Lo'Et Sha'Eroth

Lo'Et Sha'Eroth, or Eroth, is the named used to refer to both the entire world, and the three known landmasses of the world. Occasionally, a document will refer to only the mainland as Eroth, and will refer to the two islands to its' south as the 'Feral Isles.' Others will also exclude the northern section of the mainland, referring to that area (which is now known as Gahlal) as the "Northern Territories.' However, the name was most likely originally used to refer to all of these areas collectively.

The name is the only existing remnant of an ancient language spoken by the earliest of the Ra'khem, a unified people who inhabited the continent in the days of its earliest recorded history. The accepted translation of the full name varies from culture to culture, and often reflects some of that culture's most important values. Popular translations range from "The Land of The Will," to "The Land of The Promise."

There are a few recorded instances of explorers attempting to discover other landmasses, but no ship, aided by magic or not, has been able to find any other landmass before running out of supplies or encountering a storm which ends the voyage.

Magic is an influential tool and force in Lo'Et Sha'Eroth. Magic users come to possess their abilities through a number of means, including natural ability, being the subject of a magical ritual or spell, use of external sources of magic, and rarely, by teaching themself to utilize it. Most magic users find themself more, or solely, proficient in a specific area of magic use. The Mistkeep System was the first attempt to discover all forms of magic use and the capabilities of each. It has been accepted by almost all institutions that study and teach magic. The Mistkeep System categorizes and lists specializations according to what they effect, the extent of their application, the ways in which they have been acquired, and notable examples of their use. Those able to use magic, naturally or otherwise, have at some times enjoyed massive power and influence, and at others extreme oppression.

The peoples of Lo'et Sha'Eroth are diiverse, though all are humanoid with some notable quirks. Though these quirks are noticeable and have practical and social implications, all Erothians are still considered to be a single species. Distinct races began to develop after the collapse of the Ra'khem in the First Era, and their differences became more pronounced in the Second Era.

Erothians are generally deeply religious, and the many religions of Eroth are deeply concerned with finding their roots in the civilization of the Ra'khem. Many Erothians, especially those in the South and West areas of the continent, practice a local religion or spirituality, often built around devotion to a local pantheon or spirits which represent local geological landmarks. Other Erothians are strict monotheists, or pantheists, whose religions are often far larger in their numbers and are sometimes more formalized in their practice.

Eroth has seen many empires, kingdoms, republics, and nations of all kinds rise and fall. The Elkenvale Treaty, signed in 3E 3056, recognizes six nations. The Unified Theocratic Republic of Galyria, The Kingdom of Illhana, The Kingdom of Gahlal, The United Territories of Wirrshol, Cleonia, and Elkenvale.

Erothians
Almost all scholars consider the Erothian people to be one species. Though there is much variation in height, skin tone, and facial structure, no race in Eroth is incapable of reproducing with any other race. However, each of the races has some distinctive features,

Erothians generally face a natural death between 90 and 120 years of age, and occasionally longer. Some individuals have managed to almost double this lifespan through the use of magic, and some individuals of some races (Dusthorns and Snow-- in particular) may have much longer lifespans.

In the late Second Era, a group of scholars at the College of Ironhorn sorted all the cultures they had information on at the time into five groups. These groups not only share physical features, but also share key elements of their cultures, and often have similar pantheons. These categories have been generally accepted as a basic means of categorization. However, in certain regions, most individuals have ancestors from multiple cultures, and possess physical features from more than one of these categories. This became even more so the case in the Third Era, and a number of hybrid groups are now recognized as being just as defined as the original five groups.

Saffrem
Main Article: Dusthorns

Saffrem generally stand around six feet tall. They often have entirely black or white eyes, and their hair is thick and curly.and They are able to withstand extreme heat and drought very well.

The epicenter of Saffremi culture is the desert region that dominates Wirrshol. Saffrem are mostly nomadic, though the city of Ironhorn has been inhabited for a long time, and is also important to many Saffremi cultures.

Occasionally, a Saffrem is known to live up to three hundred years. In the last two hundred or so years of the life of one of these Dusthorns, they undergo major changes in demeanor and appearance. They almost always become much less communicative, speaking only occasionally of matters of great importance to them, and often spending the last century of their life in silence. They also begin to lose muscle mass and perhaps even shrink,.They are considered to be important leaders or messengers in Dusthorn culture.

Vinelings
Main Article: Vinelings

Vinelings stand around six feet tall, and are known for the green tint of their skin. They live in the thick forests that cover most of Illhana, and parts of Southern Wirrshol and Western Galyria. their green skin color serves primarily to camouflage them in this setting. Most Vinelings have only a slight green tint to their skin, although some communities residing deep within forests have more vividly green skin. They are extremely nimble, and also have excellent night vision. The latter attribute is most common in areas of forest which are so thickly covered that very little light is able to seep through. Some Vinelings are known to grow leaves from their head, among their hair. Some Vineling cultures occasionally engage in cannibalism, and this reputation has been the source of much fear and enmity regarding them. Cannibalism does have a presence, especially in secluded areas of the Illhanian and Wirsholli forests, but most Vinelings are vehemently opposed to the practice.

Snoweyes
Main Article: Snoweyes

Snoweyes are found in the Northern Territories, where they live in high in the mountains. They are generally between five and six feet tall. Snoweyes generally have fair skin, snow white hair, and grey eyes. They traditionally wear all white furs, helping them to blend into the snow around them. Their greatest strength is their long tradition of survival in the harsh climate they inhabit, and they are the only group of Erothians able to successfully cultivate many of the crops that grow well in cold climates. They are usually able to withstand cold temperatures more easily than other Erothians.

Snoweyes have a very communal culture, and their traditional religions are very ancestor-centric, and focus on the individual's responsibility to their family, to their clan, and to their world. They arguably have the

Like Saffrem, some members of their population live for hundreds of years, although, when this occurs, the individual often seems to be in a state of deep hibernation.

Plainswalkers
Main Article: Plainswalkers

Plainswalker inhabit much of the Eastern part of the continent. Their main home is the Galyrian prairie, where they lead a nomadic lifestyle. Plainswalkers are recognizable by their large, rounded ears, oval-shaped eyes, and. They usually stand around seven feet tall. They are extremely good runners, and are able to run at high speeds for most of the day without tiring. They exceed elves in their sheer athletic ability, but have much less agility and hand eye coordination. While Elves usually use bows to hunt, while Plainswalkers traditionally use spears which would be thrust directly into the animal, or thrown from a short distance. Their legs are much longer than those of other races in proportion to their torso, allowing them to run faster. They have excellent eyesight and are able to see in the dark better than other races.

Fe
Main Article: Violet-Masks

History
Scholars almost unanimously understand the beginning of Erothian history to be the Proclamation, a speech given by an early leader of the Ra'khem. The contents of this speech, the leader who gave it, and even the place it was given are unknown, but the event was of huge importance to the Ra'khem, and there is no remaining evidence of any civilization that may have existed before this point. The year of the Proclamation would be written as 1E 0.

Almost nothing is known of The First Era, except that Eroth was inhabited by a single race known as the Ra'khem. They lived as a single, unified, and prosperous civilazation for the first ten thousand years of the era, before their single empire shattered into many smaller factions, and turned on each other, thrusting the continent into a millenia of war. This event, commonly known as the Ra'khemian Shattering, not only destroyed the founding civilization of Eroth, but also almost all evidence of its' existence. In the centuries after the conflict subsided, a group of scholars now known as The Silverreach Elders composed a large collection of orally transmitted accounts of FIrst Era Ra'khemian history. This collection forms the basis for almost everything we know about life in the First Era.The Ascension of King Malok marks the beginning of the Second Era, and the beginning of the rule of a man who would later be made a God, and whose image would be a guiding force in the continent for the first half of the Second Era. Malok, a young leader of a an unknown tribe in South Western Eroth, had seen a rapid increase in his following in the final years of the First Era. Eventually, he and his followers stormed Lavakirr, and he declared himself to be the divinely appointed leader of Eroth. Very little is known of King Malok before his rule began, but when in power, he made a conscious effort to ensure that his deeds, words, and the accomplishments of his empire would not be forgotten.

During the lifetime of King Malok, the Malokian Empire would grow to encompass most of the middle of the continent. After his death, he assumed the role of a mythical God-king, and his cult of personality became the single most important aspect of culture in the Malokian Empire. Through popular religious support and relative political unity, the empire would retain its' massive size and influence for around six centuries. However, worship of local gods, especially in the Northern areas of the empire, began to grow in popularity in the seventh century of the Second Era. Many citizens of the empire did not lose their faith in the person of Malok, but were convinced by political discord in the empire that the Malokian Empire no longer fulfilled the vision of its founder. Many leaders promising to restore the vision of Malok rose and fell in the coming centuries, each one fracturing and shrinking not only the Malokian Empire, but also the Malokian faith.

Throughout the Second Era, the various dwarven kingdoms of

Fourteen centuries after King Malok's death, there were four major powers on the mainland of. The original Malokian Empire, which still controlled Lavakirr, The Kingdom of Southern Malokia, and The Aramidic Empire, which had a distinctly syncretic understanding of King Malok

Nations
There are six major nations on Eroth.

Among these six, two stand out as the most significant in size and influence.

The Republic of Galyria, which finds its capital in Galehold, is the largest in size. Since coming under the control of a popular religious movement that swept the region at a breakneck pace a little more than five hundred years ago ago, Galyria has become an empire built by, for, and around the Faith of the Above, a religion which calls its adherents to bear witness to the Above, which to the Faithful represents simultaneously a Divine Law, a God, and simply an idea which entirely transcends the material world. It is governed by a single council of two-hundred and fifty 'Witnesses', led by a mysterious figure known only as The Silent King.

The Kingdom of Illhana is the oldest still-existing nation in Eroth, dating its monarchy back almost two thousand years, to when the rule of Queen Illha was first recognized by all of the Elders of the kingdom's various provinces. Since then, while remaining a unified political entity, Illhana has rarely experienced social cohesion or even a single national identity. Instead, the Illhanian monarchy maintains its' largely symbolic rule by offering a means of mediation during inter-provincial conflict, and offering each province protection from invasion by either Galyrian forces or its neighboring provinces. Each one of these provinces is governed by an Elder or group of Elders who claim to interpret the will of and speak for the land and spirit of their province. Provinces have separate (but often related) pantheons, religious ideals, and methods of worship. However, in the last couple centuries, largely as a reaction to the development of a cohesive Galyrian identity, some religious and political leaders in Illhana have sought to develop a way to understand and promote a view of the nation's disparate mess of cultures and religions as a single tradition.