#*start

Before I get into the different regions and towns, I actually want to explain the star marks first. They show where you'd meet the travelers to add them to your party if they weren't chosen as your protagonist. Yellow is the apothecary, dark blue the thief, light blue the cleric, black the scholar, purple the merchant, green the warrior, orange the hunter, and finally, red is the dancer.

And with that concluded, time to actually talk about the land's locations!

THE DEADLANDS

Once known as the Marshlands, a horrible sickness known as the Blight struck the region during the Eight Years’ War. The Blight stole life from the once vibrant swamp, destroying crops and killing citizens, until it became the desolate and decaying wasteland most know it as now. Nobody knows for certain where the Blight came from; it could have just been any other sickness, or an enchantment by some sinister scholar, or something else entirely. But one thing is for certain: The Deadlands earned their name thanks to it.

Deltaspring

A small farming town at the mouth of a delta. Ever since the Blight hit the region, agriculture has greatly slowed; while before, Deltaspring produced enough crops to feed the whole region, it can now feed itself with a slight surplus. That being said, this is one of the few areas of the Deadlands where farming is at least possible. The region has had to mostly sustain off trade from other regions, but it’s primarily Deltaspring that prevents the region from being entirely reliant on others. Here, an apothecary named Tao makes her home, desperately trying to stop the Blight from affecting the people of her town.

Bogreed

A village on stilts, nestled into the swamp. Bogreed was hit rather hard by the Blight, with most of the agriculture industry being wiped out, even worse than in Deltaspring. The desperation of the townspeople has led to an underground crime ring taking root here, gaining and spending money through illicit means — including a gladiator ring — to stay alive.

Dimhearth

Dimhearth was once considered one of the major political powers of the world, and a historically important aggressor in the Eight Years’ War (on the side of Blizzardchapel, Spirereach, and Bloomcrown), but now, none of that power remains. Once an additional headquarters for the Church of the Sacred Flame, Dimhearth has since been abandoned after the Blight, leaving the people with tattered faith. In the time since, a gang of pirates known as the Crimson Cutthroats have made their base here, demanding the people pay tribute to them — or else.

THE WAVELANDS

An archipelago in the Shattered Sea, the Wavelands are considered the mercantile center of Vericitias. From the smallest of businesses to the grandest of corporations, all can be found here. However, the area is also a brooding ground for pirates. In particular, two factions of pirates combat one another for dominance in the seas beside the Wavelands: the bloodthirsty thugs called the Crimson Cutthroats, and the noble yet misunderstood Hawk Raiders. The Crimsons target ships near indiscriminately, as long as they look like they have something worth plundering; meanwhile, the Hawks only target ships connected to merchant companies with evidence of immoral activity — nonetheless, travelers are wary of both.

Saltshore

A humble fishing village on the edge of the Wavelands, Saltshore has a tight-knit community of close neighbors. Due to its location, it often finds itself the refuge of shipwrecks and stowaways — including a certain noble pirate named Crowley, who winds up marooned here after a harsh storm.

Tropicharbor

Tropicharbor thrives off trade and tourism, which it gets in spades thanks to its strategic position near the center of the land of Vericitias. It’s also noted for having a sizable beastling population, further spreading the town’s influence thanks to its multicultural reach.

Anchorfell

Anchorfell is perhaps the most successful trading hub in the whole land. At its beating heart is the Oracle Corporation, a massive trading company that’s all but monopolized shipping across Vericitias — though rumors persist of its past, and possibly present, corruption. Anchorfell remained a neutral party during the Eight Years’ War, keeping its role as a supplier for both sides.

THE PEAKLANDS

The home of this land’s Church of the Sacred Flame, the Peaklands is a harsh, frigid, and rugged land. The snowcapped mountains completely surround the region, save for a more open area close to the border with the Mistlands. In this unforgiving environment, many have found solace and support in the church — however, twenty years ago, the church began showing signs of corruption, leaving many disillusioned and lost.

Snowcap Abbey

An abbey town not far from the border with the Mistlands. Many people who have grown unsatisfied with the Church of the Sacred Flame gather here to live and worship instead of the church’s capital, Winterchapel; while the monastery follows the same religion as the church, it is of a different, more tolerant sect than that the increasingly corrupt church propels. Among the monks and nuns here is a cleric named Phaedra, among the people most vocal about the church’s mistakes.

Ridgegate

A militaristic town situated perfectly in the valley between Snowcap Abbey and Winterchapel. This is the home base of the Paladins of the Flame, the church’s elite soldiers. Nobody is permitted to pass through the gate to or from Winterchapel — not without the church’s permission.

Winterchapel

The capital of the Church of the Sacred Flame, and a victor of the Eight Years’ War alongside Spirereach and Bloomcrown. It’s a massive city, built into the basin between mountains. At the very peak of the city is a huge cathedral, the largest belonging to the church. Generally, lower-class citizens live near the bottom of the basin, while high-class citizens live near the peaks. Interestingly, you’ll notice that people’s classes are usually positively correlated with their positions in the church (people with little to no power in the church being of the lower class, while people with high power in the church have a higher standing in the city’s society), to the point where people may struggle to afford their needs if they don't have some sort of position of power. That’s totally not a sign of something wrong, right [sarcastic]?

THE MISTLANDS

The Mistlands get their name from the near-constant rain and fog in the area. It’s a somewhat mountainous region, but not nearly as much as the Peaklands (or any mountainous Octopath region, like the Highlands or Crestlands, for that matter). The region is an industrial center, filled with dense cities and productive factories. Unfortunately, it also finds itself the den of unsavory folk, including an infamous black market and a criminal organization that lives in the shadows.

Cloudport

A bustling city near the coastline, Cloudport is a big trading hub, a place where goods are both made and sold. On the other hand, Cloudport has a rather high crime rate, with everything from burglary to murder being a regular occurrence. It’s a good thing that the scholarly detective, Trixie, is on the case, aiming to help stop this injustice — on the path to solving a mystery she’s been trying to crack for years.

Fogshade

While another big city, Fogshade has a quiet, sinister air to it that even the dangerous city Cloudport lacks. After all, it’s where you’ll find the notorious Black Market, where all sorts of unsavory goods are on sale for hefty prices. Forbidden magic, the services of assassins, weapons and poisons fit to kill — nothing is considered too dangerous or illegal to sell on the market.

Cogsmount

The center of industry in all of Vericitias, countless inventors and merchants make their homes here. From the outside looking in, it seems like a technological paradise, with steam power fueling many aspects of life — and the list continuing to grow — making it a convenient place to live. But the citizens know differently. In the shadows, something rotten lurks, though few can say quite what — and the few who can are often wise enough to keep their mouths shut, else the Desire of Fortune force their silence. The organization has gripped power since very shortly before the Eight Years’ War, but strangely enough, not even Cogsmount’s loss made Desire lose power. In fact, some wonder if Cogsmount’s loss was *purposeful*, if they intentionally sabotaged Riverglen and Oasishaven.

THE AUTUMNLANDS

The Autumnlands is a temperate forest region, with an exceptionally long autumn making up most of the year, alongside short winters and even shorter summers, hence the name of the region. The region is known for being a relaxing countryside with small towns, and is recommended to anyone who tires of the bustling cities of areas like the Mistlands or the Blossomlands. In addition to the Deadlands prior to the Blight, the Autumnlands have consistently been an area of major agricultural output, though with different exports due to the different climate. Ever since the Blight struck the Deadlands, however, agricultural practices have increased drastically throughout the Autumnlands, more and more people relying on these goods now that the Deadlands can hardly produce much of anything.

Hollowvale

A small, quiet town in a hollow at the base of the mountain range leading into the Mistlands and the Peaklands. A waterfall that falls from a mountain spring trickles down into a pond, and then a river, which continues through the Autumnlands all the way to the sea. The town has settled around this pond, using irrigation techniques from it to water their crops and slake the thirst of their people. It’s a calm, quiet place, and a favored vacation spot for people from the nearby Mistlands as a result. The lord in charge of the town is rather strict on collecting tax and debt from the local farmers and workers, however, and it is rumored that he has ties with some shadowy organization in the Mistlands. This doesn’t sit well at all with a seasoned, charismatic merchant named Hanzo, who runs a small antique shop on the outskirts of town — and doesn’t exactly hold that organization, or the lord of Hollowvale, in high regard.

Fenrise

An agricultural town much like its neighbors in the region, this one is unique due to the predictable floods that occur in the area, with it so close to the river and the coast. The town itself is high on a hill to avoid the floods, and the docks on the river and the coast were built to float and take advantage of the tides. Additionally, the flooding creates fertile soil, and the predictable pattern allows for easy farming. Humans and beastlings both live and work here, and have a tight-knit community with one another.

Spirereach

Named for the massive towers that stretch up into the sky, Spirereach is a seat of nobility. The noble bloodline is directly related to the royal bloodline of Bloomcrown, with the current prince being a cousin of Bloomcrown’s current king. A lot of the agricultural production in Spirereach is offered to the noble family as a sort of tax. Interestingly, despite the nobility’s close blood and political relationship with Bloomcrown, they aren’t nearly as beloved by their citizens as their cousins in the Blossomlands, causing tensions to rise between the two branches of the family.

THE BLOSSOMLANDS

A lush, dense rainforest on the southern continent, filled to the brim with life. It’s also a heavily developed region, with some of the biggest cities in the land, aside from the Mistlands. While, for the most part, cities in other regions tend to govern themselves with little political involvement from other city-states, the Blossomlands are slightly different. While the towns are technically considered independent of one another, the largest city, Bloomcrown, has some level of government over the other two cities of the Blossomlands, more as overseers than actual law enforcers or political figureheads.

Bloomcrown

Nicknamed “the crown jewel of the Blossomlands”, Bloomcrown is arguably one of the most powerful city-states in the entire land of Vericitias, if not the most powerful. It was among the victors of the Eight Years’ War alongside Blizzardchapel and Spirereach. It is ruled by a monarchy, and the current king is, comparatively, the most laidback in a long line of strict and stern monarchs, even more so after the war. Though, his daughter is even more progressive, even to the point of drawing ire from her other family members; on the other hand, the citizens of the city absolutely adore her, and her staunch stance on equality between humans and beastlings has led to a larger beastling population in Bloomcrown than ever before. Ever at the princess’s side is the warrior Akiva, a member of the Royal Guard more loyal to the princess than the crown in general — and fiercely loyal, at that.

Petalcreek

A small, idyllic town settled on the large river that cuts through the Blossomlands. It was once a bustling city like its neighbors, Bloomcrown and Lushhart, but was completely razed in the Eight Years’ War by the combined forces of Riverglen and Oasishaven. Even now, eight years later, it’s still in the process of being rebuilt by its survivors. As a result of their past, they can be somewhat judgmental to outsiders, but on the other hand, they have a very tight-knit community.

Lushhart

A primarily beastling settlement, Lushhart is mostly a mining town. The earth beneath the Blossomlands is rich with countless valuable minerals, and Lushhart takes advantage of that for their work and their trade. Of great interest is a cave that was found in one of the mines, filled with colorful, glowing mushrooms. Fungi of the sort have never been seen before, and Lushhart is currently in correspondence with scholars from Clifthall trying to figure out what the mushrooms are.

THE BRUSHLANDS

The Brushlands are a savannah region between the rainforest of the Blossomlands and the desert of the Badlands, on the southern continent. This region and the Badlands both have the largest overall beastling population of all the regions. The towns in this region are generally highly independent, not really engaging with other towns outside, or even within, the region beyond what is necessary. Like the Autumnlands, it is also a rather rural area heavily focused on hunting and farming.

Shrubsteppe

This settlement is almost exclusively populated by beastlings, and is rather isolated from the rest of the world. It rests in a basin between hills with an entrance hidden behind a waterfall; the town is built on winding wooden pathways on the side of the hills, with homes that look similar to hobbit holes built into the earth. This isolation ended up being a good thing for them during the Eight Years’ War, when they were hardly bothered by their warring neighbors, so they continued that lifestyle. In Shrubsteppe, by far the most respected job you can take is that of a hunter, a job that takes years of training and a trial to be considered proficient in. In the Hunter’s Trial, you must first kill a beast to prove your potential, and then explore the world for as long as you’d like to learn what it means to you to be a hunter. Ready and eager to take this trial is Oriel, who has a secondary goal while on his quest: To find his missing sister, who embarked on her own trial three years prior and has yet to return. Alongside him is Hoku, a firebird and the child of the current wardenbeast, who was assigned to go on the quest with him; Oriel's more relaxed nature is a welcome contrast to Hoku's brash and bold personality.

Riverglen

A town between two rivers that eventually join to reach the sea. Riverglen is a city with a mixed human and beastling population, and is unique because they don’t follow quite the same pantheon of gods as the other areas in Vericitias. They believe in a unique religion, forgotten by most and practiced by fewer, in which they worship only four gods who have dominion over different aspects of the world. (As an aside, it is by fighting these four gods that you can unlock the secret jobs, which I’ve yet to figure out at this time.) Unfortunately, the corrupted Church of the Sacred Flame does not take kindly to the worship of “false gods”, which leads to tension between the church and the people of Riverglen, in addition to pre-existing tensions from even before the Eight Years’ War — which Riverglen lost alongside Oasishaven and Cogsmount.

Breezegrave

The newest city-state in all of Vericitias, Breezegrave was created after the Eight Years’ War to honor the fallen, rulers and soldiers and civilians alike. Essentially, the town is a massive memorial; very few people actually live here, only those whose job it is to oversee and expand the place. It is seen as a highly sacred place that you should only visit if you intend to mourn or honor the dead of the war.

THE BADLANDS

The Badlands is a desert region, and alongside the Brushlands, has the largest beastling population of all eight regions in Vericitias. In general, the people of the Badlands highly value art and academia, and firmly believe in a sense of community between people in the blistering, rocky environment.

Canyonsong

Canyonsong is a small town in the Badlands, just west of the Brushlands. This town, like many others nearby, has a mixed population of humans and beastlings. It is primarily notable due to its major cultural and religious influence. Most mythology of Vericitias shys away from even mentioning the Fallen God, Galdera, fearing the name itself is somehow cursed to say, that the story is somehow destined to repeat if retold. Canyonsong, however, is one of the few city-states that openly acknowledges the Fallen's existence. They have murals and stories dedicated to Galdera's fall from grace and eventual defeat at the hands of two different groups of travelers from distant lands and ages past, and an annual festival celebrating his fall. This festival, called the Festival of Spirits, also serves as a way to honor and commemorate the dead. At the center of this festival is the Book of Spirits, a book which contains immense magic power, should it be used, though it is considered a remnant of the past now. A dancer and musician named Octavian has been assigned to handle the Book, along with his two siblings, this year.

Clifthall

Clifthall is home to the most prestigious magic academy in all the land, Clifthall Academy. It was created over a century ago; for a long time, magic academies worldwide only allowed human students to enroll, falsely believing beastling students to be “incapable”. But a group of beastlings from Oasishaven established Clifhall Academy themselves. The work from their students and professors drew eyes from across all three continents. Eventually, beastlings from all over the world came to the school; even humans took interest in the academy thanks to its great standing, and came to study there. Over the decades, Clifthall Academy slowly grew to be respected and well-regarded, leading to less discrimination in magic academies overall, and Clifthall Academy becoming the greatest magic academy known in Vericitias and possibly beyond. The entire city is built around this academy, having lodgings for students and professors, and an absolutely massive library.

Oasishaven

Of all of the settlements with a primarily beastling population, Oasishaven is the largest and most respected. Even though they were on the losing side of the Eight Years' War, alongside Riverglen and Cogsmount, and have had to deal with the aftermath of that, they still manage to hold themselves up high. They have a matriarchal monarchy, and the previous queen, after the loss of the war, retired early to pass on the throne to her rather young daughter at the time. Compared to her mother, the new queen is much less strict, instead ruling with a more gentle, more patient hand. However, some fear that she is almost *too* kind, liable to be taken advantage of; still others believe that such a fear is an outdated remnant of the war.

THE EIGHT YEARS’ WAR

For the final section of this, I wanted to talk about this Eight Years’ War that I keep mentioning throughout my description of the world; as you can see, it’s kind of important to the worldbuilding of Vericitias. I originally wanted to limit what I said about it and only sprinkle in information through other characters’ stories, but I realized that it would get confusing fast if all of the important information was spread so far apart. So I’m going to give a brief description of the war here, but know that this is far from everything and other information will come in time.

To begin, the seeds for the war were actually planted about twenty years prior to the story, when the Church of the Sacred Flame began showing signs of its corruption. Back then, its secondary capital in Dimhearth was still at full power, as the Blight hadn’t hit the Deadlands yet. So, you can thank Blizzardchapel and Dimhearth for being the primary instigators of the Eight Years’ War, as they tried to strongarm their way into more power.

Additionally, there were a lot of other factors leading to the allegiances falling the way they did:

Centuries ago, it was the Church of the Sacred Flame that installed the monarchy in Bloomcrown, and by extension, later, Spirereach. As a result, the Church and the monarchy has always had a good relationship.

Oasishaven and Bloomcrown had a bit of a historical rivalry, due to Bloomcrown’s old discrimination against beastlings, and a past war many decades ago (they haven’t let go of the resulting grudges since).

The Church had great distaste for the alternative gods that Riverglen worshipped, leading to high tensions between the two groups.

Oasishaven and Riverglen are long-standing allies. Oasishaven, much more powerful and influential, would often help Riverglen stand up to the Church; Riverglen, on the other hand, would help Oasishaven by providing varieties of food and supplies that the desert city wouldn't have been able to obtain otherwise.

Desire of Fortune had secured their power over Cogsmount and wanted to spread their influence even further; they viewed the growing Church as a dangerous threat to that power. (Why is it suspected that they sabotaged their allies, then, you may ask? All I can say is that Desire will do anything for power and is willing to change their plans to get it; anything else is too spoilery to say.)

Cogsmount had usually been pretty distant from Oasishaven and Riverglen, but saw a potential for valuable allies with the two of them, and was the one who suggested the alliance.

Tensions rose and rose, until the queen of Bloomcrown was assassinated. While the perpetrator was never caught, it was widely believed that they were connected to Cogsmount’s rulers. The king, in his grief and rage — and desire to protect his rather young daughter, and only heir — sent forces to attack Cogsmount as a result. Immediately, all hell broke loose. War was inevitably declared, sixteen years prior to the story. On one side was Blizzardchapel, Dimhearth, Bloomcrown, and Spirereach; on the other was Oasishaven, Riverglen, and Cogsmount.

As the name of the war implies, it lasted for eight whole years. In that time, the mysterious Blight devastated Dimhearth and the rest of the Deadlands, evening the ground between the two sides. However, eventually, Blizzardchapel, Bloomcrown, and Spirereach simply outlasted the other side, emerging as the victors. As a result, the worldwide power of Cogsmount, Riverglen, and Oasishaven has been stifled. The war finally ended eight years prior to the story.

And the last thing I have to say that I'm not sure where to put is that beastlings are going to be entirely overhauled to be significantly less offensive in their execution (at least, that's the hope, but please tell me if I need to do something more to improve it)! Here's a short list of the things that change off the top of my head, though I may be missing some things as most of this story has simply been stored in my brain:

Remember how weird it was that most beastlings could only ever speak two works at a time except for Ochette? Yeah, well, not the case anymore. Human and Beastling are now considered two separate languages containing both speaking and writing. Like how many humans may not be able to speak or read Beastling, some beastlings you may meet may not be able to speak Human, and some Beastling scripts you find may not already be translated into Human; in these situations, you will need either Oriel (a beastling) or Octavian (a human who grew up among beastlings), both fluent in Beastling, in your party to understand what's being said. (I'm considering adding Trixie to that list as well, because she is a scholar and also spent a lot of time around beastlings, but I'm not entirely sure yet!)

There's more than literally two settlements mostly populated with beastlings! These settlements are also a bit more varied in culture and government. Even among towns that have a primarily human population, you'll likely find a couple of beastlings, as well.

Speaking of variety, I try to treat the beastlings like they're varied and individual people, and that's probably the thing I try to emphasize the most about the overhauled beastlings. I feel like Octopath 2 used the same sort of template for most of their beastling characters, even the NPCs (unquestioningly hospitable, food loving, clueless about the world, sometimes wanting to emulate humans, etc) and I wanted to try straying away from that. There should hopefully be more important, named, and varied beastling characters as a result.

Humans are actually aware of the beastlings' existence instead of being grossly uneducated like the humans in Octopath 2.

The whole thing where beastlings are incapable of experiencing greed thanks to how D'arquest made them is retconned into just a creation myth that's not necessarily true. Makes them more three-dimensional that way, I think.

Cinnamon Apple Cakes!

2 cups all purpose flour

1/2 teaspoon salt

1 tablespoon baking powder

1 egg

10 ounces (a little more than a cup) sour cream

4 tablespoons melted and slightly cooled butter

1 1/2 cups/3 medium apples

1/4 cup sugar

2 tablespoons cinnamon

Preheat the oven to 350°F/175°C

Peel and chop your apples into roughly 1/2 inch cubes(its perfectly fine if they're uneven!)

Combine your cinnamon and sugar in a medium bowl, then add chopped apples and toss until the apples are coated in the cinnamon sugar, then set aside

Whisk your flour, salt and baking powder in a large bowl

Add the apples to your flour mixture, and gently mix to ensure all the apples are dispersed evenly through the mixture

In another medium bowl, whisk your egg until light and combined, then add the sugar in two additions and whisk until homogeneous

Add the sour cream in 2-3 additions, whisking until light and combined, and finally add your butter, combining well

Using a rubber spatula, fold the liquids into the bowl with the flour mixture, and combine slowly, making sure to mix in all flour while not over mixing the batter

Take out your pans, grease with butter and flour

Divide the batter evenly between your pans. I used four miniature cake pans, but you can use any cake or muffin pans, however i recommend keeping close watch on the time as they won't bake for the same time as small cake pans.

If using small pans, bake for 25-30 minutes. They should have a slightly golden and crisp crust on top when finished.

If using muffin tins, bake 20-25 minutes, though if after inserting a toothpick, it comes out still wet, bake for up to 30 minutes total

If using a large cake pan, bake for 25-30 minutes, checking every 5 minutes after 30 with a toothpick an inch out from the edge, and waiting for a lightly golden crust

When finished, cool on racks in pan for 5-10 minutes before turning out

-For the Topping-

Melt 2 tablespoons of butter and brush/drizzle over baked cakes while they cool. Mix a tablespoon of sugar and 1 1/2 teaspoons of cinnamon in a small bowl and sprinkle over the cakes.