Overview

Burcima is located at the easternmost portion of the North Sea, at the mouth of the Dunmoray Channel and stretching inwards a short ways. Burcima does not control much territory; nearly all residents of the Kingdom live within a day of the channel. The channel receives a significant amount of traffic from merchants from the North and Eastern Seas traveling between Burcima and Kirria. In the eastern portion of the nation, north of the Dunmoray Channel, are various small towns and villages, mostly dedicated to agriculture. Nearly all the food that the nation depends on comes from the Farmlands.

The rule of the Kingdom of Burcima is passed on as a hereditary right. At this time, Burcima is ruled by King Emry Fralia II, age 56, and Queen Sana Fralia, age 54, both of whom are Mystics. They have one heir, Prince Adelbert III, age 28.

Burcima maintains positive relations with the majority of other cities and nations with access to the North Sea. One exception would be with Singo, which Burcima regularly describes as “a nuisance” due to their willingness to provide shelter to pirates disrupting trade. Despite sharing a border with Nulrath, there is very little in the way of formal interactions between Nulrath and Burcima, with a notable exception that Burcima frequently purchases ships from Nulrath for the purposes of adding to its navy. Burcima has always had tenuous relations with Syrranak, and scuffles along the border between the two are fairly common, though rarely do these result in any actual casualties. Burcima also has close ties to Kirria, the nation controlling the other end of the Dunmoray Channel. The two nations have agreements on levying taxes on those entering the channel to ensure merchants will continue to sail between Burcima and Kirria, as both nations depend on traffic entering from either end.

Burcima effectively serves as a gateway between the Midlands and the East for sea travel, as traveling north of Nulrath is nearly impossible most of the year, and the only other way to sail from East to West would be via the Southern Passage, which adds significant time to the journey. Burcima, recognizing the value of their position, has not hesitated to install taxes upon ships traveling through their territory. Consequently, this has driven smuggling to an all-time high as ships will do their best to hide precious cargo from inspection.

Burcima spends a significant amount of money on importing components from all over the world. They also spend a significant amount of money on improving their naval fleet. Burcima’s main exports are magically-created items, though in the past year this business has stagnated.

Culture

The capital of the Kingdom, the city of Burcima is a bustling port city located at the easternmost part of the North Sea, at the mouth of the Dunmoray Channel. Most of the city rests upon a mesa with the Burciman Harbor to its west, and the Dunmoray Channel to its south. At the base of the mesa, along the water, is the huge bustling market of Burcima. This part of the city is rarely quiet, regardless of the time of day or year. Whether it's locals buying produce and bread at the market for daily meals, or merchants from far away lands selling foreign goods, there are always people wandering through the many streets and alleyways. The top of the mesa is connected to the port through many stone staircases carved into the side of the mesa. Upon it, Castle Fralia overlooks the Burciman Harbor, visible to all ships that sail into the port. Here is where the royal family and their appointed subjects reside. To the Castle's east is where many of the wealthier residents of the city reside, as well as many of the various churches and temples.

Twin Queens Bridge is named after the Twin Queens, Lydia and Sula Fralia, who ruled Burcima together in the late 3rd century. The drawbridge was built spanning over the mouth of the Dunmoray Channel to facilitate easy foot travel between the Burciman capital and Syrranak. The bridge had been raised and in a state of disrepair for the past year following the latest Surge, but has recently resumed functioning.

Sitting at the entrance to the Burciman Harbor is the Lighthouse of Avalon. Considered to be a national monument constructed during the early days of the Kingdom, between the Third and Fourth Surges.

What Burcima lacks in a land-based army, they make up for with one of, if not the most, powerful naval forces in the world. Burcima has spent a significant amount of money purchasing ships from Nulrath and Rodbar. With it, Burcima is capable of maintaining a significant presence on the North Sea in order to deter the threat of piracy and raiding, which has been growing steadily more commonplace in recent times. It is unusual to not see a ship bearing the Burciman flag while crossing the North Sea.

Burcima’s small land-based fighting force primarily occupies the border to the north, defending the city against attacks from Tormentors. On the southern border, Burcima manages a few outposts overlooking Syrranak. Burcima has on occasion attempted to increase fortifications along their southern border, but this has always been met with backlash and confrontation from Syrranak, resulting in skirmishes between the two that occasionally result in casualties.

Burcima additionally has a third branch of the military concerned with ritual applications that could benefit either their army or navy, known as the Mages Order of Burcima. Most of their work concerns creating magical devices or enchantments that can be used to provide an advantage during combat.

Burcima is generally considered to be one of the more magically-oriented nations in Ashriya. Spellcasting and ritual work are very commonplace within the kingdom, especially within the capital. The people and government of Burcima alike spend a significant amount of resources on purchasing components from across the world to help them carry out their projects. Much of the basic infrastructure of Burcima is aided with ritual magic. Street lights, clean running water, sewage management, even the bridges and tollgate have been enhanced or are managed with magic. Despite the Surges wiping away years of hard work overnight, the kingdom has reinvested a significant amount of money into updating their infrastructure that had been ritually enhanced. Much of the ritual work used to manage the Kingdom is performed by the Burciman Mages College.

The Burciman Mages College was officially founded in 245 AR. The College can trace its roots back to Errid. Following the Third Surge, many of the survivors from the lost isle of Errid found their way to Burcima. With them, they brought extensive ritual knowledge. Ritual teachers from Errid continued to teach their students in Burcima, which quickly garnered attention from residents of Burcima, who showed an eagerness to learn the craft themselves. They began to undertake some small projects around the city, which soon caught the attention of the leaders of Burcima, who were intrigued at the potential benefits that the ritual could offer the city. Within a few years, the Kingdom had created an institution for the Mages College, set a little ways north of Burciman Harbor, so that they may have a safe place to work and learn.The Mages Order occasionally allocates resources to the College for the purposes of being able to work on projects that benefit the city.

Originally based out of Errid, the School of the Silver Thread encourages responsible use of Magic for the betterment of all. They espouse the belief that Magic is something that is meant to be shared, not hoarded. Many of their followers view the Surges and the disruption to Magic as tests from Aradia, and to encourage collaborative learning and relearning of magic. While not directly related to the Burciman Mages College, a number of the faculty are members of the Silver Thread. While the School of the Silver Thread does not have a hierarchy associated with it like some other sects might, the School itself, located within the Burciman capital, is maintained by Father Abrim Jas, a Ghoul.

The Church of Might is a sect of Zinaar worshipers originally based out of Old Burcima in Syrranak, and is led by a Dagon named Gregor Jido. While this sect does have smaller temples and shrines in various parts of Ashriya, the temple based out of Burcima is considered its primary location.

History

The city of Burcima was established shortly after the First Surge by Lord Adelbert Fralia and Lady Madi Fralia, after the original city of Burcima in Syrranak was claimed by the Greenwood Forest. Originally hailing from southern Syrranak, they were considered to be fair and just leaders by those under them in Syrranak, and as such many people followed the Lord and Lady to help with the establishment of the new city. The Lord and Lady, historically having had better relations with nobility in Northshire than in Syrranak, requested and were granted permission from the Lord of Northshire to build a town within his territory.

Established near the end of the river at the southern edge of Northshire, Burcima started with humble and quiet beginnings. They were small yet self-sustaining, with a rather small population. It did not receive much foot traffic, and when it did, they were often simply a convenient place to rest and resupply as one traveled to actual places of interest.

Following the Second Surge and the desolation of Northshire, Burcima grew in size as refugees from Northshire trickled in. The woods that sprouted across Northshire came rather uncomfortably close to Burcima; not close enough to consume the town, but close enough that Tormentors started to become a recurring issue. For years after the Second Surge, travel up the river from the East Sea became more popular due to the Northern Passage becoming nearly impassable. Merchants began to set up caravans based out of Burcima to buy wares delivered by boat, and then delivered said goods overland west to the territories along the North Sea.

The Third Surge is what would put Burcima on the map. The flooding of the lands around the Cove of Dunmoray brought waters up to the cliffs that Burcima rested upon. The river they resided next to was suddenly transformed into a saltwater channel connecting the North Sea and Kirrin’s Bay, now known as the Dunmoray Channel. It did not take very long for Burcima to take advantage of the opportunity presented to them, and started to heavily engage in sea trade, setting up tolls for those who wish to enter or exit the channel.

In 299 AR, Syrranak attempted to invade the nation of Burcima. The war did not last long, but the casualties were great on both sides. The war came to an abrupt halt after Syrranak began to move to seize the Burciman capital, and was met by the sparse Burciman landforce. Burcima demonstrated the extent of their ritual defenses, summoning hellfire from the sky that rained down on the encroaching forces, which caused significant harm to both armies. Burcima called for a ceasefire, and Syrranak withdrew its remaining troops, accepting the tentative call for peace. Though the conflict ceased, Burcima has not withdrawn its declaration of war against Syrranak, and refuses to until Syrranak pays reparations

Today Burcima has grown into a formidable nation. They have expanded from the sole town they controlled into a hegemony of several towns and outposts along the coast. Over the years, they have built up a sizable naval fleet in order to combat the ever growing threat of banditry in the North Sea, particularly as of late. In the past year since the Fifth Surge, Burcima has grown more aggressive in their campaign against the pirates based out of Singo and the raiders based out of Corsic that continue to plague the North Sea.