Kremlin of Svarog

Kremlin of Svarog

Realm of Svarog

Realm: Bytopia / Shurrock / The Red Spire / The Kremlin of Svarog

The Red Spire of Bytopia connects the realms of Svarog and Mokosh, which can be found on opposite layers of the twin plane. The Kremlin is located around the spire and among the most spectacular mountains of Shurrock. It is an enormous fortification built out of red bricks and adorned with ornate metalwork. Inside the walls the palace is carved right into the spire and surrounded by countless smithies and workshop buildings. Outside the fortifications, the Kremlin is surrounded by wooden huts and houses, where the majority of population lives. 

As you might expect, Svarog’s realm is chock-full of artisans. The Red Spire’s smiths aren’t as vast as those of the dwarven or even gnomish powers, but Svarog’s metalworkers are masters at working with low-quality materials like bog iron. Masons here are also not the kind to carve cyclopean monoliths out of bedrock—but they can weave magic so subtle it may not be magic at all. For example, some rooms in the Kremlin project sounds in such a way that they allow a body to clearly hear what happens in a cmpletely different room. Of course, there are more obvious magical effects too—many rooms and towers contain portals to other realms or to secret sections in the cellars beneath the Kremlin. Wooden architects of the Red Spire are highly skilled in woodworking magic—though few bloods nowadays seem to appreciate it.

The burg is ruled by the Smithy Council, where all citizens have a say on the subject. Kuzma and Demian (both planar humans [he/him] / LG) are the most respected craftsmen in the Kremlin. They are among the few smiths in the realm, who have a unique magical ability—they can forge  new voices. If a body wants to change their voice, they can, for a hefty price, undergo a magical procedure to do so. Kuzma and Demian try their best to not provide their services to would-be criminals, or those who would want to hide for nefarious reasons. Finally, a body should be wary of the Iron Men—rudimentary iron golems made of crude ores. They tirelessly guard the entrances to the Kremlin and will attack any berk who tries to sneak in without permission from the guards.

Sources: Margarita and Jon Winter-Holt. Margarita notes: While this homebrew power is based on Slavic folklore and beliefs, the amount of actual information we have on pre-Christian Slavic deities is so minuscule that building any kind of lore out of it is impossible. However, there are a lot of folk beliefs about things these deities are thought to represent, which I have worked into the piece.