Ansad

Ansad (ahn-SAHD) sits in the center of the Qevvran Desert, a rather temperate desert along the edge of the Spyglass Sea. The desert itself is part badlands, part rough bare rock, and part true sand desert. All of the moisture from the ocean falls into the jungle or into the shoreline forests before it ever makes it here. Harsh winds can whip up off of Spyglass Sea and cause severe dust storms.

The city of Ansad itself is notable for its sandstone and slate architecture. Cobalt from Gazon is used in the blue glass made here, and the blue tint is prevalent in everything, from the clay bricks of building walls to the lapis lazuli minarets. Coupled with the often cloudless blue skies and the expanse of the blue sea before it, Ansad is also called the Gleaming Blue Sapphire in the crown of... well, there's no crown these days. Now, it just sits as a discarded gem, shining in futility.

The people of Ansad are generally friendly to strangers. It's custom to welcome a stranger into your home; if they refuse, then obviously you have not been appealing enough as a host. As such, they welcome all ships across the Spyglass Sea, and even the reluctant Shar'than of the desert and Rukhelar of the wildlands to the north can be seen roaming through the city streets.

Ansad's major trade goods are its glassworks, some of the finest in Sevrea; woven silks and linens; and Sandwine, made from Sandfruit -- the small fig-like fruit of a thorny desert bush which produces a very strong, dark, thick wine.

Djeroon

Djeroon (zhair-OON) is the capital and largest city-state of the Treatylands. The city-state technically claims oversight of the city of Djeroon and its environs, the coastal port town of Djesha, and the land between them.

The city of Djeroon itself is huge and tall, extending in concentric semicircles from the shore of Spyglass Sea. Thousands upon thousands of souls cram themselves into the city, and it boasts the largest port and largest marketplace by far. The wealthiest part of town is easily identified by all of the alabaster and gold domes and spires, while the poor outskirts of town, outside even the old crumbling city walls, are often nothing more than bamboo-and-mud shacks.

Djeroon's decadent, oligarchic nature is infamous and deserved. As a citizen, you won't get anywhere unless you have connections. If you have those connections, the world is your oyster. Speaking of oysters, some of the best freshwater shellfish and mollusks in the world come from Djeroon's arm of Spyglass Sea. Those and the rich spices that grow in the nearby hills are their main trade goods, along with the products that can be made with the berries of a strange vine which only thrives in Djeroon's climes -- hops.

Eighentin

Eighentin (EYE-gen-tin) is a compact city on the border between endless rolling hills and endless dense forest. It sits in a hilly dale just off of the shore of Spyglass Sea, near the mouth of the mighty Beonnar River. Small docks exist on both the river and the sea, with ramshackle offshoot hamlets at each one, housing the teamsters and others to ship goods to and from the city itself.

Physically, Eighentin is rather unremarkable. Its buildings are made out of anything from stone to clay to wood, depending on use, need, and finances. It has nothing to match the raw beauty of Djeroon or Ansad; it's very utilitarian.

The people of Eighentin, living so close to the uber-naturalist Anfhelar and Hallanen, tend to be followers of nature themselves and the spirits within.

As far as products, Eighentin is of two worlds -- metalsmithing and winemaking. With its proximity to the Dwarven mines and abundant fuel and water for forging, Eighentin finishes a large part of the steel and silver that makes its way throughout Sevrea. Likewise, Eighentin's vineyards cover the hills that overlook the town and produce some very fine wines. There is a constant struggle between the working class steel millers and the haughty wine makers.

Gazon

Long ago, Gazon (ga-ZOHN) was the northernmost satrapy of the First Empire. Most of the city was built during that time. The buildings of Gazon are of very ancient construction -- solid granite structures with few windows. Many of these buildings have partly or completely crumbled in past disasters, and many others have not been kept up. Gazon City is built in three triangular tiers on an outcropping slope of the Spine of the World mountains, with the city abutted to the edge of a steep slope on one side and steep drops on the other two.

Entry to the city is only by trails up and around to the rear.

During the First Empire, they say, some great evil awoke and rampaged through the city. During the Qul-qeloon Civil War, Gazon's Observatory Tower was blasted, and rock rained down for an hour straight. This, along with a few natural earthquakes, has led the Gazoni people to have a supersititous fear of big cities. Many of them won't even travel to Djeroon or any of the other human cities, and much of the population has moved out of Gazon City and the smaller towns and back to their hillside farms. Morullar are commonly seen in the area; relations are friendly, trade is small but healthy.

Jakhef

The city-state of Jahkef (chah-KEFF) is the largest human community outside of the Confederation. It lies on the northeast shore of the Great Ocean. A natural peninsula protects Jahkef and the bay from the monsoons that come in from the north, though it still gets more than its share of tropical rain.

Trade with the Shee'agar who live off the coast is as good as can be expected -- mostly along the lines of swapping fancy shells for metal daggers. Raids from the Shee'agar on small villages are also as can be expected. It makes dealing with them difficult, when they are trying to sell you back your grandmother's favorite cameo.

The famous Green Ships from Ancthor dock here, after stopping at Djesha or just bypassing Djesha's smaller docks and lack of a natural harbor. They can pull right up to the huge docks in Jahkef. For that reason, much of the trade goods from Ansad, Steen, and the nonhumans are carted directly to Jahkef rather than to Djesha, resulting in a large amount of ancillary street trade around the waterfront.

Steen

Steen (STEEN) is located right in the middle of the Hallan Plains, near the confluence of the Hallan River and the Raghet River. The city was originally built as a wooden fort, and the original wood buildings still exist at the crossroads, but the city was rebuilt about half a mile downstream.

Steen proclaims itself a "free city", and in fact it has no walls and no gates -- though it does have guard towers. Taxes are only collected on coin and moneychanging, so barter is greatly encouraged.

The city houses a rather sizeable population of Hallanen centaurs, who have built their neighborhood according to their own specifications -- narrow, cart-unfriendly streets give way to big courtyards; doors are extra-tall and extra-wide; houses with open atriums are common.

Steen's main products are grains and breads, milk and meat and hide from herd animals, dried fruits -- the necessities of life that may not be glamorous but are more than necessary.

Chahual

Chahual (chah-WALL) was the capital of the First Empire, a mysterious organization which ruled over the entire ocean coast up to Jahkef and inland to Gazon. Something caused the empire to fall and fall hard, perhaps a huge series of earthquakes. The peninsula on which the city of Chahual sat literally broke in two. Part of it survives as an island, covered with strange ruins and used as a haven for brigands. The rest is an underwater ruin, full of strange wonder, blanketed in kelp and occupied by the rather territorial Shee'agar.

Tallarane

Tallarane (TAL-uh-rain) is a small port on Vantig, the land south of Sevrea and connected by a tiny isthmus. Humans, Elves, and Ghahi live here in almost equal parts and in as good a harmony as one could expect. Plenty of goat-men are employed here as laborers and personal slaves and see a fair, if rough, life. Outcasts from Sevrean societies sometimes make their way to Tallarane to "begin again in an exciting land of opportunity and adventure".

The land is forested and very rocky, making farming difficult. Mining for ores is popular, though Tallarane's aren't of great quality nor purity. Fishing and hunting are the main forms of subsistence, so Tallarane doesn't have much to export except for some fairly solid lumber, some mediocre minerals, and the hides and salted meat of some rather exotic animals.

Anfhelar

Tall elven folk who live in the deep forest, the Anfhelar (ON-fell-ar) are known as crafters of fine goods, especially of wood. They tend to have green or blue eyes, pale complexion, and golden or light brown hair. The white ash from their forests is highly prized, but only the Anfhelar can work it properly, by shaping the tree as it grows. Furniture, bows, arrows, hafts, and such made from Anfhelar White Ash is stronger than those made from any other wood. Of course, they make goods from other woods and other materials as well.

The Anfhelar weave the trees themselves into their homes and shelters and actually create villages in small glades this way. The Anfhelar Citadel is a single massive city treehouse, connected by entwined branches, vine-woven bridges, and ladders to and from the many platforms and levels. Extremely few outsiders have ever seen the Citadel.

Anfhelar are also great storytellers and orators, though they can be quite aloof and haughty. Their songs can be long, going on for days at a time as they are handed off to other singers. Strangers venturing into one of their tree-cities are seldom heard from again, and only someone marked as a Friend of Elves can pass freely.

Anfhelar have no specific familial lineage; mateships tend to be polygamous and largely informal. Like all elf-kind, Anfhelar are immortal and suffer from Grief.

Rukhelar

The Rukhelar (RUUK-hell-ar) are elf-kin about five feet tall and tending to have darker skin and hair than their Anfhelar brethren from lifetimes of separate culture. They live in nomadic clans in the great plains and even some deserts, sharing such lands with the Hallanen and the Shar’than. Not so well known as their cousins for their craftwork, they nonetheless tend to be expert at plant lore – identifying plants, using them for medicines, cultivating them, and fashioning them into useful tools.

Rukhelar live where they can; thus, groves and stands are their main resting places. They seldom establish permanent villages like the Anfhelar do, but some exist. Mostly, though, the Rukhelar set up homes on the ground, made of mud and fallen branches, or even canvas or hide tents. The Rukhelar "Citadel" is an entirely nomadic tent city which picks up and moves en masse every year.

They tend to live a rather "primitive" life, compared to their ancient relatives, the Anfhelar – but whether it’s by choice or by necessity, they won’t say or don’t know. Resources can be scarce in their lands, so they make the best use from what is available. Many of them act proud, almost haughty, about their ignorance of higher technology and science.

The Rukhelar follow a clan lineage traced through the father’s clan; clan intermarriage is a must and marrying within one’s clan, or producing offspring within one’s clan, is the ultimate taboo. Rukhelar are often naturalists or spiritualists and make excellent guides. Like all elf-kind, Rukhelar are immortal and suffer from Grief.

Morullar

Along with elves, Morullar (MOHR-ooll-ar) commonly called "dwarves") are the eldest of the peoples of Sevrea. Some say they are kin from long ago, but neither elves nor dwarves will brook such talk. Morullar live in hills and mountains and dig or occupy great complexes of caves as their homes and cities. They tend to be short and stocky, averaging about 4 feet tall. They commonly have skin of a pale hue from too little sunlight combined with a bronzed hue from many forge fires, with brown or green eyes and hair that is usually either blonde or dark brown. They favor bushy beards. Unlike some legends, dwarven women do not grow beards.

The Morullar are superior crafters in stone and metal, possessing a natural affinity for the materials of the bones of the world. They have a preternatural ability to work and craft it and they take great pride in their work. Societally, Morullar are torn between a rigid traditional structure and a fiercely burning, very personal fire to acquire.

Morullar, like the Anfhelar, have no specific familial lineage; mateships tend to be polygamous and largely informal. They tend to combine their Craft Arts with the use of nonmagical technology. Unlike their would-be cousins, dwarves are not immortal, though they seem to age into a ripe middle age quickly and then last hundreds of years before becoming withered.

Morullar suffer from an intense Greed, which drives them to desire that which they don't have; they can also direct this desire to a focused ferocity that is unparalleled.

Hallanen

The Hallanen (hall-ON-en), the Centaurs of the Great Hallan Plains, are herders, farmers, and philosophers. Their society is based upon large extended family groups/clans traveling together. Males keep harems of three to six or more mates, and lineage is traced back to the father, with names including "Son of" and the father’s name.

While herding their flocks or tending their crops, they love to have extended discussions on the nature of magic and spirituality, the sky and the weather, the purpose of life and the pursuit of happiness. Hallanen are usually mystics, agnostics, or heretical free-thinkers.

Chavonen

The Chavonen (chah-VOH-nen) are related to their Hallanen cousins, but they’re better suited for their mountainous homes, with stockier legs, wider hooves, and shaggier pelts on their lower bodies. They are predominantly hunters, as contrasted to the Hallanen farmers, and are renowned for their innate tactical sense.

Societally, they are patrilineal with monogamous mateships. The central Chavonen traditions are toward Naturalism and Mysticism.

Shar'than

The Shar’than (shar-THHAN) are lizard folk who live in the desert area. They have a protruding jaw, which houses a mouth lined with pointed teeth, much like that of a crocodile, although shorter. Eyes are set much like that of a lizard and can be yellow, red, green, or blue. Their skin may vary from a light green, through deep green, to a muddy brown. Some may have a crest on their head and/or down their back and tail.

Nomadic by nature, they live in bands consisting of several extended families, settling in an area for a few seasons or a year, hunting and foraging and then moving on. They follow a spiritualist, animistic way of life and view of the world.

Although oviparous, they do not give birth to very many young at a time – broods of three to five are most common. The eggs gestate for one hundred and fifty days, which means that a healthy female can produce two broods per year. Children are raised by their uncles (if male) or aunts (if female) and taught the ways of society in a communal setting. Uncles and male children all live in a single longtent until the child is mature, as do aunts and female children.

Sample Names: Hasstahamar, Enttohaan, Chaasso, Saalaffa

Shee'agar

Tribal lizard folk who live in the wetlands and offshore seas, the Shee’agar (shee-ah-GAR) are specialists in herbalism and alchemical experimentation.

The Shee’agar are smaller in stature and build than their Shar’than cousins – tails are longer, snouts are blunted, spines and crests are webbed and fin-like for smooth aquatic operation. They are covered in scales so small and smooth that they appear smooth-skinned, with natural coloration to match their environment – ordinarily brown or bluish-green. They primarily follow their own alchemy-based versions of Technomagic and Divination (which they, of course, don’t consider to be a heresy).

Shee’agar are oviparous but are strictly monogamous, and lineage is traced from the father.

Ghahi

Ghahi (GA-hee) are nocturnal, carrion-eating humanoids and are the garbage disposal system of the central populated lands. The Ghahi are not only carrion-eaters but almost exclusively feast on the remains of other humanoids. It gives them a rather disgusting reputation, not to mention a foul body odor, as well as the nickname "ghouls", but in truth the reputation is mostly undeserved.

Physically, the Ghahi are slender and sometimes gaunt, of average humanoid height, and covered with a fine grey fur. Their fingers and toes are tipped with small claws, and their elongated muzzles have pointed teeth for ripping flesh. Their large, animal-like ears and yellow slitted cat’s-eyes complete their image, both savage and alien. They hardly ever wear clothes (except during diplomatic meetings with other humanoids), but they always carry a shoulder-slung pouch for personal effects. Some scholars maintain that the Ghahi were created by the ancient Sevreans as messengers and waste disposers. If the Ghahi know the truth of their origins, they aren’t telling a soul.

Ghahi bands are run by a single head male who keeps a harem of females, along with his lieutenant males and the band’s offspring. Thus, lineage always goes to the band’s chief (even if the child was conceived by an illicit affair with one of the lieutenants).

It’s considered rude to bury the bodies of other humanoids when a Ghahi band is about, and cremation is a direct insult, unless it is after a disease or a war. The Ghahi tend to be agnostic multi-traditionalists (using whatever fits them at the time) and seem unconcerned about the larger philosophies of the other beings – no matter what your beliefs, you’ll end up as their food sooner or later.

Sample names: Chooj, Phoon, Dahaa, Jaliin, Greex, Nijeed

The Hive

Not much is known about The Hive. They resemble four-foot tall human-shaped ants, standing on two thickened insectoid legs and wielding four arms. They live in massive underground colonies. Their motives are inscrutable, and if they have a language beyond the clicks and gestures they make, no one else has been able to comprehend it. As far as most other races are concerned, The Hive are a nuisance and a blockage. They sometimes appear en masse to make raids on nearby villages or animal pastures.

Ancthori

Several times a year, huge green sailing ships pull into Jahkef and Djesha. The tall, hairless, green-skinned humans manning the ships say that they are from a land called Ancthor, which they say is far to the west. They make the trip along the southern edge of the continent, making a brief stop at Tallarane for fresh fruit but avoiding Chahual altogether.

The Ancthori (ankh-THOR-ee) traders fill the holds of their enormous galleys with what seem like whole villages of goat-horned, goat-headed, goat-legged goat men into port. They sell them as cheap labor and disposable slaves and purchase some of just about everything -- or rather, all of everything in the market, filling their immmense ships to the brim and sailing back home for another season.

In Sevrea, goat-men make good manual labor but aren't generally reliable enough, smart enough, or loyal enough for mercenary work or craft work (though some individuals are notable). If a siege of a city is imminent, say, a shipful of them is sometimes bought and lined up in front of the city walls as cheap shielding.