The Badlands of Orion

The Badlands of Northern Orion are the buffer region between the Annexed lands of Orion and the hunting grounds of the Nomadic Orcs that occupied Orion before the Great Annexation. The Badlands are a region dominated by hills and forest land that serve as a place for the Dark Rangers, the guardians of the frontier, to discourage any Orcs from venturing south to avenge their recent war losses.
Orion proper extends to the edge of the hills on their northern border, and all the land south of that will be dominated by agriculture once the wilderness has been fully tamed. Duke Talbot has made the taming of Orion's wilderness his top priority. He is aided by the Dark Rangers, who are sworn to protect all of Calanthi from the Orc menace to the north. The Dark Rangers operate in the no-mans-land about 50 miles wide or more beyond the official borders of Orion and Copernicus. Several organizing supply bases are located along this border for the rangers to use in resupplying their men.
The Marshal of Orion also has a host available to him, but these are campaigning troops rather than skirmishers that operate in broken and wooded terrain. If the Rangers reported the Orcs were massing for an attack, the Marshal would array his men to meet their attack and blunt any of their efforts. But, so far, this has not been the case in the five years since the Orc Wars, as they are called colloquially, were declared over.
The seven years the Duchy has been recognized have not been easy even though the Orcs seem to have retreated and accepted the new boundaries. Gryphons, Ogres and other beasts live in the hills at the edge of the Duchy and have yet to be overcome. The biggest problem has been the regular visits from Gryphons attempting to take horses and other livestock away as food. The Gryphons nest somewhere in the Badlands and the Duke has taken measures to eradicate them. This includes an agreement with the Dark Rangers.

Type

Rolling Hills