United Provinces of the Grisic Consortium

The Iron Crown (Government)
The United Provinces of the Grisics Consortium is ruled over by the iron crown. The government structure matches the crown in every aspect. The most forward two pillars of the crown represent the two ruling kings. These two ruling families date back to the Great Binding. These two houses were chosen by The Mother and The Father to represent them in this marriage. Representing the Velzar people is the Clan of Trendar. Their current king is King Frankus Trendar the Mighty. Representing the Grisics people is Guild Condric. Their King’s name is Vintar Condric the Plentiful.

Both houses live on the island bordering the two provinces. They are born together, live together, rule together, and ultimately die together. The Kings are not chosen by who is born first, rather who is born first that is also born within a few months of the other house’s child. If the two children meet these requirements, they become kings or queens of the nation.

Once one dies or becomes incapable of ruling, the other steps down to take care of the other or retire. Many who have experienced the death of the other queen or king is often overcome with grief and commits ritual suicide or commits themselves to the military. Those who choose this path take on the sir name, “Shade of the Wolf.” For example; this happened to the last king and queen. Queen Alexandria Condric died due to a terrible illness. King Hondress Trendar took joined the military and took on the name,”Hondress Shade of the Wolf.”

It is important to note that the two kings or queens are not married. They are free to marry anyone they wish and are encouraged to marry other nobles outside of the houses to extend the bloodline and to promote brotherhood amongst the houses. At different points during the nation’s history there have been two kings, two queens, one of each, however at this moment, it happens to be two kings.

Traditionally, the “houses” are not called “houses.” For the Grisics, the houses are called Guilds. Not to be mistaken for a common guild one would attribute to the economy, a Guild refers to a prominent family. The biggest difference of between Guilds and guilds is first and foremost the capitalization of the ‘G.’ As well as merchant guilds have toe word ‘guild’ at the end of the name while the families have ‘Guild’ at the beginning of the name.

Velar houses are referred to as clans. They are set up in a more traditional sense where normal clans put their elders and strongest, most cunning family members in charge of the family clan. The only exceptions to this set up are the noble houses in charge of each province and the King’s Clan.

Guild Condric has been the undisputed rulers of the Grisics people since long before the great binding. They claim to be the original house chosen by the Mother to lead the Grisics people after the Great War of the Gods and founded Grisica and chose once again to lead them after the Great Binding. They lead by giving prosperity to the land and its people. Times have almost always been good for the Grisic people. In the few times when there was troubling times for the Grisic people, Guild Condric used peaceful means to subdue the populace, often times going hungry themselves to make sure the people are properly fed.

The Trendar Clan was not always in power. Before the Great Binding, they were one of the weakest Clans. They were the exception to the brother hood that The Father wanted for its people. Leaving them out of most decisions, including food distribution and often using them as bate or distractions for their military tactics. Clan Trendar claims that The Father looked down upon these actions, sometimes even claiming he caused the Great Famine because of this. When he led his people out of Velar, he chose Clan Trendar to lead them. It was Clan Trendar who first came forward with the plan to go to Grisica and it was Clan Trendar who had The Father’s insight to join the two houses, and it was ultimately Clan Trendar that The Father chose to put in charge of his people. Clan Trendar leads now by power, example of military prowess, and justly and severely punishing those who do not abide by the law.

            The crown’s other smaller pillars represent the governors who represent their respective provinces. They also lead their houses. Each province is also led by the bi-house system like the kings. However, the governor is chosen by the provinces own practices and over seen by a Malificarum overseer. It is important to note, they only oversee and advise the selection process, but abide by the laws and ultimate choice of the province and who they choose as a governor.

Once the governor applicants become of age, they travel to the local Malificarum province and go through extensive training. At the end of this training, they become enlightened and commune with agents of The Mother and The Father, some call Angels. They come back and lead their province.

Religion
The Father is the Velzaric peoples’ god. He promotes his followers to trust in each other. The only way to defeat your enemies and to make great Metal works is to work with one another. In the old teachings and traditions, there was a pantheon of different gods. Most of these gods were lost in the great battle. In this tradition, The Father was nothing but a lowly, mortal servant that served the cruel pantheon who forced him to work for years, torturing him for decades. The one thing that kept him going was the forge. This is where he made the horse shoes for his lordly masters. One day, one of these gods chased him to his forge. As a reflex, The Father grabbed one of the unfinished horse shoes and lashed out against his attacker. The god’s throat was cut. Only the metal of the gods can do this. Over taken with just rage, he took his sharpened horse shoe and finished him. He then locked himself in the forge for a month. He forged himself armor, a shield, and sword. He emerged from his meditation and began slaying his old masters. He found himself head of the gods and their people. He looked down from his post high above and saw these dragon people and saw their potential power. He granted them the gift of god metal and his symbol, the sharpened horse shoe.

The Mother, the Goddess of Grisic people is the god of prosperity, wellbeing, and wealth. The Mother is from the beginning of time. Before there were people, animals, or even plants, Baestril was of rock and fire. All the other gods used Baestril as a battle ground, fighting an immortal battle over a baron wasteland. The Mother cared for the wounded of this war. Eventually, they realized that the war was unwinnable and created mortals to fight for them. The god who led their people to wipe out the others would be ruler of the gods. The Mother over the centuries was made sick by this violence. If the gods or other people did not kill the members of a society, the environment would. She had had it when she saw the Grisic people. They were not physically fit like the other races, but were incredibly brilliant, and had much potential. Even when clearly outmatched, the Grisic people would win time and time again. The Grisic people knew they had no chance of winning this competition. They called out to the mother, pleading to her to stop the violence. Moved by their intellect and pleading, The Mother bound herself to Baestril. This created the plants, animals, and waters. As a result, the people could live, eat, and drink. Without the mother to heal the wounded, the gods were forced to stop the fighting. The Mother would continue to support the people of Baestril, and the Grisic people from then on.

The Great Binding was the marriage of The Mother and The Father. For many years, the Grisic and Velzaric people were at war with one another. The Grisic people would create goods and a booming economy, and the Velzaric would destroy it. This cycle ended when, Velzarica the swampy homeland of the Velzar experienced a great famine that lasted for many years. They went to their longtime rivals, the Grisics. They accepted the Velzaric people and gave them what they needed to survive. It just so happened that at that time, there were raiders coming from the sea. A great battle ensued where the Velzar protected the Gris. That battle would be forever known as the Great Binding. This is when the people and the gods became one. This famine was told to be the time when The Father became distraught with loneliness. Even though the old gods were cruel, at least they had one another. This is when the land became baron. He became less attached to the land and more to the people. Even though they weren’t gods, they were still his people. This however created the great famine. Seeing that this had affected his people so, he commanded them to leave the land. They went to the only other place they knew to invade, Grisics. The Mother, at this time saw the invaders from the sea coming. She was trying to get her people prepared for them, but knew it was futile. This is when the Father showed up on her door step. Normally, she would hide from this invader. However, she saw his vast army and also saw her chance. For the first time, she appeared to him. She made the deal with him that she would house his people and feed them in exchange for protection. The Father agreed to The Mothers terms, less for the care of his people but he knew he would also not have to be alone. The deal was stuck. The Sea invaders came and were crushed by The Father and his great army. Through the coming years, The Father and The Mother worked together to bring back the swamps of Velzarica to their former glory, making it better. The two gods became close as their people did. Eventually the two gods married and became as one. No one can place the single day or event, as it was lost in time, but the entire time was called The Great Binding.

Today, the Gods and tails have become less important, putting more emphasis on working together with one another in unity.

The Cataclysmic Schism was the divorce between the Mother and Father a mere 200 years ago. Since that time the swamps of Velzarica have grown twisted and filled with putrid stench. Velarics and Grisics both suffer from the blighted effects of the land but together they still thrive as one people. Each day they offer homage to the Mother and Father seeking that they reforge their bond and return great health and prosperity to the land.

Military
The military is made up mainly out of the Velzar people. They serve as the back bone and the elite of their military might. This is due to their long history of warrior prowess. Thanks to the wealth of metal resources and a pride in their metal works, the Velzar make up The Ulvin Guard or heavy infantry in its entirety. It is very rare for a Grisic to become part of these elite. This is due to the pure physical advantage that the Velzar possess. This includes staying in extremely hot and cold climates for extended periods of time, being dropped in the middle of wild lands, and surviving multiple severe blows. Due to a Velzar’s protective scales, this is less of a problem. It might be extremely painful at times, but not life threatening to most. When a Grisic tries to participate in this training, they often die.

If a Grisic makes it though the training, however they are instantly made leader of an Ulvin Guard legion as it is almost impossible for a human to do so. Only five have ever been known to do so.

The Ulvin are armed with a heavy rectangular shield that is often decorated with their Clans crest, and the Fathers symbol of a sharpened horseshoe. They use a heavy spear, a short bent sword with a squared off tip called a Frendin, and a sharpened horseshoe called The Fathers Knife.

They are decked out from head to tail in heavy full plate armor, with plush furs as the underlining. Each fur is different as the lining is from the animals that soldier has hunted himself. This means that the type of animal used varies from region to region. The helm of the Ulvin soldier covers the skull and snout. It gives the soldier a terrifying look as it makes him look like he as metal teeth and often gives them various spikes on the head. In some regions this is a sign of rank. In others, it’s a sign of class, but for many it is simply an artistic choice of the craftsman who made it.

The Vargflock or main infantry is less extreme in its training and outfitting. This is made up of mainly Velzar the rest is made up of Grisics. Due to what each race stresses, the Grisics people tend to become more in charge of logistics rather than actual combat, sometimes even becoming commanders as the still of logistics often times transfers over into strategic skill.

The Velzar that make up the Vargflock either wish to serve their country or are training to become Ulvin Gard. It is far easier to become Ulvin when one has actual battle time under their belt. Each legion of Vargflock is led by one Ulvin Gard member. This makes it easier to be noticed and picked for Ulvin Gard.

They are equipped with a variety of armors and weapons depending on the skill set of each legion and even each Pack, or squad in that legion. However, a general front line soldier is in heavy armor, protecting vital organs, equipped with a Spear, a shield, a Fendin, and The Father’s knife. The shield is decorated similarly to how the Ulvin Guard decorate theirs.

The Quinarin Thrall Masters are considered to be the most elite soldiers of The United Provinces of the Grisic Consortium. These would be considered the cavalry of the nation; however they are much different than traditional cavalry. They are picked at birth from a Velzar family. They are then raised in a Quinarin clutch. A Quinarin is a massive flightless bird that comes from the swamps of Velzar. For reasons unknown, the Quinarin only accept a new born from the Velzar, no other race can do this. They are raised with this clutch into adult hood while also being schooled in loyalty to the UPGC. The Velzar is then given a horse. They are then trained by Thrall Masters in the ways of combat. This Velzar, after training leads their clutch into battle.

Quinarin are giant flightless birds. They are strong and vicious meat eaters, and yet beautiful. They have the tails of peacocks and the colors of one as well. However, their heads are something to behold and to be dreaded. Their eyes are the first thing one noticed; red like the color of a dead man’s blood freshly spilled. The head has only a few feather patches revealing its scaly black skin. This flows into its beak. It tips into a point making it easier to penetrate their pray. The top jaw is jagged like razor sharp teeth.

The Thrall Master himself is clad in his choice of armor. They normally choose something light as to stay as mobile as possible and is normally equipped with a club and light shield. His horse is given standard horse armor. However they normally done use it until battle is called. This is the same for the Quinarin. They have special heavy armor to protect its vitals, but not so much to reduce its speed. Its main means of attack are to bite, peck, and kick with its massive talons.

The Militaries have slightly different variations on these from region to region. However, the metal used is most of the time imported from Velzar. This is the same for the Quinarin to use in their cavalry. Making different military traditions is encouraged by the Co-Monarchy as for the vast distance and different landscape from the home land so long as loyalty is maintained and core values are kept.

Economy
            The economy of the United Provinces of the Grisics Consortium is made up mainly of the Grisics people. They have been in farmers and entrepreneurs since before the Great Binding. Their land is perfect for crops, using the fruits of the forest and the crops of the fields. Even in winder with the harsh snows, they have root cellars, canned goods, and mushrooms in excess.

On the other side of the economic resources, they use animals and precious minerals found in Velzar. They export the metal working and raw metal to other countries. Same with the exotic animals found there. The animals are some of the strangest in the world with its strange ecosystem of swamps and forests.

There is also a great logging industry. The northern most forests in Grisics have some of the largest trees known to man. They use these trees to build the structures needed for their many operations. Many of the buildings made out of this wood from the old Empire still stand to this day. The wood is do dense it is extremely hard to set on fire. This is why it is often used as a good substitute for stone at many forts and castles.

Spices are also a great income for the UPGC. It is a commodity coming from the reaches of the Kingdom and trading throughout the empire. Its diversity and reach brings in all kind of spices from all over and sold to everyone without it.

The Vast reach of the Iron Crown is the secret to its economic prowess. This brings in a variety of goods to the global market. It brings goods that one part of the world has to the rest of the world that does not have that that specific commodity.

Grisica
The Grisic people came out of the great conflict of the Gods as all the people of the planet did. However, they were The Mother’s chosen people. She chose the Family now known as the Guild Condric to lead her chosen people to prosperity. They walked across the vast grasslands and still baron shell that was still left over from the great conflict. They continued for this march for three years until they hit the northern coast.

Their leader, Grisica Condric saw this sea and the land. She looked to the ground and got on her Knees. She was very old and tired, but even so began to dig. The others saw this and started to help her. The people kept digging until Grisica said that the hole was deep enough. It was six feet deep and just long enough for someone to lie in.

Grisica went to her youngest son and told him her was the next leader of her people. She then died, falling backwards into her grave. The people were saddened by this. Many tears were shed into her grave and onto her body. Then they heard a voice come from the grasses of the land around them. The voice told them that their tears were shed for good purpose for it was enough to grow the first tree and to start your first field.

Seeds sprang up from the ground and hovered for a moment. They then fell into plots in the dirt creating the first field. One large seed landed in Grisica’s grave. The Mother then spoke to the people she called Grisic for three more years and told them how to take care of the trees and the fields and the land called Grisica, named after the mother that took care of them just as The Mother had.

The Seed that became part of Grisica started the first giant Grisic northern forests. The grave and original Grisica Tree is still the center of the Castle of the Old Capital. The Capital was moved after the great binding to more promote the coming together of the two races.

The Planting of a Grisica Tree is a common Grisic Burial Practice.

Since this time, the people prospered and created more and more of a life for themselves. However, they could not grow due to neighbors who wanted what they had. The Velzar to the south were particularly vicious up until the Great Binding.

Velzar
The Velzar were The Father’s chosen. He saw them with the capability for strength and their strong brother hood. He gave them the scales, lizard like appearance, and strength to become a strong people. They have always been in the swamps of Velzar. They used to be the main food source of the Quinarin. Now they keep them as pets and eat their eggs as part of their daily meals.

When they found their strength, they expanded to boarders of what is now known as the province of Velzar, some of the southern mountains, and the southern half of Grisica. They would have contests that are still held that equate to the real world Olympics, called the Ulvin Games. This was a contest to see which Velzar had the greatest strength, endurance, which was the fastest, and many other sports of skill.

Their burial rights were and still are very similar to their Grisic neighbors. They are buried in a part of the swamp that has been walled off so that it can be submerged again once buried. Put in there chest is a seed of a swamp lily that only blooms when in the flesh of something living. It is a black flower with a red center.

The Velzar were almost always at war with its neighbors. This was how it kept its own people fed and comfortable. The old philosophy was more in the vein of, if you aren’t strong enough to keep it, you shouldn’t have it. Their favorite people to invade were the Grisics who had the most food and goods. They would not keep the lands that they invaded. They would make sure they had enough to survive until the next time the Velzar would attack. This way they hand a constant supply.

Post Great Binding History
The Great Binding brought together these two great people under one roof. The Grisic people brought back the Velzar lands from the brink of death. It also brought both people a new outlook on life. It gave the Grisic people a new ability to expand and it gave the Velzar people a new reason for existence. The Velzar were entirely based on always attacking and never looking inward on themselves as a people, seeing brother hood as more important than fighting which stopped most of the infighting between the houses.

This brought rise to the bi-house system. Each house was pared with another and were told that they were bound just like the mother and father were. Any attempts to get out of this contract were punished severely. Some of the houses were even striped of their status.

The Old Empire
The Great Binding brought together these two great people under one roof. The Grisic people brought back the Velzar lands from the brink of death. It also brought both people a new outlook on life. It gave the Grisic people a new ability to expand and it gave the Velzar people a new reason for existence. The Velzar were entirely based on always attacking and never looking inward on themselves as a people, seeing brother hood as more important than fighting which stopped most of the infighting between the houses.

This brought rise to the bi-house system. Each house was pared with another and were told that they were bound just like the mother and father were. Any attempts to get out of this contract were punished severely. Some of the houses were even striped of their status.

When The Old Empire found UPGC settlers near their old seat of power, they were surprised by the cooperation between the two races. They particularly liked the economic prowess of the Grisic and the military might of the Velzar. This was the beginning of another kind of binding.

The Old Empire cooperated with the UPGC to expand its empire. They would use the military power of the Velzar to concur most of the known lands. They used the example that the UPGC put forward to make a stable system where all races under the Old Empire would have equal say and were known for their diverse skills.

The Grisic would make the Old Empire prosper economically, working closely with other economic power houses that make up some of the nations today. Without the UPGC, the Old Empire might not have ever happened.

After the collapse of the Old Empire, the UPGC held on to much of the provinces that were heavily influenced and settled by the UPGC. It also kept its neighboring Old Empire provinces going. Cut off from their Emperor, they continued doing what they had always done and helped keep the UPGC going however they could. They became almost vassal states to UPGC. However, they functioned as their own independent nations, up until recently that could do what they wished.

Recently, there is a man claiming to be the Old Emperor from the old capital. The Old Empire provinces have now all aligned themselves with him, calling themselves the Concilium Malificarum. This could mean great things for The United Provinces of The Grisics Consortium.