Editing Sempere

=Sempere=

Sempere is the largest continent on the planet.  Surrounded on all sides by vast oceans it is teeming with civilizations of all different races, beliefs and structures.  There are civilizations and individual people on the continent who have mapped the whole extent of the land mass but the exact makeup of the continent remains a mystery to 99% of its inhabitants (though many of them couldn’t care less).

The continent is roughly split into east and west with limited interaction between the two halves.  This is mostly caused by the Waste, a large expanse of magical wasteland towards centre of the continent.  Legend has it that long ago there were four gods; the Creator (who brings life to the world), the Reaper (who ends life in the world), the Healer (who represents all that is good in the world) and the Devourer (who represents all the evil of the world).  The Healer and the Devourer could not get along and they had a terrible fight on the surface of the world.  The Creator, on seeing this, banished them both, sending them far into the depths of limbo but not before they had wreaked catastrophic damage to the world.  This damaged land became known as the waste and it was at this time that many of the hideous aberrations and monstrosities that now walk the earth were formed.  Some say this was also the birth of magic and that sorcerors and other spontaneous casters tap into the residue of this aeons old battle.

The part of Sempere to the east of the Waste is the prime domain of humans.  Long ago there was a great empire of humanity called the kingdom of Gavilan which was riven by civil war.  From the ashes of this war emerged three countries, Keren, Tomanda and Duatin Erethol.  The Norowin, high elves, also make their home in this part of the world along with their distant tribal cousins the Qualor Ereblis.  In the north and south live human tribal communities, the Suderax in the frozen north and the Plainsmen in the desert south.  Bordering the Waste lies the Kul’Doran Forest, home to the ferocious, introspective cat people and north of them is a dangerous raiding community of gnolls.

Western Sempere is a much wilder place than the east with new countries and regimes forming all the time.  The easterners (with the exception of the Norowin) know little about this place except for a few snippets.  The island kingdom of Eladan is home to a powerful community of psychics and the sahaugin rule over a northern pirate nation.  Further inland can be found lizardfolk and kobold communities as well as scattered human tribes.  Legend also tells of a strange land populated by immensely powerful and autonomous mages as well as a kingdom of undeath ruled over by an immortal vampire lord.

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==Gavilan and the Three Countries==

Centuries ago the kingdom of Gavilan represented a golden age in the history of the humans of the continent of Sempere. A vast empire spanning hundreds of miles its art and architecture were wondrous to behold but now almost entirely lost. No-one knows much about Gavilan or what caused its disintegration as almost all the written records were destroyed in the subsequent years of strife and civil war known as the Dark Ages. 

Three separate countries emerged from the Dark Ages, Duatin Erethol, Tomanda and Keren. The republic of Duatin Erethol is formed of several city states allied by the treaty of Highwood. Tomanda was formed by the followers of Toman, a powerful prophet of St. Cuthbert. It is a strict military theocracy with hundreds of convoluted laws and a vast beaurocracy to defend the tenets of justice and fairness. Keren is the country formed by those lords united under a new king. The biggest of the three countries its first king, the Keren after which it is named, was a man of great courage and charisma who succeeded in uniting dozens of petty feudal lords under his banner.  Together they are known as the Three Countries.

Duatin Erethol lies to the east of the Wasteland and is the most southerly of the Three Countries. To the north-east lies Tomanda and, further north still, Keren. To the North-west is the peninsula of Norowin, home to the secretive and insular high elves who consider themselves guardians of knowledge. To the east, across the Calastus mountains are the large, grassy plains of the Qualor Ereblis, nomadic tribal elves. South of the Qualor Ereblis' lands are the lands of the Plainsmen, their human equivalents.  In the frozen north of the realm live the Suderax, ferocious warriors and barbarians.  At one time, all this land except for Norowin and the farthest reaches of the Suderax tundra and the plains, was part of the kingdom of Gavilan in one way or another.

===Dating Conventions===

The history of Gavilan is split into four sections. BJ stands for Before Jereth and refers to the time before Jereth I was coroneted King of Gavilan. AJ stands for After Jereth and refers to the time when all of Erethol, Tomanda and Keren were one nation with Erestin as the capital city. DA stands for Dark Ages and refers to the time after the Breaking of the Crown when a huge amount of Erethol, Tomanda and Keren was plunged into civil war. From this point the three kingdoms use different dating systems. Erethol uses SR, standing for Since Reunification and refers to the period after the Treaty of Highwood when the lords of the different cities of Erethol formed an alliance and became a Republic. Tomanda uses AE, standing for After Epiphany and refers to the date on which the prophet Toman united the people in worship of St. Cuthbert. Keren elected a new king and their dating system works by referring to the year of a particular monarch's reign. For example Seddaer 25 would be referring to the 25th year of King Seddaer's reign. No ruler of Keren may have the same name as one who has gone before. 

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==Duatin Erethol==

Duatin Erethol is a border territory, surrounded by enemies.  To the west is the untamed wasteland, consistently spitting out monsters and bands of mutated raiders at the countries borders.  North of  here is the Kul’Doran forest.  Thought he cat people are mostly reclusive they have previously been spark to confrontation with devastating results.  Further north still lie coastal lands abandoned by humans in the dark ages and now populated by large numbers of gnolls.  Orc raiders are a common site in the Thunderline mountains to the south and the Calastus mountains in the east are home to bizarre creatures made almost entirely of rock that don’t take kindly to visitors.

Unsurprisingly, Eretholiers have little time to worry about much in their lives. Add to the equation above frequent raids by Sahaugin and pirates on the northern shore and setting foot outside civilization in Duatin Erethol means taking your life in your hands. The roads of the country are very well patrolled and maintained as, without a safe means of travel, trade would be impossible. Even so, most people travel on the rivers for speed and security. 

Politically, Duatin Erethol is a republic of sorts. Each habitation of a certain size has a governor who sits on the Eretholier Council. This council sits only occasionally though as the governors are almost entirely autonomous. The council acts only on matters of national safety and legislation. It would in fact be more sensible to look on Duatin Erethol as a collection of diplomatically friendly city-states. The treaty of Highwood ensures that the country is capable of acting in a unified fashion in times of needs and ensures that matters such as highway maintenance, national trade issues, defence of the land and other nationwide topics are dealt with in a manner fair to all concerned. The leader of the Eretholier Council is the Princeps. The Princeps is elected much like a king but has few, if important, powers. He may not vote on the council nor may he be a part of the decision making process. He is not the governor of any city (though his headquarters are in Duathol) and his sole responsibility is to ensure that the tenets of the treaty are strictly adhered to. He keeps the council running and keeps it fair. He has the power to instigate a vote to strip a governor of his title if he is deemed to be in breach of the accords of Highwood as well as taking other punitive actions. 

Duatin Erethol is a frontier land and, as such, is very geared towards the military. Nearly every fighting man can be called upon in times of war and it is compulsory for men to undergo martial training and a year in service to the military. This year must be done at some point between the age of 16 and 30. Exceptions are possible if the person is deemed to have performed other services to the state though he must still undergo his martial training. 

Two mountain ranges mark borders in Duatin Erethol. The Calastus to the east divide Erethol from the Qualor Ereblis and the Thunderlines to the south separate Erethol from the lands of the Plainsmen. A small community called Calm Cove is the only part of Erethol that lies south of the Thunderline mountains.

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===Calm Cove===

===Camber===

Sitting almost exactly in the centre of the country, Camber is the centre of trade and travel in the country as it sits on 3 rivers and several major highways. Nearly all the trade in the country comes through Camber and it is often said that the city grows fat and rich by its mere existence. The dockworkers union in Camber is almost as powerful as the governor himself. It is also reputed to be the headquarters of the Theives' Guild.

===Duathol===

The capital city of Duatin Erethol, Duathol was built shortly after the reformation to be the seat of the new Council. Smaller than Erestin, Duathol has its own charm. It sits on the coast in the north-west of the country, slightly further south than Erestin. Where Erestin is a fortress, Duathol is very much a modern city with wide boulevards, bubbling fountains and many green parks. It is also a moderately busy port with a thriving ship-building trade.

===Erestin===

The old capital of Gavilan, Erestin is the largest, grandest and oldest city in the Three Kingdoms. A fortress as well as a beautiful city Erestin lies in the foothills of the Calastus mountains in the north-east of the country. Every corner you turn in Erestin leads to architectural marvels and works of public art that are technically impossible to recreate in the modern age. It's narrow, winding streets have been the setting for many poems, plays and novels across the years.

===Guldervale===

Pop: 24,900 
Racial Make-Up: Human 79%, Halfling 13%, Half-Elf 3%, Other 5% 

[[Guldervale]]

===Port Blackheart===

Population: 61 000 
Racial Make-Up: Human 45%, Halfling 12%, Elf 7%, Undead 6%, Other 30%

<i>“He’s got the spirit of Blackheart alright!”</i> – Common phrase in Duatin Erethol, Tomanda and Keren referring to a merchant who can get any goods you can desire. In a more derogatory sense it refers to a merchant of base morals and no scruples, a charlatan or a trickster.

<i>”It’s like the Black Dock in here!”</i> – Common phrase used to indicate a place is crowded and chaotic with no seeming order or law in effect.

[[Port Blackheart]]

===Southwall===

A marvel of the age of Gavilan, the Southwall extends dozens of miles from the Kul'Doran forest to the north and the Thunderline mountains to the south. At the very south-west of the country the city of Southwall houses and enormous garrison who are the first line of defence against the horrors the Wasteland spews out. For centuries the Southwall has stood, never faltering against the threat of the Wasteland. Due to it's large garrison the city operates under fairly constant martial law where criminals are punished extremely harshly.

==Keren==

Where Duatin Erethol and Tomanda turned their backs on the ways of ancient Gavilan, Keren has always held itself as the true successor to that great empire.  They seek to emulate Gavilan in every way possible and try and recapture it’s former power.  As such they pump a great deal of funds into architecture, education, road maintenance and the other things the king considers to be “civilized”.  The result is that Keren, of all the Three Countries, has a common populace most heavily taxed and suppressed.  The peasant’s life in Keren is a hard one and a thankless one and many visitors to the country have wondered whether they wouldn’t prefer their money to be spent on irrigation and medicine.

Keren is not as military-focussed as Duatin Erethol.  The biggest threat to Kerenese safety comes from the seas as both vicious Suderax raiders, more locally reared pirates and aboleth and sahaugin mean the coastal regions of Keren must be constantly watchful for danger.

==Norowin==

The Norowin are a race very similar in appearance to the Qualor Ereblis, Drow and other elves yet it is a connection they consistently deny.  The Norowin claim that they are the original elves from home the Qualor Ereblis and others are derived, via cross-racial intermingling.  They are an isolated, introspective people concerned mostly with the pursuit of knowledge.  They are fiercely protective of their land and knowledge and it is unusual indeed for outsiders to be let into their land.

Those that have visited tell of impossibly tall spires of grace and beauty, library-fortresses containing the knowledge of the ages.  They seem to have no farming or military and they do not trade with outsiders so nobody knows how they survive.  Great swathes of their land is untouched, primeval forest, marsh and meadow that has not known farming or the hand of mankind.

==Plains (Doora Desert)==

The vast plains and deserts to the south east of Sempere are populated by fierce, proud tribal folk.  The kingdom of Gavilan and the Three Countries have been at war on and off with these plainsmen for centuries and the borders of their land ebb and flow with the tide of these wars.  The Qualor Ereblis too have had military encounters with the Plainsmen though these are few and far between and the two generally show a healthy respect for each other.

The Doora Desert (as it is known to the citizens of the Three Countries) is an inhospitable place and the Plainsmen are justly proud of their ability to survive in such an environment.  They are a people schooled in conflict and forged in suffering though and they are fearsome opponents in battle.  There are many threats within the desert that prey on the plainsmen and they are frequently involved in small internal skirmished with each other and with small communities of desert dwelling creatures that emerge.

==Qualor Ereblis==

The lands of the Qualor Ereblis are mile upon mile of beautiful, unspoilt plains and rolling hills.  The elves are master horse rearers and drive great herds of their animals across this country.  They live nomadic lives, concerned only with their tribe, their horses and their land.  Outside affairs are of very little interest to them except in story.  The storytellers of the Qualor Ereblis are famed throughout the east of Sempere and they are some of the few of the elves to be seen out and about in the world.  These prospective storytellers, as part of their training, travel in the world for 30 years, learning about the stories of other cultures and, hopefully, taking a hand in some stories of their own.

There are no cities in these lands, the Qualor Ereblis take their homes with them and theirs is an idyllic life, rarely spoilt by conflict.  Occasional monsters find their way down from the Calastus mountains to the west but most of their eastern border is protected by the Plainsmen.  They are hardy foes in battle though, fighting with wild abandon and impossible grace.  There are ancient tales of a time when the kingdom of Gavilan tried to take the land of the Qualor Ereblis but had to withdraw after heavy losses.  From that time on the kingdom claimed the Qualor Ereblis’ land as their own but never encroached on it again.  The elves didn’t care, they knew who was in charge.

==Suderax==

You will often here the people of the Three Countries muttering that they are surrounded by savages.  They are referring partly to the Plainsmen and the Qualor Ereblis but mostly they are referring to the Suderax.  Chaotic and ferocious, these giant men from the cold tundras of the northern archipelago are unceasingly warlike and invasive.  They raid constantly, anywhere their ships can reach, and their unrestrained, manic fighting style often makes them seem little more than animals.

The land they come from is every bit as inhospitable as the Doora Desert.  Freezing cold for most of the year, the archipelago experiences a brief summer for a month when the snow mostly melts away to reveal a grey landscape of scree and rubble.  The Suderax live of fish mostly as well as several breeds of goat and cow particularly suited to that lifestyle.  The rest of the food they have is raided or (occasionally) traded.  Their society is tribal, but static.  They have towns and villages, though none as big as any in the Three Countries.  

The only face the “civilized” lands ever sees of the Suderax are their manic raiders but they have their own culture and traditions and life in their villages is passably similar to life in any village anywhere.  Still, their life is hard, constantly competing with the weather, unproductive landscape and the local giants and trolls, who organise frequently and violently to attack Suderax communities.

==Tomanda==

The most central of the Three Countries, Tomanda is a theocracy of St Cuthbert.  Toman was a prophet of the just god who, through great force of personality, united the squabbling local barons at the end of the dark ages into one country under the protection of St Cuthbert.  The land is a hospitable one, with more rain than southern Duatin Erethol but milder winters than Keren.  They are a great farming nation, producing vast quantities of grain and cereal that is shipped to neighbouring countries.  Their ruling elite are exclusively religious and, though the other gods are held in high regard, St Cuthbert’s church is the state religion.  Every habitation has a church of St Cuthbert of some size and great amounts of the taxes charged go to the restoration of churches and the spreading of the word of St Cuthbert.

Missionary knights travel the length and breadth of Sempere, even into the west, bringing word of St Cuthbert’s judgement to the masses.  Tomanda and Duatin Erethol are military allies.  Tomanda has few threats on its borders but acknowledges the fact that Duatin Erethol protects its southern border from the hordes of the Waste and other threats.  Every year, thousands of Tomandan soldiers make their way to Duatin Erethol for a military tour of duty and this fact makes them close allies.  There are still bones of contention among them though, the major two being Duatin Erethol’s primary religion being Heironeous rather than St Cuthbert and the problem of Port Blackheart.

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=Maps=

==Duatin Erethol==

There are three maps below, the first is of Duatin Erethol as a whole, the second is a close up of the southern half of the country, the last is a city map of Guldervale.

[[Image:DuatinErethol.jpg|left|thumb|100px]]
[[Image:SouthernDuatinErethol.jpg|left|thumb|100px]]
[[Image:Guldervale.jpg|left|thumb|100px]]<br>














More maps will follow as necessary.

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=Games=

==Last Refuge of the Black Hearted==

Port Blackheart, nest of pirates, home to murderers, thieves and charlatans.  In this city, no-one is your friend and you have to keep your wits about you at all times.  A place of adventure, danger and… opportunity.  A group of unsuspecting individuals are about to find themselves drawn into the dark embrace of a city where law has no meaning and death waits on every street corner.

===Player Characters===

[[Algernon Lupus]]<br>
[[Amadre|Amadre]]<br>
[[Coran|Coran]]<br>
[[Iovidan]]<br>
[[Kher_Vilar|Kher Vilar]]<br>
[["Lucky" Dean Korda]]<br>
[[Mieka_Miller|Mieka Miller]]<br>
[[Nagol Greyborne]]<br>
[[Naria Velleitree]]<br>
[[Rouen_Fien_Rua|Rouen Fien Rua]]<br>
[[Snarub]]<br>
[[Ulfar_the_Reborn|Ulfar the Reborn]]<br>
[[Weldon_Haubrick|Weldon 'The Bard' Haubrick]]<br>

===Non Player Characters of Note===

[[Aelron_Surfborne|Aelron Surfborne, Salty Elf]]<br>
[[Haverd the Barb|Haverd the Barb, Temple of Nerull Gatekeeper]]<br>
[[Koran Charis, Adventurer(?)]]<br>
[[Kormat, Liche lord of the north]]<br>
[[Lady Eviscera|Lady Eviscera, Vampire Socialite and Powermongerer]]<br>
[[Lyus Mercer, Protection Guild General]]<br>
[[Mortimer 'Mort' Sickmouth, Information Broker]]<br>
[[Ovan_Reikson|Ovan Reikson, Gambler and Binder]]<br>
[[Qilan|Qilan, Illithid Outcast]]<br>
[[Rennick, Watcher]]<br>
[[Ruben de'Aldiandanna, Protection Guild Lieutenant]]<br>
[[Rusko Calven, Protection Guild Sergeant]]<br>
[[Solomon Ogrous, Guilder and Intellectual]]<br>
[[The Revenant, Priest of Nerull]]<br>
[[Tiwen Finister, Tiny Wise Woman]]<br>
[[Zem Chalke, Gambler and General Loser]]<br>

===Buildings and Organisations===

[[The Temple of Nerull]]<br>
[[The Protection Guild]]<br>
[[The Warlock's Will]]<br>
[[The Brotherhood of Watchers]]<br>
[[Tiwen's Curio Shop]]<br>

===City Areas===

[[The Black Dock]]<br>
[[Blugg Swamp]]<br>
[[The Chasm]]<br>
[[The Dark]]<br>
[[Dock Road]]<br>
[[Fish Wharf]]<br>
[[The Garden]]<br>
[[No Man's Land]]<br>
[[The Other Road]]<br>
[[Blackheart Riverside|Riverside]]<br>
[[The Top]]<br>
[[The Wyrd]]<br>

===Stories===

===Threads===
[http://www.rpol.net/game.cgi?gn=Last+Refuge+of+the+Black+Hearted New location for the game]<br>
[http://forum.rpg.net/showthread.php?t=285678 Old In Character Thread]<br>
[http://forum.rpg.net/showthread.php?t=285311 Old Out of Character Thread]<br>
[http://forum.rpg.net/showthread.php?t=284852 Recruitment Thread]<br>

===Reference Pages===

[[Black_Hearted_Reference_Page|Last Refuge of the Black Hearted Reference Page]]

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==City of Light and Dark==

A star hangs over the city of Guldervale, an open, perhaps, of bad things to come.  As it looms larger in the sky a wave of madness and panic sweeps the city and devil worshippers crawl out of the sewers.  What does the star mean and can it be stopped before it wipes out the city?

This game was run on RPG.net in 2005 and is now finished.

==Buried Gods==

A chance encounter in the Thunderline mountains leaves 6 teenagers with undreamed of powers but a great responsibility.  In the east, orcs prepare to launch all out war on the sleepy province of Calm Cove but is even this monumental threat merely a front for something much, much bigger…

This is a pen and paper game currently being run in the UK.

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