The Quest

It is known by many names; Chomari, to the dark elves living in the dark green haze of the Southern Sundarban, Eifilios to the merchants and scholars of the Golddune Coast, Hatzghath to the marauding Kryyak hordes streaming from the Khibinsak Mountains, but for a small band of freedom fighters it is known as, simply, The Realm.   The Realm is a land steeped in history and strife. Much of its early history has been lost to endless wars and disasters. Evil wizards once slaughtered armies and enslaved nations with the power of The Darkness, an ancient and mysterious source of magic that even now taints the far corners of the world. Dragonriders once crossed the skies raining fire and justice upon them. Pleonectic kings and avaricious brigands pillaged the lands, and humans, elves, fey folk, and Kryyak alike struggled merely to survive. Throughout this chaos untold devastation was wrought across the Realm. Ancient knowledge and unimaginable treasures were found, lost, found again, and lost again.   All that changed 300 years ago. After decades of civil war, a man named Krisantos united the warring factions of the tiny and inconsequential nation of Therrev. Under his enlightened leadership Therrev grew from a back-water confederacy of pirates and highwaymen to the cultural and spiritual heart of the realm. Krisantos, soon called the Glorious, ushered in an era of untold peace and prosperity, ending ancient wars between nations and healing rifts between the races. Therrev's capital, Calcaria, was a shining beacon of art and scholarship, a repository for the world's culture and knowledge. Krisantos and his dynasty guided the Realm through a golden age that lasted for centuries.   That peaceful era abruptly and violently ended 22 years ago when the Kryyak hordes swarmed from the Khibinsak Mountains in the far north-east, sweeping across the world and conquering every nation in their wake. Each nation rallied to defend its borders, and each fell under the boot of the Kryyak King. Even Therrev, the Jewel of the Golddunes, was overrun. 17 years ago the Golden Dynasty came to an end when King Nikodemos IV, Cheverelle, King of the Dryads, and the Alliance of the Northlands made a desperate last stand at the Battle of Dancing Lake. They were overwhelmed, and the Kryyaks slaughtered the armies, driving the dryads to extinction. King Nikodemos and his four sons were slain, either in the battle or during the sacking of Calcaria shortly after.   Or so the world thought. Recently, rumors have begun to spread. Whispered legends of a young boy spirited away from the Palace minutes before the Kryyaks arrived. Quiet words about a man in the Mournful Desert who carries himself like a king. Furtive tales about a powerful fighter and his band of merry misfits striking back at the Kryyaks from a secret base hidden deep in the Remnant Forest. As these legends spread, the common people of the Realm have begun to renew their resistance. They have begun to stand up to the oppressor, to slow the Kryyak's inexorable march across The Realm. Though many doubt the stories contain any truth, they do have one commodity in short supply these days:   Hope.   But you, my friends, you do know the truth. Because these merry misfits?   They are YOU.