LORDS OF THE EARTH CAMPAIGN 54
"LORDS OF THEEURTH"

Home     Map     Newsfax    MSI     Background     Rules     Magic     Cultures    Archive     Theeurth RPG Site

Where now is the horse and the rider? Where is the horn that was blowing?
Where is the helm and the hauberk, and the bright hair flowing?
Where is the hand on the harpstring, and the red fire glowing?
They have passed like rain on the mountain, like a wind in the meadow;
The days have gone down in the West behind the hills into shadow.
Who shall gather the smoke of the deadwood burning,
Or behold the flowing years from the Sea returning?

      - J.R.R. Tolkein, Lament for Eorl the Young. The Lord of the Rings.

There are a few very important changes to the rules and game this turn:

1) Primacies and Religious Orders have been eliminated.  This has been with the full cooperation of the players in those eliminated positions.  Adam Rautio will be taking over as the Western Conorrian Emperor. Rich Lloyd will be taking over as the Eastern Conorrian Emperor. James Reid will take assuming the new sathla nation in Vales.  Edward Montgomery had chosen not to play an open nation.

A brief note of explanation. Primacies and Religious Orders were historically entities that vied with nation states for power and leadership.  In LOTE, players are focused on different goals than their historical counterparts and these positions become "helper" positions.  They sit in the richest lands making the rich richer, getting rich themselves and are able to field large armies not tied to any single geographic region.  They eliminate almost any chance of dissent between coreligionists and provide a constant safety net for the unwary or unlucky.  So, they're gone. 

To be clear, they were all played by excellent players whom I'm thrilled to retain in the game.

2) One of the greatest limits on the spread of Secret Empires was the presence of churches. Henceforth we will replace that mechanism with this one: SE's will find it more difficult to establish sites in close proximity to holy cities, capital cities and very wealthy regions, regardless of religion.

3) Henceforth, all Seafaring nations will have a conduit range of 1.  Not just a single conduit city, but a true range of 1, meaning that they can have an unlimited number of conduit cities, so long as they trace trade through no more than one.  The seafaring nations of Theeurth are: Lorraine, the Llyran Republic, Meneen, Choran and Tekume.

4) Some players seem determined to violate Rule 1.4.7.1.. just to see if I can catch it.  It isn't cute or funny and it's the platonic opposite of clever.  PLEASE don't make me try to put some teeth into a very reasonable rule.  Stop making me police this!

5) The maps and all positions have undergone wholesale change.  I did my best.  Some positions got better, some worse. Please don't pester me to "fix" your position unless you are missing a city or the math on the megalithic constructs is wrong.

6) François Lasalle has sent in this authoritative article on the Ecology of the Sathla.

MEDARHOS -

North-Western Medarhos -

The Skane Jarldoms -  Ruler - Queen Astrid Capital - Vanaheim Dominant Race - Human Dominant Religion - Medahros Spirit Cult

Attempts by the Spirit Cult shamans to expand their power annoyed the Skane, turning them even more strongly away from the Old Ways.

The Empire of Edgemoor -
Ruler - King Kraank
Capital - Zaramaka
Dominant Race - Orcs
Dominant Religion - The Dark Court
Diplomacy - Nivaan [-C]

The orcs of the Edgemoors resorted to eating their slaves for food.  They regarded it a a national holiday.  Those slaves they spared were put to work on farms in the Iron Hills.  Many orcs and goblins colonized the Iron Hills, making it one of the richest regions in the Empire. Orc missionaries sent to the Eastern Marches horrified the locals with their parables of the glory of slaughter and lost many converts to the Dark Court. Likewise, when Prince Gree and Taulk the Handsome attempted to improve relations with the men of Nivaan, they so disgusted the locals that the humans repudiated the claims of Zaramaka in their region. Taulk so worked himself up into an angry, spittle-spewing rage that he dropped dead in 2919. Finally, King Kraank sent the great hero Vazog the Half-Devil north to the Trollmoors.  Unfortunately, Vazog, while a great general and diplomat was no great adventurer.  He never returned. King Kraank's mother (Alax Dragonstooth) and sister (Lurra) both died in 2916.

The Kingdom of Harkoria-
Ruler - King Athansios
Capital - Cadares
Dominant Race - Human
Dominant Religion - Lords of the Grail

The Harkorians stayed in their cities and counted their wealth.  New king Athansios refused to open his purse, accumulating the wealth of Harkoria at Cadares, where it was rumored that he liked to descend into the vaults alone at night just to stare at all the gold. Whatever else Athansios did, he managed to create a new census of his nation's wealth, land and peoples, the better to tax them.   He amassed almost the whole of the Harkorian army (18,000 cavalry) at Cadares, where they were joined by nine thousand Aelissian troops.  The combined army just sat behind Cadares's walls, eating and waiting. At Athansios's orders, Grail priests attempted to sway the people towards piety, but so ill-regarded were they that the nation was Grail in name only, and few faithful could be found.  The churches stood empty. In fact, beyond the Narglaurith river, the faith of the Dark Court was on the rise, with many of the folk of Landegol turning to the gods of Woe.

South-Western Medarhos -

The Brythnian Confederation -  Ruler - Queen Immilia Clovenhoof Capital - Tauropolis Dominant Race - Taurid Dominant Religion - Lords of the Grail

Hellenas Springbuck and Hera Tworivers of Riandos led out an army of fourteen thousand centaurs and minotaurs to once again assault the halfling lands of Lauriacum and Calodunum.  Once again, the halflings proved to be surprisingly tenacious fighters, giving up ground only with their deaths and forcing the Brythnians to pay in blood for every mile of the advance. But this time luck and numbers did not desert the taurids.  Although the battles were far costlier in lives than had been planned, the Taurid generals smashed their way through the halfling defenses and subdued the valuable land along the Via Brythnia.  In so doing, they secured the valuable land route to the markets of the Conorrian east. The combined Taurid force in Calodunum in 2920 numbered just over nine thousand. Meanwhile, back in the Confederation, the violent and bloody purge of those suspected of collaborating with the hated Ascars continued.  Taurids were dragged from their homes and imprisoned.  Many were beheaded in the streets of Tauropolis or Carrenthium.  Especially hard-hit were the magistrates, many of whom were found to be black-hearted servants of demon-worshipping Ascar masters.  The slaughter of so many sheriffs and tax collectors was a blow to the Brythnian ability to control its own lands.

Aelissia - Ruler - King Jay Morningsong Capital - The Great Delve Dominant Race - Halfling Dominant Religion - Lords of the Grail

King Jay Morningsong continued to reside in the Harkorian capital of Cadares in command of his seven thousand troops. Meanwhile, in the Great Delve, recruiters assembled a further force of four thousand mixed troops of the highest quality and training. All else was quiet in the peaceful halfling realm.

Corland - Ruler - King Bertrand Capital - Khairais Dominant Race - Human Dominant Religion - Lords of the Grail Diplomacy - Port de Brises [T]

Laborers in Serry, Votois and Couronnais labored to build farms, churches and villages, Merchants in wallowing round-prowed ships rode down the Corish Strait to Roldein's Gate, their gunwales riding low because their holds were filled to bursting with wheat, rye, barley, cheese, wine and salted beef, all bound for the larders of the Neldorean elves. King Bertrand continued to rule his realm from Khairais, where he fathered another boy and girl. Sir Dagonet commanded the Couronnais garrison until his death in 2920 when he was struck by lightning when riding in the rain. Sir Lamorak commanded the Quesante garrison until his untimely death in 2919 of the plague. Prince Robert also died in the plague of 2919. Before he died, he imposed a tribute on the city of Port de Brises Another victim of the plague, Lord Jean-Pierre of Mauredoc managed to quell unrest in that distant city prior to his death in 2919.

 

The Sea Empire of Lorraine - Ruler - King Arthur Capital - Armorica Dominant Race - Human Dominant Religion - Lords of the Grail Diplomacy - Launds [T]

King Arthur directed the construction of sixteen warships, and the recruitment of fifteen hundred Lorraine Marines.  He and Sir Bors then put to see to control the Corish Straits. Sir Bors died at sea when struck by a flying tiller during a powerful storm.  Sir Congal died in Andred at the ripe old age of fifty-five. Sir Gawain traveled to the land of Launds and laid a tax upon it in the name of Good King Arthur. Sir Gais of Bruenor died while boar-hunting in the hills of his homeland.

The elves recruited three thousand mixed troops. King Xhantor moved his army from the Gold Cliffs to the Sunglades.

The Neldorean Wood - Ruler - Queen Nereil Capital - Elenuil Dominant Race - Elf Dominant Religion - Lords of the Grail

The elves planted silver birch and golden hearttrees in the wilderness of the Riftmarch, among the young trees that had grown up in the century since the Ianthans had been driven out by the Airnim horde.  In the port of Eambar, elvish masons build tall towers of stone and crystal to reflect the starlight over the Valesian Sea. Lord Amasel traveled south to Har'akir to help reconvert the Akirs to the True Faith.  However, the men of the Guarded Realm regarded Amasel's missionaries as haughty, arrogant and foreign.  They failed to make many converts. A fleet of merchant ships from Corland arrived, bringing all manner of grains, cheeses, young animals, wine, whiskey and wool, which was put into Neldorea's already burgeoning storehouses.

The Exarchate of the Great Crusade - Ruler - Exarch Galen the Lame Capital - Pontezium Dominant Race - Human Dominant Religion - Lords of the Grail

Exarch Baren prepared the Crusader States for war.  He named his son Galen as his heir. Galen had suffered a crippling childhood disease that left him barely able to walk; thus his epithet. Baren also gave his daughter Aielle's hand in marriage to Sir Derrick, elevating him to royalty. The Exarch recruited more than a thousand Crusader Hippogriff Riders, and contributed funds to his ally in Pomarche, who hired a thousand mixed infantry.  He even hired a new band of adventurers, the Sun Guard. All the armed forces of the Crusader States prepared themselves for a monstrous invasion which did not arrive. Instead, there were rumors of monsters in increasing numbers within the bounds of Barrandia, as if they were waiting for something. Whispered tales also spoke of peasants (usually superstitious, drunk or both) who had seen dark winged forms flitting through the woods and shadows of nearby provinces and cities. Exarchate missionaries to Maicutis continued to

convert the province to the worship of the lords of the Grail.

Sir Kurtis, commander of seven thousand troops in South Akasia, died in 2917 of a sudden heart attack. In 2919, a wave of fever and agues passed across the population of the Crusader States and took the lives of hundreds, including Exarch Baren, Sir James, Sir Unger of the Pomarche, and Lord Douglas of Carrandis.  Prince Galen the Lame became the Exarch.  He brought to court many of his younger generation, including two well-practiced sorcerers.  In his will, Sir Unger had named Baren as his heir, and so the land of Pomarche passed into the possession of the Exarachate.

The Holy Order of the Dawn - Ruler - Grand Master Fidelius Capital - The Akasian Hills Dominant Race - Human Dominant Religion - Lords of the Grail Diplomacy - Valdori [OO], Carrenthium [OH], Sunglades [-], Rantes [OH]

The Holy Order of the Dawn recruited twenty-five hundred mixed troops, including more than a thousand Knights of the Golden Dawn.  Merchants from the Crusader States brought in cartloads of gold, grain, wine, meat and salt. Agents of the Order established Order Houses in Carrenthium and in Rantes, though they failed to do so among the isolationist elves of the Sunglades. Grand Master Fidelius rode west along the via Phaedon to the forests of Valdori, where he purchased land and trained recruits, increasing the Order's holdings to the status of an Oratory. Mistress Venificus, Master Gladius and Master Audax pulled their troops out of Brythnia and rode northeast to the dwarven kingdom of Dhûnazhar at the head of twenty-four thousand troops, there to meet up with the army of the Grail Primacy. (See The Empire of Carhallas, below). Master Gladius died of pneumonia in 2917 in the hills of Khuruk Tor. He was forty-five years old.

At the conclusion of 2920, the entire Order of the Dawn moved to the Eastern Conorrian Empire and settled down by invitation of Imperator Secundus Draximus [GM's Note: With the elimination of Primacy and Religious Order positions, the player took up the vacant Eastern Conorrian Empire.  Much of the Order's manpower went with him in the form of public works.]

The Shadowed Realm of Ascarlon - Ruler - Baron Gauros the Arisen Capital - Denavine Dominant Race - Human Dominant Religion - The Dark Court Diplomacy - Thessol [EA], Thone [NT], Averni [C]

The men of Ascarlon completed the recultivation of Thessol, wilderness since the depredations of the Airnim Horde more than a century ago. He named Elvand and Barathor his princes. The Baron and Prince Barathor stood at Orodea with his army, ready for any invasions, but none came.  Barathor died in 2919. Count Bezhral rode north to Thessol and concluded a treaty of economic advantage with the locals through the means of a diplomatic marriage to Prince Elvand. He then proceeded to Thone and Averni, conducting diplomacy through marriage to himself and Barathor. Lord Elvand took ships and five thousand cavalry up the Mistriven river to Orpata, where he enslaved the populace.  He died of a witch's curse in Orpata and the army sailed home with slaves and placed itself under Gauros's command.  He now commands eighteen thousand mixed troops at Orodea. Ascar wagons wended their way south into the Worldspine mountains, where the delivered shipments of gold and meat to the needy Worldspine Orcs.

The Worldspine Orcs -
Ruler - King Orkgoth
Capital - Gargath
Dominant Race - Orc
Dominant Religion - The Dark Court
Diplomacy - Forest of Memory [FA], Auram [A]

The orcs recruited twenty-five hundred light infantry and four hundred ogres at Gargath and Vilcea.  They received gold and livestock from their allies in Ascarlon. Silverskein traveled to the Forest of Memory, where he established a feudal relationship with the goblins there by promising to marry the chieftain's daughter to King Orkgoth. Blatharg traveled to Auram, where he made an alliance with the Blackspike tribes before dying on a sabretusk hunt in 2919.

Emperor Maugroth marched north from Junius to seize the Vulture throne in Carcaroth, leaving the majority of his army under the command of general Ak'kratush. Meanwhile in Sauthor, general Pukh-Goroth recruited twenty-five hundred troops and marched south with them to meet up with Ak'kratush at Junius.  There, the two put the region to the sword with their nine thousand troops, enslaving the dwarves and marching north in the late summer of 2917 towards Adumar.  Adumar was the scene of considerable construction as half-naked gangs of laborers sweated in the hot plains sun to rebuild the postal road destroyed by Eastern Conorrian war-wizards. Unfortunately for Ak'kratush and his army, it was also the scene of an enormous invasion by the combined armies of the Dhûnazhar dwarves, The Holy Order of the Dawn and the Grail Primacy.  This coalition fielded forty-one thousand troops in Adumar alone, and a further seven thousand further east in Lauroth. Ak'kratush attempted to pull his troops out of the unexpected fight, but the Grail Alliance pounced, attacking him with more than five times his own strength, some eighteen thousand of which were elite Grail units such as Knights of the Golden Dawn, Paladins of the Grail and Dhûnazhar King's Elite.  A mere six hundred elite Carhallas Emperor's Oathsworn accompanied Ak'kratush. It was no battle: it was a massacre.  The main Carhallas army was destroyed, Ak'kratush was killed and Pukh-Goroth was taken prisoner by the dwarves. The Grail armies destroyed five hundred miles of postal roads and sacked

the fortresses of Naurog and Lauroth.

In the wake of this comprehensive defeat, the army in the far distant province of Lederata mutinied and the region ceased to be controlled by the Empire in anything but name.

The Great Kingdom of Annvar - Ruler - Empress-Regent Estilda Capital - Varthane Dominant Race - Human Dominant Religion - The Dark Court Diplomacy - Torava [-]

The Standard of Annvar

Empress-Regent Estilda ruled from the throne of Vartai and took care to train her son, the young Emperor, in the uses and dangers of power. Although the queen sent gold to the rising power of the Duskwood Reavers of Azhran, her most important project was the cultivation of Vartai, which was accomplished by 2920. Lord Panchotoniax attempted diplomacy with the xenophobic tribes of Torava, but achieved not the slightest success.  He died of winter exposure in 2918 on his way to Dumnava. The Duskwood Reavers of Azhran disbanded and settled some of their hierarchy in Annvar's cities.

The Forest Realm of Meledrian -
Ruler - King Eldareth Hammerhand
Capital - Dalariadh
Dominant Race - Elf
Dominant Religion - The Dark Court
Diplomacy - Nimbreth [+9 YfC], Rainas [+7 YfC], Bregil [A]

The Meledrian homeland of Silithos continued to attract elves to replace those who had fled or been killed in the civil war.  So too did the many small villages built in Mithelan. Lord Kyrrsoth, Sword Knight Aelavel Tyrnealyth, Rhias of Tirielinan and Voronhad of Finrothel traveled to Nimbreth, Rainas and Bregil conducting diplomacy with the clan chieftains and powerful noble families. Bishop Kilkrantor the Remonstrator attempted to sway the nobility of Minnuin to the worship of the gods of Woe, without success. Nor did the Meledrian mission to Celebdilas shake the faith of the wood elves.  But Missionaries in Iathos continued to convert the populace slowly towards the Dark Court. The Duskwood Reavers of Azhran disbanded and settled some of their hierarchy in Meledrian's cities and regions.

The Duskwood Reavers of Azhran -
Ruler - Grand Master Nath-Imperator Melenchlaenith the Archdisrupter
Order Fortress - None
Dominant Race - Elf
Dominant Religion - The Dark Court
Diplomacy - Varthane [OO], Sarion [OO], Coinde [OH], Rainas [OH], Mallorin [-]

The Duskwood Reavers continued to concentrate merely on expanding their holdings within Annvar and Meledrian.  The disastrous war between Meledrian and Celendor had cost them most of their power late in the last century and it was now imperative that they rebuild. Grand Master Nath-Imperator Melenchlaenith the Archdisrupter traveled to the Annvarite capital of Varthane, where he established a powerful Oratory on the outskirts of the city, evicting a minor noble family from their ancient holdings. Archons Carbonelor and Avjesk were both combat leaders, not administrators, but together they nonetheless established a second oratory in the depths of the Meledrian woods at Sarion. The Reavers received a shipment of gold from their Patrons in Annvar and another of foodstuffs from their patrons in Meledrian.

The Kingdom of Tiringol -
Ruler - King Keriadoc Stormwing
Capital - The Underhalls
Dominant Race - Halfling
Dominant Religion - The Dark Court

Through patient clearing and planting, the small farmers of Bethelas have at last cleared the forests and cultivated the land. While King Keriadoc ruled from the Underhalls, his son Halagarde produced a Vaegor Summoning Stone with which he called upon the spirits of stone and water to carve new farms and new settlements from the very earth of Elrothas! Princess Lily was far to the east in Trysavir, asking many questions.

The Conorrian Heartland -

A whirlwind of change overtook the former Western Conorrian Protectorate.  Emperor Decimus Brutus entered into agreements with Exarch Atanius of Adoria to extend the protection of Callistus to Adoria.  Atanius settled his men in ravaged Adoria and in the sprawling town he called New Eleucria. Atanius was given the title of co-Emperor, but his position was clearly subordinate to that of Decimus Brutus. Meanwhile, the Emperor entered into another agreement with the Bishop Henrikos of the Grail Primacy.  Henrikos would also settle his troops in Adoria and in the city of Callistus, where they became citizens and many joined the government.  Many of the secular and religious officials of the Grail Primacy also followed Henrikos, expanding the Protectorate's bureaucracy and religious authority.  Henrikos and Bishop Iaso became close allies of the Emperor. To honor these two new agreements, the Western Conorrian Protectorate was renamed The Secular Alliance of Adoria and the Grail, though it in common parlance, it was just "Adoria" or "the Western Empire". Peace was acknowledged between Callistus and Echoriath, and trade once again flowed down the via brythnia.

The Conorrian Empire - Ruler - Emperor Thandoros XXIV Capital - Echoriath Dominant Race - Human Dominant Religion - Lords of the Grail Diplomacy - Conorr [FA], Eatris [C]

The Conorrians concentrated on rebuilding an empire around the heartland of Faloricum.  They recruited three thousand light troops to help defend the homeland.  When Bishop Sangraal died in 2919, these reverted to the garrison. The Emperor fed them with grain and livestock bought at the docks of Echoriath from Llyran traders. Emperor Thandoros dismissed hundreds of magistrates and other government functionaries from his service even as he trained and recruited more scribes, bureaucrats and noblemen to run his government. Thandoros's sister, Princess Valenrianna traveled to the holy city of Conorr.  With the aid of the Golden Coin of Ulon, she negotiated a feudal agreement with the city and sealed the agreement by marrying the Bishop of the city. Lord Marcus, recovering from wounds taken in battle at Anicium, traveled to Eatris and laid claim to the region in a largely symbolic gesture that was nonetheless laden with historical significance.  He "seized" a handful of earth, a handful of grain and a cup of water.

By agreement between the two Empires, normal trade began to flow up the via brythnia between Echoriath and Calodunum.

The Eastern Empire received a huge windfall when the Imperator Secundus invited the displaced military of the Order of the Dawn to settle in its rich and empty fields.  Tens of thousands of landless soldiers took up farming in the poor but fertile Esharias valley, significantly increasing its population and manpower. Princess Lucilla arranged a marriage between her brother Calixtus and one of the Desolan nomads from across the Esharias river, permitting the Empire to lay claim to the region.

The Great Church of the Lords of the Grail - Ruler - Patriarch Henrikos Holy City - Conorr Dominant Race - Human Dominant Religion - Lords of the Grail

The Patriarch's Standard

Patriarch Henrikos had a vision, at once both uplifting and terrifying.  He stood at the feet of the gods in the Ring of Judgment and he saw that they were in counsel, though he could not later recount what they said amongst themselves.  But this much he understood with great clarity:  Agaleus the Lawgiver stood forth and proclaimed that the Great Church must cease its direct involvement in the affairs of nations. It was the counsel of Valkrys that the Patriarch step down from his position and seek an accord with Emperor Decimus Brutus.   And on waking from his vision, this is what the Patriarch did, becoming the Marshal-Vicar of the new Secular Alliance of Adoria and the Grail. In the meantime, however, Grail armies were on the march into Dhûnazhar and beyond (See The Empire of Carhallas, above).

Bishop Heratos sailed a large navy south towards Sirtis with the intention of rescuing the garrison and abandoning its southern possession. He set sail with fifty Primacy warships and a further thirty mercenary warships, plus a retinue of twenty merchant vessels and fifteen hundred light infantry.  His fleet worked the shallows and narrows to minimize the chance of contact with the Accolon fleet, but in the mouth of the Valesian Bight, they encountered the Accolon warfleet under Kragar Darkfist and Prince Esarch Ray Cuu, sailing north out of Korrek. A fleet of one hundred ships is difficult to hide.

Kragar commanded only twenty warships of the usual sort, but his main striking arm was twenty-five of the immense Accolon Battle Galleys.  Just as importantly, Kragar was a naval genius.  As Heratos quickly maneuvered for the open ocean of the Gulf of Thariyya, Kragar's ships made superior use of the winds and tides to bring them to battle off the Euristi coast. The first shock of battle was devastating, as the Accolon fleet tore through the larger numbers of the Grail fleet like mastiffs through rats.  Catapults thudded on the high flanks of the battle galleys, sending flaming pitch hundreds of yards into the rigging and decks of the open Grail vessels, while bronze-capped rams tore open the oaken hulls.  Within hours, the Primacy fleet was badly damaged, having lost dozens of ships of every description. Accolon had lost a mere four ships.

But as Heratos led the retreat north, and Kragar followed with bloody intentions, the wily bishop turned the tables.  Using the Euristi shallows and the falling night to his advantage, Heratos lured Kragar into a region of sandbars and mudflats where his lighter vessels could outmaneuver the deep-drafted battle galleys.  Suddenly turning by means of narrow channels and shallow lagoons, the Primacy fleet attacked with a renewed ferocity, setting many Accolon ships alight or grounding them with no hope of recovery. It was not enough to win the battle, but it was enough to allow Heratos's fleet to escape north under cover of darkness.  In the end, Accolon lost six battle galleys and nine warships. The Primacy and its mercenary forces lost forty-five warships and eleven merchant vessels. Of those, Accolon captured nine warships and three merchant vessels. 

By the time the navies of the Llyran Republic or the Valesian Empire could intervene, the battle was long over. Sirtis was never relieved.

[GM's Note: With the elimination of Primacy and Religious Order positions, the player took up the vacant Western Conorrian Empire.  Much of the Primacy's manpower went with him in the form of public works.]

The Dwarven Realm of Dhûnazhar -  Ruler - King Valand II Capital - Khelem Vala Dominant Race - Dwarf Dominant Religion - Lords of the Grail Diplomacy - Azhan Madhor [A]

The armies of Dhûnazhar set off north with those of the Order of the Dawn and the Grail Primacy to avenge the sack of Adoria.  Ten thousand Dhûnazhar King's Elite marched north with thirty-eight thousand human troops and destroyed the southern infrastructure of Carhallas (See The Empire of Carhallas, above). Garag Blood-Axe created an alliance with the dwarves of Azhan Madhor.

The Exarchate of Edledhas -
Ruler - Exarch Voromë 
Capital - Dor Edhel
Dominant Race - Elf
Dominant Religion - The Lords of the Grail

The elves tended their forest groves and grew small villages throughout Hydastes. While Exarch Voromë  ruled the nascent nation, Lord Forendhil governed the tiny capital with a deft hand. Malgorad, a clever artisan-turned-soldier applied himself to the problems of defending the city of Dor Edhel and became an expert on siegecraft.  His treatises and innovations on the subject became famous across the Exarachate and beyond.  The elves learned his lessons and became more adept at siegework.

The Warded Realm summoned twelved hundred recruits to serve in the garrison at Vigilum, while also footing the bill for eight hundred new recruits for Pelendur's ally, the duke of Draconium, who kept watch over the border with Bornil. King Gregor held the eight-thousand man Pelenduri army at Othona, which is all that kept that distant region from rebelling. Pelenduri diplomats Lord Urikson and Prince Dunhurst failed to arouse any sympathies from the chieftains of Kiringlo, Vindobala or Iaurinam. The chieftain of Iaurinam even turned down a marriage between his daughter and Prince Ulfast.

VALES -

North-Western Vales -

The Llyran Republic - Ruler - Constans Felisin Darovos Capital - Tarrentica Dominant Race - Human Dominant Religion - Lords of the Grail

The Republic traded a small amount of agricultural products to the Conorrian Empire. The Llyran shipped large amounts of grain to the Great Church and chests of gold to the Order of the Dawn. [GM's Note: I gave them back.] Engineers built fortifications on the main island in the provinces of Nova Valis, Camistella and Mons Llyrae. Shipwrights in Vorkosigan built coastal trading vessels. Meanwhile, Constans Felisin meddled in the affairs of the merchants, moving many fleets onto the route that sailed up the Esharias to the Exarchate of Edledhas. A Llyran flotilla patrolled the Bardol Sea and Crimson Coast with ten warships, while the main Llyran armada patrolled the Sea of Serpents and the Gulf of Thariyya with fifty warships.

The Holy Matriarchy of Ahuran -  Ruler - Queen Elizabeth Lynxpaw Capital - Sedeskan Dominant Race - Human Dominant Religion - Maddari

The city of Sedeskan grew to encompass several small seaside villages, far outstripping its walls. Several large public farms were built in Lann by sweating, muscled men.  This was a favorite training ground for the female knights of Ahuran. Missionaries to Qudras in Har'akir drew no converts away from the Dark Court, but Jacqueline Thrush won a few amongst the nobility. Missionaries to Kumrat, on the other hand, converted the island of Grail-worshipping Akirs to the veneration of the Mother goddess. Rowena Montcalm negotiated a feudal treaty with the island of Sandrettos, and sealed it with a marriage between the queen's son Edrick and the daughter of a local chieftess. Rowena also won the competition for heir declared by Queen Elizabeth by declaiming several famous speeches to the crowd.

Yolande of Haalthor died in 2920, leaving her region to the Matriarchy.

Har'akir - Ruler - Sultan Ahmed ibn Qadir Capital - Muzir Dominant Race - Human Dominant Religion - Lords of the Grail Diplomacy - Akir [F], Agazier [F]
	Sultan Ahmed spent liberally to train new governors, magistrates, scribes and messengers.  He also recruited three thousand infantry at Har Mekelle and retained the services of the mercenary diplomat Majid al Muzir. The Sultan further ordered his merchant fleets to leave Muzir and repair to the more capacious facilities at Agazier. He and Lord Al Zed then turned to converting the nobility of the capital back to the worship of the Lords of the Grail.  In this they had some success. Majid al Muzir, Lord Ali, Prince Phal and Diza of Gon Bahar all descended on Akir, promising amnesties and a marriage between a prominent house and Prince Phal.  So successful was this trip that the men of Akir were returned to full citizenship when they took oaths of allegiance to the sultan. Meanwhile, Princess Fajia also secured oaths of loyalty from the city of Agazier. The hero Mardukar used his great personal charisma (and a bit of pointed arm-twisting) to convert nearly a quarter of the nobles of Har Mekelle to the worship of the Lords of the Grail.

The Valesian Empire - Ruler - Emperor Dioges Capital - Centauris Dominant Race - Human Dominant Religion - The Dark Court Diplomacy - Pylus [EA]

The Valesian Empire invested heavily in the study of Conjuration.  The Ephors recruited eight hundred heavily-armored cavalry and a thousand siege engineers.  The treasury also paid for craftsmen to build a public forum and amphitheater in the city of Mealon. Emperor Dioges patrolled the waters off Centauris with nearly thirty warships, but avoided conflict with the larger Llyran fleets operating occasionally in the Bardol Sea. Mighty Ajax, meanwhile, took up command of an army fourteen thousand strong, more than half of which was comprised of elite Valesian Hoplites. These tramped into the forests of Hypylus and quickly overawed any possible local resistance.

Ajax and his men then lay siege to the city of Sirtis, held by the Grail Primacy.  Unbeknownst to both forces, a giant battle had just occurred at sea the month before, wherein the victory of Accolon over the Grail Primacy ensured that no relief would come to the four thousand troops holding Sirtis.  The defenders included two thousand Paladins of the Grail who had each taken an oath to die before suffering disgrace, and so Ajax knew the battle would be a difficult one.  Thus, it began with Valesian sorcerers summoning wraiths and insubstantial phantoms to plague the defenders and grind down their will to resist.  Then, the Valesians pushed mighty siege towers to the walls of Sirtis and began to batter them down. The assault was never in doubt.  The walls were neither high nor deep and though the defenders fought valiantly, they could do little to withstand the assault.  Sirtis was taken and the Grail Primacy forced out of Valesia, if not entirely out of Vales.

On a more peaceful mission, Gildorn and Silvain established a working trade monopoly with the halflings of Pylus.

Luxur - Ruler - General Tanari Capital - Thedelos Dominant Race - Sathla Dominant Religion - Autumna Diplomacy - Shenth [+2YfC]

The sathlas of Luxur trained hard in the use of their Leatherwing aerial beasts. General Tanari recruited three thousand soldiers at Aysira, bringing his army total to nearly sixteen thousand. At the same time, Aysira's shipwrights built ten warships with which to patrol the rivers and shores of the realm. Missionaries sent to Mekhet, Kesydon, Hawat and Shenth all preached the religion of the Scaled god, driving back the influence of the gods of Woe. Captain Sterral was given several large chests of gold bound for the nation of Weshtayo.  He took a boat upriver, but never arrived.  Years later, he reemerged as a mercenary captain for hire. Speaker Nealos continued his diplomacy with the sathla of Shenth, but died in 2918 at the age of thirty-seven when he ate some very dubious prawns in the heat of summer.

Pysus Ara Vata of the Holy See of Udjo was sixty-three years old when he touched the Dragonstone. In that moment, the Pysus passed away in an ecstasy of theogony, and in his place stood a shining serpent, nine feet tall.  This was Aldryss, an avatar of the Scaled god.  The god walked among his people, visiting for a time the holy city of Merwal, and then passing over the river into Lerope.  Wherever he trod, there the land was green.  And where he rested, there the land bloomed.  A great multitude followed him into the forests and hills along the shores of the Artaxes river. Many settled along his route, though it seemed that their numbers swelled far beyond the count of those that had followed him from Luxur.  Many believed that the Keferis humans were made to sleep by the god, and that when they awoke, they did so as sathla, but none could tell which had been born sathla and which were changed. After a year Aldryss sat down under a gum tree in the land of Prophep and slept.  The power of the Scaled god had burned hot in his veins and now it

had at last burned out the mortal shell it wore. A tomb was built over the place where Aldryss had died, and a city emerged around the tomb.  His closest followers took up the rule of the many sathla who had followed Aldryss. The nation of Shulaskur was born.

The Serpentine of Mykele -
Ruler - Sauressh Saaropiene the Mystic
Capital - Oroyon
Dominant Race - Sathla
Dominant Religion - Autumna

North-Eastern Vales -

The Kingdom of Thariyya - Ruler - Regent Zuiya Zendowan Capital - Uls Fakhar Dominant Race - Halfling Dominant Religion - Lords of the Grail

Lord Fakhar died at the age of forty in Uls Fakhar.  The queen mother died at sixty five in her palace overlooking the sea. King Iolas and Prince Thandorin were released from their captivity by the Shadowed Primacy.  Shoeless and penniless, agents delivered them to the Wall of Shood.

The Warlocks of Accolon - Ruler - Emperor Tormak Cuu Capital - Dammarask Dominant Race - Human Dominant Religion - The Dark Court Diplomacy - Unaagh [+4YfC]

Accolon was a hive of activity. The region of Hamsh, cradled in the fertile crook of the Lower Mulgaunt, saw the labor of tens of thousands as villages and farms were wrested from the black mud and dry desert sands.  Across the river in Haburrah, the forests rang to the sound of axe, saw and adze as more way was cleared for farming. Missionaries to the Fire Islands failed to impress the folk of Scythnus, but in the town of Cyclados, the power and allure of the gods of ruin seduced many to their sinful ways. Emperor Jubal Cuu died in 2917, leaving his son Tormak in possession of the Empire. The new emperor was a mighty sorcerer and devotee of the god Drauluin. By bathing in the blood of innocents, he enacted a ritual which granted him great longevity. Enok Dunestalker died in 2916. Prince Nozz “the Dark” Cuu continued to conduct diplomacy in Unaagh.

Pok Brightsword recruited a thousand infantry and sailed to the city of Korrek with them and many laborers.  Once there, they raised the walls higher  and stronger than ever before. Kragar Darkfist and Prince Esarch Ray Cuu accompanied Pok to Korrek with the Accolon fleet.  On leaving that city, they encountered the fleet of the Grail Primacy under the command of Bishop Heratos. The Grail fleet comprised fifty Primacy warships and a further thirty mercenary warships, plus a retinue of twenty merchant vessels and fifteen hundred light infantry. Heratos worked the shallows and narrows to minimize the chance of contact with the Accolon fleet, but in the mouth of the Valesian Bight, but a fleet of one hundred ships is difficult to hide.

Kragar commanded only twenty warships of the usual sort, but his main striking arm was twenty-five of the immense Accolon Battle Galleys.  Just as importantly, Kragar was a naval genius.  As Heratos quickly maneuvered for the open ocean of the Gulf of Thariyya, Kragar's ships made superior use of the winds and tides to bring them to battle off the Euristi coast. The first shock of battle was devastating, as the Accolon fleet tore through the larger numbers of the Grail fleet like mastiffs through rats.  Catapults thudded on the high flanks of the battle galleys, sending flaming pitch hundreds of yards into the rigging and decks of the open Grail vessels, while bronze-capped rams tore open the oaken hulls.  Within hours, the Primacy fleet was badly damaged, having lost dozens of ships of every description. Accolon had lost a mere four ships.

But as Heratos led the retreat north, and Kragar followed with bloody intentions, the wily bishop turned the tables.  Using the Euristi shallows and the falling night to his advantage, Heratos lured Kragar into a region of sandbars and mudflats where his lighter vessels could outmaneuver the deep-drafted battle galleys.  Suddenly turning by means of narrow channels and shallow lagoons, the Primacy fleet attacked with a renewed ferocity, setting many Accolon ships alight or grounding them with no hope of recovery. It was not enough to win the battle, but it was enough to allow Heratos's fleet to escape north under cover of darkness.  In the end, Accolon lost six battle galleys and nine warships. The Primacy and its mercenary forces lost forty-five warships and eleven merchant vessels. Of those, Accolon captured nine warships and three merchant vessels. 

The Shadowed Primacy of the Dark Court -   Ruler - High Priest Gezz Half-Shadow Holy City - Dammarask Dominant Race - Human Dominant Religion - The Dark Court
	The Shadowed Primacy disappeared back into the shadows.

The Empire of Kherouf -   Ruler - Emperor Nepherkeres Capital - Tanthis Dominant Race - Human Dominant Religion - The Dark Court

In the depths of time the ancient realm of Numanthaur helped to spark the war that ended the ancient world and trigger the Wrath of the Gods. Millennia passed and the Numan peoples forgot most of the lore of their ancestors.  But the memory of wealth and power lived on in the green valleys of Kherouf. In the ages before the rise of Conorria, the Shadowmasters unleashed their terrible shadows on Kherouf, slaying most of the population.  In order to survive, the Kheroufi wizard-priests made a pact with the Demon-Prince Malphegor.  That powerful entity moved the entire realm of Kherouf away from Theeurth and into a pocket dimension where it lived out the ensuing millennia in safety. Empires came and went, wars and prosperity, famine and plenty and the people of Kherouf forgot all but the dimmest legends of the world they came from. Then came the day when the pact with Malphegor ended.  Five thousand and one years had passed and Kherouf was unceremoniously shunted back into the world of its birth.  Astonished to find themselves suddenly thrust into a larger world, the Kheroufis quickly forced a tribute from a few of the closest tribes.  In 2918, they drove a road into Adachem and claimed it for their own, establishing the trading town of Saqqara on the shores of the Gulf of Thariyya.

The Shadowguard of Marador -  
Ruler - Queen Madariel Shadowfoot
Capital - Lantar
Dominant Race - Elf
Dominant Religion - Lords of the Grail
Diplomacy - Oromardi [T]

Queen Madariel	The earnest elves of Marador struggled for the hearts and minds of their people, which had turned to thoughts of darkness and despair, tainted with the powerful words of Ioannes, prophet of Drauluin. Prince Alitcean and Princess Mithiriel traveled to Dimbe, and there preached and spoke among the
province's nobility. Alvar Brookseeker in Kalrondo and Thingold, Prince of Gaja in Daio did the same.  Missionaries spread the word with some success in Assyris, but not in Hecaladon. Evarear Darkblow imposed a tribute on the elves of Oromardi. In addition, the Shadowguard built two new port fortresses, in Beduina and Kinn-Lai.

South-Western Vales -

The Steaming Kingdom of Drormt -
Ruler - King Vraaka
Capital - Breeka
Dominant Race - Saurus
Dominant Religion - Autumna
Diplomacy - Oiohutu [FA]

The sauruses of Drormt built farms and villages in the rich valleys and muddy bottomland of Arran, while in the capital at Breeka, the city's wealth and industry attracted still more sauruses from the hinterlands. Drormt's attempts at religious proselytization were less successful than it's building projects.  The residents of Oiohutu resisted attempts to reduce their dedication to the gods of Woe, while the nation in general refused to be whipped into religious hysteria. King Vraaka fathered a second son in 2916, but queen Ankha died of pregnancy complications in 2918. Meanwhile, Lord Mazkal concluded a treaty with the sauruses of Oiohutu that guaranteed them the Steaming Kingdom's protection while requiring them to send troops to its defense. General Gadampt died of a stroke in Arran in 2918.

Sendahl - Ruler - King Topo*ko Capital - Nyange Dominant Race - Human Dominant Religion - Valesian Spirit Cult Diplomacy - Idhe [T]

In the wake of the devastating pneumonic plague, poverty and death lay heavy across Sendahl.  But the hidden blessing of this terrible toll was that for those who survived, there was more of everything.  Food was plentiful for those with the strength to harvest it, and the nobility could no longer simply demand the labor of the serfs. A new middle class began to emerge - those skilled laborers or successful farmers who could demand payment for their services. These established successful villages and farms in Durudin, Desiket and Mbarre, while the poorer classes took the king's coin as soldiers in order to feed their starving families. Hundreds of new infantry and a thousand wild horsemen were recruited into the army. Lord Bo*ko died in Durudin at the age of sixty-three in 2917. Lord Vennix of Syniken drowned in 2919. Lord Esto*lo established a tribute to be paid by Idhe to Nyange every five years. Queen Grana died in childbirth in 2917.  King Gomo*ko entered a period of such intense grieving that he died quietly in his sleep just a few months later. Gomo*ko had died without a male heir and the fifty-nine year old king had never named one.  This sparked a fierce competition among the nobility that threatened to come to a civil war.  No particular tradition required or even permitted that a king's daughter succeed him, and no such precedent was set here, for Gomo*ko had a much younger brother, Topo*ko.  Thirty years the king's junior, Topo*ko was a charismatic and energetic young officer in the army who quickly outmaneuvered both his niece and the royal court, consolidating the approval of both the priests and the army before seizing the throne. Once crowned, he forced Agaka, Gomo*ko's eldest daughter to marry him in a private and rapid ceremony.

The Grand Empire of Mekebele - Ruler - King Fuloku Capital - Awayal Dominant Race - Human Dominant Religion - Valesian Spirit Cult Diplomacy - Itulawi [FA], Abaste [FA]

The men of Mekebele continued to pay tribute to the orc horde in Menrat, and continued to improve their growing economy despite the military threat. Engineers built public granaries in Ushwana and Jaidar, while in Awayal they built a grand temple to the Rain Spirit. Meanwhile, gangs of workers labored in the blazing Mekebele sun to widen and improve the road between Awayal and Ushwana. King Fuloku named his younger brother Prince Hariki to his royal counsel. King Fuloku and Lord Magore both set out on diplomatic missions to jungle provinces.  Fuloku convinced the warlike Itulawis to become his allies, while Magore did the same in Abaste before his death at fifty-four in 2917. The sorcerer Anghara also died in 2917, at the age of forty.  It was said that he had fallen in love with a jungle witch who spurned his love.  He became angry and sought to imprison her in a ceramic figurine, whereupon she cursed him and turned him into a black rat, which she boiled for supper.

South-Eastern Vales -

The Dwarven Realm of Aurdrukar - Ruler - King Dorin Capital - The Brass Tower Dominant Race - Dwarf Dominant Religion - Lords of the Grail Diplomacy - Hu'el [T], Zhunekru [A]

Banner of Aurdrukar

Banner of Khor-Naland

The industrious dwarves built a city in Zhunekru called Minkazad.  Hanging from the side of a tall and forbidding cliff, the only access to the city was either through the formidable tunnels below from the sky above. King Dorin and Lord Bloggin went to hostile Hu'el and were so convincing (not to mention, liberal with their gold) that the folk of Hu'el soon laid aside their fomer grudges and agreed to contribute to the common defense. Lord Gamli meanwhile concluded a treaty of alliance with the dwarves of Zhunekru. Blorin and Rignus of Hikka preached the words of the Lords of the Grail to the nobility of Shtekkten. Meanwhile, missionaries to Lrandirla met with stony silence and stiff-necked resentment by the folk of that land.

The Elven Empire of Sengkar - Ruler - Emperor Valoril Greenshield Capital - Ezrand Dominant Race - Elf Dominant Religion - Lords of the Grail

The elves of the Bright Empire continued to prepare for war.  Elven shipwrights lay down the keels of fifteen lateen-rigged sloops of war in the harbor of Jarende. One thousand heavily-mounted knights joined the rallying cry of the king's personal troops, bringing the total number of heavy elite cavalry in Sengkar to over eleven thousand, not to mention all the crack elven archers. Elven masons built a new fortress, "Anduvar", in Radhrost, and built up the defenses of fortress Coninaar at Jarende. The royal road from Bathil to Jarende was completed, and many of the laborers were paid off with land in Kulahan, a few hundred miles to the southeast. Many of them retired there to build farms and small villages. Prince Namaril the Hunter commissioned a large new fleet of merchant vessels to ply the waters between the great Sengkari cities and meanwhile trained relentlessly with the cavalry.

Attempts by the weak priesthood to stir up religious sentiment backfired among the very secular elves, and attendance at temple services dropped yet further as most Sengkarians resented what they viewed as a dangerous orthodoxy.

The Kingdom of Weshtayo - Ruler - King Ometeotl , Red-Feathered Lord Capital - Khulank Dominant Race - Human Dominant Religion - Autumna Diplomacy - Tsuu [+5YfC]

The Weshts recruited fifteen hundred elite Djurunga Horse Guards.  In pacified Khulank, the wealth of the kingdom flowed into the hands of esoteric scholars who studied the inner workings of magic and science, as well as to a small class of civil servants who kept the wheels of government running. King Cuitlahuac died of a sudden heart attack at the age of thirty in 2917.  His only heir was his five year old daughter Oyunbileg. Though the already teetering nation came close to civil war as various lords vied to be the next Red-Feathered Lord, General Ezhuahuacatl sent his troops into Khulank and established himself as Oyunbileg's regent.  All was peaceful for ten months until Ezhuahuacatl himself died after being cursed by a witch of the jungle for turning against the ancient religion of the spirits. At this point, violence did briefly reign supreme.  There was rioting in Khulank and Rendulha, and uprisings in Tresalet and Bedraku, put down by their respective garrisons.

Somewhere in all the rioting, six year old Oyunbileg was killed by a thrown spear.  Eventually, Lord Ometeotl, who had been at work as a diplomat in Tsu'u, established order and declared himself to be the new Red-Feathered Lord of Weshtayo.

Attempts by the Autumnan priests to increase the power of the faith in Weshtayo were unsuccessful.

The Imperial Realm of Zikuyu -
Ruler - Emperor Zanwee II
Capital - Ivallkyu
Dominant Race - Human
Dominant Religion - Valesian Spirit Cult

The Zikuyans continued to live in splendid isolation and indolence. Emperor Maseed passed quietly into history in 2918, and was followed onto the throne by his sixteen year old son Zanwee II.

The Valraj -
Ruler - Sultan Jahangeer
Capital - Muddakir
Dominant Race - Human
Dominant Religion - The Dark Court
Diplomacy - Kadja [T]

The Sultan gave rights to land in Hajaxtas to anyone who could clear and harvest it, and many landless peasants and earnest young men traveled south across the Rhasdine river to seize their futures. Meanwhile, missionary efforts into Hajus failed because so few of the missionaries truly knew much about their religion. The royal court, on the other hand, proved more effective and spreading the fashionable new religion to the nobility of Issus Din in the west and Sartus in the south. Lord Firas imposed a tribute on the foresters of Kadja through means of incentives to the small holders scattered throughout that region. Sultan Ayoob died in 2918 at the age of fifty-five.  His son Jahangeer became sultan amid pomp and acclaim, while Jahangeer's own son Aurangzeeb was named Crown Prince.

The Grand Duchy of Meneen -
Ruler - Grand Duke Salene
Capital - Yaz Meneen
Dominant Race - Elf
Dominant Religion - Valesian Spirit Cult

The seafaring elves of Yaz Meneen rebuilt their lost navy, adding fourteen new warships on the ways and quays of Yaz Meneen. The elf shamans of the Starborn clan infused the forests of Dreta with fertility and abundance in order to combat the famine under which the nation labored. Shamans of the Griffon Moon clan attempted to rouse up religious fervor in the people, but the elves of the Grand Duchy remained moderates. In 2917, miners in Niorin discovered diamonds in abundance just below the thick loam of the forest floor.  Although the Grand Duchy attempted to keep the find secret, within a few years the population of the region had swelled in the hopes of riches and fame. Halfling missionaries from Ahum attempted to convert the natives of Khovas with little success.

The Kingdom of Ukanve -
Ruler - King Gene II
Capital - Ukanve
Dominant Race - Human
Dominant Religion - Valesian Spirit Cult

The Royal Court of the Lost Kingdom all cooperated in transporting men and materials to the the jungles of Acclimea, where they established the tiny unwalled port of Morgania, the better to trade with the elves. A virulent plague swept through Morgania within months of its establishment, carrying off every member of the Royal Court who was present, though relatively few of the colonists. Darrun of Darja died in 2916 and his sons fell to squabbling over his inheritance.  Darja completely ignored all directives from Ukanve thereafter.

The Kingdom of Nikitya -
Ruler - King Erik Ragnarsson
Capital - Vikitana
Dominant Race - Human
Dominant Religion - Serriku Spirit Cult

The men of Nikitya finished clearing the forests of Puinissik, and put the fertile soil to work feeding their hungry people. In addition to a flurry of spells that summoned elementals to move rocks and sweeten springs, the efforts of Snorri Gundarson and Prince Harrold the Bold to govern Vikitana and Trysavir made those small cities comfortable and desirable places to live. Old King Ragnar died in 2917, leaving his young son Erik as monarch of the realm. Prince Harrold the Bold died the following year, leaving Erik with a very small royal council. Ulgwif of Tuanani also died in 2917, and King Erik's first act as king was to declare the province to be part of Nikitya.

The Principalities of Korondor -
Ruler - King Vorin
Capital - Nikkildûn
Dominant Race - Dwarf
Dominant Religion - The Lords of the Grail
Diplomacy - Unssan [T]

The dwarves of Korondor trained tirelessly in siegecraft and cavalry maneuvers.  They have become competent pony-riders, but prefer riding tamed boars where possible. Their human allies among the Lyats tribe continued to work the land of Syupit, working toward the day when farms dominate the rolling hills instead of dense, primeval forests. The dwarves continued to labor on fortifications, turning Syupit and Tyakukta into dense warrens of castles and keeps. Lords Bolan, Talon and Korin traveled to the eastern hills to treat with the non-Korond dwarves of Unssan.  These taciturn and hard-headed creatures agreed to pay an annual tribute of iron to Nikkildûn, but no more.

The Saa'vend Confederation -
Ruler - King Nassessh
Capital - Envekal
Dominant Race - Saurus
Dominant Religion - The Dark Court
Diplomacy - Batis [A], Samilen [F]

After an initial quick expansion, the treasury of the Confederation could not keep up with its expenses and King Nassessh was forced to cashier four thousand light infantry rather than pay them. Though this led to small-scale rioting, no serious uprisings occurred. King Nassessh married a young saurus of Envekal, but she died in birthing their first child. Crown Prince Sthor and Lord Kaar formed an alliance between the Confederation and the province of Batis, while Prince Boaz concluded a treaty with Samilen that gave that region full citizenship. King Nassessh halted all missionary work pending the conclusion of the war between Shanatar and Azidahaka. But when Shanatar missionaries returned to Eumela, he ordered them to be thrown into the city's cess pits.

Azidakaha -
Ruler - Azidakaha
Capital - Naifir

ELIMINATED

See The Shanatar Empire, below.

The Shanatar Empire -
Ruler - God-Emperor Migdala
Capital - Feroe
Dominant Race - Human
Dominant Religion - The God-Emperor

The aging God Emperor was more than seventy years old and childless.  He sent out agents to seek the nearest male relative of the late God-Emperor, Migdala.  He found her cousin's son Tsepheres and named him heir to the throne.  Many of the nobility muttered against this pronouncement, but Migdala made the appointment stick. The God-Emperor also sent his newest adventuring company ("The Spear of the God-Emperor") against the dragon, Azidahaka, who swept the poor fellows into his gullet in mere seconds. However, the God-Emperor's second stroke against the dragon was far more powerful.  He recruited six thousand cavalry and combined them with the rest of his army and seventeen thousand mercenaries to form the largest single army Theeurth had seen in generations: forty-five thousand troops marched northwest towards Balasir where Azidahaka and his eight thousand troops were laying waste to the countryside. The battle raged for two days.  The human traitors

who served the dragon were slaughtered within the first few hours, but Azidahaka's fangs, flame and deadly gaze destroyed tens of thousands in the same time. Lord Jualarian was slain in the initial charge.  But the dragon suffered terribly as well, as the brave and exceedingly numerous Shantar cavalry swarmed around him.  By nightfall, the dragon was bloodied and General Ulannir had lost a third of his army.  Balasir was a smoking ruin.

Azidahaka slipped away in the night, retreating to Zeynif.  But Ulannir and the army followed hot on his trail and in the autumn of 2916 cornered the great beast on the banks of the Argabazos river.  There, they fell upon him and slew him.  In his rage and pain, he unleashed rivers of fire and gouts of bile that slew thousands more, including General Ulannir.  But it was done.  The great monster was dead.

Young general Phalan, ranking survivor of the battle, marched back to Chamir and stood watch over the capital.  By the time the mercenary contracts ended, the Shanatar army numbered just over twelve thousand veterans.

The Farmuz Emirates - Ruler - Sultan Kazad Capital - Azhkatûm Dominant Race - Human Dominant Religion - Lords of the Grail

The Emirates took some me-time.

 

The Kingdom of Vaudan - Ruler - King Khosrow Capital - Chegamum Dominant Race - Human Dominant Religion - Orithia Diplomacy - Yezdarna [F], Parkora [A]

The life of a young prince in a dictatorship can be bliss...or death.  When Regent Kavad died suddenly in 2916, young crown prince Zamyad was still years away from his majority.  Prince Zand, Kavad's brother, stepped in to take over but was opposed by Lord Khosrow, who had the support of the powerful Vaudan navy. The council was split for a time, and many noblemen felt it was safer to be elsewhere and support whomever came out on top.  Chief among these was yet another brother of the late Kavad, Prince Nariman, who was safely ensconced in a diplomatic mission in Yezdarna. Khosrow outmaneuvered Zand and Orland, a third contender, and was declared Regent at the insistence of the navy. In 2918, with Zamyad still only thirteen years old, Prince Zand announced that he had uncovered a plot by Khosrow to murder the Crown Prince and assume power himself.  Outraged, Khosrow had Zand imprisoned.  The following year, Prince Zamyad sickened and died.  Zand died shortly thereafter, as did Zamyad's three younger brothers.  Prince Nariman was allowed to live, but forced to retire after giving away his niece Noushin's hand in marriage to Khosrow.  Khosrow now declared himself king and used his marriage to Noushin to legitimize his position. There was much talk of revolution in the streets of Chegamum, but Khosrow's pitiless secret police quelled all such talk with ruthless abandon. Elsewhere, the elves of Parkora became full allies of the realm, while the hillmen of Yezdarna became full citizens.

The United Clans of Mainos -
Ruler - King Kaedhrol Greyfeather
Capital - Badmira
Dominant Race - Elf
Dominant Religion - Orithia
Diplomacy - Imbalab [FA], Mitampe [-]

The elves of Mainos built a royal road from the Jalit bridge through Kheleni to the city of Jagda, and began a spur road running towards Aydu.  They also put a great store of grain and salted meat away in cool caves against the need of future years. Their main effort was to help their coreligionist, the Orithian faithful of Kasadir.  These men, seeking to escape the oppression and apostasy of their homeland, sought leave of the elven king to cross his forests and settle a thousand miles to the southwest, along the banks of the Gardagos river to the south of Mainos. The elves proved their generosity by sending many guides to the aid of the faithful humans and by sending them a staggering sum of gold, jewels,, gems and works of ancient elvish make with which to start their colony on the Gardagos.  Too, King Khaedhrol led expeditions to the land of the Imbalab tribes, seeking to convince them to support the Kasadir refugees. The fierce warriors of Imbalab agreed to permit the Kasads to settle, but the men of Mitampe flatly refused.

The Dragon's Reach -

The Kingdom of Uheju -
Ruler - King Maggor
Capital - Shkomyemri
Dominant Race - Hobgoblin
Dominant Religion - Orithia
Diplomacy - Berat [A]

Still reeling from the religious chaos of the past four years, the hobgoblin nation of Uheju settled into an unsteady peace.  Princess Regent Miyu led the efforts to bind up the wounds of the past by marrying a nobleman of Berat and cementing an alliance with that vital region.  At once the most beautiful and most terrifying woman in the kingdom, her new husband was both admired and pitied for his lot.  Her enemies dispersed and her family's position secure, Miyu handed over the reins of power to her younger brother Maggor when he came of age in 2919.  She remained a powerful voice on his council, however and many saw in her the true power behind the throne. A strange red tide washed in to the shores of the Denyema Sea, killing all the fish and impoverishing fishermen for years.

 

The Heavenly Kingdom of Kasadir - Ruler -King Maejirth Capital - Tamiyot Dominant Race - Human Dominant Religion - Falesian (Heretical Orithia)

Queen Zlawa softened her stance on the Falesian issue and issued a general amnesty to all the rebels.  While many returned surreptitiously to farms and towns, most fled south with the aid of their elvish allies (See The Faithful of Gardagos, below). The queen died in 2920 at the age of sixty-four and was succeeded by her son Maejirth. Maejirth married a priestess of the Falesian faith, but she died in 2916 during childbirth. Most of the court braced for more war against the rebels, but none came.  In Tanuan, Kal Thintal struggled fruitlessly to understand the Orb of Law. Missionaries sent to Kotutan discovered to their surprise that they had left for the south with the Rebels.

 

The Kingdom of Ahandu - Ruler - King Tzahex Capital - Zathurrin Dominant Race - Saurus Dominant Religion - Orithia Diplomacy - Heblam [+6YfC]

The court of Ahandu took great care to see that the trade route to the south remained loyal and open.  Diplomats plied the fractious and distant human hillmen with gifts and attention. Missionaries in Diangam converted the region back to the worship of Orithia, while in Jembahuan, Princess Tzazless made great strides in encouraging the nobility to return to the True Faith. Scaly engineers and gangs of shirtless laborers cut a road through Diangam to the muddy banks of the Kheleni river. An epidemic of the Devil's Fire in 2920 took the lives of both Pahualax and Oatitehe.

The Empire of Mogodor -
Ruler - Queen Lysistrana
Capital - Aone
Dominant Race - Human
Dominant Religion - Orithia
Diplomacy - Venil [F]

In her mid-forties and unmarried, Queen Lysistrana did not desire to leave her realm without an heir.  She named Prince Shi, a distant cousin, to be her heir. Great wains arrived at the borders of Januaan bearing trade goods and carrying artisans of all description.  The large but squalid province was receiving some much-needed renovations.  Tiny farms expanded with improved water supplies and centralized grain markets  The money paid to the craftsmen they spent in local shops, causing the merchants to buy more from the local farmers. At the same time, Lord Obi conducted negotiations with the city fathers of Venil that made them full citizens of the Empire and placed the city's military at the queen's disposal. In 2916, a wave of undead soldiers came ashore at Januaan bearing the emblems of the Lich King.  They raided only very near the beach, razing several

small villages and carting off both slaves and cattle.

The Kingdom of Suhanir -
Ruler - King Valiel Sunlord
Capital - Kaonayu
Dominant Race - Elf
Dominant Religion - Orithia
Diplomacy - Sunatosuk [F], Menytu [EA], Kimmaktu [EA]

Valiel Sunlord ordered that many new ships be built in the harbors of Miyotla, and that the carry trade between ports of Suhanir. His wife queen Felean conducted diplomacy in her husband's name in Kimmaktu, while Lady Halath and Prince Marahel did likewise in Sunatosuk and Menytu.  In this fashion, the Court of the Sunlord expanded its power over all of the elves between the Dragon's Reach and the sea. Lord Cerelindor, Lir of Anbarako and Ulwe of Anakhor marched south with an army of eight thousand elves to challenge the Keddihr orcs of Adairda.  The orcs summoned their tribal brothers, but only those of Antikki and Kayindu came.  Mende and Entemal remained aloof. Even so, the orcish army when it was finally cornered in the sweltering Adairda sun numbered more than five thousand. The elves had the advantage of scouts and the natural elven skill in woodcraft, but the commanders were evenly matched and the orcs were simply more stubborn in their defense.

In the summer of 2915, the Keddihr orcs inflicted a defeat on the proud Suhanir elves, throwing them back across the border having suffered more than three thousand casualties.  The orcs themselves had suffered almost two thousand dead and wounded. But Lord Cerelindor was nothing if not tenacious (some would say overproud) and in the spring of 2916 he marched his diminished army back into Adairda.  Unfortunately for him the orcs of Entemal had come to the aid of their Keddihr brothers by this time, adding a further thousand blood-mad orcs into the fray.  The result of the second battle of Adairda was similar to the first.  The elves of Suhanir were thrown back with two thousand dead or wounded, while the orcs suffered a loss of sixteen hundred.  But the orcs held their ground and is their tradition, beheaded their captives and placed their heads on pikes along the border to warn the elves against coming again.

The Kingdom of Amantai -
Ruler - King Mardule the Younger
Capital - Mahlish
Dominant Race - Human
Dominant Religion - Orithia

The Amantai army recruited two thousand light infantry at Mahlish, and reorganized itself into two armies, one under the command of King Mardule and the other under the command of General Mashin Ban.  The navy fell under the command of Bastian the Bold. Mashin Bans' attempt to drill his troops into elite units failed for economic reasons.

The Kingdom of Nuitai -
Ruler - King Jae Hwan
Capital - Temanom
Dominant Race - Human
Dominant Religion - Orithia
Diplomacy - Nymun [A]

King Ghevrit the Mighty died in 2920, never having bothered to name an heir.  His son Jae Hwan managed to outmaneuver other claimants (including his cousin Princess Chintana) to seize the throne. Lord Dong Hwi commanded the small merchant fleet that delivered tribute to the Lich-King's necropolis.  He died in Temanom in 2918. Lord Rhee secured an alliance with the province of Nymun.

The Lichdom of Erdiyek -
Ruler - Kuan Li Jiang
Capital - The Necropolis
Dominant Race - The Undead
Dominant Religion - None

The Lich Kuan Li Jiang was no longer content to sit on his island home and demand tribute.  He set out to seize it.  The lich-ling himself led a fleet of bone and tattered sails that raided the lands of Januaan in Mogodor.  He then returned to the Necropolis to plot and scheme. The lich's ghoulish servitor Zhi Kwan Li set out with a fleet that was half mortal and half undead, landing at the Tekume colony of Chobo in 2916 and overwhelming it.  However, the Tekume king, Go-Bitron reacted swiftly out of Suru'or and landed his forces at Chobo when Zhi was still consolidating his power.  Zhi unleashed a terrible Firestorm spell, killing many giants and setting many ships afire, but Erdiyek's forces were overwhelmed by the giants and their fleet destroyed. Zhi seems to have escaped in the rout.

The Kingdom of Choran -
Ruler -  Councillor Whaung
Capital - Choran
Dominant Race - Human
Dominant Religion - Serikku Spirit Cult

They came by foot and by wagon, by horse and by ship.  Farmers, landless sons, tinkers, journeymen smiths, gamblers, prostitutes and soldiers.  All moving to Bayindu on the promise of free land and a new future. Far to the south, traders out of Tolnek encountered a new market at the Lulipayat city of Darlek, more than three thousand miles away by ship. Councillor Chausian died in 2919, and there was uproar in the council over who should replace him.  So acrimonious was the discord that it nearly came to blows in the street.  But at last Councillor Whaung was elected to head the Council of Families. Lord Daxai led a slave raid to the forests of Chizuyo on the Midorin Coast.  The raid was a failure, producing only a few half-starved savages and injuring Daxai, who took a stone spear to the thigh.

The Empire of Tekume -
Ruler - Emperor Go-Bitron
Capital - Suru'or
Dominant Race - Giants
Dominant Religion - The Dark Court

With the Kitike horde receded into the hills, giants began to filter back into the damaged homes and burned fields of Karsidu.  Ha-Lukko of Tauntum was killed when forces loyal to the Lich-King of Erdiyek struck Chobo, where the Tekume ally was preaching.  Emperor Go-Bitron was prepared for trouble and sailed immediately, catching the undead forces while they were still in Chobo (See The Lichdom of Erdiyek, above) and routed them.  Though Chobo was saved, Tauntum fell into chaos and tribal warfare. Lords Sa-Vowin and Zu-Rolth preached the truths of the Dark Court in far southern Kenomus, and met with much success there.

 

The Faithful of Gardagos - Ruler - King Olizha Capital - Rakuen Dominant Race - Human Dominant Religion - Orithia

From the reaches of Kasadir, General Olizha gathered together all his people in secret and, with the aid of the elves of Mainos, trekked far across the southern forests, arriving at the Gardagos river.  They were welcomed by the Imbalab tribes with whom the elves had already made friends, though there was much grumbling among the Imbalabi when the Kasadir Rebels settled down in Imbalab and established a city a Rakuen.  It remains to be seen whether the Imbalab tribes remain peaceful when General Olizha, now king of a proto-state called Gardagos, tries to settle his remaining people.

The Kolyut Isthmus -

The Sylvan Realm of Hecadia -
Ruler - King Mardeis
Capital - Belgramma
Dominant Race - Halfling
Dominant Religion - Orithia

The Hecadians recruited two thousand halfling spearmen at Belgramma. The hard halfling labor among the green woods of the Aldrissi elves resulted in the cultivation of Amoka on the Shanatar border. King Mardeis married a noblewoman of good family, but she died in 2917 during childbirth. Lord Pickens died at Tetomo in 2917 at the age of fifty-three. Zane of Kebe died in Salman in 2916 at the age of fifty-six. In 2918, emissaries of Tiringol arrived at Belgramma.  They demanded the immediate release of imprisoned Queen Estella who was languishing in Belgramma's towers.

The Kingdom of Kerendis - Ruler - King Laoghaire Capital - Orbelain Dominant Race - Human Dominant Religion - The Dark Court Diplomacy - Orbelain [+6YfC], Iganchi [EA]

Thousands of serfs executed their feudal obligations by toiling in the hot sun of Utarmik, clearing land and tilling soil for their baronial masters. Meanwhile, the crown paid off its debt to the fat bankers of Orbelain for the large loan of fifteen years earlier. King Laoghaire and Prince Alstan soothed the angry and unsettled mobs of their own capital.  Meanwhile, Laoghaire issued protectionist edicts which forced many merchants to trade largely within the nation, rather than seeking foreign trade. Laoghaire used the opportunity to teach his daughter Ossuine the fine arts of diplomacy. Lord Tirechan negotiated an economic treaty with the western province of Iganchi. Missionaries among the followers of Evaless in Emparar failed to make any converts, but those in Awibiat fared better.  Meanwhile, Bishop Venator Shaele made great strides in his conversion of Therses's noble class back to the orthodox worship of the Dark Court.

The Kingdom of Threns -
Ruler - King Roberton
Capital - Vaayil
Dominant Race - Human
Dominant Religion - The Dark Court

The Threnish military took great strides in quality, improving in several important areas of military prowess. King Arcanon attempted to besiege the city of Fashanru, while Prince Roberton set out to besiege the city of Maskand with newly recruited engineers and four thousand hired mercenaries. Meanwhile, the halflings of Ahum and the orcs of Virityal had other plans. (See The Ruanach Wars, below). At about the same time that the Ahum army was ravaging Emanaba, a magical blight spread across the fields of Sukan, kiling crops and sickening animals. The mercenary spymaster Ssazax attempted to put down the student rebellion in Vaayil and found that the students were far more militant than had been thought.  He failed to crush the rebellion.

Lord Perejilium died a prisoner in Ruanach's dungeons.

With the death of King Arcanon, who had no sons, Prince Roberton attempted to seize the throne. He was thwarted by the charismatic Princess Cariotta, who had been with Arcanon when he died.  But Cariotta herself suffered a stroke later in the same year and Roberton came to power after all.

The Kolyut Hegemony -
Ruler - Hegemon Vekkhad
Capital - Ketarid
Dominant Race - Hobgoblin
Dominant Religion - The Dark Court

The Kolyut Hegemony was a far-flung empire of force, charisma and terror.  It subsisted upon the forced labor and tribute of subject nations and relied upon the powerful loyalties of the army for the Hegemon. But change is the only constant. When Moodor Sharptongue died in 2916, his armies held a tenuous grasp on a territory that spread more than one thousand miles from Muktikan to Inda.  And nearly every subject of that iron-fisted dictatorship hated the Hegemon nearly as much as they feared him.  When Moodor Sharptongue died, the Kolyut Hegemony exploded into violence and rebellion. The Hegomony's agents crushed a rising rebellion in the city of Komirut, flinging the ringleaders from the city walls into the sea.  But they could do nothing about the wider problem.  For the most part, the cities and urban populations remained loyal, for they had benefited the most from the regime.  But the countryside rose up in violent protests.  Armories were robbed; roads blocked by armed hobgoblin bands and tax collectors were hung or fed to giant badgers.

The provinces of Asatyen, Inda, Irnatra, Kavijas, Kumajr, Makuwai, Phinmai, Sijichi and Tiyim, as well as the city of Nistha (most of which were barely under control to begin with) all rose in open rebellion against the crown.  A terrible fire in the city of Ketarid burned for nearly two weeks, destroying thousands of homes and killing more than a hundred people.

Moodor's only son, Moodox, was less than two years old when his father died.  Lord Roojak Stone stepped in as loyal regent to the throne.  Far to the west, Gload Duncan commanded the only other significant Kolyut army in the field and was busy enslaving all the humans of Inda and putting them to work as slaves in Sharpreef when word arrived of Moodor's death.  His armies had faced unexpectedly sharp resistance by the Indans and seven hundred miles of rebel territory lay between him and the capital.  Gload Duncan declared Sharpreef to be independent of the Hegemony and named himself as High Sheriff.

Regent Roojak Stone died of a heart attack in 2918.  A minor but wealthy nobleman of Ketarid named Vekkhad rose to power and assumed the regency.  Within two years, all the members of Moodor's family were dead under not-very-mysterious circumstances and Vekkhad declared himself Hegemon of the much-reduced Kolyut hobgoblins.

The Free City of Sharpreef -
Ruler - High Sheriff Gload Duncan
Capital - Sharpreef
Dominant Race - Hobgoblin
Dominant Religion - The Dark Court

King Histro and his court made alliance with the halflings of Ahum and the orcs of Virityal to defeat the Threnish invasion of his country (See The Ruanach Wars, below). In addition to the land battles reported below, Histro transferred the Ruanach navy to his ally Hashik of Aramite.  Hashik patrolled the Ruan Straits with ten Ruanach Blacksails and thirteen warships of lesser make. Histro also tried to reduce the hold of the old Changshai Spirit Cult over his people, but the old ways die hard, even when few people took them very seriously anymore.

THE RUANACH WARS

Five armies set out to determine the fate of Ruanach and the Kolyut Isthmus.  In the Ruan homeland of Daal, Threnish king Arcanon commanded a small force of four thousand soldiers with which he dreamed of laying siege to the Ruan capital at Fashanru.  But without ships no passive siege was possible and his small force was wholly incapable of attacking the walls of Fashanru. Thus, he sat in Daal awaiting reinforcements. His assassins struck his sole useful blow of the campaign by wounding Ruans General Gestentes.

 Far to the north, Threnish Prince Roberton commanded a force of six thousand at Siruvargal, including two thousand engineers and four thousand mercenaries.  Roberton was a miserable commander leading a moderately well-trained force. Despite this, they advanced west to seize the Ruan province of Bendraj (so recently purchased from Threns itself!) and invest the city of Maskand.  That city was defended only by its wall garrison and  surrendered in Berlas of 2917, but not until after it had inflicted very serious losses on Roberton's army. Roberton's force was ponderously slow and as it made its way south towards Daal, events happened all around it.

In Ahum, King Daven Silentpad and Rustas Ocklam led a combined army of sixteen thousand halflings north through Ruanach to strike at Threns.  They spent the year 2918 destroying Emanaba's defenses and looting the region.  They then retreated south to Daal, arriving just before winter in 2919. The halflings posted signs on all public buildings in Threnish and in Ahum reading "Stay Out of the Rajahdan Peninsula."

In Virityal, King Taurog the Bold and General Groje led an army of more than eight thousand orcish cavalry north to Navarya where they expected to meet up with the Ahum army.  Having learned that the halflings had marched north into Threns, Taurog stuck to the original plan and marched into Daal to confront Threns's King Arcanon.  Simultaneously, Ruanach's King Histro marched out of Fashanru with five thousand troops to catch Arcanon's army in a pincer maneuver.  The Threnish had built fortifications and surrounded their camp with a magical field of jagged bones.  But the great weight and superior training of the orcs proved decisive.  Although both Taurog and Groje were wounded, the Threnish army was completely destroyed and King Arcanon himself was killed in battle.

The Threnish army of Prince Roberton was still at Bendraj when Ruanach and Virityal destroyed Arcanon's army.  Learning of the defeat by the time he seized Maskand, Roberton elected not to march south to Daal but instead to return to Siruvargal with the remnants of his army.

On the island of Mairtho, a smaller-scale action was taking place.  Elven tribes in Arundim allied to Ruanach raided the elves of Runambi allied to Threns.  The elves of Asatul refused to raid their fellow Vallende elves, however.

Ahum's army ended 2920 in the Ruanach homeland of Daal.  King Daven had died of pneumonia by this time, and the army was under the command of Rustas Ocklam.

The Delves of Ahum - Ruler - King Tedo Applebarrel Capital - Saumya Dominant Race - Halfling Dominant Religion - Nuree

The halflings of Ahum recruited nearly two thousand elite Ahum Rangers, and a like number of cavalry on tough, shaggy ponies.  King Daven Silentpad announced a mutual defense pact with the orcs of Virityal and placed the nation of Ruanach under his protection. Along with several other members of his court, he marched north at the head of sixteen thousand troops, aided by Ruanach guides.  The Ahum army was bound for the land of Threns (See The Ruanach Wars, above). Missionaries in Ankamal struggled for converts with sathla missionaries for the Autumna religion. Nuree remained the dominant religion by a wide margin. Ahum missionaries to Khovas on the far side of the Gates of Arthys found few converts for their eastern religion. Geffin Moonshadow and Prince Karelak Roguewillow bothdied in 2917. Stonehill Rabbitjumper of Dhal

died in 2918 when he drunkenly rpde a wild donkey over a cliff.  He had no sons and his many heirs fell to squabbling over the province. Prince Borrowold Youngstick died in 2919, and King Daven Silentpad died in 2920. He was succeeded by Tedo Applebarrel.

The Orcish Raj of Virityal -
Ruler - Raj Storog
Capital - Chharit
Dominant Race - Orc
Dominant Religion - Nuree

Raj Taurog the Bold announced a mutual defense pact with the halflings of Ahum and placed the nation of Ruanach under his protection. The defenses of Aballak and the capital, Chharit were strengthened. Now aged eighty-two, Raj Taurog named his fifty-three year old son Storog as his heir.  He also named his son Axar Bloody Knife and Roxa the Red Claw as members of the royal council. He then rode north with eight thousand cavalry to meet his destiny. After his glorious victory in Daal, Raj Taurog died.  Although wounded in battle, his followers believe that the elder orc had simply fulfilled his role and was called to the embrace of the Three-faced god. (See The Ruanach Wars, above).  Storog took over as Raj while in Daal, command of the army devolved onto Groje.

The Empire of Rajahdan-
Ruler - Emperor Gortoc the Cold-Blooded
Capital - Jalahl
Dominant Race - Sathla
Dominant Religion - Autumna
Diplomacy - Virunir [-], Sudeshu [F]

The mighty and enlightened empire at the bottom of the world continued to grow in power and reach.  The draw of the capital and the great fertility of the homeland continued to draw peasants and nobles alike to Rajahdan. Meanwhile, a massive ship-building project was underway as the Emperor assembled a fleet of forty warships at Amanal. That port, too, saw such an influx of population that its old defensive walls no longer protected it. The Emperor indulged his love of the sea without ever leaving Jalahl by moving micromanaging the comings and goings of his merchant fleet. Lord Zzzsx learned that no matter how hard he tried, he would never be a sorcerer. Lord Kecmnu and Prince Hexotta entwined themselves in the affairs of Lord Lazz of Virunir, but the fiercely independent Virunir remained so. Prince Goquax, on the other hand, negotiated the fealty of Pudzu of Sudeshu, granting the inhabitants of that province full citizenship in the Empire.

Missionaries in Ankamal struggled for converts with halfling missionaries for the Nuree religion. Nuree remained the dominant religion by a wide margin.

Anku Elevya -
Ruler - Emperor Zao Yin
Capital - Jinguir
Dominant Race - Saurus
Dominant Religion - Zaoism
Diplomacy - Okimo [A]

The shipwrights of Anku Elevya built dozens of merchant ships which swelled both foreign and domestic trade around the saurus empire.  So busy were the wharves that a new city was built at the confluence of the Nhodras and Maharimi rivers, just to accommodate more shipbuilding. While the co-emperors Zao Yin and Zao Yang lived in the palatial luxury of Jinguir, siring uncountable broods of children, Prince Zao Ves led the court on a diplomatic expedition to the giants of Okimo.  A torrent of skullduggery and sorcery supported the high-level visit.  The giants were so impressed with the might and cleverness of their saurus visitors that they swore friendship to them and offered the services of their small army. In 2919, Emperor Zao Yang accepted the invitation to join the Great Mutual Defense Pact of Eastern Changshai.

The Celestial Empire of Shen'xi -
Ruler - Emperor Mei Shu
Capital - Wu Lan
Dominant Race - Human
Dominant Religion - Kifan
Diplomacy - Shaozu [FA]

The Emperor decided that "Celestial Emperor" simply was not grand enough to convey how much better he was than the rest of creation, and granted himself the title "The Celestial Dragon and The Emperor of The Celestial Empire of Shen'xi".  His groveling subjects happily agreed, though they wished that he would produce an heir to protect the Empire from chaos.  Mei Shu also conducted a successful census of his people. Xan Ming and Ming Chou traveled to the forests of Shaozu and impressed the local chieftains with the wisdom of staying on the good side of the Emperor. As a reward for such wisdom, they offered the hand in marriage of the Emperor's sister and first in line to the throne, Princess Mei Xiu. Prince Feng Huan, beloved former regent, died in 2919 and was buried with great pomp and solemnity. Shen'xi founded the Great Mutual Defense Pact of Eastern Changshai, along with Wayahapta, Lulipayat and the Empire of the Pearl.  Later, they were joined by Anku Elevya.

The Lulipayat Empire -
Ruler - Emperor Hussa
Capital - Kelakuan
Dominant Race - Sathla
Dominant Religion - Autumna
Diplomacy - Dentu [T]

To celebrate the marriage of Empress Naddya and Prince Hussa, the sathla of Lulipayat built beautiful  gardens in the Prince's home of Mersemb and established a port, Darlek, on its shores.  This port shortened trade to Wayahapta. Traders came from distant Choran, on a route more than three thousand miles long, though the Lulipayat merchants could not fare half so far away. Lulipayat founded the Great Mutual Defense Pact of Eastern Changshai, along with Wayahapta, Shen'xi and the Empire of the Pearl.  Later, they were joined by Anku Elevya. The shipwrights of Kelakuan built many coastal traders which plied the local waters and increased trade between the Empire's many cities. At the same time, a new postal road was beaten across the plains of Bukuturru, to bring the city of Banyak more tightly into Kelakuan's orbit. Lord Hu Shan arranged the marriage of the Empress's sixteen year old sister Tersya to the lord of Dentu in exchange for an annual tribute. Hu Shan died during negotiations in 2918. Lord Lassad, governor of Banyak, died of a stroke in 2916. Autumna missionaries fared into the saurus jungles of Dipan and spread the word of the Scaled god. Empress Hussa gave birth to a baby girl in 2918.  She died tragically during childbirth in 2920.  Prince Hussa took control of the Empire in his own right.  Many of the royal family were displeased, but none spoke openly against him.

 

The Serenity of Wayahapta - Ruler - Queen Alvya Capital - Keluan Dominant Race - Halfling Dominant Religion - Changshai Spirit Cult

The halflings of Wayahapta continued to clear and cultivate the jungles of Hawhu, and began a royal road leading towards the port of Diditan. Queen Alvya married a local nobleman at the age of forty-six.  Her subjects fretted and gossiped over the lack of an heir and whether it was the judgement of the sprits. Wayahapta founded the Great Mutual Defense Pact of Eastern Changshai, along with Lulipayat, Shen'xi and the Empire of the Pearl.  Later, they were joined by Anku Elevya.

The Dwarven Realm of Khudukan -
Ruler - King Sirom Stiffbeard
Capital - Nodo-Xan
Dominant Race - Dwarf
Dominant Religion - Kifan

The mountain realm continued to mind it's own business, thank you.

The Empire of the Pearl -
Ruler - Emperor Sakurako Hideyoshi
Capital - Kuemas
Dominant Race - Elf
Dominant Religion - Kifan
Diplomacy - Shanbao [-]

The elves of the Empire of the Pearl rebuilt their destroyed former capital at Hitotome, calling it Hitotome-Atarashi.  The Emperor granted lands in war-ravaged Kumidor to several lesser houses and even favored freemen and merchants, and the population there swelled. The Emperor set his eyes on the rich lands to the west of his capital, on the borders of Shen'xi.  He dispatched his queen, Airi, to Shanbao to encourage the Kara'hai elves to cooperate.  But the Kara'hai had been fiercely independent for centuries and they politely but firmly refused the Empress's overtures. The Empire of the Pearl founded the Great Mutual Defense Pact of Eastern Changshai, along with Lulipayat, Shen'xi and Wayahapta.  Later, they were joined by Anku Elevya.

The Emerald Realm of Lekandi -
Ruler - King Galens Eagleheart
Capital - Suwelho
Dominant Race - Elf
Dominant Religion - Ukele Spirit Cult
Diplomacy - Fuam [T], Minjiloa [T]

The elves continued to drive the Great Eastern Road into the jungles, reaching to the Kupenda border.  Meanwhile, King Galens and Callirion Sharpeye engaged in diplomacy, bringing the Fuama peninsula and the island of Minjiloa to pay a tribute to Suwelho every year.

The Scaled Realm of Korondor -
Ruler - Azz'tak the Wise
Capital - Khorlaine
Dominant Race - Sathla
Dominant Religion - Autumna

This photo is courtesy of Scott Stricklin.  It is from his wedding and shows many of the players involved in this game.

Society  and Economy Effects on National Market Value:

Economy and Government Effects on Assimilation of Pacified Regions:

Page Completed 11 February 2009 (Published 2 March 2009)