World Overview

## **Geography of Tritania**

The known world of Tritania consists of three major continents: Romanda in the east, Maraav in the west, and Sezant in the south. They are separated by the Great Ocean, and scattered with islands including Atlantis. Romanda and Maraav are connected in the north by the Northern Ice Flows, while the Sea of Storms sits in the southeast, and the Sea of Terror in the southwest. Sezant and Maraav both reach far beyond the explored realms, while Romanda is bordered on the east by the Roman Ocean.

#### **Maraav**

The western continent is the original homeland of the Dwarves, and is also thought to be where Gnomes and Halflings originated, though now it is home to nations of many diverse races. The continent is divided by the Dwarfholm Mountains, which bisects the icy northern wastes all the way to the southern tip of land and contains the world's tallest known peaks. It is broken in one place (the Pass of Dragons in the southern quarter) and has one major projection to the east, a range known as the Giant’s Knife that stretches almost all the way to the Great Ocean. The lands to the west of the Dwarfholm Mountains are relatively unknown, with the Andunidae in the south, and the desert of Jalindar in the northern half. The lands surrounding the Giant’s Knife are largely forested, while lands further north and south are open plains and hills, with sporadic forests. South of the Knife is a large inland sea, known as the Sea of the Sun. North of the Knife are several rivers and lakes. In the far north is icy tundra, stretching into the ever-frozen ice fields of the north.

#### **Romanda**

The eastern continent is the original home of the Elves, and they continue to dominate most of its lands, though the far north and south are mixed. There are several smaller mountain ranges, including the seven peaks of Aramel’s Sons in the south, the Skymeet Range in the east, and the Nordmark Mountains of the north. There is one great river that spans the continent, stretching from the Nordmarks to the very south, where it divides to encompass the province of Aduruin. This split would long ago have eroded and disappeared but for the intervention of the city of Nelderast, which sits on the divide. North of the Nordmarks the land quickly becomes cold and even frozen, but hot springs and hardy flora and fauna make it habitable, occupied by the Kingdom of Tsalrad. South of the Nordmarks, the terrain is far more comfortable, but highly varied, from the steppes in the north, to the forests and plains of the west, the swamps of the south, and the rocky hills of Aduruin, which contain exceptional mineral wealth. All the continent south of the Nordmarks is owned by the Elladan Empire, except for the island kingdom of Chi-Ann, which boasts an impressive variety of terrain considering its size, and the Forest of Fear, which sits north of the Skymeet Mountains. The Forest of Fear is so named because almost no one ever ventures into its depths, and the very few who manage to return tend to have lost their minds.

#### **Sezant**

The southern continent of Sezant is homeland to the Human race, though many races now reside there. It boasts a warmer climate than the other two, absent of snow except at the very peak of the mountains. The primary mountain chain is known as the Bardina Mountains, after the kingdom that used to claim them, and stretch much farther south than have ever been explored. To the west of the mountains is ostensibly unending jungle, drawing all the way to the coasts. North and east of the mountains the land stretches in open plains,with scattered patches of desert and impressive swathes of lush forest. Zibarran is the only truly stable nation that currently occupies Sezant, with the rest taken over by tribal groups or smaller city states. Though civilization seems restricted presently to the northern sections of the continent, the less explored regions that expand to the south contain an incredible array of ruins and other evidence of the once-mighty nations that may have occupied it.

### **Oceans and Seas**

#### **The Great Ocean**

This massive ocean has no proper name, so to most it remains *the* ocean. It sits between the three continents, and contains numerous islands, some uncharted. The foremost of these islands is the mighty Atlantis, which was raised from the bottom of the ocean five hundred years ago, after it was sunk once thousand years prior. The reemergence caused many new islands to be raised in the upheaval, most of which have been claimed by the new Atlantean Commonwealth. Because the ocean spans such a great distance it is cold to the north but warm and tropical in the south, and contains many varied currents.

#### **The Roman Ocean**

Stretching into the east, this ocean is unknowably deep and contains few lands, though the islands that rise from the bottom are considerably large, more so than some entire nations of the three continents. Near the continent of Romanda is the island of Koroka and the island group known as the Sisters. Further out to sea floats the island of Stelt, and even further, along the edge of the northern frozen lands, is the mountainous region known as Xia. These lands are the farthest known to records in Tritania.

#### **The Sea of Storms**

This sea is constantly wracked by high winds, strong currents and raging storms. The weather is typically unpredictable and dangerous, making it a haven for pirates and brigands. Most of the scattered islands that sit throughout this sea are lawless, and those that possess towns can hardly be called civilization. The one exception is the Isle of Wind, the largest of the archipelago. The sea is connected to the Great Ocean by a strait between Zibarran and Elladan, and opens in the southeast to the Roman Ocean.

#### **The Sea of Terror**

This sea remains a mystery. Accessed by a pass between the southern tip of Ferravertia and the northwestern jungles of Sezant, this water contains some unknown evil. It remains uncertain how far it stretches, as no ship that enters the Sea of Terror and sails out of sight of land is ever seen again, at least not with any living crew. The only nation that has any coastline on this sea is Andunidae, and the dangers of the sea is the reason that nation never developed a navy.

## **History of Tritania**

A brief overview on the history of this world.

Notes on Time and Calendars

### **Early History**

#### **The Angelic War**

At the creation of all existence, a great war broke out amongst the gods. The conflict nearly destroyed the mortal planes, and as a result all the deities were forbidden from influencing the mortal planes directly. This is the reason that the gods require clerics to be their instruments on the material plane. They also forbid mortals from traveling between the planes as a safeguard against future interplanar wars.

#### **The Wandering** (c. 12 000 years ago)

The three races of Humans, Elves, and Dwarves originated on separate continents, and began to spread throughout the world. After nearly two hundred years, the majority returned to their homelands where they would eventually found their earliest kingdoms. Small, isolated pockets remained scattered throughout the world, meaning the various races were aware of each other’s existences long before leaving their homelands five thousand years later.

#### **The Founding of Atlantis** (4683 BF)

In the first major alliance between races, Humans and Elves founded a kingdom together. Both races having begun to colonize an island in the middle of the ocean, they agreed to make it into a joint nation rather than fighting each other. A Half-Elf was selected to rule as king, being a representative of both races, while the land became a middle ground between the continents, and thus it became a central hub of civilization and trade.

#### **First Demon War** (3248 BF - 3241 BF)

Atlantean mages, experimenting with teleportation spells, accidentally opened a portal into the Outlands, and demons began to flood into the world. The suddenness of the invasion allowed them to spread rapidly. After seven years of fighting, an alliance of every mortal nation managed to push the demons back and seal the portal, but the damage to the world was considerable. The resulting destruction, combined with the heresy of interplanar travel, began Atlantis’s decline in power.

#### **Second Demon War** (1193 BF - 1172 BF)

Telenaari Elves from the northern reaches of the Elven Dominion arrogantly delved into forbidden magic, and accidentally opened a new portal into the Outlands. Once again fiends rushed into Tritania, this time with better planning and organization, and the world was unable to resist them as swiftly. The fighting lasted twenty-one years, and the demons triumphed until the sudden rise of Makuta, a soldier who managed to almost single-handedly turn the tide of the war. His command of tactics and strategy, as well as his powerful magic and skill with a sword, helped to end the conflict and defeat the demons.

### **The Age of the Brotherhood**

#### **The Founding of the Brotherhood** (972 BF)

Following his success in the Second Demon War, Makuta was a hero loved and revered by the entire world. After two hundred years spent acting as a negotiator and adventurer, he founded an organization to assist in bettering the world. The Brotherhood of Makuta was created to negotiate peace, defend from threats like demon invasion, and perform research into magic and other areas for the betterment of the world.

#### **Third Demon War** (521 BF)

Nobody is certain how, but another portal to the Outlands opened allowing demons and devils to pour into Tritania. The Brotherhood of Makuta responded quickly, and the fiends were pushed back and the portal sealed in less than a year. The Brotherhood had been enjoying success for over four hundred fifty years, but this victory solidified their position as leaders and heroes around the world.

#### **Consolidation War** (96 BF - 46 BF)

After almost eight hundred years of maintaining the most powerful and influential organization in Tritania, the Brotherhood declared that the conflicts between nations were too constant, and the best solution would be to rule the entire world directly. When the leaders of the various kingdoms refused, Makuta declared war and attempted to assume control by force. The Brotherhood had become so powerful and widespread that the nations were nearly unable resist. The war raged on for fifty years, and many times it seemed as though Brotherhood victory was inevitable, but eventually the allied nations were able to beat them back. Makuta’s power made him nearly invincible as an individual, but when he was finally captured and imprisoned the rest of the Brotherhood fell apart. They faded into the shadows and disappeared.

### **The Golden Age of the Alliance**

#### **The Founding of the Alliance** (1 AF)

Following the Consolidation War, a group of the nations that had fought against the Brotherhood decided that they should form an alliance to replace the Brotherhood for protection and education. Twelve nations signed a treaty declaring mutual defence and sharing of resources. The Alliance of Twelve Kingdoms became such an influential and powerful organization that the world calendar was reorganized to reflect its founding.

#### **The Great Goblin War** (263 AF - 266 AF)

The Alliance had existed for two and a half centuries with marginal success, but had never faced an opportunity to prove it was as strong as the Brotherhood. Simultaneously, the hordes of Savage races from both the Dwarfholm Mountains and the Sezanti Jungles rushed forth and invaded Maraav and Sezant. None have ever confirmed whether the two groups were in contact, or if the simultaneous attacks were coincidental. In either case, the hordes posed a serious threat, but after three years the Alliance prevailed with minimal damages.

#### **Fourth Demon War** (596 Bf - 601 BF)

For the first time, a portal to the Outlands was opened from the opposing side. The fiends invaded Tritania on their own terms, expecting to face the Brotherhood. While the Alliance fought with different methods, they were still an effective force. The fighting lasted five years, rather than the quick decisive victory one thousand years earlier, but the Alliance decisively claimed victory, proving that it was capable of its own successes.

### **The Three Brotherhood Wars**

#### **The Alliance/Brotherhood War** (1026 AF - 1042 AF)

After over a millennium of imprisonment the Brotherhood finally succeeded in freeing Makuta. The Brotherhood themselves had spent a thousand years infiltrating every level of society in every nation around the world. Striking out from the shadows, they succeeded in conquering considerable territory in a surprisingly short amount of time. Though the Alliance was able to rally and strike back, after sixteen years several of the nations of the Alliance were defeated and completely taken over. When only eight of the Twelve Kingdoms remained, the Alliance effectively collapsed, and the Brotherhood was considered victorious.

#### **The Five Year Peace** (1042 AF - 1047 AF)

Following the collapse of the Alliance of Twelve Kingdoms, the Brotherhood and the remaining nations all retreated to recover strength and bolster their defences. Though this period became known as the Five Year Peace, it was hardly peaceful; Elladan took the opportunity to expand to cover most of Romanda, Atlantis seized a number of unassociated territories in the south and declared itself an empire, and the Brotherhood tightened its grip on Maraav.

#### **The War of Three Empires** (1047 AF - 1128 AF)

Fighting broke out again as the Brotherhood launched offensives against both Atlantis and Elladan. Other, smaller nations joined in, but the main fighting remained mostly a three way battle between the Elladan Empire, the Atlantean Empire, and the Empire of the Makuta. All three were evenly matched for several decades, but the Brotherhood gained the upper hand with a devastating invasion of northern Elladan, collapsing the underground Drow kingdom and creating the Sea of Tears. When Atlantis moved against the Brotherhood capital, the floating city was destroyed, and all of its leaders were killed, resulting in the collapse of the Atlantean Empire.

#### **The Elladan/Brotherhood War** (1128 AF - 1137 AF)

With Atlantis extinguished, only Elladan remained a contender against the power of the Brotherhood. For several years, it seemed that even they were hopeless, but the return of the Companions of the Sun and Moon shifted the balance back in the allied nations’ favour. Slow headway was made over several years until in a final battle aboard the Empire of Makuta’s capital, the floating city of Sovereign Shadow, the immortal lord Makuta was finally defeated. The exact circumstances of the defeat have been kept secret, but it is assumed that, given his unkillable nature, Makuta must have again been captured. With the loss of their leader once again and their forces almost entirely destroyed, the remaining members of the Brotherhood fled. Many of the conquered nations were reestablished, though some were damaged beyond repair.

### **The Modern Era**

#### **The Genesis of the Warforged** (1153 AF)

The original Warforged, those who were created by the Brotherhood but rebelled to assert their right to freedom as a sentient race rather than slaves, were finally granted permission by the Empress of Elladan and their allies to use one of the remaining Soul Forges to create a new race of Warforged. These new beings would begin their life unbound by the Brotherhood’s programming and learn to find their own place in the world. Establishing a headquarters in the floating city of Mechane, the originals, now calling themselves Progenitors, created thirteen new Warforged, intended to become the leaders of the new race, and sent them out into the world in a twenty year quest to learn, explore, and grow as individuals, before returning to pass their experience on to Mechane and form the Council of Primes.

## **Culture of Tritania**

Legends

Numerology

## **Tritania and the Planes**

Tritania is one of a group of dimensions known as the planes.

### **Planar Reflections**

The Feywild

The Ethereal Plane

The Shadowfell