Heartland

Most of the world has been designed to be morally ambiguous and subvert and overturn expectations. The Heartlands is designed as a more iconic game for players and GMs, you can likely run adventures for other settings here with little adjustment.
The Heartland has noble knights, industrious Dwarves, haughty Elves and foul goblins. The region is deliberately familiar with clear enemies, with only a few small twists and subversion.
In general, the nobles here are good and protect the people the peasants are well treated. So, these good leaders will often hire adventurers and mercenaries to protect the realm from tribes of outsiders and monsters living in dungeons and caves who threaten surrounding farms and villages.
The perception of the world by inhabitants of the region is clear cut, from the perspective of the locals the Solar Gods are good and the Lunar Gods evil. While not true in the broader setting, this part of the world feels ‘black and white’ in terms of morality.
The Yellow Horde is a clear and present danger of a familiar enemy, a vast Goblinoid army. While not necessarily ‘evil’, they are an enemy to the Human nations and well suited as a clear antagonist, as is the Red Dragon Olzryd and his dragonkin armies.
Similarly, the Cloud and other Giants in the mountains are also a clear antagonist as they harbour a bitter resentment of the other Mountain Realms.
The region has political tensions between the mainly Orcish Kingdom of Korg and the mainly Human United Principalities. While the Orcs here are sophisticated, a far cry from savage tribes, they are still a clear enemy, making them a clear antagonist if desired.
The Lords of the Heartland call to heroes to aid them in protecting the people from foul monsters and savage tribes and hostile foreign countries. Adventurer’s who answer the call will find themselves seeking out enemies for destruction, for which they will be greatly rewarded by wealthy nobles.

Type

Region

Included Locations

• Earthwall Mountains
• The Stony Steppe
• Timberland Forest

Included Organizations

• The United Principalities