DREGORDIA [GREY] Banner  - Black silhouette of a Kayakor
(traditional Dregordian pole arm) on a grey field.

FACTS IN BRIEF - Located to the far west, near the middle of the
western coast.  A relatively small and secluded area dominated by
deep forest, expansive marshes, and mountains.  A saurian species
struggling to maintain its hold on civilization, having been a
savage and warlike race for thousands of years before.  Worst of
all, many still blame the Dregordians for the Dragon War that
ravaged the lands over 800 years ago.
     Role-playing Notes - Dregordians are the classic "lizardman"
types.  They are large, strong, tough, and strange to all other
humanoid species who encounter them.  There is a savage beast deep
inside each Dregordian, struggling to take control.  This is why
they strive to build as tightly-structured a society they can. 
Their society and their culture evoke a very Roman-esque image (in
an idealized sense).  Many Dregordians are aloof, dispassionate,
and even a tad snobbish.  Others are actually quiet and unassuming,
even to the point of shyness.  In an effort to stave the "beast"
off, they often evoke qualities that would be found quite admirable
in humans and other races.
     It is expected that the Dregordian player will at least take
an appropriate Psych Lim (such as "Prone to Quick Temper"); more
appropriate would be an Enraged or even Berserk in combat or under
extreme stress.

     Dregordia is ruled by the Consul, the highest title of rank in
their society.  The Consul is served by the Consular Services, a
highly complex bureaucracy that includes such organizations as the
Consular House of Adepts, the Consular Library Service, and the
Consular Water Administration.  The Consular Legion is the most
honored military legion in Dregordia.
     The Consul is always a noble, and the office is generally
hereditary.  Every so often, however, a new noble family takes
over, chosen by a Consular Conclave when the peers of the realm
deem it wise or when circumstances mandate.  The current Consul is
Ssedra na Dristak, who is 110 but still going strong.  The na
Dristak family is relatively new, dating back only 900 years or so,
but it is well respected if not loved.
     Dregordians are reptilian, with a very warlike past.  Over the
last millennia, they have struggled to shed their savagery,
although martial training, especially in the use of the national
weapon, the kayakor, is still mandatory for nobles and their
vassals.
     There are very few poor Dregordians, and only marginally more
very rich ones.  Most citizens have some claim to being member of
this or that minor noble family, so status is rarely a thing of
common dispute.All Dregordians are associated with a house, whether
directly or (in the case of many city dwellers) somewhat tenuously
based on historical, personal, or regional ties.  Social relations
are generally cordial, though there is a current of hostility that
lays just beneath the painfully built up layers of civility.
     Dregordia is a harsh land, though much has improved since the
time when marsh dragons and the mysterious Noor-nakar terrorized
outlying farms and villages.  Those menaces were largely destroyed
some 800 years ago during the Dragon War.  Current problems involve
mainly pirate raids on the coast, bandits from the Kal Empire to
the north, and the Kal civil war that threatens to spill over into
Dregordia.
     Politically, Dregordia is run as a benevolent despotism.  The
Consul's word is Law, but custom and common sense (not to mention
the threat of a kayakor in the throat in the night) temper the
Consular hand.  Dregordians are neutral in most external matters as
a rule; they have only recently established stronger diplomatic
ties with the Kingdom of Galea and the Elvish nation.  The excesses
of the Empire and the tyranny of the Prelacy leave much to be
desired in the eyes of most (but not all) Dregordians.
     Dregordian society is surprisingly and refreshingly peaceful;
it is almost a religion for them to maintain control.  Holidays are
still often celebrated with (toned down) martial tournaments.  It
should be noted that the civility and peaceful demeanor of the
Dregordian society should not be mistaken for weakness.  A legion
of kayakor-wielding Dregordians is still one of the most formidable
and frightening sights on any battlefield.
     Females have equal status to males in Dregordian society, but
non-Dregordians have no place within the crux of Dregordian
culture.  There is a surprisingly high percentage of Dregordians
capable of following the Way; Dregordian adept schools are world
renown.

The Nine Major Dregordian Houses
     na Brssak           "of Royal Blood"
     na Dristak          "from the Jungle"
     vo Drrsshak         "the Dragon Slayers"
     na Kresska          "of the Fearless"
     na Ssathiss         "from the Vagabond Waves"
     vo Ssartis          "the Scale of the Dragon"
     na Torasssi         "of the Eastern Marsh"
     vo Trasshka         "the Warrior King"
     na Vrdlak           "of the Glimmering Hills"