NationStates

Map:


General Information:

Ceaden Country Name: Kaledoria
Demonym: Kaledorian
Race: Dominant: Ogres. Lesser races: Orcs, Humans, Beastmen, Goblins
Languages: High Kaledorian, Low Kaledorian, Bestial
Religion: Pagan believes (Ogre Pantheon, Animism, The Enigma of Steel)
Government Type: Tribal Confederacy
Head of State: Great Warlord Maraxus
Seat of Power: Yodal (military), Bugofosrun (political), Yomuwum (economical)
Currency: None, small rods of steel are generally accepted, as are most items from metal, barter is dominant.


Races:

Ogres:
Ogres are the dominant race. Due to their control of the mines and their physical intimidation, they were able to take control of the other race's tribes. They destroyed their nobility, and virtually enslaved them.
An average Ogre is 2.70 m high and above 300 kg heavy. Every Ogre enjoys great personal freedoms and they usually serve their respective tribes and their Warlord freely.

Orcs:
A wild race of powerful war slaves. Orcs are also useful when serving in the mines, especially in the quarries where they can work the stone, but a few are used on the higher farms, working the fields. Although their eyes are good in the dark, they do not have the best eagle eyes and are not used as archers but rather as melee shock troops.

Humans:
The most sophisticated of the lesser races, humans have shown a great aptitude for farming and - as workers are almost exclusivly used in the grain fields in the north and southeast. Their discipline and tactical ability makes them most suited to use the chariots in combat but they can fit any role to a point. They are less resistant to the perils of nature then the other races and are less productive when living in tents, thus settlements with a high human population feature more huts and houses then average.

Beastmen:
The Hoof-footed, horned, heavily furred Beastmen are the strangest of the lesser races. They seam to have no problem serving their Ogre Overlords but when not monitored closely, they like to brawl with each other and mate wildly - Which has let the Ogres to declare, that they have no problem with this behaviors, as long as no one gets permanently wounded in the fights. Their dense fur and strong immune system, that surpasses even that of the Ogres has made them high demand for the higher, rougher hamlets where they guard the livestock. Despite their impulsive tendencies at times, they somehow seam to have an aptitude for fishing, too. In the armies, they are excluded from the pikemen, as they have a tendency to panic in those tight formations. Instead, they are great archers, filling the niche, where Orcs lack.

Goblins:
Goblins are a very versatile race but generally not very useful as slaves, except for the fact, that they can somehow survive from the garbage of other races. Their digestion track not only allows them to eat almost anything organic, they also have no problem eating meals 5% of their body weight and then going 20 days without food (okay, not "no problem" but they survive it). They have an empathy for wild animals, especially wolves. As a race with no native language (in the Kaledorian tribes' area), they learn new languages easily - although most of them bad.



Culture:

The tribal society of Kaledoria offers a lot of personal freedom for the Ogres. Tribes are mostly geographical units and only roughly collections of family clans. Nomadic Ogres are usually welcomed by the settled, as they provide trade and diversity of skills for the time they live close to the settlements.

Society is mostly patriarchal. Female warriors and nobles are rare. Inheritance of the little personal property Ogres posses goes to the oldest son usually but in lack of a son, a daughter can inherit. Females usually choose their own husbands, arranged marriages are less likely. Among the lesser races, Goblins and Beastmen share a similar view on the topic, Humans and Ogres are less liberal and the father make all decisions for their daughters, until they are married, including the choice of a husband - as far as the Ogres allow that.

Many people of the lesser races are allowed to move freely inside Kaledoria but are not allowed to leave the confederacy. They are not allowed to own property, nether are they allowed to eat from the Ogres' fields, hunt the Ogres' wild of fish in the Ogres' rivers and lakes, creating a de facto slavery dependency to the Ogres as a whole. A few subjects that received valuable education or training are tattooed to show, who they are supposed to work for. While this has no legal character in any way, most Ogres would not allow such a person on their ground, should he run away from his landlord.


The cultural centers of Kaledoria are the 5 mines, they feature most services available and are populated with craftsmen of all trades - especially those working with stone and metal, obviously. Compared with mines of other nations, they are heavily populated, with 200 to 250 people.

On the surface, small settlements make up the infrastructure of Kaledoria, usually populated by around 100 to 200 people. These settlements are often visited by freely moving Craftsmen and thus produce an informal system of markets, trade and quasi-taxation. They are the prime distribution centers for food, thus the mines are dependent on them.

Even more people live in cottages all over the nation, tasked with providing the food for the nation. Prime food products in Kaledoria are grain, potato, onion, cabbage, turnip, sugar beet and tomato (in order). Meat is more common in Kaledoria than in other nations as the high mountains make poor fields but acceptable pastures. Dominant kinds of livestock are cattle, goat, goose and chicken.

In the less arable areas, hunting camps produce food and make sure the right animals are hunted at the right time. Given the aggressive wildlife, Hunters search the safety of numbers.



Religions:

Animism:
The Old Religion praises nature as a whole. The superstitious followers see spirits in everything (and are sometimes even right), for them Deities are just very powerful - and often distant - spirits. Some of their spirits are referred to as lesser Gods, such as Noderhugus, God of Lake Sohul or Yumos, God of Mount Yumos, the north most mountain in the Yajorun Mountains. Overall, their might be above 200 gods.


The Ogre Pantheon:
Hogus is the god of fertility and war and the highest ancestor god of the Ogres.
Sucelus is the ancestor god of the hunt, domesticated animals and also a war-god. He is said to have had dragon ancestry.
Hazaca is the ever-young primordial goddess of crops, plants, fertility and the moon.
Benonus is the ancestor god of rivers, lakes and healing.
Merura is the primordial mother-goddes of earth (caves), fire and fertility.
Camulos is the primordial god of the wild and fertility.
Cromagnus is the ancestor god of stone, metal, war and physical hardship.
Noricos is the ancestor god of death and the Spiritworld.

Shangos is the ancestor god of storms, natural disasters and war.
Balatos is the primordial god of dominance, destruction and the sun.

The Ogre pantheon speaks of 5 primordial gods: Balatos the sun, and Camulos the god of the wild represent the male aspects while Merura the earth goddess and Hazaca the moon goddess represent the female aspects. Samus was the God of Death, without a gender. When the other Gods wanted Samus gone, (s)he hit amongst the Ogres, bargaining their greatest warriors eternal life in return for protection. So the Ogres fought the gods and in the process, the greatest of them, lead by Hogus, the ancestor of all Ogres today became godlike themselves. But Samus betrayed them. As the primordial gods saw their power shrinking they welcomed back Samus in their ranks and fought the great ancestors together.
But the ancestors won, Samus was killed for his betrayal and the great Shaman Noricos took his place, Camulos surrendered and served a 1000 years as a slave before he was rehabilitated. The female gods were included into the Ogre pantheon and the Ogres don't hold any grudge against them, as they only acted as Samus and Balatos had told them.
Just Balatos escaped the wrath of the Ogre Gods, since then he is plotting revenge. Besides the vengeful, brutal Shangos, he is the only God not openly worshiped by the Ogres (and unlike Shangos, he is neither worshiped in secret either, although there is rumored to be a group of Orcs praising him high).


The Cult of Crom (also known as the Enigma of Steel):
The god Cromagnus is seen as only an average God for the followers of the Ogre Pantheon. The henotheistic Cult of Crom however worships him exclusively. Places of worship are centered around the Mines. While the Cult has followers among all crafts, mining, smelting and steel smithing have outstanding roles. Despite a rather mediocre extent of the religion, their political influence is major - also due to the fact, that they are the most organized religion of Kaledoria.

The cult is lead by the Chosen of Crom, typically 1 per mine with great magical abilities. Below them are the ranks of Mage Smith and warrior Smith, these ranks must (like a Chosen) know how to forge good steel and be Ogres. The bulk of followers are Adepts of Crafts and Earthseers. The former are just average Craftsmen (Woodworkers, Stonemasons, Leather tanners, ...), while the later are what you would call a mixture of miner, priest and prospector.


Population:
(By tribe)

-	Ogre	Orc	Human	Beastmen	Goblin	Total
Cocowes	118	153	215	87	144	717
Jomurcumes	120	159	148	105	133	665
Kaledones	225	301	239	179	249	1193
Myloles	104	139	133	87	116	579
Myzowes	98	137	110	89	109	543
Racudes	124	155	173	98	137	687
Saludes	111	156	132	105	112	616
Total	900	1200	1150	750	1000	5000

Languages:

High Kaledorian (Giant):
A language that is, in some dialects, understood by many Ogres and Giants on the continent. It is also the only language with a written form although only about 80 people in the confederacy actually know how to read and write. It is spoken by all Ogres, many Orcs and Goblins and some Humans.

Low Kaledorian (Human):
A language that has evolved from the human dialect of the region through Ogre influence. It bears some resemblance to the Saffrianan Cormorant language. It is spoken by almost all Humans, many Goblins and some Ogres and a few Orcs and Beastmen in regular contact with Humans. Since it has many common elements with High Kaledorian, people knowing both languages are not uncommon.

Bestial:
The native language of the Beastman and some Orcs and Goblins. Few Ogres and almost no Humans speak it and the Ogres often demand the native speakers of this language to learn a second language in addition.



Creatures of Kaledoria:


Places of some importance (Improvements)


Places of minor importance (just flavor)



More Information:
Forces Declaration
Ledger