DUNADALE (Duchy of)

Location: Northeastern head of the Isle of Dawn.

Area: 168,605 sq. mi. (436,687 sq. km.).

Population: 70,000, including city of Dunadale (20,000), and the town of Deirdren (5,000).

Languages: Alphatian (Hillvale dialect), Thyatian (Redstone dialect).

Coinage: Emperor (5 gp), lucin (gp), asterius (sp), denarius (cp). Alphatian coins are also very common: crown (gp), mirror (sp), judge (cp).

Taxes: 25% income tax collected quarterly (Va. 1, Ya. 1, Fy. 3, and Ei. 1). Thyatians abroad must still pay their taxes. 5% imperial sales tax on all goods except food and clothing.

Government Type: Dominion under the jurisdiction of the Empire of Thyatis.

Industries: Agriculture, fishing, cutting of peat moss, sheep herding, trade, some freebooting (into sunken Alphatia).

Important Figures: Edmondo Tiberia (Duke, human, male, F11).

Flora and Fauna: Standard for its climate, notably herds of sheep and goats. Dangerous monsters include goblinoids and bandits that are common throughout the Isle of Dawn.

Further Reading: Dawn of the Emperors boxed set, previous almanacs.

Description by Demetius Vannopolus.

The Duchy of Dunadale is a nation at a crossroads. A crossroads between the past shrouded in antagonism and war, and a future of prosperity and enlightenment. Recently joined to the Thyatian Empire, Dunadale is a land where hard working natives are blending with enterprising Thyatian settlers. But there are tensions between cultures, Thyatian, Alphatian, which threaten to renew old conflicts.

The Land

Dunadale is a large nation, with all types of terrain and climate. It reaches the northern tip of the Isle of Dawn near the border of Helskir, where the land is cold but where the fish abound, sweeping down the coast in a wide arc to the temperate coastal communities of Dunadale and Deirdren. The fertile coastal lowlands are the most settled parts of this land. As you move inland from the coast the terrain becomes a patchwork of hills, bogs, and forests, a dangerous place, but a place where the people are hardy and freedom loving.

The People

Dunadale's settlements are thriving communities, but trade is less than it could due to the distrust between the Alphatian communities and the newly arrived Thyatian settlers. There is a danger of splitting into separate societies, bound by one government but mutually suspicious. But also positive signs that a beneficial blending could take place. But the duke's forces heavily patrol the city of Dunadale, and dissatisfaction with his authority is on the rise. Deirdren remains largely Alphatian, but even their customs differ from the Alphatian norm. Even before the recent Thyatian conquest, Dunadale stood out among Alphatian domains as the only place to adopt anything resembling the Thyatian concept of citizenship, and even went a step farther. The inhabitants of the confederacy had rights, could vote, and popularly elected officials limited even the powers of the monarch. The new duke seems to prefer a more authoritarian style of rule, however, at odds with the republican ways of both the native Dunadalers and the Thyatian settlers. How this will be resolved remains problematic.

While the coasts, with their brash tradesmen and knowing ways, are what people most think of when they consider Dunadale; it is the people in the countryside, which form its heart. These people are the salt of the earth, prizing their self-reliance, and yet ever ready to lend their neighbors a helping hand. For centuries they have lived, wedged between two empires, their lives and livelihoods endangered by war and monster incursions, and yet they thrive.

Recent History

Dunadale faces a new future with more ahead of it than behind it, but the legacy of past conflicts lingers. It has been fought over between empires for over a thousand years. For the past several years it has been ruled by Thyatis, but it is known that the NACE has pretensions to restore the borders of the old Alphatian Empire, and may bring the fires of war and destruction to this still-healing land yet again.

Don't Miss

The Herdane Escarpment does provide a glorious view of the sunrise for those who have the fortitude to scale its cliffs. The hard-working people of the interior aren't a sight, but for those who are tired of interactions with cynical swindlers, spending time with these folk will restore your faith in humanity.