Campaign & Regional Map: The Adalan Empire

Hi everybody!

I’ve been playing around with this map for a while, without successfully placing our campaign in it (yet!). I’d really like to add some more detail, but I think this is worth sharing as a rough top-level map for an ACKS-y setting. Here is the campaign map:

http://i.imgur.com/oXoYr.png

My intention was to make a map to use where any element (especially elves, dwarves, and random encounters) presented in the ACKS core book could plausibly be found.

What you’re looking at are 7 human kingdoms, plus one Elven kingdom (Halric). These were formerly provinces of the Adalan Empire, a bronze-age state that united all of humanity under a single ruler. The "V"s on the map mark Dwarven vaults, all of which predate human settlement of the region. Only those which are marked retain inhabitants; the Dwarves are a people in decline.

Adalos is meant to represent Greek civilization, Borea the Slavic peoples, Crenos the Persians, Dothia the Italians, Ervala the Germanic peoples, Faros the Egyptians, and Garia the Celtic peoples.

The Elves are meant to combine elements of Indian and Japanese culture, and Halric is also part of a larger Elven civilization to the east (possibly an Empire rivaling that of the humans).

The Dwarves are as represented in the ACKS book, but also fill the role of a human precursor in the region, making them responsible for a lot of complex and abandoned holes in the ground. :slight_smile:

Here is a regional map of Southern Adalos, showing the distribution of the major languages of the region, as well as the names of major cities and vaults:

http://i.imgur.com/ZBnSa.jpg

You have my permission to use and modify these any way you like, if you promise to have fun with it.

Each kingdom covers 75 24-mile hexes. You can adjust population density and urban population as you see fit (Adalos is meant to be the former capitol of the Empire, making a great Class I market even “after the fall”).

These kingdoms can also represent political divisions that no longer exist: a “kingdom” might currently be a patchwork of independent states, that pay tribute to no other state, with no king or one that reigns in name alone.

Comments and critiques very welcome!

Looks very nice as a setting concept!

Looks great, Shane! I love that you've tied it into historical cultures. Indo-Japanese elves is a cool idea. Are Spellswords essentially samurai and Nightblades ninja?!

 

Thanks guys! That’s basically the idea!

I want to combine the Japanese martial culture of the Shogunate with the philosophy and science of classical India: there aren’t any elven clerics because they believe that the gods, too, must pursue enlightenment. :slight_smile:

I’ve decided they are also the classist caste-based right-wing to the dwarves’ leftist worker’s elective monarchy.

Player guidelines for elves: imagine a snobby, racist Japanese atheist/Buddhist

Player guidelines for dwarves: imagine a chummy and excitable Russian communist

My players like to base ther characters on real-world cultures as-is, so any tips on integrating that possibility without being accused of painting an unfair picture are very welcome. :slight_smile: