Name: Elshallen
Leaders: Queen Seh'arruan Mazhoyru.
Type: Hereditary Matriarchy.
Capital: Riverbend.
Largest cities: Riverbend and Esfahan, both centers of trade. Both are surrounded by livestock pens where each year the marketable cattle and horses are brought for sale to the highest bidder, although Riverbend is the main center of trade, due to its central location.
Location: On the Sea of the Serpent, east of Ravnglade, west of Razorstone River, and North of Cathac Forest.
Monetary unit: Standard and trade. A good strong barter is expected and respected.
Ethnicity/Race: Primarily human and wemic.
Language: Common, various clan dialects, and wemic.
Religion: Very little recognition of individual gods; primarily worship of the minor spirits of spring, earth and sky.
Climate: Temperate; warm dry summers, cold snowy winters, wet spring and fall with the occasional intense thunderstorm.
Resources: Meat, leather, horses, cattle, handcrafted goods - primarily from leather. Renowned for the excellence of the tack and warhorses they produce.
Flora and Fauna: Although the soil is, in many places, unfit for major cultivation - it does support a thriving plains ecology, and the clans of plainsmen and wemic that rove the area have learned to harvest the wild vegitation as they travel. Vast herds of semi-wild cattle and horses are tended by plainsmen, and guarded by the warriors of whatever wemic clan they are currently passing through the territory of - for the price of several animals. They are protecting the animals not only against wild animals, but also against attacks by other feuding plains clans. Each spring, groups of young warriors from both races make forays down into the Rohan Plains, to hunt the more exotic antelope species and to capture wild horses - and meara, if they can catch them.
Known Dangers: The clans of both plainsmen and wemic are extremely suspicious of strangers, and it is not unknown for either to capture travellers untill they are identified. Those taken by the plainsmen are usually released if their purpose was peacefull. Those taken by the wemic sometimes don't make it to the actuall questioning. There are also bandits and wild predators to consider - not to mention the simple danger of getting lost.
History: Untill 2900 vin Elshallen was a much larger nation, extending across the Razorstone River, all the way down to the Rohan Plains and the Sea of Mists. It was thriving on trade, and active in the ruling council of Ravnglade. However, in a single year greed and jealousy brought the nation to its knees. Every ruling family has enemies, and invariably there are those who wish to overthrow them; so it was in Elshallen. But here the greatest rival moved too quickly, too quietly to be stopped - in a single night, every member of the ruling family was slaughtered, to the youngest child. But the coup was no victory for the rival house. In a rare display of unity, the feuding clans of Elshallen rose against them and returned the favor - wiping even the name of those responsible for the loss of their king from the histories of the country. For several years after the slaughter the lands were torn by feuds and skirmishes, each clan claiming the right to the throne, and none agreeing on who should have it. Several kings and queens rose, to be cast down in the same motion. Finally a single clan, lead by a woman well-known to be both fair and ruthless, claimed the throne. She held it, if for no other reason than that she crushed any who rose against her thoroughly and without hesitation. Since her ascention, the monarchy has been passed directly from mother to daughter, untill the current queen stepped up.
Leaders: Queen Seh'arruan Mazhoyru.
Type: Hereditary Matriarchy.
Capital: Riverbend.
Largest cities: Riverbend and Esfahan, both centers of trade. Both are surrounded by livestock pens where each year the marketable cattle and horses are brought for sale to the highest bidder, although Riverbend is the main center of trade, due to its central location.
Location: On the Sea of the Serpent, east of Ravnglade, west of Razorstone River, and North of Cathac Forest.
Monetary unit: Standard and trade. A good strong barter is expected and respected.
Ethnicity/Race: Primarily human and wemic.
Language: Common, various clan dialects, and wemic.
Religion: Very little recognition of individual gods; primarily worship of the minor spirits of spring, earth and sky.
Climate: Temperate; warm dry summers, cold snowy winters, wet spring and fall with the occasional intense thunderstorm.
Resources: Meat, leather, horses, cattle, handcrafted goods - primarily from leather. Renowned for the excellence of the tack and warhorses they produce.
Flora and Fauna: Although the soil is, in many places, unfit for major cultivation - it does support a thriving plains ecology, and the clans of plainsmen and wemic that rove the area have learned to harvest the wild vegitation as they travel. Vast herds of semi-wild cattle and horses are tended by plainsmen, and guarded by the warriors of whatever wemic clan they are currently passing through the territory of - for the price of several animals. They are protecting the animals not only against wild animals, but also against attacks by other feuding plains clans. Each spring, groups of young warriors from both races make forays down into the Rohan Plains, to hunt the more exotic antelope species and to capture wild horses - and meara, if they can catch them.
Known Dangers: The clans of both plainsmen and wemic are extremely suspicious of strangers, and it is not unknown for either to capture travellers untill they are identified. Those taken by the plainsmen are usually released if their purpose was peacefull. Those taken by the wemic sometimes don't make it to the actuall questioning. There are also bandits and wild predators to consider - not to mention the simple danger of getting lost.
History: Untill 2900 vin Elshallen was a much larger nation, extending across the Razorstone River, all the way down to the Rohan Plains and the Sea of Mists. It was thriving on trade, and active in the ruling council of Ravnglade. However, in a single year greed and jealousy brought the nation to its knees. Every ruling family has enemies, and invariably there are those who wish to overthrow them; so it was in Elshallen. But here the greatest rival moved too quickly, too quietly to be stopped - in a single night, every member of the ruling family was slaughtered, to the youngest child. But the coup was no victory for the rival house. In a rare display of unity, the feuding clans of Elshallen rose against them and returned the favor - wiping even the name of those responsible for the loss of their king from the histories of the country. For several years after the slaughter the lands were torn by feuds and skirmishes, each clan claiming the right to the throne, and none agreeing on who should have it. Several kings and queens rose, to be cast down in the same motion. Finally a single clan, lead by a woman well-known to be both fair and ruthless, claimed the throne. She held it, if for no other reason than that she crushed any who rose against her thoroughly and without hesitation. Since her ascention, the monarchy has been passed directly from mother to daughter, untill the current queen stepped up.
Notable & Notorious Individuals
