\chapter{Introduction}

\begin{multicols}{2}

    \section*{Tides}

    The tides on Savits are unusually ferocious, rising from the all-encompassing ocean from which the land gets its name. When both Savitian moons align, the tides can flood deep in-land, often destroying crops and low-lying villages alike.

    Larger cities are often situated on hills or fortified with high walls to withstand the typical High Tides. The most famous such city is Krane, the capital of Kraain, where the water cascading over the city walls forms the famous Savits Falls.  While some claim that the falls illuminated by the setting sun after a storm would make the gods themselves pause and stare, it has been suggested that this opinion is mostly held by those who have recently survived a High Tide in a storm.

    In most other cities, a storm on top of a High Tide means major reconstruction will be in order. If the local ruler is lucky, all that is needed is bucket chains and some fresh paint. If fortune does not favor them, however, their throne may be washed away entirely. Many a kingdom has survived generations before being washed away in a single night. Others survived the initial flood, but fell to famine and pestilence later. Mostly, they fall to other kingdoms, as those who were lucky enough to foresee a High Tide, emerge in a perfect position to press their advantage against their less fortunate neighbors.

    When the waters retreat they leave behind nourishing silt, producing some of the most fertile fields in the land. The bounty growing on the flood plains attracts civilization and strife alike. A High Tide is often followed by a period of war, where the survivors scramble to secure land, by plundering the kingdoms destroyed in the flood, making alliances by sharing their resources, and, not least of all, defending their land from would-be invaders.

    \section*{Geography}

\end{multicols}