Nordern

In the First Epoch, Eenkai intellectuals, the Intellectual Creed, fled their home world of Throndar. They passed through the Hollow of Tarsilja, leaving one star system for an adjacent one. An advanced people as far as technology, they crossed the void in megalithic-sized voidships powered by Tarsilja Lattice engines. A few months after setting down on the world Gebs Rain, they established the nation of Nordern on 16 Artifice 734.

The Nordern civilization of Geb Rain, like the Eenkai one on Throndar were not practitioners of magic. From a world dead to magic, they had never been exposed to it. They were also atheists, relying on raw technology to meet their needs. Some of this raw technology was the stuff of the Lost Ages, like the Hollow of Tarsilja. On Gebs Rain, they were free to learn the arcane and gain the attention of the higher powers. Eventually, the Eenkai came to worship one of their own, a great speaker named Tempestant.

On Gebs Rain, the Norderns built their dwellings atop vast coral reefs. The growth of the reefs, accelerated and hardened by nature energy, was supplemented by natural scientific know-how, creating elastic membranes to cover their dwellings. These turned their living areas into submersibles, giving them some protection against their world's periodic asteroid dangers.

These coral islands are a marvelous site. Colossal walls surround the coral foundation. The beautifully colored walls are an extension of the coral base, making them formidable for defense. Beyond these walls are canals and harbors for the ships that ply the waterways and return with victuals for the inhabitants of the Nordern island-cities. They vary in size, with none less than 20,000 citizens. The Nordern priests and the most devout of worshipers use many aquatic creatures as mounts. These "blessed" Norderns are mutated, with the length of devout worship a gage for determining the extent of their mutations. The most devout are equally at home in the water or on land, capable of swimming with their webbed feet and hands, breathing water through gills in their neckline and able to soften their bones and organs for deep dives.

When the orbit of Gebs Rain takes it close to the Belt of Geb, a cataclysmic event befalls parts of the planet. It is subjected to pummeling meteor storms. In 1692, Nordern civilization was nearly wiped out, with only 40,000 people of the original 110,000 surviving the Bombing of Geb.

In 1692, Gebs Rain was hit by a great meteor shower. The lands already pitted and cratered from these frequent bombardments were set-upon by a fury greater than anything seen before. The Eenkai had been experiencing minor meteor shows for many centuries and adapted to them. This was because the orbital path of Gebs Rain takes it near the asteroids of the Belt of Geb. The rocks rain down on the world bringing destruction to large areas.

- Jolarmi, Eenkai professor at the College of Rumakarrûs, "History of the Eenkai"

The Bombing of Geb devastated Gebs Rain. The land heaved from the impacts and the seas churned with tidal waves and undersea earthquakes. The coral island-cities of the Nordern submerged into the waters, protected by their air domes, sinking into the deeps to escape the rock storms occurring above. Even at 5,000 fathoms, some of these cities were struck and suffered horrendous losses. The people prayed to Tempestant for guidance and safety, but she was unable to stop the meteor onslaught. Tempestant, an occasional lover to Phalgas, called upon him for a favor. Phalgas granted her request, but only if she would some day aid him in kind. Tempestant was torn between saving her people and being subject to a promise that may some day prove to be of ill benefit. The destruction of several more Nordern island-cities brought her in league with Phalgas. Phalgas harnessed the powers of the Web of Magic and opened three watery rifts to the Bog Sea, through these tears in the Web, the Nordern cities left Gebs Rain and came to the world Bal-Kriav.

The Nordern were cautious in this new land. They were sealed in by the shallows of the Bog Sea or by the narrow channels, which lead to Mephigax, and surrounded by powerful beasts and flying serpents that they had never seen on Gebs Rain. The people sent their ships across the Bog Sea to the shores of the Lands of Purity and to the distant lands of Brucrumus, Gorejun, and other continents. Trade flourished between Nordern and the great nations of Ivory Asylum, Malacost, and Grimmarsveinn.

In the Buruthran War (1824 - 1829 ) , the Norderns joined the Luran Alliance, fighting alongside the Tragarans. The trust between the Norderns and the people of Rumakarrûs led to a treaty where the Norderns would garrison the cities and fortresses while the armies of the Luran Alliance crushed the barbarian hordes. After the war had ended, and the Divine Empire was established, the Norderns were welcomed as citizens of the Divine Empire. Nordern in kind granted citizenship of the Divine Empire into their nation.

In the Year 1829, the Norderns finished the Mephigax-Bog Channel. This short-lived channel allowed them to move two floating cities, Bathyl and Biomechallum, out of the Bog Sea and into the seas beyond.

Architecture

Nordern cities are massive in size, with wide open streets and airy buildings. The foundation of the cities are floating islands of living coral. On Gebs Rain, there are said to be hundreds, if not thousands of these floating coral islands on the open seas. Nordern cities are also submersible, a product of the hazards of living on Gebs Rain. During submersion, they become protected from oceanic depths and most attacks by a magical elastic membrane. These cities are very colorful, akin to a coral reef. In the oceans, they become a beacon for marine life, and are often followed by vast schools of fish.