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Lords of Arcadia

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To break the Lords' Alliance was to break the world itself. Arcadia does not rule; it devours, and its appetite is endless.
—Lady Katreus of Idania, from Our Lamentations

The fall of the Lords’ Alliance, once the bulwark of unity among the human realms, marked the rise of Arcadia as a dominant force in the world. Lord Gazreth’s treachery—slaying Lord Paimon and seizing the throne of Moruin—fractured the Alliance, paving the way for Arcadia’s transformation into an empire under the banner of the One God Avestar.

Arcadia’s imperial doctrine, the Decree of the One God, demands absolute submission. Its paladins are tasked with spreading Avestar’s light across every land and sea, an unrelenting crusade that justifies conquest in the guise of divine will. The Empire’s reach spans the continent of Arcadia and beyond, supported by a supernautical battalion that dominates the world’s oceans and skies, including the perilous waters of the Night’s Ocean, the Black Sea, the Lost Ocean, and the Ocean of Furies.

At the heart of the Empire lies Castle Moongarm in Moruin, where Emperor Gazreth resides. Once a shrewd and charismatic leader, Gazreth has succumbed to madness. His erratic rule has left Arcadia divided among competing factions. The Congress of Judges, the Hierarchate of Avestar, and the Governors of Albarith vie for power, each pursuing their own agendas while pretending to serve the Emperor’s will.

Despite its might, the Empire is not unassailable. Its aggressive expansionism has provoked resistance from neighboring realms like Altea, Mordaine, and Farlas, while tenuous nonaggression treaties with Arcanum, Telrain, Vanis, Mamara, and Nithaven are maintained through political maneuvering rather than genuine peace. Internal discord further weakens Arcadia, as miscommunication and conflicting orders from its governing factions sow chaos in its campaigns.

The Lords of Arcadia embody the perils of unbridled ambition, their Empire a fragile colossus teetering on the edge of collapse. Its legacy is one of conquest, but also of betrayal, fear, and the haunting echoes of the unity it destroyed.

Adventure Hook

The scheming and jockeying for power among the Lords of Arcadia present a challenge for party to navigate in a world where alliances are fleeting, and trust is a dangerous gamble. But the Lords are human beings with human ambitions who can be reasoned with, which opens the door to campaigns that use political intrigue to solve problems over violence.

A fragment of the First Prophet’s quatrains resurfaces, hinting at the downfall of the Emperor and the rise of a new power within Arcadia. The party must infiltrate the Congress of Judges to retrieve the prophecy, navigating the labyrinthine politics of the surrounding factions that imperil any approach to the Congress. Along the way, they may uncover secrets about Gazreth’s madness and the cult of warlocks that attend him.

What does the prophecy reveal about the Emperor’s fate, and how will it shape the party’s plans?
Can the party exploit Arcadia’s internal divisions to further their goals?
What dangers lie within the heart of the Congress of Judges, and how will they escape with the prophecy?

Tags: Regimes

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Lords of Arcadia

Lords of Men

Lords' Alliance

Imperial Prophets

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