Geographic Regions on Aurea
Aurea is the second largest continent in the known world on Baltheron. Prevalent winds tend to come from the west, with cold winds blowing southerly in the northern reaches and warm winds blowing northerly in the southern regions. The northern coastlines are primarily taiga, particularly in the western reaches, including the Plains of Tazgrat and Kadach. Central Aurea is dominated by deciduous forests and open grasslands, which become chaparral along the southern shores.
The Challieann Mountains is the longest mountain range on the continent, though the Antasian Mountains are taller. The only other range is the frozen Reg'thul Peaks in the northwest. The world's largest forest lies along the northern coast, in Ywys and into the Challieann Mountains. Several other large forests dot the continent, though only the Greywood and the Glistening Weald on the Anclean Peninsula are known to be inhabited by elves.
Aurea is bordered by the Betshaban Ocean to the east, the White Ocean to the north, the Eternal Ocean to the west and the Aebasan Ocean to the south. Numerous small seas provide deep harbors, including the Aurean Sea, the Tangar Sea, Sonat Bay, Tanos Bay and the Valtaani Sea. Four large freshwater lakes, called The Brothers separate the bulk of the continent from the wilds of the northwestern regions.
The island of Dresta is generally considered a part of Aurea, as is Valtaan and the Green Isle in the far north. Two dwarven kingdoms lie beneath Aurea: Nuithone beneath Valtaan and Unterreich deep beneath the Antasian Mountains. The dwarves of Unterreich have very little contact with the humans above, despite the restoration of the Treaty of Gundagor. It is unknown how much contact the dwarves of Nuithone have with the human raiders who live on the surface of the island, though there are rumors that their kingdom spans under the Valtaani Sea and has gates hidden somewhere in eastern Donnagh Saoristat.
Forests
Bloodwood
Remote and semi-legendary, Bloodwood lies on the northern peninsula of the Island of Drallia. Those who are even aware of its existence believe it to be infested by goblin and troll tribesmen scurrying in the strange, overgrown ruins of some long-forgotten empire.
Dracian Wood
Though settled and worked by the peoples of both Dracia and Drussa, the Dracian Wood still has its primeval depths, where the forest itself seems unwelcoming to human intrusion. Rumors persist of all sorts of creatures inhabiting these wilds, from wolves that can take the shape of men to giants living off the forest to sentient trees standing watch for some unknown cause. Local villagers, of course, are more than willing to embellish these stories to keep outsiders from stealing the natural resources they rely on.
Gadoran Wood
Once a great forest that spanned from Tanos Bay across the Zetian peninsula, centuries of harvesting by Imperial woodsmen reduced the Gadoran Wood to a few hundred square miles in the foothills of the southern Antasian Mountains. Though the forest regrew to its present size during the Dark Times, the recent resurgence of trade has lead men in the region to again harvest the forest, though the deforestation has yet to reach the levels experienced during the height of the Great Empire.
Glistening Weald
Ancient homeland of the elves on Aurea, the Glistening Weald is a deep, primeval forest cultivated and protected by its inhabitants. Humans and most half-elves from neighboring nations are unwelcome here and the elves are more than willing to enforce their claim to the forest with a flight of arrows. For reasons that have long confounded human sages, the forest glows with an eerie bluish light when the leaves and wet with morning dew, hence the name given it by humanity.
Greywood
Forming a formidable border between Murgosia and the nations of Dreluria and Anclea, the Greywood contains a small enclave of elves who have long been friendly to their human (and, as a result, half-elven) neighbors to the south. Though humans are still unwelcome in their sacred groves, the elves of Greywood tend to be much less xenophobic than their kin in the Glistening Weald. Recent deforestation by the Murgosh in the northern reaches of the forest, however, may change their attitude or, at the least, lead to an alliance between the elves of the Greywood and their neighbors to the south, who are no friends to the Murgosh.
Karian Wood
Once part of the Gadoran Wood, the Karian Wood has been reduced in size from centuries of deforestation by humans in the region. Though there are some remote villages cut off from the rest of the nation during the Dark Times, the human nation of Karony has resumed its harvesting of the wood to build a grand navy to protect shipping in the region from Camarian pirates.
Highlands
The Antasian Mountains
The ancient and towering Antasian Mountains split east central Aurea. Even though the range was once claimed entirely by the Great Empire, except for four major passes through the range, the Imperials never truly tamed the deep valleys and high mountains. Recently, giants and their goblin slaves have been raiding the foothills on both sides of the Antasian Mountains. Some believe these raids are highly organized over relatively vast distances, suggesting that some ruler has risen among the giants there, preparing to send his armies into the lowlands of Aurea to ravage the isolated human communities in the foothills.
Deep beneath the sharp peaks of the Antasian Mountains lies the dwarven nation of the Unterreich. Unlike other dwarven Kingdoms, the dwarves of the Unterreich remain isolationists, despite the establishment of a treaty between humans and dwarves in the waning years of the Third Age of Man and the only contact with these dwarves are through the criminals that they exile to the surface world.
The Challieann Mountains
The rolling, frozen Challieann Mountains cut through northern Aurea, diving the Gael lands to the north from the formerly Imperial territory to the south. Much of the Challieann Mountains are inhabited by Gael clansmen considered savage and strange even by their kin in the lowlands to the north. There are a few pockets of goblin tribes in the south of the range and a few isolated orcish settlements in the deep valleys of the northern part of the range, remnants of the orcish horde that ravaged the region late in the Third Age of Man. Deep, glacial valleys among the northern peaks are believed to be inhabited by strange, blue giants who somehow survive in the frozen wastes that neither man nor orc even tries to settle in.
The dwarves of the Kingdom of Nuithone have deep mines beneath the Challieann Mountains and have recently opened a route into the western extent of the range, establishing the colony of Schweinholz on the surface world.
The Orcish Moorlands
Dry, hilly lands in western Aurea, the Orcish Moorlands are the human name for territory along the Brothers controlled by orcish tribes. The heart of the orcish horde that ravaged much of northern Aurea in the waning years of the Third Age of Man, the Orcish Moorlands are currently experiencing an invasion of their own as nearby human and dwarven nations push into the area, establishing military colonies to ensure the orcs do not again organize into an unstoppable horde. Some scholars have pointed out that this sort of military aggression might just be the catalyst that encourages the fractious orcs to work together, perhaps generating a new Great Khan to unify the clans against the civilized nations of Aurea.
Reg'thul Peaks
The remote Reg'thul Peaks have been the homeland of the orcs for the extent of recorded memory, even when human empires are believed to have spanned the plains of western Aurea. It is believed that the Peaks are somehow holy to the orcs and few humans have set eyes on its heights in millennia. Rumors persist of an ever-burning volcano somewhere deep in the Peaks that, if legend is to be believed, is guarded by a massive dragon that the orcs of the region protect.
Swamps
The Black Swamp
The Black Swamp in central Aurea is a long stretch of swampy forest between Waldavia and southern Murgosia. The humans who live in the Black Swamp refer to themselves as Szarne and speak a dialect of Murgosh that is almost incomprehensible to the Murgosh themselves. The Szarne tend to be highly territorial and superstitious, though few have reason to risk the mires of the Black Swamp to bother them overmuch.
The Bleak Bog
The frozen Bleak Bog is a large peat bog on the northern coast of Aurea, between the dwarven colony of Schweinholz and The Plains of Tazgrat. The treacherous bog tends to be avoided even by the orcs, as unstable ground and quicksand are common in the summer months and, during the winter, the uneven ice is often just as unpredictable. There are legends of the ruins of a partially-submerged city deep in the bog, perhaps the mythical city of Uz that, according to Gael legend, kidnapped a mermaid princess and was flooded by mer magic in retaliation.
Sashenta Swamp
Despite its presence in the heart of the Old Empire, the Sashenta Swamp has long been the home of tribes of lizard men who are usually content to live out their existence quietly in the depths of the wet forests of the swamp. As the area has no real natural resources, even today the humans of Karony and Camaria tend to avoid Sashenta. Recently, however, there are rumors of a pirate haven somewhere in the twisting maze of rivers, peopled by humans and lizardfolk who choose to co-exist for mutual profit. There have even been reports of lizardfolk from the swamp serving as sailors on Camarian pirate vessels, though these rumors might be little more than propaganda spun by the Karons.
Waterways
The Aebasan Ocean
The Aebasan Ocean lies between Aurea, western Gallorea and the island of Dresta, including the Tangar Sea. The primary current is a strong warm current that flows from the Eternal Ocean in the southwest that meets a weaker, colder current flowing from the northwest, before merging with the Great Betshaban Drift in the Betshaban Ocean south of Ganesia. Winds in the southern region tend to blow in an easterly direct, winds in the north westerly. Therefore, oceanic travel northward typically takes a westerly route near Dresta or following the northerly currents in calm winds. Travel south is substantially more difficult without a strong wind to fight the northeasterly currents. There are some heavy storms and the rare hurricane that hits Medalia and Camaria in early autumn.
The warm waters in the southern reaches of the ocean are known to be populated by Tritons and a variety of sea giants, making travel in the deep oceans dangerous, though most of the threats are at least semi-intelligent, if territorial, and can generally be negotiated with when conditions are favorable.
The Aurean Sea
The Aurea Sea, also known as the Golden Sea, was long dominated by the Great Empire during the Third Age of Man. Since the dawn of the Fourth Age of Man, trading vessels have begun to again ply her waters and most of the trade lanes are now dominated by Narbonne, Treva and, of course, the independent merchants of Aescalapea. The sea is a relatively shallow offshoot of the Betshaban Ocean, abundant with fish, that remains warm throughout the year. Though there is some disorganized piracy along the Ganesian shore, the waters remain relatively safe. There are rumors of merfolk in the central Aurean Sea, though there have been no recent sightings to confirm these legends.
The Betshaban Ocean
The Betshaban Ocean lies between the continents of Aurea, Duria and Gallorea and includes the Pirates' Sea and the Maroshan Sea near Duria and the Yglarsed Sea on the Gallorean coast. The ocean is dominated by the clockwise Betshaban Stream, which is fed by warm waters in the west from the Aebasan Ocean and warm waters from the Endless Ocean in the east. The Betshaban Stream tends to cool somewhat along the Durian coast, feeding into the Endless Ocean south of Danas. Prevailing winds in the southern Betshaban Ocean tend to move from the east, with the current, making westerly travel particularly easy for most ships and easterly travel extremely difficult. In the northern reaches, winds tend to move from the west, also with the current, making travel from Aurea to Duria particularly easy, though the converse more difficult. The currents and prevailing winds create a large calm area southwest of The Island of Tamarynd known affectionately as "Betshaba's Bosom". Ships who drift into Betshaba's Bosom are rarely heard from again. The northern reaches of the Betshaban Ocean are known for its legendary storms, particularly in autumn and winter. Hurricanes are a constant threat during the storm season, particularly along the Aurean coast and the northern Pirate Isles.
Though all oceans are claimed by Betshaba, the Betshaban Ocean is, obviously, considered particularly blessed (and cursed) by the Wave Queen. Though the Pirate Sea is considered by many to be appropriated by her greatest enemy, Taltos, the Deep Dweller. Most aquatic creatures, monstrous and sentinent, can be found in the Betshaban, though the most legendary creature known to travel Betshaba's ocean is the Leviathan, an impossibly huge whale said to be her personal eyes and ears in the mortal realm.
The Eternal Ocean
The Eternal Ocean lies to the west of the known world. It has two known currents. The colder, northern current flows south, bringing cold waters from the White Ocean south along the western Auric coastline, feeding cold water into the Aebasan Ocean through the Tangar Sea. The warmer, southern current moves warm water north along the western shore of Gallorea, an stream feeding warm water into the Aebasan Ocean before the main current cuts west into the trackless sea.
There are no known land masses in the Eternal Ocean, nor even rumors of such. It is rumored that the Eternal Ocean literally goes on forever, though scholars knowledgeable about geography point out the world being round makes that theory little more than ignorant myth. Like the Endless Ocean in the east, the Eternal Ocean is home to numerous monstrous creatures of legendary size, some of which wander close enough to the continents to terrorize shipping.
Sonat Bay
A large bay in central Aurea, Sonat Bay is dominated by shipping between Anclea, Drussa and rising Scalaro. Murgosia long ignored the small fishing villages along the Sonat Bay that paid homage to its King, but recently the Murgosh have been building shipyards and a proper trading city on their shore to compete with (and possibly use as a base to attack) their neighbors.
The Tangar Sea
A remote stretch of water connecting the Aebasan Ocean and the Eternal Ocean along southwestern Aurea, Tangar has a reputation for being a wild and dangerous body of water, with unexpected doldrums, chaotic winds and surprisingly heavy storms, particularly in the autumn months. Recently, there are rumors of strange, black ships plying her waters and even more alien vessels with odd, ribbed sails. As most respectable merchants have little reason to cross the Tangar, these rumors are as yet unconfirmed.
Tanos Bay
Situated in central Aurea, Tanos Bay is a large, deep bay with shores well-suited to several deepwater docks. Primarily used by Cordosan, Drussan and Scalaran merchant vessels, the central dangers come from privateers of those various countries attacking merchant ships of their enemies. There are rumors of an unmarked island, perhaps a floating island, somewhere in Tanos Bay with a tower on it. Though there are several legends about this tower, none have been substantiated as no one can lay claim to have visited the island more than once.
The Valtaani Sea
The Valtaani Sea lies in the frozen north between the continents of Duria and Aurea, bisected by the rocky peaks of the Valtaanni Peninsula. The currents in the Valtaani Sea are often unpredictable, particularly in the stormy winter months, where intrepid sailors must be wary both of sudden, violent storms and pack ice moving southward. In warmer months, the Sea is patrolled by Valtaani raiding ships looking for easy prey.
The White Ocean
The cold waters of the White Ocean lie north of the continents of Aurea and Duria. It is dominated by a sluggish eastern current that dips into the Valtaani Sea before moving northward back across the northern Durian continent. Some parts of the White Ocean freeze over, particularly the portions north of the eastern half of the Durian continent, sometimes freezing all the way to the shoreline. The late spring and early summer tends to be a very dangerous time to travel in the White Ocean as huge icebergs break off the ice pack and flow southward.
There are very few monstrous creatures known to live under the waves of the White Ocean, though much of it is patrolled by Valtang raiders, making mercantile travel dangerous even in warmer seasons.
| This article is part of the Player's Guide to Aurea | |
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Introduction · Economics and Trade · Legends and History · Religion · Regions and Realms | |
| Regions and Realms on Aurea | |
