Hordelands is the name of the general area on the southern rim of Rimevast. The region is a chaotic blend of many races, all of them hostile and battle-hardened. The most organized group in the Hordelands, as well as the one that is consistently largest, are the lands ruled by the hobgoblins, who keep various other goblinoids in their thrall. The hobgoblins are ruled by a single Lord General, the most powerful and most tactically cunning of all hobgoblins, who in turn is served by Generals, who are served by Chief Captains, then Captains, then Lieutenants, then Sergeants, and then Soldiers or Grunts (as elite Soldiers are called), with slaves at the bottom of the heap. The goal of the goblinoids is no less than the total subjugation of the rest of
Orcs make the second most powerful group in the Hordelands, and occasionally they are the most populous group as well. This, however, fluctuates wildly, since as orcs hit a certain population density in their living areas, or simply because they feel like it, they take to murderous raiding on everyone around them, with a strong preference for ice elves and humans. While orcs are present in decent populations all over Therafim, they are most common in the Hordelands, and most of the massive, raiding orcish armies that sometimes wash over the northern parts of Therafim originate from Rimevast tribes.
Giants, especially frost giants, and giantkin, such as ogres and trolls, make up the rest of the tribal melange, though they tend to very often get caught up in the machinations of other groups, since they often have great desires to fight and raid, but seldom have the will or the wit for it. An exception to this, of course, are the frost giants, who engage in raiding almost as frequently as the humans of the Bloodwit Delta, and who are only slightly less likely to ally themselves with these raiders as with the other hordelanders in their efforts.
Major Races: Goblinoids; orcs; giants.
Government: Military Dictatorship (goblinoids) or Tribal Anarchy (others).
Nation Alignment: Lawful Evil (Goblinoids) or Chaotic Evil (others).
Major Cities:
Malakh: - Its name means "messenger," and Malakh lives up to its name in more ways than one. Here, in a city set slightly into the low mountains between Nakhah and Keturah, goblinoids study the ways of war, learning how to be the ultimate messengers of death to their foes. This city is arranged along the lines of a monastery, with rigidly-kept fields tended by slaves at the base of the mountain, and training grounds carved out of the mountain itself. Here, the hobgoblins run a strict military academy, and here they train not only their elite fighters and most cunning scouts, but also the arcane branch of their military force. In the interest of improving their military styles, the hobgoblins of Malakh are actually not hostile to outsiders, and are more than willing to allow visitors to come and go in peace, provided that they announce themselves beforehand. This is based on the idea that, if somebody has penetrated that far into goblinoid territory, and is not actively hostile, then they must be allowed to be there. The instructors at Malakh are ever eager to learn new methods of fighting and spellcasting from other races, all the better to use these abilities themselves, and they are also willing to accept students from other races, provided that these students conform to the strict rules of the academy, seeing it as an excellent opportunity to demonstrate what other races are like, up close, to the goblinoid students.
Nakhah: - Taking its name from an ancient word meaning "to beat down," Nakhah is one of two cities set above Cresent and Summer Country, and from this fortified city, raiding parties are sent out to rob and plunder from those lands, and occasionally to trade. The primary purpose of Nakhah is to acquire the resources needed by Keturah to do battle with the Iron Throne, and so there are sections of this city set off for use by traders from other lands, and also areas where diplomatic envoys from other parts of Therafim might meet with goblinoids, and arrange the hiring of mercenaries. As such, Nakhah is slightly less forbidding, than other goblinoid cities, and even has its lighter moments when visitors decide to have a little fun, though it is no less well-defended.
Keturah: Directly north of the Iron Throne Empire, Keturah is the capital city of the hobgoblin dictatorship, and the seat of the Lord General's authority in the Hordelands. This city was built as a direct challenge to the Iron Throne, which the hobgoblins regard as their opposite number among the humans, and the entire stone-walled city is designed to be a massive war machine, geared towards a single purpose: destroy the Iron Throne! Bringing in great loads of mineral wealth from the hills north of the city, Keturah has been organized along strict military lines, with shifts that mean there is never an end to the preparations for war, except on those rare occasions when a relious ceremony must be performed, a speech must be given, or a war band is about to depart. The high walls of Keturah are set against the sea as well as the land, a forbidding front to all ships that come near, with catapults and flaming ballista bolts ready to sink any unauthorized vessels.
Bilefroth: Right on the edge of the Waters of Strife, just across the bay from the Bloodwit Delta, and a relatively short distance from Summer Country and Autumn Land, is Bilefroth, what comes as close to being neutral territory for the hordelanders as anywhere. Bilefroth is a port city, ruled by a powerful, centuries-old frost giant jarl named Sven Coldwind who commands great respect from his people. Since this jarl is of near-epic ability, besides being immensely cunning and charismatic, few are willing to challenge him for authority. In exchange for a reasonable fee, which varies depending on the size of the group in need, and on his personal liking for those involved, Sven runs a working shipyard, providing longboats and other vessels to hordelanders seeking to cross the waters and raid other lands. Sven Coldwind's presence, as well as that of his elite band of shipbuilding frost giant warriors, keeps the town of Bilefroth from getting too rowdy, and few stay here for long. Not above dealing with anybody, Sven is known to help out adventurers who are willing to lift a giant-sized mug with him, and often sends freelance groups in search of special woods for magical ships and boats that he sometimes builds.