[FAYWYN] The Land of Faywyn - Geography and Recent History

World FAYWYN

Faywyn is your typical medieval fantasy setting - a land of magic, knights, dragons and danger. "Faywyn" refers to two things. Firstly, it is the name of the entire planet that the action takes place on, and secondly it is the name of the largest country on said planet. Roleplay will take place in the country of Faywyn, but Facets may be from any of the five countries on the planet (Faywyn, Findera, Vjaldaskar, Narcyllia and Ashadeim).

There are many sentient races across World FAYWYN, but humans are by far the most common. Feel free to create a character that is not strictly human, but please contact an admin privately to ensure that they would be appropriate in the vision we have for World FAYWYN. Also keep in mind that the civilized world is designed for humans, and racism and hatred is a common factor between the races of FAYWYN.

Magic of all types exist, but work on a system of "equivalent exchange" - the task will take the appropriate amount of energy that would be required through manual labour. For example, a mage would be able to move a crate across a room through the air, but they would not be able to move a mountain. Mages of a darker nature can steal that energy from others rather than themselves - method is outlawed in all countries on World FAYWYN, however.
For larger spells and more abstract spells that are not necessarily physical actions, a mage has other options. Firstly, they can perform a ritual. A ritual is a long and complicated process that involves the caster finding key ingredients to channel their spell through, and then performing a chant that can take up to hours at a time. Rituals would be appropriate for spells that summon storms or transform themselves/others into another form.
The final method of casting a spell is communing with the spirit world and convincing a spirit to perform the spell for you. Being beings of pure magic, their power is almost limitless and thus should be able to perform any spell. However, the spirit will need to be convinced, and may request that the mage perform a task of some description. Be careful, though... not all spirits are trustworthy. Admins will fill the roles of spirits.


The Geography and Nations of World FAYWYN

Faywyn
Faywyn is a land of rolling green plains, with a ridge of snowy mountains dividing it from the frozen Vjaldaskar to the north. The capitol city, Restia, is nestled in the dead center of the country, with towns and villages dotting the rest of the country. The most notable of these towns and villages are Hussfell Green, a large town to the north dominated by a central castle that was the stage for a the final battle in the latest rebellion. As of late, bandits have occupied the town and communication from the inhabitants has completely stopped. To the west of Restia lies a large and expansive forest, inhabited by many strange and wonderful creatures. To the east, a straight road leads straight through grasslands of Findera to the holy city of Allius in Narcyllia. South of Restia, plainslands stretch on for miles before finally giving way to a harsh desert that marks the border between Faywyn and Ashadeim.

Faywyn is ruled by King Artein, his queen Lady Ciana (a Narcyllian), and their daughter Princess Selena. His reign, however, has been a rocky one. Between the peasant uprisings and conflicts with the neighboring country Vjaldaskar, several attempts have been made on the King's life, most noticeably a public attack while he held court by an Ashadi assassin. He is, by all accounts, a good king, but he simply is not the king that Faywyn desires. He is making the best of a bad situation - the economy is in tatters due to the wars, there are whispers of a dark army amassing in the north headed by an evil necromancer, and his daughter is refusing to marry the Finderan "prince", Harald O'Besnay. There is one more member of the royal family, Tiber Hjork, an 18 year old man who is originally of Vjaldaskarian descent. He is officially a "ward of the king" - an adopted son. He was adopted at a young age as part of the peace treaty between Vjaldaskar and Faywyn, and serves little more than a political hostage. He does, however, have a claim to the throne after Selena.

In terms of their military, Faywyn has a large standing army as well as a multitude of Knights, sworn to the king and his lords, as well as an elite corps known as "The Peacekeepers" - in times of peace they act as the judiciary system in Faywyn. They travel from town to village, acting as judges, juries and executioners. Their large black destriers strike fear into the hearts of many of the inhabitants of Faywyn, but generally their sentences are appropriate and fair. The recent war between Faywyn and Vjaldaskar has left many bloodied veterans, and as a result the army works as a well-oiled machine after years of combat.

Faywyn has no national religion, with its inhabitants worshiping a variety of deities and practices.

Findera
Findera is a small country that divides Faywyn from Narcyllia. It is heavily wooded, with steep valleys, lush grasslands and dangerous swamps. The country is made up almost entirely of small hamlets that serve as small farming communities, but there is one central small city named Cranleigh. In truth, Findera is a very quiet country that does not get involved in war or political intrigue. It stays neutral in global matters, and simply keeps plodding along. The inhabitants are generally very docile, following the Narcyllian religion, Sendainism. The Church of Sendain often takes advantage of the impressionable nature of young Finderans who dream of adventure, and as such a large proportion of the young men leave their homes and join the Holy Order of Paladins that is stationed in the Narcyllian city of Allius - holy city of Sendainism.

Findera is ruled by a council made up of the oldest and most experienced members House O'Besnay, with the supreme position going to Coemm O'Besnay, the eldest member of the family. The council moves from hamlet to hamlet, sorting out disputes and informing the inhabitants of the newest laws. Needless to say, this can take quite some time as despite the small size of Findera, the councilmen are aging and thus very slow.

Narcyllia
Narcyllia would describe itself as a shining example to the rest of the world. In houses the Holy city of Allius, a vast expanse of marble and extravagance that is home to the Holy Order of the Paladins, the strong arm of the Church of Sendain. A large part of the country is part of the sprawling Allius metropolis, but the countryside is made up mostly of hills rich in iron and other natural resources, which are mined extensively. Religion takes center stage in the lives of Narcyllians - everything in Narcyllia is either preceded by a "By the mercy of Sendain", or followed by some extravagant sentence thanking Sendain for his everlasting mercy - and oddly enough it keeps the country in working order. Everybody works towards a common goal, and as a result they have an incredibly strong economy, mostly supported by the export of natural resources and mercenary work from the Holy Order of Paladins. The Order itself is mobilized at the slightest hint of evil; they investigate every poltergeist, possession and heretical act worldwide.

The country is governed solely by the Church of Sendain, which is headed by His Everlasting Holiness, Tenn Valnorr. The government is practically a dictatorship, but Tenn is adored by the majority of the country, and those that speak out do not remain speaking for long.

Vjaldaskar
Vjaldaskar is a frigid and mountainous nation of roving clans, who fend for themselves and each other. The high clan, Clan Hjork, is the only stationary  The Vjaldik men are behemoths, and the women buxom. Vjalds pride themselves on feats of strength and skill, and often hold huge meetings in which many clans come together to drink, eat and hunt the largest animals they can find in their icy home. Their culture is steeped in tradition, and their worship of "The Circle" is sacred to them. The circle is made up of five principle deities: The Sun, The Wyld Spirit that is depicted as a great bear, The Sea Spirit that is shown as a leviathan, The Earth Spirit that is represented as a massive oak tree and The Moon. Each god represents a different aspect of life that the Vjaldik people hold dear to themselves, The Sun represents courage and leadership to provide victory over their foes, the Wyld Spirit reminds them of their fierce spirit in the face of any danger, the Sea Spirit represents health and good fortune, and Earth Spirit reminds them of their home and hearth. The moon, however, is the other side to this coin. It reminds them of the night and all that is evil in the world, and each day the moon is chased away by the sun to bring a new day of peace.

Each Vjald aligns themselves to one of these five deities upon their 18th birthday and decides what they will do for their clan for the rest of their life. Those that align themselves to The Sun are destined to lead and to teach, The Wyld Spirit provides the warriors and the hunters, The Earth Spirit their builders and cattle farmers, the Sea Spirit their doctors and merchants, and those that follow The Moon are destined to be their holy figures, mages and those that give the last rites upon somebody's death. Often, clans will only have one follower of the Moon.

The war between Vjaldaskar and Faywyn was sparked by those that followed the Moon. After a plague had swept through the nation, and walking corpses had become a common sight, the Moon followers convinced the Vjalds that Faywyn had become corrupt and had turned to Necromancy, the vilest form of magic imaginable that involved sacrificing life to resurrect mindless droves of the dead. After the Vjaldaskarian invasion was crushed by the Faywish army, it was discovered that a young, sickly Vjald child had become possessed by an evil spirit. The child escaped, and has not been seen in over ten years.

Ashadeim
Ashadeim is the most isolated country in World FAYWYN. It is separated from the rest of the world by a vast desert, which has claimed the lives of many trying to cross. As a result, very little is known of them. the greatest minds of Faywyn have managed to glean a few nuggets of information, however.

They are a society of nomads, with five distinct groups, the Bas, Mein, Den, Kor and Vash. There are also five distinct areas of Ashadeim. Each group moves from one area to the next at the start of every year, and grows a crop that is different to the one that was grown on it the year previous, in order to get the maximum amount of nutrients from the ground. However, only 4 of the 5 groups use the land they have moved into as farmland, and the fifth group the Vash, move into the province but do not grow anything. They serve as the central link between the five clans, and take in crops before distributing them evenly among the Ashad.

They are also the keepers of the Asha'zin, the equivalent of a holy book for the Ashad. It is simply a code of honor, and also teaches the mysterious methods of their assassins, the Vash'qar. These assassins roam the world, with their blades for hire. They are efficient, and never leave a trace.