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ForgetDeny — Map of Teirros
Published: 2012-01-29 13:03:29 +0000 UTC; Views: 15467; Favourites: 172; Downloads: 0
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Description
A more finished version of [link] I've obviously done a lot more painting into it, as well as renaming a few places, slightly modifying borders and city positioning. This map is a working representation of the world I have been devising as it currently stands.The main power in Teirros is Civillium, even those nations and states that are not officially incorporated into the Cilline Imperium pay tribute to the Civilline Emperor and his knights. All except for the Malani Accordancey, who managed - through inter-cultural coordination - to repel the incursions of the early Civilline Empire. Since then the Imperium has been far less aggressive, the Malani and the Empire even share an alliance. The nations fully incorporated into the Civilline Imperium include: Civllium, Marhathan and Jonden. The Northern provinces of Gaeldanar have bowed to Imperial rule, however the Southern province of Gaelda Fura refuses to surrender its sovereignty; Scar is an ungovernable land filled with monstrosities and wild men. The Civili claim Lordship of the Malfiri Jungle, though in practice their authority is difficult to exercise due to the ineffectiveness of knights in jungle. The Aelfiri of A-El' Fehasta do not officially acknowledge Civili Lordship, however it is notable that mages of Civili blood constitute 43% of their High Council, and the Civili have been granted the right to operate holds, forts and military camps within the borders of A-El Fehasta without limitation.
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Comments: 22
It's a beautiful map. But there are a few things I think that are a bit troublesome, and I will try to explain.
The colors of the map are well done, I love how areas are darker and looks like mountains. Also there're many different shapes of land on it, which aren't similair to those of our world map.
The technique used for the names of the places and the red dots are a bit distracting. And I think it's a same you did it that way. Because it's too messy. The red and the light blue are a big contrast and with a lot of them you don't really know where to look. The titles of the countries and the seas are better done e.deviantart.net/emoticons/s/s… " width="15" height="15" alt="
Overall it's a good map, but I think their must be another, less messy, way to display the citynames. I hope you will find this critique usefull e.deviantart.net/emoticons/s/s… " width="15" height="15" alt="
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Yes, I see what you mean about the red blue - I actually chose them because they're high-contrast (for visibility), but the level of visual distraction that they create is unfortunate to say the least. Do you think perhaps if they were simply black it would be better?
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Your absolutely welcome to do so - I've actually been developing a history, lore and play concepts related to this world for that very purpose. The most current version of the map is here:
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This is quite intriguing. What's the technology level in this world of yours? What are the religions, the currencies, the customs, if you can tell me about them?
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Hi, I'm stoked you find it intriguing
I would describe this world as early renaissance culturally, with an essentially feudal economic system, defined by successive layers of vassalage. It is necessary to make the caveat that their technological development has been hindered by the existence and influence of magic in the world. The point of history that this map is placed in represents the moment when machinery begins to become a threat to the reigning mage-driven order. Magic works a bit differently in this world to others, in that while mages absolutely have the power to shape and destroy on a massive scale, each mage is a channel for only a small amount of the necessary energy to generate even a fire ball so they must collaborate with each other to achieve tasks. Mages can also operate like batteries, meditating for extended periods to store energy - this is how any great feats are achieved - however, while in meditation they are extremely vulnerable and so require mundane protection.
There are several distinct religions in this region, however all of them fundamentally revolve around the veneration of the Source from which mages draw their power. In A-el' Fehasta they venerate this source in abstract terms, believing it to be the same energy field that sustains and creates life, without imbuing it with consciousness. The Civili believe that their capital Civillium itself is the source of this power, and therefore worship the stones of the city (mined from a long-collapsed quarry in the island of Tempell that has become both a holy site and the place where their mages train. On the other hand, the Malfir practice an animist religion that presents new deities at the turn of every stream, though it should be noted that their reason for this style of belief is in fact the same as that for the Aelfir (the peoples of A-el Fehasta) abstract belief system (a veneration of life energies). The Northern Gaeld have culturally capitulated to the Civili and largely practice the religion of the empire, whereas Markayni and Southern Gaeld continue to practice ancestor worship, with increasing overlap between their beliefs and those of the Malfir as you get closer to the Malfiri Jungle. The Marhatti practice elemental worship, venerating extreme forces of nature - the sky, the sea, fire, the land. The Silent Lakes of Northern Marhathan are said to be the burial sites of the dead Gods who shaped the world and imbued it with energy. Because their Gods are dead, the Marhatti have created demi-gods of heroes from their history and folk lore who are treated with a similar level of reverence to that given Gods in other cultures, however there is no assumption that these heroes might intervene in this world or life. The Janes of Jonden have deified a hero of Marhatti culture, viewing him as both the man who founded their nation and as the 'one' ascended human, Jon (pronounced Sh-yoon), or Jarmsk to the Marhatti, is the single deity of Jane religious life and they practice his worship with a terrifying fervour. The traders of the Malani Accordancey are the most well-travelled people in the world and have seen enough of it to be fundamentally amused by religion - they tolerate its presence within their society but there is no state religion and no religious practice is given priority, excepting the enigmatic presence of a temple to Hakar in their capital Taig Malai. The Malani refuse to acknowledge this presence and will often resort to violence if pressed on it. Hakar is in fact the lead deity of an immensely powerful empire from across the Aura' han Ocean, named the Hakan, though this is all but unknown on this particular continent.
The culture of Northern Gaeld is based on that of Renaissance France, the Markayni are somewhat analogous to pre-renaissance Ireland. The peoples of Southern Gaeld have had their culture shaped by constant battle with monstrosities and cannibalistic tribes living in the Scar; barring their capital Starfall and the holy city of Silverpeak they are largely nomadic, they ride horses, they fight, and they watch for signs of trouble. Until the Civili invasion, the Southern Gaeld had never formed a singular power structure however they formed a union of clans when it became clear that the only way they could stand against the Civili legions was by coordinating their defense - it is notable that the Southern Gaeld are the only people to have stood against the Civili in combat and retained their sovereignty and independence; it is also notable that the Civili do not acknowledge this sovereignty or independence though their efforts to push this claim have massively overtaxed the Empire's resources. Marhathan is an ex-empire, now capitulated to Civillium, culturally I've based them on a mixture of ideas taken from Highlands Scots and Viking period Scandinavia, where the Janes have a culture more reminiscent of late-medieval/early renaissance England. The Civili are (obviously) based on Imperial Rome, though at this point in history the breakdown in power structures caused by their over-extension into Gaelda Fura has led to the majority of the Empire resembling pre-fall Italy and the city of Civillium itself becoming somewhat akin to Byzantium. The primary currency is the Civili Andros, however each nation (barring Gaelda Fura and the Malfiri, who practice barter) have their own currencies - in the central Imperial nations (Civillium, Gaelda Rega, Jonden) it is becoming increasingly common for individual lords to mint their own currencies in competition with the Andros - the legions have thus far been powerless against this economic aggression.
Another important thing to note is that this is a post-cataclysmic world. Roughly 2000 years prior to the moment of history shown in this map, Aelfir mages of what is now called A-el' Fehasta drew too great a quantity of the power that gives them magic. It is unknown how or why they did this as the event caused an extreme dark age as well as the steep decline of Aelfir culture, however the result was massive and sudden implosion of two major sections of the continent, creating the D'Firi Sea and the Sea of Wylld. It is impossible to pinpoint a true time-frame for this due to the dark age that it caused, very little in the way of records were kept during this period and most of the documents of pre-cataclysmic cultures have been destroyed. What little is known has been extrapolated from the fact that the Aelfir were at ware with the pre-Marhatti peoples. This event also resulted in the creation of the Malfir, who the Aelfir blame for the cataclysm and continue to violently persecute to this day. Technically A-el' Fehasta is in a permanent state of declared war with all Malfii peoples, any found within their borders will be put to death, despite the laws of Civillium who are, at least ostensibly, their masters.
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My God. That is a boatload of information, more than I could have expected. I mean, trying to read it almost gave me a headache. But there are still things that don't make sense to me. Are the Aelfir elves or something? Are there other races? Why do they hate the Malfir so much? For that matter, what are the Malfir, specifically? And I'd also like to know more about the governments and rulers of each of these nations, if you could do that. Are there any conflicts, any tensions between these nations currently? Any problems of any other sort?
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Haha sorry, I've spent years now slowly putting together a fairly comprehensive 'history textbook' for this world as I intend to write stories in it eventually and, probably even more, intend to create an RPG in it. The Aelfir and Malfir are culturally quite similar to elves, though I don't think I'll be giving them pointy ears. With the Aelfir I tend to think of them as being the remnants of this world's early high civilization, much like Classical Greece in our world. This is a Malfir:
The information in the blurb tells you quite a bit about them, though I've modified the timelines since putting this picture up (2000 years, not 800 years!). There are other races too, though most of them occupy different continents to those focused on here - the peoples of Thak Harrow are a race called the Gordonna that are somewhat analogous to dwarves, their origin is tied in with the of the Malfir and the relationship between the two is one of the great mysteries of this world. There are also a race of humanoid, intelligent creatures named the Xcyxmn who occupy a group of islands in the middle of the Aura Han Ocean. I should probably also mention that the map here is an early concept, I've since developed it quite significantly.
Civillium is an Imperial republic, governed by the Imperator - a role that is hereditary for the most part, though there are ways around this - and the Senate. 'The Senate' describes the meeting chamber rather than the people in it - any sufficiently interested citizen of the city may participate in the Senate - though definition of who counts as a citizen is quite tightly controlled. Marhathan, Jonden and Gaelda Rega are all monarchies, though there approaches to vassalage (how the ranks of nobility are defined) differ greatly. The Aelfir are essentially a technocracy, as are the Gordonna - though the Aelfir focus on practical implementation of magic whereas the Gordonna focus on mechanical invention. The Markayni are a tribal society, and the people of Gaelda Fura live in nomadic clans. Malan is an oligarchy and far Hakan is a Theocratic Empire with a God-ruler figure. Though the peoples of Teirros (the continent) are largely unaware of their existence, the Hakan have been preparing a large scale invasion for a long time now.
The main issue facing this continent at this moment in history is that the peace maintained by Civillium is fracturing. Soldiers in the legion are increasingly of foreign blood (largely Marhatti), nobility within the Empire have been refusing to pay taxes to the central authority, and in fact have been minting their own coin, and the Imperator is a child, whose principal adviser is a greasy trader from Malan (much despised by Civillium's conventional great families). In relation to this many minor nobles have raised taxes and begun to enforce conscription to local militias in what appears to be a brewing civil war. Due to these harsh conditions the nobility have also lost the faith of the lower classes, who are becoming increasingly aware of the disparity between actual work and wealth and power that is implicit in their governance structures. In Gaelda Fura a great Clan Leader is rallying the others clans around him, in preparation for a final conflict with the Civili invaders - his goal is the complete elimination of Civili forces from the Southern Continent and the reintegration of Gaelda Rega. It is rumoured that he has contracted a large force of flagless Marhatti to hold the coast. The king of Jonden is suspected dead, as he hasn't been seen or heard from in roughly 5 years, though his court continues to assure the world that he is alive and well; as a result of this, the lower nobility of Jonden have been engaged in an on-going power struggle as they seek to take charge of as much of their neighbours' lands as possible before the monarchy is re-asserted.
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Nice map
Interesting world. I think I'd like to know more
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Cheers, Check out the descriptions of the pictures in this folder [link] for more info about the world. Each gives its own little snippet of history, culture and current events. I may put up a straight-forward history document at some point as well. Glad you liked the map at any rate, thanks again.
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I wasn't able to reply on the critique, so I will post it here
I think it would be less distracting. But I don't know what it will do for the visibility. Because a lot of places lies in different places of color, the most of them a bit dark.
I was thinking of some darker blue, although that's difficult with the sea. Or maybe light yellow, like the name of the countries.
And about the red dots, maybe you can try to blend them more into the background. So there is not 'bam' a red dot on it. Most bigger cities have outskirts after all
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Hi, cheers for your helpful thoughts. I've taken a different approach for showing cities on my latest piece after thinking about what you had to say and would love to read your thoughts about the success of my new approach: [link] Rather than just having a flat blob of red, I've made a custom stamp that's symbolic of that layout of cities that you mentioned (outskirts, inner city, keep etc...). Anyway would love to see what you think, cheers again.
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Me likes ^^
The red is also a bit darker (Am I right?). In blends better with the background and tracks less attention, but enough to see their and their are cities
Also the black of the citienames is better, and I like the font you used there.
At the moment I can't find something for you to improve, so you did a good job
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Indeed it is a darker red! Thanks for the feedback.
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It's a big place. My main focus is on the Southern realms: Gaeldanar, The Malfiri Jungle, Thak Harrow, The Hebronite Islands.
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^^ sounds great....and big
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