Festival of Bridges
Long ago, dozens of city-states controlled small territories along the Great River, and pre-eminent among them were the three cities:
Desetton, the northern island city of scholars; Sateze, the militaristic fortress city on the eastern bank; and Whelside, the wagon city, newest of the three and awash with coin from the growing merchant class. Those cities are now collectively known as Ternion, the capital of the river nation and named for the word “unity” in the ancient tongue. The story of its formation is celebrated at the Festival of Bridges.
After generations of contention, factions among the three cities were preparing for a bloody confrontation when the threat of Attorcarn the Blighter first became known. The necromancer’s hordes brought ruin flowing south along the river on both banks, and with destruction marching on their doorstep the cities agreed to fight under one banner.
It was Jasnata, a general of Desetton whose name is spoken now in reverence, who led them. During her command, she offered refuge to anyone fleeing the undead from other cities. When the great and powerful of her city attempted to oust her in the name of their own self-interest, she executed them as a warning and established the River Council based on the city’s ancient traditions. This group was the core of what would later become the ruling body of the river nation.
In the final battle of what would be known as the Bone War, she slew Attocarn outside Sateze’s walls. Then, with Whelside facing imminent defeat at the hands of the necromancer’s still-raging army, she led the last of her elite guard, the Falcons, to support them. However, because of the war preparations the cities had taken against each other, the bridges between the two had been destroyed, and Jasnata had to lead her guard in a near-suicidal swim across the river. There at the last, she was betrayed as she led her soldiers in a valiant charge. Envious leaders commanded loyal troops to hold, leaving them to watch as the Falcons’ bright blue uniforms were slowly swallowed by the undead mass.
Waiting with bated breath, the soldiers assumed this was some strategy, but as seconds passed and no order came, it slowly dawned on them that this was the blackest treachery. With a sudden cry, the common soldiers abandoned their places and began a charge of their own accord, and any officers who tried to stop them were cut down without mercy.
None of the Falcons survived, and Jasnata was discovered barely breathing. Her last words from that moment are taught to children, carved on public buildings, and chanted during the Festival of Bridges celebration:
“No bridge rests on just one shore. Unite and thrive.”
Game Design
The highlight of the Festival of Bridges is the challenge of the Unity Crossing, in which teams of four or more attempt to follow Jasnata and the Falcon’s example and swim across the river from east to west. Fighting eddying currents, a vicious undertow, and swirling water, it takes a strong swimmer to remain afloat, let alone make progress towards the other shore.
Supporters and celebrants cheer and encourage those attempting the crossing, and a small flotilla of fishing craft holds position downstream to fish out those who can’t make it. The crossing is made in groups, typically of ten or more and these are usually well-practiced and understand each other, the dangers, and their limits.
Visitors wishing to attempt the crossing are unlikely to be allowed to join an established local group, as such teams often have strong family ties going back generations, but are welcome to form their own teams. Use of magic to aid in the crossing is considered a disgrace and anyone known to have done so is scorned and rejected by the locals.
To succeed in the crossing, each character must accumulate four successful DC 15 Athletics checks. When a participant fails, but does not critically fail, another member of the group with the same number of successes can take disadvantage on their next check to give the failing participant a chance to re-roll their check, taking the second result.
For each failure, a participant suffers a level of fatigue . A participant that reaches three levels of fatigue doubles the remaining attempts required for them to succeed, and at six levels they are unable to make any further progress and are taken out of the water by fishing boat.
Groups succeeding in the crossing who do not use any magic gain a greater understanding and unity and for the next month may use the Help action to aid each other as a bonus action.