The Known World

The City State of Murgulmuir is positioned on the banks of a large bay in the northeast corner of the continent of Kael. From the bay is a two mile journey downriver to the coat and from there out to sea. After the Maelstrom every society in the world collapsed. In the centuries that followed new cultures emerged. A few have been discovered but many remain disconnected from the larger world.

On Kael Murgulmuir stands alone. There is a cluster of small communities arranged like a halo around the city that provide some of the food and raw materials the city state needs, There are a few warlords struggling in the wilds. From time to time one of them will start finding settlements and will try to establish a domain of their own. When someone gets close the Governors dispatch forces to destabilize them. It is in the city state’s best interest to keep the world outside unstable.

The city state needs more than they can obtain locally so there is extensive trade with other lands. There is a trade route known as “The Long Haul” that goes from Murgulmuir (in Kael) to Caphrax (in Bastion), from Caphrax to Obi (both in Bastion), from Obi to Forj (in Norvald), from Forj to Nhoma (both in Norvald), from Nhoma to Hale (in Cereborn), from Hale to Tove by way of Withnal (all in Cereborn), from Tove to Meega (in Kestrig), from Meega to G’hur by way of Zhud (all in Kestrig) then from G’hur back to Murgulmuir. The trip takes about six months. It is seldom done in the reverse order because of how the tradewinds blow.




BEYOND KAEL

NORVALD

Norvald lies to the far north. It is a single massive land mass. So far no ancient maps or new exploration has revealed an end to it. At this point scholars believe there is no end. It is quite literally where the world ends. Most of Norvald is a frozen wasteland. There are some small, sparse forests but most of the terrain is frozen tundra broken by mountain ranges. Beyond the mountains is a region of endless plains covered in a thick layer of permafrost and snow.

The Vald are the people of Norvald. They are human but tend to be larger and sturdier than those those ancestors were born further south. Their skin and hair are very pale, almost white. They speak a language called “Skurn”. Those who trade with the south often use Larcissa (an argot used by sailors). Finding a Clanner who speaks Margul is rare. It is more common for the captains and merchants who plan to trade with them to learn their language.

Unlike the people of Murgulmuir the Vald still worship the Gods. They know them by different names. The have no record or cultural awareness of what the Gods may have been before the Maelstrom. To the Vald they have always been the monstrous beings they have become. They don’t venerate the Gods they fear them. At best they are defiant. Worship involves chanted prayers for mercy and leaving sacrifices to appease them.

THURVALD

This continent is very similar to the Norvald in that it lies to the far south and is assumed to be the end of the world in that direction. Unlike Norvald no society has taken root. There are barbarous cousins of the Vald who are physically silt but they tend to have darker hair. There are no settlements in Thurvald. Nomadic tribes move to take advantage of ay source of food they cab find.

THE OCEAN

The waters stretch from Norvald in the far north to Thurvald in the far south. It has been assumed that the ocean is endless and that it is possible to sail forever east or west. There are those who believe that the world is a tube and that if you sail far enough to one side or the other you will eventually wrap around and end up on the other side of the world. Several expeditions have set out to prove this theory over the years but so far none has returned with credible evidence that this can be done. If a route could be found it would be a boon to travel and trade so merchants are eager to be the first to exploit it.

BASTION

A Mouseling Kingdom. They have tamed a small island and have built several villages, a large town and a castle that is half the size a human castle would be but twice as beautiful. The King’s Owl Riders are a match for any human knight. It is easily the safest and most lawful society in the new world.

TRADE: There isn’t much the Mouselings need. They pride themselves on self sufficiency. Because of their tiny hands they make clocks and pocket watches that are better than the functional but ungainly looking gadgets created by the Gnomes of Toc. Merchants able to forge a working relationship with a watchmaker can turn a tidy profit.

KESTRIG

The untamed jungle wilderness is home to savage tribes of orcs, goblins, hobgoblins, bugbears and ogres. It is a dangerous place that has only three settlements, all heavily defended walled ports. There was once an Orc Empire but it fell many years ago. A few ruins still remain. Tribal chiefs and warlords struggle for control over territory with valuable resources that can be defended from marauding monsters.

TRADE: Kestrig has a lot to offer. To begin with there are gemstones that simply wash up along the rivers but there are also natural treasures such as sturdy exotic wood, rare herbs and strange beasts whose flesh is considered a delicacy. They trade these commodities for worked goods, especially arms and armor.