Eglim-Tal.Geography.On the edge of the Argoran wastes, about 500m south of Orel is a medium sized town. It's built on a trading road between the central empire and the Casani Territories, on a small river called the Talan (not shown on the main map), which flows eastwards through hills into the great river that splits the Casani territories in two. The town is called Eglim-Tal, to the north-west is the open expanse of the Argoran wastes and it is surrounded on its other sides by the forest known locally as the forest of Ar-Tal. The whole area is very hilly, extending right out into the Argoran Wastes. Eglim-Tal is actually built at the head of the Talan river valley, near it's highest point, before it slopes away towards Cas-Sumas and the great Casani river valley. The town has quite good natural defences facing towards the Argoran wastes, steep rocky slopes with few trees, and the trade road follows the high ground past the forest then up to Eglim-Tal. This main trade road passes close to Eglim-Tal before following the river Talan through the valley down to the regional capital city of Cas-Sumas to the west.
There is a minor trade road that leads around the western face of “The Kopa”, a large mountain that dominates the surrounding area; this leads to the small town of Embryl. This route is quite impassable at certain times of the year, it’s generally only safe to travel it between late spring through to early autumn, as it climbs up around “the Kopa” and then down into part of the Casani gorge before it reaches Embryl. There are about 20 small villages in the area; most of them spread along the Talan valley and the Casani valley, after the river exits the Casani gorge.
Politics and Economy.The main tribe at Eglim-Tal is the Enasa, they have settled the town itself and about 5 villages in the Talan valley. The Enasa tribe has cultivated some of the land in the valley, but it is well-known for the herds of Enuk and Baruk that it owns. Eglim-Tal exports brightly-coloured woven material (from hairy enuk), and pig-iron (not brilliant quality – suitable mainly for tools and other items, but not weapons). Until quite recently, the Enasa have been able to control a lot of the glass trade from Embryl through loaning out some of their militia to this town, and there is a lot of pressure on Enasa Tellian, the Militia commander, to reassert control. Eglim-Tal also hosts the ‘Gar buuθoo’ (Great Market) - a major week-long festival at high summer each year where some of the nomadic tribes, as well as some of the feral bands, meet up to trade, buy animals and have a good time. The Great Market is usually attended by traders from around the empire and some of the tribes from Casani, and can also be a time for military commanders to meet up, as the tribes can be a good source of information on the Devanu moving through the areas. This is also a time when alliances and marriages (often the same thing) are arranged by tribal leaders to a backdrop of music, merrymaking and games.
Embryl and a few villages near to it at the head of the Casani gorge was settled by the Adyur tribe, it is well known regionally as a centre of fine glassware, using different fine sands from around the town and the Argoran wastes, as well as flint and lead from the nearby hills. Embryl traditionally has been dependant on Eglim-Tal for some of its militia, even militia commanders came from the Enasa tribe. However, a new commander, Adyur Keth, has started to recruit more mercenaries in a bid to be more independent of Eglim-Tal.
Cas-Sumas, located at the joining of the Casani and Talan rivers is the regional capital and was originally settled by the Galas tribe, although the Ortar have settled in the city as well. Traditionally, rulers of the city have come from both tribes, although the Ortar are now more powerful and have retained rule through Ortar Idrani, the current ruler. The Galas are seen as a more conservative tribe, controlling farming, wood and stone working, and textiles, as well as protecting their interests in the local area. The Ortar, on the other hand, are seen as a more political tribe, looking to increase their influence outside of this region, through politics and trade, it was an Ortar trade factor that helped Embryl negotiate agreements with mercenaries, as they felt this would lead to an increase in exports of the glass, through Cas-Sumas. The Ortar control a lot of mining in the area, as well as weapon-making and armourer’s, whilst trying to attract gifted engineers to the city.
Military.Enasa Tellian, the militia commander of Eglim-Tal is a seasoned campaigner, having successfully fought the Devanu for many years. He has led punitive expeditions into the wastes as well as defending the town and is seen as a dependable leader. The Eglim-Tal militia is well armed and mainly armoured, but also uses a lot of sling-armed herders and has several units mounted on Enuks. Tellian prefers fighting on foot, and is most commonly armed with a sword and a mace. Eglim-Tal’s militia usually wears red armour edged with yellow or gold.
Embryl has never had a large militia, but in recent years has built up a solid force of heavy infantry; armoured spearmen with few, if any, missile weapons; these have been bolstered by numbers of similarly equipped mercenaries. Adyur Keth is a good warrior, but is relatively untried as a commander – recently he has bought an expensive “Telnera” (damascene) sword from far Elani Ros, which he carries with a shield, and regards as a status symbol. The militia colours are blue and white.
Ortar Laness is the Cas-Sumas militia commander, in addition to his infantry; he has several units of Enuk cavalry and prefers to fight with them. Seen as impetuous and headstrong; he is, nonetheless, a very capable commander and has led several campaigns against the Devanu - some together with Enasa Tellian, which has led to a strong friendship between the two commanders. Cas-Sumas’ militia colours are black and red.
Because of its proximity to the Argoran wastes, Cas-Sumas has had a detachment of knights stationed here for many years. Its current commander is Kreeha, an older warrior who is resisting retirement quite successfully. It would probably shock all of the local rulers if they ever found out just how extensive his network of ‘information-gatherers’ actually is – he has been sending detailed reports back to the Emperor and hasn’t missed much.
Most of the villages in the area have a few sempa who can use a sling or a spear, but can rarely afford armour; they rely mainly on the militia from the towns for protection.
In addition to these forces, there are numbers of mercenaries in the area, mostly small groups from other parts of Anyaral, even a few Delgon. They are equipped with a variety of weapons and armour, swords, maces and spears being popular. They are mainly hired by trade caravans passing through the area, although some settlements occasionally hire them if there’s a fear of Devanu raids. The Ortar trade factor in Cas-Sumas keeps a record of available mercenaries and can act as an intermediary.