Francia

One of the holy relics of the Knights Templar (who worship Baphomet) is a severed && embalmed head of one of the Saints of their Order.
On Aerth, the Knights Templar are anti-paladins.

In Francia, which is now in a state of anarchy, it is common practice to have knives baked into baguettes. (Thanks: kingofthefreepass)

On (alternate) Aerth, Napoleon rules Francia, which is currently in a state of anarchie, with both Albion (ruled by the god-king chris107) and Helvetia massing for war against Francia. Francia is ripe for the pickings, and the aristocracy is at each other's throats, like never before. Meanwhile, the peasants are rioting (use the Angry Villagers rule in OD&D). Paris, from where Napoleon rules, is a relative calm in this state of Chaotic Neutrality. It has become a virtual armed city-state, and, none dare to attack it.

To the southeast, Arles is also in a state of Anarchy. Savoy has fallen, conquered by (King?) Robert the Brave of Helvetia (tmao's character). The dispostion of other bordering states, at present, remains unknown, though Burgundy (ruled by Charlamagne) remains a strong military power, despite their status as a "half-barbarian" nation, within the context of Aeropa. Intrigue is rife all across western Aeropa, and, spies are everywhere.

It looks like 1017 is going to be an interesting year...

ORADOUR-SUR-GLANE, FRANCE

"The Oradour-sur-Glane was the site of the infamous 1944 massacre of hundreds of people by Nazi forces. It is believed that women and children were locked in a church and houses were ransacked, even as the men were taken to sheds, where Nazi forces opened fire on them. The church was set ablaze, and when people tried to escape, they were shot. The ruins of the village are still present as a memorial to the dead, and many believe Oradour-sur-Glane to be a ghost village with the presence of spirits of those who were killed." (Source: The deadliest places on earth)

The Bastille (French pronunciation: ​[bastij]) was a fortress in Paris, known formally as the Bastille Saint-Antoine.

Le Marche d'Escargot, a famous Francian restaurant, has a big problem. Gros Pierre, the maitre d', has gone missing, but his leg has been found gnawed, in a nearby alleyway. No-one suspects Danier, the waiter, who is, in fact, a wererat. Le Marche d' Escargot is famous for exotic dishes, such as soup de flail snail, and, other dishes. All of the waiters wear berets and striped shirts.

To make matters worse, the shipment of turnip wine from Burgundy has not arrived (the farmers were eaten by a bulette), and, someone has stolen the silverware again. But, then again, these are fairly regular occurrences, but, they always make matters worse, of course. (Thanks: PnPgamer, kingofthefreepass, atherton)

A malebranche (horned devil) lives in the attic of a lawful good philosopher-priest of Francia.

Francia is among the 5 foremost realms of Aerth, when it comes to the use of elemental magick. Being a high-magick realm in and of itself, elementals do see somewhat regular use in Francian society. Fire elementals, in particular, are used in mining (smelting), technology (steam power), and defense (shock troops). Unfortunately, Francia is in a state of anarchy at present, and the fact that a few fire elementals have escaped, and now run amok does not help things at all! (In any event, despite the state of anarchy, should Albion choose to invade, they might suffer extremely heavy losses, perhaps even defeat, because of the fact that fire elementals, like all elementals, are immune to normal weapons. A single fire elemental can destroy an entire human army!)