Editing The Endless Wilds (section)

==Capitals==
===Aarn===
Aarn is the rarest of settlements; a frontier town that succeeded on an unprecedented scale. What began as one of the first Hunter’s outposts is now the largest centers for Hunter activity in the Wilds. The city, though it now is large enough to support a population of one million, is still firmly rooted in its pioneer origins. Most of the streets remain muddy and unpaved while very few buildings are not made of wood. The city’s population varies from month to month; while it can swell to nearly a million during the least dangerous seasons, when hunters are in high demand the city stands empty, reduced to nearly a quarter of that. There is an informal ruling council, made up of the most experienced hunters, although their rulings are often only enforced by the arms pledged to them rather than respect for authority. The city is largely ramshackle, with tents and hastily-constructed longhouses clustered around the edges of the city. Power is often difficult to come by, with only the more permanent residences at the center of the city receiving it with any regularity. Training grounds, forges, and stables make up a large portion of the city’s industrial core. Hunters wishing to gain official certification as such can become accredited here through the rigorous '''Sevenfold Provings''', a combination of spiritual, physical, and mental tests that in theory provide the hunter with a better ability to withstand the Wilds.

'''The Aarn''', an Elven hunter from before the Bloom is the city’s unofficial king. Moreso than the ruling council, his decrees are respected out of loyalty rather than fear. He survived the Bloom while outside of a city, enduring horrors unimaginable while fighting his way back to the nearest city. However he managed this, he pledged to spend the rest of his life beating back the Wilds. When the first mana-siphon caravans set out into the Wilds, he pledged his sword to their service, founding Aarn and the '''Hunter’s Guild'''. He “rules” from the center of Aarn in an ancient stone tower that was thrust up from the Dungeons. Unlike most outcroppings, the tower has never returned to the Dungeons. How and why this is is hotly debated, but the Aarn’s decision to live there is seen as proof of his courage in his advanced years. Some say that dark things travel to speak to him in the night from the Dungeons; others dismiss this as superstitious nonsense.

As Aarn grows, some seek to civilize the frontier town, while the sizeable criminal element seeks to keep it trapped in the past. Hunters who see the town as a sign of freedom from the oppressive laws of some cities vehemently refuse attempts to move the town forward, while the Aarn stays silent on the subject. Magineers stringing up power lines have been found dead in the mud, and every night the taverns see blood spilled. Hunters trying to relax in their off-duty moments drink to excess and fight to escape the fear of the Wilds, and numerous criminal factions, headed up by Dwarven “legitimate businessman” '''Mr. Smith''' are more than happy to help Hunters waste their hard-earned coin on brothels and gambling. Rumors abound that the ruling council is building a secret army to destroy the Aarn’s tower and take the town for themselves. Pundits say that within the year, Aarn will be either burned to the ground or headed for a new future. Mr Smith, the Aarn, and the ruling council seem unlikely to cooperate for much longer; how long the tenuous peace will last is anyone’s guess.

* Existence: 40 years
* Government: Self-described "Meritocracy"
* Economy: Mercenary work, manufacture

===Aes Kalon===
Formerly a province of Osenvar, Aes Kalon straddled the border between its mother city and Sulinad to the south. Upon the fall of its mother city during the Great Bloom, Aes Kalon knew that it was on its own as the throngs of fleeing Osenvarians went right past it, the beasts of the Wilds in hot pursuit. It seemed like nothing was going to stop the encroaching force. However, at least as the mythos suggests, a large artifact of unknown origin fell from the sky between the city and the approaching Wild sprawl. This object seemed to repel the growth headed their way, actually containing its advance and protecting the city from its wrath. This artifact soon became known as the '''Wildsbane''', and its power seemed to be long-lasting throughout the years since.

After successfully defending itself from the legions of the Wilds, Aes Kalon has risen to its former glory. A vast city of luxury amidst a chaotic world. With its Wildsbane in place, space and concerns for defense are greatly lessened. As such, the citizens of the city were able to spend more time with leisurely pursuits than those of many of the other cities. This has led to an economy that relies on things such as luxury, entertainment, and manufactured goods. While this path has led to the financial well-being of the city, the reputation as a city of excess has hindered its leaders’ aspirations to become the home of a rumored '''United Front'''.

* Existence: 100 years
* Government: Oligarchy, aspiring to a federal system
* Economy: Manufacturing, luxury goods

===Halliwell Freestate===
To be fair, no-one really had expected Halliwell to survive. It is something of a shock to much of the other survivors that such a town as Halliwell managed to endure and, indeed, prosper. The river through the city made it perfect for trade and with the trade came smuggling. The smuggling attracted more of the less savory business ventures and soon enough after the founding Halliwell, for all its trade and capitalist ventures, became a drain on the economy, thanks to unsuccessful efforts to curb the rising crime. The solution was drastic: the city was almost entirely cut off, left to fend for itself except for token support.

When the Great Bloom arrived it would most likely have become as all the other settlements with limited infrastructure if not for the amazing forward planning of the local crime lords. They had, oddly enough, invested large sums into the understanding and assembling of the mana-siphons, allegedly for the construction of engines and weapons with a magic touch. Anything if not resourceful, the assorted scum of Halliwell erected the mana-siphons and quickly and purposefully secured the borders. The crime lords claimed ownership of the city and claimed it to be a “Freestate”, a city of freedom where the common man, woman, elf and dwarf could make his or her own fortune, without strong governmental control.

Attracting more of its kind, the Halliwell Freestate has become both a refuge for criminality and a forerunner in manatech. All the unsavory experiments that the more regulated - and sane - Capitals would outlaw are fair game. Yet, it remains a place where the strong and clever can cut out a significant part of the cake for themselves.

* Existence: 100 years
* Government: Republic
* Economy: Black market

===Second Osenvar===
Upon the beginning of the Great Bloom, the great magic city of Osenvar to the east was one of the first to fall to the rapidly encroaching Wilds, quickly being enveloped in the thick flora and relentless fauna attracted to the massive amounts of Mana surrounding the city. Most of the populace perished in the assault, and many of the city’s rulers and nobility were able to escape with their subjects’ left behind. Many of the escapees were able to strike it on their own, founding new cities and settlements, or settling in others they ran across along the way. But one of the escapees, then a student of the magical arts, wasn’t going to settle for becoming part of an increasingly thin diaspora.

This man, '''Kolle Mollenar''', took it upon himself to reclaim the Osenvar of his young life from the Wilds. And the key to his success would be the invention of what is now essential technology for the world at large, the '''Mana-Siphon'''. With an advanced version of this technology and a very large group of Hunters, he managed to get through the thickest of the Wilds to secure what was once the center of the magical city. From there, he and the survivors of the expedition managed to restart the city, though using the Wilds to their advantage with the modified Mana-Siphon and reinvented itself as a budding agricultural power in the land.

* Existence: 30 years
* Government: Oligarchy
* Economy: Agriculture

===The Kingdom of Sulinad===
If something isn’t broken, sometimes it is best not to fix it. The Kingdom of Sulinad was founded far before the Great Bloom after a widespread war dedicated to the pages of history. Practically from its inception, the Sulinese have become known for their warrior culture, producing many of the best-known, best-skilled, and downright most fearsome fighters in the world’s history. Discipline, bravery, and ruthlessness are the tenets of the Sulinese way of life.

Despite how much the rest of the world loathed the Sulinese, they survived the Great Bloom in spectacular fashion. Sure, it took them some time to figure out about the Wilds’ connection to the Mana (no one said that the Sulinese were adept in magic), but they were able to root the invasion forth from land from sheer might and a complete lack of fear and value for their lives. It’s not surprising that word of their success spread through the land. They settled into the world after the Bloom as a military power, running their economy through the hiring, training, and exchange of warriors. Hunters the world over know of the '''Sulinese Martial Academy''' and save up their earnings to afford the classes there. Sure, it’s expensive, but most come out of there vastly better than ever before.

* Existence: 400 years
* Government: Feudal
* Economy: Military training and personnel

===Valeria===
When the Great Bloom came it was pure luck for the Grand Duchy of Valeria to survive, maybe more so than others. '''Grand Duke Weidlig''' of Valeria was not suited for his role. He was young, merely 20 years of age and completely dependent on his advisors. A puppet, but not even a good puppet, for he chafed at the limits that had been put upon him. The city itself was more or less governed by the bosses of the factory, carefully balanced against the resentful masses of the workers and their unions.

When the Great Bloom began it was the factory workers who were sent out to fight. The guardsmen were a joke, under-equipped, under-manned and very soon in flight. All the while Grand Duke Weidlig refused to take appropriate action, and instead had his puppeteers hanged. But that left him a lonely duke, inside a city under siege, refusing to even come out of hiding in his chambers. All the while the working class learned their worth and learned to fight. A man named '''Anvar Kell''' took successive control over the city’s resistance, spearheaded the setting up of mana-siphons and fought for every inch of Valerian ground. Not long after, the borders stabilized and Anvar Kell ventured up to the last opposition to his people’s rulership: the Grand Duke. Weidlig was publicly hanged and the “Valerian Peoples Front” set up, to serve the interest of the common man. Now, at last, the people was ready to start rebuilding.

Or so they believed.

But loyalists of the Duke, as well as common workers, were disgusted with the execution. They took up arms in counter-rebellion and the young cousin of the Grand Duke, '''Melicia''', was hailed as the new Grand Duchess. Several mana-siphons were soon put to the torch and the forces of the Wild were once again inside the city.
Now, even fifty years later, Valeria remains a city under siege. Large parts of the city where reclaimed by royalist forces with the now 60 year old Melicia of Valeria as Grand Duchess, while the ancient Anwar Kell still tries to hold the faltering Valerian Front together as they are faced with a two-front war against forces both human and Wild.

* Existence: 200 years
* Government: Police state, unclear about future
* Economy: Manufacture and infrastructure, if any