[[:Template:Southern Realms]]
Southern Realms
| Regional Information | |
| Population | 13,512,480 (55% Human, 20% Fhen Khanur, 5% Aelwyn, 5% Chovah, 5% Ta’ Jahu, 5% Rhakas, 5% Other) |
|---|---|
| Borders | Western Realms,Eastern Realms, Sea of Magnara , Sea of Ithangar, Dhunadin Sea |
| Major Religions | Albiorix, Elal, Gishra, Hadak, Mala, Odiryn |
| Highest Point | Dark Spire 34,450 feet |
| Longest River | Hulthar River 3,200 miles |
| Largest Lake | Lake Hurtan, 6,025 sq miles. |
| Climate | Dry-Grasslands to Sub-Arctic Forests |
| Terrain | Mountains, High Plateaus, Grassy Steppe, Moors |
| Natural Resources | Amber, Coal, Iron Ore, Silver Ore, Stone, Textiles, Timber |
| Natural Hazards | Grassland and forest fires, damaging floods and harsh storms |
Alore and Well met my friend! I hope the world is treating you well and you are keeping ahead of the darkness and thieves! I am Rayche Blackstone, the grand compiler of the tome that you hold in your hands. I have asked friends from around Ta Los to introduce chapters or I have sat with travelers to hear their telling of what their lands are, at least from their point of view. I had thought to ask Bishop Sandstone, Knight of Elal, and my closest friend to tell you of the greatest Realms of Ta Los the Southern Realms. He himself has traveled with me through out time, space and dimensions that no other mortal has ever done. But alas, other duties have taken him off world in a tour of duty with the Knights of Khirius, protectors of the Khirius (kai- re-us) Solvetras (Sol-vet-ras). So I bring my pen to paper so tell you of the Southern Realms.
While Ta Los is a place filled with millions of peoples of all types of species, and is home to many great realms that hold fabulous nations and wealthy kingdoms. There is no realm as popular, as old or as unique than that of the Southern Realms. The Southern Realms, also known in older texts as the Darkening Realms, is a place filled with ancient mysterious, lost civilizations and many places of wonder and horror. It is also the center of the technological developing in Ta Los an within the world on Kralis. The Southern Realms are defined by specific borders on all its sides. These borders have waxed and waned many times over the past ages, however, with the coming of the new age a sense of stability has been spreading among all the people of the south.
On the north, where Baar Dysh lies are the great mountains of Desaryn. These peaks are giants among mountains. They stretch from Sea of Ithangar to the southern spur of the Dhunadin Sea. On the northern side of these mountains lies Garandor, one of the ancient kingdoms of the Chovah and a part of the Western Realms. The mountains are huge, the highest peak, known as the Dark Spire reaches into the air with a summit topping at 34,000 feet. The Desaryn Mountains are beautiful, made up of dark granite stone, lush forests, and thousands of small lakes, valleys and lost corridors.
There are a great many passes through these mountains, but the greatest and by far the most dangerous, travels beneath the shadow of the Dark Spire, right through the middle of the mountain range, and is called the Savage Corridor.
The Southern Realms are bordered on the south by the Blood Sea and on the east by the Sea of Magnara. The Great Dale marks the furthest eastern edge of the Southern Realms.
The Southern Realms is also home to the Great Plains of Varga, the Vilmar - Valley of Echoes as well as several other WildLands.
The whole of what people call the Southern Realms are made up of six kingdoms: Ahamkara, Baar Dysh, Duchy of Mashrapur, Empire of Resha, Empire Rinsha Adynshra, Kaz-Nakiur, the Rhakas nations of Nazaru and Baztha and the two Aelwyn “nations” of Adraros and Telemor on either side of the City-State of Dardura Sheva.
It is home to seven massive mountain ranges: the Aham Mountains (once called the Kishan Mountains), the Desaryn Mountains (once called the Fythalu Mountains), the Fire Moutains (once known as the northern portion of the Khal Dhanur Mountains), the Tuurith Nyg Mountains (once known as the southern portion of the Khal Dhanur Mountains), the Kazhar Mountains, the Meminak Mountains, and the Kalish Mountains of the deep south.
It is home too two great deserts: Nazrafu and the Suduva Makatu. The Nazrafu is a coastal desert that sits south of the Sea of Magnara. Originally it was once a vast forested region where several Ta’Jahu Houses settle the realm of Sharustu Valtha (Dawn Realm). Sharustu Valtha was lost to us in 3,256 B.F.A in a cataclysmic battle against a powerful genii known as Djennar and the Demon Prince of Pursan and their armies goatmen and fiends.
The Suduva Makatu Desert is the second largest sand desert in Ta Los and nearly takes up one-half of the Empire of Resha. Known as the Burning Sands it was once known as a lush fertile valley. In the early millennia of the region when the Byris People began their migrations out of the central portions of the Southern Realms numerous tribes migrated into lush savannah-type environment, the lush vegetation and fresh water pools attracted numerous types of animals from elephants to crocodiles. Then suddenly the monsoon rains that fed this region ceased. The rain stopped relatively abruptly within the span of about 300 years, slowly drying out the ground. It wasn’t until around 1,100 years later that it reached its current arid state. Now at its center is one of the largest continuous bodies of sand known in Kralis. Only a thin, but hardy remnant of the great lush valley continues to exist along the upper foothills of the Meminak Mountains.
The central portion of the Southern Realms is a vast savannah and grass plain type environment. With rolling hills and sparse copse of densely packed forests, though there are places where the trees are widely spaced. It is a deep green region filled an abundance of wildlife ranging from great cats and packs of wild dogs, but also gazelle, antelopes, elephants, rhinoceros’, and a whole host of smaller animals from foxes to warthogs to meerkats. It also home to numerous monsters, beasts and monstrous humanoids both good aligned and those filled with evil intent.
This region was once covered in a vast forest known as the Farithik it was nearly destroyed by a combination of demons and other foul beings from Gor Gul and the raging fires that swept through the forest over the centuries that were a result of hundreds of years of drought. This region is modernly called the Plains of Vismy. Within the scattered, densely packed copse of trees are the remnants of this ancient forest. The central region is much drier than the surrounding regions, and has no year around rivers, but there are numerous lakes filled by storms and underground springs.
There are several long rivers within the Southern Realms: Aham, Hulthar, Halin, Talish, Tal Ir and the Okhi Aishu. The longest is the Hulthar which originates in the Desaryn Mountains and features heavily in the lives of the Aelywn of Telemor and the Rhakas of Nazaru and Bazth.
The Southern Realms are also home to some of the most devastating conflicts, battles and wars, some began in other dimensions or places in the Omniverse and crashed violently into Ta Los and Kralis. This is the story behind the Vilmer: Valley of Echoes which was once called the Yurag Crag. This is the result of the Convergence of Planes some 10,000 years ago and the demons of Gor Gul. The Valley of Echoes is a magnificent canyon that is home to countless horrors, and constitutes an entire region, nearly a nation in of itself, if that nation was horror filled and home to undead, demons, fiends and creatures of chaos. That is what the Baronies of Vishraan in the Eastern Realms are, and are sealed behind great magics and the Great Mothers sacrifice.
Whereas the other Realms of Ta Los are known for a small number of roads, highways and byways. The Southern Realms is a patchwork of roads, highways, and byways. The Southern Realms is known for some the of longest and well kept roads in all of Ta Los. These include: the Golden Road, the Bright Way, the Green Tea Road, and the notorious War Road. Smaller roads, but no less insignificant, include the Shining Road, the Kingsway Road, the Shukai Road, and the Katu Road.
The Southern Realms are the cradle of so much in Ta Los. It is the birthplace of the Bhahuul species, the location where the Aelwyn species fled to when they arrived from their dimension known as Gaidunia, it is the cradle of human life in addition to the lands that the Manax species defines as its homeland, if such could exist.
It is also home to numerous villages, towns and cities some a part of one nation or another, many others standing alone in wild, monster filled world. Some have been in existence since mortals first decided to build permanent locations, some dating back nearly 13,000 years. Most have grown and updated their locations with the advent of technology and sciences combined with the power of the arcane, and yet so many more have never changed.
And while there are a greater number of civilized communities, there are also a great number of locations that are controlled by monstrous humanoids, monsters, or ruled by Wild Lands that resist the axe, the stone pick or the plow.
These Realms are truly the center of the Ta Los, and in many cases the entire world of Kralis. It is often stated “Where the Southern Realms go, so follows the rest of the world.” How much that is true depends on the perspective of the speaker and their disposition towards the south.
As it is with much of the world, there are two distinct groups (beyond how a species sees itself or how a nation divides up its power or wealth): rural folk and urban folk. Nearly 80% of the population of Ta Los, and indeed the Southern Realms, are rural folk. Yet, what exactly makes a being a rural dweller or an urbanite can be difficult to define. Large villages to large towns blend both worlds. This distinction between urbanites and bucolic is much better seen around the great cities. Where the cities are very developed with a high density of population within their walls, the bucolic region is the countryside with much lower population surrounded by greater amounts of undeveloped land.
The greatest threat to the Southern Realms is war. It has been plagued with wars that have not only just changed the lives of those that fought in them but the lives of their decedents, they have also altered the lands. These are not just battles between groups, organizations or against raiders, monsters or the occasional dragon, but full blown wars where one state is pitted against another, where one city-state defends against the army of another or against creatures of other planes or dimensions.
Of all the Southern Realm nations the curse of war has plagued the Empire of Rinsha Adynshra the greatest. Since the late Age of Mortals it has seen invasion by demons, wars between unified species against the giastori, ongoing off again and on again civil wars between the six provinces in attempts to take over the entire Empire to be ruled by one or another of Rinsha Adyn’s decedents.
War has also been visited upon Dardura Sheva and the region that it calls home. From its birth the Great Sapphire City has been bathed in blood and violence. But it has risen to become known as the greatest free cities of all Ta Los and indeed Kralis. Its legendary name is known through out the Omniverse.
A great wealth of adventure, quests and more await all those that dare to face the world and the danger it holds. There is so much that I could tell you of, so much that I want to show you that this mere volumes of writing will never do it justice.
The lands of Ta Los, the world of Kralis and the Omniverse beyond is an ever-changing and dynamic place, and the Southern Realms seems to always be in the middle of one madman’s or another schemes. So as you explorer this great big world, be prepared, take heart and arm yourself with magic, the blessings of gods and the cold, feel of red steel. You are in for some of the greatest adventures of your life within the Southern Realms.
The Best of the Southern Realms
The Southern Realms offer a large number of interesting and important places to brave explorers and adventures to travel to and investigate. Here are the top important locations for the Southern Realms:
- The Wall of Sheva: Often referred to as the Great Wall of the South, the Wall of Sheva is not known for its great length, but for its height and width. It stands nearly 50 feet in height and is nearly 30 feet wide at its base. It is pierced by three major gates and has towers set every 20 miles and defenses pointed towards the Empire of Rinsha Adynshra. It took nearly 500 years to build and is constantly being worked on and reinforced.
- Okhi Aishu: “River Miracle” is the longest river in the deep south and separates the Nazrafu Desert from the Acirean realm of Cha-Nilak. This slow moving wide river drains from the Sea of Magnara. It is nearly half mile in width and is nearly 35 deep in many parts and in other parts is no more than a foot deep. While it is the main drainage from the Sea of Magnara, it is also fed by numerous fresh water springs the boil up from underneath as well as the lake of Wahkoia. The river is the result of the powerful magics of Sultra Nal Raeth that destroyed Sharustu Valtha and created the Great Desert, also brought into existence the Okhi Aishu by cracking the earth between the Sea of Magnara and the Sea of Tarn. It is home to hundreds of different animals and fish along with some more gigantic and monstrous versions.
- The Great Hulthar Falls: Known as one of the greatest and largest waterfalls in Ta Los. The Great Hulthar Falls occur just three miles north of where it intersects with the Halin River. The falls have a depth of nearly 1200 feet. Just above the edge of the drop the river is divided by two islands: Bulwak Island near the western bank and Jaluk Island near the middle of the of the river.
- Endless Plains of Rinsha: The Southern Realms are home to some the largest open plains in the world. The Endless Plains of Rinsha dominate much of the terrain south of the Wall of Sheva. Even in the war-torn landscape it is home to herds of elephants, rhinoceros, giraffes, horses and a number of predators ranging from prides of lions to troops of velociraptors.
Coins of the South
| Nation | Red Steel | Gold | Silver | Copper | Bronze |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ahamkara | Zuz | Sheq | Ahamu | Prut | Kart |
| Baar Dysh | Sest | Tert | Dena | Aura | Jadu |
| Cha-Nilak | Saeleto | Makazi | Taliha | Kisik | Wica |
| Duchy of Mashrapur | Magnu | Duuk | Marc | Fex | Tokin |
| Empire of Resha | Orb | Solar | Noble | Circle | Kaut |
| Empire of Rinsha Adynshra | Due to the ongoing civil wars each of the Provinces accept only that Provinces currency, and each has a unique name and stamp |
- The everyday currency of the Southern Realms consists of many coins and trade bars. The standard currency through out the Southern and most of Ta Los are red steel, gold, silver, copper and bronze pieces of equal value through out the Southern Realms.
- Currency exchange rates within each Nation of the Southern Realms can vary from -75% to +25% of standard value, depending on current mercantile situations and success of mining.
