The Untamed Lands: A Colony Is Born

[font="System"][color="DarkRed"]The Land of Rayvindor, is a small landlocked City-State on the Western Continent. Long ago it was a prosperous fiefdom of a much larger nation. When war ravaged the entire continent, Rival empires were able to conquer every city in the land save Rayvindor itself. The Capital fell to invading forces and they absorbed much of lands surrounding Rayvindor and it's countrysides.

However the City of Rayvindor had grown strong and remained fiercely defiant against these new occupiers. The Lord of the Fiefdom, Lucius Corvinus proclaimed himself King and that Rayvindor was to be an independent nation. The City is well fortified and its army is famous in the Western lands for their ferocity and discipline. It's people are strongly nationalistic. They are intensely proud of their heritage and tradition and would rather fight down to the last man, than to be subjugated by foreign powers. They have bravely fended off the assaults of outsiders and the Kingdom's defenders have continued to baffle their much larger neighbors. They hold their sovereignty with brilliant defense from the city walls and ingenious guerrilla attacks from the countrysides of the land. Their success can largely be attributed to the military designs of the Kings eldest son Lucius Corvinus II

The People are bound and determined to be free and free they are. Yet independence has had its price. Strife has ravaged the Small Nation. The Rebellious new King who had kept his people free at all odds, had grown old and Rayvindor's population had tripled since his reign over the land began. Foreign workers were allowed in to help expand the city, defend its walls and work the countryside. These outsiders were welcomed to the cause, provided that they respect Rayvindor, her traditions and people. In return their families have earned a place in the kingdom. This Expansion however has caused great burden and the Kings Court searched to find the best answer to the problem of overpopulation.

Rayvindor is surrounded on three sides by warring empires and has only the seemingly endless Blood Dune Desert to its south. The constant battling at its borders and sometimes through its heartland made the City itself the only truly safe place in the country. Effectively blockaded by war no food could be brought in from elsewhere and with so many families, the Kingdom is hard stretched to feed its people..

When things seemed grim... Finally a great blessing was discovered by the Archmage of Rayvindor. He came upon a most strange swirling vortex while walking the countryside. He stepped through into lands far to the south. He spoke of Crystal Clear rivers teeming with fresh fish and flat lands for raising crops and livestock. He had seen Mountains ripe with precious metals for the taking and fine stone to quarry. Above all there were lush green forests with all the strong hardy timbers a new colony could need and more. In the wilds he had seen enough game to feed an army. From what he had gathered, the place he had been transported to was far to the south and the mountains separated the beautiful green valleys of The Untamed Lands from the Blood Dune Desert. He brought word of his discovery to the Kings Court and explained that he barelly had made it back because this gate appeared to be unstable. It had nearly disappeared without warning and he leapt back just before it dissipated, trapping him in this strange wild country. He later learned from studying the "Gate" very closely, it was a tear in the prime material plane. He had heard word of a great cataclysm that had taken place in prehistoric times, how that had spread these tears across the world.... He had never seen one before and certainly not in Rayvindor..... He continued to research the phenomena and learned that it swelled open.... wide enough for many men and wagons to pass through but only once in a year.