History and Politics
Grattock was founded 20 years after the end of the Wild Storm. Before, the lands Grattock now claims belonged in part to Jela and in part to the Elseki City-States. Jela, whose lands stretched west and south of the mountains, was partially destroyed by the storm and was quickly thrown into upheaval and anarchy. The Elseki City-States were less affected by the storm, but they were only loosely federated and somewhat quarrelsome to begin with, and when storm refugees arrived into the area, all hell broke loose. Land skirmishes broke out all over the place; technically there was plenty of room for everyone, but by any one person's perspective of the situation, never enough. Finally, a Kalto named Karik Gratt organized an army and conquered his way through the area, giving refugees and natives alike two options: join him, or be defeated and then join him. Chaotic small bands of land-hungry refugees were no match for the ever-growing and frighteningly well-organized army. Only two smaller factions of people were organized enough to withstand Gratt's might: a group of Jelans united under a former baroness named Lyssa (a half-elf), and a group of Elseki that rallied to the cry of a crafty merchant named Ferash. Significant in number but not military power, both Lyssa and Ferash knew that Gratt would eventually crush them, so the two first formed an alliance with one another, and then approached Gratt with a proposal for the establishment of a new territory. Ultimately, the three groups came to an understanding over land organization, etc. and a new nation was founded under the leadership of the Karik, Lyssa, and Ferash; those who did not consent to the treaty were "converted" by Gratt's army. These 20 years later, Karik Gratt, though aging, remains military leader as Castellan of Grattok; Lyssa oversees affairs of the state as Chancellor, and Ferash handles the treasury as Comptroller. Though each have their own duties, no law many be passed without consensus of the three. Fortunately, they all seem to get along (and some whisper Karik is in love with Lyssa, who could care less). The only point of tension between them currently, that anyone knows about, is how to choose their successors.

Anyone owning land is considered a full citizen of Grattock and has rights to be protected by the Grattock Guard and may have their concerns mediated by Grattock jurisdiction; those who live on the citizen's land is subject to that citizen's own rules (within reason; some general treatment rules apply). A certain percentage of goods or money is collected as taxes from each land-owning citizen by civil servants; land-owners may profit from those who live on their land as they wish, within reasonable restrictions established by the Council. Towns with a population of 500 or more are assigned by the Council's representatives a burgomaster to help manage local citizens' concerns and oversee trade. These towns are also assigned members of the Protectorate Guard to serve as city guards, although burgomasters may also hire additional troops or constables provided they have the budget for it. Every member of a land-owning family must send at least one of their 16-20 year old members to be part of the Guard for at least 2 years.

The Protectorate being firmly established, the Guard exists primarily to "keep the peace" domestically, although it is technically prepared to handle war with other nations as well. There is little reason for Grattock to go to war with the ancient and powerful nation of Kallia, however, nor with the sea nation of Ghaash Rin –trade with these nations is for the time being far more profitable. In the past, Grattockers occasionally skirmished with their neighbors, the dwarves at Dreshen Hold, but Lyssa and Farash recently established a trade and border treaty with the Dwarven Clan Lords in order to establish a solid, peaceful, and economic relationship with them. So far it has worked fairly well.

Inhabitants
Most Grattok citizens are human with some half-elves, half-dwarves, and the occasional Sharran elf who decided living among the human "barbarians" was preferable to living alongside the pompous Kallians. Some dwarves also technically live within the boundaries of Grattock in isolated communities near their main clan hold in the mountains, but rarely do they interact with other Grattockers. Dwarven exiles might also petition to become a citizen of Grattock.

The human races of Grattock are incredibly diverse, consisting both native easterners as well as the descendants of refugees from the west. The most populous of the eastern humans are the Elseki, who have populated the northeast coast of the continent as far back as history has been recorded. The cities of Sedren and Shifren are still primarily Elseki-populated. Many resent being assimilated into the Grattock Protectorate, but they are now far too widely dispersed and displaced to offer any real sort of rebellion. The Elseki are mildly mollified by the fact that Council member Farash is a member of their race, although many believe he has "sold out" to the Westerners.

The two main surviving races from the West are the Jelans and the Kaltos. Gratt is a Kalto and many who remember their Kalto heritage consider Grattock to be the new Kalto nation; many who are not Kaltos resent and resist this concept–including Chancellor Lyssa. Although Kaltos value warriors highly, even some tire of the struggle for promotion in the Guard. Many Kaltos turn adventurer to fight the Wilderness and reclaim their ancestral homeland.

The oligarchy that rules the Grattock Protectorate makes many Jelans a little uneasy, they having gotten used to rule by a larger council–and one which at least some of them had a say in who was member of that council. However, the lower class members of that race say they don't notice much of a difference. Jelans are technically a human race although some half-elves are also raised in the Jelan culture.

There are other human races as well, tiny remnants of otherwise destroyed peoples, such as the Iron People and the Rhendar, whose numbers are not large enough to be represented in any noticeable way. Both the Iron People and the Rhendar were from the far west, and their lands were utterly destroyed by the storm, and because of their distance from the safer east coast, only very few (mostly visitors to other nations) live on to represent their people.

Occasional exiles from Ghaash Rin or Rin merchants live in Grattock as well.

The many races and ethnic groups that live in Grattok may have gotten used to living in mixed company, although cultural pride (and political resentment) often gets in the way of domestic harmony. Many adventurers work to clear out regions of the Wilderness simply so those who wish to return to their old homes or build new ones outside of Grattock may do so.

Adventuring
Many young men and women of Grattock have the ambition of becoming adventurers; as has been mentioned before, the urge not only to explore but also reclaim lost homelands drives many to leave their nation to battle the Wilderness outside. Occasionally, people will commission adventurers to seek out specific locales and retrieve ancestral items or even simply information about a lost home. Mages often hire adventurers to collect specimens of the peculiar, mutated flora and fauna which occupy the Wilderness. Elseki are less likely to go adventuring for the "searching out homeland" for the obvious reasons, although the other attractions of adventuring bring a fair number of them searching the Wilderness with the rest.

Lord Tedren Sike has assembled a group of adventurers called The Wilderness Patrol, who lead caravans on the borders of the Wilderness and form expeditions to attempt to take back some lands for the people of Ohmarr. While having a noble purpose, the Tedren and his Wilderness Patrol are relatively newly formed and rather disorganized, and their efforts for glory are often undermined by overconfidence and incompetency. Tedren's right hand woman, Ralla, is an exception to the rule, and her ability to plan and teach is probably the only reason why the Patrol has any real potential at all. The keep which is home base and the main training grounds is in Tennek, which is the only major town near the "border" of the Wilderness.

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