Way Back  Back


Featuring a large number of islands, of which 78 are inhabited. Eighty percent of Athos is mountainous, with Mount Palladius being the highest peak. The country consists of five geographic regions: Maradoni, Pelaponi, Kyklades, Gethalean, the Aeonian Islands.  Athos considers itself the cradle of civilization on the Sword Coast, being the birthplace of demarchy, philosophy, literature, logic, political science, major scientific and mathematical principles, and theatre. Athosian Kingdoms are organized into various independent city-states, known as poleis, which span the entire region along the dark channel.

United under one flag by the King Agnomakhos nearly eight hundred years ago, Arkos claims it is the oldest civilized nation. A presumption that Ethengar finds laughable. This is probably the deepest bone of contention between the two nations. Agnomakhos and his successors rapidly conquering much of the ancient world, spreading their culture and science across the ancient world. West to Theturos and North to Catalonia and beyond that ... to the icy domain of Volovik. Greater Athos eventually broke apart under its own weight. Its new governing method lacked the necessary immediacy of communication to prove effective over vast distances.  Eventually, each region was annexed by the dominant native peoples of each region. But the basis of their governing culture was Athosian and remained as an integral part of each empire and following successors, wherein the language, education, and method of logic are still obvious.

Athos' rich historical legacy is reflected in most of the Central Empire and the world beyond.  Modern Athos is a democratic and developed country with an high-income economy, a high quality of life, and a very high standard of living. A founding member of the Nine Key Nations of the Central Empire, it's nobility are also members of numerous other trade councils and economic development guilds throughout the Empire - Sanctioned by Athosian royalty. Athos' geostrategic importance to the Central Empire classifies it as a middle power.

History as written by nations outside of Athos
Legend says that in the light of the first civilized days after the fall of the Age of Dreams -  the then joint kingdoms of both Athos and Theturos was ruled by an Eternal Tyrant. A demon born of man and celestial light, a Nephilim — a hooded warlord who rode a great flying beast. The Tyrant Agnomakhios ruled with an iron fist for centuries, apparently immortal, outliving the generations of Leonin that he used as his soldiers and personal guard. The Iron tyrant aggressively expanded his empire into the wyld beyond the northern forests and the western mountains, imposing his merciless order over nature itself wherever he went. Mortals bent themselves to his will because his methods beat back the Savage Wild. It is believed that the Gods granted powerful magic to the thaumaturgists to help the oppressed overthrow the Arch-demon. The soldiers of those nations cast out the Leonin, and free Athos – to reclaim their own Destiny.

Once victorious over the Iron Tyrant the people founded the enlightened Metropolis of Meletos from Agnomakhos’s first Port city. And establishing order at the Metropolis of Arturo (in Theturos) at the Southernwestern edge of the Kings Highway; effectively dividing the nations of Theturos and Athos.

Truth?
Could they be but found in the modern world, the Leonin might have their own version of these events. But it would appear that sightings of this great cat-like race are less common than stories about them. This race is believed to have gone extinct during the Days of Rage.

Athos was born from the defeat of tyranny, and to this day it retains a spirit of the triumph of free thought over brutish force. Athosians pride themselves on their great temples to the gods, their academy, their great works of architecture, and for their Reverent Army. Field and river, city and sea. Meletos sits on the coast, surrounded by rivers and its vast, chain of island states. Grasslands of a cultivated barley called Sitra provide sustenance to Athosian men and their animals. Branches of the river Kheir splay out across the landscape, bringing fresh water and trade from distant villages.

A Hub of civilization. The great temples of Athos are testaments to the achievements of an uncivilized age reclaimed by the compassion of modern men. Signs of architectural and academic achievement are everywhere. Even the streets are formed of bricks of interlocking geometric shapes, demonstrating mathematical and mystical principles. The wild-lands of Arkos feel distant, almost mythical, from inside the city’s bounds.

Top