A Tumultuous History

The continent of Ghiyar has always been shaped by conflict. From the early, barbaric skirmishes between Human clans and Orc tribes, to the greatest war in the land's history, The Claiming War, also known as the war that never ended. Nearly five hundred years ago, the continent of Ghiyar, less civilized than any of its counterparts, became the prize in a prodigious war between all major powers of the world. However, merely five nations were potent enough to war competitively for dominance over Ghiyar. The five nations were the Elven Imperial Alliance of the Southeast Isles, the Dwarven kingdom of Krune, the Gnomish Grand Clergy, the Human Council of True Breath, and the Human dictatorship of Inthor. For decades, the five nations warred, with none of them making progress that could help them triumph. Eventually, the five nations had unleashed so much destructive power on each other that all sides involved lost millions of soldiers, thousands of technologies, and immense monetary funds. After seventy-two years of conflict, the five nations became so infuriated by their lack of victory that they agreed to create a treaty that would allow them to postpone the war for five hundred years, allowing them all to prepare weaponry and strategems. With the war postponed, life in Ghiyar limped back into prominence. The settlers left behind by the five nations had varied fates, unlike the furious natives, who united to drive any vestiges of the five nations away. The Elven settlers were quickly murdered by Human clans, as were the Dwarven colonists. The Gnomish colonists survived for a while, but were annihilated by a Hobgoblin army in short enough time. However, the most desirable fates were those of the two Human ethnic groups introduced to the continent. The Inthoseran Humans from Inthor were accepted by the people of Ghiyar's newly-created cities quickly and with only minimal complaint. While their integration was not as rapid as that of the Inthoseran colonists, the Chuur of True Breath slowly became common in Ghiyar's more metropolitan areas.
Over the four hundred ninety-seven years that have passed since the temporizing of The Claiming War, life, technology, and culture has flourished on Ghiyar. The Humans who once lived in violent clans have largely abandoned their old ways, and the continent's cities have become incredibly advanced. For centuries, the emotion of Ghiyar's general populace has been optimism. That, of course, all changed when it was remembered by the governments of Ghiyar that The Claiming War had only been postponed, not ended. Only war preperations are important to the governments of the continent, so economic and social benefits have vanished as rapidly as happiness and contentment. With social norms flung into the void, factories employ children to manufacture weaponry, mine for the components of flash bombs, and--

The Unified Theocratic Republics of Vhae

Comprised of seventeen provinces governed by priest-politicians who worship the god known as The Caregiver, The United Theocratic Republics of Vhae are ruled by a council of seventeen clerical representatives who live in the capital city of Vhegeneda, but work on the behalf of their native provinces. Life in the Republics is fairly bearable when compared to life in the other major nations of Ghiyar, but the majority of the country's inhabitants live in poverty. Despite its rigid theocratic structure, the nation's laws and customs are greatly affected by the eight most powerful noble houses of Vhegeneda, which are not subject to clerical review. The basic statutes of the country's legal system are based on the one law that takes precedence above all others: Thou shalt worship The Caregiver. Showing reverence to any deity other than The Caregiver is forbidden in the Republics, and those found guilty of worshipping a deity other than The Caregiver are sentenced to decades in prison, and sometimes to execution.

Saghriyar

Founded by Nhogannish druids shortly after The Claiming War, Saghriyar is a country ruled by druidic enclaves that only defer to the central government (made up of law scholars and bureaucrats that attend to legal matters and foreign policy) under dire circumstances. Most regions under Saghriyaran control are controlled by a few druid-oligarchs who govern as they see fit. The country's decentralized, somewhat chaotic system of governance has led to political and social turmoil in the troubled modern times. All religons are welcome to create temples and churches in Saghriyar, but only the Old Faith, Druidism that is, attracts a significant number of adherents. The standard of living in Saghriyar is extremely low, nearly 90% of its populace is made up of subsistence farmers who spend their lives growing food for their communities, earning minimal amounts of money for their work. Most people in Saghriyar own only one set of clothing, likely handmade, and eat a maximum of two meals per day. In contrast, the most wealthy Saghriyaran citizens live like lords, but without attending to any lordly duties.

Tryvyzym

A Goblinoid nation of great military might, Tryvyzym has endured for longer than any of the other major four nations, as its founding predates The Claiming War. It is ruled by an absolute dictator who reigns for life, and no dissent is tolerated. Everything in Tryvyzymian life is regimented, from its harsh intolerance of any religon other than Allochrism to its mandatory military service of at least three years that is required of every able-bodied citizen. Tryvyzym's armies are the largest and best-trained in Ghiyar, and each is devoted to one of the 99 Metallic Spirits worshiped by followers of Allochrism. As a result of its military power, Tryvyzym is rarely attacked by other nations, and has never been significantly degraded by any. The standard of living in Tryvyzym is low in most areas, but extremely high in the capital of Hilden, located in the dusty barrens that lie behind the Copperlight Mountains. The current dictator of Tryvyzym, Razyshi Yttikar, has recently prevented any outsiders from entering Tryvyzym's boarders, citing security concerns, a phenomenon that has worried scholars of war, who say that the country may be preparing to conquer again.

UumVexNyo

The kleptocracy of UumVexNyo was founded by pragmatic XaanLoan nobles who survived The Claiming War. When the calamitous battles finally subsided, four lords arose from the ashen ruins of XaanLoan civilization and rebuilt their great city of VinSaai, which was a place of culture and wealth, and created a new government, based on enriching their families and themselves, often at the expense of their subjects. The standard of living in UumVexNyo, archetypal of a kleptocracy, is punishingly low. The average citizen of UumVexNyo eats a meager one meal per day, owns one change of clothing, and lives in a crowded, communal house. The country's factories are productive, but only because of child labor, and it is able to create an impressive number of textiles and weapons. Surprisingly, UumVexNyo has strict policies against excessive exporting of its products, which are deemed "essential to national needs". Instead, it sells gemstones and metals mined in the GomFaar Mountains to increse its wealth. Many religons are followed in the country, but to most common is YyrMuuLaism, which features a tight pantheon of deities.

The Grand Variety

Countless humanoid beings exist on countless planes, providing an endless variety of life's glorious manifestation. Listed below are the most common and well known humanoid groups that exist on the world of Lhaervyn, home to Ghiyar and many other lands. First listed are a variety of Human ethnicities, but certainly not all of them, that exist on Lhaervyn. Those common in Ghiyar are given their own section, as are those considered foreigners by Ghiyarans.

Viakuran

Vy-uh-ker-En
Fair-skinned and blonde, the Viakur were once the most numerous of the nomadic steppes tribes who warred in the mountains long before greater Ghiyar was settled. Over the centuries, the tribes of antiquity morphed into noble houses that remain powerful still. The ancient Viakuran deities once revered have long been forgotten, as much of Viakur tradition was abandoned after the semi-successful colonization of Northern Ghiyar. Curiously, the Viakur are the only Human ethnic group native to Ghiyar in which blue eye color is common.

Viakuran Names: (Male) Amrest, Bjarrik, Dorn, Doffen, Medrikh, Yorlan; (Female) Anova, Bouna, Deshina, Famavielle, Omje, Myrjon, Yggane; (Surnames) Tendal, Mjar, Borith, Darnev, Mythoag, Yerrin.

Nhogannish

No-gannish
In the days before Northern Ghiyar's colonization, the Nhogan clans skirmished with those of the Viakur, and among themselves. Nhogannish Humans are characterized by their red hair, brown or green eyes, and fair skin. When Ghiyar was fought over, the Nhogan clans were enslaved by desperate Viakuran nobles, and remained slaves for three centuries after the postponing of The Claiming War before they were freed. Nhogannish naming conventions do not differentiate between male and female names, applying the same to both men and women.

Noghannish Names: (Names) Arravil, Boon, Farliam, Gurney, Manon, Vwendil, Yeemas; (Surnames) Owyn, Ronag, Seshir, Kara, Lamoral, Zynneth.

Vymnan

Vim-nan
For thousands of years before Ghiyar's colonization, the Vymn inhabited the extreme northwest portion of the continent. They were shielded from others by the mountains for millennia before the events of Ghiyar's colonization, rendering them defenseless to the violence that fell upon them soon after The Establishing Wars. Nearly wiped out during the Genocides of 1203, the Vymn fled their ancestral homeland in splintered tribes, hid for decades, and then completely integrated themselves into the continent's newfound cities. Over the centuries, the Vymn have become a large ethnic group in Northern Ghiyar's cities. Vymnan Humans are short of stature, and have fair skin, raven-black hair, and dark eyes.

Vymnan Names: (Male) Nikolain, Vohkitri, Ametisliv, Ratimir, Velitok, Dogrobov; (Female) Dashi, Ekta, Magdai, Raisaza, Soziya, Tatyila, Verna, Zari; (Surnames) Yachirslovit, Vharitovik, Kovimovli, Natishov, Togrodob, Zodislev.

Sheshi

Shesh-Ee
The dominant Human ethnicity in Central Ghiyar before the continent's colonization, Sheshi Humans lived in grandiloquent communities for centuries before the arrival of the first colonizers of Ghiyar. During The Establishing Wars, the Sheshi were enslaved by the Elven invaders from the extreme southwest isles near the South Pole. Due to this ancient wrong committed against them, most Sheshi families tell their children frightful tales about Elven evil, and teach them to despise Elves. Sheshi Humans are taller on average than most other humans. They have tawny skin, blonde or brown hair, and brown or green eyes.

Sheshi Names: (Male) Avan, Bokor, Certh, Ferrog, Eramor, Hurd; (Female) Aleira, Betha, Ern, Fougin, Marill, Voili; (Surnames) Dinroster, Fenwollen, Golrith, Hikentarver, Shamabaster.

Zhekken

Jek-In
Golden-skinned and brown-eyed, the dark-haired Zhekken have lived in Southern Ghiyar's salt swamps for thousands of years. Mostly unaffected by The Establishing Wars, the Zhekken kingdoms have matured almost independently from the rest of the continent, developing strange magics and technologies. During the wars of old, the Zhekken utilized their magic to repel invaders, and they possess those secrets still. The kingdoms of the Zhekken are each centered around a powerful, god-like entity revered by the kingdom's people. These entities vary wildly, and could be anything from a Demon to a Naga. Generations of exposure to the viruses carried by the insects of the salt swamps have rendered Humans of Zhekken descent almost immune to multitudinous diseases of the swamps. Although all Zhekken Humans in a single kingdom may share a verbal surname, each family has its own unique tattoo pattern that family members have inscribed onto their skin at age 13. This is to differentiate between families without the use of surnames.

Zhekken Names: (Male) Ard, Bu, Feen, Di, Gu; (Female) Chu, Cha, Zhu, Zhi, Jen; (surnames) the name of the entity worshiped by the individual's parents.

Variant Rule: Trusted Steed

As Halflings are nomadic travelers, a Halfling adventurer surely has a steed of some sort that they have traveled with since their childhood. When you create your Halfling character, you can choose to start play with one of the following steeds: mastiff, wolf, giant wolf spider, giant fox (wolf statistics), or any other beast of CR 1/4 or lower that lacks a fly speed. Your steed can't attack in combat, and you can't command it to attack for any reason. In exchange for receiving a steed, you must forfeit your right to either one weapon from your starting equipment or 20 gp from your starting wealth.