Derdurian Kingdom

The Derdurian Kingdom is a large kingdom situated on the Eastern side of Ezelun. As of the current year (12e634), the King of Derdurar is Eisin Whitrunner III.

Geography
The Derdurian Kingdom occupies most of Eastern Ezelun. Its northernmost border encroaches on the Mournwind Forest, where it shares a border with the Allilean Domain. The main part of the Kingdom occupies the Plains of Kalik, which turns into highlands up near the Fauverian Cliffs, to the east of Lake Bohr.

To the south, the Kingdom begins to reach the Souvin Savannah, though that land is primarily occupied by the Ironblood Orcs.

The lifeblood of the Kingdom are the three rivers flowing from Lake Cohl: the Oren, Septin, and Covhill Rivers.

The Bay of Horns contains several large ports that see a significant portion of the Kingdom's naval traffic. The majority of its shipping, however, comes in and out of the city of Fauve to the north, which is the Kingdom's largest city.

History
The Derdurian Kingdom was officially founded in the year 125 in the Third Era. Previously, the area had been governed by local feudal lords, who fought frequently with each other. During the Second Era, they managed to form a shaky alliance under the banner of Count Arndell Willowbrow, who owned the lands surrounding the city of Derdurar.

The alliance of lords sought to take land in the north of Ezelun that was at the time occupied by elves. This series of conflicts became known as the Kettle Wars. The alliance managed to capture elven territory all the way up to the Sulreu River, before the elves (in the newly created Allilean Domain) managed to halt their progress. The wars eventually ended in the year 2e16548 with the signing of the Treaty of Haverstein, which ceded the cities of Southwood and A'silon to the humans. The signing of this treaty also marked the beginning of the Third Era.

Third Era
In the Third Era, the lords convened may times in an attempt to organize themselves into a single political entity. Eventually, in 3e125, they managed to create the Derdurian Kingdom, with King Alrith Willowbrow I (Count Arndell Willowbrow's grandson) as the first regent. Many of the local lords became Counts or Marquesses, who in turn appointed their own Viscounts and Baronets to help govern their territories.

Fifth Era
During the Fifth Era, the Derdurians attempted to fight back against the invading Ivertian Empire. Their armies were inadequately led and improperly supplied, and managed only a token resistance. In the year 5e3916, King Ordam Hillmorne, Queen Evelien Hillmorne, and all of their children were publicly executed by the newly installed Ivertian government in Derdurar, and their heads were displayed outside of Castle Oakwell for all the populace to see.

In 5e7206, the Blackbough Rebellion (led by Marill Blackbough) managed to topple the Ivertian government that had been installed in Derdurar. Members of her rebellion then declared her the new Queen of the Derdurian Kingdom, and she led a successful military campaign that liberated the rest of the kingdom.

Seventh Era
During the Dark World Crisis, King Vaughn Redhorn II became friends with Darion Tessandro, and contributed a significant portion of his military to the allied forces at the pivotal Battle of Lake Wyl. The King himself fought at the battle, and his popularity amongst the people soared. He leveraged this popularity to expand the Kingdom, eventually absorbing territory as far south as the city of Redwater.

Eighth Era
In the Eighth Era, Queen Annett Clearlight declared the Church of Vikyn as the official religion of the Derdurian Kingdom. Worship of other religions was still allowed, however, and the only real changes were to official ceremonies and documentation.

Eleventh Era
During the Eleventh Era, the Derdurians were influential in the creation of the Pact of the Broken Calf, an alliance between them, the Allilean Domain, the Ironblood Orcs, the Ni Fal Shogunate, and the Culean Triumvirate which managed to push back the Anduvian Empire to the Ekalih Isle.

Twelfth Era
In the Twelfth Era, the Derdurians were attacked by the Ironblood Orcs, and waged a long, bloody conflict with them.

Government
For a list of past Derdurian Regents, click here

The Derdurian Kingdom is a feudal monarchy. The regent (either a king or queen) holds near-absolute power in theory, but in practice, the local lords (Counts, Marquesses, and Barons) run the day-to-day affairs of the local towns.

Regents
The Regent of Derdurar is political head and face of the Kingdom. The Regent lives in Castle Oakwell, located in the city of Derdurar. If a Regent dies, their spouse will then hold power. Beyond that, succession follows a system of primogeniture, wherein the eldest child - male or female - takes over after their parents' death. This child is the new Regent, and their spouse is subordinate to them in power. If a Regent remarries after their spouse's death, their new spouse becomes a lord or lady, but cannot become a Regent. If a remarried Regent dies, their eldest direct descendant (from any marriage) - not their new spouse - takes over the Kingdom.

If a Regent dies with no spouse or direct heirs, the rite of ascension goes to the eldest living sibling of the former Regent, followed by their children. In the rare event that a dead Regent has no living spouse, children, or siblings, nieces, or nephews, it is the responsibility of the Derdurian Counts to assemble and choose a new Regent.

Princes/Princesses
Children of a Regent gain the title of Prince (male) or Princess (female). If they ascend to the throne, they instead become a King or Queen.

Counts/Countesses
Counts are in charge of counties in the Derdurian Kingdom. In the current year of12e634, there are eight counties: the County of Derdurar, the County of Fauve, the County of Evenpolis, the County of Haverstein, the County of Blackhallow, the County of Mournstead, the County of A'silon, and the County of Celekar. Counts follow similar succession principles as the Regents, where the eldest child gains the title. If a Count has no children upon their death, the King (or the other Derdurian Counts) choose a replacement, usually from among the former Count's Barons or Marquesses. A Count usually directly governs the largest city in their County, and can control the actions of the Barons or Marquesses of the smaller cities within their domain.

Marquess/Marchioness
A Marquess controls a border city or region within a County, and usually controls a more sizeable military force than a Baron, making them higher in ranking. The County of Celekar is currently the only with Marquesses, with the cities of Wakefield, Ornvyrk, and Malachai's Watch all being run by Marquesses or Marchionesses.

A Marquess/Marchioness is usually succeeded by their eldest child upon death, but both their local Count and the Regent have the power to appoint someone in their stead.

Baron/Baroness
A Baron runs a city within the Derdurian Kingdom that is not controlled by a Count or Marquess. Most cities in the Derdurian Kingdom are run by a Baron or Baroness. Unlike the other Derdurian titles, a Baron or Baroness is usually directly referred to as "Lord" or "Lady", rather than by their title.

A Baron/Barones is usually succeded by their eldest child upon death, but both thier local Count and the Regent have the power to appoint someone in their stead.

Baronet/Knight
Both the title of Baronet and Knight are honorifics, with no practical power afforded to them. Both are allowed to use the titles "Sir" or "Dame", and can only be awarded by a Regent or Count. A Knighthood is usually awarded for military service, as well as acts of bravery and heroism. Knights are also allowed to use the title "of" with the city that they were awarded the Knighthood in. Baronets, on the other hands, are typically awarded for acts of stewardship, management, or other form of aid to a Regent or Count.

Law and Order
Laws in the Derdurian Kingdom were usually made by the Regent, and the Counts, Barons, and Marquesses were responsible for enforcing them in their territory. Counts were also able to make laws governing their own County (so long as those laws did not conflict with the Regent's laws), and likewise with Barons and Marquesses.

Because the local lords were in charge of maintaining law and order in their territories, many raised guard forces (separate from their militaries) to oversee their settlements. Some counts raised guard forces for their entire county, while others required their barons/marquesses to maintain their own guard force.

The local lords were also responsible for collecting taxes and adjudicating legal disputes among their constituents. Most lords also appointed judges to act in their stead if their population was large enough, in order to allow more cases to be heard.

Crime
The Derdurian Kingdom has one of the more lax legal systems in Somara, due to a combination of ambiguous laws and corruption amongst legal officials. Many laws were left open to interpretation by the local lords, leading to many regional differences in both punishment and prosecution. As a result, crime was more common in the Derdurian Kingdom than most of the other political entities.

Some of the major crime organizations based in the Derdurian Kingdom include the Shrikes, a thieves' guild operating out of Fauve; the Dryden Syndicate, a widespread organization based in Blackhallow rumored to be run by a family of dhampyrs; and Silvermantles, a drug syndicate from A'silon.

Fauve
The city of Fauve is run somewhat differently than the rest of the Kingdom. It is overseen by a Count, who in theory oversees the city but in practice holds no real power. The Lords of Fauve are a group of powerful, unelected individuals who meet to determine the laws, tax rates, and other legal matters for the city. The only way to become a Lord of Fauve is to hold a position (official or otherwise) of significant power in the city, and be personally invited by the group.

The Count of Fauve typically backs the Lords, more or less officially supporting any of their decisions. Those who have tried to go against them (most famously Countess Lorenza Keats in the Eighth Era) are typically blackmailed or threatened, and if they still resist, tend to disappear under suspicious circumstances.

The Outbow Atoll
The Derdurian Kingdom maintains several colonial cities on the Outbow Atoll, from which they extract many of the island's rich natural resources. Typically, they lease control of these colonies to powerful businessmen and corporations, which are allowed to run the colonies as they choose, so long as they maintain good relations with the local Triton and Sea Elf populations and send a decent portion of the resources back to the Kingdom for public use.

The cities they own include Woodhaerst, Watchman's Stone, and Oakenwatch.

Economy
The Derdurian Economy is primarily based on the export of finished goods and agricultural products. The Plains of Kalik are well-soiled and conducive to large amounts of agriculture, particularly grains, vegetables, and certain fruits.

The city of Fauve alone accounts for 80% of all economic activity in the Kingdom, largely due to its position as a global marketplace with some of the most lax trade laws in the world.

Fishing is also a major industry in the Derdurian Kingdom, particularly in the Bay of Horns and in Lake Bohr and Lake Cohl.

The Kingdom imports large quantities of raw materials (particularly lumber from the Allilean Domain, as well as metal ores from the Outbow Atoll) which its many craftsmen and artisans turn into finished goods.

Currency
There are five different types of coins minted in the Derdurian Kingdom, with the major mints located in Evenpolis, Fauve, and Derdurar.

Kettle
A kettle is a round copper coin with raised edges. Its name refers to the Kettle Wars, a major elven-human conflict in the third era that resulted in the founding of the Derdurian Kingdom. A kettle is valued at 5cp on the global marketplace.

Guild
A guild is a silver coin with a star-shaped stamp on it. It creation was championed by some of the larger laborer guilds in the Kingdom, who wished for a coin that would make it easy for them to pay a single day's wage to a worker. A guild is valued at 2sp on the global marketplace.

Half-Crown
A half-crown is a gold coin stamped with the image of half of a king's crown. The idea for the half-crown came from several merchant's guilds in the Kingdom that wished for a lower denomination of coin to ease transactions. On the global marketplace, it is worth 1gp.

Crown
A crown is the main currency in the Derdurian Kingdom, and it is worth 2gp on the global marketplace. This gold coin contains an image of the King's Crown, an artifact worn by the regent of the Derdurian Kingdom.

Sovereign
A soverign is the highest denomination coin in the Derdurian Kingdom. It is made of platinum, and contains an image of King Alrith Willowbrow I, the first regent of the Derdurian Kingdom. It is worth the same as 1pp, or 10gp on the global market.

Military
The Derdurians do not maintain a standing military. Instead, if the nation goes to war, each local lord (Count/Countess, Marquess/Marchioness, or Baron/Baroness) is responsible for mustering troops from their constituents to send to the war effort. From there, the King becomes the supreme commander of the Derdurian army.

Troops are usually organized into Regiments, which contain around 650 soldiers each (further subdivided into Companies and Platoons). A Regiment is usually led by a General, all of which are directly appointed by the King. A Regiment usually contains 3 Companies (each led by a Captain, appointed by the General), and each company contains 4 or 5 Platoons (each led by a Lieutenant, appointed by the Captain).

Derdurian infantrymen typically wield pikes (or other polearms), as they are cheap to produce and provide exceptional reach. They can sometimes carry shortswords and shields as a backup or for situations in which a polearm is impractical.

Aside from the basic infantrymen, Derdurians typically also field formations of archers (armed with longbows) and cavalry. The ranks of their cavalry is usually filled with noblemen who have the ability to own both horses and barding and have experience riding them.

More specialized formations exist as well, such as King's Guard, Scouts, and Engineers. Spellcasters and Knights are typically singularly attached to formations as needed, rather than operating in groups.

Culture
Derdurians have a reputation for being hospitable and community-oriented. However, they are not always disposed towards tolerance of other races. Most notably, orcs and half-orcs are not always treated well (due to the ongoing war with the Ironblood Orcs), and in some places, elves and half-elves are as well. Overall, however, all races are afforded the same rights and protections under the Derdurian legal system.

Derdurian commoners have a reputation for being hardworking, as most of them spend long hours working farms to produce meager wages. As a result, however, the standard of living in Derdurar was often lower than in other countries, such as the Anduvian Empire, the Ni Fal Shogunate, and the Allilean Domain.

Arts
While common Derdurians did not have much passion for the arts, the nobility spent a great deal of time producing artwork. The Bard's College in Fauve produced more bards than any other city in the world.

Customs
Derdurians celebrated Regent's Day every year on the current regent's birthday. Liberation Day was also celebrated each year on the 12th of June, the anniversary of the nation regaining freedom from the Ivertian Empire. In addition, Harvest's End was celebrated on the 28th of October, marking the end of the harvest season.

Religion
The Derdurians were not extremely religious as a whole, but the majority revered Vikyn as their main deity. In fact, the Church of Vikyn was made the official state religion in the Eighth Era, but worship was not enforced among the citizenry. Other popular deities included Kevolah, Sorvus, Durefn, Velia, Derala, Helia, and Paelea.