enclave. Members of the enclave, asNinsun clerics, are certainly welcomedbetween these walls. Inside and around itthere are nearly a thousand families, Jennitesfreedmen for the most part, and under thecommand of these monk-farmers, theyharvest an area that spans for over twentysquare miles and serves as a granary for thewhole Peninsula. Goldenfields was also oneof the destinations for the lost delegation:they obviously did not reach it.

Halls of the Hunting Axe

This building almost destroyed and hauntedby monsters is all that remains of Besilmer,the old Kogolor8 dwarven kingdom. Fromsome (true) rumors inside these ruins liesthe grave of Torhild Flametongue, theBesilmer clan chief.

Haunted Fortresses

In the western part of the Sumber Hills arethe ruins of four towers built twelvecenturies ago by the Knights of the Wheelof Fire9. In the locals' stories, the fortressesare now haunted by supernatural beings likespectres and predator monsters and they arethus shunned.

8 Ancient Kogolor Dwarves. “Races ofMystara” by Marco Dalmonte.

9 Knights of the Wheel of Fire takes theplace of the Knights of the Si lver Horn.



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Feathergale Spire

This group of eccentric knights is part of theHowling Hate Cult and it’s primary aim is todefend the area from intruders. Theirknightly manners and a low profile, helpedthe group not to attract the attention ofalphatian and southern coast citiesauthorities. They even regard them as a meanto maintain security of the area.

Sacred Stone Monastery

The mysterious monk acolytes of "The Way ofThe Sacred Stone" took these old ruins astheir home a few months ago. They are intruth a cover for the Black Earth Cult andprotect the surface entrance to the BlackEarth Temple.

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Scarlet Moon Hall

This is the most mysterious of the HauntedFortresses because it is, more than theothers, in the inner territories of the SumberHills. In recent times an equally mysteriousdruidic order called Scarlet Moon Circle,took over. It is indeed a cover up for theEternal Flame Cult.

Rivergard Keep

This strong castle is on the banks of DessarinRiver. It is the seat for a mercenary band,whose commander, the Castle Master, is oneJolliver Grimjaw. Their cover is to be amercenary band seeking for a safe heaven inthe castle they are renovating, to use it as astarting point for their future businesses, toact as escorts for caravans going to and fromEsterhold. Unbeknownst to all, they are onBreaking Wave Cult's payroll.

Helvenblade House

Southwest from Westbridge, at the edge ofthe forest, lies Helvenblade, the estate of thenoble family Silmerhelve, one of the greatestand richest family in Rock Harbor.

Rundreth Manor

Perched on a hilltop above the Long Road,are the ruins of the Rundreth Manor. Hiddenthere is the "Dark Lady" and even her namescares so much the valley inhabitants, thatthey stay clear from her. In truth the DarkLady is a night dragon called Nurvureem. Afunny thing is that Nurvureem is a servant ofIdris10.

Stone Bridge

This huge structure, a gigantic stone archover 3 km long and 120 meters high, is themost evident proof of the past existence of adwarven kingdom in the area. It connects thenorthern shore of the Dessarin River with thesouthern and is the only safe passage inseveral miles radius from Ironford and Yartar.

Summit Hall

In the hearth of the Sumber Hill, you findSummit Hall, seat of the Samular Knights, anold and venerable knightly order devoted toUtnapishtim. Samular Caradoon was aMinaean paladin for the Hope and JusticeProtector. Ushien Stormbanner, herself toofrom Minaea, guides now the order.

Triboar

The little city of Triboar is on the crossingbetween the Long Road and the EvermoorWay. It's on a route well used by merchantsto and from the city of Yartar. Now the citygovernor is an alphatian woman namedDaratha Shendrel, who is also the cityreferral for the Heralds of Saturnius. Thedisappeared adventurer by the name ofGervon is not a half-elf but a pure elf fromShiye-Lawr (in the Alphatia continent).

Vale of Dancing Waters

For the "modern" dwarves that dwell in theSkothar continent, this place is historicallyimportant because, according to the legends,the last Kogolor dwarves to live in Mystarainhabited this area.

1 0 Idr is s tory is found in “Codex Immorta l is”by Marco Dalmonte.


50



A remnant of the original Kogolor groupsurvives still today, grace to the devotion tothe Immortals Garal, Frey and Freya.

They control the area and name themselvesShield Dwarves. They are in goodrelationship with the Congregation of theBlade.

Westbridge

As in the original description with the soleexception of Herivin Dardragon, thehalfling owner of the Harvest Inn, that comesfrom Stoutfellow in the Alphatian continent.

Westwood

In this forest live some Jennites in aprimordial way. They have chosen the Mooseas thetotem and name for their tribe. Thesacred area in the forest is devoted to thegoddess Djaea (Mother Nature). Some ruinsfrom the old elvish kingdom were the firstdwellings of Idris’ elven followers.

Wormford and Yartar

As in the original description.


MYSTARA – PART V: THE

FACTIONS IN MYSTARA

FACTIONS IN MYSTARA

The Heralds of Saturnius

NEUTRAL OR CHAOTIC GOOD

The Heralds, organized in a network of smallcells, live in the shades and secrecy.Broadminded magicians, itinerant bards andspies mostly compose these groups offollowers of the patron of Freedom. Theirprincipal aim is to carry on the precepts oftheir patron, with devotion and commitment,especially the fight against abuse and slaveryperpetrated by alphatian mages, moreconservatives and faithful to the traditions ofthe Empire. Their strength but also theirmain weakness is, indeed, the organizationin very small groups, independent from oneanother and scattered through the Empireand the colonies. Another weak point is alsothe relatively low diffusion of the cult of

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Saturnius in the Esterhold Peninsula. Themost influential cell there is in the town ofYartar.

As a sign of devotion and respect towardstheir immortal patron, they usually wear ared garment. In the official meetings, this isthe typical Phrygian cap, which gave themtheir nickname, used by the opponents, RedCaps, like the fearsome and devilishbrownies of the fairy world.

Their symbol is a red Phrygian cap or, moreoften, a red ruby bladed scimitar.

The Alliance of the Lords of

Minaea

ANY MORAL ALIGNMENT

This group is based upon unstable andtemporary alliances, secured every other timeaccording to the circumstances andeconomic needs, by the power groups in theMinaea and the nearby City-states. The armedgroups, formed mostly by aggressivemercenaries and warlocks, in the payroll of

the Alliance, very often manage the securityof the trade between the regions ofEsterhold, Jen and, indeed, Minaea. NestraRuthiol, Baron of the Waters of Yartar is aninfluential member of the Alliance andoversees the trade between Minaea andEsterhold.

Their symbol is the golden crown of Minaeaon a red background. Sometimes yellowconcentric circles indicate the citiesparticipating in the Alliance, even though thenumber can change from time to time, giventhe instability of the agreements.

The Congregation of the Blade

LAWFUL/NEUTRAL GOOD/NEUTRAL EXCEPTTRUE NEUTRAL

This knightly order is formed mostly bypaladins and clerics of the ThonianPantheon11, very active in trying to restoreand impose, even through the use of theforce, the value of their faiths like heroism in

1 1 The complete Thonian Pantheon can befound in "Codex Immorta l is - Vol .2 Rel ig ionsof Mystara" by Marco Dalmonte.



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battle [The Eternal General], the spirit ofjustice [Tarastia] and the light and orderopposed to darkness [Ixion].

In the hearth of the Sumber Hill, you findSummit Hall, seat of the Samular Knights, anold and venerable knightly order devoted toUtnapishtim. The Congregation of the Bladeis searching badly for their alliance, toexpand their influence in the EsterholdPeninsula.

They also search for other alliances, like theone with the Baron of the Waters of Yartar, tofill the gap in their influence in this area,bordering with the ancient Reign of Thonia.

The symbol of this knightly order is a bastardsword, anointed in light and wrapped up ina purple drape recalling their immortalpatrons.

The Order of the Fallen

Dragon (also known as Skyfyr

Guild of the Fallen)

ANY. EXCEPT LAWFUL

The Order of the Fallen Dragon (or moresimply of the Fallen) is the name of the mostinfluential criminal guild in the EsterholdPeninsula. It was named after a battle ofnearly one thousand years ago, where one of

their founders fought: he built the guild in atown, originally Jennite but taken, razed andbuilt anew by the alphatians a short timebefore. They also renamed the town Skyfyr.According to the founders, the Fallen had toact in the shadows to grow their influenceinside the colony, to favor the progressiveemancipation and independence from themotherland Alphatia, through a raising ofpopular consensus of the poorest classes,always supported and helped by the Fallen.

Today, almost a millennium after, only smalland minority groups of the Fallen carry onthe founders’ ideas. The independence isalmost complete (it is complete with thedestruction of Alphatia) and the Guild’s mainpurpose now is to obtain riches thanks to itsdiffusion on the territory.

Their symbol is a dragon flying with unfoldedwings and, very often, drawn upside down.

The Emerald Enclave

DRUIDS. NEUTRAL.

Druids in Mystaraorganize themselves insecretive circles, usuallyguided by an Archdruidwith the only purpose topreserve nature accordingto the precepts of MotherNature (Djaea). The mostactive circle in this area ofMystara is the EmeraldEnclave. In practice, onlyDruid PCs can access to

(Continued on page 62)

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The Thyatian Language

INTRODUCTION

One of the major problems when we facehistory is that we tend to miss the trueperspective of time. We are used to perceivecultures in space, but we often discard thegreat differences that a population, a culture,a language experiences through its history.

Fantasy and science-fiction literature (and,thus, also role-playing games settings andadventures) often suffer from a coupledproblem: an excess in spatial (“horizontal”)and temporal (“vertical”) extension of itscultures, nations and empires.

On Earth, at the time of writing, according tothe UN there are 190 undisputed sovereignstates and 16 disputed ones; and, accordingto Wikipedia, “Estimates of the number oflanguages in the world vary between 5,000and 7,000.”

States like the US did not exist 300 years ago,while states like Italy and Germany did notexist even 200 years ago. Moreover, it is quiteeasy to point out how different England andFrance were at different times in history, like1300 AD, 1700 AD, and today.

Keeping this in mind, it is important not toreproduce the same mistakes when dealingwith the cultural history of fantasy settings. Itis true that magic and deities can change the

by Giulio Caroletti

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path of cultural history too, and “freeze”cultures (Mystara has a very good example ofthis in the Hollow World, for instance).However, to do so (or, at least, to do sosystematically) is simply not very entertainingeither for writers or players. Moreover, itwould be unrespectful of Mystara's setting,rich as it is of spatial and vertical abundance,contrarily to many other role-playing worlds.The main area of Mystara, the Known World,is lesser, in size, than the whole of Europe;and, thankfully, it seems to share the samelinguistic, cultural and historical abundancein variety of that area. It would be a pity tothink that – to name just an example -Ethengarians, whose culture stems originallyfrom 1700 BC, should have remainedessentially the same over the course of 2700years.

In this article we will try to answer thesequestions with a focus on the Thyatiancultures and languages, starting from the riseof the Antalians on Brun around 2400 BC.Since the Empire contains several cultures,we will also discuss to some extent theirpresence and influence on Thyatian languageand culture as well.

THE THYATIAN

LANGUAGE

Thyatian is a language belonging to theThantalian sub-branch of the Antalianbranch of the Neathar languages. TheThyatian alphabet is derived from theTaymoran and Milenian alphabets.

Thyatian was originally spoken in oldThyatium, the area currently known as the

Duchy of Thyatis. Through the power of theRepublic of Thyatis, the most important ofthe pre-Alphatian city-states in the region,Thyatian became the dominant language,initially in the regions known as MainlandThyatis and subsequently throughout theKnown World. Thyatian is the CommonTongue of the Known World, the language ofinternational communication, scholarship,and science. As for AC 1000, in itsstandardized imperial form, or as a dialect orlocal version, it is an official language of theEmpire of Thyatis, the Grand-Duchy ofKarameikos, the Principalities of Glantri, andthe Kingdom of Ierendi.

The area now known as Mainland Thyatiswas settled for a long time by Neathar tribes.Most of these spoke languages belonging towhat has been called by scholars andethnolinguists “Thantalian” language family,although probably no Thantalian tribeexisted, nor did the tribes, at that time,consider themselves part of a linguistic orcultural unicuum.

The ancestors of the Thyatian people wereThantalian tribes brought to Davania by theNithians, in an unsuccessful attempt atcolonizing the southern continent around1000 BC. After disposing of their Nithianmasters, the tribes lived in northern Davaniauntil they faced the Milenian Empire, andhad to choose between being absorbed orflee. Those who chose the latter were the so-called original “three tribes” of Thyatians,Kerendans and Hattians. It's possible that thetribes were really called this way, maybebecause of patronymics or because of citiesthey came from, although other scholarsthink that the names were givenretrospectively by the Thyatians to their

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ancestors, to fit the three-parted division thathappened later on in Thyatian history.

The southern tribes, among which the mostimportant were called Etrusnans1, and thelocal Thantalians intermingled, especiallysince they were all pressured by the sameenemy, the Nithian Empire in the north. It isto be noted that in the sixth century BC,what is now known as Mainland Thyatis wasalso settled by Doulakki and by descendantsof the Traldar and Taymorans, who broughtwriting and their alphabets to the region.The Thyatian alphabet, which is the standardalphabet of the Known World, descends frommodifications of the Traldar/Doulakkialphabet (which was also the Milenianalphabet) and of the late Taymoran agealphabet.

The rise of a common Thyatian language andrecognized ethnicity was furthered by theend of the Nithian Empire. Traldar, Doulakkiand post-Taymorans, whose cultures hadalready suffered much decline in the lastcenturies, were dealt a strong blow by theend of the Nithian Empire and the Spell ofOblivion. Their city-states were progressivelyconquered by the Thantalian-Southernercities, among which the major ones wereThyatis in the east, Kerendas in the west andthe isle of Hattias in the south.

Between 500 BC and 200 BC, when theAlphatian Empire decided to move intoThyatis and conquer the whole region, acommon language and ethnic identityformed in the area, although a few Doulakki

and post-Taymoran cities remained, either asindependent cities or as vassals of theThyatian, Kerendan and Hattian city-states.The Alphatian conquest and the twocenturies of domination led to the extinctionof the Doulakki and post-Taymoran cultureof Thyatis. A few fled to their kin in Traladaraafter the Alphatian invasion, some werebrought to the Hollow World, but the otherswere all but assimilated into the Thyatiansubjects of the Alphatian Empire.

By the time the Thyatians revolt and expelthe Alphatians from Thyatis, Ochalea and thePearl Islands, and the Thyatian Empire isborn, Thyatis is ethnolinguistically a mostlyunited nation, although enough differencesare present between western Thyatians andeastern Thyatians that the westerners identifyas “Kerendans”; the insular Hattians,moreover, belong to a definitely distinctculture.

With the increase in literacy, cultural life,science and technology brought by theAlphatians between 200 BC and Year 0 of themodern Thyatian Calendar, the intellectualsand scholars of the Thyatian lands codifiedthe rules for the written Thyatian language.This eldest form of Thyatian, called OldThyatian, has been revised several timesthroughout the 1000 years of existence of theEmpire, and constituted the basis of what isnow known as the High Thyatian. HighThyatian is an intellectuals' language and isconvoluted and more complex than thelanguage ever spoken by commoners.

Although the Old Thyatian language wasused in politics, law, religious activities,poetry and drama, the needs of the commonpeople gave rise to the use of so-called

1 The Etrusnans wi l l feature in an art ic le onthe next Threshold issue and are a lsoment ioned in Threshold i ssue #9 and in theart ic le “Lost Civi l i zat ions of Thyat is andAlphat ia” in this same issue.

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Vulgar Thyatian for writing. Born as a half-literate, crude and simplified version of theThyatian written language, it was givendignity first by satirists and comedians whowrote theatrical plays for the commonpeople, and then by politicians andintellectuals affiliated with the progressiveand popular parties who considered OldThyatian's complexity annoying, and bymerchants and traders who knew how thesimple common tongue suited theircommercial interests. Through time thisresulted in the codification of a simpler formof written Thyatian which is now known asCommon Thyatian and which is the officiallanguage of Glantri, Karameikos and Ierendi,and the informal Common Tongue of thewhole Known World (and sometimes beyondthe Known World as well), brought aroundby Thyatian armies and merchants, and by allthose who traded with the Thyatians.

High Thyatian remains mostly a writtenlanguage, with the exception of specialoccasions, mostly in politics, science, drama,religion, magic, although politically orartistically motivated people might preferCommon Thyatian in some instances(realistic characters in dramas or comedies;or popular, republican or ethnical minoritypoliticians who might want to distancethemselves with the aristocrats, imperialistsand/or intellectuals with whom the HighThyatian is associated).

People who speak Common Thyatian will beable to understand most of High Thyatian;moreover, every person who learns to readand write in Thyatis will be given at least abasic education in High Thyatian.

Dialects

The Mainland Thyatian language is dividedroughly into two dialect families, the westernbranch, called Kerendan, and the easternbranch, called Thyatian. The two branchesare not clearly separated, but there is adialect continuum2 between them.

Roughly, the western dialects include thosefrom the dominions of Machetos, Kerendas,Vyalia (with strong Vyalia Elven influences),Biazzan, and in the Ylari city of Ctesiphon.

The eastern dialects include those from thedominions of Thyatis, Lucinius, Retebius,

2 A dialect continuum i s “a range ofdia lects spoken across some geographicalarea that di f fer only s l ight ly betweenneighboring areas”, a l though travel ing in anydirect ion, “ these di f ferences accumulate” tothe point that sometimes “speakers f romopposi te ends of the cont inuum are nolonger mutual ly inte l l ig ib le”. This , however,is not the case for Thyat ian and MainlandThyat is (source:ht tps: / /en.wikipedia.org/wiki /Dia lect_cont inuum).

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dialect_continuum

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dialect_continuum

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Kantrium and Halathius, and the Thyatianspeaking communities from most of theeastern part of the Emirate of Dythestenia inYlaruam.

Actius and Borydos have dialects which sharetraits of eastern Thyatian with strong Hattianinfluences.

Some dialects are not included in thisclassification: these include insular ordomain-specific dialects, like Trinakrian (theThyatian dialect of Tel Akbir and of theThyatians from the Ylari city of Tameronikas),which is strongly influenced by Alasiyan andDoulakki; Terentian (the dialect ofTerentias), with Elven and Minrothaddaninfluences; and Carytian, the dialect ofCarytion, where the local, insular populationretained archaic elements that can be tracedback even to the Taymoran culture. Aurorandialects include those of areas whereThyatian is a local language, like in Helskirand West Portage and the northern parts ofthe western Isle of Dawn (but not inWestrourke, Caerdwicca and Furmenglaive,where Dunael3 languages related to Thratianare used).

Mositius is a very recent dominion and thereis no local dialect there. For differentreasons, Sclaras does not have a dialect either.

Last but not least, Hattian is a special casethat is described later in this article.

Ispan

The Ispans were a Thyatian sub-culturewhich developed in the cities of Fabia andCubis during the Thyatian occupation ofYlaruam. Their dialect was most similar tothe Trinakrian dialect of Tel Akbir andTameronikas. When the Alasiyans re-conquered Ylaruam, some Ispans remainedin those cities, where they make up almostthe whole ethnically Thyatian communities.

Among Ispan refugees who fled to Thyatisafter the Ylari conquest, many were laterexiled and travelled to the Savage Coastbecause of their fanatical belief in Solarios(Ixion), and the religious troubles theycaused within the Empire with their arrival.

On the Savage Coast, their dialect evolvedinto the current Espa and Verdan dialects ofThyatian. Some others founded small Ispancommunities in other areas of the Empire,the most important being L'Alguer onCarytion. The remaining Ispans mostlydispersed within Mainland Thyatis and lostmost of their cultural heritage.

Belcadiz elves speak a Thyatian dialect whois very close to Ispan and Espa. Since theorigin of Belcadiz elves is all but unknown toeveryone but Belcadiz elves, any speculationabout these similarities has supportersamong scholars. Some say that Belcadiz elveslived hidden between Ispans for centuries,influencing them and hastening the processof cultural differentiation from otherThyatians; some say they came from theSavage Coast, where some (or many) of themmight still pass as humans; others think theycame from the same alien world that spat thed'Ambrevilles (who seem to speak a languagedistantly related to Thyatian) on Mystara.

3 The Dunael cul ture and language wereintroduced by James Mishler for hiscampaigns, and were later covered in severalar t ic les that can be found on Pandius, seethese search resul ts for examples.

http://search.freefind.com/servlet/freefind?id=574922&pageid=r&query=Dunael&mode=Find+pages+matching+ALL+words

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Regional variants

The so-called regional variants of Thyatianare towards Common Thyatian whatCommon Thyatian is towards High Thyatian,at least in terms of linguistic “distance”.

The ethnically Thyatian communities living inother countries, having their languagecontinuum with the Mainland and theEmpire broken, developed their owndialects, which took a form of their own andspecific regional features.

Still, these dialects are intelligible to aThyatian speaker, and most of the peoplespeaking a regional dialect will still make aneffort to speak in Common Thyatian whenthey meet a foreigner.

There are three main Thyatian dialectsoutside of the Empire of Thyatis: Glantrian,Caurenzan and Ierendan. In other areas ofthe Empire, where Thyatian is not the main

language of the commoners (like on most ofthe Isle of Dawn4, the Pearl Islands, Ochaleaand the Hinterlands), Common Thyatian isspoken and regional variants are not found.

Glantrian, or Glantrian-Thyatian, is thecommon tongue of the Principalities ofGlantri, and has some distinct differencesfrom Thyatian, especially because of the highnumber of loan words from Alphatian,Flaemish-Alphatian and Elven, related tomost magic and technological terms.

Caurenzan is the Thyatian dialect ofCaurenze and of the House of Sirecchia.Most Glantrians of Thyatian origin came fromthe Emirate of Dythestenia, but thechauvinistic Caurenzans made a point oftrying to retain as much traditional Thyatianelements as possible in their ways, andlanguage was not an exception to that.However, since Thyatian dialects of westernand eastern Dythestenia belong to twodifferent branches of Thyatian (respectivelyKerendan and Thyatian, see above),Caurenzan ended up becoming a syncreticform of Common Thyatian, with most of thedialect variants and asperities removed.Caurenzan is thus considered an elegant andsimple dialect and the most beautiful form ofCommon Thyatian – especially byCaurenzans, obviously.

4 Cul tures born on the Is le of Dawn inc ludethe fan-made Dunael and the Thothians;whi le colonis ts on Dawn are of Alphat ian,Northman and Thyat ian or ig in. The Dunaelf i l l the need to explain Cel t ic and old Engl ishnames of characters f rom the Is le of Dawnand, i f necessary, other parts of the Empire,which are present in of f ic ia l products , andtheir cul ture is bui l t on the descr ipt ion inDawn of the Emperors of the dominions ofCaerdwicca and Furmenglaive.

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Ierendian

Ierendian is the common tongue of theKingdom of Ierendi; it is a regional form ofCommon Thyatian, with influences especiallycoming from the Makai tongue. Thyatianswill consider it just a dialect of Thyatian,while Ierendians will consider it anindependent language; and the matter is justa part of the ongoing hostility between thetwo countries.

Darokinian

Although Darokinian has a strong Thyatianinfluence, the language cannot be consideredpart of the Thyatian language family. InAD&D Mystara, Darokinian is described as adialect of Thyatian, but it is very unlikely thatDarokin, which was unified a thousand yearsago by the Eastwind dynasty, would besimply a Thyatian language. You areobviously free to change this in yourcampaign.

Hattian

We decided to leave Hattian last, because ofthe special nature of Hattias and of theHattian culture.

Hattians belong to the Thyatian ethnic groupand speak a dialect of the Thyatian language.However, their culture, description andnames are clearly inspired by TeutonicKnights, Prussians and Germans.

There are two possible ways to relate to this:the first one is to assume that they simply areThyatians with Teutonic/Prussian culturaltwist, and thus with German-sounding namesand surnames.

An alternative way is to make them anindependent group in the Empire, related toAntalians (and thus to Northmen andHeldanners), who speak a German-likelanguage.

In both cases, the Hattian language or dialectwould be the source of the names of themonths in the Thyatian calendar.

POSTFACE

The task of writing ethnolinguistic articlesabout a fantasy world is not an easy one.Definitions of ethnicity and language aredifficult even in real world, and even moredifficult is to find out rules on the evolutionof languages and the distribution of genetictraits in populations. The fact that Mystarahas cultures which seem to be, in many ways,strongly related to Terrestrial ones (orLaterran, if you prefer), can make the taskeasier - or more difficult, if one wants to stayinside Canon.

Thyatis and the Thyatian language are anexcellent example of this. The ThyatianEmpire is clearly based on the Roman andByzantine (or Eastern Roman) Empires.Thyatian names in the official TSR productslikewise seem to be a mix of Roman andByzantine ones. While the western parts ofthe Roman Empire used Latin as theircommon tongue, the eastern parts of theEmpire (which later became the ByzantineEmpire) used Greek. Unfortunately, westernThyatians and eastern Thyatians of theMainland all speak the same language. Sohow can we justify the presence of Latinsounding names and Byzantine soundingnames not only inside the same Empire, but

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inside the same limited region, namelyMainland Thyatis, whose main population isethnolinguistically the same?

Moreover, other aspects must be taken intoaccount:

All cultures of Thyatian origin and stockseem to speak Romance languages, accordingto names and language snippets in officialsourcebooks (Caurenzans in Glantri; Espaand Verdans on the Savage Coast);

There is already an enormous amount ofGreek-related countries and people onMystara: the Traldar (Hollow World),potentially the Traladarans (a mix of Greek,Slavic and Romanian), the Milenian Empirein the Hollow World and the Milenian city-states on Davania, the Minaeans on Skothar(which descend from Milenians), and theTraladaran city states on the Gulf of Hule(Slagovich and the like);

Traldar/Traladarans/Milenians and Thyatiansdon’t seem to be related at all (canonically,the Traladarans are related to Nithians, whilethe Thyatians are related to Antalians).

So how do we solve this?

Well, there are several possible approaches.Two in particular comes to mind:

It is a fantasy setting and a fantasy world. TheThyatian language might apparentlyresemble Latin or Greek, but it is not relatedto either. It is a different language in adifferent world, and names and sounds liesomewhere between the spectrum of thetwo, so Latin-sounding and Greek-soundingnames are all ok, and all allowed for Thyatian

characters. The nicest interpretation of thisapproach that we are aware of is TravisHenry’s one, in which he introduced theconcept of “localism”: it doesn’t matter whattype of language Thyatian is (or any otherMystaran language), the presence of Greeksounding or Latin sounding names in Thyatisderives from the fact that a certain set ofnames and surnames, whose origin is notimportant and not related to actuallinguistics, will be found in certain regions ofThyatis. And this applies more or less to anyMystaran language.

Thyatian, in this interpretation, might have aset of Italian sounding names and surnamescoming from, for instance, Caurenze; a set ofLatin sounding names and surnames ineastern Thyatis; and a set of Greek soundingnames in western Thyatis. And these‘localisms’ are not related to the actualThyatian that is spoken in Thyatis, whichmight or might not be related to a RWlanguage.

The only problem of this interpretation isthat if we use it in a strict sense, we must alsodiscard all Spanish/Portuguese linguisticreferences to the Espa/Verdan cultures of theSavage Coast.

Thyatian is very close to Latin. Latin- andRoman-sounding names are all right forThyatian characters, but we know that manycharacters have Greek, Byzantine and Italian-sounding names. Where do they come from?What should we do with them?Here we are again confronted with twopossibilities:

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To replace all Greek, Byzantine and/orItalian-sounding names with Latin- andRoman-sounding ones, or with otherscoming from the other cultures that belongto the Empire (Norse names fromOceansend, Helskir and the northern Isle ofDawn; Alphatian names from the Isle ofDawn; African names from the Pearl Islands;and so on).

To provide an explanation to the strongpresence on Mainland Thyatis ofGreek/Byzantine/Italian-sounding names.This is what we intend to do in the Appendix.

APPENDIX:

THYATIANS AS LATINS -

REAL WORLD

INSPIRATION AND THE

BYZANTINE ELEMENTS

In this Appendix we will give the ratio behindour interpretation and invention of dialectsand regional derivations of the Thyatianlanguage. Our starting point will be toconsider the original Old Thyatian language(see above) as the Mystaran equivalent to RWClassical Latin language.

In order to do so without having to providea long list of new, re-adapted names forCanon characters with Greek/Byzantinenames, however, we also try to give anexplanation to their presence.

In this reconstruction, Thyatis is theequivalent of RW Rome; however, OldThyatian will be different from Classical Latinat least because of the presence of Alphatianloan words, that will in part supplant theGreek and Hellenistic ones found in RWLatin. This doesn’t mean there will be noGreek/Byzantine linguistic influence at all:the Thyatian language bears still ameaningful trace of Doulakki, Traldar andMilenian influences, established upon theoriginal Thyatians approximately between600 BC, when the legendary proto-Thyatianthree tribes arrived from Davania to theKnown World, and 0 BC, when the individualtraits of Doulakki, Traldar and Milenian citiesin Mainland Thyatis had finally disappeared.

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It is to be noted that a great deal of Thyatiancharacters from the GAZs bear names5 whichare neither Greek-sounding nor Latin-sounding. In some cases (such as "Justin","Stefan" or "Philip") this could be explainedwith a Common Thyatian spelling of an OldThyatian name (Justinus,Stephanos/Stephanus orPhilippos/Philippus); this could also beapplied to some surnames (for example,"Malaric" or "Antonic" could be the Commoncontracted form of "Malaricus" or"Antonicus", and so on). However, we preferto consider these names as sign of thepresence of the Dunael language, created byfans to explain the presence of these namesand the toponomy of Westrourke,Caerdwicca and Furmenglaive, that weconsider a M-Celtic language. Latin namesrendered in an Anglicized version (such as"Pulcherine" from DDA1 or "Nicephore" fromGAZ4, where one should have instead"Pulcherinius" or "Nicephorus") can be

explained with true influences from theDunael language.

If we mix our interpretation with the conceptof ‘localism’ introduced by Travis Henry (seePostface, above), we can conclude that incertain areas of Thyatis, because of theinfluence of Traldar, Doulakki and Milenians,there was a set of names and surnames thatbore the Greek/Byzantine linguisticinfluence. The same happened on thesouthern Isle of Dawn with the Dunael whobrought the Celtic influence to the Empireand to its language and names. With theexpansion of the Empire and the internalmigrations, especially towards the capital,these surnames became very common.

It might be interesting to define a number ofTraldar/Doulakki founded cities in currentThyatis (taking inspiration from the foundingof Italian cities by the Greek in RW). Thesemight include the Mainland cities ofKerendas, and Tel Akbir (before the Alasiyansoccupied the area, just like Arabs occupiedSicily); and, in Ylaruam, Tameronikas andCubis.

5 These inc lude Devon, Sher lane,Retameron, Bartran, Al f r ic , Ol l iver , Merr ik ,Aleena (GAZ1), or Caine and Guldahan(GAZ8).

the Enclave, after passing an entry test.Nothing forbids other classes, like Rangers,to be in service of the Enclave and it is notrare that the Emerald Enclave useheterogeneous groups for particularlycomplex missions.

The Enclave, whose members are not used tothe affectations and formalities of the“civilized life”, don’t have a true symbol. It isoften associated with the Moose totem (thedeer in some places), an animal almost

extinct in the area but which in pastcenturies populated the forests of easternEsterhold.

According to popular legends and traditions,the druids of the Enclave meet annuallyduring the Summer Solstice and they choosethe animal form of big cervids.

ELEMENTAL EVIL IN MYSTARA (Continued from page 52)

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The Judicates of Carytion

PREFACE

Carytion was first introduced in the “Dawn ofthe Emperors” boxed set as a ThyatianProtectorate. The island was sounderdeveloped and uninteresting that itdidn’t even have an entry in the Atlaschapter, with its description limited to a fewlines in the Player’s Guide to Thyatis.

I felt that the island could be a potentialsource for more, so I completely scrappedthe information from the Gazetteer andwrote a new, alternate Carytion. So if youwant to use this alternate Carytion, justignore all the information from theGazetteer, although it is still true that theisland is used as a resort for the wealthy, andthere still is a major naval fort. However, nowthe population has been raised to 70,000

Thyatian Mini-GazetteeR:

THE JUDICATES OF CARYTION by Giulio Caroletti

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inhabitants, mostly descended from anancient population related to Thyatians,which had contacts with Taymora beforebecoming part of the Empire when it wasborn in AC 0.

This Mini-Gazetteer took its inspiration frommy love of the island of Sardinia. I lived therefor two years and grew to love its traditions,its culture and its diversity. This article is alabor of love, and I have written it with theutmost respect for the Sardinian people andculture. To “translate” a contemporary realculture into a fantasy culture can always betricky, especially since I used very explicitreferences to the real history and geographyof the island. I hope that all Sardinian roleplaying games enthusiasts will appreciate myvery humble effort to bring to life as a fantasysetting such a beautiful, culturally rich andfascinating territory.

The Author

PROTECTORATE OF

CARYTION

Area: 2,160 sq. mi. (5,595 sq. km.).

Population: 70,000 including the town ofCasteddu (pop. 7,500).

Location: Island off the southeastern coastof the continent of Brun, south of Tel Akbir,east of Lucinius; Known World.

Languages: Thyatian: Carytian regionallanguage (Campidano, Agugliastra,Logudoro); western Thyatian dialect(Gaddura); Ispan regional language(L'Alguer); western Thyatian dialect (UPaize).

Government Type: Dominion, member ofthe Thyatian Empire, officially governed byJusticiars who rule the four Judicates inwhich the island is divided.

Industries: Agriculture, crafts, fishing, oil,tourism, wool.

Flora and Fauna: Mulberry trees (forsericulture), grape vines, olive trees, datepalms, cedar, peach, pear, orange, andcherry fruit trees in cultivated orchards.Herds of cattle, sheep, horses, goats, andmules. Bees kept for honey. Boars, centaurs,foxes, dryads, and unicorns; terrestrialtortoises and sea turtles.

Carytion is home to a variety of rare oruncommon animals, like the Sea of Dreadmonk seal, the mouflon, the pine marten,birds of prey like the griffon vulture, thegolden eagle and the peregrine falcon,flamingos, and several endemic species: thealbino donkey, wild cat, deer, fox, lizards,and salamanders. Various breeds of horses,dogs and sheep are found on the island.

Carytion instead lacks vipers, wolves andbears found on the Thyatian mainland.

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GEOGRAPHY AND

CLIMATE

An ancient island from a geological point ofview, Carytion is seismically stable and notearthquake-prone. It highlands average atbetween 300 to 1,000 metres (984 to 3,281feet), with the highest peak being PiccoGiraffa (1,834 m (6,017 ft)). The coasts ofCarytion are mostly high rocks, but severallarge, shallow, salt-water lagoons can befound on the western and northern shore ofCarytion has only three major rivers, the

longest of which, the Tiresias, is 58 km (36miles) long; the Saeprus (39.5 km (24.5miles)) flows on the southwest and theNixeddu (43.5 km (27 miles)) flows east.However, there are many artificial lakes usedto collect precipitation and provide waterand energy for mills and other economicactivities.

The island has a Mediterranean climate alongthe coasts and low hills, and a continentalclimate in the interior valleys and the centralmountains. Rainfall is concentrated in thewinter and autumn, and on some of the

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http://6inchnails.deviantart.com/art/Carytion-592785371

http://6inchnails.deviantart.com/art/Carytion-art-592785351

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tallest peaks it is common to have snow inwinter for a few weeks each year.

Winds are generally dry and not too strong,so sailing is easy around the island and thehot summer temperatures are more bearablein Carytion than on mainland Thyatis. All ofthese features make Carytion an ideal placefor richer Thyatians to buy summer resorts.This has helped the locals in their fightagainst the biggest health threat, thediffusion of malaria, bringing much-neededmoney and resources for land amelioration.

Some of the seawater swamps of the coasthave been dried and are now used for saltextraction. Cork oak trees are a commonsight on the island, and they are used forcork extraction.

DEMOGRAPHY

Most of the population of Carytion is madeup of indigenous humans belonging to theThyatian ethnolinguistic group. Carytiansshare the common genetic traits of mostother ethnically Thyatians – their basic genepool is Neathar/Antalian/Thantalian withtraces of Traldar and Taymoran influences.

However, like most isolated populations,Carytians differ from other Thyatians becauseof phenomena like the founder effect andgenetic drift. Carytians are generally shorterand leaner than average Thyatians, and mosthave high cheekbones, dark hair and browneyes, with less than 10% of Carytians havingblue or green eyes in comparison to the 10-20% diffusion in the dominions of mainlandThyatians. Inhabitants of coastal plains andtowns have more influences from themainland and are closer to other Thyatians.

For unknown reasons, Carytians are one ofthe populations of Mystara with the longestlife spans. On the other hand, geneticdiseases like beta-thalassemia1 and favism2

are much more common than among otherThyatians on the mainland and on other less-isolationist islands.

1 Beta-thalassemia i s an inher i ted blooddisorder which can lead to severe anemia.See this Wikipedia entry for moreinformat ion.2 Favism i s genet ic condi t ion that can causehemolyt ic cr is is (accelerated rate of redblood cel l destruct ion leading to anemia,jaundice and ret iculocytos is) in response tothe consumption of cer ta in foods, mostnotably broad beans. Symptomatic pat ientsare a lmost exc lus ively male. See thisWikipedia entry for mo re informat ion.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beta_thalassemia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glucose-6-phosphate_dehydrogenase_deficiency

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Glucose-6-phosphate_dehydrogenase_deficiency

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CUISINE

Sheep and goats provide milk, cheese and, toa lesser extent, meat to the traditional diet,along with pasta made of grain. Traditionalcheeses include pecorino (a hard cheesemade from ewe’s milk), ricotta (a creamycheese made from sheep milk) and casumarzu (notable for containing live insectlarvae).

Carytian bread is dry, so it lasts longer thanhigh-moisture breads. Pane carasau is atypical flat, crunchy bread.

A m o n gvegetables and fruit, the most common areoranges and artichokes; olive trees provideoil and olives. Pigs are used mainly forsausages and ham; suckling pigs(porcheddu) and wild boars are eatenroasted or boiled in stews with beans andvegetables.

Among fish and seafood, Carytians eat rocklobster (aligusta), scampi, bottarga (salted,cured grey mullet roe), squid, tuna, mulletand sardines.

Herbs used for cooking include mint andmyrtle, from which a typical liquor is made.Red and white wine is common. In U Paize,the cuisine is similar to that of Machetos, andthe locals produce the famous pesto sauceoriginally from that Duchy.

HISTORY

Kartana and Taymorans

The first autochthonous culture on Carytionwas the Bronze Age Kartana culture, whichdeveloped between 1700 and 1500 BCthanks to the influence of the Taymoranrefugees escaping the fall of theircivilization. Villages of the Kartana were builtof round thatched stone huts built aroundcylindrical tower-fortresses called nuraghi(singular nuraghe), often reinforced andenlarged with battlements. Smaller nuraghiwere used as lookout fortresses andindicated the approximate territorialextension of a community, as crop fields andpasture land were generally found betweenthe lookout nuraghi and the central village.

The biggest Kartana settlements wereTurralva and Nora (considered in Carytianlegends to be the oldest settlement on theisland, founded by the eponymous heroNorax, who, according to the legends, ledsome human refugees from Mogreth toCarytion between 2300 and 2000 BC).

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Nowadays, over 1,000 nuraghi dot Carytion.Some of them were initially simple, but withtime they took on a more and more complexstructure. Other remnants of the nuragicculture are monumental collective tombs andtemples. Some of them, traditionally calledGiants' graves by Carytians, also show that inthe early stages of the Nuragic culture, theTaymoran refugees had brought with them afew Fomorian giants. However, no giantslive in Carytion anymore.

While the Kartana were aboriginal,descended from the first Neathar-Thantalianswho had settled the island, during the sameera the Taymoran refugees built a few portsin the area, bringing their alphabet withthem. The most important Taymoransettlements were Karal (the currentCasteddu) and Sulcis.

The location of Carytion in the Sea of Dreadand the presence of two advanced bronzeage civilizations meant that it was a majortrade route at the time of the Nithian Empire,especially for those who tried to stay clear ofthe routes controlled by that aggressivepopulation. Contacts with other cultures ofthat era are proven by Kartana bronze statues

found among Traldar tombs, and Traldarcoins found in nuraghi and ruined Kartanatemples.

After a few centuries of peaceful co-existence,the Taymoran refugees took an interest inthe natural resources of the interior, likesilver and lead, and by 750 BC they hadoccupied most of the western part of theisland. Attacks from the Kartana led to amajor war which lasted many decades; and asthe Kartana were gaining the upper hand, theTaymorans asked the Nithians for support.Mingling with the dark powers who were onthe verge of destroying their own cultureallowed Taymorans to reassert their controlover most of Carytion.

However, the consequences of thedestruction of Nithia and the Spell ofOblivion took their toll on both cultures,whose power and knowledge were affected,leading to a decline in the following centuries.

The Thyatians step in

Kartana and Taymorans alike had tosurrender to the Thyatian invaders in 238BC; a few years before Alphatia conquered allof the Thyatian mainland. Since theAlphatian conquest, Carytion linked its ownhistory to that of the city of Thyatis, andbecame a province of the Empire when it wasfounded in AC 0. However, some features ofthe Kartana culture were kept in themountainous interior of the island, wherethe locals fought whoever was the officialpower ruling the island from afar - whetherfrom Sundsvall or Thyatis -, led by werefoxesand wereboars loyal to the old Taymorandeity Nyx.

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Northmen raiders started attacking Carytionafter AC 400; the Thyatians thought of buyingtheir services to stop the raids and use themagainst the Alphatians. In AC 456 theygranted their most powerful pirate lord, OleJørgen Thorfinnson, the rule of the islandunder the Empire’s sovereignity. However,when Ole Jørgen’s grandson Vidarr declaredindependence in AC 533, the Thyatianstroops occupied it again. Vidarr’s sonThorfinn led a small invasion with Alphatiansupport, and took the island by surprise inAC 551, but the Thyatians conquered it againafter a few months, and most Ostlanderswere killed or fled Carytion.

During this era, Carytion was divided intofour districts called Judicates, each ruled bya Justiciar (judex in Thyatian). One of themajor problems the Justiciars had to face wasthe continued presence of rebelliousfollowers of Nyx in the Agugliastra region.Valerio Folaga, last leader of the followers ofNyx surrendered in AC 594, with theestablishment of a Vicar Justiciar to ruleAgugliastra as a representative of the Justiciarof Casteddu in Karal.

The major threat on Carytion in thefollowing centuries were pirate raids on theThyatian islands, which started in the 8thcentury and continued in the following one,with its main peak of activity when Alasiyanraiders started their activities after 850,following the independence of Ylaruam (AC831) and the expansion policy started by al-Kalim and his followers.

This pirate activity led to the building ofmany small forts that dot the coastline of thewhole island, used in the 9th century towatch out for approaching Alasiyan ships. It

was during this time that two new cities werebuilt on Carytion by refugees escapingYlaruam: U Paize (AC 739), built by Thyatiansof Machetan origin, and L'Alguer (AC 853),built by Ispans. Both cities have enjoyed afreeport status since then.

In recent years, the major threat to Carytionhas been the occasional pirate - from the Isleof Dawn, Ylaruam, Northern Reaches or fromother smaller pirate coves in the Sea of Dread.

POLITICS3

Carytion is divided into four Judicates, andthree special territories (the Visjudicate ofAgugliastra, the Free City of L'Alguer and theFree City of U Paize).

The Judicates are four autonomous entities,ruled by a Justiciar and by a regionalassembly called Corona de Logu (“localcrown” in Carytian). The Visjudicate ofAgugliastra shares the same structure, but isconsidered a vassal of the Judicate ofCasteddu. The cities of L'Alguer and U Paizeare self-ruled.

However, the four Justiciars and the rulers ofAgugliastra, L'Alguer and U Paize are notconsidered dominion rulers (and thus thesedomains have no senatorial rights – they areneither Senators nor can they choose arepresentative for the Senate), but areconsidered subject to the authority of thePraetor of the Mainland Islands4 (in AC 1000,

3 The local ru les for Caryt ion are di f ferentf rom those for most Thyat ian dominions (seepp 215-216 of Threshold i ssue 3).

4 See a lso: “Thyat ian Senators”, part 2, pp197-198 in Threshold i ssue #4.




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the year when this gazetteer is set, it isArchduke Derentarius of Terentias). Carytionhas only one elected Senator5.

This situation has caused an increasing riftbetween the population and the Empire, asmost citizens and rulers alike want to pushfor the establishment of feudal dominions onCarytion. There are however differing pointof views on this.

The ruling families of Arborea and Castedduwould like to constitute a County with asingle ruler, while the ruler of Logudorowould prefer to split the island into fourbaronies. In Gaddura, L'Alguer and U Paize,the population hopes to keep the status quo.Especially so in the two freeports, since theyknow they are too small to be given a fief,and they fear losing their special rights andethnolinguistic independence.

In Agugliastra and in the most of the ruralinterior, there is also a small independencemovement who would like to secedecompletely from the Empire. The most vocalamong the independentists is a secret,increasingly violent organization known asthe Dark Masks.

The Judicates

A Judicate is ruled by a Justiciar, supportedby the Corona de Logu (the local parliament).

The Corona de Logu is a Judicate councilmade up of: local representatives (one fromeach Curadoria, see below), two

representatives from the capital of theJudicate, and a varying number of highpriests from all the churches of the Judicate.

Each Judicate is divided in a number ofadministrative divisions called Curadorias.All free citizens of a Curadoria concur to theelection of a representative at the Corona deLogu. Each Curadoria is ruled by a Curatornominated by the Justiciar; the Curator inturn nominates a Mayor for each town andcity in the Curatoria; the Mayor is assisted inruling by an elected council; members of theelected local councils elect the Corona deCuradoria, the local assembly assisting aCurator in ruling.

Formally, it is the Corona de Logu whichelects the new Justiciar amongst themembers of the ruling family. Generally, theJusticiar nominates his or her heir, but theCorona de Logu has the right to overrule hisor her desires.

Apart from those mentioned, the Corona deLogu (and the Corona de Curadoria on thesmallest scale) have no formal power, butthey simply act as counselors to the actualrulers. However, complaints anddissatisfaction can easily gain the attention ofsomeone above in the chain of commandwho can remove him or her. A Justiciar whichenrages his or her Corona de Logu can endup attracting the attention of the Praetor ofthe Mainland Islands or, in the worst cases,of the Emperor himself.

In Agugliastra, there is a Corona de Logu, butthe Justiciar is formally the Justiciar ofCasteddu. However, there is a Vicar Justiciar,who normally acts in the name of theJusticiar of Casteddu. The Justiciar of

5 For those us ing the previous ar t ic les onThyat is and Thyat ian Senators by the author,add one Senator for Caryt ion to the tota lamount of e lected Senators of the Empire.

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Casteddu can overrule any decision made bythe Vicar Justiciar; however, cases in whichthe Justiciar of Casteddu has interfered withthe rule of Agugliastra, without having beencalled upon by the local Corona de Logu, arerare.

RELIGION

Most Carytians follow the Church ofThyatis; however, since 594, when thefollowers of Nyx in Agugliastra surrenderedto the central rule of the Empire, Nyx hasbeen recognized as a deity on the island.Followers of Nyx are few, mostly foundamong the most superstitious inhabitants ofthe central areas, or among scholars andintellectuals, especially in Agugliastra.Although it is legal to belong to the cult,priests and religious representatives of Nyxare kept secret, because of the prejudicesattached to the cult of an Entropic Immortal,and because the Church of Thyatis wouldlobby with all its strength against anypolitical role for followers of Nyx. However,a few priests of the Church of Thyatis areagainst this secrecy policy, as they fear thiscan end up favouring the goals of Nyx’sclergy. Rumor is that the ruling family ofAgugliastra has something to do with the cult.

ADMINISTRATIVE

DIVISIONS

Agugliastra

Agugliastra (pop. 1,400) isthe most mountainous areaof Carytion. Terrain isragged and hilly, with smallvalleys in the inside and justthin strips of plains orbeaches close to the coastalareas. The highest mountains of Carytion,which include the massif of Perdas Carpìas(broken stones in Carytian) and the highestmountain of the island, Picco Giraffa (giraffepeak in Thyatian, 1834 m (6,017 ft)), arelocated at the border area betweenAgugliastra, Logudoro and Casteddu.

Sheepherding and farming are the maineconomic activities of the poor, hilly interior.Hunting is especially popular in this area ofCarytion. The people of Agugliastra are themost Taymoran-influenced on Carytion, andseveral Agugliastrans are secretly followers ofNyx, a cult tolerated on the island. It isbelieved that the high priests of Nyx onCarytion live in Agugliastra.

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The capital of Agugliastra is Tortuelie (pop.550, including 100 in the port village ofArbatax), a coastal town where Folaga Palaceis the Justiciar’s residence.

The main city of the interior is Lanuse (pop.270), with an important shrine dedicated toValerias and an important market for thecentral areas of Carytion that is held everytwo weeks in summer and every month inwinter.

NPCs

Mariano Folaga (born 970, F12, TN), ashort, lean man with hair kept long at hisshoulder, and gray-green, sad eyes, is theVicar Justiciar of Agugliastra. Mariano is not afollower of Nyx, although he knows that hiscousin Deianira (born 973, C9, TN), adiminutive, busty beauty with honey blondehair and green-blue eyes, is a Patriarch of thatEntropic Immortal.

A former soldier, Mariano lost his wifePatrizia to malaria two years ago. PatriziaMurru (born 970, nosferatu W3, LN), adelicate, slender woman with jet black hairand deep, amber eyes, has been raised as anosferatu by Mariano’s aunt Augusta Zedda(born 944, nosferatu C13 (of Nyx), NE), theHigh Priest of Nyx on Carytion, a comelywoman, apparently in her late thirties, with aprominent jaw and dark, short, curly hair.

Augusta and Patrizia live in Lanuse; Marianohas never forgiven them for having embracedundeath. His sister Deianira is torn betweenthe desire to join the ranks of the undeadservants of Nyx and the love for her brother,a man without true friends and without anheir, who has only her left for family.

Pietro Deplano (born 961, wereboar F8,NE) is the Mayor of Jersu, a small,mountainous town of about 160, at 400 masl. He has Taymoran blood and is oneamong a few Carytians who still bear the oldTaymoran-Nithian strain of lycanthropy6.Deplano is deeply hostile to the Empire andhe is the leader of the Dark Masks, an illegalpolitical organization who pushes for anindependent Carytion and is not abovekidnapping and assassinations to make theirpoint.

Deplano’s second-in-command is ValerioScanu (born 976, devil swine C7 (ofThanatos), CE), a young devil swine andsecretly a priest of Thanatos. Scanu has beensent by Count Heinrich Oesterhaus7 toAgugliastra to plot against the followers ofNyx. His first goal is to put an end to theFolaga dynasty in Agugliastra and open upthe region for direct control from Casteddu;his second goal is to increase the violence ofthe Dark Masks to prevent Carytians fromgaining true dominion status for theJudicates. To make things more complicatedthan ever, after Scanu was sent to live inTortuelie to stir things up at the court of theJusticiar, he has fallen hopelessly in love withDeianira, the sister of Mariano.

The only dragon on Carytion, an onyxdragon which is known as U Enigmista, hashis lair in Agugliastra. He is a young adultmale known to be a trickster and prankster.

6 See “Treat ise on Lycanthropy” by JohnCalvin at the Vaul ts of Pandius.

7 See Dawn of the Emperors , County ofHatt ias entry; or “Thyat ian Senators , part1”, in Threshold Magazine, issue #3.

http://pandius.com/lyctreat.html



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Arborea

In proportion, Arborea(pop. 4,710) is the richestJudicate of Carytion. It lieson the most fertile land ofthe island, and its wheatproduction rate is amongthe higest in the whole Empire. However,pockets of malaria-ridden swamps are foundalso on its territory. It is the hottest area ofCarytion, and hot, humid summers withdaytime temperatures over 40°C are notuncommon; the strong winds that blow fromthe north provide a welcome relief to the heat.

Arborea is the most advanced and powerfulJudicate on the island; even though it ismuch smaller than Casteddu, it relies on itsarcane and scientific knowledge. The city ofAristanis (pop. 1,600) hosts the onlyCollegium Arcanum (School of Magic) ofCarytion, and its cavalry and horses areconsidered among the best of the wholeEmpire. While Kerendan cavalry has thenumbers, it is said that the Arborean lightcavalry is the elite among the elite.

Traditionally, the sons and daughters of thearistocracy of Aristanis train for part of theiradult life at the Kerendas Academy, butalmost any man and woman in Aristanisknows how to ride and every family provideat least one member for every generation totake part in the riding competition calledSartiglia, for which they train all year long.

Among the other towns of Arborea, the mostimportant is the walled town of Seddori(pop. 420). Seddori lies on a hill and has animpressive castle which dominates thesurrounding plains; the city has mostly beencontrolled by Arborea, but is claimed byCasteddu. Many skirmishes and battles havebeen fought over its possession whenImperial control over the island has beenloose.

NPCs

The ruler of Arborea is Justiciar ClaudiaLaconi (born 955, W11, LG). A short, leanwoman in her mid-forties, with graying jet-black hair and brown eyes, Claudiagraduated at the Collegium Arcanum ofAristanis, owns an estate on Sclaras, and is

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loved among her subjects and respected byher enemies.

Claudia has been Senator for Carytion in thepast, and has spent most of her political lifelobbying through friendly Senators(especially among the Philosophers faction)in order to become Countess of Carytion - orat least Baroness of Arborea. Her ultimategoal is to bring all of Carytion together underthe banner of Arborea. Her main politicalenemies are the rulers of Casteddu andGaddura, but she is sympathetic to JusticiarMarcus of Logudoro, and she is a personalfriend of Archduke Nurokidu Nuar of thePearl Islands.

Claudia is married to Olaf Gudmundson(born 950, F9, CN), a noble and formerpirate from Ostland. Olaf is a tall, blondenorthman with a broken leg that cannot healbecause of a curse set on him by Protius,although nobody knows exactly what Olafdid to offend the sea Immortal.

Claudia and Olaf have three children - Eloisa(born 984, W1, LG), who has just startedstudying at the Collegium Arcanum, Godrik(born 990, NM, NG), who wants to become apirate like his father, and Gavino (born 992).

Paulus Pittau (born 937, W17, CG) is theprincipal of the Collegium Arcanum and theformer teacher of Justiciar Claudia. He is agood man who puts his own personal ethicsbefore anything else. When he is not busyworking on new spells or teaching at theCollegium, Pittau travels throughoutCarytion’s towns and country in disguise, tofind promising youths that can becomemagic users, but also scientists or literates (inwhich case he will ask friends at various

colleges of the Empire for help inaccommodating them).

Casteddu

The Judicate of Casteddu(pop. 37,440, excludingAgugliastra) is the biggest ofthe Judicates.

The climate of the Judicate of Casteddu isMediterranean, with mild winters and warm,dry summers. Temperatures very rarely goabove 40°C in summer, or below 0°C inwinter. Most of the Judicate is made up ofthe northern plains where the wheatproduction is abundant. In the areas south ofCasteddu, on the other hand, orchards andcork oaks are the main agricultural activities.

Casteddu (pop. 7,500), the capital, wasfounded with the name of Karal byTaymorans on seven hills looking over theSea of Dread and takes its Thyatian namefrom the main hill of the city, a heavily walledarea (Casteddu means castle in Carytian)around which smaller quarters have beenbuilt. The area outside the central hill hasbeen renamed Torion recently, in honour ofthe Emperor, something that has triggeredeven more hostility towards the centralimperial government among mostCasteddans (and exacerbated the feelingamong non-Casteddans that the people ofCasteddu are just lickspittles of the Emperor).

Casteddu is a very windy city, with windscoming generally from northwest orsoutheast. Sea breezes from southeast oftenblow during the summer, making the days

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more tolerable than in the hot crop fields ofthe northern plains.

Quartu (pop. 3,500) is the third mostpopulated city in Carytion. The city takes itsname from the fact that it was originallydivided in four (quattuor, in Thyatian) partsor quarters. It lies just south of Casteddu andwest of a small mountain range named theSeven Brothers, where boars and deers arehunted by the locals, and whose tallestmountain reaches 1,070 m asl.

Between Casteddu and Quartu lies the marshcalled Molentargius, where salt is extractedand where many species of birds nest. Manytowns and villages surround Casteddu andQuartu, so that the whole metropolitan areaincluding the two cities is home to about15,000 people.

Sulcis (pop. 550) was an ancient Taymorancity, but today just a few ruins remain on theoutskirts of town to remind of its origin. Theabandoned ruins of Nora, an ancient Kartanacity rival of Sulcis, are just a few miles away.

Igresias (pop. 1,300), east of Sulcis, is animportant mining centre for the extraction oflead, zinc and silver.

Biddexidru (pop. 700) faces Seddori inArborea (see above), and is its rival town.

The Carytion Naval Fort, the mainstronghold of the Empire on the island, amajor strategic defensive position in the Seaof Dread, is located in the Judicate ofCasteddu.

NPCs

The ruler of Casteddu is Giovanni Pisano(born 948, NM, NE), a wealthy man who hasabused his position to increase his personalpossessions; moreover, he has the monopolyof commerce between Casteddu andMinrothad.

Giovanni is despised by most citizens and hascorrupted the military at the Carytion NavalFort, with lavish gifts, to help him to keeporder in the region. Telemakos Fabiani(born 964, F5, NE), the commander of theFort, is a corrupt and inept man, but most ofhis soldiers support him. They feel they arestuck in the backyard of the Empire, and thatthe only reasonable thing they can do is todo the least possible while gaining the mostin return.

Giovanni’s main political opponent is hiscousin Aemilius (born 964, F6, CN), thecommander of the garrison of Biddexidru.Giovanni sent him there to avoid the risk ofa revolution in town; however, the proximityof Biddexidru to Arborea has had theunexpected result to bring Aemilius in touchwith Paulus Pittau, the principal of the

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Collegium Arcanum in Aristanis. Pittau iswondering whether he could introduceAemilius to Justiciar Claudia and gathersupport for overthrowing Justiciar Giovanni.

Gaddura

Gaddura (pop. 10,000)was traditionally the leastpopulated of the fourJudicates, but grew thanksto tourism from thewealthy MainlandThyatians in the last century, after thenumber of Alasiyans incursions on Carytionhad reduced significantly.

Gaddurans are not “true” Carytians. Most ofthe inhabitants of the Judicate are ofKerendan origin: they came following theinheritance of the title of Justiciar by RanieriI, a cousin of the last aboriginal GadduranJusticiar, in the 7th century. The wave ofKerendan migrants continued for over acentury, so much that the Gadduran dialectis no longer considered a form for theCarytian regional language, but a westernThyatian dialect.

The coast of Gaddura is considered one ofthe most beautiful in the Known World, andhosts the summer residences of many of thewealthy and the powerful in Thyatis. Whilepolitics and land-based economic activitiestake mostly place in the other threeJudicates, Gaddura and its capital, Tarranoa(pop. 2,700), have prospered from services(pubs, taverns, naval activities, tourism).

For all these reasons, contrary to most otherCarytians, Gaddurans oppose any

modification of the political structure on theisland. Their ties to the Mainland are muchstronger than those to the other islanders.

An exception to this are the westernmostareas of Gaddura, whose main center isThiniscole (pop. 550). Here, the populationis made up of Carytians who speak a variantof the Logudoran dialect, and are among thefiercest independentists on Carytion. At thevery least, the Logudorans of Thiniscolewould like to secede from Gaddura and joinLogudoro.

One of the most important religious sites onCarytion is located at the aptly-namedTempiu (pop. 700; “temple” in GadduranThyatian); here, there are temples dedicatedto Solarios, Valerias, Vanya, Asterius, Nyx andTarastia. It is also the seat of a School ofTheological Studies. In Tempiu, one of thebiggest carnivals of the Mainland Islands, lucarrasciali timpiesu, takes place inVatermont.

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NPCs

The ruler of Gaddura is Ranieri IV dellaGherardesca (born 924, T6, LN), an old, tall,thin, frail man who has had a major hand inthe development of Gaddura as a touristresort for the rich. Ranieri IV is well-loved byhis subjects, but he despises non-GadduranCarytians and considers them just obnoxioussavages. A fierce supporter of the Zendrolianfaction in the Senate, he opposes with all hisresources the creation of a unified County inCarytion - also because most of thepopulation of the island would never accepta Gadduran unified ruler - so if he can’t bethe Count, there is no point in lobbying forthat goal.

Ranieri has had three wives and has manysons and daughters; he has married them toaristocrats of Gens Zendrolian or GensAemilia all over the Empire. His appointedheir is Dante (born 958, F3, P9 (of Asterius),NG), a liberal-minded priest-merchant whohas sailed the Sea of Dread and the Sea ofDawn on Minrothaddan, Thyatian andOstlander ships. Dante is married to AugillyHiljemarj (born 840, T9, CG), a Meditor elf;they have two sons and two daughters,Ranieri (born 988), Anita (born 991),Ferdinando (born 994) and Rahasia (born997).

L’Alguer

L’Alguer (pop. 2,000) is anIspan city on Carytion, andthe main center of the Ispanculture in the Empire ofThyatis.

Founded by Ispan refugees fleeing Ylaruamin AC 853, L’Alguer remained completelyoutside the conflict between the Ispanfollowers of Solarios and the Church ofThyatis, and thus the Algueran Ispansavoided exile, and the city became animportant cultural centre. L’Alguer isrenowned for its craftsmen, painters,musicians and poets, who write sophisticatedsongs in their Ylari-influenced Ispan dialect.

L’Alguer is located in a favourable positionon Carytion; compared to areas of nearbyArborea, it is much more temperate insummer, because it feels the influence ofwinds from the north and from the east.

Logudoro

Logudoro (pop. 14,000)occupies the northeasternpart of Carytion, the mostwindy region of Carytion.

Although its capital isTorres (pop. 1,100), where the Justiciar’s

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palace and the main port of Logudoro arelocated, the most important city is Tatari(pop. 6,200), the second biggest on Carytion.

A city of poets, Tatari is considered the homeof the purest Carytian regional language, andis home to the Academia de Limba Karta(Academy of Carytian language). Althoughthe authority of the Academia is not widelyaccepted on the island, most intellectualsand scholars who want to write in Carytiantend to use the grammar and orthographydeveloped by the Academia.

Another important city in the region isNugoro (pop. 1,800), which lies on theborder with Gaddura. Nugoro is alandlocked city which can be considered themost traditionalist or the most backward onthe island, depending on your point of viewon the matter. There are many contactsbetween the garrison and politicians inNugoro and the independentists ofThiniscole, in Gaddura.

Torralva (pop. 50) was one of the mostimportant Kartana cities. Now it is only a

bunch of farms and houses close to the ruinsof the ancient Torralva nuraghe.

NPCs

The ruler of Logudoro is Justiciar MarcusSpiga (born 969, W3, LN). A short, thin manof pale complexion in his early thirties, witha black-blue beard, black hair and dark,brooding eyes, Marcus is not interested inpolitics. He is a scientist and a man ofliterature, a poet and philosopher whostudied at the Academia and became a rulerearly because his parents died in a navalaccident while they travelled to Thyatis City,three years ago.

Marcus is mildly supportive of JusticiarClaudia’s idea of a unified Carytion. Marcusfeels that the Logudoran language andculture would benefit from an officialpolitical union, as it could become theleading light for the intellectual life on theisland. However, he is not sure whether hissubjects would like to be ruled by theArboreans or - the Immortals forbid! - by theCasteddans. In the end, Marcus believes thatClaudia’s ideas of unity are little more thandelusions, and thinks that to create fourBaronies on the island would be more feasible.

Claudia likes this silent young man; shedoesn’t know that Eloisa, her young, 16-yearold daughter, has also developed a teenagecrush on the Justiciar of Logudoro from hisfrequent travels to Aristanis to discussscience, literature and politics with Claudiaand Pittau, the principal of the CollegiumArcanum.

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In the last five years, Marcus, unbeknownstto all but his closest friends, has had acomplicated, on-off relationship with IreneMrazani (born 972, werefox T8, CN), aswashbuckler and werefox of Taymorandescent. Irene, who is originally from Sulcis,spends a lot of time away from Carytion as anadventuress and piratess, and has had otheroccasional affairs in the meantime. Ireneloves Marcus very much, but doesn’t want tolose her freedom and carefree way ofadventuring on the seas. This has given thethoughtful, introspective man even morecause for brooding.

U Paize

U Paize (pop. 450;The Town, inMachetos Thyatiandialect) consists oftwo towns located onthe northwestern tipof Carytion. U Paizeproper (pop. 310)lies on a small islandjust outside of the Carytian coast, and isconnected to the main island by a ferry whichlands in Cadasedda (pop. 140), a small porttown on Carytion.

The region is nominally independent fromany Judicate on Carytion. U Paize is self-ruled, and its ruling council overlord is thePraetor of the Mainland Islands.

The population of U Paize is entirely ofMachetan origin. They descend from a groupof families who had moved from Machetos tothe Ylaruam province of Nicostenia in AC542, at the time occupied by Thyatis. In 739

they left Ylaruam after they obtained fromthe current Emperor the possession of thesmall island where they built their town (AC739), after which they were also given thecontrol (and freeport rights) of the port ofCadasedda (AC 770), just opposite to U Paizeon Carytion.

Just like their cousins in Machetos, theinhabitants of U Paize are consideredavaricious and greedy. The freeport rightsand their mercantile disposition have nothelped Carytians to overcome this prejudice.

81


The Forester Class

INTRODUCTION

The forester was first introduced under theBECMI1 D&D rules in the Dawn of theEmperors boxed gazetteer, and presented asa human character class that shares manyaspects of the elf class, the most significant ofwhich is the ability to cast magical spellswhile wearing armor. Though an interestingnew class, mechanically the forester, aswritten, is not much different from astandard elf character, and only lacks the elf’sracial abilities of infravision and immunity toghoul paralysis. The class also shares thesame experience point table as the elf,including progression beyond the 10th levelof experience with attack ranks, a gamemechanic normally attributed to the demi-human classes. Traditionally, humancharacter classes (save for the mystic) canadvance up to 36th level, but the forester wasdesigned with the same level limit andmechanical build as the elf class, whichmakes little sense when compared to theother human character classes under theBECMI/RC rules.

This article presents a revised forester class,one that allows progression up to 36th level,and adjusts the experience pointrequirements for the earlier levels. Theexpanded level progression grants forestershit point increases from 11th to 36th level,additional general skill slots as they advance,and weapon mastery slots equal to thefighter class. The revision also replaces theforester’s attack rolls and saving throws fromthe elf class to those of a fighter of equivalentlevel. The end result is a logically andmechanically balanced forester class; onethat is unique from the elf class, yet whichfalls in line with the other human characterclasses as presented within the BECMI/RCrules.

1 BECMI s tands for the D&D Basic, Expert ,Companion, and Master rule sets by FrankMentzer , which were later edi ted togetherinto one volume known as the D&D RulesCyclopedia by Aaron Al ls ton.

Revision of the Forester characterclass for BECMI/Rules Cyclopedia D&D

by Craig Antoun (Irondrake)

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The Forester Class

THE FORESTER

Eight hundred years ago2 the then EmpressIrene3 of Thyatis made a pact with the Vyaliaelves to teach their magics to humans whohad the aptitude to understand them. Theseselect humans would learn the ways of theelves and become foresters, woodlandwarriors capable of wielding magic as theelves do.

Foresters typically originate in Greenheight,the largest town of Vyalia elves in Thyatis,and the center for forester studies. At anygiven time, one-hundred and sixty or morehumans (trainees to the class of forester, butnormal men and women) are living there,being taught by elven families willing toadopt them as honorary Vyalia elves.

When a forester trainee is ready to become aforester formally (i.e., the clan sponsoringhim is convinced that he is worthy,honorable, and of Lawful alignment), he istaken to the Tree of Life of the sponsoringclan. There, in a special ceremony, he isformally adopted by the clan and visited by aghostly presence called an “Arm of Ilsundal”,which fills him with energies which allowhim to learn magic as elves do. Ilsundal willnot visit a character who is not Lawful or

who has ill intentions toward the elves orforesters in this way, and can even reclaimthose energies – and the forester’s magicpowers with them – if the forester everbetrays his clan.

Once the ceremony is completed, the traineebecomes a full-fledged forester of 1st level,able to learn and cast magical spells. Theforester also gains the innate ability to wieldthis magic unhindered while outfitted inarmor in the same manner as elves.

Foresters are few in number; there are only afew hundred of them. But because theycombine magic-use and fighting in ways thatno other humans can, yet do not appeardifferent from other humans, they areeffective as adventurers, scouts, and spies.

2 The Dawn of the Emperors boxed set g ivesconf l ic t ing informat ion on when the Vyal iaelves began tra ining foresters . Count YldysylGreenheight f i rs t agreed to sponsor theForesters some eight hundred years ago(page 13 of Book One), whi le the descr ipt ionof the forester c lass indicates the forester , asa c lass , has exis ted for only 500 years (page18 of Book Two). I ’ve chosen to go with theCount’s vers ion of his tory.3 See James Ruhland’s “His tory of theThyat ian People” at the Vaul ts of Pandius.

http://pandius.com/thy_hist.html


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The Forester Class

Forester Class Details

Prime Requisites: Strength andIntelligence.Other Requirements: Strength andIntelligence scores of 12 or more.Experience Bonus: 5% for Strength of13 or better and Intelligence of 13-15,10% for Strength of 13 or better andIntelligence of 16-18.Hit Dice: 1d6 per level up to 9th level.Starting with 10th level, +2 hit pointsper level, and Constitution adjustmentsno longer apply.Maximum Level: 36th

Saving Throws: As Fighter of equallevel.THACO: As Fighter of equal level.Alignment: Lawful.Armor: All; shields permitted.Weapons: Any.Special Abilities: Magical spells;Fighter Maneuvers (Lance Attack, SetSpear vs. Charge); at 12th level FighterCombat Options; extra language(elven); 1 in 3 chance to detect secretand hidden doors.Weapon Mastery: Four weapon choicesat 1st level, then an additional choice atlevels 3, 6, 9, 11, 15, 19, 23, 27, 30, 33,and 36. One additional choice earnedfor each 200,000 XP earned after 36th

level.Skills: Alertness and Tracking requiredat 1st level. Recommended DangerSense, Riding, Signaling (Elf/Forester),and Survival (Forest).

Special Abilities

Magical Spells

Foresters can cast magical spells just as elvescan4, and the wearing of armor does notinterfere with their spellcasting ability. Theyrequire a spellbook to memorize their spellseach morning just as a regular spellcasting elfdoes.

Once Ilsundal has chosen to imbue a foresterwith the ability to wield magic as the elvesdo, the human is then instructed in elvenmagic by the clan’s Treekeepers. Elvenmagic5 is similar to that of human magic-users, but due to the elves’ connection withthe Immortal Ilsundal and the Trees of Life,it partakes quite a bit of druidic magic. Theforester may learn any of the elven magicspells save for those reserved specifically forTreekeepers.

Foresters are also able to research and learnspells from the standard magic-user spell list,just as a an elf can.

As with normal elves, foresters are limited to10th level in their spellcasting ability.

Fighter Maneuvers

Beginning foresters can utilize the fighter’sSet Spear vs. Charge and Lance Attackmaneuvers.

4 Foresters use the e lven spel l progress ionchart as detai led on Table 1 in the Appendixof this ar t ic le .

5 Ful l detai l s on e lven magic spel l s can befound in GAZ5 The Elves of Al fheim , pages63-68.

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The Forester Class

Fighter Combat Options

When the forester reaches 12th level, thecharacter gains the ability to use FighterCombat Options (disarm, smash, and parry).Multiple attacks are also gained at 12th level,which grants the forester two attacks perround. Three attacks are possible at 24th

level, and four attacks at 36th level.

Languages

All foresters can speak Thyatian, theirAlignment tongue, and the elven language(Vyalia dialect). They may speak otherlanguages as Intelligence bonuses dictate.

Detection

All foresters are trained by the elves to havea keen eye. Thus they can detect secret andhidden doors on a roll of a 1 or 2 on a 1d6.

Other Details

General Skills

Forester characters are required to take theAlertness and Tracking skills at 1st level.Additional recommended skills includeDanger Sense, Riding, Signaling(Elf/Forester), and Survival (Forest).

Magic Items

Foresters can use any magic item that elvesand magic-users can use, including wands,staves, and magic-user scrolls.

Higher Experience Levels

When foresters reach Name (9th) level, theyare often referred to as lord forester (if male)or lady forester (if female).

Land-Owning Foresters

Foresters may build a special kind ofstronghold deep in the forest just as normalelves may do6. The character will alsodevelop a friendship with all normal animalswithin a five mile radius of the strongholdonce it is completed.

Traveling Foresters

Traveling foresters may not becomeavengers, druidic knights, knights, orpaladins as a normal elf may7, and rarelybecome merchant-princes8. However, bothtraveling and land-owing foresters may trainin any of the seven secret crafts9 (alchemist,cryptomancer, dragonologist, elementalist,illusionist, necromancer, and witch) taughtin the Principalities of Glantri.

6 See page 26 of the Dungeons & DragonsRules Cyclopedia for more informat ion onelven s t rongholds.

7 See the Elves of Mystara art ic le inThreshold i ssue #10 for detai l s on theseelven sub-c lasses.

8 The merchant-pr ince c lass is detai led inGAZ9 The Minrothad Gui lds , DungeonMaster ’s Booklet , pages 16-22.

9 The Seven Secret Craf ts are detai led inGAZ3 The Pr incipal i t ies of Glantr i , pages69-76.


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The Forester Class

APPENDIX THRESHOLD ISSUE #10

ERRATA

Elves of Mystara

The example given under the Elf Mage classon page 53, right-hand column, secondparagraph, should read “For example, a 10th

level elf thief/6th level elf mage who advancesto attack rank B in his main class will have hismage class forever locked at 6th level.” Theoriginal sentence incorrectly reads attackrank “D”.

http://www.thepiazza.org.uk/bb/index.php

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The Foresters of Thyatis

ORIGINS OF THE ORDER

The origins of the Thyatian Guild ofForesters stretch back almost 800 years in thepast.1 In the relatively early days of theThyatian Empire, efforts were made topromote magical training amongst thosecitizens capable of such in order to create acadre of loyal magic-users who could counterthe magical might of the rival AlphatianEmpire. While there were a number ofpowerful wizards in Thyatis, their numbersdid not compare to the vast population ofpowerful wizards Alphatia could call upon,and many were occupied in service to theempire or were disinclined towards orunwilling to participate in any sort of large-scale training program.

Such efforts were able to progress, however,in the 3rd century when a large band ofgoblins, organized under a charismatic andclever shaman who bore a burning hatred ofelves, invaded the forest lands of the Vyalian

elves, pushing across the Traladaran borderto Thyatian territory. Emboldened by earlysuccesses and commanding a cadre of goblinwarriors accustomed to forest skirmishes, theshaman, Granark the Wolf, set his sightstowards pushing out the Vyalian elves at thebehest of his patron immortal.2 Instead of

1 There is a smal l d iscrepancy in the Dawnof the Emperors boxed set between theDungeon Master ’s Sourcebook and Player`sGuide to Thyat is ; the former s tates the orderis around 800 years o ld and the lat ter 500years o ld. I have chosen to go with theformer date in this case. 2 Unknown; poss ib ly Thanatos, who

assumed many di f ferent guises s imply tocause t rouble. I t i s a lso speculated thatGranark might have possessed an art i fact orinte l l igent sword that pushed him towardssuch a combat ive s tance towards e lves.

by Korro Zal

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engaging in large, pitched battles, theshaman elected to stage numerous hit andrun attacks, dividing his forces into manysmall war bands which harried the elvesmercilessly. The elves, worn down by theseemingly limitless number of goblin foeswho proved unusually adept at combatingthe elves, eventually made the decision toappeal to the Thyatian government forassistance.

Six hundred years ago, Vyalia was nominallypart of the Thyatian Empire, but was largelysettled by elf clans and had few humans orany kind of overt Imperial presence.Nevertheless, in response, the Thyatiangovernment sent a young but capable officer,Acastian Kelmeiarius, and his unit to Vyalia.Acastian and his men had proven unusuallyadept at skirmishing and commando tactics,having proven themselves in numerousbattles against humanoid foes and banditsthroughout the empire. In a campaign lastingseveral years, the combined elven andThyatian forces drove back the goblinssteadily. According to historical records,Acastian slew Granark when the shamanmarshaled his forces into a last, desperatepush towards Greenheight, and theremaining goblin survivors, their moralebroken, retreated back into Traladara.

During the campaign, Acastian and hissoldiers forged strong bonds with a numberof elves, granting both sides a chance to learnfrom each other. In particular, Acastianstruck up a friendship with the elf lordYntherin Greenheight, who possessed a greatinterest and curiosity in these humans whoseemed to have such affinity for the kind ofwarfare the elves excelled at. The feeling wasmutual; not only did Acastian learn about

elven tactics and strategies from his allies,but also a great deal about elven traditionsand customs, and even became a proficientspeaker of Elvish. As such, when the conflictended and Acastian had delivered his finalreport to the Thyatian senate outlining thealliance`s success, one Thyatian senator,Dioclesio Glanavitos, a former military mageand conscripti senator3 who had taken apersonal interest in the issue of increasingthe magical proficiency of the empire, cameup with an unusual proposal: would theGreenheight elves, having worked alongsideand come to appreciate their human allies,be willing to tutor promising candidates inmagic? The magical proficiency of the elveswas well-known; surely, he reasoned, herewas an opportunity to secure magicaltraining from tutors who were well-practicedat such and owed a debt of gratitude to theempire to boot. The proposal was well-received by Empress Irene4, who herself wasa magic-user with an interest in the elves,and intrigued by the proposal

The senator`s proposal was well-received bythe Vyalian elves; in fact, YntherinGreenheight went a step further andproposed that in addition to training magic-users for the empire, worthy Thyatiansoldiers could also be trained in Elven tacticsto create units of scouts and skirmishers whocould work well alongside Elven soldiers. Ashumans were unable to learn the ways offighting and magic as Elves do5, Yntherin did

3 See “Senators of the Thyat ian Empire” inThreshold i sue #44 See James Ruhland’s “His tory of theThyat ian People”

5 This s tatement assumes the BECMI rulessystem; i f us ing a later edi t ion, there maywel l be other k inds of humans who can wie ld




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not envision the humans who had foughtalongside the Elves as candidates for magicaltraining, but rather nominated his friendAcastian and many of his soldiers to serve asthe first recruits for this new unit. TheThyatian government, pleased at havingsecured such cooperation, immediatelypromoted Vyalia to County status and madeYntherin its ruler, instilling strong bondsbetween the Elven peoples of Vyalia and therest of the Thyatian Empire.

According to the autobiography he pennedtowards the end of his life, Yntherin decidedthat as a reward for his human friend'scourage and loyalty to the Greenheight Elves,he would honor Acastian with a specialceremony. The far-sighted elf was not merelythanking his friend; given the growing powerof the Thyatian Empire, he reasoned thatsecuring stronger bonds between elves andhumans would benefit both sides in the longrun. But the elf lord also did not want to seethe elves become subservient to ordominated by the humans, so he sought tocreate an alliance that would instill respectfor the elves and their culture by impressingupon the Thyatians the strengths of hispeople. Providing magical training was onesure way to do that, but creating loyal friendsand allies within the Thyatian military wouldprove even more effective, he reasoned. Andin Acastian, he wrote, he had found a friendand ally who could help him forge analliance of mutual respect and dependency.

What happened next surprised everyone.Yntherin, in order to impress upon Acastianthe respect he was being shown, decided tohold the ceremony at the clan’s Tree of Life,and many prominent clan members and their

Treekeeper were also in attendance. AsYntherin declared his friend an honorarymember of the Greenheight clan, a presencemade itself felt to all present. To the shockand surprise of all who were in attendance, aghostly arm extended itself from the Tree ofLife and descended upon the kneelingAcastian, who could only stare in awe at thespectacle. As the ghostly hand made contactwith his brow, the Thyatian officer felthimself being infused with an energy hecould not truly understand but could neitherdoubt the power of, one which caused himto be seized with visions of the elves andtheir history, their joys and their sorrows, tohear fragments of famous elven poems andsongs, to feel the profound connectionbetween the elves and the forests, and finally,to grasp within his very soul the magic whichis inherent to the elven experience and wayof life—indeed, perhaps the magic whichgives elves life. In that moment, Acastian hadtranscended the normal human capacity forunderstanding, receiving an insight into theway of the elves that not even his years livingamongst them had provided.

No one present truly understood what hadhappened, but all the elves clearly graspedthis was the work of Ilsundal, their immortalpatron. This was confirmed when the clanTreekeeper, in communion with theirpatron, learned that Ilsundal had chosen tofavor Yntherin`s decision to make Acastianan honorary member of the clan by instillingwithin the noble human part of the power ofthe elves—namely, their inherent ability towork magic even while encumbered byarmor.6

arcane magic in armor. 6 See n. 5 above

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Awed by this revelation, Yntherin repeatedthe ceremony with those men and women ofAcastian`s unit who had also shown aparticular affinity for the elven lifestyle andthe ways of the forest, and the sameexperience was repeated in each case. And sothe Thyatian Guild of Foresters was born,with Acastian and a dozen of his comradesserving as the first of the order. In the yearssince, the human population of Vyalia hasgrown, with the county now boasting 20,000residents, of which roughly 25% are elven.7

The mostly human community of Forestonhas become the center of the order, ruled bythe head of the Forester`s Guild (who in1000 AC is Larandia Lymianoporus8, aveteran Forester and Knight of Thyatis withthirty years’ experience).

In the centuries to come, the order wouldgrow, eventually encompassing severalhundred members. In keeping with tradition,every candidate to the order is adopted by anelf clan and lives among them for at leastthree years. Then, if judged worthy by theclan, the prospective Forester is brought tothe clan Tree of Life and the same ceremonyis performed. Should Ilsundal find thecandidate worthy, a new Forester is born andtakes his or her place amongst the clanmembers.

RECRUITMENT AND

TRAINING

The majority of applicants to the Forester'sGuild come from the County of Vyalia; thehumans who have settled there in thecenturies since the order began have beenheavily influenced by their elven neighbors,adopting their views and philosophies,particularly regarding protecting the forestsof their homeland. Naturally, these peopleproduce from their ranks many idealcandidates for Forester training. Typically, aninterested candidate will seek out the Guildheadquarters in Foreston, the largest humancommunity in the county, and make theirintentions known; if such an individualshould seem a likely prospect to theForesters there (a decision which is neithermade quickly nor rashly), then the candidatewill be introduced to one or possibly severalof the elven families who sponsor Foresters9-

7 As per Dawn of the Emperors.8 See n. 7 above

9 According to Dawn of the Emperors , theGreenheight and Diamarak c lans are themost l ike ly to sponsor Foresters . The other

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-should a particular family find the candidatesuitable and believe he or she has thenecessary affinity with the elven way of life inaddition to the family in particular, then theywill invite the candidate to live with them,upon which their training as a Forester willbegin.

Not all candidates come from the county,however; many Vyalian elves and Forestersare adventurers, and travel extensivelythroughout the empire and visit manydifferent nations. Should they encounter anindividual who seems a strong candidate(again, not a decision made lightly—such asituation usually comes about when theyhave opportunity to observe the individualover an extended period of time to assesstheir character), they may invite theindividual to Vyalia if he or she seemsinterested in the possibility. Most of theseindividuals are Thyatians, but occasionallycitizens of other nations are chosen as well.The Guild has an understanding with theThyatian government in which they will nottrain a member of a nation consideredhostile to the empire, meaning that citizensof Alphatia are almost always out of thequestion. Typically, at any given time thereare at least a few Karameikans andDarokinians amongst the Guild`s ranks, withthose of other nationalities present muchless commonly. In any case, upon becominga Forester the individual must declare

themselves a citizen of Vyalia and a memberof their elven clan, which by default alsodeclares them to be Thyatian citizens.

Once a candidate begins his or her training,they begin their new lives as a member oftheir adoptive elven family. They areexpected to obey the family elders faithfully,absorbing all they have to teach. Candidatesare assessed at all stages to evaluate theirloyalty, honesty, sense of honor, affinity forthe elven ways and their reverence for thenatural world in general and the forests inparticular.10 Should the candidate at anystage fall short of these expectations, theycan be dismissed from their family, and whenthis occurs their chance at becoming aForester is forever gone—no other elvenfamily will adopt them. If the candidateshould prove worthy, however, then afterthree years or so the adoptive family's elderswill begin consulting with other clanmembers and Foresters who have witnessedthe candidate's training. If all are inagreement that the initiate has the necessaryqualities to join the ranks of the Foresters,then they will be taken to the Tree of Lifeand initiated into the guild and mademembers of their adoptive elven clan in thesame solemn ceremony Acastian experiencedeight centuries ago.

c lans, namely the Blueleaves (ar t is ts ) ,Etheredyls (phi losophers) and Hierydyls(scholars) only rare ly sponsor Foresters g iventheir lack of emphasis on mart ia l pursui ts .The f inal c lan, Treeshie lds, i s very mart ia l lyor iented, but many of their members aretradi t ional is ts who look upon the Foresterswith some suspic ion and thus rare ly sponsorthem.

1 0 There is another discrepancy in the Dawnof the Emperors boxes set here; the DungeonMaster ’s Sourcebook s tates Foresters mustbe Lawful , whi le the Player’s Guide toThyat is s tates they may be of any al ignment.Again, I have chosen to go with the former.In systems other than BECMI, “Lawful”should be interpreted as an adherence toelven t radi t ion, loyal ty to the e lven c lan, andan honorable disposi t ion.

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RELATIONS WITH THE

THYATIAN GOVERNMENT

The Foresters offer a unique blend ofabilities that makes them suited for a widevariety of missions. In particular, unlikenormal soldiers and magic-users, they areideal for stealth, spying and scoutingmissions where their surprising ability towield magic while bearing arms and armorconfounds and surprises many foes.11

However, they are generally not deployed instandard military units, but instead used asspecialists who are requested when needed.This is done primarily for two reasons.

The first is the surprise factor. In spite oftheir long history, the Foresters have neverbeen a large order, only numbering about160 members at the current day.12 Evenwithin the Thyatian Empire many areunaware of the order (particularly those wholive far from the County of Vyalia), and eventhose who are may regard the Foresters asnothing more than a myth or simply a bunchof scouts and skirmishers whose reputationhas been exaggerated by tall tales. As such,foes who are faced with a Forester are oftendeeply surprised when their armoredopponent suddenly casts a spell, a usefultactic that takes many foes off balance. TheThyatian government takes advantage of thissituation by maintaining no permanent all-Forester units13, instead sending small bandson scouting or spying missions, or secreting

Foresters within the ranks of other units,providing them with an unexpected magicalmight that foils crafty assassins and sniperswho might seek to take out dangerous spellcasters early in a battle. In short, obscurityand deception are two of the main strengthsthat Foresters rely on when engaging inconflict, and thus the government uses themsparingly to maximize such strengths.

The second reason is the oath that Forestersswear to their elven clans. It is important toremember that this oath is to the clan, andnot the Thyatian government. Foresters areindeed often loyal to their nation, often moreso than many ordinary citizens due to theirlong history of fighting for the empire, buttheir duty to their elven clan is even morebinding. Furthermore, the clan binds theForesters in an iron-clad code of conduct,requiring its members to uphold the tenetsof honesty, bravery and the utmost loyalty totheir elven clan. Given the Thyatian Empire`swell-deserved reputation for treachery, it isunderstandable that some missions thegovernment might call upon its troops toperform might conflict with the Forester`scode of honor. As such, Foresters are neverchosen for a mission randomly, but arerather carefully selected when a particularmission would benefit from their strengthsand contain parameters that do not offendthe order`s notions of proper conduct.

Typically, when the planning stages ofmilitary operations call for Foresterinvolvement, a Thyatian official will send amessage to the head of the Forester`s Guildin Foreston, who will then assign membersto the operation as he or she sees fit. In rarecases, a request may go unfulfilled if nosuitable Foresters are available or if the guild

1 1 Again, this assumes the BECMI rulesetwhere this i s unique to Foresters and Elves.

1 2 In 1000 AC, according to Dawn of theEmperors.

1 3 Specia l uni ts of Treeshie ld c lan e lves doexis t , however.

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leader strongly disagrees with the nature ofthe operation, but this is done sparingly andonly with good reason. The Forester`s Guildenjoys a great deal of autonomy compared toother branches of the Thyatian governmentand military, and as such does not care tojeopardize this special status by angering thegovernment. Similarly, as mentioned above,most Thyatian officials limit their requests towhen it is clearly needed to avoid clasheswith the Forester code of honor or overtaxthe resources of such a small order.Nevertheless, in spite of these limitations, theForesters have proven invaluable in manyoperations, and as a result there were fewsignificant conflicts between the guild andthe government until the events of Wrath ofthe Immortals (see below).

One last note of importance concerns thelegal status of Foresters. Although citizens ofThyatis, Foresters are also, for all intents andpurposes, considered members of their elvenclans. The Vyalian clans are granted a certainamount of autonomy within Thyatian law,and barring any crime short of treason orsomething equally heinous, clan membersaccused of breaking the law have the right tobe tried by their clan. The clans will protecta Forester as they would any other elf,though as noted above crimes that areserious enough may cause this protection tobe lost--although crimes of that magnitudeare likely to strip a Forester of his or herstatus anyway, upon which they will nolonger be considered a member of the clan.

FORESTERS AND

ILSUNDAL

Foresters receive their powers through thegrace of the immortal Ilsundal, who createdthem to instill greater bonds betweenhumans and elves. This serves two purposes:firstly, it helps impress upon humans areverence for the elven way of life and thenatural world, encouraging a respect for boththat would blunt any destructive urgestowards either, be it through over-cutting ofthe forests or wars of aggression towards theelves. Secondly, it encourages the elves to beless reclusive, seeking out good relationswith humans in order to forge alliances thatwould protect the race.

As such, Foresters are bound to embodythese goals as best as possible, helping tofoster good relations between the twopeoples and protect the forest lands of theirhome. They must also uphold high standardsof personal conduct in order to present theorder as honorable and trustworthy,ensuring that their word will be respected in

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times of trouble (which is particularlyimportant in an empire such as Thyatiswhere treachery is commonplace). Towardsthis end, Ilsundal monitors the actions of hisForesters as he does his clerics, and canwithdraw a Forester`s powers if he or she isfound to have acted contrary to these goals.In particular, Foresters are expected todemonstrate absolute loyalty to their elvenclans and to act in an exemplary fashion, acode of conduct which includes thefollowing tenets:

● Obey the orders of elven clan leaders, aswell as the head of the Forester's Guild

● Respect and protect the natural world--hunting and logging are acceptable,provided it is done in a sustainablefashion and for necessary reasons(hunting for sport is prohibited)

● Refuse any course of action which wouldharm or betray the elves (should theForester be placed in a no-win situationwhere he or she is forced to take anaction that would cause harm to elvenpeoples, the lesser evil must be chosen)

● Seek to promote good relations betweenthe Vyalian Elves and the other peoples ofThyatis in order to ensure the safety andstability of the elven clan (again, if placedin a no-win situation, the Forester mustcarefully choose the best way forwardpossible)

● Avoid the treacherous conduct commonthroughout Thyatis, emphasizing honestyand integrity--a Forester's word is his orher bond (dishonesty and subterfuge intimes of conflict against enemies of theelves or Thyatis is acceptable, inmoderation)

● Inflicting unnecessary pain or hardshipon others, even enemies, is to be avoided

- torture and slavery are out of thequestion (Foresters do not have tooppose these actions at everyopportunity, particularly when it wouldharm Elven-Thyatian relations, but theywill never actively participate in them)

A Forester who falls short of such ideals mayreceive a warning from Ilsundal, usually inthe form of a dream where the immortalmakes his displeasure with the offender'sactions known (though he never actuallyappears in such dreams or speaks directly tothe offender--usually the dream utilizessymbolism and metaphor to make suchpoints). A Forester who ignores suchwarnings or egregiously violates his or hercode will have their powers immediatelystripped from them, and once this is donethere is no chance of redemption--he or sheis cast out forever, unable to wield magic atall.

A Forester in good standing, however, isimmediately recognizable by clerics ofIlsundal, who can sense the deep connectionthe Forester has with the immortal. They willtend to view a Forester in much the sameway as other faiths might a paladin, and willconsider him or her one of their own,allowing them access to elven records,documents and histories that most humanswould be barred from reading. Furthermore,Ilsundal guides the actions of powerfulForesters; characters capable of casting theContact Outer Plane spell automaticallyreach Ilsundal, who will answer questionspertaining to the elves without any chance ofdriving the caster insane or lying (though thechance of knowing remains the same—

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consider Ilsundal to be at Distance 8 for thepurposes of these questions, 3 for others).14

The Forester`s bond with Ilsundal is notmerely meant to instill reverence, however;it also has to do with the nature of theconnection between the two. Ilsundal grantsForesters their elven-based ability to wieldmagic while armored via the immortal spellBestow, which costs 5 Permanent PowerPoints per use. However, since there areroughly around 160 Foresters in the order atany given time and the guild has existed for800 years or so, it is clearly impossible foreven a powerful immortal such as Ilsundal toexpend such power. He accomplishes suchusing a special technique he developedwhich causes the points to return to himupon the end of the Forester`s service(usually this occurs at death, thoughForesters who violate their code can have thebond severed much quicker), but thisrequires a close relationship between therecipient and the patron immortal in orderfor this to work. The Forester's utmostadherence to the teachings of Ilsundal andthe sacred vows he or she makes to defendand respect the elven clan makes thisconnection possible. (This is also why fewimmortals maintain such orders, as Ilsundalis investing about 800 of his Power Points inthe guild, something only a powerfulimmortal would even consider doing—andeven then, only with good reason.)

CONVERSION NOTES

In the eight hundred years of its existence,the Guild of Foresters, a tradition unique toThyatis15, has generated numerous heroeswho have served the empire bravely. A few

such individuals are noted here in the historythat follows (with a focus upon the presentday). Some abbreviated statistics areincluded, which requires some explanation.

Level: The listed levels assumes a 36-levelprogression, as used with Irondrake`sversion of the Forester (see the article in thisissue). If you are using the classic BECMIlevel progression with Attack Ranks, assumeranks D and E are equivalent to levels 11 and12, with each successive rank worth threelevels (thus a Forester with a listed level of 24would be Attack Rank I). If you are using 2nd

or 5th edition (or another system with a 20level progression), keep levels the same withall classes up until level 12 and then counteach three additional levels as one level (sothe above-mentioned level 24 Forester wouldbe level 16).

Alignment: The BECMI three alignmentsystem is used, with the nine alignmentversion used in later editions appearing inparenthesis.

Half-Elves: In BECMI, these should beconsidered racially human with some elvenfeatures (possibly using the option in GAZ5that grants infravision in exchange for a smallexperience penalty).

Class: If using 2nd edition, typically theRanger class would stand in for the Forester,

1 4 As per the rules for Contact Other Planein the Rules Cyclopedia.

1 5 The Hollow World Box set makesreferences to Foresters amongst some of thecul tures that l ive there. How and whyForesters came to be there is probably bestcovered in a separate ar t ic le . In addi t ion, theMerchant-Pr inces of Minrothad could a lso beconsidered a specia l ized kind of naut ica lForester sponsored by Cal i tha Starbrow, whowould a lso have a reason to foster s t ronghuman-elven re lat ions l ike I l sundal does.

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but I feel the Ranger class isn't “magical”enough to properly simulate a Forester. Thisissue can be solved by building Foresters asmulti-classed Ranger/Magic-Users (anexception is made in this case regarding theprohibition against humans multi-classing)and creating a Forester kit for thesecharacters, which involves the followingchanges:

● Cleric spells of the Animal and Plantspheres may be used as if they werewizard spells, and are recorded in spellbooks (this replaces normal Ranger spellcasting)

● The Alertness skill (see the Red SteelCharacter Guide) must be chosen at 1st

level● Spell casting can be performed in armor,

which differs from the standard 2nd

edition rule that only multi-classed elvesand half-elves in elfin chain can castmagical spells while so protected

However, the following strictures also applyto balance out these hefty benefits:

● Spells from the schools of Invocation andNecromancy cannot be learned

● Should the Forester betray his or herclan, or perform an evil act, all magicalpowers are lost as is Ranger status—thecharacter becomes a Fighter of equallevel, with his or her experience pointtotal dropping to the lowest numberneeded to qualify for the level

● The character will be assigned missionsfrom his elven clan or the Guild ofForesters occasionally, and enemies ofthe guild will target her as well

● Human Foresters are treated as multi-classed characters, dividing experience

evenly between the two classes, and maynever dual-class as humans normally can

(Under these rules, calculate Foresterlevels as normal for a 20-levelprogression, and then subtract two todetermine the Forester’s Ranger andMagic-User levels. As such, a 24th levelForester should be a 14th level Ranger/14th level Magic-User with the Foresterkit.)16

If using 5th edition, the Forester Guild can becreated as an Organization, as found in the5E Dungeon Master's Guide. Thisorganization provides more benefits than theothers, but demands more in return:

Requirements: The character must be aRanger of good alignment who has livedamongst the Vyalian elves for at least threeyears and taken forests as their FavoredTerrain. Once the first point of renown isgained, the character is initiated as a clanmember.

In exchange for these numerous benefits, theForester is bound by the code of conductmentioned above, and failure to do so or lossof their good alignment will strip them of allmagical powers and reduce their renown to0, which can never rise higher again as theywill be banished from the order. Byappealing to another immortal, normalRanger spell-casting powers might beregained, but the bonuses above never willbe, not by any means.17 The Forester's Guild

1 6 I f these rules are used, the Riders ofRenyard in the Dragon Mountain box setshould be considered to have the Forester k i t

1 7 Ruaidhr i Hawkbane is known to havedone this , res tor ing the spel l abi l i ty of an

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will make requests of them, and enemies ofVyalia will target them, as mentioned abovewith the Forester kit. In addition, a FavoredEnemy which does not threaten the VyalianElves or Thyatis cannot be chosen.

Avengers: If using 2nd edition, theseshould be treated as Fighters with theDefender kit (see the Red Steel CampaignGuide). If using 5th edition, these shouldbe treated as Paladins with the Oathbreakersub-class.

ex-Forester whose e lven lover was s la in bywerebeasts and subsequent ly vio lated theForester code in pursui t of revenge.

Renown Min Level Title Benefits1 1 Strider Gain two cantrips from the Bard list (or the

Sword Coast Campaign Guide, if available)3 2 Ranger Learn one bonus spell from the following

list and one additional spell each even levelgained: Faerie Fire, Feather Fall, SilentImage, Sleep, Gust of Wind, Mirror Image,Misty Step, Web. Only spells of a level thatcan be cast may be selected.

10 9 Guardian Add the following to the additional spellsavailable list above: Clairvoyance,Counterspell, Dispel Magic, Haste

25 13 Forester Knight Add the following to the additional spellsavailable list above: Arcane Eye, Confusion,Dimension Door, Hallucinatory Terrain

50 17 Forester Lord Add the following to the additional spellsavailable list above: Cloudkill, ConjureElemental, Scrying, Transmute Rock (fromPrinces of the Apocalypse)

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TIMELINE

A Short History of the Order

203 AC: Acastian and his unit are deployedto Vyalia to help with the defense of theelven peoples.

206 AC18: The goblins defeated, Acastian andtwelve of his compatriots become the firstForesters with the unexpected blessing ofIlsundal. Humans begin settling in the newCounty of Vyalia and Foreston becomes thecenter of the guild.

230 AC: Acastian (Male Thyatian Lawful (LG)Forester 27) retires as head of the ForesterGuild. In his place, Beliscia Thorion (FemaleKerendan Lawful (LG) Forester 21) takesover leadership of the order. Her first act isto agree to assign Forester agents to theAgentes in Rebus19, serving as spies andadventurers in the service of the empire,something the guild will excel in thecenturies to come.

313 AC: The Emperor Alexan II puts downthe Hattian revolution with the assistance ofForester spies, which contributes to thehatred many Storm Soldiers bear for the Guild.

335 AC: In the middle of EmperorAlexandros`s campaign to retake Thyatianterritories lost to the Alphatians on the Isle ofDawn20, several Forester operatives are

kidnapped by the Alphatian wizard andgeneral Rishardian. Having heard stories ofthese elite human armored magic-users, theAlphatian general ruthlessly tortures them forinformation about the guild, interested inhow they came to be. All Foresters die incaptivity save one, Belsasiana Ceruldynitos(Female Thyatian Lawful (NG) Forester 9),who escapes captivity and returns to Thyatis.After she reports the fate of her compatriotsto the order, this cements enmity betweenthe guild and the Alphatian Empire.

445 AC: Foresters engaging in a diplomaticmission with the sea elves of Minrothadbecome caught up in the Silver Purge; unableto stop the mobs descending upon NewAlphatia, their senior member JulielaDaphnothemites (Female Nuari-ThyatianLawful (NG) Forester 8) leads them inhelping some residents of the city to flee itstotal destruction. This results in some ill willbetween Minrothad and the Guild.

486 AC: Thyatian territories on the Isle ofDawn, including West Portage and Helskir,are overrun by Alphatian troops. TheEmperor Romanos, through the assistance ofForester spies and commandos, breaks theadvance at the Siege of Redstone.21 Hebestows honors upon the order for thecrucial role they played, which increases theprestige of the guild. In the following years,the number of applicants to the orderincreases steadily.

1 8 According to James Ruhland;s “Historyof the Thyat ian People” , Empress I rene ruledfrom 202-211 AC; I chose this year for nopart icular reason to serve as the s tar t of theorder. .

1 9 See “Thyat ian Senators” in Threshold

i ssue #3,

2 0 See James Ruhland’s “History of theThyat ian People” at the vaul ts of Pandius

2 1 See n. 20 above; this i s wr i t ten asoccurr ing in the late 5 t h century; again, Ichose this year at random.













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524 AC: After failing to find an immortalsponsor in the Sphere of Energy, Rishardian(who has magically extended his life) turnsto the Sphere of Entropy and is accepted as acandidate for immortality by Thanatos, whostill bears ill will towards the order giventheir role in suppressing the Hattianrevolution. Rishardian (Male AlphatianChaotic (CE) Magic-User 36) remainsinterested in somehow reverse-engineeringthe process which creates Foresters to createsimilar agents in his service. He takesadvantage of the conflict in Alaysia to kidnapseveral Foresters for experimentation.

547 AC: Foresters and Vyalian Elves areinvited to Minrothad by the Sea Elven clansin an attempt to dispel the mistrust betweenthe guild and Minrothad. There is an ulteriormotive; the Minrothaddans, already skilledwith Alphatian sea magic, are interested increating a corps of merchant princes fromthe ranks of human merchant captains.22

Instead of utilizing the Forester method ofhaving a candidate live with the elves,however, they use the Tutorial Guild toinstruct students.23

565 AC: Following a series of prolongedconflict between Alphatian and Thyatiancolonies in Alaysia, an Alphatian advance ishalted near Fabia in a battle that heavily

relies upon the Retebius Air Corps. They areassisted by the Forester hero and GriffonKnight of the Air Callisine Acropatian (MaleKerendan Lawful (LG) Forester 27) who,along with a cadre of his fellow ForesterKnights, manages to slay the opposingAlphatian admiral, after which the battle ismostly won by Thyatis. In the years to come,Emperor Wien Dien-Ling honors bothorders, renaming the Retebius Air Corps theRetebius Air Fleet. This, in turn, starts a longera of cooperation between the Fleet and theForester Guild, which at any given time inthe years to follow has several membersserving as Knights.24

571 AC: Investigating reports of a missingForester, several members of the order, ledby Callisine, stumble upon Rishardian`s lair.They destroy the lab and free their comrade,forcing the Alphatian wizard to flee. Thanatosabandons the wizard, who, bitter at hisfailure to secure immortality, becomes a lichin the years to come, continuing to preyupon the order.

585 AC: The legendary Forester heroCallisine Acropatian leaves Thyatis on hisquest for immortality, sailing south towardsDavania with his friend Bastius Occandro(Male Minrothaddan Neutral (LN) Fighter 12-Merchant Prince 10). They are never seennor heard from again.

612 AC: Angelius Cantrithus (Male ThyatianChaotic (NE) Fighter-Avenger 18), a failedForester initiate and Knight of Thyatis, strikesa bargain with Rishardian--in exchange formagical assistance to help boost his career,he uses his contacts within the Agentes to

2 2 This ref lects my view that MerchantPr inces are a Sea Elven vers ion of theForester , though or iented towards t rade andseafar ing, and bound by Cal i tha Starbrow.This a l lows them to cast spel l s in armor asForesters do.2 3 I t i sn ' t c lear exact ly when spel l -cast inghuman Merchant Pr inces or ig inated inMinrothaddan his tory; I assumed this to haveoccurred in the 6 t h century based on thehis tory of Minrothad in Threshold #4 .

2 4 See James Ruhland’s “His tory of theThyat ian People”at the Vaul ts of Pandius




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learn the details of several missions involvingForesters, using that information to help thelich secure Forester subjects for hisexperiments.

620 AC: After years of attempting to trackdown several missing Foresters, GaletiniusHalanenan (Male Thyatian Lawful (LG)Forester 10) discovers Angelius`s role inhelping to ambush the missing members.Summoning several allies from the Guild, hediscovers a dungeon complex beneathAngelius`s estate where he makes thechilling discovery that the captured Forestershave been experimented upon and used tomake a new kind of undead creature. TheForesters destroy most of the horrors beforeRishardian arrives to save the last fewspecimens and teleports away with them—although he never succeeded in creating hisown warrior-mage minions, he did discovera new type of undead creature similar to aWyrd that could be created from torturedForesters.

700 AC: The Battle of Foreston—Rishardianassaults the town using a Gate to bring in anarmy of undead , led by elite squads ofForester-Wyrds and a Nightwalker. TheForesters and Vyalian Elves defend the townin a pitched battle, which ends when theGuild Leader Arcadia Chrysterios (FemaleThyatian Lawful (NG) Forester 24) slays theNightwalker in a one-on-one combat. Clericsresiding in Foreston also play a role indispersing the undead, and most of theForester-Wyrds are destroyed. Of Rishardian,though, there is no sign—he is not seen oncethe battle is underway.

754 AC: Famed Forester scholar andadventurer Honorius Metopolites (Male

Alphatian Lawful (NG) Forester 21), anAlphatian by blood born in the Thyatianterritories on the Isle of Dawn, uses his racialappearance to go on an extended tour ofAlphatia, which lasts several years. Uponreturning to Thyatis, he pens the book AThyatian`s Travels in Alphatia, which is stillconsidered the definitive guide to Alphatiawithin the present-day empire.

797 AC: Foresters, both Knights of the Airand those serving in marine units, help haltthe Alphatian advance towards the PearlIslands25. This marks the first time Forestersare secreted in marine units, and theirsurprising magical support helps overpowerthe Alphatians in many boarding actions.Many Pearl Islanders develop an affection forthe order as a result, which leads to somepolitical cooperation amongst thePhilosopher faction of the Senate.26

826 AC: An uprising of Alaysian nomadspushes out the Alphatians and threatens theThyatian colonies.27 The governmentrequests Forester support, but the order,uncomfortable with the way the empire hasrun the colonies and increasingly influencedby the Philosopher faction`s anti-imperialistleanings, declines to participate. While thisangers the Emperor and some Thyatianmilitary officials, the popularity of the ordershields them from any repercussions.

900 AC: The Thyatian acquisition of the newProvince of Traladara begins. Forestersparticipate in scouting missions, but mostlyhelp to reduce acts of aggression towards the

2 5 See n. 24 above

2 6 See “Senators of the Thyat ian Empire”in Threshold #2,

2 7 See GAZ2.


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Traladaran people and engage in diplomaticmissions with the elves of the region, whichhelps to contribute to further human-elvencooperation later in the realm`s history. Thisalso makes the order known to the elvenCallarii clans of the region.

960 AC: During the Alphatian Spike Assault,units of Foresters lead by the Guild LeaderGalerica Prochiarius (Female Thyatian-Ochaelan Lawful (LG) Forester 24), assistThincol with defending the capital, againplaying a pivotal role and earning the soon-to-be Emperor`s good will.

962 AC: After Foresters bravely help retakethe city of Kendach, upon which theAlphatian Emperor Tylion IV abdicates,Thincol establishes the Ranger Knights ofThyatis, a small group of Foresters assignedto the Emperor`s service and overseen by hisMagist, Demetrion. These Foresters engagein a number of missions on the Emperor`sbehalf, as dictated by Demetrion, who iscareful to only use them when the missiondoes not compromise their code of ethics.

970 AC: Larandia Lymianoporus, the currenthead of the Forester Guild, joins the order.After twenty years of adventuring, Larandia(Female Thyatian Lawful (LG) Forester 27)becomes head of the order in 990 AC28 uponGalerica Prochiarius`s retirement.

The Decline of the Order

1000 AC: Ilsundal allies with Ixion andValerias as part of the Ring of Fire againstRad, fearful of what the nucleus of thespheres might inflict upon the highly magical

elves.29 This, however, creates a problemwhere the Foresters are concerned: whileelves in areas such as Alfheim can bemarshaled against Glantri, Vanya ensures thatThyatis sides with Rad, possibly forcing theguild to work against Ilsundal's interests. Atthis time, Ilsundal does not involve theForesters in his schemes but some membersof the order, in response to dreams they havereceived, do help agents in the immortal'sservice from abroad enter Thyatis, thoughthey are not aware of the reasons other thanit serves the interests of the elves.

1001-1004 AC: Ilsundal continues to moveagents into position throughout Mystara inorder to oppose Rad, which includes actionsmeant to destabilize Thyatis. Valerias, in herguise as Helena Ledamiades30, helps weakenthe Thyatian Officer Corps throughencouraging them to engage in decadent

2 8 See Dawn of the Emperors.

2 9 See Wrath of the Immortals

3 0 See n. 29 above (The Immortal ’s Fury

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pursuits. On occasion, Foresters are calledupon to help in such schemes, such ashelping to smuggle zzonga into the empire.This troubles some members of the order,but they are led to believe that this isrequired to act against anti-elven Thyatianelements, which prior events such as thoseenacted by Angelius render a credible threat.

1005 AC: Upon the declaration of warbetween Alphatia and Thyatis, Ilsundal, whois allied with the immortal Alphatia, patron ofher namesake empire, sends prominentForesters dreams that convey uneaseregarding the war and dire warningsregarding Glantri. Larandia, unsure what tomake of these omens, quietly sends someForesters out of Thyatis to engage ininformation gathering missions in Glantri,and sends some Foresters to engage inspying missions in Alphatia but declinesmany other requests from the Thyatiangovernment. This reluctance strains relationsbetween the order and the empire.

One Forester sent to Alphatia, however,interprets Ilsundal's dreams differently.Reynard Milton (Male Darokinian Lawful(Chaotic Good) Forester 15), a Foresteroriginally from Darokin who, while loyal tothe Vyalian Elves never particularly warmedup to the notion of being a Thyatian citizenand harbored serious doubts about itsimperialist policies, interpreted his visions asproof of the empire's evil intentions.Swaying his fellow Forester comrades to hisway of thinking, he makes the disastrousdecision to turn on the empire, feeling itserves the interests of Ilsundal. He makescontact with the Alphatians who, advised bya cleric of Alphatia to believe the Foresters,

allow the Forester spies to switch sides. Hecontinues to feed information to Thyatis tohide his treason, but only sends intelligencewhich is worthless or flawed.

1005 AC, Fall: In a disastrous turn of eventsfor the Thyatian Empire, West Portage,Kendach and Fenswatch fall to theAlphatians. Although the main reason wasdue to the loss of troop discipline andmorale thanks to Valerias's meddling31, faultyintelligence sent by the traitorous Foresterspies also played a critical role in thedebacle. Furthermore, Reynard and hisfellow conspirators are present after the fallof those fortresses, helping their Alphatianallies within sight of captured Thyatianofficers, one of whom later escapes andreports the incident to his superiors uponmaking his way home.

Within the Senate there is an explosion ofoutrage--the Guild of Foresters had longbeen viewed as one of the most honorableand patriotic orders within the empire, andthis act of treason hits hard, damaging theorder's credibility severely. Larandia, alongwith the Senator from Foreston, DiatresImlacris32, hastily rushes to the Guild'sdefense, claiming that the traitors do notrepresent the order as a whole. No punitiveaction is taken against the order at this time,but their prestige is heavily damaged, andmany Foresters are demoralized by this turnof events. Ilsundal is deeply troubled by this,realizing that his actions have put hisservants in a bad position.

pg73 )

3 1 See n. 30 above

3 2 See “Thyat ian Senators” in Thresholdmagazine issue #4,


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1006 AC: Although the order faced noexplicit punishment following Reynard'streason, the empire tests their loyalty bymaking increasing demands of the guild,constantly requesting Foresters to be sent ondangerous combat missions, as opposed tothe usual espionage missions they are nolonger trusted with. Many members, eager toprove their loyalty to Thyatis, accept suchmissions, and suffer many casualties as aresult. By summer, more than twenty havedied in various operations, a serious blow toan order that only numbered less than 200.Reynard calls upon the order to join him,stating that Thyatis is hopelessly corrupt andnot worthy of the Foresters' service.

In the fall, as Alfheim's trees begin to sicken,Ilsundal becomes increasingly alarmed. Hesends more dire visions to the order, andLarandia quietly sends some Forester agentsto Darokin to help investigate.

1007 AC: With nearly fifty casualties, and theorder's reputation still heavily damaged,morale is lower amongst the survivingmembers of the order than it ever has beenin its history. Reynard continues to help hisAlphatian masters, and there are incidentswhere Foresters traveling within Thyatis areattacked, often by emboldened Hattians, whohave long nursed a grudge against the order.

With the fall of Alfheim, Ilsundal comes to adecision. Although he still values the order,he realizes it suffers from divided loyaltiesand thus must change to address this issue.He sends further visions to many prominentForesters, showing the order assisting theelves fleeing Alfheim and settling in countriesother than Thyatis, showing a future guildlargely defined by loyalty to the elves and

organized amongst several nations ratherthan bound to merely one. Larandia, afterpondering such visions, sends her nephewJustinian Lymianoporus (Male Half-ElvenLawful (NG) Forester 12) at the head of adelegation to meet the elven refugees enroute and help guide them to Karameikos,where the Vyalian elves also have a presence.

Other Foresters, guided by Ilsundal and theirown moral compasses and dislike for Thyatis'imperialist policies, quietly help the PearlIslanders and Ochalea in their independencemovements, and both declare independenceby winter. Such an act would have beenunthinkable even in spite of the Foresters`dislike of Thyatis' historical treatment ofthose regions only a few short years ago, butthe actions of the past two years haveweakened the Foresters' loyalty to theirparent nation--many see themselvesincreasingly as servants of Ilsundal ratherthan imperial citizens.

1008 AC, Spring: Reynard and his fellowAlphatian Foresters help with the pacificationof Helskir, which causes the order'sreputation to suffer even further. Even withinVyalia, few applicants seek to enter the order,and a handful who do are murdered on theirway to Foreston by Storm Soldiers who havehidden themselves within the County for thatpurpose. Even after they are caught, publicopinion against them is muted, much to theorder's chagrin.

Justinian and his followers reach Karameikoswith the Alfheim refugees, who are granteddominions in the eastern forests ofKarameikos. They provide what assistancethey can, establishing good relations with the

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Callarii and Vyalian Elves who live in thatnation.

1008 AC, Summer: The war continues to gopoorly for Thyatis, with the Alphatians in aposition to attack mainland Thyatis. PetronielHalataum (Male Kerendan Lawful (LG)Forester 15), a Knight of the Air,accompanies the Retebius Air Fleet andseveral other Forester Knights to meet theAlphatian fleet before it can reach theThyatian mainland. Still deeply loyal to theempire, Petroniel is determined to stop theAlphatians at any cost, though his resolve istested when he learns his former friend,Reynard, is helping command the Alphatianfleet as an advisor on Thyatian tactics.

Petroniel communes with Ilsundal, asking hispatron immortal what he should do. Ilsundalis torn--although members of the order arenow in conflict, both sides are doing whatthey believe is in the best interests of theelves and the order, and Reynard has beenled to this path by Ilsundal's own influence.Petroniel acts as he does because he isconvinced that a strong union with Thyatis isbest to preserve the guild and protect theways of the Vyalian Elves. Bitterly realizingthat he has caused this sad turn of events,Ilsundal strips none of the Foresters involvedof their powers, and has no answers forPetroniel.

Petroniel decides, reluctantly, to go intobattle with his fellows. In the events whichfollow, he finds himself pitted against theAlphatian airship the traitorous Reynardtravels on, and after his hippogriff is mortallywounded Petroniel is forced to crash ontothe deck of the ship and face Reynard directlyalongside a contingent of his fellow Knights

of the Air. For the first time in the history ofthe order, two Foresters find themselvesfighting each other on opposite sides of a war.

In the duel which follows, he slays Reynard,but the ship is critically damaged andcrashes, killing Petroniel in the process. TheAlphatian advance is stopped--for now--andPetroniel becomes a hero of the empire forhis brave sacrifice, helping to restore some ofthe order's lost prestige. The only Forester tosurvive the battle is Trention Lycostorion, aPegasus Knight33, who also becomes a heroof the order. While this helps the Forester`sGuild somewhat, the fact that two of itsmembers have been forced to kill each otheris yet another terrible blow to the morale ofits members. Although some still favor aunion with Thyatis, the majority are nowlooking towards Karameikos and embracingIlsundal's visions of an order that transcendsnational boundaries.

1009 AC, Spring: Forester agents andskirmishers help slow the Alphatian advanceinto Thyatis, but given the casualties theyhave suffered and the fact that still more havechosen to go to Karameikos to help the elvesthere means their numbers are limited. Still,they engage in enough acts of heroism tofurther repair their tattered reputation withinthe empire.

Justinian and his fellow Foresters consultwith the Karameikan elves about setting up abranch of the Foresters within Karameikos.Ilsundal informs the Treekeepers of thoseAlfheim and Callarii clans that he will honorany such ceremony performed by them,provided the same standards are kept. The

3 3 This is the sample character provided inthe Dawn of the Emperors box set .

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elves, still struggling to adjust to theirsituation, gladly accept the help.

1009 AC, Fall: The war finally ends for abattered Thyatis, and the Foresters there arefreed at last from having to fight theAlphatians. The order's reputation isimproved, though still nowhere near what itwas before the war. The Week Without Magicshocks the Vyalian Elves and the Foresters tothe core, however, and during this timevengeful Hattian terrorists, guided byThanatos, assassinate several weakenedForesters.

Larandia calls a meeting of the Forester`sGuild, and outlines her vision of the future ofthe order. She approves of Justinian's effortsto establish a Karameikan branch of theorder, as she senses that this is Ilsundal's will.She gives every member of the order achoice--they may stay in Vyalia, or go toKarameikos. Of the sixty surviving Foresters,forty choose to renounce their Thyatiancitizenship and go to Karameikos. Theremaining twenty, including Larandia,choose to stay.

In Karameikos, Justinian seeks out and isgranted an audience with King Stefan. Heproposes a Karameikan Forester's Guild thatwill swear loyalty to Karameikos rather thanThyatis. Stefan is somewhat reluctant toaccept members of a formerly Thyatianmartial order, but, after consulting with hisadvisors, chooses to accept the offer. TheOrder of the Griffon makes contact with theForesters, hoping to establish ties.

1010 AC: With the sinking of Alphatia, theconflict is finished. The Forester's Guild inVyalia remains, and once again is receiving a

healthy number of applicants, moved by talesof Petroniel's heroism. In time, the order willgrow to its original size. In the years tofollow, Larandia will swear loyalty toEusebius after his father's death in 1012, andthe order will continue to engage in the sortsof activities it did before the war. However, itwill never enjoy the same level of prestige itdid before the conflict, as Reynard and hiscohorts will form a stain on the guild'sreputation for a long time. There are still afair amount of senators and governmentofficials who feel the order was not punishedsufficiently, or even favor disbanding itoutright.

However, the order no longer exists solely inThyatis. The Karameikan Guild of Forestersalso grows in size, accepting promisingKarameikan students who are sponsored byAlfheim, Callarii and Vyalian clans. JustinKarameikos, Stefan's second son, sensing thatKarameikos's new elven population willprove critical to the future of the nation,chooses to apply for entrance into the orderand is accepted, fostering even greater tiesbetween the nation and the new KarameikanForester`s Guild. Relations between the twoguilds are good, and this causes sometrouble for the Thyatian branch, asKarameikos refused to aid Thyatis during thewar.

The Order of the Griffon welcomes Forestersto its ranks, and several former Knights of theAir amongst them are instrumental in effortsto secure griffon mounts for the knighthood'suse.34

3 4 See Karameikos: Kingdom of Adventureboxed set .

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In time, efforts will be made to expand theorder into Darokin as elves begin to returnthere to help save the Canolbarth forest.35

The Foresters as an order have spreadbeyond Thyatis, and continue to promote thewill of Ilsundal throughout many parts ofMystara.

Note regarding article art:The art used in this article comes fromNathanParkArt, who has graciouslymade his work available via a CreativeCommons license.

3 5 See the Mystaran Almanacs for the years1013 and af terwards on the Vaul ts ofPandius.

http://pandius.com/tome/index.html

http://blackmoor.mystara.net/

http://www.nathanparkart.deviantart.com/

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/

http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-nd/3.0/

http://pandius.com/alm.html


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Imperial Explorers!

A short list of the most famous Alphatianand Thyatian explorers, compiled in AY2020 by Thiserstian of Alphatia, magicianand scholar of the Imperial University.

Obviously the world of Mystara has manyother famous explorers beside those thatcame from Thyatis or Alphatia. TheKarameikan Claransa the Seer, who revealedthe existence of the Hollow World to OuterMystara comes immediately to mind. TheHeldannic Knights, bitter enemies as theymay be for us, have many famous explorerstoo, even if in most occasions they did notshare their discoveries with the rest of theworld. Neither did many Minrothaddantraders, who reached far away shores butkept the details about such sea lanes tothemselves, to have a monopoly on theresulting trade. And the elves of Mystaraobviously, as I have explained recently in ashort treatise1, have roamed and exploredduring the centuries vast regions of Mystara.And I suppose dwarves, gnomes and otherancient races and cultures too haveextensive records of their explorations. Thisshort list however will focus only on theexplorers which came from the two majorempires of the Known World, Thyatis andAlphatia. The order in which they arepresented should be chronological, based onthe available informations.

Vassillaanaas

An Alphatian wizard that reached the Gulf ofHule as early as AY 50 (BC 950) or evenearlier, according to some incompletereports. Most details of his life and fate havehowever been lost. Probably several moreAlphatian wizards privately explored the newworld in the early years, but, with quitetypical Alphatian individualism, very few ofthem bothered to leave records for thegeneral public.

References:Slagovich ancient history

1 See “The Elven Clans and theirmigrat ions” by me in the previous issue ofThreshold magazine.

Imperial Explorers!


http://pandius.com/svchhist.html



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Imperial Explorers!

Khendaras, Alinquin and

other Alphatian explorers of

the first years

Admiral, Khendaras was the first Alphatian tocircumnavigate the Isle of Dawn and to leavea record of his expedition,The Periple, in AY286 (BC 714). He was obviously not the onlyone in the first centuries of the AlphatianEmpire. Aasla, Zarthurastram and Ar are sofamous that is not necessary to speak of themhere. Others, like Meriander and Horken, arelegendary figures. So legendary indeed that Icame to doubt of their true existence or atleast of their true names.

As I will explain in another report2, I thinkmost city names in Bellisaria, and the nameof the island itself, have a Milenian origin, soeither some of these supposed Alphatianexplorers did not exist, or their trueAlphatian names were quite different. I ammore inclined to believe to the historicalexistence of Alinquin, as his seems indeed atrue Alphatian name.

References:Caerdania Gazetteer, version 1.0Expedition to the Great SouthlandThe Conquest of Alphatia - The Early YearsGazetteer for the Kingdom Dawnrim

Alexis Vorbian

A Thyatian adventurer and later also ageneral who claimed to have travelled thewhole world between AC 78 to AC 91 (AY1078 to 1091). Notoriously, Haldemar ofHaaken did not believe any of his claims, buthe was the source of most of thegeographical informations of the KnownWorld for centuries anyway. His map andbooks may contain more truth thanHaldemar believed.

References:Dragon Magazine issue #153“A Short Reference to Thyatian Literature” byGiulio Caroletti and James Ruhland(originally published in Tome of Mystaraissue #3)

2 See “Lost Civi l izat ions of Thyat is andAlphat ia” in this i ssue of Thresholdmagazine.

http://pandius.com/caerdana.html

http://pandius.com/southlnd.html

http://pandius.com/alphconq.html

http://pandius.com/dawn_gaz.html

http://pandius.com/thy_lit.html

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Imperial Explorers!

Alzendarius

An Alphatian mage and explorer whoreached the lands of Borea in AY 1479 (AC479). He also established a tenuous traderoute between Alphatia and the northernport-city of Azure.

References:The Borea Project

Don Sancho and other Ispan

explorers of the Savage Coast

Even if they left permanently the ThyatianEmpire to found new dominions in the farwest, the Ispan explorers are worthmentioning, as they reached Yavdlom andbeyond from 860 BC (AY 1860). The onlyindividual name I was able to find however isDon Sancho Estaban de la Villa Florida.

References:The History of the Ispan People

Zyndryl of Aquas and the

gnomes who preceded him

The King and founder of Aquas is certainlyfamous as an explorer of the seas aroundAlphatia. He was preceded by several gnomeswho built the first aquatic vessels now in usein the undersea city. Zyndryl unfortunatelyperished in AY 2009 during the greatearthquake, yet succeeded in saving his cityfrom destruction.

References:Aquas (Kingdom of)Official details about Metropolitan Alphatia

http://pandius.com/borea.html

http://pandius.com/ispan.html

http://pandius.com/aquas4.html

http://pandius.com/metroalp.html

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Imperial Explorers!

Rory Barbarossa

Sometimes also spelled Barbarosa, he wasthe explorer of the Isle of Dread, the Straitsof Dawn and other locations in the WesternSea between 965 and 970 AC (AY 1965 -1970), the full biography of this captain isquite mysterious, as he could be a Thyatianof the Empire, a Thyatian of Karameikos oreven a Ierendian of Thyatian origins. I wasnot even able to ascertain if he is still alive orhas he died several years ago in a Traladaranport, as some rumors say. Another rumor sayhe was alive, in Davania, after 990 AC. He hasbeen labeled either explorer, adventurer orpirate by different parties.

References:Kubittes and GarganthuaxIsle of Dread TimelineSavage Tide : Isle of Dread and AdhuzatimelineBrasolia

Haldemar of Haaken

The voyages of the Captain of the PrincessArk are extremely famous in the Empire, ashe discovered the Hollow World in AY 1965(AC 965), the invisible moon of Patera andextensively explored several locations of thePlane of Air and the mysterious continent ofDavania. Official and unofficial accounts ofhis travels are bestsellers in Alphatia and theCaptain is the center of any social gatheringwhere he cares to show up. More recently,he extensively explored the Hollow Worldand its nations too.

http://pandius.com/kubittes.html

http://pandius.com/iod5time.html

http://pandius.com/dreadtml.html

http://pandius.com/dreadtml.html

http://pandius.com/brasol.html

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Imperial Explorers!

References;Dragon Magazine article listChampions of Mystara Boxed set

See also:Voyage of the Princess Ark (fan derivative)Episode Guide

About Haldemar’s explorations in theHollow World see the Mystara Almanacs andTimeline for the Hollow World, AC 1013

Dogrel, General Commander

of Alphatia Neatharum

An important figure for the exploration ofthe Hollow World surface after Haldemar’svoyages, Dogrel participated in severalexpeditions on foot, magical means andflying ships, and financed several more. Hewas removed from his position in Klarmont16, 1015 by Empress Eriadna, due to someconfrontations with the local Neatharpopulation, and is now back on theAlphatian mainland.

References:Evenbts of Klarmont 1, AC 1015“The Other Alphatian Expeditions” thread atThe Piazza Forums

Azlum Swith

I am not even sure if I should include thiswizard on the list. We know he built amagical airship in the shape of a crystallinegeodome before AY 1968 (AC 968), and thathe is apparently travelling around Mystara

with it. Some says he is an Alphatian, somesay he is a gnome. Others says he is Thyatianor Glantrian. Unless he eventually publish abook with his discoveries, or his arship isfound, we may never know the truth abouthim.

References:Champions of Mystara boxsetHyborean Timeline

Leilah Ben Nadir and other

Thyatian explorers of the

Hinterlands

General Leilah ben Nadir is the militarygovernor, now Exarcha of Davania Superior,that Emperor Thincol sent to the Hinterlandsin 988 AC (AY 1988). She made personallysome of the first explorations of the region,during successful military campaigns. Othersexplorers followed more recently, such asMarcus Cassius Aurestius and the Almanaccorrespondent Favonius Viator, who also(unwillingly) explored the undersea empireof Twaelar.

References:Thyatian Hinterlands (Exarchate of)Ancient Civilisations of Northern Davania - ADiscovery in the HinterlandsAtlas of the Old WorldThe Twaelar Merrow Empire

http://pandius.com/dragon.html

http://pandius.com/votpa_eg.html

http://pandius.com/votpa_eg.html

http://pandius.com/hwtime.html

http://pandius.com/1015kla.html

http://www.thepiazza.org.uk/bb/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=1149&p=13380

http://pandius.com/hybtime.html

http://pandius.com/thyhint4.html

http://pandius.com/hintrlnd.html

http://pandius.com/hintrlnd.html

http://pandius.com/aotow4.html

http://pandius.com/twaelar.html

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Imperial Explorers!

Theodorian Metothemius

Captain of a Thyatian expedition to Skotharthat left in AY 2017 (AC 1017) according tothe Mystaran Almanacs. Apparently not yetreturned in AY 2020, last known positionMinaea.

Obviously Minaea was previously explored byAlphatian sailors a long time ago, it seemsindeed that the rulers of Leontion in Minaeadescends from some Alphatian wizards whoarrived there in AY 1353 (AC 353). Individualexplorers probably reached the area evenearlier, but their names are not widelyknown.

References:Events of Flaurmont AC 1017Events of Kaldmont AC 1019Minaea (Confederated Kingdom of)

Julius Ambrosius

Captain of a Thyatian expedition to Davaniathat left the Hinterlands in AY 2017 (AC1017) according to the Mystaran Almanacs.Apparently not yet returned in AY 2020, lastknown position in the far south of Davania,western Vulcania.

References:Events of Vatermont AC 1017Events of Kaldmont AC 1019

Paulus Angelinus

Captain of a Thyatian expedition to Yavdlomand the Savage Coast that left in AY 2017 (AC1017) according to the Mystaran Almanacs.Apparently not yet returned in AY 2020, lastknown position the Free City of Dunwick inthe far west of Brun.

References:Events of Vatermont AC 1017Events of Eirmont AC 1019

http://pandius.com/1017fla.html#fla16b

http://pandius.com/1019kal.html#kal25a

http://pandius.com/minaea2.html

http://pandius.com/1017vat.html#vat25a

http://pandius.com/1019kal.html#kal27c

http://pandius.com/1019kal.html#kal27c

http://pandius.com/1017vat.html#vat25a

http://pandius.com/1019eir.html#eir2d

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Lost Civilizations of Thyatis and Alphatia

To Her Imperial Majesty Eriadna the Wise, ashort description of the many ancientcivilizations that inhabited Alphatia andThyatis before our time, compiled byThiserstian of Alphatia, magician andscholar of the Imperial University.

HISTORY OF THE

ALPHATIAN SEA

The History of our beloved great island ofAlphatia is more complex than manyAlphatians realize, eveng among my people,the Shiye elves. As I recently explained in mysmall treaty about the Elves of Mystara1, wedo not even know exactly when the first elvessettled the central forest. Many differentwaves of invasion, of humans and otherraces, swept the island in past centuries, andI will try to summarize them here. I will startfrom the (relatively) recent history, as I havenot yet the necessary knowledge toinvestigate the most ancient inhabitants ofthe area2. What I know is that fairies, dragonsand giants are most certainly among the

oldest inhabitants of Alphatia. But not onlythem. Several reptilian races, the araneaspiders and several rakasta breeds are alsoamong those who have inhabited theAlphatian sea since ancient times. The readershould remember that what follows is justmy hypotheses on ancient Alphatian history,and many of my assumptions could bewrong.

1 See “The Elven Clans and theirMigrat ions” in Threshold i ssue #10,.

2 To learn more about the most ancienthis tory of Mystara, see my art ic le“99,9999985% Mystara His tory” at theVaul ts


http://pandius.com/Threshold_10.pdf#page-12

http://pandius.com/Threshold_10.pdf#page-12

http://pandius.com/mysthist.html

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The Burrower Wars

More than 50.000 years before the Landfall,ancient kingdoms dominated the Alphatiansea. One was the Empire of Aran, in what isnow the southern Isle of Dawn, home of thepowerful spider people. To balance itspower, there was the Fairy Kingdom of Aasiein the Alphatian mainland. The northernparts of the Isle of Dawn and Alphatia weredominated by Giants, as were several areas ofBrun, where the powerful brute mencivilization also thrived. Several reptilian andamphibian races, especially lizardmen andfrogfolk, dominated the southern islands andBellisaria. The Burrowers3, powerfulmonsters created by evil immortals,destroyed these civilizations, or weakenedthem much, leaving the Alphatian seapartially open to new colonizers. And theycame soon.

The First Wave: Pardasta

The Pardasta, a breed of rakasta, started tocome after the Burrowers Wars, easilyconquering vast areas in Bellisaria and Brunfrom the failing reptilian, amphibian andbrute men nations. They reached also theIsle of Dawn, the Alatians, southern Alphatiaand Ochalea, but they did not settle heavilythe central and northern Alphatian mainland,still dominated by fairies and giants.

The Second Wave: Carnifex

It is not very clear what caused a decline ofthe Pardasta population in the Alphatian sea,but it may well be a combination of factors.An almost unknown reptilian race, calledCarnifex in ancient chronicles, certainlybecame prominent in Davania and reachedas far as the Alphatian sea. Climate changesand diseases probably played a role too inthe Pardasta decline. Anyway around 14000years before the Landfall the Carnifex empirewas very powerful, and lizardmen, gatormenand frogfolk, probably used by the Carnifexas slaves, also rose in numbers in easternBrun, the Isle of Dawn, the Alatians, Ochalea,southern Alphatia and Bellisaria. The FairyKingdom of Aasie, the giants of the north andthe Empire of Aran however were able tocontain the Carnifex advance in the Alphatiansea.

3 The Burrowers are to ld in the Hol lowWorld boxed set to destroy the Brute mencivi l i zat ions around 5000 BC, but I movedthis date to 50000 BC as i t seem morereal is t ic to me and f i t t ing much bet ter wi ththe his tory of Lhomarr and the rakastamigrat ions.

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The Third Wave: Oltec and

Lhomarrian Humans

The olive skinned Lhomarrian humans andthe copper skinned Oltec humans came bothfrom the area of modern Esterhold startingtheir slow migrations even before the heightof the Pardasta civilizations, around 45000years before the Landfall. At the beginningthey were only small and weak groups, whohad to bargain for their lives with the morepowerful races inhabiting the Alphatian sea.From 11000 years ago however theirnumbers were considerable, and they hadalready founded many cities along the coastsof Esterhold, Bellisaria, Alphatia, the Alatiansand the Isle of Dawn. The Lhomarrian in

particular had a powerful empire in Davania,and they successfully defeated the Carnifex,but they too were destroyed by a greatearthquake about 6000 years before Landfall.

According to some texts, they could be themain ancestors of the Yanifey humans whoinhabited Alphatia before the Landfall. In thisage, Alphatia was called Atlan or Aztlan4,probably the first was the Lhomarrian name,the second the Oltec one. The existence ofan actual powerful kingdom called Atlan isdisputed, and it is not even sure if it was an4 This is a l i t t le ins ide joke as in CM1 Testof the Warlords. The crones of Crystykk cal lAlphat ia “At lant is”, see page 27 of themodule. So I suppose i t could have been thenat ive name of the great is land.

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human or faerie kingdom, or both. But itseems quite probable that Alphatia wasindeed called Atlan by the natives up to theLandfall.

References;My main sources were the following articlesby Geoff Gander, Giampaolo Agosta, ArilaPires Dos Santos, Giulio Caroletti andSimone Neri, but their ideas about the pastof Alphatia could be much different fromthe ones I detailed above.

Lhomarr: The Land, Its People, and TheirHistory“Of the Lore and Legends of Y'hog, City ofthe Unclean Ones, and of that Race”

Ethnographic History of MystaraA Timeline of the Oltec ManHistory And Evolution Of Rakastas

The Fourth Wave: Serpentine

Empire

The Serpentine Empire of Davania, alsoknown as Old Arypt, had a great expansionafter the fall of Lhomarr, and came to ruleland as far as the modern Known World andthe Isle of Dawn. In the Alphatian sea itsexpansion was contained by the Gandharempire of the Giants, which at the time ruledalso over fairies and human populations. The

http://pandius.com/lho_hist.html

http://pandius.com/lho_hist.html

http://pandius.com/lore.html


http://pandius.com/ethno.html

http://pandius.com/oltcmant.html

http://pandius.com/rakhevol.html

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Aranea kingdom in the Isle of Dawn and theoltecs of Aztlan were also instrumental instopping the Serpentines. As said before, Ihave almost no reliable information onAztlan, but I have some clues that its capitalmay have been the modern Archport. Itseems that the Yanifey culture developed atthis time from an alliance between humansand fairy folks, but it was menaced by thegiants and the Aztlan.

In Brun, the powerful Draconic empiredominated vast lands, but the giants ofGandhar kept it away from the Alphatian sea.

References:My main sources were the following articlesby James Mishler, Bruce Heard, GiampaoloAgosta, Arila Pires Dos Santos, GiulioCaroletti and Simone Neri:

The Age of BlackmoorThe Alphatian Province of AmburEthnographic History of MystaraA Timeline of the Oltec ManHistory And Evolution Of Rakastas

The Fifth Wave: Blackmoor

and Thonia

The expansion of the human empires ofBlackmoor and Thonia in Skothar hadrelevant consequences on the Alphatian sea.The Thonians created a powerful colony inthe southern Isle of Dawn and the modernAlatians, dominating the local Oltecs. TheBlackmoorians had an important colony ineastern Brun and several outposts on thecoasts from Skothar to Brun. The Gandharempire of giants maintained its power in thenorthern Isle of Dawn and Alphatia.Skandaharian colonies, an ancient northmenculture, were created in north westernAlphatia. The rest of Alphatia was apparentlyruled by Yanifey kingdoms, the mostimportant being Nafer, probably heir of themythical Aztlan empire. Bellisaria was ruledby the Asyidhia culture and the powerfulkingdom of Bahldaraat-khor. The Mawahuman culture, from the Sea Kingdoms ofthe Farend ocean, also started to colonize thesouthern seas from Bellisaria to the PearlIslands and beyond.

References:See Geoff Gander’s article: Bahldaraat-KhorSee Simone Neri’s article “Real WorldInspiration for the Isle of Dawn” forinfirmation about the Asyidhi; they wouldbe an Oltec population related to Afridhiand Jennites of Skothar, progenitors ofNithians, Thothians, Alasiyans and similarMystaran cultures inspired by Earth’s MiddleEast.See James Misher’s article “History of theIsle of Dawn”The Mawa would be M-polynesian createdby me in “Peoples of NE Davania” fromprevious discussions in the Mystarancommunity.

http://pandius.com/ageblack.html

http://bruce-heard.blogspot.co.uk/2013/04/Ambur01.html

http://pandius.com/ethno.html

http://pandius.com/oltcmant.html




http://pandius.com/bahlkhor.html

http://pandius.com/rwdawnis.html


http://pandius.com/dawnhist.html


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The Sixth Wave: Antalians and

Dunharians

With the Great Rain of Fire, the existingcivilizations were pretty much swept away,and new ones replaced them. The Pardastaand other rakasta breeds, persecuted inblackmoorian times as beastmen, rose backto power in Bellisaria and Ochalea, and otherareas. The Mawa humans expanded in thesouthern islands. Some cultures related tothe modern Thothians, like the Asyidhi, theAfur and the Neeth, flourished in northernBellisaria, southern Alphatia and the easternIsle of Dawn. Fairies and giants dominated

vast lands in Brun, the northern Isle of Dawnand Alphatia, and I have some archeologicalevidence that elves lived in our islandcontinent too. Further studies will be neededto ascertain the lineage of such elves, whocould be related to the mysteriousTrueflowers of the Isle of Dawn. Certainnations of Brun had an influence on theAlphatian sea region too, in particular thelizardmen of Mogreth certainly had somecolonies in the western Isle of Dawn, thedwarves of the Shimmering Lands probablyhad colonies both in the Isle and in modern

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Stoutfellow5. The humans of Taymoraeventually founded colonies in the westernIsle of Dawn and probably northern Ochaleatoo.

Some powerful Yannivey kingdoms also roseto prominence in Alphatia around this time,like Zaanidon in central Alphatia, Llynaround the namesake lake and Ogam in thenorthwest. The latter kingdom wassupposedly inhabited by worshippers ofunspecified foul immortals, and for this waslater destroyed by the Yannivey of the east.

But I believe the most important migration ofthis time was the spreading of Antalians andDunharians. The first people founded citiesand colonies not only in all of north easternBrun, but also in the northern Isle of Dawn,Qeodhar and all of northern Alphatia, oftenfighting the local Yannivey, fairies and giants.The Dunharians, ancestors of the modernDunael of the Isle of Dawn and the people ofthe Four Kingdoms in Davania spread inmodern Alphatia and the Isle of Dawn. InAlphatia they lived in vast lands and had atleast one powerful kingdom in modernRandel, which I believe was called Dunra andhad its capital in modern Rardish.On a final note about this age, I should addthat the Great Rain of Fire also caused atemporary resurgence of some non humanraces. For example lizardmen ruled themodern Haunted Marshes of Alphatia and allthe lands around it, possibly allied with thenation of Mogreth in eastern Brun. Thearanea of Aran were again quite powerful,dominating the newly created greatescarpment in the Isle of Dawn. And themodern Esterhold was largely colonized bythe insectoid hivebroods, who in latercenturies invaded the Alphatian mainland.

References:The Ogam were created by Geoff Gander in“Orzafeth – the Unspeakable Kingdom” andare also mentioned by Bruce Heard in “TheAlphatian Province of Ambur”Roger Burns created the early Alphatianrealms in “Alphatia: Kingdoms BeforeLandfall”James Mishler’s “History of the Isle of Dawn”John Calvin developed the 2300 BC culturesin “2300 BC Campaign Setting”

5 The Dawn of the Emperors boxed setstates that Stoutfel low was sett led bydwarves and gnomes only “f i f ty yearsago” (AY 1950 or AC 950). I f ind thisdate completely unbel ievable, so I ’vearbitrari ly decided that Stoutfel low hasbeen inhabited by dwarves for more than5000 years. That could f i t with thedwarven migration from Skothar to Brunafter the Great Rain of Fire imagined byJohn Calvin in his Shimmering Landswork. Dwarves however could have beenpresent in the mountains of Alphatia fromeven more ancient t imes.

http://pandius.com/korzafth.html



http://pandius.com/ab4lfall.html



http://pandius.com/Mystara2300BC_SettingOverview.pdf

http://pandius.com/shimland.html

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The Seventh Wave: The

Taymorans

By 2000 BC (-1000 AY), the political situationin the Alphatian sea had changed quite a bit.The Taymoran humans of eastern Brun hadexpanded greatly, founding colonies in thewestern Isle of Dawn, particularly in thecentral part, the allied kingdom of Shumarwhere now modern Thothia lies and thecolony of Ymathra in modern Haven. One of

their greatest enemy, the lizardmen empireof Mogreth, was destroyed, and their formerland was now inhabited by humans related tothe Thothians, and likewise dominated byTaymorans.

In the rest of the Isle of Dawn, the Dunaelhuman culture had expanded greatly, whilethe related Dunharians were much reducedin mainland Alphatia, except for the powerfulkingdom of Rardish. Antalians still

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dominated over all of north eastern Brun andnorth western Alphatia. The Yannivey ruledthe north east, while the central forests wereagain dominated by fairy folks. Both cultures,like the kingdoms of Zaanidon and Rardish,were hard pressed by a hivebrood invasionwhich had engulfed large areas of modernForesthome and Bettelyn. Several newkingdoms had risen in the rest of theAlphatian sea. Hunak, a kingdom of stonegiants, in the southern Isle of Dawn hadcontained the expansion of the aranea ofAran. The Treadan city states were foundedon the modern Eadrin coast, probably byTeslan colonists, a people vaguely related tothe Jennites that at the time lived in modernMinaea, on Skothar. Internal Bellisaria, also

known as the Strifeland, was dominated bythe Tiref clans who were probably anasyidhian people.

And lastly, waves of Tanagoro colonists fromSkothar began to settle the Pearl Islands,mixing with the existing Mawa. It’s likely thatat the time minor settlements of Tanagoropeople existed also in other locations of thesouthern seas, like southern Bellisaria or theAlatians.

References:Roger Burns as aboveJames Mishler as aboveJohn Calvin as above and in the [Mystara2300 BC] Alphatia topic on the Piazza Forums

The Eight Wave: Humanoids

In 1700 BC, or probably some decadesearlier, Brun was swept by the first greathumanoid invasion. The powerful Antaliancivilization, and many other human andnonhuman cultures, were almost destroyed.The Alphatian sea region was not spared, ashumanoids were able to reach the Isle ofDawn, Ochalea and Alphatia through theland bridges that existed at the time. Suchbridges were later destroyed by climaticchanges and rising sea levels after theearthquakes that destroyed the Taymoracivilization from 1750 to 1700 BC.

Only the Pearl Islands, the Alatians andBellisaria were spared from this invasion,even if as we will see later, the first two werelater reached by orcs anyway.

In the Isle of Dawn, Fomorian giants andhumanoids allied, laying waste to Firbolg



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giants, fairies and Dunael communities. ManyTaymoran and Traldar colonies were sackedtoo. Even if they were not normally alliedwith humanoids, lupin tribes too reached theIsle of Dawn and Ochalea around this time.It’s not exactly clear when ogre magi reachedOchalea, but it must have been between1700 and 1000 BC.

In northern Alphatia the local antalians,yannivey, giants and fairies suffered the worstof the humanoid invasion, and started a long

struggle against them which did not end withthe Alphatian Landfall, and could beconsidered to continue even today.

References:James Mishler as aboveGiampaolo Agosta’s Gazetteer of Ochalea


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The Ninth Wave: Thothians

and Varellyans

By 1300 BC the humanoid expansion wascontained in most of the Alphatian Sea andeastern Brun, even if humanoids tribes stillruled vast lands. Two great civilizationsdeveloped at this time, the Thothians6 in theIsle of Dawn and the Varellyans in Davania.From their rise to the fall of their empire in500 BC, the Thothians dominated almost allof the Isle of Dawn, several regions ofEastern Brun and as far in the west as theSavage Coast, the Antalians and the Aryptregion in Davania. They had trade post inOchalea, Alphatia, Bellisaria and evenNorwold, and there are traces they reachedas far as modern Minaea in Skothar, or eventhe Tangor Empire in the far east. FromSouthern Davania, the Varellyans reached thesouthern coast of Bellisaria and the Alatians.It doesn’t seem that the Thothians and theVarellyans fought major wars, as they werefar enough from each other to easily sharetheir influence on the world.

References:LoZompatore on the Extent of the NithianEmpireMore about Varellya in Threshold issue #5

The Tenth Wave: Paesh, Gnolls

and Kara-Kara orcs

Displaced by some invasions in Skothar, thePaesh people, loosely related to theEthengarians of Brun, settled Ochaleaaround 1100 BC. Others of these people alsoreached Vulcania in Davania, and it’s possiblethey also created some small communities inBellisaria and elsewhere in the Alphatian sea.Around 1000 BC other humanoids invasionshit eastern Brun, in particular the gnollhordes that conquered Traladara for a shorttime and shortly later arrived in the Isle ofDawn, attacking Thothia. Also around thistime the southern seas from the region ofmodern Thyatis to Ochalea, the Alatians andthe Pearl Islands were attacked by Kara-Karaorcs, humanoids who had somehow learnednavigational skills somewhere. These wereprobably the last invasions of the Alphatiansea before the Landfall.

References:More about the Paesh in Threshold issue #5More about the Kara-Kara in “Advice forTraders in the Sea of Dread” by LoZompatorein Threshold issue #4

6 Thisers t ian cannot know this due to theSpel l of Obl iv ion, but Thothia was just acolony of Ni thia, see GAZ2 The Emirates ofYlaruam , Dawn of the Emperors Boxed Set ,Poor Wizard’s Almanacs .

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The Eleventh Wave: Alphatians

When the Alphatians arrived in 1000 BC (AY0) the great island was obviously inhabitedby many native people. Despite the officialhistory many Alphatian wizards like to learnand teach to others, it’s not true that suchpeople were quickly enslaved or assimilated.In many instances, it happened the other wayaround, and local people assimilated theAlphatians. In my study of the originalAlphatian language and culture, I havedeveloped the conviction that what we now

call “Alphatian” is truly borrowed in largeparts by the native cultures that alreadyexisted in the region. Even the Alphatianalphabet is clearly very similar to the onewhich was used by Milenians and Varellyans.I have strong evidence that Bettelyn existedalready as a deeply religious nation with thatsame name before the arrival of theAlphatians. Randel was called Rardish, but itwas already a militaristic nation with dragonriders. Haven was called Dafe, but it wasalready famous for its artisans and artists.Shavadze, which was the territory of modern

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Arogansa, already had a notorious arrogantaristocracy with a relevant number ofwizards.

It is true that now most Arogansan claimpure Alphatian blood, but I have investigatedenough the first years on Mystara to knowhow things really went. Alphatians oftenabsorbed by marriage or alliance nativewizards and, later, clerics too, because theyneeded their expertise on local magic. Howmany Cypric Alphatians will be surprised toknow they have bronze skinned Asyidhian orYannivey ancestors! And how many PureAlphatian do not suspect they have paleskinned Neathar or Antalian ancestors! Thatis also due to Alphatian peculiar society,where the daughter of a slave automaticallybecomes an aristocrat if she has magicalpower, or she has the means to learn clericalspells. In the first years, the subjected peoplelearned this “trick” rather quickly andexploited it, also because at the same timemany Alphatians had sons and daughtersborn without magical abilities. It should alsobe remembered that Alphatians had no socialclasses in their home world, no servants or

slaves. The stratification we can observetoday was definitely borrowed from nativecultures. It is now impossible to say, after2000 years, how much of each AlphatianKingdom’s culture comes directly from itsnative predecessors, but it is probably a veryrelevant part.

Even if it is historically undisputed that Ar,Sundsvall, Aasla, Citadel and Blackheart wereall settled by Alphatians shortly after Landfall,and naval expeditions reached Bellisaria,Trikelios and northern Alphatia just a fewyears later, that doesn’t mean at all that theEmpire ruled over a vast territory from thestart. Quite the contrary, indeed. Arremained independent for centuries, and thenearby kingdom of Argonath, comprisingmodern Frisland and Ambur, even if it wassettled by many Alphatians, did not officiallyjoin the empire until 405 AC (AY 1405).

The native kingdoms of Ymathra, Zaanidon,Dafe, Afotir, Shavadze and Rardish wereofficially under Alphatian rule by AY 100 (BC900), but the truth was not so simple.

Indeed in the very first centuries theemperor or the empress effectively ruledonly over Vertiloch and Theranderol. Havenwas hostile to the imperial throne for a longtime, as the Wall clearly demonstrates.Bettelyn was normally not hostile, butindependent anyway. Randel was a menaceso serious that the early emperors builtfortifications to defend Theranderol from itsraids, even if later that kingdom became loyalto the crown. Arogansa produced a numberof emperors and empress, but was oftenhostile to the current ruler when he or shewas not from its royal house. All this shouldclearly prove that the unity of Alphatia was a

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fiction to the benefit of foreigners for most ofthe history of the empire.

The Alphatians were instrumental indefeating the Hivebrood infestation in theeast, yet Foresthome was sparsely settled byAlphatians for many centuries and joined theempire only around AY 920 (BC 80). Frislandreached the modern extension only in AY1556 (BC 556), after the Kingdom ofOrzafeth and the antalians of Ystmarhavnwere assimilated. The humanoids of Limnand the Antalian people living on the northof the modern kingdom were conqueredonly after AY 910 (BC 90), even if the firsttreaties were signed already in AY 500, andLimn has been recognized as a true kingdomonly a hundred years ago.

Stonewall was settled by many native andalphatian without magical abilities, whoaccepted to join the empire only after AY900, when they received assurances that theycould have the same rights as wizards andclerics in their territory. The same happenedwith Stoutfellow.

The colonizations efforts outside Alphatiaproper too were largely exaggerated insubsequent chronicles. For example,Alphatians reached Esterhold as early as AY800 (BC 200) but effectively controlled onlySkyfyr and some trading outpost for manycenturies after, and even now the empire’scontrol over internal lands is more wishfulthan real.

Other colonial expeditions, like the failedone in Norwold by Alinor in AY 655 (345 BC)were more private initiatives than somethingsanctioned by the Imperial crown, and the

same happened in many other lands, like thesettlement of the Alatians and Bellisaria.

The relation with clerical magic wasproblematic, because the Alphatians did notworship Immortals in their original world.Yet magical power was grudgingly respected,even if given by mysterious powers. In someplaces, like Bettelyn, clerics becamedominant. Elsewhere they were mistrustedfor centuries. Many went to Ochalea, firstsettled by Alphatians in AY 200 (800 BC) orthe Alatian islands. When some Alphatianreached immortality and their cults spread,religion became much more popular inAlphatia. Yet even in modern times, manyAlphatians are still quite indifferent towardthe Immortals.

References:See James Ruhland’s “Alphatian History,revised” for an Alphatian point on view onthe Empire’s historySee “The Conquest of Alphatia - The EarlyYears” by Jamuga Khan and CaptainEbenezum for early Alphatian history, evenif I have partially departed from theirhistory.See Geoff Gander’s “The Jarldom ofYstmarhavn” and “Antalians of the East” formotre about Ystmarhavn and the AntaliansSee Geoff Gander’s “Alphatia - theSuppression Wars (AY 774 - AY 1515)” formore about Argonath

http://pandius.com/ahistrev.html

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http://pandius.com/ystmar.html

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http://pandius.com/suppress.html

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The Twelfth Wave: Shiye Elves,

Traldar and Milenians

In addition to what I said above, in the veryfirst centuries of the Alphatian presence inMystara, the expansion of the empire wasalso limited by the Thothians and by theShiye elves. The Thothians were immediatelyfriendly with the Alphatians, some sagesindeed say that they guided the Alphatianmigration to Mystara. They shared theirmagical knowledge too and were

fundamental in aiding the Alphatians adaptto the different magic of the new planet.

Therefore peace was kept with the Thothiansfor as long as their empire existed. Alphatiaassimilated them in AY 500, after a greatcrisis had collapsed the Thothian empire andits Brunian colonies7. But while theThothians declined, another power rose inDavania, reaching up to the southern shoresof the Alphatian sea, the Milenian Empire.

7 See the Ninth Wave and note 5 above.

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Alphatia had problems in the central andnorthern part of its own island too. TheShiye elves arrived in AY 200 (800 BC), andsome among my people say that thishappened because they were called by thelocal fairy folks, worried about the Alphatianencroachment. The Kingdom of Shiye Lawrremained independent from Alphatia, and attimes hostile, until AY 1000, with an earlieralliance by AY 700. The northern elvenkingdom of Ilmaryl was independent until AY734 (BC 266), when it fell to dark powersand became eventually the infamous land ofBlackheart. This latter kingdom didn’t jointhe empire until it was forced to, by AY 1100(AC 100). As already anticipated above, Limnand Foresthome became part of the Empireonly in AY 910 and 920, but they were mostlyinhabited by many humanoids and fairy folks,as they still are. Argonath, part of modernFrisland and Ambur, officially joined theempire only in AY 1405, the rest of Frislandonly in AY 1556 after the defeat of Orzafeth.

The story is really different from eachkingdom and territory. Some, Ar and Ochaleafor example, were settled by Alphatians inthe early years, but had no intention to jointhe Empire. This was true even for Havenand Randel in the early years, and forBlackheart and Argonath for severalcenturies. Others, like Frisland, Foresthomeor Bellisaria were culturally assimilated onlyrecently, and not completely. Others, likeShiye Lawr, Stoutfellow, Limn and Thothia,joined the Empire, but certainly are notdominated by ethnic Alphatians. Others, likeStonewall or Bettelyn are inhabited byAlphatians, but consider themselves verydifferent from the “typical” Alphatian cultureand mindset. The Empire has no culturalunity and its political unity is never

guaranteed, and that explains why it wasnever able to dominate Mystara, andprobably never will . Still, it has been able toconquer and rule vast territories, and tounite to face great threats and externalenemies.

One of such threats was the Milenian Empire,which by 600 BC was ever more powerfuland had founded colonies in the Isle ofDawn, Bellisaria, Minaea and the Alatians.The Alphatians traded and warred with theEmpire, which often used piracy by proxiesto hurt Alphatian interests. Such proxieswere often the Traldars, or the Thyatians,who probably were sent north by theMilenians for the exact purpose of creatingproblems to Alphatia.

From AY 700 to 900 (300 to 100 BC) theAlphatian empire became more and morehostile toward the Milenians, hence the

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decision to conquer Aeria, Ochalea andThyatis itself.

The Milenians were not pleased, they foughtback in all the southern seas, and keep onharassing Alphatian trade until their ultimatefall in AY 950 (50 BC). The Alphatians hadreason to think that, with Milenia gone, theworld was theirs to take. But they werewrong.

References:See “The Fall of Ilmaryl” by Geoff Ganderfor more about Ilmaryl.See “Orzafeth – the Unspeakable Kingdom”and “Orzafeth, the Truth Revealed!!” formore about Orzafeth - both by GeoffGanderFor more about Milenia see Threshold issue#5 and also “Extent and expansion phasesof the Milenian Empire” by LoZompatore

The Thirteenth Wave:

Thyatians and Minaeans

In AY 1000 (0 BC) the famous or infamousThyatian rebellion happened, and theThyatians were able to exploit the Alphatianweakness and conquer not only half of theIsle of Dawn, but also Ochalea and the PearlIslands. At the same time, Minaea wasfounded by Milenian colonists, who lost notime to harass the Alphatians in Bellisaria andbeyond.

So began a century long struggle with bothpeople, even if the latter one was toneddown by Alphatian chronicles as simplepiracy.

In the first six centuries of the secondmillennium on Mystara, the Alphatianshowever were able to complete theunification of their own island, with Frislandand Qeodhar finally joining the empire withthe present borders by AY 1600 (AC 600)after the fall of Orzafeth and Ystmarhavn. Themap below shows the extent of the twoempires circa that year. Alphatia had not fullcontrol of Bellisaria and Esterhold yet, andthe colonies in Norwold were endangered bydragon attacks. A first foothold in Brun wasestablished in Alasiya, where a two centurieswar with the natives and the Thyatiansbegan. Thyatis in the meantime hadexpanded in Ierendi and Minrothad, even ifits control of such land will be short lived.

In the following centuries the strugglebetween the two empires continued, and byAY 1800 (800 AC) the Alphatians hadconsolidated their domains in Norwold,Alasiya, Esterhold and Minaea, and even

http://pandius.com/ilmaryl.html

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occupied, for a short time, the area ofmodern Glantri.

Thyatis had lost Ierendi and Minrothad, sofor a time it seemed that Alphatia was gainingthe upper hand.

References:“History of the Thyatian People” by JamesRuhlandList of articles about Minaea in the Vaults ofPandius

That proved to be a short living illusion, asthe colonies in Glantri and Alasiya were soonlost, and the Alphatians seemed about to beexpelled from Brun. A new struggle began inNorwold, with the Thyatians founding thecolony of Oceansend and advancing in thenorthern Isle of Dawn, and the Alphatianresisting in the northern part.

Combined with the Thyatian conquest ofTraladara, this seemed a time in whichThyatis could gain the upper hand.


http://pandius.com/minaea.html

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The Spike assault of AY 1959 changed thepicture once again with Alphatia conqueringall the Isle of Dawn and Thyatis itself, thusreaching its maximum historical extension, afeat which was replied in AY 2009. In bothoccasion the conquest lasted just a fewmonths, and then the Thyatians were back,and expanded also in Davania with theirconquest of the Hinterland.

Alphatia however gained something inNorwold, as the Thyatians lost control of

Oceansend. The Alphatian claim on allNorwold was however more political thanreal.

After the great war and the great earthquake8

that hit Alphatia at the end of AY 2009,Thyatis conquered the Alatian islands and a

8 In my campaign, Alphat ia was hi t by theDoomsday device as per Wrath of theImmorta ls boxed set t imel ine, but not sunk.A part of i t s populat ion was s t i l l moved tothe Hol low World, and the Empire wasgr ievously weakened.

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relevant part of the Isle of Dawn fromDunadale to Trikelios, but its advance waseventually stopped. Some treaties later, theIsle of Dawn is divided again, with Helskirand Dunadale theoretically independent inthe new Kingdom of Heldun.

APPENDIX:

THE PAST OF THYATIS

As I was examining past cultures andcivilizations of mainland Alphatia, I decidedto do some researches on the past of Thyatistoo.

Before the Great Rain of Fire, this region wasapparently inhabited by giants in themountains and by some human cultures in

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the lowlands, called Albai and Tjeset9.Apparently they were both descended fromToralai Neathar. The informations aboutthese people are scarce at best, for so far Ihave only ascertained that Albai were landdwelling tribes, while the Tjeset had relevantnavigational skills.

After the Great Rain of Fire the region wasslowly taken over by the Taymoran culture,

which came to dominate the whole areabefore its fall around 1700 BC.

From this time to the arrival of the Thyatiansin 600 BC several cultures developed in theregion. In the area between modern Kerendaand Thyatis city the Etrusna cultureflourished between 1500 and 100 BC, withits peak around 600 and 500 BC.

The Etrusna were a sophisticated cultureinfluenced by Taymorans, Thothians and

9 Br ief ly descr ibed by me in my art ic le “NewBlackmoor, 3050 BC” in Threshold i ssue #2



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later Milenians, and the dominant power inthe region for several centuries. When thelate Thothian Empire started to oppressthem, they allied with the Thyatians and theKerendans to fight back, eventually blendingwith them. Such a blending was not devoidof conflicts. Initially the Etrusna clearlydominated militarily and culturally thenewcomers, but from 500 to 200 BCThyatians and Kerendans eventuallyassimilated or conquered their major cities.The Albai lived in the area of modern

Machetos, and were the same people frombefore the Great Rain of Fire. The Thyatianempire eventually conquered them and therelated people living in the area of modernBiazzan, but only after several campaigns andrelevant difficulties, and not before 200 AC.

The region of Mesonia was the first onesettled by the Thyatians and apparently mostof the native population happily merged withthem to get rid of the Thothian empire.

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The eastern part of Thyatis however was alsoheavily settled on the coast by Doulakkicities. The Doulakki were a culture probablyloosely related to the ancient Traldars andthe Taymorans which allied firstly with theThonian Empire, and later with the Mileniancolonies of the Isle of Dawn. Each city wasrich, powerful and fiercely independent, andthe Thyatians had to struggle until 200 AC tofully assimilate them.

Indeed when the Alphatians conqueredThyatis in 190 BC what they really conqueredwas a collection of different cities andcultures. The Thyatians were the ones wholead the rebellion against Alphatia from 2 BCbut, even when they won, the land was by nomeans completely in their control. Customsand dialects of the native people survive inthe more isolated regions of mainlandThyatis, for example in all the internal lands,and in the south of Hattia.

Some regions of Thyatis, the mountains inparticular, are still in the hands of giants,ogres, kobolds and dragons and the Empirehas little or no authority in such territories,even now.

That is what I have learned so far on theancient Thyatian history. The mostinteresting thing was to see that indeed, ashappened in Alphatia, in Thyatis too thenative populations were not so easilyassimilated as the official imperial historywould like us to believe.

And, as happened in Alphatia, I think it’squite obvious that the native cultures had agreater impact on the formation of modernThyatis than many Thyatians currently know.

References:

The Doulakki were created by the Mystarancommunity as Mystaran-greeks living in theKnown World before the Thyatians, foundersof Cynidicea, Selenica, Akorros and manyother cities, more information van be foundin the articles listed here in The Vaults. InThyatis, they would be the equivalents of theGreek colonies of ancient Italy as decribed inthis Wikipedia entry.

All the cultures of ancient Thyatis would bebased on the cultures of ancient Italy. TheAlbai on Ligurians, the Etrusna on theEtruscans which I also placed in the HollowWorld in Threshold issue #9. Teria shouldbe based on Elba. Mesonia should be basedon ancient Latium and its populations, andother regions of central Italy. Retia and Alatiashould be based on Veneti and Reti. Caryashould be based on Sardinia, as explained byGiulio Caroletti in his article in this sameissue of Threshold. Tallia and Mosia shouldbe based on Campania, Apulia and Calabria,and other regions of southern Italy. Caniashould be based on Sicily.

Overleaf: Map of Thyatis circa 1000 BC

http://search.freefind.com/servlet/freefind?id=574922&pageid=r&query=doulakki&mode=Find+pages+matching+ALL+words

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Magna_Graecia

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ligures

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Etruscan_civilization

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Elba

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Latium

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Adriatic_Veneti

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rhaetian_people

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nuragic_civilization

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_Italy

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Southern_Italy

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_Sicily

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THYATIS CIRCA 1000 BC

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Alphatian Alphabet

I. THE ALPHATIAN

ALPHABET

Alphatian is customarily written from left toright. It’s a script of 27 characters; 18consonants, 6 vowels (A, Œ, H, N, Ω, and И),and 2 semivowels (Y and U)1.

Every letter is a symbol of a universalconcept. Some of the letters representmonths of the year and schools of magic.

Every letter has 2 proper names. If only 1name is given above it’s usually the Cyprianname. The last 3 letters, Sula, Azha, andBury, were added after Landfall to representforeign sounds. They have 2 names but don’thave a secondary pronunciation that’s onlyused for archaic words.

Alphatian is the language used for spellbooksand magic user scrolls. Spellcasters fromdifferent nations that speak differentlanguages don’t pronounce the words of aspell the same way but they will use the samewords if both of them got the spell from thesame teacher. They will usually know howsomeone who speaks another dialect wouldpronounce the words.

Alphatian has changed as the centuries passand some of the letters that had distinct

1 For the a lphabet, I used 22 Greek let ters ,4 Cyr i l l ic le t ters , and 1 modif ied Greek-Lat inlet ter .

by Jacques (Jack) Riesling

A [Alpha/Ar] K [Kypri] T [Tar]B [Beta] Λ [Lambda/Amphi] U [Isla]Г [Gamma] X [Shu] Ф [Phi/Akasha]Δ [Delta] M [Mu] Ш [Chi]Œ [Andru] Ξ [Ksi] Ψ [Psi/Hypno]Z [Zetta] N [Nu/Nyx] Ω [Om]H [Eta/Eir] Π [Pi/Mystra] З [Sula]Θ [Theta] P [Rad/Hast] Ж [Azha]Y [Yod] Σ [Sud] И [Bury]

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Alphatian Alphabet

sounds in the past now sound the same.Some of the original sounds have vanishedfrom the Common tongue as it’s spoken inVertiloch (which has changed from boar-tae-loch to vair-tee-lock and kept the originalspelling of BHRTYΛΩШ).

Sages believe Andru (Œ) and Chi (Ш) wereadded to the Alphatian Alphabet shortly afterthe conquest of the Cyprians. Some sagesbelieve Nu/Nyx () was a consonant.

Every letter has an opposite that negates it.

Alpha (beginnings) is negated by Omega(endings). Sula (animal or beast) was addedto the Alphabet to negate Beta (plant ortree). Azha may represent chaos, wilderness,or a waste land. It was added to negateGamma. Delta (light) is opposed by Shu(darkness).

Akasha negates Myst because memoryresolves questions. Psi negates Akashabecause dreams interfere with memory. Mystnegates Akasha because questions engage themind and disrupt a trance. For the other 12cases, negation means almost the same thingas opposite.

Chi sounds like Kypri in the most commondialect of Alphatian. It was a guttural 'k' in theoriginal Sundsvall dialect. Spellcasters mightsay both letters the same way when they'retalking but they would be sure to say themdifferently when they're chanting.

Spellcasters might use Myst in a confusionspell and Phi in a dispel confusion spell butthey're more likely to use Eir and Ksi becauseKsi marks the spot.

Spellcasters would use Delta in a light spelland Shu in a darkness spell. If they used bothit would probably be a wasted effort.

Many spells have a reversed version. Tarwould be used in the slow spell because itnegates Rad/Hast. Ksi would be used indetect invisible.

Zetta and Sula might also sound the same.

Bury (cold or undead) was added to negateAndru (entity). The 5th letter representsintelligent life in any form and may not implyliteracy or speech. It may be extended togoblins, hutaakans, and peasants along withelves and humans.

Pi or Mystra represents women, circles, andmysterious things. Phi or Akasha representsmemory and negates it. Pi won’t work tocounter the influence of Phi in a spell but Psi

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Alphatian Alphabet

or Hypno (dreams) must be used. Pi willnegate Psi.

Eir may represent mist but it’s morecommonly used to represent deception orhidden things. It negates and is negated byKsi, which represents truth and openness.

Kypri may represent bravery or skill. Itnegates and is negated by Chi, which is calledHollow and often means boastful orvainglorious.

Amphi represents the deep and Nyx thefirmament, they negate each other. Yodnegates and is negated by Mu. Zetta negatesand is negated by Isla. Theta (infinity or theimmortals) negates and is negated by Sud(addition). Rad (rebel) negates and isnegated by Tar (tyrant). The true meaning forall of these symbols is debatable.

II. THE HISTORY OF

ALPHATIA

Sunville (ΣNBHΛ) was known as Fort Abel(ABHΛ) before it became a town, the City ofSundown, and finally the Capital City ofSundsvall.

Sages that study Fort Abel add thatGreenwood (originally spelled BABA) wasknown as Fort Babel (BABHΛ) or Betaville(BHTABHΛ). It was built to the northeast onthe shores of a lake that the Yanifey called Llyn.

Zettaville (ZHTABHΛ) was founded in thesame year as Fort Abel and it came to becalled Citadel. It became the capital of anation when the King of Bettelyn (BHTAΛY)petitioned the Emperor of Ar as a fellowsovereign. Theranderol (ΘHRNΔHRΩΛ) wasthe next nation to attract a king, who namedhis capital Errolyn.

Ar, the archmage who built floating islands,arrived with Aasla and Emperor Kerothar. Hefounded the City of Bluenose with sevenother archmages. He founded the City ofSepphoris and raised a Hanging Palace forthe Emperor.

Vertiloch was recognized as a kingdom abouta century after the King of Theranderol tookhis place beside the monarchs of Ar andBettelyn. The people of Sundsvall saw thatCitadel had grown wealthy as it gainedinfluence and they wanted the same benefits.

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Alphatian Alphabet

Each of the 4 kingdoms favored a magicaldiscipline but wasn’t organized into an actualschool. Each of them had their own symbols.The Alphatians believed there were 12magical disciplines but didn’t agree on theirnames.

Arogansa petitioned the Imperial Court whenSepphoris became the capital of Ar.Foresthome, Greenspur, and Shiye-Lawrwere autonomous regions for a long timebefore they were formally recognized. Havenwas a duchy for almost a century.

Arogansa, Foresthome, and Haven choseappropriate symbols to rival the 4 kingdoms.Randel started its own School of Magic andseceded from the Kingdom of Theranderol.Bluenose and Errolyn built schools in relateddisciplines. Haven was opposed to themilitant attitude of Randel and didn’t build aschool in its favored discipline. Foresthomebuilt a school in the wilderness that taughtmind tricks and was more popular than the 3schools of war studies.

Ar corresponds to divination, the hue ofazure, and the stone of turquoise. Sepphorisis its capital. Bettelyn corresponds toconjuration, the hue of ebony, and the stoneof onyx. Citadel is its capital. Theranderolcorresponds to evocation, the hue of gold,and the stone of topaz. Errolyn is its capital.Vertiloch corresponds to alteration, the hueof emerald, and the stone of jade. Sundsvallis its capital.

Arogansa corresponds to necromancy, thehue of silver, and the stone of crystal.Bluenose is its capital. Foresthomecorresponds to illusion, the hue of bronze,and the stone of amber. Greenwood is its

capital. Haven corresponds to enchantment,the hue of ruby, and the stone of jasper.Aasla is its capital.

Ambur, the next kingdom to be recognized,established a School of Fine Arts that didn’ttrain spell casters. Shiye-Lawr was finallyrecognized as a kingdom. Greenspur wasrecognized and established a School ofAviation that accepted fighters, magic users,and clerics. Skyreach, Alfeish, and Eagret arethe primary cities. Alfeish seems like a youngcity when compared to Citadel because itnever had a construction boom or bust, andbecause most of the natives are elves that canlive for 800 years or more.

Limn was conquered and became a kingdomnearly 5 centuries after Landfall. Its capital,Trollhatten, is a relatively young city.Blackheart and its capital of Shraek wereestablished by refugees from Limn. Itattracted potion brewers who sought privacy.They met with arcane crafters and potionbrewers and found common ground. The 3factions established a private school of itemcreation.

Eadrin, Frisland, Stonewall, and Stoutfelloware the young nations of Alphatia and theirprimary cities are Archport, Shiell, Draco,and Denwarf-Hurgon.

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Alphatian Alphabet

III. THE ALPHATIAN

SCHOOLS OF MAGIC

Not all of the 8 schools of magic have orshould have physical locations. Magic usersshould have access to spells from everyschool but many spells are considered tradesecrets and seldom taught to anyone exceptfor specialists. All specialists should haveaccess to the School of Divination to getdetect magic and read magic.

Specialists in the School of Abjuration arecalled banishers. Specialists in the School ofEnchantment are called beguilers. The otherschools train diviners, illusionists, invokers,necromancers, summoners, and transmuters.

Specialists in a magical school take on of theletters of the Alphatian Alphabet as a symbol.Specialists in alteration, conjuration,divination, and evocation use the letters Λ,N, A, and K. They have more prestige thanthe other schools.

Specialists in the School of Necromancy tendto be unpopular in most places. Thothia (theDominion of the Immortals) is a notable

exception. They use И as a symbol.Specialists in abjuration, enchantment, andillusion use P, U, and H.

In Alphatia, scholars who study animal lifeare called naturalists and scholars who studyplant life are called herbalists. Somenaturalists are beguilers and some of themdon’t cast spells. All of them use U as asymbol. Druids and herbalists use B as asymbol. Druids don’t benefit from formalstudies and some of them aren’t even literate.

Artificers, shape changers, and snakecharmers are obscure schools of magic thatused Œ, З, and Σ as symbols. They’rementioned because they correspond to theother letters of the Alphabet that give namesto the months.

Bards, clerics, and magic users aresometimes included as schools of magic.Bards and clerics don’t learn how to castmore spells by taking classes. Magic usersdon't agree on what letter should symbolizethe 10th class, the reasons why arecomplicated. They agree that clerics are the12th class and they should use Theta as asymbol.

Specialists get better spells in their ownschools and don’t have access to 2 opposedschools of magic. Diviners don’t getconjuration or evocation spells.Necromancers don’t get enchantment orillusion spells. The other schools don’t getnecromancy spells and spells from 1 otherschool. Abjuration and enchantment areopposed schools. Alteration and conjurationare opposed schools. Evocation and illusionare opposed schools.

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A Gazetteer of Limn

This article presents and compares versionsof Limn maps published in the MystaranAlmanac (AC 1018) with those developed byBruce Heard on his blog1 circa AC 1000/AY2000 with a brief general description (withthe first part focusing on the north) andproposes an alternative to unite the unusualpassages in each version of the maps in orderto put them together. This article also makesextensive use of the material previouslydeveloped by Geoff Gander2 in hisdescriptions of the region.

INTRODUCTION:

The situation of Limn attracts the curiousfrom all over the Empire: sages,anthropologists, historians, archaeologists,scholars in zoology, students of monstrologyand magicians in general. However, most ofthese just give up early and abandon the ideaof living in Limn when they realize themagnitude of hostile environment, the socialfrictions and the ever present violence. Amultitude of races and groups live in thisnewly formed kingdom (circa AY 1900).Despite being a very small kingdom, byAlphatian standards, Limn is indeed a veryspecial one and during the centuries theAlphatian Empire allowed many unusual andmonstrous races to dwell in this stretch ofland. The northern region of Limnexperienced constant conflict betweenAntalian tribes, goblinoids and occasionalmonsters from the region and those comingfrom the mountains.

1 More info see topic “The Alphat ianProvince of Limn” on Bruce Heard’s b log

2 According to the ar t ic les “Torpes” and“Antal ians of the East” developed by GeoffGander at the Vaul ts of Pandius

A GazetteeR

of Limn

By Hausman Santos and Alexandre de Luna

http://bruce-heard.blogspot.co.uk/2012/05/alphatian-province-of-trollhattan.html


http://pandius.com/torpes.html




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TRACES OF NORTH

HISTORY

"While Østheim was still in its infancy, otherrealms were being founded by otherYstmarhavners, further south. Some 150years after Haakon achieved his first victoryagainst the Yanifey, Ylsa of the SharpenedBlade conquered the citadel of Terkyn, andrenamed it Grønborg. Her dominion, alsonamed Grønborg, occupied much of what isnow coastal Trollhattan, while her ownfortress was centered on what is nowTorpes."

(Part of a lecture on Antalian history )

Much of the history of northern Limn has itsbeginnings when Ylsa conquered the citadelof Terkyn, and renamed the area along theSpear of Bith-Xul and the actual Bay ofTorpes, Grønborg.

In BC 650/AY 350, Ylsa founded the realm ofGrønborg, which, though it was sparselypopulated, more than made up for thisweakness through the ferocity of its warriors.

The soldiers of Grønborg did not sell theirservices to others, and they did not seek toexpand beyond what could be easily held.

The jarldoms of Gronborg and Marklandfrequently clashed over territory. Markland,which was centred on the port of Taraldsstadand extended as far east as the KerotharMountains, is little more than ruins inmodern times. There were also somegoblinoid tribes that dominated the foothillsof the mountains and occasionally did settlethe hills of Ankh-Kahru (between Bay ofEanna and sound of Ishme) when they wouldimpose their will on local tribes and takecontrol of the iron mines for craftingweapons, until finally being driven back tothe passes in Sheb-Talai.

ALPHATIAN INVASION

This reasonably stable situation changedwhen an Alphatian invasion occurred in BC116/AY 884, which saw all but the city ofGrønborg itself fall to the invaders (besidesthe problems with the Trollhattan pit to thesouth preventing colonization in that area,which will be discussed later), though theAlphatians lost over 10,000 men in theirefforts. Imagine an impressive defensive wallalong the neck of the peninsula, some ofwhich may still stand today, though modernTorpes is built upon the ruins of Grønborgcity. Between BC 109/AY 891 and BC 72/AY928, Alphatia was actually forced into pullingback several miles from the city, so ferociouswere the counterattacks by theYstmarhavners.

After its seizure, the region remainedunsettled by Alphatians for years.

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RISE OF TORPES

Roughly 200 years after the fall of Grønborg,and while the Alphatians were stillconcentrated east of the Kerothar Mountains,a few battered vessels sailed in from thesouthwest. A small group of Traldar, who hadleft their homeland, washed up among theruins of Grønborg where they sheltered.Eventually, after the Alphatians learned of thedisplaced Tarpanadeans' history, they offeredto the Traldar the possibility of establishing alocal colony in exchange for fealty to theEmpire. The Tarpanadeans accepted, on thecondition that they were allowed to governthemselves as they saw fit. The Alphatiansagreed, so long as taxes were paid, findingthis reasonable under the circumstances.

During that period, the town's name slowlychanged, as newcomers mispronounced it,and as some of the old lore of the originalsettlers faded. Today, it is now known as"Torpes", a contraction of its old name,though the name "Tarpanades" still appearson official documents and proclamationsfrom the town council. About a few yearsbefore the formation of Limn, to helprepresent imperial interests on site, anAlphatian economist, Xandaram, wasdesignated to administer an embassy in thecity as well as represent the voice of Alphatiaon the city council.

Some Traldar families have gainedprominence in the region includingTarpanades, the original surviving clan,Dracor and Mitrestu, besides other smallerhouses. Other families, such as theMarthedren, Hundraal and Thorberg, haveAntalian blood.

PLACES OF THE NORTH

(See maps on following pages)

Baenil

Ruled by Hanna Marthedren, the Iron Lady,the village's economy revolves around fishingand refining of iron ore extracted from thehills near Remina. A guild of Per-Atúrdwarves provides services to the Marthedrenclan with iron refining, with the refined ironthen transported to Remina and sent by ferryto Ishme. One member of the "Iron Guild",Master Dulnor, is actually an agent of theLibrarians3 investigating the traffic of bannedsubstances from Frisland to Limn and thewidespread use of these drugs amonggoblinoids working in Remina.

Tharmug (an acteon druid) has sent Grabulg(another actaeon) and his foresters (not tobe confused with the forester class inThyatis) to investigate numerous sightings ofa strange creature in the hills and forests.Reports of the beast claim it is more than 5meters tall and has 4 arms, its body coveredwith thick black fur and having a huge wolf'shead4. Sightings are always followed by thebrutal deaths of travelers or entire families offarmers. Cattle mutilations have also beenrecorded. The druid suspects that some beastfrom Frisland crossed the mountain borderand is loose in the field, but attempts to track

3 See about Librar ians in the “Grand Duchyof Fr is ia” on Bruce Heard blog

4 The beast i s actual ly a Howl ing Fiend, see“Wrath of the Immortals” page 108 or aGlabrezu - see the “Complete Monstermanual” for AD&D stat is t ics , or thed20PFSRD websi te for d20 s tats

http://bruce-heard.blogspot.co.uk/2013/06/Fris02.html


http://www.lomion.de/cmm/tanatgla.php


http://www.d20pfsrd.com/bestiary/monster-listings/outsiders/demon/glabrezu

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http://bruce-heard.blogspot.co.uk/

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A Gazetteer of Limn

http://pandius.com/limn2.html

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A Gazetteer of Limn

http://bruce-heard.blogspot.co.uk/

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A Gazetteer of Limn

the beast down, mundane or magical, haveproven fruitless. Grabulg has recently sent arequest for help to the druid circle and aletter with his concerns to queen Mellora.

Remina

Ruled by Svart Thorberg, the village controlsthe mining of iron in the hills and is a havenfor gangs and criminals who provide variousservices to the miners, from food and drinksto gambling and prostitution. The Thorbergreceive a large percentage of all transactionsconducted in the city, except those related toiron ore itself, since these are strictlysupervised by the Marthedren in Baenil. Asmall militia led by the Thors, the half-breedbastards of Hafthor-Old Crow (Leader of theThorberg clan) keeps things under control inthe city and mines. Those stupid enough toviolate the "laws" (failure to pay theThorberg) are fed to Svart pet dogs in thevillage square, an event which is alwayseagerly awaited by the residents.

Around the city there are numerousgoblinoid camps housing the miners thatwork in the hills. These camps have alwaysbeen a haven for drug dealers, however, acouple of years ago a new drug emerged andspread like wildfire in the camps, the Kala; amixture of herbs coming from Frisland. Usersof the drug have an almost supernaturalresilience, they do not need to eat, rest orsleep, they feel a huge euphoria and workwhilst hallucinating greatly increases theirmining quota, which generates more money,which is in turn used to buy more and moredrugs. After some time, users begin to have astrange behavior that the miners call “thewither". Afflicted miners start to hear voicesand wander aimlessly and many disappear inthe hills, but as ore production has risensharply, the clans do not give importance tothese disappearances.

Elendra Dracor has sent agents to find outmore about the Kala and other herbs used byThorberg to break the domination of theCount over the clan. She plans to use themto break the bond of blood that binds her toLord Mizilikazi (Leader of House Dracor),however, she has not had much success sofar, and one of her agents disappearedrecently near the old abandoned salt minesouth of Remina.

Hills of Akh-Kharu

Old tales always permeate these forested hillswhich abound with mystery andsuspicion. The place long ago ceased tohouse sylvan creatures5 when the oldconflicts between goblinoids and Antaliansintensified with the wars involving Grønborg

5 About wee fo lk see TSR supplement “PC1:Tal l Tales of the Wee Folk” for more info.

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and Markland. They say a last resistance wasmade here against Alphatian invaders. Amagical effect was triggered by witches andold wise women with fairy assistance(Alphatian scholars suspect some ancientwitchcraft from Grønborg witches andperhaps some of the old fairy winter court ofFrisland). As a result, the forest becameinhospitable with haunting tales: peoplewandering lost in the mists and fog, soundsof screaming and crying, people whodisappear and, recently, monsters thatappear and disappear next to corpses anddead people. Many of the forest beings nowlive in the southern regions of Zerantha, Alal-Xul and Maskin-Xul forest.

Recently Tarmugh sent his friend Grabulg(see above) along with some allies fromZerantha to investigate the reports of suchcreatures.

Sheb-Talai (Winterfall Hills)

Lord Bussnox6 rules this castle and the Akh-Kharu Hills. The niece of the Count, ElendraDracor, also assists in monitoring theextraction of iron ore in the hills. Bussnox ismore insular and reserved, preferring toremain isolated within their little castle andout of their fields. The borderlands north ofSheb, Talai, are patrolled and manned byfomorian giants and giant bats, besidesregular troops in the Castle from KingDrushiye.

Migul & Ishme

Migul is an outpost keep north of Torpes,guarding the coast and the passage of shipsin the region.

Ishme is a port / cargo crossing point whichferries people and ships goods along theshores on the Sound of Ishme. A tribe ofseveral smaller goblinoid clans help theAntalians in local shops (including someevaluators and dwarven guild members fromRemina and Baenil).

Dagan

The keep oversees the activities of obsidianmines where slaves do the extraction.

Murtagh Dracor inspects the mine's activitiestogether with men of the Marthedren clan.

Harpies from the mountains and giants (hilland mountain) hunt any fugitives. Corpses ofslaves and conscripts are brought up to thedomains of the castles of Dracor and Mitrestu.

6 This character was or ig inal ly presented in“Mystaran Almanac AC1019” (avai lable atthe Vaul ts of Pandius) .

http://pandius.com/pwa1019a.html

http://pandius.com/pwa1019a.html

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Marthedren

The Tower of Marthedren is the main clanholding east of Torpes and lies along theonly travel route between Ishme and the Bayof Torpes. There is a large hall where theclan leaders and representatives of minorhouses and families gather to discuss thepolitical and economic cases and to managethe clan's actions in Torpes and daily tradeaffairs in Ishme.

NPC GALLERY

House Dracor:

Dracor retains the loyalty of smaller housesby Charming the young inheritors of thesehouses when they are taken to the castle toserve as pages and squires, in order to learnthe arts of politics and war. Repeated use ofCharm, over the many years of service,ensures an unwavering and unconsciousloyalty, but it also has a terrible side effect -the subconscious struggling to free itselffrom mental domination generates aberrantpersonality traits that manifest themselves inmany different ways.

Count Mzilikazi (Lord)

(CN male human vampire 9HD)

Likely location: Castle Dracor

Political alignment: favors the Marthedrenand Mitrestu

Duties: Oversees the Bay of Torpes andKerothar Mountains

Personality: Lord Mzilikazi7 (usually knownas "the Count") has family kinship with theMitrestu8. His story begins with theexpansion of Traldar families for theexploitation of mining in the KerotharMountains. The Mitrestu have magicalabilities, especially within the arts ofnecromancy. Centuries ago Lord Mzilikazihelped in the capture of a local vampire formagical experiments by the Mitrestuinvolving necromancy and longevity spells.The event attracted the notice of an ancientnosferatu in his crypt (a likely elder vampirefrom some lost culture or unknowncivilization) who quickly turned him into avampire, and still controls him (see TheElder Vampire Sleeper in the DM Plotinformations section below). As count, LordMzilikazi has some freedom to rule hisdomains, he also enjoys clan support of theold houses and clans and now also analliance with king Drushiye. The alliance withthe Mitrestu and Marthedren has lasted along time making the political forces in thenorth relatively stable. An order of avenger

7 Known as “The Count” this character waspresented on Mystaran Almanac AC1019(avai lable at the Vaul ts of Pandius) .

8 Cast le Mitrestu was presented as seen inLimn map in Mystaran Almanac AC1018(avai lable at the Vaul ts of Pandius) .

HOUSE of DRACOR

http://pandius.com/pwa1019.html

http://pandius.com/pwa1018.html

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knights led by the Count (Order of Dracor)form an organized military structure alliedwith the Antalians, especially with theMarthedren.

Lord Bussnox

(CE male human nosferatu/W11)

Likely Location: Sheb-Talai (CastleWinterfall)

Political alignment: He favors theThorberg

Duties: Administration of the hills of Ahk-Kharu;Oversees the Bay of Eanna and Ishme

Personality: The "elder cousin" of the Countis a cautious and cunning man, used tocourtly games and the arts of politics. Heleaves Elendra, his younger “daughter”, totake care of the provincial administration, ashe considers such mundane activitiesbeneath him. He despises Murtagh, hisyounger nephew, seeing him as an ineptthug and unworthy of Dracor’s name.Elendra, on the other hand, he considers auseful tool, but one that needs to be closelywatched. A refined man and somewhateccentric, he always dresses with the finestspider silk and brags about his "specialcollection", a group of young people withserious congenital malformations or victimsof freak accidents, a veritable circus ofhorrors, which he uses as servants andoccasionally as food.

Recently, Bussnox managed to break its bondwith the vampire Count Mizilikazi when, withthe help of the Dark Avengers of Alphaks, he

became a nosferatu9 who now secretly plotsthe fall of his cousin, only awaiting the rightopportunity. In the Winterfall hills near Sheb-Talai, Bussnox houses Vraakhys, an agent ofthe Dark Avengers who has taught the Lordvarious spells to deal with planar monstersand to capture fomorian giants. Currently hehas an ironclad (a submersible) at his service.

Elendra Dracor

(CN female human vampire 9HD)

Likely Location: Sheb-Talai (CastleWinterfall)

Political alignment: Favors the Marthedren

Duties: Directors of the iron mines inBaenil and the hills of Ahk-Kharu

Personality: Elendra is a dangerous womanwho is hungry for power. She strives todestroy those who stand between her andher goals. She was adopted as seconddaughter for her merits by Count Mizilikazi,but was originally the nephew of Bussnox.She hates her uncle Bussnox and aims totake his place in the Dracor house hierarchy,secretly plotting to overthrow the Lord. Inthis dangerous game, she has two cards upher sleeve: Murtagh, her foolish "brother"who nurtures a sick passion for her, andknowledge about the fact that HouseThorberg had secretly broken the minddomination of the Count with the use ofextracts from Frisland herbs.

9 The Nosferatu was ini t ia l ly presented inGAZ1 The Grand Duchy of Karameikos .

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Murtagh Dracor

(CE male human vampire 7HD)

Probable location: Dagan

Political alignment: Favors the Dracor andMarthedren

Duties: Supervision of obsidian mine

Personality: Murtagh is a skilled warrior anda competent military commander, beingknown as "the sword of Dracor". He has atemper, a very bad one, and is feared by hissubordinates and peasants of the valleys. Theyoung Dracor nurtures an obsessive passionfor Elendra and hates Bussnox, who sparesno efforts to humiliate him. He unloads hisfrustrations over the prisoners in the mineshe oversees, subjecting them to sadisticgames and disproportionate punishments fortheir "faults".

Clan Marthedren:

The House of Marthedren is an Antalianwarrior clan strongly linked to house Dracorthat acts as enforcers of the Count’s will.They struggle to maintaining the status quo,because the more power the Earl and theCount have, the better it is for the clan.

Hafthorr Marthedren

(LN male human F9)

Likely Location: Marthedren

Personality flaw: Paranoid

Duties: Oversees the Bay of Ishmer andiron trade through the port of Torpes

Personality: The guardian of the ancientAntalian ways has a hobby: the collection oftales of old Grønborg: their stories, legaciesand relics. Over the years paranoia hasmanifested itself in his behavior as some sortof inner drive to fully demonstrate theefficiency and strength of his house and clan.He believes Marthedren should alwaysdemonstrate its ability and competence onthe coast domain of Torpes or be swept fromlocal policy by the Traldar families. He hopesthat the local strength of his house ensuresthe support of king Drushiye beyond thealliances with Mitrestu and Dracor. Yet therudeness and chaotic nature of Thorberg,and miscegenation over the years withgoblinoids, has generated frictions that makea firm and reliable alliance with the kingimpossible.

Hafthorr keeps his eyes in various places(southern Trollhattan at the court of theking, the council town in Torpes, the minesin Baenil and around Dracor) hoping tomaintain his position (a kind of game for themaintenance of the power of his house). Hemakes use of minions to spy and report onhis behalf.

HOUSE OF MARTHEDDREN

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A Gazetteer of Limn

The old Marthedren has a secret collection ofrelics of the old Grønborg: ancient totemstones and marker stones with old runes inaddition to weapons and armor. He studiesthese with the help of an elder from theSage´s League of Torpes, Hogni, aRavenfolk10, hoping to find old magicalsecrets.

Hanna Marthedren (

CN female human T9)

Probable location: Baenil

Personality flaw: Xenophobia (elves)

Duties: Administration of the city of Baenil

Personality: The First-Born of Marthedrenclan is a fascinating woman, her fragilebeauty and deep green eyes hide adetermination and relentless spirit thatearned her the nickname "Iron Lady". Hannais a born leader and inspires unswervingloyalty in her subordinates. The mentalinfluence of the Count generated a fanaticalloyalty, leading her to see king Drushiye as ausurper, making her believe that her solepurpose is to restore the old days when theMarthedren clan responded only to the oldEarls (like Ylsa). She believes that theelven invaders must be expelled from thenorth (she has already partially achievedthis).

In fact in recent years, there have been manydisappearances of elves near Baenil and theborder with Frisland, however, the events

seem to have no connection with oneanother and the stray beasts from Frislandwoods are always blamed.

Svein Marthedren

(LE male human avenger 12)

Likely Location: Castle Dracor

Personality flaw: Obsessive compulsive

Duties: Member of the Count’s personalguard

Personality: The young Marthedren is oneof the most implacable avengers in Dracor’sservice (the Order of Dracor) and is greatlyfeared in the north for his skill with thesword and the habit of launching deadlychallenges to those who inadvertently crosshis path. Vain and debauched, he collects theswords of the men he defeats in those duels,hanging them in an old oak tree on the sideof the road to the castle Dracor. Svein isobsessed with fame and wants to berecognized as the greatest swordsman of Limn.

Clan Thorberg

A lesser Antalian Clan, they migrated fromFrisland a long time ago. Servants of HouseDracor, they resent their vassal position.Having secretly broken the mental influenceof the Count using Frisland herbs, they plotthe downfall of Dracor and the destruction ofthe Marthedren.

1 0 These myster ious seers are in fact k in ofthe ancient Fey, and thus remain bi t teropponents of the Ogam as re lated in“Foresthome: Burwyn, Orfeander, &Rathmore”on Bruce Heard Blog

http://bruce-heard.blogspot.co.uk/2012/11/Foresthome03.html

http://bruce-heard.blogspot.co.uk/2012/11/Foresthome03.html

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Asmund Thorberg

(CE male human F9 lv)

Probable location: Ishme

Personality flaw: Sexual disorder(“Goblinoidphilia”)

Duties: Administration of the city of Ishme

Personality: The Thorberg clan patriarch isa cynical and unscrupulous man, who haslived more than 90 winters, but presents anunusual health and disposition. The "OldCrow" has a strange fetish for goblinoids,having generated numerous half-breedbastards, the “Thors” as they are collectivelyknown, who act as foremen in the mines.About five years ago, on a business trip inHaroth, Asmund was contacted by a group oftraders interested in a large amount of ironore. During a dinner at the home of one ofthese traders, he was presented to the"spiritual guide" of his host, Gork ninefingers. Asmund doesn’t have manymemories of that night, only the bitter tasteof the drink served to him and a strangedream in which he walked among the stars,

but he knew that something had changed; henow can see the invisible chains the Countimposed on his clan and has resented themever since.

Svart Thorberg

(CE male human F11)

Probable location: Remina

Personality flaw: Obsessive compulsivedisorder (hunting)

Duties: Administration of the city of Remina

Personality: The Hunter, as he is betterknown, is fascinated by hunting, especially oflarge prey, which earned him the hatred ofthe druids, especially Tharmug, the acteondruid responsible for the Forest of Alal-Xuland Zerantha to the South. Svart commandsthe foremen of the iron mines of Remina, hiscrossbreed half-brothers, the Thors, and hasa pack of modified dogs, much larger andstronger than normal, which he uses in hishunts and to intimidate and punish workersin the mines. Svart maintains a secretrelationship with Elendra Dracor and it wasthrough him that she found out about Gork,the herbs of Frisland, and the breaking of theCount’s influence over the Thorberg clan.

Gork Nine Fingers

(CE male human Shaman 10)

Probable location: Unknown

Personality: Gork took a bold mission: onethat cannot be completed. Coming from theancient art of Ogam he was taken to Limnwith the help of “Old Crow” AsmundThorberg during a visit in Haroth. Since then

HOUSE of THORBERG

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he has established several refuges andgathered information on a very specificlocation: the ancient Ogam ritual table (astone altar) of Ahk-Kharu, the current statusof which is unknown. This site wasinaccessible and lost after a failed ritual thattriggered a chaotic magical state known asAnchorhead11. Gork has relied upon the helpof some expendable goblinoids whom hesends into the forest to search forAnchorhead. The use of the Kala drug (fromFrisland) has helped in controlling thegoblinoids.

One of the current biggest problems forGork in the quest for Ahk-Kharu is thestrange demonic creature that has made himback off and has destroyed his variousminions.

Gork is a nickname12 and he has presentedhimself to Thorberg as an old hermitherbalist that is more than happy to breakThorberg’s mental chain, imposed by CountDracor, with mixtures of the Kala drug. Thisinformation was indirectly passed on toElendra and has caused the female vampireto start a personal crusade of freedom fromthe influence of the Count. Unfortunately shehas not yet been able to find or locate Gork,having already lost some of her spies in theattempt.

The most recent progress of Gork was todiscover that the strange creature likeshuman and humanoid sacrifices, and this hasallowed him a first approach. He has tried tounderstand if the creature (which sometimes

seems to be more than one) is connected tothe plane of his dark lords (the OuterBeings13) but still without too much success.If this is the case, then the ancient ritual inthe past had partial success, but it is still tooearly to know.

MINOR NPCS

Sgt Uldris (CN female brute 4HD) - Uldris isa Thors (one of the half-breed bastardchildren of Asmund) who oversees with herlocal militiamen (Antalians and goblinoids)commercial activities in Baenil and theactions of goblinoid guilds and the trade ofiron ore. She is rude and stout, Uldris tries toimpose respect by using her barbarian waysand menacing appearance, and enjoysfrightening the weak. She believes that herbehavior will bring respect to Thorberg andgive her dreaded fame. She tries tocollaborate with Elendra when possible andkeeps a suspicious eye on Hanna's actions.

Hagarath (CN male human avenger 9) -Delegate responsible for the garrison inBaenil and security of the coast. Hagarath isa bit paranoid with the exercise of his dutyand believes in possible incursions ofAlphaks’ followers along the coast of Eanna.Local goblinoids keep him busy with variousdisputes between the tribes and local guildsand that makes him more irritable andintolerant of others. The occasional presenceof Elendra (when inspecting Baenil) bringshim some comfort and the impression ofsupport from Lord Bussnoxx.

1 1 See fur ther at the “DM Plot Informat ion”Sect ion of this ar t ic le .

1 2 Gorkh-al l -Guhlsh is f rom very old Ogamterminology l inked to the Outer Beings.

1 3 The Outer Beings was extensivelydeveloped by Geoff Gander in ThresholdMagazine issue #2 and “The Kingdom ofFr is land” at the Vaul ts of Pandius,



http://pandius.com/frisland.html

http://pandius.com/frisland.html

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Master Dulgard (N male dwarf 4) - Memberof the Iron Guild administered by LadyHanna. The Iron Guild trade in Baenil startedwhen his clan sent him from Per-Atúr tomake the purchase and evaluation of orefrom the mines and his efficiency hasattracted the attention of Hanna andMarthedren, who soon gave him a steady jobin the guild. Practical and very focused onbusiness he has a small group of dwarves tohelp with the services (currently four friendswho call their little group the Circle of Ore)of evaluation, purchase, sale and trade withRemina and also Per-Atúr. Dulnor (hiscousin) remains mostly in transit betweenBaenil and Remina and makes few regulartrips to Per-Atúr.

Master Dulnor (N male dwarf 6) - Quiet andobservant, Dulnor belongs to the Librariansand was sent to Limn a long time agobecause he has a cousin working in thisregion. He is investigating the traffic and useof the strange herb, Kala, coming fromFrisland (which has been brought by Eannabay with permission of Elendra and Thorberg).

Their investigations thus far have only led tothe conclusion of the effects of Kala onaddicts and the occasional disappearance ofsome goblinoids between Remina andBaenil. Legends about the forested hills ofAkh-Kharu may have some suspected linkwith ancient Ogam magic but their freedomof investigation in the region is still verylimited and the hostility of goblinoid forcesnearby has convinced Dulnor to stay closerto guild activities. Currently he has showninterest in the League of Sages and may beacquainted with Hogni, the old man who canusually be seen between Torpes andMarthedren Tower.

Ghrokul (CN male orc 4 + 1 HD) - Proudand vain, a leading chieftain of his tribe andan Iron Guild merchant in Baenil. He hasseveral families of orcs, goblins andhobgoblins as mercenaries, stevedores andcaravan guards at his service. He tries todemonstrate prestige and wealth in hisclothes and says Limn brought evolution andmodernity to his people who before lived incaves. It is still a little early, but he wants thepower and influence of the largest guilds inTorpes and maybe one day Trollhattan.

Rutgarth (N male human F3) - Sly andfriendly, Rutgarth arrived a few years ago inBaenil and has a trade on the dockstransporting spices and plants. He hasprovided Kala herbs coming from Obdaa inFrisland (he usually does not reveal thesource of the product) and transports themwith the help of mercenaries and guards ofGhrokul to the Thorberg in Remina. Hisproduct still has not been challenged orbanned in Limn. Remina leaders certify thatthe herb consumption is linked to increasedproductivity in the mines. Rutgarth knowsvery little about Gork but was advised by hispatrons in Frisland to help him in any waypossible.

Grabulg (NG male actaeon 11HD) - Seriousand dedicated in behavior, Grabulg is part ofa small sylvan council that administers thecity of Zerantha, an urban refuge for sylvanbeings in the kingdom. At the request ofTarmugh he went to Akh-Kharu with a fewallies to investigate the strange reports ofsome mysterious monster prowling theforest. He has still not had any resultsbeyond a brief encounter in the nightwrapped in mist. This occasion resulted inthe loss of two of his friends (one was killed

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by the creature and another disappearedscreaming in the forest). The case seemedmore serious and Grabulg has taken a morecautious stance on research preferring towait for a response from Tarmugh on what todo before alerting Queen Mellora inTrollhattan. Another setback at this momentis also the local influence of goblinoids andThorberg, who are somewhat intolerant ofsylvan beings.

Ulmud (NE male human brute 3HD) -Ulmud is one of the Thors, who still feels likea minor minion of Asmund his father. Ulmudhas been put in charge of the smaller tasksbetween Remina and Baenil. He works wellwith goblinoids and sometimes resents thestrong-willed Svart. The situation has taughthim to be strong and show how well hefulfills his services to make him important ...someday.

"Captain” Brombargh (CN male orc 7HD) -This experienced and charismatic orc is theleader of a vast tribe of mercenaries andworkers in the mines in Remina.Transportation to Ishme, by ferry boat andother means, and supervision of the localmarket, has been entrusted to him byThorberg. Brombargh is a self-styled "CorsairMerry man" (or orc) and he loves to tellstories of the tribe’s bravery and exploits(even if it is true or not), preferably withmany spectators and drink. He can be seenregularly with Ulmud around Remina.

Cathratya (CN female harpy 5HD) - Free-spirited of nature and passionate, Cathratyaleads her clan in the mountains near Dagan.A few years ago she discovered the advantageof working with Dracor and Mitrestuwatching the passes in the mountains,

hunting fugitives and intruders, gatheringlocal information and investigating theborders with Stoutfellow. Recently she hasestablished contact with the mountain giantsin Kerothar and receives help from somegargoyles in the most dangerous missionsinvolving Dracor.

Martoth (NE male mountain giant 20HD) -with the support of the nobles of Dracor andMitrestu, this giant and his clan hasdominated the passages between themountains and captured all the unwantedvisitors that pass (always expecting somereward by the Dracor who supervise themines in Dagan). Maroth received weaponsand armor for him and his band (whichincludes hill giants, ogres and even trolls).Occasionally he pays visits to Nergath to getgoods and food. He has behaved very wellsince he thought he had enough power tochallenge everyone in Limn but wasoverwhelmed by the forces of CountMizilikazi.

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Zakład (N male human wizard /necromancer 10) - This ambitious Mitrestuhas provided service to Lord Bussnox inSheb-Talai as his court magist. He has showngreat interest in the research developed thereand this inevitably led him to Vraakhys. Sincethen he decided to investigate the nature ofthis deviant host of Bussnox. Inevitably, theuse of undead and spirits to discoverVraakhys’ nature will be the destruction ofthis necromancer who will have his freedomstolen by the forces of Alphaks ... but the caseis still in process.

Vraakhys (CE male human C14 of Alphaks)- Taciturn and sly, he has been chosen fromthe Dark Avengers to prepare the ground inthe north of Limn and strengthen Bussnox togenerate an insurrection in the coming yearsand thus a beachhead for more agents sentfrom Alphaks Island. Yet it is still very earlyand there are forces to be built.

Dragadan (CN male human avenger 10) -Dragadan recently replaced Captain Derfliyeafter an "accident" in the mountains (he wasan elf loyal to Drushiye) and has rearrangedthe local troops to show more strength in theborders and the mountains. As an avenger ofthe Order of Dracor, he has attracted theinterest of Vraakhys who wants to recruit himas one of his minions.

Hogni (N male human 3+1HD) – Hogni is aRavensfolk, a member of a race ofsoothsayers, seers, and tellers of portentswho speak in riddles. Hogni came someyears ago to study old legends about fey,Antalians and the Akh-Kharu forested hillscurse. He joined the League of Sages andsince then he has investigated the Ogampresence in Limn.

DM PLOT INFORMATION

The Anchorhead

This site was created when an Ogam ritualwas unsuccessful during the time of theAlphatian invasion, when Antalianscollaborated with the ritual in a desperatemeasure of defense, but the expected help ofthe Outer Beings did not come. An Entropyeffect has spread across the hilly regiongenerating an ethereal pocket where theOgam stone altar currently is. If found, theritual could be resumed and theoretically agate could be opened between the materialplane and the Outer Being’s dimension. Thecurrent structure of the Anchorhead in theAkh-Kharu Hills is a sudden transition ofplanes through invisible and hidden gates.Walking through the woods is like getting

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lost among the planes (the DM can generatea random table of planeshift and whatconditions should be met for it to return, butit should be something very difficult, as amaze).

Akh-Kharu Monster

Despite the fact that the site is renowned forencounters with planar beings attracted bythe gates, the creature who has causedconcern recently is a demon from the Pit (Atthe DM’s discretion, this is a Howling Fiend14

or a Glabrezu15). He was attracted by thegreat power and manifestation of Entropythat has happened here, however theconfusing structure of this semi maze hasprevented him from leaving the forest. GorkNine Fingers has actually tried to contact himoffering sacrifices of goblinoids numbed byKala in the hope that he may be one of thereal Outer Beings trapped in the forest(which is a mistake).

The Elder Vampire Sleeper

In fact, the oldest of this small circle datesback from the lost Taymoran civilization(which was preserved in the Hollow World asthe Bahlor Empire16). During the Mitrestuexploration for lost Taymoran magicalresearch on longevity and necromancy, an

ancient crypt was found near the ruins ofDag-Atur in the Kerothar Mountains.

Only one of the vampires was captured andmagically imprisoned for Mitrestu research.The Elder decided to turn Mizilikazi into hisvampire minion to secretly rule the region inhis name until he returns (or until theCount’s death which would be a very easyend for Mizilikazi). As a very old vampire, thisElder does not have the condition of acommon vampire but instead is a nosferatu(and a very powerful one at that). However,he decided not to pass on this condition toMizilikaki and, through some old secretmagic of his ancient civilization, he made theCount only a vampire. He also released adragon in the mountains to protect him(Large Red Dragon) and from his grave hasused his bond with the land and the animalsto monitor the development and safety of themountains where his old crypt is. Its locationis unknown to everyone and he prefers for itto remain so.

REFERENCES:Bruce Heard,“The Alphatian Province ofLimn” from About Bruce Heard and NewStories, 2012.Geoff Gander, “Torpes”, from the Vaults ofPandius, originally from the Mystara MailingList 30 January, 1999.Geoff Gander, “Antalians of the East”, fromthe Vaults of Pandius, originally from theMystara Message Board, 1998.The Almanac Team, “Mystaran Almanacs”AC1018-1019, from the Vaults of Pandius.Bruce Heard, “The Alphatian Province ofFrisland” on About Bruce Heard and NewStories, 2013.

1 4 See Howling Fiend in Wrath of theImmortals pag.108 or Glabrezu on AD&Dstats .

1 5 Glabrezu is an AD&D vers ion f romoriginal s tats of Howl ing Fiend in Wrath ofthe Immortals .

1 6 More about this c iv i l i zat ion can be foundin ar t ic le “The Empire of Bahlor” at Pandius.



http://pandius.com/torpes.html







http://pandius.com/bahlormp.html

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Warbirds Add-Ons

This session proposes small illustrations ofblueprints of the Warbirds described inFGAZ-7 (The Heldannic Order) , Edited byJTR in 2007 .

The blueprints come with a list of rooms anddecks for better understanding and shouldbe used as a supplement in the use of gamecampaigns involving Heldannic Warbirds

between Thyatis, Alphatia, Heldann, Davaniaand elsewhere.

Feel free to the necessary changes accordingto the needs of each game group andindividual plans of the DM. It should beuseful also the Warbird Stats Reference(included below) as well as a copy of FGAZ-7 to better use them in the game. Enjoy it !

Warbirds Add-Onsby Hausman Santos

Warbird Class Adler(Light)

Waffenadler(Light)

Eagle(Medium)

Sturmkondor

(Heavy)

Uhuboote

(Night)Tonnage 125 tons 125 tons 160 tons 200 tons 64 tons

Hull Points 90 90 105 120 45 Hull, 6 Sail

Armor Class 8 8 7 6 7 7

Lift Capacity 175 tons 175 tons 200 tons 300 tons 70 tons

Cargo Capacity 10 tons 9 tons 10 tons 20 tons 5 tons

Air Speed 360’ (120’) 360’ (120’) 360’ (120’) 360’ (120’) 360’ (120’)

Move Factor ½ ½ ½ ½ ½

Length (inc. tail) 175’ 175’ 200’ 240’ 60’

Beam (inc. wings) 225’ 225’ 275’ 300’ 90’

Depth 40’ 40’ 45’ 55’ 20’

Crew Captain1 Abbot3 Commanders10 Knights15 Squires1 Chaplain9 Sailors

Captain1 Abbot3 Commanders10 Knights15 Squires4 Chaplains9 Sailors

Captain1 Abbot6 Commanders50 Knights65 Squires3 Chaplain20 Sailors

Captain1 Abbot6 Commanders30 Knights44 Squires12 Chaplains25 Sailors

Captain1 Prior3 Knights10 Squires1 Chaplain5 Sailors

Weaponry 1 Blight Belcher6 Ballistae1 Lt Catapult1 Hvy Catapult

1 Blight Belcher3 Lt Blight Belcher3 Ballistae1 Lt Catapult1 Hvy Catapult

1 Heavy Belcher6 allistae2 Lt Catapult1 Hvy Catapult

1 Hvy Belcher6 Lt Blight Belcher3 Ballistae1 Lt Catapult1 Hvy Catapult2 War Talons

1 Lt Belcher2 Ballistae

Defense None None None Protect. From NormalMissiles, 1x/day, 12T

Darkness

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Warbirds Add-Ons

WARBIRD EAGLE CLASS(BLUEPRINT PLANT)

BATTLE DECK:1- Forward Ballista Bank

2- Forward Catapult 3- Aft. Ballista Bank

MAIN DECK: 1- Bridge 2- Chapel 3- Hatch to Cargo Deck 4- Officer´s Quarters 5- Captain´s Quarters 6- Helmsman´s Quarters 7- Crew´s Quarters 8- Ammon Storage 9- Upper Hold 10- Aft. Catapult/ Belcher

CARGO DECK: 1- Board Ramping 2- Boarding Equipment 3- Hatch to Main Deck 4- Galley 5- Mess 6- Cargo Deck 7- Cargo Doors 8- Ship´s Stores 9- Sail Storage

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Warbirds Add-Ons

WARBIRD UHUBOOTE

CLASS(BLUEPRINT PLANT)

FLIGHT DECK: 1- Forward Watch Post

SCOUT DECK: 2- Weapon Battery (Ballistae) 3- Storage & Watch Chamber (With hatch and Ladder on Roof and Ground)

LOWER DECK: 1- Bridge 2- Chapel 3- Galley & Mess 4- Helmsman Quarter 5- Officer´s Quarters 6- Storage 7- Captain´s Cabin 8- Chart Room 9- Lower Crew´s Quarter and Aft. Alley

HELDANNIC NPCS

Heldannic characters so you can fill and usethe crew of your Ship with your gaminggroup. Use as best fit it.

For more information see “The HeldannicOrder” and these articles at The Vaults ofPandius

Captain Jürgem Zimmer (Abbot C10 lv)Prior(Helmsman) Baldur (Kb 7lv)Knights(5): Eckhard(kb 6lv) Agnes(Kb 6lv) Oscar(kb 06lv) Beor(knight 5lv) Karl(Kb 7lv)Chaplains(2): Gotfried (Knight 6lv) Gertrud (Knight 5lv) (Kb= Knight Bannered)

http://pandius.com/The_Heldannic_Knights.pdf

http://pandius.com/The_Heldannic_Knights.pdf

http://pandius.com/heldann.html

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Warbirds Add-Ons

WARBIRD

STURMKONDOR CLASS(BLUEPRINT PLANT)

FLIGHT DECK:* Watchboard & Masts and Sails

BATTLE DECK: 1- Forward Battle Deck 2- Aft. Battle Deck

* Weapon Battery (Ballistae, Catapult and Belcher)

BRIDGE DECK: 1- Bridge 2- Navigation and Officer´s Chamber Staff 3- Assembly Deck 4- Companionway 5- Flight Crew Quarters 6- Mess Hall & Galley

MAIN DECK: 1- Foward Weapons Battery 2- Captain´s Quarters 3- Helmsman Quarter (Main Helm) 4- Paintry Storage 5- Officer´s Quarters 6- Crew´s Quarters 7- Cargo Door, Upper Hold 8- Rear Weapons Battery

CARGO DECK: 1- Main Gangway and BoardRamping 2- Crew´s Quarters 3- Armory 4- Main Cargo Hold 5- Cargo Doors 6- After Alley Deck

163


20 Years of History in the Sea of Dawn

1002 AC:Ramenhotep XXIII is overthrown byadventurers and popular rebellion after he isdiscovered to be under the control of ademonic spider. His son becomes the newpharaoh as Ramenhotep XXIV (M5 Talons ofNight and Poor Wizard’s Almanacs)

Spring 1005:The Great War is declared between Thyatisand Alphatia, the Isle of Dawn is going to bethe first battleground. The pit to the HollowWorld in Aegos is destroyed by anearthquake (Wrath of the Immortals boxedset).

Fall 1005:West Portage and Kendach are conquered bythe Alphatians, Countess Julia Kendasius iskilled in battle, Guildmaster Lareth Kubek ofWest Portage is executed.

Winter 1006:Redstone besieged, Furmenglaive falls.Caerdwicca resists.

Summer 1007:Newkirk fall, the Archduke DonegalFirestorm falls in battle. General HarantiusLycrandonion is defeated and killed andRedstone surrenders to the Alphatians.

Winter 1007:Ochalea and Pearl Islands declare unilateralindependence from Thyatis



A timeline of the Isle of Dawn, theAlatian Islands, Ochalea and thePearl Islands as detailed in Wrath ofthe Immortals boxed set, the PoorWizard’s Almanacs I, II and III,Joshuan’s Almanac and the MystaraAlmanacs from 1014 to 10191

1 The purpose of this t imeline is most lyto highl ight the many changes thathappened in the Is le of Dawn and nearbylands between the Dawn of the EmperorsBoxed set and the Mystara Almanacs,including those writ ten by fans that canbe downloaded from the Almanacssect ion of the Vaults of Pandius, and tohighl ight the great work done in the



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Spring 1008:Helskir becomes an Alphatian kingdomunder Eruul Zaar and Asteriela Torion.

Summer 1008:The Thyatian fleet repels an initial Alphatianinvasion

Summer 1009:Alphatia succeeds in invading mainlandThyatis.

Fall 1009:Thyatis surrenders to the Alphatian army, butlater Alphatia is destroyed. King Hastalan theFair of Ekto disappears.

Nuwmont 10th, 1010: The Thyatian armyreturns to the western Isle of Dawn.Periandra Docerius is appointed baroness ofWest Portage. General Deitica Baralius isappointed Governor of Septentriona.Anaxibius and Stefania Torion command theThyatian army in Redstone, and are latergiven the territory as County (Poor Wizard’sAlmanac I).Nuwmont 14th, 1010: Thincol recognizesindependence of Helskir but secretlyencourages Ostlander raids against thecountry.Nuwmont 25th, 1010: Thyatian navy attacksDunadale, the Heldanners attack Helskir

Vatermont 8th, 1010: Heldanners andThyatians attack Dunadale ports.Vatermont 11th, 1010: The Thyatian andMintothaddan navies conquer Aegos in theAlatian Islands.Vatermont 27th, 1010: Ne’er-do-well allieswith the Thyatian empire

Thaumont 13th, 1010 Thyatians conquerDeirdren in Dunadale,

Thaumont 28th, 1010 Thyatians conquerDunadale city and all the nation. KingTastagarth Lunn escapes to an unknownlocation.

Flaurmont 9th, 1010 The Thyatian navyconquers Gaity in the AlatiansFlaurmont 25th, 1010 Thyatians attack EastPortage, and in exchange for a Thyatian ducaltitle, King Lornce M'Jozee surrenders thekingdom to the Thyatians.

Klarmont 16th, 1010 Ekto is burned downby its own citizen who refuse to surrender tothe Thyatians, and then they retreat towardTrikelios. Townmaster Trumbull, whoadvised the people to surrender, is killed.

Felmont 12th, 1010 Aeria in the Alatiansjoins peacefully the Thyatian Empire

Fyrmont 1st, 1010 Thyatians attackTrikelios and are repelled.

Fyrmont 14th, 1010 Helskir calls foradventurers against Ostlander raids

Ambyrmont 19th, 1010 Thyatian wizardspoison Trikelios’ waters

Sviftmont 14th, 1010 The Flying Fish,airborne vessel from Alphatia, reachesHelskir.

Sviftmont 20th, 1010 Trikelios falls intoThyatian hands

Kaldmont 22nd, 1010 Thyatians invadeThothia and are repelled by undead.Kaldmont 27th, 1010 Thyatians startexploring the Great Escarpment

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Nuwmont 13th, 1011 Thyatian AdmiralAlrigo Gioncardi searches for adventurers toscout Thothia and the Great Escarpment inoccupied Trikelios (Poor Wizard’s AlmanacII)

Vatermont 13th-14th, 1011 NorthwesternIsle of Dawn is hit by a great blizzard.Heldannic armada meant to attack Helskir isalmost destroyed.

Thaumont 12th, 1011 Mario’s Maraudersterrorize Helskir countryside.

Flaurmont 3rd, 1011 Ostlanders ransackHelskir villagesFlaurmont 22nd, 1011 The Behemothattacks Minrothaddan ships travelling toOchalea

Yarthmont 6th, 1011 The earthquake inAegos is felt in Caerdwicca and vicinityYarthmont 15th, 1011 Thyatian settlersarrive in West Portage

Klarmont 15th, 1011 Thyatian troopsinvade Thothia but are repelled in front ofEdairo by undead, drolems, sphinxes andgolems.

Felmont 2nd, 1011 Thyatian army retreatsfrom Edairo and is followed and routed bywizards on sphinxes

Felmont 9th, 1011 Barony of Albarocca isestablished in the Great Escarpment south ofTrikelios.

Fyrmont 1st, 1011 The Thothian armymarches on TrikeliosFyrmont 13th, 1011 The Thothians win anaval battle near Trikelios.Fyrmont 21st, 1011 The Thothian fleetblocks Trikelios Bay.Fyrmont 26th, 1011 The new Barony ofAlbarocca remains neutral as the Thothianarmy marches through its territory towardTrikelios.

Ambyrmont 17th, 1011 Outbreak ofmummy rot disease in Thyatis, spread byThothian spies.Ambyrmont 19th, 1011 The Thyatian armyleaves Trikelios and falls back to Ekto.

Sviftmont 7th, 1011 The Thothian armyreaches Ekto.Sviftmont 11th, 1011 The Thothian navydefeats the Thyatians in front of Ekto.

Eirmont 1st-2nd, 1011 Thothian armyattacks Ekto, Alphatian troops retake EastPortage from the Thyatians. GeneralQuicklimn is the new ruler of the city. DukeLornce, who was in Thyatis, escapes toEsterhold. Queen Stillian returns to Trikelios.Eirmont 20th, 1011 Ottavio Giacomo,Thyatian governor in Gaity, is removed forhis mistreatment of Alphatians, who are sentto EsterholdEirmont 21st, 1011 The Alphatian crew ofthe Imperial Eagle, first Thyatian skyshipbuilt in Aeria, mutinies and takes control

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while the vessel is directed to aid thebesieged Thyatians of Ekto. The Eaglereaches the city on Kaldmont 4th.

Kaldmont 9th, 1011 The Thothian armyattacks Ekto again.Kaldmont 11th-12th, 1011 More battle atEkto, both Thyatians and Thothians receivereinforcements.

Nuwmont 5th, 1012 Ekto is attacked againby Thothia. Admiral Alrigo Gioncardisurrenders. (Poor Wizard’s Almanac III)

Vatermont 16th, 1012 Thothia sends truceproposals to Kendach, Redstone andWestrourke.

Thaumont 1st, 1012 Thyatian prisoners inEkto are released to Kendach.Thaumont 2nd, 1012 The baron ofCaerdwicca encourages piracy againstThothian ships to support Thyatis.

Yarthmont 9th-15th, 1012 The King andQueen of Helskir and the Thyatian rulers ofthe Isle of Dawn meet in Newkirk, agreeingon declaring their fealty to the Thyatianempire. General Edmondo Tiberia becomesDuke of Dunadale.

Yarthmont 27th, 1012 Stefania Torion ofRedstone proposes a treaty to PharaohRamenhotep XXIV of Thothia.

Klarmont 5th, 1012 Peace talks begin inRedstoneKlarmont 13th, 1012 Treaty of Redstonebetween Thyatis and Thothia assigns theGreat Escarpment and Aeria to Thothia,Aegos and Dunadale to Thyatis, Gaity andNe’er-do-well as independent territories.General Tristan is appointed the king of Ektoby Thothia.Klarmont 21st, 1012 Emperor Eusebiussends more colonists to the Thyatian areas ofthe Isle of Dawn.Klarmont 27th, 1012 The Evander and theMarinos, two Thyatian ships of the navy,desert and turn to piracy in Aeria.

Fyrmont 2nd, 1012 Thothian clerics go toThyatis to cure the mummy rot disease theThothians themselves had spread the yearbefore during the war, a move to strengthenthe peace treaty between the two nations.

Kaldmont 13th, 1012 Thothia is invited tothe new Alphatian Council.

Nuwmont 23rd, 1013 First skyship areproduced in Aeria for the New AlphatianEmpire (Mystara Almanac 1014)

Thaumont 2nd, 1013 The Evander and theMarinos, Thyatian ships turned to piracy, arecaptured in the Alatian islands by the

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Thyatian imperial fleet. (Joshuan’s Almanac)Thaumont 8th, 1013 Emperor Eusebiusestablishes an emigration draft, manyhomeless of Thyatis are shipped to the Isle ofDawn or the Hinterlands. Hopetown isfounded in southern Meridiona.

Yarthmont 10th, 1013 Thothia joins theNew Alphatian Empire.

Klarmont 11th, 1013 Earthquake kills 75people in West Portage.

Ambyrmont 13th, 1013 Uprising of forcedemigrants in Hopetown, ProvinciaMeridiona, and abandonment of the colony.

Yarthmont 13th, 1014 Gaity is in chaosbetween competing barons after becomingindependent from the empires. (MystaraAlmanac 1014)

Ambyrmont 18th, 1014 Thyatian colonistsin the Great Escarpment are attacked by giantspiders and escape to West Portage

Ambyrmont 21st-22nd, 1014 Helskir opensdiplomatic relations with the New AlphatianEmpire.

Eirmont 5th, 1014 Some Minrothaddandwarves begin working on the still closedworld elevator in Aegos.

Thaumont 15th, 1015 First Alphatian-Karameikan skyship, the Concordia,launched in Aeria. (Mystara Almanac 1015)

Felmont 23rd, 1015 The work ofMinrothaddan dwarves at the Pit to theHollow World in Aegos is hindered by severalsabotages.

Ambyrmont 13th, 1015 The Grey Frontoccupies Serraine while it is over the Isle ofDawn, and hundreds of Serraine’s citizensare ferried out of the city to the nearby Isle,in Septentriona.

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Eirmont 13th, 1015 Ostland demands someThyatian territories in Westrourke,negotiations begin.

Nuwmont 5th, 1016 Strange sightings nearthe village of Perdidis, in Septentriona, dueto the nearby presence of Serraine’srefugees. (Mystara Almanac 1016)Nuwmont 13th-19th, 1016 Revolt inDunadale against Duke Edmondo Tiberia.The revolt is quelled and a curfew and passlaws are proclaimed. Deputations are sent toHelskir and Thyatian authorities.

Vatermont 22nd, 1016 Mario’s Marauderson rampage in Hillvale

Thaumont 12th, 1016 Followers ofThothian mysticism disturb a ceremony toRathanos held by the pharaoh in Edairo.Thaumont 18th, 1016 Tiberia is deposedon the Emperor’s orders, Dunadale to bejoined with Helskir in the Kingdom ofHeldun. New talks begin between Alphatiaand Thyatis in Helskir.

Flaurmont 2nd, 1016 New treaty of Helskirgives independence to Heldun and returnsall the Alatian Isles to the Alphatians. Thyatisstarts evacuation of Aegos.Flaurmont 5th, 1016 Thothian mysticscollapse a temple of Rathanos in Edairo,numerous victims.Flaurmont 12th-13th, 1016 Burrower onthe Loose in Aegos, the Thyatians escapeFlaurmont 16th-17th The Burrower attacksthe Alphatians as soon as they arrive inAegos.Flaurmont 17th, 1016 King Eruul Zaar iskilled by monsters in Alphatia, and QueenAsteriela barely escapes the attack.Flaurmont 20th-27th, 1016 The Alphatiansin Aegos find the Pit destroyed by theThyatians. The agreed Thyatian quarter is notcreated in response.Flaurmont 21st, 1016 Westrourke becomesan Exarchate.

Yarthmont 8th, 1016 The Burrower inAegos confines the Alphatians to Aegopoli.Yarthmont 18th, 1016 William Hazard, anAlphatian general, arrives in Trikelios to dealwith Mario’s Marauders.Yarthmont 23rd, 1016 The former king ofAegos, Dromedon returns to the island tofight the Burrower.

Klarmont 4th, 1016 The Thothian lichHaptuthep II starts a rebellion against theruling pharaoh in the village of Anunak

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Klarmont 6th, 1016 After two battles withDromedon, the Burrower apparentlydisappears from Aegos.Klarmont 13th, 1016 Gnomes fromSerraine encounter the Trueflower elves ofthe Great Escarpment.Klarmont 19th, 1016 The Burrowerresurfaces in Gaity

Felmont 5th, 1016 Alphatian citizens areattacked in Edairo.Felmont 7th, 1016 Thyatian settlers arrivein Rialtos, Septentriona.Felmont 10th, 1016 Thyatian quarter isopened in Aegos.

Fyrmont 9th, 1016 Dromedon banishes theBurrower in Gaity but is apparentlydestroyed too.Fyrmont 13th, 1016 Pirates hunted by theAlphatian navy take refuge in Caerdwicca.Fyrmont 22nd, 1016 The New AlphatianEmpire annexes Gaity.

Ambymont 10th, 1016 The lich Haptutheptries to ally with the hunakoi (stone giants)against the ruling pharaoh, promising to ridthem of the araneas.Ambyrmont 10th, 1016 Dawnsea Concordsare signed in Beitung. Ochalea and PearlIslands return to the Thyatian Empire asExarchates.Ambyrmont 14th, 1016 Ne’er-do-wellvoluntarily joins the New Alphatian Empire.

Sviftmont 18th, 1016 The araneas of theValley of Kings are attacked by golems raisedby Haptuthep.

Sviftmont 26th, 1016 Rulers of Redstone,Kendach and West Portage meet in Redstoneto decide how to react to the Thyatian civilwar.

Eirmont 19th, 1016 Redstone andWestrourke remain loyal to Eusebius. Therebellious rulers of Kendach and WestPortage are arrested.

Kaldmont 2nd-5th, 1016 The HeldannicKnights attack and conquer Helskir.Kaldmont 12th, 1016 Haptuthep completesthe occupation of the Valley of Kings.

Nuwmont 4th, 1017 Pharaoh claimantHaptuthep II gathers followers in the Valleyof Kings, Thothia. (Mystara Almanac 1017)

Vatermont 4th, 1017 The Duke ofWestrourke announces a project to expandand improve the signalling system ofWestrourke to West Portage, Kendach, andRedstone.Vatermont 11th, 1017 Riots in Edairo areprovoked by followers of the banned spiderreligion.Vatermont 14th, 1017 Cabal of Thanatosfollowers reach Rialtos in Septentriona.Vatermont 20th, 1017 Having secured theirpositions in Helskir city, the HeldannicKnights start to advance on the countrysidetoo.Vatermont 26th, 1017 Ramenhotep XXIVsends emissaries to the Alphatian Centre ofDisease Control of East Portage to study thebody of a werespider.

Thaumont 2nd, 1017 The HeldannicKnights won Battle of Two-Forks Ridgeagainst Heldunian forces south of Helskir.Thaumont 20th, 1017 Sjofjord is conqueredby the Heldannic Knights in Helskir.

Flaurmont 2nd, 1017 The HeldannicKnights conquer the Village of Dawnhaven inHelskir.

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Flaurmont 2nd, 1017 Thyatian-Minrothaddan Skothar expedition stops inBeitung, OchaleaFlaurmont 7th, 1017 Some Thyatianmerchants from Albarocca contact Trikelios.Flaurmont 14th, 1017 Guest Hospice isopened by Thyatians in Seagirt, Pearl IslandsFlaurmont 16th, 1017 Thyatian-Minrothaddan Skothar expedition stops inSeagirt, Pearl Islands.Flaurmont 27th, 1017 On the fifthanniversary of Eusebius Torion's ascent tothe imperial throne Westrourke becomes anExarchate, as Heldun and Redstone,Furmenglaive is expanded and becomes theArchonate of Meridia. Kendach and WestPortage are combined into the Archonate ofHespiria.

Yarthmont 5th, 1017 Thyatian-Minrothaddan Skothar expedition stops inNe’er-do-well, in the Alatians.Yarthmont 10th, 1017 Skirmishes nearWestrourke between Heldannic knights andThyatian troops. The Knights are defeated.Yarthmont 20th, 1017 Electrum is

discovered near Rialtos, Province ofSeptentriona.Yarthmont 25th, 1017 Philippos Dassinitesis proposed as the new Archon of Hespiria inthe Thyatian senate.Yarthmont 28th, 1017 The Army of Heldunleaves Dunadale to attack the HeldannicKnights in Helskir.

Klarmont 3rd, 1017 A Cabal of Thanatoscultists establishes a stronghold in thewestern portion of the Great Escarpment.Klarmont 12th, 1017 The hunakoi giantsbuild a wall to protect the Valley of Kingsfrom the Thothian army.Klarmont 22nd, 1017 The researchers atthe Alphatian Center for Disease Control inEast Portage create a magical device that candetect lycanthropy.

Felmont 7th, 1017 The Alphatian Navystarts a blockade around Helskir against theHeldannic Knights.Felmont 14th, 1017 Thyatian trade outpostis established in the unclaimed coast south ofthe Great Escarpment in the Isle of Dawn,

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across from Aeria.Felmont 19th-23rd, 1017 The armies ofHeldun and Thyatis advance toward Helskir.

Felmont 20th, 1017 Strange golems attacka Minrothaddan magical vessel near Rialtos.

Felmont 27th, 1017 Mario’s Marauders raida village in the Hillvale region, followedclosely by the Alphatian men of WilliamHazard.

Fyrmont 9th, 1017 The Heldun andThyatian armies start a siege of Helskir.Fyrmont 11th, 1017 Strange golems occupythe ruins of Fjellstue in Septentriona.Fyrmont 16th, 1017 The Heldun andThyatian armies begin to assault Helskir’swalls.Fyrmont 19th, 1017 The Thanatos cultistscontact the Barony of Albarocca.

Ambyrmont 7th, 1017 Ennius Necrekisarrives in West Portage leading an expeditionto search for pro-Alphatian Thyatians wholeft the mainland after the revolt of BC 2Ambyrmont 10th, 1017 After a long battle,the Heldannic Knights are finally defeated inHelskir.

Ambyrmont 17th, 1017 Mario’s Maraudersare caught in an ambush by the forces ofWilliam Hazard. Mario is captured, to be sentback to East Portage to stand trial for hiscrimes.

Sviftmont 4th, 1017 Ekto and Trikelios areannexed peacefully by Thothia.

Sviftmont 6th, 1017 Queen Asterielareturns triumphantly in Helskir.Sviftmont 7th, 1017 The New AlphatianCouncil is angered by the Thothian

annexation.Sviftmont 13th, 1017 Alphatian troopsarrive in Hillvale to discourage the Thothianannexation.Sviftmont 16th, 1017 In Helskir,collaborators to the Heldannic occupationare executed.

Eirmont 12th, 1017 The Thyatianarchaeological expedition led by EnniusNecrekis reaches the phanaton village ofCaligaris in the Great Escarpment.Eirmont 13th, 1017 Julius Ambrosius’sDavanian expeditionary flotilla docks inSeagirt, Pearl Islands

Eirmont 19th, 1017 Several importantalphatian agents vanish in the Alatian islands.

Kaldmont 24th, 1017: In the library ofEdairo, Ennius Necrekis discovers thatCaligaris was indeed founded by ancientThyatians.

Vatermont 3rd, 1018 After wintering in thecity of Seagirt, the Thyatian expedition toDavania led by Julius Ambrosius, lifts anchorto resume its explorations. (MystaraAlmanac 1018)

Felmont 19th, 1018 Galatia re-joins QueenAsteriela in Dunadale, after the two friendshave been several years apart. They will soonhave some encounters with the returnedTerari, their former master, about the statusof the New Alphatian Empire.

Ambyrmont 3rd, 1018 Several Thyatianmilitary engineers arrive to assist in theimprovement of walls and defences at thecity of Helskir.

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Svifmont 18th, 1018 Economic crisis in theNew Alphatian Empire, and shortage of metals

Nuwmont 6th, 1019 Daffyd ap Llewellyn apCarver, a bard of indeterminate continentalorigin, arrives in the tiny southern village ofGuangtieu, Ochalea. (Mystara Almanac 1019)Nuwmont 11th, 1019 Banditry by humansand ogres is on the rise on Ochalea.Nuwmont 13th, 1019 The skyship Eagletakes flight from Edairo, Thothia, headingwest over the Great Escarpment.Nuwmont 17th, 1019 A group ofadventurers find an underground complex

occupied by bandits in the Dragon SpineMountains, Shun Province, OchaleaNuwmont 26th, 1019 Garrison isslaughtered by unknown assailants in BohanProvince, Ochalea

Vatermont 11th, 1019 The New AlphatianEmpire resumes work to re-open the AegosPit.Vatermont 1st, 1019 Monster attacksincrease in the countryside villages of KiangProvince, OchaleaVatermont 2nd, 1019 The Eagle is returnedto Thyatis by the Thothians in exchange forthe hulls of some damaged alphatian skyships.Vatermont 9th, 1019 The Thothian convoyis attacked by a black dragon in the Sea ofDawn and some of the damaged skyships arelost at sea.

Thaumont 1st, 1019 The decision of theexarch to officially make women full citizensis met with stiff opposition in the courts byconservative bureaucrats, nobles and clericsof Ochalea.Thaumont 6th, 1019 Numerous nobleparties and interests begin a process ofpetitioning the royal courts to renegotiatethe terms of Ochalean membership in theThyatian Imperium.Thaumont 11th, 1019 Studentdemonstrators from many of the finestschools fill the streets, declaring the exarchto be a heretic for his decision to makewomen equal to men.Thaumont 13th, 1019 The bureaucrats ofOchalea declare demonstrations of any kindexcept religious festivals and royal parades tobe illegal.Thaumont 26th, 1019 Many noble womenof Ochalea stand up on both sides of thefeminine rights debate in the royal courts.

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Flaurmont 16th, 1019 Explorersinvestigating goblinoid bandits in thenorthern foothills stumble upon ancient cityruins submerged in a valley lake in the TangHills, Ochalea.Flaurmont 24th, 1019 Upon hearing of theexarch's decision to limit polygamy manypoor and lower middle class young menspontaneously demonstrate in support of theexarch.

Klarmont 7th, 1019 Master Yao Zhuchin, ahonours student at a military academy in thesouthern Cao province, Ochalea, is revealedto be Miss Yao Su-Xin, the young man's eldersister.Felmont 4th, 1019 Riots and protests inEkto and many other alphatian territoriesdue to the economic crisis.Felmont 15, AC 1019 Master Wu PhongZhin of Celestial Mountain Harmony Templedeclares publicly the discovery of massiveunderground complexes in the Dragon SpineMountains, Shun Province, Ochalea

Sviftmont 18th, 1019 Employment plan bythe New Alphatian Empire has some successin Aeogs and Gaity

Eirmont 3, AC 1019 The Royal Office ofCultural Conservation arrests Master Zhinand several of his students on charges ofconspiracy to create disharmony in Ochaleaafter is discovered that over a dozen nativeOchalean warrior maidens are in the serviceof the order.Eirmont 8th, 1019 The Pit in Aegoscollapses, killing many workersEirmont 19th, AC 1019 A number of noblesand respected warriors, having paid therequisite priority fees, petition the exarch inpublic court to intercede in Master Zhin's case.

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An Atlas of the Isle of Dawn

An Atlas of the Isle of Dawnby Francesco Defferrari (Sturm)

To Her Imperial Majesty Eriadna the Wise, ashort description of the Isle of Dawn, itscommunities and its inhabitants, known andunknown, compiled by Thiserstian of Alphatia,magician and scholar of the Imperial University.Borders and communities are those of 1000 AC,with 1020 AC integrations as specified in themap and the text.

This At las is based on al l the avai lable fanonand canon sources , most ly M5 Talons ofNight , Dawn of Emperors Boxed Set and thePoor Wizard’s Almanacs I , I I and I I I in canonand these ar t ic les at the Vaul ts of Pandiusand the Mystara Fan Almanacs in fanon. Themaps were populated by me, modifying the

or ig ina l maps byMark Howard, ofthe Northern Is leo f Dawn and

Southern I s le o f Dawnwhich can be found at theVaul ts of Pandius. The ful ls ize map of the Is le with myaddit ions wi l l be publ ishedat the Vaults at a later date.

http://pandius.com/dawnisle.html


http://pandius.com/iodnorthmd2.png

http://pandius.com/iodnorthmd2.png

http://pandius.com/South_Isle_of_Dawn_8_mph.png

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The Northern Isle of Dawn is dominated bythe City of Helskir, independent from bothempires in 1000 AC, then an AlphatianKingdom in 1008, independent again in1009, occupied by Heldannic Knights in1015, and finally forming the Kingdom ofHeldun by absorbing Dunadale in 1016 AC.During several periods of its recent history,Helskir also claimed the Demerian Moor,inhabited by reptilian creatures and darkfairies. The plains are mostly dotted withfarms and towns of the local Antalians, theHelska, and also some wizards’ towers. Thecentral woods are the rumored home of theAlfar, the northern fairies, and many hills are

roamed by bands of humanoids, some ofthem hostile to other races. MountainRakasta are rumored to live in the southernHelskir hills near the Demerian Moor. ThePegasus Peaks are also inhabited byPegataurs, Cloud Giants and other strangecreatures.

Northern Dunadale is a wild land, withDunael humans living only near the coast,and the interior inhabited by fairies,humanoids, giants, griffons and more. Thereare also rumors of a cabal of Nyxworshippers and undead in the interior. TheHerdane Escarpment is rumored to be the

HELSKIR AND THE NORTH

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domain of sidhe and other fairies,determined to protect their privacy and theirfabled city of Findias from any intruder.

This area of the Isle is quite cold and subjectto blizzards, strong winds and snowstorms inwinter. Common animals are seals, lynxes,deer, elks, aurochs, wolves, bears, andbeavers along with a huge variety of birds ofprey and seabirds. The Bay of the Kraken,inhabited by seals and whales, is so calledbecause of the monster which is supposed tolurk in its depths.

References:

The idea that a strong cult of Nyx exists onthe Isle comes from M5 Talons of Night, byJennell Jaquays.

About Helska, Dunael, Alfar and Drouw: see“History of the Isle of Dawn” by JamesMishler

About the villages of the North: see thisarticle by Geoff Gander

About rakasta in the Isle of Dawn: see“History And Evolution Of Rakastas” bySimone Neri

About the Herdane Escarpment: see theAlmanac entries for “Dunadale (Duchy of;Empire of Thyatis)” and “Heldun(Exarchate/Confederated Kingdom of)” at theVaults of Pandius

About Helskir and Dunadale: see theAlmanac entries for Helskir, Dunadale andHeldun at the Vaults of Pandius

Many creatures and monsters included in themap were inspired by The Isle of DawnMonstrous Atlas by Sheldon Morris


http://pandius.com/vllgniod.html

http://pandius.com/vllgniod.html


http://pandius.com/dunadale.html


http://pandius.com/heldun2.html


http://pandius.com/helskir.html

http://pandius.com/dunadal.html

http://pandius.com/heldun.html

http://pandius.com/ma_iod.html

http://pandius.com/ma_iod.html

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THE SWAN PENINSULA

This area is inhabited byDunael humans, as is therest of Dunadale. Local loresays the interior isdominated by swancreatures, but no oneseems able to tell if theyrefer to fairies, pookas orwerecreatures, or gyerians.

Some friendly Firbolggiants also live in theregion. The sea of this areais also called the Weird Seabecause superstitious sailors say fairies oftentake people away from the ship’s deck. Itmay also be because Water Weirds are quitecommon in this area.

References:

Gyerians appear on the Isle of Dawn in theMystara book Son of Dawn

About Dunadale: see these Almanac entriesfor Dunadale and Heldun at the Vaults ofPandius, but this area was detailed by mehere.

THE NORTHERN TERRITORIES

The northern part of this area, the southernDemerian Moor, has been claimed by Helskirin the past and eventually became part of theKingdom of Heldun in 1016 AC. No one hasmuch control over these lands however, andthe Lochnar swamp, as the southern moor isnormally called, is really inhabited byreptilian creatures, frogfolk, dark fairies andhostile humanoids.

The Thyatian villages of Camulodunum,Agrigentum and Messambria were proverbial

among legionaries as the most backward andisolated places a poor soldier could be sentto. Since the formation of Heldun thesoldiers who guard this road are sent fromHelskir or Dunadale, but they probably feelthe same way. The Oppiand Hills whichdivide Westrourke from Dunadale areinhabited by Firbolgs and other giants, rocs,dragons and hippogriffs. The same goes forthe Geittinden Mountains of northernWestrourke, where the famous Finnegar’sWatch lay, a sacred place dedicated to a

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mythical Dunael king who battled in theancient past the evil Fomorian giants. Themost important city of this area is howeverNandua, on the western coast, a haven forpirates and unscrupulous merchants.Another mythical faerie city, Gorias, isaccording to local lore hidden in the hillsaround the Geittinden Mountains.

References:

Nandua and nearby Denstehn keep arementioned in AC10 Bestiary of Dragons andGiants, and in Threshold issue 9, page 101.

Some locations in this area came fromSimone Neri’s Guide to Norwold published

in Threshold issue #7; his 24 mph maps canbe also found at the Vaults of Pandius

About Finnegar’s Watch, Gorias, Firbolgs andFomorians: see “History of the Isle of Dawn”by James Mishler



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Inhabited by Dunael humans on the coast,Dunadale, which will become part of Heldunin 1016 AC, is a wild land in the interior, thedomain of fairies, centaurs, drakes,humanoids and many other non humancreatures. It is also a green land, full of plantlife, woods and animals, such as deer, horses,wild goats and many others. It can be quitecold and foggy in autumn and winter butwarm during the summer. The Dunadalebogs are quite dangerous, claimed byhumanoids and dark fairies. The mountainsof the Dunadale Wall are dominated byFirbolgs and other giants, rocs and giant

eagles. Nixies and Sea Hags are supposed todwell in the waters of Dunadale.

References:

About Dunadale: see Almanac entries“Dunadale (Duchy of; Empire of Thyatis)”and“Heldun (Exarchate/Confederated Kingdomof)” at the Vaults of Pandius

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The winters are milder here and the coast issupposedly inhabited by friendly fairies, butthe interior is as dangerous as any wild landcould be. Trolls, giant termites, dark fairies,wights, banshees, manticores, bugbears andother humanoids, gremlins, harpies, funguscreatures, lizardmen, frogfolk and otherkinds of creatures live in this area, includingsome normal animals that could occasionallybe dangerous, such as great bears, wolves,jackals and mountain lions. The DustReaches, in the west toward Westrourke, arealso inhabited by humanoids and Fomorians.More than one group of Alphatianadventurers has explored the wilderlandssearching for the mythical fairy city of Murias,

but no one, to the extent of my knowledge,has ever returned.

References:

About Dunadale: see Almanac entries“Dunadale (Duchy of; Empire of Thyatis)”and “Heldun (Exarchate/ConfederatedKingdom of)” at the Vaults of Pandius

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The area of the Isle nearest to Ostland isinhabited by similar Antalian people, whosometimes fight against Ostlander piratesand sometimes are allied with them. Theinternal woods of Svorkmo (or Svorkomo)are infested with goblins and similarcreatures. The Fyresvatn Bogs are inhabitedby lizardmen. More humanoids, andaccording to some unverified accounts, alsolupins and rakasta, inhabit the Cougar hillsand the Dust Reaches to the east.

Ancient and mysterious ruins are rumored toexist in the Reaches, but the high number ofhumanoids in the area has always been aserious obstacle to their full exploration.Underwater, the Gulf is supposedly

dominated by Sea Giants and Whales, andclans of Storm Giants also live among thesmall islands and the reefs of the westerncoast.

References:

About Westroruke: see these Almanac entriesat the Vaults of Pandius

I placed Nithian ruins in several locations ofthe Isle taking inspiration from thedescription in Dawn of the Emperors andfrom “Extent of the Nithian Empire” byLoZompatore

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This gulf, often closed by high cliffs, isdominated by Westrourke’s capital, Newkirk.The regions north of the city, the Kauth Hills,Westrourke Bogs and southern Dust Reachesare not the domain of man, and anyonetreading on them does so at his own greatrisk. The northern coast of Redstone and theinner part of the Gulf are instead dotted byfishing towns and keeps. The interior ofRedstone is still quite a wild land, and theSutherlands peninsula is mostly inhabited bycentaurs, usually not hostile to travellers. Thewestern coast however is also called thePirates Coast, as it is dotted with pirate andbuccaneer coves, and considered quitedangerous for passing ships. The sea in frontof the Sutherlands is dominated by the

intelligent Dendan Whales, who often attackships because humans often attack them, astheir bodies are supposed to contain amagical ingredient to produce waterbreathing potions, and precious oil andmeat, just as all other whales.

References:

About Westroruke: see these Almanac entriesattthe Vaults of PandiusAbout Redstone see these Almanac entries atthe Vaults of PandiusAbout the Dendan Whales see “Advices forTraders in the Sea of Dread” by Michele“LoZompatore” C. in issue #4 of ThresholdMagazine (page 49).

GULF OF NEWKIRK

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This region is really fairy land, outside themain road and the coastal Dunael villages, itis quite easy to get lost in the woods and thefog, encountering sprites, pixies, satyrs or themore dangerous redcaps. Firbolgs too livenumerous in the western hills. Anothermythical fairy city, Falias, is rumored to liesomewhere in a remote vale. The rivers ofthis area and the coastal waters are ofteninhabited by water termites.

References:

About Hillvale: see these Almanac entries atthe Vaults of PandiusOrdania is mentioned in “History of theDunael Peoples” by Thomas Forsyth

NORTHERN HILLVALE

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Since a thousand year the main fortress cityof the Thyatian Empire in the central Isle ofDawn, Redstone became a County in 1010AC, then an Exarchate in 1017 AC. TheDunael human natives of the area callthemselves Ruagallans and have alwayscohabited peacefully with centaurs, faeries,lupins and Firbolg giants, quite common inthe area, and have often fought againsthumanoids and Fomori giants. Many scholarsthink indeed that either the modern Newkirkor Redstone was in the remote past thecapital of the great kingdom of the giants of

Gandhar. Other giant kingdoms, later ruledby Firbolgs or Fomorians have risen andfallen in the following centuries. Otherhuman people, such as Thothians, Mileniansand Northmen, have also founded their citiesin this region in the past centuries. Nonhuman races still inhabit the interior of thisland in relevant numbers. The area of theFengallen marshes, Carryduff Hills andKillyleagh Curragh in particular is a hugeterritory dominated by bugbears andkobolds, and maybe other creatures too.Nemedia, an important town south of

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Newkirk, has a very ancient history as it oncewas a Thothian and Milenian1 city.

The area of the Barony of West Portage isinhabited by the Teihzel Dunaels, who alsolive further to the east, and it has its ownshare of fairies, and humanoids. Someunverified accounts say “one of the seven”fairy cities, Ardulla, lies in the area. If thereare indeed seven fairy cities, I have identifiedonly five of them so far, and therefore I don’tknow where on the Isle the other two maylie.

References:

About Redstone: see these Almanac entries atthe Vaults of Pandius

About the giants of Gandhar see JamesMishler’s “Age of Blackmoor” article at theVaults and my article “New Blackmoor, 3050BC” in Threshold issue #2.

About West Portage see these Almanacentries at The Vaults of Pandius

About the Ruagallans and Teihzels: see “RealWorld Inspiration for the Isle of Dawn” bySimone Neri at The Vaults of Pandius

About the town of Alexandria near theCarryduff Hills: see “To Build A Mystara City”by Jesper Andersen at The Vaults of Pandius

About Nemedia, Nithian and Traldar city: see“History of the Isle of Dawn” by JamesMishler at The vaults of Pandius

About Ardulla: see “Summerhill Hounds” byHåvard at The Vaults of Pandius

1 Part of the great Mi lenian colonizat ionsand explorat ions of 500 - 100 BC, see theart ic le “Lost Civi l izat ions of Thyat is andAlphat ia” in this same issue.

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This region too is inhabited by the TeihzelDunaels as the area of West Portage, laterjoined by Thothians, Thyatians andAlphatians. Most of the wilderlands areinhabited by Firbolgs and other non humanraces, including faeries, lupins, kobolds,orcs, ogres, cyclops, Fomorians, harpies andmuch more. The region is untamed andmostly unexplored just a few miles out of themain roads and the coasts. East Portage, oncea city state of the Alphatian Empire, becamethe capital of the Kingdom of Hillvale in 1016AC. The Bay of the Dragon Turtles is suchnamed because the creatures have beenspotted in the area, and often blamed forships lost at sea.

The Kendach Escarpment has been claimedby Kendach since 1000 AC, but in truth is aland dominated by Fomorian giants, even ifit seems it once hosted the capital of aFirbolg kingdom. A rumor I was unable toverify also says that the Archdruid of the Islehas his house on the Escarpment.

References:

About Firbolgs and Fomorians in this areasee “History of the Isle of Dawn” by JamesMishler at the Vaults of Pandius

About the Archdruid: see “Archdruid of theIsle of Dawn” at the Vaults of Pandius

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About East Portage: see these East Portageand Hillvale Almanac entries at the Vaults ofPandius

About Kendach: see these Almanac entries atthe Vaults of Pandius

About the Teihzels: see “Real WorldInspiration for the Isle of Dawn” by SimoneNeri at the Vaults of Pandius

About West Portage: see these Almanacentries at the Vaults of Pandius

BAY OF EKTO The Peninsula of Rathen, east of East Portageis the start of the fastest sea lane to reachAlphatia, but also a wild and dangerous landinhabited by goblins, cyclops, harpies andFomorians, and dotted with mysterious ruinsfrom a forgotten past. The Bay of Ekto to thesouth is much more civilized near the city,but the hills and the mountains west of Ektoare the domain of orcs and Fomorians giants.

The mountains however are also extremelyrich in minerals, and in fact they hosted inthe past many Thothian outposts and are stillthe seat of the famous Great Mines of Ekto.

The land beyond the road south of Ekto is awild land, inhabited by orcs, minotaurs,cyclops, medusa and other monsters and,some believe, dominated by followers of Nyxand undead.The Bay of Ekto is supposedly inhabited bynon hostile merrow and tritons, but the highsea towards Alphatia is infested by giantoctopuses.

References:

I assumed several Nithian outposts couldexist in the area, inspired by “Extent of theNithian Empire” by LoZompatore at the Vaults.I created the Great Mines of Ekto because

mining is given as an important activity forthe city in Dawn of the Emperors.

About Ekto: see thes Almanac entries at theVaults of Pandius

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The area which the Thyatians now callProvincia Septentriona has in truth a veryancient history, inhabited in the past bygiants, Thothians and Milenians. The areanear to the city of Alasia is also the originalhomeland of the modern inhabitants ofYlaruam, and the nearby city of Ispanyolawas for some centuries the home of theThyatians that later colonized the SavageCoast, far to the west. Indeed the humancultures of this region are quite complicated,as there are also the Aseni and the Armeni,who could be related to ancient Alasiyan orto the Asieni of the Shadow Coast, andimportant Traldar and Milenian settlements,

such as Laticea, were also founded in thewestern coast. The inhuman inhabitants ofthe area are even more different andinteresting, if sometimes dangerous,including dragons, Fomorian giants,centaurs, gyerians, gnolls, sphinxes,hobgoblins, rakasta, lupins and otherhumanoids. Much more should be written ofSeptentriona to truly learn the secrets of thisland.

Despite its name, the Seawolf Bay is notinhabited only by seals, but also by manydolphins, porpoises and sea giants.

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References:

GAZ2: The Emirates of Ylarum mentions thatthe Alasiyans of Ylaruam did come from theIsle of Dawn, brought as slaves by theNithians.

The Aseni and a M-Armenian culture arementioned in “Real World Inspiration for theIsle of Dawn” by Simone Neri

About the Asieni and Laticea: see “History ofthe Isle of Dawn” by James Mishler

About Septentriona: see these Almanacentries at the Vaults of Pandius

About Ispanyola: see “The History of theIspan People: Some Notes” by James Mishler

Rakasta presence on the Isle of Dawn ismentioned in “History And Evolution OfRakastas” by Simone Neri at the Vaults

Lupins presence in Ochalea are mentioned in“History of the Lupins” by Giampaolo Agosta;I decided independently that they could havea presence in the Isle too.

LAND OF THE FOMORIANSIt is worthwhile to describe separately thecentral area of the Isle between Kendach,Ekto and Laticea because it can beconsidered a land fully dominated by theFomorian giants, who rule over the threeminor Escarpments and the Fomorian Hillsand Mountains to the south and the east ofthem. These giants are usually hostile tohuman encroachment, but in theirterritories there are other races andmonsters too, including gorgons, cyclops,minotaurs, orcs and dragons, probably allallied with them. A notorious but unnamedred dragon rules the so called Red Domainin the mountains, probably in league withthe Fomorians. The northern part of theGreat Escarpment, south of Fomorianlands, is instead inhabited by centaurs,phanatons and gnomes, of whom I willwrite below.

References:

The main reference about the Fomori isagain “History of the Isle of Dawn” byJames Mishler





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The branch of the GreatEscarpment which goes fromTrikelios towards Thothia isoften called in Alphatia theTrikelios Escarpment. It isalso called the Spider Wood,as giant spiders are the mostimportant inhabitants of thearea, with some harpies,gremlins, dragons andphanatons. Fairies of variouskinds also probably live inthese woods. The area islargely unexplored and,according to some explorers,dotted with ancientruins infested by giant spiders.

The Trikelios peninsula northeast of the cityand the area toward Thothia is inhabited bythe local humans, mostly descendants of theancient Milenians and Alphatians, but it toohas several wild regions, inhabited by stirgesand other creatures or rumored to bedominated by followers of Nyx and theundead. Great animals of the region includeseals, ostriches, wild goats and wild asses,deers and gazelles, wolves, jackals andleopards.

The sea of this region is notorious for thegreat tuna fish that can be caught here.

References:

The land of Aran, ancient realms of theAranea, is south of Trikelios in the moduleM5 Talons of Night, where also the cult ofNyx in the Isle is mentioned.

About Aran: see also “Lost Histories: Empireof Aran” by Andrew Theisen and the “Historyof Thothia and Aran” timeline by John Calvin

About Trikelios: see these Almanac entries atthe Vaults of Pandius

THE TRIKELIOS ESCARPMENT

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The central region of Thothia contains thegreat city of Edairo but not just it, as thereare also the ancient tombs of the pharaohs,great pyramids, the ruins of Ashura, the cityof Shumar and much more. The localhumans are mostly Thothians, with someAlphatians, but there are also a variety of nonhuman races in the area, from the gnolls ofthe northern desert to the lupins of the east,several reptilian races both in the Thothianswamp and in the deserts, sphinxes, centaursand more. The Hunakoi stone giants are alsoan important population of the area, as theyonce had a great kingdom here, with Ashuraas their capital.

The Aurora river is famously full of theequally dangerous hippos and crocodiles.

In the open sea, ships are sometimesattacked by sea snakes and sea worms.

References:

The Hunakoi, stone giants with red skins, arementioned in M5 Talons of Night, page 10and in James Mishler’s “History of the Isle ofDawn”, as Ashura and Shumar.

See also these Almanac entries on Thothia atthe Vaults of Pandius

THOTHIA



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The Thothian Peninsula, also called EasternThothia, is a huge grassland inhabited byhumans mostly along the coast. The interior,while still dotted with some Thothianvillages, is mostly the domain of othercreatures, such as the Fast Runners Rakasta,a huge variety of antelopes, goats andgazelles, centaurs, sphinxes, dragons, gnollsand thouls. Tigers, lions and leopards allhunt in this great plain. The seas around thepeninsula are supposedly full of giant squid,sharks, manta rays and devilfish.

References:

Rakasta Fast Runners are mentioned in thearea in “History And Evolution Of Rakastas”by Simone Neri

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The southern branch of the GreatEscarpment, also called the Thothian Branch,is locally known as Mathanephet, from thename of a legendary dragon king who oncehad here a huge pyramid and ruled over agreat domain. No one so far has ever beenable to discern if there is some truth in thisrumor. Thothian adventurers do not usuallyventure in this area, and the Alphatianadventurers who have done so did notreturn, recruited, willing or not, byMathanephet, or so the story goes. TheThothian villages of the southern coast areactually quiet places, but some say they areall dominated by death cults.

References:

Mathanephet is an undead dragon who wascreated by me in “Who’s Who in theWyrmsteeth part 2” (Threshold issue #9,page 101)

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The so called Haunted Coast is anunexplored area of the Isle, inhabitedaccording to local rumors by dangerouscreatures both under the sea and on thecoast. The region is also dotted withmysterious and unexplored ruins, maybeThothian, maybe much more ancient. Thewarm woods of the Escarpment above aredominated by Pardasta rakasta, and by othernon human inhabitants, including treantsand fairies. The few human settlements ofthe coast belong to the Asieri and Asuricultures, but those who inhabit this area aresaid to be savage and xenophobic.

References:

Pardasta rakasta are mentioned in the area in“History And Evolution Of Rakastas” bySimone Neri at the Vaults of Pandius

The ruins should belong to the ancientcolony of New Thonia, invented by JamesMishler in his “History of the Isle of Dawn”,from before the Great Rain of Fire. Samesource for the Asieri and the Asuri cultures.

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This great valley is the heart of the Isle, onceinhabited by Asuri humans and Hunakoigiants, then settled by the Thothians, whobuilt here great temples and tombs. Soonafter they fell under the domination of theNight Spider cult, and were liberated in 1002AC by Ramenhotep XXIV. The valley is alsothe main base of the rebellious pharaohHaptuthep II from 1016 AC.

Rumors in Edairo say the now bannedreligion of the mystic spiders still thrives inthe villages of the Escarpment just south ofthe valley. Giant spiders, sphinxes andharpies are numerous in the area, as aremany other kinds of dangerous monsters. It’snot clear if the Asuri humans who live in thisarea of the Escarpment are followers of theNight Spider or not.

The phanatons who live west of the Valleyare certainly enemies of the Spider and ofher servitors.

References:

The Valley of the Dawn and the Night Spiderare prominent in the module M5 Talons ofNight.

For the timeline of the Valley, see also myarticle “20 Years of History in the Sea ofDawn” in this issue of Threshold Magazine.

For the Asuri culture and the Hunakoi, see“History of the Isle of Dawn” by James Mishler

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This area of the Isle is inhabited by somemysterious cultures, such as the almostunknown Trueflower elves, who I havementioned recently in my small treaty aboutthe Elves of Mystara, lupins, phanatons,many kinds of fairies, centaurs, the stone folkand some isolated clans of gnomes anddwarves. I cannot say much about thesepeople because I know almost nothing aboutthem. The valley that divides this region ofthe escarpment is also inhabited by powerfulgoblin clans, while the plains to the southwest are dominated by the Asieri humans andcentaurs.

References:

The Trueflower elves were mentioned in myarticle “The Elven Clans and theirMigrations” (Threshold Magazine issue #10)

For the local dwarves and gnomes, the stonefolks and the Asieri, see “History of the Isle ofDawn” by James Mishler at the Vaults ofPandius

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THE SHADOW COAST

Part of the Thyatian province ofSeptentriona, the Shadow Coast,location of several Milenian citiessuch as Salicia, Mesonia andRialtos, is considered a dangerousplace for a variety of reasons: itswoods are supposedly inhabited bywerecreatures, harpies, humanoidsand undead. In its waters somedangerous monsters have beenspotted too, such as mesmers andaquatic beholders. The interior ofthis region is truly an unknownand wild land, but is still inhabitedby some ancient cultures, like theDunasi, the Ausar and theAlbernians. These bronze skinhumans are descendants ofThothians, Dunaels, Oltecs,Traldar, Milenians or, moreprobably, a bit of them all.

References:About Septentriona see theseAlmanac entries at the Vaults ofPandius

For Ausarnak: see James Mishler’s “History of the Isleof Dawn”. The Ausar should be the descendants of theNithians who lived there.

For the Albernians: see Simone Neri’s article, “RealWorld Inspiration for the Isle of Dawn”, at the Vaults ofPandius

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The region the Thyatians call ProvinciaMeridiona, or rather the northern part of itand the southern part of Septentriona, is alsocalled the Gulf of the Beasts, as the interiorlands are inhabited by werecreatures,humanoids, lupins and rakasta. Beside that,the sea is also inhabited by sea dragons. Onthe coast there are also many human villages,inhabited by Albernians and Thyatians. Thereare humans also in the interior lands, theAsieni, supposedly descendants of theancient Oltecs who mixed with Milenians,Dunaels and Thyatians. They are oftenconsidered savages, and dedicated toentropic cults, by those living on the coasts.Another rumor I heard maintains there areelves living in the remote forests of theShadow Coast. If such elves really exist, they

are even more mysterious and reclusive thanthe Trueflower of the Great Escarpment.

References:

About Meridiona:see these Almanac entriesat the Vaults of PandiusAbout the Asieni: see James Mishler’s“History of the Isle of Dawn”For the Albernians: see “Real WorldInspiration for the Isle of Dawn” by SimoneNeriAbout the Shadow Coast’s Elves: see “TheHistory of the Ispan People” by JamesMishler’ These elves probably were meantto be somehow related to the Belcadiz andthe Elves of the Savage Coast in the West.

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It’s interesting to focus a biton the woods east of the Gulfof the Beasts in Meridiona.These woods are called theLands of the Werebears, asthey are inhabited by suchcreatures. South of these landsand just north of Caerdania(Caerdwicca andFurmenglaive) there are thelands inhabited by centaurs,lupins and the Aelannhumans, some of themsedentary, particularly on thecoast, and some of themnomadic. To the northeast,near more lands inhabited bydwarves and stone folk, thereis also the Caesi culture, a mixup of Asieri and Caerdas.

References:

About Meridiona: see these Almanac entriesat the Vaults of Pandius

About the Asieri, see “History of the Isle ofDawn” by James Mishler

For the Aelanns and Caerdas: see the articles“Real World Inspiration for the Isle of Dawn”and “Caerdania Gazetteer, version 1.0” bothby Simone Neri

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The region of the Western Escarpment isdominated to the north by the River ofSkulls, that arrives to Rialtos on the WesternCoast, and is inhabited by stone folk, giants,dwarves, gnomes, centaurs, gyerians, Asierihumans and the Nierash culture.

The Nierash are simply sedentary Asieri,heavily influenced by dwarves and gnomes,while the others are normally nomadic, andhunt the huge variety of gazelles, antelopesand bovids who roam the great westernplain.

References:

About the stone folk, gnomes, dwarves andAsieri: see “History of the Isle of Dawn” byJames Mishler; the Nierash were invented byme for this issue.

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This region could possibly be the mostmysterious and unknown of the wholeEscarpment. It is supposedly inhabited by theAsuri humans, Oltec descendants whorevered animal and ancestor spirits, but laterbecame partially followers of Tarastia andallies of the Hunakoi giants. It is unknownwhat kind of society they may have and whatimmortals they may follow in modern times.There is also a mythical Realm of Araq hiddenin this forest, according to unverified rumors.The realm was supposedly founded by Asuriwho worshipped the immortal Korotiku, ormaybe the Night Spider, as the accounts arenot clear on this matter. An area of these

woods is also called the Monkey forest, andmay be inhabited by intelligent monkeys, orso the rumor goes.

References:

About the Asuri: see “History of the Isle ofDawn” by James Mishler; Araq and theMonkey forest were invented by me here.

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The region of Caerdwicca is inhabited by theCaerda humans, who are quite infamous aspirates in the Alphatian regions. They staywell away from the Dark Coast to the northeast, inhabited by the so-called Dark Asieni,who however are probably just followers ofNyx. The Escarpment just above Caerdwiccais inhabited by dwarves, centaurs, stone folk,gnomes and the human Asiur clans, probablyAsuri who left the eastern woods centuriesago.

The region of Caerdwicca, as the wholesouthern Meridiona, is near to the tropic andtherefore quite warm for all the year, among

the common animals there are scorpions,snakes, lizards, frogs, parrots, deer, buffalo,goats, lynxes, jackals, leopards and lions,with a great variety of seals, dolphins andwhales in the sea.

References:

About Caerdwicca: see these Almanac entriesand “Caerdania Gazetteer, version 1.0” bySimone NeriAbout the Asieni and the Asuri: see “Historyof the Isle of Dawn” by James Mishler; but Iinvented here the particular groupsdescribed above.

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The region of Furmenglaive goes beyond theborders of its namesake county and includesall the main regions of Caerdania, inhabitedby the Caerda humans, who however have toshare their land with several non humanpopulations. These include humanoids,lupins, werecreatures, fairies, undead,gyerians and some dangerous monsters suchas robber flies, seergars, yowlers and manyothers. While the human presence goes backcenturies, maybe millennia, the region is stillsparsely inhabited and a big part of it shouldbe considered wilderlands. The sea northwest of Furmenglaive is supposedlyinhabited by some clans of aquatic elves.

References:

About Furmenglaive see these Almanacentries at the Vaults of Pandius and“Caerdania Gazetteer, version 1.0” by SimoneNeri

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The Straits are dangerous fornatural, human and inhumanreasons. The natural reasons arewhirlpools, storms and reefs. Thehuman reasons are pirates, whohave many bases in the area orcome from Caerdwicca and Ne’er-do-well. The inhuman reasons arehostile sea creatures thatsometimes attack ships. The seahere and towards Caerdwicca isalso inhabited by shark-kin andknas, who however are not hostileunless provoked.

References:

About The Straits: see “Twilight ofthe Dawn” by Andrew Theisenfrom issue #3 of Tome of Mystaraat the Vaults of Pandius

THE STRAITS OF BARBAROSSA

http://pandius.com/tome/tomevol3/twilight.html

http://pandius.com/tome/tomevol3/twilight.html

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Koskatep level 9: Krystallac, crystal heart

The Three Sisters ruled over the FairImmortals. A Queen of Spring, a Queen ofSummer, and a Queen of Twilight. TheQueen of Summer had a daughter with theSun, to mend the wounds of the world. TheSun did not want the wounds to mend, andthe daughter was buried deep under theearth. The Queen of Spring had a daughterwith the Enemy, to prepare the end of theworld. And the Queen of Twilight had adaughter with the Lord of Death, that shecould kill her mother, and her father too.

Ancient, haunting fairy song.

SECRETS OF KOSKATEP,

LEVEL 9

This level can be reached going down fromthe closed and trapped hatch of area 9 onLevel 8 or even through the chasm in area 10on Level 8 (Mokrath, published in Issue 10 ofThreshold magazine). The PCs will findthemselves on Level 9, Krystallac, once acity of fairies, now apparently completelyempty, but in truth haunted and cursed.

The text below repeats the originaldescription of this level in issue 1 ofThreshold Magazine (Mirror of Eternal Nightarticle). Read on to discover more on thislevel of Koskatep!

byFrancesco Defferrari (Sturm)

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This level was Krystallac, a holy place of thefairy and giant realm of Grondheim1. Thewalls of this levels are heavily decorated withmagically enlightened, coloured crystals andbeautiful natural designs. This level is empty,apparently everything of value wasplundered when the city fell to the lizardmenmany centuries ago.

The secrets: Even though fairy folk weredriven away from the city so many years ago,they have always maintained a hiddenmagical gate in a small, unassuming room.Now sidhe lords from across the KnownWorld, Oberon’s court, and storm giants aregathering their strength to reconquerKrystallac. Unknown to the Darkers, at thetime of Grondheim, sidhe priests discoveredthat the Starlake could indeed be used toopen a permanent gate to any other plane,and the fairies would like to open one to theDreamlands. Yet, as the Starlake is defiled,the gate would now open to the Unseeliecourt, unless it is first purified.

Before the Darkers arrive, this level is empty,and afterwards it still is, even though theDarkers are slowly exploring it, hoping tofind some lost fairy folk artifact.

TIMELINE

The Great Mother Time: When the fairieswere not divided in two Courts, Chaos ruledover Law and the Great Mother reigned. Themythical time in which fairies were above themodern Immortals.

The Dragon wars: When, after theImmortals betrayed and killed the GreatMother, the Dragons waged war against theImmortals and were defeated, losing theirimmortality. Fairies, allied with the dragons,were also exiled from the immortal realms.

Ixion and Elienor: When Elienor the FairyQueen of Summer fell in love with theImmortal, Ixion, and they had a daughterwho was called Ashira.

Ashira’s Dream: When Ashira created theDream of Fire, a powerful artifact that couldchange past history. Her father Ixionimprisoned her for this. Elienor led a waragainst her former lover, but the fairies weredefeated.

Carnifex wars: When Carnifex and theOuter Beings almost destroyed theImmortals, and some fairies decided to helpthem to save the worlds2. Thus it was thatthe rift was created between the UnseelieCourt of Elienor and the Seelie Court ofMorganna.

Blackmoor: When Morganna fell in lovewith Uther, King of Blackmoor, but later the

1 Grondheim is most ly a creat ion of JohnCalvin (aka Chimpman) and more detai l s canbe found at this l ink on the Vaul ts ofPandius, and most ly in the Grondheim andtheGrondheim 2300 BC threads on The Piazzaforum. Many ideas in this ar t ic le a lso comefrom RobJN (aka Robert Nuttman, j r ) onThorn’s Chronic les and Thorn’s Mystara,about which more detai l s can be found in“Thorn's Chronic le” and “Thorn's Mystara”in the Vaul ts of Pandius, or in RobertNuttman’blog. My personal take andinterpretat ion on faer ies and Grondheimcould wel l be di f ferent f rom the or ig inalintent ions of both John and Robert .

2 By “Worlds” here I mean Mystara 's Pr imeplane and adjacent other planes, see forexample this ar t ic le by Ripvanwormer on“Mystara’s Cosmology” at the Vaul ts ofPandius

http://pandius.com/grndheim.html

http://www.thepiazza.org.uk/bb/viewtopic.php?f=63&t=8922&start=25


http://pandius.com/thorns_c.html

http://pandius.com/thrnmyst.html

http://thornschronicle.blogspot.it/2014/06/design-diary-time-before-years.html


http://www.pandius.com/mystcosm.html

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fairies of both courts had to fight theencroachment of the technomagic empire.

2504 BC: The Inti, led by the church ofIxion, occupy the ruins and rebuild the cityof Koskatepetl.

2379 BC: The Troll Queen of Grondheimconquers the city, renaming it Krystallac. Justa few years later sidhe priests discover theexistence of the inner temple and begin acentury long negotiation with the Sollux andthe Brutemen below to gain access to theartifact. The Troll Queen also creates theCrystal Lake, a permanent gate to the Border,the area between the Dreamlands and theNightmare dimension.

2282 BC: As the Queen grows impatientabout the unwillingness of Ixion tocompromise, she sends her best troops toopen the temple. Inti troops soon attack theplace, and Taymora intervenes shortlythereafter. This is the beginning of the War ofthe Empires, or the Twilight Wars, or the Warof Southern Grondheim, that will lastdecades and will devastate the region.Mogreth intervenes as well a few years later.

2170 BC: Some fairies of Krystallac turn tothe Unseelie, and decide to tell Elienor aboutAshira’s tomb. The Troll Queen discoversthem and exiles them, and manages toscatter the essence of Elienor after a terriblemagical battle near the Crystal Lake. But sheis gravely wounded by Elienor’s magic, andwill never be able to recover. The Crystal lakeis also damaged and its capacity as a portalgreatly reduced.

2080 BC: In a time of crisis in Grondheimdue to the Troll Queen’s malady Taymora

and Intua, lizardmen and troglodytes,escaped from the Mogreth, occupy Krystallacand keep it for a hundred years. As thelizardmen cannot locate all the portals left bythe fairies in Level 9, they try to seal itcompletely.

1976 BC: After a long siege Taymoraconquers Krystallac and renames itKosmoteiros. Nyx knows about Ixion’sartifact but rather than try to steal or destroyit she decides to exploit the magical aura ofthe place to build her own strongest artifactthat will bring fulfillment of her Dream. Thefollowers of Nyx leave Krystallac alone, andfairy agents of Titania, the Troll Queen andtheir mother Morganna start to fight tocontrol the Crystal Lake.

1777 BC: To prevent Kosmoteiros fromfalling into the hands of Thanatos, the priests

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of Nyx destroy the city with a terribleearthquake. Thousands die and the place isabandoned for many years as seismic activityincreases in the area. The Starlake watersfrom Level 7 spill into the Crystal Lake ofLevel 9, changing its properties. Agents ofOberon and Mabel also arrive in Krystallac.

1664 BC: After the destruction of Taymorafairies of the Unseelie court, former exiles ofKrystallac, take possession of the place andtry to use the Starlake, but do not discoverAshira’s burial and are not able to reachElienor until much later. The dark fairies ofKundrak try to reach Krystallac but the agentsof the three Seelie Courts ally against them.A long negotiation begins, but is cut short byLord Keiros’ coming.

1597 BC: Lord Keiros, a Tal nosferatu andfollower of Nyx, conquers Koskatep from thedark fairies. Vampiric followers of Thanatosattack several times but are defeated.

1412 BC: Hutaakans conquer the site forIxion and Pflarr, a seriously wounded LordKeiros is forced to hide, and his followers areexterminated.

1021 BC: Orcs sack Koskatep, somehutaakan priests survive hiding in the lowerlevels, and will become more guardians forthe hidden temple of Ixion. The fairy agentslet the hutaakans pass, Haput is recruited byOberon’s faction.

954 BC: After several battles a dwarven armydefeats the orcs and conquers Koskatep, butare soon in constant warfare with the gnollsthat rule over the region.

912 BC: The dwarves are finally defeated bythe gnolls, who build their own city over theruins. Shamans of Ranivorus and Thanatosbegin to study the Starlake.

841 BC: Followers of Nyx, aided by ogresand giants, attack Koskatep but are unable toconquer it from the gnolls. Yet they succeedin killing the most powerful shamans ofThanatos and burning their notes.

603 BC: The ogre king Kulfan conquersKoskatep in the name of Nyx and ogres ruleover the area for centuries. Human priests ofthe Lady of the Night live in the city alongwith them.

95 AC: The Darkers almost complete theritual to use the Starlake and bring forth theEternal Night, but are stopped at the lastmoment by priests of Ixion, who drive outthe ogres and occupy Koskatep for years.Elienor returns to Krystallac, and the Lord ofLeaves pledges his fealty to her. She learnsabout the existence of her daughter’s tomband tries to conquer Koskatep, but she andher agents are repelled by the priests ofIxion, who also occupy Level 9, hindering thework of the faerie agents or stopping itcompletely.

227 AC: The priests of Ixion have repelledseveral attempts by ogres, giants andfollowers of Nyx trying to reclaim the ruins,but are destroyed at last by a very powerfuland ancient vampire sent by Thanatos, TheLast One, called by Elienor. Some priests ofIxion escape to the lowest level and becomedefenders of the inner temple. In thefollowing centuries ogres, giants, followers ofNyx and even adventurers sent by Ixion try toreclaim Koskatep, but The Last One destroys

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them all. The Last One sends Akrash’sminions from Level 8 to conquer Krystallac,but the Seelie Courts ally to stop them. TheDark Fairies of Elienor try too, but arelikewise repelled. Rarely, some humanadventurers reach this far, and are kidnappedby the fairies or sent back against Akrash andthe Last One, to their doom.

912 AC: Traladaran freedom fighters hide inthe ruins for some time, but are destroyed bythe Thyatian army. The Thyatians soon leavethe place.

998 AC (or later if the DM prefers): LadySonya, the Grand Daughter of the Night, apowerful priestess of Nyx, and her followers,are able to defeat The Last One and reclaimKoskatep. Elienor on Level 6 is now growingimpatient with The Last One’s apparentinability to reach Level 13, while secretly onLevel 9 agents of Titania, Oberon, Mabel,Morganna and the Troll Queen are waitingfor the right chance to take control of theCrystal Lake. Elienor also tries to turn someof their agents to her cause, and sends parleyoffers to her rivals.

1031 AC: The next alignment. On this datethe Starlake could be used to bring forth TheEternal Night.

The Random Critters table of level 2B (inissue 3 of Threshold magazine) and theWandering Parties table may apply here ifthe DM so wishes. In this case there is a 1%chance in each room that a Wandering Partywill be encountered.The Followers of The Last One encountertable of level 1 (in issue 2 of Thresholdmagazine, page 122), can also still be usedhere if the DM so wishes. One such followercould try to join the PCs to explore this level,with the final purpose of bringing them inthe presence of The Last One himself (inLevel 7). After the Darkers take control (seeissue 1) any Follower of The Last One willobviously keep a much lower profile andmaybe even aid the party against the Darkersto use them or lead them to their deaths.

Spells that provide magical transportation,such as teleport, passwall, dimensional door,magic door, travel, gate and spells such asclairvoyance and find the path do not workon this level as on Levels 5-8 due to powerfulwards placed by The Last One and othersbefore him. The DM could decide to applythe same rule to the levels above the 5th, atleast from Level 2 and below, particularly ifthe PCs are of a high level.In addition, every faerie being secretlysurveilling this level will immediatelyperceive any spell cast here and will likely tryto invisibly follow the PCs to discern theirmotivations. The behaviour of these agentswill be described in each individual area.

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The map and the inhabitants of

this Level

The area in dark grey on the map is solidstone, very difficult to dig, even though itmay contain small tunnels dug by critters andwandering monsters. The area in light grey ispartially clear, but full of rubble, rocks andcollapsed structures which cannot berecognized anymore.

The black “scar” in the middle of the map isthe Chasm opened by the Kosmoteirosearthquake of 1777 BC, which goes all theway down to Level 12.

The structures in green are the originalconstructions of Krystallac at its height, builtwith magical greenish crystal that still glow inthe dark of this level. The green points aretrunks of the crystal trees, which once hadbranches and leaves. The purple squares arethe seven abodes of the Seven DreamKingdoms. All these locations will be fullyexplained below.

At its height, the city was packed of greencrystal houses, but most of them have sincecrumbled, their magic exhausted. A finegreen dust covers most of the area in lightgrey, all that remains of the thousand magicalhouses of Krystallac.

The green and purple structures not onlyglow, but also show transparent images fromtime to time, usually leaves and flowers, butsometimes faces, or creatures.The azure spot is the Crystal Lake built by theTroll Queen.

This level is completely empty andapparently has no living (or dead)inhabitants. This is because the inhabitants ofthis level are not physically here, but areinstead in the Dreamlands (or Annwyn in theNightmare Dimension) the homes of thefairies of the Seelie and Unseelie Courtsrespectively.

The DM could decide that the PCs will beable to cross this level without encounteringanyone, or, through this level, the PCs will beable to travel to the Seven Worlds.

#1: “Mirror of the Eternal Night” (Overview)#2: “The Debris” (Level 1)#3: “The Akropolis of Kotesh” (Level 2B)#4: “The Lower Ruins of Kotesh” (Level 2A)#5: “Ranesh, city of four people” (Level 3)#6: “Karrast, dwarven gold” (Level 4)#7: “Dark secrets of Ieronyx” (Level 5)#8: “Shadows of Kundrak” (Level 6)#9: “Signs of the Universe” (Level 7)#10: “Mokrath, serpent eye” (Level 8)











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1 - The stair from Level 8 and the Crystal Trees

Here a spiral staircase comes down from Area 9 ofLevel 8, the Shrine to Thanatos. This access isnormally kept locked and trapped by Akrash and hisminions above (see Level 8 in issue #10 ofThreshold magazine). All around the spiral staircasethere are the trunks of the Crystal trees. Magicalconstructs of the Troll Queen, at the height ofKrystallac they had branches, leaves and fruit withvarious magical properties, but now they seem justbroken columns of green crystal. In front of thestaircase there is the huge crystal green wall of theTemple (Area 7). The wall is impossible to climb.Anyone attempting this will simply reappear at thebase of the wall right before he or she reaches thetop, unless he or she possess immortal level magic.Bones or other similar remains litter the floor inthis area, among the green dust. They are mostlywhat’s left of followers of the Last One who tried toinvade the level and were destroyed by the fairies ofAreas 2, 5, 8 or 9.

The Darkers will open this access to start exploringthis level, but mostly it will be Elienor and herminions from Level 6 that take advantage of thisoption, as they will hope to contact the members ofthe Seelie Court who sometimes come here, to swaythem to their cause. A mixed group of 1d10+2Darkers and Dark Fairies may be present here atany time.

2 - The Mound

This is just a round wall of green crystal, apparentlyless massive than the one of the Temple in Area 7,yet likewise unclimbable. There is no apparentaccess to the inside.This area was inhabited by cloud and storm giantsat the height of Krystallac. Vuram, a cloud giantenvoy from the Altan Tepes mountains, and ally of

1 - It is possible to reactivate thetrees with a green key. These keysare normally only in the possessionof high level fairies and can openany green crystal house or structure,if the fairy concentrates on it. PCs ofother races will be able to activatethe key only 30% of the time. Areactivated tree can randomlyprovide food, beverage and magic.Fairy folk are able to call a specific“product” from the tree, but non-fairies will succeed only 10% of thetime, otherwise the tree will create arandom object, food or beverage, upto a maximum weight of 3.3 pounds(1.5 kilograms).

2 - There are giant sized pieces ofarmor, weapons, furniture and foodinside the Mound, but PCs willprobably be able to access it onlywith the aid of Vuram, and he willnot let them take anything away.

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the Fairy King Oberon, sometimes visits the area,mostly to hunt and kill minions of the Last Onewho are exploring the area from Level 7. He oftenhas 2d4 other giants (mountain, cloud or stormgiants usually) with him. He has an unique greenkey which opens the Mound, and if he encountersthe PCs will ask about their allegiance beforeattacking. He will know if they tell the truth, butwill not attack if they are not aligned with the LastOne.

Some time after the arrival of the Darkers they willcontact Vuram and he will be friendly with them,even if he has his own plans about Koskatep.

3 - The Crystal Forest

This great area is full of green crystal trunks, oncethe crystal trees that provided Krystallac withmagical food, beverages and items. Now they canonly be activated with a green key, as explainedabove.

After the Darkers initial attack any follower of theLast One still alive in this area will escape with himto Level 10, and wait for his revenge. Afterwardsthere is a 3% chance that a group of Darkers(1d6+1), led by a priest or a wizard, may beencountered here.

3 - There are 1d10+1 followers ofthe Last One hidden among thetrunks. Check the table in issue #2of Threshold magazine as explainedabove or choose any kind of undeadminion as appropriate to the PCslevels. Their purpose here is to killfaerie agents, if they can surprisethem. In truth, this is only the latestgroup of followers the Last Onesent. All the previous ones werediscovered and destroyed by Vuram(Area 2) or the fairy agents (Area 5).

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4 - The Purple Houses of the Seven Kingdoms

These seven houses, the only structures built inpurple crystal instead of green, each lead to one ofthe Seven Kingdoms. The kingdoms are just howthe fairies call seven very different areas of Mystara.The Houses were built by the Troll Queen thanks tothe magic of the Crystal Lake and their use wasreserved to her and her most trusted servants. Theycan be accessed only by a purple key, unique toeach house, which only the Lord of Leaves in Area 9and any other very high ranking fairy may possess.Using the house may leave the PCs stranded in a faraway location or even kill them, if they do not havefaerie help:

I - The Earth House leads anyone entering it to arandom faerie location in the Outer World3, unlessthe traveller concentrates on a specific location.Non-faeries will only be able to pick a specificlocation with a successful saving throw againstspells, but they will not be aware of the necessity toconcentrate unless a faerie agent explains it tothem.

II - The Sea House leads anyone entering it to arandom Undersea location4 in the Outer World. PCsnot equipped with water breathing spells willprobably drown.

III - The Sky House leads anyone entering it to arandom Cloud Castle of the cloud giants or arandom Faerie City5 in the skies high above theOuter World.

3 See PC1 Tal l Tales of the Wee Folk or the “Whoare Mystara 's Archfey” thread at The Piazza forumsfor fa i ry locat ions in the Outer World

4 Nixies are detai led in PC3 The Sea People5 Faer ies appear in the Rules Cyclopedia; see a lso“Faer ie Subtype and Faer ie” at the Vaul ts ofPandius

4 - There is a safe way to travel thePurple Houses, as the Lord of Leaveswill explain to the PCs if he decidesto meet them in Area 9, see thedescription of that Area for furtherdetails.



http://pandius.com/faerie.html

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IV - The Shadow House leads anyone entering it toa random fairy location of the Shadowdeep6

between the Outer and the Hollow World.

V - The Hollow World House leads anyone enteringit to a random fairy location in the Hollow World7.As normal teleportation spells will not work in theHollow World, PCs will be able to return here onlywith Immortal level fairy magic, i.e. the aid of anextremely powerful fairy, should they stay for morethan a week (see below).

VI - The Matera House leads anyone entering it toa random fairy location in the moon of Matera8,either on the outside (where the PCs could die forlack of air) or in the Hollow Moon.

VII - The Patera House leads anyone entering it toa random fairy location9 on the invisible moon ofPatera.

Once the user reaches a location, the Purple Housewill remain in that location for a week, waiting forthe traveller’s return, then it will disappear forever,leaving him, her or them stranded if they do notreturn in time to the House.

The Darkers will be very interested in the PurpleHouses, but any fairy party will try to destroy them

6 See these ar t ic les in the Vaul ts of Pansius

7 Tepictoton are fa i r ies l iv ing in the Hol lowWorld, other fa i r ies speci f ica l ly l inked to Hol lowWorld cul tures may exis t too.

8 About the surface of Matera: see the topic“Revamping Matera” by LoZompatore un ThePiazza forums; about the Hol low Moon, see theseart ic les in the Vaul ts , and John Calvin’s ar t ic les inprevious issue of Threshold Magazine.

9 About Patera: see these ar t ic les , part icular ly the“More detai l s about Patera” by LoZompatore andpage 22 of the “Gazeteer of Myoshima”byAgathokles

http://pandius.com/shaddeep.html

http://pandius.com/tepict.html


http://pandius.com/hllwmoon.html

http://pandius.com/hllwmoon.html

http://pandius.com/themoons.html

http://pandius.com/patera2.html

http://pandius.com/Myoshima.pdf#page=23

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before they are able to use them. Should the faeriesfail to defeat the Darkers, they will magically blowup the whole level to avoid the danger of a humanorganization gaining control of so many faerieportals.

5 - The Houses of Green Crystal

These houses of green crystal, apparently withoutdoors or windows, are the only ones still standingin the city because they are occasionally visited andoccupied by living fairy folk. A green key is neededto access any of them, one unique to each house.There are twelve green houses still standing, andtwelve active faerie agents. (Fifteen if the Lord ofLeaves in area 9, Vuram in area 2 and Heshaanis inarea 7, are also counted. They, however, have theirown particular stories as detailed in their areas).The exact location of these twelve minor agent’shouses can be determined randomly. Theynormally avoid each other and all are trying torepair and study the Crystal Lake in area 7:

I - Crais, a pooka who appears as a porcupine manand is an agent of the Summer Court of QueenTitania. Crais seems nice and harmless but it’s justa ruse. He is a powerful wizard (Pooka 10, Wicca13) who has destroyed many followers of The Last

5 - Politics of the fairy courts couldwell be quite confusing for the PCs,but they are meant to be. All of themcould be allies against the Last One,some could accept a temporaryalliance with the Darkers or theChurch of Ixion, but they willeventually try to take Koskatep fortheir people. From the most friendlyto the less friendly faction, considerthat Mabel’s faction could be themost willing to share the place withothers, even humans, but it also theless powerful and most far away, asit represent Davania’s fairies.Oberon’s faction too is relativelyfriendly, and much nearer. Thenthere is Titania’s faction, who wouldprefer not to share the place withhumans, but will try to use nonlethal force to drive them away.Then there is Morganna’s faction,whose purpose is mysterious evento other fairies. The Troll Queen’sfaction is willing to resort to anymeans to drive other races awayfrom Koskatep and control its magic,and its ultimate goal is to bring backGrondheim, conquering any humannation in its way, such asKarameikos. Elienor’s faction plans

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One already. He normally only exits the house with1d10+2 other powerful fairies (Levels 4-10). He isthe leader of the Summer Faction, whose ultimategoal is to make a rebuilt Krystallac the center of anew fairy realm, open only to some selected races,such as elves, but not to humans.

II - Etraig, a sidhe knight (Sidhe 10) is anotheragent of the Summer Court, but of King Oberon’sfaction. He cooperates with Crais and the otheragents of Titania, but Oberon has his own agendaas he would prefer a fairy city more open to theexternal world, including humans. He may also bemore willing to ally with the Darkers, or at least notoppose them directly. He normally only exits thehouse with 1d6+1 other powerful fairies (Levels 3-9).

III - Aesha, a dryad shaman (Dryad 9 Shaman 9)and chief agent of the Twilight Court of Morganna,the mysterious Queen of the Fairies of Skothar. Theother factions are not sure of what goal she mighthave. Morganna supposedly aided the ancient Kingof Blackmoor, Uther, in his rise to power, but it’shard to say if she is still friendly toward humans, asthe other fairies are not even sure she is still alive.Aesha normally only exits the house with 1d8+2other powerful fairies (Levels 4-10).

IV - Cuachal, a Tepictoton (as Pixie 10 or seenote10), a Davanian fairy, is the only agent of theSpring Court of Mabel in Virdin. His goal is mostlyto wait and see what the other Courts will do, orwho will win, and intervene only if The Last One orthe Darkers gain control of Krystallac. In this case,Mabel could decide to send relevant forces. Cuachaloften leaves the house alone, or with just a singlecompanion (normally another sprite or pixie, Level3-7)

1 0 About Tepictoton: see this ar t ic le at the Vaul ts .About Virdin see my art ic le on the Izondian Coastof Davania in Threshold issue #5.

nothing less than awake Ashira inLevel 13 and change the past, thusdestroying the world as the PC’sknows it.There are a multitude of enchantedfairy objects in each house,belonging to the faerie who livesinside when he or she is present. Itis very unlikely, however, that thePCs could be able to gain access to ahouse without the consent of theowner, even if they stole his or herunique green keys. A non faerie canin fact gain access, even with thecorrect key, only 10% of the time,and he or she can try only once aday. If the PC fails, he or she will bestunned for the rest of the day.

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V - Shorok, a woodrake (Woodrake 10, Wicca 9) isthe chief agent of the Troll Queen in Krystallac.The other fairy courts are not sure about theultimate fate of the Troll Queen of Grondheim.Some say she is asleep, hidden somewhere, whileothers say she has awakened and is active again inAlphatia. Regardless, Shorok’s purpose is to repairthe Crystal Lake and bring Krystallac back to itsformer glory, destroying any interloping humans.He normally only exits the house with 1d12+2other powerful fairies (Levels 5-10).

VI - Jinimix, a brownie (Brownie 9) is officially anagent of Titania, now in the service of Elienor (seeKundrak in Threshold issue #8) due to his fealty tothe Lord of Leaves (see Area 9) who also turned tothe Queen of Winter. The others of his faction donot know this, but Crais suspects something. Henormally leaves the house alone or with 2bodyguards (Pooka 5). The bodyguards have turnedto Elienor too.

VII - Kirvos, a faun (Faun 9) is the only knownagent of Elienor, even if he was sent by the TrollQueen centuries ago. Shorok hates him for hisbetrayal. Kirvos has met with Jiminix in secretseveral times already. Elienor’s goal is nothing lessthan access to Ashira’s tomb on Level 13, thendestroy the Immortals and bring back the Time ofChaos. Repairing the Crystal Lake andexterminating humans in all the area surroundingKoskatep could be a minor goal. Until the Last Oneis destroyed, Kirvos does not have easy access to theDark Fairies of Level 6, due to the wards preventingteleport and portals in Koskatep, he communicateswith them through spells. The situation couldchange if Heshaanis (see Area 7) shares his access.Kirvos normally exits the house alone, secretly andin the dark, but Elienor has given him the power tosummon 1d6+3 wraiths once a day, with a blackmagical stone he always brings along.

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VIII - Taasea, a dryad (Dryad 9) is another agent ofTitania and apparently loyal to Crais, but she issecretly in love with Etraig, who plans to enlist herhelp for Oberon’s faction if needed. She normallyonly leaves the house with 3 other dryads and 2fauns (Levels 3-7).

IX - Kuyckj is a bog imp (Bog Imp 1011) and anagent of the Troll Queen. He would like very muchto kill Kirvos but normally obeys Shorok loyally. Henormally only exits the house with 1d6+2 otherbog or wood imps (Levels 3-6).

X - Tairyc, a sprite (Sprite 10) is an agent ofMorganna and he normally just aids and obeysAesha. He often has 1d7+1 other sprites with him(Levels 2-7).

XI - Kaeja is a dryad (Dryad 10, Shaman 8) and anagent of the Troll Queen. She obeys Shorok butwould like very much to succeed in their missionbefore him and take the credit. Tairyc is trying toturn her to Morganna. She normally exits the housewith three dryad acolytes (Dryad 3-5, Shaman 1-4).

XII - Verish is a Pixie (Pixie 10) and an agent ofTitania. He is loyal to Crais and doesn’t know thatJinimix has turned to Elienor, but suspects thatTaasea has a relationship with Etraig. He normallyexits the house with 1d6+1 pixies (Levels 3-8).

Some time after the arrival of the Darkers all theminor agents will show themselves and professtheir friendship, while secretly trying to furthertheir cause by spying on the Darkers and the rivalagents and smearing the rival groups. If the Darkershave allied with the Dark Fairies of Level 6, theagents of Titania, Oberon, Morganna, Mabel andthe Troll Queen will try to warn them that theultimate goal of Elienor and the Winter Court is

1 1 See the AD&D Mystara Monstrous Compendiumor “Bog Imp” at the Vaul ts

http://pandius.com/bogimp.html

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nothing short of the destruction of the world andall the Immortals, Nyx included. Obviously theDark Fairies and their agents here will try to denysuch claims and accuse the others instead. AllFaerie factions, except maybe for Oberon’s, willprobably betray the Darkers for their own ends,sooner or later. Oberon, Titania and Mabel couldalso be willing to compromise with a winning Ixionfaction, while Morganna’s goals are completelymysterious and the Troll Queen will wantcomplete control of Koskatep for herself.

6 - The Chasm, and entrance to the Temple

The Chasm opened by the earthquake of 1777 BChas destroyed the former entrance to the FairyTemple which contains the Crystal Lake. Now theonly safe way to enter is to fly over the Chasm,while climbing up and down or tying a rope couldbe quite dangerous as the water dripping fromLevel 7 has random teleportation effects, seesidebar.

The Darkers will eventually try to cover the Chasmto have an easier access to the Temple and theCrystal Lake. The fairy factions will not hinderthem, waiting for another good opportunity tostrike at them and at the other factions.

7 - The Temple and the Crystal Lake

This area is now partially isolated from the rest ofthe level by the Chasm, as explained in theprevious area, and the faerie factions constantlybattle one another to have access to the CrystalLake. This happens through pitched battle, layingtraps or sending expendable minions (such ashuman adventurers) against each other, or bysimply trying to sneak here unnoticed by the otherfactions. There is a 5% chance each time that the

6 - There is the Dark Waterfallcoming down from above. As thewalls of the chasm are wet, it isextremely dangerous to try to reachLevel 10 and below going downfrom here.Touching the Dark Waterfall mayalso cause random teleportationeffects to Annwyn, particularly theareas where it borders the Carnifexprison1.

1 This idea comes f rom the Thorn’sChronic le b log by RobJN. For moreinformat ion about the Carni fex, see“Of the Lore and Legends of Y 'hog,City of the Unclean Ones, and ofthat Race” and “Carni fex” (both atthe Vaul ts) . Annwyn is thehomeplane of the Dark Fair ies , seealso the previous level of Koskatepin Threshold issue #8 and issue #9about the Dark Waterfa l l . Thechance of te leportat ion could bevery low (only 5% of the t imes thatsomeone touches the waters) , ormuch higher, depending on theDM’s preference.






http://pandius.com/carnifex.html



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PCs arriving here may encounter a (temporarily)victorious fairy faction here studying the Lake.There is another 5% chance each time that the PCsarrive right in the middle of a battle between fairyfactions, or between a faction and the followers ofThe Last One of Area 1.

The Crystal Lake was created by the Troll Queen tobe a permanent gate to any faerie land in Mystaraand to the Border, the land between theDreamlands and Annwyn and the Nightmare lands.Thanks to its properties, the Purple Houses and theGreen Houses were built too (see Areas 4 and 5).After the battle here between the Troll Queen andElienor in 2170 BC the Crystal Lake began to fail,sending users to unknown locations of themultiverse12, or maybe just destroying them. Sincethen, the fairie factions are trying to repair themagical damage, but their efforts have beenseriously undermined by the fact that they do notcooperate but rather constantly try to hinder eachother.

The Darkers will be quite interested in the CrystalLake too. After their arrival a group of them,(1d6+1), led by a priest or a wizard, may beencountered here with a 3% chance. They willprobably not have the time to study it properly,however, as one or all the fairy factions will soonstrike against them once they rid them of The LastOne. The latter’s return from Level 10 (see Level 7and previous issues of Threshold) could wellhappen while the Darkers are busy fighting thefairies here and on the level above.

8 - The City

This was the main area of the city of Krystallac at itsheight, it therefore contained a lot more housesthan now. The terrain is covered with fine green

1 2 Anywhere, such as the Vortex or Cal idar. . .

7 - Heshaanis, a dark hsiao (a hsiaoaligned with the Unseelie Court) ishidden among the crystal trunks ofthis area. He has arrived from Area 7of Level 6 (through the randomteleportation effect of the FaeryRing) but he has not communicatedthis to his superior and QueenElienor. He is trying to decide if hecould gain more by exploring thislevel first, in the hope he coulddiscover some treasure of Krystallac.He will try to contact the PCs toobtain their help. He will claim to bea hsiao of the outside world whojust wants to save the ancient secretsof this fairy city from the plunderingof the Last One.

8 - With a thorough search of thearea some items could be found,mostly weapons, coins, armor orother objects dropped during thecenturies by the rare adventurers orminions of the Last One who came

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dust and there are still 7 green houses and 2 purplehouses here, but not much more.

The Darkers will make plans to rebuild the city,with the assistance of the Dark Fairies of Level 6. Intruth, as explained before, they will just wait for theright time to betray them. After the arrival of theDarkers a group of them (1d6+1), led by a priestor a wizard, may be encountered here with a 3%chance.

9 - The Palace of the Queen

This was the Palace of the Troll Queen at the heightof Krystallac. Now it is apparently completelyempty, and without a door to close it, it can beeasily entered. In truth, the Lord of Leaves (Sidhe10, Wicca 10, Shaman 10) is often here with severalminions (at least 1d20+5 or more), including sidheknights, pookas, drakes, sprites and more. But theywill all be invisible unless he decides to meet thePCs. If the PCs had some agreement with Elienoron Level 6 or the Flame Duke (see Area 14 of Level6), the Lord of Leaves will appear to them.

this far and were destroyed by thefairies.

9 - There is a treasure of magicalobjects in the palace, some datingback to the time of Grondheim.Spells to see magic and invisiblethings may reveal them, but the Lordof Leaves and the other fairies herewill not allow thieves to escapeunmolested.

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The Lord is in fact the brother of the Flame Duke,leader of the Fairies who betrayed the Troll Queenin 2170 BC. The Lord of Leaves remained loyal, butthe rift with his brother weighed heavily on him,and with the passing centuries he reconsidered hisposition. Officially aligned with Titania after the fallof Grondheim in 1700 BC, the Lord of Leavesnevertheless contacted his brother in Kundrak in1664 BC and kept contact with him even after thefall of the Dark Fairies. Eventually his turning pointwas in 95 AC, when he found Elienor by the CrystalLake. Since then, he has been a secret agent of theWinter Queen. Even if he normally aids Crais andthe other agents of Titania and Oberon to deflectsuspicions, he always subtly sabotages their efforts.He has also successfully deflected Crais’ suspicionsto Jinimix (see Area 5) and other factions, so far.The Lord of Leaves has found a way to repair theCrystal Lake, even if he has not shared thisinformation with anyone yet, not even with hisbrother and Elienor. The magical ritual to repairthe lake needs some quite rare components fromthe Seven Kingdoms accessible through the PurpleHouses (Area 4):

I - A dryad’s love potions from the earth fairies.II - A nixie’s veil from the sea fairies.III - A faerie’s wing dust from the sky fairies.IV - A gem of Annwyn from the Shadowdeep fairies.V - A tepictoton’s cloak from the Hollow World fairiesVI - A pinch of enchanted dust from Matera’s fairiesVII - A pooka’s boot from Patera’s fairies.

Obtaining all the above items will include somedifficult feats of persuasion and a lot of travel. If thePCs manage to do that the Lord of Leaves willreward them handsomely with magical items andwill promise even more rewards from Elienor andthe Flame Duke, once he informs them. The PCscould instead obviously bring such items andknowledge to one of the other fairy factionsdescribed in Area 5. Elienor and the Duke will

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obviously eventually use the lake to bring herehuge numbers of Dark Fairies, to eliminate humansand any other faction. The Lord of Leaves may tryto convince the others to spare former allies, butElienor and the Duke may well not necessarilylisten to him.

The Darkers will meet the Lord of Leaves too buthe will not tell them about the items, as he willdecide to speak directly with his brother and theother Dark Fairies. The Lord and his retainers willbecome visible here once the Last One has beentemporarily defeated.

10 - The Cave, only safe way to Level 10

Even if it is possible to reach Level 10 through theChasm, this cave is the only safe way to do so. Thefairy agents and the Lord of Leaves know that theLast One has awakened some mummies below, butthey did not care as their only interest is the CrystalLake. Therefore the hatch opening into the spiralstaircase going down is bolted.

The Darkers will not immediately try to open Level10, but should decide to do so eventually,activating or disarming the trap. It is very likely,however, that The Last One, hidden below on Level10 and after his first defeat on Level 7, will strikeagainst them well before they decide to explorebelow.

10 - There is a trap on the hatch leftby The Last One if someone tries toopen it without saying “All praises toThanatos Lord of Death”. The trap isexceedingly powerful, sending ameteor swarm against the intruders.A clue to its existence are thebattered bones of some oldadventurers who somehow managedto reach this far.

There will be no initial battle on this level, asthe Darkers and the Dark Fairies will arrivehere peacefully after conquering Level 7 (seeissue #9 of Threshold) and finding anagreement with the lizardmen on Level 8 (seeissue #10 of Threshold). After some timehowever the minions of the Last One (or of

other parties, see the next issue of Thresholdmagazine for a possible timeline andoutcome of the battles for Koskatep’scontrol) will come up from Level 10, andthey will have to battle whoever controlsKrystallac, probably the Darkers or the DarkFairies, or another fairy faction.

THE BATTLE ON THIS LEVEL

225


Time’s Travels

226


Time’s Travels

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Artwork Sources and Credits

Front cover: [Image: Cover of issue 11]Cover of issue 11 by Sturm, using Bellerophon, Pegasus and theChimera by Peter Paul Rubens

Source

Page7 : [Haaken’s shield or Coat of Arms]Original works by Bruce Heard

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Page 8: [County of Grunfold]Original work by Bruce Heard

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Page 9: [Kidnapper’s Lair]Original work by Bruce Heard

Page 10: [Ad]Original work by John Calvin

Page 11: [Champions of Mystara cover]Front cover art for the boxed set Champions of Mystara. Cover artcopyright belong to the publisher or the cover artist. Reproduced forreview purposes.

Page 12: [Alphatia Ad]Original work by Francesco Defferrari using Thorfinn Tait’s replicamap of Alphatia

Page 13: [In Stranger Skies cover]Front cover art for the book In Stranger Skies. Cover art copyrightbelong to the publisher or the cover artist. Reproduced for reviewpurposes.

Page 14: [Beyond the Skies]Beyond the Skies presentation on Kickstarter. Original work by BruceHeard

Page 17: [Atlas of Mystara logo]Original work by Thorfinn Tait

Page 18: [Map of Thyatis by Thorfinn Tait]Original work by Thorfinn Tait

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Page 22: [Thorf’s photo 1]Photograph belonging to Thorfinn Tait, reproduced with his permission

Page 23: [Thorf’s photo 2]Photograph belonging to Thorfinn Tait, reproduced with his permission

Page 25: [Northern Iciria 1999]Original work by Thorfinn Tait

Page 25: [First hex designs]Original work by Thorfinn Tait

Page 25: [Atlas of Mystara logo]Original work by Thorfinn Tait


https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Peter_Paul_Rubens_-_Bell%C3%A9rophon,_mont%C3%A9_sur_P%C3%A9gase_transperce_la_Chim%C3%A8re.JPG

http://bruce-heard.blogspot.it/2013/01/Ar02.html

http://bruce-heard.blogspot.it/2015/12/Ar03.html

http://mystara.thorfmaps.com/dawn-thyatis-8/

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Source

Page 27: [Thumbnail of the Great Caldera]Original work by Thorfinn Tait, copyrights owned by Calidar authorBruce Heard.

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Page 29: [Mystara 2016]Original work by Thorfinn Tait

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Page 30: [Meryath province map]Original work by Thorfinn Tait, Calidar copyrights owned by settingauthor Bruce Heard.

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Page 31: [Thorf’s photo 3]Photograph belonging to Thorfinn Tait, reproduced with hispermission

Page 33: [Princes of the Apocalypse cover]Image copyrights belonging to Wizards of the Coast, reproduced forreview purpose

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Page 34: [Elemental Evil Player’s Companion cover]Image copyrights belonging to Wizards of the Coast, reproduced forreview purpose

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Page 35: [Map1]

Replica of Poor Wizard’s Almanac Maps by EPiK team.

Page 37: [Map2]

Esterhold Players map by EPiK team

Page 38: [Map3]Esterhold GM map by EPiK team

Page 39: [Ordana]Flora by Evelyn de Morgan, via Wikimedia commons

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Page41 : [Elements]Four elements, seasons and Zodiac. Miniature from English medievalmanuscript, via Wikimedia commons

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Page 42: [Elemental Cults]The Four Elements by Deodat van der Mont, via Wikimedia commons

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Page 42: [Black Earth Cult]Reproduction of the cult symbol from Princes of Apocalypse

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Page 43: [Howling Hate Cult]Reproduction of the cult symbol from Princes of Apocalypse

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Page 44: [Breaking Wave Cult]Reproduction of the cult symbol from Princes of Apocalypse

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Page 44: [Eternal Flame Cult]Reproduction of the cult symbol from Princes of Apocalypse

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http://mystara.thorfmaps.com/hw-northern-iciria-40/

http://strangerskies.com/get-calidar-2/

http://www.thorfmaps.com/lining-up-mystara-xix/

http://www.strangerskies.com/bbforums/viewtopic.php?f=10&t=55

http://dnd.wizards.com/products/tabletop-games/rpg-products/princes-apocalypse

http://media.wizards.com/2015/downloads/dnd/EE_PlayersCompanionv2.pdf

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Morgan,_Evelyn_de_-_Flora_-_1894.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Morgan,_Evelyn_de_-_Flora_-_1894.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Medieval_four_elements.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Medieval_four_elements.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Deodat_van_der_Mont_-_The_four_elements.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Deodat_van_der_Mont_-_The_four_elements.jpg





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Page 46: [Players map of the adventure area]Replica of Princes of Apocalypse map by EPiK team

Page 48: [DM Map of the adventure area]Replica of Princes of Apocalypse map by EPiK team

Page 50: [Heralds of Saturnius]Clothing of two Phrygian males via Wikimedia commons

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Page 51: [Alliance of the Lords of Minaea]Pericles pronouncing the funeral oration of Athenian soldiers viaWikimedia commons

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Page 51: [Congregation of the Blade]Roland (right) receives the sword, Durandal, from the hands ofCharlemagne (left), via Wikimedia commons

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Page 52: [Order of the Fallen Dragon]Order of the Dragon. From a textile insignia drawing, via Wikimediacommons

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Page 52: [Emerald Enclave]Illustration tirée de Histoire de France, cours élémentaire, ErnestLavisse, Armand Colin, 1913, via Wikimedia commons

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Page 53: [Cover of a Thyatian book]La Prudenza, incisione, in "Symbolicarum quaestionum de universogenere" di Achille Bocchi, Bononiae 1555, via Wikimedia commons

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Page 56: [Thyatian scribe]Woodcut showing Cicero writing his letters. Detail from page 329 ofCicero, Epistulae ad familiares (“Letters to his friends”), from an earlyedition printed by Hieronymus Scotus in 1547 at Venice (Venezia,Italy), via Wikimedia commons

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Page 58: [ Thyatian inscription]Inscription on Guadix cathedral, Spain, via Wikimedia commons

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Page 61: [Thyatian emperor]Mosaic of Iustinianus I, 6th century A.D, in Ravenna, Italy, viaWikimedia commons

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Page 63: [Map 1: Carytion and Surrounding Area]Particular of Thorfinn Tait’s replica map of Thyatis

Page 65: [Map 2: Judicates of Carytion]Maps by Giulio C (4 mph)

Page 66: [Map 3: Carytion in 4 mph and in 1 mph plus original Thyatismap in 8 mph] (4mph by the author Giulio C. and in 1 mph (byRobin D).

Page 67: [Peak in the interior]Orgosolo mountain in Sardinia, via Wikimedia commons

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Page 67: [Cork oak trees]Cork oak trees in Sardinia via Wikimedia commons

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Page 68: [Casu marzu cheese]Sardinian cheese via Wikimedia commons

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Page 68: [Carasau bread]Sardinian bread via Wikimedia commons

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https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Hottenroth_I-024_-_3-4_-_Phrygian_males.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:With_the_world%27s_people;_an_account_of_th

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Rolandfealty.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Dragon_order_insignia.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Lavisse_elementaire_003_druide.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Achille_Bocchi_Prudentia.gif

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:CiceroEpistulaeAdFamiliaresVenice1547page329Detail.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Guadix._Catedral._Inscripci%C3%B3n.jpg

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Mosaic_of_Justinianus_I_-_Basilica_San_Vitale_(Ravenna).jpg

http://6inchnails.deviantart.com/art/Carytion-592785371

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Orgosolo_-_M._Fumai.jpg?uselang=it

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cork_oak_trees.jpg?uselang=it

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Casu_Marzu_cheese.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pane_carasau.jpg

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Page 69: [Ruins of the Nuraghi of Torralva]Nuraghe in Toralba-Sant'Antine by Michel Royon [Creative CommonsAttribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported] via Wikimedia Commons

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Page 72: [Agugliastra Coat of Arms]Coat of arms of Province of Ogliastra. Sardinia, via Wikimediacommons

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Page 72: [Agugliastra Coast]Ogliastra coast, Sardinia, via Wikimedia commons

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Page 74: [Arborea Coat of Arms]Coat of arms of Arborea, Sardinia, via Wikimedia commons

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Page 74: [Arborea interior]Abbasanta, Sardinia, via Wikimedia commons

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Page 74: [Riders at the Sartiglia]Sartiglia Oristano Sardinia tradition mask by cogitosergiosum [CC0Public Domain ] via Pixabay

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Page 75: [Casteddu Coat of Arms]Coat of the Judicate of Cagliari, Sardinia, via Wikimedia commons

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Page 76: [Molentargius marsh]Flamingos in Sardinia, via Wikimedia commons

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Page 77: [Gaddura Coat of Arms]Coat of Arms of Gallura Judicate, Sardinia, via Wikimedia commons

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Page 77: [Gaddura coast]Beach in the Island of Caprera, Sardinia, via Wikimedia commons

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Page 78: [Alguer Coat of Arms]Coat of Arms of the Kings of Aragon, via Wikimedia commons

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Page 78: [Cliffs near L’Alguer]Capo Caccia near Alghero, Sardinia, via Wikimedia commons

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Page 78: [Logudoro Coat of Arms]Torres Judicate Coat of Arms, via Wikimedia commons

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Page 79: [The Coast near Torres]The island of Asinara from Falcon Cape, Sardinia, via Wikimediacommons

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Page 80: [U Paize Coat of Arms]Old version of Carloforte Coat of Arms, via Wikimedia commons

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Page 80: [Lighthouse and cape]Cape Sandalo near Carloforte, Sardinia, via Wikimedia commons

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Page 81: [Empress Irene]Portrait of Empress Josephine by Pierre-Paul Prud'hon via Wikimediacommon

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Page 82: [Landscape]Landscape by Asher Brown Durand via Wikimedia commons

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Page 86: [Vyalia woods]The Catskills by Asher Brown Durand via Wikimediacommons

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https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Torralba_San_Antine_10.JPG

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Provincia_dell%27Ogliastra-Stemma.svg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Baunei_Pedra_Longa.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Albero_Eradicato_del_Giudicato_di_Arborea.svg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Altopiano_di_Abbasanta_%2801%29.JPG

https://pixabay.com/en/sartiglia-oristano-sardinia-712848/

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Cavallo_del_Giudicato_di_Cagliari.svg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Non-pink_Flamingos._%285812001713%29.

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Gallo_del_Giudicato_di_Gallura.svg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Arcipelago_della_Maddalena,_Caprera_Cala_Napoletana_02.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Aragon_Arms.svg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Alghero_-_Capo_Caccia.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Torre_Merlata_del_Giudicato_di_Torres.svg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Torre_della_pelosa_%2B_isola_piana_%2B_asinara_da_capo_falcone.jpg

https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/it/archive/0/00/20130330180808%21Carloforte-Stemma.png

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Capo_Sandalo_(Carloforte).jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pierre-Paul_Prud%27hon_-_The_Empress_Josephine_-_WGA18457.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pierre-Paul_Prud%27hon_-_The_Empress_Josephine_-_WGA18457.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:1859,_Durand,_Asher_Brown,_Landscape.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:1859,_Durand,_Asher_Brown,_Landscape.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Asher_Brown_Durand_-_The_Catskills_-_Walters_37122.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Asher_Brown_Durand_-_The_Catskills_-_Walters_37122.jpg

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Page 106: [Ancient Alphatian ship]Phoenician ships on a sarcophagus, via Wikimedia commons

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Page 107: [Alphatians meeting natives]Phoenician traders on the coast of Britain via Wikimedia common

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Page 108: [Thyatian ship]Mosaic of a roman ship via Wikimedia commons

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Page 108: [Alphatians in the north]Morning on the Arctic Ice Fields by William Bradford via Wikimediacommons

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Page108 : [Ispans meeting Savage Coast natives]Landing of Pedro Álvares Cabral in Porto Seguro, in 1500, via Wikimediacommons

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Page 109: [Section of Alphatian submarine]US submarine project of 1806 via Wikimedia commons

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Page 109: [Modern Thyatian ship]A Portuguese nau (carrack) as depicted in a map made in 1565, viaWikimedia commons

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Page 111: [Hinterlanders rising]Druids Inciting the Britons to Oppose the Landing of the Romans, viaWikimedia commons

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Page 89: [Maric]Maric by NathanParkArt June 18, 2014 [Creative CommonsAttribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License], viaDeviant Art

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Page 92: [Ranger]Ranger by NathanParkArt May 15, 2014 [Creative CommonsAttribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License], viaDeviant Art

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Page 96: [Archer]Archer by NathanParkArt May 21, 2015 [Creative CommonsAttribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License], viaDeviant Art

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Page 100: [Blue Flame]Blue Flame by NathanParkArt May 14, 2014 [Creative CommonsAttribution-Noncommercial-No Derivative Works 3.0 License], viaDeviant Art

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Page 112: [Shedu]Persian Shedu in the Chicago Oriental museum, via Wikimedia commons

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Page 113: [Oltecs]Image from “Myths of Mexico and Peru” by Lewis Spence via Wikimediacommons

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Pages114 to135;

Maps: [Alphatian sea 8000 BC], [Alphatian sea 5000 BC], [Alphatiansea 3100 BC], [Alphatian sea 2500 BC], [Alphatian sea 2000 BC],[Alphatian sea 1000 BC], [Alphatian sea 100 BC], [Alphatian sea 600AC], [Alphatian sea 800 AC], [Alphatian sea 900 AC], [Alphatian sea1000 AC], [Alphatian sea 1020 AC], [Thyatis 1000 BC]Original work by author

Page 116: [The Royal Court of Bahldaraat-Khor]From Myths and Legends of Babylonia and Assyria by Lewis Spence viaWikimedia commons

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https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Phoenician_ship.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Phoenician_ship.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Phoenician_traders_on_the_coast_of_Britain.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Phoenician_traders_on_the_coast_of_Britain.jpg

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Romtrireme.jpg

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Romtrireme.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:William_Bradford_-_Morning_on_the_Artic_Ice_Fields_(c.1880).jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Desembarque_de_Pedro_%C3%81lvares_Cabral_em_Porto_Seguro_em_1500.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Desembarque_de_Pedro_%C3%81lvares_Cabral_em_Porto_Seguro_em_1500.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Fultondesign7.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Fultondesign7.jpg

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Carrack_1565.jpg

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Carrack_1565.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Druids_Inciting_the_Britons_to_Oppose_the_Landing_of_the_Romans.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Druids_Inciting_the_Britons_to_Oppose_the_Landing_of_the_Romans.jpg

http://nathanparkart.deviantart.com/art/Maric-461658231

http://nathanparkart.deviantart.com/art/Ranger-454217001

http://nathanparkart.deviantart.com/art/Blue-Flame-454206259

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:2015-12_Taureau_androc%C3%A9phale_ail%C3%A9_d%27apr%C3%A8s_l%27original_de_l%27Oriental_Institute_Museum_de_Chicago_(A_7369)_AO_30043.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:2015-12_Taureau_androc%C3%A9phale_ail%C3%A9_d%27apr%C3%A8s_l%27original_de_l%27Oriental_Institute_Museum_de_Chicago_(A_7369)_AO_30043.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:186-The_King_who_Loved_a_Princess.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:186-The_King_who_Loved_a_Princess.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Myths_and_legends_of_Babylonia_and_Assyria_(1916)_(14779767254).jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Myths_and_legends_of_Babylonia_and_Assyria_(1916)_(14779767254).jpg

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Page 136: [Milenian alphabet]Sample of modern Greek alphabet via Wikimedia common

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Page 137: [Varellyan alphabet]The Phoenician alphabet via Wikimedia commons

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Page 138: [Citadel]The Tower of Babel by Pieter Brueghel the Elder via Wikimedia commons

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Page 140: [Alphatian wizard]The Flying Carpet by Viktor M. Vasnetsov via Wikimediacommons

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Page 141: [Limn Coat of Arms]Original work by Bruce Heard

Page 142: [Death of an Antalian warrior]Death of a viking warrior by Charles Ernest Butler via Wikimedia common

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Page 144: [Bruce Heard’s Map of Limn]Original work by Bruce Heard

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Page 145: [Mystara Almanac 1018 Map of Limn]Original work by the Mystara Almanac Team

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Page 146: [Bruce Heard’s Map of Limn Population]Original work by Bruce Heard

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Page 147: [Depiction of the mysterious beast]18th-century engraving of La Bete du Gevaudan via Wikimedia commons

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Page 148: [Bay of Eanna and Castle of Bussnox on Sheb-Talai Winterfall Hills]From a 1837 book on Wales, via Wikimedia commons

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Page 149 to153:

Genealogies: [House Dracor], [House Marthedren], [HouseThorberg]Original work by the authors

Page 118: [Antalian raiders selling slaves in the south]Trade negotiations in the country of Eastern Slavs by Sergey Ivanov viaWikimedia commons

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Page 120: [Taymoran city]A naval action during the siege of Tyre by André Castaigne via Wikimediacommons

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Page 121: [Nithian ship]Egyptian tomb painting from 1450BC via Wikimedia commons

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Page 124: [Natives submitting to Kerothar]A bas relief sculpture at Naqsh-e Rostam, Iran, depicting the triumph ofShapur I over the Roman Emperor Valerian, via Wikimedia commons

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Page 127: [Milenian and Alphatian fighting]Greek hoplite and Persian warrior fighting each other. Depiction inancient kylix. 5th c. BC via Wikimedia commons

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Page 128: [Naval battle]Byzantine miniature via Wikimedia commons

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Page 134: [Doulakki city resisting Thyatian invaders]Archimedes directing the defenses of Syracuse by Thomas Ralph Spencevia Wikimedia commons

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https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Modern_Greek_alphabet_sample.svg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Modern_Greek_alphabet_sample.svg

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Phoenician_alphabet.svg

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Phoenician_alphabet.svg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pieter_Bruegel_the_Elder_-_The_Tower_of_Babel_(Vienna)_-_Google_Art_Project_-_edited.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Pieter_Bruegel_the_Elder_-_The_Tower_of_Babel_(Vienna)_-_Google_Art_Project_-_edited.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Vasnetsov_samolet.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Vasnetsov_samolet.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Charles_Ernest_Butler_-_Death_of_a_viking_warrior.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Charles_Ernest_Butler_-_Death_of_a_viking_warrior.jpg

http://bruce-heard.blogspot.it/2012/05/alphatian-province-of-trollhattan.html

http://pandius.com/limn2.html

http://bruce-heard.blogspot.it/2012/05/alphatian-province-of-trollhattan.html

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Gevaudanwolf.jpg?uselang=it

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Gevaudanwolf.jpg?uselang=it

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Narrative_of_a_journey_-_associated_with_a_fly_from_Gloucester_to_Aberystwith,_and_from_Aberystwith_through_North_Wales,_July_31st_to_September_8th_1837_(1840)_(14597922930).jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Narrative_of_a_journey_-_associated_with_a_fly_from_Gloucester_to_Aberystwith,_and_from_Aberystwith_through_North_Wales,_July_31st_to_September_8th_1837_(1840)_(14597922930).jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:S._V._Ivanov._Trade_negotiations_in_the_country_of_Eastern_Slavs._P

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:S._V._Ivanov._Trade_negotiations_in_the_country_of_Eastern_Slavs._P

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:A_naval_action_during_the_siege_of_Tyre_by_Andre_Castaigne_(1898-1899).j

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:A_naval_action_during_the_siege_of_Tyre_by_Andre_Castaigne_(1898-1899).j

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:EgyptTombOarboat.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:EgyptTombOarboat.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bas_relief_nagsh-e-rostam_al.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bas_relief_nagsh-e-rostam_al.jpg

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Greek-Persian_duel.jpg

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Greek-Persian_duel.jpg

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Byzantinischer_Kampfschwimmer.jpg

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Byzantinischer_Kampfschwimmer.jpg

https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Archimedes_Directing_the_Defenses_of_Syracuse.jpg

https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Archimedes_Directing_the_Defenses_of_Syracuse.jpg

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Page 156: [Harpy]Depiction of a harpy in a 1660 book via Wikimedia commons

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Page 157: [Giants guarding the Kerothar mountais against explorers]Illustration from a 1928 book via Wikimedia commons

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Pages 160to 162:

[Warbird Eagle], [Warbird Uhuboote], [Warbird Sturmkondor]Original work by author

Page 163: [Scene of the Great War]The Taking of Constantinople by Palma the Young via Wikimedia common

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Page 165: [Thothian pharaoh leading the resistance]Meeting Between Cambyses II and Psammetichus III by Adrien Guignet viaWikimedia commons

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Page 166: [Stefania Torion visiting the tomb of her parents]Morning entrance of Byzantine empress to the tomb of her ancestors byVasiliy Sergeevich Smirnov via Wikimedia commons

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Page 167: [Naval battle against pirates]Battle of a French ship of the line and two galleys of the Barbary corsairsby Jean Antoine Théodore de Gudin via Wikimedia commons

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Page 168: [Dunael lord on war chariot]Cú Chulainn riding his chariot into battle by Joseph ChristianLeyendecker via Wikimedia commons

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Page 170: [Heldannic knights win the battle of Two-Forks Ridge]The Battle of Stamford Bridge by Peter Nicolai Arbo via Wikimediacommons

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Page 172: [Asteriela Torion rallying her soldiers against the HeldannicKnights]Queen Boadicea and her soldiers via Wikimedia commons

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Page 173: [Ochalean painting of a female warrior]Painting of Mulan by He Dazi via Wikimedia commons

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Page 178: [Dunael chief surrendering to the Thyatians]Vercingetorix throws down his arms at the feet of Julius Caesar by LionelRoyer via Wikimedia commons

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Page 185: [Violent battle between Alphatians and Thyatians]The Battle of Mohács by Bertalan Székely via Wikimedia commons

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Page 183: [Dryad and pixies]Midsummer Eve by Edward Robert Hughes via Wikimedia commons

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Page 185: [Thyatian lord judging a prisoner]Scipio Africanus Freeing Massiva by Giovanni Battista Tiepolo viaWikimedia commons

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Page 185: [Conquest of a Milenian city]Le Dernier Jour de Corinthe by Tony Robert-Fleury via Wikimediacommons

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Page 192: [Fomorians]The Fomorians, John Duncan's interpretation of the sea gods of Irishmythology, via Wikimedia commons

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Page 192: [Thothian landscape]Abendstimmung vor den Pyramiden by Georg Macco via Wikimediacommons

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https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Harpij_-_I.I_Schipper_1660,_graveur_Matthius_Merian,_naar_J.Jonstons%27_%22Naekeurige_Beschryvingh_van_de_Natuur%22.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Harpij_-_I.I_Schipper_1660,_graveur_Matthius_Merian,_naar_J.Jonstons%27_%22Naekeurige_Beschryvingh_van_de_Natuur%22.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Illustrasjoner_Eventyr_Side17.png

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Illustrasjoner_Eventyr_Side17.png

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:PriseDeConstantinople1204PalmaLeJeune.JPG

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:PriseDeConstantinople1204PalmaLeJeune.JPG

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Meeting_Between_Cambyses_II_and_Psammetichus_III.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Meeting_Between_Cambyses_II_and_Psammetichus_III.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Vasiliy_smirnov_002.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Vasiliy_smirnov_002.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Th%C3%A9odore_Gudin-Combat_d%27un_vaisseau_fran%C3%A7ais_et_de_deux_gal%C3%A8res_barbaresques_mg_5061.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Th%C3%A9odore_Gudin-Combat_d%27un_vaisseau_fran%C3%A7ais_et_de_deux_gal%C3%A8res_barbaresques_mg_5061.jpg

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Cuinbattle.jpg

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Cuinbattle.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Arbo_-_Battle_of_Stamford_Bridge_(1870).jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Arbo_-_Battle_of_Stamford_Bridge_(1870).jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Queen_Boadicea.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Queen_Boadicea.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:%E7%95%AB%E9%BA%97%E7%8F%A0%E8%90%83%E7%A7%80_Gathering_Gems_of_Beauty_(%E6%A2%81%E6%9C%A8%E8%98%AD)_2.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:%E7%95%AB%E9%BA%97%E7%8F%A0%E8%90%83%E7%A7%80_Gathering_Gems_of_Beauty_(%E6%A2%81%E6%9C%A8%E8%98%AD)_2.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Siege-alesia-vercingetorix-jules-cesar.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Battle_of_Mohacs_1526.png

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Edward_Robert_Hughes_-_Midsummer_Eve_(1908c).jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Giovanni_Battista_Tiepolo_-_Scipio_Africanus_Fre

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Robert-fleury-Le_Dernier_Jour_de_Corinthe.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:The_Fomorians,_Duncan_1912.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Georg_Macco_Abendstimmung_vor_den_Pyramiden.jpg?uselang=it

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Page 194: [Sea cave in the southern coast]Sea Cave by Joseph Wright of Derby via Wikimedia commons

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Page 199: [Thyatian general sparing the population of a conquered city]Metellus Raising the Siege by Armand-Charles Caraffe via Wikimediacommons

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Page 200: [Rim of the Great Escarpment]The Mogollon Rim in Arizona via Wikimedia commons

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Page 204: [Ship sinking in the Straits]The Wreck, by Knud-Andreassen Baade c.1835, via Wikimedia commons

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Pages 174 to294 :

Maps: [Isle of Dawn], [Helskir and Northern Dunadale], [Helskaand Dunael warriors], [Swan peninsula], Northern territories],[Central Dunadale] , [Southern Dunadale], [Northern Westrourke],[Gulf of Newkirk], [Northern Hillvale], [Redstone], [East Portageand Kendach], [Bay of Ekto], [Septentriona], [Land of theFomorians], [The Trikelios Escarpment], [Thothia], [EasternThothia], [Mathanephet], [The Haunted Coast], [The Valley of theDawn], [The Central Escarpment North], [The Shadow Coast],[Meridiona], [Central Meridiona], [Western Escarpment], [TheCentral Escarpment South], [Caerdwicca], [Furmenglaive], [TheStraits]Original work by author, modified original maps by Mark Howard,

stored at the Vaults of PandiusPage 205: [Depiction of unidentified fairy queen]

Nyx, Night Goddess, by Gustave MoreauSource

Page 207: [Portrait of the fairy queen]Howard Pyle illustration from the 1903 edition of The Story of KingArthur and His Knights via Wikimedia commons

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Page 211: [Map of Krystallac, Level 9]Original cartography by Francesco Defferrari

Page 211: [The Levels of Koskatep]Original cartography by Francesco Defferrari

Page 213: [Faerie in the night sky]Spirit of the Night by John Atkinson Grimshaw via Wikimedia commons

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Page 216: [Court of Oberon and Titania]The Reconciliation of Titania and Oberon by Joseph Noel Paton viaWikimedia commons

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Page 219: [Fairy song]A fairy song, by Arthur Rackham via Wikimedia commons

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Page 222: [The Lord of Leaves and his Court]The Fairies' Banquet by John Anster Fitzgerald via Wikimedia commons

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https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Joseph_Wright_004.jpg?uselang=it

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Caraffe,_Armand-Charles_-_Metellus_Raising_the_Siege.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Mogollon_Rim_east_of_Pine.jpg

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:The_Wreck,_by_Knud-Andreassen_Baade_c.1835.JPG

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Nyx,_Night_Goddess_by_Gustave_Moreau_(1880).jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Nyx,_Night_Goddess_by_Gustave_Moreau_(1880).jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Arthur-Pyle_The_Enchantress_Vivien.JPG

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Arthur-Pyle_The_Enchantress_Vivien.JPG

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:John_Atkinson_Grimshaw_-_Spirit_of_the_Night.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:John_Atkinson_Grimshaw_-_Spirit_of_the_Night.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Joseph_Noel_Paton_-_The_Reconciliation_of_Titani

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Joseph_Noel_Paton_-_The_Reconciliation_of_Titani

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Fairy_song.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Fairy_song.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:FitzgeraldFairyBanquet.jpg

https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:FitzgeraldFairyBanquet.jpg

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NOTS

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Next Issue

The sinking of Ancient Lhomarr, the Great Rainof Fire, the crumbling of the Great Plateau,Taymora falling beneath the waves… many braveadventurers have heard fleeting tales of thesecatastrophic events, and the cultures and societieswho lived through them, but few know more thana smattering of details. Now they can experiencethem directly! Mystara's past holds secrets bothhorrifying and resplendent, all ripe for the takingby someone in the right place… at the right time.

Prepare to travel to …

AGES PAST

Anticipated contents include:

● Traversing the lands of Blackmoor,Y'hog, and Taymora

● An interview with James Mishler● Return of the Egg of Coot● The Lost Origins of the Elves● Maps of the past of the Known World,

from 4000 BC to 900 AC● Treatise on Time Travel● Another level of Koskatep

… and much much more...

Your Opinions?

The Editorial Team welcomes your feedbackon this issue of THRESHOLD are welcomed.Please post your comments either by postingin The Piazza Forums

Or by email to the Editorial address:[email protected]

Please begin the subject line with the tag“[LETTER]”


mailto:[email protected]


Submission Guidelines

ProposalsAll proposal submissions can be sent by mailto the editors at the following [email protected], and must bereceived by the proposal deadline†. TheThreshold editorial team will contact youwithin 7 days of the proposal deadlineregarding the status of your proposal.

Submission proposals should be sent inlinein the mail, using the following subject format:[ISSUE#][Proposal]<title of your article>

The mail content should include the following:● Proposed article title● The type of article being proposed (short

story, adventure, geographical location,organization, etc...)

● A one paragraph description of what thearticle is about.

● An estimated word count of the article(articles should range anywhere from 1000to 7000 words, depending on the type ofarticle submitted).

ManuscriptsManuscripts should only be submitted afteryou proposal has been accepted by theThreshold editorial staff, and must be receivedby the manuscript deadline†. When submittinga manuscript file, please use the followingnaming convention:threshold_#_your_title.<extension>(extension: see below for recommended fileformats)and the following subject format:[ISSUE#][Manuscript]<title of your article>

The mail content should include the following:● The article title.● An attached document containing the

article contents.● The final word count of the article.

Other types of contributions: the editorialteam will consider on a case by case basisother types of contributions. Please contactus to inquire if and how we can accommodateunusual contribution formats.

The following guidelines apply to differenttypes of submissions:

Illustrations: please submit art and maps inlossless format (e.g., PNG).

Articles: manuscript submissions can be sentby mail as plain text, doc(x) or odt, or sharedas Google Doc. The issue editor will create ashared document (for each article) to allowthe author and editorial team to work on it.Articles can be as short as a single page, or aslong as 6 pages, depending on the specificcontent. The editorial team will do its best toaccommodate the contributions, butespecially long works may be split overseveral issues.

Tables: Tables should be numbered (TableX: Name of Table), and any references in thearticle should refer to that table number (andnot to "the table below," for example).

Author Bios: Please include a short blurb (oneor two sentences) biography/blurb aboutyourself for our "contributing authors"section. It can be serious or silly, but don'tget too carried away with it, please.

Other types of contributions: the editorialteam will consider on a case by case basisother types of contributions. Please contactus to inquire if and how we can accommodateunusual contribution formats.

†Refer to “Call for Contributions” (page 5)for next issue deadline dates.

#Insert relevant issue number in place of ‘#’

mailto:[email protected]

Visit Thyatis and Alphatia!

Two great Empires which have shaped the history of Mystaraas we know it. Thyatis and Alphatia, enemies since a thousandyears, one the dominion of fighters, the other a house ofwizards.

From an exclusive story by Bruce Heard set in Alphatia to themore ancient past of the empires, a conversion of theElemental Evil storyline set in Esterhold, the foresters ofThyatis, the Alphatian alphabet, the Thyatian language,gazetteers of Carytion and Limn, and to the Isle of Dawn.

Threshold magazine brings you to the heart of the empires, tocontemplate their Dawn and to meditate about their future.Sunset seems still quite far away, the empires have nointention to submit, not to their enemy, not to passage oftime.

www.pandius.com [email protected]

The Mystara Magazine

Documents

Threshold issue 11 v2