The story of Lebester is largely the story of the West. What used to be the most vast and powerful kingdom in the West, the fall of Lebester began with the death of an heirless king. What followed were years of in-fighting, kin-strife, and eventually all-out civil war. This led to the nation losing vast amounts of territory, encompassing what is now the nation of Scond, the territory of Tira, as well as most of southern Orelle. After decades ruled by the High Council, a long-lost true heir to the throne emerged. With leadership renewed the people rejoiced and the kingdom of Lebester finally entered a period of peace and stability that lasts to this day under the leadership of current king Alester Greyne.


For much of history the country now known as Orelle was mostly a vast territory of independent towns, villages, and trading posts. With no real rule to speak of other than the territories eked out by merchant lords, bandit kings and barons, the northern Orelle territory was mostly lawless and free. With the turmoil in the Lebestran capital region, however, large portions of the southern Orelle territory were left without any tangible imperial presence. Powerful, intelligent and shrewd Trade Princes emerged to fill the power gap and protect the people, slowly uniting the country. A declaration of independence was issued from Knifestone, Orelle’s largest city and trade capital for the West. The Lebestran government had no choice but to cede control of the region.


If adventure is in your heart, then Lavonne is your home. On the frontier of exploration, Lavonne boasts more heroes, adventurers, archaeologists, treasure hunters, explorers, and pretty much any other occupation dedicated to finding somewhere or something dangerous or fascinating than any other country in the West.


In the southern Lebestran territories, far from the attention of the crown, lived a ruthless baron who rallied like-minded people around him and defied the king, attacking cities with heavy imperial presense and sowing the seeds for a civil war that would erupt with the breakdown in governance following the king’s death. A brilliant but brutal strategist, Baron Scond led the disenfranchised people of the south to rise up against the empire and eventual independence. A nation born of blood, however, will never truly be free. The spoils of war brought unprecedented wealth to the people of Scond, and with it came safety and, more importantly, education. Slowly becoming illuminated to the atrocities carried out by their leader and how truly free they could be without him, Scond once more overthrew a ruler, finally attaining a government representative of its people. Scond is now a flourishing, peaceful country, but this has done very little to change opinions of its people throughout the West.


While landlocked, the kingdom of Argose, being in the rain shadow of both the Greatshadow and Northcap mountain ranges and crisscrossed with rivers, has built itself on the back of agriculture and industry. Far removed from the political turmoil of the south, Argose has largely remained free of strife. Combined with the richness of its land and its vast natural resources, Argose is proud of the centuries of peace, prosperity, and tradition it has created in the region.


Not as much a nation as it is a region no one else seems willing to claim, the territory of Borea is bordered by dense forests in the south and the frozen, impenetrable Northcap Mountains to the north. The sliver of habitable land there is is home mostly to small rugged villages, trade posts, and whaling towns.


A group of monks and scholars sequestered on the Isle of Tira, their members were always present in the highest echelons of Lebestran government. Their elders possessing skills in sagacity, the Brotherhood predicted that it could not survive if it remained tied up in Lebester’s strife, or strife of any kind. Using the power and respect they had accrued among the population of Lebester, they removed themselves from the kingdom, thus beginning the current reckoning of years.


The South Seas are feared across the West as being home to terrifying sea monsters and vicious pirates. A vast archipelago surrounded by tempestuous waves, the Shards of the South are rumored to be the remnants of a former landmass, sunk in ages lost to time by a vengeful god, terrible magic, or a cataclysmic beast, depending on one’s preferred superstition.