The World You Know

Zinrar is a happy and clean little town, at a key crossroads from the farming villages that surround Castle Cypher and the heart of the Kingdom of Windamere. Those roads lead to adventure and the cities, even to wild lands that are not safe.

Here, however, is safe. Market Days are wonderful things, with thousands of farmers and stockmen coming with their produce and animals, jugglers and puppeteers making the children laugh, artisans showing their homespun woolens, even bolts of finer cloth that a merchant might wear.

With the passing of King Dallarus and the entry of horrible dark things into our midst, this pretty picture vanished. Young Queen Arana does what she can to hold together the fearful populace, and her Barons are loyal to her to the death even as they debate, peacefully, which of their sons might marry the Queen. After all, they are distant cousins of the Royal Family. Much speculation at the Copper Cup and other Zinrar’s other places of entertainment focuses on such matters or on rumblings beyond the border.

The Dark Ones are active, always active somewhere over the horizon. The cities are there: Nelonif, Higilodon, and others, but they may as well be on the Moon. You youngsters have never left the environs of Zinrar. The Khan, other minions of Darkness, the Mad Sorcerer Essidar, and things that cannot be named for fear of their hearing you are far, far away.

The world in Zinrar is sunny, the King’s Forest near Zinrar and the Castle has been free of wolves for a long time. Only the occasional black bear comes to raid livestock. You may have a family. You may not and be a street urchin who has nearly come of age. You may have duties in an Inn or farm. You may be a rural bumpkin. But adventure is about to call you and your friends. And you don’t yet know it.