Traghelm

**Traghelm** (pronounced: / TRAK-helm) is the only large-scale nation that inhabits Drace's Choir. Across the globe, Traghelm is more commonly known for its popular Dragonschool of Traghelm and the notorious wizards that originate from the lands.

## Description

Traghelm is a universally acknowledged nation that is widely known for its prominent studies in the arcane. Figures from planes of existence all over Ohura travel to or request the assistance of one of the Dragonschool desciples, believing that their talents in the mystique arts are among the most powerful. The inhabitants of the nation are largely lawful neutral: they abide by the laws of their own, and often scoff at those created by others. Nevertheless, bending the Traghelman rules is something that occurs rather commonly. According to the teachings of the Dragonschool, a true citizen of Traghelm should stick to their own gut, rather than be a slave to the law. Nevertheless, laws and rules have been set in place to keep some set of order in Traghelm.

## Environment

The territory of Traghelm is largely situated in the middle part of Drace's Choir, stretching out a couple hundred miles into the snowy mountain ranges of the north and only a few miles into the dry deserts of the southern part of the continent. The most prominent type of terrain found in Traghelm are valleys overrun with lush forests and blooming plants, or plains enshrouded in fog, snow, or sand. Most commonly found are mountain ranges with summits of up to 18,000 feet high, that appear sporadically throughout the continent. Secondary biomes, such as forests, plains, and arctic environments are extremely variable and change every 30 miles or so.

## Religion

Traghelm's official state religion is considered to be the beliefs that are taught at the Dragonschool of Traghelm. However, approximately half the population is atheist or follows some other sort of belief system or pantheon.

The Dragonschool's religion is called the *Tragsonlibm* amongst its members. The primary ideas that this religion teaches is that dragons are beings born of a certain raw, magical essence. Though this concept remains unexplained, the Dragonschool members named it the *Flixadra*. On top of being born from this strange power, dragons are creatures that are able to harness and wield the power of magic, making htem the ideal entities to worship. Other, more minor, teachings talk of the core of magic and its origin, about the Major Deity of magic, and how to create powerful and versatile spellcasters. When a member of the Dragonschool finishes their final exams after 12 years of studying, they are banished from the Dragonschool for a minimum period of 30 years. During this period of time, the ex-member is considered a diciple of the Dragonschool, and must spend their time away from Traghelm to continue their studies in the rest of the world.

## Figures of Power

The most powerful figures of Traghelm- both in terms of physical and mental might and political power- reside inside of or near the Dragonschool of Traghelm, situated in the Willfendr mountain range. From here, they control or indirectly influence most of Traghelm.

### Antiquator Brevus

While the Dragonschool, with its articial ancient dragon, the Echelon Council, and Drugh Vulbaar himself, is located in the northern part of Traghelm, Antiquator Brevus is situated in the southern part. While subservient to the Echelon Council, Brevus is seen as a king in these areas, where the main port of Traghelm lies. From here, most of the import and export of the nation takes place. Magical ingredients and items harvested from dragons, as well as some of the ores or wood types naturally found in Drace's Choir, are traded for cattle, knowledge, manpower and books. Meanwhile, Antiquator Brevus keeps a close eye on everything, and any item that enters or leaves the port of his seaside city Ktalom is inspected by the lord himself.

### Oceiros

What once was the first and only king of Traghelm has since then been banished from history. Any passages on the old ruler of the continent have been scrapped and burned, and only secret tomes and forbidden knowledge withhold information on the figure. Although Oceiros no longer holds any power in Traghelm or its Dragonschool, the ancient madman still invokes fear in some of the oldest members of the school of magic.

### The Ancient Quasi-Dragon

This dragon closely resembles a pseudodragon in nature, but appears identical to an ancient copper dragon. However, this faux-draconic creature is neither of the two. Instead, it was created through decades of straining efforts by some of the most notorious wizards from Traghelm. After years of hard work, the project had finally been completed: to create an artificial dragon that could rival the looming threats of ancient dragons. Being posted in Drace's Choir means a constant danger of dragons destroying the place, but the Ancient Quasi-Dragon keeps those at bay out of fear of a fight too difficult.

The dragon itself is able to shapeshift through the different draconic- both the chromatic, gem, and metallic variants- and is under direct control of any member of the Dragonschool's upper echelon. When the dragon is needed, it is used to battle hordes of smaller enemies, or larger ones if it must, while the spellcasters of Traghelm fight from a distance. Otherwise, the Ancient Quasi-Dragon rests on a large, circular plateau hewn from sandstone and smooth rock, resting at the top of the Dragonschool.

### The Echelon Council

The eightteen most prominent members of the Dragonschool of Traghelm sit together at the center of the Dragonschool's structure. In here, the council acts as the face of the Dragonschool, and rule as an aristocracy when it comes to making decisions that affect Traghelm and its Dragonschool. Each school of magic is represented by two spellcasters that specialize in their respective fields. The Dragonschool itself sends its two oldest and most talented wizards to attend the council and its meetings as well.

However, to avoid favoritism or assassinations, the identities of the Echelon Council's members are kept secret, even to those in the Dragonschool itself. Anyone could be part of this ruling aristocracy, and so everyone is treated with politeness and respect.

### The Remnants of Drugh Vulbaar

This petrified statue sits upon a naturally-carved throne of stone. The myth goes that, should the Dragonschool of Traghelm ever stand on the brink of destruction, Drugh Vulbaar will be released from his state of petrification to escape this threat and flee Traghelm. Vulbaar will then found Traghelm and its Dragonschool once more, in a safer location. Afterward, the grand wizard will petrify himself once again, should this event arise once more in the future.

## Relationships

The continent of Drace's Choir is situated rather isolated from the rest of Halbot, and thus Traghelm itself is rather secluded as well. Nevertheless, the nation has some interesting relations with the rest of the world.

During the Magae Rux, Traghelm provided kingdoms with war casters that could be used to fight off invaders. After all, the Magae Rux threatened the existence of Traghelm's Dragonschool. Because of this, Traghelm made itself an enemy of what was then known as Kastilla (now rebranded as Baltia) and The Order of Swords. At the same time, many allies were made that benefitted from the supplement of spellcasters which aided in and out of battle. Although most of these points of civilizations were weaker villages and towns, more well-known ones included BLANK BLANK BLANK.

Many of the draconic inhabitants that dwell on Drace's Choir are indifferent or even friendly to Traghelmans, especially to those who derive from the Dragonschool. While some dragons respect the Traghelman desire for knowledge and dedication to spend their life studying for it, others simply see them as business partner. A handful of Traghelman societies hold large treasure hoards with unique magic items and expensive gemstones and artworks. Even the most evil of dragons sometimes make exceptions when dealing with Traghelmans, although it is usually because they will benefit from any deal made in the long term. The Ancient Quasi-Dragon also assists in intimidating any dragon that might wish to threaten or even harm Traghelm or its Dragonschool.

## History

Somewhere during the year of 264 AH, a merchant's ship encountered the lands of Drace's Choir by accident. The continent had never been discovered before, and thus the crew of the ship decided to bare witness to the strange lands and its stranger inhabitants. The ship's arcanist, Drugh Vulbaar, felt infatuated by the extreme differences in terrain of the continent, and by the flying reptilians that had not been seen before. Vulbaar decided to stay behind with a few others, and asked the captain to send some friends and acquaintances over to settle down.

In the first few months of 270 AH, the first village of Reptar was founded, located at the southwestern shores of the Drace's Choir. Throughout the years, the settlements would grow farther inland.

Due to an abundance of dragon sightings and attacks, the population of what was then an unnamed continent would move north, before eventually settling down in and around the mountain ranges. Using a mixture of intensive manpower and magic, the people carved temples and homes into the rock. In 299 AH, this settlement was decided to be used as capitol of their kingdom. Although Vulbaar was considered the founder of Traghelm, he had no interest in ruling it.

At the start of 303 AH, Traghelm became a worldwide-acknowledged nation. Although only consisting of a few villages, the country would grow over time. At last, a referendum had been made to vote for a king, and the arcanist Oceiros became ruler over Traghelm, with Vulbaar being his right-hand man. Together, they decided that Traghelm would become a nation of scientists and students, in the aim of discovering more on the art of magic.

It wouldn't be until 548 AH that Traghelm was a kingdom with a large spread over the continent. Although the primary goal of the Traghelmans was to study the nature of magic, many residents took up the careers of dragonslayers- and riders due to the scale of looming threats.

The infamous Dragonschool of Traghelm was founded in the year of 557 AH, with the first temple ever carved on Drace's Choir being the very foundation of it. Over the years, the school would continue to grow and expand across the mountain range it is situated on. Although Vulbaar believed in the old gods, the king Oceiros started to vouch for a religion made to worship the many dragons, and slowly created an obsession with the draconic creatures. This religion came to be known as *Tragsonlibm.*

Somewhere between 648 AH and 702 AH- the exact date is unsure, as many of the information surrounding Oceiros have been destroyed- Oceiros slowly succumbed to madness. In his obsession for dragons, the ruler of Traghelm aimed to transform himself into a dragon. However, the process failed and Oceiros presumabely died. In truth, he was exiled to the depths of the dragonschool; a prison that burrowed hundreds of feet downward to conceal the deranged king. However, Oceiros' experiments did not stop down there, and none are aware of the horrors they might find within.

After the events with Oceiros, Vulbaar chose for an aristocratic rulership to rule over Traghelm. The Echelon Council was created in 704 AH, after which Vulbaar petrified himself, in case he was ever needed in the far future.

In 1023 AH, the kingdom of Kastilla officially declared war against any magic-faring nation, thus starting the Magae Rux. Due to Traghelm's focus on the studying of magic and its Dragonschool, the nation became a big target. The war eventually ended in 1095 AH, although Traghelm was not directly affected by the war itself.