Voice of Breland

In the wake of the Mourning, our king welcomed the survivors of that tragedy into our cities. In Sharn, High Walls alone holds more Cyran refugees than Karrnath has allowed across its borders. If you read the Sharn Inquisitive or the Korranberg Chronicle, you’ve heard the endless litany of how difficult life is, tales of overcrowding, starvation, and disease. Although we at the Voice of Breland sympathize with all who suffer, we refuse to ignore the deadly threat in our midst. The majority of Cyrans who survived the Mourning did so because they were beyond the borders of their nation. And why is that? Because they were soldiers.

The Sharn Inquisitive talks about starving children and ailing peasants, but it doesn’t mention the Cyran special forces and elite war mages who now reside in High Walls. As Brelish, we all want to show compassion to the truly innocent, but let us never forget that these people were once our enemy and could be again. And let us also remember that the cause of the Mourning remains a mystery. Was it divine punishment for Cyran sins that have yet to be washed clean? Or could it have been a premature activation of an arcane weapon—and if so, could Cyran artificers already be working on an improved version in the heart of our greatest city?

Remain alert, people of Breland! Don’t let the current plight of these unfortunates blind you to the danger!

Watch Commander Lian Halamar, in charge of the large and prestigious Daggerwatch Garrison in Sharn’s Dura quarter, has long been suspected of ties to the infamous Boromar Clan. Though these suspicions are often dismissed as simple prejudice in the assumption that any halfling in Sharn must be associated with the crime syndicate, the Voice of Breland, in cooperation with civic-minded members of the Clifftop Adventurers’ Guid, have uncovered stunning evidence confirming this connection. The Clifftop guild denies claims that these accusations embody the latest fracas in the long-running tensions between the Daggerwatch Garrison and the city’s various groups of heroes for hire.

Imagine it: a long-lasting state of euphoria, a feeling of power and energy, a measurable impact on certain magical powers, and the risk of addiction and deadly overdose with every use. That’s the thrill of the drug called dragon’s blood, which currently enjoys skyrocketing popularity in Sharn. Every day the death toll from this mysterious substance rises among “blood addicts.”
And no wonder, as it’s produced in Droaam and sold in drams or “veins” by the monstrous thugs of Daask, who surely seek nothing less than to destroy the prosperity of Sharn but targeting its most precious resource: its sober, hardworking people. Remember friends, “Stay on the wagon. Say NO to dragon!”

Prince Oargev, the exiled Cyran royal who governs the town of New Cyre by the sufferance of King Boranel, is planning a brazen act of secession, hoping to transform all of eastern Breland into a new Cyran realm, sources say. According to a group of adventurers recently employed by Oargev, the prince sent them into the Mournland to recover weapons of war so they could be wielded against the Brelish military during the secession. How will King Boranel respond to this treachery? Will the nations come to the defense of the displaced prince? Will Oargev’s scheming result in all of eastern Breland being swathed in the same gray mist that consumed Cyre?

It is common knowledge that those with aberrant marks can’t be trusted. It’s not their fault; they’re touched by Khyber, and the Dragon Below twists their minds. All aberrants will eventually become killers. And though I can see the appeal in using these creatures as weapons against our enemies, how could we bring such vipers into our midst?

According to a high-ranking source in the King’s Citadel, this secret operation predictably ended in disaster. After a few missions, the strike force slew their handlers and deserted, disappearing into the criminal underworld. They could be anywhere. There can be no clearer sign that it’s time to bring down the monarchy and institute a government that is chosen by and answerable to the common people!

Who really pulls the strings behind the ostensibly unbiased news coverage of the Korranberg Chronicle? The Chronicle’s publisher, a wily Zil gnome named Cassia Lorridan Claddik, is the most public face of its leadership, and her connection to Korranberg’s ruling Council of Nine is well known. But she is not the ultimate authority determining what gets printed and what does not. No, that honor goes to the shadowy board of the Chronicle’s owners.

Voice reporters have uncovered the names and positions of several members of this board, and the results are nothing less than shocking. The Trust—the shadowy secret police who maintain order in Zilargo—is well represented on this board, raising questions about the extent to which the Chronicle is a propaganda engine for Zilargo. Worse still, several of the wealthiest and most influential members of the board are associated with the Aurum, a shadowy cabal whose primary interest seems to be increasing its members’ wealth and influence. Whose interest, then, does the Chronicle serve?

All the more reason, loyal readers, to rely on the Voice of Breland for unbiased news you can use.

In a shocking move, King Boranel has ordered that all Brelish citizens who live west of the Graywall Mountains must leave their homes and return to the eastern lands, or else forfeit their claim to the king’s protection. In the face of a few withered hags and a ragtag “army” of filthy ogres and mangy gnolls, King Boranel’s legendary courage has apparently faltered. We can only assume he means to yield to Cyre next.