Kingdom of Moskva

History
The Kingdom of Moskva is an ancient kingdom within the harsh lands north of the Mountains of Winter. The kingdom has existed in the region for millennia beginning in the 5th Age. The Kingdom of Moskva was created during the great cataclysm which caused a division in each of the original five races. The Mountain Clan was divided like the others between their lighter and darker elements. Moskva became the center of power for the Light Mountain Clan, which in the future would be called the Dwarves, and was the enemy of their eastern Dark Mountain Clan counterparts, the Duergar as they later came to call themselves, in the city of Varos. The Lords of Moskva quickly started gathering the rest of their peoples into a single political and cultural entity. They gathered enough strength that they would protect themselves from any attacks by the eastern threat since no threat would risk the mountain passes from the south. The plain became divided and for many centuries the west and east refused to acknowledge the other as kin.

During the Wizard Wars of the 6th Age the Kingdom stood fast and even repelled invasions from both the Duergar and their new allies the Empire of Athenai. The kings in this time made a pact with a powerful Gold Dragon and taught them the secret of making a special steel that could channel heat. In addition to this special material, the Dwarves began digging into the mountains and landscape of their domain and discovered other materials including adamantine and mithril. They learned to work these metals and made more powerful weapons that would be used to defend their lands. The push for technological growth became a powerful ideal in the populace with even the King declaring that all technological discoveries were state secrets and anyone who shared them with an outsider would be convicted of treason and executed.

The Dwarven race continued to defend themselves against the Drow and the Duergar well into the 7th Age. Their perseverance was rewarded when the Empire of Roma formed in the east and agreed to ally with the Kingdom of Moskva against a common enemy. It was during this time that the Duergar attacks had finally subsided and peace talks had begun between the two sister clans for the first time in ages. The 7th Age ended with the fall of Athenai and the Kingdom of Moskva took a breath for the first time in several centuries has they no longer had to defend themselves continuously from external threats. But in the 8th Age, a new threat reared its head. The peace talks with the Duergar broke down after the fledgling Kingdom of Varos collapsed from a lack of heirs and the region was divided into warring territories once again. Several Princes of the Royal Dwarven House of Orlov gathered warriors and invaded one of the Duergar States and annexed the land into Moskva. This act was the first aggressive expansion by the Kingdom in centuries having only been a defensive land during the last two ages. Tensions with the Duergar have arisen once again and the future of the region is unknown.

Geography
The Kingdom of Moskva is the northwesternmost nation on the Western Continent. The territory of the kingdom sits mostly on the western half of the tundra north of the Mountains of Winter. The lands extend east past the White Mountains and end on the border of the Frozen Wood. The borders on the east are with the Duergar state of Nyugati Varos and the Svirfneblin Kingdom of Szoke Zarak. The lands of the Dwarves also extend south past the Mountains of Winter to plains east of the Green Sea and north of the Black Jungle. These plains are the bread basket of the kingdom since the frozen tundra of the Kingdom fails to grow crops sufficient to feed the entire populace. The southwestern edge of the kingdom shares a border with the Empire of Knossos. The Kingdom contains the large Icemelt River which connects the capital city of Moskva to the port city of Rostov. The Kingdom is made of nine historical regional provinces and the newly conquered Vac Region. The ten regions are not autonomous by any means and are merely a way to differentiate one area from another.

Peoples
The population of the Kingdom of Moskva is made up of one major race and three minor races. The vast majority of the population is made up of Dwarves and historically has been a nearly homogeneous since the split between the Dwarves and Duergar. Currently a small number of Fetchling and Drow refugees have taken up residence in the Kingdom's coastal region and the Duergar natives of Vac have been added to the populace following the annexation of the region.

Largest Cities: Moskva (96,000), Petro (54,000), and Rostov (41,000)

Population during Year 30 of the 8th Age

Government
Current King: Nikifor Orlov

Capital City: Moskva

Patron Gods: Perun, Svarog

Succession Law: Agnatic Primogeniture

The Kingdom of Moskva is an absolute monarchy with the King holding all power within the land. The nation is divided into duchies but the government of those regions is still under the direct control of the King or his appointed governors. Governors are either Royal Archdukes or lower nobles appointed to the position by the King if their are not enough Archdukes in the Royal Family. The duchy titles are not hereditary but are traditionally held for life if given to a Archduke of the House of Orlov. Lower nobles can be removed from the position if a suitable Archduke comes of age. The King himself holds the honorary title of Archduke of Moskva. All dynastic members within the line of succession are titled Archduke but not all Archdukes have an official Duchy.