The Magic of Altasia

Altasia is a great land filled with wonderous beasts and breathtaking scenery. Three kingdoms live in this land. To the west, amongst the forests and grassy plains, the Arkians have settled. They built castles of stone and huge farms, planning to live off of the fat of the land. Their army is reasonably large, with a focus on strong defenses. A wall of Arkian shields is said to be unbreakable. King Arkaym rules fairly over this kingdom, though he was vain enough to name it after himself.

The kingdom of Shallir lies in the desert-filled east. The tanned Shallians work most days, struggling to keep any farms afoot. For this reason, they have mighty bands of warriors who hunt huge beasts for food. They live in towns of sandstone and their main defenses are their warriors of legendary skill. Although there is no current war, the Shallians will always hate the Arkian people for claiming the good land for themselves. Shallir is ruled by Lord Khal, who is said to be a swordsman of unmatched skill and speed.

The final kingdom lives in impressive tree-top houses in the dense forests that cover the north. The people there are known as Reldians, their kingdom Reldia. Reldians are known for their natural sense of animal empathy and their great natural skill with ranged weapons. They are suspicious of the other two kingdoms and rarely make contact. Reldia is ruled by the Great Woodsman, Kinuk.

Nobody lives in the south as it is plagued with the most evil and vicious of the beasts.

Magic. Nobody thought it existed. Men fought with sword & bow and 'magicians' were just con-men that cheated drunk men out of their coin. But recently, the strangest of people are appearing. People of all ages and from all walks of life are developing strange powers. One schoolboy woke up to find that his right hand was gone, now replaced with a whip made of pure fire that he could control like a new limb. A Reldian potter woke up to find that he could now freeze anything that he touched just by wanting it to be so.

The powers that are appearing are completely varied. There is no pattern and people are calling it an act of God. The kings, however, are reacting differently. Arkaym demands that anybody with a dangerous ability joins the army. Refusal leads to death. He also has the guards spy on people with less dangerous powers to make sure that they aren't planning anything. Khal is even less lenient. Any discovered magic-users are put to death instantly. He believes they are the spawn of demons. Kinuk, however, welcomes magic-users with open arms. For this reason, many refugees are fleeing from the eastern and western kingdoms to join Kinuk and his people. These magic users are appearing more and more frequently and with greater degrees of power.