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deadsands/content/lore/cities-and-trade.md

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+---
+# /Users/evilchili/dnd/deadsands/www/content/session0/cities-and-trade.md
+
+title: Cities and Trade
+author: evilchili
+tags: homebrew
+date: 2022-07-16 08:42:22.105065
+description: Some notable settlements in the region, ranging from large fortified towns to trader outposts and nomadic tent cities.
+---
+
+Over the last several hundred years, a variety of folk have settled the northen rim of the Dewa Q'Asos, in the shadow of Hoard's Vault where temperatures are milder. A few larger city-states have risen, with several smaller communities along the trade routes. By far the largest is Gazakh Noch, a great city whose walls control the Gold Pass, effectively isolating the Dewa Q'Asos from the rest of the continent. 
+
+1. * Name
+    * Population
+    * Notable Races
+    * Economy
+    * Notes
+2. * **Gazakh Noch**
+    * 25 000
+    * Various
+    * Gearforging, smithing, textiles
+    * The seat of civilization in the region. Magic is permitted but generally frowned upon. Ruling class is mercantile, though artificers and craftsman are held in high esteem.
+3. * **Poshni Koth**
+    * 3000
+    * Dwarfs, Rock Gnomes
+    * black powder, mining
+    * A fortified town in the northwest foothills of Hoard's Vault, Poshni Koth's wealth comes from its total monopoly on black powder production. Its laws forbid magic of any kind and its hardline politics discourage outsiders from establishing permanent residence.
+4. * **Tano's Edge**
+    * 1000
+    * Humans, Halfings, Dragonborn
+    * Arcane research, enchantment
+    * Until recently, Tano's Edge was little more than a remote village on a ridge overlooking the Sahwat desert, catering to outcasts and the lawless. But with the discovery of ruins under the sands and the riches they contain, this town has become a powder keg of competing interests.
+5. * **The Heap**
+    * 75
+    * Gearforged
+    * Trading, Scavenging
+    * A nomadic group of Scraps that travels between settlements with an enormous ambulatory junk pile.

deadsands/content/lore/demographics.md

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+---
+# /Users/evilchili/dnd/deadsands/www/content/lore/ancestries.md
+
+title: Demographics - A Question of Blood
+author: evilchili
+date: 2022-07-16 22:31:25.781021
+tags: homebrew
+description: More so than in other regions it seems the comingling of histories has become a favourite pastime in the Dewa Q'Asos. Maybe it's the heat.
+---
+
+The Dewa Q'Asos is home to folks from a variety of genetic and cultural backgrounds. Old Blood — that of Humans, Elves, Dwarves, Halflings and Gnomes — is found in abundance here. Those with the Blood Draconic are present also: Dragonborn, Tieflings, Lizardfolk, even a few Kobold. But the effects of the Sahwat are both strong and persistent: over time Dewan of all kinds have been born with strange mutations, giving rise to distinct ethnic groups found only here, referred to collectively as New Blood: Harengon, Tortles, Loxodan, Alseid, and whatever else crawls its way out of the desert. Finally, there is the Gearforged — sentient clockwork automaton that have only existed for a few centuries.
+
+
+### The Old Blood
+
+Though census records are limited to major city-states, across the entirety of the Dewa Q'Asos Humans, Elves and Dwarves account for roughly a third of the population; with Gnomes and Halflings this number approaches half.
+
+Dwarves accord themselves historic prominence in the region, and for good reason: many of the customs and traditions of the Dewan peoples can be traced to Dwarven sources, from place names, to the high respect accorded masons, smiths, artificers and other craftspeople, to the popularity of the Dwarven pantheon. Some even go so far as to make ancestral claim to the entirety of the Dewa Q'Asos, but this claim is not commonly accepted.
+
+Dewan Elves enjoy the same longevity and other gifts of a fey-touched ancestry as their counterparts across Telisar, but unlike those others have mostly avoided prominent political or social power. In some ways this is the natural result of the Movan Unath — a custom whereby adult Elves are expected to cut ties with their current life, travel to a new place, and start a new life every 200 years.
+
+Though you might expect Halflings and Gnomes to bond as small folk in a region dominated by larger people, Dewan Halflings and Gnomes share a peculiar animosity towards one another. Not hate so much as a suspicious, competitive drive. There is apparently some historical prescendent for such feelings as both sides claim victory in the same pivotal contest, but as neither are willing to speak on it the details are somewhat lost on the rest of the Dewan.
+
+
+### The Blood Draconic
+
+The draconic races account for fully a quarter of the Dewan population, a much greater presence than you are likely to find anywhere else. It is widely believed that the First Era was a time of Dragons, and that in their wake the draconic races were born. Opinions differ about why the gods allowed these people to thrive though their progenitor dragons were brought low, their divinity stripped, and their population scattered, but it is undeniable that many today walk the sands with the blood of dragons in their veins.
+
+Dragonborn are typically cosmopolitan folk, found throughout the major city-states and smaller towns. Many find work as caravan guards, milita, and other martial positions where their natural talents are most valued, though just as many are scholars, merchants, and craftspeople.
+
+Dewan Tieflings for the most part, fully accept their draconic origins, considering it a source of pride. They mostly reject the Asmodean Heresy, and suggesting a tiefling may have an "infernal" origin has become, if not a slur, at least a sure-fire way to start a bar fight. Tieflings in the Dewa Q'Asos are no more feared or hated than anyone else, though they do have a troubling reputation for producing sorcerers. 
+
+Lizardfolk too claim draconic origin, though their cosmology and history is mostly not understood by others. This is not surprising, since most lizardfolk communicate exclusively via a kind of telepathic bond transmissible by pheromone. Lizardfolk therefore tend to avoid the major cities, choosing instead to live in small nomadic tribes. Those few who do acclimatize have been known to learn to speak a verbal language and take on work, often as desert guides, bounty hunters, or spies.
+
+### The New Blood
+
+Living and breeding next to ground zero of an arcane environmental disaster has taken its toll, and the mutations and general weirdness that characterize the flora and fauna of the Sahwat have begun to spread to the humanoid races. Comprising too many to summarize here, the New Blood are typically met with indifference from their fellow Dewan. That's life on the dead sands.
+
+### Gearforged
+
+Nobody is quite sure why but the mechanical machines known as Gearforged developed first by Grazakh artificers hundreds of years ago have begun spontaneously achieving consciousness. When this happens, the Gearforged is by law a person, and — with indentured servitude having been outlawed in the major city-states, at least — must be released by its former owner. Such a sentient Gearforged is somewhat callously referred to by some as Scraps. Often considered outcasts, Gearforged are nevetheless highly valued as skilled laborers in dangerous or conditions otherwise inhospitable to flesh and blood humanoids. Some have even found work as Determinants when an impartial view is required to settle a dispute or determine appropriate punishment for crimes committed. Whether Gearforged are any more capable of impartialty than any other sentient being is of course a matter of debate and may be the result of stereotypes.
+
+While sentient Gearforged are by local standards still a relatively recent phenomenon — the oldest known record of a machine spontaneously achieving consciousness dates from 793 ME — the Gearforged themselves have quickly developed a culture, art, and religion all their own. 

deadsands/content/lore/factions.md

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+---
+# /Users/evilchili/dnd/deadsands/www/content/lore/factions.md
+
+title: Factions
+author: evilchili
+tags: lore, faction
+date: 2022-07-23 10:39:00.458832
+---
+
+The politics of the Dewa Q'Asos are mostly localized -- city-states have their own laws and political structures and while they may share competing interests, outright hostilities between states is rare. Perhaps most significant to keeping the peace is the reach of the Factions -- quasi-political entities that transcend local politics to extend influence across the entire region. While each has its own agenda and motivations, Factions as a whole are a stabilizing influence, providing civic infrastructure, services, security, and the free flow of trade throughout the Dewa Q'Asos. Each has its specific area of influence, the borders of which are constantly shifting as the Factions vy for dominance. But this veneer of peaceful coexistence is thinnest beyond the walls of the major cities; the balance of power between Factions is somewhat precarious -- back-room deals, temporary alliances, betrayals, corruption, and the occasional short, bloody Faction war keep life interesting. 
+
+The difference between a Faction and a garden-variety criminal syndicate is one of legitimacy -- purchased through regular tithes to towns and cities -- that grant a Fraction the ability to operate openly. It is therefore in the current Factions' best interests to deal aggressively with any groups that seek to upset the status quo.
+
+### The Liberty Sisters
+
+| | |
+|-----------------|----------------|
+| **Established**    |  857 ME (268 yrs) |
+| **Headquarters**   |  Tano's Edge |
+| **Branches**       |  Anywhere there's a brothel (i.e., everywhere) |
+| **Alignment**      |  Lawful Neutral |
+| **Politics**       |  Libertarian |
+| **Leader**         |  Mama Grahlu |
+| **Interests**      |  Brothels, intelligence, assassination |
+| **Public Motive**  |  Security and self-determination for common folk   |
+| **Bonds**          |  Wildly popular outside the major cities; de facto government of Tano's Edge |
+| **Flaws**          |  Reputation for vicious, bloody violence is not undeserved |
+| **Motto**          |  "Liberty At Any Cost" |
+
+The Liberty Sisters Faction was founded in 857 ME after a union of brothel workers across the Dewa Q'Asos seized control of their establishments and slit the throats of every madame, pimp, and abusive customer in a single night remembered now as the Night of Bloody Liberation. The current Faction head is  Mama Grahlu, an imposing half-orc who rules Tano's Edge. Publicly, The Liberty Sisters build schools, roads, and social programs for minor settlements along the desert rim. Privately, they use their extensive network to sell blackmail, extortion, and assassination to anyone who can pay, provided these dealings do not jeopardize the safety of common folk. Despite the name, the Liberty Sisters welcome all members regardless of identity expression.
+
+### The Gunslingers
+
+| | |
+|-----------------|----------------|
+| **Established**     |  838 ME (287 yrs) |
+| **Headquarters**    |  Poshni Koth |
+| **Branches**        |  Gazakh Noch, Tano's Edge, Gunslinger Outposts |
+| **Alignment**       |  Neutral Evil |
+| **Politics**        |  Fascist Capitalist |
+| **Leader**          |  Repeater Joe |
+| **Interests**       |  Private security, bounty hunting, trade caravans |
+| **Public Motive**   |  Peace, Order, and Gold |
+| **Bonds**           |  Enjoys support from wealthy elite and merchant classes |
+| **Flaws**           |  Paranoid; Hatred of magic and magic users |
+| **Motto**           |  "Peace Through Superior Firepower" |
+
+The Gunslingers were originally a clan of Dwarves in Poshni Koth that grew to prominence by gradually seizing control of private security contracts up and down the trade routes of Dewa Q'Asos, protecting caravans and wagon trains. It is rumoured this was accomplished by attacking any contract not given to them, though the Gunslingers maintain it was simply their competition's sheer  incompetence that led to their dominance. Nowadays the majority of the Gunslingers' business lies in the transportation of black powder exports from the Koth, though they will take any job suited for a private army geared with the latest in firearms advancements. They also maintain "Outposts," small groups of Gunslingers for hire by private citizens at frequently extortionate  rates, though discounts are readily available for any bounty on magic users. The Gunslingers are controlled by Repeater Joe, a grizzled, one-eyed dwarf who maintains a heavily-fortified compound in the foothills outside of Poshni Koth.
+
+
+### The Guild of Makers
+
+| | |
+|-----------------|----------------|
+| **Established**  | 1050 ME (75 yrs)
+| **Headquarters** |Gazakh Noch
+| **Branches**     |Poshni Koth, The Heap 
+| **Alignment**    |Neutral good
+| **Politics**     |Anarcho-syndicalist
+| **Leaders**      |Radiant, Rat's Nest Six
+| **Interests**    |Artificing, gearforging
+| **Public Motive** | Support and develop technological innovators
+| **Bonds**         | Believes technology will solve all society's problems
+| **Flaws**        | Believes technology will solve all society's problems
+| **Motto**        | "Mechanize! Modernize! Prosper!"
+
+
+The Guild of Makers (popularly "The Guild") is the newest Faction to rise to legitimate status, having been recognized first by Gazakh Noch just 75 years ago, on the strength of *Radiant's Radiance*, a series of unique gearforged automata designed by Radiant, a halfing artificer and the most famous gearforged designer of his time. Radiant's progressive politics and prominent status attracted artisans and craftspeople throughout Gazakh Noch, who essentially pushed him into establishing a Faction to further their own interests and ensure the continued rock-star status of the best makers. Today Radiant reluctantly heads the Guild together with Rat's Nest Six, the first -- and so far only -- gearforged of the Radiance line to achieve sentience.
+
+The Guild's relationship with the other Factions is somewhat complicated: The Gunslingers disapprove of their politics but rely on their expertise to maintain and improve the automata upon which the Koth's industry relies. The Liberty Sisters see the Guild as insular and arrogant, dismissive of the common people and seeking to disrupt their livelihoods with unasked-for automation.

deadsands/content/lore/languages.md

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+---
+# /Users/evilchili/dnd/deadsands/www/content/lore/languages.md
+
+title: Languages
+author: evilchili
+tags: homebrew
+date: 2022-07-18 16:22:41.090320
+---
+
+### The Old Blood Tongues
+
+#### Common
+
+Common is the trader's tongue, and can be reliably spoken in most parts of the Dewa Q'Asos without fear of being misunderstood. This is somewhat true of the Old Blood languages and Draconic as well, though it depends mostly on population density. Some general notes about cultural relevance and social mores of specific language use follow.
+
+#### Dwarvish
+
+Two major dialects of Dwarvish exist: "High," or "Deep," Dwarvish is used primarily in formal proceedings, contracts, and anywhere one wishes to advertise high social standing; "Low" or "Street" Dwarvish is used everywhere else.
+
+#### Elvish
+
+Elvish too has a "High" dialect, though it has fallen entirely out of use save by historians.  
+
+#### Gnomish
+
+The Gnomish tongues consist of multiple distinct dialects unique to specific ancestries, but "Gnomish" as it is usually intended refers to a sort of patois of Rock, Hill, and Forest Gnomish spoken commonly throughout more populated settlements. Speaking formal Rock Gnomish to any random city-dwelling Gnome might be interpreted as arrogant by some and uneducated by others.
+
+#### Halfling
+
+Halfling is a fiendishly complicated language for anyone not born into it, so much so that Halflings are sometimes used as secure message couriers since their language is effectively already enciphered. Rarely spoken outside Halfling settlements and businessness, and almost never with non-Halflings.
+
+### Draconic, Lizardfolk, and New Blood
+
+#### Draconic
+Draconic is not unheard of in the major cities, though only the Blood Draconic races generally bother to learn it -- and even then, most conduct their business in Common anyway as it can be hard for other humanoid species to accurately articulate it without the necessary physiology.
+
+The ancient Dragonborn spoke "Old Draconic," a poetic language only superficially similar to modern Draconic, containing only the present tense and rooted in a form of existentialist eternalism that most scholars have a hard time understanding even if they manage to become fluent. The written form of Old Draconic, "runescript," has been outlawed for being inextricably linked to the practice of Draconic Rune Forms, an ancient magic system that some believe has its origins in the First Era.
+
+#### Lizardfolk
+Strangest of all are the Lizardfolk, whose language is not verbal but olfactory: highly specialized scent glands on the neck emit a startling array of pheremones that carry a telepathic bond. For this reason, Lizardfolk are rarely encountered in major settlements and any who are typically learn to speak a smattering of either Draconic or Street Dwarvish.
+
+#### The New Blood Tongues
+
+Many of the New Blood have developed their own languages based on their unique physiologies which may be heard in ethnically-concentrated areas, including Loxodan and Harengon.
+
+### Gearforged: Chattering Teeth and Bellows
+
+Gearforged are constructed with a basic vocabulary of command words, typically in Common, but this is auditory only; Gearforged automata that can speak are rare. Upon achieving sentience, however, the Gearforged will usually seek out the services of an artificer to have a mechanical device call "Teeth" installed. This device consists of an array of finely-wrought gears, springs, switches and solenoids that permits communication in a complex series of long and short clicks called Chatter. Chatter can be spoken by non-Gearforged by tapping patterns, speaking in alternating *dits* and *dahs*, or by writing dots and dashes.
+
+More expensive and therefore somewhat rarer is a Gearforged fitted with a "Bellows" -- a complex arrangement of air bladders, pipes and stops that permit the automaton to emulate humanoid speech, though with a persistent harmonic wheezing that raises in pitch as the Gearforged becomes more animated. Some Gearforged see Bellows as threatening the unique cultural development of their kind.
+
+### Codes, Ciphers, and Thieves Cant
+
+Many factions in the Dewa Q'Asos rely on coded messages and ciphers to secure their communications from competing interests. They all rely on Alley Common (A local dialect of Thieves Cant) to share messages not meant for the legitimate authorities. 
+
+### Other Languages
+
+A multitude of other languages are known to priests, historians, and scholars, from Primordial to Deep Speech to Celestial and Infernal, but these are never spoken in daily life and rarely outside a temple or library.