Notable Locations and World Information

Eascaea

Eascaea is the name for the land in which all of the kingdoms reside. It has been inhabited by elves and dwarves and humans and dragon-kin for thousands upon thousands of years, and has cradled their progress of those many, many years as a parent cradles a child. Two centuries ago saw the invasion of the Drow from the unnamed lands to the north of Eascaea, and in the recent century they have started to assert themselves even more, leading to the current wars.

Human Kingdom:

Arcadon: Port kingdom of the south. The capital city is Rhodiva, which is at the very southern tip of the kingdom. They are the most separated from the Drow invasion, and so are the most reluctant to send support troops. In general, this kingdom is filled with merchants and more wealthy citizens, and are adept at sailing. The people are more intellectually inclined than the other human nations, and have enjoyed easier lives than the other kingdoms. They do, however, turn out a fairly large percentage of pirates and more illicitly inclined professions.

Indica: The hill kingdom in the east, running just west along the Thern mountains. The capital city is Salena, located in the center of the kingdom. Because they live close to the mountains, they have taken in many dwarven refugees, and are more willing than the Arcadons to send troops to fight. In general, they are a laid back people, who spend much of their time farming and raising livestock, though they are famous for their tenacity as a people, and great equality between men and women.

Thern: The mountainous kingdom of the north, though the mountains curve around the entire eastern side of the land. The capital city is Norasis, and it is easily the largest of all of Thern's towns, and holds most of the population. Some of the kingdom of Thern spills over into the plains at the base of the mountain, but for the most part, the citizens live in small, clustered towns built into the side of the rock. Because there is very little farmland, each family must make do with what they can, either by keeping private gardens or livestock that is able to survive the harsh environment. Because of the harsh nature of their kingdom, the Thernese people are naturally tough, and know how to keep care of their own, and are the most 'powerful' of the human kingdoms.

Elven Kingdom:

The entire Elven kingdom resides within the Ethenulian Forest, which reaches from the south-east, and borders the land all the way to the north-west. While the forest is not the sole 'property' of the elves, most races regard it as theirs, and so keep out of it, except for a few spots where humans feel it safe to use for lumber.

Istion: Capital city in the south-western part of the forest. The most densely populated of the elven cities, and also the most advanced and closed off. It is most known for the way the city glows in the night, for a special breed of moss that grows on the rocks, casting a bluish glow all over the city. Though there is no true monarchy of elves, the elves of Istion would be considered 'noble' among the other elves. It is unique among elven cities in that all of its citizens live in constructed houses, rather than in tree-houses (some cities have some constructed buildings, but not to the degree that Istion has them).

Star Lake: A spectacular natural wonder that lies just outside of Istion, the Star lake is a lake about a half-mile across, with crystal clear waters. The bottom of the lake is entirely covered with the glowing moss found in Istion, and so, at night, the entire lake glows like a star. It is considered a sacred spot among the elves, from all over the forest.

Athlene: A larger elven 'city', located in the north western part of the forest, almost to the point where the forest meets the Thern mountains. While the Istion elves might be considered aristocratic, the elves of Athlene live simpler lives, and are known to be slightly more hostile than their fairer brethren, having to deal with their harsher woods. This does not mean, however, that they are cruel or even overly suspicious; it just seems to be so when compared to other elves. The woods are darker and rougher the closer they get to the mountains, and so more care must be taken to keep it safe. However, among the elves, they are also the most open to outsiders, despite the unwillingness of most to enter their forest.

Dwarven Kingdom:

All of the underground mountain tunnels and caves and caverns belong to the Dwarves. Even though the mountains under which the Dwarves live belong to the human kingdom of Thern, the two races rarely have anything to do with each other.

Unfortunately, at this moment in time, all of the Dwarven kingdom has been taken over by the Drow, resulting in the death of almost half the Dwarven race, and the fleeing of the rest to the human kingdoms of Thern and Indica.

Byzerea: The city from which the dwarven king rules, in the north of the Thern mountains. The city is entirely carved from massive caverns inside the mountain, and if one should stand in it, it would make you feel no larger than an ant. The stone workmanship is the pride of the dwarven kingdom, and had been worked thousands of years before to stand just as strong in the present day. Byzerea is just slightly larger than Thosion, which is a more recent construct. The dwarves of Byzerea are more inclined to be stone workers, blacksmiths, and jewel-smiths.

Thosion: The sister city to Byzerea, they are almost identical in craftsmanship, though Thosion was constructed a few centuries after Byzerea, in order to accommodate the growing kingdom. Still, it hardly suffers from a lack of beauty or skill in its stone-craft. The dwarves of Thosion are more inclined to be inventors and miners.

The Deep Caves: The caves have no official name, but they have been regarded with more affection by the dwarves than they give even their own families. The caves are the richest in the entirety of Eascaea, and, as the dwarves like to say, you barely have to scratch the surface of the rock to rind a sizable gem or vein of precious metal.

Drow Conquered Lands:

The Drow have no land of their own, except for their underground tunnels far, far to the north, where not even the Dwarves will tread, and this 'homeland' has no name outside of the complicated Drow tongue. Because of their naturally violent nature, this land was never enough, and in the past century the Drow have begun to attack the Dwarven kingdom, attempting to take if for their own. In the past year, they have finally succeeded, though in-fighting prevents them from having yet given a 'name' to their newly conquered kingdom.

Orobai Kingdom:

The Orobai 'kingdom' is less of a kingdom in the traditional sense than it is a single massive city carved into the high northern mountainsides. The dragons were always relatively few in number and had no need for homes or cities, but since they began recalling their dragon-turned-human brethren back to the mountains, the need for actual infrastructure became apparent. With a natural affinity for beauty, they built a city to rival even dwarven craftmanship, known to the rest of the world as the Eyrie, and to the Orobai simply as 'home.' Orobai numbers never grew to such an extent that the need for more cities ever arose, and their recent decline in numbers have even left many parts of the Eyrie in disuse. No other creatures are permitted in the Orobai home.

The Order Head Quarters:

It is said that the Order of Five Stars once held their head quarters on solid earth like the rest of the races, but no longer. In order to assure that the Order remained impartial and unaffiliated with any one kingdom, they took their headquarters and, with the help of dragon and elven magic, lifted it up into the skies. The Order HQ is now a floating island, drifting above Eascaea, always moving and difficult to locate unless one is a member of the Order. It consists of a simple yet large temple complex complete with personal quarters, training grounds, and living areas. There is also a small-scale village of sorts surrounding the elevated temple where farmers have dedicated their lives to farming the small plots of land needed to supply the Order and it's inhabitants with food (as it is not possible to always purchase food from the ground below). In return, these farmers, and the few craftsmen (blacksmiths, tailors, etc.) living there, who so dutifully keep things running on the floating island, get to live peaceful lives without fear of famine, poverty or violence and are free to leave if they so choose.

Many (ridiculous) rumors circulate Eascaea concerning how the members of the Order descend and ascend their floating home. The knights allow these rumors to persist, finding them to be a source of amusement, and closely guard the true manner in which they get to and from 'home.' It helps to protect their island from invasion, as well as continues the spread of the humorous wild theories.