Malahma

Languages: Talahaean, Malahman, Donaran (aristocratic dialect, borrowing from elemental languages.)
Cities: Agradine

Geography

Malahma is warm and wet. Lying just north-east of the penumbra of the Crownshade, it receives sun almost all day around and very strongly at noon. Coupled with the waters from the north, this gives it a hot, sultry climate, giving way to the drier heat south of the Water Margins. It boasts rich gold and bloodstone mines, and is famous for its steel. There are great stocks of river fish and thick groves of ancient olive trees. The south also boasts considerable stocks of undergound rock oil.
It’s main city is the fortress of Agradine.

History

The warm, southern regions of Talahaea were home to an elven kingdom known as Malahma, although as the elves grew in unity it soon came to be known as the Regime county of Luxard. During the Legion-Regime Wars it was often the front line, and afterward it became the point of entry into Talahaea for most of the Human refugees from the Great Ophionic Empire. For many it was also the place where they stopped.
One of these refugees was Don, a shadow-blooded sorcerer who emerged from the desert. He lead a great pack of Gnolls who seemingly obeyed his every command, and was accompanied by four genie advisers - Asah, Tok, Jalad and Meret - and a host of Genasi. Don gathered a following among the refugees, built a community, and ultimately took control of the county, renaming it Donara. He established himself as the Majister of Shadows and married his ally, Jalad, ruling for decades before departing as mysteriously as he had come, leaving his son to rule under the title Majister of Thunder.
There were half a dozen majisters in turn - the Majisters of Flame, Sand, Rain, Wind, Lightning and Smoke - each boasting their own sorcerous affinity, before the Union rose up. The rebel cults subborned the gnolls in the other sovereignties and set them agianst Donara’s hosts, although the local packs remained stubbornly loyal to the Majistry. The Union seized the territory after a long struggle and restored it to the ancient name of Malahma.

Social/Political

Bordering the Riverlands, there are many traders from the Beast Kingdoms in Malahma, and a continuing trickle of refugees maintains the influence of the sub-cultures of the northern Ophionic Empire. The cults of Tanit and Ilmar are strong, while those of Iuva and Tinevra are relatively weak, and the combination of a war economy, eastern trade and a strong Artificer presence makes this one of the most liberal Provinces in the Republic.
The province has a strong military tradition. The nobles of the estates and a class of landed knights are expected to retain a warband to fight as part of the provincial army, the size of the force depending on the extent of their holdings. This structure gives the estates considerable power, and the guilds are required to pay tithes to support them.
Although the loyalists left through the Gap of Don, Malahma still has a substantial independent gnoll population, with most packs in the province in some way associated with the Citadel of Wings in Agradine. It also has a large population of Genasi, most of whom belong to a community that see themselves as a displaced and wronged aristocracy, punished for their affiliation with the old order with social stigma. Despite this, they stubbornly retain a tradition of sponsoring their eldest children to the Citadel to become exemplars.

Type

Large city