Whelk

Name - Kingdom State of Whelk

Government Style - Monarchy (Elected for Life by council.)

Flag - Dark green background, with vivid orange oak tree in centre. Interweaving patterns in same orange down either side.

Currency - Mantu, a small gold coin resembling a fruit that was once used for barter.

Capital - Fey-Boralind

Geography - Whelk is a heavily wooded land, the inhabitants preferring to live with nature rather than change it. In fact, the only unnaturally non-forested area is the land around the central core of the capital city. The capital city has a core walled city with all the most important governmental buildings - the rest of the "city" is built into and around the trees. In the north there rises a series of hills as the trees thin out. The hills then sweep down the the starkly beautiful northern shore. Many parts of the forest have been grown into dense groves to act as defenses or "towns" - the Green Mages of Whelk constantly modify the forest to suit the needs of the nation. Whelk lies to the west of the GAC and east of Dalmaek and is north of Alupia and Dalysium - the northern sea making the final border.

History - Whelk has always been the home of a very organized and tightly knit tribe of elves. Through the rise of the Iraygion Empire and the expulsion or overthrow of elves from other nations, Whelk has managed to stay isolated and united. This has not mean it has been friendly with the neighbors - it has clashed with the GAC and Oscrow at times and occasionally with other nations in the area. The current demographics of the nation stand at roughly 70% Whelken Elves (Or Elves whose families have lived there long enough that they consider themselves Whelken), 15% other Elf tribes, 10% Other Non-Humans and 5% Humans. However, there may be more non-elves than the census reveals - often, servants, such as Pyskies are still counted as property

Today - Today, Whelk is in a difficult political position. It still has tense agreements with Oscrow and the GAC, which has affected trade. As well, Whelk's trade is mostly in magically crafted goods - there is no "farming" in Whelk, per se - there is organized harvesting of tree fruits, berries (Often used to make famous Whelkian Wine, which is one notable export) and a large Hunter's Guild. Many nations however have begun to ban objects with magical connections. As well, Whelk has brazenly harboured magical creatures and criminals wanted in other nations. The Whelk Royal council controls most of these dealings, in a socialist type model, with all resources being shares and allocated as deemed fit.

The current king is attempting to modernize Whelk while keeping to the old ways as much as possible. The capital city, Fey-Boralind has always been an impressive place, unlike the rest of the forest or any other city, light coloured stone buildings rising up amidst beautifully tended gardens. The city however, is now heated and light at night by magical generators - the horses are now replaced by gilded "Horseless Carriages" using a magic fueled engine.

The new King has also modernized the military, giving proper uniforms and ranking systems. The old bows have finally been discarded in the military for rifles that are loaded with a charged crystal which discharges energy, meaning the gun doesn't need to be reloaded. (Until the crystal wears out and needs recharged.) Cannons have been built that fire glass spheres filled with explosive magics. There have even been airships built - literally ships that move using sails and seem to impossibly fly, the bottoms being laden with anti-gravitational material. Some old elves consider these creations bastardization of the old ways, while most are happy a compromise can be found that lets tradition keep up with survival.