Ortho: Nations, Provinces, People, Places

Crossposting stuff from my LJ to Planewalker is just fine, as long as proper credit is given. Any failure on my part to do so promptly is just me being an eccentric bum.

Okay, havin' been given the go ahead on postin' from Eldershinx's LJ that stuff Orthoan that has yet to make it to this venue, here is Eldersphinx's Immergaunt (28 Jan 06):

This may have been discussed before, but I can't seem to remember...Has slavery, at least in its most basic form, been abolished on Ortho?...That is, is the private ownership of another as chattel been banned?...
Kwint

Clueless-The 'Edit A Post' screen took forever to load...Is if because of the thread size?...

Because I hope to make Measure One by my birthday and also because I, on occasion, like to enable laziness (see this post), I present the latest entry from Eldersphinx's LJ, "The Monsters of Ortho, Part I" (01 Feb 06):

In any case, I was originally thinking about making the post to Ortho in a single lump, once both parts were online. (Doing 2000 words of writing in one day, then breaking it in half for daily posting, lets me have a short but welcome period of laziness.) Since it's there now, tho, I'll refrain. Thanks!

I was looking over my map of Ortho, and (surprise, surprise) a few questions arose in my mind...I know the cities of Delastra and Steelgate originated from Rip's site and there they are described as having been flooded due to rising ocean levels...Now I am under the impression this is not so with our Ortho...So, my question is, what is the importance of these cities?...Are they the provincial capitals of their respective provinces?...I know the Isles have not been written up yet, but what do you think?...Clueless, Iathra is your baby, is Delastra that province's capital or just an important trade port?...If it is not the capital, what is?...

As an aside, I figure y'all feel I should be finishing up my provincial write-ups instead of askin' questions, but with my brother in the hospital and lots of work at my job to distract me, questions come easier...I've been jotting down thoughts and notes in lieu of writing text, which it seems I'm at a loss for at the moment...Semi-heated forum interactions is also a distraction I've participated in lately, but a fun one, so sue me...Okay, I'm starting to dig a hole, so I best finish up here...

Kwint

So, here's 95% of my entry for the Province of Omospondia...Any thoughts and/or suggestions on how to better it are more than welcome...
Kwint

OMOSPONDIA - Land of Heroes
This land, located on the western half of the Parsadian peninsula, has been ever known for its mythic warriors, agricultural production, traditionally strong navies and classical culture. Omospondia is an ancient name, originally describing those city-states along the western and southern coasts of Parsadia that unified under a confederation of equals to defeat the mercantile power of Dardonian League and its monopoly on eastern and southern trade. It disappeared and reappeared throughout history ultimately to be resurrected by the Harmonium to describe the entirety of western Parsadia. Located in the northwest corner of the continent of Keln, it was from here that the humans of much of Mot originated, a legacy that would come back to haunt the land during the Great War of Unification.

Ancient Omospondia and Parsadia
Many are the tales of the heroes of ancient times who helped shape the culture of this land- Iotar of Hiota, who slew the hundred hands tall Giagantos who had despoiled the Agiosopolis of Krotos and carried away Chrysemene, First Daughter of Epidonus; Myrgidar of Koma, who outwitted Pyroklaxion the Crimson Scourge, convincing her to devour her children that were harrying the Mines of Zomos; Pertalos of Nisiprasinos, who convinced the Sea Devils of the Lykos (Wolf) Straits to seek their true homeland in the Southern Oceans, securing the sea lanes for his people; Protokles, Archon of Phemis, who introduced the concepts of democracy and republican government; Phleogone of Xios who stopped a war and brought tears to the eyes of the gods with her sculpture, The Lost. These are but a few of the heroes of Omospondia’s mythic past, but foremost of the heroes of ancient times was Iskandros.

Iskandros was the grandson of King Aotar, who had invaded the Land of Heroes from his holdings of Kokinos (‘Rhendholm’ in Ulfar) in Ulfrheim and conquered the city-states of western Parsadia, including Krotos, Alaens and Bisos of Omospondia, and establishing the intercontinental Kingdom of Aotarium. Aotar’s son, King Hakos, established a capital at Aotaria and solidified the new kingdom , but expanded it no further. Hakos’s son, Iskandros, was not content to merely rule this new kingdom, for in his youth he had sought out the Seer of Iphika and knew his destiny was to expand the kingdom or die. And expand it he did. He took the combined martial and magical styles of his Ulfrheim heritage and Parsadian birth land, creating a new style army and conquering the remaining city-states of Old Omospondia, those of southeastern Parsadia, most of modern Karazam and the northern coast of modern Hazhkan, creating the largest Kelnic empire of ancient times. So great were his accomplishments and so adored was he by the people of the new Empire of Iskandria that he was elevated to divinity upon his ritual suicide at the temple complex in ancient Gurakat (modern Iskandral).

But not all was gyros, olives and wine. Those who spoke out for old freedoms and traditional independence were exiled to colonies west across the Iron Sea by the tens, possibly hundreds, of thousands throughout Iskandros’s reign. Others followed the exiles to the west voluntarily, silent in their opposition to the empire, yet seeking the same freedoms.

Although Rhendholm and the western colonies would rebel a generation after Iskandros’s death, the rest of the empire would last for centuries under the conqueror’s dynasty, expanding and retracting ever so. Ultimately, as happens to all dynasties, an emperor had no children and no siblings. Thus was the fate of Klontos the Sad, the last Iskandrian emperor. Upon his death, the empire broke down into its component parts, ruled by Klontos’s distant cousins, power happy generals or strong-willed city magistrates. Western Parsadia reached back to the days of yore and reestablished Omospondia to control trade between the inner seas and the Western Ocean. Omospondia also reestablished control over their colonies across the Iron Sea. The cities of central Parsadia fell back into ancient ways, warring amongst themselves for the various resources of the Central Peaks. Iskandral and the rest of the far eastern provinces of the empire accepted the new Kisto-Iskandrian dynasty that would ultimately establish the Karazam Empire. The Iskandrian lands along the northern Hazhkani coast elevated General Padipoodra to the Raj, only to have that kingdom splinter time and time again as various heirs outlived their royal parents.

This state of affairs lasted for a century or so until waves of Ogrish nomads from the east raided through eastern and central Parsadia weakening the city-states there and ultimately forcing them to join the new Karazam Empire that hounded after (some say paid) them through central Parsadia. Eventually, the Ogres were forced northward into [insert name of Province #6], but the damage had been done. The agricultural and mineral resources, as well as the ports, of the central peninsula was now the property of the eastern empire, while the Omospondian city-states and other independent kingdoms of the west were eventually relegated to a vassal-like status. This situation continued as such until the Great War broke out first in Iathra, then Pan Thaera and the Elven Shaar and ultimately coming to a conclusion on the Parsadian peninsula.

Omospondia During the Great War of Unification
The nations of the Parsadian peninsula were generally unfazed by the Great War when it broke out in Iathra, although a great deal of trade in grains and iron increased with the Pan Thaeran Confederation. When the Knights of Harmony turned against Pan Thaera, Omospondia continued trade with the island nation and many mercenaries from the city-states set sail for the islands. Few of them returned. Concern, and in some instances panic, emerged as news that the Knights had allied with the Tyrants of Motmurk and were giving their support to the colonists in Xaric. Trade with the nations of Mot ceased and its ports were blockaded by the Omospondian navy. While the war progressed from Pan Thaera to the Elven Shaar, the nations of the Lykos Straits and the Sidero (Iron) Sea began to boil.

//more forthcoming for this section

Geography
Omospondia is a province extremes, from jungles in the southwest to forests in the central midlands to the Desert of Sweet Sighs in the northeast. Gentle sandy beaches are found along the shores of the Asimi (Silver) Sea and Drako (Dragon) Sea in the south, rocky beaches along the Sidero Sea in the west and cliff riddled shores along the Lykos Straits. With its great rivers and inland lakes, much of the land has been cleared over the last millennium and Omospondia’s plains are some of the best farmland in the world, producing huge amounts of grain, fruits and vegetables as well as textile fiber plants such as cotton and flax. The central highlands are rocky and jagged and are thus the least populated portion of the province. The region is generally used for the herding of goats and sheep and the mining of copper, tin and to a lesser degree, iron, gold and silver, as well as minor gemstones. With the exception of the Desert of Sweet Sighs and the central highlands, the land is plush with vegetation and life.

The Desert of Sweet Sighs
In the northeast corner of Omospondia lies the barren sands and rocks of the ever-expanding lands of the Desert of Sweet Sighs. This region, which reaches as far east into Karazam as it does west into Omospondia, is completely without any natural life, either flora or fauna, and those who enter it soon are dead as well for the sun, and the land itself it seems, leaches water from the body. A breeze, which in the summer may build to a great and constant wind, blows at all times throughout this devastated land, reminding those foolish enough of the sighs of both lovers and those at death’s door.

But this is not the land as it always was. A little over four centuries ago, this land was another of the poli, Zotikopolis, the City of the Fey Folk. The elves of this land were fair, with a set of grey elven philosophers as leaders, a high elven middle class of merchants and military leaders and humans of the area as laborers, farmers and militia, all happily co-existing, tending the great fields of barley and wheat and the orchards of peaches, apples and pears. But then came the orcish armies of Motmurk during the Great War.

Those who could not reach the magically reinforced walls and were not slain in the original onslaught were driven to the winds. Those within the walls were to withstand a siege that would last a decade. Half way through the seige, elven refugees from the south appeared within the walls, the lone survivors of the Shaar Slaughter. Zotikopolis was the last stand for the elves of Ortho. But those that came from the south, were not of the same nature as the goodly, if independent, elves of the north. They were a bitter and cruel folk who sought vengeance. They began a ritual that would take five years, a ritual that would sap the life of both those who laid siege to the city and those who dwelled within, for the dark elves of the south saw that the only victory that could be achieved would take centuries, maybe millennia, as well as their lives.

So it was that after five years and a pact with Mab, the bitter Queen of Air and Darkness, those within the city and on the land around its walls were dehydrated so quickly that the wind that blew from the south blew away all trace of the attackers and all organic items they used or carried, leaving behind only their arms, armor and metal equipment. A constant breeze picked up, one that has yet to die, and whistled through the city. It is this breeze that gives the region its name. The remainder of the orcish forces that were unaffected tore down the now easily razed walls of the city, set fire to the city and the fields around it, salted the earth and declared victory over the last of the faeries of Ortho.

But in the ensuing decades and centuries, the area did not grow back and the area of devestation grew. It took the world government a century to realize that something was wrong and another century to realize what was wrong was growing. Divinations and auguries gave no information on what had occurred or what was happening and the Harmonium was distracted by other issues during this time. Thus it was not until a century ago that they realized that the spread of the desert could apparently not be averted. The cities of Petris to the southwest and Taruf in Karzam have been overcome and deserted.

Recently, it has been observed that the effect extends out into the sea, as the salinity of the Bay of Zotika has risen to levels that can no longer sustain most sea life. At its edges, fish that enter the area quickly die and seaweed shrivels and floats to the surface; both wash ashore creating a great deal of stink. If not checked in some fashion, the Desert of Sweet Sighs may, one day, cover the entirety of Ortho.

Provincial Government
The center of life in Omospondia is the poli, or city-state, and as such, the provincial government is highly decentralized. The Chamber of Ambassadors in Alaens is the de facto parliament of Omospondia, responsible for disseminating the federal laws from Harmony’s Glory to each of the poli. It is also responsible for affirming or rejecting the Omospondian representatives of the Harmonium and the Church and to directly elect the State representative to the Council of Ortho. Otherwise, its only other function is to adjudicate any disputes between the varied poli.

People and Cities
The people of Omospondia are wide and varied, ranging from the tawny skinned in the east to the fairer skinned in the west, but, on the whole, they all have a few things in common. Each is fiercely proud of his home poli, whether it be metropolitan Alaens or smaller, more rural Tritheon. The people are hardworking and proud of its heroic heritage, and as a result, many sign up with the Harmonium to serve in the expansion of Ortho throughout the multiverse. Given its location near the equator, in summer the people work hard in the morning and afternoon, taking a mid-day rest, while in the winter, they rise later and retire earlier, working the day straight through. In evenings, they celebrate life with a gusto rarely rivaled on Ortho, and on Godsday, all answer the calls of the bells of the Church of Law, whether it be in the poli temple or local village shrine.

The Greater Poli
Alaens: The City of Marble is the provincial capital and as its name implies most of its great civic buildings are constructed from marble quarried on the island of Marbos in the middle of the Bay of Agos on the Asimi Sea. These include the Hall of Ambasadors, the Queen's Palace and the attached Temple of Alae, as well as the Great University of Iathiphos.
Aotaria: The ancient capital of the kingdom of Aotar, grandfather of Iskandros, was razed during the Great War four centuries past. It has been rebuilt and serves as both the Harmonium navy’s main port in the eastern Sidero Sea and the gateway to western Omospondia from the Xaric.
Bisos: The City of Bulls is the first city on the inner seas for those coming from the south and is the shipping port for the varied exports from the jungles of southwest Omospondia. These include teak and mahogany, rice and millet from the interior as well as saffron, cinnamon and nutmeg among other spices.
Darda: The Gateway City is the entry point to the Drako Sea, built twenty-five miles from the ruins of fabled Dardonus. It is also the hub of the fishing industry of the central portion of the inner seas.
Hiota: The City of Warriors has a long tradition of warfare and sided with the Harmonium against any who would stand against them during the Great War. As such, it holds the greatest Temple of Didairdin in all of Omospondia. The god’s blessings can be seen in the bountiful harvests that are exported from this city each year.
Iphika: The City of Poets hosts a challenge each year to see who can best express the virtues of harmony. Its Great Library is home to some of the most ancient scrolls depicting the valorous deeds of Omospondian heroes of yore.
Krotos: The City of the Old Ones is best known for the ruins of the Agiosopolis, a temple of the once united pantheon that split into the Lords of Law and the Lords of Chaos. The city is also a center of iron mining, a metal once thought to be the blood of the ancient gods.
Koma: The City of Naerids was once known for the enchanting fey that lived off the shores of Lake Hogos, but now is primarily known for the wheat production of the plains to the north and freshwater fishing of the lake.
Ledes: The City of Red Sails is the main port for the wheat grown around it and in central Omospondia. This wheat is primarily shipped to the teeming millions in Iironda and Hazhkan. The Ledean Regatta, held annually, is one of the most prestigious sailing events of Keln.
Nisiprasinos: The City of Seawolves was once known as a pirate haven for the feared seawolves of the Lykos Straits. It is now known for its great pine forests, which are tended well by Harmonium druids, and its shipyards which reap the rewards of those forests.
Petris: Once the City of Golden Fields, Petris is now a ruin, taken in by the Desert of Sweet Sighs a century ago. All that is to be found there now is thirst, sand and madness.
Phemis: The City of Democracy is the cradle of republicanism in the north, a philosophy that rules a third of the poli in Omospondia. It is also the center of cotton production for the province.
Rhogma: The City of Dance is best known for its dance studios. People from all over Ortho come to learn both ancient and modern forms of dance. Its Kaisos Troop performs the world round and for the various courts of Ortho. On a more mundane level, it is also the producer of the finest shoes and footwear in all Omospondia.
Xios: The Frozen City is not named such because of its climate, but for its tradition of fine sculptors. Statues of great heroes can be found on almost every street corner. Once the capital of one of the major provinces of both the Iskandrine and Karazam Empires, it controls much of the land to the north and west of the city. This includes a great deal of exceptionally arable farmland, as well as the white marble quarries of Sipsos.
Zomos: The City of Bronze is the mining center of the province. Its mines producing copious amounts of copper and tin, as well as a bit of silver and gold, although the latter two are found to the west in greater quantities if not in greater concentration.

Leaders
The greatest of leaders of Omospondia are not on the provincial level, but on the level of the city-state. Of these the foremost are:

Iapitea of Alae is the Queen-Priestess of Alaens and is the moral leader of the province as well as its heart and soul. It is she who, through her will and empathy, makes sure that the commoners of the province are not taken advantage of and that none go hungry.

Archon Euthipites of Phemis encourages any and all in the province who are not happy with their lot to join the Harmonium and improve themselves. He attempts to spread the beliefs of his poli to others whose royal houses are waning. He is currently in his fourth five year term, which show how popular he is as one cannot serve as Archon for more than one term in a row.

King Constantiosis of Hiota makes sure that every citizen of his poli is well trained in arms and combat, despite the lack of a local enemy. All citizens capable of doing so are required to join the Harmonium in some form or another, although most serve in its military wing. His son Nostonios currently serves in the Spelljamming fleet and has attained a rank of Measure Five and captains the ship Concordant Belief.

The Dictator of Zomos is Opitomes, whose taskmasters constantly remind the workers of the city that they will be judged by Tyerusus at life’s end, so that the harder they work the better that they will be judged. The city pays all funeral costs for its citizens and has some of the finest and most beautiful cemeteries in the province. Opitomes makes sure all workers are fairly, if not extravagantly, paid for their labors and that those who break the law are paid for their transgressions.

The King of Iphika, the half-elf Kristoles, has begun a decade long program to move the city to the west, preparing for the apparently unstoppable growth of the Desert of Sweet Sighs to the east. The building of the town of Iphikara is being paid for out of the coffers of the poli, with the blessing of its citizens, many of which are the descendants of those who fled ruined Petris.

Plot Hooks
//forthcoming

Map of Omospondia and Its Neighbors

Blah, blah, blah...Edited the Omospondia write-up on the previous page for bad grammar/syntax and run-on sentences...Blah, blah, blah...Probably still needs more work...Blah, blah, blah...
Kwint

Eldersphinx-
Are you picturing the Desert of Uathein occupying the entire eastern border of Karazam (roughly 2000 miles from Keln'in to the Great Northern Sea), the northern spur of the Flamedance Mts. (that portion of Karazam east of the Zamia Valley on the map below)...Are you picturing something like Afghanistan with the Hindu Kush rising up from the scrublands around it...That's my generic perception of that portion of south Asia anyway...

Also, 'cause I like to bang my head against the forum walls, what is the Neverseen's alignment?

Kwint

'eldersphinx' wrote:

Uathein occupies as much of Karazam as is convenient. It's intended less to be a complete provincial writeup and more of a smaller subregion - interesting enough to draw some attention, not so sizeable that it has a major impact on the world at large. Overall size probably works out to a few hundred miles on a side.

So, here's the updated map of Ortho...I've indicated the 'sites' with initials so the map is a little less congested...I've also given the 'common tongue' names for the various bodies of water as opposed to local names (such as the Great Boreal Sea for the Great Northern Sea or the Sidero Sea for the Iron Sea)...
Kwint

To clarify, I guess I was trying to say, "Here's a little bit of history (or is it myth?) for the seas of the area; use it as you will"...Just a reminder for consitancy's sake...

Also, the ancient heroes of Omonspondia was generally meant to be little pieces of lore that identify the mythic heroism* of the area as well as being something a DM might grasp onto and develop into some sort of adventure; you know, looking for lost treasures of the heroes or their opponents, that sort of thing...

kwint

*Of course, in a D&D world, these sorts of things are a little less mythic and a little less heroic in our perception of the words...

Edit: added Bafati and the Polar Sea (as there was no opposition voiced) to the Map above...

I was actually imagining and aboriginal race of mountain goat people, their mountain home protecting them from the encroachment of the Harmonium, their peaceful harmonious way of life unchanged over the millenia.

Not a majority, of course, those would be the peaceful fishermen of the Eastern Coast, the seafaring viking-like Northerners, and the nomadic humans who have more and more encroached into the mountainous regions of Bafatai as they raise and herd llamas with the most prized fur on all of Ortho.

Also, Yetis.

Bafatai - I like it with the 'a' better.

I say it, in my head, Ba-Fa-Tie.

I see the beholders being far removed from the religous practices of the other races of Ortho, they probably hardly believe that the humans HAVE deities on their side - viewing such anthropomorphized helpful beings as being peculiar oddaments of the primitive Humanoid mind.

Durgret is a very large country-sized island so it probably has a number of cities... but I wasn't able to fit any in Photoshop and I added it on at the last minute.

The Eye is a beholder built lighthouse.

So, What Does the Harmonium Do on Ortho?

That is to say, what are the formal day-to-day activities and responsibilities of the Harmonium on Ortho?...I understand that they fulfill the role of federal military, but what else do they do?...Are they also the provincial or city police?...Are the majority of its members just reserves?...Or are they similar to a mega-corporation, funding various projects and employing their members to fulfill these projects?...Are they censors who review every written word or public exhortation to make sure it is in line with what's acceptable...I guess my basic question is, what do the Harmonium do besides acting as the military in a basically pacified world?...
Kwint

As to the other activities of the Harmonium on Ortho, thanks for the clarification and elucidation...

Kwint