Post by Dead Greyhawk on Jun 30, 2008 19:18:25 GMT -5
An Overview of The Islands
History is a torn and ragged book, splattered by blood and grime, whole passages and chapters gone missing. Men may have always been on the Islands, or perhaps they are newly come. No one knows. No one cares.
Jutting out of the sea, the Islands are filled with tall, fearsome mountains. The interior of the Islands are perilous, with strange creatures and beasts making their homes there, and ill-suited to civilization. The fiercest and most independent folk pull a meager bounty from the rocky soil perched on the mountainsides. Only the shores provide truly arable land, and the sea provides its bounty to any and all able to sail it. Man’s most enduring influence has been along the coast, scattered among seaside towns and hamlets and two great cities.
Far to the East is the Land of Sand, a barren, raised place girded with a thin layer of greenery below a great escarpment and along the coast. This place is filled with nomad tribes following foreign religions. The intolerant Thune worship their one god and protect the hidden tombs, strange pyramids, and mysterious sites of the deserts from despoilment. The Symbayan Sultanate claims to rule over all the land, but their power is thinner than the veils they wear and is limited to the oases. The Shaham, servitors of their Crimson King, are the most accessible, living near the coastal lands, and the most dangerous, as they resort to banditry and prey on all others.
To the West is the limitless ocean. A few lonely isles dot the vast sea, but ships sailing westward generally fail to return. Sun-mad mariners have claimed to spot strange rigged ships flying from contact with them, but these rumors have never been shown true.
To the South is the Kingdom of the Sun, a jungle land wreathed in mystery. The bountiful riches of timber, food, and raw materials have led to many attempts to settle the coast, all of which have ended in failure. Now, only temporary settlements, no more than a year or two in duration, exploit the land’s resources. Deep within the jungle are massive stone structures covered by vegetation.
Off to the North is the Land of Ice, known to the fool barbarians that live there as the Land of Song. A frozen and inhospitable land unable to support its inhabitants, it disgorges waves of raiders in their longships to descend on the Islands and wreak havoc and spread fear. It is only recently any degree of accommodation has been made with the tribes of the northlands and the raids cease.
The Northmen’s raids led the men of the Islands to gather together for protection, and eventually two great cities grew, one on each island, facing each other across the Bitter Strait. The cities are enormous, with over a hundred thousand folk living within them and even more in the surrounding lands. Their rulers have become overproud, taking on grandiose names such as the Invincible Overlord of North Island and the World Emperor of the Southern Island, and no longer view each other as allies but as rivals. Their vassals, petty lords all, send tribute of men and goods to these hard-minded, heavy-handed rulers and are thus left to their own devices. Intrigues, gamesmanship, and plots mark their daily lives.
For those without riches, few opportunities await them. The sea trade is closed to those lacking a charter, bought, stolen, or seized, and the cities are treacherous for those without a place. The churches take lesser sons and cast-offs from noble families. The rest are faced with three stark options: join a city’s army or a noble’s guard, turn brigand or bandit and prey on others, or become treasure seekers, eking out a life by searching the ruins of the lands.
Fortunately, the Islands themselves are lands of ruins. Crumbling towers, monasteries, and castles dot the countryside. Shrines to hundreds, perhaps thousands, of lost gods — demons all — are sprinkled high and low. Whether Man built these shrines is lost in the annals of missing history, but it is certain that some men worship at them now and that their beliefs have entered with them into both of the great cities. Many of these ruins remain unspoiled, and riches may lie within any or none of them. The blasted lands to the east have provided many a ne’er-do-well with a life of leisure, as many of the tombs and shrines are filled with gems, jewels, and valuable artifacts. Of course, the Thune slay many more tomb-robbers than return rich and diplomacy with the Shaham is always uncertain. Lastly, a thriving business of mercenary protection of the settlements in the jungles to the south provides a dangerous but profitable employment, and many of the guards return with more than merely their pay.
History is a torn and ragged book, splattered by blood and grime, whole passages and chapters gone missing. Men may have always been on the Islands, or perhaps they are newly come. No one knows. No one cares.
Jutting out of the sea, the Islands are filled with tall, fearsome mountains. The interior of the Islands are perilous, with strange creatures and beasts making their homes there, and ill-suited to civilization. The fiercest and most independent folk pull a meager bounty from the rocky soil perched on the mountainsides. Only the shores provide truly arable land, and the sea provides its bounty to any and all able to sail it. Man’s most enduring influence has been along the coast, scattered among seaside towns and hamlets and two great cities.
Far to the East is the Land of Sand, a barren, raised place girded with a thin layer of greenery below a great escarpment and along the coast. This place is filled with nomad tribes following foreign religions. The intolerant Thune worship their one god and protect the hidden tombs, strange pyramids, and mysterious sites of the deserts from despoilment. The Symbayan Sultanate claims to rule over all the land, but their power is thinner than the veils they wear and is limited to the oases. The Shaham, servitors of their Crimson King, are the most accessible, living near the coastal lands, and the most dangerous, as they resort to banditry and prey on all others.
To the West is the limitless ocean. A few lonely isles dot the vast sea, but ships sailing westward generally fail to return. Sun-mad mariners have claimed to spot strange rigged ships flying from contact with them, but these rumors have never been shown true.
To the South is the Kingdom of the Sun, a jungle land wreathed in mystery. The bountiful riches of timber, food, and raw materials have led to many attempts to settle the coast, all of which have ended in failure. Now, only temporary settlements, no more than a year or two in duration, exploit the land’s resources. Deep within the jungle are massive stone structures covered by vegetation.
Off to the North is the Land of Ice, known to the fool barbarians that live there as the Land of Song. A frozen and inhospitable land unable to support its inhabitants, it disgorges waves of raiders in their longships to descend on the Islands and wreak havoc and spread fear. It is only recently any degree of accommodation has been made with the tribes of the northlands and the raids cease.
The Northmen’s raids led the men of the Islands to gather together for protection, and eventually two great cities grew, one on each island, facing each other across the Bitter Strait. The cities are enormous, with over a hundred thousand folk living within them and even more in the surrounding lands. Their rulers have become overproud, taking on grandiose names such as the Invincible Overlord of North Island and the World Emperor of the Southern Island, and no longer view each other as allies but as rivals. Their vassals, petty lords all, send tribute of men and goods to these hard-minded, heavy-handed rulers and are thus left to their own devices. Intrigues, gamesmanship, and plots mark their daily lives.
For those without riches, few opportunities await them. The sea trade is closed to those lacking a charter, bought, stolen, or seized, and the cities are treacherous for those without a place. The churches take lesser sons and cast-offs from noble families. The rest are faced with three stark options: join a city’s army or a noble’s guard, turn brigand or bandit and prey on others, or become treasure seekers, eking out a life by searching the ruins of the lands.
Fortunately, the Islands themselves are lands of ruins. Crumbling towers, monasteries, and castles dot the countryside. Shrines to hundreds, perhaps thousands, of lost gods — demons all — are sprinkled high and low. Whether Man built these shrines is lost in the annals of missing history, but it is certain that some men worship at them now and that their beliefs have entered with them into both of the great cities. Many of these ruins remain unspoiled, and riches may lie within any or none of them. The blasted lands to the east have provided many a ne’er-do-well with a life of leisure, as many of the tombs and shrines are filled with gems, jewels, and valuable artifacts. Of course, the Thune slay many more tomb-robbers than return rich and diplomacy with the Shaham is always uncertain. Lastly, a thriving business of mercenary protection of the settlements in the jungles to the south provides a dangerous but profitable employment, and many of the guards return with more than merely their pay.