Table of Contents

Cultural Groups

Regional Customs

Flora and Fauna

Military Factions

Criminal Factions

Important NPCs

Cultural Groups

The Borderland Dvoryanin

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A collection of culturally similar tribes that make their home along the borders of the north and southern regions of the Zeinav Desert. The Dvyoranin men are traditionally of swarthy complexion and dark hair with famously long mustaches, while the women are tall, pale skinned, and blonde to almost white in hair color.

The North
The Ash Land Dvoryanin are a largely settled people who maintain the importance of horses in their culture. Their settlements are bright flashes of color amongst the despondent greys and prairie browns of their surroundings. Large pavilions of reds, yellows, and blues form a spiral around a tall watchtower that keeps an eye out for raiders, merchants, and acts as the judging seat for the horse racing that is the all encompassing center of the Dvoryanin.

Dvory Racing Crown
The major cultural festival is the annual meeting of the Ash Land and Valley Dvoryanin in the middle of the Zeinav Desert where the biggest horse race of Charon take's place. The Dvory Racing Crown acts as a festival and the accepted way of settling grievances among the Dvoryanin. Outside of the 100 mile endurance horse race that is the main event and the associated gambling, there are an innumerable amount of sabre duels, the sabre being the most prolific blade among the Dvoryanin. The outcome of the races and these duels establish the hierarchy between the Dvoryanin till the next meeting.

Regional Customs

Interment of the Dead

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The Ash Lands, while politically associated with the Zeinav Desert, is wholly unique in almost every aspect. The harsh mountainous landscape populated with active volcanoes, petrified forests, geyser fields, and countless hidden grottos is hardly the most hospitable place to call home. However, these features have made it a haven for many people displaced from civilized society. Majority of its populace lives in Darkveil, with only a few gangs of criminals making hideouts out in the harsh wilds.

Cremation
Unsurprisingly, cremation is the most common way that bodies are disposed of in the Ash Lands, whether intentionally or otherwise. Remains are placed in crematoriums and exposed to extremely high temperatures until the body is reduced to ash and bone fragments. 

Since the Lava Pits are continually changing, it can be hard to designate a specific pool for the process of cremation. Lava flows are in a constant flux of heating and cooling, making the land ever-changing and very dangerous to traverse

Of course, anyone up to no good may also use this method to cover up any foul play or make someone they don't like disappear without any chance of their body being recovered. Any trip to the Lava Pits is always under some suspicion that those headed there have something they're trying to hide. 

Grave Pits
Though there are few well-kept records of the Ash Land's history, there are sites that provide evidence of various notable events in the region. Grave pits are such sites. These depressions in the earth, filled with layers of ash and dirt are occasionally uncovered in the Deadwood near remnants of past settlements that failed to survive the passage of time. These pits are unmarked mass graves, with often dozens of skeletons unceremoniously left forgotten with little to no records of who is who or how they perished.

Anthropologists have a few running theories on how these sites came to be. The first is that - due to the harsh conditions and poor air quality in the Ash Lands - the people who built and lived in these now-ruined settlements were more vulnerable to disease. Without easy access to healers, clean water, and other conveniences, the people may have died quickly and in rapid succession, leaving only a few behind to bury the dead and abandon the homestead.

Another theory is that the settlements were subject to other disasters with high mortality, such as earthquakes or volcanic eruptions. Such disasters are common in the area and there have been remains of whole encampments of individuals found in the Devil's Ridge buried by landslides and collapsing stone overhangs. 

A final theory is that these settlements were wiped out by rival communities or bandits. As resources are scarce in the Ash Lands, conflicts over anything of value are not unheard of. 

Honoring the Dead

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There are various schools of thinking when it comes to honoring the dead in the Ash Lands. Darkveil is essentially a melting pot of cultures since a good proportion of its population is made up of those who have found themselves displaced from civilized society around the rest of Charon and very small population of people who call the region their ancestral home. With such diversity, some traditions have changed or been lost to time itself. Despite this, there are some unique traditions specific to the region that remain. 

Stained Glass
Glasswork is one of the most important industries in the Ash Lands, much to the surprise of people who only know of the region for its rough and dreary reputation. The sands harvested from the region's long coastline and deep canyons are hauled back to the various glassmaker studios found within Darkveil City.

These studios either have a traditional blacksmithing kiln or a lava flume - a specialized heating apparatus that uses geothermal heat from the earth itself - which is used to melt the sand into a liquid form. Various ingredients are added and mixed to the melted sand in order to change its color before it is poured into molds. Stacks of molded glass panes are cooled in stone cellars specifically designed to ensure that ash and dust particles are filtered out of the ventilation. 

Once properly tempered, artisans will then use a number of tools to score and cut the colored glass into different shapes depending on the design they have come up with. They fuse the pieces back together using thin bands of metal. The intricacy of a piece is a reflection of an artisan's commitment to their craft. The most desired stained glass artists are those trained at the Tempered Monastery.

Each artisan has their own distinct maker's mark which are used to identify which pieces are part of an artisan's portfolio. These marks are often stamped into a piece of glass or metal that is part of the piece of work itself. Pieces that are specifically meant to honor someone who is passed may have their name stamped into the piece in a similar manner.

It is considered a major social faux pas to recreate another artisan's work or forge their mark which unfortunately does happen. There is a whole market for fake Ash Land stained glass that aims to sell pieces to foreigners who cannot tell the difference in the glass quality compared to stained glass crafted in other regions.

More distressingly is the recent raids on glasswork studios in Darkveil conducted by the Legion of the Dark Sun. Many artists had their studios damaged in the earthquakes and then their materials and pieces confiscated by authorities in the aftermath. This has led to several families putting out requests for people to help them find the missing pieces they had commissioned. 

Memorial Beads
Beaded jewelry serves as a more affordable alternative for those who cannot afford more elaborate memorials but still wish to have something that honors the memory of someone they lost. These pieces vary wildly in design and materials, with very few pieces being identical. 

The process of creating the glass beads is similar to that of stained glass, and many stained glass artisans also use their studio space to create these pieces of jewelry, or at least produce the beads for other jewelers to use. The major difference is that instead of pouring the melted glass into molds, the molten liquid is instead pulled into long glass rods on cooling tables. These rods are then cut into small beads and shaped by hand into the desired shapes. Stiff metal needles are used to create the hole in the center of the bead while it is still malleable. The beads are then fully cooled before they are strung onto metal wire, braided string, or whatever other material is used for the jewelry. 

Colored glass beads are easy to customize and the colors and patterns can symbolize different fond memories or traits of the departed. Some locals like to braid the beads into their hair as a way to carry those memories with them wherever they go. 

Ash Paints
Practiced almost exclusively by those who have ancestral ties to the indigenous populations of the Ash Lands, Ash Paints are greyish pigments specifically made out of ashes collected from the Deadwood. The ashes are mixed with oil which produces a thick paste. This paste is ground between stones until the ashes are broken down into a finer texture. More oil is added until the consistency is more akin to paint. Since these paints are oil-based, they hold up well against water and can linger for a fair amount of time. When dry, the pigments take on a ghostly grey shade. The ash paints are applied directly to the skin using either fingers or paint brushes.

These body paints are used in various rituals, including communing with the dead. By covering the body in the ash paint, one tethers their soul to the earth and strengthens one's connection with the land. All souls return to the land when the body can no longer harbor it, so it's believed that one can walk with the spirits while donning the ash paints. 

Foreigners often have the misconception that the Ash Paints are created using cremation ashes, but this is just a myth popularized by Stablemen agents in order to further isolate Ash Land denizens from the rest of Charon's people. 

Little is known about the history of how the pattern motifs have changed over time. Some historians lament even attempting to create an accurate history of ash paint designs as so much of the Ash Land's history has been lost to time or misrepresented by other regions as part of their own political agendas. It's likely that ash paint designs will never really be understood by anyone aside from those who have passed on the small fragments of oral history.

Necromancy

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Being a hive for criminal activity, necromancy is not something that is frowned upon in the same way it is in other regions. Few argue the morality and ethics of the practice since those who would be making the arguments likely have plenty of skeletons in their closets themselves, figuratively and literally. Those engaged in shady practices don't tend to draw attention to it, or criticize others as that can cause unneeded questioning or interest in their own underhanded dealings. This means that necromancers don't often get investigated or questioned even if there is evidence of their dark practice. 

Powerful Ashen Fathers have been known to employ necromancers for the various services they can provide, including having the flexibility to interrogate the dead and saving themselves the trouble of having to hire mercenaries to bolster their forces. While this can provide a necromancer with security and luxurious living within the region, it means they have be to wary of becoming caught up in the gang drama. Anyone seen as an asset to an Ashen Father is equally seen as a target by their rivals. 

In the aftermath of the awakening of Vulcadreaus - the primordial deity of destruction and rebirth - and the destruction of Mount Drakolt, many necromancers have gone into hiding or fled the region for their own self-preservation as the Stablemen and Legion of the Black Sun hunt down anyone associated with the cult responsible for the catastrophe. Even if they had no involvement, their practice is enough to get them equally incarcerated or executed should they be found by the Legion. 

The exodus of necromancers hasn't exactly reduced the number of undead in the region, however. More recently, many of the souls that perished on Mount Drakolt or were sacrificed to the revival of Vulcadreaus have been transformed into undead creatures known as Charred.

The Charred are manifestations of the pain and suffering experienced by those who lost their lives to the fires of Mount Drakolt. The Charred have no memory of their past lives beyond the pain of burning to death and seek only to share their suffering with anything that breathes. The Charred roam close to the sites of where they perished, forever seeking vengeance and only finding peace in their own destruction.

Flora and Fauna

Ash Roses

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Location: Found in the Ash Lands, on island platforms at the heart of the Lava Pits of Mount Drakolt.

A surprisingly beautiful ebony flower that blooms on stone islands, sustained by the blistering heat of lava around them. The petals are ink-black and curl in a spiral, much like a traditional rose, with a bit of an ashy finish to them from which they derive their name. The stems are a similar black color, but they have little specks of gold working through them. All in all, very pretty flowers.

Individual petals, surprisingly, crumble quite easily only when plucked from their source– this makes it very easy to turn them into powder, or to mix them with water. They do not have a great deal of medicinal worth, but their properties make them viable as a component for potions of invisibility and silencing.

Toxicity: Surprisingly, I don’t actually think they’re poisonous, they just don’t taste very good– putting a petal on your tongue would really just be like taking in a mouthful of ash. Nasty, maybe slightly harmful, but not as bad as drinking straight poison. Still, I don’t recommend it.

Additional Notes: No medicinal merit whatsoever– they’re purely viable as a potion component… and as a fine aesthetic choice, if you’re. You know. Willing to go gallivanting into lava pits for them. Just don’t shatter your legs. *cough*

Baby Dragon's Breath

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Location: Found in the Ash Lands, growing in the Lava Pits of Mount Drakolt

A type of flower found growing in the lava pits of Mount Drakolt-- yes, in them, albeit peeking out above the surface-- in clusters, each stem usually carrying around four to five blossoms. They are a brilliant orangey-gold, some of them even coming in a pale red, and the petals produce a fine, misty smoke without ever burning. The core of the flowers boasts a crystalline golden core, as though hosting the first treasure of a young dragon's hoard.

Surprisingly, for a flower as potentially dangerous to obtain as these, they're very rich in medicinal merit. The golden core is useful when melted down and mixed with other components for producing heat resistance potions, and the petals retain heat exceptionally well, making them excellent when ground down and packed into larger packets to slip into clothing to retain heat in colder places. They're also useful in the treatment of frostbite and other similar ailments. They lack any inherent healing properties, but are remarkably useful for combating temperatures, much like Lux Lilies.

Toxicity: Mildly poisonous-- can cause some severe illness when consumed in moderate quantities, as they effectively scorch your insides and your body will rebel against them. Eating them is a bad idea.

Additional Notes: They're incredibly beautiful flowers, and have a great deal of aesthetic value, but are very dangerous to go looking for. If you want to go plucking flowers from lava pits for the sake of a display, be my guest.

Lux Lilies

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Location: Found in the Ash Lands, particularly at the base of and higher platforms of Mount Drakolt

A volcanic flower resembling a classic lily; the petals are a dark crimson in color, a scorched-red, though this is not the key noteworthy characteristic. The pistils are luminescent, glimmering gold, emitting a pollen that shines like embers and emits a mild heat, and the leaves are ink-black and appear to be withered, curling around the rest of the plant. They can be difficult to see against the background of the volcano, but the pollen is a key giveaway.

Its key uses are in combating temperature-related wounds; the petals themselves radiate a natural heat and when ground down are a useful medicinal component for warming potions and other such things, even being useful in the treatment of burns in tandem with other components in poultices, but the key merit lies in the pollen. The pollen is remarkably potent and serves as an amplifier for certain potions, aiding in empowering their effects.

Toxicity: None, though it lacks any nutritional value when consumed as is.

Additional Notes: For a volcanic flower, they're surprisingly mild and make good decorations. They have a surprising bit of aesthetic merit, if you're willing to brave the volcano for them.

Ashland Jackals

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Ashland Jackals, sometimes known as the “Ashen Death”, are native to the gloomy and charred plains of the Ash Lands. This canine appears in a semi-illusory state, as if its very form is broken between two planes of existence; and while this canine has a physical body with which to hunt, the appearance of its true physical state has never been fully witnessed or documented. This can be attributed to the fact that, upon death, it appears the Ashland Jackal dissipates back into ash— or perhaps, returns to the other plane of existence it appears to be stuck between— leaving no evidence of its physical state remaining.

The Ashland Jackal is a species of canine which travels in isolation unless it has taken a mate; and for a time, the illusory state of the Ashland Jackal caused researchers to believe that the Jackals were pack animals of at minimum four members; but this has since been proven wrong. Solitary and stray jackals have been known to wander Darkveil’s streets at night, targeting lone travelers or drunkards, and earning them the title of “Ashen Death”. With a quick speed, a strong bite, and their ability to seem as if it is in two places at once, the Ashland Jackal is a lethal creature to stumble across for the unprepared or unaware.

Urban legends have formed around the Ashland Jackals as a result of their usual hostile and dangerous reputation; with more superstitious residents of Darkveil titling them as harbingers of doom and ill luck. Some individuals believe the Ashland Jackals to be the souls of hostile spirits, murdered mobsters, or ghosts with unfinished business who wander the streets at night searching for their vengeance— or take it out on anyone in their path.

While these urban legends are arguably untrue, they remain popular among Darkveil citizens due to the widespread presence of Ashland Jackals in their streets and land. As partial scavengers, it is not unlikely to find Ashland Jackals in the presence of tragedy: picking what they can from the remnants to survive in the harsh landscape.

Although domesticating the Ashland Jackal seems an improbability, or an invitation to disasters to most— it’s not impossible: some Ashen Fathers have mastered the training technique, forming nigh-inescapable hunting hounds of the omnipresent jackals, and furthering urban legend and mythology related to their ill will and relation to death. Tamed Ashland Jackals are still early in their domestication; but prove to be mischievous and highly energetic. Extremely protective and territorial of those they are fond of, they are loyal to the end of their, or their master's, lifespans.

Military Factions

The Darkveil Militias of the Ash Lands are more reminiscent of a Jackson Pollock painting than a true military organization. Their numbers and equipment are entirely dependent on who has the money and power or what internal city organization is funding their existence, so there's a constant ebb and flow as businesses fail and new ones start. The two biggest and longest lasting militias are the Officers of the Count, currently headed by Count Mallock, and the Chimney Sweepers, a militia organized by the Ash Cleaning Union.

Personal Militias

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These can be anything from the local bakery employing a few citizens to protect his business, to highly trained and funded entourages for nobility. They make up the bulk of the Darkveil Militias and due to their nebulous nature, they are also the ones least counted to show up when called upon.

Chimney Sweepers

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The current tally for the Chimney Sweepers is around a thousand individuals. Their uniform is a leather hauberk, armored gloves, and a steel helmet. Their main weapon is a billhook, with a sidearm of a rondel dagger to puncture heavily armored foes. The Chimney Sweepers are funded by the Ash Cleaning Union which is currently the largest workers' union in the entirety of the Ash Lands as they provide the essential service of cleaning off all the accumulated ash, soot, and debris from roofs and chimneys so that businesses and homes don't collapse from the weight or their occupants suffocate from the same buildup blocking air passages.

Officers of the Count

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Numbering only around 500, the Officers of the Counter are entirely made of heavily armored knights. Their horses are an imported bloodline from King's Valley, a giant breed of warhorses whose caretakers are all Ash Land Dvoryanin. Their armor and weapons are forged from the cores of meteorites by the dwarves of Bleak Fort. Outside of the knight orders, the Officers of the Count are the premier heavy cavalry force in Charon.

Criminal Factions

Ashen Fathers

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Current public knowledge of the Ashen Fathers is that they are the faceless leaders of a vast interwoven criminal network that has a vice like grip on every aspect of life in Darkveil City and across the countryside of the Ash Lands. Outside of the certain circles of the nobility, the entirety of life in Darkveil City is in some way connected to one of these Ashen Fathers. The woman selling produce on a corner, your local street sweeper, the milkman, any of these individuals could be part of a gang, paying protection to a gang, or an informant or spy. This immense civil power has the Ashen Fathers constantly competing with one another, Count Mallock, and his fellow members of nobility.

In the long forgotten past, the Ashen Fathers once represented something more than the petty criminals that now use the same name. They were originally the high priests to a religious order that worshipped a powerful and world shaping entity known as Vulcadreaus. Despite their name being co-opted, the order still remains today. Their organization is hidden by the ashes of the past and fading of public memory, and their activities have gone deep underground. Ceremonies once held under the falling ash of the open sky now take place in the hollowed bones of the mountains and their numbers have dwindled to barely twenty. This dwindling has only pushed their faith into an obsessive and highly dangerous fanaticism.

Now there are rumblings of change across the Ash Lands. Mount Drakolt’s volatility has started to increase and those who have hidden deep underneath it have been the first to feel it. In response, the true Ashen Fathers have begun a campaign of bloodshed in Darkveil City. Ritual killings amongst the criminal underground with the message “The Dragon Awakens” have been found written in their victims' blood on the floors, walls, and ceilings where the murders occurred. The gangs have been blindsided, and are accusing one another of making a power play, unsuspecting of the grander plan that has been set in motion.

The Gardeners

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Though Darkveil supposedly formed a coalition of criminals seeking a place to escape the eyes of the law, not everyone has been content to live this lifestyle. Some centuries ago, as the Ashen Fathers took hold of the city, Darkveil was rife with instability - sickness as the people adjusted to the ash from the volcano, inclement weather, and political turbulence… during this time one of the criminals controlling the city was struck with the realization that the misfortune facing their people was because of the crimes they had been committing - that they had brought these conditions upon themselves.

So convinced of this truth, the criminal leader possessed a complete change of heart. He began to assert that the only way they would ever find peace in Darkveil was if they found redemption in the form of reformation. He was labeled a madman… by this point, the families governing the city were deep-rooted enough that they controlled almost every aspect of Darkveil, and a tentative order had been established. Supposedly, the other families sent assassins after the lone dissenter, most likely to silence his ideals for good before they gained traction and shook the foundations of the status quo. The criminal went missing; the others let down their guard, believing that they had squashed the dissenter.

They had no idea the man had survived… and taken his family into hiding in the Devil’s Ridge with him.

He did not let go of his beliefs. Even though they had been cruel to him, the man still loved his city, and believed that its people could be better; even if it meant ridding Darkveil of the people that had poisoned it, including himself. He considered this exile his punishment for his former crimes and trained his children to uphold his ways. Slowly but surely, their teachings began to grow, as more and more criminals who had been spurned by the Ashen Fathers and the ruling crime families fled the city.

The Gardeners consider themselves the driving force behind cleaning Darkveil. They call themselves such, as they believe they are ‘pruning the city of its thorns, allowing life to grow once more’. Their original leader has long since died, though his ideals prevail - those who call themselves a member of the tribe consider such an undertaking penance for any crimes they may have committed in their previous life. They see what they do as a sort of community service, where their actions are their life sentence. They are open to showing other criminals the light, though those who do not learn… are not worth saving. Their views are harsh, though they only see it as a form of altruism.

Ironically, they only end up serving the status quo of the city by keeping small-time criminals in check, preventing the order from being thrown into disarray by thugs stepping out of line.

After recent events, the Gardeners have taken a more active role in the city of Darkveil itself, rather than seeking refuge in the no-longer barren wastes of the country. As life begins to take root in the wake of the volcano’s destruction, the Gardeners feel as if they have been proven right; that the root of evil must be purged to return these lands to their natural state. And perhaps, some have even begun to wonder what their founder must have known about Vulcadreus.

Whatever knowledge died with him is unimportant; only one fact matters. One evil has been eliminated, and the Ashen Fathers must die in order to restore order to the city. It is yet unclear whether the order they bring is worse than what already exists.

Deadwood Darlings

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The Deadwoods are well known for housing criminals in hiding or acting as a sanctuary for clandestine meetings. However, despite these unspoken rules, there is less civility in the dead forest than one might think - the criminals of Darkveil are vicious opportunists, constantly fighting one another to come out on top. And not all criminals are so civilized. Recent rumors have begun to spread about such a pair of thieves who have made the Deadwoods their home; vicious muggers who have robbed many a traveler and criminal of their personal belongings.

They call themselves the Deadwood Darlings.

Their name is a bit on the nose in terms of irony, but the two seem to take great amusement in it - just as they seem to take pleasure in savagery and mayhem. They are partners in every sense of the word... it is unknown if they are legally married, though they have assumed the same - likely fake - last name, and they take the words till death do us part very seriously. Amanita and Zima can only be described as vultures. They have made the woods their home, and they lurk in the dark corners behind dead trees and in the crevices of caves. They do not hunt the unsuspecting - they hunt the hunters, stalking bandits and thugs that mug travelers blind, and picking off what remains. One might think this would yield little reward, but they seem to take more pleasure in the act of crime itself than the end result.

If you find yourself down on your luck in the Deadwoods, you're likely to get picked on by the partners in crime. Have no fear, however; if you can convince the Darlings that there is more fun to be had elsewhere, such as hunting a vicious monster, or tracking down a different foe, you might be able to sway them to your side... so long as you can hold their attention. They are quite prone to boredom.

On their own they do not seem particularly dangerous. The real threat is when they corner you in tandem. Years of fighting side by side has given them what can only be described as a pack mentality. Their tactics commonly involve toying with prey by manipulating their surroundings and playing on their fears, until they have backed their target into a corner, giving them ample space to strike. They almost view it as a game... one they intend to win, or die trying.

Important NPCs

Count Mallock
Ash Lands, Fellblood, Male

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Appearance

Description

Personality

While Darkveil is run by a council of crime families, Count Mallock is the official leader of the entire region. He was voted in several years ago in an attempt to unify the region and bring peace to the Ash Lands. It is speculated that the major crime families support and back Mallock, having played a huge part in getting him elected. While he has done a good job so far, things have not been improving in the region and many fear he is tightly in the pockets of the Ashen Fathers.

Count Mallock is a jolly, out-going man who has no problems interacting with the public. He loves to talk, dance and attend expensive parties. Many people outside the region view him as the perfect figurehead, a puppet for those who are actually in charge.

The Ashen Fathers
Ash Lands, Varied, Varied

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Appearance

-N/A-

Description	Personality
The Ashen Fathers are a group of noble family chiefs who speak for various mob style families. They run the streets of Darkveil City, and are behind all of the crimes taking place. The amount of Ashen Fathers can vary from year to year, as they are constantly fighting and contesting over land. They have latched onto the region have begun to drain it for their own good.	The council consist of several members, most of their identities a secret. They consist of several notable figures who work in the shadows and pull the strings.

Abbot Frit
Darkveil, Hauflin, Female

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Appearance

Description

Personality

An elderly hauflin, Abbot Frit inherited her role as the head of the abbey forty years ago, and has showed no signs of slowing down. She is a pioneer in her field, coining certain techniques that help increase output and quality across the whole industry. Her name is universally known and well respected. She has been married to her partner, Sister Shard, for the past thirty five years, and is the proud mother to all her adopted children. In the abbey and in the community at large, she is considered the Grandmother of Glasswork.

Abbot Frit can be best described as even-keeled and composed. She has taken many apprentices over her tenure, and is considered a pleasure to know, work with, and learn from. She is warm and forgiving, her straightforward nature one that perfectly fosters an environment for learning and a use for every imperfection. Abbot Frit is also a dedicated artist, and will sometimes offer pro-bono services for memorial pieces for those who could not typically afford them.

Hemlock
Ash Lands, Fellblood, Male

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Appearance

Description

Personality

Supposedly, Hemlock was a drug smuggler before he became a Gardener. It was only when he lost his twin to the illegal substances circling the city did Hemlock realized the great and terrible impact of the way the city is run. In his grief, he took a vow of silence, changed his name, and joined the Gardeners; within the span of a few years, he had worked his way to the top and became their leader. He runs the Gardeners from the Devil's Ridge.

It is hard to tell what Hemlock thinks at any given time, considering that he has not spoken in many years. He would not consider himself an ambitious man - in fact, he thinks ambition a folly. Do not mistake his silence for serenity. It takes a killer to understand a killer, and Hemlock is quite prone to poisons. If you attempt to parlay with him, do not accept any tea he offers.

Dominique Carloch
Ash Lands, Half-Orc, Female

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Appearance

Description

Personality

Dominique is the master of the docks at the coast of the Ash Lands, just off of Darkveil City. It would be more accurate, though, to call her a pirate - she is commonly known as the "Pirate of Pirates". Once a cutthroat sailor from Dragon's Cradle, she's found a more profitable business controlling the flow of commerce to the city. Any smugglers have to pay her a cut of what they bring into the city, and those who don't bow to her whims are denied port.

Dominique acts like your best friend as she buries the hatchet in your back. She did not get to where she is today by being afraid of silencing other scumbags and taking all they own. In fact, it's entirely possible she murdered the last dockmaster to take their position. Her jovial personality is a bit disarming... considering she is liable to rob you blind and enjoy the spoils.

Habitha Caligiari
Ash Lands, Fellblood, Female

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Appearance

Description

Personality

On the surface, Habitha is a dancer at the Dancer's Den. She has worked for Layla for years; the truth of the matter is that she serves as Layla's eyes and ears. She is quite young, but eager to prove herself in the criminal world. Most assume she is an orphan off the streets, though Habitha's secret is much darker; she is a runaway from a middling crime family, the youngest daughter, and a sheltered child. She has struck out on her own to forge her own path, rather than live in the shadow of others.

She moves with a regality that might betray her upbringing if others paid much attention to her. Habitha was sheltered as a youth, and did not want for anything - working for Layla has shown her much of what it means to struggle and fight for what you want. She is no good with a weapon, but she possesses a silver tongue and a disarming aura that can get her out of most situations.

Vesh Maganti
Ash Lands, Fellblood, Female

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Appearance

Description

Personality

A mercenary in Darkveil, and one with a brutal streak, no less. Vesh is not known for her subtlety. She is the person you hire when you want to send a public message. Most of the time, that involves breaking kneecaps for people who are late on their dues, or trashing a shop. To be honest, she feels pretty tired of these petty intimidations. She misses the days when a good old killing would do the trick. She would compare herself to a dog on the leash, or assert that her abilities are being misused. With the instability in Darkveil, she hopes to put her sword to good use to keep the peace.

Vesh was born for war in an era where there has been none. She was once a member of some militia or the other, but she doesn't care to talk about or even remember her past. The only thing that matters to her is the present and the thrill of battle. Some might even deign to call her an adrenaline junkie. When she's not working, she's known to jump into fights that occur on the streets... not to stop them, but to make them worse.

Amanita Sauvage
Ash Lands, Half-Elf, Female

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Appearance

Description

Personality

Born in the Marsh Flats, Amanita is every bit comfortable with savagery and the wild lifestyle. When the crown started trying to civilize the swamp country, Amanita moved to the one place where she knew she would be free of their influence. Unfortunate, then, she could not seem to hack it in a city controlled by organized crime, where subtlety is the name of the game. It was when she was about to give up hope that she met Zima; the two felt an odd kinship with one another and disappeared off the face of civilization together. Years later, they have reappeared, having found refuge in the wild of the Deadwoods.

Amanita would liken herself to a Shrike - a vicious perching bird commonly known as the Butcherbird. She takes great pleasure in the hunt and could perhaps be considered a touch too diabolical. She is cunning and cutthroat, and quite handy with the spear. To everyone's surprise, despite her gleeful personality, she's quite shrewd and understands the pecking order of the world, which is why she's quite content to pick on those weaker than her. The only thing more vicious than her spear and her dark magic is her foul mouth.

Zima Sauvage
Ash Lands, Human, Female

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Appearance

Description

Personality

Born an orphan in the bowels of Darkveil, most expected Zima to meet the same end as most vulnerable children in the harsh city. She was one of the few to survive into adulthood, making a living as a scavenger and hunter in the harsh climate. Eventually, she came into a job as a bruiser for a small-time crime family in Darkveil. The family got in some hot water; rumor has it, that they got on the bad side of one of the mysterious Ashen Fathers. Seeking to save their own skins, they made Zima their scapegoat. She was placed on Death Row for a crime she didn't commit... but she would go down without a fight. Amanita witnessed her fighting off her jailers on the way to her execution and rescued her, and the two fled the city together.

Zima has stared death in the face and does not fear it. She is considered a thug by some, but really, she just knows how to harness fear and use it against others. She is resourceful and crafty, and excels as a huntress... these skills have come quite in handy when it comes to robbing people blind in the woods. Some might mistake her for the rational one between the two, but Zima is not the kind of person to pick her battles. She will charge headfirst into anything with an improvised weapon and an unquenchable bloodlust. She has a special hatred for anyone related to the numerous crime families in Darkveil.

Important Locations

The Nestled Pavilion

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The Nestled Pavilion is an equine oasis in a fertile valley in the low-lying regions between the Ash Lands, Dragon's Cradle and the Zeinav Desert. The Ash Land Dvoryanin, like the more Southerly tribes in and around King's Valley, are master horse-folk. The settlement contains several stables managed by many generations of the same families, as well as spacious green paddocks for the rearing, nurturing, and shipping of horses. The Dvoryanin in this area has developed the region into a port city, best known for the import and export of horses to other areas of Charon.

As a mark of cultural pride, the horses that are bred here take part in the Dvoryanin Racing Crown, though only the best of the best and their skilled riders are expected to attend. The Ash Land Dvoryanin breed is also favored by Count Mallock's cavalry in Darkveil, due to their powerful build, deft climbing ability, and unfaltering fierceness in battle.

The Glassworks at the Tempered Monastery

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One makes do with the resources they have at hand, and no one could ever make the argument that the citizens of Darkveil are not as resourceful. Indeed, so much as the inhabitants are enterprising, to say the least, the capital city of the Ash Lands has since its inception been a hive for people who have been able to create something from nothing.

The volcano that was once Mount Drakolt was, for as long as living memory and historical accounts provide, in a constant state of eruption; even now, with only the crater remaining, the magma flows very close to the surface. So much so that the industries revolving around foundries, smithies, and kilns have been able to thrive here, in spite of the challenges of living in the shadow of a volcano.

The Tempered Monastery was established by Haulflin who found promise in these harsh conditions. Like many Hauflin, they separated from society in protest of the war against the gods, deigning to isolate in their groups that identify them by trade. Those who moved to start an Abbey in Darkveil quickly found themselves in a perfect situation to ply the trades of creating glassworks-- and thus, the Tempered Monastery was born.

While far from the only glassworks in the city, none can hold a candle to the artistry achieved at the Tempered Monastery, so much so that other glassmiths will prefer to work on items like bottles for wine or paneling for the greenhouses used to grow crops in the area, rather than attempt to mimic the finery created in the Abbey.

 The techniques used by the Tempered Monastery are a closely guarded secret, refined over centuries to imbue their works with unique properties. The glass produced there is ideal for preserving specimens and certain potions; The Mage's Guild and the Golden Consortium are very particular about their materials and tools. Potions that involve ice and fire must be stored in special flasks, and the bottles produced by the Tempered Monastery are known to withstand the extreme temperatures of the fluids involved in such alchemy. This also makes them the ideal vessel for medication, poison, and healing potions that would otherwise become damaged when exposed to light, high heat, or extreme cold.

The secret to Darkveil glass? Regional volcanic sands, when heated into a liquid, produce a vibrant tint relative to where it was sourced. The sands can be super refined and used to make clear glass, but this process is much more expensive and yields the higher-end transparent glass that is used in windows, eye-wear, and of Stained glass specialty as well, for bright hues that are uniformly translucent and pieced together with deft precision. Many of their works feature in Sun's Keep, the golden palace for the High King Solarian and his family, but they are far from elitist when it comes to their clientele. Private libraries, carriages, and public buildings have all been known to feature the glass out of Darkveil, but even the modest peasant can have these works in their homes as well. Gifts of stained glass ornaments are popular gifts leading up to the Night of the Red Rogue and Hearth's Day, and decorative lamps are a common housewarming or wedding gift.

The elder of the Tempered Monastery in Darkveil, a Hauflin by the name of Abbott Frit, is the best-known glassmith in the region-- potentially, in all of Charon. Her pieces are some of the most sought-after, for she is one of the few who can produce a perfect "golden ratio" spiral out of one single piece of molten glass.

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