Welcome to the World of Icengale, a world divided. The bulk of Icengale is comprised of a single continent that nearly circumnavigates the entire planet. This continent goes by many names in many parts of the world, but most know it simply as The Great Belt. The continent, and the world itself, is dominated by the Godspawn Mountains, a single chain of mountains that rise to a height of 40,000 feet. This mountain range is in turn dominated by the Vainen Glacier, an inhospitable region inhabited by a few species of animals that are uniquely adapted to survive in this frozen realm. Together these two features make an impassable barrier that literally divides the world in two. The only known means for non-magical travel between the two halves of the world is via a narrow strip of water known as the Icen Channel.

The Icen Channel, however, is not always accessible. The Vainen Glacier completely fills the Icen Channel, blocking it with a solid wall, right down to the bottom of the channel itself. Every two years, though, the currents in the surrounding seas shift and warmer water thaws a tunnel through the glacier, exposing the channel. This tunnel, often referred to as The Merchant's Portico, is only open for about 4 months. During this time merchants and explorers from both sides race through to do as much trading as possible before the glacier once more closes in and seals off both halves of the world. Many a merchant has found himself stranded on the other side of the world because they tarried too long. And untold numbers of ships and dead sailors litter the bottom of the channel because they did not tarry long enough.

For those caught in the channel once the glacier starts to freeze back over death is by no means certain. A massive, dwarven kingdom exists beneath the shores and water of the Icen Channel and numerous entrances to their kingdom dot the region. It is believed that the channel somehow thaws from the middle out as when the merchants sail through they find the dwarves there, waiting behind makeshift defensive works and offering all sorts of services for everyone sailing through. These services range from shelter to food and drink to arbitration and appraisal services. They also offer a last hope refuge for those unable to escape the channel. Those rescued are made to pay for their room and board while given sanctuary and those unable to pay either pay their debt through hard work or are locked up until someone will pay for them. This treatment might seem harsh but the dwarves are least fair and treat everyone the same way.

Rumors persist that the Merchant's Portico is not the only means to cross over to the other side of the world. A few intrepid adventurers have claimed that the Vainen Glacier does not completely seal the Icen Channel, and that hundreds of feet beneath the surface of the water the currents carve a veritable maze of small tunnels through the ice. They tell tales of the tunnels being inhabited by all manner of aquatic denizens and countless undead, but they claim it is possible to travel through to the other side. Oddly those who make such claims never seem able to remember exactly what route they took or seem eager to retrace their steps. Many a person has gone searching for this warren of tunnels and is never seen again. There are also tales of similar tunnels located above ground, up among the upper reaches of the Godspawn Mountains. No one has ever been able to prove this to be true, but given the countless number of streams and rivers that issue forth from the glacier it is easy to see how such rumors are born. One of the most common rumors tells of a hidden valley within the mountains, a verdant bowl of geysers and tropical plants surmounted by a dome of ice through which sunlight filters down. This valley is said to be the home of a community of dwarven mages, but given their non-magical nature everyone knows that there is no truth behind this fantastical story.

There is one other means of travel to the other side that has been verified, and that is beneath the mountains themselves. At least a dozen known charted routes exist in the underground realms, the Dark Regions. These routes, however, are very long, often circuitous, and in addition to being fraught with natural and monstrous perils they are not ideal for trade as everything has to be packed through on one's back or on the backs of pack lizards. None of these routes are considered safe all the way through and only a handful of merchants ever attempt to trade along these routes. Many adventurers, though, readily attempt these crossings. Other routes are suspected of existing but none of these have been successfully mapped out and are thought to be nothing more than rumors that have spread and grown with each retelling. This still does not prevent intrepid explorers from searching for yet another route under The Great Belt.

This natural divide has led to an interesting cultural divide between both halves of the world. The southern half of the world, which calls itself after the world itself, has developed a cultural that is relatively similar to the Medieval European culture of the Middles Ages of the planet Earth. The Northern half of the world, which calls itself Elagenci, is an Oriental culture, similar to that of Kara-Tur on the planet Toril. This cultural difference, however, is not tied to a racial difference between the two. Those of Asian racial stock are just as likely to be found on the Sourthern half as those of Caucasian racial stock can be found in the Northern part of the world. This applies to all of the human racial types. In addition to the cross existence of human racial types on both sides of the world, the human racial types also exist among the more common humanoid races, though in lesser numbers. Thus it is possible to find dwarves that in addition to being, well, dwarves, are also of Asian stock, or elves that are swarthy and dark skinned. The only exception to this is those who are similar to the ancient Aztecs and Incans of Earth. This racial type exists only in humans and is only found in one isolated valley within the Godspawn Mountains and only accessible from the Southern side of the world.

Another interesting difference between the two worlds is one of directions. Both halves of the world view the Godspawn Mountains as being to the "North." This extends also to mapping preferences. Maps from both sides almost always are oriented with the great mountain range on the top of the map. When working off of a map this is generally not a problem to foreigners on the far side of the world, but when asking for verbal directions travelers have to take extra care to mentally invert North and South directions lest they inadvertently find themselves traveling in the wrong direction. To add to the confusion both East and West are the same on both sides of the world, with the sun "rising" in the East and "setting" in the West.

A note on Slavery: Slavery is a common practice throughout the entire world. This is not to say that every kingdom practices slavery, but rather that every kingdom knows of slavery. Most kingdoms that practice slavery follow the same general rule that the status of slavery is hereditary, though freedom can usually be purchased. The acquisition of new slaves is an oft touchy subject. The normal means is to purchase slaves from legal slave dealers in kingdoms where slavery is legal, and most of those slaves are the offspring of slaves. New stock, however, is often acquired through other means. Some of these are the captives of war, the victims of raids by slavers, the victims of kidnappings, or criminals sentenced to slavery as a punishment. The open seas are probably the most common source of new slaves. Among those kingdoms where slavery is not legal it is at least tolerated in the sense that it is legal for visitors to bring their slaves with them. Universally every one of these kingdoms has a law that allows them to seize slaves who are openly abused or are citizens of that kingdom and many of those allow for the seizure of all assets by the slave's owner. A few kingdoms, however, have complete and total bans on slavery and they will actively seize and release all slaves within their borders and arrest their owners. Only one race as an entirety practices slavery, and that is the Sarai.