Kartakass

Landscape

Kartakass is a heavily forested realm in the southernmost Core’s center. Small grasslands inbetween the forested regions provide fertile farmlands and grasslands suitable for the grazing of livestock and sheep herders are fairly common in these areas.
The three main forests of Kartakass are the Ulvskoven (Wolfwood), Rodskoven (Redwood), and Fekleskoven (Mistwood). The Wolfwood is the largest of the three, encompassing the northern half of Kartkass. Locals say the Grandfather Tree, where wolves gather each night, lies within the heart of the Wolfwood. Deep within the Wolfwood lies the Black Heart Lake. Locals tell a tale of the Black Heart monster that delves beneath the peat-covered surface of the lake, though no two tales describe the creature in similar details.
The Redwood lies between the two main rivers of Kartkass and its name is derived from the ruddy tint of the bark of the elder trees that grow there. Or perhaps from the common sight of blood splattered upon tree roots and trunks. The Mistwood lies along the southern banks of the Musarde River. An omnipresent fog drifts through the trees of this forest and rumors tell of deranged mystics and undead making home within.
In the southwest corner of Kartakass is the Arkalias Hills, more commonly known as the Dead Hills. The Dead Hills is aptly named, for nothing but sickly shrubs grow there. The area is riddle with underground caverns where it is rumored a great necromancer once delved.

Populace

Kartakans are mostly human with a scattering of half-elves, elves, and gnomes. They are an open, flamboyant people that dress, act, and perform to impress upon others. They love gossip and good stories and live for music. Kartakan fashions favor vibrant colors, blousy shirts and trousers tucked into riding boots. Gowns are only worn on the most formal of occasions.
Kartakans teach their history through “mora” or song. Mora is written by the revered Kartakan ancestors of the past or the Ancestral Choir. Mora can vary greatly in tone and situational relevance, but most have an allegorical meaning drawing on cultural lessons of morality or ethics.

Religion

Kartakans are not overly religious, but there are common beliefs held by the populace. They believe in two afterlifes, one for humans and one for animals. It is said that when a person dies, their spirit joins the Ancestral Choir and adds their voice to its eternal music. This is true regardless of the type of life lead by an individual, though those that have lived “wicked” lives are said to have their voice drowned out by the more worthy. The Dark Forest is the afterlife for animals. The spirits of all animals go to the Dark Forest after their death to enjoy what they do most. For wolves, the Kartakans believe this joy is to prey upon humans. These wolves are said to hunt the spirits of the recently departed before they ascend into the Ancestral Choir. If caught, the wolves drag them into the Dark Forest where they are forever hunted by the ever hungry pack.
Another commonly held belief among Kartakans are that the undead are spirits that refused to join or were expelled from the Ancestral Choir. These undead exist by stealing the lives of mortals in an attempt to trick the spirit wolves into chasing another. In Katakass, the dead cannot sing.

The Ancestral Choir

Symbol: Flute
Choirmasters: Clerics of the Ancestral Choir. Wear red and gold vestments and typically have beautiful singing voices as they spread their word through mora.
Beliefs: That offering proper veneration to their ancestors will earn them divine favor and guarantee they will reach the eternal haven of the Ancestral Choir after death. Other beliefs mirror the general belief held by Kartakans.

Ezra

Symbol: Sprig of belladonna and a sword upon a kite shield
Ezra's religion is new to Kartkass with a small, barely attended church located in Skald.

Government

No one leader rules over all of Kartakass, instead each settlement is ruled by a Meistersinger who is chosen during an annual singing contest which begins on Midsummer’s Day.
Meistersingers may rule as they wish and oversee nearly every aspect of government over their settlement. They mete out criminal justice, adjudicate civil disputes, oversee public works, fund the town guard, and appoint lesser officials. They are considered to be the cultural and moral leaders of their settlement.

Economy

Kartkass’ economy is mostly through agriculture and forestry, though there are a number of merchants and artisans that trade and sell the finest of musical instruments.
Coin: Heads is a lyre and tails a musical notation that increases in complexity with value. Canticle (copper Dirge (Silver Ballad (Gold)

Settlements

Travelers may encounter hunting cabins in the woods, small compounds, and farms in the wildlands of Kartakass, but most of the populace is found in one of the two main settlements: Skald and Harmonia

Skald

Largest settlement in Kartakass. Skald is bordered to the east by overhanging cliffs and to the north and west by the Sing-Song River. The Sing-Song plunges 60 ft off the cliffs into a churning basin that throws up a fine curtain of mist year round. The Locals call this basin the Cauldron, due to its boiling appearance.
Twenty-five foot tall curtain walls are found along Skald’s southern border. An old structure, said to once have been Dargacht Keep and the curtain walls that once protected it are found along Skald’s southern border in shattered piles of rubble and ruins of what they once were. Dargacht Plaza, where the yearly Meistersing competitoins are held, is at teh center of the ruins. The southeastern curtain wall runs to the cliffs where it meets a tower built into the cliff face itself. This Great Tower runs up to the Meistersinger’s Keep atop the cliffs. Skald is divided by a wall into Upper Skald and Lower Skald. Upper Skald is home to the most prominent establishments in the town which are clustered around the Caludron. Lower Skald has a large park and poor homes clustered tightly together along narrow alleyways.
Inns: Old Kartakan, Fireside Feeshka, Split Boar
Meistersinger: Harkon Lukas

Harmonia

Although smaller than Skald, Harmonia is considered to be the “heart” of Kartakass in both culture and art. The Road to Harmony leads to Harmonia, ending at the Whirling Bridge, which consists of a stone tower that uses twin drawbridges to span the river. This bridge can be raised and pivoted 90 degrees to block entry into Harmonia. The bridge is always closed at night.
Along Harmonia’s northeaster border are tall cliffs where bonfires are lit during festivals to provide lighting to the town’s outdoor amphitheater which is carved into the living rock of the cliff face. Along the south and west sides of Harmonia is a 15 foot wall and a moat. The South Gate opens out into farmland and the West Gate into a large paddock where the town’s sheep are sheltered each night. The Meistersinger’s fortified mansion is located on a small hill at the center of Harmonia.
The east side of Harmonia is home to the South Hill (manors of the elite), the Amphitheater ringed by four tiers of seating which dictates the price of admission. On the fourth tier one can enter the Crystal Club for 5 gold. Western end of Harmonia is dedicated to agricultural industries and also houses the Temple of Divine Song, the only known church dedicated to the Ancestral Choir with Tibor Bellock serving as the First Voice. Inns: Longhorn Inn - located in the western end near the Temple of Divine Song.
Meistersinger: Eliska Vokrona