@Wildman13
if its mine that got in the way i can choose another location, no prob :p
@Wildman13
if its mine that got in the way i can choose another location, no prob :p
@Wildman13
I would like to keep the region I had before if you don't mind.
Name: Werewolves are called Shaou Strimider in beast tongue but to humans and soft kin they are Shadow striders
Flag/symbol:
Race/Races: Werewolf kin
Magic: No true magic in terms of spells however the wolf kin have alchemists and shamans. Alchemists are as they are described potion makers able to create potions that enhance the wolf kin beyond their limits to become unstoppable in battle however they can also make lethal potions that when thrown explode on impact and kill those that are weak to poisons or diseases. Their shamans are closest to mages that the wolf kin have, they are able to control plants and vines in the area. However this can only be done on their own land allowing them to work alongside nature. In order for shamans to use their abilities outside their territory requires a pact with the local forest spirit.
How you survived: The clan are in touch with the earth and as such they avoided the rays of lightning. They used the earth itself to protect themselves from the harshest of the effects while avoiding to many losses to the clan.
Technology: Steel age: they use steel weapons and armor and tribal magic's
military might: Incredible military might when fighting on their own turf allowing them ability to keep their home safe from all invaders. Outside their territory they are a force to be reckoned with in terms of a straight up fight, when on solid ground they are able to fight in peak conditions however they loose more then half their fighting strength when in water or fighting air based enemies without shamans.
History: The ancient elders tell of the tales of how their kind came to be. It has been told that they were born of alphas males mating with humans creating a cross which to soft kin are known as werewolves. However since the first werewolf was born they have bred with only the best of breeding stock from both humans and wolves and their own werewolf kind. Through many different attacks against their kind from fearful humans they showed their strength against the humans and subjugated them into servitude and made them slaves the best were of course used as breeding stock while the others were left to do menial jobs.
The key point however that made their kind strong was no physical weakness to silver or any of the other myths that surround their kind and without a clear mortal weakness the humans who were much weaker eventually died off as they expanded their kind. It was after the humans died in servitude that alchemy and came to be as werewolves died to poisons from the herbs their came those that learned to harness their lethalness in their own potions of course their were many issues and deaths from experimentation but after a hundred years of experimentation alchemy became a science that the smartest of their kind became a part of.
Shamans came shortly after as it was told that a young werewolf tried to harvest plants from a sacred tree far from the village that she met the local forest spirit. The young pup was innocent and was able to make friends with the spirit, as the pup grew up they learned from each other and she was the first shaman and as such learned how to harness the power of the earth itself. Shamans were then accepted allowing even the women of the tribe to help out in the cause as women are more in tuned with their emotions then men were. As such they became instrumental to defending the tribe against attackers.
It has been over 500 years since the events transpired and they lived with the land and were peaceful until the portals came and they became part of a much larger war...Name: Aragonaus
Rank/title: Alpha: strongest of the strong and leaderAppearance:
In Werewolf form he stands at an impressive 7 feet tall easily larger then the average human. He has razor sharp claws that rip and rend flesh and his eyes are an emerald green however when he is angry or under the influence of the alchemist juggernaut boosters his eyes turn blood red.
When he decides to go into human form when not to scare soft kin he stands 6 feet tall still somewhat taller then the average human. While most of his body becomes human he retains his wolf tail and arms and sides of his chest keep his wolf fur, his eyes remain green and finally he keeps teeth sharp enough to bite through flesh.
Weapon: mounted arm blades (the closest I could find for my image was this)These blades reach father then his arms and can slice through most armors and if not the sharp point can pierce through them.
Armor: steel plate armor over his shoulders and legs. It is believed that chest armor is a sign of weakness for scars and wounds are badges of honor
Capabilities: He is an unbeatable warrior able to fight any foe and because he is so strong he is considered a great leader for the pack and can lead his brothers and sisters into battle as he leads the charge. He is smart but that does not make him a great tactician.
Background: Aragonaus was born with a litter of his brothers and sisters to an alpha and their mate. He grew up learning to fight and hunt first along with his brothers and sister and he showed he had a high aptitude for battle and keen instincts. He kept fighting at a young age and learned how to fight the biggest and strongest of his kind and as he grew up a few of his brothers and sisters became alchemists while his sisters became shamans or mates to the betas. He however had a higher goal in mind, he challenged his father to be the alpha and the entire tribe came out to watch it as it was rare to see someone challenge an alpha. Aragonaus was a teenager but his father had aged of course they fought ferociously for 4 full days both were strong fighters and they kept slashing trying to get the best of one another but finally Aragaonaus won by performing the first move his father taught him as a child, a classic grapple move that flipped him onto his back and pierced his chest with his claws. His father died with a smile and his final words were "Bout time son" (translated from beast speech). The entire tribe howled loudly and celebrated the new alpha rising to power.
From that day onward Aragonaus proved himself time and time again hunting and protecting the tribe from threats until the event came that made them show a new world beyond their own...
Thw wolf father:
He is said to be the very first wolf who loved a human and helped in creating the first werewolf of their kind. His body has long since been gone into the earth but his ferocity was enough that the spirits gave him infinite life and charge him with protection of the sacred tree. He stands 10 feet tall much taller then any of the werewolves but it was believed that with his immortality came the powers of the spirits themselves making stronger, faster, and larger then any beast that would dare challenge him. The only voice that he will listen to is that of the earth mother. When in a desperate situation of being outnumbered he is able to split his being into 5 other wolves each one smaller and weaker of course but note then enough to challenge any beast.
Tree of the earth mother:
Said to harbor the very first earth spirit, it is said that all fairies that speak with the werewolves originated from her and her tree is known to be sacred. It is said that if the tree were to ever be destroyed the very forest itself would die. The tree itself stands talls and above all other trees making it viewable even at a large distance. The tree harbors the Earth mother and like the tree she is unable to move from where her tree is but her roots expand the entire forest to calm and help her children. She mashes all the spirits that live in her forest stronger and those that pick roots closer to her are much more potent
<Snipped quote by Wildman13>
Alright, I fixed it... I hope :P
Japan Royal Imperium (JRI/Japan) 日皇帝國
How you survived:
A few days before the dropping of nuclear bombs on the islands of Japan, the spies of Japan received information regarding several transportations of nuclear bombs across a few major countries. The Government was loading everything and everyone onto their latest ships when the first nuclear bomb hit Tokyo so only those who managed to go onboard were safe. The ships actually returned to the islands of Japan after a few years to see if there are any survivors but unfortunately, there were no survivors left.
Flagship:
JRI Yamato(大和) -
A reconstruction of the previous IJN Battleship Yamato.
Self-defense weapon. Torpedoes, missiles, radars etc to keep the enemies at bay. Nothing too overpowered as only minimal self-defense weapons were allowed when she was built.
Fleet Factory. Serve as a place to repair, build or scrap anything like vehicles, ships, ammunition, weapons etc.
Harvesters Farm. Produce food and drinks for the citizens.
Laboratory. Everything about science and technology.
Combined Hanger. Station for the fleets and aircraft.
Two Ship:
JRI Nagato(長門)
A reconstruction of the previous IJN Battleship Nagato, also the "older sister" of JRI Akashi. Nagato was previously a container ship full of resources and equipment. After they moved everything out from the ship, Nagato was redesigned to be the home for The Emperor and his royal family, regular citizens and a few sectors were redesigned to become the school, park, hospital, and sports center etc. The reason for the building of the recreation sectors was because Japan had always believed that humans have to rest/relax enough to be productive, nothing good will come by forcing them. Equipped with basic defense weapons just like Yamato.
JRI Akashi(明石)
A reconstruction of the previous IJN Battleship Mutsu, also the "younger sister" of JRI Nagato. Akashi was previously a fleet repair ship, she was equipped with the latest equipment in case of emergency during any missions. She can also conduct "underway replenishment" of ammo, food, supplies etc for the stationary fleets. Some of the sectors were redesigned into factories for future use just in case. Equipped with basic defense weapons just like Yamato.
Escort:
JRI Shimakaze(島風)
A reconstruction of the previous IJN destroyer Shimakaze. Known as the fastest ship of the entire fleet due to her small size, but she's very fast and easy to maneuver around. Shimakaze has basic defense weapons just like those on the flagship Yamato.
Technology:
The JRI did not focus on the technology and invention of new powerful weapons because of the WW2 treaty. Even thou that their technology for the weapon is lacking, they're trying their best to catch up to the rest now. Medical, biotech, food and agriculture technology, on the other hand, are more advanced compared to their military tech.
History:
After the defeat of Imperial Japan during WW2, a new government called The JRI was formed with the terms of completely disarming the entire military forces. After that, Japan has focused primarily to improve the country's prosperity and harmony. After WW2 with the guidance of the other countries, Japan's tech improved and the industries were prosperous after WW2.
Japan was allowed to participate in the world trade game and she can build anything under only one condition - Only minimal defensive weapons were allowed to prevent Japan from re-arming for war.
Everything looks good for Japan until the fire nation attacked the dropping of a nuclear bomb right above Tokyo.Greetings fellow humans and monsters others, this is Grand Marshal Mitsunobu speaking. We are the loyal subjects of our Heavenly Emperor. We mean no harm as we Japanese citizens only wished to conquer seek true harmony and eternal peace with each other. We like to conduct inhuman/inelf/indwarf experiments secretly, do not tell anyone. Harmless until provoked.
Гла́вное управле́ние Генера́льного шта́ба Вооружённых Сил Росси́йской Федера́ции
Main Directorate of the General Staff of the Armed Forces of the Russian Federation
The G.R.U.
The events that unfolded on Earth were unexpected but far from unplanned. Ever since 1957 and the first ICBM, the Soviet Union, Russia, the Pan-Slavic Union and the many names it had through the modern ages, had prepared for the worst, to insure that long after the world had ended, 'Russia' endured. Russia being of course a small cabal of well connected elite with the hyper competent peons lucky enough to be chosen as 'essential'.
Some people who were in power as far back as during the Soviet Union survived the third war but after they regretted favoring competence over loyalty in the selection process of their grunts. They called it the 'Palace Revolution' when the political and oligarchic elite was overthrown and replaced by the military and then the 'Insidious Civil War' when the unstable military junta was slowly replaced through assassinations and power plays by a single leadership from Military Intelligence.
Russia is doomed, a quagmire of unrest and death, as its government is entirely cynical and uncaring. Those onboard the Russian Expedition are not at all a well mixed group of civilian expert ready to reestablish civilization but rather a bunch of cold and calculating killers that managed to climb on top by ruthlessly crushing its opponents. Still, taming vast territories while they are outnumbered by people who hate their guts with nothing but a technological advantage and the will to destroy is business as usual for these guys, they are confident they'll be right at home in this new world.
____________________________________________
Flagship: TK-209 Akula Submarine, while most of the nations sent surface vessels, the Russians preferred discretion and thus sent an underwater expedition. This submarine, the largest ever made, dates from the cold war as in its current devastated state, the GRU didn't have the means to built something new, but still its been modernized to serve its purpose well, stripping its armament for space.
-1st Module, Extra Soldiers: A compartment loaded with cramped beds with the floors, walls and every surface covered with guns, ammo and other items to deal with 'soft targets'. These elite spetsnaz, chosen for how unquestioning they are of any... 'morally ambiguous' orders are eager to go out and do some exercise.
-2nd Module, Mining Equipment: Exploration and exploitation, they don't intend to go full Robinson on this expedition, this is to serve as the base to build a bunker and begin re-industrialization in the new world.
-3rd Module, Air Cavalry: Gunships and transport helicopter, they assumed from day 1 that conflict with natives would be unavoidable, as such a quick moving force would be essential to maneuver in places lacking infrastructure.
-4th Module, Workers: They all have a lot of degrees and could be considered the best of the best, but they rarely are here by choice. These people were 'conscripted, 2 females for every male, to be simply 'human resources'.
-5th Module, Ballistic Missiles: Not all the silos were removed from the sub and Ivan keeps a card up his sleeves in case things get too heated. These cruise missiles are the ace in the hole, armed with either high explosive or chemical warheads.
Secondary Ship 1: Vostok, large container ship modified to be a modular foundry equipped with older more reliable machinery along with some newer 3d printers and the likes. This ship is to be beached and dismantled to fuel itself at first until the mining operations become viable. Once a base is established, it is then to be taken apart and rebuilt in a more secure location.
Secondary Ship 2: Myr, cargo ship containing people. Soldiers who have proven themselves valuable to the regime have been allowed to bring their families (should they have the potential to be useful of course, no elderly here) and are living cramped and in terrible conditions with rapidly depleting food supplies. These people are desperate and have proven that they are capable of anything to survive.
Escort Ship: K-600 Novoprospekt, Yasen-Class attack submarine, it is a stealthy vessel equipped with better surface optics than the norm. Notably, of its crew of a hundred, a fifth is not navy but a 'Special Group' from the GRU making sure the sailors don't get funny ideas while away from command. They aren't entirely useless however and can also be used as a recon or light attack team since they are trained spetsnaz after all.
Technology: The G.R.U. brought with it the essentials that would be troublesome to manufacture to kickstart long term colonial operations. Machinery and human resources. More basic things like 'food' will have to be acquired at the discretion of the military commanders on the field. Ultimately, the technology of the Russians are like the Russians themselves, not the creme de la creme, but rugged and proven to work under miserable conditions.
Military Might: The only luxury is perhaps the couple of gunships to insure mobility, otherwise the G.R.U. brought itself a strong elite of killers and weapons calculated to have the most killing power on soft targets for their weight and the space they occupy. Notably the 'rabble' that serves as colonist, unless the conscripted technical experts on the Akula, are also tied to the military and thus fit and capable to defend itself even if for now they lack enough weapons to equip them all. Mass production of small arms and ammunition are of course thus a priority.
@Wildman13 This took all afternoon and into the night, more than i had expected. But....i hope this idea does not clash with anyone else's maps. That....or is a crappy idea in the first place. Ugh. @_@
Maker’s Side Note: For the map above, this was as far as I could get in editing it and making this before site I was doing it on stopped working.Yin’Fael
Full Name: Kingdom of Yin’Fael (meaning “moonbeams” and “three” in their main language respectively, aka: “The Three Moonbeams”)
Flag/Symbol:
Wonder: (You all have one wonder or two if you are large empire, A wonder is basically a powerful relic or devise that can give a constant buff for your people or a superweapon that inspires your people or instills fear for your enemies. But, be careful, all relics are powerful but, can be stolen destroyed and etc.)
The Great Spire- A secret, massive tower built underneath the underground capital city, its walls are magically tempered and crafted with the finest materials one could hope to gather for making it. Their nation's "superweapon" for all intents and purposes, it is stronger than even their best buildings in make and could survive earthquakes without a scratch due to the centuries of work put into its making, maintenance, and improvement since. Further, the fact it is under a city, which is under/within a literal mountain, is a telltale sign of just how safe this thing is from attacks from above-ground normally.
It is a great "magic boosting cannon", accelerating energy within the earth over and over within it, before the energy is fired as a beam through a portal. This portal was built on the bottom of the "lid" that covers the top of the spire. This portal, which has to be calibrated first with magic to designate and form an "exit" portal for the attack, takes time to "aim" in this regard. However, the portals only opens/is-opened just as the magical energy beam is being fired.
This being said, the one time it was used the enemy tried to fire an attack back through the portal. This attack was vaporized by the concentrated energy. Similarly, trying to fire into the portal and into the spire itself would only vaporize potential intruders, magic, or physical objects.
The end result is an explosively powerful attack capable of blasting cities into ash and producing a devastating shockwave that goes far beyond ground zero as well. However, the long charge time and notable aiming time make it only used when it needs to be. This being said, Yin’Fael has been working on a manner in which to "supercharge" it faster and speed up the magical formula and processes it utilizes, which is still in the process of being developed.
However, despite its chamber being reinforced to survive an apocalypse with metal and magical wards, anti-teleporting/portal formulas written all over, and the best possible materials to keep it contained and safe all around, the spire is vulnerable from sabotage done on the outside of its firing chamber. Hence it has a dedicated guard granted to it for protection where it is located. It is what has kept this small nation safe from far larger threats, as the ability to annihilate enemy bases or cities by scrying the location and firing it remotely is absolutely terrifying.
Wonder Guard: A special 550-person elite guard called the “Ai-Dael” (meaning “beloved guardians”), they were each and every one of them. Chosen from among the best potential in military recruits possible in the nation of Yin’Fael, they are the guard for the wonder as well as the royal family. Their armor is layered with wards and healing spells and top-quality materials that they gained the moniker “The Immortals” in battle when enemies found it seemingly impossible to make them “stay dead”.
In the case of protecting their nation’s wonder, the troops protecting the underground city above can also assist to add to the numbers and effectiveness of a defense. Likewise, these troops can protect the city above in order to protect the wonder.
The last 50 members of this guard called the “Honor Guard” are specifically meant to be for the protection of the royal family and to escort them, but can come to the defense of this wonder as well as part of their job. However, they have a priority on the royal family by just a bit in their case.
Technology: Though technologically medieval-era like the rest of the nations of Titania, Yin’Fael represents in ways some of the best technology of old being refined until this point in time. Think of if the Roman could improve on what they had done rather than people falling into the Dark Ages in Earth’s past.
Ducts to move water efficiently like advanced aqueducts, roads and water-filled channels for travel and moving people and things, and generally cleaner and well-built cities for a fantasy realm. Through magically-treating materials, they have developed buildings and fortresses and ships capable of withstanding high firepower (within a certain extent), and advanced weapons or mechanisms of their own unique spin (musket, cannons, ye olde magical pumping mechanism, and even naval equipment) that have been refined or honed during foreign trade. Even clothes are made from a native variant of “silk” produced by worms that live on the islands, from which are made beautiful garments considered to be an exotic good.
Navally they represent an advanced power, alongside artillery and infantry. However, due to limited trade and such that they do the nation has rumors and such about it that abound in especially far-flung areas about them being “barbarian” in technology. This in reality isn’t true at all, though, which is a point of amusement for the Yin’Fael.
Military Might:
The Yin’Fael military is a highly-trained, professional military that is broken into several main wings, each with subsections of their own: Naval, Infantry, Artillery, and Espionage.
1 – Most notable is their Naval wing of the military, which takes the form of a great fleet known as the “Iron Fleet” for their size and being made of magically-altered metals for incredibly tough hulls but light enough designs to make them function properly. This originally arose from a lack of wood on their islands to use for building any ships. This could also be said to be a “cheat” that skipped the process Earth’s people had to undergo to make metal ships eventually. Using sails as their main movement, but possessing perfectly useable magically-powered movement if the need arises in situations, they are like the moving battle tanks of the ocean.
Yet despite rumors of being a “slow moving target” as far away peoples and the nation’s opponents have painted them as to be derogatory to them, they do have smaller ships with higher speeds and larger ships of varying sizes they can employ for various naval situations.
Further, the well-trained naga marines of the nation are underwater threats for any enemy at sea, with a conginent usually kept at the bottom of the ship to be “released” under the ship during battles to take on the enemy from underneath.
2 – The Infantry wing of the Yin’Fael military is known for both high discipline and professionally-trained troops, an oddity of sorts that has paid off in spades in combat. Trained to fight on sea and land, on smooth and rough terrains, at range and in melee, the process to train troops is high but the result speaks for itself. There are the:
Gunners (using the nation’s own brand of long, thin musket whose metal was magically treated to be stronger than it looks on paper)
Archers (utilizing special reinforced longbows to make them useful against firearms only in terms of range and not making sounds)
Melee Infantry (ranging from lightly armored, one-handed blade wielders with shields to things like heavily armored club and two-handed-sword wielders, to even spears for anti-cavalry tactics)
Kitai (warrior class of the military, raised in their families to be elite, versatile warriors who stand head and shoulders above the normal soldier....who are already very well off themselves on the average for Yin’Fael. Their families pass down ancestral land, and members of these families as they inherit and prepare to inherit it are expected to care for it and ensure it thrives, as well as adding something to it when they finally inherit it. They are useful for a variety of assignments.)
Other Information: Infantry are trained to work in direct battle, guerilla tactics, and even in flexible squads (akin to modern tactics) alongside other troop types in order to perform missions or invasions or battle or other tasks they are used for. However, the lack of cavalry does make them most vulnerable on flat plains, one reason that spear infantry exists among them and anti-cavalry training has become a thing among the nation’s military as well.
3 – Artillery is one of the newer areas of the Yin’Fael military, though through the employment of specialists teaching their own engineers the nation has managed to catch up frighteningly fast. Great Cannon/Bombards with magic-based aiming and targeting systems, circular, rotating cannon barrels spun with wind magic to fire off rapid shots at the enemy, sigils and formulas drawn on ammunition to provide varying effects when fired, and even mobile-artillery platforms in the form of constructs who joined the military and have had mechanisms and artillery built into them voluntarily.
Artillery crews and serving constructs all have the same discipline as the regular infantry and even the naval marines of the nation are famous for, and are trained in sighting up shots and such beyond any magical assistants in order to “prove their worth” and keep them well-trained in case they are forced to use captured guns from enemies or have to resort to manually firing the more magically-assisted artillery pieces. This being said, not all the artillery of the nation is enchanted to magically aim, also in order to keep Artillery crews on their toes and make them experienced.
4 – The Espionage wing of the military is formed from groups of troops taken from other branches of the military, or who are taken into this wing due to having certain talents or the potential for this kind of work, to become agents and/or become part of the many special, highly elite squads of troops used for covert missions. In this lattermost thing the Infantry and Espionage areas can overlap, though in this wing of the military’s case they are more concerned with covert matter such as: getting information, inserting moles into places, assassinations, sabotage, and other tasks that the regular military does not normally handle....all from within the shadows.
Government:
-The Queen: Yin’Fael is at the top ruled by the “Moon Queen”, always having been a female member of the Dark Elf race due to the matriarchal sentiments that have existed in the nation since its beginnings. She wields supreme power over the military, and is capable of vetoing laws passed by the “Great Council” beneath her. She also has the power to enforce laws. However, though she cannot come up with laws, but she and her family enjoy a life of great luxury, high status, and high education regardless.
-The Great Council: Underneath the Queen directly is the “Great Council”, also known as the “Council of the Twelve”. To become a member of the council, one must have pass an inspection and exam for council candidates. This is to ensure, as has been noted in the past the council itself: “an experienced, fair, and just council who have the varied and needed experience to serve the people well”. Representatives come from various parts of the nation, in order to ensure interests are fairly represented alongside the nation’s various peoples and such things.
Along with this The Council (its nickname as it were) also is the one that fiddles with the laws and legislation on a normal basis, the matters of state that would be unwieldy if only left to one individual. The Star Queen attends these meetings, in order to remain in the loop, but she has limited power to merely veto new legislation...but does have the power to enforce the laws once they are passed. Despite not being able to craft the laws, the Star Queen can suggest them to the Council for discussion.
The Great Council does have input on declaring war properly, however, and thus with the Star Queen they must come to a majority agreement to declare war properly. This being said, the Council does recognize the Star Queen’s authority to mobilize the military prior to such an event as is needed. After all, this is one reason for her very high education from a young age.
-Other Political Notes: Constructs with sentience are taken in as proper citizens, given rights and such to boot. However, the slaying of a construct maker to “free constructs” is considered a taboo and unethical, as within their nation a construct maker crafts their creations with a free will in mind according to their law. Illegal “non-free-willed constructs” are usually confiscated and treated until the user dies either from age or legal punishment or such. In fact, the punishment for “illegal non-free-willed-constructs” in Yin’Fael is death after a proper trial....unless it is an emergency situation.
History:-Origins-
A long time ago, a group of exiled elves was forced out of their home in the Highlands and out to the sea of the Central Isles. As the group made their way to try to find sanctuary on the desert coasts to the south, a storm blew their ships off course. For three days and three nights the exiles prayed to the gods for deliverance and sought to keep their people alive and their ships intact. Yet one deity seemed to answer above the others: the moon goddess named “Yin”. She sent softly glowing messengers of light to guide them, directed their path and give instructions, and led them to the islands that would become their home.
Finally on land again, and with low supplies, the surviving elves gave great thanks and worship to the goddess for their survival. However, their surprises were met with more as they came across a small tribe of cat-like beastfolk. With ears and eyes and tails of beasts, but soft-skinned bodies like humans, this group had become a unique people. Approaching each other on peaceful terms, thankfully, the surviving elves were fed and given shelter before the locals began to share their story. Having been regular beastfolk in the past, they had moved to this island so long ago they could not remember anything before that but that they had fled to the islands to escape their enemies.
However, not too long after arriving and setting up these beastfolk had encountered a great plague that had slain most of their people and their men especially, leaving the remaining few men infertile after they survived the ordeal by some miracle. Already having been worshipping the ancient god/goddess Meatha, a fertility deity of old, the deity had extended a hand to the people for their survival. Their bodies were changed to withstand the hotter temperatures (losing most of the fur and instead having human-like bodies/skin), their people were taught magic in the form of special symbols/sigils to help crops grow and cause materials like metal to become as light as wood and such things as magic can do, and their females were changed to “possess the nature of both man and woman” to supplant the loss of the males of the people.-Unity, Cohesion, and the Birth of a Nation-
The elves too relayed their story of survival to these people, who called themselves the Torren-Ai (the first meaning “deity-blessed” neutrally, and the latter meaning “beloved” respectively, with the suffix “-ren” on Torren meaning “heavens”, which combined with “tor” meaning “touched”, combines into their words for “deity” which means “one who is touching heaven”). The end result was both parties rejoicing, calling their meeting “a merciful act of fate” their deities had created to bring these outcasts together. Thus began the event known as the “Great Uniting”, as these elves and the Torren-Ai moved in together, sharing cultures and magical knowledge and such things among them. Old and new came together, and even the elves eventually hewed a new city into the rock of the mountain on their island home.
As this occurred, even they became changed by the two deities they now worshipped. Yin marked them with icy-pale skin to reflect the love the moon had shown them, and she granted some Torren-Ai and elves silver eyes that could see into the distance farther than normal and see well in the dark at that as a sign of her favor upon them. Meatha granted a boon to the elves of denser muscles and slender bodies like the Torren-Air had been granted, and made some members of their females the same as the Torren-Ai in being of “both of man and woman” as a sign of having taken them in as Yin had taken in the Torren-Air as well. From here the races grew, with this new race of what was labeled “Dark Elves” booming in population over the next centuries and millennia.
This combination of races, that called themselves the “Ai-Torrai-Yin” (with the suffix “-rai” meaning “of”, aka resulting in this name being: “beloved and people of the moonbeams”), aka the “Aitorraiyin” as it would eventually be shortened by other races outside of their islands. However, this boom in population between them over time expanding to populate other main island and remaining small islands in the area. These are the island that would form the main part of their nation, though as they got toward this point the Aitorraiyin ran into one big problem. The Naga, who could be an issue on the beaches and were the source of some minor conflicts in the earliest parts of the nation’s existence.
Seeking to provide a long-term solution, eventually negotiations were made between the local naga and Aitorraiyin over time, assimilating the local naga and their underwater cities near the islands into the nation itself. It was after this the “first golden era” of the people began, resulting in channels, tunnels, and such things being dug, as well as other structures meant to unite the three species together more deeply with each other. This golden era occurred under the first several queens of the nation who sought to create unity to avoid creating internal issues, the first queen having been put in place by the consensus of the three peoples after much searing and debate.-Isolation and Development-
The islands and their peoples remained rather isolated, however, for a very long time, developing into a unique culture and society that to the modern eye would seem similar to the former Earth nation of Japan. Respect, honed combat skills, a warrior-class called the Kitai (meaning “revered”) that have existed for a long time, but at the same time they had their own unique spins such as a notable level of industry developed carefully over time to avoid tarnishing the little landmass they had. This being said, their population density is great, not to be underestimated in terms of people, troops, and even naval power able to be fielded at a time. They came to their own separate discovery of what would become the “Islander Musket”, a thinner, magically-reinforced version of the musket known for its notably higher accuracy and precision in use than the muskets anywhere on the continent (due to the length of the barrel primarily). Does not having rifling though.
This fed into the “Second Great Boom” among the nation, in the form of great infrastructure boom beginning to be built as metals and other resources were discovered underground on the islands and under the ocean floor, as underwater naga cities and land/coastal cities of the elves/beastkin merged more and more in some cases over time whilst most became more and more connected between ancient dug paths and more advanced magical systems set up for these things. Temples to the various gods the peoples worship have become blended into various communities as well.
Further, the merging of elven arcane arts/formulas, Torren-Ai sigils, and naga magical abilities merged it transformed the landscape of the nation’s magic practices. While areas of distinct magical practice for each of these three things exist among the races, recent development has resulted in the creation of what is known as the unique “Aitorraiyin Composite” system of magic. Amidst all of this the nation finally emerged from isolation as they were discovered by an elven ship. Eventual negations created some trade with the regular elves, and then as the Aitorraiyin settled a city or two on the coast of the eastern peninsula they came into contact with some Independent Dwarven Kingdoms. This resulting in a process of careful but profitable trade that has been a boon to both sides since then.-To Current Times-
From the dwarves was gained technology that would allow the nation to produce its own artillery, which only improved their navy simultaneously as that technology expanded. Rumors about them by those not actively interacting with them (or are getting secondhand Aitorraiyin goods from other sources) tend to think them a set of careful isolationists or stubborn backwards people. This is because they have only been selective in getting involved in conflicts with other nations and peoples, which some have labeled them as “picky” for amidst the politics in Titania.
This is actually not true, as they are an industrious, respectful, but resourceful people who shouldn’t be underestimated in any given situation. They feel to choose their battles carefully, yes, but when they do commit they do so with a zeal and intelligence that makes them far more dangerous than they initially seem.
Race(s) within Nation:Originating from the stock what are considered “normal” elves by this time, the Dark Elves differ notably from their counterparts. Dark Elves were shaped by the blessing of the deity Meatha in terms of their physiology, and then this alongside the side effects of the magic contained under the mountain they dug a city underneath on one of their islands.
Though still amazing at magic, their muscles and bones are notably denser despite their graceful, elegant, and slender appearances. Granting them more notable physical strength than the standard type of elf, they are capable of holding their own better in a melee than others might think upon looking at them. Further, the race genetically possesses a limited selection of dark hair colors, ranging from a soft brown to black, though rarely a child will be born with white hair (a special and celebrated thing). Eye colors range within the following: golden hazel, bluish-silver, fiery-gold, and red on very rare occasions.
By this point in time the Dark Elves, just like their unique Beastfolk allies, have also become entirely a race of what was described by the first visitors to the island as “possessing parts both male and female” within an overall “female” physical shell to assist in the need of rearing and caring for children.
This, as it did with the Beastfolk of their island, occurred because couples of these sorts over time simply had more children and a pre-disposition to bear children “like them” if they are involved in producing a child. Being able to have more children than traditional male-female couples, which was a side effect of the Beastfolk deity’s blessing on both these races, eventually things shifted the sex ratio to these who are called “Faelen” (meaning “moonbeam people”) as a proper and widely accepted term.
Due to blessings from Yin bestowed on them and their Beastfolk fellows, those born with silver eyes possess the ability to see at far distances, making them valuable as scouts as well as in and out of battles.***(Adapted from the History section with added details and such)***
Having been regular beastfolk in the past, they had moved to this islands so long ago they could not remember anything before that but that they had fled to the islands to escape their enemies. Since time immemorial they had lived there, isolated from the world for a long time.
However, not too long after arriving and setting up these beastfolk had encountered a great plague that had slain most of their people and their men especially, leaving the remaining few men infertile after they survived the ordeal by some miracle. Only females seemed to retain some fertility through this infection, if they even survived it, and the unaffected children were fine as well (due to their lack of sexual maturity).
Already having been worshipping the ancient god/goddess Meatha, a fertility deity of old, the deity had extended a hand to the people for their survival. Their bodies were changed to better survive the tropical hotter temperatures (losing most of the fur and instead having human-like bodies/skin), their people were also by their deity taught magic in the form of special symbols/sigils to help crops grow and cause materials like metal to become as light as wood and such things as magic can do, and their females were changed to “possess the nature of both man and woman” to supplant the loss of the males of the people.
However, as noted with the Dark Elves, this blessing formed the “Faelen” sex, and both Faelen tendencies to birth more Faelen as well as Faelen couples naturally having more children between them (and ability to biologically support them) this resulted in the Faelen being the only sex among this unique variant of beastfolk.
Further, due to blessing from the elven goddess Yin, some members of this race too can be born with silver eyes that allow “far reaching sight” as it has been called with the same value.
These unique beastfolks’ hair/ear/tail color is always the same for each individual, save with the use of temporary hair dyes. This being said, dying all of one’s hair is seen as a complicated task. This being said, hair colors for them naturally range from fiery red, to black, to chocolate brown, to even blonde. Eye colors range from a soft emerald green to red to chocolate brown and then silver of course.
The most simple way to describe this beastfolk variant to Earth Humans would be....“catgirls”.Insert whatever the GM has for canon naga info and magic here, just in this case incorporated into the nation eventually in its history and adapted to the culture as marines, workers at sea, and held equal to the land races within Yin’Fael.Free constructs are welcome in Yin’Fael, which has taken in a number of those who fled from their creators and such. Despite being able to make constructs and employ them as other elves can, the law spells out that any constructs made must be allowed free will and freedom as full citizens. Illegal “enslaved constructs” are prohibited, a thing punishable with death to the creator outright.
Freed constructs have found places in Yin’Fael society, as servers or dock workers or such things like others have. A number volunteered to serve in the military, some even voluntarily seeking to have mechanisms and artillery added to them as troops in order to stand out and best support their peers in the military.
Religion:
To put it simply, the worship of the Beastfolk deity Meatha, the worship of the elven goddess Yin, and any such other gods/goddesses brought in by the naga upon being assimilated into Yin’Fael over generations are worshipped.
Culture:
To give a general idea, though the Kitai and individuals like the royal family are held as a higher class and a certain social order remains in place, the people seem to be content with it. They can get good jobs, earn ways into many high-ranking positions with real effort, and both the Council and Queen tend to keep each other in check overall.
The normal attitude of the people of Yin’Fael are generally laid-back, relaxed, and content. This being said, festivals, parties, and the like they enjoy quite a lot, and romance is a celebrated thing much like the birth of a first child (due to the odd composition of the vast majority all being Faelen in their society).
Elders are respected generally for wisdom, and live at home with family to assist them and be assisted.
Family compounds are common places for people to live, though with dense cities rising these compounds have begun to take on multiple floors. Albeit, there is nothing like a skyscraper in Yin’Fael due to a lack of enough construction knowledge for this. However, underground floors of compounds are also things sometimes made to extend the family’s living spaces properly.
Deaths are mourned, yes, but instead of a somber occasion the dead are celebrated with a party, all to think of the happy times and good parts of the person’s life and bring hope to those close to the deceased.
Education is a thing that is being pushed in recent years, to spread knowledge about the people. Many in trying to get into high positions can get an education in preparation for that to help them. However, it has a long way to go to develop any proper education infrastructure on the ground level despite having both Council and Royal Family support. This being said, the nation has several notable colleges for magic, development, and training military personnel among such things.
Fishing and farming are valuable assets for the people of Yin’Fael, with the nation focusing in recent centuries on being self-sustaining with food to avoid that being using against them in trade. However, they do still import foods and such from other places.
Kingdom of Jollas
=-=General Information=-=
- It is a sizable medieval kingdom based around the inland sea, based along the Jolfan Peninsula
- It is a defensive and slowly expanding kingdom, viewing others with suspicious disdain
- It is made up of Humans, but had a large beastfolk minority.
- There are many human cultures within Jollas
- A man from Jollas would be called a Jolan / Jolans
- Their chief language is Jolfan, but their official written language is Lagiu
- Their state religion is Tresism
- They are a feudal monarchy, which is fairly centralized
- They are in a constant state of war with it's own terrain, it's mainland being home to various dangerous monsters
- Population - 16,000,000
- Military - 570,000
- Ships - 95
- Wealth - Moderate
- Espionage - Moderate
RacesJolfan (Human)
Jolfans are a fair skinned race of men who live along the Jolfan mountains, basing much of their naming conventions around the protective mountains. Their culture and customs are dominate in Jollas, and have a long history of personal strife, expansion, and conquests. Jolfans are normally fair by human standards, with a heart shaped face, high cheekbones, almond shaped eyes, and dominate foreheads.
Souden (Human)
Souden are very close resembling to Jolfans in most ways, but differ slightly in culture which makes them very distinct. By stereotype, most Jolfans consider the Souden to be 'born tall, but grow up short'. Culturally, most Souden are much more moderate and have higher values in religion and the forest then their northern brothers. Souden are also far less racist to the local Beastfolk, having lived near their communities for long.
Karoe (Human)
Karoe are tall, well bred, pale men with a very long history of infighting and personal clan hatred of one another, more likely to kill one another out of spite then to unify against a common enemy. This had made the Karoe a very warlike people, who's long standing culture of violence had made them considered barbarians and even ab human by their feudal overlords. Karoe are normally taller, have reddish or dark red hair, grow their beards, and groom their mustaches.
Otum (Beastfolk)
Otum are a semi-aquatic beastfolk peoples who dwell in the southern islands known as the Beast Isles, a race of people who resemble very close to otters or minks. Otum have long ears, short fur, and fairly short arms and legs. In water, Otum tend to glide and are naturally born swimmers with early training, but even without it, they adopt very quickly. Otum tend to be a very peaceful people, since they as a species cannot defend themselves very well. They typically only reach a height of 3'5 ft.
Bolam (Beastfolk)
Bolam are a beastfolk species which dwell as nomadic tribes which travel between the Beast Isles to Upper Jolfa, a large beastfolk species being 6'5 ft tall and resemble bears to most. Bolam have short snouts, typically have very thick fur, and are immensely strong. It isn't uncommon for a Bolam to rather easily tear apart armor with their claws. Bolam tend to move slowly and speak very little. Bolam are a fairly warlike people and are highly nomadic, but also tend to be very clan oriented. Bolam consider it a form of death to be separated or banished from the clan. In spite of stereotypes in Jollas, Bolam are actually very smart creatures, very much capable of craftsmanship that is better, if not superior, to local human smiths.
Kobtum (Beastfolk)
The Kobtum are a people who lived in the far southern end of the peninsula and within small borrow fortresses, a short 3'5 ft tall race which highly resemble upright possums. Kobtum differ very little from their animal cousins, and this fact has made many to speculate if they are in fact a form of Fae (but are not). Kobtum often are a simple minded and highly active people, very similar to Otum in terms of culture and ideals, but are in fact immensely gifted in magic. Kobtum are almost naturals when it comes to magic, being very quick to learn, and are especially gifted in potion making and herbology. Kobtum also tend to be fairly nomadic, but often tend to also have settled homes and borrows.
HistoryFirst Jolfan Tribes
Very little is known about the first tribes of the Jolfan, outside that there has been 14 major tribes which settled the region at some unknown time long ago. These tribes often warred with one another, pushing each other further and further away until the first settlements were truly formed into the first major Jolfan nations. These nations elected amongst the family of warriors to be their kings to rule the tribe and to guide them, performing religious rituals to drive off beastfolk and monsters which prowled the region. These holy warriors eventually grew uneasy, some leaving at some unknown time to settle more southward to get away from 'the forbidden knowledge of metal and axe'. The Jolfan had a rather uneasy peace with one another, with their main wars ending as each tribe began to settle the lands around them as their tribes grew bigger.
The Uneasy Feud
One of the first Jolfan names to be known in the chronicles was a warlord named Kosmas who led a tribe known as the Olphasi into a war with his neighbor, a petty king of another unknown tribe. Kosmas, in supposed cruelty, utterly destroyed the tribe and had the bodies dumped in a open grave as a insult, ransacked its temple, and swore to do the same with the other tribes. Kosmas started a 100 year war with another character called Uslmas, a supposed son of a vengeful god, starting the Uneasy Feud period. A period of total war between the tribes who aligned with either Kosmas's or Uslmas's tribes. Uslmas's tribe was ultimatly destroyed utterly in the end, but he lived on to utterly destroy Kosmas's tribe and scattered the bones of his people on the mountains, naming them the Jolfan Mountains in honor of his fallen tribe. Uslmas settled on the coast, at the site what is now Kolum.
Council of Jolgas
The tribe of Jolgas settled on the coast and elected Uslmas as it's ruler, but over the years the line of Uslmas brought disappointment and arrogance. In a rage, twelve councillors led a coup, overthrowing a incompetent king of the tribe and took control shortly there after, becoming a council which elected its rulers. Jolgas became a republic and built up wooden walls which soon turned to stone, finding a unique successful niche of trade and military strength which propelled it to become a dominate power. Jolgas rapidly expanded and began warring with other tribes successfully, incorporating those on the west side of the mountain and enslaving tribes who resisted. Jolgas's capital of Kosgas (now Kolum) became a center of art, trade, and philosophy which formed the basis of the Jolfan language, armor making, and made codes for magic and religion. It unified the main cults into one powerful all encompassing faith.
1st War of Beasts
Jolgas became annoyed during the height of it's reign when incursions of Bolam tribes crossed into it's border to raid or cause trouble, normally picking on undefended villages and stole from distilleries. Sending it's generals to battle the large beasts became ineffective, as the Bolam often kept to the forests and were difficult to fight in battle. In order to deal with the issue, the council head Konrad Stach led a army into the forests and allied himself with several Beastfolk tribes, using them to kill or subdue the Bolam. These mercenaries and their tribes were invited back to the capital where they were betrayed by Konrad and were enslaved, sending countless Bolam into slavery. Konrad was declared a hero to the council for his actions, but also introduced great wealth and blood sports into the common life of Jolgas, leading to a counter incursion into the south to claim further Bolam slaves.
Kingdom of Kiesmach
On the eastern side of the Jolfan Mountains, one tribe known as the Kiesmachi had become a powerful force. Under the rule of it's famed king Marian the Beloved, the tribe incorporated most of the eastern kingdoms and hamlets. Kiesmach became a important eastern power and a natural rival to the republic in Jolgas, but it also became a very important trade partner. Kiesmach's king built trade routes, helped pave roads, and even helped out partially in wars with it's mutual rival, but this aggressive friendship soon ended. When Jolgas troops tried to assert authority in bordering Kiesmachi towns, Marian in his old age led 10,000 troops over the Jolfan mountains and decimated the Jolgas garrisons. To try to prevent a brutal war, the Jolgas general buried the mountain passes to cut off trade and further warring with Kiesmach. The kingdom soon passed to Marian's 3 sons who split the kingdom. After a short civil war, the kingdom was reunited under Marian II.
Jolgas Dele Mes
Marian II had in the chronicles once intended to rule in peace, and married a friend of the family. On his wife's way to the Kiesmach capital, a ship of Jolgas hired pirates killed her and her family, leading Marian to swear a blood oath of vengeance against Jolgas. Marian II, together with an escaped Bolam gladiator and a feared general named Oskar, traveled over the mountains following hidden paths, and attacked Jolgas with 6,000 troops. Jolgas sent it's elite army of 14,000 to stop Marian II, but the Kiesmach king tricked the Jolgas army into an ambush, slaughtering their army and harassing it's survivors all the way to their capital. Marian bolstered his army with freed slaves and rebellious land owners, and began a utter destruction of Jolgas's cities, towns, and lands. Marian II walked through the gates of Kosgas and renamed the city Kolum, settling in the city as his new capital. It was said that the last Jolgas councilors and generals died when Marian II has them ripped apart one by one by angry Bolam gladiators for his amusement.
Kingdom of Jolfa
Marian II and his heir ruled from Kolum until their deaths, consolidating their lands. Kiesmach's rulers returned to their own lands and left their general Fryderyk Banaszynski as the ruler of the conquered territory. Fryderyk adopted many Jolgas customs and traditions during his reign, and his sons ultimately rebuilt the city their overlords destroyed and restored the surrounding landscapes, but also re-enslaved the freed Bolam in order to help do this as well. When Kiesmach's overlords tried to revoke the lands from the Banaszynskis, they revolted and won. The Banaszynskis then reforged much of the struggling barbarian kingdom into a more civilized one, declaring themselves King by donating huge sums of war loot to the religious cults to gain their blessing. The Kingdom of Jolfa was born, and with it, came a era of new forms of conquest, art, and technology.
Jolfan Civil War
The Kingdom of Jolfa had a difficult issue with succession, stilling abiding by a form of Gavelkind. Under the cruel reign of Florian the Idiot, his two children led separate lives. Florian II was the natural heir to the throne, a cruel and arrogant noble who cared more about extortion then running the country, and Hubert who was a wandering mercenary and had ill feelings for his father. When Florian died, Florian II sent assassins to kill Hubert to prevent a succession crises, not willing to give up any of his father's estates. Hubert survived and fled north, gathering a mercenary army and invaded into the south, taking the city of Banzrech and declaring himself king. This civil war led to many odd and dramatic changes of land, with neither brother able to overthrow the other. A peace was forcefully signed when their tired vassals imprisoned them both, formally seperating the two's countries between Upper and Lower Jolfa.
Vargam II the Beast
Florian II never bore children, his line passing his cousin Vargam II, who fought for Florian II in the civil war. Vargam II was infuriated that the country was split and sought openly to remedy the problem. Using heavy handed diplomacy and trickery, Vargam II started a rebellion in Upper Jolfa. In the confusion and with it's armies away, Vargam took Upper Jolfa's capital city. Vargam forced Upper Jolfa's king into surrender through threat to his family, and unitied the provinces into Jolfa again, but was unable to formally unify them back to the way it was. Vargam gave the province to his brother to watch over. Vargam would then hop back to Lower Jolfa, crushing a Bolam slave rebellion and later won a war and expanded his country by defeating Souden insurgents. Vargam became a famed and great king known for his tactical skills and personal diplomacy, treating his people very kindly. In order to prevent further rebellions, he codified a law of rights and privileges held for nobles, commoners, and peasants, along with giving greater rights to slaves and indentured servants.
Commonwealth with Loskadia
When Vargam II died, he was young and left a child on his throne, Jaromir. Jaromir's mother and regent organized a marriage with the recently crowned king of Loskadia, who had just united the Souden kingdoms and tribes. Through a series of plagues and accidents however, some being rather suspicious, the crown fell to Jaromir's betrothed who was kidnapped by the mother regent's spies and brought to Kolum. When the two got older, the two betrothed fell deeply in love, but Jaromir's wife was not allowed to return to her home country unguarded. Despite attempts to put other members on Loaskadia's throne by angry nobles, Jolfan soldiers put down revolt after revolt thanks to Jaromir's uncles. Once peace was restored, Jaromir personally made his way to Loskadia to claim its crown, but was assassinated by a Souden prince. In outrage and fury, Jaromir's pregnant wife assumed the position of regent of the country and bore twin male sons, being both the heirs to the two kingdoms. A commonwealth was formed under a queen regent's iron fist, supported by Jaromir's uncles.
1st Dark Hunt
Jaromir II ascended the throne after his mother forced his twin brother Zachariasz to give up his claim in a attempt to rid Jolfa of it's succession law. Jaromir II married mutliple women who bore him many daughters and the occassional son, but his religious mother and iron fisted grandmother often led to horrific abuse on both children. Jaromir grew up hating the educated and the elite, while Zachariasz grew to despise the Soudens. Zachariasz convinced his brother to let him form a company of inquisitors to investigate the death of their supposedly beloved father and bring peace to the family, with much support from their mother and grandmother, leading to the Dark Hunt. Many intellectuals, priests, and educated elite in Loskadia were rounded up, tried before biased knights, and were put to death in gruesome ways. What started out as a regicide investigation turned into a witch hunt, in which much of Loskadia's minor nobility were purged and those loyal to the crown were heavily enriched. The witch hunt spread to also consume many parts of Lower Jolfa, and eventually led to a heavy handed slaughter of free Bolam within Kolum's enclave.
The Loskadian Rebellion
The Souden, reeling from the slaughter of their people and the burning of their art and temples, grew resentful under Jaromir II's reign, as the man grew more paranoid. When the double deaths of his mother and grandmother happened within months of one another, half of his sons fled to southern courts to round up support not for a claim, but for their survival, as Jaromir II believed his own family were planning to murder his 'beloved blood'. Jaromir II's kin led a rebellion of Souden against their father, but their armies were disorganized and often began to fight amongst each other over old feuds, or worse the Souden sold them out to Zachariasz's band of huntsmen. However, Zachariasz died in an ambush and later Jaromir led a army to crush the rebellion, but fell to sickness himself and died, leaving his more competent firstborn Bernard as king. Bernard reversed many of Jaromir's 'reforms', but kept Zachariasz's band as personal guardsmen and agents to be rid of lesser nobles who challenged him.
2nd Beast Wars
Bernard had no fun ruling his kingdom and was overthrown in a coup by his brother Leopold, a highly skilled diplomat, warrior, and administrator. Leopold learned that Bernard escaped to the court of Otek, a large and rich Otum island kingdom. Seeing an opportunity, Leopold led a army against the southern Beastfolk kingdoms and led the charge personally to tame the last free Bolam clans in Loskadia. Bernard and his army butchered, enslaved, and devastated Beastfolk kingdoms until his army attempted to cross into Otek. The Otum, using their impressive navy, made it difficult for Leopold to cross, and built a series of temporary bridges to island hop, forcing captured Beastfolk to build his bridges, knowing the peaceful Otum refused to fire on slaves. With very little resistence, Leopold strode his army and took Otek, and executed Bernard publicly by having him covered in pitch and lit on fire and let loose into Otek, burning parts of the city down in the process. Leopold took the provinces and made them his vassal, taking half of Otek's people into slavery back to Kolum to be sold. The heir to the Otek throne was also taken with, and was subjected to seeing his people tortured, abused, and treated horrifically and was 'trained' to speak the language and know the history of Jolfa. To this day, they refer to this series of unfortunate events as 'Leopold's Day of Grief'.
Rescuing Karlemgrad
Leopold was not done with his conquests and shortly after returning to Kolum, he was visited by two banished youngsters. The Karoe prince and princess declared that their country was ruled by a vile tyrant and murderer, and invited Leopold to put them back on the throne of their country. Seeing opportunity, and using Otum ships, the Jolfans crossed the straight and into Karlemgrad and laid siege to it's provinces. However, through a great deal of trickery and misinformation, Karlemgrad was divided amongst the prince and princess who had tricked the Jolfan king to deal with their enemies and used his army to unify the divided tribes. Unable to challenge the two further, Leopold had assassins lure the prince into a trap and killed, but left the princess in charge over the kingdom, making them a March for Jolfa. He returned home, dying of old age and leaving his great kingdom to his son Leopold II.
Integrating Karlemgrad
Leopold II had witnessed the trickery of the Karoe princess and was a mutual rival of the two since they appeared in Kolum. Seeking to be rid of a pest, he aligned himself with a young Karoe warlord and flooded money, men, and resources to his cause. The warlord, Samo of Watzengord, used the money to improve his realm and expand his army, eventually challenging the princess of the Karoe for the region itself. Leopold II's young puppet won his war at the Battle of Ill Pass, using a contingent of foreign mercenaries to break up the Karoe ranks while he led a surprising flanking charge against the flank, a irregular tactic to most Karoe. The princess killed herself before she could be captured, and she along with her brother's name were burned away in Karoe literature. Samo accepted total capitulation to Leopold II and helped bring the nation into Jolfa. Samo and his family were well rewarded for their services, and used much of their money and prestige to build up their castle and surrounding villa into a proper port town.
Succession Crises
Leopold II, despite not knowing it, was very infertile which he often blamed his wives for and had not only no heirs, but also left a trail of dead wives which either disappeared or were executed. Leopold II in his old age, fearing the worst for his kingdom, sent word to a well respected cousin of his to become king, and promptly died. His advisers however, seeing opportunity, decided to elect a bastard dynasty who would be loyal to their own noble lines. Lubomir the Lesser was informed rather ironically by a Otum slave to Leopold II who snuck out news to the nobleman, hearing rumors that the nobles wanted to dismantle his people's isles. Lubomir returned to the capital and made loud speeches, and with aid from Otum nobles and their money, was able to peacefully overthrow the corrupt council, banish the bastard dynasty, and claim the crown. As a reward, he freed the Otum slave and made concessions and even some half hearted apologies to the Otek nobility for his kin's past actions, granting them great autonomy for the Beastfolk, but also wished to continue to use their money to expand his personal projects, mostly involving art.
2nd Dark Hunt
Lubomir's reign was not without controversy, as his concessions and apologies to the Beastfolk led to rumors, which led to the Order of the Hunt believing their king had been corrupted by nefarious forces. What started as a trial for Lubomir's bankers, turned into a full fledged hunt for intellectuals, story writers, poets, and mages. Plagues had hit the nation, and several monster attacks on villages led to a huge uprising of the Order of the Hunt dragging intellectuals and beastfolk from their home to execute. Much of the violence had been secretly orchestrated by Lubomir, who's many Otum moneylenders whom he owed huge sums to were killed in the Dark Hunt, alongside many who also ironically criticized the king's connection with the beastfolk. Lubomir however forced the hunts to end when his own son had gone to trial for supposedly casting curses on the Order, and their fiery anger and attempts to burn his son alive led to a standoff in which the Order backed off from. Much of Jolfa's history books were destroyed in the 2nd Hunt.
Jollas Calba Deo
Lubormir's death and swift succession to his son Maksymilian led to a short golden age of peace in Jolfa. Maksymilian tried to restore much of the art and history lost to the previous Dark Hunt, and often revoked many of the order's holdings after the attempt on his life by them. Maksymilian spent much of the treasury repairing and expanding cities, building castles, and took a special interest in magic. One his most powerful sorcerers, Urban the Warder, helped forge the mysterious structure known the the Pillar of Dynasty, which greatly amplified magic and was to be guarded by a elite order of knights and magic users within Kolum. The kingdom was restructured into a more centralized and imperial Jollas, paving roads between cities, codifying laws, and mediating old transgressions. Under Maksymilian's reign, the kingdom greatly prospered, and became a center to trade and culture.
Current Events
With the coming of the mysterious and technologically frightening strangers, the death of Maksymilian led to some harsh times for his son Tymon. Tymon had to deal with many internal and external issues, and especially grew weary of large iron ships capable of sinking his vessels with great ease terrified him greatly, leading to him nearly shutting down the country's trade rather then deal with these mysterious outsiders. Tymon's inaction led to a decline of imperial reign, but yet possibly still exists within his son who had only recently ascended the throne. New political woes linger, and many eyes lay on the large and proud kingdom.
CultureAppearance
The people of Jollas live in simple fashion and rarely have time to worry too much about fashion outside the cities. The climate in Jollas is fairly decent as it is, and thus most Jollans have wool shirts and trousers, with iron buckle belts and the occasional cap. Most Jollans are in fact fairly well groomed, believing that illness spreads via unclean muck, and thus Jollans tend to avoid brownish colors in both wear and style. Brown in seen as a ill or poor color, and thus richer Jollans avoid it like a plague. Black colors are considered hard on the eyes. Rich and more noble Jolans tend to wear a variety of colored cloths and restricting dresses, sometimes covered in a silver or bronze lining. Cloaks are often avoided due to the fact that Bolams wear tribal cloaks to signify their clan loyalties, and thus it is considered a savage custom. Noblemen normally wear swords on their person most times, rarely being for show. Ornate swords are often considered a urban fad, which is laughed at as a joke by locals.
Craftsmanship
Jollans build with wood and stone, and thus many of their homes are simple, medieval, and have no real style outside being simple woodland huts. The big difference in a Jollan style is that they tend to build bunkers beneath their homes for storage, and often build sizable stone fences around their property. Jollan cities aren't exactly eye candy either to most visitors, being wooden and cramp. Most forms of aesthetics are often found in castle or public gardens, as most castles are build more for defense then they are for beauty. Kolum is often considered a Jolfan culture center, being a city with many simple winding white roads, gardens, and large open shops and entertainment theaters of marble, left over from the reign of Jolgas. Jollans aren't exactly master spear and sword makers, but they do specialize oddly in ship making. They often have no real unique style which stands out, but they don't have poor quality either. Only Bolam seem to make masterwork armor and weapons in the county, and often their services are exclusive to nobles who buy them or hire them as their castle smiths.
Traditions
The Jollans have a long line of traditions which survive to this very day, some modernized and some having remained the same for hundreds of years. Jollans never marry in winter or fall, but will only marry in summer and spring months. They will often gather under a willow, and the groom and wife must face the opposite of each other and slowly turn to one another until the marriage vow is complete. Marriages are met with week long celebrations and the occasional wrestling by the bride and groom's male family members. Funerals are very solitary and lonesome, and are considered far too depressing. Normally, a male patriarch and a helper, sometimes a friend, local peasant, or slave, takes the body of the deceased to a tomb or mound and buries the body themselves with no words said until after the body is buried. Family then gathers around the grave to say their goodbyes, and drink until midnight. Normally, the eldest man in a family is automatically the family patriarch, until they either go insane or die. A nobleman can be a powerful king or dujal, but may not actually be the overlord patriarch of the family by custom.
Cuisine
Due to the resources in Jollas, different regions provide different means of eating for the common and noble folk. Lamb and Goat is especially important for most diets in the region north of the Beast Isles, with shellfish being a favorite amongst the Beastfolk in the south. Only the Karoe have an extreme culinary difference, favoring drink above food and have a specific niche for hard ciders and beer flavored meats. Bread isn't often on hand on Jollas, so to make up for it, salads from veggies grown in the region make up for most issues, along with a large variety of vegetable soups. Nobles are known to especially have a sweet tooth, and it isn't uncommon for them to own their own special distilleries, honey farms, or to import sugar from far off. Jollan pastries and deserts are especially famed for their simple, but delicious, texture.
Language
The common language of Jollas is the Jolfan language, which is a fairly swiftly spoken and condensed language. However, the common written language is entirely different, being Lagiu. Lagiu is a difficult language, but it was commonplace in most form of Jolfan literature and history and is adopted as the sole written word of the country. Jolfan dialects different between region to region, but the further south, the more gutteral it becomes. The 'true' language ironically is better spoken in the less developed regions of Upper Jolfa. Beastfolk and the Karoe had their own languages, but were greatly restricted by the Jolfan nobility. Most Beastfolk speak with a swift and high pitched accent, while Karoe have a very deep and frightening slow accent.
Law
Law in Jollas is fairly centralized, but is interestingly not very feudal. Traditionally, a special adviser known as Kujal was the one to 'fulfill' the law, with local guardsmen and warriors enforcing the law and the nobility passing it. Laws of the land is codified within the Laws of the Past and the Laws of the Present, two sets of codes which dictate most forms of laws, and proper punishments for disobeying them. Most lords set their own laws, but they cannot go against the Laws of Past and Present, or face horrific punishment by virtue of the king. Kujals often handle minor lawsuits and crimes, with majoe crimes brought before a council of Kujals. If the crime is a capital punishment, the Kujals bring the matter before the king. If the king is busy, then the matter is decided in his stead by the Kujals. Kujal often require eyewitnesses, evidence, and religious omens to give verdicts, which is carried out by the noblemen's own guards. Most punishments is often either being sent into paying a heavy fine, mutilation, or paying in blood (giving up their children to the victim party). Capital punishment can include everything from beheadings, public torture, or some form of impalement.
Rights
Rights exist in Jollas, guaranteed by the Laws of Past and Present. These law codes guarentee freedom of movement, freedom to speak without being slain or imprisoned (with exceptions), and freedoms to marry. This is only normally for commoners, who are male, and are not in some form of bondage such as peasantry, or slavery. Women rarely have rights if they are not noble born, often straddling the line between family property to being a formal family member. Women can inherit, but only if they are born as nobles and there are no sons available. Rights for minorities such as Beastfolk does exist, but its rarely taken heed of. Publically, the law allows free Beastfolk to walk as free as a common man, but can be moved from cities without their permission, but they are regularly abused by the Jolfans. Atheists, homosexuals, and other oddities are considered more as unique oddities by professional circles and are treated like freaks, but are considered abominable by the rural peasantry and will often be killed if they are open and proud for their beliefs.
Entertainment
Depending on rural or urban Joffans, entertainment varies greatly. Rural peoples are fair drunkards who enjoy bar life and wrestling, a traditional past time. Occasionally, nobles from the rural villas hold horseback tournaments either by racing or large festive parties to celebrate some kind of event. Cities on the other hand, especially in Kolum, are a different story. Theaters, entertainment colleges, chess clubs, and a variety of acting troupes all make homes in Jollas cities to entertain city goers. However the elite entertainment comes with arenas. Blood sports are large crowd pleasers, a pass time brought over by the ancient days, but toned down quiet a bit. Most forms of blood sport is very theatrical, done with actors and the occasional animal. Often, Bolam slaves are forced to fight for some kind of amusement, but even this tends to end bloodlessly after a few scratches or jabs. Gladiator schools exist in Kolum, which buy and train Bolam to fight these mock battles.
Education
Education has a poor history in Jollas, having been home to the Dark Hunts which killed mages and intellectuals alike. Of the few surviving schools is the Nausbarth Academy, a fortress turned education center which had a long history of purges, closures, and embarrassments in it's long career, but is still a functioning academy despite it's persecution. The Otek Merchant School however is a 2nd noteworthy academy that survives, normally reserved for the families of moneylenders and future guild merchants. Most forms of education is passed down between parent to child, with some able to afford tutors from one of the academies. Normally, higher nobility are tutored in some way, but typically most people in Jollas are fairly superstitious and ignorant and must learn on their own.
Family and Honor
The notion of family and honor, while depicted as an ancient custom, is more of a modern and fairly noble oriented issue. Blood ties are important, the only way to true inheritance, and thus attempts by families to rewrite their own history is a big industry. Most families however also know that their past relatives have done very awful things to achieve their noble titles, especially the ruling families. The Dark Hunts had erased history, giving time to the families who want to capitalize on this trend to write their own history, often comparable to fairy tales, with notions of honor. Generations later, these tales inspire knights, nobles, and merchant class alike into duels, to banish family members who commit heinous crimes, and to secure family lines through healthy marriages. Carefulness to chose honorable and noble suiters has become a highly sought out industry amongst the nobility, who play with bloodlines to secure a more noble marriage. Sons and daughters are often taught, and sometimes outright abused
Psychology
Jollans from all cultures normally a very proud, but also very cautious, of their nation. To say that the nation tends to attack itself and that either culture can be subjected to horrors at any time is considered a massive understatement, and most Jollan commoners are very much afraid the madness of a king can lead to their nation's ruin. Thus, most Jollans are ever watchful of their nobles, and their nobles often watch back. Jollans, even those who are considered slaves and minorities tend to be fairly proud of Jollas, especially when it came to their mini golden age. Nobles often have little consideration of who they rule, and often do not care much for their own peasantry or faith, caring more for their own families above all else. Normally, only internal resentment is found amongst the Beastfolk, who feel they were forced into the nation by ill means, and were treated poorly by those they must call overlord.
Slavery
Slavery exists in the kingdom, but it fairly rare. Slaves normally come from wars and work on freemen farms and villas, normally in the estate of nobles. Others are sold because of outstanding debts. All human slaves are typically shaved and given brown rags as a symbol of their status, and must work off their slavery for 25 years at max, and then are freed. Children cannot be born into slavery, and those reach extreme old age must be automatically set free. Beastfolk make up the majority of slaves, and rules for them are very different. Beastfolk slaves are collared, branded, and are normally slaves for life. Typically, most of these slaves are Bolam, who are used for heavy labor, as gladiators, or as bodyguards. Slaves are by law prohibited from joining the military, but can be used as camp slaves to dig ditches, clean armor, or work on siege equipment. Most noble families own slaves, and soldiers who are commoners tend to take slaves home to work on their farmsteads as a reward for their service. Only peasants are prohibited from owning slaves.
Beastfolk Cultures
Of the three main Beastfolk in Jollas, each have their own distinct cultures. Otum are the most 'civilized', having a fairly benevolent authoritarian culture based in civility, kindness, and the happiness of it's people. Bolam are a warlike nomadic culture who only identify themselves based on the pattern and color of their cloaks. The Kobtum are a very theocratic culture, which heavily relies on a caste and control of sages who rule over small clans and guide them from place to place. All three cultures, while distinct, mix in heavily with the main Jollas culture. Most of the cultures of the Beastfolk are abandoned completely by the urban creatures trapped in enclaves, or in the major cities. It is of considerable note that most Beastfolk cultures are treated with hostility by Jollas peoples, who bury their temples, desecrate their burial grounds, and sometimes drunkenly burn their sacred groves.
MilitaryRecruitment
Jollas has a rather simple form of recruitment, in which officers from the noble's local villa go out and gather men from the villages, volunteer or conscripted simply from the road. It isn't uncommon for travelers to get conscripted into the army, as most are pressed into service anyways. However, it is considered far more honorable and of good character to join willingly, often earning possibility for promotion for volunteers. Most nobles often have programs to train their peasantry and commoners beforehand, where many practice in fields before they get conscripted into a war. Most of the more elite recruits are conscripted amongst local guards, with the idea that because there are less men around, there is nothing to guard. Jollas forbids the recruitment of slaves, often as a way to bar Beastfolk like the Bolam to get recruited into their military and try to claim their freedom or worse to switch sides. Beastfolk are normally ignored for recruitment, since the only usable infantry are Bolam who are few in number as it is, but each clan normally still maintains their own caste of soldiers for guarding.
Organization
Jollas, while it likes to think it has a flexible and well organized army, does not in fact have such a army. Most armies are led by Generalings, a group of officers who lead in the stead of a noble as a second in command, and if either dies, the command goes to another Generaling. Most Generalings have officers who keep their camps in order, and below officers are flag bearers who command the smaller units of levies. Knights sometimes are in officer positions, but are more or less treated as elite levies. Normally, most tactics require that a line of reserves is held back while others fight on a open field, as is traditional combat. However, most Generalings from Jollas prefer to fight in forests, use attrition, and set up ambushes as to wear down a enemy before engaging them in open battle in order to get a severe edge.
Jollan Levies
Jollan Levies are not exactly the brightest or most disciplined, but they are however fairly basic infantry which are well experienced enough to hold a spear or fire a bow. Typically raised from peasant farmsteads and trained by local nobility, most levies are equipped with Jollan colors of red and yellow, giving some padded armor or if they are lucky some chainmail. They typically wield spears, long spears, axes, knives, and a buckler, with rarer swords, iron shields, and the occasional flail. Most soldiers from more northern contingents have bows and arrows, with richer southern armies having crossbows.
Jollan Knights
Jollan knights are members of nobility, lesser or otherwise, and are normally sons, cousins, and brother-in-laws of powerful lords who are trained from a young age in sword play, to march, to lead, and to occasionally ride on horseback. Only knights tend to ride on horseback, acting as the main, if not only, cavalry in the region and having such a horse is a sign of status. Jollan knights are well armored, the richer lords having plate, and typically arm themselves with swords and shields. Jollan knights tend to decorate themselves to give their families a proper and honorable name. While most knight believe they follow a code of honorable conduct, it is often very rare of them to do so, which can include dueling worthy opponents to the death, taking in their opponents family as their own if they won, and preventing the lesser levies from defiling the homes of the innocent no matter which side they are on.
Beastfolk Mercenaries
Beastfolk do have their own armies, but are often reduced to guard positions which are sometimes fulfilled by human mercenaries or local human nobles. However, most Jollas armies do tend to have a small army of Beastfolk regardless, being part of small mercenary companies of Otum, Kobtum, and Bolam warriors. Otum and Kobtum are not capable of fighting in human combat, being armored very little and their 'swords' being little more then knives, but Otum scouts and soldiers and easily traverse rivers and bogs with ease, and Kobtum herbalists tend to be very skillful medics and are fairly decent camp watchmen. Bolam are fairly light armor, but their size and strength make them living cavalry within themselves, and their weapons no matter how crude can make them take on 50 men with ease. Bolam clansmen tend to be flanking troops, since due to their size, they are easy prey for archers. Armored Bolam are a terrifying sight in battle, but are exceedingly rare, normally being chieftains or skillful mercenaries.
Karoe Legedari
The Karoe have a elite caste of warriors known as Legedari, and no Jollas army is complete without them in the vanguard. Karoe are known to be legendary in both their morale and discipline, and the best amongst them are the Legedari, or living legends. Typically being traveling warrior nobles, the Legedari are heavily armored infantry who can match even cavalry on the field of battle, known to form unbreakable walls which make them difficult to break. Most of these warriors loot from rich homes and have their own horses, often taking slaves to sell back home or to run their estates. Most Legedari are fairly nomadic, being also fairly competent monster killers where they make most of their money by driving away dragons or defeating some demon threat.
War Mages
War Mages are an important part of a Jollas army, and is crucial for most successful battles. War Mages are there for 3 important reasons; to deal with magical threat, to act in a defensive position to prevent magic from harming the main army, and to provide artillery fire from afar. Being mobile and sentient casters, war mages typically are tasked to devastating a enemy army before it even arrives on the main field. However, clever generals only tend to use them to counter spells from enemy war mages, and to bypass or detect some kind of magical interference. Jollas war mages are not particularly special, but they are well paid for and well taken care of, often being in a high military position amongst the army.
Navy
The Jollas navy is fairly mixed, because there are in fact 2 main navies. The main imperial navy is a collection of galleys which are typically conscripted merchant ships outfitted for war, since Jollas has very little experience or care for naval combat. The main threatening navy is the Otum navy amongst the Beast Isles, since the Otum tend to have masterful ship builders. Otum ships are small, but strong, which rely on ranged warfare. Otum naval traditions are fairly cruel and odd by most human standards, where young Otum sailors spend 5 years as a galley slave before moving up ranks to an actual sailor, not allowed to even go onto land for 10 years in total. Most Otum sailors are die hard fanatics when it comes down to fighting on the open sea, and it isn't uncommon for underpaid captains to turn to piracy along Jollas coasts since the Otum often refuse to deal with their own, and the Jollas navy tends to fair poorly against the pirates themselves.
GovernmentCentralized Feudal Monarchy
The feudal system of Jollas was centralized during it's miniature golden age, with many of it's most minor nobles given more formal lands, other purged from history, and a clear set of rules and regulations were placed to identify between nobles of different castes. At the head of government is the king and his councillors, who is the sole landowner in all of Jollas, and everyone else pays rent to him. The King provides the land to the Dujals, who provide land to the Valks and so on and so forth. The final say in laws is with the King and King alone, but each lord can set the rules in his own country so long as they do not go against the Law of the Past, the Law of the Present, or any of the main edicts put into effect by the King.
King - The King is the sole landowner and ruler of Jollas, is the religious head, and is head of the army. The King of Jollas has the responsibility to leading Jollas to victory
Prince - Prince does not simply mean the son of the king, but more closer to that of a pretender to the crown. The Prince can only be of the king's bloodline, and can range from uncles, to nephews, to cousins, and so forth. All Princes have a right to the crown, but only one can be dedicated to inherit the kingdom upon the king's death if left in the will. Otherwise, this process is given to the king's previous councillors.
Dujal - Dujals are large landowners, owning huge amounts of territory to be declared a province. Dujals are direct renters of the King and answer only to him.
Valk - Valks are a large landowner who own a smaller province within a province, typically owners of rural castles and estates who control villages and towns, and sometimes the occasional city. They are a major nobility, and are the direct renters to the Dujals.
Earlom - Earloms, or Earls, are minor nobility who are the main noble line in charge of towns, villages, and smaller provinces within a Valk's province. Typically, Earls own small estates and usually own several peasants to tend to their farmstead. They are the direct renters to the Valks.
Lesser Earl - Lesser Earls are essentially Beastfolk chieftains, barbarian chieftains, and sometimes refer to foreign ambassadors of noble birth. Lesser Earls have noble rights, but do not give direct rent, but rather are instead expected as commoners to obey laws, but have protected noble rights and privileges.
Commoner - A commoner is a common citizen of Jollas, a freeman who pay a gold tax to earls. They range from merchants, to priests, to warriors.
Peasant - Peasants are bound serfs who give up the freedom of themselves and their families for protection of a landed lord, tending their lands which they are bound to. Have few rights, and pay taxes in the form of resources and gold. Peasants cannot get a higher job or marry outside their caste. Peasants can only be freed by the whim of their overlord.
Slave - A sentient being which is owned by another, having few rights. They cannot outright be killed for their service, and human slaves can only put into servitude for 25 years at most.
City Councils
A city council is a small group of wealthy or powerful urban aristocrats who run the cities, usually in the name of a local Valk. Councils only exist at the behest of the local Valk, but the reality often is they have far more influence and power then their noble overlords and thus tend to just bribe them to keep their power in check. Councils often focus on city planning and earning money for both themselves and their city, normally a council being made up of wealthy merchants, guilds, and influential families. Councils tend to vary in size, meeting in large halls to discuss their business. Rather then deal with the local Valk, almost all forms of city based agreements goes through the council instead, giving Jollas cities a form of unique autonomy.
Elders
One ancient noble caste which survived modern purges were village elders, a traditional caste of nobles in the villages which undermine the power of earls, especially in Souden where they are disturbingly powerful. Elders are the old and wise of the village who run much of the village's day to day operations, consulting the gods, and condemning the wicked. Elders in the villages often are elderly clan patriarchs of families and often promote tradition and religion, commonly feuding with other villages over ancient issues. Elders are not a legal nobility and are considered commoners, with most being fined for their transgressions. In places such as Loskadia, Elders have terrifying political power, and can quite easily overthrow disobedient earls and valks. In order to appease them, Souden elders are allowed a certain amount of autonomy, and local lords pay small sums to fix shrines and perform religious services to appease them.
The Free Isles
The Beast Isles have a unique issue in which it is difficult to enforce Jollas laws amongst the various smaller island villages, so in order to keep control of these islands the monarchy allowed the Otum islands to become Free Isles, in which Otum law trumps the law of Jollas. Otum islands can have their own armies, form their own laws, and set their own tolls. The islands naturally pay a higher rent to the monarchy for these privileges, but the free isles have become dens of merchants and criminals who abuse the generosity of the Otum to become filthy rich. Those who flee to the free isles are often not arrested until they cause trouble on the islands themselves, often becoming a haven of bastards, traitors, and victims of the Dark Hunt. Usually, in order to keep the islands from becoming a free haven to the damned, the King of Jollas traditionally provides a tax break to allow his soldiers onto free island shores to collect these undesirables.
State Sanctioned Magecide
The Order of the Hunt is a group of soldiers and religious militia who hunt down the 'vile, evil, and wicked' within Jollas. This includes foreign mages, necromancers, and traitors to the crown. However, normally these hunts expand to include everyone from the highly educated who are not noble born, to priests who so happen to be criticizing the order. Whenever the army marches, the order follows shortly with it's orders to purge the 'vile, evil, and wicked' from conquered lands, normally torturing and slaying mages. The excuse to use the Order is controversial, but its threat of violence is often a easy political tactic to control many of Jollas's mages and prevent them from becoming a political power to trump the nobility. The effectiveness of the Order to hunt them down has frightened many a mage and professor in Jollas.
Minor Titles
- Admis - Admis is a regent, normally a noble who takes control of a court during the death or absence of a ruler until a new one is found.
- Spion - A spy of sorts, normally in charge of handling informations formally, but is realistically used for spying and agent work.
- Armsmaster - A garrison master, normally a captain of the royal guard. Charged with training the peasants, getting weapons, and leading recruitment efforts.
- Generaling - A commander of a Jollas army, charged with leading men into battle and winning wars in case of the death or absence of a nobleman.
- Unfavored - A fool's position, normally reserved for prisoners and disliked slaves, who provide clownish and cruel entertainment for guests and at feasts.
- Favored - A favored servant or slave, considered a friend of the family but is bound to them as well.
- Blood Brother - A person who is not born of the family, but their deep friendship has them split their hands open and make a pact to declare themselves spiritual brothers.
- Tutor - A educated person who teaches young nobles. Normally comes from prestigious schools, but any person can fill the role of a tutor.
- Councillor - A councillor is a adviser and head of a department of sorts, typically charged by the noble to do things in their stead so he can focus on other things.
- Champion - A warrior who fights in the honor and name of another, typically a nobleman who has grown old or is unable (or unwilling) to fight. Champions who die bring immense scandal and shame to the family.
ReligionTresism
Tresism is the universal belief which encompasses the various mythologies and cults of the Jolfan, Souden, and some of the Beastfolk and Karoe cults. These cults were unified into a polytheistic faith and codified as the state religion, which holds some buy not very noticeable sway. The faith's head is the King of Jollas, and as such, all religious ceremonies and theological debate go through Jollas's king. As such, only the priests can formally declare who is the king of Jollas as well, granting them some form of high political power, even though it tends to be insultingly easy to appease them. Tresism has a very warped and mysterious history, with most book and scholarly works pertaining to it's existence having been destroyed twice over during the Dark Hunts. They are both rivals and allies of the Order of the Hunt, and often view each other as puppets of the other, even though officially the Order is a school of faithful militia to the religion.
Gods
- Kasta - Kasta is the God of Summer, Kings, Blood, Nobility, Man, and the Fields. He is the paragon of Summer and is born from Tiesama, and who's death births Makrova. He is the closest thing to a god of war in Tresism, depicted as a heroic warrior with a yellow robe, and wields a spear dipped in boar's blood. Throughout the summer he leads a wild hunt of dead kings and legendary warriors, crossing the moonlit sky on starlight horses.
- Makrova - Makrova is the goddess of fall, mediation, pumpkins, beer, peace, harvests, and rivers. She is an avatar of fall and is born of Kasta, and who's death births Gulgia. Makrova is said to warn farmers of harvest, devours the leaves of trees, and drinks in a wine made from the blood of pumpkins and animals, making them flee from her at all times. She is said to be always partying in the wilderness, drunk off her sacrifices, and if not appeased then she will die and winter will start early.
- Gulgia - Gulgia is the goddess of winter, torment, darkness, death, sorrow, and mountains. She is born of Makrova, and her death borns Tiesama. Gulgia is a decaying creature who is ill seen and who's sight kills men instantly. She is said to live in the mountains and cries for the end, and only through sacrifices, prayer, and lamenting on the woes of war can she be driven off. Gulgia is said to be a mother of monsters, and is said in her quest for love she sucks out the souls of men in their sleep and on the battlefield.
- Tiesama - Tiesama is the god of spring, fruit, wind, smell, rain, storm, and the forest. Tiesama is born of Gulgia, and upon his death borns Kasta. He is depcited as a younger Kasta with a brown dirty robe, and a bent spear, carrying mistletoe in hand. He is said in legend to have a joyful personality. He is said to turn himself into various animals to play tricks on men, and his death his heralded when riders of Kasta's hunt finally catch him and kill him, and from his bones Kasta is born.
- Paros - Paros is the Karoe god of Feuds, Murder, Bloodlust, Vengeance, Honor, and Sacrifice. He is often considered the Karoe god of war, but is more closer to be considered to be a god of law and vengeance by many Karoe customs and legends. Paros is a red faced being who's armor is made up of all the swords lost on the battlefield, and wears a robe made from the bones of the guilty and wicked. He judges warriors in the afterlife, either adding to his cloak or granting them a afterlife with never ending war, glory, and loot.
- Gula - Gula is the god of the sun, and is depicted as a groomed and collared wolf hound who hunts with Kasta as his immortal companion. Gula is said to hunt across the sky, constantly chasing Nulla his free mate. Gula is a patron of light who is said from Kasta's blessings all life flows from and who's honor and service bores the world's civilized fruits, but is also a symbol of the tyranny of civilization and the patron of the new ways.
- Nulla - Nulla is the god of the moon, who is a mangy she-wolf who in the night and under the light of the moon glides across the world, bringing darkness. It is said her gliding brings monsters to life, brings the dead back, and kills the mood with the cold. Nulla is a patron of the free and the traditional, but is also a reminder of its costs. She is constantly chased by Gula, her mate, and is prophesied to one day come to the side of Kasta and end night forever.
Divinity
According to Tresist beliefs, the world began when 3 men walked through the forest of jade leaves and picked up a stone the size of a mountain. Each god have the world 3 gifts; water, fire, and spit. From the spit of these 3 titans bore the first men, and from the fire brought magical beings, and from the water bore the non-humans. The world is a pebble was then casted into the void by the titans. Some beings are said to live a divine life, spirits of the titan's own image, who were in fact their sons who came back and slew them and drank of their blood, giving them immortality. Whenever one dies, another is born, and so the cycle continues, granting their gift to man, non-human, and beast. They raised gods and made men like them, teaching them the ways of the gods without consequence. The gods now guide the world and live among men supposedly, watching from the forests and mountains, living as invisible kings and queens over all creation.
Priesthood
There is little in terms of priesthood in the faith, as there are only 3 castes which have small but important tasks. The Quasibor is the chief priest, roughly translated to Vassal of Gods, who is the chief priest. However, the Quasibor is more closer to administrator of the temples and does little in terms of religious rituals. The main priests are known as Cousai, who guide the main religious festivities and practices. Cousai are normally the leaders of cults and have a lower caste of ritualists known as the Kuan, the Kuan are acolytes who follow a Cousai to learn their ways and help them perform rituals. Cousai follow their cults to the letter and lead religious practitioners is making proper sacrifices. Only Cousai can perform religious rituals, and have no real restrictions on them, allowing them to drink, marry, and even go to war if they wish.
Cults
A cult is a small sect normally dedicated to only one of the main gods in Tresism, or a minor deity who supposedly grants blessings. Cults make up the basis of the religion, controlling small provinces of influence in which the cult can operate, gather followers, and perform sacrifices. Normally, most cults are harmless and usually give only simple rituals during a certain season, but other cults can be outright dangerous and are often frowned upon for their wild beliefs and practices. Cults of Paros for example often act as guilds of assassins and vigilantes, and cults of Nulla tend to spawn traditionalist fanatics who have been known to lead weary nobles into ambushes as their sacrifice. Cults tend to keep to rural wilds and hidden caves where they perform their rituals in peace, usually accompanied by feasting and the occasional game.
Temples
Temples vary between the rural outback and the urban centers greatly. Urban temples are stone houses with small shrines dedicated to each of the gods and a altar used for sacrifices. Normally, a priest will live in the temple itself, often acting as a support structure or gathering hall at best. In the rural lands however, temples are found in large caves or in lonesome groves, usually being these large and ornate huts and structured basement caves which are far more spiritually appealing their their city counterparts. Most advance forms of worship are done in these secret abodes, and where most priests tend to gather for the larger festivals. Most of these rural temples can hold both their priest and followers, and are built by local clansmen. Most of these structures also tend to be ancient, some dating back to the first clans.
Beliefs
The unifying belief of Tresism is that all live in a cycle of death and renewal, where the soul is immortal and constantly latching onto something. There is no one prophet who started the faith, but rather, it is said to have started 'by simply being'. Tresists have no issue with violence, as their gods tend to be violent in themselves. Tresists believe the natural world is full of curses and blessings, and that concepts such as luck simply doesn't exist, but rather it is the will of the gods. There is a certain divine spark with gambling and dueling, which is decided by the gods themselves in the end. There is a belief in a divine spirit and guiding forces for that spirit, and that spirit is under constant threat from the both the spiritual and physical world around it. Doing things that are deemed 'evil' and 'wicked', such as kinslaying for example, can infest and rot the soul to the point of spiritual death.
Practices
In order to appease the spirits and gods, sacrifices have to be made. In order to extend favorable seasons such as spring and summer, fat and meat is presented in offering to the gods upon altars conducted by priests. During more turbulent months like fall or winter, individual families make 'poison offerings' such as offerings of rodents, bones, and herbs to either extend fall or to speed up winter. Tresists will stand in prayer to favorable gods, but kneel or crawl to gods who they show no respect for, begging themselves to be spared out of pity rather then loyalty. Tresists will often wear a string necklace with a small idol of their god to show their loyalty to a cult, but will often practice in secret. Often, most Tresists will consecrate new holy sites and the homes of their families with salt and fall leaves, driving out evil house spirits and inviting in godly spirits who protect the home and watch over the family.
Legends
Hundreds of small individual legends exists amongst the Tresists, but none more revered as the Chronicles of Franciszek. Franciszek was said to be born of Kasta and a human bride, making him a demi god who could only exist in a time of summer. During his non-living years, he journeyed in the spirit world, doing the bidding of other gods, returning to the world every summer to solve a issue amongst men. He defeated giants, drove out snakes, and built bridges made from his iron hair. He was known to have a rivalry with the Bolam gods, and in legend slew each one who had feuded with him. He had ultimately found a way to escape his death by joining in his father's hunt, hunting the goddess Nulla. Franciszek is said to one day return and lead a final charge against the evil of the world, wiping out the last bastion of troubles for men.
Festivals
Tresist festivals are seasonal, with a festival every start of a season celebrating the birth of one god and death of another. Summer festivals are the greatest, being made solely of hunted meats and beers, spring having salads and eggs, fall having pumpkin and wines, and winter being of pork and breads. Festivals are important in the faith and each cult hosts their own, often trying to outdo each other with games, festival foods, and activities. This also means festivals change yearly, and depending on how rich a cult gets. Universally, cities host the larger more public festivals while rural temples tend to have the better spiritual parties. During festivals, merchants tend to gain great riches by setting up shops nearby, providing offerings and additional venues for the worshippers, making them a public spectacle for both locals and foreigners alike.
Magic
Priests are not magical in nature even though most assume to be, but the temples do pay for magical services, build housing for mages, and keep them safe whenever possible. Tresists cults love magic more then their practitioners and regularly keep them close by. Most forms of Tresist magic is a mixture of druidry and arcane. Tresists mages tend to specialize in pyromancery and various forms of illuminating magic, with some old practices of the Beastfolk who had specialized in druidry. Tresist mages themselves often live very secularized lives compared to the religion which patronizes them, who often use them to perform tricks for their cultists.
Views on Magic
Magic is treated fairly badly in Tresist faith on the lower levels, with regular practitioners viewing it as a form of wickedness which toils with the creation of the world. Only Beastfolk seem to tolerate mages or respect them, along with small Karoe clans. Most Tresist see magic in the hands of men as to do the possibility of great evil, which is good enough to remove from society. Mages of other faiths are treated far worse, often killed for heresy or witchcraft of the highest order. However, most Tresists are not bloodlusting for the blood of sorcerers, but can be easily stirred by radicals who may wish to see them removed. Tresist clergy however view mages very differently, seeing them as tools of their gods, but unable to explain away why common men, beasts, and non-humans can share in such powers which they cannot. So they often protect or hide them, fund their research, and allow them to be acolytes in their cults to give them political immunity.
EconomyTaxation
The feudal system of Jollas is a fairly basic system of renter and rent receiver. Officially, the landowner over all of Jollas is the King who owns everything in the country by divine right, and all of the Dujals under him pay a rent to him. This rent is normally a set rate which changes depending on factors such as bad harvests or wars, but generally the taxation is collected every year. Below that, Dujals collect taxes from Valks, who collect taxes from Earls. Earls are the ones who gain the crux of most taxes from commoners and peasants alike, but pay larger sums to the Valks. Valks use this money to pay guardsmen and to build armories, who then provide a small fee to the Dujals who organize the Valks. All money ultimately ends in the kingdom's treasury in Kolum, which is hoarded for future wars or projects. Merchants pay what is known as a 'Toll Tax', for a merchant to enter a port, they must pay for the privilege of trading in a Jollas city, with higher costs for foreign merchants.
Trade
Trade is a fairly straight forward and poorly controlled institution for Jollas who often tend to leave their own Merchants alone. Guilds consume merchants in the cities and buy the resources made in the countryside for which can be made into objects to sell at the city's markets. Cities then consume these products, with very little inference from the nobility who are more then happy to tax their merchants for trading privileges (but also unintentionally making merchant unreasonably rich and influential). The Beast Toll is a toll in which is controlled by the Otum, who demand money in order for those who wish to enter or leave the circle sea, which earns them huge amounts of money. Jollas is known to have a certain distrust of foreign merchants and moneylenders, and generally will intervene in the affairs of their merchants if they ask their nobles to be rid of foreign competitors.
Resources
Jollas is very rich in resources, especially raw resources such as iron, copper, and tin. Tin mines in the south and copper mines in the north allow Jollas a small monopoly on bronze in the region, and it's dense forests and mountain ranges give a excellent source of both lumber and stone. Most of these raw resources are met with ease, but more advanced resource such as salt, gold, silver, and spices need to be imported. Jollas lacks many important and much wanted cash crops, and often envies other nations who can easily produce silk, alcohol, and sugar. Most attempts to expand these industries often fail due to Jollas's temperate climate, and dangerous wildlife makes it difficult to expand. Many mountain ranges are also homes to sheep and goat herders, making goats milk, cheese, and lamb a source of abundance in the nation.
The Beastial Toll
The Beastial Toll is protected waterways amongst the Beast Isles, controlled by Otum ships. Otum will refuse passage to any ship until they dock at a port and buy passage slips, showing they paid the toll. Otum make a huge profit from control of this trade route, and providing ship repair services on their island has also greatly improved their income. Piracy along the Beastial Toll is also a rather infamous issue, as rogue captains from the Beast Isles tend to raid merchant ships leaving the waterways before they can find a safe port, and the Otum rarely if ever give chase. Pirate fortresses along the coasts and islands can be a uncommon sight, and act as miniature petty kingdoms within themselves. These pirates often demand protection money from merchant ships and attack those who refuse, keeping their people captive until a ransom is paid or until they sell them at slave markets in Kolum.
Imports and ExportsExports
- Sheep
- Goat
- Venison
- Stone
- Lumber
- Honey
- Mead
- Copper
- Bronze
- Wool
Imports
- Sugar
- Marble
- Steel
- Silver
- Gold
- Wine
- Paper
- Dyes
- Silk
Territory
Lower Jolfa
Cities - Kolum (Capital), Strekkad, Karzbach
Ruling Family - Banaszynski
Culture - Jolfan
Lower Jalfa is the capital home region of the Jolfan, and the central historical region for their people in terms of culture and religion. Lower Jolfa is a crucial territory due to it's wealth, being home to it's capital, and it's 'wonder'. Lower Jalfa stretches between the east and west coasts, having the better roads and richer villages. The capital city of Kolum is unique for not only surrounding the Pillar of Dynasty, but also home to the marble home of the King and being a beautiful city of culture and trade. Kolum is the largest of the Jolfan cities, and is the richest of them as well, being a center of trade between northern and southern Jollas.Pillar of Dynasty
The Pillar of Dynasty was built during the miniature golden age of Jollas, built by the legendary arcanist Urban the Warder. Urban was a elderly and powerful magi, who used magic and countless rituals to consecrate a great iron pillar in the king's favored garden, which became the Pillar's home. The Pillar is a hollow iron pillar on a marble stage, which amplifies magic around it to a powerful degree. The pillar is used to magnify rituals of mages, cast more powerful spells, and generate powerful focuses. The garden in which is held is closely guarded and walled off, only cultists of Kasta can enter along with the Chosen who live in the garden itself. The Pillar was used only twice, once to sink a pirate fleet threatening the city and another time to dispose of a powerful Wendigo which had tried to sneak into the garden to devour its magic.
The Chosen
The Chosen are a multi-raced group of warrior mages who guard the Pillar of Dynasty, loyal only to the royal family of Jollas. 90 members exist at a time, bearing white and yellow cloaks, and are trained in the arts of monster slaying, magic identification, and theological studies. Chosen are chosen at young ages to serve the order, and are trained ruthlessly to guard the Pillar. They are also trained in magic by a group of Magi who look over them. Chosen are not allowed to leave the garden, and are not allowed to interfere in the world outside it either for politics or for personal reasons. They are skilled swordsmen and highly competent war mages, given great armor and weapons to the best which their lord provides.
Upper Jolfa
Cities - Banzrech
Ruling Family - Barna
Culture - Jolfan
Upper Jolfa is considered the 'traditional' and 'free' home of the Jolfan, but it is debatable to say the least. Most Jolfan are traditional and descend from the rebels who split their country in two, and consider themselves more independent from their southern cousins. Most infrastructure is ill and poorly looked at, giving the territory a rustic scenery. Upper Jolfa is very poor, and regularly relies on a group of rich Valk families to keep itself afloat. However, the territory's castles are well maintained, but their greatest defense is their thick road-less forests which do not stretch northward and is infested normally with many border clans and Bolam tribes who wander aimlessly in the region. Banzrech, the sister city of Kolum, is considered 'the iron wall of the north' due to it's high stone walls and seaward keep.
Loskadia
Cities - Fiskvach, Neulbach
Ruling Family - Kucys
Culture - Souden
Loskadia is a poor region and home to the Souden, a traditional people. Loskadia was once a free nation until it was consumed in a commonwealth with Jolfa, and is now little more then a province. Loskadia is ruled over by rivaling conservative factions, temple priests, and mage huntsmen who set up miniature fiefdoms to control the region's resources and peoples. The region is home to a sizable Beastfolk population, but is more famed for being the home of many of the Jollas's monsterous denizens. Fae creatures control the forests, dragons control the mountains, and undead besiege the villages and farmstead, making it a difficult and dangerous region to control. However, its cities are populous and rich, and often is home to many of the country's mage elite.
Beast Isles
Cities - Otek, New Strekkad
Ruling Family - Poljak
Culture - Beastfolk
The Beast Isles is a unified province of the old Otum kingdoms united under their great city of Otek, and is made up mostly of the Beastfolk. Otum live and thrive on the islands, but hold only minor sway in the refuge city of New Strekkad (named Strekkad) which is ruled by a human nobility but rents it out to countless Beastfolk such as the civilized Bolam and the ever paranoid Kobtum. The Beast Isles is a fairly rich province and maintains itself well, much to the jealousy of it's neighbors. The Beast Isles holds its own laws, and often attempts to protect itself from its internal neighbors as best it can, but often results to bribe them.
Karlemgrad
Cities - Watzengord
Ruling Family - of Watzengord
Culture - Karoe
Karlemgrad is the unified kingdom of the Karoe, a warlike tribal peoples. Their city of Watzengord is only a recent city, made up of small mud huts, tents, and lodges. Karlemgrad is a wild land still being tamed by the Jolfan, made up of many Karoe tribes which inhabit the region. Being very mountainous, it is difficult to civilize the land, and much of the trading is done through merchant ports controlled by Jolfan guilds or Otum colonies. Karlemgrad, despite it's savage appearance, is fairly ordered and civilized, and is a main producer of iron for the nation. Most human smiths come from Karlemgrad, who's tribes encourage the trade. Its ruling nobility are historically known to being fiercly loyal to the nation, who are rewarded with minor gifts and villas.
Beasts and Monsters of JollaFaen (Fae)
Faen are forest beings who resemble upright women and men, having the body and faces of men, but the legs of a goat. They usually are known to have large goat horns and stink of nature. Faen are sentient, but are far closer to being magical beings who are bound to forests. Faen are fun loving creatures who enjoy playing, dancing, and striding through forests, but also they particularly interested in human interaction. However, their existence brings misery to those they interact with, often summoning wild animals with their wooden lutes, cursing those they befriend, and generally causing trouble to satisfy a prank. Commonly, Faen do not kill themselves, but lead others to their death with their dances, or even attempt to drive men mad with their playful nature. They can be killed like sentient creatures, but it is difficult to catch them, as they are very nimble and swift.
Leshari (Fae)
The Leshari, or tree men, are ancient beings who resemble old men with tree limbs for hands and legs, and who's bones are wooden. However, despite them looking like hermits, they are far from peaceful and take great offense to those who harm their woods. Leshari draw their power from placing sacred magical totems which enhance their powers over the woods, befriending the animals there and binding them to it's will. They can also command tree limbs and can suddenly disappear without warning. Typically, they are worshipped as forest spirits, and often demand of their worshippers that they respect it's domain or face its wrath. Leshari are natural enemies of the Wendigos, but are friends of the Faen, and often the presence of many Faen often means a Leshari is near by as well.
Wendigo (Fae)
Wendigos are monstrous horrors which dwell in the deep woods and near human settlements, created when a Faen eats the flesh of men and grows accustomed to it, they turn into monsterous stag beasts which seek out further flesh. The creatures resemble upright moose with claws for hands, and their chest and face has decayed rapidly into a skeletal figure. Wendigos are corrupters of forests, devouring animals and men alike in a desperate need for raw flesh to devour, killing and eating Faen as well. Wendigo claws can easily rend into the flesh of others, and are deviously very silent while hunting. Their remaining bones and skin is almost like steel, making them difficult to battle. Wendigos bring blights to the forests, corrupt animals into a mindless wage, and war with their natural enemies the Leshari for territorial dominance. Sometimes, a Wendigo is worshipped as a dark forest spirit, who 'blesses' its followers with children who are unnaturally strong but also driven to devour the flesh of others, sometimes growing stag horns upon their heads or become insane.
Island Hopper (Dragon)
Island Hoppers are medium sized dragons which dwell on the Beast Isles and in the southern mountains, being blue drakes which hunt large sea beasts such as sharks and sometimes whales. Island Hoppers are very aggressive hunters, but often tend to leave smaller prey alone and do not spit fire. Instead, Island Hoppers inject venom into their prey which quickly dissolves their insides and allows them easier access to kill. Island Hoppers are considered a menace for ships, since they sometimes mistake smaller fishing ships for whales and sharks, which is why the Otum try to hunt them and remove them.
Rockback (Dragon)
Rockbacks are huge winged dragoned which dwell in the northern Jolfan mountains, such as in the top of peaks, being huge and dangerous beyond measure, but are also highly passive beasts. Every 90 years, they awake from a long slumber and journey out to either eat or mate, and return to their mountain caves to rest. They usually torment the sheep herders before disappearing back into their caves. Rockbacks are normally yellow scaled and breath a noxious fiery napalm at their opponent. Rockbacks are often named for their rocky fin on their back and their tough leathery skin. Being near biologically immortal, and also highly solitary, they often are not much of a nuisance or a threat to most except for northern goat herders who despise and fear them.
Coalback (Dragon)
Coalbacks are medium sized black drakes which dwell in Karlemgrad's mountains, and are a common beast which is hunted by the Karoe. Coalbacks normally hunt dear in a pack of three, and sometimes torment undefended human villages. They typically are fairly thin and breath a toxic fume, covering themselves and making it difficult for their prey to quickly react to them. Coalbacks are a danger to Karlemgrad, which is why its warriors delight in hunting them so much. Coalbacks groups tend to stick togeather and nest in cave bunkers in large masses, these nesting ground becoming a infestation. Coalbacks regularly do this to keep humans away from their nests, especially the eternally brave Karoe Legedari who sometimes go on suicide missions into the caves to destroy the nesting grounds.
Revenant (Undead)
Revenants are a undead phenomena which appears in Jollas very regularly. Normally, if a person dies of betrayal or with intense hatred, they can raise themselves from the dead and will not die till they are satisfied. Revenants can 'regenerate' their bodies to a limited degree endlessly, and are set on killing a person until they are dead. Revenants are ritualistic undead, which means only a ritual can drive them away, such as either fulfilling their deed for them or by granting them a sacrifice twice the life of their own. Out of fear for Revenants, most army officers will burn their dead or try to bury the dead of their enemies peacefully. It is unknown why Revenants spring to life from time to time in Jollas, but only Beastfolk seem to be unaffected by it.
Forest Wraith (Undead)
Forest Wraiths are unique necromantic beings, normally made by both Wendigos and Leshari from the corpses of knights they slew. Forest Wraiths are brought back to life by these Fae to serve as guardians for their groves, spectral beings bound to their weapons and armor and covered in sticks, grass, and their bones. Forest Wraiths act as guardians, but as cursed beings, that guardianship acts as a double edged sword. These constructs can often turn on their masters or even refuse to obey, even killing their masters and becoming 'rogue'. Forest Wraiths are often infused with magical powers, such as abilities to control wind and foilage, with some more powerful creature capable of conjuring complex curses and spells. Burrows of druids, especially beastfolk druids, tend to be guarded by some of the more powerful and sentient forest wraiths.
Mourner (Undead)
A mourner is very much a similar cursed being like a Revenant, but is entirely spectral. Mourners are born from the deathly emotions of dead women who are slain during a time of joy, or were killed during great sorrow, their spectral bodies haunting forests and fields. They 'feed' off negative emotions and fright, usually resembling shriveled up corpses who are constantly weeping. Mourners are stationary evils, unlike Revenants which travel, and haunt the last place they died or some important object. Mourners tend be horrifically dangerous due to the fact their mourning raises the dead, can cause disastrous blights, and summon demons and Fae to them, especially creatures such as Wendigos who bind the spirits to their will. Mourners are a ritualistic undead, requiring that their bodies to be burned or to be appeased with special sacrifices.
Imp (Demon)
Imps, also known as Spawn, are minor demons which are summoned by clumsy wizards looking for guardians. Imps are small black or reddish creatures which are jittery and have large horns, but cause ceaseless mischief. As demons, they cannot enter holy places and disintegrate at the touch of light imbued things, but Imps are unnaturally strong creatures despite their size who are ordered to guard objects with intense jealousy. When someone threatens the object they are ordered to guard, they tear the person apart and eat their remains. Imps can only be removed if the mage who summoned them unsummons them, or if the Imp horde is by ritual granted the object they were guarding and pull it back into the abyss from whence they came.
Black Hound (Demon)
Black Hounds are emotion demons, feeding on negative emotions and devouring those who produce them. Black Hounds are normally summoned much like most demons, to guard the treasures of warlocks who summon them. Being a bit more effective then Imps, Black Hounds are harder to control, requiring magical fetters to keep them in line, or they would otherwise tear their summoner apart. Black Hounds normally break free and roam the highways and deep forests, chasing those who have deep regrets and eating them. Black Hounds tend to go in packs, but no one really knows what they look like, as to the human eye they look like blackish mutts, but up close they have reddish eyes, spikey hides, and gnashing fangs. Black Hounds will sometimes 'grow' their pact by kidnapping their prey and forcing them into their dens where their presence and feeding them human flesh slowly turn them into a new Black Hound over time.
Dealer (Demon)
Dealers, also known as Crossroad Demons, are powerful demonic entities and are the patrons of witches and dark magic users in Jollas, who taught mages how to summon imps and black hounds. Dealers are predatory demons who have powerful abilities, feasting on the torment of souls. They look human by all means, their true forms vary, but they universally are connected to contracts and deals. Dealers give wishes in return for person's soul, but purposefully corrupt the wishes in the demon's favor. When the demon collects, it steals the soul from their body via their contract ritual. Dealers rarely if ever show their chests, due to the fact as a morbid curiosity, all those who make deals with them have their heads added to them, a morbid collection of severed heads which make ups it's chest. What it does with the souls of others is anyone's guess.
FactionsOrder of the Hunt
The Order of the Hunt was a organizations founded by the twin brother of Jaromir II, Zachariasz. Zachariasz and his band rode through Loskadia, killed traitorous Souden nobles, but their focus soon turned to the educated elite, mages, and beastfolk. The Order has continued to this day, a faithful militia at the beck and call of the Jollas monarchy who hold barracks all across Jollas as expert hunters of mages and monsters. The Order is xenophobic and deeply seated in extremist ideology, dedicated to hunting the 'vile, evil and wicked'. The Order normally dresses in all black leather garb, having books of curses on their person and various oils. The Order is violently opposed to any form of political magical elite, and act as thugs to prevent mages from gaining political power in Jollas. The Order are typically disliked by most nobles, but are hailed as heroes by peasantry when they deal with undead and demons.
The Black Knights
The Black Knights are a cavalry mercenary company in southern Jollas, known for their black garb. The Black Knights, also sometimes known as the Knights of Nulla, live 'free' lives and reject their pasts and titles in favor of fighting for the gods, and are a well respected mercenary group. They decorate their armor with feathers and tribal markings, and hold wolves with black war paint which ride with them. The Black Knights tend to exclusively fight for religious causes in Jollas, and are well paid by temples to guard them during times of war. The Black Knights have their own villa and barracks, known well for their wild parties, their women warriors who join them, and lack of grooming. When the Black Knights fight, their favored tactic is to unleash their hounds first and ride during a foggy day, to make themselves look terrifying in comparison to their medieval foes.
Conclave of Mysteries
The Conclave is a group of elite mages in a secret pact in Jollas, attempting to secure rights for the magical elite, the educated, and the liberal minded. The Conclave in practice however are more dedicated to studying magic, and using it to overthrow the Order in order to become a stronger force within Jollas, or even outright puppet the nation. It is led by elitists and tutors, often trying to get their hands on the royal family for their own designs. It isn't uncommon for the Conclave to summon demons or dabble in necromancery to achieve their aims.
Otek Merchant's Guild
The Merchant Guild of Otek is a guild of Otum merchants who formed a successful city council in the city of Otek who have power over the local government politics. The Guild had expanded from being a fisher's guild to a multi-guild enterprise due to their vicious tactics and playing on the naive nature of the Otum, attempting to puppet the Otek government to enrich themselves. The Guild has a hand in everything from shipping to tolls, slave trade to piracy. The Guild employs much of Otek's people in some form and way, becoming a powerful entity which is diffiuclt for the Otum lords to get a hold of. The Guild is especially prevalent in New Strekkad, and has ties all across Jollas. The Guild's quest for more money often puts it in odd alliances and deadly rivalries with other factions.
Pact of Paw and Sword
The Pact is a secretive Beastfolk pact between the chieftains of Jollas's beastfolk, dedicated to the singular purpose of relieving themselves of Jollas control or at least improving their rights. The Pact is fairly simple minded, with leaders all across Jollas who help secure the rescue of Beastfolk from bondage or some worse fate. The Pact is divided between it's peaceful southern folk, and it's northern bandits. Bolam often use the Pact as an excuse to raid villages in the north once they are freed, 'fighting' a war to secure lands for their people. The Pact often tends to focus its efforts in Otek, where the Otum Dujals are very public faces of the Pact, using their resources to free Beastfolk slaves from cruel overlords and transporting them to Otek where they can be safe.
CharactersTymon II Banaszynski
Titles - King of Jollas, Dujal of Lower Jolfa, Guardian of the Pillar, the Hound, Quasibor
Race - Jolfan (Human)
Gender - Male
Tymon II is the son of Tymon and grandson of the legendary king Maksymilian. Born in the court to good tutors, he and his family has ascended the throne during a time of coming political strife and looks westward and northward to secure a future for the Jolfan peoples. Tymon is a serious minded king, but is not without his kindness or mercy.
- Beata - Wife, from Upper Jolfa
- Tymon III - Eldest son and Heir, a very skilled general and warrior
- Ferdynand - Younger son
- Alicja - Youngest child, a beloved daughter
- Hieronim - Uncle
Jarosław Barna
Titles - Dujal of Upper Jolfa
Race - Jolfan (Human)
Gender - Male
Jarosław is the ambitious ruler of Upper Jolfa, a powerful diplomat, general, and soldier who fought in various wars and crushed rebellion after rebellion but was never recognized for them. He was especially resentful when his vassal granted his love Beata to the current king, angering him deeply. Jarosław, much older now, had made amends to the king and his family, but has since become a silent ruler who has very little time or patience for jokes or fun, often trying to administer his poor realm.
- Krystyna - Wife, is personally terrified of her husband
- Łukasz - Son, a clever but cruel man who enjoys time away from his father and in the company of the Black Knights who he wished to be apart of.
- Wera - Daughter, a ambitious, clever, and manipulative martial woman who is difficult to marry off
- 'Big Iron' - A Bolam gladiator raised from birth to fight in the arena and was a grand champion, now serving as a bodyguard of the family as a favored. He has a nasty scar on his left eye.
- Róża Grzelak - A Conclave sorceress in the service of the Dujal, and also acts as his Spion.
Sichar of Watzengord
Titles - Dujal of Karlemgrad, The Witch Man of Watzengord, the Butcherer, the Bulwark
Race - Karoe (Human)
Gender - Male
Sichar is a old but powerful warrior of the Karoe, who in his youth was an already legendary Legedari for his skill in battle, bravery, and tactical skill. Sichar is currently one of the best generals in the Jollas army, and is only rivaled in his skill by the Dujal of Upper Jolfa. Sichar is known to many as the Witch Man, having said to make terrible dark deals with local warlocks and druids for magical assistance in controlling the Karoe clans. Sichar is also a monger of atrocities, with no ill will when it comes to destroying villages and enslaving populations.
- Dodda - Wife, a fierce iron fisted woman who's competence in politics often terrifies Sichar more then war.
- Adele - Eldest daughter, a child
- Cilia - Daughter
- Omer - Brother, often fights alongside Sichar
- Wazo - Kobtum druid who is a court wizard of Sichar and a family friend
Arminas Kucys
Titles - Dujal of Loskadia, Rose of the South, the Drunk
Race - Souden (Human)
Gender - Male
Arminas is a clever drunkard and party goer, who while unpopular, is also a powerful manipulator and who's youthful claim was not challenged. Arminas often is a model knight and seducer, but his interests in women is questionable at best. Arminas is a patron of various arts, and being a rich entrepreneur, he seeks nothing more then to live life to it's fullest. However, despite the facad of a simple young party goer, he is also a master of intrigue and a grand strategist by many who know him personally.
- Pranas Milius - A up and coming Jollas artist under the wing of the nobleman, known to make very good pieces of art and is always interested in new ideals
- Giedrius Jurkynas - A young and atheistic man who's philosophies intrigued Arminas, but is also secretly a member of the Conclave
- Renatas Liachtas - Arminas's rival, grandmaster of the Order of the Hunt, a famed witch hunter and monster slayer who has criticized the Dujal deeply.
- Jokubas Stralkus - A skillful mage under the employ of Arminus, who studies the magic of the world and the odd technologies which outsiders had brought into it.
- Vincenta Kanapkiene - A Black Knight woman and friend of Arminas
Mislav Poljak
Titles - Dujal of the Beast Isles, Guardian of Beasts, the Well Intentioned, the Naive, the Young, Friend of Man and Beast, Gatekeeper of the Toll
Race - Otum
Gender - Male
Mislav is the current ruling head of the Beast Isles, a older ruler who has a long history of warring with the Otek Merchant Guild. He is a kind and gentle ruler, and while considered cowardly by his neighbors, he is very confrontational. His personal conflicts with his neighbors is often resolved by him backing down rather then fighting, hating to see his people die for land or resources, much to the fury of the Guild. Mislav is a cautious ruler who think about his people often, and deeply admires kindness and mercy.
- Irena - His beloved wife, and secretly the leader of the Pact.
- Budimir - Eldest son, a strong warrior for a Otum and a good tactician
- Neven - Youngest son, a child, who seeks to one day learn magic
- Darko Gulin - Master of the Otek Merchant Guild and Mislav's hated rival. Both have had a rivalry since childhood.
- Đurđa - A hydromancer and Mislav's sister, a younger member within the Conclave.
Sound like an interesting NRP to me.
I'm going to post my modern nation sheet soon.
EDIT: Question! Do the modern and fantasy nations both understand each other in terms of language at the current state?
