TheKawaiiEdition/Halnia

Halnia, Kingdom of Talking Animals

• Location: Scavenger Lands, East of Telmarine, at the Headwaters of the Silver River
• Population
  • Dryads, Naiads, and other kind of scantily clad female nature spirit creatures: 200,000
  • Human: 800,000
  • Talking Animals: Somewhere around 40 million
  • Tree-Dwelling Mountain Folk (no really!): 112,000
• Ruler: King Halbert XIV and the Council of Animals
• Status: Independent Kingdom; Ally of the Boo of the North

Halnia is the Kingdom of Talking Animals, yet another Harem Age experiment gone wrong. Or right, depending on your perspective. The Notorious Doctor Moron, a highly skilled Meight with no common sense, spent the last years of the Harem Age creating and trying to civilize dozens of kinds of animal-human hybrid species. Rumor has it that he was trying to create beings similar to the Catgirls, but able to reproduce their power in their blood, as the Magical Girls do. With the collapse of the Harem Age, the animals rose up and overthrew their human oppressors, only to find that while they could repel Magical Girl retaliation, they were unable to unite when their instincts drove too many of them to eat each other. They were forced to import a group of humans who would guide the nation, advised by a Council of Animals, chosen by each species in its own manner.

They were eventually forced to pay tribute to the various rulers of the Iron Millenium, but always retained some independence. Things changed massively with the Chaos Plague and the coming of the Oni. The survivors were forced to take to the trees to escape the Oni onslaught; they were aided by refugee Mountain Folk, fleeing the North, who joined with the animal-men and the humans to build great cities high in the branches. They also cunningly hollowed out some trees and dug tunnels and refuges deep beneath the earth as well, providing alternate highways across the land.

It was the coming of the Lion Catgirl Halnia who brought about the transition to a new age. She and her allies (rumored to be heroes from another Creation) defeated the worst of the Onis and forced a treaty on them; the Onis would control the ground but could not climb into the trees above. Both sides then settled down to a long cold war.

The coming of the Telmarine Horde out of the frozen wastes of the North in 503 IY marked the start of a new age. The Telmarines defeated the armies of Halnia and conquered the land for a time; but they grew lazy and decadent, and with the help of heroes and heroines of uncertain origin (again, rumored to be from another world), they overthrew the Telmarines in Halnia in 604 IY, though the Telmarine Empire survived in the treeless lands of the western Telmarine Empire.

Ever since then, the Oni, the Telmarines, and Halnia have been locked in a three-way war for control of the area.

Life in Halnia

Everything is made of wood, cities and towns exist on giant platforms and inside huge trees, with towns connected by endless rope and board bridges. There are monkeys everywhere, trying to steal your food and generally being annoying. Birdcalls are omnipresent. In some areas, there are huge platforms with dirt piled on them, where crops are grown; the trees are also unnaturally fruitful, producing a wide array of edible products. In general, unless you want to eat monkey or bird, most meals are pretty vegetarian.

Most of Halnia's manses are set up to funnel magical energy into the forest to help it sustain life on a large scale. Even so, settlements are spread widely and tend to be small.

The Animal-Men

For most purposes, they can be treated as human equivalent; however, they get two base pips for Perception and usually have enhanced senses which grant them three bonus dice and let them do animal-level sensory feats, such as tracking by smell. They dress like humans, use tools, and can learn the full range of skills. While they never exalt as Magical Girls, it is possible, though very rare, for them to exalt as other things.

There are a fair number of animal species with human level intellect but largely animal bodies as well. They have full citizen rights if they behave themselves.

The Mountain Folk

The Mountain Folk of Halnia have adapted to tree-life, though they favor living in their underground refuges when possible. Their culture no longer resembles that of the main body of Mountain Folk, however, as they have divided into clans and begun organizing families. Their caste system has ceased to exist. Many scholars think they are in the process of turning into something else entirely. Their expertise in woodworking has become quite high and many are starting to look green-tinted.

The Oni and the Catgirls

The Catgirls continue to watch over Halnia, fighting with the Oni for control of the floor of the forest. The tide ebbs and flows as Halnia herself and her pack sometimes have to turn to other matters, and then the Oni will unite under some leader and threaten all the lands.