The World of San'Dora

The Vold

Proper Name	Clanholds of the Machtig-Baelvolkerung	Ruler	Oberlaird Kaenha Kennering
Government	Semi-democratic Autocracy	Population	~8,500,000
Capital	Fallenheim	Major Settlements	Hafenstadt, Dunn Betreibenn, Dunn Steinegbahn, Caer Svato, Caer Ungorhaus, Dunn Braithwaite, more...
Languages	Machtig	Coinage	Gildennze (1:1.25 gp) Silbennze (1:2 sp) Eizennze (12:1 sp)
Resources	Metal goods, foodstock, horses, furniture and other wooden goods, furs, leather goods, fish, salt, Varic resellers	Religion	Druidic Faith
Military	~1400 Huscarl ~4,175,000 Thegns	Arms / Symbol	Oak Tree with Nine Branches
Allies	Var, ~Shidaal	Enemies	Everyone else except Worfinal

OVERVIEW

Large Scale Map of the Vold

In the underbelly of the Danoshorvas continent, between the Horn of Gersaan to the East and Ieshali to the West lie many tracts of rustic and rugged lands primeval and wild. These lands are called simply the Vold by the Humans that inhabit this expanse, the Machtig.

MAGIC

The Machtig have a diverse range of magical traditions.

The Druids weild powerful magics rooted in the natural world, and the turning of the stars and ages. They create mysterious stone monoliths and circles to focus their power and further weild absolute spiritual authority among the Machtig. They use the Derwydd Magic System.

The Skalds know many things including the secrets of Skaldingkraft, a subtle but influential form of magic that excels at manipulating the morale of others. They use the Sortilege Magic System (Spontaneous variant).

The Obermancers are masters of the very Elements and weild awe inspiring powers over the building blocks of the material world. They use the Elementalism Magic System (Spontaneous variant).

The Runecrafters learned the way of the Runes from Varic allies long ago and excel at carving, engraving, and tattooing them upon things for impressive effect. They use the Runecrafting Magic System.

The Aelf-bludded have some Haelfinan blood in them that grants a powerful legacy in the form of magical Gifts and can be quite potent. They use the Aeldenaren Magic System (Extended variant).

HISTORY

The Vold has been home to many peoples over the millennia, but most recently the Kor and the Machtig. For more information consult the History of the Kor and the History of the Machtig.

MODERN DAY

The Vold is firmly controlled by the powerful and diverse Great Clans of the Machtig. For more information regarding the Vold in the Modern Day, cosult the Machtig Clans documents.

COINAGE

The Wundvolding Clan of the Machtig mint their own coins, which were originally modeled after the Varic standard but diverged over centuries. In the modern era there are three coins in circulation:

Gildennze (GILD-en-OONZE): Usually shortened to Gilden in everyday speech, this gold coin is a little larger and heavier than the Varic standard; every four Gilden are worth five Varic Aurs (1:1.25 gp). Gilden are stamped with a mountain on one side and a hammer on the other; and thus are called Mauls in the slang of the Great Trade Route.
Silbennze (SILL-ben-OONZE): Usually shortened to Silben in everyday speech, this silver coing is twice as large and is worth exactly two Varic Arians (1:2 sp). Silben are stamped with a mountain on one side and a round Machtig style shield on the other; and thus are called Bucklers in the slang of the Great Trade Route.
Eizennze (EYE-zen-OONZE): Usually shortened to Eizen in everyday speech, this coin is a copper-iron alloy that makes for a curiously reddish color; six of them are roughly worth one Varic Arian (6:1 sp), but they are not accepted too far away from the Vold as few know what to make of them. Eizen have a mountain on one side and a pick on the other; they are called Blooddrops in the slang of the Great Trade Route due to their color.

LAND FEATURES

The Vold is a rugged and harsh land of great beauty but also great danger. Primarily composed of bluff rolling highlands shrouded beneath dense and ancient forests, it is effectively a subcontinent, ringed in by a natural arc of rugged and rocky mountains and crisscrossed with streams and rivers that have carved lush and fertile valleys over millennium and form a great freshwater lake before spilling into the southern oceans.

The highlands between the central cropland and the moutains are heavily forested, providing a selection of different types of wood. The coastline is relatively harsh and is very rugged, but there are numerous natural harbors ideal for medium to low drafts, and a couple of deep harbors that can take larger keels. Fishing is good in the rivers, the large lake, and off the coastline.

The mountains are rugged enough to provide useful natural defense, but a couple of natural passes and river courses are navigable. The mountains are resource rich, and numerous mines have provided well-husbanded resources for the Machtig, particularly in the Wundvolding Clanhold.

BODIES OF WATER

LAKE PARGO: This large and deep freshwater lake is home to many fish and provides a good deal of sustenance to the fishermen of the Pargori clan that live along its edges.

VANDOLOR: This large and stately river flows through the Vold from far to the northwest, through the lands of the Wundvolding, Jagrling, Ulthferen, and Pargori before flowing into Lake Pargo.

A fair amount of trade enters and leaves the Vold via this river, and it has become a creditable trade route in the last sixty years. Many Kor attempts at retaking the Vold have tried to use the Vandalor as their entry points since it provides one of the two easiest means of ingress into the Vold.

ORDECAR: This fast moving and flood-prone river races into the Vold from the north and east, and has carved a great pass directly through the Wundvolding mountains. It's course has changed a few times over the many millennia as well, leaving courses throughout the area that sometimes become flash flooded when the Ordecar overruns.

In seasons when it is navigable it provides a means of trade through the lands of the Herodi before rushing into Lake Pargo, but most find it safer and preferable to trade via land along the broad pass running the length of the river. There isnt an actual man made road here, but the dry river courses make for a natural passage.

A couple of Kor and Undari invasion attempts have tried to use the pass to enter the Vold, but it is extremely well defended with Herodi fortresses, and the attempts provided to be ill-advised.

VANDOLFELSIG: A small tributary of the Vandolor, this river runs through Jagrling lands, forms part of the border between the Huarthmunn and Pargori lands, and finally empties into Lake Pargo north of Fallenheim. During some parts of the year Jagrling loggers and carvers move lumber and worked wood products down the river for trade in Fallenheim.

LAGERBREK: A middling sized river flowing through the lands of the Ulthferen into Lake Pargo. It originates somewhere deep beneath the mountains, and also occassionaly becomes flooded by winter run off from the mountains. A small amount of trade moves along it, but most people prefer to avoid the lands of the Ulthferen.

ORDEFELSIG: A small tributary of the Ordecar, this short river is even faster than its parent and very few vessels will risk its length.

GUNNARSVIK: A decent sized river running down from the eastern mountains of the Vold, it too is of subterranean origin. It is a generally safe and easily navigated river save for when it runs high from run off or heavy rains. Many settlements in the Herodi, Huarthmunn, and Hengsting Clanholds rely upon it for their general livelihood. Accordingly much trade moves along its length in both directions, and two important roads parrallel its length for at least part of their way.

UNIEN: This large moderately quick river drains from the south end of Lake Pargo and makes for the coast in a basically straight southwesterly course to empty into the Sea of Osloanda. It connects three of the most important Machtig settlements: Fallenheim, Dunn Betreiben, and Hafenstadt.

Particularly vital is the stretch between Fallenheim and Dunn Betreiben, and so many Pargori merchants move up and down it either via boat or along the road that parrallels it that many call that stretch the Pargori River and this is a generally understood reference throughout most of the Vold, though it is truly part of the Unien River.

UNFELSIG: A very short and unimportant tributary of the Unien, its main claim to recognition is that it acts as a natural funnel for excess flow, helping to prevent the Unien from flooding badly when the water is high. It also acts as sufficient barrier to land navigation that the fastest way to Hafenstadt from the west is by boat; otherwise a detour up to Beulhalle to portage across is necessary.

WOODLANDS

VOLDWALD: A massive forest, its borders are essentially the same as the Clanholds of the Faendradi, Jagrling, and Ulthferen, with a little bit of spill off into the western-most Herodi lands. Traditionally home to many small groups of Ungheur these forests are not perfectly safe, but certain well populated and traveled areas are reasonably secure.

In addition to three of the nine Clans drawing a good deal of their livelihood from the forest, some Jagrling settlements are skilled loggers, carpenters, bowyers, fletchers, and other workers of wood and some beautiful pieces of furniture and other fine products originate from them.

SWARZWALD: A dark forest that lies entirely within the Herodi Clanhold, this was once part of the greater Voldwald but was seperated long before the Machtig came to these lands by a great fire. Traditionally the home of many Ungheuer, the Herodi long ago hunted them to a controllable state. Most areas of the forest are now completely tamed, but a few pockets of various Ungheuer can still be found in its more remote expanses.

ROADWAYS

Roads are relatively scarce for such a large area, but are sufficient to meet the typical needs of those who must travel the Vold's expanses.

SHIDAALWEG: This is by far the largest and most traveled single road within the Vold. Roughly 750 miles long, it connects the Huarthmunn capital of Dunn Betreibenn to far off Shidaal, where it also latches on to the end of the Great Northern Trade Route that originates in Daelanthanor far to the north. From Dunn Betreibenn the road turns north and ends at the Pargori capital of Fallenheim, the center of trade for the Machtig.

The Wundvolding call the portion of it that runs through their lands Steinweg, which means Stone road, but everyone else calls even this portion of it Shidaalweg.

CAER SVATO to CAER ALUNBRENNER: Not specifically named, an important road runs across the spine of mountains, through valleys, passes both natural and man made, and even a few tunnels the length of the western arc of the Wundvolding mountains, ending in the Herodi fortress of Alunbrenner. There is also a tunnel running under the Ordecar river that allows one to easily connect up with the road starting in Caer Verdton on the other side of the river.

It also has offshoots that allow linkages with the Great Northern Trade Route via Caer Vaclice and Caer Ungorhaus. This passage way is crucially important and is well protected by the Wundvolding Huscarl, the Steinwach.

CAER VERDTON to FALLENHEIM: Not specifically named, there is a series of roads connecting Herodi settlements that eventually loop back into the Vold proper and connect with both Hengsting and Huarthmunn settlements before finally ending at Fallenheim via a couple of forks.

A good deal of inter and intra Clan trade uses this road network, but few non-slave outsiders have ever trod it's traces.

CAER DIRKLOF to DUNN REITSTALL: Though there is no actual road, a broad natural passage carved by the Ordecar river allows easy foot transportation from Caer Dirkloff in the north to the Hengsting capital Dunn Reitstall in the south, passing through the Herodi capital of Caer Coinig along the way. A good deal of trade passes along this route, which is sporadically patrolled by the Herodi Huscarl.

SOCIETY

The Machtig have relatively few professional armsmen (Huscarl), but almost fifty percent of their population is comprised of trained warriors making them a force to be reckoned with when they go on the war path.

The Machtig are the dominant people in the Vold, but pockets of Haelfinan, Var, Kor, Hurgur, Vorshek, Dyrgynion, and Wyrdynion exist in various remote areas as well.

Each group have their own culture and society, and for the most part do not intermingle, though there are exceptions.

CAPITAL

Each of the Nine Clans has its own capital, which they call a Laird seat. Whenever an Oberlaird rules no longer the Lairds of the Nine Great Clans congregate and vote for one of their number to ascend to be the new Oberlaird, and that person so voted is both the Laird of their own Clan and the Oberlaird of all the Clans thereafter. They rule from their own capital; thus as the current Oberlaird is a Pargori the effective capital of the Vold is the Pargori capital but it may change the next time an Oberlaird ascends.

Fallenheim is a relatively attractive small city built on the southern end of a large lake and is in two halves. It is a trade center for the Machtig and some merchants from beyond the Vold, and is a very lucrative and pleasant place to live.

The city is in two halves, split by the Unien River. The half on the left bank is the older part of the steading and is called Upper Fallenheim. It has all of the culturally and politically important assets of the city, while the newer half is called Lower Fallenheim.

Most of the practical work, such as working docks, warehouses, and trade processing facilities, have been moved to Lower Fallenheim over the years, leaving Upper Fallenheim as a sort of high-rent neighborhood for the wealthy and influential and older families that been in the city for a long time.

However a good amount of trade still makes its way into Upper Fallenheim before being ported across the river thanks to the Shidaalweg ending at the gates on the left side of the river. A large trade market exists essentially permanently and bustles with trade, though the individuals currently manning the stalls vary widely.

A surprising amount of swag makes its way to Fallenheim, including copious amount of loot and plunder traded to the Pargori by the Herodi and Raevoring. Between the The Kauffenkwad (COUGH-in-KWOD, literally "Merchant's Square") in Lower Fallenheim and the Geschftar (geh-SHOVT-tar, literally "Trade Fair") outside Upper Fallenheim's southern gate a person could find just about anything for sale aside from certain things that the Machtig don't countenance such as drugs and slaves.

Upper Fallenheim is walled, but Lower Fallenheim is not. The Laird Hall of Fallenheim rests on a hill that gives it a commanding view of the entire area, particularly the Lake.

RULER

Kaenha Kennering is a wily and capable ruler that has brought numerous trade agreements into being while managing to rein in the more fractious Clans. He is likely to hold power for at least another decade.