Griselderyn

The region of Griselderyn is located far in the north of Kashura, bordered in the east by the northernmost parts of The Worldspine and in the west by the frozen archipelagos and fjords of The Shattered Sea. In the south, Griselderyn borders The Boreas Highlands and The Blooming Heights, two mountain ranges which separate it from the region of Upper Zagesi.
While the region is nowadays dominated by members of The Hominid Strain, it was not always like that.
Due to its cold and harsh weather in most parts, Griselderyn has historically been rather sparsely populated, something that has not meaningfully changed even with the recent refugee migrations from The Shattered Sea and Upper Zagesi.

When Talking about Griselderyn, people generally differentiate differentiate between 3 regions:
The first region, located in the southeast of Griselderyn, is referred to as Darimark, which roughly translates to “The Land of Woods and Waters” in old Briathain.
The second region, located east of the first one, is known as The Howling Wilds, namesake of which are The Howling Hills, which dominate the region.
The Third region, located to the north of Griselderyn, is known as The Winter's Veil, a mostly frigid and extremely sparsely populated part of Kashura.
These regions have differences in culture, history and geography, and the people living there generally view themselves as distinct from one another.

Darimark:

Darimark is what people generally think of when talking about Griselderyn. It is by far the most densely populated region of Griselderyn, home to its 4 largest cities, the reasons for which are manifold.
The region revolves around The Griselder River and entirely encompasses The Dha-Gillain, The Griselder Woods and The Griselder Valley to its south. It borders The Blooming Heights in the south-west and the northernmost parts of The Worldspine to its east. It also holds access to Higurds pass and The Northwind Pass.

Climate:

The climate of Darimark is milder than those of the other two regions, though it is still on the cooler side, especially in the borderlands closer to The Worldspine and The Howling Hills. During the calm seasons, temperatures can range from 0C (32F) around the north and the borderlands, to 25C (77F) in The Griselder Valley.
During the harsh seasons, northern Darimark experiences temperatures as low as -18C (-0.4F) heavy snowfall, snowstorms and even flash freezes. Middle Darimark tends to deal with lower temperatures, heavy snow and rainfall, thunderstorms and floods. The South of Darimark tends to deal with heatwaves, droughts and earthquakes.

Population:

Darimark is the most densely populated region of Griselderyn, home to around 250.000 people, most of which are of The Hominid Strain. These people predominantly live in small villages and towns, though a number of larger cities have sprung up in the region as well.

Polities:

While for most of its history, Darimark was home to countless hominid clans controlling small chiefdoms, this all changed around 350 pSF, when an until then small and unimportant clan managed to subjugate another much more powerful clan in the region that had attacked them. Fast forward to today and The Embergrasp Dynasty, a monarchy originating from said clan now controls most of Darimark with the exception of The Griselder Valley to its south, which is controlled by the free city of Ordinnean.
Ordinnean is the largest city in all of Griselderyn, home to around 20.000 people. It is known for its talented craftsmen, especially blacksmiths and engineers. Ordinnean is the place where iron-forging was first invented just a few decades ago, the techniques of which are a well-guarded secret of the city's blacksmiths guilds. “Ord-Steel” is in fact known to be the best steel in all of Kashura, unrivaled in flexibility, durability and hardness.
The Embergrasp Dynasty and Ordinnean are currently on friendly terms, though it has historically not always been like that.

The Howling Wilds:

The Howling Wilds are a look into the past of Darimark, a place where the old ways of warring tribes still ring true. This certainly has not changed with the migrations of The Gray Giants, large hominids with gray and snow-white skin originally from their island home of Rungholt, which began around 0 SF.
The region is centered around The Maera, and encompasses the entirety of The Howling Hills. It stretches north to south from The Auroras all the way to The Boreas Highlands and The Blooming Heights, and east to west from the borders of The Griselder Woods to The Shattered Sea. Finally, The Thairdal are also part of this region.

Climate:

The Howling Wilds tend to be cold and frigid all year round, with the cold winds of The Shattered Sea carrying freezing rain and snow into these lands. The temperatures in The Howling Wilds vary a bit, being generally a bit more bearable the farther south and east you go, up to 20C (68F). The coastal and northern regions experience temperatures as low as -20C (-4F) during the calm seasons.
During the harsh seasons, temperatures in the region drop even further, as low as -30C (-22F) in the far north. During these times, The Howling Wilds experience extreme snow storms, earthquakes and occasionally volcanic eruptions from The Thairdal.

Population:

The Howling Wilds are rather sparsely populated, home to around 100.000 people, the vast majority of which lives in semi-nomadic tribal structures. While about half of the region's population consists of hominids, especially since 0SF, the other half consists mostly of members of The WIldkin Strain and The Elven Strain. These elves and wildkin are likely the first people of Griselderyn, and still follow the ancient religion of The Veiled Mother.

Polities:

While The Howling Wilds lack a larger unified polity, they still are home to 3 cities numbering a few thousand in population each, representing the more “civilized” parts of the region.
Far in the south-west of the region, the city of Kallmark, conquered and renamed by the first wave of The Gray Giants around 0SF, is the main trade hub in the east of The Shattered Sea, home to around 4000 people, 80% of which are hominids of The Gray Giant variety. While the situation between the conquerors and original holders of the city used to be quite tense, it has relaxed in recent years, as peace agreements have been negotiated between the two by their southern neighbor Uzdarezi.
On the south-eastern shores of The Maera lies the largest settlement in the entirety of The Howling Wilds, the city of Cathaineogh. Controlled by a confederation of the largest settled tribes in the region, it is home to around 5000 people, 50% of which are hominids, the rest being equally split between elves and wildkin. Cathaineogh is known as the neutral grounds of The Howling Wilds, and is often used for peace talks between the different warring tribes of the region. Besides that, The Maera, the lake on whose shores Cathaineogh was built, is an important cultural and religious site for followers of The Veiled Mother.
Finally, far in the north of The Howling Wilds, at the river mouth where The Auroras meet The Shattered Sea, lies the city of Gorthael. To call it a city however is an overstatement, as half of the year next to no one lives there. Gorthael is mostly inhabited by the far northern tribes of The Howling Wilds, though these tribes are semi-nomadic and only come here to hunker down for the harsher seasons when it is, by their standards, not safe to travel. During these harsher seasons though, Gorthael can be home to up to 2000 people, with an equal split of elves, hominids and wildkin.

The Winter’s Veil:

The Winter’s Veil lies in the far north of Griselderyn, consisting pretty much of The Auroras and everything they encompass, including The Elderwoods.
They are only a part of Griselderyn geographically, as there has historically been little interaction between it and the rest of Griselderyn, in no small part due to the extreme cold, terrible weather and generally inhospitable environment.
Due to this however, the people of this region have had little to no changes in their way of life for thousands of years, from outside or otherwise. As such they still follow the ancient ways of their ancestors, worshiping The Veiled Mother and countless nature spirits.

Climate:

The Winter’s Veil is known above all for its extreme climate. Even during the calm seasons temperatures almost never reach above 0C (32F) and drop as low as -40C (-40F) in the far north. Blizzards, avalanches and flash freezes are common even during the calm seasons, and it snows pretty much all year round.
Things become even worse during the harsher seasons, with temperatures dropping as low as -60C (-72F), blizzards that can go on for weeks without break. It is a wonder anyone lives here at all.

Population:

The Winter’s Veil is about as sparsely populated as a place can be, home in its entirety to just around 5000 people, the vast majority of which are elves and wildkin. While many of them travel around to hunt for food, and supplies the vast majority of them still live in and around Elwyth, the one and only settlement in the entire region. The reason for this is simple: the environment makes it pretty much impossible to survive on your own for extended periods of time, therefore cooperation is literally a matter of life and death here.

Polities:

While the city of Elwyth is the epicenter of civilization in The Winter’s Veil, it does not really fit the definition of a polity, it would be more accurate to equate it to a way of life. In Elwyth, everything revolves around the survival of the group, every day is spent preparing for and defending against the cold. Everyone has a task, a job to do, a role to fill, and they do so with almost ritualistic obsession, as even one mistake could not only spell the end for them, but everyone they know and love.
It is not surprising then that the people of Elwyth have come to worship The Veiled Mother, and have done so for thousands of years. They bring her offerings, sacrifice their dead and sing her hymns, all in an effort to gain her favor, for calm winters and plentiful hunts.

Landmarks:

Mountains & other Geological Features:

The Auroras
The Blooming Heights
The Boreas Highlands
The Griselder Valley
The Howling Hills
The Thairdal
The Worldspine

Forests, Swamps etc:

The Elderwoods
The Griselder Woods

Bodies of Water:

The Dha-Gillain
The Griselder River
The Maera
The Shattered Sea

Miscellaneous Landmarks:

Higurds pass
The Northwind Pass