Valduran
No summary.
| Valduran |
| The Staatenbung of Valduran |
| Geographic Info |
| Continent: Gallorea |
| Location: North of the Janos Mountains. |
| Government |
| Government Type: Representative Confederation (Herzog, Margrave, Graf, Waldgraf, Ritter, Burghermeister, Stradtrat) |
| Ruler: Herzog Swefred of Clan Langader, Vorsitzender of the Valdastadt (Ex 5, Ftr 8, dm) |
| Arms: A gray upright dwarven double-axe with a blue diamond on the haft on a brown field |
| Coinage: 6 Hochraden = 1 Pfennig (1 cp); 6 Pfennigs = 1 Eisenmunze (iron), 6 Eisenmunzen = 1 Silbergeld (1 sp); 6 Silbergelds = 1 Stahlgeld (steel); 6 Stahlgelds = 1 Mark (1 gp), 12 Marken =1 Platengeld (1 pp) |
| Capital: Eisennstadt (pop: 8,327) |
| Alliances: Military alliance with Haleland, Halgard and, ostensibly, Adanar. Trade agreements with Adanar and Oridal. |
| Hostilities: Thet, Nadera |
| Society |
| Population: 772,885 (63% human, 26% dwarven, 8% hobbit, 3% other) |
| Languages: Adan, Valsprache |
| Important Persons: The six Herzogs who compose the Valdastadt, Holdunder Gunderic of Clan Stahlschmeid (of Balthor) (Cl 14, dm), Father Gustav of Baelthor (Cl 12), Sir Alexander Brennen of Haleland (Pal 15). |
| Religious Info |
| Pantheon: Aebasan, Dwarven |
| Patron: None |
History
Until recently the Archduchy of Walean, Valduran's modern history begins in 7830 AC, when King Rudolf III of Adanar turned over the Archduchy to the dwarven King Skjalg in return for a lucrative trade agreement. The dwarves, a stoic, thoughtful race accustomed to rigid order, are somewhat bewildered by the people of Adanar, but their rule has proven to be extremely fair, if not the wisest government in the region.
When the territory was first given to the dwarves, the region began to fall into chaos as the local human nobility, suddenly landless, either departed for the more peaceful fields of their parent nation or began establishing large merchant empires. King Skjalg took six months to compose the Valdakodex, or Codex of Valduran, which would serve as the legal document of the region and another two months before appointed government officials began to take their positions. Though there was a great deal of initial confusion, eventually the human priesthood of Baelthor and the dwarven priesthood of Balthor began communicating between one another and the Codex was translated into Adan.
The Codex allowed for great freedoms that the humans of Valduran were unaccustomed to. It didn't directly change most human customs of the region, but increased the power of the mayors and reeves by allowing them to make many of the day-to-day decisions in towns and rural estates. Furthermore, it codified the system for electing mayors and reeves from the local populous. The most significant change to the local laws was the liberation of the serfs of the region. Though the various social classes still exist, poor men in Valduran have the same rights to freedom and are punished under the same justice system as the wealthy. The rest of the Codex was a detailed description of how the dwarves and humans would each rule themselves according to their local traditions. Each region has two separate judicial systems, one dwarven and one human. Law enforcement is supervised by the dwarven nobility, but actually led and controlled by appointments from the human government. When a legal dispute arises that involves dwarves and humans, a council of six judges are assembled, three human and three dwarven, to adjudicate the case. Foreign policy is handled by the dwarven nobility, but a dwarven noble can be removed from office by a special court, called an Aklagen, which is supervised by a council of dwarven judges but adjudicated by a jury of the human mayors and reeves of the region that the noble rules.
The humans were initially cynical of the dwarven Codex and some pockets of rebellion sprang up, but the Codex was put to the test in 7834 AC when the dwarven Herzog Thorismund of Clan Silberbart was tried by Aklagen for misrule. His crime was minor: over-taxation of luxury imports, but the jury determined that he was guilty. The humans of Geldeland, the region that he ruled, began to prepare for civil war, but the Herzog Thorismund stepped down without resistance and King Skjalg selected a new Herzog. Surprised that the Codex had worked so smoothly, the humans of Geldeland are now some of the most loyal defenders of the Codex and the dwarven government and former Herzog Thorismund now enjoys a deep respect from his human neighbors.
The dwarven government, officially called the Staatenbund, would likely have never formed if not for the imperialistic nature of its neighbor, Thet. Thet and its undead Fell King had been threatening the region for almost two hundred years and most believe that King Rudolf gave the region to the dwarves in the hope of forming a buffer zone between himself and the Thesh armies. After the dwarves initially contacted Adanar in 7828, they founded a few trading colonies in the region, including the town of Sonnenstadt in the Borderlands. The Fell King, in one of his many attacks on the region, noticed the new town and sent his forces to conquer or destroy it. The Thesh armies met the dwarves in battle and were almost completely destroyed. The Fell King carefully pulled back from Sonnenstadt, presumably to observe his new enemy.
The Borderlands are the beleaguered region of eastern Valduran that are the first line of defense against Thet in the area. Soon after the first war against the Fell King, Adanar and Haleland jointly built a string of fortresses in the region. While Adanar governed the civilian populous, the Hale and the Adan operated the fortresses jointly. When the region was given to the dwarves, the Hale suddenly had no formalized military alliance in the region and were understandably concerned about the fate of its castles. The Herzogs of the Valdastadt, the central governing body of the region, were not only interested in maintaining a military alliance with Haleland and Halgard, but codified it. Dwarven and human diplomats met with nobles from Haleland, Halgard, Adanar, Oridal and Roncal to hammer out the details at the Council of Falgrin, in Adanar. The League of Balgura was formed, wherein Haleland, Halgard, Adanar and Valduran would supply military support to the Borderland fortresses, while Oridal and Roncal would send needed foodstuffs and money to support Thesh containment. Adanar almost immediately began to decrease its military support in the Borderlands and today rarely sends soldiers to defend the castles, but Haleland, Halgard and Valduran have found no short supply of warriors willing to man the castles. The military leader of the League is currently a Halic noble by the name of Sir Alexander Brennen, a man respected by both dwarves and humans alike for his sobriety and loyalty to the principles of the League. Sir Alexander is a tireless military commander who can often be found traveling between Border castles on his way to inspect the troops and defenses under his command.
Despite the recent influx of wealth to the region, Valduran is still very much a frontier of civilization. Much of the nation is composed of rough foothills, which rise into the still-unexplored northern reaches of the Janos Mountains. Periodic raids by giants from the interior of the mountains are met with harsh resistance by the highlanders of the region, who often feel that they're on their own so far from the wealth of the lowlanders and their troubles with Thet. The dwarves have done a great deal to insure that the highlanders see much of the wealth that is flowing into the nation, but there is still a very deeply ingrained feeling of isolation between the people of the hills, who must face the Thesh threat, and the mountain folk, who face periodic raids from the giants. The Janos mountains are composed of towering rocks and deep, narrow valleys and still possess secrets dwarven and human, as well as mysteries more alien. Local legend holds that the capital of a once-great empire lay somewhere in the region but few, if any, know where the ruins of that ancient capital lie. The only visible sign of this empire's power are paved roads which criss-cross the country, some of which are still used and some of which abruptly disappear into rubble, their ancient destinations unknown.
Economy
Valduran is the chief trade center for the dwarven kingdom of the Janos Mountains and, thus exports a great deal of worked metals, including weapons and armor that are not needed in defense of the Borderlands. Though sheep herding is significant in the region, the rocky land does not lend itself well to agriculture and foodstuffs are its most significant import. The dwarves of the region are rarely interested in luxury items, though the recent influx of wealth has made it an interest of the humans and items from as far away as Aebasa can be found in some of the larger markets. Though there is no serious shortage of wood in the region, timber is often imported from the hobbit nation of Hartland, where a few human merchant companies are allowed to harvest trees in carefully measured lots.
Religion
The worship of Baelthor/Balthor has seen a tremendous increase in popularity in the twelve years since the dwarves began to come into the region and the temple at Eisennstadt is believed to be the first dwarven-human temple to the god of the Earth. Virtus, god of courage, has long been popular in the Borderlands, particularly among the warriors from Halgard, though the worship of Vortumnus, god of honor, among the men from Haleland has not caught on as quickly. Evander, god of gates, is popular as well, as his priests are often the final line of defense against the Thesh forces who would dominate the region. Sarped, the god of guardians known as Sarpedon in the west, is not particularly popular in the region, but highly respected due to the actions of the Rovers of Gaveric, a loosely organized group of rangers dedicated to protecting the free people of the region from the depredations of orcs, giants and the Thesh. Bellona, goddess of wealth, has seen an increase in support in the region though Minar, god of merchants who is known as Minos in the west, is not particularly popular because of his association with the Oridalic merchants who are rumored to be attempting to change the Codex to support a Guild-controlled government amongst the humans. No worshippers are prohibited from practicing in the region, as long as they observe the local laws and customs, though the worshippers of Britomaris, god of thieves, are distrusted and often discriminated against both for their larcenous ways, which the dwarves do not tolerate, and their association with the spies of Nadera, who dwarves and humans alike do not tolerate.
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