The Kingdoms:
There are 9 Kingdoms on the continent. In the few millennia of recorded history there has never not been at least a minor war or a civil war. Usually minor wars, or throne usurpers within Kingdoms themselves, but wars between the Kingdoms as well. The Continent has changed in the last 1,000 years, the amount of Kingdoms went from 11 to 10 when Vedu and Slorick were destroyed and became the Kingdom of Pestilence 200 years ago and then to 10 to 9 when HoruTan formed 150 years ago.
Although they are not all technically, “Kingdoms”, they still get called Kingdoms to simplify any discussion of the various lands across the continent of Ptansia.
The 9 Kingdoms:
The Kingdom of Djat (Pronounced – zhat or jat): Djat is the southernmost Kingdom, a fairly small, but strong kingdom due to being rich in war resources. Nearly limitless iron ore, fertile farms and a strong trade relationship with Calydron to make up for limited fruit and fish (the waters surrounding Djat were cursed several millennia ago). Djat is nearly impenetrable on land due to a mountainous range on the North and North West of the kingdom and a giant steel wall built along the rest of the kingdoms border. Many countries have gone to war against Djat from the sea, but, barring a few villages being razed and some stolen resources, not much success was had.
Magic Relations: Djat has the highest number of Water Magic Wizards. Due to being surrounded by water, as well as its harsh and dry climate the Kingdom has invested a lot of time and money into digging deep into Water Magic. All schools but Blood, Curse and Were Magic are in Djat. Djat is the only country without a Were school due to a cultural norm that demands no man ever change their being (punishable by execution).
Names: Daughters of Djat are named after their fathers, for instance, if the father’s name is Tor, the daughter will be Tor-Seta (meaning daughter or Tor). If a father has more than one daughter the numbering convention comes in. Torta-seta, Torti-Seta, Torla-Seta and so on.
Son’s are named as the parent’s wish. Though, most names are only one or two syllables to make the naming conventions less complicated.
When a daughter is married, her name changes to the husband’s name, however instead of -Seta it is -Set. For example, Tor-Seta marries Fir, she becomes Fir-Set. There have been pushes from groups to change the naming conventions, but Djat has a very strong and devout culture, so it is likely not going to change.
The Kingdom of Calydron (pronounced kal-ee-drawn) : The smallest of the Kingdoms when it comes to landmass, but one of the largest if ocean claims are taken seriously. Calydron is made up of 100s of small islands. Calydron has been the most politically stable Kingdom of them all during the last millenia. There have been minor feuds between islands and a few Island lordship claims, but overall the King (known as the Tabar Rek) has kept diplomacy between the islands, through strong trade, and friendly competition. Calydron has strong relations with the Kingdom of Djat, thanks to mutually beneficial trade. However, due to differing opinions on oceanic rights Calydron often butts heads (and had one short 3 month war) with the Kingdom of HoruTan.
Relation to Magic: Many Master Wind Wizards come out of Calydron. Most seafarers learn at least basic Wind Magic. As well, a lot of Clerical Wizards. The only two Magic Schools that cannot be found in Calydron are Blood and Curse magic, a fairly standard affair, as no Kingdom has a Curse magic school and only one Kingdom has the gall to officially have a Blood Magic School.
Names: Children of Calydron are nameless until they have completed the trials of adulthood. The success they show in the trials, mixed with the magic they are most powerful at dictates their name. Almost all of them create nicknames based on these names as they can be wordy at times. For example, a Calydron peasant farmer with no magic, may get a fairly boring name such as, “Harvester of the Fruits”, he or she may just go by Harv or Frui, or even Haruit. Someone with intense magical ability may get a name such as “Soaring Wind ” to indicate their prowess with wind, they may go by Sorin.
Kingdom of HoruTan (pronouncedHor-OO-Tan): HoruTan was once two Kingdoms, Horuzuth and Tansini. Ironically, even though the former Kingdoms of Horuzuth and Tansini were constantly at war. There are still two Kings at a time within the country, both who live within the same giant fortress of a castle that rests within the former borders of the two countries. HoruTan is still a very warmongering culture however, some say the two Kings try to one-up each other’s attempts to be the most warlike. HoruTan rests on the other side of the mountains of Djat, and shares ocean space with Calydron. HoruTan has tried to take land from Djat many times, through the mountains and through the water, but has never come close to any success. They constantly try to initiate war with Calydron, but Calydron’s powerful Wind Wizards and superior navy ensures HoruTan gains nothing.
Names: Naming conventions in HoruTan haven’t changed too much over the millenia. Even when they were separate it was one of many shared cultural points (a fact that historians point out as interesting since it took so long for them to realise they were quite similar). All children are given a name and they take their father’s surname. If the father is unknown or disgraced they take the grandfather’s surname. Most children have very similar names as popular names tend to boom in HoruTan, especially after famous warriors. For example, the great HoruTan warrior, Pel Turo, who successfully merged the two kingdoms and then won a war against a combined Redland, Djat, and Calydron is honoured by many families. Many girls have been named Pela or Tura, many boys Pel or Turo.
For this reason, most people share their family name’s first, Mr. Verun, Mrs. Polos, etc…
Magical Relations: The only Kingdom with a Blood School. It is not unheard of for HoruTan to bribe budding Water Wizards from Yaudi and Djat to become Blood Wizards for their armies. The only Wizard schools they do not have are Curse and Luck. HoruTan culture dictates that there is no such thing as luck and a person must pave their own luck.
Yaudi (pronounced YAW-dee): Yaudi was once the most powerful Kingdom of them all. All of the best wizards were trained in the kingdom. It was at one point almost likely to be the centre of the continent, where the great King Otfe Grenti would have been emperor. But a successful assassination sent the Yaudi Kingdom into chaos, splitting the then Kingdom into 5 smaller Kingdoms. Horuzuth, Tansini, Redland, Basit and of course what was left of Yaudi. Yaudi still remains the most successful when it comes to the output of powerful Master Wizards, but lacks the resources to grow a strong army. It survives based on its ancient treaty pacts with each Kingdom. These pacts have essentially left Yaudi as a centre of culture, diplomacy, schooling and magical knowledge. The other kingdoms help fund Yaudi, and defend it as necessary to keep the deep magical knowledge away from any one specific kingdom. Most great wizards go to Yaudi School to become Master Wizards.
Magical Relations: Even after losing most of its land and power, Yaudi is still the homeland of many of the most powerful Wizards. Master Wizards of every branch of magic can be found in Yaudi, even Curse Wizards. If a Wizard wanted to ever possibly master more than one branch of magic, Yaudiis where they would want to be. It is said the land itself is blessed and therefore magic is better learned there. All schools but blood and curse magic can be found in Yaudi. However, even though there are Curse Magic schools, if one were to want to learn those schools, any books that are needed would be found there. Wizards from all over the continent ensure that the Yaudi School is provided with a copy of any book that contains anything related to magic.
Names: Since Yaudi is considered to be extremely connected to the source of magic (a source that is still not fully understood (at all depending on who you ask)). All children’s names are mediated at the Vall Erell (Great Waterfall). Because of this there aren’t really any naming conventions in Yaudi. Many High Wizards who train in Yaudi will go to the Vall Erell to meditate for a new name. These new names are respected practically continent wide.
The Kingdom of Redland (pronounced red-land) Redland is called such due to being an extremely volcanic region of the continent. However, the people that live in the Redland have a unique connection to the heat of the land and an affinity to Fire Magic unlike any other Kingdom. The people in fact, take baths in boiling, yes, boiling water. Food is scarce as not much plant life survives other than a few root vegetables that to most outside of the of the Redland Kingdom are inedible. Redland survives off of their abundance of ore, masterful blacksmithing and powerful mercenaries that are nearly immune to any sort of Fire Wizards that may be thrown at them. Due to the land, Redland is often safe from direct conflicts and war. Although no Kingdoms have ever directly attacked them, assassination attempts, legal claims and attempts at marital bonds to gain access to Redland resources are a constant worry for the Redland Kingdom. Redlander also don’t speak with pronouns. For example, if a Redlander were to say, “I am mad!” they may instead say, “Am mad!”. They do write with pronouns, so it’s unknown if it is a natural dialectical change, or through some sort of Curse Magic.
Magical Relations: Every person of Redland has basic Fire Magic, mostly only to the extent to be nearly immune to the heat of fire. So, it goes without saying that Master Fire Wizards often come out of Redland. Redland Wizards are still prone to the potential negative effects of holding fire within them.
Names: Although the other Kingdoms tend to make fun of Redland by saying that all of their children are just named Boy 1,2,3 or Girl 1, 2, 3. Redland actually has a fairly interesting naming system. One that most don’t know about since they do tend to just call themselves the third son of their father, the seventh son, or something similar. Their surnames tend to be just whatever town they were born in, or river they were born by, or just a family name that stuck through the generations. However, for their given names Redland children are named after the first sound that is heard on the child’s twelfth birthday. An especially funny story about this is when on a large portion of children’s birthdays across the Redland, Redland’s giant volcano, Rolf (yes, Rolf…) exploded (in a weirdly safe manner (luck wizards?)) so 100s if not 1,000s of children across Redland, boys and girls alike were named Rolf (why they weren’t named Kaboom or something that the sound a volcano exploding would make is a mystery).
Meritocratic Region of Basit (pronounced BAH-siht or BAW-siht):The Meritocratic Region of Basit is the farmland of the continent. Sweeping farmlands across the entire region create abundances of food and prosperity for the region. This has allowed powerful trade deals with other kingdoms, which has led to the region investing heavily into Solicitors, Merchant ships and caravans and powerful armies (though, built of mercenaries, so loyalty goes as far as gold). Though they do not wage war, they are not necessarily an ethical country, there are a lot of questionable decisions made by them. Be that as it may, the Meritocratic Region of Basit provides funding to Wizard schools across the continent, and signed an extremely lenient declaration of peace nearly immediately when the Redland Kingdom took several 1,000 acres of prime farmland. Prosperity in Peace is often considered their unofficial slogan by many.
Magic Relations: Meritocratic Region of Basit funds many of the schools across the continent. No one is entirely sure why they do so, but they do. However, the schools they push within their borders are Necromancy, Hypnotic and animal magic. They do not have blood or curse school.
Names: The Meritocratic Region of Basit values skill, profit and prosperity of everything. Therefore every family’s surname is based on their overall net worth, or usefulness to Basit. An entire lineage of names can change if a family member strikes rich or loses all of the family’s money. If a surname contains a type of metal, Platinum, Gold, Silver, Iron or even Tin then that person is from a well-off family, the type of metal is chosen at random by the kingdom’s Mercantile Overseer. Families of lower worth find themselves with surnames such as Dirt, Mud, Grass, or somewhere in the middle such as Stone, Wood, etc… The family member who was the reason for the networth shift’s name will be in the Surname as well, so if their name was Aton (a fairly common name in Basit) and they reached the higher echelon of society their families entire lineage could become something like SilverAton. Given names tend to be recycled from a rough list of about 100-300 names (it changes every time there is a government change).
Lands of Aewon (pronounced ay-whon though many pronounce it ay-ih-whon):Known also as the Kingdom of Forests to some. Thousands of forests cover the Lands of Aewon. Most of the population lives within the forests, which are all connected and primarily the same to outsiders, but have clear divisional lines to the people of the land. There are settlements and villages throughout the kingdom as well, mostly for the benefit of outsiders for trade and diplomacy. The Lands of Aewon, although mostly peacekeeping, have waged war with other kingdoms before, mostly due to ethical reasons, such as treating life and nature with respect. They have primarily waged war against Basit due to the disregard to the sanctity of life.
Magical Relations: The people of Aewon tend to have a better connection to nature than the other Kingdoms, both Earth Magic and Animal Magic come naturally to the people at a lower level. Interestingly enough, the only Master Wizards that have come out of the Kingdom have been Luck Wizards, Fire Wizards and a legendary (though now infamous) Curse Wizard. They do not have schools for Necromancy, Blood magic or Curse magic, but apparently (and it is likely true) have a vast knowledge of hidden Curse magic (hidden even from the High Wizard School).
Names: People of Aewon are named after animals, usually a druid-mother will give the child the name upon birth. It is said that the name directly connects to the character of the child. Though perhaps in reality the child grows into the name.
These two Kingdoms, one with so little known about. A cursed people, unable to communicate. The other, not really a kingdom, but called one anyway.
Perhaps there will be a time when the Kingdom of the North can join the rest of the world in shared language and community. And perhaps there will be a time when the Kingdom of Pestilence’s curse is lifted and there will once again be people from those lands enriching Ptansia.
Kingdom of the North: The Kingdom of the North is extremely isolated from the rest of the kingdoms. Not even physically isolated, the Kingdom of the North is assumed to be cursed (or everyone else is), preventing them from speaking Yaud (the common language of our world of course) and us from speaking theirs (which we call Rurtal, due to it sounding like a common sound they make). It is still possible to communicate with signals, pointing, yelling, etc… but it’s been limited since recorded history. The Kingdom of the North uses its isolation to remain fairly safe from attack. Most pirates in the ocean are from the Kingdom of the North. It is not an exceptionally resource rich Kingdom, ironically, even though it is frozen for a large part of the year, the fauna of the land has adapted, so food has never been a problem. However, isolation has led to a weak economy and a lack of resources from outside Kingdoms. This means, they do often declare war on other kingdoms, especially when the other kingdoms seem to be struggling and may not be able to fend off an attack. Currently they have large encampments within the Kingdom of Aewon.
Magical Relations: Not much is known. Wizards of all types have been found from The Kingdom of the North. It’s assumed that they must have schools for magic. The only undocumented magic has been Curse Magic. Perhaps they know of it, but fear it as much as the rest of Ptansia. As they should.
Names: Since what is assumed to be a curse has caused the Kingdom of the North the inability to communicate with the rest of the Kingdoms, their naming conventions are unconfirmed. However, we can surmise that they do seem to have names, as captured ones call to each other with unique “words” we don’t hear them use with anything else. Again, probably due to the curse, those words escape us soon after they are heard.
Kingdom of Pestilence: No one lives in the Kingdom of Pestilence. What was once two separate kingdoms, constantly at war, constantly in competition. Constantly trying to find a way to finally defeat the other led to a curse to end all curses. The former Kingdom of Vedu had a group of Curse Wizards turn the Kingdom of Slorick’s fields into pits of acid and their livestock into great beasts. Their lakes were turned to lava. However, as Curse magic often had drawbacks, the Kingdom of Vedu and the Kingdom of Slorick were in turn erupted into Eternal Flames. All the people of both Kingdoms were instantly turned to dust, their ghosts are said to roam the land screeching for peace. No one knows as even the strongest Redland FireWizards are incapable of stepping into the Kingdom of Pestilence. Luckily, the awful effects of both lands seem to be trapped within the Kingdom. Magic has been sensed from the Kingdom last century, and it continues to grow. Men that have braved getting close to the border swear that it slowly expands, however, extremely slowly. But they also swear they can hear the old Vedurick dialect, not in screams and chaos, but in demands and order. Again, rumours.
Magical Relations: The Kingdom of Vedu was the one Kingdom that had ever had an official school of Curse. Both Kingdoms had Blood Schools. Every school could originally be found in the Kingdoms. Both Kingdoms had historically provided a lot of modern Wizard technology and knowledge thanks to their deep research into the war benefits of each magic. A lot was lost however when the Kingdoms became one-of-pestilence.
Names: No one lives here. No names.
SMVLTRUDEAU 