11
Andrew
Jan 28, 2013

Geography and Climate

The Last Grand Master  is set on the world of Nendor.  There are three main continents, Ardus, Erd and Loudria.  The island kingdom of Dumbarten is one of the largest kindgoms in the world, but set just of the western coast of Loudria, it is not considered it’s own continent.

Ardus – Book One, takes place entirely on Ardus, the southern most and smallest of the three continents.

Andy's Map final

There are Seven Major Kingdoms on Ardus, Yar-del, Zargon, Endor, Respital, Arvendia, Pelipan and Honal. Collectively, these nations are referred to as the Seven Kingdom.

The Seven Kingdoms are bordered to the north by Spine of Khron, the highest mountains on the continent, and to the west by the Trellham Mountains. The Kessen Ocean lies to the east. The southern wastes are a snowy icy land that covers the southern tip of the continent.  Haven is built into the Trellham mountains.

North of the Spine, an arid dessert that stretches all the way to the Sea of Erd. Along the northern coast, free merchant cities arose. Most, however, housed more pirates than honest merchants. The cities along the Delmun Ocean were founded by wealthy merchants who transformed their domains into prosperous city-states. Occupying the western most tip of Ardus, Belsport was the largest, wealthiest and strongest of these city-states.

Much of the story in Book One takes place in Haven, a hidden city built inside the Trellham Mountains.  When Meglar revealed his true intent, it became apparent his power might prove too great for anyone to resist. Queen Zenora of Yar-del and grand master wizard Heminaltose devised a plan to stop Meglar, but they recognized they might not have enough time to execute it. As a contingent against defeat, Heminaltose and scores of lesser wizards spent a decade carving Haven out of the bowels of the Trellham Mountains. When Yar-del fell, Haven was ready to receive the survivors.  More, Heminaltose, realized early on that Haven might need to house most if not all the sovereign realms of Ardus and he had his wizards create a massive complex capable of housing tens of thousands of people.  Construction of Haven required more than just physical space. Air circulation, sanitation, climate control, lighting, food preservation and storage, ventilation for smiths, tanners, slaughterhouses, massive kitchens to feed the survivors and many other details went into creating the sanctuary.

One of the greatest wizards ever to live, Heminaltose devised the spells so that lesser wizards could ‘extend’ them to cover new areas. This increased exponentially the number of wizards who could assist in the building of Haven.  When The Last Grand Master opens, four realms have already been conquered. Yar-del, Endor, Respital and Arvendia.  Arvendia was ‘conquered’ in name only.  Although much of the ruling class sent their families to Haven for shelter, many of the warriors remained on the savannah they called home to harass Meglar and his armies.

The other lands of Nendor will be important in later books, so here is a brief description of each:

Erd – The largest and most populous of the three continents, stretches almost two thirds of the way around the world. North of the equator, Erd is home to the first organized civilization of men, as well as the dwarf kingdom of Fracturn and the island of Primilian, ancestral home to the unicorns, peregrines and muchari.  More will be written about Erd in future books.

Lourdria –  The only continent to straddle the equator, Lourdria can be considered many lands housed on one large land mass.  Reaching hundreds of miles inland, rich fertile lands make up the western coast of Lourdria. These are the most densely populated lands on the continent.

The middle of Lourdria is a vast dessert and savannah. Almost at the center most point, the city of Agloth, home of Seritia, goddess of love – sits at the eastern edge of the parched land.

Dumbarten b&wEastern Lourdria is a collection of smaller kingdoms, principalities and city states. Over the centuries, these kingdoms establish ties with the city-states of western Ardus and a thriving merchant society emerged. Trading not only with Ardus, but Erd and the rest of the world, these kingdoms remain relatively stable as the nations have banded together whenever one king or prince threatens to conquer the rest.

The southern quarter of Lourdria is cut off from the rest of the continent by steep, rugged mountains. The lands to the south are a steamy tropical rainforest, sparsely populated. These lands are home to a primitive people who have minimal contact with the rest of Nendor.

Off the western coast, the united island kingdom of Dumbarten stretches a thousand miles north and south.  Dumbarten used it’s size and lack of neighbors to it advantage, militarily and economically, becoming over time, the most powerful nation on Nendor.

 

11 Comments

  1. That is a very cool map! Did you use some kind of program to create it, or are you just really good at graphic design?

  2. Nellie says:

    That is indeed an awesome map and I like the detail. The world sounds very interesting.

  3. hayleybjames says:

    I agree with Sharon, that is a cool map.

    The vastness of the world reminds me of Lord of the Rings. 🙂

  4. […] Nendor has three main continents – Ardus, Laudria & Erd.  My goal was to make each book a journey that took the reader to each continent and back and than in Book 4 I’d wrap things up.  The 100-120K word limit left me two choices: abandon the 4 book model in favor of more books or abandon the original series and try to create a new, scaled down story that would fit in the 4 book model. […]

  5. Po says:

    Would you do a map of Lourdrian and Erd as well? Perhaps a complete map of the whole Nendor? I always find myself pause reading to look at the map to be able to visualize where the characters are or why a certain city is going to war with another.

    • Andrew says:

      There is a map of Lourdria in Kings of Lore and Legend, but I should have posted it here as well. Thanks for the reminder. As for Erd – that will be the map for book four – Child of Night and Day. Once that is finished, I’ll post it as a sneak preview for the book.

      Thanks for commenting.

      -AQG

  6. Hello! I wasn’t sure where to comment so I’m putting this here.

    Is there any information about when the rest of the books in the series might be recorded in audiobook form. I’m almost done with the first book and REALLY love the audio version. Any information about this is greatly appreciated.

    Having said that, I want to thank you for writing (at least 1 book as I’ve only read the first) a book that is refreshingly different than any epic fantasy series I’ve read (aside from being m/m). My favorites include The Wheel of Time Series by the late, great Robert Jordan and his ghostwriter Brandon Sanderson, The Mistborn Series/The Wax and Wayne Series by Brandon Sanderson, The Sword of Truth Series by Terry Goodkind, and of course, J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter among others.

    What I find most refreshing is how with Terry Goodkind I have come to expect the shit to hit the fan with every turn but with Champion of the Gods (at least thus far) while there are problems, the world is refreshingly warm, compassionate, and honest. So, thank you for that.

    Alright, I’ve rambled on long enough; thank you for your time.

    ~Nathan

    • Andrew says:

      Hi Nathan,

      Unfortunately the voice actor is booked solid until next year, so the next audio book won’t be out for at least a year. The good news is we’re going to have the rest rest of the series done pretty much back to back including the yet to be released book five – When Heroes Fall Which is the last book in the series. Sorry I don’t have better news.

      Im glad you’re enjoying the series so far, and please email if you have questions or comment that you don’t want to post online. My email is. Andrew@andrewqgordon.com

      ~AQG

      • Thank you for the response! I’m both saddened and gladdened by your news!

        I just read “First Love” as I finished listening to “The Last Grand Master” today. While I thoroughly enjoyed the short prequel story it may have sold me on waiting for the audiobooks as the emotions I feel when listening to the spoken word versus reading are much more visceral. But, then again, I may become too eager to learn what happens next, read the books, then listen to the audio when it becomes available to have an even deeper experience of your work.

        Thanks again for your response.

        ~Nathan

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