Tyriv’s Teachings – Introduction

Welcome readers! My name is Tyriv Riswor. I am the Headmaster of the the University of Olmkala, and personal Sage to King Arion. My own education came from the Imperial Academy, where I was a scholar of humanities, graduating with the highest honors.

After the Empire fell, and the Demons were eradicating all vestiges of eduction, I went into hiding. I spent the years of the Demon King wandering throughout Elhal, living among different cultures, and learning their ways and history. Unaware of how long the reign of the Demons would continue, I made it a point to document my experiences and the knowledge gained, and hid these documents in caches throughout the lands.

When King Arion liberated Olmkala, I made my way there to serve him. During the war, I helped to restore Olmkala’s ancient library, and served as an advisor for the King. After the fall of the Demon King, King Arion requested that I open a new University, in the traditions of the Imperial Academy.

Since then, I have dispatched scholars to recover my caches of writings, to assemble them into a larger work; the very work you are reading now. The pages that follow will detail the lands of Elhal, its culture, our religion and beliefs. All of what I have documented here is as unbiased as possible, though from time to time I will include my own thoughts .

What then is Elhal?

Geographically, Elhal is a continent located in a larger world. A world we humans have not explored due to our inabilities to navigate beyond the sight of our shores. Because of our lack of exploration, we use the word Elhal to talk about both the continent and the world.

We do know that there are other continents beyond Elhal. The Orcs lands are to the East, and the Hobgoblin lands are to the west. Both cultures have discovered the ability to traverse the large oceans, and both have been unwilling to provide us the means to do the same. There have been human expeditions beyond our waters, but none of those have returned, either lost once leaving our shores, unable to find their way back, or fallen to some ill fate.

The Lands Of Elhal

The continent of Elhal starts to the north, close to the ice sea, and extends to the south where it is the hottest. In the time of the Empire there were five distinct lands; four kingdoms and the Imperial District.

Vaasari

Vaasari is the northern most kingdom, whose lands start with cities built on the northern ice shelf, using the hardy Haroon pine. Being so far north, these people are the most isolated, and speak their ancient language as well as our own. They are avid fishermen, who survive on the large fish from the ice sea. The ice shelf extends south and gives way to a rocky tundra before transitioning to the Haroon pine forests, their primary source of wood.

Kotkala

The southern neighbor to Vaasari, Kotakala contains the most fertile lands in all of the kingdoms. It has a massive pine forest to the west, and plains to the east. There is a saying that if it can be grown, it was grown first in Kotakala. Those who live in the pine forests are master woodworkers and hunters, and those to the east, farmers. Kotkala has several large cities to the east, which included the University of Inkala, which rivaled the Imperial Academy. During the Fall of Inkala, the University was lost.

Stammiglin

Stammiglin borders Kotkala to the north and Monatobe to the east. Western Stammiglin is mountainous, with its massive peaks dominating the west of the lands. Eastern Stammiglin mimics the plains of central Kotkala. In the mountains, the cities are built onto and into the rock where mines run deep, providing metals and other minerals. To the east, the plainsmen are more nomadic, traveling the lands with packs of sheep and other herd animals. Stammiglin is known for its metal works, and their blacksmiths are known throughout the lands.

Monatobe

The lands of Monatobe are both feast and famine. The southern coast holds the warm lands with pristine beaches. The cities on the southern coast engage in fishing and trade. They are large port cities where goods from the other kingdoms flow, and anything can be found in their marketplaces. Central Monatobe is a hardpan desert, formed by the mountains of Stammiglin to the west. Central Monatobe has several cities, but consists mainly of nomads who travel about following water and game. Monatobe also boasts the cradle of our religion; Ceradome.

Arelean and the Demon Lands

Arelean was the Imperial District, created when the kingdoms of Vaasari, Kotkala, and Monatobe donated lands for its formation. It was the home of the Emperor and the Imperial lines. Arelean was full of beautiful cities, as well as the Imperial Academy, the War College, and Archmage Conclave. In the Fall of the Empire, it became home to the Demon King and its Princes.

The presence of the Demons poisoned Arelean, turning its lush lands into a wasteland. The Academy was razed, the War College turned over to the Demon Armies, and the Conclave converted into the terrible Demon Forge. Today it remains a wasteland filled with the Enshos, the palaces of the Demon Princes.

Next Lesson

To best understand how Elhal came to be, we will start with our origin, and talk about the Titans, Humanis, and the Eon Wars. After that we can look at our history, the All-Father, and the rise of the Empire.

–Professor Riswor