Rzhlev
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Status:
Recommended
Capital:
Rzhlev
~200.000
Government:
Feudal monarchy
Imports:
common goods, stolen goods
Exports:
ore, wood
GB Income:
44 GB (Province 34 GB; Law 7.7 GB; Source: 1 GB; Tribute 2 GB)
RP Income:
10 RP (2E)
Expenses:
23,6 GB (Army 12,5 GB; Fortifications 6.4 GB; Court 2 GB; Ports and Shipyards 2,7 GB)
Treasury:
23 GB
69 RP
Levies (x4), Irregulars (x2), Elite Infantry (x2), Varsk Riders (x2), Archers (x1), Artillerists (x1), Roundship (x1), Longship (x3), Keelboat (x2)
Rzhlevskyy (5), Feyulfsky (1), Lazzgrad (1)
[top]Introduction
Rzhlev (/ʐXlef/, *r-sh-LEYF*) was once Brecht realm over-run and conquered by the Vos after the collapse of the disastrous Brecht League. The realm alternately trades and raids its neighbours, and continually feuds with the pirates of the Zweilunds who see the bullied merchants of the realm as easy prey.
People from Rzhlev are called Rzhlevenians, whereas things from Rzhlev are called Rzhlevian. Rzhlevian is also the language spoke in Rzhlev, a mixture between low brecht and vos language.
[top]History
See Also: Timeline of Rzhlev
[top]The first colonies
When the first brecht settlers entered the Dwarfhame around 325 and 350 Ma, they found a gigantic dwarven kingdom, Daikhar Zhigun, and a forest near a spine of mountains separating them from the east. While most of the settlers went north to found what will become the southern provinces of Grevesmühl, some of the settlers decided to live under the rule of the dwarven King Edar, which at the time ruled under the biggest mountain at the center of the mountain range known in present days as the Edarlaskyy. When the war of the shadow begun in 513 Ma, most of the central provinces were already won by the humans and the ancient forests greatly diminished.
[top]The Great Earthquake (513 Ma - 20 HC)
Around the same time the battle of Mount Deiismar happened (some texts says the same night, other say years later), an earthquake of devastating proportion happened. An entire part of the eastern mountain range collapsed and most dwarven settlements, including the royal city under mount Edarr, collapsed. Not even the greatest dwarven architecture was able to sustain such dramatic change. King Edar, along with most of the ancient city under the mountain, disappeared forever.
[top]The years of the empire (~40 HC)
When the anuireans came from the south, around 40 HC, they saw the colonies as easy prey. The elves were not enough to stand, the dwarves had suffered many casualties to stand against the anuireans and so they retreated to the northen mountains, sealing Daikhar Zhigun for the time being. The colonies had their moment of glory when they became for a while a strategic placement in a potential second invasion of voosgard. A visit in Grevesmühl by the emperor Roele himself sets off the first official status of the realm. Lazzgrad and Nyurskyy were still in dwarven hands, rzhlevian side of the Dwarfhame became the county of Oevere. The woods and the management of the range, including the province of Nyurehv, Rzhlevskyy, Molevof and Feyulfsky, were assigned to count Ulfer, and the county took the same name. This was an unprecedented move, as count Ulfer was the chief of the noble families of Ulfsted. Altough this was an isolated case at the time, it would eventually start the gradual opening of imperial political positions for native brecht leaders in the Overlook.
[top]The founding of Roschlöwen (980 - 990 HC)
See Also: The Roslöw-Ulfer family, last line of rulers before the vos
How the two kingdoms became one is a tale put together and preserved by the clergy and the bards loyal to the Cleansing Home, and has been somewhat confirmed by actual documentation preserved from destruction and evidence found in statues and paintings now property of the tsarina.
Around 980 HC, during the brecht rebellion, The dwarves lost the last two southern provinces due to an Orog invasion. Now, the people abiting the mountains around the Dwarfhame had inherited certain great halls of the dwarves, using them as subterranean households, so even humans were affected by the invasion. Count Riegon Oevere had lost his king and first lieutenant during the rebellion, so the kingdom had not enough resources to face this danger. The king sent messengers up north to look for help and they eventually reached the Company of the black spear, a mercenary company lead by knight and adventurer Richard Roslöw, a small noble from a minor house in Jardwessen, returning from a military campaign from Drachenward. Roslöw accepted and went south, helping small villages and facing hard battles in the depth of the mountains, eventually drawing back the Orogs first, the dwarves then, as they were trying to reclaim their halls. Roslöw saw how poor the kingdom was managed - the count’s men just claimed taxes, even the harbour in the Dwarfhame was down in mainteinance - and decided to claim the land for himself, as those were troubling times for the anuirean overlords. At the same time, in the south, Harold Ulfer, wizard king, was trying to tame the sources and was deeply fascinated by the ancient secrets of king Edar - he was sure the dwarves had hidden a secret in accessing more dark, powerful realms. In his mad search for power, he sought to become a lich and so harassed his own people to gain enough resources to further his plans. He had already recovered most of the ancient underground city of mount Edarr, and made the mountain his capital. Alisse Ulfer, a descendant from the Ulfer family in Ulfsted, was helping with the indipendence of Berhagen when words came of the mad king, and decided to stop his plans. Her quest is unfortunately lost in the mist of time, but we know she succeeded, and then decided to claim the land for herself, calling the new kingdom Edarlan, as it was know in the legends. Between 985 and 990 HC they both tried to conquer mount Edar, as a gateway to conquer their realms and unify the land.
What happens next is something between legend and history. It seems that Sera herself, tired of the turmoil that tormented the Brechtür, saw no gain in having two of her own people fight each other. So she asked Laerme to ignite passion in the two leaders, and when they saw each other in the middle of the battlefield, during the diplomatic exchange before the battle, they immediately and hopelessly fell in love with each other. More disillusioned scholars say that they just decided that was a better course of action rather than more years of war, but there are a lot of hints that what happened could have been a miracle for real.
Duality was always part of the land - first the coexistence of dwarves and men, then the two counties, then the two heroes, the regents decided to forge the Roslöw-Ulfer dinasty. To enforce the idea that the evil Harold Ulfer was gone for good, people from the realm started to call the land Roslöwen (the land of Roslöw) which eventually bastardized itself into Roschlöwen with passing ages.
To further enforce the idea of two people joining in alliance, as it already was between dwarf and man, a tradition was started: Each line of the family should grant two heirs. Should one fail, the other must answer. Each heir is entitled of half the realm, split between north and south.
[top]The Brecht League and the fall of House Roslöw ( ~1140 HC)
In 1136 HC twin brother and sister Kurth and Katherine Roslöw-Ulfer joined the Brecht League with as many as 6000 men. Kurth commanded the armies as their general while Katherine was well-versed in war magic. They managed to help the first conquest inside Vosgaard, but the Brecht League as a whole suffered a major defeat at the Battle of Lake Ladan in 1140 HC. Casualties had been high and those who survived were thoroughly routed.
The Overlook of today would be very different if the defeated Brecht forces had been able to make an orderly, tactical retreat. But the routed forces fled without thinking -- a horde of howling Vos barbarians in close pursuit tends to have that effect. They took what appeared to be the path of least resistance and fled - straight into the Mistmoor. Caught in the throes of bloodlust, the Vos chased after the fleeing Brecht.
Kurth was one of the few men who managed to keep his wits about him that day. He and the cavalry under his command regrouped and performed a desperate flanking maneuver in an attempt to slow the Vos down enough to allow the tattered remnants of the Brecht League to make good on their escape. He and his cavalrymen perished in the short battle that ensued but Kurth's bravery prevented the Vos from annihilating what was left of the Brecht armies. The Vos resumed their pursuit of the the fleeing Brecht forces but then something happened.
The Mistmoor happened.
Those who experienced the Mistmoor that day have long rotted in their respective graves but the legends persist. Cautionary tales. Horror stories that make children cry and give grown men nightmares. Some stories say the undead arose to drive mortals from the Mistmoor. Others claim creatures of mist and shadow began to appear. Still others insist demons were involved. Whatever it was that the assailed Brecht and Vos alike induced such terror that even when the routed Brecht armies exited the Mistmoor, they didn't stop running until reaching the safety of Berhagen or Grevesmühl.
The Vos who had followed the Brecht were forced to give up pursuit due to the army of Berhagen in the south and an alliance between men and dwarves in the north, leaving them with only two options: they could return to Vosgaard via the Mistmoor or remain in the Brecht Overlook. Even the bravest of Vos warriors adamantly refused to set foot in the Mistmoor ever again. So they stayed. And, being Vos, the took the land for their own.
The Brecht who resided in the area were quick to capitulate. After all, they were leaderless. Kurth had died a hero's death in the Mistmoor, buying time for his countrymen to escape -- his sister among them. The many tales told about the flight from Lake Ladan all agree that Katherine had fled into the Mistmoor along with all of the other survivors of the battle, but no tale exists that even hints at the possibility that she ever came out. Her fate remains unknown, even today.
Neither Berhagen nor Grevesmühl were happy that the Vos gave no indication that they planned to return to Vosgaard but too much blood had already been spilled. Ultimately, an uneasy treaty was signed by the Brecht states and the Vos: Roschlöwen in exchange for peace.
The Overlook of today would be very different if the defeated Brecht forces had been able to make an orderly, tactical retreat. But the routed forces fled without thinking -- a horde of howling Vos barbarians in close pursuit tends to have that effect. They took what appeared to be the path of least resistance and fled - straight into the Mistmoor. Caught in the throes of bloodlust, the Vos chased after the fleeing Brecht.
Kurth was one of the few men who managed to keep his wits about him that day. He and the cavalry under his command regrouped and performed a desperate flanking maneuver in an attempt to slow the Vos down enough to allow the tattered remnants of the Brecht League to make good on their escape. He and his cavalrymen perished in the short battle that ensued but Kurth's bravery prevented the Vos from annihilating what was left of the Brecht armies. The Vos resumed their pursuit of the the fleeing Brecht forces but then something happened.
The Mistmoor happened.
Those who experienced the Mistmoor that day have long rotted in their respective graves but the legends persist. Cautionary tales. Horror stories that make children cry and give grown men nightmares. Some stories say the undead arose to drive mortals from the Mistmoor. Others claim creatures of mist and shadow began to appear. Still others insist demons were involved. Whatever it was that the assailed Brecht and Vos alike induced such terror that even when the routed Brecht armies exited the Mistmoor, they didn't stop running until reaching the safety of Berhagen or Grevesmühl.
The Vos who had followed the Brecht were forced to give up pursuit due to the army of Berhagen in the south and an alliance between men and dwarves in the north, leaving them with only two options: they could return to Vosgaard via the Mistmoor or remain in the Brecht Overlook. Even the bravest of Vos warriors adamantly refused to set foot in the Mistmoor ever again. So they stayed. And, being Vos, the took the land for their own.
The Brecht who resided in the area were quick to capitulate. After all, they were leaderless. Kurth had died a hero's death in the Mistmoor, buying time for his countrymen to escape -- his sister among them. The many tales told about the flight from Lake Ladan all agree that Katherine had fled into the Mistmoor along with all of the other survivors of the battle, but no tale exists that even hints at the possibility that she ever came out. Her fate remains unknown, even today.
Neither Berhagen nor Grevesmühl were happy that the Vos gave no indication that they planned to return to Vosgaard but too much blood had already been spilled. Ultimately, an uneasy treaty was signed by the Brecht states and the Vos: Roschlöwen in exchange for peace.
[top]The founding of the modern Rzhlev (~150 MR - Present)
The conquest was quick and merciless. All the upper class was killed, any symbol of power destroyed, including the church of Sera. Even the harbours were burned down, to prevent escape. The population was enslaved. The first tzar of Rzhlev, Viktor the Tyrant, immediately tried to break the treaty and push both south and north with his aries, but the strength of Berhagen, now recovered from the defeat, and the coalition between Grevesmühl and Daikhar Zhigun prevented the tzar in further conquering.
Each province was assigned to a captain or a general of the vos horde, and vos tongue became the official tongue. With time, vos and brecht culture assimilated, and the new upper class, altough retaining their culture based upon raids and pillage, started to see the conquered people as cattle to heard instead of simple preys. Around 150 MR Roschlöwen had finally become the vos realm of Rzhlev.
The first line of vos rulers was know as the Zvetjeskegian line, the line of the rulers, started by Victor, and uphold the realm until 431 MR, when Gregor Molev, Zhupan of the Molevof province, challenged tsar Mikail Pyotrovisk to a blood duel and usurped the throne. This change was supported by the other zhupans, who saw in the Zvetjeskegian rulers a line too weak and too soft on the brecht lower class. Gregor pursed a more conservative politics, aimed at restoring the privilege by bloodline of the vos element in the realm. This move staged a small internal civil war, which was solved by rewarding the loyal families, especially the Lazz family with full autonomy as vassals, and the Nyur family two provinces, once the previous Zhupan was murdered.
When Gregor’s son Rodel became of age, Gregor challenged all the other zhupan for the throne. Nobody answered the challenge, so Rodel become the heir and the new Tsar in 471 MR, when Gregor was killed during a treacherous raid with the pirates of the Zweilund along the coast of Müden. Rodel had three sons and two daughters. Fate - or something darker - took a hand. All three brothers died in battle with the Brechs, and, after the death of rodel in 521 MR due to an heart attack, Marisha’s older sister and her husband disappeared without leaving trace. Marisha became the tsarina of Rzhlev the same year, and continued the ruthless agenda of his grandfather, but, unlike her predecessors, she surrounded herself by lieutenants and actively helps the church of Belinik Tsarevic into furthing is ideology.
Over the last years however the tsarina’s absolute power has begun to crack. The presence of Grovnikk Glössevik and his guild has closed any chance of trade with the dwarves of Daikhar Zhigun,but, more importantly, the betrayal of Marisha's best assassin, Birgitta Jarlsbane, has lead to a rebellion in her home province of Molevof, which has resulted in losing power and letting the Church of Ayairda gaining foothold in the province. Similar rebellions were spawned in all the northen range, but were targeted mostly at Belinik Tsarevich’s expense, resulting in most of the northen range starting to believe in a different society, and the hope of a new era.
Each province was assigned to a captain or a general of the vos horde, and vos tongue became the official tongue. With time, vos and brecht culture assimilated, and the new upper class, altough retaining their culture based upon raids and pillage, started to see the conquered people as cattle to heard instead of simple preys. Around 150 MR Roschlöwen had finally become the vos realm of Rzhlev.
The first line of vos rulers was know as the Zvetjeskegian line, the line of the rulers, started by Victor, and uphold the realm until 431 MR, when Gregor Molev, Zhupan of the Molevof province, challenged tsar Mikail Pyotrovisk to a blood duel and usurped the throne. This change was supported by the other zhupans, who saw in the Zvetjeskegian rulers a line too weak and too soft on the brecht lower class. Gregor pursed a more conservative politics, aimed at restoring the privilege by bloodline of the vos element in the realm. This move staged a small internal civil war, which was solved by rewarding the loyal families, especially the Lazz family with full autonomy as vassals, and the Nyur family two provinces, once the previous Zhupan was murdered.
When Gregor’s son Rodel became of age, Gregor challenged all the other zhupan for the throne. Nobody answered the challenge, so Rodel become the heir and the new Tsar in 471 MR, when Gregor was killed during a treacherous raid with the pirates of the Zweilund along the coast of Müden. Rodel had three sons and two daughters. Fate - or something darker - took a hand. All three brothers died in battle with the Brechs, and, after the death of rodel in 521 MR due to an heart attack, Marisha’s older sister and her husband disappeared without leaving trace. Marisha became the tsarina of Rzhlev the same year, and continued the ruthless agenda of his grandfather, but, unlike her predecessors, she surrounded herself by lieutenants and actively helps the church of Belinik Tsarevic into furthing is ideology.
Over the last years however the tsarina’s absolute power has begun to crack. The presence of Grovnikk Glössevik and his guild has closed any chance of trade with the dwarves of Daikhar Zhigun,but, more importantly, the betrayal of Marisha's best assassin, Birgitta Jarlsbane, has lead to a rebellion in her home province of Molevof, which has resulted in losing power and letting the Church of Ayairda gaining foothold in the province. Similar rebellions were spawned in all the northen range, but were targeted mostly at Belinik Tsarevich’s expense, resulting in most of the northen range starting to believe in a different society, and the hope of a new era.
[top]Life and Society
Rzhlevian society is a mixbag between Vos and Brecht customs. On the other hand, the realm is based upon racism, as the vos, the conquerors, have more rights and power than the brecht, the conquered. This brings a costant tension that makes life in Rzhlev, 400 years after the conquest, still as life would be on a kingdom under siege.
The population is divided into two main social classes, determined by origin. People of Vos origin are the high class: either nobles, warriors or free citizens; those of Brecht origin are the lower class, comprising the Słuz or Swuz (/swuʑ/, sw-OO-sz, serf), consisting mostly in merchants and artisans in towns but also the occasional farmers or herder, and the Wartos (/Vartoʂ/, *VAY-rto-sh*), the slaves, people with no rights but the one their master will grant them. The law is applied only inside classes, people from the lower class have no right against the upper class. Law is applied from a higher status to those below, so the quarrel between a serf and a free citizen is disputed by a warrior or a noble, a case between two warriors by a noble. Nobles are judged by the Zhupan , the ruler of the province. Slaves may ask their own master. Only the higher class may carry weapons, although this rule is much less respected in country areas. Dwarves are now considered as free citizens, thanks to the words of Grovnikk Glössevik to the Tsarina, elves however are killed on sight.
Free movement inside the realms is heavily discouraged: with no documentation existing, if you don’t look vos you may be caught and be sold as a slave if there is no family or a member of the higher class to support your claim. Merchants may perform travel with special badges, however, should a merchant of the lower class not return in a year, his house will be sold and his family turned into slaves if nobody is able to pick up the business. This law was introduced by Gregor Molev, the tsarina’s grandfather, to prevent people escaping Rzhlev using trade as an excuse. So far, it has been applied once or twice and mostly as a punishment for anybody found adhering to the church of Ayiairda.
As the temple of Belinik Tsarevic took his place into the realm, a cruel social ladder was introduced: The right of might. One may prove to deserve a better status trough violence. A slave killing at least five of is own peers for survival may be rewarded as a slave guard or even a pirate. Cannon fodder brechts surviving a battle may be rewarded with freedom without having to marry a free citizen. Partecipating in a raid or killing a warrior is the only way for a free citizen to raise to the warrior class, provided the Zhupan grants it. These rules provided a painful balance into Rzhlev society, as one is encouraged in cruelty, but also to be responsible for his cruelty - an overly strict master can be killed by his slaves, who will become pirates or bandits, swelling the ranks of the horde and pleasing the Lord of War.
Even if the nobility remained mostly reserved to vos lineages, the lower class brecht mixed with the vos. a marriage between a serf and a vos merchant is not uncommon, especially because this will grant an improvement in social status for their children. The culture has become a mix between the two. When it comes to more organized work, Tsar Pyotr (grandfather of the current tsarina) granted that a company may own and manage slaves just like a regular vos can do, including justice. It is not uncommon for a warrior to have his own mansion, and maybe a trade business too, and still join raids or even piracy against his own clients, as the vos tradition requires. Warriors from noble houses often have their contingency of 3 to 5 slaves, with the sole purpose of having a priest forging a blood bond that will protect the warrior in battle.
When Grovnikk Glössevik, a renegade dwarf from Daikhar Zhigun, entered the realm, he managed to build a guild from scratch and to show the tsarina the benefits of organized trade besides raids. The tsarina introduced the dwarf to the concept of slavery. Since then, slavery has become much more an issue in the realm, as the guild received the right to own slaves, so they pay the Zhupans tributes to ensure that their supply of wartos is always fresh.
[top]The Land
The realm is made of four principal areas, overlapping between provinces.
- The Northen range is a chain of mountains starting from the dwarfhame down to the fallen range in southern Nyurehv. It is a natural barrier against the northen cold winds and stabilize the southern plains enough for farming and cattle.
- The Eastern Range is now a small chain of mountains. The mountains of the Berhangen Range become the Rzhlev range in the southeast Feyulfsky until the abruptly end into the MistMoor. The range used to be connected to the Northen Range until Deiismar, when an earthquake leveled what is now known as the eastern border of Molevof into rocky hills.
- The Rzhlev Range is a chain of mountains starting from the southern Dwarfhame and ending in the great mount Edarr. The range seldom reaches the sea, creating small fjords and coves, and more usually slides down to hillside, which are more influenced by the winds of the bay.
- The Central plains were once part of the southern forest and now represent the central region of the realm. There are a lot of small rivers. They include the great plain where the town of Steppegrad is located.
- The Southern woods, the remains of a much greater forest, with a great amount of fruit bearing trees alongside pines and other conifer woods, where a small elven community still survives.
[top]Duarlavka
Duarlavka overlooks the Dwarfhame with steep cliffs and few quiet landing spots. There are many ancient dwarven settlements here, some of these still used by the humans, and many ore mines (mostly iron) opened by the dwarves before the humans and now run by the Grovnikken Stohlevvskyy. Most human villages dwells on the western side, after the hills, because they know that anybody who is not vos may be kidnapped and turned into a slave working in the mines. The Sunken tower was a symbol of alliance between the Brecht and the dwarves blessed by Neira, but it felt underground with the great earthquake, and is now used by the tsarina as her operative tower/laboratory for her arcane experiments.
Keldar Karlovisk, a former pirate, is the Zhupan of this province, the mayor of Duarlavka, and he acts as a middle man between the guild and the tsarina.
Keldar Karlovisk, a former pirate, is the Zhupan of this province, the mayor of Duarlavka, and he acts as a middle man between the guild and the tsarina.
[top]Evuarr
In Evuarr the mountains of the western range abruptly ends in a prosperous plains where small settlements of farmers mostly live in self regulation as communities. The biggest settlement is the city of Abholstelle, where shipments of salt from Rzhlev go to the Bay and, more often, the raiders from the inland embark either to fight piracy or to raid their own neighbours. Dead Man’s Gorge, an hidden docking bay inside the high cliffs of the western bayside, is where most of the smuggling, escaping slaves included, occours.
Victor Evuarr, a raider more versed in the aviking ways of the rjurik, is the ruthless Zhupan of this province.
Victor Evuarr, a raider more versed in the aviking ways of the rjurik, is the ruthless Zhupan of this province.
[top]Lazzgrad
Lazzgrad marks the northen Range end, becoming huge cliffs and chasms over the Dwarfhame. the city of Lazzgrad stands in the plains as a vassal city-state ruling over the farms and the scarce fisherman villages over the coast. In the northen border there is a passage between the Northen Range, the Marble Pass, a small land corridor between the northen range opened by two enormous statues of two Dwarven doomguards.
Anatoli Lazz rules the city and the province, and he’s more akin to opening business with the dwarves than to hunt slaves.
Anatoli Lazz rules the city and the province, and he’s more akin to opening business with the dwarves than to hunt slaves.
[top]Nyurskyy
Guarding the northen border, Nyurskyy is famous for the olive oil farmed in the hills at northen range’s feet, and for breeding varsks with black fur. The mountains are rich in ore, but a strong dwarven community still lives here, and has made clear to Zhupan that trying to seize the mines will trigger a war with Daikhar Zhigun. The Zhupan keeps a regular unit here, as he often has to protect the province from Kobar invasions.
Leonid Nyur of the Nyur Family is the zhupan of the province, lives according to the nona vos principles and has become famous for his friction with his sisters and for what is called in the courts as The red incident.
Leonid Nyur of the Nyur Family is the zhupan of the province, lives according to the nona vos principles and has become famous for his friction with his sisters and for what is called in the courts as The red incident.
[top]Nyurehv
Nyurehv takes all the eastern side of the central plains, starting from mount Edar, up to the Mistmoor range. The region is rich in hills and rivers, but farmers here prefer grain and rice instead of olives. Similar to Nyurskyy, Nyurevh takes most of the population in the plains, preferring to leave the misty mountains in the west unhabited, as they are too close to the Mistmoor. The town of Gorthrekj is the biggest settlement here, between the northen border and the Broken mountain, a passage southeast in the Eastern Range created after the great earthquake.
Maria Nyur, minor sister of Lenoid Nyur if only in age, rules this region with the help of a permanent infantry unit. She aims to become first lieutenant of the tsarina and often clashes with his brother, sometimes even in battles.
Maria Nyur, minor sister of Lenoid Nyur if only in age, rules this region with the help of a permanent infantry unit. She aims to become first lieutenant of the tsarina and often clashes with his brother, sometimes even in battles.
[top]Edarlaskyy
Edarlaskyy includes the ancient Mount Edar and the surrounding smaller mountains. Mount Edar, also called The Gray City, was the capital of an ancient dwarven kingdom build inside the mount. Most of the capital was buried in the stone when the giant earthquake. The restored halls are used now as an underground city, where the large halls are for the high class while the swuz and the wartos sleep in the now spent and abandoned mines. The main halls are used for the Great Bazaar, a permanent market where everything can be found.
Dimas Lowstar, the tsarina’s War Chief, rules the Gray City and everything happening under the mountain.
Dimas Lowstar, the tsarina’s War Chief, rules the Gray City and everything happening under the mountain.
[top]Rzhlevskyy
Rzhlevskyy includes the western part of the southern woods and the Rzhlev Range. The woods are inhabited by orchads and small woodmen collectives. At the southern feet of the Range there is the Guresh River which starts with a lake with the same name and goes down to the sea, passing Yuria village, but the most important settlement is of course The Capital city of Rzhlev, equally distant from the sea and the river. The great battle pits of Belinik here are the most important of the realm and often used for arena tournaments. The docks of the city, far from the city itself, have begun to be used as warehouses to store goods only after the Grovnikken Sthlevvskyy took control.
[top]Steppegrad
Steppegrad was once a second gulf, but after the earthquake of Deiismaar the water slowly retreated and the great valley in the range, the Steppe, was formed. Steppegrad is an ancient brecht settlement now run only by the vos, as the brecht escaped into the mountains. Many relics and shells from the sea can be still found in the steppe and someone says even a forgotten underwater palace is hidden in the hills near the town of Plarzskyy
Galina Brokeslav, cousin to Warmaster Nikolai Brokeslav of the Belinik Tsarevich, rules as Zhupan in this province.
Galina Brokeslav, cousin to Warmaster Nikolai Brokeslav of the Belinik Tsarevich, rules as Zhupan in this province.
[top]Molevof
Molevof is almost fully covered in forest plains, with the exception of its center where hills raise and support most of the farmers and the recent uprising that lead to the destruction of several holdings of the Grovnikken Stohlevvskyy, which led to the conversion of many Słuz.
The Zhupan, or Baron as he prefers to be called, is Vladimir Molev, an arrogant man still envious about losing the control of the oak and pine wood traffic to the guild.
The Zhupan, or Baron as he prefers to be called, is Vladimir Molev, an arrogant man still envious about losing the control of the oak and pine wood traffic to the guild.
[top]Feyulfsky
Feyulfsky is filled with coniferous forests and the climate is generally colder until the Berhagen river, where it gets temperate. The mountains of the Berhagen Range become the Rzhlev Range in the southeast until the abruptly end into the Mistmoor. The southwest mountain is called the Verzberg, the mountain of despair, and his home to Zhupan Feyulf himself and his warriors.
The true ruler of the province is the mayor of the woodsman town of Feylgrad, Fiala Vyerina. Zhupan Feyulf lives as a brigand and a raider in the mountains with his “pack”, raiding Feylgrad and Vortzgrad when he needs goods.
The true ruler of the province is the mayor of the woodsman town of Feylgrad, Fiala Vyerina. Zhupan Feyulf lives as a brigand and a raider in the mountains with his “pack”, raiding Feylgrad and Vortzgrad when he needs goods.
[top]Political
- Allies: Cut off from other Vos realms, Rzhlev has few allies. Some say the Black Ice Traders (the pirates of Black Ice Bay), have an alliance with the Vos realm, and they may be right. Certainly, Colin Shaefpaete of the Zweilunds occasionally trades with Rzhlev, but he maintains no official alliance with them.
- Enemies: Berhagen and Rzhlev clash often. Forays from the Vos realm meet resistance in the mountains between the two kingdoms, and even the Mountain Brigands of Berhagen fight the invaders. Grevesmühl also exhibits more than little hostility toward Rzhlev - though open warfare between the two realms has not existed for nearly a decade.
- Special considerations: Rzhlev's tsarina is well into middle age, and she wants to make a name for herself as both a warlord and a wizard. She may begin ordering her Belevic to attack whatever realm seems most handy, even if it means a Vos expedition into the Mistmoor. Meanwhile, if Marisha begins running ley lines into any of her neighbor's realms, it could mean mass destruction for these unfortunate realms.
[top]Important Figures
- Marisha Rodelovisk (FV;F4/W11; Vo, great, 38; LE), Tsarina of Rzhlev and head of House Rodelovisk;
- Nikoli Brokeslav (MV; Pr5, Belinik; Ba, major, 23;NE) high priest of Belinik Tsarevic;
- Grovnikk Glössevik (MD: T8;An, major, 24; LE), guild leader of Grovnikken Stohlevvskyy;
- Dimas Lowstar (MV;F9;NE), war chief of Rzhlev forces and lord regent of Edarlaskyy;
- Birgitta Jarlsbane (FRj; F?; ???; ??), former warrior assassin for the tsarina.
- Keldar Karlovisk, zhupan of Duarlavka
- Viktor Evuarr of House Evuarr, zhupan of Evuarr
- Anatoli Lazz of House Lazz, zhupan of Lazzgrad
- Leonid Nyur of House Nyur, zhupan of Nyurskyy
- Maria Nyur also of House Nyur, zhupan of Nyurehv
- Galina Brokeslav of House Brokeslav, zhupan of Steppegrad
- Vladimir Molev of House Molev, zhupan of Molevof
- Feyulf known as the red wolf, Zhupan of Feyulfsky
[top]Plots and Rumors
- The tsarina, well in her middle age, may be preparing something big to leave herself a legacy, such a mass invasion of the neighbours or even something more sinister involving the Mistmoor.
- Did the wizard king really died? Some say Ulfer actually managed to become a lich but was buried under the forgotten halls by Alisse and the ghost of king Edar.
- What really happened to Katherine Roslöw-Ulfer? did she found shelter in the mistmoors? or did she maybe escaped north, and now, somewhere, a true heir to the throne is waiting for his or her chance to claim a birthright? Some say Brigitta may even be such heir.
- Sights of ghouls and undead in molevof are getting more frequent every day. Is something happening behind the mists?
- Some say that the tsarina is secretly working on a spell, so powerful that would expose all the hidden temple holdings of the cleansing home. The stone lighthouse may be the first place to look for such terrible arcane weapon.
- Other say the same thing, only it's Belinik Tsarevic that is planning to launch a full on persecution. The Warmaster does not care about the body count, but the guild may - they need slaves, not bodies.
- The Zweilund pirates are acting weird lately. They say an arcane war between their lord and the Tsarina may begin soon.
[top]Domain Holding Table
Province | Law | Temple | Guild | Source |
---|---|---|---|---|
Duarlavka (3/4) | Ts (3) | BT (2) | GS (3) | Ts (4) |
Edarlaskyy (4/3) | Ts (3) | BT (2) | GS (1) | Ts (1) |
Ay (1)** | ||||
Evuarr (4/3) | Ts (1) | Ay (2)** | GS (1) | - |
Feyulfsky (3/4) | Ts (3) | BT (3) | GS (2) | Ts (3) |
Lazzgrad (2/5) | - | - | - | - |
Molevof (4/3) | Ts (3) | BT (2) | GS (0) | Ts (1) |
Ay (2)** | ||||
Nyurehv (3/4) | Ts (1) | Ay (1)** | - | - |
Nyurskyy (3/4) | Ts (1) | Ay (2)** | - | - |
Rzhlevskyy (5/2) | Ts (5) | BT (4) | GS (5) | Ts (2) |
Steppegrad (3/4) | Ts (3) | BT (3) | GS (3) | Ts (3) |
Abbreviations: Ts = Tsarina of Rzhlev; BT = Belinik Tsarevic (Nikoli Brokeslav); GS = Grovnikken Stohlevvskyy (Grovnikk Glössevik); Ay = Ayairdan Vierklevven (Brigitta Jarlsbane); **= Secret holding. |
- Law: Tsarina Marisha Rodelovisk rules all of Rzhlev like a kingdom under siege. Won from the Brecht people after the Battle of Lake Ladan nearly four hundred years ago, the only Vos kingdom bordering the Great Bay holds it own in enemy territory.
- Temples: The Tsarina of Rzhlev "encourages" her people to follow the teachings of Belinik through her vassal Nikoli Brokeslav. She punishes those she finds worshiping at the scattered and secret churches of Ayairda. No known high priest exists in Ayairda's Cleansing Home, but its clerics wander the land preaching the value of beauty and love over war and death.
- Guilds: No single guild ever controlled Rzhlev's internal trade before the renegade dwarf Grovnikk Glössevik came south out of Daikhar Zhigun with a band of exiled dwarves. Working with the tsarina and the remnants of the old guilds, they introduced advanced mining and metallurgical techniques to the Vos kingdom; the Vos kingdom introduced them to the idea of slave labor.
- Sources: Marisha became a warrior to honor her father's wishes, she learned the ways of a wizard to increase her power. Despite her advanced level of experience with conventional magic, she has only rudimentary knowledge of realm magic and began creating source holdings recently.
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