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The Nordland is the northernmost island in Terracopia, and also the name of the nation comprising the entire island. It is known for its bitter winters and brief summers. The Althing governs the island.

It is always referred to as The Nordland. Natives are called Nordlanders.

[edit] Climate and Weather

The climate of the Nordland is harsh. The winters last for six months, and are known as the Long Dark. The spring and fall, two months each, are known as the Changes. The summer is the Short Light.

The northern and eastern coasts are made of high, water-beaten cliffs and twisty fjords. The central region has deep valleys and high peaks; many sheep dot the landscape, but few crops.

The western coast of the Nordland is lashed with storms frequently in all seasons, but the harshest storms, coming from the north-east, arrive in the fall. The first storm of the two-month autumn is known as the Droplet, and it is considered to be a harbinger of the strength of the storms that autumn. If it lasts less than two days, it is called the Small Droplet, and means that the first month will be unusually cruel. If it lasts longer than three, it is called the Drop; this means that the autumn will be relatively calm. If it lasts exactly three days, it is called the Fated Storm, and the autumn storms will lash the coast mercilessly. The Fated Storm happens once every decade; the year of the Resurrection Pit, and the Striking of Mila, the Droplet was a Fated Storm.

The Droplet is taken by some to be a weather forecast, but others take it to be a forecast of fortunes. Enough evidence points in either direction to make the debate a hot one, even as the cold rains soak the island. It is traditional, while the Droplet lasts, for the residents of the Nordland to take shelter together in Family Halls and feast for the duration on the last crops to be harvested; this is called the Drink. The second day of the Drink is taken with the telling of traditional sagas and myths, as well as the creation of new ones. The Saga of the Brothers is set in the Droplet, pre-Althing, as is the Saga of the Law.

[edit] Government

The government of the Nordland is the Althing, a feudal republic. All landowners on the island who have held land for more than a decade are allowed to stand as representatives. The Althing dates back to 294 PR, and its founding is chronicled in the Saga of the Law, when the petty and great lords had come together for the Droplet to decide on a contentious matter of honor between two warring lords who had inheirited a great fortune.

Theoretically, about thirty thousand Nordlanders may sit in the Althing. Usually, however, only about a thousand actually attend. The number varies from session to session, and it tends towards the richer landowners, as they can afford to sit in the Althing instead of working their lands. Specialized committees, convened each session, rule on specific matters, such as debating treaty terms, fishing and mining rights, and the usage and maintenance of the steam systems.

At the start of each session (every year), the Althing elects the Lords of the Nordland - the Lord of Order, the Lord of Law, and the Lord of the Vote. The Lord of Order, in turn, appoints his advisors from the Althing, and selects the heads of the committees. He is the closest thing that the Nordland has to a head of state, and he often serves this role, speaking for the Nordland when necessary.

The Lord of Law is the final judge of appeal and chair of the Court of the Laws, a committee (made up of several hundred members) that decides whether a law that is passed is "in keeping with the traditions and standards of the Althing".

The Lord of the Vote maintains a semblance of order and civility in the Althing chambers themselves when they are in session. He carries a double-bladed sword, although the blade is dulled slightly to prevent lethal accidents. The Lord of the Vote is very careful with the sword, but the arms of veteran Lords are scarred with the cuts of the blade, and a few Lords over the years have disemboweled themselves while tired and emotional.

[edit] The Saga of the Law

It was a Fated Storm that year, in 294 PR, and the Saga tells of four great lords - one who wanted peace, one who wanted war, one who wanted chaos, and one who wanted order. The one who wanted chaos had the most support at the beginning of the Fated Storm, but, when the second day came, he was unable to tell a story, and the nobility turned against him. One petty noble went to kill him, but was stopped by the lord of order, who called a vote - who would raise their weapons to decide such a thing, or who would allow the rest of the stories to be told.

The nobles were stunned into silence, and, after long discussion, they then voted, each person present holding up a hand (holding a sword) for their choice. This is where the current system of voting in the Althing (which uses colored cards with elaborate swords colored in special inks) comes from, although sometimes a noble will vote using an actual sword to make a point. This is done on such occasions as a noble's first vote, a vote for war or peace, a vote on the expulsion of a member, or a vote that is meaningful to a particular person. The vote fell narrowly in favor of allowing the stories to continue - this is called the First Vote.

The next storyteller was the lord who wanted peace. He told a story of green fields, of pleasant families, of good harvests and the ocean's bounty. Many lords liked this story, and the lord who wanted peace was given a cup of fine ale. The lord who wanted war then spoke, and he spoke of glories in battle, of protecting, of conquest and honor and virtuous combat between equals. He, too, was given a cup of fine ale - but the lords were becoming restless, as the topic turned back to what they were all thinking about.

The lord of order cut through the tumult by pounding his sword hilt on the table, and, as the thunder raged, he proclaimed that discussion and debate - though not combat - would ensue over the question of which of the warring lords would gain the inheritance. Some asked for him to decide, and he refused, saying only that conflict over the question would bleed every family in the Nordland. The lord of order then told his tale.

He spoke of honor and protection. He spoke of debate and reason. He spoke of saving their families from a bloody internecine war. And he spoke of keeping the peace outside the hall, but warring with words inside it. The two warring lords accepted the tale, and, each attempting to outdo the other, pledged their inheritances to the establishment of the Althing.

So was the first session of the Althing. The matter resolved, the nobles went back to telling their stories.

[edit] Military

The Nordland keeps no standing army. The navy of the Nordland is divided into the Fleet of the Nordland, the Fleet of Helsk, and the Fleet of the Villages. The Fleet of the Nordland numbers two dozen steamships, half of which are posted at Verona to fight the Blight, and half of which are undergoing repairs and modernization in the Deep Port. It is headed by the Admiral of the North, who also serves as the head of the navy. The flagship of the Fleet of the Nordland is the Northern Star XVI, the sixteenth ship to bear that name.

The Fleet of Helsk, also headquartered in the Deep Port, is made up of three dozen wooden ships, two dozen of which are on station at Verona. The Fleet was created several years ago, when the ships were purchased from the Messina clan in Macedonia, as part of the Longbow Accords. The Fleet of Helsk is headed by the New Admiral, whose flagship, the Drift Ice, is stationed in Verona.

The Fleet of the Villages is made up of the other boats in the Nordland; mostly, these are fishing vessels. They are the last line of defense for the Nordland, and do not carry weapons. The term is archaic, but the Admiral of the Villages is one of the more important ceremonial posts in the Althing, and they could theoretically be mobilized (although the last time was in 771 PR, to serve as the honor guard for the body of the Lord of Order, who perished in a hunting accident).

[edit] Culture

The culture of the Nordland is an old one. The great works of literature from the Nordland, the Sagas, were only written down several centuries ago, but they date back much farther. The population of the country lives almost entirely in Helsk, and this has meant that the idea of community is very strong in the Nordland.

The weather - the stormy skies and the turbulent seas - make up most of the idioms and colloquialisms. A discussion of the weather can be extremely nuanced, and can last for hours. Many of the great Sagas take place in times of extraordinary weather.

[edit] Cities

[edit] Helsk

Main article: Helsk

The only major city on the Nordland is Helsk, the capital city. All other residents live in one of the small communities around the hot springs.

[edit] The Countryside

The countryside of the Nordland is made up of grazing tracts centered on small villages. The small villages (none of which number above 400 people) are each built around a hot spring that provides both heat and water.