Nalepo

in The Dead East Province

Base history

Nalepo was an ancient city, one of the first cities said to have been built in the world. A vast basin at the edge of the Nekistan mountains, the lands before the desert have proven to be fertile and resourceful. Nalepo has gone through multiple rulings and the city has been destroyed and rebuilt countless times over the past few centuries.  

Imhotep; The First King

The first king to unify the badlands from Nalepo to Nyag Town was Imhotep, a man said to have been so prideful he changed his name to that of a god. He is said to have found a genie’s bottle and used the wishes to achieve power and immortality. However, the immortality he was granted was only in soul, as his spirit stayed strong his body fell weak. To preserve himself, he built a monument in his honor, a palace and respective temple for himself. He buried inside things he held dear and feared that one might come to take everything he held close.   Worship of Bhaal grew in the city and the city itself grew notorious for being a place of evil. Imhotep waged wars against the outside and sought more magical means to keep his corporeal form. As Imhotep’s body began to fall, his people grew weary of him as a leader, and the Bhaal worshippers overthrew the king and used dark magics to seal his soul in his own monument; a place meant to exalt Imhotep now became his tomb.  

The Orcish Invasion (500 years ago)

500 years ago, the Orc clans of Dead Man’s Passage in an unprecedented feat, unified under one banner and militarized themselves against the civilized world. Nalepo, being the first city outside of the Passage was nearly destroyed by the onslaught of orcs. Nalepo was the final stand of the orcs when the Kingdoms of Dorione, Mudston, and Northfel unified and allied with the Elvish kingdom of Sylvan to fight back the orcs. Nalepo was fortified by the orcs and the battle was at a standstill. Known as The Year of War, Nalepo was a ground of constant warring with attrition pushing either side back and forth. It wasn’t until the previously reclusive Dragonborn kingdom of Dragon’s Keep, after finishing a war against the Dwarven Kingdom of Brastapor came forth and slaughtered the orc’s behind their own front, taking the city of Nalepo as their own.  

The Age of the Dragonkin (457 Years ago)

Times were dark at this point in the world. Savaged by war, the kingdoms of man began to unify in the south. The Dragonborn kingdom of Dragon’s Keep took control of most of Northern Lands. Nalepo was rebuilt to its former glory, however internal politics prevented Dragon’s Keep from expanding westward. To exert more control over the city, the Dragonborn built a Temple to Bahamut in the city; the silver dragon god of justice. Control of the city began to falter and the worshipers of Bhaal began to overrun the politics of the city. Slowly, the worship of Bhaal began to expand from the city and take control westward.  

The Holy War Against Bhaal (300 years ago)

Wulfa, one of the founding members of the the Knights of Holy Judgement in his elder years, led an assault against the Dragonborn city of Nalepo. The human and dwarf cultists who maintained political and religious control over the city were worshipers of the god of evil, Bhaal, and Wulfa felt this evil needed to be destroyed. They planned on taking the city and killing all those who worshiped the evil god. The religious leader of the city, Cyric, (Called N’sar by those who knew him) was a Dragonborn who lead the worship of Bhaal. Cyric began to get power hungry and sought his own personal power. During the war for Nalepo, the Knights of Holy Judgement beat down the threat of the cultists, but failed to kill Cyric. Cyric himself ascended with the help of his inner circle and became a god himself. The Knights of Holy Judgement attempted to prevent worship of Cyric and Bhaal by having Wulfa ascend and slaughter Bhaal in combat.  

Nalepo’s Independence (300-200 years ago)

For 100 years, Nalepo was an independent city with a loose ruling by the Knights of Holy Judgement. A temple for Tyr was built and became the centerpiece for the city. It served as a place of worship, a center of operations for the Holy Order in the Northeast, and a place for the city to be governed. Internal politics split the Dragon’s Keep forces and prevented the Dragonborn kingdom from reclaiming the city. It wasn’t until the Dorione Empire took the Southern kingdom of Gloomcroft with the aid of The Knights of Holy Judgement that the Knights aimed on claiming the Northeast in the name of Tyr with rule from Dorione.  

Resistance to Southern Rule (200-175 years ago)

Those within the city who weren’t devout to Tyr or the Knights still yearned for an independent city of Nalepo. The Nallepan Knights of Holy Order sect had somewhat grown distant from the now political heavy Knights who had taken partial rule and command within the Dorione Empire. The Knights within the city who believed they should unite were exiled from the city. The southern fort of Southwatch became their home as a force of Elves and Man were formed to reclaim the city. In an effort to have some control, Dragon’s Keep sent a force to help with the military plot. There were some skirmishes, mainly militarized civilians led by zealot commanders from the Holy Order, but the resistance was shortlived as the city was outnumbered in force. The Dragon’s Keep pledged allegiance to Dorione in hopes of taking control of the city, but Nalepo was allowed its own governance if it pledged fealty to Dorione. Dragon’s Keep was given the lands of the Northeast to ward over and protect, but could only benefit and collect from its own holdings in the Nekistan Badlands.  

175 Years ago to Present Day

Nalepo became a place for religious worship and a melting pot of history and culture. Allowed its own governance, many were allowed to grow and become powerful in the city. The Knights of Holy Judgement were relocated out of Nalepo to Southwatch to be in a direct line of Dorione governance, but Nalepo’s Temple of Tyr is still a spectacle to be seen and a place of worship to this day. Temples to other gods had been sprout up through the city like the temple of Bahumet, where dragonborn worshippers still gather to this day. Worshipers of Bhaal who were not stomped out by Holy Order Inquisitions slowly rose up and underground began worship of their new god: Cyric, the god of murder. Through underground worship and clever intrigue, the cultists of Cyric gained political control and began a militarization of the city. With the aim of reinstating independence of Nalepo, they seek to promote the worship of Cyric to those within the city and devote the land to his rule.