Of all the countries in the Old World, The Empire is the largest and most prosperous with a culture and technology comparable to an early renaissance age: knights co-exist with gun and cannon. It comprises a vast conglomeration of princedoms, duchies, leagues and city-states, which live together in comparative peace and prosperity and ruled by Emperor Karl-Franz I. To the north, The Empire is bounded by the stormy waters of the Sea of Claws. To the east lie the World's Edge mountains. To the north-east lies the country of Kislev, whose heroic inhabitants hold back the hordes of Chaos encamped in the Northern Wastes. To the south and west, the Black and Grey Mountains form natural frontiers, while the Wasteland in the north-west extends across the only open country between The Empire and Bretonnia.

The seven largest states within The Empire are known as the Electoral Provinces, as they traditionally have a say in the election of the Emperor. There are also five non-electoral provinces, those with no votes to cast for the election of an emperor. As well as the provinces, there are three great City-States: Middenheim, Talabheim and Nuln whose rulers are also Electors. But the greatest of all The Empire's cities is Altdorf - Imperial Capital and location of the towering cathedral to Sigmar.

THE GRAND COUNTY OF AVERLAND

Elector: Grand Countess Ludmila von Alptraum (age 77); named heir Baroness Marlene (eldest daughter); electoral threat: Marius Leitdorf.

Other Noble Families: The Leitdorfs, powerful ruling family of Wuppertal. Headed by ‘Mad’ Marius Leitdorf, this family has designs on the electoral seat. Lord Marius himself is something of an unstable character hence the ‘Mad’ prefix. Sometimes he is sullen and morose, at other times he locks himself away in his chamber for days at a time and would speak to no one, and yet at other times he is given to bouts of rage. Marius’s taste for fine silks, velvet, and exquisitely fashioned clothing is legendary and his opponents (wrongly) class him as an ineffective fop. He maybe given to unpredictable moods but he is a fine swordsman, poet, painter, engineer and inventor. Marius has had many lessons from the great Tilean fencer, Francesco Carmagnola, and fights with both sword and long-bladed dagger. In fact Marius is a great patron of everything Tilean and has several influential Tilean friends. Marius Leitdorf is also one of the heads of the League of the Hammer (see below.)

Geography: The River Aver marks the province’s northern border and the Upper Reik marks the southern border. The River Aver is particularly notable for its strong blue colour and vigorous, foaming waters. It also travels through the Moot and into the Black Mountains. Occasionally barges and riverboats carry passengers from Nuln to the Dwarf stronghold of Karak-Varn in the mountains.

Averland benefits from a mild climate and lots of idyllic rolling hills perfect for extensive wine growing. On the south side of the River Aver and the north side of the Upper Reik can be seen many of the province’s bountiful vineyards. It isn’t only the nobility that capitalizes on the lucrative wine production but also the holy orders. Sigmarite abbots especially have long been processing wine in their monasteries and some own the most productive vineyards in the entire province. Many nobles also own castle estates near to the vineyards.

This extensive cultivation has seen Averland’s landscape change over the centuries. There used to be many thick forests and boggy marshland. Now the Averlanders have drained many of the marshlands to create ponds, which are now ideal for fishing. Some of the wealthiest nobles own estates with huge ponds; the Pond District of Averheim is especially sought after as the place to live in the town among many nobles and merchants.

In the southeast of the province lie three ruined towers known simply by Averlanders as the ‘Three Towers’. Learned people know them to be of Elven origin and very ancient whilst everyone else sees them as three, grim, ruined towers that are best avoided. The pervading view is that strange malignant powers lurk there.

Historical Notes: Before and during Sigmar’s reign the main tribe of the Averland region were the Averingi. Under the great chief Alric the tribe became powerful and rich, mostly because of their adaptability and their ready use of bows in a time when the favoured missile weapon of the day was the javelin and francisca. When Sigmar came Alric pledged allegiance to him and joined his army for the final battle in Black Fire Pass. Alric’s loyalty was dually rewarded with the governorship of Averland in the new fledgling Empire.

In 1707 the future of Averland looked decidedly bleak. From out of Black Fire Pass came the huge green horde of Gorbad Ironclaw from Iron Rock Fort in the Badlands. Averland was totally unprepared for this threat and forces arrayed against the horde were brushed aside with frightening ease. Many farmsteads and wine villages were razed to the ground and even Averheim itself was sacked, but not before a hard battle. The Orcs, satisfied with the destruction, went immediately on to Nuln where a large portion of that great city was also sacked. At the Battle of Solland’s Crown the Orc Warlord slew the Elector of Solland and took his Runefang. At the Battle of Grunberg Gorbad was finally stopped when he suffered a serious wound at the hand of the Count of Wissenburg, who was himself badly wounded. Thus ended the last of the great Orc invasions to plague the Empire, for the moment. The rest is history as Solland became Wisssenland and its Counts became vassals of the Electors of Nuln. Averland recovered quickly and if anything the destruction of some parts of the province by the Orc horde paved way for renewed cultivation and the people prospered.

From TEW to present day: The political situation in the Empire worsened during this time frame (approximately ten years) and enemies both external and internal beset the Emperor. Chaos gradually wormed its way into many of the electoral courts, including Altdorf’ s, and succeeded in not only bringing up old antipathies but also creating new ones. But Chaos was merely the catalyst for what would happen next. The Empire was far from unified in the first place and the opportunity to be rid of some enemies was too much for many of the Electors to pass over, Chaos just encouraged this process. All-out civil war was the inevitable result with many choosing sides on basis of religion, i.e. Sigmarites against Ulricans. No one could claim neutrality. You were either for the Emperor or against him.

For Grand Countess Ludmila von Alptraum, a follower of the Old Faith, this was a difficult decision. She had always been loyal to the Imperial Court but she had always known that she wasn’ t popular because the dominant Sigmarites suspected her family of having Ulrican sympathies. Countess von Alptraum did not in the end have to make a decision. An Imperial plenipotentiary from Altdorf contacted Marius Leitdorf and told him that if he gave wholehearted support to the Emperor, and attack the Von Alptraums and their Ulrican supporters, he would be given the Electorship of Averland. Marius needed little encouragement in mobilising the forces of the League of the Hammer to begin the campaign. He always knew that the time would come to rule and the time was now. The Elector of Averland, supported by the League of the Vine, moved to counter this threat. But instead of preparing for a siege they confronted Marius’ s forces in the open where they were outclassed by the superior weaponry and armour of the predominantly Sigmarite force, which was also supported by large numbers of Tilean condottieres (evidently Marius benefited from his various alliances with Tilean nobles).

Meanwhile another war was raging in the southeast of the province between the League of Weinberg and the forces of the Abbot of Rebstock. Both sides had been bitter enemies and as soon as war had broken out between Averheim and Marius Leitdorf, the Abbot’ s forces were mobilised to crush the upstart league on their doorstep. The Abbot had always been allied to the League of the Hammer and the League of Weinberg had always opposed rule by Averheim. This being the case, the League of Weinberg had to be removed. Although the battles were fierce and the league did have some successes they could not in the end prevail. Thus Marius became the Elector Count of Averland and the Abbot of Rebstock increased his empire in the south.

Relations with the Emperor: Averland has no pretensions to the Imperial crown and has no interest in extending its provincial boundaries. It is, however, concerned with maintaining what it already has and will fight any nobles both from within its own boundaries and those from rival provinces intent on stealing its wealth. Generally Averland is far too concerned with the intrigues in its own borders, especially between Averheim, the League of the Hammer, and the League of Weinberg, than to bother itself with external matters. But if, as is likely, Marius Leitdorf succeeds Ludmila to the Electorship then the politics of Averland is certain to change too. Would he expand Averland’ s borders?

Relations with Neighbouring Provinces: Averland enjoys reasonably good relations with Nuln as it relies on the city-state for its superb pikemen and artillery. In the past, however, this wasn’ t always the case as Averland tried to secure the burgeoning town (as it was then) for itself because it lay on the lucrative Reik trade route. But now this is impossible, as the town has grown into a powerful city with an equally powerful army.

Not surprisingly relations with the Moot are good. Trade is brisk with wine exports and imports of Halfling foodstuffs. Some Halflings live in Averheim and a few of the villages near to the Moot border where they can find ready employment in wine production and, of course, in the kitchens. They stay clear of going further south not least because it is a little too far from the Moot and they tend to believe the stories about ‘mad Sigmarites’ living in the south.

Relations with Stirland are strained at times because of the robber barons who seem to be allowed to roam free on the Averland border where they raid and pillage villages and small towns and take their spoils back to their strongholds. Naturally these occurrences are blamed on common bandits and the ubiquitous Goblinoids and mutants. However, a loose conglomeration of noble families and villages in the north of Averland, called the League of the Vine, has since been successful over the last twenty years at preventing most of these raids even to the point of penetrating into Stirland and razing several castles to the ground, which the local Stirland authorities are far from happy about. The worst of these conflicts is over but it is not finished.

Sylvania is seen, like the rest of the Empire, as a place of ill omen and no one willingly goes there. Those Averlanders that do invariably choose to go the long way round via Nuln and then along the River Stir and then to Waldenhof, Sylvania’ s capital.

The relationship between Averland and the Border Princes is primarily built upon mutual defence: the Averlanders (with the aid in no small part of the Knights of the Fiery Heart) promise to keep Black Fire Pass free of Goblinoids and other nasties while the northern Border Princes city of Kircheburg promises likewise.

Non-Humans: Averheim and Wuppertal, being the largest towns in the province, are known to have small numbers of Dwarfs. They are more often than not travellers from Karak-Varn, and other Imperial Dwarf strongholds, who have stopped in those towns on their way to Nuln and beyond. But this isn’ t to say that a few stay in Averland to offer their services. The kind of Dwarfs favoured are naturally those who can build or forge weapons and armour or are good fighters – where they either become bodyguards for the nobility or join the mercenary contingents.

As in most areas of the Empire, Wood Elves are few if non-existent in Averland. There are few densely forested regions, having being cleared away for agriculture and the establishment of new settlements. To this end there are no areas in Averland that Wood Elves call home. Any Wood Elves in the province are most likely to be adventurers. However, some may look to stay for a few years if the fancy takes them before moving on, as Averland is a picturesque province and the wine is favourable even to their taste.

Halflings are more common in the northern parts of the province, as the Moot is so close, where they find employment in the vineyards and the kitchens of nobles. Quite a few prefer to work in Averland and then go back to their homes in the Moot, effectively commuting.

Religion: Sigmar is worshipped predominately by the urban classes, especially the middle class and the nobility. The strongest support for Sigmar lies along the Upper Reik in the League of the Hammer. Here, especially in the town of Wuppertal, Sigmar’ s worship approaches that of the fanatical and often lawbreakers are held to account before a priest than to a secular judge. Those accused of a crime can then opt for the Trial by Ordeal and if he succeeds it is judged that Sigmar finds the defendant not guilty and allowed to go free. Joseph the Reverent of Wuppertal is known to be extremely harsh in passing judgement on wrongdoers, especially those accused of blasphemy who can only expect to have their tongues cut out.

The Old Faith is popular among the poor and the agricultural classes seeing as most of Averland’ s trade is reliant on the production of wine (Taal is also a popular deity among these people). The most prominent follower of the Old Faith in the province is none other than the Grand Countess herself. This naturally sometimes puts her at odds with the dominant Sigmarite nobility of Averheim who view the Old Faith as a primitive and backward religion fit for only the peasants.

Other religions play second fiddle to Sigmar and the Old Faith. Verena is popular among the rich intellectual class of Loningbruck where the largest temple of the town is dedicated to the goddess of justice and wisdom. Ulric is perhaps worshipped by a few communities on the foothills of the Black Mountains where wolves prey on their cattle and where Goblinoids attack from time to time. Of course, as always, Ranald has his adherents in the bustling towns. Because Averland relies heavily on mercenaries for its protection, the Tileans among them have brought with them their observance of the Myrmidian faith. Chapels dedicated to the war goddess can be found in Averheim and Wuppertal.

Military: Averland has no real military tradition that, for example, the Reikland or Nuln has. It isn’ t massively populated and can only call upon small numbers of militia in times of war. However, it is a rich province and relies on two things for its protection: mercenaries and leagues. The former primarily protects Averland from immediate threat, such as Goblinoids and any rampaging bands of beastmen and mutants, whereas the leagues, backed up of course by the mercenaries, protect Averland’ s mercantile interests as well as defence against the overbearing Imperial nobility.

The mercenaries are overwhelmingly Tilean. These highly skilled condottiere hail from several regions in the Tilean City-States and among them are handgunners, crossbowmen, archers, and a few men-at-arms and knights. There are also some Estalian swordsmen from Bilbali and pikemen from Nuln. The mercenaries have proven to be highly effective at keeping the peace not only against Goblinoids and beastmen but also against human armies over the years.

There are several leagues in Averland and one of the most notable is the League of Weinberg. It comprises of several towns, including many villages, in the southeast of the province and was set up originally to counter the Goblinoid threat of the Black Mountains. This concern for mutual defence paid dividends as the towns pooled their resources to train and equip an army to protect their borders from any unwanted incursions. Later, as the threat from the mountains subsided, the League of Weinberg found itself under the scrutiny of the Elector of Averland, who did not like having a powerful conglomeration of towns on his doorstep, and ordered that the league be broken up. But this only served to heighten the league’ s resistance and stubbornness and unsurprisingly, despite the best efforts of the Emperor, Averland was plunged into civil war. The initial phase of the war lasted for four years and afterwards there were long periods of peace and then protracted periods of war with neither side gaining the upper hand. Finally both sides were exhausted and the Elector was forced to recognise the League of Weinberg’ s integrity or risk further bloodshed and the ultimate break up of Averland itself.

Another important league is the League of the Hammer founded in the early 24th century by Sigmarite warriors and priests after victory against the Incursions of Chaos. They had seen the horrors of Chaos firsthand and wanted to create a fief that would be resistant to it. It is roughly identical to the League of Weinberg in composition and lies along the Upper Reik. The town of Wuppertal is one of the chief places for the League and its most vocal champion is Marius Leitdorf. Like him, the League of the Hammer is entirely Sigmarite and is an alliance of towns and villages dedicated to protecting their rights, primarily from Averheim. The alliance has become worryingly powerful as far as Grand Countess Ludmila von Alptraum is concerned and she is afraid that when she dies, which can only be soon (she is 77 years old), her daughter will be passed over for Marius Leitdorf and the Emperor will probably endorse him too.

A holy Sigmarite order of knights lies near to the League of Weinberg. This too was in response to the Goblinoid invasion of 1707. It was Count Theophilus von Reinwald, a renowned wine merchant, who rebuilt his castle estate called Rebstock, after Gorbad had finished sacking it, and, after finally coming to the conclusion that the region was too dangerous, gave it to the Cult of Sigmar. Thus Sigmarite monks occupied the castle and started up the wine production again. Within a few years warriors came to the castle to serve as guards. Rebstock became an important stopover for pilgrims as they retraced Sigmar’ s steps to Black Fire Pass. It was the Chaplain, Quintus Diehl, who laid down the law by which the soldiers of the castle would live their lives and after a minor, but substantial, Goblinoid incursion the soldiers were recognised by the Grand Theogonist as a holy military order and was named the Order of St Alric (after the famous Averingi chief). Today, the order still exists to expel invaders from the south but it has also been a slight pain in the side of the League of Weinberg and several times over the years the two have clashed in bloody confrontations. The Order is seen by the League as governmental interference under the aegis of Sigmar and is not very popular. Indeed, the Abbot of Rebstock is a sworn enemy of the League as he more or less admitted that he desired their land to expand his business empire.

Military Colours: The traditional colours of Averland have always been black and yellow but as is the want of the nobility to be exclusive they tend to either add their own additions or ignore the pattern altogether and use completely different colours. This certainly holds true for the League of the Hammer, which favours blue and white diamond patterns, while the League of Weinberg, not wholly going against tradition, chooses red and yellow stripes. The League of the Vine, however, sticks rigidly to tradition as its troops wear the black and yellow.

Gazetteer: Settlements in italics are unofficial.

THE BARONY OF HOCHLAND

The Barony of Hochland is governed by Baroness Hildegarde Tussen-Hochen from the town of Bergsburg to the north-west of the barony and it is one of the smallest Imperial provinces. However, the thriving town of Hergig remains a thorn in the Baroness's side. It has now surpassed Bergsburg in wealth and will continue to grow and may eventually usurp the capital's dominance if Count Aldebrand Ludenhof has any pretensions to the governorship. The Count's son, Konrad Ludenhof, is rumoured to being groomed for the tasks of an Elector Count, but as he is still young, and his father has not shown any hostility to Hildegarde's rule, yet, although the size of Hergig's army and its close ties with the Knights of the Silver Mountain is a cause for concern.

What is the present cause for concern is the unwanted border skirmishes with Ostland troops. The Tassenincks, the rulers of Ostland, seem to have recurring confusions over where the borders of Hochland begin and theirs ends. This has caused more than one diplomatic incident and several small scale skirmishes with both sides losing men and, sometimes, land. Grand Prince Hals von Tasseninck has proven to be quite a warmonger and only the intervention of Talabheim, of which Hochland is attached to, has prevented all out war between the two provinces. Naturally there lies a suspicion between any Hochland and Ostland soldiers who happen to meet.

One of the greatest inventions attributed to Hochland is the Hochland Long Rifle. It was invented by Leon Todmeister and was converted from the harquebus used by some Hochlander hunters. Although the weapon is very effective against armoured targets and has a long range, it is very unwieldy and needs two people to use it effectively.

Roots: Hochlanders claim ancestry from one of the dominant tribes of Sigmar's time: the Teutognens. The Teutognens ruled a great swathe of land around the Middle Mountains and Nordland.

Historical Notes: North Hochland was ravaged several years ago by a horde of Beastmen from the woods on the slopes of the Middle Mountains. Count Aldebrand Ludenhof proved his prowess in battle by defeating the Beastmen and slaying the Khornate leader. The sacked farmsteads were given compensation from the Count's personal fortune so that they could rebuild their lives. Baroness Hildegarde, cynically perhaps, has viewed this action of financial support with suspicion and believes that the Count is trying to 'buy' support for his challenge to the rulership of the Barony. Meanwhile, Count Ludenhof has said "it is nothing more than a gentleman should do." (In the WA: Empire book for Warhammer sixth edition Count Aldebrand Ludenhof finally becomes the Elector Count of Hochland.)

Regional Saints and Heroes: Hochland has few but some claim Uathach, a Teutognen warlord, as a hero or local patron. Uathach is notable in his time for betraying Sigmar during the Goblin Wars. He turned upon Sigmar's Dwarf allies and his reward for this betrayal was death at the hands of the Unberogen leader. Some claim that Uathach's spirit rides the heavens in a chariot when there is thunder and lightning. A statue of Uathach lies in the gardens of Count Ludenhof's manor.

Military Colours: Green and red.

CHARACTERS FROM THE BARONY OF HOCHLAND

Adventurers who originate from Hochland tend to be apprehensive of Ostlanders, especially those following military careers, because of the von Tassenincks incursions across the border. There is also a certain amount of rivalry between characters from Bergsburg and Hergig and once again this is mostly military; nobles from each town always seek to outdo each other in the latest fashions and wealth. Both Bergsburg and Hergig take the sport of falconry very seriously and contests between the two towns are fierce, sometimes even leading to the occasional duel if it was felt there was any cheating.

All Hochlanders are opposed to Ostland and the von Tassenincks.

HOCHLANDER WARRIOR BASIC CAREER CHART

HOCHLANDER RANGER BASIC CAREER CHART

HOCHLANDER ROGUE BASIC CAREER CHART

HOCHLANDER ACADEMIC BASIC CAREER CHART

MIDDENHEIM CITY-STATE

Middenheim is second only to Altdorf in importance (and size) in the Empire. The City of the White Wolf, as it is also known, is the capital of magical knowledge in the Old World and possesses the finest guilds of magical lore. Middenheim is also the capital of the Cult of Ulric just as Altdorf is the capital of the Cult of Sigmar.

Middenheim is sited upon a great plateau of rock called the Fauschlag or 'Fist Strike' which, as legend has it, Ulric himself fashioned. It is said that his brother, Taal, gave the rock to him as a gift and Ulric foresaw that a great fortresscity would grow on its plateau. And he was right. It was Artur (see below), the great chief of the mighty Teutognens, who brought his tribe to the pinnacle and founded the city.

Middenheim city-state is governed by Graf Boris Todbringer, though it is the three Law Lords who carry out most of the laws. The Todbringer dynasty has governed Middenheim for centuries and is regarded as fair and just (the family are distant relatives of the von Bilthofens, and one of them, Gunthar von Bilthofen, was the brother of Emperor Magnus the Pious). In fact Middenheim is quite a liberal place for an Imperial city. The Todbringers have for many years tried to listen to the people when making and enforcing laws and have even developed a semi-democratic rule. Graf Boris and his family maintain close ties with Kislev.

Roots: It was the Teutognens who settled on the Fauschlag. They were a mighty tribe whose warriors were feared throughout the Old World; the warriors even claimed some kind of ancestry with Ulric with himself. As a result they weren't great settlers and had very little knowledge of agriculture. They were essentially warriors and hunters. They put great pride in their ability to hunt, and not just the elk or buffalo, Trolls and Giants were hunted, not only for meat and tough leathers but for trophies and the inevitable statement of prowess in combat.

Historical Notes: In 1152 IC the province of Middenland was annexed by Middenheim and the City State's Graf, Erich, then took the title of Grand Duke of Middenland, taking two electoral votes in the process! In 1550 IC Middenheim warred with Talabheim, signalling Middenland's independence, as the Middenlanders renounced Middenheim's rule and retook Carroburg; Middenheim was too depleted to stop them. In 1812 IC Middenlanders lay siege to Middenheim but are thwarted in their attempts by the defenders and stubborn Dwarven aid; the Undercity becomes sealed. In 2302 IC during the Incursions of Chaos, Magnus the Pious humiliated the High Priest of Ulric by stepping into the Sacred Flame of Ulric's Temple. The priest tried to brand Magnus a heretic and a fraud, but he emerged from the fire unscathed, revealing that he was the Empire's saviour in its hour of need. Such was the impact of Magnus on Middenheim that they name the year 2302 as the 'Year of Shaming'.

Regional Saints and Heroes: Artur, the Chief of the Teutognens and founder of Middenheim, is heralded as a saint. His statue lies in the grounds of Graf Boris's palace, revealing how much the Graf treasures the Teutognen chief's memory. Artur made friends with the Dwarfs, who were themselves forced out of their homes in the Middle Mountains, and together they built the great city. Artur's end finally came when he was bested in single-combat by Sigmar. Artur's son, Wulcan, is also held in high esteem. It is said that he beheld a vision from Ulric and the god smote the rock with the butt of Blitzbeil (Ulric's axe) and a fountain of fire burst forth. This fire was where the great temple of Ulric was built and where the fire still burns to this day (the fire that Magnus the Pious passed through unharmed.)

Military Colours: Blue and white.

CHARACTERS FROM MIDDENHEIM CITY-STATE

Middenheimers maintain a certain mistrust of Middenlanders because of the wars between the two in the past and some even have a dislike for Talabheimers because of deeds perpetrated during the Age of Three Emperors. These kinds of antipathies flourish today centuries later because of Middenheim's relative isolation on the Rock and its fortress mentality. To this day troops from Middenheim clash with those from Middenland who stray too close to the disputed villages of Jagerhausen and Schoninghagen. Skirmishes such as this aren't common however. There have also been some clashes at the village of Grevenfield, whose 'ownership' is being disputed with Hochland.

True Middenheimers, it is said, claim Teutognen ancestry and wear bushy beards and have skulls that could knock down a castle wall. They are proud men, who like the Teutognens, spurn shields and helmets preferring instead to use axes or swords; they rarely wash too. It is said that Marshal Maximillian von Genscher has Teutognen blood flowing through his veins.

Adventurers from Middenheim city-state will always maintain a rivalry with those from Altdorf, especially when religion is involved, notably between the devout followers of Ulric and Sigmar.

Middenheim is famous, some say notorious, for its Snotball hooligans, any Middenheimer is in danger of being labelled a 'hooligan' as a result. Real hooligans enjoy this unwholesome reputation.

Although the Marine and Seaman careers are closed to Middenheimers, Humans and even Halflings are able to follow a career in tunnel fighting. As Middenheim has a comprehensive sewage system there are not enough Dwarfs to solely comprise all of the tunnel fighter units. With this in mind any Human or Halfling who wishes to, and is handy in a fight, can become a Tunnel Fighter.

There is also a much greater chance of finding wizardly tutors in Middenheim, as it is the magical capital of the Old World. However, Dwarfs will prefer the study of Alchemy and their chances of becoming true Alchemists are greatly increased in Middenheim.

MIDDENHEIMER WARRIOR BASIC CAREER CHART

MIDDENHEIMER RANGER BASIC CAREER CHART

MIDDENHEIMER ROGUE BASIC CAREER CHART

MIDDENHEIMER ACADEMIC BASIC CAREER CHART

THE GRAND DUCHY OF MIDDENLAND

The Grand Duchy of Middenland is governed by Grand Duke Leopold von Bildhofen who is based in the city of Carroburg. Carroburg is a very rich town and benefits from a swift merchant trade on the River Reik. Ocean-going vessels arrive from Marienburg from the north-west and Altdorf from the east. Carroburg is also the nearest Imperial city to the great port-city of Marienburg. 

As well as Carroburg there are also two small towns, Delberz and Schoppendorf, situated only a few miles from each other on the eastern half of Middenland. Each small town governs its own domain of villages, though direct power is solely the use of the Grand Duke in Carroburg.

Roots: In the time of Sigmar it was the Kruebi tribe who settled the Middenland region. They weren't a warlike tribe and avoided confrontations with the Teutognens if at all possible. The Kruebi produced exceptionally gifted wood craftsmen and some artefacts of those ancient times survive today; Grand Prince von Bilthofen has several woodcarvings in his palace at Carroburg.

Historical Notes: Friction with Middenheim. Many times have Middenlanders and Middenheimers clashed in bloody battle. In the Age of Wars (1152 IC) the heirs to the Duchy squabbled over who would succeed the Grand Duke, while Graf Erich of Middenheim marched his army through the Drak Wald forest and took Carroburg by storm. Middenheim's rule over Middenland finally ended when in 1550 IC (the Age of Three Emperors) the city state declared war on Talabheim; the Middenlanders renounced Emperor Siegfried's rule and Middenland once again became an independent province. In 1812 IC Middenlanders almost took the City of the White Wolf in a siege that lasted nine months. Grand Duke Karl-Heinz drove through the tunnels of the Fauschlag and his army would have swarmed through the city if it weren't for the doughty defence of the Dwarf tunnel-fighters.

Regional Saints and Heroes: The Chief of the Kruebi tribe, Carrolus, is regarded the patron saint and protector of Carroburg, as he founded the city just after the Goblin Wars. Grand Duke Karl-Heinz is something of a hero too, his statue sits on a pedestal in Carroburg. Middenheimers who know of this statue remark that it is as nothing compared to that of Artur's in the Graf's palace in Middenheim: Artur's statue is proud and heroic while the Grand Duke's takes a humble stance.

Military Colours: Carroburg: Dark red, the rest of Middenland: Blue.

CHARACTERS FROM THE GRAND DUCHY OF MIDDENLAND

Adventurers from Middenland, especially those from its capital of Carroburg, refute any comments that Middenheim is its political capital, although those further to the east of the county, namely from Schoppendorf, might declare the opposite. This is probably due to the fact that Middenheim is considerably nearer to Schoppendorf than Carroburg is. Some of the Schoppendorfen youth brave the long road to Middenheim in order to watch a great game of Snotball, and maybe participate in a good punch-up afterwards.

From Carroburg, great galleys sail to and from Altdorf, either to trade with other parts of the Old World, as is often the case, or to explore strange new places beyond the Sea of Claws. Marines and Seamen can be found in the smoky taverns of the City. To the east of Carroburg, where the River Bogen and River Reik join, is a vast marshland where some fishermen and boatmen have failed to return. Adventurers sometimes enter the Carroburg marshes intent on finding hidden treasures amid the calls from peasants who maintain that the marshes are haunted.

Middenlanders are very river-orientated. The three main areas of habitation, Carroburg, Delberz, and Shoppendorf, each lie next to a river. It is sometimes said that youngsters learn how to row a boat before they can walk.

MIDDENLANDER WARRIOR BASIC CAREER CHART

MIDDENLANDER RANGER BASIC CAREER CHART

MIDDENLANDER ROGUE BASIC CAREER CHART

MIDDENLANDER ACADEMIC BASIC CAREER CHART

THE MOOT

The Moot or the Mootland is an autonomous region governed by Halflings located between Averland and Stirland. Administrative autonomy was granted to the little folk by Ludwig the Fat in 1000 IC, during the Age of Three Emperors, after he decided it was about time to give them their own land to govern as they see fit. Ludwig's advisers at the time told him that he cannot possibly grant the Halflings this just because they had contributed to the Imperial cuisine. Nevertheless, Ludwig the Fat issued the edict that the Moot should be its own province and even be permitted an electoral vote (much to the consternation of his more conservative advisers.)

The Moot is formed by a collection of villages, each one headed by an Elder. The Elders meet fairly frequently, called a District Moot, in a selected village which has been voted for by the Elders; such things as prestige and monthly yield is important in the voting process. Topics debated in a District Moot covers the harvest, which is one of the most important areas of discussion, how many fields should be left fallow, if any are flooded, as well as other crop rotation and fertility issues; where herds should be allowed to graze, if they are producing enough milk or not; whether the cheese is up to standard; the amount of pipe weed grown; and if there are any concerns over possible bandit activity. Before the District Moot the chair-halfling is elected by the Elders and this individual actually becomes an Imperial Elector with the power to vote for a new Emperor!

A District Moot is a sight to behold for it is a gigantic banquet where the village Elders smoke enormous amounts of pipe weed and drink ale by the gallon. For some Elders the attendance of a District Moot depends on the size of the banquet and what is being served. Some conservative Elders (those with strong Halfling traditions) will baulk if half a dozen extra helpings of meat pie are not forthcoming and won't attend. Often the local Electors, usually Averland and Stirland, will send emissaries to a District Moot to watch and take note of the proceedings (when politics is finally discussed after the first seven courses) because little do the Halflings know that they could have an influential say on Imperial politics. One of the Emperor's own Plenipotentiaries is always present at any District Moot, as whoever becomes an Imperial Elector from the assembled Halflings could prove to be an important associate and ally. The Emperor's Plenipotentiary will also keep an eye on any other officials sent by the Electors.

Although the Moot relies heavily on Imperial protection it does at least have its own militia, which the Count of Stirland in particular insists upon, to help with combating bandits in the region. Mostly they are a defensive force and not very well equipped to attack. The Halflings make great use of their culinary skills for homeland defence. Just as most Halflings are excellent cooks and can prepare delicious meals some can also prepare cocktails designed to actually harm a foe and even these ingredients are closely guarded secrets just like an old woman won't divulge the secrets of her recipe book. The cocktails are boiled by the cauldron load and contain ferociously hot spices, as well as peppermint herbs, firebalm, and even dabs of gunpowder. The mixture turns out to be quite a wicked brew and highly flammable, not to mention effective when launched from a catapult. Indeed, mixtures of this kind are very effective against goblinoids; apparently the hot spices and herbs play merry havoc with their fungus-like metabolism. This could be one of the reasons why bands of goblinoids aren't as much of a problem as perhaps they should be on the Moot's borders; the stench given off by the boiling brew is enough to put most creatures off from getting too close. This lethal, stinking concoction is reasonably harmless to a Halfling should one consume a portion (he or she may suffer from an hour or two of stomach pains and intermittent blasts of wind) but to a human it is far more unpleasant; this includes almost immediate unconsciousness and at least two weeks, or more, of diarrhoea.

In return for their Imperial vote, the Moot sends some of their finest cooks to the Imperial court and sends small groups of their foresters to serve for a time in the Imperial army. Halflings are not born warriors but they make competent bowmen and can make hardly a sound when wandering through undergrowth. This makes them ideal scouts although their use in any Imperial army is largely symbolic and few Empire generals want them in their army. Halflings in defence of their homes are determined and doughty fighters, however.

Roots: It has been known that Halflings have always been in the general area of the Moot even before the Edict of Ludwig. Their actual origins are not known or whether they are related to humans in any way. (It is claimed that they were engineered by the Old Ones to be immune to Chaos and it is certainly the case that they are highly resistant to magic and Halfling mutants are unheard of.)

Historical Notes: One of the most important dates is 1000 IC when Ludwig the Fat issued his edict and the formal creation of the Moot. The Moot gained an Imperial vote for the first time.

Regional Saints and Heroes: One of the foremost equivalents of a Halfling saint was the first Moot Elder called Feri Goldlock. Feri accepted the formal handover of the Moot to the Halfling people from the Emperor himself and went on to officially sanction District Moots and politicize the village Elders, although today most have reverted back to their indolent ways. Feri is also accorded several splendid ales and pipe weed, all of which it is said were made with the use of magic (Feri's pipe weed today is called "Gold Leaf".)

When the Black Plague devastated whole populations in the Empire in 1111 IC even the Moot wasn't safe, though they suffered less. Sam Proudbelly grew medicinal herbs, as well as toiling day and night to produce as much food as was possible, and helped to alleviate the suffering of the "Big Folk" in the local Averland and Stirland areas. Just three years later, however, a swarm of locusts threatened to ravage his precious harvest, but he used magic to get rid of them. Some say he was blessed by Esmeralda.

One of the most famous Halfling heroes was Drogo Heartfoot. In 1678 he single-handedly killed a beastmen using a meat cleaver. The creature had been terrorizing the locality for many weeks, stealing food and killing farmers. Drogo was big for a Halfling, standing at a towering four-and-a-half-feet, and today he is remembered as one of the mightiest Halfling warriors and defenders of the homeland that has ever been. Big banquets today mark the occasion when he slew the beastman.

Military Colours: The Halfling militia doesn't conform to a strict dress. As all are ranger-type people they tend to wear greens and browns. However, for those in the service of the Empire they might wear the colours and bear the devices of the Elector or noble they are currently serving.

*The Moot is roughly divided into four "ridings", each one also comprising a collection of villages with their own Elders. There does exist some friendly rivalry between the ridings, such as who makes the most delicious fruit puddings, the finest ale, the best pipe weed and so on. The East Riding lays claim to the best foresters in the Moot due to their historical achievements in the Age of Vampires.

THE BARONY OF NORDLAND

The Barony of Nordland is the northernmost province of the Empire and lies on the political boundary of Middenheim city-state to the south and Ostland to the east. The governor of Nordland is Baron Werner Nikse whose base is in the relatively small city of Salzenmund. Nordland, along with Ostland, is the only Imperial region that has a coast, but unfortunately there are no sizeable harbours along the coastline. Perhaps this is due to the danger of the peninsula of Norsca only 300 miles to the north or the fact that the coastline is too precipitous in many places for any constructions to be built.

Nordland is a non-electoral province but is closely linked with nearby Middenheim. This relationship stemmed from the marriage of Brunhilde Todbringer to Baron Ludwig Nikse in 2368 IC. Today, Graf Boris of Middenheim is married to Anika-Elise Nikse of Nordland. The Barony looks to Middenheim for its security and for trade links with the south and west. In return Nordland provides the occasional regiment of archers.

Nordland has the only 'true' Elven forest of the Empire within its boundaries - the Laurelorn Forest. Nordlanders believe that the Laurelorn is haunted and do not venture into its depths unless they have to. Woodsmen stay well clear of it, perhaps knowing something no other Nordlanders know of, and work the forests a little to the north of Salzenmund or the Forest of Shadows instead. Only trappers have the guile to keep up with their jobs within the Laurelorn but only during the day. The Laurelorn Forest is a mixed deciduous forest and home to the giant lornalim - a straight-trunked tree, with a silvery bark and fibrous, yellow leaves, much loved by the Elves.

Roots: It is known that the Semunduri tribe settled in the Nordland area at the time of Sigmar but what became of them no-one really knows. Other tribes, namely hunters and woodsmen, re-settled the area, setting the scene for the future barony.

Historical Notes: In 1244 was the famous Battle of Beeckerhoven. This was where the self-styled 'Doomlord of Middenheim', the Necromancer Dieter Helsnicht, met his match outside the town of Beeckerhoven against a combined force of Empire and Kislevite troops. The battle is often the source of inspiration for poets and playwrights. A force of Middenheimers and Kislevites came to the aid of the Nordlanders just in time to destroy the rear of Dieter's Undead forces. The Elector Count of Nordland at this time was Einrich Moltke and he slew the Doomlord with his Runefang. However, the Necromancer's body was never recovered after the battle. It is assumed that his body still lies somewhere outside Beeckerhoven.

Regional Saints and Heroes: The semi-mythical Fraewulf is held as a great hero by those who know of him, mostly Druids and others who follow the Old Faith. He was the chief of the Semunduri tribe and was the first to pledge allegiance to Sigmar. There are legends that Fraewulf was as big as a giant and had the strength of one-hundred men. However, the real hero of Nordland is Count Einrich Moltke, who was the Elector Count of Nordland some one-thousand three-hundred years ago. He rallied the troops of Nordland at Beeckerhoven against the hordes of Undead that Dieter Helsnicht had brought to bear on them in his forty-year campaign of war against the Empire. The Count bravely stood up against the Necromancer and ran him through with his Runefang. Einrich's statue now stands in the town square of Salzenmund.

Military Colours: Blue and yellow.

CHARACTERS FROM THE BARONY OF NORDLAND

Unsurprisingly, any Wood Elf adventurers from the Empire will probably originate from Nordland than from any other region. The Laurelorn Forest is home to at least four to five hundred Elves and some of them will be of the adventurous type.

Human Nordlanders live in the sparsely populated region occupying towns, villages and hamlets: Nordland is too densely forested for large settlements to be found. As a result their customs are different to any other region's, and some degree of in-breeding is common.

Nordlanders are a people of woodsmen, trappers, roadwardens, hunters, coachmen, and highwaymen; more commonly the latter three. Nordlanders have a reputation of being highwaymen, a reputation that some of them love and others hate. The coaching town of Beeckerhoven might have something to do with this as it stands on the main highway from Middenheim to Kislev. Those people that have been 'held up' by highwaymen complain that the inhabitants of Beeckerhoven work with the highwaymen and hide them from the authorities in exchange for a share of the spoils from any robbery.

NORDLANDER WARRIOR BASIC CAREER CHART

NORDLANDER RANGER BASIC CAREER CHART

NORDLANDER ROGUE BASIC CAREER CHART

NORDLANDER ACADEMIC BASIC CAREER CHART

NULN CITY-STATE

Nuln is the third city of the Empire and is famous most of all for the Imperial School of Gunnery, where all the greatest gunnery captains and artillerists are schooled. The ruler of the city-state of Nuln is the young Countess Emmanuelle von Liebewitz. She is, perhaps sadly, more famous for her lavish parties than her policies. As the saying goes amongst the educated in Nuln "the Countess' head is as empty as her manifesto." This is usually greeted with roars of laughter amongst the opposition, though not in the Countess' presence.

Nuln lies at the southern tip of the great forest, at the focus of four provinces: Reikland, Sudenland, Averland, and Stirland. Until 100 years ago Nuln was the Imperial capital of the Empire not Altdorf. It was also renowned for having the finest universities in the Old World. What hasn't changed is the imposing temple to Verena located facing the main gateway.

Roots: Most of the Reikland area, including Nuln, was settled by the Unberogens - Sigmar's tribe.

Historical Notes: In 1359 IC the Grand Duke of Stirland was elected Emperor in Nuln and a year later Grand Duchess Ottilia declared herself Empress in Talabheim. The elected Emperor attempted to wage war on Empress Ottilia but was attacked by Middenland in the same year. For 200 years there was civil war in the Empire with no conclusive outcome. Elected Emperors continued to be crowned in Nuln while Ottilia's crown was passed on to her descendents. It was in Nuln that Magnus the Pious addressed the city's nobles for unity against the Incursions of Chaos. When he was elected Emperor, Magnus made Nuln the centre of the Empire.

Regional Saints and Heroes: Of all the heroes of Nuln the best known is, of course, Magnus the Pious; the Temple of Sigmar reckon that he will attain sainthood in another one-hundred years time. Magnus was an exceptional orator and marched from city to city and town to town gathering support for the war against Chaos in 2302 IC. With this army, together with Dwarfs and Elves, Magnus went to the aid of Kislev and routed the Chaos hordes. After the Incursions of Chaos Magnus was elected Emperor and ruled for sixty-five years.

Military Colours: Black.

CHARACTERS FROM NULN CITY-STATE

Nulners are intensely proud of their city and some of them boast that they live in the 'true' capital of the Empire, which it was only 100 years ago. This ensures that they have a rivalry with anyone from the Reikland, especially from Altdorf. Nuln also has arguably the finest schools of military training in the Empire, or they certainly rival those of Altdorf. Because of this, the city has one of the most professional armies in the Empire. Good fighters have a real chance of following Soldier careers here.

Nuln is principally a city of learning and trade, which ensures that there are many students and traders. It is sometimes said that a Nulner will try to sell everything, even his own grandmother, for a few gold crowns. What is true is that most Nulners are exceptional hagglers and will always try to knock the price off an item even if it means by just a few brass pennies. This does not endear them to other people from outside Nuln, who regard them as very mean and selfish and never want to buy the next round of drinks - a tip for the barmaid or barman is very much out of the question!

NULNER WARRIOR BASIC CAREER CHART

NULNER RANGER BASIC CAREER CHART

NULNER ROGUE BASIC CAREER CHART

NULNER ACADEMIC BASIC CAREER CHART

THE LEAGUE OF OSTERMARK

The League of Ostermark occupies the eastern edge of the Empire with Sylvania to the south and the World's Edge Mountains further to the east. It is attached to Talabecland and is responsible to its ruling Elector Count, Grand Duke Gustav von Krieglitz. The governor of Ostermark is Chancellor Maximillian Dachs and he lives in the provincial capital of Bechafen to the north. Also in the capital is the sorcerous Fire College (see Realms of Sorcery.)

The League of Ostermark is an unremarkable region of the Empire but it does produce some good fighting men. The World's Edge Mountains is a hotbed for trouble and adventurers come from miles around to sample its 'delights'. There are some mines which belong to Ostermark located in the mountains and sometimes they are the target for attack by bandits and goblinoids. Then there is the ruined former capital of Ostermark: Mordheim. It lies near the border with Sylvania and is a place of ill omen and only heavily armed and well equipped groups of adventurers and treasure hunters ever dare to venture into its dark ruins. Folklore over the centuries has produced fanciful tales that Mordheim is paved with gold but the truth is it isn't: only beasts haunt the burnt site and dark magicians looking for ingredients for their magic.

Roots: Both the tribes of the Talabec and Fennones settled in the Ostermark region one way or another during and after Sigmar's time. In fact it was the Fennones who first began to settle in its southern regions but the tribes of the Talabec, who viewed them as degenerate scum, pushed them back. Over time it would be the Talabec tribe who would begin to settle the area.

Historical Notes: The most notable battle in the region came in 2145 IC when an Imperial army, containing many Ostermark troops, defeated the Undead horde of Mannfred von Carstein at the Battle of Hel Fenn. Hel Fenn is a dreadful stretch of marshland which penetrates into Sylvania to the south. When the Vampire Counts were at their height, at the turn of the millennium, Ostermark was almost completely devastated. This is one of the reasons why there are few settlements to the south. In the Age of Three Emperors, Ostermark took advantage of the anarchy and invaded Talabecland but with no conclusive outcome; the goblins of the Red Face tribe began to invade Ostermark's eastern border ending the invasion of Talabecland. Another threat to Ostermark was around the mid 18th Century when Ungol horsemen raided its border settlements.

Regional Saints and Heroes: One name springs from the Age of Vampire Counts when Ostermark was invaded by the Undead legions: Adam von Steinwitz. This young man was the leader of a small infantry unit tasked with the defence of the village of Steinwitz. The village would be attacked several times over several nights until Adam devised a bold plan: to attack the Undead on their ground with the day as their ally. Adam found that the Undead were attacking from the foothills of the Worlds Edge Mountains and that the insane, but brilliant, Necromancer Ludwig was guiding the attacks. Through much daring and heroism Adam and his unit annihilated many Undead foes and it was von Steinwitz himself, alone after his unit finally perished, who killed the foul Necromancer in his tower. Adam never returned from the foothills. It is said that just after he left Ludwig's tower he was cut down by a goblin arrow, others say that he is still in the tower, trapped in the fabled Labyrinth of Ludwig, forever to wonder its dark passages. Whatever the scenario, Adam von Steinwitz is heralded as a local saint (even if the priesthood doesn't) by the people of the village; his statue stands proudly in the village square, sword in one hand while his other rests on the shoulder of a gaunt peasant. Even though the village is impoverished the villagers manage to ensure that the statue is well maintained; sometimes at their own personal expense.

Military Colours: Purple and yellow or purple and white.

CHARACTERS FROM THE LEAGUE OF OSTERMARK

People from Ostermark are largely treated as second-class citizens by their more affluent neighbours from Talabecland. But Ostermarkers have always maintained a great spirit and camaraderie that largely began when the small settlements of Ostermark were invaded by the armies of the Vampire Counts. Tales tell of small groups of soldiers, sometimes even peasants, fighting off large numbers of Undead creatures. While some of these stories are true many have been altered to give them a more 'heroic feel'.

OSTERMARKER WARRIOR BASIC CAREER CHART

OSTERMARKER RANGER BASIC CAREER CHART

OSTERMARKER ROGUE BASIC CAREER CHART

OSTERMARKER ACADEMIC BASIC CAREER CHART

THE GRAND PRINCIPALITY OF OSTLAND

Ostland lies on the other side of the Middle Mountains and is one of only two provinces, the other being Ostermark, to border the nation of Kislev. Its capital is the town of Wolfenburg, which lies at the easternmost tip of the Middle Mountains, and is ruled by the von Tassenincks. The current family head is Grand Prince Hals von Tasseninck. His son, Hergard, is currently resident in Altdorf. As easterners, the von Tassenincks are regarded as little better than country yokels by their more sophisticated western cousins.

A thorn in the side of the von Tassenincks are the von Raukovs, who are currently resident in the town of Ferlangen. Grand Prince Hals von Tasseninck knows full well that the head of the von Raukovs, Count Valmir, has designs on his electoral position. But Hals has stopped any ideas of waging war in his own kingdom because the economic costs would be unbearable and a war unsustainable, even though the von Raukovs are less powerful than the von Tassenincks it is not known how much support they actually have in Ostland and amongst the military.

Roots: The Thurini tribe settled in the area that Ostland now occupies before and during the time of Sigmar. They were expert horsemen and were exceptionally proficient at hunting down large warbands of beastmen and goblins in the Forest of Shadows. They had little contact with other tribes save for the Teutognens, whom they hated. Some Thurini tribes had dealings with the Kislevites to the east and some today even claim some kind of Dolgan/Ungol kinship; both had a great love for horses. It is the sign of the times that today Ostlanders are relatively poor at training and maintaining horses.

Historical Notes: Recently, on more than one occasion, Ostland soldiers have made incursions across the border and into Hochland. The Tassenincks maintain that such incursions are merely part of troop exercises or honest mistakes. But this hasn't stopped Ostlander and Hochlander forces clashing in the border regions ending in bloodshed on both sides. In the 20th Century Ostland invaded both Nordland and Hochland in a space of ten years. Periodic invasions of both provinces continued throughout this age of upheaval in the Empire.

Military Colours: Black and white.

*In WA: Empire, Count Valmir von Raukov becomes Elector Count of Ostland.

CHARACTERS FROM THE GRAND PRINCIPALITY OF OSTLAND

Like the von Tassenincks, people from Ostland are sometimes referred to as 'eastern yokels' or 'easterners'. This doesn't cause much offence but does tend to get rather tiresome. Although Wolfenburg does have docks they are only large enough to cater for the larger river boats, and since the Upper Talabec cannot support ocean-going vessels it would be wrong for anyone to go here for training as a marine. Ostland is the heart of fanatical Sigmar support - Ulricans beware! Clerics of Ulric have been known to be set upon by fanatical peasants in this region.

OSTLANDER WARRIOR BASIC CAREER CHART

OSTLANDER RANGER BASIC CAREER CHART

OSTLANDER ROGUE BASIC CAREER CHART

OSTLANDER ACADEMIC BASIC CAREER CHART

THE GRAND PRINCIPALITY OF REIKLAND

Elector: Grand Prince Karl-Franz I Holswig-Schliestein (age 35) who is also, of course, the Emperor and sovereign of the Empire; named heir is Prince Wolfgang Holswig-Abenauer, his sister’s eldest son. Although Karl-Franz I has the power to set taxes, raise armies and issue edicts, he is far from having total control. The provincial Electors respect him as a figurehead and not out of any sense of nationalism.

But the Emperor is far from alone where governing is concerned. To aid in this respect is the Council of State. This governmental body includes the Grand Theogonist and a number of other individuals from some of the most aristocratic families in the Empire. Although the council has no constitutional authority it has great influence over the Emperor’s decisions, especially when they are united. In this respect the Grand Theogonist wields enormous power as he often manages to sway opinion his way.

Any edicts issued by the Emperor and the Council of State are subject to ratification by a watchdog body called the Prime Estates. It was set up a long time ago during Boris the Incompetent’s reign (when he wanted to make his favourite racehorse a Duke) to curb the Emperor’s power over the provinces and stop him from implementing any edicts they don’t like. In this way the Electors have almost complete veto on the Emperor’s right to issue commands. The Prime Estates consists of special representatives from each of the provinces and freistadts (Middenheim, Talabheim etc) who meet in Altdorf to study the various edicts issued by the Council of State. Like the Council the Prime Estates consists entirely of noblemen and priests; lackeys of the Emperor are excluded. These Electoral representatives then send reports back to the Provincial Electors. In this way the Electors have manipulated Imperial politics to grant themselves special privileges over the years.

The Emperor also has his own watchdogs that he despatches to the provinces in an effort to effectively spy on the Electors. These people are known as Imperial Plenipotentiaries. To many they are seen as court favourites and sycophants, eager to worm their way up in the eyes of the Emperor, and accorded little respect. Some are scheming, ambitious, Machiavellian individuals who are quite dangerous and can do more harm than good.

Other Noble Families: The Reikland is a very rich and prosperous place full of wealthy and influential nobles and their families. The most notable of which are: Graf Wilhelm von Saponatheim (Bogenhafen), Graf Sigismund von Jungfreud (Ubersreik), and Baroness Ingrid von Wittgenstein (Castle Wittgenstein.)

Graf Wilhem von Saponatheim “governs” the wealthy town of Bogenhafen, which lies in the Barony of Saponatheim, from Castle Grauenburg 25 miles north of the town. He is quite an ineffectual ruler, as he prefers to indulge in his more favoured pursuits of hunting, shooting, and fishing. He is quite happy to leave the more mundane tasks of administrating Bogenhafen to the town council and its four powerful merchant families: the Haagens, Ruggbroders, Steinhagers, and the Teugens. The only thing the Graf gets involved with as far as the town is concerned is organising the annual Schaffenfest where he gets to invite nobles from throughout the land to partake in a bit of friendly jousting. (see Shadows Over Bogenhafen for more information about Bogenhafen.)

Graf Sigismund von Jungfreud is the direct opposite to his counterpart at Bogenhafen some 100 miles north up the road from Ubersreik, although this has more to do with outside pressures chiefly being meddling from the Altdorf court. The Emperor sent one of his Plenipotentiaries to the town of Auerswald to keep an eye on the Graf; he suspects that he is after the Hahnbrandt mine and the Plenipotentiary, the ambitious grease monkey that he is, has begun to impose punitive taxes on ships using the River Teufel, which has been making the situation worse. Now there is an uneasy standoff between the two towns and skirmishes between the troops of both sides have become increasingly common. Graf Sigismund is infuriated by the extra taxes and all-out war against Auerswald cannot be far off.

Baroness Ingrid von Wittgenstein of Castle Wittgenstein, which is located near the banks of the River Reik roughly halfway between Kemperbad and Nuln, is really quite a harmless sort who is rarely ever seen these days. Rumour has it that she has gone insane and spends all of her time pampering a large number of cats. What is true, however, is that she despises and hates commoners, viewing them as sub-human and in need of extermination. (See Death on the Reik for more information on the Wittgensteins.)

Geography: The mighty River Reik marks the northern boundaries of the Reikland; the famous river flows 750 miles from its source in the Black Mountains and then passes through three great cities – Nuln, Altdorf, and Carroburg - as it continues its journey to Marienburg. The Reik has many tributaries: the River Grissen, which marks the Reikland’s southern boundary as it flows into the Reik at the town of Grissenwald; the River Soll, which flows south from The Vaults; the River Aver, which flows from the east from the Black Mountains and parallel to that 100 or so miles to the north the River Stir; the River Teufel, which flows from the southwest and into the Reik at Castle Reikguard; and then the River Talabec, which flows from the east all the way from the World’s Edge Mountains. The confluence of the Talabec and Reik, beginning at Altdorf, provides a big enough stretch of river from the Imperial capital to the Manaansport Sea in the Wasteland for ocean-going vessels to navigate. In fact the Reik on this stretch is so wide that it contains small, rocky, islands upon which are built many fisher villages, watermen’s inns and other commercial stopping places. But for long stretches the banks of the Reik are heavily forested and can be very dangerous at times and attacks from bandits, as well as bands of beastmen and mutants, on commercial shipping is not unknown, which is why the larger vessels have crews of fighting men to protect their cargo as well as their lives.

The southwest boundary of the Reikland, as well as that of the whole Empire, is marked by the Grey Mountains. This natural frontier also marks the eastern border of Bretonnia. Various passes penetrate through the mountains to offer passage between the two realms but Axe Bite Pass is by far the largest. Dwarfs still remain in the Grey Mountains albeit in only a few isolated scattered settlements. The only Imperial settlement of note in the mountains is the village and keep of Helmgart, which lies in an upland valley almost upon the Axe Bite road. Years ago there was a great battle between Imperial and goblinoid forces in the pass. The Imperials won the hard fought battle and prevented the goblinoids from pouring through the pass and invading the Reikland. Thus the Emperor invited nobles throughout the land to buy the land won in the battle for 1 Gold Crown – and then hold onto it. The noble who bought the land built a keep and brought his serfs with him who then built the foundations of Helmgart village, which is in essence purely there to support the keep. The Helmgart Keep has had an illustrious history and has repulsed both goblinoid and Bretonnian invader alike in its time.

Within the Reikland are two prominent hilly regions: Skaag Hills and the Hagercrybs. The former lies several miles south of the city of Carroburg and the latter dominates the region between the Weissbruck Canal and the River Teufel as the hills emerge from the Reikwald Forest. Both the Skaag Hills and the Hagercrybs are riddled with mines but over the years the veins of precious minerals have dried up and now only the mines of Delfgruder (in the Skaag Hills) and Hahnbrandt remain (in the Hagercrybs.)

Another place in the Grey Mountains is Blood Keep located due west of Ubersreik. It used to house the Knights of the Holy Order of the Dragon who safeguarded the ways through the Grey Mountains. They were originally a Sigmarite order but turned to brigandage during the Age of Three Emperors. The Grand Theogonist excommunicated the order and sent an army of knights and witch-hunters to siege the keep. The Order of the Dragon, although they claimed several prominent knights, were defeated and the keep fell into ruin where it stands to this day. Some claim that the Order of the Dragon were all in fact Vampires but if this was the case the Church of Sigmar has swiftly covered this up.

The main dominating forest of the Reikland is the Reikwald. Only in the east does it give way to the mixed oaks of the Great Forest. The Reikwald Forest is mainly coniferous, particularly in the uplands of the Skaag Hills and the Hagercrybs, but there are deciduous stretches along the rivers. Like all forests in the Empire, the Reikwald is a dangerous place to be after dark or if one ventures to far into its depths. The only places that offer a modicum of safety are the roads, which are (or at least should be) patrolled by roadwardens, and the odd coaching inn.

Historical Notes: It was the Unberogens who settled in the Reikland region, the second largest tribe in the time of Sigmar (the largest of course were the Teutognens). The Unberogens were generally on good terms with most of the tribes of The Empire but were continually at war with Artur's fearsome Teutognens. They were also a highly sophisticated tribe for the time and were accomplished farmers and fishermen. Their principle gods were Dyrath, the goddess of fertility, Karog, god of the rivers, and the Old Faith, as well as many other nature spirits.

At the age of fifteen Sigmar displayed great feats of bravery and strength, none more so when he defeated a band of goblins and freed a small group of captive Dwarfs. Among the captives was none other than King Kargan Ironbeard. The King of the Dwarfs gave Sigmar Ghal-maraz, or "Skull-splitter", in return for his act of heroism. With this magical hammer Sigmar's already considerable fighting ability grew to superhuman levels and tribesmen from miles around wanted to join him and be part of his victories. However, Artur and his Teutognens remained one of two obstacles against a united Empire of Men: the other were the greenskins. Sigmar met and defeated Artur in single combat forcing the Teutognens, at last, to recognise Sigmar as the ruler of Men. With the combined might of all the human tribes of the Empire, Sigmar defeated a gigantic army of goblins on the plains of Stirland. Then word came from a messenger from court of King Kargan that the battle against the greenskins in the Black Mountains was going ill. The Dwarfs had suffered a humiliating defeat and the remnants of the army retreated and regrouped at Karak-Varn. Sigmar wasted no time in coming to the Dwarfs' aid and at the Battle of Black Fire Pass the greenskins were finally put to the sword. The remaining Dwarfs charged from their strongholds and cut off any avenue of retreat the greenskins might have had. Few Orcs and goblins survived to tell of the slaughter and from this moment on Sigmar was known as the "Hammer of the Goblins". In year zero Sigmar was crowned Emperor at Reikdorf (the then Altdorf.)

Altdorf has had to endure several sieges in its long and illustrious history. In the 18th Century the Orc Warlord Gorbad Ironclaw laid siege to the Imperial Capital. It was a desperate time for The Empire as it was riven with plague and civil war leaving bands of Chaos Warriors, Beastmen, goblinoids and bandits to roam the land more or less unmolested. Gorbad easily made his way through the southern provinces laying waste to Averland, Solland, Wissenland and even the city of Nuln. During the siege Sigismund the Electorate Emperor lost his life to a terrible beast but Altdorf was not lost and Gorbad had to retreat. The Orc Warlord was trailed by the Emperor's finest general, the Count of Wissenland and their forces met at the Battle of Grunburg where the Count inflicted a serious wound on Gorbad. The greenskin invasion, subsequently, routed in disarray back whence they came. Thousands were slain in the rout.

During the Age of Vampires Bogenhafen was attacked by an Undead army led by Vlad von Carstein himself. The gunnery captain, Klaus von Rauptmann, ordered a salvo of cannon fire against the hordes of Undead outside the town. It maybe due to luck, or to Klaus's great skill, that the Vampire Lord was struck in the head by a cannonball, taking it clean off. Without Vlad, most of the army crumbled to dust or beat a retreat.

From TEW to present day: The political situation in the Empire worsened during this time frame (approximately ten years) and enemies both external and internal beset the Emperor. Chaos gradually wormed its way into many of the electoral courts, including Altdorf’s, and succeeded in not only bringing up old antipathies but also creating new ones. The reinvigorated Tzeentchian Cult of the Purple Hand almost had the Emperor assassinated as he addressed the Council of State in the Volkshalle. The cultist was dressed as an Ulrican knight, bodyguard to one of the assembled Ulrican clerics, and as he was about to strike the Emperor down he was overpowered and slain. Before he died he cried, “Long live the wolf!”

But Chaos was merely the catalyst for what would happen next. The Empire was far from unified in the first place and the opportunity to be rid of some enemies was too much for many of the Electors to pass over, Chaos just encouraged this process. All-out civil war was the inevitable result with many choosing sides on basis of religion, i.e. Sigmarites against Ulricans. No one could claim neutrality. You were either for the Emperor or against him. As far as everyone was concerned the Ulricans had declared war on Sigmar’s Empire and the Ulricans and Sigmarites, as history shows, were well accustomed to fighting each other.

Relations with Neighbouring Provinces: There are generally cordial relations with the eastern Bretonnian realms and the Reikland. Occasionally an embassy is sent to Bretonnia and the Oisillon Palace where both sides exchange (sometimes) overbearing, bootlicking compliments in an effort to give the impression that the Empire and Bretonnia are bosom buddies. The great natural barrier of the Grey Mountains makes it difficult for the two to engage in battle although in the north those great uplands merge into the rolling limestone hills of the Pale Sisters where it would be possible for armies to meet.

Many in the Altdorf court regard Marienburg as though it were still part of the Empire and the Grand Theogonist and the Cult of Sigmar bemoan the fact that it isn’t. For almost two and a half thousand years Marienburg had remained firmly in the bosom of the Empire but in 2429 it gained independence and the Cult of Sigmar sees this as a great failure as it is their sacred duty to prolong the unity of the Empire. Since Marienburg’s independence more than one aggressive Grand Theogonist has called for a crusade to reclaim the Wasteland for the Empire, but nothing has ever transpired. Moreover they find the Reformed Cult of Sigmar in Marienburg to be tantamount to heresy and the Grand Theogonist refuses to recognise these priests who preach disunity by declaring that the Wasteland was purified when it seceded the Empire. The Reikland depends upon trade with Marienburg not least because it is its only route to the sea and many merchants, as well as Karl-Franz himself, relies upon the wealthy merchant families of the Directorate for loans.

There are neutral relations with the Grand Duchy of Middenland. Religious differences (Reikland is overwhelmingly Sigmarite and Middenland is Ulrican) prevent anything more than this although the merchants from each province have fewer concerns as Middenland’s capital, Carroburg, lies a few miles west up the Reik from Altdorf and trade can be quite lucrative. Trade with Carroburg is also important with the western Reikland; the River Bogen carries boats laden with cargo to Weissbruck and Bogenhafen.

Because of the Grand Duchy of Talabecland’s role in the turmoil known as the Age of Three Emperors, when Grand Duchess Ottilia declared herself Empress and outlawed the Cult of Sigmar in Talabecland, there have been neutral (at best) to sour relations. Some Sigmarite friars travel the Reikland preaching about the evils of the Ottilian period and about how the Ulricans tortured and murdered good Sigmarite men, women, and children in their debauchery. While some of the stories are untrue the Sigmarite leadership does little to stop them.

The Freistadt of Kemperbad is a very rich autonomous trading town on the confluence of the River Reik and the Stir. The Emperor realises that a lot of potential income is being lost to the Trade Barons of Kemperbad and has sent one of his Plenipotentiaries to the town to discover if there is an easy way of getting round this. Otherwise relations with the town are reasonably good.

There are good relations with the Grand County of Stirland being another Sigmarite stronghold. The province holds a certain kind of religious significance to the Cult of Sigmar because it was in Stirland where a great battle was won by Sigmar against a horde of goblinoids. Some high-ranking Sigmarite priests, as well as some pious nobles, make the pilgrimage to the scene of the battle. The Emperor himself is also considering doing the same.

The Emperor always tries to maintain good relations with the Freistadt of Nuln and the County of Wissenland. Some say it is because of Nuln’s fine artillery and gunpowder weapons that the Emperor wishes these good relations but others say it is because he fancies the city’s Elector: Countess Emmanuelle von Lieberwitz, who is acclaimed to be the most eligible spinster in the Empire.

Non-Humans: The Reikland has strong historic ties to the Dwarf race so it comes as no surprise that most Dwarfs in the Empire will live in the Reikland. Altdorf, according to the 2510 census, is home to over one thousand who in turn comprise ten clans. They mostly live in the Metallschlacke and Niederwind districts at the eastern end of the city, both of which are at the heart of the metal and stoneworking industries. Then there is also a much smaller community living in Bogenhafen in the Eisenbahn district where there are Metalworkers’, Carpenters’, Jewellers’, and Masons’ Guilds.

Even in a province as populous as the Reikland Wood Elves are still very few. The Reikwald Forest may have supported a community a long, long time ago, but since then the growing human nation has been clearing the trees away for agriculture to support an ever-expanding population. Nevertheless Altdorf is a very big city and there could be anything up to one hundred Elves there. But Wood Elf settlements are never found by other races so it could just be that in the deepest depths of one of the Reikland’s forests a community of Elves may still live.

Where there are large human settlements, especially places like Altdorf, Bogenhafen, and Ubersreik to name but three, there are certainly to be rich nobles who want Halfling cooks not to mention the many inns and taverns. But then there will also be Halfling vendors selling all kinds of food and drink to the large human populations. Altdorf can probably boast the largest population of Halflings outside the Mootland, especially as the Mootland sends a small detachment of foresters to serve in the Altdorf army each year although this is mostly a symbolic gesture.

Religion: The Reikland is the centre of the Sigmarite faith and Altdorf is where the towering cathedral of the Cult of Sigmar is located. In the 1st century the first Grand Theogonist, Johan Helstrum, laid the foundations for this sacred building as well as heralding the beginning of a new cult, which would eventually supplant most of the others. Virtually every village, and all the towns, have a site dedicated to Sigmar from a simple shrine to a great temple.

In Bogenhafen there are several temples dedicated to the gods. The chief temple is of course dedicated to Sigmar (whose chief priest has a seat on the merchant council) but there are also temples to Ulric (the smallest one in the town), Myrmidia, Verena, Handrich, and Shallya. There is also a temple dedicated to the town’s patron saint called Bogenauer. The temple relies heavily on donations and clerics of Sigmar who run a lot of its administration, as the temple has no priests of its own.

While the urban centres are staunchly Sigmarite the rural folk favour the gods of nature although they still revere the Great Unifier as well; they tend to be more polytheist in their outlook than most Sigmarites. Along the river Reik many fishing villages worship Karog, and the hunters who rely on the Reikwald for subsistence and their living worship Taal, who is also very popular among farmers. The Old Faith tends to be more popular in very isolated regions as it is a dying religion and few people understand it these days preferring instead to turn to Taal. There are also a very small number of people who worship the fertility goddess of old known as Dyrath who was said to be a prominent deity among the ancient Unberogens.

Aside from the normal state religions there are just as many proscribed faiths, which the authorities are desperate to stamp out. Including the worship of the Powers of Chaos there are also daemon covens, vampire cults, and other nameless groups. By far the most dangerous are those organisations dedicated to the Chaos Gods and especially those who worship the Great Conspirator: Tzeentch. The name of the Cult of the Purple Hand has reached the ears of some and they should be greatly feared because they do not conquer through force of arms but through cunning, intrigue and subtle manipulation. The more complex the more Tzeentch rewards them.

Military: Few places in the Empire can have a prouder military tradition than the Reikland. It is probably most famous for the Reiksguard Knights. It was a secular order incepted by one of the Electorate Emperors of Nuln several centuries ago during the Age of Three Emperors with the express purpose of protecting the rightfully elected Emperor against their opponents in Middenland and Talabecland. Each knight is a powerful noble in his own right with his own estates to run outside Altdorf and at certain times of the year they are required to accompany the Emperor on state and ceremonial occasions and, of course, to war. The leader of the Reiksguard is known as the Reiksmarshall and the current incumbent is Kurt Helborg. This position also entails being the commander of all the Empire’s armed forces.

While the Reiksguard knights get all the limelight and attention it is the Reiksguard sergeants who fulfil the (often) tedious duties of guarding the Emperor’s palace in Altdorf. These are, more or less, lesser foot knights who wear almost identical armour to the cavalry knights but wield halberds. In battle they form a stalwart guard of elite halberdiers who are the bane of cavalry as well as any large foes.

Serving the Cult of Sigmar and the Grand Theogonist is the famous order of holy knights called the Knights of the Fiery Heart. It is an ancient order dedicated to the Cult of Sigmar Heldenhammer, the destroyer of the Goblin hordes and founder of the Empire. Its members are charged with fighting religious heresy, Goblinoids, Chaos, and the practitioners of evil magicks. The order is led by the Hochmeister (Grand Master) Heinrich II von Sangershausen and he cuts a very influential figure through Altdorf society.

Being a large, wealthy, and populous province the Reikland can muster large armies when it needs to and also afford to hire large numbers of mercenaries. The former is subject to the needs of the people to tend to their lands and the latter more to how much disposable income there is available in the coffers, as companies of mercenaries can be extremely expensive even for the Emperor, especially in a long war. The standing army of Altdorf consists mainly of small numbers of professional troops (Knights, sergeants-at-arms, professional archers, Greatswords, mercenaries etc) and roughly two or three thousand militia and watchmen of varying quality (the nearby Castle Reikguard can also be counted on to provide excellent troops). Bogenhafen is the complete opposite. They have a tiny standing force of militia but are happy to hire mercenaries as and when required. However, Castle Grauenburg, residence of the ruling Graf, has a small number of highly professional and well-equipped troops that can be mustered quickly in an emergency should the town be under threat.

There are many private retinues of soldiers all owned and equipped by the many wealthy noble families living in the Reikland, which the Emperor can, in theory, call upon when he so wishes. However, each city and town is required to train and equip at least a force of watchmen or militia. The Emperor himself pays for the recruitment, training, and equipment for a regiment of fine archers, dressed in the colours of Altdorf (red and blue). He is also in the process of recruiting an order of knights called the High Helms, so-called because the entry requirements are that those men wishing to join must be at least six foot six inches tall.

There is also an exclusive organisation of knights called the Champions League. It was set up primarily as a result of the Reform Crusade where the “do-good” Shallyans actually started to ban the more bloodthirsty martial pursuits in some areas and were imposing on rulers the need to adhere to certain regulations to prevent injury and death. The founder, Count Ludwig von Ebenauer, joyously declared that no man, priest or priestess will stop them from enjoying their birthright. And if they did he would fight hard to keep it. Thus the Champions League was founded consisting of many rich knights and their retinues. At certain times of the year a number of them meet at a designated spot where they hold jousting tournaments. Massive bets are put on to predict the winners and at each tournament large sums of money change hands. The winners of the tournaments take with them lucrative prizes: gold, jewellery, precious stones, or even a magical artefact, along with the victor taking his beaten opponent’s armour (and sometimes even his horse!). Then there is one last tournament consisting of the all the winners of the previous tournaments to decide the overall champion. Sometimes these meetings can degenerate into extreme violence as one side refuses to acknowledge their defeat or accuses another of cheating and then order their assembled bodyguards to attack. Should things like this happen it can have devastating consequences as many of the knights hold vast tracts of land and it has been known for rivals to declare war on each other until one of them apologises. However, the league should have got over these problems now ever since they agreed upon the idea of having an elected leader who, in theory, can demand a rematch, draw lots for the winner, or even choose the winner (if he is particularly bold.) The Champions League is only open to nobles of at least knight status and they must own all the trappings of a knight: full plate armour, warhorse and caparison, lance, at least three squires, six servants, and at least a dozen men-at-arms. Even this is the bear minimum. Moreover all participants must contribute to the proceedings both for the jousting lists and prize money. The Champions League has quite a reputation and knights travel far and wide to even have the chance of attending a meeting.

Military Colours: For Altdorf the primary colours are red and blue, while the rest of the Reikland is white. Altdorf sticks rigidly to their heraldic tradition but other regions in the Reikland only partly comply with the tradition of wearing white. Those close to the Emperor always dress their troops in white whereas those with a history of defying the Imperial court (or are located in more isolated places where Altdorf cannot interfere) may reject the colour all together. Then of course there’s always the fact that nobles themselves have their own heraldic traditions and are loath to change them. However, some nobles endeavour to satisfy the Imperial court by having their regiments fly white banners whenever they are required to muster their forces for the Emperor.

Reikland Gazetteer:

Key

Size: Settlements are classed as: (C) City, (CS) City State, (T) Town, (ST) Small Town, (V) Village, (F) Fortress, Castle or Monastery.

Ruler: Refers to the suzerain of a settlement or settlements who is in reality under the rulership (often nominal) of the provincial Elector.

Imperial Census Pop: Refers to the number of people registered paying taxes.

Estimated Pop: Refers to any number of people in a settlement: drifters, visitors, tax dodgers (or people who are exempt from tax), beggars, thieves and other riff-raff.

Wealth: Settlements are rated as followers: 1 impoverished, 2 poor, 3 average, 4 wealthy, 5 very rich.

Garrison/Militia: Refers to the quality of men under arms in a settlement: (a) Excellent – these are standing troops such as knights and the private retinues of the nobility, (b) Average – these are good troops and are generally a mercenary contingent attached to a settlement, (c) Poor – these are the number of able-bodied men available (greatly subject to change) to a settlement in times of war, included in this are militia and watchmen roughly making up 20% of the number.

Player Characters from the Reikland

Reikland Adventure Hooks

Trouble at Helmgart: The proud history of Helmgart keep could be drawing to a close. The ruling family of the little fief in Axe Bite Pass, the Durers, has almost run out of money and can no longer afford to employ the soldiers needed to ensure its security. The soldiers are being laid off gradually and taxes have risen in the village to help pay for the costs of the upkeep of the fortress. There is now the distinct possibility that the Reikland could be open to invasion should Helmgart fall. The keep not only guards the pass but also protects some of the isolated farmsteads in the foothills of the Grey Mountains. Obviously with Helmgart falling into ruin the Durers need to start looking for extra muscle and the adventurers could be just the ticket. Once there the PCs first have to deal with an increasingly militant and disenchanted mob of villagers who are struggling to pay the extra taxes, and also there’s a small question of a beastman/orc invasion. But none of these is primarily why the PCs are here.

The reason for the family’s dramatic decline was due to the untimely demise of the head of the Durers, Maximilian, leaving the fortune to the nineteen-year-old heir Johan. Unfortunately Johan had a taste for Altdorf’s highlife and frequently gambled and drank copious amounts of alcohol. In the space of a year Johan had done what the might of Bretonnia and all the Orcs and Beastmen of the Grey Mountains couldn’t and that was to bring Helmgart to its knees. He had spent, gambled and drunk away the Durer fortune. That is the reason given by everyone in Helmgart but the truth is more complex than that. But the real reason why the Durers have been losing their fortune is because of the steward, Gottfried Wurtemberg. The Durer family had enormous wealth passed down through generations from father to son and it just isn’t possible for Johan to have spent it all without help. The steward, a very cunning, Machiavellian type, has been making false accounts, forging letters, and generally making Johan the scapegoat for the Durer family’s great drain in finances. Often Johan sent letters from Altdorf to Helmgart asking for more money. True some of them were genuine but the more costly ones weren’t. Now that Helmgart is falling to pieces and the peasants are beginning to revolt Gottfried’s plan is coming to fruition.

But who is Gottfried? Who, if anyone, does Gottfried work for? Is he really working for the Bretonnians? The Bretonnians wouldn’t mind extending their influence through the Grey Mountains and Helmgart keep would be a perfect stronghold for any further expansion. Or perhaps he is working for a rival noble who wants Helmgart for some other purpose? Can the PCs find out what is going on and perhaps revive the Durer family fortune? Maybe they can get the money back?

THE GRAND COUNTY OF STIRLAND

The Grand County of Stirland lies in the middle of The Empire with the Reikland to the west, Talabecland to the north, Ostermark and Sylvania (which is attached to Stirland) to the east and Averland to the south. The county is governed by Graf Alberich Haupt-Anderssen from the town of Wurtbad, which is located on the southern banks of the River Stir, and some would say that at the tender age of sixteen he is in no fit state to be the ruler of Stirland, let alone an Elector! Though no-one will ever say this in the lad's presence. Not far from Wurtbad lies the College of Earth, built into the side of an east-facing hill in order to catch the dawn light. Cultivated fields surround the college, which provide its inhabitants with food.

The staunch Sigmarite Graf Alberich has an intense dislike for Ulricans, and all positions in his government are filled by people of the Sigmarite faith. When he came to power after his father's death, which he maintains was due to an Ulrican assassination plot, he had all Ulricans (few though they were on the advice of Bardin, see below) turfed out of office and replaced by his own sycophants. But there has always been antipathy towards Ulricans in Stirland and Stirlanders dislike Talabeclanders even more; an ancient antipathy from the Age of Three Emperors (see below.)

Graf Alberich's antipathies are not helped by his chief adviser Bardin Hergare. He is a Sigmarite priest with traditional views, hence his Dwarf-sounding name, and he has been feeding Alberich's young and impressionable mind with visions of a "pure" Stirland state. Bardin has whispered in his ear many times that Sigmar hates mutants and that Halflings are little more than them and should not be allowed to settle on the site of one of Sigmar's most famous battles on the eastern plains of Stirland. Bardin has also recommended that the Ulric-worshipping Stirlanders near the border of Talabecland should be "re-housed" and Sigmarite families be allowed to settle in their stead. All this Alberich has listened to. He has always resented the Halfings of the Moot and the land that they occupy and he has always disliked Ulricans and Talabeclanders. It is just a matter of time before Bardin convinces the young Graf to put his words into actions. But proving Bardin to be a "robber baron" would be almost impossible considering his position in the Church of Sigmar; he is very highly thought of in the Church of Sigmar and is in the running to be an Arch Lector.

Roots: A mixture of Unberogen, Talabec and Fennone stock, although Stirland scholars always emphasise that Stirlanders are of healthy Sigmarite Unberogen blood.

Historical Notes: One of the great battles of Sigmar's time was fought on Stirland soil. It was the first time that all of the human tribes of the Empire fought together and defeated a huge goblinoid army. Relics from that battle are still being found today.

In 1000 Ludwig the Fat issued a royal charter that gave the Halflings a portion of Stirland: the Moot. The Halflings were also granted administrative autonomy and an Imperial vote; the Halfling Elder is counted as an Elector Count.

When in 1152 the Electoral Council ended in a stalemate, the Grand Duke of Talabecland raised an army and waged war on Stirland. This heralded the Age of Wars and The Empire was torn apart by civil war for two-hundred years.

In 1359 the Grand Count of Stirland was elected Emperor in Nuln. As a result the Grand Duchess of Talabecland declared herself Empress without election in Talabheim. The elected Emperor was about to wage war on Talabheim but was himself invaded by Middenland.

In 2145 the Battle of Hel Fenn saw the end of the Age of Vampires and according to the chronicles of the time it was Count Martin of Stirland who cut down the Vampire Lord Mannfred von Carstein. The Count then claimed Sylvania for Stirland. No-one argued with him as no-one wanted the accursed land.

Regional Saints and Heroes: Sigmar Heldenhammer and Count Martin. Although Sigmar is the patron deity of the Empire he is particularly revered by Stirlanders. Count Martin is hailed as a hero and embodies the bravery and fighting spirit of Stirlanders as displayed in the war against the Vampires of Sylvania. Graf Alberich's chief adviser Bardin has been trying to use his influence to get the Count canonised by the Church of Sigmar but as yet with no success, at least for the moment.

Military Colours: Green and yellow.

*Not strictly a village but it covers a wide enough area to be classed as one.

CHARACTERS FROM THE GRAND COUNTY OF STIRLAND

Stirlanders do not like Talabeclanders and those who follow Sigmar (the principle religion of Stirland) also don't like Ulricans. Where in other Sigmar-dominated places, such as Altdorf and Wolfenburg, Ulricans are largely unmolested, this is not the case in Stirland where discrimination against Ulricans is open and even encouraged. Ulrican Stirlanders live close to the border with Talabecland and they are often at the forefront of harsh treatment from the Graf's tax collectors.

Adventurers from Stirland will mirror the above concerns: a dislike for Ulricans and Talabeclanders; although this does not have to be the case. Initiates will most likely follow Sigmar but have a less chance to follow Ulric and any of the deity's relations, such as Taal (he is, however, popular as the aspect of Karog, god of the rivers) and Rhya. There are good relations with Morr, Verena and Myrmidia, especially as the southern warrior goddess regards Ulric in a less than complementary light.

STIRLANDER WARRIOR BASIC CAREER CHART

STIRLANDER RANGER BASIC CAREER CHART

STIRLANDER ROGUE BASIC CAREER CHART

STIRLANDER ACADEMIC BASIC CAREER CHART

THE GRAND COUNTY OF SUDENLAND

Sudenland is a sparsely populated county, as is to be expected from a region in the south of the Empire. The southern reaches are very hilly as they merge into the Black Mountains and the World's Edge Mountains to the east. The Old Dwarf Road passes straight through the county and then into Black Fire Pass, the only commercial trade route through the Black Mountains to the Border Princes.

Many adventurers, Dwarfs especially, come here because of the riches in the Black Mountains. Beasts from these mountains terrorise the mines and farms, leading to the employment of manoeuvrable mercenary and outrider regiments; not to mention worthy adversaries for Dwarf Troll Slayers. There are so many goblinoids and beastmen in the Black Mountains that a warrior can make a fortune in Sudenland: the main trade route at Black Fire Pass must be kept open at all costs.

The county of Sudenland is governed by Grand Baroness Etelka Toppenheimer from her seat in Pfeildorf, the county's capital. Etelka is a benevolent ruler and has set up many democratic institutions. Other Electors are suspicious of handing power to peasants and they site Etelka's visit to Miragliano over twenty years ago as a contributing factor where she brought back many new innovative ideas.

Roots: The Avermanni (see Averland.)

Historical Notes: Several centuries ago much of the southern Empire was devastated by a massive Orc invasion led by the vicious Warlord Gorbad Ironclaw. After Gorbad's subsequent retreat after his defeat at the Battle of Grunberg the ruined south took on new names and new nobles came in to rule in the stead of those who died in the invasion. Solland, the province that had existed before the Orc invasion, was no more and its land was given over to the Count of Wissenland and the Count of the new province of Sudenland. An electoral vote was dually given to the new county.

Regional Saints and Heroes: The famous Baron Johann von Mecklenberg hails from the county of Sudenland. Ten years ago bandits descended upon his father's land and burnt the family castle to the ground; his father slaughtered as well as the servantas. Worst of all for Johann, his brother Wolf was kidnapped. Rather than take his inheritance Johann set out to find the bandits who kidnapped his brother.

Military Colours: Yellow and brown.

CHARACTERS FROM THE GRAND COUNTY OF SUDENLAND

Adventurers from Sudenland will be of the outdoor type because there are no cities or even sizeable towns in the county. Suffice to say, Dwarf characters who want to be Troll Slayers can do no wrong in choosing Sudenland as their 'home' (other than the Border Princes). Hochsleben is usually the chosen abode for such people and houses the best fighters in the county.

Sudenlanders are seen as the real country bumpkins of the Empire known for wearing dirty farmer's clothes and speaking with yokel accents. However, Sudenlanders see themselves as the toughest people in the Empire and regard city dwellers, especially Altdorfers, as 'softies', but dislike Averlanders even more than them.

Agbeiten is a small town whose population are pious towards the Old Faith and Taal. Religious attitudes are generally not confined to Sigmar or Ulric but the trend is to follow the latter. As a result any Initiates from Sudenland will be of Ulric and Taal. Druids from Sudenland will almost certainly originate from Agbeiten.

SUDENLANDER WARRIOR BASIC CAREER CHART

SUDENLANDER RANGER BASIC CAREER CHART

SUDENLANDER ROGUE BASIC CAREER CHART

SUDENLANDER ACADEMIC BASIC CAREER CHART

Elector: Sylvania is ably administrated by the Count Rudgar von Walden who is also a vassal of the Elector of Stirland (Graf Alberich Haupt-Anderssen); the Count is not an Elector himself. Graf Alberich is happy for the rulership of Sylvania to remain in Walden hands because no one else wants the responsibility; such is Sylvania’s evil reputation. The heir to the county is Rudger’s son, Rodrik.

Other Noble Families: There are several notable aristocratic families in Sylvania but to someone from outside the county it would be hard to imagine them being of the nobility such is their lack of wealth. Sylvania has been an impoverished backwater of the Empire for centuries and few, if anyone, has ever made a fortune there. The noble families that live there today are descended from those nobles who took up the Count of Stirland’s invitation to settle and rule in Sylvania after the Battle of Hel Fenn in 2145. Naturally these aristocrats were either very brave, desperate, or insane to even think of forging their own fiefdoms in blighted Sylvania, the Land of the Vampire, but settle they did. The von Waldens, being the richest, took the town of Waldenhof where they have ruled ever since. The three other most powerful nobles in the land include Baron Kristof of Leicheberg, Count Petr of Swartzhafen, and Countess Gabriella of Nachthafen. None of them desire to usurp Count Rudger and even if they did none of them have the resources for a military campaign. In fact they are all pretty much left to their own devices and rule their own fiefs as they see fit.

Geography: On the eastern border of Stirland, in the cold shadow of the Worlds Edge Mountains, lies Sylvania, the most ill-famed region in the whole Empire. For as long as anyone can remember Sylvania has been a dreadful place and even the chronicles of the Empire reveal that as long ago as the twelfth Century dark magic was practiced in the land and probably for many years before that.

Although the Empire gradually recovered after the Great Plague of 1111 Sylvania did not and it was about this time that a warpstone shower broke upon the infertile earth of the ravaged province, furthering the misery of its inhabitants even more. Disfigurations at birth are higher in Sylvania than anywhere else in the Empire and the Sylvanians themselves are often malnourished due to the fact that the land is largely infertile and very difficult to farm. If disease doesn't claim them then famine often does.

Sylvania has always been seen as a province of poor worth and up until the end of the Age of Vampires it was always governed by mad, corrupt, decadent and despotic nobles. Probably the most infamous of all the noble families of Sylvania were the von Draks and in particular Otto von Drak. Otto executed peasants at the slightest provocation and was given to putting their severed heads on spikes. His deeds were many and terrible and not surprisingly the other nobles of the land paid little attention to his demands and for years Sylvania was torn with civil strife. Only the emergence of Vlad von Carstein did Sylvania enjoy a brief renaissance.

By the standards of Sylvania the capital of Waldenhof is a thriving town. Much of it lies in ruins and it used to be able to give home to five thousand souls. Now only a few hundred remain to eek out a sorry existence under the shadow of Castle Waldenschlosse, where the ruler of Sylvania Count Rudgar von Walden does his best to govern this unpleasant land.

Of all the places of Sylvania Drakenhof is the worst. This was the place of the Von Carstein dynasty and the crumbled ruins serve as a reminder of what happened here; dark magic still saturates the air around the ruins of the castle. The village of Drakenhof is only inhabited by lepers and mutants. Somehow they manage to survive, subsisting on plants and insects and sometimes carrion; the lucky ones might be able to find alms that other Sylvanians, with a kind heart, have left them on the village's borders. Not surprisingly, no excisemen come here to collect taxes.

To the east of Swartzhafen lies Ghoul Wood, aptly named because of the large numbers of Ghouls that live there amongst the gnarled and twisted trees. It is rumoured that those Sylvanians who have reached the end of their tether, or are cast out, go to Ghoul Wood where an uncertain existence greets them. Only the luckiest, the most ruthless or the most resourceful individuals survive. The only available food is what can be found in the dark earth (typically disgusting, wriggly things) or the graves of fallen warriors from battles ages past. Sometimes goblinoids from the World's Edge Mountains wander into Ghoul Wood... never to return. It is also Ghoul Wood where, during the Age of the Vampire Counts, that the Von Carsteins hunted the Strigoi for sport.

Just to the west of Tempelhof lies Hunger Wood, a nightmarish place of blackened trees. According to Sylvanian folklore anyone who attempts to journey through the wood will be suddenly overcome with starvation and should a traveller be accompanied, those who succumb to starvation will attempt to devour their companions. No-one knows if the myth is true because anyone who wonders far into Hunger Wood never comes out.

Along the southern banks of the River Stir lies Grim Wood. The few travellers who have claimed to enter Grim Wood and come out again say that evil things rest uneasy in the depths of the forest.

Historical Notes: One can only guess as to what effect the Nehekharan Empire had on this region of the Empire. Thousands of years ago the Legion of Setep constructed a military base in the Sylvania area, no doubt with the intent to conquer further afield. But their stay was cut short once the heart of the Nehekharan Empire was threatened with destruction and so the legion left. An early human tribe known as the Gepids moved into the space vacated by the Nehekharans. Over the years they began to ape certain Nehekharan customs, most notably that of mummification and burial in tombs, and their shamans began to delve into the dark lore of necromancy after years of deciphering old tomes left by the Nehekharan priests. They also began to worship a mysterious death god whose rites involved human sacrifice. While human sacrifice wasn’t unheard of by the majority of the early tribes, especially with the Old Faith and other nature gods whose priests used entrails to see the future, the Gepids often used human sacrifice to increase the power of an individual and that of their death god. Other tribes and even goblinoids rightly feared the Gepids but they did fight for Sigmar in the final battles against the greenskins. In the new Empire, Sylvania flourished and became a province of great importance. However, in the 12th century the Great Plague ravaged the province reducing the populations of entire villages and towns and a warpstone storm cursed the land for good and it is from these events that Sylvania has never recovered.

It was Frederik van Hal, a powerful Necromancer, who came to Sylvania to carve out an Undead empire in the 12th Century (evidently capitalising on the misery and death caused by the Great Plague). He built the looming fortress of Vanhaldenschlosse in the east of the region, several miles north of Drakenhof, which would serve to be the capital of his Undead kingdom. During this time the Empire was at war with the Skaven who had decimated nine tenths of the human population using the Black Death as a weapon and Vanhal had many victories as he unleashed his Undead horde on the weary humans. But Vanhal was assassinated by his ambitious lieutenant, Lothar von Diehl, leaving the Necromancer's fledgling empire at the mercy of goblinoids, Skaven, and humans. The castle of Vanhaldenschlosse is now nothing but ruins, although it was subsequently rebuilt by the Von Carsteins, it was once again ruined when the Age of Vampire Counts came to an end.

Sylvania enjoyed a period of stability when Vlad von Carstein took over the rulership of the province from the insane Von Draks and for two hundred years Sylvania became a productive realm. Yet there was another agenda. Vlad was merely making Sylvania strong for battle, including infecting the other Sylvanian nobles with the curse of vampirism, and it took two centuries for him to achieve this. With his Undead armies Vlad devastated Ostermark and defeated several Imperial armies. It was at the Siege of Altdorf (2051) that Vlad finally was slain. The most widely held account of this episode is that the Grand Theogonist Wilhelm III embraced the Vampire Lord and the momentum sent both of them falling to their deaths from the walls of Altdorf and onto the wooden stakes below.

The last of the Vampire Counts was said to be Mannfred von Carstein who perished at the Battle of Hel Fenn in 2145. Some say his body was never found but others say that his carcass lies somewhere in the swamp. After this battle the Count of Stirland added Sylvania to his own realm and invited nobles throughout the land to help administrate it. It was from this episode that created the Sylvania of today. But some whisper that Mannfred did not die at the battle and fear his return.

From TEW to present day: During this tumultuous period nothing happens in Sylvania to alter the regime. None of the nobles of the Empire wanted this impoverished backwater leaving Count Rudger to his own devices. Even though the Vampires have long gone, no army would wish to enter Sylvania, least of all conquer it.

Relations with the Emperor: Sylvania is of no concern to Emperor Karl-Franz. To him and his courtiers it is a region of Stirland and Graf Alberich Haupt-Anderssen’s responsibility. Meanwhile Count Rudger has absolutely no dealings whatsoever with the Imperial Court, especially as the nobles there think of anyone east of the Upper Reik to be a beggar. So to all intents and purposes Sylvania is effectively alone: a forgotten, impoverished land in the eastern Empire with no influence whatsoever outside its boundaries. Relations with the Cult of Sigmar, however, tends to be strained as in the past several Grand Theogonists called for crusades against Sylvania the most successful of which was called by Jurgen VI in 1650. But the Empire was too weak and fragmented at the time to capitalize on any gains thus effectively handing Sylvania back to the mad von Draks.

Relations with Neighbouring Provinces: Being a shunned region of the Empire it is not surprising that Sylvania has few dealings with any other provinces. It is bordered by the League of Ostermark, the Grand County of Stirland, the Mootland, the Grand County of Averland, and the Border Princes across the other side of the Black Mountains. Of all these, the only dealings, how ever few, is with the parent province it is attached to, that being Stirland.

Non-Humans: Only Humans live in Sylvania (and humanoid things).

Religion: The Sylvanian nobility can be counted as Sigmarites whereas the majority of the common folk are followers of the gods of nature: Taal being the most popular with the Old Faith coming second. In fact the peasants have their own superstitions intermingled with these beliefs and for well they might because of Sylvania’s history. They still believe that dark things stalk the night and when the sun finally disappears heralding the darkness, the peasants hurry to their homes where they lock and bar their doors and hang bundles of witchbane and daemonroot over their shuttered windows in the hope that these herbs will ward off the evil of the night. Many also trail a line of salt around their homes, which they believe will offer the same protection.

Given Sylvania’s dark history it would be presumptuous to assume that no one follows the death gods of old. There are some who have not forgotten the past. Indeed, there are some who worship the Vampires of old as gods and look back on the Age of Vampires as Sylvania’s golden age (the period approximately from 1797 to 2145). In fact there are several Vampire cults in Sylvania and they may have branched out to other provinces too. They believe that their Undead masters of old will once again walk the earth and rule Sylvania as they had done centuries ago. Some even claim to be Vampires. There are also some disciples of the Cult of Nagash who worship the Great Necromancer as a god – Nagash could well have been the ancient death god of whom the Gepids worshipped all those thousands of years ago.

In some villages and hamlets Nurgle the Plague God is worshipped openly. Such is the misery and desperation of so many Sylvanians that they will turn to even the most vile gods for succour. They prey and offer sacrifices to him in the hope that he will lift their suffering. Seeing as these places have few, if any, visitors from the outside, they are free to worship Nurgle as they see fit and in any manner they choose. Such a situation would be unheard of course anywhere else in the Empire.

Military: What military tradition Sylvania had has long been consigned to history. Up until the 12th century, Sylvania participated fully in military ventures throughout the Empire and beyond but the Great Plague and subsequent warpstone storm decimated the population making the rulers unable to mobilize any armies (there was particular discontentment among the Imperial nobility of the von Drak’s reluctance to send any of their sons to the crusades in Araby in the 15th century). There was a brief renaissance under Vlad von Carstein’s governance – the population rose, the county became rich again allowing the nobility to easily carry out their obligations to muster an army - but since then they have been unable to mobilize anything resembling an army.

Today, Sylvania only musters small groups of militia for defence. More often than not it is to counter an immediate threat, such as a ghoul in a forest preying on unwary travellers or other Sylvanians. Generally speaking Sylvanians only venture far from their villages or town in large numbers. When they are happy that the threat has gone then they immediately disperse and go home. The Sylvanian militias are basically groups of peasants armed with pitchforks, hatchets or anything else they can lay their hands on. Only the larger settlements, i.e. towns, have watchmen but only in very small numbers and fewer still are armed with real swords.

Military Colours: Being part of Stirland, Sylvania is supposed to field troops wearing the traditional green and yellow. But as Sylvania can only offer pitiful amounts of manpower for any military campaigns what colours they wear matters very little. The small numbers of militia that can be raised typically wear their own clothes and one or two of their number will carry the heraldic device of their master as the Sylvanian nobility are too poor to properly cloth their troops in uniform and the peasants themselves certainly can’t adhere to any colour schemes.

Gazetteer:

Key

Size: Settlements are classed as: (C) City, (CS) City State, (T) Town, (ST) Small Town, (V) Village, (F) Fortress, Castle or Monastery.

Ruler: Refers to the suzerain of a settlement or settlements who is in reality under the rulership (often nominal) of the provincial Elector.

Wealth: Settlements are rated as followers: 1 impoverished, 2 poor, 3 average, 4 wealthy, 5 very rich.

Garrison/Militia: Refers to the quality of men under arms in a settlement: (a) Excellent – these are standing troops such as knights and the private retinues of the nobility, (b) Average – these are good troops and are generally a mercenary contingent attached to a settlement, (c) Poor – these are the number of able-bodied men available (greatly subject to change) to a settlement in times of war, included in this are militia and watchmen roughly making up 20% of the number.

PCs from Sylvania

People from Sylvania are highly superstitious folk, as one might expect. If anyone has the means to leave Sylvania, they will, so it comes to no surprise that a man or woman might turn to the life of an adventurer. Whilst they may not have seen many ghouls and ghosts (if any) they will have seen a lot of neglect and suffering in Sylvania. 

Characters can choose to come from Drakenhof if they wish; the old Vampire capital of Sylvania, but there is a 25% chance that they will be suffering from a disease. Even if they aren't actually suffering from an ailment there is a 75% chance that they will be carrying one: usually Black Plague or Red Pox.

You do not choose to go to Sylvania in the hope to broaden your career prospects, which is why most able-bodied people will be militiamen or gamekeepers. Grave Robbers are most likely employees of some foreboding hooded employee. Sylvanians with noble blood are looked upon as having links with Sylvania's dark past: the Vampires.

You might like to give any characters from Sylvania some distinguishing features from Hogshead Head's Apocrypha 2 supplement, because Sylvanians are largely a degenerate bunch, namely features such as: large/flat/hook nose, scar on face, one eye, one arm, limp, bald, excessively hairy, stooping, very short, very skinny, pale-skinned, scarred skin, broken teeth, short legs, rough hands.

There are no Halflings, Elves or Dwarf characters from Sylvania.

Sylvania Adventure Hooks

The Beast Lurketh

Lately in Sylvania, Ghouls are abroad and in large numbers and are becoming more and more cunning and coordinated with their attacks. Large wolves have also been seen in the forests and they do not fear fire. Even on the best of days Sylvanias are a frightened bunch but now they are terrified. Where before the various outcasts and beasts of the forests could be scared off by the pitchforks and flaming torches of the local militias, now they are bolder.

The governor of Sylvania, Count Rudger, is naturally concerned and what farming produce Sylvania actually makes to feed its malnourished population is being threatened. Soon there will be widespread famine on such a massive scale that there won’t be anyone left in Sylvania. The Count has sent various emissaries to Stirland over the past few weeks and although their concerns have been addressed nothing has been done. No one outside Sylvania gives a damn and if the province is to starve to death then so be it. The Cult of Sigmar is unrepentant claiming that finally the sins of the Sylvanian people have caught up with them and they are being punished.

What is happening in Sylvania? A Strigoi Vampire (see the Critical Hit bestiary) has taken up residence in the squalid diseased village of Drakenhof and is orchestrating all the troubles in the province. He is controlling all the ghouls, the wolves, and all the nasties to make life unbearable for the Sylvanians and especially for the resident nobility. But he is no ordinary Strigoi. He is none other than Nikali von Drak, son of the mad despot Otto von Drak. It is true that the stories say Otto never had a male heir, only a daughter (Isabella von Carstein, the Vampire wife of Vlad), but Nikali was the illegitimate offspring from a brief liaison between Otto and a young milkmaid over seven centuries ago. When Otto heard that he had fathered a bastard, especially a peasant one (the milkmaid had managed to keep the secret hidden until Nikali was in his teens), he had her brutally tortured and then impaled for telling lies and would have done the same to Nikali if he hadn’t escaped into the forest. For weeks he survived off what measly morsels he could from the forest and at the same time he had to avoid the cruel blades of Otto’s search parties. Otto couldn’t let Nikali live and each time a search party failed to bring back Nikali’s body he had one of their number executed.

Eventually Nikali was found. The pursuit had exhausted him and the brutal search party gave him so many knocks and bashes that they inadvertently killed him. Rather than risk the wrath of Otto for denying the pleasure of torturing and maiming him, the search party dropped the body outside Drakenhof castle and fled. When Otto had the body brought to him by his guards he was relieved that Nikali was dead. The corpse was then disposed of in the forest and left to rot.

It was then that the Strigoi Dragan Redescu found the body and gave Nikali the Dark Kiss in the ghastly Strigoi way. Dragan had been observing Nikali for a long time and chose him to be the “blessed” recipient of the Dark Kiss. But unfortunately for him when the Strigoi Nikali awoke from death he tore his head off and devoured him in a fit of rage. Now Nikali sought revenge against the von Draks but before he could do anything Otto von Drak had died and Vlad von Carstein took over the rulership of Sylvania after marrying Isabella (Nikali’s half sister). Revenge would have to wait and he promised himself he would one day claim his rightful inheritance.

Nikali knew immediately that Vlad was a Vampire and a very powerful one at that. For centuries Nikali chose to do nothing while Vlad led his armies against the Empire and his successors did likewise only to be destroyed at Hel Fenn. He learnt that humans were dangerous and, even after Hel Fenn, Nikali stayed low and lived in various forgotten crypts and cemeteries around Sylvania.

Now Nikali has struck and has begun his grand plan to claim his inheritance as Count of Sylvania. To do this he needs to create so much upheaval in the province that the people turn against their masters. In fact Nikali himself will make the people trust him by personally seeing off all the ghouls and wolves that plague Sylvania. But that will have to wait. The people must suffer first.

The PCs can get embroiled in the events taking place in Sylvania by listening to the rumour mill. Apparently the Sylvanian nobility will not only pay extraordinary amounts of money for anyone to help their dire situation they will also be handing out titles and lands by the bucket load. Of course this is all false. The Sylvanian nobility, by average Imperial standards, is extremely impoverished. But Stirland hasn’t been totally without heart. The Graf is sending one of his advisers to meet with Count Rudger to see if he can’t help with his problems. The only snag is, is that no one wants to escort him to Waldenhof, which is why he will need to hire some guards. Will the PCs go?

To Castle Drakenhof!

The foreboding ruins of the first and last Vampire stronghold still remain in Sylvania as a sobering reminder of the province’s evil past. The castle’s last occupant was Mannfred von Carstein, before him the brutal Konrad, and still before him the eloquent Vlad von Carstein and then the mad and despotic von Draks, the last living rulers of Sylvania. Although locals shun this place like the plague there are some who will seek Drakenhof out and explore the ruins. These people are known as adventurers. Only adventurers are mad enough to want to visit the scene of some of the most despicable and most vile acts committed in the Empire. A magician would pay handsomely for a party of adventurers to locate Drakenhof Castle and then explore it for any books or magic artefacts. But finding a party willing to even Sylvania could be a problem in itself.

Drakenhof castle is rumoured to still contain vast amounts of treasure as well as a library of occult law, which would be invaluable to any wizard. The castle itself is huge, built on top of a massive clifftop from where it dominates the surrounding forest. It has four great towers and a gigantic central keep, beneath which is a huge number of crypts, dungeons and abandoned torture chambers. Secret passages run all the way through the cliff and are said to come out in the woods.

But the castle seems abandoned. The curtains and tapestries have rotted away, and the furniture is cracked and dusty. In the dining hall the obsidian goblets, from which Mannfred and his lackeys used to drink blood, still stand undisturbed on the banqueting table. The walls of the great hall are hung all along with portraits of the Vampire Counts: tall, gaunt, red-eyed men. It is possible that since they could not see themselves in mirrors, the Counts required the pictures to remind them of their physical likeness.

The Count Returns!

Mannfred von Carstein did not perish at the Battle of Hel Fenn almost four centuries ago. True, he was greatly weakened after the battle and did indeed almost come to an end but today he has gathered enough strength to begin his revival. For all this time he has been regenerating his powers in some forgotten crypt deep in the darkest forest of Sylvania. After Hel Fenn his broken body was taken to this place, rather than Drakenhof castle because it was being besieged by an Imperial army, by his loyal followers. But they too came to an end, killed by the scouts of the victorious Imperial army. So the immediate return of the Count had to wait. That was until a wandering leper came across the crypt, probably drawn there by some mystic power. Over time the leper tended to the crypt each day, making the Vampire stronger as he did so, feeding its remains with the warm blood of degenerates. Not a perfect regeneration by any means but at least now Mannfred is whole but by no means back to his full majesty. He needs something else and that is the blood of the descendent of the individual who almost destroyed him at the Battle of Hel Fenn. This can be anything from a minor noble anywhere in the Empire to even the Graf of Stirland himself! Although Mannfred von Carstein will use his own agents to do his bidding he won’t be averse to getting his hands dirty. Even though he is still weak he will stalk the Empire once again and feed on the blood of many a fine dandy page boy or girl. He may attend the lavish balls and parties of the glittering nobility and attempt to work his way into the right circles before striking. Once he has his prize he will take him or her back to Drakenhof castle and etc., etc.

The Resurrection

A group of foppish young nobles have stumbled across the bloody remains of another noble while walking through the streets of a city or town in the Empire. The noble was the unfortunate victim of a gang of footpads. While the footpads stole all his valuables they did not take the collection of parchments and a large tatty book from his bag. But the young nobles, all students, took great interest in the parchments and the book and began to study them over several weeks. They found out that the murdered noble was in fact a member of the Cult of Blood; an underground brotherhood consisting of mainly nobles who desire immortality and worship the Vampires of old. The parchments were maps of Sylvania and the tome was a vile occult work written by Frederick van Hel, the Necromancer of old who ruled Sylvania for a time, which basically gave details on raising the dead and resurrecting Vampires. Now the young nobles are beginning to like the idea of resurrecting a Vampire and attainting immortality as the reward. The Vampire in question can be anything from a relative unknown to a true monster (the name of which was on one of the parchments.) True to form the prime ingredient for the resurrection is warm, human blood, spilt onto the remains of the Vampire as soon as the victim has had his or her throat cut. Naturally the students choose a beautiful young female student, one who is also attending their university. They kidnap her and then begin the trek to Sylvania where they proceed to locate the remains of a Vampire with the help of the maps.

How are the PCs embroiled in all this? A substantial reward is offered to anyone who can find the daughter of Heinrich von Luxemberg. And there is the fact that three or four other students from the university have gone missing too (the fellows who wish to resurrect the Vampire of course.) The young nobles took the boat to Waldenhof and have begun their work there. The young nobles may choose Drakenhof castle for this or they could choose any other dark and foreboding place in Sylvania. Can the PCs follow the trail quickly enough to prevent them from carrying out the resurrection?

Witch-Hunter!

A fanatical Sigmarite priest, by the name of Helmut Klosse wants to hire a group of mercenaries, i.e. the PCs, for a campaign in Sylvania. He believes that a Vampire lives there and the abomination needs destroying before it can do any more harm.

Who does Helmut believe to be the Vampire? None other than Countess Gabriella of Nachthafen. He first came suspicious when she was at the Graf of Stirland’s banquet. She refused to even attend at first and when she did she never ate or drank anything. He also became aware of some bruising and scabby marks on some of her servants’ necks and arms. He maintains that most, if not all, Sylvanian nobles are tainted by daemons and the fact that he has accused the luscious Countess of being a Vampire has led to his dismissal from the Stirland court – the young Graf Alberich fancies her something rotten. But Helmut will not let this rest and he will prove to the young Graf that the beautiful Countess is an Undead monster. All he needs is a handful of hardy and resourceful individuals to help him: the PCs.

Now you can go about this adventure in many ways. The Countess Gabriella could in fact be entirely innocent, i.e. a living, breathing woman. But even then there could be problems. Helmut will demand Trial by Ordeal and force the Countess to undergo all manner of religious tortures to prove his point. What would the PCs do if this happened? Would they stand by and watch an innocent woman tortured? Or would they go against the wishes of the powerful Sigmarite Church and rescue the Countess? Another possibility is that the Countess is definitely a Vampire but a harmless one at that. She rules her fief with fairness and never preys upon her people. Do the PCs do as Helmut asks and slay the Vampire? Or do they take a different view that she is harmless? What if the Countess is a gathering evil? What if she is biding her time to do something nasty to the Empire? (After all Vampires are immortal.)

THE GRAND DUCHY OF TALABECLAND

The autocratic duchy of Talabecland is ruled by Grand Duke Gustav von Krieglitz from the provincial capital of Castle Schloss. Talabecland lies in the heart of the Empire with Stirland to the south, the Reikland to the west, Ostermark to the east (Ostermark is attached to Talabecland) and Middenland and Hochland to the north. The von Krieglitz family has been in the office of Talabecland for the last two centuries although they have experienced much greater heights. It was Emperor Dieter von Krieglitz who was deposed by the Electoral Council after "conniving" with the Burgomeisters of Marienburg thus ensuring the city-ports succession from the Empire. As a lesser punishment the von Krieglitz family was sent to the office of the Grand Duke of Talabecland.

Two-hundred years ago a warpstone meteorite ploughed into the part of Talabecland now known as the "Devil's Bowl". All that remains is a crater and Druidic Priests have since place a stone circle around its perimeter to stop the resultant Chaos debris from polluting the land. Unfortunately the druidic protection has only gone so far and the effects of the meteorite has blighted the land for many miles around. Living things continue to grow in the hills but they are far from natural. This place is roughly three or four days travel from the village of Unterbaum.

Roots: The Talabec tribe occupied the land around the River Talabec before Sigmar's victory over the goblin hordes. Afterwards the chief of the tribe, Krugar, was granted more land, which is approximately the size of Talabecland today. The Talabec tribesmen were devout followers of Taal and of Karnos the Hunter and they bred swift and fearsome hunting dogs to help them catch food in the forests.

Historical Notes: In 1360 Grand Duchess Ottilia declared herself Empress in Talabheim and outlawed the Cult of Sigmar in Talabecland (a source of much antipathy between the the cults of Ulric and Sigmar even today) by recommendation from the High Priest of Ulric. This resulted in many Sigmarite temples being desecrated and the Clerics being pursued and subsequently murdered by Witch-Hunters. The elected Emperor in Nuln began to gather his forces to wage war on the Talabheim "she-devil" but was himself invaded by Middenland.

In 1550 Talabecland was at war with Middenheim.

In 2302 although the anti-Sigmar witch-hunts had subsided somewhat they were still prevalent throughout Talabecland. However, it was Magnus the Pious who finally brought some stability to the troubled duchy. Thus he declared to Talabecland, and all the provincial rulers of the time, "All true sons and daughters of Sigmar unite! We must take up arms as one great people, lest the Chaos hordes o'erwhelm us all and the final darkness consume the world".

Regional Saints and Heroes: Krugar, and sometimes his son Talcred, are worshipped as gods in their own right in the more remote parts of Talabecland.

Military Colours: Red and yellow.

CHARACTERS FROM THE GRAND DUCHY OF TALABECLAND

TALABECLANDER WARRIOR BASIC CAREER CHART

TALABECLANDER RANGER BASIC CAREER CHART

TALABECLANDER ROGUE BASIC CAREER CHART

TALABECLANDER ACADEMIC BASIC CAREER CHART

TALABHEIM CITY-STATE

Talabheim, sometimes also known as the "Eye of the Forest", lies in the centre of the Great Forest in a vast crater making the city virtually impregnable. The only way in, short of finding a perilous route over the crater, is through the Wizard's Way: a half mile long tunnel which penetrates the great crater on its western face. The tunnel is big enough for merchants with great wagons to pass through, although not without expense! A small fortress lies at each end of the Tunnel. The city stands at a great river junction where river and road travellers meet before departing on their way north to Middenheim, east to Kislev, or west to Altdorf.

Talabheim is ruled by Duchess Elise Krieglitz-Untermensch and oversees the city's arcane laws and customs, which it is determined to hold onto as well as its hard won privileges. The two cults of Taal and Ulric are extremely powerful in Talabheim and even that of Ulric has more power in this city than of that in Middenheim. But the major religion is Taal, which predominates many of the names for things in the region: River Talabec, Talabecland, Talagraad, and Talabheim. It is said by many in the city that it is virtually impossible for anything to be done without the consent of a Cleric of Taal or Ulric and even the Duchess's hands are bound by all kinds of antiquated religious regulations, which gives the two dominant cults their power. And the priests themselves aren't above corruption; the High Priests of Taal and Ulric are said to be richer than the entire Krieglitz family.

Roots: The Talabec tribe.

Historical Notes: Talabheim was once the capital of Talabecland until 2429 when Emperor Dieter IV fled to the city after the Electoral Council's decision to remove him from the Imperial Throne. His descendents live in Talabheim to this day.

In 1360 Grand Duchess Ottilia declared herself Empress in Talabheim and outlawed the Cult of Sigmar in Talabecland (a source of much antipathy between the the cults of Ulric and Sigmar even today) by recommendation from the High Priest of Ulric. This resulted in many Sigmarite temples being desecrated and the Clerics being pursued and subsequently murdered by Witch-Hunters. The elected Emperor in Nuln began to gather his forces to wage war on the Talabheim "she-devil" but was himself invaded by Middenland.

Regional Saints and Heroes: Krugar, chief of the Talabec tribe and his son Talcred.

Military Colours: Red and white.

CHARACTERS FROM TALABHEIM CITY-STATE

TALABHEIMER WARRIOR BASIC CAREER CHART

TALABHEIMER RANGER BASIC CAREER CHART

TALABHEIMER ROGUE BASIC CAREER CHART

TALABHEIMER ACADEMIC BASIC CAREER CHART

THE COUNTY OF WISSENLAND

The County of Wissenland borders the Grey Mountains to the west with the Reikland to the north and Averland and Sudenland to the east. One of Wissenland's greatest assets is having Bugman's Brewery, located by the river Sol. It produces the finest ale in the Empire and probably in the Old World. The stout brew house was set up by Zamnil Bugman and it is his son, Josef, who owns and runs the brewery today. However, it is a veritable settlement now: a haven for expatriate Dwarfs from all over The Empire to taste a bit of 'home'. Bugman's Brewery is well-guarded, which isn't surprising considering a Dwarf's love for beer is almost as much as his love for gold. Some of the meanest and most ferocious Dwarf warriors live in Bugman's settlement and they will fight to the death to protect the alehouse, especially as Giants from the Grey Mountains come down for their ten yearly drinking binge, so it is easy for the brewery to attract good fighters.

Wissenland is attached to the City-State of Nuln and is governed by the Pfeifraucher family, specifically Count Bruno Pfeifraucher. But it wasn't always so. Before the 24th Century Wissenland changed hands several times between Emperors and Counts, gaining independence and then losing it. It was the von Reichenbachs tyrannical rule of the village of Kreutzhofen that signalled changing times for Wissenland and, of course, the beneficent rule of Emperor Magnus the Pious (see the historical notes below.)

Roots: The Avermanni (see Averland.)

Historical Notes: The development of Wissenland has probably been tied to a small village at the foot of the Black Mountains called Kreutzhofen. In 1614 it was nothing more than a hamlet and was raided many times by goblins and bandits from the mountains. Kreutzhofen was abandoned time and again due to these unwelcome incursions but the people would always return to pick up the pieces and in 2107 it became a village. At this time there were three Emperors in the Empire. One of them was Emperor Adelbert IV who ruled from Nuln and controlled both Averland and Wissenland. He heard of the discovery of Montdidier Pass by the Bretonnian Marc Oppoleaux and wished to secure the Kreutzhofen area so that he could benefit from Bretonnian mercenaries who would use the pass to get to the Empire. With the support of the Grand Theogonist, Adelbert sent troops to secure the area and a noble from Marienburg was more than willing to help govern it, a one Count Axel Reichenbach. The troops from Nuln defeated the goblins in the Kreutzhofen area and raids in the region became less frequent. Farmers and craftsmen began to settle in the village but unfortunately things began to go wrong...

Count Axel Reichenbach was a petty noble in Marienburg and when trade with Bretonnia flourished he diverted taxes to his own pocket. He eventually amassed a fortune and had village labourers build him a mansion. The people of Kreutzhofen were ruthlessly under the Count's thumb and with the troops to enforce his rule the villagers became nothing but serfs. Anyone who complained were brutally suppressed. The Count's successors were no better. They retarded the link with Tilea by hiring an explorer to investigate the subterranean stretch of the river Sol to the south of the village and then claiming that it was full of malevolent beasts. These packs of lies were paid handsomely by Count Bruno Reichenbach and no-one thought to explore the Tilean route. Years later, however, Tileans appeared from it, compounding the stories of savage sea monsters.

When Magnus von Bildhofen, later called the "Pious", trumpeted the call to arms for the Empire to go to the aid of Kislev and defeat the spawn of Chaos, Reichenbach lost his troops to the call. Without protection the Reichenbachs were murdered and their mansion burned to the ground by the angry villagers, who seized on the opportunity to rid themselves of their longtime oppressors. The villagers told the authorities that the Reichenbachs had been killed by bandits and because of the upheavel the Empire was suffering at the time no-one questioned them.

Magnus the Pious, now Emperor, gave rulership of Wissenland to the Pfeifraucher family and, on the advice of the Grand Theogonist, tied the county to the City-State of Nuln, thus preventing any single tyrant from afflicting Kreutzhofen again. In later years the military garrison in Kreutzhofen has declined and no goblinoids have raided the area for almost a century; connections with the Barons of the Border Princes and in particular the lands of the Steinkuhler family have increased trade and stability.

Military Colours: Grey and white.

CHARACTERS FROM THE COUNTY OF WISSENLAND

WISSENLANDER WARRIOR BASIC CAREER CHART

WISSENLANDER RANGER BASIC CAREER CHART

WISSENLANDER ROGUE BASIC CAREER CHART

WISSENLANDER ACADEMIC BASIC CAREER CHART