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The Southern Shield
Realm: The Twelve Kingdoms
Population: Approximately 4,000,000
Military: Varied
Economy: Varied
Language: Common and Uskal
From the eagle's eye view, the Irontooth Mountains form a broad, curved knife shooting down from the high peaks in the north to the lower heights as the range descends into northern Calantyr. Though the actual mountains are reckoned to end somewhere to the east of Knight's Lake, the highland ridge continues all the way through southern Calantyr to the Bay of Storms. From Ang'arta in the north through Djorain and eastern Porphia to the Southman citadel of Norryton, tall hills divide the land.
These hills, whose name varies from region to region, are noted as a particularly wild and dangerous territory. Nests of goblins, orcs and various magical creatures survive, protected by rough terrain, despite the best efforts of human nobles to exterminate them as thoroughly as has been done in the flatter terrain to either side. Hill-dwelling peasants are also menaced by ordinary human dangers, with bandits, rebels and rogue warlords all finding safe havens in between raids.
To either side of these hills, whose name varies from region to region, are high plains stretching for a hundred miles or more--the Southern Shield. The plains continue right up to the shores of the Center Seas, so that the western shores of that great gulf are dominated by rocky cliffs. Though there are a few ports along the coast, the first true harbor heading north from the Cape is V'Tavia at the mouth of the Tav, which inconveniences Porphia but cripples Ironfell and Eastern South Hold, which are both choked off from seagoing trade despite ample coastline.
In the north, the Shield descends around the southern border of Calantyr, with a number of gaps and passes that permit travel but inhibit the movement of large armies. Ang'arta's position on the top of the shield has been a factor in its rise to power, protecting it against V'Tavian armies while leaving Ang'artan raiding parties free to harass the land all around.
The high plains of the Southern Shield hold extensive softwood forests and rolling grasslands, but relatively little fertile farmland. The eastern half of southwestern Meditra, therefore, is largely poorer than the west, with more of the population required to farm the land.
One other notable feature of the Shield is the river that rises in its central hills. Coming together from springs in highlands of Djorain, it flows through Porphia, cutting a narrow valley out of the hills. In southern Porphia, it turns sharply northward and descends in rapids down the escarpment to the western lowlands. There it winds more leisurely until it merges with the Vesserine river, forming a large delta flowing into the Meditran Ocean.
This river is called the Laria while in Porphia (after its ruling family, the House of Lar). The Djorainis call it the Ashkent and claim sovereignty over the whole river (or at least its upper reaches) by virtue of history and their control of its headwaters. Before the rise of the House of Lar, Calants called the river the Dardon; this was still the case as recently as half a century ago in the Republic of Nemarie, prior to its defeat and annexation into Porphia. The Otessans called the river the Parlo during their occupation of southern Meditra.
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