Yura Setting

The Primary Setting
The game takes place on an Earth-like planet in era similar to our middle ages. The planet goes by many names, but the most common is Yura. Yura is larger than Earth, and has two moons, one of which is terrestrial. Eris, the terrestrial moon, is visible in the day, while Eros, the barren moon, is visible at night. The Known World of Yura consists of three continents, and the game we’re playing takes place on the westernmost of these.

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A Crude and Fairly Inaccurate Map of the Setting

The Western Continent, Thain
Thain is the smallest known continent on Yura. It is separated from Khart by the large inland Sunlight Sea to its east, and from Tsap by the enormous Jagged Mountain range in the north. The Endless Sea borders Thain to the west and south. Thain’s climate is fairly boreal and wet, but its southernmost region is swelteringly hot and significantly more arid, in some places even desertified. People from Thain are known as Thann. While many nations claim to hold territory in Thain, most of the interior and western regions are unpopulated. As in the rest of Yura, monsters roam uninhabited regions and magical creatures such as dragons dominate vast swathes of wilderness.

The Realms of Thain

Carys
Carys is the oldest human kingdom of Thain, and one of its most prosperous. It lies on the eastern coast of Thain, and was originally founded by Khartagan colonists over a thousand years ago. Carys is regarded as the “Gateway to the East” by the majority of Thann, and their culture is understood by many to be foppish and foreign. The dominant religion in Carys is the Church of the Holy Maiden. Carys is ruled as a kind of administrative or bureaucratic feudal realm, with a figurehead king. The real power of the realm is vested in its Erudite Council.

Ventis
Ventis is the oldest sapient realm of Thain, by most accounts, and home to the elves of Ventis. Ventis is a city-state that controls the large island that gave the nation its name, which rests off the northeastern shores of Thain. It was originally founded thousands of years ago by elves who fled the religious persecution of the old elven Empire of Fys. Today Ventis is regarded as the most advanced and civilized place in Thain, and it is renowned even in Khart for its magical scholarship. The famous Scholar-Knights of the Tower of Flame come from Ventis. The dominant religion in Ventis are the Small Faiths, as many of the elves still cling to their old and diverse pantheons. Ventis is a republic ruled by a Grand Prince, who serves his term for life.

Talland
Talland is the largest realm of Thain by both population and land area. Talland exists on the eastern interior of Thain, covering most of the large boreal forests and mountains that make up the Pinelands. Tallanders are obsessed with honor, chivalry, and war. Though technically led by a king, Talland is really a series of autonomous dukes and counts, who nearly constantly war with one another for land and power. There are only two times when Talland is said to be united: when it is threatened by foreign invasion and when the Grand Tournament is being hosted. Talland is home to people of many faiths, but the largest portion venerate the Holy Maiden.



Garonne
Garonne is the smallest realm in Thain, and its westernmost. Garonne has a much smaller population than its neighbors, but still claims a massive amount of territory extending even to the western coast of Thain. Despite the low population and essentially wild nature of most of its holdings, Garonne is a very cultured and civilized place. Garondins are generally believed to be stoic and subdued in comparison with the wild character of the rest of the Thann. Most Garondins belong to the Church of the Holy Maiden, but a large minority practice Kantorism as well. Garonne is ruled with a fairly direct feudal structure, though the crown is quite powerful.

Edelmarch
Edelmarch is known as the realm of iron and stone, because its people constantly guard the northern region of Thain from barbarian incursion. Edelmarch has the largest dwarven population in Thain, and is technically a dual monarchy of dwarves and men. The Jagged Mountains lie within the borders of Edelmarch, and the dwarven holds dot the passes and vales of the Great Range. The men of Edelmarch, known as Marchers, are regarded as common and uncouth by nearly everyone else, as they do not possess an aristocracy and practice universal conscription. Despite the prejudice against Marcher mannerisms, however, they are well respected for holding the line against barbarian invaders from Tsap. The dominant faith in Edelmarch is Kantorism, though many simultaneously adhere to the Small Faiths.

The Eastern Continent, Khart
Khart is a truly massive continent that covers the majority of the Known World. Many theorize that it may actually be connected to Tsap at some point in the Far East, thus making it the undisputed largest landmass on Yura. The Sunlight Sea separates it from Thain, and the Jagged Mountains separate it from what is known of Tsap. The western coast of Khart is a sunny, humid climate which is perfect for agriculture, but between 200-300 miles from the coast, arid lands give way to the Eternal Dunes. It is unknown how long the Eternal Dunes stretch into the east, but there are some myths and records which claim that there is a fertile land on the other side. Regardless, the Dunes are also home to numerous foul creatures, including demons and legions of the undead, which have constantly plagued the Khartagans. Khart is generally held to be the birthplace of civilization and sapient life, and has hosted many great empires over the millennia. Perhaps the greatest civilization in Khartian history was the Pithian Empire, which ruled nearly the whole of the Known World approximately 1000 years ago, but decayed and was beset by a calamity. Pith today is just one of the many small empires that struggle for power in Khart. Nearly all of the major religions in the world have their origins in Khart, but the majority of Khartagans today are either Adrasteans or Kantorists.


The Northern Continent, Tsap
Tsap is the northernmost continent in the Known World, and the one which is least well known. Tsap is a massive, cold, dry landmass which is separated from Thain and Khart by the Jagged Mountains and Sunlight Sea. The expeditions to Tsap have explored some of its southern reaches, which are vast, arid steppes and plains. North of the steppe lies a frigid, snowy waste, but it is not known how far it extends. Tsap is home to many monstrous race and barbarian hordes, and its history is mostly understood in relation to its invasions of civilized realms in Khart and Thain. Thousands of years ago, men descended out of Tsap and invaded and settled in northwestern Khart, which most contemporary scholars regard as the beginning of the domination of man in the world and the end of elven supremacy. Now it is orcs, goblins, and dark elves that raid and invade from Tsap.

Religion
Religion plays an important role in the world of Yura, but unlike in many conventional D&D settings there is no overarching, reality-defining pantheon. Gods are believed to exist, and some claim evidence for it, but there is no confirmation of the existence of anything truly divine, apart from the powers displayed by clerics and paladins, which do not come from a patron deity.

The Church of the Holy Maiden, Adrastea
Arguably the most popular religion in the world, and certainly the most powerful, the Church of the Holy Maiden is a monotheistic faith which recognizes the existence of a single, all-powerful creator god, but does not worship it; they instead venerate Saint Adrastea, the Holy Maiden. Adrastea was a cleric of extraordinary powers who lived about six hundred years ago, in the time of the Pithian Empire. She was an extremely kind and compassionate person who dedicated her life to aiding the poor and the weak. In her later years, however, Adrastea despaired over the seeming futility of her efforts, as those she helped invariably sickened, died, and then vanished from the world or reincarnated to experience suffering over again. Adrastea devised a solution using her unparalleled command of divine magic, and created a realm for the souls of the dead to live in peace and happiness after death, free from oblivion and reincarnation. She sacrificed her life and her power to do this, but did make sure that she would reincarnate to lead the faithful towards salvation. Since then, the Church of the Holy Maiden has always been lead by a Holy Maiden, believed to be the reincarnation of Adrastea, and commands a great deal (some speculate the majority) of wealth and political influence in the world today. The Church of the Holy Maiden advertises itself to the poor as a means to a better afterlife, and demands only a few simple things from its faithful: 1) that they worship no god, 2) that they repent of their sins, and 3) that they venerate the Holy Maiden. There are many more commandments and dogmas of the Church, but these Three Principles are the basis of the faith, and are theoretically all that is necessary to reach the Paradise that Adrastea promises. Adrastean services take place in temples, in which a special blessed water is set ablaze with a quasi-magical blue flame to absolve the sins of its members. Fire (especially blue fire and magical fire), water, and cloth have special significance to Adrasteans. Ten Thousand Broken Promises is the name of their holy book, authored by the Third Holy Maiden, and it relates the tale of the Holy Maiden as well as numerous proverbs. Adrastea herself authored a number of texts, though they are mostly theological works analyzing and critiquing what are now regarded as the Small Faiths.

For cleric/paladin characters: the favored weapon of the Church is the bastard sword, and its alignment NG. Its domains are Liberty, Love, Fire, Divine, and Martyr.

Kantorism
Kantorism is a pantheistic, animistic, and ascetic faith that worships the long-dead Pithian Emperor Kantor as the messiah. Kantor was perhaps the greatest archmage to ever live, and his reign saw unprecedented prosperity. Towards the end of his reign, Kantor divined that a great calamity would befall Yura and put an end to life on the planet. It is not known what this calamity actually was, but many believe it may have been related to a comet that was supposed to approach the planet in his reign. Kantor sacrificed himself to save Yura, but because of his power he did not truly die. Instead, his essence diffused into the very fabric of the world. Kantorists believe that this was his apotheosis, and they erect shrines in nature to worship and give thanks. A shrine to Kantor can range from something as simple as a rope enclosing some trees to an elaborate temple complex. Space, and the arrangement of objects within it, is believed to have critical importance by Kantorists. Rope, plants, paper, and doorways have special significance to Kantorists. Kantorists do not have any hierarchical religious organization, and do not worship gods, though they do recognize the existence of many. Instead, they believe that they, and everything else in the world, is part of the divine, as it is infused with Kantor’s essence, and strive to achieve harmony in all things. Kantorists have no single holy text, but most regard Emperor Kantor’s own Horticulture and the Eighth Plane (oftentimes instead titled Order and Disorder) as their primary theological treatise.

For cleric/paladin characters: the favored weapon of Kantorists is the estoc, and its alignment is LN. Its domains are Magic, Solitude, Plant, Rivers, and Inevitable.





The Small Faiths
The Small Faiths is a term that refers to the worship of individual patron deities, a practice that fell out of favor after the fall of the Pithian Empire around 500 years ago. The Small Faiths are incredibly diverse, but each cult often has very little depth, so people take to worshiping two or three gods to protect them in different aspects of their life. Most clerics in the world would consider themselves part of the Small Faiths, though it has long been known that divine powers do not come from patron deities. Some of the Small Faiths claim evidence of their gods’ existences, including some clerics who have walked between planes and visited the realms of the divine, but theologians and archmages long-ago debunked the idea that those powerful extraplanar beings were anything resembling true gods. Still there are many, especially in Khart, who cling to the Small Faiths out of tradition, habit, and the promise of some degree of power. Although they are incredibly diverse, there is a fairly standard set of practices for the Small Faiths. Temples house idols to the gods, and sacrifices of incense and livestock are made on their behalf.

For clerics/paladin characters: Because of their diversity, the Small Faiths have many favored weapons, alignments, and domains.

The Five Cults
This religion is native to the northernmost peoples of the world, who worship powerful, ancient, living creatures as gods. Each god is an immensely powerful being with a unique form and consciousness, but all dwell beneath the waves in enormous prehistoric temples. It's believed that there were more cults in the past, but they died with their god, and even now there is competition between the remaining cults. The gods themselves simply rest, either sleeping or engaged in activity indiscernible to human observation. Bells are considered extremely important to the cults, though whether this is because they beckon the gods or keep them lulled to sleep is open to interpretation. Eros and Eris, the two moons of Yura, as well as the stars, shawls, and green eyes are considered to have special significance by members of the Five Cults. The Five Cults have no single holy book, but they do share a book of songs, Moonlight Hymns, which is the primary means by which they spread their faith. The Five Cults are not well known in most of the civilized world, but the barbarians of Tsap have learned to give them a wide berth. Each of the cults has a real, grand temple under the sea, but in the south they worship on the coast or underground.

For clerics/paladin character: The Five Cults have a number of favored weapons and alignments, but all share a Neutral position on the Good/Evil axis. The domains of the Five Cults are Protean, Moon, Catastrophe, Insanity, and Void.