Taldor: The Decline and Fall
The Lion throne of Taldor, ancient and glorious, decrepit and degenerate, is occupied, for now.
But a failed social and political coup resulted in the banishment of several figures of high authority and the death of the Crown Princess in undefined circumstances, who some allege was herself the leader of the plot. Grand Prince Stavian III has not named an heir, as he should have done months ago. The political arena is unsettled. Senatorial and Royal caste families jockey for power and favour, old rivalries on the verge of flaring to murderous violence. The debates to invade Galt, invade Qadira, or do neither reach a fever pitch. The vast unwashed masses seethe in squalor and unemployment. The nation's enemy circle and look for weakness to exploit.
And yet, hoary dowager ever slowly sinking from twilight into oblivion though she is, Taldor endures still. Even the dregs of glory that once held the world in awe can manage moments yet of blinding wonder and authority. Though its empire is gone, the impossible wealth of those years remains, propping up a nation that some argue should otherwise be long dead, and has well earned the executioner's ax. Others take it as a sign at the strength concealed at the heart of rot, a strength that could be revived and restore the promise and dignity of this ancient nation. Others still acknowledge that for truth, and work all that much harder to prevent such an event from ever coming to pass.
And finally of course, there are those who find no complaint in the long fall down, as long as the descent is slow, the scenery enjoyable, and the experiences pleasurably decadent. And in willful ignorance and indulgence would fight viciously to knock away the hand that would dare to pull them back up.
Taldor: The Decline and Fall is a moderately high level gestalt game (11th level), using pathfinder, where the players will be the heads of noble families, or organizations of otherwise weighty heft, pursuing their agendas in the twilight centuries of what was once Golarion's mightiest nation, now mired in decadence, opulence, inward focus, and decay.
