The Northern Continent

Ilmiora

The Lords of Law hold sway across the rolling, grassy

plains and city-states of Ilmiora. It is ruled by a Council of
Senators sent from the many city-states that make up the
country. The title of senator is a hereditary one, held by the
oldest families of each city.
Much of the land remains wild and untamed, with wide
distances between the thriving city-states. The people of
Ilmiora are energetic and open minded. Such arts as dancing
and singing are taught to all the members of the nobility.
Even the peasant folk take delight in creativity, be it as simple
as a song while they work.

Nadsokor

The broken towers and sagging walls of Nadsokor blight

northwest Vilmir, but even before ones eyes are assailed by its
slovenly appearance, the pestilential stink which encloses the
city of beggars has one retching and gagging.
Nadsokor is infamous throughout the Young Kingdoms and
from its decaying buildings, disease ridden and malformed
beggars creep out to beg and steal across the world.

The Sighing
Desert

The sandy wastes of the Sighing Desert are so named

because of the constant, mournful, moaning sounds of the
wind over the dunes. Occasional jagged spurs of rock rear
from the blazing sands. Sometimes travelers report finding
precious metals and gemstones uncovered by sandstorms,
remnants of some old forgotten kingdom.
However, The Sighing Desert is far from lifeless. Many
creatures have adapted themselves to the waterless waste.
Nomadic Tribes, those who call themselves members of The
Nomad Nations thrive in the desert. These men and women
have no gods, but instead seek enlightenment through
meditation and self awareness.

Org and the

Forest of Troos

Squatting like some cancerous growth among the

grasslands of Ilmiora is the kingdom of Org. Few Orgians
cross the borders of their land, nor are they welcomed beyond.
Unsavory legends are whispered of Org and its people, stories
of necromancy and decaying malevolence.
The disturbing Forest of Troos forms Orgs borders. It is a
dark, sinister place. Shadows cloak the trees and strange
plants and all manner of mutated, pathetic creature, predators
and prey alike, haunt its grim glades. Few venture here. The
forest does not welcome visitors almost as though it possesses a
sentience and a wit to reject them.

Vilmir

Once, Vilmirs land was a forest paradise. Now it stands as

grasslands, ruined by the slash and burn farming of several
generations of land workers, punctuated by the huge,
uninspiring, pyramid-walled cities.
The wealthy and high placed souls of Vilmir claim almost
everything for themselves, parasitically sucking life from
those who toil hardest and deserve it most. But there is an
exception to this stagnation. The city of Old Hrolmar is a
beacon of enlightenment amidst the grey and the drab.
Vilmir takes the doctrine of Law to a logical extreme. The
entire realm is strangled and decayed by its allegiance, while
at the same time profiting from the advances Law offers that
are seen nowhere else in the Young Kingdoms.

The Weeping
Waste

East of Vilmir stretches the vast, mist shrouded plateau

known as the Weeping Wast. After climbing its steep, rocky
slopes a softly-turfed plateau, green and damp, a place of
eternal rains. Animals abound in the Wastes, including
mammoths, bears, and the predatory burrowing mole-worms.
The barbarians of the Weeping Waste adorn their bodies with
ritual scars instead of jewelry. Their curious tongue, Mong,
has no written form. The are astounding horsemen and also
display great skill in tracking and in bow craft.
The tribes of the Waste worship a variety of nature spirits,
including the elements, and revere their ancestors. The more
superstitious among them claim that only the Waste is the
real world, and that beyond the clouds of mist and rain lies
hell, the realm of Chaos.

The Western Lands

Marshes of Mist

These unnatural marshes form the boundary between

Shazar and the Silent Land. These stinking, mist-shrouded
bogs teem with life, all of it unpleasant. Swamp bears, marsh
Serpents and moaning, half dead spirits number amongst the
foul beings resident here.
Legend claims that the gleaming fens, ripe with decay and
stinking slime, were cast up by the inhabitants of the Silent
Land ten thousand years ago, as a barrier against
encroaching Melnibonan legions.

Myyrrhn

The winged folk of Myyrrhn dwell in rocky aeries high in

the northern mountains. The oldest civilization native to the
Young Kingdoms, the Myyrrhn have never had an empire,
nor has it ever been an aggressive nation. It is rare for the
Myyrrhn to have much commerce with the outside world.
The Myyrrhn use complex aerial ceremonies to worship Lady
Lassa of the Air.

Shazar
Dharijor

Dharijor, with her warlike knights and fierce corsairs, is the

most powerful nation of the Western Continent. The scattered
provinces of Dharijor are bound by the ferocious rule of their
King, who in turn pays allegiance to the Theocrat of Pan
Tang and the Church of Chaos. Dark priests roam the land
with impunity.
Dharijorians are a blood thirsty people, and many consider
violence their national past time. The warrior caste of Sharijor
is honored below the priesthood and nobility. Merchants are
not loved in Dharijor, and those who favor softer activities to
battle and war, such as art and poetry, are despised.
Scars, missing limbs, and other maimings are considered
attractive, evidence of moral fiber and strength of character.

Jharkor

Jharkor is a powerful western nation, and her sizeable navy

and merchant fleets are commonly seen upon the seas of the
Young Kingdoms. Its coastline consists largely of low cliffs,
with a line of gentle hills inland. Beyond these hills the
landscape is drier and harsher.
The capital, Dhakos, is a large coastal city with a sizable
harbor. Dhakos is called the City of Spires, after the plethora
of spires that crown the buildings in the old city. The palace
and the Cathedral of Law are found in the old city , before a
large open plaza. Wrongdoers are crucified here, in the city
square.
Jharkorians are renown for their love of secrets and they make
superb assassins, scribes, scholars and priests. The people of
Jharkor are unused to open displays of magic, and view
sorcery as unnatural and evil. The have a firm belied in the
rule of the White Lords of Law.

The lush plains of Shazar stretch across the south of this

continent. Sparse grasses wave in the constant sea breezes
along Shazars coast of cliffs and shingled beaches. It is a
peaceful land that takes care to trouble no one.
Shazarian horses are acclaimed as the best steeds in the
Young Kingdoms, the Shazarians are known as wild and
clever riders. The knights of Dioperda and Aflitain are the
best trained cavalry in the land and many a Shazarian lad
or lass dreams of a career among their number. Horses are the
pride and joy of Shazar and Shazarians, and are held in high
regard.

Tarkesh

Tarkesh is a land of contradictions. The far north of the

country is mountainous and thickly forested, as is the west;
fjords and a multitude of islets fringe the coast. Life is hard
with little good land for farming. Northern Tarkeshites live
by hunting, fishing, and raiding.
The south and east of Tarkesh are more gentle, consisting of
farms and grassy plains that become hot and dry in the
summer.
Southerners subsist more upon trade, on rich
harvests and on large herds. Tarkeshites wear colorful silks,
bright wools, velvets, and brocades in the south; in the north,
furs and thick woolen garments. The northern people view
their southern neighbors as effete weaklings and decadent
city dwellers, while people in the south see northerners as
ignorant savages.

The Silent Land

All the Young Kingdoms shun this place, and the existence
of its inhabitants is a fear-haunted mystery. A handful of
adventurers have entered the Silent Lands. None have ever
returned from its black mountains. The pale, scuttling
residents dwell unseen and unknown in lightless warrens
beneath these same mountains.

The Southern Continent

Agrimiliar

Once a member of the Lormyrian Republic, Agrimiliar

holds fast to the notions of honor and chivalry. While the
nation is largely an agrarian society, the remains of the
Bright Empire are evident throughout the land.
The cattle barons of southern Argimiliar are among rhe most
powerful and tradition bound of the nations nobility,
although the richer, more decadent merchant-nobles of the
coast enjoy the wealth from the fleets of the Cadsandrian sealords.
The worship of Law is dominant in Agrimiliar in particular
Lord Eglis, the Gentle.
Recently the coastal cities have
dabbled in Chaos worship.

Dorel

Inhabited by venomous black serpents and by tribes of wild,

whooping, chariot-riding barbarians.
Dorels landscape
consists of bare moorland dotted with rocky outcrops, narrow
rushing streams, and hardy twisted trees. Snow covers Dorel
for over half the year and great slabs of stone rear up from the
barren earth, pinnacles of granite rising to dizzying heights.
Dorelites are feared as raiders throughout the south, their
loosely federated tribes pillaging settlements across the
continent. They dress in crudely dyed plaids and tartans,
have no cities but only temporary encampments. Dorelites
fear and hate Chaos and are exceedingly superstitious. They
worship Lassa as a goddess of storms and Grome Earth-King.

Filkhar

Despite Filkhars small size, it is one of the richest countries

in the southern continent. Its low, marshy coast swarms with
marine life and its fens and fertile valleys are bountiful.
Filkarians are arrogant and obsessed with style and clothing,
and for decadence and hedonism.
Filkharians are well
known gourmets and excellent cooks. Even the peasants of
Filkhar are well dressed by foreign standards.
The Lords of Law are worshiped throughout Filkhar and
although Chaos is not outlawed, it is viewed as quaintly oldfashioned

Lormyr

Four hundred years ago Lormyr was a vibrant

nation,the first to free itself from Melnibonan
dominion. The Lormyrian Republic ended two
hundred years ago. Since then Lormyr has
become the most pleasant and tranquil of all the
Young Kingdoms, and is still dominant in the
south.
Currents from the Boiling Sea warm Lormyrs
coast of cliffs and shingle beaches while snow
blankets the inland region for much of the year.
Villages of whitewashed stone and thatch roofs
dot Lormyrs pleasant undulating hills.
The Lords of Law are worshiped throughout
Lormyr and the religion of Chaos is forbidden.

Oin & Yu

Barbaric Oin and Yu, although two separate nation, are joined
in many ways. As well as being the poorest of the southern
nations, they share one city between them, the seedy capital
Dhoz-Kam, straddling the banks of the river Ar.
The Oinish and Yurits are superstitions, primitive peoples who
live in fear of the demons they claim haunt the coastal jungles.
Oinish and Yurits have no organized religion or central
government and loyalty to family is paramount. Blood feuds
between clans are common.
Worship is directed toward the Elemental Rulers, particularly
Grome, Straasha, and Lassa, as well as toward the Beast-Lords.

Pikarayd
Pikarayd is a land of ragged hills and dark forests given to
sudden storms and hard winters. Closer to the border of the
Dead Hills Pikarayd becomes bleak moorland, broken by deep
bogs. Legend claims that the borders between the worlds are
weak in the Pikaraydian badlands.
The rivalry, contempt, and outright hatred that Pikaraydian
clans show one another is matched only by their loyalty to
their own clan. By tradition the King of Pykarayd holds
hostages from each clan to act as clan emissaries.
Once the people of Pikarayd worshiped the Elemental Lords. In
the past hundred years Chaos worship has spread throughout
the land.

The Islands
/
Melnibone
The heart of the Bright Empire, Imrryr the Beautiful stands on the
main island of the Melnibonan Archipelago. This main island is
often called the Dragon Isle after the great winged reptiles
slumbering in caverns beyond the city. Imrryr is also known as
the Dreaming City, due to the languorous narcotic haze that fills
her inhabitants days.
Landing on the Dragon Isle is virtually impossible, as a
treacherous sea maze guards Imrryr, and reefs and dangerous
currents ring about the steep cliffs of the shore. For centuries
Melnibon has slumbered undisturbed.
The folk of Melnibon predate humanity, and share little in
common with them. They are proud and amoral, and they delight
in every sensation. They take pleasure in pain, especially that of
others. Melnibonan ways often seem frightening or cruel to
humans. With their delicate graces and refined tastes,
Menibonans are a race without vitality or curiosity, beyond good
and evil, content to exist in drug enhanced pleasure as they have
for centuries. Only tradition and worship of the grotesque and
gorgeous gods of Chaos rule their lives.

Pan Tang
A bleak, storm lashed isle in a nameless sea, this shattered island
of black rock and fused glass is called Pan Tang, and those
dwelling on it, Pan Tangians.
Pan Tang is a nation of sadistic, warped people, all of them quite
possibly insane. The rest of humanity fears them as pirates and
bloodthirsty priests. Pan Tang is a dominant power among the
Young Kingdoms, more because of her black sorceries than for her
military might.
Like a warped reflection of Melnibon, her hated rival, Pan Tang
has but one city. Hwarmgaarl is often called The City of
Screaming Statues, after the twisted stone figures that dot its
walls and rooftops. The sobs and screams of these damned statues
echo about Hwarmgaarl incessantly, as do the roars of tigers taken
from the northern jungles that now prowl the iron paved city
streets.

The Isle of the

Purple Towns
The third island civilization of note in the Young Kingdoms is the
nation of the Purple Towns. It is home to a bold race of sailors and
merchants, renowned for honesty and seamanship. Although a
precarious political balance exists upon the Isle between the old
nobility and the new and powerful merchant class, this has not
stopped the Isle of the Purple Towns from becoming a center for
trade to rival Imrryr. Purple Town traders are not smiled upon by
Melnibon.
The folk of the Purple Towns are the best and most trustworthy
sailors of the Young Kingdoms. The long bearded and leather clad
Purple Toners are to be found in every port of the Young
Kingdoms, wherever there are ships to be sailed. Its nobles spend
the year celebrating one festival after another, roaming the island
in a continuous cavalcade, while its peasant folk till the soil as
they have for generations.

The Isle of the Purple Townsgains its name from the color of the
stones from which its people construct their houses and buildings.
It is a pleasant place of fields and small farms, the warmer
lowlands of the north giving way to rugged mountains in the
interior, and the sheep dotted moors in the south. Menii is the Isles
modern and stylish capital, while the nobility chooses to live in
northerly Kariss, a more sedate and lethargic city. The priests of
Goldar, whose golden pyramid temple looms over the marketplace
in Menii, claim that if something cannot be bought in the Isle it
cannot be bought at all, such is the wide array of products from the
four corners of the Young Kindgoms brought and sold in the Isles
markets.
Lord Goldar, a god of Law, is the main deity worshiped in the Isle,
eclipsing the reverence given to Lassa of the Winds and Straasha
Sea-King, two Elemental Rulers.