River Safra
The Safra runs for about 400 km as the crow flies, arising between the Salgur and Vemmish hills. The folk who dwell along it are almost all Tixrynish speaking humans. The lands to the west of it are forested and sparsely peopled, with more Lomen and Bemmel than human inhabitants. Back to Map of HusyfraLhoshad Lhoshad, near the mouth of the Safra, is the capital of all Husyfra and a chartered city. It has 45 000 inhabitants, about 10% of which are Lhoshadi, 5% Kalamen, and 2% Narganian Argandarri. It is a great entrepot for all the goods of Husyfra, but the staple industry is weaving cloth from the vast quantities of wool produced inland. It is famous for its coppersmiths, its tolsty (the tubers are grown by a Kalamen colony in the swamps at the mouth of the Safra), and its preserved sea cucumbers in wine. It is a spacious and well built city of brick, arranged on a grid next to an artificial harbour, and is Amur Hev's chief rival in long distance trade and shipbuilding. This is in fact the reason why Lhoshad was established, in the days when Lhom was not yet an imperial possession and the Great Tixryni had little skill upon the sea. The herald of the city is a red beehive on a field of gold, and its Elector is a wise and vigorous woman who is often absent, representing Husyfra at the emperor's court. Her dissolute son, who manages the city in her absence, spends his time hunting and hiring assassins to kill other Husyfran rulers - no less than a dozen of these are said to have perished in the moat of Hixrath. The Archimandrite of Lhoshad controls ecclesiastical matters for the whole of the valley of the Safra. Back to Map of HusyfraHixrath
The coastlands around Hixrath are sparsely peopled, with no more than 10 000 inhabitants. The soil, like that of Lhom, is poor, and only safflower oil is a major crop. Lumbering and fishing are important activities as well. This coast, and the first 50 km of the river, belongs to the barony of Hixrath. About 25 000 live along these reaches of the river, 2000 of them in the grubby little town of Hixrath, and many of Lhomish descent. The farmlands are prone to flooding, but bring forth fine crops of dream melons, sailor's hemp, gemnuts and olives. The baron of Hixrath is insane, and has imported at great expense a gross of giant crocodiles to guard his castle. His herald is pure white, with a single green star in the upper left hand corner. Back to Map of HusyfraMishik The next 100km of the river is the Barony of Mishik (47 000), ruled from Xar Mishik (4000). It is more devoted to lumbering and shepherding, and has huge weirs where fish are raised for food and oil. Also prone to flooding, its villages are raised above the level of the river on artificial hills. It provides the finest rope and dream melon liqueur in the Empire; its Baron can trace his line back before the conquest to the kings of Husyfra, is strong, young, beloved, and a great hater of infamy and evil. His standard is a white horse on a black field. Xar Mishik is a crowded town of tall stone towers built on three sides of a shallow lake teeming with swans and chariteals. Back to Map of HusyfraDrosyn
A further 80 km are the Barony of Drosyn (30 000), ruled from Ximtah (3500). Most of these people do not live along the Safra, whose banks are steep and rocky, but have carved out small holdings in the forests to the east. The road south to Ag-Darxes leaves the Safra valley at Ximtah; extortion from travellers is the main source of baronial revenue, since the native inhabitants are so scattered and skilled at tax evasion. The baron is a twisted and lecherous old miser who keeps a harem of Colaban slave girls in a secret annex beneath his castle. The herald of Drosyn is a golden chalice flanked by golden salamanders on a field half blue and half green. Back to Map of HusyfraMnath
The rest of the course of the Safra, as far as its source (about 170 km), is the barony of Mnath (39 000). Xar Mnath (1500) is a great black fortress atop a lone pinnacle some distance from the river, in the depths of a forest. Most of the farming is done in the northern parts of the country; the rest is covered with thick woodland, the home of lumberers, hunters, mushroom gatherers, and a few lomen. Tanning is a major industry, and the leather armour of Xar Mnath is famed throughout the Empire. Nearly 10% of the population are Thudun, who labour at copper, silver, and cinnabar mines in the Vemmish hills. The herald of Mnath is a black bear on a white field. Its baron is a cold and bloodless man who only ventures out at night and is a great friend of the Thudun. His loyalty is suspect, for were he to control the output of the mines in his barony he would be extremely wealthy, and for this reason his son and three daughters are hostages at the imperial court. Back to Map of HusyfraSeg
Between the Safra and the Erath, south of Lhom, covering almost 40 000 km2, is the land of the Seg, nomadic shepherds that are swarthy like Kitabans but speak a dialect of Tixryni. They practice facial scarring and infant sacrifice, bathe only when near death, and sleep under the stars with their sheep. They prefer to avoid strangers, but are known to enslave solitary travellers. They are tolerated by the Empire chiefly for their willingness to sell wool cheaply, and send a tribute of gems and lizard skin cloaks to the Emperor annually. Their numbers are unknown; they know no law, and ceaselessly wander the land in bands of up to a hundred. Their own tales say they came from the east, and were given this land by the gods; in Husyfra it is said they are the descendants of mercenaries from Kalmahar and Kitaba who were brought in by the Husyfran kings to drive Bemmel and Lomen from the great forests. If this last was their mission, they have had great success, for the greater part of the wood between the Safra and the Erath has been burnt for pasture and there are neither Lomen nor Bemmel anywhere in the land of the Seg.
Many farmers from the river valleys have moved into the land of the Seg since the conquest, forming tight walled villages to protect themselves. Their exact numbers are unknown, for even the existence of many settlements is hidden from imperial tax collectors. They have no baron, and distrust strangers. Back to Map of HusyfraStoer
An exception is the barony of Stoer, a closely settled region 90 km W of the Erath and hard by the heights of Lhom. It has 9000 inhabitants, 2500 of which dwell on the fortified height of Stoer, and was established by the Empire only a hundred years ago. It produces wood, preserved nuts, and a small amount of Cinnabar. It is rumoured that great fields of gemstones are to be found in the neighbourhood of Stoer, but this remains unproven. Many prospectors arrive every year, most to perish of disease or be enslaved by the Seg. The Baron of Stoer is an honest fellow in his thirties, whose grandfather travelled from New Tixryn to found the place. He is lame because of a bungled assassination attempt, and is a good and capable man, with the following defect: he has an irrational hatred of beggars, and whenever he sees one he will thrash it himself. Persons found begging under false pretences (pretending to illnesses, etc.), are flayed and their skins displayed on the roads into the barony. His herald is an anvil and hammer, black, on a gold background. Back to Map of Husyfra Kelaf
The 70km of the Erath nearest the sea, and the lands stretching east of it for 50 km or so, is grassland with sparse clumps of trees. This whole region is the Barony of Kelaf. Its folk are mostly Tixrynish, with a small admixture of Lhomish and Kitaban. Its capital, Kelaf Hev, is a walled port on a barren rock 25 km E of the Erath's mouth - it has 4000 inhabitants and is only accessible by land at low tide. 18 000 coastal dwellers raise poppies, olives, and sheep, and fish for cuttlefish and flatcod. There is also pearling, seaweed cultivation - the seaweed is pressed into blocks as hard as teak and exported to inland parts to make soup. There are another 17 000 inhabitants along the Erath and east of it - there is some cultivation, but more shepherding and aquaculture. 50km S of Kelaf Hev is an extensive underground cave system from which gems and giant blind toads are extracted. The baron of Kelaf is a young and irresponsible woman who fancies pale southern men and has executed not a few who spurned her affections. The herald of the barony is a white toad against a field of red and gold diamonds. Back to Map of HusyfraVakaz
33 000 people live in the Barony of Vakaz, which comprises the next 60km of the Erath and the forested and grassy lands to its east. The capital, also called Vakaz (4200) was at one time a border fortress guarding against the Kitaban kingdom. It is hewn out of solid rock where the Erath passes through a canyon, which is bridged by a mighty drawbridge.
Great orchards, grainfields, and watering cisterns line the eastern bank, where the bulk of the people live. Dream melons are also grown, and there is much herding and weaving. Oryx are raised for the medicinal properties of their hooves and horns. The baron of Vakaz is a rather absent minded old man who continually makes new laws and promptly forgets them. The treasury is empty and the barons retainers rely on bribes and extortion to survive. The standard of Vakaz, in commemoration of an ancient defeat, is pure black. Back to Map of HusyfraAhmal, Shikimith, Xorta and Ilirtath
The next 50 km of river and adjoining lands is divided between the tiny baronies of Ahmal (9000), Shikimith (11 000), Xorta (7000), and Ilirtath (6000). These, like Vakaz, have irrigation systems that make the E bank of the Erath green with melons, grain, and fruit trees. There is little herding, but a great deal of woodcutting. Daham in Shikimith (3000), the only town of the area, has many kilns for pottery and soapmaking. It is also infamous for its ransom markets - travellers captured by the Seg are often sold to merchants in Daham, who sell them back to friends or relations for a handsome profit. The baron of Shikimith is a tremendously obese man who rules his people fairly but has little tolerance for foreigners - his herald has a red hand and a black hand clasped in friendship on a white ground.
The baron of Ahmal is a brutal drunkard who beats and slays his servants while in his cups; his standard is a white quail. The baron of Xorta is a kindly old man, as large as the baron of Shikimith, with whom he has a friendly rivalry. He is blind in one eye due to a hunting accident and an able ruler. His standard is a blue triangle on a red field. The baron of Ilirtath is a crotchety old woman with an ancient grudge against trees and a hatred of all mood-altering drugs. Ale, dream melon liqueur, and exotic mushrooms are alike banned in the tiny barony, whose inhabitants nip over the border whenever the mood takes them. The standard of Ilirtath is a grey squid surmounted by three silver balls on a field of black. Back to Map of HusyfraUmud
For 80km further along the Erath is the Barony of Umud (46 000). Its capital, Narabal, is a fine town of white stone with 8000 inhabitants. The irrigated and settled zone extends far to the east from the Erath; gemnuts and grapes are grown along with great quantities of grain and legumes. There is some herding and lumbering on the west bank, and a considerable textile industry in Narabal. Others see the Umudites as slow and stupid farmers, and many jokes are told about them elsewhere in Husyfra. The baron of Umud is a brave and terrible warrior, one of the ten great soldiers in the empire, and won several victories in the Zimbelani insurrection. He has little patience with his dull homeland, and is apt to be too summary when dispensing justice. His herald is a hand clasping a sword, in white, on a red background. Narabal is the seat of the Archimandrite of Erath, who is responsible for the whole river valley - he is a dissolute disgrace to his position who drinks far too much wine and has far too many mistresses. Back to Map of HusyfraPirx
The Barony of Pirx includes the last 70km of the Erath, as far south as the Vebbish hills, and the forests to the east and west. It has a population of 34 000 and is governed from Xar Palad (4500), 16 km E of the Erath. There are copper mines in the Vebbish hills belonging to Pirx, sustaining about 1000 Thuduni, and smelters are fuelled by the once plentiful forests. Ceramics, leather, and smithing are the main industries of Xar Palad; the countryfolk supply the trees and hides required for these activities, and graze sheep and cattle on the cleared land. Xar Palad is built mostly of wood, but has many fine stone temples. It is the home of an order dedicated to the conversion of the Seg and abolition of their hideous customs. There is only a little farming, mostly along the Erath. Pirx is governed by Gimral, Lord Protector of the nine-year-old Baron. Its standard is a spreading jatha tree against a silver background, with two golden planets overhead. Back to Map of HusyfraYlmad
The region between the eastern side of the Vemmish hills and Malash river is divided in two; in the west, more than 50km from the Malash, is the Barony of Ylmad (35 000). This area is forested except where it has been cleared for firewood, where cattle are grazed. The main settlements are in the area of Ni Nothu (4300), in the Vemmish hills, a smelting centre surrounded by mines of copper, silver, and gold. It is in a deep valley bare of trees, and at night is ringed with fire from the Thuduni smelters pounding without rest. Nearly 20% of the population are Thudun, and as many are convicts working in the mines. As much as half of these are Kalamen taken captive in the insurrection. Most other Ylmadans are Tixrynish, but there are 5000 kitabans drawn by the promise of wealth. After the former baron was killed by brigands while hunting, a Burseg in the Emperor's guard was sent to restore order. This has been done with a vengeance; one cannot travel a day in the barony without seeing a tree hung with thieves. The barony has no standard but the image of the Emperor's signet ring, red on black. Back to Map of HusyfraRabaina
The barony of Rabaina extends along the Malash 120 km and is 30km wide. Its southern boundary is formed by the river Im. A settled farming country with some herding, it has 90 000 rural inhabitants - 80% of these are kitaban speaking swarthy men, who predominate everywhere except along the Im, where there are Tixrynic folk wearing the blue and white caps and fringed capes of Imarxes. Although Kitaban speaking, the populace see themselves as Asjhadis, and recall the Ephate of Asjhadpur rather than the Kingdom of Kitaba. Most follow the Lhomish rite in secret. There are also 3000 Kalamen, mostly indentured labourers on stewmelon, waxtree, or pipeweed plantations. The capital of Rabaina is Ahktash (9000), formerly an important fortress of the kitaban kingdom. A spacious and well defended garrison town, it has been laid out on a grid pattern and is 50% Tixrynic - Kitaban is spoken rarely. Gold and silver smithing, the packaging of sealing wax and tea, tanning fish leather, and silkweaving are industries of Ahktash. The silk growing regions are along the river south of Ahktash, while most of the fish farms lie north. 47 km NE of Ahktash is Kaxalma (2500), a younger sister-city to Godsbridge across the Malash. By beggary, thieving, and thuggery it earns its daily bread.
The baron of Rabaina is a cold and pragmatic woman whose family came from Agdarxes. Criminal and mercantile elements are allowed their own way as long as the proper palms are greased, and slavery rather than death is the penalty for serious crime - there is always a need for more workers on the plantations and in the mines of Ylmad. The bodyguard of the baron, known as the Dark Hundred, is especially feared; it is composed all of orphans, trained since birth to ride and hold a sword, and woe betide the being that refuses to give way to one when he rides through the marketplace, masked in black armour with a dozen poisoned daggers at his belt. The standard of Rabaina is three parallel strips of red, black, and green, and the Dark Hundred wear bands of leather in those colours across their chest - said to be made of Human and Kalaman skin.
The Archimandrite of Ahktash is politically feeble; he has a pathetic faith in the justice and goodness of the Empire, and has refrained from persecution of the Lhomish Rite. Back to Map of HusyfraWathaz
The next 80 km of the Malash, as far as the end of the forested country, is the Barony of Wathaz, with 60 000 rural inhabitants. They are Kitaban speaking, and call themselves Asjhadis. Their homes, like those of all dwellers along the lower Malash, are flimsy shacks on stilts. Stewmelon, pipeweed, and subsistence crops are grown on the expanses of fertile soil extending 20 km west of the Malash; sheep and some cattle are grazed on the remainder, while mushrooms and flaxvines are collected from the scattered remnants of woods. The capital is Ikhbal (5000), a mudbrick town on an island in a normally dry lake 18 km from the river. It is famous for its pestilences - it is said that one drink from the water there will kill even a kalaman with a stomach of beaten brass. Because of this, the barons of Wathaz dwell customarily at Xar Athas in the Wood, 40km SW of Ikhbal. Pipeweed is the only important export. The current baron is an indolent young man with a terminal illness. His younger sister and cousin are involved in a bloody behind-the -scenes struggle for control of the barony. The standard of Wathaz is a blue manticore on a red background. Back to Map of HusyfraKalmahar
Kalmahar, often called the granary of Lhom, is the barony controlling the last 180 km of the Malash and most of its wide, swampy, delta. The land is mostly grassy, with scattered clusters of trees, and great irrigated fields of grain and vegetables. Salt from the other shore of the malash is used to preserve large quantities of vegetables, which are exported. There is some herding, chiefly of sheep, in inland parts, and pearling and fishing off the NW coast. There are 130 000 rural inhabitants, almost all Kitaban speaking, though with a few Tixryni on the coast. Kalmahar was a quasi-autonomous region under the Kingdom of Kitaba, and was never part of Asjhad. The old capital was Mattilah (6500) a close-packed mud-brick town huddled within crumbling ancient walls. It lies 15km from the Malash and is ringed on every side by crumbling palaces and ziggurats from bygone days. It is the centre for the Kitaban Rite in Kalmahar, the site of great religious festivals and bloody street battles. Pipeweed, fruit, and poppies are also grown in Kalmahar- the former two in the south and the latter on the coast.
The chief port and modern capital is Gotla Am, 10km up the Malash (17 000) - it has been extensively rebuilt by the Empire to funnel the produce of Kalmahar outwards, with fine walls of gleaming black stone, rectilinear streets, and an enormous baronial residence with doors of beaten bronze five yards high. About 25% of its people are Tixrynish and 20% Lhomish, and close to 6000 kalamen live in the city or in the nearby delta swamps. These swamps are dangerous for travellers, being infested with escaped slaves, brigands, and other animate and inanimate dangers. The baron of Kalmahar is universally detested by his subjects. He pays his peasants as little as possible for their produce to sell it cheaply in Lhom and avoid the wrath of the Emperor; armed men surround him at all times, and at the slightest suspicion of disloyalty he will have retainers thrown to the snarks of the Bay of Malash. It his opinion that peasants have less energy to rebel when they are half starved. When his son was murdered some years ago in a district south of Mattilah, he had 200 men from that locality slain at random. The standard of Kalmahar is two white ibises on a green field; the ancient and banned standard is a black and burgundy triangle fringed with little plates of beaten copper. The Archimandrite of Kalmahar has his palace in Gotla Am; he is the chief priest of Kalamahar, Wathaz, and Hashbalxa across the river, and spends most of his time in the suppression of the heresy followed by the majority of the population. There are several persons calling themselves rightful King of Kalmahar, one hiding in the delta, one in Ag-darxes, and others in Kitaba and Lhom. Back to Map of Husyfra
