Irrisen

The nation of Irrisen is known throughout the Inner Sea region as a land of magic and wonder, an enchanted place where winter is constant, wild animals can talk, and mysterious spellcasters known as the winter witches rule. Yet none of these stories make any pretense that Irrisen is a place of comfort and delight. The stories of Irrisen’s sagas are told to children by parents as parables—they must mind their elders and be good, lest the winter witches snatch them away and feed them to their true leader, the legendary Queen of Witches: Baba Yaga. In the case of Irrisen, these childhood fairy tales are even more accurate than one might think.

Baba Yaga herself exists, but she does not hail from Golarion. She traveled to Avistan nearly 1,400 years ago from a distant, unknown world and subjugated a portion of the Lands of the Linnorm Kings during a particularly harrowing and brutal winter, claiming the land as her own. She killed all who resisted and IRRISEN

enslaved those who did not. Her conquest of Irrisen took a mere 23 days, and the nation has remained locked in the throes of winter ever since.

For many of those years, Irrisen has clashed with its western neighbor, the Lands of the Linnorm Kings. Memories of defeat linger in that proud nation, and even as the centuries wore on, the Linnorm Kings and their subjects could not forget the swift and humiliating defeat Baba Yaga handed them during those 23 days. The border between the two nations has long been fraught with fighting and intrigue, but the wards protecting Irrisen are as potent as their witch leaders.

Baba Yaga herself did not linger after her triumph. As if the act of conquering the land were all that mattered, she left its rule in the hands of one of her daughters, a cruel witch who was promised eternal youth in return for keeping the nation safe and secure. Every 100 years, though, Baba Yaga returned to reclaim the ruling queen, taking that daughter away to accompany her on her journeys to other worlds and leaving a new daughter installed on the throne.

After 13 queens, this pattern collapsed. The fourteenth ruling daughter was a woman named Elvanna, said to be the most cruel of a long line of cruel queens. As the time of Baba Yaga’s return drew near, Elvanna grew more and more convinced that she deserved to remain Irrisen’s ruler forever. When her mother arrived, Elvanna triggered a devious trap and captured Baba Yaga, then turned her magic toward spreading the curse of winter to other lands. Only the timely intervention of a band of heroes halted her plot, freed Baba Yaga, and saw Elvanna’s defeat. Today, for the first time since its founding, Irrisen is ruled by someone other than a winter witch, yet this should not necessarily be taken as a hopeful sign. Queen Anastasia may be young, but as an exile of the same world her ancient grandmother Baba Yaga hailed from, she has the potential to wield great power. Just how she will choose to exert this power in her stewardship over Irrisen has yet to be unveiled. Certainly, Irrisen is no safer a place today than it has been for centuries, and with rumbles of embittered witches who regard Queen Anastasia as the “Fraud Queen,” it remains to be seen if her rule will match the century-long reigns of her 14 aunts. 4709 ar

A falling star strikes an isle just south of Riddleport, causing a tsunami that damages the city. Drow appear for the first time on the surface of the world in Riddleport and in the ruins of Celwynvian.

4712 ar

Adventurers from Magnimar reconstruct the lost Sihedron. Their efforts accidentally trigger the rise of the isle of Xin from the nearby sea, creating a tsunami that damages ports as far away as Hermea.

4713 ar

Queen Elvanna is defeated after she attempts to usurp Baba Yaga’s influence over Irrisen; Queen Anastasia takes the throne as Irrisen’s first non-winter witch ruler.

4718 ar

Other runelords emerge, chief among them Runelord Alaznist, whose damage to the flow of time threatens reality before she is ultimately defeated by heroes; New Thassilon is founded.

NOTABLE FIGURES

The following are key public figures in the region.

QUEEN ANASTASIA While Queen Anastasia hails from a distant world where magic is a poorly understood myth, she has adapted to her new role as queen of Irrisen with grace.

RUNELORD BELIMARIUS Envious Belimarius clings to the old traditions of Thassilon and sees herself as the only true runelord remaining alive; she jealously eyes Sorshen’s power and lands.

LORD-MAYOR SABRIYYA KALMERALM When Magnimar’s previous lord-mayor died under mysterious circumstances, townsfolk elected this silver-tongued merchant, scandalizing the city’s nobles.

QUEEN SORSHEN One of the most powerful wizards to rule in ancient Thassilon, Sorshen hopes to sculpt New Thassilon into a haven for exiles from across the world.

Today, Irrisen remains in the grip of unending ice and snow. Even Baba Yaga herself seems unable, or at least unwilling, to end the reign of winter within the land. As such, the land remains eternally frozen, with frost goblins, winter wolves, ice trolls, and all manner of rime-coated fey posing common threats to those who have little other choice but to keep their heads low and their minds focused on simply making it one day at a time. That the first few years of Queen Anastasia’s rule have resulted in less agony for the land’s citizens is not taken as indication of a blissful future. Life in Irrisen has always been tough, and many still feel that the new queen’s kindness is a cruel trick intended to grant hope only to rip it away just as the citizens start to trust again. And beyond the dissidents and spurned witch relations of the prior ruling castes plotting intrigue and fomenting rebellion, there is always the threat to the west of the Linnorm Kingdoms—memories of defeat still linger there, and with an untested queen on the throne, it may be only a matter of a few months before a new invasion begins.

Wintery Spells

The eternal winter of Irrisen has inspired numerous spells, but the simplicity of the snowball spell has resulted in use throughout the Saga Lands.

Snowball

SPELL 1

Traits: attack, cold, evocation, water

Traditions arcane, primal

Cast ◆◆ somatic, verbal

Range 30 feet; Targets 1 creature

You throw a magically propelled and chilled ball of dense snow. The target takes 2d4 cold damage and potentially other effects, depending on the result of your spell attack roll.

Critical Success The target takes double damage and a –10-foot status penalty to its Speeds for 1 round.

Success The target takes full damage and a –5-foot status penalty to its Speeds for 1 round.

Failure No effect.

Heightened (+1) The damage increases by 2d4.