Ravilla
Ravilla is an elven faction in Western Oerik.
Description
The region of Western Oerik once controlled by the "Dragon Empire" eventually fell and became known as the Sundered Empire, and the portion still ruled by elves is known as Ravilla and is a successor-state to the Dragon Empire.
History
These are excerpts from Dragon Magazine #285. This is not a full excerpt.
This area has never been explored by the denizens of Greyhawk, so it has remained a mystery for countless generations.
Before the Demon War, the elves were split into to main groups. The wood elves as their name suggests, lived in the primeval forests of the interior, while the gray elves lived in remote mountain cities. There was little communication between these branches of the elven race, but the Demon Ware changed everything.
Without warning, enormous portals opened up in the depths of the forest. Armies of demons direct from the Abyss poured into Western Oerik.
Aid was slow in coming and the wood elves were on the brink of annihilation.'
At this hour, the wood elf hero Peramil mounted his giant eagle and flew through the blackened sky to reach the mountain home of the gray elves. He fought of winged demons and vicious harpies along the way, but no evil could slow him. Peramil reached the gray elf city of Ventia and told his kin of the holocaust consuming the wood elf homeland.
The gray elves acted quickly. Within the hour, powerful wizards were flying above the battlefields, reconnoitering the enemy positions. Elite strike teams were dispatched to distract the demons while the gray elves mustered their army for war. Soon a hundred thousand elves were marching from the mountains to engage the demonic armies. Bahamut the platinum dragon led his metallic dragons int the fray, and together the allies saved the wood elves from destruction.
After the Demon War, Corellon Larethian tasked the gray elves with guarding the Abyssal Gateways. They built new cities around the portals.
This state of affairs lasted for nearly five hundred years, during which time human tribes and dwarven clans spread into Western Oerik. In the year 499, the Abyssal Gateway in the city of Xanos opened, and demons flooded out once again. The attack was contained quickly and bloodily, but the complacency of the previous centuries had been shattered. Everyone wanted answers.
In 505 the wizards reported their findings. It was their opinion that the gate's activation was due to the abnormally large number of sorcerers in Xanos. In a stunning declaration, the wizards claimed that the secret and previously unknown root of the sorcerers power was the Abyss. The scientific method of wizardry was thus the only safe way to practice arcane magic.
Sorcerers across the city-states protested vehemently. They argued it was the blood of dragons that gave them their power, not the influence of the demons. The Grand Council was looking for a scapegoat, however, and the wizards had given them one. To protect the elven people, the Grand Council turned from an advisory body to a ruling one.
The Grand Council's next move was to enact an official ban on sorcery. Its practice was specifically linked to the demonology and its practitioners were declared a danger to elven security. Over the ensuring five years, sorcerers in the city-states were hunted by specialized teams of magic hunters. They were forced to renounce their sorcerers ways or go into exile. Many left and never returned.
Description
The region of Western Oerik once controlled by the Empire of Ravilla is now known as the Sundered Empire.
References
Citations
Bibliography
- Pramas, Chris. "The Empire of Ravilla." Dragon #285. Renton, WA: Wizards of the Coast, July 2001.
- Chris Pramas. "Ahmut's Legions." Dragon #286. Renton, WA: Wizards of the Coast, Aug 2001.
- Chris Pramas. "The Armies of Thalos." Dragon' #287. Renton, WA: Wizards of the Coast, Sep 2001.
Zavoda Index Entry
The Encyclopedia Greyhawkania Index page has a list of sources, abbreviations, and a link to the full index.
External link
- Thread on Ravilla at Paizo.com.
Encyclopedia Greyhawkania Index
The Encyclopedia Greyhawkania Index (EGI) is based on previous work of Jason Zavoda through '08, continued by numerous other fans. The EGI article has a list of sources, product names, abbreviations, and a link to the full, downloadable index.
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