Skalbaard

Skalbaard was founded in -204PC by Enya the Holy, who left with the blessing of her mother, Bréda, daughter of Körvic, to discover a holy land. Skalbaard's legends claim that Enya had a dream in which she was visited by Hellen, the Skal goddess of ice, to discover her holy body in the far north. Enya and her faithful companions eventually came to the mountains of Hella, inside which they found a series of caves kept warm by volcanic springs. It was declared holy land, and the companions crowned Enya the first queen of a new land, Skalbaard, which would follow the old ways for all of time. Today, over a thousand years later, the people of Skalbaard have stayed true to that promise. The Arven of Skalbaard tattoo themselves from the time of their coming of age with symbols and stories of the gods, as well as their own deeds. For the Skalbaard, one's history should be written on one's skin for all to see. Every action they take has consequences, a rippling effect that touches everything in its path and alters the course of nature's river. They observe the way of nature and the respect it, treating their lives as meaningful yet fleeting. They are strong and capable hunters and warriors, staunch defenders of their territory and their birth-rights, and fiercely loyal to their leaders, whether it be their tribal chief, their clan leader, or their king. There are two variety of Skalbaardic people. One are town and citadel dwellers, or those who live on the outskirts on smallholdings, living subsistent lifestyles without significant thought to gaining wealth. The other half of the population are nomadic, travelling across the highlands and the frozen wastes. Most of these people lead peaceful existences, though occasionally they engage in Nature's Law, ritualistic banditry or pillaging. This practice is punishable but not outlawed in Skalbaard, as even the Monarchy recognises that if one is not strong enough to protect what is his own, he has no right to claim it as such. It can be a brutal life, yet the Skalbaard believe that it is the very brutality of the natural world that makes them strong. Sure enough, one day the world will end, and all the material wealth in the world will do them no good. Due to the constant possibility of attack from nomadic tribes, all of the settlements in Skalbaard take the form of fortified castles or strongholds. Even the most meagre of smallholdings with defend itself with palisades, if nothing else. Geographically, Skalbaard is a country of heavy snowfall and mountainous regions. It is cold, and ice sheets float in the Gulf of Anna in the north throughout the winter months. Indeed the year is divided into two seasons; summer and winter. Spring and autumn do not exist in this land. Disparity is everything in Skalbaard. You have or you have not. You live or you die. To the south of the country is the coast of Lake Gravann, and the adjoining Lake Weissa, both of which are saltwater lakes directly adjoining the sea, making Skalbaard and its neighbouring country of Nilfjord part of a single island, separate from the rest of Veligskör. At the centre of Skalbaard are icy lake-lands known as the Fjardessa, the Frost-Lakes, around which many of the nomadic tribes live, hunt and fish. All of the northern coast looks out into the Sea of Ormor, with the eastern shore sharing the last slivers of Nilfjord's eponymous fjords.

Structure

Skalbaard is run managed through a feudal system, with highborn Clan leaders swearing fealty to the reigning monarch, and the lower clans swearing fealty to the highborn. Land is not owned in Skalbaard, and only honour is demanded and returned in kind.

Public Agenda

The Skalbaardic people do not share in the love of advancement, nor do they strive to make an impact on the global stage. They are content to live out their lives as they always have, to worship the gods of Skal and to find harmony in nature, not to dominate it. Humans are animals as any other, and subject to the same laws of nature as governs all else.

Demography and Population

Life in Skalbaard is hard. Food can often become scarce and modern medicine rare. Those who cannot live with the state of their lives do not try to change Skalbaard, which would be folly, and instead choose to leave. Those who stay accept the hardships of life, and the beauty and tragedy it brings. Skalbaard cannot support a large population, and the mortality rate is high among adults. That said, the Skal believe in protecting children above themselves, and so childhood mortality is surprisingly low. Even when faced with raids or other attacks, the children are almost always spared, and usually are brought under the care of the raiding party, if they cannot be successfully fended off.

Territories

Skalbaard is loosely divided into the lands of Yellden, Ursreach, Nilhelm and Baardheim.

Technological Level

Skalbaard has access to the same industrial-era technology as the other Arven nations, but chooses not to use it. This is in deference to the Skal faith, and to their traditional way of life.

Founding Date

-204PC

Type

Geopolitical, Kingdom

Capital

Nordhelm

Demonym

Skalbaardic

Government System

Monarchy, Absolute

Power Structure

Autonomous area

Economic System

Barter system

Currency

Only official Monarchical organisations accept the Vektörmark as currency. The vast majority of Skalbaardic life is subsistent, and as such most commercial trading is done on a goods-for-goods bartering service, or else through Honour Payment. Honour Payment is an officially sanctioned verbal promise to pay the value of goods, without interest, within an agreed upon deadline. Failure to do so has repercussions ranging from beating to banishment and even execution.

Legislative Body

Laws in Skalbaard are determined by the reigning monarch and the priests of Skal, who function as a single, non-secular entity. Contrary to the other Arven nations, the clan leaders from across Skalbaard act as advisors and envoys to the monarch, and do not have any say in the ultimate passing of judgement.

Judicial Body

Clans in Skalbaard follow their own form of feudal law-keeping. Failure for a clan to adhere to the laws of the reigning king or queen, even in the lowest of circumstances, might have repercussions which affect the entire clan and its sway in court. That said, most Skalbaard are also governed by their own innate sense of duty and purpose.

Official State Religion

The Skal Faith

Parent Organization

Arven Kinship

Location

Arvendell

Official Languages