Ever since commencing play in our current 5E-campaign, DM-ADD has tugged on me to create and explore other worlds. Settings such as the Westerrealm and the comedic Burgundy were results of that urge, as was the brief reexamination of Greyhawk.
This spring, I decided to pool all world-building efforts into a reimagining of the homebrew world our group has been exploring for the past 13 years, and enrich it with all that has come before and since (both homebrew and official). In doing so, I hope to create a mix that speaks exactly to my (and my group's!) tastes. Pulling from published sources as well as the rich history of our own homebrew games, I strive to concoct the perfect homebrew.
I will be creating / fleshing out this setting taking part in the Lore24 challenge, launched by Yora of Spriggan's Den. Every day in 2024, a new part of setting lore will be published on this blog. This can be a kingdom, an item, an NPC or a small bit of background. Today, I present Lore 24: The Sovereignty.
The Sovereignty (Basileia)
The Sovereignty is the name by which is referred to all civilized human dominions. A millennium ago, humanity fled the fallen lands to the east to settle on this wild continent. Fanning out from the ancient city of Aurora, on the continent's eastern shore, humanity quickly spread to all corners of the land this side of the great mountain chains that divide this continent. And while the humans that travelled across the mountains fell into strange and barbaric ways, on the eastern side of the mountains great kingdoms were established.
In the beginning, these kingdoms all strove to be independent or in control of one another. But in the first century after the Exodus, it became clear that there was one dominant power in the land: the Golden Throne of Aurora, from which ruled it's divinely appointed Sovereign. And so, all lands east of the mountain chains became known as The Sovereignty, or Basileia in the native tongue of Aurora. The Golden Throne mostly retains power and influence through the application of soft power, religious influence and cultural significance, and money - large sums of money.
The subject kingdoms and principalities of The Sovereignty, with names such as Navaroigne, Lotharingen and Thule, all have early medieval trappings and technology. Religion in the Sovereignty is a monotheistic state church, dedicated to the worship of a living angel named Phaeton. Civil wars are frequent but of low intensity. Sovereigns are formally elected but de facto frequently members of the same influential dynasty. Dynastic upheaval does occur, however, the latest being a decade ago with the ascension of Sovereign Rauxes Anaxandros, King of Kings, to the Golden Throne.
The Sovereignty is intended to be a setting full of intrigue, adventure, mystery, ruins and unexplored wilderness. PCs are challenged to carve out their own domain, principality, perhaps even kingdom, out of the rivaling kingdoms of the Sovereignty - perhaps even staging an attempt at the Golden Throne itself.
Inspiration
The Sovereignty is partly inspired by the early Byzantine Empire, a mysterious yet powerful state in early medieval Europe. Hence the monotheistic state church and application of soft power. The look and feel of soldiers of the Sovereignty will be largely influenced by the Easterlings of Peter Jackson's film adaptation of Lord of the Rings. Phaeton's church will be both reminiscent of the most corrupt depictions of the Catholic Church in various media sources, as well as of the manner in which faith is depicted in media such as The Last Kingdom - as a source of power and hope.
RPG-wise, major influences are both early Greyhawk and the Birthright setting (the latter for reasons that will become apparant in subsequent posts).
All in all, I seek to invoke a Tolkienesque flavour, but with a twist (such as taking the Byzantine Empire as the cultural analog to the main political power on the continent).
I look forward to developing this setting in the coming year.
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