Ruling Passion: The Emperor and the Harbingers
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The ruling passion, be it what it will. The ruling passion conquers reason still.
— Alexander Pope
In secular matters, Guang Keshar’s Emperor is considered the ultimate authority. However, he doesn’t make any major decisions without consulting the ruling council, the Moot of Harbingers. Officially, these are considered descendants of the original Harbingers created by Huang Ti (though not all of them are) and have the power to overrule imperial decisions by unanimous vote.
Among the Houses and populous of Guang Keshar, everything official requires the Moot’s ratification, including marriages, treaties, disposal of Imperial property, etc. Only the naming of heirs remains solely the purview of each house. The Moot even has the right to select the next Emperor, should the current one die without naming an heir. The current Emperor, Hotashen, is ailing and unable to rule, leaving the Moot as the current ruling body. As Emperor Hotashen has no heir and is the last living member of House Atum. When he finally passes on, it will be up to the Moot to choose the first Emperor not of House Atum. A murky line of succession exists, but Emperor Hotashen’s death will likely leave a bloody legacy in it’s wake before a clear successor is named.
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In the Beginning…
IN THE BEGINNING there was nothing.
And the nothing, which was the Void, the total of All, spun and stirred. It writhed and thrashed and whirled and exploded, becoming the nothing which was not Void, becoming the something which was Being. And Being was all and everywhere, except for the remnant of Nothing, of the Void, which remained: the Abyss.
And Being gave birth to Herself, giving Herself form and being, becoming at Her heart the great Jade Wyrm, Huang Ti. Huang Ti stretched and swam, gathering the stuff of Being. Huang Ti gathered part of the Being and shaped it into a large sphere. With Her mighty back, she made the mountains with her talons she created valleys and furrows. And she called her creation Guang Keshar, the Middle Realm, for it hung between the All above and the Void below. Huang Ti was pleased with her creation and wept tears of joy. These became Keshar’s oceans and rivers.
Resting from Her labors, Huang Ti was filled with wondrous power. The power flowed through Her and She turned and bit herself, spilling one and twenty drops of blood. From these drops sprang the First Children, known by other names such as Wyrm and Dragon. They too numbered one and twenty, one from each drop shed, though their numbers have grown and waned many times since those First Days. They are most beloved of Huang Ti, for they carry Her image and their blood carries the power of Creation and from them all sorcery and magic spring.
Then Huang Ti breathed life into the Being of her creation. Seven breaths blown and from each sprang one of the Seven Harbingers. The first-born, Atum, Huang Ti appointed the King of Guang Keshar, to watch over and guide the other Harbingers and their descendants. Then came Thumun, the First Priest, charged to speak for Huang Ti to Her people. Guashim was next, the Keeper of Wisdom, then Ling, Keeper of Sorcery. Kotish, Lord of Battles, leader of Huang Ti’s defenders, and Hoten, Keeper of the Sword, who was charged with caring for the common good, were next. Finally, the last breath became Tsamin, Keeper of Traditions.
The sweat from the brow of Huang Ti during these labors dropped onto Keshar and each drop formed a new creation: horse and hound, bird and beast, and more beyond name and number. These gathered together and they bowed before the Seven, save for the First Children who bow to none but Huang Ti Herself. Thus the world was formed before the watchful eye of Huang Ti, the Jade Wyrm, and all bowed before Her.
And in the something that was Guang Keshar, the Seven and their servants built a great empire. And the First Children walked among them and taught the secrets of Sorcery and all manner of Greater and Lesser magics. And some of the First Children took alternate forms and married among the Seven. From these came the First Born, and they also numbered Seven, though later is to be born an Eighth, born out of the Grace of Huang Ti and doomed to betray them all. And the seven were Lia, the daughter of Guashim, who slew her own mother to forge twin blades in her blood; Karolan, son of Kotish, and Tsurin, son of Ling; Eliani, first child of Atum and his successor, along with her twin Markum, who slew his sister to gain their father’s throne; Marith, the daughter of Thumun, and Lorya, son of Tsamin.
——————-
This is the beginning of Guang Keshar’s most sacred book, The Book of Jade.
Welcome to Guang Keshar
Do you dream of empires? Do you have a taste for intrigue? Do your PCs long to be part of the pageantry and power of courtly life? Do you feel lost and have no idea where to start?
Welcome to Guang Keshar (pronounced gu-ANG ke-SHAR), a richly detailed high-fantasy campaign setting. Guang Keshar is a world of courtly intrigue and shifting politics which can be used on its own, or added to “blank areas” of your currently existing game setting.
- Published in a modular format, you can purchase those areas or topics that interest you most.
- Learn about the world through adventures and interactive content — no need to sift through 100’s of pages of background material before you can play.
- “Mechanics lite”. Guang Keshar’s focus is on role-playing rather than on rules.
- Optional character, House, and World goals provided. Use these ideas to get your PCs involved and interacting with the world.
- Player handouts included. Just print out and hand these to your players to give them what they need to know about any particular subject.
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