889 years have passed since the Rimelords were defeated and the Great Winter was ended. The city of Valoris has ever since lain deserted and in ruins. Elderdusk Forest, a great woodland already in the High King's day, has now all but reclaimed the tilths, orchards and cobbled roads of old Valoria. Only crumbling, vine-wrapped pillars and walls remain of what was once the heart of a mighty and prosperous realm. Into this tangled maze few dare venture, for it is said that Valoria is evil, forever befouled by the Rimelords' onetime presence.
The North, a region the southerners call The Sundered Lands, has slowly risen from the age of darkness that followed the Great Winter. But though much has been mended, all is not well. Much knowledge perished with the High King and his realm, and many crafts have been lost over the dark centuries. The secrets of farming, engineering and medicine which the Valorians possessed are today only legends. Thus famine and disease sweep across the lands almost every other year.
The cities and towns are little more than calm islands in a sea of lawlessness. Preoccupied with feuds and wars, the nobles have not men enough to keep the roads safe, and bandit lords rule unchecked in the rural areas. And just like their vassals, the kings bicker and scheme incessantly, the few and far between truces and declarations of peace seldom lasting long.
The plutocracy of Kergos, the mage-state Ilthora and the kingdom of Myrkania have formed the Western Alliance in an attempt to restore the order and prosperity of the old days. But it is an uneasy alliance. The worldly merchant-lords of Kergos have little if any understanding for the concerns of the Ilthoran mystics, and vice versa. And in Myrkania, a land of hardy woodcutters and miners, neither nobles nor lowborn care much for any of the southern states and their curious ways. In fact, it is rumored that Myrkania might break the alliance to form a new one with Joruna and Alesia, two northern kingdoms whose customs and interests better reflect those of the Myrkans. Furthermore, the Western Alliance also lacks the military power required to unite the bickering kingdoms of the North. Therefore they have long strived to recruit Hearnir in the west, for the Hearnings are fearsome warriors and have a mighty fleet. But the westerlings, ever a proud and selfish people, has inexorably turned the Alliance down. The Alliance might need the Hearnings, but the Hearnings do not need the Alliance.
In the east, the situation is even more ominous. Whereas the Western Alliance endeavors to reinstate the great realm of old by peaceful means, the ruthless king Tarc of Brennin firmly believes that order lies down the path of conquest. For years, he has looked with greedy eyes upon the kingdom of Pendras, for he covets the fine horses which are bred and trained by the Pendrans. By controlling Pendras and thus the horse-breeding, king Tarc will have cavalry that no other nation's armies could withstand. To attain this goal he has tried virtually everything bar brute force. But the Pendran Horselords will neither be cajoled nor bullied. King Alador of Pendras has sworn that should any Brennian again as much as let his shadow fall on Pendran soil, he will ford [river] with all his forces and lay waste to the rich farmlands of northern Brennin.
Perhaps annoyed by this standstill, king Tarc has instead directed his attention towards Pelonia. By taking advantage of the increasing amount of piracy in [eastern sea] of late — and the fact that Pelonia's military might is occupied with this threat — king Tarc has assumed control over Windy River and its pearl-strand of wealthy towns. This he claims to be simply an act of friendship, a strong nation's concern for the safety of its weaker neighbors, but the Brennian king's true intentions are no secret. Though the Pelonians may be outraged at the gall of king Tarc, they can not spare enough troops to reclaim the occupied region, for fear of their coastal towns being overrun and sacked by pirates.