Politics of Karrnath
F
ounded by Karrn the Conquerer, Karrnath is the
most martial of the Five Nations and the home of
Galifar's founder. At the beginning of the Last
War, King Kaius rejected almost nine centuries of
tradition by asserting a new right to the throne.
However, Kaius' confidence in his nation's
military might was swiftly undermined by a series
of plagues and famines that crippled Karrnath's offensive
efforts.
Forced to turn to the clerics of the Blood of Vol for help,
Kaius was introduced to its darkest secrets - the ancient lich
Erandis Vol. Transformed into a vampire, Kaius attempted to
reject Erandis' plots. Erandis punished his insolence by
activating Kaius' bloodthirst, forcing him to kill his wife. Kaius
retreated into hiding, faking his death and letting his son
Kaius II ascend to the throne. Kaius plotted his revenge,
returning to public life on his great-grandson Kaius III's
twentieth birthday.
Coordinating with the Regent Moranna, Kaius I executed a
decades-long plan in the making. Kaius III had been carefully
coached to emulate Kaius I's look and mannerisms, convinced
that appropriating his great-grandfather's style would grant
legitimacy and help him bring an end to the war. This made
the change, with Kaius III whisked away to Dreadhold and
Kaius I ascending to the throne, nearly seamless. Although
careful court observers suspect something might be off,
keying into Kaius' vampiric nature, none suspect the carefully
hidden truth that Kaius III is in fact his great-grandfather.
The Crown
Kaius has spent nearly a century planning the reclamation of
his birthright - first Karrnath, then Galifar. While the curse of
vampirism has stripped him of any compassion or empathy, it
has also stripped him of his vanity and pride. Even before
becoming a vampire he would be considered lawful evil proudly using torture and other extreme tools of the state to
accomplish his goals. But before, his pride and vanity would
interfere, wasting time torturing enemies for the fun of it or
playing games to amuse himself. The modern Kaius is the
type of villain who has read the Evil Overlord List, avoiding
ego-baiting mistakes while constantly advancing his schemes.
The Royal Family
Kaius I realized that his two other great-grandchildren,
Haydith and Gaius, would both be more than capable of
recognizing his deception given enough time, while also being
too important to disappear or replace. As such, he remained
distant from both until he wrote in a royal family exchange to
the Treaty of Thronehold. While he maintains letter
correspondence to keep up the pretense that he's still Kaius
III, Haydith's and Gaius' now two-year tenure in Wroat and
Flamekeep respectively are the least of his concerns.
Haydith ir'Wynarn is Kaius and Gaius' half-sister, the
daughter of their shared mother Vasilisa ir'Wynarn and First
Warlord Eadric Ivanovich. Vasilisa remarried nearly a decade
after her husband Jaron's death, again drawn to power and
choosing the most powerful man in Karrnath amongst her
many suitors. She died in childbirth in 982, bearing only a
single, radiant baby girl. Moranna, distrusting of Eadric and
his schemes, banished him back to his ancestral estate while
taking up Haydith as her own to raise in addition to the
teenage Kaius and Gaius. Both boys embraced Haydith as
their full sister despite the age gap, and she grew to admire
both strong young men.
Heartbroken by Kaius' deal in 996 to exchange the royal
heirs, Haydith has become her own political force during her
enforced absence. She has gained Boranel's confidence while
making nice with the parliamentarians. Beautiful and
charming, many underestimate the young princess at their
own peril. While she does not have the cruel streak passed
down in the line of Karrn to all true heirs of Karrnath, she is
still a political force, taking up charity cases and whichever
cause catches her attention. Recently, warforged rights have
fascinated her, realizing that they are much more than the
tools her brothers believe them to be.
Gaius has in many ways rejected his Karrnathi heritage,
becoming a cleric of the Silver Flame under the tutelage of
Jaela. Kind and compassionate, he sees it as his mission to
learn the power of the faith and warm the frozen hearts of the
Karrnathi people. While he knows nothing of the dark secrets
behind the Blood of Vol, he still loathes their presence,
recognizing that the religion have been associated with some
of the darkest chapters of Karrnathi history.
Kaius III's aunt Moranna served as regent and now serves
as a royal advisor. A powerful necromancer, she was turned
into a vampire by Kaius so she could execute his grand
designs. She willingly serves, enjoying both the power she
currently possesses and the power she knows Kaius will
continue to grant her as his plans unfold. While she did not
relish killing her brother Jaron in 972, he had become a thrall
to Vol and would never stand for a truly free Karrnath.
Queen Etrigani is a beautiful face to contrast the hardened
and imperious Kaius. Even amongst the Aereni she's an
impressive figure, earning her noble status early in her second
century and gaining an appointment to the diplomatic corps
before she turned 150. She caught Kaius' eye serving as an
attache to his court in Korth in 992 YK. Within the year the
two were married in a truly loving marriage.
Etrigani's true goals in Karrnath are a mystery, which
means the royal rumor mills have been hard at work. Some
accuse her of participating in a plot to place Khorvaire under
elven rule, seizing Karrnath diplomatically while the Valenar
use force. Others accuse her of conspiring with or even being
a member of the deathguard, Aerenal's elite undead hunters.
The petty simply consider her a gold digger, pointing to her
elven youth. The truth is not only she a prodigal member of
the deathguard but she has become instrumental in helping
Kaius handle his vampiric nature, defending him not only
from external threats but also from himself.
1
Kaius' Coverup
Kaius' deception that he is not only alive but in fact Kaius III
isn't the easiest trick in the world. A large array of protective
magics and practical effects work together to conceal his true
nature.
Kaius' protections start with an Amulet of Nondetection, a
rare wondrous item that maintains the nondetection spell on
him permanently. Bound to the same protective Eberron
dragonshard is an enchantment that protects Kaius from
sunlight, negating both the damage and the disadvantage from
his sunlight hypersensitivity trait. Because this amulet is so
important to protecting him from harm, it's been specially
crafted to have 20 HP and hardness 10 and been enchanted
with Arcanist's Magic Aura to appear nonmagical.
To handle the long term logistics of Kaius' bloodthirst, he
keeps a harem of willing supplicants, Blood of Vol devotees
whom have been persuaded that the dark mistress behind the
scenes does not care for their lives. The warforged Beauty
guards the harem from wandering eyes, serving Kaius
faithfully. The harem itself is protected by a Hallow spell
protecting from radiant damage woven to exclude celestials,
fiends, and undead that aren't Kaius or Moranna, while
providing Kaius and his followers protection from radiant
energy. Furthermore, the area is protected by a Private
Sanctum spell, with all of the clauses active. Kaius' inner
sanctum is beyond the harem, further warded by Glyphs of
Warding keyed to explode at any creature besides him,
Moranna, and Etrigani.
The Twist
Kaius III secretly being a vampire and also Kaius I is one of
the most widely known "setting secrets". As such, DMs with
players that are familiar with the setting may find the reveal
insufficiently dramatic.
On his blog, Keith has suggested to add another layer of
deception - Kaius III is the one in command of Karrnath, with
Kaius I posing as Kaius III in Dreadhold. The main reason to
do this would be the continued existence of Kaius I's vampiric
sire, a creature capable of subverting even Kaius' iron will.
2
The Warlords
During the days of Galifar, the Warlords of Karrnath bore a
purely honorary title associated with their noble status. The
ignition of the Last War transformed the title to a meaningful
one, expanding their charter from managing a piece of
territory to managing entire military operations. While the
Karrnathi nobles have never been the plump conoisseurs of
Aundair and Breland, the Last War created real opportunities
for nobles to distinguish themselves by their acumen in battle.
Karrnath has a long and honorable tradition of war. The
highest-ranking nobles in the land, charged with protecting
specific regions and granted the right to raise armies, have
held the title of warlord from before the time of the kingdom
of Galifar. During the time of the kingdom, the title was mostly
symbolic, as any troops under a warlord’s command were also
loyal to and under the direction of the king. When Kaius I
declared that Karrnath was an independent nation at the start
of the Last War, this changed. Suddenly, the warlords had real
power and real responsibility to create and maintain armies to
protect the nation.
The Military
While all Karrnathi soldiers wear a standardized uniform,
each soldier also wears an insignia indicating under which
warlord they serve. The Karrnathi military, more so than other
national armies, is composed from the ground up, with units
of soldiers typically composed of a single warlord's forces.
This factionalization certainly has its costs, but also comes
with organizational benefits, leaning into the strong
distributed martial traditions of Karrnath.
The Army
The Karrnathi army, on a soldier per soldier basis, is the
strongest in Khorvaire. Youth train with the use of weaponry
from a young age, first sparring with sticks before moving
onto more sophisticated forms of weaponry that are often
passed down within a family. Karrnath's primary weakness is
its lack of industrial base and logistical support, two factors
that would likely have lead to Breland's victory if the war
continued. The loss of the Mroran mines and the frequency of
bad harvests meant that Karrnathi efficiency and supply lines
were constantly stretched to the limit.
While Karrnath does not have a long tradition of arcane
magic like Aundair, Kaius quickly realized the importance of
evocation in the early days of the war and established several
academies dedicated to training war mages. Lacking the
academic sophistication of their peers in other nations,
Karrnathi war mages made up for it with deadly accuracy and
spell selection, choosing the right blast or burst for the job to
circumvent enemy defenses. Karrnath especially invested in
Siege Staffs, magical staffs carrying potent third level spells
that even relatively inexperienced spellcasters could use. One
such spell is Warmage's Fireball, a variant on the traditional
fireball spell that trades damage for increased area of effect.
The Navy
The Karrnathi Navy is based out of Karrlakton, and was
integral to defending Karrnath from invasions. Seperated
from the other five nations by water, any invasion attempt
must reckon with Karrnath's navy. The aundairian incursion of
the western reaches of Karrnath certainly exposed
weaknesses, but the Cyrans never succeeded in pushing
through the long aquatic border. Fighting in and around
Scion's Sound was fierce, as the waterways determined who
could easily move supplies and troops around and who
couldn't. Furthermore, naval routes opened up new angles of
attack that simply weren't available through land-based
marches.
The White Lions
The White Lions are a military police force charged with
internal security to Karrnath. While Karrnath does have a
system of localized law enforcement implemented by the
variuos warlords, capable of handling common problems like
ordinary theft and violent disputes, truly serious crimes are
escalated to the White Lions. As military police, the White
Lions have extensive powers compared to other nations, with
the martial law of Karrnath offering few civil liberties. While
the White Lions report to First Warlord Eadric Ivanovich,
their subsidiary counterintelligence organization the Twilight
Brigade (colloquially known as the Dark Lions) reports back
to Moranna.
The Dark Cabinet
The Dark Cabinet is a new organization, formed in the
aftermath of the removal of the Blood of Vol from positions of
power in Karrnath. Now without an intelligence agency, Kaius
and Moranna formed the Dark Cabinet, a peer-group
intelligence network that coordinates the intelligence
resources of the various warlords. Acting as Kaius' spymaster,
Moranna has begun to develop deeper sources and contacts,
but she is still woefully behind the almost century of build-up
their competition has had.
The Undead
Karrnath is best known for its elite Karrnathi undead, corpses
of elite soldiers infused with the martial spirit of Karrnath.
These elite units are capable of working in any condition with
minimal management. Compared to warforged, the chief
advantage of Karrnathi undead is their superior night vision,
enabling operations even on the darkest of nights when only
one or two moons shine.
However, the majority of Karrnath's undead legions are not
made up of such elite soldiers. Bured under Atur are hordes of
ordinary skeletons and zombies, bound by enchantments that
are only to be undone when the next war begins. Other types
of more sophisticated undead are also contained, although in
much smaller quantities both due to the increased cost
associated with creating and controlling them and the reality
that only skilled necromancers can create them. Selfreplicating undead, such as ghouls, shadows, and wights were
especially kept on a short leash in low quantities to avoid an
uncontrollable outbreak or infestation.
During the war, it's important to contextualize that it wasn't
just the moral and ethical flexibility of the use of undead that
gave the Karrnathi the advantage, but the magical
development. An ordinary necromancer can only control a
handful of undead at a time, and even that required significant
skill and training. However, with items such as the Helm of
Odakyr even a novice necromancer could manage half a dozen
basic undead.
A common mistake amongst residents of Khorvaire is the
belief that the Karrnathi as a whole like the use of undead.
This is not true - most Karrnathi are vassals, worshippers of
Dol Arrah and Dol Dorn. However, they recognize the
important role undead have had in defending Karrnath, so
while they may dislike them they see it as something
necessary to preserve their proud heritage. Due to the
mandatory two years of service, many Karrnathi have had
more personal encounters with the undead legions, seeing
that they were able to stay safe and act as support while the
allied zombies and skeletons bore the brunt of the casualties.
Sample NPCs
First Warlord Eadric Ivanovich is the leader of At All Costs, a
secret society within the Order of Rekkenmark that seeks to
start and win the Next War by any means necessary. Many of
Karrnath's most powerful warlords are members of the
society, increasing the taxes they impose so as to fuel their
growing forces. Eadric sees a reprisal against the Valenar as
the best opportunity to test Karrnath's strength while avoiding
restarting the war on the Western half of the continent before
he is ready.
While he is somewhat concerned about drawing the bulk of
Karrnath's armies away from its heavily settled Western
portion, he sees Jaela as too weak to invade and has reliable
intelligence about Lord Darro ir'Lain of Aundair's plans to
invade the Eldeen Reaches. As such, he feels comfortable
extending Karrnath's forces to the south to invade Valenar.
Gavin Shult is the grandson of Gyrnar Shult, the
necromancer who worked with the then-living Malevenor to
develop the Odakyr Rites that are used to create Karrnathi
Undead. While his grandfather was the agricultural reeve of
Odakyr, the province that covers southwest Karrnath and
includes Fort Bones and Fort Zombie, Gavin has both
abandoned his father's faith and political position, instead
serving the royal family directly as the chief magical advisor.
Unaware of Moranna and Kaius' true nature, he has
nonetheless served both faithfully to protect and preserve the
nation. While Gavin considers Crownhome his primary base
of operations, he manages facilities all over Karrnath, many of
them inside Mabaran manifest zones.
His most recent projects have involved improvements in
both controlling and destroying undead. These spells and
items would work to counteract Emerald Claw schemes to
hijack Karrnath's legions or to turn their own forces against
them. These have drawn Vol's personal attention due to their
potential to be used against the rebellious Kaius and
Moranna, and whatever comes of Gavin's research is likely to
reshape the shadowy conflict between Kaius and the Crimson
Covenant.
3
The Seekers
Followers of the Blood of Vol are known as "Seekers",
referencing their search for a way to unlock the Divinity
Within. While not particularly numerous, the Blood of Vol has
had an outsized impact on Karrnath on the past century.
While followers of the Blood of Vol are generally united
doctrinally, they are not united systemically. Each church of
the faith is an independent community from the others,
however many clergy choose to engage with others through
mail correspondence via Orien's network. Within Karrnath's
numerous small and scattered communities, especially in the
rural eastern reaches, these letters are the only regular
contact these priests have with other people outside their
immediate community.
However, while many clergy know nothing of the Queen of
Death's machinations, she has developed a network of
abactors that subtly persuade and recruit members into Vol's
schemes, a sort of cult within the faith. The Blood of Vol
developed as a faith first within the Lhazaar without the
influence of Erandis, but it was only able to grow with
Erandis' resources and influence. Abactors are not publicly
identified as such - they are just understood to have deep
understandings of the mystery and power of faith.
The Crimson Covenant
The Crimson Covenant is Erandis Vol's thirteen most trusted
lieutenants and advisors, responsible for executing her global
plans and machinations. Handpicked over the centuries, each
member is either an undead or has some other method of
unnaturally extending their lifespan. While each member has
taken their own extensive set of steps to protect their person
both from physical and magical harm, Erandis has
supplemented their defenses with her own rituals and spells,
protecting not only their identities but very existence from
mortal magic.
While the Lords of Dust or Dragons of Argonessen might be
capable of piercing Vol's defenses, either they have simply not
thought to look or have their own reasons to let them be. It is
possible that one or both groups may have a deep cover agent
amongst the thirteen, subtly manipulating Vol and her plans to
fulfill key passages of the prophecy.
4
The Order of the Emerald Claw
The Order of the Emerald Claw was the most infamous of
Karrnath's many Blood of Vol based orders. They were
officially kicked out of power with the transition by Regent
Morrana in 976 YK as she consolidated her power, and lost
indirect state support when Kaius III removed the Blood of
Vol as the state religion in 991 YK. Bitter at the loss of power
and privilege, many devotees were eager to serve Lady
Illmarrow when she began recruiting for a reforged Order of
the Emerald Claw.
The Order of the Emerald Claw has transformed itself into
a terrorist organization, with tight-knit cells and information
strictly operating on need-to-know. Each cell leader reports to
one of the members of the crimson covenant, although they
rarely know the true name or identity of that covenant
member. Orders flow from the cell leader to its members. It
has actually grown in size since being disbanded, absorbing
many disgruntled members of other Blood of Vol orders that
existed during the war. Some have resisted this call, with the
Knights of the Ebon Skull as the best well known order to
align itself with Kaius over the Queen of Death.
Publicly, most know that the Order of the Emerald Claw
roots many of its beliefs and practices in Blood of Vol
traditions, but dismiss it as an extremist sect that doesn't
represent the religion as a whole. Zealous believers of other
faiths however sometimes point to the Order's worst atrocities
as proof of the corrupt nature of the faith.
Sample NPCs
Marcel Landeau is a reformer within the Blood of Vol, a rising
star with no connection to the Crimson Covenant. His
writings have gained broad circulation within Karrnath,
preaching against the secrecy that the abactors use to
radicalize members. While he does not know the truth behind
the abactor's schemes, he has seen plenty of evidence of some
dangerous secret society within the faith that continues to
push restless youth into the Order of the Emerald Claw. He
has also made an enemy of many warlords, calling for an end
to the constant militarization of Karrnath and for an inward
focus on peaceful renewal. Player characters may find any
number of reasons to call Marcel an ally, as Marcel has
managed to make an enemy of many of the most powerful
people in the nation.
Trukhin Ivanovich is the disgraced son of First Warlord
Eadric Ivanovich and former member of the Emerald Claw.
His father did not approve of Trukhin's choice to join the
Emerald Claw over more traditional roles in the Karrnathi
military, considering their underhanded and occult tactics
disgraceful and dishonorable. When Moranna started
deemphasizing the Emerald Claw, Trukhin stuck to the order.
When Kaius removed them from power, Trukhin formed a
new mercenary unit called the Jade Company, made up of
former Emerald Claw agents. The Jade Company competes
with both Thuranni and Deneith as an independent crew,
which has certainly made Trukhin his fair share of enemies.
Still, several Karrnathi warlords are more than happy to hire
them to fill in gaps in their operations. Trukhin's secret edge is
that his soldiers still serve the Crimson Covenant, providing a
plausibly deniable way for Vol to continue to exert her
influence within Karrnath.
Local Politics
Below the Warlords, Karrnath's towns and surrounding
villages are managed by Royal Mayors. The Royal Mayor is an
appointed title chosen by the Warlord. While it is usually
hereditary, the power to renounce a Royal Mayor's title is
solely vested in the Warlord. Furthermore, the Royal Mayor's
primary residence is owned by the Warlord, making them
dependent on their Warlord for continued power.
Karrnath has endured a century of martial law, declared
when Kaius contested the coronation of his sister Mishann of
Cyre. This has given Karrnath's security forces, especially the
White Lions, wide discretion when it comes to enforcing the
law. Those deemed to be in violation of the law are brought
before a judge for sentencing. The intervention of a Royal
Mayor or a Warlord is typically necessary to mitigate the
consequences - meaning that if a party decides to cause
trouble and gets arrested, they better have made friends in
high places who can intervene on their behalf.
Towns
Governed directly by a Royal Mayor, each town in Karrnath is
a center of commerce and trade. Local villagers bring their
goods on a regular basis, trading agricultural products for the
manufactured goods produced in each town. Many towns
implemented curfews over the course of the war, and the
steady lifting of them over the past two years has caused a
resurgence in traditional Karrnathi dancing halls where young
people fraternize after dark.
Villages
The cold climate of Karrnath shortens the growing season for
"breadbasket" crops, making many of the farmers reliant on
magebred cows and pigs supplied by House Vadalis. While
House Vadalis and Lyrandar have spent significant amounts of
time pursuing magebred crops bred for northern resiliency on
the Karrnathi crown's dime, their successes have been far
more limited than their results with livestock. The Karrnathi
branch of Vadalis considers themselves artisans, working with
the many villages to cultivate new and exciting flavors of meat
and dairy products. What has especially excited the artificers
of Vadalis is the promising new chocolate flavor brought in by
Xen'drik explorers two decades ago - while the plant itself
cannot handle Karrnath's long winters, the bitter flavor pairs
excellently with Karrnathi agricultural products.
Still, Karrnath's villages are haunted by a century of
famines. Contrary to what many assume, the worst years were
actually preceded by light, warm winters - meaning that
insects and vermin were able to survive in higher numbers,
terrorizing the farmers. Many village elders show signs of
malnutrition, as the lack of food during their childhood years
led to stunted growth.
Over time the Seekers and Vassals have self-selected to live
in different villages. Seeker villages typically support a couple
of basic undead - skeletons and zombies - that help with the
fields, having a status somewhere between plows and oxen.
Seekers give their bodies to the communities so they can
continue to help even in death. The farmhand reanimation
process is expensive, so most corpses are sold to government
corpse collectors to restock the undead legions.
Sample NPC
Lord Mayor Arthur Marks governs Frosthold, a major trading
community on the Iceflow River in northern Karrnath. The
port town facilitates the exchange of agricultural produce,
timber from the Icewood, and minerals from the Icetop
Mountains. Lyrandar and Lhazaar ships come upriver to buy
these raw materials and sell manufactured goods from the
rest of Khorvaire.
This region of Karrnath was in many ways abandoned with
the outbreak of the Last War, as the ringing bells of levies
pulled every able-bodied adventuring spirit away. This led to a
resurgence in the native monsters and spirits of the area, keen
on reclaiming what was theirs. Since the Treaty of
Thronehold, Arthur Marks has prioritized reclaiming the lost
communities and mines that have sat empty for decades,
hiring mercenaries and adventurers to clear a path.
New Spells
Warmage's Fireball is a 3rd level Wizard and Sorcerer spell.
Warmage's Fireball
Evocation
Casting Time: 1 Action
Range: 200 ft.
Components: V, S, M*
Duration: Instantaneous
A bright streak arcs over the battlefield to a point you choose
within range and then blossoms with a low roar into an
explosion of flame. Each creature in a 50-foot-radius sphere
centered on that point must make a Dexterity saving throw. A
target takes 3d6 fire damage on a failed save, or half as much
damage on a successful one.
The fire spreads around corners. It ignites flammable
objects in the area that aren't being worn or carried.
* - (a tiny ball of bat guano and sulfur)
New Items
Helm of Odakyr
Wondrous Item, rare (requires attunement)
Once per day, the wearer of this helm can cast Animate
Dead at 5th level, but only to assert control, not to animate
new undead. This ability refreshes at dusk.
Banner of the White Legion
Wondrous Item, rare
As an action, you may plant this banner. Any ally within line
of sight of this banner can command undead under their
control out to triple the normal distance.
Credits
Thank you D.G. Landreneau for the cover!