Irrisen
The nation of Irrisen is known throughout the Inner Sea region as a land of magic and wonder, an enchanted place where winter is constant, wild animals can talk, and mysterious spellcasters known as the winter witches rule. Yet none of these stories make any pretense that Irrisen is a place of comfort and delight. The stories of Irrisen’s sagas are told to children by parents as parables—they must mind their elders and be good, lest the winter witches snatch them away and feed them to their true leader, the legendary Queen of Witches: Baba Yaga. In the case of Irrisen, these childhood fairy tales are even more accurate than one might think.
Baba Yaga herself exists, but she does not hail from Golarion. She traveled to Avistan nearly 1,400 years ago from a distant, unknown world and subjugated a portion of the Lands of the Linnorm Kings during a particularly harrowing and brutal winter, claiming the land as her own. She killed all who resisted and enslaved those who did not. Her conquest of Irrisen took a mere 23 days, and the nation has remained locked in the throes of winter ever since.
For many of those years, Irrisen has clashed with its western neighbor, the Lands of the Linnorm Kings. Memories of defeat linger in that proud nation, and even as the centuries wore on, the Linnorm Kings and their subjects could not forget the swift and humiliating defeat Baba Yaga handed them during those 23 days. The border between the two nations has long been fraught with fighting and intrigue, but the wards protecting Irrisen are as potent as their witch leaders.
Baba Yaga herself did not linger after her triumph. As if the act of conquering the land were all that mattered, she left its rule in the hands of one of her daughters, a cruel witch who was promised eternal youth in return for keeping the nation safe and secure. Every 100 years, though, Baba Yaga returned to reclaim the ruling queen, taking that daughter away to accompany her on her journeys to other worlds and leaving a new daughter installed on the throne.
After 13 queens, this pattern collapsed. The fourteenth ruling daughter was a woman named Elvanna, said to be the most cruel of a long line of cruel queens. As the time of Baba Yaga’s return drew near, Elvanna grew more and more convinced that she deserved to remain Irrisen’s ruler forever. When her mother arrived, Elvanna triggered a devious trap and captured Baba Yaga, then turned her magic toward spreading the curse of winter to other lands. Only the timely intervention of a band of heroes halted her plot, freed Baba Yaga, and saw Elvanna’s defeat. Today, for the first time since its founding, Irrisen is ruled by someone other than a winter witch, yet this should not necessarily be taken as a hopeful sign. Queen Anastasia may be young, but as an exile of the same world her ancient grandmother Baba Yaga hailed from, she has the potential to wield great power. Just how she will choose to exert this power in her stewardship over Irrisen has yet to be unveiled. Certainly, Irrisen is no safer a place today than it has been for centuries, and with rumbles of embittered witches who regard Queen Anastasia as the “Fraud Queen,” it remains to be seen if her rule will match the century-long reigns of her 14 aunts.
Today, Irrisen remains in the grip of unending ice and snow. Even Baba Yaga herself seems unable, or at least unwilling, to end the reign of winter within the land. As such, the land remains eternally frozen, with frost goblins, winter wolves, ice trolls, and all manner of rime-coated fey posing common threats to those who have little other choice but to keep their heads low and their minds focused on simply making it one day at a time. That the first few years of Queen Anastasia’s rule have resulted in less agony for the land’s citizens is not taken as indication of a blissful future. Life in Irrisen has always been tough, and many still feel that the new queen’s kindness is a cruel trick intended to grant hope only to rip it away just as the citizens start to trust again. And beyond the dissidents and spurned witch relations of the prior ruling castes plotting intrigue and fomenting rebellion, there is always the threat to the west of the Linnorm Kingdoms—memories of defeat still linger there, and with an untested queen on the throne, it may be only a matter of a few months before a new invasion begins.
Baba Yaga herself exists, but she does not hail from Golarion. She traveled to Avistan nearly 1,400 years ago from a distant, unknown world and subjugated a portion of the Lands of the Linnorm Kings during a particularly harrowing and brutal winter, claiming the land as her own. She killed all who resisted and enslaved those who did not. Her conquest of Irrisen took a mere 23 days, and the nation has remained locked in the throes of winter ever since.
For many of those years, Irrisen has clashed with its western neighbor, the Lands of the Linnorm Kings. Memories of defeat linger in that proud nation, and even as the centuries wore on, the Linnorm Kings and their subjects could not forget the swift and humiliating defeat Baba Yaga handed them during those 23 days. The border between the two nations has long been fraught with fighting and intrigue, but the wards protecting Irrisen are as potent as their witch leaders.
Baba Yaga herself did not linger after her triumph. As if the act of conquering the land were all that mattered, she left its rule in the hands of one of her daughters, a cruel witch who was promised eternal youth in return for keeping the nation safe and secure. Every 100 years, though, Baba Yaga returned to reclaim the ruling queen, taking that daughter away to accompany her on her journeys to other worlds and leaving a new daughter installed on the throne.
After 13 queens, this pattern collapsed. The fourteenth ruling daughter was a woman named Elvanna, said to be the most cruel of a long line of cruel queens. As the time of Baba Yaga’s return drew near, Elvanna grew more and more convinced that she deserved to remain Irrisen’s ruler forever. When her mother arrived, Elvanna triggered a devious trap and captured Baba Yaga, then turned her magic toward spreading the curse of winter to other lands. Only the timely intervention of a band of heroes halted her plot, freed Baba Yaga, and saw Elvanna’s defeat. Today, for the first time since its founding, Irrisen is ruled by someone other than a winter witch, yet this should not necessarily be taken as a hopeful sign. Queen Anastasia may be young, but as an exile of the same world her ancient grandmother Baba Yaga hailed from, she has the potential to wield great power. Just how she will choose to exert this power in her stewardship over Irrisen has yet to be unveiled. Certainly, Irrisen is no safer a place today than it has been for centuries, and with rumbles of embittered witches who regard Queen Anastasia as the “Fraud Queen,” it remains to be seen if her rule will match the century-long reigns of her 14 aunts.
Today, Irrisen remains in the grip of unending ice and snow. Even Baba Yaga herself seems unable, or at least unwilling, to end the reign of winter within the land. As such, the land remains eternally frozen, with frost goblins, winter wolves, ice trolls, and all manner of rime-coated fey posing common threats to those who have little other choice but to keep their heads low and their minds focused on simply making it one day at a time. That the first few years of Queen Anastasia’s rule have resulted in less agony for the land’s citizens is not taken as indication of a blissful future. Life in Irrisen has always been tough, and many still feel that the new queen’s kindness is a cruel trick intended to grant hope only to rip it away just as the citizens start to trust again. And beyond the dissidents and spurned witch relations of the prior ruling castes plotting intrigue and fomenting rebellion, there is always the threat to the west of the Linnorm Kingdoms—memories of defeat still linger there, and with an untested queen on the throne, it may be only a matter of a few months before a new invasion begins.
Founding Date
3313 AR
Type
Geopolitical, Kingdom
Capital
Demonym
Irriseni
Leader Title
Founders
Head of State
Government System
Monarchy, Absolute
Power Structure
Feudal state
Location
Neighboring Nations
Related Ethnicities
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