About the Factions
Gravia Kein’s Order
The Citadel has routinely employed the services of adventurers, but after the betrayal and fall of Baron Zachareth, the warden saw fit to formalize a more clandestine organization loyal to the Citadel and to Terrinoth alone. This organization became known as the Secret Order of the Warden, or more aptly, Kein’s Order.
The Order is characterized by a stout adherence to law and governance, both that which comes from the Council, and as some suggest, that which comes from Gravia Kein herself. The knights and marshals of Western Terrinoth comprise the core of the Order, but their efforts are closely supported by the scholarly mages of Greyhaven. These are further supported by the multitude of adventurers emanating from Tamalir, all with hopes of fame and fortune gleaming in their eyes.
Baron Zachareth has proven a useful tool, just as he was for his previous master. In Carthridge he provides haven to several former agents of the overlord. Now stripped of their guardianships or otherwise lacking purpose, The Citadel can put their hands to labor for a cause greater than any they ever could have hoped. Hardly a price to pay for past transgressions against the baronies.
The minions of the Order are a collection of native beasts and magical creatures sprung from the laboratories of Greyhaven. From golem and ironbound constructs to maritime beasts like the Merriod, the creatures of the order are a reflection of its fortitude, control, and dedication to the art of magic.
Aymhelin Vanguard
The Aymhelin Vanguard is the elite defense force of the reigning Latari king, Aenoeth. During peace times, the Vanguard is disbanded, a signal to the people and traders of The Aymhelin that the sparkling stone pathways of the woods are safe and open for business. However, when danger from the shadows beyond the forest infiltrates the shadows within, then the Vanguard is quietly assembled to purge the threats wherever they may lurk.
The hunters and huntresses of The Aymhelin are the backbone of the guard, silent and deadly harbingers of the forest’s wrath. Each sally across the region is expertly informed by the geomancers and beastmasters, who ever listen to the voices of the plants and the animals. These informants ensure that each unwelcome visitor receives the king’s welcome.
The forest has also become home to a few refugees from the region surrounding Sudanya. The dangerous Ariad and the conflicted Serena, now hidden away in the Bloodwood, provide the Latari fair service in exchange for safe harbor from those who would hunt them.
The minions of The Aymhelin are put to service through training, enslavement, or a combination of both. The beastmasters tame the denizens of both the woods and the tundra of the northern lands, the latter being sent as gifts from Salishwyrd kin who lay hidden in Isheim. In this way, the vanguard exacts rule over beasts, but this is not all. As the elves keep vigil over the Greywood, they exercise a profane opportunism over the ynfernael creatures that cross the veil and into The Aymhelin. Most of these creatures are slain on sight, but some who exhibit a fragile willpower are enslaved by powerful elven magic and set against the enemies of The Aymhelin.
Haven’s Hand Mercenary Guild
In the aftermath of Baron Zachareth’s insurrection, numerous accounts of the events in the west of Terrinoth spread across the east, creating confusion and instability within the baronies and the free cities. Fearing the darkness in the west boded ill for the east, Baron Fredric put all of Kell on high alert, and placed temporary restrictions on travel and trade in and out of the region. A special blockade was placed along the Lothan River at Hernfar Isle to prevent the transfer of arms and treasure across the eastern half of Terrinoth, and this posed a challenge for merchants accustomed to moving with relative ease between the Dunwarr Mountains and the Broken Plains.
In the thieve’s town of Last Haven, east of the Lothan River and nestled in the southernmost part of the Dunwarr Mountains, a shadowy figure has created a new order, driving the towns previous power broker, Diggor, into hiding and out of influence. Though the identity of this person remains a mystery, their organization has emerged infamous among those who would impede the shared commercial interests of the Dunwarr dwarves and the orcs of the Broken Plains. This is the Haven’s Hand Mercenary Guild.
Haven’s Hand is filled with wanderers and ex-patriots of Terrinoth who retreated to the east in search of glory, but instead found routine employment in service of the merchant trade. In particular, fierce berserkers and skirmishers swell the ranks, ever eager for the clamor of steel. They whet their blades in Xor’s pit on the eve of each merchant contract. Thieves, treasure hunters, and bard’s are paid an honest fee for a dishonest day’s work, but on the Ru, the best way to fend off the criminal element is through employment!
Haven’s Hand is, in many ways, a natural home for former minions of the Overlord. When Baron Zachareth was captured, Belthir joined up with Valyndra, and along with their hybrid minions, fled east toward the “”. Roaming the land east of the Lothan, they satiate their avarice through the procurement of particularly large merchant contracts. Other brigands such as Splig and Bol’Goreth have made similar arrangements, along with other members of their race who now seek wealth under contract.
The minions of Haven’s Hand are as savage and wild as the heroes that lead them. Hoards of goblins and kobolds form phalanxes around merchant trains, overseen by lumbering ogres and gigantic ettins. These brutes are reminders that, when crossing the western Ru, the only virtuous path is that of the mighty.
The Rothfeld Resistance
In all of Terrinoth, there are no folk more wretched than those of Rothfeld village. The endless intrusions of undead have instilled a desperation in the people, such that they are willing to entertain any path to redemption. Even if that path means entrusting their safety to the very source of their anguish.
That solution arrived the day a pilgrimage of necromancers and spiritspeakers solemnly strode into the middle of town, just as another contingent of vile undead began assaulting the surrounding hamlets. Soon spirits began to emerge from the hearths, and forgotten bodies from the earth. The wails and screams of the undead rose as they began dismembering each other limb from shambling limb.
These are the ways of the Rothfeld Resistance. The necromancers’ dark arts form walls of bone, while the spiritspeakers dare to consort with the tormented spirits scorned by others of their profession. They are accompanied by a variety of other champions and adventurers from Terrinoth, similarly drawn by the plight of the villagers, and likewise fortified in their conviction - to defeat the evils of the Mistlands, it just might take the evils of the Mistlands!
Even the former undead agents of the Overlord aren’t opposed to assisting the Resistance given the proper incentives. Not surprisingly, Waiqar has never been one to share power or instill loyalty, and the agents crave opportunities to subvert his hold over the mists and stake a small claim of their own. Any opportunity to exact vengeance on the minions of The Citadel only increases their enticement.
Reanimates, barghests, and enormous crypt dragons can be counted among the hoards.