Fantasy Jörmungandr: The World Train - LORE

[Mykinkaiser]

JÖRMUNGANDR: THE WORLD TRAIN
TABLE OF CONTENTS​

THE TRAIN
Jörmungandr

Van Aalsburg-Oirschot

Borgese

Baudelaire

Hightower

Tarhov

THE OUTSIDE NATIONS
Allechlande

Volstad

Khadan

Juha

Aleku

The Hosterian Union

The Freyar Archipelago

Nishida

The Valkyrie City States

THE NATURAL WORLD
The Races

Eitr

The Northlands

The Frontier

Flora

Fauna

​

 

[Mykinkaiser]

JÖRMUNGANDR
​

Jörmungandr was created around a century ago as a symbol of unity during a time of global peace, with all nations sending their best engineers and artisans to aid in its construction. Even now, it stands as a marvel of engineering that is unreproducible and far ahead of its time. In fact, much of modern eitrcraft comes from craftsmen reverse-engineering what was used on the train.

The train stands as tall as a small mountain, and its length stretches for miles. The inside is a city that rivals the capitals of other nations in population and sprawl. Furthermore, the train mostly maintains self-sufficiency with farms covering the roofs of the cars, and water reclamation systems working to both recycle used water and to catch and filter water from the exterior.

Currently, the train is seen as a normal part of the world by most, and stands as neutral ground protected by a global treaty forbidding the nations from using it to either house or transport troops.

THE TRAINBORN
​

As the name suggests, the Trainborn are those who were born on Jörmungandr and they often take great pride in this fact. Due to the fact that the train circles the world, the Trainborn do not have a standard expected race or ethnicity and are thus incredibly diverse. Culture aboard the train is similarly varied, with elements of many other countries' cultures blended together present in it. One of the best examples of this is the common language aboard the train, a pidgin language which is often referred to as Trainspeak.

The train is governed by a council made up by the heads of the 5 Families, a term that refers to the 5 richest and most powerful families aboard the train.

TRAVELERS
​

Travelers, sometimes known as Passengers or simply as Outsiders, are those who purchase tickets to board Jörmungandr. Generally, these people are using the train as a form of transportation, hence the name (though the name is applied to anyone not born on the train, even if they've moved on-board to live permanently).

Tickets for Jörmungandr are not sold in the same way that regular tickets are. Instead of paying for passage to a particular destination, passengers buy tickets that allow them a certain amount of time on the train. The shortest, and thus cheapest, ticket allows for a day and the longest, barring a citizenship ticket, allows for 3 years. Should a Traveler's ticket run out, they will be required to leave the train at the next stop. Should they fail to do so, they tend to be forcibly ejected, sometimes while the train is still in motion.

Citizenship tickets, allowing for permanent residence, are only offered to those who have lived on the train for at least 5 years and meet other strict requirements. This, plus the high cost of such a ticket, means that there is an intentionally high barrier for Travelers who wish to become citizens of Jörmungandr.

Lastly, a Traveler's ticket functions as their ID upon the train, and is required for most things on-board. In the case that a Traveler is found without their ticket, they can be fined heavily and incarcerated. That said, there have been cases of this law being used to target "unfavorable" Travelers.

THE LOWBORN
​

The lowborn are a class of people on-board Jörmungandr who perform the manual labor to keep the train running. Despite being almost universally born on the train, the Lowborn are kept confined to the underbelly of the train, away from the general populace. The first reason for this is to keep their existence a secret known only to the 5 Families. The second, to keep them isolated in order to cut off any avenues for them to keep them from getting any ideas of rebellion, given that they're treated as expendable slaves.

Despite these measures however, the Lowborn have managed to get in contact with the more unscrupulous denizens of the train, and have been quietly building up supplies. Now their preparations are nearly complete, and they will soon make their move to rise up.

TOP​

 

[Mykinkaiser]

VAN AALSBURG-OIRSCHOT
​

When one thinks of weapons, Aalsburg-Oirschot Arms is one of the first things that will come to mind. Getting their start in Allechlande, the family made a name for itself as arms manufacturers after scoring a lucrative government contract to provide a replacement sidearm for standard infantry members. Following this, they built their reputation up further with successive contracts, becoming successful in the civilian market as well during this period.

It was this success and reputation that gained the Van Aalsburg-Oirschot family an invitation onto the train, one that they happily accepted. They have continued to operate factories within Allechlande since their relocation, though the move has brought about a sharp decrease in military contracts. To compensate for this, A.O. Arms has expanded into other countries and also maintains manufacturing capabilities on the train itself. Due to this, their popularity on the civilian market around the world has only gone up.

Past production of standard firearms, A.O.Arms is also involved in research and development for eitrwork weapons, including research into potential ways to utilize Grade 3 eitr.

The current heads of the Van Aalsburg-Oirschot family are the husband and wife Marcus and Alena Van Aalsburg-Oirschot.

TOP​

 

[Mykinkaiser]

BORGESE​

 

[Mykinkaiser]

BAUDELAIRE​

 

[Mykinkaiser]

HIGHTOWER​

One of the oldest families on the train, the Hightower family’s influence on health and pharmaceuticals is one seen in a good light. Even before the train existed, the Hightowers have benefited others with their supreme dedication to their medical craft. Because of their prowess, they were asked to join the other four families on the train, providing the patrons of all classes with good medical care. Helping seems to be their main source of pleasure, and assisting in making the human body a better experience for those involved in it. The Hightowers were always into medicine, but once eitr was discovered and brought into the world, it seemed they took extra care into figuring out how the source worked and how it affected people.

The Hightowers were the first to come up with the term “eitrtouch” and to find an effective treatment for the disease, albeit one that was prohibitively expensive for the common man. (A certain Hightower has dedicated her life to developing a cheaper cure for eitrtouch, much like her father had done before he forgot himself, but alas…) Some of the reporters who mysteriously disappeared while they were making their articles found it curious how often some of the poorer guests of the Hightowers’ generous monthly banquets “for the people” would leave and never come back. There was one reporter who managed to get into one of said banquets, went the wrong way, and claimed that the Hightowers were experimenting with eitr, but none of these attempts of so-called slander were ever proven true...plus, after a few years, she disappeared as well.

The current Head of the Hightower family is Callahan Hightower III, and his son, Ezra, should be next in taking his place.

TOP​

 

[Mykinkaiser]

TARHOV
​

Taking the position of one of the oldest families on the train, the Tarhov Family is well known for their contribution to entertainment to the masses. A lovely family filled with men and women of various talents, they were famous for their productions even before the train was established. Singers, actors, playwrights, authors - you name an artistic craft and the Tarhov family is sure to have at least one person in the craft. They are influential due to their plays being broadcasted nearly everywhere - they do not limit it to those of high society. They established many successful casinos in various countries.

This is what got them invited to the train and gave them acess. The Tarhov Family established the first casino inside the train almost immediately after it started its first rotation. They were the ones who would put on multiple plays about the founding of the train as well as generally spread merriment among the people. They’ve built more casinos and theaters over the years and stayed as an influential family - especially as it is their voice that is often being heard via their many productions.

There are many cases where there are desperate people who find themselves at the steps of a Tarhov owned establishment where they plead for money to live. The ever generous Tarhov family gives this money as a loan. They are given a time limit to when they can pay back their debt - often with a small interest. Time limit and interest are entirely negotiable. No one is really sure what happens if you don’t pay them back on time. There have been rumors that these people enter their establishments and never be seen again.

The current head of the Tarhov Family is Francesca Tarhov, newly appointed two years ago after the death of her father.

TOP​

 

[Mykinkaiser]

ALLECHLANDE
​

Situated in the center of the eastern continent, Allechlande is a stratocracy with an incredibly advanced military. This can be traced back to the fact that Allechlande contains vast amounts of fertile farmland in its southern region. While this has made Allechlande a nation of plenty, it has also lead to much conflict over that land from bordering nations. This constant conflict caused previous rulers to focus on military development and merit-based promotions out of necessity, eventually resulting in the military coming into power. However, this has also lead towards the nation becoming highly jingoistic, with the military sparing no expense in their (highly successful) propaganda effort to maintain high levels of patriotism in the populace.

All citizens of Allechlande are subject to compulsory military service beginning when they turn eighteen, lasting for at least two years. During this time, they are put through basic training to achieve discipline and a standard level of competence with arms. Should a citizen be unable to participate in this training, they are placed into a division that they can aid with, often logistics or the like. It is only when a citizen is truly unable to participate in anything, such as in the case of coma or extreme disability, that their service requirement is waived.

For the past twenty years, tensions with Volstad have been on the rise over a section of disputed territory that Allechlande had seized in a past war. These tensions have escalated to the point that border skirmishes are the norm and the two nations are at the brink of war again. This is partly due to Volstad's aggressive expansionism, but also due to Allechlandic jingoism rearing its head, with the public supporting a war to assert national dominance and to secure an even stronger position for the glorious fatherland.

TOP ​

 

[Mykinkaiser]

VOLSTAD
​

The easternmost of the nations, Volstad is also the largest in both landmass and population. It is a nation of rich history and tradition, but also of inequality. Generations of power hungry Tsars have created a deeply entrenched class devide, and woven corruption through the government to the detriment of the people. However, the current Tsar, for fear of rebellion, has begun to unravel the web of nepotism, corruption, and injustice that plagues the nation.

Within the last 20 years, Volstad has been engaged in a series of escalating border skirmishes with Allechlande over a disputed section of the boarder. Due to these, as well as the nation's growing population, there have increasingly been calls within the Volsa government and from the people to invade Allechlande and claim the land for themselves.

Climate-wise, the northern part of Volstad is extremely cold, even leading into arctic conditions at the northernmost edge. To the south the tundra blends into taiga, and eventually plains near to the boarder with Juha.

TOP​

 

[Mykinkaiser]

KHADAN​

 

[Mykinkaiser]

JUHA
​

Juha is a prosperous merchant nation, sharing its northern boarder with Allechlande and Volstad and having easy naval access to the

Hosterian Union. Juhan merchants have used this geographic position to effectively become the main trade conduit between the two mainland superpowers and the Union, though the reach of Juhan trade extends far beyond just that.

However, due to this strong mercantile spirit, and the desire to be independent and to protect one's own interests that accompanies it, Juha has a very weak national government. Normally, this is just how the citizens like it, but as tensions rise between their northern neighbors so to do anxieties about how the government will handle negotiations, and particularly about their lackluster military.

Northern Juha is comprised mostly of scrublands and savanna, blending into desert about a third of the way down. As a result of this, most of Juha's cities tend to be along the coast, on the nation's main river, or else in the north. Those who live in the desert tend to be bands of nomads. Juha also has the largest Alrami population of any country by a large margin.

TOP​

 

[Mykinkaiser]

ALEKU
​

Aleku is best known for their unique and prosperous agricultural industry. Due to their relative isolation from the rest of the countries, Aleku isn’t the most advanced country. However, this does not mean that they don’t have their own inventions to aid them in their efficiency in agriculture.

Due to very little influence from the outside aside from trade, Aleku is still thriving under the rule of multiple tribes allied in age old peace treaties and common hate for anyone seeking to colonize them. Thus far, however, no one has bothered Aleku due to it being a rather lackluster land aside from its rich land for agriculture.

There are five major tribes that overall rule five different parts of Aleku - each with their own specialties in terms of what they produce. There are other smaller tribes that dot the land of Aleku and while they are independent, they do typically follow the main tribe where their land is based on.

Each tribe’s leader is called Anggatu and they oversee all the operations within their tribe. If an Anggatu dies, a trial is called onto those who are interested in the position. Each tribe has their own variation of the trial but it is all made with fairness in mind.

On par with the power of the Anggatu is the Bayrian - their spiritual leaders. They oversee relations with other tribes and the outsiders and they also lead their rituals and festivals. They are believed to be able to communicate with their deities. Bayrians are typically elected through the choosing of the current Bayrian; however, there are times where certain villagers experienced what they call “Deriusimo” [“Spiritual Awakening”] where it is believed that a particular villager was chosen by the spirits to guide the tribe.

Commonly, it is believed by Outsiders that an Anggatu is male and a Bayrian is female. Though this is most commonly true, there have been multiple records of female Anggatus and male Bayrians, rare as they may be. The concept of gender seems to be vastly different in Aleku than the rest of the world, however, which leads to conflicting records between Outsiders and Alekan records.

The concept of racial superiority also do not exist within the borders of Aleku. While integrating oneself into Alekan tribes have proved to be difficult due to their difference in lifestyle compared to the rest of the world, they are accepting of any race who wish to join them. Over the centuries that Aleku has existed, certain races have integrated themselves into the country which has become racially diverse in today’s time.

They trade most commonly with Juha, in exchange for certain materials that cannot be found within Aleku. Though it is rare, there is some trade with Volstad.

Aleku is mostly composed of mountains, forests and clearings. Those of Aleku have built their villages and their livelihoods around nature out of both fear and respect for the spirits that inhabit the world. They’ve learned how to live within these conditions and travel through them with little to no consequence - but to an outsider, it would seem like a maze of trees that all look the same. If one were to travel in Aleku, it would be wise to get help from a native.

Teeming with dangerous fauna and flora, natives of Aleku have learned to make peace with them. Generally avoiding certain territories and making sure that they only hunt in areas that are out of the way of the more dangerous creatures.

Aleku is rich with culture with multiple rituals to appease and please the spirits that watch over their land and their seas. They also have multiple festivals over the year but their biggest Festival is called the “Unayaw il Derius” [roughly translated to: “Festival of the Spirits”] where all the tribes go to the middle of the island to celebrate their harvest. This happens at the end of the year. The Bayrian of the chosen tribe will lead the prayers for the festival and it lasts for two days of non-stop merrymaking and prayers. Those who are left in their respective lands to both protect and tend their land simply offer their prayers.

TOP​

 

[Mykinkaiser]

THE HOSTERIAN UNION
​

Founded by those seeking their fortunes in the then unsettled western continent, the Hosterian Union boasts considerable wealth and international influence despite its relatively short history. This can be attributed to the vast amounts of natural resources that can be found within the nation, making it the single largest exporter of raw materials of any of the nations.

Juhan merchants are a common site in Hosterian port cities as a result of this.

However, despite its wealth, the Union is a country heavily divided between the haves and have-nots. The wealthy hold tremendous political influence and organized crime is both commonplace and normal within the large cities, with officials either accepting their bribes or else finding themselves ousted from their positions. Regardless of this reality, most citizens of the Union hold onto the ideal that anyone can make their fortune with enough hard work and perseverance.

West of the Union, past a mountain range known as the Spires, lies the Frontier. This vast stretch of dense and treacherous jungle has long been an object of desire for the Hosterian government, who have mounted an ongoing effort to settle it for decades. As a result of this, there are several established towns near the western base of the Spires, though none established any further west have lasted more than a year as of yet.

These frontier towns pride themselves as being apart from the main body of the Union, seeing those living east of the Spires as lazy, conniving folk who've forgotten the true origins of the nation. In turn, the easterners generally view the frontier folk as crude, violent people who could benefit from learning some manners.

TOP​

 

[Mykinkaiser]

THE FREYAR ARCHIPELAGO
​

The Freyar Archipelago, to put it bluntly, is a hive for the scum and villainy of the world. The islands serve as the home base of many of the largest smuggling rings and criminal organizations in the world. As such, they are an extremely dangerous place for outsiders, and only marginally less dangerous for those who know the unspoken rules and dynamics of power. Still, if you're looking for something, odds are there's someone that can find it there, for a price that is.

The various organizations on the islands maintain a sort of tacit agreement with the surrounding countries. Pirates from the archipelago won't raid official governmental ships, and in turn the nations don't send troops to assault the organizations. This "agreement" mainly stems from the fact that while the surrounding nations (especially Allechlande) have the capability to win that battle, their focus is generally pointed elsewhere, making it not worth the expenditure. Due to this, an uneasy "peace" reigns.

Time will only tell how long that lasts however.

TOP​

 

[Mykinkaiser]

NISHIDA
​

Located to the north-west of the map, Nishida is an island nation known for being fiercely proud of their global independence and aloof in regards to international affairs. Nishida also holds tradition to be of great importance, with bloodline and clan history doing much to determine a person's worth in the eyes of society. This attitude has resulted in a relatively small number of well-established clans holding a disproportionate amount of power, to the extent that the Imperial family cannot unilaterally disregard them when making decrees and the like.

Recently however, tensions have been rising between these clans and the Emperor, as the latter has come to believe that this style of government will eventually cripple Nishida on the international stage, and thus leave them at the mercy of other nations. His attempts to weaken the clans have not gone unnoticed however, which has resulted in the country splitting politically between imperial loyalists and clan traditionalists. This schism only served to heighten the discord, leading to broken families and violence between opposing supporters.

Theses tensions came to a head when a large mob of traditionalists attacked the home of a loyalist official, prompting loyalist forces to intervene. This proved to the last straw for the clans, as they formally renounced the Emperor, plunging the nation into civil war.

The war has been going on for a year now, and the loyalists currently have the upper hand. However, discord has recently struck the Imperial Family, and the war is still far from over.

TOP​

 

[Mykinkaiser]

THE VALKYRIE CITY STATES
​

The Valkyrie City States are, as their name suggests, not a nation in the truest sense. Rather, it is the collective name for the various nation-states located in the mountains north of the

Khadan-Allechlande border. As such, this name is not in use within the city-states themselves, as it serves more as a convenient way for outsiders to refer to the region as a whole.

While the various city-states differ in regards to the details of their individual cultures, there are some traits they all share. As a whole, Valkyrie culture places heavy emphasis on martial ability, especially since relations between city-states are not always harmonious to say the least. Most city states are lead by a council of elders, but most also have a military leader chosen through a martial tournament. Generally, this leader is little more than a figurehead to rally and inspire the troops, though they can be given actual authority by the council if they're deemed to be competent as a leader. Furthermore, given their remote location atop the frigid mountains, the city-states are relatively untouched by the cultures and technologies of the rest of the world. The most important similarity, however, is how the city-states approach childbearing and upbringing.

As Valkyries are an all female race, it is necessary for them to seek out men from other races in order to reproduce. As such, citizens of the city states are expected to go on a journey in order to conceive and return with a child. These children are then raised communally, treated as the entire city-state's child. Due to this, the Valkyries are culturally very lax about romantic relationships, though should a member wish to bring a husband back he would usually be welcomed. Should a Valkyrie be unable or else unwilling to bear a child, they are required to go on a journey to acquire new skills that they can then teach to their fellow citizens.

TOP ​

 

[Mykinkaiser]

THE RACES​

 

[Mykinkaiser]

EITR​

Eitr is a naturally occurring mineral that functions as the power source for eitr engines and eitrworks. It is crystalline in nature, and will explode if exposed to sufficient shock. The amount of force necessary to cause a rupture decreases as the grade increases. Also, raw eitr cannot be used in eitr engines, it must be refined into power cells first.

Eitr is largely split into 4 general grades which can be told apart by the intensity of the crystals:

Grade 0: Entirely useless, generally refers to depleted eitr, or what grows on the bodies of the eitrtouched.

Grade 1: The most stable and abundant grade of eitr in use. It powers most civilian grade engines and tools.

Grade 2: Military and weapons grade eitr, used for clockwork dolls as well. Access to this grade is generally restricted.

Grade 3: Extremely unstable and energetic. At this point it is unusable due to it exploding far too easily.

Eitr Engines​

Eitr engines, also referred to as eitrwork or eitrcraft, are clockwork devices that draw out the power contained within eitr to create some sort of phenomenon. The craft began around the time of the creation of Jörmungandr, though eitrcraft tools have only become widely available within the last few decades.

Eitrtouch
​

Eitrtouch is a disease that occurs due to prolonged exposure to raw, unprocessed eitr. As such it primarily afflicts those who work in eitr mines and processing plants.

It is characterized by eitr crystals growing on the bodies of the infected, though these crystals are of Grade 0. Over time, these crystals will continue to grow and encroach throughout the infected's body, eventually crystallizing major organs and killing them. This process occurs faster if the infected continues to come into contact with raw eitr.

Treatment options for eitrtouch do exist, but as there has not been much research done on the subject, they are still mostly experimental which makes them also very expensive and rather rare. Furthermore, due to this lack of research, many misconceptions about the disease exist, causing most to shun the infected out of fear despite eitrtouch not being contagious.

General timelines for infection are as follows:

Grade 0: 10 years​

​

Grade 1: 3 years​

​

Grade 2: 6 months​

​

Grade 3: 2 weeks​

TOP​

 

[Mykinkaiser]

THE NORTHLANDS​

 

[Mykinkaiser]

THE FRONTIER​

 

[Mykinkaiser]

FLORA​

 

[Mykinkaiser]

FAUNA​