Faction Overviews and Background FAQ

[Jubal]

The Aurothians are a very, very ancient people; they also sit on a crossroads between the eastern world (as shown by the nearby Hematites), the Southern Sea nations (Such as the Lusitanians), and trade routes from places like the Commagene Empire. As such, they have a very rich and diverse history and draw on many other cultures to create quite an unusual fusion. Their city of Estarinia has been built over many generations, and having never been destroyed has vast undreground mazes of tunnels, particularly in the castle.

Aurothians consider themselves to be the oldest surviving nation; certainly they were never absorbed by the Lusitanians at their height. Legend has it that once there was a great island in the middle of the southern sea; the Kings of this isle, Nurelon, were the most powerful of all the rulers of their day. They built a vast city, called Huralia, beneath a large mountain. Eventually there was a great civil war there, between those loyal to the Kings and those loyal to the High Priests. Eventually the Kings were forced to flee and continue their war from afar, fighting around the shores of the sea until eventually, in the middle of the night, they found a wooded hillside beneath a second great mountain. As the stars were so bright in this new place, the settlement they founded there was named Estarinia, and bears that name to this day. And what of Nurelon? The earth was angered by the wrongs of the priests and punished their falsehoods; the mountain at the centre of their realm spat fire, and the once great nation sank beneath the waves. Perhaps this will one day happen to Estarinia, who can tell? Nevertheless, the Aurothians are truly and rightly proud of their heritage.

They tend to a higher degree of learning than most nations, prizing that above discipline or the arts of war - they fight with finesse, using fast horses and daring bands of archers, rather than the clunking heavy knights of other kingdoms. The leadership of the Kingdom is done firstly by the King, but he is advised by the Rinterns, who the academics and merchants of the town elect from amongst the old noble families. In this way those who provide the wealth are made to feel they have some say in matters (though since the candidates must be of noble blood it makes little real difference). Popular pastimes for the poor include archery and rabbit-trapping; for the rich, alchemy is very much in vogue as is hawking (Aurothians are known for breeding the finest hunting-birds in the world).

[The Dragon Reborn]

The Aurothians are a very, very ancient people; they also sit on a crossroads between the eastern world (as shown by the nearby Hematites), the Southern Sea nations (Such as the Lusitanians), and trade routes from places like the Commagene Empire. As such, they have a very rich and diverse history and draw on many other cultures to create quite an unusual fusion. Their city of Estarinia has been built over many generations, and having never been destroyed has vast undreground mazes of tunnels, particularly in the castle.

Aurothians consider themselves to be the oldest surviving nation; certainly they were never absorbed by the Lusitanians at their height. Legend has it that once there was a great island in the middle of the southern sea; the Kings of this isle, Nurelon, were the most powerful of all the rulers of their day. They built a vast city, called Huralia, beneath a large mountain. Eventually there was a great civil war there, between those loyal to the Kings and those loyal to the High Priests. Eventually the Kings were forced to flee and continue their war from afar, fighting around the shores of the sea until eventually, in the middle of the night, they found a wooded hillside beneath a second great mountain. As the stars were so bright in this new place, the settlement they founded there was named Estarinia, and bears that name to this day. And what of Nurelon? The earth was angered by the wrongs of the priests and punished their falsehoods; the mountain at the centre of their realm spat fire, and the once great nation sank beneath the waves. Perhaps this will one day happen to Estarinia, who can tell? Nevertheless, the Aurothians are truly and rightly proud of their heritage.

They tend to a higher degree of learning than most nations, prizing that above discipline or the arts of war - they fight with finesse, using fast horses and daring bands of archers, rather than the clunking heavy knights of other kingdoms. The leadership of the Kingdom is done firstly by the King, but he is advised by the Rinterns, who the academics and merchants of the town elect from amongst the old noble families. In this way those who provide the wealth are made to feel they have some say in matters (though since the candidates must be of noble blood it makes little real difference). Popular pastimes for the poor include archery and rabbit-trapping; for the rich, alchemy is very much in vogue as is hawking (Aurothians are known for breeding the finest hunting-birds in the world).

Thanks, its good to know about them now. They're now even more interesting to me.

[Jubal]

Well, feel free to ask any more questions you want.  

[The Dragon Reborn]

I also have a question about Lacontia or however you say it. Why do they have two kings? More importantly, what are their origins?

[Phoenixguard09]

I'm not Jubal  but I imagine that Lacontia has two kings as a Spartan reference.  

@ Jubal: I have a question regarding the Vorroks and Dharroks.  Who are they?  And are they civilised to any real extent?

[Jubal]

Yeah, Lacontia is basically just a load of Spartan references, an imagining of that sort of state in the medieval era.

As to the Vors/Dhars; the Voroks are the least civilised of the Vorok/Dharrok/Rhodok people, and the most tribal. They are how ever experts at mining, good builders of fortifications, and fairly handy healers due to their lack of truck with the "make it bleed, that'll heal it" methods employed across Calradia and the Gorin Empire at this time. They're still (as I said) very tribal by nature, and are led by a council of chiefs, from whom a convocation of monks (of which there are large numbers across the Vorok lands, practitioners of their rather shamanistic religion) choose a High Chief.

The Dharroks are a migration southwards mirroring the northwards spread of the Rhodoks; they are more feudal by nature, and are fairly similar to medieval Scotland.

All three have strong similarities; they dislike cavalry and distrust horses, they prefer spears as weapons, they place a strong cultural emphasis on herding animals, they prefer a more egalitarian view of religion (the Rhodoks are Coniriles, the Dharroks oft-schismatic Varalites, and the Voroks tribalists, but all three have a very community-based religious approach). They have a strong respect for age and wisdom, and little respect for personal military valour over military cleverness and order.

The differences are really that the Voroks are the traditional and "pure" culture. The Rhodoks moved north, and their tribe became mixed up in the disputes of the southern Swadian farmers and merchants, who together broke away from the more feudal and militaristic knight-controlled parts of the realm (In the vale of Uxhal and the Duchy of Suno). This has given them a more mercantile and pastoral outlook, and encouraged their absorption of old Calradic culture which was instrumental in influencing the thinkers and philosophers behind the Great Peasants' War (as the Rhodok war of Independence is known). The Dharroks were a southern offshoot of the Voroks who conquered the surrounding lowlands as their previous masters took troops out in their failed war against Gorinia. Their acceptance of the Varalite faith bought them support from Lexandria and other smaller nations who helped their new co-religionists maintain independence. The support of the church bought with it the idea of anointed monarchs under the Mother Goddess (a monotheistic deity shared by the Varalites, Coniriles, and Orinites), which in time led to a more feudal system developing.

[Phoenixguard09]

I see cool, thanks for answering those questions for me.

[Dimos]

Just out of curiocity... have we talked about the hematite emirate? why do they have a capital reminding Chuck [al-Norris]? what are their relations with foreign dudes? the one-castle state [malardia?] next to thum, the Aurothian/Estarinian people? the Goriniae?

And whatever else you like mr Jubal.

EDIT: Also info about Tenthalla and countess Aroma and General Tataca the old foul, alone in the fort...

[Phoenixguard09]

Who cares if it's a necro?

I don't suppose you'd care to answer the questions please Jubal? Dimos isn't the only one who's interested.

[Jubal]

Okay, this is done from long-distance memory so hopefully I haven't made continuity errors:

The Hematites are a breakaway group from a faction which I was going to  put in whose name I've now wholly forgotten who've invaded the Gorin peninsula from the south. The Goriniae have tried and failed to dislodge them many times. They're culturally extremely different to their neighbours; the Mallardians are the result of an attempt to use a Mercenary army to attack them, with the Lusitanians being a formerly dominant power in the peninsula. They were beaten in a few wars by the Goriniae which then created the weakness the Hematites exploited.

Aurothia is a very, very old island nation, a bit of a hang-over from days gone by. They tend to be quite reclusive and defensive, and dislike Varalite clergy intruding on their culture. Their buildings often have centuries-old catacombs and tunnels due to the very firm (but volcanic) rock on the island.

The Tenthalese are just another city-state of the Geroian peninsula. They tend to be very wealthy due to trade, as well as being a centre for the production of velvet. Tenthala is also something of a base for swashbucklers and privateers, and is sometimes referred to as the "Zendar of the South" for its very mercantile and mercenary culture. Arona is the current countess, her father having been killed recently on a crusade to the far east. As for Tataca, he's something of a legend in the wars of the city states. He took both Calamantia and Eulalia for the Geroians, giving them a dominant position in the peninsula, but then fell out with his old masters and retired to a safe location in the hills with some of his loyal guards. He's reputed to have never lost a battle.

[Jubal]

This thread now actually *has* brief faction overviews in it, over four years since it was last used

[Phoenixguard09]

Good stuff mate, I'll get stuck into this when I get a chance. Tonight hopefully.

[Jubal]

I'll happily try and answer any questions, though I may be deviating a lot from what me-four-years-ago thought the lore should be if I do

[Phoenixguard09]

Okay so my main questions revolve around how several of these factions wage war, so I guess if you could go into a little detail regarding the make up of their armies and how they fight, that would be awesome. Particular interest mainly in those smaller factions like Curaw and such.

[Pentagathus]

Is this mod being reborn?