The Books of Blutora

2 : Southern Civilization

Upon the continent of Blutora there lies a significant number of people, cultures, and incredible history. In this piece, we focus on those of the south, the people, the culture, the history.

To begin with, in the farthest reaches of the south we find the Ezeru. The Ezeru people are humans with a natural born connection to the auras of magic intertwined with planet Teldess. Amongst the humans of Blutora, this inherit connection is unique to the Ezeru. This allows those of this race of humans to better learn to harness and channel magic compared to others. More often than not, human wizards, sorcerers, and spell-casters all around are Ezeru in origin. The Ezeru race is relatively new, as they all originated as normal humans, the Arberi. When the event known as 'the banishing of Lundell' occurred, in the year A-455, a great many Arberi gained the life-changing connection to magic, specifically the whole of the city of Goldcrest, and all of the nearby settlements as well. It was at that time, the Ezeru had been born of the Arberi, and they've built a population, and a culture significant enough to rival any others across the lands in present day.

Many hold to this day that the very first settled land in Blutora was that of the kingdom of Goldcrest, the first home to those who would become the Ezeru people, a number of eras ago. As it would come to be, the Ezeru people would inhabit the lands that would come to be known as the province of Mariteia, but never settled in large amounts elsewhere. While you can find Ezeru humans across the entirety of Blutora, the majority reside in the far south in Mariteia, with the next highest concentration residing in Elabet. The origin of the first Ezeru people lies within the origins of humans in general, the Arberi, in the mysterious lands of Xizios far off the coast of Blutora across the unforgiving Yulean Ocean. The story of how the humans made their way to the continent of Blutora for the first, and only time, remains unclear however. What is known, or at the very least accepted as fact, is that the first Arberi arrived off the coast of Mariteia roughly seven years prior to the beginning of the A-era.

When it comes to the aura of magic and the Ezeru, similar to the Dukaze elves of the north, the connection is inherited, passed down through generations. Normally, the connection to the magical auras should've been severed during this time, and that was the case, until the aforementioned event took place. The humans of magic are also well known for their connection to nature itself, this is represented well with The Aestisic, the ancient tree guarded in the lands of Goldcrest that's magical properties keep it standing far longer than it should. Many of the Ezeru make the journey to The Aestisic Temple to meditate near the tree and draw from its aura to strengthen their bond to the greater magical auras.

The majority of the Ezeru align with the followings and beliefs of Uzra, as you might expect being their province plays home to Mount Andetor and the Temple to Hafeol near it's peak. This is also shown in the Ezeru tendency to lean into a more pacifist mentality and desire to avoid conflict where possible. When it comes to the humans of the far south, their culture is defined by magic, nature, and the pursuit of peace.

This leads us to the Arberi people. This race of humans on Blutora originated as the only humans of the lands, eventually being partially divided into the Arberi and Ezeru peoples, the latter of course being magically inclined humans of the Mariteia province. The Arberi began as the only humans and have always been the most prevalent race of humans as well. When the Ezeru came to be, it converted only around a fifth of the total Arberi population at the time. Combine this with the fact that for the Ezeru, passing down the magical connection through hereditary means isn't fully guaranteed, and you can see how the Arberi have always significantly outnumbered the Ezeru. A number of the Arberi have Ezeru parents, but none of the Ezeru have Arberi parents.

The first Arberi to arrive in Blutora settled in the lands of Mariteia and branched out from there. First to the lands of Elabet, followed by Moorufell, and finally Odelia. From the formation of the Ezeru onwards, the Arberi were outnumbered in Mariteia, but kept the highest population numbers in the remaining lands that would eventually become the three provinces of Elabet, Moorufell, and Odelia.

Unique to the humans of Blutora, both of the Arberi and Ezeru are some of the most resilient to heat in all the lands, and as such they could make use of the warmer climates of the savannas, arid plains, deserts and badlands, whereas the other races could not. This meant that over the years and era's of time, any conflicts within these drier, hotter regions of Blutora often favored the humans of the south in more ways than just a home land advantage.

The Arberi while not being gifted with a connection to the magical auras, are well known for their ability in battle. Their fighters are light on their feet, and quick with their strikes. They are also responsible for some of the largest kingdoms in Blutora, such as Schium, Aiphalia, and Balmoral - the widely regarded unofficial capital of Blutora. While residing in different provinces for the most part, the Arberi and Ezeru still maintain a good relationship... all of them besides the early Schiumians and Goldcrestians, who had much conflict in the B era. When it comes to conflict however, the Arberi have always had a rough relationship with the Yimaro to the north. Wars have been raged, truces broken, countless lives taken, and lands ravaged many times over. They have also seen times of tentative peace over the years, resulting in overall a very inconsistent and rocky at best relationship between the two most populous races across the lands of Blutora.

Culturally speaking, the Arberi hold their ability in combat and skill of fighters towards the top of the list in terms of traits they're most proud of. On top of this, their magnificent cities, crafted of some of the the boldest architecture seen anywhere in Blutora, is another point of celebration amongst it's people. The majority of the Arberi people follow the beliefs and teachings of Izan, the deity known as the guardian of hope. They channel these beliefs into confidence which further serves to aid their renowned prowess in combat, and these beliefs also fuel their knack for surviving harsh desert conditions.

The Ongrah, native to the province of Yustreia are an orcish race of people, renowned for their smithing ability and heavy weaponry and armor, as well as their legendary architecture. Little is known of the Ongrah amongst the rest of the provinces in Blutora, compared to the others. These people are one of three races to originate on the continent of Blutora, as opposed to having ancestors that arrived from elsewhere. As such, the Ongrah have a very extensive and deep understanding of the lands from coast to coast in either direction.

They remain fairly disconnected from the outside world, primarily interacting only in trade with other kingdoms. They keep the roads of Yustreia open to travel, but their kingdoms closed. It wasn't always this way, but long ago when war found their province from the Arberi people of the south it took a devastating toll on their land. After peace was made, they closed their borders to anyone who wasn't Ongrah. This lasted for a while before they were convinced to lift the closed borders, and since then it's remained closed kingdoms - while allowing open passage through the province. It's not impossible to visit an Ongrah settlement however, as the smaller towns and villages remain open to visitors, as without walls for many of them, it would be more trouble than it's worth to keep outsiders out.

When it comes to trade, the Ongrah capitalize on Yustreia's centralized location in Blutora, which makes the land a major crossroad of trade routes. They set up small villages along the roadways where they regularly do business with traveling traders of other kingdoms. Since outsiders aren't allowed inside the Ongrah kingdoms, this is the only way the other provinces can acquire the legendary craftsmanship of Ongrah tools, weapons and armors. Their renowned craftsmanship doesn't end at smithing however, their architecture is known to be some of the strongest and sturdiest that exist in Blutora. Everything the Ongrah have built has stood the test of time, noticeable in the occasional ruins and abandoned buildings dotting the Yustreian landscape. They make an extra effort to avoid removing any old buildings across their homeland as an homage to the creators and master architects of times past.

Many of the Ongrah align with the ideals of Zifio, lord of creativity. A common legend of the Ongrah is that their legendary skills in smithing and architecture is the result of a blessing directly from the deity Zifio. On the opposite end however, stories tell of a great number of Ongrah who devout themselves to Stuzocious. Something the people of Yustreia try to dismiss and distract from. The culture of the Ongrah is centered around craftsmanship in every facet, and bringing the best of a persons creativity to the forefront to flourish under the beliefs of Zifio. At the end of the day, whether it's a house to call home, or armor on your back, you want it to be of Ongrah craftsmanship.