Aetheral

**This is part of the sections which are outdated/for use to look through history. Nothing here is part of the current continent of Parvus!**

## **Cities, Towns, & Territories**

#### Ardea, The Capital

The Kingdom of Ardea is the capital of Aetheral, and holds with it the continent's heart. It is the largest of the territories, having within it, two mountains, one plain, three forests, one swamp, a desert and a canyon, the only port, the only palace, the largest Druid Grove, and Aetheral's largest winery.

This Kingdom was known for its military might, and the prowess of its people. Having lived through and defeating both dragons and lich kings, these people have stories to tell, and have certainly earned their home in Aetheral. Without Ardea's people, the whole of the continent would have been overrun by undead and monsters long ago, adding it to the long list of uninhabitable islands that dot the world.

Some popular attractions within Ardea included; The Wanderers Rest, which is the main tavern within the city; the Palace, being the only palace in Aetheral, and being one of the few palaces that are completely open to the public, it's certain to be a nice spot to add to your travel itinerary; the Ayari Library, which is one of the largest libraries on the continent, and even holds up against some larger public libraries in other parts of the world; and, even though it's technically in Kaeth Serine, The Red Wolves Guild, which is a large fortress named Eastwind, which is home home to mercenaries, monster hunters, and explorers alike. Port Nymris is another lovely attraction, named after an allied dragon that died protecting Inkwell from the undead. Within the Giant's Forest is an actual Giant, and it's camp, be warned though, he is not to be trifled with. Both the Saint Antonius Monastery and Abbey of Silence are embedded within the Southern Magni Mountain Range, and, while the Abbey can't be entered, both are an architectural marvel. La Roseraie Vineyard in the desert is a popular romantic date spot, open for day tours, and it even has a bathhouse any resort would be jealous of.

However, not every place within Ardea is safe, or comfortable. Crawler's Canyon is known for harboring Goblins, and giant venomous spiders, which the caynon is named after. The Ferali Swamp is one of the few uninhabited parts of Ardea. It's a no-man's land, untouched by even the Crown. Within the Magni Mountain Range, there lies an abandoned Dwarven Ruin, which used to be home to Dwarves, Dark Elves, and Dragons alike. Now, it is a dangerous place to wander, since rockfalls, lava flows, and poisonous mushroom spore clouds are common. Adventure with caution.

Learn more about Ardea here.

#### New Inkwell, The Free City

New Inkwell is known as the "Free City" for one reason, and one reason only. It's founder, Viltrei Inkwell, believed that people should not have to live under law or rules, for the natural way of the world was to live without these things. The only "laws" within his territory (though they are more like guidelines), can be found on one of the few notice boards around the city, and are as follows:

> "Whoever you may be, whatever you may have done, all are welcome. Only rules: No theft, no murder in the streets. In the wild, everything goes."
>
>

Though, this slogan was not received well by the Church of the Light. Near the end of Second Fellnight, an extremist branch of the Church of the Light, known only as the Abbey of Silence, went on a purge through Aetheral, but their primary target was Inkwell. Known for being a city of that not only houses but protects criminals and heretics, the Abbey of Silence attempted to burn the whole city to the ground. Another thing this city is known for is being quite the fire-hazard, with its wooden buildings and cramped alleyways.

No one has seen the city's founder Viltrei since this incident, and it's uncertain whether he left the continent entirely to flee persecution, or if the Abbey of Silence has finally snuffed out this dangerous spark.

Keep in mind that, if a denizen of Aetheral is to live in Inkwell, they are not guaranteed the protection of the Crown, or even the mercy of the Light.

With no leader, and no money coming into the city, Inkwell has all been but abandoned. Some people still live there, but whoever remains is guaranteed to be the unsavory type.

Though, in its prime, Inkwell was not all that bad. It aided Ardea in the fight against Drictag and his undead army, and housed countless refugees from not only this incident, but the Dragon Attack as well. The city was also known for being Ardea's most vital lumber import, though, with its abandonment, things have changed.

Inkwell is Ardea's sister city, and, even if there are disagreements, it will always be seen as such.

Learn more about New Inkwell here.

The Northern Territories
 The Atramento Mountain

#### The Southern Jungle Tribe

The Tribal Territories
 The Volcano

## Diversity & Population

Aetheral is a continent full of refugees, explorers, and travelers of all calibers. For that reason, the continent is extremely diverse, with having groups from nearly every race.

Currently, Aetheral holds a large population of Humans, mainly because it was Humans that discovered and founded the two major cities within Aetheral, along with Harth, Kaeth Serine, and Dark Horse. The second-largest group is that of the High Elves, which seemed to follow the Humans as they migrated in.

Aetheral is also home to refugees from Norenia, which not only includes more Humans, but includes Orcs as well, marking them as Aetheral's third most common race. They even have an entire tribe to call their own within Aetheral's jungle.

The least common races within Aetheral are Dark Elves, Wood Elves, Dwarves, and Goblins. The lack of Wood Elves is not an uncommon thing within our world, though, it is not to say that there aren't a large population of them, they're just rather difficult to find, and typically despise the city. Dwarves, also tend to stick to themselves deep underground, or even within Wood Elven settlements. Goblins are rare here, mainly because Aetheral doesn't have an environment to suit them. They often live where no one else can stand to, and with most crannies of Aetheral being populated by competitors, they find themselves better homes elsewhere. Those that can adapt to city life tend to, but, it's often argued that Goblins within the city aren't true Goblins at all.

## Religion

Despite being so racially diverse, Aetheral is not very religiously diverse. This is mainly because the Church of the Light is the predominant religion here, and, those kingdoms under the Church tend to outlaw other religions, for fear their kingdom will be marked for a Crusade by the more extreme branches of the Light. However, that doesn't mean that some other religions are not tolerated, with worship of Saria and Druid-related paganism being marked as "acceptable," albeit, barely.

#### The Church of the Light

The Church of the Light within Ardea only holds with it two offshoots, which are the Church of the Sundial, and the Abbey of Silence. The Sundial was actually brought to Aetheral off of the backs of Norenia's refugees, and used to be the official religion of Norenia. Not much is known about the Abbey, but more can be learned about the Church of the Light here, as well as the Sundial here.

#### The Children of Saria

More about Saria and her worship can be found here.

[Diversity and percentages are based off player characters and are subject to change.]

Light Worship: 39%

Saria Worship: 15%

Shamanism: 15%

Heathenry: 8%

Cult Followings: 8%

Misc/Unknown: 15%

#### The Ardean Compendium of Law

The Ardean Compendium of Law is arguably one of the most important books within Aetheral. It was updated until the very end of Aetheral, and was a large writing on what the Crown considers illegal, and what exactly will get you killed or otherwise.

The Compendium was more than two pages long, and would take up the majority of this section.

## Economy

Aetheral's currency was the Ardean Coin, which was a type of gold coin minted at the Iron Belt bank, located in Ardea's west district. One gold bar was worth 100gp.

The standard is a "bread standard" meaning, one gold piecec should be able to buy a person one loaf of bread, however, the market often changes and does not fit this standard.

### Professions

[Diversity is based off of player characters and is subject to change in the future.]

Animals/Animal Control: 15%

Crown/Court Staff: 15%

Doctors/Medicine: 7%

Farmers: 12%

General Merchants: 7%

Guards: 7%

Guild Leaders: 5%

Mining: 5%

Misc: 5%

Seamstress/Tailoring: 2%

Tavern Owner/Bar Tender: 7%

Teaching: 12%

## Flora & Fauna

Aetheral was known for its large diversity, in almost every sense of the word. Aetheral contained a total of nine biomes! It has icy plains, giant pine taigas, golden birch forests and oak ones to match, flower-filled plains, cold and warm mountains, expansive desserts, dangerous canyons, and even a subtropical jungle with it's very own volcano.

For that reason, it is nearly impossible to tell all about Aetheral's Flora and Fauna in one book, or one page

## Rulers & Important People

### **King Johann Von Hertenjacht's Reign [2/8/630 -]**

King Johann Von Hertenjact is the current King, due to the discovery and general acceptance that he is the grandnephew to the previous King, Leopold the First.

His current court consists of Stewardess Hildegard Von Steiner, Almoner Howl, Marshall Onur Velvorn, Doctor Phyrrah Aelsinorin, and scribe Krystyn Vidra.

**[The 9th day of Fire's Grasp, year 631]**

A botched execution informs Ardea of the existence of "The Cult of the Night," a cult whose members have killed four guards in their pursuit of Arcane knowledge.

**[The 2nd day of Fire's Grasp, year 631]**

Harth is cleared of Drictag's necromancy.

**[The 8th day of High Sun, year 631]**

Ardea declares war on the Molemasher Clan.

**[The 30th day of Rain's Grasp, year 631]**

The border agreement between Ardea and the Southern Orcish tribe is finalized, which helped to solidify the alliance between them.

**[The 18th day of Rain's Grasp, year 631]**

Strange meteors fall to Aetheral. Each meteor is embedded with runes, and appear to be of a new, undiscovered stone.

**[The 17th day of Rain’s Grasp, year 631]**

The second issue of "Letters From the Crown" names the newest members of the Royal Court. Hilde Von Steiner, the King's aunt, is named Stewardess; Inquisitor Howl is named the Almoner; Onur Velvorn is named the Marshall; and Phyrrah Aelsinorin is named the Royal Doctor and Alchemist. The addition of an Almoner and Royal Doctor/Alchemist is important to note, for these titles are likely the first of their kind within the Ardean Kingdom.

**[The 15th day of Second Frost's Reign, year 631]**

"Letters From the Crown," the Crown's official newspaper, distributes their first issue. Within the first issue, it's surmised that the previous Council system is informally removed and is replaced with a Court system, with it's only member being the previous Regent, Ademar Burstow, acting as a temporary Steward. Also, in this first edition, Dark Horse, a small population near the North West of Ardea's border, is established as a Sovereign State.

**[The 18th day of Second Frost's Reign, year 631]**

Steward Ademar Burstow establishes the Artificers Guild, which is a group of engineers that helped defeat the undead threat.

### **Regent Ademar Burstow's Reign [10/4/630 - 2/8/630]**

The Steward Ademar Burstow was named Regent soon after King Leopold's death. His reception was somewhat mixed, but it is known that many wanted him to become the new King of Ardea, though, he declined the position, and soon began searching through King Leopold's records to find the next heir to the throne.

**[The 6th day of Second Frost's Reign, year 631]**

Grand Nephew of King Leopold, is discovered by the Regent.

**[The 28th day of First Frost’s Reign, year 631]**

Regent Ademar Burstow was handed a country that was faced with the imminent threat of destruction at the hands of a lich and its generals, yet, he prevailed. With his army and the aid of all of his countrymen (the Red Wolves, the Southern Jungle Tribe, and the only recently recognized state of Dark Horse), he was able to stop the undead invasion. However, cursed magic still fills the deep north, and the city of Harth is still crawling with undead even during King Johann Von Hertenjacht's reign.

**[The 14th day of First Frost's Reign, year 631]**

Islands to the west of Aetheral are newly discovered by Baron Sigurd Björnsson Hvitserk.

**[The 22nd day of Crimsonfall, year 630]**

A small encampment of Giants is discovered for the first time in Aetheral.

### **King Leopold the First's Reign [??? - 10/4/630]**

King Leopold the First established a short-lived elective council system during his time. The council system was made that each race within Aetheral could have a representative within the King's court. Among the first of these council members were; Sabiara Coborel, the Elven Councilor; Dulin Goldbound, the Dwarven Councilor; Azul of Ardea, the Orcish Councilor; and Rurik of Ardea.

Sabiara Coborel and Dulin Goldbound greatly aided King Leopold in the creation of the Ardean Compendium of Law, which replaced the previous system, which was primarily a collection of unwritten policies enforced by the King's Guard.

**[The 4th day of Crimsonfall, year 630]**

King Leopold the first is assassinated by Counilman Azul. As written in his will, the palace and its gardens are made public to the people.

**[The 17th day of Lowsun, year 630]**

An undead army invades and takes the Serine Republic of Harth,

**[The 19th day of Fireswane, year 630]**

The construction of the Ardean Port, now named Port Nymris, is finished.

[**The 27th day of Fireswane, year 630]**

With Sabiara's absence, the position for Elven Councilor was soon opened. The votes were close between Gilthos, Miir Ayari, and Ulfin, who was the acting Guard Captain at the time. Gilthos beat Miir Ayari by two votes.

**[The 16th day of Fireswane, year 630]**

After the dragon attacks, Ademar Burstow was named Steward, with Jeremiah Caeiro serving as Marshall, and Miir Ayari acting as the King's Scribe.

**[The 26th day of Fire's Grasp, year 630]**

During Leopold's reign, a dragon attacked Aetheral. This dragon caused great harm when it burned down not only Ardea but Inkwell, and killed many people. It's known that Ademar Burstow's siege weapons were the primary reason the Ardean army was able to stop this great and terrible beast. Though it's unknown when dragon sightings truly began, it is known that the dragon was defeated during the 26th day of Fire’s Grasp, year 630.