Mendev-Crusader Theocracy

Alignment: LG     Capital: Nerosyan (64,700)
Notable Settlements: Egede (39,410), Kenabres (12,330)
Ruler: The Crusader Queen Galfrey, Sword of Iomedae
Government: Monarchy  Languages: Common, Hallit    Religion: Iomedae, Aroden

Queen Galfrey

Mendev is a land of duality, a shining bastion of law and goodness hard up against the Worldwound, a burgeoning sinkhole of evil that threatens all of creation. It is a land of pilgrims, crusaders, opportunistic rogues, and a simmering clash of cultures from south and north. Descended from Iobarian exiles and ne’er-do-wells, Mendev of old was home to more than a few Issian pirates. Friend and ally to lost Sarkoris, it was otherwise seen as a small and inconsequential
kingdom. Everything changed with the death of Aroden, when tales of demonic monstrosities spewing from the distant north spread throughout Avistan in the beginning of the last century. The “Song of Sarkoris” related the fall of a wicked barbarian kingdom to cosmic horrors from the Great Beyond. “The Ballad of Prince Zhakar” told of the brave march into a chaos-warped land by a band of Mendevian heroes who died one by one fighting their way to the center of the blight, which they called a “wound in the world.”


Government: The noble Queen Galfrey wields considerable power in Nerosyan, but further from the capital her influence dwindles. Individual crusader commanders vary in their loyalty and how many liberties they take on their own authority, and there is often tension between the religious and military leaders of the crusade over priorities. Looming over all are the overzealous inquisitors—Hulrun of Kenabres is the most inf luential but he has many sympathizers across Mendev. Meanwhile, the Crusade Heralds attempt to mediate and satisfy all groups in the best interests of the crusade. The queen and her councilors know the quality of the crusaders f locking to Mendev has become highly questionable, and yet they are desperate for troops and loath to turn away anyone. Still, they hear the cries of persecuted native Mendevians at the hands of inquisitors and thuggish “low templars” alike. With resources stretched to the breaking point and division within the crusade even in the face of the dire threat of the Worldwound, there are few to spare to quell these internal problems.