Posted July 9, 2006 by unspeakable
Walking the Silent Path: Part 1. Nicodemus, weary from his travels, has only a short time before the Sentries are upon him. He can trust no one, yet knows he cannot venture back into the wilderness alone if he hopes to make it as far as Tremali Keep.
Posted August 3, 2006 by unspeakable
Walking the Silent Path: Part 2. The party is formed, and the group lays some ground rules before they set out.
Posted August 22, 2006 by unspeakable
Walking the Silent Path: Part 3. Nicodemus tactfuly defuses a potentially threatening encounter...
Posted November 3, 2006 by unspeakable
Walking the Silent Path: Part 4 Nicodemus awakens to find his comrades in danger. Combat ensues. As the dust settles, we find that everyone in Itima deals with pain a little differently.
Posted May 4, 2007 by unspeakable
Walking the Silent Path: Part 5 Like father, like son.
Three parties diligently seek what has been eluding them.
Posted August 2, 2007 by unspeakable
Walking the Silent Path part 6: The company finds the Shadowrealm disagreeable, and the Sentries are in pursuit from Cankleton.
Posted January 16, 2008 by unspeakable
Walking the Silent Path: Part 7 A chain of wandering souls are dragged across Itima, billowing in the winds of Fate, their destinies falling like dominoes.
Posted February 29, 2008 by unspeakable
Walking the Silent Path part 8: Tremali's cold stone beckons. (It's a longer piece, so pour a tall glass for this one.)
Posted March 15, 2008 by unspeakable
Walking the Silent Path: Part 9
Dhampyl may have shared human ancestry, but after almost 2 millenia, they are far removed. Two races, side by side, worlds apart.
Posted March 20, 2008 by unspeakable
Walking the Silent Path: Part 10 Here we are.
Posted April 15, 2008 by unspeakable
Walking the Silent Path: Part 11
Each group is dealt a hand they would not have anticipated. Nicodemus ventures deeper into Tremali's depths. The hunters and the hunted struggle against each other. Answers are sought which only bring more questions. The various tangeants all draw toward a single encounter. It is only a matter of time before resolution is afoot.
Posted August 18, 2008 by unspeakable
Walking the Silent Path: Part 12
Diyn's men meet the denizens of the forest, Nick and company peel back the layers, and patron Muwth digs deeper. What exactly is so important about Tremali Keep? Where are we going? Signs seem to indicate, we're going down. |
NicodemusNicodemus is a human necromancer, graduating from apprentice to neonate roughly a year ago. His scruples and morality are unclear; it is known he committed some terrible act in the recent past while pursuing arcane lore. He is thus pursued by Imperial Sentries. He has acquired many of the powers attributed to a master of the Silent Path, even at so young an age, but he bears the physical scars of such hurried progress…SarahNicodemus and Sarah meet in episode 1 at the Wolf Warden Tavern. She seems eager to strike up conversation and quick to befriend Nicodemus. She is intrigued by the secrets he keeps, and might have a few of her own. She's as canny as they come among the crowded village bar, but out in the wilderness, her talents are less pronounced. When she looks on Nicodemus, there is an obvious lasciviousness that pervades her demeanor.Lady BalthesLady Balthes carries herself with a mix of indignant regality and brazen commonness. Her chin high and proud, she moves among the lower classes with grace, but doesn't blanch from a fight or contest. She wields her weapon of choice, a repeating crossbow, with confident resolve. In fact, she seems most comfortable, most human, when handling heavy artillery. Away from town, the muddier she gets, the more she lets down her façade of high station and revels in the dirty work of adventuring. TessijahBorn in a world unlike that of the common Imperial citizenry, Tessijah grasps the more primal elements of the realm. She is a shaman of the wild people, unbound by society or even the tethers of the flesh. The spirits speak to her, and through her, a map of destinies. She adventures with the group as a council and aid, but ultimately, she is walking this path to give witness to the blasphemies to come. She is the only member able to speak to the nin'ki, and shares with him a facet of truth withheld from the others. Tessijah carries a staff and bears several tribal tattoos of mystic power. The nin'kiLike that of the rest of his kin, the nin'ki's passage is rife with trials and oppression. He bears it boldly, the doubtful pragmatist, and runs with the pack for the least deluded measure. As the story unfolds, the party puts up with his presence as much as he their folly. He has the ability to slip into the lower reaches of the realm, "shadow-stepping," and is not averse to combat, although he is also quite ready to flee a situation from which he has no chance to prevail. AnthelisAnthelis has been used to being the big fish in a small pond most his life. He is the second custodian of the Naman-Imria in Cankleton: a small post, with a booming voice. He carries a badge of nobility, a bit undeserved, and in the wrong audience. As things sour, he gives in to his bestial nature, to the chagrin of his superiors and kin, and begins to truly explore what it means to be a predator of humanity. As the story progresses, he gives in more and more to thirst madness. KeepersKeepers doesn't give a pity. He's a brilliant young man, living on the fringe, thrown into unexpected circumstances. There is a gyspsy way about him, although he is cut from a finer cloth than the typical vagabond. He knows his way around any card table and can flick a dagger sure. When he sees what he wants, he's willing to bet all to get it. Mark FleurFrom the beginning, Mark Fleur is shown to be a man of lies. He escapes description. None know what lingers beneath his watery depths. As will be shown, he has mastery of hydromancy, and uses it to accomplish his ends. What those ends are, however, remain as elusive as river water clutched by the clawed fingers of a crow hand.- AE
- "Age of the Empire." The Imperial calendar begins with 1 AE, the year the Immortals all but vanished from Itima while Zin and Vrodah first appear in historical texts as powerful human born undead. The Empire as we know it technically did not exist until 1486 AE, but the interim is claimed by the Empire as "heavily influenced by our birth pangs." Some outsiders refer to this prior millenia and a half as the Age of Kings, but within most libraries AE is still used to refer to events in Itima including and following the Mortality Wars. The current year is 1924 AE, making Zin's Empire four-hundred and thirty-eight years old.
- Aruru
- A daemonic entity subservient to Nituku. Aruru's primary domains are those of sickness, disease, and rot; his minions are thought to be the cause all such afflictions throughout Itima.
- Barzil
- One of the 9 Imperial provinces. It is boardered on the west by Edin and on the east by the Kurlugal Mountains. Barzil is rich in ore and its people are a hearty, brooding lot.
- Beer
- A social lubricant and fascilitator of both joy and torment. Many regard it as the singular achievement of civilization that may save the souls of men.
- Black Eyes
- Living creatures that experience prolonged exposure to the energies of the Shadowrealm often have solid black eyes, with no distinguishable iris or pupil. Also, certain magical abilities temporarily turn their user's eyes black, such as when peering into the Shadowrealm from the Material plane. These same abilities cause the eyes to glow white when viewing the Material from the Shadowrealm.
- C-Tax
- A yearly insurance fee against an individual's corpse becoming conscripted due to retroactive debts or shift in economy.
- Cankleton
- A small town in southern lowlands of the Imperial province of Edin.
- Caprin
- Also called Beast Men or Goat Men. Caprin stand 6'-7' tall, have hairy bodies, equine legs, a drawn face and wet nose like a stag, and thick back curling horns. Caprin are forest and mountain dwellers, living primitively.
- Common
- Or Common Speech. A shared language throughout the Empire. Its usuage predates 1486 AE, and was probably used to fascilitate trading among the various cultures and nations. Since then, it has acquired unique slang and dialects specific to province.
- Conscription
- After incurring debt of various kinds, an individual could be marked for conscription. Any citizen necromancer is free to animate the conscripted individual's corpse after their death. The C-tax is paid by many to avoid this fate.
- Cryptorium
- In many Imperial cities, a cryptorium serves as a center for necromantic lore, tutelege, and a repository for bodies. Many Cryptoriums have a functioning shadowgate. The larger and more financially secure cryptoriums feature a Ziikruum.
- Daemon
- A hellish creature from the deeper parts of the Shadowrealm. Daemons desire souls for food, trade, and magical power, and despise undead of all kind for denying them this. Particularly, daemons revile Vrodan vampires (see Vrodah Malketh).
- Daggers
- A common tavern game, involving throwing a dagger or dirk at a wooden board painted with rings. Some boards are further divided by diametric lines that converge at the center, or "bull's-eye." Variations of the game exist, but the goal is usually to accumulate the most points by hitting certain sections of the board with a limitted number of daggers thrown, at a specific distance from the board.
- Dark Ether
- The winds and natural forces of the Shadowrealm. Even necromancers do not fully understand its whims.
- Death-Birth
- When a creature dies and becomes a spirit (instead of merely a soul orb), there is a good chance that the trauma of dying can unhinge its sanity. Although the term death-birth can be used for any spirit's incarnation, it is usually derogatorily spoken when this madness of paradox prevails. Such lunatic spirits often replay the events of their death for eternity, or until destroyed.
- Deep Shadow
- A layer of the Shadowrealm "beneath" the Near Shadow. While the Near Shadow borders the Prime and resembles it in a twisted nightmarish fashion, the Deep Shadow is an endless void of inky blackness. Even stranger creatures swim its depths than those in the Near Shadow, and if one travels far enough into its bowels, one can find gates to the demiplanes of the various Hells, floating like islands amongst nothingness.
- Dhampyl
- A living race blessed with vampiric blood. Magically created from human stock nearly 2,000 years ago. Most dhampyl belong to a specific bloodline, or House, the three dominant being Vraash, Zatir, and Phugosi.
- Edin
- One of the 9 Imperial provinces. It is the largest, at the Empire's center, and houses the Imperial capitol Zinkalam.
- Elementalist
- A practitioner of magic that manipulates the elements of the Material plane, each specializing in one element: Air (cyclomancers), Earth (geomancers), Fire (pyromancers), or Water (hydromancers).
- Eternal Storm
- The never-ceasing tempest that wracks the Storm Plains of Ukusgana. Also, a curse.
- Feel the Cut of my Boots
- Slang. To empathize.
- Fortune Deck
- One of many sooth-saying tools employed by rustic folk. Gypsy claim it is a medium through which the forces of Fate can communicate their whims to a mortal canny enough to read them properly.
- Ghostlight
- The creation of necromantic magic, a ghostlight flame is most often employed in the Shadowrealm. It remains idle, provides light as a torch but no heat, and attracts the loose flotsam and jetsam of the Shadowrealm (imperceptible bits are consumed to sustain itself, while larger chunks, like drifting soul orbs, merely orbit around the flame). Employed in the lands of the living, a ghostlight will cast shadows not of this realm, but of the other, revealing the proximity of spirits.
- Gold Pieces
- A standard unit of Imperial currency. Lesser denominations include silver or copper. Coinage in the Empire bares a specific stamp indicating the province it was minted in as well as its time period. Coins minted more than 400 years ago might bare the image of nobility local to its place of origin; these coins are valued by collectors but regarded suspiciously by common Imperial citizenry.
- Gremlin
- A small humanoid race known for mechanical aptitude. Gremlin often behave in unnerving or enigmatic ways, but are better off in station than the nin'ki. Several small nations of gremlin inhabit various mountainous regions surrounding the Empire.
- Half-Dead
- Slang. See Dhampyl
- Heretics
- Zealots from the east, beyond the mountains, who despise the Empire and Zin with all their religious furvor. They lurk amongst the common folk, spies and seditionists, and call upon the power of their god, Unus, to smite the undead of Itima.
- Itima
- The realm. Specifically, it refers to the largest landmass of the known world in the physical plane.
- Kankal
- The first of the 9 Imperial provinces. Its populated areas are cities of antiquity, while its remote wilderness is cold and barren but for grim folk and ancient monsters. It boarders the sea to the north, Edin to the south, the great forests of Thenore to the northeast, and hostile barbaric lands to the west.
- Kindling Wars
- Also called the Kindling Years. Approximately 402 AE to 486 AE. Faced with the growing supremacy of Vrodah's brood, humans across Itima stage revolts and vampiric genocide ensues. Mistrust between the Vampire Kings and the vast distance between them prevents a solid defense for decades. Some speculate that the vampires themselves were weeding out their own undesirables. When Myra coalesced and announced its union, it became clear that an armstice was necessary to repel this new threat.
- Magus Senatus
- The legislative body of the Empire. There are 15 high seats, 45 low seats, and 90 counsels. Each of the five magical schools (elementalists and necromancers) elect 3 high seats to represent them from the low seats. This position is for life (or longer), but retirement is an honorable option. Each province is represented by 5 mages (of any school) in the low seats, appointed by the local body of nobles, and each of those in turn appoint 2 counsels to aid them in voting and communicating with both the noble and Imperial bueracracies. The Senatus debates matters of state everyday, but any policy they establish comes second to the word of Emperor Zin. Their purpose is to keep the massive Empire running efficiently while Zin continues his war against the Hells.
- Majakib
- A popular narcotic, it is dried green herb that is smoked through a pipe or rolled cigar. There are many varieties, both rich and poor, and its popularity is quite known throughout all the Empire. Some nobles are connoisseurs of it, and rate themselves for how well they perform at arts or sports while under its influence. Common users of the lower classes rate themselves by its use as well, but mostly in the sheer quantity they can smoke in a single sitting.
- Mellul
- A vampire of legend. According to historic texts, Mellul was the descendant of Tiran (and thus Vraash) and became the first vampiric martyr in 28 AE. He is also famous for inhabitting the forbidden Iron Cathedral for over a decade. Some claim Mellul built it himself.
- Mensch
- An automaton, usually metallic, created by mechanics. Their complex gear registry allows them to respond to countless stimuli, bank new information and calculate new reactions, ultimately giving the outward appearance of independent intelligent thought. Many can communicate (literally speaking). Although their mathematical and logical processes are perfect, their social negotiating is decidedly child-like.
- Mortality Wars
- 1 AE to 150 AE. From the dawn of the new age, when the Immortals were stripped of their might, humans began to pick up the pieces of their ancient kingdoms. In many cases, this resulted in deicide. The last known immortal, Asghiat, was slain in a public execution in 150 AE by the people of the city-state Guanse (which is today in the southern province of Mungazi).
- Mungazi
- One of the 9 Imperial provinces. It is boardered by Ganaga on the west, Parim on the east, and both the Temer Mountains and Edin on the north. Its southern boarder is the ocean, and its southern metropli were once independant city-states before the coming of the Empire.
- Myra
- A nation of human kingdoms that existed from 486 AE to 1486 AE in what is today southern Edin, northern Mungazi, and northern Parim. During that period, it waged a continual war with the combined kingdoms of Vrodah Malketh and his descendants. It was not until Zin arose and united the Empire that Myra was defeated and crushed
- Naman-Imria
- A religious order begun by Vraash in 127 AE. It deifies Vrodah Malketh and vampire nature. It has never been adopted as the state religion for several reasons, namely that not all the Houses share its views, and the Empire in general frowns upon religous practice of any sort. The Naman-Imria has the strongest powerbase in Barzil.
- Near Shadow
- Another term for the Shadowrealm coexistent to the Prime. See Shadowrealm.
- Necromancy
- The art of magic practiced by necromancers. It involves creating undead, manipulating soul energy, and entering the Shadowrealm. Necromancers occupy an important position in the Empire due to the prominence of undead, the importance of combatting daemons, the regality of vampires and other intelligent undead, and the fact the the Empire extends into the Shadowrealm as much as it extends over the lands of the living. As a necromancer progresses in his studies and begins using stronger and stronger dark energies, however, he experiences "changes" to his body, mind, and soul. Common folk call these "corruptions."
- Necronatal Sphere
- Also, soul orb. A necronatal sphere is a tiny fragment of soul energy released into the Shadowrealm when a living creature dies. Soul orbs are not sentient. Some have the potential to form into full spirits, most simply drift about aimlessly.
- Necroplasm
- The material which most of the Shadowrealm is composed, including spirits and other natives.
- Nin'ki
- A small rat-humanoid. Within the Empire, the nin'ki occupy the lowest rung of society as untouchables. They mostly live in sewers and only venture out at night to perform manual labor or unwholesome tasks. Some rural areas ban them entirely due to their propensity to carry virulent diseases. Nin'ki have no formal societies above a tribal level outside the Empire.
- Nituku
- One of the 5 most powerful daemonic Dukes (although, unlike the other four, Nituku is widely regarded as genderless). Nituku reigns over madness, despair, plague, and the unknowable horrors from beyond existence. Those few sages who dare to study it say that Nituku very well may be an alien entity altogether, completely unlike any other daemon duke or duchess. However, it is difficult to ascertain much truth from these scholars as they all, inevitably, end up in sanitariums, little better than jibbering fools.
- Nizzal
- A large city in southern Edin, noted for its prestigious mage colleges.
- Parim
- One of the 9 Imperial provinces. It is boardered by Mungazi on the west, the nation of Kiud on the east, and Edin to the north. Most of Parim is windswept desert, but its few cities are great centers of trade in many exotic goods from all across the southern coast as well as the eastern lands.
- Passing Rite
- The typical non-religious funeral service offered to the recently departed in the Empire. Although it is mostly ritualistic in nature, some modern passing rites include necromancy that is thought to aid the necronatal sphere's safe formation into a full spirit. Dark ether alone determines the final outcome of ghostly birth. If no soul orb is present, then no such effort can be made, and the passing rite is no more than a formality.
- Phugosi
- One of the three prominent vampiric Houses, known for agility, depravity, and monopolizing criminal activity in areas they control.
- Pity
- A vulgar insult in Common slang.
- Pommelhead
- A large city in the southern part of the Imperial province of Edin. For hundreds of years (until 1486 AE) it was the southernmost Imperial settlement, on the war front of Myra.
- Raptorkin
- Hawk-men, standing six feet tall on the average. They have feathers covering their bodies, but it is very, very rare for one to have wings. Both hands and feet end in similar talons. Raptorkin find it nearly impossible to speak the languages of other humanoids, lacking the essential anatomy.
- Sentry
- A member of the Imperial military responsible for general policing within the home provinces.
- Shadow-side
- Being in the Shadowrealm, as opposed to the Prime. Usually it means "in the Near Shadow," as if it and the Prime were two sides of the same coin. When one is in the Deep Shadow, you are too removed from the "normal" aspects of Itima to be on either "side."
- Shadow-Step
- The definitive ability of stalkers. To observers, shadow-stepping stalkers appear to leap into one shadow only to emerge from another. In truth, shadow-stepping uses an existing shadow in the mortal realm as a portal into the Shadowrealm, and provided they do not tarry, uses another nearby shadow as a means of egress. Shadow-stepping is not without its perils, for the stalker must physically run from one portal to the other, and can be hindered by obstacles and creatures shadow-side. A stalker using the shadow-step ability while already in the Shadowrealm descends instead into the Deep Shadow, another plane entirely. While not outright hostile, it is a strange and alien place where anything can happen.
- Shadowgate
- A portal into the Shadowrealm. Some operate along schedules, others open only when presented with certain keys, and some are permanent. Many are two-dimensional gates while others are three-dimensional areas that shift between realms. Shadowgates that form without magic usually do so in response to negative energy, peculiar deaths, or with whims of dark ether.
- Shadowrealm
- The realm of the dead. In civilized places, it is a dark and warped reflection of the Material plane. In the wilderness, it can be a hellish nightmare. Necronatal spheres, spirits, daemons, other undead, and alien creatures can be found there. Necromancers are the most adept at traversing or manipulating the phenomenon of the Shadowrealm, but other professions can do so at varying degrees.
- Silent Legion
- A horde of over 10,000 undead, usually mindless and given a specific programmed travel route. The Silent Legion never tarries or tires, destroying everything it encounters. A Silent Legion patrols several of the boarders of the Empire.
- Silent Path
- 1) The wake of devastation left by the passing of a Silent Legion. 2) The art of necromancy.
- Sulfur
- A mined mineral, sulfur was not recognized as a precious resource until 1798 AE. With the invention of the first rapid-reload firearm, rifles became a viable choice of equipment for the Empire's troops. However, firearms are still a costly alternative, and the region's sulfur is controlled by a few powerful families and mercantile guilds. Guns are most popular on the Storm Plains and in the south.
- Triad
- An Imperial metropolis sitting on the boarder of Ukusgana, Edin, and the Labrum Mountains. The road west along the foothills of the Labrum is the safest and most direct route to the Groaning Gorge and thus Sugtul. In this position, Triad is the hub of trade between the Empire's north and south.
- Ug'gaaz
- A vulgar explative, derived from the sound that can supposedly be heard echoing throughout a particular kingdom of hell.
- Ukusgana
- One of the 9 Imperial provinces. A devastated land, consumed by poisonous fog and the Eternal Storm. The cities of Ukusgana are isolated domed encampments, magically shielded from the torrent outside. Travel through the province is extremely treacherous. House Phugosi are the undisputed rulers of this damned territory.
- Unus
- The "One God" of the heretics. His religion originates in the eastern lands of Kibala, where anti-Imperial sentiment has reached fanatic levels. According to official Imperial doctrine, Unus either has died a long time ago, or never existed in the first place. Although the atheist Empire has an ambivalent stance when it comes to policy regarding most religions, devotion to Unus is considered treason.
- Voodoo
- A common slang term for magic, usually derogatory. Also, hoodoo or wazoo (practicioner of hoodoo).
- Vortex
- A rip in the fabric of the Near Shadow that leads directly into the Deep Shadow.
- Vraash
- One of the three prominent vampiric Houses, known for strength, honor, and a religious devotion to vampires (see Naman-Imria).
- Vrodah Malketh
- The first vampire of the Vrodan line. In life, he was the general of Zin's army. After Zin became a lich, Vrodah fought his way into hell and devoured the essence of a daemon, becoming a vampire. As his power grew, he left his post as Zin's military chief and went out to conquer his own kingdoms. Vraash, Zatir, and Phugosi were spawned by him directly and proceeded to proliferate their own vampiric bloodlines (as well as dhampyl bloodlines) and kingdoms throughout Itima.
- Wolfen
- A savage race of humanoids that harrow the Empire's boarders. They resemble immense muscled wolves that stand on two legs. Although capable of using tools, most wolfen only take interest in weapons and armor, building nothing for themselves, and taking what they want through brute force.
- Zatir
- One of the three prominent vampiric Houses, known for intellect, spiritual fortitude, and magical aptitude (specifically necromancy).
- Ziikruum
- A sentient entity created through necromancy and soul binding, represented physically by a monolithic structure. A Ziikruum is the central fixture in prominent cryptorium, functioning as a repitoire of knowlege and the central operator of the cryptorium's various magical/organic functions. A Ziikruum controls everything from the openning and closing of doors to the collection of ambient necronatal sphere energy for use by its necromancers. Some Ziikruum are advanced enough to monitor (and to a degree, alter) the biological functions of those within its cryptorium. Conspiracy theories abound that Ziikruum are even privy to its guest's thoughts. Ziikruum are capable of communicating with each other, via the Shadowrealm, over vast distances, and form an information network throughout the larger cities of the Empire.
- Zin
- The undying lich Emperor. According to legend, Zin was the first human to achieve immortality through magic. In 1486 AE, Zin united the various kingdoms Vrodah and his vampiric children had conquered, calling it his Empire.
- Zinkalam
- The capital of the Empire, located in the province of Edin. Within is the fortress of Zin himself as well as the body of the Magus Senatus. Not to be confused with Old Zinkalam, which is located in the province of Kankal, where Zin's fortress resided for over a thousand years before it was magically uprooted and moved physically. The two locations are connected by shadowgates, as both still contain the Shadowrealm-likeness of Zin's mighty keep.
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