High Hermitage

The Red Mountains

The Red Mountains is a mountain range extending over much of southern Westeros. The range divides Dorne in the south from the Stormlands and the Reach to the north.

Castles in the Dornish Red Mountains include Blackmont, High Hermitage, Kingsgrave, Skyreach, Starfall, Wyl, Yronwood and Vulture's Roost ruins. There are two principal passes through the mountains, the Prince's Pass, guarded by House Fowler, and the Boneway, guarded by House Yronwood. The river Wyl flows from the eastern mountains to the Sea of Dorne, while the Torentine flows from the western mountains to the Summer Sea.

The hidden valleys and high meadows of the Red Mountains have sweet green grass and running streams. The meadows north of Yronwood, for instance, have crisp air at night. The fertile vicinity of Yronwood is forested and contains deposits of iron, tin, and silver. The foothills near Skyreach have runoff from the heights and plentiful game in valleys.

High Hermitage is original seat of ‘House Dayne of High Hermitage’, a cadet branch of landed knights and bannermen to House Dayne of Starfall, is located in the Red Mountains of Dorne northeast of Starfall along the Torentine. However, during the time of the Conqueror’s conquest, a cryptic visitor, a green-seer, persuaded House Dayne to leave their home for parts North.

               

High Hermitage is beautiful to behold, a tiered garden citadel with wide balconies and high windows built into rusty colored stone marked with scenic waterfalls and clear pools of water fed by the Torentine River and the massive nearby Elemental storm. Stone tunnels lead to open courtyards, community gathering areas and personal spaces. Bridges both natural and man-made stone walkways join courtyards and balconies some soaring thousands of feet above the sandy desert foothills. In some areas pools of fish and water plants are farmed and harvested for sustenance as well as for their special properties and for trade. A single watchtower looks down upon a Mercantile below and the only known switchback trail that leads here, however there is a second underground method of reaching here. Golden Rocs soar overhead and seem to watch over the daily lives of the monks who live here; the Rocs present in both the skies and brooding statuary of the architecture.

These monks follow old elemental traditions maintaining their adopted home and living off the Torentine’s bountiful resources. Each individual living here has a story of how they were called here to serve a purpose. Some were called to High Hermitage as monks to learn the ways of the Source or to tend the fisheries for the initiates. This calling, unique to each man and woman, is said to have come to them in dreams or in fire visions- a vision of the obelisk. 

The one hundred Monks follow a master and apprenticeship structure, four masters for each of the material elements and the Elder, the Master of the South Wind and his pupil the Immaculate. The Elder is said to be over a hundred years old and was part of the first group to establish themselves here. The sanctum has grown beyond its original purpose, High Hermitage is only well known to the Maesters and old families of Dorne.

Flowering Pesh Cactus

The Obelisk At Hermitage (Touchstone)

The origin of the stone Obelisk is unknown. The Obelisk is a seventeen foot tall monolith of weathered sandstone seemingly as old as time. A gentle breeze always surrounds it. Primitive faces are carved up and down the Obelisk except at the meridian band where four elemental symbols, each facing their respective compass directions, are featured. (Fire to the south, Air to the east, Water faces the west and Earth to the north) These symbols are cut with a precision unlike the crude faces which resemble all the known races of the world. 

It appeared at High Hermitage in 25 AC and has been at the center of focus and meditation for the monks. Stories passed down say it resided for a long time in the neolithic burial grounds in the Lands of Always Winter; the Children of the Forest used its powers of seeing to view the surrounding lands and look into the affairs of men throughout the lands. 

The Watchtower

Other Locations

Other locations at High Hermitage include the Watchtower that overlooks the long trail at several intervals along the path, atop of which is a bell of platinum hangs. There are beehives where masters tends the prosperous bees and the fisheries that sustains the one hundred monks. The Undying Flame is the holy fire contained in a large brass brazier in the Hall of Brothers that the monks tirelessly watch over and keep alive; a chapel adjacent to an open courtyard called the Council Square where in its center a heartwood tree grows. There is also an aviary for the dire eagles. A guest house over looks three waterfalls, and beyond the falls are the salt caves. High Hermitage also includes a small library and crypts, livestock pasture, brew house, kitchens, servants’ quarters, and many other supporting rooms. These diverse buildings are joined by a network of bridges, tunnels, and covered passages, making the place beautiful oasis in the mountain valley.

The Merchant

A half day’s march from High Hermitage on the stony path is a Mercantile and a small community of smallfolk that support the Mercantile. An old statue  of the Sword of the Morning stands just outside the Mercantile, which is the only permanent structure as the small folk families reside in colorful yurts. Travelers often use this area as a rest stop while crossing the Red Mountains and are free to use the open areas to camp. The Mercantile building itself hides a secret trail to High Hermitage and is a closely guarded secret.

Dumrock

The Valley

In a wide and fertile valley beyond Hermitage reside the gully-folk. Short, stocky peoples who delight in merriment and song. They tend the sorghum fields and work closely with the monks for survival.

Economy

Golden honey, pesh flower extract, sorghum, black diamond apples, pink cave salt, bees wax, elemental water as well as deep cave mushrooms. 

Land Strider

Other Details

Riding lizards, tall land-striders, camels, sand-steeds, and dire eagles provide transportation around Dorne. Hazards include sand storms and quick sand; monsters including camelopardel, sand worms, and pairs of canishinx. Giant varieties of vermin like scorpions, ant lions and termites hazard the sands along with the elusive Asherati sand people, as well as dire jackals, pumas, and vultures. Stories passed from travelers across the wastes tell of rare dinosaurs that still roam the sandy landscape and a so-called 'sand hag' that steals babies during each winter's new moon to replenish her youth as well as tribal wemics that roam the Greenblood. A common fear, passed along through Dornish folklore, is the fear of dying in the Dornish sands and returning as a Dustform creature.

Personalities

One-hundred monks of the Obelisk call the small, isolated vale of High Hermitage home along with about a three-dozen servants, craftsmen, and herdsmen. Elder Ved’Dren the Master of Summer, is the last surviving original settler to Hermitage after the cadet House of Dayne abandoned their home decades ago to become Speakers. Ved’Dren is well over a century old and has been sickly for some time but is still capable of great wisdom. Immaculate Ka’heb a Master of the North Wind, is the Elder’s administrator and therefore all official procedures and authority come from him. Deran Toyne, an Ibbenese foreigner is a small well-muscled fellow with harry broad shoulders, short legs and long arms who came here after a vision, he tends the goats and guards against natural predators. There is Brother Ashur who tends the beehives, Kendrick who commands the Volunteer watch, and Bother Kerith who is the candlemaker. There is Vonda Lingard who tends the aviary and Zenia Furrow who is the Keeper of the Undying Flame in the great pavilion. The Torentine river valley is populated by gully-folk who keep livestock and farm sorghum to trade. Finally there is Paxton Trinner and the proprietor of The Mercantile, a small trade business at the base of the trail to the Hermitage valley along the mountain pass to Starfall. He ventures up to trade for honey, beeswax and foodstuffs with the monks twice a month; he is often accompanied by a small earth elemental he calls ‘Dumrock’.

Akhal Teke Sand-Steed

Winterfell

Winterfell The seat of House Stark, and the ancestral home to the Kings of Winter, Winterfell is among the oldest castles in all the Seven Kingdoms. According to legend, Bran the Builder constructed the ancient holdfast, making it at least eight thousand years old. While the castle has certainly spread beyond its original foundation, with new walls, towers, and more added over the decades, Winterfell has never been conquered.

Winterfell is a grey stone labyrinth, a maze of walls and towers, of courtyards and tunnels; a sprawling fortress whose size and scope are unmatched anywhere in Westeros. The keep and buildings form the heart of two massive granite walls and a wide moat between them. The outer wall reaches eighty feet in height, while the inner wall stands more than a hundred feet tall, studded with watchtowers and sheltering those who walk the crenelated battlements.

The size of the fortress is staggering; it spreads out over hills and valleys, encompassing both woods and hot springs. The oldest parts of Winterfell have slanting halls, rooms that lean to one side or the other, and because the ground was not leveled when it was constructed, figuring out just what floor one is on can be a challenge. Covered bridges and walkways connect the various places in the castle, and staircases wind up hills or descend into the darkened depths in the shadows of the walls. Shapeless gargoyles brood over the inner bailey, cold sentries whose features have long since been erased by wind, rain, and snow

Original Keep

Crypt

The Starks maintain the ancient tradition of interring their dead in a crypt deep beneath their fortress. At the bottom of a narrow winding staircase is a long hall flanked by granite pillars. Between each pillar is the stone likeness of a deceased Stark seated on a stone throne, their backs against the sepulchers containing their remains. Overhead, the ceiling is vaulted, supported by the columns marching down its length, far longer than Winterfell itself. Some claim the crypt is but one level of many, and beneath it are the deeper vaults that house the ancient remains of the older kings. By tradition, only the kings (and lords) are interred here; the rest are buried in the lichyard above.

First Keep

A squat round tower set with weathered gargoyles, it is long neglected. In recent years, lord Rickon of Winterfell have moved the quarters to the Great Keep, which is connected to the adjacent armory by a covered bridge and overlooks the practice yard and the Maester’s Turret through high, narrow windows.

Godswood (Touchstone Site)

Winterfell’s godswood reflects the dour and contemplative personality of the Starks—it is a dark and shadowy place, yet at the same time both peaceful and calming. The trees here have grown untouched for over ten thousand years and include sentinel trees, oaks, ironwoods, hawthorns, ash, and soldier pines. The heart tree, an ancient weirwood, grows beside a dark pool; its face is long and melancholy, its eyes deep and watchful. An ancient sentinel tree of Winterfell’s godswood grows high over the wall and overhangs the armory.

Great Keep

Most activity at Winterfell takes place in the Great Hall, located adjacent to the main castle yard. This vast hall can accommodate over five hundred guests, seated at eight long rows of trestle tables, four on either side of the central aisle, and it is warmed by a great fireplace at one end. Here, too, sits the throne of Winterfell, a cold seat of stone carved with hounds and direwolves, where the ancient Kings of Winter sat and issued judgment.

Library Tower

The Library Tower is devoted entirely to books and manuscripts, and it includes a number of important works on ancient history and warfare.

Maester’s Turret

This tower houses the maester’s apartments. Cluttered and messy, it is a maze of books, tables, and chairs, with shelves holding elixirs, curious concoctions and rare ingredients lining the walls. Maester Oghan possesses a bronze Myrish lens, so he can examine the stars, and a number of charts and illustrations of his findings litter the room.

Pools

Across the godswood, just under the windows of the guest house, lay the pools. Fed by a hot spring deep beneath the castle, these pools steam and bubble day and night. The pools are ideal for bathing and relaxation, and they heat the castle.

Other Locations

Other locations at Winterfell include the bell tower, where the maester tends his ravens, the guard hall adjacent to the armory, the guest house beside three steaming pools across from the heart tree, and the broken tower—once the tallest in Winterfell—whose upper levels were shattered by lightning over a century ago. Today, the broken tower is home only to crows and sparrows. Winterfell also includes a guardhouse, kennels, gatehouses, stables, brew house, kitchens, servants’ quarters, and many other structures, including a small Sept for use by visiting southern folk. These diverse buildings are joined by a network of bridges, tunnels, and covered passages, making the place a baffling labyrinth to anyone not familiar with its layout.

Winter Town

Just outside Winterfell’s walls is Winter Town, a small community of smallfolk that support the Stark family. A market square stands just outside the castle’s gates, and muddy streets and neat rows of houses fashioned from logs and rough stone spread out in all directions. Most of the year, Winter Town is empty, but during the cold darkness of winter, folks drift in from across the countryside to take shelter here until the spring.

Economy

Dire bison, branta, woolly mammoths, as well as other game hunting inland; whaling, fishing, and lamprey hunting along the shores.

Other Details

Mastadons and Pale draft horses provide the majority of transportation in the north. Hazards include weather related white-out conditions, and quick slush; monsters including ice toads, sabre-tooth tigers, angry giants, pairs of mated megalocerosi and yeti; the frost folk or Skagosi peoples, as well as dire polar bears, boars, and wolves.

Stories passed from travelers across the wastes tell of rare glyptodons that still roam the rugged northern landscape and small flocks of Preytons that who steal the shadows of their victims before they gore them. A common fear, and slogan for the Stark family, is Winter is Coming. A grim reminder of times past when a winter that lasted a generation fell upon the people of Westeros before Bran the Builder led a group of heroes against The Night King.

Personalities

Winterfell is home to an average of two thousand individuals including the Lord of Winterfell Rickon Stark who is said to be a direct descendant to Torrhen Stark- the ‘King who Knelt’. Maester Oghan and his raven Rik Rak; Oghan who serves as an adviser, alchemist, and messenger to the Lord of Winterfell. 

There is Corban "Blackbar" Stark, the steward and seneschal who takes care of the estate and household administration including the events in the Great Hall. 

Croll Cerwyn, Chamberlain and officer of the Stark household who is responsible for the Chamber, which includes the administration of the household's budget. 

Roberd Hornwood ‘Knight of Ponds’ is the Watch Captain charged with supervising the house guard and carries out and marshals the Stark’s bannermen in times of conflict

Koryn ‘Pathfinder’ Glover who is the ranking Ranger of the north. 

Hugar Selter who functions as the local barber and Stark beast master

Harlik the Hairless who manages the cooks, porters, scullions and bakers of Winterfell. 

Then there’s Barthogan ‘Barth Blacksword’ Stark, the crippled brother to the Lord of Winterfell who opposes Rickon’s leadership at seemingly every turn- he has three children two sons who are both rangers and one daughter who is sly and can be very persuasive.

Westeros Laws, Customs and Superstitions

Laws

The following is a list of some of today’s most prevalent key laws of Westeros:

• Gold currency are called Gold Dragons; silver pieces are called Silver Stags; and a copper piece is called a penny. 
• Authority runs from the king, who is believed to be empowered by the gods, whether old or new.
• The king can pardon any criminal.
• Nobility have more rights and responsibilities than the smallfolk.
• Nobility are born to their status. (Unless granted such by the king) and higher-ranked individuals have more rights and powers than those of lower status.
• Men have more rights than women (except in Dorne, where age is the determining factor, not sex).
• The children of nobility inherit the same rights as their parents, unless they are born out of wedlock.
• Inheritance law is a key issue among the nobility. First-born sons are the legitimate heirs, followed by their brothers. Sisters—no matter their rank in birth order—only inherit if no sons exist to do so.
• Bastards (natural sons and daughters) may be acknowledged by their parents, and they may even be given rights of inheritance in unusual situations, but normally they lose out to legitimate siblings in all cases.
• The lord of a region is the chief authority and can administer the king’s justice. It is a lord’s duty to keep the peace, hear petitions, and mete out justice and punishments, all in the name of his lord and, ultimately, in the name of the king.
• Punishments for criminals can include maiming, death, and stripping of lands, wealth, and titles; an alternate punishment is to be forced to “take the black” on the Wall. By joining the Night’s Watch, all crimes and sins are forgiven, but one must give up all lands and rights (including the right to wed) and be forever sworn to the Brotherhood of the Night’s Watch. Women are not allowed to take the black.
• Lords have the right of “pit and gallows,” which means they have the king’s authority to imprison subjects or have them executed if the crime warrants it. A thief may lose a hand, a rapist may be castrated, and floggings are doled out for many minor offenses.
• Landed knights may also carry out justice, but they do not have the right of “pit and gallows.” They cannot, therefore, execute someone or imprison someone on their own initiative. Knights that turn to raid, murder and pillaging are called Robber Knights 

Customs

The following is a list of some the most prevalent key customs and traditions of Westeros:

• In the tradition of the First Men, the man who passes the sentence should look into the subject’s eyes and hear his final words, and he should be the one to swing the sword. The people of the North still cling to this belief, but in the south, lords often keep a headsman, like the King’s Justice.
• Most executions are done by the gallows or the headsman’s axe or sword, but cruel lords may use the “crow cage,” a wrought iron cage barely big enough for a man, in which the victim is imprisoned without food or water until death. Its name comes from the throng of crows who often descend upon the poor soul, pecking at his or her flesh through the bars.
• A lord who is accused of a crime may request a trial by combat (of which there are several variations over the ages) or trial by lord, in which several other lords listen to the facts and pronounce judgment upon him.
• Another tradition of the First Men still held throughout Westeros to this day is that of the “guest right.” Any visitor who eats at his or her host’s board is protected from harm for the duration of the stay. By custom, a guest may request bread and salt, and any visitor who does not trust his or her host may request such immediately upon arrival. It is said that those who betray this pact are cursed by the gods.
• The age of majority is 15, before that, a youth may be “almost a man grown” (achieving his first wet dream) A girl’s first menstruation (getting her moonblood)—often at a younger age for noble girls—is also an important milestone.
• Marriage vows are normally not said until adulthood, though there is no law prohibiting it. Nobles often betroth children at a very early age, and sometimes it is politically crucial to marry children younger than 15, such as when an inheritance is at risk. Regardless, no one would bed a girl before her first moonblood; to do so is seen as perverse and profane.
• Those who follow the Seven are wed by a septon, while those who follow the old gods may say their vows before a weirwood.
• No one can be forced to marry if they refuse to say the vows, though familial pressures, and even threats of force, are not unheard of. Marriage contracts can be broken, especially if the marriage has not been consummated.
• Family allegiances are often made by fostering sons of another lord from the age of 8 or 9 until they reach the age of majority. These lads serve as pages and squires, and they will often become fast friends with the family they serve.
• Wards are similar to fostered boys, but in this case the youths are kept as political hostages. While they may be treated well, a shadow of the true meaning of their extended stay always remains.
• Bastards, or natural children, are often looked down upon with suspicion and distrust. Born of “lust and lies,” a common belief is that they will grow up to do no good. Each region has a distinctive surname for noble bastards: Dorne: Sand, The Reach: Flowers, The Iron Islands: Pyke, The Riverlands: Rivers, King’s Landing (and Dragonstone): Waters, The Vale of Arryn: Stone, The North: Snow, The Westerlands: Hill, The Stormlands: Storm.
• Women are not to show any leg above the ankle in public lest bring dishonor to her father or husband. 
• Holidays vary from region to region however some days are recogognzied the continent around: Coronation Day- commemorating the day Aegon the Conqueror was crowned king; Moon Day, Lovers Day, and Name Day- the common reference to ones day of birth or day they received their proper name.  
• Sweet sorghum is a drought resistant, heat-tolerant member of the grass family and is most commonly grown in warm environments. As a result, sorghum harvest festivals are typically found in rural, southern communities. While the plant can be grown with some success in temperate, northern climes its cultivation is not typically part of a community’s identity there and so the harvest is rarely seen as an event to celebrate. The harvest festival is a communal event celebrated by everyone. Typically, the men will spend the weeks before hand aiding one another in cutting the 10’ tall canes, harvesting one farmer’s fields together before moving on to the next. By the end of the month, they are exhausted and in need of a respite. The sweet sorghum harvest festival is a chance to relax and enjoy oneself. Merchants from further afield may also attend, view the crop and perhaps make purchases for export to distant markets.
• The Devil’s Horse Market- The three days prior to the first full-moon of autumn. It was on this evening, many years ago, that a brigand attempted to steal the horse from what seemed to be an enfeebled old man. Unfortunately for him, the old cripple turned out to be a‘devil’ named Furcas, who promptly severed the brigands head from his body with a stroke of his blade. Ever since, legends say on the eve of brigand’s death, the headless outlaw haunts the road near Winterfell, riding atop an albino steed, searching for a head to replace the one he lost. While many from the north have come to enjoy the festivities associated with this renowned fair, it is particularly aimed towards those associated with the horse trade. 
• Similarly a warrior commonly in service to a Lord, have badges of thin metal worked into their shields or breastplates. Like the masters, these too symbolize their level of achievement or identify them as a veteran of specific battles. 
• On Earthos there are 7 days in a week, 4 weeks to a month, and there are 13 months in a year (364 days in a calendar year). 

Superstitions

The following is a list of some of the most prevalent key superstitions of Westeros:

• In Dorne it is forbidden to ferry the dead on the Greenblood river lest invite famine on the land. 
• It is believed that a silver mirror will stop a dark folk from stepping through shadows in its presence. 
• Toasting with Water is to wish death upon someone, according to superstition. This tale is derived from a myth where the spirits of the dead would drink the water from the river of forgetfulness to forget its earthly past before it passed on into the underworld.
• A First-Man story states that goblins are actually evil fractious children, transformed by hags who lure them with sweets and anarchy.
• Sitting at the corner of the table is bad luck. The unlucky diner will allegedly never get married. Some say the bad luck only hangs around for seven years.
• To guard against the Evil Eye, descendants of the First Men had a custom of wearing an amulet called the "nazar boncuğu." The charms are typically blue and white (blue is thought to be a ward of the evil eye as well), and resemble an eye themselves. These charms are common sights in the North, the Vale, Dorne and free cities in Essos, among other kingdoms.
• An old wives tale says that a bird flying into your home is a bad sign, especially if said bird circles the room and lands on the back of someone's chair and then leaves. That supposedly means the person whose chair the bird chose would die.
• In much of Westeros, except the Crownlands, to dream of any lizard or dragon is a sign that you have a secret enemy.
• If a friend gives you a knife, you should give him a coin in return, or your friendship will soon be broken.
• In Dornish folklore the black witch moth can indicate one will soon come in contact with a witch or fall victim to a dark spell. The moth is bat-shaped, dark in color, nocturnal and can have wingspans of around six and a half inches.

Races of Westeros

The Races of Westeros

The First Men were the culture of humans who first set foot on the continent. The influence of the First Men is still felt in Westeros, most strongly in the north. The First Men were a Stone Age people who had a basic form of runic writing system, buried their dead, and would later adopt the pagan gods from the children of the forest. The First Men are the dominate human race in the North, it is not uncommon however to find folk of First Men descent elsewhere. Referring to the First Men invokes the an Old World or First World connotation to the subject.

The Andals are one of the three major ethnic groups from which the humans of Westeros descend, the others being the First Men and the Rhoynar. The Andal invasion caused the fall of many of the kingdoms of the First Men which had developed in the wake of the Pact with the children of the forest. The Andals also brought the Faith of the Seven to the Seven Kingdoms. The Lord of the Seven Kingdoms, the king on the Iron Throne, claims to be the King of the Andals, the Rhoynar, and the First Men. Andals are the dominate human race and can be found anywhere in Westeros.

The Rhoynar were a culture of river-faring people who dwelt on the banks of the immense river Rhoyne in Essos. After being forced to flee in ten thousand ships during the Rhoynish Wars with Valyria, the surviving Rhoynar eventually settled in Dorne in southern Westeros. While most Rhoynar integrated into Dornish society, the ‘orphans of the Greenblood’ have retained their Rhoynish heritage and language.

The Free Folk are a race of people who live beyond the Wall. They are more commonly referred to as "wildlings" everywhere south of the Wall.

The Small Folk despite being of smaller stature, these lowborn are the common people of the known world. Most are peasants who have to obey their local lord, even though they may never catch a glimpse of him during their life. The nobility of Westeros have great power over their smallfolk, whom they are expected to protect.

The Children of the Forest are all but vanished from the world, collectively they are the fey, tree-folk and witches from the old world who’s numbers total less than one hundred.

Asherati are a geographically established people who live below the sands and dusts of Dorne, rising to the surface to hunt for food, socialize and trade, and make war upon their enemies. As merfolk are to the sea, asheratis are to the sands.

Important YouTubes: House Targaryen, Aegon’s Conquest Part 1, The North Part 1, The Rhoynar/ Dorne

Westeros 12,000 BC to 159 AC

12,000 to 10,000 BC Dawn Age, the migration of the First Men to Westeros via the Arm of Dorne; the First King of men and the War with the Giants, the Races of Stone and Children of the Forest. In Vaith, Dorne the Asherati erected the Ziggurat of the Wrathful Sun to their sun god who blessed them with the Eye of the Sun to bear against the encroaching First Men.

10,000 to 8,000 BC - Age of Heroes and the origin myths of Bran "the Builder" and Garth Greenhand. Around this time an celestial body falls from the sky where Starfall would be founded by House Dayne who ruled as King of the Torentine. 

8,000 BC -  The Long Night, is how the Westerosi refer to a period of great winter that lasted for years when a terrible darkness fell across the Known World.The Long Night lasted a generation and laid waste through famine and terror as the Others emerged from the Lands of Always Winter to ravage the lands of the living. Realms across the world have their own interpretations on what happened during the Long Night.

In Dorne it is said that the Asherati sun-god grew angry at her people's pretensions and withdrew the blessing of the sun from the land, plunging the world into the Long Night. In what would become Sandstone the Asherati erected the Lighthouse, and bound the essence of Light to forever shine in the darkness. 

In Westeros it was the Sword of the Morning who fought with the Last Hero against the White Walkers in the Battle for the Dawn. This period gave rise to the Speakers, nomadic people who spread knowledge through word of mouth and stories; the creation of the Wall and the formation of the Night's Watch to protect the lands of men from future attack from the Others. 

This period saw the death of the Guardian of the Winds thus revealing the existence of the five elemental guardians.

Finally, in Asshai it is said a hero named Azor Ahai forged a weapon and with the help of Oros the Stormbringer to defeat the armies of darkness.

Sometime later, according to legend, Night's King lived during waning Age of Heroes, not long after the Wall was complete. He was a fearless warrior who served as the thirteenth Lord Commander of the Night's Watch.

After viewing a beautiful white-skinned woman from atop the Wall, he chased and loved her under the light of a full moon. Night's King brought her back to the Nightfort and after the unholy union, he declared himself Night's King and her his queen.

The Night's King ruled the Nightfort as his own castle for thirteen years. During the dark years of his reign, horrific atrocities were committed, of which tales are still told in the north. It was not until Brandon the Breaker, the King of Winter, and Joramun, the King-Beyond-the-Wall, joined forces with the Guardians of Source that Night's King was brought down and the Night's Watch freed. After his fall, when it was discovered that Night's King had been making sacrifices to the Night Queen, all records of him were destroyed and his very name was forbidden and forgotten. But the Night Queen remained stronger than ever. The conflict known as the War for the Touchstones spanned all of Westeros. 

6,000 BC - The migration of the iron age Andals, and the Faith of the Seven. The first men repel the invasion to remain dominate rulers of the North. 

700 BC - Nymeria gathered her Rhoynar people in ten thousand ships to Dorne where she took Mors Martell as a husband and named him Prince of Dorne. Many Rhoynish customs are adopted in Dorne. The Ashetari people return from the desert sands as scavengers.

102 BC - The Doom of Valyria occurs, leaving House Targaryen as the only remaining dragonlords.

12 BC - Year if the five day solar eclipse - The Uninhabiting of Summerset- as the seas recede after a sudden tsunami, a lost fishing boat reappears with all the fishermen aboard dead. That night all the families of the dead fishermen woke from their slumber and walked into the dark Summer Sea never to be seen again. The next night three more families rose in the night and walked into the sea. For five days this went on until each man, woman and child wandered into the seas. The fishing village does not appear on any map. 

5 BC - After the Seven Year Summer an elemental sandstorm called the Eternal Breath of Seneferu formed at the head of the Torentine bringing with it strange weather and the appearance of elementals. Seneferu is the name of a explorer who once lived Dorne where the Eternal Breath now roams. He sought the heart of the desert, a mystical elemental storm. 

1 AC - Begin Aegon Targaryen's Conquest of Westeros. 

2 AC - Torrhen Stark surrenders to Aegon. For his surrender, he was named the Lord of Winterfell and Warden of the North. Ever since, Torrhen is known as the King Who Knelt. In the end, with his dragons it only took Aegon and his sister-wives less than two years and 1,600 warriors to conquer all but Dorne. 

4 AC - The First Dornish War, with a Targaryen full-fledged attempt to invade Dorne. Queen Rhaenys Targaryen attacked the Planky Town from the air with Meraxes, while King Aegon I Targaryen marched through the Prince's Pass and Lord Orys Baratheon descended through the Boneway. Most of the Dornish prefer to avoid confrontation and abandon their strongholds rather than face the invading armies and, with the help of the Asherati, fled into the desert. After capturing a few castles, Aegon took Sunspear and declared the Conquest of Dorne concluded. 

5 AC - The Dornish War went on with renewed fierceness however. Taking advantage of the fact that Aegon and Balerion had returned to King's Landing, hordes of Dornish spearmen emerged from hiding and recaptured the castles they had lost, killing the garrisons and the castellans. Lord Rosby was thrown by Meria Martell from the top of the Spear Tower in what would be known as the Defenestration of Sunspear, and Harlan Tyrell and his entire army disappeared amidst the red sands, somewhere at the east of Hellholt in what some say was a magical sandstorm. Year 5 AC is also notable for the creation of the office of Grand Maester, after King Aegon requested the Citadel in Oldtown to send him one of their own to advise him.

Meraxes

10 AC - the Dornish War took a darker turn, again with the help of the Asherati, Rhaenys and her dragon Meraxes were brought down by a scorpion bolt at Hellholt by House Uller. In return the Asherati demanded the body of Meraxes and the bolt that brought down the dragon.

This would begin a renewed period of indiscriminate attacks by the Targaryens, and the war escalated to a series of castle burnings and targeted assassinations of Dornish nobles that became known as The Dragon Wrath. After a failed assassination attempt on Aegon, his other sister-wife Visenya convinced the King to establish a body of seven sworn bodyguards that would be named the Kingsguard. Elsewhere in the south a spy network called the Sand Scorpions is created in Dorne.  

13 AC - End of the First Dornish war when a peace treaty was reached between Nymor Martell and King Aegon. 

25 AC - A cryptic visitor persuades a cadet branch of House Dayne to flee their home after House Blackmont was given equal voice in the Red Court. Members of this branch of Daynes embrace the Speaker path in the North. 

27 AC - Individuals from across the known world, after experiencing various visions, make the pilgrimage to High Hermitage to become monks. 

37 AC - Rise of the Vulture Kings. Three outlaw knights rose to power from the Red Mountains in a thirty span. Each 'king' wore a hideous crown and commanded dire vultures; each of these Vulture Kings worked in concert with a sinister snake cult to incite rebellion against Houe Baratheon that aided the Targaryens during Aegon’s original conquest. 

129 AC- The Wood Woman comes to a young Ka'heb and Oghan during their studies in the Citadel at Oldtown. Within a year of completing their studies the two young Maesters embark for High Hermitage and Winterfell respectively. 

140 AC - Boren Stark is born in Winterfell during a lunar eclipse. The Giant of Dorne and the Company of Fire and Ale are credited with saving Vaith from the Ziggurat of the Wrathful Sun.

143 AC - Daeron Targaryen is born in King's Landing

149 AC - Called the Incident by many in Winterfell; one night during a solar eclipse the Wall suddenly increased 5 to 10 feet in height causing major damage, injury and death. This disaster renews a kingdom wide call for more watchers on the wall. 

Daeron I Targaryen

157 AC - Daeron I Targaryen, also known as the Young Dragon, ascends to the Iron Thrown at the age of fourteen after the death of his father Aegon III. Young Daeron, Eighth King of Westeros, had long felt that the continued independence of Dorne represented unfinished business for the Targaryens, and upon his ascension he vowed to rectify his ancestors' mistake.

Three hosts went to war against the Dornish led by the King and three Westerossi Lords. Lyonel Tyrell from Highgarden led an army on behalf of Daeron and won the Prince's Pass, entering Dorne at the western end of the Red Mountains, while the King personally led an elite host down the Boneway. Lord Alyn Velaryon led another host by sea as the final host was brought to Sunspear by Rickon Stark, Lord of Winterfell.

158 AC - After several battles, the Prince of Dorne as well as two score Dornish lords bent the knee in what became the Submission of Sunspear in 158 AC, within a year of the invasion's beginning. Daeron became the first Targaryen king to conquer Dorne and unite all Seven Kingdoms for the first time.

                                                                   

When Daeron returned to King's Landing, to insure Targaryen rule, he left Lord Tyrell behind to keep peace in Dorne with Lord Sethron Qorgyle of Sandstone as his Hand.

159 AC - In the North, a long-standing truce between the Mountain Clans of House Umber, and House Karstark and the island stone-men of Skagos ended when the savage Skagosi crossed the Bay of Seals on their longboats and began raiding the coast. The conflict lasted a year and was wrought with intrigue between feuding clans indicating one of them willfully broke the truce.

In White Harbor the Faith of the Seven create the Order of the Star, a court of cavaliers to ride out in crusade fashion to offer assistance against the Skagosi and to bring the Faith to the old Houses.

In the aftermath; conflict with the Skagosi barbarians has upset the balance of power in the North just the Faith is gaining power.

The Five Magics and the Guardians of the Source

The Five Magics

On Earthos, different cultures refer to mysticism by diverse names: Magic, the Touch, Reiki, Mana, Mojo, Chi or the Shining. Despite these differences names, magic in Westeros is universally drawn from five elemental forces, sometimes referred to as the 'Source'. It is the taking of energy from the elemental planes, and weaving that energy by specific thoughts, words, and practices into a desired physical form or result. 

Earth- Magic of Elemental Earth protects, defends, and brings together all things in solidarity; earth governs possessions, wealth and wards off omens. 

Water- Magic of Water has both a sedative effect and a swiftness result providing a boost to motion and movement; water also governs seasonal cycles, and emotions. 

Fire- Fire magic has a positive influence on the body and is the magic of healing, vigor and tenacity. 

Air- Magic of Air increases the effectiveness in one’s self or affects another as well as governs knowledge and communication. Magic of Elemental air is also used in warfare and can be used to increase the potency of weapons. 

Spirit- Magic of the spirit affects the mind in some way and can alter memories, dreams and nightmares, emotions and can even remove free will. It is the magic of shadows, loss, fear, and can change the way someone would see things as they truly are, causing someone to react out of character. While each element of magic possesses a duality, spirit magic is largely regarded as dark (black) magic. 

---

The Five Guardians

Tales dating back 8,000 years, during the Age of Heroes and around the creation of the Wall and the Long Night, first suggest there are five mystical beings that are guardians of the Source. Through these beings elemental energy flows into Earthos that penetrate, bind and connecting all things. Some children rhymes use these great beings to explain the changing of the seasons, explaining cosmic events, as well as finding one’s direction if one becomes lost as each guardian is associated with a season and a compass direction.

These mythological creatures are represented in stone carvings in the north as well as in early cave paintings from the First Men. The Guardians are also present in the night sky as major constellations under which some secret cabals, pyromancers and first world druids perform night rituals to auger favor from the guardians...

Grumon

Grumon- ‘the Tree of Life’ Keeper of the North and the Green Faith, Brother Earth, Herald of Winter, Guardian of Elemental Earth; Friend of sparrows and all woodland creatures. Grumon, the World Tree, is said to be a tree of global proportions that grows at the North Pole. Stories describe entire landscapes on hulking branches, where leaves of every kind can be found and whose boughs seem to touch the very auroras.

Rhaenia

Rhaenia- ‘the Triton’ Keeper of the West, Herald of Autumn, and Guardian of Elemental Water. Tales describes Rhaenia as being able to change from a sea creature to a woman by shedding her skin in stories of romance and tragedy. In other accounts Rhaenia is feared and vilified where she is described as a great nightmarish tentacle creature able to produce a tsunami capable of destroying fleets of ships and coastal cities.

Neferion

Neferion- ‘the Phoenix’ Keeper of the South, Herald of Summer, and Guardian of Elemental Fire. Tales speak of this undying creature that is able to rise again and again after death as a fire-eyed angel with flaming wings with a heart so hot tales say it can be seen glowing through his chest. In some cultures he symbolizes the undying flame and the fire of humanity and in others he is a volcano who demands sacrifice to cool his fiery needs.  

Oros

Oros- ‘Stormbringer’ Keeper of the East, Herald of Spring, and Guardian of Elemental Air; friend of the raven and all creatures that dwell in the sky. Oros is described, often in awe, with an equine body twice the size of any horse with great feathered wings and a handsomely chiseled human torso. Oros can command the storms and has a talent for diplomacy across the continents. Stories also speak of his heroism and his deadly bow, as large as a ballista, which is able to fire bolts of lightning that he uses to defend the defenseless.  

Akasha- "Woods-Woman" She is the Keeper of the Moon, the Indigo Child, and guardian of the Spirit element and the Aether as well as the shadows. It is an element that encompasses all other elements like a sphere. Spirit is the fifth element and is the only element with a dual nature; a male and female aspect, as well as a light and dark side. Akasha is said to be one of the Children of the Forest, a woods woman, or the offspring of the First World courts and is sometimes described with ram-like horns or legs and tail similar to a fawn.

The Heroes

"Twilight is upon us child..." she said with a grave look in her eye.

Five elemental paragons, champions for the Guardians of Magic, must first find each other and discover their mysterious purpose; only together can these elemental-touched heroes defeat the prophesied surfacing darkness.

---

Mon

Align: LN, Age: Unknown, Sex: Male, Height: 7' 11", Weight: 275 lbs. Homeland: Unknown.
 STR: 17, DEX: 13, CON: 12, INT: 10, WIS: 15, CHA: 12

You were separated from your homeland long ago and do not remember where you came from or remember a time before coming to the land of Drone. Here you are intrinsically tied to the ocean, the moon and seasonal cycles because you slumber during some lunar phases and seasonal changes, and sometimes you wake with lost memories. You are a giant among these people. Your earliest recollection after coming to Drone was of Gabriel Dayne, the woman who found you in the Torentine and brought you to her ancestral home of High Hermitage where you were accepted. Time would pass for you as you learn to live in Dorne preferring loose earthen colored robes with a hood that hides your features, a blue scarf always reminds you of Gabriel is tied around your waist and you have wielded the same driftwood staff since that first day she found you- injured and unconscious. You are wise with years, strong and acrobatic with the soul of the sea. You are seldom seen without your friend Brim who came into your life in the early years and who would share with you in many travels, but never anywhere beyond the sands of Dorne. You are quite old and you believe much of your past is tied to something you lost. You have a command over water and channel it to great effect. Currently you and Brim are back at High Hermitage and the Dayne ancestral home, working alongside elemental monks who each came here after sharing a vision.

Brim

Align: LG, Age: Young Adult, Sex: Male, Height: 6' 3", Weight: 195 lbs. Homeland: Dorne.

STR: 13, DEX: 13, CON: 15, INT: 10, WIS: 12, CHA: 17

Orphaned and raised at High Hermitage where you have lived much of your life, you were identified early as fate’s favored by Monks of the Obelisk, an order of elemental monks who have over the years, have instructed and raised you. While you have always felt your heart call to adventure you were always “too young” and were not allowed to leave Hermitage for any length of time and when you did it was as a missonary and always in the company of your friend Mon. You have a thirst for geography because it is easy for you to vividly imagine other people and places; sometimes they even appear in flames during your prayers like scenes played out as tongues of flame. This phenomenon lead you at a very early age on down the path of R’hllor and into a position close to the Monk Elder who marked you as ‘gifted’ and the only person who could keep his disease at bay. In your studies you discover you are a man of Rhoynar descent but have never known your parents; you have however, known the Monk Elder and your friend Mon all your life, and call them your surrogate family. You prefer loose red robes over a deep red tunic over black pantaloons and leather boots. You also have a mysterious elemental symbol of fire on your chest, the “mark of the Flame-Touched” the Elder once told you. Currently, because the Monk Elder keeps you close, you work with a herbalist who maintains one of High Hermitage’s great agricultural alchemical resources as well as the high honor of watcher of the Eternal Flame. 

Boren 
Align: NG, Age: Young Adult, Sex: Male, Height: 6', Weight: 180 lbs. Homeland: The North, Winterfell.
STR: 10, DEX: 17, CON: 13, INT: 12, WIS: 12, CHA: 15

Born on the Northern frontier you are the only son of Abrigale Dayne a Speaker (deceased) and Rickon Stark the Warden of the North. You have one younger half-sister from a different mother but you have not seen her since the incident about ten years ago. You have a resident uncle in Winterfell; who sired your three cousins who have harassed and bullied you incessantly since childhood. You dress in warm dark studded leathers, trousers and boots while at home; you are born with a rarity is called a 'Wolf's Eye', an icy colored eye that contrasts your dark blue one. Your father would tell you “You are capable of great things,” as he traced his thumb over your Wolf Eye. You have always revered the old gods and the old ways and make regular visits to the Godswood during seasonal ceremonies or when calling upon the spirits. Your earliest memory was approximately ten years ago, an event referred to by everyone as the incident, when your abilities manifested at the Wall when you (and everyone who was there) realized you had a power called The Touch, exceptional ability born to few. While the disaster of the incident lives on with the permanent injuries suffered by your uncle, there was good that came of it. A mystic Wood-Witch, recognized you and your abilities during the incident and has been unofficially training you in the ways of spirits and how to call upon them. Years pass as the Wood-Witch and her two ‘children’ would visit you at Winterfell for a few days each month to continue your training. You are skilled in the art of stealth and a master with a knife. As of late you have been under the guidance of the master of Winterfell attending the rookery, apprenticing, as well as performing alchemy and minor first aid to rangers and travelers.

  

Willow

Align: CG, Age: Adolescent, Sex: Female, Height: 5' 3", Weight: 120 lbs. Homeland: Lands of Always Winter
STR: 10, DEX: 13, CON: 12, INT: 17, WIS: 15, CHA: 12

You are a petite young wilding lass with long skinny limbs, auburn hair, pale blonde skin that darkens to indigo under starlight, slightly pointed ears, and deep sparkling blue eyes. You are Earth-touched and are quite adept at foraging the earth to brew potions or to create alchemical effects to foil dangerous creatures. Savage by some estimations, you like to dress in over-sized cold weather gear as well as mixed tawny and brown pelts of small bunnies, raccoons and such. A heart born of the wilderness, you expressively revere the old gods, specifically the Green Faith that you believe actively guides your fate. You have a magical aptitude and commonly speak to birds and woodland creatures and will often braid vines and wildflowers in your hair. Before a few years ago you were just that, a fledgling willow tree. You stood in a sparsely forested glade near where the land becomes more rocky and mountainous. Then you experienced an awakening; a soul formed inside you; an intellect formed, ancestral wisdom emerged; and you became bonded to a mystic Wood-Witch, child of the forest, as her companion. Over the years she treated you like her own daughter, teaching you how to forage the flora and fauna for survival and how to draw power from the earth. For you there is no joy greater than answering your calling.

Lobo
Align: CN, Age: Adolescent, Sex: Male, Height: 6' 6", Weight: 210 lbs. Homeland: Lands of Always Winter

STR: 17, DEX: 12, CON: 13, INT: 10, WIS: 12, CHA: 15

You are a tall young man of First-man lineage with dark brown hair, a strong jaw-line, and eyes of deep indigo. A child of the tundra, speak in halting common and you possess strong arms and pale yet harry scarred skin, common to first men and favor simple clothes and a full wolf’s pelt. You are an air-totem and will wear threads of teeth and bones to better focus yourself. You are most comfortable in the wilds and while in the company of the dark skinned Wood-Witch who over the years has taught you to focus your animal side. Not long ago you were a great wolf, one of the best hunters in the pack that roamed the shadow side of the Wall. Then you experienced an awakening; a soul formed inside you; you shed your animal form of the wolf and became man now bonded to the Wood-Witch, one of the last indigo children, as her companion. Over the years she treated you like her own son teaching you how to use your skinchange abilities. Over the years you travel around the Northern territories with your adopted sister and the Wood-Witch traveling to such places as Winterfell and north of the wall while providing protection from them as well as learning the ways of the Source from the old and wise woman. 

Malta Session 62: The Blockade Continued, Help from Naxxar, and Ambushing the Blockade

We begin this week on board the Blood Prince moments after the last bugbear jump overboard; our other ships however were also under attack. Jabari and Lete dimension door to the next ship behind- the Bonded Mind. There we find a Xill, a genie-born noble as well as gorgon chimeras flying about killing sailors and deck-hands. 

Eventually the rest of the group joins the combat on the Bonded Mind and after our characters ran off the last of the attackers we find much of the crew dead, some turned to stone; we also assess damage to the Bonded Mind. Our characters quickly move on to the next ship- the Tender. Lex was unfortunately turned to stone in the fray.

Once there the remaining crew indicated their sails were destroyed by fire as they were surprised by a couple of giants during the attack. Crew members of the Tender drove them back into the ocean but not before our enemies were successful in slowing down the Tender.

As we take an hour to make repairs, Naxxar sends Jabari a message that indicates help is with us- keep our enemies focused on us and hopefully our enemies will reveal their Dreadnought. Lete in a flash of inspiration thinks to use the blood of the gorgon chimera to restore Lex to flesh- it was successful. 

We group our ships together to appear we are going to sail undaunted through the blockade. Eventually three ships are seen approaching our convoy, flying no colors, from the blockade. They alter their course to intercept our ships as we attempt to evade them. Our characters eventually realize these three break-away ships are populated by undead.

We begin to formulate a plan: Lete and Carlo remain on the Bonded Mind for defense, Marco and Evagara, while Lex and Jabari head out and through a chain reaction destroy the three fire ships.

Jabari then circles back to our previous heading and attempts another run at the blockade as the sun begins to set. Our characters tighten up our ship distances.

When the sun sets an enlarged seagull lands on the Bonded MInd, Stacer says they have received a message from the enemy that they will allow us to pass on the condition we never return to Maltese waters. Overhead the sky is dark and filling with clouds promising inclement weather to come. We ignore the offer and continue under the cover of a cloudy night.

It is not long before our characters realize our swift passage is being aided by water elementals (from Naxxar) and soon we get close enough to see the Egyptians retrofitting various foreign ships for their blockade efforts; this helps gets our characters within 100 yards.

They hail us with questions, Lex responds with ‘we are bringing in more captured ships’ in Egyptian. They hesitate and follow up with more questions. Lex carries on his bluff buying our characters three rounds of prep before we ambush them. 

Malta 61

When we pick up the next morning, the weather has turned most foul. All ships are driven to dock, including two that looked to have suffered battle. The storm is almost certainly unnatural and as violent as any have seen. Many readily believe that the storm is an Egyptian tactic to keep folks from sailing out to sea.

Most of our heroes catch up to the lucky survivors of those ships, spaniards for the most, who seem anxious to drink ale, gamble coin, and spin yarn as they relay their harrowing misfortune upon the sea. They were sailing in grid G-3, an envoy of three ships; the Warrior Witch, the Taloned Witch, and the Tireless. The crows nest gave sudden warning as a massive ship suddenly appeared out of nowhere and opened fire with cannons and powerful magic. The Tireless was sunk.  One sailor whispered that it was a Dreadnought. Another claimed dragon fire, but he was hushed and dismissed as a drunkard. Details were few, and gaps in their collective timelines indicate they are misleading in their telling, and it becomes apparent they are relaying what the Egyptian forces want them to say. We leave them to their lives as men of fortune, and undaunted make sail for open water under blue skies and calm waters the next morning. 

Into a cleverly played gambit of a trap. As we hit open seas aboard the Blood Princed with Capt. Marco at the helm, we see clusters of ships on the horizon.  Two break off and approach us, but don't get very close before they change course and hastily put distance between us again. Shortly after that our three ships are bombarded with very powerful magic using creatures that seemed like spider humanoids with six arms. Five arms brandished a shorts word each, with the sixth using a wand.

Each caster was accompanied by a dozen bugbears, all arriving on deck at the same time. Concurrent were screams and alarms shouted from below deck. The casters unleashed a powerful lightning attacked that decimated most on deck crewmen, the bugbear mercenaries pressed sword attacks against us, and Edna was sent to help below decks where they had been overrun with vicious poisonous spider swarms. It took several rounds of combat to repel the enemy and secure the deck of the Blood Prince, but we left off with the swarms still swarming, and no knowledge of how the Bonded Mind nor the Tender had fared yet.