Amalgia

Two worlds, now one.

Home to the Materians and Dyrus (among a variety of fauna, flora, and fungi), Amalgia is a world in turmoil. Its sky is scarred by the Rift. Its people are at war.

And it is dying...

A History

Amalgia was formed when two worlds from different realms collided with one another. These worlds - Materis and Dyrethreed - shared a magical connection, one linked to the very souls of both planets.

A calamity befalling the world of Dyrethreed compounded the connection. Strengthened it. So much so that Materis reacted, resulting in the collision that the survivors of both worlds dubbed the Coalescence.

by Johannes Plenio

Geography

Map of Amalgia by SunlanceX

Separately, Materis and Dyrethreed were both composed of five continents. When the Coalescence hit, the people saw a great central continent splintered into two, and each of the other four continents saw drastic changes (though none quite as perplexing as what happened to that central continent).

It took time to agree on new names, considering that the Materians and Dyrus almost immediately started a war with each other that has yet to see a ceasefire. Mostly, it became a matter of which name was more popular, or perhaps easier to say. Eventually the general population settled on these five:

• Perhl
• Emerand
• Diamon
• Satiere
• Ruberus

Perhl

To the north lies the continent of Perhl. Hit hard by the Coalescence, with the origin of the Rift hanging eerily above its skies, Perhl saw a regional shift in its climate and its geography. Despite Diamon’s obvious central fracture, many agree that Perhl is the most changed continent of all and is almost entirely unrecognisable to the land that existed before the Coalescence.

Perhl is the amalgamation of Mourning the Morrow (a continent of Dyrethreed) and Halloven (a continent of Materis).

Perhl is home to dangerous and unforgiving environments, and creatures corrupted by the untempered, negatively charged magic pouring from the Rift. Its people, regardless of whether they are Materian or Dyrus, survive in these harsh lands - but barely. Everyone who lives, or has lived, on Perhl is well aware of the danger the Rift poses. Most know well enough to stay away from it. Some brave or foolhardy souls tempt fate and travel to the closest point to the Rift, and none of them ever return the same.

by Jr Korpa

Perhl is split into six territories. The Scaen Islands, Malachi, and Peridiya are territories controlled by Materians. Shadow, Reach, and Sunder are territories controlled by Dyrus.

The continent is bounded on the northeast by the Dreamer’s Ocean, on the southeast by the Widows Deep, and on the northwest by Northern Breach. It is separated from Diamon by the Fractured Straits and the Gilded Sea. It is separated from Emerand by the Emberlit Sea.

Those early days were chaotic. Pure and simple.

I remember walking the streets of Vallentree - or what was Vallentree - cracked concrete and desecrated homes everywhere you looked. People cowering beneath the ruins. Afraid of the Rift, the Dyrus, the sudden change to everything they knew.

I was just a little boy back then. Too young to fully comprehend just how awful the situation was. And now? I… I can’t go back there. Halloven… Perhl… it was my home. I can’t go back and see the wreckage it’s become. I won’t.

— Recollections of the Warden

Emerand

In the northwest is the continent on Emerand. The continent got away relatively unscathed when the Coalescence happened, at least in comparison to the others. Both the current landscape and climate in Emerand are stable. The only large-scale change that people who live on the continent have noticed is that the merging of Materis and Dyrethreed has actually made the continent a little bigger.

Emerand is the amalgamation of Ember of Midnight (a continent of Dyrethreed) and Ranaskaun (a continent of Materis).

Photo by Hasan Almasi

Currently, Emerand is plagued by violence. Dyrus fighting Materians, Dyrus fighting each other, Materians fighting their fellow compatriots. Vengeance and betrayal are thick throughout the mountainous reaches and Emerand, so much so that high ranking officials from outside of Emerand have declared the continent a temporary no-go zone - on both sides of the war.

Emerand is split into three territories. Norlethin and Esterdon are territories controlled by Materians. Calling is the only territory in Emerand that is controlled by Dyrus.

The continent is bounded on the north by the Northern Breach and bounded on the south by the Pale Haven Ocean. It is separated from Perhl by the Emberlit Sea. It is separated from Diamon by the Sea of Palasque.

Of the Dyrus I have spoken to - few though that may be - Emerand is more their’s than it is ours. That is why they fight so valiantly for it.

Because those mountain peaks, those expansive forests, none of that harkens back to the beloved towns and cities I knew growing up. Those sights belong to them, to Dyrethreed.

And yet, I still desire it. These pastures new.

— Chronicles Under the Laughing Light

Diamon

By far the largest continent in Amalgia; Diamon sits in a central / slightly southwestern position on the map. It is obvious to anyone and everyone that Diamon suffered greatly during the Coalescence, as evidenced by the fractured set of islands that now bisect the great continent. However, the people of Diamon are thankful that they do not have to contend with the same level of magical corruption that besieges the northern continent of Perhl.

Diamon is an amalgamation of Tears In The Voice (a continent of Dyrethreed) and Mirravale (a continent of Materis).

There has been a lot of debate over whether Diamon should still be considered a single continent thanks to the fracture dividing it’s upper and lower half. Most notably, the faction of Liberty considers the two halves of Diamon to be separate entities, to the point where they even symbolise this on their insignia. Such thoughts are not of a popular opinion elsewhere though, and many even argue that if you were to consider the upper and lower halves as separate continents, then surely the Broken Isles should also become its own separate entity.

Photo by Joshua Brown

Diamon is split into eight territories. Morestow, Lowerdas, and Hyverist are controlled by Materians. Gift, Victory, Burden, and Promise are controlled by Dyrus. The Broken Isles do not currently sit under either side's control - not through a lack of effort, as the Materians and Dyrus are still actively fighting over this territory, but due to the fact that one of the Saints has claimed part of the land for themselves.

The continent is bounded on the west by the Pale Haven Ocean, the east by the Widows Deep, and the south by the Silver Thread Ocean. It is separated from Emerand by the Sea of Palasque. It is separated from Perhl by the Fractured Straits and the Gilded Sea. It is separated from Ruberus by the Vollidan Sea and the Echo Straits.

Such pitiful arguments. All for what?

No one now knows of the Tears’ great valleys, crystalline grasslands stretching for miles and miles. The glorious sight of sunset reflecting the Weeping Lights across the fading sky.

Except for me. Alone in my grief, alone in my reminiscence. Oh what I would give to see my home once more - to fly high above the Tears and simply marvel at the scene below. Instead, I must commit the memory to my dreams, and know that when I sleep, I am back where I belong.

— The Impressions of Passion

Satiere

To the northeast is the continent of Satiere. The best way to describe Satiere is cold. For most of the year, the continent is gripped by snowstorms, and even when the temperatures rise in the summer months, it is barely ever enough to truly rid the lands of its blanket of frost. It is perhaps the only continent where you can guarantee that the climate will be consistent enough to predict.

Satiere is an amalgamation of Storm Over Mountains (a continent of Dyrethreed) and Vieniere (a continent of Materis).

Photo by Andrey Bond

There is little wonder that Satiere is home to so few Dyrus. So harsh and unforgiving is the cold of Satiere that, in the months immediately following the Coalescence, the continent saw the highest death toll of the Dyrus population who found themselves stranded there. Many ended up moving, desperate to get away from the constant cold. Few stayed, determined to survive. In fact, the reason why Solace exists in Satiere’s far east is because those Dyrus survivors stole Materian technology, allowing them to slightly alter the climate in Solace to something more bearable.

Satiere is split into three major territories. Zevesk and Kela are territories controlled by Materians. Solace is the only Dyrus controlled territory in Satiere.

The continent is bounded on the north by the Dreamer’s Ocean, on the south by the Widows Deep, and on the east by the Pale Haven Ocean. It is separated from Ruberus by the Ashen Sea.

They call it the neverending winter. I call it fucking freezing.

Those early days… I really thought we were all done for. I mean, you try imagining going from a warm summer's day to a sudden frost. It was like night and day. Scary thought to have as a kid, that death was just around the corner, waiting for the final curtain call.

Made it through though. Barely. Can’t say the same for a lot of the Dyrus - I can only imagine what it must have felt like for them. If it was awful for us, then it must have really felt like a death sentence.

Maybe if we had thought to work together that day, we could’ve saved a lot of lives. Or maybe that’s just my naivete shining through.

— Sudden Changes

Ruberus

In the southeast is the continent of Ruberus. The continent has the benefit of being the furthest away from the Rift and any subsequent chaos caused by it. This has meant that Ruberus has seen an influx of people - both Materian and Dyrus - migrating to the mainlands. In particular, Ruberus took in a lot of the Dyrus survivors from Satiere in the months immediately following the Coalescence.

Ruberus is an amalgamation of Glory of Morn (a continent of Dyrethreed) and Ruquan (a continent of Materis).

Diversity, in both its people and its biomes. Ruberus boasts of vast deserts in the north, a large central swathe of woodlands and mountain ranges, southern grasslands, and marshes to the west. It can make the weather a little difficult to predict, especially with the Charged Negative magic causing havoc with Amalgia’s climates, but many of the people who live on Ruberus would not swap their home for anywhere else.

Photo by Mario Purisic

Ruberus is split into five major territories. Switterlis and Frimera are territories controlled by Materians. Greed and Pride are territories controlled by Dyrus. Helavi is considered a neutral territory - home of the Saint of Protection and Honourhold.

The continent is bounded on the north by the Widows Deep, on the east by the Pale Haven Ocean, on the south by the Dreamer’s Ocean, and on the west by the Silver Thread Ocean. It is separated from Diamon by the Vollidan Sea and the Echo Straits. It is separated from Satiere by the Ashen Sea.

You want me to wax poetic about my old home? Go on and on about my dear Glory of Morn, as if by voicing its eulogy I may somehow bring it back?

Don’t make me laugh.

I know the others are attached to their old homes, old lives. I care little for it. What good does it do to remember marbled streets and red-topped woods if I can never see them settled in reality?

No, my homestead is lost, and this new Ruberus is a mockery of what once was.

— The Artist’s Journal, In Hysteria