The truth of our times is that there's not a piece of land in our world that is not claimed
as property by someone. No matter if it's fertile lands or a hermit's cottage deep within
some nameless swamp, you can be sure that there's a carnivore out there, somewhere,
digging their jewel-adorned claws into it.
The predators may wear crowns and bear titles by the dozen, but they cannot hide their true
colors – not that they care to. The coalitions formed to fight against the Nilfgaardian Empire
in recent history may have turned the kingdoms into a single pack, but the moment the Empire
was thrown back, the predators started to turn on each other. Such is the fate of this
pit of vipers we call the north.
Am I exaggerating? Suffice to say that after the Northern Kingdoms defeated the Empire
at Sodden in 1263, it didn't take long for them to resume their bickering. Redania, with
its vast farmlands, but underdeveloped industry, could not fight against the influx of cheap
goods from the Empire in the south.
The King of Redania, Vizimir, reacted by instituting staple rights in cities it controlled and
influenced. King Foltest of Temeria returned the favor by severely undercutting Redanian
merchants. This resulted in Redania establishing prohibitive importation tariffs to protect
their economy from collapsing under the economic might of the Empire.
As for the kingdoms of Aedirn and Kaedwen? To understand their quarrel you need look
no further than the fertile Pontar valley. This stretch of land has been a source of
food and wealth for the entire region – whoever held the valley, had the keys to the north.
The squabble between the two kingdoms turned into armed conflict more than once, with perhaps
the most heinous being the annexation of the valley by Kaedwen-
before Kaedwen turned on the Empire, of course. Oh, how the
nobility love a good backstabbing.
But the four kingdoms aren't all that there is in the North. The mighty maritime mercantile
kingdom of Kovir and Poviss is small in terms of size, but is a veritable economic giant.
Fueled by decades of unlimited emigration from the big four, it monopolized the market
for glass and salt, and expanded to become key suppliers of gold, iron, silver, nickel,
and other metals throughout the Continent. When Redania and Kaedwen attempted to subjugate
it, they were summarily defeated by elite mercenary armies – often led by their own
retired officers, convinced by the “retirement funds” of the northern Kingdom.
There's also Lyria, the small, but fierce kingdom that lies between the Empire and Kaedwen.
Though ruined by consecutive wars, but legendary for their guerrilla resistance under its Queen.
And, of course, Cintra. The once mighty kingdom that ruled lands on both sides of the Yaruga
river, with vassals across the surrounding land. All its might was for naught. When Nilfgaard
invaded it, starting the first Northern War, Cintra's army was wiped out by the Imperial
might. The King was slain in combat, while the Lioness of Cintra, was mortally wounded
and returned to the capital. The undefended city was stormed by Imperial soldiers, leading
to what's known in the Northern Kingdoms as the Rape of Cintra: Mothers killed their children,
the few remaining men launched themselves in suicidal attacks on Nilfgaard troops, while
the queen threw herself from the walls of the fortress. With her death, the Kingdom
of Cintra ceased to exist, its lands annexed as an Imperial province, vassalized by foreign
powers, or otherwise partitioned.
By now you're probably convinced that the Nilfgaardian Empire is the political equivalent
of a post-Conjunction monstrosity, of the kind that witchers slay. If you're a Northener,
at least. But come south of Yaruga, and you can see that it's not a monster. In fact,
it's not all that much different from the North.
True, all bend their knees before the absolute monarch ruling from Nilfgaard on the Alba,
but its lands are a mosaic of kingdoms and realms just the same.
There's one key difference: with all its faults, Nilfgaard has far fewer problems with elves
and dwarves. In fact, the Empire fielded an entire elite regiment of Elven troops. That
alone should tell you volumes about the Elder Races and their place on the Continent.
But that- is a story for another day...