The world beyond our humble realms are vast in nature — lands stretch from corner to corner, and those of different terrain float adrift outside the As’dra peninsula. Here are the stories of how they came to be, and how they eventually find As’dra to be their new home.

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The Sun Dynasty sprawls from the Howling Sea to nearly the borders of the Eyirath Kingdom, close to Firefly Grotto in the north with only The Divide separating the Spearhead from the Bloodwood. With their borders so close to another kingdom's, the Sun Dynasty is militant about patrols, and has a strong presence throughout their region. The kingdom is lush jungle interspersed with towering karsts to the southwest as the Crow's Eye watches over the Howling Sea and the rest of the Dynasty, steadily fading into verdant green the closer one moves to Yuwen Temple. Hard to see due to the flourishing undergrowth are the numerous caverns and holes, all leading underground to a number of wellsprings and rivers that had a hand in forming the Crow's Eye to begin with. They are safer to drink the farther northeast you go, though have a distinctive taste that has been said in other kingdoms to contribute to the bitter, long-lasting memories of the Dynasty's people. Approaching Yuwen Temple, the wellsprings begin to show above ground here and there, with small water sources peering through the greenery. In the northernmost reaches, the jungle thickens once again, and becomes a dense mangrove swamp which blocks the sun even on the brightest days, leaving only those clever or familiar enough with the roots of the mangrove trees to navigate beneath its dark canopy.

Known to be inventive over the other kingdoms, despite their bloody past, this kingdom stretches from the east side of The Rift to the dunes surrounding Eldtril Retreat, and from the shores of the summer sea all the way up to the Altar of the Phoenix in the north. Golden red sands stretch as far as the eye can see to the east, and the Pharaoh of the Endless Horizon has ostensibly claimed it all for their own kingdom, earning their name--the Endless Horizon. Realistically speaking, if one goes far enough out into the desert, it becomes lawless, far from even Yggdrasil's reach, but none who rule from their seat of Teggedell will accept such logic; the desert is theirs. The sun is harsh, but the wind is moreso, flinging sand hard enough to strip bone during the worst of storms and otherwise providing little shelter or relief from the heat. At night, temperatures plummet into near-freezing, and by morning the sand is cold as ice and just as hard-packed. When storms come, it is in the night, freezing rains and howling winds driving citizens into their shelters. It is in this environment that the people of the Endless Horizon have thrived, and it shows in the harsh nature of their interactions and the bloody history stretching behind them. It also shows in their innovation and drive, their passion for invention and the industrious nature of their culture. When survival is not guaranteed for even the fittest, someone must even the odds--and that someone has always been among the people of the Endless Horizon.

The Eyirath Kingdom sprawls from Nepenthe Haven in the south, along the coast of the Om'at Tributary all the way up to Firefly Grotto in the north. Though The Divide separates the two kingdoms, up north the borders between Eyirath Kingdom and the Sun Dynasty actually touch, which results in great conflict near the Firefly Grotto if the border patrols happen to meet. The dense jungle that makes up the northern half of Eyirath Kingdom is ripe with hiding places for an ambush, as the lone road leading from Nepenthe Haven through the Bloodwood stops long before, at the bridge leading to Willowglen across the Om'at Tributary, leaving those seeking passage to Firefly Grotto to navigate the dense foliage on their own. A longstanding sentinel against the encroaching Sun Dynasty, Eyirath Kingdom was founded by Adachi Takamoto after receiving a leaf from the Yggdrasil Tree, which he and others took as a preordained sign of his right to rule. In contrast to their closest neighbors, they have long cultivated an air of elegance and civility, with a looser approach to conflict despite the number of patrols they carry out being even greater than those of the Dynasty. However, this has led to a tendency for veiled threats and attacks from the shadows, for their smiling faces are only a mask to hide their true thoughts. Eyirath Kingdom is one many find hard to trust.

Only recently, Uddegana Province had been shattered and on the cusp of abandonment, and that history still shows in the scars left behind on the land. This kingdom is divided by Nateka Ridge across from the Thesvern Hills, with the Pass of Tomorrow being the only way to move between the northern and southern halves. Frosthaven lies above the ridge, while the capital of Attexus is tucked in beneath it. In the north, vast evergreen forests have, in some places, been reduced to frozen wastelands, and the lands have given in to the frequent cold; to the south, the maple trees around Attexus are standing twisted and scarred, but whole, while the crop fields are carefully tended; and the Pass of Tomorrow has had avalanches more frequently, leaving boulders in the road and a new rule for caravans to speak quietly while walking through. Uddegana Province may have suffered under the negligent rule of its previous king, but there are also signs everywhere that the kingdom is healing. Border patrols are more frequent, particularly on the sides facing other kingdoms, and trade has resumed with enthusiasm from the merchant class, bringing caravans in from all corners of As'dra. The settlements are livelier than they have been in recent years, with frequent open markets and festivals the likes of which are not seen anywhere else.

Nestled under the comforting eaves of the Wild Vale and embracing another forest that stretches even beyond As'dra, the Sestrala Commonwealth is home to a secretive people. The kingdom stretches from the north side of the Horizon-Sestrala Border to the Wild Yonder in the northwest. The trees grow tall and close together throughout most of the kingdom, with the foliage of thick red coniferous trees providing a constant shade to the vibrant tangle of life at their roots. The trees are large enough that a number of locals can travel by climbing into the tree tops, and a keen eye may spot ladders and bridges leading off into the canopy. Others make near-invisible pathways through the underbrush, an ever-changing web that functions as a security measure as much as the patrols often wandering through it do. Rather than brave the maze, outsiders tend to stick to the only road that accepts merchants, and runs straight through the middle of the kingdom to Redwood Keep. The King's Road is well-kept and often patrolled, but locals seldom seem to use it themselves. The trails are faster, if you know them well. To the north, steep cliffs fall into Twilight Valley, where coniferous trees give way to birch and silvered variants, the ghostly silhouettes visible even from Redwood Keep's towers and stretching well past the kingdom's borders, into the Beyond.

The farther Northwest you travel in As'dra, the warmer it becomes and the more sparsely various foliage grows. Eventually even the earth is turned molten black, and then it gives way to heated lavarock and the burbling of an active volcano. These are not the most interesting feature of the area, however; coiled at the foot of the volcano and wrapping around toward its peak are the bones of a massive creature, its chest cavity large enough to hold a den for a family of lions and wingspan stretching over the whole side of the volcano. Its skull curls toward one wing, and those who are daring enough to climb up that far will see that this creature died coiled around a nest of dozens of eggs, now petrified in the face of the elements. Claiming a dragon's egg is a frequent test of bravery, most often in the Sun Dynasty but well-known among the other kingdoms. It is said those who take the eggs suffer horrendous nightmares and feel compelled to return them, but whether that is the truth no one really knows for sure, as those who have managed the climb rarely speak on it. Those who do recount it as an almost religious experience, to stand by the maw of a creature that could have swallowed them whole and see how small it once had been in the eggs it guarded.

From the farthest northwestern reaches of As'dra down to the calmer waters of Amaranthine Cove and as far out across the water as the eye can see, the Howling Sea rages. A place where the waters never calm, and the wind screeches more than sings. The tides of deep blue water are rough and unforgiving, battering the coastline and anything built upon it with no mercy. Beneath the choppy surface, fish and more dangerous creatures lurk more peacefully, but it's only a few feet down that the waters become pitch black--no way of seeing what's further beneath. Should one dare to go swimming in this murderous sea, they are always cautioned not to go too deep, for if they do they may lose sight of the light and never find their way up again. Storms are a common sight along the coastline, and occasionally the Howling Sea will rage enough to throw a hurricane along As'dra's western coast. The wailing cries of the wind long preclude such events, and most of the time it is simple to find cover; if you can move far enough inland to avoid the accompanying floods, all the better. Once, only once, the Howling Sea rose up in a tsunami and devastated the land, creating what's now known as the Sinking Dominion from the remnants of a strong settlement. The story continues to pass down, however, and many watch the Howling Sea with wary eyes, uncertain of when or if its rage will boil so high again.

Stretching from Kikona Springs and the edge of Burnsul Freeze down to the top of Alef's Cascades, the Toreia Plateau is actually multiple plateaus, covered in lush and beautiful meadows which sprawl from the bottom of one cliff to the top of another. In autumn and winter, it's mostly thick grass and a little bit of shrubbery breaking up a somewhat monotonous landscape, but in spring and summer the flowers bloom and it becomes a wonderland of color and variety of all kinds. Toreia Plateau can be hard to navigate due to its sheer size and the distinct lack of landmarks, but is a playground for the dedicated forager or young hunter hoping to improve their skills. The tall grass makes a good home for all sorts of smaller animals and there is a network burrow of tunnels that even young lions have fallen into before, navigating the entire plateau just a few feet further down. Older lions might break an ankle if they aren't taking careful steps around the holes that litter the ground across the whole of each steppe. Temperature can be strange on Toreia Plateau, changing depending on whether you're closer to Burnsul Freeze or the Sinking Dominion, though it stabilizes towards the south as it approaches Alef's Cascades.

Untamed and unforgiving to those who travel through it, the Divide sits squarely between the territories of the Sun Dynasty and Eyirath Kingdom. It has separated their borders since the beginning, though the size of the Divide has fluctuated over history as both kingdoms make forays into claiming more or less of the land. Both neighboring kingdoms often forage here, as the area is made up of thick foliage from underbrush to canopy and filled with a dazzling variety of flora and fauna. The rainforest that makes up the divide covers a little under three hundred square roots of neutral territory, sprawling south of the Phantom Veil all the way to the shores of Amaranthine Cove. Bamboo intersperses among various trees, both deciduous and coniferous alike. The divide is the densest part of the local jungle, with thick underbrush hiding a number of burrows that could break an unwary ankle or swallow up an unsuspecting cub. Any move to clear pathways often leads to a rise in tensions between the two kingdoms it separates, so it remains untouched, leaving only the brave or experienced to try their hand at gathering here. There are many rumors about The Divide among all the kingdoms, old legends and tales that imply a lost treasure to be found somewhere south of the Phantom Veil, but the tales are old enough that, with nothing found so far, they are often written off as hopeful stories for children.

Nestled down between two peaks of the Skelmor mountain range, the winding valley known as the Wild Yonder is one of the only places in As'dra where outsiders from the north can reasonably make their way under Yggdrasil's sheltering branches to the Kingdoms of As'dra. The Skelmor Mountains block off a number of other passages through the mountains until you reach the western edges of the Three Sisters, leaving the Wild Yonder as the friendliest route. Rolling pine forest gives way to silver birch as the valley sprawls southward, the narrower paths between the mountains widening into snowy tundra right before travelers hit the Rift. No kingdom lay claim to this area as they would then have to police who traveled through it, though as the nearest kingdoms, both Uddegana Province and the Sestrala Commonwealth are both known to keep an eye on who comes and goes. The forests of the Wild Yonder are usually colorful even in winter. Though the forest is dense, there are a number of trees working as a part of the grander trailhead guiding through into the plains below the Skelmor Mountains. The ancient remnants of a much older path are overgrown now, but still make travel easier through the Wild Yonder. Hunting and gathering in this area is particularly lucrative, as many winter-fruiting blooms grow year round in the cold temperatures and the Wild Yonder serves as the mating ground of many different herds throughout the year.

Om'at Tributary has long been neutral territory between the Sun Dynasty and Eyirath Kingdom. Once it included Firefly Grotto, and frequently its heavily wooded lands have been used as a battle ground for control of that most desirable settlement. The waters themselves run shallow usually, over rocks and under brush, from the falls of Firefly Grotto. Three distinct fingers spread lazily, and in the wet seasons widen into a veritable rapids to be carried down to the Phantom Veil and eventually beyond, detouring to let out into the Summer Sea. Crossing the Om'at Tributary can be quite tricky when the rains have been falling heavily, depending on which part it is you're trying to cross. Fortunately, most of the time it is a burbling creek, moving along steadily but nowhere near deep enough to cause grown lions any issue. Cubs or smaller residents of As'dra may still have difficulties, but that just means that they can fully play and swim in the waters of the Om'at Tributary, heedless of any potential undertows that develop as the waters rise and fall. There are tales of some who'd gone missing in the Om'at Tributary, only to turn up on Issan Estate worse for wear and soaked to the bone; those who heed these tales often take particular caution even when the waters are shallow.

Cracking the earth from the Pass of Tomorrow all the way down to the Willowglen, the Rift is a gorge so deep that from the top, one cannot see the stream trickling through the bottom. The water is shallow, barely enough to cover the paws, but getting down there is the tricky bit. The Rift is steep, the sides sheer cliff almost the whole way up. There are very few safe ways to travel down, and most don't bother; going around the rift will eventually allow for a gentler slope to climb down near the Willowglen, and a bridge has been built across it to allow easier traversal. From the bottom, it's easier to peer up at the cave walls and even climb a bit before things start getting too steep. The sight of caves in the walls of the ravine is a strange one, but the tunnels exist, opening up and looping on each other in a confusing mess that could have someone lost for days before finding the surface again. Speculation that they were made by some creature tunneling through the earth runs rampant in certain communities, while others assume they're a natural formation. Some say the Rift and its caves were both created as a result of a huge magickal backlash, and others tout this as a children's fable. No one knows for sure whether the caves had any purpose, or how the Rift formed.

Sprawling from the eastern edge of Eyirath Kingdom and along the southern coast of As'dra as far as the eye can follow is the beautiful Summer Sea. This clear blue ocean is considerably warmer than its sister sea, with clearer, brighter waters seen from the shore and wildly different wildlife from the Howling Sea to the west. The Summer Sea boasts rough tides of its own, but the storms don't usually hit the shore very heavily, and the shallows are filled with colorful coral and vibrant tropical fish of all kinds. Though many of them are more poisonous as well, the fishing along the coast nearby is enough to keep most of the local communities very well-fed indeed. The sudden shift from the deep, dark and cold waters of the Howling Sea into the tropical temperatures within the Summer Sea likely contributes to the former's rage. In fact, most of the Summer Sea's turbulence can be found farther from shore, and deeper under the water, with volcanic activity occasionally happening on a small scale and sending fish fleeing into the reefs, or floating in atop the tides with their deaths. Residents of Eyirath Kingdom and the Endless Horizon have learned to keep watch on the water for these signs, for there are legends of something lying beneath that is of great interest to many from all five kingdoms--though what that may be, the stories vary wildly to describe. Other, more practical souls know that fishing will become more dangerous with the underwater volcanoes erupting, and watch for different reasons.

Characterized by unforgiving mountains on one side and treacherous, cliff-littered forests on the other, the Horizon-Sestrala Border is a slim patch of land in comparison to the kingdoms on either side of it, left alone thus far because patrolling lands that give way beneath your feet without warning on both sides has been declared 'not worth the trouble.' The mountains are varying heights, made of softened igneous rock in shades of red and pale yellow which, when worked with water and a sharp claw, can be carved into more easily than other types. As a result of the mountain's formation, high winds cut through any path made available to them, steadily wearing away at the peaks until boulders have broken off and fallen--and then wearing them further, sharpening their edges and in some cases resulting in a strange cuboid shape, littering the paths between peaks. Rockfalls are frequent and dangerous. On the Sestrala side where mountain gives way to forest, the trees grow thicker and taller as they leave the peaks' shadows; as the ground softens, it becomes necessary to pay attention to where the trees have rooted, for that may be the only place safe to walk as the towering sentinels hold the ground together through age and will for survival. There are many fallen trunks and sudden, steep drops, and the trees grow close enough together that it's always better to watch your step.