Ord
Despite being notorious for its neutrality in an age of war, the kingdom of Ord has contributed mightily to its neighbors’ war efforts in the form of countless mercenary companies who call the fog-shrouded region home. Ruled by the cunning and unconventional King Baird Cathor II, who spends more of his time in ports of ill repute such as Five Fingers than he does at court, the nation’s commitment to neutrality has placed it in an enviable position in the aftermath of the Claiming, and King Baird has taken prime advantage.
With little to offer in the way of natural resources save the peat that locals burn as fuel, Ord has learned to make good use of what few assets it possesses, including plenty of access to the waters of the Meredius, as well as several important trading ports that lie between the rival nations of Cygnar and Khador. Seafaring is a way of life in Ord, and the nation is home to perhaps the most impressive naval might in the whole of the Iron Kingdoms.
Under the unorthodox rule of King Baird—sometimes called “the Bandit King” due to his heavy taxation of the wealthiest nobles in the land—Ord has also become quite adept at trade, and the kingdom makes the most of its neutral position by moving wartime goods to those who need them on both sides of the front. This willingness to play both sides, along with a reputation for relatively lax laws, has made Ord the go-to home for mercenary companies looking to make a name for themselves.
Soon after Khador invaded Llael, Ord acquired an unexpected benefit when the Order of the Golden Crucible moved its headquarters from that beleaguered kingdom to the Ordic city of Midfast. This relocation led to an influx of new trade to the nation, along with alchemical weaponry and valuable blasting powder, both of which ultimately helped repel the infernal invaders years later.
The long-tenuous link between Llael and Ord was strengthened when the newly crowned Queen Kaetlyn of Llael married King Baird’s grandson Alvor, eldest son of Baird’s heir and therefore third in line to the throne. Although Llael and Ord remain two separate nations, they share a closer bond than any others in the new Iron Kingdoms—one that the cunning King Baird is sure to exploit to his own advantage.
GOVERNANCEOrd was formed by the combination of the Thousand Cities kingdoms of Thuria and Tordor, and the divisions between these two ancient powers continue to influence almost every aspect of life in the kingdom today. Just as they did in the aftermath of Tordor’s conquest of Thuria centuries ago, Tordorans hold higher station than Thurians today, and the most powerful of Ord’s present-day nobles—the castellans—are descended from Tordoran stock.
Even though King Baird is the ultimate authority in Ord, he governs only with the collaboration of the Hall of Castellans, the nation’s chief lawmaking body. Among the hundreds of castellans who make up the top ranks of Ordic nobility, the three most exalted are the Lord Castellans who govern Ord’s three northern political divisions, or gravs: Cosetio, Murio, and Almare. The other three gravs are ruled by Thurian moorgraves who, in turn, are the highest ranking of the numerous thanes, Ordic nobles of Thurian descent. Although these three noble groups occupy ostensibly similar roles in the governance of the kingdom, the castellans enjoy numerous privileges that the thanes and moorgraves lack, including the ability to set the nation’s laws.
Over the years, the crown has frequently clashed with the castellans, especially over the Bandit King’s heavy taxation of the nobility. Of the hundreds of castellan families, the Mateus have most frequently proven themselves a true rival to the Cathors in court. Izabella Mateu, the matriarch of the family, sits at the top of a merchant organization that rivals Cygnar’s Mercarian League in scope and economic power, and she does not hesitate to use her considerable wealth and influence to inhibit King Baird’s plans if it suits her purposes.
SOCIETYHailing from a dreary and fog-shrouded land of heaths and moors, the Ordic people stand in stark contrast to the land they call home. Whether of Thurian or Tordoran descent, the citizens of Ord seem to wring every drop of joy and plenty from life, perhaps because their own lives appear so disinclined to offer them either. Although they are capable of subtlety and dissembling—and, indeed, are often masters of it when the need arises, making them excellent spies comfortable with living amid a constant jumble of political intrigues—the common people of Ord are open with their emotions by nature, whatever those emotions might be. In grief, they are despondent; in joy, ebullient; and in anger, wrathful.
Although the Ordic people lack the nationalistic streak of their northern neighbors, they are a proud people whose heritage stretches back just as far as any Khadoran’s. They value song, dance, and, above all, storytelling, and a good orator will always find a welcome place by almost any hearth in the land.
Ordic families tend to be large even when food is scarce, and expansive family gatherings and holidays are common. Because of the close-knit nature of Ordic families, those who lost loved ones in the Claiming have been hit particularly hard by the aftermath, and empty houses dot the moors where families once gathered in song and merrymaking.
GEOGRAPHYA small, swampy kingdom of moors, lakes, and rivers dominated by the dense forests of the Olgunholt in the south and hilly uplands in the north, Ord makes the most of its central location, its long stretch of coastline, and its ample access to the Bay of Stone through ports in Carre Dova and Five Fingers, the nation’s most notorious city.
Despite the difficulty of farming in Ord, it is widely practiced throughout the kingdom, although many families raise little more than what they need to survive. In the sprawling grasslands north of Armandor, ranchers raise cattle and horses, just as they have for centuries. Ordfolk who live along the coast often spend more of their lives on the turbulent waters of the Meredius than they do on dry land, whether that means making a living fishing, working on the deck of a merchant ship or privateer vessel, or joining the Ordic navy.
The capital city of Merin is centrally located and connected to every corner of the nation by railway and river transport, and the kingdom is shielded by natural geographic borders. In the north, the border with Khador runs along the Murata Hills just to the south of the Gallowswood and Shadoweald, two forests with sinister reputations. This boundary has been strengthened with a string of border fortifications that run from Scarswell to Boarsgate.
The southern border with Cygnar snakes along the mighty Dragon’s Tongue River, which provides yet another convenient trade route for Ordic merchants and mercenaries. Throughout the south, from the Molhado River to just shy of the coast, Ord is covered by the vast and often trackless expanse of the Olgunholt, which provides the kingdom with much of its timber but whose dark interior has never been logged or even mapped.
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