Tartaria
| Official languages | Common |
| Capital | |
| Currency | Barter and Trade |
Tartaria
Geography and History
The vast grasslands of Tartaria are endless and unforgiving. It is said that the sky goes on forever. On this harsh steppe, live a vast nation of warrior people with a rich tradition, a boundless energy and an irrepressible spirit. The Tartarian people are a semi-nomadic Clan race, whose hot temper and quick wit often leads to violence. Tartars excel in all areas of combat, including the production of weapons and armour and the breeding of the finest war-horses in the world. Tartaria however has not been a land of prosperity for long. For hundreds of years, Tartaria was united under the leadership of an evil chieftain who imbued himself with the spirit of his totem and used it to gain power over nearly every tartar clan. Salamander and his sister Flame Hair controlled Tartaria for hundreds of years, uniting the Clans to do their evil bidding, as they sought to conquer the World. This culminated in 1102ac during the Summer of Fire, with a ritual to further strengthen Salamander’s power. Mercifully, the ritual was interrupted by the AAG lead by Krieg Clan Dragon and both Salamander and Flame Hair were killed. All the controlled Tartars exploded as Salamander died, leaving many Clans decimated. Afterwards, the Clans were recalled to Tartaria, the borders were shut, and inter-clan rivalry was brought to an end by the five year promise in order for the nation to heal. The borders were re-opened again in 1107ac.
Tradition, Lore and Legend
Tartaria is an epic nation, and its people fiercely passionate. Tartars live and die by their spirit alone, and believe stories to be the key to immortality. Traditionally, tartars shun reading and writing, believing the written word to be in some way evil. Once written, a story dies on the page; it can only live on in the soul of the bards. Therefore, they have a strong oral tradition and story-telling plays a very significant role in Tartar life. Each clan has its own myth and legend, handed down from generation to generation and story-tellers are greatly respected.
Politics
Tartaria is organised into Clans, each with their own lands and leaders. Each clan has an animalistic totem spirit from which they draw their power. For the most part, each clan has the same structure, ruled by a chieftain, assisted by a Clan Shaman, who represents the spiritual needs of the clansfolk, and a Clan Elder who represents the material needs of the clansfolk. The word of the chieftain is final, and any challenge to authority is done by force. Tartarian people, whilst not stupid, are uncomplicated by scholarly learning and prefer to solve disputes by physical strength rather than diplomacy. Each and every tartar child is raised to fight, a dagger very often being a child’s first possession. Although the Clans have relative autonomy, inter-clan disputes are often rife. These are settled by Clan Council meetings and by a ruling Clan known as The Nameless, of whom the Tartars never speak.
The larger clans are:
• Clan Dragon
• Clan Leviathan
• Clan Stonesnake
• Clan Hawk
• Clan Raven
• Clan Ghostbear
• Clan Timberwolf
• Clan Boar
• Clan Stallion - decimated beyond recognition as although the Clan still persists, only the children survived.
• Clan Phoenix - Totem was swallowed by Salamander, but resurrected in 1109ac with the aid of the Adventurers Guild
