Tashana
The Tashana Tundra is a land of vast, open spaces and endless sky. Home to the great skinwalker nation of Sarlona, the Tundra consists mainly of grassy, treeless plains that stretch without interruption from horizon to horizon. For many thousands of years, these seminomadic tribes have roamed the grasslands, isolated from the rest of the world and left in relative peace to contemplate the cold, pure spirit of their ancestral homeland.
LAND OF MANY WATERS
Tashana means "many waters" in an ancient, nearly extinct skinwalker dialect. The plains are dotted with hundreds, if not thousands, of small glacial lakes. Many of these remain frozen year-round, but the southern waters thaw in summer. In these months, the Tundra is a place of pure and unspoiled natural beauty. The landscapes are regularly interrupted by huge mounds of rocks and boulders, some miles wide, that seem to have fallen from the sky. Remnants, presumably, of an earlier glacial age, these rock mounds have a strange and otherworldly beauty.
The majority of the Tundra is covered with frosty grasslands. To the north the Eska Mountains rise, and the northern foothills of the Paqaa Mountains encroach upon the southern border. In the far north, the dream like and ghostly Tashyvar Islands reach into the Sea of Rage. Finally, the mysterious Krertok Peninsula extends northeast of the Eska Spines.
The climate is mainly subarctic, with true arctic conditions in the northern plains and mountains, and short summer months of near-temperate conditions in the south. If anything definitive can be said of the Tundra as a whole, it is this—it is a land of strange weather. Blizzards, snow squalls, and whiteouts sometimes descend in an instant, but also common are strange heat waves, downpours of inexplicably warm rain, and savage lightning strikes.
Structure
The Tashana Tundra is better understood as a geographical region rather than a nation. Although the Tashana skinwalkers are the dominant people in terms of a semiunified culture (and sheer numbers), they do not recognize political borders, and they have no diplomats or delegations abroad. The dwarves of the Dorann Holds are closer to being an actual political nation, but their isolationist policies have kept them all but invisible in their distant mountain holds. The Akiak refugees and the Icebinder half-giants remain essentially nomadic peoples, and little is known of the mysterious Inana maenads. The Tashana Tundra is simply too big, too wild, and too sparsely populated to qualify as a nation in any but the loosest sense of that term.
WHO RULES THE TUNDRA
Skinwalker Nations: The Qiku and Saartuk nations are composed of hundreds of individual tribes, each led by a council of elders. The tribe is the basic organizational unit of the skinwalker people, and each functions more or less independently. Each tribe has one or more shamans—healers and spiritual councilors. In the north, the desperate and more warlike Chuniigi are more fractured and entirely nomadic, following the herds of caribou and competing with the many human tribes and Neanderthal packs in the area.
The three nations have enjoyed a state of relative peace for many decades. The great wars of the past had been devastating for all, and the Tundra is too harsh a land to spill unnecessary blood. Twice a year, each nation holds a gathering of its internal tribes and once a year, representatives from the three nations convene a Summit Council at a secret location in the central plains known as the Speaking Stones. Recent threats by the Kalaak barbarians have tribal leaders uniting in common defense, and a semi-permanent Summit Council has gathered for several years now. The Council is led by a triumvirate known as the Sky Tellers, with each of the three great nations represented. Among all three nations, adult males and females are both hunters and fighters, and in times of war, each nation is capable of fielding an army of fighters on very short notice.
Dorann Holds: The Holds have long been a collection of loosely confederated clans, with frequent infighting and skirmishes between various factions. In recent years, how ever, the infighting has calmed, and several of the clans are working together to an unprecedented degree. the Stone Council, previously an intermittent conclave gathered to settle important intraclan disputes, has been in permanent session in the fortress of Tannishold. Able-bodied dwarves from all clans are being dispatched—forcefully in some cases—to work in massive excavation projects deep in the Eska Mountains. Recent reports indicate that heavily armed militias, controlled by a member of the Stone Council known as Hammerhand, now control many of the major passes and valleys of the Eskas. Opposing dwarf clans are uniting under the flag of the paladin order known as the Clanguard, and rumors of a civil war hang heavy in the air.
Akiak Refugee Clans: A community-in-exile, the Akiak people currently eke out a semi*nomadic existence. There is no government or military structure per se, but rather ad hoc leadership committees and guerrilla bands. The charismatic duergar military leader known as Jade-Lin is attempting to galvanize the clans, and many have rallied to her flag of late. The Akiak refugees are closely allied with the southern Qiku tribes.
Inana Maenads: What little is known of the Inana maenads suggests that they maintain a radically simple, almost deliberately primitive society in the remote Tashyvar Islands. Separate and distinct coastal villages are designed to be entirely self-sufficient, and there is no indication of any centralized government. Inana colonists have in recent generations established a series of fishing villages on the western seaboard of Tashana, as well as the port community of Winterstead, trading peaceably with the native Saartuk skinwalker tribes. As a people, the Inana apparently follow some kind of seasonal rhythm, with active periods of exploration and colonization in the summer, offset by almost hibernation-like episodes in the long dark of winter. In fact, visitors to
Inanan villages in the dead of winter report entire colonies seemingly abandoned.Icebinders: The nomadic half-giants known collectively as the Icebinders also follow mysterious internal rhythms. Their migrations do not correspond to any seasonal pattern, nor do they trail any of the great herding animals of the Tashana. Some have suggested that the Icebinders move according to some intricate plotting of the aukaraks that sweep across the Tundra. Others say the Icebinders actually control the aukaraks, somehow herding the storms like great planar beasts. In any case, each nomadic Icebinder group is apparently self-governed and independent.
Culture
No single civilization graces the Tashana Tundra. The people of the Tundra include numerous races, each separate and distinct.
Skinwalkers
The Tundra Skinwalkers are divided into three great nations, the Qiku tribes of central Tashana; the coastal Saartuk people, and the more warlike Chuniigi in the north. Although inter-tribal skirmishes and raids are not uncommon, the elders of all three nations work hard to maintain the peace of recent generations. Whereas the Skinwalkers of Khorvaire tend to value self-reliance and personal freedom, the Qiku and Saartuk Skinwalkers place much more importance on the community. Allegiance is to the tribe, the family unit, and the nation— in that order. The harshness of life in the Tundra has dictated this be so— rugged individualism in the Tundra is not advised. Going it alone, to a Tashana Skinwalker, is dangerous, stupid, and spiritually misguided.
Tundra Skinwalkers do not struggle against their bestial nature, but rather embrace it as a sign of their oneness with all living things. Shifting is a profoundly exhilarating and joyful experience, even when the aim is aggression. Tashanan Skinwalkers have a remarkable ability to accept violence and death as part of the natural order. If it's necessary to tear an enemy to pieces, a tundra Skinwalker does so with great passion.
Tundra Skinwalkers who choose to explore the wider world might be doing so at the bequest of the community. Such braves gather ideas and knowledge before returning to the tribes, seeking to make the nation stronger. Because Tashana Skinwalkers place a premium on community, such a character is likely to be fiercely loyal to his companions. Possessions mean little to Skinwalkers aside from their utility. Although they understand the concept of currency,hoarding coins and gems is a strange practice to them.
Skinwalkers from the northern Chuniigi tribes have a simpler, more aggressive viewpoint. While the community concept is still very strong, these are desperate times for the Chuniigi. A tribe might raid another tribe to supplement its hunt, and intra-tribal conflict can pit factions and families against one another.
Dwarves
The Eska Mountains are home to the isolationist dwarves of the Dorann Holds, who are thought to have migrated from Frostfell over an ancient land bridge. Little is known of these clans today. The dwarves and duergar who eventually migrated to populate southern regions appear to have split from the Dorann centuries ago. Since then, the Dorann dwarves have maintained a policy of political isolation, although they still trade with the northern Skinwalker tribes and Inana maenads of the Tashyvar Islands. It is said that an increasing number of the Dorann clans are feverishly mining the Eska Mountains, stockpiling raw minerals as they dig.
The dwarves of the Dorann Holds are a mixed lot. Northern clans tend to be more primitive, clannish, and warlike than their distant cousins in the Mror Holds. Whereas the Khorvairian clans settled into a prolonged peace under Karrnath annexation, the dwarves of the northern Dorann Holds have never known such an era, and the typical state of affairs is one of low-simmering clan conflict. The southern Eska clans, by contrast, have much more arable land to work, and hence more peaceful relations, trading among themselves and the nearby humans and Skinwalker tribes. Still, all Dorann dwarves tend toward mild xenophobia and isolationism, and as such have little contact with the world beyond their borders.
These days, a Dorann dwarf adventuring in the larger world is likely to have chafed under the oppressive policies of the recent Stone Council leadership. As the northern clans fall into line under the Hammerhand leadership, southern clans are rallying to the cause of the resurgent Clanguard paladins. A Dorann character is certainly concerned about potential civil war, and might feel compelled to choose a side and take a stand.
When the last Akiak strongholds in the Paqaa Mountains fell to the Riedrans, the scattered remnants of this once-great nation were forced to the north, where they lived in small mobile refugee camps. The few remaining Akiak are an intriguing people—a fully integrated society of dwarf and duergar, attempting rebuild and fight back against their Riedran enemies. The Akiak are fighting a guerrilla-style war against the Inspired, launching forays into their occupied homelands while constantly defending themselves against counterattacks by Riedra's death squads. An Akiak character is likely to be driven to take back the Paqaa Mountains, and to eventually bring the fight to the corrupt heartland of Riedra.
Maenads
The Tashyvar Islands are home to the Inana maenads. Victims of an ancient tragedy, these psychically powerful beings are the last survivors of an island nation that sank beneath the waters of the Lhazaar Sea two thousand years ago. The Inana have recently established a series of small coastal hamlets on the western seaboard of Tashana proper. Others: Scattered throughout the Tundra are the Icebinders, wandering bands of half-giant psions. Other nomads include many independent neutral- and good-aligned human barbarian groups. The terrifying Kalaak—a sect of savage, self-mutilating barbarians said to be in league with an ancient evil—plague the central and northern Tundra.
TASHANAN STYLE
Of the peoples of the Tashana Tundra region, only the Skinwalkers of the Qiku and Saartuk tribes have developed a cohesive culture that can be effectively chronicled. The dwarves of the Dorann Holds have isolated themselves for generations, and only the occasional artifact finds its way out of the Eska mountain passes. The culture of the Akiak clans has been all but destroyed by the genocidal machinations of the Inspired.ART
Currently in vogue among a small circle of influential collectors in Khorvaire (Zilargo in particular), Tashanan art is surprisingly sophisticated and powerful for such a "primitive" culture. "An unmatched sophistication of simplicity," says Morgrave art scholar Mentarion Palinostrum. Most prized are animal sculptures made of ivory, whalebone, antler, and stone, often found as ornamental parts of utilitarian objects. These figurines reveal a highly developed aesthetic style, with a meticulous exactness of anatomy and proportion. Tashanan paintings employ natural oils and pigments with hide canvases, and display complex techniques that are the envy of many a Khorvairian art student. The popular dreamscape style features dense and surreal landscapes of the natural world with an overlay of strange shapes, colors and images.
ARCHITECTURE
Virtually all Tashana Skinwalkers were at least semi-nomadic until only a few generations ago. Now, many tribes of the Qiku and Saartuk nations have established permanent settlements and a nascent architectural tradition. In the central plains, sprawling villages built in and among the strange rock mounds combine stonework and tunneling with traditional shelters of seal or caribou skins. This dreamscape style features odd, otherworldly totems and ornamentation. In the coastal settlements of Winterstead and Whitetooth, increased trade has resulted in a riot of improvised architectural styles. The nomadic and semi-nomadic tribes still employ collapsible tents of seal or caribou skins, supported by frames of bone and driftwood. Larger structures typically have raised sleeping platforms and a simple flue to release smoke. It's thought that the Chuniigi tribes of the far north maintain several hidden ice fortresses and storehouses carved directly into glacial formations.
CUISINE
The Tundra is not the place for cultured cuisine, but in terms of resourcefulness and ingenuity, Tashanans must be admired. In coastal and lake areas, the diet consists primarily of fish, waterfowl, and sea mammals, with some varieties of harvested seaweed. Inland, meat is provided by the vast herds of caribou, supplemented by fox, bear, and the occasional mammoth in the far north. Many tribes also harvest various types of lichen and algae that cling to the glacial rocks of the plains. Tashanans are renowned for finding utility in every possible part of the kill—examples are foxsnout soup and the infamous Chuniigi blubbercake. Some larger southern tribes employ a limited system of agriculture for winter grains.
FASHION
Materials and clothing among the Tashanans are almost entirely animal-based. Males and females both are likely to wear trousers and parkas of polar bear hide, with great fur-lined hoods. Boots are made of caribou or seal skin. Dressing in layers is the rule, since the weather of the Tundra is famously unpredictable. The hareskin socks and gloves of the Tashana are greatly prized for their warmth and comfort. Clothing is typically stitched with narwhal or caribou sinew.
Religion
Eschewing technological and industrial advancements, the majority of Tashana skinwalkers choose instead a path of simplicity and union with their natural surroundings. Although much of this choice is strictly a practical matter, it is also a defining spiritual aspect of the skinwalkers of Tashana. Where a foreigner might see the Tundra way of life as primitive, the native sees it as pure and spiritually powerful.
The central nations of the Qiku and the Saartuk have enjoyed relative peace for many generations, and as their communities continue to grow and prosper, the skinwalker mind has turned inward to more spiritual matters. They are no longer driven by a struggle to survive, and now their shamanistic traditions grow more advanced with every generation. This advancement is evidenced by the skinwalkers' sophisticated use of medicinal and magical lichens native to the Tundra
Foreign Relations
Among the various peoples of the Tundra, relations are generally peaceful. The skinwalker nations keep to themselves, having successfully averted large-scale war for hundreds of years. Isolated tribal skirmishes still occur regularly when resources become scarce, particularly involving the warlike Chuniigi tribes of the north. In recent years, the refugee people of the Akiak and the tribal leaders of the Qiku skinwalker nation have joined in alliance. This alliance has historical roots: When the Akiak split from their Dorann forefathers hundreds of years ago, the skinwalkers of the Qiku nation helped the dwarves in their migration from the Eska Mountains across the Tashana Tundra. After the Akiak established their new clanholds in the Paqaa Mountains, the two groups remained friendly and engaged in significant trade. After the betrayal of the Inspired, the Qiku skinwalkers provided refuge and shelter to the desperate Akiak refugees in the northern foothills of the mountains, where they remain to this day. While there is no formal military alliance, the Qiku provide Akiak guerrilla raiders with supplies and mercenary warriors to assist in their campaign to retake clanholds in the Paqaa range.
Along the western coast of the Tashana, the Saartuk nation coexists with colonies established by the Inana maenads of the Tashyvar Islands. There is certainly no shortage of space or resources along that shoreline. The port communities of Winterstead and Whitetooth are an intriguing mix of maenad and skinwalker culture, along with a smattering of various Khorvarian influences brought by increasing sea trade.
In the far north, low-lying Dorann clans have a tradition of trading worked metal and weapons with the Chuniigi, typically for prepared meats and animal products. However, relations have soured in recent years. The Chuniigi are enduring relentless raids by the savage Kalaak barbarians, and these are desperate times for the northernmost skinwalker nation. Chuniigi now regularly raid Dorann dwarf settlements, and even northern roaming Qiku and Saartuk tribes when necessary.
The nomadic Icebinder half-giants generally have good relations with all three skinwalker nations, in that they leave one another alone. The scattered and self-sufficient human barbarian and Neanderthal tribes of the Tundra have no overarching organization, and conflict arises only when competition for resources heats up.
The human barbarians known as the Kalaak are an entirely different matter. Of these terrible raiders, little is known—and of that, little is spoken. Some say the savagery of the Kalaak has earned them a reputation entirely out of proportion to their actual power and numbers. There is no doubt, however, that the Kalaak represent a grave threat to all peoples of the Tashana.
Riedra
Riedra and Tashana have long had a mutually beneficial policy of ignoring one another's existence. It's unclear to what extent the skinwalker leaders know of the Riedran government, and all indications are that the Inspired consider the skinwalker nations harmless primitives. Several passes break through the strange planar-influenced border between the lands of Tashana and Riedra, and limited trade exists between individual skinwalker tribes of the southern Tundra and northern Riedran settlements—proximity trumps politics in these cases. The upper reaches of the Paqaa Mountains represents a significant exception, due to direct hostilities between the refugee Akiak fighters and Riedran occupiers. Although there exists no state of war between Riedra and the Qiku, it is common knowledge that the skinwalkers support the Akiak in their struggle to reclaim their homeland. Tashana tribes and Riedran military skinwalker harbor a deep enmity toward one another. Extremely bloody incidents in the past have led the leaders of both Riedra and the Tundra nations to avoid direct conflict.
Syrkarn and Adar
Tashanans are, for the most part, unaware of the distant nations of Syrkarn and Adar. It's probable, however, that leaders of the skinwalker nations have some knowledge of these lands. In fact, there are those who suspect that emissaries have been dispatched in both directions, and that secret talks are under way to assess a possible alliance against Riedra.
Other Nations
It's a fact known to only a select few, but Tashanan coastal communities and pirates of the Lhazaar Principalities have maintained secret trading and smuggling routes across the Lhazaar Sea for many years. Initial trade was probably in certain exotic spices native to the Tashana coast, but much of the commerce now revolves around trafficking of medicinal and magical lichens, especially icewild. Other commodities include native Tashanan art, and mineral and crystal exports from the Eskas.
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