Cinderlands

The Cinderlands lie in the northwest of the Darklands. The climate is hot and dry, most of the moisture in the region being held within the root systems of the bloodvines, the thorned, strangling creepers that are endemic to the area. Successfully pursuing agriculture in the Cinderlands is a matter of clearing and draining the vines, digging out the roots and cutting open the gourds which hold the water, but the vines are semi-animate and aggressively defend the roots, even at the cost of the vines themselves. Since the vines kill most larger animals in order to drain their blood, they are the primary threat to life in the region, and keeping them cleared the greatest expenditure of labour in the civilised regions.
The Orcs of the Cinderlands have cleared two major areas: the Southern Fields, which lie contiguous to the tamed part of the Ragged Coast; and the Ashen Fields in the north. The Ashen Fields are a militarised area, supporting the border citadel of the Ashfort, which guards against Yuan-ti aggression. The border itself is thick with cultivated bloodvines, forming a natural barrier against attack and maintained by the kingdom's Woodcutters. The cleared areas are fertile and humid, and many require drainage to be productive and to fight the threat of swamp fevers without the dehydrating influence of the vines.
The Ashfort is the seat of the Cinderlands' queen, the Cinderthorn, and the home base of the Ashwardens, the army of the kingdom, and the Orders of Purity within the region. The king's court, meanwhile, sits in the southern city of Fieldhall, overseeing the gradual expansion of the Southern Fields.

Type

Geopolitical, Kingdom