#eodeth

[soul-of-steam-series]

Gaze and behold, the supercontinent of Yaquoris! Home to an uncountable myriad of plants and animals, Yaquoris is the only documented major landmass on the planet of Mundus, surrounded by the seemingly endless Cerwiss superocean. As such, Yaquoris is sometimes called “Mundus” itself, in that odd manner of Landwalkers. Every known sapient species lives on this supercontinent and its nearby waters, from humans, Avesians, and Gols to Phractos, Degenerates, and Spawn. 

Yaquoris stretches from north to south and east to west for millions of square miles, and no mapmaker has yet to capture the perfect dimensions for the supercontinent. It is estimated that Yaquoris is about 54,230,000 square miles in area. The continents that make up Yaquoris, Aeshai, Eodeth, and Otera are about 33,020,000 sq mi, 15,110,000 sq mi, and 6,100,000 sq mi, respectively. The highest reaches of Eodeth end at 78°18′50″N at the island of Trisk, north of Decheyle, and the deepest reaches of Aeshai end at 53°53′47″S, south of the country Ogria. 

The organization of map is fairly straightforward: every piece of land that is currently controlled by a significant population and has a presiding government is labelled by name. The capital cities of these countries are labelled by a star. Gol cities are labelled by a star in the center of a circle, or in the case of the Tial Bazaars, by a circle with a dot in the center. Gol Forests are marked by a symbol of a tree. Important landmarks like the Laraizo Plains and areas of ungoverned land are labelled by name. Major bodies of water like rivers, lakes, seas, and the superocean are marked in black. 

Finally, as promised, here is the map of the supercontinent of Yaquoris and the Cerwiss superocean, comprising of the planet Mundus. This map should allow anyone to locate almost any given location in the Soul of Steam series, or have a general idea about its location. More detailed maps will follow in the coming months and years as the series develops and its settings are further expanded upon, including a colored version of this map.

The image of the map is compressed to fit the confines of Tumblr’s system. In order to get a closer look at the map’s finer details, it is wise to look at the image on a separate tab.

This drawing was made by @o11. He owns the respective rights to this image. I own the design and ideas behind continent of Yaquoris and its various countries and landmarks.

[soul-of-steam-series]

Regions of Mundus:  Zemlya Volk

Introduction: Zemlya Volk is an island off the northeastern shores of Eodeth, and is one of the few unpopulated areas on the continent with no government currently controlling the territory. While small sections of the island are dotted with forests, much of the island is a tundra with limited moss, lichen, and grass. Spawn are known to dwell along its coastline, and treat the island with equal parts apprehension and awe.

History: Zemlya Volk’s history is murky. Due to its dangerous, cold weather patterns, hundreds of human, Avesian, and Spawn explorers have perished in their efforts to discover more about the island. The waterways around Zemlya Volk are treacherous, and the coastlines are lined with rocks ready to sink many a ship. The interior is little better with frequent blizzards and below 0 temperatures. White bears, wolves, oxen, and other large animals are known to thrive here, many known for their opportunistic feeding habits and violent territorial tendencies. Even several Degenerate species are known to live on Zemlya Volk, 

As a result, various rumors and superstitions have spread about Zemlya, such as formless shadows walking across the icy ground and strange lights appearing in the sky. Stories of ghost ships, skeleton crews, and unnatural beasts are common. Some believe that Zemlya is a magnet for aquatic Typhons, and there are several cases of aquatic Typhons destroying ships in the area.

What little is known about Zemlya Volk has been pieced together by a few brave archaeologists, who claim Zemlya Volk once had a much milder climate many millions of years ago. The bones of ancient Spawn species have been found on inland Zemlya, suggesting that Zemlya Volk was once partly submerged in the Cerwiss Ocean and home to several Spawn communities. It is also known that the Gols consider Zemlya Volk a sacred site for unknown reasons.

Geography: Zemlya Volk is located in northeastern Eodeth as part of the Volk Island Chain, just east of the country of Nivala and north of the countries of Singva and Zogyre. The Moroz Sea and Gorlo Sea are west and south of Zemlya. A large lake known as Glaz Volka is located in the center of Zemlya, and is frozen over for much of the year. The only known forest in Zemlya Volk is known as the Black Timberlands, and is located just south of Glaz Volka.

Demographics: Due to its inhospitable nature, Zemlya Volk has no known demographics. Arguably the few Spawn who live along its coastlines count as Zemlya’s only inhabitants, and thus demographics, but they typically identify with other Spawn countries and cultures rather than with Zemlya Volk. Gols are known to visit Zemlya Volk as a holy site, but there are no known Gol cities in Zemlya. 

[soul-of-steam-series]

Countries of Mundus: Eosmus

Introduction: The country of Eosmus is a landlocked country in Eastern Eodeth. It consists of 26 smaller territories known as “Regios.” The country finds its earliest roots in a small territory settled by several bands of Phractos in 1454 CE. By cooperating with the Spawn and forming the Amicitia Coalition, Eosmus was formally established in 1503 CE. The country serves as a beacon of unity among the Spawn and Phractos, despite their vast cultural differences and histories. 

Geography: The country of Eosmus is located just north of the Khorfteum Desert and the Errat Sea. As such, the southern region of the country is warm, but considerably humid. Lake Ogon also contributes to the high humidity, as the large lake occupies more than a quarter of the country’s territory. Both Spawn and Phractos are known to call Lake Ogon home.

Eosmus is bordered to the north by the country of Paklos, to the west by Ryca, and to the east by Melvice. The country is also quite close to the Lith Bazaar, which is the most eastern property of the Tial Gols. As such, the country shares the honor of selling, trading, and distributing wares from Otera and Aeshai across eastern Eodeth alongside Melvice.

Government and Politics:  The country of Eosmus is a directorial republic. Spawn and Phractos make up the majority of the country’s population, and as such, the heads of state similarly represent this population with four Spawn leaders, and six Phractos leaders. Eosmus is unique among the countries of the world in that it is the only country in Eodeth with a partly run Phractos government.

And so we finally get into Eodeth! Eosmus is currently my favorite of the countries of Eodeth, partly because its going to be a vital part of a future novel of mine, and partly because I enjoy the thought of Spawn and Phractos cooperating together. It isn’t fully developed yet, hence the short blog post, but I’ll be sure to update this post in the future. 

In related news, I have finally commissioned someone to draw the map of Mundus! Finally, instead of strictly relying on my directions, any time anyone wants to locate a country, city, or landmark on Mundus, all they have to do is check the map! How convenient! Only so much details can be placed on the map, so smaller cities like Breham couldn’t fit, but otherwise the map will be a nice guide for those curious minds trying to puzzle what the f**k I’m talking about. 

Expect the new map by the end of this month. Possibly the next, if I find a character whose more suitable to be posted this month.