Varangian Duchies

Varangians opened the western route to Moa Toa. Their merchants now lose ground, their sailors turn pirate, and their old naval traditions remain formidable.

From the setting document

This page presents established setting lore. Chapter links show where the crew encountered, challenged, or changed it.

Known as intrepid explorers and consummate seamen, it was the Varangians who first charted their way across the Maelstrom. Though first unaccustomed to the heat of the isles, they established the original tradeposts and laid the foundation for the Tradeway. Today they continue to exert influence in the Trade Consortium through the Varangian Merchants’ Guild.

Chief exports: cannons, mercenaries, fur

The Varangian Duchies are a nation forged by hardship. Composed of a cold, windswept archipelago and a rugged stretch of continent, their lands are not fertile, and their seasons are not gentle. This scarcity has bred a hardy, self-reliant people who learned early to look to the sea for their survival. It is little wonder they became the first great traders and, when trade was not enough, the first great pirate raiders of the West—a dual reputation they carry to this day.

The Squabbling Lords

Politically, Varangia is a fractured realm, divided into dozens of independent feudal states. These domains, the smallest of which are mere petty baronies, are collectively known as the Duchies. Their existence is a constant, chaotic squabble over territory, titles, and vassalage. This internal division has long prevented them from forming a cohesive, modern state, leaving their institutions and military somewhat antiquated when compared to their rivals.

The High King

Despite their endless infighting, the Varangian identity is unbreakable, and they have proudly refused to bow to any outside authority. When an external threat arises, the squabbling lords are quick to set aside their rivalries and unite with a singular purpose. In these times of peril, the Duchies will elect a High King—a temporary sovereign granted absolute authority to lead the combined might of Varangia into battle. It is a tradition born of necessity, and one that has repelled many would-be conquerors who mistook internal strife for external weakness.

The Blood of the North

The true source of Varangia’s outsized influence lies in its people. For reasons unknown, the bloodlines of the north are thick with power and talent, birthing a disproportionate number of gifted individuals. In times of yore, when magic reigned supreme, princes across the world prided themselves on having a Varangian court wizard; indeed, whispered histories claim the current Royal House of Albion first conquered that land with the aid of such a mage. Today, that talent manifests in new ways. The latest western advancements in sailing and gunsmithing consistently emerge from Varangian workshops. Above all, their strong culture of Air Kineticists, or Windbinders, allowed them to be the first to master the winds and break through the impassable Maelstrom, opening the way to Moa Toa and changing the course of history.

Navy

Varangia proudly upholds the world’s oldest traditions in sailing and exploration, but its fragmented nature has kept its modern navy somewhat antiquated and constrained. Single masted ships such as knarrs and tartans are still the norm, modeled after the longships that dominated the seas in centuries past. The other powers could almost never deliver such small vessels safely through the Maelstrom, but Varangians have learned to do so routinely.

Early model knarr, resembling those that first navigated the Maelstrom

When it comes to larger modern ships, the limitations of resources has caused Varangia to diverge in two directions. Merchant vessels mostly sacrifice all firepower for speed and cargo space, such as in the design of the Varangian fluyt. Against foes they cannot outrun, their only hope relies on a ramming or boarding action.

Conversely, Varangian warships made every sacrifice possible to match Albion in firepower, the theory being the only way for one ship to fend off three was to destroy each quickly in sequence. This was briefly accomplished when Varangian cannons were the only ones able to fire explosive shells. That secret has since been leaked (and in any case, as it turns out, was greatly surpassed by the guns of the East). Still, Varangian cannons maintain a notable edge in quality among the Western Powers.

In the chronicle

• Day 28 — Light treasonDisavowed by Moa Tor, the crew becomes Albian privateers and accepts Prince Pako’s mission to recover a sacred relic.
• Day 26 — My sailorThe Lively Lady serves as bait in a multinational trap for a Cathayan ironclad—and ends up inside the assault.
• Day 25 — The calm after the stormThe rescued migrants return to their fleet, where a celebration becomes the prelude to an international naval operation.
• Day 23 — Trade negotiationsWeapons negotiations with the Ranti expose missing captives and lead the crew into a harpy-haunted swamp.
• Day 18 — BBQA blood-boar victory feast brings grief, trade, Punx’s departure, and urgent news from Oro.
• Day 17 — GaslightedThe three villages undertake the Culling, with the crew serving as bait in a record-setting blood-boar hunt.

Show 13 earlier chapters

• Day 16 — Not a haikuTrade, politics, and the consequences of imperial entanglement give way to the villages’ sacred Culling.
• Day 15 — Diplomatic incidentThe investigation into Saint Sebastian’s death collides with local politics as the boggarts bring catastrophic news.
• Day 14 — Who dunnit?A voyage with the Contessa and Saint Sebastian becomes a murder mystery with dangerous religious implications.
• Day 13 — Amuse boucheThe Migrant Fleet arrives with tales of slavery and the crew receives new diplomatic and rescue missions.
• Day 12 — Day at the zooAlbion’s opera-house envoy introduces the crew to Living Saint Sebastian and his hunt for Don Gregorio.
• Day 11 — Master & CommanderPirates, a storm-damaged ship, and a tense return to Kapikala expand the crew’s view of the foreign powers.
• Day 10 — BoomerangAfter returning Bloombark’s children, the crew departs into a storm that leaves their ship lost and damaged.
• Day 9 — MihfThe infiltration of Utu ends in battle, sacrifice, and the liberation of the kidnapped children.
• Day 6 — Blood AguDon Gregorio identifies Blood Agu while Ranghi guides the crew toward a cure and the kidnapped Oro.
• Day 5 — Tea dispute settledA royal breakfast, a necromancer’s tower, and an archaeological mystery end with Oro’s abduction.
• Day 4 — The Doom of the BunyipsAfter surviving the bunyips, the expedition reaches Bloombark and meets Queen Killipella and Don Gregorio.
• Day 3 — Voyage to the Elephant IslesCompeting foreign interests converge as the party sails to the Elephant Isles and narrowly survives its first landing.
• Day 2 — The secret in the cavesThe investigation follows Molty’s trail through boggart caves and uncovers the strategic secret of Elephant Isles timber.