Lore: All The World's A Stage...
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Lore: All The World's A Stage...
Some Introduction
The land of Grisbin is similar to other worlds of Pathfinder, but is itself unique in several ways. The layout of the land is somewhat of a contradiction itself: civilization is pocketed in a number of city-states and their holdings, but between most of them is untamed wilderness fraught with peril. There is no central government that rules the land: the chaos of the past has undone many alliances and trade agreements, and the faith of the people is usually the only thing the City-States have in common anymore. Because of the precarious situation, important paths are well-protected and maintained, often by powerful freelancers that retain loyalty to no single ruler or group.
The party begins their adventures as young folk in the village of Cloudvale, in the providence of Mystria. It nears the Winter Solstice, and the town is abuzz with anticipation for the Festival of Saint Tryce, a time of reflection, remembrance, and charity... as well as the slew of gifts the townsfolk will receive from one another!
Some History
The scattered City-States of Grisbin have their origins in the ancient past, when the cities were merely fortresses, bulwarks of mortal kind against an ancient threat. Although historians cannot agree on a single time frame, all agree that the current age began with the end of a titanic conflict that nearly wiped out life from all of Grisbin, as well as its surrounding regions. An ancient wizard by the name of Zoran Xix, one of the very first true masters of the arcane arts, began a campaign of war and death that decimated the population at the hands of his armies of undead and insane warriors. So great was his might that the very heavens were made distant from the power of his magic, making the divine magic that had been a gift from the gods nearly impossible to access. Like a plague, he came for every living being in Grisbin, heralding an age of "perfection through undeath", believing existence as an undead creature to be the final evolution of mortal life.
Though doom seemed imminent, one hope remained for Grisbin, if not the world: A holy man by the name of Arnd. Gifted directly by the gods with a fraction of their power, Arnd was capable of performing miracles lesser beings could not begin to dream of. With the aid of his ten Saints--a group of holy men that swore allegiance to him and lead his holy armies--and a powerful artifact known as the Fatesphere, Arnd defeated Zoran Xix and banished his armies from the world and revived the fatally wounded of his army in a single, powerful spell.
Arnd claimed that his power had from a single, unified source of divinity: The Overbeing, the combined essence of three lesser goddesses, who had sacrificed their individuality to break through the barrier conjured by Zoran Xix and save their creations. With Arnd's enemies destroyed and his power exhibited, there was little doubt of his prophecy; Arnd was declared the voice of the Overbeing. And as he pierced the veil of the Great Beyond to find his Goddess, his Saints were made rulers of the land, and the rebuilding of Grisbin began.
Many centuries have passed. None know what became of Arnd and the Fatesphere, but worship of the Overbeing remains strong to this day. Only once before had the power of the Goddess waned, and a time of darkness briefly reappeared...
Some Prejudice
Several centuries after Arnd's victory over the Archmage Zoran Xix, the people once again were plunged into a state of fear as, after many years of strength, divine magic began to fade again. Because the horrors of the Army of Xix were still fresh in many people's minds--especially the elves and dwarves, whom had taken perhaps the greatest losses during the war--many people began whispering that practitioners of arcane magic were to blame. Some were even thought to have been long-operating sleeper agents of Zoran Xix. Even more experienced clerics and paladins of the Overbeing had begun to subscribe to the rumors when their power began to fade. It was in the following years that wizards, sorcerers, arcanists of all kinds were subject to a grand inquisition: libraries of ancient knowledge were burned to the ground, trinkets and potion were destroyed in riots, and a great number of innocent mages were but to death in the frenzy of misplaced zeal and cowardice. It was not until the Saints themselves went to war with each other that the conflict ended, and the strength of the divine returned to normal. Though many people are convinced that the Witch Hunts were the reason for the return of divine magic's strength, others know better; druids, as well as others that gained wisdom and knowledge from nature, did not suffer any lack of power during this dark time. If the druids know the true source of the drain, they have been silent of the matter for centuries...
The land of Grisbin is similar to other worlds of Pathfinder, but is itself unique in several ways. The layout of the land is somewhat of a contradiction itself: civilization is pocketed in a number of city-states and their holdings, but between most of them is untamed wilderness fraught with peril. There is no central government that rules the land: the chaos of the past has undone many alliances and trade agreements, and the faith of the people is usually the only thing the City-States have in common anymore. Because of the precarious situation, important paths are well-protected and maintained, often by powerful freelancers that retain loyalty to no single ruler or group.
The party begins their adventures as young folk in the village of Cloudvale, in the providence of Mystria. It nears the Winter Solstice, and the town is abuzz with anticipation for the Festival of Saint Tryce, a time of reflection, remembrance, and charity... as well as the slew of gifts the townsfolk will receive from one another!
Some History
The scattered City-States of Grisbin have their origins in the ancient past, when the cities were merely fortresses, bulwarks of mortal kind against an ancient threat. Although historians cannot agree on a single time frame, all agree that the current age began with the end of a titanic conflict that nearly wiped out life from all of Grisbin, as well as its surrounding regions. An ancient wizard by the name of Zoran Xix, one of the very first true masters of the arcane arts, began a campaign of war and death that decimated the population at the hands of his armies of undead and insane warriors. So great was his might that the very heavens were made distant from the power of his magic, making the divine magic that had been a gift from the gods nearly impossible to access. Like a plague, he came for every living being in Grisbin, heralding an age of "perfection through undeath", believing existence as an undead creature to be the final evolution of mortal life.
Though doom seemed imminent, one hope remained for Grisbin, if not the world: A holy man by the name of Arnd. Gifted directly by the gods with a fraction of their power, Arnd was capable of performing miracles lesser beings could not begin to dream of. With the aid of his ten Saints--a group of holy men that swore allegiance to him and lead his holy armies--and a powerful artifact known as the Fatesphere, Arnd defeated Zoran Xix and banished his armies from the world and revived the fatally wounded of his army in a single, powerful spell.
Arnd claimed that his power had from a single, unified source of divinity: The Overbeing, the combined essence of three lesser goddesses, who had sacrificed their individuality to break through the barrier conjured by Zoran Xix and save their creations. With Arnd's enemies destroyed and his power exhibited, there was little doubt of his prophecy; Arnd was declared the voice of the Overbeing. And as he pierced the veil of the Great Beyond to find his Goddess, his Saints were made rulers of the land, and the rebuilding of Grisbin began.
Many centuries have passed. None know what became of Arnd and the Fatesphere, but worship of the Overbeing remains strong to this day. Only once before had the power of the Goddess waned, and a time of darkness briefly reappeared...
Some Prejudice
Several centuries after Arnd's victory over the Archmage Zoran Xix, the people once again were plunged into a state of fear as, after many years of strength, divine magic began to fade again. Because the horrors of the Army of Xix were still fresh in many people's minds--especially the elves and dwarves, whom had taken perhaps the greatest losses during the war--many people began whispering that practitioners of arcane magic were to blame. Some were even thought to have been long-operating sleeper agents of Zoran Xix. Even more experienced clerics and paladins of the Overbeing had begun to subscribe to the rumors when their power began to fade. It was in the following years that wizards, sorcerers, arcanists of all kinds were subject to a grand inquisition: libraries of ancient knowledge were burned to the ground, trinkets and potion were destroyed in riots, and a great number of innocent mages were but to death in the frenzy of misplaced zeal and cowardice. It was not until the Saints themselves went to war with each other that the conflict ended, and the strength of the divine returned to normal. Though many people are convinced that the Witch Hunts were the reason for the return of divine magic's strength, others know better; druids, as well as others that gained wisdom and knowledge from nature, did not suffer any lack of power during this dark time. If the druids know the true source of the drain, they have been silent of the matter for centuries...
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