geography hyvar begins in rolling fertile plains, orchards, and copses in the north. the center of the kingdom is hilly and verdant, with small lochs. to the west the vegetation becomes squatter, with twisty groves and wide fields that give way to craggy moors run through by streams and estuaries that flow to the Laerran sea. the further east one travels the denser the trees become, giving way to the deepest parts of the glas river and misty, ancient forests. the south is flatlands that rise sharply and suddenly into dark, grey vymirr mountain ranges, with reliable farmland well irrigated by the streams that flow down from the mountain lakes and tributaries.

there are two main rivers: the varan which begins in the north near the capital and runs north to south-west, and the glas which originates beyond the eastern border and snakes midway through the continent before branching out into numerous brooks and streams. the south boasts a series of mountain waterfalls, which the dwarves have individual names for but hyvarians refer to colloquially as the dragon's tears.

settlements of the many settlements across hyvar, the most significant are: the capital city of osrell in the north, the large seaside settlement and trading post of porthaven that sits at the center of the western coast, the southern hold of grey reach at the foot of the vymirr mountain range, and the elmhirst, a trio of well fortified townships connected by underground roads that sit in the forest near the eastern border.

travel On horseback, to ride from one end of the kingdom to the other would take four weeks in good weather and much longer on foot. those looking to circumvent long stretches spent on the road can pay a trustworthy mage to provide them with a portal, allowing for instantaneous travel.

technology it's your standard high fantasy realm: swords, capes, horses, castles, carriages, ships, and magic. gunpowder has not been invented.

education basic reading, writing, and arithmetic is taught across hyvar. access to formal education beyond that relies on the necessary income to pursue it. the laeren university is an academic stronghold in the capital, but the mage's school, gwytherin, is better known for accepting students based on individual merit over financial means.

politics hyvar is ruled by a hereditary monarchy aided by a council of advisors and guildmasters. in the time of dragons, a catchall for the millennia before the wards were cast, the crown was not held by any one linage for more than a generation or two. the guilds and great houses held greater influence over the land. when queen distar organized the campaign to drive the dragons from hyvar and allied with the elven mages to construct the kingdom's wards she also consolidated power and the love of the people behind the crown.

by and large the sebell line has produced worthy monarchs, but queen milva's father, king ovaine, did not have a talent for ruling. his council did what it could to make up for his shortcomings, but part of milva's reign was spent rehabilitating regard for the crown.

society genders are considered equal, with the culture focused more on the individual's ability to pull their weight and contribute to society. heirs are decided by birth order or wills.

religion the people of hyvar worship a small pantheon of gods: ola the mother of gods and fierce protector of life and creation, rew the god of harvests, seasons, and death, helt the goddess of battle and victory, ardon the god of rains, travel, and wisdom; and his sister vara the goddess of the winds, waters, and wilds. each god has their own sect of priests and priestesses who occupy temples of various sizes dotted across the kingdom. the head of each sect resides in the main temple in the capital.

humans live for 70-100 years on average. what they lack in lifespan, humans make up for in wits and determination. after appearing from seemingly out of nowhere two thousand years ago, they conquered the long untamed wilds between the kingdoms of elves and dwarves. like all species on the continent they are capable of using magic. humans developed two types of spells not before accomplished by elves or dwarves: portals (instantaneous travel) and reflective writing (instantaneous written communication). while reflective writing has been successfully adopted by the other races, their portals have never developed to be as reliable as humans'.

half-elves on average live well into their 200's, owing their extended lifespan and resilient youthful appearance to their elven blood. half-elves are almost always taller than a full-blooded human. with their heritage also comes keener eyesight, hearing, and agility. their healing and warding skills are naturally stronger than a human's and far superior to a half-dwarf's. this keeps those with magical talent in high demand to help maintain the kingdom's wards.

half-dwarves can live for 90-150 years. they don't age as slowly as half-elves, but their increased resistance to magic and the elements is a fair exchange for timeless beauty. half-dwarves are much heartier than humans and elves alike, able to better withstand enchantments, offensive spells, and adverse conditions such as extreme heat and cold. half-dwarves living in the southern kingdom have been known to survive short blasts of dragon fire, though not as unscathed as their full-blooded relatives. half-dwarves experience more difficulty and discomfort passing through portals than humans or half-elves.

nobility hyvar has been ruled by house sebell since the dragons were routed from the realm two hundred years ago. beneath them are the two great houses of hyvar: ifera and mayvir. a handful of minor vassal houses also exist, but these two are the most powerful.

house ifera the great eastern house has been voted most likely to be the poisoners ninety years running; ever since the current lord (or lady)'s grandfather took control of the family seat through a series of implausibly deniable murders. the iferas make only the barest efforts to hide that they're eagerly waiting for a royal foot to slip disastrously enough. if it weren't for the nigh impregnable nature of their keep in the forest near elmhirst and how much lumber they provide for the kingdom's shipbuilders, the crown would have dragged them out, kicking and screaming, and tossed them over the eastern border decades ago.(4/4)

house mayvir seated at grey reach. their lineage was established from amongst the last living members of the original three great southern houses. crippled after the final push against the dragons, they knew they could not all survive individually and so united beneath the banner of the mayvir. tensions between house mayvir and the crown have been high since king ovaine's reign. the collapse of the southern wards and the prince's disappearance have done nothing to improve them. the mayvirs are loyal and patient, but they have their limits. if the sebells should fall, they'd rather see themselves on the throne than the iferas. (1/4)

the council & guildmasters make up the political and economic advisers to the crown. royal council members are a mixture of heads of military, statesmen and ambassadors, scholars, spymasters, royal accountants, priests or priestesses, and a representative from the mage's academy. guilds currently with seats on the council are the weavers, blacksmiths, bakers, and merchants.

magic itself is a primordial force that permeates the universe. it can be drawn from and channeled by anyone naturally inclined or trained to do so. it has an everyday presence from village apothecaries providing poultices to the formally trained mages who help maintain the kingdom's wards. elves and dwarves were the first species to master the use of magic, but humans have since caught up. dwarves are the strongest practitioners in terms of brute force, elven magic is considered the most elegant, and humans are renown for their variety and ingenuity. humans were the first beings to create magic for instantaneous travel via portals.

limitations magic has costs and consequences. costs can be defined as exchange of energy. the stronger the magic, the greater energy and effort required to perform it. magic is less defined by dark and light, and more by the intent of the user and consequences that it invokes. for example: a mage may redirect a storm to help a field plagued by drought, but by doing so they rerouted that rain from another area that might have also been in need. a fireball gone astray in battle might set the whole forest on fire. necromancy has proved to be beyond the scope of magic, but that doesn't mean people haven't tried to variously horrific levels of failure.

education of the many ways to learn magic apprenticeships are the most common: a young person of magical talent or interest in the trade will seek out an experienced magic user (be it within their community, family, or elsewhere) willing to take on students. small regional schools exist but only the mage's school of gwytherin, where a formal curriculum of magic is taught, is recognized by the crown. court mages are almost exclusively selected from its alumni. pursuing an education at gwytherin can be a daunting path to follow, as they expect every student to uphold the high standard their reputation commands.

reflective writing a method of instantenous communication first created by human magic. a spell connecting two surfaces (most commonly a scroll or bound pages of parchment) is cast allowing for writing on one surface to appear on the other. (mod note: this is how we're going to get away with customs if people want them)

wards a series of magical barriers designed to repel hyvar's greatest adversary: dragons. commissioned by queen distar and designed by the six great mages of the era, it was the ultimate collaboration of human ingenuity and elvish might. it is said to have taken fifty mages to cast each border; all reciting the great mages' protective spell simultaneously.

the reality was much less dramatic: each took several years of strenuous toil to build, refine, and put into place the many layers of magic that compose each ward. like any defensive structure they require constant upkeep to remain effective, and the many mages responsible for maintaining the wards often partner with rangers and hunters to monitor the ward lines for beasts and monsters; an indication that a section needs repairing.

journal it can be ic or ooc as long as it's relevant to your character. if you're reusing one don't forget to lock any old entries!

ooc contact a backdated, screened post for getting in touch. we may have a discord at a later date, but not right now.

character info we're looking for a good understanding of who your character is and what they can do. it can be short or long, and in whatever layout you like as long as that info comes across.

examples 2-3 narratives and/or scenes is ideal. they don't have to be genre specific. if you're getting back into rp after a while you can use narratives written for the character you're applying with. please link us to your example journal or entries posted in the journal you're applying with.