--- PAGE 1 --- Time Jump 2009-2010 Roekron Developments (twenty one year jump): Twenty-one years have passed since Dagdeoths last major invasion and the appearance of the Sisters. Roekron has both grown and suffered during this period. Politically, the government has grown. The Wizards Trade Order has seen change for the first time in hundreds of years as Eleana Starlight has stepped down to attempt to repair the failing Elven Empire of Andionian which is in political collapse. The murder of King Nelorian and his wife Queen Selena five years ago by what has been called Wood Elf extremists, threw Andionian into a potential resurgent civil war. Eleana has stepped in as mediator and current ruler of Celendil in the interim of choosing a new leader. Her absence in the Wizards Trade Order and subsequent replacement on the council by Laura Whitelocks of Hostor has caused a great uproar throughout Roekron. King Obami Baraku’s choice to elect a representative to The Order from a country that is not currently a member has outraged many. However, his choice appears to have been well designed for Hostor is closer to membership now then they ever have been before, and many of the decisions that are being made now by the Order seem to be more focused on the good of the people and less about the gain of the Order. The overall policy of the Wizards Trade Order seems to be more accessible and leads to what most consider true justice. Most of the provinces have remained unchanged in their borders, though Dagdeoth has shrunk considerably, and Grimsoeoth (the true name of the Eastern Army peoples) is a permanent presence with villages and towns throughout. Events of note in this period are the renaissance of Temnor which span seven years and then was promptly cut off by the discovery that Temnor was stealing from Sorikonia and not inventing much of its own at all which resulted in a short war which left Temnor worse off then before. The capital city of Estorock has been torn by --- PAGE 2 --- invasions of Grimsoeoth as well as numerous small civil wars throughout this period but remains the capital. The Golden Mountain Invasion in which Glimindel was invaded by Grimsoeoth and then promptly switched sides and is currently supplying Grimsoeoth with magic items still rankles many Dsesnorians. Svodlun of all provinces has risen to glory in its delving into old abandon mines and tunnels and as it is the only location of reliable ore resources has flourished in these lean times. Economically Roekron has suffered greatly. Already in a dark age, Roekron has found no help in resources and has spiraled deeper into an economic collapse that has left many struggling for supplies and basic needs. Gone are the boom times of generations past when magic items were commonplace and mages to be found around every corner. Weapons themselves are scarce as the cost of such items rises with limited amounts of ore to be found. Thus, when looking at the current economic standing of the majority of Roekron people, one would find them very poor, with many families passing down their weapons and armor for generations, not because it is magic, or master crafted, but simple because it is the only way they can afford them. Farmers are on the brink of starvation with crops doing well but much of their goods being taken by lords to fund armies and to be traded for weapons, armor, and ships. In such times, simple problems such as Orkish invasions, roving Ogres or a band of hungry Goblins is no longer a nuance, but a matter of life and death for the local lords. Socially, Roekron has improved. The relations between species and the ways in which royalty and commoners associate is more civil. Crime has increased, but so has the attempts to curtail it by locals, which has developed into less actual losses from criminal activity. A large amount of sanctioned vigilantism has surface in these lean times when finding law enforcement might be difficult. Fortunately, the government seems to be more appreciative of citizens who take matters into their own hands and less apt to punish those who are protecting others. Death has become more serious in Roekron as the cost of resurrection has gone up and most people cannot afford resurrection nor can they find a mage to perform the ritual. Thus, acts of murder and killing are viewed in a much harsher way as the people realize that though they may be resurrected should they die, it is likely they will not --- PAGE 3 --- and thus they take life very seriously. Killing someone, even if they are resurrected, almost always results in the execution of the murderer as well as prison time of at least two months if and when they are resurrected. Culturally there have been some shifts in Roekron. One of the biggest changes has been the development of a new religious group calling themselves the Nomads of the Sisters. They were at first a very loosely organized band of people drawn to the appearance in Roekron of the beings now known as the Sisters. These beings have been seen enough times in visions and waking life, to be verifiable in their appearance as huge white centaur like beings with dragon winds and a single horn in the center of their forehead. They are described as silver or grey and always seen together as a group. The legend of these beings is that they are the children of a deity known as the Elder Goddess, and they were once split into six beings but were recently joined back into their original selves. The Priestess of the Elder Goddess are closely associated with the Nomads of the Sisters due to the fact that when the Sister appeared the Elder Goddess became silent and apparently has vanished from the world, leaving her followers empowered by the Sisters in some mysterious way. Other religious groups have grown and developed over the past 21 years in the wake of some that have diminished. The Celtic mythos, first finding its new insurgence in the Wood Elven province of Ein Ion has now spread throughout Roekron and gain many followers in these lean times of change and balance. Some of the teachings of the Sorikonian Martial Masters and philosophical teachings of harmony in nature have also struck a cord with the struggling people of Roekron and thus these teaching can be found across Roekron currently. The culture has also shifted greatly towards crafters and tradesmen and away from mages, and class based professions which have been found to be too hard to upkeep. Those few who do make it into a class are viewed almost as nobles, as often they are the few with the funding to keep such jobs. Warriors are by far the most prominent class in these lean times as they are assured of work in any region. Semi-martials take a close second as their skills are almost akin to the trades and crafts of the common village. Mages have all but vanished from the landscape of Roekron as there are few people with the basic knowledge to become a mage, and the places to train are so far --- PAGE 4 --- away the ideas is absurd to most people. While every village will have its token mage, the mage guilds are few and far between. As mages are the crafters of magic items, they too have become few and far between. WHAT THIS MEANS FOR JUNIOR LEAGUE PLAYERS: Beyond the flavor of play that these changes imply, there are a few practical changes that affect game play. (1) Buying things, anything, will be severely limited in any region. Even the basic equipment sets may not be available in many locations. Scrolls, magic items, amulets of classes, or ANY specialty type item cannot be purchased out of game. Anything beyond an equipment set (including armor of any kind) will be rare and thus need to be bought in game with the GM’s approval. You cannot assume you can just trade items for what you want, the economy has gotten worse and thus you are very limited in what will be available. Custom items will be unheard of in most regions. Furthermore, the amount of money carried by monsters and travelers will most likely be small amounts of silver, not gold. (2) Characters are in high demand to solve any and all problems involving battle, monsters, and the like. No one is equipped to deal with these threats anymore other than heroes and officials, so characters are needed more then ever to solve even simple things like Goblin attacks, as the populace will be helpless against them. (3) There has been a cultural shift towards law enforcement by the masses. Heroes are called upon to do the job of law enforcement regularly and are expected to take the law into their own hands. Death is also more severe so characters will be very reticent to kill unless pressed to. While life is harder, people are kinder and more helpful on the whole and so tend to be more understanding all around. (4) Wildness is commonplace. With less and less resources to patrol roads, rebuild towns and cities, the wilderness has been slowly but surely creeping in all across Roekron. It is not uncommon for monsters to turn up in town, having --- PAGE 5 --- found their way in through a broken gate or a damage sewer drain. Geographical Location of FanWar Leagues for 2009-2010 season. (1) First Weekend of the Month in Palo Alto (Basic and Advanced): Pinicle, capital of Hostor. (2) Second Weekend of the Month: Petaluma League (Basic and Advanced): Odilathen (3) Third Weekend of the Month (Saturday with Tony) Palo Alto: Teriock (Skilhaven Area) (4) Third Weekend of the Month (Sunday) (Basic and Advanced) in Cloverdale: Odilathen (5) First and Third Sunday in Ukiah (Basic/Advanced half day with Tony): Teriock (Skilhaven Area) (6) Adult League (Second Sunday and every Tuesday): Krodogros, capital of Svodlun.