The Humans of Stone and Shell Part 1

The first God-Queen of Man was named Eve.  

Educated people debate about whether or not She herself was deific or was called God-Queen by her contemporaries, but none are foolish enough to doubt her Holiness.

It was in Her name that humanity was born, flourished, and made Crown, a port city and gift to the Queen that still exists to this day.

And it was so that the line of Eve was called the First Dynasty, and Her line was Good.

But you don't really believe any of that nonsense, do you?

No no no, Here's What Really Happened

Though the Priests of Adam may tell you otherwise, the First Dynasty was not, in fact, a happy family where all the descendants of Eve got along and followed the Laws of the Queen with Zealous Fervor. And sure, the Records indicate that the great Calipheus saw Good in the hearts of the First Dynasty and that it blessed them with Prosperity and Stubbornness and Tenacity and sent its Angels to watch after us.

But you and I both KNOW those disgusting Nobles were just a bunch of backstabbing, power-hungry, traitorous wretches who didn't live long enough to get their chance at the throne. 

And then one of the scumbags got their chance and murdered the little girl who was next in line.

Art by Arvalis

---

A Brief History of the Blue Ribbon Republic

The sudden, tragic, and mysterious end to the Line of Eve some two centuries ago left a rather large power vacuum. 

 The Poor of Crown, tired of the oppression they faced under that strict aristocracy, arose in GLORIOUS REBELLION to fill that vacuum.  It was they who would CLEANSE CROWN OF ITS SINS (and most of the aristocrats who didn't have the sense to flee to Ori or Eden, along with their families)

But the blessings of Calipheus can be a curse at times. Many of the Rebellion Leaders were too stubborn to realize just how many of their generous patrons and weapon-suppliers were smiling foreigners, all too eager to part with their wares. Not one realized how many riots seemed to start after a japing Bugbear Bard got a bunch of drunkards riled up and thirsty for rich-man's blood. Their cause was a Just One, they needed DEMOCRACY, Damnit! Who CARES whether some half-breed or water-monkey wanted to help the process along?

Now despite modern opinion, while The Queendom of the First Dynasty was not without strife, it certainly wasn't the scheming cesspool that the Blue Rebel Scholars make it out to be. And indeed, the Blue Ribbon Rebellion would not have happened were it not for at least some support from well meaning Nobles in places of power.  As unpopular as it remains, Monarchy was the most stable government the people of Crown would ever experience. 

Over the past two-hundred years, the government has shifted more often than the wind. Near countless coup's, election scandals, and yes, Rebellions, have made it so that even the most learned political scholar would have a difficult time remembering which Party members lead during which month of which year. Though when they do remember they can probably tell you the scandal or violent uprising that caused said Party to finally leave office.

It doesn't help that every Political Group calls themselves the Blue Ribbon Party.

---

What they look like: The People of the BRR tend towards olive skin and dark hair.  Foreign Azoth fleshcrafters offer cosmetic services in Crown for the right price, and sometimes exotic eye and hair colors will go in and out of style amongst the Republic.

What they wear: Imagine the distressed jeans version of the prince/princess outfit of your choice. Noble's clothing that's been forced to a level of practicality, then made uncomfortably fashionable again many years later, then practical once more, and so on. Lots of blue accents to show patriotism. Blue Ribbons tied in fashionable braids in hair, onto hats, or worn as a belt. Walking canes are popular, they make good improvised clubs in case there's a riot. 

What they sound like: LOUD. BRASH. ARGUMENTATIVE. Sometimes erudite, even surprisingly insightful, but too many fancy words might signal to others they don't understand the hardships of the COMMON MAN. 

What others think of them: 
- Gullible, Obsessive, Stubborn 
+ Determined, Hearty, Proud

Stats, if that's your thing: Advantage on Saves vs Fear, Save vs Charm when given a compliment.

Plot Hooks: 

-  The Rotting King  The Dusk Lord has captured Reach (A neighboring port city still technically within the BRR) with its undead forces. Crown may well be next, and would be an easy target with the current political upheaval dividing the military. Most of the people either in power or about to seize it fail to acknowledge that this could be a problem.

- It's no secret that Crown owes millions of gold to...well, everyone. Especially Ori. Years of funding military insurrection has left the treasury empty and the city in debt to all the other nearby nations. The many lobbyist groups from the creditors ensure that any demands those foreign nations have for trade or policy are met, but the only real thing keeping away a hostile takeover of Crown is its creditors' fear of sparking a war amongst one another should they come to collect the massive debt. Crown has sold its soul many times, and that's worked to its advantage so far. But there are whispers that both the Bountiful Kingdom and Ori are on the brink of an arrangement that could dismantle the foundations of the Blue Ribbon Republic.

- The Angels retreated into the mountains when the First Dynasty ended, taking their secrets of gunsmithing with them. Rumor has it that they're waiting on a pure heart worthy of the inheritance of Eve- but all the would be insurrectionists who have sought the secrets of the ancient weapons from the feathered ones have never returned.




(Author's Note: A Huge thank you to the players of the OSR DoW for the idea farm, and special thanks to Dan for organizing it. You can find my thoughts about the game here. I'd be very surprised if the other authors agreed with all of my batshit conclusions.)