Nations of the Silath Tyr Region

Several nations are vying for primacy among the coasts of the Northern Sea and islands of the Silath Tyr region. Each nation's champions are racing to gain sole control over the artifacts and relics of the shattered empyrean vault.

• Alden (Red Sails)
• Fontaigne (Red Sails)
• Ottovar (Red Sails)
• Empire of the Spear (Red Sails)
• Native Cultures (Red Sails)
• Fallen Nations (Red Sails)

An Unquiet Peace

The great nations of Alden, Fontaigne, and Ottovar are not at war with each other, though it may sometimes be difficult to tell. Their ship captains practice a bit of piracy against the other nations, when they think no one is looking, laying claim to supplies and treasures before they can reach their destination. The cities claim territories far beyond their borders, despite lacking the armies to defend them, just to allege grievances against the neighboring nations when the land is taken back. Court spies are everywhere, many working for more than one master, and secrets are a currency more valuable than gold.

Each of the nations is an invader to these lands, their capitals hundreds of miles from the front lines of this great race. Only the thinnest of supply lines exist to the homelands (though Ottovar's is the most protected, since they run underground through the Duerenhaims), making every new venture a risk.

Each nation seeks to solidify their foothold in this region, and hopes to drive the others out, whether by depriving them of resources, defaming their heroes, demoralizing them with casual savagery, or assimilating them with superior culture and influence. Of course, should any of the nations acquire the right artifact, the tide will turn very suddenly. For the power of the exiled gods was so vast, even the modern gods seek these treasures for themselves. The right discovery could render all the current posturing and positioning entirely moot.

This is why the nations are trying to avoid open warfare with each other. By maintaining at least a facade of peace, and the illusion of fair dealings, should one nation gain dramatic advantage, the others can retreat to their homelands without losing too much face. The victorious nation needn't slaughter all of the players in the game if they win. Of course, they might choose to do that anyway, if the power they acquire is sufficient to succeed in such a ploy.

There can be no doubt that these are dangerous times — ripe with opportunity, teeming with risk.

A few things are common among all three of the great nations: scarcity of magic, belief in the gods, and a nationalistic bigotry.

Scarcity of Magic

Arcane magic use is restricted to the great noble families of each nation. Each nation usually has several families with bloodlines that possess a gift for magic. However, breeding of these blessed few outside of the established families is strictly prohibited, often resulting in execution of any bastards and their parents. As a result, no one native to Alden, Fontaigne, or Ottovar, possesses the ability to cast arcane magic, unless they were born among one of the noble families. The common folk, who experience arcane magic only as bystanders and witnesses, usually view it with awe and terror, since the noble families are rarely fair towards such folk.

However, the noble families are also deeply invested in the success of their nation's affairs, both financially and emotionally. Most of the families devote great energy to ensuring that their magic is used to their nation's best advantage, from making enchanted items available to favored adventurers, to providing streetlights for their cities, etc. Some of the families take an even broader view of their obligation to their people, using rituals to increase virility, fertility, and promote health among their citizenry. It is rumored that such magic might also ward their cities against outsiders, or those seeking to harm the interests of the noble families and their nation.

Belief in the Gods

While each nation has its own pantheon of gods, it is quite common for citizens of each nation to pay at least some obeisance to all of the gods who might be listening. This is because the gods are not some concept of belief, or a divine council of nebulous beings who sit in the sky looking down on their subjects. The gods walk the land, often in disguise, and take a very active role in the world. They are extremely powerful beings, defying description or any known limits, so it is a very foolish person who treats a stranger too callously, lest they discover that stranger to be a god in disguise.

Speculation on the origin of the gods is rampant. Some believe they are merely people who grew their power beyond all reasonable levels, while others suspect the gods are invaders from another place where all beings are absurdly powerful compared to the people of this world. Hundreds of other theories exist, but the central truth is that the gods are real, and they are interested in the affairs of the common man. Of course, that interest can take many forms...

Nationalistic Bigotry

Each of the great nations sees people of any other nation as lesser folk. This is exacerbated among the nobility of the great nations, since they commonly view their own citizenry as lesser folk, and outsiders as nothing more than uncouth filth. It is very difficult for citizens of one of the great nations to openly visit cities of another nation. Such brashness typically leads to imprisonment as a spy, or worse. Consequently, many people who travel between the nation's borders are careful to hide their nationality. The successful ones are careful to hide their accents, mannerisms, and other tell-tale signs of their origins at all times.

It has become quite fashionable in the larger cities to speak only common, and practice the New Way, which takes this absence of cultural touchstones to an artform. Such citizens have created a carefully constructed form of unaccented language, which eschews euphemism, and frowns on mannerisms and blatant displays of color, seeing such identifying marks as gauche or even rude. However, travelling to the smaller villages requires a visitor to adopt the language and cultural memes of the locals. Few individuals are so skilled that they can move between all the nation-states without notice, but they do exist, and they can command quite a price for their ability to slip across borders.