The Campaign Builder's Guild

I personally do not have a problem with the term Reconquista, for reasons previously discussed. However, the critics are right that Reconquista has some baggage attached to it. I think that to reclaim: reclamar sounds nice and may work. Or you could just twist the word: "Reclamarcion". It's not like you need to be true to any language, since it's a fantasy world. Although it is very popular to do in literature; I find it a bit annoying when fantasy worlds have a large amount of linguistic analogues to real-world countries. (Unless it's for humorous purposes).

The orc valley names are cute.

Quote from: Light DragonAlthough it is very popular to do in literature; I find it a bit annoying when fantasy worlds have a large amount of linguistic analogues to real-world countries.

There are only three ways to avoid this, though. First one is to resort to made-up jumble for names - which very easily just makes the result worse. The second one is to construct your own fictional languages - which is a terrible amount of work and requires that you know what the hell you're doing. The third one is to name everything in actual words ("Oldtown", "Blue River", etc), regardless of the setting's demographics - which is workable (if a bit dull) for place names but a whole lot more problematic when it comes to personal names and ethnonyms and the like.

Another issue is that recognizable references to real-world subjects are a powerful way for the world builder to invoke the setting's atmosphere and to manipulate the audience's impressions. By intentionally refraining from their use, the world builder may have a harder time communicating his vision.

Well, let me put it this way: Would you rather see something with baggage or something without baggage that might distract your readers?

I love Jack of All Blades, which uses real-world names for amusing purposes, but it demonstrates how silly it seems when real world names are used. http://www.jackofallblades.com/

For example, Texas is invading Indiana, etc. http://www.jackofallblades.com/?page=29#comic It's just silly :) Which works for Jack of All Blades, but which is a bit ridiculous otherwise.
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Another example:

Fantasy world--gnomes and dwarves underground living in the city of London. Underground river is the Thames. It works if the setting is a social commentary on London. Otherwise though, it just seems incongruous.
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-George RR Martin managed to avoid using real world analogues (save generics) in city names: http://www.pvv.ntnu.no/~madsb/home/read/asoiaf/_photo/maps/_orig/south.gif (Perhaps he's a bit generic, but he still has verisimilitude).

-Likewise, Mieville and Bas-Lag http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Bas_Lag_by_JenJenRobot.jpg And he's pretty evocative.

-What I don't have an issue with is using words that seem to be from a particular real-world culture, but that are not cities, and/or are slightly twisted and altered, like my suggested modification for EE's city (above).

Maybe we agree and my statement "linguistic analogues" was misunderstood, since it was a vague statement. What I don't want to see are bunches of : London, Washington, Beijing, Delhi's in a fantasy world. Also it's a bit silly to see an author consistently using words from other real languages as cities (unless they are from fairly obscure languages). On the other hand, I suppose one Borscht city is okay every once in a while, as long as it isn't surrounded by Babushka and the prison-city of Gulag. But still... it really risks annoying a reader, and it particularly risks annoying me. Maybe this merits a "city-naming" thread?

[note] [/note]

The Tieflings came to the Amalga roughly 170 years ago due to a sabotaged teleportation spell that scattered their entire civilization across the whole continent. The largest grouping of Tiefling settlements landed in what is now Kamir. Since that day, the Tieflings have founded a strong nation that has sought to convert its neighbors to their trinity.

COMMON KNOWLEDGE
 The streets of a Kamiri city are designed to flow in gentle curves, swaying back and forth. The architecture of Kamir is designed in a similar wavy outline with complex geometric shapes lacing every square inch. Kamir is ruled by Kronapet Avakian VI, he is a militant and deeply devote person. The wars he has led against Leonamarca have been as fierce as they have been bloody.

Thirteen years ago, the Avakian V was pushed into a war with Nargosa by the hardliners within the Clergy (which acts as both church and state). The war went poorly for Kamir, when the Archmages of Lindje called forth a thunderous tsunami which saw the Kamiri invasion fleet completely destroyed. The Kronapet was aboard one of the ships, his body was never found. Six months later, taking advantage of Kamir's weakened state, Castiland joined Leonamarca began a renewed war effort that saw Kamir loose hold of the Islands separating Castiland from Leonamarca, as well as several outlying islands as well. Twelve years of civil war ensued as various Clerics were put on the throne, only to be assassinated a few weeks later. Avakian VI came to the throne just one year ago and has seen his empire shrink, first with the loss of Invierno, then Otono and finally the shifiting of the western border all the way to the Vorde River. Avakian, who was raised in the south but educated in the north, has managed to hold on to the throne even with such devastating defeats by playing the various political factions off against one another and having any true rivals discreetly assassinated.  

REGIONAL FEATURES
Kamir, like most of the Elavada, is dominated by the Veneno (a magical poisonous sandstorm that races back and forth across the Elavada) which renders much of Kamir's land unlivable. The habitable areas are often scrubland at best, desert at worst. This has forced the Kamiri (who came from a land of snow) to quickly adapt to the [note]
[/note]   unfamiliar land. Many of the solutions they devised have spread across the Elavada, including the introduction of the Derrteli, an oxen-sized Boar that tolerates the scrubland's grass.

The country can be divided into two major regions '" north and south. The north is dominated by religious intellectuals who preach a more peaceful coexistence with Kamir's neighbors, citing how wealthy Kamir could become if the government pursued trade (especially in Kamiri silks). The north, centered around the city of Patrav, is traditionally immensely more affluent than the south. The city of Patrav was captured from the Tugish over a hundred years ago, its architecture still contains many Tugish qualities, especially in the design of the old quarter were many Tugish buildings remain.

The southern region of the country's view on foreigners has been hardened by 170 years of near constant warfare with the Leonamarcans, 'Kharkum Kam Rranel' (lit. Forced Conversion or Die!) is a phrase all southern Kamiri learn from an early age for it is a phrase they live (and die) upon. Warfare is a way of life in the south. The last three Kronapets have been from the southern region and have favored a particularly violent form of Kharkum (lit. forced conversion) whereby the faithful warriors gain indulgences for every Leonan they slay. The south is also much more inhospitable than the north, very little is agriculture occurs, though large deposits of iron and gold can be found in the foothills. The south's towns are built with stone brick, rather than wood as the latter is a luxury. Raige is the country's major mining town, exporting the raw supplies of gold and metal the war effort requires. Paterra is the base of operations for the Havatarim, which is the second largest professional army on the continent. It is said no Kronapet can truly rule Kamir without the support of the Havatarim.  

THE PEOPLE OF KAMIR
The people of Kamir are very devout followers of their Trinity '" Horinogh the creator, Pashtan the defender and Akana the destroyer. Every aspect of life is regulated by the Yerek, their holy book. The Kronapet of Kamir has sole authority over its interpretation. The current Kronapet interprets the Yerek to mean the Kamiri should wage war against the unbelievers, though previous Kronapets interpreted the book to mean peace.

The vast majority of the people of Kamir are Tieflings. Unbelieving Non-Tiefling are watched closely, though the need for trade (especially food) is recognized and encouraged. Very few non-Tieflings have converted to the Trinity. Those that do are called Vochsmbak (literally no hoof) and are welcomed with open arms. [note]   [/note]  The Havatarim, the principle guardians and private army of the Kronapet is completely composed of Vochsmbak. The members of the Havatarim run the gamut for race, though Humans and Minotaurs make up the vast sum of members.

ENEMIES AND ALLIES
Kamir is a land surrounded by enemies. To the west lays Leonamarca, who's war of retribution and re-conquest has been ongoing since the Tiefling's arrival. To the north lies the off-and-on enemy of Tugaland. Across the Bay of Kamir lie Nargosa and Glauben, two enemies who have waged a war of re-conquest to capture the island of Slacht. Further afield lays Castiland (newfound ally of Leonamarca) and Colina who has become an ally of sorts as the two share a mutual enemy in Castiland. The only true ally Kamir has is with the High Elvish realm of Glasmor who hold a grudge against the Leonamarcans.  

Quote from: Elemental_Elf The Tieflings came to the Amalga roughly 170 years ago due to a sabotaged teleportation spell that scattered their entire civilization across the whole continent. The largest grouping of Tiefling settlements landed in what is now Kamir. Since that day, the Tieflings have founded a strong nation that has sought to convert its neighbors to their trinity.

That must have been a spell of epic scale to have affected an entire race. But where is this land of snow that the tieflings originally came from?

Quote from: Elemental_Elf Kamir, like most of the Elavada, is dominated by the Veneno (a magical poisonous sandstorm that races back and forth across the Elavada) which renders much of Kamir's land unlivable. The habitable areas are often scrubland at best, desert at worst. This has forced the Kamiri (who came from a land of snow) to quickly adapt to the unfamiliar land. Many of the solutions they devised have spread across the Elavada, including the introduction of the Derrteli, an oxen-sized Boar that tolerates the scrubland's grass.

The Veneno is turning out to be one of the most interesting things in the setting IMO. Is it perhaps a living being? Intelligent? How long has it been around?

Quote from: Elemental_Elf The people of Kamir are very devout followers of their Trinity '" Horinogh the creator, Pashtan the defender and Akana the destroyer. Every aspect of life is regulated by the Yerek, their holy book. The Kronapet of Kamir has sole authority over its interpretation. The current Kronapet interprets the Yerek to mean the Kamiri should wage war against the unbelievers, though previous Calliphs interpreted the book to mean peace.

Are the kronapet and calliph just different words for the same title? How does one become a kronapet, other than through a coup?

Quote from: GhostmanThat must have been a spell of epic scale to have affected an entire race. But where is this land of snow that the tieflings originally came from?

It was a spell of truly epic proportions that took nearly 20 years to craft. The land of snow, or Dzyun as the Tieflings called it, is loactaed far to the north-east past the Realms of the Giants, of the Centaurs and of the Lizardfolk. Their original destination was not Amalga but rather the tropical islands called Arevadara.

Quote from: GhostmanThe Veneno is turning out to be one of the most interesting things in the setting IMO. Is it perhaps a living being? Intelligent? How long has it been around?

 I'll do a small write up on it in the near future :)

Quote from: GhostmanAre the kronapet and calliph just different words for the same title? How does one become a kronapet, other than through a coup?

I apologize, Caliph was a standin word until I could come up with a more culturally appropriate word. I used Word's replace function but I forgot about plurals. :(

Interesting read on Kamir. Since the Veneno reduces most of the land to scrubland I'm guessing there is very little vegetation.

In modern silk production a lot of vegetation is required to feed the silkworms. How do the Kamir compensate for this?

They could set up enclosed gardens for mulberry trees, fed by irrigation canals.

Kamir looks good, even if they don't seem so "exotic" as I expected, considering they are from across the world. There seems to a small error in the last paragraph where you say Leonamarca is to the east?

Quote from: LlumInteresting read on Kamir. Since the Veneno reduces most of the land to scrubland I'm guessing there is very little vegetation.

In modern silk production a lot of vegetation is required to feed the silkworms. How do the Kamir compensate for this?

Production of Silk is still, compared to modern times, a small scale operation. Each castle in the realms is allowed a single orchard with which to cultivate silkworms; Kimir (the capital) possesses many such orchards.  The Orchards are fed by a vast network of canals, aqueducts and irrigation ditches that begin in the mountains to the south and east and trickle down to the cities below. The profits generated from silk production far outstrip the high expense of cultivation. This is illustrated by just how expensive purple-dyed silk, the (intentionally) rarest of all colors, truly is - King Filbur of Galaland spent half a year's worth of tax revenue to acquire enough purple-dyed silk to create a wedding dress for his betrothed Baroness Randaline.

Quote from: Conundrum CrowKamir looks good, even if they don't seem so "exotic" as I expected, considering they are from across the world.

Well part of that has to do with the harsh realities of the land they find themselves on and part of it has to do with... Well this can't really be explained outside of a whole post about history but...

To put it concisely, the forebear of Kamiri culture - Dyzuni culture - was forged by the eighth Dwarven Emperor of Vortland - Erober the Great. Vortland was the largest empire ever known and it stretched from the borders of what is now the Henwald in the west to the lands of Dyzun far to the east. Erober was a tyrant who ruled with an iron grasp. Having slain the Guardian of Time and drunk from the magical Well of Amser, he was given eternal youth. His personal reign lasted for nearly 300 years before a council of Elvish Assassins, called the Llofrud, teleported into his throne room, slit his throat and trapped the despot's soul with in a magical gem to prevent any from resurrecting him. During his reign, Erober sired hundreds of children, the most cunning and brutal of which divided his empire up amongst themselves. This Age of Tyrants, as it came to be called, continued for another 400 years before Llofrud assassins personally hunted down and trapped the souls of each and every child of Erober. The last Tyrant to fall was the Prophet-King Ben Beharede who ruled the lands of Dyzun. His rule over the Tieflings was not one of fear but of love and adoration. Powerful Tiefling clerics prevented the Elvish Assassins from murdering their king with unique spells drawn from the two Gods their King had revealed to them. Though the Assassins were stymied for nearly 80 years, they eventually hit their mark but before they could trap Beharde's soul, the King's trusted advisor '" Kronapet '" unleashed a spell of epic scale that shielded the King's soul long enough for the Gods Horinogh and Akana to Sheppard his soul to the heavens and crown him as one of their own, thus becoming Pashtan the Defender.

The very foundation of Dyzuni, and later Kamiri, culture was built atop ancient Dwarvish culture, the same ancient Dwarvish culture that influenced and shaped the current Empires that exist in Amalga.

[note] [/note]
 
Glasmor is the last bastion of true High Elven presence left on the continent. The High Elves fought for many years to either end or push the Venano away from their ancestral homeland of Tybad (which laid in the far west of the Elevada). Their struggle was for not and so the High Elves chose to retreat back into the wild mirror of the world known as  Gartef, praying someday a solution could be found to end the horror that now claims their former homeland.

COMMON KNOWLEDGE
Glasmor was once the center of a great High Elven civilization known as Tybad. The Venano decimated their homeland and forced the High Elves to retreat back to their island capital. From there, the Elves sought magical and mundane ways of countering the sandstorm. The great shimmering prismatic   Force Walls of Gobaith, Derfiniad and Rhyfel stand as testaments to High Elven ingenuity and mastery over the arcane. Yet even these mighty fortifications could only stem the tide that was the Veneno. Ruin came when the Warlord '" King Vrolly the Minotaur '" invaded the lands of Tybad and tore the mighty Walls down brick by brick, stone by stone, with the aim of conquering the island of Glasmor and pillaging the city for its many wonders. With its land overrun by Minotaur and Orcish warbands, as well as the poisonous sandstorm, the High Elves lost all hope of re-forging their lost empire and isolated themselves from the goings on of the world around them.

Knowing their homeland on the continent was all but lost and their island under threat, the Glasmorian Triumvirate planted the interior of their island within the wild plane of Gartef. From the viewpoint of a boat in the Western Sea, the island appears to be quite small, some may even say insignificantly tiny. Yet when one goes ashore, the island appears more akin to a small continent, larger than even Galaland. Time too is distorted, one year on Amalga Is roughly 12 years within Gartef; even with unnatural longevity, whole generations of High Elves are born, raised, have children of their own, grow old and die in the span of what to the outside world appears to be a an instant.[note][/note]

Though only 190 years have elapsed outside the island, nearly 2,280 years have occurred within. Entire civilizations have arisen, fallen and began anew. The current government is a byproduct of the cyclical nature of Glasmorian life and the highly traditionalist nature of the High Elves. Prior to Tybad's destruction, the Kingdom was ruled by three Kings and when the island was seeded into the Gartef, things continued as they always had. Though many revolutions and counter revolutions have occurred over the last 2000 years, one fact has remained the same '" there are always 3 Kings.

The current government is an alliance, of sorts, between three very different political groupings. The ancient (and very old-fashioned) aristocracy banded together to form the Cygnor, or Senate, which has possessed power (off and on) since the days of yore prior to the seeding. The Cygnor operates under a single rule - majority wins. As such it is common for different political factions within the senate to assassinate their opponents with the aim of reducing the number of votes the opposition is able to muster. Whole sale slaughter occurs once every generation or two, it has not been unheard of for the Cygnor to have a single member (who is always in the majority). Such a bloodbath occurred 20 (Gartef) years ago, and the Cygnor's numbers were culled from nearly 300 to just 10. These[note] [/note] ten are led Un Arth, a man who has a seething hatred for the outside world and regularly orders raids into Leonamarca for that nation's desecration of his family's ancient tombs. Arth is currently populating the Cygnor with like-minded nobles and excluding those that are not. Though many in the aristocracy decry Arth's plans, the single rule of Cygnor remains in effect and there is nothing the nobility can do to stop him.

The second King is represented by the Hudlath, or union of the Patriarch of Ystwyth and the Matriarch of Aelwyd '" who are the two divine guardians of Glasmor. The union is both political, religious and marital. King Aung, who was the last King of Tybad to pass, believed the nobility to be corrupt and the government equally so. A deeply religious man, Aung desired to bring his people to back to a simpler time and rid their new oasis of the affluence that had so tainted the once great civilization. With that in mind, he bequeathed his throne to the Patriarch and Matriarch (as they are referred to in Glasmorian society) with the hope that by forming a union of two souls and the forging of a new family would serve as an example for the people to adore and emulate. Though disagreements between the two halves of the throne are common, compromise and trust are what define the Hudlath.

The final King is known as the Adwyth, or Regent, who represents King Gollwyd. The King left Glasmor on a quest to destroy what he referred to as the 'corruption to the north' following a private meeting with a human who identified himself as 'The Mad King'.  The Lost King, as Gollwyd came to be called, has not been seen or heard from for 500 (Gartef) years. Given the young age of the King prior to his departure, and the time differential between the two planes, Gollwyd would be nearing his 60th birthday, which given the average 200 year[note] [/note] life span of a High Elf, means the Lost King is still a young man. Before leaving, Gollwyd declared his mother would act as reagent in his absence, a post she held until her death. The throne then passed to the family of Gollwyd's fiancé '" the Leider family.  Over the course of 470 years the Leiders have accumulated vast wealth and much prestige, many speculate they will not willingly hand the throne back to the Lost King when he returns. The current Adwyth is Dusarff. He is a proud man who secretly covets the true throne for himself and has made many allies within and outside of the government to ensure his continued power. Hushed whispers speak of a secret alliance between Dusarff and Un Arth, one that will see the two share power without the need of a third throne'¦

REGIONAL FEATURES
The island of Glasmor is akin to a small continent and is rich with diversity. The south-eastern half of the island is dry, covered by rolling grassy hills and dotted with small family owned farms. This region is called the Hinterland for it is where the most devote go, seeking a life far from the excess of the Forest. The only settlement of any size is Prodas (home of the Hudlath). Which lies near the coast that borders the Deigran Channel (which separates Glasmor from the continent). At the center of this settlement lies the statue of a nameless Elven warrior, his feet firmly planted in the soil, pointing back across the channel with a single tear in his eye.

The north-west is simply called the Forest and as the name implies, is covered by an old and wondrous jungle complete with massive High Elven cities that intertwine with- and merge [note] [/note]into- the natural surroundings. In many ways, the Forest is one massive city with one community merging into the next both through outward and upward growth. Vast networks of wood-and-vine bridges race back and forth, in all directions. It is said one can travel from Bren (home of the Adwyth) clear across the Forest to Daeth (home of Cygnor) without ever touching the ground below.

Dividing the two regions are the snow-capped Aruchel mountains, which rise up suddenly from the hills below. A race of ram-like centaurs, known to the High Elves as the Hwrrd, lay claim to the mountains and desire only isolation from the Elves. For their part, the High Elves respect the Hwrrd's wishes, though many Foresters detest the '˜savages' and it is only through the objection of the Hudlath that the Hwrrd have not been eliminated. Trolls, too, exist in the mountain caves and are given no qurter when encountered by any Elf or Hwrrd.

THE PEOPLE OF GLASMOR
The Elves of the Forest are haughty and care only for the status of themselves and their families. Little heed is paid to religion, unless it can somehow improve their standing in society. They are a people consumed with the intricacies of their own culture and shun contact with outlanders, unless such contact can improve one's standing in society'¦

The Hinterlands are much the opposite; they readily welcome outlanders into their homes. A great majority of the Hinterlanders are the scions of unions between Henish immigrants and native High Elves. Though this is often viewed in a negative light by Foresters, the Hinterlanders see themselves as forming a new society, one based on good works and devotion to the divine.

ENEMIES AND ALLIES
The Kingdom opposes the Tyrants of Tarosia, who occupy the once great cities of Tybad. The senator known as Un Arth feverishly opposes the existence of a Leonamarcan state and has sent highly skilled assassins and saboteurs to infiltrate and bring ruin to that Kingdom.[note] [/note]

Interesting, especially with the transplanar geography.
I don't know if it's just my computer, but sometimes the text overlaps the notes making it hard to read.
Also, as you are fairly map-savvy, I believe this would be a fair request: could you add a national map to the nation posts? It doesn't have to be detailed, just a cut-out of the larger map with other nations grayed out or something. One often loses track of how things are placed according to the other nations.  

Ditto on the small on the outside, big inside geography, plus the quicker passing of time. Is high elf intelligence/culture so adverse to progress that they haven't outpaced the outside world despite the huge advantage they're given?

Quote from: Conundrum CrowI don't know if it's just my computer, but sometimes the text overlaps the notes making it hard to read.

I apologize if the note-ing of the images makes it hard to read. The only reason I do it is to have text wrapping. On my two computers it lines up well but different screen resolutions may be different :(

Quote from: Conundrum CrowAlso, as you are fairly map-savvy, I believe this would be a fair request: could you add a national map to the nation posts? It doesn't have to be detailed, just a cut-out of the larger map with other nations grayed out or something. One often loses track of how things are placed according to the other nations.  

I'll start working on that :)

Quote from: GhostmanDitto on the small on the outside, big inside geography, plus the quicker passing of time. Is high elf intelligence/culture so adverse to progress that they haven't outpaced the outside world despite the huge advantage they're given?

Only the Dwarves rival the High Elves in terms of development, history and knowledge. The Gartef's different pace of time is both a blessing and a curse. The fundamental truth of Elvish life is the cyclical rise-and-fall nature of their civilizations. Even though thousands of years have passed for the Elves, it has been filled with social upheaval every few generations. Countless numbers of new nations have arisen and fallen in that time; the  current government is very much a by-product of the last fall and can be likened to an alliance of two very different countries that cohabit-ate the same island. Due to this social turmoil, and a general feeling that things are good as they are, the High Elves have not advanced far beyond where they would have otherwise, some may even claim that, with out contact with the outside world, they have regressed...