Magnificent And Brutal

Oh, wandering traveler, the vast continent of Aether Eotha is home of the most varied cultures and climates. The mystery of the archipelago north in the Union of Momind is no less than that of the Desert of Ghosts. Few have seen them and no one knows who has returned alive.

In Adria you will find the most varied shops of all Eotha. It's magnificent marble bridge that connects ShadeFell, it's main city, with the eastern limb of the Union of Momind, and with the north of Carisland. Both are as different from each other as the jungles of Bhadian Republic and the cold forests of Adrak. The city of ShadeFell has the peculiarity of being the only zone, in the whole continent, where confrontation is downplayed and swiftly stepped over. Many believe that this is due to the importance of trade in this small country. You will see guards everywhere, especially at the endless rows of caravans and markets, who swiftly move to stamp out any overflowing tensions.

If Adria is your starting point and you decided to attend the famed Bhadian orgies of Rurdo, you will have to cross the Broken Mountains in Momind territory, preparing for possible confrontation with highwaymen, and for the most beautiful landscapes you have ever seen; or travel more dangerous and secretive routes across the southern border with Carialand. Above all, don't attend with valuables, let alone unarmed with weapon and a range of antidotes, an oversight could cost you your life.

If you have survived and have money, maybe you want to buy one of the magnificent horses bred by the Momind or maybe a slave. Whatever it is you will find easily on your way back; remember the more exotic the horse or race of slave, the more expensive they will be.

Back in Adria you can head south, where you will find the hot and dry lands of Carialand, home to the awe inspiring blacksmiths of Eortha. In Pedro, the capital, you will find the finest smithed pieces, and treasures of rare metal adorned with precious gems. From Pedro, the parched Tradeways wind east and north to ShadeFell, south to the bustling port of Si Neri Poerta, and west to Poerta De Moel on the shores of Chasm Lake.

If your intention is to infiltrate Bara Bara, something very dangerous even for a survivor of Bhadianas parties, you can do it through one of the rivers that cross the Carian border. Bara Bara is the most closed society in all of Eotha, very few are able to enter, and no Bara Bara is known to have left.

On the eastern border of Bara Bara, and at the far southern end of the Far Eastern Tradeway lies Ternia, a society very different from that of the Momind but at the same time very similar. It has geo-thermal heated buildings, many well kept roads, and beautifuly manicured parks. It is a country where women rule, men are a simple uneducated workforce, an entertainment. Women wear the finest transparent white lacework dresses, a stunning counterpoint to their olive skins.

It is also the most militarized nation of the continent, it's soliders easily noted by the white isignia on their sheepskin coat uniforms. Its climate is mostly temperate, warmer in the tropical north, and colder in the far south. The women of Tarnia are known for their kindness to the guests, only if they are women; though visiting need not worry, you will not be thrown out or taken as a slave - though you will not be welcomed with open arms.

Crossing the border northwards, you'll find yourself in the Necalli Empire, the home of one of the strangest, calm and cultured societies on the continent. At peace since the end of the terrible 1,000-year confrontation with the Momindi, and despite the vast size of the Empire, the Necalli live isolated, unasuming and quiet lives. Their often incestuous family groups are tightly bound, rarely admitting outsiders even to their famed protracted orgies.

So quiet and apparently tranquil are the Necalli, dressed all in near-white, they might be mistaken for a silent religious order. So rare, soft, and to the point is Necalli speech, people invariably pause in order to listen. Whatever is being said, you know it will be important enough for the Necalli to have broken their silence. This has lead to the world's greatest philosophers and thinkers coming from the Empire.

If you follow the main tradeways eastwards through the great pine forests of the eastern Empire, you will arrive without incident at the borders of Adrak, a nation buffeted by the harsh easterlies - an ever present arctic wind - which leads to some of the lowest temperatures you will encounter. The Adraki are a proud people, where deeds maketh the man or woman, not mere words. They live in villages on the banks of rivers or seas. In every corner of Adrak you will find yourself near a water source, that is why the basis of the Adraki diet comes from fishing. The chill beauty of the landscape and hardiness of it's inhabitants have inspired many old legends of triumph over adversity.

Visitors to Adrak should note that their ongoing war with the Union of Momind means that few Momindi will be seen in Adrak, and most certainly won't be welcomed or wanted. Expect false allegations, and swift brutal justice.

Finally let me tell you a little bit about Dryndae. There is no way to enter due to undersea reefs that make travel by ship impossible. To leave or enter the island they use portals of their own technology. Drynd is an island in isolation, yet it's people are seen in every country across Eotha guarding and controlling their travel portals, banks, and postal systems, which opperate by means of their "anomolous magma" technologies. Strange devices with screens, buttons, and levers, swathed in an eerie oragnce glow, that they crowd around and bicker over. It is believed that the island retains even greater technologies and that those that have been revealed are nothing more than the tip of the geo-technomagical iceberg.

Open your eyes wide, fearless traveler, for great are the mysteries of the lands of Eotha and great are their dangers too.