The Faded States of Daarken

[vorropohaiah]

can a mode please fix the typo in the title and change Daded to faded :p

Arkos, Suma'ya & Zion - small.jpg

Perhaps exemplifying the entropy of Elyden more than anywhere else in the Inner Sea, the history of the regions of Arkos, Ba’ath, Suma’ya and Zion (collectively known as the Faded States) are, as befits their geography and cultural similarities, intertwined. They are regions whose past was shaped by Korachani expansionism and whose futures are bleak. Invaded relatively early in the Korachani empire’s history they became at first colonies and and then part of the empire itself, with immigrants and caretaker patricians lording it over the natives, who in many cases became second-class citizens, and the lands themselves were valued only for the resources that could be exploited.
In particular, the regions of Ba’ath and Zion became prized for their reserves of raw umbra, which was essential to the rise of Technarcana in the region and instrumental in the growing power of the Korachani empire. As is so often the case, when those resources waned to the point that large scale extraction was no-longer profitable, Korachan abandoned the region to the Domnitors (regional care-takers) in 2732, handing it over to Sathep the Risen of Sarastro in 3103 RM, alongside Zion. This became known as the Sarastroan Sanction.

Starting in 3097 RM the political situation in Ba’ath had grown out of control, with anyone seen to be a threat to the administration exiled to the south of Ba’ath, which by that had become an Atramentally-tainted wasteland with little resources. This continued well into the start of Sarastroan rule, and over the next centuries the area became a war-torn region of opposing warlords and tyrants. By 3311 the city of Suma’ya had risen above the others, with other cities subjugated beneath its banner. Sarastro had no need of its lands and allowed the fledgling state to fester. Raiding neighbouring territories for slaves and resources it is little more than a localised threat and of little importance to the world without.

Arkos, despite being a relatively small land, had a rich history following failed Korachani attempts at conquest. It was originally conquered by prototype of what would later become the feared Steel Legionnaires - elite vat-born clones that formed the vanguard of Korachani armies - one regiment of which was left behind to maintain the region during the Korachani withdrawal. The descendants of these caretakers would eventually become a ruling caste, known as the Arkos, their imposing statures and military prowess making them natural leaders to a region that was forever fending off barbarian attacks from the south. Though predation from Sarastro would ultimately lead to the region’s downfall. After periods of Sarastroan subjugation, the last of the descendants of the Arkos killed himself in shame 3822 RM, leaving the ruin of its once-great capital Arkashan ( corruption of the original Arkosachan, meaning city of Arkos in Korachani) empty, guarded by a crumbling colossus that echoed a golden age that had passed into memory centuries past.

[ChickPea]

Fixed it for you.

Oh, and nice work on the map!

[tilt]

Really great looking map and I see that ChickPea has already fixed the problem in the title, so I'll just put my feet up and enjoy the map

[Voolf]

Another great piece of your outstanding project. How many do you still have to do to map entire world ?

[vorropohaiah]

Fixed it for you.

Really great looking map and I see that ChickPea has already fixed the problem in the title, so I'll just put my feet up and enjoy the map

thanks

Another great piece of your outstanding project. How many do you still have to do to map entire world ?

If you've seen the google earth image on the previous page you'll see how little of the world is currently mapped in this format. It's taken me 16 months (I started the first map in January 2016) to do 18 maps, and they only cover a small fraction of the world's surface, so I wouldn't even wager a guess as to how long it will take to do the entire world in this level of detail.

And to be honest, once I detail the areas my writing takes place in I doubt I'll spend this long on maps for distant continents unless my writing takes me there and I feel the need to fill in the blanks.

I'll most likely create more generic world maps and one-off maps, as the mood strikes me one I'm finished with these and the Inner Sea 'mega'map' my work is leading towards.

[Voolf]

I found it. That is a lot of work ahead. I wish you all the best with this project.