Cimmerian Timeline Part 29

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Previous: Cimmerian Timeline Part 28

973BCE: Shivara and Tikanile coronated one of Sadroston’s weakest children, Tachydorn, as King of Nox. The stronger of Sadroston’s remaining descendants were taken back to the White Dragons’ lair at Doom Peak. The White Dragons changed their forms and mated with their captives to produce human-dragon crossbreeds. They were raised by Shivara and Tikanile. Their draconic parents taught them magic, combat, and an icy hatred for their human ancestry.

950BCE: The white dragon children of Shivara and Tikanile were sent back to Nox to act as viceroys for the draconic couple.

876BCE: The leader of the Hobgoblins, Kruk-Sho-Kar, invaded Eastern Cimmeria. He and his army destroyed the settlements around the Aral Sea. Toffoun, Amalgami, and Jovy responded, but the scattered people of the region were unable to form an effective army.

875BCE: Jovy brought in reinforcements from Those Blasted Islands. Toffoun negotiated a deal for supplies, weapons, and armor from Queen Shortrastor of the Dominarie Mountains. Amalgami avoided open battle while training and drilling the soldiers around the Aral Sea.

874BCE: The tide of the war between the Aral Sea people and the Hobgoblins turned. The unified resistance of Toffoun, Amalgami, and Jovy’s efforts deflected the Hobgoblin advance. Kruk-Sho-Kar’s progress stalled. His leadership came into question within the Hobgoblin command structure and Kruk-Sho-Kar was forced to retreat to secure his position.

873BCE: Knowing that the Hobgoblins could return at any time, Toffoun and Amalgami organized their people into a city-state at the Dirt Plateau. They named the city, Jipangu. With the Hobgoblin threat passed, Toffoun and Amalgami left to continue their work with Tentineh to secure the Dragon Orbs.

Next: Cimmerian Timeline Part 30

A Level One PC

Mister Ed Dungeons and Dragons, Music , , , , , ,

I wrote a little song that’s sung to the tune of “Do-Re-Mi” by Rodgers and Hammerstein. It’s about how to make a character in Hackmaster (sort of).

Let’s start at the very beginning
A very good place to start
In reading you begin with A-B-C
In Hackmaster you begin with a level one PC
First roll 3d6 to see your stats to be Continue reading →

Kingdoms Sprouting Up Part 5

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Previous: Kingdoms Sprouting Up Part 4

Satronwook
After the Dragon War a few Humans, Elves, and Halflings settled within the Aractrash Jungle. One group founded a small village named Satronwook on one of the upriver intersections of the Aractrash River. As trappers and traders moved through the village they stayed at the Inn of Lost Souls. The establishment was right on the village square, an optimal location for all those who wished to do business in town.
One day Dionysus got it in his head to go on a tour of Cimmeria to witness the food, drink, and culture of the Olympians new playground. Of course Dionysus brought his entourage, maenads, and Pan. They started in the West and proceeded clockwise around the Caspian Sea in a meandering path. Along the way the members of their troop shifted and changed. When they neared the end they had acquired a pack of magical blink dogs. The final stop on their tour was Satronwook.
When Dinoysus arrived in Satronwook he struck his thyrsus into the ground of the village square. The staff grew and grew into the alcohol fountain that makes Satronwook famous today. The pair stayed for a month in the Inn of Lost Souls, partying in their characteristic destructive way. At the end of their visit every citizen of Satronwook was either dead, cursed, or enriched by some blessing of the gods. Continue reading →

Kingdoms Sprouting Up Part 4

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Previous: Kingdoms Sprouting Up Part 3

Dalleer
Shaelin left Dalleer in the hands of his trusted friend, Bjorn, when he left to reclaim Fangaroot. Bjorn guided the city through the Dragon War and through the Dwarven Civil War. They emerged as a city-state that nominally owed their fealty to King Yentbern in Jord.
Bjorn ruled through a golden age for Dalleer as the metropolis grew and welcomed people of all races. Eventually Bjorn died as one of the most loved rulers in all Cimmeria. The lordship did not pass to his son. Instead , Bjorn willed his position to a wise human friend of his, Ballath. Ballath took the position gladly. Outraged, Bjorn’s living family moved to Jord. Many Dwarves followed suit, not wishing to live under the rulership of a human. Ballath wished to keep a hold on the city’s past, so he took the name of Bjorn as a title in a failed attempt to keep the peace. He lead the city well, but it was not what it once was. Continue reading →

Kingdoms Sprouting Up Part 3

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Previous: Kingdoms Sprouting Up Part 2

Jeutontic
Jeutontic served as a trading post between the Elves of Whitewood Forest and the rest of the world for over a century after the Forest’s settlement. This relationship suffered during the Age of Monsters when the Elves escaped into the Underdark to avoid the dragons. Trade disappeared for a time and Jeutontic shrunk to a few households determined to stay in their generational homes.
During the Dragon War the Dark Elves were as much adversaries for their former trading partners as for the dragons. They raided settlements across Western Cimmeria for supplies and trade goods. The war consumed the attention of the surface dwellers and the Dark Elves pillaged without fear of reprisal.
At the end of the Dragon War a descendant of Sadroston came to Western Cimmeria with a goal of ending the raids. His name was Condrofalspeth and he was a Half-Elf mage. Condrofalspeth gathered the dispersed people of Western Cimmeria together so they could better defend themselves against Croshan’s warriors. These settlers rebuilt the town of Jeutontic into a splendid city-state on the edge of Gaia’s Navel. Continue reading →

Kingdoms Sprouting Up Part 2

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Previous: Kingdoms Sprouting Up Part 1

Jipangu
While the races of the defunct Conclave were distracted by the Dragon War, the Hobgoblins of Eastern Cimmeria were preparing for war. In 876BCE the leader of the Hobgoblins, Kruk-Sho-Kar, invaded, laying waste to all of the small settlements around the Aral Sea.
Toffoun had been trying to stop the Dwarven Civil War. He realized that his efforts were getting him nothing and that his talents could be better used defending his old home in Eastern Cimmeria. Toffoun went with his old friends, Amalgami and Jovy, to stop the Hobgoblins. Together they organized the Eastern Cimmerians into an army. Continue reading →

Kingdoms Sprouting Up Part 1

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The end of the Dragon War is a climax for the history of Cimmeria. I knew pretty well what built up to it. I knew the relative timing for events that happened during the war. The activities of the heroes after the war is largely dictated by the natural length of their lifespans depending on their race. It’s the transition to the next stage of Cimmerian history that I never figured out. Most of the harsh challenges of settling in the new land are resolved, so now the people just… settle. I don’t have any large conflicts for another 200 years after the Dragon War.

My next step is to set the stage for the next conflict and mix in a few smaller problems that the successors of the Dragon War Heroes will have to deal with.

Kingdom Sprouting

Smaller Settlements
After the Conclave dissolved, the Humans, Dwarves, Elves, Halflings, and Orcs of Cimmeria spread out. They settled in small communities across the land. These communities would eventually develop into the various tribes, cities, and towns that are spotted across the landscape.

Nox
Most of Sadroston’s descendants died defending Nox when the dragons attack. The remaining few signed their lives away to the White Dragon pair, Shivara and Tikanile. The White Dragons disliked ruling personally in the relatively warm city. They coronated one of Sadroston’s weakest children, Tachydorn, as King of Nox. The stronger of Sadroston’s remaining descendants were taken back to the White Dragons’ lair at Doom Peak. Continue reading →

Cimmerian Timeline Part 28

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Previous: Cimmerian Timeline Part 27

1091BCE: Hephaestus presented Karnafaust with a gift, the Fierce Axe of Dwavish Lords. With the Axe came a promise, that the Dwarves were Hephaestus’s favorite people, even beyond death. King Karnafaust adopted the Axe as a symbol of his right to rule.

1045BCE: With Karnafaust’s death the Fierce Axe of Dwarvish Lords passed to Cogard. The Dwarven Regency Council held the Axe to Cogard came of age, just as they held his governmental powers.

996BCE: King Cogard turned 50 and came of age. He was coronated, but the Dwarven Regency Council did not relinquish governmental control to their designated sovereign. Cogard received the Fierce Axe of Dwarvish Lords at his coronation. Continue reading →

Pokémon Dashboard

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We all have our little quarantine projects. I’ve had a few. Reorganizing the cluttered tupperware in our cabinets. Getting the furniture in a spare bedroom ready for our new son in November. My more frivolous project has been installing a Pokémon themed display on my dashboard.

I started off simple. I wanted the display to be modular, so I could move the Pokémon around or play with them (not while driving). That meant instead of super-gluing the figurines directly to the dashboard, I would glue them to metal washers. I glued ceramic magnets to the dashboard (all using heat-resistant epoxy so it won’t soften in the summer heat). Then the Pokémon could be moved around to create different displays. I can even switch the Pokémon out entirely if I want and put in some other type of figurine!

So that looked good. It was fun. I liked it. But the dashboard was still a boring black color. How could I spice it up? Continue reading →

The Fierce Axe of Dwarvish Lords

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Fierce Axe of Dwarvish Lords
Dwarvish lord not included

The Fierce Axe of Dwavish Lords is the symbol of supreme Dwarven leadership. It was gifted to Karnafaust after his resurrection by Hephaestus. With the Axe came a promise, that the Dwarves were Hephaestus’s favorite people, even beyond death.

Karnafaust held the Fierce Axe until his death in 1046BCE. The Axe passed to his swaddling nephew, Cogard. As the boy had just been born, the Axe was entrusted to the Dwarven Council. The Axe was wielded by the head of the council, not as a weapon, but as a symbol of the infant king’s authority. When Cogard was coronated he took the Fierce Axe as his birthright. The Axe’s presence provided a boost to Cogard’s popularity as he toured the Dwarven lands before returning to peacefully oust the Dwarven Council from power.

King Cogard used the Axe during the Dragon War, slaying many of the lesser dragons with it. Cogard also had a tendency to execute traitors of the other Conclave races using the Fierce Axe. Treasonous Dwarves were killed by Cogard’s executioner instead.

The Fierce Axe was lost during the Dwarven Civil War. The Dwarves claim that the Axe abandoned the people as it could only be used by a united Dwarven race. Others say it was simply hidden by a group who didn’t want it used as a bargaining piece in the conflict between Cogard’s sons.

It was many centuries before the Fierce Axe of Dwarvish Lords resurfaced. Atreides was a Dwarf aiding Princess Tarigananata’s claim to the throne in the First Alliance War. He had a vision that led him to the Fierce Axe’s hiding place. He slew a giant guarding the weapon and claimed it for the Dwarven race. Before returning the Axe to his king, Atreides took it into battle with the Xorian Rage, Grave. Amalgami took the Axe and gave it to the Xorians when he negotiated his personal surrender. The Axe would linger in the Xorian Museum of Power for two more decades. 

When the Dragovinians rose to power, Jevaninada II had to renew alliances with the vassals within the Xorian Empire. He used the Fierce Axe to bribe the new Amazon Queen Ashabodai. She wielded the Axe for the initial push into Eastern Cimmeria.

The Hill Dwarves came to the assistance of the Alliance at the Battle of Phoenix. When the Dragovinians assaulted the city, Torin came face to face with Ashabodai. Athena possessed Torin and with the help of his goddess and his friends, they defeated Ashabodai and reclaimed the Fierce Axe for the Dwavish people.

Torin gave the Fierce Axe of Dwarvish Lords to King Dainlin of the Hill Dwarves. Dainlin used the Fierce Axe to call for a meeting of the four Dwarven Kings. The meeting would decide which of the four would take his place as High King over all the Dwarves. Dainlin supported Torngar on the condition that Torngar join the Second Alliance. Sandil supported Torngar as well. Deekgaon refused to provide his support until Torngar named him general of all Dwarven armies.

With decision finalized, Torngar became High King of the Dwarves. He wields the Fierce Axe of Dwarvish Lords and rules over a united Dwarvish nation once again.