Starting from Bruck, nestled in the heart of Isdraia and defying the current of the Elendar, a council of several dozen scholars works tirelessly to gather and document both historical knowledge and contemporary events. Thanks to generous patronage of the mayor, ample resources are available, allowing for an unprecedented scale of archiving. Thus emerges the greatest and most comprehensive repository of knowledge in all of Isdraia. From this endeavor arises an institution that shall henceforth be known as The Omniscient Archive.

On behalf of the chief cartographer, a wide variety of historical writings and travel reports from the past 100 tides have been compiled and researched. The local record is intended to provide a contemporary overview of the peoples, groups and creatures of Isdraia. This chapter focuses on the people of the Kingdom of Morgathal around the settlements of the Southcrest. It is based on a recent travelogue and a dozen old books from the mayor's private collection. He has generously made these available, as he has permission to enter Morgathal but is too busy to make a trip to the Southcrest.

The Kingdom of Morgathal is located in the far south-east of Isdraia. It is framed by the Trer Mountains. The Peakblades border the territory to the north, and to the west it does not extend beyond the Elendar. The Victoryvein flows within the kingdom. The river rises in the Trer Mountains and winds its way through Lake Morga, Ninepasses and Westwatch before finally flowing into the Elendar. Lake Morga is considered the largest body of water in Isdraia. The military and political centre of the Southcrest is the capital city of Morgathal. It is named after the former King Morga. It is located immediately west of Lake Morga.

Some works mention Southcrest with lush lands used for farming and livestock breeding, some of them accompanied by drawings. The oldest records available in the archive also describe significantly more forest area than today. And forests are not the only landscape structures that have changed over time. Even rivers are said to have fallen victim to the control mania of the people in the Southcrest – at least apparently. In order to verify these drastic allegations, further expeditions through the Omniscient Archive must be carried out. This raises the question of whether a warrior took pen and paper in hand to record what he considered glorious – after drinking something that was rum-rich.

If you try to identify the people of Morgathal visually, the easiest way to do so is by their robes and armour. Silver steel paired with royal blue elements is the trademark of the warrior elite. Their soldiers are almost completely enveloped in it and hidden beneath this uniform armour. Morgathalers are easily recognisable because they all look the same. So, although you can tell at first glance that you are dealing with one of them, you can only dream of recognising them again or even distinguishing them from others of their people. This is especially true for the male soldiers among them. There are no female soldiers. It is also striking that the Morgathalers do not seem to be great advocates of ranged combat. None of them have ever been seen with a bow. They carry heavy shields, swords or spears.

Based on the available information, it is difficult to categorise the people of Morgathal. The books donated by the warrior elite paint a relatively positive picture of determined and consistent rulers and followers. The works depict a people who could subjugate the entire country with their unrivalled superiority. They are a proud people, whom others may accuse of arrogance and vanity. They are a people who stand up for their kingdom without compromise – or must they?

The Omniscient Archive strives to report as neutrally as possible. The fewer independent writings there are on the warrior elite, the more difficult it becomes to remain true to this goal. It is possible that this problem is greater than ever. There should be no attempt whatsoever to glorify the Morgathalers. In anecdotal encounters with one or two representatives of the warrior elite, the people have been noted for being particularly loud. In addition, they attach great importance to material possessions and are even stingy and petty, which contrasts with the magnificent buildings that the kingdom has produced. It is not only in this respect that it is sometimes difficult to find common ground between Morgathalers and meaning.

They reject anything ‘abnormal’ and ‘unnatural’ – whatever that may mean. As mentioned, women are not allowed to serve in the military. In fact, nothing is known about women in the warrior elite. They are not mentioned at all in the available books. Since there is only one current travelogue available, the subject of femininity is very obscure. There is disagreement among archivists as to whether the Morgathalers reproduce by laying eggs. However, this speculation may be based on only a few less serious considerations. Apparently, trees are also among the undesirable, unnatural things of the Morgathalers. They destroy them with impressive vehemence in order to create a clear view of potential enemies.

Recent developments concerning the warrior elite are difficult for the Omniscient Archive to assess. As has been lamented repeatedly, there is a lack of adequate knowledge. Expeditions are being planned to investigate the remaining forest stands, for example. Strangely enough, there seem to be certain areas in the Southcrest where no axe is ever raised and no forest is ever cleared.