Droaam

Droaam is a nation ruled by monsters, established by the Daughters of Sora Kell in 986 YK. Few of the civilized races dare to test its borders. Their connection with the rest of Khorvaire is limited to a single House Orien roadway that passes through Graywall and into the Great Crag, and a beneficial business relationship with House Tharashk, who set up mercenary contracts between the inhabitants of Droaam and the outside world. Recently, the House has acquired permission to mine in Droaam, and they have begun exploitation of the nation's vast byeshk mines and Eberron dragonshard fields.

Location

Droaam shares a tenuous border with the Shadow Marches to the west and more solid natural borders in the form of the Byeshk Mountains to the north, the Graywall Mountains to the east, and the Thunder Sea to the south. The area is inhospitable and mostly barren plains, which is part of the reason it was never formally settled. Sparse copses of trees break up the plains here and there, and as one approaches the mountains the land turns slowly more rocky. As low as Droaam is in arable land, it is high in mineral resources: rich veins of byeshk run through the northern mountains, and fields of Eberron dragonshards are common.

Society

The Daughters of Sora Kell have begun to change the nature of Droaam; using their wits, magic, and the strength of their troll and ogre forces to forge the region into a semblance of a nation. Roads have been constructed to link the major communities, and a tenuous spirit of cooperation has taken hold between the varied monstrous inhabitants. One can find harpies, ogres, orcs, and more wandering the same streets, going about their own business, at least in the major cities. Outside of the cities life is still largely split along racial lines. Most of Droaam is divided between warlords loyal to the Sisters, and in these places the strong rule the weak. Due to the relatively low intelligence of a lot of physically imposing races, this keeps much of the nation fairly primitive. The hags intervene only against major threats such as battles between monster communities, raids on caravans, or anything else that would jeopardize their attempts to be formally recognized by the other nations, result in significant property damage, or multiple deaths. Lesser crimes are mostly ignored, unless a warlord takes personal offense. A rare few, mostly the followers of the Queen of Stone, look at law with a more sophisticated view. Within their personally governed domain, the hags enforce stricter rules, ensuring even the weaker citizens (such as kobolds and goblins) lead relatively good lives. The government is a form of despotic feudalism: the most powerful warlords give tribute to the Daughters of Sora Kell and in return they rule sections of Droaam. The tribute is paid in gold, goods, soldiers or laborers.

Most warlords see that the hags are shaping Droaam into a greater power than any of them could have done alone, so they begrudgingly accept their rule. The nation remains volatile however, as the hags do little to stop minor feuds, assassinations, and coups from taking place.

Due to Droaam's exclusion from the Treaty of Thronehold, few of the laws common in the east are recognized here. As a result, various Droaam settlements (most notably Graywall) have become havens for criminals, smugglers, and fugitives from the east.

Relations

The hags unsuccessfully petitioned to be included in the Thronehold Accords , and as a result Droaam has not been officially recognized by any nation. As far as foreign power groups go, only House Tharashk has any real presence within the nation. Despite this, Droaam has a lot going for it. The strength of their monstrous laborers and mercenaries draws much attention; already ogre laborers and minotaur bodyguards are employed in relatively high numbers throughout Breland, Aundair and Zilargo. Either out of patriotism or out of fear of their hag queens, this monstrous workforce is proving more reliable than local workers, never offering complaint or dissent to their clients.

Thrane has vehemently refused all access to these monsters, and from their side Droaam's inhabitants despise the adherents of the Silver Flame for the judgement against them that it represents. House Tharashk often serves as an intermediary between Droaam and other nations, especially between Droaam and Thrane.

History

Droaam was originally part of Breland. However, this was a polite fiction, as it has never been settled by humans, elves, dwarves, or other civilized folk, instead remaining a land of savage monsters. Knights often entered Droaam to make a name for themselves by slaying monsters. Few returned. Despite this, the monsters never really worried the people to the east because of their lack of organization, and so the region was largely ignored and forgotten.

The Last War

During the Last War, bands of monsters raided across the border into Breland seeking spoils and slaves. These attacks were opportunistic and had no long-term effects, though sometimes enemy nations riled up or hired the monstrous races to attack Breland in a slightly more coordinated fashion. Karrnath is said to have been particularly good at this.

In 987 YK, King Boranel pulled the few remaining Brelish settlers away from beyond the Graywall Mountains and declared the region off-limits, and that same year the Daughters of Sora Kell appeared out of nowhere with a monstrous army to declare the formation of a new nation. Droaam was never formally recognized by the other nations, as most Khorvairians believed that the alliance of monstrous humanoids would crumble to in-fighting and treachery. The Daughters of Sora Kell have managed to keep the warlords united under their banner despite all odds, and whether the Thronehold nations will eventually be forced to give in to their request to be formally recognized remains to be seen.