Byzantium, Justinian and Arthur: Historical High Fantasy

by Kenneth Hite

"It was said that the Emperor's own mother told some of her close friends that he was not the son of her husband Sabbatios or of any man at all. For when she was about to conceive she was visited by a demon, who was invisible . . ."
-- Procopius, Anekdota, Book XIII

Now there's a concept for a fantasy game. The Emperor, seemingly merely a former barbarian, is actually a prince of the demons in disguise, raised to the throne with the help of a profligate user of sex-magick, poisons and diabolism who now reigns as Empress. While they drain the treasury dry and launch ceaseless wars on the neighboring kingdoms, the very Earth rebels against them, as riots, floods, earthquakes and a devastating plague run rampant through the cities of the Empire. The only hope of humanity, a noble paladin, is enslaved by his wife, also a sorceress, and held captive by his oath of allegiance to the demonic Emperor. By a fortunate coincidence, our paladin's army is made up of professional soldiers from every corner of the known world. By an equally charming coincidence, the evil demonic Emperor goes to great lengths to destroy and exile the good magicians who guard knowledge from previous centuries, and to drive out holy clerics whose only sin is to disagree with the corrupt puppets he places in the temples. This kind of behavior is just the thing for creating parties of do-gooding PCs.

Of course, you're . . .

This article originally appeared in the second volume of Pyramid. See the current Pyramid website for more information.

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Article publication date: May 1, 1998

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