The Blood Vale is comprised of nine dutchies, each ruled by a Duke, and each holding any number of Counts who administer the counties, and Barons who are charged with the knights, soldiery, and defense of the principality. Each Duke holds the right to nominate the Grand Duke who serves for life. The dutchies of the Blood Vale are largely ordered around hereditary lines from the tribes of Mydlothnyr, Alendor, and the remnants of Sargos.
Dutchy of Bryn #
The Cullis people were the oldest line of humans in the Blood Vale, and were often locked in conflict with the Almatian elves. Over time, the Cullis tribes were conquered, or intermarried with the Viridans that migrated eastward. The landscape of Bryn is dotted with old Cullis ruins and forts, temples erected to gods long forgotten. The people who live here now speak an odd dialect of Mydlim, and are a reclusive people. They are considered the black sheep of the other Mydlothnyan provinces.
Primary Language: Mydlim Dominant Ethnicity: Mydlothnyan Racial Makeup: Human (94%), Nemedian (2%), Other (4%) Dominant Gods: Annwn, Ioris, Elberick
Dutchy of Addewid #
Addewid is the largest of the dutchies, and its people are a diverse collection of representative cultures that have flowed in, out, and through the duchy over the past century. Cullis refugees from the south, Mydlothnyan settlers from the west, and Accipiteran settlers from the north, all make for a mottled tapestry that is often at odds with itself. The copper mines, rolling fields of barley, and hilltops adorned with windmills, make for an economically diverse and thriving region. Addewid is considered the heartland of the Blood Vale.
Primary Language: Mydlim Dominant Ethnicity: Mydlothnyan Racial Makeup: Human (92%), Thorfor (4%), Other (4%) Dominant Gods: Gaedrik, Elara, Annwn
Dutchy of Almeia #
Almeia has long been home to Accipiteran settlers, and is a stalwart supporter of the Colleges of Magic. Nearly all the lords of Almeia contribute their second born sons to the Colleges. Almeia has also seen its fair share of entrepreneurial adventurers come to the region as entrances to a vast underhome of a city believed to be of the age of the Titans has been found. Scholars, explorers, and tomb raiders are scouring the Corde Epaisse looking to find treasures, lost knowledge, or ancient magics. The lords have also taken to requiring such groups apply for and purchase writs, and some even have taken to a lottery system for delving rights.
Primary Language: Afarin Dominant Ethnicity: Alendorish Racial Makeup: Human (92%), Eldan (5%), Other (3%) Dominant Gods: Arawn, Math, Ealyndryl
Dutchy of Dwyfer #
Dwyfer is the purported home of the heirs of Rikard who fled here in 920 CA. It is a staunchley Mydlothnyan hold, although it has seen its fair share of immigrants from Alendor and old Sargos. The line of Rikard has been broken into the noble families of the Kendricks, and the Rikardsons, but they have intermarried with other lords of the Blood Vale over the last ten generations. Dwyfer is a dreary place of thick forests, moors, and seemingly perpetual gray skies. It does have a fair amount of silver mines which affords the territory some level of wealth and prestige at court, despite most other lords considering it a place of criminals, poor breeding, and backward thinking.
Primary Language: Mydlim Dominant Ethnicity: Mydlothnyan Racial Makeup: Human (96%), Eldan (3%), Other (1%) Dominant Gods: Annwn, Saedra, Ioris
Dutchy of Cavala #
Cavala, jewel of the Blood Vale, is covered in rolling fields of wheat, deep deposits of gems, and gold, and a major trade port that controls the flow of goods to and from Alendor. It is the home dutchy of the Gaspar family, whose patriarch, Alphonse Gaspar, has ruled as Grand Duke of the Blood Vale for over thirty-five years. It is home to artisans, the threatre, and all manner of high society, and cultural innovation.
Primary Language: Afarin Dominant Ethnicity: Alendorish Racial Makeup: Human (95%), Sidhe (3%), Other (2%) Dominant Gods: Ealydnryl, Ioris, Unarna
Dutchy of Prisetlund #
When the Blood Vale was fighting a war of independance from all comers, an Ulnastyran warband came to raid the coasts while the major armies were distracted. But Accipiteran soldiers made the grave error of trying to stop the Ulnastyrans, and only served to make an enemy. Soon, the forces of the Blood Vale began to count the Ulnastyran raiders as allies. When the war was done, Jarl Kjell Sivers was given his own territory, and joined the table of dukes. Today, Prisetlund is a provider of mercenaries and soldiery, and the bulk of the Mercenary Guild call Prisetlund home.
Primary Language: Ulnas Dominant Ethnicity: Ulnastyran Racial Makeup: Human (90%), Nemedian (5%), Other (5%) Dominant Gods: Mharaz, Liripai, Ultor
Dutchy of Karaktos #
Karaktos, highland moors bordered on the east by expansive alpine forests that scale up to the midrise of the Arpasian Mountains. The land east of the Arpasians is the desolate Alabaster Sea, a region of blasted deserts and cursed undead. The people of Karaktos are hearty and independant, and Sidhe of the long dispersed Almatian people still linger in the region. The massive Alabaster Sea still holds ancient ruins and treasures, enough to draw wayward adventurers to Karaktos to seek their fortunes, though most only find an early grave.
Primary Language: Sargosian Dominant Ethnicity: Sargos Racial Makeup: Human (85%), Sidhe (10%), Other (5%) Dominant Gods: Ultor, Elberick, Unarna
Dutchy of Lithos #
The Lithos valley is rife with fertile plains sprawling in the western shadow of long cold volcanoes. It’s limestone quarries from the Whitespine Mountains line all the manor homes and temple exteriors of the Blood Vale. Lithos is home to three dragons: Acheron, Xasinax, and Doro. It is ruled by House Ostia, a family that contributed more than a dozen Sargons. Despite the wealth of their lands, and the weight of their name, Lithos has been a stalwart supporter of the Grand Duke. They envision a Blood Vale ascendant, one that can achieve far more than Sargos ever could; unbound by the hubris of legacy.
Primary Language: Sargosian Dominant Ethnicity: Sargos Racial Makeup: Human (95%), Sidhe (3%), Other (2%) Dominant Gods: Ultor, Elberick, Avenal
Dutchy of Thume #
Thume stands vanguard over the Marches, and is a land of equal parts opportunity, danger, and intrigue. East of Thume is wildlands populated by dangerous wildman tribes, remnants of the Almatian empire, agents of the Dominion, and all manner of fae and beast emboldened by the ripped Veil that stretches from the Scarlands. It is a place where the rule of law is impotent to enforce, making it home to all manner of smuggler, criminal, and renegade mage. This makes it an ideal home for the adventurer, the crusader, and the explorer.
Primary Language: Sargosian Dominant Ethnicity: Sargos Racial Makeup: Human (80%), Sidhe (15%), Other (5%) Dominant Gods: Annwn, Avenal, Ioris