Region Information

[VySaika]

Here there be info on the various Regions. Lorant and Venture will be the only ones I put anything major up for now, with just minor bits on the others. More to be added as Victor discovers and learns it!

Alot of the information here will also be written from the point of view of someone from Venture, what you would have picked up on and what the Embassy would have mentioned.

A note on the Magic sections of the regions. Each Native Magic Class listed will have either an I, L or I/L next to it in parenthases. This means that the magic is either Inherent(you have to be born with it), Learned(you can learn it, so those from Out-Region can get this), or either one can happen. Example: Sorcerer(I) and Wizard(L) both exist in Rashal but neither in Venture. However, a Venturan man could travel to Rashal and become a Wizard because it's a Learned class. He could not ever take levels in Sorcerer however, because it's purely an Inherent class and does not exist in the Region he was born in.

[VySaika]

Lorant
The Land: Lorant is a rough land with a few city-states located in the more hospitable areas. The terrain is very mountainous with thick and thin forests spread between(and on) the mountains. Small lakes and rivers also dot the landscape, and boating along them is considered the safest way to get between cities. The climate in Lorant is cold throughout most of the year, occasionally reaching into the 70s and maybe the low 80s during the peak of summer and plummeting below 0 as a rule during the winter.

Also of interest are the cavern complexes beneath Lorant. Nobody knows just how far down they stretch, and most Lorish folk avoid them like the plague. There are miners of course, and some enterprising people have also cultivated "root gardens" in certain caverns near or under the city they live in, but even they aren't interested in what might be further down.

The reason for this attitude, and for the insular nature in general of the people, is because THINGS live in Lorant. Monsters live in the wilds and worse is said to live in the caves. And most of them really are out to kill you.

The Civilization: There are two types of cities in Lorant, though the word "city" is used loosely here. The somewhat large, walled(this is important) city states that are ruled by a Lord and where the majority of people live, and the small(usually not walled) wilderness towns and villages. The city dwellers consider those who live in "the towns" to be lunatics and probably cutting deals with dark powers since how else could they survive out there? Likewise, the town dwellers are even more insular and xenophobic then usual for the region, distrusting even those from the cities or other towns(let's not even get into what they think of Out-Region).

There are maybe a dozen or so city-states in all of Lorant, most of them only having regular contact with two or three others at most. The most important ones are:

Jotgunn: The largest city-state in Lorant, and where the primary Venturan and only Rashali embassies are located. The people here are fairly receptive of outsiders these days and the city's ruler, Lord Garr Torvald, is working quite eagerly with the ambassadors from Out-Region to improve the lives of his people.

Moorgard: A city-state that has irregular contact with Jotgunn, being just distant enough for communication to be possible but not easy. Venture has recently begun work on building a second Embassy here. Venture's offers had been rejected by the previous lord, but after a recent shift in power the new lord, the unusually young Lord Chad Carlson, has welcomed the prospect of the Embassy.

Hornsfald: The closest city-state to Jotgunn. Despite, or perhaps because of, the close proximity Hornsfald and Jotgunn have fairly frosty relations. The enmity seems rather old, but isn't being helped much by Jotgunn's recent good fortune and successes. However, Hornsfald has some of the richest mines in the area, so trade is a necessity.

Economy: Money in Lorant consists of three coins. Iron, Silver and Gold. Most folks deal in barter or Iron coins. If you have Silver you're wealthy, and if you have Gold you're flat out rich.

Magic: Both Arcane and Divine magic exist in Lorant, but only in small amounts of power. Spells above third level rarely function properly, and magical items are things of legend with history and uniqueness, not something you can buy at a bazaar like in Rashal. Most arcanists, as well as Mystics, are incredibly distrusted here, as that sort of magic is seen as being a tie to dark powers. Sadly, it's true often enough that there's good reason for the suspicion. Warlocks get the worst of the suspicion, often being driven out of cities by force right alongside soulshifters(who often get accused of being lycanthropes).
Native Arcane Classes: Sorcerer(I), Warlock(I), Adept(L)
Native Divine Classes: Druid(L), Mystic(I), Wanderer(L)
Native Misc Magical Classes: Soulshifter(I/L), Totemist(L)
Lorant is considered to have a Magic Level of 6.

Technology: Tech is a fairly new thing to Lorant, brought largely by those from Venture. It's taking off quickly though and what of it works is becoming quite popular, as it's easier to control and more predictable then magic. Gunpowder, internal combustion engines, the telegraph and other purely mechanical inventions seem to work here without too many problems, but electronics and anything more advanced then that do not.
Lorant is considered to have a Technological Level of 8.

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Lorish Humans
Stats: +2 Str. Lorishmen are a fair bit taller and more muscular on average then other people.

Toughness: Lorishmen gain Toughness as a bonus feat.

Adaptability: Lorishmen gain 4 bonus skill points at first level, and one bonus skill point at every level beyond 1st.

Physical Description: Tall, often stocky and usually muscular, Lorishmen stand out in a crowd made of any other people. They are also the fairest skinned people of the known Regions, and tend towards blonde, red and light brown hair. Some Lorish women are born with raven black hair, and are usually shunned as witches and sometimes even killed at birth because without exception they will develop inherant magic and become sorceresses, mystics or warlocks.

[VySaika]

Venture

The Land: Venture is a fairly small region, consisting of fairly uniform temperate to cool low hills and thinly wooded 'forests' in between the cities and towns. The land of Venture is perhaps the single safest region, having little untamed wildlife(at least that's actually dangerous) and being fairly pleasant all around. Various roads, usually well maintained but some have fallen into disrepair, connect the cities of Venture. Citizens can either ride bicycles along these roads(which all have lanes just for that) or take mass transit to get from place to place. Personal automobiles do not exist in this day and age, though records say they once did.

The Civilization: Where the landscape of Venture is fairly calm and not particularly noteworthy, the civilization proudly claims to be the most advanced in all the known regions. At least if you consider advancement to equal technology and social reforms, which the people of Venture most certainly do. Some of these reforms and advancements are actually carryovers from the time before the Event, of which Venture has stronger records of then any other region.

In it's history, the region used to belong to a larger country, the Federation of Ald, before the Event which tore it away and secluded it by itself for so long. Early on after the Event, the civilization of Venture almost died out, as the people were torn between violent rioting and mass panic, and others attempting to continue the same lifestyles they had lived before when they had more resources then could be found just in thier little land. On the verge of societal collapse, a man named Garcia Wade proposed the system that would be the beginnings of the new structure of the region: getting people out of the cities and into self-sustaining rural communities. Even that could only last for so long, but it managed to hold on until better means could be found to sustain the rapidly depleting resources of the region. This sorts of crisises have happened many times over the past two hundered years, but each time someone has managed to invent the solution in time. These days, vertical farm towers have taken the place of traditional agriculture and water recycling is perhaps the single largest industry in the region. Recycling for everything else exists too.

Economy: The Venturan economy is very nearly socialistic at this point. "Money" does not exist physically anymore there, as the raw materials that might be used to make it are instead used to make things that are actually useful. The basic unit of currency is the Credit, and a person's credits are electronically accessed and spent by use of state issued cards. There is only one bank in Venture, and that is the state run bank, which keeps track of everyone's credits.

Magic: Magic is completely unusable on Venture. Even the most basic cantrips fail more often then they succeed, and absolutely nothing higher then a cantrip is usable at all. Venture is considered to have a Magic Rating of 0.

Technology: As Venture has the best technology in the known regions, and the few things invented elsewhere and brought to Venture seem to work just fine there, there isn't a known limit to the technology that will work there. Until some discovery of a more advanced region proves that there are purely scientific devices and ideas that won't work there, Venture is considered to have a Technological Rating of X.

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Venturan Humans
Stats: +2 Int. Venturan humans have the benefit of free, high quality public education, giving many of them a keen interest in learning from a young age. And even those that didn't enjoy their years in school still find themselves a bit sharper then average for other regions.

Focused Learning: Venturans may select any single skill at 1st level. They gain a +2 racial bonus when using this skill and it is always considered a class skill for them.

Powerful Immune System: Thanks to medical advances and aggressive vaccinations, Venturans have a +4 racial bonus on fortitude saves against poison and disease.

Easy Task: Venturans may Take 5 on any skill check they possess five or more ranks in even during stressful situations that would prevent them from Taking 10.

Physical Description: Venture has the largest physical disparity between it's own people of any known Region. Some Venturans are light skinned, some dark, many mulatto at this point, their hair and eye colors can range anywhere from blonde to pink to black to green or nearly any other color. There really is no real unifying physical trait.

[VySaika]

Rashal

Info to be edited in later

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Rashali Humans
Stats: -2 Str, +2 Dex, +2 Cha. Rashali are raised in a society that places great importance on politeness judo, haggling, storytelling and many other complex interactions, with little forgiveness for those who do not learn the game. Physically, Rashali are a bit smaller and thinner then other humans, possessing greater agility but less raw muscle mass.

Folklore: Rashali gain a +2 racial bonus on Knowledge(Arcana), Spellcraft and Use Magic Device checks.

Talented: Rashali gain a bonus feat at 1st level.

Physical Desciption: Rashali tend to be smaller then most folk, often averaging 5ft even for men and even shorter then that for women. If a Rashali were to reach 6ft in height he would be considered a giant by his people. They have tan to light brown skin tones, and universally dark brown to black hair(though it does gray with age).