Sidebar: Why a City in the Storm?

Chapter Seven 79

City in the Storm

Deep in the heart ofa neverending storm called the Reavewind lies Sanneth,the City in the Storm.Nestled within the eye ofthe storm,the magical flying city floats safely amid the destruction all around it.The entire city,made mostly ofglass towers and crystal domes,rises up from a bronze disk base almost halfa mile across.

When the sorcerer Gar Sanneth needed a sanctuary from the marauding ogre army ofChureck-Fon, she created an entire city using multiple wishes that left her drained and vulnerable.The city lay at the heart ofthe Reavewind,an eternal storm that continually washed over a small but shunned sea far to the west.She dwelled within the city for quite some time,fortifying it,and making pacts with elemental lords called the Scions ofStorm and Earth to ensure the well-being ofher creation.She even worked with the archdruid Ravvan to create the creatures known today as the sohr.Though they look like creatures of the sea,these beasts remain very much at home on the wind.

Eventually,however,Chureck-Fon’s mind flayer assassins caught up to Gar Sanneth,and she was slain.

Background

Years passed,until finally Ravvan calmed the storm for a day and revealed the floating abandoned city again.At the time,he sought a place to store an artifact called the mana vessel for safekeeping.This huge crystalline artifact,shut with a mithral seal, held vast reserves ofarcane energy and—rumor had it—magical beings ofenergy as well.Ravvan,fearing the mana vessel’s power, stored it within the city,which he named Sanneth after his friend,its creator.Then he assigned awakened animal guardians to watch over it.When the storm returned,he was already gone from the city,which hid,undisturbed,for many more years.

Later Ravvan returned to the Reavewind and once again calmed it with his power.This time,however,the ghost ofGar Sanneth herselfpossessed the archdruid as soon as the storm had died,and forced him to return to her city.Seeking to destroy it in a scheme ofspite from beyond the grave,she bade Ravvan break the seal on the mana vessel, loosing its contents in a conflagration ofdissolution.The possessed Ravvan killed his own awakened servants and prepared to do just that.

Guided by divination,the clerics ofnearby lands foresaw these events and looked for those who could stop them. Seven individuals rose to oppose Ravvan.On winged steeds they flew to Sanneth while the Reavewind remained calm. They joined Ravvan in fierce battle.

During the struggle,however,the vessel cracked.The T’kraam,known in ancient legends as “the thunderkin,” escaped.The partially open mana vessel bathed the seven heroes with strange otherworldly energies,but they repaired the crack before the artifact could loose far worse destruction.The heroes defeated Ravvan,then called upon the Scions ofStorm and Earth to seal the broken vessel.

With the battle over,the heroes decided to settle in Sanneth and make it their home.They used the sohr to travel through the storm safely and bring more people and supplies;they have continued to rely on the creatures ever since. Ofcourse,the ever-present danger ofthe thunderkin forced the inhabitants ofSanneth to remain always vigilant.

Seven noble families developed over time,each descended from one ofthe seven great heroes ofSanneth.In each ofthese bloodlines flowed sorcerous power and talent,giving the descendants special abilities activated only through certain spells.

Sanneth Today

Though Sanneth is a place oflegend to some,most people do not even know it exists.The Reavewind that surrounds it rages in an isolated area ofthe world above a sea rendered almost unnavigable by the eternal storm.Despite this, Sanneth supports a population ofabout 4,000 residents. More than a traditional town ofthat size,Sanneth teems with people ofgreat power and skill.It has more than its share ofmid- to high-level fighters,wizards,clerics,rogues, and so on.

Those few who do know ofSanneth consider it a source of great craftsmanship,particularly known for its magic items.

The people ofSanneth have only recently learned that the T’kraam have somehow created a number oftiny floating fortresses oftheir own within the giant storm ofthe Reavewind.From there,they launch attacks against Sanneth.The Palat family urges calm prudence,but the Ethrochals,the Aovaunts,and the Tephaons prepare to mount an airborne force ofbattle sohr and air barges† to brave the winds,root out the monsters in their lairs,and destroy them once and for all.No one knows how the evil creatures could have obtained such fortresses— without hands or the ability to cast spells,they could not have built them themselves,presumably.What no one has yet learned is that the T’kraam have begun taking slaves to build structures for them.

Why a City in the Storm?

The whole point of the City in the Storm is to provide a way to have classic, epic adventures in the clouds. Characters mounted upon flying whales sailing into a stormcloud to do battle against creatures of thunder and lightning— these are things that every player will remember fondly. Floating cities in the clouds are a staple of fantasy for a reason. Almost everyone dreams of flying. Living in the clouds is a fanciful daydream for landbound creatures like us. We even refer to daydreamers as people “with their heads in the clouds.”