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Guide to the World of Alliera

Planet : Sized slightly larger than Earth the planet of Alliera (Ah-Leer-ah) consists of two major contents, the northern content, Fahara (fa-har-a) which is mainly dominated by the Fehalis but also includes isolated populations of the Tytarra, Aventa (both are of the few species that travel between the contents , however the Aventa are more localized in the mountains of southern content and only travel when they must) with some Otara living and working on the docks and ports of Fahara. Retasis, work the mines often serving as warden for prisoners of the Fehalis. Several of the Retasis are merchants, buying and selling the minerals and "Bathot" the iridescent glass the Fehalis value the most and use for their highest valued currency. Some of the merchants have homes in the cities but most Retasis live in villages in the foothills and caves in the mountains, they are a secretive race and as such are looked down upon by much of the Fehalis, and feared by more than a few, rumored to be anything and everything from demons to having created a city grander than Edoba, and a standing army three times as strong poised to invade at the first opportunity...

The southern content has no widely accepted name, known within Fahara as slimply "the South" or "the Southern Continent" populated by dozens of tribes all with different governing styles and bodies there are no nations, only territory's belonging to different races and subgroups. It is vastly pre-mid evil (by the standards of Faharan citizens) consisting of several tribes and races namely the Fahuvex, who are the second most trade driven people on the planet (being seconded only by the Otara) they are a generally peaceful people, consisting of small tribes of 30 to 50 individual, but on more than one occasion the tribes have banded together in the mutual defense of the lands they all claim. The Lucaiyan, live in a warlike society of nomads are the closest allies to the Fahuvex valuing them for their vast knowledge of medicine. The Aventa, who live the vast majority in the mountains of the southern continent with little reason to trouble themselves with the worries of the Northfolk (a name given to any who hail from the northern continent, the opposite being Southfolk, though neither themselves are considered offensive the implications and stereotypes associated with Northfolk and Southfolk have been used to create many insults, e.g. "You are as arrogant as a Northfolk" or "What do you take me for? Only a Southfolk would be so ignorant")

The four seas of Alliera are the North [Polar] Sea, the South [Polar] Sea, the Great Sea, and the Thin Sea

History, Economy, Government, and Religions of Alliera: The people of Fahara are subject to the rule of the high king Correlan. A Fehalis himself Correlan is great-grandson to Carallas, who united the peoples of Fahara under one nation and brought together the greatest minds of the time to help draft the new government into order and build the capital city of Edoba, a habitation for those of science and culture. During this era was the first known contact between the Fahuvex and Fehalis, though both races knew of each-other's existence through the tails told by the Tytarra and Aventa, once communication was established between the two races it was agreed that a new language would be created and used to further the bonds between the two peoples. For several generations the two nations prospered, the Fahuvex, learned of agriculture, and was able to begin creating more permanent settlements, in return the Fahuvex taught the Fehalis the medicinal uses of plants and as well as several sanitation measures such as boiling rags before use on open wounds and how to use splints to cure broken limbs (up until this point a broken bone to the frail-boned Fehalis resulted in limb loss and often death). The Trouble occurred when the Fehalis refused to reveal the mysteries of gunpowder, and in return the Fahuvex refused to reveal more about the geographic layout of their territory, this more often than not led into a heated debate about generosity and ethics which escalated into a debate on religion, and the Fahuvex's determination not to convert to the single deity of the Fehalis known as "Kala".

The arguments continued to escalate until a short but violent and bloody war drove a wedge of resentment between the two peoples, the Fehalis coming to believe that the Fahuvex were too much like their cousins the Lucaiyan, primitive and violent, and not intelligent enough to form a lasting treaty. The Fahuvex deemed the Fehalis too arrogant and narrow minded to create any lasting bond.

The laws of Fahara are fairly standard, theft, slavery, murder, any combination, alteration, or plans to commit any of the three is a crime and will be punished, thieves are made to pay three times the value of that which they stole, anyone associated with any form of slave trade (with the exception of the slaves themselves) are sent to work for one year (per slave owned, sold, or purchased) in the Mines of Garvok (sulfur and glass mines, nasty place) the slaves are freed and compensated by their former owners, all property is sold and distributed between the slave. Rape falls under the classification of theft, and because what was taken cannot be replaced, three things are taken from the assailant which cannot be replaced (these are normally various body parts and are up to the decision of the victim, go ahead and guess which three are most popular). Assault is considered an attempt at murder and is punished by a public flogging and often jail time. Actual murder is dealt with on a case by case basis, the final decision resting with the king, the most popular sentencing is life in the Mines of Garvok, or no life at all, the ban on theft, slavery, and murder are considered the three "High Laws". Below the High Laws there are the three "Core Laws" dealing with taxes, the military, and interpersonal disagreements, they are harder to break in the sense that they are simple, and to most, just another fact of life. The first of the Core Laws is that every Fehalis not of Nobel blood must join the Great Army, within their eighteenth year, where they will serve until the age of twenty five, upon there twenty fifth birthday the Fehalis will receive one Cheep for every day of service, and an additional ten Paxes for every rank advancement they may have earned, they are then given the choice to continue to serve in the military at the wage of one Ikeres a year (a fourth paid every three months) until they reach the age of fifty, or leave the military in search of schooling in the trade of their choice. Most choose to leave, but those who stay often quickly find themselves in high ranked positions within the first five years. If a Fehalis does not wish to join the military their only option is to join the priesthood of Kala, the initiation rights of which involve self-castration in order to prove their commitment, and branding of their sins as they graduate into the order. Joining the priesthood is a lifetime commitment and not to be taken lightly. The second Core Law is Taxes, one Cheep for every working head in the household and a Halovs for every non-working head, those that cannot pay are made to work for a month in the Mines, very few Fehalis are unemployed so this is hardly a problem. The final Core Law is for disagreement by individuals, again, there are three ways to solve the disagreement, the first being discussion in the Forums of the Magistrate where the public votes and interacts with the two offended party's to solve the issue often disagreements over pricing of goods and services are decided in this manner, the second is to take the problem to the Magistrates themselves in a process known as the "Justifying of Grievances", or "The Justifying", this is often used in more personal matters where honor is involved, and the individuals involved would like to keep the matter private, this is done to one magistrate who will decide on the validity of the case, if it is deemed too low profile he will send the party's to the Forums, if it is high enough profile, or intricate enough in its details a datewill be scheduled to have the case pled before a group of nine Magistrates. The final way to dispel disagreements is by publicly sanctioned duel, and can only be used if one of the other two methods was tried and failed. The duel is overseen by three magistrates, and can be anything from a chess game to a pistol fight. Below the Core Laws there are three final laws, dealing with health and the mundane. The "Low Laws" decree that any homeless shall be sheltered in the public houses, meat shall not be sold a week after it is cut, and the dead are to be buried within a fortnight of their passing.

There is no religion widely practiced in all or Alliera, the Southfolk believe in a mixture of Veneration and a race specific Pantheon, there is little tension on the subject of religion among the Southfolk due to unvoiced belief that a single god may take many names or shapes to better appeal to the people being communicated with. In the north the Religion is monotheistic worship of Kala by the Fehalis, and unknown by the Retasis. The Tytarra as well as the Aventa are mostly atheist, but there is a large enough percentage "Kaliens" that the clerics and missionaries of Kala leave the non-religious ones in peace.

The economy of Fahara revolves around both bartering and the use of currency, the most common being silver coins known as cheeps, there are also copper, gold, and glass coins, dubbed Halovs, Paxes, and Ikeres. A Cheep has the combined value of four halovs, and a Paxes is the equivalent of fifty Cheeps, an Ikeres, being the most valuable one and made from a unique indecent glass known as Bathot, is the most valuable form of currency, and is only used commonly for government transactions, one Ikeres is the equivalent of fifty thousand Cheeps.

Races:

Fahuvex (Fa-haou-vex): The Fox Race of the southern content, Consists of several dozen Tribal Villages scattered thorough out the forest and plains region on southern content adults grow to be anywhere between 5'6" and 6' and often live to surpass age seventy. Well gifted in the arts of healing the Fahuvex are sought out by the Otara, Lucaiyan, Tytarra, and Aventa for their healing remedies. A peaceful people they are willing to accept most strangers in with open arms, however seeped in superstition and tradition they are quick to shun those who they feel threaten their way of life. When Fehalis missionaries came to the southern continent to spread Kalaism they were quickly told to return to their homeland, those that did not were often killed.

Fehalis (FEe-Hail-ess): The Feline Race, highly intelligent and inquisitive by nature started off in much the way the Fahuvex did, a tribal system, which gave way to several serfdoms, eventually uniting under one ruler, Carallas, who created the laws of the Fehalis kingdom. Driven by science and culture the Fehalis kingdom prospered and grew, the only attempt to expand was to the southern continent, and after the brief war it caused the Fehalis kingdom stayed segregated off, stagnant in its growth. The Fehalis themselves are lightly shorter than the Fahuvex, growing to a maximum height of 5'6" and are more frail, despite this fact they are still considered to have the largest and best equipped army of all the other races, armed with industrial level, steam-powered technology.

Otara (Oh-tera): The Otter Race of the seas, there are only three oceans on Alliera, the polar seas are mostly frozen, melting very briefly during the days surrounding summer solstice (each pole having summer six months apart) the southern sea, and the northern sea, the barrier between the two being the equator. The Otara are widely viewed as the most promiscuous race, when in reality Otara are very monogamous, selecting a mate for life, but only after sampling all there is to offer. Otara tend to have between six and eight children in a lifetime, but a life of constant movement and sea-travel take their toll and roughly only half of Otara children make it into their teens. With their short stature (a full grown male capping out at 4'8") those who chose to remain on land often find it hard to find work, and are considered an easy target for cut-throats and muggers.

Lucaiyan (LUe-KAi-yan): The Wolf Race of the planes, often called "cousin" by the Fahuvex the Lucaiyan is a proud warrior race, little is known of them other than the fact they widely chose to retain their native tongue of "Gocho-jak" and are a steadfast ally of the Fahuvex. They are nomadic and pride themselves with scars cut onto their left shin numbering their enemy's slain in battle. Tall and bulky the Lucaiyan grow to be between 6' and 6'8.

Retasis (Re-tAA-siss): The Reptilian Race allied with the Fehalis they live often on the outskirts of towns in wagon caravans, trading different minerals and metals. They are considered to be the greatest blacksmiths in all of Alliera, and are known for their craftsmanship as well as their cold approach to anyone not Retasis themselves. Their disposition often leads to whispers of their deceit and malicious intent, as well as positions as guards, mercenaries, floggers and executioners

Tytarra (Tie-Tar-aah): The Hawk or Raptor Race of avians nomadic like the Lucaiyan the Tytarra are the only race that regularly travel between the two continents of Alliera other than the Otara. They covered in dull colored feathers, often brown or rust colored with a lighter underbelly of cream, tan, and in some cases white. The Tytarra are stealthy hunters, warriors, and occasionally employed assassins they are quick, clever, and decisive, quick to anger and often viewed as short tempered there imposing stature of a lean, muscled often 7' body is enough to intimidate even a few Lucaiyan. They shy away from other contact in most cases, and tend to live in the mountain ranges of both continents.

Aventa (Ave-ent-a): The Owl Race of avians generally more lightly colored than the Tytarra the Aventa are not in any way a warrior race. Widely regarded by all but a very few in each other race as wise ones or sages the Aventa live in small groups or solitary lives mating for life, or not at all they seek a place that is high up, but not completely removed from the community they have settled in. Observing the life around them they have unique insight on the lives of others and though they keep to themselves they will often write to one another, and keep very well informed on political events. Though they have retained the ability to fly most prefer to walk from place to place and are never opposed to travel by carriage if the need arises. Aventa are stocky, but not muscular, and are normally covered in light colors white, light tan and a shade of pastel yellow are not uncommon. Very few and often very old Aventa have darker feathers of mahogany brown and black. As the longest lived of all races (easily surpassing one-hundred and fifty) with the best memories they avoided just as much as they are sought out. An Aventa is just as likely to tell you your family has long been one of murders and bastards as they are to tell you where the family fortune is buried.

** Plant-Life:** The indigenous plant-life between the two continents varies by only a small degree, and by name. The Southern continent many plants are named for their physical appearance or by some special quality, however, in Fahara, many plants are referred to by more unique names, most likely descendant or variations of the words in the original Fehalis language.