Kiroan Nomads

The nomads? I don't trust them too much. Not because they're, well, tieflings. But because they live every day under that hot sun. No secure shelter, not even of wood! I don't like thinking about that. They have to be mad.

— Lord Thalamar Stonefist

The Kiroan Desert lies along the southern borders of the Rhyliss Empire, a dry and hazardous area thought to have little inside of it to be of use. However, there are a variety of places and resources which can only be found within its borders - and hazards enough to keep outsiders from staying too long. Living within the desert are a group of nomadic tieflings who manage to sustain themselves quite well, even offering useful things from the desert as trade to outsiders.

The Kiroan nomads are largely hunter-gatherers, hunting the local wildlife and gathering what few plants survive. As merchant routes run from Rhyliss to Sebile, and the opposite, more attention begun to be paid to the desert. One trading caravan attempting to find a way to reach Lybermis easily found the nomads, and interest led to the formation of a semi-permanent trading post in the northern reaches of the desert. Through this, the existence of the Kiroan nomads became known to the outside world.

Since that time, the composition of the nomadic bands have changed slightly to include members of other species. Humans and elves have joined up and adapted to the lifestyle, bringing other talents and knowledge into the bands. The trading post of Chauclian has become more secure due to it, yet the old traditions remain.

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The Village of Chauclian

Along the northern edge of the desert there lies a series of buildings, made from stone and wood. This is known as Chauclian, a place many of the nomadic tribes use for trading with caravans traveling along the nearby route. When a caravan is expected to be traveling through, a tribe wishing to barter will travel to Chauclian and settle in for a brief period of time. Once any desired trades have been accomplished, the nomads leave - and usually another tribe has a reason to come to the trading settlement. In this fashion, the village is seldom left unoccupied for long while also never having a permanent leadership or population. Similarly, caravans which travel through often find themselves able to trade simple trading staples in exchange for rarer goods which can fetch higher prices in the Empire.

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