TE="fyreant, post: 11273, member: 33935"]Not sure if it goes against the spirit of the story but to keep things manageable I was going to start a storyline focusing on a smaller territory held by a vassal of the main Kingdom, to keep in proximity with the main story but still give me my own little canvas to get weird with. Here's my proposed chapter start:
Countess Zoe Orban of the County of Undrek
Located in the eastern half of the Frostpeak Mountains, the county of Undrek - mostly tribal wilderness except for the town of Undrek itself - is one of several "black sheep" regions of the Itheria, notorious for either toeing the line or outright ignoring the laws and traditions of most of the kingdom. In theory, the Orban family that currently rules Undrek are vassals of the reigning Duke von Doom, but the inhabitants of Undrek consider themselves to be more sophisticated than most of their southern brethren and have grown increasingly brazen in their refusals to assist against goblin raids or other threats. In sharp contrast to the warrior ethos associated with most of the southern lands of Itheria, the jaded people of Undrek openly scorn the arts of war, considering themselves sophisticates despite not being particularly wealthy or influential compared to other parts of the kingdom. This is not to say that Undrek is pacifist or benevolent in any way, shape or form; they simply prefer mercenaries, privateers and brigands to do dirty work on their behalf rather than raising their own companies of men-at-arms.
Undrek has some very unusual customs... some of which are very unpopular in other parts of the kingdom, and others that gain them wealth and favors. Many of the peculiarities of Undrek have to do with the considerable goblin population. Unlike in most human lands, goblins are accepted and even somewhat 'civilized', wearing woven garments and using metal tools and weapons. But the integration is far from perfect: the smaller humanoids are still second-class citizens (alongside the few beastmen that dwell there), and have no legal protections. Many of the goblin tribes that frequent Undrek lands are nomadic, using it as a stopover and hideout in between raids on human settlements in the north; the rulers of Undrek have historically turned a blind eye to, and even encouraged this.
As if this were not enough, Undrek has always maintained an ethic of tolerance for any and all forms of magic, even the most dangerous and immoral ones. In particular, the township of Undrek is strongly associated with necromancy, with grotesque reanimated skeletons shuffling through streets openly and undead slaves being sold as laborers alongside other wares in the market. Other goods that are illegal in most of Itheria, such as poisons, can also be found there. Titillating tales in taverns across the southern lands talk of Undrek as being "The city of witches and whores", but of course, the main source of income is more mundane - the smelting of ore produced by the rest of the Frostpeaks for sale to blacksmiths in the Crownlands. In return, the county is unusually reliant on imported food.
More than tolerance of banditry and sorcery, though, the practices of of Undrek that both disturb and intrigue nobles from other Duchies the most are those to do with sex. The County of Undrek has always been ruled by a Countess by tradition, making it among the only parts of Itheria with a tradition of matriarchy - though this is a de-facto state of affairs and founded on flouting and circumventing the inheritance laws rather than challenging them directly. Although both men and women alike assert the superiority of female leadership, they also scorn the Amazons who sometimes visit Itheria from across the sea and often take offense at being compared to them.
In order to flout the male-preferring marriage and inheritance laws of Itheria, the ruling ladies of Undrek (currently the Orban dynasty, having ruled for only three generations after the last rulers fell prey to an intrigue) traditionally refuse to marry, thereby preventing Undrek from coming under male rulership by marriage. Any males born to the line are 'gifted' to the King's Own with the understanding that the King or Queen of Itheria will never support their claim to rulership of the county. The few of these soldiering bastards that have persisted in raising the issue have met with 'unfortunate accidents' at the hands of their sisters. These ascendant rulers are sometimes not even related to the previous countess by birth, part and parcel of their dynasty's brazen disregard for the purity of their bloodline. On several occasions, reigning Kings of Itheria have taken advantage of this state of affairs by purposefully siring a 'backup heir' or two who can be invited up to the crownlands and legitimized if there are no more suitable candidates to carry forth a dynasty.
There is a flip side to this rebellious disregard for tradition, however, that makes many rulers fond of having the County of Undrek as one of their vassals. For as long as any could remember Undrek (the region as a whole but, in particular, the city of that name) has maintained the law of "prostration"; to whit, any monarch of Itheria, anyone bearing said monarch's seal, or any of said monarch's direct vassals (Dukes, mostly, but also a few other nobles who are directly associated with the royal house) has certain rights in Undrek... the right to sexually make use of any adult inhabitant of the county. Aside from those under 18 years and the infirm, no one is above this law, not even the countesses. Although this astounding bit of latitude is theoretically gender-neutral, in practice it amounts to noblemen and their vassals coming to Undrek to wantonly make use of its women. Merchants, sell-swords and adventurers of all stripes also make stops in at Undrek for much the same reasons, although they buy their carnal delights with coin rather than being entitled to them. Because of the unusual laws, many men consider it a dishonor to live in such a county, unwilling to accept that their wives might be swept up to serve as the playthings of someone else at a moment's notice (even if the actual odds are rather low) and leave at the first opportunity, so females make up roughly 60% of the ~8000 inhabitants.
Countess Zoe has just ascended to the seat of power at the age of 20 after her mother turned 50 and abdicated. She is mischievous and greedy, but also far more naive than she realizes. In the chaos after King Bryce's passing Undrek suddenly seems very vulnerable, but she sees this as an ideal time to try and expand her hometown's influence, daydreaming of some masterstroke of diplomacy that will bring the crown to her. She has a coterie of unsavory friends - a witch, a necromantrix, and a sell-sword to name just a few - to help her make her grasp at power.[/QUOTE]
Got to say this is intriguing place, kind a like Mos Eisely Tatooine or Tortuga from Pirates of the Caribbean.
So is it impossible for a guy to take over or just really difficult?
