Aurosa

Aurosa is a large continent separated from any other major landmasses that might exist by expansive oceans in all directions. It stands as the only known bastion of human civilization in the world.

## Climate and Geography

Aurosa boasts a wide variety of climates, ranging from the scattered deciduous forests and rolling plains of the south, to the more coniferous woodlands, swamps, and mountain ranges further north. Deserts are less common, but nonetheless expansive. The surrounding oceans consist of salt-water, though there are a multitude of inland freshwater lakes.

## Historical Overview

### Early History

It is unknown exactly when the first human settlers arrived on Aurosa. Surviving records from this period indicate that the first farming communities were established by around the year 8000 PUW, clustered mainly along the south-western coastline. Historians have not been able to determine if these settlements were pre-dated by smaller, hunter-gatherer societies, or if the first humans to arrive were already familiar with early agricultural technology. In either case, nomadic hunter-gatherer and pastoral societies have since persisted into the modern age, though in greatly diminished numbers, and it is generally accepted that most of these smaller groups eventually settled into agricultural societies by 2700 PUW. As the human population across the continent continued to rise, many of these settlements developed into the world's first urban centers.

#### First Civilizations

##### Kiammu

Starting as a single city-state in the plains of the Isarian Tokemere and Kandure territories around the year 3800 PUW, for unknown reasons Kiammu aggressively expanded, transforming into one of at least three early civilizations that archeologists have discovered. Between approximately 3700-3300 PUW, Kiammu is believed to be responsible for founding at least fifteen additional cities across the region, centered primarily around the Kiammu and Anen Rivers. By 3100 PUW, all of these cities had been abandoned. It is unclear at this time what caused this relatively sudden disappearance, but many experts attribute it misuse of the magical arts.

##### Amuya

Nestled between the Kamapir Mountain range and the Su River in present-day Isaria, Amuya and its sister city Dar emerged sometime in the early 3600 PUW. Unfortunately, very little is known about this civilization. Unlike their contemporaries in Kiammu and ancient Cahnnia, Amuya did not engage in any noteworthy campaigns of territorial expansion. This fact has puzzled historians for generations, as when it was discovered in 122 PUW, archeologists discovered strong evidence that it was besieged and laid-waste too no later than 2900 PUW. Evidence also suggests that Dar suffered a similar assault, though to a far lesser extent. While Amuya has remained abandoned since it was razed, Dar managed to partially survive into modern times. Today, Dar is a small town that presides over a robust laboratory dedicated to studying the ruins of Amuya.

##### Cahnnia

The only truly ancient civilization to survive into the modern era, Cahnnian civilization first emerged sometime between 3800-3600 PUW in the Orange River Valley. It is believed that large population booms during this early period of Cahnnian society motivated an enormous wave of expansionism, resulting in the construction of a dozen cities and three-times as many surrounding farming villages. Some historians speculate that the Cahnnians may have been responsible for the siege of Amuya, however the evidence supporting this theory is inconclusive at present, and records from that period indicate that Cahnnian awareness of Aurosan geography did not yet extend to that region of the continent. Mastering agriculture to a higher degree than its contemporaries, less than half of the original twelve Cahnnian cities were abandoned or destroyed, and today Isarian Cahnnia boasts one of the largest populations in the world, second only to Isaria itself.

#### Early Developments and the rise of Juniapolis

Following the collapses of Kiammu and Amuya, Cahnnia endured as the sole large-scale agricultural civilization between 2900-2100 PUW, though other smaller civilizations were know to rise and fall in neighboring regions. However, this Cahnnian dominance was challenged after 2100 PUW by the aggressive expansion of the Junian Empire.

Starting as the unremarkable farming village of Juniapolis in modern-day Vitela sometime between 2600-2400 PUW, Junia began as an effort by its warrior elite to bring new levels of prosperity to themselves, but soon evolved into Aurosa's second major historical empire. Though it's expansion took place over the course of centuries, it became a serious rival power to Cahnnia relatively quickly, maintaining power over a diverse population with its unparalleled military technology and stratagems. At the height of its territorial growth around 1400 PUW, The Junian Empire spanned from the Munden Region in western Puris all the along the southern coast of Aurosa to the outskirts of the Karje Province in southern Falinav, and is believed to have been responsible for standardizing agricultural practices in these territories and establishing several cities that would later serve as the foundations and capitals for many modern nations.