The Doors

The Realms

There are other worlds than that of Aarklash. The magicians studying them have discovered that the Free city
had reflexions in the elemental Realms. The latter are named the Great Circlet, as they are all bound to
Aarklash, as if that continent was the center of it all.
The Voyagers enter these Realms to collect mana gems and these magicians go from world to world using rare
and fought over portals which appear only for a few days. Legends and rumors tell of the existence of permanent
portals, however.

These doorways are hard to find and crossing them is often dangerous. Each portal is unique, but all are found
at the border of two "spaces": a door, the surface of water, a wall, the edge of a forest, etc. Their rarity is of
course no stranger to that of gems on Aarklash. Most magicians use the most ephemeral of them sparingly in
order to preserve the mana they contain.

It sometimes happens that portals open in Cadwallon, especially when powerful spells or miracles are used
repeatedly in the same area. A portal is defined by a level of Awakening between 0 and 5. The higher this
number is, the more important and stable the mana bound to that portal is.
A strange and mysterious magical phenomena affects Cadwallon. Bafflingly, Darkness portals created there are
very unstable - these doorways only open for a short time or do not grant access to a Realm of Darkness but to
Hollowdeep, one of the city's reflexion.
Rule-wise, there can be no portal of Darkness with an Awakening of more than 3 in Cadwallon.

The magical arcades.

The Arcadia district, in Ghieronburg, is known for its enchanted arcades. Many portals to the Great Circlet open
easily there (Awakening 5). However, they are not easy to cross and their destination (as their point of arrival)
are never certain.
Finally, most of the supernatural inhabitants of Arcadia follow and enforce Mardi's Truce, which demands that a
precise protocol be followed in order to have the right to use a portal. These rules concern themselves with
proper behavior and have been made to ensure cordial relations between Cadwës and magical beings.
Voyagers are held to these rules, and even though the organization of the Seuil has made the procedure more
simple, it remains time consuming.
On the other hand, it seems that any creature from "outside" of Aarklash can cross the arcades to enter
Cadwallon without even having been invited. The wisest mages think that this proves that Arcadia is not really
part of the continent, but is part of another world, and that this place plays a role in Creation the same way that
Yllia or the cardinal stars do.
The new arrivals always follow the Truce edicted by Baron Mardi.

Splitrock, the reflexion of Air

Portals:
The ice fountain (Awakening 5) is found at the very heart of Parchedvale (Ghieronburg): it's a stone monument
whose surface is permanently iced-over. It sometimes happens that magical creatures break the ice to enter
Cadwallon.
Some pillars in the upper city also grant access, but in a more chaotic fashion (Awakening 2): it has happened in
the past that Voyagers reappeared hundreds of meters in the air.

Appearance: The ground, covered by glacial fog and struck by a northern wind, has been increasingly forgotten
and considered as impure - dwellings started rising ever higher, as if to get closer to the warmth-giving sun.
These sumptuous buildings made of frozen crystal (the only material which can resist the cold) now form a
delicate filigree of towering spires and graceful bridges.

History: Many years ago, Splitrock was once a fayerieseque world called Hejrannak. When Aubroyn, the king of
Hejrannak, died, a supernatural cold fell upon the Realm. When princess Titania wanted to claim the throne of
her defunct father, a terrible wind rose and the royal throne was covered by a sheath of ice. The ceremony was
interrupted, but the transformed climate remained. Ever since then, Titania leads that world, which has been
renamed Principalty of Splitrock due to its glacial cold, able to shatter metal as well as stone.

Inhabitants: Princess Titiana is a haughty, calculating and vain sihir who rules over the Hejris, a race of pale and
sad angels. Fayes, leprechauns, satyrs, zephyrs and imps also populate Splitrock, though most only have a
limited and animal intelligence and are instead companions or slaves to the Hejris. A languor and deep ennui are
progressively growing in the eternal winter of Splitrock.

Riches: There are many gems in the realm of Splitrock: when the wind starts blowing and snow falls in large
amount, it drops gems of Air on the ground. It's a rather common resource and the inhabitants of Splitrock gladly
trade them for other objects from Aarklash.

Plots: Titiana has heard about the disappearance of prince Pyrion of the Fire reflexion. She intends to capture
this somewhat wild young sihir. She is in fact convinced that his presence in Splitrock would change the climate
of the Realm and make it more bearable. She intends to seduce him and marry him, or, if he refuses, to sacrifice
him on the throne of ice to disperse his magical essence.

Anfoebia, the reflexion of Water

Portals:
The most visible portal is found on the wall surrounding the upper city (see illustration). It's from this portal that
the anfoebians who tried to invade the city fifty years earlier have come from. Ever since then, water has been
leaking out of it in permanence, despite the many attempts made at closing the passage (Awakening 2).
At the eastern end of the Kraken, one of the land tentacles is sometimes the site of a strange phenomenon. The
ruins of a small fishing port (Awakening 5) appear at low tide and is populated by magical creatures who offer
travelers a place on small skiff to the Concordat of Anfoebia.

Appearance: This submerged Realm once sheltered the most sumptuous palaces of all of Creation. But political
turmoil and war ravaged the Odazzur empire. Renamed Concordat of Anfoebia, this Water Realm has now fallen
into decrepitude: the buildings of nacre and coral are no longer resplendent and now bring to mind a gigantic
undersea cemetery rather than a large capital city.

History: For a very long time, the Odazzur empire ruled over Mendazzur, firmly but without tyranny, allowing
coexistence between the marlins, a species resembling humans, and the anfoebians, a violent race with
pisciform traits. In 955, the anfoebians, goaded by two sihirs, Mnemosyne and Gaelis, revolted against the
aristocracy to put in place a free and democratic regime. A few survivors of the Odazzur dynasty managed to
flee to Aarklash. Mnemosyne was satisfied to stop there, but Gaelis, brutal, cruel and ambitious, used these
refugees as an excuse to launch a full-scale invasion on Cadwallon. At the end of epic battles and after much
trickery, the anfoebian forces were repelled in 956 by the cadwë troops, thanks to general Ghieron and Amelise
Odazzur, who were ennobled by the duke of Cadwallon.

Inhabitants: In the ruins of the ancient city a few tribes of marlins hide, hunted down and tracked ever since the
revolt of the anfoebians. These creatures possess long ears which also double as gills and which makes them
look like aquatic elves, and fine membranes between their fingers.
The anfoebians, tyrannized by Gaelis, are reconstructing the nacre palace. They look like odd fishes with a large
dorsal fin and two pairs of prehensile tentacles.

Riches: Despite the fact that Water gems are plentiful in the Concordat of Anfoebia, this resource is jealously
kept. Indeed, Gaelis intends to return his Realm to its former majesty - and is therefore having its symbol, the
nacre palace, rebuilt, using Water mana as cement.

Plots: The anfoebians aren't quite done with Cadwallon. Some still hope to be able to claim the city. The wife of
Kraken's Peer, Oklair of Odazzur is actually a Water Elemental who is using every resource at her disposal to
help her people, all the while leading her own battles.

Solnarreg, the reflexion of Fire

Portals:
During military parades on Wyvern's road (Ghieronburg), it sometimes happens that a passage to Solnarreg is
created. The temperature then quickly increases and the muddy ground opens up to let a stone arch emerge
(Awakening 4).
During some of the fights which pit gladiators of the Little Arenas (Gamehead), a portal leading to the reflexion of
Fire sometimes violently opens to let bellicose creatures through. These apparitions are due to a deal struck
between the managers of the arenas and Ignice of Warmhoven. It's a good way to spice up the fights for the
former and a good way to keep abreast of what's going on in Cadwallon for the latter.

Appearance: Solnarreg is a solid bubble plunged in an infinity of lava. Gorged with heat, this cocoon shelters an
improbable city which struggles as best it can against the assaults of tides of magma which erode a bit more of
its protective shell every day. Everything here reminds of fire: the staggering heat, the smell of sulfur and the
bubbling of magma.

History: Under the leadership of regent Ignice of Warmhoven, the Solnae have developed a flourishing
civilization, remarkable through its ingeniousity and its materialism. The regent, a curious, greedy and blunt sihir
was originally meant to keep his post only temporarily, while two political organizations, the Hanse and the
Genius, were to come to an agreement on what sort of definitive constitution to offer the populace. For what now
seems like an eternity though, both important institutions have been at each others' throats and the regency
remains. Ignice of Warmhoven is a just and efficient leader and is thus systematically re-elected during the
Elogies, ceremonial and orgiastic celebrations.
Even outside of these carnivals, Solnarred remains a city with no taboos.

Inhabitants: The Solnae look like human beings, with the exception

of their reddish skin and the mineral layers which cover their joints. This peculiarity makes them slightly clumsy
but very resistant on average. They often move about naked and are constantly on the lookout for new
experiences, ideas and possessions.

Riches: Fire gems are jealously kept by the Solnae, which use that Element to strengthen the shell of Solnarreg.
A voyager who were to steal a gem would be accused of high treason and brought before Ignice of Warmhoven.

Plots: Ever since the disappearance of prince Pyrion, the shell of Solnarreg has started to fall apart. Only the
constant efforts of members of the Hanse and of the Genius manage to keep this rampart in good repair
(sometimes even push it further). Elementals have been sent in the different reflexions in order to find the former
regent and understand the cause of the phenomenon.
The explanation is simple: the Braise, which grants mysterious powers to the Ghieron, draws its energy from the
shell of Solnarreg. If Ignice were to find out, the family of the Peer would be condemned.

Xurgaddys, the reflexion of Earth

Portals:
The petrified grove (Awakening 4) of Cal Ka Dum (Ghieronburg) easily allows to one to reach the reflexion of
Earth, as long as one gets the permission of Calka, its guardian.
In the fields of the Trophy (Awakening 3), Xurgos may sometimes be met while sent by Mother Nature to collect
water and bring it back to their Realm.

Appearance: Xurgaddys is a spring-tempered plant-like realm. This primitive agglomeration is composed of a

profusion of villages built in layers on the branches of Addys, a gigantic tree which no one knows where it has
lain its roots, other than Mother Nature and a privileged few. Some believe that the world-tree grows downwards.
Its jumbled branches form numerous platforms and it is possible to travel on the same branch for weeks.

History: The nature of the Realm remains mysterious: the only certainties are that water and light come from
above and that Addys stretches out in every direction. A sihir called Mother Nature shapes the life of the Xurgos,
who worship her as a goddess. She is maternal and generous, but also very prying.

Inhabitants: In their hits of wood and leaves, the Xurgos, jovial ape-men, lead a peaceful existence only troubled
by the war of rain: after each rainfall, rival tribes face off ritually over the control of puddles. The reason for that is
that in this plant world, water is the most valuable thing: fallen from the sky, it descends towards the depths and
the Xurgos sometimes follow it by migrating lower.

Riches: The gems of Earth are plentiful in Xurgaddys, but it is sometimes difficult to collect them. Indeed, they
mostly appear in the lairs, huts and nests of the inhabitants or creatures of the Realm. And while some will gladly
trade them others will fiercely defend their territory.

Plots: The roots of the tree which makes up this Realm are lain into Cadwallon, around Petropolis (Ghieronburg).
To a Cadwë, this tree really does grow downwards and it's the tip of its roots which breaks out of the ground to
make up the petrified grove. Mother Nature's greatest fear is for those roots to come unbound - the reflexion
would then slip away to become an unfinished Realm. Her envoy, Calka, passes himself off as an orc and is
trying to understand instinctive magic. The sovereign feels that there is a link binding this magical art to Earth
and hopes to be able to use it to anchor her Realm once and for all.

Hollowdeep

Portals: Some Voyagers use dark rituals allowing travel to Realms of Darkness in order to create passages
leading to Hollowdeep. These hazardous attempts are severely reprimanded by the ducal authority.
In the district of the Nasty shaft (Automaton), a business owned by the Usurers sells strange safes (Awakening
3), which have the capability of opening directly into Hollowdeep. Acquiring one of these safes is very expensive,
more so in services than in ducats.

Appearance: Hollowdeep is a petrified city which forms a gigantic labyrinth. Many passages, roads, stairs and
tunnels mingle in a jumble of underground passages of which have no logical purpose. It is very easy to lose
one's self in these, even by going back on one's step, and a Voyager is never certain of finding his starting point
again.

History: This world is rumored to be haunted and while no one has ever claimed to be from there, it is not rare to
meet trouble there. It seems that this Realm is the convergence point of the lost souls and other creatures victim
of a failed summoning in Cadwallon. The magical energies drawn to this Realm are unable to leave it unless
they become radically transformed. The faithful of Destiny believe that Hollowdeep could become an
intermediate Realm between Light and Darkness and that it would be the first place where gems containing
neutral mana would be found.

Inhabitants: No Voyager has ever met an entity from Hollowdeep. The only creatures found there are the ghosts
and other Abyssal creatures that some magicians have tried to call into Cadwallon.

Riches: It is very difficult to bring gems from Hollowdeep. As soon as one appears there, it is automatically
attacked by mana of its opposing Principle and disappears in a few hours. One must therefore have the chance
of finding a gem which has recently appeared and remove it from Hollowdeep as fast as possible. This is why
only minor gems may be brought back from this Realm.

Plots: The Limbo of Acheron are trying to understand the phenomenon which prevents portals of Darkness from
opening in Cadwallon. Explorers have therefore been sent to Hollowdeep to solve that mystery. These envoys
quickly realized how many creatures haunted this Realm. They do not know that it is the hidden weapon in
Vanius' mausoleum which, despite not having been activated yet, still protect Cadwallon by preventing the
opening of portals of Darkness. Necromancers are currently trying to gather and control the dark herd of
Hollowdeep and that army could someday allow the Cursed barony to attack Cadwallon.

____________________
Insert
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Awakening of Cadwë portals

Awakening
Sort of Activity

0
The portal has been sealed for good.

1
The portal is chaotic and only opens according to mystical conjunctions.
2
The portal requires a long and complex ritual to be opened temporarily.

3
A watchman or guardian keeps an eye on who goes through the portal.

4
Creatures native to the Realms frequently cross the portal.

5
The Realm the portal leads to seeps through the portal and changes the nearby environment.

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Splitrock

Starting Threat Level: 3

NPC Behavior: Passers-by.

Dominant attitude: SLEight.
FAITH level: -
MOV Cost Modifier: + 1 (snow).
Light Level: Clear.
Noise level: Noisy (sound of blowing wind).
Smell intensity: Odorless.
Special rules:
- Temperatures in this Realm are extremely low (-30°C, see Players Manual p. 228).
- The wind increases the difficulty of tests having to do with ranged weapons by 4.
- If the TL reaches 13, intruders are expelled from the Realm by a violent wind.

-------------------------------------------------

Anfoebia

Starting Threat Level: 4

NPC Behavior: Official forces.

Dominant attitude: SUBtlety.

FAITH level: Darkness + 1.
MOV Cost Modifier: + 2 (unless the Swim/PUG 4 talent is used).

Light Level: Low.

Noise level: Quiet.

Smell intensity: Fragrant.
Special rules:
- Anfoebia is a submerged Realm. By crossing a portal into it, the Voyager no longer needs to breathe but must
keep air in his lungs. He can therefore no longer speak without drowning. This rule only applies outside of
buildings.
- If the TL reaches 13, intruders lose consciousness due to a rapid increase of water pressure. They regain
consciousness on one of the beaches around Cadwallon.

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Solnaregg

Starting Threat Level: 5

NPC Behavior: Official forces.
Dominant attitude: PUGnacity.

FAITH level: Destiny +1.

MOV Cost Modifier: -

Light Level: Clear.
Noise level: Deafening (sound of waves of lava).
Smell intensity: Sickening (smell of sulphur).
Special rules:
- If the TL reaches 10, all visitors are arrested and brought before Ignice of Warmhoven to face judgement.

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Incantation trade: Voyager

The Voyagers travel across the magical Realms. Many motivations may lead them down this path: curiosity, the
thirst for knowledge, the desire to weave diplomatic ties with elemental beings or simply naked greed caused by
the gems.

Rank 1: Incantate (Element)/Special, Barter/SUB, Entities (Elementals), Magic Path (Primagy).

Rank 2: Channel/SUB, Dominate/STY, Realm (au choix).
Rank 3: Incantate (Element)/Special, Magic Path (Air, Water, Fire, Earth, Light or Darkness).
Rank 4: Feel/SUB, Entities (Sihirs).
Rank 5: Strength of Awakening. When the Voyager is in the same area as a portal, the latter sees its Awakening
increase or decrease by 1, as per the player's choice.
Rank 6: Argue/SUB, Incantate (Element)/Special, one knowledge of player's choice.
Equipment: Attires, gem case, minor immortal gem, purse, 75 ducats, (3) key to a portal.

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Xurgaddys

Starting Threat Level: 2

NPC Behavior: Creatures.
Dominant attitude: DIScipline.
FAITH level: Light + 1.
MOV Cost Modifier: + 1 (luxuriant vegetation).
Light Level: Dark (dense foliage).
Noise level: Noisy (animal cries).
Smell intensity: Fragrant.
Special rules:
- If the TL reaches 13, intruders become petrified until the TL returns to its original level. NPCs then ignore
intruders and return to what they were doing.

-------------------------------------------------
Hollowdeep

Starting Threat Level: 5

NPC Behavior: Creatures.
Dominant attitude: OPPortunism.
FAITH level: Light +1, Darkness +1.
MOV Cost Modifier: -
Light Level: Pitch Dark.

Noise level: Quiet.

Smell intensity: Odorless.

Special rules:
- It is hard to cast spells in this Realm. The difficulty of any Incantate test is increased by 2 for all forms of magic,
with the exception of Primagy and Instinctive Magic.
- When the TL reaches 10, the various creatures haunting Hollowdeep are attracted to the area in which the
characters are to be found. Fleeing is then the only possible solution.