From The Pinnacle To The Pit

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“Thou at the sight / Pleased, out of Heaven shalt look down and smile, / While by thee raised I ruin all my foes, / Death last, and with his carcass glut the grave.”

Strange days have come to Creation, and even its most distant corners feel a change sweep over them. Ashrapur sit in the southwestern seas, a verdant and gleaming gem for those who would pick it. On this lonely island, servants sharpen knives to cut their master's throats; war-drums echo though the jungle; great rulers turn to madness; and deep beneath the earth, a long-dreaming beast stirs and opens one horrible eye.

Within this tempest stands sun-crowned warriors, reborn from forgotten myths, to carve new legends for themselves, and change the face of Ashrapur -- if they survive.

From the Pinnacle to the Pit is an Exalted 3rd Edition Solar game by hippokrene for the RPG.net forums.

Player Characters

Important NPCs

The Dancing Demon Leopard

Little is known about the Anathema that haunts the jungles of the central wilds, but rumors abound. The creature can turn into mist, the creature caused all the inhabitants of a village to vanish, the creature steals children and sacrifices them for magical powers. Men found mauled in the jungle are said to have been killed by the Dancing Leopard. Women who become pregnant though still virgins say that the Leopard must have crept in their home at night.

Though much of what is attributed to the Dancing Leopard is fanciful, it has committed numerous, grisly killings, and attacked hunting bands and scouting parties that ventured too close to its territory.

Kai Tavisharwa Nah

Tavisharwa was only eleven when he ascended to the Floating Thone of Naranja two years ago. While his mother holds no official title or position, she still exercises a great deal of political power, and is generally accepted as true ruler of Naranja.

Due to Tavisharwa's age, his ascension and continued rule is an uncertain one. The atmosphere at the palace is one of mild but constant paranoia that one of the Kai's Sajils might attempt to seize the throne for themselves. Tavisharwa seems to be an intelligent and considerate child, but has become superstitious. He has lately invited a number of soothsayers, alchemists, and other wise men to the palace.

Kai Vashistic Om

Vashistic Om was once the pride of Maukai. A handsome and outgoing prince, he charmed visitors to the palace and his exploits on the battlefield earned him renown with the common folk. This changed however, after a chariot race accident shattered his right leg and hip. Though Vashistic's body eventually mended, he became addicted to the powerful painkillers he took during the months of his recovery.

Over the years, he became more temperamental, beset with bouts of melancholy or irrational anger. When his mother died and he ascended to Kai at the age of 27, Vashistic quickly withdrew from public life, preferring to spend his days in the palace's ornate pleasure dome.

Vashistic Om is now nearing 50. He spends his days in an opium filled haze, oblivious to the world outside the palace walls and engaging in listless, fleeting pleasures. Maukai's nobility and Cynis patricians are happy to rule in his place, though a few of the older ones feel pity for the proud prince they once knew.

Organizations of Note

The Sons of the Saki

Numerous tribes have been conquered, enslaved, and assimilated in Ashrapur storied history. The ancestors of the Sons once dwelled in the fertile river basin now occupied by Naranja but were displaced to the rocky southern shores. There they encountered a great animal spirit who offered them protection in exchange for their veneration.

Now the Sons of Saki launch frequent sea raids against their neighbors. Only a few hundred strong, they’re wise enough to avoid the great barges of the Dragon-Blooded, the Guild, and the Lords of Ashrapur, but instead target small towns and villages along the coast.

Ashrapur and its Environs

Maukai

The second largest of Ashrapur's cities, Maukai is a bustling port city with a population of over twelve-thousand. Its people are some of the most diverse in the region with a wide-range of ethnicities, religions, languages, and cultures on display.

Over a century ago, Maukai pledged itself to the Realm. It retained its rulers and laws, but the Immaculate Order became the state religion, its military was drastically curtailed, and it now pays tribute to the Realm in the form of silver and black jade.

It's allied with the cities of Anica and Tulkai, and their combined influence over the surrounding region forms Ashrapur's northern power bloc.

Maukai's current Kai is Vashistic Om.

Naranja

Naranja, the Floating City, sits in the Ashrapur's great basin and is the largest city on the island. It is the crossroads of the island's trade and controls some of the richest jade and iron mines. The city predates the Great Contagion and benefits from a number of artifacts and workings found nowhere else on the island.

It's allied with the cities of Matahja, Lotco, and Annik, forming the central power bloc. Its attempt to conquer the northern lands over a century ago caused Maukai to cede to the Realm, and it remains hostile to Cynis influence.

Naranja's current Kai Tavisharwa Nah, who is currently 12. The Nah line descends from the goddess Lahis, She of Ten Thousand Rivers, and the city has enjoyed her patronage since they ascended to power.

References

Champa - A division of land tended by, typically, an extended kinship group. Champas are often farmlands that pay tribute to a sajil.

Kai - Typically the highest ranking lord in an area. Analogous to king.

Sajils - The Lords of Ashrapur. Sajil is a loose term, it may refer to anyone from the chief of a village of fifty to a wealthy noble ruling over a hundred champas to one of the heads the cartels.