Campaign Storylines

Written by Adsmalley

This will provide a list of campaign storylines that have been used and detailed within the Channel Cities and World of Ærnth setting. Only brief descriptions will be provided here as the more detailed aspects will be limited to Subscribed GM and Co-Creator access only, so that the players will only know the over-arching concept.
Ancient Secrets - The once great and powerful Ruglund Empire that ruled over more of the World of Ærnth than any other empire in remembered history had gained knowledge (that many say should have been forbidden to mortals) and dark arts (some say using Arcane Magic, rather than the more widely known Channeling, Essence and Mentalism schools/sources of magic). Some say that the ancient secrets of Arcane magical arts may be recoverable from the corrupted lands of the Forbidden Plains or the haunted ruins of the ancient city of Ruglund that sits near its center. But of course this would be a dangerous task after the Fall of the Ruglund Empire around 1488-1500 T.A. (and which many historians claim started during a nearly-globe spanning Æssence Storm in 666 T.A.).
Antipathy - As with any guilds or organizations that compete with one another, the Antipathy between the Society of the Silver Wind (the largest and most powerful spell-casters guild in the entire World of Ærnth), both of which are headquartered in the Channel Cities results in a constant state of distrust and suspicion between these two groups. But who, if either, can be fully trusted?
Bad Blood - The many underworld organizations that operate among the shadows in the Channel Cities are constantly at odds with one another. Be it the Black Widows, The Brotherhood, Hydra, Mist Riders, Night Stalkers, Pallid Hand, Purple League, Red Hoods, Sea Urchins, Shadow Clan, or even the most feared of them all The Scorpion; the power-struggle and battles between these "Guilds" (or disorganized gangs in some cases) is a constant within the Channel Cities. Some are thieves, some are burglars, assissins, while others are simply thugs; but all are constantly working to try to gain the upper hand relative to their "competition" among the back-alleys, darkness of night or the shadows.
Channel Cities Wardens - With the corruption and influence of the nearly dozen underworld guilds, the political bickering between the five Channel Cities, and the economic squabbles between the wealthy merchants of Argentum at the center of it all; a few of the wealthy and more noble (ethical and moral) members of Channel Cities society have come together to put in place a couple of small groups of true Heroes to fight for the greater good of all the residents of the cities. Be it dealing with the various political espionage, smuggling, illegal (at least in four of the five cities) slavery, or even some of the darker sides of societies underbelly (evil cults, necromantic practitioners, etc. there is always need for a few Heroes to watch out for the common folk!
Cult of ... - There are rumors of the ancient cult of ________ (actually two different ones have been heavily detailed, but each has its own plot/story-lines, with one being of a necromantic nature and the other being of a demonic nature, but in both cases the details are not revealed here in an attempt to allow for several sessions of following possible trails and leads trying to discover more about each of these cults in preparation for the longer goal of defeating/stopping either of these cults from gaining enough power to cause the possible downfall of society) developing in the Channel Cities.
Death of ... - this is one that should not be revealed to the players until after the campaign has started so as not to spoil the discovery aspects of the plot/story-line. But it involves the assassination of one of the Channel Cities most important and well-known people.
Death on the Nightwinds - this is another one were it is better to not reveal the details to the players until after the campaign is started so as not to spill the discovery aspects of the plot/story-line. It is loosely based off of an adventure/concept that had been developed by Patrick Farley (a fellow GM and player within the setting) back in our days of playing Rolemaster in college back in the mid-late 1980's.
Division among the Trade Lords - This plot/story-line is varied and not heavily detailed at this point in time, as it involves economic espionage and dealings beween various groups of Argentum's Merchants. With the struggles potentially being between several different members of the Argentum upper eshelon of society.
Enmity - The building of the D6-3 High Tower of Magic across the river in Dorgard from, and to a taller height than the Grand Cathedral of the Church of the All Father in Gorled to help even the balance of the Petty Kingdoms trying to defend themselves from the much larger and more powerful Gorled Kingdom; not only created even more enmity between Dorgard and Gorled, but the massive shadow that is cast on the Grand Cathedral by the High Tower has created an even greater strain between the worlds most poweful spell casting guild and one of the largest and most powerful Religions in the entire World of Ærnth.
Eyes of Othorout - this is one that very little detail should be made available to the players until the campaign has started so as not to spoil the extensive discovery aspects of the plot/story-line. But it does involve travel to strange and alien locations that are not part of the World of Ærnth, but yet that are strongly linked and related to it.

Footsteps to Knowledge - Very little is known about the Isles of Stars, other than the fact that it is an extremely exclusive school for those who have been hand-picked as the brightest and most promising intellectuals of the World of Ærnth. But for those few who have been hand-picked, they have the opportunity to become masters of lore and history, as well as becoming very capable in the unarmed martial arts.

Keys to the Martelain Rebellion - For those who detest the capture of the city of Martelain by the Northern Empire, the possibility of rebelling and taking back the city and returning the mineral wealth from the mines in the mountains back to the (mostly now shuttered) smithies of the former "City of Iron", there is a drive to overturn the rule of the Northerners and return the once great Martelain kingdom to its former glory. After all, there are rumors that a member of the Martelain Royal Family may still be alive...
No Quarter under the Iron Crown - A call has been put out to assist the peoples of the small northern Rockwood Kingdom located between the northern edge of the Gorled Kingdom and the frozen north. But those who travel to this tiny northern kingdom find themselves in the middle of a much bigger and more twisted plot, involving many stories that parents tell their children to scare them from wandering too far from home. Is your party of adventurers heroes enough to face these threats?
Resurrection of the 16th Kingdom - Those who ally themselves with the Dorgard Commons and hate what the Gorled Kingdom has done in slowly taking over the Petty Kingdoms in the past, there is talk about a possible attempt to resurect what used to be the 16th Kingdom that used to be part of the Petty Kingdoms. It will be a long battle along the edges of the wilderness and mountains that define the borders of the lost kingdom (after all, the farmlands that the Gorled Kingdom claimed were only a small part of the former 16th Kingdom.
Sands of Time (Sea of Sands campaign) - Stories and rumors abound regarding the Great Sea of Sands, which covers nearly half the surface of the Lemgláhrúbha Continent (the largest continent and thus the largest single biome on the entire face of the World of Ærnth. Rumors of a great city of glass hidden within the depths of the great desert that covers close to one-fourth of the land surface of Ærnth. The few merchants who survive the trip often return with goods that allow them to become wealthy. But most perish among the sands, never to be seen again...
Shadows around Archendurn - This campaign takes place in and around the Archendurn Kingdom rather than near the Channel Cities. It is a moderate sized kingdom that is sparecely populated and intersperced with deep, dark and vast woodland wilderness, with rumors of strange beasts, haunts and ruins...
Sójaskar - Rumors (if you have heard them) of a distant land where the sun never sets, where the land rolls back onto itself and s merciless and deadly... Rumored to be the original homeland of the Easálíslo / Damned Elves, Gratar and Sstoi'isslythi.
Tetrarralms Travels - Another campaign that should not be revealed to the players until after it has stared so as not to spoil the discovery aspects of the plot/story-line. But it involves travel to another dimension. One that is strange, and confusing for most; as it is a world unlike any that most players have ever experienced. One that is drenched in mystery and discovery, and one where your character may not ever be able to return to the "normal" world again...
Winds from the West - Avast, rumors be spreadin' 'bout the massive Glandbeln pirates fleet returnin' from the west and causin' havock among the merchant fleets tha' sail 'r'nd the globe from Argentum.

Winds of Change - This is another campaign that is best if some of the details are kept from the players early on. It is intended for a small group and involves the Druidical College and organization and a member or two of the Order of the Stag that serves as the escorts to the members of the Druidical College.