An Introduction To Estoya

A Nation of Reason

The Center of Civilization

Estoya is the center of civilization. While it is not the only country in the world, it is one of the largest, and the best equipped due to its access to a variety of crucial resources. Being the homeland of the pathfinders, it is also the only region where time and space are stable. Roads do not seems to get longer and travel times are unaffected in Estoya.

Estoya is also the only place where reality sickness does not occur. This is the starting point for the expedition and will likely not be seen for a long time if at all after leaving. Estoya is littered with rolling hills and vast forests. In the north this landscape gives way to plains and then desert as one reaches Dis. To the south the forests become more frequent until one enters the grasslands of The Provinces of Mhirriah . The mountains that border Mhirriah end at the Estoya-Mhirrian border but can be seen for miles around. Plants and animals in Estoya would be considered quite mundane to most outsiders.

In Estoya, the wilds seem tame and conquered. Most animals in Estoya are used for food, predators have all but fled the land as they are hunted with prejudice. wolf packs and dire creatures however do make their home in the furthest reaches of the wilds.Due to the lack of predators, the populations of animals rise and as such meet the demands of the people.

Plant life in Estoya is equally bland. Cedar is the most plentiful tree in Estoya and a large assortment of herbs and flowers grow in its balanced climate. Wood, Iron, Gold, and silver are plentiful in Estoya. Farmers raise cattle, fowl, and other mundane animals as well as horses for cavalry. Fish of all kinds can be found in the oceans to the west and east and also in the many small lakes and rivers that flow within the region.

Estoyans

Estoya is a diverse mashup of several races and several ethnicities of those races. Its traditions and language are a melting pot of these cultures.

Humans

Humans are the most common race in the world. Coming in many shapes, colors, and sizes, Humans are known for mediocrity and also their fragility. All other races have natural immunities to the brutal world. Whether it be resistances to disease or thick skin to prevent damage. Humans are fairly exposed to the dangers that haunt the land and as such tend to have short life spans. They are however, ambitious and without a doubt admirable in their efforts

The High Races

The term "High Races" refers to Alfen, Greenskins, and The Dwarves. This title stems from their unique lineage. Any member of the high races who refer to themselves as Estonyan are often heavily urbanized and many have all but forgotten their cultural beginnings such as the wild elves who once lived in peace in what is now the Black March. The dwarves are often exiles from their subterranean kin and have changed their racial identity to match their position. These dwarves tend to have more color in their skin due to time in the sun as opposed to the more pale mountain dwarves. Greenskins who chose to be urbanized and are significantly different and less savage then those found outside of Estoya. It took quite a while for the other urbanized races to accept them as equals, which drove many to careers in the criminal underworld. While not as common this is still an issue to this day.

Tablin

The Tablin of Estoya are heavily influenced by Estoyan culture as most Tablin are native to Estoya. The tablin however have a very different culture all their own and many deviate from Estoya in favor of it.

Customized Beauty

Estoyan ideals of beauty stem from the big picture. Specific elements don't truly matter and are based on preference. Your overall beauty is judged by how you look as a whole. Do you look aesthetically pleasing with your blonde hair, green eyes, bubbly personality and comfortable but functional fashion? Then you are beautiful. This is highly based on preference but it is rare to see anyone who is with someone and not see why they chose to be so. This "up in the air" way of judging beauty has caused much undo stress in the nobility and probably on commoners as well due to the fact that one is unsure who they are attracting or how to attract what one prefers.

There are common trends that have become staples for those who can pull them off. Facial hair well styled and trimmed is a sign of status and attractiveness for men, as is martial prowess. Woman are considered more attractive when exorcising the mind. Most consider it a good sign when a quick walk turns into hours of intellectual conversation. Women also tend to be more desirable in form fitting clothing as opposed to Vanheim, where the more left to the imagination the better. You don't see many dresses outside of court in Estoya and even then, they tend to hug the woman's frame just as much as male fashion does.

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Gender

Men are symbols of order in Estoya, a far cry from the matriarchal society of Ozlith. It should be said that few ever confuse order with control. The strength and raw physical power masculinity is thought to impose is balanced by the grace, creative, and chaotic concepts that are attributed to women.

Men and women are considered two parts of the same coin. The Masculine and feminine being aspects of the mind that all must have but are only born with one or the other. It is common for young woman to have more male friends than female friends and vice versa. This is a way of understanding their counterparts. This level of equality is a fairly recent development having occurred within the last several centuries.

Fun Fact:

It should be said that gender values actually stem from the mind to those in Estoya, not the body. Estoyans believe gender comes from within and has little to do with that biological sex one has. There are many individuals who appear as one gender but actually be another. These individuals will actively seek to fit into the gender roles of their true gender as opposed to the one that fits their biological sex. While sexual reassignment is impossible with the current advances in technology, many Arcanists are seeking out a way to do so for those who find themselves in this place, and wish to change it.

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Even in death, never shall we part...

Relationships are official agreements of emotional and spiritual ownership in Estoya, and don't officially begin until marriage. This ownership does not branch into the physical, however, and it is a common sight for married men and women to frequent brothels, often with one another. The noble lords and ladies build harems and stables or both if it fancies them. Sexuality is open in Estoya and as such casual sex is frequent and sometimes encouraged as pregnancy has become a rare event in the world. Even the most promiscuous human women will likely only be pregnant once in their life.
Courtship in Estoya is not a complex ordeal, but marriage most certainly is. Marriage exists to combine assets and houses into one and for a select few a covenant with their gods. More importantly, marriage is a covenant to each other. Divorce does not exist nor would it ever be allowed. To marry someone is to give them yourself entirely, and even if they die, you will never be able to remarry for that reason. This isn't to say you can't develop relationships with others, emotional or otherwise.

Proposal

In marriage, the tradition is that the whichever individual has the most merit, whether female or male, keep their family name and the other changes or hyphenates their family name to match. This concept is not practiced among The Major Nobility (Noble Houses) as often, as one's name often carries weight in The Estoyan Government. Usually those who will become head of their house will keep their names and the other may change, if they so please. Proposal is an arranged affair where one party proposes to the other after consideration and discussion with both families involved. The proposal is rarely a surprise for anyone.

Maps

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  Map Of Estalia

  a map detailing the plot centric locations and important places within Estalia

Names

Estoyan female names tend to end with soft vowels. Races often adopt the names they like and as such many members of other races have traditional Estoyan human names.

Examples include:

• Jemma
• Mari
• Digna
• Thay
• Meerthala
• Zeriya

Male names counter female names in that they rarely end in vowels save for o and it is always pronounced with the hard sounds as in Mario.

Other names include:

• Jacob
• Tammer
• Paris
• Luke
• Kirk

Unisex names mix the rules in that they may have a series of hard sounds and soft sounds.

Examples include:

• Jackobi
• Marceen
• Marshal
• Shalion

Not all Estoyans are named traditionally. Many take names and words from other races and utilize them when naming their children and vice versa.

Given that Estoya is a melting pot of cultures, names often vary and don’t always follow these rules. Surnames are just as varied, but are cherished as ones family name is often a badge of honor in Estoya.

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Type

Territory

Included Locations

• Brooke
• Grayport And The Gray Bay
• Jeelix
• Overdale
• The Calhurst Prison Colony
• The Harrows
• The Tablwood
• The Three Pawns and the Island of Ferver
• The Wailing Wood
• Waiversea and the Waiversea hills
• Yithwitch

Included Organizations

• The Doves of Black and White
• The Estoyan Government

Owner/Ruler

Tammer Roux, King of Estoya

Owning Organization

The Estoyan Government

Characters in Location

• Tammer Roux, King of Estoya

A Reasonable People

Estoya is known for its people's intelligence and reason. The people here are some of the most literate in the world. Innovations occur with great frequency on all fronts. Few give into emotion and romanticism is regarded as naive unless they accept, at least in part, some concept of the rational. Religion is unrestrained so long as its customs do not break the law.