This thread contains setting info important to the game. Each post breaks down a portion of the setting.

The Cloistered Coast runs North-South, forming the Western edge to the True Sea (as opposed to the Inner Sea far to the West). The Thunderclap Spires hedge the Coast in from the rest of the continent, giving the Cloistered Coast its name and relegating it to an existence separate from other kingdoms.

The Coast is split into six city-states. All of them claim to give allegiance to King Frederick the Wise, who rules in name only from his palace on the Northern reach of the Coast. The city-states are, from North to South:

+ Hlerheim, Where Giants Stand
A Sprawling metropolis built on a platform supported by three mountain peaks where the Thunderclap Spires meet the True Sea.

+ Rhinia, At the Feet of the Gods
A veritable paradise built on hot springs so that it is always the perfect temperature. Everything grows in abundance.

+ Crickton, Crossroads of the World
The main trading hub for goods passing up and down the coast. Leaders in commerce, mercantile, and democracy.

+ Proios, Cornucopia
A breadbasket state, where food for the whole Coast is grown and shipped out. Ridden with crime and poverty as an Oligarchy takes every cent of profit and ships off all the usable goods.

+ T'chul, A City Over the Horizon
A forward-thinking city of scholars, seers, and futurists. First to embrace new ideas, and first to leave them when they fall out of vogue.

+ Sarambar, Jewel of the Sea
A golden city of wealth beyond measure. Deep mines bring up gems, precious ore, and well-kept secrets. The streets run riot with thievery of all kinds.

Humans are common up and down the Cloistered Coast. They are the dominant race in every city-state.

Dwarves come from ancestral homes in the Thunderclap Spires, but have integrated into the Coast well. Most of them stay in the Northernmost city-states of Hlerheim and Crickton (disliking the temperate warmth of Rhinia).
Dwarves reach maturity at the same rate as humans, but tend to live hundreds of years before descending into the Thunderclap Spires to die with their ancestors.

Elves have populated the Coast for hundreds of years. They helped humanity settle the raw wilderness and mentored them as each city-state was built. They have scattered among all of the city-states and tend to be fiercely loyal to the one that they have lived in for years.
Elves reach maturity near 20-25 years but live until killed, never dying of old age.

Half-elves are seen as the natural fulfillment of centuries of human-elven harmony. They are rarely born, but always seen as auspicious signs of good times to come.
Half-elves reach maturity around 10-12 years old and live to be only 25-30 before burning to death in a sudden combustion. Which only gives credence to the theory that they are sent by the gods as omens.

Halflings are recent imports from across the True Sea. Traders brought them on slave ships to Crickton, where the local populace immediately set them free and gave them land to settle. They have slowly moved up and down the coast, but for the most part stick to Crickton.
Halflings mature around 14-15 years and live well into their 200's.

Gnomes have lived on the Coast for as long as history records. They have made homes in the natural formations - trees, rocks, rivers, and the soil. They do not recognize borders between city-states, travelling freely by simply ignoring them.
Gnomes are born from a strange sort of metamorphose where they hatch from a cocoon of mud and sticks. They do not age.

Half-orcs are the leftovers of the aboriginal people of the Coast. When humanity arrived and began settling - with help from the elven peoples - they displaced or absorbed the orcs. Interbreeding has led to several genetic features that come out prominently in certain children.
Half-orcs mature and age like humans.

Tiefling are genetic oddities. They come from the consort of a human or elf with a creature of the lower realms. But the tiefling will not appear in the family for at least 13 generations, meaning that there is no immediate way of knowing which ancestor was responsible.
Tiefling mature as humans, but can live up to 250 years.

Dragonborn are a new race. They are the product of - depending on who you ask - celestial inspiration, alchemical experiments, draconic interbreeding, or gnomish magic. No one is sure. In any case, they are a race in their own right but have only existed for a couple dozen years.
Dragonborn mature and age like humans.

The Cloistered Coast is home to all sorts of cults - both to minor gods and to mortal personalities - as well as its share of religions both great and small. However, there are six major gods that are generally revered and worshiped up and down the coast.

Jute of the Broken Bow
God of hunters, warriors, and criminals. Jute once ruled the skies, running his hounds from one sunset to the next. But millenia ago, his hunting bow broke in some great struggle and he fell from his domain. He now hunts in the underworld, tracking damned souls for eternity.
Domain: War

Xyr, Lord of Flies
God of decay, disease, and rebirth. Xyr's followers claim that he can see and hear through every thing that buzzes through the air or crawls along the ground. Xyr is a parasite, feeding on the powers of the other gods to stay alive. And many who follow him are the same.
Domain: Nature

Altria, Lady of Youth
Goddess of life, happiness, and ignorance. Altria is the embodiment of all things good about youth, and all things bad. She is constant inexperience and ignorance coupled with perfect beauty, freedom, and potential.
Domain: Life

Grigor, the Rat
God(dess) of secrets, hidden places, and lies. Grigor knows all that happens behind closed doors and all that is said in whispers. (S)he listens to all, truth as well as lies, and believes every bit of it.
Domain: Knowledge

Nuri, A'ana, and Krin
Goddesses of song, dance, and art, respectively. The three goddesses are collectively known as "The Rings". Their followers are often exempt from borders and allowed to roam freely in the name of artistic merit.
Domain: Light

Holmgar, Drowning King
God of the sea, storms, and love. Holmgar is the king of the gods. Full of passion, rage, lust, and unbridled fury. His emotions run high and change like the wind on a calm sea. His followers give offerings to the sea by throwing them off of cliffs into breaching waves.
Domain: Tempest
This message was last edited by the GM at 23:42, Fri 18 Sept 2020.