The High North

Perigord

Semolina

Treybakenster

Volubilis

The Colazione

Limonana

Chalap

Lyme Keys

Karbonaad (The Pork Chop)

Decoquere

Vesper

The Maesgout

Creolewy

La Grenouille

Andouillen

Sous'vide

Wainnan

Kedgeree

Zestermouth

Hopback

Jambalaya

Spanakopita

Fromage

Trou Normandy

Cobbury

Galetton

Romesco

Couscous

Ballotine

Gooduckenstein

Turduckenstein

Wishbone

**The High North** is one of the six countries of Halintar. It is home to the Dragon-God Paradoxie, who considers herself more of a friend to the people than a ruler, and often prefers to let the populations govern themselves while stepping in during times of crisis or tribulations. She lives at the "pearly gates" of the whole continent, the capitol city of Cinadaria that welcomes hundreds of ships into their territory each year.

With much of it's territory covered by vast seas, the High North's population is equally stationed underwater as it is on the islands and peninsulas that scatter themselves through the bronze goddess' domain. A large, jagged peninsula at it's center is the primary home of most of it's land-based residents. Ships, both from legal entities such as merchant ships or that of the Bronze Gulf Traders, as well as pirate vessels, are quite bountiful and the most common form of travel all the way up to the country's borders.

## History

### *Prehistory*

Thanks to the scholarly nature of it's inhabitants, archives of historic events reach far into the history of the world- however, mysteriously enough many of these reports are contradictory, making many of them unreliable. It can be assumed that these contradictory accounts were caused by issues regarding the Temporal Storms, or otherwise ravaged/mis-dated thanks to the constant war that plagued the continent for countless centuries.

### *The Insurrection (3,000-2,000 years ago)*

Though she herself was also up in arms regarding the betrayal of the Dwarves against Ester Pyx, it's noted by many accounts that Paradoxie wept for ceaseless hours simply thinking about the events. Her people, with or without her instruction, became very protective of her, prideful in the sorrow she expressed at the bloodshed. It's assumed that any dwarven survivors were also extinguished in this territory.

Many Bronze dragons died at the hands of the Dragonsbane epidemic as well, the seas of the High North functioning as a painfully effective tool for spreading the illness. Paradoxie contracted it over a dozen times, each time falling asleep in 5-20 year intervals.

### *The Age of Ardence (2,000-905 years ago)*

An age of peace, wherein Cinadaria was built into the massive beautiful city it is today. It became a model for many other cities and towns, whom also use the mixture of undersea wings and land waterways to connect the merfolk with their land-based cohorts.

Near the very end of this era, Paradoxie detected the arrival of the first ships sailing in from Kaiken while in deep meditation. She declared it "the beginning of a new era", swimming out to sea in order to be the first to greet these foreign explorers.

### *The Metier Era (905 years ago to present)*

After the arrival of Kaiken explorers, ship-based commerce between Kaiken, Ohwald, and Halintar became commonplace for several centuries. All three continents prospered from this increase in trade and travel.

#### **The Queen's Inquisition**

*(See: The Queen's Inquisition, the Conflux)*

However, this peaceful coexistence was shattered in the year 405, when the Queen's Inquisition was initiated by Kaiken. Boastful of their power, they began attempts to colonize both Halintar and Ohwald, starting by kidnapping the current wife of Paradoxie at the time. In their years of "peaceful exploration" of the continent they had done deep research into the gods, finding tricky and underhanded ways to circumvent their perceived omniscience.

The war between this opposing continent and Halintar was surprisingly evenly matched, making quite an impact on the typically peaceful-natured peoples of the High North in particular. The resistance cells that were formed in this country, as well as the wrath of the gods themselves, helped the continent push against Kaiken's overwhelming strength until the Conflux occurred, an elemental "nuke" that obliterated Kaiken's society as it was known back then. With nothing left to return home to, the remaining Kaiken forces either fought to the death or returned to attempt to find the remnants of their society they held most dear.

#### **Post-Inquisition**

After taking some time to reestablish their homes and government, the survivors still living in the High North ended up establishing a highly organized system of states referred to as Courses, which were then organized into four major precincts, called Noshes. Each Course has their own smaller governments, which report to their respective Nosh for overarching government motions, collection of taxes, or resolution/judgement of inter-course conflicts.

## Geography

The geography of the High North consists of deep undersea civilizations, bountiful islands and bays, and a generally beautiful and well-respected landscape protected by its people. Ships are the most common form of travel, thanks to both natural and man-made waterways.

### *Landmarks*

The great bounty of courses, towns, and cities make it so that there are far too many landmarks to list within here, or otherwise it would be redundant. See "Courses" for particular landmarks or locations of note in this country.

### *Climate*

Due to the large bodies of water in comparison with the islands and peninsulas that make up the land, the High North has a very pleasant climate year round. They have warm, dry summers, and cool, mild winters, making it a wonderful place to live all year long. The worst things that plague the region are their storms, but these storms are often kept away from the mainland by Bronze dragons wishing to protect their communities.

#### *Temporal Storms*

*(See: Temporal Storms)*

On rare occasions, the High North is threatened by Temporal Storms, large and powerful typhoons that originate from the Vortex Isles. These storms have strange, time-warping properties, though they seem to only be able to shoot locations or creatures into the future at points where they appear again.

When these storms come through, they deal devastating damage to the High North. In the year 905, a storm the likes of which Halintar had never seen threatened to obliterate the entire country; but thanks to a team of unknown adventurers, that storm was deflected, resulting in only some damages to the capitol city.

### *Fauna & Flora*

*(See: Fauna and Flora of the High North)*

Though it appears to be one of the smallest countries of the six, what the High North lacks in width it gains in depth. Many deep-sea creatures make their homes here, and many more share the mysterious arcane powers that the Merfolk have.

## Demographics

### *Noshes &* *Courses*

There are four defined precincts in the High North, known as Noshes. They are called the Merende, the Colazione, the Maesgout, and Bleupont. The three former ones have several smaller states within them, called "courses", while Bleupont functions as it's own large course due to largely consisting of just Cinadaria and the few surrounding cities near it.

The Wishbone is considered it's own course, and has unique circumstances surrounding it that keep it from being included in any of the major Noshes.

#### ***Bleupont***

*(See: Cinadaria)*

Bleupont is renowned as the "Pearly Gates" to Halintar, the home of the city of Cinadaria. This is the legal entry point for any ship originating from outside of Halintar's borders. Vast docks, both connected to the city and standalone outside of it (maintained by merfolk), extend from and throughout the territory. It is the headquarters of the Bronze Gulf Traders, and also houses Paradoxie's den deep beneath the sea.

Naan'ba, a high-security arcane prison complex, is about a hundred miles off the coast of the capitol city.

The bay and surrounding rocky cliffs on the southern central part of this course, close to the border shared with Zestermouth, is where the Lightning Tribe makes their home.

#### ***The Merende***

The Merende, also known as the "Edgelands", are the four united courses on the western edge of the country that line themselves up against the mountain range separating the North from Pyx's territory.

##### **Perigord**

Named for the forest of which takes up most of this course, Perigord is a rather remote territory with little actual inhabitants. It's most famous for the wild pigs that make their home here, sniffing out the rare truffles that only grow here.

##### **Semolina**

This narrow stretch of land along the outer edge of the Greatclaw Ridge is another mostly-wild course. It's mostly inhabited by older, "retired" Bronze dragons, which hoard old out-of-commission ships- they also volunteer their services to watch other people's ships when not in use, for a price.

##### **Treybakenster**

The mountainous territory of Treybakenster is an outpost more than anything. An embassy for the Crusaders of the Sterling Serpent is set up here so that Pyxian guards can help keep an eye on any suspicious outer-sea activity, and provide support for the local towns in case of any attacks.

##### **Volubilis**

Volubilis nests on the edge of the Greatclaw Peninsula, acting as a thin natural shield against unwelcome seafaring foes. Much of the land here is dedicated space for Paradoxie's army and navy, with several bases and warehouses for building ships.

#### ***The Colazione***

The Escutcheon, a wide ring of sea that encircles the mainlands of the North and connects it to the ocean, make up the Colazione. There's a huge community of merfolk in this part of the country, and it is home to most of the colleges of the Wizards of the Coast.

##### **Limonana**

Protected by the Maesgout and the Riparare Range, Limonana is a very peaceful course. Many tourists from within and outside of the continent enjoy coming to visit the quaint Varde Isles, prolific with resorts and undersea tours on the backs of the majestic manatees.

##### **Chalap**

In the center of the West Escutcheon is the course of Chalap, littered with isles and coves that make the territory difficult to navigate for ships and swimming dragons to squeak through. Most notable are Adobo Isle, a large island with several small salt-harvesting towns along its coast; and the island of Apple, which hosts an ancient orchard that's been kept for generations by old dragons and a population of Treant plantfolk.

The Island of Apple has a smaller island across from it that is host to Hopscotch Applebears Candy Factory. A place of wonder and pure imagination, few have ventured inside.

##### **Lyme Keys**

The Lyme Keys are infamous for the pirate activities that proliferate its islands and coasts. Many a band of brigand (and vigilante anti-pirates) dot the waterfront, crisscrossing through the outer sea and Bleupont as they attempt to attack (or protect) the foreign merchant ships that come to trade in the capitol. It's home base to most pirating crews, though they tend to move often, leaving many a tale of buried treasures and sunken ships to lure in treasure hunters as well.

##### **Karbonaad (The Pork Chop)**

Though the more prideful natives prefer the official name, Karbonaad, most folks have fallen to the nickname of the Pork Chop for this course thanks to its unique shape. Visitors to this territory are often merchant ships waiting for their time to enter the mainland- often pleased to see that many immigrants from more familiar territories have made their homes here. The residents of the various towns by Bordeaux Bay are mostly immigrants, fishing on the edge of the Dujina Skerry and using the harvested materials to cook dishes native to their homelands.

##### **Decoquere**

This archipelago of islands in the heart of the East Escutcheon are bursting with life from both sea and land. Paradoxie has declared for many years that this bounty of life must be preserved, meaning there are no towns within the course- but upon asking permission, small expedition teams are allowed to visit the islands every once in a while. The wildlife here is so peaceful that some Bronze dragons are posted just to protect the land from poachers and pirates who may ignore their Goddess' will.

##### **Vesper**

Vesper is a jagged piece of sea, coiling its way through the edges of the Maesgout and into the top of the Dobra Reacharound in the mainland. Though deep within the East Escutcheon, this area's weather and water tend to be quite temperamental at times, and many seafaring folks dedicate their lives to becoming seasoned veterans of the Vesper's violent seas.

#### ***The Maesgout***

The third and largest of the four Noshes, the Maesgout sports an impressive 19 courses, though many of them are rather small. These small courses are the epitome of "domestic", often differentiating each other through small details and frequently having petty squabbles and rivalries between one another. However, when times come for these courses to unite, they do so without complaint, remembering the Kaiken-dominated past that many of them once had over 200 years ago.

##### **Creolewy**

Sometimes referenced to as the Nightcap, Creolewy claims the triangular peninsula that jabs between Chalap and the Lyme Keys. It's absolutely filthy with pirating activity on its coast, causing many honest townsfolk to leave. Those that remain are hardened seafolk that know their way around ranged weaponry and cannons used in self-defense.

##### **La Grenouille**

Named for the infamous bullywog pirate Lainne "Croakbeard" Grenouille, this course has been all but sacrificed to illegal pirate activity. Many thieves and treasure hunters find themselves obsessed with the territory, as they attempt to hunt down Croakbeard's Bounty. Currently this area is home of the famous pirate Yenta Naylu, "the Queen of Pearls", who has plagued the Lyme Keys with her criminal activities for over 100 years.

##### **Andouillen**

Sheltered from most of the pirating activities by the courses to the north of it, Andouillen profits in its cozy relationship with the tourist course of Limonana. Those who run out of money or simply can't afford the luxurious prices of Limonana's resorts come to Andouillen, eventually discovering the smaller courses' unique charm along the way.

##### **Sous'vide**

Coated in forest, Sous'vide is a course well-known for its historic significance during the Metier Era. When the High North was taken captive by Kaiken, those who resisted took shelter in Sous'vide, where they built many secret forts and initiated guerilla warfare against the invaders when they could. Today many of those forts are continuously discovered every year, creating much intrigue for historians and archivists (and criminals on the run) today.

##### **Wainnan**

Wainnan, like Sous'vide, was a host course to anti-Kaiken resistance troops during the beginning of the Metier Era. However, unlike Sous'vide, Wainnan was mostly conquered before their foes finally fled. Though most were destroyed after they were kicked out of the country, some Kaiken ruins remain in the wilderness of the course. As they're usually booby-trapped they often remain unexplored until thoroughly cleaned out by experienced adventurers. It is said that deep within Wainnan, Kaikanese colonizers did horrific experiments on dragons and half dragons.

Although Wainnans massive forest is under heavy protection by the Bronze Gulf Traders; the coast is a popular vacation spot. Especially Oreo Shore, a well known vacation spot completely picturesque. Many artist often come to the shore for inspiration.

##### **Kedgeree**

One of the few landlocked courses of the High North, Kedgeree is a human-dominated course lined with many land- and sky-based trade routes. Small trade towns and farming villages are scattered throughout, making some living as hosts and providers to travelers and caravans moving deeper into the country.

##### **Zestermouth**

Another course heavily affected by the attacks from Kaiken. So much so that many descendants of Kaiken's forces still live in the towns that dot the coast, though oftentimes they denounce the acts of their ancestors to save face. Most famous of these is the coastal city of Nacimeinto, whose residents are mostly of mixed High/Wood Elven descent.

Zestermouth is also home to the Layered Cake Plateau

##### **Hopback**

Hopback functions primarily as a sanctuary for those who are tossed about by the relentless Vesper sea, having had their boats crash into it's rocky shores. The natives of this course are known to be quite kind to these unfortunate fellows, nursing them back to health at no cost and even offering them work and shelter until the washed-up individuals figure out what they'd like to do next with their lives. Because of this, those who leave Hopback often return with offerings of money and resources to repay for their kindness. Many old folks like to retire here and enjoy the cliffside views and year-long breezy weather.

##### **Jambalaya**

Dense forest covers this landlocked course, which is typically looked over or passed through by those excited by the other wonders of the High North or Halintar as a whole. However, the humble residents are renowned for their stew, which they create using locally grown produce and raised livestock.

##### **Spanakopita**

Another rare landlocked course, Spanakopita is the land hub of all High North trade and travel. Mercenaries and seasoned travelers loiter in the territory seeking commission from outsiders seeking guidance through the rest of the continent.

A slightly embarrassing current-day nickname for this course is "Spanktopia". This started when famed erotic novella author Asteroth "Shucks" Tingleton, a young Bronze dragon from the city of Podguznik, made it big time in the world of erotic fiction with his satirical work *Pounded in the Butt by my own Handsome Time-Traveling Space Clone from the Elemental Plane of Positive Energy Who's Also a Ghost Doctor*. Though only published in the year 904 ME, a friend of Shucks brought the work to a publisher who found it so intriguing they immediately moved out to sell it all throughout Halintar and beyond. The locals are still having trouble deciding if they want to embrace this fame, as it brings in more revenue from book sales, or reject it's dirty nature.

##### **Fromage**

Open fields hold secret caverns that lead deep into the ground in Fromage. The people here live a druidic lifestyle, but there is a deep mystery to their ways of life, as well as the Three Ches Plateaus, which is surrounded by powerful winds that make it impossible to fly to.

##### **Trou Normandy**

Wavy hills lead to a beautiful beach where only the truly wealthy are privileged to live. Most of the land in Trou Normandy is dedicated to extremely wealthy organizations, both within Halintar and outside of it. The local population main source of income is based on tourism.

##### **Cobbury**

Deemed a “National Park, not to be trifled with” Cobbury is another location on Halintar where plantfolk come from in droves, protected heavily by The Bronze Gulf Traders. Cobbury has few villages save for the Trunk of Reincarnation, a stump that is said to somehow help Plantfolk find out where their previous body had passed away. Many creatures said to be of fey origin live here as well. Cobbury also is well known for a group of farmers who have made international fame for their farmed vanilla beans

##### **Galetton**

Galetton goes by many names, most notably, “The Bay of Marauders” as the coast is known for it’s shaggy cities filled with debauchery and crime, a favorite spot for many pirates of the sea. Galettons forest is said to hold riches from an old dragon, and it’s for the taking for anyone who can survive his deadly maze.

##### **Romesco**

People from Romesco are said to have ridiculous accents. A land of culinary genuius, most who are well adept in the arts of Babishing are said to have learned a thing or two from the chief chefs of Romesco. Romesco has a huge amount of livestock and farmland, along with the chef’s guild.

##### **Couscous**

Home to the Casters, a group of evocation mages who disassociated from the Wizards of the Coast. Couscous' main export are products made from fish that aren’t edible, Glues, Oils, Fertilizer, Isinglass, you name it.

##### **Ballotine**

Welding and manufacturing are major industries of Ballotine, with entire towns dedicated to the productive industry of ship building and weapon forging.

##### **Gooduckenstien**

The "Best Course to Live in The High North" champion for several years, often trading the title with their heated rival, Turduckenstein. A very peaceful locale, it earns most of it's money through transporting materials to Ballotine and otherwise housing their own shipyards and fisheries.

##### **Turduckenstein**

The Course that makes up the neck of the peninsula in the High North, connecting it to the mainland of Halintar. Many towns make their stead here as tourist stops as "the gate to Halintar". They pride themselves in the natural beauty of their course, their towns, and their people, and compete almost to a violent degree with Gooduckenstein for the title of "Best Course to Live in The High North".

#### ***Wishbone***

A lone island within Vesper, nestled between the bay split by Hopback and Galetton. No one knows why, but this island is banned to be visited by any creature, dragon or humanoid alike. Those who attempt to enter it are whipped by a powerful mixture of spells and shipwrecked or washed up on the nearest beach, often with little to no memory of their life before their foolhardy attempt.

### *Ethnic Groups*

Merfolk are the number one population here, and most of their society is either in Bleupont or scattered in the massive bay that reaches to the country's borders. Humans are also pretty common, as many of them enjoy travel or life on the seas as well as Paradoxie's carefree attitude. Aside from them, any other race in the Big Stretch itself can be found in the many port cities that proliferate the country. These populations can be recent immigrants, or even families who have lived in the country for generations.

To accommodate the aquatic lifestyle of merfolk, many cities or towns equip themselves so that their waterbreathing individuals can traverse at least most of the terrain. This is often done by making towns half underwater, or by carving aqueducts alongside streets. Though typically this would be time-consuming and costly to maintain, the arcane prowess of these fishy folk makes it fairly easy to ensure they stay clean and well-maintained. Similarly, Merfolk keep waterbreathing spells/materials or air passageways in their shared towns as well.

Bronze dragons are the most populous dragon here, immensely social beings that often love to have many friends. They tend to spend their youth exploring the High North, Halintar, or even the Big Stretch as a whole, before settling down back at home in their old age. Yellow dragons who have seen the error of Balktan and the Salt Dwarves' ways often come here to beg the mercy and understanding of Paradoxie, who allows them to live in the more remote regions of the country so long as they promise to behave.

### *Language*

Common is the most popular language by far, as countless other languages also see use here.

Aquan is the second most popular, spoken by Merfolk and more easily understood underwater.

### *Religion*

*(See: Paradoxie or the Bronze Gulf Traders)*

Worship of Paradoxie is most common here, as the bronze Dragon-God dedicates all of her time and energy to the country to make sure it's people are happy and safe. She appears often in Cinadaria to accept audience with her followers or participate in various festivities. Prayer to this deity is almost seen as an everyday practicality, as her mastery over stormy weather and seas makes it so that many wish to her that their own seafaring travels go safely.

Followers of Ester Pyx, Dinante, even Tephra may also make their homes in Paradoxie's domain, though they are much less prolific. It is rare and unusual to find more than a small chapel or shrine in their names.