Byros

Byros is a large nation located on the easternmost part of the continent of Deltin. Its people won independence from the nation of Kasimar in the Wars for Byrosian Independence. It is governed from its capital, Foxmarch, by its Queen, Shanna Lyrella. The people of Byros are known worldwide for their easy-going nature and red hair. Its location has made it the target of numerous Drowned incursions over the centuries.

Geography & Climate
Most of Byros enjoys a temperate climate, bordering on tropical in its southeasternmost parts. The capital, in particular, enjoys very mild winters and a long growing season. The coldest part of the country is Hornshatter Point, the land of hundreds of orc invasions, and as such the subject of countless songs and poems throughout Byros. The western shore of the nation borders Arellon's Tooth, on the other side of which lies the Dragonslake region of Kasimar. Attempts to invade Byros across the Tooth are rebuffed by the Shields, a foreboding mountain range taking up nearly the entire west coast. The southern part of Byros is known as The Den, because of its beautiful, hospitable land and two mountain ranges to the north and west which have protected it from invasion for centuries. The northwesternmost part of the country is connected to the rest of Deltin by a narrow strip of land, barely forty miles across, appropriately called The Narrow. It is here that Gregen the Strong made his famous Stand and secured victory for Byros in its last war against Kasimar.

History
Byros was settled during the campaigns of the Fifty Thousand, about 2,800 years before Gregen's Stand. After centuries of feeling little cultural influence from the west, in no small part due to isolation by way of the Narrow and the Shields, Byros had developed language, culture, and even gods all their own, some borrowed from old Reachlander traditions and some borrowed from visitors from Nubaka from the southeast. In 988 BGS Byros helped fight off the Shipsbottom Invasion, the last time forces from Kasimar and Byros ever formally worked side by side. In 685 BGS, Byros declared independence, beginning the Wars for Byrosian Independence which would last until 499 BGS. After its independence was formalized, Aeron the Silver-Tongued, the hero of the last of the wars, would take the throne. His descendents would rule for centuries.



The War of the Narrow, taking place in 2 BGS, would culminate in Gregen's Stand, in which the Byrosian hero Gregen the Strongand his five hundred knights held off a force of Kasimar dozens of times larger at The Narrow. Gregen would survive to see Gregen's Pact formed, ending hostilities between the two nations after centuries of on-and-off warfare, and establishing the current age. Gregen died in 13 GS, but is immortalized across Byros in countless songs and epic poems. A mighty bronze statue of Gregen stands in the main square of the capitol, Foxmarch.

In 299 GS, after centuries of rule by the descendents of Aeron Silver-Tongued, the people grew restless under the grip of Toron the Tyrant. At the beginning of that year, rebels under the command of Jace Lyrella staged a series of coups across the nations, ousting supporters of the tyrant king and his heirs. What would become known as the Byrosian Civil War followed, lasting until 304 GS with the Sack of Foxmarch. In what is considered to be the last great display of mortal magic in modern history, Jace's court wizard Kilakin the Burning burned Arellon's Keep to cinders, killing the Tyrant and his sons along with his entire court and nearly his entire royal guard. Jace took the throne soon after, building Greenknuckle Keep and establishing the Lyrella dynasty. Many sing songs of his exploits in freeing Byros from the Tyrant, but some still question his decision to burn the palace down.

Culture & Demographics
Byrosians are considered to be somewhere between Kasimar and the Reachlanders: free-spirited and independent, but in a more restrained fashion than the Reachlands. Byrosians wear brightly-colored clothes, crack jokes, and sing songs, usually all while drinking and dancing through the night. Byrosians seem to know a song for everything- an unknown author from Kasimar is often quoted as saying, "the second-to-last sound in the universe will be a Byrosian harp, and the last sound will be a Byrosian singing about that harp." For these reasons, Byrosians are sometimes welcomed with open arms at inns across the world, while others will try to get them to leave for fear of a destructive party.

The Byrosians have their own language, Olde Byrosian, though most speak the tongue of Kasimar as well. They speak Kasimar with a lilt that most foreigners find endearing or odd. Each castle in Byros has its own Tapestry of Stories, a metitulously woven tapestry in bright colors depicting the history of the castle, its people, and the surrounding lands, embroidered in Olde Byrosian. The Tapestry at Foxmarch is filled with history from the last hundred years, but the old one, a much longer one, was lost in the Sack of Foxmarch. Some Byrosians worship Gaat, but most pay homage to Killi, the Fox-Mother, Queen of Nature.

The cultivation of natural things, flowers in particular, is important in Byrosian culture. The arrangement of certain flowers in certain orders can convey messages, known as Lyrella Flower Language. It is called this after the practice of rebels in the Civil War using flowers to communicate secret messages and battle plans. Farming is also important to the Byrosians, as much of their trade is based around crops and the growing season in The Den is so long. Skilled farmers and gardeners can be inducted by their lords into the Order of the Fox-Mother, becoming Master Growers. These men and women are held in high esteem in Byros, similar to knights. Kasimar often mockingly call them the Knights of Dirt.

Notably, one of the last schools for wizards in existence is in Byros, in the capitol. The Pale Tower accepts a few dozen students per year, trying to impart the dying art of magic to new wizards.

Government & Military
After the harsh rule of the Tyrant, Lyrella kings & queens have traditionally been gentler rulers, which the Byrosians relish. Right of the throne passes to the eldest heir, regardless of gender. The king or queen is attended to by the Green Council and guarded by the Foxguard, an elite cadre of soldiers. They rule from Greenknuckle Keep in Foxmarch. For the most part, Queen Shanna allows lords to govern their local populations as they see fit, with few royal soldiers taking up residence in their forts.

The Foxguard are the only soldiers to wear plate armor. Most wear half-plate or mail, but Byros's strength does not lie in its footmen. Byrosian free-riders and light horsemen are peerless in mounted combat. Many from the region surrounding Hornshatter Point are in high demand as soldiers and sellswords, as they are trained from a young age to repel the Drowned in the region. Some are riding ponies before they know how to talk.

Byros remains one of the last nations to deploy battle-wizards in its standing army. These men, while ancient and frail, can conjure up fairly potent magic to rain fire upon the enemy. Since magic began to wane, however, these wizards have become fewer and fewer in number as years pass.

Trade & Industry
Most of Byrosian trade revolves around foodstuffs, crops, and alcohol. They primarily import goods from Nubaka, across the sea, where they inquire after all types of metals, fruit, and exotic goods. The Shields and the Great Sharri Waste make trade with Arqar-Sharri nearly impossible, and trade with Kasimar difficult, so their interactions with these nations is limited. However, some would say that the Byrosians prefer it that way.