Yharn
- Controlled by: Various primitive tribes
- Effective capitol: Mecatl
- Official language: Various dialects of oldtongue
- Inhabitant races: Skinwalkers
- Population as of AC 1411: ~ 470,000
- Demonym: Yharnian
- Approximate form of government: Distributed tribalistic autocracy
- Head of Mecatl: Highchief Xiuhpilcoatli
While the outside world of Terre is a continent of constant change and conflict, nothing much has changed throughout centuries in the dense and suffocating jungles of Yharn. Inhabited by numerous skinwalker tribes of varying size, the region was left alone first by the expansion of the Forgotten Empire, then by the rebels in the Tides of Steel. The geographical seperation gave rise to a culture unique to the rest of Terre, but rarely experienced by outsiders due to the equally unique dangers present under the canopy.
The Primeval Jungle
The region of Yharn is covered by dense tropical forestation, covering the sky with foilage, shadowing and dampening the ground to the pleasure of local faunas. The northeastern parts are mostly covered by high jungle woods with bushes and ferns occupying the ground, while the southwestern parts feature water-soaked soil and sprawling mangrove forests.
Settlements scatter the tropical jungles, utilizing whatever space society can grasp from the claws of nature. More inland villages tend to find flat clearings and build houses and structures with dirt, logs, and stone, while villages in the mangrove regions uses supported wharfs above the water level to build with more lightweight materials like leaves and planks. Many avian skinwalkers prefer the canopy layer for their settlement, building houses and walkways atop the trunks and branches.
While the jungles may connect Yharn closer to nature than most other regions, this land acts more on its own will, presenting more peril and hostility than balance. Mention not the diverse range of bestial predators and agressive floras, insect swarms and the diseases they bring also plague the jungle. While deadly threats to foreigners, the natural resistances of the skinwalkers together with generations of vernacular experiences helps the tribals survive in relative prosperity.
The Nocturne Parade
Despite the dangers the day proposes, the real terror of the jungle only roam the land after nightfall. In the darkness under the canopy where no moonlight may shine into, howlings of a thousand voices can be heard, forming a symphony of tooth and claw. The jungle comes alive, as shadowy beasts move swiftly and silently beyond the walls of the villages, sweeping clean and consuming those that are unfortunate or foolish enough to be caught in their path.
Within the darkness and the eyes shining with murderous intent, a watching presence can be seen: Three diamond-shaped bright red spark, from the eye sockets of the war mask of Xbeltz’aloc. The entity that the skinwalkers worship as their progenitor is also the entity that hunts them in the darkness under the canopy, a subject of fear. Perhaps such is the rule of this land, and there is nothing the mortals can do but to obey.
Mecatl
The largest tribal settlement of the region, and located conveniently in the outskirts of the jungle, Mecatl acts as the representative capitol city for the jungle tribes of Yharn, handling diplomatic relationships and trading affairs with the rest of Terre.
The city itself is surrounded by dense jungle woods, constantly being logged and cleared out for expansion purposes, which leads to increased repercussions from the land. Huts and houses surround a central temple-pyramid structure, used for ceremonial and administrative affairs, for example storages, ceremonies, and so on.
Magic and Technology
The isolation between Yharn and the rest of Terre gave rise to a unique set of martial and magical techniques within Yharn. Shamanism is prevalent and utilization of Netheric arcane is scarce, and warriors prefer war masks and blunt, primitive, but effective weaponry like warclub and machetes, most notably the macuahuitl.
While Yharnic tribals lack knowledge of technological advancements like alchemy and firearms and prefer traditional means of warfare, the difference between them and the Okeanosian aristocrats is that they will not reject the such gift, should they prove powerful and valuable enough. It is just that the training required to be proficient with these new martial tools usually outweighs their effectiveness, as through centuries and generations of experience, these warriors can simply outperform a musketeer or an alchemist with their own primal steel and magic.