Gaz F10 The Kingdom of Kaarjala - Vaults of Pandius

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HISTORY AS THE IMMORTALS KNOW ITIlmarinen’s ReturnThroughout the ordeals of the Saamariand Vaarana, Ilmarinen remained withthe Maiden of Pojaara and was unawareof all that was transpiring beyond theborders of her semi-mythical realm. Hiseternal reverie only ended when, one day,an old man entered the Maiden’s hallpraising the young man’s skill and askinghis help to repair a wagon. Ilmarinenaccompanied the old man outside andfollowed him down a path that ledbeyond the limits of Pojaara. Repairingthe wagon reignited Ilmarinen’s passionto build and invent, and the Maiden’senchantment over him broke.Ilmarinen recalled his people andreturned to Kainuu, but he found it only adesolate land. The old man reappeared,and guided the smith to Isanmaa, nowembroiled in conflict with the humanoids.The craftsman presented himself toIsanmaa’s King Maunu, and proved hisown legendary identity by revealingdetails about Kainuu and Isanmaa’sfounder, King Mikko. A convincedMaunu welcomed the inventor, and theyoung man set himself to creatingweapons and other devices that wouldturn the tide of the war in Isanmaa’sfavor.In the halcyon days of victory,Ilmarinen found himself pining for theMaiden of Pojaara. Eager to regain thehappiness he enjoyed, yet unable to leaveIsanmaa, Ilmarinen turned his talents tofashioning a lover to replace her. Afteryears of toil, he built the Automaton, agolem made from gold and silver shapedin the Maiden’s likeness, but no matterhow beautiful his creation was, it couldnever satisfy his emotional needs.Crestfallen, Ilmarinen presented theAutomaton to King Maunu and retreatedto his private workshop.During his long period of reflection, theold man that he had befriended yearsearlier returned and revealed himself asKagyar the Artisan, an Immortal patronto craftsmen. Kagyar showed Ilmarinenhorizons undreamt and inventionsinconceivable. Realizing that there waslittle left for him in his current life, buteager to expand his knowledge and skills,Ilmarinen gratefully accepted theImmortal’s offer to walk a new path.The Golden Age ofVainamoinenIlmarinen returned to Isanmaa in BC1070 as Prince Vainamoinen, the onlychild of the aged King Saku. The princedisplayed remarkable skill in leadershipand combat from an early age on, but hisimpulsive nature aroused concern at thecourt in Kuusamo. By the time he was20, Vainamoinen was already a famedadventurer in his own right and had ledmany victorious campaigns against theneighboring humanoids. During one ofhis journeys the prince encountered theMaiden of Pojaara, and like Ilmarinenbefore him, Vainamoinen was lovestruckand followed her back to her domain.Months passed without a clue as to theprince’s fate, and King Saku wasincreasingly anxious. The frontiers ofIsanmaa grew unsettled – the humanoidsdisplayed increasing organization andwrought havoc in Isanmaa. The kingpleaded with the Automaton to find andsafely retrieve his son.Lacking a soul of its own, the constructwas not fooled by the magical defensesthe Maiden had erected to shield Pojaarafrom unwelcome mortal eyes. It locatedthe hall in which Vainamoinen wasstaying, but the enthralled prince wasunwilling to leave. In the confrontationthat ensued, the Automaton killed theMaiden. This broke her spell over theprince, and Vainamoinen returned toIsanmaa.By that time, the humanoid raiding hadprogressed to a concerted campaign todestroy Isanmaa. King Saku fell in battlein BC 1035, elevating Vainamoinen tothe throne. The young king personallyled his troops in a determined counteroffensivethat regained all previously lostterritory by BC 1030. He then carried thewar to his enemies’ lands. In the yearthat followed, Isanmaa’s army broke ahorde numbering more than 15,000 witha combination of strategy, the weaponsand runic magic devised by Ilmarinen,and the king’s personal charisma.Even after this victory, Vainamoinenpursued remnants of the horde for thenext 20 years. When he died in BC 998,there were no humanoids anywhere inIsanmaa, and few in the surroundingregion. His legacy survived to thepresent among many northern humanoidtribes, who use Vainamoinen as abogeyman of sorts with their young.The Expansion of IsanmaaAfter the successful campaigns of KingVainamoinen, Isanmaa became a regionalpower in northern Brun. Successive kingsmounted ever more extensive campaignsagainst the neighboring humanoid tribes,exterminating many and forcing theremainder into submission. By BC 800,Isanmaa was at its zenith, receivingtribute from many tribes and culturallyinfluencing other peoples.Figure 2 Isanmaa, BC 8004
HISTORY AS THE IMMORTALS KNOW ITEventually the Saamari grewaccustomed to their position of absolutedominance and became complacent. Theambitions of their kings, however,continued to grow unchecked.In BC 591, King Ville mounted a grandcampaign to conquer the Borean Valley,home to humanoid tribes on Isanmaa’sfrontiers. At first highly successful, theking’s armies soon became bogged downin vicious guerrilla warfare and had toexpend considerable resources defendingthe conquered lands. Progress stalled,and King Ville’s resolve crumbled after asurprise counterattack by a coalition of15 tribes (BC 572). The action claimedmany lives, including that of Ville’s heir,Aarne. The army withdrew in goodorder, but the defeat and the subsequentperiod of intense border raids signaledthe end of Isanmaa’s expansionism andits golden age.The Decline of Isanmaaand Lovaara’s ShadowSurrounding humanoid tribes wereemboldened in the decades that followed,and raids became commonplace. By BC500, large sections of Isanmaa’sborderlands had been laid to waste, withentire towns and villages razed.Thousands fled to Isanmaa’s heartland,while heroes and rune mages maderepeated forays to regain control over theborder regions.Isanmaa also faced difficulties withinits borders – many recalled the past gloryof the Saamari and bitterly blamed theking for the nation’s current state. Somebegan to place greater faith in Isanmaa’sadventuring heroes, but these were few innumber and could only delay thehumanoid advance. Others suspected therune mages of hoarding Ilmarinen’ssecrets for themselves. The mageswithdrew from the public in response tothis charge, which only reinforcedpopular beliefs. Seeing their cousins’kingdom crumble, the Vaarana withdrewfurther north.Isanmaa’s declining power might havestabilized or even resurged were it not forthe ambitions of a young sorceress namedLovaara. Lovaara resented the loss ofesteem that she and her colleagues hadenjoyed. She questioned the policies ofKing Tuomo and drew to her side likemindedrune mages. Her own powersrapidly grew – unnaturally so – and sheenjoyed dark dreams that showed her apath by which all of her desires could befulfilled. As the visions’ enticementgrew, so, too, did her powers.The sorceress and her followers stageda revolt in BC 390. They had drawnmany of the discontented – and a largehost of humanoids – to her banner. Nineyears later, their army descended onKuusamo, the capital. The city held for atime, but ultimately the gates werebreached. Nearly the entire populationwas put to the sword – including theroyal family.With the royal line extinguished and thecapital in ruins, Lovaara conquered manytowns across the heartland and destroyedeven more. Thousands of Saamari flednorthwards to join their Vaarana cousinsin safety; Lovaara, busy consolidating herown realm, was content to leave themalone for a time.The bulk of Isanmaa was transformedinto a wasteland populated byhumanoids, restless spirits, and corruptedsouls who had sworn service to Lovaaraand the dark powers into which shetapped. As the land twisted into a parodyof what it had once been, Lovaaraevolved into a monster. She remained abeautiful woman, but her eyes mirroredthe evil in her soul as all compassion andempathy drained away, and the coldnessin her heart took on a physical reality.Everything she touched became coatedwith frost. Among the Vaarana and thesurviving Saamari in the north, shebecame known as Lovaara the Ice Witch.Lovaara was not long content with herdominion, and she attacked the holdoutsto the north, which had since becomemore organized. Her crusades slowlypressed northward. Ilmarinen returnedonce more to his people, this time as aVaarana hunter named Lemminkainen.Lemminkainen regrouped the falteringSaamari and Vaarana, and led them on aseries of aggressive ambushes and sneakattacks to assassinate Lovaara’s generals.The resulting chaos stalled the enemy’sadvance and diverted the Ice Witch’sattention.Accompanied by a small group ofheroes, Lemminkainen sped through theenemy territory, entered Lovaara’scitadel, and attacked her there. The IceWitch turned her considerable powersagainst the heroes and killed many of herassailants, but she was gravely woundedand fled her domain in disgrace.Lemminkainen and his survivingcompanions razed the citadel and took asmany of Lovaara’s treasures as theycould.In doing so, the victors unknowinglysevered many of the mystical linksthrough which Lovaara had accessed herpowers. She lost many of them and wasleft unprotected from their unwholesomemagics. The energy quickly corruptedher physical form, and she vowedvengeance on her former people for herfall from grace.The Great FlightWith the destruction of Lovaara’scitadel and her elimination as a unifyingforce, the humanoid hordes fell intodisarray and feuded amongst themselves.The Saamari entertained thoughts ofrestoring Isanmaa, but over 300 years ofbrutal occupation and warfare haddestroyed far too much, and theythemselves were sickened of conflict.The Vaarana had suffered less, however,and they were eager to push back thehumanoids. The gulf widened betweenthe two peoples despite Lemminkainen’sdiplomatic efforts.Just as it appeared that the people ofIsanmaa would fall upon each other inbattle, the Automaton reappeared beforeLemminkainen and delivered its counsel.It told him that Isanmaa was too gravelywounded to sustain her people, and thatthe humanoids would eventually regroupunder their own leaders, against whichthe Saamari and Vaarana would not longendure. If he wished his people tosurvive, Lemminkainen would lead themto a new home.He presented the Automaton before thechiefs and instructed them of what wasneeded. The Saamari chiefs agreed toundertake the journey, but those of theVaarana opted to reclaim their lands. InBC 275, Lemminkainen led a great hostnorth into the mountains. The way was5
Page 2 and 3: WHAT PEOPLE SAY ABOUT KAARJALA“Wh
Page 4 and 5: INTRODUCTIONForewordWelcome to The
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 18 and 19: SOCIETYBarbarians. Centuries of sep
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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