Tirialle - The World

Overview  -  The World  -  The History  -  Miscellaneous

Midrealm - Hub of Tirialle

The Midrealm is the smallest of the realms, and is the center of peace and power.  It is bordered to the east by the Serpentine River, the Silver Stag mountains to the south, the Granites to the west, and the Riftlands to the north.  Skyhaven Keep is generally considered to be in the exact geographical center of Tirialle, among the rolling Haven Hills.  It was here that the Dreamfounding was forged, and it is here that the sacred documents are still kept in storage.  Once the home of the ruling monarchy, it has become instead a symbol of the Dreamfounding's principles of goodwill and trade among all species and worlds.  It was only natural that it would house Tirialle's adoption program.
Skyhaven Keep stands near the great Skyhaven City, where the Dreamkeepers Senate assembles.  It is one of the largest cities in Tirialle, though far from the oldest, home to many diplomats. It is also the headquarters of the Dream Watchers, an elite force with international powers whose primary task is to preserve the Dreamfounding in letter and spirit.  They are like a cross between military, police, and diplomatic interests, and are universally respected.

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North Realm - Arctic Secrets

Vast forests, broad plains and the legendary Frozen Mountains mark this region, said to be home to some of the strongest and most volatile natural magic currents in the world.  The Ice Deserts to the northeast are a great barren tundra, full of harsh beauty and rare beings.  Residents of the North Realm tend to be loners, adhering to ancient and peculiar traditions.  Some of the most powerful mages have come from its forbidding yet breathtaking lands.
Those who live in the North Realm usually keep to themselves.  Privacy is one of the most highly valued virtues of this land.  People come north to be left alone and live in peace, and if some come to hide from enemies on whichever side of the law, nobody considers it their business to question them.  Of course, not all North Realm residents are fugitives, hermits, or freaks - it is just one of the safest places in Tirialle to be if you happen to be any of the three.
Between the North Realm and other regions of Tirialle, along most of the southern borders, are the great Riftlands.  Legacy of an ancient magical battle between races that killed each other off, it is not only a geological barrier, but a magical one.  The airs overhead are full of tricky currents to test the best fliers, and magical "rip-tides" disrupt all but the most skillfully-crafted transportation spells.  Those who attempt to navigate the Riftlands on foot face a daunting labyrinth of canyons, cliffs, crevasses and wild rivers, in addition to disorienting magical echoes that can frustrate even seasoned explorers.  To the east, the Ice Deserts form their own natural barrier to travellers.  For this reason, the North Realm is still greatly unexplored by those in the lower realms, and is likely to stay that way.

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East Realm - Center of Learning

Across the Serpentine River, one finds the East Realm, one of the oldest inhabited regions of Tirialle.  Ancient petroglyphs confirm sentient beings existing in areas of the East Realm long before they apparently spread elsewhere.  Sprawling coastal cities like Scale Rock, Gull Harbor and Saltspire can trace their histories through upwards of two hundred different ruling empires over thousands of years.
The most prestigious universities and libraries of Tiralle are located in the East Realm, home to many of the greatest philosophers, theologists, thinkers and writers.  It is generally considered that East Realm residents prefer to do their thinking at home and their exploring no further than the nearest museum.  Like most stereotypes, it doesn't hold up to real life observation.
It was on this coast, at the small harbor of Kingfisher Cove (since renamed Dreamer's Cove), that the first vessels from Zakotansett, under direction of the Master Dreamer, made landfall.  She herself did not make a personal appearance until much later.

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South Realm - Trader's Paradise

The Silver Stag Mountains form much of the northern border of the South Realm, a land noted for its shrewd traders and self reliance.  Within memory of some living, the South Realm was a great independent monarchy, fighting rivals in the West Realms and Celestial Sea.  It is the only Realm to retain a regional monarch - indeed, the only way the South Realm would agree to participate in the Dreamfounding that united the land was if they retained some semblence of independence.  They also have their own monetary system.  While other Realms do, as well (sometimes several per realm), all are more accepting of the coins of those beyond their borders.
Economy is based on trade, and the Celestial Sea has hundreds of trade routes - both within Tirialle and beyond, to exotic realms the Master Dreamer herself has never visited.  The trading and sailing skills of the South Realm residents are said to be unmatched.  Many spices, woods, and exotic goods are available exclusively through South Realm traders, and they are the only ones the residents of the Rainbow Forest will do business with.  For this reason, the South Realm is, on the whole, a prosperous region, with very few not benefitting from the trade industry in some fashion.  This may also explain why the residents feel so independent - they are and always have been very self-sufficient.

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West Realm - The Wild Frontier

Crossing the Granite Mountains puts one in the West Realm, a land of plenty where the locals are noted for knowing how to take advantage of any given situation.  The other Realms tend to see them as selfish and lazy, but most West Realm residents are rarely at rest.  If they seem slow to adopt the latest ways of doing things, it's because they're already looking ahead to what newer, better things may be coming along, and planning accordingly.  The southwestern portion of the West Realm is covered by the beautiful Copper Desert, sometimes considered a realm all its own.  There are beautiful stone formations, vast cacti forests, and desolate stretches of barren dunes.  It is here that the kangaroo-like kolaroos live in harmony with the human Sandwalkers, among the few sentient creatures able to survive the Copper's often-unforgiving climate.  Also in the western plains and woodlands are the largest remaining herds of Freespirit Centaurs, adhering strictly to the Old Ways.
The West Realm is favored by explorers and entrepeneurs of all species.  Each year, at least one vessel sets sail across the Silverfoam Ocean from ports like Dreampoint, Seeker's Cove and Farfancy, full of those seeking adventure and brave new worlds. Very few have been known to return, each bearing a different story of what lies beyond the western horizon (this being a world of magic, every tale may be simultaneously true).  Also, while the East may lay claim to being Tirialle's intellectual capital, it is in the West that one finds innovators to implement the ideas generated on the opposite coast.

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Independent Regions

There are several areas of Tirialle that, for one reason or another, are considered outside the normal bounds of politics.  The most noteworthy are listed below.

Rainbow Forest - Islands of the Celestial Sea - Black Ice Forest - Sandcastle

Rainbow Forest
Off the southeastern corner of the Tiriallean continent is a large subcontinent, connected by a narrow isthmus to the main regions of Tirialle.  This land mass is almost entirely covered by the Rainbow Forest, an immense rainforest engulfing three major rivers (the Anaconda, the Crocodile, and the Otter) and two mountain ranges (the Seaspine and the Black).  The shore is mostly unsuitable for harbors, being either sheer cliffs, muddy swampland or bordered by massive coral reefs.  Even the air over the forest is full of tricky crosswinds and currents due to the volcanoes in the highly active Black Mountains, which also have a peculiar effect on magics not originating from the Rainbow.  The Sheerwall Strait between the Rainbow Forest subcontinent and mainland Tirialle is scarcely a half mile across, but was not named for nothing - the walls are jagged and steep, the waters unpredictable.  The single narrow isthmus connecting the Rainbow to the mainland, named the Impassable Pass by locals, is a broad jumble of giant stones, possibly a toppled mountain, that until recently was incapable of being negotiated by any but the most surefooted of pack animals.  Even now, there are times of year when the massive rope and wood bridges are drawn up, cutting off land access.  This means that most of the Rainbow is still unexplored by outsiders.
The Rainbow Forest holds innumerable wonders, most of which no outsiders have ever seen.  Among the more widespread tribes is the Jaguar People, an almost-human race directly related to the Zakotans of Zakotansett.  It is to them that outsiders owe almost all of their knowledge of the Rainbow's wonders.  This is where the hummgryphs and jewelwing fairy dragonflies were first spotted.  Creatures long thought extinct or mere legend thrive in the Rainbow's many climates.  Other residents are so wild that not even the imaginations of mainland dwellers ever envisioned anything like them.  There are also great dangers and dark forces in the Rainbow.  The stone snake, barely a foot long, can paralyze anything that looks it in the eye.  Lasher vines are elastic, stronger than steel, and have razor-sharp leaves lined with heat-sensing spots.  The vines entwine the victim in an unbreakable grip (the elasticity makes it impossible to snap them), while the leaves cut up to six inches deep; lasher vines thrive on the blood that flows over their roots.  These, according to the Jaguar People, are among the most minor of dangers to unwary travelers.
Only three major cities are known to exist, where trade and commerce is possible. (There are rumors of at least one civilization in the Rainbow, but it is either a myth or has chosen not to communicate with outsiders.)  Dawnsbreak is the largest and oldest, set in the forbidding Seaspine Mountains along the western coast.  It was created by a people who have long since vanished from the forests, often referred to as the Pyramid People for their favored architectural style.  It is the only Rainbow Forest city that can be reached by foot, connecting with the "Great Trade Road" from the Sheerwall Strait.  It is not an easy trip, but those who make the effort are rewared handsomely.  The name, a translation from a local dialect, refers to an old myth about how the Seaspine Mountains "break open" each morning to reveal a new sun "bird", which ages as it flies across the skies, dims, and dies in a fiery sunset on the opposite horizon.
Lost Harbor is on the mouth of the great Otter River, amid the shifting delta islands.  The name refers to the fact that it was found once by explorers aboard the Blue Horizon, driven to seek refuge from a storm.  At the time, it was a small fishing village which welcomed the outsiders and their trade-trinkets quite warmly.  The crew of the Blue Horizon, however, could not relocate the place when they came back to negotiate more permanent trade ties with Tirialle's mainland.  The captain and crew were laughed out of every harbor in Tirialle after reporting their findings, and it became a jest for years to brag to green sailors about the wonders of "the lost harbor of the Rainbow."  Upon its rediscovery by a descendent of the original captain (still sailing the Blue Horizon), the harbor was named Lost Harbor in "honor" of the joke.  Though not as impressive as Dawnsbreak, being built almost entirely on stilted boardwalks across countless tiny islets, it is nevertheless a bustling trade center.  With access to the deep Otter River (which connects with the more treacherous Crocodile upstream), people from deep within the Rainbow come to Lost Harbor to do business, bringing with them goods that can be found nowhere else.
Greenstone is set on a high, arid plateau in the heart of the Rainbow forest itself.  A number of semi-permanent structures and stalls stand in the middle, ready to be taken down at a moment's notice should inclement weather come (the plateau is prone to sudden and violent storm activity).  The heart of Greenstone, however, is within a great underground citadel carved beneath the plateau, remnants of an unknown civilization.  Known as the Spiral Builders, for the most common decorative motif, they, too, have long since vanished from memory, yet another secret of the vast Rainbow Forest.  Greenstone is the least popular of the three trade cities of the Rainbow, at least with outsiders.  It is a long and perilous voyage by air over the subcontinent, and if one is driven down to the forest on the way to or from the city, one is as good as dead.  There are no major roads leading to or from Greenstone, and transportation spells are peculiarly unreliable there, so the "high way" is the only way.  Residents favor the site, possibly because it remains relatively uncluttered with foreigners.

Rainbow Forest - Islands of the Celestial Sea - Black Ice Forest - Sandcastle

Islands of the Celestial Sea
There are hundreds of small tropical islands dotting the large Celestial Sea, too numerous to mention.  For political purposes, these are considered part of the South Realm, but the residents of mainland and islands alike are very quick to dispute this claim.  They are very territorial and fiercely independent, and there is almost always open warfare between one chain and another.  The Celestial Sea islands are also the birthplace of some of Tirialle's finest sailors and star-navigators, and it takes a shrewd businessperson indeed to best the islanders.
The only chain truly worth noting is the Dolphin Isles, the northwesternmost string of islands.  This is as close to a neutral zone as one gets in the Celestial Sea, and the home of trade for the region.  For reasons shrouded in mysticism, no islander will ever attack another within sight of the Dolphin Isles.  Dolphins are sacred here, and there is a local cult professing them to be guides to true spiritual happiness.  As a result, the Dolphins have become the chief locale of trade in the Celestial Sea, home to legitimate traders and pirates alike.
Other major chains are the Jade Islands (known for rich jade deposits), the Coral Chain (known for fine coral jewelry), the Turtleback Islands (nesting grounds of the grizzly-sized, pearly-shelled Goliath Sea Turtles, considered sacred by the islanders) and the Hermit Crab Islands (which has a thriving shell trade due to an abundance of the shell-seeking crustaceans).  One should also take note of the Burning Islands (home of several active volcanoes) and the Black Bones, named for the banners flown on the war canoes of the residents.  To sail within sight of the Bones is almost invariably synonymous with death: the locals are extremely fierce warriors with strict religious orders to destroy any outsiders.  Should one not born of the Black Bones ever set foot on the islands, it is foretold that the angered sea gods will swallow the chain.  Only the offerings of the bodies of "infidels" from the evil outside world keep the gods appeased. This information was gleaned from the only tribesman ever taken captive, aboard the famed South Realm trading vessel Sea Lancer.  As they approached the Dolphin Isles, the tribesman, who never gave his name, panicked: apparently, as forbidden as it is for outsiders to walk on his homeland, so he was forbidden from setting foot on foreign soil. Tearing his chains out of the beams into which they had been screwed and ripping his arms to ribbons in the process, the tribesman leapt into the sea and drowned.  As per his apparent wishes, the Sea Lancer left his remains in the water, and never again were any attempts made to capture or rescue a Black Bones resident.

Rainbow Forest - Islands of the Celestial Sea - Black Ice Forest - Sandcastle

Black Ice Forest
This ill-omened forest is in the North Realm by geography only.  It is said to have sprung into being during a war between two black magicians thousands of years ago, and that the forest itself somehow neutralized both parties.  Since then, a number of dark creatures have called its depths their home.  To be sure, not everything from the Black Ice Forest is evil - some of the most powerful magicians have come from homes at its fringes, and its plants can produce miraculous medicines.  There is a strange magic at work beneath its branches that no one has ever managed to understand, and most consider it best left alone.  It is also the only natural habitat of several peculiar, often poisonous flora species, including the Sword Pine (an evergreen with steel-sharp needles nearly a foot long, lethal projectiles when caught in strong winds), Black Ice Moss (a deep greenish-black moss that is perpetually cold and slick to walk upon), and Weeping Fungus (a wrinkled, brownish mushroom that "weeps" poison - just one inch-tall fungus can produce enough poison to taint ten gallons of fresh water each day).

Rainbow Forest - Islands of the Celestial Sea - Black Ice Forest - Sandcastle

Sandcastle
Sandcastle is the heart of an underwater kingdom in the Goldenwave Ocean, consisting of merfolk and other water-dwelling sentients.  The name of the kingdom is unpronouncable to land-dwellers, so it is referred to by the "nickname" for the capital.  Not just merfolk, but numerous other waterfolk call it home.  While on good diplomatic terms with Tirialle, it is not and never will be a part of the land.
The capital of Sandcastle is reached by two ways, both of which can be quite disturbing to outsiders.  The first is the Seacave Road, a great stone tunnel under the waves.  This leads one along the seabed to the city itself - or, more accurately, the "Sandlot," a suburb of the city where trade with outsiders occurs.  The Sandlot is itself in water, but visitors emerging from Seacave Road are enclosed in magical air-bubbles while within the suburb's borderstones.  Due to sound distortion of air bubbles, non-telepathic traders use a complex sign language to complete deals.  It's awkward, but it gets the job done, and many traders will accept the inconvenience in order to have true air to breathe.  The second method of reaching Sandcastle is more disturbing, yet allows one closer contact with the natives.  Floating roughly above the city is a docking structure, colloquially known as the Driftwood.  From here, an individual can purchase an enchanted seastone collar, which will enable them to breathe seawater and withstand the water pressure.  Then, it's a simple matter of riding a sea carriage (like a land carriage, but drawn by sea creatures) down to Sandcastle.  Because of the great hassle of dealing with air-breathing creatures, only the capital habitually handles land-dweller trade and commerce.  Rarely, an individual will get to visit another underwater city in the Sandcastle kingdom.  Even more rarely, that individual will return to land to tell the tale.
There are also underwater realms beneath the Celestial Sea and the Silverfoam, but neither have ongoing contact with the surface like Sandcastle does.  The waterfolk of the Sandcastle speak little about them, and some landdwellers think there may be intermittent warfare or ancient blood-feuds at work.

Rainbow Forest - Islands of the Celestial Sea - Black Ice Forest - Sandcastle

Other Lands

Two other continents are known on the world, Zakotansett and Eoterra.

Zakotansett - Home of the Bright Dreamers
Across the Goldenwave Ocean to the east lies Zakotansett, the land from which the Master Dreamer originally came.  It is home to the Zakotans, a humanoid race whose name translates as "bright dreamers," whose numbers are dwindling, as well as a variety of beings and beasts rivalling Tirialle in its diversity.  Trade between Zakotansett and Tirialle is sporadic, owing to the Goldenwave's moods, so little is known about the geography or politics of most of Zakotansett.  Nevertheless, they are considered a friendly land, and it is possible that relations between the two continents are so good simply because they limit their contact to trade.  The drakyns and miniature sabercats originated in Zakotansett, and fairy dragonflies were first sighted there.

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Eoterra - The Lost World
South of the Celestial Sea, in what is commonly referred to as the Thunderwave Ocean, explorers recently confirmed the existence of Eoterra, the long-rumored "lost" continent where many species from ages past survive and thrive.  Much like the Rainbow Forest, little is known of most of Eoterra, and Tiriallean authorities are doing their best to keep the land from being overrun by adventurers, bounty hunters, settlers, and others who would exploit it.  Sagitarries and eodracs come from its exotic shores.
Geographically, most of Eoterra is still unmapped and unnamed.  A northern projection of land, Wonder Point, is so far the best-known region.  Along its ridge runs the Wonder Range mountains, the southernmost reaches of which hold dormant volcanoes; it was near here that the eodrac nests were originally discovered.  From the northern coast, a rugged, snowy range of mountains can be seen deep in Eoterra's interior, known as the Forbidden Mountains.  Explorers sailing around the coast have spied two major rivers thus far, the Mystery and the Big Blue, but making landfall is very difficult due to tricky reefs and deadly currents around most of the land.  Mapmakers recently reported a large inland sea, as yet unnamed, on which a few small islands can be seen.  Forests, swamps, savannahs, deserts... Eoterra seems to have it all.
Only one major settlement, New Sunport, has been established by mainland Tirialleans, on the northernmost reaches of Wonder Point.  This is the "capital" so far as most of the world is concerned, the only city known to exist on the whole of Eoterra; there appear to be no true civilizations, though some explorers report traces of long-fallen roadways and buildings.  Intriguingly, the sagittaries, who appear to have no metalcraft, carry impressive forged blades of a durable metal unknown to Tirialle.  They say only that they trade hides and other goods for the blades, but refuse to say with whom.  Some speculate an underground civilization in the Forbidden foothills, while others think that mountain-dwelling sagittary relatives are the true metalsmiths.  A number of unofficial townships, established by pirates and unauthorized settlers and bounty hunters, pop up from time to time along the continent's shores, but they have notoriously short lifespans, cleared out either by Tiriallean sea patrols, rivals, or what can best be described as Eoterra's native defensive magic.  Little understood by outsiders and of completely unknown properties and origins, this magic seems to repel outside influence, either by subtle means (drying wells, sickening livestock) or more drastic measures (horrific diseases or unnaturally potent natural disasters; one town was literally washed away during what survivors describe as a "mild spring shower.") New Sunport thrives only because it has the support of certain native Eoterran beings, such as the eodracs and local sagittaries.  Those who come to the land intending to exploit or destroy have much harder times of it than those who come for more honest reasons.  This magic, according to scholars, is completely unlike any known in mainland Tirialle, even in the Rainbow Forest, and hints that Eoterra's magical fields are just as bizarre as its native life forms.  No doubt many more surprises and dangers still lurk in its vast uncharted interior.