Fantasy Age of Legends- Mythology/History

[TheHistorian]

The Age of Chaos

For an immeasurable period of time, before there was anything of substance, there was but the void and an endless torrential swirling of matter and energy within. For billions of years this chaos continued to froth and foam until eventually It happened to form the first Beings. At first they were disembodied, mere intelligences or concepts drifting through the maelstrom of madness. Slowly but surely they would gain physical forms and would begin to will things into being, They created the Concept of Space to hold the universe together that they may explore it, they created the concept Time to measure The distance between places. They invented Fusion, Fission, Electromagnetism, And even Gravity. However these forces were tailored to their existence and were far different than the forces we know of today. Eventually these beings would will into existence the first Living Mortal things, The Dremos, who would in turn worship these “Old Ones” their creators, filling the universe as their creators willed it.

The Age of Darkness

As the millennia passed the Dremos Would fill countless worlds and forge mighty empires, each granting praise to a different one of their creators. This would inevitably lead to a great war breaking out between entire planets. The “Old ones” having long grown bored of the monotony of the universe goaded on their creations out of sheer amusement, granting them powers, and eventually growing competitive between one another. Soon they too would join the conflict and the universe would be Filled with Chaos once again, with entire galaxies being consumed by weapons inconceivable even to the gods of todays age. Massive Voids began to spring up, emptied of their contents by the strife, and eventually all this bloodshed would awaken the oldest of the “Old ones” those who transcend comprehension and were not amused by the state of reality. In a rage these “Great Old Ones” Awakened and engulfed the Universe in The flames of their Fury. The last world to taste their Anger was Earth, where the Wisest of the “Old Ones” Hid deep beneath the oceans and mountains until the “Great Old Ones” Returned to their slumber.

The Age of Blood

The war had twisted the Entire universe in unfathomable ways. It had been rendered unable to develop New life, Physics itself was altered, but arguably the most egregious change, was that the Dremos whose bodies had been wiped away by the flames, still walked the worlds they once lived as spirits. Eventually the “Old Ones” would Crawl out from their hiding spots and Feeling invigorated and excited by the danger they had escaped they actually set in play a plan to start the Madness all over again. They took the souls of the Dremos and constructed for them bodies Whose shape and size was influenced by the Dremos own psyche, sadly almost all of them had been so warped by the mind boggling insanity that was the “Great Old Ones” rage that these bodies would become twisted horrors and the Dremos would no longer be known by their Ancestral Name, instead They would take to calling one another Demons. For 500,000 years they would reign, building up a great empire time and time again, only to be Wiped clean by the Old Ones, and to have the Process of their twisted creation repeated further warping them. Eventually these demons would rise up against the Old Ones, and at a tremendous cost they would succeed in binding them in the depths of several subterranean oceans. The Demons would then celebrate their newfound freedom by indulging in the twisted Hedonistic Violence they had come to enjoy out of sheer necessity. Yet even with all the Demon empires on the varies worlds infighting continuously their fickle nature ensured that none would rise to unite their kingdom again.


The Age of Order

While The Tentative balance of power between the ever changing demonic empires seemed to be preventing them from growing “too loud” as had once been the case, even still enough time produced enough bloodshed that the stench of violence would once again stir the “Great Old Ones” And they would begin to once again consume to the universe in destruction All for the promise of silence. And Silence they would get. Around halfway through their rampage a bright flash filled the entire universe heralding the arrival of a new master of existence. The lord of order injected Itself into reality and begun the work that came naturally to it. Physics were altered to make it all the more difficult to traverse the cosmos thus making warfare more difficult. The “Great old ones” were Subdued and cast outside of reality where their Impacting upon the fabric of nothingness would carve a deep pit into nothingness itself. Seeing the twisted souls of the Demons and their hearts desire for only that which It deemed wicked, the lord of order considered destroying them, however he found pity within himself for them, and instead chose to evict them from the universe depositing them into the same pit their creators had been cast into. So sudden and without contest were these decisions made that the Lesser “old ones” remained silent in their prisons no longer struggling against their restraints for fear of catching the lord of orders eye. With no more opposition to his rule, the lord of order set to work altering physics and the laws of existence itself. To prevent a repeat of the Dremos to demon transformation it constructed an afterlife which would cleanse souls before reincarnating them with either punishing fire, or Rewarding Waters. Finally it would create the Natural laws of Biological life, and soon from that the first naturally mortal living beings would be born.

The Age of Terror

As reality progressed the Lord of order found itself perturbed. The chaos energies of the Great old ones still persisted in the universe and would cause tremendous cataclysms to occur at random. Intelligent life would never rise up under such unreliable conditions, so the Lord of order began to craft magnificent beings in its own image. They would be designed with the capacity and purpose of absorbing the chaos energies and then converting them through The lord of order into the force known as magic, a type of controlled chaos. He would call these beings the Titans and would send them into the universe in their divine spectral bodies where they would clean the universe in only a few years. However upon completing their task the lord of order simply congratulated them and began creating the blueprints for intelligent lifeforms but one in particular he made to inherit the entire universe. Mankind. The titans viewed these imperfect creatures as inferior and unworthy to inherit what the lord of order had built. They protested to the lord of order and when they were rebuffed they rebelled. While short lived their rebellions end result was predictable. The lord of order merely looked up from his work and decreed that they had forsook their roles and thus cast off their divinity and would no longer be allowed in his presence. Afterwards the lord of order removed their immortality, denied them access to the afterlife, and made their souls able to deteriorate into nothing post mortem. Infuriated by what they viewed as a betrayal the titans would launch a campaign across the universe to enslave and destroy all they found, but the greatest objects of their fury were humans.

For thousands of years the titans ruled, however seeing its creations being tormented caused the Lord of order to respond. The response was to release from the Abyss the least of the demons, the Surpann. These snakelike people while not powerful could tap into the incredibly powerful artifacts of the height of the demonic empire. They waged a vicious war against the titans who they viewed as the children of their enemy. Yet the titans would not fall so easily, they smote the surpann a blow so hard that the serpent men would forever have a instinctual fear of the titans. However the power the Surpann used was alluring to the Titans and they began to build their civilization around this chaotic energy but without being aware of the inevitable consequences of doing so. Most titans abandoned the use of magic in favor of directly tapping into the chaotic energies of the demons from the Abyss. They would take the essence of demons and force them into objects to fuel their civilization. This would continue for thousands of years until the titans and demon based technology were practically inseparable. However a select few would not forsake their original power and would practice magic still. They would be the only survivors of the fall of titans and the end of the age of Terror. Eventually the demons would rise up against the titans, and a brutal war would tear them down. The greatest blow was struck by the demon lord Hezrou who removed their ability to reproduce by cursing them with birthing only death. However he was stricken down by the one titan who could, Kronos the titan lord who was one of 48 titans who still used magic.

While thousands of titans would live through the conflict, they were mortal, had no afterlife, and with no children they only had one hope of survival. The time magic of kronos which could stop their Aging, however, he refused to give aide to any who had forgotten magic. He instead aged them all to dust and immortalized the other 47 titans who could use magic. Seeing the devastation of his own kind Kronos decided that though they were inferior the mortal races of the universe would be subjugated and rounded up, then put to work rebuilding. After a couple thousand years the population of the mortal races had grown to a point where kronos was about to cull them, however his wife gaia convinced him to instead teach them to be more useful to the titans and thus their numbers would be a boon. A task Kronos trusted To the titan of fire and ingenuity Prometheus.

The Age of Legends

The titans reign would continue for several thousand years, and eventually the population of humanity would creep into the millions. They began to bicker and fight amongst one another and again Kronos would consider culling humanity. Once again Gaia would coo sweet words to her husband about the humans fate. “They simply need guides” she would tell him. And so Smitten was the titan lord that he took his mates words to heart and said he would think on it for a day and a night. During that night he heard his beloved Mourning her inability to ever become a mother and an idea was formed within him. Kronos would come to gaia and take her Blood, then mix it with some of his own and choose three remarkable men. He would then use magic to infuse the mixed titan blood with these men, and Created the First Gods of Man. He would name them Zeus, Hades, and Poseidon. One was Given command over The skies and an limitless pool of energy to pull from, one was Given the Sea’s above and below the earth and tasked to keep the old ones of the deep locked away, And the third was given the wealth of the earth, but his lofty gift was balanced by him being made responsible for the souls of men. Eventually these three Gods, calling themselves brothers, would uncover the lies of the titans.

They claimed they were sent to guide mankind, however Hades found a ruined demonic temple built by the Surpann during their brief return. Here he found strange recording devices which stored a souls memories. Eventually he found the memories of a Titan and he was shown that To the titans, humanity were little more than cockroaches. Revealing this to his brothers The three Gods of man came up with a plan to create more like them. By taking the trapped titans soul, some of their own blood, and a but of demonic energy, they wove a spell that would encompass the entire afterlife and would allow for The very very rare and random occurrences of natural born Human Gods. They knew it would take much time before their plan was ready, and Kronos was made aware of their spells casting, though not its effect. Nonetheless he became paranoid of a plot against him and so the three Human gods were forced to flee, and only their titan mother Gaia would offer them secret refuge. It has been one thousand years since the Three Gods of Man went into hiding, many more like them have been born since then and the numbers have reached a point where The three brothers see their window of opportunity opening and do not intend to let it pass. With The Age of Legends reaching its crescendo, The Titanomachy begins.​

 

[TheHistorian]

Magic

“When Chaos and Order come together all things become possible.”kronos to gaia on the eve of the gods birth.

Magic is a powerful force of endless versatility and from a variety of sources. However it is not without its rules or limits, which vary from person to person. Arguably the most powerful magic users in all of the universe Are the Titans, or perhaps the Great old ones, Even the demons have a pretty solid argument for their magic being superior in some ways. Yet the universe is constantly changing and with the mortal races now being born with connections to magical sources from all walks, The changes coming may be more drastic than any anticipated.


1.) Eldritch magic- Abstract concepts like dreams, souls, and primal emotions like Lust, Fear, and Rage all fall into the domains of eldritch magic. Used by both the Old Ones and the Great Old Ones this magic is powerful but impossible to control fully. It has the heaviest tilt towards chaos. Gods of Dreams, Afterlifes, Imagination, Nightmares, And Cataclysms tend to draw their power from this magical catagory.


2.) Nether magic- Death, Destruction, Fire, Undead, Pain, Blood, and Steel are all examples of the nether magics utilized by the Dremos and Eventually their Descendants the Demons. Similar to eldritch magic in its nearness to chaos however it is a bit more towards order than the prior, but that order is usually steered towards wickedness. Evil gods, War gods, Tormentor deities, Undead Gods, Lichs, and obviously demons all utilize this power source.


3.) Cosmic magic- The power utilized by The titans and the lord of Order itself. This magic is by and far the most diverse with atomic manipulation, time, space, life, death, matter, energy, duality, and balance all falling within this category. Many titans have attempted to argue the theory that Cosmic magic is simply the most developed of them all and encompasses all forms of magic however, mystic scholars from all other schools tend to disagree. Sky gods, Sun gods, Moon gods, Star gods, And a vast majority of lesser gods all utilize this source of power. It is a perfect balance of order and chaos.


4.) Natural magic- Fire, Water, wind, earth, the core components of the material world. Life ,death, war, peace the states of life. Nature magic is a very common power source for the new gods, Shamans, And Non human mortal beings such as harpies or minotaurs. While powerful and wild this magic is young and has little study into it. Nearly any magic user can in some way trace their magic back to this domain if it is not from something older. This magic actually is the only one currently that utilizes more order than chaos.

Manifestations of magic

Magic tends to be utilized in one of three ways. Most magic users possess the capacity to use all three though many will have a preference and some may choose to specialize in only one.

Spells- Instant occurrences where magic carves out a small segment of reality and then fills that carved out segment with a desired effect. Some spells have a delayed reaction and can be mistaken for an enchantment or a Blessing, but unlike the latter examples a spells duration will end when its effect has been achieved or prevented. An example is a fireball spell. Casting it the user will carve out a small piece of reality in front of their hand and fill it with the desired effect of Dense flames with momentum behind them. The result is a ball of flame striking something in the general direction it was cast. The spell would end the moment the ball left the space it was spawned allowing mages to “fire and forget” making fireball one of the most common military or self defensive spells out there.

Enchantments- An enchantment is effectively carving out small properties of an object in the same way a spell carves out pieces of reality. However in the case of an enchantment the objects missing properties are rebuilt and replaced by magic in a permanent structure. This is often considered the most powerful kind of magic use as it is said the Lord of Order enchanted the laws of reality into the universe. An example would be the common enchantment “Maintain” Also known as “Unsunder” to the northern Tribes of man. this is an enchantment that replaces the outermost layer of an object with a magical version of that same material that is self repairing. This can be used to make clothes that eject stains and dirt, or swords that never lose their edge. Even artworks and monuments have been enchanted with this making them effectively timeless.

Blessings/Bestowals- Similar to enchantments but only done on a living being. The blessings or bestowals are basically enchanting a beings soul, body, and mind. Only the most talented of magic users can do this without it resulting in severe and potentially life threatening mutations. However the effects are a permanent change in the capabilities of that being in one way or another. Hades, Zeus and Poseidon were Bestowed their power by Kronos and Gaia, and likewise all the subsequent “gods” were created by the enchantment they placed on Gehenna which bestows power to souls as they undergo reincarnation. Some titans have used this process to create monsters out of men and even strip away a beings free will.​

 

[TheHistorian]

The Macrocosm

While the universe was once just one massive seemingly endless expanse, the Arrival and work of the lord of order has added multiple adjacent universes that are all tied to the prime material universe. Here i will list these universes and their properties.

Prime material Plane- This is where all people places and things that exist in the universe are. It is the only universe with the capacity to form new life, physics within the universe have been tailored to make this entire process possible. Magic connects this universe to all other adjacent dimensions.

The Higher Realm- The dimension where the lord of order is said to dwell. Very little is known about this realm however powerful sorcerers, gods, and titans are able to open a window to this dimension from which knowledge without bounds can be extracted. One must be careful as too much exposure to one of these windows can fry out the very mind of a being. In small doses it can be used to reveal the secrets of the universe. To this day, no being, Be they titan, god, old one, demon, or any other being has ever set foot in this realm and returned to speak about it. All titans who were created by the lord of order claim to have lost their memories of what this realm even looked like.


The Abyss- Not to be confused with hell, the abyss is where the Great Old Ones and their demons are quarantined from reality far below the universe. It is believed that none can return from this world, however the Surpann being returned contradicts this, and magic can extract demons from this realm as disembodied essences without physical form. Often times these extracted demons are used as fuel for enchantments and are bound to an item, other times they are stuffed into mundane creatures and mutate them into magical aberrations. Creatures like hell hounds and infernal dragons are made in this way. Also in the Abyss is the Concentrated flames of the old ones rage which is known throughout the Macrocosm as Abyssal Fire or hellfire.

The Infinite Wilds- A flat plane to the west of the universe. It is said to be where the souls of non sentient creatures go to await reincarnation free of the fears of death and the hunger of life. Still on rare occasions a creature dies and makes it here with their hunger intact. These creatures will feed on other beings merging essences until they have accumulated enough to be reincarnated as a sentient. It is believed that the first members of the Beastmen races of Leonians, Loxodons, Lycans, Harpies, Minoraurs, and Merfolk were created in this way.


Gehenna- The afterlife for sentient beings, Split into two halves, the top being paradise and the bottom being Hell. Gehenna is not eternal however it is essentially a big fancy waiting room and filtration system. Souls are sent through the gates where a being called a Fate will Weight the Good and Bad of their life. If a person is More good than bad they go to paradise, if they are more bad than good they go to Hell. however it still is not so simple. The process of reincarnation takes 100 years, which will be spent in one of two sides. But each side has seven levels. The first level of each time remains the same and you spend the normal 100 years. When you are reincarnated, die, and come back you are measured again. If you were good two lifetimes in a row you get to go to Lv2 of heaven where time dialation turns the 100 years into 300 for you. Likewise the same is true for those sentenced to hell. I will include a table that shows the levels and their times. Seven good or bad lives in a row will lead you to the respective 8th levels. The 8th level of heaven is to be transported to the Higher plane where you will live alongside the lord of order, the 8th level of hell Has you condemned to the Abyss. In either case the Reincarnation process ends and this final destination becomes eternal. Good and bad are not decided subjectively, rather the objective standard is set by the lord of order.

Heaven/Hell sentences
Base floor- 100 years.
2nd floor- 300 years
3rd floor- 900 years
4th floor- 2,700 years
5th floor-8,100 years
6th floor- 24,300 years
7th floor- 72,900 years
8th stage- Eternity in The Higher plane/Eternity in The Abyss.​

 

[TheHistorian]

The playable races

God- Humans who were infused with Titan Genetics via magic and thus granted Incredible magical potential.

Human- Mankind, the Inheritors of the Universe. Bearers of a heavy burden of destiny.

Beastman- Anthropomorphic Sentient life forms who are created in a variety of unique ways. The snake men known as the Surpann are lesser demons, The lycans, Loxodons, Leonins, harpies, Bullmen, and merfolk, were made via chimerization in the infinite wilds, Minotaurs, not to be confused with bullmen, Satyrs, Centaurs, And crocodilians were all created by titan magic.

Demons- Not Yet playable.

Horrors- Not yet playable.

Saints- Not Yet playable.​

 

[TheHistorian]

The Known world

The world of the Age of legends is centered around the Mediterranean sea, yet the huge ice caps to the north hold much of the sea in their frosty tombs. Thus the sea levels are much much lower and the inner sea is made up of fresh water with the outer sea, the one connected to the Atlantic ocean being salt water. The total population of this region is about 24 million, made up of humans, titans, gods, and beast men. These 24 million souls dwell in seven different city states each established by the 48 titans and populated by their subjects. All seven of these cities are technically part of the same nation though their cultures vary greatly. Small towns and settlements branch off of each one but none stray too far as Strange creatures, dangerous beasts, and dark spirits seem to rule the deepest of wildernesses. Below you will find a brief description of each city.

Titania- the Capital of the Titan empire, and home to the largest population among the seven cities. Four and a half million call this area home with another 2.1 million living in the settlements surrounding it. Nestled in a fertile valley between the Salt and Sweet seas to the north of the African continental shelf. Vast cavernous mines carve into the Scycil mountains to the north, which we today call Sicily. Likewise a powerful fortress is located on the peak of the Malt mountains, which we call the islands of Malta today. Huge farms of great bovine beasts and The ancestors of horses provide food to the local populations and the majority of the land to the south of the city all the way to the continental shelf is filled with gorgeous patchworks of farmlands. The northwestern port of the city connects to the salt sea and establishes sea trade routes that reach all the way to the coasts of Asgard and Garzet. The south east has the Titanic Road, a large road made of up huge stone slabs which leads all the way to around the sweet sea acting as the primary trade route between Titania, Olympus, and Nuwe. While the city itself lacks any walls, it is believed to be the most secure place on earth as at least 18 titans can be found here at any given time.

Olympus- a highland city built on a mountaintop overlooking verdant and beautifully fertile valleys to the west and east, and the sweet sea to the south. Housing a population of 1.3 million in the city itself, with more than 3.6 million living in the valleys below. It is predominantly a fishing and agricultural hub providing food to nearly every one of the other cities in the titan empire. However they still possess an incredibly powerful army which is focused in a line of forts just north of the mountains where they keep the Monstrous beasts of the treacherous northern mountain jungle as far from the civilian populations as possible. Fishing towns on the northern coast of the sweet sea make up the olympian southern border with another three forts having ships in harbor in case the beasts of the sea rare but devastating fury were to reach shore. Beneath the mountain of Olympus there is a chamber where the Ancient Surpann ruins can be found, the three brother Zeus, Hades, and Poseidon have been in hiding within this chamber.

Nuwe- a city built in the most beautiful garden like environment in the entire titan empire. Home to only around 600,000 people but with dozens of riverside communities boasting tens of thousands each. The inspiration for the Garden of Eden and the home of the ancestors of the Egyptians, And Arabic nations. Arguably considered the spiritual capital of humanity. It was here that mankind was said to be first created by the lord of order. Ancient art from the first men depict the wicked serpann and titan waging war in this area and myths say the titans spilled their divine blood for mankind here and that sacrifice made the land fill with life. In reality it is the result of dozens of rivers from the Sweet sea flowing through the area and into the red sea to the south. Surprisingly the people here have not constructed much and instead attempt to live in harmony with the natural world, carving their homes into large boulders along the rivers edge. While not much of a warrior people their lack of materialistic views makes them tend to have very little possessions and thus they are more willing to drop everything and run when storms, invaders, and monsters rear their heads. However a rise of several new heroes and increased immigration from titania and olympus have begun to provide more of a defensible environment for the people here to lay down lasting roots. In celebration of this the people have recently begun construction of a large statue of a lion lounging in victory. Something which will stand all the way to the modern age, known today as the great sphinx. The written language of man was taught here, as was the beginnings of the Titanius faith.

Hyperia- the easternmost limits of the titans empire Hyperia is more of an outpost than a city. Most passing through would not even be aware that they were in a civilized part of the world, and that would be because they barely are. Hyperia is the home to many kinds of Beastmen, predominantly the Lycans, And harpies, but with sizable populations if Bullmen,not to be confused with the savage minotaur, Leonins, and even a good deal of merfolk who dwell in the Dark sea. These peoples have formed a tight nit community where all work towards a goal. Their homes are grown out of the very trees, or carved into the ground itself. While only around three million total call this area home. The Hyperian beastmen are unrivaled in their ferocity and coordination and have felled some of the most fearsome of creatures including dragons and krakens. Unfortunately they seem to have a rather low view of humans, and a great respect for the titans. As such they are often called upon to quell rebellions and unrest, something which has further increased tensions to the point where hyperians are barred from entry into Olympus, and the growing olympian population in Nuwe threatens to have the same thing occur there.

Garzet- A beautifully constructed megalithic city that was started by the Titans, and passed on the the one species whose intellect and craft were respected to a near equal degree by the titans. Home to the noble Loxodons or elephant men, Garzet holds a small population of a mere 250,000. Despite this their army consists of 25,000 bulloxes (young Loxodons in their prime) and is said to be the unstoppable hammer of the titan empire. However the loxodons are a very peaceful people almost monk like, disciplined, spiritually enlightened, and wise beyond most others their kingdom is not only considered unconquerable, but even the desire to do so simply does not exist today. The city earns great wealth via trading ivory and precious metals to the rest of the world and it is said that they are the jewel of the empire. Fortunately the Loxodons are very welcoming and will even go so far as to build elegant houses for visitors and shower them with praise. That said the penalties for breaking the laws of this land are steep, permanent exile without escort to a new place of dwelling. To many this is a death sentence because garzet is surrounded by harsh mountains to the north, harsher desert to the south, endless sea to the west, and an arid maze of high cliffs and sandy valleys to the east. While this does make trade difficult in the area, loxodon escorts will literally carry guests to their land on their backs and navigate the few safe paths which they have stored in their memory, after all it has been said that a loxodon never forgets a thing.

Muzaan- a massive mining settlement which was the titans first ever mega mine. Muzaan is a rather un-ornate city of stone and wood constructed at the mouth of a great cave which leads into the highlands of spain. Beneath the mountains one can find iron, copper, gold, tin, silver, and coal in large amounts. When paired with its proximity to the salt sea, Muzaan became one of the largest trading hubs second only to Titania itself. Home to nearly 3 million with a peppering of fishing communities lining the peninsula jutting into the salt sea and plenty of farmlands muzaan is an entirely self sufficient nation whos motto of self reliance has often caused strife between them and other cities. However their close proximity to Garzet and Titania keep them from ever going to far off the deep end. It also boasts the second largest community of merfolk, rivaled only by The dark sea tribes of Hyperia.

Asgard- A guard outpost set up on the northernmost borders of the titan empire. This small community sits just south of the great frozen wastes of the north, from anywhere in Asgard you can see the two and a half mile high wall of ice to your north. Home to incredibly hardy men, Battle tested Lycans and Bullmen, And young warrior gods. These people use Mammoths as livestock and mounts, compete with sabertooth’s and withstand harsh blizzards on a near weekly basis. Nonetheless you would be hard pressed to find a more formidable people. Nearly half a million call this place home, but all dwell within the cities walls. By far their greatest danger, more so than any number of blizzards, even more so than the deadly ice apparitions and wraiths, are the Jotun, a tribe of giants believed to have descended from titans who escaped the demonic curse but had reverted to their primitive natures. These jotun are twenty foot men who are stronger than their size would imply, and seemingly impervious to the cold. They dwell atop the glacial ice sheet and cone down with blizzards at their backs. Most wield clubs of wood or spears of stone, but a few come clad in heavy metal armor wielding metal weapons forged by the hands of titans. While this is kept secret from most of the denizens of the titan empire, leaders from every city have a small force on standby, consisting of elite warriors handpicked from their armies. Should Asgard ever make the call these forces will march north to reinforce them, as the titans who rule the empire view an invasion from the Jotun to the north as the single largest threat to their empire.

(players are allowed to make up any small towns or settlements that are in the area around any of these cities, with two exceptions. Asgard has no villages or towns, they simply cannot spare the forces needed to secure areas beyond their wall. And Garzet which is geographically stunted in its ability to expand. Neither of these settlements have any nearby small towns.)

Spoiler: Additional map for extended view