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Message: <blockquote data-quote="steeldragons" data-source="post: 5253341" data-attributes="member: 92511">The Kingdomof Grinlia: Part II[SIZE=+1]Grand Duchy of Denil[/SIZE]When the Great Spell was cast, and the Elder gods were overthrown in the  cataclysm of the Godswar, the lands of the Selurian Empire were torn  apart and the western sea poured into the chasms, wiping out much of the  former Empire and creating the Arm of Tyris. Fearing that Tyris would  wash away the whole of Orea, destroying all the had been created, the  Elder god Oor threw up the wall that would become known as the   Dragonreach mountains. Those lands south of the Arm of Tyris recovered  from the Godswar slightly faster than their northern cousins, being  severred from the northern realms’ abundant infighting. Also, the  ancient city of Brightmoon, a Selurian metropolis, stayed standing (at  least in part) on the newly created coast of the Arm of Tyris offered a  stabilizing symbol of enduring good. This substantial realm, nearly the  size of the Embrars combined, is called Denil.  From the western sea to the Dragonreach mountains, east to west,  Denil is composed mostly of great stretches of fields, rolling hills,  and rich farmland. The Onyx Hills comprise about a quarter of Denil  territory and are rich in ore and stones. Most of the gnome communities  that reside in the hills are happy and willing subjects of the Duke, who  have come to their aid and rescue more than once over the centruies.  The river Alevia (elvish for “Life”) peacefully winds from its origin  near <a href="http://file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Gene/Desktop/OREA/Steel%20Dragons%20website/realms/elfrealms.html" target="_blank">ShiStaliir</a>,  around the western Onyx hills, past Denil Keep, and out to the Arm of  Tyris. At the northeastern edge of Denil a small piece of land does  connect to the northern realms of Grinlia, but they are treacherous  swamps and moors known as the Endless Marshes. These are the feared dark  realm of <a href="http://file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Gene/Desktop/OREA/Steel%20Dragons%20website/realms/grinlia.html#Dunsmoor" target="_blank">Dunsmoor</a>  and its powerful Witch-queen. While much of the southern border of the Duchy is the ancient elf  hold of ShiStaliir, no Staliiri elves have been seen in the realm of  Denil since before the Scourge Wars. Still, the Star elf realm is given a  wide margin There is a narrow expanse south of the Onyx Hills and north  of ShiStaliir that leads to the edge of the barren cursed lands known  as the <a href="http://file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Gene/Desktop/OREA/Steel%20Dragons%20website/realms/other.html" target="_blank">Aeiri  Kros</a>. Over the history of Denil this corridor has been patrolled  with various frequency. Some outposts and fortresses were built, to keep  an eye out for sinister forces attempting to sneak into Denil whether  from the eastern realms, the abundant goblinoids that ebb and flow from  the barren lands, and in the distant past, the ShiStaliiri. But there  are few of these left manned and patrols are rare. Most travel and trade  with Mostrial is done by ship, few merchants would risk taking the  Aeiri Kros on foot.  The lands of Denil fell into line under the rule of a poweful  warlord whose descendants still rule the realm, having taken the  region’s name as their own centruies ago. Darmon Kar Denil,  Grand Duke of Grinlia is the 65th lord of Denil from this line. He  oversees the administration and defense of the Duchy and to an extent is  responsible for the safety of the Prince and the Crown city Brightmoon.  The Dukes of Denil have been very close with the Grinlian crown since  the first High-king.  Trade with the northern realms of Grinlia is abundant across the Arm of  Tyris.   [SIZE=+1][/SIZE][SIZE=+1]Dunsmoor[/SIZE]The sole land route between the northern and southerhn regions of  Grinlia , west of the Dragonreach mountains, is the realm of Dunsmoor.  This region is almost entirely covered by swamps and moors collectively  referred to as the Endless Marshes. The realm is not a part of the  High-kingdom of Grinlia ruled by a wizardess of significant power named Selara,  the Witch-queen of Dunsmoor. Selara resides in an ancient fortress set  on the slopes of the Dragonreach range above the swampland. The  lizardmen and other denizens of the swamps serve her. Some even worship  Selara as a goddess. But it isn’t her legions of reptilian servants that  keep the Grinlian forces at bay. Neither are the hostile elements or  creatures of the Dunsmoor landscape. It is the power of Selara herself.  The witch-queen is in the possession of one of the Staves of Nator. The  might of this artifact gives Selara near-godlike sway over the element  of fire. This combined with Selara’s personal magical might and psionic  powers see to it that the realm of Dunsmoor is rarely accosted by the  surrounding duchys of <a href="http://file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Gene/Desktop/OREA/Steel%20Dragons%20website/realms/grinlia.html#EEmbrar" target="_blank">East  Embrar</a> and <a href="http://file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Gene/Desktop/OREA/Steel%20Dragons%20website/realms/grinlia.html#Denil" target="_blank">Denil</a>.  Luckily for Grinlia, Selara has little interest beyond her own magical  power and the continued increasing thereof.   [SIZE=+1][/SIZE][SIZE=+1]Crown city of Brightmoon[/SIZE]From the days before the Godswar, from the earliest days of the Empire  of Seluria, the city of Nane Terum flourished as a center of arts and  culture and became known across the world as the “Gem of the West”. A  city of beauty and power to rival that of its sister city, Andril, the  “Jewel of the East” A fire in the 26th year of the Emperor Iar nearly  destroyed the whole city. As the city was rebuilding, the war with the  Tanku consumed the continent. In time, Nane Terum found itself in  decline as the needs of Seluria’s vast armies increased. Then, the  Godswar fell upon Orea. The great fields of Seluria were torn and the Arm of Tyris  reached into the world. Nane Terum was split in the great quakes. Nearly  half of the city fell and the other half rose becoming divided by great  cliffs nearing 500 feet in some areas. The city was again, almost  entirely, razed. It just so happened that the part of the city that fell  contained the Temple Quarter, so that all of the worship centers for the  Elder gods were ruined. All save a small shrine dedicated to Arinane,  goddess of the greater moon and the mother of the sea goddess Tyris,  right on the edge of the cliffs. In the wake of the Godswar, the Selurians were excised by the  surrounding people of the realm, most of whom living under the steel boots of the Selurians for generations. For the first  couple of centuries, the city’s guard, The Bronze Swords, took control.  The victorious New Gods were embraced and the city renamed Brightmoon in  the common tongue of the  people. As the formerly great imperial city  was again rebuilt, Brightmoon soon became established as a port city  since the lower half of the city now sat on the coast of the Arm of  Tyris. “The Bronze” as they are still called, kept the city relatively  secure, maintaining order in the city while the warlords vied among  themselves outside the city. During the Mage Wars, Brightmoon was one of the only cities in  Orea where magic-users and sorcerers had some safety from the newly empowered Zealot priests. An fairly secure underground network was established (at least in the  lower section of the city) lending to the reverence for the goddess,  Arinane, mother of the new gods. The Zealotry, who quickly gained power around most of  Orea, found the inhabitants of Brightmoon more resistant to their new  world view than other realms. After the Mage Wars, magic-users that had  remained in Brightmoon in hiding soon found themselves in positions of  great power and respect, for their defense of the city from the waves of  invading chaos including Selurian raiders and goblinoid hordes that  roamed the surrounding realm of Denil. Several mage houses exist to this  day in the “upper crust” of the city.   In time, Brightmoon began a resurgence of the arts and culture  and has achieved much of its former glory, particularly on the upper  levels. Great creations of architecture tower into the skies. Great  arches and bridges and an elaborate system of lifts joined the upper and  the lower halves of the city, referred to as the Crownside and Leaside  respectively. The city has grown over the centuries to now consist of  over a dozen “Quarters.” On the Leaside, the larger quarters are: The  Merchant Quarter, the Navy Quarter, the Mage Quarter, and the Wharf. On  the upper level the largest quarters are the Moons Quarter (the  temples, libraries, and academies), the Stone Quarter (masons,  engineers, and builders, including a decent sized dwarven neighborhood), the Bronze  Quarter (containing the offices, barracks, and training   facilities for the city guard, the Bronze Swords) and the Star Quarter  (the nobles and aristocracy). The Grey Hall (House of Aedran, Stewards of Brightmoon) and the Palace  of the Crown are at the pinnacle of the upper level. After the Scourge Wars and the unification of Grinlia, the  Highking Elibon named the lord Aedran of Mostrial as his Steward in the  city of Brightmoon. The House of Aedran ruled the city for several  generations before the 5th Highking of Grinlia sent his sons to be  fostered (and protected from his   scheming enemies), making Brightmoon, the Crown City of Grinlia and  further uniting the southern Duchy with the vast northern realms. Now  the crown prince, currently Prince Gerren L’lorn, rules  the city until he takes his place on the High-throne in <a href="http://file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Gene/Desktop/OREA/Steel%20Dragons%20website/realms/grinlia.html#Aberol" target="_blank">Aberol</a>.  The Lord of the House of Aedran serves as the prince’s chief advisor, city  administrator, and acts as ruler in times when no heir exists or is too  young (under 16 years old) to rule properly.   [SIZE=+1]The Onyx Hills[/SIZE]Most of the southeast of the <a href="http://file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Gene/Desktop/OREA/Steel%20Dragons%20website/realms/grinlia.html#Denil" target="_blank">Grand  Duchy of Denil</a> is a series of wooded hills and rocky terrain called  the Onyx Hills. These hills are considered to be a part of the Grand  Duchy, but in reality, the Duke’s forces rarely patrol beyond the edges  of the hills, except the trade routes that lead to the gnome settlements  that mine the hills of its numerous stones and ores. Two of the larger  of these are King Quarry (where marbles and precious stones were  quarried for the rebuilding of Brightmoon) and Undertown. The hills are  also known to house a community of ShiCynallae elves in what is simply  known by its neighbors as <a href="http://file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Gene/Desktop/OREA/Steel%20Dragons%20website/realms/elfrealms.html#vaal" target="_blank">“Elf  Valley”</a>, the halfling community of Thistledale, and some dwarves  (mostly mining for themselves, but also found in the gnomish  communities). The Onyx Hills are also known to harbor bandits and  various goblinoids from the <a href="http://file:///C:/Documents%20and%20Settings/Gene/Desktop/OREA/Steel%20Dragons%20website/realms/other.html" target="_blank">Aeiri  Kros</a>.</blockquote>

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