The World of Haylene

The world of Haylene is relatively small, and the part inhabited by what the elves call "the People of the Art" (races that have independently developed arcane magic) is limited to the area shown below.

This region, commonly called the "Middle Reaches" (or the "Imperial Reaches" by humans) is dominated by the former Imperial lands.  At its height, shortly after they conquered the Woods of Tulone, the Empire of Rhysone spanned nearly a thousand leagues.  The regions of the former Empire consist of:

• The Imperial Coast, the home of the Imperial City itself, and the only area still under the direct control of the city.
• The Heartlands, which have broken down into a collection of petty "kingdoms," none of which are more than a few days rides across.  
• The Northern Marches, a collection of five large baronies that still maintain the culture and organization of the fallen Empire.
• The Hinterlands, a series of large region consisting of the distant county of Durrington, the Marches of Metrol, and the Imperial Runs... all of which are now outright controlled by the Guilds.
• The Tulone Woods, whose conquest was relatively brief, and is rarely thought of as Imperial Lands.

Beyond the fallen Empire, the Middle Reaches contain most of the elven and dwarven lands in Haylene.

• The Five Nations of Prydain contain the once proud lands of the high elves.
• The Aelwode is the home of the reclusive and xenophobic drow elves.
• The Dwardok Mountains contain all the dwarf holds in the world.
• The Chasmn of the Broken Pact is a monstrous region, inhabited by chitins, ettercaps, and malign fey.
• The Dragon Ride, to the north, has recently been invaded by goblins, and whose hobgoblins seem on the verge of joining the People of the Art.

Further, to the South, there are three lands influenced by the lich-lord's kingdom of Xynalin.

• The Midnight Sea is an inland sea known for its dark waters, and is home of the Midnight Coast, home of petty warlords and nations that last a generation, maybe two.
• Norden Darkane is a vassal state of Xynalin, and known for its necromancer princes.
• The Keldoran Wilds are known as orcish lands, and have never been conquered by any foreign people, but who often serve as mercenaries in Xynalin's armies.

The Rhysonian Mysteries

Lands: Primarily the Imperial City and Heartlands

Races: Aasimar, Halfling (Lightfoot), Human, Tiefling

The masters of the Rhysonian mysteries are priests drawn from the nobility, and inducted into one of nine orders.  The orders are in a hierarchal caste structure, with the Violet order at the top, the Whites and the Blacks serving them, and the organized beneath them.  Virtually every part of the Imperial City’s society is dominated by the mysteries, and the noble families associated with each caste serve as priestly kings.  

• The Violet serve as the masters of the Mysteries, and are the lone members of the First Caste, interacting only with other priests.  Their domain is Arcana (from the Sword Coast Adventurer’s Guide).
• The Whites oversee the administration of sacraments to the layfolk, and are half of the Second Caste.  Their domain is Light.
• The Blacks hold sway over all matters relating to property, worldly possessions, and death.  They are considered the lawgivers and are the other half of the Second Caste.  Their domain is Death.
• The Blue are those sworn to minister to the poor and protect the faithful.  They are one of two warrior orders (the Reds being the other).  As members of the Third Caste, they serve the Whites.  Their domain is Protection.
• The Gold are the artists and poets of the clergy, and charged with the creation of various works to exult the mysteries.  As members of the Third Caste, they serve the Blacks.  Their domain is Life.
• The Gray are secret keepers.  As members of the Third Caste, they serve the Blacks.  Their domain is Trickery.
• The Red are a warrior order, who serve as the Mysteries generals and warlords.  As members of the Third Caste, they serve the Blacks.  Their domain is War.
• The Silver are the lore masters and scholars, who rigorously attempt to keep the secrets of the Empire alive.  As members of the Third Caste, they serve the Whites.  Their domain is Knowledge.
• The Greens are the prophets of the Mysteries, a powerful group who practice spiritual magic.  As members of the Third Caste, they serve the Whites.  Their domain is Nature.

History

Prior to the Great Conflagration, the power of the priests of the Rhysonian Mysteries ruled across the lands.  However, since then, they have fallen into decadence, completely controlled by the ruling families of the Imperial City.  During the Reckoning over a century ago, the Malengarth family gained control over the Violet Order, but would be wiped out through treachery two generations after.  Since then, the White and Black orders have acknowledge no true Violet priests, declaring anyone who practices the mysteries of Arcana to be heretics.

Goals

• Each order has a specific goal: for example, the Whites tend to the flock, while the Blues serve as guards and constables.  
• Since the Great Conflagration, there has been no contact with the Exalted Ones, the angels of Rhys that taught the priesthood their mysteries.
• The true purpose Rhysonian Mysteries is to maintain Imperial Society, and if possible, bring the light of Rhys back to the world as a whole.

Key Individuals

• Master Miksel the Black: A scion of the powerful Durrington family, and the de facto master of the Imperial City.
• Master Orphelia the White: Matron of the Corrinbyrd family, and Miksel’s chief rival.
• Master Garielle the Red: The captain of what remains of the Imperial forces, and the favored daughter of the Winding family.
• Master Ignoblis the Silver: The eldest member of the Ironcrown family, and one of the great lore masters of the city.
• Master Jayce the Green: One of the Justimans, the largest family in the city, Jayce embraces their chaotic ways as he leads the city’s seers.

Rank and Associated Abilities

Associated Subclasses Cleric (see descriptions for available domains)

• Acolyte (Rank 1): Clerical training available (required for 1st level of cleric).  Note, there are currently no Acolytes of the Violets.
• Adept (Rank 2): Clerical training available (required for 2nd level of cleric)
• Initiate (Rank 3): Clerical training available (required for 6th level of cleric)
• Master (Rank4): Clerical training available (required for 8th level of cleric).  Currently, there are no Masters of the Blues, Golds, or Grays.
• Templar (Rank 5): Clerical training available (required for 17th level of cleric).  Currently, there is no Templar within the mysteries.  

Heroes of the Empire

The Heroes of the Empire

Lands: The Imperial City, the Heartlands

Races: Aasimar, Human, Tiefling

The Heroes of the Empire are the collective names for the nobles of the old Empire.  These are the individuals who held positions, either in courts, or private lands beyond the city (or both).  In recent days, their numbers have dropped, such that most cities beyond the walls of Rhysone are run by guildsmen of the Keepers Guild.

Note: while the ranks of all factions are only loosely correlated with the abilities of certain subclasses (with a particular rank being a prerequisite for certain levels, not the other way around), this is particularly of note for the Heroes of the Empire.  The Rhysonian nobility is fallen and a shadow of its former self: there are very, very few holy warriors of true power left.  

History

Before the Great Conflagration, and even up until the days of the Reckoning, the nobility of Rhysone was known for their prowess in battle as much as for their constant scheming against each other.  Now, of course,  they are known only for the latter.

Goals

• Every noble has but one goal… gain power for his or her family.  The ideals of the Empire have largely fallen to the wayside.

Key Individuals

• Count Sambrun Corringbyrd: A cunning, if somewhat detached man, who opposes the unchecked power of the priests of the mysteries.
• Countess  Inga Winding: The leader of House Windling and a hero to the people, Countess Inga is the most likely to gain the support to be named Duke (and thus open ruler of the Imperial City)
• Count Wendall Ironcrown: The greatest arcanist in the Imperial City is this aging man who none the less has managed to make his family into a force to be reckoned with.

Rank and Associated Abilities

Associated Subclasses Paladin (Oath of Devotion), Sorcerer (Favored Soul)

• Lord/Lady (Rank 1): Paladin or sorcerer training available (required for 1st level of sorcerer or 3rd level of paladin).
• Baron/Baroness (Rank 2): Paladin training available (required for 7th level of paladin).
• Count/Countess (Rank 3): Sorcerer training available (required for 6th level sorcerer).  Currently, there are only three Counts.
• Duke/Duchess (Rank4): Paladin or sorcerer training available (required for 14th level of sorcerer or 15th level of paladin).  Currently, there are no dukes.
• Emperor (Rank 5): Paladin or sorcerer training available (required for 18th level of sorcerer or 20th level of paladin).  At any time, there could only be one Emperor.

On the World of Haylene and It’s Unique Composition

A note to Astrel: I assume basic knowledge of the “Great Wheel cosmology” as described by Master Wetet in his well-known manual.¹

Possessed of a unique perspective, having been to other realities entirely, I must say that the most peculiar fact regarding the world of Haylene is that it is entirely flat.

To expand: I have personally visited six other worlds that would be considered “material” and have evidence of the existence of over a hundred others.² Generally, a material world possesses the following qualities:
Mortal creatures, possessed of both body and soul, are native to this worlds.
Creatures of spirit (such as fiends or celestials) are not generally native, nor are creatures of the elements (elementals).
The world connects to the Great Wheel (or aspect thereof) by the Astral Plane, and the elemental planes by way of the Ethereal.
The world possesses a consistent and generally immutable sense of time, as well as common physical laws, including gravity and simple laws of physics.

By these definitions, Haylene is certainly a material world, possessing all the necessary characteristics and existing in the proper “place” in the accepted cosmological models. However, virtually all other worlds I have encountered consist of concentric sphere (more accurately ellipses), with a massive source of energy in the middle, creating a system of such size that any native to Haylene would have problems comprehending it.³ In such cases, great “planets,” orbit this energy source (which serves a purpose to them analogous to our own Sun), the inhabitable ones being thousands of leagues of across. Being spherical, they often have lands ten times the size of our modest world.

By contrast, Haylene is a flat disc, for all intents and purposes circular, that exists on a plane of existence roughly two thousand leagues in in diameter.

The reason for this lies in the creation of the world… instead of forming around a central point, there was a tremendous divide of energy, creating a flat plane and forcing the divine forces of the Great Wheel to organize the matter and energy of creation as a disk. I can describe this disk, and have even been to the edges: it is generally composed of granite, it is at sea level about 30 miles feet thick, dry land (the portion above sea level) is about 800,000 square miles. The rest is covered in water, the vast majority is open ocean.

The disc is bounded by an intense veil of shadow seems to be actually be planar in nature. Approximately a day’s travel from the edge, the veil of shadow intensifies, such that within 10 miles of the edge one transitions to the Plane of Shadow (and can actually travel freely within that plane).⁴ As one approaches the edge, one enters the Deep Shadow and leaves Haylene completely. This veil actually continues into the sky, forming a perfect dome. A brilliant portal to the Plane of Radiance, approximately 12 miles across, travels across the veil from East to West every day, varying in its path on a 363 day cycle.⁵ At night, it seems to disappear beyond the horizon, and it is my personal theory that it illuminates a mirror dimension.

The moon and stars are of particular interest. The stars are each portals to various demiplane, each unique in their origin and history. Our three moons drift in and out of the Deep Shadow according their orbits along the dome, which are neither concentric nor aligned with plane. Their complex motion is what leads to the various conjunctions that have defined our history.

All of these features are unique to Haylene: I have discovered other worlds that are not strictly spherical, but never another flat earth. The circumstances of our creation… of the Divide Primordial, and our mirror dimension… define us, and keep Haylene in a particular peril that may lead to our ultimate downfall.

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1 While any edition that uses the Great Wheel cosmology, Annals of the Last Conjunction assumes the 2nd Edition Planescape version as default. This includes the city of Sigil.^↩

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2 These worlds include Athas (Dark Sun), Eberron (Eberron), Krynn (Dragonlance), Neverness (from Bruce Cordell’s modules), Oerth (Greyhawk, as well as Hollow Earth and Mystara) and Toril (Forgotten Realms).^↩

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3 The Red Witch is, of course, describing crystal spheres from the Spelljammer campaign setting. Haylene is not accessible via the phlogiston, but rather only through the Deep Shadow and spells such as plane shift.^↩

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4 As an exception to the rule, the setting assumes the Plane of Shadow exists as described in the 3rd Edition Manual of the Planes.^↩

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5 This is an error on the part of the Red Witch. Haylene’s sun is actually a portal to a demiplane with significant similarities to the Paraelemental Plane of Radiance.^↩

Weeks and Months

Common Names of Months and Days

The Rhysonian Calendar uses the following names for months and days of the weeks as well as the special days at the beginning and end of the month. Each month also has a three day festival, associated with a different order of the Rhysonian Mysteries.

The months of the Rhysonian Calendar are:

• Fekre (Early Winter) - This month is unusual in that it contains the Winter Solstice, and as such the New Year. The New Year was holy to the defunct violet priests of the Order of Grand Initiates. Unlike other months, the holy days do not interrupt the second tenday, but rather begin the day before the solstice, and are called the Feast of the New Year.
• Hala (Mid Winter) - This month is holy to the Order of Saint Joene, commonly referred to as the Whites. It’s holiday is the Feast of the Martyr, which celebrates Arim’s sacrifice to see the Kingdom of Rhys.
• Sykane (Late Winter) - Belonging to the blacks, also called the Order of the Ebon Truth, the holy days of this month are dubbed “The Remembrance” and used to commemorate the dead.
• Tarak (Early Spring) - This month contains the Spring Equinox, and is holy to the Order of the Fallen Angel. Swordmeet, which is traditionally a time of treaties and meetings amongst nobles, falls during this month.
• Drizlash (Late Spring) - The golds, officially called the Order of the Exalted Voice claim this month of the liturgical calendar, which contains the feast of Saint Lilyan the Beautiful… traditionally a time of music and feasting.
• Zantas (Early Summer) - The Order of Saint Imbram, a warrior order who serve as generals and warlords, control this month. Naturally their holiday is the Charge of Saint Imbram, which is a military holiday of parades that usually precede wars.
• Enandin (occurs every 3 to 4 years, always as Midsummer): Enandin is an elven word, and the concept of such a month is closely tied to elven astrology. The month of Enandin occurs regularly over a 13 year cycle, happening on the 3rd, 6th, 9th, and 13th years (this keeps the Winter Solstice during the month of Fekre).
• Yagra (Late Summer) - The silvers, known only as the Mystery of Mysteries, claim this month.  Their holy days are known as The Silence, and not celebrated by the laity. 
• Norgana (Early Fall) - The greens, also called the Order of the Primeval Woods, hold dominion over the Fall Equinox. Their holiday is the Bountiful Harvest of Arim, which is a feasting holiday held after the crops have been reaped.
• Seriach (Late Fall) - The gray, whose name is the Most Honorable Order of Humble Servants (although that name is almost never used), celebrate a holiday of both friendship and trickery, known for all sorts of pranks and scams, called Humbleseve.  

A tenday begins on the 4th, 14th, and 26th days of the month (with the exception of Fekre, when the holy festival shifts).  The holy days are always the 19th through the 21st of the month (again, with the exception of Fekre).  The first and last three days of the month are called the Market Days, and numbered (beginning with the 37th day of the month, so that the first day of any given month is the 4th Market Day). The days of the week are:

• Crownday
• Dosday
• Tosday
• Reday
• Marceday
• Malenday
• Rhysday
• Elinsday
• Lovesday
• Sacreday 

The Calendar of Haylene

The Roll of Years

There are three common ways of keeping track of the changing of years and the marking of history in Haylene, although usually this is the province of sages and scribes, and not the common man.  Most peasants have no idea what year it is; for them “three years ago” is a perfectly valid method of keeping track of the passage of time.  As such, the most common method of tracking the years and centuries is very inconvenient for anyone who isn’t a historian… the tradition is to note a monarch and the year of their reign, such as “The Third Year of Esinaan III.”  This, of course, requires detailed knowledge of when the third year of Esinaan III was… it’s much easier to say “about four hundred years ago.”  However, if one reads a historical tome, it is extremely likely it uses this convention of dates.  

Two other calendars exist, however, one extremely old, and one relatively new, which both keep time in a much simpler fashion.  The first is the Guild Count, which is a count of years from the Great Conflagration and the death of Emperor Aasiman I, the last Emperor of Rhysone.  By the Guild Count, the current year is 324 (commonly annotated 324 GC).  The second such calendar is the Elven Count, kept by the high elves of Prydain.  The Elven Count is far more complicated, based on the phases of the various moons, and goes back over 12 millennia.

The Months and Weeks

The only commonly agreed upon convention in Haylene is that the year is 363 days long… this happens to coincide with with five & half cycles of Io, the Dragon Moon.  The weather of Haylene depends very strongly upon how Io aligns with the Winter Solstice (which is almost universally viewed as the start of the year).  In years where Io is Full, the weather is generally very wet, while in years when it is New, the weather tends to be very dry.

The matter of months is less of an agreed upon matter.  The dwarves, who give little care for the phases of the moon, divide the year up into 11 months, each with three tendays and three feast days (the first, last, and middle of the months).  While this convention is uncommon outside of Haylene, the strength of Dwarven trade and the popularity of the festivals meant that the Rhysonian calendar (which is far more popular), also uses three tendays and three festivals, although their festivals are three days long (and much less festive than the dwarves).  The Rhysonian month follows Titania, the Fey Moon, which has a 39 day cycle. 

In order to keep the months (based of Titania) and the years (based off of Io) loosely in synch, the Rhysonian calendar borrowed the elven month of Enandin, which occurs every three years during summer.  As such, the Rhysonian year typically has 9 months of 39 days each, and every three years has 10 months.  

The third moon, only called the Dark Moon (or the Dark), has a much longer cycle, taking 595 days to complete an orbit.  There are no commonly used periods of time based off of it, although it factors prominently in the Elven Calendar.

Conjuctions

Titania, the Fey Moon, Io, the Dragon Moon, and the Dark Moon do sometimes come into conjunction (periods where they are in the same phase).  With periods of 39, 66, and 595 days respectively, these conjunctions occur in four ways.

• An Arcane Conjunction, or conjunction Titania and Io, occurs every 7 years (7 years and 33 days, to be exact).  This is supposedly a time of great magic.
• A Strange Conjunction, or a conjunction between Titania and the Dark Moon, occurs every 63 years (63 years and 336 days, to be exact).  This is a period associated with death, and in particular the undead.
• A Terrible Conjunction, or a Conjunction of Flame, is a conjunction of Io and the Dark Moon.  This will occur every 108 years (108 years and 66 days) and be a time of great upheaval
• The Grand Conjunction, which has not happened in recorded human history, would be a conjunction of all three.