The World of Open Roads

So, you have joined the Open Road campaign, and are itching to figure out what this world even really is. This is the main lore primer, a foundation for you to explore the history of Orvas, from the boring to the bat-shit insane bits, and everything in between.

Though without further ado...

The Gist of the Lore

We look to the continent of Orvas, the first among continents, a mighty landmass with many unique denizens, from Elves and Humans to Harpies and Ogres.

This was where the first gods walked, the land the mysterious Creator called his own. Not much is known of the early days, though it told through generations that there was a great catalysm in the first years of the world. Many gods vanished from this point, with most retreating into their own domains, other planes of existence, or sequestering themselves in far off places.

As mortals rose, there came great empires, and much conflict. The most notable among these early civilisations were the Sorcerer Kingdom of Lorelia and the Five Kingdoms of Wuthing, who early on gave mortals a foothold in a world still ruled by monsters and conflict. Unfortunately, the Sorcer Kingdom would not see its first millennia, after Ritchlik 'The Vile' of House Vekodan invented the concept of Lichdom by becoming the first one. This promted a series of unrest and civil wars that would see the destruction of the ancient Sorcerer Kingdom, sinking below the earth after its undead ruler was disrupted in the casting of an apocalyptic spell.

Soon after, Dragons dominated the world, taking over large parts of the world, in which the only way to survive was appeasement and sacrifice. This was ended with the arrival of the first vampires from the Shadowfell, who proceeded to usher in a new age. Much death happened in the Age of Twilight, much of it brought about by Ritchlik the Vile, rearing his ugly head twice within 500 years. After he was banished into a extra-planar prison, the alliance of vampires and mortals that beat him broke apart, with vampires betraying the mortals and starting the Long Night.

The Long Night was a truly dark age, where terrors of the night snuffed out thousands, the great forests of the world became hostile to all of civilization, and the dread influence of tyrants reigned supreme. But even in this time, there still was hope left. Mighty cities still managed to rise, Lorelia united a mighty mortal empire, and the Wolfhearts became the spear that would pierce the heart of darkness. With the founding of the Empire of Mortals in the year 4360, a new bright age of mortals began.

In the span of 1510 years, the Empire of Mortals would carve out a stronghold of civilzed life around the Crystal Sea, one of many large inland lakes of Orvas. In its last 200 years, there came the Vampire Wars. Though only three of them were of major importance, these conflicts with the northern vampires would still rattle the Empire, forcing it to its dissolution in 5869 with the slaughter of the Imperial family.

Current State of the World

It is the year 6017. The provinces of the Empire have formed their own nations, maintaining a tenious alliance. Muskets have become a major weapon of the modern armies, with Pike and Shot tactics having become king on the battlefields. In Wuthing, whispers of revolution against the Dragon Emperor are running rampant, with no signs to its perpetrators. The Celestial Elf Empire is carving a way eastwardly, reducing the northern Vampire Clans to a slither of what they used to be. And rumors of Ritchlik the Vile having returned have long since been confirmed to be true. The question remains... What will you do?