Overview

Falirus is a province whose north and western borders are marked by a crescent-shaped mountain range. The largest river in the region, the Kearidden, runs more or less from north to south, going through the town of Klens and the provincial capital, Ovriver, and later widening into a swamp which is home to a tribe of elves.

Just over 20 years ago, this was an independent (if poor) kingdom, but now it is under the control of a larger power, which has forbidden the traditional religion of the land.

The populace is primarily human, but in addition to the elf-settled swamp, there is a small dwarven settlement near the source of the Kearidden that has so far remained beyond the reach of the Empire’s control. Other peoples are rare in the area. As well, a small group of bug people live in the mountains, where their spaceship crashed a few years ago.

Veg Darul, Dwarven Mine

Smoke billows from the a smeltery complex in the town at the base of the mountain. Behind it, two sets of rails snake their way up the slope, with carts occasionally going up and down them. Trails of steam twist up into the air at apparently-random points on the mountain. Somewhere in town, two cats fight on a roof.

The people of Veg Darul mine gold, silver and iron from the mountain. The gold and iron has been brought up from the depths by hot springs running through the mountain. These springs are incredibly hot, more deadly than pleasant. There are plenty of places where the springs have broken into the mine or the mine has broken into the springs, but the hardy dwarves simply build over it, trusting their engineering and some sturdy wood to keep them from falling in.

Veg Darul is divided into several burrows, each of which belongs to a clan, along with the mines and a town at the base of the mountain…

Clan Blazeforge is responsible for equipment creation and maintenance. The minecart lines also technically fall under their domain but in practice everybody pitches in to take care of them… until Blazeforge starts wheeling some bizarre gadget down them. The dwarves of Blazeforge are typically red-haired.

Skarruk, Mad Engineer. Skarruk is a one-eyed, twitchy dwarf. She is one of the dwarves responsible for the rack railway that goes up and down the mountain, using some kind of “internal combustion engine.” Recently, she cut half her hair off when it caught fire.

Clan Rosecheek was the first to settle this area, and their burrow is the most extensive. Their name comes from the cold-induced rosiness in their cheeks when they greeted the second wave of settlers.

Tordain, guard. Tordain is a burly, black-haired dwarf who carries a large warhammer. He suspects any non-dwarf of being an Imperial agent, here to look for weaknesses in the town’s defenses. As such, he will be quite standoffish with any non-dwarven party members.

Valdemar, apothecary. Valdemar is a black-haired dwarf who can be found anywhere plants or mushrooms grow, searching for strange herbs and fungi with which to make esoteric potions. She is particularly proud of her most recent discovery, the “Potion of Longing,” which makes anything it’s poured on longer. It is jet black, and he’ll sell it for 34 GP. Exactly how the potion determines “long” as opposed to “tall” or “wide” is not clear to anyone but Valdemar.

Clan Beastback, famously strong workers. They handle most of the moving of ore. The fine folks of Beastback know every nook and cranny of the mines.

Grandrak, cartdwarf. Grandrak is an incredibly strong and incredibly loud. Grandrak spends his days pushing carts to and fro in the mines, and his nights drinking and singing. Despite his love of bawdy songs and his earth-shaking voice, he’s quite clever, and is partially responsible for the rack railways the mine uses.

Adventure Hooks

• Skarruk has invented a new device: An automated tunnel boring and ore refining machine! Unfortunately, it’s very loud when it’s operating, and he wants you to defend it from various beasts. This is the classic “wave defense” kind of scenario.
• One of the mines has been breached by the hot springs! Can the party save the miners trapped on the other side from the scalding, corrosive water?

Klens, Farming Town

Klens is a sleepy little town with a wonderful view of the mountains. It is surrounded by farms and ranches, and much of its output gets sent down to Ovriver for taxation and sale. The buildings are mostly wood but some, like the mill, are made out of stone brought downriver from Veg Darul.

Fred Fischer, human mayor. Fred Fischer is a brown-haired man in his mid-40s, Mayor Fischer used to be a rancher, but an enraged bull kicked him in the leg, shattering his thigh. That leg is now missing, and he uses a crutch when he walks any significant distance. He’s not terribly fond of outsiders. He has a fondness for alcohol that has, more than once, resulted in townsfolk finding him asleep in a ditch.

Adventure hooks

• Mads Vester, the barge pilot, took a late-night trip down the river to Ovriver, but hasn’t returned. Can the party find him and get him out of whatever trouble he’s in?
• An Imperial official has been putting pressure on Elena Hawkdane to sell her farm. She has steadfastly refused so far, but now the “offers” have escalated to threats, and she can’t find hands to work the farm for the harvest. Can the party save the farm?
• Strange creatures like giant insects have been seen wandering near Klens. Are these demons? Predators? Possible future livestock? (They’re the Bug People, coming up below…)

Southsby Fen

A few dozen kilometers past Ovriver, the Kearidden River widens out into a lush wetland. In the center of it a small group of elves make their home. Many of the plants near that settlement have been lovingly cultivated and altered over the generations, producing bountiful fruit and handy herbs. They also have a small congregation of alligators that they raise as livestock.

The unsettled parts of the swamp are populated by alligators, snakes, the occasional gray ooze, and heat-sensing tentacle plants that will administer a potent mix of contact poison and psionic messaging that debilitates the victim so they can be drawn into the depths of the fen and incorporated into the bulk of the ancient, forgotten god which is slowly awakening.

Va’al-Yun, Treeshaper. Va’al-Yun is a practitioner of ancient elven arts. Many of the homes and structures in the treeline of the swamp were made by him, through a combination of magic and botany. As the oldest elf in the swamp, he is the de facto leader. He is the father of Kae-Bryn

The Beast Beneath: Yse’Lira is more or less right about what’s beneath the swamp. The body of an ancient god sleeps under the swamp, and its tentacles protrude upwards, searching for victims to drag below for sustenance. They paralyze their prey with an odd combination of poison and touch-based psionic messaging.

Bug People Colony

Bug People Colony at a glance:
Population: Roughly 300
Main purpose: Refuel spaceship and leave.

The “Bug People,” as they’re known to the locals, are a strange group of greenish insectoids living high up in the western mountains. Contact was sporadic for most of the last 30 years, but recently they have worked out a trade arrangement with people from Ovriver. Once a month, both parties meet and exchange a large quantity of potatoes for a significant quantity of ore. Neither group really understands the other, but they’ve managed to work out this trade arrangement.

The bugs come in two major breeds: Crawlers and Fliers. Crawlers crawl, fliers fly. Crawlers are brute laborers, fliers hunt and scout. Unknown to the locals, there is also a queen in their crashed spaceship.
The bug people come from space. Actual space. Beyond the sky. Their spaceship crashed here after an engine malfunction.

The bug people are more or less indistinguishable, save for Scar-Eye, who regularly accompanies shipments of ore. Incidentally, the scar covers a smelling organ, not an eye.

Important note: The bugs cannot be understood. Comprehend Languages does not work because they communicate with a combination of dances and pheromones. If a character has some kind of advantage on smell-based checks, a roll of 20 or higher can pick up the general mood being displayed by the target.

The bug people’s home is a spaceship embedded in the side of a mountain. In their time here, they have built wooden bracing structures to stabilize it. The ship is surrounded by bugs, day and night, as they work to restore it.

Ominous Ruins

The Temple of Ebris

Once, the Temple of Ebris was the center of a major community, until the area was absorbed into the domain of its current kingdom, roughly 20 years ago. In the conflicts that ensued, the town was burnt to the ground and the area declared forbidden.

A few parts of the old temple remain, covered in plant life. Most notable among these is the old altar, covered in dedications to Ebris. It is conspicuously free of plant life compared to everything else in the area, though several overlapping blood stains are obvious on its surface. Both of these are the results of the semi-regular visits by Louwrens Torny.

Ebris’ main symbol is a coiled snake.

The Lost Temple of Khavian.

Khavian, god of bargains. Grants power for a price. Khavian’s temple is located by an old market at what was once an important crossroads. That area is now considered forbidden by the ruling government.

In the temple, there is a large granite statue of Khavian: A robed, elven man holding a pumpkin in one hand and a sword in the other. Once, the statue looked carefully at these objects, examining them. Now, its head lays on the ground, severed during the desecration. It faces the main door, and looks almost like it’s scrutinizing anyone who enters.

Khavian’s main symbol is a measuring scale.

Bandits

The majority of bandits are people with no other choice— outcasts, the impoverished, and so on. Most of this region’s bandits want little more than money to buy food, but three organizations have higher goals:

The Red Eagles, led by a man who claims to be the last survivor of the former ruling family, the Rothmans. They want to push the Empire back out of Falirus, but don’t have the numbers to do it. They attack carts and steal from merchants, and if a few people get hurt along the way… well, it’s all for the greater good, right?

The Order of the Snake, a wandering group of adherents to the old faith. While they are not generally violent, they are often desperate for money, and have little tolerance for imperial priests. The Order of the Snake operate primarily in The City of Ovriver, since the demonization plague is centered there.

The Bulls predate the invasion, but their operations have become much more ambitious in the last few years. They have no particular ideology beyond “What’s yours is mine.”

Wilderness Encounters

Ruins of a temple. The party stumbles off the main roads and comes into a clearing, where two sets of stone benches face a central dais. On one side of the dais is a locked box that contains elaborate writings on the rituals of Vaborh, Goddess of Love, patron of weddings. The incredibly florid language makes it hard to decipher for anybody not in Vaborh’s priesthood, but general gist is “here’s how to wed people.” The ritual appears to involve hot wax, a fire, and the burning of clothing.

Ruins of a town. To one side of the road, the party sees a collection of dilapidated buildings. On one prominent building, the words “PLAGUE: KEEP OUT.” There is no treasure here for the party. Only death, and decay.

Bandits! As the party rounds a bend in the forest, five men jump out of the trees, surrounding them. They’re dirty, with sunken eyes and gaunt faces. They want the party’s money and food. If the encounter escalates to a fight, the bandits’ weapons do half damage due to poor maintenance.

Wolves! Make the players roll a DC 20 Perception check, with advantage if they’re trained in Nature. If they succeed, they see a wolf staring at them behind the treeline.

Bug People. On the road ahead, the players see some of the teal and gray bug people on the road. They appear to be injured, but carry on ceaselessly forward.

Ambushed! The party runs across a small group of Imperial soldiers examining a wrecked cart. The driver and an Imperial guard are dead and laying in the ditch. If the players try to investigate, the guards will initially tell them to move on, but they can be persuaded to let the PCs help. A DC 15 Perception check will reveal footprints in the grass. Following them will eventually lead the party to a group of starving men and women hiding in a cave. Most of the food from the cart has already been eaten.

Support the Creators

Garmbreak1
Former esports wannabe, current TTRPG streamer and TTRPG creator interviewer. I like science fiction and I have a soft spot for licensed tabletop RPGs. You can find all the campaigns I’m in and interviews I’ve done over on YouTube.

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