Campaigns

Back to the Burning Star

Admeh - Admeh Sharon - A bard of the Ghostly Minstrel.  He wrote the Song of the Starborn. Nereida's mind briefly inhabited his body when she was imprisoned in the Probe of Dreams.

Amantes, The - Family name for Basil, Demetrios, Bonzimir, Nereida and Felix.

Anushirvan - A monastery of Borlamnos which held a great library. It was destroyed over 1600 years ago during The Summoning War, by monks corrupted by the Book of Inverted Darkness. [This was my version of Bard's Keep, from the old Randy Maxwell Dungeon magazine adventure, Ex Libris.]

Artorius - God of Valor and the Body. Twin brother of Borlamnos. Laelia's monastic order worships both gods.

Aulus - Aulus Hirtius Neverius, an eldritch warrior sent by the Inverted Pyramid to aid the Company of the Starborn in the Banewarrens.

Avatar, The - The unnamed dark elf who was one of the first banes to escape the Banewarrens.  He called himself The Avatar of Chaos.

Banewarrens, The - The place where the ancient cleric Danar hid away some of the world's worst evil artifacts, or banes.  It is set within and below Mons Tarteros.

Basil - Basil Amantes, one of the PC's - a human Fighter.

Black Grail, The - The evil artifact which the Pactlords covet.  It is thought to be somewhere in the Banewarrens.

Black Manor, The - The residence of the Pactlords in the Quann.

Bonzimir - Bonzimir Amantes, one of the PC's - a halfling Rogue.

Borlamnos - God of Magic and Knowledge. The Company of the Starborn are sworn to his service. Also known as The Opener.

Burning Star - The common name of the meteor that crashed in northern Conorria in the year 2780. Though it is little known, this meteor brought to earth a number of mysterious infants, including the PC's.

Callistus - A large city in the Conorrian Empire. It is known as the City of Towers and sits on an island in the Phaedon river. It lies approximately 500 miles due north of Echoriath.

Chaositech - A foul and ancient demonic power, capable of great things, but ultimately corrupting to its users.  Both the Pactlords and House Vitellius apparently have access to Chaositech.

Charch-Pahn - An ancient beholder and leader of the Pactlords.  He has his own tower in a swamp in the Quann.

Company of the Starborn - The PC's adventuring band, so called ever since the defeat of Kyroclides and the song Demetrios urged Admeh Sharon to write.

Conorrian Empire - Once the greatest empire in the world, the Conorrian Empire is now one of a few handfuls of states holding out against the rising tide of dark powers that have consumed most formerly civilized lands. It is the home to my current campaign.

Cornelia - A lovely barmaid at the Ghostly Minstrel. She and Demetrios have developed a romance.

Danar - The nearly mythical hero who built the Banewarrens.  He later became the evil demi-god Eslathagos Malkith, the Dread One, and was destroyed by his former companions.

Demetrios - Demetrios Amantes, one of the PC's - a human fighter/wizard (later, all wizard).

Donna Mara - Sister Donna Mara, a priestess of the Great Church, and the PC's contact at the Great Cathedral. 

Echoriath - The capital of the Conorrian Empire, largest metropolis in the known world. 

Elida - A female Knight of the Sacred Keys, holy warrior of the god Borlamnos. She has had a vision commanding her to protect Nereida Amantes (she's Nereida's cohort).

Ennius - A Conorrian noble house, friendly to the PC's and powerful in Callistus.

Eslathagos Malkith - The name of former hero Danar, after he had been corrupted by the Book of Inverted Darkness and become an evil demi-god. Also known as The Dread One.

Fabitor - Brother Fabitor, priest of St. Gesius, a chapel in the run-down Maze district.

Flavia - Flavia Brassus, a powerful wizard living in Echoriath. She has maintained a correspondence with Quintus for years. She is red-haired and her left arm is made of magical red glass.  She is served by a falcon familiar made of red glass.

Felix - Felix Amantes, one of the Company of the Starborn.  A psion. Killed by Yuinthu and the second Grail Quest Team.

Geristonomos - An intelligent (but now addled and forgetful) mechanical being created by Danar to keep up the Banewarrens' protections.  He has spent the last 3,000 years half-blind and pinned under tons of debris.  His eye was restored by the Company of the Starborn.

Ghostly Minstrel, The - The favorite watering hole of the Company of the Starborn and other adventuring groups in the city of Echoriath.  Run by Olivia and her daughter Cornelia.

Grail Quest Teams - The name given to the teams of monsters sent by the Pactlords to the Banewarrens to retrieve the Black Grail.

Great Church, The - The most powerful of all Conorrian Churches, dedicated to the entire pantheon known as the Gods of the Chalice. 

Hand of Danar - The mummified hand of Danar.  Also known as The Banewarrens Key.  It opens many doors in the Banewarrens and can only be destroyed by the Staff of Shards.

Herminius - Professor Herminius, an elderly scholar at the University of Echoriath, an expert in ancient literature and an avid consumer of tales about the Dwarvenhearth. 

Heth - Brother Heth Neferul.  A deacon of the Great Church and priest of the Chapel of St. Thessina.  Revealed to be a traitor in league with the Pactlords.  Killed by the Company of the Starborn.

Inverted Pyramid, The - A secretive association of wizards in Echoriath.  The only member known to the Company of the Starborn is Flavia Brassus.

Jonas - Jonas Ennius.  The son of Flavius Ennius and heir to House Ennius.  The Company of the Starborn rescued him from the clutches of Lucius Vitellius and Kallus the Necromancer.

Julia - Julia Metellus, an enterprising member of powerful House Metellus, an ancient noble Conorrian family. She employed the Amantes in Callistus and was impressed by their resourcefulness.

Julius - Julius Ennius, the Secundus of Borlamnos in the city of Callistus.  A patron of the Company of the Starborn.  Brother to the nobleman Flavius Ennius.

Kalerecent - Sir Kalerecent.  A paladin of the Order of the Dawn.  A hero of the Maze.  Killed in the Banewarrens by the first Grail Quest Team sent by the Pactlords.  Later raised by the Great Church.

Kikanuile - The green hag who lead the first Grail Quest Team.  Slain by the Company in the Outer Vaults.

Kyroclides - A young blue dragon from the WotC adventure Start at the End. He escaped the Company of the Starborn in the Shattered Lands.

Laelia - Laelia Parvula, one of the PC's. A female monk of the Leones Alae ("Winged Lion") order. A follower of the twin gods Artorius and Borlamnos. 

Lucius - Lucius Vitellius. A ruthless and petty crimelord in Echoriath's Maze district. He is a distant cousin to the powerful family of Navanna Vitellius.

Mace of Marius - An ancient and wicked-looking black two-headed morningstar said to have been used by the Conorrian hero Marius to defend the Empire against the Living Statues of Accolon.

Marcian's Oddities - An eclectic shop in Echoriath's Academy district, dealing in magical items, run by the elf Marcian.

Marcus - Marcus Asinus. One of the PC's. A Knight of the Sacred Keys, holy warrior of the god Borlamnos. 

Mons Tartaros - The immensely tall spur of rock that towers over the city of Echoriath. It is where the hero-king Aumerides (later the Emperor Vasil I) defeated the titan Tartarus.

Navanna - Navanna Vitellus. Beautiful, capable and evil daughter of the House of Vitellius.  Also known as The Lady of Shadows.  

Nereida - Nereida Amantes, one of the PC's - a human cleric of Borlamnos.

Nicolon - Nicolon Regelis, a bard and Knight of the Chord. He was impersonated by someone unknown when the Company infiltrated the Vitellius manor.

Olivia - Owner of the Ghostly Minstrel, mother to Cornelia. She likes Demetrios but disapproves of her daughter's interest in an adventurer.

Pactlords of the Quaan - A weird order of monsters bent on the elimination of the "good" races from Theeurth.  They are based in the Quann.

Pertinax - A corrupt and boorish Magister Civites (Captain of the Guard) in Echoriath. He doggedly pursues blackmail of the rich and moderately powerful in the city, and curries favor with the great houses. He forwarded much of this information to Navanna Vitellius. Unbeknownst to him, many of his men worked for Lucius Vitellius. He hung himself after his corruption was uncovered by Vera Macrinus with the help of the Company of the Starborn.

Pierre DuMonde - Dashing and dangerous bounty hunter from the western nation of Corland. Worked for Appius Macrinus. He and Nereida have admired each other without acting upon it.

Probe of Dreams, The - A machine given to Brother Heth by the Pactlords of the Quann.  It could probe the dreams of a captive for information.

Prophecies of the Burning Star - A book, recovered from Anushirvan, which speaks of the powers of Astromancy, and hints at the important destiny of the Starborn.

Quaan - A swampy demi-plane built by Danar's companion Maerithia Moonbow, but later taken over by the Pactlords.

Quintus - Claudius Amulius Quintus Amantes, adoptive father of the PC's. A cleric of Borlamnos and an expert in the lore of magical items.

Rsanir - A monk.  Companion to Kalerecent.

Sealing Generators - The magical engines that seal the Banewarrens. 

Sealing Rod - The dragon-headed rod needed to finish the last Sealing Generator and seal the Banewarrens forever.

Severa - A female paladin, dedicated leader of the Great Church's team looking for the Sword of Truth in the Banewarrens.  Charismatic and practical, she has a passion for the works of the Great Church.

St. Martius's Street - The street where the Amantes family owns a house in Echoriath.

St. Thessina's - The chapel of the Great Church formerly run by Brother Heth.

Staff of Shards, The - The staff forged by Maerithia Moonbow to destroy Eslathagos Malkith.  It shattered into three parts once it accomplished this.  One part still contains the intelligence of the dying  elven girl whose soul powered the Staff.  This is the dagger named Yaeshla. The re-assembled Staff can destroy the Hand of Danar.

Starborn, The - Collective name for the PC's, from their origin in a fiery meteor crash. The PC's have since learned that there are other Starborn out there, perhaps many more. Laelia is one such. Another is The Warlord, said to reside in the nation of Ianthe.

Starborn Tattoos - The mysterious silvery tattoos that writhe across the arms and chests of the Starborn. Certain events (such as an oath to Borlamnos or PC death) cause one tattoo to migrate to the chest and settle into a fixed form.

Sword of Lies, The - The sword which was once used to slay hundreds of wizards and sorcerers in a terrible pogrom after the fall of Iridian.  May be The Sword of Truth under a curse.  

Sword of Truth, The - Ancient holy sword which was one of the relics of fallen Iridian.  The Great Church believes in a prophecy that says it will return to bring great glory into the world.  It may now be The Sword of Lies.

Tarteros - The titan defeated by Aumerides (later Vasil I, first Conorrian Emperor) and imprisoned within the spire that bears his name: Mons Tarteros.

Terestir - Terestir Malacon.  A wizard in the hierarchy of the Great Church.  A master of mirrors.

Theeurth - The world wherein my campaigns are set.

Thought Stalker, The - One of the foul banes released by the Pactlords.  It escaped into Echoriath and eats people's brains.

Tobias - Brother Tobias, the high priest of the Great Cathedral.

Unmaker, The - A chaositech machine given to Brother Heth by the Pactlords of the Quann.  It could disintegrate almost anything.

Vera - Vera Macrinus, beautiful wife of Appius Macrinus, a powerful Echoriath merchant. Vera is a friend to the Company of the Starborn, and was being blackmailed by Pertinax.

Vitellius - A powerful and evil noble house of Echoriath.  Rumored to have demonic ancestry.

Yaeshla - the mind of an elven girl preserved in the Staff of Shards.  She is now the hilt of a dagger with the same name.

Yuinthu - An illithid (mind flayer).  Part of the second Grail Quest Team.  Killed by the Company of the Starborn in the Outer Vaults.