Hyboria

The economic center of the world, this originally lonnic country has risen to extreme power in the last couple centuries.

Location & Geography

Situated just south of Sidon and the Spine mountains, Aurora makes up more than fifty percent of the Ring of Fire. For being such an important world power,   it actually controls very little land, and ranks above only Skull Island in total land controlled.

Rather tame in nature, weather in Aurora is usually pleasant all year-round. Summers tend to be warm, but are rarely overly hot or humid, and winters rarely see anything colder than morning frost on the rooftops. Though Aurora is naturally a very green place, only towards the north and along the very coastal regions are the plants evergreens, the majority of Auroran trees being seasonally green.

The majority of wildlife in Aurora consists of varying species of birds and small herbivorous reptiles, though farther north, away from the coast, larger land mammals become more common. Poultry is the most common commercial livestock here, though individuals may occasionally invest in larger animals for food purposes.

History

Founded as a satellite colony for the Empire of Lon, Aurora belonged to Lon well into the Thousand Years War before showing any interest in independence. When it finally did declare independence from Lon not five hundred years ago, Lon was too busy with the Akkadians to truly resist Aurora's decision.

For years following their secession from Lon, Aurora struggled with Skull Island (Which was also part of Lon, having gained independence at the same time as Aurora) in an attempt to gain economic and trade superiority. Initially, Skull Island (then known only as Trada) controlled all the sea trade routes to and from Badonia, and it was only through a huge investment of time and money that Aurora was able to surpass their neighbor and gain the trust of the Badonians over Skull Island.

Now, Aurora exists as the commerce capital of Hyboria. Its centralized location and otherwise neutral land makes it the perfect choice for traders needing a place to stop, rest and resupply, and its very high foreign exchange rate makes it a desirable location for merchants looking to peddle their foreign wares.

Internal & Foreign Relations

Having seceeded from Lon just under half a millenia ago, tensions between the two regions have calmed, though to say that the two are friends would be inaccurate. Lately, Aurora on the whole has decided that Avalon has little to offer the world anymore, and it would be in Aurora's best interests to remain neutral in the civil war against Gamlon. Accordingly, trade has been sharply withdrawing from Avalon lately, which could potentially put Avalon in a very hairy situation.

With the advent of the Salters, Aurora saw a noticable increase in relations with both the Akkadians and the Sids, causing many disenchanted warriors to make Aurora their new home. There is a lot of bad blood between the Sids and Akkadians, though Aurora has a very strict series of laws that absolutely forbids anything to come of these conflicts within Auroran borders. Many of these immigrants take up mercenary work, though some attempt to "become more Auroran" and work at taverns, banks, or even attempt to start up their own business; all with mixed results.

Relations with Skull Island remain sour. It is nearly impossible for a trade ship to make it to or from Aurora without a naval escort ship now (especially through the Trada Strait), and Aurorans are highly advised to vacation by methods other than boat. Skirmishes with the pirates have escalated to a nearly-daily occurance, and many believe that Auroran officials are in discussions to simply end the Tradic nuisance in a full-scale attack some time soon.