King Lodik is dying and the realm of Manichee is being engulfed in a perilous succession war over the throne. The six Dukedoms are dying to control the sons of the king and assassination has become the rule of the day, with the peasants waiting for the lords to murder each other off so they can return to harvesting crops or face a famine the lords either do not know about or are too embroiled in their plots to care about.
Note: This is conceivced as a one-kingdom game, making setting creation much quicker than in most games.
The Kingdom of Manichee
Geography: The land of Manichee is a wealth of pastureland and forest in the north, bounded by the Grey Teeth Mountains that are all but impassible. To the east the land is bound by a foul swamp said to be inhabited by the dread witch Jeliz - none have returned from its depths. In the south the land is farmland and rivers, bound at it's end by the Wasting, the relic of a long forgotten war. Only the west allows travel to othger lands by the Jagged Coast, and travel through the reefs is perilous during the summer, the only months one can make it to their land safely.
But 300 years ago a way through the Swamps was discovered and trade with the outside world, largely the kinddom of Caryldan, has prospered, bringing new sciences and modern weapons into the land.
Succession: For well over 800 years the line of Lodik has ruled in a Salic succession, but the kings only surviving son died last night of natural causes (for kings to be, assassination counts as a natural cause). The war over who takes the throne next is heating up and renegade ideas of having the females (or their male children) included in the line of succession have threatened to split the kingdom in half.
The royal family is listed below. Males are in CAPS, females in lowercase. No spouses etc. are listed to save time.
| LODIK | DAVIS (dead) | A BASTARD |
| Mira | A PC RAFAEL | |
| MAX (the fool) | UGIT Elwen | |
| HERON | Riles | |
| Alluwen | Madine | Vesyil A PC |
| TOLKIR | MORN Alyesha DURK A PC |
Note: MAX is mentally challegened, and many believe him unfit for the throne even though he is next in line. His son UGIT is a sadist, and but-ugly. His daughter is slow.
Magic: Magic is done a la modern earth witchcraft and is very iffy to use, rarely works right, and is mistrusted. The rule of 3 applies.
Religion: Some gods, but they are not involved in the world and their names mostly only known to the secretive priests who serve them (Mystery cults, more or less)
Society The King rules all. His word is law, no one breaks it. Under him are the Dukes who rule the 6 dominions in the kings name. Under them are Barons, under then knights, then villagers, peasants, and slaves. Slavery is rare (there are better things to trade with the outside world) but does occur. Indetured servants rank with slaves and are basically peasants given to/sold off to a baron because the family can't afford to raise them.
Barons rule their area with approval from the Duke. They can enforce laws as they wish, and most Dukes are just concerned that they pay their taxes and train knights. The Dukes settle all disputes between baronies (and between peasants and their lord, if one reaches their notice). The king settles ducal disputes and is the final authority in the world, seen as the embodiment of the gods will by the pious.
(Some kings in the past have even displayed royal powers but they tend to be rare.)
Laws are whatever the King says. Taxes, the same.
Possible complications:
- Caryldan considering an invasion.
- The dukes vying for power as well, Lodik was once one of the ducal houses, after all. If MAX & UGIT die and HERON does (so he can have no sons) by right one of them gains the throne. No one wants MAX or UGIT on the throne, really, and HERON is an old man as well, and his death - unless he produces a son - will just spark off another war, so people don't want that.
- The crops need to come in! Famine!
- The Witch in the Swamp closes the trade road. Panic ensures. Traditionalists like it. Modern thinkers fear that Manichee would fall behind the rest of the world and be conqured the next time such a road opens.
- A priest decides what candidate s/he wants on the throne and begings using his/her cult to arrange matters.
PCs would basically be the heirs listed, bastards, or friends of the heirs ("from our adventuring days"). PCs could be any level for such a game, but 2-6 should be good enough.
Any ideas?
No comments:
Post a Comment