World building post – Cooper Walden Sturm

Xugngerdaz

ˈzʊgŋɝdɑz

Government: Anarchy

Population: Varied (But containing an unusually high quantity of tieflings, gnolls, harpies, ogres, and other monstrous races)

Amongst all the lands to be found within the world of Adetrom, Xugngerdaz is undoubtedly the most mysterious. The region is scorched and ravaged, barren and debased, with echoes of its past jutting out from the weeping sands and rusty junkyards. Monstrosities lie in wait beneath Xugngerdaz’s demented cliffs and enshrouded mires, and the land’s climate is burdened by exigent curse. Xugngerdaz has no surviving history, written or oral, and no amount of archeological excavation can dredge up even the slightest documentation regarding the circumstances of the region’s defilement. In spite of that, there are clear indicators of an ancient past hidden within the labyrinthian ruins, mechanical leviathans, and broken structures buried deep beneath Xugngerdaz’s desolate deserts. The gods, for their part, remain silent on the matter.

Although the region of Xugngerdaz has no laws, enforcement, or sovereignty to corral its inhabitants into a collective civilization, the wasteland has still developed communities that each function as a mature, albeit crude, society. A handful of cities and towns dot the scarred landscape, providing safe havens for those looking to escape the apocalyptic squalor of the wild, wild wastes. Outside of these small strongholds of civilization, however, the only authorities are five, warring clans: the Pack Raveners, the Scrappers, the Decadent Scales, the Crimson Crest, and the Coven of Yaldabaoth. The five clans each operate on their respective turf, all of them claiming to hold authority over the entire region of Xugngerdaz. As the most powerful forces in the nation, and candidates to become its sole sovereignties, the clans are constantly maneuvering to defeat their opposition, all the while scheming to obtain the fabled Crown of Xugngerdaz. Legends and superstitions started by the now missing Grand Hunter tell of the Crown’s immense importance as a long-forgotten artifact, lost amidst the shifting sands and ruined wastes. Whoever holds the Crown, it is foretold, will lead Xugngerdaz into a new age.

Most other nations treat Xugngerdaz with a measure of both disdain and curiosity. Although many attempts have been made to properly colonize the region, ultimately such endeavors have proved to be far more trouble than they are worth. Instead, the other regions now primarily use Xugngerdaz as a dumping ground for their undesirables. Surplus criminals from other countries—the kinds too dangerous to be kept within the confines of a prison—are sent by ship to wander the wastes, as are exiles, vagrants, and other such unwanted folk. Other inhabitants are more fortunate, wandering into the region by choice in search of virtue, enlightenment, or most often, treasure. Glittering gemstones and powerful, arcane relics can occasionally be looted from Xugngerdaz’s condemned ruins. Amidst the mounds of rubbish dumped by the kobold population of Aurigixir, there lie the forgotten remains of ancient and profane machines, some ravaged and unsalvageable, but others still operable, biding their time below heaps of detritus for a lucky (or unlucky) wanderer to stumble upon. Lost technologies, boons, and artifacts draw in adventurers with gainful promises, but few who dare trespass upon these accursed lands make it out intact.

Aurigixir

ˈɔɹəˈgɪksɪɹ

Government: Hierocracy

Population: Kobolds, Dragons

Amidst the eastern summits of Oklysht’s mountain range lie the Aurigixian city-states, their tremulous foundations carved into the ancient, glittering peaks. Presided over by six (formerly seven) draconic rulers, the nation of Aurigixir is centered around the worship of dragons as living deities. Ghorom-Azdul’s dragon arch-prophets are each given a territory to rule over, and although these arch-prophets are gem dragons of nigh unparalleled intellect and might, they often shift into kobold shape in order to perform business amongst the laity, or to deliver divine judgment. Ghorom-Azdul, the Great-Wyrm of diamond who leads the nation, commands fear and respect from all his peers, even in spite of his inactive state. Ancient beyond even the most venerable of beings, Ghorom-Azdul rarely ever awakens to rule his country, instead biding his time in cycles of rest and lethargy while the world marches ever onward. As large as a mountain, or so his priests claim, Ghorom-Azdul requires a great amount of sustenance just to move his body. If the nation of Aurigixir were ever to be threatened such that Ghorom-Azdul were required to fight, the sacrifice required to sate his appetite would be so immense as to trigger a nationwide cataclysm.

Of course, leaving a nation in the hands of several all-powerful dragons is not without its difficulties. The arch-prophets seldom agree with each other on how to rule the nation, and they squabble with each other constantly. All of this, in combination with the draconic tendency to underestimate members of the other “lesser” races has resulted in the Aurigixian government largely ignoring the other nations of Adetrom, instead devoting the majority of its resources towards internal territory disputes and civil conflicts. Moreover, given that dragons oversee the nation while kobolds provide the menial labor, there is a noticeable deviation between the methodical and highly-intelligent demeanor of the dragon arch-prophets versus the primitive, scrappy, and unstable nature of kobold society. Kobold architecture is notoriously shoddy, with entire cities being built upon stilted towers of rotted wood beams, precarious mountain precipices, and hoarded piles of refuse. Even in spite of their occasional inefficacy, however, the dragon arch-prophets tolerate the kobold population of their nation; they know well that no race can excavate a labyrinthian, maze-like lair as well as the kobolds do, nor fill it with as many crafty and deviant traps.

Though the kobolds of Aurigixir are treated with much scorn by the races of the other continents, many nations continue to do business with them in light of the surprising wealth accrued within the Aurigixian economy. Though they are often unwilling to part with their amassed hordes of coins and gems, kobolds do often barter with the other nations, including offering their expertise in mechanical construction in order to obtain the raw goods and supplies necessary to keep their society functioning. Urumond in particular has a somewhat unsteady alliance with Aurigixir, providing them with numerous trade goods and raw wealth in exchange for kobold services.