Defenders of the Forest - Liber Fanatica

Politics
Quenelles’ dilapidated ducal palace overlooks the capital from
a hilltop just north of the city. Although the elderly Duke
Tancred II is celebrated as a hero, the city’s lesser aristocracy is
considered decadent and haughty. The turrets of their crumbling
mansions reach upward like supplicants from the overgrown
gardens surrounding the palace. Quenelles’ aristocrats resent
having been denied the lands of their birthright by geographical
circumstance. To reinforce their status under King Louis’ archaic
decree, these disenfranchised landlords indulge in rare luxuries
and openly mock the local townsfolk. The city bailiff and his
watchmen, who fear the aristocrats’ mockery themselves, assert
their own authority through heinous acts of violence against the
populace.
Chapter VII: The Forest of
Athel Loren
Over the past decade, many new saplings have grown to young
trees in the nearby Wild Heaths. The Asrai realise that Drycha
and her wicked dryads are responsible for the forest’s expansion,
but fay envoys share none of these facts with humans. Locals are
simply told that Loren’s encroachment upon Quenelles is a sign
of the forest spirit’s favour.
Lost Heir of Duke Tancred II: Duke Tancred actually believed
this explanation until hearing of the recent tragedy involving
Earl Leofric Carrard. Now, Tancred suspects Loren is actually
coming to reclaim the ducal heirlooms stored under Quenelles’
Fay Chapel. In particular, his lance Étoile de Chêne is said to be
crafted from the elven metal called Ithilmar. The fay envoys have
not visited Quenelles in months, and now Tancred is impatient
to return the lance to Loren as soon as possible.
Duke Tancred II’s reign is nearing its end with no heir apparent
to succeed him. Two leading candidates for Quenelles’
ducal throne are Tancred’s nephews, the cruel Earl Hincmar
from Massif Orcal, and the young Lord Therevault. Of the two,
Hincmar has the greater support amongst the aristocracy since
it’s believed that his ruthless ambition would enable them to
increase their land holdings if he became duke. So pervasive is
the avarice on palace hill that many of Quenelles’ nobles have
already bargained away their souls to Slaanesh and Tzeentch
without even realising it.
Lost Heir of Duke Tancred II: Adventurers hired to rescue
Tancred’s lost heir might find their efforts sabotaged by corrupt
nobles who’ve cast their lot with Hincmar.
Fay Diplomacy
Despite Quenellers’ apparent reverence of the fay, the burden of
their subservience weighs heavily on the Asrai. Understanding
the constant risk of human rebellion, Wood Elf diplomats strive
to temper the healthy fear that’s perpetuated every autumn by
Orion. Envoys of the Fay Enchantress visit Quenelles frequently,
obscured by magical glamours making them almost invisible.
Despite their ability to quickly traverse great distances using
the Shadow Walk, fay envoys prefer to use Duke Tancred as an
intermediary in their diplomacy with Bretonnia. Tancred has at
times been accused of “fay appeasement” by political opponents,
but the Duke’s past accomplishments protect him from serious
criticism. On several occasions when Tancred questioned the
fay envoys about his son Einhard’s fate, they told him that only
Loren’s spirits know the truth.
Lost Heir of Duke Tancred II: Earl Hincmar’s official position
is that recovering Einhard’s corpse will enable Quenelles
to move on. Off the record, however, Hincmar has opined that
Einhard’s disappearance was an “accident” arranged by the fay
to gain leverage over Duke Tancred. In truth, only a few elder
Spellweavers have any idea of what might have happened to
Einhard.
2. The Wild Heath
Navigation: Very Easy (+30)
Forest Disposition: Cold (-10)
Magic: Lore of Necromancy (+1D), Lore of Death (+1)
Kindreds: Alter
Around the Sentinels marking Loren’s borders, the tangled forest
periodically gives way to heather. Quenelles herbalists seeking
rare plants number among the few brave enough to traverse the
Wild Heath’s verdant hills and dells. Whispers from long-departed
ghosts drift around the heath’s many burial mounds, and
dead spirits still walk amongst the overgrown ruins of eastern
Carcasonne. Over the past decade, an increasing number of
malevolent Dryads have also begun roaming the Wild Heaths.
Many centuries ago, Elves customarily buried the corpses of
defeated invaders on the heath. The pools of dark magic which
accumulate around these burial sites have attracted necromancers
from across the Old World. Most famous was the Lichemaster
Heinrich Kemmler, who invaded Athel Loren in 2495 IC
behind a skeleton army raised from the local mounds. At the
Battle of the Cairns, Kemmler’s undead legion was repelled
by an alliance of Elves and Duke Tancred’s knights. Recently,
Loren’s spirits have begun interring erstwhile trespassers more…
thoroughly…without any need for burial or cremation.
The southern Wild Heath is currently a lawless battleground
where Elven Glade Riders engage in running skirmishes against
mercenary Tilean tomb robbers and occasional Beastman warbands.
63