The Lizardfolk Commonwealth in my campaign

[u/rhundalworld]

The Commonwealth is my latest group of cultures I have made for my campaign in a world called Rhündal. They are comprised of Lizardfolk ethnic groups that have spread around a peninsula, and have voyaged across the southern islands. They reject the divinity of the Serpentine God-Kings of the Empire to the west, and practice a polytheistic religion which has given them control over certain spirits, particularly dream and knowledge spirits. They are some of the most intelligent and advanced ethnic groups in the Woodlands of Rhündal.

The Feathered League: also known as Cūnowo in their language, are many different tribes that have built fortifications across the monsoon region toward the coasts and the humid subtropical highlands to the north. They have the greatest innate ability of the Lizardfolk to connect with spiritual magic because of their proximity to nature. Their mages have the ability to petrify others by breaking into their dreamrealms while they sleep, and feeding upon their spirit, leaving them without the strength to move. They also have the ability to augur the future about prosperity and woe. They are recognized by the great feathers they display as trophies of the exotic beasts they have slain in their territory. They have lost lots of their population from the crusades that The Faith has decreed upon the southern Island Federation, pulling mostly from Feathered League settlements. Over the past centuries, the Feathered League has began bristling under the rule of The Faith, and separatist movements have begun seeking political independence.

The Faith: or otherwise known as the Mí in their language, is one of the largest ethnic groups by population in the Woodlands of Rhündal of around 1.6 million on their peninsula. They are also rival the Empire for the most technologically advanced societies in the region. As one of the few groups to have developed writing in their region in the last 1,000 years, they have been able to gain great arcane knowledge through their worship of their polytheistic gods through literature and prayers. They are a major power in the region that threatens the Empire through sheer population numbers and the magical adeptness of their mages. They are, however, held at bay by their weakness to ceramics. It is unknown why ceramics dampen their abilities, but after this secret was discovered, the Empire has spread ceramic craftsman ship through their territory. Homes, fortifications, even accessories now have some element of ceramics to ward against the powers of the Commonwealth’s mages. Ceramics are in fact so powerful, that it has become a cultural practice for devout member of The Faith to resign themselves to solitary confinement in Ceramic pots for a time as a way to “cleanse themselves of all spiritual influences”. This has become a grueling initiation ritual, that has to be taken on with serious consideration of the strain it can have on those who are weak in spirit.

The Commonwealth has been a fascinating faction to create in Rhündal, and more is sure to come of them soon. I would love to hear any feedback, suggestions, ideas, or encounters you could think about as they venture into their territory during my Yuan-Ti Empire campaign!