The Power of Souls

The phrase 'Wicked Hive of Scum and Villainy' is basically a cliché by now, but it certainly applies to Shadowport, which isn't even the city's real name, but it's the name everyone uses, official documents be damned. During the Godwar, something happened in the city that caused the entire place to be bathed in eternal shadow. Regardless of day, night, or fullness of the moon, the city and it's surrounding areas are clad in shadowy twilight.

Were it not such an important port, the city would have been abandoned, and even as is, much of the 'good' folk have left over the decades. Today's citizens are an exotic mix of misfits and miscreants who may not fit into other cities. Shadowport welcomes all, although coddles none. It's a ruthless city, where a person is free to make their own destiny, although could just as likely end up dead in an alley. While many faiths have temples, the city's real god is Gold, it's true moral fiber is greed. Corruption is rife, bribery is simply a cost of doing business, and possession is 9/10ths of the law.

There is a City Watch, who are charged with keeping the peace. They don't tend to do much to investigate crime, but will bash heads to stop a crime in progress. The city is ruled by a council of guildmasters, each of whole control a prosperous and notable guild. Nobility and titles mean next to nothing in Shadowport, so a prosperous merchant has more sway than a Duke who's fallen on hard times.

Dangers stalk the dark corners of Shadowport. There are monsters in the sewers, vampires stalk the streets, and cultists using the City's arcane oddness to try to summon eldritch horrors from beyond the veil of reality. Thieves, assassins, and grifters who've been run out of other parts of the empire call this place home, and it's widely assumed that the ruling council answers to the Prince of Shadows.

All in all, it's a terrible place to visit, and your characters live there.

Icons are mover and shaker NPCs in the setting. They aren't people your characters necessarily interact directly with, but are more elemental forces of the campaign. They're mortals who've, for different reasons, have absorbed incredible amounts of soul energy and their schemes and manipulations often drive stories or impact our heroes.

The Emperor: The Emperor of the human empire is a large man with wild grey hair and an imposing demeanor. He's a man of large appetites and boundless desires who's bastards are countless. His distinctive golden armor is known throughout the empire, and while he's not a bad ruler, his sympathies don't necessarily lie with the weak.

The Elf Queen: During the GodWar, the Elf Queen was widowed and her kingdom was decimated. Rather than be broken, she's brought all of her kin together. High, Wood, and Drow elves, rather than living as enemies are now allies, if sometimes uncertain allies, and all pay homage to the queen. She has not remarried, but rather keeps a harem of elves to serve as her consorts. She's rumored to have had dalliances with other races, but no lasting attachments.

The Dwarf King: During the GodWar, the Dwarven Empire was beset by underneath, as the earth itself ruptured, spilled hellish creatures into Dwarven Tunnels. One by one, Dwarven holds collapsed, until only the largest remained, and that's where the Dwarves remain, struggling to maintain at least one of their ancestral homes. The Dwarf King has been forced to rely heavily on trade with the human empire for resources, and resents being forced into subservience to the Emperor.

The Orc Lord: In the northern wilds, large tribes of orcs war with one another until one Orc rises to the top to unify the tribes and lead them on devastating rampages through the south. Heroes inevitably rise to stop him, but the Orc tribes never go for more than a decade without a lord, and it's been 12 years since the last horde boiled forth from the north.

The High Druid: A title that's passed through ritual combat to the death, The High Druid is the liaison between the civilized world and the wild. Half-Orcs were actually created by the High Druid to make mankind heartier and better able to survive the wilds.

The Priestess: While the GodWar resulted in numerous dead deities, there are still hundreds of them out there, and the Priestess is their voice. She is the high priestess for all faiths and moderates conflicts between rival sects. Her moods tend to change depending on the closest holy days. Depending on the time of year, she could be a benevolent healer, an innocent virgin, a rapacious whore, a vicious harpy, or a manipulative shrew. One never quite knows what to expect.

The Archmage: This human wizard was alive at the time of the Godwar and was able to protect the Chantry, the finest source of arcane lore in the empire. Since that time, he's only become more powerful. When he's not tasked by the empire to deal with some magical calamity, he's researching for ways to correct the scales of death and bring balance back to the world... or at least siphon all of that power into himself to attain godhood.

The Crusader: The Crusader is another title that's passed from being to being as they fall in battle. When the earth cracked, the forces of hell were able to enter the world. The Crusader takes the fight back to them. No shining knight, the Crusader is a spiked fist, a ruthless warrior to whom the ends justify the means and will use the powers of hell against it's denizens in his endless crusade.

The Diabolist: While the Crusader rushes to meet fiends in battle, the Diabolist takes a different tact. The Diabolist believes that with the gates of hell sundered, it's only a matter of time before the world is overrun, so why not make the best of it? A seductress and corruptor, this powerful Warlock tempts others to embrace the darkness, to start down a path of self destruction and madness on their own accord.

The Prince of Shadows: The Prince is a myth and a legend. A rogue so notorious that he cannot possibly be responsible for all he's blamed for, but who can be certain? It's said the Prince could steal the stars from the sky and slip them into the Emperor's pockets in front of the entire court with none the wiser. He can steal a maid or man's virtue with a smile, leaving them broken hearted and penniless come morning. He might not even be real, but thieves pay homage to him as their patron saint.

The Lich King: The origins of the Lich King are often questioned. Some say he's the previous human Emperor, who was assassinated and had his throne stolen. Others claim he's the remains of the former god of death, broken but not quite destroyed. Regardless, the one eyed, one handed lich is immensely powerful in his necropolis to the south, and no undead, intelligent or not, can deny his commands.

The Prince of Shadows

The Prince's influence permeates Shadowport. It's widely assumed to be his home and the center of his power. Some claim Shadowport is clad in darkness because he stole it's light. And yet, if he does live here, no one can say where, or whom he lives. Some people claim to receive missives with his mark on them, but who can say if they're genuine or forgeries? The Ruling Council likely knows, but they aren't saying anything.

The Emperor

His royal highness hates Shadowport. It's a thorn in his side, a lawless bastion of corruption that isn't paying it's proper taxes to his throne, and yet, conquering the city isn't something his armies want to consider. His agents are sometimes found gathering information in Shadowport or even trying to destabilize the status Quo.

The Elf Queen

Drow are quite fond of Shadowport, and the Queen maintains an embassy in the city, staffed almost exclusively by Drow. Their quarterly masquerades are infamous for extremes of both intrigue and debauchery.

The Dwarf King

Like the Emperor, the Dwarf King finds the lawlessness of Shadowport offensive, and yet, he still appreciates the power commerce commands in the city. The Dwarves also have an embassy where one can purchase Shadowforged Weapons, which purport to be stronger in the dark.

The Orc Lord

Shadowport is a southern city, one the Orcish hordes have never made it down to. So clearly, the Orc Lord is nothing they'd ever have to worry about. His agents and war profiteers would never try to smuggle weapons through a notorious city of smugglers, either.

The High Druid

While the High Druid herself doesn't take much of an interest in the city, there is a sect of heretical druids who are studying Shadowport as a unique ecosystem, learning how the lack of sun causing creatures, plants, and people to change over time. Perhaps even helping those changes along.

The Priestess

Her eminence has never come to Shadowport. It's rumored that a prior Priest tried to visit once, but couldn't step into the city's shadows, as if stopped by a physical barrier. That's just foolishness though. Why wouldn't the speaker of the gods be allowed to walk Shadowport's streets?

The Archmage

The Caul of Darkness that covers the city is of great interest to the Archmage, and his agents can often be found researching different topics. There is also the Talismonger's Guild, which provides magical reagents and components to most of the empire, that's headquartered in Shadowport.

The Crusader

Most demonic incursions into Shadowport are the subtle kind. Tempter demons and devils that coax people into damnation through lust or contracts. As such, there's little glory to be had fighting here. And yet, there is a Crusader Stronghold in the city, which is used as an R&R spot for the Crusader's armies, who's hunger for pleasures of flesh and vice is nearly as otherworldly as the foes they battle.

The Diabolist

Remember how 'Most demonic incursions into Shadowport are the subtle kind.'? The Diabolist /loves/ Shadowport. The city has a proud sort of practical amorality that she loves to play with. her schemes and social experiments are almost always based on the Seven Deadly Sins, and generally result in tragedy.

The Lich King

A city bathed in eternal shadow is an idea breeding ground for undead. Undead in Shadowport, while not necessarily any more power than in other places of the empire, are almost always more intelligent. Even skeletons and zombies, which are classically mindless, are possessed of low cunning in the city. As such, they are a constant threat to the city's health and well being.