Editing Setting:Hail and Kill (section)

===The North===
{{Topquote|Far above the ravengate<br />The spread wings of Blashyrkh waits<br />Above the roaring depths<br />Sits the oath of frost<br />On the elder Raventhrone|''Blashyrkh (Mighty Ravendark)'', Immortal}}

To the frostbitten forests and mountains of the North lies the realm of the Blackened. Descendants of a clan-based warrior culture, the Blackened have returned to these tribal roots after centuries of monarchistic rule during the Golden Age of the White God. Here, warriors don black and white corpsepaint as they storm, screeching into battle! The religions of the Blackened vary from clan to clan. Some stay true to the Old Gods or Nature Spirits of the Wilds around them. Other clans turned to the Raven Prince during the great rebellion against the followers of the White God. The de facto capital of the North is considered to be Everost, the Black City, the only urban settlement of the region. It is lorded over by the Black Emperor.

====Everost====
Often referred to as the Black City. For nearly a thousand years, the many noble houses of the North lorded over the clans, taxing them and persecuting that many clans that openly worshiped the Old Gods and Nature Spirits, instead of the White God. During Sortem the Black's civil war, the clans enjoyed an autonomy they had not seen since before the days of the Empire. As the Northern King faced the chopping block and stability was returning to the North, the clansmen realize they rather liked governing themselves and ousted the nobles residing in their lands, regardless of what god they served, thus driving them to Everost. Since then, the Blackened noble houses have carved out domains within the city as petty baronies, districts they oversee on behalf of the Black Emperor. Although they may have relocated, the noble houses still harbor the same rivalries they fostered for generations when trying to expand their holdings and monopolize trade within the Kingdom of the North. Clandestine skirmishes and raids between noble houses are common as they fight over territory within the Black City and trade with the Blackened clans. It is not uncommon for these secret wars to escalate into larger conflicts that draw in many of the houses' allied clans and mercenaries, which may force the Black Emperor's personal forces to intervene. Currently sitting on the Raven Throne is Nagrish of the Sortemson Dynasty.

=====House Sortemson=====
The ruling dynasty for the past 200 years, ever since Sortem the Black usurped the throne (at the cost of collapsing Everost's authority over the North). Their primary concern is maintaining stability within Everost, which is appears to be a futile effort. Still, they have been known to intervene harshly when the situation calls for it. Most members of House Sortemson typically venerate the Raven Prince, Old Gods, and Nature Spirits at the same time. Their sigil is the Raven of Everost.

=====House Corax=====
This House is infamous for its activities in espionage. The House Patriarch is on the Black Emperor's council as spymaster. It is suspected to have spies in all the major capitals. The Everost Blackened have a saying about them, "Whenever a secret is spoken, a Corax ear receives it. Whenever a back is stabbed, a Corax hand holds the dagger." Those of House Corax typically venerate the Raven Prince. Their sigil is a raven in flight, holding a dagger in one claw and a scroll in the other.

=====House Zyrhakh=====
Feared for their military might. Their house troops are seconded only to House Sortemson. When they want something (usually in the matter of enchanted treasures of trade routes with the Northern Clans), they are not hesitant to attempt to take it. They are also known to fund raiding parties of coastal clans. Their House Patriatch is the Black Emperor's High General. They typically venerate the Old Gods. Their sigil is a bloody double-headed axe.

=====House Guldrik=====
Their holdings in Everost lie mostly in the port district. As such, they are the masters of trade in the North and the richest House. Because of this, they are often at odds with House Corax and House Zyrhakh, who mean to take this wealth through scheming and plunder. However, their ties with several Northern Clans makes their trade routes the best defended. House Guldrik's Matriarch serves as the Treasurer of Everost. They worship no gods in particular, preferring the Sunsetter way of life and putting most of their energy into hedonism and decadence. Their sigil is a scale.

====The Northern Clans====
[[image:Hailandkill13.jpg|right|thumb|A Warrior of the North]]
After nearly a millennium of being lorded over by Whitist nobles, the clans of the North took their independence in Sortem's Rebellion and have ever since jealously guarded their domains from outsiders and other clans.

=====Clan Gorschek=====
Located in the southern end of the forest, Clan Gorschek is known for raiding trade caravans that cross into their lands. Travelers in small bands are typically left alone, unless they appear to have something valuable on them. Still, those who journey through Gorschek turf report feeling the icy stares of scouts on their backs and bowstrings being drawn in anticipation. This clan worships the Raven Prince, even being rumored to take part in cannibalistic rituals that they neither confirm nor deny. The music and shrieks from their rituals can be heard echoing from the woods to haunt the settlers on the outskirts of Kholdon.

=====Clan Allarn=====
Deep within the forest is Clan Allarn. Like most clans in their area, they have a deep reverence for the Nature Spirits. Though they mostly prefer to keep to themselves and tend their woods, they have been known to send raiding parties against Everost loggers that encroach too closely to their sacred groves. Though they are not otherwise hostile toward Everost, they are often the most reluctant to cooperate in their military ventures. Clan Allarn rarely mobilizes for war, unless the North itself is threatened.

=====Clan Vorsung=====
In the perilous and frost-bitten Great Northern Mountains is Clan Vorsung. Because of their location, they are an exceptionally resilient clan. Their sorcerers are legend in the North and feared on the battlefield. They revere the Old Gods and Raven Prince in equal measure. It is said that the clan elders of Vorsung know the mysteries and secrets of the realm of Blashyrkh that lies beyond the moutains, but few are capable of making the journey to meet them.

=====Clan Ávinstrigr=====
The largest and mightiest of the seafaring clans, they have piracy and raiding down to a tradition. For generation, Ávinstrigr has been feared and hated in the coasting regions of northern Ferrumgard. Like most coastal clans, they praise the Old Gods, believing their frenzied berserkers to be empowered by the ancient war gods in battle. They are often the vanguard in Everost's invasions.


====Blashyrkh====
Through the haunted forests and over the perilous mountain ranges of the North lies the frozen wastes of Blashyrkh, a grim and frostbitten land. The biting winds and crippling cold prevents even the hardiest of Northerners from settling here. Just as well, since there is nothing here to offer Man; only tundras, mountains, and plains of infertile permafrost. Should one dare to venture this far north and be equipped with the means to survive it, they just might stumble across ruins of a civilization predating the Metallican Empire, where ancient, otherwordly evils dwell...