#knowledge (geography)

The Longinus state of Eldoria is famed for its rich gem veins and jewelery. Many villages are built around a mine or two, while many others pass down trade secret gemcutting techniques. One secret artisanal technique local to the town of Briaringen is the art of making 'holographic' rings that seem to display a 3-dimensional illusory image within set stone. This is done by carefully carving a shallow relief into the back of a translucent gemstone, then setting it into a ring in a certain way. The light refracting and reflecting in and back out when the ring is worn will make the relief appear as a floating shape within the stone. This is used most often with faces to create 3d cameos, but also the symbols of various deities, animals, or other simple designs. It works best on rings, but masters can also do it with pendants, earrings, or clasps. 

Lake Teahill is huge freshwater lake in the eastern reaches of the Catacombs region, fed by a fork of the Orthan River near its end. Nearly 7 miles wide and almost circular, the lake is very fine for boating on in good weather, especially in high summer.

The Kingdom of Provincia's ostensible capital is Provincia, though the culture and rule of the people there is relatively isolated to the areas around the capital and the lands to the far west. The Tegyans and the Omarians consider themselves independent with their own rulers, though the Provincian king still claims their lands as part of Provincia. This ancient dispute has resulted in various periods of sabre-rattling and skirmishes, but for the most part, the deserts and jungles make Tegya and the Omar Peninsula, respectively, too difficult to really invade, and the Provincian trade with the Omarians is too fruitful to give up. The sprawling Rokugani settlements do submit to the Provincian king's rule, but have mostly retained their own culture, so they are functionally more like a tributary land.

The Longinus State of Gaogar is best known for its supernatural wonders, which some scholars believe result from extraplanar 'bleeding' caused during the Titanwar. The Istinien Archipelago is a chain of floating islands over Lake Harmonicon, where many of the smaller isles are connected by vines and shrouded in the mists from the seemingly sourceless waterfalls that pour off their sides into the lake. To the north, the great forest of Ulmek is made of giant mushrooms sprouting from clusters of crystal undergrowth. Commonfolk who dwell nearby to harvest the crystal for export claim that on some nights, the stones will glow and sing to each other in strange, hauntingly alien melodies.

Ruled by the Earl De Mark, the state of Tornan is world-famous for its airships. The Airshipwrights Guild in the capital city of Kadesh has long kept the secret of their magical flying ships, and grown extremely wealthy by supplying them to rich buyers. Many githyanki pirate ships in the Astral Plane, as well as spelljammers like the Icarus, were assembled here over the Centuries. The technology was originally developed for skywhalers to hunt the flying skywhales that dwell among the clouds over Tornan, though these magnificent beasts are nearly extinct now.

Serious wars among the horselords of Orion are rare, but minor skirmishes over territory and livestock are frequent, usually with a few small battles before a treaty is signed. When not fighting these, the men work as cowboys herding livestock, while the women run their homes. The Orionese have a saying that "even the fiercest horselord is polite in his lady's tent" to reflect their idea that men rule the hills while women rule the home.

All warriors in the Kingdom of Orion ride into battle, so they have no real concept of knighthood and no real infantry. It is tradition to capture rather than kill a foe's mount, but if an enemy's steed is slain, the rider who slew it cuts off its tail and braids it into his hair as a way to honor its sacrifice. Orionese men wear their hair long for this reason, while women wear it short to keep it out of the way as they work.

Potions tend to taste sweeter in tropical places, like the southern coast of Terolus and Suel, because sugar ground from sugar cane plants can be added to them during their brewing.