I just sent this out to the Facebook Group for my new West Marches style campaign.
Setting the stage-
Fort Augustus is the “safe town
area”, it is the only remaining imperial outpost here in the
wilderness, it is a port. The fort proper is on an island in the
mouth of the river, the town itself clings to both banks of the
river, nearest the fort. Beyond the buildings of the town are fields,
pastures and orchards belonging either to small holders or owned by
great-holders and worked by a mixture of hereditary serfs, indentured
servants and convicts. The area is, in general well patrolled by
imperial soldiers.
History-
The better part of a millennium ago,
this land and all the land further east, belonged to your ancestors.
There were many petty kingdoms of man, elf, and dwarf. Those kingdoms
fell to a tide of beast-men and their demon overlords, your ancestors
became refugees who eventually fled westward across the sea to the
safety of a new land. Those refugees, united in their purpose to
create a new home for themselves settled and civilized that land,
creating the empire.
Nearly two centuries ago the empire
sent an exploratory expedition to their old homelands, they found
that they had become a wilderness, full of danger, but ripe for
reconquest and resettlement. This proceeded fairly quickly, the
surviving peoples had lapsed into barbarism, but many welcomed the
empire, at first. Eventually, after a number of incidents, there were
some native uprisings against the empire. The threat of savage tribes
of bestial humanoids was omnipresent as well, still, conquest and
settlement continued unabated.
Almost a century ago the emperor was
assassinated, and died with no clear successor. The ensuing civil war
lasted for over eighty years, with short, intermittent periods of
peace while alliances shifted and forces gathered and regrouped. The
colonies were largely abandoned to their fate. One by one they ceased
to exist, except Fort Augustus.
Within the last decade the new imperial
house consolidated their power and chose to once again pursue the
colonization and conquest efforts of their predecessors on the
imperial throne. A viceroy was appointed for the colonies and rapid
settlement was encouraged, with many inducements, such as free
transport, and free land. Ex-soldiers and mercenaries were given
tracts of land as payouts for their services. Various noble houses
have been granted vast tracts of wilderness for their cadet branches.
Large sums of money have been offered to skilled laborers. Many
imperial soldiers have been transferred to duty at Fort Augustus,
then mustered out of service while there. Many have chosen exile to
the colonies as preferable to life under the new regime.
Transportation of convicts to the colonies has become a common
punishment for many petty crimes.
However you got here, you are here now.
