Post by HDM Legacy on Mar 5, 2016 23:27:08 GMT
"Morcavia: home to thousands of bloodthirsty fanatics, millions of impoverished serfs, the five biggest cities in all the world, and the longest ongoing war in the history of Aipana. It's a fascinating place, but I wouldn't want to live there."
~ Reldo Traipse, Bartender at the Wayfarer's Rest
Country: Morcavia
Language: Mordish
Capital: Rautendorf
Population: 23,000,000 (66% Human, 8% Half Elf, 2% Elf, 9% Hobgoblin, 3% Goblin, 7% Half Orc, 4% Dwarf, 1% Other
Government: Feudal Theocracy (Achlys)
Head of State: Arch-Sanguinary Cosmina Balan
Religion: Achlys is the state religion. All others must purchase licenses, and pay a tax to operate freely. The faiths of Sepran, Solon, and Moloch are outlawed.
Allies: Scythia, City of Arten. Shaky economic ties with Bergen.
Enemies: Andilla, Sarmatia, Isenfiordr, Orm Aethel.
Economy: Capitalist
Imports: Fertilizers, Water, Gums, Resins, Lead, Coal
Exports: Copper, Wood, Iron, Salt, Grain, Weapons, Armor, Gems, Alchemical Goods
Overview
A grim and dystopian theocracy rivaled in size only by the vast, wild, expanse of Orm Aethel, and in military might by the rest of the free world combined, Morcavia's past is shrouded in horror and mystery. Once a realm of light and hope; the foremost bastion of virtue of the civilized lands against the writhing hordes of madness invading through the Riftlands, Morcavia's ruling line was extinguished over two centuries ago during the Darkening. Desperate, the people turned to Achlys, the lovely yet terrible Goddess of Blood for succor. The Crimson Queen has saved the Kingdom from destruction, but many wonder. . .at what price?
Geography
Morcavia is bordered on the west by Isenfiodr, on the east by Orm Aethel and Gray Hills, and on the south by Scythia and Sarmatia. It borders Lake Arten, and the entirety of the Emerald Mere, an inland salt lake, lies within it's borders. The lake is fed by two rivers, which flow southward from the northwest and notheast highlands; the Vasik, the Ovik respectively. The southern border is formed by Red Mountains, and northern border by the Gloomfrost Sea. Most of Morcavia lies in a valley between it's northern highlands and southern mountain range, with ancient, rugged forests scattered throughout the plains and hills.
There are five provinces: Norgarde, Blackfell, Feyreach, Easthold, and Sanguil. The most powerful is Sanguil, the central province, which plays host to the capital city of Rautendorf. There lies the Cathedral of the Sacred Blood, a vast black temple from which the Church of Achlys lords over their domain.
There are only five cities in Morcavia, each the capital of their own province. There are no towns, no villages, no hamlets, and no houses outside these vast megalopolises, which resemble stupendously massive hybrids between pyramids and towers.
Climate
Morcavia's climate ranges from the arctic in the far north to temperate in the south, with winters severe no matter the location, due to the humidity rising from the Emerald Mere. Morcavians are rather proud of the fact that most other folk cannot weather the cold as they can, and more than one invading army has been defeated because they tried to fight through the winter months against better prepared and acclimated Morcavian forces.
The country's borders are ever swathed in a thick, cold, gray mist, and the sky, even in summer, is frequently overcast; the sunlight browned and blackened by the thick clouds and the greasy smoke pouring from the country's many massive forges, tanneries, and mills.
Politics
Morcavia is ruled by a sprawling, rigid, religious bureaucracy that has over time merged with the five most powerful noble families in the country. In the Kingdom of Blood, the church is the state and the state is the church. These families are: the Valca (Norgarde), the Lupei (Feyreach), the Sala (Easthold), and Fieraru (Blackreach). The most powerful family, the Balemyre, govern the central province of Sanguil, and the capital of Rautendorf. These five families are the only nobility recognized by Morcavian law, and while visiting nobility is granted most expected courtesies, they are expected to mind their own business while conducting their affairs in the Kingdom of Blood. Those who don't seldom get the chance to mind anything ever again.
Religion
If stopped on the street and asked their religion, most any Morcavian will tell you they worship Achlys. This is usually true, but there are a minority of citizens in Morcavia who adhere to other faiths. These beleaguered few must pay hefty fines and taxes for the freedom to conduct their faith outside of Morcavia's dungeons and torture chambers, as the Church of Achlys has precious little love for those who do not adore their Queen. Those who worship Solon, Sepran, or Moloch are executed upon discovery of such heinous heresy.
Cosmina Balan currently heads the church of Achlys. A prodigy of divine gifts, the innocent peasant girl was plucked from the grimy floor of a military warehouse by the Council of Sanguinaries, and given the best education the Church could buy. Only twenty years old, she wields more power than clergy many times her senior, but due to her political inexperience currently relies heavily on the Sanguinaries when dealing with matters of state. Because of her restraint and even hand, Cosmina is wildly popular with the serfs of Morcavia, despite her position as the head of Aipana's darkest nation.
Culture
As a pre-industrial feudal dystopia governed by a sprawling, politically treacherous priesthood, Morcavia's people are, for the most part, poor. With heavy taxes, heavier workloads, educations reserved for the wealthy, and filthy sanitation, the teeming masses dwell in utter misery, eking out a living in the lower levels of the five megalopolises. The lucky ones get to journey outside the stench and squalor to work in the mega-plantations and mills that grow and process food throughout the countryside, or work on merchant ships and in supply caravans. The ones who aren't have jobs in one of the many massive forges, tanneries, textile miles, or plumbing plants inside the cities, and work inhumane hours, only to limp home to the ancient, decrepit hovels that line the ground floors of the dark fortress cities.
The Sanguinary Council governs all industry, trade, and agriculture. More often than not the serfs are payed in finished goods, not money. There is no upward mobility, economically. Those who attempt to improve their situation by theft lose their hands.
If it's bad for skilled workers, it's worse for those without skills. The truly hopeless have only two options: to sell their bodies as prostitutes or slaves, join dangerous underworld organizations, or enlist in the Army of Morcavia. Most choose the first two, but are conscripted anyway. Thousands die daily in the winding blood soaked trenches and crumbling gothic towers of the Norgarde line, fighting back the horrible, otherworldly servants of the Destroyer, Moloch. Those who survive come back forever scarred, but these lucky few receive as reward a comfortable if modest life for their families in the middle levels of the cities.
Here in the mid-levels of the cities, the country's small middle class run shops frequented by the upper class, and own homes of their own. These homes, while they are mansions compared to the wretched favelas in the lower rings of the city, are hovels themselves next to the Palaces of the Five Families, and the Cathedrals of Blood. Wrought of extraordinary classical architecture, decorated with masterful sculptures and stained glass windows, and overlaid with thousands of pounds of precious gems and metals, the silken nests of Morcavia's tiny ruling class dwarf and cheapen the royal residences of most other countries in their opulence. For the Priesthood and Nobles, life is a luxury, with every service provided, every delicacy available, and every fantasy indulged. Even the hedonistic Senators of Etrusca are modest in their lifestyles compared to the lavish wealth of the Sanguinary Council and it's lackeys.
Their harshly theocratic government and dangerous life have hardened the Morcavians into a pious yet cruel people; not because they wish to be. But because they have to be. It's the only way they can survive.
Military
Five million strong and slowly growing despite the massive casualties they suffer daily, the Army of the Sacred Blood is the largest military force known in the world. Most armor, weapons, and uniforms are of mediocre quality, and are mass produced in Sterianu, the Capital of Norgarde. Due to Morcavia's alliances with Bergen and Scythia, they are able to import state of the art siege engines from the former, while half of Scythia's forces fights along beside Morcavia in the trenches.
While Morcavia's rank and file soldiers are so much arrow fodder, the leaders of their armies are rumored to possess strange and frightening supernatural powers, which many claim are the reason Moloch's hordes have not been able to defeat them. Despite these fabled advantages, no Morcavian army has ever passed the borders of their homeland since the Darkening.
Regional Trait:
Morcavian: +2 to Know Religion and Intimidate, one of which becomes a class skill. +2 to fortitude saves against environmental cold.
~ Reldo Traipse, Bartender at the Wayfarer's Rest
Country: Morcavia
Language: Mordish
Capital: Rautendorf
Population: 23,000,000 (66% Human, 8% Half Elf, 2% Elf, 9% Hobgoblin, 3% Goblin, 7% Half Orc, 4% Dwarf, 1% Other
Government: Feudal Theocracy (Achlys)
Head of State: Arch-Sanguinary Cosmina Balan
Religion: Achlys is the state religion. All others must purchase licenses, and pay a tax to operate freely. The faiths of Sepran, Solon, and Moloch are outlawed.
Allies: Scythia, City of Arten. Shaky economic ties with Bergen.
Enemies: Andilla, Sarmatia, Isenfiordr, Orm Aethel.
Economy: Capitalist
Imports: Fertilizers, Water, Gums, Resins, Lead, Coal
Exports: Copper, Wood, Iron, Salt, Grain, Weapons, Armor, Gems, Alchemical Goods
Overview
A grim and dystopian theocracy rivaled in size only by the vast, wild, expanse of Orm Aethel, and in military might by the rest of the free world combined, Morcavia's past is shrouded in horror and mystery. Once a realm of light and hope; the foremost bastion of virtue of the civilized lands against the writhing hordes of madness invading through the Riftlands, Morcavia's ruling line was extinguished over two centuries ago during the Darkening. Desperate, the people turned to Achlys, the lovely yet terrible Goddess of Blood for succor. The Crimson Queen has saved the Kingdom from destruction, but many wonder. . .at what price?
Geography
Morcavia is bordered on the west by Isenfiodr, on the east by Orm Aethel and Gray Hills, and on the south by Scythia and Sarmatia. It borders Lake Arten, and the entirety of the Emerald Mere, an inland salt lake, lies within it's borders. The lake is fed by two rivers, which flow southward from the northwest and notheast highlands; the Vasik, the Ovik respectively. The southern border is formed by Red Mountains, and northern border by the Gloomfrost Sea. Most of Morcavia lies in a valley between it's northern highlands and southern mountain range, with ancient, rugged forests scattered throughout the plains and hills.
There are five provinces: Norgarde, Blackfell, Feyreach, Easthold, and Sanguil. The most powerful is Sanguil, the central province, which plays host to the capital city of Rautendorf. There lies the Cathedral of the Sacred Blood, a vast black temple from which the Church of Achlys lords over their domain.
There are only five cities in Morcavia, each the capital of their own province. There are no towns, no villages, no hamlets, and no houses outside these vast megalopolises, which resemble stupendously massive hybrids between pyramids and towers.
Climate
Morcavia's climate ranges from the arctic in the far north to temperate in the south, with winters severe no matter the location, due to the humidity rising from the Emerald Mere. Morcavians are rather proud of the fact that most other folk cannot weather the cold as they can, and more than one invading army has been defeated because they tried to fight through the winter months against better prepared and acclimated Morcavian forces.
The country's borders are ever swathed in a thick, cold, gray mist, and the sky, even in summer, is frequently overcast; the sunlight browned and blackened by the thick clouds and the greasy smoke pouring from the country's many massive forges, tanneries, and mills.
Politics
Morcavia is ruled by a sprawling, rigid, religious bureaucracy that has over time merged with the five most powerful noble families in the country. In the Kingdom of Blood, the church is the state and the state is the church. These families are: the Valca (Norgarde), the Lupei (Feyreach), the Sala (Easthold), and Fieraru (Blackreach). The most powerful family, the Balemyre, govern the central province of Sanguil, and the capital of Rautendorf. These five families are the only nobility recognized by Morcavian law, and while visiting nobility is granted most expected courtesies, they are expected to mind their own business while conducting their affairs in the Kingdom of Blood. Those who don't seldom get the chance to mind anything ever again.
Religion
If stopped on the street and asked their religion, most any Morcavian will tell you they worship Achlys. This is usually true, but there are a minority of citizens in Morcavia who adhere to other faiths. These beleaguered few must pay hefty fines and taxes for the freedom to conduct their faith outside of Morcavia's dungeons and torture chambers, as the Church of Achlys has precious little love for those who do not adore their Queen. Those who worship Solon, Sepran, or Moloch are executed upon discovery of such heinous heresy.
Cosmina Balan currently heads the church of Achlys. A prodigy of divine gifts, the innocent peasant girl was plucked from the grimy floor of a military warehouse by the Council of Sanguinaries, and given the best education the Church could buy. Only twenty years old, she wields more power than clergy many times her senior, but due to her political inexperience currently relies heavily on the Sanguinaries when dealing with matters of state. Because of her restraint and even hand, Cosmina is wildly popular with the serfs of Morcavia, despite her position as the head of Aipana's darkest nation.
Culture
As a pre-industrial feudal dystopia governed by a sprawling, politically treacherous priesthood, Morcavia's people are, for the most part, poor. With heavy taxes, heavier workloads, educations reserved for the wealthy, and filthy sanitation, the teeming masses dwell in utter misery, eking out a living in the lower levels of the five megalopolises. The lucky ones get to journey outside the stench and squalor to work in the mega-plantations and mills that grow and process food throughout the countryside, or work on merchant ships and in supply caravans. The ones who aren't have jobs in one of the many massive forges, tanneries, textile miles, or plumbing plants inside the cities, and work inhumane hours, only to limp home to the ancient, decrepit hovels that line the ground floors of the dark fortress cities.
The Sanguinary Council governs all industry, trade, and agriculture. More often than not the serfs are payed in finished goods, not money. There is no upward mobility, economically. Those who attempt to improve their situation by theft lose their hands.
If it's bad for skilled workers, it's worse for those without skills. The truly hopeless have only two options: to sell their bodies as prostitutes or slaves, join dangerous underworld organizations, or enlist in the Army of Morcavia. Most choose the first two, but are conscripted anyway. Thousands die daily in the winding blood soaked trenches and crumbling gothic towers of the Norgarde line, fighting back the horrible, otherworldly servants of the Destroyer, Moloch. Those who survive come back forever scarred, but these lucky few receive as reward a comfortable if modest life for their families in the middle levels of the cities.
Here in the mid-levels of the cities, the country's small middle class run shops frequented by the upper class, and own homes of their own. These homes, while they are mansions compared to the wretched favelas in the lower rings of the city, are hovels themselves next to the Palaces of the Five Families, and the Cathedrals of Blood. Wrought of extraordinary classical architecture, decorated with masterful sculptures and stained glass windows, and overlaid with thousands of pounds of precious gems and metals, the silken nests of Morcavia's tiny ruling class dwarf and cheapen the royal residences of most other countries in their opulence. For the Priesthood and Nobles, life is a luxury, with every service provided, every delicacy available, and every fantasy indulged. Even the hedonistic Senators of Etrusca are modest in their lifestyles compared to the lavish wealth of the Sanguinary Council and it's lackeys.
Their harshly theocratic government and dangerous life have hardened the Morcavians into a pious yet cruel people; not because they wish to be. But because they have to be. It's the only way they can survive.
Military
Five million strong and slowly growing despite the massive casualties they suffer daily, the Army of the Sacred Blood is the largest military force known in the world. Most armor, weapons, and uniforms are of mediocre quality, and are mass produced in Sterianu, the Capital of Norgarde. Due to Morcavia's alliances with Bergen and Scythia, they are able to import state of the art siege engines from the former, while half of Scythia's forces fights along beside Morcavia in the trenches.
While Morcavia's rank and file soldiers are so much arrow fodder, the leaders of their armies are rumored to possess strange and frightening supernatural powers, which many claim are the reason Moloch's hordes have not been able to defeat them. Despite these fabled advantages, no Morcavian army has ever passed the borders of their homeland since the Darkening.
Regional Trait:
Morcavian: +2 to Know Religion and Intimidate, one of which becomes a class skill. +2 to fortitude saves against environmental cold.