The Campaign Builder's Guild

In a distant and bizarre universe, forged by the wars of two great Gods, the world of Kalara sits as a blue-green gem in a dark night sky. A great disc of earth, upon which conflicts and peace, religion and atheism, march side by side. It sits at the centre of a great crossroad of burgeoning planes, and invasions by creatures from the Outside are not uncommon. Magic is rife, but mastered only by a very few, and overarching all is the Spirit World, where thoughts are dangerous and anyone can be swept away by a tide of the Creeping Dead. In this land people make their lives, surviving day-to-day by the efforts of brave people... people alike to yourself.

[ooc]Kalara is an ancient effort, from back when the WOTC boards were actually a bookmark of mine. However, I recently was looking through some of the stuff I'd done for it, and I gaped to realise that it was... actually... quite good (even if some of it did have a startling resemblance to Eberron, which I hadn't read when I wrote it). So... voila.[/ooc]

 Creation Theory

Amongst the different continents and religions of Kalara there are many creation theories. Some of these, mostly from the lands north of the Mists, are found below.

[spoiler=Church of the Greatminds, Northern Mushtar]
Before Kalara, there was the Tiet, that raw magical essence from which all other things were born. From this came the Greatminds, those two infinitely powerful creatures of ultimate knowledge and ability. These two fought, as kin or brothers may do, and from the Tiet by their fighting formed a world, a great disc over which their battle could be fought, and many other things that later became the Planes around.

But the Cunning Mind, Yankash, saw this world as a weapon, and threw his brother down into it. Dathran, the Defeated Mind, shattered into a hundred pieces and broke the world in two, forming the Mists. Shooting upwards and pouring downwards from this great gash in the world went much Tiet, forming the Seven Steps to Heaven and Seven Steps to Hell, and where they hit the bottom of the great orb within which the brothers fought, arced outwards, forming a second sphere within the first, Daazar, the Battleground.

From the corpse of Dathran came the little-gods, the Minds From The Greatmind, eggs within the Mists ready to hatch. And Yankash, seeing what he had done, threw himself down into the Mists and died also, but from him, rather than Minds, came the Fiends, the Creatures Without, and other bizarre beasts that settled outside of the World. Later, the Little-Gods created life on Kalara itself, but it is the Greatminds that began the formation.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=The Dreamer Cult, Eastern South Mushtar]Before the World came the Dream, a great mist in which lived only Neqed-Maa, He-Who-Always-Dreams. Neqed-Maa dreamed Kalara and the planes into being, and the variety within these planes only proves his existence, for only Neqed-Maa could have dreamed such things. He dreams still, and when he stops dreaming, the world will end.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Myeste Tribal Beliefs, Maltazak, Satom and Thanir]Once, the Mists were all, covering the rocky surface of Kalara with their horrific cloak. The earth cried out in pain, but no-one heard her. First she created the dragons, but they were overcome easily. Then she created the Rashabbi, the gypsies and their kin, to fight back the Mists. They fought, and they fought, and yet they lost and were also overcome easily. She bred every race in Kalara and more to fight back her coat of death, but all failed like the vermin they so obviously were. So she bred the Myeste, champions of her might, to fight back the Mists, and the Myeste did so easily. Their defeat of the Mists caused the earth to spring forth in greenness, and have many gems and beautiful objects as her children. But the other peoples, jealous of the Myeste, cast them down from their position on high and replaced them with their own foul creations, Fiends and Beings from the Other. So it is that the Myeste became a nomadic people with very little power to influence things amongst the other races.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Shindoka Writings, Daza, Xobesh]Shandak forged the world with his mighty hammer, and through doing so, bred many creatures that spred from his blows like ripples, becoming Fiends. We, the creatures of his terrible might, were chosen to be his favourites, his blessed and worshipful ones, so long as we obeyed his laws. Yet some did not. These ones became corrupted and foul, the Others, the Myestok and Dansheka. These pig-bloods do not deserve to live, and we, the hammers of Shandak's law, will give them their punishment.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=The Ninefold Pantheon, Southern Mushtar, Northern Mushtar and Northern Maltazak]Once, there was one deific creature, and his name was Da'shuul. It was he who forged the world from air and earth, and began the spreading ripples of creation that would forge the Planes. It was then that he realised he could not maintain all of the world alone, so he split into Nine. These Nine made the creatures and plants, the Planes and their creatures and plants, but eventually these Nine also realised that there were not enough of them to look after their creation. And so, finally, these Nine each split into Nine, forming the Eighty-One deities who now form our pantheon, and each of them took a power and region of influence for himself or herself. Their interests are our own, and we must teach this to those who seek to oppose the spread of the Ninefold Pantheon.[/spoiler]

Kalara and the Planes

Kalara itself is a vast disc of earth, alike to our own world in many ways. A sun passes over it day to day and it slowly rotates on itself, keeping a diversity of climate alike to our own. However, there are several major differences with the world itself, not mentioning the outside planes.

[spoiler=The Spectra]Firstly, Kalara is the central disc between the Negative and Positive Spectra, or Spectrums, known by different names across the world. Each of these is a disc near-identical to Kalara, but with two major differences. As you go up the Positive spectrum, everything becomes more vibrant, more 'lifelike'. Wounds heal faster, your senses become sharper, everything is brighter and more in-focus, and time moves more rapidly. On the opposite side, the further down the Negative Spectrum you travel, the slower time goes, the darker everything is, and your senses become duller. Either side can kill you if you travel far enough, and no-one has succeeded in reaching the ends, or indeed more than half way, in anything more than legend. The only creatures that exist in the Spectra naturally are wild and undomesticated animals.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=The Mists]Secondly, Kalara itself is split in two by a great band of thin white mist. Wind, temperature, water and magic alike do not move it. You cannot see more than ten feet into it from the outside, and this distance decreases the deeper in you go. Until a short time ago, no-one had crossed it from either side in living memory, although similarities in culture and language between peoples on either side suggest that either whole peoples have crossed historically or that the Mists have not always been there. It is not just, though, that you are likely to get lost within the Mists - there is some kind of magical effect or malevolent presence within that manipulates those within and loses them for hundreds of years, keeping them alive until they leave, at which point their years pile onto them in seconds. Not only this, but about half a mile in, the earth suddenly tumbles away into a vast crack in the world itself, a crack of unknown depth. Recently, though, thanks to the development of the Rejtaak Navigator, ships have succeeded in travelling through the Mists, and trade connections have been set up by certain nations.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=The Orb and Daazar]Kalara itself is surrounded by a great orb-like shell, a kind of thick band of 'reality' made out of pure Tiet energy, the magic that makes up the world. This itself is surrounded by a second, larger orb, outside which are the 'True Outside', the Planes. Between the two bands, however, is the Battlefield, known by the Church of the Greatminds as Daazar. This is the home of the creatures sometimes called the 'Fiends', semi-humanoid beings that mutate as constantly as they fight amongst themselves. Although they are dangerous to any who come near them and are sometimes considered a 'Threat' to Kalara, they are anything but - whilst too disorganised to attack inwards, the frequent attacks by those from the 'True Outside' are easily defeated by this line of defence, ensuring that only the most serious attacks manage to reach Kalara.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=The True Outside]Beyond the Battlefield is a horrific and bizarre world of apparently infinite size. Fountains of blood, rains of acid and ground made of bone and rotting flesh are some of the more familiar sights, and the creatures go beyond that. Great heaps of flesh with mouths and eyes, masses of tentacles with claws, and skinless masses of organs that flap through the air on wings of bone and muscle are just some of the sights that visitors will at least be able to recognise the 'what', if not the 'how', of.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=The Dreaming and the Spirit World]These two 'planes' are not really planes at all, in the sense that they cannot be visited deliberately, and do not appear to have a plottable existence. All living creatures have a constant presence in the Spirit World, and whilst asleep, they also have one in the Dreaming.

The Spirit World is essentially where Souls reside, living and undead. The thoughts of a living being project themselves via the soul into the Spirit World, and one who knows how to listen can 'hear' thoughts by using this weakness. They can also tell certain things about the person. The Spirit World has no sense of distance or even space, so that you can listen to ANYONE'S thoughts, but doing such things constantly can drive you mad. It is possible to focus on a single person, however, and this is what many do. It is also possible to project your thoughts using another's soul, although this requires skill, and is only one-way. Despite this, it is an infallible form of telepathy.

The Dreaming is supposedly ruled over by Neqed-Maa, He-Who-Always-Dreams, although unlike other gods and pantheons, his power seems to come from a source other than followers. It is seemingly an infinite area divided into equally infinite spaces, into which a Dreamer's consciousness is teleported when sleeping. These spaces often give hints about the future to certain prophets, or seem to at least - one theory about this is that the Dreaming is particularly sensitive to the 'Order', a kind of pattern or convoluted timeline that Kalara is intended to follow, an ever-branching tree of causality, and so great choices in the future affect those in tune to the Dreaming's dreams. Certain people can look into the Dreaming whilst still awake or only half-asleep, although these people are rare even amongst the Dreamer Cult of Southern Mushtar.[/spoiler]

The World





This map shows the five northern and four southern continents of Kalara, north and south of the Mists (although two pairs, as indicated by the dotted lines, are theorised as being connected and thus the same continents). The map also shows the continent Anzhaar, unknown south of the Mists but a legend especially in Mushtar and Maltazak, supposedly inhabited by beautiful females of all species and races (that is, those that the teller or the listener finds attractive) and piled high with gold, silver, and Sidillum, the currency-metal of the Empirate, by the ton. It has never been visited, but that has not stopped foolish or greedy adventurers attempting the voyage on multiple occasions (and inevitably disappearing for a hundred years or more or simply not returning at all).

Magic

[spoiler=Wizardry]The Tiet surrounds everything - it is the force that makes the world work, and more than that, it IS the world. Only a very few extremely talented, one-of-a-kind individuals are bound into the Tiet themselves, and most mages instead use the force named 'Ka', the Soul's energy, to dam and redirect flows in the eternal river that is the Tiet (although this is usually only for a short time).

Tiet can be manipulated by Ka in hundreds of ways. A mage can create a fireball by dragging flames from a lantern and throwing them, or target lightning bolts by ripping electricity from a storm overhead. Only if pure Ka energy is added to the equation can fire, or anything else, be truly created. This makes mages, or more properly Wizards, quite ineffective where battle is concerned, unless they have the materials ready to work with. Most practitioners of this art will call themselves, or at least answer to, 'Wizard'.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Soulsinging]All intelligent creatures have Ka, although it takes natural talent and a measure of training to learn how to use it. Ka is a magical force inherent in the soul of all sentients, whilst Tiet is natural in the world around. Tapping into the Soulsong, the power of the souls within you and around you, is a dangerous act, but when used correctly, this path can be a lethal and effective one. Soulsinging is connected to Listening and Sensitivity, the talents of looking into and listening to the Spirit World, and its practitioners are often driven slightly insane.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Sorcery]
Some powerful mages can use Tiet to manipulate Ka, although this is considered an evil process. Many sorcerous magics, for instance, use Tiet to age the body and soul of a man in seconds, or manipulate his physical body and the chemicals to cause great fear or delusions. Slowing time and other similar effects are alike to this, although they instead freeze the Tiet around the caster, binding it momentarily, and so equally stop the souls of men, and are not considered part of Sorcery.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Summonings]Summonings, on the other hand, pull Tiet out of the world around and force it into a shape wrought from the caster's mind. The summoner must be extremely certain of what he is creating, whether it is a fireball or a living creature, and rather than teasing the Tiet into doing unnatural things, he forges it, using tools made of Ka, into what he desires. A momentary lapse in concentration can cause an explosion that could rip the magical ability or even life outof everyone for miles around, and because of this, Summoners are not exactly popular in most societies. Summoners can also create a semblance of sentience by pulling some of the degenerate strands of Ka massed around the Souls in the Spirit Realm into a body forged of Tiet - the more adept and skilled at this craft a Summoner is, the more intelligent and capable he can make his creations.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Psionics, or the Shadow Art]Psionics works by using superior mental prowess to bend the Tiet in the world around. This should, technically, be impossible, as no force can be detected during the application of a psion's ability. Some scholars both north and south of the Mists have theorised that psionics uses some force of unknown properties, although as it cannot be sensed using any form of magic yet tested, they could be wildly wrong.

Dissection of the Myeste (the only race of men known to be capable of using these abilities) has found an extra lobe, recessive in other men, that seems to be the source of psionic power.

Psions are feared and admired almost everywhere they go. At least seven churches have declared them all heretics, although as most of them are from primitive cultures, very few of them cared very much. An individual openly declaring himself a practitioner of this 'art' in many societies, sadly, must always be on the lookout for traps - any scholar with a sense of curiosity and a strong stomach would give anything for a chance to dissect a psionic brain.[/spoiler]

The Peoples of the North

[spoiler=Mushtari]The Mushtari are a dark-skinned people of many subdivisions, residing in a cultural spread mostly found across the more southerly areas of Northern Mushtar and the west of Southern Mushtar. They gave their continents their names, and are the people who form most of its great nations. Most Mushtari follow the Ninefold Pantheon, although some live within the Xindok nations or amongst the Mendek people in the mountains, and thus follow different beliefs.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=The Mendek]Scattered across the north and east of Northern Mushtar, rarely accepted into normal society, the Mendek are a loose people of olive-skinned hill tribes and mountain clans. Their ways are secretive, and although a small minority work as guides or mercenaries in the lowlands, these individuals are normally looked on with disgust by their brethren. The only other peoples that Mendek commonly associate with are those of the pale-skinned Xindok, who sometimes hire large bands of mercenaries from their number to work as scouts and warriors.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=The Set-Xen Dreamers]As dark as Mushtarians and able to hide as well in flat desert as any other man could in thick forest, the Set-Xen are as secretive as the Mendek and follow a nomadic lifestyle with no chiefs and no tribes. A Set-Xen man's permanent companions are a hunting-dog, a spear, and perhaps a wife and children - larger groups tend to break apart and then reform amongst them. Most follow the Dreamer Cult, giving them their name, and there is not one recorded case of a conversion amongst them to the Ninefold. Despite this, they make excellent trackers, and often serve as the Mushtarian Empirate's reluctant response to the Mendek of the Xindok nations.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=The Myeste]The Myeste are tall and lithe and darker than Set-Xen, a people accustomed to warfare and conquest. Most are nomadic and live in small tribes, banding together beneath Princes and High Princes only when required. Although originally most followed various different traditional religions, they are now an almost 50/50 split between the followers of the Earth-Mother (in various different divisions) and those converted to the Ninefold Pantheon. They are remarkable in that they are the only people to have mastered the use of k'mel and elfanti, the beasts of the desert and savannah that scatters a lot of their lands. [/spoiler]

[spoiler=The Rashabbi]The Rashabbi, according to the histories, were once the rulers of a vast empire stretching from Z'daa in Northern Mushtar across the North all the way to the mists. However this Empire was ended, the Rashabbi are now split into two groups - the Denzin Rashabbi, who are travelling traders of anything, up to and including slaves, and the Shai-La Rashabbi, those who have retreated to the great and fertile Dazaan valley and all its crags and ravines, the ancestral home of the Rashabbi people. They are copper-skinned and speak a language from which the Empirate's Mushtari and many other tongues draw several loanwords, and many seem introvert whilst amongst others. Rashabbi are often spurned when visiting others' lands, and more and more retreat to Dazaan every year.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=The Xindok]The Xindok are a people as pale as ivory, nearing on albino, and this effect is only increased by the facial powders both genders wear as a matter of course. Many Xindok have tilted eyes, and almost all are taller than other men, even the Myeste. The pale skin of a Xindok is shunned by almost all other races, and many consider it alien outside of the Xindok themselves. Xindok hail from Xobesh, where skin ranges from a slight tan to the sheer white of a noble, and their home is a cold land. Unlike other peoples, who generally use the script of the Rashabbi, the Xindok have their own alphabets - five-hundred of them, or so explorers to Xobesh claim. Their languages are many, contextual and toned, and learning their ways is said to be more labyrinthine than the City of Eyes in Maltazak. Many hundreds of thousands of them heeded the visions of one of their prophets three-hundred years ago, going forth in what has been variously translated as the 'Divine Settlement', 'Godly Raid' or 'Great Raid'. This is the origin of the Xindok nations.[/spoiler]

[blockquote=Wensleydale]In a distant and bizarre universe, forged by the wars of two great Gods, the world of Kalara sits as a blue-green gem in a dark night sky. A great disc of earth, upon which conflicts and peace, religion and atheism, march side by side. It sits at the centre of a great crossroad of burgeoning planes, and invasions by creatures from the Outside are not uncommon. Magic is rife, but mastered only by a very few, and overarching all is the Spirit World, where thoughts are dangerous and anyone can be swept away by a tide of the Creeping Dead. In this land people make their lives, surviving day-to-day by the efforts of brave people... people alike to yourself. [/blockquote]
This is certainly an earlier effort, in that it feels ready-made for adventuring.  You've unapologetically set the stage for mayhem in the first paragraph.


I also like that the creation myths compete fairly, and that they are all mythic.  What races comprise the goblinoids?

I love the well constructed, self-contained planar set up.  You are right when you noticed it was good, as it is very straightofrward but leaves a tremendous amount of leeway to play with .

[blockquote=Wenslydale]The Humans' creation is one thing that is known as a 'certainty' by all religions, and although it may not be true, it has a lot of evidence in fact. Supposedly, the Giants (a legendary people) bred them from a mix of elves and fiends, and thus gave them an unstable temperament, a greedy nature, easily mutable genetics and the ability to use the Shadow Art. They are common throughout Kalara, particularly in Northern and Southern Mushtar and the more easterly parts of Maltazak north of the Mists and Thanir and Yashtaan to the south of the Mists. They are often seen as below the other species, especially by dwarves, and were supposedly spread across Kalara by the Giants when that race realised it was dying. Humans turn up relatively frequently (compared to the other races) with mildly fiendish-looking traits such as horns, oddly-shaped eyes, claws and other traits that would not be considered 'normal' in other species.[/blockquote]

A certainty, but might not be true.  The giants made them.  And they are totally mongrels...showing up with horns and tails  sometimes...that;s great.  Having them below the other races, as a 'mongrel' race, is kind of cool.  Do you have mixed countries here, or racially separated ones.

I also love the extinct high elves, and that orcs ans elves are cousin races. I'd like to see more on the emotional makeup of the elves, and am curious if the orcs share a fractured emotional state.

QuoteThis is certainly an earlier effort, in that it feels ready-made for adventuring.  You've unapologetically set the stage for mayhem in the first paragraph.

I also like that the creation myths compete fairly, and that they are all mythic.  What races comprise the goblinoids?[/quote]A certainty, but might not be true.  The giants made them.  And they are totally mongrels...showing up with horns and tails  sometimes...that;s great.  Having them below the other races, as a 'mongrel' race, is kind of cool.  Do you have mixed countries here, or racially separated ones.[/quote]I also love the extinct high elves, and that orcs ans elves are cousin races. I'd like to see more on the emotional makeup of the elves, and am curious if the orcs share a fractured emotional state.[/quote]

Yes, both elves and orcs share the strange emotional makeup. Orcs are essentially the perfect soldiers, whilst elves are more of a cross between a tribe and a monastery.

Thanks for the review. :)

interesting take on the orcs and elves.
What type of adventures did you run/envision for this setting?  What type of players did you have, and how what type interaction did they have with the setting?  did they make major changes, or were they more local?

Quote from: LordVreeginteresting take on the orcs and elves.
What type of adventures did you run/envision for this setting?  What type of players did you have, and how what type interaction did they have with the setting?  did they make major changes, or were they more local?

Well, I have made some rather large changes. But back then, I think the one adventure I ran was travelling to a plane (that I've now cut) and bringing back the creator of the Mistsplane (not a very original name) who then took them on the first ever voyage across the Mists, ever. They made some pretty large changes by doing that, I'd say. Now, though, I'd envision searching for magical secrets, fighting back goblinoid invasions, destroying incursions from the True Outside, and so on and so forth.

Review time... Normal annotations apply.

I like your spirit world, reminds me of a book I read once, about the nightmares that would unfold if our ENTIRE imaginations came ot life, not just our daydreams...

Your creation stories are, quite frankly, odd. Which is good. They sound real. The greatminds one I read, and I'm not going to ven try and figure it out (breaking that into two or three paragraphs might be good, btw).
 
The Dreamers one hits me as funny. Simply becuase it has this air of 'well dur' around it, as well as something one might come up with while heavily drugged.

The Elven one seems perfect; we're the best, we just don't feel like running the show right now. I'm definately getting a vibe of supremecy from it.

I've never seen a monster race creation story that explicitly defines the other races as ugly. It's about damn time. Very, very cool thing, turning the legend to the goblins being the bastions of faith.

the ninefold pantheon reminds me a bit of my pantheon, with the five and 25. It also seems to be a mix of the first one and the goblinoid one in terms of language. I don't know if that was intentional or not, but it make that one strike me as more 'fake' then the others.

 

QuoteYour creation stories are, quite frankly, odd. Which is good. They sound real. The greatminds one I read, and I'm not going to ven try and figure it out (breaking that into two or three paragraphs might be good, btw).

The Dreamers one hits me as funny. Simply becuase it has this air of 'well dur' around it, as well as something one might come up with while heavily drugged.[/quote]The Elven one seems perfect; we're the best, we just don't feel like running the show right now. I'm definately getting a vibe of supremecy from it. [/quote]the ninefold pantheon reminds me a bit of my pantheon, with the five and 25. It also seems to be a mix of the first one and the goblinoid one in terms of language. I don't know if that was intentional or not, but it make that one strike me as more 'fake' then the others.[/quote]

It's deliberate. Northern and Southern Mushtar, where the Ninefold originated, have a large goblinoid population. On top of that, the goblinoid 'home continent' of Xobesh is very close. Mushtarian languages have been influenced heavily by Xobesh tongues. On top of this, the Ninefold is an almost direct extension/interpretation of the Church of the Greatminds, almost as closely linked to it as, say, Christianity is to Judaism.

Nations of Mushtar

Daanzaash

[spoiler=Map]


[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Overview]Government: Monarchy
Capital: Daan'zad Matri Zadhan
Population: 1.5m (45% human, 25% goblinoid, 25% earthkin, 5% orcs)
State Religion: i'Dazi
Imports: Slaves
Exports: Majhrak

Daanzaash is the first of the three Goblin Nations looked on with contempt and fear by the rest of Northern Mushtar. Whereas in other lands, goblinoids are spat on at best and lynched much more frequently, in Daanzaash they are accepted as evenly as humans are. It is one of the few remaining bastions of the Ga'a Naid i'Rashti, the great goblin migration into Mushtar, and the first language of most of its inhabitants is i'Zakda or i'Shakdu, the two majority languages of the goblinoid raiding parties who settled here. Although goblinoids are becoming slowly more rare in Daanzaash, the humans bear many of their traditions and even blood and maintain them with prejudice.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=History]Five-hundred years ago, the goblin Miztari had a vision from Shandak, the Pure God who is all other Gods as one. This vision told Miztari of the Ga'a Naid i'Rashti, the Great Raid (alternately translating as Divine Settlement, high contextuality being a feature of all the i'Maan language family), and instructed him to lead a great army to crush the humans of Mushtar beneath the boots of Those Who Are Higher, the goblinoids.

He did as asked, and through charisma and power led more than twelve-thousand goblin tribes south and east into Northern and Southern Mushtar. He himself landed in the spot known as Rankaa'Zaad, formerly of the nation Dakruuz but recently absorbed into the Mushtarian Empirate. The tribal leader Danshaak, himself a great hero amongst his people and respected by many tribes, led his army east and landed in Daanzaash. He was followed by Rek'Shid, another great leader, who landed slightly north of him, and the two tribes - the Zakri and Shakdu'a - shattered the armies of Tankid, the city-state that ruled most of what is now Daanzaash, and settled rapidly, converting the populace.

Whilst others of the Divine Settlement were slowly pushed back after their first great victories, the Zakri and Shakdu'a formed an alliance and defeated any and all who came against them, extending their lands slowly. The marriage and clan-bonding of the Zak'aad Shamhuul to the Shak'dez Rek'Sha, son of Rek'Shid, united the leading bodies and the clans together into one. Over time, humans became 'goblin' enough to be accepted into the clans of the settlers, and the old ways died out. Humans even bred with goblins, and the current Zha-Shak'dez, the 'Prince' of Daanzaash, is partially human-blooded, born of one of the three (out of seven) human wives of D'raash, the monarch.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Slavery]Slaves are an integral part of all Xobeshi society, apart from a few extremist (and in most goblinoid opinions, foolish) tribes in the north. Certainly none of their beliefs have spread here, and slavery is common here. Slaves are taken during raids, for crimes, and for heresy. Slavery is one of the greatest punishments in the Daanzaash justice system, and often applies to eunuchs (as castration is the punishment for several crimes, including rape and other sexual offences).[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Cities]There are two major cities in Daanzaash, as the Xobeshi way of life, generally living in small walled villages and fortifications, does not really lend itself to cities. These two cities are the capital, Daan'zad Matri Zadhan, and the coastal city of Rashad Danzshaki Riiz. Both are built along the only major river in Daanzaash, the Danzi Rasha, and both revolve around river life, surviving as much off barges as they do off farmland. Hate them as they do, non-goblin-nation traders do not hesitate to trade with the contemptible paleflesh, and goblinoid traders debate prices constantly down at the riverbanks.

Daan'zad Matri Zadhan is much closer inland than its cousin city, and often has to defend outlying territories from raids. It itself, however, is impenetrable. A pair of tall, point-topped towers, built in the distinctive goblinoid style, stand at each river entrance, whilst twinned curtain walls sixteen feet thick and forty feet tall surround the main body of the town itself. The farms are out of necessity mostly found along the river bank, although there are some around smaller oases further out. Daan'zad Matri Zadhan has resisted fifty-three sieges, small and long, with ease, and it shows. It is the Place of the Seat, from where the Zha-Shak'raan, the ruler of the entire nation and tribal chief of seventy-five percent of its true population, commands his countrymen.

Rashad Danzshaki Riiz, on the other hand, is at the end of a long river, sitting upon a wide bay. It has little need of fortifications, and has none, but its docks are immense and outswell the entire rest of the city. It is the landing place of Danshaak, the first Settler Chief, and is thus the place for the Great Shrine of the entire nation - the equivalent to a kind of 'High Temple' or national cathedral. The Shrine itself sits on an island in the mouth of the river, and is surrounded by a complex of priestly quarters, minor temples open to the public for the worship of the Lesser Parts (the minor deities which make up Shandak), and a barracks of temple guards. Rashad has a relatively large population of orcs, mostly slaves, whose ancestors were taken (supposedly) by the Shandaasi Raid on Maltazak. Although no goblinoid settlers remain on Maltazak, orc and elfish slaves remain in Xobesh and the Goblin Nations.[/spoiler]

Nice to see you doing Kalara again.  It was always my favourite Wensleydale setting.   :D

Huzzah! :P

Nations of Mushtar

The Mushtarian Empirate

[spoiler=Map]

[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Overview]
Government: Theocracy
Capital: Dashriik (Ninepeaks)
Population: 18.9 million (90% human, 7% earthkin, 1% elf, 1% orc, 1% goblinoid)
State Religion: The Ninefold Pantheon
Imports: Sirillium
Exports: Gold, Iron, Grain

The Mushtarian Empirate is a fused-together conglomerate of some fifty-three other states, a land ruled over by a goblinoid-hating theocratic Lord. Born out of the throwing down of the Tyrant Zajjan, its people are encouraged to strike down those not of the Ninefold and burn them alive if necessary - ironic, as the same belief is held by many goblinoids.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=History]The Mushtarian Empirate was established seven-hundred years ago in a smaller form by the Tyrant Majrik, who apparently intended it to be an inherited monarchy ruled by his children. His line continued for four decades, with each ruler becoming crueler, until it reached a climax in Zajjan. The Ninefold worshipers, incited by their priests, rose up against the decadent and despotic dictator, killing him and all faithful to him. This threw the entire nation into a power vacuum for twelve long years, during which anarchy reigned. Eventually, the Ninefold Temple emerged victorious, with its own army and leaders, and reestablished peace, slowly. Once the nation had been consolidated, High Priest Dejran declared himself Magisterial Theocrat, a position for life, and created the Theocrats' Council, consisting of twenty other High Priests. He was eventually succeeded by Majtai'i, who expanded the Empirate northwards substantially. It was at this point that the Empirate came up against the Divine Settlement of the Goblinoids, spreading rapidly across Northern Mushtar. It was a conflict that would change the face of Mushtar forever.

It began with small skirmishes across the borders. The exquisitely pale-skinned Goblinoids were foreign to the dark-skinned Imperials, and their faiths seemed created to meet in opposition. Seven major battles were fought to decide the borders of the Divine Settlement, and to decide the fate of Mushtar as a continent. The last, the Battle of Nine Crows, was an auspicious day for the forces of the Ninefold, whose priests teach that Nine Crows means good luck all day long, and so it was this day that they chose to attack.

They swept down on a goblin horde in the mountain fastness of Goblinslayer's Throne, and it is said that only one-tenth of the goblins that came there that day escaped alive, and those with many wounds. This was the battle that ended the Divine Settlement's encroaches on Mushtar, and pushed it backwards into the mordern Goblin Nations. It was also the success that prompted the goblins to seek other, richer raiding grounds, culminating in the Shandaasi Raid.

After this success, a city grew up at Goblinslayer's Throne, a walled city that was in all truth more of a fortress than a home. It is most likely the coldest city in Mushtar, and the highest, and was the home of the invasion that crushed the fourth Goblin Nation of Dakruuz. The Empirate went on to expand across Southern Mushtar, and encroach its power if not its territory across the sea to Maltazak (where it still possesses much influence due to its station as the Head of the Ninefold Faith). If it were not for the Ninefold Temple, the Empirate's influence would be much less, especially in the nations that it has converted, but an official of the Empirate can order executions in nations across the North and people will jump to obey.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Currency]Sirillium is a metal that shines with an almost holographic effect, making light dance across its surface like sunlight on ice, and is used as the currency and the Holy Metal of the Ninefold Temple and by extension the Mushtarian Empirate. So it is, and so it has been, since declared by the first Magisterial Theocrat, Dejran. 'Coins' come in three varieties, the tiny orb-like Shandizi, with only a tiny plating of Sirillium, the larger disc-like Makzat, with two thick orbs of Sirillium set within, and finally the Rajj, large discs of almost pure Sirillium, which it is unlikely a non-noble will set eyes upon. [/spoiler]

[spoiler=Government]The Government is made up of two separate bodies, the Aristocracy and the Clergy.

The Aristocrats, unlike those of other nations, have very little power. They can elect members of state, and are occasionally given minor governmental positions, but the titles are there mostly as honours, a mark of your ancestry, not your power. A wealthy noble will not have gained his money from his title.

The Clergy, on the other hand, range from the Priests and Khaja'ai of the street shrines to the Muja and Rijiin, holders of high office. The highest of the Theocracy are the Theocrats, effectively High Priests with money and higher office, who hold positions on the Council. This Council elects the Magisterial Theocrat, who rules the Empirate. The current Magisterial Theocrat is Hajiin the Benevolent, a man bearing many physical scars from the holy war in Dakruuz of which he is a veteran, and many mental scars from the time he spent manipulating his way through the thick, intrigue-infested politics of Goblinslayer's Throne before ascending to his current position.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=Cities]There are several cities of note in the Empirate.
Dashriik (Fourpeaks): It is said that the Great Dragon Zamiishrrak, in times of old, built himself a nest from rock and fire. If that is true, Fourpeaks is truly it. Four dormant volcanoes, held in check by wards and enchantments constantly held subconsciously by the School of Magi, rest in almost perfect symmetry around an immense bowl of earth. This is an extremely holy place, where the Eighty-One Shrines, holy, pyramid-like structures built to 'hold' the Gods, rest. These lie centred around the ruins of the Emperor's Tower, the folly of the Mad Tyrant Zajj, in order to remind pilgrims of the foolishness of being ruled by a hereditary and inbred despot, and each one is identical in basic shape but decorated greatly with beautifully carved stonework and statues.  

A wall surrounds this inner section of the Bowl, and outside this wall stretches the Great Complex, a warren of corridors, rests, shrines, barracks and governmental features, all indoors. All governmental functions go on within the Four Towers, each of which is built up against one of the Four Peaks, but the rest of the complex is equally important. It holds apprentices, priests, warriors of the temple, government officials, minor treasuries, sacred relics, trading posts and pilgrim-stops. This complex ends in a wall, against the Complex but not a part of it, wide enough for a cart to pass with a man on either side comfortably. This wall has only four gates, and each one is guarded heavily. The Fortress of the Ninefold is not an easily-accessible place.

The sacred river Ya'an runs through the complex, through two of the four gates, and is the source of much of the Fortress' grain and supplies, as well as its water. The river can be blocked as easily as the gates, however, using vast chains welded with long, ship-crippling spikes.

Zank'Da: A city which appears on maps as far away from Dashriik but really stretches to only a few miles away, Zank'Da is a city in which Fourpeaks is always on the horizon. It is, in effect, the TRUE capital of the Empirate, and it is a real city rather than the warlike temple-hold that is Dashriik. Its current governor is the Theocrat Mandiiz, although some say that HIS governor is his Listener, Manshij, a man known for his abilities in the Spirit Realm even amongst the Listeners themselves. Either way, Mandiiz is always accompanied by his shadowy spymaster-magus, and does not seem to act without his guidance.

Taj'ri: This fortification was built to guard the land bridge, and although it is no longer needed, it serves its purpose well. A quarter-mile wide canal was cut through the land bridge itself, and the earth used to create an artificial island. This island is the only area at which the canal can be crossed without a ford, although bridges are now being constructed, slowly. The island is nothing particularly special, however - it is a small town, extending either side of the canal, with twin fortified towers dominating its centre. There are eight bridges extending from Taj'ri, four to either side of the canal, and it is from this that its nickname was brought about - An i'Abn Jamajj - The Spider Fortress. The fortress is ruled over by a minor noble, Daj, and the Muja Sadik, who supposedly has Listeners spread throughout the realm.[/spoiler]

[spoiler=The Listeners]Listening to the Spirit Realm is a refined art in the Empirate, and the Listeners, a loose cult, hire themselves out to lords and governmental officials across the Ninefold states. They are expensive, and keep their secrets, but they are effective spies and tools at court. However, some of the most basic training a priest or noble, or one wanting to become a bodyguard or duellist, will receive, is learning how to clear your head of surface thoughts, and then deeper thoughts, until only the silence of one totally automatic, a weapon, is left. Whether you train with the blade or not, this method is important in any place where Listeners are employed. Some Listeners work as spies or even champions, as a Listener's skills in a battle, or in seeing a conspiracy as it forms, can be invaluable to officials who live dangerously.[/spoiler]