Lausá

Lausá, informally called simply Eastern Serrona, is a geographical and cultural region on the continent of Serrona in Eldham; typically being divided in two, the other region of Serrona being called Vustada (or simply Western Serrona).

Overtime the conception of where the border between Lausá begins and Vustada ends has changed over time but most seem to consider all land East of the Celestial Sea and Batu Strait to be Lausá while all land to the West of this arbitrary border is culturally and geographically a part of Vustada.

Today the region is home to a diverse array of ethnic groups ranging from the native Lo'Oix, Mari (Lausán Humans), and Kolssons to the foreign-in-origin Havenites, Adalorians, Sylvanians, and more.

Physical geography
Lausá has some of the most fascinating geography of any region on Eldham; including both manmade and natural physical geography. It features territories of virtually all biomes from mesas, to rainforests, to deserts, to plains, to forests of all kinds.

Frozen expanses
Notably however, Lausá has the single largest expanse of tundra and taiga on the entire server, even beating out those in the similarly diverse Vustada. The coldest known location on all of Eldham is found in the middle of this large expanse of tundra and taiga on the Isle of Tumiria, in the main borough of the modern city of Kazkaya. Nowadays, the region has warmed due to urban settlement but its frigid nature remains undeniable. It is difficult to estimate due to constant human intervention, but the region in this expanse of tundra also is believed to have one of the three tallest mountains on Eldham; however due to human habitation the natural height of one of these mountains was cut down. Nowadays the city of Kamieniec sits at the top of one such massive mountain chain and the religious center of Gehenazar sits at the foothills of the mountain once believed to be the tallest on Eldham.

These regions are also home to the only dragon species in all of Serrona, the Serronan Windrider (Lo'Oi: Sérona Zoapálo) which contrary to many dragon species is actually relatively small and does not ever attack animals for the purposes of predation. There is notably zero species of vultures that live in Lausá and for this reason the Windrider has taken its niche in eating carrion. Windriders are surprisingly docile to people to the extent they have taken advantage of towers and empty barns across the landscape of Southern Lausá to use as nesting sites. These regions are also home to the largest species of wolf on Eldham called the 'Spirit wolf' (Lo'Oi: Flokovoala) which is notorious for its aggressive nature which has made the gathering of sheep in pastures in Eastern Lausá's taigas near impossible; forcing ranchers to remain in open expanses away from forests where the wolves reside. The wolves feature prominently in a famous text called the Dé'I Dakoroto written by Xeroise Ronango'O, hunting people who wander into the woods and using their large size to even take down horses.

The Ythmyrr Vents
Perhaps some of the most noteworthy natural landmarks are in that of modern Medtremar; which is the location where multiple tectonic plates intersect to form a volcanic landscape known as the Ythmyrr Vents (Lo'Oi: Ová'Áa-la-toá-Gotás, literally 'Rising-heat-for-(the)-gods'). A scientist from the USSE was the first to dangerously enter the risky era and document its attributes for science, his name being Jaspir Spéd. He documented that the region was the intersection of the Lausán, Vustadan, and Kaladinian tectonic plates. This created numerous volcanic plumes and vents, most notably the Artho'Ogi; a series of three volcanic vents which are named for and said to be the birthplace of the minor Forge Gods in Oxinto mythology; said to be triplets born the attribute of knowledge, skill, and strength - the three attributes necessary to be a worthy metalworker and forger. This landscape has also produced the largest river of lava in both Rathnir and Eldham on the overworld; called the Styrveli; a word originating from a Mari language term for 'evil air' in reference to the toxic underground fumes emitted along the Ythmyrr Vents. It is believed that around 200 years prior to the Rathnirian discovery of Eldham that an eruption at the Vents - while not particularly devastating physically - resulted in the expelling of enough toxic gases to kill the population of much of Southern Kaladinia and Northern Adalor; resulting in the area being almost entirely unpopulated even by the time of the Rathnirian discovery as numerous individuals refused to live near the area. With modern develops in seismology however in the USSE, the area has since become reinhabited with cities such as Renapheus and Ythmyrr Beach existing in the area.

Wetlands
The region of Lausá is home to two gargantuan expanses of wetland, the first being the Kjarrlands in the geographic region of Western Kolssonafell and the second being the Great Swamp in Central Medtremar. The Kjarrlands in particular are one of the very few places where hippopotamus can be found, grazing on land during the night and relaxing the day's heat away in the waters. They are notoriously territorial and cities only recently began to be established there year-round, such as Duckia and Astranza. Pygmy hippopotamus are known to live in the rivers and the Great Swamp in Medtremar as well. Hippos have become a sort of cult figure for many in the area, with a hockey team in the USSE being called the Akaishiran Hippos.

While technically not a wetland, there is also a series of floodplains in Southern Kaladinia and Western Xeka. These floodplains tend to have clay or silt filled ponds which act as breeding grounds for numerous frog species and the region is home to the Medtremari Swamp Pheasant which is renowned for its bright colors. The Pheasants nearly went extinct due to overhunting from Barbossan pirate settlers in Kaladinia; but due to the passing of the Natural Authority Act in the USSE which declared these floodplains to be national forests, the Pheasant populations have quickly regrown. To this date, among pirates, particularly those of Barbossan decent, the bright purple and red pheasant feathers are considered particularly fashionable.

The Gleaming Groves
Within Central Kolssonafell, to the South of the Agseirsan peninsula there is a region known as the Gleaming Groves. It acted as a sanctuary for Kolsson mages for numerous years; even in prehistory. It is noted for its expanses of fungi-ridden grass that give the landscape of deep turquoise coloration and for the mineral-filled waters of the region. In fact, the waters of the Gleaming Groves are so filled with minerals that it is undrinkable, not only being toxic but easily creating digestive obstructions. There are scattered sturdy trees in the area, however it is believed when it rains in the Gleaming Groves the minerals from the water end up forming residue over these trees that builds up over centuries forming trees that give the appearance of being almost of amethyst. Much of the ecology of the region is a mystery

Lo'Oix
The single most dominant ethnic group of Lausá is made up of a peoples known as the Lo'Oix, its estimated that they make up around 60% of the population of the region and also have the most expansive spiritual traditions and language(s). Technically 'Lo'Oix' is the name is the name of the entire unique Serronan subspecies/species as they are a unique group from Humans similar to that of Elves but because most Lo'Oix are descended from the same overwhelming ethnic group, at least in Serrona, the term Lo'Oix and Dridia Lo'Oix (the technical name for the Lausán Lo'Oix ethnic group) are usually interchangeable.

They speak perhaps one of the most prominent languages outside of Traveler's Tongue across Eldham, with one of the largest word lexicons of any 'constructed language' on Stoneworks, with a still-growing catalog of around 1,000 words.

Mari
While there are multiple groups of Humans (Homo sapiens) across Lausá, the most populous is that of the Mari. They make up around 20% of the Lausán population and are typically restricted to the Northern reaches of Lausá, populating the vast majority of Medtremar, Andrimar, and indeed having a population that reaches into other continents like the coastlines of Leifmyrr and Onthukhan. They are an incredibly diverse sea faring peoples perhaps most comparable in terms of lifestyle to the real world Polynesians.

The Mari are one of several indigenous Human groups to Serrona - that is to say - that their group experienced the process of ethnogenesis prior to the Rathnirian discovery of Eldham and as such are native to the land. The only of such groups to exist in Lausá however were the Mari and nowadays endangered Kolssons; with small groups and settlements throughout times existing of Eldurians and the Shakumagi (of whom make up no substantial amount of the population there today - nor in the past). Vustada however saw a more diverse range of Humans, particularly including native ethnic groups of the Batus, Potusis, and some Shakumagi.

They speak a language within the Lausán language family that also includes Lo'Oi, the extinct Polarisi, and more divided languages like that of Kolsson.

Adalorians
A mixed-species group of peoples that live in Lausá is the Adalorians who - in comparison to numerous other ethnic groups - experienced ethnogenesis relatively new only coming into existence after the Rathnirian discovery of Eldham perhaps around two centuries ago.

Adalorians are generally descended from four distinct groups, coming from the intermixing of the Lo'Oix, Mari, Kolssons, and foreign refugees from Central Eldham called the Pergamians; of whom are another Human group similar to the Mari. For this reason they speak an entirely unique dialect of Lo'Oi of which some argue should be considered its own language entirely and have a range of unique customs that come from the combination of cultural backgrounds. Their population is restricted to modern day Adalor/Pergamos, Southern Kaladinia, Western Xeka, and Northern Kolssonafell; with small groups of migrants living in urban centers abroad, typically forming ethnic enclaves.

Vansharii
The Vansharii, similar to the Adalorians, come from a combination of ethnic groups but unlike the Adalorians this combination is relatively exclusively including Human (Homo sapiens) groups. Modern Vanshariis are descendent largely of Maris; of whom most are at least 50% descended from. The remainder tends to be a hodgepodge of Vanakunirians, various pirate groups that have inhabited the region over time since Rathnirian colonization, Tortugans, Barbossans, Morladronians, and more. While today, the Vansharii typically speak solely Mari; the cultural elements of their society outside of linguistics tends to be incredibly unique hence why they are largely considered to be a unique ethnic group outside of the Mari.

Havenites
Following the Uldarashi Civil War, many Loyalists fled to territory belonging to the United Socialist States of Eldham and into the mountains and foothills of a peninsula in Kolssonafell called Agseirsa. These Loyalist refugees, of which most were ethnically Havenite, have formed a widespread community that exists to this day.

Kolssons
The Kolssons, in addition to the Mari, are the two native Human (Homo sapiens) groups that are native to Lausá. Unlike the Mari though, the Kolssons have experienced severe endangerment of going extinct because of both human intervention, political nationalism and ethnic cleansing, and a series of famines. Around fifty years after the Rathnirian discovery of Eldham a series of famines struck Kolssonafell which had particularly devastated the population;the reason their peoples were so capable of being devastated by famine was because they were hugely sedentary in nature unlike the highly migratory Mari and Lo'Oix and unlike both peoples stuck around to urban centers.

The government of Kolssonafell and eventually the USSE attempted to intervene in this by bringing in settlers from across Serrona, particularly Lo'Oix settlers from Eastern States of the USSE. This however resulted in a reactionary wave of ultranationalism, Lo'Oix settlers began to consider themselves a separate ethnic group from the Dridia Lo'Oix called the 'Manz' and enacted policies that were disfavorable to the further development of the Kolssons and eventually there were little to no Kolssons in Kolssonafell and many had been forced to flee or intermarry with other peoples (such as the Adalorians). It was only after the Furry War and the collapse of the nation of Manzland that policies favorable to Kolsson development would be created which steadily increased the population, even in USSE States like Ljordmir, however with further war in the region continuing the Kolsson population has dropped once more and may be extinct outright within two centuries without extensive cultural preservation.

It is believed that prior to the Rathnirian discovery of Eldham that the Kolssons may have made up as much as 15% of the Lausán population.

Polarisi
The Polarisi are an extinct ethnic group of Lo'Oix, separate from the Dridia Lo'Oix, that went extinct shortly after the Rathnirian discovery of Eldham. They spoke a unique, now extinct, language closely related to Lo'Oi and even Mari. They went extinct within five years of Rathnirian discovery; with the Achadian peoples moving in to their former territories prior to their own ethnic extinction. Today the region they lived in is largely inhabited by the Vansharii and Lo'Oix respectively.

Achadians
The Achadians were a unqiue non-native group in Lausá that moved to the region en masse from the Wandenreich shortly after the Rathnirian discovery of Eldham and the first territorial expansions of the Wandenreich. They were a largely urban peoples that spoke their own language and had unique religious customs, however the Kunir War struck Lausá the Achadians were forced to move once again. It is believed the Achadians today are an extinct group following their exodus after the Kunir War, being forced to intermarry with other groups and over the century(-ies) being forced to assimilate with other ethnic groups for the comforting of the nations they now lived in such as the Wandenreich.