The youngest nation in the Shattered Seas, the Raider States are a newly united nation after more than a century of near constant war. Having brought together the five states of the west under a single banner for the first time since the Shattering is no small accomplishment, and one that the world has certainly recognized. The stability and peace is a fragile victory, with the individual peoples still seeing themselves more as seperate peoples than a single nation. As such the King of the Raiders has organized them into a single army and marched this unified force against Athera.
The Raider States are a newly unified region, having been brought together through alliance or conquest. As such this vast nation represents a wide variety of people who still see themselves as more distinct than unified. With no one central cultural identy untiy is held by common purpose. This diversity in peoples also makes generalizations about everything from economic status to urbanization difficult and inaccurate.
Sea Raiders
Although technically the ruling people, the Sea Raiders make up little more than a quarter of the population of the Raider States. The Sea Raiders are those who live on the coast of the Shattered Sea. With their long sailing tradition they have often raided the Atherans and the Gothics to their south. In the unified states however they are one of the most united peoples within the nation.
Gothics
The Gothics are the largest portion of the total population of the Raider States, with a moderately urbanized population and strong martial tradition. The Gothics spent much of their history fighting between eachother, the Sea Raiders, and The Kahn. As such they also make up the largest portion of the Raiders combined military and where instrumental in the unifcation of the various states. The fiercely proud Gothics are skilled craftsmen, warriors, and farmers.
Slavic/Rus
The Rus, are a small multicultural group in the far north, sitting along the shattered sea they were once a collection of Sea Raider cities that had been conquored by the Khan. Having revolted during the Sea Raider Khan Wars the Rus are a new people still forging their own identity. Making up a tiny portion of the total population of the Raider States they contribute disproptionately to the military of the Raiders.
Steppe Riders
The people of the Khan are another comparitively small people, but make up a major portion of the Raider States combined military, and the last to join. With their long cavalry tradition and nomadic culture they have a very low urban population with a large agrarian footprint. They produce a lot of food, through their hearding and farming. Additionally nearly all memebers of their culture are trained in the martial traditions of the Khannate. This does mean that the Steppe Riders are capable of mustering a startelingly large force for their population.
Litho/Polish
The Litho/Polish are the most developed and advanced of the Raider States. Having been far removed from the collapse following the Shattering they held on to much of their old culture and traditions. Their military fields armies in advanced plate, using large amounts of Calvary. The population is on the larger side of the Raider States, and highly urbanized. Called the smiths of the west, the Litho/Polish produce many of the weapons and armorments of the raider armies.
The Raider States fields the largest army in the world
Campaign Setting Information
Cultural Views on Classes
Artificer
Barbarian
The various raider states have one of the richest barbarian traditions. In particular the Sea Raiders have long used barbarian berserkers and their rage to break the lines of theory enemies. Each ship usually carries a single barbarian champion who is usually the first ashore. While the Gothic Kings would often employ small bands of barbarians to conduct raids on their enemies. As such the armies of these states hold a particular place for barbarians among their ranks.
Bard
The Raiders have a wide variety of bards of all manner of performers, few however are of the College of Swords. Most bards within raider lands are musicians, and poets who tell the legends of the great heroes of the raiders. These poets and musicians are typically of the College of Lore or Valor. The other colleges are represented more rarely and are typically found within the courts of the noble houses of the Raider states.
Clerics
All Domains can be found within the various Raider states except the Domain of Wells. The various states all have diverse peoples with many different focuses. For more information about the Raider states check the section on the Raider states in nations. These clerics run the temples and churches of the states, as well as traveling the communities to help the struggling peoples.
Druids
Of all the human nations the Raider states have more druids than any other. As a more decentralized culture of rural populations they tend to be more connected to the wild places in their lands. These druids were some of the first to cultivate the roo to focus their powers and to communicate with the spirits of nature. Like the other nations however, these druid circles tend to remain distant from the more urbanized areas of the Raider Kingdoms.
The War
The nations of the Raiders and Athera stand at the brink of war at the start of the Campaign, the flow of the events of this war are documented and progresses steadily. Characters should not feel compelled to join the conflict, however the steady march of a conflict outside their control helps create a feeling of stakes while providing a sense of stakes. However if players are not interested in dealing with the ramifications of the conflict there are many areas largely unaffected by the war.
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