Background

Five years ago, no one had heard the name Daerish Hagat. Now the name is spoken throughout the Ironlands, often in hushed tones. As commonly, he is simply referred to as "the Witch King" though kings are something not seen since the Old World and many scoff at this appellation.

But for those of the Havens and the Flooded Lands, few can deny the growing power the Witch King commands. He has taken direct control of a number of circles, and installed puppet leaders in many others. The riders of his Black Vanguard (led by the fearsome Unfeeling) raid with impunity, sowing destruction in their wake and bringing booty and slaves back to Hagat's ever-growing holdings. Though their predation may be nothing more than mere marauding, rumor has it that their movements are deliberate, that they are looking for something, and they are increasingly encountered as far as the Hinterlands and even the Tempest Hills.

Meanwhile other circles continue to squabble amongst themselves. Those whose lands lay close to the Witch King's sphere of control are afraid of angering him, and those who do not are either to blind to see the danger or to stubborn to acknowledge it.

Worse, at the edges of lands held by men the Firstborn are increasingly active. Encounters with the enigmatic elves and giants are still rare, but few can call these denizens of the Ironlands mere stories any longer.

Who will protect the people against the rise of dark forces?

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The Old World

The savage clans called the Skulde invaded the kingdoms of the Old World. Our armies fell. Most were killed or taken into slavery. Those who escaped set sail aboard anything that would float. After an arduous months-long voyage, the survivors made landfall upon the Ironlands.

Iron

Inscrutable metal pillars are found throughout the land. They are iron gray, and smooth as river stone. No one knows their purpose. Some say they are as old as the world. Some, such as the Iron Priests, worship them and swear vows upon them. Most make the warding sign and hurry along their way when they happen across one. The pillars do not tarnish, and even the sharpest blade cannot mark them.

Legacies

Other humans sailed here from the Old World untold years ago, but all that is left of them is a savage, feral people we call the broken. Is their fate to become our own?

Before the Ironlanders, before even the firstborn, another people lived here. Their ancient ruins are found throughout the Ironlands.

Communities

We live in communities called circles. These are settlements ranging in size from a steading with a few families to a village of several hundred. Some circles belong to nomadic folk. Some powerful circles might include a cluster of settlements. We trade (and sometimes feud) with other circles.

Leaders

Numerous clan-chiefs rule over petty domains. Most are intent on becoming the one true king. Their squabbles will be our undoing.

Defense

In the more settled regions, the wardens are our soldiers, guards, and militia. They serve their communities by standing sentry, patrolling surrounding lands, and organizing defenses in times of crisis. Most have strong ties to their community. Others, called free wardens, are wandering mercenaries who hire on to serve a community or protect caravans.

At the periphery, supplies are too precious, and the lands are too sparsely populated, to support organized fighting forces. When a community is threatened, the people stand together to protect their own.

Mysticism

Some still find comfort in the old ways. They call on mystics to divine the fortune of their newborn, or ask them to perform rituals to invoke a bountiful harvest. Others act out of fear against those who they suspect of having power. However, most folk believe true magic—if it ever existed—is lost to us now. Then again, who really knows?

Religion

Our gods are many. They make themselves known through manifestations and miracles. Some say they even secretly walk among us. The priests convey the will of the gods and hold sway over many communities.

(Magic comes from the gods)

(Every settlement may have its own pantheon)

Firstborn

The firstborn have passed into legend. Some say the remnants of the old tribes still dwell in deep forests or high mountains. Most believe they were never anything more than myth.

Beasts

Beasts of all sorts roam the Ironlands. They dwell primarily in the reaches, but range into the settled lands to hunt. There, they often prey on cattle, but attacks on travelers, caravans, or even settlements are not uncommon.

Horrors

We are wary of dark forests and deep waterways, for monsters lurk in those places. In the depths of the long-night, when all is wreathed in darkness, only fools venture beyond their homes

Party Creation

Support Secure Ruin Fellowship Reveal Death

A power is growing somewhere. Someone is making a bid to become the high king. We need to find out who his supporters are and break their fellowship.

Play begins in the Hinterlands. The power aspiring to the High Kingship is in the Havens.

Kato (Joe) is a former merchant who lost his goods.

Lio (Tim) is a beast hunter. He was a soldier, and he's the sole survivor and most decorated member of his old unit. He's fought elves, too, and may be the reason nobody sees them anymore.

Kanno (Jason) is a veteran archer from the Ragged Coasts. He left home young and has done mercenary archery pretty much everywhere. Fought in the same elf wars in the Wildlands as Lio.

Sabine (Lisa) is from the Havens. She came to the Hinterlands looking for treasure.

Aidan (Gary) knows Lio and Kanno from work. Where there's a war, there's money for a healer.

Ironsworn: The Would-Be King

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