Wildcrest Kingdom

History
The Wildcrest Kingdom was officially formed in 523 C.E. It's first ruler was Aymeric Cilamur and the Cilamur family line continues to this day. After the Dark Ages, the Elves and Dwarves emerged from their homelands to aid the humans in building their civilizations. They wanted to foster peace and cooperation and sheperd them to a brighter future, as the Gods had once done for them. During this time the beautiful city of Montrose was constructed. It is a monument to the genius of the Wildcrest people and rivals the beauty of the Elven cities.

During the early years of the Kingdom, the Cilamur monarchy took a different path in the creation of a nation state. Rather than embracing the old governmental institutions upheld in its neighboring realms, Wildcrest afforded its citizens greater freedoms, instilling a fierce independence and a loyalty to the Cilamur regents. This loyalty extends to today's ruler. Also, taking advantage of vast resources and the freedom to become rich, Wildcrest's population swelled, forming sprawling cities and cultivating lands across the nation. Wildcrest remains one of the richest nations on the continent of Acios, and one of the most populated.

While the occasional border skirmish did break out, peace was maintained on the continent between the Four Nations for 500 years. However, this peace was shattered when the Malorian Empire arrived on the shores of Acios in 1144 C.E. The Four Nations rallied to defend their continent from the Malorian Invasion, however the Empire was too strong for them. The Ryslanders would soon backstab their allies and side with the Malorians. The Iptians fled to the Hulvern Mountains and the Confederacy of Karkoth was conquered. Soon, the Wildcrest Kingdom were the only ones that continued to resist the Malorian Empire.

The Wildcrest Kingdom was forced to surrender in 1150 C.E., ending the six year war. The entire Cilamur family line was seemingly wiped out by the Malorians. However, the youngest son of King Marcel Cilamur, Julian was smuggled out of the country by the Eserion Elves. They replaced the real boy with a body double, who was sadly murdered with the Cilamur family. Julian did not live long enough to see the return of the Wildcrest Kingdom. The responsibility of retaking the Kingdom fell to his great-great-great grandaughter, Carissa.

The events of The Great Rebellion and The Treaty of Thirgos have led to the restoration of the Wildcrest Kingdom. The people are free from Malorian rule and cherish their new half-elf queen who delievered them from evil.

Government and Politics
The Wildcrest Kingdom is ruled by the half-elf Queen Carissa Cilamur. The Wildcrest Kingdom is a constitutional monarchy. This form of government is new to the people of the Wildcrest Kingdom as it used to be a feudal monarchy. The Wildcrest Kingdom had afforded many more social freedoms than their neighboring nations, but equal representation in the government was never a part of the Kingdom's history. However, Queen Carissa viewed feudalism as an outdated form of government that helped to result in the defeat of the nation during the Malorian Invasion. Therefore, in the post-war years, she worked with the nobles and people of Wildcrest to create a new form of government that better suited the nation.

Queen Carissa controls the kingdom's armed forces and enforces its laws. However, she shares a great deal of power with a parliament elected by the citizens. The parliament consists of two branches, the Nobles Chamber and the Commons Chamber. Twenty-seven nobles make up the Nobles Chamber. Each member holds the position for life and passes it on to his or her heir. The people elect the Commons legislators for terms of four years. Power and influence shift from one chamber to the other, depending on the charisma and stature of the chambers’ leaders. The parliament’s primary responsibility is to create laws. As a result, the people have the parliament to thank for their increased freedoms.

The monarchy continues to endure in the Wildcrest Kingdom due to Queen Carissa Cilamur's immense popularity. Queen Carissa recognizes that the monarchy may be abolished during her lifetime. She does not mind and has stated that she will continue to protect the nation as either a monarch or as a simple member of the civilian population. Whatever her citizens deem best for their nation. The increased freedoms have been a breath of fresh air for the people of the Wildcrest Kingdom who were forced to endure years of opression from the Malorians.

Queen Carissa is currently unmarried and has no heirs to the throne. She is looking for potential suitors that could place her country in a better strategic position. Her lack of heirs has led some to fear what would happen if she were to die without someone to take her place. Would the nobles attempt a coup, or would the commoners attempt to install a permanent democracy? Carissa's half-elf heritage have led some within the Wildcrest Kingdom to distrust her. They fear that the Eserion Elves are having an undue influence on her and that they may one day sweep into the Wildcrest Kingdom and take over. Queen Carissa does her best to quell their fears, but there are elements within the government who would not mind if she was no longer the ruler of Wildcrest. For the most part though, the citizens of Wildcrest love her and trust her to lead them into a Golden Age.

Foreign Relations
The Wildcrest Kingdom is on good terms with the Eserion Elves because of their aid during the Great Rebellion. Their militaries conduct joint excercises and their wizards often consult one another. Tourism is also commmon between the two nations as citizens want to see the splendor of the Elven Kingdom or take in the breathtaking city of Montrose. The Wildcrest Kingdom is also friendly with all three of the Free Cities and have trade agreements that bring in large amounts of gold for all parties. The Wildcrest Kingdom continues to despise the Malorian Empire and wants nothing more to see it wiped from the map once and for all. The Karkothians and Lhazaar Principalities are viewed with suspicion. The distrust the Confederacy of Karkoth because of the strange alliance between Orcs, Goblinoids, and humans. The Lhazaar Principalities are scrutinized due to their ways of piracy that while not endorsed, are certainly not punished. Their relationships with the Dwarves are based on trade. They have no diplomatic contact with the Almorin Elves and are fine with that. The Almorin Elves left the rest of the continent to be devoured by the Malorian Empire. The relationship between the Wildcrest Kingdom and the Kingdom of Rysland is complicated. While the Ryslanders betrayed the people of Acios, they did so out of self-preservation. While many in Wildcrest view them with selfish hatred, some understand their motives and seek greater diplomatic contact with them. The government of Wildcrest does conduct trade with them but trust the Ryslanders about as far as they can throw them.

Military and Law Enforcement
The standing army of Wildcrest is not very large due to the fact that the main bulk of the miltary are the common people of the nation who must work the fields and shops of the Kingdom during times of peace. There are milita forces in each town that must be ready at an moment for the call to arms. The leaders and generals of the miltary are often the nobility. However, some common folk do rise to the officer corps based on merit or through education at the Royal Military College of Churneau.

The Queen's Citadel is the Wildcrest Kingdom's elite military branch. It is made up of the Queen's Swords, the Queen's Shields, the Queen's Wands, and more recently the Phoenix Guard. The King's Citadel had always been an institution in the Wildcrest Kingdom. When Queen Carissa claimed the throne she brought back the Citadel in order to protect the interests of the nation. She added her personal bodyguard, the Phoenix Guard, to this military institution to show that she would not be using these elite cavalry troops as her own personal retainer any longer. Instead, they would be used to best serve the interests of the nation. In times of peace the job of the Citadel is to dispense the queen's justice and maintain law and order within the Kingdom. The King’s Citadel occupies a black tower in Montrose. The Citadel building is a large fortified structure containing training facilities, offices, barracks, and armories.

There is another organization within the Citadel that is kept secret from the majority of the people of Wildcrest. This organization is the Dark Lanterns. The Lanterns are spies and killers, skulking through the shadows to steal secrets and lives in the queen's name.

Queen Carissa's chief advisor and most trusted friend, Sir Kendrick of Lamar leads the Queen's Citadel. His job is to collate reports from agents in the field, manage royal family security, allocates resources to reinforce local law enforcement agencies, and sends out spies and assassins to attend to major threats.

The King’s Citadel has four divisions. A hand-picked captain commands each branch, chosen for his or her work in the field and successes in the organization. The Queen's Swords are elite warriors who undertake specialized and dangerous missions. The Shields protect the Queen, members of the court, and members of parliament. The Wands are accomplished mages who supplement military personnel in the field or assist in other Citadel missions. The Phoenix Guard are a mix of Elves, humans, and Half-Elven troops. They are fiercely loyal to Queen Carissa, and by proxy, the Kingdom of Wildcrest. They are the most elite unit of cavalry found on the entire continent of Acios. The King’s Dark Lanterns is a covert agency. Few outside the Citadel know that they exist. The members of the Dark Lanterns deal in information, assassination, and sabotage. They fight on the front lines in the cold war.

Geography
The nation of Wildcrest is quite large. It stretches from the Gardovere Heights in the north all the way down to the Lamiliere Wilds in the south. It stretches from the very edge of the Stormcrest Mountains in the west to the Whisper Woods in the east. The climate in Wildcrest is quite temperate and never goes too high or low in temperature extremes. The Garodvere Heights provide numerous valuable metals, including iron, copper and gold. The Bartois Plains are the breadbasket of the nation. The fertile lands provide plenty of food for the nations people. The countryside is rich in natural resources, giving Wildcrest an edge over its rivals.

The Lamiliere Wilds are officially recognized as part of the Wildcrest Kingdom. However, the true ruler of the Wilds is the Great Oak Oalian. He leads the druidic sects collectively known as the Wardens of the Wood. The Wardens worked with the Wildcrest Kingdom for centuries before the Malorian Invasion. The Wardens help the people of the Bartois Plains with their crops, while the Wildcrests aid the Wardens with construction projects or threats to the forest. The Malorian Invasion led the Wardens to retreat deep into the forest. They only re-emerged recently and aided the Wildcrest's in their rebellion. The Malorians burned much of the forest to the ground during their reign, and the Wardens are now focused on rebuilding with the help of the Wildcrests.

For more information on the Great Oak Oalian and the Wardens of the Wood, see the Wardens of the Wood in the Important Groups section.

Economy and Infastructure
The economy of Wildcrest is driven by the crops grown in the Bartois Plains and the minerals mined from the Gardovere Heights. The food and cash crops grown in the Bartois Plains have allowed the Wildcrest Kingdom to grow quite rich in the ten years after the Great Rebellion ended. The minerals of the Gardovere Heights have provided a good amount of supplementary income as the ore is sold directly to markets or is used in the metalworking industries.

The Amber Road connects Montrose directly to the Dwarven city of High Thurim and the Free Cities. It was a feat of engineering that was able to cut through the thick forests of the Lamiliere Wilds and the Hulvern Mountains. During the time of the Malorian Invasion the road was collapsed by the Dwarves in the mountains and the road through the Wilds fell into disrepair as the Malorians had no use for it. After the war, the Dwarves reopened their part of the road and the Wildcrest Kingdom worked with the denizens of the forest to reconstruct the route through the Wilds. The Amber Road is a much travelled route that brings even more income to the Kingdom due to the wealth of the Dwarves and the Free Cities.

Demographics
The Wildcrest Kingdom is mostly made up of humans. However, the war brought many elves and half-elves from the Eserion Kingdom to Wildcrest. Many of them decided to stay and start a new life in the reborn kingdom rather than return to their homeland. There are also numerous Elves who live within the Lamiliere Wilds. They are descended from Elves who have lived within the Wilds since the dawn of time. Many dwarves live within the Gardovere Heights and work the mines of the Kingdom. Others live within the cities, usually working as merchants and metalworkers.

The Wildcrest attitude of acceptance and tolerance naturally attracts people of all races to its confines. There are numerous halfling farms found throughout the Bartois Plains. Other halflings live and work in the cities as well, alongside their fellow small-folk, the gnomes. However, most of the gnomes that reside within the Kingdom are found in the Lamiliere Wilds. Their ancestors fled there after the downfall of the Draconic Kingdom. Half-Orcs, Orcs, and Goblinoids are found here, but they are not nearly as common as they are in Karkoth and the Kingdom of Rysland. Dragonborn and Tieflings are quite rare. The Dragonborn that do live here are usually found working as mercenaries for nobles or as members of the Wildcrest military. Tieflings are often found in the city centers or within the Bartois Plains.

The main racial tensions are found between humans and Elves. The humans view the Elves as trespassers and as aliens to the human realms. Many of them were very appreciative of their efforts during the Great Rebellion, but thought that they would return to Almorin now that the Malorian Empire is just a shell of its former self and the Wildcrest Kingdom is free. They also fear that they are influencing Queen Carissa and may one day take the Wildcrest Kingdom for their own. While there are feelings of distrust and sidelong glances, only a small minority of Wildcrest citizens feel this way toward the Elves making violence uncommon between the two races.

Culture and Religion
The people of Wildcrest are very independent and self-reliant. They are a practical and pragmatic people who tend to shun the finer things and favor the simple things in life. They are innovative and independnent often trying to make their own path in the world. What makes Wildcrest different from most of the other nations is the number of urban centers that have grown up within its borders. Not only does it boast the largest metropolis in all of Acios, Montrose, but even its smaller cities and towns have a cosmopolitan and worldly air to them.

The people of Wildcrest favor The Dagda as their god of choice. They worship him because they believe he is the one who provides all of the crops that grow within the bountiful Bartois Plains. The Green Hearts are a religous organization that ensures the people of Wildcrest are properly worshiping The Dagda. Those who fail to properly worship him, are first talked to. If the transgressions continue, the citizen will face punishment. Their leader is the Archbishop Adrian Deschamps and he is a very close adviser to the queen. The other gods are worshipped as well, but not as devoutley as The Dagda. Worship of the monstrous gods is outlawed in the nation. However, there are cults that spring up to the Dark Ones. When found, they are destroyed by the Citadel or the Green Hearts.

Druidic traiditions are also strong within the Wildcrest Kingdom due to its close proximity to the Lamiliere Wilds. Many of the Druids look to both Oalian and The Dagda as their spiritual guides. They aid the farmers in the fields as well as the natural creatures of the Wilds. The Wardens of the Wood hold sway over the druidic traditons. Most communities within the Wilds have a Warden druid who serves as a spiritual guide and advisor. Some in the Bartois Plains also have a druid advisor in their village. The Wardens seek to find a balance between human advancement and nature. The Wardens have no problem with agriculture, animal husbandry, or hunting for food, as long as proper respect is shown for the land.