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Post by Avi on Jan 24, 2005 23:12:25 GMT -5
Well, I guess we're on to Scuro now... Maybe I'll try to read that.
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Post by Jongluer on Jan 24, 2005 23:26:29 GMT -5
Actually Scuro is where the whole thing started, it's the country that surrounds Caladon.
"Other" in the Population statistics represents things like Goblinoids, Gnolls, etc.
Does this matter-Yeah, it kind of does if you care about what I believe is your character's homeland...or just the world your character inhabits. Does anything matter-Anything in the boards matters in some way to the Campaign Setting itself. If you were asking anything as in anything on the world, that's up for you as a person to decide. What really happened to Atlantis-I was sworn to secrecy by multiple governments including the Atlantis government. Does it even exist-Yes, I have visited it multiple times. Should you stop having so much caffiene-No, if anything you should have more.
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Post by Avi on Jan 25, 2005 0:00:56 GMT -5
...Ah.
I wonder where we're headed on the mountains.
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Nightleo
WOW! You just got your first magical weapon!
"Look, that rabbit's got a vicious streak a mile wide! It's a killer!"
Posts: 39
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Post by Nightleo on Jan 25, 2005 0:09:48 GMT -5
Mark, what's up with black=evil? Why can't pink be evil? Or yellow? She could be the evil Bright Sunshine countess who rules over the Giallo area, attempting to mindwash people with propagandiac (is that even a word?) messages on "children's" TV... um, I mean thearte... shows! Really, Mark, you should create an evil Elven bard or something like that. Or a lawful good half-orc rogue (is that possible?)
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Post by Avi on Jan 25, 2005 0:23:39 GMT -5
Were you there when Mark did in fact put out an evil bard? Well, he was goth... And that was pretty funny.
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Nightleo
WOW! You just got your first magical weapon!
"Look, that rabbit's got a vicious streak a mile wide! It's a killer!"
Posts: 39
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Post by Nightleo on Jan 25, 2005 0:37:56 GMT -5
Well, yeah. Except he wasn't evil, he was just emo. I want to see a bard that acts like a sterotypical bard, but plots world destruction in his spare time. I also want to see a half-orc wizard named Glitterfinkle.
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Post by Avi on Jan 25, 2005 0:51:14 GMT -5
1) OK, maybe you should lay off the caffeine 2) Actually, are you taking caffeine or acid?
And if you're looking for evil emo bards, there's always Black Sabbath...
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Post by Jongluer on Jan 25, 2005 11:14:46 GMT -5
Well, technically, Half-Orc wizards do exist, and quite a large number of lawful good half-orcs are around as well, you just haven't met any. As for Bards well Bards can be evil they just don't have to show it nor do they have to be called evil by you... As for black equalling evil, the Black Countess isn't called that because she is evil, the Black Countess is called that because A) She wears lots of black, B) it is her favorite color, C) it has been the nation's color since the dawn of the country, D) It is the Neroka color, a.k.a. the color of her lineage. Some might say that she is evil yes, and make cracks about her being evil and wearing all black but in reality the color she is wearing has nothing to do with such...after all you all met Cherri Tornado the Lich who read romance novels and gave you milk and cookies, I'd thought after that you would learn not to judge a book by its cover.... Technically if you asked the Black Countess what she thought of herself, or even most of her people what they thought of her, the response would be fair and just, perhaps a bit crazy but still a good ruler with an expansionist touch.
For those of you wondering, yes in my campaign setting alignment isn't all black and white, it is a mixture of rules about evil being relative to the observer, and that people still do have a natural "core alignment" that they derive quite a lot of their actions from (this core alignment is also what is picked up by spells and the like)
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Post by Jongluer on Jan 25, 2005 13:05:47 GMT -5
The Confederation of Unaligned Principalities Capital: Fort Snurd Population: 1, 235, 000 (85% Human, 10% Half-Orc, 5% Other) Exports: Raw Materials
Lord Snurd, and the many other barbarians overlords who fill his land, finally gained sovereignty for their land, 4 years ago at the Caladon Conference of 916 A. S. (after settlement, referring to the settlement of the north, this time measurement is only used in the northern human lands, corresponding dates: 1428 A. O. A. A., 6773 V. T., 48 years after the 412th Clan Conference, 112th year of the Civil War, and 24 R. S. P.). The unification of the Unaligned Principalities (well they were called tribes then), actually happened in 906 A. S., when Lord Snurd brought all of “his” people (the barbarians who originally inhabited the lands, in times of B.S. or before settlement) under his banner via his and his soldiers blades. 9 centuries ago, the barbarians who did not join with an Arthurian lord were forced into wild lands where monsters roamed, the barbarians did not go in further until they were sure that they wouldn’t be forced further in, eventually they routed most of the monsters and they have been spread across most of the world ever since. These tribes had their differences, and for most of the year there was unrest in the land of barbarians, and the lands around it, and only in the winter was their peace due to the difficulty of traveling through snow. As leaders formed in the tribes, many of them became small nations in their own right, but there was still more war and raiding in the land, and only till Lord Snurd (then Prince Snurd son of Lord Nor) came to the realization that the nations would kill each other or be destroyed by outlanders any time now, did the nation begin the road to peace and unity. Prince Snurd performed a coup in 903 A. S. since his father refused to unify the land through any means, it is said that the resulting blood bath still stains Lord Snurd’s palace. Over the next three years, Lord Snurd sent emissaries to all of the leaders of his people telling them to join him or die most believed that the Lord was full of himself (more so than a masochistic cannibal), though a few (those closest to his land, that heard of the blood bath at the palace) did join him out of fear, the resulting war went on all year round (even in the winter Lord Snurd attacked with unheard of ferocity), and it seemed as if every day, another lord fell, until finally Lord Snurd himself slay Orgam the Wizard-Lord (he feared and despised the leader) in the man’s bedchamber, where the wizard had made his last stand. With the country under his rule, Lord Snurd set out to make it a far better place, first he and the Princes that were left alive drew up a constitution, which created a Centralized Feudal Democracy (A/N: they are barbarians, they don’t understand how riddled with contradictions that is, besides it has worked for 14 years in their land…), the next thing Lord Snurd did was instate a national religion, the god he chose was one that his own brother prayed to and was actually the favored soul of, the great and mighty Fjord, Fjord according to legend was a man of massive proportion, barrel-chested broad shouldered and tall to begin with, he trained diligently and became muscle-bound, he has a deep hatred for the arcane (something Snurd shares, hence why he wants religion so there to be more divine magic and less arcane), Fjord became a god a long time ago when Wee Jas was looking for a statuesque lover, though this ended badly, Fjord is still a god, and is now widely prayed to by the people of the Confederation of Unaligned Principalities. After a constitution, and religion, Snurd created laws, most of them were common sense, no killing, stealing or other such things, but then he took his hatred of the arcane into the fore front, he outlawed arcane magic in his land, something looked down upon by other countries especially since he has been known to capture and torture arcane spell casters. After ten years of unity, other nations in the north became interested in the lack of killing coming out of the barbarian lands, and after a few messengers were sent to the land, the other leaders in the north finally learned of the unified land of barbarians and their desire to become a real nation. Not wishing to anger an entire nation of fury (and now divinely driven) wielding barbarians, a conference was held in Caladon where the subject was addressed (along with other things) and the nation was given its sovereignty and has since been left alone. As of late, the nation is beginning to worry about things such as the Mages Guild, and the nation of Scuro which in their eyes is not only dangerous because of their arcane tilt but because they are also a group of people who like to “spread” their ideals via force. Inn response to this fear, Lord Snurd has been building ties with Frall and mustering a larger military force just in case something happens.
Industries The Confederation is mainly filled with wilderness and a few small towns, fortress-castles, and one city that are within the land. For the most part, the people in the Confederation don’t trade outside of their own nation. Since their nation follows an isolationist policy they have yet to receive the wonders of industry or magic that most of the nations around them have been using for generations, instead, they focus more on using their tools to harvest from the land, as a result their only export is raw materials such as wood and assorted unrefined metals.
Life and Society Life in the Confederation is harsh. Most families and towns still focus on things such as staying alive and keeping a sense of security amongst themselves to learning of luxuries. It is a simple fact that up until recently, the Principalities were still warring with each other, and in such a culture there was never truly much time for true culture to be established. The people are simple, their food, clothing and shelter are all made to be effective not decorative, the few places that do contain decoration are the keeps which the few permanent settlements that exist sprang up around, and these keeps are only decorated to give historians visual aids where their words do not work. In their current state, most people are still largely illiterate and the population is filled with unskilled laborers whose major focus is farming and hunting. People who do gain an education gain a simple one, basically learning to read and write along with possibly some history of the land, but rarely anything else. The ruling class is only slightly better than the people below them, they live in small keeps that are generally kept warm though not always, and they have always focused on leading people through war than through peace so even now they are finding it hard to deal with things such as law and diplomacy. Recently, Lord Snurd has been drafting up a military, which still follows the original clan structures that were held inside of the nation for centuries. As a result of this, many people are quite happy, able to return once more to the building of weaponry and the raising of food to keep the soldiers fit and healthy, for many it seems a return to normalcy, which is something they as a simple people appreciate greatly.
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Post by Jongluer on Jan 25, 2005 13:06:05 GMT -5
Government and Politics The Confederation of Unaligned Principalities has a very unique system of government. First, they follow feudalism, the land is split up into sectors by the current ruler of the nation, and then it is handed out to officials who shall rule the land and split it into smaller sections as they see fit. Second, the country is a democracy, the officials who receive land from the ruler, are elected by the people to serve them and govern the land for the benefit of the people. Finally, all of the elected officials who are given the land to protect and govern are given it by a head ruler who is chosen from the elected officials by his or her predecessor. The system has yet to fail or have elections (which occur every 5 years) have yet to result in a problematic ruler. The current central ruler is Lord Snurd who has been the ruler since the country formed. He rules from his “palace” at his self-titled fort-city. Lord Snurd has been ruling justly since he came into office and despite the bloody way in which he gained his ruling position, blood has yet to be spilt under is rule, and the people have been basically at peace. The only truly major change that Snurd has made, is create a state-religion that all must follow. The religion basically supports what the people have been following since the beginning of time, except for the hatred of arcane magic, but due to arcane magic’s need of literacy to truly flourish, no one has yet to see a problem with this, or Snurd’s outlaw of the arcane. When dealing with other nations the Confederation has been surprisingly civil, they do not seem to care for the people outside of their borders, or of the technology they use. The Confederation truly wishes to stay simple. On the other hand, the Confederation has a great fear of their northern neighbor of Scuro, whom they feel covet their lands and will probably move to take them, as a result the Confederation is very close to Frall.
Power Groups Due to the simplicity of the people, and the fact that no one seems to be bothered by the rule of Lord Snurd no true power groups have emerged to try and help rule the country.
Religion For a long time, the people of the Unaligned Principalities followed a shamanistic religion that supported nature, this religion also supported ideals that they believed in, such as the strong survive, war is usually the best answer, and so forth. Recently however, the people were told to follow the Church of Fjord, for the most part, Fjord follows the same ideas as their original religion and even bears some of the same rights, so no on really seems to care about the change of religion in fact many people support it.
Major Settlements Fort Snurd: (200, 000) Fort Snurd is the only true city in the country. It rests on a hill, and is surrounded by tall thick walls. Inside, rests everything needed to govern the state, and a large military base. The city is surprisingly nearly void of crafters, it is a military and government city, and mainly resides around servicing those types of people, as such very little business is done within the city itself.
Ca`ro: (55, 000) In the center of the nation rests the trading town. Ca`ro exists because over time, as the people did trade with each other or as they moved on from area to area, they made caravan paths, which of course all eventually crossed over the area in which the city now rests. Since no major roads run to Ca`ro or to anywhere in the nation, it can be quite breathtaking to come to the crest of one of the many hills surrounding it and then look down to see a bustiling town filled with crafters and traders trying to sell their wares. Ca`ro is the economic center of the nation, and is one of the only places that caters to outlanders who come to bargain for raw materials in the land. The wares sold by crafters are simple but still as good as one might find in other cities and some are even exotic and therefore craved by the city dwellers of other nations who find the objects quaint. Overall, if you’re not from the nation and you’re looking for a place to be Ca`ro is it.
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Post by Jongluer on Jan 25, 2005 17:33:52 GMT -5
Kingdom of Darn Capital: River Bend Population: 3, 400, 000 (72% Human, 18% Half-Elf, 6% Elf, 2% Dwarf, 1% Other) Export: Produce, Alcoholic Beverages, Missionaries, Diplomats, Divine Scriptures, Herd Animals, Mounts, Textiles, and Apparel. Bordering lands of danger (barbaric, stealthy, and Psionic) and the Elven homeland lies, the theocratic land of Darn. The country came into being when the many followers of Lord Darn, stopped to admire a beautiful river. The beautiful river reflected the sunlight into a silver sheen, which reminded them of their patron Heironeous. Heironeous is the half-dragon son of Bahamut (and half-brother of Hextor), and was greatly worshipped in Arthuria before the Lord Darn who had tried the lead the country into theocratic greatness was exiled with the other lords and ladies. The lord and his followers (and those of Heironeous) saw the silver shining river (now called the River of Chivalry), took it as a sign from their god to stop here. They followed its many tributaries and used them and other rivers as the borders to their lands, in a decade the city of River Bend had been erected along with a massive temple to Heironeous. The land has followed Heironeous’ ideas to the letter, which is most likely why they have survived for so long. The leader of the country is always chosen by the clergy and military leaders and normally is a paladin in fact the current leader is a paladin. The country bears a strong military force that is centered at the River Bend Garrison there are many forts throughout the land, though they become sparse as one travels farther from the capital. The nation’s military force is bolstered by the knight order of the Shining Blades, they are people that have learned to empower their long swords with Heironeous’ strength, and they will defend the land and their god’s ideals till they die. In current times, the Kingdom of Darn is considered weak and idiotic, since they cling to ideals that have not been seen in the north since the first decade of Arthurian settlement there. A few nations (such as Frall, and Scuro), see the strategic placement of Darn (it borders with Vandalia, and a small strip of land leads to Arthuria itself) in a way to further their interests, and to finally stick it to Arthuria (9 century old grudges are very powerful). Darn is nearly constantly training and performing diplomatic actions so to avoid the fate of its destruction, the people who spearhead this are another knightly order who seek to protect the ideas of old Arthurian knights they are called Knight Protectors.
Industries Darn is conveniently placed in many different ways, and one of them is economically. Darn sits at a crossroads between the southern and northern areas of Alusterus, therefore for many years there has been trade traffic moving through the country. Also, the country is filled with small streams and tributaries that feed the River of Chivalry, allowing for profitable farms to cover a large portion of the land. These farms produce enough crops to cover three times the amount of people that live in the country and as a result, the variety, quality, and quantity of the crops has lead Darnish produce to be sold throughout most of the continent. Also, the large open plains have allowed for large herd animals such as cattle, sheep, goats, and horses to be raised, and many of them are considered the best mounts in the northern lands. Wool, tanned hides, and cotton raised throughout the island is eventually made into cloth, leather, and clothing in a large grouping of textile factories that exist in River Bend the nation’s capital. As well as textiles, a large amount of distilleries exist in River Bend as well, these places produce wine, beer, and the national drink of Glorin (a sweet, extremely potent, drink made from the distilled nectar of fruits harvested in the southern areas of the country). Finally, one of the two most important things produced in the country, are the large amount of priests that are taught in The Great Chapel of Valor (a large assortment of buildings dedicated to Heironeous) and they leave to spread the ideals of their god to the people of the world. In addition to priests, the church also runs a non-denominational school of diplomacy and negotiation where a large amount of people come to learn a trade greatly needed in both the business and political world.
Life and Society The people of Darn, are highly religious, and also highly determined. Most of life in the country revolves around Heironeous’ teachings, and therefore nearly every person in the country is treated equally and fairly, plus they all take great pride in what they do. This has resulted in a large amount of national productivity that benefits the community in many ways, including a high literacy rate, high state of living, and general peace among the people. Life in Darn is generally good, people live well, everyone has a job, and a home. Society does revolve around religion though. Every event is determined by the religious calendar, the children learn about religion throughout their entire education, and most adults pray to their deity every morning and night. This is not truly surprising, since Darn is a theocracy, but still many outsiders are occasionally perturbed to see entire towns enter small chapels for morning and evening prayers.
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Post by Jongluer on Jan 25, 2005 17:36:13 GMT -5
Government and Politics The Government is controlled by the Church of Heironeous. The Church has been in charge since Lord Darn, a knight in the service of Heironeous founded the land. The ruler is normally a member of high standing in the Church who has proved their competence through service. The Church and Military Chiefs choose the ruler of the country based upon an unknown set of criteria. Local governors are Church or Military officials who lead the town from their Chapels, the clerics, priests and paladins are all considered officers of the government. The current ruler of the country is Cassiopeia Foren, a Paladin who served the government as a tactical agent, she ruled over a portion of land bordering Fredonia, and the land’s peace during her rule there is what won her, her current position. Darn is at a constant struggle to keep their lands their own. To the north, rests Fredonia and their lack of government often results in small incursions into Darn that must be quelled by the military. The Barbarians to the northwest do occasionally wander into Darn but they rarely cause trouble. Dwarf No-Holders who move around the mountain foothills raid Darn often resulting in multiple problems in the south, and the entire eastern border is with Frall, resulting in an influx of diplomats trying to have Darn agree to annexation of areas that border Frall. With all of these problems, Darn is constantly trying to consolidate their power and put up a tough front, overall they must often be lead to compromise with other nations, such as Frall (which is how Frall is actually on the coast of Alusterus and not just the island of Dreamworld).
Power Groups Due to Darn’s strategic and economic position, it is constantly being pulled at by other countries, and also within the country sects of the Church often try to pull control away from the ruling church sect.
Church of Heironeous: The ruling body of the Church is simply called The Church, and they are often at odds with about everyone. If not for the fact that they were the largest and most widespread part of the religion, the government would fall and be rebuilt countless times in a few days.
Shining Blades of Heironeous: The stalwart knightly order that protects the world from evil, does not truly wish to take control of the country, but they do wish to see it changed. The Shining Blades believe that the government is focusing to much on material wealth and not enough on spiritual good for the people, they want to see Darn turn inward and focus upon itself, and ridding itself of harm before moving out to fight the evils of the rest of the world.
Knight Protectors: Everywhere these people look they see the problems with their chosen homeland. Much like the Shining Blades they don’t want to truly rule over the countr, but unlike the Blades, they will gladly take the mantle if they must. The Knight Protectors believe that the country is straying from the ideals that it was founded upon and is beginning to become just another place that focuses on amassing wealth and land, they think the nation should return to being honest, chivalric, and glorious (the Protectors also wouldn’t mind a war)
Merchant Association: On the other side of the spectrum, the Merchant Guild of Darn sees the entire nation as too caught up in old codes and dying ways. The Merchants wish to free the people from the bondage of their deity and begin focusing on turning the country into the economic powerhouse it should be. Unlike the two knightly orders of Darn, the Merchants are actually attracting followers, though they will not try a coup, they might win via majority vote sooner or later.
Religion Religion is a driving force among Darn, and the predominant religion is the Church of Heironeous. The Church of Bahamut also is present in the country but only in the southern areas and only as a compliment to Heironeous.
Major Settlements River Bend: (1, 945, 000) River Bend is a large metropolis jutting over the River of Chivalry. Contained in the city is a massive college dedicated to the teachings of Heironeous, the Military Academy, countless types of factories, and the government buildings. The students, and soldiers of River Bend are the largest part of its population, they live here only for short periods of time but their numbers are refreshed periodically allowing for a large but stable population. The city mainly caters to large merchants who plan on buying foodstuffs or textiles in bulk or for those with a religious bent who have come to see the many marvels of the Church.
Important Sites Great Chapel of Valor: This large amount of churches, classrooms, and dormities crammed together creates a surprisingly beautiful place to come and rest. The place is also a center of learning in the country, and a site of spiritual pilgrimage for followers of Heironeous or the Arthurian Pantheon in general.
River of Chivalry: The silver-colored, reflective waters of the river are considered to be blessed by Heironeous himself, and are therefore considered highly important to any follower of the church, some say that the river has healing properties.
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Nightleo
WOW! You just got your first magical weapon!
"Look, that rabbit's got a vicious streak a mile wide! It's a killer!"
Posts: 39
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Post by Nightleo on Jan 25, 2005 18:15:07 GMT -5
Mark, I'm not talking about real life, here. Evil doesn't exist in real life; I'm well aware of the fact. I'm taking about in a fantasy kingdom, you have to have some generic stock characters, as to give all characters depth would mean that killing would be a moral problem, not something you could gain experince for. So, I'm hoping that when you create stock characters, you can create parodies of the generic stock characters we're use to, but still ones lacking enough depth so that we can kill them.
... Okay, time for a nap.
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Post by TheBigCheese on Jan 25, 2005 21:39:38 GMT -5
Way before when u said Scuro is the country that surrounds Caladon, wouldnt that technicly not be possible since Caladon is a port city? It couldnt fully surround it cause of international waters laws...right?....
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Post by Jongluer on Jan 25, 2005 21:40:35 GMT -5
Evil does exist in real life, if anything Evil exists in far worse forms in RL than it ever could in a game, and don't kid yourself with that fact, a real human is far worse than any fake human I could conjure up. And I do prefer giving my characters depth to make it a moral question for you guys, I mean really you guys don't actually think that the enemies in this world don't have backstory....really, do you know how many fatherless children you people have left in your wake, it's quite sad *tear rolls down cheek*. And you always gain experience from killing no matter how immoral, after all either way you're sharpening your killing abilities.
Brian, Caladon exists deep within a large harbor, kind of in a claw shape. Caladon is on the very inside of the claw, rusulting in strips of land fanning out next to it, meaning that yes a country can surround it on all sides, then again the harbor in which Caladon rests is considered free water so no it doesn't surround Caladon in the literal sense, but the land around Caladon is controlled by Scuro....on another note Caladon is controlled by Scuro now as well, meaning that Caladon is surrounded *chuckle*
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