“…so difficult to see the people of Nyrond after being away so long, dearest wife. Eight years past the land was verdant with bountiful harvests, abled bodied men at the ready to defend faith, king and country, women prepared to feed, clothe, and bear more faithful souls of Heironeous. In my travels across the kingdom this year, I have seen far too many fallow fields, gutted homesteads, mass graves, and a weary, taxed people whose expressions were as empty as their purses.” — Excerpt of a merchant’s journal found in possession of a captured xvart in the Womtham Highlands.
Nyrond is an ideal nation for storytellers to relate the glory of a human-led nation at the height of their cultural awakening, to then experience a rapid erosion of their national integrity and security. The classic tropes of feudal fantasy are at the ready for a novice Dungeon Master to utilize. Creativity can pivot the schisms between rulership, religious doctrine, the mighty military, and the common folk of the nation in an epic, memorable manner. Borrow heavily from current pop culture and a game of thrones between Lynwerd and Sewarndt is ready to be told, bringing Nyrond’s story to the present.
Country Specific Resources:
WGR4— The Marklands (TSR9398, 1993), by Carl Sargent
Bastion of Faith (TSR11442, 1999) (Heironean temple hierarchy)
Adventures in this country include:
- Adventures could be framed against a background of a society on the brink of anarchy.
- A peasant hero gathers comrades to bring grievances to the hereditary lord of their lands, declaring the taxation they suffer to be excessive and ill spent. Falling on deaf ears, they resort to banditry against the bailiff-general, effectively stealing from the rich and giving to the poor.
- The next generation of noble heirs struggle against their parents’ excessive habits recognizing that their actions do not match the oaths they swore to gods, king, and country.
- Full scale war campaigns with young sailors, soldiers, and officers attempting to overcome Nyrond’s military leadership’s failings and bring victory on the seas and battlefields.
- Exploring the religious order of Heironeous and how Hextor’s dominance in the Great Kingdom is the greatest perceived threat to Nyrond, thus blinding them to their own failings.
- Persistent humanoid threats in the Flinty Hills sparks the consternation that the demihumans of the region feel towards the king. The gnomes and their allies must act.
- The Heironean Order of the Topaz investigates abductions of priests and magic-using folk as clues suggest quaggoth, derro, and other ‘deep dark’ races of the Underoerth are involved.
- Ancient ruins inherited by the Oerdians when they claimed the land from the Flan natives are scattered about the nation; some are well explored, others hold their mysteries still.
- The conflict between brothers, King Archbold III’s sons, Crown Prince Lynwerd and Prince Sewarndt, does it lead to civil war as the claim to the throne is contested and manipulated?
Adventures in nearby areas include:
- The miasma of despotism that was the Great Kingdom, be it Hextorites, undead hordes, or rogue demons. Pursuit of Sewarndt will lead the heroes here in all likelihood.
- The Bone March and all its humanoid tribal intrigue; gnomish defenders take the offensive.
- The northern lands with zealots and banditry provide a rich storytelling seedbed.
The Kingdom of Nyrond is spatially big, providing opportunity for any story to take root with design and care. The feudal society is a familiar background to set in motion a Dungeon Master’s first bold tales though long-time storytellers may find Nyrond hackneyed and may need to find other corners of the Flanaess to spark their dynamic tales. _________________ Richard Di Ioia (aka Longetalos)
Last edited by Longetalos on Sun Sep 20, 2020 9:51 am; edited 1 time in total
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