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The Foundation Stone

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Within the stone lies the will of the Lords, each oath etched by hands and hearts united. Break it, and you break the realm.
Governor Athor of Albarith, from the Chronicles of the Fastness

The Foundation Stone is a towering monolith of numenic ore, erected at the heart of Castle Moongarm. It serves as the binding symbol of the Lords’ Alliance, the pact that united the Lords of Men to protect Midworld from external threats and internal corruption. Each Lord impressed their heraldic sigil upon the stone, sealing the magical bond of their shared purpose. Its presence behind the throne of Moruin is a constant reminder of the need for unity and shared responsibility over the realm.

The xenolith was originally unearthed from the shores of Nithaven, a land renowned for its industry and its people's resilience in the face of tempests from the Ocean of Furies. Numenic ore, a raw material that's explosive if mishandled, perfectly symbolizes the delicate balance that the Lords' forged when they made their alliance.

The Foundation Stone’s cracking marked the end of an era when Lord Gazreth declared the Decree of the One God, proclaiming himself Emperor of Arcadia. Skalds sing of how the Stone split the moment Gazreth’s forces seized Grael Fastness.

Since then, the Stone has been a source of speculation. Some believe its crack allows dark forces to seep into the realm, influencing rulers and igniting conflict. Others argue it is at best a coincidence that the Stone cracked when it did, and at worst a physical manifestation of the betrayal that destroyed the Alliance. Regardless, the Stone remains behind the Emperor’s throne, a fractured but potent relic of what once was.

Adventure Hook

By linking the Stone to the party’s current struggles, you can position it as a reminder of the dangers of clinging to the past while challenging the party to chart a new course for the future. In a downtime, explore the PCs’ lost lovers, broken friendships, or abandoned causes to help them internalize the Foundation Stone’s meaning.

It is revealed that fragments of the Foundation Stone, broken off during its cracking, were stolen from Castle Moongarm in the earliest days of the Empire’s forming. These shards retain echoes of the oaths once bound to the Stone and could be used to forge alliances or manipulate powerful magic against the Emperor. Many arcanists were present at the sealing of the Foundation Stone, but a rumor persists that among them was the Artificer himself. What secret power or encoded sigil did the Artificer leave in the famous stone and its missing tablets? Perhaps knowledge of said script could be crucial in the rebel uprising against the Emperor… if only a crew of adventurers could collect and assemble the missing pieces.

Who has stolen the shards, and to what end?
What secret power does the Stone possess, heretofore unknown to the Lords?
Can the Stone’s magic be restored, and should it be?

Tags: Artifacts

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The Foundation Stone

The Order of Mankind

Decree of the One God

Lords' Alliance

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