Broken Lands

Far to the north of Absalom sprawl the Broken Lands, nations and wildernesses united in their shared stature as fractured regions — places where life itself has taken a blow and the struggle to survive is simply part of daily reality. Not all of the Broken Lands are constantly fraught with peril, but regardless of where one might settle down in these parts’ tumultuous times, danger is rarely far from home.
In some cases, the breaks are political. In the northeast, the nation of Brevoy has hung on the edge of civil war for many years, as the long-running feud between the traditional noble houses of Issia and the mercenary swordlords of Rostland maintain an ongoing state of tension that may be nearing a breaking point. But in the case of the oft-contested River Kingdoms, these political breaks have reached something of a draw, for here it is said that anyone might become the ruler of a nation — if they have the tenacity to seize the reins of rule.
Elsewhere in the Broken Lands, the fractures are more spiritual. Razmiran, for example, is ruled by the living god Razmir, who demands the worship of all who dwell within his nation’s borders and brooks no competition of faith. His priests act as police throughout the land, brutally enforcing their deity’s laws. To the north in Mendev, these spiritual breaks are less obvious; this land struggles to reclaim its heritage in the wake of a century of occupation by a crusading force that, until a few years ago, stood as a bulwark against the demons who ruled the lands across the river to the west.
These western lands are truly broken, in a physical sense, for in the chaotic times at the dawn of the Age of Lost Omens, powerful agents of the demon lord Deskari tore a hole in reality. The resulting wound in the landscape allowed legions of demons to pour through and devastate the lands once known as Sarkoris. Although heroes of the Fifth Crusade recently defeated Deskari and closed the rift, these lands are still known as the Worldwound. The main threat has been quelled, but demons still inhabit the region, and the blighted landscape struggles to return to normal.
Perhaps the strangest of the Broken Lands lie near its heart. The rugged hills and plains of Numeria are home to many Kellid clans. However, in the distant past, the crash of a scientifically advanced starship brought strange aliens, mechanical monstrosities, and technological wonders to Golarion, but its fiery arrival left large reaches of the surrounding land blighted and blasted even to this day.