The 7th Kingdom

Member: 6
Joined: Sep 9 2008

Hello everyone,
Questions have been sent, interest shown, whispers heard in the darkness (okay, yes we made that last bit up), so here is more information on submitting a design for the undiscovered country.

Key Points to remember:
Check out the Mythos section - particularly the Kingdoms summaries. This is the basic format submissions should take. Any and all extra materials are definitely welcomed.

Maps are a fantastic bonus, but remember, unless you have a collection of stories or novel to support a very detailed realm, leave room for other Artisans to create and build upon your 7th kingdom submission. Even within a single kingdom there should be plenty of room for other Artisans to grab their 40 acres and mule.

The 7th Kingdom had been a part of the Empire of Gallidon prior to the Destruction. Please review the Empire to make sure you are not conflicting with the basic world foundation. We've left lots of wiggle room in RoG by design, but it is important that everyone start from the same base in their creations - out of many voices comes one grand tale!

Just because it is referred to as a ‘Kingdom’ does not mean there must be a king or queen. It could be ruled by a council, a conclave, a committee of merchants, etc. There does not have to be a noble (greater or lower house) in charge. There could be a commoner at the helm or a hidden assembly of nobles. There could be a civil war between rivals - both claiming power. The doors are wide open for creativity here.

We're not in a rush to decide the 7th Kingdom. We're gathering submissions for the beastie over the next few months and keeping them in review until the time comes to open the gates to this new realm.

Tony Graham
Steward of Gallidon

Member: 4
Joined: Sep 2 2008
Villages, towns, cities, regions, etc.

Don't feel you have to wait for the 7th Kingdom to be announced before you can create villages, towns, cities or even regions.

Take a look at the interactive map. Lots of empty space there. On purpose. Room for mountains, swamps, beaches, forests, jungles, deserts, lost valleys, tundra, towns, cities, even forgotten civilizations.

When you look at the map, notice there are NO borders for the declared Kingdoms. The world is in flux. It is not stable. Civilization is falling away 50 miles in any direction from most cities, 25 miles from most towns, 5 miles from most villages.

Check out the Mythos sections - particularly the Kingdoms and Regions. These should give you jumping off points for using existing locations OR for introducing new villages, towns or cities.

All that empty space is there for YOU. Build off the common foundation laid out in the Mythos section & on the map. Take a moment to review the Guidelines. It will save you time and effort.

There's a lot of room to play on the map - notice the scale - especially when you remember an average rate of travel on well-maintained roads is 25 miles a day. And did I mention many roads are falling into decay?

Tony Graham
Steward of Gallidon

Member: 307
Joined: Oct 21 2009
Swampland

Sounds awesome. I think I may do something in regards to the swamp land of the area. Is there a possibility of a Noble House lost to Gallidon being on the new land? Maybe a "new" symbol that Gallidon has forgotten in the midst of the destruction?

Member: 4
Joined: Sep 2 2008
Lost Noble Houses, terrain, magic

Concerning a lost noble house - I'm not sure I understand your question. The unknown (as yet) 7th Kingdom is just another part of the Empire that has organized itself into a new kingdom. It should not be seen as "new" or "undiscovered country" in terms of the world mythos.
We have simply thrown the ball into the court of the creative community to develop a part of the former Empire with its own distinct culture, history, peoples, etc.
However, it should not conflict with the established world. It was a part of the shattered Empire until the Destruction.

Any sort of new order, new rulers, or new government could be rising - seizing power - in the 7th Kingdom.
Strange new sorcery? Check!
New runes of power? Check!
Weird terrain & customs? Check!

While new story elements can (and often should) conflict with what has come before during the centuries of the Empire, these elements should not violate the world mythos (the world's internal logic or foundation).

And please remember:
You don't have to wait for the 7th Kingdom to introduce a small region or terrain feature (check out the Stretch of Shadow) into the world for your tale. It is a large scale map - 500 miles to the inch - with a lot of wide open space.

You can always introduce a Lower Noble House that has discovered, developed or stumbled upon a new type of magic or rune, etc. This is the age where the Greater Noble Houses are failing. The Lower Noble Houses are the ones seizing power & making things happen.
Put another way - the Greater Noble Houses are a remnant of the past Empire. The so-called "Lower" Noble Houses will probably define the future.

Tony Graham
Steward of Gallidon

Member: 470
Joined: Apr 16 2010
Great Wall of the 7th Kingdom

Is it possible for there to be a giant wall somewhere on the isthmus to the southwest of the 7th Kingdom? I do realize that it would have to be at least a couple hundred miles long, but the Wall in China is much larger. I figure that the people in the Kingdom became very concerned for their own well being after the Destruction and decided to shut out the rest of the world. Which also might explain why there isn't a whole lot that is known about the Kingdom? Just throwing the idea out there. It seems like something that a lot of Artisans or the Stewards would have to agree on.

Member: 5
Joined: Sep 2 2008
Re: Great Wall of the 7th Kingdom

While the official history of the 7th kingdom may indeed be steeped in mystery (and perhaps even a degree of isolationism), it need not be so simply because it hasn't been defined yet.

The only reason there isn't much known at this time is that we haven't published an official accounting of the kingdom.

For anyone contemplating submitting a proposal for the 7th kingdom, the single most important question to consider is whether your vision of the kingdom makes sense given the existing mythos of Gallidon. Your vision should logically fit within the tapestry of the rest of the empire (both pre- and post-Destruction).

Which noble house(s) ruled the lands in the 7th kingdom before the Destruction? How did they react after the Destruction? Are they friendly or fearful of Kaday, Vanth, and Ishi? Or have nobles disappeared completely from the lands after the Destruction?

Secondarily, it should hopefully add a new culture, with its own unique social customs, clothes, weapons, etc. The Stewards tried to give each kingdom its own unique voice, and the 7th kingdom - whatever it turns out to be - should achieve the same thing.

Hope this helps!

Scott Walker
World Steward

Member: 484
Joined: Jun 12 2010
Please accept Farthing

I am writing an awsome novel called Sunrise over farthing. Farthing is a land which is split between the humans, the thlendar (elves) and the Badmen (evil). i would love it if this could be somewhere in the seventh kingdom because this novel means a lot to me and it would be much appreciated. There are two Brothers, Lorencio and matthias and both have reached the coming of age, 13, in havenhutland (their village) and must find work in the nearby city, rhedda because their father has fallen ill. Along the way, they fight bandits, spirits and badmen (thugs). They are taken in for training at the Fighter's, Archer's and mage's guilds and become rangers in the end. They get their mother back!

it is set in 5099 and farthing is humble under the reign of the king, but in side, things are stirring. gorath was discoverd in 5066 by the miners (the soon evil badmen) and he shrouded farthing from the rest of the 7th kingdom. there is a huge war on the borders of the human territory and Lorencio and Matthias will soon find that they become part of it.

Member: 5
Joined: Sep 2 2008
Re: Please accept Farthing

Lorenzium,

Thanks for stopping by, and welcome to Gallidon!

If you would like to discuss in more detail whether your novel would best live within Gallidon, please provide an outline (you can click on the 'Contact' link at the bottom of this page and select 'Editors' from the Category drop-down menu).

In the mean time, please review the information on the 'Submissions' page (see the link at the top of this page). It has some specific suggestions about how to collaborate in and contribute to the world of Gallidon.

Best,

Scott Walker
World Steward

Member: 5
Joined: Sep 2 2008
Cross-post from the Dragons forum thread

[cross-posting this from the other thread on Dragons]

First off, please post anything regarding the 7th Kingdom at the following thread (I think it will help if we keep these two topics running in separate threads!):

http://runesofgallidon.com/forums/7th-kingdom

Secondly, to reiterate an earlier point about the 7th Kingdom, the original intent we had for the 7th Kingdom wasn't some newly discovered region. It was designed to give Artisans a chance to introduce a new culture and climate not already represented in Gallidon, but one that was always part of the empire.

The Wastelands and the Empty Lands were meant to serve as mysterious lands, and, with the Destruction, new sources of evil and threats to what's left of the empire.

Not to say that evil isn't springing up the kingdoms or even in large cities, but we created the Wastelands and the Empty Lands to be playgrounds for new, never-before-seen monsters, villains, and possibly secrets revealing more about Gallidon's history. If you want to introduce these kinds of toys in the Gallidon sandbox, you don't need to use the 7th Kingdom to do it. : )

Now - and bear with me! - that said, I'm not ruling out the possibility that the 7th Kingdom was a walled off portion of the world. But here's the rub - this approach raises some vexing questions about what's been going on there for the past 5,000 years.

According to the Orders, the most powerful deity known to Gallidon descended to the world five millenia ago in order to unite the lands and protect the mortals. If she and her agent (Emperor Gallidon) left a part of the land out of the unification formula, there would have to be a very good reason for it. A very good reason.

The theme of Gallidon is one of decay. Things were great for a long time, but behind the scenes, they got increasingly worse. Ultimately, they got so bad, it resulted in the Destruction, which caused people to take nothing for granted. Things are not what they were, and they likely never will be.

But it all started with a unified empire that slowly went horribly wrong.

So, as you think about what the 7th Kingdom is, please remember the larger context for it in the mythology of Gallidon.

Scott Walker
World Steward

Member: 322
Joined: Nov 2 2009
Explorers?

If the 7th Kingdom was not walled off or anything, would people have explored it? Some sort of word must have gotten back, at least, to Tar Mira, or even Krea'al. I suppose that would be the story though, wouldn't it? Someone who explored it and it now telling of what he saw... Hmmmmm. thought there might be more than one person who has gone in there over they years and years. I don't know, I'll think of something!