Sample file Introduction Theon ce-mighty kingdom ofVesuand short of paying homage. The young tions have been often ignored. Funher· is n grave danger: Divisiveness within Prince hadthe pedigree, butwi thout the mo.re, all attempts to recover the Sarona the realm is approaching anarchy. Fur­ CroWtl of t.h Sun, he lacked the majesty have failed-a situation which of itselfhas m therore , ever-hostile fac tions from the to rule . Withm a fow momhs of Mara­ diminished the council's esteem. Eth •ngar Khanate posea serious threat . met's disappearance the superstructure At theour.set of this adventurethe C:Ollll· For many years the fierce people of the of the realm be gan to crumble and the cilonly hasnominal control over the sour.h­ steppes have looked with envy upon lhe seeds of anarchv were own. em ponion of lhe realm,du e largely to Lhe prosperous coasral realm to the cast. In Although No�'ikfa the capitalo fVesc­ support of the Duke of Rhoona and the l thi,g perilous hour Vc stland lacks thal land, the kings of the realm have aways amenable dispositions of lhe J arls of So­ which it needs most. strong and legiti­ had a sp cial affrn ity with the hamlet of derfjord. Elsewhere lhe voice of the council mate leadership. Ruthin. For centuries the High Kings is weak or else completely ignored. At tha rune, the northern and western have been crowned here under theaus pi­ portionsof the countryare most ttou bled ces of the Cieri� of Rulhin. A small but Background Intrigue in the absenc of an effective, ce ntral au­ prestigious order, the Ruthinians have thomv. Raidsalong me border with th always supported the high kingship, es­ Without doubt the beBt kept secret in Khanate are commonplace as the pecially in limes of succession. the realm ii;th e fact that a direct heir to Ethtmgarians test the weakening menle Following Maramet'li demise thesecler­ I.he throne: yet. lives. 1wcnty years before of .he Vestlandian folk. And within I.he ics, under the direction of theirpatriarch, King Ma:ramcl's disappearance , the realm itsclf, pettywar lords are engaged Annat:ks, soughtin vain to t abilizeth e po­ Queen of Ve sdand gave birth m rwi:il in the most uncivil pracrices: e.xacung lirical climare in the realm.As stalwan sup · boys. The elder. and senior by a matter unla\'nul [01)5 on toads and waterways; poners of law and order, the Ruthlnians of minutes, wa Thendel. The other extortion ; mugglin g and otheract ivities had to accede to the traditions and thus babl! was named Tenltar. Only one mid­ in defiance oi the law of the land. they could no press for Tuendd's en..­ wife was witness to the event and tragi­ Desptte the best intentions of many thronemem. lrutead, rhey proposed that cally theQu een died shortly tben:afte.r. e nobles. Vest.land has been besetwith in­ the Prince should become Regent until In theuon ost ecrcy i.he king and An­ ternalstri fe forove r five years, ever since uch time as the Somna could bf' recov­ nacks held a sad counsel with one an­ the disappearance of the last High King, ered. Fu rther, Annacks suggested chat an other ]ate into the night. The Rutbinian Maramel . This fierce but noble monarch expedition be orgaruzed for Lhc purpose of Patriarchhad the .heavy burden of point­ apparently perished in a campaign reclaiming the lost crown and the pre­ ing out the inherent danger of there be­ against barbarianson th border withthe sumed body of the missing king. ing rwin heirs to the throne. Even in his Hc.ldann Freeholds. At the time only a Much agamst Annacks' bener judg­ shattered stat of mind th • grief-stricken handful of Maramet soldiers return d ment, yoW1g Toendel ins.isted uponleading monarch could see the problem; wb.en it de�ite the overall success of the sortie. ihis excursion to the northc:m rronrier. Alas, came time, which of these boys would 'eltlan dian losses were grave , and worst within a fortnight of Lhisleave- takir1g1 the rule? How could one of the Princes defer of all,the king simply vanished. Prince s bodywas borne back to Ruthin. to the other? Il was plain enoQgh that Maramechad an heir in the person of ThendelSample's pany had file been ambushed by civil war, and quite probably a sundered his son, Thendel, but the continuity of Ethengar:i.ans on the northwest :frmu:ier. kingdom, lay in the future. a th · lineage was clisrup ed by the loss of Aft.er Thendcl's deth, Annacks and So it was thatthe king andhis advisor the orona, the greatly revered mystical at.her dignitaries �tablished a Council of decided that one of the boy should be crown of the High King. It was widely Regents in orrvtlc . Only those well­ taken away in secrecy and givenas an or­ known - even by the lowliest peasants disposed to the high kingshipelected were phan to a worthy guardian: As the - th.al tht: High King always wore the lO this body, fortheir mandate wa.s to gov· youngest Tenitarwas thus taken by An­ great cu·clct. for not only was the Sorona em until such time as the monarchy could nacks and given into the care of the at­ a symbol of Lhe king'i;power . it was also be restored. Under Annacks' in.Ouence it tending midwife. This trusted servant an ndorsement of his right to wield it . was agreed that the council would labor was furn isbedwi th money forhe rself and Th lore of Vestland held that only one also for the Sorona's return.Officially , the the babe, and further directed to find a worth� of hlgh kingsrup could wear the regents held that if the crown could be re­ suitable home for the child. It was also crown. Without thi el{- e\'ident symbol stored , then a man worthy of kingship decided that. 1v[ aramet and Annacks of righ teousness Maramet's son found would come forth lo wearit. would001 kno11vof the child's fate, forthe himself berefL of legitimacy. Now afterfive ye ars,thc power and au­ temptation to seek him out would be too Although many nobles, such as Duke tb.ority of the Council has dwindled. 1n great. If the need arose to find the babe, tephcn of Rhoonp.( s e theD&D ® mod­ some cases the regents have simply been they would trust to the powers of the ul , X3 Thr Cum efXanallum ), acknowl­ unable to discharge the duties of royalty. In Sarona. Thus young Tenitar, Prince of edged Thcndel's claim , olhcrs .stopped =es of feudal succession their prodarna- Ve stland, was taken into the nighl. .2 Introduction After some dcliberacion and searching, troop, for only the barbarian chieI and realm . More importantly, however, the !K!IVant woman offered the infant w one other remained . Vana Cullen deems it his destiny to rnle. s Kadw.., who was thenKee per of theStones At lat th High King ofVestland caught Accordingly, in the Last five years the of Sky, a sacred placeof st.anding stones in up with the enemy chieftain at a mountain· Duke of Esti.ne has consislentl under­ the north of Vc stlaru:L Ka.den, who even side track known by the local tribesmen as mined the. effo ns or those who seek the thenwas well pastthe prime lifeof , took on Knife's Ridge, on die eastern peak of a vol­ Sarona. In point of fact, it was Cullen's the custodianship of the anonymous or­ canic formation known as the Red Fangs. men , in the guise Etbof engarian tribes­ phan , for he aw a chanceraise to and train WU:h their respective retainersslain, the men, wh_o attacked Prince Thend I s an apprentice, someone co take over r.b.e king and the barbarian engagedin mortal party as it rode our in search of lung and stewardship of the shrine. combat.. The .fiercechieftain received a kill· crown . This chaotic dulce is directly re­ ow, 25 years larer, Tc niou- is the sole ing wound in.themclec, the for king- wasal­ sponsible for the Prince's death ! keeper of the stones. He is known as Gre­ most invincible with the Sorona about his Furthermore, Cullen has made pre­ gorian, and sometimes as Gregor. Igno­ b.ead . Witha last desperatelunge, however, liminary overtures to emissaries of the rant of hi true origins, Gregorian is a the barbarian gra_p pied with tb.e King and Et.hengar Kha:nate. He intends lo offer simple rustic, a fell ow with no more polish together they plunged from the ridge , fall­ the enemy a land corridor through Ves­ h than a caretaker or a marsh ward.en. With ing hundredsof feet intoa narrow ice flow. tland to the sea so that te people of the a matted hai r, a long beard,.and the shabby With no living thing the wiser, bow men steppes may at last take advantge of a n robe · of a pilgrim,he is the most unlikely­ were .instatl.y entombed. in me glacier and lucrative sea trade, free of Ve stlandian looking ca.nclidale for kingship that one sotoO, was theSaro na.The High Kin g and tariffs and meddling. ln exchange for couJd imagin.e'. Deepwithin, though,Gre­ his mystical crown were never seen again. chis promise he expects the tribal people gorian has a noble spiritwaitin g to emerge. Maramet's body, frozen and pre­ to help him win the throne of the re alm Annacks harbors the knowledge that served in death, was conducted through by making war on the southern prov· Teni ,ar (Gregorian) is yet alive, or most the flowof slowly moving ice.