Fantasy Core Ireland Setting--History Part 2

FANTASY CORE RPG
(c) Jerry Harris, 2012
Published here as Open Game Content.

Index

Then came the invasion of the Sons of Mil, humans. At a pair of battles, men with the power of their druids and bards (who were able to draw on Ireland’s powerful native magic) defeated the Fey. After the final battle, the Fey accepted banishment to the Otherworld. They took most of magic of the land and warped it to shape their hidden, magical kingdoms. They would not be able to visit the mortal world for longer than a day. The mortal world would be under the rule of man, but they would not be able to visit the Otherworld for longer than a day either.

As a consequence of this arrangement, elves are immortal, but cannot have children. Which is why they sometimes “dally” in the mortal world and create Changlings, half-elves. Meanwhile, druidic and bardic magic has steadily degraded over the years with Ireland’s native magic concentrated in the Otherworld. Time also passes much quicker in the Otherworld. A mortal staying too long will find time may have long passed him by at home. Setting foot on mortal land will also cause aging to immediately catch up with the human, usually resulting in immediate death.

There was a time of mythic heroes following this. The great warrior Cuchulain would single-handedly defend his province against an army lead by the vain queen Maeve at the Cattle Raid of Cooley. Later came the stories of Finn MacCool and Fianna, warriors of the king, who were the forerunners to the current King’s Men.

The next invasion of Ireland consisted of a single man, Saint Patrick. Though there had been Christian missionaries preceding him, it was Patrick who brought the miracles that began the conversion of the Irish people. Other saints would follow to complete the work. The power of the native druids and bards would be diminished even further.

Finally came the Vikings. They first raided anything of value along the coasts and islands before settling down. They created Dublin and other permanent settlements on the coast. It was the first high-king, Brian Boru, who checked their expansion at the battle of Clontarf. The good king would lose his life while praying near the battlefield to give thanks for the victory.

At last, here we definitely diverge from established history and myth. The current high-king has reestablished the old concept of the King’s Men and sent out small troops of trusted men to all parts of the emerald isle. A precarious sense of national identity is being gently fostered by these selfless bands, who work to keep the Irish people safe from foreign, supernatural, and domestic threats.

What follows is a listing of various personalities, peoples, places, and other items. No apologies for a few creative liberties I’ve taken for the purposes of making them interesting for possible adventure use. Feel more than free to add many more of your own devising. You’ll have plenty of examples to work off of.

Keep in mind, knowledge of clan feuds, the origin various curses, the reported powers of a monster, the location of ancient tombs, and other information will be vital to the characters’ success. Those with that knowledge are very valuable. Finding and entreating these people will likely be an on-going task for the characters.