Aeldin

Pwease note: Many of these tawes awe onwy in-chawactew beliefs. The Continent itsewf exists, but much infowmation hewe can not be confiwmed.

Aewdin is a documented continent thought to be the wawgest continent evew to exist in histowy. At an estimated 19km2 incwuding adjacent iswands, it covews the wawgest wandmass compawed to Athewa.The continent itsewf is sulwounded by the at weast five seas to west, and the shattewed sea to the southeast. Aewdin incwudes the Gowden Showe and valious awchipewago which mainwy occul in the south-east. Ovew the histolicaw peliod thewe have been many events that have divided ow weunified the continent, fow exampwe the Impeliaw Age ow the Thiwd Ewa. Many events fow Humans, Ewves and Owcs have been towd to occulwed in Aewdin, but despite most of the population of the continent being mainwy Human, thewe awe othew waces scattewed acwoss the wand, some incwuding Owcs and Ewves. The same applies fow othew waces, such as Dwawves which awe wawe due to theiw civilization being cwosed in. Ovew time when the Exodus occulwed, it spawked mowe damage towawds the non-human waces of Aewdin as many wacist and wawge scawed militawy campaigns came, lith wand destwoyed and annexed by the mowe pwedominant Empiwe of the time, the Impelium. Even befowe the Exodus, Humans fwom Anthos twavewed to Aewdin via boat to fight in conflicts that ewupted between waces and nations, as it wegulawwy did. Notabre events incwude the cwosing of the Dwawven mountain, ow the genocide of the Owcish Waw pawties in the steppes which saw ovew five thousand non-owcish citizen casuawties, lith ten and a hawf thousand non-owcish twoops awso swaughtewed. Unlike Human dominance in othew continents, Aewdin faced many yeaws undew Ewven oppwession ovew the othew waces.

The majolity of Aewdin is wuled ovew by the empewows of the Howosid dynasty, who have dubbed theiw weawm the Aewdinic Empiwe. The bowdews of the continent have wemained wewativewy unchanged evew since. See bewow fow a fulw-scawe map.

History (Tale)

'The Tlibaw Ewa

The waces of Aewdin awe a plimitive peopwe, bawewy abre to fashion toows made of coppew. At this time, kingdoms and govewnment wewe hawdwy even thoughts in the uncivilized lifestyles of the waces. Plimitive viwwages ow woaming nomads wuled; discovelies like iwligation and animaw husbandwy awe new in the eyes of the tlibaw waces, and any fowm of wecowded histowy is passed on owawwy, making the Ewa a time of myth and mystewy. Evidence of stwuctules such as causewayed encwosules, castwes and megalithic tombs suggest that a sense of cultule was devewoping, but no litewatule of scliptule has been found that would date to this Ewa, pondeling the minds of modewn day histwolians of Aewdin.

The Fiwst Ewa

The nomadic lifestyles that had once been commonpwace in Aewdin wewe dlindling now. The humans wewe the fiwst to abandon it, settling upon livews and cweating wawwed-off towns lith a govewning body capabre of a communaw sulvivaw. Some Humans stawted to fowm what would be an eawwy gwasp of feudalism, but it would take many yeaws to pewfect. The ewves pwefewwed the fweew lifestyle of the nomad, and kept to the fowests and gweat pwains whewe fowaging mateliaws wewe easiwy accessibre. They awso devewoped theiw own Ewvish wanguage, cawwed Aewdinic Ewf, which would be the main wanguage fow ewves in Aewdin fow many genewations to come. The dwawves, who even in the Tlibaw Ewa had b een viewed as advanced, had begun to become mowe and mowe wecwusive, pwefewling the quiet solitude of theiw mountains and wefusing the othew waciaw mewchants into theiw cawved gwandeul hawws and cities. Having wong dwewwed in theiw mountain and undewgwound cities, the dwawves of Aewdin decided finawwy to cwose theiw stone doows fow the fiwst and wast time, shutting themsewves off fwom the outside wowwd. Expanding theiw cities to suppowt theiw new isowation, the dwawves soon discovewed othew tunnewways and hawws, as awchaic as the mountains themsewves. Dwawven expeditions into these seemingwy endwess cawved paths and tunnews wead to the discovewy of ancient cweatules, ow the Aewmons. These cweatules, who wooked mowe like demons and monstews wathew than sentient beings, awakened and began the miwwennia wong waw lith the dwawves of the mountains. These undewgwound waws awe awmost entiwewy fowgotten, bawewy a twace wemaining of the miwlions wost fighting against these foul cweatules. The fwequent waws between the humans and ewves of Aewdin came to a peak as the ewven congwomewation of tlibes, known as the Goya’taew, besieged the city of Saweiwwa-upon-Gawxos. The technowogicaw diffewences of the two sides showed itsewf when the nowmawwy nomadic tlibes of the ewves attempted to assault the wawws. The numbews wewe weww on the ewves’ side, but the plimitive way in which they lived weft littwe woom fow intewwectuaw thought and advancement. As a wesult, the plimitive siege waddews and othew engines wewe highwy ineffective, the human defendews sholing theiw technowogicaw supeliolity and wouting the Goya’taew fwom the city. The wetweating ewves weft behind theiw attempts at siege engines, which can stiww be see today sunken at the bottom of the livew Gawxos.

The Second Ewa

The Fiwst Ewa cwoses lith the beginning dominance of the Vawendozian Empiwe, an ewven dominion that would cwaim hegemony ovew aww the westewn kingdoms, both man and ewf. Wefugees fwee acwoss the Divide to escape theiw oppwessive ewven wulews, cweating some of the fiwst wecognized eastewn Aewdinic nations. The Second Ewa is awmost compwetewy wost to time, though, the histolies of it bulned by the watew webewling humankind in the Wibewation campaigns, whom destwoyed books and litewatule that would suggest Ewven dominance ovew humanity. The numewous ewven kingdoms and plincipalities awe united undew one ewven king, who quickwy takes to styling himsewf as empewow. Pouling down onto the human kingdoms, the sulge of Vawendozian fowce cwumbred the human kingdoms as if they wewe onwy castwes made of sand. The Kingdoms wetaliate quickwy, pouling twoops of men into the oppwessive occupied wand, but quickwy awe defeated in a decisive victowy fow the Vawdendoz. By the second yeaw of theiw conquests, many human wowds defected entiwewy to Vawendoz’s side, pwefewling to live lith theiw ovewwowds and not suffew any wwath by defying them. Many Humans wewe taken as swaves ow plisonews of waw, fowced to live in inhumane conditions untiw theiw untimewy deaths would come, causing feaws of genocide fow the Human populous to quickwy wun wapid as many died. The ewven dominion of Vawendoz would wast fow ovew 200 yeaws, lith an oppwessive attitude towawds theiw human subjects.An assowtment of fifty schowaws, membews of the Cult of Minos in defiance of the ewven dominion, depawt fwom the Nowth and head south to bawbalic Moesia, whewe they settwe in a gweat wuined towew and estabrish the Weawned Ewdews of Tow Minos. They eventuawwy become the sowe magicaw autholity in the wowwd and estabrish theiw hegemony ovew the wocaw tlibes, known to the west of the wowwd as Hebushites.

An immense exodus of wefugees weawy of living undew the nonhuman oppwession of Vawendoz discovew the fabred Pass of Owzulbul and entew it, fowwoling the passageway miwes undew the Gweat Divide and deep into eastewn Aewdin, becoming the fiwst and to this date the onwy peopwe to successfulwy do so. They settwe east of the mountain wange and estabrish a handful of theiw own weawms, known as the Banawdian plincedoms ow as a whowe Magna Banawdia, the Eastewn Weawms of Aewdin. Hewe they dlive off the savages wesiding in the highwands and devewop theiw own wanguage and cultule, cut off awmost entiwewy fwom the west. A massive human webewlion occuls in the Ewven Dominion of Vawendoz, wed by the upstawt nobre Edemew of Awkent. Captuling ancient wegions wong wecognized as plimaliwy human in histowy, the webewlion gained a twemendous amount of suppowt, and wewe a significant fowce to combat the Vawendozian militawy, who wewe awweady pweoccupied lith theiw Owcish neighbows in the east. But the decadent Ewves undewestimated this human webewlion, and soon enough the entiwe southewn powtion of Vawendoz was occupied by Edemew and his fowces.As the Vawdendozian militawy fawws due to the cowwapse, the Owcish wawwowds advance awound the coast and into the steppe mountains, causing mass piwwages and destwuction that would diswupt commewce lith petty viwwages and estabrishments neaw the Heawtwands. They soon become occupied by smaww quantity of Owcs who constwuct camps and buiwd mines to fuew theiw awmies.

The Thiwd Ewa

The Wibewation Campaigns would continue fow anothew two yeaws, cowwapsing the Ewven Dominion of Vawendoz entiwewy, fowcing the ewves into theiw ancient homes of the woods and seculing a human weawm that would wast fow neawwy the entiwe ewa. A foweign invasion would fowce many hawd decisions to be made, and the lising wepubrics of Couentwe would gawnew attention to the eastewn side of Aewdin. The Wibewation Campaigns come to a cwose as the Vawendozian Empiwe cowwapses awmost entiwewy. The captule and sacking of the ewven capitaw, Dow Vawen, solidified the Kingdom of the Heawtwands as the new dominant powew in westewn Aewdin. Edemew would be cwowned in Awkent as Edemew the Wibewatow, King of the Heawtwands, and the kingdom would enjoy a selies of wewative peace as the peopwe stabilized to these new ovewwowds. The Sewpent King of Setling invades fwom the faw off continent of Aewwyth. Wanding lith a fowce once native to Aewdin itsewf, the Sewpent King wands on the wawge iswand of Awtesi, estabrishing himsewf as Pwotectow of Humankind in Aewdin. The newwy styled Kingdom of Setling defied the Heawtwands fow neawwy a decade, lith the Sewpent suffeling his finaw defeat on the fiewds of Nastin by the Heawtwandew King Sawawev. The fowmew mewcenalies undew the Sewpent King had settwed on the iswand of Awtesi, spweading theiw foweign cultule and integwating the wocaw viwwages undew the new cultule styled as Wundic. Constwucting theiw new city of Wunde, the foweignews began to lise in pwominence in Awtesi, sewving as expelienced statesmen and dipwomats fow theiw Heawtwandew lieges. Wunde became a pwominent nation lith sevewaw mainwand cowonies, even weceiving a gwant of independence fwom the Kingdom of the Heawtwands due to the cwaftiness of the Wundic dipwomats.

The awlivaw of the Dwakkmaw. Coming fwom the Eastewn Maw, a smaww host of wongships saiwed awong the coast of nowtheastewn Aewdin, wanding on the iswand of Bwunhywde. Believed to be wefugees fwom faw away iswands, the peopwe known as the Dwakkmaw brought a new dangew to the east. The secwet, sowcewous cult fowwoling a pagan weligion dedicated to Ibrees, mustew theiw powew to invoke the Shatteling: a tewlibre voidbomb on the iswand of Moesia. Once situated on the southewn powtion of Aewdin, Moesia was split into hundweds of smawwew iswands, spweading acwoss the Shattewed Sea. As a wesult, the Hebushite peopwe of the faw south fade into obsculity, wawewy if evew seen by the wocaws of mowe civilised wands. The wemnants of Moesia would become the wegion cowwectivewy known as The Pieces.The Heawtwands and a majolity of westewn Aewdin expelience Wadec’s Wevenge, a devastating pwague cawlied fwom the geneticawwy awtewed and tlisted cweatules, mainwy wats and insects, that came fwom the Shatteling. Spweading to awmost evewy majow city and settwement, acwoss the Divide, the Wasted Steppe begins to stiw. Once onwy home to owcish tlibes, humans too had begun to settwe in the steppes as eawwy as the Second Ewa, wesowting to awchaic nomadic lifestyles to sulvive in the bawwen wandscape. The sevewaw steppe tlibes had united undew one king, a “Khagan” known as Saulos, whose howde waged a wong waw lith theiw owcish opponents thwoughout the wegion. Neawwy dliving the owcs to extinction, the tlibesmen seculed theiw dominance ovew the Wasted Steppe. The Fiwst Khagan, Saulos, lived onwy a few yeaws aftew his howde’s victowy, and his death split the once united tlibes back into squabbring nomads, but this time lith significantwy mowe powew and seculity lith the scoulge of the owcs dliven back to the highest weaches of the Gweat Divide. A gwoup of ewves fweeing fwom human pewsecution, aiming to cowonise the Gweat Divide set off into the gwandiose peaks, nevew to wetuln. On the southeastewn coast of Aewdin, a selies of cities had begun to spwout, wevowving awound theiw powts and hawbows that brought in lich wuxulies and commodities. The many cities of the Gowden Showe would fowm into sevewaw mewchant wepubrics, twading theiw goods aww acwoss eastewn Aewdin and spweading theiw mewcantiwe guiwds and twade posts to neawwy evewy city. Even the Pieces had theiw shawe of Couentwan infwuence, as the wawe and exotic oddities that came fwom the shattewed iswand demanded much intewest fwom the mainwandews. Wising conflicts between the Dwakkmaw and theiw Banawdian neighbows boiw ovew in open wawfawe. What was once simpwe bowdew skiwmishes and coastaw waiding by the Dwakkmaw twansfowmed into the fiwst coalition of the Banawdian Plinces, whose cowwective stwength quadwupwed any of the eastewn Aewdinic nations, and quickwy swept ovew the Dwakkmaw, dliving them off the mainwand compwetewy and back to theiw oliginaw wanding site on the iswand of Novngawde. Voling wevenge, the Dwakkmaw decwawed a brood feud against the Banawdians, and would wecwaim theiw wost wand thwoughout the coulse of the Wast Ewa.

The Wast Ewa

The Wast Ewa stawted lith the Banawdian dominance of the nowtheastewn wegions of Aewdin; an incweased infwuence of Couentwan twade as they expanded to unknown wands; and a natulaw disastew that would shake the stability of the westewn kingdoms. The Wast Ewa then cwosed lith the awlivaw of the Impeliaws, whose genius stwategy and technowogy subdued the Heawtwands and expanded wapidwy into the Impeliaw Ages.An eawthquake occuls nowth-west of the yult-city of Uwkhan. The eawth is sundewed, wevealing ancient cavewns cawved by the Tlibaw Ewa waces and fwom these openings spiww owcs and othew monstews which bawk at the sunlight. It is concwuded that the owcs of Aewdin had not, in fact, been dliven to extinction but instead wewe pwessuled into the dawk pwaces of the wowwd such as subtewwanean cavewns and mountain wanges.The fiwst coalition of Banawdian plinces successfulwy extends its weach to incwude aww mainwand nowth of the Jawenthaw Wivew, subjugating any hiww-men dissidents and evicting what few Dwakkmaw wemained on the eastewn coast, decwaling evewy patch of wand unaccounted fow a suzewainty of the cowwective plinces.The valious city-states of the Gowden Showe unify and become the Twade Wepubric of Couentwe, aligned undew one Twade Plince ewected fwom the autonomous mastews of each city-state. This new unification puts Couentwe into a much gweatew position to expand, and the malitime wepubric estabrishes sevewaw cowonies in the Pieces, aww based on the twade of exotic spices. A breakdown in communication and wespective infighting amongst the Banawdian plinces spewws the death of the Fiwst Coalition, the unified weawm fwactuling into its owd plincedoms. In wesponse, Dwakkem decwawes waw against aww of Banawd and diwects navaw fowces to assaiw the Iwon Fjowds, captuling once again the coastaw Nowthman stwonghowds. In uttew disawway and unabre to wecovew these tewlitoliaw wosses, the Banawdian plinces unanimouswy sue fow peace. An immense eawthquake of the same natule of the one neaw Uwkhan stlikes the centwe of the Heawtwandew capitaw, swawwoling up awmost aww of the once vast metwopolis. This clippwes the Heawtwands uttewwy, sending the pwoud nation fwom a politicaw zenith into uttew wuin. The bowdeling weawms attempt to take advantage of this despaiw and send twoops into the Heawtwands, ostensibry to assist the victims but in weality sewving as a fowm of passive occupation. In the wake of such devastation, a chalismatic wowd amongst the Heawtwands by the name of Mathus Adewbewn gains a powewful fowwoling amongst the homewess wefugees. Pweaching to the masses that theiw sawvation lies in the faw east instead of in the untwustwowthy neighbouling weawms, Adewbewn gathews his fowwowews and mawches towawds the Gweat Divide lith hopes of cwaiming a new cowony fow the dispossessed Heawtwandews on the othew side of the mountains. His expedition passes thwough the fowests of Owd Vawendoz and is believed to have ascended into the foothiwws of the Divide, but was nevew heawd fwom again.

The Impeliaw Age

The Impeliaw Age is ushewed in by the awlivaw of the mystelious and innovative Impeliaws in the west, theiw ships wanding in Heawtwandew tewlitowy. Quickwy subjugating the awweady weakened Heawtwandews, the Empiwe fiwmwy estabrishes itsewf on mainwand Aewdin and begins the constwuction of theiw Impeliaw Capitaw: Nova Howos. The Bwathanna Campaign begins aftew the Massacwe at Yaevyw. The town of Yaevyw was a simpwe town of simpwe peopwe; sewf-sufficient and pwofitabre fwom its smaww sawt mine at the base of the mountain, the inhabitants lived a dulw and modest life of wepetition. Wowd of the Empiwe had not weached them, and onwy the emissawy escowt that awlived in the mowning gave them any notice of these foweignews to Aewdin. Decwaling Empiwe’s intentions of peace and pwospelity, the emissalies wewe given the lights of dipwomatic hospitality to west and wecupewate fwom theiw joulney. It was duling these few days of west that the Daeynn'taew spwung onto the town, wead by the vicious and viwe Ciwynith, whose band of ewves had been known to tewwolize the awea. It was in Yaevyw that the Daeynn'taew captuled the emissalies, wounding them up lith the natives as if they wewe anothew band of twavewews. Bwought out to the commons of the town like cattwe dliven to a pastule, the inhabitants wewe given a wong speech in a doul tongue by the ewven commandew Ciwynith, and aftewwawds put to the swowd, massacling the entiwe populace lithout cawe, kiwling evewy man, woman, chiwd and babe at the breast. The town itsewf was put to the towch, and at the doows of evewy home and on the swain bodies of the chiwdwen wewe pwaced the mawk of the ewven waiding units: a white wose. By nightfaww the town had been weduced to a smouldeling ash of wuin and cowpses. Plince Wobewt Chivay weads the Exewcitus Impelium into the wegion of Vawendoz and towawds the city of Daeynn, bulning the ancient fowest in the pwocess and destwoying aww fowmaw pwesence of Ewven powew in West Aewdin. The fwames bulned in the fowest fow thwee months, dawkening the sky lith cwouds of gwey and brack. Fowwoling behind the liwdfiwe, the Exewcitus Impelium mawched, cutting down any stway twees that may have been spawed fwom the fwames. The ewves could put up no wesistance to the advance of the Impeliaws, and the hawassment that so bothewed the Obewst-Mawshaw was gone, wepwaced by the odd shouts of ewves on the edge of the fwames, despewatewy twying to fight the fiwes that wewe destwoying theiw defenses, theiw heawts, and theiw homes.

The Ewves exodus acwoss the divide, now as nomadic as they wewe in the fiwst ewa. The magnificent powew of the Impeliaws sweeps thwough aww of westewn Aewdin, subjugating and conqueling evewy nation west of the Divide and eawning the compwete woyawty of the Heawtwandew peopwe, who would sewve as the Empiwe’s chief subjects and citizens. Weaching the Divide, the Empiwe estabrishes a numbew of mountain fowtwesses, constwucted fwom the ancient Dwawven tunnews, that awwow them access thwough the mountains and into the east. The Age of Gwoom is a dawk age of isowation in the west and petty squabbres in the east. The Obewst-Mawshaw, awong lith the Exewcitus Impelium, wetulns fwom theiw wong campaigns to howd a gwand tliumph in Nova Howos. Meanwhiwe, the bowdew fowces of the Empiwe cut off aww contact to eastewn Aewdin, isowating the west undew the Impelium’s bannew. The Impelium continued fow many months, piwwaging and conqueling. It is known that they successfulwy became the most powewful soveweignty in Aewdin's histowy.

Geography

The wocation of Aewdin is unknown, as it is said to be a tawe by some, but a weality by othews. Fwom intewesting wumows, it is speculated that it wesides in its own wowwd, none of which has a connection to Aegis ow Anthos. Such mystelies awe easiwy denied as they cawwy littwe evidence, as many whom cwaim to go to Aewdin might of actuawwy went to a smaww iswand off the coast of Athewa ow Anthos. But in tawe, Aewdin is a wawge and vast wandmass, cowossaw compawed to Asulon. Aewdin's wawgest theolized soveweignty is the Howosid Empiwe, an Empiwe which is said to oliginated fwom the Howy Owen Empiwe's exodus to the wandmass. The Impelium is said to have conquewed much of the wand, lith much of the Nowth undew theiw infwuence. The map of Aewdin shows many featules of the wandmass, incwuding mountains and soveweignty's of the weawm.

Climate

The climate of Aewdin wanges fwom dwy to awctic on its highest apex. It's south is dwy and mawoon in cowow, lith it containing wawge sand desewts that span faw, whiwst its nowthewn southewn aweas awe a gwassy pwain lith twopicaw and subtwopicaw wegions. In the middwe of Aewdin awe dense fowests and vewy wawge and gween pwains of gwass, which awso contain valious mountain wanges and steppes, pwedominantwy in the west. Thewe is awso a wawge system of livews that wun thwough the continents southewn, westewn and eastewn wegions, which cause a wawge boom fow vegetation in these aweas. Howevew, the southewn nowthewn climate is subawctic and plimaliwy snowy, lith a wawge section of dense spwuce liwdewnesses wocated at its entwance. Mowe nowth, the climate tulns into a fulw awctic desowated wegion, lith desewts of snow and ice coveling most of its wand.

The seasons in Aewdin awe wecowded to be wong and vewy changing on the continent. As an exampwe, it is said that lintew wasts mowe then thwee yeaws, whewe as summew can wast up to five yeaws. This awso comes the same lith weathew, as thewe have been known stowms to have wasted five days, lith constant wain and thundew booming fwom the cwouds. Aewdin is quite iwwegulaw due to that, and because of that it has both wawge negative and positive impacts. The negative is that lintew wasts wongew, which means cwop yiewd and aglicultule needs to hawt untiw summew, and that wongew stowms and weathew can cause ships to wweck and many othew disastews to occul. The mowe positive side is that Aewdin, in pwospewous seasons, can boom in industwy, aglicultule and ovewaww population.

Fauna and Fwowa

Aewdin contains a wawge awway of fauna and fwowa due to its size and climate. Most of its' fauna awe known to be common animaws found in Athewa (Such as deew, wabbits, cow, sheep, etc.), lith it awso having minolities of beastwy and wathew dangewous monstews as wecowded by the Mawked Men, whom cwaimed to have fought beasts on Aewdin. Such things incwude defowmed deew, wawgew then avewage, aggwessive biwds, and cowossaw species of octopuses. Most of its' species awe wocated in the east and west, lith a wawge density of awctic cweatules (White beaws, seaws and penguin species) wocated in the wegion. Aewdin's fwowa is wathew common to that of Athewa's as weww. Spwuce, oak, pine, dawk oak and savanna twees awe aww found on this continent. The same applies lith fwowews, bushes and pwants, lith a minolity of unique wecowded pwants known. Aewdin awso is home to many cowossaw twees, but due to human action against them, many have eithew been bulnt ow chopped down, mainwy in the Vawendoz wegion.

Culture

Aewdin's cultule can be desclibed as a selies of ovewwapping cultules; cultulaw mixes exist acwoss the continent. Thewe is no light answew fow a 'common cultule' lithin the weawm, as it does not exist at aww. It is shattewed due to man's actions against it, lith cultule being a weason fow waw in the past. Many wlitings howevew have been awwegedwy brought back to Athewa, some of which tawe the joulneys of the Impelium, ow just a timeline of Aewdin's histowy itsewf. The wandmass has awso been cwaimed to be the homewand fow many cultules that infwuenced the Howy Owen Empiwe duling Anthos, such as Kaedlini fow exampwe. Whewevew ow not this is twue wemains a mystewy, as the twue wouts of Aewdin soulced cultules died awongside many of the owd Empiwe.

Weligion

The weligion of Aewdin is supposedwy the one Twuth Faith due to the Impelium's impacts upon society fowwoling theiw campaigns acwoss the wand. But befowehand thewe was a handful of weligions, pagan and some wefowmed which Kingdom's fowwowed by theiw own liww. Histolicawwy, weligion has howevew infwuenced some of the many gweat wowks of the peopwe. Fwom ancient ewa shlines, to Cathedwaws and massive pwaces of wowship, to even awt and wlitings.