Grothon

In the massive sprawling caves under Arondor, the independent nation of Grothon thrives, far from the light of the stars. It's easy to forget about Grothon's existence, but the people of Telumar have a lot to be thankful for; through their uneasy alliance with their surface neighbors, Grothon defends the sunlit world from the dangerous creatures that live below.

The Defenders of Telumar

Every single surface culture agrees on a fundamental belief about the Wandering Gods: they left for the stars; therefore, Telumarians ought to look up every night and wait for their return. And yet, the people of Gorthon rarely see the night sky; indeed, many of these cave dwellers never see the sky at all in their entire lives. So when foreigners talk to a Grothon native, they may be surprised about how ardent their faith in the Wandering Gods is—and even more surprised when they learn about Grothon's unique take on Telumar's cosmology.

Grothon lore calls them the Destroyer Gods and they believe the gods left underground. When the Destroyer Gods return, the world will be destroyed and reforged anew, and Grothon will be Telumar's first line of defense. Most people scoff at these ridiculous beliefs, but the truth is that they are this first line of defense already. Their caves are extremely deep and harbor unimaginable horrors that could destroy entire cities if they ever made it to the surface. Grothon keeps them at bay thanks to their arcane wards, and by sending scouting parties when necessary.

The Dark King

Grothon is a monarchy ruled by the Dark King, who is elected by the high councils of each of the four major cities in the nation. The King (who holds this title regardless of their gender) remains on the throne until their death or abdication, but their authority is not absolute. While they command the army and have control over some aspects such as diplomacy, most internal laws must be agreed upon in the General Assembly, which includes representatives from each settlement according to their relative sizes. The Assembly can veto any laws presented by the King, who can also veto any laws presented by the Assembly. This process can be deeply frustrating to many, but it has provided the people of Grothon a mix of stability and social fairness.

Uneasy allies and unlikely friends

The stuck-up folks of Arondor don't like the idea of having an entire independent nation of such uncouth people within their borders. Fortunatelly for Grothon, the idea of having to patrol and manage the dangerous caves by themselves is even more unappealing; and so, Grothon has thrived since Time Immemorial as an independent underground country. Not only that, but Arondor also partially funds Grothon's defense program; they know that if the caves fall, Arondor will be doomed too.

On the other hand, the Grothon have a long history of friendship with the Lendari; this could seem surprising at first given their very different lifestyles, but some evidence suggests Grothon is in fact an offshoot from an ancient Lendari culture. Regardless, the Gorthoners enjoy hearing about the outside world from the Lendari's stories; for the Lendari, playing their music and singing their songs with the acoustics of a large cave is all they could ask for.

The Secret Deep Below

If you spend a long time in Grothon, you my encounter certain strange phenomena—a spectral figure in dimly lit alleys, shadows fleeing into the depths, strange sounds coming from the chasms, and abyssal lights painting the walls of the caves for an instant. These are all caused by the Secret Deep Below, something that Grothoners rever and try to ignore in equal measure.

No one truly knows what this secret is, but the scouts are confident they aren't tied to any of the powerful creatures they regularly fight. Many attribute them to the Faint Divinities, who they see as dangerous spirits you should respect but stay away from. Some go as far as claiming they are signs that the Destroyer Gods' return is getting closer.

Contents

Quick data

Government System

Monarchy, Constitutional

Power Structure

Unitary state

Neighboring Nations

• Arondor
• Voronta

Communities

Grothon is inspired by the Underborne community, but a Grothoner character could easily be from a variety of different communities too.

For example, a Highborne or Wanderborne character could be originally be from Arondor or from a Lendari clan originally. A Slyborne character would fit in really well too in the naturally dark environment of Grothon.