Home Setting The Cast Rules Archives

Varisia

The Player's Guide, which contains more information on the people, religions, beasts etc. of Varisia, is free to download at Paizo.

  • People
  • Religion
  • Bestiary
  • Calendar
  • Coinage of Varisia
  • The Lost Coast
  •             Scarred by the depravity of ancient wizards and reclaimed by a wilderness of beasts and savages, only in the past few hundred years have the steps of civilized men again trod the wondrous and mysterious lands of Varisia. From the reclusive elves of the Mierani forest to the orc-blooded interlopers from the Hold of Belkzen to the Varisian wanderers from whom the region takes its name, diversity and conflict characterize the varied cultures that make Varisia their home.

                Languages include Taldane (Common), sharp Shoanti, sultry Varisian, and Thassilonian, the dead language spoken only by intellectuals, historians and arcanists.

    People

    Humans
                Humans are by far the most common race in Varisia, and generally fall into one of three ethnicities—the cultured Chelaxians of the cities, the nomadic Varisians, or the fiercely tribal Shoanti barbarians. Chelaxians tend toward dark hair and eyes and pale skin. Popular opinion holds that most Varisians are singers, storytellers and thieves. They carry special scarves called kapenia, but only wear them on special occasions. They never brook insults to their ancestors or clan leaders. They have olive skin and dark hair. Shoanti are a proud people divided into 7 clans, or quahs: the Lyrune-Quah (Moon Clan), Shadde-Quah (Axe Clan), Shriikirri-Quah (Hawk Clan), Shundar-Quah (Spire Clan), Sklar-Quah (Sun Clan), Skoan-Quah (Skull Clan), and Tamiir-Quah (Wind Clan). They are tall, powerfully built and tend to have ruddy complexions.

    Elves
                The elves, recently returned from an age-long absence, are far taller and thinner than humans, with long pointed ears and pupils so large they fill much of the eye. Most elves keep to their own kind, preferring the wild places where, over time, they take on aspects of their environment. Occasionally a traveler in Varisia might run into one of the Forlorn—lonely elves who grew up in non-elf lands among folk who are born and die in the time it takes an elf to reach maturity. Elves left the world on the eve of the Earthfall, returning en masse in the middle of the Age of Enthronement. They generally have four names.

    Dwarves
                Dwarves in Varisia are stocky miners and stalwart fighters, generally concentrated around their stronghold of Janderhoff. They see elves as weaklings who abandoned the world during the Age of Darkness, and half-orcs as savage curs, progeny of a race they've been at war with for millenia.

    Halflings
                Halflings, in contrast, are nomadic and have no set homeland, preferring instead to latch onto other races and wedge themselves into the cracks in any given society.

    Gnomes
                Gnomes are by far the most mysterious and magical of the civilized races, and their vibrantly colored hair and skin show the influence of nature and their fey roots. While gnomes are generally no more evil than the other races, their alien thought processes and adherence to an unconventional moral code tend to make other races uneasy. Gnomes need excitement on a regular basis or they suffer the Bleaching, losing color, substance and awareness until they die. It is the only natural cause of death among them. They emerged from the First World.

    Half-breeds
                Half-breeds such as half-elves and half-orcs are exceedingly rare in Varisia. Half-elves, with their extended lifespan, face many of the same problems and prejudices as the Forlorn, while half-orcs are almost universally mistrusted by all but their orc brethren. (True orcs, for their part, frequently conduct raids into human lands specifically to breed more halforcs, as the smarter half-breeds make the best leaders of the various orc tribes.) Half-elves have an affinity for crystals, while half-orcs often collect tattoos.


    Religion

                The civilized peoples of Varisia most commonly worship one of six deities: Abadar, Desna, Erastil, Gozreh, Sarenrae, and Shelyn. The region’s Varisian wanderers possess a strong traditional belief in Desna, while the Shoanti revere abstract powers of nature, their ancestors, and tribal totems.

    Bestiary

    Cindersnake: These giant red-patterned vipers hide amid the crags and fine silt of the Cinderlands, crippling prey with a painful, burning venom.

    Donkey Rat: Snowy white rodents the size of small dogs (in some places known as capybaras or giant guinea pigs), the donkey rats native to Varisia’s coast are popular pets (and meals) throughout the southern lands.

    Fire Pelt: These black-and-red-furred mountain lions stalk much of northwestern Varisia. The color of their pelts changes from predominantly black to a range of autumnal colors with the seasons.

    Giant Lizard: Geckos the size of ponies prowl the moist sea cliffs and forests of southern Varisia, feasting on rodents, giant insects, and even the occasional goblin. Upon the Storval Plateau, aggressive horned spirestalker lizards hide among rocky outcroppings and fearlessly attack anything that comes in sight.

    Storm Roc: Proud raptors with wings the color of thunderheads and crownlike crests of tousled feathers, storm rocs are said to live for hundreds of years and eventually grow to the size of the true rocs.

    Calendar

    Download the AR 4707 calendar

    Years are marked since the founding of the last great empire by Aroden, the Last Man. Although the empire has collapsed, its calendar remains in use to this day. At the start of Rise of the Runelords, the date is 4707 AR (Absalom Reckoning).

    The days of the week are as follows. Each day has a general purpose that most people in the Inner Sea region follow.
    Weekdays
    Moonday Work, religion (night)
    Toilday Work
    Wealday Work
    Oathday Work, pacts signed, oaths sworn
    Fireday Work
    Starday Work
    Sunday Rest, religion

    The months in Golarion correspond to our own, with each new year starting shortly after the solstice. Each month is etymologically tied to a specific god—residents of Golarion see the gods reflected in the changing of the seasons, and their names for the months reflect this.

    Months
    Abadius Calistril Pharast Gozran Desnus Sarenith Erastus Arodus Rova Lamashan Neth Kuthona
    January February March April May June July August September October November December

    Coins

    The Lost Coast

                Those who head north from Magnimar along the rocky coastline quickly find themselves in a peculiar country. Fog drapes the rolling landscape, floating spectrally along damp and lonely moors. Small woodlands grace the region, their tangled depths redolent of nettles and pepperwood and pine sap, while further inland, river valleys lined by majestic redwoods wind between ragged tors and limestone escarpments. This vastness and the sense of isolation have earned the region its local name. This is the Lost Coast.
                Yet there are pockets of civilization along the Lost Coast. Traditional Varisian campsites can be found in nearly every gulch and hollow along the cliff-lined reaches, and lonely houses sit upon bluffs now and then - domiciles for eccentrics or the rich seeking a bit of peace far from the bustle of Magnimar’s streets. Roadside inns grace the Lost Coast road every 24 miles or so, placed by virtue of the distance most travelers can walk given a day’s travel. Low stone shrines to Desna, goddess of wanderers and patron of the Varisians, give further opportunities for shelter should one of the all-too-common rainstorms catch the traveler unaware. Given time, any of these seeds of civilization could bloom into a full-grown town, or even a city. It’s happened once already, along the shores of a natural harbor nestled among the cliffs some 50 miles northeast of Magnimar. What was once a larger-than-normal Varisian campsite in the shadow of an ancient ruined tower has become the Lost Coast’s largest town: Sandpoint.

    Sandpoint

                As one approaches the town of Sandpoint, the footprint of civilization upon the Lost Coast grows more clear. Farmlands in the outlying moors and river valleys grow more numerous, and the blue-green waters of the Varisian Gulf bear more and more fishing vessels upon its surface. Passage over creeks and rivers is more often accomplished by wooden bridge than ford, and the Lost Coast Road itself grows wider and better-kept. Sight of Sandpoint from either approach (south or east) is kept hidden by the large upthrust limestone pavements known as the Devil’s Platter or the arc of rocky outcroppings known as Whistler’s Tors, but as the final bend in the road is rounded, Sandpoint’s smoking chimneys and bustling streets greet the traveler with open arms and the promise of warm beds, a welcome sight indeed for those who have spent the last few days alone on the Lost Coast Road.
                The sight that strikes all visitors to Sandpoint at first is the ruins of the Old Light. The Old Light rises from sea level and is built into the face of a 120-foot-tall cliff , the tower extending another 50 feet above that level to culminate in ragged ruins.
                From the south, entrance to Sandpoint is governed by a wooden bridge, while from the north a low stone wall gives the town a bit of protection. Here, the Lost Coast Road passes through a stone gatehouse that is generally watched by one or two guards - the southern bridge is typically unattended. Aside from the occasional goblin, the citizens of Sandpoint have traditionally had little worries about invasion or banditry - the region simply isn’t populated enough to make theft a lucrative business. Hanging from a bent nail at both the gatehouse and the southern bridge is a sign and a mirror - painted on each sign is the message: “Welcome to Sandpoint! Please stop to see yourself as we see you!”

  • 1. Sandpoint Cathedral
                Easily the largest building in Sandpoint, this impressive cathedral is also the town’s newest structure. Built over the foundations of the previous chapel, Sandpoint Cathedral is not dedicated to the worship of a single deity. Rather, it gathers under its eaves the six most commonly worshiped deities in the region, providing chapels for all of these deities in a communal forum. In a way, Sandpoint Cathedral is six different churches under one impressive roof. Yet even the previous chapel wasn’t the first holy site in this location. The core of both the original chapel and the new cathedral is an open-air courtyard surrounding a set of seven standing stones themselves surrounding a circular stone altar.
                To the south, facing Sandpoint’s heart, are the shrines of civilization: Erastil and Abadar. To the west, offering a view of the Old Light and the sea beyond, are the shrines of Shelyn and Gozreh. And to the east, off ering a view of the Sandpoint Boneyard and the rising sun, are the shrines of Sarenrae and Desna.

  • 2. Sandpoint Boneyard
                Set in the shadow of the Sandpoint Cathedral and accessible via a gate to the north or from several doors leading into the cathedral itself, this expansive cemetery overlooks the Turandarok River.

  • 3. The White Deer
                A pair of wooden life-sized deer, carved with painstaking care from white birch, stand astride the entrance to this sizable tavern and inn.

  • 10. Garrison
                This stone fortress serves double duty as Sandpoint’s militia barracks and its jail. The jail itself is located in an underground wing, while the above-ground portion houses the town’s guard. The garrison’s jailor is a heavily scarred brute named Vachedi, a Shoanti tribesman. The garrison is currently under the watchful eye of Sheriff Belor Hemlock, a native Shoanti.

  • 11. Town Hall
               

  • 15. Red Dog Smithy
                Here the foul-mouthed, short-tempered Das Korvut, along with his huge red mastiffs, works at the smoking smithy.

  • 19. The House of Blue Stones
                This long stone building is primarily a single large chamber, the floor decorated with polished blue stones set within winding pathways of reed mats. A worshiper of Irori, the god of self-perfection and knowledge, Sabyl Sorn maintains a large collection of old books and scrolls in the basement chambers below. She opens both the meditation floor and her library to fellow worshipers, but others must convince her of their good intentions before she’ll let them in. She already denied Durriken access, if very politely.

  • 29. Grocer's Hall
               

  • 34. Valdemar Fishmarket
               

  • 35. Sandpoint Market
               

  • 36. Sandpoint Meat Market
               

  • 37. The Rusty Dragon
                This large structure is Sandpoint’s oldest inn, notable for the impressive (and quite rusty) iron dragon that looms on the building’s roof, doubling as a lightning rod and decoration. Owned and operated for the past six years by the lovely and popular Ameiko Kaijitsu, the Rusty Dragon is not only one of the town’s most popular eateries (made so, in large part, by the spicy and exotic food served here), but also a great place to meet visitors from out of town, since most newcomers to Sandpoint come upon this inn first, the north Lost Coast Road being less traveled. The Rusty Dragon is probably the most adventurer-friendly establishment in town.

  • 38. Goblin Squash Stables
                The sign above this door perpetuates one of the greatest fears of the lowly goblin—being trampled underfoot by a horse. Tended by a retired hunter named Daviren Hosk, in a somewhat grisly display, over the entrance to the stable’s covered barn is his collection of goblin ears: preserved and nailed to three different rafters, each bearing the goblin’s name burned into the leathery flesh.

  • 46. Sandpoint Shipyard
               

  • The Second Cycle