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Forward Sora Kell Petition to Thronehold, Karrnathi Ambassador Says
 KORTH—Recent overtures from the Daughters of Sora Kell deserve consideration from the Treaty of Thronehold nations, said ambassador Jurneya ir’Hauptroch in advance of a diplomatic mission to Breland, Droaam, and Zarash’ak in the Shadow Marches.
“With each passing year, conditions improve in Droaam,” she said. “While the nation of Karrnath continues to have important differences with the Daughters of Sora Kell, it’s increasingly apparent that they have de facto control of the region.”
Within the last month, capitals across Khorvaire have received missives bearing the seal of Sora Katra, one of the trio of hags that rules Droaam.
The exact contents of each letter aren’t known, but those received by Breland and Aundair sought advantageous trade terms and a dramatic reduction in standing armies in western Khorvaire.
The Karrnathi crown also received a communiqué from the Sora Katra, ir’Hauptroch said. Its contents are still under consideration and remain under royal seal.
But based on the Breland and Aundair letters, court watchers believe that Droaam is asking for terms that would functionally make it a Treaty of Thronehold nation, subject to all the treaty’s rights and strictures.
In 993, the Daughters of Sora Kell unsuccessfully petitioned to be part of the talks that eventually led to the Treaty of Thronehold. At the time, Karrnath objected that the hags weren’t truly ruling a nation-state. Other nations had their own reasons for denying the Sora Kell petitions; Brelish soldiers were fighting Droaam’s gnoll and giant armies at the time, so Breland never even acknowledged the hags’ diplomatic effort.
Droaam’s current efforts are being viewed more favorably, although ir’Hauptroch was clear to point out that the Karrnathi crown hasn’t advanced an opinion on closer relations with Droaam—merely that the recent missives deserve careful consideration. The diplomatic corps in Thrane and Breland are said to remain suspicious of Droaam’s overtures.
Actually adding Droaam to the Treaty of Thronehold would require the presence of existing signatories’ ambassadors on the island of Thronehold. No such summit has been scheduled, ir’Hauptroch said.
Hannuri d’Tharashk, a dragonshard prospector whose livelihood often takes him to southern Droaam, said there may be another reason for the diplomatic overtures: famine.
“A lot of the population relies on livestock as a food source, but this spring a lot of animals were born weakened and lame,” he said. “The gnolls call it urrakhnoon—the purple spots. The animals develop these bruises that make it too painful to stand.”
With its livestock herds thus depleted, Droaam may be seeking imports from the breadbaskets of Breland and Aundair, he said.
About the Author
David Noonan is a designer/developer for Wizards of the Coast. Before coming to Wizards, he was a daily newspaper reporter in Washington state. Apparently the city hall beat is good practice for an Eberron campaign.
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