Threads of Light and Darkness: an introduction
We are creating a campaign world that is viable for D&D 5e, taking place in an unique high fantasy setting.
The world of Grea
It is the most common name the many different cultures and races use when describing the ground under their feet and the sky above, although pronunciation may differ a bit.
Many empires have risen in the past, many fell, some survived, now the dawn of an age is nearing in which the world as a whole will become a lot “closer together”.
Tereo
A continent in the southern hemisphere, in the west there are lush lands and steep mountains, to the east are endless steppes that form a sea of land, to the south are untamed woods and tundra.
Who comes to the western and northern coasts will reach the Azure Sea, the massive ocean that lays between the continents of Tereo, Payatar and Omokami.
Tereo like Payatar and Omokami is widely dominated by humans, although the dwarves always were on even footing with them.
Elves in Tereo mostly stood clear of these two warring races by remaining south, halflings and gnomes did their best to become vassals, centuries of war in which many smaller and bigger realms constantly fought each other, lead to complex hierarchies.
Strife finally came to an end with the First Oath, a pact which united the most powerful dwarven and human kingdoms under a league that promised a lasting peace.
What followed was a time of prosperity, Tereo which was especially known for its many conflicts and war ridden history to outsiders, became a beacon of progress.
A stolen future
Western and eastern Tereo are separated by the Marmaska mountains and the resilient dwarven kingdoms that call them their home.
In the centuries of conflict between the western realms many sought flight to greener pastures, a significant number paid hefty tributes to the dwarves to make passage to the untamed eastern lands.
Through assimilation and conquest an ever-growing human population founded four city states, that each spawned a plethora of surrounding villages, Letacio, Lusoni, Murino and Verocia.
While war raged in the West the city states grew, when strife ended the First Oath secured peace, the city states had formed an alliance of their own, calling themselves the Eastern Princedom.
As West and East subsequently united the city states experienced unprecedented growth and prosperity, a modern realm on track to eclipse its parent culture was emerging until the cataclysmic disaster that was the Age of Prophets, doomed it all.
The Age of Prophets
A hundred years ago arcane energies all around Grea grew dramatically in their potency, with the boost in power also came entities that seemingly swam in these otherwordly torrents.
These elusive beings promised more might and more wisdom, especially ambitious individuals gladly took them up on their offer and became prophets of a new truth.
What started as a period of innovation and reform soon turned into an incursion of corrupting powers on an apocalyptic scale, the empires of the southern hemisphere burned and only through tremendous sacrifice the tide was turned.
The term “demon” which was mostly used as a vague description or mythological concept until then, became the general term to name the deranged disciples and the grotesque creatures they conjured.
Different prophets arose opposed to those who had fallen to demonic subversion, the former taking up arms to defend civilization itself while the latter worshipped an entropic maelstrom.
Although the demonic forces were finally defeated, parts of the world remain destroyed or even corrupted, several regions in Tereo suffered the same fate and are still a tainted wilderness to this day.
The Hollow Princedom is one of these regions, a living monument to the sins of the past.
The Hollow Princedom
A whisper goes through the Hollow Princedom, after many quiet decades of slow decay a vast land rises from its slumber.
Adventurers and brigands alike are starting to arrive in greater numbers, settlers, prospectors or treasure hunters follow in their tracks.
It is a daunting wilderness, stalked by vicious beasts, the undying remnants of the great war and entities that are not of this world.
For those living in the prosperous empires that came after the Age of Prophets, regions like the Hollow Princedom are like festering scars at the fringes of an otherwise healthy civilization.
Undeniably dangerous but also alluring for many different reasons, there are lost artifacts to be found or fertile lands to be claimed, many people who want to leave their past behind also try to get a second chance here.
What may sound strange or outright fabricated can be very much the norm amongst the dense forests and overgrown ruins.
The mysterious realm of the Fae bleeds into Hollow Princedom, the war-magic from the Age of Prophets still manifests itself in spontaneous outbursts and so do demonic incursions.
People are not forbidden to rummage through the leftovers of the great war but there is always the chance of waking something up.
Over forgotten secrets and calls to adventure still looms the dreadful heritage of the Age of Prophets, especially paladin and knight orders patrol the land every couple of years, hunting down demons and the covens sworn to them.
It is a land that often quite literally devours everyone who doesn’t take its countless dangers seriously, many came here and simply vanished.
Still, the slow trickle of newcomers turned into a steady little stream, creating more opportunities but also attracting more of those who prey on others.
The challenges of the Hollow Princedom are as dangerous as their rewards are bountiful, there are quite a few seasoned champions who have been roaming the land for more than a decade, getting rich and famous in the process by only covering a fraction of what’s out there.
Another day passes, more tales of grand quests travel to the cities far beyond, the whisper grows stronger and comes dawn, another batch of hopefuls will make their way here.