Since William the Conqueror defeated the Saxon, the Normans rule over eastern England. These are by no means peaceful times though. From the north and west the Scottish and Orkney Lords threaten with invasion, and the Welsh are in constant rebellion in the Southeast. There is also a basic conflict between the ruling Normans and the conquered Saxons, the Norman kings favouring their own countrymen with titles and land at the cost of the original Saxon inhabitants. Thus most of the Nobility and Clergy are Normans.
There is even a saying about this among the people: As long as a pig is wallowing in the dirt in the sty, it is a pig, which is Saxon. Once it is carved up and served at the banquet though, it becomes pork, which is Norman. Same things goes for the ox - as long as it leads it's miserable life guarded by Saxon serfs in a dark cow-shed, it is Saxon. But served as a meal at the table it becomes beef, and Norman.
Currently England is ruled by the Plantagenet Dynasty. The true king, Richard, who earned his name Coeur de Lion or Lionhearted because of his bravery, is impetuous nd headstrong, but also generally known to be fair and just. Unfortunately, like so many violent and adventurous men, he gets bored to death by administration and seeks his entertainment elsewhere. So far he has only spent a few months of his ten year reign in England, and he is an ardent crusader.
While Richard is pursuing his pleasures in the far east, fighting the nauseating noble Saladin and trying to free the Holy Land from the Saracens, his brother John has usurped the throne. John, (nicknamed "Lackland") is by no means as god a man as Richard. Like most of the Plantagenets he is given to violent rages, hiding his cruelty behind a facade of geniality. However his constant tactlessness gets him enemies everywhere and he has already set most of his French and English barons against> him, by taxing them harshly and abusing feudal law. At present there is a state of general rebellion in the country, the barons joining together and demanding that the King conform their ancient feudal rights.
As always in turbulent times there are those who take advantage of the situation. Robber barons raid the countryside, ambushing unsuspecting wayfarers, and then claiming enormous ransoms from their unfortunate relatives. They also collect inordinate taxes and rents from their long-suffering tenants, and usurp the land from the free peasants in the neighbourhood of their strongholds. Many a free yeoman, revolting to this situation, has been forced to leave house and home and seek refuge in the deep forests. Robin Hood is the most famous of these, but there are many others like him.
The coasts are also raided frequently by Viking ships and barbarian pirates, who ravage the countryside, looting, burning and murdering. The Vikings claim to be traders and merchants, but their business methods are a bit original, to put it mildly. The Pirates don't even bother to put up a pretence, they just kill and steal whatever they come across.
There are rumours, however, that the true king, Richard the Lionhearted, is on his way back from the Holy Land. While many people welcome this prospect, King John and his cronies tremble in their socks at the thought of Richard's return.
You also hear other tales, about another King, who is said to live far away in the Southwest, in a golden citadel called Camelot. His name is said to be Arthur, the illegitimate son of Uther Pendragon. Some call him The King of Kings, others The Once and Future King, and he is said to be the one who is going to unite all England. People talk about his Round Table, that is big enough to seat 200 knights around it at the same time, and they also say that he has gathered the best knights of all England at his court. And most people have heard the tales about Sir Lancelot, the bravest and most gallant of all those knights, who can unhorse any other knight in a joust, and who is also without counterpart in all kinds of armed combat. You have probably heard about the never-ending quest for the Holy Grail too, a quest that is lead by Sir Galahad.
They also tell stories about Merlin, who is supposed to be Arthur's friend and councillor, and who is said to be the greatest wizard that ever walked the earth. He used to wander about in the countryside before, and was even reported to have been seen in the City of Olde Yorke some years ago. Lately he seems to have withdrawn from business though. Some say that he is just old and tired and wants to have a rest, others claim that a young girl named Nimue has enchanted him, and that he is now totally under her spell. According to both stories he is sleeping in a crystal cave far away in the mountains west of Avalon, and he is only to be roused at a time in a future when England is in her greatest need ever.
Now there are those who claim, that these stories are just egends and fairytales for children, like the tales you hear about elven and dwarven kingdoms, far off in the western countries. Most people believe that the elves all left England centuries ago, sailing into the sunset in their silvery elven longboats. Others claim that there are still some elves left in the country, and you keep hearing these tales about the Valley of Elves and distant fairy countries. But then again you hear stories of Giants and Drows and about Dwarven and Goblin Kingdoms too. Only the people who tell these stories never seem to have been there themselves, just been talking to someone else who is supposed to have seen it. But lately there have been some new stories too, about a mysterious and wonderful country called Avalon. It is supposed to be situated somewhere near the marshy areas south of the City of Durmandle. In these lowlands the fog doesn't lift from the ground for weeks and months, and almost every day people are reported to be lost in the heavy mists. Some of them are never heard of again, others return after several days or even weeks, mostly wild-eyed and ranting about a distant and glorious kingdom, where everything is possible and nothing but your own bravery sets up the limits. In Avalon, they say, a swineherd can become a famous knight, and even the poorest beggar> boy can slay the dragon, win the princess and be king in his own kingdom. In Avalon you can meet leprechauns and talking Unicorns in the forests, and elves are a morex common breed than men.
Most of the people who tell those stories are at best being laughed at relentlessly. Whoever heard of a beggar being king in feudal England? And as for swineherds becoming knights - well such foolish talk might put some unwanted ideas into the heads of presumptuous serfs and cause them to rebel against their rightful owners. And so the storytellers quite often and suddenly disappear, and nobody knows if they have been put in a lunatic asylum or thrown in some dungeon for instigation to rebellion - or if maybe they have returned to that distant and mysterious country of dreams... Oh well, it was probably nothing more than hallucinations anyhow, induced by hunger and thirst maybe. Or just daydreams and wistful thinking - and who wouldn't need some daydreams to survive in the harsh and cold reality of medieval England...
Then last but not least, there is the greatest danger of all: the ageless Wamphyrii Lords, who threaten all four dimensions of time with their dark and evil powers, from distant aeries way off in the far mountains. The people who talk about these creatures usually lower their voices and cast furtive glances over their shoulder, lest someone should be listening, who might be in thrall to the Wamphyrii Lords. There even are places where the Vampires are said to rule totally. Names like the Svalich Woods and The Castle of Mirkheim send cold thrills up the back of most people. But once again the informer seldom actually WENT to these places or SAW any Wamphyrii or Werewolves or Vampires himself, he just heard about someone, who heard about someone who did...
Be this as it may, there is much trouble in England right now, and a prospective adventurer like yourself should make a choice which side you want to join. Will you side with the good, and try to defeat the evil powers, free the suppressed and save the innocent victims of abusive overlords? Or will you join the dark forces, that really seem to hold the country in a firm grip right now? Or perhaps stay neutral and just make an easy buck for yourself? There is always easy money to be made in a situation like the present...
