By Nick Landry Jun 7, 2019 | Articles, Kobold FAQ, Midgard |
Considering making a new geomancer or picking up one of the ley magic feats? You might have many questions about ley lines and how they work. I know I did, so I went to the source and asked Dan Dillon, author of the book Deep Magic 5: Ley Lines from Kobold Press. Here is a summary of that conversation, FAQ style. All the answers come from Dan (except for the first two questions, which I added to provide a more complete FAQ). Q: What are ley...
By Kobold Staff Jun 3, 2019 | Articles, Midgard |
A hungry crow pecks at the eyes of the rotting corpse hanging on a rusty gibbet at the crossroads. The night air is filled with the howling of wolves, the soft hooting of owls, and the occasional human scream. The Blood Kingdom of Morgau is made up of three former kingdoms: the Duchy of Morgau, the Barony of Doresh, and the newly conquered northern province of Krakovar. Morgau and Doresh are located on a forested highland known as the Brom...
By Kobold Staff May 6, 2019 | Articles, Midgard |
Mercenary life seems full of plunder and easy money when the recruiters come around. Most of the time, it involves a great deal of boot leather and a life spent in tents and camps. The lucky recruits do get paid, find rich plunder, and retire to a manor house filled with sweet scents, rich tapestries, and obedient servants to erase memories of slaughter, death, and burnt-out villages. Most mercenaries are not that lucky. Argent Rats: Originally...
By Kobold Staff Apr 1, 2019 | Articles, Midgard |
The Free City’s austere feudal history explains the city’s current freedom‑loving citizenry. After suffering under the long, harsh reign of the aristocratic Stross family, the people of Zobeck have little love for nobles or the institution of feudalism. They have vowed to never again accept a lord’s yoke. Instead, commerce and the ability of every man and woman to grab life’s wealth with gusto rule the Zobecker spirit. Free to make their way in...
By Kobold Staff Mar 4, 2019 | Articles, Midgard |
The druids of the Northlands tend to more than the land. Some see to the health of the spirits. Druids of the Circle of the Stones build immense circles of standing stones where they commune with both the spirits of the land and the souls of the departed. SPIRIT GUIDE Starting at 2nd level, you gain the service of a minor spirit guide. You can cast find familiar as a ritual. As long as you and your spirit guide (familiar) are within 100 feet of...
By Kobold Staff Feb 25, 2019 | Articles, Midgard |
Twin Gods of Passion, Fertility, Magic, and the Living World, Lord and Lady of the Vanir, Gods of Beauty, Patron of Farmers and Patroness of Shield Maidens, the Twins of Wine Freyr Divine Domains: Life, Nature Freyr Domains: Animal, Charm, Earth, Healing, Lust, Plant, Water Freyr Subdomains: Caves, Decay, Fur, Growth, Resurrection Freyja Divine Domains: Tempest, War Freyja Domains: Charm, Magic, Plant, War, Weather Freyja Subdomains: Arcane,...
By Kobold Staff Feb 11, 2019 | Articles, Midgard |
The Clanking Legion is a legendary mercenary company, composed of roughly half gearforged and half beings of flesh and blood. CLANKING MERCENARY (FIGHTER) Fighters who emulate the Clanking Mercenary archetype see the flexibility of flesh in steel and the strength of metal in their own bodies and minds. CLANKER’S CRAFT Beginning when you choose this archetype at 3rd level, you gain proficiency with your choice of blacksmith’s tools or tinker’s...
By Kobold Staff Feb 4, 2019 | Articles, Midgard |
Midgard is surrounded by a god made flesh, the great World Serpent, a monstrous beast that defines the edge of the world and that contains—and some say, created—the entire world. This serpent, biting its own tail, creating the tides through his breathing and storms through his snorting and sneezes, is well known to the Northlanders and the Mharoti and less well known in other places. Hugely powerful, he is an indolent, even lazy, god who rarely...
By Kobold Staff Jan 14, 2019 | Articles, Midgard |
The doom croaker tradition originated among the Northlands ravenfolk and spread from there to the northern dwarves. Doom croakers follow the teachings of Wotan to gain glimpses into the infinite knowledge he was granted while hanging from the branches of Yggdrasil. DOOM CROAKER (WIZARD) Common folk regard doom croakers with a mixture of fear and awe. The doom croakers carry the power of Wotan’s runes, and though people cautiously seek out...
By Kobold Staff Jan 7, 2019 | Articles, Midgard |
To the west of the black wood where the shadow fey dwell lies a great pit in the Shadow Realm’s landscape. A series of deep depressions gouge the dark earth, diving deep into thick shadows and darkened tunnels. To a shrewd scholar of Midgard geography this mighty crevasse takes on a sinister meaning, for it exists in the corresponding location of the dwarf heartland, the Ironcrag Cantons. In these Black Iron Depths thrives an exiled arm of the...
By Kobold Staff Dec 17, 2018 | Articles, Midgard |
Of the smaller races, the kobolds have adapted best to the changing world. Enslaved long ago by reaver dwarves, kobolds quickly carved a niche for themselves as miners, scouts, and tinkerers: small enough to be useful, and also small enough to be dismissed as a threat. At first they were tolerated, then largely ignored. As a result, the shadows of dwarven society are rife with kobold rogues and entrepreneurs (many of them secret worshippers of...
By Kobold Staff Dec 10, 2018 | Articles, Midgard |
South of the Reaching Mountains and east of cyclopean Jotunheim, a fertile forest teeming with vibrant flora and fauna is sheltered from the worst excesses of cold and wind. Trollheim’s inhabitants are cunning hunters, fearless explorers, and fearsome raiders. Whether human, dwarf, or troll, few embrace the culture of the North as fiercely. They farm, brawl, raid each other, toast the gods, and consider themselves the best of all peoples. Most...
By Kobold Staff Dec 3, 2018 | Articles, Midgard |
Five reptilian heads upon long necks rise from the murky surface of the water. Sizzling venom drips from each gaping maw. The venom maw hydra lurks in sulfurous swamps and near areas of high geothermal activity, poisoning the hot springs and lakes where it dwells. Voracious Appetite. The venom maw hydra takes advantage of the sanctuary its warm water home promises to nearby fauna, devouring any creature that comes for warmth or a drink and...
By Kobold Staff Nov 26, 2018 | Articles, Midgard |
All seek some form of justice when they have been wronged, and many live under the promise of its protection, whether or not the promise is kept, but few take on the holy burden of delivering the justice of the gods. The mercy of the gods, when in evidence at all, is not the mercy of mortals, and meting it out makes for a lonely life. Yet most agree on the urgent need for justice in the world, with all of its dark places and rulers who give it...
