Thrapsus

The continent

Overview

After the unfortunate burning of the Great Library at the Tercento city of Ferisia, most centralized knowledge regarding the Continent of Thrapsus was lost, forgotten, or reduced to unreliable rumors and local hearsay. The aim of this chronicle is to correct that profound loss. This work relies on dedicated chroniclers from each land, who have supplied the recorded histories, maps, and local lore of the continent’s myriad inhabitants to the newly constructed Great Library. The collected documentation offers a detailed, ground-level perspective on a complex and often hostile world. Thrapsus is a land of intense diversity and perpetual conflict, home to multiple warring animal taxa, including various mammalian, reptilian, and insectoid peoples, alongside the elusive and difficult-to-classify Fey-kind.

The relationships between these diverse species are rarely congenial. While some alliances of convenience exist, they are fragile and often temporary. The mammalian species, for example, exhibit as much animosity toward each other (such as between the Ratogs and the Pig-Orcs) as they do toward obvious external threats. Similarly, rigid caste systems and ancient feuds define internal relations among races such as the K’tharr, the Saurians, and the Kethrul Turtlelians.

Wars

Warfare across Thrapsus is conducted with technology ranging from the Iron Age to the early Medieval period. Factions are armed with standardized weaponry such as swords, shields, pikes, and bows (both longbow and crossbow). Armor is functional; chainmail, leather, and fur are common, while heavy plate armor is rare but present in elite human and dwarven units. Most races employ some form of mounted troops, necessitating widespread use of anti-cavalry weapons such as pikes, halberds, and glaives. Siege weaponry, including catapults, drill-rams, and battering rams, is universally deployed against fixed fortifications.

Religion and Magic

The spiritual landscape of Thrapsus is varied and fragmented, and it rarely serves as a unifying force. Major powers like the Saurian Empire operate under strict theocracies centered on solar deities, while others, like the Mouse Empire, exhibit little central religious authority. Dwarven factions vary wildly, from the rigid, pragmatic faith of the Mining Coalition of Midivar (which bans arcane magic outright) to the innovative, magic-embracing Kingdom of Dun Kareth. Orcs venerate the practical, often brutal, forces of nature, such as the Eternal Chill or The Great Forge, linking belief directly to survival and environmental conditions. Magic exists across the spectrum; some races rely on innate talents (Knoots, Fey-kind), others utilize disciplined martial magic (Saurians, Dun Kareth Dwarves), while others fear or ban it entirely. This diversity means that what one culture calls a divine blessing, another calls a dangerous, unnatural aberration to be hunted and destroyed.

Trade and Commerce

Trade and commerce across Thrapsus are defined by scarcity, suspicion, and necessity. The burning of the Great Library disrupted most centralized trade routes, leaving commerce in the hands of regional powers and dangerous independents. Critical goods—metals from the dwarven realms, unique Piran mounts from the K’tharr, specialized crops from the human heartlands, or salvaged goods from the Roaring Wastes—are highly prized. Trade hubs like Kethryl’s Crossing (Centaurs) and Siltbound Crossing (Frog Folk) exist in highly guarded neutral zones. Alliances are frequently formed based purely on access to vital resources or strategic goods, such as the Karskaro Orcs trading military service for essential forged goods from the Trolls. While every faction desires the stability of trade, the constant threat of banditry, political instability, and open warfare means that trade is always conducted with caution and heavy armed escort.

This guide provides an overview of the key powers that shape this fractured landscape—from the industrious Dwarves of Midivar and the resilient Humans of the Lanshir Savanna to the reclusive Crocodylians and the high-flying Eeeks. The following entries detail a world where endurance, cunning, and localized strength matter more than grand empires, offering the reader an unfiltered look at survival on the Continent of Thrapsus.

Lands of Thrapsus and Their Peoples Thrapsus Geographical Placement