The Campaign Builder's Guild

Question: would anybody be interested in seeing write-ups (basic info, geography, society and history) on two countries, Ultramar (Theocratic USA in enlightened Middle Ages) and Taino (a flying country - quite literally)?

Would be interested in seeing both. Prioritized order of preference is identical to the order you noted them in :)

So, well, here they are. I especially like the historical description of Taino, since I think I finally hit the "mythic" feel for the first time since... years? Months at least.

Major races: Deva, Aasimar
Minor races: Quetzin, Shifter
Magic sources: Divine
Government alignment: lawful good
Aesthetical inspirations: medieval Europe, India
Cultural inspirations: United States in enligthened Middle Ages, as theocracy
Geography: The core of Ultramar's state is an island off the coasts of Uster. While relatively large (certainly capable of housing a major capital), it was small enough to originally house only a small tribe of Shifters who have since emigrated to the mainland. The island itself is mostly covered in temperate plains, with meditarranean forests covering the rest. While not perfect for farming, it's a land perfect for Ultramar's original purposes - to found their capital on a peaceful, serene land which would encourage meditation and peace. The capital itself, called Capita Prima, lies on the shores of a lake in the southern part of the island, and is growing in every direction with more Devas, Aasimars and Quetzins arriving every month.

The coastlines that fell under Ultramar's dominion outside of the island are mostly heavily forested, but once cleared, they are perfect place for farming and husbandry. While some of the native populations are not overly happy with their forests being burnt down, Ultramar has promised to limit their expansion to only as much as their population needs, without encroaching on sacred territories of the local Shifters and Minotaurs. No mountains or other areas rich in mineral ores fall under Ultramar's jurisdiction, making metal import a necessity.

Politics and society: Ultramar is a lawful good theocracy, led by a Holy Father whose given name is not known, as he claims he needs to forsake it to truly identify all his incarnations as one person who's destined to lead Ultramar forever. He and his closest friend, called the Holy Mother, are two Devas who upon death of either's body go out to one of the established shrines on Ultramar to find and identify the other, thus maintaing a stable and direct line of the same person heading the government forever. While Ultramar is a tolerant society open for everyone, it expects all of its citizens to conform to its lawful good rules, thus attracting almost entirely kinds of people touched by good energies - Devas, Aasimars and Quetzins.

Despite its "lawful" reputation, Ultramar is very tolerant to all forms of good and neutrality - if what you are doing does not harm anyone, you are allowed to do it. No one is judged by his race, subrace, wealth, religion, creed or orientation - it's only your acts that matter. But if you break Ultramar's rules and harm people, an appriopriate judgement will be swiftly executed, varying depending on severity of the crime. Ultramar's first rule is being friendly and open to everyone - "every soul reveals its true colors when trusted, even when the trust wasn't deserved". It houses people of all good and certain neutral alignments, as Devas are mostly lawful good, Aasimars neutral good and Quetzins chaotic good.

History: Ultramar was first founded as a Society of Benevolence in Kenaanite city of Gadera. There local Aasimars were gathered under the guidance of a small group of Devas, headed by a pair who claimed to have lived since the Sun Queen first set foot upon the world and sent them as messengers to mortal people to spread the word of good. Society's original aim was to educate the Nephilim majority of their goals and principles, but as the hard-headed Kenaanites still refused to bow to anyone who wasn't them, after only ten years Society felt its original purpose was void. As such, a new objective was created: to find a place for every benelovent person to live peacefully together. With one of the Aasimar nobles donating majority of his fortune to the cause, the Holy Father started searching for an unclaimed land. One such place was found on the island then called just "Big Island" by the natives, who sold it for just a small donation of magical artifacts. Holy Father promised them his protection, but most of them quickly left for the mainland and never returned.

Thus, 552 years ago the construction of Capita Prima started, with the Holy Father proclaiming Ultramar theocracy as the land for everybody with good in his heart. While first years were tough, the news quickly spread and numbers of people from all around the world, but mainly Aasimars and Devas (and persecuted Quetzins), arrived, allowing the new nation to quickly rise in power and spread to nearby coastlines. It has since existed in complete peace, avoiding conflicts with the natives through diplomacy. Their only major concern is nearby Tulan, dominated by three evil ghosts and their undead army, but Ultramar currently lacks the power to deal with them alone, or with the minor help of Quetzin state of Kulkan.

Major races: Pteronts, Raptorans
Minor races: Aarakocra, Kenku, Quetzin
Magic sources: Arcane, Divine, Primal
Government alignment: good (neutral good)
Aesthetical inspirations: colonial Central America
Cultural inspirations: traditional 'high elven' cultures, Raptorans of 3.5 D&D
Geography: Looking at Taino from the ground level, it appears to be just a small chain of fairly insignificant (and rather tiny) islands. However, Taino's true core lies in a unique cluster of earthmotes, hovering high above the sea. Most of those earthmotes are forested or rocky (being main source of Taino Pteronts' export to Ultramar), but few big crystalline and glass earthmotes are making Taino special on this account - skyglass lands are rare even on the standard ground, and even rarer as earthmotes.

The biggest earthmote is called Lindale and is the centre of government on Taino. Its shape is more or less resembling a bone and contains rich deposits of rare incendium and orichalcum - one of Taino's main export products, next to the brightwood - wood carved from an endemic species of tree which grows only on earthmotes. In the middle fo Lindale is located the capital, arranged in circles around the Temple of Thought. The other most prominent islands are Darngal ("the sky-nest"), the biggest Raptoran settlement and an earthmote consisting of a huge piece of rock, dotted by countless tunnels and nests of Raptorans; Elima ("concordance"), the place where Pteronts and Raptorans first signed their mutual non-aggression acts and finally Ravangal, Taino's only earthmote housing land-bound species, the Kenkus.

Deep below most earthmotes lie a few actual islands, though they scarcely populated. Few minor Kenku and Quetzin settlements are known, but otherwise those islands are insignificant.

Politics and society: Taino's main government is ruled by a caste of philosophers, chosen based on wisdom and benevolence. Those philosophers, called the Muses, believe that government exists to satisfy its people, not to rule them. The magical groups of Taino concentrate their efforts to provide the best possible standards of life for all people, regardless of their race, worship or origin. While non-flying citizens are naturally under-disposed to live in a highly aerial location, Taino's ruling caste makes sure to satisfy everyone.

While Raptorans of Taino have lost most of their vicious, predatory appetite with the lifting of the curse, some part of that lifestyle remained ingrained in their blood. Raptorans are still fierce fighters and hunters, rarely eating anything but meat of game they bagged themselves. While they can live peacefully with the Pteronts, they have short temper, but their natural aggresiveness has found use, making them primary part of Taino's armed forces.

History: It is said Taino was first settled around 900 years ago, when god Dioras cursed an ancient humanoid tribe for their disobedience with a form and spirit partially resembling a predatory bird - while gifted with flight, they would forever hunger for blood and flesh. Fleeing from Hellade to not hurt their former relatives, the newly founded Raptorans settled on a place where they would hunt only beasts - a cluster of earthmotes they called Taino ("exile"). Since Dioras didn't bother with them after their curse, he was not aware of their new settlements.

Two hundred years later, a group of talented musicians from Elis was persecuted of a string of murders by an envious politician whose son could never rise up to the Muses level of talent. When his militias arrived to lynch the Muses, they refused to fight back and decided to go out singing and playing instruments. The music moved the heart of Dioras who decided to rescue them - he blessed them with a form resembling partially a bird, giving them wings and feathers for hair. The Muses, now calling themselves Pteronts ("the winged ones") fled their former homeland and arrived at the same land inhabited by the Raptorans. When both groups met each other and learn of each other's origins, a war broke out between descendants of the Muses and Raptorans. Once Dioras learnt about the outcome of his machinations, he had a change of heart and couldn't stand the amount of suffering his short-mindedness has caused.

He inspired a Pteront man who risen up and managed to calm the hearts of both sides with his music. On this day, 523 years ago, the curse of viciousness was lifted from Raptorans (allowing them to keep a bird-like form), and both races signed an act of unity. The few Raptorans who still refused to sign the peace had their curse strengthened and turned into bestial vulture-men called Aarakocra. Since then other races started showing up deep below, on the few actual islands, benefitting from Taino's beneficient government.

What is that thing about devas going to a shrine to keep the two same person ruling? I can't remember how they work (I keep thinking of 3e devas instead...)
How do the Ultramarians handle dissident elements and invasive evil? Crime? If they are so accepting of everyone how do they handle people with a different set of ethics (e.g. if someone thinks human sacrifice is good because you sacrifice yourself for the greater good so the gods grant a good harvest)?

Is Taino the only real raptoran community in the world? Do the birdman communities mine and process their mineral deposits themselves? Are they known for any crafts related to these natural resources? How do the Kenku get to their earthmote? Is the government of Taino wealthy enough to fulfill everyone's wishes? How far do they go in this pursuit? Can anyone join this seeming utopia?   

Regarding Devas - since 4e, they are incarnated angels, and when they die, they "respawn" in a holy place. Not only have Ultramarians dotted their whole capital with shrines and sacred fountains, but the Mother or the Father remember faint memory of the other's essence, so they find them rather quickly.

Ultramar clearly mentions that everybody can live there, as long as they live in accordance to their rules. So it is good, but Devas' very clear and defined idea of good (be helpful to people, don't harm anyone). Human sacrifice is clearly harming someone, so Ultramar wouldn't allow that. Crime among Devas and Aasimars is unheard of, but any outsiders that are not "good planetouched" are rather quickly caught - as not only there's a fair amount of paladins and avengers in the place, but majority of people are lawful good-aligned - so they work together to get the criminal.

Taino's natural ores are mostly exported, and they mine it themselves. Incendium is not exactly something you want to use for crafting (it's a highly volatile and combustible metal - you usually just get a bunch of it in a bomb and throw it at people), and orichalcum craftsmanship is not very familiar in Taino - mostly Nephilim specialise in weaponising it, as the original veins were found on Kenaan's Azerum.

About Kenkus and their earthmote, I actually wanted to add a small bit of story about this, and in a potential book, maybe it will still be there. Basically, they were originally carried there by a titanic elemental whale they tamed. With the whale dead, they now have "wizard express" - a kenku wizard that casts Fly on you on the ground, and you fly through several minor motes (with wizards on every one of them, sending you further) until you get up top.

The wealth is actually a serious problem in both good-aligned countries - Ultramar is still pulling on money from its noble patrons, while Taino is barely staying on top due to mineral exports. Both countries are working on solutions, since their current sources of wealth may run dry quickly. It's also not exactly Utopia, but citizens can count on protection and basic sustenance from their government - while they are still prompted to work on their own, with Pteronts advising artistic work primarly.

Yeah, they just came off at first as psuedo-utopias where everyone was good and happy, and in Ultramar's case that might very well be true, except I feel like living there would be like living under surveillance 24-7. A lawful good police state where failure to adhere to the strict rules result in swift punishment or exile.

Yeah, the more chaotic disposed folks might not like Ultramar too much, that's intended (from me), but as long as you don't harm anyone, you should be good with them. That's why there is hardly anyone but the good-aligned plane-touched - because a human or Nephilim wouldn't stand being controlled every day by a whole nation of people who, for all cosmic reasons, are just better than you.

Has anybody sought to gain control of the valuable earthmotes of Taino through less than peaceful means? Aerial sieges sound awfully tough, but well, in a world with magic it's probably not impossible.
Maybe a dissident cell who seek to make the earthmotes come crashing down?

I guess it can be an adventure hook, but so far any countries that have the power to do that (Kenaan, Auriga, Tang) are either busy with other matters, don't care or are just too far away. I'm thinking the cost of first conquering the earthmotes and then regularly transporting the resources for a non-aerial race might be too high compared to potential income.

Why do you compare the US to Ultramar?

The "US" aspects of Ultramar have not really come up so far, but it's mainly because of the mottos and ideas both states are based on, and some historical parallels.
-Both were first settled by religious exiles
-Capitals of both were founded on a land cheaply bought off of natives
-And then the general mottos and virtues - "In (God) We Trust" (replacing "God" with "Sun Queen" in case of Ultramar), all men are equal, unalienable rights, pursuit of happiness; "semper fidelis" etc.

I would be careful using modern influences so strongly in a setting that is supposed to be set far in the past. The mentality of modern humans vs humans of the past is very different, and many of the things that are modern - universal sufferage, civil rights, equality before the law - are very new ideas and only occured after thousands of years of history, trial and error, and sudden revolutions. Unless you have a magical or some other way to explain this, I'd be wary.

EDIT: If I may offer a word of advice: maybe trim down your culture/historical influences to just a few, start with that land, and slowly expand out instead of trying to built a kitchen-sink world from the top-down. Once again, no offence meant, just some earned experience.

Quote from: Señor Leetz
I would be careful using modern influences so strongly in a setting that is supposed to be set far in the past. The mentality of modern humans vs humans of the past is very different, and many of the things that are modern - universal sufferage, civil rights, equality before the law - are very new ideas and only occured after thousands of years of history, trial and error, and sudden revolutions. Unless you have a magical or some other way to explain this, I'd be wary.

They're good-aligned plane-touched - that's all the reasons I feel I need for such an enlightened society.

So I try my hardest to concentrate on specific parts and came up with a write-up for an Ultramarine city. Anything to add/remove in a city description?

Name: Dawnsbreak
Location: eastern coastline of Ultramar island, at the mouth of Tears of Joy river.
Architectural style: romanesque
Population: 2,000 registered citizens of Ultramar (95% Aasimar, 2% Deva, 2.5% Quetzin), approx. 1,500 traders and visitors at peak months of the year (50% Nephilim, 20% Human, 10% Gnome)
Patron deity: the Sun Queen
Dominating alignment: good (neutral good) (90%), unaligned (true neutral) (9%)
Workforce distribution: trade (50%), manufacturing (35%), fishery (10%)
Brief history: Dawnsbreak was founded 557 years ago and was the original landing of the Holy Father's ships, at the mouth of river called Tears of Joy (legend states, he shed tears of joy upon finding a 'promised land'). While originally considered as future capital, ultimately purchase of the whole island from natives assured emigration deeper inside, founding Prima Capita. The settlement later became Dawnsbreak, a port town that mainly serves as the entrance to the realm.
120 years ago the New Docks were set on fire by a Nephilim 'godslayer' who sought to sabotage the Holy Kingdom. The criminal has been caught, but fire destroyed much of southern parts of the city, which has been since rebuilt.
Places of interest:
- the Dawn's Break Docks - main and oldest docks in the city, with a shrine marking original landing of the Holy Father. On a tiny, rocky island near the entrance to the docks a giant statue of the Sun Queen has been erected, reminding everyone entering Ultramar of her radiance. It's usually the first place anyone coming to all of Ultramar sees.
- Mariner's Chapel - small, but prominent chapel located near Dawn's Break Docks.
- The Radiant Scene - theater and restaurant in the northern part of the city, main place of socialisation in Dawnsbreak.
- market - main city market, located in the southern part, near the trade docks and craftsmen's district.
- The New Docks - city's main trade docks. Most authorities advise avoiding the place because of "shady people" - which means unscrupulous Nephilim merchants, not crime.