1 The Continent of Gaia
Gaia is a massive continent that stretches from The World of Gæa’s arctic circle to straddle the equator in its most southern reaches. The figure below shows the world naming the continents of Gaia, Araktor and Vasniss:
Gaia along with Araktor are the dominant landmasses of the Eastern Hemisphere assuming a Meridian dropping through the western reaches of Vasniss. Gaia itself may be split into three main regions:
- The Northland. A formidable mountain range splits Gaia into two near equal parts. Everything north of this range is generally considered The Northland, a rugged dangerous expanse where few dare to venture. Little is known of this land, its geography or its population dynamics. It should be noted that even the portions of this land that extend south, along the western reaches of Gaia are considered as part of The Northland, even though they reach the same latitude as the civilised Mirsea countries
- The Lands of the Mirsea – Central Gaia. The Mirsea comes close to splitting Gaia in two. All the lands surrounding the bowl which is centred on the Mirsea stretching from the continental dividing mountains in the north to the Southern Peaks south of the Mirsea are encompassed here. The coastal regions of the Illian Gulf linking the Mirsea to the ocean beyond are nominally part of this area with no clear border that signifies the start of The Northlands. These are considered the most populous and civilised lands by human reckoning.
- The Backlands. This area encompasses the lands and east of the Southern Peaks as well as the peninsula jutting out along the Illian Gulf. More a place of occasional coastal city states interspersed between vast tracts of forest and jungle, this land has a sparse population compared to the Mirsea Lands, although certain city states are extremely powerful and wealthy in their own right as they serve as trade hubs between Araktor and Gaia and even the Dark Continent of Vasniss.
The map below shows Gaia indicating the regions discussed:
For context consider that The Earth is about 2/3 the size of the World of Gæa. Now consider the distance from the Svalbard (arctic island holdings of Norway) to Equatorial Congo in Africa. As a rough indication, Gaia could be considered to be the length, north to south of Svalbard to Capy Agulhas, the southern most reach of Africa.
2 Were the Adventure Takes Place
This adventure takes place in an area of The Northland as represented by the red square on the Gaia map. This is merely a rough indication, a point of reference to allow players to orientate themselves.