Introduction to Lasair

Lasair is the name given to one of the world's continents. The name is derived from the river that prominently divides the coastal region in two and is a major source of economic movement.

History

Prehistory

Before Humans and Elves existed on the ground, and even before Dragons soared in the skies, a race of Giants walked the lands. These enormous creatures constructed soaring dwellings and gigantic fortifications, dug titanic canals, and left frighteningly large marks upon the earth. At some point in their history, however, a cataclysmic volcanic eruption covered all their lands with hot ash and molten rock. The eruption virtually wiped the giants' civilization from the continent, covering nearly everything that even showed that they existed. Only the Titan Wall remains as a visible monument to this race, running from the plateau formed by the eruption to the sea. No being living today (nor any human, elf or dragon that ever has lived) knows that the giants existed: the origin of the Wall remains a mystery.
The basic origin of the “modern” races is not known. It may have been documented by an early human civilization, and some long-lost cache of elven knowledge may contain clues about the races' birth, but between the ravages of time and the Dragonscourge, much ancient knowledge has been lost.

The Dragonscourge

[Main Article]A thousand years ago, the land now known called Lasair was wracked with war. The dragon races of the world, sensing that their power would wane in the coming centuries, set upon the lesser races of with a vengeance, attempting to permanently establish their dominance over all living nations. The lands were not just laid waste by physical battles, but also by magical forces which often left more serious effects. While pure dragons are not particularly proficient in magic on their own, the blood of a dragon is capable of granting enormous, natural ability to any humanoid blessed (or cursed) to have a dragon somewhere in his family tree. These Sorcerers fought alongside their dragon benefactors, who in turn fought against the magical and martial strength of Human and Elven nations.
This savage war, known now only in legend, was called The Dragonscourge. The manner in which the war finally ended is not known, as any records from this time have long since fallen to dust. All that is remembered is that the dragons were defeated, humans were scattered, and elves retreated to their forests rarely to be heard from again. The effects of this period are still felt on the lands and by its people even today, a thousand years later: giant gouges scar the earth, entire forests shift and move, and mysterious shimmering “bubbles” litter some of the more out-of-the-way lands. Beyond these aftereffects, however, nothing else is known to remain from the period.

The Lasair Compact

[Main Article] Some centuries after the Dragonscourge, the scattered remnants of human magic users on Lasair had organized and created a hierarchy within their newly formed order. In order to ensure the survival of humankind, this order took it upon themselves to force negotiations between a number of disorganized (and frequently-warring) cities upon the coast of the continent. This negotiation resulted in the Lasair Compact, a small set of laws that defined the conditions under which cities would exist within what became the City-States Region - and also solidified the Mages' position as the preeminent power in region. The Compact has stood for over five hundred years, with the City-States remaining peaceful for nearly the entire period.

Major Sentient Species

Humans

[Main Article] What is known about the history of humans in what is now Lasair is somewhat scattered. It is known that humans founded a number of small nations, often in tandem with nearby elven settlements. The entirety of the western coast of the continent had scattered human cities, who took advantage of the mild coastal climate, abundant fish, and plentiful mining along the bottom of the plateau. Most records of these nations and cities were lost with the Dragonscourge.
Centuries after the Dragonscourge ended, new cities arose, though they were disorganized and often in conflict. The Lasair Compact ended those wars and imposed order upon the City-States Region. Now those cities are primarily economic centers, several of which have carved out a specific niche for themselves within the region.
The modern history of humans will be detailed within the various regional Geography pages.
Human blood is exceptionally compatible with that of other sentient species, and traces of those others linger within for many generations. It is fairly common for a human pairing to result in the birth of an infant showing signs of Elven features, or for a human adolescent to find their growth going more outwards than upwards. When this occurs, the being is still considered to be a "human" for all legal and social means within the City-States Region - which is very important given the second law of the Lasair Compact. The only exception is that of Wurmborn. Any being showing signs of dragon descent, whether through physical characteristics or through natural magical ability, will be put to death immediately - and their family investigated by the Mages to determine whether such corruption exists within.

Elves

[Main Article] Elves are most likely not native to Lasair's continent. Even pre-Dragonscourge the elves did not have large numbers, and many of their settlements featured a naval design motif. If asked today, elven elders will say that their people came from across the sea, before the waters off the coast became mostly impassible due to magical effects of the scourge. They would generally found small villages with maybe a few hundred elves (some Mages theorize that they were built upon magical focus points in the land) but never attempted to create nations or any organizations larger than their town. Many settlements agreed to aid nearby human nations (usually providing high-quality craftwork or magical teaching) in exchange for protection and food.
After the Dragonscourge, when most elven towns were destroyed and much of their population killed, the elves retreated to forests and other isolated areas, cutting themselves off from the humans who had turned to banditry while fighting over the remnants of post-scourge land. These new elven settlements turned away all outsiders, and eventually took on extremely distinct personalities from each other and even developed physical differences depending on the effects of their chosen refuges. To this day full-blooded elves are an extremely rare sight in human lands; most don't believe that they even exist any more. Elven blood runs strong, however, and many children are born showing signs of elven ancestry even dozens of generations after the last elf to enter a family tree.

Dragons

[Main Article] Though thought to be extinct, the origin of dragonkind is much debated amongst the few scholars willing to discuss such a frightening concept, though there are very few facts known. One of the more common theories is that they evolved into sentience from a reptilian species that existed long ago, or perhaps were coaxed into it by some magical effect. Given the effects that draconic ancestry has on members of other races, the magical genesis theory certainly holds much weight. This theory is one of the reasons that the Mages are so diligent about policing the existence of Wurmborn beings - and is also why parents of Wurmborn children are often not also killed.

Other Major Sentient Species

Dwarfs are known to exist within Lasair, though they live largely hidden away in small pockets underground. Occasionally, signs of a dwarven ancestor appears within a human family - these beings are generally welcomed within those dwarven settlements.
Halflings make up several population pockets within the Fertile Lands. The species shows particular talent and affinity for an agricultural lifestyle, and generally have been content to maintain that lifestyle for many generations. The "tiny folk" rarely show much need to leave their lands, though the odd victim of wanderlust will sometimes wish to go on an adventure, and even more rarely an experience with human traders will leave an impression that results in a desire to pursue magical or mechanical learning.
Read up on other Sentient Species here

Who Knows This?
Throughout the Lasair site, you will come across pages that discuss wide-ranging topics about regions, organizations, and species. Not everything on these pages will be known by all characters (and some will be known by no characters currently alive in the world). These pages will often include a sidebar noting the general "spread" of knowledge of a subject. Here is a summary of what those lines mean:

---

An Intelligence (History) skill check will bring to mind the following depending on the character's roll:

• DC 5 (Common knowledge): 
   common fact known by many people throughout the land
• DC 10 (Could hear it from travelers):
   something you could find out by being in the tavern the right night or through casual interaction with learned individuals
• DC 15 (Education covered it): 
   a fact that may have been covered through a basic noble or religious education
• DC 20 (Learned Historian): 
   knowing this requires that you have dedicated time in your life to studying the history of this subject
• DC 25 (Subject Matter Expert):
   this is only generally known to those who have dedicated a significant portion of their life to studying the subject and may be the foremost expert on the subject in their community
• DC 30 (Directly Acquired Knowledge): 
   this is something only known by those who have directly interacted with the subject, whether through adventuring or literally being the subject of the article