Laurondirin, Desert of Strength

Laurondirin is the kingdom to be in if strength is your desire. Though mostly void of vegetation, and covered in distinct red sand and hardy grasses, it is quite populated and prides itself in its militant power and cultural uniqueness. Laurondrians emphasise pride in life, physical and mental strength, and a standard lifestyle that meshes the province together as a single powerful unit. It is the northeastern kingdom of North Nidonn and has some of the most vast plains out of the whole country. The only way to reach it, besides climbing high mountains, is to travel up through Cape Valley from Jevithem. The valley used to be considered part of Laurondirin, but a disagreement --which resulted in a war between the two kingdoms -- saw a change to this, and the border was moved to where the valley meets the desert.

The main land of Laurondirin is known as Simbea Desert, thus, Laurondirin is sometimes called The Simbea. The large lake in the centre is called Hulon lake. Numerous rivers flow from the Heknian Mountains to the east and Yrth Range to the west and into this lake. The large peninsula in Laurondirin's northwest corner is Cape Sharuk, and the bay between the cape and eastern Estall Bay is the Great Bay.

Laurondirin Castle

Where Leotyne prides itself in its high walls and unassailable terrain, Laurondirin prides itself in the sheer strength and endurance of both its military forces and its fortifications. Lord Daramien was appointed the ruler of the Simbea plains in 3543BD and began the construction of his fortresses in the same year. Because Laurondirin was the last founded kingdom of North Nidonn, the Laurondrian architecture is significantly different to the other kingdoms. The northeastern end of the country is a jumble of hills and small cliffs. Numerous roads lead up through the hills and pass through large gatehouses. Three rows of walls surround the castle; one at the bottom, one half-way up the hills, and one towards the highest points. Between the two inner walls are many of the castle's general buildings, such as a barracks, a stable and yards, some armouries, and many large towers. Inside the third wall are the high quarters of the castle, built as a single stone building against the inside of the wall. In the middle is a raised courtyard surrounded by more walls, and inside this courtyard is a keep that peaks off into four towers which overlook the land. The only way into the inner courtyard is through the main hall. The castles are a deep reddish stone, and their banners and flags are also red.

The interior of Laurondrian fortresses is as dark and warm as the exteriors. Windows are uncommon and firelight is very common. Elaborate rugs cover many stone floors, all weaved with strangely intricate patterns. Laurondrians generally enjoy displaying works of art, such as paintings and suits of armour and weapons, as well as valuable furniture, statues, and expertly crafted stain glass windows. Halls are lined with both supporting and decorative columns, and both are often carved with astounding detail depicting both real events and fictional events.

Fort Brugend

Laurondirin's primary fortress is known as Fort Brugend, and it is renowned for its vast courtyard known as the Red Line where many famous armies of Laurondirin have trained and gathered. Besides this courtyard, the fort is in the same style as the castle, with many deep red walls, pairs of towers, and an overall intimidating style. The keep is also home to some of the best blacksmiths in all of North Nidonn. Some of them are commissioned so often that they simply took up residence within the keep to save time travelling to and from home. Laurondirin's watchtower, known as Crimson Tower, is to the southeast of the keep, across the main highway.

Ventet

The largest city in Laurondirin rests by hulon lake and it is called Ventet. Besides being on the main road, and being at the crossroad point for where the road splits north and west, Ventet is mostly known for being the only city in Riiga to have a fistfighting stadium, as indeed the sport was invented there. There are four main schools of fistfighting -- north, south, east, and west -- and the stadium is in the north end of the city. Despite the sport being an anti-crime method, having four competing schools does create rivalry, and this is sometimes the cause of brawls on the streets. It is for this reason that people tend to stick to their own area of the city if they are associated with any fistfighting school. Some people will say that the arrogance of the Laurondrian military allows underground factions to grow in strength beneath the city unseen.

Despite this, Ventet is rich in culture and marketplaces, where many goods such as dark woven tapestries and rugs can be purched. These markets are also visited for their wide array of powerful spices and their geneous selection of strong weapons and armour. The buildings follow the common Laurondirin style of very geometric shapes, often with two or more storeys; tall, high, and thin windows; and decorated with multicoloured painted bands around the outer walls.

Port Lentrin

The northern-most town in North Nidonn is Port Lentrin. Some mistakenly assume it is owned by pirates because of how far north it is, but Laurondirin claims complete ownership of the busy port town. Because the only ways out of Estall Bay that it overlooks involve weaving through channels bordered by high cliffs, only some of the ships at the port either travel to the nearby Laurondrian port of Hanuan or to the port at Trelinia. The rest of them are enlisted to keep pirates at bay, because without having ships in the sea, the port would surely become overrun by outlaws.

The town itself is built on three levels, with the lowest meeting the sea. Due to the odd position of the mountainous western side of North Nidonn, Port Lentrin is usually where any goods from other parts of the world come in. Traversing the channel between Nidonn and western Estall is the main obstacle sailors encounter. Like with Ventet, some say that there are swarms of underground outlawed factions beneath the town.

Hanuan

Hanuan is almost like a miniature Port Lentrin. Because it sits far back from the ocean in a large cove, it is better defended than Lentrin and thus suffers a lot less pirate attacks. It is the town that Magnus retreated to when he ran away from the castle to escape his aggressive father, Lord Ignatius. The townspeople are usually proud to tell stories of how Magnus learnt to sail a ship in their cove, and how the whole town helped the prince to live there for several years away from the eyes of the lord's soldiers at the time.

Mikneera

Mikneera is one of two large mining towns near the heknian mountains. It was started some time before Moruna, and its mines go deeper and are generally larger. Aside from being the home to many miners, and the biggest gold mining town in Nidonn, it often became the home of some of the best retired Laurondrian soldiers in history.

Moruna

Moruna is the second biggest mining town, and is to the south of Mikneera, but it is bigger in a different way. Deep in the mines of Moruna, Arkarum was first discovered, back in 2755BD. The only piece of Arkarum found was a chunk approximately 3 inches high, wide, and deep. This piece was broken into five smaller pieces. One was donated to each of the Carson Institutes for study, and another piece was sent to the palace at Lyte. The fifth piece was put on display at Moruna, but went missing within a week. It is not known where the final piece is.

Gehts Hill

Gehts Hill is a town in the grey cape valley between Laurondirin and Jevithem. It is sometimes called Eagle Top, because there is a family of bird tamers there who often become employed by the lord in wartimes. This family is the Gehts family and they train birds to hunt and scout. A Laurondrian scouting knight oftentimes had a member of the Gehts at his side when assessing an area of land. The Gehts often train many kinds of hunting birds.

Most of the money they earned over the many years of being in service was used to create more homes where others could live in a community. This was so that the Gehts would not have to travel so far to obtain goods (as their residence was one of the best places where the birds would feel comfortable) and also so that whoever lived there and sold and bought goods would basically be guaranteed business, because the community looked after itself.