At the height of its power the City of Felstad knew no limits and mighty sorcerers breached the walls of reality itself and began to explore other worlds and realities. Some were plundered for rare metals and jewels or strange beasts for the breeding pits and arenas. Beyond some gates the explorer mages were met with similar civilisations and the best of these permanent diplomatic relations were established and embassies granted within Felstad. Around each Embassy strange districts would emerge, a blend of the two realms in culture and over time a blend of both realities. Some districts like Ur and Xennidhum were small and little more than way stations and trading points while others like Charn, Simmurad and Carcosa grew into thriving centres of their own, adding to the richness of the greater city around them.
When the fall came Carcosa District was one of the few regions that did not freeze in that first cold instant. The gateway to distant Hyades and the districts saturation of magic from being linked to Carcosa had granted some protection and as the ice sheet fell it paused at the districts edge like a glacial wall and its advance slowed to a crawl. Faced with the inevitable some chose to fight, encasing themselves in powerful wards and terrible Words. They advanced into the cold wall with their wands and staff flaming like blowtorches. The weakest merely stepped in and froze, while others managed some distance before they too failed and were lost.
The strongest were the Yellow Orders, great sorcerers and magic weavers from Carcosa and Felstad who had made the district their home.The Church of Transmogrification, The High Towerists, the Sons of Hastur, and the Church of Dead Sun. They banded together and focuses their strength to pierce the wall and in arrogant procession they marched from the district. They lasted the longest and made it furthest, almost to the Weeping Willow Gate, but Felsteds curse would not be denied and one by one the sorcerers fell, burnt out by the effort and consumed until the last of the Orders banners fell and they were no more.
With the failure off the Yellow Orders, Carcosa ordered the gate to be closed, taking back its own citizens and a chosen few into exile.Abandoning the rest to their fate, despite their desperate pleas or hollow threats.
Of those that were left, some gave up just waited for the end, or lost themselves in each other, enchanted spells or delirious potion. A few of the powerful left retreated to their tall towers and deep Mausoleums, laying down fearsome counter charms and sorceries to protect and guard themselves, that they might endure the tide and emerge one distant day in its wake.
The rest went mad and gathered in the Hastur Square to a performance of the King in Yellow, a last revel and riot before the end
When the thaw came Carcosa District was among the first to emerge, its pale streets still embedded with the residue of distant stars and the madness of its final moments. It is a brave band that crosses over to explore its twisted streets and risk their lives and sanity for it lost wealth and power.
Ever since Frostgrave was released I have wanted to add it to my playlist. As a long time player of Mordheim, it offers an interesting twist on the urban skirmish game. I wanted to give it another twist and not just build another Mordheim and finally found my inspiration with the Cthulhu Mythos and the art of Michale Hutter.
Michael Hutter created a unique vision of the mythical city Carcosa from the Cthulhu Mythos which will be the inspiration for the Carcosa District which I will build around the scenarios of the core book but also for my own Carcosa campaign.
