Chapter 5: Creating Campaigns

Character Motivations

For each character, think about what motivates them to adventure. Motivations generally fall into the following categories:

Players often reveal their characters' motivations through play. If you're uncertain or a character's motivations seem to have changed, it's OK to ask players for clarification.

Family, Friends, and Foes

A character's origin (species and background) implies some amount of backstory, suggesting the character's family and what the character did before becoming an adventurer. Take note of specific background characters—friends, foes, family members, and others—who might appear in the campaign.

Should these background characters become important to the campaign, work with the player to develop them in detail. Revealing a character's lost sibling or childhood rival midcampaign should be handled carefully to avoid straining credulity. Make sure a player is comfortable with new developments about their character before introducing them.

Character-Focused Adventures

Adventures should occasionally highlight character motivations or elements of their backstory. Here are a few examples of character-focused adventures:

• A rival from a character's past shows up to settle a grudge.
• A sneaky character puts their skills to the test by leading the rest of the party to conduct a heist.
• A character learns the location of a magic item needed to save their hometown.
• A spellcasting character must undertake a trial to join an exclusive group of spellcasters.

Any adventure that focuses on a single character should incentivize the whole party to participate—even if just to help their companion. Avoid focusing adventures on one character too often, and look for opportunities to have character-focused adventures for each character from time to time.

Setting New Goals

Characters can change their goals whenever they please, but you can encourage them to do so by giving them significant victories roughly every 5 levels. When characters accomplish their goals, consider the following questions:

• How does completing this goal create a new challenge?
• How is this victory only part of what the character wants to achieve?
• Who might be upset by the character completing this goal?
• What is a reward the character will be excited to receive that also moves them closer to their ambition?

Use the answers to these questions to develop new character goals and to inspire further adventures.

Building on the Characters' Actions

Sometimes it can be fun to let the players steer the campaign by having their characters' actions dictate future adventures. For example, if the characters buy a tavern using the treasure they've amassed, you can adjust the campaign so that the tavern has a role in future adventures. One adventure might involve a competitor trying to put the characters' tavern out of business. Another might use the tavern as the setting for a murder mystery.

Heroic Fantasy Conflicts

Heroic fantasy campaigns often revolve around delving into ancient dungeons in search of treasure or to destroy monsters or villains. Consider conflicts like these to drive the action of a campaign:

Sword-and-Sorcery Conflicts

In this flavor of campaign, magic-users often symbolize the decadence and corruption of civilization, and mages are the classic villains of these settings. Magic items are therefore rare and often dangerous. Consider conflicts like these to drive the campaign:

Epic Fantasy Conflicts

Conflicts like these highlight the themes of an epic fantasy campaign:

Mythic Fantasy Conflicts

Conflicts like these highlight the themes of a mythic fantasy campaign:

Supernatural Horror Conflicts

A supernatural horror campaign often features Undead or demonic foes whose evil transcends the merely mortal. Consider conflicts like these to drive the campaign:

Intrigue Conflicts

Conflicts like these are ripe for an intrigue campaign:

Mystery Conflicts

A mystery might set the stage for the whole campaign. The characters might uncover clues to this mystery from time to time, while individual adventures might be only tangentially related to it. Consider conflicts like these for a mystery campaign:

Swashbuckling Conflicts

Conflicts like these highlight the themes of a swashbuckling campaign:

War Conflicts

Conflicts like these highlight the themes and flavor of a war campaign:

Crossing the Streams Conflicts

Conflicts like these create opportunities for crossing the streams:

Five Questions to Consider

As you contemplate a new campaign setting, think about your answers to the following questions:

Starting Level

What level are the characters when they start? Many D&D campaigns start the characters at level 1. If you want the characters to be a bit more resilient and your players are experienced, start the campaign at level 3 instead. (See the Player's Handbook for rules on 2.)

Bonding Event

Some bonding event (such as a wedding, a festival, or a funeral) brings the characters together, whereupon they quickly discover a shared sense of purpose.

Happenstance

Someone puts out a call for adventurers to complete a quest, and the characters answer the call. Alternatively, all the characters could meet by accident, only to discover they're headed to the same place, or they could find themselves trapped together.

Mutual Acquaintance

The characters are introduced to one another by a mutual NPC acquaintance whom they all trust. This shared acquaintance could serve as a patron for the party—perhaps a representative of an organization (an academy, a criminal syndicate, a guild, a military force, or a religious order), a politically powerful person (an aristocrat or even a sovereign), or a magical creature like a sphinx or a dragon.

Shared History

The characters grew up in the same place and have known one another for years. Despite their different backgrounds and training, they're already good friends.

Tavern Gathering

The characters meet in a tavern over mugs of ale and decide to embark on a life of adventure together—a tried and true trope!

Starting a New Episode

In an episodic campaign, the start of a new adventure doesn't necessarily have any connection to the end of the last one. The action might pick up immediately after the end of the previous adventure, but it might instead begin weeks, months, or years after the last adventure, allowing interim events to unfold while the characters take a break from adventuring.

Linking Adventures

In a serialized campaign, make connections between the end of one adventure and the start of the next to help it feel like a connected story. Sometimes you can simply continue the current storyline with new locations to explore and new threats to overcome. Alternatively, you can use the Adventure Connections table to inspire a link from one adventure to the next. The table suggests things you can do near the end of one adventure to lead characters into the next one.

Bastions Episode

The characters take a break from adventuring to tend to their Bastions (see 7), with players taking one or more Bastion turns and describing what happens.

Carnival Episode

A carnival tempts the characters with magical attractions, games, and prizes. 1, described in The Wild Beyond the Witchlight, is one such carnival.

Creature Comedy

The characters encounter monsters with a comedic flavor—such as flumphs, pixies, faerie dragons, or chatty mimics—in a situation that leads to mischief and humor rather than combat.

Missing Pet Episode

Someone's pet is missing. The characters must search a settlement and connect with locals to help find it.

Shopping Episode

A friendly NPC asks the characters to help shop for someone's birthday.

Special Event Episode

The characters are invited to a sporting event, holiday celebration, fancy dinner, or ball.

Vacation Getaway

The characters relax on a quiet beach, enjoy the comforts of a grateful noble's villa, withdraw to a serene monastery, or while away the hours in a fairy hot spring.

Chromatic Dragons

Evil chromatic dragons dwell in the wilds of Eastern Oerik. For years, adventurers have kept these evil dragons at bay, sometimes with the help of benevolent metallic dragons. Lately, the chromatic dragons have grown restless, their dreams invaded by the whispers of 8, who is trapped in the 5. The five-headed queen of dragons believes her escape is nigh, and from the depths of her prison, she commands her kin to go forth and claim the world of Oerth for themselves. Only the greatest among them will live to become her consorts.

Elemental Evil

"Elemental Evil" is the name given to a host of destructive, extraplanar entities—demon lords, evil elemental princes, and elder gods—who ravaged the world of Oerth long ago. Many of these entities are now trapped in dungeons, with cults and monsters seeking to free and serve them. Adventurers are the only ones equipped to keep these malign entities from escaping their subterranean prisons.

Iuz the Evil

North of the Free City of Greyhawk, a demigod named Iuz has reclaimed the vast tract of land he lost after being imprisoned under Castle Greyhawk by the archmage Zagig Yragerne. The newly freed Iuz aims to lay waste to the kingdoms, steadings, temples, and outposts of his rivals. To that end, Iuz's spies are searching for powerful Artifacts they can use to ensure victory, while evil creatures spawn in Iuz's homeland and threaten neighboring realms. Adventurers can thwart Iuz by keeping evil Artifacts out of his hands and defeating the vile creatures that serve him.

Months and Festivals

The standard year is 360 days long and consists of twelve twenty-eight-day months (each month divided into four seven-day weeks) and four six-day lunar festivals (Needfest, Growfest, Richfest, and Brewfest). The midwinter festival of Needfest is considered the start of the year. The diagram here shows the months and festivals that make up a year.

Factions and Organizations

In addition to the many political entities that dot the lands of the Flanaess and the temples of its many gods, several organizations operate across national borders in pursuit of their goals. Some of these organizations could serve as patrons or allies of adventurers in a Greyhawk campaign, while others might appear as villains. Some might even accept adventurers as members.

Circle of Eight

Some of the greatest spellcasters of the world of Greyhawk form the Circle of Eight, a group dedicated to preserving balance in the world. The group's general aim is to prevent any single country, faction, or other organized group from becoming too powerful and overwhelming others. The membership of the Circle of Eight is secret but includes 8 (the strategist behind the group), 8, 8, 8, and 8.

Knights of the Watch

The order of the Knights of the Watch originated as a military force protecting the lands of Bissel, Gran March, Geoff, and Keoland from hostile neighbors to the north and west (particularly Ket and the Ulakandar). Though Watchers maintain strongholds along the border with Ket, most of their energy is spent defending against giants and dragons in the western mountains. The Watchers are sworn to an ascetic and disciplined code, and they train rigorously to the exclusion of personal property or other attachments.

Order of the Hart

The knights of the Order of the Hart were organized to preserve the freedom of the states of Furyondy, Veluna, and Highfolk against the threats of bandits and hostile neighbors. These nations have little centralized authority or military power, so the knights have historically served as a first line of defense against these varied threats. In recent years, they have mobilized against the rising threats of 8 and Elemental Evil, forcing them to broaden the scope of their operations into neighboring realms where these evils are active.

Scarlet Order

The Scarlet Order is a monastic order of Suloise militarists whose spies and assassins have infiltrated many courts and castles throughout the Flanaess, ready to strike. The leader of the order is a seemingly immortal being known as the Father of Obedience, Korenth Zan. He is rumored to be a Suloise monk who walked the lands of Oerik long before the Rain of Colorless Fire destroyed the Suloise Empire. Others claim Korenth is a red dragon—a former consort of 8 who became trapped in human form. Whatever the true story, the Father of Obedience is revered by all who pledge their lives to the Scarlet Order. His goals—and, by extension, the order's goals—are shrouded in mystery and could one day tilt the balance of power across the whole of Eastern Oerik.

Magic in Greyhawk

In the world of Greyhawk, as in most D&D worlds, magic is widespread but still wondrous and sometimes frightening. People everywhere know about magic, and most people see evidence of it at some point in their lives. Magic permeates the cosmos and moves through the ancient possessions of legendary heroes, the mysterious ruins of fallen empires, those touched by the gods, creatures born with supernatural power, and individuals who study the secrets of the multiverse. Histories and fireside tales are filled with the exploits of those who wield magic.

What normal folk know of magic depends on where they live and whether they know people who practice magic. Citizens of an isolated hamlet might not have seen true magic used for generations except the strange powers of the old hermit living in the nearby woods, which they regard with suspicion and mention only in whispers.

By contrast, magic is common enough in the Free City of Greyhawk that the Guild of Wizardry teaches magic and sells spellcasting services. Extensive codes of law govern the use and abuse of magic. The law treats magical coercion as a major crime, and punishes the public use of magic in situations that could harm people or property.

Mysteries of Greyhawk

Eastern Oerik is a realm of many mysteries, several of which are described below.

Bat-Folk of Hepmonaland. Separated from Eastern Oerik by the Tilva Strait, Hepmonaland is a relatively small continent that few people of the Flanaess known much about. Those who have explored the north spur of Hepmonaland report dense rainforests, severe tropical storms, steamy wetlands, and a fetid swamp (called the Pelisso Swamp). Adventurers are sometimes lured into Hepmonaland's rainforests by ancient ruins, including tombs and shrines left behind by an ancient civilization of bat-like humanoids whose history is largely forgotten.

Gods of Greyhawk

The Gods of Greyhawk table shows many of the most popular deities worshiped in the Flanaess. Greater gods and demigods are marked as such; the others are lesser gods. Many other deities and demigods are also worshiped in the Flanaess, beyond those shown on the table. Some deities of Greyhawk have also transcended their origin on this world to impact the broader multiverse. Two of these, 8 and 8, are described in 8.

The greater gods of Greyhawk rarely get directly involved with happenings on Oerth. Lesser gods are more likely to manifest in some form on the Material Plane and interact with their worshipers. Cuthbert, for example, is well known for appearing in mortal guise, appearing as a dirt-covered farmer, a wanderer robed in brown and green, or an elderly tinker. And of the many quasi-deities that appear on Oerth, most prominent among them is Iuz, a demigod who rules his own nation in the Flanaess.

Adventure Hooks

The city contains plenty of rumors, local legends, and quest givers, any of which could point characters to their next adventure. The 3 in 3 can all begin in the Free City of Greyhawk.

Bastion Friendly

There are ample places within the city and on the city's outskirts where adventurers can build Bastions (see 7).

Key Conflicts

Two of the three central conflicts of the Greyhawk setting—the threats of Elemental Evil and Iuz—are the source of major tension and intrigue in the Free City of Greyhawk. The third conflict, involving evil dragons, is a looming threat nearby, particularly in the Mistmarsh, the hills of the Abbor-Alz, and the Bright Desert.

Local Hurly-Burly

Greyhawk has a frontier spirit atypical for a settlement of its size. The locals are a tough and rowdy lot. Adventurers seeking action don't need to look far, as the city contains more than its fair share of troublemakers.

Nearby Attractions

North of the city are the Cairn Hills, which are known to have tombs and dungeons hidden among them. Nearby are a forest, a swamp, and a desert. The monsters that haunt these areas tend to be weak—perfect for testing the mettle of low-level adventurers.

Port in the Storm

The city provides a place to rest, heal, acquire information, and procure magic items. Adventurers looking to visit distant lands can book passage on ships docked at the wharf.

Trade Hub

Adventurers can buy gear and sell their hard-won loot in the city's shops and markets.

Background Connections

Use the backgrounds of the characters to connect them to people and places in the city. These connections help the players feel like Greyhawk is their characters' home—or will quickly become their new home. A character who was born and raised in Greyhawk might have known one of the city's prominent figures for many years, while someone who has just arrived in the city might have a mutual friend with that connection or might carry a letter of introduction recommending them to that person. (Each location detailed in the "4" section includes potential connections for two character backgrounds.)

City Activities

Greyhawk is an ideal place for activities that support adventuring. There's endless opportunity for social interaction in such a bustling place, as well as places where characters can rest and recuperate between adventures, acquire new adventuring gear, and spend their gold.

Home Base

As a home base for characters, Greyhawk can serve as a place to live, train, and recuperate between adventures. As described under "4" in this chapter, Greyhawk offers a host of potential friends, rivals, villains, and resources. Use the people and locations mentioned in this chapter as a starting point for fleshing out characters' connections to the city, and work with your players to develop those connections. Choose one neighborhood of the city (see "4" below) as a focus for the characters and their activities.

Urban Adventures

A city isn't just a place to spend time between adventures—plenty of adventures happen within the city walls. From wererats in the sewers to scheming bureaucrats in the halls of power, dangers lurk around every corner.

City Government

The Free City of Greyhawk is ruled by a council called the Directing Oligarchy, made up of sixteen coequal rulers. This council elects its chief officer, the lord mayor—a position currently held by a human Spy Master (Lawful Neutral) named Nerof Gasgol. The other directors include the captain-general and constable of the City Watch, several guild masters, priests of Boccob and Rao, the inspector of taxes, and a few influential magic-users with ties to politically active secret societies. Several of these directors represent criminal or unsavory interests, including Nerof Gasgol himself, who achieved his position and wealth as the owner of a notorious gambling den.

City Watch

The City Watch is a standing garrison of some eight hundred Guards and Veteran Warriors. Bolstering these defenders are Mages from the city's Guild of Wizardry, as well as Priests from local temples.

The captain-general and constable of the City Watch are stationed at the Grand Citadel (see "4").

City Walls

A 30-foot-high stone wall winds like a snake around the city. Two other walls, identical in height to the outer wall, separate the city into its three great sections. Access to the wall tops can be gained via lifts in each gatehouse. In addition, along the inside base of the outer wall are secret compartments at 300-foot intervals, each one containing a 30-foot-tall wooden ladder. All members of the City Watch know the locations of these secret ladders, which, in an emergency, can be pulled out and used by city defenders to quickly reach the parapets.

The walls are patrolled regularly. During daytime, the typical patrol is one sentry (a Guard) placed every 300 feet along the top of the wall. At night, the guard patrol is quadrupled, with two sentries posted together every 150 feet along the wall. Also at night, torches light the wall top at 150-foot intervals between the guards so each sentry station is 75 feet from a torch in each direction.

City Gates

Each city gate consists of a pair of iron-reinforced wooden doors that can be barred from the inside. These heavy doors are backed by a massive portcullis of iron bars. A very small child might be able to squeeze between the bars, but not a youth or even an adult halfling. The city's portcullises are usually left open even when the gates are closed.

Each gate is contained within a small gatehouse flanked by a pair of towers. The tower tops and connecting blockhouse are equipped with arrow slits and holes for pouring boiling oil straight down onto invaders. Each gatehouse tower connects to the city through a door in its base and to the wall top by a door in its side. The towers contain three platforms, beginning at the top of the wall and extending upward. Each of these can shelter and provide a firing platform for up to forty archers.

Three of the city's gates typically remain open throughout the day and night: the Highway Gate (the grand entrance to the city), the Cargo Gate (used primarily by traders and merchants), and the Garden Gate (one of the city's two inner gates). The remaining gates are closed from dusk until dawn, and a visitor must produce a written message from the lord mayor of Greyhawk, the captain-general of the City Watch, or a head of state to be allowed through. In the latter case, the guards ensure the traveler is harmless before opening the gates.

Those passing through open gates aren't asked to explain their business, nor are they detained or turned back unless they are recognized as known fugitives. Wagons and carts might get searched if they trigger the guards' suspicions, but most vehicles are waved through without inspection. The guards keep a daily roster of who and what pass through their gates.

Crime

The Free City of Greyhawk is home to many thieves, vandals, charlatans, and hooligans. Crimes are divided into three categories.

Religion

The city has temples and shrines dedicated to various gods. Religious practices that are certifiably evil aren't tolerated, however. When an evil sect is discovered in the city, its wealth is confiscated, its leaders are put to death, and all other members are banished from the city for life.

See the "4" table for many deities worshiped by the inhabitants of the Free City.

Black Dragon Inn

The Black Dragon Inn in Clerkburg has good food and affordable rooms. The inn's stable can hold up to a dozen steeds.

The inn's proprietor is Miklos Dare, a human Warrior Veteran (Chaotic Good) who loves to recount his heroic exploits in the Battle of Emridy Meadows seven years ago, when warriors from across the Central Flanaess united to drive the forces of wickedness from the Temple of Elemental Evil (see "4" in this chapter). A red-bearded bear of a man with a prosthetic leg, Miklos is affable and proud. His friendly rivalry with Olaf and Sivan, the proprietors of the Silver Dragon Inn just up the street, is the talk of the city. Olaf and Sivan recently hired a mage to make Miklos's black dragon sign drool acid, much to the chagrin of visitors entering and leaving the Black Dragon. Miklos is itching to pull a similar prank of his own.

Grand Citadel

The grand edifice at the northern end of the High Quarter, simply called "the Citadel" by the city's inhabitants, contains barracks for the City Watch, the offices of the captain-general, the city's treasury, and a large store of armaments for the emergency citizen militia. The Citadel also contains a prison where the city's most hardened criminals are incarcerated.

The captain-general of the City Watch is Sental Nurev, a tall, human Warrior Veteran (Neutral Good) with thinning blond hair and a mustache. Sental is usually incorruptible, but he is under great stress. The rulers of Stoink, a fortified town in the Bandit Kingdoms, have captured Sental's brother Sarek and are forcing the captain-general to provide information about Greyhawk's defenses and local politicians. Sental gives this information to a human Spy (Chaotic Evil) who stays at the Black Dragon Inn under the false name Skanda Drond. Sental is unaware that the bandit lords of Stoink are pawns of Iuz, whose dreams of conquest extend to the Free City of Greyhawk and far beyond.

The city's constable—who serves as second-in-command to the captain-general, manager to the members of the watch, and a member of the Directing Oligarchy—is a compassionate Priest of Pelor named Derider Fanshen (Neutral Good). Her kindness and talent for healing make her well loved among the watch, and as a former adventurer, she is sympathetic to adventurers' needs. She's unaware of Sental's compromised position.

Great Library

Weapons and armor aren't permitted in the Great Library. If anyone wearing armor or carrying a visible weapon tries to enter the library, or if a thief is spotted trying to leave the library with one or more stolen books, the stone-carved bronze dragons flanking the entrance animate and attack. These statues are Stone Golems.

Abra Saghast, a crusty and irascible dragonborn sage, serves as the head librarian. Abra, an Archmage (Chaotic Good), has bright-green eyes, and her bronze scales are tinged with aquamarine blue. She typically wears a patchwork robe.

Abra sits behind a high desk in the main hall. Six open archways lead from the main hall to wings where the bulk of the library's books are shelved, free for visitors to peruse (but not remove from the library). The library has several sages and scribes under contract to write books, mostly detailing current affairs in the city.

An iron door leads to a hallway behind the head librarian's desk. Three scribes (Mages) labor here and act as sentries, for next to their desks are three locked, iron doors to the library's vaults. Arcane Lock spells seal these doors, beyond which are repositories for the library's most valuable or scandalous works. Next to each scribe's desk is a pull cord hanging through a hole in the ceiling. A tug on any one of these cords releases a homing pigeon from a loft above the library. It takes the bird 1 minute to find and alert an Archmage, who teleports to the main hall of the library to investigate.

High Tower Inn

The High Tower Inn's human proprietor, Erlynn Goodfellow, is a soft-spoken, middle-aged, pot-bellied Mage (Lawful Good) with gray hair, bright-blue eyes, and platinum-rimmed spectacles. She dabbled in adventuring before realizing she had little taste for danger and her life's calling might involve more sedentary pursuits. Few guests know of Erlynn's magical abilities, as she rarely casts spells in front of strangers.

The High Tower, located in the Garden Quarter, is a favorite haunt for some of the city's most famous wizards, including 8 and 8.

Silver Dragon Inn

The grand Silver Dragon Inn, located in the Foreign Quarter, is often the first place sought by new arrivals to the city. The prices are average, but the food servings are huge. The inn's menu includes spicy bean dishes, seafood delicacies of the Wild Coast, and rice and vegetable entrées.

Weapons larger than daggers must be checked at the door, together with shields. Customers wearing metal armor aren't admitted. Two bouncers (Neutral Tough Bosses) stand at the door, politely enforcing the rule.

The inn's married human proprietors, Olaf Al-Azul (Chaotic Good Warrior Veteran) and Sivan Al-Azul (Chaotic Neutral Assassin), speak multiple languages and use humor to raise spirits and diffuse tensions. Olaf can almost always break up a fight before it starts, generally with a round of drinks for the instigators. Sivan is quiet and introspective, but he always keeps a hilarious joke or cutting remark at the ready.

Temple of the Far Horizon

Situated in the Garden Quarter, this temple is dedicated to Fharlanghn, a god favored by travelers and mercenaries. The Priests who staff the temple offer nourishment, rest, and healing to those in need, day and night. Several small rooms are maintained for guests, and simple, hot meals are free to all visitors.

Temple of the Radiant Sun

This temple, dedicated to serving the god Pelor in the heart of the Garden Quarter, opens at dawn and closes at dusk. In a sanctuary in the heart of the temple, Priests conduct daily morning rites, as well as all-day observances every Godsday.

Sarana, the temple's Archpriest (Neutral Good), is a middle-aged, human woman wearing a sun-shaped headdress and yellow-and-gold robes. She is never seen in public without her Staff of Healing. Sarana has straw-colored hair, green eyes, and a forgiving nature.

Unearthed Arcana

Magic items are bought and sold in Unearthed Arcana, a quaint shop in Clerkburg. Magical wards render the store's windows and doors shatterproof, and no one can use magic to enter or leave the shop without the consent of its proprietor, Morley, whose quarters take up the second floor.

Morley is an Adult Copper Dragon (Chaotic Good) who spends his days shape-shifted into a talkative, alert, white-bearded human mage wearing a pointed hat, frayed robes, and pointed slippers. Only a few people in the city—including the esteemed local members of the Circle of Eight, Jallarzi Sallavarian and Otto—know Morley's true form.

Morley is one of the city's secret weapons, ready to repel invaders or break a siege should the need arise. The dragon has a soft spot for adventurers who risk their lives for good causes. He occasionally loans magic items free of charge to valorous heroes who can't afford them, on the condition that the items be returned to him as soon as they're no longer needed.

Battle of Emridy Meadows

Seven years ago, knights and soldiers from Furyondy, the Archclericy of Veluna, the Viscounty of Verbobonc, and the elven kingdom of Celene formed an alliance to repel an evil horde that had gathered in the grassy fields south of the Velverdyva River. This clash of armies—arguably the greatest seen in Eastern Oerik—was called the Battle of Emridy Meadows. The forces of evil were smashed, and their remnants were driven back into the dungeons under their stronghold, the Temple of Elemental Evil. The forces of good, under the command of Prince Thrommel IV of Furyondy, besieged the temple, which fell in a fortnight. Only a few of the temple's wicked leaders escaped, and it is suspected that these individuals were responsible for the subsequent kidnapping of the prince.

Prince Thrommel was engaged to marry Lady Jolene, a priest from a prominent noble family of Veluna. Their marriage would have united Furyondy and Veluna as a single entity, with the canon of Veluna ruling in matters spiritual and the king of Furyondy ruling in matters temporal. This combined state, with its powerful elf allies in Celene, could wage a steady war against the evil plaguing Eastern Oerik. The prince's disappearance has stalled these plans.

The Rise of Iuz

Iuz is the offspring of the demon lord Graz'zt and a human archmage named Iggwilv. For ages, he ruled the lands from the Howling Hills to Lake Whyestil, naming his domain after himself. These lands are so despoiled and dangerous that the otherwise fierce nomads of the Hunting Lands and Wegwiur pass through the Cold Marshes rather than enter the merest edge of Iuz's realm.

Iuz's evil reign was interrupted by a sixty-five-year imprisonment in the dungeon under Castle Greyhawk. During his absence, the Kingdom of Furyondy and its allies prospered, while the land of Iuz was overrun with evil bandits and monsters. Iuz's absence turned him into a legend and attracted a host of new followers, whose misplaced faith invested him with the power of a demigod.

Upon winning his freedom, Iuz had no trouble reclaiming his homeland. He forged tenuous alliances with the leaders of the Bandit Kingdoms and the Horned Society, whom he controls through terror. With their aid, he aims to destroy his neighbors and lay waste to the Free City of Greyhawk.

Since the resurgence of Iuz, the northern quarter of the Vesve Forest and the eastern part of the Howling Hills have become filled with marauders and monsters. While the Wegwiur battle Iuz's forces in the Howling Hills, scouts and troops from Furyondy join forces with Highfolk's defenders to drive out the Vesve Forest's evil inhabitants.

Central Flanaess Culture

The culture of the Central Flanaess is a result of the long imposition of the Great Kingdom's rule over a variety of peoples living in close proximity. These peoples, by and large, share the Great Kingdom's practical, hardworking values, and they rely on the family and local community, rather than the might of nations and armies. They have a strong egalitarian streak unlike the Great Kingdom's strict social hierarchy, and (beyond the domains of Iuz and the Horned Society) they have little tolerance for would-be tyrants or aloof nobility. Amid a large number of free cities and confederations, the monarchies of Furyondy and Celene are far more democratic in practice than those in other regions.

Typical dress in the Central Flanaess includes a tunic of varying length, sometimes worn with close-fitting trousers. A cape or cloak, usually featuring patterns of ovals or diamonds, completes the ensemble. The cuisine of the Central Flanaess uses rice and potatoes alongside cheese and meat that is typically boiled or roasted.

Central Flanaess Adventures

The dual threats of Iuz and Elemental Evil present abundant opportunities for adventure in the Central Flanaess (see "4" in this chapter). This region is particularly appropriate for campaigns flavored with epic fantasy, supernatural horror, or war (see "4" in this chapter). This region is also home to many of the most famous dungeons and ruins of Greyhawk, including those described in the sections that follow.

Shar

Fanatical Suloise militarists called the Scarlet Order founded the Hidden Empire of Shar, which is closed to outsiders. The order controls the peninsula west of the Tilva Strait, as far north as the Vast Swamp. See "4" in this chapter for more about the 4.

Eastern Flanaess Culture

The culture of the Eastern Flanaess is largely that of the ancient Aerdi tribe of humans that conquered the region and established the Great Kingdom almost 800 years ago. The Aerdi valued common sense, hard work, and knowing one's place in a strict social order. Having claimed their position of power through conquest, they put great emphasis on military power and martial skill. These values persist throughout the region, reinforced in the Great Kingdom by strict laws and even stricter social mores.

These same values persist in many of the lands resisting the overking's reign. Nyrond and Almor, in particular, share the stratified social structure of the Great Kingdom, with their king and prelate remaining distant from the common people they rule. The independent states of the Iron League are more egalitarian, sharing that trait with the peoples of the Central Flanaess.

Typical clothing in the Eastern Flanaess is a tunic of varying length, often worn with trousers, with a cape or cloak. The fabrics of the east are often patterned with checks or plaids, with different patterns often relating to the wearer's lineage. Eastern cuisine pairs rice and potatoes with a variety of meats, especially seafood.

Eastern Flanaess and Its Neighbors

The Duchy and County of Urnst bridge the regions of the Central and Eastern Flanaess. Once part of the Great Kingdom's province of Nyrond, they declared their independence from the Great Kingdom and the new Kingdom of Nyrond at the same time, achieving their separation from Nyrond with minimal bloodshed. While the people of Urnst distrust the king of Nyrond, they don't hate him like they do the overking.

The proximity of the Nyr Dyv, the Cairn Hills, and the Shield Lands means the Urnst lands can't ignore the rising threat of Iuz or the politics of the Free City of Greyhawk. At the same time, Nyrond stands as a buffer between Urnst and the Great Kingdom, but the overking's threat still looms. The duke and countess of Urnst believe that a united Urnst will stand more strongly against pressures from east and west, which they hope to achieve through the marriage of Countess Belissica Gellor to Byron Lorinar, eldest son of Duke Jalken Lorinar.

Eastern Flanaess Adventures

The story of the Eastern Flanaess is a tale of scrappy rebels—Nyrond, Almor, and the Iron League—defying the overwhelming power of a corrupt and decadent empire. This story lends itself to campaigns exploring themes of supernatural horror (in the fiend-haunted courts of the overking), swashbuckling (in the cities across the region as well as the eastern seas), and war (see "4" in this chapter).

Baklunish Nomads

The Chakyik and Wegwiur—called Tiger Nomads and Wolf Nomads, respectively, by their neighbors—are horse riders of Baklunish descent who dwell on the steppes north of the Yatil Mountains and Lake Quag. The climate in the steppes and pine forests ranges from cool to frigid. Both peoples maintain scattered trading outposts that welcome visitors from neighboring and distant lands.

The steppe nomads have a rich storytelling tradition that reinforces a strong sense of clan identity and family line within the clan. Their tales include stories not only of heroes within their clans, but also of heroic horses, and the nomads trace equine lineages as carefully as their own. These nomads maintain the traditions of their people, many of which can be traced back to the ancient Baklunish empire.

The Baklunish nomads favor bright pastel colors in gowns and robes. When traveling or at war, though, they prefer more rugged gear of leather and hide.

The North Kingdoms

Three kingdoms of related peoples occupy the Thillonrian Peninsula in the northeast of the Flanaess—a beautiful subarctic landscape of high mountains, coniferous forests, and deep fjords. The kingdoms are named for the three distinct tribal lines that inhabit them: the Cruski (whose name means "ice"), the Fruzti ("frost"), and the Schnai ("snow").

The Schnai are strong and numerous. When Queen Ingrid of the Schnai has a mind to raid the isles of the Sea Baronies or the coasts of Aerdiaak and the Great Kingdom, she calls upon the king of the Fruzti and the queen of the Cruski to join her army. King Hundgred of the Fruzti has no choice but to honor his oath to the Schnai, while Queen Tharla of the Cruski rarely turns down a chance to attack her enemies. At other times, the Cruski raid the Fruzti, the Schnai, or the Hold of Stonefist.

As their distinct kingdoms suggest, the people of the North Kingdoms value their connection to their clan lineage. They preserve a love of learning from their distant ancestors of the Suel Imperium, and they value knowledge of the natural world as highly as they do the skills of hunting, sailing, and warfare. Their clothing includes shirts and pants made of wool, augmented with furs, capes, mittens, and warm boots. They often wear large pins, brooches, or emblems in their cloaks as a sign of wealth or accomplishment.

The Hunting Lands

The People of the Hunting Lands (called Rovers of the Barrens by their neighbors) have a history of raiding the outskirts of Furyondy, the Bandit Kingdoms, Tenh, and Wegwiur, which hasn't won them many allies. The nomads' legendary dominance of the north has faded, as the forces of Iuz and the Horned Society wage steady war against them while raiders from the Hold of Stonefist prey on the Hunting Lands farther east. Many of the Rovers' mightiest warriors—the Wardogs—have perished in battles against all these relentless foes.

The people of the Hunting Lands value a close connection to the natural world. They view nature as an entity to be respected, not controlled, and their myths and legends teach the value of accepting nature's bounty as a gift that evokes gratitude. They wear clothes made entirely of animal skins, including belts, capes, robes, and slippers, and decorate their skin with paints and tattoos.

Northern Flanaess and Its Neighbors

The regions of the north exist on the fringes of other regions of the Flanaess. Three realms are the primary points of intersection between the Northern Flanaess and neighboring areas.

Northern Flanaess Adventures

The cold north is an ideal location for a campaign featuring themes of 4 (see "4" in this chapter). The peoples of the Northern Flanaess battle giants, dragons, and other horrific monsters in equally dangerous environments, while remaining suspicious of the decadence of the cities and nations of the south.

Old Keoland Culture

Old Keoland is a diverse region of the Flanaess where different cultures have mingled for many centuries. Keoish folk often garden, maintain close family ties, have a down-to-earth nature, and love storytelling.

The clothes worn in Old Keoland tend toward loose-fitting shirts and wide-legged pants, voluminous cloaks for cold or wet weather, and sturdy boots. This region's cuisine represents a fusion of Central Flan dishes of rice, potato, and meat with some spices and seasonings brought from the west, creating unique flavors.

Old Keoland and Its Neighbors

The long chain of the Lortmil Mountains forms a natural barrier between Old Keoland and the region of the Central Flanaess. The mountains contain some of the richest gem and precious metal deposits in Eastern Oerik. The humans, dragonborn, dwarves, gnomes, halflings, goblinoids, goliaths, and orcs that live in these mountains and their foothills are subjects of the realms that surround the mountain range, but they often band together to deal with greater threats on both sides of the mountains.

Old Keoland Adventures

One reason for the amicable relations among the nations of Old Keoland is the danger posed by dragons, giants, and other monsters found throughout the region. That makes this region particularly well suited to a heroic fantasy campaign (see "4" in this chapter). The most dangerous places include those described below.

Western Flanaess Culture

The culture of the Western Flanaess preserves many of the ways and traditions of the ancient Baklunish empire. Enormous value is placed on the virtues of hospitality and generosity, particularly almsgiving and pious donations to temples and clergy. Since the fall of their ancient empire, the people of the Western Flanaess have demonstrated more interest in trade—as a way of amassing power and wealth, but also as a means of connecting and coexisting with neighbors—than in imperial expansion or military domination.

The clothing favored by the people of the Western Flanaess features bright patterns in vibrant colors, worn in flowing gowns, robes, and long coats worn with breeches. Their cuisine is renowned for its rich flavors and spiciness.

Western Flanaess and Its Neighbors

Ket is the crossroads between the Western Flanaess and the rest of the continent, nestled between the Yatil Mountains and Barrier Peaks. Though it was founded by Baklunish settlers, Ket's proximity to both Bissel (and the lands of Old Keoland) and Veluna (and the Central Flanaess) makes it a vibrant, multicultural land rich from extensive trade. Its culture reflects the breadth of its trade, including sizable populations of dragonborn and tieflings and displaying a fusion of Baklunish and Oeridian influence. This mixture is visible in the title of its ruler, which is a combination of a Baklunish title (bey) and an Oeridian one (graf). The beygraf is a noble chosen by the lords of Lopolla's wealthiest, most influential families. Many of these lords also serve as generals in the Kettish military. The current beygraf, Zoltana Lhaz, is a skilled diplomat who so far has balanced the interests of different forces both inside her nation and among her neighbors.

Western Flanaess Adventures

The political and mercantile intrigue among Ekbir, Tusmit, and Zeif provides abundant adventure opportunities for characters in the Western Flanaess. A campaign focused around intrigue or mystery (see "4" in this chapter) works particularly well in this region.

Of course, the Western Flanaess has its fair share of monsters, dungeons, and ruins as well. The ruins of the Baklunish Empire in the Dry Steppes, and those of the Suel Imperium in the Sea of Dust, attract plenty of adventurers as well as villains hoping to claim the magical knowledge that caused the terrible catastrophes leading to the fall of those empires. Ket and Ull, too, suffer from the depredations of the monsters in the Barrier Peaks and the Yatil Mountains, just as their eastern neighbors do.