Eris

Overview of Eris[]

This land is on the small planet of Ryos and stretches from a frigid north to balmy southern 'summerlands' and even a southern and south-eastern desert. The far north of eris is icy in winter, ok in summer. Below the true north is the marcherlands. These experience cold climates but also have large stretches of bogs and moors, large rivers such as the northwater and the vudml and grasslands perfect for cattle-grazing. The province of the North is ruled overall from the castle of Northwarden in the northern marches by the family Dace under a Lord Dace. The far north is governed by the Yrymar of Helmstir and the north-western 'square' by the Dacentals of Northolding. The northern coast of eris has a long latitudal stretch of land in the east until the coast turns northwards and becomes inhospitable. The latitudal stretch is known as the Seaholdlands. It is rocky enough but enjoys great fishing and decent land. Trade comes through the seaholds and down the River Wells or the Great Water. The mouths of both of which is controlled by the seaholders. The land is ruled by the Lichus' of Seacitadel. South of the seaholds is the karstlands. This is a relative inhospitable area of limestone pavement, rocky outcrops and the occasional poor land. It is ruled by hardy people and the majority of it's settlement is on the outskirts, where the land is decent or along river banks such as that of the Moon River. It is one of the more interesting areas of Eris with unique culture and history. It is ruled by the Harnce's of Matrohb Castle- somewhat newcomers to the games of power. South again of the karstlands, keeping to the banks of the Great Water, is the summerlands. So named due to balmy and ideal conditions, the name stuck after the Lordship of Summer's long spell of governorship. The lands turn green and fertile gradually after the Staval pass. Beneath the summerlands is the thinlands, technically a part of the summerlands. The Thin Lands grow slightly drier then the summerlands but are still lush down to Ilynaehal where the land rapidly turns into the Southern Desert. Desertification is slowly creeping northwards. The summerlands are ruled by the lord of the summer, the most ancient title in Eris, Lord Cartus of Summerwood. The summerlands border Round Bay. This bay rounds the island of Round island, central to the bay with the smaller island of Querl to it's northeast. The climate on these isles is similar to that of the summerlands except a thick forest covers a lot of the north of Round island. As capital of the nation, Royal Isle in Round Island attracts a lot of trade. The Imperial Bridge connects the Round Island to the Imperial peninsula, two miles away. North of Bay is the estuary of the River Feeder. To the east of the feeder lies the thick Forest of Taeranyus, peopled mainly by nomadic tribes. The Forest houses a geological wonder and almighty fortress, the Rock of Taeranyus. The Rock is a two mile high natural rock formation in the middle of the forest. It is extremely steep but a long walkway has been painstakingly carved into the rockface. The Rock has been gradually excavated by the Old Kings of Taeranyus. The Rock used to contain much iron ore and as a result the interior of the rock is a warren of tunnels. Atop the Rock sits a small but strong towerhouse which guards the entrance to the fortress. Notth of Taeranyus is the Ring of the Vale, the eastern range of mountains protecting the Vale and Glens of the Seven Lords. The Ring stretches in a long semi-ellipse from a southern point on the banks of the feeder to a northern point, near the Fork. It is only broken at the Staval Pass in the east. The Vale is reknowned as one of the most richly fertile swathes of land in Eris. Protected by a natural wall of mountains, the seven lords fight their petty wars but band together when invaders threaten them. To the west, the vale is guarded by the Mountains of Hilte to the south and the Watermount Hills to the north. The De Facto capital of the Vale is Valehall Keep, a castle which houses the senate of the Vale and sits close to the centre of the Vale. It is ruled by the family Gatereon. Follow the river Feeder upriver from the vale and you will pass through fields and paddocks until you find the swirling parting of one river into two. The Wells flows north and the Feeder south, distributaries of the Fatherwater, rising in the Ring of the Wells. The riverlands are not a historic territory. They are merely the leftovers of the other nations, cobbled together by Lord Sanchil of Waterswatch at the Fork of the rivers. They are so called as most of their great holds and towns lie along major rivers. The elmswood is north-east of waterswatch, starting a few dozen miles west of the well. Oakyield City is an anomally. It is to the west of the riverlands proper, nearing the coast lies the great city oakyield, the most populous city in Eris. It is home to many tens of thousands of people, some estimate over two hundred thousand. Formerly an independent city-state, the Sanchil's gained influence over it during Aenan's Conquest as to fit in with his Province governing plan, it had to be under some faction. It retains a huge degree of autonomity though, being ruled by a council of it's merchant lords as of old. South of oakyield is the Dale pass, the entrance into the lands known as Hilte. Hilte is a cobbling together of many different types of people. The Old Hiltian Empire conquered the Dihiltians of the south-west, the Birkon Republic of the south-east, the Bzylaq's of the north-east and many native tribes of the interior to create thie create empire. The Hiltian coast is fertile though hot and most of the hiltian settlement occurs here. Hilte is mostly surrounded by sea but it's northern border is the mountains of hilte and easter the river Feeder. The wastes or the 'dry plains' dominate hilte. The vast interior of the province is essentially desert. The Wood-in-the-wastes is a strange forest inside the wastes, growing springs and underground water nearing the surface. East of the woods is a small stretch of arable land farmable. The western coast of Hilte contains nothing major, the desert eventually ends and turns to poor lands supporting subsistance farmers. To the north-west the desert ends with the prosperous and fertile Dale of the Sealords. Once, like Oakyield, the Dale was an autonomous city-state. As part of the Treaty of the Keep, Hilte gained sway over it but lost birkton which it was later to regain. The Dale is a jewel of maritime trade with a powerful navy all to itself and ships sailing to the corners of the western ocean. Again like Oakyield, the Dale has a degree of autonomy and is ruled by a council, this time of the Sealords.  Eris has 4 main routes of trade. The midwest route lands goods at the Dale, sends them overland to Oakyield or the Vale and distributes them from there. It caters for much of the north and for goods only found in the west to be brought to the north and east for trading onwards. The southern route takes goods south oversea through the pirate pestered  strait to land at Royal Isle, Southceil on Round Isle for distribution throughout the thinlands and to Blackport on Querl. Some trade also goes up the feeder along with goods from the royal isle. The Life Route goes north to south along the Life of the East. Goods from the peaceful barbarians are brough up and distributed, goods from the north and east are brought down and distributed, goods from both places are traded for each other. Ships from the seaholds handle the oceangoing as the barges of the lifewater can't handle the seas. The River Route is similar to the life route, just has a wider distribution range. Down the wells, round the fork and down the feeder. This route accesses the north, the karstlands, the seaholds, the vale, hilte and the baylands. The North's exclusion from taxing and working on any of these routes takes greatly from it's potential power. Seastir in the far northeast and Northolding in the west enjoy small amounts of trade, but only little for exportation.

Main Settlements(by population)[]

The settlements on the same line seperated by / indicate settlements of a size too similar to determine. Due to the inept census system in most of Eris it is hard to be exact. It is clear however that, for example, Sumerwood is larger then Hiltiton. 

Oakyield City

Royal Isle

Summerwood

Hiltiton

The Dale of the Sealords

Seacitadel/Lordwatch/Karstus

Southceil

Forktown/Defford

Tharwood/Tirnavigae

Ilynaehal

Helmstir

Wellsbridge

History of Eris []

This land enjoys an interesting past. A bried period of unity graced the land under the Ancient Empire, an expansionist classical Age empire of hundreds of years ago. After the fall of the empire, the lands desgressed into many different kingdoms, states, coalitions etc, with the Lordship of Summer remaining the last vestige of empirism(technically a lordship of the Ancient Empire.) This was known as the Old Kingdom's period. The lands were united by one Aenan Sarcrus. He came from the mysterious lands to the south-west, the lands now known as the lands of Sarcrus. Facing certain defeat in a war for political control of the contemporary Brynlan Republic, Aenan took his ships and men and sought out new lands. There is evidence to show he fought an unsuccessful campaign against the peaceful barbarians.  With 5,000 soldiers armed in legionnaire knight style(two spears, a large rectangle shield, a short sword and heavy knightlike armour) and a huge fleet of massive galleys unlike anything seen before in Eris, he landed at birkton on the birke peninsula in the south-east of Hilte. His men were disciplined like no others and their amour and skill was unmatchable. He found peace with the Hiltian Empire, conquered the Round Kingdom and endured a bloody war, employing many local lords to his cause, in which he conquered all of Eris, all the kingdoms and states united as one.  He employed many public works schemes and placed lords loyal to him in high places. After the conquest he was crowned King Aenan, known as the Forger. His son, Daeneon was unwise. He invaded the lands of the peacful barbarians with a Grand Army and all the sarcrusians in the land, intending to carve out a new kingdom as his father had done. The peaceful's mobilised against this threat and slaughtered his entire army and himself, though only after he enjoyed many victories.Thus ended the line of Sarcrus.  The Stackes were left as stewards in Royal isle, the Sarcrusian capital, strategically located on an island within a lake within an island within Round Bay. Lord Stacke was assassinated and his son Ruare, a brilliant man came to stewardship. After Daeneon's death he reunited the kingdoms and reigned well for nigh on fifty years. Stacke was not deemed to be regal sounding enough for rule and hence the family name was changed to Imerator, meaning 'ruler' in High Ruiolon. Ruare died childless, succession went to his brother Aure for a short amount of time. After his death, Petron, his son conquered the island of Direshores in the North Salt Sea, mainly to stop direshoisii pirates as well as to make a name for himself. Various wars between lords and other lords and lords and the throne occurred. Around 150 years after the coming of Sarcrus, a pattern began to develop. The riverlands and north allied repeatedly and fought the karstlands and riverlands. Warfare is low enough in casaulties, with both sides abiding by the strict and humane rules of war as written in the Book of Valehall. When sides begin to deviate from these rules, a war can become what is known as a 'viscous war', a war in which no mercy is spared, no quarter given. Such wars cause much destruction. 

The Arrangement[]

A shadowy deal known as The Arrangement is forefront in Erasii political realities. Though known by very few, the Arrangement has prevailed since the times of Petron, coming and going with some monarches being more consencious then others. Since King Saen I every king has upheld the Arrangements. The basis of the arrangement is that if the masses gain too much power and wealth, or come to think for themselves, widespread education as it were, they will throw off their shackles and rise against their rightful masters. The Arrangement dictates a set balance of power. Kings>Provincial Overlords>High Lords>Lords>Earls>Dukes>Barons>Counts>Knights. The middle class of merchants as well as priests, priestesses etc occupy a slightly skewed tier. No one is to rise up or down in the Arrangement, even if the Arrangement is broken, a family member or relative dissosciated from the actions taken is raised to power. As the lower tier members such as Barons and Earls could easily become uncontent with their prospect only of eternal stasis, only the Overlords and some of the High Lords are aware of the Arrangement. Under the Arrangement, war is used to keep the lower classes down. While men are in the field of war food isn't produced, men die and wealth is poured into weaponry and waste. Thus war is ranged on equal enough terms. While transfers of great sums of wealth may take place from one great house to another, that is all that will ever happen as well as exchange of border lands. In certain places, particularily Round Island and Royal Isle there is much population pressure. Men are trained into Royal Armies and sent out on 'peacekeeping' missions. Many die and more end up stranded far from home, away from the overcrowded areas. War is also a place to channel the natural agression of bored young minor lordlings- those who don't end up drifting through opium dens in cities such as Hiltiton. Knights fight chivalrous battles and win great honours. Certain lords have asperations to break the Arrangement, particularily lords of Hilte who have a long history of clashes with the throne and asperations on the Vale or on Oakyield. The Royal Intelligence or the Dark Soldiers are present all over Eris and keep the king's grip on power. Occasionally wars get out of control due to personal issues(the knight son of the Lord Lichus being killed by riverish troops being one such things) or rebellion.

The War of the Ninth Succession was the most major war to be fought after the Conquest, excluding the Conquering of Direshores and various abortive invasions of the peaceful barbarians and the men of war. Two twins were born to King Thalron I the Peacemaker- twins called Aureon and Saen. No one recorded who was born first and they looked insanely alike. Thalron randomly chose Aureon to be heir but on his deathbed revealed the truth. Aureon's son Thalron the Younger was an extremely dashing and promising prince. Saen agreed to allow Thalron the throne as him and Aureon were nearing fourty in any case. Unfortuanately Thalron II launched an invasion of the peaceful barbarian lands. It failed miserably and caused the burning of the Imperial Bridge, cities of the southern thinlands and the deaths of many. He abdicated in severe depression. Fearing Saen acting against him, Aureon crowned himself and made an attempt on the life of Saen and his family. Saen survived and fled to start a rebellion. Saen was an amiable character who had friends in high places. Aureon wasn't too friendly but wasn't a bad king all round. War raged for years and killed tens of thousands directly and hundreds of thousands indirectly. It is the source of a massive amount of mythology, tales and songs. The Battle of Avonfield, Second Siege of Waterswatch and Battle of Fathertown were the most influential conflicts in the war. The losing Aureon was killed by one of his own generals after his field armies were largely destroyed and Hilte turned against him. 

Periods of Erasii History[]

Ages of the First Men~(6000BE-4000BE{4000BE-2000BE{2000BE-500BE)

Pre-Empirical Period~(500BE-1BE

Empirical Era~(400 RS- 353 RS/ 1 AE- 47AE)

Old Kingdom Period(353RS-1RS[crossover period], 47 AE-400AE)

Sarcrusian Era

Imperator Era