Hmm, I'm wondering, would it be alright if I can have that bit of land between my colony and the Lizard Clans, and to connect and all. If not then that's alright.
[OOC] Fabula Elysia - Medieval Fantasy Nationgame Page 18
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General Introduction
Myrstrost is known as "the Forgotten Kingdom" as it had once been lost to the world for centuries but still beaconed forth Hallows from around the world. Now, reawaken from its hundreds year sleep, Myrestrost tries to not only reestablish itself, but also try to re-tame it now hostile land besieged by beasts and monsters while also digging ever deeper into itself and its shadows to uncover what exactly happened before and during the Thousand Year Fog.
Location/Geography
A view of the Frostfallen Peaks from an edge of the Arlimir Forest
Myrstrost is built on the island of Slivyst, far north of the main continent, separated by the Csarik Strait or the "Strait of Monsters" as great sea-born beasts of unnatural origins that prowl under the waves, killing any who dare cross. The island itself has many rolling hills and expansive Arlimir Forest. Towards the north-east, the woods begin to thin out and reveal a chain of mountains called Frostfallen Peaks where tribes of giants can be found. The two smaller islands to the north-ish are Krosc (smaller) and Himlar (larger). Across all of Myrstrost can be found ruins of villages, towns, and temples, all seemingly lost during the Thousand Year Fog, however much of the population lives in cities and settlements that have not been lost as all those places lost have now taken up new, more sinister residents.
Climate wise, the island is fairly chilly but there are times where it warms just enough for crops to grow but famine still plagued the land at one point until the genius inventor Pharros had come up with a network of magical fires called Ember Cradles which had warmed the earth up enough to allow for more stable farming. More recently now that the Thousand Year Fog has ended, the Starlit Strait will occasionally freeze over, allowing easy access to the island from the mainland and trapping the beasts under the ice, but some still find a way above.
History
Myrestrost can trace its roots back to the old Empire Of Aciret which had spread its wings the northern edge of Matria hundreds of years ago, encompassing many races under its banner. However, the Empire was fractured from its start with local rulers having too much power compared to its central leaders and under the weight of unruly vassals and the Orc hordes that were making routine incursions into the weakened Aciret lands, the Empire fell apart.
Those who were lucky enough to run faster than the mounts of the Orcs could go hopped on to boats and made way for what was then known as Silvyst Island. The Orcs had tried to follow but the valiant warriors who were left protected the beaches with great vigor day and night to ensure that their new home would be well protected. As the raids became less and less frequent, the island slowly became its own kingdom under Queen Gywendelin Myrstrost the Stoneweaver. A talented mage in the Earthen Arts, Queen Gywendelin personally oversaw much of the creation of the new Myrstrost Kingdom, explaining its fantastical style.
Things went smoothly for a few generations where the Kingdom became an important stop along many northern trade routes and sea lanes. The ports were busy, people filled the streets, things where made and researched, but then, silence. The villages were silent as no ships came in and an erie, thick, hazy fog set in.
No one could get in or out it seemed, any ships that tried to enter or leave the fog found themselves turned right back around by some force of magic. Strangely enough though, Hallows were able to pass through the mist and reach the Kingdom but never come out.
For centuries the silver mist isolated Myrstrost with no one able to get in or out. As such, the land had faded away into legend, an eternal abandoned land beyond the smoky mist with only the words of a kingdom so grand and epic that the gods themselves were jealous of the Queen's abilities. And thus, curse her entire kingdom into fog to be forgotten.
But then, almost 10 years ago, the fog dissipated and the ancient kingdom rose from that of legends into that of reality. However, now there are new monsters and beasts that roam the old, once forgotten cities and the island of Silvyst has been tainted and marred with countless new ruins. But no one remembers how all of this came to be, nor the events that lead up to the Thousand Year Fog or what exactly transpired in it. Now as Myrstrost, the Forgotten Kingdom, tries to find its spot in the world that it had been so long forgetful of while also trying to discover what happened within it.
Government & Capital
Castle Myrstrost, the massive home of the Royal Family and capital building of the Kingdom
The rule of Myrstrost is a simple monarchy with heirs chosen from the oldest of the Royal Blood, assisted by a Royal Court. The first known ruler of Myrstrost is its namesake founder, Queen Gwyndelin Myrstrost the Stoneweaver, although legends speak of someone even older and stronger the the fair Queen. As of now, the current ruler is King Dromovalt of the same line as the old Queen Gwyndelin.
The rulers of the Forgotten Kingdom reside in the epic Castle Mrystrost that had been made by Gwyndelin herself. Some describe it as mountain of a cathedral-castle, others an extraordinary city-of a castle, all can be said as true. Perhaps a monument to Gwyndelin's power, its built atop a massive outcrop of stone making it as defendable as it is beautiful.
The iconic symbol of the Myrstrost monarchy is the Frozen Crown, a masterpiece crown made of exquisite, delicate work made of silver, inlaid with prized sapphires and diamonds and imbued with with pure Salus as to clear the mind and improve the health of its wearer, the king or queen.
A view of Tyrbure, the major and only city within MrystrostThe city which surrounds Castle Mrystrost is called Tyrbure (try-burn), and its seen as a massive, sprawling city and the only city in Mrystrost as all other have been lost to the beasts and darker forces. As such, Tyrbure is divided up into different sections or "wards", each focusing or being known for something but not necessarily only doing that. Several layers of walls have also been built, signifying the willingness of the kingdom and city to move further into the wilderness during the Thousand Year Fog with each wall inward becoming taller, more complex and just more epic. The wards of Tyrbure are:
- Castle Ward - Consists of Castle Mrystrost and its immediate surroundings.
- Factory Ward - The manufacturing heart of the city, it feeds the people with goods and warriors with weapons and armor.
- Caravan Ward - A small-ish merchant district that hosts the largest marketplace and festival grounds.
- Cathedral Ward - Not just the religious center of Mrystrost with the epic Nostradamos Cathedral, its also the cultural center of the kingdom with many museums displaying art and old artifacts from expeditions into the ruins as well as several opera houses and entertainment venues. It is said that it is actually the ringing of the Bell of Awakening atop the Nostradamos Cathedral which beckons Hallows to Mrystrost.
- Academy Ward - With knowledge at its head and magic in its heart, the Academy Ward is the center of all things relating to knowledge, education and the arcane. The prestigious College of Yornheimel is located in this ward and this is where everything relating to Mythst takes place.
- Noble Ward - As one might expect, this is basically a nice, secluded place for THE ARISTOCRATS to do whatever THE ARISTOCRATS do and has many a manors and estates.
- Farmer Ward - The large, open space between the very first perimeter barrier and the first proper wall, this is where the farming takes place mostly in close proximity to Tyrbure and thus is almost a village in its own right given the number of people living and working here.
Races
Hallows are the most common folk of the Forgotten Kingdom making up about 2/3 of the total population, the rest being human with a tiny sliver of other races from other lands who've found their way to Myrstrost without dying and without being Hallows.. Technically there's only two races in Mrystrost: Hallows and Humans. But given that Hallows are simply undead of any race that retain their intelligence, Myrstrost can be seen as quite diverse.
About the same as any other humans within the lands; Myrstrost's are known for much heartier constitutions given how far north the are, acute eyesight due to the Great Mist that once surrounded their home and the greater resistance to fear especially of the undead given how often and close they are with Hallows. Interesting enough, Mrystrost humans do not bleed red, but instead a silvery white.
Hallows are a special off shot of the undead which can afflict any species. They are those who have had their intact souls returned to their bodies in such a way that they do not become mindless, obedient slaves and behave the same way which they did whence they where still truly alive. But no matter how alive they act, they are not considered anything more than glorified undead in most places and do not look quite like normal beings. Their bodies riddled with scars and marks, their eyes that glow like embers in the darkest shadows and the pale blood which ominously gleams.
Such beings are immortal and very difficult to kill, usually only through complete destruction of the body. However, immortality is no blessing, but a curse as all Hollows know; death is replaced by insanity as anything which would normally kill a man will cause them to be resurrected once more, each time the subject loosing their will to be living and eventually descending into madness and turning feral.
Hallows feel no pain nor pleasure, they are not alive nor undead, but yet they walk the earth as if they do. It is only through the constant pursuit of a purpose which they may retain their sanity. Sad, pitiful beings indeed. The reason why they are beckoned to Myrstrost however is unknown; some say was the Fog but more modern theory suggest that there's something else entirely on the island that calls for the souls of the undead to its shores.
Such beings are immortal and very difficult to kill, usually only through complete destruction of the body. However, immortality is no blessing, but a curse as all Hollows know; death is replaced by insanity as anything which would normally kill a man will cause them to be resurrected once more, each time the subject loosing their will to be living and eventually descending into madness and turning feral.
Hallows feel no pain nor pleasure, they are not alive nor undead, but yet they walk the earth as if they do. It is only through the constant pursuit of a purpose which they may retain their sanity. Sad, pitiful beings indeed. The reason why they are beckoned to Myrstrost however is unknown; some say was the Fog but more modern theory suggest that there's something else entirely on the island that calls for the souls of the undead to its shores.
What could be seen as the natives of the Slivyst Island which Myrstrost is built upon, these giants were once considered hostiles of the highest danger. But through the use of magic and guile, some have learned how to control these towering men to serve as labor and even soldiers. Its said that the reason why Myrstrost's architecture is so grand is because it was also built to accommodate for Giants.
Alas, those days are long gone and one will never see a friendly giant anymore. Now, many of them guard old ruins and castles dutifully and attack all who dare enter. Some have managed to form their own tribes in the high mountains, but they are just as hostile as their "tamed" brethren.
Alas, those days are long gone and one will never see a friendly giant anymore. Now, many of them guard old ruins and castles dutifully and attack all who dare enter. Some have managed to form their own tribes in the high mountains, but they are just as hostile as their "tamed" brethren.
Religon
Long ago, when the kingdom was first founded, men worshipped the Giants as they stood taller than life above all else. Back then the Giants were much more intelligent and knowledgable so it was their assistance which allowed the tiny humans to survive. Such was known as the Age of Giants where Mrystrost practiced the beliefs of "Way of Giants" with rituals and prayers and festival.
But then, it would all change when Karginoth of Mezenia, a small village on the edge of the mountains, launched an attack on the Giant's stronghold with 10,000 men. Overcoming the great ones with agility and speed, he overthrew the Way of Giant and in its place had created the Bodhi Church in its place, ordering extensive magic to be used on the Giant to the point they would loose their intelligence as Karginoth believed man had learned all they needed from the beasts.
The actual ideals and beliefs of the the Church of Insight are unknown as they seemed to have faded with the Fog once it had left. Its widely assumed that Karginoth had used the fog some how and the Bodhi Church exerted great power in the kingdom as seen by its numerous churches and buildings. Its said that the Cathedral Ward of Tyrbure was entirely built and financed by the Church of Insight alone, quite a show of power.
Now a days, Myrstrost is lost religiously, the Way of Giants long gone and the teachings of the Church forgotten, while some scrap to old beliefs or even cults, Bodhism is returning and seeping in once more into the once forgotten Cathedral Ward with prayer and hymn filling the streets once more. However, in conjunction with the reformed Chuch of Bodhi is the Brescian religion of the "Sect of Insight", otherwise more commonly known as the "Church of Insight". While it would be lying to say that both ideologies go smoothly with each other, the two do enjoy cultural similarities and a number of shared worshippers; the Church of Insight even has its own floor on the epic Nostradamos Cathedral in Cathedral Ward, a sign of great prestige in Mrystrost
Originally established by Karginoth after his crusade on the Giants, the Church of Bodhi is more commonly referred to as Bodhism or even just Bodhi or "the Church" (as it is the original). It seeks enlightenment and transcendence through means no longer known but certainly dubious given the shadowy nature of Mrystrost in general and a strange connection to the College of Yornheimel for some reason. In modern times, it seeks those same goals via devotion and worship with transcendence being something happening after life. They believe in many different gods, the two most notable are Adaron and his wife Annalis.
Brought over from the lands of the City-States of Brescia, its an adopted version of their Sect of Insight. It enjoys high acceptance given its ideology and how well to parallels to the culture and ideals of many Mrystrostians. The greatest difference is that the goddess now has the name of Pataronis instead of the bland "Patron of Arts" which the Bescians gave her.
Social Culture
To outsiders, what Mrystrostians appear to be can vary from telling to telling. Some talk of a land of undead Hallows who do nothing but moop about, others speak of a land of endless adventure with brave men exploring the great ruins of a land forgotten; some say of a frozen hellhole in the north where everything tries to kill you and its people nonchantly brush off dangers which could easily kill them, others report that its a land with limitless magical potential and can possibly hold the key to evolving magic to the next stage with its Mythst.
All of those are true to an extend in some capacity. Mrystrostians are known for being incapable of feeling fear in the face of danger while also being xenophile to an extend, their curiosity about the world only natural given their isolation. If compared to a child, Mrystrost is like a curious kid whose wants to be friendly with everyone to learn more about the world while sharing what it as.
They're quite a strange but yet quaint people with an eternal chasing of adventure.
Besides the law, the two aspects which dominates common life is the Church of Bodhi and the Odyssey Guild. The Church already wields influence in the way which you would expect, but the Guild is in charge of all explorations and endeavors into the ruins as well as trade. Their focus on trade means their exploration laws are actually quite lax, but employment into the Guild in an administrative role is a every coveted role indeed.
Economy & Industry
A picture of the sprawling Factory Ward of TyrbureThe Kingdom of Mrystrost is modestly gifted with resources. Miners toil to dig up iron and silver to be made into steel and jewelry, woodcutters fell great forests of Northern Yew and Frostbitten Ironwood trees as farmers push out a meager harvest each year thanks to the Ember Cradles network which the Mad Inventor Pharros created to prevent permafrost from starving the land. However, Mrystrost finds itself in need of food given how poor the soil is naturally is; how the land got by during the Thousand Year Fog is unknown.
That does not mean that their is no speciality food however as Mrystrost has its own unique Mist Toast, bread made from wheat that is grown in soil laced with Mythst and whose texture and taste is soft and fluffy when unheated and a sweet toasty flavor when heated. Some say it also has magic abilities of its own like regenerative properties to promote youth and energy.
While by no means backwards, much of Mrystrost is less reliant on cutting edge technology as they are on arcane magics as they have found their natural landscape does not permit a good deal of technology to work well if at all. The people of the Forgotten Kingdom have also long since mastered the ways of magic in ways to make creations almost impossible to do with technology. Such as that in their magnificent buildings that defy physics almost and the magical Alephs of old, of which the art to create and control them has been lost.
That said, the Mad Inventor Pharros had managed to conjure up quite the amount of machinery in the Factory Ward of Tyrbure. A now near-constant beat of pistons and ticking of gears fills the steamy and smoky air of the Factory Ward as everything needed to rebuild a kingdom is made.
Mystrost's main exports are that of a magical nature, of note is Mythst. Mythst is a strange, mysterious element, only appearing in the Forgotten Kingdom as a result of the Thousand Year Mist which it had isolated the nation. It takes on a state between liquid and gas in an almost plasma-like nature although it can be hardened into a solid form. Colored like a moonlit silver, Mythst's magical properties are great, able to enhance the effects of any other type of magic as well as reinforce physical materials. When "retuned", Mythst's properties change so slightly to create Salus, a pale blue liquid not unlike the blood which flows through the veins of Hallows.
Such finds common use in the military of Mrystrost where even the simple iron or steel armor's durability and protection jumps dramatically and blades are stronger and more damage resistance. Some smiths have taken dried Mythst powder to forge items with the properties of the substance imbued in naturally.
Salus is a form of healing and the Art of Retuning which refines Salus from Mythst is considered the highest form of Alchemy normally used to create healing solves and such. However, the process making pure Salus is long and difficult, leading people to create slightly cheaper Salus Flasks; flasks with some bit of Salus mixed into the glass of the flask which provides a diluted healing effect of that of Salus. These flasks themselves are incredibly durable as the Salus which they are bolstered by still retains the reinforcing properties of Mythst. Such Salus Flasks are common amongst adventures and explorers to venture deep into Myrstrost's unknown past.
Such finds common use in the military of Mrystrost where even the simple iron or steel armor's durability and protection jumps dramatically and blades are stronger and more damage resistance. Some smiths have taken dried Mythst powder to forge items with the properties of the substance imbued in naturally.
Salus is a form of healing and the Art of Retuning which refines Salus from Mythst is considered the highest form of Alchemy normally used to create healing solves and such. However, the process making pure Salus is long and difficult, leading people to create slightly cheaper Salus Flasks; flasks with some bit of Salus mixed into the glass of the flask which provides a diluted healing effect of that of Salus. These flasks themselves are incredibly durable as the Salus which they are bolstered by still retains the reinforcing properties of Mythst. Such Salus Flasks are common amongst adventures and explorers to venture deep into Myrstrost's unknown past.
Trade Goods
- Foodstuffs - While Myrstrost doesn't starve on a yearly basis anymore, it never hurts to have a small surplus when you tend to break even most times.
- Spices - While Myrstrost has a small salt industry, the demand far outstrips what they can produce naturally.
- Gunpowder - Something the military absolutely adorns in the form of bombs, finds wide use in exploration.
- Fine Art - Bought most often by independent orders by nobles, the most often of the art is in the form of paintings on canvas, something of a rarity all the way up north.
- Gold and Gems - Again, something only really bought by the wealthy nobles as they don't have much if at all domestically; most common gemstones are often fire rubies, forest emeralds and royal amethyst.
- Adventurers - While not imported as much as hired or just attracted to the land, these outsiders often come to Myrstrost to test their mettle in the endless ruins of the Forgotten Kingdom.
- Mythst/Salus - Listed above
- Metal - The forges of the Factory Ward produce a great number of metal and alloy ingots of a wide variety, assuming you don't want something crazy of course
- Armor - While Myrstrost is not too estatic about trading in military equipment, their Mythst-imbluded armors and sheilds are without a doubt some of the toughest in the world.
- Silver - The most popular of Myrstrost's luxury resources, silver is in relative abundance in Myrstrost and used in coins and decorations
- Jewelry & Decoration - Fine crafted decorations of carved wood, chiseled stone and fine silvers, often inlaid with sapphire.
- Sapphire - The only gemstone that is common, also known as "Ice Gems", they posses tinges of ice-based magic and are always cold to the touch.
- Frozen Ironwood - A strong, sturdy hardwood whose exceptional toughness makes it a fine choice for shields and ships; Myrstrost uses a special Mythst-covered Frozen Iron wood for its shields and ships, granting them some insanely tough protection, has a natural defense against cold and ice-based magic.
- Northern Yew - A soft but supple wood, ideal for creating bows and craving intricate designs in.
- Stone - Things such as granite and andesite to be used in walls or buildings.
- Mist Toast - Listed above
- Animal Pelts - The pelts of winter animals such as wolves, foxes, and even bears, all of which boasts natural cold and ice resistance.
- Seafood - Fished up from the cold icy waters around Myrstrost, these range from things as simple as carp or salmon to bits of the great monsters which lurk under the waves in the Straits.
- Explorers - Basically mercenaries who offer their services in the realm of exploration and adventuring in dangerous areas, hardened by Myrstrost's native ruins.
Army Overview
Mrystrost's military is heavily focused on the idea that they will be more often used in exploring ruins and such within the island itself rather than being used as an offensive or defensive force. As such, they have some unorthodox techniques and mannerisms. Many soldiers are Hallows, most of whom dedicate their immortal lives to the art of military and diving into ruins in hope of being able to cure their eternal curse. Such "expeditions" are a common sight within the kingdom as otherwise the army has little to do. Bringing home valuables and past knowledge is also always appreciated.
The most famous of such is the high mobile fighting style used by all ranks of the Mystrost army. Such methods of quick-stepping and rolling are considered essential parts of training and are part of the "Karginoth Movement Arts", named after the leader of the warriors who defend the island from the Orc onslaught many centuries ago. Each soldier is not trained as a soldier who finds strength in numbers, instead they train like warriors, drawing upon their individual strength.
Another point of interest is the adoption of gunpowder, not in the form of firearms, but mostly that of bombs urns, at least one per person. In things such as field battles, warriors are expected to light the fuse and throw them right before they charge or the enemy does. This strategy has proven remarkably well at disrupting defensive formations, making for easy prey for the charging infantry while also capable of slowing the momentum if not outright breaking a charge. The odd firearm does exist however, mostly in the form of defensive units stationed at cities and ports or handguns carried by wealthy officers as more of a sign of wealth, prestige and rank due to their more ornate nature.
Sketch of the common Mrystrost soldier;
their armor heavily borrows from the Aciret Empire's Legions
Infantry is without a doubt the star of the show for the Mrystrostic Army, their Hallowed soldiers spending years training the arts of war and then using them in the seemingly endless dungeons and ruins of the island. Death is nothing to be afraid of for a Hallow as they know that their curse will bring them back to life, even if they turn feral and die with the last shreds of their humanities lost. Heavily armored warriors that move swifter than light infantry in battle, each on their own can easily outclass any soldier from any other nation and can give elite units a run for their money in groups.
\Common armor of a Mrystrost noble knight; modified for greater mobility and execution of Karginoth Movement Arts
The downfalls of the Mrystrost army is a lack of a solid ranged support unit as most ruins do not offer optimal shooting conditions thus archery is left to volunteer hunters who keep at their craft in the army. Cavalry is also something of an issue as the harsh climate does not provide great conditions for horses. To circumvent that, knights ride the native Iceborn Dire Wolves and their role changes from that of a traditional fast shock cavalry unit into that of a slower brawler cavalry unit as the large beasts are by nature tougher than horses and are ferocious enough to fight on their own even without an already formidable knight riding them.
Artist rendition of one of the legendary Soulguard Knights with one of their signature massive great swordsThe elite unit of the Mrystrost is the "Hallowed Soulguard Knights", the chosen warriors who undergo the "Chalice Rituals" and go from mere Hallows into legends. They stand taller than any other soldier in the Mrystrost army (about 7-9 feet depending on the person in question) and have incredible strength and swiftness, often wielding massive weapons that no one else would dare to try and pick up. Such strength and combat ability makes the Soulguard Knights literal monsters on the battle feild, legends speak of ones with such strength that they could wipe away entire armies but alas, those heroes have long since met their fates, feral or not.
Naval Overview
Given their long isolation and the fog, one can assume that Mrystrost never got its sea-legs, never building anything larger than canoes, rafts and barges for internal use and transport. One legend speaks of a long, slender black canoe driven by the Veuls who brought foreign Hallows to Mrystrost to begin their often ill-fated quests.
The iconic ship of Mrystrost braving rough waters.Due to once again being able to see the world once more, there had been a small push to make more sea worthy vessels. The Cascade is the result of such efforts and has proven to be a great sucess for Mrystrost. Swift enough to dodge the monsters even in the Strait while sturdy enough to take on whatever the seas can throw at it, its Mythst-coated Frozen Ironwood construction is the likely source because of this. Although these ships are very lightly armed, their durability and agility can easily annoy many sea captains as their decks are harassed by arrows, bombs and marines.
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ClocktowerEchos Come Fly With Me!
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#15
Thangoradrim is a heavily wooded and hilly region, with rocks and creeks aplenty along the landscape to the east. To the west, isolated mountains that contain iron, copper, and nickle are highly prized and settled by the local clans. Highlands and foothills around them are rich in clay and tin. The mountains hold 2 other valuable metals found nowhere else in the world, Baldr and Valdium. They also contain the great Musk Ox for clan mounts, predators like the Mountain bears of incredible size, and the venerable Drabarians. The mountains lead to watchtower clad foothills, that further lead into small farm lands and field that connect to the dangerous forest of Thangorad. The forest teems with huge beasts and perilous hills, such as Drumlins and Tors. Perilous because men unused to the forest often find it so thick that they fall off cliff edges or into deep creeks without them even knowing until they plunge. Storm Wolves, canines the size of ponies, are held in esteem and semi domesticated (Thanes use them for mounts) by the forest clans. To see a wild one heralds doom, though doom to the Thangoradrim or to their enemies, remains to be seen. The Eald Cabhaig River is vast and stretches across Thangorad forest, effectively splitting it in two. Eald Cabhaig is the source of most wetlands and creeks that slither over the landscape. There is a vast network of caverns beneath Thangor forest. Stone Trolls inhabit both these caves, and make homes in the mountains. Trollslayers are held in high esteem. The southern most portion of Thangoradrim is lowlands that are patrolled by clans with the small amount of horsemen they have.
While every Clan has an honored scribe, most of the nation tells their history through oral stories. Some scholars believe that Thangoradrim was founded by refugees that had a shared history with the kingdom of Baile, but the Thangors have a different story. They tell of their people hailing from the Isles of Nal'thaggrasil. The men there were thralls to to Thaggs, giant beings of untold power who used the men for their labor and entertainment. It wasn't until the Dragonflights, lead by Broxxigar the Fiery, unchained them and sunk the island into the sea. Wherever they came from, what is known is that great ships of wood clad with shields landed on the southern portion of modern day Zhodul. Their ships were in disrepair, with claw and teeth marks upon their hulls. The men would only mutter about great sea creatures and storms, not bothering to explain. They clove their way into the southern forest that bordered the mountains and desert. This led to the meeting of the Eloians, and the war Thangoradrim would call the "Blooded" conflict (for it being their first good scrap since landing on the mainland) or "War of the Glades."
Thangor scouts commented on how odd looking the Eloians looked to them, meaning no offense. They were attacked, noted here.
Without raising voices or arms against them, these horse men charged and fired upon us. A welcome fight to break in this new and harsh wilderness! It was not until a year later and many bodies of our foes staining the forested ground did we realize what they protected from us so vigorously. The Sacred Glades. If they had merely told us, we would have given fair and respectful distance. But this attack upon our persons and honor could not be ignored, and we drove the horsemen out of these lands and claimed it for our own. What a glorious time it was!
Step by bloody step, with stern faces and strong arms, the Thangors gained ground, throwing their new enemies into the desert to die. As they settled into their new home of peril, the first Druids were formed when they discovered the Fey spirits that surrounded the Glades. They made pacts with the spirits of the forest, pledging to always respect this sacred ground, and to protect the forest from outsiders. In return, the spirits gave each Thane a Storm Wolf companion, solidifying their pact. The Fey allowed the Thangors to make homes, small roads, and even gifted them with Valdium or "Moon Metal."
The new conquerors ventured west, making their way into the mountains and coming into contact with the venerable Drabarians. They too awaited for the end of all things, and for Forgenhalst return (known as Broxxigar to them). The two warrior cultures became fast allies, and the Drabarians helped the Thangors shape and wield weapons of Baldr. When they had reached the western sea once more, and it awakened a long forgotten feeling in their hearts. The Exploration Guild was formed within a decade, and with the vast resources of timber and metal, ships were quickly created.
Fyrd Ships were wrought. Huge war vessels built for speed, recrafted for use in exploration. While passion was in their hearts, they weren't spurred into action again until they met the emissaries of Hamleton. These new peoples and their tales of exploration were enough to make Thangoradrim their steadfast friends, and the Tnagors gifted them vessels made from their best shipwrights. They wee just about to explore before they were attacked...
From the depths of the caverns beneath Thangor forest they had just begun to traverse, spewed forth a new and savage enemy. With moss green and dirt stained brown skin, akin to burnt leather, they would forever be known as the Gundarogs. These fierce creatures stood 5 feet tall, with wiry muscle and rat like teeth. Wielding black iron scimitars and spears, they surged into the above ground and tore apart all in their way. The creatures used monstrous Trolls as their shock troops.
They would have been too sudden and ferocious for most anyone. But the warriors of Thangoradrim simply un sheathed their weapons, and fought undeterred and unshaken. With a grim determination, shields and axes in hand, they clove through the vanguard of the Gundarogs and went into a 20 year campaign of systematically exterminating the infectious race. Many brave warriors and wolf companions fell, but heroes were born, and through the adversity, the city of Thangoradrim was formed at the moment of their victory. Songs were written, feasts were held, and tunnel fights were formed from the hearty men. They now began to map the underground system of caverns for their own use, and to this day the sighting of a Gundarog is a once in a decade affair.
Licking their wounds, regaining control of their forest from the beasts, making settlements there and in the mountains, creating watch towers along the plains and foothills, planting farms and establishing their kingdom, Thangoradrim is now a soveriegn nation recognized by all. In recent years, they have sailed to distant lands, making an alliance and everlasting friendship with the clans of Kashar. They have begun to search for new places to make settlements, and trade has been/will soon become established with other nations. Roads that helps travelers moving from north to south are now in the planning process, under the protection of Thangoradrim and their warrior might.
The High Thane rules over all, unquestioned in times of total war, but often leaves the organization and leadership of individual clans to their respective local Thanes. Every Thane has a Druid advisor that resides in huts beside their sacred Glades.
The High Thane, and in turn, the Thanes, are often chosen by blood relations. However, the Thangors have a loose system reminiscent of a republic. They meet in moots within the glades, and vote to decide who will rule next. To them, they believe that blood holds the strength of the previous Thane and often do not question the succession from father to son. However, if the son in question is seen as weak or unintelligent, they will vote him out. Other than Succession, moots can be formed and created for various other decisions, though the High Thane is often not in question during them. He would do wise to listen to them, however. Druids get votes just as Thanes and clan mates do. Women and Slaves (more like indentured servants, who are indebted to another and choose to work in order to pay off their debt) are allowed property, freedom, and weapons just as any other. Often times, Fyrds (small warbands) are formed to destroy threats, gain/protect land, or even to settle disagreements between clans.
Beofric Dormgrad is High Thane, residing in his great hall of Stone, Baldr, and Timber within the city of Thangoradrim, located atop a particularly large Drumlin hill that gives an incredible vantage point over the forest. The city itself is both atop and within the stone cliff, lit with great braziers and adorned with bronze and carved art upon Wyrdwood.
The Clans Cladheim, Forgod, Déorhidh, and Thaggar reside in the forest of Thangor. Clans Bryne and Brimrad live along the coasts and create great ships for exploration and war. Clans Horthaig and Ardabeorg reside within the mountains and highlands. Clan Dunbryte patrols the plains to the South, bordering between Thangor forest and the desert of the Eloians.
Think of something like this:
Precious metals, stone, and timber, and exotic monster/beast meats are the most abundant and used exports. Between the foothills and forest, and in some rare places of cleared land further east, wheat, potatoes, and various other farming items are grown. This would allow Thangor to survive on its own in war, though it is easier to get their farming foods and horses from more northern nations, and are their most prominent imports. That and Ale, of course. Thangoradrim Ale is a malty, strong ale amber-to-dark red in color. The few brewmasters within the Kingdom are highly regarded and skilled, but are in short supply.
Thangoradrim craftsmen and hunters are often hired by other nations for their skills. Their warriors would be as well, but they tend to see serving other nations with arms as dishonorable (unless allied), when Thangoradrim itself could be attacked at any time by foreign foes or domestic monsters. There is an avid fishing and exploration market with the Clans Bryne and Brimrad (as well as the forest clans along the riverlands, meaning fisherman). The 2 clans in question either transport emissaries of other clans, or do the diplomacy with nations across the Sea. They often bring back hidden treasures from foreign lands, and sometimes a sea monster carcass or two. The High Thane, Heldenhammer Dormgrad has just began to become interested in trade routes and foreign relations, prompting more ships to be made and more exploration and settlement making beyond the previous mild curiosity.
Valdium: A silver steel found beneath the sacred glades, Valdium is as strong as well forged iron, half as light, and gives off a faint glow. It cleaves through monster flesh and the flesh of magical beings easier than other metals.
Wyrdwood: A sturdy timber that regenerates into the form that it is carved in, even after it is broken.
Baldr: The more durable substance known to Thangoradrim, and possibly the world. Twice as strong as Valdium, as heavy as Iron, and known to be extremely hard to fall to corrosion or rust. It takes a Drabarian or an extremely strong Thangor blacksmith to shape, and to the uninitiated, forging a sword of Baldr could take a decade.
Being a warlike people, young Thangors practiced with the family weapon as soon as they could walk steadily. By age 10, they were practiced hunters, and by age 14, they could form an effective unit in both the forest/mountain, or southern plain. Their tactics would change with the terrain. For forest combat, the archers would hide in special tree plateaus and fire upon the enemy, and the melee fighters would close in to hack their enemies down. Sometimes they would use clan warriors as distractions, traveling with shields upon their backs and weapons in their hands, acting as if they attempted to remain sneaky. Their archers would then fire on the unsuspecting raiders from above.
Thangors are unrelenting and determined when in battle, holding shield walls and firing upon their enemies when fighting among hills or on flat ground with little forest around them. They tend to maintain a staggered formation when fighting upon their mountains, outmaneuvering opponents less used to such terrain.
The Axe was the most common weapon for clan warriors, though often times it was not the primary armament. Axes are customarily not allowed within the sacred glades, to honor their pact with the forest spirits. Due to their rigid tradition, customarily left behind generally means forbidden or banishment. They have shields customarily, with one handed axes or swords. But they tend to wield two handed weapons such as great swords, or long handled axes with spikes atop them. Or a recurve bow, for a trained archer. Armor is often sturdy and well made chainmail of iron and bronze, with wealthier families using Valdium or Baldr. They cover that with well boiled leather and cloth.
Thangor warriors are renowned for their fierce charges, war drums and shouts, and battle paint they adorn themselves with. While respectful, they are ruthless with their enemies and will pillage freely. Men and women often adorn their hair or beards with the jewelry of those conquered, or will get wargold given to them after performing some great deed.
Thangoradrim has a moderately sized but very efficient and dangerous navy, for their ancestors were shipwrights and seafarers.
Their weakness is their lack of Cavalry. They have a modest one, and those who are enlisted aren't unskilled horseman. They also use Great Musk Oxen and Storm Wolves for mounts, but these exotic beasts are rare and more useful over certain terrain.
Drabarian Warriors: Wielding enormous Halberds and Great weapons, the Drabarians are clad in Baldr platemail. This, coupled with their firebreath, and hardened scales, effectively make them walking tanks.
Warwicks: Men who have undergone rituals performed in their Sacred Glades, being infused with the blood of Wolves. They grow a bit taller, a bit stronger, hair covers their bodies, and their heads become far more canine. They can run and leap at great speeds, though they cannot carry weapons and only wear light armor. Their claws and teeth are as deadly as Iron, however.
Dómbeorns: Professional Warriors who both protect and enforce the will of their Thanes. They wear only the finest armor and wield only the best weapons. Often times their scale mail/plate mail armor is made of Valdium or high class Iron, as is their armaments. Even so, martial prowess is not the only factor one needs in order to become a Dómbeorn. The man must have achieve a particular feat of bravery and honor and voted in by a moot before they are given the right to be one of these legendary warriors.
Thangoradrim
(your crest, symbol or flag can go here - optional)Location/Geography
#15
Thangoradrim is a heavily wooded and hilly region, with rocks and creeks aplenty along the landscape to the east. To the west, isolated mountains that contain iron, copper, and nickle are highly prized and settled by the local clans. Highlands and foothills around them are rich in clay and tin. The mountains hold 2 other valuable metals found nowhere else in the world, Baldr and Valdium. They also contain the great Musk Ox for clan mounts, predators like the Mountain bears of incredible size, and the venerable Drabarians. The mountains lead to watchtower clad foothills, that further lead into small farm lands and field that connect to the dangerous forest of Thangorad. The forest teems with huge beasts and perilous hills, such as Drumlins and Tors. Perilous because men unused to the forest often find it so thick that they fall off cliff edges or into deep creeks without them even knowing until they plunge. Storm Wolves, canines the size of ponies, are held in esteem and semi domesticated (Thanes use them for mounts) by the forest clans. To see a wild one heralds doom, though doom to the Thangoradrim or to their enemies, remains to be seen. The Eald Cabhaig River is vast and stretches across Thangorad forest, effectively splitting it in two. Eald Cabhaig is the source of most wetlands and creeks that slither over the landscape. There is a vast network of caverns beneath Thangor forest. Stone Trolls inhabit both these caves, and make homes in the mountains. Trollslayers are held in high esteem. The southern most portion of Thangoradrim is lowlands that are patrolled by clans with the small amount of horsemen they have.
General Introduction
Thangoradrim is a collection of Hunter/Warrior clans, ruled over by Thanes, who are in turn beholden to a High Thane. They are a proud and strong people, taking their fatalistic view of the world at large with admirable stoicism. They regard tales of War and Heroism highly, often asking young boys if they will grow to be "Fell men of good deeds." The people respect hard work greatly, especially work done by craftsmen. The Thangors are deeply traditional, yet give fair respect to all who give it in return. Despite their belief in hands on work being the most important kind, story tellers, poets, and song writers are in high demand and greatly enjoyed. The men of Thangoradrim pride themselves on being free men and warriors born, for who else could brave the woods of Thangorad but they? Who else were blessed by the Dragon, Broxxigar when the world was young? Who else was shown how to shape Valdium and Baldr? They will guard their land, await Broxxigar's return, and remain steadfast, even before the gates of hell and the unmaking of the world.History
While every Clan has an honored scribe, most of the nation tells their history through oral stories. Some scholars believe that Thangoradrim was founded by refugees that had a shared history with the kingdom of Baile, but the Thangors have a different story. They tell of their people hailing from the Isles of Nal'thaggrasil. The men there were thralls to to Thaggs, giant beings of untold power who used the men for their labor and entertainment. It wasn't until the Dragonflights, lead by Broxxigar the Fiery, unchained them and sunk the island into the sea. Wherever they came from, what is known is that great ships of wood clad with shields landed on the southern portion of modern day Zhodul. Their ships were in disrepair, with claw and teeth marks upon their hulls. The men would only mutter about great sea creatures and storms, not bothering to explain. They clove their way into the southern forest that bordered the mountains and desert. This led to the meeting of the Eloians, and the war Thangoradrim would call the "Blooded" conflict (for it being their first good scrap since landing on the mainland) or "War of the Glades."
Thangor scouts commented on how odd looking the Eloians looked to them, meaning no offense. They were attacked, noted here.
Without raising voices or arms against them, these horse men charged and fired upon us. A welcome fight to break in this new and harsh wilderness! It was not until a year later and many bodies of our foes staining the forested ground did we realize what they protected from us so vigorously. The Sacred Glades. If they had merely told us, we would have given fair and respectful distance. But this attack upon our persons and honor could not be ignored, and we drove the horsemen out of these lands and claimed it for our own. What a glorious time it was!
Step by bloody step, with stern faces and strong arms, the Thangors gained ground, throwing their new enemies into the desert to die. As they settled into their new home of peril, the first Druids were formed when they discovered the Fey spirits that surrounded the Glades. They made pacts with the spirits of the forest, pledging to always respect this sacred ground, and to protect the forest from outsiders. In return, the spirits gave each Thane a Storm Wolf companion, solidifying their pact. The Fey allowed the Thangors to make homes, small roads, and even gifted them with Valdium or "Moon Metal."
The new conquerors ventured west, making their way into the mountains and coming into contact with the venerable Drabarians. They too awaited for the end of all things, and for Forgenhalst return (known as Broxxigar to them). The two warrior cultures became fast allies, and the Drabarians helped the Thangors shape and wield weapons of Baldr. When they had reached the western sea once more, and it awakened a long forgotten feeling in their hearts. The Exploration Guild was formed within a decade, and with the vast resources of timber and metal, ships were quickly created.
Fyrd Ships were wrought. Huge war vessels built for speed, recrafted for use in exploration. While passion was in their hearts, they weren't spurred into action again until they met the emissaries of Hamleton. These new peoples and their tales of exploration were enough to make Thangoradrim their steadfast friends, and the Tnagors gifted them vessels made from their best shipwrights. They wee just about to explore before they were attacked...
From the depths of the caverns beneath Thangor forest they had just begun to traverse, spewed forth a new and savage enemy. With moss green and dirt stained brown skin, akin to burnt leather, they would forever be known as the Gundarogs. These fierce creatures stood 5 feet tall, with wiry muscle and rat like teeth. Wielding black iron scimitars and spears, they surged into the above ground and tore apart all in their way. The creatures used monstrous Trolls as their shock troops.
They would have been too sudden and ferocious for most anyone. But the warriors of Thangoradrim simply un sheathed their weapons, and fought undeterred and unshaken. With a grim determination, shields and axes in hand, they clove through the vanguard of the Gundarogs and went into a 20 year campaign of systematically exterminating the infectious race. Many brave warriors and wolf companions fell, but heroes were born, and through the adversity, the city of Thangoradrim was formed at the moment of their victory. Songs were written, feasts were held, and tunnel fights were formed from the hearty men. They now began to map the underground system of caverns for their own use, and to this day the sighting of a Gundarog is a once in a decade affair.
Licking their wounds, regaining control of their forest from the beasts, making settlements there and in the mountains, creating watch towers along the plains and foothills, planting farms and establishing their kingdom, Thangoradrim is now a soveriegn nation recognized by all. In recent years, they have sailed to distant lands, making an alliance and everlasting friendship with the clans of Kashar. They have begun to search for new places to make settlements, and trade has been/will soon become established with other nations. Roads that helps travelers moving from north to south are now in the planning process, under the protection of Thangoradrim and their warrior might.
Government & Society
The High Thane rules over all, unquestioned in times of total war, but often leaves the organization and leadership of individual clans to their respective local Thanes. Every Thane has a Druid advisor that resides in huts beside their sacred Glades.
The High Thane, and in turn, the Thanes, are often chosen by blood relations. However, the Thangors have a loose system reminiscent of a republic. They meet in moots within the glades, and vote to decide who will rule next. To them, they believe that blood holds the strength of the previous Thane and often do not question the succession from father to son. However, if the son in question is seen as weak or unintelligent, they will vote him out. Other than Succession, moots can be formed and created for various other decisions, though the High Thane is often not in question during them. He would do wise to listen to them, however. Druids get votes just as Thanes and clan mates do. Women and Slaves (more like indentured servants, who are indebted to another and choose to work in order to pay off their debt) are allowed property, freedom, and weapons just as any other. Often times, Fyrds (small warbands) are formed to destroy threats, gain/protect land, or even to settle disagreements between clans.
Beofric Dormgrad is High Thane, residing in his great hall of Stone, Baldr, and Timber within the city of Thangoradrim, located atop a particularly large Drumlin hill that gives an incredible vantage point over the forest. The city itself is both atop and within the stone cliff, lit with great braziers and adorned with bronze and carved art upon Wyrdwood.
The Clans Cladheim, Forgod, Déorhidh, and Thaggar reside in the forest of Thangor. Clans Bryne and Brimrad live along the coasts and create great ships for exploration and war. Clans Horthaig and Ardabeorg reside within the mountains and highlands. Clan Dunbryte patrols the plains to the South, bordering between Thangor forest and the desert of the Eloians.
Think of something like this:
Humanoids with the faces of Dragons, Dratarians or "Dragon men" live in small holdfasts in the western mountains. Standing fully 7 feet tall, with muscled builds and covered in red, green, or brown scales, they are an imposing people with a similar honor based culture. Their leaders are blessed with tails, and only one Drabarian in 500 years can grow wings. The Drabar claim they await the end of the world, and the herald of the Dragon's return. They send their offspring into the Thangor forest, and cannot come back until they have proof of a heroic kill, such as the tusks of a Demari Boar. They taught the Thangors how to work Baldr and Valdium.
Economy & Industry
Precious metals, stone, and timber, and exotic monster/beast meats are the most abundant and used exports. Between the foothills and forest, and in some rare places of cleared land further east, wheat, potatoes, and various other farming items are grown. This would allow Thangor to survive on its own in war, though it is easier to get their farming foods and horses from more northern nations, and are their most prominent imports. That and Ale, of course. Thangoradrim Ale is a malty, strong ale amber-to-dark red in color. The few brewmasters within the Kingdom are highly regarded and skilled, but are in short supply.
Thangoradrim craftsmen and hunters are often hired by other nations for their skills. Their warriors would be as well, but they tend to see serving other nations with arms as dishonorable (unless allied), when Thangoradrim itself could be attacked at any time by foreign foes or domestic monsters. There is an avid fishing and exploration market with the Clans Bryne and Brimrad (as well as the forest clans along the riverlands, meaning fisherman). The 2 clans in question either transport emissaries of other clans, or do the diplomacy with nations across the Sea. They often bring back hidden treasures from foreign lands, and sometimes a sea monster carcass or two. The High Thane, Heldenhammer Dormgrad has just began to become interested in trade routes and foreign relations, prompting more ships to be made and more exploration and settlement making beyond the previous mild curiosity.
Special resources
Valdium: A silver steel found beneath the sacred glades, Valdium is as strong as well forged iron, half as light, and gives off a faint glow. It cleaves through monster flesh and the flesh of magical beings easier than other metals.
Wyrdwood: A sturdy timber that regenerates into the form that it is carved in, even after it is broken.
Baldr: The more durable substance known to Thangoradrim, and possibly the world. Twice as strong as Valdium, as heavy as Iron, and known to be extremely hard to fall to corrosion or rust. It takes a Drabarian or an extremely strong Thangor blacksmith to shape, and to the uninitiated, forging a sword of Baldr could take a decade.
Military Overview
Being a warlike people, young Thangors practiced with the family weapon as soon as they could walk steadily. By age 10, they were practiced hunters, and by age 14, they could form an effective unit in both the forest/mountain, or southern plain. Their tactics would change with the terrain. For forest combat, the archers would hide in special tree plateaus and fire upon the enemy, and the melee fighters would close in to hack their enemies down. Sometimes they would use clan warriors as distractions, traveling with shields upon their backs and weapons in their hands, acting as if they attempted to remain sneaky. Their archers would then fire on the unsuspecting raiders from above.
Thangors are unrelenting and determined when in battle, holding shield walls and firing upon their enemies when fighting among hills or on flat ground with little forest around them. They tend to maintain a staggered formation when fighting upon their mountains, outmaneuvering opponents less used to such terrain.
The Axe was the most common weapon for clan warriors, though often times it was not the primary armament. Axes are customarily not allowed within the sacred glades, to honor their pact with the forest spirits. Due to their rigid tradition, customarily left behind generally means forbidden or banishment. They have shields customarily, with one handed axes or swords. But they tend to wield two handed weapons such as great swords, or long handled axes with spikes atop them. Or a recurve bow, for a trained archer. Armor is often sturdy and well made chainmail of iron and bronze, with wealthier families using Valdium or Baldr. They cover that with well boiled leather and cloth.
Thangor warriors are renowned for their fierce charges, war drums and shouts, and battle paint they adorn themselves with. While respectful, they are ruthless with their enemies and will pillage freely. Men and women often adorn their hair or beards with the jewelry of those conquered, or will get wargold given to them after performing some great deed.
Thangoradrim has a moderately sized but very efficient and dangerous navy, for their ancestors were shipwrights and seafarers.
Their weakness is their lack of Cavalry. They have a modest one, and those who are enlisted aren't unskilled horseman. They also use Great Musk Oxen and Storm Wolves for mounts, but these exotic beasts are rare and more useful over certain terrain.
Super Units
Drabarian Warriors: Wielding enormous Halberds and Great weapons, the Drabarians are clad in Baldr platemail. This, coupled with their firebreath, and hardened scales, effectively make them walking tanks.
Warwicks: Men who have undergone rituals performed in their Sacred Glades, being infused with the blood of Wolves. They grow a bit taller, a bit stronger, hair covers their bodies, and their heads become far more canine. They can run and leap at great speeds, though they cannot carry weapons and only wear light armor. Their claws and teeth are as deadly as Iron, however.
Dómbeorns: Professional Warriors who both protect and enforce the will of their Thanes. They wear only the finest armor and wield only the best weapons. Often times their scale mail/plate mail armor is made of Valdium or high class Iron, as is their armaments. Even so, martial prowess is not the only factor one needs in order to become a Dómbeorn. The man must have achieve a particular feat of bravery and honor and voted in by a moot before they are given the right to be one of these legendary warriors.
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MonkeyBusiness
Member
Seen
1 yr ago
Heavy WIP
#22
The entire Quexltec Collective is buried underneath the shifting sands of the Great Arduin Desert. The northern border of the desert is is blocked off with the Arduin Mountain range on one side leading into the Quinze river while the eastern and southern borders are protected by high cliffs against the ocean. The far western coast of the desert is the Xultz mountain range spanning two hundred miles of the coast.
All the Collective's cities are built into massive underground caverns spread throughout the desert and even includes several cities built into the face of cliffs and hollowed mountains. The only indications that these cities even exist to the outside world are large thirty foot tall spires that rise into the air marking the entrances to these cities. Theses spires exist as a form of small fort as well as an early warning system against any invading forces for the cities below.
The Quexltec Collective are a former group of Lizardmen tribes that were unified under one banner that dwell under the surface of the Great Arduin Desert. To survive the harsh environment of the desert, the Quexltec built large underground cities near underground rivers or lakes.
(What is your nation? What they do? How they live? etc...Anything you can think helps identifying your nation among the rest.)
The Quexltec Collective is united under the single banner of Empress Tetha who is the sole authority of the land. Her throne is located within Xeztec as the capital and her word is considered law by all her subjects. All the cities spread through the desert are under the command of individual governors that are the hands of the Empress and enforce her laws within their cities, though they do not have the power to make negotiations on their own or even raise the taxes of their city without the central governments permission. The lineage of Emperor or Empress is through bloodline with the authority to rule passed down from parent to child.
The Quexltec Collective is a defensive nation that has developed their military strength around defending their borders against any invading force. The mountain range that makes up the northern border of the Empire is fortified with a picket line of large forts that are built into the faces of the mountains as a first line of defense against invasion. Within the entire Collective, there is a standing decree that upon invasion or declaration of war that citizens are to be conscripted into the army in the defense of their homeland.
Forts:
These defensive positions are built to withstand month long sieges on their own without assistance from any external sources. Each is garrisoned with roughly five hundred troops with several dozen iron cast cannon emplacements along the outer walls of the fort. Behind this first line of defense is a spider web of tunnels dug into the mountain to disorientate and confuse any force that made it into the compound.
Army:
The Collective's standing army is a pitiful shadow of many of it's neighbor nations as they do not have a centralized military. Each of the cities is responsible for raising and maintaining their own defensive force under the command of their governor. Though each of these smaller armies have to swear fealty to the Empress and to serve as one unified army if the call ever comes. Each of these cities must also offer soldiers from their own personal forces to serve in the border forts for a service time of two years. Xeztec as the Capital of the Collective maintains the largest army of all the cities as well as being the headquarters for the Knights of the Scale.
The main body of the army consists of an infantry force supplied with large halberds used for keeping the enemy at bay while inflicting damage upon them. These weapons prove to be an effect deterrent against cavalry charges as well allowing the infantry line to only have to deal with infantry while their own cavalry can deal with the flanks. For closer ranges and hand to hand combat the infantry is given a three foot battle axe with a crescent shaped blade on one side and an half foot spike on the other side. They are either allowed to carry two axes into battle or a round body shield with protruding spikes along the edges. Depending on the wealth of the soldier, this equipment could change for different weapons and armor while the standardized armor is chain mail.
The cavalry of the Collective is a force to be fears as instead of riding horses, they have tamed the sand dragons of the southern deserts to become their mounts. These dragons each stands at roughly seven feet tall with a long lean body that is covered in plates that make them hard to pierce with arrows from a distance or a sword at close range. These mounts have proved to be extremely fast on the surface of of the desert with their clawed feet giving them the appearance of gliding over the sand, they are effective on other terrain other than sand but that is where they will maintain an advantage. The Quexltec that chose to ride these sand dragons carry a long lance into battle giving them an effect charge against the enemy as well as being equipped with their standard battle axes for close up fights. Their mounts has also proved to be effective in battle along with the rider as they use their powerful jaws and spiked tail as offensive weapons to maim opponents and take down mounts.
Knights of the Scale are elite
(Yeah, of course you also need to tell us some about your military. Try to avoid number games and unhealthy arms races. We play this game for fun and that needs balance and sensible approach. One of the main guidelines is that your nation's military shouldn't be much better than a historical 15th century medieval army. Don't worry, I don't ask you historical accuracy. So-called "super units" can be okay if they are rare enough for their worth and don't make your army unbeatable. The point is to let you do cool things and explore your creativity but at the same time don't do it at the expense of others. Also if you have magic or magicians involved in your military then perhaps you can describe that, too.)
Quexltec Collective
Location/Geography
#22
The entire Quexltec Collective is buried underneath the shifting sands of the Great Arduin Desert. The northern border of the desert is is blocked off with the Arduin Mountain range on one side leading into the Quinze river while the eastern and southern borders are protected by high cliffs against the ocean. The far western coast of the desert is the Xultz mountain range spanning two hundred miles of the coast.
All the Collective's cities are built into massive underground caverns spread throughout the desert and even includes several cities built into the face of cliffs and hollowed mountains. The only indications that these cities even exist to the outside world are large thirty foot tall spires that rise into the air marking the entrances to these cities. Theses spires exist as a form of small fort as well as an early warning system against any invading forces for the cities below.
General Introduction
The Quexltec Collective are a former group of Lizardmen tribes that were unified under one banner that dwell under the surface of the Great Arduin Desert. To survive the harsh environment of the desert, the Quexltec built large underground cities near underground rivers or lakes.
(What is your nation? What they do? How they live? etc...Anything you can think helps identifying your nation among the rest.)
History
- Tribes of the Quexltec settle North of the Arduin Mountains.
- Lion men migrate South fleeing from the Orcs
- Survival War begins between Quexltec and Lion men forcing Quexltec farther South
- Tribes band together in the Great Arduin Desert to fight the Lion men
- Creation of the Eyes of Soltec
- War with Lion men ends
- Tribes split up across the Desert and start on underground cities
- Unification War begins between the tribes
- Tribes are united under the Luxal Tribe
- Xeztec founded as Capital of the new Quexltec Collective
- Xeztec chosen as resting place for Eyes of Soltec
- Gunpowder is discovered in Chaxl
- Gunpowder is recognized for military use
- Empress Tetha takes the throne at the age of 20 promising a new era for the Collective
- Collective borders are opened up completely welcoming foreign traders and embassies
- The Forges of the Collective are lit with requests from other nations
Government & Society
The Quexltec Collective is united under the single banner of Empress Tetha who is the sole authority of the land. Her throne is located within Xeztec as the capital and her word is considered law by all her subjects. All the cities spread through the desert are under the command of individual governors that are the hands of the Empress and enforce her laws within their cities, though they do not have the power to make negotiations on their own or even raise the taxes of their city without the central governments permission. The lineage of Emperor or Empress is through bloodline with the authority to rule passed down from parent to child.
The Quexltec are a race of lizardmen that have grown adapted to the underground life style with several features that allow them to live in the desert. The Quexltec range in size from 5'4" all the way to 6'2" and they ranged in color for their scales from pure black to deep green with most also sporting several markings on their body. The main distinguishing feature of the race would be how the males have large frills around their necks roughly three feet in diameter that is able to fold up against their necks when not completely extended, the females of the species sport a spinal frill that runs from the base of their necks all the way down their backs to the end of their tails that is also able to fold up when not extended. Both males and females have a sharp row of teeth meant for tearing at their prey along with sharpened claws on their hands and feet.
Quexltec are omnivores by nature, thought their diet mainly consists of herd beast and if located closer to the ocean than there is a variety of fish that can be mixed into the diet. A special function of the race's frill is that it helps as a mating attractions as well as a way to regulate body temperature while in the surface. The life expectancy of a Quexltec is around seventy years given the right conditions.
Quexltec are omnivores by nature, thought their diet mainly consists of herd beast and if located closer to the ocean than there is a variety of fish that can be mixed into the diet. A special function of the race's frill is that it helps as a mating attractions as well as a way to regulate body temperature while in the surface. The life expectancy of a Quexltec is around seventy years given the right conditions.
Economy & Industry
(What are your primary exports and imports? How much you trade? How are your craftsmen organized? How developed is your technology? What kind of unique creations you have? etc. If you haven't described your involvement with magic in the society/government section, you can do it here.)Military Overview
The Quexltec Collective is a defensive nation that has developed their military strength around defending their borders against any invading force. The mountain range that makes up the northern border of the Empire is fortified with a picket line of large forts that are built into the faces of the mountains as a first line of defense against invasion. Within the entire Collective, there is a standing decree that upon invasion or declaration of war that citizens are to be conscripted into the army in the defense of their homeland.
Forts:
These defensive positions are built to withstand month long sieges on their own without assistance from any external sources. Each is garrisoned with roughly five hundred troops with several dozen iron cast cannon emplacements along the outer walls of the fort. Behind this first line of defense is a spider web of tunnels dug into the mountain to disorientate and confuse any force that made it into the compound.
Army:
The Collective's standing army is a pitiful shadow of many of it's neighbor nations as they do not have a centralized military. Each of the cities is responsible for raising and maintaining their own defensive force under the command of their governor. Though each of these smaller armies have to swear fealty to the Empress and to serve as one unified army if the call ever comes. Each of these cities must also offer soldiers from their own personal forces to serve in the border forts for a service time of two years. Xeztec as the Capital of the Collective maintains the largest army of all the cities as well as being the headquarters for the Knights of the Scale.
The main body of the army consists of an infantry force supplied with large halberds used for keeping the enemy at bay while inflicting damage upon them. These weapons prove to be an effect deterrent against cavalry charges as well allowing the infantry line to only have to deal with infantry while their own cavalry can deal with the flanks. For closer ranges and hand to hand combat the infantry is given a three foot battle axe with a crescent shaped blade on one side and an half foot spike on the other side. They are either allowed to carry two axes into battle or a round body shield with protruding spikes along the edges. Depending on the wealth of the soldier, this equipment could change for different weapons and armor while the standardized armor is chain mail.
The cavalry of the Collective is a force to be fears as instead of riding horses, they have tamed the sand dragons of the southern deserts to become their mounts. These dragons each stands at roughly seven feet tall with a long lean body that is covered in plates that make them hard to pierce with arrows from a distance or a sword at close range. These mounts have proved to be extremely fast on the surface of of the desert with their clawed feet giving them the appearance of gliding over the sand, they are effective on other terrain other than sand but that is where they will maintain an advantage. The Quexltec that chose to ride these sand dragons carry a long lance into battle giving them an effect charge against the enemy as well as being equipped with their standard battle axes for close up fights. Their mounts has also proved to be effective in battle along with the rider as they use their powerful jaws and spiked tail as offensive weapons to maim opponents and take down mounts.
Knights of the Scale are elite
(Yeah, of course you also need to tell us some about your military. Try to avoid number games and unhealthy arms races. We play this game for fun and that needs balance and sensible approach. One of the main guidelines is that your nation's military shouldn't be much better than a historical 15th century medieval army. Don't worry, I don't ask you historical accuracy. So-called "super units" can be okay if they are rare enough for their worth and don't make your army unbeatable. The point is to let you do cool things and explore your creativity but at the same time don't do it at the expense of others. Also if you have magic or magicians involved in your military then perhaps you can describe that, too.)
GM
Willy Vereb The Wordy Engineer
Member
Seen
5 days ago
Updated the map and hastily added a few race descriptions in the Glossary.
Also I should really work on my NS now. The lack of it inhibits my ability to evaluate profiles which is a problem.
Though don't expect me to do the latter until the evening.
Also I should really work on my NS now. The lack of it inhibits my ability to evaluate profiles which is a problem.
Though don't expect me to do the latter until the evening.
Thrashy smashy-splashy
Member
Seen
8 yrs ago
Felt like contributing, so here's an updated list with all submited Nation Sheets, with permalinks and name of the author:
Mercheant Republic of Vuts, by Nerevarine
Kingdom of Zhodul, by Sigma
Clans of the Kashar, by Lauder
The Crown of Virith, by Aristo
The Kingdom of Thabos, by TheMoatedGrange
The Aelorian Empire, by Taeryn
The Eloia, by GreivousKhan
The Great Sunrise Empire, by Dead Cruiser
The Irodein Empire, by eemmtt
Fenea Kingdom, by Legion02
Baile, by Thrashy
The City States of Brescia, by WrongEndoftheRainbow
Myrstrost, the Forgotten Kingdom, by ClocktowerEchos
Thangoradrim, by POOHEAD189
Empire of the Hidden, by MonkeyBusiness
Farastine, by Monkeypants
Mercheant Republic of Vuts, by Nerevarine
Kingdom of Zhodul, by Sigma
Clans of the Kashar, by Lauder
The Crown of Virith, by Aristo
The Kingdom of Thabos, by TheMoatedGrange
The Aelorian Empire, by Taeryn
The Eloia, by GreivousKhan
The Great Sunrise Empire, by Dead Cruiser
The Irodein Empire, by eemmtt
Fenea Kingdom, by Legion02
Baile, by Thrashy
The City States of Brescia, by WrongEndoftheRainbow
Myrstrost, the Forgotten Kingdom, by ClocktowerEchos
Thangoradrim, by POOHEAD189
Empire of the Hidden, by MonkeyBusiness
Farastine, by Monkeypants
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Monkeypants
Member
Seen
1 yr ago
Epic wip
Location 25, big purple island down south.
(Pick a color representing your nation and draw up your borders on the map. Don't be too greedy! Remember that there are many players wishing to participate in this game. After that you can also describe the territory you claimed. Environment, landmarks, notable regions and so on. While you can't just say you have unbearable heat in the whitened out sections at the North you have the freedom to describe pretty much anything not obviously shown otherwise on the map.)
(You can detail the history of your nation here. How they were formed? Any major events like wars, political changes or catastrophes? Really, you know better than me what you wish to write here. History is good for giving other players story hooks to establish some relationship with your nation. A good history section tries to incorporate knowledge from other NS to do exactly that, a shared history.)
Think of something like this:
Farastine
Location/Geography
Location 25, big purple island down south.
(Pick a color representing your nation and draw up your borders on the map. Don't be too greedy! Remember that there are many players wishing to participate in this game. After that you can also describe the territory you claimed. Environment, landmarks, notable regions and so on. While you can't just say you have unbearable heat in the whitened out sections at the North you have the freedom to describe pretty much anything not obviously shown otherwise on the map.)
General Introduction
(What is your nation? What they do? How they live? etc...Anything you can think helps identifying your nation among the rest.)History
(You can detail the history of your nation here. How they were formed? Any major events like wars, political changes or catastrophes? Really, you know better than me what you wish to write here. History is good for giving other players story hooks to establish some relationship with your nation. A good history section tries to incorporate knowledge from other NS to do exactly that, a shared history.)
Government & Society
(I decided to combine these two and maybe even several other categories because I feel they are often related. You can detail here the type of your government, who are your important people. How the people live and what's their mentality like. You can talk about religion, minorities, demographics, population. If you have an unique faith or judicial system you may also want to detail it here. And of course you can mention what is your unique races are like. First come first serve. If a player already made elves then they have priority. You can of course discuss things with that person and come to an agreement. Race/species descriptions must be always put in separate hiders so they can be easily found.Think of something like this:
Garden Gnomes are tiny humanoids at average 10-14 inches in height. Their dietary requirements include lot of grass thus they are the most frequently found in gardens and clearings. Garden Gnomes are shy and developed an unique defense mechanism. So long they're looked on they become motionless like statues. To compensate when nobody is looking Garden Gnomes are both silent and incredibly fast. If you feel you're being followed around by happy looking yet sinister dwarf statues... you probably are. Have a good night!
Economy & Industry
(What are your primary exports and imports? How much you trade? How are your craftsmen organized? How developed is your technology? What kind of unique creations you have? etc. If you haven't described your involvement with magic in the society/government section, you can do it here.)Military Overview
(Yeah, of course you also need to tell us some about your military. Try to avoid number games and unhealthy arms races. We play this game for fun and that needs balance and sensible approach. One of the main guidelines is that your nation's military shouldn't be much better than a historical 15th century medieval army. Don't worry, I don't ask you historical accuracy. So-called "super units" can be okay if they are rare enough for their worth and don't make your army unbeatable. The point is to let you do cool things and explore your creativity but at the same time don't do it at the expense of others. Also if you have magic or magicians involved in your military then perhaps you can describe that, too.)
ClocktowerEchos Come Fly With Me!
Member
Seen
20 days ago
EDIT: Deciding to do a bit more work on it
TheMoatedGrange Tennyson's Hussy
Member
Seen
7 yrs ago
I think this is finished. Reposting because the format went awry in the original version... Let me know what you guys think!
Thabos has a warm, tropical climate, fed by the 'Sunsweep', the name given to the warm wind that blows almost consistently from the south and east and that feeds the climate of the eponymous isles. The seasons are divided into the sunny and the monsoon season, with little room in between pouring deluges of rain and scorching heat.
There is a small amount of variation in each of the isles - the most northerly, Nibari, is also the most temperate, famous for its fruit groves, while the most easterly, Lobessa, is perpetually windswept and devoid of almost all tree cover, instead being covered by low-lying savannah land and hilly bluffs that stretch out into sand dunes and areas of scrub land. Settlement on all of the islands is mostly restricted to the coast - the inlands are populated, but infrastructure can be patchy, and vast sweeps of jungle that smother the interiors of the three southerly islands are home to hostile beasts like Diresabers and Great Snarks, as well as rumours of dark magic wielding cannibals who live in tree-top cities far above the expansive canopy.
The islands are dotted with enormous marble ruins, some of which have been adapted into the cities of the current Thabossian kingdom and others that are buried deep within the jungles, or jut out from the reefs in the sea between the islands. These ruins show the marks of complex stone working and carving, with some statues of various robed persons unknown also being found regularly. Though incomplete and often severely damaged, the ruins show the remains of a level of craft as of yet unable to be replicated. What is more, there are no natural marble deposits on the archipelago, leading some to theorise that the ruins are the remains of an ancient and forgotten Empire that colonised The Sunswept Isles many centuries ago.
The Kingdom of Thabos is a mercantile and yet secretive kingdom at the fringes of the known world, inhabiting a circle of islands far to the south-east known as the 'Sunswept Isles'. The copper-skinned Thabossians are not an infrequent sight throughout the world, rippling silently into most major trade ports on their black-sailed skiffs, trading their stocks of exotic spices, tea, silks and animal parts in exchange for furs and various foodstuffs. Apart from this interaction, however, few people know much about the secretive and unaggressive islanders. Most foreigners are not permitted to reside or to stay for long on the islands, and those who do become aware very quickly of a complex social structure and belief system that shapes the lives of all those who live under the reign of the Tiger-Queen Anetkara, the 'Sun's Avatar' or Salhamat-i Ashvahat.
Legend has it that the five islands of Thabos were once one, largest island, known as Kaeramuni, inhabited by the precursors to the Thabossians, who are known in Thabossian mythology simply as 'the Antecedents'. The Antecedents grew haughty and arrogant, building enormous towers and forsaking the power of the Sunsweep. Their arrogance brought about their downfall - one day the centre of the island, deep in the jungle, exploded with such force that it blew them all apart into five distinct entities. The event caused tidal waves across the world, and destroyed the Ancient Thabossian Kingdom utterly. Those who survived had to restart from scratch, foraging in the ruins of their illustrious ancestors for berries, and waging warfare with cannibalistic tribes from wooden shanty towns built in the shade of cracked courtyards and great palaces.
The Thabossians, however, proved to be a resilient peoples, adapting quickly and advancing quicker still. Some semblance of the Ancient Thabossian advancement must have lingered, for their ship-building capabilities were unaffected by the event and they made forays out into the wider world for the first time, tentatively establishing trade relationships with other fledgling nations and mapping the known world as best they could. At this point, each of the five islands was ruled by a Prince who took on the avatar of a different animal - the most southerly islands were the homes of the Crocodile, Snapping Turtle and Elephant Princes, while Lobessa was ruled by the Panther Prince and Nibari by the Tiger Prince. These princely dynasties were frequently in violent conflict, waging bloody war both on each other and on the 'Untamed Peoples' or the tribes that had yet to come under their yoke; those who lived (and continue to live) deep in the jungles and reject civilised life.
It was under the reign of the 'Great Tiger', Kahu'un the Wizened, that unification was finally achieved. The first 'Tiger-King' allied himself to the Snapping Turtle and Elephant Princes and waged a bloody conflict first against the Crocodile Prince, who he is said to have drank the blood of after defeating him in battle, and then the Panther Prince, who ruled the second most prosperous island. The war has come to be known variously as 'The Tiger's Leap', 'The Five Islands' War' and 'The Unification'. From that moment on Thabos began to worship its monarch as a demi-god, responsible for bringing in the warm southerly winds to end the monsoon season. It is not unusual for a Tiger King or Queen to be sacrificed to the oceans for failing to do so.
Thabos operates under a strictly stratified society, built mainly on the back of extensive slave labour. The Thabossians themselves occupy their place at the top of society, with their lives devoted mostly to religious worship, magic, scholarship and the arts, with architecture, painting and instrument playing being the most valued pastimes amongst the Thabossians. The slave class is composed mostly of tame Kahularians, with various races from across the world being brought in to act in various capacities after having been bought from local governments or captured as pirates by the nimble and well-built Thabossian Navy.
Thabossian cities are built from the dark grey stone quarried in Lobessa. Buildings are largely built to be towers, many of which are interspersed with rolling, decorative gardens filled with trees, fountains and open patches of grassy land, most of which is flooded at some point during the monsoon season. To avoid this annual flooding disrupting Thabossian society entirely, a series of stone walkways connects most buildings in every society so that it is possible for the Thabossians to move around throughout their cities even when five or six feet of water submerge the ground level. This is repeated on a smaller scale in towns and villages, with most of the smallest villages containing a single tall tower where rations and medicaments are stockpiled year round in order for the residents to take shelter should the need arise.
The Thabossian faith is often referred to simply as the 'Diarchy', because it is dominated by two gods. Marrakari the Father of Rain brings the monsoon season, and is depicted as a tall, lumbering figure composed almost entirely of clay and water, with a shifting, ever-changing figure with a vaguely humanoid shape and four arms. He is said to exact bloody revenge on those who wrong the natural order of the islands by sending great floods and tidal waves.
Lakshvia the Sun-Swept Goddess, brings the Sunsweep to the islands to blow away the humid oppression of the monsoon and bring nourishing light to the crops and cities. She is depicted as a tall and beautiful woman, but to look on her is allegedly to burn out one's eyes from the sheer brightness of her beauty. The sun itself is said to be the shining light of Lakshvia's naval, which she presses warmly to the sky in order to warm the world from her loving womb.
The Tiger-King or Queen is said to be the avatar of whichever of the gods their gender corresponds to. It is forbidden for anyone except chosen foreign emissaries, the eunuchs and the scions of the highborn houses (who are also said to possess the 'godsblood') to look upon the Tiger-King or Queen under penalty of death. In public, they travel veiled in enormous corteges.
Sacrifice is practiced heavily in the enormous ziggurat shaped temples of the Thabossian religion, with the offerings ranging from livestock to the Tiger-King or Queen themselves. The spilled blood is said to nourish the earth in times of hardship and rouse the masculine impulse of Marrakari in times of drought. Dozens of slaves are bought from all over the world to be used as sacrifice livestock, also, as their foreign blood is seen to be a special offering.
The Kingdom of Thabos is ruled by the Tiger-King or Queen, usually the eldest son or daughter of the previous monarch. Marriage is not commonly practiced and the Tiger-Monarch is allowed a harem of lovers in order to sate their need to produce heirs. It is considered an honour to be selected for the harem, and some of them have numbered into their hundreds, while it is usual for them only to consist of a few dozen consorts at a time. Apart from the monarch, who rules as a God and whose will is obeyed utterly within the kingdom, there is a relatively low level of civil development, though various offices of import are given to royal favourites who administer taxation, civil order and trade negotiations with varying degrees of success.
The administration of the royal palace itself, which acts as the de facto centre of political life in the kingdom, is held firmly under the thumb of a powerful group of eunuchs. Their dissuasion from carnal lust is seen as the perfect way to ensure that they serve Thabos before their own desires, and nearly all prominent courtly positions - especially those with close access to the King or Queen - are filled by eunuchs. These eunuchs are invariably Thabossians from highborn families, while more menial tasks are performed by Kahularians.
Each of the four other islands is still reigned by the ancestral princely line that existed since before the unification, all of whom swear ritual fealty to the Tiger-King or Queen upon his or her ascension.
The Thabossian priesthood practices its own strand of curiously druidic magic, with the ability to summon the life-forces that they worship to shape the will of animals, plants and occasionally the weather (if in collaboration). These priests are in constant conflict with the secular magical orders, who are numerous in the relatively learned Thabossian upper classes, who practice a much more refined and carefully trained form of magic with a heavy elemental focus on aquamancy and pyromancy, to represent the two aspect gods of their religion. Most ships carry at least one magister of some description to identify magical items of worth to be sold on to various interested buyers around the world.
Kahularians are commonly exported as slaves due to their stocky build and relatively hardy constitutions in most weather, but the main export of the Thabossian Kingdom is whatever it is that they can trade. Acting largely as middlemen in enormously complex global maritime trade networks, the Thabossians have a worldwide reputation for efficiency and honesty in business, and reliability in delivering cargo quickly and safely.
Though a mercantile culture by nature, the Thabossians are required to maintain a strong and robust internal defence force to fight off frequent incursions from the untamed populations of the Kahularians, many of whom practice various primal dark magic.
Kahularians are used in droves in the military. Their intrinsic understanding of how best to use jungle landscapes as well as their small size, muscular bodies and quick movement mean that they are the ground troops of most Thabossian military detachments. The Thabossians themselves dominate the archery and magic using sections of the military, however, while Kahularian shaman are allowed to serve alongside Thabossian druidic priests in the healing and moral boosting sections of the military.
Fighting in the dense jungles of Thabos requires a degree of adaptability, and the Thabossian army is composed largely of archers, slingers, saboteurs and light skirmishers, many of whom are adept at constructing elaborate traps, defences and conducting aerial warfare from high in the trees dozens of feet above the thick jungle canopy. In the way of cavalry, there is a special and elite detachment of Tiger Riders, who tame and ride the ten foot tall Diretigers into battle in honour of the Tiger King or Queen.
Insofar as weaponry, the Thabossians are fond of curved scimitar like swords and short, one-handed axes. Their armour is generally made from leather with mesh inlet made from imported iron and steel, but the Tiger Riders wear full suits of gilted green steel plate. There is also a small but increasingly large detachment of permanent snipers, who use the cumbersome and relatively unreliably stocked ammunition stocks of the nation to organise a gunpowder using section of the military.
The Navy is Thabos' pride and joy, and is famous for its well-constructed and nimble sailing ships. Any confrontation between The Sunswept Isles and another nation will begin at sea, and the Thabossians are experts at creating detachments of archers and slingers who can fight from the ship's decks. The fact that most warships are equipped with at least two magisters of some variety also means that warfare at sea can quickly turn sour for an opponent of the Thabossians. However, though swift, Thabossian ships are not heavily armoured, nor have they quite become comfortable with the idea of power-based weaponry or cannons. If one hits a Thabossian ship with a cannonball, it is likely over.
Most armies march with an equally sized cohort of druidic priests and secular mages, though the former is often the more visible, integrating visibly with the ground troops and using their druidic magic to shape the jungles to their advantage, a tactic that has saved the Thabossians from enclosing enemies by closing the literal trees against them and buying them enough time to make their flight on many occasions before.
The Kingdom of Thabos
(Often just referred to as 'The Sunswept Isles' in vernacular speech) - claim number 21
Location/Geography
Thabos has a warm, tropical climate, fed by the 'Sunsweep', the name given to the warm wind that blows almost consistently from the south and east and that feeds the climate of the eponymous isles. The seasons are divided into the sunny and the monsoon season, with little room in between pouring deluges of rain and scorching heat.
There is a small amount of variation in each of the isles - the most northerly, Nibari, is also the most temperate, famous for its fruit groves, while the most easterly, Lobessa, is perpetually windswept and devoid of almost all tree cover, instead being covered by low-lying savannah land and hilly bluffs that stretch out into sand dunes and areas of scrub land. Settlement on all of the islands is mostly restricted to the coast - the inlands are populated, but infrastructure can be patchy, and vast sweeps of jungle that smother the interiors of the three southerly islands are home to hostile beasts like Diresabers and Great Snarks, as well as rumours of dark magic wielding cannibals who live in tree-top cities far above the expansive canopy.
The islands are dotted with enormous marble ruins, some of which have been adapted into the cities of the current Thabossian kingdom and others that are buried deep within the jungles, or jut out from the reefs in the sea between the islands. These ruins show the marks of complex stone working and carving, with some statues of various robed persons unknown also being found regularly. Though incomplete and often severely damaged, the ruins show the remains of a level of craft as of yet unable to be replicated. What is more, there are no natural marble deposits on the archipelago, leading some to theorise that the ruins are the remains of an ancient and forgotten Empire that colonised The Sunswept Isles many centuries ago.
General Introduction
The Kingdom of Thabos is a mercantile and yet secretive kingdom at the fringes of the known world, inhabiting a circle of islands far to the south-east known as the 'Sunswept Isles'. The copper-skinned Thabossians are not an infrequent sight throughout the world, rippling silently into most major trade ports on their black-sailed skiffs, trading their stocks of exotic spices, tea, silks and animal parts in exchange for furs and various foodstuffs. Apart from this interaction, however, few people know much about the secretive and unaggressive islanders. Most foreigners are not permitted to reside or to stay for long on the islands, and those who do become aware very quickly of a complex social structure and belief system that shapes the lives of all those who live under the reign of the Tiger-Queen Anetkara, the 'Sun's Avatar' or Salhamat-i Ashvahat.
History
Legend has it that the five islands of Thabos were once one, largest island, known as Kaeramuni, inhabited by the precursors to the Thabossians, who are known in Thabossian mythology simply as 'the Antecedents'. The Antecedents grew haughty and arrogant, building enormous towers and forsaking the power of the Sunsweep. Their arrogance brought about their downfall - one day the centre of the island, deep in the jungle, exploded with such force that it blew them all apart into five distinct entities. The event caused tidal waves across the world, and destroyed the Ancient Thabossian Kingdom utterly. Those who survived had to restart from scratch, foraging in the ruins of their illustrious ancestors for berries, and waging warfare with cannibalistic tribes from wooden shanty towns built in the shade of cracked courtyards and great palaces.
The Thabossians, however, proved to be a resilient peoples, adapting quickly and advancing quicker still. Some semblance of the Ancient Thabossian advancement must have lingered, for their ship-building capabilities were unaffected by the event and they made forays out into the wider world for the first time, tentatively establishing trade relationships with other fledgling nations and mapping the known world as best they could. At this point, each of the five islands was ruled by a Prince who took on the avatar of a different animal - the most southerly islands were the homes of the Crocodile, Snapping Turtle and Elephant Princes, while Lobessa was ruled by the Panther Prince and Nibari by the Tiger Prince. These princely dynasties were frequently in violent conflict, waging bloody war both on each other and on the 'Untamed Peoples' or the tribes that had yet to come under their yoke; those who lived (and continue to live) deep in the jungles and reject civilised life.
It was under the reign of the 'Great Tiger', Kahu'un the Wizened, that unification was finally achieved. The first 'Tiger-King' allied himself to the Snapping Turtle and Elephant Princes and waged a bloody conflict first against the Crocodile Prince, who he is said to have drank the blood of after defeating him in battle, and then the Panther Prince, who ruled the second most prosperous island. The war has come to be known variously as 'The Tiger's Leap', 'The Five Islands' War' and 'The Unification'. From that moment on Thabos began to worship its monarch as a demi-god, responsible for bringing in the warm southerly winds to end the monsoon season. It is not unusual for a Tiger King or Queen to be sacrificed to the oceans for failing to do so.
Government & Society
Society
Thabos operates under a strictly stratified society, built mainly on the back of extensive slave labour. The Thabossians themselves occupy their place at the top of society, with their lives devoted mostly to religious worship, magic, scholarship and the arts, with architecture, painting and instrument playing being the most valued pastimes amongst the Thabossians. The slave class is composed mostly of tame Kahularians, with various races from across the world being brought in to act in various capacities after having been bought from local governments or captured as pirates by the nimble and well-built Thabossian Navy.
Thabossian cities are built from the dark grey stone quarried in Lobessa. Buildings are largely built to be towers, many of which are interspersed with rolling, decorative gardens filled with trees, fountains and open patches of grassy land, most of which is flooded at some point during the monsoon season. To avoid this annual flooding disrupting Thabossian society entirely, a series of stone walkways connects most buildings in every society so that it is possible for the Thabossians to move around throughout their cities even when five or six feet of water submerge the ground level. This is repeated on a smaller scale in towns and villages, with most of the smallest villages containing a single tall tower where rations and medicaments are stockpiled year round in order for the residents to take shelter should the need arise.
Religion
The Thabossian faith is often referred to simply as the 'Diarchy', because it is dominated by two gods. Marrakari the Father of Rain brings the monsoon season, and is depicted as a tall, lumbering figure composed almost entirely of clay and water, with a shifting, ever-changing figure with a vaguely humanoid shape and four arms. He is said to exact bloody revenge on those who wrong the natural order of the islands by sending great floods and tidal waves.
Lakshvia the Sun-Swept Goddess, brings the Sunsweep to the islands to blow away the humid oppression of the monsoon and bring nourishing light to the crops and cities. She is depicted as a tall and beautiful woman, but to look on her is allegedly to burn out one's eyes from the sheer brightness of her beauty. The sun itself is said to be the shining light of Lakshvia's naval, which she presses warmly to the sky in order to warm the world from her loving womb.
The Tiger-King or Queen is said to be the avatar of whichever of the gods their gender corresponds to. It is forbidden for anyone except chosen foreign emissaries, the eunuchs and the scions of the highborn houses (who are also said to possess the 'godsblood') to look upon the Tiger-King or Queen under penalty of death. In public, they travel veiled in enormous corteges.
Sacrifice is practiced heavily in the enormous ziggurat shaped temples of the Thabossian religion, with the offerings ranging from livestock to the Tiger-King or Queen themselves. The spilled blood is said to nourish the earth in times of hardship and rouse the masculine impulse of Marrakari in times of drought. Dozens of slaves are bought from all over the world to be used as sacrifice livestock, also, as their foreign blood is seen to be a special offering.
Government
The Kingdom of Thabos is ruled by the Tiger-King or Queen, usually the eldest son or daughter of the previous monarch. Marriage is not commonly practiced and the Tiger-Monarch is allowed a harem of lovers in order to sate their need to produce heirs. It is considered an honour to be selected for the harem, and some of them have numbered into their hundreds, while it is usual for them only to consist of a few dozen consorts at a time. Apart from the monarch, who rules as a God and whose will is obeyed utterly within the kingdom, there is a relatively low level of civil development, though various offices of import are given to royal favourites who administer taxation, civil order and trade negotiations with varying degrees of success.
The administration of the royal palace itself, which acts as the de facto centre of political life in the kingdom, is held firmly under the thumb of a powerful group of eunuchs. Their dissuasion from carnal lust is seen as the perfect way to ensure that they serve Thabos before their own desires, and nearly all prominent courtly positions - especially those with close access to the King or Queen - are filled by eunuchs. These eunuchs are invariably Thabossians from highborn families, while more menial tasks are performed by Kahularians.
Each of the four other islands is still reigned by the ancestral princely line that existed since before the unification, all of whom swear ritual fealty to the Tiger-King or Queen upon his or her ascension.
Magic
The Thabossian priesthood practices its own strand of curiously druidic magic, with the ability to summon the life-forces that they worship to shape the will of animals, plants and occasionally the weather (if in collaboration). These priests are in constant conflict with the secular magical orders, who are numerous in the relatively learned Thabossian upper classes, who practice a much more refined and carefully trained form of magic with a heavy elemental focus on aquamancy and pyromancy, to represent the two aspect gods of their religion. Most ships carry at least one magister of some description to identify magical items of worth to be sold on to various interested buyers around the world.
The Thabossians are a bipedal, humanoid peoples, closely related to humans. They are copper-skinned, with most of the population possessing bright red or black hair. Physiologically, they are not predisposed to gaining much muscle mass, and they are all taller than humans on average, with females averaging at 7 feet tall and the males averaging at 7 feet and 6 inches, all of which contribute to giving them a tall and willowy appearance that is accentuated by the flowing, loose-fitting robes that they wear at almost every opportunity in order to cope in the heat of the Sunswept Isles. The Thabossians are omnivorous but most remain largely herbivore due to the general dearth of livestock animals on the islands. Their ears taper to small points, and their eyes are either silvery-green or blue, with little exception.
The Kahularians are a bipedal, simian peoples who inhabit the rugged centre of the Sunswept Isles, nominally under the charge of the Tiger-King of Thabos but operating more often as an independent patchwork of tribal states that are constantly warring with each other and occasionally operating raids out onto the Thabossian cities that dot the coast. A wholly carnivorous and ostensibly cannibalistic people, they are generally regarded as barbarians by the Thabossians, who use them both as galley slaves and forced soldiers in their armies, though in reality the Kahularians have their own language, their own customs and their own religion, which focuses on the worship of the 'Great Life Tree' Atakaru, rumoured to be located somewhere within the enormous and near impenetrable jungle of the Snapping Turtle principality, where the Kahularians maintain the strongest presence and most developed infrastructure. Short and stocky, the average female Kahularian stands at five feet, while the males are usually a few inches shorter. Their physiology is essentially humanoid except for their being covered in thick and coarse greenish black hair.
Economy & Industry
Kahularians are commonly exported as slaves due to their stocky build and relatively hardy constitutions in most weather, but the main export of the Thabossian Kingdom is whatever it is that they can trade. Acting largely as middlemen in enormously complex global maritime trade networks, the Thabossians have a worldwide reputation for efficiency and honesty in business, and reliability in delivering cargo quickly and safely.
Military Overview
Though a mercantile culture by nature, the Thabossians are required to maintain a strong and robust internal defence force to fight off frequent incursions from the untamed populations of the Kahularians, many of whom practice various primal dark magic.
Composition
Kahularians are used in droves in the military. Their intrinsic understanding of how best to use jungle landscapes as well as their small size, muscular bodies and quick movement mean that they are the ground troops of most Thabossian military detachments. The Thabossians themselves dominate the archery and magic using sections of the military, however, while Kahularian shaman are allowed to serve alongside Thabossian druidic priests in the healing and moral boosting sections of the military.
Army
Fighting in the dense jungles of Thabos requires a degree of adaptability, and the Thabossian army is composed largely of archers, slingers, saboteurs and light skirmishers, many of whom are adept at constructing elaborate traps, defences and conducting aerial warfare from high in the trees dozens of feet above the thick jungle canopy. In the way of cavalry, there is a special and elite detachment of Tiger Riders, who tame and ride the ten foot tall Diretigers into battle in honour of the Tiger King or Queen.
Insofar as weaponry, the Thabossians are fond of curved scimitar like swords and short, one-handed axes. Their armour is generally made from leather with mesh inlet made from imported iron and steel, but the Tiger Riders wear full suits of gilted green steel plate. There is also a small but increasingly large detachment of permanent snipers, who use the cumbersome and relatively unreliably stocked ammunition stocks of the nation to organise a gunpowder using section of the military.
Navy
The Navy is Thabos' pride and joy, and is famous for its well-constructed and nimble sailing ships. Any confrontation between The Sunswept Isles and another nation will begin at sea, and the Thabossians are experts at creating detachments of archers and slingers who can fight from the ship's decks. The fact that most warships are equipped with at least two magisters of some variety also means that warfare at sea can quickly turn sour for an opponent of the Thabossians. However, though swift, Thabossian ships are not heavily armoured, nor have they quite become comfortable with the idea of power-based weaponry or cannons. If one hits a Thabossian ship with a cannonball, it is likely over.
Magic in the Military
Most armies march with an equally sized cohort of druidic priests and secular mages, though the former is often the more visible, integrating visibly with the ground troops and using their druidic magic to shape the jungles to their advantage, a tactic that has saved the Thabossians from enclosing enemies by closing the literal trees against them and buying them enough time to make their flight on many occasions before.
Thrashy smashy-splashy
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8 yrs ago
@Monkeypants Added you to the list of submitted NSs for easy future reference.
@TheMoatedGrange Updated your permalink in the list.
@TheMoatedGrange Updated your permalink in the list.
Goldeagle1221 I am Spartacus!
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1 yr ago
Suppose I'll pump my NS out after work.
GreivousKhan Deus Vult
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3 yrs ago
Suppose I'll pump my NS out after work.
Pump it eagle, pump it good.
POOHEAD189 The Abmin
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Not quite done, but I edited some more for my nation if people want to speak of relations. Will be able to chat after work (I'm on break)
Lauder The Tired One
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3 days ago
1x Like
POOHEAD189 The Abmin
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@LauderLike I said, we'll be best buds! :D
GM
Willy Vereb The Wordy Engineer
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5 days ago
And I feel ashamed I still haven't done my NS yet. Not like it's super long. I just never get the time to gather my thoughts.
And now it's past midnight here. I'll try to fix this issue tomorrow.
Until then I say we should put up the nation subs to their appropriate place. All people who at least filled a paragraph on each category now are allowed to put their NS to the characters tab.
Let's get things into gear!
I get nation evaluations later but really I can't see why would I refuse any of you guys to play.
So long you are willing to do minor changes in order to keep the setting more cohesive there's no harm in anyone copying their NS to the other tab.
Again, pardon me for not having the time to talk about your NS in detail. This is my gift of compensation for the time being.
And now it's past midnight here. I'll try to fix this issue tomorrow.
Until then I say we should put up the nation subs to their appropriate place. All people who at least filled a paragraph on each category now are allowed to put their NS to the characters tab.
Let's get things into gear!
I get nation evaluations later but really I can't see why would I refuse any of you guys to play.
So long you are willing to do minor changes in order to keep the setting more cohesive there's no harm in anyone copying their NS to the other tab.
Again, pardon me for not having the time to talk about your NS in detail. This is my gift of compensation for the time being.
1x Like
Goldeagle1221 I am Spartacus!
Member
Seen
1 yr ago
And I feel ashamed I still haven't done my NS yet. Not like it's super long. I just never get the time to gather my thoughts.
And now it's past midnight here. I'll try to fix this issue tomorrow.
Until then I say we should put up the nation subs to their appropriate place. All people who at least filled a paragraph on each category now are allowed to put their NS to the characters tab.
Let's get things into gear!
I get nation evaluations later but really I can't see why would I refuse any of you guys to play.
So long you are willing to do minor changes in order to keep the setting more cohesive there's no harm in anyone copying their NS to the other tab.
Again, pardon me for not having the time to talk about your NS in detail. This is my gift of compensation for the time being.
Need your co for anything?
Goldeagle1221 I am Spartacus!
Member
Seen
1 yr ago
NATION 11
(Filler Name)
Location/Geography
The geography and topography of this area is very particular. The most obvious landmark is the dominating forest that covers the entire region, except for the high rocky coast or where it spreads into light copse of twisting apple trees and black trunked maples around the edges of the forest. Hamlets dot this ring of fertile and shaded land, with the soil pulling most of it’s moisture from run offs that soak in from the dense forest beyond the boundary of apple farms and quaint villages.
The forest itself is another monster all together, and it mostly avoided by those who have no business inside of it. The Hamlet dwellers of the apple lands and copses tend to stay clear of the “fringe dwellers” who live solemnly in the swampy fringes of the great wood. Armies of headstones and moss conquered statues mark the official boundary to the dark trunked forest.
(Send personal request via PM for further information about the interior of the forest -- until I format the old description to fit this setting)
General Introduction
Fringe dwellers aside, the people of the apple lands have a running trend to send out their young men and women from their tiny farms to study and enjoy the world. The more popular the country is, the more likely the adventurous emissaries are likely to go there, especially if it is a profit of knowledge or of any other sort.
These emissaries are expected to help their hosts, and study the culture of their current location with extreme detail. Often the emissaries return home to retire after compiling great works and massive tomes of information, and even more often bringing the culture and its ways back home to the tiny hamlets. It is not uncommon for priceless art or foreign architecture to be portrayed in the small villages, giving a strange non uniform appearance to the more successful emissary’s home hamlets.
List of relations
City States of Brescia -- These City States are among the most popular for new Emissaries, as for many years they have been welcomed with open arms and copious amounts of gifts, not including the Brescian religion and masterful artwork. Their architecture has made its way into the apple lands, and quasi cathedrals of Brescian style with it. What few migrants of the apple lands there are tend to gravitate here due its long standing generosity to the emissaries. If there is a fancy and well stocked hamlet full of alien artwork, chances are a retired emissary of Brescia lives there.
The Kingdom of Ardonia -- This wondrous and strange land prompts many young men and women to pick here as the location of their adventurous emissary years. Similar to Brescia, Ardonian religion made its way back to the apple lands, but with far less gifts and much more cultural notes and tomes of information. Those willing to take the trip even sometimes trade small wares with Ardonian’s albeit rarely. Many emissaries out to find the most interesting landscapes or variety in a nation travel here to study, as not a note of the many cultures goes unheard by the ever hungry adventurers.
Zhodul -- Similar reception was found in Zhodul as in Ardonia, with the fancy addition of gifted scales from authoritarian figures. This relation increased the presence of Ardonian religion due to its presence in Zhodul as well as the original location. A fine choice for any emissary looking for something different.
Kingdom of Myrstrost-- For those seeking adventure and stories instead of raw gifts or fanciful depictions of culture, this is where the most adventurous emissaries go to prove their mettle. The curious nature of the inhabitants and their attention to dangerous adventures and prying thoughts to the darker sides of “what-if” bring the hardiest Emissaries to test their own danger-sense and hopefully bring home tomes of great knowledge, if not a traditional dungeon crawlers treasure. Also the toast here is phenomenal.
Empire of the hidden -- A unique place for emissaries unwilling to do too much traveling to get their tomes filled with information and pockets with memoirs. The government of the Empire has been generous enough to offer a house for visiting emissaries, and even seats at local academies. This combination made the number of emissaries limited, but longer lasting in presence. Upon return the apple pickers of the hamlet lands are always glad to hear about the latest medical news and new forging techniques presented by the Imperial Academies.
TBA
City States of Brescia -- These City States are among the most popular for new Emissaries, as for many years they have been welcomed with open arms and copious amounts of gifts, not including the Brescian religion and masterful artwork. Their architecture has made its way into the apple lands, and quasi cathedrals of Brescian style with it. What few migrants of the apple lands there are tend to gravitate here due its long standing generosity to the emissaries. If there is a fancy and well stocked hamlet full of alien artwork, chances are a retired emissary of Brescia lives there.
The Kingdom of Ardonia -- This wondrous and strange land prompts many young men and women to pick here as the location of their adventurous emissary years. Similar to Brescia, Ardonian religion made its way back to the apple lands, but with far less gifts and much more cultural notes and tomes of information. Those willing to take the trip even sometimes trade small wares with Ardonian’s albeit rarely. Many emissaries out to find the most interesting landscapes or variety in a nation travel here to study, as not a note of the many cultures goes unheard by the ever hungry adventurers.
Zhodul -- Similar reception was found in Zhodul as in Ardonia, with the fancy addition of gifted scales from authoritarian figures. This relation increased the presence of Ardonian religion due to its presence in Zhodul as well as the original location. A fine choice for any emissary looking for something different.
Kingdom of Myrstrost-- For those seeking adventure and stories instead of raw gifts or fanciful depictions of culture, this is where the most adventurous emissaries go to prove their mettle. The curious nature of the inhabitants and their attention to dangerous adventures and prying thoughts to the darker sides of “what-if” bring the hardiest Emissaries to test their own danger-sense and hopefully bring home tomes of great knowledge, if not a traditional dungeon crawlers treasure. Also the toast here is phenomenal.
Empire of the hidden -- A unique place for emissaries unwilling to do too much traveling to get their tomes filled with information and pockets with memoirs. The government of the Empire has been generous enough to offer a house for visiting emissaries, and even seats at local academies. This combination made the number of emissaries limited, but longer lasting in presence. Upon return the apple pickers of the hamlet lands are always glad to hear about the latest medical news and new forging techniques presented by the Imperial Academies.
TBA
History
Beyond apple picking, basic farming and being simple, this land doesn’t hold much history past the many exploits of its esteemed emissaries -- at least not to common knowledge. (more to come)
Government & Society
This simple and primarily human nation is unique in its government in only that it doesn’t have an official one. United solely by familial ties, topography, and culture, the apple-picking hamlet dwellers, and fringe dwellers are technically an “autonomous collective” with no formal system of law or unification among the many hamlets or swamp settlements.
Because of the lack of government, family is the leading authority among individuals and law is often taken upon the elders of a hamlet to dish out. While the apple hamlets tend to be quiet, when a criminal does strike, it is usually either met with indifference if minor enough, or a mob attempting to run the criminal out of the local area.
Families tend to be large and with many children. Direct family tends to live in the same hovel, sometimes shared with other families. Distant family members can usually be found in the next hamlet over, or across a darkened field of twisty apple trees.
Almost everything used or conceived here was handmade by the families that use them, save gifts from emissaries. In the little down time found in such a life of work, stories from past adventures are used to entertain the youth and grant nostalgia to the retired adventurer elders of the hamlets. When a horror story is needed, the youth in turn grant the elders darkened tales of beyond the ring of headstones, either lying or boasting their own steps into the forbidden realm past their small ring of apple farms, usually to be scolded.
Many of the hamlets look like a strange mix between simple farms and bizarre libraries, brimming with past emissaries works and treasures (relevant to an apple picker). Stranger still, foreign religions brought back by emissaries can be found in mimicking places of worship, to which most are thankful for the lax approach to the newer religions and ancient tolerance of their own.
(more to come)
Economy & Industry
The normal appearance of the economy tends to be simple barter among neighbors and tradesmen and farmers. Foreign trade is rare due to the lack of cities, or excess goods. The only influx of wealth comes from returning Emissaries who had received many gifts from their hosts or where graciously taught a new skill of luxury. Sadly, a portion of the most expensive and ancient artifacts or tomes of information that might be brought back are sometimes snuck into the dark of the lingering forest for some reason or another, some claim it’s for a great and hidden library, others claim a strange form of sacrifice or ceremony.
All the trades of the dirt are found among the hamlets to keep them running, and hard workers are abundant in a world where sloth leads to starvation.
Military Overview
Any formal sense of a military is nonexistent, these are simple farmers, tradesmen, and retired adventurers.
Just putting this here.
If I haven't approached you about receiving my Emissaries, feel free to PM me if you are interested.
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