Ancient Mesallas (Origo Mundi Map Game)

Ancient Mesallas (Éysaζas) was a civilization belonging to a period of Messalian history from the Dark Ages of the 12th–10th centuries BC to the end of antiquity. The period was preceded roughly by the Late Bronze Age collapse of Sterikolian Mesallas (a period of time when the entire region was loosely under the dominance of the city of Sterikolos), and began with the rise of the Mesallian urban “Colis” (city) in the 10th century BC, which became the Archaic period and the colonization of the Kulonapades Basin.

Archaic Period
The fall of the dominant Sterikolian civilization in the 12th century BC brought upon a period of stagnation and even regression, collectively known as the “Messalian Dark Ages”. During this time the old Sterikolian alphabet was abandoned, as well as other technological advancements. Widespread communication and trade was ended, with the region’s mountainous geography isolating the people of Mesallas into various self-governing communities.

Numerous city states emerged, one of the largest being the city of Meshawti, which was a confederation of many small communities in the northwest. Others included the cities of Karissa in the mountains south of Meshawti, Agira in the strategic entrances to the peninsula, the warlike city of Nykos on the western coast, and numerous maritime powers, such as Isimos, Halatia, and Oximilos. The process of “Awonilism” (from the Old Mesallian for “together” and “house”), or the urbanization process in which several small settlements are amalgamated into a single urban center, was coined to describe the rise of many of these early city states.