Thursday, 25 April 2013

Background to the Witch-Queen and High Elstrand

I started writing two story threads, one thread is set in The Witch-Queen universe of High Elstrand and the other is set in the city and country of Xentra. I have been asked if it is OK for others to base stories in these universes, it is as long as I can see the story before it is submitted to a web site.

So, with this in mind, I have taken the step of giving my vision of the universe that High Elstrand exists in, the details can be found below:


Background to the Witch-Queens World

Population –             17,395,476 free women, according to the last census
                        9,443,170 slaves, according to the last census

Cities -             12 major cities
                        15 minor cities
                        30 large towns and many smaller ones

Culture - Highly militaristic and aggressive matriarchy with an economy and expansion based on trade of all kinds and, when necessary or when provoked, conquest.

Military -             30 army’s each of 250,000 troops
                        The Blood Guard (10,000 strong)
                        The Order of the Black Sisters (45,000 strong)

The Witch-Queen and High Elstrand

Elianna Holzberg became Witch-Queen after the death of her mother, she is two hundred and three years old and has ruled the realm of High Elstrand for one hundred and nine years. Before ascending to the throne Elianna had been the Commander of her mothers army’s only becoming the Witch-Queen when her mother died as the result of a riding accident. A rare occurrence in a land where life spans of five hundred years or more are common.

The title Witch-Queen is not one given in jest or maliciousness, it exactly describes what Elianna is. It is a title that must be earned, on the death of her mother Elianna rode to the capital city and made her way to the coliseum that sat at its centre, For three days, without food or water, she waited for challengers for the throne to appear, four did and four died.

The Witch-Queen leads by example and is often at the head of her armies, personally leading her troops into battle. She is a ferocious, fearless and highly skilled warrior with the ability to wield devastating magic when it is needed. As the Witch-Queen once said to a visiting head of state from the far south, “We’d rather sell you something than fight you but if you turn on us we will seriously fuck both you and your country.”

Elianna rules over a vast matriarchal realm whose population numbers in the millions and is almost entirely female. The few men there are being kept for only one purpose, breeding, they are never seen outside the underground stables that house them.

Except in extremely rare occasions there is only one way to become a citizen of High Elstrand and that is to be born one. The vast majority of women from High Elstrand are magic users, sorceresses and priestesses, or as they preferred to be called, witches.

The capital city is on the northeast edge of a plateau some seven thousand feet above sea level and one hundred and fifty mile from the border with Grent as the first story begins.

The Blood Guard

Commanded by General Leandra Benina the Blood Guard is the personal regiment and protection of the Witch-Queen, it is named after the colours of House Holzberg, which has successfully ruled High Elstrand for three thousand years, it is the colour of their armour and their banners. To be a member of the Blood Guard is the highest honour a soldier in the Elstranian army can achieve and only the very, very best are chosen to join its ranks. There are no lengths the Blood Guard will not go to in order to protect their Queen and it has often been mentioned that blood red is a convenient colour to have your armour when it comes to shedding the blood of others.

Slaves

Any woman found within the boundaries of the Witch-Queens realm or taken as a captive either in battle or conquest is enslaved. The vast majority become household, industrial or agricultural slaves but those that are deemed the most beautiful are enslaved as sex-slaves and, in the case of those taken by the members of the priesthood, pain-sluts.

Ordinary slaves wear brown lather knee length smocks, brown leather collars and flat soled shoes while sex-slaves are easily identified by the skin tight red leather slave-skins they wear along with the red leather slave-masks or slave-hoods that cover their faces for most of the time. Other fetish clothing, also always in red leather, such as thigh boots, harnesses and leather corsets are common additions to a sex-slaves clothing. Designs and styles may vary but the colour red remains the same, the exception are the sex-slaves owned by members of the priesthood, their slaves are always sheathed in black leather slave-wear and accessories.

Wherever it is a sex-slave is always collared in its owner’s personal design of collar.

As with the Blood Guard the colour of the blood red leathers worn by sex-slaves derives from the colours of the ruling Holzberg family who were the first to own pleasure-slaves.

Deity and Religion

The citizens of High Elstrand worship a Goddess called Siv, also know as The Dark Lady or the Shadow Lady. Siv is the Goddess of pleasure, pain, sex and magik and it is through her worship that the Witch-Queen and her people derive their magical abilities. Her worship is based around three things – perverted sex, extreme pain and black magic but the rewards she has given to High Elstrand have been great.

The Arch-Abbess Candida Renville, the Witch-Queens closest friend and confidante, is the head of the church in High-Elstrand and leads the Abbesses, Deaconesses and Canonesses of the black robed Sisters of Torment. The Arch-Abbess is feared, despised and hated by most outside High Elstrand who know of her because of her delight in extreme sexual perversions and sadism.

There is an order militant called The Order of the Black Sisters who operate in much the same way as the Knights Templar did and enforce canon law.

As with any religion there has been divergence with various sects and factions appearing but in the end they all worship Siv in their own way while giving allegiance to Candida Renville as head of the mother church.

Neigbouring Countries (More info can be provided on these)

The Five Lands are made up of:

Grent (soon to be swallowed up)
Lindest ruled by Lord Vertan Consadign
Bel-Heston ruled by Prince Evan and Princess Alexa Dristan (plans afoot)
The Duchy of Hillmartin ruled by the elderly Duke Bertram and Duchess Dorothy Hillmartin
The Conclave of Caer-Corlendell ruled by the High Priest of the Five Who are One, Jasphid Ar-Escan

Chlestdh

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