An Age of Sorrows
Art by Deadcross
The southern lands of Creation were once places of great bounty and wealth. It suffered much since the Great Uprising of the Dragon blooded Host. The South was wracked by famine, war, disease, and tyranny. Kingdoms have risen and fallen, mad cultists lead thousands to their deaths, and the Scarlet Empire has secured the wealth of the Empire firmly in its hands. The Imperial Magistrates walk the streets so called free cities of Chiaroscuro and The Lap and are given as wide a berth as they would upon the Blessed Isle itself. The Scarlet Empress rules from her distant throne, and the southern kingdoms are content to send her tribute, all currying her favor against each other's ambitions.
The stars foretell a time of tumult is coming. Whispers of reborn heroes of the First Age spread amongst the common people. A new religion, know simply as the Fellowship of the Illuminated, preaches of these shining heroes coming to save creation in its darkest hour. Rumors abound regarding the disappearance of the Scarlet Empress herself, the Great Houses of the Empire mobilize and maneuver around each other, each with its own designs upon the Imperial throne. Tales that the Anathema, demonic entities that were once the despotic rules of Creation, are returning in great numbers, and the righteous Wyld Hunt of the Immaculate Order is powerless to stop the returning demonic horde due to absence of the Empress.
It is a time for Heroes
From the velts, sweeping deserts,and vast metropoli, men and women of virtue, courage, cleverness, and determination gather to protect the harsh lands of the south. From the clockwork efficient astrologers of Varang to the coniving merchant-nobles of Gem, people all over the south are being drawn into events greater than themselves. The forces of destiny and fate pull at those who have the potential to stop the dark cataclysm to come. What legends will they tell of your deeds?