Czellian Island

First discovered by human explorer Columbus da laMacy year 3811 After Magic, who later became the first mainlander to map and tread on every island in the Bright Isles, Czellian Island is considered the most resource-rich of all the Bright Isles. Absolutely covered in surface veins of precious metals, and with the island’s immense amounts of hematite, the island was quickly colonized by settlers from both the Balkrain Provinces and Victoraccan Monarchy. For the first fifty years of its settlement, colonists from both nations lived peacefully in the resource-rich and heavily rained Czellian Island.
However, this changed with the year 3047 expulsion of the Necromancers in the Victoraccan kingdom. King Carlos IX, in an effort to secure a more solid relationship with the Marble Church, issued a national edict declaring that all Necromancers within the realm were henceforth outlaws, to be hunted down and brought to local tax collector’s home for monetary reward. This edict drove even dabbling wizards from their royal courts and were forced to flee in order to avoid persecution, many of which fled to the Bright Isles. Within Czellian, displaced necromancers and their families overtook the small colonial governments and rose undead militias in order secure their hold on the island. Ever since the Czellian has been home to Necromancers and a heaven to the practices of the Malevolence Heresy. Though civilized, and debatably a very organized society, most modern colonists keep well aware from Czellian Ports, which are only visited by the most daring of traders.
Now, Czellian Island is ruled by a self-appointed warlord known as Cosmo the Grey. It is unknown if Cosmo is a living human or some form of powerful undead, but it is known that he can animate and control entire legions of undead warriors and servants, and that his skill in necromancy is unmatched by any other on the Island. Though he does not do it himself to prevent bringing the outside nations to invade, it is rumored Cosmo sponsors kidnappings of outsiders in order to bring more bodies to turn into undead minions.

Geography

The island emerged from an undersea volcanic eruption that built upon its own cooling lava to form the base of what is now the Czellian Island today. Irrifutable evidence of this gyser of liquid rock exists in the island's center, which is dominated by a large inactive volcano that runs through the island's core. The mountain itself is a resource-rich area brimming with both hematite and basalt, and hundreds of now-empty volcanic vents allow miners to delve deep into the mountain to find even more elusive materials like platinum and gold.
The plains around the volcanic mountain, that make up the rest of the island, all possess a slight uphill slope towards the island's center. Though subtle to the naked eye, residents often find it impossible to keep anything level in their homes, and construction workers take great care to build level foundations for homeowners that can afford it. The flats around the island are mostly fertile grasslands full of shrubs and fast-growing softwood trees, though a few dense coniferous forests full of hardwoods grow away from the coast.
The coastline of Czellian is characterized by the course, black volcanic sand that rings the entire island.
Czellian Island, being volcanic, lacks sources of fresh water from aquifers within the ground or mountainside. Luckily, the island has a very prominent wet season in the fall, winter and spring that keeps the island green, and even very marshy at parts.

Fauna & Flora

Most of the island is simple grassland, with species of grass that grow to chest-height to the average man. Because of this, the island is home to many species of plains creatures, sporting a large population of Antelope, Aurochs, Bison and Buffalo, as well as other varieties of plains-dwelling herd creatures. The abundance of prey also supports a large population of predators on the island, including Cheetas, Hyenas, and even Axe Beaks, though the latter prefers to stick to regions with especially tall grasses.
In the hardy coniferous forests that dot the inland regions of the island, forest creatures such as deer and elk make their home. The forests of Czellian are considered quite dangerous, as they are isolated from most of the civilized population and are home to many ambush predators like Leopards and Digmaul.
However, the easiest site to see anywhere in the island's wilderness are rouge undead. Spawn of dead necromancers or thrown away experiments, small groups of undead shamble across even the most remote portions of the island; though they often congregate close to cities. These undead, though uncaring if their next meal is human or animal, have little impact on the natural population, as most quadrupedal animals are much faster the undead, and natural survival instinct causes natural creatures to give the undead a wide berth.

Natural Resources

Though the plains of the island are indeed very fertile, the roaming undead threat only allows for small, spartan farms owned by families who's careers are more akin to a warrior than a cultivator. These farms traditionally produce hardy vegetables that require as little maintenance as possible, such as onions, carrots, potatoes, beats, and varieties of mushroom. Most of these farmers are also hunters, as no poaching laws exist on the island, and pad their meager incomes by selling hides and dried meat.
With few, dangerous coniferous forests on the island, the most prominent building material on the island is basalt, which can be found anywhere by any peasant with a shovel. Additionally, the center of the island is abundantly full of hematite and other low-value metals, with large pockets of more precious materials such as platinum, gold, and titanium deep within the empty volcanic vents.
The scrappy, fast-growing softwood trees that dot the island in groves make for poor building material, and worse tool-handles, but burn well and are used as fuel for fires in homes all across the island.

Maps

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  Czellian Island

  A more detailed map specific to Czellian Island

Type

Island

Included Organizations

• The Undying Order

Owning Organization

The Undying Order