Melicor

**Melicor** is a country northwest of Caledric connected to the mainland by a massive bridge from Serenity's End to Freeport. Currently, Melicor is split into three competing and warring factions, a coven of winter witches whose name translates to the Ice Witches, a federation of Frost Giant tribes led by a Frost Giant chieftainess named Yrsa, and band of humanoid tribes united under the banner of the Ebrataal.

## Geography

Melicor's landscape is dangerous; cold, windy mountains, completely frozen up lakes and silent mountains are just a sliver of the obscurity Melicor has to offer, which is why the country is shunned among foreigners but to the natives it is merely a test of their continuous strength.

### The Broken Teeth Mountains

The Broken Teeth Mountains are a set of mountain ranges caused by repeated tectonic folding thousands of years ago. The range lost many of its peaks during an event that occurred thousands of years ago. The range is best known for its sheared peaks and the extremely high numbers of restless spirits that are tied to them.

### The Frozen Spires

The Frozen Spires are a pair of artificially created mountains created by the Ice Witches to serve as a fortress for their armies. They rise far above the comparably flat tundra around them, towering over the sea and the city of Last Reach.

### Climate

Cold, borderline polar. Average high peaks around 8℃ (46.4℉) where lows can get towards -22℃ (10.4℉) at night in the summer.

## Wealth

Poor. Not much intercontinental trade is done to Melicor due to the extreme weather. Most trade would be done out of Freeport with Serenity's Edge. Only the bravest or most profit-hungry of merchants would dare make the trip into the settlements within the Frozen Spires or Broken Tooth Mountains, and most of the tribes are more focused on survival than gaining wealth. The Ebrataal have made trading attempts with other countries, mostly for food and steel in exchange for furs, hides of exotic beasts and True Ice.

## Culture

Melicor is a harsh and unforgiving place—where the people are born warriors, who must persevere against all odds. Proud and fiercely independent, the tribes of Melicor are often considered wild, rugged, and “uncivilized” by their neighbors across Caledric, who do not know the ancient traditions that shaped them. The people of Melicor are an ever divided people. Tribes fight for dominance for what little resources they can find. As a result, Melicorians deeply value battle, battle kins and battle scars, which are known as a sign of strength, courage and battle experience. A person can only have a fulfilling death with their eyes open.

### Ice Witches

Currently the leading power in Melicor is of that of the Ice Witches tribe, the people still living under the Ice Witches live simple lives, although they do live with the risk of the state appropriating their belongings or children at a moment’s notice, however the Coven has the greatest safety net, as the coven stores food in case of famine and gives it out to the peasants in times of need. Most of the people under the Coven live safe but hard lives. They survive, and live for a long time, but their lives are mostly working, eating and sleeping, with little else.

The Ice Witches are a coven but also a ruling organization. Five of the witches represent the uppermost echelon of this organization but aren’t the only Ice Witches in power in Melicor:

* **Adasika**, also known as the Queen of Ice is the unofficial leader of the Coven. Her powers over Cryomancy are unmatched on Orlanthea, able to call not only on the capabilities of Witchcraft, but also primordial cryomancy and the magicks of the Winter court. It is widely believed that she is the one responsible for maintaining the eternal winter over Melicor. She’s known to be a cold individual, but also appears to be open to love or romance, as she has several children. She rarely leaves Melicor, leaving diplomatic meetings or meetings of heads of state to the other four unless the meeting is held in Melicor.
* **Amya**, the Ancient of Decay makes her home in the Broken Teeth Mountains. She studies the restless spirits there, granting them final rest and studying the history of Orlanthea. While loath to share with outsiders, and protected by a menagerie of creatures that are said to be something between raven, skeleton and plant, many still seek her out to try to learn what they can about Orlanthea’s history from her. Her role in the leadership of Melicor is that of an adviser and scholar. Using the stories of the past to ensure that the current administration does not repeat the mistakes of the past.
* **Anive**, the Ancient of Chains is responsible for ensuring that those who defy the coven are punished for their crimes. She’s the Warden for the prison under the Frozen Spires, where the prisoners requiring the highest possible security are kept. She also serves as the Supreme Judge in the territories held by the Coven and supplements her sister Dinafayn’s armies with bound and controlled extraplanar creatures.
* **Dinafayn**, the Ancient of Blades resides in the icy fortress she built in the Frozen Spires. As General of the Coven’s armies, Dinafayn spends most of her time preparing for war with Belator and Stoneleaf, Melicor’s two neighbours, as well as leading campaigns against the Ebrataal and the frost giant tribes. Dinafayn is surprisingly the easiest of the coven to approach, and takes audiences regularly to meet with diplomatic envoys, adventurers, and even accepts requests for duels on the odd occasion.
* **Hvita**, the Ancient of Deceit is an enigmatic entity. She is entirely immune to the effects of divination, and her talent for illusions makes her true identity impossible to know. She runs the secret police and external spy networks of Melicor, advises Adasika on the movements of countries beyond Melicor’s borders.

### Frost Giant Tribes

The Frost Giant tribes have their own distinct culture, mostly centered around the worship of regional variants of Kreevix, Jormungandr, Korg, and Catha. Since Yrsa conquest a more conventional worship of Korg and Jormungandr have risen in prominence. The Frost Giants carefully observe the night sky and solemnly observe scheduled religious events. Events such as these include mostly raiding under the New Moon or during the day as to not sadden Catha, who they perceive as a pacifist, while as the Goddess of Love, Weddings and Conceptions occur under the full moon so that they may gain her blessing. The circle and the knot are symbols of loyalty, and greetings are typically gripping both of each other’s forearms to create such a circle. Finally, Hospitality is sacred to the Frost Giants, and there are fewer sins more grave than taking advantage of someone’s hospitality or harming someone you’ve opened your tent to.

Yrsa is a woman with a fiery temper and a steely resolve and current leader of the Frost Giant tribes. She has managed to unify all the tribes of Melicor under her banner by force, and commands the respect and allegiance of these tribes. Under her rule, the Frost Giants have moved down from the mountains and better coordinated their raids on the Coven and the Ebrataal alike. Her dedication to Korg is matched only by her ferocity in battle, and she carries a greataxe said to be blessed by Korg himself that crackles with lightning in times of need.

### Ebrataal

The Ebrataal are perhaps the most modernized of the factions, constantly seeking to create a normal society, this has led the Ebrataal to congregate mostly around Freeport, a trading hub and Ebrataal’s fortress. They also believe in their moral superiority in the region, believing that if they allow people in they’ll not want to complete any mission of sabotage and rather join them. This hubris has unsurprisingly ended poorly for them in the past, but they’ve been slow to adapt, and are still friendly and are almost cocky with how open they leave their cities, this combined with their generous hospitality and the Ebrataal are seen as one of the kindest people in Caledric.

In charge of the Ebrataal, Thyra is far more mild than the other leaders. A diplomat first, warrior second, she convinced the humanoids to seek a better life than what the Melicor of today has to offer. Under her leadership, the Ebrataal have begun to seek out help from other countries and trade with them directly, and fight back against Giant and Coven raiders alike. Thyra is blessed with divine magics that allow her to protect and heal her people, lead them through uncertain times, and is able to hunt as well as any of her tribe’s hunters and put food on the table.

## Military

The military of the Ice Witches consists of recruited fey, lesser Ice Witches who are more martially inclined and several thousand conscripts. A large number of them undergo constant training and are sent on campaigns as further practice, and to separate the wheat from the chaff, those who show promise are placed in stasis for a more rigorous war.

The might of the Frost Giant tribes comes from its warriors. While in total they number in the thousands, it is rare for more than a few dozen to be in the same place at the same time. Frost Giant raids target weaker areas such as farms and villages so they rarely need to mobilize in force. When attacked the tribes are a tenacious foe, but prefer to fight long enough that they can melt away into the wilderness.

The Ebrataal boast the best archers in Melicor, as they’re soldiers are hunters first, warriors second, but plenty know how to wield weapons more easily used on boats, such as axes and swords in addition to the hunting implements such as spear and bow.  The Ebrataal number in the tens of thousands as well, with every adult knowing how to fight, even if skill levels may very, and the open and accepting culture of the Ebrataal has allowed them to find alliances with dragons and giants, and some even become citizens.

## Gallery

The port of Last ReachHome to the Ice Witches