Briham

**Briham** is one of the nations in the world of Cults & Kings, and is where the beginning of the campaign takes place. At the beginning of the campaign, Briham has been taken over by "The True Xynnites", a cult which is an extremist offshoot of the Xynnite religion. The cult have shut down all travel in and out of Briham, and the party (many of whom were not from the nation) were trapped in the country.

## Geography

Briham is a very small archipelago in the middle of the Dalaou Ocean. It is quite remote, but its closest nation is The High Kingdom Of Clandenbury. The islands are a mostly temperate environment, with plenty of grasslands and forests, but there are also snowy mountains near the town of Montshire, a small desert near the town of Kamaeeraska, and a mesa near the Xynnite Monastery. The main archipelago and capitol island are separated by the Bay of Briham.

## Government

Before the cult took over Briham, the nation was ruled by two main royal families, Haus Zartü and Haus Aeselwë. The two families mostly live in Alderdeen, but the current ruler lives in Castle Spaulding, named after the town of Spaulding and highly regarded by locals to be the most secure fortress in the world. The royal families of Briham entered into a truce long ago asserting the power of Haus Zartü over the nation, while Haus Aeselwë would act as advisors, and in some cases, noble spouses. Prior to the truce, these two houses and several others waged constant wars on each other to gain control of the nation. Each time a different Haus took control, the calendar year would be set to 1. The wars resulted in Haus Zartü wiping out nearly all of the other houses, excluding Haus Aeselwë when they surrendered. The truce took place in the most recent year 1, and as of the time the adventurers find themselves in Briham, the year is 1378. It was the longest period of peace in the history of Briham until the cult overthrew the current king, known by locals as "The Good King Zartü" due to his progressive policies surrounding race, same-sex marriage, etc. The royal families in Alderdeen viewed the king as weak for these policies, and the king's younger brother was eventually revealed to have been working with the leader of the cult, Kelshan, in their insurrection.

## Population

The main populace of the nation of Briham are elves and humans. Kamaeeraska was also inhabited by orcs and tritons, and Porthaethwidge is inhabited solely by satyrs. Montshire and the Xynnite Monestary also have a small populace of aasimar and air genasi. Bearfolk and tabaxis also live in Briham in very small numbers. The most common languages spoken are Common and Elvish.

## Timekeeping

Timekeeping is done quite differently in Briham than in the resst of the world. There are four "months" which are really just the seasons. The four seasons are: Antritt (spring), Amusus (summer), Autumnus (fall), and Arctus (winter). When the months switch depends on the weather in Briham and is announced by the Keeper of the Calendar, which happens to be Kekos of Porthaethwidge. Dates are measured based on days in seasons. (For example 13th Antritt or 46th Arctus). The New Year is celebrated on 1st Amusus. At the time of the campaign, the current year is 1378. This is not the same as many other cultures in this world. This is because Briham measures their years by the dynasty of the royal family in power. Zartü's family took control of Briham 1378 years ago. If Zartü were to die without an heir, the calendar would reset to year 1 for whoever would take over next. That being said, those who affirm the rule of the cult over Briham insist that this is Year 1, not Year 1378.