Frostmarch

The Fourth Jarldom of Frostmarch, commonly referred to as Frostmarch, is a Valdic nation-state holding vast territory in eastern Sørligste. It's capital, Hafnarfjoll. is one of the biggest cities in Sørligste. Its cultural capital, Erðvald, sits on the banks of the River Artir. Frostmarch currently encompasses a large portion of East Sørligste.

Founding, Insurrection, and the Early Boom
Frostmarch was officially founded on the 12th of December, 2020, when Jarl Green of Erðvald declared independence through insurrection of the Sørligste Confederation. Over the weeks following, territory would steadily be taken from the Confederation and incorporated fully into Frostmarch. This starting period would be known as the Early Boom, in which Frostmarch would gain a large population and begin to quickly grow.

By the 27th of December, the Sørligste Confederation disintegrated, and all remaining territory was split between Frostmarch and Jarldom of Suðerlind.

Early in its history, Frostmarch had been approached by the Crescent Concordant regarding membership. During early-mid December, Frostmarch was fully integrated into the CC, wherein it would assist in attempts to stall northern aggression.

War of the Pyramids
On the 12th of December, two mysterious pyramids of bedrock appeared in the south, one in the far western land of Jcon, and one within the then Sørligste Confederation. Control of the pyramids brought about great power and wealth, and so conflict over them began.

With the assistance of the Crescent Concordant, efforts began to hide the Pyramid near Frostmarch (Pyramid B) and to fortify the pyramid near Jcon (Pyramid A). Frostmarch warriors were sent to stand among the forces of the CC to defend both. Despite their efforts, none of these efforts succeeded, either in securing the pyramids or in defending CC land.

In the effort, CC operatives created the Sárið through dark means, forever scarring the March. The Jarls were not consulted, and much friction followed this decision. In the end, Frostmarch withdrew its warriors from the front and refused to cooperate with the pyramid offensive any longer.

Iceland Incorporation
On the 21st of December, iam_nekk stepped down as leader of Iceland, to retire south in peace. A transfer of ownership was negotiated, and the territory was transferred to Frostmarch for maintenance, upkeep and temporary control. As of yet, iam_nekk remains in peaceful retirement and Iceland is under Frostmarch control.

Southern Settlement
Seeking to utilize the untapped resource of Ice Spikes in the far south, Jarl Beans set out to occupy the town of Skjaldreyja. Following the towns establishment, a keystone path was build by Jarl Green linking the outpost to the capital. Over the following days, the settlement would prove its worth, producing great mineral wealth and, of course, plentiful ice of all kinds.

Departure from the Crescent Concordant
On the 30th of December, following a period of strained relations and decay in communications, Frostmarch decided to leave the Crescent Concordant. Despite their departure, they continued to assist the Crescent Concordant until it collapsed on the 25th of January, 2021. This would begin the The Long Chillin Period, where Frostmarch stayed out of the world's politics.

Partition of Farnoka
Farnoka, one of the two independent Valdic States of Rathnir, had long been declining. Eager to integrate it into the March, negotiations began with the Kronesian Empire regarding who would come to occupy its lands. Eventually, a joint split of the land was decided. Kronesia would control the capital city and its northern territories, while Frostmarch would take the south, along with first pick on pillaged loot.

Establishing DE ASS
Following the collapse of the Crescent Concordant, a vacuum of power existed in the south. Kronesia had always been a great ally of Frostmarch, having stood together during the savage Walmart Massacre, and having agreed cordially to split the lands of Farnoka. Together, they agreed to form a union in which all nations of Sørligste could know prosperity.

Frostmarch favoured an economic union of regulated trade, given their experience in trade and economic management. Kronesia, having known first-hand the wrath of the north, instead wanted a military alliance against invasion. To meet both needs, the Defensive and Economic Alliance of Southern States was born. Over the following weeks, Soumere and Pahonja would be brought into the alliance.

Occupation of Suðerlind
As Farnoka was under Frostmarch control, Suðerlind was the only Valdic State beyond the authority of the March. After its people had long been abandoning its castle capital for greener pastures, the land was seized, and the capital left under the watchful eye of Jarl metagall. Along with this, some of the far eastern claims of Regalia were taken, although much was given to the members of DE ASS, to whom the territory was more useful.

Partition of Kronesia
As all the Valdic states were now firmly under Frostmarch control, the only land left was in the east. Following the sudden disappearance of the Kronesian peoples on the 18th, and the worry of foreign annexation, Frostmarch, Soumere, and Pahonja began discussing what should happen to the former lands. Pahonja quickly took a small chuck of east Kronesia and some islands. Vandalah, now a Sorgliste nation, claimed all of Kronesia up to the southern mountains. They later on had to renounce the claims. Soon afterwards, the partition had happened, with Frostmarch gaining a bit in the East, and Soumere a bit in the West.. Afterwards, Vandalah had taken up the rest, with support from Frostmarch and Soumere.

The Second Big Boom
With the newly acquired land from Kronesia, Frostmarch and Soumere became the 2 dominant powers in Sorgliste. Using the crises brewing in the north, and the general distaste for Rathnir politics at the time, Frostmarch became a great place to get away from dealing with wars and banditry.

Frostmarch's population began to explode when the town of Vesturperla was founded to secure Frostmarch's place in the west, and allow for a higher population to be founded for Frostmarch, due to the stagnation of the eastern coast in population. Edgeland would serve as a great place for resources such as potatoes, wood, stone, and any essentials. Ice roads were developed to reform the infrastructure, and enabled easy and quick travel through the overworld. Nether portals were created at many different towns throughout the nation, allowing for even faster travel.

Science was at an all time high in Frostmarch despite it's history of little research, with research being done various diseases thought the nation, especially ones from Suðerlind. Alchemy was also beginning to grow in Frostmarch, as a large Alchemist station was created in Vesturperla to allow for quick brewing of potions. Trade also began with nations outside of Sørligste, for one of the first times ever.

The Second Jarls Council
Having completed their work of spreading Nostíkur teaching throughout Rathnir and raising the Valdic people from their Dark Age, Jarls green, beans, Cyro, Epic and Train prepared their ascension. Through the power of mass ritual sacrifice, they breached the Firmament and escaped Rathnir on the 5th of April, 2021. Once word had spread of their departure, talks began amongst the people of the March regarding leadership. From this rose Jarl Host, Jarl Roduct and Jarl Flaming, who would lead the March into its next chapter. Along with the ascension, the Old Jarls hid all of their treasures in a crypt, with the crypt later being found the next day.

Conquest of Vandalah
Despite the Old Jarls intentions of welcoming the wayward to Sorligste, the people of Vandalah were beginning to prove themselves more an obstacle than an ally. Jarl Host, who was eager to expand the Ice Rail of the March across all of Sorligste, found himself repeatedly blocked by King Pierogi, who refused such a rail be built unless he could directly tax its use.

Over time, relations soured between the states, as Vandalah began forced deportation of certain "undesirable" peoples in its lands. Angered by this, and the kingdoms repeated refusals to co-operate, the New Jarls reached out to the people of Soumere to find a solution. Eventually, they decided that war was the simplest means to solve their problem.

With the assistance of Kostarion, an invasion began, and the capital city of Vandah was seized. The King of Vandalah, along with his closest confidants would flee before the battle, entering hiding in the far north. With this, the War was swiftly won, and lands were shared as planned. Osteria, Kostarion the eastern plains, and Frostmarch all of the south.

A United Sørligste
After the conquest of Vandalah, the leaders of the nations in the continent of Sørligste drafted a constitution for a union. On May 19, 2021 all the nations in Sørligste, with the exception of Osteria, united under one banner bearing the name of the Grand Union of Sørligste. This unification discouraged the further expansion of large, neighboring empires such as Uldarash and Viodoxa that threatened the region, and also strived to prevent wars like the conquest of Vandalah from ever happening again.

The Mushroom Valley Crisis
While busy dealing with a potential global coalition, agents of The Grand Union of Sørligste discovered a new town called Mushroom Valley had been setup right next to Vesturperla. The leader of Frostmarch, Jarl Host, surveyed the town himself and found that it was claimed by Osteria, and very far from their actual borders. The leadership of Osteria was immediately informed about this, to which they demanded a large swath of Sørligstan land (from Not Venice to the entirely of Vesturperla and Iceland), and to otherwise expect invasion. This sent the Sørligste government into a panic.

BackToTheHub stepped in, and said they would buy just enough land to reach Mushroom Valley for a large sum of money. The deal was then made and Osteria annexed that land. This still caused fear of invasion by Osteria, especially after The Magisterium was formed between Osteria, Azuria, and the Abyssal Isles.

Annexation by Tortuga
After the Mushroom Valley debacle, Sørligste dealt with multiple internal stability issues including the formation of minor rebel factions. One rebel leader, a man named Ederan, declared independence in West Soumere. Seing the instability in Sørligste after the newly-formed Magisterium gave Sørligste an ultimatum, to join the Magisterium as a province or face war.

Seeing the writing on the wall for Sørligste, the government dissolved their autonomy and allowed themselves to be vassalized by another willing neighbor, Tortuga.

After a war against Ederan, foguht alongside the Tortugans, met little resistance and a 0-1 victory for Sørligste, Swiggan declined Hub's proposal and quickly joined Tortuga. During that time, Not_Venice was raided by agents of the Magisterium. Significant valuables were stolen and carted off, likely never to return to Sørligste. Frostmarch was then annexed as a region of the now Tortugan Empire.

Only three states survived the Grand Union of Sørligste: Frostmarch, Pahonja, and Soumere (however Soumere lost around 90% of their land).

The Third Jarldom
After the Tortugan annexation, the Second Jarl Council of Frostmarch became the sole government of the nation. However, for a multitude of reasons (including the fact that Jarl Flaming was still dead and had not been replaced), many of these Jarls were unable to perform their administrative duties to reasonable extent, and much of Frostmarch fell into disarray. The city of Skjaldreyja was abandoned and entirely destroyed in a violent hurricane. Several settlements appeared in the wastes of Frostmarch (see Novishk and Gooseburgh), and grew to considerable size before being found and inducted into Frostmarch. Considered a dark age for the government of Frostmarch, what few administrative and military activities performed were orchestrated by the noble High Jarl Host.

Seeing Frostmarch struggling to stay alive, Jarl Host reformed the Frostmarch government for the second time, forming the Third Jarldom of Frostmarch. Jarl Alcon retained control of the West, but the east and south were entrusted to the new Jarls Frug and Temsyod respectively. This arrangement lasted for several years before the death of Jarl Host, as his sudden death left no heir prepared to usurp the throne.

The title of Grand Jarl was officially decided to Jarl Frug through an election (see "The Grand Sorgliste Federation Merge")

The Grand Sorgliste Federation Merge
After the Great Sorgliste Federation had received threats of war from the small Empire of Leveros, which wasn't considered a threat on it's own but had backing by Uldarash. In fear of annexation, Shark, the Head of State, merged with Frostmarch whom was a vassal of Tortuga. This threatened major conflict should Frostmarch be attacked, delegitimizing any major claims made by Leveros.

This merge had the unintended consequence of uniting the majority of Sørligste under a local government. This was the first time a single Sørligstan state controlled this much of Sørligste since the dissolution of the Grand Union of Sørligste many years prior.

In a bout of nationalistic pride following the annexation of The Grand Sørligste Federation, the (then) Assistant Grand Jarl of Frostmarch Temsyod reached out to the Pirate Emperor of Tortuga with the intention of purchasing their independence. A deal was eventually reached at $400,000, plus a barrel of fine beer and a single cow in exchange for the independence of Frostmarch.

Leveros Banditry and War
Shortly after the nation of Frostmarch reasserted her independence, several bandit militants, primarily citizens of the Empire of Leveros, attacked cities of the former GSF. The coup of Severos (merge between Serenus and Norvos) had caused the Leverosi to escape and harass the newly formed Grand Sorligste Federation, causing a strong grudge on both side against each other. The cities of Not Venice Port Leon, and Serenity caught the worst of it, witnessing the slaughter of dozens of citizens over months. Enraged by these aggressions, the Jarl Council attempted to contact the leadership of Leveros, however diplomacy failed for a multitude of reasons. Neither side would opt in to give up any land or cities, and both stretched their claims far, with Leveros claiming the entire former Grand Sorligste Federation. Seeing no other solution, the Jarl's Council, led by the two Jarls Temsyod and Host, declared war on Leveros on December 14th, 2021.

As Frostmarch troops approached the small Empire of Leveros, they were halted by the Stoneworks admins mere minutes before the war was going to be declared. They were forced to reorganize the war for after the winter-break peace. However, the Leverosi leaders quickly realized their situation was bleak and allowed themselves to be vassalized by the Second Empire of Uldarash. Due to the sheer toxicity between the two nations and the countless bans on both sides, the admin team decided that if a peace wasn't forced, the leaders of all the nations would be permanently banned. After weeks of negotiations, a peace deal was reached between Leveros and Frostmarch, with the agreement that banditry will end and the old town of Argadon ceded to Leveros. This conflict was one of the longest conflicts on Stoneworks history, lasting just over three months.

Peace Period
The peace forced between Frostmarch and Leveros would allow Frostmarch to regather itself and focus on internal affairs rather than external ones. However, the Jarls of Frostmarch had gotten tired of the Leveros debacle, and had most gone inactive with only a handful of Jarls active and taking care of their regions. Jarl Makkis and Shark would resign during this. Jarl Starlorde was kicked out of his position and replaced with the thane of Not Venice, Urban Milante, during a series of reforms being presented by Grand Jarl Temsyod. However, these reforms were too late too little, and wouldn't be fully implemented in time for the newest threat to emerge.

Reannexation by Tortuga
From the beginning, the Grand Jarldom was a loose confederation of mostly independent Jarldoms, and were unable to centralize the nation. The resignation of Jarl Shark also caused the population of Ato to collapse, as most left for the newly independent Great-White Isles. The Lorentish Empire, under a new alliance with Vinovia, were planning an invasion of Frostmarch. Jarl Host, knowing that the nation was eventually going to fall to the Lorent, went to the Pirate Lord of Tortuga Ulifer to reannex the Grand Jarldom back into Tortuga. The Grand Jarldom was the longest lasting Sorligstean Union in the continents history, lasting for just over 5 months.

The Cold Era
Frostmarch was divided into 5 separate regions in Tortuga, Ato, Norvos (later integrated into Soumere-Serenus), Serenus (later Soumere-Serenus), S.A.S (later Featherian Federation), and North Frostmarch. The borders of all the regions remained mostly stable outside of Frostmarch. Serenus annexed the entirely of Neo-Kronesia, and the Featherian Federation annexed Riga and some northern territories. This would make SirVoske, who was now the Grand Jarl of North Frostmarch, bitter. The majority of Frostmarch activity would be centered around the city of Hafnarfjoll, with the capital of Erðvald being moved for the first time, to the western fort city of Vesturperla. This would mark the beginning of the "Cold Era" where Frostmarch became extremely unstable.

The Jrunmarch Crisis, The Neo-Kronesia Crisis and The Featherian Crisis
The division of Frostmarch during the Grand Jarldom of Frostmarch into the Jarldoms of Erovald, Sutherlind, and Vesturperla were mostly served to ensure Frostmarch would have adequate representation in the Jarl Council. However, when the Grand Jarldom was merged into Tortuga, the divisons stayed and Sutherlind took heavy measures to ensure that anything close to Frostmarch was to be removed. The name was changed from the nordic Sutherlind to Sanctus Anser Servitus, then later the Featherian Federation. The very existence of the region was disputed, with Ulifer originally giving it to Frostmarch, then retracting it from Frostmarch, then giving it back to Frostmarch on the basis that Temsyod had mysteriously disappeared. However, the S.A.S protested and they returned as their own region. This immediately caused the S.A.S to believe that North Frostmarch was attempting to annex them, which North Frostmarch denied. This caused tension between the two regions which would cumulate in the Jrunmarch Crisis.

In the west of Frostmarch, Soumere-Serenus, who had settled the thanedom of Neo-Kronesia which was under the Jarldom of Vesturperla during the Grand Jarldom, had been giving the land by Ulifer. North Frostmarch instantly disputed this, claiming that they had "illegally" settled the lands and had no permission from the Jarl, Roduct. The dispute lasted until August, where a verbal agreement was made that if North Frostmarch settled the former squatter settlement of Syvansia in Neo-Kronesia, they would drop the claims on Neo-Kronesia. This agreement would only last 4 months.

The area known as Jrunmarch, was under the S.A.S. However, Jrunmarch was unhappy with the state of the S.A.S and wanted to unite with North Frostmarch, citing that they never wanted to be apart of S.A.S in the first place. North Frostmarch immediately accepted them in, however, Serenus was on the verge of merging with the S.A.S, and so both of the regions disputed the claim. Serenus merging with the S.A.S then became an even bigger reason why they wanted to leave to join North Frostmarch. Neither side would give in. The S.A.S claimed that Jrunmarch was illegally ceding from them, while North Frostmarch claimed they were respecting the wishes of the people living there. Serenus sided with the S.A.S and also began the dispute. After well over a month of arguing, it was decided by the Pirate Lord Ulifer that the entirety of Jrunmarch (both Jrunmoor and St. Istanvar) would be annexed into North Frostmarch. This would end the Jrunmarch Crisis.

Elsewhere in the S.A.S, two players called twinkycome and Diarria would begin a new town in the region. Problems quickly arose and they were kicked from Tortuga. They began raiding Tortugan regions constantly, however did not raid North Frostmarch. They orginally joined Serenus, but were quickly kicked out of there and began raiding Tortugan cities again. The debate happening between this time caused a lot of problems, because both the players wanted to annex their town into North Frostmarch, however, North Frostmarch refused to and so they abandoned the settlement and joined North Frostmarch, settling in the former town of Paskon, forming the regions second biggest city, Edenville.

The Lorent War
The new Pirate Lord Fury Astaseul was currently running the war between the Lorent and Tortuga. The Battle of Relmont commenced on August 11th, 2022. The battle was a resounding victory for Lorent due to it's mountain in Relmont being near-impenetrable. The war was a complete disaster for Tortuga. Most of the western regions were "sold" independence by Fury in the coming days. Frostmarch, which was debating on whether or not to join Aateyli, opted to join Lorent on the promise that it will get the S.A.S (now Featherian Federation). The rest of Tortuga collapsed and the only 2 regions in Sorligste that were independent were Serenus and Featheria.

Culture and Traditional Practices
The peoples of Frostmarch are culturally Valdic (traditionally found along Sørligste's eastern coasts). Valdic peoples are easily identified by their practices and customs. The most prominent traditions in modern Frostmarch include;

Alcoholism
Drinking is integral to social interactions in Erðvald, with activities as simple as fishing and debate often resulting in substance abuse. It is tradition in Frostmarch for new members to drink poorly crafted alcoholic beverages, so as to test constitution.

Another alcoholic practice of Frostmarch is known as the Siðasmal, or the "Last Supper". In this ritual, crimson wine is consumed in combination with rotten pufferfish to induce intense hallucinations, levitation and total organ failure. The fatality rate of this ritual is 106.2%.

Calendars
The times and dates of Frostmarch have stayed the same since the founding of the Valdic Calendar, which starts at the founding of Erðvald, or 0 AEC (before Erðvald is BEC). Each year in Frostmarch is 179 days, or 2.486111 real-life days. The current year in Frostmarch as of 3/12/2023 is 330.

Literature and Historiography
Despite the nation's reputation, its people have a strong appreciation of literature of all kinds, favouring historic texts of far away lands. A public library exists in the North Wing of Erðvald Museum, wherein texts of interest have been compiled from around the world for citizens to read.

Warrior Culture
Militarism is a core value of Frostmarch, part due to the harsh environment its people inhabit, another part due to its neighboring lands being known for imperialism, and part due to the nations history of near constant political tension. The fighters among the people of Frostmarch are held to high esteem, often permitted greater privileges and plunder than other citizens. Some privileges may include a free food supply, cheaper armor or weapons, and free beer.

Hoarding
The instinct to collect and compile seems innate to all people of Frostmarch, from lone pilgrim travelers to Jarls presiding over their keeps. Blocks, tokens, and items of all kind are often taken and preserved. Nowhere is this better showcased than the Erðvald Public Museum, wherein items of interest are displayed, no matter how ethical the means of acquisition.

Disease
Throughout the history of the March, disease has always been a problem. Especially in the deep parts of the March, and in almost all of Suðerlind, disease has been a common reason for these places never becoming a large state, and why the East Coast has always been the center of the Valdic people. Until 1100 AEC, when Red Wine first came to the March, most of the March was a rural, unurbanized place. Red Wine has since been used to explore the inner parts of the March and Suðerlind, with more stable and permanent methods being worked on in Erðvald. In recent times, Red Wine has been combined with Golden Rum to travel through Suðerlind.

Nostíkur Faith and Custom
While not solely practiced within the March, this country has the majority of Rathnir's Nostíkur practitioners. The following of this faith involves three main aspects;

Ritual Sacrifice
For the average follower of the Nostíkur faith, this includes routine offerings to the Brotsjónir for good fortunes. The average town/household is likely to have access to an altar to perform these weekly sacrifices. On more important occasions, sacrifice can come to include living beings, and even people.

Runecrafting
Runes are often carved into stone or wood to produce magical effects. For daily uses, runes are carved into small "Runeshards" and placed beneath firepits, hung in doorways or simply disposed of in a river. For more significant projects, boulders are chiseled into "Weystones", used to inscribe many runes to convey a complex idea, such as instructions or a story.

Oral Tradition and Folktales
Stories are told of the ages past, of ancient Valdic heroes and the struggles of the Brotsjónir and Verðinir. These tales are typically told in the evening, around campfires. Due to these stories heavy reliance on music and dance, they are told outdoors. Valdic Bards can be expected to memorise up to 400 tales, along with their many variations, and are also expected to be able to improvise music around tales they may have never heard before.

Geography and Demographics
Within this territory, are three major forests (currently unnamed), 5 major rivers, and a record breaking population of polar bears. There are 3 main sites of activity in North Frostmarch.

Erðvald
Erðvald is the former capital of North Frostmarch and cultural capital. This city acts as a hub of trade, travel and administration for eastern parts of the region. Among the most famous locations in Erðvald include the Erðvald Public Museum of "Acquired" Items, Erðvald Citadel, the Blood Pit and the Gurgling Donkey.

Vesturperla
Vesturperla is the second oldest standing city in Frostmarch and has been it's fortress-city for many years.

Edenville
The second biggest city in Frostmarch, it follows the religion of Edenism and is Frostmarch's greatest hold on the Western Frontier.

Whitemaw
Formerly apart of Hafnarfjoll, it is Frostmarch's northern port and trading hub with a large population comparable to that of Erovald.

Jrunmoor
The 3rd oldest standing city in Frostmarch, it is an underground city and has beautiful natural scenery.

Grimagund
A dwarven-city founded underground. It is a bastion for defense and the largest dwarven city on the continent.

Hafnarfjoll
Founded in one of the most inhospitable regions of Frostmarch, it has quickly grown to be a massive city in Sørligste and the population and trading hub of the nation. The city has been in disarray since the civil war and is in a process of being rebuilt.