Page 96 - Serpent Kingdoms

REALMS

throughout the walled compound house a menagerie of exotic Plots and Rumors
beasts—primarily reptiles.
Hlondeth has always been a hotbed of yuan-ti intrigue. The fol-
In the Year of the Tatters (527 DR), Hlondeth was besieged
lowing plot is only one of many that can be investigated here.
by kobolds of the Tattered Cloth Legion that had been secretly
Plague of Serpents: Leaders of the Plague-Mother’s Chil-
dispatched by Nathglaryst, drow queen of Undraeth. The rulers
dren, a human cult based in Hlondeth and dedicated to Talona,
of Chondath did nothing, but Lord Shevron Extaminos wel-
have forged an alliance with the Sibyl’s Chosen. Together, the
comed all who managed to escape the kobold army into his
two groups aim to create tainted ones on a vast scale. Dediana
family’s compound. During the subsequent siege, Shevron re-
Extaminos is working in secret to oppose their plot, fearing the
ceived a vision from Ilmater that caused him to dispatch swarms
power it would give the Serpent Sibyl. The Serpent’s Secession,
of “pet” snakes from his gardens against the kobolds, routing
a secret society of humans led by Gonthril Astinar (NG male
Nathglaryst’s host. Shevron himself was killed in the battle, but
Chondathan human fi ghter 7/rogue 5) also opposes the plot,
no defender of House Extaminos was slain by the serpents.
since its members are sworn to actively resist the spreading infl u-
After Lord Shevron’s death, House Extaminos reawakened
ence of the serpentfolk.
from its centuries-long indolence and lethargy. Many of the
younger family members began adventuring in the long-ne-
glected sewers of Hlondeth, ostensibly seeking their escaped Isstosseffifil
“pets” and the connection to the Underdark through which
the kobold army had gained access to the city. In the city’s (Land of the Lost Sea)
catacombs, the young Extaminos nobles uncovered a long-for-
Capitol: Crypts of Oreme
gotten temple of Varae, as well as Lord Sheveron’s lost army
Population: 12,404 (asabis 52%, stingtails 47.5%, sarrukh liches
of snakes.
0.5%)
Discounting the former lord’s dedication to Ilmater, the next
Government: Rotating monarchy/de facto oligarchy
generation of House Extaminos began to resurrect the long-
Religions: Semuanya (asabis, stingtails), Sseth ([now Set] sar-
dormant cult of Varae. Following ancient rituals described on
rukh)
tablets in the temple’s vaults, the humans of House Extaminos
Imports: Realmslore
made contact with the Se’Sehen tribe via an ancient portal net-
Exports: Asabi mercenaries, stingtail mercenaries
work linking the Scaled Halls of Varae to the Pit of Vipers in
Alignment: LE, NE
the ruins of Ss’inthee’ssaree. After forging an alliance with the
serpentfolk there, they began to interbreed with Se’Sehen in the
The sarrukh empire of Isstosseffi fi l is all but gone. Its ancient
nearby Osraun Mountains in an attempt to literally join with
secrets were destroyed by the phaerimms and the folly of the
the snakes they venerated. They also began secretly extending
Isstossef (as the inhabitants were known), scattered by the
their family’s political infl uence through all levels of the gov-
Netherese, and buried by the drifting sands of Anauroch. In
ernment’s hierarchy. Eventually, they acquired enough infl uence
its heyday, the Land of the Lost Sea ran along the eastern
to engineer a series of rebellions against Chondath’s unwanted
shores of the old Narrow Sea, encompassing the fertile lands
rule. Hlondeth fi nally regained its independence in the Year of
that stretched from what is now the Saiyaddar to the High
the Shattered Scepter (614 DR).
Ice and from the water’s edge to the Plain of Standing Stones.
While House Extaminos did not directly seize power in
Today, all that remains of this once-great empire is the buried
Hlondeth after Chondath’s governor was overthrown, its
city of Oreme.
members ruled from behind the throne for the next four cen-
turies. Within a decade of Hlondeth’s reclaimed independence,
Ilmater’s shrine in the Extaminos family compound was re- Life and Society
named the Chapel of Emerald Scales and consecrated to Varae.
The sixty sarrukh liches of Oreme are ancient even by the stan-
Hlondeth’s citizens accepted this alteration with little fuss, since
dards of most undead. Only one, always known as King Oreme,
House Extaminos was still highly regarded for its past benefi -
is awake at any given time to fulfi ll the duties of monarch.
cence and bravery.
The remainder lie in repose in the Crypt of Dreaming Lizards,
In the Year of Smoldering Spells (1020 DR), House Ex-
dreaming of lands long lost and awaiting their turns to rule.
taminos began openly ruling Hlondeth with little opposition.
Ancient contingency spells ensure that all the liches wake up if
By this time, the aboveground temple of Varae had been ex-
any real danger threatens the city, or if the currently awake lich
panded fi vefold, the adjoining compound of House Extaminos
is destroyed or incapacitated. The current ruler can also awaken
had sprawled throughout much of the noble’s district, and the
all of his companions at once with a single mental command.
bloodline of the ancient ruling house had become fully and com-
The current King Oreme spends his time in much the same
pletely yuan-ti. From this point forward, House Extaminos was
way as his predecessors did, scrying events of interest to reptiles
considered a great yuan-ti tribe in its own right, wholly distinct
in Faerûn and recording his observations in the city’s vast
from the Se’Sehen tribe, with the city-state of Hlondeth fi rmly
library. The asabis that guard the city are largely left to rule
constricted in its coils.
95
620_96566_SerpentKin92-135.indd 95 5/12/04, 4:10:39 PM