Hey all, Ian here again. Sorry for the belated post, but we’ve been putting a lot of time into ramping up for our Premiere (which is actually starting soon! Maybe consider hopping on over to twitch to check it out)

This time in the series, we’re looking at the place I worked on when I started writing Sigil of Dusk - Irretai. Home of the main deity of the world - Ur’Goth - I actually initially intended for the players to begin their journey here, as a member of the Dragon Guard. Alas, it was not meant to be, and it looked a lot more interesting to start literally anywhere else :)

Overview

The continent is an island country - a theme in the Sigil of Dusk world. It’s main inhabitants consist of humans and halflings of the Irretian ethnicity, a dark-tan skinned, and generally well-groomed bunch. They come in a bit shorter than most other humans, although you wouldn’t notice it unless you were looking for it. They exude a strong sense of duty and hierarchy - even for humans - leading to other cultures viewing them as stuffy, and maybe a bit bland (although not as much as Ravnens - detailed in a future entry). That said, as you’ll see, Irretians definitely know how to have a good time when the occasion calls for it.

The Irretian continent, meanwhile, hangs on a needle’s edge - for dire threats lay on each of their borders, as well as within. The hostile Ash’kin continent - El’Hom' - lies to their west, even as monsters constantly encroach from the Ashen Steppes to the south, and barbarian tribes threaten to invade at any moment from The Outlands to the north. Beyond that, all know that straying too far in the Shywood Forest means certain death - for the Relliven Elves protect their home jealously and with extreme prejudice. This constant threat of invasion and attack led to many of the defensive structures found on Irretai today - Ullator’s Keep stands as the stronghold of the country, with some of the strongest defenses in all Unatowa, while the Frost Wall in Craghome protects their northern flank, and of course the Dragon Guard stand as the foremost defensive force in the world.

Traditions

In fact, this focus on defense and duty has seeped into Irretian tradition - The Call of Age, shortened to “The Calling”, refers to the first day of the year, where all young men and women aged 16 years leave home to dedicate the next 4 years of their lives to public service.

This tradition invokes mixed feelings among the various generation. Some young adults look forward to the challenge and opportunity that comes with The Calling, while others dread spending 4 years away from family and home. Likewise, older adults might appreciate the extra help, or they might dread the influx of snotty, ignorant teenagers.

The quality of the experience for those involved, as a result, tends to go to either extreme, with no moderation or in between. Get an interesting job with an enthusiastic, knowledgeable mentor? The teen in question will surely remember the experience as an invaluable learning experience, and a great way to gain exposure to a potential new career. Get a lazy boss in an obscure corner of the city’s bureaucracy, who shows no interest in what you do or how - aiming only to keep you busy enough to stay out of the way? Well, the called had better get ready for 4 years of abject misery.

Beyond a sense of duty to the country as a whole, Irretians also feel a strong connection to their community - with society consisting of many small, close knit communities. In smaller villages like Tumblebird, everyone knows everyone and considers themselves one cohesive group. In larger cities, though, like Ullator’s Keep, this subdivision can go down as far as the neighborhood level - everyone knows everyone on their block or in the area, keeping close tabs on them and their personal affairs, but they probably don’t know anything about Harold on the other side of town, or his affair with Mathilda.

As a result, when someone new enters into their world for a longer period of time - for instance, someone new moves into town, or a traveler decides to stay for a moon or two - they Empty the Barrel. This involves getting everyone in the community (whatever they denominate that as) together for a night of feasting, with a barrel of wine front and center for the party. While they expect almost everyone to get drunk (given the whole point is to learn about each other and get comfortable with one another) this goes double for the newcomer[s]. Likewise, the town expects that everyone there gossip and share at least some embarrassing details or stories about themselves (again, especially for the newcomer).

Of course Irretains give a pass for of the usual reasons not to drink - moral reasons, pregnancy, or a past drinking problem - but the community still expects those abstaining to share a juicy store or five about themselves in any case.

The low-key goal of this whole endeavor involves deciding whether or not to welcome the newcomer[s] into the community as one of their own. So a newcomer who keeps relatively tight-lipped, even if the face of Uncle George talking about the time he accidentally slept with a stuffed squirrel, will likely get the cold shoulder from the community for the rest of their stay. This of course causes some friction for travelers, who might not be fully in-tune with Irretian cultures and social norms.

Finally, as in the name, the community expects the eponymous barrel to be empty by the end of the night. This might lead to some spouses “accidentally” spilling their Significant Other’s drink, or tossing a few glasses into the bushes, in an attempt to ensure their beau doesn’t get too drunk. Smaller communities keep this as an unspoken rule - a necessity given they consider it dishonorable to have wine left over at the end of the night, but likewise finding impossible to do so without going seriously overboard.

But of course - the townsfolk don’t communicate that widely in the open - it’s evolved organically over time in many different forms, and generally understood as sticking to the heart of the tradition as long as they don’t over-indulge in under-indulging.

Wait, But Why?

While going through the world in this format, I want to give some insight into why we made things the way we did. So, with that in mind: Why Irretai?

Broadly speaking, I wanted Irretai to be a place where lawful-types could thrive, that had a lot of intrigue, and ongoing struggles, and yet also be a place that fosters relationships with communities in game. One of the things I think RPG games as a whole tend to miss out on, even though it’s one of the format’s strong suites, is really embedding people into a community - and Irretai’s culture and makeup really encourages that.

But with regard to the traditions, each serves a very specific gameplay purpose, in addition to providing some depth and texture to the culture. In particular:

• The Calling provides a cheat button for inserting a PC or PCs into a hierarchy that facilitates interesting gameplay and adventures. You have a mentor with whom you likely have a well-defined relationship, you’re close to home - so you’ll still have plenty of relationships with other NPCs or even possibly (probably?) the PC’s you’re working with, and of course it’s not difficult for any GM to imagine situations where a small group of The Called might get themselves into a Tight Spot, where they really have the chance to stand out and prove themselves to their superiors.

• Emptying the Barrel encourages roleplay in a way that’s both centered around forcing the player AND the GM to come up with some interesting, personal stories to share. It’s made to both provide a punctuation mark on travel - forcing the players to integrate and get to know members of a new environment - and also set the tone for the next few campaign sessions. Maybe the players don’t really catch on to the traditions and get to enjoy a frosty few months helping out citizens who really don’t want anything to do with them. Or maybe players get some drunken plot hooks that lead them into some deeper secrets embedded in the community they’re staying at. Or maybe they really hit it off with the town before finding out that the main Antagonist lives among them, putting them in a bit of a pinch as they need to decide between upsetting the townsfolk they've come to love, or accomplishing their overall goal.

Point being: both traditions drip with plothooks, intrigue, and roleplay opportunities for anyone willing to look, and I really can’t wait to see how they inform our campaign moving forward, as well as any others that might be set in our new world!

So anyways, that’s Irretai - a continent focused on duty and community, surrounded on all sides by the threat of invasion, pillaging, death, or worse. I hope you enjoyed reading a bit more about our world, and don’t forget to tune into the premiere of How Not to End the World, where you can meet the party’s resident Irretian, Rhea!

And of course, don’t forget to follow us on your social media platform of choice so you can hear more as it happens!