Paridon
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This section contains canon Ravenloft information from officially published sources; see the References below. |
Paridon is a domain designed around the idea of social decay, one which happens to be infested with dread doppelgangers. The darklord is the doppelganger Sodo, who is referred to by the human inhabitants as "Flickerflame" because he cannot control his shape-changing powers and is constantly "flickering" in form. Previously an island of terror, Paridon and the domain of Timor (located within the sewers) form the Zherisia cluster.[1]
Beyond the shapechangers that hide among the populace and the marikith or other horrors from Timor below, few native inhuman monsters inhabit the fog covered streets of Paridon. However, there are all too many human evils here, including murderers that walk the streets at night. The most infamous of these madmen is Bloody Jack, a serial killer who takes six lives without fail every 13 years.[1] Most recently, he struck in 755 BC.[2][3] On a more mundane but widespread level, Paridoner society is also afflicted by the social ills of mass hunger and a stiff class divide.[1]
History
Prior to its capture by the Mists, Paridon and the surrounding land of Zherisia were located on some unknown world of the Prime Material Plane. Several dread doppelganger clans lived hidden among the humans of the city. One particularly sadistic and traitorous doppelganger systematically betrayed and wiped out all of the elders of his clan, subsequently seizing power. When his treachery became great enough, the Dark Powers drew in Paridon and some of the nearby land.[4] The year was 551 BC.[5][2][3]
In 586 BC, the murderer known as Bloody Jack went on his first spree, claiming the lives of six victims. "Bloody Jack" would continue the pattern every thirteen years right up to the present day.[6]
Even prior to the loss of the arable land surrounding the city, the problems of scarcity (particularly food scarcity) ran rampant in Paridon.[7] In 740 BC, the Grand Conjunction occurred, and Paridon became alone in the mists, the surrounding land outside of the city lost entirely.[8] Starvation ensued, though the issue was ameliorated somewhat a few years later as people started disappearing from their homes and the population dropped. Throughout this strife, Paridoners continued to refer to themselves as Zherisian, as a way to remind themselves from a time outside of the Mists. Coinciding with the drop in population, the layout of the sewer networks beneath the city became changed.[9] Unknown to the general populace, Paridon had joined with the underground remnants of Timor to form the Zherisia cluster in 744 BC.[5][2][3] Seeping up from the depths of Timor, the marikith and other denizens of that domain became a new threat to the people of Paridon.[9]
References
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 Domains of Dread p. 117-118
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 Ravenloft Third Edition p.17
- ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 Ravenloft Player's Handbook p.19
- ↑ Hour of the Knife p. 38; Domains of Dread p. 118
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 Domains of Dread p.16
- ↑ According to Hour of the Knife p. 5, the knife was first used in this fashion 156 years ago from the time of the module. According to Domains of Dread p. 17, the events of HotK happened in the year 742 BC.
- ↑ Realm of Terror p. 86 (Black Boxed Set)
- ↑ Ravenloft Campaign Setting: Domains and Denizens (Red boxed set) p. 41
- ↑ 9.0 9.1 Domains of Dread p.116-117
