Edrias

The geography of Edrias is temperate and somewhat varied. Generally residing in between the pleasantly cool to rather frigidly cold, it is a somewhat idyllic home for many of the Empire's devout and loyal citizens. Forgiving and generous springs and falls with glowing summers and chilly winters, it is a place that anyone could live and find little to complain about in regards to it's overall weather. This variety and a combined presence of bountiful flora and fauna, raw materials and resources, and plentifully generous natural geography forming rivers, bays, harbors and coasts provides an excellent base for the Empire to reside upon and build from.   Beginning from the cardinal north of the continent's mainland are the widely known and desolate White Wastes. These sparse, hostile, and highly barren tundras are devoid of civilization, life, and hospitable climates. Ice plains are swept with frigid and ruthless, freezing wind that cuts through all but the most protective of winter clothing. Traveling from the farthest icebergs and treachorous iceladen cliffs will bring one to the Devilclaw Spires. Ancient stories tell of their occupation by the devils of the Hells early on in the nation's settled history, thus earning it this name. Not only these stories, but the general treachorous nature of these mountains inspires fear and awe from all who set eyes upon their ruthless and jagged peak. Yet despite this, and ironically, the mountains are greatly coveted for their riches in minerals. Bountiful veins of copper, silver, gold, and precious gems spew forth in these dangerous mountains. As such, mountain mining towns have sprung up across this dangerous stretch of mountains, connected through ramshackle, dangerous, and hardly upkept roads and paths, earning it the name 'The Bloodgem Road'. Aside from the treacherous weather, shoddy roads, and hostile wildlife, bandits and other unsavory intelligent life stalk the roads, looking for defensless and helpless hits to rob.   The central city of this lawless stretch of mountains is that of the mountain-base city of Devil's Respite. Located in the narrowest part of the formation known as Devil's Maw, Devil's Respite is a ramshackle mishmash of cobbled together houses hoisted at various elevations along the bases of the mountains the city rests upon. The edges are this way at least, known as Pauper's Ring. The inner parts of the city house more established, stable, and respectable buildings for the rest of the 'respectable' citizenry. Despite its somewhat grimey and shady nature, government authorities see immense productivity emerge from the mines, refineries, smelteries and forges and factories that dot this industrial cities skyline. A somewhat lawless land held in check by loose formations of town militia and vigilantes known as the Devil Hunters as well as the occasional inquisitorial visit, Devil's Respite is the place to be for a young and upcoming adventurer.   Moving futher south, one enters the Whiteflame Wood. Unique trees of pure white wood grow here, their flesh and bark being warm to the touch. Emerging from the Whiteflame Wood one may travel west across the Steel-Ice Hills, lower elevation yet still cold and windswept bluffs that are dominated primarily by their barren features. Hardly anyone survives here, and one must move south after venturing halfway into these cold bluffs before emerging in a more temperate environment.   Upon exiting the Steel-Ice Hills, one enters the God's Plain. Cooler in temperature yet far more warm, The God's Plain is the primary avenue of access for many of The Empire's greatest cities upon this continent. The major city of Centerholde lies in the center of these rolling plains, which then traverses to the coastal region of the Red Coast. The Red Coast harbors many great towns and cities, that feed their industry and crafts into the Red Sea. Redmane, Edrias's Folly, Medran, Setrak itself, God's Road, and Cetral all inhabit this coastline with innumerable small fishing hamlets and locales dotted along its prosperous and bountiful shore.   The Godwood and Redwalk, both large forests, inhabit this western side of the continent. Redwalk shields the town of Redmane from much traffic of the road, resulting in its port being massively used due to the dense and somewhat dangerous nature of the forest itself. The Godwood is an ancient and magically attuned wood that for many years has held rumors of divine visions, holy messages, and more in the time since the God-Emperor's ascendance.   The west coast is dotted with high cliffs and sharp rocks that savage any ships that are unwise enough to come within range. Baretisan is the only major city upon this coast as it takes advantage of the only safe shipping lane into and out of the widely known Edrias's Teeth. Traveling to the east from the capital, one would naturally encounter the Shieldwoode, a large forest that encompasses the entire thin choke point of Edrias that separates the God-Lands from the Godless Lands.   Upon the wide and flat Yarez Peninusla lies the city of Yarez, a shipping city specializing in traveling the Fulran gap and to the Fulran island chain.   Traveling through the dense and protective Shieldwood, one arrives at a hilly biome that progresses south until the town of The Waypass. This final holy city is the penultimate stop before the exiled, the criminal, the heretic, and other unwanteds travel to the Godless Lands, where they await their inevitable fate at the hands of hunger, disease, or violence. This southern subcontinent is a somewhat governmentally maintained quarantine zone, allowing the discriminated, hated, and otherwise unwanted elements of society to escape to a haven of their own design, yet they are never too far away from the iron fist and steel blade of The Empire, and they are sure to know it. In recent years it has become less populated due to a decrease in immigration, partially due to to more violent public reactions against those minority groups that 'infect' society.   From The Waypass, one may travel east upon The Wayroad, and arrive at Fulran, a large shipping and trade city that specializes in fishing, boatbuilding, and maritime training. To the southwest of The Waypass is the city of Graceton, a town renowned for its healing lake, The Lake of Harbinger, and it's educational opportunities in regards to medicine and it's practice both mundane and magical. Yet directly south lies the city of Exile's Gate, the final settlement before one enters the Godless Lands. From this somewhat bustling and sad town move out the now exiled of The Empire. Those that yet live here do so to maintain some income off of the backs of the desperate, the travelers, and the merchants. Leaving south out of this city into the Cleansed Hills, one is now outside of the holy lands of the Emperor. Past the somewhat dry and arid hills one treads upwards to the Forsaken Foothills, bluffs inhabited by bandits, hostile lifeforms, and more. The town of The Hidden Village is a major stopping point, a widely known but restrictive and exclusive town that one can only access by being an 'exiled, lost, damned, and hated.' Traveling east here will bring one to Queran's Mercy, a town named after a long dead saint of Harbinger. It is a town designed to receive and care for the sick and lost, those who have nowhere else to go often find their feet guiding them to this city, where it is said that the spirit of Queran herself guides the hopeless on a path to redemption, and perhaps acceptance back into their former towns and society.   Traveling south from The Hidden Village, one would arrive at Halfordan in the Godless Lowlands, a collection of smaller hills that are now truly isolated from the greater Edrias. This is the beginning of the Godless Peninsula. From here, the arid grasslands are occupied by many towns down to the south to the Golden Ocean and to the east to the Ionthar Ocean. Standouts are The City of Whispers in the Swamp of the Damned, and Eastshore.   If one was to eschew this path, and travel south from Graceton, they would arrive at the Heavenstone Peninsula, with the holy city of Heavenstone at it's center. This peninusla is idyllic, verdant and dry with the Heavenswood and Gracewood providing ample game, the fields here are golden and lush, farming being excellent in this region.

The ecosystem of Edrias is a standard temperate continental one, that is to say that there is a more expected cycle of life and death, growth and rebirth throughout the flora and fauna of the continent. Mice are hunted by voles, who are hunted by foxes, who are hunted by wolves, and so on. Fresh water flows from the Devilclaw Spires down throughout the continent, forming rivulets, tributaries, rivers and lakes that are fed on by deer, bears hunt salmon and other fresh fish in the flowing streams in the Godwood and Shieldwood, insects are plentiful in the humid and wet swamps of the Swamp of the Damned. The circle of life has been preserved and some might argue, bolstered in the care of Harbinger as his Empire has taken rule. Implementations of hunting season regulations, population controls, and even some forms of preservation and a primitive species extinction ranking system have been implemented by the Minister of Health, who oversees not only the health of the individuals that Harbinger rules over, but the land itself as well.   In the south, the lands are dryer but fertile, hosting great farmlands near the capital, around the Shieldwood, and even south of that and especially near Heavenstone. The Godless Peninsula boasts excellent fields to harvest dry crops such as wheat and barley, and even greater for cattle and ranching.

The ecoysytem of Edrias is varied and unique but somewhat predictable. Most regions hold four seasons, those being fall, winter, spring and summer. In the north there is a fifth season known as 'Deep Winter', where it is extremely cold and unforigiving, and blizzards rage for days on end. Fowl migrates south typically around the midfall mark, to the Heavenstone peninsula. Typically in Edrias, from Setrak, fall lasts 3 months, winter lasts 4 months, spring lasts 3, and summer lasts 3 months.   Around the spring in the Centerholde and Setrak area, owlbear procreation and mating increases rapidly along with most other wildlife, yet in the winter in this area and especially in the northern mountains, minor and small devils and demonic entities are seen, making it sometimes rather dangerous to be out on the road late and night during these time periods.   In the southern reaches, the cycles from dry and extremely hot, to cool but still dry and arid.

The phenomena of Edrias are many and mysterious. There is a period in the fall known as 'The Deep Cold', where it becomes brutally cold, far below freezing. No one is quite sure what causes this, but it is quite dangerous and many an unfortunate wretch has been caught in the blizzards that accompany it, to their deaths. The spring sees an inverse period known as 'The Glow' in which it becomes almost pleasant out. Ice begins to melt, contributing to the ever continuing cycle of pack ice melting into rivers and fueling the downward stream of life. This lasts for about two months before entering into the summer months in which it returns to a cold and frigid area, with snowfall resuming as normal.   On the Red Peninsula, an event known as 'The Red Tide' occurs at the close of Summer, in which groundwater emerges as a crimson red liquid that holds magical properties. Only holding this for 8 days, it is a special time, and has resulted in many pilgrimages being made to this area during this time, bringing special cultural and spiritual reverence to Redmane, and especially Redwalk.   In the spring, the Heavenstone Peninsula blooms with growth and life as if granted by the Emperor himself. Crops are sewn and harvested here, often times being bountiful and plentiful in their values. Farmers here are blessed truly.   The Godless Peninsula holds a rather negative fifth season, known as 'Harbinger's Withering'. The already dry grasslands become utterly parched, the temperature spikes, and the soil and grass become a darkened black shade. Nothing grows, and hostile fauna and flora grow and reproduce at more rapid rates.   Magical creatures always prefer to reside in areas around Graceton, the Lake of Harbinger, and the Heavenstone Peninsula as a whole, only migrating when the rare once every 3 year occurrence known as 'The Harrowing' occurs. This is an event in which the Lake of Harbinger's healing properties nullify, and instead it poisons those who bathe and drink from it.

The climate in Edrias varies from region to region. In the north, a frigid general climate takes hold, with the Devilclaw Spires and the Steel-Ice hills being home to whipping, slicing winds of pure cold, heavy snow and sleetfalls, and treacherous, dangerously low temperatures. The winter is accompanied by brutal snowstorms with feet upon feet of snow, and short days and long, cold, beautiful nights.   In the areas near Setrak, a more temperate climate takes hold with a more clearly defined four season. There is a monsoon season on the Red Peninsula, typically around every spring, in which sheets of rain pour down for days on end, typically known as 'Harbingers Lashes'.   The Godless Peninsula is known for it's odd weather patterns, with periods of dryness broken up by bouts of rain followed by extreme heat. This, accompanied with Harbinger's Withering, makes the Godless Peninsula truly that, godless. It is a harsh and unforgiving place, with little drinkable standing water, little harvestable food, and few natural animals to hunt.   The Heavenstone peninsula, while dry and arid, is also cool, and the soil holds a strange fertility that attracts those holy individuals who assume the mantle of cultivating the earth to produce sustenance.

Edrias is inhabited by a standard affair of forest and plain creatures. Deer, bears, rats and owls. Notably though, there are some unique lifeforms that call this temperate continent home. The Devilclaw Spires are home to a rather significant population of devil and other fiendish creatures. Disposing of these beings permanently has proved impossible over the years, yet they keep to themselves. Should an unwise, or foolhardy adventurer stray off the worn path, they might find themselves at the blade or fang end of a savage beast. Yet the riches and ancient ruins from before the Great War hold mighty and life-changing riches.

Edrias is a resource rich nation, that holds very large amounts of a diversified portfolio of natural resources. Trees from woods are harvested for their wood and bark. The fertile fields of the mid and southern continent are sewn and reaped. In the harsh and dangerous Devilclaw Spires, iron, gold, and coal are mined to be sold to markets and the government itself.    Eterium is the primary unique resource of Edrias, highly valuable, and highly dangerous. Mines that specialize in its extraction are state owned and operated, ensuring maximum security.

Edrias is now home to the capital of the Empire, but was once home to the countries of Alkan, Bensa, Yoric, Gares, and other numerous independent duchies, fiefs, and small to medium kingdoms whose names have been all but lost to the vagaries of time. Conquered and ground to dust under the boot of Harbinger and his war machine, the history of this great continent now is dotted with Imperial landmarks of victory, greatness, and unending glory to their god Harbinger.

Tourism is suprisingly enabled and encouraged in the Empire, and Edrias is one of most popular destinations. Safe, secure, and a cultural and political powerhouse amongst the continents of the Empire, it draws great tourism both from beyond its shores and within them. Setrak is a highly popular destination, but also the cities of Redmane, Fulran, and Heavenstone are highly popular destinations.   There are various activities one can undertake in the great center of the Empire. Setrak holds a great many museums and historical landmarks and areas. For example, one may visit and tour the Vrelman Inquisitorial Academy, and see the deep and complex history of the elite government organization. The Museum of the Empire is in Setrak as well, cataloging and chronicling the thousand plus year history of the Empire. Heavenstone holds great religious signifigance as the close third religious center of the Empire, only behind Cenesal and of course The Hallowed City.