The Frontier

The Frontier is what New Z'hratians call everything that isn't the city. Outside the mega-metropolis, the world is untamed, wild and confusing. Myths of beasts and monsters keep the vast majority of city dwellers away, but those few who have found their home out in the uncharted wilderness wouldn't trade the forests and wide, starry night skies for anything the city could offer. Even fewer are able to give reports on what is way, way out there; those that return tell stories of magic-touched landscapes that defy the laws of nature and abominations that lurk beyond the understanding of mankind.

Geography

Very little of the frontier has been seen, but it's known that the area closer to the sea is a swamp and a mountainous deciduous forest region, which transitions to a field of tall, wild grassses, and then to a desert. It wouldn't be unexpected to see every biome represented somewhere, and maybe even some magic-touched regions that Z'hratians haven't heard of before.

Ecosystem

There are many wild creatures on the Frontier. The most well-known ones are shark wolves, direlizards, and human-sized spiders, because all of them are known to attack or kill people. However, the land provides for many different herbivore species as well. The people who live there are primarily nomadic, but there are a handful of small farming settlements in the more temperate climates. Overall, there is a large variety of ecosystems even within the known areas of the Frontier, making it difficult to generalize.

Climate

The known region of the frontier is mostly temperate and prone to thunderstorms, thanks to the nearby sea, although it gets warmer and drier the farther inland you go. Also, if the rumors from the far reaches of the Frontier are true, there is some odd magical weather patterns out there, such as sandstorms which are reported to have a lifelike, malicious consciousness, frozen geysers, and rain that "falls" up and against gravity.

Natural Resources

Lumber
Stone
Water from rivers. Seawater is also distilled into pure water and the salt is extracted by machine.
Power crystal, particularly on the border with 8th District.
Crops, region-dependant.
Desert glass. When the sand of the desert is struck by lighting, it produces a glass that has an unusual purple-and-blue iridescent sheen. Some nomadic tribes harvest the glass and sell it, primarly to tourists, jewelers, and artesians.

History

The Frontier has always been there. The Wayfarer, the god of travel, required that there always be something outside the city, something to explore and expand outwardly towards. But, for the most part, Z'hratians have chosen to expand vertically rather than horizontally. New Z'hrat is the only major civilization in the known world, so most residents of the Frontier are people who have found the city inhospitable for one reason or another. Most of them have been exiled for crimes or for being political opposition to certain guild leaders, or have been priced out of home ownership within the city. After many generations of this, a decent-sized population has sprung up, usually in the form of nomadic, mostly-family clans that city dwellers call the Tribes.

Tourism

Thrill-seeking and adventure-loving tourists might have a visit to the Frontier on their bucket list, often taking time to experience the entirely different lifestyle in one of the Tribes. A visit to the Frontier includes lots and lots of hiking and potentially swimming, camping, and enjoying the simple, but unusual, flavors of local cuisine.

Alternative Name(s)

the wild, the Wildlands

Type

Expanse

Included Locations