Numeria: Pathfinder's Blackmoor

Pathfinder is doing really well these days. I am no expert on this game or its setting, Golarion, but as with everything from Paizo, the books look great. I was pleasantly surprised to discover the Golarion nation of Numeria, which seems to have alot in common with Blackmoor. I asked about this in a discussion over at the Piazza and it was pointed out to me that Golarion pays a great deal of homage to Greyhawk. Since Greyhawk has a Blackmoor, then Golarion should have one too.

A German D&D forum describes Numeria as a cross between Blackmoor and Expedition to Barrier Peaks. The most significant similarity is that during a cataclysmic event known as the Rain of Stars,

"a metal mountain fell from the sky and lit up the plains of Numeria, modern scholars believe it to be a vessel of some sort but that night it was a raging fireball."

This vessel from the stars, is apparently the source of the technological wonders which is an overarching theme to this nation. Furthermore, the capital of Starfall, shares many traits with Blackmoor's Starport and the Duchy of the Peaks in general. Numeria's ruler, the Black Sovereign, seems like a cross between the Iron Duke of Thonia and the Egg of Coot. The Black Sovereign is supported by technology oriented wizards and mechanical constructs. The people living outside the cities of Numeria are described in a way that reminds me of Peshwah. It is great to see that Dave Arneson's ideas were so strong that they keep showing up in new games and settings.





-Havard

[Races] Gatormen

Also known as Broadgrin, the Gatormen are, as the name implies a cross between man and aligator. The Gatormen of Blackmoor make their home in the Barrier Swamp. This swamp marks the border between the Duchy of Ten and the Duchy of the Peaks. There have been many speculations to where this horrid race came from. One theory is that they were created by Lord Ran at the time when he controlled the Duchy of Ten. The Egg of Coot has been known to spawn a number of mosterous creatures, and Ran is reported to have stolen many of the Egg's secrets when he betrayed his former master. Although fellow swamp dwellers, Gatormen have no love for Froglin and are clearly not followers of the Frog God. Most likely they are followers of Demogorgon.

Behind the Curtain:
DA4 is the first recorded appearance of Gatormen, who later appeared in the D&D Creature Catalog. This means the race was invented by Dave Arneson or David Ritchie. They were later incorporated into the Red Steel Setting (Mystara) through Bruce Heard's excellent Voyage of the Princess Ark series. Red Steel offered no link to Blackmoor, but instead provided a much later creation date for when the race supposedly was created by a Wizard. It seems likely that this Wizard had discovered some old Blackmoorian scrolls which he used as a basis for his recreated race.


-Havard

Realm of the Egg Part II

Here's the second installment of my take on the Realm of the Egg. 

The Land

The Realm of the Egg is a place filled with sinister disorienting mists. Large towering structures can be seen surrounded by smaller ruined and abandoned buildings. Cities and towns appear desolate, although there are always creatures lurking in the shadows. Structures originally built by Merfolk can be seen among ruins.

Travelling through the land, the landscape will seem surreal to explorers. Magical experiments, permanent gates to other planes of existence and rampages of demonic creatures have turned the lands of the peninsula into a bizarre twisted realm.  Woodlands such as the Thornwood, the Forest of the Druj and the Weirdring Woods are dark and sinister places, where even plantlife seems hostile. These are not green wonders of nature, but black and thorny areas bearing little resemblance to forests in other lands. Mountains and hilly landscapes can be found in the humanoid infested Trollop Mountains and the infernal Locust Hills.

Four major settlements are hidden in this terrifying landscape; The Egg’s Nest, Ohmfet, Trollgate and Harbol.

The Egg’s Strongholds
The Egg’s Nest is an impenetrable fortress. Colossal rocks enforced by rusting steel bars and huge iron doors are some of the most prominent features of the Nest. Going deeper underground, the halls are a mixture of metal rails, cold rock, mushy swamp like growths covering some of the walls and slime dripping from the ceilings.

In addition to the Nest, three other strongholds guard the corners of the realm: Ohmfet, Harbol and Trollgate. Harbol lies to the south. It is from this nefarious place that constant attacks towards the Glendover are sent. Baron Bascom Ungulian made an attack on this fortress, but was captured and stripped of any memories of the place. Ohmfet occasionally sends envoys to meet with the people of the Duchy of the Peaks, but the people of the Peaks are frustrated that these envoys are oblivious to the temptations the Peaks have to offer. Trollgate guards the northern border. As the name implies, this stronghold is populated by Trolls and other humanoids who carry our raids on the Skandaharian and Frisian neighbours. At times, they Skandaharians have attempted to fight back, taking the war to the Egg. The last time they did this was a raid lead by one of the Skandahar’s greatest warriors; Moorkok the Slayer. When Moorkok succumbed to the domination of the Egg, the Skandaharians fled. They have not forgotten this loss.

















-Havard

Realm of the Egg Part I

The Realm of the Egg

Overview
• Location: North of Blackmoor.
• Area: 7000 sq. mi. Population: 20,000. Languages: Thonian. Coinage: Egg (pp), Prince (gp),
• Government Type: Dictatorial Magocracy. The Egg is the law within its realm.
• Industries: Piracy, slavery.
• Notable Sites: The Egg's Nest (pop. 6000), capital city.
• History: About 25 years ago, the seas to the north of Blackmoor mysteriously receded, as a rocky peninsula rose from its depths. Shortly thereafter, messengers bearing tidings from the Egg of Coot, lord of the northern peninsula, traveled to all the major cities in the North.
• Important Figures: The Egg of Coot (MU?). Moorkok the Slayer (F17), Prince of the Egg, Soukup (Balrog), Abler (MU)
• Flora and Fauna: Due to the experimentations of realms sorcerers, and the nature of the realm itself, encounters with nearly any sort of monster imaginable are possible.

Background
The origins and true nature of the Egg remain a mystery. For centuries, it rested deep underwater. Untill something, or someone awakened the evil entity from its slumbers. Some sages speculate that it was the sea folk who first discovered the Egg somewhere within their realm. Others claim that evil wizards, perhaps from the Red Coven, or even Abler the Demonologist himself.

The men of the Duchy of the Peaks were the first who reported to have made contact with the servants of the Egg, as early as in NC 970. The Egg used its powers to raise its city, Coot’s Nest, from the bottom of the Black Sea and at the same time made the surrounding lands sink below the level of the ocean. This greatly reduced the kingdom of the Redwood Elves. The changing of the landmass also connected the Black Sea to the North Sea which in turn gave access to the Black sea to the Skandaharian Raiders of the East. It is unknown what havoc these dramatic geological upheavals caused for the Black Sea Merfolk, but they have obviously no love for the Egg.

(Notes: Some of this information was based on the works of Andrew Theisen and David Ross)

-Havard

DUCHY OF THE PEAKS PART IV: THE PEOPLE

THE PEOPLE
The People of the Duchy of Peaks are mostly of Thonian stock, descendants of the so-called Unwanted, who left the Empire in ca 700. Their features are darker than that of the nobility of Blackmoor. Some have more exotic features due to interbreeding with slaves from distant lands. The society is feudal, with the population divided into nobility, serfs and an unusually large number of slaves. The majority of the population are slaves of course and many of the others live under fairly harsh conditions in the various mining towns of the Duchy, being driven hard by the nobles. Their misery becomes even more apparent when it is contrasted by the life in Starport, where public spectacle, debauchery, wild parties and various decadent forms of entertainment. Use of drugs and the general unhealthy and decadent ways of these people have made them somewhat dim-witted.








-Havard

DUCHY OF THE PEAKS - PART III

DUCHY OF THE PEAKS TIMELINE
0
Empire of Thonia Founded
Emperor Robert I founds Blackmoor as the northernmost province of the Thonian Empire

500
Rogue Mages settle in the Superstition Mountains, founding the Duchy of the Peaks.

700
The Unwanted begin settling the lands west of the Misauga River. Some of these Unwanted settle in the Duchy of the Peaks.

815-896
Mage Wars rage in the Province of Blackmoor. Many Sorcerers find refuge in the Duchy of the Peaks.

925
Unwanted living south of the Duchy of the Peaks declare their lands as an independent Duchy, the Duchy of the Peaks.

970
The Duchy of the Peaks makes contact with the Egg of Coot.

980
Lord Whitehead becomes the new Duke of the Peaks.

994
Marfeldt the Barbarian begins his massacre of the Duchy of the Peaks, reportedly reducing its population by 30%.

997
(Winter) The Ran of Ah Foo betrays the Egg of Coot. The Duke of the Peaks sides with the Ran of Ah Foo.

1015
The Duchy of Ten is occupied by the Afridhi. The Duke of the Peaks attempts to reach an understanding with the forces of Toska Rusa.

1020
Duke Whitehead marries an exotic dancer named Sonia Sholako. Through the use of her charms and magic, she is soon able to gain complete control of the Duchy of the Peaks.

1023
Duke Whitehead dies under mysterious circumstances. Donia Sholako becomes the Duchess of the Peaks.

1030
The Present. The alliance with the Afridhi has proved to be a poor one for the Peaks and the general level of conflict in the North is causing economic problems for the Duchy. Rumours of civil war and general unrest in the realm is spreading.






-Havard

DUCHY OF THE PEAKS - PART II

HISTORY
The Superstition Mountains got their name from the rogue magic users who settled there many centuries ago. These were the original founders of the Duchy of the Peaks and they claimed the lands between the Misauga River and the Superstition Mountains as their own.

Much later, around the year 700, they were joined by a people called the Unwanted. These were dissidents fleeing persecution in the Thonian Empire. The Duchy offered to protect these people, but in the end the majority were turned into slaves. Many of these slaves were used to construct a line of forts along Thunder River.

The lands to the south of the Duchy of the Peaks has also been settled by these Unwanted and when they declared their own realm, the Duchy of Ten as an independent Duchy, some of the Southern Lands of the Duchy of the Peaks were lost to the newly formed neighbouring realm. The Duchy of the Peaks accepted this, seeing the chance of making a profit on this new political situation.

Men from the Duchy of the Peaks made contact with the Realm of the Egg of Coot later that same year. The Duchy attempted to play the Egg, the Duchy of Ten, Thonia and the Peshwa against eachother and has seemed to successfully avoid getting drawn actively into conflict itself. They rely on bribes, shifting alliances and clever diplomacy to stay out of war and make a profit instead.

In 985, Marfeldt the Barbarian arrived in the Duchy. His visit would prove disastrous to the realm. Disgusted by its culture, the Barbarian went on a rampage which reputedly significantly reduced the population of the realm.

The former Duke, known to some as Lord Whitehead was perhaps not the most clever man, though he was said to have lead men into battle personally, even though he mostly tried to keep his realm out of wars. At an old age, he married the exotic dancer named Sonia Sholako, who through the use of her charm and magic was able to manipulate the Duke into handing over the realm to her. She has remained the ruler of the Duchy since the death of the former Duke.

Unfortunately, the Afridhi invasion and recent wars has been problematic for the Duchy as the markets for their gemstones has dried up. The Duchess has been forced into an agreement supplying the Afridhi with Pikemen from the Peaks, though she has seemed reluctant to follow up on the arrangement. The economic troubles the Duchy has had, in recent years, have made the barons push their vassals and slaves harder, making the country ripe for revolt.












-Havard

THE DUCHY OF THE PEAKS - PART I

Introduction
Lately, I have been doing some research on the Duchy of the Peaks, one of the most neglected realms in the Blackmoor setting in terms of game supplement coverage. One can only wonder if it is due to the fact that the nature of the realm lends itself too well to mature content that it has been left out of recent supplements, or whether the same mechanics which help the Duchy avoid getting drawn into wars that is at work. Note that while I try to stay true to canon, I will be taking some liberties to give some room to my own creativity. Also, this should be considered a work in progress. Finally a word of thanks to David Ross and Andrew Theissen. Their prelimiary work has been very useful.

DUCHY OF THE PEAKS
Location: Northwest of the Kingdom of Blackmoor.
Population: 50.000(?)
Languages: Thonian.
Government Type: Monarchy.
Industries: Mining (Gems), slavery, magic
Religion: Faunus (if any)
Alignment: Any Chaotic
Notable Sites: Starport (pop. 15,000), capital city.
Important Figures: Sonia Sholako (MU11), Duchess of the Peaks, the Gin of Salik (MU 20)

DESCRIPTION
High up in the Superstition Mountains lays a realm known simply as the Duchy of the Peaks. The Duchy was founded by rogue magicians from the Thonian Empire. It is from these magicians names like the Supersition Mountains and Starport, the name of the capital have their origin. The lands borders are formed by the Superstition Mountains to the West and North and by the various brances of Thunder River to the South and East. This is a decadent realm of slaves, prostitution, wine, drugs and sexual escapades. The Duchy also boasts excellent Pikemen and some of the most powerful magic users of the North can be found here. The main industry is mining and many of the smaller towns of the Duchy are mining towns.

Starport, the capital, is one of the largest cities in the region with a population of about 15.000. It rests heavily fortified, high up in the mountains. A large number of Castles and dungeons can be found in the city, which is constantly changing to adapt to the needs of its population. The people who live in Starport are protected from most troubles in life, though their reliance on drugs and a generally unhealthy as well as immoral lifestyle does take its mark on the population.







-Havard