Northbelt

This page is a sub-page of the Geography page which records all major regions of the Alorian world, and explains roughly what each Nation or area is like. Northbelt in particular is in the north-western direction of Regalia, home to many Ailor, Sihndar, and Urlan realms, each with varied and often conflicting history. Some of these pages may be tied to more expansive lore, which is linked within their respective table rows. Below is a piece of the Geography map cut out to show the relation between all the nations geographically.

Name	Description
Nordskag	The Nordskag Kingdom is the largest (population wise) and strongest realm of the Northbelt, generally seen as the most centralized and urbanized of Velheim Ailor states. It's capital Kongehjem(pictured) in particular is one of the largest cities in the Regalian Empire despite being built in an environment with harsh winters and threatening neighbors. Nordksag is generally considered the pre-eminent nation on the so called Skags, which it shares with Middeskag and Hvitskag. These nations mostly thank their population numbers from the great Skagger Diaspora, as hundreds of thousands of Skagger Velheim and their families left the Regalian Archipelago when Drixagh was formally annexed into the Empire after the Skagger Wars. Nordskag held out independent for several decades, until it was invaded by Regalia again, and conquered also. Unlike Drixagh or other Velheim realms however, Nordskag's kings learned their lessons best from Regalia, and quickly modernized their armies and urbanized their population centers, making it the second wealthiest subject after Ithania, and certainly the one with the largest independent army. It is currently ruled by King Markus I Krumme, who is a Viridian Fornoss worshiper, though rumor has it he intends to have no children and pass the throne to his sister Marinne Krumme.
Middeskag	Middeskag is the less populous and strong cousin-realm of Nordskag but the more civilized cousin-realm of Hvitskag, and the middle nation of the three Skags. Middeskag, despite its more northern position in the Northbelt, has a milder climate than Nordskag and Hvitskag, with many long fjords extending into the country that break up the frozen winds from the north and give plentiful fish to catch. Middeskag is generally a peaceful realm, and although it is not directly controlled by Regalia, it has been used as a staging ground by both Regalia and Nordskag to make battle with Hvitskag. The Middeskag Jarls pay homage and tribute to the King of Nordskag, but they were never formally made a part of either the Empire or Nordskag, and both countries have very little control over the fiercely independent region. Middeskag is divided about 50-50 between supporting the Regalian Empire, and actively fighting it.
Hvitskag	Hvitskag is commonly known as the "Graveyard of Empires", and the "Nation that just will not die". Nordskag and Regalia have on-and-off waged a near 100 year lasting war with Hvitskag, with only creeping advances in the front and little to show for. Hvitskag is not strategically important, it is impoverished, but it constantly raids Ithania who has largely saddled Regalia with the task of dealing with it as part of their federal contract, and Regalia can't tolerate a nation constantly raiding its borderlands without punishment. Hvitskag is sparsely populated, but any populated center has large defenses and stores to hold out for literal years. The locals also have an uncanny habit to burn their own homes and retreat far inland, where the very geography and weather work against invading forces. Even Urlan know not to come here.
Drowda	Drowda, also known as the hellish continent, the dark continent, or the Void-Cursed continent, is all that is left of a part of the world where the Void Invasion last started, and where Cataclysm also emanated from. Drowda was once a normal place with Ailor inhabitants and a vibrant wildlife, as well as the Drovv Race that hailed from this land natively. When the Void Invasion occurred, the Drovv were wiped out, and the Allorn armies sent to deal with the invasion also perished here. As the Void Invasion failed due to the events leading up to Cataclysm, Drowda suffered the worst of the cataclysmic magic storm that unleashed untold natural disasters across the rest of the world. The continent itself was blasted with so much magic that it became oversaturated, including the animals and people still living on it. What remained of the Ailor population would later become the Vampires and move to Ellador, while the Nelfin population turned into the Sihndar, who remained, building their black fortresses to hold watch and fight back against the Demons that constantly pry into Aloria in this forsaken land.
The Cain Free Jarls	The Cain Free Jarls, sometimes also called the Cains, or the Free Jarl Lands, is a large island group of wild rugged coastal fjords and milder inland pine forests that stretch on for miles. In terms of population, the cains are middling, not quite as populous as Nordskag, but still more populated than Middeskag. What is notable about the Cains is that populations are densely packed together for safety reasons, but are also all miles away from each other and exist as effectively independent fiefdoms of one another. It is commonly said that the Cains are incapable of unifying, and that someone trying would quickly run into a common issue: communication is incredibly slow, and the many isolated hillfort towns that occasionally appear in the rugged landscape are so far removed from one another that the people don't feel any kinship to the people living in the town over from them. Regalia has never showed interest in annexing or even dealing with the Cains, specifically because it is impossible to get a unified message out of them.
The Wildland Throngs	The Wildland Throngs are much of the reason why the Cain Free Jarls live in such densely packed hill forts (along with the violent wild-life that is). The Wildland Throngs are a loose decentralized collection of Urlan tribes that roam the same landmass as the Cain Free Jarls, and largely subsist of local hunting and gathering, while also expanding their numbers through "recruitment" from the local Velheim population. The Wild Throngs expand much faster than the Cain population, and some scholars believe that they will overcome the Cain population in about 50 years unless some violent conflict were to speed up the process. Some of the Urlan there have already toyed with the idea of centralizing into formal nation-states, but none of their ventures have succeeded yet, as the internal power struggles among the various throngs have yet to be settled. Still, when facing a foreign invader, these throngs band together, and in general, they are considered more amicable than the Urlan who live in Jorrhildr.
Jorrhildr	Jorrhildr is not a formal nation, but bears mentioning anyway because it is historically important. Jorrhildr is generally considered the coldest continent on Aloria, even though it is technically smaller than the island-nations of the Skags and the Cains. Jorrhildr is a frozen wasteland with next to no plant life existing on it, filled also with all manner of large beasts that somehow manage to survive in this most barren of frozen landscapes. Notable about Jorrhildr, are the massive Seraph-era structures that reside on it, most in very good condition, and many of them also protected with magical forcefields that have prevented intrusion for the past 70,000 years. Many of the huge towering statues taller than mountains have puzzled scholars and biologists, while some whisper rumors that these statues are in fact 1:1 life-size. Jorrhildr is also home to native Velheim and Urlan populations that survive on hunting the wildlife and fishing.
Jorrhildr Throngs	The Jorrhildr Throngs are a generally unified bunch of Urlan Throngs are also generally considered very unpleasant to outsiders. The Urlan of Jorrhildr are Urlan fanatics, believing in their superiority with a very high degree, and thus also (always) forcing Symbiosis on any person that has the misfortune of treading onto their hunting grounds or homes. Jorrhildr Urlan are some of the most violent and cruel Urlan found, far from the kind giant philosophers in the capital, though any astute scholar could quickly observe this is because of their extreme environment in which the only currency for survival is strength and showing no weakness. The Urlan of Jorrhildr manage herds of slow grazers, while also hunting the large ice-plains beasts themselves, and occasionally raiding Velheim settlements for fish stocks. The Urlan seriously outnumber the Ailor in this continent, with only scant villages of stubborn outbackers remaining, too proud to leave, and likely Urlan or dead themselves before the end of the year.
Hjordi	Hjordi is the common term that defines a group of small near-abandoned Velheim villages that still stand on the southern coast of Jorrhildr. Why anyone would want to live on such a wasteland is not known to many, though some speculate it is just to get away from the violence in the Skags, or from the violence of an oppressive mother in law. Hjordi is not expected to see the end of the next 5 years, with symbiosis and death of the remaining population likely soon. Some of them have already left on their own account, but occasionally a small hut with light and fire can still be seen on the distant horizon. What few inhabitants that remain have learned however that to draw attention is to invite in unwanted horned guests, and as such, the Velheim who live here have become very good at not being noticed even from afar, and also at hiding any smells or stenches they produce for Urlan noses to pick up.
Barrlonde	Barrlonde is now extinct, but it still bears mention due to its historical importance. Barrlonde was the only formal attempt to colonize Jorrhildr by the Regalian Empire, which managed to set up a reasonably sized town on the southern coast that was able to tap into the mineral-rich mountains close to it. Barrlonde was mostly inhabited by Heartland Cearden colonists and Anglian workers, but was frequently besieged by the Urlan natives of the land. Barrlonde fought its final battle in 307 AC when Gallovian mercenaries tried to shore up its defenses, however the walls were eventually breached, and the castle fell. The entire population, including the army and mercenaries present, were all turned into Urlan who joined the Jorrhildr Throngs. The land where Barrlonde once stood has mostly been destroyed by the cold and cutting blizzards of Jorrhildr, with the stone fort being the only remaining building that can still be seen as a memory to the town that was once there. Regalia has essentially declared the continent no-entry since then.
Barratt	Barratt is perhaps the strangest land in the Northbelt, or indeed in the whole world. Barratt is a tiny island with steep cliffs, surrounded by violently wild and unnaturally magical storms. The whole island is surrounded by a ring of massive rose-quartz dragon statues that shoot lighting at unwanted guests. On the island itself, there exists a strange population of Ailor covered in metal and moving in unnatural ways. All other forms of organics found on the island appear entirely made of metal, there is no grass, no flowers, no insects, no animals. Everything is made of the same blue-tinted metal. Any attempt to introduce animals in fact resulted in violent responses from the plantlife itself, with grass and plants attacking critters on sight, while sentient humanoids were severely limited in their freedom to move around by the locals who want them to leave as quickly as possible. Barratt is rumored to be the final resting place of the Old God Jord, who has paralells in the All-Father god worshiped by the locals, who lives in a castle-city made of metal, that none are allowed to enter at the heart of the island. Barratt is declared off limits by the Regalian Government as the locals are hostile to incursions and are barely understood.