Book II: The Sword of Valour The dawn after victory brought not rest, but summons. The heroes awoke to the sound of trumpets echoing through the streets of a rebuilding Kenabres—a royal fanfare heralding the arrival of Queen Galfrey, the… Read More »Session 13 — A Queen’s Charge
Small in stature but vast in spirit, Nurah Dendiwhar brings light where shadows linger. A bard, historian, and self-proclaimed “morale officer extraordinaire,” Nurah has travelled across Mendev chronicling the heroics and tragedies of the crusades. Her laughter is infectious, her… Read More »Nurah Dendiwhar
A man shaped by both loyalty and loss, Aron Kir has seen more of the Crusades’ failures than its triumphs. Once a soldier in the Queen’s armies, Aron later turned his talents toward engineering—building siege engines, fortifications, and field defenses… Read More »Aron Kir
Sosiel Vaenic is a man of rare gentleness amid the brutality of the Crusades. A devoted priest of Shelyn, goddess of beauty and love, he tends to both the wounded body and the wounded soul. Tall, calm, and graceful in… Read More »Sosiel Vaenic
Drezen is a crusader citadel in the middle of the Worldwound, erected when victory over the demons seemed so close. Its high walls can house an entire army. Control over this city is key to victory in the war. Drezen… Read More »Drezen
With the lower floors of the Grey Garrison cleared and the sounds of battle fading behind them, the heroes turned their gaze upward—to the final floor, and to the source of the corruption festering at Kenabres’ heart. The last few… Read More »Session 12 — The Shattering of the Wardstone
The babau is an assassin, a murderer, and a sadist. Certainly not traits unusual in the demons, yet the babau’s penchant for stealth and surprise sets it apart from its generally less-subtle kin. With no need to eat (although most… Read More »Demon, Babau
The half-succubus witch Areelu Vorlesh was one of the most powerful denizens of the land known as the Worldwound. She was best known for having aided the demon lord Deskari in opening the Worldwound in 4606 AR, shortly after her… Read More »Areelu Vorlesh
Nothing holds a grudge like a minotaur. Scorned by the civilized races centuries ago and born from a deific curse, minotaurs have hunted, slain, and devoured lesser humanoids in retribution for real or imagined slights for as long as anyone… Read More »Minotaur
Savage creatures of nightmare, perytons combine the features of stags, wolves, and great birds of prey. Though vicious beasts, perytons possess all the intelligence of a human. Perytons hunt any creature weaker than themselves, but prefer humanoid prey, as they… Read More »Peryton
The air inside the Gray Garrison grew heavier as the heroes pressed deeper into its defiled heart. Having secured the main hall, they turned northward, determined to clear the ground floor before daring the ascent. Their caution proved wise—waiting in… Read More »Session 11 – The Blade Returned
Deskari is the Demon Lord of infestation, swarms, and the apocalypse that comes on endless wings. His vast, chitinous form towers over mortals, a hybrid of man and locust — six clawed limbs, vast serrated mandibles, and a crown of… Read More »Deskari
A schir resembles a tall, muscular humanoid with the head and hooves of a demonic goat. A ragged hide covers patches of a schir’s body, usually around the forearms and lower legs, with a crestlike patch running down from the… Read More »Demon, Schir
The council chamber at Defender’s Heart was thick with the smell of smoke and sweat, every crusader gathered knowing they might not see the dawn. There, the plan was laid bare: the last of Kenabres’ soldiers would ride out, striking… Read More »Session 10 – The Shadow of the Gray Garrison
Vermleks form from the souls of those who habitually violated the dead in life, such as grave robbers, necromancers, and necrophiles. Demonic armies often use them as disposable troops in war, with vermleks inhabiting the bodies of slain humanoid enemies… Read More »Demon, Vermlek
The companions left Defender’s Heart with grim purpose, making for the Tower of Estrod. The streets were eerily quiet, broken only by the circling of carrion birds — fiendish vultures that picked at the ruins from above. Giving the beasts… Read More »Session Nine: The Enemy’s Hand Revealed
The dawn after their rest at Defender’s Heart saw the companions strike out once more into the ruined streets of Kenabres. The air still carried the tang of smoke and the distant echo of falling stone, reminders that the city… Read More »Session Eight: Shadows in the Ashes
A mandragora rises spontaneously from a mandrake root that has drawn nutrition from the corpse or ichor of a demon. A typical mandragora stands at just over 3 feet tall and only weighs 30 pounds. However, its size hides the… Read More »Mandragora
Refreshed and paid for their service, the party left the relative safety of Gwerm Manor and re-entered the scorched streets of Kenabres. The city was eerily quiet, the wind thick with soot and the occasional distant roar or scream a… Read More »Session Seven: Voices in the Ash, Fires in the Heart
A wardstone is a minor artifact in the form of a menhir inscribed with runes, and is designed to ward out demons of the Worldwound. Its power must be maintained by regular prayers and annual rituals. The wardstones are infused… Read More »Kenabres’ Wardstone
Galfrey is the eldest daughter of the last prince of Mendev who died under mysterious circumstances on a diplomatic mission to Sarkoris in 4601 AR. She was quickly crowned and has remained the head of state ever since. Galfrey originally… Read More »Queen Galfrey
Commander of the Eagle Watch, Defender of Kenabres A half-orc paladin of Iomedae, Irabeth is a stoic and unwavering defender of the city. Now the highest-ranking member of the Eagle Watch following the fall of Kenabres, she has taken command… Read More »Irabeth Tirabade
The howler is a native to the Abyss, an Outer Plane where madness is the norm and cruelty is expected and often rewarded. The howler prowls these Abyssal realms, serving the role of a hungry predator like a lion or… Read More »Howler
Emerging into the smouldering wreckage of Kenabres, the party took in the ruin their city had become. Deep chasms split the ground, smoke choked the sky, and once-proud landmarks were now shattered husks. Yet there was no time to mourn.… Read More »Session Six: Ashes, Allies, and Old Debts
The Riftwardens are a loose collection of planar travellers from across the Great Beyond who guard the multiverse’s integrity and stability. They aim to prevent evildoers from using planar gateways and punish any who they catch trying. Riftwardens are believed… Read More »Riftwardens
Known as wrecker demons, abrikandilus delight in destroying beauty, be it by rending a fine painting to shreds, reducing a magnificent statue to rubble, or scarring a lovely face. Abrikandilus are formed from the souls of mortals who vandalised art… Read More »Demon, Abrikandilu
Legend A: Exit from the UnderwayB: Blackwing LibraryC: Gwerm ManorD: Tirabade ResidenceE: Topaz SolutionsF: Nyserian ManorG: The Tower of EstrodH: Defenders HeartI: ?
Hosilla, You will remain, for the time being, in Kenabres. But know this: the city’s days are numbered. Seek a place of safety—the underground den of your mongrel lackeys should suffice to keep you safe from the devastation to come.… Read More »Hosilla’s Orders
Even the lowest demons of the Abyss are dangerous and filled with a driving need to spread ruin and dismay. The lowly dretch is as hideous and foul as it is cruel, even if it lacks the strength and power… Read More »Demon, Dretch
Galvanised by their hard-won victories, the party pushed deeper into the heart of the cultist enclave. In the depths of the caverns, they faced the leader of the outpost—Hosilla—alongside her loyal bodyguard. Fire and chaos erupted as a grease spell,… Read More »Session Five: Ashes Above, Shadows Below
With the memory of Chief Sull’s charge still fresh, the party pressed into the darkness to confront the traitor mongrelmen. Their approach was swift and decisive, cutting down the guards posted at the enclave’s entrance. But not before the alarm… Read More »Session Four: Echoes of Betrayal
Guided by Lann and his companions, the party at last reached Neatholm—the hidden refuge of the mongrelmen. Nestled on an island in the middle of a subterranean lake, the city was little more than a ramshackle cluster of huts, but… Read More »Session Three: The Promise of Neatholm
Climbing out of the mad dwarf’s cavern proved far more treacherous than the descent into the depths. While some of the party ascended the old, piton-studded shaft with ease, others—particularly the wounded Anevia and the blinded Aravashnial—required careful rope work… Read More »Session Two: Beneath the Broken Watchtower
Iomedaeis the goddess of righteous valor, justice, and honor. Having served as Aroden’s herald, she inherited many of the Last Azlanti’s followers upon his disappearance and continues to espouse the ideas of honor and righteousness in the defense of good… Read More »Iomedae
Baphomet demon lord of beasts, mazes, and traitors, rules over the Abyssal realm known as the Ivory Labyrinth.
Lann the mongrelman is a curious sight even for the distorted land of the Worldwound. A descendant of the first crusaders, a child of the caves beneath Kenabres, he followed his new leader up toward the light of the foreign… Read More »Lann
The day began in celebration. Armasse had come to Kenabres, drawing crowds from across the crusader city to Clydwell Plaza. Among them stood Suliman the Magus, Frod the Grippli Rogue, Mokrer Djir the ratfolk Wizard, and Rurik the Dwarven Shapeshifter.… Read More »Session One: Fall of the Kite
The darkmantle isn’t a particularly good climber, but it can cling to a cave roof like a bat, hanging by the hooks at the ends of its tentacles so that its dangling body looks nearly indistinguishable from a stalactite. In… Read More »Darkmantle
The powerful balor demon Khorramzadeh rules the city of Iz in the Worldwound. He is known as the Storm King, as his form is bathed in lightning rather than the fire usual to balors. He is one of the two… Read More »Khorramzadeh, The Storm King
The ancient silver dragon Terendelev has made her home in the Mendevian city of Kenabres for many years. She serves the Iomedaean leadership as a soldier and enforcer, patrolling the city with a group of like-minded paladins.
Prelate Hulrun Shappok is the aging leader of all inquisitors in Mendev, and the ruler of the northern city of Kenabres. He is second in power in Mendev only to Queen Galfrey.
Horgus is a wealthy aristocrat from one of the minor noble families of Kenabres. He has a numberof superficial cuts and scrapes, but is otherwise unharmed.
Aravashnial is a Riftwarden, a member of a secretive society that has long opposed the works of theBlackfire Adepts and any others who would use planar portals and gateways to undermine or assault the Material Plane. While his blindness severely… Read More »Aravashnial
Anevia is a semi-retired adventurer who settled in Kenabres after falling in love with a crusader named Irabeth. Her rogue abilities include certain skills that may be needed to escape the caverns alive.
Huecuvas are the risen corpses of heretical clerics who blasphemed and renounced their deities before meeting death. In unlife, they hate and seek to destroy those pious souls who keep their vows. Although easily mistaken for zombies or even skeletons,… Read More »Huecava
Voracious scavengers, giant maggots feed constantly, gorging themselves on the dead in preparation for their transformation into giant flies. Their pallid, corpulent bodies are the size of human children, and their rasping teeth are capable of eating even the bones… Read More »Giant Fly & Maggot
Kenabres is a fortified crusader city bordering the Worldwound. Currently, the city is the center of a radical faction of Iomedae’s faith who are renowned witch-hunters, led by the aging Hulrun Shappok. Although the city has become infamous for its… Read More »Kenabres