Home Game: Politics in Cormyr, Cormanthor, and the Moonsea

In setting the stage for the tale to follow, it behooves our chronicler to mention the political situation into which our potentially gallant fools are stepping. The political vacuum left behind in the Moonsea by the departure of Zhentarim forces has left a complex political situation, the return of the elves to Cormanthor is beginning, and both Cormyr and Tethyr have undergone certain noteworthy changes.

The clear victors of the relocation of the Zhentarim are Mulmaster and Melvaunt: Both have ample room to take advantage of the Black Network’s disappearance, and unlike Hillsfar they are sufficiently distant from Cormanthor that the resurgence of the elves in the area is no real concern to them- for the moment. Both cities have begun expansion of their navies, recognizing the danger of traveling past Hillsfar and the chaotic former Zhent territories. The city of Thentia remains a wary but still un-threatened city, owing to the power of its wizardly inhabitants.

This chaos is caused in part by the remaining Zhent forces. Some six hundred foot soldiers and two hundred cavalry, along with a scattering of mages and Banite clerics, remain under an unclear chain of command and strike at any non-Zhents moving in force through the area. On the other end of the area, Teshwave has declared independence and is rallying to re-establish Teshendale. So far they have warded off Hillsfar and the other powers of the region with the assistance of the returning elves and several tribes of centaurs that moved into the region and have settled along the nearby river. The area has become the site of constant skirmishes and travelers are well-advised to avoid it.

The return of the Elven Court to Cormanthor has created a great deal of alarm in Sembia, Cormyr and the Moonsea, and some in the neighboring Dales, though the Dalesfolk trust the elves to keep their compact. The returning elves are under the command of Ardellos Sunmane, a paladin of Corellon. The choice of a military leader to command this return has put many of the Drow in Cormanthor to rout and has led to elven interference in the politics of the Moonsea. Sembia worries that elven crafts will undercut its markets, while Cormyr worries that the elves will attempt to reclaim ALL of their old territories.

In the midst of the this Cormyr has been left with something of a power vacuum as the ancient and despicably wealthy Gromwell family has taken most of its holdings and declared itself the royal family of Tazra. This has led to a large power-grab by lesser noble families, as well as a great deal of underhanded politicking and trading to try and replace the Gromwells as the primary food suppliers of the Cormyrean army and populace.

And while our chronicler notes that Tethyr is far from the hearts and minds of our heroes, nonetheless he feels it only right to mention the strange developments that even the Dalelands have heard of in the new home of the Zhentarim. The war rages on, the gold dwarves refuse to take sides, and some Tethyrian nobles, unwilling to bow to the Zhents and disappointed with the Queen's handling of the war, have begun to swear fealty to a shadowy figure of the Wealdath known only as the Bear King.