Tian Xia

Tian Xia (pronounced TEE-yawn-shaw) is the continent geographically farthest from Avistan, and lies across the Embaral Ocean that borders the eastern shore of exotic Casmaron. Often referred to as the Dragon Empires, Tian Xia is most easily accessed by the residents of Avistan via the dangerous land route over Golarion's northernmost continent, the icy Crown of the World. As a result of its distance from the Inner Sea region, not much is known of this mysterious continent. It has acted as a cradle of civilization for nearly 7,000 years, and in that time has boasted three continent-spanning empires, the most recent of which, Lung Wa, ruled up until a century ago. Mainland Tian Xia today has many different sovereign nations, many of which have experienced a cultural renaissance since the fall of Lung Wa.

Geography

The mainland of Tian Xia is incredibly large, equaling (and some say surpassing) the size of any other continent on Golarion. The mountains of the Wall of Heaven (or Qiang Tian as they are known locally) run along the western border of the continent's northern half from Hongal in the north, all the way to Nagajor in the south. The mountains are incredibly tall with few dips, forcing all overland east-west trade through a limited number of passes, the greatest of which is near the cosmopolitan city of Goka.
To the east of the Wall of Heaven, the land quickly becomes flat and opens into the lands once controlled by Imperial Lung Wa, now the territories of the Successor States.
Many of the islands on Tian Xia's northeastern coast are part of the empire of Minkai, a land slipping toward civil war thanks to the holding of the emperor by the Higashiyama clan.
Tian Xia's southern half is much wilder, and dominated by the massive Valashmai Jungle, along with two mountain ranges: the Chenlun Mountains and the Sudisan Peaks. Here lie the territories of the realm of Nagajor, land of the serpentine nagaji; the mysterious Xa Hoi; and the distant islands of Minata.

History

The history of Tian Xia is incredibly long and detailed, dating back 7,000 years to when most humans in the Inner Sea region were still living in barbarism. King Wen of Quain, for instance, has a 98-foot-long scroll that supposedly shows his direct descent from the first Tian emperor, Mu Lung, while Emperor Shigure of Minkai claims he can trace his family tree back 296 generations to the goddess Shizuru. During this long period, hundreds of different nations and three empires have risen and fallen, each of which has taken it upon itself to rename the continent they call home.
The last great empire to arise in Tian Xia was Lung Wa, which ruled the northern half of the continent from 4142 AR on until the death of Aroden in 4606 AR. The natural calamities that accompanied his death led to massive civil unrest that collapsed Lung Wa and led to the current political structure of over a dozen Successor States.

Location under

Golarion