Stonelands



The Stonelands is an island to the west of Mandoria and north of Argania with an extinct volcano at its center. Until the first human colonists arrived, no plants or animals ever lived in its almost inhospitable landscape. The only natural resources ever to be found were stone and ore. In the early days of the Peurotsiilian empires, many criminals and exiled folk were shipped to the Stonelands to die. This was the maintained tradition until a handful of Arganian nobles were exiled after a failed rebellion. These nobles gathered their followers and convinced many lesser sons of greater Mandorian lords to journey with them to the Stonelands. These colonists would dwindle by the hundreds in the coming years but would carve the land and build their new homes. By cracking open the stone and bringing soil and dirt from the occasional raids into the mainland, the Stonelands managed to sustain small pockets of populations with rigid irrigation. Fishing and raiding became a strong part of the local culture that developed. Eventually, five small villages along the coasts of the Stonelands evolved into the Five Holds. Each hold was ruled by a Jarl who was chosen amongst the greatest of his warriors. Fiercely independent, the holds engaged in savage warfare amongst themselves and refused to bow to a single sovereign. In its history, there have only been two instances of unification. Once by Brynjolf Bloodjaw of Giantsfell in older days and by Yorin Stormhelm of Ironheart.