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Mhirdrun | The ThradhelLinothor | Sundering Isles | Sea of Calingwai |Gwathia | Sulgate | The Blasted Wastes

Of the Tàán Empire

As with all in Gwathia, little is known of the distant isle called Tàán Deǔdì, upon which the Tàán Empire is settled, except by what the sworn tongues of mariners tell. From these tales are borne a land alone in the sea, from which great mountains and valleys rise, and great forests also, but outsiders are much distrusted, and it is said that the storms which surround Tàán Deǔdì pass oft, such that they act as a wall against which few may penetrate except with great skill and knowledge of the waters. Of this it is sure, that Men dwell on this island, though beyond legend their coming to reside there is a matter entirely mysterious, and much of their habitation and way of life is unknown, for they do meet with the mariners who hail from the Thamun sea, but only at a great gathering of merchants, which is kept far from their own cities, and peopled thinly.

On the Peoples of the  Tàán Empire

Men

The Tàánrén are said to be all of them Men, with no Elves or Halflings or Dwarves found among them, and they are a rugged people, pale, olive, or dark of skin and with dark eyes and hair, and more small than western Men, and of weaker constitutions, for though they prize much western wines and ales, they tolerate them less. The traders who gather on the shores of Tàán Deǔdì to ply their wares are said nearly all of them to be the men of their race, dressed always in great robes, which exceed in size their own bodies, and their clothings are light or dark and plain of color, though worn in layers which display many colors between them. Their hairs are oft grown long, and tied behind their heads, as though knots, and when left over their faces are worn in a variety of ways. The women of the Tàánrén are seldom seen, although their beauty has been much attested, and sometimes they appear as companions of the traders or as traders themselves, and these are dressed in a wholly different fashion, draped in robes of great and diverse varieties of color, and their hairs are worn in all manners of excessive styles. On some occasion are the warriors of the Tàánrén seen, guarding these gatherings, and their armor is quite queer in appearance, as though composed of many plates, though not of scale or mail, and though its seems oft not to be made of metal, its composition has never been revealed to the west.

 

The Tàánrén have many strange customs attendant to their ways, which leave western mariners oft mystified, and which they hardly understand themselves, and so can relate only incompletely, and with difficulty.

Feycreatures

Although never witnessed by western eyes, mariners who visit the Tàánrén become aware that living among the forests and rivers of Tàán Deǔdì are ghosts, or else called spirits and even demons, but which are believed to be fey, who live among the lands of Tàán Deǔdì, and alike to western fey may be benevolent or malevolent, and the Tàánrén employ many wards out of fear of them, or else attempt to harness their powers.

On the Country of the  Tàán Empire

Only speculation can be here offered, for as aforesaid none have journeyed deep enough into Tàán Deǔdì to descry what else may be said of its lands or its government. It is known that an Empire resides there, for its banners are oft hung or else displayed on the fashions of the peoples of authority, but never has its emperor been seen, or the extent of his lands been mapped, nor much heard of, and when his name is overheard it is only in whispers and reverent tones, shielded from the ears of the west.

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