Chapter IV · The World
Usmon
- Government
- Various Councils, the most prominent being the Council of Arcanum
- Known For
- The largest collection of aetheric artifacts, the greatest academy and monastery, Justicars, neutrality
- Places
- Azmar, Dawsbury, Myrefall, Peltragow, Runswick, Eldritch Mountains, Lake of Sorrow, Swamp of Pestilence
- Treaty
- No war machines or souldriven may cross Usmon's borders
- Currency
- Bronze Council talents; 1 glim = 2 talents (see Money)
Usmon likes to think it is above the wars of other nations. It stays out of them, keeps its streets clean, frowns on machines and locks its artifacts in a vault. Other nations suspect it has been supplying those wars all along.
Neutrality
Usmon made an agreement with Adryae and gave it a powerful artifact that redirected souls. In exchange, Adryae keeps all war machines out of Usmon and provides military support outside Usmon's borders. The Council of Arcanum boasts that this treaty brought peace. Any souldriven found near the border is recycled. Usmon's trains carry trade and passengers, not troops, and airships are banned. Some say the Council's neutrality is really a long game: let the other nations exhaust themselves with weapons Usmon provided, then unite the continent under one banner.
Life in Usmon
Using machines to do one's work is frowned upon in Usmon, and people resent the idea of soulless automatons replacing them. Forge-grafting and aetheric manipulation are forbidden unless one belongs to the Council of Arcanum. The Custodians keep the city streets clear of rubbish and beggars.
The Wild South
Southern Usmon is mostly dryad-style country. Its people reject all technology and focus on life and flux. Their hatred of technology and outsiders gave the region a bad name, and cartographers weren't kind when naming it: the Lake of Sorrow, the Swamp of Pestilence. Despite the names, the people who live there do so in harmony.
Politics
Council of Arcanum
Rules over Usmon and maintains the largest collection of aetheric artifacts in Eldriloch, as well as its largest academy and monastery. The Council was formed by members of the ancient Arcanum Order and claims a purely academic purpose. Its critics see aging, power-hungry bureaucrats led by the vain Grand Councilor Hogem. Members vote on everything, but everyone knows who decides.
Custodians of the Living Light
The spiritual protectors and caretakers of Usmon, working directly under the Wardens of the Celestial Covenant. Their elders sit at the monastery in Peltragow.
High Tribunal of Blades
The highest order of Justicars, stationed in Runswick. It trains every Justicar, along with warriors sent from other nations. See High Tribunal of Blades.
Justicars
Usmon's knights, trained to a higher standard than any city guard. See the justicar class and the High Tribunal of Blades.
Peltragow
The second-largest city in Usmon. Its center began as a stone keep and kept growing for generations, as masons added rooms high and wide until it looked like a stretched-out pyramid. Wealthy families live on the outer edges, offices and great halls fill the inner sections, and at the very center lies the vault of the Council of Arcanum. The vault is ringed with aetheric traps, and rumor says it is big enough to hold an airship. Peltragow houses both the Custodians of the Living Light and the Council of Arcanum, and its monastery is the most prestigious in Eldriloch.
Runswick
Usmon's capital and bastion, the city that keeps other nations out of Usmon. Runswick is magnificent: home to the High Tribunal of Blades, the training yards where every Justicar is made, and the legendary Runswick blacksmiths. Warriors from every nation come here to train, and most leave without being knighted. The rail line runs through the canyon pass in the Eldritch Mountains straight to its gates, and nothing has ever forced its walls.
Dawsbury
The largest city near the west coast, shielded by the Eldritch Mountains to its east. It is very well protected and, by some accounts, the most boring place in Usmon.
Myrefall
A city famous for its baths. Its accent is close to Peltragow's.
Other Places
Entries for Azmar, the Eldritch Mountains, the Lake of Sorrow and the Swamp of Pestilence.