[QFGC] - The Quest for Glory Club

The Cities

The world of the QFGC takes place in an original world of our own creation. On the continent known as Tellus, the world itself is divided into five general regions. The frozen northern lands of Lyse-Brennan, where the resilient humans mine the mysterious star touched metal while coexisting with the large Barbarian people. The dark and beleaguered nation of Estwilde, the vibrant city with a dangerous secret and prowled by the cunning Callain people. To south in the desert nation of Achaemendis a Sultan rules with an iron fist, where people live in fear of his secret police as he jealously guards their growing technology. And in the western lands of Varro, the mighty city of Cynosure sits as the center of all trade in the world, hosting the largest palaces and greatest schools the world has ever known. Each of these great nations, the Big Four, share a level of wealth never before seen in the world, while the largest stretch of lands, known as the midlands, see a only a constant state of war, plague, banditry, and political strife.

Vann-Lyse

The cold nation of Vann-Lyse sits high on the continent in the snowy region of the north. It's capital, Lyse-Brennan actually sits in the crater of a large meteor strike, where the land seems to be strangely receptive to fire magic. The nation was established as one of miners, since the mountains of the north have unusually high deposits of very rich ore, and makes some of the finest metal in the world. It was also here that star-metal was discovered, a strange substance that not only gave it's ruling hose it's name, but also has remarkable properties. Vann-Lyse, therefore, is home to some of the greatest smiths in the world, and it's capital city of Lyse-Brennan has an unrivaled row of smithies known as the "Street of Steel." The people of the north are proud of their bastion of warmth in an otherwise cold an inhospitable region, as their capital proudly boasts the title of "City of Lights" since at any hour of the day, fires burn not only from the high walls around the city, but from every house and window, casting it's radiance around the entire area, even in the black of night. It is here in the north, where people rely on fire for life, that humans were first introduced to the large, barbarian people, a race of giants that roam the frozen land and despise the use of fire as weakness, for they are stalwart enough to not need any sort of luxury to survive.

Estwilde

The nation of Estwilde, laying on the eastern most coast, is a land set between the high Cardiff Mountains and the raging ocean. A land of thick forests, deep river cut ravines and fjords, and treacherous precipices; it is as dangerous as it is beautiful. It is here that the settles of the Bleak Coast made their great city of Inorawn, which is wedged into the ends of one of the great fjords that cut the coast. It took many long years for the fishermen settlers of the coast to carve out their home and build the walls which would protect them from the large animals that stalked the forests where they had to rely on cunning an ingenuity's to survive the wilds of their home. The city itself is half above the earth, and half etched into the mountain it was built upon, being one of the first cities to have an underground sewage system and running water, it is home to an extensive under city network of tunnels. On the surface of the city, political intrigue seems to be the state sport as assassinations and corporate take-overs almost seem common place. While on the east, things that go bump in the night may seem more real, for the mysterious Callain roam the night scape.

Achaemendis

The Achaemendis Empire is a bastion of order and control in a desert that seems to reflect the opposite. The chaotic winds, the shifting sands, and the wild heart of the gypsies claim the expansive reach of the desert for their own, while the Sultan of Achaemar claims hold over all settlements of a more permanent nature. Ruling with an iron hand, the Sultan and his secret police enforce an efficient order on a people otherwise known for their colorful dancing and grace. The great seat of the Sultan's power, Achaemar, sits astride the only pass leading into the desert as he carefully constricts any and all trade through the city. On one side, the bounty of the desert exists with rare spices, creatures, herbs, and the desert strongholds who's wealth in gems is show in obvious excess among the capital's citizens. The gypsy people, at home in the desert, travel from stronghold to oasis village to stronghold and back to the capital, trading as they go and carrying the gifts to city for trade. Within the tall metal walls of the city is a marvel unknown to the rest of the world, a marvel of magic and technology, where the Sultan's jealously guarded engineers build wondrous contraptions like cranes and the slow moving steam shovels. The people of the capital city are a very private, precise people, which is a strange counter point to the marvelously polite, but very warm hearted katta. The short, furry people are the master merchants of this desert refuge and are more than welcoming to strangers as they ply their trade.

Varro

The vast plain lands and delta of the Varro makes it one of the most opulent lands in the world. Sheltered by mountains and the more gentle ocean currents, it seems the land was set up for prosperity. Rolling hills are home to vineyards and grazing, the fertile plains home to orchards and fields, and rivers and delta make for bountiful fishing. The legends say that one family in four is fed with food grown from this farmer's paradise, which gives credence to the fact that Varro is the wealthiest, and most successful nation in the world. Their great bounty in food seems only to be augmented by the greatest achievement in trade history when the great magic school, Collegium Arcanum, devised the wondrous airships, allowing the Varro merchants to trade with greater speed and efficiency than ever before. With the bounty of their crops, the speed of their air ships, and the cunning of their mercantile empire, the Varro went forth from their home and spread throughout the world, drawing in the best minds and talent the world had to offer and marketing it. For this reason it is home to the greatest magic school in the world, the only place where one can learn all of the elements, and the only place where one can learn how to make them work together. The nation itself, while it's last king died and the prince gone missing, is now ruled by a council of nobles and the richest of the merchants. It's walls and borders are defended by the towering and undefeated might of the stone Sentinels, while the land is roamed by the world's finest cavalry, the Knights of Cynosure, who work hand in hand with the proud, honorable Liontaur people. Half man, half lion, these fierce but peaceful people have served the idea of Nobility and Honor since they first men man, and have lent their strength to that of man. The city of Cynosure is said to be so large, and so beautiful that even the creator looks down in awe at what man has wrought.