The Gran March, occupying the fertile plains bordered in the west by the expansive Dim Forest and in the east by the Lortmil Mountains. While the northern baronies enjoy a temperate, dry climate, in the south the Dim Forest and the Rushmoor swamp generate dark mists and frequent showers.
For Commandant and Country, I do solemnly swear that I will serve with true faith and allegiance in the Gran March military, that I will support and defend Gran March against all enemies, that I take this obligation freely without reservation or purpose of evasion, and that I will discharge my duty well and faithfully. Oath of Induction, Gran March Military.
People
About 200,000 humans from mixed heritages live in these lands today with even about 10% of those pure-blooded Flan, most living in either the Barony of Harnarchus (which is now the Eastern Marsh) in the Lortmil hills and near the Dim Forest. These pure-blooded Flan together with the 20 000 or so Dwarven, gnomish and halfling communities have one thing in common, they belong to the same social class – the Allod. There are no significant number of elves in the Gran March. The Dim Forest holds a community, but most do not fall into the forested area that falls in the Gran March.
The Allod living in their autonomous domains within the March, are not beholden to any baron but answer only to our Commandant. The Flan Allods generally have a hereditary chieftain, dwarves elect princes while Halflings may elect their leadership. Within their domain, Allod are governed by their own laws, which may or may not have any relevance to ‘March Law’, and while within an Allod’s domain, all of us Marchers are subject to that law. The March has no right to claim, tax or levy the land and they are effectively independent friendly nations within the corpus of the March. There are several dozens of these small Allod domains in the March, most of which predate the March, and a few of which predate Keoland.
Lifestyle
We, and the dwarves of course, like living in a structured and lawful nation. We are a hardworking and very proud people who are very loyal to our country. We hold the feudal system up as a banner as we like to know our place, rights, and responsibilities. Generally, the people are friendly and helpful but due to our history, there is a prejudice and mistrust towards the Bakluni people. Understand that the prosperity of our country now, is built on the sacrifices of innumerable soldiers in the past.
Ours is a martial country, from top to bottom, and just like my son, every 15-year-old male, after having complete any apprenticeship of course, enters the mandatory conscription for a period of up to seven years, while girls that age may join as well, it is not mandatory. Mustering Day arrives in 2 years, perhaps the single most important holiday in the nation of the Gran March. On this day, all those soldiers who have completed their mandatory term of service in the Army are mustered out, and a fresh batch of fifteen-year-old boys and girls are mustered in to begin the process by which they could become highly-trained soldiers in one of the most formidable armed forces. Only those who are so impaired that service of any kind would be impossible are released. It is an indication of our intense patriotism that even those that fall into this category often beg to be found able. The Gran March government considers citizens who do not make themselves available for service to be traitors and will punish them by death unless they can show good cause for their actions.
Our military is the uniting factor in our society. Participation in the military breaks feudal bonds and allows for a level of social freedom and advancement not found in most other Kingdoms. It allows the masses to earn wages not dependent upon the local lord’s whim.
Economical
Even though there is a strict social class system, farmers, like myself, are proud and respected as a vital part of the nation. It was us famers that made sure food supply lines were kept up during the large campaigns the Gran March did throughout our history. Not to mention that every farmer has his sword above the hearth and would take it when the local Baron called upon our service.
Besides the central lands supplying food products, the cities produce all sorts of products. The product we export the most though is cloth and clothing, from fancy dresses to leather armour. The Dwarves and gnomes in the Lortmil Mountains in the March, produce copper and gems which boosts the economy in up and down bursts.
The manufacturing of weapons and armour is also large enough that we export the best quality across the Sheldomar Valley.
History
To truly understand the history of the Gran March one must look to distant past events in the Sheldomar Valley. Over a millennium ago, the northern half of the Sheldomar Valley formed part of what was then the Occluded empire of Whispered One, the lich lord. When he was killed, his empire gradually fractured and several small Flanae kingdoms arose. The northern Flan living in the Gran March area left their cities however and returned to the tribal system (flan nomadic) of government used before the rule of Vecna. This tribal system is what ruled the Sheldomar Valley for hundreds of years until the coming of the Suel at the end of the fifth century Before CY.
The Suel settling in Keoland were refugees in the Flanaess and tired of war. As such, they used diplomacy and manipulation to forge Keoland with the native Flan and good aligned non-human tribes located there. When word came from explorers that their ancient enemy, the Bakluni, were spotted far to the north the Keoish king created an order of knights, the Knights of the March, to secure the northern passes. To ensure that the Knights were dedicated in their zeal, it was formed entirely out of Suel warriors. The Knights were ordered to hold the pass near where Thornward is currently located and prevent any incursion of the Bakluni into the Flanaess.
Political
Our ancestors had no interest in building a new kingdom only to ensure a quick and secure path from Keoland to Thornward and defend against the Bakluni hordes beyond. This suited the various native Flan tribes and various other enclaves just fine, as they also had no desire to be joined in a unified kingdom. Thus, the patchwork for what was to become the Gran March was laid out (-161 CY); a central corridor controlled by the Knights of the March and the rest of the country controlled by various chieftains, thanes, and speakers. Eventually the Keoish crown named the leader of the knighthood as commandant of Gran March
The early 300s CY brought the Baklunish Brazen Horde to Ket. King Tavish I of Keoland ordered the foundation of the Knights of the Watch, built upon the basis of the Knights of the March and commanded by its leaders. This new, international knighthood quickly spread to Geoff, Bissel, and the heart of the Keoland Empire, all the while retaining strong roots and key leadership in Gran March. Indeed, the commandant became titular ruler of the massive knighthood, as well as leader of his nation.
With the dawning of Keoland's wars of aggression, in 350 CY, Gran March gained international notoriety as the primary staging ground for the Second Expeditionary Army, which invaded Veluna from the southwest. After the success of that campaign, the capital of Hookhill became an important caravan stop.
By 415 CY, life in Gran March had grown extraordinarily difficult, due to the appointed Commandant Berlikyn, a harsh ruler who created a period of bitter oppression. King Tavish III, seeing only the impressive results, appointed the commandant to be the supreme commander of all the northern provinces, which at the time included Gran March, Bissel, and much of Veluna.
The death of Berlikyn and the loss of Bissel and the Velunese territories forced a change in Keoland's policy in the north. The King’s first act was to allow the local nobles to elect one of their own to the position of Commandant of the Gran March, and forevermore split that title from that of the "Marcher Lord," titular head of the Knights of the Watch. Over the next few years, the first truly united government of the Gran March took form. The Gran March is a young nation but with deep roots going back to -161 CY.
The old Border Towers
Several hundred years before the Brazen Horde, what is now a poorly defined "open" border with Bissel, was the frontier border to the wild foreign lands. Several Border Towers were built to help in the defence against whoever wanted to invade. These Old Border Towers are the ruined remains of some of those.
Dim forest
The Dim Forest is an ancient forest that was so large it once connected with Oytwood, today it still covers a large enough area that parts of it are in The March of Bissel, The Gran March and the Grand Duchy of Geoff. I do not want you to go beyond our borders daughter so I will only focus on the part that lies within the Gran March.
The trees at the eastern edge bordering the Shire plains are used for timber and there is a lumber industry in the small towns of Carern and Gralston. But if you venture into the forest, you quickly realise why it is called the Dim Forest, for the trees become so broad and leafy as to make the ground beneath dim on even the brightest days. The Dim Forest here has a spine running through it – Taura Ridge. This ridge combined with the broad trees make the forest ideal for orcs, goblins, and other nocturnal and light-hating creatures. But what will stop you sooner are the enormous nests of Spiders and other crawlers that make their home east of Taura Ridge. The ridge has ancient history attached to it but only the elves in The Western dim forest could tell you those stories.
The Great river
A wild river runs through the Dim Forest here, crossing it on foot is folly for the water rushes through a rough riverbed and can be quite cold. The river crosses the entire length of the Gran March and springs out of the Lortmil mountains at the eastern side, hence the waters can be cold depending on the season.
The lakes on the river’s journey from East to west are an excellent source of fish. The Town of Buxton’s Crossing sits at the centre of the fishing trade and the Fish market in this town is famous throughout the Country.
Carern’s lake district is used to bind solid trees together and let them be carried through the forest by river until it reaches the Town of Hochoch. The Great River eventually flows into the Javan river, an enormously long river that flows all the way down towards the Hold of the Sea Princes.
The Barony of Farvale
Midwood Vale ends into the Barony of Farvale in the Gran March. A shifty road, sometimes deteriorating into a mere path, stretches from the Town of Hochoch to Buxton’s Crossing and Hookhill beyond. Farvale has been deforested a long time ago due to the Occluded Empire. Farvale has had farmers of Flan descend for hundreds of years but the town of Orlane was officially founded in 556 CY, when explorers reported to the Commandant that the land seemed to be extremely fertile, producing larger than normal crops. Soon after that, a large group of farmers arrived. Orlane quickly grew into a thriving community 500 people with the rest of the vale divided into farms, respecting the boundaries of already established Flan famers. Although Orlane is very much a farming community, by 575 CY it has become a major trade point on the road east to west. What helped that development were several groups of adventurers that opened a small caravan track through the previously untraveled Dim Forest and the Gran March investing in Fort Endurance whose task it is to safeguard passage. The track cuts through a narrow finger of the forest, and only lucky or well-armed caravans can expect to make the journey in safety.
Rushmoor (pop. 1500)
The Rushmoors, a thriving, ecologically balanced, wetland filled with unique flora and fauna but at the same time a fetid, dangerous place overflowing with dangers and diseases.
The moor’s water level is ever fed by the Javan River, starting in the Barrier peaks, and because the whole swamp lies in a depression, rain that falls in the Gran March eventually flows towards it. What keeps the area from forming into a large lake is that it drains in the Javan River as it continues its journey south and, near the Sheld ridge, drains into the Sheldomar river.
The numerous rises throughout the swamp form small islands in the muck which allow for lizard folk huts, outlaw camps, monster lairs, or simply those who wish isolation from society. At the eastern edge of the Moors there are several hundred Flan barbarians living in tribes. What makes the area liveable is its ecological products and that it has a microclimate. Air gets trapped inside the swamp, creating a humid, stagnant climate with temperatures that can rise well above those of surrounding lands. The average temperature in summer is 35C degrees and in winter, it is 24 C.
The swamp is very dangerous however, and Fort tribulation is the closest outpost keeping an eye out. If danger rears its ugly head, they sent word to Shiboleth. Why this caution? Local tales say that the swamp was once the home of the Whispered one, the Lich Vecna, and that he was cursed to become a foul swamp after his demise. The remains of the Rotted Tower still stands within the moors, from this tower, Vecna supposedly sat on his Spidered Throne ruling over his Occluded Empire.
The southern border
The southern border is shared with the Kingdom of Keoland and it is the Sheldomar River that separates the two. It has its headwaters in the Rushmoors and its mouth in the Azure Sea. Although only small ships can use the river from Shiboleth to Lortenford, beyond the latter the river broadens and from the Azure Sea to Niole Dra, even large vessels can travel safely up the river.
Legend has it that the leader of the Knights of the March took out a map of the region and drew a straight line between the then imperial capital Niole Dra and the town of Thornward in the March of Bissel, and then selected locations for fortresses, all at one day travel intervals, along that line. Two of those fortresses became the towns of Shiboleth and Hookhill. A roadway, known as the Watchtower Road, was eventually built linking all these keeps.
City of Shiboleth
Shiboleth, the seat of this Barony, is small compared to other walled cities in the Flanaess but is second only to Hookhill in size in the Gran March. The settlement used to be no more than a bridge and some houses, placed as a means of crossing the Sheldomar river but with increasing number of travellers, it quickly grew into a village.
It became an important trading station for goods heading to the northern Sheldomar Valley and south into Keoland. The village became a town with a plethora of inns, shops and anything a traveller, trader or merchant need. The dangers crawling out of the Rushmoors forced the growing town to become fortified town. It is thus not only a trading hotspot, but Shiboleth also stands guard over the Eastern Rushmoors and keeps these lands safe.
Fleeth (ruined)
Between the Watchtower Road and the March of Rushmoors, where hundreds of Flan barbarians live, lie the tree covered ruins of Fleeth. Legends and myths surround this site and the name Fleeth can be found in ancient books describing it as one of the few Flan cities of old, with white walls standing proudly upon the eastern plains as a stronghold against the wild lands. This could have been the city where Vecna was born and said person violently destroyed. Vecna’s name has become synonymous with pain, suffering and the price of dabbling in magics not meant for the ken of mortal minds. So strong is his legend that local people believe the ruins here are those of Fleeth and are to be avoided at all costs. None dare to set foot in it lest to awaken the tortured spirits of ancient past.
Lortenford
Lortenford is a walled provincial town that is located where the Kingdom of Keoland, the Duchy of Ulek and the Gran March borders meet. Just like Shiboleth, it too started out as a bridge to cross the Sheldomar but was added with a second bridge to cross the Lort river that connects to the broadening Sheldomar river further down.
This hamlet quickly grew into a town. It was a vital strategic location during the expansion period that made the Kingdom of Keoland into the empire it once was. To this day Lortenford holds a strong military presence, even though relations with the Duchy and the March are now peaceful. Lortenford maintains the bridges so that safe crossing is assured and provides a safe place for diplomats of all three countries to meet and exchange news. A hotbed of political intrigue.
Nowadays, it has become a mayor trading station where the three countries come to exchange goods and, as such, it has a surprisingly large wharf. You can jump on a small vessel to sail upriver to Shiboleth or board a larger ship towards Niole Dra.
Traziada
Out East, on the border with the Duchy of Ulek sits the small walled regional town of Traziada. It is the gateway into the upper north Lort plateau and offers safe crossing over the river Lort, which has a rough character this close to the Lortmil mountains. The town has good relations with the dwarves and gnomes of the Lort Plateau and there are always groups of dwarves or pair of gnomes in town passing through or here to trade.
Lortmil mnts
The Lortmils, a low chain of mountains fading into hills due to its age, is the homeland of a plethora of cultures.
The good folk, persuaded by the dwarven communities, acted in concert almost a century ago (498 – 510 CY) to expel most of Orc kind and vicious monsters from the Lortmils. The dwarves are now the prominent culture inhabiting the mountain range and clan leaders here are reputed to be as rich as princes, sought by emissaries from foreign nations for aid.
This side of the Lortmil mountains sees a different flora then on the Northeastern slopes. The slopes here are covered with sudden steep peaks and deep valleys, all dwarfed by Mt Cragmore, a narrow but steep peak. The valleys here still get the benefit of the occasional warm breeze from the azure sea as well as the occasional thunderstorm rain that make sure the valleys have dense forests of maples and beech. Tangled underbrush, encouraged by the favourable conditions, makes direct travel through these woodlands more difficult.
Well-established trails are used when climbing these slopes and travellers are well-advised to keep to them.
Cragmore Valleys
The Fortified town of Cragmore is the centre of the Cragmore valleys and it sees as many dwarves and gnomes as it has humans. The surrounding hills and valleys are dotted with independent dwarven and gnomish Allod communities bringing trade goods such as minerals, gems and even unique medicines from the caves and forest.
Just east of the town, following a not very well-maintained road, sits the fortified village of Topaz pass. During the Hateful wars this pass was a strategic site and today its walls are still kept in good shape, for it is foolish to believe nothing vile can creep out of the high slopes and deep caverns of the mountains. Topas Pass allows access to the higher slopes.
If you follow the secondary road from Cragmore towards Ander’s falls you will marvel at the beauty of the many small but impressive rapids until the river reaches Ander’s Lake. Here the river forms a beautiful waterfall, unless it is summer when it is but a sliver. Ander’s Fall town, also fortified, sits in low hills and surrounded by lakes. It is a vital stopping point if you come from the west or south and wish to climb up into the Cragmore valleys.
Great lake near hollowdell
Hollowdell sits at the edge of the Cragmore Valleys and is known for its gigantic lake. Although the lake and its surroundings seem peaceful, locals know it has not always been so. But they will not recount the tale for what is spoken may become real again. If you ignore the tales spoken in Hollowdell and only reside in the luxury village in Athael during summer, then you would find yourself in the most relaxing place in the land.
The Shire lands
The vast area between the Dim Forest and the Crag Valleys is called the Shire lands, it is mainly pastures and farmland dotted with low lying hills and small woodlands. Next to the human population it has some Allod settlements of halflings producing some of the most flavoursome food products in the country.
Proman
From the large, walled, town of Proman that sits beside the scenic Lake of its name, you have a perfect view on Mt Cragmore in the east and the green pastured lands that surround the town. Proman is located more or less in the centre of the country, and although it is not the capital of the Gran March it is most definitely the centre of all its food production.
Capital City of Hookhill
The capital city of Hookhill is the other settlement of note in the Shire lands. It is a walled city, most of which makes up one big district with only the Commandant’s Keep as a mini-district unto itself, as is the Army headquarters. The other most significant structure is the Cathedral Valorous of Heironeous. Although the faith of the arch-paladin is followed by thousands, it is not the national faith nor the only temple in the city. Many faiths can be found here but the temple of Zilchus is perhaps the one with the most followers, or that is at least what they want you to believe. Hookhill is the trading centre for mineral products from the Lortmil Mountains, specifically the iron from the dwarven mines. The precious materials are guarded every hour of the day in the capital.