What is Aerth?

      Aerth is a game setting for the Pathfinder d20 roleplaying system published and owned by Paizo Publishing corporation. A world of my own creation, I began work on it way back in the late nineteen-eighties and have tried several times to fit it into one roleplaying system or another, never with very much success, mainly due to the fact that I had dreams at one point of publishing the setting. This was until I realized two things, 1: I will probably never get it published. And 2: The world is so large and so complex I can never hope to be completely finished with it. With that in mind I hope you do enjoy reading about what I have come up with in the years between now and then. Please keep in mind that this web site is a constant work in progress and that it may take some time before I have as much info here as I would like. Also it will take some time before I am able to take all the information I have elsewhere and display it here.

A world beyond our door:

     Aerth is not a world in some far flung corner of the universe, nor is a past lost history of our own world, it exists in the here and the now, along side our own. It was born of the same world that spawned the earth and lives in a plane and reality parallel to ours. It orbits our sun and the people gaze upward at the same moon. It takes twelve months for it to make one path around the sun, just as it does ours and the seasons come and go with the same predictable cycles that have lasted since the dawn of the first day.

     We grow up hearing legends and tales of creatures and beings that could not possibly exist on earth, dragons, vampires and werewolves, they all form a collective mythical narrative that stretches across oceans and time and are common to all people. But where did these tales begin? Why do dragons appear in every culture throughout our history and yet to our knowledge they never actually existed? But there are doors between our two worlds, theirs and ours, doors through which a person may only travel one way. And once crossed they can never return. Many times those who wished to leave have crossed over and lived silently among us. Bringing the history and legends of that place with them and passing them down through the generations to now. Tales of a world of magic, passed to children of a world of technology. The first of these was the man known as Adam, the son of Origin, who also brought his wife, Eve.

     Unlike our world however, Aerth had only one major continent, named Pangaea, which is divided into upper and lower Pangaea by a turbulent and fast flowing stretch of water known as the Straights of the World connecting the Great Sea in the west and the Shining Sea in the East. It is through the Straights that most trade between the nations of the west and the east takes place as the overland routes are blocked by a great mountain range called the Wall of the Gods, beyond which according to legend live the last of the Titans, who guard their realm against all who enter it and prepare for their eventual final war with the old gods.

The Legend of Taranis:

     Central to the history of Aerth is the stroy of Taranis, the first Paladin and king of Empyrea. It was his bloodline that the prophet Jerod prophesized would rule over all of Aerth and it was this prophecy which eventually led to the formation of the Holy Church and the worship of the "Pendragon", who will return and reclaim the holy sword Impyratalix and destroy evil once and for all. But Taranis himself refused godhood when it was offered to him by the creator and the church evntually split into two.

The Realms of the West: (As of the year 1494 of the 7th Age)

Anthoria: Anthoria is the core of the anvil. Beset with enemies on all sides it is a very militaristic nation, but it is also the greatest bastion against the threat from Rorin in the west and it is also the domain of the Holy Church. The capital of Rhonivin is known as the crossroads of the west and is the largest city west of the Sea of Arden. Predominantly inhabited by humans, smaller dwarven, halfling and other demi-human communities can be found here, though most of them shun the cities except for occasional trade.

Darandor: The last of the elven lands on Pangaea, Darandor is ruled by the ancient house of Eltherin, one of the few remaining noble houses among the Grey Elves. Very wary of the other nations, especially after the border wars with Anthoria during the later half of the seventh age, Darandor is tightly guarded against outsiders, and especially dwarves as both they and the elves blame each other for the fall of Antea which brought about the time of the Sundering and the rise of Megatranix.

Markaine: Once part of Anthoria, Markaine is now a small dukedom ruled by the Cabal of the Magi, the duke himself having been stripped of much of his power through political maneuver and blackmail, and only allowed to remain as a figurehead among the government. The cabal rule the land with an iron hand and it is a place, unlike much of the west, where it is magic that holds the key to power. Sorcerers are regarded with respect, and fear, among the population and those who openly oppose magic can quickly find themselves beset with more enemies than they can handle.

Rhune: The Spur of the Anvil, the dwarven nation of Rhune is home to the finest armor and weapon smiths in the known world. The dwarven race near xenophobic attitude toward the other free peoples though rarely allows any others to see the glorious kingdom that resides just beneath the surface. The Gnomish kingdom of Arkitheron lies just off its southern coast

Asgard: A land of barbarian tribes and raiders, Asgard and its northmen is what remains in the west of the human tribes that did not go to Luria following the death of Taranis. Incredibly independent minded and proud, the natives of this land do not recognize the ruling family set over them by the Council of Arden and this has led to outright warfare between most of dragonkind and the northmen.

The Sea of Ice: A vast plane of ice that stretches as far as the eye can see, this harsh land only supports the strongest and most hardy of men and beasts. Occasional breaks in the ice allow the few nomadic tribes that live there to scratch out a living from fishing but even then survival is never a certainty in this place where the sun never rises very far if at all over the horizon.

Rorin: A black land of ash, smoke and death, the once beautiful nation of Roldir is now known as Rorin and is ruled by the vampire lord Megatranix. Mainly inhabited by the undead and the truly evil, only two cities of the living exist within its borders, the martial city of Helkar and the slave city of Urth-Morla, where the skeleton lord Velrak rules in his lord’s name. The only other settlement is the necropolis of Zinth, which surrounds the baron’s fortress home of Caer-Karidon. The rest of the land is devoted to the tent cities of the baron’s huge armies.

The Dragonvale: The last known domain of dragonkind on Aerth. The area is ruled by the queen of the dragons from the island of Ardenell in the center of the sea of Arden. A place few have seen up close and even fewer have been permitted to set foot.

Kaliden: The largest nation of men in the world, no other nation can match the gargantuan military strength of the empire. Many in the west believe that it is only a matter of time before the legions of the emperor sweep into the heartland and absorb the remaining kingdoms into it. Within the empire the largest following of the old gods can be found, along side the popular cult of the emperor.

Sea of Arden: The largest inland sea in the west and the home of the dragons of Arden.

Charis: Ruled by a multitude of guilds, these islands are home to pirates, traders, slavers and adventurers alike. Each one the jealous rival of the next and each one trying to employ whatever new technologies they can to gain the upper hand and rule the pirate isles as a whole. Many war machines built by the dwarves and the gnomes end up here mainly to harass the ships of the empire going to and from Rhune or Asgard.

The Wilderland: As the name suggests, this is a wild land of untamed creatures and harsh landscapes where only the very brave or the very foolish choose to go. Many believe that this was the land once inhabited by Mortigern and his countless minions for numerous high and decrepit ruins dot the countryside and the chilling sound of wailing souls in hell can’t always be blamed on the wind.

The Shield Mountains: Protecting the Vale Lands from the worst of the winter weather that sweeps down from the tundra and ice of Orsica, these mountains also serve to protect the people of the vales and the Wilderland from all but the most determined among the dragons.

The Vale Lands: Home of an independent, and some would say very naive people; the vales are largely peaceful except for the occasional monster or scouting party from the empire. Many who call this place home do not believe that the emperor really attaches any great value to their sparse and largely poor communities and so believe themselves safe from invasion. The men of the vale have always taken care of themselves however and their pride is not without some justification.

The Wall of the Gods: Separating the nations of the west from the unknown of the heart of Pangaea, these high snow-covered mountains are nigh impassable for lesser men. Following the battle of infinite tears in the age of the god war, the Titans retreated beyond them and have not been seen among mortals since.

The Land of the Titans: The unknown and unexplored land east of the Wall of the Gods. No mortal who has managed to cross the mountains has returned to tell of what they saw.

The Shining Sea: The watery gateway to the eastern empires of Sunjin and Tau, and one of the most violent and unpredictable bodies of water in the world. The shining sea is rapidly becoming the busiest for trade and fishing anywhere but great storms, sometimes hundreds of miles wide often batter the coastline and leave all in their wake in ruins.

El-Amyr: A land where water is more highly prized than gold or precious gems, and where a misspoken word can earn the wrath of an entire clan. Descended from the earliest of the human tribes, the nomads of El-Amyr are taciturn, and closed off to those who are unfamiliar with their ways. But once they make a friend they are loyal to the death. Their fighting skills are legendary, and to an Amyrite, their word of honor is sacred, among these people to live without honor is worse than death and their fanatic loyalty to Ella-Jeka, their name for Lor, is without any equal even among the inquisitors of the holy church.

Orsica: The native home of the centaur race and a place so vast and empty that it is said men could die from the loneliness of it. Orsica is a land of extremes in every sense. Sometimes rather warm during the short summer, and a land of intense and unyielding cold during the winter, it is a land not to be entered lightly. Least of all by those from the empire, as the centaurs hate Kalidites with a passion that can be hard to match. It is also a home not only to the centaurs but also to entire family tribes of fiercely independent humans who view all outsiders with at least suspicion and most often with hostility.

The Endless Sands and Beyond: Stretching from the spine of the world into the unknown and unexplored regions of southern Pangaea, this immense wasteland is said by some to be impossible to cross. And yet stories persist of grand and glorious kingdoms beyond, where great pyramids encrusted with gold and jewels rise out of the heavy mists of the jungle. Of places where great beasts and leviathans the likes of which have never been seen in the north still battle each other and mortal kind for control of the land and where large pools of flowing clear water that have not been touched since creation carry the power to give everlasting life to those who drink from them. Many expeditions have been launched from various parts of the west into this unknown region, though few lived to return out of the Endless Sands.