Chalter Medrium

Chalter Medrium
= Table of Contents =
Location
Land
Common Races
Resources
Past
Present
Capital
Other Cities of Note
Government
The Flag
Military
Established Orders
Hall of Travelers Boards for Chalter Medrium
== Location ==
 Western Xaria. Borders: Karandia (W/NW), Icara (N), Uragoth (E), Doro Y’Edhel (S/SE), Vesve Forest (S), the Veldron Ocean (SW)
== Land ==
 The tremendous peaks of Mons Kyrandus form the northern borders of 
Chalter Medrium. The southern spur of this range divides the country 
into eastern and western halves before giving way to rolling hills and 
fertile valleys in the south. Towards the middle of the range lies the 
dormant volcano, Kiranu. West of the mountain range are dense pine 
forests, eastern slopes give way to greater hardwoods. There are 
abundant plains to the south and east, yielding the bulk of Chalter 
Medrium’s croplands. The coastline is rocky, but navigable by smaller 
ships and longboats. Larger, ocean-going vessels cannot port due to 
treacherous reefs and shallow waters.
== Common Races ==
 Humans, some dwarves, some halflings, few elves, fewer beastmen.
== Resources ==
 Mining of metals and gems, lumber, grains, and ales, seasonal 
vegetables. Metalworking in Chalter Medrium is below average, while 
woodworking far exceeds that of other countries, perhaps due to elven 
influence from Doro Y’Edhel. The coastal waters yield great crabs and 
lobsters from her depths as well as writing ink harvested from squid.
== Past ==
 Following the secession of Icara from the Kyrandus Empire in 129 P.A. a
 disproportionate demand for resources was placed upon the fiefdoms of 
the southeastern Empire. After several years of toiling for their 
masters to the West, and receiving little appreciation in terms of title
 and privilege, the Dukes and Lords soon became disenfranchised with 
their role in the Karandian economy. In 52 P.A. a pact was formed 
between the feudal lords in the lands south of Mons Kyrandus and East of
 the river Bayne. They choked the northern passage to Welmington with a 
landslide, and united their militias under one banner on the River 
Bayne. A battle never took place. The Lords of Chalter Medrium declared 
their independence and established treaties amongst themselves for 
mutual aid in event of outside aggression.
The blow to the courts of Karandia was indeed a sharp one, and one that 
would not soon be forgotten. Nevertheless, the leadership of Karandia 
was more concerned with furthering their knowledge with the discoveries 
garnered from their mystical libraries, and no move was made against the
 upstart revolutionaries.
Chalter Medrium thrived in its independence. Its population boomed, 
along with its economy. Over the next two hundred years, Chalter 
Medrium’s self-sufficiency allowed the country to become a major 
political force in western Xaria. This only served to infuriate their 
neighbors to the north and west, and because of the seemingly unbridled 
success of their southern cousin, the governments of Karandia and Icara 
became rooted in jealousy.
Dissension became more commonplace as rival Lordships contested borders 
and power within Chalter Medrium. As the land was divided by the 
southern spur of Mons Kyrandus so to were the people of Chalter Medrium.
 There arose two capitals, one in the east, one in the west, with two 
rival lords claiming the right to rule all of Chalter Medrium. Summits 
failed, and in 396, civil war erupted within these once peaceful lands. 
Economies that had grown fat with trade were funneled into the fielding 
of great armies. The east boasted greater manpower and war machines, the
 west knowledge of arcane magiks. The war held nothing sacred, and raged
 on unabated for nearly 30 years.
 In the late months of 424, a spy was captured
 infiltrating the compound of one of the eastern field commanders, a 
young lord named Frederick. During the interrogation, all were startled 
to discover that the prisoner was in fact an agent of Icara. Further 
questions and research led to an inescapable conclusion. Karandia and 
Icara, long at odds with each other, sought a way in which to settle 
their grievances while minimizing their own losses. With Icara providing
 training and equipment to the eastern forces of Chalter Medrium, and 
Karandia supplying powerful magik to the west, the two warring countries
 sought to grind the people of Chalter Medrium against each other, 
eventually splitting the remains of the country between them.
A summit was called, and representatives of the Eastern and Western 
forces of Chalter Medrium gathered in the contested city of Grath. 
Frederick presented the information before the council, and due to his 
skill as a diplomat, the civil war came to an end. As a result of the 
summit between the eastern and western leaders, it was decided that 
“Frederick the Wise” should govern the country as king.
Frederick vowed that no outsider would ever again interfere with the 
well being of his people, and that strangers in the land of Chalter 
Medrium should be viewed with suspicion. With their remaining forces and
 supplies, Frederick forced the Karandian and Icaran advisors from 
Chalter Medrium, and closed the borders to outside eyes. The crown would
 rest in the walled city of Grath on the southern slopes of the Mons 
Medrius. The country would rebuild.
 In 450, King Frederick I, at the age of 63, 
passed away. Of his children, the crown and title passed to his eldest 
living son, Gilbert, at the age of 26. Dubbed “Frederick the Fair” by 
his subjects, he retained his father’s policies of noninterference with 
the world outside Chalter Medrium, focussing instead on the continued 
rebuilding of the lands within. Under his benevolent rule, Chalter 
Medrium began to prosper once again.
 In June of 490, at the age of 66, Fredrick II 
was found dead in his bedchamber. His eldest living son, Peter, was long
 known to be of unhealthy mind. When, only days after his father’s 
passing, Peter was found dead, no one questioned the pronouncement of 
suicide. The only other living son of Frederick II, Xavier, was a boy 
barely ten years of age.
The ministers met to discuss the terms of ascension. The sole surviving 
heir of Frederick I and only son of his second marriage, Winslow, was 
called to Grath. He arrived in early August with a small band of 
supporters, fully expecting to be named the new king of Chalter Medrium.
 He left with the title of Regent. As regent, Winslow was charged with 
ensuring the education of young Xavier, and arranged for him to travel 
throughout the great country so that he would learn of every peasant, 
every village, every hillock, stream and field, so that he could one day
 rule as evenly as had his father. Xavier left in the company of a 
stalwart guard, and a host of private tutors. Reports
 surfaced some nine months later that the Prince and his cohort were 
missing somewhere on the eastern borders of the country. Further 
investigation showed that the cohort had been ambushed. The little 
evidence left behind suggested an attack by the elves of Doro Y’Edhel.
Winslow argued for a strong response to this abhorrent transgression. He
 warned of an elfish conspiracy that would culminate in the eventual 
appropriation of the country by the elves. Winslow presented his 
argument to the council behind closed doors. What was said during this 
conference was never revealed, and was not recorded. There is a legend 
that a hooded and cloaked advisor to Winslow was seen entering the 
meeting, though what his role was has never been confirmed. When all 
emerged, it was pronounced that Prince Winslow, then 48 years of age, 
would ascend the throne as Frederick III.
Winslow was crowned on May 28, 491, amidst much pomp and circumstance. 
Among his first actions as King, Frederick III decreed that all citizens
 of Chalter Medrium bear documents certifying their lineage. Those 
unable to do so would forfeit their lands and positions, becoming serfs 
or put on trial and jailed for sedition.
In August, 491, Fredrick III issued a series of proclamations, each more
 severe than the one before. First, he banished from Grath all 
"adventuring-types, devilish influences, and landless beggars". The 
military assisted with this purge, and then too found itself ordered 
from the city. After a week of orders from the King, Grath stood empty 
save for Fredrick himself, and his honor guard troops.
Over the following months, Fredrick III continued to rule Chalter 
Medrium with an iron fist. Because of his skill as a politician, the 
citizens backed his approach. He used the age-old feelings of paranoia 
and fear that were so a part of Chalter Medrium, to his advantage. In 
late 492, an order came down that all elves within Chalter Medrium were 
to be driven from the country, and slain if they resisted. Throughout 
the land, over-eager troops and long-restrained citizens began the 
persecution, and execution, of many elves.
As Regent, Winslow had disassembled much of the Crown Guard of Frederick
 II, ordering many of the best knights to positions along the 
borderlands of Chalter Medrium. Ostensibly this was done to train the 
regional militias and recruit new soldiers. Many of the younger knights 
were put in other positions, still in service to the crown, but not with
 the same responsibilities they once held.
Sir Finnian was one of these younger knights. Formerly a Knight of the 
Crown Guard, Finnian now commanded the Grath constabulary, the militia 
force for the city. He had the unsavory burden of administrating each of
 the new decrees of the then Regent, and now King Frederick III. He 
viewed each of the King’s new orders with ever-growing concern. When 
evidence of the elven persecution was brought before him, Sir Finnian 
decided he could no longer support the mad king. On that fateful winter 
day in 493 Finnian led his forces to Castle Grath to arrest Frederick 
III for crimes against the people. By the eve of the second day, 
Finnian’s men had breached the inner baileys and were pressing the 
King’s men deeper into the castle. On the dawn of the fourth day of 
battle, Finnian and his men entered the royal chambers of Frederick III 
to find a masked elf standing over the lunatic King. The elf killed 
Frederick III, and was summarily apprehended by Finnian and his men.
 The trial of the elven assassin was held a 
day’s march from Grath at the Inn of the Rusty Dirk. Here it was learned
 that the elf in question was none other than Kyril Feanor, a highly 
respected member of the Doro Y’Edhel High Council. It was decided that 
Kyril had acted in response to a threat against his people, and that 
further elven bloodshed in the name of Frederick III would damage future
 relations with the Elven Kingdom. Kyril Feanor was set free.
Still reeling from this course of events, the land-owning nobility 
gathered in Grath to discuss matters of the throne. Because Chalter 
Medrium’s history as a Monarchy was so short lived, there were none, 
beyond the infant daughter of Frederick III and the missing and presumed
 dead Xavier, who could claim a royal bloodline. As the Lords and Dukes 
gathered to settle this problem, the country held its collective breath.
A provisional government was soon assembled in Grath. The remaining 
Knights of Frederick II rallied behind Sir Finnian. All local militias 
were banded together into the remains of the shattered Crown Guard. The 
Dukes and noblemen formed 'the Senate Council' comprised of the landed 
nobility and twenty-four of the most powerful and influential men in the
 country. Fearing a military coup, they appealed to the knight's sense 
of service to the crown, and named Sir Finnian Regent. By placing Sir 
Finnian in this position, the Senators hoped to insure the loyalty of 
the military, while placating an uneasy populace. Winslow's daughter was
 sequestered away, 'in training' for the royal position she would one 
day fulfill.
Sir Finnian, under the guidance of the Senate, drafted repeals of 
Frederick III's decrees and set about altering the very perception of 
rule in Chalter Medrium. Amnesty was granted to any prisoners who were 
accused of political crimes against Frederick III, following summary 
evaluation by the Senate. The original tenets of Frederick I held firm; 
tight control of the borderlands, limited contact with outside nations, 
and increased effort placed upon the improvement of infrastructure 
within the country.
In the years since Finnian was given rule, the country has been 
rebuilding, and, at peace. For much of these years nothing of much 
consequence occurred within the borders, and, only mild attention was 
paid to the happenings on the rest of the continent.
== Present ==
 Chalter Medrium’s goal of staying secluded from the troubles of the 
continent was forever changed in the late years of the century. An 
ancient magikal construct was discovered on a remote peak in the heart 
of Chalter Medrium. This site became the focus of many strange stories, 
and, many of the Chalter Medrium elite military units were assigned 
there over the past few years. In fact, to this day there is a 
contingent of elite guardsmen and a detachment of engineers assigned to 
the peak. Locals and travelers in the region have reported seeing large 
groups of adventurers, including beastmen, as well as military units 
wearing a red and gold standard. There are many rumors as to what 
actually occurs there, but, few know the true tale.
In general, the people of Chalter Medium now live in comfort, earning a 
livelihood in either agriculture or business. They have little need to 
complain, and, the government still exists as an uneasy combination of 
the Royal Regent and the Senate council. The Queen Cassandra, having 
been crowned upon her 13th birthday in 505, still rules with the aide of
 the Regent and the Senate.
In reaction to a foray of Ank's men on their eastern border, the 
military outpost of Sarwen's Keep was reopened in 505 and construction 
was completed in 506 to restore the ancient ruins to practical use.
Chalter Medrium has suffered more than most lands by the closure of the 
Elven Kingdom, as the elves were a major trading partner for this land 
(despite the challenging past). With ancient rivals Icara and Karandia 
to the north, the monsters to the east, and the elves to the south, 
Chalter Medrium has struggled economically for the past five years.
In response, Queen Cassandra has drawn from the royal treasury to 
sponsor expeditions to all corners of the known lands, seeking 
opportunities for colonial settlement. A new advisor from the southern 
oceans has become one of her inner circle, and is often the one giving 
instructions to the hired adventurers.
== Capital ==
 Grath: a large walled city set into the lower slopes of Mons Medrius, 
the southernmost spur of the great Mons Kyrandus chain. Its high towers 
and gates are easily defendable in time of war or unrest. With fields 
and pastures to the east and lush forests to the north and west, it is 
ideally located. The scars of civil war, after so many years, are no 
longer so apparent. Around the city, though, one can still see old women
 weeping, or placing flowers at a street-corner. The structures of the 
city are healed, though, the generation that saw Fredrick the Mad wreak 
havoc upon their home is still not whole.
=== Other Cities of Note ===
 Warren’s Glen: nestled in the mountain slopes north of Grath, 
this is the town in which the East Gate rebellion was formed and the 
site upon which the trial of Kyril Fea’nor was held. The Inn of the 
Rusty Dirk now holds some degree of celebrity for the troubles it has 
witnessed.
Kelwyn: perched atop a bluff and protected by a natural moat to
 the east, the forces stationed in the walled city keep a watchful eye 
on the Forests of Uragoth. Razed during the civil war and only recently 
repaired wholly and re-inhabited, Kelwyn was once, and hopes to be 
again, the brewing capital of Chalter-Medrium.
Bril: on the road to the Karandian city of Welmington, Bril was
 originally a weigh station for goods heading northward. Its forces 
patrol the mountainous ranges to the North and West to the River Bayne, 
protecting the logging and mining villages that were all but wiped out 
during the war.
Lund: The southernmost town in Chalter Medrium, Lund was spared
 much from the civil war. Situated on the thunderous banks of the River 
Bayne, it is a home for the small ocean-going fleet of lobster and 
fishermen of the country.
Wenskep: The civilian village and supply house for the fortress
 of Sarewen's keep. North of Kelywen, it was half-burned down during the
 restoration of the keep in 505. It has been rebuilt and continues to 
serve as the civillian population center for the nearby military post.
== Government ==
 The former monarchy is no more. A Senate Council rules Chalter Medrium 
with Sir Finnian acting as Regent. As Regent, Finnian holds a 
tie-breaking vote on the senate, and is theoretically responsible for 
any communication outside Chalter Medrium. With his control of the 
militia, not one of the 'Senators' wishes to make an issue of their own 
supposed right to the throne, especially with the memory of the civil 
war all around them. This is a new form of government in Chalter 
Medrium, and although some would rather have the comfort of being ruled 
by a monarch again, the Senate seems perfectly content with the current 
arrangement. Queen Cassandra, being fairly young, rules with the aid of 
both Sir Finnian and the Senate and is more of a figurehead than a true 
political power; for now.
=== The Flag ===
 Chalter Medrium’s banner shows a red lion upon a white shield resting 
in a swath of royal blue from upper left to lower right upon a field of 
light blue. The Senate regularly discussed adopting a red sword to 
replace the lion as no monarchy resided in Gath at the time, but it was 
never altered.
== Military ==
 Chalter Medrium has slowly restored its military to a position of 
power. It is not grand enough to make an attack on a neighbor, but, 
anyone attacking Chalter Medrium will find the defense to be more than 
capable. With the historical connections to both Icara and Karandia, the
 Chalter Medrium army has a healthy respect of both magikal and military
 might. Under Frederick I, and to a greater extent, during the rule of 
Frederick II, the best minds of eastern and western Chalter Medrium were
 able to compare notes on the results of 'the experimental war' they had
 unwittingly played part in. The Grath Academy of Military Studies was 
founded in 442 and to this day works to improve upon the combined usage 
of magecraft, and warcraft. In 505 the disused outpost of Sarwen's Keep 
on the Urogoth border was reopened.
== Established Orders ==
 It was rumored that there was a group, highly loyal to Frederick the II, called the Agents of the Crown. Since the rise of the Senate and the Regent they have vanished into rumor and half-forgotten memory.