Melphor

The World

Sun: Kilphar
Moon: Tiylshan
Languages: Ehkan, Tinui
Religion: polytheistic

Melphor is the third planet in orbit around the golden sun the natives call Kilphar. It is home to a wide range of people. Its singular moon, Tiylshan, has an orbit of 26 days.

During the day, the sun is typically a light blue colour. On rare occasions, the moon can be seen. This is seen as an ill omen by the people of the Soulforge Alliance.
The sky is dark at night. The moon has a predictable cycle and is visible most nights. There are numerous stars visible and the people have identified several patterns in these stars.

Shan-Illu once ruled most of Ardren. Back then it was known as the Land of the Golden Sun. Kephru ruled the rest.

Climate and Weather

The southern country of Athros and parts of Ayellis are hot and dry. It gets colder the further north you travel. It’s coldest in the Toth mountains, a largely unexplored area to the north of Ardren. The coastal regions experience violent storms during the summer. Inland, Silvestri is known for its windstorms. Sandstorms are common year round in Athros.
The mainland experiences the four seasons of spring, summer, autumn, and winter. Ju’shal’long has only three: winter, growing, and storm season.

Geography

The people of Melphor don’t have the ability to fully map out their world as their naval technology is fairly primitive. Outside of the large continent of Ardren and it’s smaller satellite islands, they know about Ju’shal’long, Keltos, and the unexplored Toth Mountains to the north. There are a few smaller islands just south to those mountains but on all maps these areas are left as simple outlines. They are known to exist but haven’t been explored in any great detail.

Ju’shal’long and Keltos are island nations, although Keltos is believed by the Soulforge Alliance to be uninhabited. Ardren itself is divided up into five countries, though the fifth one is a dead zone and has been since the end of the War of the Roses. Currently, the inhabitable countries are Miltan, Ayellis, Silvestri, and Athros.

The closest thing to a polar region they’re aware of is the Toth Mountains, but it’s not even close. Parts of southern Ardren are equatorial.

Natural Resources

Miltan has the most farmland while the farmable areas in Ayellis are superior. Ju’shal’long has some decent farmland, but not as much as the other two. Silvestri is rich in mineral deposits, particularly in the Tehvir Mountains. The Tesha Mountains in Ayellis have decent deposits of iron. The Griffin Mountains are a rich source of several ores. Each country has different produce and mineral resources.
Clearstone, mined only in Silvestri, is a rare stone with magical properties. A green stone called mawsitsit is also rare and is only found in the Tesha Mountains in Ayellis.

Flora and Fauna

Griffins are considered extinct in most places, but they still live on Keltos. They’re close to being considered an endangered species and its only been through careful monitoring of their population that they’ve come back from the brink.

Religion

The people are polytheistic with a large pantheon of gods and goddesses.
There’s technically one religion with many branches. Each god or goddess has at least one temple or shrine dedicated to them. People are free to choose as many or as few deities to follow as they like.
Sacrifices are largely symbolic and done rarely. A petitioner would sacrifice something related to the god or goddess they’re petitioning rather than making a general sacrifice.
Religion is openly available although there are individuals who are known to have the favour of the gods. These people are known as the Touched and they can talk to the gods. While it’s a great honour to be chosen, no one in their right mind would ask for it or falsely claim to be one.
Temples vary widely in design depending on which god or goddess they’re dedicated to.

Language

Each species has its own language. Ehkan, the human language, is the most widely spoken one largely due to the large population of humans and how simple the language is compared to the others available.
Anyone wanting to work in a field that will take them to a foreign country would be wise to learn at least a basic amount of their language.
Traders typically pick up a smattering of most languages, but the unofficial trade language is a simplified version of Ehkan.
Each species has at least a basic written language, but unlike the spoken one, there’s no universal writing.

Curses involve deities that have negative aspects, such as Tehaksha, Kephru, the three members of the Kha’len, Nelar, Not, and Zu’ul’pri’nut.

Conversation

Safe topics include the gods, weather, local history, work, food, and politics.

Culture

Anyone living in the few settlements near the Forbidden Lands--such as Paraten and Donaris Hall--live in a constant state of fear. It is, however, a point of pride that they live in these places. The general populace is at peace.
Strength is highly prized.
It is highly proper to be generous with what one has. The gods look with favour with those who show generosity. Tattoos are frowned on, though some of the less popular religious orders used them to mark their members and used them as a means of identifying each other.

There are several things that one should never do in a social situation:

• Not paying your debts, regardless of how small
• Talking too much about yourself
• Not refusing a shai’then’s gift the first time they offer it to you. Only accept after they insist.
• Making eye contact with a strange centauricorn. They see it as a challenge.
• Touching a naga’s tail
• Remaining seated when someone new enters the room.
• Leaving a meal in Miltan.
• There are some ways of narrowing the eyes that are considered very rude.

Popular art forms are dance, music, elaborate gardenscapes, sand art, sculpture, oil painting, and embroidery. The lunyari have a kind of theater but it isn’t largely appreciated outside of Ayellis. It’s sponsored by the wealthy and available to all citizens. The position of Rose Knight is highly coveted. In most places, lighting lamps at night is fast and easy with enchanted devices created specifically for that purpose. In towns near the Forbidden Lands where use of magic is strictly regulated such devices cannot be used and so the lamps must be painstakingly lit by hand each night. This is considered a lowly and menial task although necessary.

Fashion

This year the fashion is soft, layered garments. Tops are typically sleeveless though that’s a matter of preference. Stockings and hosiery are a must. Thick necklaces are trendy. Wool is popular as are spotted patterns. Popular colours are burnt orange, green-brown, and tan.

Last year, anyone who thought they were trendy wore horrendous and voluminous vibrant yellow garments with a poorly chosen blue-black accent. Baggy trousers and wispy skirts were everywhere. Buttons and lace were staples of the style. Other popular colours were bright green, grey-blue, and deep red.

Superstitions

Those who are born when the moon is visible during the day are said to be cursed.
It is lucky to be born on a moonless night.
Dark coloured creatures are to be treated with caution.

Calendar

The year on Melphor is broken up differently depending on what part of the world you’re from. On the main continent of Ardren and on the shai’then island of Ju'shal'long, the year is divided into 36 weeks with each week containing 12 days. Each day has 22 hours. The weeks are all named for a patron god or goddess. The days are named for lesser gods. The days are the same each week. On Keltos, the year is divided up into 13 months. Each month has a distinct name and a patron deity.
There is also a yearly cycle that repeats every 16 years. Each year in the cycle is assigned a protective deity and an element. Some years are good fortune to be born in and others not so much.

General living

People feel safer in more heavily populated areas, but dislike how crowded and busy they feel. As a result most people live in smaller towns that are built in clusters. These towns are no more than an hour apart from each other, giving them some measure of security with the quietness of the rural life.
The most common domesticated animals are chickens, pigs, and sheep. Some people keep cows but they’re large and expensive. As a result, beef is a luxury food.
Horses are very uncommon as most of them lived in Kaishivan. What hadn’t been sold out of the country either died as a result of the war or was secretly smuggled to Keltos. The horses that remain on Ardren were painstakingly bred from that remaining stock and have pedigrees that can be traced back to the Forging. Horses are expensive to acquire and are treated like royalty.
Those not fortunate enough to have a horse or a jyelyar either strange donkey-like creatures called Lirnune or travel by ox cart.
Moving up in society has a moderate amount of difficulty. Going down is easy.

Education

There’s no formal school for young children. Parents are expected to teach them basic things.
They become eligible for a more formalized education at the age of thirteen (or equivalent).
Education is sponsored by the Crown and as such is open to all should they desire.
Each species has a different rate of physical and mental development. As such, it’s highly recommended that they attend schooling in their home country if it’s at all possible. If not, the schools will do their best to accommodate the different needs of the students.
Having an education doesn’t necessarily mean that a person can read or that they learned to do so at any point in their lifetime. Some people may have once been literate but lost the skill with lack of practice. There isn’t a great deal of use for literacy except in high society. Reading is taught in school and all students are encouraged to read and practice it, but a lack of reading ability isn’t a social stigma, particularly since books aren’t widely available.
Scholars run the schools. Many towns don’t have dedicated facilities for it so they meet in temples or in a public building. Classes are held on 2 consecutive days out of the 12 day week. Classes are never held on holidays. School for children ages 13-18 covers broader topics than what their parents would teach, such as history, sums, an in depth study of the gods, and geography. Guilds teach only things specific to their guild. The Academa is a large school in Sunhame that anyone can attend to learn more about things. There is, however, a fee per class to attend. These fees pay the teachers for their time and the fees are generally low.
There are things that are appropriate for each gender to do exclusively. That’s not to say that the pursuit of knowledge is for men only. Women are actively encouraged to learn as much as they can within their means and the more promising students are sponsored to further education. Men are not so fortunate and so the order of Scholars is there to give men who wish to learn, who wish to have some means of employment a means to do so.

Family

Each species defines a family unit a little differently, but a mother, father, and their children are commonly cited. People form partnerships for many reasons depending on their circumstances. Marriages to form alliances between Houses aren’t unheard of. By and large, people marry who they want.
A woman will raise her children up to a certain point before it becomes the father’s responsibility to take over their care. As a rule of thumb, that point is when the infant is weaned, though each situation is different.

Guilds

There’s a guild for most professions.
Children of guild members wishing to join their parent’s guild have an easier time of it as they’ve spent their life watching and learning the requisite skills.
At the age of 13 anyone who is interested in learning a particular trade can apply to the requisite guild. That person is tested to see what kind of aptitude they have and if they’re suitable for training. If they pass, they’re assigned to a teacher. If they fail, they’re sent on their way. They can try again in a year or apply to a different guild. Guilds help to ensure fair prices and to regulate quality. Guilds also give training to their members and protect them when they’re in trouble.

Crime and Order

Criminals and crime are sadly common. It’s not restricted to the Houseless, either. Just because a person is born into a House doesn’t mean they’re automatically a good person. If you’re convicted of a serious enough crime, you can be removed from your House among other punishments.
Towns have dedicated lawkeepers to assist the Order.
For minor crimes--public drunkenness, vandalism, minor theft, etc--the local lawkeepers dole out the appropriate punishment, such as temporary incarceration, fines, time in the stockade, etc. They have no need to consult with the Order on such matters.
A more serious offense, such as major theft, destruction of public property, etc--would merit a longer incarceration and might, therefore, require a consultation with the Order if no suitable facility is available.
Serious crimes--murder, entering or exiting the Forbidden Lands--are punishable by execution. No common lawkeeper has the authority to carry out this sentence and so the Order must be called in.

Condemned prisoners are branded with the death mark as soon as they were sentenced, right before they’re put in prison to await their scheduled execution in whichever form has been chosen for them. The mark isn't necessarily in the same spot. Shoulders and neck are the most common places, but it’s not unheard of for the mark to show up in places like the wrists, ankles, hips, or lower back. It really depends on who the prisoner is, what the crime was, and the taste of the person marking the condemned.
So many people dead in the last few centuries for things that they hadn’t done or for being different, being in the wrong place at the wrong time, condemned for their coloring or for saying something that went against the common belief. People had even been condemned for reading a book that had been banned for some reason or another. It was even known for people to be executed for which god or goddess they chose to swear to.

All executions took place no longer than three months after the person in question was condemned.

Jobs

There are some jobs that are only for a specific gender. Men are seen as somewhat lesser.

Government

Both Keltos and the Alliance are governed by an Empress. These Empresses are immortal demi-goddesses. Each country has its own individual ruler but they ultimately bow to the authority of the Empress.
Most countries are traditionally led by women. Silvestri is the only country with an entirely masculine leader. While each country’s ruler has their own honour guard, none are more famous than the Rose Knights and the Nightlords. The Empresses have ruled for close to 2000 years.
Houses fall into different classes. The naga have a Caste system.
The governments want their people to be happy, healthy, and safe. As such they do everything they can to assist people who are struggling. This is largely accomplished by helping them to gain meaningful employment if they’re old enough to enter the workforce. Direct financial compensation is given only as a last resort.
Wealthy Houses have been known to sponsor these people. Good works are good for the soul and the gods look kindly on those who help the less fortunate.
The governments are trusted as they carried out their promises of defeating their enemies.
The vast majority approve of the governments.

Taxes

There’s a flat 10% taxation rate on your monthly income. This tax can be paid in either physical goods or in coinage. Payment goes to the highest ranking person in the area for storage. Once it’s gathered up it’s sent on to the country’s capital. Each country pays a smaller tax to the Empress. This is a token amount paid annually out of respect and fealty.

Military

There is a standing army in each country but they do little more than sweep for bandits and maintain order.

Public Services

There’s no healthcare system.
There’s no public transit system.
The closest thing to a communication system are the mail carriers that travel between towns. Standard mail is by ox cart and isn’t very fast but it’s free. For a small fee one can employ a mounted mail carrier. Larger towns and cities have access to Order members who can send magiced messages.