Once the proudest civilization of the southern seas, the Sunken Empire now lies mostly beneath the waves — a vast, haunted graveyard of shattered marble cities, drowned temples, and abyssal trenches. During the Great Drowning at the end of the Second Age, cataclysmic magic and the wrath of the Primordials dragged this serpent-ruled empire into the depths. What remains is a labyrinth of haunting beauty and overwhelming terror.
Key Locations
The Drowned Spires: Towering structures that occasionally break the surface near The Ash Wastes during irregular low tides. Treasure hunters and cultists race against the returning tide.
The Abyssal Library: A legendary submerged archive of black stone and glowing coral, said to contain the original writings on the Broken Blade and the secrets of primordial blood sorcery. Guarded by Deepkin and aquatic horrors.
The Trench of Whispers: The deepest known chasm, where the pressure is said to crush not only bodies but souls, and where the heartbeats of slumbering serpent gods can still be heard.
The Coral Necropolis: Vast underwater cities now overgrown with luminescent coral and inhabited by merfolk abominations and risen dead.
Inhabitants and Dangers
Deepkin, corrupted merfolk, and ancient undead serpentine guardians prowl the ruins. The pressure, madness-inducing whispers, and sudden “tidal surges” (magical currents that drag victims deeper) make exploration suicidal for most. Artifacts recovered here — especially those tied to the Broken Blade — carry powerful but corrupting magic. The Sunken Empire is the single greatest source of lost knowledge and ancient evil feeding the current campaign’s conflicts.