Narrator Guide

This section contains spoilers — players should avoid this section if they have a Narrator. Groups without a Narrator who would like to minimize spoilers may avoid this section for now, and only refer here when directed by the story.

New Factions

Refer to the People section of the Setting Guide for details on the basic factions in the Horizon setting, including the tribes such as the Nora. The factions listed here have been created for the Connections module.

The Unearthed

A small group within the Nora, the Unearthed would like to see the Nora fully reconcile with the other tribes, throwing open the gates for unrestricted travel and trade. This group has no formal organizational structure, codified vision, or identifying marks. It began in whispers, as Nora saw the Seeker go out into the world, gain the trust and friendship of a diverse group of allies, and return to lead that group against the machines. While the Seeker shied away from that role, some Unearthed would like to take up that banner and show the world how the Nora are smart, capable warriors worthy of respect and not just derision. Others don’t feel the drive for leadership, but see how the years of isolation have left the Nora unprepared to deal with modern threats, and believe that open trade and sharing of people and ideas are the only way to catch up.

The Unearthed get their name from a conversation that happened after a group of Nora braves returned from the battle of the Spire. One of the braves described the Deathbringers, unearthed and awake after who knew how long in the dark, then going on to describe Oseram cannons and countless other wonders even more horrible than the Thunderjaw and Corruptors that had ransacked Mother’s Watch. In the crowd, murmuring and raucous from the unbelievable story, a pair of Nora commiserated about how they, too, felt unearthed — finally digging themselves out of the hole they’d buried themselves in for so long.

Without a centralized leader, the Unearthed mark their progress one changed mind at a time. A quiet and reasonable debate here, a whispered suggestion there — their numbers grow slowly, content to stay beneath the notice of most, especially the rowdy and obnoxious.

The Unearthed have recently convinced the Nora High Matriarchs to open the borders and accept refugees from the Battle of the Spire.

From the IASO module, Grethe and Uln would consider themselves among the Unearthed.

Nora Carvers

Regardless of the state of the border or the relationship with other tribes, some Nora have begun to doubt the wisdom of remaining willfully ignorant of the technologies of the Old Ones. They see the Seeker, willing to delve into ruin after ruin, learning what she could, improving her weapons and skills, and using that knowledge to overcome something as unknowable and mighty as HADES itself. If she could do that, and still be true to her Nora upbringing, even one in exile, should that not give any Nora pause?

Carvers believe the secrets in the ruins of the Old Ones should be investigated, catalogued, and maybe even put to use to the benefit of all Nora. If that means they have to delve every cave, canyon, and hole in the ground, carving tunnels through the mountains themselves, so be it. Like any artist knows: these things take time, patience, and a watchful eye.

Carvers do not have centralized leadership or organization, nor would they necessarily recognize each other in the same room. Instead, a loose network of friendships has started to form, as small conversations reveal hints of being receptive to delves, or to technology. Maybe a merchant shows a little more interest in novel machine parts, especially from collectors who might also have trinkets of the Old Ones shining just beneath their cloaks.

From the IASO module, Jineko would be considered a Carver.

Oseram Opportunists

While the battle at the Spire may have been devastating in terms of lives lost, it also set off an explosion of technology and opportunities for innovation. The many Corruptors and Deathbringers unearthed by the Eclipse at the behest of HADES were known to the Oseram before the battle, but had been few and far between, with parts hard to come by. Dozens, possibly hundreds, of the machines now sit inert above ground, waiting to be stripped for parts. Who better to make use of those parts than Oseram Sparkworkers?

Since the battle, more Oseram have been seen outside of the Claim than anyone can remember. Some of them come promising to rid fields of scrap, returning worked lands to profitability, possibly even paying for right of way. Others come in the night, not bothering to ask, but claiming the machines as salvage for those most prepared to act. Carts overloaded with machine parts seem to creak northwards at all hours of the day and night, multiplying and returning empty days later.

While some of these opportunists see enough dormant machines to go around, others have gotten more territorial. Most of these squabbles end in hard words and stamped feet, it is increasingly common for beaten and bruised Oseram to show up on Carja and Nora doorsteps, asking for shelter after everything else has been taken from them.

In Carja and Nora lands, rumors abound for whether the opportunists have any kind of internal organization. Surely, they can’t all be operating independently — but nor can they all be operating together. Even the nicest of them, smiling as they hand over shards, is tight-lipped about it.

Carja Refugees

Many Carja were displaced by the destruction of the Battle of the Spire. Not bound by any single ideology, nor from any particular social class, Carja from all walks of life suddenly found their homes destroyed, their family members murdered by uncaring machines. One common trait defines them: they no longer felt safe in Carja lands. For some, it was just proximity to the Spire that gave them unease. For others, being across the river from the Shadow Carja, who birthed the Eclipse, was the proximity they feared. Some simply lost faith in the Sun King.

Carja refugees scattered in every direction. Many found their way to Nora lands, desiring a return to the machine-free existance those people were always talking about. The Claim saw a similar number arrive, looking to arm themselves, or at least to be better defended if another attack came. A few desperate Carja made it to Banuk lands, to find the Banuk willing to help where they could, but still recovering from their own confrontation with machines and buried shadows. The Tenakth and Utaru also saw an influx of refugees, though the sour relations with the former likely led to much smaller numbers than the others.

It remains to be seen how the various tribes intend to handle the refugees long-term. Will the refugees be expected to return home eventually? Or should they be offered permanent integration with their new homes?

Tenakth Expansionists

While the Tenakth are not the mindless brutes their legend would imply, nor are all of them willing to let an opportunity like this pass. The defenses of the Carja were decimated by the machines, creating a unique opportunity for the Tenakth to reacquire lands lost to various treaties, and maybe even a bit more. A few warlords, mostly the ones who still have strong feelings about the Red Raids, have begun to whisper and scheme, suggesting it may even be time to put aside internal clan conflicts and turn their energies outwards.

Thania, warlord for one of the three major Tenakth clans and the one whose lands abut the Carja, has begun sending small raiding parties into Carja lands. To the Carja, they look like any other scavengers, trying to steal what they can, taking advantage of the chaos. Keen observers would notice that the raiders often leave behind valuable but bulky goods, and seem far more intelligent than raiders generally are.

Utaru Isolationists

As the Nora and Carja absorbed the bulk of the Shadow cult’s attention, Utaru lands went untouched by the group. (At least it seems that way.) Having split from the Nora centuries ago, due to the same kinds of ideological differences which drove out the Carja, some Utaru view the decimation of the Nora as the completion of a cycle which began all those years ago. While the Sundom’s Royal Maizelands are visually striking, adult Utaru are all too aware of the caste systems those noble-family-owned farms perpetuate.

Mix all this together, and sprinkle in the occasional Tenakth incursion from the southwest, and the general standoffish nature of the Banuk, and it all leaves some Utaru with a desire to pull back to Deeproot and let the others work out their own problems for a few years.

Some frame the contraction of Plainsong as the inherent ebb and flow, wax and wane in any natural cycle. These advocates aren’t loud or sneaky, but instead cloak their desires in expressions of sadness and resignation. Others are indeed loud, making bids for various Executor roles with promises to “put Utaru first”.