Industrialization Quest

Excerpt from:
The most significant organized civilizations in the world, summarized, year 1133 A.P. (After-Piebellum)
Being an attempt at a Reasonably Objective View of the world.
Written by Drace-al Harraby, Prince of the Elm Coast Holds, loyal subject of Emperor Carrus III.

Firyn is a harsh place. For all that its people have a strength of spirit that allows them to throw themselves into their passions with reckless abandon and often achieve great things in doing so, the land itself does them few favors. It is generally mountainous, prone to earthquakes, and home to many varieties of dangerous animals, some of which have magical properties (such beings being colloquially referred to as 'monsters'). Most settlements of Firyn are along the coasts, but their intrepid spirit means that the determination to carve homes between the crags and the toothed horrors of Firyn's interior will probably never waver. Even the waters surrounding this place hold more danger than average, with many shallows and rocks and winds that make shipping and trade risky.

Every decade or two there is a new idea or plan to bring success and prosperity to Firyn. A few are relatively sensible ideas that simply proved impractical, such as clearing roads, tunnels, and harbors, or expanding the fishing fleets. But far more common are extremely risky, ludicrous, and outright insane 'ideas' that still somehow attract major investment and public excitement. From attempts to tame and ride Skydrakes, to strange towers that wave flags at each other to pass messages, to alchemy experiments that lead to enormous explosions, and even an aborted attempt to use the lava from The Great Anvil to heat a huge complex of baths!

Making it all worse is the fact that The Great Anvil, an eternally-active volcano deep within the broken land of Firyn, is considered a holy place by most of the faiths popular on the continent of Sudaria, supposedly being an abandoned workshop of the Gods. Crusades and invasions from the south inflict the land of Firyn on a predictable basis, sometimes supported by wizards and blessed priests! But they are always repulsed - no time in recorded history has such a crusade even approached success.

The only reason Firyn is here to stay is that the same terrain, lack of infrastructure, and monsters that make it so difficult to settle and trade also make it nigh-impossible to invade without phyrric casualties. The Firyn keep to themselves in their eternal struggle against their own land and the anger of Sudaria, staying out of the wars between great powers. Heaven only knows what they might accomplish if their insane plans start working, though.

Information about future option revealed. Starting location "Firyn"
Advantages: Pro-innovation culture, insanely reckless populace, very resistant against invasion, Great Powers not worried about this place
Disadvantages: Insanely reckless populace, Monster infestations, Difficult terrain and little infrastructure, Regular target of crusades that invariably fail

Probably the last info-post before I close the vote.

Great Powers of the world:
The most powerful political groups in the world, whose actions can change the course of history.

The Holy Gastonian Empire. A fractious feudal government divided up into many complicated Holds, Duchys, Baronies, Crown Lands, Free Cities, and so on and so forth, all ultimately paying tribute and fealty to Emperor Carrus III, long may he reign. In times past the title of Emperor was little more than ceremony, but under Carrus II it began to centralize more and more powers under the Emperor, most notably in stripping much of the various nobles houses' power to decide the next Emperor, forming an Imperial Army, and removing some intra-Empire tariffs.

Erdwel. A people with very strong seafaring traditions, who are known to swap between piracy and trading in an instant. There is no single overall ruler of the Erdwel Nations, but against external foes they will band together and form the most powerful Navy in the world. They expand by conquest and raiding, often kidnapping women and children to return to their homeland - though these captives are rumored to actually be better treated on average than Gastonian slaves, made into peasant families but not degraded and forced into hard labor.

Lumeria. This land is ruled according to strict religious codes, maintained by the Church of the Everlasting Light. By living according to the tenets of humility, discipline, order, and hard work, people can live relatively safe and peaceful lives, shielded from the worst threats in the world. Those who take up the a holy calling as Guardians of the Light join a military that is somewhat lesser in skill, numbers, and equipment but makes up for it with excellent discipline, solid leadership, and a willingness to sell their lives dearly for the Light.

Minor Powers of the world:
Nations notable and influential enough to warrant consideration, but not quite in the same tier as the Great Powers.

Ionia. Idyllic islands with pleasant weather, good farmland, an excellent position for trading, and a collection of minor deities that did not decide to return to Heaven, which discourages the occasional thoughts of invasion.

The Republics of Sudaria. Loose coalitions of city-states on a desert-dominated continent. The usual way to reduce dissent is to launch crusades where tens of thousands of angry young men leave and a few hundred heroes return.

The Murkhid Horde. Nomads who travel with their herds over vast steppes too cold for good farming, with a fiercely independent culture. They are dangerous when angered but don't pose a true threat to major powers.

Veschwar. A kingdom with a long history of defending itself against invaders of all kinds, that it survived and thrived against despite the odds. High population, martial culture, and an aggressive posture towards potential threats.