Oh, no, not another bonus post...and possibly controversial this time!

Ideally, this project will see publication within the next year or so.  And so, ideally, I'll eventually be needing illustrations.  And I've come to the realization that a certain common trope of the fantasy art genre could open up quite the can of wiggly worms.

So consider yourself forewarned.

Bards of the Southlands

Bards in the Southlands are as diverse as they are versatile.

In Dellumea, tribal skalds keep histories and legends alive.  In Kalretia, a reliable courier is often needed—by islander and swamper alike—to carry messages between the islands.  In Tahvaair, a neutral party is often needed to negotiate between rival nobles or those seeking allegiances.  The bards of Ta'Araen and Velakhura may be entertainers, messengers, spies, or any combination of the above.

Barbarians of the Southlands

When most people of the Southlands hear the word "barbarian," they inevitably think of the tribal peoples of Dellumea. While many Dellumeans do take up the path of rage and power, they are not the only ones.

In Taahvaair, the half-ahvaiyru feiyin typically serve as warriors of varying kinds. Whether they are janissaries in the ahvaiyru armies or gladiators in the arena, fighting is often a way of life for these half-breeds. While some gladiators fight with skill or cunning, there are those who channel their anger and frustration at their captors into a powerful fighting form.

Barbarians also exist among the swampers who call Kalretia home. These powerful warriors face the harsh environment head on rather than learning to cooperate with it as rangers and druids do. Among the pirates and scoundrels that raid on the Velakhuran coast, there are a number of them who display astonishing power and incredible ferocity in their attacks on other ships. In Ta'araen, there is a saying that goes "You can accomplish more with a big stick and a kind word than you can with a kind word alone." However, there are some in that country who forgo the kind word altogether and simply wield very big sticks.

Ki'vali aren't orcs.

They're the "stouts" of the setting, and should have something of a "proud warrior race" feel going on.  But they're not orcs.

Apsuri aren't halflings.  Nor are they gnomes.  The way that they look—or rather, the way that they used to look before I changed some details—was slightly influenced by hobbit knock-offs created by an author I don't even particularly like.  But that's about it.

Ahvaiyru are not elves, although they may be something of a deconstruction.  Neither are turéhu, although one could probably stretch a point and call them wakyambi.

Tíraleth are...well, they're just purposely weird.

And yes, I did decide to elaborate somewhat upon the subject matter here.

*Cue Portal Theme Song*

I'm still alive, and I certainly haven't run out of ideas.  However, compiling my ideas into a presentable format is proving a slightly bigger task than I'd predicted.

Rest assured that there will be new material here in the near future.

Velakhura

Velakhura makes up most of the eastern coast of the Tirin Peninsula, sharing borders with both Ta'Araen and Tahvaair.  It takes its name from a human tribe that migrated north from Dellumea, from whence most of its human inhabitants are descended.

Much of Velakhura is forested or mountainous, making travel by foot or by the usual conveyances dangerous or impossible in some regions.  Crops and livestock tend to be those that thrive in the shade or on hillsides.  The native turéhu, with whom the humans have a truce, have the final say on logging and quarrying throughout most of the nation.

Velakhura's capital city, Martauthri, is also its main seaport.  Any rumors that the King of Velakhura—who was also among the nation's founders—has extended his lifespan by way of necromancy should be ignored as the basest slander.

Tahvaair

Tahvaair, to the west of Ta'Araen, is ruled by an unknown number of ahvaiyru families; all non-ahvaiyru in Tahvaair are slaves of one clan or another.  These clans are known to feud amongst themselves in a manner said to be all the more vicious for being so genteel.  

Of more concern to outsiders, however, are regular sorties against neighboring Ta'Araen, by the ahvaiyru and their feiyin janissaries, in attempts to annex parts of it.  As diplomatic relations and legitimate trade with Tahvaair are nonexistent, little else is known.

Ta'Araen

Ta'Araen is the most diverse, and in many ways the most cosmopolitan, nation in the Tirin Peninsula.   Most of its human denizens are the descendants of several different tribes known collectively as Tirins, and the vestiges of many distinct cultures still survive.  

Approximately half of the nation—centered roughly around the capital, Araenkeep—is given over to farming.  Further south, along the border mountains that separate the peninsula from Dellumea, mining for various metals predominates.  The remainder of the nation is prairie and light forest.  Here, due to all-too-frequent attacks from Tahvaair, there are few settlements aside from military garrisons.

Kalretia

Kalretia (or, more formally, the Kalretian Archipelago) is located to the northeast of the Tirin Peninsula.  Its thirteen islands have approximately the same total area as Ta'Araen.

The true natives of the islands are apsuri and lizardfolk.  But in recent generations, humans from a northern continent have established a colony on the largest island.  As a result, two distinct major cultures have sprung up:  "Islanders," centered around the main seaport on the largest island, are primarily influenced by the human colonists; "swampers," denizens of the brackish swamps of the northeastern islands, are primarily influenced by the apsuri.

Dellumea

The Tirin Peninsula is separated from the rest of the southern continent by a steep and treacherous mountain range.  Few safe passes exist through these mountains.

While the tundras and boreal forests that lie beyond may have any number of names among their inhabitants, most of the Tirin Peninsula knows the land only as Dellumea.  It's the home of tribal humans—some friendly and some much less so—wild beasts, and things largely unknown in the Tirin Peninsula.