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 Phalorm - The Lost Colonies (Maztica/Anchorome 4e)

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T O P I C    R E V I E W
Lirdolin Posted - 19 Jan 2012 : 15:49:46
Before 5e changes everything again I thought I might share my ideas for the remaining northern colonies of Maztica with you:

PHALORM

Named for the the legendary ‘Realm of Three Crowns’ of north western Faerûn, where many races lived together, Phalorm is actually made up of three seperate realms: Darkwater, Trythos and Balduran. All three where once colonies of faerûnian realms, that where left to fend for themself, when the Spellplague destroyed their shipyards and the colonies where thought lost like the rest of Maztica by their motherlands. Sometimes the people of Phalorm refer to their lands as Forlorn Phalorm or the Forlorn Realms.
The warm winds of Phalorm meet with the icewinds of Fimbrul over Darkwater Gulf, creating regular storms. Phalorms climate somewhat cooled down as a result.

History
After the Year of Blue Fire, the vanishing of Mazticas mainland, the colonies shipyards destroyed and being cut-off from their mothercountries the three remaining cities of the settlers united for mutual protection under the name Phalorm.
During the first years of the Spellplague, another plague called “Zaltec’s Hunger” befell the land and killed so many of the natives, that in the end they only numbered about one third of the entire population. Today only isolated villages of fullblooded natives remain, the rest intermingeld with the settlers and only a tendency for dark skin and hair among the rural population hint a their legacy. There is also a strong tendency of sorcerous ‘Pluma’-rituals among the natives descendants.
Recently exploring eladrin and elves from Evermeet arrived and revived the lands sea-trade by offering to transport goods between the cities.

SETTELMENTS AND FEATURES
NEW WATERDEEP
The Capitol of Darkwater is ruled by the Triumvirat, three masked lords, elected from the Elder Families. These noble families are the Raventree, Adarbrent and Jardeth. The Helmfast family all but died out when the moorings on Maztapan island vanished during the Spellplague. The surviving members joined the Raventrees.
New Waterdeep is policed by the Harpers, who are lead by Orist Moonbow, an eladrin ranger.
The City also sports numerous small guilds like the Council of Farmer-Grocers, the Fellowship of Salters, Packers and Joiners and the Downeybeard Tobbaconists.
With the Help of the Elves of Evermeet he people of Darkwater recently started to rebuilt their naval fleet. Sofar they only manage the sea trade between the three port cities of Phalorm.
After Helm died, the Church of Torm took over many of its responsibilities, Torm’s servant Bahamut is depicted as a feathered serpent-dragon in Darkwater. Chauntea’s veneration also differs from the cults found in Faerûn as it is mingled with attributes of the natives old Maztica veneration. The city also houses shrines to Mielikki and Auril.
About half of the old city lies sunken in the swampy bayou of Darkwater Gulf that formed when Maztica and Laerakond exchanged places. The drowned Guardians Gate Temple of Helm is reported to haunted and several smaller earthmotes hover above the bayou.

Below Darkwater, in a vast network of limestone-caverns lair the ‘Ancient Ones’, a conclave of driders with white furred spiderbodies, lead by their revived wizard-queen Darien. They revere Lolth again in hopes of regaining her favor. The driders rule over a drow enclave they discovered after the Spellplague and their dark elven and human followers are known as Viperhand-Cultists, because of their use of snake whips.

LANTARAS
Originally an enclave of lantanese refugies, the now small town quickly grew and is the Phalorm’s center of invention guarded by warforged troops.

TRYTHOS
Founded as Trythosford by the Paladin Trythos, it’s paladins, the Eagle Knights, still make up the elite warriors of the realm. The knights, whose helms resemble eagle heads and whose armors are worked with feather-images remind of the ancient warriors of Maztica.

FLAMEHOLD
Formerly known as Fort Flame, the city still is guarded by the Flaming Fist, now the settlements regular guard under the Command of the Duke of Flamehold, rather than mercenaries. The Silvertongue halflings are quite influential as is the Moruene-School of Wizardry.

The Darkwater
The black seawater of the realms southern coasts is said by some sailors and coastdwellers to posses a sort of malign intelligence and life of it’s own.
Morellas Gate
A former outpost destroied by the wild elves of Elfhome, the Wizards of flamehold tried to built a portal home. they succeded, but the new portal connected to a portal of the lower levels of Undermountain and brought a pocket of the Spellplague to Balduran. The ritual caster, the half-elf wizardress Morella was plaguechanged into a naga-like creature and still guards the gate.
Axepoint-Mountains
A corruption of an older native name, Mount Aurora beinig it’s highest peak. In the higher mountain valleys live tribes of natives, who found a new patron in Malar after the god Zaltec vanished and turned into jaguar lycantrophes and later shifters, who still enact gruesom sacrifices. Their most powerful warriors call themselves Jaguar Knights.
Cliffs of Kultakas End
The southern coast is made up of high cliffs, lined by many Earthmotes. In the south across the sea the people of Phalorm can see the grim and icy mountains of Fimbrul below the steelgrey sky.
The Cerulean Plain
Due to the Climate changes the southern parts of the former central desert are greening. The native halflings have been civilized by the halflings among the settlers and life in hill-houses. At night the plains are the hunting grounds of plains roming beholders of the deathkiss variety. Many insect-people like Thri-Kreen, Dromites and Formians make their home here as well.

Neighbouring Lands of Phalorm
The Blueglas-Wastes
A plaguechanged desert, home to dwarven savages, some of which are even cannibalistic and are ruled by intelligent deepspawn.
Elfhome
A realm of the northern Forests and the Poscadara Gras Plains, it is populated by eild elves, who revere archfey at evigy mounds, and by feywild eladrin whose cities returned during the Spellplague. Part of Elfhomes forests near Flamehold is a vine-forest, that’s actually a sleeping primordial.
Itzcatil
A realm of bloodthirsty sahuagin of the coast of Trythos, adding to the dangers of travelling by ship.
Huac
A land of orcs, ogres and trolls far to the west, who revere no gods because they once cast them into their now hideous form and drove them from their shining empire on the Land now gone.
Michaca
The already vast canyon caved in, opening to the underdark on many places and is now guarded by the elves of Elfhome.
The Expatriat of Wu
A recent colony from Kara-Tur, on anchoromes western coast.


14   L A T E S T    R E P L I E S    (Newest First)
Zireael Posted - 26 Oct 2012 : 15:21:08
This is awesome!
Lirdolin Posted - 18 May 2012 : 19:39:34
Thanks a lot
And I totaly invite the powers that be use use this material for an official version when it comes around
Brian R. James Posted - 18 May 2012 : 05:02:01
I really like this. Excellent job Lirdolin. Sweet map too.
Lirdolin Posted - 17 May 2012 : 10:52:11
uploaded the sketch map to deviant art:
http://therealmidir.deviantart.com/#/d506lcr

The Green Sisters
The island-chain far to east of Phalorm's and north of Fimbrul's coasts has become the home of elves and eladrin from Evermeet, who use it as a base for expeditions to the two continets. the islands are heavily forested and sport some exotic wildlife of old Maztica and even feathered serpents are reported to live here, if they are couatls or even the feathered dragons of Maztica is unknown.

Aeries of the Birdpeople
Scattered across the continents mountain ranges and forests are several tribes of Aarakocra. While those tribes living near the central desert resemple vultures, the tribes of the south have a more parot-like look and their norther forest brethern are more crow-like. The aarakocra of the south have been forced into a battle with the Skypeople over the dominance over the skies while those tribes living near the Expatriat of Wu have come under attack by imigrated kenkus.

The Expatriat of Wu(Update)
A recent colony from Kara-Tur, on Anchorome’s western coast. It was created when the rulers of the islandrealm Wa deciced due to the terrors of the Spellplague, to bring some of the royal heirs to a safe location, unknowing, that there where no real ‘save’ locations on the whole planet. Several ships set sail to the east containing settlers to serve and warriors to fight for the royal heirs. Since their arrival the Expartriat has prospered. Most recently gold has been found in the mountains and rivers and Wu’s current rulers are contemplating to change the realms name to ‘Wu the Golden Shogunat of the East’. The gold is also thought to be a gift of Amaterasu, goddess of the Sun and the divine Patron of the realms rulers (now a female aspect of Amaunator). Wu is beset by the savage people of Huac and by several tribes of Kenku, whose ancestors had managed to smuggel themselves and a huge nest of eggs aboard the original settlers ships. With the elves on their northern borders they have set up trade relations and elven females are becoming a favorite as concubines among the rich and powerful of Wu.

The Blueglas-Wastes(Update)
A plaguechanged desert, home to dwarven savages, some of which are even cannibalistic and are ruled by intelligent deepspawn. The Blueglas-Wastes aren’t only endless dunes of blue sands but are riddled with jagged mountains and mesas of blue glas, some sharp as razors, others polished smooth by the howling winds and the sand. The Wastes are home to other spellscarred and plaguechanged predators besides the dwarves and their deepspawn masters as well. Vultures have grown into huge ‘blueflame phoenixes’ who recreate themselves from their own ashes after they died and most of the native scorpions might not have grown in size considerably, although there some gigantic scorpions here, but the rare ‘midnight scorpion’s poison transfers spellscars that are rarely useful to the victim. Also a relative of the common scorpion are the ‘blue tide stings’, intelligent swarms of tiny scorpions and the huge glasspider weaves webs of razorsharp glas. The mountains are home to some spellscarred blue dragons, often revered to as ‘thunder dragons’ due to the lightning that constantly envelopes them.

The Valley of Giants
The valley is actually a large, realm-sized strip of forested land between two mountain ranges but to it’s natives, several tribes of giants of differnt kinds, with hill, storm and stone giants being the most numerous, it’s only a valley with a lush river.
Lirdolin Posted - 17 May 2012 : 09:50:31
quote:
Originally posted by Markustay

What maps are you using?

It seems to me you did precisely what I suggested WotC do in 5e - merged old lore with new, and created something fantastic. I only talked about it, but you went-ahead and did it!

Please continue - we need more threads like this.



Thanks again :)
The map (yes there actually is a very sketchy one) I'm using is stiched together from various sources like Lands of Intrigue, the northern Maztica Adventures and some maps found on the internet.

And to add a little lore

The Formian Plain
On the north western coast of the continent bordering Elfhomes plains and woods lies the Formian Plain which isn't a natural plain but was created by the hunger of it's inhabitants, various states of formians, who time and time again try to invade on the lands surounding them to win new feeding grounds. Luck has it, that the formian warriors of the Plain get irritated and even illogical when moving to far from their respective queens hold or one of said queens is killed.
Markustay Posted - 01 May 2012 : 18:01:53
What maps are you using?

It seems to me you did precisely what I suggested WotC do in 5e - merged old lore with new, and created something fantastic. I only talked about it, but you went-ahead and did it!

Please continue - we need more threads like this.
louis_bowwow Posted - 28 Apr 2012 : 18:19:42
Very cool. You could have them war with the local aarakocra for dominance of the skies over Phalorm. Or have them move the mote above mountains where the were jaguars live and try to assert their lordly might. The eagle path must be better than the jaguar if the were elevated like that.

Keep the ideas coming.
Lirdolin Posted - 22 Feb 2012 : 06:43:41
When you think about something you get new ideas...

The drow among the Ancient Ones still shape limestone to build their houses, just like their relatives in Faerûn do, but the drider live in tempel-structures that remind of the architectur of old Maztica, the greatest pyramid in every city is dedicated to Lolth. Inspired by the maztican driders, the culture of the Ancient Ones also took over some other of the more bloodthirsty trademarks of maztican culture like the way sacrifices are made. The clothes of the higher families often remind of a mixture of drow and maztican fashion, spider and web motives being used most often. The female priests and highborn females even wear dresses and skirts that pronounce the bottoms, reminding of spider abdomens. in the last decades a new deity has become relevant among the ancient ones, the cult of Lolth's new Champion, the interloper deity Vulkoor. He caters especially to the warrior cast and has even created the first scrow (scorpion-like driders) from the elite warriors.

The Skypeople
Among the earthmotes of Kultakas End, there is a large one that carries a city, (Name), acity of old maztica. The people here are pure blooded mazticans. They revere the gods of old (alnd they are unaware that now other deities answer their prayers). The people of (Name) have become haughty believing that the gods elevated them to higher status and saved only their city from destruction. Their wizards create magic pluma items, like feather cloaks, to allow flight and their eagle knight actually ride large eagles.
Lirdolin Posted - 21 Feb 2012 : 21:00:15
quote:
Originally posted by Old Man Harpell

And you will be submitting your ideas to WotC, yes?
Seriously - this is really good stuff!
More, please.



Thanks for all the praise.
Sadly at the moment there isn't more on Phalorm. But given some time maybe I'll add some more ideas (curently formulating some ideas on 4e/5e Zakhara I once posted on the WotC forums).
But I wouldn't mind if someone else would post ideas to add to my ideas.
Currently I have got only a sketchy map for my orientation and the 'Lands of Intrigue' Maztica part as my mayor source that is not inclueded here.

Submitting it to WotC? Well, at least I could post a link on the 'Create Realmslore' thread here so maybe it will get noticed in that context.

Lirdolin
Old Man Harpell Posted - 19 Feb 2012 : 16:36:01
And you will be submitting your ideas to WotC, yes?

Seriously - this is really good stuff!

More, please.

- OMH
Diffan Posted - 19 Feb 2012 : 16:04:57
This actually makes me want to play there and have the PC's find a way 'Back Home'. And I can literally put anything there I want and grab aspects of Returned Abier for that setting as well.
Markustay Posted - 19 Feb 2012 : 15:15:23
Very interesting take; please continue.

I guess Maztica could have been fixed - you just proved it. All it took was a little creativity.
Diffan Posted - 19 Feb 2012 : 12:57:21
Wow, great job!
louis_bowwow Posted - 19 Feb 2012 : 07:54:13
This is really interesting. Do you have anymore?

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