• Avalon - The main island. Avalon is ruled by Queen Elaine. The island itself is further subdivided into seven Kingdoms:
  • Lothian
  • Gaavane
  • Breg
  • Lovaine
  • Camlann
  • Percis
  • Balig
• Inismore - A large island lying to the northwest of Avalon. The tribes of Inismore are ruled by Mad Jack O'Bannon. Inismore is subdivided into 4 separate counties:
  • Carrig
  • Leister
  • Donegal
  • Dreenan
• The Hebrides - Also sometimes referred to as the Highland Marches this smaller archipelago of islands lies to the northwest of Inismore. The clansmen there are closely related to those who dwell in Lothian and Gaavane and share an Auld Alliance with them. There are Nine Clans in the Hebrides. Names of the islands are pending.

• The High Queen - Her Majesty, Queen Elaine herself.
• The Allies - the Ard Ri of Inismore, Jack O'Bannon and the MacIain of the Hebrides, James Stewart are technically equal to Her Majesty, but not quite.
• Dukes
• Earls
• Barons
• Knights
• Sailors
• Mayors Officials in charge of entire towns.
• Sherrifs Senior lawmen.
• Merchants The middle class of Avalon.
• Constables Junior lawmen, working for Sherrifs.
• Peasants The landworkers at the bottom of the feudal system. They are, of course, by far the most numerous class.

Derwyddon
Her Majesty's chief advisor. Derwyddon is leader of the order of Druids. He is also the ruler of the county of Balig. Derwyddon has one piercing blue eye and one blood red eye and dresses in the robes of his order.

Dracheneisen
The "magic metal" of the nation of Eisen is stronger and more flexible than steel, yet lighter than leather. It is for this reason that Dracheneisen armour is still worn. It does not inhibit a swordsman from fighting effectively, and yet it is also still strong enough to block a musket shot. Weapons and arms made of Dracheneisen are the purview of the Eisen nobility.

du Lac
The du Lac family were the Montaigne family that held title as Stewards of Avalon during the occupation. Since their defeat and repulsion, the family has fallen into disfavour at l'Empereur's court and now finds itself languishing.

The Eisen Mercenaries
As a subject nation, Avalon has traditionally had no standing army. Since she is now in the political position of being in imminent danger of hostilities with both Montaigne and Castille, Her Majesty has instigated a national force of irregulars. She has her Knights, but as the vanguard of her army she has hired thousands of mercenaries from the shattered lands of Eisen. These men are widely renowned as the greatest military force in the world and now a solid force of them train to defend Avalon.

Elaine
Her Majesty, Queen Elaine, is the ruler of Avalon and has been since the death of the Iron Queen in 1654. It was her discovery of the Graal that enabled her to raise the Sidhe and drive out the Montaigne rulers from Avalon. Her Majesty has never married and claims that she never will, "Avalon is husband enough".

Elaine's Knights
Her Majesty has founded an Order of Knights mirroring the ancient Order who served King Elilodd. All told, the order stands about 200 strong and are ruled by the Twelve Knights Champion:

• Sir Lawrence Lugh - an exiled member of the Sidhe, sir Lawrence is the head of the Order and personal bodyguard to Her Majesty.
• Sir Jeremiah Berek - commander of the Sea Dogs, Berek was knighted for his defeat of the Castillian Armada.
• Sir Bleddig - called "the Seneschal", Elaine's stepfather serves as a link between the court and the nobility.
• Sir Cowan - in charge of training new Squires and Knights, Sir Cowan is called "the Boot" for his... firm... methods, but not to his face.
• Sir Geriant - Avalon's representative on the continent, he and his knights work as both political representatives and as direct agents of Her Majesty's will. NB - Not to be confused with our very own Sir Geraint Penarfion.
• Sir Gwyth - raised by the Sidhe and only 18 years old, he is one of the mightiest Knights. He handles most matters involving the Sidhe.
• Sir Lamorak - General of Her Majesty's armies, he is in charge of the growing force of Eisen Mercenaries that comprise the national vanguard.
• Sir Bors MacAllister - called "the Black Knight", it is rumoured that the laconic Highlander handles various private duties for Her Majesty.
• Sir Owain - son of Sir Uwaine. Promoted two years ago to the Inner Circle.
• Sir Peppin - famous for hunting the Mirror Beast.
• Sir Uwaine - the High Sherrif of all Avalon. His Knights reinforce the Sheriffs of the land.
• Sir Yseult - the only lady knight in the Inner Circle. Famed as one of the most daring knights in Her Majesty's service.

King Elilodd
The legendary first High King of Avalon. Elilodd united his peoples and allied with ancient Vesten tribes to repel other invaders such as the Eisen and further Vesten. He also instigated a famous Order of Knights and a code of chivalry which the Queen's Knights seek to emulate.

The Explorers' Society
This international society, founded initially in Montaigne, is dedicated to discovering the ancient secrets of the civilizations which predate our own. These include:

• The Syrneth ruins which litter Theah.
• The remains of Numan and pre-Numan civilizations on the continent.
• The civilizations which once dotted the various archipelago and island chains which ring Theah to the north and west.

Fillid
An old term meaning "wise one", the Fillid are the order of Druids. They maintain the tradition of secret lore dating back to the time of the Old Ones. A Fillid progresses through the following ranks:

• Apprentice - students who travel with a Bard, or remain under the tuition of an Olladh.
• Bard - taletellers and oral historians. They travel the land seeking knowledge.
• Olladh - senior members of the order who settle in one place and serve the people there.
• Druid - greatest of their order, of whom there are only ever seven at any one time. Derwyddon is the current leader of their order.

The Hebrides
This chain of six islands off the northwest coast of Inismore is inhabited by a celtic people, like the Inish but more closely related to those who dwell in Lothian and Gaavane. There are Nine Princes in the Hebrides, whose clans maintain a permanent power struggle. The consensus leader of this struggle is the MacIain, the titular leader of the clans, a role currently held by James Stewart. The clans of the Hebrides are:

• Campbell
• Davidson
• Douglas
• MacAllan
• MacDonald
• McEwan
• McKendrie
• Stewart
• Younger

The Heirophant
The leader of the Vaticine Church. His role is the analogue of the Pope. The Heirophant is chosen by the Council of Cardinals of the Church. The last Heirophant died of the white plague during a visit to Montaigne last year. He has not yet been replaced.

The Imperator
This was the title of the historic ruler of the Numan empire. It later became the title of the ruler of the kingdoms of Eisen. The last Imperator hanged himself at the end of the 30 years war, leaving no heir.

The Inquisition
Founded by the Third Prophet the Inquisition exists to keep the Vaticine Church internally pure. It is their job to route out both heresy and sorcery. The Inquisition are based out of Vaticine City in Castille and have chapters across Theah.

The Iron Queen
Perhaps the cruellest of the occupation rulers, she was responsible for burning hundreds of Objectionists and Traditionalists alive. Her reign finally suppressed the civil wars which had raged throughout history. She died at midnight on the spring equinox, 1654.

The Merchants' Guild
Founded by the Vendel League, this guild is open to all merchants and tradespeople worldwide. The guild promotes the Vendel currency, the guilder and works to provide better rights and representation for the middle classes throughout Theah. They are bitterly opposed to the Vodaccean merchant houses.

Nations of Theah
The nations of Theah and their Earthly analogues are as follows:

• Avalon - Briton, with Inismore (Ireland) and the Hebrides (Scots Highlands) as its territories/allies.
• Castille - Spain.
• Cathay - China. Cathay is sealed off behind a wall of fire.
• Eisen - Germany.
• Empire of the Crescent Moon - the Middle East. Yes, all of it. The Empire is inderdict since the end of the Crusades, although some Voddace princes have the right to trade with them still.
• Kanu - south-sea island. No specific analogue.
• Montaigne - France.
• Ussura - Siberian Russia.
• Vendel/Vestenmanavnjar - Norway/Scandanavia.
• Vodacce - Italy.

The Numan Empire
The first well-documented human civilization is the Numan Empire, which united the nations of Theah by means of conquest. The Empire is a rough analogue of the Roman Empire in our own world, but also had Grecian tendencies. The term pre-Numan refers to the scattered civilizations which existed prior to the Empire.

O'Bannon, "Mad" Jack
The O'Bannon is a legendary figure of Inish folklore, supposedly an ancient immortal who used to rule that land centuries ago and is now returned. He is a hugely popular folk leader to the Inish, but there are those who whisper that he is either a Sidhe or some other form of usurper.

The Old Ones
The people who inhabited ancient Avalon before the coming of the Numan Empire, King Elilodd, the Montaigne or anyone else. They were a wild people and left stone atogs, promonotory forts, cairn burial sites and small buried shrines across Avalon. It is in the western and northern counties that these lie mostly undisturbed, as years of invasion, war and "exploration" by occupying forces has served to denude the southeast of these ancient traces.

The Prophets
The Four Prophets of Theus have been sent throughout history to bring His message to humanity. In a nutshell, the prophets are:

• The First Prophet is roughly analogous to Christ. He first brought Theus' message to the world, including preaching against Sorcery, and was eventually martyred. Before he died he prophecied that three further Prophets would follow to continue his work.
• The Second Prophet came to reform the Church. He was responsible for instigating the Heiros War whereby the centre of the church was moved from Numa, in Vodacce, to Vaticine City in Castille.
• The Third Prophet was a more confrontational reformer and instigated both the Inquisition and the crusades, during which he was slain.
• The Fourth Prophet has not yet come. It is said that he will bring blood and fire as the judgement of Theus falls upon the world. His coming is analogous to the Christian vision of the Second Coming revealled in the Revelation According To Saint John.

1. Sorcery should be abjured as it is a sin and is harmful to the world.
2. The world exists as a puzzle created by Theus for mankind to solve. Knowledge brings us closer to Him. Thus seeking knowledge is traditionally the purview of the Church.

• The Vaticine Church - established during fourth century, the Church is ruled by a Heirophant from Vaticine City. Roughly analogous to Catholicism.
• Avalon Traditionalism - rejects certain doctrines of the Vaticine Church, including recognizing the Sidhe as a legitimate part of Theus' creation. This is (very) roughly analogous to the Church of England.
• Objectionism - recently erupted on the continent and also in Avalon, this discipline strives to rid Vaticinism of the church infrastructure. Roughly analogous to Protestantism.
• Ussuran Orthodox - found only in Ussura, this discipline rejects the teachings of the Second and Third Prophets, holding that the message of the First Prophet is in itself the sufficient gospel of Theus. Vaguely analogous to Russian or Greek Orthodox faiths in our own world.

Knights of the Rose & Cross
An internationally famed society of gentlemen adventurers, founded in the early 16th Century in Montaigne. These "Knights" wear tabards and arm themselves (typically) with fencing rapiers. They maintain chapter houses in many of the world's larger cities and do good and heroic deeds. Joining the Knights is difficult and brings much prestige. The Order also accepts patronage from the wealthy and many have taken this route to caching in on the Order's celebrity.

The Sea Dogs
Her Majesty's privateers, captained by Sir Jeremiah Berek. The Sea Dogs were responsible for the famous victory over the Castillian Armada several years ago. By royal degree, the rank of a Gentleman Sailor is just behind that of a Knight in the order of nobility.

The Sidhe
Pronounced "shee", the Sidhe are similar to the faeries of legend. Think of Oberon and Titania's court in 'A Midsummer Night's Dream' rather than of Tolkien's Elves. The Sidhe are not a race in the manner of the creatures in D&D, rather they are a phenomenon, a preternatural force.

The Sidhe break down into the following brackets:

• The Seelie
  • The Three Queens - Three ancient and powerful Queens rule the Seelie court. They are:
    1. The Queen of the Air, ruler of all the Sidhe.
    2. The Queen of the Earth, also called "The Lady of the Lake".
    3. The Queen of the Sea, also called Maab.
  • High Seelie - Like their Queens, the high Seelie appear to be roughly humanoid, although taller and more slender and graceful. Theirs is the magic of Glamour.
  • Low Seelie - This broad category contains many spirits: the goblins, nixies, pixies, sprites and elfs of the woods, as well as naiads, driads, trolls, giants and a host of others.
• The Unseelie
  • The horde - a great winged convolcation of the wretched and damnable, the Unseelie Horde is the greatest force of dark nature. They have no respect for or interest in humans whatsoever, save to torment them. Many have lost their lives to the rampages of the horde.

Sorcery
The powers of Sorcery were given to the Senators of the Numan Empire almost 2000 years ago and have continued through the bloodlines of the nobility of Theah. Practicing Sorcery is a sin, according to the Church of the Prophets. Each nation has a different sorcerous power associated with it:

• Avalon has Glamour, a magic learned from the Sidhe.
• Montaigne has Porte, the art of opening gateways in the air which cross vast spatial distances.
• Vesten Skjaeren are rune-mages and can inscribe runes which give a man great power or which can be used to control the elements.
• Vodacce noblewomen are Sorte Strega (Fate Witches) and have power over destiny, including the power to see the future and to curse or bless a man.

Stewart, James
The current MacIain of the Hebrides, Stewart is the leader of the clans. This post is held by consensus of the clans, however, and the celts are a tricky bunch. For the moment, Stewart brings the support of the clans to Her Majesty's aid. He also travels to the continent a lot where he serves as Avalon's ambassador to Montaigne. This has elicited considerable criticism of him amongst his political opponents at home who claim either that he is an unfit ambassador (if they are Avalons) or that he is neglecting his duties to the clans (if they are Hebrideans).

The Swordsman's Guild
This international fraternity regulates the teaching of formalized duelling. In most nations of Theah, Swordsmen are the only citizens with the legal right to initiate a duel (although anyone has the right to accept a challenge). Swordsmen often work on commission to right wrongs for various members of the nobility or merchant classes, although it is their first rule that they do not take contracts on other swordsmen.

Swordsman Schools
These are the famous fencing schools which attract so many of Theah's gentlemen. This list is not exhaustive but lists those common in Avalon and northwestern Theah.

The following schools are recognized by the Swordsman's Guild.

• Anystyriol - vicious and showy rapier duelling school taught in Avalon by the invading Montaigne.
• Desaix - a descendant of Valroux, this rapier and main gauche school is the fighting style of the Knights of the Rose and Cross. Only these Knights may learn it.
• Donovan - "classic" Avalonian fighting school using broadsword and buckler. This is the favoured fighting style of the Queen's Knights.
• MacDonald - a Claymore fighting school from the Hebrides.
• Rogers - only recently formalized as a school, this is the fighting style common amongst sailors and pirates across Theah. Teaches the use of the cutlass and knife.
• Rois-et-Reines - the training school for L'Empereur of Montaigne's famous Musketeers. It teaches the use of the musket, pistol and bayonet.
• Valroux - a gentleman duellist's school for rapier and main gauche from Montaigne. Focusses on elegant swordplay.

• Boucher - a knifefighting school from Montaigne, brought somewhat into Avalon during the occupation.
• Goodfellow - an archer's school in the old style. Teaches the use of the longbow.
• Tout Pres - a rough and ready streetfighting school from Montaigne. This school is not recognized by the Swordsman's Guild.
• Trymbwll - ancient Inish spearman school, based on the way the Old Ones learned to fight from the Numan conquerors.

The Syrneth
This is the term that Thean historians and archaeologists give to the civilization that predated the pre-Numans. It is widely believed that the Syrneth were not precisely human, although no precise evidence as to what and who they were has yet been discovered. The ruins of their civilization contain many wonderful and bizarre devices, most of which are only poorly understood.

Theah
The continent which corresponds to Europe in our world. More loosely, the term may also be used to refer to the whole world, much as we would use the term 'Earth'.

Theus
The unseen god of Theah. He is loosely analogous to the Judeo-Christian god of our own world. His Church is divided into four disciplines and teaches the gospel brought by His Prophets.

Vodacce
The nation of Vodacce, in southeastern Theah, is analogous to Italy in our own world. Vodacce's rule is divided between the (count 'em) seven Merchant Princes who inherited the blood of the old Senators of Numa. Each Prince rules from a cluster of islands in the Forbidden Sea to the south of the country. These islands are the centre of Vodaccean society, politics and commerce. The mainland is mainly responsible for agricultural production and the mining of copper, tin and chalk. The land is divided into provinces which the Princes rule from afar through local overseers.

Vodacce is famed for her treacherous politics, fabulously decadent balls and parties, for Falisci wine and for the code of honour which has lead her nobles to a thousand duels. She is also famed for the beauteous Courtesans who walk her streets, and infamous for the dreaded Fate Witches who lurk like spiders at the hub of her society, seeing much and manipulating many.

The White Plague
Very similar to the Black Plague in our own world, the White Plague has ravaged Theah in at least two previous epidemics. Nowadays it is largely thought to be extinct, although isolated outbreaks do still occur. The most recent of these was the one in Crieux last year which killed the Heirophant.