Gaz F10 The Kingdom of Kaarjala - Vaults of Pandius

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SOCIETYBarbarians. Centuries of separation fromthe other Antalian populations andintermittent contact with the Littoniansand the Kaarjalans have modified theirlanguage. Viaskan is 85% compatiblewith the dialect spoken around theAlphan Peninsula, 65% withNorwoldensian, and less that 60% withthe Icereach or Wyrmsteeth dialects.ReligionSaamari religious practices haveformalized over the centuries, partially asa result of the rise of the Church ofKaarjala. The High Priest of the Church,widely known as the Grand Smith ofIlmarinen, oversees a clerical councilcomprised of the most senior clergymen(called Smiths) from each community.The council discusses broadadministrative and doctrinal matters, butit grants individual priests and itinerantsconsiderable leeway to run their ownaffairs.Individual Smiths also act as thespiritual voices of their communities, andthey have a level of authority greater thana village council member. In addition toleading regular religious services andother ceremonies, many clerics also offera limited education for Kaarjalans inexchange for service or generous tithes.In most places, such educationencompasses a rudimentary knowledge ofthe history and legends of Kaarjala (moreof the latter), basic arithmetic, and theinculcation of social values. If the clericis literate, students may also be taught toread – this is more common in the largersettlements.The people of Kaarjala – both Saamariand Vaarana – revere legendary figuresand personifications of the physicalworld, as befits a people who arose in thefar north and survived its severe climate.The listings for Immortals linked to thetheir beliefs reveal the hidden,convoluted history of the people, withelements borrowed from the (O)ltecs,(N)eathar, (T)honians, (L)ittonians,(V)iaskodas, and even the (H)umanoids.Not every figure of lore corresponds toan actual Immortal, and Ilmarinen, Thor,and Terra (or Djaea) perform multipleroles for different aspects that arevenerated separately. The figure of Ukkoarose from contact with the Thonians(Blackmoorians) and originally waslinked to Odin, but it becameincreasingly affiliated with Thor over thecenturies of Viaskodan contact.Additionally, Hel took over the personaof Tuoni after the apparent demise ofThanatos during Nithia’s destruction, butJabbmeaaakka is tied to the beastmen andhumanoids. Immortals whose names areitalicized are considered female by theKaarjalans.The Vaarana cleave more strongly tothe folklore roots and their historicThe Common Kaarjalan PatronsFigure Immortal Attribute SourceIlmarinen Ilmarinen Craftsmanship NativeLemminkainen Ilmarinen Hunting NativeVainamoinen Ilmarinen War NativeThe Saamari PatronsAhti Protius Water, rivers NPekko Terra Crops, barley, brewing NPelervo Terra Harvests NTapio Ordana Forests LTuoni Hel Death O/TUkko Thor The sky, thunder T/VThe Vaarana PatronsBeaivi Ixion The sun OMattarakka Terra Mother Goddess, women, children HHovrengalles Thor The sky, thunder VJabbmeaaakka Hel Death, the Underworld HBieggolmai None Wind, the powers of nature Nativeinteractions with humanoids and othertribes, and they follow a shamanistictradition. Everything – people, animals,and even plants – is thought to be sacred,created by the powers beyond as part oftheir great work. Noaide (shamans) actas mediators between mortals and theImmortals, asking questions on behalf oftheir people and relaying any responses.Most such communication concerns thesacrifice required to cure an illness,conceive a child, or ensure success on ahunt. Noaide also mediate disputes,perform healing, and bestow blessings –thus, they play a critical role in anyVaarana community.Most Vaarana also believe in the notionof a dualistic soul; people are generallythought to have two souls – oneassociated with the body and itsfunctions, and one for the mind thatdeparts after death. This belief is held bymany Shonak tribes as well.Holidays and CelebrationsJuhannus: Juhannus is the mainMidsummer festival. Great bonfires areburned and drunken revelry is the orderof the day. Although there is no set dayfor the event, Kaarjalan communitiesnormally hold this celebration withinseven days of the solstice. During thistime, some young women also makebridal wreaths and place them under theirbeds, after which they are supposed tosee their future husbands in their dreams.Joulu: Joulu is the KaarjalanMidwinter celebration, anacknowledgment of the old year’spassing, and the dawn of the new one. Inaddition to family feasts with a foodspread called the joulupöytä, a commonpractice is to melt a piece of tin and dropit into a bucket of cold water. The shapeassumed by the tin is used to predictone’s fortunes for the coming year.CultureTo those who know them, theKaarjalans have a reputation for beingvery straightforward and stubborn. Littlethought is given to a person’s title, whattheir ancestors did, or what they claimthey can do; all that matters is what aperson can do right now, and whether16
SOCIETYthey can be depended on to help theirfamily or community. Their attitudes arecharacteristic of the peoples who livenorth of the Great Bay, but the Kaarjalanscarry it to an even further degree. Cut offfrom other “civilized” nations anddependent on a magical artifact for theircontinued prosperity, Kaarjalans feel theyhave little luxury to dwell on possibilitiesor be introspective; threats to survival arevery real and require quick action.The everyday perils of life in the farnorth have inured the Kaarjalans toadversity; the struggle to survive isconsidered a part of life, just as theseasons’ progression and the weatherpatterns are seen as elements of existencethat cannot be controlled by mortals.This stoic acceptance of the challenges oflife, encompassed by the Saamari wordsisu (“grit and guts”), is often viewed asmelancholy by most others, save perhapsfor the dwarves whose own attitudes aresimilar in some respects.To the Kaarjalans, sisu expresses thesheer determination that allowed theirancestors to build their kingdom and towithstand the suffering they enduredwhile driving away invading forces thatwould take away their hard-won lands.This carries forward into a deep regardfor the value of hard work, theimportance of the common struggle tosurvive, and the need to do whatever isnecessary to keep what one has.The Kaarjalans hold a deep reverencefor nature in all its forms. This attitudestems in part from their nomadicbackground – a lifestyle still practiced bymost Vaarana – but also from theirenduring respect (and fear, to somedegree) of the capriciousness of nature.Most Saamari express this reverence byenjoying nature’s bounty whenever theycan, and holding festivals to mark theturning of the seasons; the Vaarana, asdiscussed above, tend towards the directworship of nature in all its forms.Another nomadically derived feature ofthe Vaarana culture is the use of unique“family runes.” These runes serve thesame purpose as branding and denotewhich reindeer belong to whom. Vaaranawho still herd reindeer will alwaysrecognize another family’s rune on sight.JokamiehenoikeusA commonly-held notion amongKaarjalans is that of jokamiehenoikeus(“everyman’s right”, or more commonly“right to roam”). The people have theright to access all open, uncultivatedland, be it public or privately owned.Thus, gardens and farmers’ fields areconsidered off-limits, while pasturelandand forests are not. This right carrieswith it responsibilities – trespassers areexpected to make their passage as tracefreeas possible, and those foraging orhunting are expected only to take asmuch as they need to eat in the now.Those who deny jokamiehenoikeus toothers are ostracized.This practice arose during thekingdom’s early years, when the landwas still cold and brutal. Saamari chiefsat the time agreed that their collectivesurvival would be dependent on sharingresources, and property restrictions wereloosened. Some of these attitudespersisted even as the realm became moreorganized. It should be noted, this beliefdoes not extend to personal possessions.Currency and TradeMost Kaarjalans conduct their businessthrough barter – this practice is commoneven in Kaarja – but the kingdom hasminted coins for well over a century. Theinitial purposes of the currency was topay mercenaries and for the settling ofaccounts between the noble families thatcould not be met with livestock or othergoods. As trade deepens with Littoniaand foreign mercantile interests operatingthere, currency is becoming moreimportant as a medium of exchange.The Kaarjalan currency system is basedon the markka (gp, plural markkaa),which is subdivided into the penni (sp,plural penniä), and the oren (cp, pluralorenissa). Foreign coins – primarilyLittonian santīmu (sp), but also Alphatianmirrors (sp) and judges (cp) – are used inlarger Kaarjalan settlements; the formervalued by weight, the latter at face value.Where coins are exchanged domestically,it is almost always silver or copper thatchange hands; few people are wealthyenough to have markkaa. Cutting coinsto make change is a common practice.Due to the beneficial effects of theGreat Sampo, Kaarjala produces enoughbasic foodstuffs (primarily grains andpotatoes) to feed itself in all but the worstyears. There is significant logging andfishing, but most production is fordomestic consumption. Growing marketsexist in Littonia and Alpha for Kaarjalanhides – particularly reindeer, bear, andringed seal.The semi-nomadic Vaarana rely on theherds of reindeer during the wintermonths and farm ancestral lands inKaarjala during the summer. They storea portion of their harvests in stonestorehouses dug into the ground to helpsurvive the lean times. Other than sellinghides or cured meat, they contribute verylittle to Kaarjala’s economy.GovernanceAlthough it is an organized kingdom,Kaarjala lacks many of the trappings andinstitutions, e.g. codified laws, penalcodes, and bureaucracies that KnownWorlders would expect to see in a nation.The often harsh environment militatedagainst developing more complex socialsystems. Nevertheless, Kaarjalan societyhas a stable monarchy with a strong,independent-minded nobility.The most important locus of authorityis the town or village council (thekäräjäoikeus). Local nobles wieldinfluence with these councils, butcommunities under their jurisdiction aretypically allowed to run their day-to-dayaffairs themselves. The exception to thisarrangement occurs during times of crisisor war, in which case it is understood thatthe nobility will assume responsibility forprotecting the people in exchange fortheir obedience. The king is a distantfigure who figures infrequently in dailylife, but his visits to communities aremajor events, and the details quicklybecome the stuff of legend as they areretold and embellished.Traditionally, only the king or hisdesignees may collect taxes. At the timeof Kaarjala’s founding, there was onlythe people and their leader. Even afterthe nobility arose, this arrangement hadremained, but this once-personal connectionbetween liege and subject grew ritualizedthrough the tax collection system.17
Page 2 and 3: WHAT PEOPLE SAY ABOUT KAARJALA“Wh
Page 4 and 5: INTRODUCTIONForewordWelcome to The
Page 6 and 7: HISTORY AS THE IMMORTALS KNOW ITIlm
Page 8 and 9: HISTORY AS THE IMMORTALS KNOW ITper
Page 10 and 11: HISTORY AS THE IMMORTALS KNOW ITLit
Page 12 and 13: GEOGRAPHYThe LandKaarjala is locate
Page 14 and 15: GEOGRAPHYThe watershed for the Maan
Page 16 and 17: SOCIETY“Bieggolmai makes, and bre
Page 20 and 21: SOCIETYAt the end of the year, each
Page 22 and 23: SOCIETYkingdom into any future Held
Page 24 and 25: PERSONALITIESRoyaltyKaarlo Taavinen
Page 26 and 27: CREATURES of the AUTUASMAASave for
Page 28 and 29: CREATURES of the AUTUASMAAThe Rimal
Page 30 and 31: ARTIFACTS, TREASURES, and HIDDEN PL
Page 32 and 33: ADVENTURESKaarjala On The March(Lev
Page 34 and 35: ADVENTURESThe Great Silence: Agents
Page 36 and 37: CREATING CHARACTERS for KAARJALAAva
Page 38 and 39: SPECIAL RULES for KAARJALA: THE NOA
Page 40 and 41: SPECIAL RULES for KAARJALA: THE NOA
Page 42 and 43: SPECIAL RULES for KAARJALA: THE KAN
Page 44 and 45: SPECIAL RULES for KAARJALA: THE KAN
Page 46 and 47: SPECIAL RULES for KAARJALA: HYPOTHE
Page 48: VAULTS OF PANDIUSThe Kingdom of Kaa

Gaz F10 The Kingdom of Kaarjala - Vaults of Pandius

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