Thoth (love it, hate it, tell me what you think)

[Soup Nazi]

This is my new and revised Thoth. While I feel it is an improvement over the older version, it still seems like it's missing something. Any opinions or ideas are of course welcome. I can't really put my finger specifically upon any one thing that seems off, but if something jumps out at you that seems underdeveloped, too wordy, or just uninteresting let me know. Thanks to any who offer help.

Thoth

Capitol: Tharizaar (398,000)
Size: 30,000 square miles
Civilization: 3,000 square miles (10%)
Wilderness: 27,000 square miles (90%)
Population Density: 195 people per square mile
Total Population: 5,850,000 people
Rural Population: 117,000 people (2%)
Urban Population: 5,616,000 people (96%)
Isolated Population: 117,000 people (2%)
Races: 90% Dwarf, 5% Illithid, and 5% Other
Common Classes: Fighter, Psion, Psychic Warrior, Rogue, Ranger
Common PrCs: Dwarven Defender, War Mind

Thoth is a land of majestic mountains, so massive their ice capped peaks vanish into the clouds. While hidden passes and tunnels throughout the realm have enabled the dwarves to move to and fro without much difficulty, those who are unfamiliar with the terrain find it all but impenetrable. Colossal glaciers still scrape through the primeval mountains, and sudden gusts of wind blow through her valleys, crevasses, and canyons. Unexpected blizzards seem to sweep in without warning, and drop several feet of snow, even on what may initially seem like clear and sunny days. Those without knowledge of the dwarven passes have never found a means to navigate the lands of Thoth, and the impenetrable gates of their mountainous fortresses have been opened to outsiders for only a couple decades.

Beneath the mountains of Thoth vast networks of tunnels, mines, foundries, warrens, and halls run throughout the region connecting the numerous cities, towns, and mining colonies of the dwarven people. When the dwarves first withdrew to the mountains five millennia ago, Thoth was little more than a handful of mines and their adjoining colonies. The tiny settlements of the past have been replaced today by sprawling metropolises and an expansive labyrinth of connecting tunnels serve as the roadways between them. It is entirely possible to visit every city within the nation without ever leaving the protection of the tunnels, and most dwarves never do.

Technologically the dwarves are at least as advanced as the rest of Sulos. Coal powered steam engines have revolutionized their mining operations; heavy drills, conveyer belts, water pumps, and other amazing devices have increased both productivity and efficiency. Black powder has made blasting through rock just a matter of engineering and mathematics, where once it was matter of back-breaking labor and persistence. Complicated clockworks open colossal gates, move and power the lifts, and keep the foundries working on a timely and regular schedule. The foundries and factories of Thoth are immense sprawling maze of pipes, belts, pulleys, and huge cauldrons in which the dwarves melt down and refine their ores. Many of the dwarven cities are being completely overtaken by steam filled tunnels and the oppressive heat of the foundries, though the dwarves donâ,¬,,¢t seem to mind.

Most of the dwarves sleep within small cramped cubicles, though they live for work, celebrations, and crafts, so the somewhat simple confines of their living quarters do not matter to them. A dwarf spends most of his time hard at work in his shop, at the factories, mills, foundries, or in the mines. He celebrates a dayâ,¬,,¢s work with plentiful spirits, good food, and good company in the great halls, taverns, or bars scattered throughout the cities. Only after a hard day of work and merriment will a dwarf retire to his quarters for sleep. The great steam whistles that blow at precisely the exact same times each day, signal the change of shifts, breaks, and important announcements. Dwarves adhere to tight schedules, plans, and repetitive cycles. Promptness is one of the defining characteristics of the dwarven people, and being late for an appointment, shift, or meeting is considered a grievous sleight.

The dwarves of Thoth have only recently begun to reveal themselves to the rest of Sulos, but their impact has been immediately felt across the continent. As the merchants of Thoth have emerged from their mountainous strongholds they have set out for Lâ,¬,,¢Landra with efficient determination. Rather than wait for Denesni diplomats to come to them, Thoth sends their own emissaries to the mercantile Syndicate themselves. While taken aback by this sudden interest and unexpected move, the Syndicate has been most gracious to their new friends. Thoth and Lâ,¬,,¢Landra have rapidly hammered out the details of a trade agreement suited to both their needs, and dwarven craftsmanship has begun to flood the marketplaces of Sulos. Five millennia of isolation have been undone within the past twenty years, and the dwarves of Thoth are once again a force to be reckoned with.

Many Lâ,¬,,¢Landran craftsmen have felt the pinch of the unexpected competition, and prices have plunged as the amount of tools, armor, weaponry, and ores have rapidly increased in supply. The dwarves have almost completely undercut the competition, and there has been economic uproar within the merchant community. The Syndicate has ensured their people that when things settle down, all will return to normal, but the craftsmen of Lâ,¬,,¢Landra are not so confident. Many have already begun to protest, and the Syndicate has simply ignored their pleas. While the Syndicate has suffered in some areas, they have gained in others. Since the arrival of the dwarven merchants, the demand for adamantine ore has skyrocketed. Strange requests for obsidian have House Alâ,¬,,¢Arach scrambling to find new sources of the rare igneous stone. Rumors of a potential source within Ilsen, have reached their ears, and the house has been involved in intense negotiations with the crimson nomads to meet the demand of the dwarves.

The Thanes of Thoth who were once little more than a warrior caste, have in essence become the principle guiding force behind the nation. They have decided to jump on the booming economic bandwagon, however unlike the nations and people before them, the dwarves have elected to join under their own devices and on their own terms. They decided not to give the Syndicate the opportunity to fully prepare for the scenario, and have enjoyed holding the upper hand. While their aggressive business tactics quickly earned the dwarves a reputation within Lâ,¬,,¢Landra as men to look out for, they have also drawn the utmost scrutiny of the Syndicate. The Thanes are possibly just as cunning and just as devious as the merchants of Lâ,¬,,¢Landra, which unsettles their new rivals.  The merciless tactics and unbridled ambition of the Thanes, threatens to disrupt the stability of the delicate balance of power, the Syndicate has worked so hard to build and maintain; while the dwarves have earned Lâ,¬,,¢Landraâ,¬,,¢s respect, the Syndicate will only permit so much, and the Thanes for all their accomplishments have no where near the economic or political muscle of their rivals.

Thothâ,¬,,¢s line of kings stretches back thousands of years, unbroken while the dwarves have lived peacefully in their isolated realm. While the kings of Thoth are little more than symbolic entities, they are still important cultural icons, and beloved by the dwarven people. The Thanes have gradually stripped away the political and military power of their kings for generations. While it has been a subtle and bloodless coup, the kings of Thoth have become toothless figureheads, powerless to oppose the collective power of the Thanes. A clever King can manipulate the Thanes, and rally his people for support, but few kings have the charisma, intellect, and political savvy to accomplish anything of significance. Thus Thoth is a kingdom in name alone; the nation more closely resembles a military dictatorship.  

Despite the many wars, and chaos to have gripped the world above the dwarves have prospered. They have grown as a people and a culture, and mastered the techniques of mining, masonry, and most forms of fine craftsmanship. Hazraâ,¬,,¢Ghalduur is not the only nation to have harnessed the power of coal, and dwarven furnaces fuel numerous technological devices that help them tunnel through the granite, and forge their tools. Indeed despite their absence from the general progression of the world, the dwarves of Thoth have kept pace just fine. Perhaps it could even be said that because of their isolationism, unmolested by outside wars, the dwarves have made at least parallel progression, if not debatably superior advances.

The dwarves have long been concerned with the security of Thoth. Millennia ago the dwarves faced the possibility of extinction. Nearly completely exterminated during the Druidic Wars by the armies of Tair'Shola, the Thanes led their few remaining brethren into the mines of Thoth to rebuild and prepare for the defense of their people. They carry on these traditions to this day, and have used their technological advances to protect Thoth. While their traps, gates, and draw bridges have been more than sufficient defense for their heavily fortified strongholds, the greatest weapons at their disposal are the clockwork golems.

Never particularly adept at magic, the engineers of Thoth have built clockwork golems instead. These almost mindless automatons can only follow simple commands and instructions, but they are powerful machines that can easily match the might of any wizard's iron golem. The gates and bridges of Thoth are protected by the golems, and even within the cities themselves they are a silent menacing presence. Seemingly lifeless sentinels, the golems stand motionless until trouble erupts and they spring into action. Before the dwarves began to incorporate psionically resonant deep crystal, the clockwork golems were very primitive and completely mindless, within the last fifty years however they seem to have developed a limited sentience all their own.

Places of Interest

The Mines

The network of mines within the mountains of Thoth is greater in scope and size than all other mining networks of Sulos combined. Thousands upon thousands of miles of tunnels and shafts run throughout the region.  Complicated drilling, pumping, and ventilation systems run twenty four hours a day to keep the mines fully operational and efficient. More than half the population of Thoth work within the mines. Coal, Iron, lead, silver, gold, copper, and other valuable minerals are pulled from the tough stone, and used for the numerous industrial operations of the nation. Foundries refine and melt down the various metals and pour them into support girders, heavy machinery, and bricks for various smaller uses. Most machines are now coal or steam powered, and the dwarves have begun to rely far less on manual labor, as their technology advances.

The deeper the mines the more dangerous the operations become. Some of the finest minerals and ores lay literally miles below the dwarven cities, and despite the technological advances, the risks are still quite numerous. Frequent collapses, poor ventilation, and sudden flooding often result in injuries and casualties. Only the most desperate of men voluntarily resort to working within the deeper mines, and the bulk of the labor force is made of convicted criminals who have been assigned to work-release or community service programs. A sentence within the mines is often considered worse than death, and few of the convicts make it out alive.  The martial law of the Thanes has ensured a steady supply of convicts to fuel the demands of the mining industry.

There are rumors among the dwarven people that strange beasts and monsters dwell within some of the abandoned mines that riddle the kingdom. Others say entire civilizations of subterranean creatures have been uncovered. Others have whispered that something living within the mines has been devouring the dwarves. Some dwarves seem to completely vanish while deep within the mines, and others have been found mangled and disemboweled. None can substantiate any of the rumors, and most dwarves simply dismiss them as ridiculous rumors, but not all are convinced. The casualty rate seems to be accelerating and the miners who inexplicably disappear have some of dwarves wondering just what really is happening down there.

Thasilidur

It has been five centuries since the dwarves moved their capitol from Thasilidur to Tharizaar. While the dwarves would never have willingly abandoned a city with such important historical and cultural meaning, the move was made under duress. The city was abandoned when the mighty dragon Vespirithas shattered her mighty gates and made the city his lair. Though the dwarves at first attempted to fight of and resist the dragon, the Thanes soon came to realize that they were no match for the mighty beast. Dozens of valiant warriors willingly gave their lives so that their people and their king could escape. None have returned to Thasildur to recover the many treasures left behind or to attempt to drive the dragon from the city.

Mighty Vespirithas still lairs within the city, though today he is not alone. The mind flayers of the Dark Hand have made the city their home, and their principle base of operations within the heart of Thoth. They have struck a bargain with the dragon for mutual protection. The flayers guard the many tunnels and passages beneath the great halls and treasure vaults, where the dragon lairs. The illithids have no desire for the dwarven treasures, and the dragon desires not the damp flooded passages of the lower wards. They primarily stay out of each otherâ,¬,,¢s way, and out of each otherâ,¬,,¢s business. Neither truly cares about the other.

Vespirithas has strayed farther and farther from his lair in recent years. His forays into the surrounding wilderness for food, treasure, and perhaps a mate, have been longer and farther than ever before. At times he is gone for weeks, and rarely does he need to return to his lair to protect his treasures. It has been more than a century since the last foolish would-be dragon slayers attempted to steal from him, and he is confident that his traps, scrying devices, and golems will adequately delay any burglars until he can get back to handle them personally.

The mind flayers have selected Thasildur specifically for its reputation and security. They have moved their elder brains to the city, and established their largest and most important colony within her. The elder brains are powerful enough to control the dragon should they need to, and they have convinced him to allow them to live within his territory unmolested. They walk a delicate line with the fiery dragon, but the illithids trust their disembodied elders implicitly; they have no doubts that the dragon poses little to no threat to their kind.

The greatest obstacle the illithids have faced thus far has been the lack of a renewable source of hosts. They have plenty of dwarven slaves, but the stout little dwarves have proven time and time again unsuitable hosts for illithid tadpoles. The mind flayers desperately need a source of human hosts, and they hope that the influx of merchants from Lâ,¬,,¢landra will provide them with a means of perpetuating their species. If not, they will be forced to begin raiding the eastern lands of Rhoenheim, which may draw far too much attention to for their comfort.

Power Groups

The Thanes

Thoth is governed by a military council of Thanes, who have gradually seized more and more power from the throne. While they have always been the generals of the dwarven military, only within the last couple centuries have they become truly powerful. The Thanes now control the guilds of the craftsmen and engineers. They control the prison system, and oversee the judiciary responsibilities of the nation. They have seized control of the merchant class, and the mines, and really the only power beyond their control is the throne itself, and the line of kings. It seem that it is only a matter of time before the Thanes remove their king from the equation, but for now their people still exonerate and love their king, even if he is little more than a figurehead and cultural icon.

The Thanes are a warrior caste first and foremost, and despite the lack of external threats to the security of the dwarven people there has been no shortage of conflict in which to hone their skills. For generations the Thanes and their clans warred among each other over various territory political disputes and personal differences. While many would consider their conflicts trivial and meaningless, among the dwarves war is in their blood, and the heat of battle itself is incentive enough; they have never needed an excuse to test their mettle and pit their skills against one another. The last two centuries however have seen an unprecedented era of peaceful cooperation between the Thanes.

The Thanes have shifted their focus from war among themselves to other more important issues. They are determined to make their mark economically, politically, and culturally upon the world. Their philosophical shift seems to coincide with the alliance forged between the thanes with their hidden allies. The Thanes were approached approximately two centuries ago by strange creatures known as the Illithids who call themselves the Dark Hand. The illithids have shown the thanes the secrets of psionics, and helped them bring order and peace to their people. Since the alliance was forged with the Dark Hand the Thanes have also managed to put their own differences aside, and resolve many of the petty rivalries that have divided them.

While the clans admire the Thanes for resolving the issues that have divided them for millennia, they wonder what inspired the shift in focus. The dwarven people are still unaware of the pact their Thanes have forged with the illithids, though it is becoming increasingly difficult to deflect inquiries about the rapid advances made in both psionics and technology. The Thanes are not certain that their people are ready to handle the truth, and they have been searching for a way to keep their alliance hidden for the time being.

The Dark Hand

The Dark Hand of Ilsen is the secret society of Illithids who have taken refuge within the mountains of Thoth and forged an alliance with the Thanes. These Illithids introduced themselves to their eventual allies during the vulnerable period when the people of Thoth were suffering from economic destitution, the king was a weak and cowardly man, and the Thanes were embroiled in a period of devastating wars. Thoth was on the verge of internal collapse, and while the Thanes were pondering what could be done to save their people and their kingdom from self-implosion, the Illthids extended their dark hand in an offer.

The Illithids told the Thanes that should the lands of Thoth fall into chaotic unrest, they would take control, but should the Thanes seize power for themselves, the mind flayers would share the secrets of their advanced psionics and technology, and help the Thanes restore their kingdom to her ancient glory. While at first the Thanes refused the offer, and dismissed the Illithids as shady monsters with a hidden agenda, it became apparent as time passed that Thoth was not going to recover from the terrible mismanagement of the monarchy and the terrible series of escalating conflicts between them.

The Thanes first took control of the mines and prisons and turned them over to the Illithids. The Thanes then seized those who would resist their secret coup and imprisoned them. The Illithids quickly conditioned and enslaved the prison population and set them to work in the dank tunnels and mines, which were soon restored to full working order, and the model of efficiency under the direction of the Dark Hand. Together the Thanes and the Illithids carefully usurped control of various businesses and guilds, one by one, and began to rebuild the structure of Thoth from the bottom up. The mines were run by their pseudo-slave labor force, and Illithid thrall-herders. The craftsmenâ,¬,,¢s' guilds were restructured and restored, with leadership loyal to the Thanes put specifically in place. Massive public works projects refurnished and repaired the lower wards and foundries, which helped boost economic recovery and public morale. When the Thanes and the Dark Hand elected to open their borders to new trade opportunities with the surface dwellers, all conflict and economic troubles were left behind, and Thoth was once again a world power.

The Dark Hand is perfectly content and more than willing to manipulate the minds of those who oppose their agendas, and work well in collaboration with the Thanes. So long as they receive their fresh supplies of slave labor and obsidian, the Illithids are quite happy with the arrangement. They are pleased with the situation and so long as they can keep the Thanes under control, they are able to continue to build and expand their colony hidden beneath the cities of Thoth.

The Dark hand of Ilsen though now centered in Thoth, where they can hide in the darkness, away from the painful light of the sun, is not entirely limited to mountainous lands of the dwarves. Their tentacles stretch out across the lands of Sulos to L'Landra, where they lay beneath the murky waters, and crawl under the docks, and piers. They have connections within Rhoenheim, where they have subverted important professors and teachers in the employ of the University of Dastun. The Illithids have obedient servants among the crimson nomads of the blazing sands. Indeed in some way or some form, the Illithids seem to have connections and informants all across the continent. Weather in the form of a simple snitch, or an entire mind flayer colony hidden amongst the populace, the Dark Hand touches all.

The War Minds

There are those among the clans of the Thanes who have become very talented in the psionic arts, since they first began to study them two centuries ago. While the Thanes themselves have held to their traditional warrior traditions, many of their brethren have chosen to pursue alternate paths to the fighter, such as those of the psychic warrior and even the psion. A secret alliance of the most psionically talented of the dwarves has begun to take shape within Thoth. These dwarves who hail from multiple clans have begun to develop new skills that seamlessly blend the power of the psionic mind with the warrior traditions of the dwarves. They call themselves the War Minds.

The war minds have discovered the alliance of their Thanes with the sinister Dark Hand, and question the sanity of their leaders. It is quite clear to the War Minds that the Hand has ulterior motives, and that they have been manipulating the Thanes in some form or another. While the War Minds have not determined precisely what kind of arrangements their Thanes have worked out with the Illithids, they are certainly watching and preparing for the worst possible of outcomes. They sense a war coming and plan to tip the scales in favor of their own kind, rather than allow the mind flayers to subvert the Thanes and take control of Thoth.

The War Minds have agents within almost all of the clans, spies within the mines, and the mental tools to resist the influences of the mind flayers. They are just beginning to scratch the surface and uncover the lowest levels of conspiracy of the Thanes and the Dark Hand. They donâ,¬,,¢t yet know the extent of that which they are up against, though they are certain that they cannot trust anyone. Ultimately the War Minds hope to restore power to their king, disband the Thanes, and hunt down and destroy the illithids, though they feel it will be some time before they have the means to do so.  For now all they can do is watch, study, wait, and hone their skills in the service of their Thanes.

The Cults of the Deceiver

The dwarves were once a devoted religious people, but those have long since passed. During the Druidic Wars the dwarves revered many different aspects, and churches of the Ancient Pantheon, but as the tides of war shifted against them, and their allies fell before the armies of Shaâ,¬,,¢Irna the dwarves gradually lost faith in their gods. By the time they withdrew to the mountains of Thoth most dwarves had all but given up on the gods who failed them in their greatest time of need.

For the first few centuries in which they lived within the mountains a handful of churches survived, though there were few men of faith keeping them alive. The Cults of the Deceiver however quickly undermined rival religions, and turned them against one another. They spread propaganda and eventually drove the churches to war with the Thanes. The dwarven people backed the Thanes, and the last of the churches were destroyed, disbanded, and forgotten. Only the secretive cults devoted to shadowy god Shemeloth remained.

In the modern era cults devoted to Shemeloth continue to live hidden within the shadowy corners of the dwarven cities. They have connections within most of the underhanded and criminal aspects of dwarven society, from the black markets, to the thievesâ,¬,,¢ guilds, and even among the Thanes themselves. The cults have lived hidden among the dwarves for generations, and yet they remain almost completely unknown. The shadowy deceiver lives on, where other of his kind have long since faded away. It is ironic that the one god of the ancient pantheon who wishes to be forgotten is the only god who is still remembered.

Most of the cults have no connection between them. They operate independently, and worm their way into various aspects of dwarven society. They admire the Thanes and the Dark Hand for their shadowy pact, and underhanded coup that has usurped control of Thoth from the monarchy, but they have not cast their lot in with either of these influential factions. Shemeloth and his followers have learned better than to put themselves in a position where they can be discovered. They suspect it is only a matter of time before either the Thanes or the Dark Hand slips up, and they donâ,¬,,¢t plan on getting dragged down with them.

Followers of the deceiver have joined the ranks of the dwarven merchants and begun to explore the world beyond the lands of Thoth. The Deceiver is beginning to discover that the world that lies beyond Thoth is ripe for the picking. The Syndicate of Lâ,¬,,¢Landra embodies many of his ideals, and the secretive cults of Shemeloth have set their sights upon the nation. They hope to spread across Sulos once again, and twist the world in their vision. Where the cults take hold corruption, greed, deception, entropy, and murder soon follow.  Should they gain a foothold within the Syndicate there is nowhere the touch of Deceiver would be unable to twist the people of Sulos into his image.  

[Numinous]

I so utterly Love the cult of the deciever!  I skimmed the rest of it, but you caught my attention there.  Dwarves...  It doesn't feel like something you would expect, but it makes sense nonetheless...  I find it great man, just great...  I don't care what you do with Sulos man, the cult stays!

[Soup Nazi]

You can read a little more about the deceiver in the Religions of Sulos spoiler. Shemeloth is one of the ancient gods.

[Soup Nazi]

:poke: Bizumpititty Bump