Primer for the Kuan Empire Region
"Traveller, this here village is like the whole world. Very little is like it appears. The old man peddling the tinctures and remedies outside? One time Imperial Sage and master of herbs, plants, bugs, fungus and creatures! Don't look it do he? That farmer drinking with his buddies? Retired Imperial Legionaires, all three of them. Any one could take out a squad of bandits, and has over the years." The grubby looking men looked like sun tanned farmers not battle scarred veterans. The whole bar area was rough hewn timbers and crude frontier pottery. Small, maybe 8 meters across with double rows of larger tables and smaller ones in the corners. "Yllasa, the bar maid? Really an Imperial Monitor. They say once a spy, always a spy. She could kill you seven times over in the blink of an eye and she knows everybody's secrets. Don't ya Yllasa?"
The raven haired server squinted and stuck her tongue out at them, her face momentarily looking like leathery dried apple under a wild haired black wig. "Shut up Hoon! That traveller doesn't need any of your foolery!"
"Just entertaining 'em with talk! Sheesh - People in and out, traders and travelers and always some talk! And now, see that sad sack lad in the corner nursing his drink? No, not sandy haired Miller's son - the one with the tight dark frizz of hair and the hooked nose in the other corner! New smith's apprentice, even if he's a bit old for it. Word is he's really some run away Torga noble's son from the Core, the very heart of the empire slumming out here!"
The traveller's head swung to focus on the corner. "Really? I 've gotta talk to him, a Imperial house noble out here?" Red skinned with coppery red blonde hair marked him as one from the Eseret Provinces. He rose, scooping up his drink and snaked through the tables towards the corner.
Yllasa was suddenly blocking him. "I don't like the feel of you. You let the boy be and just ask Hoon for a story."
"He's the one I've been looking for!" The stranger exclaimed, forcefully pushing the woman away, causing her to fall into the table next to her. His mug of ale smashed into the face of another patron on the other side who started to stand as he shouldered past a merchant and his beastman servant. Both slid back, the merchant with his hands raised, palms out at his chest level, eyes wide. The traveller smiled and thought to himself. "Little road mice."
A hand on his arm spun him and he faced the serving wench again. "Go back and have a seat and leave the lad." She told him.
His free hand flicked out a long dagger that he sliced across her belly, cutting a long slash in her shirt. Instead of crying out or falling, her form rippled like disturbed water.
Her expression darkened. "Now I think you'd just best leave."
"The Hells! He's mine!" Replied the stranger twisting and slithering from her grip as he slashed again and the strike sent out waves over her as if he'd cut a pool.
Her counter punch was powered with some silvery white aura sending him over the next table and into the one beyond, collapsing it with a crash. The farmers had risen and now closed on the man, pulling him up with rough hands on his coat.
He twisted, wriggled from his coat and swinging at the three. Them blocking and twisting away or hitting back as he squirmed and wavered to dodge them.
"Enough!" came a young quavering voice from the back corner. The young apprentice smith stood, a black disc floating like a shield a few centimeters in front his hand. From the blackness shot an orb that hit the traveller, who folded with a hiss. The farmers stood back as the stranger rolled and unfolded, rising up instead as a three meter serpent with small horns like lyre arms on the head and a flared hood from the neck, yellow cream on the underside, jagged lightning bolt pattern of black, grey and red on the back, and arms off the wider upper body. The head whipped around and spat burning poison on the three men around him. The farmers fell back, grabbing mugs to try to wash away the clinging venom. The young man stood wide eyes, mouth agape.
"Antimagic, nice-ssss." Said the serpent creature. "But it ruined my disguise-sssss." It uncoiled and moved toward the boy, gaining only a meter before a pair of thrown daggers pierced it's scales, causing it to halt with a hiss.
Yllasa held another set of knives and moved between the boy and the creature. "You are exposed Naga! You're not getting the young Lord!" she shouted dodging a round of spit venom.
The Naga pulled a pair of blades from some pockets of folded space at it's sides. " You can't stop me Monitor. None of you pathetic....."
A thunderous roar drowned his voice as a towering two and half meter creature of fur, fang and talon, inscribed with lines of glowing silver runes over it's body, fell upon the Naga. The claws ripped as the powerful jaws clamped on the scaled neck, shaking and tossing from side to side. The swords clattered somewhere on the floor. The body twitching from the critical hit.
Yllasa stood in silence for a second then stamped her foot, shouting: "Damn it Hoon! Now we'll never know what it's plan was!"
The raven haired server squinted and stuck her tongue out at them, her face momentarily looking like leathery dried apple under a wild haired black wig. "Shut up Hoon! That traveller doesn't need any of your foolery!"
"Just entertaining 'em with talk! Sheesh - People in and out, traders and travelers and always some talk! And now, see that sad sack lad in the corner nursing his drink? No, not sandy haired Miller's son - the one with the tight dark frizz of hair and the hooked nose in the other corner! New smith's apprentice, even if he's a bit old for it. Word is he's really some run away Torga noble's son from the Core, the very heart of the empire slumming out here!"
The traveller's head swung to focus on the corner. "Really? I 've gotta talk to him, a Imperial house noble out here?" Red skinned with coppery red blonde hair marked him as one from the Eseret Provinces. He rose, scooping up his drink and snaked through the tables towards the corner.
Yllasa was suddenly blocking him. "I don't like the feel of you. You let the boy be and just ask Hoon for a story."
"He's the one I've been looking for!" The stranger exclaimed, forcefully pushing the woman away, causing her to fall into the table next to her. His mug of ale smashed into the face of another patron on the other side who started to stand as he shouldered past a merchant and his beastman servant. Both slid back, the merchant with his hands raised, palms out at his chest level, eyes wide. The traveller smiled and thought to himself. "Little road mice."
A hand on his arm spun him and he faced the serving wench again. "Go back and have a seat and leave the lad." She told him.
His free hand flicked out a long dagger that he sliced across her belly, cutting a long slash in her shirt. Instead of crying out or falling, her form rippled like disturbed water.
Her expression darkened. "Now I think you'd just best leave."
"The Hells! He's mine!" Replied the stranger twisting and slithering from her grip as he slashed again and the strike sent out waves over her as if he'd cut a pool.
Her counter punch was powered with some silvery white aura sending him over the next table and into the one beyond, collapsing it with a crash. The farmers had risen and now closed on the man, pulling him up with rough hands on his coat.
He twisted, wriggled from his coat and swinging at the three. Them blocking and twisting away or hitting back as he squirmed and wavered to dodge them.
"Enough!" came a young quavering voice from the back corner. The young apprentice smith stood, a black disc floating like a shield a few centimeters in front his hand. From the blackness shot an orb that hit the traveller, who folded with a hiss. The farmers stood back as the stranger rolled and unfolded, rising up instead as a three meter serpent with small horns like lyre arms on the head and a flared hood from the neck, yellow cream on the underside, jagged lightning bolt pattern of black, grey and red on the back, and arms off the wider upper body. The head whipped around and spat burning poison on the three men around him. The farmers fell back, grabbing mugs to try to wash away the clinging venom. The young man stood wide eyes, mouth agape.
"Antimagic, nice-ssss." Said the serpent creature. "But it ruined my disguise-sssss." It uncoiled and moved toward the boy, gaining only a meter before a pair of thrown daggers pierced it's scales, causing it to halt with a hiss.
Yllasa held another set of knives and moved between the boy and the creature. "You are exposed Naga! You're not getting the young Lord!" she shouted dodging a round of spit venom.
The Naga pulled a pair of blades from some pockets of folded space at it's sides. " You can't stop me Monitor. None of you pathetic....."
A thunderous roar drowned his voice as a towering two and half meter creature of fur, fang and talon, inscribed with lines of glowing silver runes over it's body, fell upon the Naga. The claws ripped as the powerful jaws clamped on the scaled neck, shaking and tossing from side to side. The swords clattered somewhere on the floor. The body twitching from the critical hit.
Yllasa stood in silence for a second then stamped her foot, shouting: "Damn it Hoon! Now we'll never know what it's plan was!"
The Peoples of the Kuan Empire Region know the Mortal world of daily experience is a flat plane, presumably with edges though none known have yet reported it. The sky is held up in crystalline shells where the Sun and Sister Moons and Stars are found. It is known that there are spirit dimensions, the Underworld and Hells and that there is a barrier veil between them and the mortal world. Scholars and Mages debate and study these planes and the Fringe where spirits may pass from life and death to Dream and Truth and back.
The Gods of the Empire and The Order of Heaven are the supreme Church of the Empire and it's Provinces, though pagan animism persists in the Northern Olia Provinces and Holy Dragon Spirits are revered in Eseret , after the State Church. The Unholy Elder Gods of the Golam are worshipped in secret by some who pretend to the official Church. And the humans of the The Harrowland have their Vampire lords and their Deathlord. The Centaurs follow their Mystery religion of the Dreaming Tree and recovery of the fractured soul. The LizardKings have their own Dragon worship for their own kind alone. The Fae bow to the Church and also follow elemental spirits, or liken Gods as being to them like Mortal Kings. Only a few sages bother to seek the lore of the worship of the other kinds of creatures.
The Core cities of the Outter Shards or the Holy Island of Kuan are safe and settled, displaying the full wealth and power of the Empire, where the nobles and wealthy are served by Beastmen slaves taken from the Western Golam (Golam ) Frontier. The Core enjoys sedate, comfortable lifestyles while only suffering occasional ravages of things from long lost hidden Crypts, Undead Pirates from The Harrowlands, mortal pirates from the Teeth Islands or Warp Storms producing terrifying magic effects like warps to Yokai nests or transpositions of parts of the world, or even transformation of living or unliving into other things like a crystalline forest or a hill of flesh. Occasionally those exposed to large quantities of Arcane Crystal will suffer severe degeneration or mutation of mind or body to become a Blood Mage (Blood Magic ) or Black Magic practitioner or mutate into a Fellspawn. This is why the nobles post houseguard and the Empire posts Legion Units in every major town or city.
The Provinces are the engulfed conquered ethnic kingdoms that have become settled in the low lands. Provinces have loyal Imperial Noble governors of ethnic Torga Clans (Torga ) overseeing local rule by the regional Nobles. Golam people and their Provinces were the earliest conquests- wild magic imbued forests and mountains wracked by the Warp Storms and haunted by the Skinchangers and their Beastmen minions. The Olia are a pale skinned, light haired and thin people of the cold north, pagans following Totems, shamen and Druids that became Imperial citizens in a series of conquests and subjugation in civil wars. Esereti were rivals for centuries before The Empire was invited in as allies in a war that saw the Great Black, White and Blue Dragon Clans installed as as High Rulers while the Red,Green and Metal Dragons were subject Tributaries. Centuries later these two were taken by the Empire. Cities are centers of politics and trade but still subject to hazardous creatures like the Mocks (Mocks ) which mimic human form, seeking isolated or weak persons to consume to allow them to fission into several new Mocks. The Mind Worms, The spiritual hazards of Corruption spirits from Arcane Crystal use or mining, Bane spirits, and Nemeses or worse. Dreams and nightmares invaded by Unsealie Fae or Nightmare creatures. Shapechanged Nagas or Skinchangers inflitrating causing mayhem or the regular hazards of thieves, arrogant nobles, and bad food or drink. Dark alleys, criminal and untouchable districts or ruins with Necromancers, Bloodmages, Fellspawn or other practioners of Black Magic forbidden in the Empire. The Empire's agents are everywhere balancing squabbling lords, unruly conquests, nests and dens of monsters, demons and horrors. The wilds are mostly the many and large mountainous regions that contain lost tombs and crypts of the Demon Age 10,000 years ago, bandits, barbarian tribes, rebel lords, unconquered, monsters like the cyclopian Titans, enemies and rival powers like the Nagas. The Fae (The Fae are largely banned to a homeland with only small slum enclaves allowed within the human domains.
The Frontiers are barely conquered regions where loyalist and rebel, unconquered "free" peoples and some monsters, or rivals like Octnon LizardKings or the Minotaur and Centaur may be fighting for control or Loyal Lords are establishing Imperial control and improvements. The world and it's surrounding realms are home to a multitude of species, spirits and beings. The main group are called The Naming Races in some parts - intelligent, makers, and namers. In the Kuan Region of the Inner Sea, only the Centaurs refer to the others as Naming Races. The Peoples of the Inner Sea and the Empire are:
The Provinces are the engulfed conquered ethnic kingdoms that have become settled in the low lands. Provinces have loyal Imperial Noble governors of ethnic Torga Clans (Torga ) overseeing local rule by the regional Nobles. Golam people and their Provinces were the earliest conquests- wild magic imbued forests and mountains wracked by the Warp Storms and haunted by the Skinchangers and their Beastmen minions. The Olia are a pale skinned, light haired and thin people of the cold north, pagans following Totems, shamen and Druids that became Imperial citizens in a series of conquests and subjugation in civil wars. Esereti were rivals for centuries before The Empire was invited in as allies in a war that saw the Great Black, White and Blue Dragon Clans installed as as High Rulers while the Red,Green and Metal Dragons were subject Tributaries. Centuries later these two were taken by the Empire. Cities are centers of politics and trade but still subject to hazardous creatures like the Mocks (Mocks ) which mimic human form, seeking isolated or weak persons to consume to allow them to fission into several new Mocks. The Mind Worms, The spiritual hazards of Corruption spirits from Arcane Crystal use or mining, Bane spirits, and Nemeses or worse. Dreams and nightmares invaded by Unsealie Fae or Nightmare creatures. Shapechanged Nagas or Skinchangers inflitrating causing mayhem or the regular hazards of thieves, arrogant nobles, and bad food or drink. Dark alleys, criminal and untouchable districts or ruins with Necromancers, Bloodmages, Fellspawn or other practioners of Black Magic forbidden in the Empire. The Empire's agents are everywhere balancing squabbling lords, unruly conquests, nests and dens of monsters, demons and horrors. The wilds are mostly the many and large mountainous regions that contain lost tombs and crypts of the Demon Age 10,000 years ago, bandits, barbarian tribes, rebel lords, unconquered, monsters like the cyclopian Titans, enemies and rival powers like the Nagas. The Fae (The Fae are largely banned to a homeland with only small slum enclaves allowed within the human domains.
The Frontiers are barely conquered regions where loyalist and rebel, unconquered "free" peoples and some monsters, or rivals like Octnon LizardKings or the Minotaur and Centaur may be fighting for control or Loyal Lords are establishing Imperial control and improvements. The world and it's surrounding realms are home to a multitude of species, spirits and beings. The main group are called The Naming Races in some parts - intelligent, makers, and namers. In the Kuan Region of the Inner Sea, only the Centaurs refer to the others as Naming Races. The Peoples of the Inner Sea and the Empire are:
- Humans: variable and adaptable and found over most region. The Church says that the Emperor is the intermediary between Heaven and the world and Humans are the children of the Gods.
- The Fae : The lesser Fae - Elves ( Sidhe, Sluagh and Pooka), Halflings ( Gnomes and Dwarves) and Orgres ( Trolls and Goblins) are common residents of the world. They claim to have once slaves, servants and prisoners of the High Fae, or Sidereal - alien creatures of Dream, Nightmare and Ego. The fae talk of a dimension called Dreaming inhabited by walking dreams and fantasies and other kin of the Fae -butterfly winged faeries, Satyrs, strange wizened gaunt creatures, demi elemental creatures of fire, earth, water and air. Uplifted animals or changed humanoid Hobgoblins made into runners, fighters, hunters, seekers.
- Centaurs : wide faced with pointed ears, prominent cheekbones, humanoid torso and arms and an equid body with cloven hooves. Related in culture are Minotaur a bipedal, taurian headed humanoid bodied race.
- Bahku : Lionine tribal warlike barbarian humanoids of the Eastern Lands. Scholars debate if they are a form or source of the mutant Beastmen found in the West.
- The LizardKings: Claim descent from Dragons and give their races the uncouth name of "Octnon ". They are clannish and secretive. Like generations are called "zangesh" which is like to "sibling". They hatch their eggs in large shared nesting buildings or temples overseen by Elders.
- Monsters: The Bugbear -Pumpkinheaded shaggy creatures frequently inservice to Evil Mages or more powerful monsters. Beastmen have human bodies but heads like beasts and feet of the same kind, clawed hands and sometimes tails. These simple barbarians are native to the Western Golam Provinces but are seen through the empire as slaves. The savage Ghenid , like Bahku are found in the West and the North, and again may be some sort of Hyena Beastman though the furred body and legs are shaped differently from humans. The Kobolds - strange uncanny dog-monkey horned creatures of magic, makers of fine things but known to make evil pacts and steal children. Vampires, ghouls, Titans , Dragons which cross from realms of mortals and spirit planes, and many other varieties of things are found by explorers and seekers of knowledge.
- Spirits: Manifestations of elements, of aspects of nature, of the creatures of the world ( but not Humans, Fae, Centaurs or other kinds like them- though they do generally have a body Ghost which is the source of hunger, sleep, urination and defecation, lusts and things of the body). Tiny mote spirits grow to general types, then greater spirits of significant things -a river, a mountain, a great boulder, or a road or city. Then come Totems - more primal representations of fundamental types: The totem of Wolf, or lesser totems of Direwolf, Winter Wolf or Forest Wolf.
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Author's Notes
#summercamp-2020