The Thunder Realm
The Thunder Realm
The realm of Aardwulf comprises the isles, the highlands and the mountains that embroider the coasts of the western sea. It is a cold, windswept land bearing great evergreen forests, shining lakes and winding rivers. A storied history and distinct culture lures the world’s wanderers to this realm in search of adventure and glory.
The land gains its name from Rjorn Aardwulf, a figure steeped in legend. It is said that as a babe the elder Aardwulf’s village was attacked, his family and people slaughtered in a raid by a rival clan, and that as an orphan he suckled upon the breast of a dire wolf. It was Sethex, Father of All Monsters, who reared the boy with trials and feats until he had earned renown and glory such that he was able to call a moot between all the warring clans. Once united, the wild nations began to raid together against the continent of Oerth and in one glorious campaign captured one of the relics of sovereignty from the iron hands of Drin himself. With this act, Aardwulf was crowned as the first high king of the Thunder Realm.
Five great holds lie upon the isles of Aardwulf. Foremost is Vahl’ Thundra, where King Balimund sits upon the ancient dwarven throne. The city is built within the magma-dripping maw of a ill-tempered volcano, Krados Vahl, whose eruptions are ministered by a Circle of Archdruids. The ice-tipped Jotun Mountain range which Vahl’ Thundra rests upon contains some of the richest veins of gemstones, minerals and metals in the world of Orr, but their extraction is a costly endeavor. Dragons and ancient giants, from lineages that span back to the dark era of the second age lair and rule among the peaks.
A variety of races call the isles their home, but none so fiercely contest it as the Woad-Elves. The Woad are said to have lived in the deep pine forests and the snow-frosted mountains of Aardwulf since the time of the heaven-dragon that struck the world of Orr. They served the Giant Kings and the Dragon Lords as slaves until the earliest clans of Dwarves and Men arrived on their islands. The Woad-Elves fought savagely to retain the land, such that the skalds speak of a tide of red blood that washed upon the shores of the isles for seven days. The Woad were felled by the invaders tools and armor, for they had mastered steel weapons and shields that bestowed them great advantage. The Woad-Elves were driven into the deep places of the wild and were unchained as the conquerors cut down their cruel masters. The Woad never truly returned to the world, they yet remain in the savage lands of Aardwulf, often serving Dark Powers. It is said that these Elves bare a deep connection to the Drow, legend claiming that some of the Woad were driven into the bellows of the earth and there in the dark they were transformed by unspeakable covenants.
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