The Archduchy of Maelonbourg and the Wenigzustand was never a title that rolled easily off one’s tongue. Heck, it didn’t roll off anything easily. The nations of Partum are filled with aristocrats that adore lengthy names and regal accolades but even among them the bulky name of this growing realm was a bit much to handle. It looks impressive, to be sure, but the folks that live there are not the kind of people that welcome heavy linguistic burdens.

As a reflection of the land’s increasing power and influence the Archduke of Maelonbourg and the Wenigzustand issued an edict. From that time forward the nation would be known more simply as “Renatus”. In the ancient language of Partum this means “reborn”, and it illustrates many things about the land and its ruler. First of all, it speaks to the various portions of the expanding country. Several of these provinces were governed by actual monsters following the collapse of human or elven realms. Some of the areas were ungovernable in any real sense, having disintegrated into ruin or having never been meaningfully adopted by any civilization. Secondly, it speaks to the notion that this is going to be a single unified entity wherein the concept of equality (as far as it is defined by an autocrat with some semblance of enlightened thought) is applied to all of the many parts, not just the first state of Maelonbourg. Thirdly, it speaks to the remarkable poetic spirit of the Archduke himself, a man better known for falling down flights of stairs or stabbing foreign diplomats than he is crafting clever wordplay.

No time was lost in getting the word out about the name change. Overnight messengers were dispatched by the Prime Minister, a kobold by the name of Jandle von Normand, to all corners of the Archduchy to spread the word. New signage was commissioned for any official structure, the royal stamp and coat of arms were updated, and new branding began to appear within days upon everything from bread to beer. Renatus was well on its way to being absorbed into the everyday words tossed about by paupers, kings, and drunken revelers. Contests in some areas have pitted various jokesters against each other in attempts to create the most oddball welcoming signs. On the borders of Condamner the residents are going with “Welcome to Renatus, Land of Fine Cuisine” after only recently having discovered the joys of cooking with salt. In the rugged land of Riesenwald the faerie folk have put up a sign on the eastern border that reads “Renatus: There be Dragons here!” because the countess overseeing this area is in fact a silver dragon. And in Chute de L’Ombre the sign at the crossing from Fanolania across the river reads “Renatus” with a smaller sign below it that continues with “And Stay Out!”

The people of Renatus may not all be as eloquent as their Archduke strives to be, but never let it be said they don’t have fun.