Once, many an age ago there was a planet made from the body of Tiamat, The Dragon Mother. The planet was divided into two super continents, one in the Southern Hemisphere and one in the Northern. These continents were separated by the Belting Ocean, which stretches across the entire planet.
The Great Northern Continent, the subject of today’s discussion, is the single largest landmass on this earth, covering almost all of the Northern Hemisphere. Its' sister the Southern Continent is slightly smaller and for the most part untamed. Even still the Northlands still encounter more Cyclopes, snow bears, and dragons than do the Southern reaches.
The population of the Northern Continent is wide and variable, no exact number is know for a successful census was never taken. The Great North contains a mix of all the civilized races (Humans, Elves, Giants, Goblins, Dwarves, and the occasional Lake Mer). As in all the lands humans are the dominant race, though in the Great North the elected monarch holds council with the leaders of the other five races to reach an agreeable conclusion.
Currency and trade mainly circulates within itself in the Great North because almost nothing of any true value is worth bringing it across the Belting Ocean. Even further to this point is that Northern currency(gold coin Shields) has no value in the Southlands, which use gold coin Swords. There is a way around this, which is to take the gold coins to the capital city of either land and get the coins melted down into compatible currency, but since this is a fairly arduous task most merchants are content to barter with their goods.
The Great North, though self supporting, can only grow vegetable crops in it’s Southernmost reaches, so their main diet consists of meats and a type of giant mushroom grown underground year round. Needless to say that the North greatly values their vegetables.
In all many like to live in the North because it is more welcome to outsiders, despite the Dark Heart incident nearly seventy years ago, and has even been known to harbor the ever so rare Half-Dragon when a living one appears. So it is not uncommon to see Elves, Goblins, Dwarves, and even Giants mingling together in one of the great cities.
There are many myths that surround the Great North, including the origin of the Dark Heart creature and its’ demise, and the mystery of the Burning Forests that are in one place one day and then gone the next, But an even greater myth precedes all of these. It is a whisper, merely rumor, but it has traveled the length and breadth of the known world. It has been said that, seated atop the very peek of the earth, in the coldest reaches of the Great North where none but Dragons dare tread, that there is a giant portal. They say that this magical gate is a one way transport into the very depths of Hell, where dwells the Unnamed One and all his fell minions. It was said that the gate was built with a purpose in mind, but none now live that would know as to what the purpose had been. So the gate is assumed to sit at the top of the world, but no one knows for sure because none are foolhardy enough to go seeking it and if it does exist then the legends of it being a one way journey must be true, for the world has not yet been overrun by Demons.
This a VERY brief run down of the Northern Continent as seen in my developing novel series The Flamefist Chronicles.
The Great Northern Continent, the subject of today’s discussion, is the single largest landmass on this earth, covering almost all of the Northern Hemisphere. Its' sister the Southern Continent is slightly smaller and for the most part untamed. Even still the Northlands still encounter more Cyclopes, snow bears, and dragons than do the Southern reaches.
The population of the Northern Continent is wide and variable, no exact number is know for a successful census was never taken. The Great North contains a mix of all the civilized races (Humans, Elves, Giants, Goblins, Dwarves, and the occasional Lake Mer). As in all the lands humans are the dominant race, though in the Great North the elected monarch holds council with the leaders of the other five races to reach an agreeable conclusion.
Currency and trade mainly circulates within itself in the Great North because almost nothing of any true value is worth bringing it across the Belting Ocean. Even further to this point is that Northern currency(gold coin Shields) has no value in the Southlands, which use gold coin Swords. There is a way around this, which is to take the gold coins to the capital city of either land and get the coins melted down into compatible currency, but since this is a fairly arduous task most merchants are content to barter with their goods.
The Great North, though self supporting, can only grow vegetable crops in it’s Southernmost reaches, so their main diet consists of meats and a type of giant mushroom grown underground year round. Needless to say that the North greatly values their vegetables.
In all many like to live in the North because it is more welcome to outsiders, despite the Dark Heart incident nearly seventy years ago, and has even been known to harbor the ever so rare Half-Dragon when a living one appears. So it is not uncommon to see Elves, Goblins, Dwarves, and even Giants mingling together in one of the great cities.
There are many myths that surround the Great North, including the origin of the Dark Heart creature and its’ demise, and the mystery of the Burning Forests that are in one place one day and then gone the next, But an even greater myth precedes all of these. It is a whisper, merely rumor, but it has traveled the length and breadth of the known world. It has been said that, seated atop the very peek of the earth, in the coldest reaches of the Great North where none but Dragons dare tread, that there is a giant portal. They say that this magical gate is a one way transport into the very depths of Hell, where dwells the Unnamed One and all his fell minions. It was said that the gate was built with a purpose in mind, but none now live that would know as to what the purpose had been. So the gate is assumed to sit at the top of the world, but no one knows for sure because none are foolhardy enough to go seeking it and if it does exist then the legends of it being a one way journey must be true, for the world has not yet been overrun by Demons.
This a VERY brief run down of the Northern Continent as seen in my developing novel series The Flamefist Chronicles.
