About this universe
Dahlia awakens, memories shattered, aboard a strange vessel after a brush with death and betrayal. Hunted by a murderous cult she once led and shadowed by the grim legacy of Bhaalspawn, she must piece together her identity and stop the killings before the city drowns in blood. Every answer brings new dangers, and the past is never far behind.
Tone
Somber and suspenseful, with glimmers of hope and self-discovery.
Themes
identity, fate vs. free will, the weight of the past, redemption
Protagonist
Dahlia
Dahlia is a Forest Gnome with a restless energy that belies her small stature. Her moss-colored hair is often unkempt, framing sharp, wary eyes. She moves with a guarded grace, a survivor accustomed to performing for survival. Her current state is one of fractured memory, caught between her identity as a Lore Bard and the resurfacing legacy of her Bhaalspawn heritage.
Goal: To escape the Nautiloid, reconstruct her shattered memories, and stop the killing cults.
How it begins
Dahlia stumbled to her knees as the wooden planks of the illithid ship lurched beneath her. The air was thick with brine and a faint metallic tang. Across the hold, pale, tentacled figures slid between the shadows, ignoring her as they watched a glowing orb pulse atop a pedestal. Dahlia’s hands trembled as she traced the silver filigree on her battered rapier, trying to summon a tune, any melody, to anchor herself. Her heart raced, not knowing why she recognized the tune that seemed to rise unbidden from the humming wood. Voices echoed somewhere above, punctuated by guttural clicks. A rivulet of fresh blood ran from her temple. She pressed it with shaking fingers, and for an instant, an image, a flash of a burning home, screams, her own laughter, flickered and vanished. Blinking back panic, Dahlia rose, eyes darting for an exit or a weapon as she heard heavy footfalls approach the hold's grated door.
About this world
Faerun is a sprawling land where magic, memory, and ancient gods shape every shadow. Cities like Baldur’s Gate pulse with intrigue, while forests and ruins hold secrets from eons past. Cults of forgotten deities plot in the dark, and those touched by fate, like Dahlia, walk between worlds, hunted and haunted alike.
Faerun stretches from mist-laden forests to bustling cities, with the city of Baldur’s Gate at its fevered heart. Rivington, a poor suburb on the city’s edge, is home to a medley of races and faiths, all striving for stability amid the city’s chaos. Magic infuses daily life, but paranoia about dark sorcery lingers from past disasters. Political power is split between merchant lords, religious orders, and clandestine cults, a balance always on the brink of collapse.
The landscape is scarred with the aftermath of divine wars. Ruined shrines and haunted groves dot the wilds, while urban centers sprawl under the weight of secrets. The murder cults of Bhaal, god of murder, operate in the shadows, seeking to fulfill ancient prophecies through violence and fear. The Bhaalspawn, mortal children of the god, are hunted, revered, or reviled, and their existences ripple through every power structure.
Magic is both a tool and a temptation. Bards, like Dahlia, wield song and story to weave enchantments, but magic’s gifts are always double-edged. Ilithids, mind flayers from the Underdark, prey upon the vulnerable in the city’s underbelly, abducting those who will not be missed. Daily life in Rivington is modest, marked by devout rituals and tight-knit families who cling to hope and one another, even as darkness seeps in from the city. The lines between villain and victim are blurred, and every whispered tale could unravel a life.
