The Talesinger Saga

A thousand miles across, the continent of Forleah shifts geography slowly from West to East. Coasts rise into mountains, falling across a desert and long grasslands, and then settling into sandy coasts and the Shoal to the northeast. The equator of Auvir falls about a third of the way across the upper portion of Forleah, and the winters of the Great Forest of Gidra in the south are very cold. The nation of Siwarra spans most of the upper portion of the continent, from mountains, across the desert and over the plains, leaving only the river mouths and coast to the Rohakkim.   Stretching almost the full height of the western side of Forleah, the Godspine Mountains contain some of the highest points on the continent. Multiple high plateaus have been built upon to make the great cities of the Siwarran nation, including its capital Thivasa.   To the east is the Ash Flats, an expanse of volcanic scree that tapers off to ash lakebeds, baked dry for most of the year but erupting into life and dangerous sucking mud pits during the rainy season. Timing one’s journey across them is paramount, as too wet and they are dangerous and slow going, but too dry and it is a hundred miles of fine silt and no vegetation.   A network of low islands, sandy shoals, and man-made pilings, the nation of Rohakka has extended out into the Marisan Ocean to the north and east of Forleah. Due to shifting tides, constantly expanding construction, and a desire to thwart Siwarran influence, there is no official square mileage of the Shoal available to outsiders.   Beyond the Shoal, small tribes beyond the Rohakkim hold power. Some are splinters from Rohakkim society, and others are native islanders from before the Golden Age. Few outside the Rohakkim know their language or customs, and as such trade is often conducted through Rohakkan intermediaries. Pirates are a constant threat once you get beyond sight of the Shoal, a distance of about 12 miles if viewed from a crow’s nest.   Lands far beyond Forleah are spoken of in myth, and tales of sailors going far beyond the horizon and returning with strange tales and exotic riches are common. Siwarra is incapable of the distant sailing required, and Rohakka is unconvinced of the profit of such an endeavor.