Spoilers for LA-HP1-2 "Temptations of the Flesh" (also in
Year of Ill Harvest) follow. Yes, it's an ancient adventure, but some players might not it spoiled.
I just today realized a big historical connection:
- Attalus val'Virdan, the Nierite attaché in the Dark Triumvirate's delegation, is an officer in the Cohort of Searing Purity.
- In the First Crusade of Light, the Legion of Searing Purity fought alongside the First Emperor against the Infernal armies. Afterward, they zealously adhered to church dogma, and they passionately ferreted out dangers to the Mother Church. They served as the Patriarch’s personal honor guard and thereby as the strong arm of the Mother Church.
- In 374 IC, General Erdul val’Virdan of the Legion of Searing Purity killed Patriarch Hulantin val’Assanté and was accused of plotting to murder Emperor Marellius val’Assanté. The General was executed, the Legion was disbanded, and Nierites were exiled to Canceri. (The full story of what happened is more complicated, as is standard for Arcanis.)
I presume that the cohort was founded by former members of the disbanded legion. It outwardly seems presumptuous of the Cancerese to send someone from that particular cohort to talks about reunification given its sordid history. Maybe they forgot their history. Maybe they focused on the past of protecting the Patriarch and the Church. Maybe they realized Attalus was the best Nierite for the job, and they hoped the Coryani would have forgotten. Or maybe someone did want to thumb their nose at the Coryani.
There's another military historical connection in the same adventure:
- It was a centurion from the Legion of Radiant Glory who killed Becherek, who is considered the founder of the Dark Triumviate.
- Prelate Acastus val'Assanté, one of the Mother Church delegates to the reunification talks, served in his youth in the Legion of Radiant Glory.
The fact that re-reading things many years later reveals even more depth in the details in one reason I love the rich world of Arcanis.