Beyonfar

Area

The Beyonfar region of Alven mainly comprises the high mountains and valleys of The Great Towers Range range. This article will mainly focus on the clanlands and human settlements in the region.

Although the northern foothills of the Great Towers belong to Lowside clans, the rest of the mountains and southern ridges of the range are firmly Beyonfar territory. The mountain clans have always been the first line of defense against the enemies of the Thane and Alven. Their way of life is more traditional than in the rest of the country. Many clansmen and clanswomen will not have travelled away from the town where they were born during their lifetime.
The Beyonfar clans are feared for their pure hearts and martial prowess, but the clan chieftains tend to not meddle in the political affairs of the clans.

On the southern shores of the Lake of Inner Voices is maybe the most powerful of the Beyonfar clans: Clan Crowdlaw - Crowelm - Great Towers.

The Crows' Keep, Crowelm, is situated at the head of Loch Nestie at the foot of one of the highest mountains of the Towers: Ben Croh.

The clanlands extend southwards up to the border with the Southern Territories. You can cross into Sutherlands at the head of the Lake through The Wooden Bridge of Yarma: an ancient, indestructible carved bridge of great beauty.

The huge inner sea of Midlake makes a natural border between Alven and the Southern Kingdoms and marks the end of the Crowdlaw clanlands in the south.

Next to the Crowdlaw clanlands are Hakhend's. Clan Hawkend - Righolm - Great Towers's lands are maybe the least accessible territories in the whole of Alven. The human communities there are of the hardy type. They live mostly secluded from the rest of the country. The clankeep, Righolm, is set on the shore of Midlake. A forbidding fortress that has control of many Towers dotted along the seashore. Its clansmen are dedicated from birth to the defense of the realm and take their job very seriously.

The third and last clan is Clan Gusson - Gusselm - Great Towers. The clanlands are made of the Towers foothills towards the west of Alven, called the Staney Braes. The region is made up of green valleys that slowly give rise to chalky conical dry plateaux and arid plains. The clan keep, Gusselm, is placed strategically at the end of the fertile Glen Gussie valley, and overlooks a big chunk of the southern plateaux. Despite the difficult terrain, Clan Gusson is very well placed to trade with the Southern Kingdoms. Caravans of goods have traditionally been going up and down Glen Gussie for centuries and brought great wealth to the clan in the form of taxes. Gussons are also the masters of the glen and have been able to defend it from outsiders for generations.

Habitat and Natural Resources

The High Valleys of the Great Towers Range

Not many human settlements exist in the frozen snow and ice of the Towers. The Great Caves of the Towers are home to a non-human species called the Staynes or the Curts.

The Staynes have inhabited Alven and the Towers from before men arrived on the continent. There is not much interaction between Staynes and humans.
The Staynes do not trust the fast reproducing and forever expanding humans, and try to have little to do with them if possible. The Staynes have a representative stationed in the human capital, Highfort in order to ease the relations between the Thanes and themselves. As to humans, they are fearful and envious of the Staynes' magical abilities.

The open caves the Staynes dwell in are a wonder of the world - they are so big that they can contain whole cities. They also offer protection against the elements and are an essential part of the Staynes' survival and way of living.

Many species of plants and animals have adapted to live in the caves. Others are well known to humans and live in the open in the high valleys and lower dales of the mountains: eagles, white winter wolves, black bears, etc. The Winter Wolf is hunted during the winter as bands of wolves come down the mountains to find more lenient weather in the lower valleys. Their pelt of pure white is only to be worn by women, chieftains, and thanes.

One of the most recognizable species of the valley has been domesticated by the Staynes millennia ago: The White Mountain Goats. Humans have followed suit and goat herding is big business in the communities of Beyonfar.

The highest human settlement in the Towers is Highcawr a mining town in the clanlands of Clan Crowdlaw.

- The Nestdowns

The Nestdowns are uplands tapering off at the edge of the Lake of Inner voices and situated in the west of Beyonfar.
The land belongs to Clan Crowdlaw and is well known for the beauty of its landscape.

The uplands benefit from a milder climate than the rest of Alven. Vineyards stretch on the flank of the hills and are a most valued resource for the clan.
The wines from the Nestdowns are prized beyond Alven, and the best ones grace the tables of the aristocracy everywhere on the continent.

Orchards are also a going concern and there is a big artisan industry of glace fruits, jam, etc.
The lakeshore is a very busy place: harbors such as Portisco and Crawsythe dock many ships that ply the length of the lake with the produce of the region.
Other towns such as Cawshand have become fashionable places to be in the winter months. The relatively mild climate of the lakeshore has made it a place where the influential rich and their family spend the worst of the wintertime.

Sanatoriums have also sprouted further north to take advantage of the 'good air' of the Nestdowns: Crowsyke is a very well known spa town throughout Alven.

- The Lakedales

Between the Great Towers high valleys and the inner sea of Midlake, lies a vast region of lakes and vales that are known collectively as The Lakedales.
Most of these valleys, although very beautiful, are difficult to access and can be very isolated throughout the year.
In winter, it is especially difficult to travel in the region.

The Lakedales region was given its name because of the hundreds of lochs or lakes dotting the valleys and high plateaux of the region.
Eight of them are very big and are well known to contain a freshwater shell known as The Lop which contains a pink pearl, called a Pinkle. The Pinkle is used in jewelry and other artifacts in the region and has legends of its own.

The diving and fishing communities along the loch shores are organized in guilds and will protect their knowledge of the pearls jealously.

Away from the lochs, life is very peaceful in the vales since the instauration of the peace with the Southern Kingdoms three centuries ago.
However, many young men and women are still drafted in The Clan Militia to help guard the borders of Alven. As per the ancient customs, the Thane helps the Beyonfar clans in sustaining the 'war' effort and pay for the Militia's upkeep.

The Dales are peppered with old abandoned towers from the past. The only manned towers are now mainly in the south on the desolate shores of Midlake.

A traditional mountain industry sustains the clansmen's livelihood. If you are not drawn to the army life of the Militia, then, as a young Alvenite, you would be following in the footsteps of your parents or family and tend to your farm: sheep and goat herding being the prime industry in the valleys as well as cheese making.

Some vegetables will grow for a short season in the quick, hot summers of the Lakedales - clan people are very good at preserving their summer produce.
In the autumn, the mealy fruit of The Auburn (a type of chestnut tree), The Burnie, is collected and will keep throughout the worst of the winter until the mountain salads grow again once the ice and snow have melted.

The bright and cheery flowers of The Pistal is always a relief for the farmers and villagers as it signifies food can be foraged or grown once more and the time of the light months has arrived at last.

Based on the wool industry and mining, some market towns have flourished in this harsh climate. On the Hawkend lands, the towns of Rigga, Fellrig and Nethertoare examples of thriving communities where guilds of artisans have become powerful in running the social and to some extent the political life of the area. Silver and goldsmiths as well as wool merchants are usually the richest and most influential people and can rival the Militia for power and influence over the local population.

- The Shores of Midlake

In contrast to the green vales of Beyonfar, the shores of Midlake are a barren desolation.
Stretching for a few miles inland, the shrubby pebbled landscape is home to some of the strangest ancient sea creatures. It is not a safe environment, and only the Towers and a few fishing settlements have been built on the shores.

The only other significant settlement along the Midlake coast is the keep of Clan Hawkend towering on a green plateau above the seashore.

- Glen Gussie and the Staney Braes

As opposed to the fertile wide valley of the Gussie, the Staney Braes are more arid and difficult to till.
Staney is an old Alven word for stone, and it describes well the kind of earth a farmer has to deal with in the region.

The Braes'wealth lies with its iron and coal deposits. These are to be found in abundance throughout the braes: mining towns like Dalegus and Corgussie are the 'industrial' powerhouse of Alven.

The mines produce much of the ore needed to equip the Archive and other Clan Militia throughout Alven. The swordsmiths of the Braes are well known for their solid, and often exceptional craftsmanship.

Lately, gold veins have been found in some areas of the Braes - a gold rush (very similar to the one in the Eastern Isles) has taken hold of the Alvenites.

'Going West' usually means one is going to seek their fortune in the hills of the Braes or the mountains of the Isles.
Goldrush towns have sprouted out of nowhere in this harsh and remote environment: Knuss is one such settlement.

From a quiet village of crofters, it has increased its population tenfold. The Clan Militia had to be drafted in to take care of some of the lawlessness the rapid population increase and the power vacuum had caused.

- The Louves Tribes and the Western Peaks

For above the Lakedales, in the frozen valleys of The Western Peaks, live three tribes of humans who are not affiliated to the Thane. These humans have a different morphology from the Alvenites.

Over millennia, they have become very tall and broad-shouldered, and their skin is very pale. Their hair color can be any, but it is traditionally dyed red or black.

The Louves have settled in Alven five hundred years ago and are a relatively recent arrival in the country.
Originally the Louves were refugees from the Southern Kingdoms. At the start, one tribe, chased from its lands in the south by a common enemy of the Alvenites sought refuge in Alven.

In exchange for their help in defeating Alven's southern enemies, the Louves were granted some lands in the region of Beyonfar.
Of course, the tribe could not be picky about the lands they were given, and the People (as they call themselves) had to settle north in the high valleys of the Western Peaks where no clan had any claim on the land.

However the Louves thrived in this harsh environment. Like the Staynes, they found refuge in the huge open caves and tunnels of the range.

In the tunnels, they found rich veins of different minerals, and with the skills they had brought with them have been able to forge their own tools and weapons.

They rear goats and other cave based resources throughout the year. The Louves have now divided themselves into three different tribes- at times the tribes have fought among themselves but not for long.

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Region