Sarkoris

Sarkoris

(Nation)

Alignment

Demonic rule, until 4718 AR: Chaotic evil

Capital

4725 AR: None; Gundrun (de facto)
Demonic rule, until 4718 AR: None; Iz (de facto)

Demonym

Sarkorian (sing.), Sarkorians (pl.)

Adjective

Sarkorian

Languages

Hallit

Religions

Druidism; Green Faith; Pulura; and many more

Images of Sarkoris

Source: The Worldwound (1E)
Rival Academies, pg(s). 14, 16–19 (2E)

Rule of Fear uses the term "Sarkorin" as a demonym and adjective, but no other published work does so.

See also: Worldwound and Sarkoris Scar

The historical Kellid realm of Sarkoris (pronounced sah-KOHR-ihs) was a savage land of fiercely painted warriors and witches located in north-central Avistan. Established in 3672 AR after a confederation of tribes defeated the frost giants of the Northmounds, Sarkoris lasted until the opening of the Worldwound in 4606 AR, after which it was quickly overrun by armies of demons who destroyed or corrupted all in their path.

Today, the lands of Old Sarkoris are also known as the Sarkoris Scar. A collective of Kellid descendants of its original inhabitants, known as the Reclaimers, have worked since the Worldwound's closing to reclaim the lands and re-establish Sarkoris, beginning with the reclamation of Gundrun.

History

Aroden and Deskari

Sarkorian mystics had long identified that the barrier between planes was thin in Sarkoris. Historically, the central region of barrows known as the Northmounds was haunted by strange monsters, and infested by cultists of Deskari, demon lord of the Locust Host. In 4433 AR, Aroden drove the cult into the Lake of Mists and Veils and, for a while, made the region safe from further demonic incursions.

Society before the Worldwound

The people of Old Sarkoris worshiped a host of different gods, hero-gods, spirit guides, and heroes. While many of them have been forgotten, some are still known today, including Alglenweis, Dolok Darkfur, Kagia, Ristrentho, the Stag Mother of the Forest of Stones, and the dawn-feathered children of Sturovenen the Dragoneagle.

The western city of Dyinglight was the spiritual heart of Sarkorian religion, with an impressive ring of idols revering Pulura, Mistress of the Stars.

The country's central plateau was the site of numerous mines, and the nearby city of Iz was a centre of stone and metalworking.

Miners from the plateau would also trade in the city of Undarin, rubbing shoulders with the herders of western Sarkoris bringing their flocks to market. Raliscrad served as a trading hub where the Sarkora and Isk Rivers connected.

The shaman-ruled southeastern city of Storasta remained an independent city for centuries. Following an incident in 4000 AR, the high witch-wardens of the three other major cities, Iz, Dyinglight, and Undarin, and the Warlord Uloric Dziergas annexed the city and brought it into the nation of Sarkoris.

Demonic invasion

Foul demons infest the Worldwound.

A few years before the prophesied return of Aroden, stirrings of new demonic cults began. Sarkoris' strange mystics made grim predictions of the nation's fall, speaking of ascendant chaos and a thinness between the planes in their haunting orations. Most of the people, however, were confident that Aroden's return would directly lead to a final end of these cults. Unfortunately, the mystics were proven correct. The planar instability of Aroden's death in 4606 AR allowed for the opening of the Worldwound, a gaping gateway to the Outer Rifts in the heart of Sarkoris. The nearby city of Iz was the first to fall to the demonic forces that streamed from the planar rift, and the other clan-holds soon followed, and soon the very land became warped and twisted.

The city of Storasta was the last to fall, its sacred circles defended ferociously by tribal witches and shamans, aided by druids from Mendev and Numeria. Their bloody last stand is commemorated in the tragic Song of Sarkoris.

The church of Iomedae, appalled by the demonic invasion, declared the Mendevian Crusades in 4622 AR in order to drive back the demons. The first several crusades were somewhat successful at containing the threat but still the majority of Sarkoris remained firmly under demonic control.

Only the remote southern town of Gundrun, which had been destroyed by demons but rebuilt around 4670 AR, remained free during this time, mainly because the demons had more or less forgotten about it in their larger conflict with Mendev. Refugees of lost Sarkoris huddled there and along the Mendevian border, with some forced to travel further into Avistan—or as far as Iobaria and Garund—to find shelter.

The Sarkoris Scar

The Sarkoris Scar.

In 4718 AR, the Fifth Mendevian Crusade succeeded at vanquishing Deskari and closed the Worldwound. Afterward, the land became known as the Sarkoris Scar, and the tribes that once called it home began to resettle it. Several ruined cities, including Storasta and Iz, were largely reclaimed as the demons withdrew, but fiends still roved the hills and plains.

As of 4725 AR, heavily-warded Gundrun remains the most active settlement in the revived nation of Sarkoris and the center of Sarkorian culture. The nearby Wall of Lost Gods serves as a collection of monuments to Sarkorian gods, some of them of beings with names lost to history.

Reclamation of the Forest of Embers, led by the Farheaven Clan and their goblin allies in the Dragondweller tribe, had also progressed as of 4725 AR. Pulura's Fall, which survived a century of sieges, had reopened to train new worshippers of the North Star.

However, many sites remained inaccessible or controlled by demons. The chasms of the Wounded Lands remained overrun with demons despite their lack of reinforcements, and the nascent demon lord Jaalika remained in control of the Crown of Feasting Ravens and Blackearth Cairn. Marsh giants of Frostmire Fen turned to the worship of High Priest Glungur and his patron Sithhud and warred with the nascent demon lord Enivuni, making the region a hazard for all but the most careful travelers.

Undarin remained overrun by survivors experimented on by Areelu Vorlesh and demons, with the two groups continuing to wage destructive battles across the ruined city.

While Raliscrad was mostly destroyed by the lilitu demon Minagho and her Templars of the Ivory Labyrinth during the era of the Worldwound, its historic temple of Ivyfane remained intact. Its crypts were guarded against the demons by psychopomps led by Atzemsira, and remained guarded against Sarkorians and demons alike as of 4725 AR despite containing valuable treasures and knowledge of Old Sarkoris.

Culture

Members of the Academy of the Reclamation welcome attendees of the Six Schools' Convocation in Nerosyan.

Much of Sarkoris' culture was lost in the demonic invasion, with countless temples, libraries, and storytellers lost in its wake. Reclaiming this lost knowledge is a primary focus of modern Sarkoris.

Huzuris

The tribes of Old Sarkoris magically preserved the collective memories of their chiefs and witch-wardens in the skulls of animals with whom they had a strong historical or cultural connection. These skulls, called huzuris, were believed to house the spirit of the tribes themselves, and any tribe that lost its huzuri was believed to have lost its soul as well.

Reclaimers

The Academy of the Reclamation in Nerosyan, on Mendev's border with Sarkoris.

A group of people who call themselves the Reclaimers are actively attempting to restore the Sarkoris Scar to its former glory. They consist of courageous ex-crusaders, followers of the Green Faith, and descendants of old Sarkoris who are determined to drive off or kill the remaining demons and cleanse the Abyssal taint from the land.

Foreign relations

Many refugees of Sarkoris remain in Nerosyan while Sarkoris is slowly reclaimed from demonic corruption, and the two nations remain closely connected. Secret routes through the Frostmire Fen facilitated connections to the dwarven Sky Citadel of Jormurdun, itself recently reclaimed from demons and hryngars with the aid of the Pathfinder Society in 4715 AR.

The Six Schools' Convocation in 4725 AR, hosted in Nerosyan by the Sarkorian Academy of the Reclamation, brought scholars from institutions across the Inner Sea region (and a few points beyond) to the region.

References

For additional as-yet unincorporated sources about this subject, see the Meta page.