Welcome to Crypso, where the descendents of the survivors of a great disaster one thousand years ago struggle to establish dominance on a broken world. This is a low fantasy medieval setting, meaning magic only exists in the lore and histories of the world, though fantastical races may exist. The world is a blank slate, only the outline of the continent and political borders established, the rest is waiting to be filled out by the players. How you choose to make your way in Crypso is up to you, whether it be to extend a global empire in a bid for dominance, establish a vast trade network with the other kingdoms of the world, or simply close off your borders and survive the turmoil ahead. It's up to you, and best of all, the world is yours to create!
How To Play Crypso is a game driven by game mechanics. Every week players submit orders to shift the geopolitical landscape of their domain, which are then processed by me, and the results posted in a summary that advances time by one season. Orders are divided into three different types, with a player able to submit one order for each per turn.
Admin/diplo order - Anything that deals with the internal administration of your realm, geared toward improving your stats. Anything from a trade deal to a grand hunt, just be clear in your orders which area of the stats you intend to improve. This could also be an attempt to sway one of the many NPC factions within Crypso. Success is determined by the roll of the die.
War order - While you are free to create you own internal conflict that may include war and battles, this will not effect your stats. The purpose for war orders are to strike out against players or NPCs. Try and be brief, but more importantly, be specific. Give me a broad strategy, names of your commanders, marching route, enough information for me to write a general narrative in the update.
Plot order - Any player may wage a plot against another player, but only those with a schemer trait (more on that later) are able to keep their plots secret. Use plots to give you an edge in a military campaign, establish informants in another player's court, target a player's nobility for assassinations to cause havoc, whatever you desire. Just remember, if you aren't a schemer, your complicity will be discovered.
Stats Each kingdom's stats are divided into several fields they may work to improve. You're starting stats will be decided by me based on your nation sheet. For example, a kingdom of lush farmlands will begin with a greater population then a kingdom in a barren desert.
Supply - This is the population within your ruler's sphere of influence. Keep in mind that this figure does not represent the total population living within your borders. Assume there are many nomads and unknown settlements that exist apart from your rule. By issuing successful orders, more can be brought under your rule.
Income - Your kingdom's seasonal income. This figure is based on several factors. The size of your supply, being your tax base and workforce, will have an effect, along with successful orders to boost this figure, such as mining and trade, etc.
Expenses - Seasonal expenses are listed here, typically the cost of armies and ships.
Treasury - The balance between Income and Expenses is put here in your treasury. Go into debt and your supply will shrink as your ability to exert your influence over your people wanes.
Levy Rate - Most will be able to raise a total of 2% of their supply, but depending on your culture and successful orders to militarize your populace, this figure could change.
Unraised Levy - The total percentage of your supply able to be raised for war is listed here. Be wary when committing these forces to war, as it will take time for their ranks to be replenished.
Raised Levy - The total troops marshalled into an army. It is expensive to hold a standing army, but the risk in maintaining a defenceless realm well worth the cost. There is a seasonal cost of 0.1 gold to maintain a soldier in the field. So 100 troops would cost 10 gold per season to keep equipped.
Traits The rulers of the kingdoms may choose one trait that will apply a bonus to a certain area of orders. Note that this only increases chances of success, and is not a guarantee.
Tactician - The military prowess of the tactician creates an increased chance of success in battle.
Diplomat - The golden tongue of the Diplomat is able to easily sway NPCs to their cause, anything from convincing mercenaries of an enemy to betray their master, to convincing a group of nomads to settle within their domain.
Steward - A mastery of numbers and finance gives the steward a bonus in administrative orders of their realm.
Schemer - This elusive shadow is able to wage plots from the shadows, their intricate web of informants able to mask their role in the conspiracies waged.
Signing Up Prospective players may submit an application, but only five will be selected. Please use the following application.
your kingdom's banner Kingdom Name Government: (such as a republic, absolute monarchy, feudal monarchy, or something of your own creation.) Ruler: Trait: You're ruler's trait that shall give a bonus in the following areas; diplomacy, combat, stewardship, or plots. Preferred Location: Blue, Red, Yellow, etc - check map above. Predominate Race: Bio: You may wish to be brief but the more info you give, the better I can ascertain your level of commitment to the game. Even just a teaser that holds my interest would be good, with the details to be fleshed out later. Geography: The overview of your kingdoms terrain. You may break up your kingdom into three sub-regions, each with a major and minor settlement with distinct geographic features. Be specific as possible as that will help with the map making process.
I ask that all players try and remain active, hopefully able to post at least one IC per week. Try and submit orders on time, the deadlines of which I shall keep posted, and be courteous to all. Should an issue ever arise, just pm me and we'll work things out. I want this to be a fun game for everyone and a good outlet for our creativity.
I shall keep applications open for at least a couple days while I finalize stats and the map.
Alright, you caught my interest in chat, so I wrote up a nation. Obviously, extensive edits are likely to be made, but I hope the main thrust of the idea is clear. Also, my apologies in advance for having so many cities and varying terrain. Hope that doesn't make your cartography too challenging if you go with my application.
Cheers!
Monarchy (Federation) – the Grand Council of Dukes
The Illyrian Grand Council consists of seventeen independent Duchys inside the borders of Illyria, all of whom maintain representatives at the Grand Council in the fortress city of Devastation Gate. Each independent Duchy retains control over all their domestic affairs, including local laws, taxes, infrastructure, military levies, local government, and rules of succession. The Grand Council works to standardize some of these rules in order to facilitate protected trade amongst the Duchys, put pressure on Dukes who implement laws not conducive to the promotion of the collective well-being (of the Dukes, that is, not necessarily the people), and to coordinate foreign affairs. This includes major military operations, the setting of tariffs and organization of major foreign trade deals, and the selection of generals, ambassadors, and major advisors to the Council.
The Duchys are roughly split into four factions inside the Council, though some members are prone to switching sides spontaneously depending on the issue or what they're being paid. I will briefly list their names (consider the name of each Duchy to be the major city located therein), and then briefly describe their location.
The Virenti League: In the south of the Illyrian Duchys, the coastline and the numerous islands ringing the bay are home to five of the richest and most populous Duchys in the Federation. The Duchys here are tiny in terms of total land yet each is home to a major port or island city that gives the Duchy its name. - The Duchy of Virenti: island Duchy - The Duchy of Quimble: island Duchy - The Duchy of Wester Isle: island Duchy - The Duchy of Devastation Gate: main port on the mainland - The Duchy of Kraken's Rest: located on the eastern edge of the bay on the mainland
The Western Hinterlands: To the west of the Virenti Leagues sandy and beautiful shores, deep bays, and countless islands, the coastline becomes considerably rougher and steeper, making the ports fewer and far between. The Western horn of the Hinterlands has incredibly rough storms, which further limits the amount of navel travel and trade undertaken by the Duchys located in this region. Four dukes split the control of the rolling foothills and heavily forested valleys of the Hinterlands – populations are smaller and more spread out, and the land is wild and often untamed. Lumber is the primary export of the region, but as much as they cut down trees, the forest never quite seems to diminish in size... - The Duchy of Silverwood: the very centre of the western point - The Duchy of Desolation Point: the northern point and shoreline of the western point - The Duchy of Coldhollow: The west shoreline - The Duchy of Helliwell: the south shoreline
The Triumvirate: These three Duchys control the central regions of Illyria, and despite being outnumbered in absolute terms by the Virenti League usually retain immense influence in the Council due to their role as the breadbasket for the entire Federation. Though the Virenti league produces sizable quantities of seafood for consumption, it is the grain from the Triumvirate that feeds the rich cities to the south. - The Duchy of Pythia: borders the Western Hinterlands - The Duchy of Berengar: located north of Devastation Gate, dead in the centre of Illyria - The Duchy of Kioria: east/south central, farthest east of the triumvirate. Kioria is a port.
The March Dukes: To the north of the Triumvirate, the land quickly fades into arid desert, which constitutes close to 45% of Illyria's landmass. As such, the four March Dukes control the largest amount of land but have the smallest total population. Their revenue comes mainly from mining metal, including precious ores, and in facilitating trade across the wide-expanse of Illyrian desert which is prone to deadly sandstorms. They, of course, charge generously for their services as guides. The March Dukes are also the most militarized of all the Duchys, being the first line of defense against incursions from the north as well as constantly engaging with bandits and... other threats... that arise in the desert. - The Duchy of Precipice Point: farthest east - The Duchy of Ogre's End: smaller Duchy located in the middle of the others, mostly mountainous - The Duchy of Redsand Cleft: largest Duchy, contains most of the desert - The Duchy of Liberty Oasis: controls a substantial amount of desert – fully surrounded by Redsand Cleft though.
Ruler: The current Grand Duke is Duke Nathaniel Berengar (see bios).
Trait: Ruler's trait is diplomat.
Prominent Terrain: Illyria has a primary terrain of arid savannah and sandy desert mountains, though most of the population lives to the south of that region. This region takes up the northern half of the country and contains the four March Duchys. Various small mountain ranges ring the desert, creating the conditions for an incredibly hot, dry, and isolated climate inside the desert.
Secondary Terrain: Illyria has two secondary terrains: flat plains south of the desert continuing almost all the way to the south shore, and a hilly forested region in the Hinterlands on the western point.
Human (neutral – each Duchy has a specialisation which roughly balances the Federation out when viewed holistically). However, each Duchy has one or more sub-races who have intermarried extensively with the local human population (often out of necessity), which leads to very distinctive looks for most citizens of each region. Pure human ancestry is considered by the elite in the Verenti league to be the most valuable, but few other Duchys agree with or support this superiority complex to the same degree.
As such:
Virenti League: Mainly human, though some of the “lesser classes” have interbred with orcs. Western Hinterlands: A dizzying array of elf and fae genetic influence, such that it is often unclear exactly at first glance whether a citizen is more fae than human. The Triumvirate: Pythia has independent centaur tribes and Kioria has some halfling influence in their genetic pool, but Berengar is mostly human. The Marches: There is a fair amount of dwarvish blood in many of these kingdoms, especially Ogre's End which is the only Duchy in which humans are not the majority. However, the desert Duchys are also prone to humans with... mutations... that reflect the continuing lingering effects of the apocalypse of a thousand years past.
Supply:
Levy:
Income:
Expenses:
Treasury:
The Free Duchys of Illyria: Historically, the Free Duchys were always constantly at war with eachother, and many independent states have risen and fallen over the past millenia. However, the relative isolation of the Free Duchys from the west of the world due to the ocean to their east and the desert on their northern border has allowed for their political development to continue mostly in isolation, though several current Duchys are the result of past successful or partially successful invasions from other regions of Crypso.
The constant pressure of conflict allowed little room for racial discrimination towards other races living within the borders of a Duchy, as few Dukes could handle both their external affairs while waging an internal war against another race that often made up close to half of their population. As such, over the centuries extensive racial intermingling has led to a melting pot within each Duchy that can often be repulsive to outsiders who find racial intermarriage distasteful. This is not to suggest that there are not “pureblood” communities of all the racial groups to be found in Illyria, but just that it is far rarer to find an “pureblood” elf than it is to find an half-elf with fae attributes from a grandparent. Given that the current arrangement of populations and political borders has remained relatively constant for the last sixty years, each Duchy has settled into a particular “look” that also tends to reflect their political approach and social outlook. This, understandably, leads to substantial disagreements, rivalries, and intrigue inside the Grand Court.
Economically, the Duchys are reliant on the major southern cities for most of their major industry, guilds, and trading ports. Most of the primary products that they produce, such as timber from the Hinterlands and ore from the Marches, are consumed locally, with their major exports to other nations being rare spices and precious metals from the Marches, fishing byproducts and wine from the southern isles, wool/leather from the Hinterlands, and grains from the Triumvirate.
Independently the Duchys are not a military threat – it is only when the Duchys band together that they are capable of holding their own against foreign interference. Each Duchy has a specialty, such as the Pythian peasant-knights, the Silverwood pike squares, Ogre's End's heavy infantry, or Coldhollow's lightly armoured rangers. Coordinating these disparate forces in battle is a major challenge which weakens the ability of the Duchy's to fight at full effectiveness, but when used correctly the specialized forces can tear through an unprepared opponent.
Grand Duke Nathaniel Berengar: Now almost sixty-five, Grand Duke Berengar has chaired the Grand Council of Dukes and held the deciding vote on major issues for close to twenty uninterrupted years. A cunning and charismatic diplomat, he has managed to use the rivalries of other Duchys to enhance the power and wealth of his own Duchy, Berengar, while at the same time convincing the other Duchys that their best interests lay together rather than apart. Nonetheless, he is aging and not entirely well, and there is no clear successor to the position of Grand Duke should he die.
Marshal of the Duchys Ferrod “The Hammer” Iglesias: The current man in charge of coordinating the armed forces of the various Duchys, Ferrod Iglesias was born in Precipice Point and spent most of his life commanding skirmisher squads as they hunted down bandits and other threats in the northern deserts. While the Virenti league does not entirely trust him, few can deny his effectiveness and immense talent for engaging in guerilla warfare. Seeing as the Duchys have rarely ever had to fight a pitched battle on the plains of the Triumvirate, his expertise using the specialized forces of the Duchys in surgical strikes in the desert, the Hinterlands, and the rocky slopes of the Virenti League islands is preferred to someone with a more traditional military education. He acquired his title by catching the would-be bandit king Gerrod Onearm at Liberty Oasis in a trap where he smashed the bandit's forces between the massed heavy infantry of Ogre's End and the goat cavalary of Precipice Point.
Duchess Aeronwen Gwynedd: Considered by all to be the most influential of the Hinterland's Dukes, Duchess Gwynedd rules Silverwood with an iron fist. She is uncompromising and brutally efficient, which is a shock to many onlookers who might only initially see her tiny stature and fae features. She gained power in Silverwood after a long career as Ranger-Captain of Silverwood's armed forces, through an overnight coup after the old Duke began to ally too heavily with the Virenti league and their racist policies. Her official reasons were, of course, that she was defending the freedom of Silverwood's population, but the pleasure with which she has taken to Grand Council intrigue reveals her ulterior motivation. Nonetheless, she is popular among all of the Hinterland Duchys, though she secretly worries some of her immediate neighbours.
Duke Berrick Polonius: Berrick is, to put it bluntly, an obnoxious, overly proud, arrogant, and ambitious statesman. Unfortunately for his opponents, he is also intelligent, extremely good looking, and very popular amongst the Virenti league's nobility. His fortune is made from the Duchy of Virenti's wine trade, and his influence gives the Virenti league it's name. He is widely regarded to be the most likely successor to Grand Duke Berengar, though the March Dukes despise the man they consider to be more interested in parties and frivolity than honest work.
Government: Constitutional Monarchy. The head of state by right of blood is limited in his or her authority by the Koramallen, a non-partisan unicameral legislature elected to directly by the citizens of the various districts of Tairre'Tal.
Ruler: King Draanuv 'the Shield' Aaytarne, Lord of Sereenost. Draanuv's full royal epithet, "The Shield That Held", is often shortened to simply 'The Shield', and is in reference to Draanuv having survived an infamous assassination attempt by his political opponents in the Koramallen.
Trait: Tactician.
Preferred Location: Grey.
Predominant Race: Taurn'edhel, or High Elves. They're a humanoid species, frailer, less numerous, but more agile, longer-lived and wiser than man. They tend to be built gently, have light features, and are known for their high degree of sophistication in the area of arts and culture. The Taurn'edhel possess an extremely disciplined and regimental culture, but still hold great pride in their democratic institutions and the freedoms they provide. The capital of Tairre'Tal, Taln'e, is the heart and mind of Taurn'edhel society, and the city's crowning feature—the Citadel of Sereenost—is the prime example of the Taurn'edhel style of architecture, emphasising ornateness over stark utility and favouring smooth lines, soft exteriors and pleasant interiors full of natural light and extravagantly decorated. The Taurn'edhel aim to live life not to its fullest, but to its highest and most noble, and even the poor of the race desire above all else to present themselves with dignity and poise.
The largest minority in Tairre'Tal are the Calen'edhel, the Forest Elves. They reside, as their common name infers, in Taiire'Tal's denser woods, living out nomadic existences as hunters. They tend to shy from large towns and cities, those of them who choose to leave the forests settling in small, tight-nit villages at the forest's edge, mostly among their own kind. The Calen'edhel are not represented in the Koramellen, except those rare few who reside in Taln'e or the kingdom's other noteworthy settlements, but do not overly begrudge this as they tend to be apolitical, interested only in being able to continue their traditional lifestyles—a modesty the Taurn'edhel are happy to oblige. The Calen'edhel have darker features than their city-dwelling cousins and are both considerably shorter and considerably less interested in courtly manner. Whereas the Taurn'edhel spend their days designing towering constructs of stone and entertaining themselves with games of the mind, the Calen'edhel are content to live simply, making camps alongside the trees and practising their talent with bow and blade. Another stark difference between the Calen'edhel and Taurn'edhel is their attitude towards sexuality. Whilst the Taurn'edhel are monogamous, taking on only one committed partner (at a time) for their long lives, the Elves of the Wood are quite licentious. Sex between uncommitted partners is common place, even the norm, and relationships between the nomads of the forest are never exclusive. Even sexual taboos such as homosexuality are accepted among the Calen'edhel. This liberal attitude to sexuality wavers among the village-dwelling Calen'edhel, who are more strongly influenced by the Taurn'edhel culturally and tend to mimic them more closely than those Calen'edhel who live in the forests.
History: Taiire'Tal has historically consisted only of Taln'e and its immediate environs. It was the first ruler of the Aaytarne dynasty, Queen Kalina the Great, who gradually extended Taiire'Tal's domain over all of the forests of the Calen'edhel, by way of a combination of military might and fabulous riches, simultaneously coercing and purchasing the loyalty of the Calen'edhel chiefs. Only a single tribe of the Calen'edhel, the Daennir, was made a casualty of this otherwise peaceful conquest. The Chieftain of the Daennir refused to accept Queen Kalina's authority regardless of the might of Talne's armies or the splendour of riches she offered in exchange, and his insistence on independence drew the support of a significant minority of the population of the other tribes, who abandoned their own people to join the Daennir and resist Queen Kalina and Taln'e. The Queen, unsatisfied with being known in future generations for having conquered most, but not all, of the Calen'edhel, marshalled the full strength of her armies and sent them to war against the fiercely independent Daennir. In a long and bloody guerilla war, the Daennir fought bravely, but simply could not match Taiire'Tal's superior strength. In the end, all professed members of Clan Daennir were slain, and all their sympathizers sent back to their own clan's lands to be punished as their chieftain deemed fit. The portion of the forest that the Daennir had called their own was burned and cleared, a final punishment to the dead tribe for their resistance, on its ashes Queen Kalina constructed the city of Kalina, which was seeded with Taurn'edhel settlers and became Taiire'Tal's second largest city before the end of Kalina's reign.
@The Nexerus Looks good. I look forward to seeing them the Tarrie'Tal in action. If you have time, include a description of your lands geography. I will be doing some map making tonight.
I just wrote a geography section and a whole ton of history, but lost all of it because of an errant mouse click. I guess I'll pick up some other time and rewrite the geography section. I'll post a quick breakdown from what I remember I wrote just so you're not delayed with map making.
Three regions: Arrandar in the east of the mainland, Calenaur in the west of the mainland and the three northern islands are a region of their own called Neldeelee. The pointy-looking bay is the dividing line between Arrandar and Calenaur. The southern tip of that bay, along the western border of Arrandar, is also the location of the capital, Taln'e. Aluar is in Arrandar too, along the east coast. Kalina is the largest city in Calenaur and is located about in the centre of the region. The north-western tip of Calenaur, along the coast, holds Nortessa. There are only two settlements of note in Neldeelee and they're both small and both situated on the same island, the smallest one in the centre, called Luin. They're named Luinfor (along the north of the island) and Luinhar, along the south. Arrandar is mostly plains, Calenaur is temperate forests and Neldeelee more boreal type forests.
Keep in mind that this is a rough draft, if there is anything that you'd like changed feel free to let me know. Also, there are some waters you may also wish to name as well...
Such as ~ The northern bay above the Hinterland Horn ~ The eastern bay bordering the Triumvirate and Marches ~ The southern sea
@The NexerusThe Constitutional Monarchy of Tairre'Tall in all it's glory.
Again, a rough draft so we can flesh out the details as we go. Perhaps we can throw in some river valleys to fill it out a bit, if you like. Also, you can name the western sea, plus the south-west bay, northern bay by your capital and the shallow bay by Aluar.
Looks good. I will add a geography section, and in greater detail, tomorrow. Also a bit more elaboration on history, though it'll be frustrating to have to rewrite what I lost.
Hello, I am also interested in this RP. Middle ages, right? Since my nation will have slight technological aptitude it's important to know where in the Middle Ages are we? Or an easier question: Are there knights wearing full plate armors? If yes, you won't have a problem with my nation, either.
EDIT: I am not really fan of using dice rolls to decide things in forum RPs. Usually common sense, fairness and creativity are more than apt to decide things, IMO. And since this game has a limited number of players I say I resign my post for now. I may have my plate full with other RPs anyways.
I'm interested - I was following the IC but have been stuck on my phone so it's been difficult to post. I have the weekend off so I can construct a CS then, if there is space remaining.
I'd say it boils down to what you would like for a setting. If you want to write in colder climates with harsher winters, blue would be the best choice, while the other two could have warmer climes.
Kingdom Name: The Septentrion Government: Feudal Monarchy Ruler: King Eldris Trait: Schemer Preferred Location: Blue Predominate Race: Humans Bio: Since the the death of King Marten last year, the Septentrion has been a kingdom divided. Upon Marten's death, the kingdom was split into three duchies each lorded over by one of Marten's three sons. Eldris, the oldest of Marten's sons, became the Septentrion's king, ruling from Nistria - the kingdom's heartland. Youngest Melor was granted the Reach, a rugged and wild region on the northern extent of the Peninsula of the Septentrion. The middle son, Ragnar, was granted dominion over Brackland - a barren expanse of bogs and marshes on the kingdom's southern flank.
Immediately, Ragnar voiced his dissatisfaction with his post in the worst of the three duchies. He insisted that a redrawing of the duchial borders take place, such that southern swathes of Nistria's rich farmland be incorporated into his duchy with some of the Reach's territory ceded to Eldris in order to distribute the territorial burden more evenly. Ragnar's proposal was a non-starter with both Eldris and Melor.
That year's winter was a particularly difficult one throughout the northern kingdom. But in Ragnar's realm, typical poor harvests combined with a severe winter meant starvation for the peasants. Ragnar himself went to his elder brother's seat of power at Velken in the height of winter and lamented the plight of his people, blaming Eldris' refusal to cede Nistria's fertile farmland for the famine. Eldris rebuffed Ragnar, laying the blame for Brackland's famine squarely on Ragnar's inept rule. Lord Ragnar returned home insulted and empty-handed. If his brother would not redress the situation, Ragnar decided he would take matters into his own hands.
When Eldris' taxmen went throughout the land in the spring demanding taxation from all the King's vassals, Lord Ragnar's counts refused payment. Lord Ragnar had informed his vassals that they had no obligation to pay taxes to King Eldris on the account of the King's refusal to assist Brackland during the winter. Ragnar sent parties of his knights against Eldris' tax collectors, chasing them out of Brackland. Not long after the King's tax collectors returned from Brackland empty-handed, Melor - who had paid his dues - was aggravated when he learned of Ragnar's nonpayment. Lord Melor threatened to refuse future taxation as Ragnar had if Eldris did not collect Ragnar's delinquent taxes.
Grave words have now reached the King's ears: Ragnar has already spent every coin of the gold due to his King in fielding an army. Lord Ragnar's counts have raised levies in time for the summer campaign season. An attempt to collect on Ragnar's due taxes now would amount to a civil war in the north, but doing nothing proves to both Ragnar and Melor that their king brother is a spineless craven. With the neighboring kingdoms licking their chops as his recalcitrant brother threatens war, these are dangerous times indeed for King Eldris and all of the Septentrion. His next moves must be cautious and well-executed.
Geography:
The Reach: the northernmost reaches of Crypso are a rugged and varied land with diverse habitats. There are open rolling hills, river valleys, evergreen forests, and majestic snowcapped mountains on the northern coasts. The terrain does not lend itself to traditional farming practices and so most settlement is concentrated on the western coasts along the interior sea, such as the duchial seat of Gullstone. There are a handful of towns present in lowland valleys and rivers in the south, and some remote whaling villages can also be found. In the interior of this region, a nomadic horse people known as the Narze live in the unsettled wilderness. Fair-skinned descendents of ancient Norsians, the Narze have little interaction with the settled people. The Narze have sometimes served as mercenaries. Narze horsemen armed with their traditional javelins, are perhaps the finest light cavalry in all the world.
Nistria: The extreme terrain of the Reach mellows substantially as one moves southeast. Occasional hills and knobs can be found here, but the terrain is quite subdued in general. Poplars and aspens intermingle with the evergreens in the forests, which have been cut back into a patchwork of woodlots surrounded by tenanted farmland. This is a land that has been inhabited for a very long time - various ancient civilizations and peoples have left their mark on Nistria in the form of abandoned stoneworks and fortifications. Most of Nistria's old castles are inhabited by modern counts and lords. It is said that Velken has been inhabited on-and-off since before the Cataclysm. On the eastern coasts, a population of swarthy seafarers from the East have established a number of coastal villages with economies based on trading and fishing. Their foreign goods are welcome, although their penchant for poaching and evading taxation is not.
