The breadbasket of Tarkhon—a farming state that feeds the empire but sees little of the wealth. Bordered by the forbidden Stone Forest to the west and the Wurn Mountains to the north.
Position and Borders
Enymu occupies the northeastern portion of Tarkhon's core territory:
- West: Nektuna (and the Stone Forest on the border)
- North: The Wurn Mountains (home to the Stone Men)
- East: Frontier territories, eventually leading to Kerwin
- South: The Tarkhon Passage (Midton Island and Ekfusy fortress lie offshore)
The state is landlocked except for a small coastal stretch in the southeast, which provides limited access to the passage but no significant harbors.
Terrain and Climate
Temperate continental climate—warm summers, cold winters, and reliable rainfall that makes the land excellent for farming. The central lowlands are almost entirely cultivated, a patchwork of grain fields, vegetable plots, and pastures.
The terrain rises gradually toward the Wurn Mountains in the north, with rolling hills and sheep pastures in the foothills. The eastern reaches are more forested, providing timber for construction and fuel.
The Wurn Mountains
The northern border of Enymu is defined by the Wurn Mountains—a range of peaks inhabited by the Stone Men, a human subculture with gray, rock-hard skin from generations of elemental exposure.
The Stone Men are serious, blunt, and pragmatic. They keep to themselves in their high valleys, herding sheep and goats, trading occasionally with lowland Enymu. Relations are generally peaceful but not warm—the Stone Men find lowlanders soft, and lowlanders find Stone Men unsettling.
Occasionally, trouble comes down from the mountains: bandits using the peaks as refuge, monsters driven from their lairs, or raids by Stone Men bands who've decided the lowlands have something worth taking. Enymu's army handles these problems, but the northern frontier is never entirely quiet.
The Craven Communities
Enymu's substantial Craven minority lives throughout the state, but several towns have particularly large populations:
- Stoneheart Vale: Named for the noble family that rose from Craven commoners, this town in the eastern hills is majority Craven and proud of it.
- Borderwatch: A town near the Stone Forest staffed largely by Craven Stone Wardens.
Unlike in Nektuna, Craven here face no legal discrimination. They farm, trade, serve in the army, and even hold noble titles. Craven from Nektuna sometimes emigrate for better treatment.
Relationship with Nektuna
Enymu is loyal to Tarkhon—but that loyalty shouldn't be mistaken for enthusiasm.
The relationship is fundamentally exploitative. Enymu produces; Nektuna profits. Enymu's grain feeds Tarkhetan's population, but Nektuna's merchants set the prices. The wealth flows out, and the Enymese see little return.
This did not happen by drift. It was written down. Some five centuries ago, when Tarkhon was young and its new capital drew more mouths than the strait could feed, King Aldric I signed the Grain Compact, binding Enymu to supply Tarkhetan's bread at prices fixed in the Exchange at Aldrichold. No army enforced it; none had to. Enymu is landlocked but for a harborless coast, and every road to a paying market runs through ground the empire holds. The terms founded the Aldric line and chained it in the same breath. The Grain Compact has its own entry for how the bargain was struck.
King Aldric IV keeps the compact for reasons that do not flatter him. He believes King Selron II of Tarkhon is his friend. He inherited the terms from ancestors who accepted them, and he will not be the Aldric who repudiates his line's founding act. Defiance, in any case, looks worse to him than the slow bleed of a bad price.
His advisors are less naive. Lord Councillor Beren handles most negotiations with Tarkhetan precisely because he doesn't trust Nektuna's envoys. Marshal Kira Stoneheart maintains Enymu's military at respectable strength because she knows that respect requires capability.
For now, Enymu remains loyal. But younger Enymese are asking questions. And someday King Aldric IV will learn what Selron II really thinks of him.
Points of Interest
The Grain Exchange: A large warehouse complex in Aldrichold where Enymu's harvest is collected, graded, and sold to Nektuna's merchants. The prices set here determine whether Enymese farmers prosper or merely survive.
The Old Stones: A ring of standing stones in the northern hills, predating human settlement. The Stone Men consider it sacred. Local Enymese avoid it.
The Warden's Tower: High Warden Gellert's headquarters, overlooking the Stone Forest from a safe distance. Contains generations of records about the forest—and the one ancient text that explains why entry is forbidden.