Realms of Orbis: A fantasy nation roleplaying RP

[Sobotnik]

I'm deciding to reboot a fantasy roleplaying game. Come on in and have some fun. If you're new it's a good idea to talk to me or another player about playing. This is mostly for returning players but there's a heck of a lot of room spare for new ones.

Information on the previous game and turns are here:

[url]https://facepunch.com/showthread.php?t=1454502[/url]
[url]http://facepunchrp.wikia.com/wiki/Realms_of_Orbis_V1_%26_V2[/url]
[url]http://facepunchrp.wikia.com/wiki/Realms_of_Orbis_V1_(Turns)[/url]

In this thread, we are largely skipping the early middle ages to jump right into High medieval fantasy with a few more fantastical elements at play. The next half dozen or so turns will cover much of the medieval period and depending on player actions more of the “undiscovered” regions will be cleared and new magics and technologies will appear.

RULES:

1. Send in a PM to Sobotnik, with the following title: "Countryname: Turn X"
2. DON'T write turnsheets that are too long. It may be tempting, but unless I can copypaste it in, turns take longer.
3. DO write up to [B]10[/B] and [B]no more[/B] lines (of commands) in your turn.
4. The PM you send should be (ideally) in this form:

[quote]Technology: (You give me 3 technologies to research, and one•of•them will be randomly selected to be researched)
Military: Everything involving your military goes here. Also includes expansion on the map via force.
Domestic affairs: Everything inside•of•your countries borders.
External affairs: Everything outside•of•your countries borders. Includes expansion on the map via peaceful methods.[/quote]

Note if you are creating a new country or are taking over an existing one it's a good idea to throw me a message because it's getting hard to create nations out of thin air in this RP now.

That's the gist of things. Make your turnsheets, post in the thread, make comics and announcements and such. Overall try to have some fun and roleplay.

First turn will be turn 1. You will send in both your country info and your commands.

Without further adieu, the much awaited reboot to the RP:

[img_thumb]http://i.cubeupload.com/2N50Zd.png[/img_thumb]
Religious map: [url]http://i.cubeupload.com/yemlUT.png[/url]

[media]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2Tl-xAAq-z0[/media]

[quote]Heraclius: "Is this how you have ruled, wretch?"
Phocas: "And will you rule better?"[/quote]
World population: 295 million

Postclassical (Oycumen)
Bīng yǔ huǒ dynasty (Jiuan)

Events of the years 1 - 500 Third Age of Man (TA):

-Nobody cried when the old world died. As civilization rotted away, the cost of keeping it alive outweighed the benefit of its continued existence. People fled the cities and adopted new lives and names as togas fell off their backs and their hands onto crude ploughshares. Slowly the great palaces fell into ruin and their masonry crumbled away as ivy pried it apart and peasants took the rocks to build their homes. Many thought this was the beginning of the end of the world, and in many places the world continued to decay and die. Then, in the year 84, something remarkable happened. In the quarrelling kingdoms that resulted from the breakup of the Gan Empire, a small rump led by the Zuida dynasty reconquered the whole empire, and drove out the hordes of the Kagans . They restored order, rebuilt the ruins, brought justice to the commoners, and even more impressively, expanded the borders of their empire into lands that have never before seen the light of Gan. Humma monks spread into the Empire and brought with them a new philosophy that eventually became the dominant one of one of the biggest powers in history (leading to its adoption by neighbours and ambitious chieftains alike). The grand “Bronze Bell Navy” was built and with the support of new instruments of war (including the allegiance of a terrifying dragon) they crushed their neighbours. Throughout their history, new feats in engineering and culture were achieved. From the void above, the world appeared to grow ever darker. But in the land ruled by the Zuida dynasty one light still shone, brighter than any that came before it. Even after her collapse in the mid fifth century, a dynasty just as capable (Bīng yǔ huǒ dynasty) took it upon themselves to carry forth the torch twenty years later.

-In Oycumen, dwarven tribes that appeared in the mountains north of Gor'lan spread throughout the continent where they ended up settling primarily in the lands north and east of Irminonia (Ostrovia Magna). They founded the Kingdoms of Amboise, Cravant, and Tharingia (among others). Ultimately many of those in the west conquered by the Visivir tribes (later the Kingdom of the Vesivirs) and after those in the east by the Palamacian Empire, although many of them retained their distinct identities. After the division of the Empire into two in the year 336, and despite having been assimilated by humans in Vesivir they still comprised the majority of the inhabitants east in the Kingdom of Ostrovir. This was however nothing compared to the rapid expansion of the Savonic goblins of the eastern part of the continent. Originally descended from Gor'lan goblins who fled Gor'lan, they became mercenaries under the Kiratain Kagan. But when the Kaganate collapsed they quickly took advantage of the vacuum to spread until they had filled up most of the continent between Ostovir and further east than the former lands of Nuu'ta. By the end of the fifth century the western Savonic goblins had formed the Duchy of Bórsce (which is slowly accepting Na'zyr missionaries), while their eastern cousins had formed the Ruotsi Federation (ruled over by a dynasty of elves who had migrated there and founded Uusikaupunki in 384 as the capital, followed by the city of Tikku). The growing Na'zyr church may find fertile grounds here, like they did in the west of Oycumen and in Cytannia.

-In the Midnight Islands came changes wrought by the dreaded Italaiset from Dolben. Elves that had (eventually) adopted the technologies of men found themselves facing problems they had never even considered before. Unlike other elven tribes, Dolben was slightly open – enough to permit the occasional introduction of humans into the gene pool and some of their ideas as well. Eventually this left a Dolben full of elves that began to grow in numbers as they abandoned population control and began to digest foods produced from agriculture. Freed from the bounds of hunting they exploded over much of the northern peninsula once occupied primarily by hunter-gathering elves and the growing number of humans in Lanun. Eventually they created a number of overpopulated petty kingdoms that began to send out raiding parties to harass the continent. They were particularly interested in the Midnight Islands, where they established themselves in Iverju before establishing Kingdoms throughout Cytannia. Eventually they took over most of the island, relegating the original inhabitants to the margins. But for the invaders they did not have much luck with retaining their original tongue and culture. They adopted the Na'zyr faith of the natives, and eventually the language of the Scadutians before even their distinctive elven traits dissolved away to leave little distinguishing the invaders and the subjugated.

[img]http://facepunch.com/image.php?u=462795&dateline=1425134218[/img][img]http://i.imgur.com/6smYyLw.png[/img]
[b]Dvergfit – Damian0358
Capital: Diplómstaðr
Culture: Dvegr
State Religion: Verenism
Race: Dwarf[/b]

-Although much of the world around them fell into barbarism and shitting in the streets, this kingdom bucked the trend. King Vinnáðr inherited a fairly substantial and wealthy demesne. Unfortunately, he also inherited his father’s drooping chin and unpopularity. Immediately upon his accession to the throne, many nobles declared independence and petitioned for assistance from the warlords of Herrey. Following this was a bloody and badly handled war between Herrey and Dvergfit, killing many hundreds of nobles and causing harm to their livestock and peasantry. The noble faction raised an army and demanded that the king accept their demands for greater feudal rights. He responded by calling in assistance from the matriarchs of Mizukan and blockading the major ports in addition to raiding undefended coastal towns. After some time was taken to raise enough levies, Dvergfit invaded outright and broke the back of the noble coalition at the site of some abandoned fishing village.

-To celebrate the victory, Vinnáðr started work on a brand new capital city, wealthier and more majestic than any that came before it. Named Diplómstaðr, it was founded where the climactic battle between Dvergfit and Herrey took place. It was the only such city ever founded in his reign, and it became the site of a new palace and much of the new functions of government (such as tax offices). With the prospect of royal patronage and support, many merchants and nobles moved to the city and began work on making it a truly splendid site. Unfortunately, as half of the kingdom was ruined by war it took years for people to move back into their abandoned lands or the other towns. In addition, the destruction of old and illegal fortifications built by the nobility went slowly – many of them argue that their house with three-meter thick walls and arrow slits was actually a fine manor or simple loft extension. While the king normally dismissed these complaints, these very same nobles are the ones he relied on heavily to keep his massive kingdom together. Administrative machinery has been steadily growing, but the inconsistent and weak application of law in addition to many nobles owning private armies checked royal authority.

-By the 2nd century, there was no doubt that things were looking up. Vinnáðr’s grandson was not much stronger than his predecessors, but he did have most factions in check and has restored something that many of the peasantry are grateful for – peace. With no wars to decimate them, not to mention the recovery in trade (aided by growing ties with Mizukan), there has been a population boom. Colonists resettled some of the older settlements on the mainland which were abandoned centuries ago, and pushed into Jarn and Pelagonia. Miklagard itself has grown into a rich trading city (thanks to the removal of most tariffs on gods), which funds regular trading expedition as far west as the wealthy cities of Nuu’ta, prompting the establishment of a trading post in Skagosa that later became a dependency of the crown. Chou appeared around this time, becoming an instant hit among the nobility. Over cups of chou, nobles and merchants told elves that their religion was wrong and stupid and that they should convert to Verenism. Unsurprisingly they agreed, and the elves invited missionaries to help them with rooting out their native faith.

-But success can generate its own failures. Although the power of the nobles was slowly diminished, new problems came to emerge as time went on. The old aristocracy lost ground and were eventually reduced to little more than following the whims of the centralizing empire. Politics moved to the courtrooms and parties of the new capital where under the watchful eyes of disinterested bureaucrats one of the biggest cities in the world emerged. The private armies were soon disbanded, as too were their courts and traditional powers, leaving the lords with little else to do. They often went overseas to Jarn to assist in the numerous wars, and in the establishment of cities. But their sons often went elsewhere – into running profitable estates or trading. They took their skills overseas to Jarn. Unfortunately, a large Empire is difficult to maintain. After sending expeditions to much of the world and seizing lands from as far west as Nuu'ta and as far east as the borders of the Zuida dynasty, they were involved in a great many conflicts. The imperial treasury bore the brunt of these, and in addition to this their allies in Sakasu and in Skrall declined. After the Gan peoples were reunited, they launched many wars against the dwarves, most of which they won. These eventually resulted in Jarn declaring independence and becoming a loyal ally to the Zuida dynasty, and in Dvergfit being forced to pay tribute to the Zuida Emperors. Since the collapse and replacement of Zuida by the Bīng yǔ huǒ dynasty during the war in Skrall it has been thought that a new period was upon them. Instead as they prepared for war with Jarn, the reunified Gan Empire returned to thrash the Dvegr and reaffirm their alliance with Jarn before forcing the weak rulers of the Dvergfit to pay tribute to keep away the Bronze Bell Navy – but this may not be for forever.

[img]http://facepunch.com/image.php?u=601768&dateline=1420557903[/img][img]http://i.imgur.com/MkJs4P6.png?1[/img]
[b]Empire of Skrall and Denna – Pezgod1
Capital: New Krellgr
Culture: Skagosi
State Religion: Verenism
Race: Dwarf[/b]

-The Skagosi have come a long way over thousands of years, having largely abandoned the mountains of their ancestors. This age began with the changes set in motion by the humble chou plant and the elves of Mizukan. Trade has been consistently on the rise, aided by support from the central government. The piracy that became more common after the collapse of Gan and the abandonment of the south in the previous centuries led to the creation of a professional navy, which in the first century expanded (due in part to assistance from professional shipbuilders in Mizukan) and was ultimately able to drive out the pirates for good. Peace treaties were signed with the Qivdenna tribes, while new forts were constructed in addition to many cities having walls built around them (predominantly in the south and along the border with Gan) at great expense. Ostensibly to protect the inhabitants from invasion, the decline in cross-border raids by the Qivdenna tribes later led the peasantry to assume that these fortification projects were attempts to impose control on them. Due to the shape of the forts, they are nicknamed “nail-houses”. Near the end of the period, a number of them begin to store various tools which would be rented out to locals, while their height and sturdy construction meant they were well-placed to use the latest technological innovation – windmills, employed to drive oil presses and querns inside the towers. Watermills and other irrigation systems soon followed and began to make the southern lands as nearly as productive as the northern ones.

-Frosts and floods continue to spark outbreaks of famine, the third age being not much different from the ones that preceded it. Massive investments on part of the central government are made in the hopes of controlling the elements, but by the end of the century most of the budget allocated towards the maintenance of dykes is being used up primarily on repairing existing infrastructure rather than expanding it. Around twenty million taels were spent in the year 102 on all projects combined, which was equal to the taxes raised from farming. That same year, a famine killed over 800,000 dwarves throughout the empire. The starving turned to boiling bark, prostitution, and murder. One civil servant complained bitterly about the lack of taxes, for many householders had switched to growing vegetables and keeping pigs rather than rice (the latter is taxed). The chou planting in addition to the profit promised by it led to the rapid expansion of the cultivated land during good years, but during famine years, hungry people ransacked chou warehouses angry at the lack of food. Subsidies were later employed to encourage them to grow rice while taxes were raised on chou. Eventually however, trade went into decline and became the source of a constant deficit for the treasury. The Mizukan increasingly dominating trade had been the source of this problem, as they now possess their own mainland ports and employ more effective trading techniques the Skagosi merchants, who now suffer heavily as the elves out-compete them. The government found itself unable to collect as many tolls as it used to, undermining the national budget.

-A quiet and unassuming dwarf known to history as Hujui Jakensin. Born into a time of increasing religious tensions and turmoil, he had the misfortune to waste his time on the study of theology. Descended from nobility, he was given a generous stipend by his parents to pursue both his studies and chou, the latter of which he heavily imbibed until he came to denounce his older ways after studying a great many books. He reasoned out a new faith based on ideas taken from Verenism and from common traits he noticed in dwarven cultures (such as old traditions of the Deep Ones). He preached to the nobility and later the people of New Krellgr who took to his ideas with such vigour that a massive and dangerous following grew up around him and his nationalist ideas. He of course had help from magic, for he could procure flames from his fingers. Around the year 80 he apparently devised an alchemical method whereby he could somehow give powers to gemstones. Amassing a great pile of gemstones he showed that even commoners could somehow draw a fire out from one of these stones before throwing it at a target. Jakensin armed his close followers with these rubies and when the Emperor Lodumi V heard of this he grew enraged and arranged to meet the upstart heretic. In the central plaza of New Krellgr, he ordered Jakensin and his followers to remove themselves from the city and the Empire. But in a move that surprised even the Emperor, Jakensin agreed to on the condition he was given free leave to found a nation of his own in the mountains to the north. So many left to join him that it was remembered as the “Great Northern Migration” and the consequence was that large parts of the north were left devoid of people.

-Unfortunately this event embarrassed the church, especially as it was perceived to be unable to do anything about the declining public morals and the lack of connection with god. In an age of reoccurring famine and the uptake of chou (named “Devils cabbage” by the faithful), the religious grew convinced that God was pissed and had to please him before he destroyed the empire. Unfortunately this new religious movement also has the same radical spirit as the old “Pink Caps” who rose in rebellion centuries ago. They spread out in all directions, working eagerly to convert people in the former Gan (later Zuida) Empire and Mizukan. It backfired as when they spoke to the people about taking direct action (interpreted as killing the local taxman), it causes rebellion not only in Skrall, but in Zuida too (their Emperor banned trade with Skrall as a consequence). These preachers are also opposed to chou since it was discovered that in high enough doses it is an effective abortifacient, which many women take in order to terminate pregnancies. They blame the slow haemorrhaging of people from all parts of the empire on it, although the pressures of hunger and taxes are also to blame. Rice and chou cultivation continued to decline as people switch to crops better suited for the new climate or find that they aren’t being paid subsidies for chou anymore. With tax collection becoming harder, the government borrows heavily as a consequence, often from Mizukan merchants. The borderlands with Qivdenna slowly grow, but the northern parts of the empire near the border with the former Gan empire slowly depopulate and develop thick forests. Attempts to develop timber stands for the navy in the south consequently are shifted to the north.

-With the Empire growing poorer and the centre of population slowly shifting southwards, her enemies became confident. The Zuida dynasty reunited the Gan peoples into a powerful empire, rebuilding not only a vast army, but the fearsome Bronze Bell navy. Making matters worse was that the Empire had managed to convince a dragon to join them after a shepherd boy had gotten close to one and befriended it. It learned to follow human commands in return for a generous quantity of food and for some gold and silver (which it wore in the form of jewellery). In the year 418 the Zuida Emperor Zhui Hui sent an emissary to New Krellgr demanding that he pay tributes and put a stop to the missionaries and reel in the dwarves to the north who had established a poweful nation in the mountains there. Emperor Dasoug refused and this resulted in a war whereby half a million Zuida soldiers invaded along with their feared dragon and reduced much of the outer parts of the country to ruin. This led to a peace treaty that recognised Skrall as a tributary state of the Zuida and downgraded it to a mere ”kingdom” in 422. Another rebellion in 431 led to the dragon burning down the imperial palace in New Krellgr and the division of the kingdom into two parts (the eastern part being the Kingdom of Khelgaer). Following this, Mizukan, Skrall, and Dvergfit banded together along with the descendants of Jakensins exodus and the Qivdenna tribes, they managed to successfully destroy the armies of Zuida in 434. Their dragon was driven mad after a number of the mountain dwarves came down with strange weapons made from thick rods of bamboo. They would touch their thumb to a ruby mounted in the fat end of the rod and out would shoot a large flaming bolt or rock. They pierced it so that it fled and at the sight of this the Zuida forces lost hope and fled. The Emperor was deemed to have lost divine favour and shortly afterwards lost his throne in 443.

-As Zuida collapsed into ruin, the Kings of Skrall found the opportunity to declare themselves emperors once more. But the rise of the Bīng yǔ huǒ dynasty meant their gains were short lived. In 472 their armies (having reunified Gan) marched to Jarn and made them a tributary state in addition to reaffirming their alliance against the Dvegr. The Bronze Bell navy was rebuilt into a terrifying force once more and this time the Gan managed to secure for themselves several more dragons which they kept in a fortress by their capital. Insulted at the indignity of their enemies and their arrogance to declare themselves equals, the Emperor of Gan ordered a fresh war. Unlike last time, he merely opted to send the navy to Mizukan with some dragons and burned their ports and towns in addition to the navies, before heading to Skrall and setting ablaze their navy and attempting an invasion via Qivdenna. Unfortunately for him, the local tribes were hostile and formed a confederation to repulse him, while others joined the Skrall upon seeing the fearsome dragons. The Skrall Emperor then agreed to a peace treaty, although he ceded several of the depopulated provinces in the north to the Gan (who then built a giant hedge there) followed by offering a regular annual tribute. In return, the Gan would allow him to call himself Emperor with the exception of official envoys to the Gan Empire. With peace restored, the Empire and Skrall and Denna was thus formed from a combination of many of the old lands of Qivdenna in addition to the western parts of Skrall. It remains to be seen how he will restore the prestige of a nation battered by religious turmoil, war, division, and reducement to a nominal vassal of Gan.

[img]http://facepunch.com/image.php?u=243999&dateline=1389299675[/img][img]http://i.imgur.com/1Bk1VXv.png[/img]
[b]Despotate of Nigasand – Satansick
Capital: Citadel
Culture: Immortish
State Religion: Sadara (Rage)
Race: Orc[/b]

-After the religious wars and persecutions in Nigasand, numerous refugees fled to Aclary where they petitioned King Zemenfes II to hear their pleas and to avenge those killed unjustly. Until this point in time Zemenfes had been unwilling to engage in warfare but after Nigasand exhausted itself in numerous conflicts and had been impoverished over the years he saw it as a good opportunity to strike and expand his empire. In 101 he declared war on Nigasand with the casus belli of a religious war. Immediately upon this the remaining Sayites in Nigasand rose in rebellion and seized several areas, but they were defeated and not only were they savagely killed, but even their towns were burned to the ground and the houses cast down. In anger, Zemenfes orders his new and expanded navy to raid the coastlines and to burn everything they can get their hands on. When the main invasion force arrived, the scholar Eratocantes wrote that “the vast fields of the nation were pounded flat under the stampede of beasts and men alike, little distinguishing their footprints”. King Zemenfes not only brought perhaps the largest army on the continent, but in addition numerous deinotherium, camels, a large mercenary host from the Kiratain Kagan, and savages recruited from the jungle tribes – men said to eat the flesh of their defeated enemies and who sharpen their teeth to a point so that they may kill even without sword or axe. Numerous campaigns saw much of the Flovis heartlands seized and many of the cities were sacked and their inhabitants forced to flee. Men, women, and children died and were cast out into the harsh wilderness as the climate grew colder and drier. Droughts caused many more to perish, and as the war progressed the damage to irrigation led eventually to famine. The cities were reduced to rubble by horrible new machines that looked like giant slings, throwing pots of red hot sand that shattered and fell between the gaps in the clothing of the defenders.

-Hekatos, the despot of Nigasand was forced by desperation to move the capital to one of their overseas colonies while he reorganised what was left. Taxes were levied on everything, wages collapsed, every single orc and even human and goblin peasants were drafted with the promise of land in return for service. As the enemy hordes rampaged about, Hekatos took it upon himself to assemble a vast army which was divided into two. One led by Hekatos went to draw out the Alacerians and to induce them to follow them south into upper Flovis while the other led by Triktos went on a brutal march west through the one gap in the desert now used regularly by camel trains. Using simple compasses to help navigate and bribing scouts, the Orcs managed to reach the Aclary heartland in 124. Even though King Zemenfes heard of this news and immediately ordered his own armies to turn back to save his kingdom it was too late. The Nigasand armies ran rampant among the defenceless tribes and unwalled towns, putting many of them to ruin. The main ports on the southern coast were ruined and several cities were besieged. As Demenfes marched home, he called upon the great commander Dil Amlak (who had made a name for himself capturing most of the cities of Nigasand and being unbeaten in battle) to meet the orcs in battle. Amlak refused and returned home, leaving Demenfes to battle the orcs by himself. He won, but at the cost of half his empire reduced to cinders. Hekatos used the time to slowly cut off the besieging armies of Aclary on the river and used large catapults among the banks of the Flovis river to destroy supply shipping. The Kiratain mercenaries rebelled and marched to Aclary after their supplies and payments were delayed by this action, before joining Hekatos to invade Aclary.

-Barely winning in the war, Nigasand was victorious but broken. Her armies had broken Aclary for good and killed their king, leading to the new puppet monarch and generous conditions. But most of the towns and cities had been devastated and the population had collapsed for good, with many sites once inhabited since the days of the first cities now pummelled into the dust. Returning home in 129 he spent a few years trying to desperately reform the broken administration. He granted large tracts of abandoned land to the soldiery and broke up the ancient administrative divisions by instead redrawing the borders to centre on locations of military encampments during the campaigns of the war. Orcs who had proven their worth would hold lands in these “Tems” in return for military service from themselves and their children. But in 136 King Yemane of Aclary asked for help from Hekatos as he could not put down the growing rebellion which had seized much of the southwest of the nation. The oldest and grizzliest of the greatest orcs to walk the earth then came out of retirement one final time to bring his army to stop these rebels who had also caused his vassals in Upper Flovis much grief. At the Battle of the Hitimokes River Hekatos was soundly defeated by the desert tribesmen and their allies, forced to flee back home to Old Nigasand where he hastily prepared the defences. But Amlak had spent years in the last war campaigning here and had broken many cities and learned of their weaknesses. In 137 Amlak seized Lower Flovis and over the next two years he used his knowledge of the land and people to bring many cities to surrender before his unstoppable might. Unable to break through into the Nigasand peninsula he decided to return home to focus on religious affairs and matters of succession. Hekatos had become a nervous wreck in the meanwhile, trying everything possible (to the point that he sent petitions to Palamecia and Gor'lan begging for help) and even sending assassins and agitators to Aclary to target their leaders. A brutal civil war broke out in Aclary but a great general known as Damaht managed to unite much of the new empire around himself and led it on Nigasand. Hekatos again tried to fight them but was hemmed in at the Citadel whereupon he bitterly cursed his predecessor for his corruption that had ruined the army and nation he had spent so long to save. He developed painful kidney stones that later killed him, and the city whose walls had repelled so many invaders eventually fell to the invaders in 156. The war, Nigasand, and the classical world, was over.

-The Sadarans soon incorporated the Rage-filled orcs into their ranks, sending them overseas to invade Palamecia and to conduct heavy raids and invasions of much of Oycumen before they were ultimately halted by the successor kingdoms of Irminonia after a century of unopposed expansion. Civil wars broke out at times (as is common amongst the Sadarans after a succession crisis), but all the while the Orcs remained under such domination that they were compelled to worship Rosaya in the manner of the Sadarans. But a religious split soon developed amongst the Sadarans who refused to recognise Damaht and his book as the ultimate successor to the religion. They instead proclaimed that the descendants of Dil Amlak were to be considered his successors (most of who just so happened to be people who syncretised Rage and Sadara). They remained on the fringes and mostly organised themselves in Nigasand proper, before they eventually declared independence in 424. This new Nigasand was ruled by Orcs once more, although with a heavy religious influence from the Amlak family. Many of the old republican institutions had decayed since the days of Hekatos, so that by now the despots were often the heads of their own prestigious dynasties. Numerous wars against the heathens in Oycumen had contributed to the recovery of a heavily martial spirit and warrior culture, which meshed well with the commands of Dil Amlak to conquer other nations. The advent of the sixth century would see whenever or not they would manage this goal.

[img]http://facepunch.com/image.php?u=578995&dateline=1420214107[/img][img]http://i.imgur.com/081z981.png[/img]
[b]Palamecian Empire – iAmaNewb
Capital: Ezatinsr
Culture: Irminian
State Religion: Na’zyr (Orthodox)
Race: Human[/b]

-Irminonia was finally extinguished in year 1 of the third age. General Novissi had saved the Empire once before, but he was unable to keep her safe once he slipped into the eternal sleep. The Emperor he protected was but a young boy, and when barbarian Ostrovir dwarves stormed into Ezatinsr they deposed him. Rather than take up the seat of Emperor, Thundobad I the Great instead declared himself Kuningaz of all Liguriensis (the lands covered by the heartlands of the old Empire where the people still spoke the same tongue as in the capital). Thundobad then made efforts to integrate his tribe with the existing nobility so that he could become the founder of a brand new civilization. He reopened the schools, repaired irrigation, and tried to build more public monuments. Unable to of course maintain the old professional standards or even raise the monies necessary to supply the administration or army conditions mostly degenerated. By the time he had been on the throne for twenty years he could only muster up fellow Ostrovirs and whatever militias he could afford to pluck from shrivelled towns and cities. He initially restored a period of prosperity and relative peace, even though he had to battle off numerous incursions by the Savonic tribes and other dwarves. He eventually died, leaving a stable kingdom when he died in the year 36. A century passed, during which point the last lights of classical civilization died. His successor kings found it easier to travel around the country to have feasts than to rule. The wars in Aclary ruined what little was left of trade. The cities shrivelled away to nothing. But the Na'zyr church held strong, converting the barbarian kingdoms to the true faith. The new kingdoms of Oycumen were settling down and a new order was taking shape – until it was smashed in 162.

-Andokos was on the southwestern end of the continent, formerly a part of the Empire but now overrun and ruled by the Subaric dwarves. Always dysfunctional, the sophisticated urban culture had broken down to leave a nation full of millions of superstitious and impoverished peasants along with a bickering nobility of dwarves that secretly did not accept the Na'zyr faith of their subjects. When the Malikdom of Notos invaded in 162 they were quickly overwhelmed by armies of orcs, humans, goblins, and even occasional dwarven mercenaries that had thrown in their lot with this new empire. After their armies were smashed, most of the nobles either fled to the Kingdom of the Vesivirs or even joined the invaders. A coalition of barbarian kingdoms were thus joined together at the behest of the church to drive these invaders back to the seas whence they came after the war came to their borders in 179. Liguriensis decided to send a massive expedition to help the Vesivirs but they were defeated at the Battle of the Andokos foothills in 182 after it became clear that the undisciplined infantry could not hold their own in a fight against the invaders. Raids continued on Liguriensis for years. A descendant of Novissi (who was still a nobleman and had some training in classical warfare) realised that the cavalry of Notos could be halted by proper training and use of combined arms. After convincing others of his ideas, Mateus ran an experiment in his estates where he kept a large part-time army (in times of emergency) with a small professional force he lavished attention on rather than trying to raise all of his men at once. In 253 he marched on Andokos and to the surprise of the invaders he managed to hold the line despite repeated attempts to hammer the formation. Such was the victory that he was granted a great feast in his name.

-But Mateus had bigger ambitions. He dreamed of the old days of the empire, and when he came to a disagreement with one of the major dwarven families he marched on Ezatinsr. His enemies were unable to work together on a cohesive warplan, allowing Mateus to isolate and smash each rival using his core group of professional warriors. After securing the patronage of the Patriarch of the city, Kuningaz Thundobad IV “The unsteady” was eventually forced out of his palace when an angry mob attacked it and he was driven out of his kingdom by Mateus. Having restored the dignity of Irminonia he sought to declare a new empire, albeit modelled on the last one. On the winter solstice of 268 he was crowned Emperor Mateus of Palamecia, King of the Irminonians and Ostrovirs, Protector of Oycumen and defender of the faith. Even though it was initially thought to be distasteful that he minted coins in his name, built a palace, and ordered books to be copied and written, it is of no doubt that he would go on to truly earn his title. In 277 he came to the Kingdom of the Vesivirs where he asked the Kungingaz Klovik to pledge his fealty as a subject of the Empire after defeating the invaders of Andokos once more and establishing a borderland there. He went on to Ostrovir Magna with his ally Klovik to conquer the Kingdoms of the Ostrovirs, such as Amboise, Cravant, and Tharingia. He had to spend years putting down rebellion after rebellion as the dwarves protested the imposition of alien taxes, political rule, and the encroaching church. A different branch of Na'zyr had also formed in Cytannia and had become popular in Aquilos and Ostrovir, which was spreading through monasteries in northern Oycumen and were considered somewhat heretical by the church in Ezatinsr. This in turn would be the most pressing concern if it wasn't for the constant raids by the Italaiset on the northern coasts of the empire.

-As a reward for their service, Mateus granted his loyal soldiers large estates from which to raise taxes and men for their Emperor. And although he toyed with the idea of invading Cytannia, Mateus deemed it too expensive and time-consuming to bother with (instead he carefully arranged to marry into Kloviks family that led to the Empire inheriting the kingdom). A new order was taking shape, and even after Mateus died his sons continued ruling an undivided empire until 336 when due to the bizarre combination of contrasting families and legal systems, the Kingdom of the Vesivirs (later the Kingdom of Vesivir) became independent after two brothers were to inherit the throne. Much later, another Emperor gave another sibling branch control of Burgosia in 463. While still a powerful and large Empire, it has already started to encounter problems as the divided north (Ostrovir) and south (Liguriensis) are difficult to administer, especially as they are kept in a delicate balance considering the north is full of dwarves (who practice according to Insular Na'zyr) and the south full of humans (who follow Orthodox Na'zyr). The beginning of a population expansion and economic growth in the Kingdom of Ostrovir (a title held by the Emperor that covers all Ostrovir dwarves) threatens to upend this balance. The growing (and divided) church with an internationalist outlook and an uppity nobility makes this all the worse. At least peace holds with the unfriendly Kingdom of Kiradai.

[img]http://facepunch.com/image.php?u=440820&dateline=1423541430[/img][img]http://vignette4.wikia.nocookie.net/facepunchrp/images/a/a3/SayiteFlag.png/revision/latest?cb=20160502160442&format=webp[/img]
[b]The Most Serene Republic of Gor'lan – Native Hunter
Capital: Gilgamesh
Culture: Sayite
State Religion: Saya
Race: Goblin[/b]

-At the onset of the third age, the position of the Gor'lan is exceedingly grim. With their once great empire reduced to cinders and broken up it would have taken a miracle to bring about a change. But in 101 that miracle happened when Aclary invaded Nigasand in the largest war in recorded history. Vast numbers of mercenaries from Gor'lan were hired during the war to fight on both sides and when they returned they had brought much valuable experience with them. The revival began after a grizzled veteran warned the goblins of the ambitious general Dil Amlak who he had seen in action and who was reputed to have never lost a single battle. This veteran was Olkuig, who had personally commanded a portion of the navy and had been engaged in numerous raids on coastal towns and in sieges throughout the Flovis valley. Speaking strongly he convinced the merchants, major families, and the landed to travel to Gilgamesh where they convened a council in 122 and agreed to finance the construction of a new navy and army that would bring about their former glory and restore the old trade routes. With trade at its lowest level due to the Nigasand-Aclary wars the time was ripe to seize the seas.

-This great council also changed the basic nature of their society too. Gone were the old laws, and now came in an entirely novel system of government. A constitution was written for the first time, explicitly stating the basic principles that would govern the whole nation. Two separate bodies were formed, with the Council of Princes acting as an executive and ultimate legal authority that is elected from the Yur'kal of citizens, acting broadly as a legislative body. At various times the Council of Princes is allowed to directly appoint random individuals into their ranks (often giving them semi-hereditary posts), a tactic used to help reel in some of the disinterested landowners and merchants from further afield. With a genuine stake in the future of the country, they began by giving Olkuig considerable power to enact his reforms and military campaigns. He started by immediately pardoning a large number of pirates in return for them agreeing to become privateers, acting under a license. Next he not only rebuilt the navy but bought a considerable number of old boats and then declared that the first goal of his was to restore control over the warlords who had refused the call to come to Gilgamesh.

-Starting in 126 Olkuig hired a number of elven spies and assassins to target the main leaders of Jar'val, Sen'les, and Gil'esh. Sen'les was formerly under protection of Nigasand but as a result of the war had lost this protection. Their weak navy was incapable of preventing any intrusion, and so the warlord surrendered in return for a palace and a permanent position on the Council of Princes once he realised that Nigasand would be unable to help him. Over the next decade Olkuig then exerted much effort on bringing back Jar'val through a series of brutal naval skirmishes and a siege of the island fortress of Inchkappie that controlled one of the major straits. It refused to give in for it had gardens and collected enough water by rain that it could hold out for years. A total blockade (and thus a siege) was impossible, and so In 128 Olkuig found a way to force them to surrender by locating an underwater bank nearby. Upon this he built an artillery platform for catapults and other fearsome machines of war, which he used to rain buckets of flammable oils (later known as Goblin fire) and heavy boulders onto the fort. Eventually the inhabitants surrendered and without the protection of the fortress the merchants of Jar'val gave support to an assassin who murdered the warlord. The next one in power quickly surrendered and was brought into the fold of the republic.

-By 148 all of the warlords had been subdued, allowing for the Gor'lan to make one final assault on the Kingdom of Robbliya. Unfortunately this would happen, for a mighty warlord to their south had unified all of Notos under his banner and within a few years brought even Nigasand to its knees. Olkuig didn't live to see these wars, many of which went poorly for the goblins as fleet after fleet battered the Republic and eventually led to the loss of the whole of Sen'les and Jar'val. After the collapse of the Kiratain and their replacement by the Kaganate of Kiratania, the Kiratan Kagans later conquered much of former Gil'esh and conducted regular raids on Gor'lan until they were paid tribute to go away. Eventually in 218 even Gilgamesh was besieged by the armies of the unstoppable Malikdom of Notos. The invaders originally intended to scale the walls using long ladders on their ships, but upon reaching the walls they were set ablaze by “Goblin fire” while a vast chain was pulled up around the mouth of the bay where they had entered. Trapped and in a panic, the fleet was destroyed while the besieging force was left without regular supply lines. Despite looting much of the countryside around Gilgamesh they took heavy losses from disease and cold during the winter and were forced to leave after a large contingent of gnomish and orcish auxiliaries rebelled and left to go home.

-In 245 the time was ripe for one last final series of wars by the capable Vasiel of Gil'esh. Although wars with Robbliya had dominated much of their military efforts, the Gor'lan had been never really able to oust the gnomes from their homes for good. Seeking to rectify this, Vasiel began by signing formal peace treaties with the Malikdom of Notos for the first time, in which he accepted their claims to Sen'les and Jar'val in return for respecting goblin control north of here. Sadarans and Sayites were to be treated with some degree of freedom in both nations too as it became increasingly apparent that annihilation of the other was impossible. Vasiel rose a great army and invaded Robbliya, but he took a very different approach compared to the older generals. Unlike a general campaign he instead opted to annex the country piece by piece in a slow and methodical style while also capturing gnomes and turning them against the Kingdom. The eventual result was the desperate King of Robbliya gambled everything on a single battle which he lost, especially after Vasiel made many offers to the nobility of retaining their lands if they switched sides. Those who refused were treated brutally by being put to work as slaves in mines or as galley slaves after they had been castrated. Numerous goblins were then sent to the country to recolonize the area, and by the end of the fifth century the gnomes were slowly on the decline as their names, language, and culture assimilated into the Republic. To celebrate the victory grand public works were undertaken in Gilgamesh using the wealth that had been looted in the campaign. Among these was an academy where the magically adept could hone their skills and study the arcane arts. The science of magic was being born, and they discovered that gemstones are somehow connected with it all.

[img]http://facepunch.com/image.php?u=432426&dateline=1413895040[/img][img]http://i.imgur.com/vz3X5w1.png[/img]
[b]Kingdom of Aclary - Mr. Face
Capital: Cayerus
Culture: Aclerian
State Religion: Saya
Race: Human[/b]

-As the world got a little cooler, it also got a little drier. First it was irrigation, and then when the rains were shorter and less frequent, the peasantry began switching to pasturage and stopped repairing the dykes. To the east, the formerly poor lands became much better suited to agriculture. The inevitable result was migration as tens of thousands of hapless peasants trekked east to find a new home. In the heartland of the empire came a new crisis as towns shrivelled up and died. Peasant rebellions became common, as did uprisings of militant Sayites led by the odd priest who proclaimed some new form of heresy. Trade declined, and the administration found itself incapable of ruling over it all. Other migrants went west to settle the coastline and near to the arid areas where they could scratch some kind of living from the soil. Unfortunately for the crown, these calamities proved its undoing. The last pagan communities vanished around this time, but not without leaving one final mark upon history. The leader of the Mairari tribe (nominally a vassal in the western plains) was forced to either give up before the authorities and accept the faith, or be considered to be an enemy of the crown. With a heavy heart Dil Amlak agreed to allow missionaries. Upon arrival they began to preach the word of Saya and convinced many of the people to give up their old barbaric customs. Dil travelled to Damot (a religious port town on the northern coasts) to find a way to reconcile his old beliefs with that of the new faith. He was told by the priests how best to follow the faith, and how to serve his king as well. Dil Amlak returned home spouting the decrees of the encroaching civilization.

-Demenfes II invaded Nigasand in a religious war in 101, while Dil Amlak was forced to work on gathering up men for the war. Already unpopular he had to employ the full extent of his knowledge and strength to unite the tribes and bring a suitable levy for his king. Arriving in the nick of time, he joined the main war host that went west to Nigasand. He soon gained a reputation as a fearsomely intelligent general who was unfortunately mismatched with his peers. The other generals delighted in cruelties upon the inhabitants of Nigasand, by burning their crops and after capturing people they tortured them until they revealed where their valuables were hidden. Their harems swelled in size, filled with women now made slaves and raped. Dil Amlak grew so disillusioned that in the cold winter of 110 he went on a pilgrimage to a monastery in the mountains by himself. On the way he fainted during the cold night and had a dream with Rosaya, who revealed many religious truths and told him that his people had a special destiny, before showing the Nigasand army in the desert and marching on his homeland. Upon rewaking, he went back to his men and commanded them to follow him back to Aclary against official orders. Zemenfes was about to order him a traitor when news came of the invasion. As all sides rushed back to Aclary, Dil Amlak chose to ignore the orcs when he discovered that many of the Mairari had been captured in the war and ransomed by Triktos. Zemenfes refused to pay the ransom as he cited having not enough money, leading to their deaths and to Amlak heading back home with his men. Triktos had laid siege to Cayerus, but shortly afterwards the forces of Demenfes arrived and forced them to leave. In the brutal weeklong Battle of Mastaba (127), Zemenfes deployed the Kiratain mercenaries to pick at the flanks and to drive Triktos away from fresh water supplies while diverting rivers using military engineers. Finally, Zemenfes moved his men down onto the plains and forced Nigasand to a final clash atop an old burial mound. But during the battle a large part of the Aclerian left flank peeled away and Triktos ordered his camels to chase them down while the rest of his men surrounded the Aclerians on the burial mound. But it was a ruse, for Zemenfes ordered not only for the left flank to feign a retreat, but to also break the dams nearby. The waters burst forth and drowned many of the Orcs, who panicked once they realised the Alcerians were on high ground. Triktos himself was forced to remove his armour and fled naked, bitterly complaining about the loss of his harem. The Kiratain mercenaries finished off the remaining forces sent after the feigned rout, before they came to Zemenfes and demanded payment.

-Zemenfes paid up as promised, but as news returned from Flovis that not only had Hekatos raised an army and retaken most of the cities by 125, he had also caused the other Kiratain mercenaries enough grief that they mutinied and were heading back to demand payment. Meeting with them on the northern route from Flovis at the fork of a river, Zemenfes was unable to bring up enough payment for all of the mercenaries, as it had transpired that Hekatos had made a deal with them shortly after the new year of 127. Realising he had been tricked once more, Zemenfes ordered his men to disarm the remaining Kiratain mercenaries on his side, which led to a mutiny and the beginning of the Battle of the Fork. Hekatos struck with his allied Kiratain mercenaries and in the confusion he met with Zemenfes on the field. Spotting his golden crown embedded with a massive Garnet gem with smaller rubies and sapphires along their sides, Hekatos used a hammer to smash the crown and the skull of Zemenfes, the last Great King of the old world. Upon seeing their King die, the remaining forces fled. Unable to pay the Kiratain mercenaries, Hekatos let them to ransack Cayerus and other major cities before they returned back to the Kaganate upon news of the Kagan dying. Hekatos went home and signed a peace treaty with the son of Zemenfes (Yemane IV) who he installed as a puppet king in 129. It would be all over, save for Zim Amlak – who had risen in open rebellion and declared independence.

-Dil Amlak had become the centre of a new religion in his time back home. With influence from Saya, Rage, and Kiratain soldiers he had met on his travels, a new faith had formed and grown strong by 132. Calling themselves Sadarans, they had seized numerous trade caravans and extended their rebellion over a wide area. After another dream, he was told by Rosaya to go forth and conquer in his name, to bring all nations under his benevolent light. Dil Amlak moved upon the Aclary homeland once more, merely content to occupy rather than to burn and destroy as his predecessors had. The common people rejoiced at his arrival as he brought peace and stability once more. Yemane sent a pitiful force to meet him outside of Cayerus but much of it deserted and fell apart after just one battle. He sent a letter to Hekatos begging for help and so in 136 he arrived with his army by the Hitimokes river. Amlak utilized tactics and stratagems even the greatest living warrior among all orcs could not have seen. Pinned down by the river, he was prevented from a full engagement as the mobile horseguard of Dil Amlak was said to have been guided by divine inspiration when they rode to one part of the lines to hammer their opponents and shower arrows on their enemies before pulling back. Keeping the numerically superior force at bay, Amlak spent a week letting his foes grow exhausted while each night he ordered more and more fires put out. On the last day, Amlak then hid his cavalry and had the centre of the line pull back. Hekatos was desperate for a victory and so fell into the trap, pushing the centre before realising that Amlak had sent his cavalry around to attack the right flank of the Nigasand army. Folding in on itself, the Nigasand army broke and fled the field of battle. The result was a complete victory for Amlak, who declared himself Malik of all Notos and proceeded to march on Nigasand proper. There he conquered much of the nation and created the largest empire ever seen. Yemane went into permanent exile.

-But it would not last for long. After giving a speech on the steps of the palace in Cayerus he retired from politics to give religious sermons throughout his domains while his closest followers ruled over the empire. He died peacefully in his sleep in 140, leading to the outbreak of yet another civil war amongst his followers over a succession crisis. His main disciple Damaht became the next Malik after winning the war, and finished the conquest of Nigasand. He however thought himself unworthy to hold the title of Malik and so decreed that a book would be collected up of his predecessors sayings and sermons to serve as a guide for the Sadarans. The book was declared the official Malik while the ruler was to take a secondary role as an “advisor” to the book which was deemed the absolute authority, becoming the orthodox text for the Malikdom of Notos in 176. Damaht ordered an invasion of Andokos in the southwest of Oycumen and brought it under his rule, and later wars with Palamecia, Gor'lan and successor states of Irminonia led to major initial gains throughout the 2nd century before being ultimately repulsed in the mid 3rd century. Several more dynasties followed before the empire broke down into three separate empires – of which Aclary was one. In a major uprising in 473 a native dynasty of Aclerian Sayites reclaimed their independence after exploiting protests from the nobility generated from heavy taxes and feudal levies. The restored Kingdom of Aclary is nothing compared to its height centuries ago, with the balance of power shifted significantly against her favour and many of her inhabitants having become Sadarans. However much of Jar'val came under Aclary administration and during the fight for independence ownership of these lands passed over – some of them wealthy. It remains to be seen how her new kings will utilise them.

[img]http://facepunch.com/image.php?u=649717&dateline=1424230559[/img][img]http://i.imgur.com/Sev8cqK.png[/img]
[b]Kingdom of Aquilos - Killbane
Capital: Halingar
Culture: Cytanni
State Religion: Na'zyr (Insular/Ingarinism)
Race: Human[/b]

-With the birth of a new era came a new religion from the south. The Na'zyr faith found fertile ground among peoples who watched all that they held dear become slowly undone. The promise of an eternal afterlife with all its associated rewards was alluring to many. Although missionaries appeared sporadically beforehand, in the first century they really came into their own where they set up monasteries and began converting the people. But as international travel and trade disintegrated and geographical isolation came into play, the Na'zyr church in Cytannia began to diverge significantly from that of the mainland. Borrowing heavily from ancient Cytanni mythology the two central figures of Ohm Cytae (represented by the sun) and Gihr (represented by the earth) were incorporated into the new faith. God was composed of both these figures, who were both distinct but were the same “substance” of God. Ohm was considered to have created the skies and races of the world in addition to the numerous heroes of ancient mythology. Heroes are regarded in a similar manner to the holy men of Irminonia, who passed on to become one of the stars in the heavens (each hero is represented by a ball of flame behind the head). Most of the orthodox features of Na'zyr (such as the religious laws and administrative structure) was retained, although this is not enough to prevent the mainlanders accusing the insular Na'zyr of heresy.

-During the first century these missionaries were successful in not only converting the Cytanni, but additionally all of the kings and chieftains (big or small) throughout the island. Conversion wasn't complete until the the mid third century, but by that point a major monastic network had grown and entrenched itself within the fabric of most peoples lives. They were successful in convincing people that High King Ingar was chosen by Ohm to lead the Cytanni to a new homeland before he died and became the North Star, an act which eventually granted the position of religious advisor to the High Council of the King. They also made efforts to incorporate traditional imagery (such as lions, dragons, and wolves) into the religion in addition to promoting many stories of brave missionaries (some of them also being warriors). As the climate cooled and the raids from across the seas intensified, people and their faith came under strain (even with heroic stories to give them inspiration). Without guidance from the continent, their faith evolved to suit the needs of conversion and of the brutal and harsh world that was created in the wake of the collapse of the powerful kingdoms. Waves of famine, cool summers, and freezing winters drove ideal growing conditions to the south. Eventually the invading Italaiset elves began to establish footholds from which they slowly picked away at the decaying hulk that was once Cytannia.

-By the second century, tribes from the north of Cytannia, and from the eastern island of Iverju picked away at the edges while elves set up powerful bases in Iverju from where they conducted ever more aggressive raids. By the middle of the second century, they were establishing fortified towns on the locations of old hillforts along with powerful regional kingdoms. Eventually Cytannia failed to be a kingdom of any worth as central authority collapsed after the failure of High King Anntor to beat the Italaiset in the critical Battle of Bondberry HIll in 236 . Had he succeeded it would have been likely they'd have repelled the invaders for good, but with the loss they were emboldened further and a trickle turned into a flood. Faced with such calamities and unable to push back the invading Italaiset elves, High King Karaedr III ordered his people to pack up and to invade the mainland where they would set up colonies and a new home for his fellow haplotype-sharing subjects. Organizing a grand host of 30,000 an invasion force went to Aquilos in 251 and seized control of several major towns before Karaedr called it a day and put his feet up in a hillfort he named Halingar. He never finished the job and kept putting it off, but he set in motion an irreversible tide. Over the years many thousands of Cytanni migrated to Aquilos where they established a number of heavily fortified towns. Due in part to the successful evangelical activities of the missionaries of the Na'zyr faith the region was wholly saturated with monasteries within a century of Karaedr founding Halingar.

-Even this wasn't enough to escape the elves. They kept on raiding throughout the centuries (as did pirates and slavers from Notos who paid visits), and even after they died down in the fifth century there were still occasional attacks by smaller groups of elves long afterwards. As a consequence most people lived in heavily fortified towns, as much a consequence of these elves as was the incursions by the Visivirs and later attempts by the Palamecian Empire to incorporate the Kingdom. Eventually Palamecia gave up and allowed the Cytanni to live in peace (in return for a few tributes), although the movements of the near-heretical monks into the Empire where they established new monasteries was considered to be intensely grating and only barely accepted due to the fact that more pressing concerns (such as the wars in Ostrovir with dwarves and elves) were taking up their attention. In the meanwhile, the Kingdom of Aquilos (or Lesser Cytannia as some have taken to calling it) settles down. The migrants eventually stop moving after the new Kingdoms of the Midnight Isles eventually stabilize (with it stopping entirely after the elves were converted to the Na'zyr faith). Removed from their homeland, the Cytanni begin the long process of creating a new home for themselves on the continent. They intermarry with the local nobles, build up new houses, and clear lands for their own benefit (or kill the previous occupants). After several centuries they have firmly established themselves here, although distressingly a concurrent process went on in their old home whereby the Cytanni were slowly displaced at first by the Italaiset. But the ultimate victory would go not to them, but to the descendants of the Scadutians who would make up the majority of the population, assimilating both elves and Cytanni in equal measure.

[img]http://facepunch.com/image.php?u=178241&dateline=1304611174[/img][img]http://i.cubeupload.com/q8SEH1.png[/img]
[b]Mizukan – Deltasquid
Capital: Sakasu
Culture: Sakasunese
State Religion: Fey-Verenism
Race: Elf[/b]

-Around the first century Mizukan began to shift yet again into a new kind of society, largely under the influence of the little coins minted by dwarves. This was a society driven by money and the relentless search for profit as above all the desire to create wealth became core to those who were in power. Starting with the acknowledgement that the country could not have its economy directly administered from Sakasu, a new code of laws was written up that decentralized the administration and introduced a standard legal system throughout the archipelago. Anybody was now free to make money, but now taxes had to be paid, and all major financial accounts had to be recorded no matter how small the merchant was. The obvious result of this was the explosion in the demand for paper, ink, and literacy to the extent that massive areas of land were cleared for cotton farms while papermakers became an established sight in every town. Chou prices declined steadily over this time as the markets became saturated, but this did not deter the merchants whatsoever. They began to fund ambitious overseas voyages to Qivdenna where they established a number of trading posts. Unfortunately their plans for colonization backfired as over the years many Qivdenna chieftains began to organise their lands to turn a profit so that they could secure valuable goods. They soon kept standing armies, which blocked out the Sakasu for good.

-Seeking another way to turn a profit and expand, the Sakasu began by taking over the markets in Skrall and then in the Gan Empire, before they sailed west to Dvergfit and then as far west as the Mandarabad Kingdom next to Skagosa. Along the way they invented a number of novel means of navigation or otherwise improved on them. Shops were soon selling accurate maps while any sailor worth his salt would always carry a Kamal with him for navigation (a piece of wood on a string). Other merchants, being unable to burden the risk came about with an exceedingly amazing way of getting in on the craze. A company was hired out to chart a ship full of goods to some distant port, while any interested party was free to buy shares in the enterprise at a fraction of the cost of outfitting the expedition itself. The model was so successful that Mizukan quickly grew into a powerful commercial behemoth by the third century, effectively dominating all seaborne tra

[Pezgod1]

[t]http://i.imgur.com/paN5OgE.png[/t]

[Tufty 🌹]

Definitely put me down for this one, if there's room!

[Sobotnik]

sure why not

[Sobotnik]

Also have a labelled map:

[img_thumb]http://i.cubeupload.com/Fg88iK.png[/img_thumb]

also pls keep inventing new names or cultural traits and lore and shit i can't do this all for u guys

[TheBloodyNine]

[IMG]http://i.imgur.com/l0F68c0.png[/IMG]

[Native Hunter]

From the Emperor of Palamecia
[QUOTE]A royal illustration of Emperor 'David Bowie' Mateus[/QUOTE]
[T]http://vignette2.wikia.nocookie.net/finalfantasy/images/2/24/Dissidia_Mateus.png/revision/latest?cb=20091018061812[/T]

[TheBloodyNine]

what a fucking weab

[Sobotnik]

send in ur turns pls

[Tufty 🌹]

I sent a turn in along with some nation notes. Hope I didn't fuck up~

[editline]13th August 2016[/editline]

oh wait, I did. [URL="http://orig11.deviantart.net/e419/f/2015/332/6/3/633219d71e73a1ec6243a0524b285e05-d9ie2vm.png"]Forgot the flag.[/URL]

[robinkooli]

reporting for duty

[EmperorScorpious]

Oh shit this actually started. Is it too late to join..?

[robinkooli]

[QUOTE=Emperor Scorpious II;50879848]Oh shit this actually started. Is it too late to join..?[/QUOTE]

Yeah, you can join still.

Here is the format for new people:
[QUOTE]

Starting location: (You will mark down on the map where you wish to start)

Flag: (image is 250x150 pixels)
Country name:
Capital:
Culture:
Religion:
Race: (dwarf, human, elf, goblin, orc / ask sobtnik for custom ones)

You must also send in your commands:

Technology: (You give me 3 technologies to research, and one of them will be randomly selected to be researched)
Military: Everything involving your military goes here. Also includes expansion on the map via force.
Domestic affairs: Everything inside of your countries borders.
External affairs: Everything outside of your countries borders. Includes expansion on the map via peaceful methods.
[/QUOTE]

[Damian0358]

Just so that everyone knows, the Wikia links in the OP are outdated now that I've changed [URL="http://facepunchrp.wikia.com/wiki/Realms_of_Orbis_V1_%26_V2"]their[/URL] [URL="http://facepunchrp.wikia.com/wiki/Realms_of_Orbis_V1_(Turns)"]titles[/URL] to accommodate Orbis' return. I've also started the [URL="http://facepunchrp.wikia.com/wiki/Realms_of_Orbis_V2_(Turns)"]turn page[/URL] for the reboot.

Also, for those wondering, as I won't be back south until the first weekend of September, I can't make any info maps, as the files are on my computer there. Thank goodness Sobot has made one in the meantime.

[EmperorScorpious]

[QUOTE=robinkooli;50879916]Yeah, you can join still.

Here is the format for new people:[/QUOTE]

Going dwarf, that's all I'll say for now :wink:

[robinkooli]

[QUOTE=Emperor Scorpious II;50880086]Going dwarf, that's all I'll say for now :wink:[/QUOTE]

The empty area at very south is claimed for my coming nation. :weeb:

[robinkooli]

[B]Sexy Map:[/B]
[url]https://www.half-logic.xyz/realmsoforbis/[/url]

[Sobotnik]

Climate map of Notos:

[img]http://i.cubeupload.com/3usGiA.png[/img]

[EmperorScorpious]

I'll get my turn in either tonight or tomorrow morning.

Pez, I'll be on steam then or then as well.

[Native Hunter]

[T]http://i.imgur.com/R5PFtW1.jpg[/T]

This Turn

[Sobotnik]

Gilgamesh, 576 TA

[i]Kornen was a dwarven monk who worked on behalf of the Na'zyr church in travelling the world to document various events on behalf of the learned scholars of Oycumen. He was granted a rare permission to visit the academy in return for bringing translations of the latest mathematical works[/i]

[quote]To his holiness, Patriarch Aspasius

On arriving at the academy I was greeted by a younger assistant to one of the elder mages. Before doing anything else I was to take up lodging in one of the guest rooms in the external courtyard where I could unpack the gift I had brought as a sign of goodwill. As you know, they accepted your letter to them, and thus gave our church a rare opportunity we could take advantage of. I slept the night easily and was glad for the rest. I breakfasted in the morning with some olives and bread, and was given a pair of new boots. The hospitality I was afforded here was much more than that of the other nations I have visited, and nearly that offered by most of the faithful back home, and as such is worthy of attention.

After I observed their morning prayers I was taken from the courtyard to the inner facilities where there was a bathhouse, a library, several individual cells for study, along with numerous other rooms containing a myriad of other things I was unable to see in my time. I was however able to see many curious arrangements of gemstones and intricate metalworks in many of the rooms normally devoid of extravagance. I was lead through to a chamber where one of the elder mages received me and offered drinks and a seat. I asked for a rough wooden bench and some milk for I did not intend to give in to luxuries even outside of the monastery. After introductions I brought forth the illustrated manuscript of the philosopher Abelos, most prized by the abbot of Oxeburg. The mage then told me of several stories about the academy itself in addition to those pertaining to some of their own recent discoveries – most of which do not require repeating here for they did not pertain to my mission. I was also granted a tour around some of the facilities, for which I am grateful. They however did not have much to show me seemingly, as it was largely the gemstones and metalwork from earlier.

Before I left you did inquire as to the condition of the much afflicted Archmage Cohard of the academy, who was last heard as having been forced into early retirement as a consequence of his illness. I am pleased to announce that I was able to meet him, but his health has taken a turn for the worse. I was taken through to his private chamber where he has been for several months. In that time he has taken on an unnaturally pale pallor and is attended to by a doctor at all times along with a scribe who dutifully records down anything he considers worth reading. In the three days I was there I was only able to have a single conversation with him – which was shortly before I left to return to my duties in Oxeburg.

The Archemae Cohard talked plenty, giving me a great number of stories about his research and goings on at the academy before he decided to entreat me with information he considered serious and worthy of your attention. He told me that no matter what he tried, he was unable to make any breakthroughs and had consigned himself to unhappy ignorance. But some years ago he had a most curious dream, wherein a creature talked to him and told him that it possessed untold knowledge, evidenced by its “All-seeing eye” that could see into days that had passed, those that were to come, and days in worlds that were not our own. It asked to be given access to the mind of the archmage in return for this knowledge which he promised would unlock the mysteries of the world.

Our friend Cohard agreed to this deal with the creature, whereupon it was free to move into his mind while granting information to him. He found out about numerous secrets, among them the means to make use of certain powers which I am unable to elaborate upon in this letter. Even if I could, I would doubt very few people would be able to discern the meaning of that information. Regrettably for Cohard, after he transcribed as much information as he could extract, the creature grew impatient. He confided to me that he made a second deal with it in the pursuit of knowledge but had refused to follow through on it, enraging the demon and causing it to subject him to a series of nightmares that left his mind scarred and caused him to take up permanent lodging in his chamber, rarely leaving even his bed. After this he felt pride in having had the strength to trick a demon despite the consequence to his health, but he then implored me to tell you and any other person who may be tempted by curiosity to never entreat with this demon whatsover and to never trust the promises it makes. When I asked him why, given how he had tricked it so easily Cohard was unwilling to tell me. I left with many more questions created than answered, something that never bodes well for a scholar. As to the nature of their studies, they have made some kind of major breakthrough that was a cause of celebration – but at the cost of one of their own. He is not the first to have lost much in the pursuit of knowledge.

I hope that God grants me safe passage on my travels home, and that he guides us in our search for the truth of the material world.

Yours faithfully, Brother Kornen of Oxeburg[/quote]

[Dutch Flowers]

Hi, I'm new to this. Can I join?

[robinkooli]

Ask Sobotnik.

[Sobotnik]

i don't see any reason not to

i encourage players to take existing nations (besides names most of the NPCs are blank slates and even the names and shit can be changed if you really want) however because we're rapidly running out of white space to put new countries

[Dutch Flowers]

I wanted to be gnomes but I guess I'll settle for Nigasand. :smile:

[TheBloodyNine]

Could always take something in the Isles or the north and just say they're gnomes.

[robinkooli]

More nations to conquer!
mwhahahah :godzing:

[EmperorScorpious]

My turn is 99% done, just working out the kinks of a flag.

Get ready for paladin dwarves

[robinkooli]

[QUOTE=Emperor Scorpious II;50894872]My turn is 99% done, just working out the kinks of a flag.

Get ready for paladin dwarves[/QUOTE]

Like mines?

Normal:
[IMG]https://i.imgur.com/XxNluVe.png[/IMG]

For war:
[IMG]https://i.imgur.com/O8hPCxh.png[/IMG]

Made with Paint.net

[Sobotnik]

8/12 turns in now