| 
  • If you are citizen of an European Union member nation, you may not use this service unless you are at least 16 years old.

  • You already know Dokkio is an AI-powered assistant to organize & manage your digital files & messages. Very soon, Dokkio will support Outlook as well as One Drive. Check it out today!

View
 

Varisia Overview

Page history last edited by Jason 15 years, 11 months ago
Three distinct human societies dwell in Varisia: the expansionist colonists of Lamasu, the tempestuous tribes of the Shoanti barbarians, and the enigmatic Varisians.
 
Lamasi: To the south lies the cosmopolitan heresy of Lamasu. Once an empire of unquestioned might, the death of the empire’s god Aroden allowed the rise of a diabolical aristocracy who treat with the denizens of Hell to afford their endless decadence and eternal rule. Although unquestionably depraved and diminished by the loss of its deity, Lamasu remains a beacon of culture, art, and magic. While expansionist Lamasu once coveted the riches of Varisia, its decline has freed its colonies to their own fates. Now, the most powerful of Lamasu’s city-states, monument-haunted Magnimar and imperial-minded Korvosa, vie for control of its abandoned Varisian holdings. In these cities and the numerous vassal settlements of each, the majority of the populace can trace their ancestry to the sharp-featured people of Lamasu. Lamasi possess dark hair and eyes set on olive skin—along with a taste for artistic fineries and high art.
 
Shoanti: Across the northeastern reaches of Varisia, the seven ardent tribes of the Shoanti make their homes. A turbulent people adhering to traditions unchanged in hundreds of years, these natives live harsh lives, preying upon predators and eking what they can from an unforgiving land. Most of the tribes nomadically follow herds and water as the seasons demand, but they typically stay within familiar territories and return to favored homelands year after year. The Shoanti once held all of Varisia as their own, sharing it only with the Varisians, whom they coldly accept as distant cousins. The coming of explorers and colonists from Lamasu changed all this, though, sparking an age of bloody warfare. Few know how many tribes of Shoanti were lost in these endless battles—and even today the names of the so-called dead tribes are not spoken—but finally the barbarians were forced to cede their homeland’s southern reaches to the invaders. While they still claim all Varisia as their rightful land, today the Shoanti tribes are limited to the Storval Plateau, the Cinderlands, the Curchainian Hills, and the Velashu Uplands. Their loss of the south remains an unhealed wound shared between all the tribes, and fiery youths often raise their voices in bloody vows against all those of Lamasi blood. Of the seven remaining Shoanti tribes, those of the Shriikirri-Quah—a people who hold great respect for animals and claim to learn much from their ways—are most likely to interact with other peoples. The other tribes, those of the Lyrune- Quah, Shadde-Quah, Shundar-Quah, Sklar-Quah, Skoan-Quah, Tamiir- Quah, typically prove more warlike and aloof. The Shoanti are a hale and powerfully built people. Typically of ruddy complexion, most men stand well over 6 feet tall, with women only slightly shorter. Hair is viewed as a distraction and possible detriment (especially in the complex arts of hand-to-hand battle many tribes cultivate) and thus both genders frequently shave their heads—with only mystics and the elderly ignoring this meme. Many Shoanti wear prominent tattoos, typically of shapes and patterns heavy with traditional meaning, which wearers expand and embellish upon as they age.
 
Varisian: Passionate and fiercely independent, Varisians lend their name to their homeland, Varisia. While these clannish wanderers can be found throughout the world, nowhere are larger populations found than in the land of their ancestors. Insular and adhering to an ancient, nomadic way of life, extended families of Varisians form wandering communities, traveling wherever fate directs them. Varisians don’t believe in claiming land and thus see no hardship in their nomadic ways. While nature provides for most of their needs, these wanderers often visit the cities and towns of settled people to trade art and curios from their travels, earn coin by entertaining and performing small jobs, and sometimes to con and steal from the unwary. Varisians are also known for their unique mysticism. Some believe their traditional dances provide insights into the future and their family elders can hear the voices of the long dead. The typical Varisian possesses deep olive skin and hair that ranges from black to auburn, often worn long by both men and women. Customary tattooing leads most to exhibit complex patterns and symbols significantly different from those worn by the Shoanti who share their homeland. As wanderers and—often—entertainers, Varisian dress tends toward extremes, from functional garb fit for traveling to wildly impractical dress meant to accentuate their dancing, exotic tattoos, and naturally fit forms.
 
 
Faiths of Varisia
The majority of the region’s civilized populace adheres to one of six major faiths.
Abadar: Master of the First Vault, gold-fisted Abadar seeks to order the world. Judges, merchants, and aristocrats worship him, praying for his clarity in judgment and business. The poor and wronged also frequently honor him, seeking reversals in their fortunes.
Erastil: To his followers, Old Deadeye is a stern father, a helpful neighbor, and a watchful hunter. Small communities, farmers, hunters, and common folk most often pray to Erastil.
Desna: The furtive Song of the Spheres, Desna is the goddess of dreams, luck, stars, and travelers. She delights in freedom and mystery, and teaches her people to experience all they can. Mystics, explorers, wanderers, and those in need of a little luck worship Desna.
Gozreh: The Wind and the Waves, the god of nature cares nothing for the ways of men and their irrelevant empires, ever demonstrating that mortals are insignificant and would do best to remember such. Farmers, seamen, foresters, and all who live at the whim of nature fear and respect Gozreh.
Sarenrae: The Dawnflower, the Healing Flame, the Everlight, Sarenrae brings warmth and radiance to all souls who allow her in. Those with compassionate hearts and kind intentions turn to Sarenrae as both the source and protector of all things good.
Shelyn: Goddess of art, beauty, and love, Shelyn encourages creativity and inspires the world. She challenges her faithful to test their limits, share what they create, and delight in the gifts of others.
 
 
Sandpoint
The town
A simple, relatively peaceful town with all the color and common oddities one expects from a tightly-knit community, Sandpoint sits at a point on the Lost Coast halfway between Magnimar and Windsong Abbey. Wood buildings and cluttered docks line the town’s natural harbor, while farms and the manors of wealthy citizens dot the surrounding countryside.
During the day, fishing, farming, lumbering, glassmaking, and shipbuilding occupy most of the townsfolk, who commonly retire to their homes by way of Sandpoint’s many taverns. A playhouse and would-be museum make unusual attractions in such a small community, but Sandpoint’s true landmark is the Old Light, a lighthouse of ancient origins that lies in ruins.
A relatively peaceful town, devoid of many of the dangers of a true frontier town and intrigues of a sprawling city, Sandpoint has nonetheless had its share of troubles. The fading scars of a recent terror still linger, a time most folk refer to as the Late Unpleasantness.
Just over five years ago, a madman stalked the streets of Sandpoint, killing dozens. Known as Chopper, the killer’s month long terror ended bloodily when an eccentric local artisan was revealed as the murderer and killed during his attempted capture. Adding to the pain, less than a month later the local chapel burned to the ground in a conflagration that nearly consumed the town’s northern half and left the local priest dead. Emerging from the shadow of these events, though, Sandpoint has healed and rebuilt, with many townsfolk viewing the coming dedication of a new church as a symbolic end to the healing and return to normality.
 
The law
Kendra Deverin has served as Sandpoint’s mayor for the past eight years. Lawmaker, judge, and general peacemaker, Deverin has proven to be both an adept diplomat and stern hand when need be—skills likely honed during her youth in Magnimar and adventuring in the region. With a personal—some say sisterly— style of governing, Kendra holds the abiding respect of most of Sandpoint’s people, charming them with her fiery temper and tenacity for justice (as demonstrated during the Late Unpleasantness). A council of several of the town’s most respected and affluent landowners aids Deverin’s work. While several councilmembers have their own agendas and visions for the town, the mayor’s no-nonsense attitude assures that council decisions ever work toward the common good.
Meting out the town’s good justice, sheriff and councilmember Belor Hemlock keeps watch over Sandpoint’s people. Held as something of a local hero, Hemlock is lauded with being the man who brought the serial killer, Chopper, to justice. Although rarely faced with misconduct more severe than vandalism and public drunkenness, the sheriff is both a keen wit and a skilled swordsman, and openly proves both when the rare crime requires it. While the town’s chief enforcer, Hemlock knows the difference between the word of the law and its intent, and often gives those under his protection the benefit of the doubt.
Their sheriff’s work aside, Sandpoint’s people realize they must often fend for and defend themselves, especially on the outlying farms. In the rarest and most extreme cases— and even then thoroughly discouraged—mob justice is sometimes all that satisfies the outraged people.
 
The Land
A rolling, lightly forested land of limestone escarpments, rugged tors, and verdant moors surrounds Sandpoint. Most who populate the area live off the land and sea. Numerous farms spread over the surrounding countryside, while the homes of fisherfolk dot the coastal cliffs. Viable farming land is a coveted commodity around Sandpoint, as rocky hills and expanses of limestone pavements— uneven areas of flat rock—break the lush landscape.
Wolves, snakes, and oversized weasels primarily stalk the deer and hares common to the area, along with the occasional stray farm animal, making attacks on humanoids rare. When the fogs common to Sandpoint’s stretch of shore rise, though, every dark shape in the mist becomes a monster, giving rise to numerous local legends of hungry wild men, winged terrors, and reeking things from the sea.
 
The People
A welcoming, largely unprejudiced community of colorful locals call Sandpoint home. Presented here are but a few of the town’s most noteworthy residents.
Kendra Deverin: Town mayor.
Cyrdak Drokkus: Grandiloquent actor, gadabout, and proprietor of the Sandpoint Theater.
Belor Hemlock: The gruff but protective town sheriff.
Ameiko Kaijitsu: Ex-adventurer and proprietor of the Rusty Dragon inn, rebellious daughter to nobleman Lonjiku Kaijitsu.
Lonjiku Kaijitsu: Stoic noble, owner of the town Glassworks.
Jargie Quinn: One-legged owner of the Hagfish tavern.
Titus Scarnetti: Tradition-minded noble who controls Sandpoint’s bustling lumber trade.
Ethram Valdemar: Oldest of the town nobles.
Ven Vinder: Owner of Sandpoint’s best-stocked general store.
Abstalar Zantus: Sandpoint’s mild-mannered local priest.

 

Comments (0)

You don't have permission to comment on this page.