The Kingdom of Sonora

The Kingdom of Sonora is an ancient civilization that resides at the center of the continent of Albion, held together by powerful magics, ancient laws, and delicate alliances. Ruled by the current King Dalen Sonora, the land as observed a time of profitable peace and expansion on the road to becoming the strongest kingdom in all of Albion.

Structure

• The King of Sonora: The King of Sonora rules over all of the Sonoran lands with unquestionable authority, residing at the royal seat of the Diamond Throne at the capital city of Alscace. The current King is King Dalen Sonora.
• The Queen of Sonora: The Queen of Sonora serves as the king's hand when the king requires advice or cannot be present to make certain decisions. The current Queen is Siobhan Kascarda-Sonora, who married the king to end the War of the Eastern Rend.
• The Royal Family: The family of the king, mainly his children had by his queen. This consists of the Crown Prince is Dairon Sonora, followed by the middle prince Damian Sonora, the princess Dorothy Sonora, and finally the youngest prince Dorian Sonora.
• The Court Wizard: The court wizard is a trained Arcanist hand-selected by the Court after a series of rigorous tests, training, and years of building power and experience. More often than not these Wizards come from the Star Citadel, but sometimes the crown may request or demand another form of Wizardry that the Star Whisperers cannot provide. The current Court Wizard is the Elf Mage, Anders Iomundar, originating from the Elvish Kingdom of Nyth Noelle whose placement in the position of Wizard was part of the formation of an alliance between the two kingdoms. He has served the past three kings and now serves King Dalen.
• The Dukes Triad: The three Dukes under the king who each command one of the three primary Regions of Sonora: Grynn to the west, Torim to the center, and Rayce to the East. Each Duke is a close family member to the king of an official of great renown whose service to the crown as elevated them to this position. Duke Ordom Cevir presides over Rayce, Emile Zedolphin watches over Grynn, and Jordan Sonora, cousin to the king, rules over Torim at the center.
• The Barons & The Counts: The Barons and Counts of Sonora serve the Dukes by controlling the various inner Counties and Baronies that fill the Regions of the kingdom. Grynn holds the County of Carcallon to the north bordering the Orcish Take, and the County of Eanfuldt to the south bordering the Elves of Nyth Noelle. Torim holds the Barony of Crownsbed to the southwest, the Barony of Solace to the center north, and the Barony of Locksheed to the northwest. Finally, Rayce commands the Barony of Stonehaven to the south and the County of Kinswarden to the east bordering the Eastern Rend.
• The Knights Argent of Sonora: The Knights of Sonora are men and women of blade, honor, and truth, sworn before the court to uphold the Code of the Fair and act as a shining example of Sonoran bravery and respect. Knights defer to those who bear a title and act as agents of the king and of justice and honor in their own right, taking the blade to those who would see dishonor, mistrust, and deceit be carried out.
• The Mayors: The Mayors command the various towns and villages that fill the Sonoran landscape, working under the rest of the chain as the last link between peasantry and nobility.

History

• The Failed Siege of Mohm: During the rule of Dolan Sonora, the Yapping King called for a siege of Thor Bardam in an attempt to seize control of the entire continent of Albion. The dwarves would be the first and last war fought in this endeavor as while the Sonoran forces were able to easily make landfall, due to the Dwarves lacking a proper navy, they were simply unable to combat against the Dwarves on their own native land. With their Earthpriests sealing them in caves, cutting and redistributing water supplies, casting walls of stone to split garrisons in half and break charging lines, the dwarves' land familiarity and zealous guerilla warfare made sure that the Sonorans did not reach the capital of Mohmtorigg that easily. Even then, the whole city would be walled like a dome of stone, maintained by its Earthpriests while the Abbey of the Dawn fed and grew food from the light blessed to them by Pelor.
For three years, the Sonorans kept stuck at the base of Thor Bardam, unaware that during that time, the Dwarves worked to form a great tunnel beneath the very ocean itself, burrowing to the mainland of Albion and beginning a reverse siege on the unaware and undefended towns and cities of Sonora. This tunnel would become known as the Mohm's Reach, and the Dwarves sacked the whole of the southern isle and eventually made it to the humans' capital of Alscace. There, Eyroc Slaghammer aka. the Stone Wraith and his Earth Priests spent a week dismantling a whole quarter of the Sonoran Walls while under constant barrage fire, before the King's armies even made landfall back at the mainland. The statement was sent, with little lives lost, that the Dwarves could break through any wall the Sonorans could hope to hide behind.Eyroc and his legion then hid and skulked their way back to Mohm's Reach, but were followed by Sonoran Scouts who soon discovered the great tunnel and prompted the armies to follow. In his greatest act of foolishness, King Dolan ordered his priests to chase after the Dwarves and follow the spout up into the heart of the mainland, finally taking Mohmtorigg for himself. However, the army would not get anywhere near as Eyroc, knowing what they intended and understanding that his forces couldn't out run nor overpower the Sonoran army, stayed behind and bought the foundation of the Reach down upon them. The whole of the Ocean's water came crashing through, Eyroc using the last of his power to seal the tunnel behind him so the Dwarven capital would not drown, but all of King Dolan's soldiers were swept away by the torrent of earth and sea. This crushing defeat would see the end of Dolan's credibility as a ruler, and in time his brother Andros would usurp the throne to focus on rebuilding tensions between all of the great Kingdoms of Albion.
• The Zaffrewood Conflict: During the rule of King Doran Sonora, otherwise known as Doran the Fox, he attempted to expand his army northward past the Alderwood and into the mysterious Zaffrewood in search of resources and other things to help the improvement of his kingdom. The vicious incursion drew the attention of the native Star Elves, who responded with violence and desolation of the kingdom's scouting and gathering parties due to the rampant destruction and colonization of their land. Doran responded in kind but opted not to risk his soldiers in a land battle on ground they were unfamiliar with. Instead he used his navy to encircle the whole of the spit of land and rained fire down upon it from afar, nearly destroying their holy site of the Star Basin and reducing it to the ruin it is today.

The tactic seemed to work, but the druidic Caste of the Starsoul communed with their Fey Brethren for aid, and the Feywild answered in the form of the Night Sirens, bestowed upon them by the mysterious Archfey patron, the Nightmother. These Sirens swam to the boats under the cover of night, their dark yet glittery skin hiding them beneath the black night-wrought waves, and they would seduce all of the naval men atop those ships before pulling them into a drowning passion in the sea below. It would be days before the king realized his fleet was empty, left floating on the water with no one to man it.
Thusly, he changed tactics, despite pleading from his younger brother Dalen to stop the needless war. Using his most trusted informers and assassins, Doran sent them into the Zaffrewood to both map out the land for the king as well as to assassinate the heads of the Caste. They ventured off, and the assassins would go on to hunt down and murder the Caste's Elder, leaving her body to bake and dry out in the sun while hung against a cliff face. But this brutality was met with a cunning that equaled Dolan's, and after a month or so only one of the assassins returned from their journey, a whole map of the Zaffrewood drawn and the Elder's Moonstone Amulet in his hands.
The man, calling himself Charn (K-arn), was rewarded for his valiant efforts, offered a keep and bride to marry, but they seemed to withdraw from the war on the insistence that the loss of his comrades was too much for him to bear. He vanished off into one of the many towns and villages under Sonoran rule. The king made plans to invade with his new plans in motion, but soon enough coin began to be misplaced, resources and shipments shuffled around in strange and random ways, and orders began to be followed that people seemed to not remember giving to their subordinates. Wagons of food for the soldiers were donated to the poor and hungry, the coin was donated under the king's stamp to endless parishes and holy sites, and control over the kingdom seemed to slowly slip from Doran's fingers.
Eventually, the madness got to him, and he flushed out all of his officers and replaced them with new ones, but it did nothing to quell the chaos. Eventually, Doran took to his wife for comfort, and whilst they lay in bed making love, she stabbed him in the neck and watched him gag and slowly die. The guard heard the commotion and knocked to inquire, and was greeted with the king, who insisted all was well. The night would go on, and the king's assassin would sneak through the castle with the body of Doran and his wife (who they had slain in a similar manner of deception), and hang their bodies for display as they had done to their Circle's Elder. The messages upon their bodies read, "A riddle for you to solve: A king kills his queen, and then the queen kills her king. How could this be? How can wives poison their husbands and brothers open the throats of their sisters? How can the greatest of friends suddenly fill one another with steel and surprise, and the kingdom tear itself apart in a slow flaying of its own sanity? Insist on claiming the Zaffrewood, and you will learn the answer to this question".
Assuming the crown of his dead older brother, Dalen Sonora became King and immediately sought to the construction of a massive wall that spanned the whole of the continent's peak, cutting off Sonora from the Zaffrewood entirely. Through arcane investigation, he was able to discern that the culprit of his brother and sister-in-law's murder was a fey of some sort, and thus this forced him to institute the practice of wearing pure iron rings and other jewelry to make sure that people truly were themselves, as iron burned and marked the fey like acid. Doran's Wall rose within a few months with the assistance of the Dwarves of Thor Bardam, and the truce of ignorance between the two has stood ever since.

Demography and Population

Despite its government and nobility primarily consisting of humans, the Kingdom of Sonora highly versatile. Humans, Half-elves, Dwarves, and Halflings are the most common races to be seen, with occasional appearances of Gnomes, Half-orcs, Elves, and others. Tieflings, Goblinoids, Orcs, and Dark Elves are often treated with disdain and suspicion, and Aasimars are often graciously respected without much press.
The population of the Kingdom stands at seven million people, with various Noble Houses listed below:

• House Grynn: House Grynn is one of the most powerful houses in the Kingdom of Sonora, primarily known for its warriors and for having their seat of power be the Grynnhold.
• House Cevir: A lesser noble house who rose to prominence after the ascension of Duke Ordom Cevir as Duke of Sonora.
• House Zedolphin: A noble house known for its trackers, hunters, strategists, and sometimes mages, also known as House Orcsbane.
• House Azon: A lesser noble house known for its warriors and knights, passing down the ancestral blue-flaming sword, Azurelade.
• House Tillman: House Tillman has the largest segment of fertile lands in the whole of the Kingdom, commanding a mixture of gardens, orchards, farms, and other crops that they distribute throughout the whole of the continent. From their seat of Crowngarden, they feed most if not all of the Sonoran people, whilst also brewing a selection of the finest wines, beers, and juices available.
• House MacIntyre: A wealthy family with ancestral ties to the Rend who moved into the Sonoran Kingdom, known for birthing powerful and notorious mages and warriors.

Territories

The Kingdom of Sonora commands the center-most area of Albion, expanding far enough into the west that they reach the edge of the continent so as to not be completely surrounded by other kingdoms. They also reach out towards the southern coasts, bordered by the Dwarven Lands of Thor Bardam.

• The Eastern Rend (Region): After the War of the Eastern Rend where Dalen Sonora defeated the Chieftainess Siobhan Kascarda, he decided to spare her life in exchange for a marital union that would bring the Barbarians of the Rend under his protection so long as they pledged fealty. She agreed, in hopes to save her people from further destruction, and so now the Rend is under the command of the Silver Crown.
• The Alderwood: The Alderwood Forest, often shortened to the Alderwood, is a large expanse of green forest that expands down far into the stretches of the Sonoran mainland. It serves as home for the Arc of the Beryl Soul Druids as well as Green Fey such as the Sprites and Dryads, both of whom provided aid to the Tribes to the east during the War of the Eastern Rend. However, due to the loss and then marriage of their Queen Chieftainess Siobhan here at the Battle of the Alderwood, the Duke Ordom Cevir has begun taking action to cleanse the forest of the Green Fey in favor of alliances with the Dwarves and expansion of the "civilized world". As such, he has allowed trappers, rangers, and hunters of all kinds to roam the forest in search of the various fey, paying them to either kill, capture, or otherwise remove the Fey from this land by any means necessary. This has since become a sore spot for the Elves of Nyth Noelle, as they know this will inevitably lead to a conflict with the Archfey of the Alderwood, The Horned King.
• The Berylsoul Grove: The Berylsoul Grove serves as the main congregation area for the Druids of the Alderwood; the Arc of the Beryl Soul. Many members of the Druidic Circle come to engage in rituals and pray to the spirits and fey of the forest, communing with and through animals and diving into the powerful magics of the natural space. The Druids have often run into conflict with the local Dwarves who have begun mining in the hills north of the Grove, and often this has led to vandalism, theft, injury, and even death that has continued to scale higher and higher.
• The Tower of Flame: The Tower of Flame resides across from Alsace as a great Beacon to all of the continent, whose color of flame speaks to the current state of the kingdom. In dedication to the cities religion of the Silver Flame, the fire is usually kept White in times of peace, Red during times of war or conflict and Blue during times of mourning. The Flame is always to burn constantly, as for it to go out historically always means doom for Sonora.

The Kingdom of Sonora also covers a large variety of towns, villages, and small cities, listed below by Region:
THE CENTRAL REGION OF TORIM:

• The Capital of Alsace: Alscace is the capital city of the Kingdom of Sonora, the seat of the Silver Throne and the ancestral home of the Sonoran royal family. Landmarks such as the Starspire, the Ivory Palace, and other places can be found here in its immense population, serving as a colossal trade hub between the Dwarvish, Elvish, and eventually Orcish Kingdoms.
• Giralden: A grassland village placed right below Clayhaven, bordering the Graygash River.
• Barronmir: A large town within the Alderwood, placed right above the capital of Alsace.
• Eavmoran: A boggy, mist-covered town in northeast Torim, bordering the Zaffrewood. The powerful Wizard/Warlock Tasha resides here, running her lover's club The Grapevine, which also serves as an information brokerage area. 
• Felden: A large village set aflame during an Orcish raid. The village's ruins remain in the Grynngrass Plains, bordering the Region of Grynn.
• New Felden: The new village formed by the old denizens of Felden closer within Torim.
• Clayhaven: A mist-covered city surrounded by the foggy marshlands of the King's Weep.
• Belkaven: A town placed at the edge of the beginning of Carrion Cross.
• Kingsegg: A small city placed towards the west of Clayhaven within the untapped region of Grynn.
• Filadelle: A town resting at the south by Bardam Bridge, housing the Shafty Nook tavern and bordering a Roadhouse where the criminal organization known as the Road keeps trafficking victims. The steward of Philadelle's Mayor is a member of the Road.
• Elmstall Hollow: Elmstall Hollow is a Dwarven Mine located right above the Berylsoul Grove, opened by the Dwarves of the Silverstryke Mining Company after Dalen Sonora allowed the Dwarves to mine their lands as a renegotiation of their Alliance. Headed by Garyand Elmstall and his miners, they have since needed to hire mercenaries, trappers, and rangers to protect the miners from the Sons of the Beast, who have been disturbed and feel intruded upon by these miners.
• Sunsept: In the northwest near the border of the Eastern Rend, there is the large congregating convent of Pelor known as Sunsept, lead by the sun elf Dawn-bearer Alavendor. It is also an agricultural center for the Kingdom of Sonora.

THE WESTERN REGION OF GRYNN:

• Cutforde: A harbor town that runs along the Graygash River on the eastern end of the region.
• The Reins and the Fort Callion: This colossal castle outpost resides within the center of the Rein, the massive wall that protects all of Albion from the beasts and barbarians of the Orcish Take. Four other castles dot the whole of the wall's length: the Black Tooth built into the westernmost Blackpikes mountain range by the coast, Crimspire at the middle left, Grynnhold at the middle right, and Highground built into the eastern mountains of the King's Weep.
• The Grynngrass Plains: The grasslands that extend throughout the whole of the space below of the Rein and nearly the whole region of Grynn. Pale and dreary grass and wheat fields cover over the whole of the hilly to mountainous lands.

THE EASTERN REGION OF RAYCE:

• Kinswarden: Kinswarden is a large outpost town centered right below the Carrion Cross leading to the Eastern Rend, known for housing the Tower at the Rend and the Rend Watch Legion who are dedicated to the management, observation, and even subjugation of the Clans of the Rend. The Rend Watch keeps tabs on and sometimes works with the Bowed Clans to help eradicate threats in their territory, be that animals, magical beasts, or the Clans that refuse to kneel before the King's rule. A massive Owlbear has made its cave nest near the western side of Kinswarden, and is one of the few Owlbears born with wings large enough to accommodate its colossal size.

Military

• The Knights Argent: Sworn knights dedicated to preserving the Code of the Fair and serving the noble of Sonora, with males titled Sir and females titled Ser. Most often worship gods like Tyr, Helm, or even Bahamut, but they need not keep gods to be a knight.
• The Throneguard: The Royal Guard of seven specially selected warriors dedicated to the protection of the royal family of Sonora, led by the King's Shield.
• Morningstar Unit: A small squadron of thirty men trained under the Minotaur warrior Sir Selaryn Voz aka. "the Cavalry in One". They are made to be the cavalry and spear of the Army, charging in to break enemy ranks and cleave through open spaces of defense.
• The Lawmages: Magic users who have been trained to serve the crown, covering several different positions such as the Divination Silverseers, the Evocation/Conjuration/Transmutation Warmages, the Abjuration Spellwardens, and the Enchantment/Illusion Hexrooks.
• The Sonoran Guard: This is the standing army, navy, and guard of the kingdom all rolled into one.

Mythology & Lore

The Kingdom of Sonora holds the following religions in high regard with high-volume churches and prominent clergy throughout its territory:

• The Silver Flame, God of Protection and Good
• Pelor the Dawnfather, God of Sun and Agriculture
• Bahamut the Platnum Dragon, God of Justice and Nobility
• Helm, God of Protection
• Ioun the All-Seeing Mistress, Goddess of Knowledge
• Erathis the Lawbringer, Goddess of Civilization and Invention
• Tyr the Maimed, God of Justice and Protection
• Torm the Righteous Fury, God of Courage and Self-Sacrifice

Sects

• The Knights of the Silver Flame: This collaborative order exists as an amalgamation of the gods of justice and valor: Torm, Tyr, Helm, Bahamut. They believe that the Silver Flame is the idea of guiding justice, the ideal that all of these gods strive to fight for and protect. While this order holds a number of subsections listed below, they all dedicate themselves to the pursuit of justice and the presentation of valor and courage.

The Oath of Law: Under Torm, this order is concerned with the written letter of the law and its upholding and defense. Most members of this order become judges, lawmen, lawyers, guardsmen, and other logistical roles required within the royal system.

The Oath of Trust: This Tyr-based oath is concerned with loyalty and the preservation of promises, duty, and pledged oaths and service. Members of this oath are commissioned to hunt down oathbreakers, traitors, and serve as traditional warriors.

The Oath of Protection: This oath of the god Helm is concerned with the defense and protection of what the knight is given charge of. This means that they are to dedicate all their resources, even their own life, to the defense and safeguarding of any object, person, place etc. Most members of this order become bodyguards, guardians, soldiers, guardsmen, and safeguarders under the employ of various people.

The Oath of Justice: This oath is concerned with diplomacy and negotiation under Bahamut, speaking of wisdom and settling of grievances before conflict so as to avoid needless death. Most knights of this order serve as diplomats, investigators, interpreters, middlemen, and even undercover agents who attempt to both understand the enemy and work them towards their sides. They're sometimes called "Knights of the Platinum Tongue".

Stand By Me

Type

Geopolitical, Kingdom

Capital

Alsace

Alternative Names

The Nation of the Silver Crown, The Land of Silver, Sonora, The Sonoran Lands,

Predecessor Organization

• The Urth'haile Kingdom

Training Level

Elite

Veterancy Level

Decorated/Honored

Demonym

Sonoran

Leader

Dalen Sonora

Head of State

Dalen Sonora

Head of Government

Dalen Sonora

Government System

Monarchy, Absolute

Power Structure

Feudal state

Economic System

Market economy

Currency

Sonoran's trade in gold, silver, and copper. A gold coin is equal to ten silver, and a silver coin is equal to ten copper. Platinum may also be employed in the process, but only for exorbitant purchases due to its high value of equalling ten gold pieces.

Subsidiary Organizations

• The Clans of the Rend
• The Knights Argent
• The Sonoran Guard
• The Starspire

Location

Albion

Controlled Territories

• Alsace
• Clayhaven
• Fort Callion & The Reins
• The King's Weep

Neighboring Nations

• The Arc of the Beryl Soul
• The Caste of the Starsoul
• The Kingdom of Nyth Noelle
• The Kingdom of Thor Bardam

Notable Members

• Dalen Sonora
• Ordom Cevir
• Siobhan Kascarda-Sonora