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The Wellspring of Knowledge


The continent of Arkos is a huge dual landmass. Despite the loss of knowledge of its interior, this fact has been well proven by the combined maps of sailors over the centuries. The time necessary to sail its circumference lies in the range of a dozen months, or two - depending on the discipline of the captain, the bravery of the crew, and the depth of the ship's keel.

But sailing around Arkos can't be said to be the same as circumnavigating the globe. Arkos, though large, is potentially only one (two?) continent(s) of many? Beyond the horizon is what sailors call the 'Deep Blue' ocean - where no other known shore ever in sight.  [Is Arkos, Pangea?] It's from there that the Charduni said they came from. And the sailors of Arkos have yet failed to prove them right ... or wrong.  Common wisdom holds that the Charduni must have come from some other port heretofore unfound. But it's been hundreds of years since that contact and their home nation hasn't been found. Lending to the persistent belief that it could be true, the Charduni are a race from beyond the great deep.

Geography
The southeasternmost tip of the known world is Athos, the longest populated coastline of all of the nations of the Central Empire.
To the west of Athos lies the steppes and jungles of Theturos, a wilderness of nature domesticated by the tenacity of fighting men.


Basic Geography
*DC: 0*
* The commonly accepted name for the known world is 'ARKOS'.
* Land which *can* be cultivated is typically over-abundantly productive. There is typically a very, very short fallow cycle until the earth is productive again. ONLY WINTER provides a lack of a growing season in Arkos. This is one behavior of a set of collected attributes called the Savage Wyld.
* The majority of any claimed nation's land is "claimed" not settled or even defended.  Noble's militia guard roads, towns and cities... not borders.
* Most 'nations' only exist as lines on a map - at best defined by what town speaks which language.  A truer map of each nation would show a much greater area of wilderness.
* The remnants of war and spilled blood are not so far gone in the distant the memory of the land that anyone traveling the road might not stumble upon a human skeleton with well-made arrows piercing them. Or seeing discarded bits of armor and weapons in the overgrown bush.

*DC: 5*
* The nations of the Central Empire exist on two VERY LARGE land masses positioned very close together - between them lies a long chain of seas that connecting once ocean to the other.
* The Central Empire is composed of Eight separate Nations but there are Nine 'Key Powers' - The Scarlet Empire, Theturos, Mount Athos, Valsgarde, Volovik Horde, Novus Ordum, Catalonia, Ethangar AND the Church Triumphant.
* The 'Provinces' are essentially collections of large towns with established interrelated trade economies which have elected to join with the largest city - forming the nations as we know them.
* The farther from each nations 'capital' city any town is - the less worldly it's resident's attitudes become but these individuals are often less dependent on external support, as well. Any stereotypical presumption that could apply to city slicker vs country bumpkin archetypes may be assumed to exist. This behavior will include all caste of individuals - including 'country born nobles' vs 'blueblooded aristocracy'.
* Many 'smaller' towns are best described as colonies established from the nation's prime city founded hundreds of years ago, as colonists left the primary cities to search for resources and liberty.

*DC:10*
* Several large island chains exist around the fringe of either continent (think island chains like England, not Hawaii). There is no unanimous agreement upon names of landmasses to provide more than the names of various nations or cities.
* Each Nation's 'Primary city' is built on a coast as in comparison to sailing, crossing the country on foot is VERY dangerous.
* A nation which is active within their own borders is considered very powerful because they have access to their own resources.
* Countries who are not sufficiently mobile within their own borders are dependent upon trade and diplomacy with other nations - these are weaker nations in the Imperial pecking order.
* Arguably - the priority of most to least powerful nations of the central 8 Nations are - Theturos, The Scarlet Empire, Catalonia, Mount Athos, Valsgarde, Volovik,  Novus Ordum, Kalishi ..  on the basis of internal resources harvested and products manufactured and traded.
* Some patches of natural earth are no longer cultivatable due to the amount of blood spilled from centuries of war. There are areas where life exists but grows stunted, dark, and perverse.

*DC: 15*
* The general geography has a spread of possible climates but does not appear to include any of the following types in large enough area to be noticeable.  Icecap Climates (Glacial) Although certain mountains are sufficiently high to have snow all year round.  Tropical Climates (No triple canopy rainforests or Savannas)
* The Central Empire's typical Climate will depend on elevation and season but generally it varies between Semi-arid, Desert, Subtropical, Humid, and Highland. (For relatability that's basically all possible weather conditions for the continental United States.)
* Because each prime city is on the coast of its nation - the frontier of that nation is not always toward the outside of the continent. This means the border kingdoms, frontier towns, and other 'far' points may be closer to each other than each of the prime cities are to each other.
* Ruins exist on every continent despite how often 'we' point to other continents being filled with savage descendent of once great ancient civilizations.
* 'Explorers' always talk about finding the lost treasure of some ancient civilization by happy chance - but randomly walking in a direction in the wild an explorer is more likely to find death patiently waiting for him.
** In the order of probability in finding some humanoid designed structure when 'off road'; an explorer is most likely to find an old bit of shelter over a graveyard, a graveyard over an abandoned town, an abandoned town over a ruin.
** A ruin with some sort of lost treasure in it tends to remain lost for a reason - monsters, cultists, traps, hazards, etc.
** Those ruins which exist off the old roads are rare. A person would NEED a map to find one. And a guide to using the map. And a  good guide to not die while traveling off of the road.

NOT REMOTELY WELL KNOWN
*DC: 20*
* The Nine nations of the Central Empire claim huge portions of the two land masses. But they are only really representative of the Nine Largest Cities.
* There are roads that link these cities to outside towns and each other - that are older than the cultures which currently exist. There are new roads and new towns - these roads require maintenance before they are overgrown by the Savage wyld.
* While the old roads do not require maintenance in this way they are not necessarily any safer. In fact they may be a good deal less - as they pass near ruins, through graveyards, under 'hill and dale', and over mountain winding widdershins.
* Occasionally an old road will be broken as the land breaks underneath it -  in those places the savage wyld will overgrow the old road.
* Other times old roads will abruptly end without marker but the  Savage Wyld will still not overgrow the natural area after such an ending.
* Recent battlefields are more likely to be the culprit of shambling dead spawning than ancient graveyards.

REALLY REALLY UNCOMMON KNOWLEDGE
*DC: 25*
* Abrupt Old Road endings are indicative of the existence of a Gate (A nexus, a portal, or waypoint)
* Gateways may include any demarcation of a portal opening. Freestanding doorframes. Arches - carved in rock or wood ; - cultivated of bushes, trees or vine; - drawn in ink, sand, or shadow.
* Most gateways are inactive. Stories abound of permanently active ones which sporadically operate... like an invisible revolving door.

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