The Known World of Dracopolis: The Antalians
by Lance DuncanFollowing the Great Rain of Fire, the Antalians(equivalent to the Ancient Norse) traveled north avoiding the frozen glaciers and mountains further inland until they reached the Great Bay where they took refuge from the harsh northern seas. Over the next few centuries the Antalians spread out covering the entirety of the Northern Lowlands, around where the modern Great Bay is now, and along the coast all the way down to modern landfall. Many Antalian kingdoms rose and fell and warred with each other and the giant and dragon kingdoms in the mountains.
After many centuries of Antalian preeminence in the region the great Orc horde of Loark shattered the southern kingdoms and leaving few survivors before moving on. The remaining Antalians in the north took centuries to rebuild and as they resettled the southern lands, they became known as the Norsenians(equivalent to the Old Norse). At this point there were no kings or great lords, only small scattered tribes and homesteads trying to scrape out a living from the dark northern seas.
After half a millennium the seas again struck as glaciers melted and great tidal waves washed away many settlements. The land bridge between the continent and the isle of dawn sunk beneath the waves and the shoreline of Norwold retreated creating many fjords at the edges of the mountains, also the Northern Lowlands became flooded as the sea rushed in and created the Great Bay. This great flood separated the surviving Norsenians in the north around the Great Bay from those in the south along the deteriorated coastline. Those in the north became known as the Alfish tribes(equivalent to the Old East Norse) while those in the south along the coast came to be called the Norwold tribes(equivalent to the Old West Norse) by their southern neighbors.
In the north the Alfish people gathered on the peninsula of Alfmark(i.e. Alpha) and and the surrounding lands to the south and west. In AC 12 a group of refugees from the Thang empire came to the land of Alfmark and with many Alfish outcasts and lowlifes built the city of Alfa. This city began to war with the other tribes and establish supremacy over them. And thus the kingdom of Alfmark was established. Virtually any Thang influence has died out as all the Thang refugees comingled with the natives and became assimilated to the Alfish culture.
The Alfish tribes to the west remained independent of the kingdom of Alfmark. Over the next few centuries they warred with the orc tribes in the western mountains until most of the orcs were driven out of the valleys which were in turned settled by the Alfish. Many Alfish traders and warriors also went north among the barbarians north of the Great Bay. There a great kingdom was established which still exists in the form of the northern Empire of Cezavy, yet the Alfish conquerors quickly assimilated into the local culture, so that story belongs to another people. In the year AC 492 a small kingdom among the western mountains experienced a meteoric rise and came to dominate the region. From this point the Alfish people became culturally divided between the east and west: the Alinish of the west(equivalent to Early Old Swedish) and the Alfish of the east(equivalent to Early Middle Danish). The kingdom of Alinor was destroyed soon after coming to power during a series of devastating earthquakes, yet the cultural memory of the kingdom remains with the Alinish people to this day.
In the south the Norwoldic people scattered among the fjords, hills, and isles of the eastern coast. They continued to live as their ancestors, being simple farmers and fishermen, while some few traded journeyed on long voyages to the south on for trade or sometimes plunder. In the middle of the second century BC many Norwold tribesmen were overrun by Gothic invaders from the south who in turn were fleeing from a horde of Goblinoids. After this event an traditional boundary was formed at the Saffir river between the Norwoldic people of the north and Nordurlanders of the south.
In the year AC 250 many raiders, or "vikings" of Norwold began voyaging to and plundering the rich lands to the south including the Isle of Dawn, the green isles of Ostland, the lowlands of Vestland, and even as far south as the rich cities of Thyatis. These raiders set up temporary camps on the northern isles of dawn and these eventually formed a stronghold called Helskir(equivalent to Dublin). Over the centuries this settlement has expanded and conquered much of the island becoming the modern day Kingdom of Helskir, and the Norwold descended people speak their own dialect of Helska(equivalent to Old Faroese).
The Kingdom of Helskir was not to be the only conquest of the Norwoldic people. In AC 400 Cnute the Bold led the greatest army ever gathered among the Norwoldic people to invade the rich green isles of Ostland to the south. For centuries the Southern lands had been ripe picking for the raiders, or "vikings" of Norwold, but never before had so ambitious a plan been set in motion, and in a few short months Cnute had set himself up as the new King of Ostland. After his death the sons of Cnute also conquered the Kingdoms of Vestland, excluding Ghyr. For many years the two lands of Ostland and Vestland were ruled by one king, heir to the realm of Cnute, but eventually the tyranny of the king could not be tolerated be his unruly vassals and the jarls of Vestland revolted. After a long and bloody war a king of Vestland was crowned and a peace established between Ostland and Vestland. The kingdom of Ostland became more isolated and insular over the years so much so that the Norwoldic people have altered their speech and speak their own specific dialect, Nutish(equivalent to Norn), distinct from the Norwoldic spoken in Vestland and Norwold.
The latest chapter in the legends of the Norwoldic people occurred only 300 years ago. A great leader and shipbuilder, named Heldann, had a vision of a new land where he and his friends could be free from the tyranny of petty kings. He built a fleet of ship and gathered many to his cause. They sailed forth and made landfall in Kamminer Bay south of the Skaufskogr hills. They were almost immediately beset by goblins, but were able to drive them off. Over the next few years many outcasts and vikings joined with Heldann in driving the goblins from this new land. Since that time the region has come to be known as Heldland and is populated by many freeholds of Norwoldic descent. They suffer no king to rule over them and settle any major disputes at the traditional Althing. The people of Heldland have come to call themselves Heldannic in honor of their national hero and speak their own dialect of Norwoldic(equivalent to Old Icelandic).