My concept of Q'Barra is based on several of my characters backgrounds.
Given the larger influx of refuges of the last war I have decided to place a military training center for nobles whom wanted there children to get away from the fighting and at the same time gaining experience in fighting tactics and styles.
This training center located in a heavily barricaded complex (formally ruins from several towns that seemed to have been destroyed) in the middle of the Blackscale lizardfolks' territory. This has lead to a random series of attacks between the lizardfolk and the common races inhabiting the complex. Not knowing when an attack is coming, combined with watching people around you dieing fairly often has lead to a large following of The Keeper within its walls.
The complex is well know for producing highly disciplined and focused clerics(sovereign host / the keeper), fighters, monks, ninjas, and samurai. The reasoning behind the complex producing PC classes instead of NPC classes is that its inhabitants are mainly of noble descent thus they have the money to hire professionals to teach there students/cadets.
There are several monstrous races that have come here to train and to escape the many dangers of the region. This has led to a greater cooperation between not only the different nations represented but also between different species that normally would never coexist. (no this is not some sort of federation, merely exerting that in order to survive you most work together).
An example of the inhabitants of this complex is best described as a combination of the "Spartans" and the soldiers in the movie "soldier" starring Kurt Russell.
But of course, you can not farm food unless you are safe, and that gives way to the second most important duty, soldiers. In my Q'barra there were three original minds that set out to create a safe haven for the settlers of Q'barra. One of them was a Legate commander of the Cyran military. He was a strategic genious and god to his men. When he deffected and left for Q'barra with a few good friends(these are the other military minds who set things in motion) he went with a full cohert of his finest men. All who were of the same mind set as their leader. THis fellow, Gaius Vorinus, was most well known for his Cavalry tactics that won him many impressive victories.
With him came a shifter scout from the Eldeen reaches(at the time Aundair) who was renownd for his archery tactics and stealth abilities. He came with a small force of archers who were trained to work with infantry and cavalry to provide cover and ranged support.
THirdly came a mage who was trained in using the arcane arts to further bolster and support the military needs of his leaders.
Together these men set about to building themselves an impressive community of farmers and soldiers. All able bodied men and women were expected to work as farmers in times of quiet, but all trained as soldiers for part of the day. Within the community it is a given that every one can tend to their own fields or livestock but also can take up arms and fight as a cohesive unit to defend said pastures.
This community has made alliances with some of the lizardmen tribes nearby and trade armed support and food stuffs for scouting support, free passage to settle in the area, and military support.
I see this as being able to fit in with your vision of Q'barra nicely. i mostly see Q'barran settlers as those who had the forsight to see where things were going in the rest of Khorvaire and the needed skills to put a plan into effect and settle somewhere safe. These people had to have had the skills and intelligence to pick up everything and make a run for it, and that in itself dictates that there were some great minds involved.
Cities allied with Newthrone are essentially city-states, with a large central town/city serving as the hub and center of government for smaller villages and communities in very close proximity. They're built pretty much like fort towns to keep "civilization" inside and "savages" out. A tall wall of stone/wood surrounds "downtown", and successive layers of walls, fencing, and other fortifications emanate from it- home to the farmers, workers, and other common people. Most of the issues of defense are handled by the military, composed of professional soldiers. There are very few civilian soldiers or militiamen amongst the people of New Galifar.
They look to the leadership (rulers, nobles, religious authorities, and military) as their defenders and keepers of the traditions of Galifar, and as something of a parental figure. The leadership in turn, guides and protects the people, orchestrating their transformation of Q'barra from an inhospitable jungle to a model of government/society that will be the envy of the rest of Khorvaire.
Q'barrans pride themselves on what they've been able to accomplish and their relative self-sufficiency. They enjoy a standard of living just as good, if not better than many in the five nations, there's no major issues of corruption or abuses of power (of course there are bad apples) and they're not too worried about another war seeing as they're far removed from much of the action. Their concerns are very local, and things like new fashion trends or current events tend to arrive later than in other lands, and are less readily absorbed by the locals. They're sort of smug and haughty when dealing with outsiders, especially the independent communities in the jungles.
I think I may have them start attempting to absorb/annex smaller communities nearby under the rationale that they're bringing stability to the region (can't have a bunch of destitute, criminals, and pirates living in your backyard) and/or simply because they want to spread superior Galifar society and culture.
Aside from the northern wetlands and what seems to be a patch of more open land in the extreme south, it's pretty much all jungle divided into 3 major sections separated by rivers. Of course "jungle" is a very flexible term that simply describes very thick forests, usually in warm regions. Many of the jungles in Australia don't look too much like some in South America, or heck, even like other jungles in Australia and Tasmania.
That's a fun word to say out loud. JUNGLE!
I have envisioned a very similar style of community for Q'barra. THough in my mind the first and most important duty of all Q'barran settlers is farming. There can be nothing more important then producing the food stuffs needed to sustain your people, and so that is the first priority to all the settlers.
Sorry if I was not clear with my descriptions. In my settlement(complex) the nobles that are there for their training are like the Spartan culture of classical Greece; In that their use of forced laborers of those creatures they have defeated in combat as workers in the field. They relay on these creatures for most of their food supply, thus are very vulnerable to uprisings and this has led to harsh punishments for minor crimes.
This community has made alliances with some of the lizardmen tribes nearby and trade armed support and food stuffs for scouting support, free passage to settle in the area, and military support.
I see this as being able to fit in with your vision of Q'barra nicely. i mostly see Q'barran settlers as those who had the forsight to see where things were going in the rest of Khorvaire and the needed skills to put a plan into effect and settle somewhere safe. These people had to have had the skills and intelligence to pick up everything and make a run for it, and that in itself dictates that there were some great minds involved.
I agree that your concepts fit within a similar context to my own, although given my very limited development of this wild region I will actually use both yours and others ideas to flesh out the region for the games I run. Because it is clear that we all have similarities and differences in the social-economic systems in existence in Q'Barra. And this is a good thing
Also I neglected to includes details on my settlements interactions with any other city-states of the region. There is only a minimal level of interaction between the complex and the other communities in Q'barra, so they are viewed as a powerful force with vast aounts of rumors being told around the fires of the Q'barra's cities.
I see Adderport as not having been settled by New Galifarans, but by Lhazaarans several centuries ago. Originally the town was a sort of "pit stop" for pirates and traders, tired of the long sail between Galifar's southern coast and the Principalities.
The pirates had little to gain from fighting the lizardfolk, and the Lhazaaran merchants weren't above trading with the "savages." For some time, Adderport was the only source for lizardfolk cultural items, and these were exported to Galifar whenever exotic tribal artworks were in vogue. Thus, lizardfolk are allowed to visit the town and conduct business, and even a rare few have left their tribe to take up residence or join the pirates.
Law enforcement is somewhat selective, as the highly corrupt government considers bribery the best defense. This government, though corrupt, is not totalitarian; it's just greedy and lazy. Brawls between various pirate groups (or just for the heck of it) occur almost nightly, and deaths caused in these fights are rarely investigated. Theft from a rich and influential person usually leads to an arrest (if perhaps not the arrest of the true perpetrator), and time in a poorly-maintained prison.
With the arrival of Newthrone, Adderport has risen in resident population, though its government remains just as lax in law enforcement. Goods illegal in Newthrone are usually smuggled in by way of Adderport, and criminals exiled from Newthrone usually head for Adderport first.
Newthrone does not consider Adderport an ally, or even a fellow frontier town. Adderport is in no way a New Galifaran settlement, it is Lhazaaran, for better or worse (but mostly worse). In Newthrone, Adderport is used as a grimy example of how to not run a community.
http://revvecor.blogspot.com/2008/06/origin-lizardfolk-of-qbarra.html
Does anyone have anything to add? Comment?http://revvecor.blogspot.com/2008/06/great-civilizations-of-qbarra.html
Baerlaine scanned the swampy, bug infested bog before him and shook his head. After several days scouting around the farthest reaches of their lands this is the closest thing to good farming land he had been able to find. Sure the water level was pretty much a foot above ground level and for most of the year the area would be submerged under several more feet of water, but the soil was perfect.
One of his lizardmen guides, a tiny fellow who called himself Scarlof, motioned for him to be silent. Scarlofs comrades, a motley crew of lizard men silently stalked forward to investigate and Baerlaine lost them in the green undergrowth within seconds. After a few tense minutes one of them returned and gave the all clear. Letting out a breath he hadn't realized he was holding, Baerlaine turns to his second in command. "I want this whole valley to be scouted for any traces of hostiles. Even the hint of a dirt hovel needs to be investigated. If you should find anything resembling a temple run back here fast. Tell your men we are trying to find un-used farm land. If there is anything in this valley that would contest our holding, we will forget it and move on. I also want a group sent off to tell the Legate of what we have found thus far. Send those dragonshards we found with who ever is heading back to base camp. I want work crews out here within two days. Dismissed."
Baerlaine turned to watch his second in command give out his orders to the large group that was under Baerlaines command. This better go well...though Baerlaine to himself as his men moved to follow his commands.
High above the humans sat Hrrskil and he grinned as he watched the humans bustle about the valley. His blackened scales, and rippling muscles glistened in the afternoon sun as he turned to his own small group. "The humans are stopping here. We will wait until they begin to spread out then we will attack. Srrlil, take one other and tell the High shaman of what is happening. Bring more back with you. "
Hefting his massive greatclub onto his shoulder, Hrrskil began issuing his orders.
http://revvecor.blogspot.com/2008/06/random-stuff-for-qbarra.html
However their opening gambit involves the lumber community of Falcons Hollow and a few of their agents are working to set up their scheme to start a war between the colonists and the lizardmen but of course there's more to their scheme and then there's the reason why the lizardmen aren't interested in fighting the colonists...
I was thinking more about the lizardmen staying as far away as possible from the human settlements but whilst the original colony is more or less left undisturbed (for now) the lawless new settlements are drawing their ire more and might result in conflict that is if they weren't already fighting them and the lawless settlements are looking to get the colony involved to cover up what they've been doing since they're aware something big is behind the lizardmen and want official help so they don't expend their resources and if he colony does and is weakened as a result they'll be looking to takeover...
I had not thought of the lizardfolk as passive bystanders waiting until their opponents were weak to engage. I have always considered lizardfolk (the blackscale more so than the others) as intelligent ambushers who enjoy proving their superior strength by attacking an often as they can.
If you have more ideas for the lizardfolk feel free to write them down.
But I do believe that the poisondusk ones might be more into the wait and pounce.
http://revvecor.blogspot.com/2008/06/some-notes-on-qbarran-survival.html
I actually let my players choose where the game would be set I just set up the themes I wanted to explore an the type of game I had in mind and they decided to have Q'barra be their home, specifically Whitecliff, which has no details. That's fine it gave me something to flesh out. So here are some details from my game "Eberron: Deadliest Prey" (what's an over the top pulp adventure without cheesy titles?)
The Small Town of Whitecliff
Whitecliff (Small Town): Conventional; AL LN; 1,000 gp limit. Population 1,800; Mixed (70% human, 10% halfling, 7% dwarf, 6% half-orc, 6% other).
Whitecliff is the primary source of Eberron Dragonshards in Q'barra, and a begrudged linchpin in the economy of New Galifar. Without the rich dragonshard exports, New Galifar may have well collapsed in on itself long ago.
Nestled in the foothills of the Endworld Mountains, at the headwaters of the river that's named for it, and for the large part carved directly into the very cliff face from which the town takes its name is Whitecliff.
Established shortly after Q'barra itself, when Ven ir'Kesslan sent an expedition to explore the headwaters of the 'New Throne River', what they found were Dragonshard fields. Duke ir'Kesslan recognized the potential of such a find and sent one of his most trusted surveyors up the river to locate a suitable place to establish base camp for shard prospecting, as lizardfolk raids had already begun to claim lives.
So it was the location of Whitecliff was chosen, a cove along the river with backed up against high cliff walls. This is where the early expeditions made camp, putting their backs to the wall and trusting the difficult passes along the river side to keep the Lizardfolk from getting to them. The temporary camps soon grew too large to be contained on the small spit of land the cove offered, so the miners and prospectors started to build into the cliff itself.
As the town grew the cave homes started to rise higher onto the cliff face, and deeper. Soon most of the city needed to be accessed from walkways and scaffolds.
Now-a-days most citizens of New Galifar live 'cliffside', while recent refugees brought in to work Tharashk's land claims have taken up refuge in the old camp still on the shore. This is by far the poorest section of the town.
With shipments of dragonshards regularly coming down from Whitecliff to Newthrone the common name for the river, if you asked someone in Newthrone became 'Whitecliff', because that was the way up to Whitecliff. Though New Galifar officially holds the name of the river as 'The Newthrone river', most maps mark it as the 'Whitecliff river'
Whitecliff (Small Town): Conventional; AL LN; 1,000 gp limit. Population 1,800; Mixed (70% human, 10% halfling, 7% dwarf, 6% half-orc, 6% other).
Whitecliff is the primary source of Eberron Dragonshards in Q'barra, and a begrudged linchpin in the economy of New Galifar. Without the rich dragonshard exports, New Galifar may have well collapsed in on itself long ago.
Nestled in the foothills of the Endworld Mountains, at the headwaters of the river that's named for it, and for the large part carved directly into the very cliff face from which the town takes its name is Whitecliff.
Established shortly after Q'barra itself, when Ven ir'Kesslan sent an expedition to explore the headwaters of the 'New Throne River', what they found were Dragonshard fields. Duke ir'Kesslan recognized the potential of such a find and sent one of his most trusted surveyors up the river to locate a suitable place to establish base camp for shard prospecting, as lizardfolk raids had already begun to claim lives.
So it was the location of Whitecliff was chosen, a cove along the river with backed up against high cliff walls. This is where the early expeditions made camp, putting their backs to the wall and trusting the difficult passes along the river side to keep the Lizardfolk from getting to them. The temporary camps soon grew too large to be contained on the small spit of land the cove offered, so the miners and prospectors started to build into the cliff itself.
As the town grew the cave homes started to rise higher onto the cliff face, and deeper. Soon most of the city needed to be accessed from walkways and scaffolds.
Now-a-days most citizens of New Galifar live 'cliffside', while recent refugees brought in to work Tharashk's land claims have taken up refuge in the old camp still on the shore. This is by far the poorest section of the town.
With shipments of dragonshards regularly coming down from Whitecliff to Newthrone the common name for the river, if you asked someone in Newthrone became 'Whitecliff', because that was the way up to Whitecliff. Though New Galifar officially holds the name of the river as 'The Newthrone river', most maps mark it as the 'Whitecliff river'
I like this concept a lot. I like the newspaper clipping you did, I remember when seeing it when it was posted in another thread.
Sometimes good things come from dots on a map with naught but a name.
The noble founders of Q'Barra were idealistic men, at least so idealistic as nobles ever get. Watching the world militarize and destroy itself, they sought to recreate the world they had lost in a new land.
They had not, however, thought about the fact that Galifar had been able to function as it did because it had been settled long ago and was a prosperous society which easily could produce the goods and services necessary for its lifestyle.
Not a howling wilderness full of lizardmen and kobolds and poisonous plants and odd draconic creatures spawned from the line of guardians of Haka'torvhak. It wasn't for nothing that this region had remained unsettled at the height of Galifar.
The first problem was actually GETTING to Q'Barra. This basically required going into debt to House Lyrandar. The revolt of the Lhaazar against Galifarian authority early in the war made them unpalatable to the idealist exiles, whereas House Lyrandar had remained neutral. And there wasn't much other choice; it was one or the other.
House Lyrandar only extracted a few privileges...which essentially set them up to control Q'barra's trade with the outside world for a long time.
The creation of Adderport was an ambitious project--a port city had to be constructed along with surrounding farms in order to feed it, since it would cost too much money to import food. Fortunately, the lizardmen were embroiled in their usual wars with each other and did little to stop the early phase of the colony. Sure, the new kingdom sank further and further into debt with House Lyrandar in order to get crucial goods which couldn't yet be manufactured and it struggled to provide the services they'd been able to rely on the other houses to provide and various crucial kinds of artisans turned out to have not been recruited because the leaders of the expedition didn't understand the full complexity of Galifarian pre-war society, but hey, at least it was peaceful.
A serious problem which soon emerged was the problem of finding people to work the lands of the nobility. Many of the commoners who came were not interested in being wage labor on noble lands when they could set up their own farms by hacking down a chunk of jungle. Wiser nobles had brought their own peasantry, but many of those now tried to move out and set themselves up independently.
Galifar had been a post-feudal society, so the laws they'd brought with them tended to be fairly favorable to this process; however, the nobility was coming to realize they couldn't live as they had in Galifar. Many of the old nobles sank into poverty and ended up as craftsmen or farmers themselves.
One group, however, struck up the coast and founded Newthrone, laying claim to lands which held valuable Dragonshards. With this money, they were able to import workers to till fields for them and to build up military forces, which would soon prove crucial.
The Dragonshard collection now turned the lizardfolk upon the settlers. The result of the First Dragonshard War was the creation of a feudal system: only the new nobility, who controlled the Dragonshard sites could afford to create the fortresses which could repel lizardfolk attacks. Some peasants fled west and south to the region known as 'Hope' in order to keep their independence. The rest had to contract with the nobility for protection as the monarchy was unable to field sufficient military forces itself to adequately protect them. As refugees fled the Last War to Q'barra, some settled in Hope, desiring independence. Others settled in New Galifar, seeking security and pledging themselves to the nobility, or to the crown in the cities.
As the wealth of the land grew, the Q'barrans increasingly called upon the Dragonmarked Houses to come and assist them in increasing their standard of living. Most of the houses have some presence, though many Q'barrans see them as complicit in the wrecking of Galifar and thus are reluctant to see them grow influential here. Further, the wealth level is still not sufficient to fully support their usual level of business.
The current monarch, seeing his land increasingly evolve away from the Galifarian ideals which began it, has invited in the Riedrans as a counter-balance to the Dragon-Marked Houses and the nobility. This has enabled him to reduce the power of the nobility somewhat, though this is heading towards a likely civil war as the nobles have grown jealous of their privileges. It's allowed more of the jungle to be trimmed back and new towns founded closer to the Galifarian model (with Riedran influences). Ironically, if there is civil war, either way, it will likely further twist the nation away from the real model of Galifar, either to more feudalism or else to a Riedran takeover...
New Galifar has two major kinds of communities: feudal manors which circle around a castle and which each contain some sort of mini-fortress themselves, and the newer royal walled towns which are protected by royal (and/or Riedran) troops.
Hope is a region of many small communities, each a tiny city-state, usually cut off from each other by jungle. The locals are sometimes vassals of lizard man tribes; in other cases, fiercely independent. It is rather like the Old West if that had been a jungle...
I'm treating the place as a combination of New Orleans, Miami and Hong Kong.
There will be a small community of Cold Suns. Here, some of the best guides through the jungles (among other reasons, because they can negotiate with the Blackscale and Poison Dusk) can be found. The community is split between mud huts and shacks. Not because they are very very poor, but rather the dwellings remind them of home. They are lead by a trio of strong leaders - Sees Through Veils their shaman, Tongue of Flowers their voice, and Spear Never Sleeps their champion. These three have kept the Cold Sun on hospitable terms with the Newthrone population.
Outside of House Tharaskh, the Dragonmarked Houses see Q'Barra as the Western Siberia of Khorvaire; if you do something that offends your house, or the person above you really, really does not like you, you are re-assigned to an Enclave in Q'Barra. Thus you have a place filled with Marked degenerates, political enemies and those desperate to win back favor with their Houses.
Something that probably never existed in real life, but I have vague mental images of people wearing white suits and khaki shorts, and being oh-so-civilized in a land between the sea and jungle.
But you can hear the drums from the jungle if you listen closely.
And just around where the horizon fades you can see a ship flying the black flag if you look closely.
Only there is no empire to be a part of. That all went away with Gallifar, it's why you are here after all. If you don't make it here, there won't be anything else.
And to rip off something someone wrote earlier in this thread, you may not be able to count on the blokes in Newthrone. Found some dragonshards, now they are lording it up like they was back in the Five Nations, and nothing bad could ever happen. Folks in Adderport don't think that way. They have work to do. The fish on this boat won't unload itself. Nor the lumber on the barge from upriver.
Oh well, the week's done. Ale and a bonfire on the beach tonight. Tomorrow out on Tom's gig, to get some shrimp, maybe some clams. Day after, more ale, and target practice with the bow.
Pays to stay in practice, y'know?
Edit:
Oh yeah. Those new folks. Sad stories most of them. But a rough looking lot, and desperate too.
Probably for the best most of them are in the South, by the mountains. Never know what trouble that bunch might start.
Or what will come of letting them stay. That's something everyone in Adderport has an opinion on, even if they only talk about it when the beer has loosed their tongues.
Of course we already have the lords and ladies in Newthrone. So how bad can it be?
Isran_Imrador
And the Korranberg C webpage / paper had a few artichles from Q`barra to...If its still up...
http://forums.gleemax.com/wotc_archive/index.php/t-407071.html
Outside of House Tharaskh, the Dragonmarked Houses see Q'Barra as the Western Siberia of Khorvaire; if you do something that offends your house, or the person above you really, really does not like you, you are re-assigned to an Enclave in Q'Barra. Thus you have a place filled with Marked degenerates, political enemies and those desperate to win back favor with their Houses.
Although I like the concept that dragonmarked cast outs are sent to Q'Barra in lieu of a harsher punishment, while they wait for the day when they can leave. When I first read the post, my first thought was of "Nimbus III" in Star Trek 5.
It's rough there, and civilization is really on the fringe. Bad water, ever-present risk of infection, disease, floods, poor crop yields... and that's before you get to the lizardmen, dinosaurs, and who knows what sort of giant beastie that the jungle will pop out on any given night. Refugees came here because they were told this was a land of opportunity, and it turns out most of them were dead in a year. But the boats kept coming, because the colony's founders were selling a lie about a distant paradise to the desperate people of Cyre's frontiers who were displaced by the war and unwelcome in Cyre's cities.
The Cyran government, knowing full well what a hell hole it was found it expedient to sent prisoners of war there, and there are members of every nationality represented in q'barra--descendants (and often bondsmen, no better than serfs or slaves) of these men.
The leaders of Q'barra believe in the ideals of old Galifar certainly, but the Old Galifar that they came from, where the aristocracy and the d'marked controlled the people, the economy, and lived in a high fashion. These are dangerous men, skilled with spell and sword, and surrounded by Lhazari mercenaries.
The average person lives a short, pitiful life. He is born in a ramshackle hut with a mud floor. He will farm a noble's land his whole life, and make a pittance doing so, growing more and more in debt every year. Whatever gets him first, one of the ever so common epidemics, a venomous reptile or insect, a lizardman spear, a drunken mercenary, or even a minor cut that becomes infected, it will likely get him before he sees his children grow past their teens. He will never have rubbed more than two coppers together in his life, will never have read a word, will never have owned shoes or purchased clothes--everything being handmade from the rough cotton that grows here.
This is not to say there is no hope for the downtrodden. There are rumors in the jungle of men living free lives, who attack the landlords, and fight for the people. In truth, most of these men are little more than brigands, numbering in the few dozens at most, and raiding manors because they are the only sources of food and wealth. But they are more than troubling for the landholders, who crack down ever harder on their charges.
Strangely enough, the only other light is the Church of the Silver Flame, which has established a presence here only recently, after re-connecting with some of the Thranish p.o.w.s. who survived here. The Thranish community has survived better than most, with their strong beliefs, their mutual care for one another, and their hatred of the Cyrans who captured them. Among the poor, the Church has begun gathering a following among non-Thranes, and some of the freshly arrived, and charismatic Thranish preists have preached for a new system, much to the landlords' ire (and occasional wrath). This is still a small movement, but it is well organized, and growing.
The Riedran government is represented by a single Inspired ambassador and a small force of soldiers. In total they represent only a hundred men under arms. The King sees them as an emergent ally against the Lhazari who threaten to topple him and the nobility who threaten rebellion AND the lizardmen who threaten to drive the humans into the sea. They are free for his use, and they fight better than his own small levy or whatever his bankrupt treasury can pay for. Riedran merchants come infrequently, but every visit is cherished, and much profit is made on both sides. A few Riedran expeditions into the hinterlands have even been launched, with greater than average casualty rates, but also some greater than average exploits when the Riedrans return from the jungles speaking of vast ruins found, and carrying immense fortunes.
The Lhazari are everywhere. Some of them are interested in exploiting Q'barra's abundant resources and doing business with the locals who are tied into the Sharn/Stormreach trade. Others see the kingdom as a fine place to settle down--Lhazari immigrants have bought some of the best land and settled here, displacing some of the bondsmen whose landlord sold the land to the foreigners. The bondsmen are either driven into the jungles or worked even harder by the Lhazari.
Pirates defeated in the harsh naval warfare of the north are commonly found in Adderport, looking for a new ship to sign up with, or a crew to fill out their depleted ranks. The Blood of Vol is a growing faith among the nobility who are marrying into the Lhazari clans to further their commercial ties. It is rumored that soon enough Q'barra will simply be another part of the principalities... if the colony can hold out that long....
If you absolutely, positively have to get anywhere in Q'Barra, you have a few options. There exists a few boaters willing to take you anywhere you want to go, but you're dealing with the crazy, the high priced, or those not to be trusted.
For the crew of the Erebus, all three might apply.
Who's on board
The boat's entire crew is comprised of enterprising iredar kobolds. Paying passengers and clients are given a wide breadth, but the kobolds take no lip from anyone. They all share a particular hatred for the Poison Dusk tribes, and fear of the Blackscale. Cold Sun lizardfolk are regarded with wariness, but are accepted due to their ability to negotiate with the hostile tribes and their extensive knowledge of the land.
Chief Pillak: The Captain of the Erebus. Ex-militia for the humans against the Lizardfolk tribes, he patrolled the rivers, escorted civilians and assisted in transporting supplies up and down the waterways. After he and his crew saved several big wigs in an ambush, Pillak was granted the Erebus. Pillak is strict, by the book, and takes his duties (and the survival of his crew) seriously. In return, the crew will follow him into the bowels of Khyber.
Kigore: First Mate and artillery. Kigore uses his sorcery and his flasks to good use, killing anything that threatens the Erebus's crew. Ex-militia like Pillak, Kigore is a little more unstable than his captain; the kobold loves the thrill of battle and the smell of alchemical shock, declaring it the "scent of victory". He obtains from using fire (much to his disappointment) out of fear of setting the boat in flames.
Lancer: While his primary job is secondary pilot, steering with long poles and untangling the Erebus from low branches and underwater rocks, Lancer is more often than not caught sunning on deck. Uncharacteristic of kobolds, he is lazy, and is the boat's best swimmer. His name is derived from the javelins and spear that he favors, and he is no louse about applying them to anything trying to climb aboard unwelcome.
Chef: A self-trained artificer, this kobold is the "boat medic"; any damage sustained to the Erebus is fixed lickity-split by Chef, usually mid-combat. As his name implies, Chef is also the boat's cook, something he takes as seriously as his engineering; he has dreams of being a Chef in Adderport, which is what his share of monies is being hoarded for. This is what makes the rest of the Crew joke about him being dropped on his head before he was hatched.
Tyr "Mr. Clean": Tyr mans the crossbow nest as the Erebus's gunner and lookout. Born in a ghetto in Adderport, Tyr has always sought to overcome his shabby surroundings. The most obvious expression of this is that Tyr buffs his scales, resulting in a nice shine. This is where his nickname comes from.
The Erebus
Little more than a well-fortified raft, the Erebus is still not a shabby river-faring vessel. One foot of open deck surrounds the "core" of the raft. It has three levels, all kobold sized - the protected interior, where cargo is kept, then the second floor where supplies are kept, and finally the gunnery and lookout nest. All three levels are at the center of the raft, surrounded for the most part by sliding panels of wood used as cover in case the boat is attacked. There is also a covered section in the back suitable for Medium sized characters to sit comfortably.
Several sections of the boat's "railing" can be detatched with the pull of a peg. This is usually in case it is caught on something and must be freed immediately, but also is a surprise failsafe against submerged foes trying to board. Hinged trap doors have been cut in the floor of the boat, allowing the crew to gauge the depth of the river, drop anchor, use the latrine, fish, or escape if they must flee the ship.
The defenses are fairly simple. The gunner's nest is a medium Heavy Crossbow mounted on a swiveling pole, allowing Tyr to get one good shot off. Two loaded small heavy crossbows also sit in the nest, able to be picked up and fired in short order. Two caches of small light crossbows, Alchemist's Shock and Alchemist's Frost are stashed around the ship, and every member carries with him a flask and heal potion. Stashed in the cargo hold are two CLW potions and an antidote.
Each member also carries a small anchor; a heavy rock in a pouch at their belt. The pouch is attached to a rope tied around their tail; a kobold falls over, he drops the anchor, has enough slack to surface and not be dragged down river.
If not I will try to assemble a table in the next few days
I have some ideals about Q'Barra but i need a map with the cities on it to make it right. does any one have one
Do you mean like this?
[INDENT]In the jungles of Q'Barra lies the great black dragon Rhashaak. For unnumbered years he has been worshipped as the godly guardian of ancient ruins by the lizardfolk. Some tribes are fanatically devoted to the fiendish dragon, and some sacrifice their own number or themselves to transcend to godly vessels. One of these dedicated tribes are known as the Redeemed. They claim their ancestors were saved from an outnumbering squad of humans by Rhashaak and were chosen by the dragon to be the emissaries of the "god." The ancestors made a magical pact stating that their descendants shall guard Haka'torvak for eternity. [/INDENT]
[INDENT]Unlike most tribes, they do not associate with the Cold Sun Tribes. The Redeemed think of them to be squabbling idiots wasting their time dealing with repulsive humans and not putting enough faith and sacrifice toward Rhashaak. [/INDENT]
[INDENT]The Redeemed still live today, but are initially hostile to all but themselves. Most are ordinary lizardfolk or viletooth lizarfolk (Dragon Magic) with levels in Barbarian or occasionally sorcerer. The sorcerers are the leaders of the tribe, and are considered the farthest down the path of embodying their dragon god.[/INDENT]
http://revvecor.blogspot.com/2008/06/basic-monster-encounter-tables-for.html
one question... what is up with all the half dragons?
In the Explorers Handbook p146 it mentions that Rhashaak has an elite guard of half-dragons. To me this means that Rhashaak has had enough children to make them worthy of encountering. You will note that the Half-dragons are mainly in the Jungle, near ruined sites from the Age of Demons. The half-dragons found under a "human settler" roll represent trusted servants of Rhashaak sent out to preform tasks in and around the humanoid races.
I should note that these half-dragons (with any real intelligence) would be under the command of Rhashaak himself and off doing his bidding, they are not potential PCs just NPCs.
-Joni
Well isn't that the true purpose of all cults? Sex, power and Fortune...
But of course
if you had thousands of followers worshiping you as a god wouldn't you want to maximize all of those things?:D On a different note is there anything in the tables you would edit or add?
And if anyone has any ideas for Q'Barra don't hesitate to add them!!
When Q'barra was still a developing nation, many services were controlled by competing royal Baron Lords instead of the dragonmarked houses who wished not to risk their business in the dangerous fringe colony. At the beginning, there were more than a dozen, but have whittled down to three. Most Q'barrans see them as political decorations of the past, but the Barons can provide services that the Dragonmarked houses cannot perform. All of the Baron operations are centered in Newthrone.
Târvoya:Târvoya was the first Baron House founded in 930 YK. The It is currently under command of Ghelsa D'Târvoya (Female Half-elf Rogue 5/Aristocrat 1/Beguiler 4) . It provides an intricate network of spies across Khorvaire. Unlike House Thuranni or Phiarlan, Târvoya provides information gatherers within Sarlona, stealing secrets from the Dreaming Dark, and within many of the Dragonmarked houses. Târvoya also knows spy routes within Q'barra no else knows. It also keeps a close eye on the Aurum. Though Târvoya is not as well known within Khorvaire, it prides itself on that note. Controversy remains because Târvoya is rumored to have a piece of the Draconic Prophecy relating to the Day Of Mourning and its cause.
Seldol: Seldol (founded 932 YK) was one of the older Baronships along with Târvoya. Seldol is a religious Baronship zealously dedicated to the Silver Flame. It is now under hold of Harathus Macelus Seldol II (Male Human Crusader 5/Cleric [Silver Flame] 3). Seldol provides healing services as well as some mercenaries. It is in contact with The Church of the Flame and was founded by the Church to enforce the Flame's will in the hectic colony.
Gashthul: Gashthul (founded 968 YK) was founded during the Last War solely as a mercenary organization, and is the last of the Baronies to be founded. It is headed by Kalshak Hakul D'Gashthul (Male Human Warblade 8/Barbarian 4). Hakul was a Kalaak (Secrets of Sarlona) whose family sailed to Q'barra after their village was destroyed by a Chuniigi shifter tribe. However, the Baronship was successful during the years of war in Q'barra and prospered well by dealing troops to both sides. Now, the large Baronship deals men to Valenar and Talenta tribes.
If you do not mind i would like to add one
Iarthen: Iarthen (founded 945 Yk) was found by a noble from Aundair when he came to Q'Barra. This Baranship is a magical one. It is in control of the largest magical organization of Sorcerer, Wizard, Artificer and a growing number of warlocks in Q'barra (The Circle of four moons). Although it does not have powerful as almost all the other magic circles in the world they are slowly gain power and have a great knowledge of magic in Q'barra and it's sites. It is currently under command of Lillian ir'Iarthen (Female Half-elf Wizard 6/Aristocrat 3).
The Circle of Four Moons is a magical organization base in the captal of Q'barra, Newthron. The organization is made up of 4 circle. THe first circle has of five, with four poeple form each class in the organization and the last person being the baroness herself. This circle leads the group and has control its resarch and items. The second circle is larger then and nien people are in it. These people are the best the group has and they are sent to new sites to get gather artfacts and texts for the First circle which rarely leaves Newthrone. The threed circle is mad up of 12. They give orders to the last circle and they lead seraches for sites and other things. The last circle is the body of the group.
http://revvecor.blogspot.com/2008/06/my-trip-to-karhashan.html
I used the link because its a long entry.
or Comments made by this threads many Contributors?