The Circle of Seven

The Circle of Seven is the fictional world setting for "The Sickness of Demor Lant". The name refers to the seven continents on which the bulk of the story has occurred.

**Demor Lant** is the big continent, comprising many biomes and environments. It is an old continent - it has had the name Demor Lant in various iterations for most of recorded history; many of its towns and buildings are over 500 years old - but is a young *nation* in its current form. It is presided over by the black dragon **Tefyrthana**, and has been for about a hundred and fifteen years, since the period known as the Pelethian Usurpation - around the turn of the previous century. At that time, a political group from the Peleth Islands had infiltrated Demorian centers of power and were staging a takeover, on the basis that the noble families of Demor Lant had violated terms of trade and abused Pelethian merchants. Tefyrthana alighted on the continent and presented herself to a Demorian population scattered by conflict, and offered to protect the people from the Usurpation. With her aid, the Demorians successfully drove Peleth out, and thereafter Tefyrthana unified the continent, becoming the nation's de facto ruler, judge, and figurehead. Tefyrthana does not have absolute authority – the noble class and kingships of the local Demorian monarchies can challenge her, and many Demorian cities have developed effective safeguards against dragon attack, so her power is not the end-all be-all. But she does have input on nearly all laws and policies, especially those touching on foreign relations. She is featured in some form on most Demorian flags. Demor Lant has several famous port cities and utilizes canals and fjords for shipping purposes; further inland are many lakes and mountains.

**Lefwyne** is the southwestern country - also called the Old Country - and unlike Demor Lant has existed as a unified entity for many centuries. Though about half the size of Demor Lant, it is much more thickly settled, with hundreds of very old towns and cities; its military is also extremely sophisticated, with a secretive and dangerous reputation that other peoples talk of in tentative whispers. It is governed by a monarch, who divides power over the land between the gentry, lords, magistrates, and mayors. Lefwyne is where the **Pestilence** first originated - in game time, a little over three years before the beginning of the campaign.

The **Meadows of Clarity** make up the southernmost country, to the east of Lefwyne and another nation named **Corrisgaul -** these three nations share a coastline. The **Meadows** are inhabited by many ancient monarchies and strongholds, which are very private, keep to themselves, and avoid international involvement. The land in the Meadows is rich and fertile; their main exports are agricultural. There have been many attempts by other nations to seize the Meadows, but none have succeeded, and each attempt resulted only in the people of the land withdrawing further. **Corrisgaul** is a densely settled city-state, whose wizards and inventors have developed many sophisticated technologies, including steam power and indoor plumbing. It is an almost exclusively urban landscape, bristling with towers, and the livelihoods of its people depend heavily on agricultural imports from Lefwyne and the Meadows.

**Falstaff** to the west is a hilly country of expansive moors, deep pine forests, and towering cliffs. Its people live in small, often mobile family units; there are only four major cities in the whole territory, which are stark and beautiful centers of power. The various peoples of the land hold a summit every ten years, and elect representatives to govern them. **Amonderre Sev'rene,** to the northwest, is a verdant plain laced with rivers and rocky plateaus - its gray fortresses seem grown out of the very stones, and its courts are famous for their grandeur. Its power structure is largely feudal: leaders are most often knights who have distinguished themselves in armed conflicts.

**The Peleth Islands** possess the coldest climate of all the nations, icy six months out of the year, though the southern coasts are warmer. The islands carry a rich cultural tradition of philosophy, religion, and storytelling, and their people are renowned seafarers. There are three distinct political groups - the Rozores, the Kassanders, and the Valonis - which have traded power over the various islands between them over the course of history, gaining and losing ground in repeated conflicts.