Moratash

Created by Moss A. (Discord: raccoons_in_trenchcoat)

A nation so divided in ways of life and culture that it is hard to see what keeps it together, yet magic and the power of Spirine hold it all together. Farmers who use magic to aid their harvest, travelers who find new ways to traverse dangerous cityscapes, academics who wish to find the secrets of the universe, people who simply want a place to feel the magic inherent in the world, all can find a place in the mundane strangeness of Moratash.

Geography

Moratash is probably one of the most mismatched regions in terms of its clashing environments requiring vastly different ways to life, yet it is unified all through its central tower that has provided much strife and stability.

Spirine (Tower)

The central hub for the entire region. It allows for quick travel through much simpler teleportation circles directly to it, as well as instant travel to anywhere else in the region.

Makaba and the Antakar Forest

Supposedly the root of the forest. It is said that those born within sight of the tree are blessed with magical prowess.

Gradtakar Desert

A mostly barren desert of everchanging dunes. The few settlements to have sprung from it have built massive monuments that the sand will never overtake.

Lerdzor

Great canyons have risen from the earth as the final spell a powerful spellcaster performed to protect the ones they loved. Those who reside in it have had to find interesting workarounds to living both on and within sprawling canyons.

Terakash

The original settlers of the mountains have most definitely left their mark on the land through intricate tunnel systems and whole cities. However, this culture is difficult to find now, mixed in with the surrounding area due to being in the center of the civil war.

Cortamros

The first established government to be found in Moratash, the Kingdom of Cortamros. The surrounding plains region is covered in vast farmlands that feeds the whole nation.

Elarnia

Magic seems to surge around here unpredictably. Settlements have formed on its outskirts, however most journeys into the mainland have ended with the few who return spouting out urban legends.

Alfernote

Once a bustling island for unregulated trade, it got caught up in the climax of the civil war and was practically wiped off the map. All that remains is a crater, a reminder that peace is a better choice.

Towns

While there are many towns and cities throughout Moratash, many areas within would not define themselves by just a single town. As such, there are only three to be noted on an international scale.

Spirine (City)

Both the name for the massive tower at the center of Moratash and the city that is within it. People from all across the region come here to trade their goods to others in a melting pot of culture, and within all this lies the Moratash Council, the governing body.

Cortalcia

Once just a castle made solely to withstand wars, the city of Cortalcia has expanded into a fancy menagerie, holding both extravagant restaurants and extravagant arts.

Baroasis

The largest port city in the southern half of Moratash, Baroasis is located between an oasis and the sea. It is home to massive sandstone architecture and the Magic Academy.

Culture

While very divided in many ways, Moratash is unified in its connection of magic and its uses. Whether one decides to study the secrets of the arcane, experience phenomena that cannot be explained in traditional means, or simply have an unseen servant help with cooking a meal, magic is seen as a natural way to live.

Government

Moratash functions as a sort of “republic”, where representatives of each of the five areas of Moratash gather in Spirine to keep the peace. The way these representatives are picked largely reflects the nature of each area, such as the king of Cortamros (plains) picking a trusted advisor himself, or a democratically elected leader in Lerdzor. Each of these representatives lasts an amount of time decided by the area that picked them, usually it is just they’re eventually called back and replaced.

Food and Art

The food of Moratash is largely built upon farming and livestock. Wheat is used to make bread, pasta, and all other grain-based foods whereas animals like cows, pigs, and chickens provide both meat and other byproducts like eggs and milk. Basically any farm animal or plant is farmed. These are all enhanced from bland to breathtaking with spices and magic and magic spices.
The art of Moratash has manifested itself in very permanent ways such as massive architectural feats that mark any town they’re present in as “important” as well as plenty of sculptures, stone, and wood carvings. They also take the most instantaneous, a brief burst of magic can give way to a vibrant display of color and emotion that will only last for a moment, only to be enjoyed by those who happened to be in the right place at the right time.

Religion

As a region with a strong connection to magic, the people see magic as a way to worship the gods. Whether it be creating with magic, destroying with magic, trying to understand it or live for its unpredictability, the very act of living with magic is how they feel connected, even if it‘s not necessarily divine magic.

Population

While almost any race isn’t exactly uncommon to see due to ease of trade and shortcuts due to Spirine, races with innate ties to magic are more common than others. Elves, tieflings, firbolgs, and the like may all feel like they belong as it seems like their very existence and ties to magic is smiled upon.

Clashing Cultures

While much of this section has been about unifying experiences of Moratash, it should be noted that each area of it has lived very different existences. Cortamros sees themselves as orderly compared to the other areas, but the other regions see them as ruled by an unqualified tyrant. Antakar sees themselves as free in their communities, but other regions see them as disorganized and unfocused. Lerdzor has a highly efficient system of transportation of necessary supplies, but other regions see them as overly bureaucratic and confusing. Gradtakar has some of the greatest minds in Edari, but other regions see their endless pursuit of knowledge as foolhardy and hopeless. Terakash stands in the center as a mix of the best and the worst of all the other regions.

History

Settling 100-900

With the dawn of people and eventually civilization, large groups settled north and south of the mountains of Moratash. They both grew in complete ignorance to each other, but for one reason or another they both found themselves linked through the use of magic. In the large fertile plains of the north, magic began to be used to aid in agriculture and other mundane tasks. The south, however, found themselves in a forest full of magic. They learned to adapt to this environment, embracing the magic as a natural part of life. The desert to the west of them served as a good testing ground for magic, though nobody dared cross it completely yet.

Kingmaking 900-1000

As agriculture became more of a staple in the north, organizing the planting, harvesting, and distribution of crops became more and more important. King Cor rose to this challenge, claiming a gift of both magic and organization from the gods. For the time, his magic seemed above and beyond whatever anyone else could do, so the people followed him, creating the Kingdom of Cortamros which has managed to last in some form ever since.

Division 1000-1500

Both the north and south of Moratash expanded, ultimately becoming split into the regions it is today. In the north, the Kingdom of Cortamros was thriving. At least until a particularly cruel king came to power, leaving many unsure of what to do. Those in the northeast were especially scared, as they faced far more cruelty for the simple crime of being farther away from the capital of Cortalcia and perceived as more rambunctious. A mage whose name has been lost to time ended up leading a rebellion, which almost proved hopeless until they called upon the gods to free them. The very ground rose into the sky, forming a large series of canyons for the people of the northeast to live in. They were well defended and through the use of creative magic found many ways to keep an agriculture based economy and systems of travel around.
In the south, ventures across the desert have proven successful with the discovery of an oasis all the way across the desert. Being so separated from the forest of the east, Baroasis began to grow into its own culture. Where the forest had been very comfortable in the chaos and unknowable nature of magic, the people of Baroasis were determined to discover everything they could about it.
Through these migrations, many people ended up finding their way through the mountains that run through Moratash. This is how the north and the south even learned of each other’s existence. Due to the large mix of cultures, the people of the mountains still held strong cultural heritage to where they came from, though they were also willing to integrate with others. Trade routes quickly opened through the mountains and a healthy amount of cultural mitosis began, cementing what really linked all of Moratash together.

Moratash and the World 1500-1800

Now that Moratash was comfortably split into five distinct regions, people began asking what they should call themselves. Obviously there was the Kingdom of Cortamros, but what about everywhere else?
Lerdzor, the land of canyons, was the first to name itself specifically so it could say it is not Cortamros.
The academy that had slowly taken shape around Baroasis eventually had a foundation to be a proper institution for the region. It became Gradtakar Academy.
While the people of the forest really didn’t care for naming themselves or any structure like that, some became to claim that the forest itself began to call itself Antakar, and the name stuck.
Finally the people of the mountains decided to call themselves Terakash, simply, as the stories tell, because it sounded cool. They were also the ones to suggest the name Moratash for the whole nation, and it seemed satisfying enough for everyone.
Under the name of Moratash, trade routes were established with many of the surrounding regions.

Tensions and War 1800-2000

The Kingdom of Cortamros was still quite upset with the loss of Lerdzor, and felt deserving of all of Moratash, seeing it as unruly. That, and events in the north began to make many trade routes with all the other nations less reliable.
After years of building pressure, The Century War took place. At first there was inner strife, but with the Moratash Alliance formed and accepted by all regions in desperation, Moratash began a defensive war against all those who threatened their borders, managing to retain their borders even as the war dragged on and on and got worse and worse.

Spirine and Civil War 2000-2200

At the end of The Century War, those who had survived finally returned home. They looked up to the nation they had fought for, to the mountains of Moratash and found something peculiar. A Tower. And further, they discovered its power of limited teleportation within the borders of Moratash. And then another war immediately broke out.
Cortamros and Gradtakar both very much wanted this for themselves. Lerdzor and Antakar, both knowing what would happen if the other two regions claimed it, joined the civil war. Considering how defensively Moratash had been in The Big War, this war was far more destructive. Worst of all, Terakash was caught up in the middle of it.
After a century of small but deadly skirmishes, the war forever changed when Cortamros received firearms. The other regions quickly stole some, reverse engineered them, then made them even more deadly. Then violence really took hold. Countless died, and finally, everything came to a head at one of the islands to the west. Fighting took hold, and soon the entire island was destroyed. All that was left was a crater that was barely above sea level. With this, the regions finally realized this war would kill them all before concluding, and so they finally called for peace.
The second Moratash Alliance formed, along with a proper system to govern Moratash just enough to prevent another civil war.

Golden Age 2200-3000

With the end of the civil war, Moratash entered an era of peace. Everyone was free to basically live how they wished, and any conflicts that emerged eventually got a peaceful outcome. Terakash began to become a trade hub again, recovering from near complete collapse. With the use of Spirine, plenty of trade routes went out of their way to go through Moratash to quickly travel across the continent through the use of teleportation. This solidified Moratash as a place of magic and trade among all the nations.

Capital: Spirine

Leaders: Moratash Council (Five members chosen in numerous ways)

Governmental System: “Republic”

National Mascot: Displacer Beast

Patron God: Akhard

Demonym: Moratashan

Population: a lot

Major Imports: food, raw materials, weapons, magic components

Major Exports: food, luxury goods, magic items