Kayor
"Don't rule out Kayor. Save your wages, get some land and plant a sugarcane farm - or marry your way onto one - and you will be set for life. Once you work out how to avoid the gators. And the mosquitos. And the cyclones battering your house five times a year. But at least it's not cold, right?"
-A rower aboard an Avadian bireme discussing his retirement plan Located on the southwestern edge of the continent of Arikanda and bordered on the south by the Calinan Sea, Kayor is the southernmost subregion of the Avadian Colonies. It is considered the gateway to the Avadian territories on the mainland. Its unique climate conditions caused by its proximity to the Backlash have made it a tumultuous region, particularly along its southern shores, but have also made it a prized agricultural region where exotic resources such as sugarcane and fruits can be sourced and exported throughout the Calinan Sea and Arikanda - arguably making it one of the most important holdings of the Avadians in an economic sense. It is currently considered a viceregency, with the settlement under the supervision of a viceroy appointed by the Avadian Assembly.
Geography
Kayor is divided into two major geographic zones- the southern coastal region, which is a broad, flat plain mainly made up of mangrove swamps, glades and similar wetlands/tropical forest, and a subtropical humid zone, which consists of longleaf pine forests, some deciduous trees, and shallow hills and grasslands.
Rivers and lakes are prominent throughout the region; albeit the further south one goes, the more those waterways tend to be mixed in with both the swamplands and the salty waters of the Calinan, while rivers in central and northern Kayor have a more distinct separation from surrounding lands and other waterways.
Two major cities, Denato and Osvenato, are located to the south. Beyond this, most settlements in Kayor are small towns, villages, and owner-occupied farms and settlements throughout the lands. Roads and wagon trails have been set up throughout both the wetlands and drier regions, connecting the major cities to smaller towns and to the other overland routes to Barcelles, Freemarket and Ormond.
Climate
Despite it sharing similar latitudes with otherwise temperate or even dry parts of the world, Kayor's proximity to the Backlash and its ongoing effects results in a significantly more humid climate than would otherwise be expected in the region. In the southern parts of Kayor adjoining the Calinan Sea, this manifests in an environment similar to a tropical monsoon climate, with a hot and wet season with heavy rainfall and frequent thunderstorms, along with a warm, dry season.
Periodically throughout the year, the Backlash's unique weather system generates more chaotic weather patterns. Tropical cyclones are a frequent hazard within Kayor, often forming in the Backlash, crossing the Calinan, and making landfall along the southern Kayoran coast, with as many as five powerful cyclones potentially making landfall in a year. Frequently this will cause destructive gale-force winds that can fell trees and cause significant damage to settlements and crops, along with flash flooding, torrential rain and storm surges along the southern edge of Kayor.
Kayor's climate becomes less extreme the further one gets from the shores of the Calinan Sea and by extension the Backlash, degrading into a more stable, but still distinctly unnatural, humid subtropical climate, with more distinct seasons of hot and humid summers and cool to mild winters.
Fauna & Flora
Due to the unusual climate conditions affecting the region, Kayor enjoys a significant diversity in plant and animal life in comparison to the rest of Arikanda. The mangrove swamps and wetlands of the south see a number of trees and shrubs adapted for brackish water. Away from the saltier environments, ferns and palms feature significantly, along with fields of brightly coloured flowers, fruits such as peaches and oranges, and the eponymous sugarcane which Kayor is famed for.
Animals in Kayor include alligators, particularly in the southernmost reaches, along with white-tailed deer, waterfowl of various types, panthers, and brightly-coloured tropical frogs and venomous snakes.
History
Not much is known about Kayor prior to the arrifval of Avadian wayfarers to the location in 871 DoM. At the time, Kayor's landscape was significantly different from the modern day, bearing similar appearance and weather to the other warm and relatively dry lands of southern Arikanda. Settlements were established at what would become Denato and Osvenato, serving as staging points for expeditions further inland, where a variety of farms and settlements were set up. For centuries, its role was effectively as a foothold on the mainland and a way to both connect to land trade routes and to farm traditional crops available to the rest of Arikanda for Avadian consumption.
As with many lands around the Calinan, The Ashstorm changed everything.
In 212 TE, the island of Tethos was torn apart by an enormous volcanic explosion, and the Calinan Sea was rocked by the effects of the Ashstorm. With Kayor located so close to what was once Tethos, Kayor was absolutely devastated by it, battered with tsunamis from the shockwave, and hammered by volcanic lightning and clouds of ash and pumice brought inland. Even once the aftershocks of the explosion faded, a terrible realisation set in - the unnaturally hot air following the explosion, and the periodic cyclones battering the shores, were there to stay.
For the original Avadian colonists, who had lived in Kayor prior to the Ashstorm and the ensuing Backlash, this nearly obliterated the Kayoran colonies, with the previous more temperate ecosystem outright ruined. Famine and economic ruin raged through the area as crops failed en masse, and in the years following the calamity, more than one viceroy considered abandoning Kayor outright. The pioneering spirit of the Avadians held on however, and over time, the settlers have adapted to not only the changing climate but have also attempted to combat the cyclones in the region.
"We have three options, Kayorans. We can try to continue the way we were prior to the Ashstorm and starve to death as our crops fail. We can run with our tails between our legs back to Port Avadia and let some other enterprising people reap the rewards of our misfortune. Or, by the gods, we can get every brilliant mind and every diligent worker we have together and make this disaster work for us. I know what I'm choosing."Natural philosophers from as far as the Academy of Arikanda were hired to study the weather and designate specific cyclone seasons, along with an attempt to understand warning signs and methods to mitigate the storms when they make landfall. Avadian engineers were brought in from the Beyan home islands, along with more natural philosophers, to develop new irrigation systems to attempt to mitigate the effect of flooding, and a sustained campaign was made to clear trees near settlements to prevent them being felled within homes and injuring people. Stone buildings also became the standard, Avadians believing them to be more resilient against storm-force winds. The weather changes also saw Koron, the Avadian god of winds and storms, become ascendant among the Avadian gods in the eyes of Kayoran Avadians, with many community-led festivals in his honour, along with regular sacrifices, works of art and prayers for his favour to see them through the coming storms, believing him to be the only thing capable of tempering the storms naturally. This practice has continued for the past 250 years. Over time, Kayorans have adapted and even thrived in their new conditions, leveraging the appearance of tropical fruits and crops to command the market and making them more than a simple transit region subservient to Port Avadia, but a vital piece of the Sovereignty.
-Viceroy Lerina of Kayor addressing the Assembly of Denato, 215 TE
Tourism
Most visitors to Kayor will find themselves in the two major cities of Kayor, Denato and Osvenato. These are both major seaports on the Calinan Coast, and serve as large import and export hubs for the rest of the Avadian Colonies, often exporting local fruits, rum from local sugarcane, and manufactured goods from as far as Freemarket and the Tondra Plain, and importing materials, tools and luxury goods from across the Calinan. As a result, much tourism to Kayor consists of traders.
The area also attracts interest from natural philosophers and Druids of the Vessa, who often visit the region to study the weather patterns, plants and the ongoing effects of the Backlash.
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