The Civilized Lands
From Ouroboros
[edit] The Civilized Lands
The Civilized Lands are actually only a small grouping of interconnected valleys that are formed by the two great rivers that twist their way down the continent of Solum. The valleys are filled with people, who usually flock to the three or four large cities in each valley. Despite being termed 'civilized,' the valley people are constantly at war with each other in their own valleys, and with other valleys, over issues ranging from trade problems to religous holidays.
In the unlikey situation that a king of one of the cities in a valley takes control of the other large cities, he is usually crowned 'Valley Emperor.' This is almost always a short-lived honor, as the new Empire will undoubtedly be attacked by all the neighboring valleys and at the same time must ward off chaos in his own nation and assassination attempts by just about everybody. However, some emperors become firmly entrenched (usually by the coast, where they aren't totally surrounded), and their dynasties rule for many generations or more.
Being a Valley Emperor is not, however, the highest position in the civilized lands. The absolute highest, the title of River Emperor, was held only once, by Emperor Aduro I. He ruled the Lavern river valleys for forty years before he was assasinated, famously, at the ford of Suum, where legend says he was pierced by 8 arrows, one from each of the valleys he ruled. There has never been an Emperor of Two Rivers.
[edit] Culture
The Civilized Lands, while not all that civilized when it comes to politics, are quite technologically advanced. Iron is their standard metal, with steel being afforded only to upper classmen. It is relatively urban, with merchants living in the walled cities among kings and nobles and the like, while peasants suffer, undefended, by the river. The peasants are usually the targets of vicious raids and the like from other cities, and also of unpredictable river floods.
Magic was banned on the Lavern by Aduro, mainly so he could destroy several royal families in other cities that practiced magic. The ban has been kept on the Lavern river for unknown reasons, while the Surgo river valleys have never similarly had magic banned. For this reason, the two sides rarely trust each other. They also don't trust the 'uncivilized,' people who live in the regions between valleys. These are simple people, who usually benifit from Valley technology, and are able to stay away from valley wars. They live usually in lone houses in the wilderness, feeding off of whatever is at hand, and occasionally driving off Magical Inquisitors on the Lavern side.
Lavern River Valleys (From Northern Reaches to Coast In Descending Order):
Surgo River Valleys (Same)
