We've known about the Hyparlink Road for some time, and L'Urque is known to be on a major road, too. There at at least four ports on Konti-Nyuum - Borrd, Mei'n Payj, Tumblar and La Wunj - and, presumably, stuff gets from them to the other cities somehow

Here's how:



As you can see, the big loser on the road network front is Iric (and eastern Borrd) - while there are large passes into Wechi and Ozerbord, the former Kingdom of Chaett is solidly walled off by the Larninkurvs - and, where La Wunj itself is concerned, another set of mountains and a river (seriously, is no-one going to give Iric's geography appropriate names?).

On the other hand, the east is the clear winner when it comes to sea traffic. The Western Arc allows shipping from Borrd to Tumblar, much of which then takes the Pankae Road inland and through to La Wunj. The Eastern Arc, passing through the recently-discovered Tumblar Gap in the reefs, forms the near end of the Tumblar Route, which reaches all the way to the distant Scholars' Empire and Federation of Academia. La Wunj, with the massive Chaett Break in the reef, is even better off - ships sail in from all the lands to the east, but primarily vast Somath-Aful and wealthy Autor.

The rest of Konti-Nyuum is limited to only two trade routes - or perhaps even one. The northern Hyparlink, heading to Tivit, is well-travelled, but the southern extension heads into waters roamed by troll pirates, and then to Marizu-controlled shores.

Borrd, Wechi, and Ozerbord are tied together by a well-developed network of roads. The north-south Hyparlink and the west-east Great Western Highway are the most prominent, and their intersection has made Vaekew a significant trade hub - particularly since the Iron Highway also terminates there, bringing ore from the western mines. Of course, officially there is no Iron Highway - just the El-Jheycom Road from Vaekew to Andboc - but the barons Neshomeh and Araeph show surprisingly little concern about the masses of smuggling over the Obrefs from Risersh.

The Wattuf Mountains were in Plort's early days considered impassable, until the Quest of the Five discovered the pass now named after them. The proximity of the Pass to the headwaters of the river Wep have spurred development in the area, and much of the output of the mines now takes the Copperway through a bored-out tunnel, north to Ozerbord, and then follows the O-Road and Coast Road to Borrd.

One of the less-travelled, but most important, roads is the Knights' Road, an offshoot of the GWH. It is this road that prospective knights take on their pilgrimages to the Purmeshun Range, and the sides of the road are littered with shrines and monuments.

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That was surprisingly fun. Now I have to figure out how to fit it into the Cyclopaedia... :(

hS

Neshomeh said last time round that Wechi is basically Scotland - independent, mountainous, self-sufficient. So that got me thinking: what are the other nations of our little Union?

Borrd - England. Oldest (though technically Scotland is sort of older - it depends how you think of the union with England), largest, most populous. It probably holds the most political power, too - and under the baronial system, Borrd has always had the most barons, and thus the greatest influence on the Council.

Ozerbord - Wales. The least populous, Ozerbord is generally content to be run by a Borrd baron - though it does harbour some thoughts of full independence. It's also mountainous, and hosts a song-and-story contest.

Iric - Ireland, the Republic Of. Fiercely independent from Borrd, Iric is only grudgingly in the Union at all (much like Ireland only grudgingly shares the British Isles). It also has a significant history as an independent nation, what with the existence of Chaett. Which of course means...

The Barony of Cassie - Northern Ireland. Cassie's barony lies in Borrd now, but it was once part of Chaett. I imagine there were long debates over where it should be assigned when Iric was formed - and possibly even actual fighting. It's an uneasy part of Borrd, at best.

The former El-Jheycom - Cornwall. Part of Borrd, but with a long-past independent history, El-Jheycom is trying quietly to reestablish itself as a full member of the Union. It also has strong ties with Ozerbord, much as Cornwall does with Wales.

L'Urque - Berwick-upon-Tweed. A little border town between Borrd and Wechi, it's a perpetual debate as to which country it's actually in. Much like Berwick, which changed hands between England and Scotland repeatedly for 400 years.

hS

I don't quite have the wherewithal to come up with detailed descriptions, but I have some ideas. For the Elvish device, something using kudzu leaves and flowers with vines woven in the middle would look nice, and maybe some spikes and points reminiscent of exclamation marks. White background, silver border.

I'll have to think more about a shield, but my motto is "Preview twice, publish once."

~Neshomeh

but I wanted to get your attention. I've sent you an e-mail; please keep an eye out for it.

I really like your Elvish device, most excellent.

Knight Ælcalen's device (Elvish, of course) would be:
Ner royal blue; rena silver; canta nastar alta tera, brown curved violin neck ending in scrolls; cantar nastar nica, rays of silver star; canta miri, linden leaf; canta miri, linden leaf.

The ship Ysæs's device would be:
Ner black; canta nastar alta tera, rayed star beams; canta nastar nica tera waterlily flowers; canta miri waterlily leaves; canta miri waterlily leaves.
(If I got that right, essentially the ESAS flashpatch translated into Elvish heraldry?).

Can I make claim to the town of L'Urque, lying in the mountain glades of the Lhawgin Heights beside one of the main roads between the former nation of El-Jheycom and Wechi?

L'Urque grew up around the mead-hall of Ælcalen, being a convenient place for travellers between Borrd and Wechi to stay their journey and take refreshment of song and drink by the hearth.

The arms of L'Urque are:

On vert, a bend argent, below a harp or and above a tankard argent.

Elcalion, armigerous

Heraldic: Shield Vert, above a stalk of kangkung proper and under a stack of coins argent, a quill bendwise Or with shaft argent, on a stalk of paddy vert with seeds Or bend sinister.

Formal English: Green Field Shield. On it, on the topmost part of the shield, a stalk of kangkung, a creeping plant, coloured green with white roots. Huinesoron's quill placed diagonally from left to right. It is placed overlapping a stalk of rice with green stem and golden seeds. Under this, there is a stack of silver coins, three pieces in total.

Could anyone draw this for me? If it's not what I had in mind, I will comment further. If how I write it is wrong, I'll correct it. And I take Huniesoron's pen on my device, as I have to emphasise that my town is under him somehow. And I'm not good at quartering. Maybe I'll try to snap a pic on my desired shield and paste it as reply here tomorrow.

Feel free to ask me for any translations. Or at the very least use a dictionary that can actually translate into Latin, such as Whitaker's WORDS (though you will need a fair bit of knowledge of Latin in order to make use of the program's output).

As I've mentioned in a different thread, please do not use Google Translate to translate something into Latin (unless you are deliberately going for bad Latin for the sake of comedy); Google Translate sucks at translating into Latin!

Once upon a time, in the land of Tivit, lived a mage by the name of Karrin the Blue. In the earlier years of her life, she dwelt in the calmer outlands of Fanvik-Neht, but all records of work in that time have been lost. She then left those lands and walked with a tribe of Bronee before finding the land of Tivit, where she studied the art of Arpying.

From the libraries of Tivit she learned the ways by which the nations of the Scholars Empire had been founded and learned of their shared traits. And in time she learnt to recognize the traits of the Marizu, whose ways had been nigh-unheard of to her as they rarely ventured to the outlands where she had lived.

One day, in her studies she heard tell of the land of Plort, and set off with her books of magic and gods. Though she was inexperienced in the ways of fighting the Marizu, it was not long before she began to make raids into the familiar outlands to cull the rare incursions she discovered. In these battles she found aid in the Fast Seneschal and later a monk, and often she used her knowledge of the magic of Beytah to aid them.

She continued in this way until one day she saw a vision of the Marizu war-leader, Nova, and the desolation she had brought to the lands of Fanvik-Neht where Karrin had once roamed. She and the monk travelled to defeat her, and though the battle was long and hard, Karrin the Blue dealt the death-blow herself.

Though the battle against the scourge Nova had been won, it was not without cost - during their campaign the mage had been observing the festival of Nahn-Oh Wry-Moh, and she found herself exhausted. She returned to her home, retreating from the societies of Plort to meditate and regathering her strength, making frequent pilgrimages to the lands of Tivit and Aohtree, and seeking new knowledge in the port town of Tumblar. Having since honed her skills in Arpying, Beytah, Vew'zorse, and Eich-Tee-Ehm-Ehl, she now undertakes scouting missions into the Marizu lands, though the results are kept hidden until she believes that she has gathered enough information to be of use.

-------------
Her motto is "Spes est scintilla magna et dura facie domuit indifferentia non universi," which is google translate Latin for "Hope is the spark that is not subdued in the face of the vast and callous indifference of the universe," which itself is a paraphrase from this: "Hope? Hope is not the absence of tragedy, my friend. It is the conviction that tragedy can be endured. Hope is the spark in you that is not subdued in the face of the vast and callous indifference of the universe. Hope is that which is not shattered by hardship. Hope is the urge to fight what is wrong even when you know it will destroy you. Hope is the decision to love and need someone knowing that they will one day die. For me to promise that there are no obstacles would be the cruelest lie I could possibly tell. That lie is not hope. Hope is the will which needs no lies," which is a quote from http://travisbeacham.tumblr.com/post/59911992881/ochinkun-there-is-a-thing-about-the-pacific-rim

Since I've already posted my story down there in July's thread, I'll just link to the monk Thanasius Ampelius' English heraldic device: argent, a raven volant azure.
(The Elvish way is a bit too confusing for me.)
As to his motto... since we're in the business of pretentiousness, I'll just put this piece of Latin beauty here: Errare humanum est, perseverare autem diabolicum, et tertia non datur. (Trans.: To err is human, to persevere in error is diabolical, and a third option does not exist.)

(Roughly to the tune of the Red March)
---
See now, Konti-Nyuum,
What wonders the dawn brings,
All the light touches
Is yours now to own,
For our fallen heroes,
Whom our hearts avenge still,
Took this sacred country
And made it their own

=CHORUS=
Rise, commoners and nobles!
Rise up against the speshul!
For only through union
Shall our hearts fly free!
=CHORUS=
---
It continues in similarly overblown vein for about nine years, much like the best national anthems.