United Tribes of Marfall

The United Tribes of Marfall, commonly referred to by the simplified name of Marfall, is a nation in eastern Galessia. A democratic republic of sixty-six officially recognized orc tribes, the special administrative zone of the Clear Shame, and the semi-autonomous city of Burrath, Marfall is bordered by the Kingdom of Grasynnia and the Gray Lake to the west, the domain of the Free City of Crosswell of the Alliance of Overmyre to the north across the River Kennar, and the world ocean to the east and south. A country dominated by rainforest, it stands out as both a natural and a political anomaly on the Galessian continent. Its current ruler is Murzush the Defiant.

History

As the orcs lacked a written language for a long time, they relied purely on oral history, which warps and diminishes as time passes. Therefore, pinning down a definitive history of Marfall is hard. What is certain, however, is that the history of Marfall is rife with conflict between the many orc tribes dotted around the Great Rainforest and its bordering lands. Less than a hundred tribes remain in the current day, however many are known to have been driven to extinction throughout history, be it through famine, disease, or most commonly, conflict. It is however a common misconception that all Marfallian orc tribes consist of nothing but savage warriors. Even in the past, many tribes dedicated themselves to other pursuits, be it hunting, agriculture, exploration, artisanry, or yet others. The conflicts, however, remained numerous, and extracted heavy tolls upon the orcs and the land they inhabited. After several decades wherein nations grew larger and more imposing, the people of Marfall grew anxious, which led to more conflict - whereas the answer was perceived to need to be the opposite: unity to breed strength. Thus, some sixty years ago, a major bloc of nine allied peaceful tribes began advocating for such unity, in the hopes of creating an orc nation to provide counterweight to the growing powers of the continent. This effort was met with ridicule from many of the more traditional and ruthless tribes of the Rainforest, yet in total, twenty-seven tribes gave a positive response. The meeting was to be held in the Clear Shame, where by orc tradition, combat was forbidden. Most tribes waited in the forest's edge, but one by one, the representatives came out of the canopy, and the meeting began. After over a month of difficult, tension-filled discussion and debate, the twenty-seven tribes present agreed to form the United Tribes of Marfall. However, this union was weak in its early years, and certainly not the icon of unity that the orcs sought to create, as infighting was common, and other tribes often disregarded the Union. Orcs used to populate the region known as the Marrens for centuries, however, most of them were driven out during a brutal war with the Kingdom of Dergeria over seven centuries ago, who then conquered the lands and possessed them until the Zenith War. At that war's inception, the three largest and most powerful orc tribes outside the Union - the Czogar, the Bynsi, and the Mulvihil - were approached by secret representatives of the Kingdom of Grasynnia. These representatives appealed to the pain the orcs' ancestors felt over losing their homelands in the Marrens, and offered them a place within their military force to reconquer these lands together. The tribes eagerly accepted, and spurred on many other tribes in the region to follow in their wake. Thus, the Falchions of Grasynnia waged war in the Marrens, aided by the orcs of what they referred to as "the Green Contingent", to force the Dergerians into a war of two fronts. Due to this, the Marrens were soon conquered. The orcs, satisfied with the arrangement, moved to claim the lands, but they were stopped by their Grasynnian allies, who redirected their fighting forces north to the swamps of Gobnor to continue fighting the war. The orcs protested in large numbers, but the Grasynnians then used their own superior military might to threaten the orcs unless they continued to fight at their behest. Two tribes attempted to rise up against this unfair arrangement, but were completely wiped out, without the Falchions losing a single man. Thoroughly intimidated, the orcs did the Grasynnians' bidding, and went on to fight in Gobnor. The Sacking of Gobnor was a long, drawn-out, harrowing conflict, during which many orcs gave their lives, and the Grasynnians hung back and let them. Although after four years, the war was won, what remained was a broken, decimated people. When King Merxellis Dragonbane then proclaimed the Marrens as Grasynnian territory, actively going against the original deal, very few orcs had any strength left to resist. Thus, those who were left retreated into the Great Rainforest, having gained nothing and lost too much. After seeing first-hand the weight that world powers could leverage against the disparate tribes, the rumblings of unity once again pervaded through the rainforests. Unity could have stopped this disaster. The leaders of the decimated tribes arrived in the Clear Shame to beseech the Union for its aid, in return for their support. As they did, so would other tribes follow. Soon, the amount of tribes in the union had more than doubled, and the idea of the Union lived among the people, not as a pipe dream, but as their only possible path to a strong and secure future. With the help of the wizened of Burrath, which had joined the union during the war, the political system of the nation was streamlined, and regular elections started being held.

Geography

Main article: Great Rainforest

Roughly four-fifths of the domain of the United Tribes comprises the Great Rainforest: a dense, wet, extremely lush, and largely dangerous forest with a closed canopy and a high variety of plant, animal, and monstrous life. Insectoid, reptilian, and amphibian species are plentiful here, as are birds. Most species found here cannot be found in any other known location in the Three Great Continents. Many rivers and streams snake through the forest, and the hills are rich with ore. The Clear Shame lies at the southern edge of the region, notable for being a gap in the canopy, where the trees do not grow. The orcs of the region have many traditions and legends connected to this marshland, and in modern times, it is home to the capital of the Union, built for the purpose: Nrov. Off its coast lies Redbank Shoal, named for its red-colored sand. The Zihrfa, the thirty-ninth tribe, have their ancestral home here. The north end of the Union's domain comprises the eastern half of the region known as the Blessed Breadleas: an agriculturally rich land beyond the Great Rainforest's edge, home to several farming tribes. The tribes here are physically and culturally distinct from the other orcish tribes of Marfall, including the largest tribe of the area, the Mulvihil. It is also here that the flourishing city of Burrath can be found, the largest city of the Union, which serves politically as the sixty-seventh tribal parish.

Politics and society

As a rare democracy, the United Tribes of Marfall has a rather complex structure. Each of the sixty-six officially recognized tribes that have joined the union is allowed to cast one vote as a tribal parish for any chief other than their own to take office as the top chief. On top of this, the city of Burrath gets to cast a vote as well, as part of its unique arrangement with the Union. Every tribal parish decides for themselves how they decide upon their vote: tribal meetings are a common solution, but sometimes, the vote is decided by the tribal elders, or even the chief all by themselves. Those who are not affiliated with any recognized tribe, be it through exile or being part of a tribe outside the union, do not get any say in the election. Similarly, those residing in the Clear Shame, including the capital of Nrov, are barred from affecting the political outcome as well, outside of the incumbent top chief being allowed to campaign for re-election. The top chief's power is limited through checks and balances orchestrated by the wizened of Burrath, where every legislative and judicial decision proffered by the top chief can be debated by representatives of all tribes in the union. This often slows down decision making, so for urgent decisions, the top chief can utilize a power called "the Word", which surpasses the debate option. Their use of this power is technically unrestricted, but is often kept in check by the election process, as reckless use of the Word is often punished by losing re-election. The current top chief, Murzush the Defiant, chief of the Yaksha, the nineteenth tribe, was elected seven years ago and re-elected two years ago with popular support: fifty-four of the sixty-seven parishes voted for her. In recent times, as the orcish society matures, businesses and organizations are formed in Nrov. Exploration guilds attempt to map the Great Rainforest, and an organization known as the Woodwalkers searches the region for ruins and treasure. Nrov is also home to many plant and animal enthusiasts, hoping to research their object of interest to their heart's content. As a product of their cultural past, however, the most well-known organization within the Union is the Fight Folks, a loose guild of warriors of various persuasions who train and spar together in the hopes of becoming the strongest. The Union considers the Kingdom of Grasynnia hostile, and the borderline at the Marrens is permanently patrolled by the strongest orc warriors. Speaking the name "Dragonbane" in mixed company is strongly discouraged within Marfall, as some grow enraged at its very mention. Relations with the Free City of Crosswell are calm, and the Union also maintains warm diplomatic contact with the City of Bloomsburgh in Asmarea, owing to the large gnome population in Burrath. The rare exception of that city aside, the people of Marfall are almost exclusively orcs, with some half-orcs present as well. Green half-dragons specifically can be occasionally found here, too. Orcish culture has little room for the divines of the Divinium, and as such, their worship here is scarce. Most orc tribes venerate their ancestors and/or natural phenomena. The worship of their ancestors also leads to the deification of the mythical forefather of all of orckind, Gruumsh One-Eye. His worship is especially popular among the tribes outside of the Union, since the word of Gruumsh is to wage war endlessly - decidedly at odds with the Union's belief of peace and unity. Therefore, especially among the younger generations within the Union, worship of the One-Eye is declining sharply.