Zweisslûnd

**The Kingdom of** **Zweisslûnd** is a mountainous realm located in the northern part of the continent, Wendos. It is bordered by Ehstvär to the north-east, Skaalmark, The Pale and Torland to the south, Novron to the west and and Astafall to the east.

Zweisslûnd operates as a feudal monarchy, lead by a king. The kingdom itself is broken up into smaller states, or Lurtondi, that are directly controlled by lesser lords that swear fealty to the king. These Lurtondi are usually geographically defined, their borders set by mountains, rivers or other terrain features.

The people of Zweisslûnd are shorter and stockier than other human populations, owing to the long interbreeding of the humans and dwarves of the region. Culturally, the Zweisslûndi are closely related to the nations of Novron, especially in religion and language.

## History

### Pre-History

According to ancient Dwarven traditions, the mountainous lands of Zweisslûnd were first inhabited by a grand civilisation of giants. It is said that these giants built prodigious cities and castles throughout the realm. The stories go that this illustrious kingdom was destroyed during The Age of Fire. Other stories claim that the giants were wiped out during a catastrophic war with the Dragons of Astafall. Whatever the story may be, the only thing that remains of this great civilisation are few crumbling ruins dotted throughout the mountains.

### The Dwarves of Dorntarum

Following the end of the Age of Fire, the Dwarven race started to emerge from the mountain caverns of the world. One such society was known as the Dorntarum. These Dwarves moved throughout the mountains of Zweisslûnd, building mines and settlements throughout. Over the next 5,000 years, the dwarves had unified into a single kingdom and formed relationships with the other Dwarven and Gnomish civilisations further south.

### Arrival of Humans

In the 7th century 6E, the first humans started to arrive in Zweisslûnd. The human tribes, known collectively as the Vaerg, moved throughout the lowlands of Zweisslûnd, sticking to the river valleys and avoiding the mountains. At first, the Dorntarum simply observed these new arrivals from afar. But when the humans started to encroach upon their mountain halls, the Dwarves responded with force. The Dwarves drove them away with their superior weaponry; these first encounters were often violent and completely one sided.

After a while, the humans learnt to stay away from the mountains, and kept to the lowland valleys to avoid more conflict. The humans that remained in Zweisslûnd began to built settlements along the river valleys and over the next 600 years, grew and flourished. As the Vaerg expanded, the Dorntarum recognised that they may soon be outnumbered and endeavoured to engage in peaceful discourse with the newcomers. Trade started to flow between the Dwarves and Humans and the area entered into a period of uneasy peace.

### The Southern Threat

During the 8th century 7E, the human settlements in the south came under attack. Roving bands of wolf-like humanoids started attacking villages, killing and devouring livestock and villager alike. In the early days, these attacks were treated as hearsay and rumour, too outlandish to be true. Over the next 50 years, more and more humans started to flee north as the lycanthrope attacks became more and more aggressive. Soon, the humans of the lowlands were facing a refugee crisis.

As the threat from the south increased, the humans turned to the dwarves for support. The Dorntarum were hesitant to help, staying in their mountain halls. The situation turned critical when hordes of undead soldiers started to march north, capturing scores of people and taking them back to the dark forests of the south. Faced with this new threat, the lowland humans banded together and sent their armies to face the undead. The war was long and bloody, with the living facing a slow and inexorable defeat. For another 80 years, the undead pushed further north. The remaining humans fled from the valleys and back to the steppes of Ehstvär, where there ancestors had come. By the dawn of the 8th Era, the valleys of Zweisslûnd were overrun by the denizens of Skaalmark and the dwarves found themselves in a precarious position. With no more humans to hunt, the undead armies fell upon the dwarven fortresses. The dwarves were dug in well and managed to repel the invaders again and again, but their numbers were dwindling. In desperation, the dwarves sent messengers north, to beg the humans for help. With their extinction on the horizon, the Dorntarum were surprised when the forces of the Easarg people marched south and help push back the invaders. The campaign was long and brutal, but at the end of it, the dwarves swore an eternal allegiance to the men of the steppe, who once again started to settle in the lowlands.

Over the next thousand years, the humans and dwarves of Zweisslûnd thrived together in peace. During this time, the two people learned to co-exist and even interbreed. By the 9th Era, the people of Zweisslûnd were neither dwarven, nor human, but a mixture of the two. Throughout this time, various kingdoms and states rose and fell. Wars were fought against marauding nomads from the north and evil monsters from the south, but the folk of the mountains remained steadfast. The people of this era were known as the Alnazic people.

### Novroni Settlement

In the 3rd Century 9th Era, the Novroni people of Nolrandi started to expand their influence outside of Nolthwyk to the north. Colonists started to settle in the islands to the north of Alnazic controlled territory and eventually on the rocky peninsulas that formed the northern parts of Zweisslûnd. At first, the Alnazic and Novroni maintained peaceful relations. The Novroni settlements were mostly fishing villages and fur trapper camps. Over the next 4 centuries, the colonies grew and eventually formed into the Nolrandi province of Zweiran (Toothland in Novroni, named for the tooth like shape of the mountains).

As Zweiran grew in power and influence, they formed lasting trading deals and alliances with the Alnazic and the two cultures flourished. Intermarriage between noble houses further cemented these relationships and free movement of peoples ensured that tehir cultures became even more intertwined. By the time of the collapse of the Nolrandi Kingdom in the 8th century 9E, the two cultures had essentially combined into a single people, much like the Easarg and Dontorum had done over a millennia ago.

When the Parhond Kol came to power in Nolthwyk during the 10the century 9E, the newly formed dynasty sought to bring all of the Novroni colonies back under their control. However, when the Nolthwykans sent delegations to the former Zweiran colony, they were faced with a culture that barely resembled their own. The language and customs of Zweiran had changed so dramatically that the Parhondi decided that conquest was the only way to reinforce Novroni dominance in the region.

Early on in the Gediryalt, the Parhondi dedicated a large force to retake the Zweiran lands. The Nolthwykans raided fishing villages and ports, driving the Zweirani to take refuge in the ancient fortresses of the Dontarum. Although the initial attacks were successful, the Nolthwykans found it difficult to draw out the entrenched defenders and a long war of attrition started. During the 16th winter of the 10th Era, the northern seas froze over and the Nolthwykans were unable to get fresh supplies to their troops. This would become one of the longest and coldest winters in recorded history. As the former colonists safely wintered in their dwarven fortresses, the Nolthwykans starved and froze to death. Eventually, the invasion was called off and a truce was signed.

After the failed Nolthwykan invasion, the leaders of Zwerani peoples formed into a single unified kingdom, known as Zweisslûnd.

## Religion

Zweisslûndi faith is quite similar to that of Nôvron, as the
Zweisslûndi originally splintered away from the Nolthwykans. The Zweisslûndi
believe that there are twelves afterlives, known as the Valtieri. Each
Zweisslûndi endeavours to perform their trade or craft to their best ability so
they impress their ancestors and be granted entrance to their chosen Valtieri
upon Death.

**Grimmaeria:** Adventurers, wanderers and explorers hope to
enter this Valtieri by travelling to dangerous or unexplored areas of the
world. Those without a home also pray for the mercy of being accepted into this
afterlife to serve as subjects to those who earned entrance through great
deeds.

**Alsegar:** The Valtieri for sailors, fishermen, shipbuilders
and all those who make a living from the sea aspire to

**Galfenia:** Healers, nurses

**Herfengar:** Farmers, workers of the land

**Lifirna:** Mothers, druids, nature-folk

**Vennas:** Mages, teachers, masters of knowledge

**Lufjir:** Lovers

**Strennak:** Warriors

**Honvir:** Builders, artisans, smiths

**Sprennelos:** Storytellers, the wise

**Luandas:** Artists, poets, bards,

**Brenna:** The Damned