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    Shadows over Keoland Campaign
    Posted on Mon, October 15, 2001 by Toran
    Anonymous writes "For many years, horrors have laid buried beneath the Sheldomar, until the recent upheavals have allowed a number of them to escape. Heretics and cultists are also stirring up trouble as plans set in motion ages ago are coming to fruitation.

    Author: Jesse Dean




    Shadows Over Keoland Campaign

    by Jesse Dean (jessedn@yahoo.com)
    Used with Permission. Do not repost without obtaining prior permission from the author.

    Power Groups
    Baron Darath Hemeos (human male/wizard 7, lore master 3/lawful neutral)
    Appearance: A tall, distinguished looking man with hard, chiseled features. His hair is black with a shock of white running along the front. He is usually wearing long, flowing brown robes with a staff in hand. He typically speaks slowly and evenly, leaving no room for misunderstandings.
    Overview: Darath has the generational duty of safeguarding the Kingdom of Keoland from the threats to be founding the elder elven ruins that dot the land, especially in the Hool Marshes. The hard times that have overcame the Hemeos family, whose holdings lie to the south of Gradsul, over the last decade could not have come at a worse time. The recent increased wartime activity in and around the Hool Marshes has awakened a number of horrors that would have been better left sleeping. Darath has several favors he can call in, though, and plans on using them as his agents to deal with the rising threat.

    Cult of the Living Goddess
    Overview: Founded in the city of Cryllor, with the full backing of the Count, this religious group is dedicated to Izamna, the Living Goddess. Izamna is said to be the daughter of Dalt and Istus, the key between continuities, mistress of the past and present, and the holder of the future. According to dogma the Oerth is at a critical juncture right now. The continuity of time is slowly defraying into thousands of possible worldscapes, each of which has striking differences from the others. Unless this is stopped Oerth will unravel, ceasing to be, and allowing Tharizdun and other, darker powers to emerge from their ages of imprisonment. The only way to prevent this from happening is to unite under the Living Goddess. Only with one voice of religious unity under the one goddess shall Oerth remain one, continuing its existence into eternity.
    Outsiders do not consider Izamna to be a true goddess, seeing her as little better than a powerful mortal or maybe an outsider, in human guise. Her followers do get spells, but they claim that some other power could be the true font of her power. Her detractors have thus far been unable to do anything against her prime power base, though. The Count fully supports the Living Goddess and shares the faith in her (though some say that he is more than a faithful follower with the goddess)

    Ebon Brotherhood
    Overview: An offshoot of the Scarlet Brotherhood dedicated to Tharizdun, the Ebon Brotherhood has its hands in many, many arenas. They are behind much of the chaos in the Sea Prince lands and are bringing forth elder horrors to use in their war against the brotherhood at large. They have also been exploring more northern areas for other tools to draw upon. In addition to ruin claiming in the south and their covert with the Scarlet Brotherhood, the Ebon Brotherhood is also working on snaking its way northward into the rest of the Sheldomar Valley. In particular they are working on forming kuo-toa/aboleth cults dedicated to insane evil in the larger cities, such as Gradsul and Niole Dra, and the conquest of Salinmoor through infiltration and hidden replacement of key nobles.

    The Purifying Flame
    Overview: A fanatical, yet heretical, sect of Pyremius-worshippers who are closely allied with the efreeti worshippers of Pyremius on the elemental plane of fire. They are not allied with the Scarlet Brotherhood at all and see them as potential foes in their quest for the return of the Flame Kings. They are dedicated to removing any and all corruption in Keoland, burning it out in a dark tribute to their god. Only once Keoland has reached a certain level of purity, the Flame Kings will arrive and lead the faithful of Pyremius on an epic crusade to drive all who oppose them from the world, establishing a new golden age of fire, poison, and murder.
    They have members among the nobility of Keoland, Sterich, and the Gran March with agents in many thieves’ guilds within those realms. A few members can be found in the nobility of other neighboring lands but those are where the greatest concentration lies. In preparation for the arrival of their lords, the Purifying Flame has been seeking to create an infrastructure in major settlements. Hidden temples, caches of weapons and magic, and plans to assassinate major foes, all exist. When the time comes these will all become apparent and the Purifying Flame will seize control.
    Flame Kings: The Flame Kings are an alliance of powerful efreeti sorcerers, priests, and fighters dedicated to Pyremius. They were banished in ancient times by Suel magi, but now that they are long dead are seeking to escape from their imprisonment. The cult of the Purifying Flame is their answer to this. They have discovered that to escape they need to remove the taint of chaos, corruption, and darkness from the Kingdom of Keoland to escape.
    Sample Agent:
    Izaros Pyros: CR: 11, AC:

    Human (Half- Fire Elemental)
    Fighter 4/Cleric 5
    Armor Class: 25(+7 armor, +3 dexterity, +4 enhancement, +1 natural)
    Movement: 40’
    Hp: 64
    Attack Bonus: +14/+9 (flaming long sword +2), +10/+5 (Long bow)
    Damage: 1d8+9+1d6(flame) or 1d8+4
    Str: 20(16), Dex: 17, Con: 11, Int: 14, Wis: 17, Cha: 14
    Saves: Fort: +10, Ref: +7, Will: +10
    Feats: Expertise, Dodge, Mobility, Spring Attack, Whirlwind Attack, Weapon Focus (Long Sword), Weapon Specialization (Long Sword)
    Skill Points: 28(Fighter), 20(Cleric)
    Climb +10, Concentration +7, Diplomacy +5, Hide +9, Jump +16, Knowledge (Religion) +7, Listen +6, Move Silently +9, Ride +4, Spellcraft +7, Spot +6, Swim +4,
    Equipment: boots of striding and springing, shadow silent moves breastplate +2, large metal shield +2, flaming long sword +2, belt of giant strength (+4), wand of cure moderate wounds (50 charges), cloak of resistance +2, mighty long bow +4, 50 arrows, 4 opals (100 gp each), 20 platinum pieces, 80 gp, medium warhorse
    Special Abilities: burning hands, produce flames, flaming sphere, wall of fire, fire shield all once per day; immune to disease and cold, +4 to saves vs. poison, rebuke undead, rebuke fire creatures, turn water creatures, smite 1/day, spells: 5/4+1/3+1/2+1
    Spells: Cure Minor Wounds, Detect Magic, Light, Read Magic, Resistance; Cure Light Wounds, Endure Elements, Entropic Shield, Inflict Light Wounds(d), Shield of Faith; Endurance, Lesser Restoration, Silence, Shatter(d); Contagion (d), Dispel Magic, Summon Monster 3.

    The Cutters’ Hand
    -A Thieves Guild in Gradsul. Associated primarily with smuggling, but also involved in some assassination and misc. larceny.
    -Secretly involved in slave trading.

    Knights of the Watch
    Overview: There is more to the Knights of the Watch than meets the eye. While seemingly a quasi-racist knighthood dedicated to the defense and propagation of the Sheldomar Valley nations, in reality it has a far more sinister purpose. The highest-ranking members of the Knights of the Watch are all secretly members of the martial fraternity known as Vi Ecana Kos. They have preserved the prophecy of the Twelve Precepts since ancient times, which foretells the end of the world. Only they can prevent this from happening. They know the end time is imminent and that only by being able to harness the resources and armies of entire nations will they be able to stop the Oerth from being destroyed.
    To this end they have virtually annexed Bissel and are planning on retaking Geoff to add its wealth and people to the knight’s coffers. The Duke of Geoff is standing in their way, but they have plans for him. Sterich is also in their sights, and they do not plan to let the bickering within the nation to continue for much longer. A coup is being planned, with a small army of diplomats in the court of other nations to make sure that the transition goes smoothly and without protest from Sterich’s neighbors. After taking those two it will only be a short time before they will begin to pick the plum prize. Keoland itself.
    Unknown to the Knights, they are being manipulated in this by none other than Vecna himself. Vecna wishes to gain revenge on those who have built on his old lands, and helped to lead to his original destruction at the hands of Kas.


    The PCs:
    A different hook will pull each of the PCs in. All that ties them together is the favors they owe to Darath


    Premise:
    The invasion of Westkeep and increased activity in the province of Salinmoor has awakened beings that it would have better left sleeping. A number of sites sacred to the elder elves were looted during the war, awakening a number of equally old evils. They have since spread through southern Keoland and the Hold of the Sea Princes, leaving terror in their wake.
    While this terror has largely gone unnoticed by the decadent nobles who call Keoland home, Baron Iridith Neheli, has taken notice. The latest in a family dedicated to safeguarding Keoland from the horrors that lie in its core. To this end he has gathered several groups of covert agents from among loyal retainers and those who owe him favors. Those with the greatest known competence and loyalty have been sent to investigate known sites to make sure they are undisturbed. Those with less known loyalty and competence are to be sent to the south into the marshes to figure out what is really going on. If they survive then they are worthy of getting more important tasks.
    The Hold of the Sea Princes has taken the brunt of the horrors emerging from the swamp descending from merely being torn by civil war to being consumed by madness and decay from within. Even the Scarlet Brotherhood has had to deal with the elder horrors. Interior holds are frequently under siege by creatures whose very appearance invokes madness. Most coastal bases have avoided open attack thus far, but have still had to suffer from infiltrations by members of the Black Brotherhood and its allies.



    Note: CthulhuHawk, Keoland, Sheldomar"
     
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    Re: Shadows over Keoland Campaign (Score: 1)
    by Scottenkainen on Tue, October 16, 2001
    (User Info | Send a Message)
    An article this good deserves at least one comment! This article is rife with good ideas, and I like that -- although 3E stats are included -- the ideas are not tied to the statistics. The only flaws are the use of (oh no, not them again!) Tharizdun and Vecna, and that little of this would translate well to the South Province. Oh well...



    Re: Shadows over Keoland Campaign (Score: 1)
    by Taras on Tue, October 16, 2001
    (User Info | Send a Message)
    Oh, come now. Sure they can be transported to South Province. Let's see...

    Baron Darath Hemos...let's see...put him as a minor landholder on the fringes of the Iron Hills, and make the threats in elven ruins to be threats buried beneath dwarven ruins. Or invalidate some of my own Sud Graufult material, and keep it elven, but transport him to the area around the Rieuwood.

    The Cult of the Living Goddess...maybe change it to Cult of the Living God...a reborn Farlockend in Hexpools. After all, according to Ivid the Undying, they're already fanatical about Farlockend in that city, and it wouldn't be much of a stretch to incorporate some ideas along those lines...you could even make the whole Living God cult a sham, backed by a fiend or god like Syrul.

    The Ebon Brotherhood...could be an offshoot hiding out in Idee or Onnwal, and muck things up in the area easily enough, say, maybe in preperation of the Wars.

    The Purifying Flame could easily be transported somewhere else, with a few minor tweaks. Pyremius cultists work nicely anywhere there's Suel to be found or were Suel to be found at one point.

    The Cutter's Hand, given the lack of notes, could easily be the nasty groups of Prymp, which is already known for smuggling and slavers.

    The Knights of the Watch present the biggest problem...but they could be changed to a knightly order in Ahlissa, say, the Order of the Boar's Head or somesuch. Change the bad guy behind it to suit your tastes.

    There, see? Easy to move this across the subcontinent...Old Aerdy has it's own dark secrets to tinker with...some of which I've dealt with before.


    ]


    Re: Shadows over Keoland Campaign (Score: 1)
    by Tuerny on Tue, October 16, 2001
    (User Info | Send a Message)
    Thanks, I am glad you enjoy it. :)

    I originally created for a Greyhawk campaign I was going to run but ended up passing on it because I did not feel up for Greyhawk.

    I had shown it to Rasgon and he suggested that I submit. So I did.
    As for the usage of Tharizdun and Vecna, I figured since I was using Greyhawk I should use appropriate figures :)


    ]


    Re: Shadows over Keoland Campaign (Score: 1)
    by Man-of-the-Cranes (manofthecranes@canonfire.com) on Wed, April 17, 2002
    (User Info | Send a Message) http://www.ManoftheCranes.com
    Izamna and the Cult of the Living Goddess caught my eye especially. Is this an original concept or is there some obscure reference I am missing for Izamna?

    That single plot set my own mind reeling with possibilities for my own campaign. SO I probably shouldn't ask/comment too much...

    But I would be curious to know how you had intended to devolop this. For a small cult they have a very ambitious agenda - a one-god world.

    If this were ever to come about (under anyone) the ramifacations would be immense.

    Cheers
    Man of the Cranes



    Shadows over Keoland Campaign (Score: 1)
    by Osmund-Davizid on Tue, December 14, 2004
    (User Info | Send a Message | Journal)
    My comment to this great article has been long overdue. This was one of the first articles I found on CF that I just had to print out and use right away!

    Excellent adventure hooks (although I am not big on using half-elementals) that can lead in so many different direstions, I liked the use of the Knights of the Watch especially.

    This article is a 5 rating from me and a great all around read.

    O-D




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