Kalakeri

Tsien Man-Yi. Made of pale wood, Tsien Man-Yi must remain near the willow tree in the courtyard of the Palace of Bones, and has the statistics of a dryad. She wishes for flowers from the Gemstone Garden or for a friend to fall asleep under her tree's boughs. Tsien Seu-Mei. Voiceless Tsien Seu-Mei is made entirely of teeth and has the statistics of a ghoul. She wishes to eat a delicious dessert or care for one of the fish of the Gemstone Gardens. She often wanders the stalls of Gwai-Huit Center. Tsien Wai-Ching. Made of living fog, Tsien WaiChing is the youngest daughter and has the statistics of a specter. She wishes to help a spirit from Ping' On Tower find its family or to play with an incorporeal toy. She regularly explores the memorials in the Gemstone Gardens. D ISRUPTING THE DREAM

Damaging Tsien Chiang's dream undermines her grip on I'Cath, freeing the dreaming populace and opening the domain's borders. Thousands of living people suddenly need to be fed , but they can reclaim their normal lives. Those seeking to spoil Tsien Chiang's dream can do so in the following ways: Dreaming Daughters. If all four of Tsien Chiang's daughters in the waking world fall asleep, their sleeping forms replace their doubles in the dream city. This unites them with their mother in her perfect world, exactly as they've always wanted. Tsien

Chiang, however, is horrified by their intrusion and flees her dream. Dreams of Revolution. I 'Cath's dreamers and displaced ancestral spirits might be persuaded to revolt against Tsien Chiang. This leads to extreme responses from the Darklord and her servants, but could force her to neglect or end the dream. Waking Dream. A particularly compelling waking individual, spirit, or goal within I'Cath distracts Tsien Chiang from her dream. Perhaps the spirits of her lost family haunt the Mansions, or an individual directs the jiangshi to perfectly execute the Darklord's plans. Either outcome might lead Tsien Chiang to focus on reality and let her dreams slip away-for a time.

Domain of Betrayal and Revenge Darklord: Ramya Vasavadan Genres: Gothic horror and dark fantasy Hallmarks: Monstrous leaders, family intrigue, war-torn nation Mist Talismans: Ornate but rusted talwar, shield emblazoned with a wyvern-and-lotus emblem, a well-polished skull

For untold generations, the Vasavadan dynasty has ruled over the Great Kingdom of Kalakeri. This land was one of stability and prosperity until a barbarous civil war and a queen's dying curse brought low what centuries never could. Once an unrivaled power known throughout the world for its rare resources and vibrant trade, Kalakeri is now locked in an endless storm of violence. At the center of that storm stand the remnants of the Vasavadan: three heirs transformed into unspeakable monsters by their depravity and hatred.

Kalakeri is a deceptively beautiful land of verdant rain forests and an idyllic web of rivers and lakes known as the Backwaters. Rare creatures and extraordinary magical plants are found across the forest peninsula locals call the Harvest Peninsula. At the height of its prosperity, Kalakeri was a robust center of art, commerce, and religion, with foreign merchants spreading wild tales of Sri Raji, the Steaming Lands, the Land at the Heart of the World, and other fanciful names for Kalakeri. Now Kalakeri is a shadow of its past glory, a quagmire of intrigue and despair where fortunes change on a whim.

The people of Kalakeri live i n dread, as a single misstep means doom. Schemers and hapless citizens alike are tossed by the tidal forces of the royal family. Following her betrayal and assassination, Maharani Ramya was restored to the world to avenge herself against her treacherous siblings, Arijani and Reeva. Ramya's curse manifests in both her deathless rage and in the monstrous forms afflicting her siblings. Both sides continue to escalate their atrocities against one another, drawing the powerful and the innocent alike into their squabbles. As Arijani and Reeva host murderous galas to entice fiendish allies, the forces of the Darklord search out and execute anyone they consider treasonous, adding their skulls to Ramya's ever-growing Tower of Traitors. NOTEWORTHY F E ATURES

Those familiar with Kalakeri know the following facts: • Two factions struggle to lay claim to Kalakeri's Sapphire Throne: the soldiers and loyalists of

K A L A K E R I CH A R ACTE R S C h a racters from K a l a keri h a i l from a r i c h , w o n d ro u s l a n d t a inted b y s u s p i c i o n . T h e y a re typ i c a l l y d arkh a i re d , d ark-eyed, brown- s k i n n e d p e o p l e with I nd i a n i n s p i re d n a m e s . W h e n p l ayers create c h a racters from K a la ke r i , con s i d e r a s k i n g them the fo l lowin g q uestion s .

How h a s t h e war between t h e Vasavadans affected you? Residents of j a d u ra i l ive i n t h e m id st of confl ict. Are you o n R a mya's o r Arij a n i and Reeva's s i d e ? H ave you c h anged s i d e s or tried to avoid t h e conflict e n tirely? I f you h aven't taken p a r t d i rectly i n the confl ict, has s o m e o n e you c a re about been h armed by it?

What part of society d o you come from? K a la keri i s b u i lt o n social c l a s s , with the n o b il ity at the top, wealthy m e rc h a nts and m i l itary officers next, a n d everyo n e else below. W h e re d o you stan d , a n d d o you w i s h to rise o r s i m p ly to s urvive?

What are you hiding from the royal family? Does your fam i ly h arbor a traitor, o r d o they avoid conscription i nto Ramya's a rmy? Are you brave e n o u g h to pass o n i ntel ligence to a factio n ? O r d o you wor k to overthrow both Vasava d a n factions to e n d t h e i r strife ?

Maharani Ramya, a n d t h e nobles a n d merchants who support the younger royal siblings, Arijani and Reeva. • The vast city of]adurai performs multiple duties as Kalakeri's capital, the site of the royal palace, and a battlefield where factions struggle to claim • or hold it as a symbol of rule. Fierce followers of each faction scour the land, • murdering any who oppose their faction. Refugees from the strife hide in the Backwaters, and rebel groups there organize against the entire • Vasavadan family. The Tower of Traitors is a dizzying, skull-studded structure that grows daily. Some say its completion will cleanse the nation of evil, while others believe it will summon the gods' wrath. SETTLEM E N T S A N D S I T E S

Kalakeri i s dominated by tropical rain forests that surround hundreds of miles of inland waterways. Farming and fishing villages line these waterways and the coast. jADURAI

T h i s city is thousands o f years old. Here ancient structures with the architecture of previous dynasties stand alongside modern buildings. Hardly a month passes without locals rediscovering a forgotten chamber or catacomb. The colorfully canopied Lakshma Market trades in everything from betel leaves to the eggs of wyverns, which are common near the mountain spires known as the Lesser and Greater Vochalam. People of all social classes flock to the market, moving past the flower-petaled kolam that ward the entrances of the high temple of Kalakeri's gods.