To the north lies the great barrier, the mountain range of the earthen folk of Sandik and their kin whose rocky homes sit above the high waters. Towering there is the crown of the world and the greatest of mountain peaks. To the south the tranquil lakes of marigold and minor border this fair land and give it the name by which it is known locally, the shallow coast. Corvithan is bordered on all sides by water; to the north, the high water of the great barrier is filled in the winters and forms it’s body. The rivers and lakes from which is feeds are called the “Frontier” to the west and the Crowns Jewel to the east. At its maximum, the crown feeds the Bridgeway Lakes in the spring and in its lowest, the waterways grow shallow and run into the deep Marigold, the inner sea. The frontier runs along the western wilds and fills the basin of Lake Minor, the shallow waterway whose waters team with life. From the Minor, the Minor River feeds the great Marigold and from the Marigold, the Sendai River reaches the sea. To the east, the North Sendai River feeds the Marigold to Lake Oire and from the prophets lake the Civil River reaches the Sea of Frosts. 

It should come to no great surprise to the traveler that the people of Corvithan are experts at maneuvering the waterways of the inner oceans. The namesake for the region known as the shallow coast is both for the prominence the Lake Minor holds in the society, and the unique features of the lakes in the region, whose coastlines run shallow into the lakes for miles. As much as the fresh waters of the inner oceans affect the lives of Corvians, for that is what they call themselves, equally important to them are the forests and grasslands that surround their bountiful homes. In fact very few things are as important to Corvithan as a state than the protection of nature and the balance of its population with the wilds. While there are likely many reasons for such disposition their proximity to the Freefolk and the Feyish of the West must have instilled fear and respect for their surroundings from its inception. 

In the north, lying at the frigid shores of the high water is the nation's capital and oldest city: March. Named for the trampled earth that was left in the wake of the Ironfolk who long ago marched from the barrier under the whips of Gaatian slavers. March holds history to those ancient times, though little of the current city shares anything but name to those ancient times. In fact modern scholars generally consider the names origins to be fictional as it is generally known that the dwarves of Kirigim were the creators of the Ironbridge and no march would have ever taken place across the lake region. The city is small in comparison to the eastern city of southern wastes but the greatest of the Corvian cities. Nestled in between the lake and the temperate forests of the north the urban center of the city prizes the open forum of the Corvithan King. 

In 673 GC some 400 years after the collapse of the Gaatian empire the settlements once conquered by the god king reunited in the land of the lakes under the rule of “The King in March”. While little is known of the figure, including his true name, the King was a warlord from the north, likely a local lord from the fragmented Gaatian era he united the region as a protectorate from the wilds to the west. Even in ages previous the threat of the western wilds had been apparent to the Gaatians and their expansion to Oteria was a hard-fought one, an expansion which eventually abandoned the idea of settling the great forest and instead utilized the waterways to sail along the rivers and coastlines. March itself was founded by this king, who grew the then meager village to a veritable fortress for the period. Its ideal defensible location with ample supply of fresh water and local fauna made it an ideal location from which to rule and wage war against the Feywilds which persisted past the Frontier River. It is supposed that the true name of the King in March was erased from history and was likely kept from the populace as a way to prevent manipulation by the Fey, although much of this is conjecture. This period was marked by war and constant threats across the Lakelands from the feyish folk. The conflicts themselves are known to have been fought much for reasons of territory and the feyish desired to see the encroachment of civilization halted at all cost. The long-lived elven and gnomish peoples who lived in the region were descendants and kin of the fey they warred with. Sometime after the first unity of March around 677 GC a pact was signed, now known as the Treatise of the West. Made between the Archfey of the Western Wilds and the King in March the contract was “signed in blood and planted in the earth as was custom of the freefolk who signed it”. From its planting, it blossomed into the Foewood, a tree of great rarity and which still stands at the center of the Corvithan Forum. The Foewood itself still advises the King of Corvithan and has done so far all its chosen kings. The spirits of the Kings of March are said to still dwell within its bows and the site itself is considered most sacred both politically and spiritually for the people of March. The pact which was made that day vowed for the progression of peace and a halting of civilization at the Frontier from that river no mortal would be allowed to pass with the intention to till earth, uproot flower, or kill faun. The fey in return swore to shower the lands in water and protection blessing the people who lived there with knowledge of harmony and balance. 

Corvithan in modern days, has slowly assembled from city-states and villages that swore oaths to the Foewood, maintains this pursuit as its most righteous edict; balance and conservation of the natural world and the pursuit of harmony with it. Politically the state exists still to this day as a Kingdom ruled and regulated to protect that harmony. The individual cities of the region operate with a great degree of autonomy and without a central military, only uniting into a centralized union of militaries when called upon by the king. Under normal circumstances, the local militias and ranger bands operate out of their local cities and enforce the credo of the Treatise of the West to maintain the balance of the civilization growing in the east and the wilds holding fast in the west.