The Black River is the most fertile place in south Karatera. Without it bringing clean water and fresh silt to the land, life would never have started there to begin with. It's rumoured that it's even lightly blessed to extend the lives of those who drink from it.
(4/4)

The Black River was once the home of a mighty civilisation of half-human, half-beast kings, who once enforced the will of the Old Faith, known back then as THE Faith. They build pyramids, temples, palaces and tombs, most of which still stand to this day.
(3/4)

The Black River is similar to the Nile in our world, except it flows southward rather than northward. Originating somewhere in the Scar Mountains, the river facilitates trade and travel to the lands south of Karatera, namely the kingdom of Kush and the Great Jungles.
(2/4)

There's still standard fantasy "those damn elves" racism going on in Karatera. Indeed, that's one of the driving forces behind the four-way war that's going on at the moment, with the dragonkin conquering humans and the Redblood Mercenaries enslaving non-humans.
(3/3)

...the lands controlled by Providence), or at least it isn't as bad as it was back in antiquity in our world. There's a lot more acceptance about all that, stemming from the fact that most of the very real gods aren't really cool about that kind of discrimination.
(2/3)

The dragonkin also follow their own gods - the Archdragons, which are primeval dragons that ascended to the celestial planes. Their teachings are more inward-focused than outward, with a particular emphasis on promoting a "might makes right" mentality.
(3/3)

The First Eye, meanwhile, is more popular in the north, and its teachings enforce adherence to the community and to the scripture. It promises salvation and paradise for those who practice charity, compassion, and humility - so long as its done in the name of the Eye.
(2/3)

...to make himself seem more reasonable that he is. He's quick to anger when questioned, and those who anger him often find themselves on the receiving end of his lightning breath.
(7/7)

KING GHARAMAX
Gharamax is a fucking dragon, and the leader of the Bluebane Alliance. Vain, territorial and utterly ruthless, he is everything one would expect from such a creature. He puts up a veneer of chivalry and diplomacy, but it's mostly just...
(6/7)

...into slavery if she thought it would net her enough coin. She is the embodiment of mercenary thinking, and is will to hurt whoever she has to for money. Oddly, though, she lives quite modestly compared to the other nobles of the Red Sands.
(5/7)

GENERAL AFRITA EL-DEMAL
General el-Demal leads the Redblood Mercenary Company, and is one of the accursed demon-blooded azaelite people. She's said to be utterly emotionless and uncaring to the plights of others, and that she would sell her own son...
(4/7)

...buggering off to go adventuring across the sea, leaving the kingdom in the hands of some unscrupulous nobles. He's quick to fight when his family or his kingdom is threatened. Indeed, some might say that fighting is *all* he knows how to do.
(3/7)

KING ERGON CASPIO THE 2ND
As the Divine Sovereign of Providence, King Ergon is just, compassionate, and dedicates to wiping out "evil" wherever he sees it. He's also incredibly self-centred, and prior to the war he had a nasty habit of...
(2/7)

Dumu is a dragonkin from the southern expanses. He's big and strong, even for his people, but he's a bit timid and he doesn't like hurting others. He doesn't want power or prestige, and has no desire to do wrong by anyone, but he's got no desire to do good, either.

Chloe is a girl from the coast, sheltered from the hardships of the desert. She's a bit naive, but she's fiercely strong-willed, and believes she should choose her own destiny rather than letting someone else do it for her. She's still got very simplistic ideas on what's good and what's evil.

Fayiz is a mercenary for the Redbloods, and he has an appropriately bleak outlook on life. Good and evil stopped mattering to him a long time ago. All he cares about is doing his job and living long enough to get paid for it.

They're a bit few and far between, yeah.

Yeah, they did pretty well for a good 50 years or so after that revolt. By this point in Karatera's history, though, the humans of the Red Sands now have a slave trade just as big as the Bronze King's, if not bigger. So the oppressed kinda turned into the oppressors on that one.