The Kingdom of Hustonium

The Kingdom of Hustonium is the first Monarchy established by Humans after the Catalyst nearly 1000 years before the dates of the Campaign. It is ruled by King Dorian IV 'The Wise' from the seat of power in the City of Highfield. Hustonium is a major trading force on the global level thanks to it's large ports to the south, the River Elementus is the largest known river way in the World and the King's overall tolerance of Races and Religions which in the past would have been shunned.

Provinces of   Hustonium 

The Kingdom is divided into 4 provinces.

Westshire: The Largest area of the Kingdom in terms of land area. Most of the Westshire is Farmland as it stretches from the Crownlands down the west bank of the River of Elementus. Longriver is the Provincial Captial and the largest center of internal and international trade in the Kingdom.

The Crownlands ☀A central extinct, and small peek Volcano stands at the center of the crownlands which houses the great city of Highfield, the seat of Religious and Political power in the kingdom. The outlaying area is the smallest province in the kingdom, most of its population lives in the capitol or in the surrounding towns. The economy is supported through the Crown and the Faith, taxes from all over the Kingdom come to the crownlands. There is a great deal of tourism for these two industries. There is farming, light mining of Ore and Silver but for the most part the economy is tied up with the City and its service to the kingdom.

The Capstones: A mostly Mountainous area in the North where there are settlements, none ofwhich boast more than 1000 people living year around. The area is home to many Dwarves who trade openly with the Humans, and several roaming packs of Stone and Hill Giants making the area dangerous for those who travel there.

The Region relies heavily on Mines in the mountains, Gold, Silver, Ore all can be found and are mined heavily by the Humans. The Mining industry here is more developed then in the West where the King shares rights with the Dwarven Lords, but in the North they have full mining rights.

The Silver Shore: The Southern Most province of the Silver Shore is a low lying landscape with two prominent geographic characteristics, one, the River Elementus divides the entire province in half as it winds down the middle of the province, and secondly the large open Harbour of the Silver Shore itself, where the Southernmost part of the Continent empties into the Silver Sea (which is technically an Ocean).

The Silver Shore’s geography drops significantly in elevation from the rest of the kingdom creating a sort of micro-climate that has made much of the land suitable for growing Grapes and other fruits. In the kingdom, if you do not drink Ale, you drink Gold Wine or sweet Brandy from the Silver Shore.

The Silver Shore’s economy is based on International Sea Trade. Many traders of goods, culture, and ideas come to the Silver Shores Capital City of Starfall, the most culturally diverse city in the Kingdom, chock-full of all sorts of races, religions, and cultures. The City itself is well defended, up high on a cliff face keeping it safe from a Naval attack, the city sprawls down the cliff face and reaches down into the Ocean. Many people live in Starfall, but not many people claim to ever be born there, natives to the City often leave to experience the world and Cultures that they’ve been exposed to through the rich tapestry of life there.

Starfall is the home of the King’s Navy, the Seminary to the Water God and the Monastic Order of the Ancients.

Ironwood
Throughout the Kingdom of Hustonium there are enchanted Forrests where trees grow with supernatural strength. Only 1 in 20 trees in these forests produce Ironwood, which grants the user of this wood physical power superior to that of normal oak or pine. This is a major export of the kingdom selling Ironwood for boats, weapons, buildings etc. Ironwood is considered a symbol of status and wealth.

The two major sources of Ironwood are in the Westshire to the western area and in the Crownlands. There are other smaller patches of Ironwood growths that are prohibited to be Felled to promote longevity.

The First Order of the Arcane
The First Order is an elite order of Warriors, Wizards and such mandated by the King to police dangerous individuals of Magical power or origin. This includes Lycanthropes, Dragonkind, Spellcasters, Magical beasts and creatures. Not a hostile order at all, a policing agency that keeps tabs on any and all that hold substantial power. While normal spell casters or those who study magic are not required to register, at a certain point, spell casters are marked by the Order’s divination magic mostly thanks to the level of spell they are capable of casting, any Wizard, Sorcerer, Warlock, Priest etc that can cast at the 4th level or higher are placed in a Registry. Spell casters who can cast at the 7th level are monitored as closely as possible, and should they disrupt the monitartion are placed on a second list as potentially dangerous.

Constructs, Lycanthropes, Shapeshifters, Magical Structures etc are all monitored and if something goes poorly they are brought in for questioning or taken to the Silver Cells beneath the Capitol where they are held until deemed safe to release.

The Order is presided over by Master Dol Arcanikus, an Elven wizard of high level, and student of The First Enchanter who while is the head of the Order, does not deal with the day-to-day operations of the Order and delegates all matters to Master Arcanikus.

The White Guard
The White Guard is an elite order of Knights who are charged with the security of the Realm. There are only 10 men who serve in the White Guard at any given time and answer only to whoever sits on the Thrown in Highfield be it a King or Queen. These men are typical of Higher Level and command their own garrison of troops. The White Guard is currently under the command of Lord Commander Cyrus Oakshield, a Human Paladin.