Homebrew guide to

Eberron Campaign Setting

Eberron is the latest official Dungeons & Dragons campaign setting from Wizards of the Coast. It's designed from the ground up to have its own look and feel, whilst accomodating everything from the core D&D rulebooks (Player's Handbook, Dungeon Master's Guide, Monster Manual and, optionally, Expanded Psionics Handbook). The setting has several distinguishing features that combine to make it unique:

War-torn NationsThe continent of Khorvaire, within which most of Eberron's adventures take place, has just seen the end of nearly a century of warfare. The nations which once formed a kingdom that spanned the continent were embroiled in a bitter struggle for succession in which there was, in the end, no victor. Now these nations are independent sovereign territories who have held an uneasy peace with each other since the Last War ended two years ago. New nations have sprung up in the course of the Last War, and others have lost territory or been obliterated entirely, so tensions still run high, and nobody truly knows if peace wll last.

Magic as industryIn most settings, magic is treated as strange and unknown, given a mystique quite at odds with the high availability of both magic and spellcasters that the standard D&D rules presume. Eberron starts from the premise that magic is available and widely-studied, and builds its societies on that basis. Magic is prevalent in the everyday lives of practically everyone in the setting, from everbright lanterns (lamps with continual flame cast upon them) lighting the streets, to elemental-powered carriages and airships for long-distance travel. Low-level magic is commonplace and ordinary, but high-level magic is still rare and mysterious.

Dragonmarked HousesThe economy of Khorvaire is based upon the influences of thirteen distinct Great Houses, each overseeing a different aspect of trade and commerce. These Dragonmarked Houses are so-called because of the unique hereditary markings borne by the members of each one's controlling family. Known as

Dragonmarks, these tattoo-like symbols provide each family with unique abilities upon which their trade is based. For instance, the half-elves of House Lyrandar, who control much of the shipping in the seas around Khorvaire, and more recently the airships that ply the continent's skies, bear the Mark of Storm, which grants its bearers powers over wind and weather.

Remote deitiesThe gods of Eberron form two distinct pantheons, the Sovereign Host and their darker counterparts the Dark Six. Most races in Khorvaire worship members of one of these pantheons, or a pantheon as a whole, whilst there are a few other religions with smaller followings. However, these deities all have one thing in common - nobody has ever seen any direct evidence of them acting to intervene in the affairs of mortals. Some scholars believe that the gods do not exist, that it is the mere act of faith that allows some priests to channel magic into spellcasting, whilst others believe that the gods do exist, but do not take a direct hand in mortal affairs. Whatever the truth, this has implications for members of these religions - unlike in other campaign settings, a religious character in Eberron will not be set upon a quest by his deity, though his church might make such a request. And so long as a character still has faith, they need not be close in alignment to their deity in order to retain their spellcasting abilities - so the possibility of corrupt priests within a church's ranks is always present.

New faces for old racesAll the standard D&D races are present in Eberron, but few of them are exactly as you'd expect. The gnomes of Zilargo are scribes and scholars, but they are also expert shipwrights and have a culture in which intrigue, espionage and blackmail are elevated to art forms. Elves are divided into two nations - the afterlife-obssessed Aereni, who practice a very literal form of ancestor-veneration, and the Valenar, whose breakaway culture is aggressively martial. Half-Elves outnumber Elves on the mainland, and are a true-breeding race with their own well-respected culture. Halflings live in most civilised lands, but trace their origins to the Talenta Plains, where the majority of the Halfling race still live as barbarian tribes, riding and herding the dinosaurs of the plains. Orcs are a spiritual people whose ancestors were the first and most powerful practitioners of Druidic magic, whilst goblinoids once ruled the continent in an empire that exceeded the more recent human empire in almost every respect. Reduced to scattered remnants in the aftermath of the extraplanar invasion which shattered their empire, some of

them still keep their once-proud culture alive and dream of returning to power.

NPC classes for NPCsIn Eberron, characters with PC classes are rare and exceptional people. The vast majority of NPCs will only have NPC classes (i.e. Adept, Commoner, Expert, Aristocrat, Warrior, and a new NPC class, Magewright). Even those who have PC classes will almost certainly be multiclassed with NPC classes. In organised religion, the vast majority of priests are Adepts and Experts, Clerics making up a small minority, and most members of Watch or Militia organisations will be Warriors. Even professional soldiers are unlikely to have more than a single Fighter level. Magewrights are NPCs who are accomplished at just a handful of spells, and who use them in a variety of everyday crafting tasks.

Heroes are exceptionalIn addition to PC classes being rare, Player Characters are considered, right from the start, to be exceptional people. The capacity to learn and advance quickly with experience is a part of that exceptional quality. Most NPCs in Eberron have just a handful of levels, and would take years of hard work to gain even a single level. Any character above around 6th level is exceptional at what they do, and even amongst the elite of the entire nation, there are almost no NPCs higher than 12th level. This means that as player characters advance through a campaign, they will quickly become known as exceptional people, and by the time they reach higher levels, there will be few if any NPCs who can match them in their chosen profession. This doesn't mean that such characters will lack challenges - there are plenty of villainous NPCs, monsters and other challenges that can easily match them - it just means that they will not find friendly NPCs of similar power to fall back upon.

Shades of greyAlignment in Eberron is rather more of a grey area than in most campaign settings. Good people may do bad things through poor judgement, and bad people may do good things. Paladins are still bound by a firm moral code, and will lose their powers if they stray from that path, but Clerics need not follow the general alignment of their church or deity, so long as they still have faith. Other creatures, too, may not be as you would expect them to be - many Orcs follow an ancient spiritual tradition as protectors of the world; goblinoids rule a sovereign nation that maintains peaceful relations with the

human nations; and dragons are no longer colour-coded by alignment - you might easily meet a Neutral Good red dragon, or a Chaotic Evil gold. Taking anything at face value can get you into a lot of trouble.

SOME EBERRON GROUND RULES

Action PointsThe Eberron Campaign Setting is deisgned to be ideal for campaigns which have a certain feel, which incorporate the style of pulp and noir fiction. As such, they can often lean heavily towards intrigue, but are also likely to feature set-piece confrontations of cinematic action. To facilitate this, Eberron uses an Action Point system. Each character gains a pool of Action Points at first level, which refreshes at each new level (your Action Points per level are equal to 5 plus half your character level rounded down, and you cannot retain any points left unspent from the previous level). These Action Points can be spent in several ways, the simplest of which is to enhance any d20 die roll - an attack or a skill check, for instance. Before or after rolling the d20, but before you know whether your roll was a success, you may spend one Action Point to add 1d6 to the roll. At higher levels, you can roll multiple d6s and choose the highest roll (2d6 at 8th-14th level, 3d6 at 15th-20th), and by taking the Action Boost feat you can use d8s instead of d6s.

Additionally, Action Points may be spent in several other ways. A character who is down and dying (between -1and -9 hitpoints) may expend a single Action Point to stabilise, as though they'd made a successful stabilisation roll. By spending two Action Points, you can gain an extra activation of a class feature with limited uses per day, such as a Barbarian's Rage or a Cleric's Turn Undead. Also, Action Points can be utilised or enhanced via several of the feats and prestige classes featured in the Eberron Campaign Setting.

New RacesFour new races are featured in the Eberron Campaign Setting, each balanced to have no level adjustment, so they can be taken by first level characters.Changelings are the descendents of humans and doppelgangers, and have the ability to alter their appearance at will, as though using a Disguise Self spell.Shifters are descended from humans and lycanthropes, and are able to manifest certain bestial traits in a form similar to a barbarian's Rage. These traits may be enhanced via a selection of feats, or by

taking the Weretouched Master Prestige Class. Kalashtar are naturally psionic beings who are adept at the use of psionic powers. Warforged are living constructs, built by magical Creation Forges to do battle in the Last War. Now that the war is over, the Creation Forges have been decommissioned and the Warforged given the status of citizens. They must find their place in a world that has turned its back on the purpose they were built for.

New ClassesEberron features one new core class and several Prestige Classes. Artificers are specialised magic-item creators. Understanding magic in its rawest form, beyond such distinctions as Arcane or Divine, they utilise the Use Magic Device skill to emulate spell requirements for the purposes of building magic items. They gain all magic item creation feats as class features, and rather than casting spells, they can cast Infusions, temporary magical enhancements which are cast directly into items. With Cleric-equivalent hit points and BAB progression and a good skill selection, they make well-rounded adventurers.Prestige Classes include the Dragonmark Heir, a member of one of the Dragonmarked trading houses who utilises both their House connections and the powers of their Dragonmark; Extreme Explorers, professional dungeoneers who strongly utilise Action Points to boost their abilities; Master Inquisitives, professional investigators dedicated to urban crime solving; and several others, including Prestige Classes specifically for Warforged and Shifters.

The Campaign Setting also includes a number of new feats, some of which are aimed at the new races, whilst others are designed for particular cultures, and many are general feats which can enhance any character.

DragonshardsDragonshards are a unique mineral material, essential in creating magic items. They come in three varieties - Siberys shards, which fall as meteorites upon the continent of Xen'Drik, Khyber shards, which are found in deep caves and chasms, and Eberron shards, which are found in deposits just below ground level. Eberron shards are an essential component of all magic items - the creation cost of a magic item can be assumed, in the Eberron Campaign Setting, to include the cost of Eberron shards required to make it function. Siberys shards enhance dragonmark abilities, and can be made into a variety of magical items for the Dragonmarked Houses. Khyber shards have

the property of absorbing and binding life-force, and they are used in the creation of bound-elemental items, items in which an elemental's essential nature is harnessed to produce magical effects. The largest of these are elemental airships and lightning coaches, but other bound-elemental items include weapons, armour and wondrous items.

FINDING YOUR WAY AROUND EBERRONSee the attached map for reference.The continent of Khorvaire is the central setting of Eberron. Until 100 years ago, it was largely ruled by the Empire of Galifar, a human empire that spanned the continent. This ended in the Last War, and the former Five Nations of Galifar are now independent territories as follows:

AundairAundair is a moderate, egalitarian nation to the north of Khorvaire, a pastoral and fertile land. It is a centre of learning, the site of both the Arcane Congress and the University of Galifar, as well as two of the Dragonmarked Houses. House Orien (run by humans bearing the Mark of Passage) runs Khorvaire's land-based transport systems, in the form of well-maintained trade roads and organised caravans, as well as the Lightning Rail, a network of lines of magical conductor stones, on which the elemental-powered Lightning Train carriages run. Transport via lightning rail is fast and reliable, but expensive. House Lyrandar (run by Half Elves bearing the Mark of Storm) operates most of Khorvaires coastal and river trading fleets, and over the last few decades has begun using elemental-powered airships which ply trade routes throughout Khorvaire. With the advent of these new vessels, House Lyrandar and House Orien are in direct competition as never before. Queen Aurala is considered an even-handed ruler who governs her country well.

BrelandSouth of Aundair, Breland is perhaps the most industrially advanced nation in Khorvaire, its economy divided roughly equally between rural and urban communities. Breland is traditionally egalitarian and welcoming, and has become the home of a large number of refugees from Cyre (see below). Breland is the site of Khorvaire's largest and most diverse city, Sharn, known as the City of Towers. Breland houses a large faction of House Cannith (run by Humans bearing the Mark of Making), which has become a fractured House since its leadership was destroyed during the Last War. House Cannith

is responsible for producing and selling a large proportion of Khorvaire's manufactured goods, and were also responsible for creating the Warforged during the Last War.

ThraneThrane is a theocracy, situated east of Aundair and north of Breland. Seven hundred years ago, a divine phenomenon known as the Silver Flame manifested in Thrane. Whilst not in itself a deity, the Silver Flame incorporates the spirits of a paladin and a couatl who were transfixed within it in the act of slaying a great demon, and their influence can be felt by those sensitive to it throughout thrane and beyond. This uniting force - the Voice of the Flame - remade Thrane from the Galifaran kingdon it once was to a nation dominated by the Church of the Silver Flame. The people of Thrane are ardent believers in this religion, so the Church does not rule by force, but Church members are highly evangelical, seeking to spread belief in the Flame across Khorvaire, whilst righteously battling against evil in any form. As a result, the Church includes a far higher proportion of Paladins than any other religion in Khorvaire. Whilst it maintains its royal family as a figurehead, Thrane is now ruled by the Council of Cardinals. They are nominally guided by the current Keeper of the Flame, the child-priest Jaela Daran, whose wisdom and power as a conduit of the flame belies her appearance as an elevenyear-old girl. However, she is generallykept concerned with spiritual matters whilst the Cardinals deal with more practical matters. Some say they are a little too practical - there are rumours of extensive corruption within the Cardinals' ranks.

KarrnathEast of Thrane and Aundair, Karrnath is a nation with a proud martial history. A largely urban society, Karrnath is highly industrialised. Its current ruler, King Kaius III, is dedicated to his people, and has been instrumental in creating the Treaty of Thronehold which ended the Last War, and subsequently in keeping the peace. There is a dark side to Karrnath, in the form of its extensive use of necromancy during the Last War. Where other nations turned to Warforged to supplement their armies, Karrnath's necromancers created vast armies of undead. Even today, they still maintain large numbers of skeletons and zombies both as armed forces and labourers. A common religion in Karrnath is the Blood of Vol, an unusual religion which venerates the spritual and metaphysical powers of blood, and sees undeath as a path to immortality. Karrnath houses two Dragonmarked Houses - House

Deneith (run by Humans bearing the Mark of Sentinel), who hire out security personnel and mercenary forces to all comers, and House Jorasco (run by Halflings bearing the Mark of Healing), whose hospices and other healing centres throughout Khorvaire provide care for the ill and injured, at reasonable prices.

The MournlandSouth of Karrnath, and east of Thrane, Aundair and Breland, there once existed the oldest of the Five Nations, Cyre. A proud nation with a rich history and economy, Cyre was hit hard by the war, its central position meaning it was often the battleground for the worst conflicts of the Last War. House Cannith had its headquarters here, and Cyre was where the majority of Warforged were manufactured.

Four years ago, a strange and terrible cataclysm hit Cyre. The land was enveloped in strange, unearthly fog, and all life within it was either snuffed out or twisted to new and terrible forms. This tragic event, known as the Day of Mourning, destroyed Cyre as a nation, and was the main trigger for the beginning of the peace overtures which ended the war two years later. The Mournland is still enclosed by a wall of fog known as the Dead Grey Mists, and is a terrible place inimical to life. Strange aberrations, living spells and other terrors stalk the land, and its very nature disturbs the course of life and death. Natural and magical healing is impossible within its bounds, and battlefields of corpses still lie perfectly preserved, as though they had perished just moments ago.

THE OTHER NATIONS OF KHORVAIRE

ZilargoHomeland of the Gnomes, Zilargo has maintained its independence since the first days of the Galifaran empire through negotiation, trickery and intrigue. When King Galifar's forces advanced upon them, they met them at the border and immediately surrendered, negotiating the status of an independent province within his kingdom. They spent the first half of the Last War as independent observers, before allying with their northern neighbours Breland, supplying them with intelligence and weapons whilst remaining non-combatant. Zilargo's gnomes are keen shipwrights and the only people in Khorvaire who know the ancient secrets of elemental binding, which

allows them to produce unique magic items from elemental-bound weapons to the lightning coaches used by House Orien and House Lyrandar's elemental galleons and airships. They are highly inquisitive, and practice intrigue, espionage and even blackmail as a natural part of their everyday life. House Sivis (run by gnomes bearing the Mark of Scribing) are based here, and are responsible for mediation, communications, record-keeping and notarising throughout Khorvaire. Over their long existence, they have established a solid reputation for absolute neutrality and confidentiality.

Talenta PlainsEast of Karrnath and the Mournland, the Talenta Plains are the homeland of the halflings, and whilst many of their kin have become integrated into civilised society (notably those of the two halfling Dragonmarked Houses, Jorasco And Ghallanda), the barbarian tribes still maintain their existence here much as they have done for thousands of years, roaming the plains and living off the land. Aside from halflings, the Talenta Plains are best known for the variety of dinosaurs which roam there. Whilst there are few of the lager breeds rumoured to stalk the southern continent of Xen'Drik, many varieties do roam the Plains, and some of them have been domesticated by the halfling tribes as mounts and livestock.

ValenarMost Elves of Eberron still live on the island of Aerenal, but a small, martially-inclined faction arrived in Khorvaire during the Last War, answering a call for help from Cyre. In return for their mercenary services, they exacted a surprisingly high price, annexing a large area of formerly Cyran territoty as their new homeland, claiming a prior territorial claim that dated back to before humans came to Khorvaire. Cyre might have argued matters, but the Day of Mourning eliminated that possibility and the Elves' claim to Valenar was acknowledged in the Treaty of Thronehold. The Valenar Elves, like all Elves, seek to venerate their ancestors, but they choose a very particular way of doing so. Drawing upon legends of their distant ancestors' successful rebellion against the long-ago kingdom of the Giants, they seek to venerate these ancestors by emulating their legendary feats in battle. As a result, Valenar elves are a martial culture above all else, seeking conflict for its own sake. Divided into highly-mobile horse-clans, they regularly conduct raids on the neighbouring Talenta Plains, even pushing north as far as Karrnath in search of worthy challenges. They are not truly expansionist, they just want to fight, as gloriously as possible.

The Mror HoldsEast of the Talenta Plains lie the massive twin mountain ranges of the Ironroot and Hoarfrost Mountains. Here, the twelve ancient clans of the Mroran Dwarves reside. Once prone to almost-constant inter-clan battles, they live these days in a loose confederation. The Mror Holds are perhaps the richest single area in Khorvaire, with a wealth of minerals, metals and gems, and the Mroran Dwarves are excellent metalworkers. They also have one other industry. House Kundarak, the Dwarvern House governed by a clan bearing the Mark of Warding, are Khorvaire's premier banking institution, and have banks and other interests throughout Khorvaire.

The Lhazaar PrincipalitiesAn even looser confederation than the Mror Holds, the Lhazaar Principalities occupy both Khorvaire's north-eastern coastline and the many islands bordering it. These islands are ruled by merchant-princes for whom the size of one's fleet is more imprtant than how much land one owns. Borderline pirates (and some well over the line), they compete for control of the rich trading routes along Khorvaire's coastline. The Principalities are the only coastal region in which House Lyrandar have failed to dominate the naval trade, a situation they would very much like to correct.

Q'BarraOne of the last true frontiers of mainland Khorvaire, this dense jungle region nestles on Khorvaire's south-eastern edge. Its main human population includes a large number of Cyran refugees, and also a faction composed of members of all the Five Nations who wish to preserve and eventually re-create the Empire of Galifar. However, most of the occupants of Q'Barra are not humans, but lizardfolk. Living deep in the jungle, these tribes have formed a civilisation whose extent is hardly guessed by most of Khorvaire's civilised nations. They have a large city in northern Q'Barra, and also guard a large number of ancient ruins dating back to the Age of Demons.

DarguunThe region encompassed by the Seawall Mountains east of Zilargo had always been home to many goblinoid tribes, largely unregarded by the human nations, until House Deneith came up with the idea of employing hobgoblins as mercenaries. This practice was highly profitable for them, until just under thirty years ago. During the Last War, a hobgoblin chieftan,

Haruuc, realised that the human forces were overstretched, and began secretly forming alliances within the other goblinoid tribes. Rebelling against their human employers, they took the region now known as Darguun as their own territory, killing or enslaving many of their former employers. Breland and Cyre, the owners of this territory, were completely unprepared, and had no forces to spare to deal with this. The King of Breland struck a deal with the goblinoids, but conflict continued with Cyre right up until the Day of Mourning. Eager to end the War, the remaining Nations acknowledged Darguun's sovereignty at the Treaty of Thronehold, and it has remained independent since then, and even renewed its mercenary contracts with House Deneith. The goblinoids are unused to civilisation, and Darguun is still a very dangerous place for outsiders, but Haruuc is doing his best to civilise the nation.

Haruuc rules the lowland goblinoids, but within the Seawall Mountains, there is another faction, largely unregarded by the outside world - the Heirs of Dhakaan. These martial tribes retain the traditions and knowledge of the Dhakaani Empire, the goblinoid empire that once ruled all Khorvaire. They are a powerful force, backed by ancient knowledge that surpasses that of current human civilisation in some respects, but they remain divided amongst themselves. If ever a single ruler emerges to unite them, they could pose a significant threat to the balance of power within Darguun and beyond.

DroaamDarguun's formation east of Breland during the Last War was in some ways echoed by that of Droaam to the west. This land, largely claimed by Breland as Brelish territory, was known as the barrens - wild and largely uninhabited by humans, due to the large number and variety of monstrous inhabitants, including goblins, gnolls and ogres. Disorganised and ungoverned, it presented neither major attraction or threat to the other nations. During the Last War, Breland was unable to spare troops to defend or patrol the land, and drew all its people back beyond the Greywall Mountains, declaring the border sealed. Meanwhile, a strange new organising force had arrived in the form of three powerful hags, known as the Daughters of Sora Kell. Already powerful creatures individually, the stuff of legends and spine-chilling fairytales, the trio united were unopposable - they were able to unite the monstrous races into a coherent nation in a remarkably short time, claiming all of the barrens as the domain of Droaam. They petitioned unsuccessfully to

be included in the Treaty of Thronehold, and Droaam remains officially unrecognised as a nation, but no other nation has challenged the borders they have established. The hags' long-term plans for their new nation remain a mystery.

The Eldeen ReachesThe massive forest lands west of Aundair are one of the richest remaining areas of untamed wilderness in Khorvaire, and their inhabitants like it that way. Part of what is now the Eldeen Reaches used to belong to Aundair, but as with Breland, Aundair's forces were overstretched during the Last War, and the always-independent inhabitants of the Reaches claimed and kept the land as their own, becoming a fully independent nation. The Reaches are home to Khorvaire's widest variety of Druidic sects, including the nihilistic Children of Winter, the arcane-phobic Ashbound, the fey-revering Greensingers and the protective Wardens of the Wood. Spiritual leader to most of these sects is one of the oldest living beings on Khorvaire, the Great Druid Oalian. Oalian is anawakened greatpine tree who was taught the Druidic principles four thousand years ago by a long-dead Gatekeeper druid. He has remained in the Reaches ever since, passing on his wisdom down the ages.

The Shadow MarchesThe Shadow Marches are a large area of fens and fells in the west of Khorvaire, largely cut off from the rest of the continent by mountain ranges. Inhabited by a wide variety of tribes composed largely of humans, orcs and half-orcs, the Shadow Marches would still be considered marginal if not for the fact that it contains the richest deposits of Eberron Dragonshards on the continent. Essential for the creation of magic items, these crystals are worth more than gold, platinum or mithral. House Tharashk (run by humans and half-orcs bearing the Mark of Finding), the youngest Dragonmarked House, runs most of the dragonshard prospecting business in the Shadow Marches and beyond. The powers of their Mark make them excellent prospectors, but also excellent at finding clues and people, so they have diversified into providing private inquisitives and bounty hunters across Khorvaire. Aside from House Tharashk, there is little civilisation in the Shadow Marches. They are home to the Gatekeeper faction of Druids, an ancient Orcish sect who were once instrumental in foiling an invasion of aberrant extraplanar forces from Xoriat, the Plane of Madness, by sealing the most powerful of the invaders in the depths of Khyber [Eberron's Underdark]. Their descendents

still check and maintain the seals, amongst the ruins of that time, many of which are strewn throughout the Shadow Marches. However, there is a darker legacy of that invasion - the Cults of the Dragon Below. These chaotic Khyber-worshippers revere the sealed aberrations as deities, and seek to release them from their prison. Fortunately, the Cults are scattered and unco-operative, but they still pose a serious danger in themselves, being prone to violent and terrible practices.

The Demon WastesThis blasted and terrible land on Khorvaires north-western extremity is a horrific, deadly place. It is well named, as demonic forces, the remnants and offspring of the ancient Age of Demons, still prowl here. Barbarian tribes of cruel and warlike nature inhabit the canyons of the Labyrinth, and the fiendish forces of the Lords of Dust inhabit the city of Ashtakla, whiling away the eternity of their existence hatching terrible plans to spread chaos through the civilised lands, while they seek to release their ancient masters, the godlike Rakshasa Rajahs, trapped in the depths of Khyber aeons ago. There are some forces for good here - some tribes revere an aspect of the Silver Flame, and dedicate their lives to fighting the demonic forces - but it is a deadly place for most adventurers, though it has its rewards for those who somehow survive - there are still relics and artifacts dating back as far as the Age of Demons to be discovered here.

BEYOND KHORVAIRE

There are several lands beyond Khorvaire. On the island of Aerenal, to the southeast, the ancient Aereni Elves keep to their secluded and highly traditionalist lives. They venerate their dead in a highly literal manner - a particularly worthy Elf, upon reaching the end of his life, may be transformed by the Aereni high priest into a Deathless, a form of positive-energy-based undead, who retains all his memories from life. The oldest and wisest of the Deathless, the Undying Councillors, rule the Aereni and guide their nation. The Aereni venerate the afterlife, and most incorporate symbols of it such as skulls into everyday decoration and design, many families tattooing their bodies in emulation of the shrunken flesh and prominent bones of the Deathless, some even altering themselves to look more zombie-like.

Far to the east lies the continent of Sarlona, home to the Riedran Empire.

Closed to outsiders, little is known of these people, who call themselves the Inspired, though they do maintain some embassies in Khorvaire. They are highly accomplished psionicists.

South of Khorvaire is the continent of Xen'Drik, mysterious and largely unexplored. Once home to the ancient civilisation of the Giants and their Elven slaves, the continent was shaken by a terrible cataclysm that ended the Giant empire many thousands of years ago. The Elves rebelled and most of them left for Aerenal, though the nocturnal Drow remained behind, most now living as scattered tribes across the continent. Expeditions to Xen'Drik are dangerous but highly profitable - the Giants' civilisation was more advanced than any since, and many secrets and treasures still lurk in the ruins. Xen'Drik is also the primary source of Siberys Dragonshards.

Finally and most mysterious is the continent of Argonnessen, south-east of Khorvaire. This continent is the domain of the dragons, and they guard their privacy well. No Khorvairan expedition has ever returned from there. Most don't even reach the mainland - the savage tribes known as the Serens, who revere the Dragons, occupy the islands off Argonnessen's coast, and drive off or destroy any outsiders who approach.