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EKSTASIA
EASTERN CONTINENT GYRUSIA
In ancient times, during the Gyrus Dynasty (approx. 2000 years ago), the entire continent was unified under the conqueror Temporania Gyrus VII, until Anurathion the Frog God was awakened by the Vampire rebellion under the undead conqueror Ilium Guk and plummeted the continent into chaos. Now, it is a lawless and chaotic land. The Principality of Guk, whose sovereign leader Prince Guk maintains closed borders by employing mercenary Elites, with whom the government of Guk has a shadowy arrangement. Vampires are all but fully banished from Guk, except under the employ of his rule as an army for hire. The realms to the east of the continent remain largely neutral, and are united under the Confederacy of Zither. After being forced from their land, the Elven exiles of Abacus to the west settled the area known now as Zither. The various City States maintained themselves through strong defense and fortification until opening their borders once self-reliance was established. Now, they face political enemies from within, vying for power through corruption and chaos. Zither is plagued with a variety of ethos, some of which are elf-supremacist, which many argue is the result of unresolved generational traumas due to imperialism. The Northeast Kingdom, which caps the northmost region of Gyrusia, is home to the Thief King and the various houses, families, and groups that every 12 years battle for the throne. Who ever wins takes the throne and with it massive tithes from all who use the land for smuggling or hiding from the rest of the world. It is a den for thieves, smugglers, pirates, criminals and outcasts. Ancient magic lies buried in its mountains and lakes, and recent disturbances have awakened the old gods who have been resting for millenia.
WESTERN CONTINENT HOLLINDAGEN
Much of Hollindagen’s recent history was shaped by the emergence of the Chalkanium: a white human-supremacist empire hellbent on remaking the world in its narrow dogmatic worldview. At least, this remains central to its central ethos. The Chalkanium has fallen under decay in its 169 years of conquest. Its leadership, afflicted by multiple diseases and setbacks, has become weak and impotent in its ways. The rest of Ekstasia awaits the empire’s collapse; yet somehow, the empire always has found ways to further subjugate and conquer. The ancient kingdom of Abacus, a flourishing dark-skinned Elven ethnostate was wiped from the map 169 years ago when the Chalkanium ravaged its land and obliterated the Abacus way of life through calculated ethnic cleansing and genocide. It is said that the Chalkanian Empire worships the god of metal, war and supremacy: Industrios. This has had devastating consequences on the world of Ekstasia, namely the scattering of several ethnic and racial groups into an extreme diaspora that has all but completely eliminated the old ways of living as part of nature in that region. Over the centuries, the nationstates of Phaedra and Lauzeta, now split into two nations, in addition to the Sultanate of Niminya, have been able to resist the advances of the Chalkanium. This is because of their military strength, superior defensive strategy, and strong relations with each other.
Ekstasian Alliance:
Composed of the Duchy of Lauzeta, the Kingdom of Phaedra, and the Sultanate of Niminya. Lauzeta and Phaedra were originally one nation called Altawam or Altawama. Humans, halflings, tieflings, orcs, half elves and dwarves populate this part of the world. They exist consolidated under their respective national rulers; however, much of this part of the world is free from class distinctions and all the land and means of production are shared, especially in the Sultanate of Niminya which according to rumors as of 162 CE (Chalkanium Era) is getting ready to merge with its allies Lauzeta and Phaedra to become the Syndicalist Republic of Ekstasis, provided the Chalkanium collapse in on itself.
The Chalkanium:
A fascist empire consisting of human-supremacists, they convinced the tiefling tribes of Chaitius and Lablake to turn on their own people and thus began the Chalkanian Empire. Now those tribes, along with the orc tribes Lauzetaya, Ora, and Tousayl, have been subjugated and enslaved by the cunning Sorcerer Legions of Chalkania 160 years ago. For the last 160 years the Chalkanium has conquered the neighboring nations of Chaitius, Egebamyasi, Tousayl-Sona, the Dragonborn Isles of Unasz, and has sealed off the mysterious land known as the Whisper, which is the site of many unexplained occurrences such as the sudden disappearance of Chalkanian Legions who enter the lands in conquest. The Chalkanium has been held at bay by its neighbors to the northwest; the three kingdoms known as the Ekstasian Alliance. Most of the names of the towns and land features of the Chalkanium have been renamed after notable Chalkies, with several exceptions in which the original names were preserved as a way to falsely oblige treaties (land acknowledgment). Many of its natural resources in the provinces and colonies have been used up; the resource in the heart of the empire, Central Chalkania, is being hoarded by the Empire. Most of the climate in the Chalkanian Provinces and colonies are desolate and strangled earth; churned and burned by industry and warfare. Due to the low intelligence of its historians and politicians (yet extreme nationalist pride and ego) a lot of the names given to themselves and their conquered regions seek to empower themselves with mighty prefixes and suffixes belonging to dragons and other subjugated beings. However, they still have fragile egos that overcompensate, and often their successes in worldly domination is due to dumb luck. Or perhaps there is a larger plan at play in the shadows….
ISLANDS AND REACHES
The two main continents of Ekstasia, Gyrusia and Hollindagen, were once joined as one large continent in prehistoric times. Legend says it was referred to as the Mariposita, the small butterfly, because of its shape resembling such. This word was used by the gods Ekstasia (Creator of the world) and Industrios (counterbalance God of destruction), and their offspring Phaedranos, Lauzetana, Niminyaio, Higgsry, and Gyrusianas. Industrios created the demigods of the world called Hollind, Anurathion, and Unasz, with the intention of having them battle each other for his entertainment. His children, Higgsry of the Goliaths, and Gyrusianas of the gnomes, tried to stop the fighting and were killed by Industrios. Furious with this heinous act, Ekstasia killed Industrios. This then began an age of people, non deity beings with free will, the many races of Ekstasia, descendants of these gods and demigods. Ekstasia then created the demigods Eye (fox god of western humans), and the nonbinary siblings Adi & Aba (elf gods). With the death of Higgsry, his soul was split into the Goliaths who were then exiled to the northwestern most islands of Ekstasia. When Gyrusianas was killed, her soul was split into the gnome race who were then exiled to what is now called Rustwind. Hollind, a prankster god who is often referred to as the son of Higgsry, created the humans and specifically the Chal tribe who were then corrupted by the soul of Industrios, thus empowering them to become the Chalkanian empire.