Brandobia

Brandobia – an outsider’s view

“What’s that? You want to know my thoughts on Brandobia? Why. I’m Glad you asked – I consider myself something of an expert on that region. You see, the four kingdoms we know of today – Casdol, Eldor, Mendarn and Pel Brolenon – were once part of an ancient empire that predated even the mighty Kalamarian Empire. Though they lacked the Kalamarans’ expansionist attitude, the Brandobians were able to stop Fulakar’s expansion to the west and make peace with the Kalamarans.

However, the arrogant Brandobians refused to acknowledge the assistance they received from the homanoids of the region, and war eventually broke out between the elves and Brandobians. The truce has been on edge of being broken since the day it was signed. Then, a few years later, the nation erupted into civil war, as the sons of the King vied for control. When the dust settled, the empire was split into four counties, with the brothers ruling over three nations and refugees from the war ruling over Pel Brolenom. The elves kept hold of the biggest forest, of course.

Nowadays, the Eldorans usually don’t even speak to those they consider the lesser race everyone else. The Eldorans take their arrogance so far that the majority of them refuse to speak Merchant’s Tongue even if they know it. Mendarn is somewhat more tolerant of non-Brandobians, but not by much. Cosdol, on the other hand, is very tolerant when it comes to the non-Brandobians, so much so that the capital city Cosolen is called 'the Capital of the Fey'.

Pel Brolenon, now, you take my advice and stay away from there. This place used to be a utopia, but now it’s just the slave capital of the world. the clerics of the Overlord rule this place with an iron fist, and it’s nowhere I’d want to be caught dead or alive.”

Brandobia – an insider’s view

“What do I know about my own land? Why, quite a lot, actually. Let us start with the basics. The countries of Brandobia are Cosdol, Eldor, Mendarn, and Pel Brolenon. Only pureblooded Brandobians are capable of leading and holding offices of power. Simple enough, eh? Now let me tell you something else – we Brandobians are superior to all other races of Tellene. If it were not for us, the elves would have never learned to use magic properly and the halflings would still be grubbing in the dirt, with no planting skills.

You see, Brandobian Empire ranged at one time from the Elenon Mountains to the westernmost islands in the Brandobian Ocean and from the Straits of Svimohzia to the waste above the Volderwoods. Built by superior artisans, merchants bought these ships at every opportunity.

The upstart Kalamarians once tried to attack our empire, but even their best strategic minds could not defeat our superior tactics. Although our primitive humanoid allies almost cost our King his victory, our vastly outnumbered armies overcame both the ineptitude of our allies and the supposedly superior tactics of the Kalamarans. The Kalamarans agreed to the King’s terms and agreed to remain on the eastern side of the Elenon mountain range.

Unfortunately, the elves that lived in the Lendelwood betrayed the alliance and rebelled against the King’s power. Our forces ejected the treacherous elves from their lands and forced them to retreat to the Lendelwood. King Endremin could have easily conquered the inferior elves, but instead offered a truce. If the elves remained in the woods as a buffer between Brandobia and possible renewed Kalamaran attacks, Brandobia would allow them to live there. Knowing they had no choice, the elves readily agreed with the King’s terms, and have remained there ever since.

The elven king, however, betrayed that truce and cursed the King saying “May you have many sons and may they rule when you pass on”. Within a year of the treaty, the queen gave birth to triplets boys. Of course, you know what that means – as the princes came of age, the rivalry between them grew and grew. On the death of the king, each son claimed the throne as his own. The elven spies whispered dark words into the ears of the Brandobia people, and our great empire erupted in a bitter and bloody civil war.

Three years later, the smoke and dust settled with each of the sons controlling part of the Empire. Clond Endremin, who had the largest number of followers, claimed what is now Eldor. The middle son, Avbron Ebdremin, ruled Mendarn. The weakest of the three, Veseln Endremin, held sway over Cosdol. The island colonies, where most of the wealthy merchants lived, pledged loyalty to Clond. The rivalry remains today and each country does everything it can, short of war, to gain advantages over one another.

And that’s all there – what? Pel Brolenon? Why … it’s a … necessity. The clerics of the Overload only enslave the racially impure and those of questionable intent and character, after all. I’m sure that a truly pure Brandobian would be unmolested there. It is part of Brandobia, after all.

Source Notes: KoK Player's Primer