North Equikora
North Equikora, much like Edane, has much of its history tied closely with the Tome of Solun. During the Age of Heroes Maferath's chief captain among the Balor, Kazus the First, made his home here in the frozen northern regions of North Equikora. Many of the battles during the age of war scarred the land throughout the continent. Several of the ancient castles, keeps and other defensive features of the ancient world lie in ruins across the continent, their locations lost to time and their secrets waiting discovery.
The continent is divided into eight different Kingdoms, Aldir being the northernmost kingdom with Raivaria and Trutia forming its southern border. Gresha forms the southeastern border of Raivaria and Vrugia forms the southwestern. East of Gresha is Nimelia, a kingdom almost exclusively composed of elves. South of Nimelia is the kingdom of Kuiketor, west of which lies the Kingdom of Vrossekar. Finally, the southernmost kingdom, just above the Equikorial land bridge is Ihaton.
Aldir is easily the largest of these eight kingdoms, and it was here that Kazus built his massive castle of wicked and evil stone. The name of this castle has been stricken from historical record, but its massive and ancient ruins can still be found in the hinterlands in the far north of Aldir. As a result of Kazus’ reign over North Equikora corrupted the land, making nearly the entire continent a difficult land to till and harvest from. The people that call these kingdoms home are tough and hardy and accept that their lives will not be easy ones and most likely short. The roads are unsafe to travel due to monsters constantly wandering them. Dragon’s are a common sight, and haunted ruins exist in every corner.
North Equikora would best be described as the wild west of Unorrea. That said, visitors and residents alike will find a far more diverse population throughout North Equikora when it comes to race than you'd find anywhere else in the world as thousands of refugees have fled the war torn nations of Ibesh and just as many have immigrated to the untamed lands of Equikora to avoid persecution and the national responsibility of Imperial Edane.
Geography
Much of North Equikora would be geologically defined as a taiga, in fact almost 60% of it. Closer to the Equikoran Land Bridge the climate becomes much more temperate and even tropical in the southern most parts of Ihaton. As one travels north the closer one gets to the dragon mountains dryer and colder the climate progresses. Deciduous trees begin to give way to tall pines and evergreens and animal life becomes less abundant along with natural resources.
The Dragon Mountain range, named for its reportedly excess population of dragons, splits the continent almost perfectly in half from east to west. Three hundred leagues north lies the Frost Mountains, a massive and jagged mountain range perpetually covered in snow and ice. These mountains serve as a barrier wall from the harsh and bitter winds of the massive northern tundra called the Kazus Wastes. Legend tells that Kazus the First built his terrible fortress in this region and the land around it for hundreds of miles was corrupted and burned by his presence. When he was finally defeated by Kanan the land was cursed from a lack of his presence and turned to ice.
In between the two mountain ranges is easily the most populated area of the continent: the Summervine river valley. Replenished from the glacier runoff from the Frost Mountains a massive river called the Summervine meanders through a large valley perhaps a hundred miles wide nestled in the foothills between the two ranges. Fertile land is aplenty here and the majority of the settlements of the Kingdom of Aldir are located here.
The Continent bi-coastal, with the Saukasi Ocean on the western side and the and the Sedmana Ocean on the Eastern. Along the eastern coastline is the Iron Wood. A massive forest running several hundred miles along the eastern coast and half as much inland.
Fauna & Flora
Animal Life
The Animal life found in North Equikora is pretty typical of a taiga biome. On the small side one can find foxes, lynxes, bears, minks, squirrels, while larger ones include grey wolves and their preys: caribou, reindeer and moose. In addition to animals mundane, so too can be found just about any species of dragon (particularly when traveling through the Dragon Mountains or the Wyvern Foothills), Orc, Goblin and frankly any other beast magical or otherwise that would find itself comfortable in a dry, high altitude biome.Plant Life
Evergreens prevail, partly because in North Equikora the summer season is short. These plants start their photosynthesis as soon as the temperature begins to rise in springtime and make the most of the feeble northern sun. This is why the soil is dark and unsuitable for the undergrowth to develop. In addition, mounds of dead needles prevent herbs and shrubs from growing since they acidify the soil and replenish it of resinous substances. Only where the sun can seep in can shrubs with fleshy fruits grow, for instance currants, raspberries and blueberries.Natural Resources
North Equikora, while a harsh place to live, is not without an abundance of resources. Rolling forests dot the land, the mountains and hills are rich with valuable ores and minerals (if not precious metals and jewels) and the Summervine River Valley is the perfect climate most of the year for agriculture, particularly vineyards.
As far as man-made products and exports are concerned the most well known is the Ironwood of the Elvin tribe of Iron. They have a magical process of curing the bark from the trees of the Iron Wood that hardens the wood to be far tougher than even some of the most sturdy of metals. Additionally, the rivers and lakes of the region are chocked full of fish and the trapping and fur trade is quite prevalent in some of the more rural communities.
Maps
-
Aldir
A map of Aldir, this particular map was located in the office of M. Davon Krebeaux during his tenure at the College of the Eight Nations as a museum archivist.
Alternative Name(s)
The Untamed Kingdoms
Type
Continent
Included Locations
Included Organizations
Characters in Location
Related Tradition (Primary)
Related Reports (Secondary)
Remove these ads. Join the Worldbuilders Guild
Comments