Grand Duchy of Reme
The Grand Duchy of Reme is a vast realm: a network of well-settled river valleys running through enormous areas of almost-uncharted wilderness. To the west, Reme’s territory extends to the Deepfell Mountains and the forbidden Green Realm of the wild elves. To the east, it reaches to the town of Fareme near the western edge of the Stoneheart Valley. Its northern border is the Wizard’s Wall across the Crynnomar Gap, and to the south, the realm extends to the Whiterush River. The land borders of Reme do not tell the whole story, however, for Reme is also a seafaring nation, one of the most significant in the world. The grand duke has no colonial aspirations, but the nation has been focused on dominating trade on the Crescent Sea for centuries, and Rhemish ships venture throughout the known world from the city’s great port.
In overall size, the Grand Duchy of Reme rivals the entire holdings of the overking of Foere and exceeds that of the actual Kingdom of Foere by quite a bit. However, most of Reme remains wild, inhabited by nomadic tribal clans known as Loreclans rather than agrarian settlements. With the exception of river valleys, Reme is almost entirely a vast grassland prairie, poorly suited to farming. The Frontier in the northwest is only nominally under the jurisdiction of the Northmarches, for the reach of the duchess at Ironfell only barely extends into this region. In the west, permanent agricultural settlements have only recently begun to form in the Windreft following the resolution of civil wars that have ravaged the Westmarch for the last several decades. The civilization of Reme is powerful, but the settled population is widely scattered in pockets and along the great rivers.
Given the uneven settlement and great distances within the wild territories of the Reme, the grand duchy has evolved into a number of marches providing for more local administration. Today, these are the Westmarch, the Northmarches and Waymarch, in addition to the central lands which are held directly by the grand duke. The origin of power of the dukes of Reme are as Loreclannic chiefs, and their authority, developed over the course of millennia, extends to ancient Loreclannic boundaries rather than feudal grants of the land itself. The distinction between Reme’s Loreclannic traditions and Foere’s feudal law is nuanced, but it is a key factor in understanding the history and the nature of the Rhemish people.
History and People
Reme is dominated by its various Loreclans: a social collective akin to that of a tribe but more complex in terms of internal organization. Loreclans usually have between 500 and 1,000 members, but there are smaller Loreclans that have fallen upon hard times over the years and the urban Loreclans in and around the city of Reme can number as many as 5,000. Across the vast Sea of Grass dominating Reme’s central plains, vast differences exist between the cultures of the various Loreclans, with all of them respect an overarching tradition governing the rights of all of the Loreclans but with each clan having its own unique customs and practices.
Most Loreclans are led by a “baron,” a word imported from the Hyperborean/Common tongue that in Rhemish is usually the word “tarkhan.” Both titles are used throughout the lands of Reme. There is no permanent level of nobility between the barons/tarkhans and the dukes (or khans), which leaves a vast gap for any kind of administration of collective Loreclan traditions or interclan justice, or the mediation of interclan disputes.
This gap is usually filled by those appointed to the role of “pashtar,” a temporary title for an individual who acts in the nature of an attorney, mediator, ambassador, or temporary chieftain for more than one Loreclan at one time, usually for a single purpose. Most of the Loreclan representatives at the ducal courts are pashtars given temporary authority by a group of barons to speak for their collective Loreclans. Anyone designated as a pashtar has an absolute right to the hospitality of tribes along the journey to a court — they are sacrosanct when acting in the capacity of pashtar.
Pre-Hyperborean Era
Pre-Hyperborean Rhemish history comes to us from the varied oral traditions of the Loreclans, although most of the commonly-told stories have been put to writing, expanded upon, and even turned into scripts for plays in the famed Rhemish theaters. At least as far back as such tales go, the original inhabitants of the Rhemish plains were nomadic and divided into numerous Loreclans, some of which no longer exist because they were destroyed in battle, merged with other Loreclans or, in some cases, simply vanished from the tales.
Hyperborean Era
The city of Reme was founded under the name of Remenos by Polemarch Oerson in the earliest years of the Hyperborean conquest of Akados, and since that time the lands of Reme have largely been governed from that city. Boasting an excellent natural harbor and central location on trade routes, Remenos quickly became the premier port on the Crescent Sea, and the lands under its sway expanded to the west and east. For many years, any expansion north was held in check by the wild elves of the Green Realm, whose domain then extended to forests north of the High Downs. Then in the early Eighth Century I.R., war-bands from humanoid tribes in the Great Steppes poured through the Crynnomar Gap to make war on the elves. Fearing that the humanoids if not stopped would threaten their homelands farther to the west in the Green Realm, in 712 I.R. the elves moved up to the Crynnomar Gap to make it their line of defense, emptying their lands further south. Noting the withdrawal of the elves, the military governor of Remenos took the opportunity to move into the forests north of the High Downs. When the elves finally beat back the humanoids and returned from the gap in 725 I.R., they found Hyperborean legions entrenched and loggers clearcutting their former forest homes. Already disorganized and depleted after their war with the humanoids, the wild elves lacked the will for further battle and withdrew west deeper into the Green Realm, leaving Remenos in possession of the northern lands all the way to the Crynnomar Gap.
Hundreds of years of peace followed the withdrawal of the wild elves as Reme consolidated its hold on the lands south of the Crynnomar Gap. Then in 1548 I.R., hobgoblins raiding parties from the Deepfell Mountains fell upon the northern fringes of Reme. Survivors reported a new hobgoblin kingdom had arisen among the clans of Dragonbone Peak, which was led by a seemingly unbeatable warlord. The armies of the Northmarches were staggered by the onslaught, and by 1557 I.R. had fallen to the hobgoblin hordes. Everything north of the High Downs was claimed by the hobgoblin kingdom of the Deepfells. Reme set a defensive line between the High Downs and the Green Mountains. Several years later, a group of adventurers infiltrated Dragonbone Peak and discovered that the warlord of the hobgoblins was in fact the demigod Kakobovia.
In 1571 I.R., an army of Deepfell hobgoblins and allied orcs invaded Arcady in the Feirgotha Plateau in the midst of the Stoneheart Mountains, only to be destroyed in a magical attack the following year. Kakobovia survived, however, and gathered the remaining forces of Dragonbone to launch an all-out attack on the High Downs. At the Battle of Ironhill, the hobgoblin army was lured into a trap and destroyed by forces of Reme. Grand Duke Borell I of Reme himself led the army and is said to have personally banished Kakobovia from the Material Plane.
Rhemish nomads and settlers flooded back into the Northmarches after the Battle of Ironhill, harrying and destroying any remaining outposts of the hobgoblin horde, and quickly re-established their dominion over the homelands from which they had retreated.
For nearly a millennium, the lands of Reme remained largely unthreatened, a prosperous though thinly populated region of the empire. In 2496 I.R., the Hyperborean capital of Curgantium was destroyed in a wildfire that spread and burned The Plains of Suilley and Matagost Forest. Three years later, the imperial capital moved to Tircople in Libynos, and the Hyperboreans abandoned their western empire. The harmost of Reme, Barthorios Deciandos, was ordered to march to Libynos with his legions, along with the dependent harmost of Panetoth.
Deciandos, who had spent the majority of his life in Reme and was in fact half-Rhemish, was disinclined to leave. He consulted with the Loreclannic dukes and the harmost of Panetoth and with the high priests and priestesses of Dame Torren, Mithras, and Solanus in a series of counsels known today as the Council of Deciandos. Deciandos argued that Hyperborean withdrawal from the region would cause tremendous upheaval, and that if it was necessary for the Hyperboreans to withdraw then something needed to be done to fill the ensuing power vacuum. At the end of the Council of Deciandos, the decision was made that the harmosts would resign their posts, and that Deciandos would be acclaimed grand duke in his own right by the Loreclans, accepting a sovereign position over Reme. In the end, only a very few of the Hyperboreans in Reme actually departed for the east, as the majority of the Hyperborean power structure simply changed its name — from the service of the imperator to the service of the grand duke. To reflect the new order, the name of the capital city was changed from Remenos (its Hyperborean name) to Reme
Foerdewaith Era
This period of independence barely lasted 200 years. In the early part of the 28th Century I.R., envoys of Macobert, king of Foere, came to Reme with a proposition: swear fealty or prepare for war. The canny Grand Duke Altharus III, recognizing the benefits that would come from allying with Macobert as well as the importance to Foere of a secure harbor on the Crescent Sea, sent diplomats to negotiate a favorable treaty. And a favorable treaty he obtained that granted Reme substantial independence in exchange for an oath of fealty, Foere’s access to the port, and a small annual payment to the crown.
Then in the year 2858 I.R., Overking Paulus of Foere died. He left behind twin sons, Kennet and Cale, though no one knew which was the elder. Different factions of the empire supported each of the brothers, and the possibility of a civil war loomed.
A similar situation loomed in Reme where the childless Grand Duke Yajot Oersi Windflame suffered from a wasting sickness that would clearly prove fatal at some time in the near future. As in Foere (though due to a lack of obvious heirs rather than too many), a succession war threatened the Oersi rulership of Reme, with Loreclans beginning to form sides behind a number of possible successors.
The twin heirs of Foere, showing a wisdom beyond their years, chose a course of action that solved both problems. It is likely that the solution evolved slowly in the minds of the various nobles involved, but eventually someone must have noticed the opportunity inherent in the long Rhemish tradition of adopting outsiders into their Loreclannic structure. In preparation for the eventual death of Grand Duke Yajot Oersi Windflame, Cale Macobert entered the Oersi Loreclan as Cale Oersi Macobert, adopted by the dying grand duke as a son and heir. This gave the Loreclans of Reme time to accept Cale as their future leader, and for the Oersi to overcome (either by negotiation or by combat) the claims of other potential successors.
In Foere, Kennet was eventually crowned as the sole overking of the Foerdewaith. Cale, meanwhile, abdicated his claim to the throne, and succeeded to the title of grand duke of Reme. The arrangement served to unite the two realms more closely for many years to come and aligned the new Oersi dynasty in Reme with the royal lineage of Foere. Cale’s adoption remained a point of friction for decades among many of the Rhemish Loreclans, but to deny its validity would clearly fly in the face of centuries of Rhemish Loreclannic tradition. So-called “conservatives” pointing to the fact that Cale had no Rhemish blood received little help from equally conservative Loreclannic leaders who sought to adhere closely to Rhemish traditions. Ultimately, the voices of opposition wavered and grew silent.
With the full support and resources of Courghais at his disposal, Cale of Reme began the Great Colonization, a mass migration of settlers through the Crynnomar Gap into the fertile and largely unoccupied grasslands of the Great Steppes. The Foerdewaith military provided all the protection that the colonists needed against the few bands of Shattered Folk and disorganized humanoid tribes that were occasionally seen upon The Plains beyond Reme. Little was known in Reme of the battles that the elves had fought at the gap more than two millennia before, and such rumors as were remembered were generally dismissed — the Rhemish are quite aware that their campfire tales of valor and war contain a bit of poetic license. Unfortunately, in this case the dark fireside tales were fairly accurate.
Within 70 years, a string of settlements sprang up along the base of the surrounding mountains and in an unbroken chain across the steppes to the western coast more than a thousand miles away. The colonists then reached the shores of Lake Hali in the far northwest where they found better-organized and aggressive tribes of humanoids that suddenly descended in hordes onto the Great Steppes. The widely scattered settlements were ill prepared, and many were sacked and burned before the Foerdewaith were even aware of the threat. With additional military assistance from Courghais, the colonists fortified their steadings and slowly pushed back the humanoid marauders, until a tense stalemate settled in.
The stalemate did not last long. Less than two decades later, the floodgates opened once again in a horde that poured forth from the Lost Mountains in numbers not seen since the great elven defense of the Crynnomar Gap, and this time new horrors never seen by the men of Foere accompanied the horde, creatures of Shadow only whispered of in the old tales of the Northlands and the Ancient Ones. The horde descended in a tide that rolled south, burning and destroying settlements as it went. Finally, at a battlefield now known as Cale’s Doom, the Caleen Legion and the remaining colonial irregulars met the humanoids and shadow-walkers. But against this new threat, the steel pikes and heavy cavalry of Foere proved little worth, and the legion fell where it stood with tens of thousands dead. Among the missing was Grand Duke Cale himself.
Refugees from the settlements poured into Reme, and the army of the Foerdewaith prepared to march north to try to stop the oncoming horde. In this time of Reme’s greatest need, the powerful archmages Margon and Alycthron appeared out of legend, having vanished from the knowledge of men more than 10 centuries before. At the Crynnomar Gap, where the gathering legions of Foere stared across a field at seemingly endless numbers of humanoids, the wizards called upon ancient and forgotten magics. The ground before the legions broke and tilted steeply backward, creating a slope where only a flat plain had stood before. The hordes beyond the break watched as the tilted ground rose in a massive escarpment of earth and stone before them, rising hundreds of feet and stretching all the way from the flanks of the Stoneheart Mountains, across the Crynnomar Gap, to the flanks of the Deepfells more than 500 miles distant. With such an unscalable height — thereafter known as the Wizard’s Wall — blocking their path into the human lands, the humanoid hordes were turned back.
Sorrowful even in victory at the loss of the colonies and anyone trapped below on The Plains beyond the Wizard’s Wall, the soldiers of Foere turned their backs upon the House of Cale and began the long march home. Garrisons were left along the length of the broken escarpment to ensure that no attempts were made to scale the wall and sneak into the human lands beyond, but never again, swore the folk of Reme, would they cross the Crynnomar Gap and enter what became known as The Haunted Steppes beyond.
Between 2960 I.R. and 3207 I.R., the Foerdewaith embarked on four great crusades to Libynos in efforts to control the ancient city of Tircople and the holy Sacred Table. Many of the forces sent on these crusades took ship from the port of Reme, and in the sinking of the Third Great Crusade’s fleet both Grand Duke Tobiah and his son and heir Crown Duke Jesper were lost at sea. Ultimately unsuccessful, the aggregate effect of these crusades was to drain the resources of Foere, in both manpower and gold. By 3213 I.R., Ramthion Island declared its independence from Foere, marking the beginning of the Foerdewaith Wars of Succession.
Independent World Power
In 3233 I.R., the grand duke of Reme, with the concurrence of the Lords’ Council of Reme, declared its independence from Foere. By this time, the overking was unable to do much other than complain and attempt, without avail, to pressure other monarchs not to recognize the grand duchy’s independence. The young king Luceus of Castorhage, caught between the two, managed to offend both nations and soon found himself in the decisive Short War with Reme. In seven months, Reme soundly defeated Castorhage’s navy, forestalling Castorhage’s attempts to regain control of its former possessions: Tandril Island and the Forest Coast. In the next year, the Free States declared their independence in the Forest Coast, and the Grand Duchy of Reme became the first to recognize this new state.
Civil Unrest in the Westmarch
Over the last 500 years, various families have contested for dominance in the Westmarch, which has led to civil unrest and, in a few circumstances, outright rebellion against the grand dukes. Recently, the last of the disobedient families was brought to heel, leaving the grand duke in firm control of the Westmarch. As a result, areas under the domain of the duke in Eckland that were formerly largely inaccessible, such as the Windreft, have become fertile ground for new settlers.
Ethnicity and Culture
Roughly a third of the humans in the grand duchy have some degree of Foerdewaith ancestry, although these are clustered mostly in cities, towns, and other substantial settlements. Adoption of Foerdewaith culture is more widespread in Reme than actual Foerdewaith ancestry, for the cultural impact of Reme’s alliance of convenience with Foere extended into the Loreclans of The Plains as well as the cities. The Common tongue is used as a trade language to overcome Loreclannic dialects of Kirkut, jewelry is heavily influenced by Foerdewaith craftsmanship, and — perhaps oddly, perhaps not — plays and music from Foere are performed enthusiastically by amateur troupes even deep in The Plains, by purely nomadic Loreclans.
The Loreclans and the Shattered Folk
Every 50 years, tribal families from the Shattered Folk beyond the Crynnomar Gap are permitted to petition for a right to settle in the Rhemish plains, and a lottery is held to determine who may immigrate. Those granted the right to cross the Wizard’s Wall are usually incorporated into one of the Loreclans, for most tribes of the Shattered Plains have at least some relations, if distant, in the Rhemish plains that have been granted their own Loreclannic lands.
Religion
Although temples to many gods may be found within the walls of the city of Reme, Solanus, Dame Torren, and Mithras are the matron/patron deities of the city, and their worship is predominant among the residents. The worship of Mithras is almost exclusively limited to the cities and settlements, having been an import of the Hyperborean legions that did not catch on among the nomadic Loreclans.
In addition to the three most prominent deities, other gods (mainly of the Hyperborean or native Loreclannic pantheons) are worshipped throughout the grand duchy. Merchants and travelers pray to Sefagreth or Belon the Wise, many soldiers and city guards venerate Vanitthu, and throughout the countryside Kamien, Freya, Telophus, and Ceres have devotees. Given the dedication to Solanus throughout Reme, this is one of the few regions on Akados that has proven resistant to the growth of the faith of Mitra.
Many among the more nomadic Loreclans worship Halatra the Horse, while Loreclannic knights often pray to Bowbe, god of battle-ragers. The worship of Bowbe is more common in the eastern regions of The Plains but is found scattered throughout the Loreclans across the country.
Trade and Commerce
The city of Reme sits at the western end of the Tradeway, a critical trade road that in the east passes through Bard’s Gate, and thence to Freegate, a port city on the Gulf of Akados. The Tradeway has existed since the days of the Hyperborean Empire and provides a direct travel route that does not require a detour through the heart of the Foerdewaith empire.
The city of Reme also boasts one of the best harbors on the Crescent Sea, with merchant traffic arriving from and departing to all of the known ports of Akados and beyond.
As a result, nearly anything can be bought or sold in the markets of Reme. Most of the trade throughout the grand duchy is controlled by several powerful merchant houses, each of which has a representative on the Council of Merchant Houses and Guilds that, with a lord mayor, governs the city of Reme.
Loyalties and Diplomacy
Reme has no colonies beyond its traditional, ancient borders. In part, this is due to a distaste for foreign conquest arising from the painful memory of the terrors that nearly overran the grand duchy from The Haunted Steppes after the disastrous attempt to colonize those lands during the reign of the Grand Duke Cale. But even without that impetus, with the excellent harbor at the city of Reme, vast lands providing ample food and other resources, and a central location in Akados unmatched by any other power, it really has no need to look elsewhere for conquest or colonization. Reme’s entire political structure is based upon the ancestral lands of its Loreclans, and there are no ancestral lands that Reme has not already reached and protected. If Reme were ever to lose control of lands claimed by one or more of its Loreclans, however, the reprisal would be savage, involving hordes of mounted cavalry in numbers far beyond what most feudal leaders could possibly mobilize.
As a result of this general attitude of peacefulness beyond the borders, the grand duchy seeks to be on good terms with other realms of the Lost Lands, so long as they do not threaten the sovereignty of Reme’s lands or the security of its trade. Stability is the primary goal sought by the grand dukes. As a result, it is on friendly terms with Foere, the Kingdom of the North Heath, the Kingdom of Vast, the Principality of Olduvar, the Kingdom of Suilley, Bard’s Gate, the Borderland Provinces and the Kingdom of Oceanus. It has particularly good relations with the Tycho Free States and has been instrumental in ensuring their ongoing independence. Reme trades with various cities in the Northlands throughout Libynos. Reme even has good — albeit wary — relations with Castorhage.
To protect its interests, the grand dukes have agents and spies in nearly every country and major city on Akados, and even in many locales in Libynos. The slow but steady deterioration of Foere is of great concern to Reme, particularly the growing chaos in the Borderland Provinces and Sundered Kingdoms. This concern is a large part of the reason that the grand dukes have encouraged the alliance between the Duchy of Waymarch and Bard’s Gate, as this secures the Tradeway and the eastern border of the grand duchy.
Government
The Grand Duchy of Reme is a hereditary, feudal monarchy ruled by a sovereign known in the Common tongue as the grand duke or grand duchess. In Rhemish, with its ancient linguistic roots in Kirkut, the title instead is “grand khan.” For purposes of understanding Reme’s structure of government, as opposed to its culture, the term “grand duke” is probably the better fit. The grand duke’s powers are more limited than those of the khans of the Hundaei of old, subject to Loreclannic conventions and ancient ancestral promises, rather than a legal code of the type that restrains feudal rulers in other cultures such as Foere. Yet even beyond these conventions and ancestral promises, the grand dukes of Reme seldom interfere in the affairs of the dukes of the Waymarch, the Westmarch, and the Northmarches.
Local authority in the Marches is devolved to the respective dukes of the Northmarches, the Westmarch, and the Waymarch as the protectors of Loreclans that have sworn fealty to them as groups. Although the position of duke by tradition passes down to the predecessor’s first heir, the grand dukes can remove and appoint dukes, a right that has been exercised by them on only a few, very rare occasions. Below the dukes (or, in the case of the ducal lands, the grand duke), civilized regions are usually divided into baronies (a title now given to a Loreclannic chieftain), with some small communities held by “Loreclannic knights” — a close analogy to the status of knighthood elsewhere in the Lost Lands.
The grand dukes have long ruled with the guidance of a high council made up of the dukes of the Marches and a group of chosen advisors. The advisors generally include one or more of the ruling members of the prominent merchant houses such as Drenwall, Oron, and Gastone-Sheshek.
Military
Given the size of the territory of Reme, it is unsurprising that the duchy maintains a sizable military contingent at all times. The grand duke draws forces from the grand ducal lands, and from the forces of the dukes, who are obliged to provide a certain number of warriors to their monarch each year. The navy of Reme also owes allegiance directly to the grand duke, and warships are continually venturing around the Crescent Sea and beyond the Mouth of Akados to protect shipping lanes and deter pirates. Command of the ships of the Reman navy is vested in the lord high admiral of Reme, a direct appointee of the grand duke.
Reme’s military tends to focus on heavy infantry with large contingents of the light cavalry of Loreclannic warriors. Light infantry has little value in Reme’s open interior. Given the vast distances involved, the most likely combat would be between light cavalry units. Heavy infantry would instead see use in battles against settlements or fortifications. The Rhemish tactic against invasions such as the great hobgoblin incursions or large-scale banditry focuses on cutting off supply lines, weakening opposing forces, and, in many cases, simply waiting until the invaders starve or become lost on the open plain, engaging in open combat only when the enemy is weakest. In foreign wars (such as the Crusades), Reme’s most significant contribution has been in the form of mounted archers clad in light armor of high quality.
Major Threats
The major threat to trade seen by the grand dukes is the growing instability of the other kingdoms of Akados, particularly the deterioration of Foere.
In terms of actual political threats to the country, Reme has few concerns at this time in its history. The civil unrest historically seen in the Westmarch has recently been resolved in Reme’s favor. There are, of course, tribes of humanoids in the realm, particularly in the Green Mountains and in the far north amid the Haunted Wood and the Deepfells. But none of those pose any real threat to the security of the Rhemish heartland. The Haunted Steppes beyond the Crynnomar Gap also poses a theoretical danger, but the Wizard’s Wall continues to be an impassable barrier to those of ill intent who might wish to cross.
Region
Reme, Grand Duchy of (Ducal Lands)
Subsidiary Organizations
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