Players
Post your character's name, race and class here!
Sil'daren, elven (shapeshifting) former athlete
Pieter, half-elf, Ranger
All'aha, servant of Asmodeus
Background
The heroes fell, and the Wyrm enveloped the earth. But their sacrifice was not in vain-they weakened the beast long enough for a team of mages, led by Archmage Talveran, to find a way to save the planet's sentient life. The beast had imbued itself into the ground, and so strong enough vibrations could ward it off. Construction of huge magical towers, known as Citadels, began immediately. They would rise up a few inches every hour, then slam back down, causing a low-frequency shockwave that warded off an area of a few miles. By the time the Wyrm rose again, 29 Citadels had been built, their populations adjusting to the periodic earthquakes, but grateful to be safe. Those who weren't able to settle near a Citadel proved less lucky-a few tree-dwelling elf communities were all that remained after a few months.
But all was not well. The Wyrm was drawn to accumulations of sentient life, and the Citadels grew less and less safe as time went by and population rebuilt. First, wyrmspawn began attacking the outskirts. Soon, wyrmbrutes were emerging not half a mile from the Citadels, driven into a blood frenzy by the mass of people. The ruling councils discussed options, and finally Mayor Oscuro, head of Citadel 14, made the difficult decision to exile people from his city.
Each group of the Displaced was given their own thumper-a smaller version of a Citadel, warding off an area of a few thousand feet-and a supply of the magical Shards that fueled them. They were promised a steady supply of Shards as long as they remained 50 miles from the Citadel, and for about thirty years, this arrangement held. But in the last three years, these supplies have grown smaller and smaller. Two months ago, your village, on the outskirts of City 14, stopped receiving shipments at all, with no word from the city as to why.
You are residents of this small village, those people and descendants of those who failed Citadel 14's strict reviews and were displaced. You may be a guard of the village, or just someone who looked tougher or more skilled than the average resident. But either way, Chief Amura has asked you to visit her for a job, something that will decide the fate of the village, and maybe more…
Dramatis Personae
Chief Amura - Head of the village on the outskirts of Citadel 14
Female Shifter - 37 years old - Worships Bahamut
Chief Amura is the authority figure of your village. Somewhat stern, she nevertheless cares deeply about the people of her village, and bears some resentment towards the city that threw her people out when she was young. The recent cease in shard rations has exacerbated this feeling, and as stores run low, she grows more concerned and angry. She has distributed some of the stolen Heartshards to other villages, which has caused friction between her and the adventurers.
Mayor Oscuro - Leader of City 14
Male Drow - 114 years old - Worships Erathis
Oscuro is a career politician, and was so even during the Heroes' Fall and Rise of the Wyrm. It was he who asked Archmage Talveran to begin research on ways to guard against the Wyrm, and he who first broke the Oath of the Citadels and exiled people from his city's protection. Usually jovial and amiable, he has fallen more and more out of the public eye recently, working through proxies. He has come to the decision that the only possible future for the world is through the death of the Wyrm, and has put faith in Talveran's ability to find a method.
Archmage Talveran - Brilliant magical scientist
Male Eladrin - Died at the age of 174, now undead - No known religious practice
Talveran was the mage who empowered the Heroes to battle the Wyrm, and who planned and oversaw the construction of the Citadels after they failed. Like many other mages of that era, he became a lich to allow the creation of a Heartshard using his brain. Afterwards, he decided to stay in City 14 with Oscuro, and founded the Arcane University there, concealing his undeath. Now President Emeritus, it has been over twenty years since he has been seen in public, spending all of his time researching a method by which to slay the Wyrm. The results of his labors are collected into the Project Mjolnir dossier.
Arraka - Thief-turned security expert-turned revolutionary
Female Gnoll - 22 years old - Worships Yeenoghu Sehanine
Arraka's life has run the gamut-from a member of the Wyrmtouched raver gnoll packs that rampage the earth, to an awkward young girl growing up lonely in a village, to professional thief of Citadel 14, to security consultant for Citadel 14, to bitter village conspirator. Notable events in her life include being left for dead by her pack when she was three, murdering her foster parents in a hormonal adolescent rage, being captured by Citadel guards and hired by Oscuro to help shore up infiltration points in the city, and planning the theft of the Citadel's Heartshards. She is keenly aware of the negative opinions most people have of gnolls, and works to rise above them. Results are mixed near universally poor.
Robert - Nate's best friend
Male Human - 21 years old - Worships Bahamut
Rob is a guard of the Citadel, and helped the team fight off the Wyrmbrute that attacked right in front of the tower. He's Nate's roommate and partner, but not in that way, except that one night that they don't talk about. He was very sad that Nate was transferred to Citadel 13, and abandoned his post to stay with him. In the aftermath of the leviathan attack, he has begun looking for another guard job.
Nathaniel - Rob's best friend
Male Drow - 58 years old - Worships Corellon
Nate is a Citadel guard, like his roommate and guard buddy Rob. He was almost killed by the Wyrmbrute, but Prellyx saved him! He's very grateful. Nate was recently assigned to guard Belphanior in Citadel 13, but thankfully is still roommates with Rob. He's been helping his friend look for jobs in the new city. Nate likes Rob very much, in ways that he's not sure it's ok to like him.
Balin - Priest of the Wyrm
Male Dwarf - 73 years old - Worships the Wyrm
Balin was an ordinary miner until about 15 years ago, when he broke through into an abandoned shrine to the Wyrm, built possibly millennia ago. He was able to communicate with the ancient spirit there, and became invested with a measure of control over its spawn. Tasked with removing the Primordial Barbs that pierce the Wyrm's form and keep it in agony, he had little idea of where to start before meeting the adventurers. As the sane fragment of the Wyrm's being atrophies, he has been falling into destructive trances more and more often recently.
Illivarra - Last member of Oscuro's team
Female Drow - 49 years old - Worships Zehir
Illivarra was a gifted and respected member of one of Oscuro's strike teams. Working directly under the mayor, they would spy, infiltrate and report on people he wanted information on. But they bit off more than they could chew when they attempted to report the adventurer's protection from the Wyrm to Oscuro. Now, Illivarra is the only member still alive, on Prellyx's insistence. 'Varra, as her friends call her, is especially afraid of death, since her parents died before the coming of the Wyrm. Her absolute loyalty to Oscuro was secured when he promised her the Gauntlet could be broken.
Belphanior - Civilian artificer
Male Gnome - 146 years old - Worships Moradin
Belphanior is a master artisan and was head Craftsman of Citadel 14 before its evacuation. His specialty is energy storage and transmission, and their applications in art and practical artifice. One of his most famous pieces is the Arcane University's Planar Mobile; it is so power-efficient that some have called it a perpetual motion machine. Despite his brilliance, he is not mentioned as involved with either the Citadels or Project Mjolnir.
Sherri - Hot-tempered ship's captain
Female Dragonborn - 32 years old - Worships Avandra
Sherri is the captain of the (ostensibly) merchant vessel, the Seaward (a.k.a. the Inward at Belacqua). Quick to anger and abrasive, she is quite undiplomatic and so lets her first mate Khanja handle most negotiation. But she cares deeply for her ship and crew, and is a fierce fighter. She puts much faith in Khanja's cool head and ability to get along with people, and trusts his judgment implicitly. After facing the water leviathan, she is keeping the Inward in dry dock until repairs are completed.
Khanja - Even-handed and diplomatic first mate
Male Gnoll - 17 years old - Worships Erathis
Khanja is a rarity in the world: a gnoll untouched by the Wyrm's madness. Growing up in City 8 to the north, he needed to be careful and diplomatic just to get by. In his adulthood, he had difficulties finding steady work due to (generally well-founded) prejudice against gnolls. On a, er, merchant visit, Sherri noted his natural charisma and recruited him to be the face of her ship, an unusual choice that he's still grateful to her for. Khanja stays cool and collected, even in dangerous circumstances, so Sherri relies on his advice often. However, he's not much of a fighter, and doesn't have the stomach for the harsh decisions that a captain must make.
Linda - Ancient queen of the desert
Female Elf - Age unknown - Religion unknown
Linda was the queen of an ancient desert kingdom, hundreds of years ago. Not content to go to her rest like any other mortal, she had her court mages transmute her soul with the sands themselves, ensuring she could never truly die. For reasons unknown, she reawakened a number of weeks ago in the Belacqua Isles, and began using her charms to regain her power. She targeted a number of unique individuals to sap power from, posing as a lover. She had begun draining blood from the island's residents when the party uncovered her schemes, and was defeated. But is she truly gone?
Dr. Karlov - Absent-minded biologist
Male Human - 58 years old - Worships Vecna
Dr. Karlov is a reclusive biologist, living in a secluded castle on Belacqua's mountainous northeast isle. His personal dream is to fully understand life and death—to that end, he has been working on a method to reanimate corpses. The PCs, lead by Pieter, were able to assist him in creating the formula, but the creature proved aggressive and uncooperative, and they were forced to put it down. Later, he was used as bait for the water leviathan, whose incredible power, despite being composed of inorganic components, proved fascinating to the doctor. He has radically altered his research towards duplication of the beast, using samples retrieved by Eliana.
