Talon Hill is a large, old clearing, fox-dominant but full of

denizens of all sorts. It has been ruled by the Kingfishers for

as long as any denizen has recorded the history. At various

points in history, the Kingfisher family has also sat atop

the Eyrie’s throne. As a result, the Kingfishers have as good

a claim on the throne of the Eyrie Dynasties as any. In the

midst of the Woodland War, bureaucrats and powermongers

alike hatched plans to make the bustling Talon Hill the seat

of Eyrie rule once more, not least because Lady Morgana

IV of the Kingfishers seemed a good candidate for queen.

Unfortunately, Lady Morgana passed away suddenly and

unexpectedly within the past months.

After Morgana’s death, the Kingfisher family finds itself

locked in a three-way succession conflict for the ashwood

throne of Talon Hill (and possibly the Eyrie!).

The contenders include Thurgud, the traditional heir and

Morgana’s nephew, who believes this is his due; his sister,

Theodora, a general and war hero who believes she would be

a better ruler; and Gaius, a stark traditionalist and merchant,

seemingly with the weakest claim of the three, but using

instead an ancient, esoteric Eyrie method of determining

succession that would make his claim the strongest.

Each of the three has taken to investigating the nearby

Augustine Castle, a treetop fortress that was once the grand

seat of the Kingfishers when they ruled the whole of the Eyrie.

Each would-be successor hopes to find and use ancient Eyrie

relics to solidify their claim to the throne without war.

Open war among the three Kingfishers would be a stain

on the new rule of whomever wins, casting doubt on their

legitimacy and value to the Eyrie—not to mention that none

of them clearly would have the upper hand in such a conflict

Even if an actual war doesn’t break out among the three

Kingfishers and their supporters, the conflict might still tear

the clearing apart if this continues for much longer.

At First Sight:

From the paths into the clearing, visitors first see the massive oak

atop the eponymous Talon Hill. In its branches sits the impressive

silhouette of the Augustine Castle. But the ramshackle state of the

castle becomes clearer as one draws near, and the sprawl of the

modern clearing below comes into view.

The footpaths are filled with soldiers bearing a silver talon sigil,

along with a few members of the blue-and-gold–uniformed High

Guard. Tension between the two groups fills the air. Some denizens

wear blue-and-gold armbands signifying allegiance to Thurgud;

others wear red and silver, the mark of an allegiance to Theodora;

and a rarer group wears the old crest of the Talon Hill regency of

the Eyrie Dynasties, connecting them to Gaius.

The sounds of hushed conversations are nearly drowned out by

sharp words between denizens in differing armbands shouting at

each other, as each yells their grievances and the abuses of the other

sides, be they High Guard, Silver Talons, or Riverfolk mercenaries.

ConflictsConflicts

core conflict:

The Line of Succession

After the death of Lady Morgana IV, her first nephew quickly

assumed the silver laurel crown, becoming Lord Thurgud II

of Talon Hill and setting himself up to ultimately become

King of the Eyrie Dynasties. Shortly thereafter, however,

Talon Hill’s primary military company, the Silver Talons,

returned from battle elsewhere in the Woodland under the

command of General Theodora. While out-and-out conflict

hasn’t yet bubbled up, Theodora’s forces have clearly failed

to acknowledge or bow to Thurgud’s rein. Theodora and

the Silver Talons have made not yet made explicit, blatant

demands that Thurgud relinquish the throne, but their

position is perfectly clear—only propriety and fear of outright

civil war stands in the way of open claims. In the meantime,

the High Guard has taken to opposing the Silver Talons

and their intimidation tactics, all but pressing to full-scale

conflict. Most soldiers and leaders of the active expeditionary

military maintain that their forces will only answer to

General Theodora.

In the midst of the conflict, Lord Gaius Kingfisher threw his

hat into the ring, making a claim for sovereignty through the

ancient tome On Rulership written by Augustine Kingfisher

himself. He is backed by the wealthiest non-Kingfishers of

Talon Hill and by traditionalists within the nobility, including

several who had originally hoped Morgana would ascend to

the throne of the whole Eyrie. Additionally, Gaius has hired

out Riverfolk Company mercenaries to support his claim.

Riverfolk Captain Signa has agreed on behalf of the Company

to blockade the clearing’s commerce should the Company’s

chosen candidate not become Lord Gaius I.

All three would-be monarchs look to Augustine Castle, inside

which several Eyrie symbols of power are rumored to be

buried: the original Seal of Augustus I, given to him by the

all the leading families of the Dynasties; the Royal Mantle, a

cloak made of Augustus I’s feathers; and the Binding Scepter,

crafted by the legendary Eyrie Queen Tornessa and handed

down to new Eyrie rulers through the ages. All were buried

in the ruins after a battle in the Civil War, when a group of

crows from the nascent Corvid Conspiracy sacked Talon Hill

and destroyed parts of the castle with explosives.

Having the classical symbols would bolster any would-be

successor’s link to tradition and help them win support from

the rest of the undecided nobility and denizens throughout

Talon Hill and the wider Eyrie. Without these symbols, each

of the three has only enough sway to force a stalemate. None

of them can afford to dismiss the others, and none wants any

outright conflict. These relics might tip the balance.

1818 Free RPG Day BookletFree RPG Day Booklet

Gaius was the first to look for the symbols of power, hiring

denizens to delve into the ruins to search the ancient ruins

for him. It wasn’t until part of the unstable castle collapsed,

crushing one such group under wood and stone, that anyone

took notice. Afterward, King Thurgud tasked a large portion

of the High Guard to lock down the decrepit castle. Now the

Guard keeps careful watch to prevent anyone else from entering,

while Thurgud forces Guard members and other servants to risk

the dangerous ruins in search of these items for him.

Not to be outdone, Theodora has sent a military detail to

“assist” in keeping the ruins off limits; the Silver Talons and

the High Guard hasn’t yet clashed because their commanders

are each hoping to resolve the conflict by successfully

pillaging the ruin, but every day they face off at the ruins,

blocking each other from entering their own guarded

passageways. Theodora has taken to press-ganging denizens

and military personnel to enter the ruins while her soldiers

keep watch against the High Guard. Gaius, meanwhile, has

begun sneaking his own supporters into the ruins, using

whatever illicit means he can to send more and more rogues

in to find the relics he needs.

As the three bribe, conscript, and force denizens to do their

dirty work, more and more denizens go missing in the ruins.

Rumors circulate that, while the ruins are certainly unstable,

the biggest danger is a colony of giant ants who will kill

anyone who attempts to enter their territory.

How It Develops

If the vagabonds never came to Talon Hill, then the search for

the symbols of power in the ruins would go catastrophically

awry. As the denizens continue to search for the symbols

of power, their inexpertise would cause the ruins to totally

collapse, preventing anyone from entering without either years

of effort clearing rubble or some other outlandish solution

like explosives. Without the symbols to support one claim or

another, tensions would come to a head.

Theodora would be reluctant to resort to a coup, but as the

conflict grows, her advisers would convince her that the only

way to restore peace and order is to take the throne by force.

The militaristic Silver Talons would march on the castle and

fight the High Guard. Gaius would respond by calling in

Captain Signa and her mercenaries to join the fight. Theodora’s

Silver Talons, made up of highly seasoned professional

soldiers, would defeat both the High Guard and the Riverfolk

mercenaries, but not without heavy losses. Lady Theodora X’s

rule would begin in bloodshed and strife. The hopes of uniting

the Eyrie behind a Kingfisher monarch would fall apart, and

the Eyrie itself would suffer widespread conflict as other Eyrie

leaders strive to take control of the wider faction. Soon Talon

Hill would become a hotbed for anti-Dynasty sentiment.

conflict:

In the Chaos

In addition to protecting the ruler on the ashwood throne,

the High Guard is traditionally charged with policing Talon

Hill. Usually, the Knight Sergeant of the Guard—currently a

fennec fox named Sir Qina’an Nahtam—leads these efforts.

But Sir Qina’an hasn’t had the time to maintain the careful

balance with the smugglers, thieves, and cutthroats in Talon

Hill, especially with regard to the Moonlight Syndicate.

The Moonlight Syndicate is a local operation of smugglers

and thieves run by Marie White-Talon, better known as the

Winter Night. The Winter Night is a self-starter and has been

smuggling illegal drugs into the clearing for years.

In the past, Sir Qina’an Nahtam has allowed the Moonlight

Syndicate to operate their smuggling ring as long as Marie

kept the Syndicate small, and as long as the Syndicate

funneled a portion of its income to help the poorer denizens

in the clearing. Marie has been happy to fulfill her end of

the deal. Recently, however, the Winter Night has been

expanding, running a racket on wealthy merchants—she

started by charging them exorbitant prices and extorting

them, and has since moved into demanding protection

money and claiming valuable, undefended businesses.

But the Moonlight Syndicate’s position isn’t secure. Someone

has been stealing from the Syndicate’s internal smuggling

stores. The Winter Night has noticed that a few of her illicit

deliveries never arrived, and some of the best-kept secret

caches of Moonlight Syndicate contraband were plundered.

She has tasked her daughter and right hand in the gang,

Diana White-Talon, to investigate what’s going on. Little does

Marie know that Diana herself is the traitor. Diana has been

using the stolen goods to support her partner, Alexandria

Kingfisher (see “The Hatchling That Could Be Monarch”).

The Winter Night is still trying to expand her territory while

holding off this new threat. Meanwhile, Sir Qina’an wants her

to either stop trying to expand and return to the way things

were, or be eliminated entirely.

How it Develops

If the vagabonds never came to Talon Hill, then the Moonlight

Syndicate would press their expansion while trying to find the

person responsible for stealing from them. When the Winter

Night discovers the thief’s hideout, she would have it sealed

and burned down. Diana and Alexandria would barely escape

with their lives, but Marie would notice her daughter is singed.

This, along with other clues, would reveal Diana as the traitor.

In that moment, Marie would harden, and Diana would

disappear utterly. The Winter Night then would then seek to

expand the Moonlight Syndicate to control the clearing, first

revealing evidence of her deal with Sir Qina’an Nahtam to

ensure he is dishonorably discharged and removed from power

before having him quietly murdered. The Winter Night would

quickly fill the position with someone more loyal to her, and the

Moonlight Syndicate would all but take over control of the law
in Talon Hill, brooking absolutely no rivals or threats.

Root: The Roleplaying GameRoot: The Roleplaying Game 1919

conflict:

A Red Lizard

The Lizard Cult runs the Talon Hill Orphanage under the

stewardship of Clement Meekly, providing indigent children

with housing, education, and food. Being relatively new in

the clearing, Clement and his followers haven’t made much

traction on the conversion front. They took the last half

decade to garner enough members to sit an invocation ritual,

in which one of their older members voluntarily gave their

own life to bless the others. The body was laid to rest with

respect and care: he was buried on the orphanage, which

double as the local Cult’s sanctuary.

Recently, on six different mornings, the High Guard has

found a corpse of a bird lying in the street, killed in a manner

that evokes rumors and stories of Lizard Cult sacrifices.

Both the manner of their deaths and the proximity to the

orphanage have brought suspicion on the orphanage and

Cult, while a murderer stalks Talon Hill. Meekly needs

someone to vindicate his members and school while

respecting the practices of their faith.

In fact, the murdered birds are all denizens who, if the

archaic method of succession being put forth by Lord Gaius

is accepted, could have an equal or even greater claim to

the throne of Talon Hill than Gaius himself. These other

potential claimants aren’t even all particularly wealthy or

powerful—it’s a fluke of the old rules that they have any claim

at all. Most had no concept that they might be able to don the
silver laurel crown, and they might not even have been aware

of their familial relationship to the Kingfishers—Gaius only

knows because of dynastic lineage documents uncovered

with the archaic legal tracts. Gaius might be able to press his

claim through this manner without issue, but the chance

that an opponent might find out about one of these other

stronger claims and create a puppet wearing the silver laurel

crown…it’s too much for him. So he sent an assassin to solve

the problem. His assassin, Adrian Hookbeak, learned of the

Cult’s recent sacrifice and is happily playing on the clearing’s

xenophobia and prejudice against the Cult to hide the

assassin’s own attacks on the Kingfishers and their cousins.

How it Develops

If the vagabonds never came to Talon Hill, then without

another voice coming to the defense of the Lizard Cult and

its local leader, Clement Meekly, public opinion would turn

against them and passions flare. Furious and mistrustful

mobs of Talon Hill denizens would protest the Cult, and some

participants in the protests wouldn’t hesitate to inflict harm

on the Cult members they spot—in fact, they would likely

assume any lizards they see at all are members of the Cult and

inflict harm accordingly. As the body count mounts, the mob

would gather outside the orphanage, protesting its continued

existence. Sir Qina’an Nahtam and his High Guard would

move then, not to protect the Cult and the orphanage but to

arrest Meekly and close the orphanage. The children would

return to the streets and the harsh fates that meet them there.

conflict:

The Hatchling Heir

While the assassin Adrian Hookbeak has been largely successful

in taking out Gaius’s rivals, one would-be victim made it out

alive. Alexandria Kingfisher was deemed too young and too

ignoble to rule by their second cousin Gaius, though their claim

(according to the archaic method Gaius uses to press his own)

is just as strong as his. Alexandria didn’t want the silver laurel

crown and didn’t even realize they had any real claim…not until

Adrian Hookbeak came for them. They barely survived the

attack, and Hookbeak assumed Alexandria was dead. Instead,

Alexandria escaped and went into hiding, slowly putting

together the bigger picture and realizing the commonality they

shared with many of the other recent victims—that all had a

claim through Gaius’s archaic succession method.

Now Alexandria spends most of their time on the ground,

hiding with friends all over Talon Hill and with their lover,

Diana White-Talon, who is the daughter of the notorious

criminal, the Winter Night. Diana hid Alexandria while they

recovered from the attack. Using their connections to the

criminal underworld of the clearing, Alexandria marshals

their own faction of denizens, funded through money and

goods stolen from the Moonlight Syndicate. They plan on only

revealing Alexandria’s survival to the clearing at large when it is

time to implement their plan: when Gaius makes his move, they

will expose him as a murderer and discredit him. Unfortunately,

pilfering from the Moonlight Syndicate to fund this plan has

drawn the attention of Diana’s mother, the Winter Night.

Alexandria doesn’t know who or where Adrian Hookbeak is ,

though Alexandria is getting closer to figuring out exactly who

other likely targets might be. They want to stop the murders but
have no qualms about using violence to protect themselves or

others working for them if they are forced to make that choice.

All the while, Adrian Hookbeak has realized that Alexandria

likely survived, and when the assassin sees that Alexandria is

getting aid from Diana and others, the entirety of the Moonlight

Syndicate comes into Hookbeak’s crosshairs.

How it Develops

If the vagabonds never came to Talon Hill, Alexandria’s and

Diana’s plan would enable them to depose Gaius at the perfect

moment…but Hookbeak isn’t sitting still. Eventually, Hookbeak

would manage to figure out that Diana is helping to protect

Alexandria, and they would kill a couple Syndicate members

while grievously injuring Diana. Alexandria would grow more

desperate with their lover injured, and they would allow their

worst nature to rule them, using their small gang of denizens

to run over Gaius’s interests until they try to have Gaius himself

murdered. Alexandria’s movements would not be well hidden

at this point, and Hookbeak would pick up their trail, waiting

for the perfect moment to strike. When Alexandria would go

to murder Gaius, Hookbeak would strike and kill them. The

recovering Diana would go to her mother for aid, and when

she reveals why she had been stealing from her own mother, the

Winter Night would turn the full force of the Syndicate against

Gaius and would begin a war against the merchant class.

2020 Free RPG Day BookletFree RPG Day Booklet

Thurgud Kingfisher II

The current lord of Talon Hill, Thurgud is clever, but also a bit

naive. He believes himself to be the rightful sovereign of the

clearing and doesn’t understand the motivations of his sister

and cousin. He needs to shore up support for his rulership,

which he believes finding the symbols of power will do. He

knows that acquiring the symbols of power will play well with

the traditional and very conservative nobility of Talon Hill.

He doesn’t expect his sister to really attack, and he doesn’t

understand how tenuous his position with her truly is.

exhaustion ■ ■■ ■

injury ■■

wear ■■

morale ■ ■■ ■

Drive: To remain the lord of Talon Hill

Equipment:

• Noble vestments

• Silver laurel crown

• Eyrie-made custom armor

• Eyrie-made custom sword

Moves:

• Command the High Guard to defend him

• Demand loyalty from his subjects

• Make decrees about the laws of the land

Theodora Kingfisher

General of the Silver Talons, bona fide war hero, and

reluctant politician, Theodora sees herself as primarily and

directly opposed to her brother, Thurgud. She doesn’t want

to be the Lady, but no one under her believes that Thurgud

deserves the silver laurel crown—not after everything that

she has given the clearing and how little he has done. Her

supporters have convinced her, but she doesn’t want to bring

Talon Hill to another civil war. Secretly, she believes that

Thurgud does likely have the best legal claim to the crown,

but she knows that he is not well suited to leadership and,

moreover, hasn’t earned the right to lead as she has.

exhaustion ■ ■ ■■ ■ ■

injury ■ ■ ■ ■■ ■ ■ ■

wear ■ ■■ ■ ■ ■■ ■

morale ■ ■ ■■ ■ ■

Drive: To take control of Talon Hill for its own sake

Equipment:

• Combat and dress armors

• Eyrie-made sword

Moves:

• Order the Silver Talons to strike

• Give clear commands while in battle

• Resist seemingly insurmountable odds

Important ResidentsImportant Residents

Gaius Kingfisher

Gaius Kingfisher is the third Kingfisher pressing a claim to the

Talon Hill throne. He is a rich merchant and traditionalist. He

is an ambitious bird, though he claims not to seek personal

glory; instead, he pursues the advancement of Talon Hill. He

tells himself that he just aims to put the clearing back on the

correct, traditional path. To this end, he has drawn forth an

archaic method of determining succession that makes him the

heir, and he has hired an assassin, Adrian Hookbeak, to remove

those who might interfere with his claim.

exhaustion ■ ■■ ■

injury ■■

wear ■■
morale ■ ■ ■ ■■ ■ ■ ■

Drive: To lead Talon Hill to a greater future

Equipment:

• Rich merchant’s clothing

• A pouch of coins

Moves:

• Reveal an underhanded plot

• Call forth hirelings to defend and serve him

• Blackmail a foe with stolen secrets

Clement Meekly

The leader of the local Lizard Cult and director of the Talon Hill

Orphanage, Clement practices his faith in the way that feels

true to his own spirit and beliefs. None are forced into the Cult,

but the lizard happily teaches the orphans he cares for that the

Great Wyrm values and loves them. But Clement’s kind nature is

seen by many of Talon Hill’s denizens as strange, as if he’s hiding

something, and the locals often share hyperbolic, nightmarish

stories about Cult rituals. Recently, one elder member of the

Cult offered up their own life to bless the newest members of

the faith, as is the Cult’s tradition. But the locals believe that the

half dozen birds found murdered in the clearing thus far are all

victims of Meekly’s religious furor. Clement protests otherwise

while continuing to do good works, but few, if any, believe him.

exhaustion ■■

injury ■■

wear ■■

morale ■ ■ ■■ ■ ■

Drive: To protect and aid those who desperately need it

Equipment:
• Common clothes

• Walking stick

• Modest wood-carved symbol of the Great Wyrm

Moves:

• Call for aid from the faithful

• Preach a sermon of mutual support and empathy

• Give aid and comfort to the sick and poor

Root: The Roleplaying GameRoot: The Roleplaying Game 2121

Alexandria Kingfisher

By the method laid out in Gaius’s On Rulership, this young

Kingfisher cousin would have almost as viable a claim to the

throne of Talon Hill as Gaius himself, despite seeming barely

older than a nestling in Gaius’s eyes. Thus, Gaius’s assassin

attempted to murder them, but they got away with their life,

barely. Now they have banded with their lover, Diana White-

Talon, and her criminal friends, to try to take Gaius down

before he can make his claim and ascend to the throne.

exhaustion ■ ■■ ■

injury ■■

wear ■■

morale ■ ■ ■■ ■ ■

Drive: To stop Gaius and punish him

Equipment:

• Fine clothes

• Set of small knives

• Kingfisher signet ring

Moves:

• Flee to their criminal allies

• Make important connections across collected evidence

• Gather followers to their cause

Marie White-Talon

Also known as the Winter Night, Marie is the leader of

the Moonlight Syndicate, the largest individual criminal

organization in Talon Hill. For years, she had a tense but stable

relationship with the High Guard and Sir Qina’an Nahtam—she

could operate in Talon Hill without fear of prosecution as long

as she kept her head down, didn’t cause trouble, and didn’t try

to expand into wealthy areas where the Syndicate might be

noticed. In exchange for this, she contributed some portion of

her profits back to the clearing and its downtrodden denizens.

Amid the recent chaos, she has taken the opportunity to expand

her control of the clearing, threatening that previously stable

relationship. Recently, unbeknownst to Marie, her daughter

Diana has started skimming off the top of the Moonlight

Syndicate to help Alexandria Kingfisher, Diana’s lover. Marie

would have helped Diana and Alexandria if they had come to

her, but Marie is now convinced another gang is moving into her

territory. She’s ready to resort to violence to protect her claims.

exhaustion ■ ■■ ■

injury ■ ■■ ■

wear ■ ■■ ■

morale ■ ■ ■■ ■ ■

Drive: To expand and defend her criminal empire

Equipment:

• Fine clothes

• Silver and pearl stiletto

• Silver and diamond jewelry

Moves:
• Intimidate through threats of violence

• Make illicit deals and bribes

• Reveal hidden allies and hirelings

Diana White-Talon

The daughter of the Winter Night and lover of Alexandria

Kingfisher, Diana serves as her mother’s second-in-command.

When Marie hands down an order or some thug needs their

head knocked, she sends Diana. Everyone assumes that one

day Diana will ascend and take her mother’s place. By backing

her partner Alexandria and using Syndicate resources to

protect and work for them, she has created strife between

her obligations to her mother and her devotion to her lover.

Now she has set herself on a course and doesn’t see an easy

way out. At this point, she hopes Alexandria can out Gaius so

things can go back to normal.

exhaustion ■ ■■ ■

injury ■ ■ ■■ ■ ■

wear ■ ■■ ■

morale ■ ■■ ■

Drive: To protect and assist Alexandria

Equipment:

• Fine clothes

• Throwing daggers

Moves:

• Attack with brutal ferocity

• Call in other criminals for backup

• Solve a problem with pilfered money

Adrian Hookbeak

A freelancing assassin who has lived in Talon Hill for only a

short time, Adrian currently works for Gaius Kingfisher. Adrian

has been killing anyone who might have a claim to the silver

laurel crown through Gaius’s archaic method of succession.

Adrian themself came up with the idea of pinning the murders

on the local Lizard Cult, making the murders appear to match

the worst tales of that group’s practices. Hookbeak failed only

once so far—with Alexandria—although Hookbeak believed

that Alexandria was already dead when they left the scene.

Hookbeak has since realized that Alexandria might have

survived and is trying to finish the job. The wide-scale murders

have thus stopped for the time being, although the fear and

mistrust of the Cult still grows. Alexandria is proving rather

difficult to find, especially since they are in the care of the

Moonlight Syndicate by proxy of Diana White-Talon. Adrian is

seeking someone to dupe into giving up Alexandria’s position,

and they know how to play it casual to avoid suspicion.

exhaustion ■ ■ ■ ■■ ■ ■ ■

injury ■ ■ ■ ■■ ■ ■ ■

wear ■ ■ ■■ ■ ■

morale ■ ■■ ■

Drive: To murder Gaius’s rivals

Equipment:

• Subtle armor under modest clothes

• Assassin’s tools

Moves:

• Lie in wait for the right time to act

• Move quickly and quietly

• Attack from the shadows