Drang
Drang is the name of the desert region located on the Southernmost edge of the continent of Crestfall.
While Drang has no formal governing body, the independent city-state of Drakmort is located within the desert region.
Geography
The region of Drang is an expansive stretch of harsh desert, punctuated by sandy dunes, scattered oases and the occasional half-buried rubble of past civilizations. Days in the desert are blisteringly hot while the night is freezing cold; this, combined with the scarcity of available food in the desert, has caused the native flora and fauna of Drang to have adapted to a particularly hardy lifestyle.
The Jormund River, rougly 3 kilometres wide, flows Southeast through the desert; as the main source of water in Drang, the river is an essential part of the native ecosystem, as well as an important landmark for the sentient races that occupy the region: the Drangese people, an ethnicity of humans, historically developed their nomadic lifestyle by following the migrating schools of fish that travel the length of the river to spawn. Likewise, the gnoll clans of Drang would use the river as an ambush spot to take down any prey which came by the river to drink or feed on the plants that grew along its banks.
In the Modern Era, the Jormund River is an essential artery and trade route for the city of Drakmort, whose imports and exports rely heavily on the merchant vessels which travel the length of the river to arrive at the city's harborfront district. By the same token, the river is often employed by smugglers seeking to transport illicit goods in and out of the city.
Ecosystem
While the conditions of Drang are no doubt harsh, the various species of flora and fauna which populate the desert land serve to demonstrate that life can adapt to even the most inhospitable of environments. Drang is home to a plethora of species, both mundane and monstrous in nature.
Some of the more extreme examples of life within Drang include the Axe Beaks, large omnivorous birds which travel in large flocks, or "mobs", the armored bulettes which stalk their prey by "swimming" beneath the desert sands, and mighty wyvern, a rare but highly dangerous apex predator distantly related to the more intelligent dragons of old.
In addition to the creatures which dwell on land, Drang's Jormund River is home to a diverse collection of freshwater aquatic species, from harmless schools of multicolored fish to more fearsome fauna such as carnivorous quippers and crocodiles. The largest predator found in the river is the enormous Jormund Catfish, known to grow up to several meters in length and capable of swallowing a grown human whole.
Localized Phenomena
Shadowstorms
In addition to the usual dangers of desert life, Drang is unique in that a strange and potentially supernatural weather phenomenon has been known to manifest within the region. This phenomenon, known as a shadowstorm, is a sandstorm of massive proportions can tear through entire swathes of the desert in a matter of hours. While highly destructive in their own right, what makes shadowstorms particularly dangerous is the tendency for strange and hostile monsters to appear in their aftermath; while it was originally believed these creatures were simply opportunistic predators native to the desert, no specimens of any creature that appears in the wake of shadowstorm has ever been found in a "natural" setting. A more pervasive theory which has taken hold of the public is that these monsters were brought to the desert by the shadowstorm, implying that the storms themselves may be temporary gateways to another plane of existence altogether. Until more is understood about the nature of shadowstorms and the reason for their occurrence, the answers to these questions will remain unclear.Natural Resources
Many efforts have been made in the Modern Era to colonize and settle the seemingly inhospitable deserts of Drang, or a number of reasons, chief among them being the region's vast abundance of Hexstone deposits. The frequent discovery of Hextstone veins beneath the sand has led a vast number of boomtowns to be erected within the desert to capitalize on the valuable resource, only for these towns to stagnate and bust when the vein inevitably runs dry; for this reason, the region of Drang has earned the nickname "Dustbowl", due to the sentiment that the average would-be Hexstone miner is more likely to return home with a bag full of sand and dust than anything else.
In addition to Hexstone, the ruins which are scattered throughout Drang have been known to yield valuable artifacts and magic items dating back to the Pre-Vancian Era and beyond, making the region a popular archaeological site. The Hegian Empire maintains several Reclaimer outposts throughout the desert, deploying adventuring parties to scour the desert for these artifacts on a full-time basis. Due to the harsh conditions of the desert, Reclaimers typically view deployment in Drang as a form of punishment, although many of them are more than happy to travel to spend their leave in Drakmort's taverns, bars and brothels.
History
Evidence suggests that the region now known as Drang is much more lush and fertile than its current iteration; the transformation into its current state is believed to have been caused by the fallout of multiple battles throughout the Millennium War, with the magical weaponry employed by both sides rendering the Southern portion of Crestfall a desolate wasteland. The use of powerful and unstable magic in this area is also believed to have resulted in large deposits of crystallized magical energy, leading to Drang's abundance in the mineral known as Hexstone.
In the year 691 ME, a particularly violent Shadowstorm resulted in the massive corpse of a Tarrasque to appear within the middle of the desert. Opportunistic settlers quickly set to work harvesting the slain creature for the numerous resources its corpse provided, leading to a boomtown being erected that would eventually grow into the city now known as Drakmort.
Demographics and Cultures
While the city of Drakmort is know for its highly cosmopolitan array of citizenry, the arid lands of Drang were colonized by sentient races long before the village that would one day become Drakmort was ever erected. For untold generations, the waters of the Jormund River have been traversed by the Drangese people, nomadic humans that follow the migratory patterns of the fish that venture up and down the river's fertile waters. Further from the river's edge, frontier towns and trading posts dot the desert landscape, populated by outsiders from nations such as Kovia and the Hegian Empire who wish to seek their fortunes in the Hexstone-rich wastelands. Those who travel to Drang soon find there's more to contend with than the harsh weather, however, as these boomtowns are the frequent targets of raiding gnoll bandits, looking to scavenge food and other resources by attacking these well-off settlements. It is for this reason that mercenary work is a thriving industry for adventuring parties stationed in Drang, usually overseen by Empire-affiliated factions such as the Reclaimers. Not all of the desert's inhabitants are malevolent, however. Far from these frontier settlements, the most secluded regions of the desert are home to the elusive desert elves. Much like the wood elves of Lubec, the desert elves are descended from the elves which chose to defect from the conflicts of the Millennium War, enacting a self-imposed exile into the lands they once sought to conquer.
Type
Desert
Location under
Included Organizations
Related Ethnicities
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