Abeir-Toril
Encyclopedia
Abeir-Toril is the name of the fiction
al planet
that makes up the Forgotten Realms
Dungeons & Dragons
campaign setting, as well as the Al-Qadim
and Maztica campaign settings and the 1st edition version of the Oriental Adventures
campaign setting.
The name is archaic, meaning "cradle of life." It consists of various continent
s and island
s, including Faerûn
, Kara-Tur
, Zakhara, Maztica, Osse, Anchorome and Katashaka, a sub-Saharan-like continent south of Maztica, where humanity appeared.
Toril was the name of Jeff Grubb
's campaign world, and it was adopted as the name of the planet with the continent Faerûn when he and Ed Greenwood
were designing the original Forgotten Realms Boxed Set
in 1987. Abeir- was added as a prefix so that the world's name was placed at the beginning of an alphabetical encyclopedia.
Forgotten Realms material for the fourth edition of Dungeons & Dragons "reveals" that the world was split into two in prehistory, divided between the primordials (Abeir) and the gods (Toril). Toril is the world that has been showcased so far. A cataclysm called the Spellplague has caused several parts of the two worlds to switch places, displacing portions of Faerûn and the entire continent of Maztica with regions of Abeir: Tymanther, Akanûl and Returned Abeir.
It is orbited by one moon
named Selûne
, and by a cluster of asteroids, known as the Tears of Selûne.
, and as such could be translated as real-world's Vinland
from the Vikings. It is almost unexplored and is at the North of Maztica. Its best-known inhabitants are the Azuposi (a Pueblo
-like people), as well as the defunct Esh Alakarans and the xenophobic Poscadar elves (Native American-style shamanic elves. They are so xenophobic they did not even speak with the ambassador from Evermeet
— this may have been inspired by the Skræling). There is also a sahuagin realm called Itzcali located in the sea nearby.
Long ago, Balduran, a sea captain who was the founder of Baldur's Gate
, sailed to Anchorome and returned with a great wealth that was used to build the wall around the fledgling Baldur's Gate. It was revealed in the Baldur's Gate: Tales of the Sword Coast
expansion that Balduran returned to Anchorome and retrieved a second hoard of treasure from the Native kingdoms. Unfortunately, when he attempted to take on a number of locals to replenish his crew he discovered they were infected with lycanthropy. The resulting battle shipwrecked Balduran on an island, which was later discovered by a Merchant Guild from Baldur's Gate and subsequently by the player who is sent to confirm the finding, where both the original crews' and the natives from Anchorome's descendants were locked in a bloody lycanthrope feud. The fate of Balduran himself was never clearly revealed.
After the discovery of Maztica by the mercenary captain Cordell, mercenaries from the Flaming Fist
were sent to Anchorome. They built a keep, Fort Flame, in the shores of Balduran's bay (which is actually far below Balduran's resting place) but other than this it had been a complete disaster.
It is speculated that it is the land where the Creator Races
known as the Aearee retreated a long time ago. It is rumored that several tribes of thri-kreen
make their home in Anchorome's western regions.
continents in the time of their discovery by Christopher Columbus
, more exactly Mesoamerica
, albeit confused with the whole “western lands” (like the Americas
). The Maztica Campaign books provide a mythical setting where players can imagine their characters traveling for adventure. They describe a mythical civilization similar to the Aztec, Incan, Toltec, or Mayan cultures.
West from Faerûn
, across the Sea of Swords, the Trackless Sea, and 'Tayola' the Eastern Ocean, Maztica is a land of jungle
s and (to the Faerûnians) mystery. Early in its history it was a land fought over by the gods Qotal the Plumed Serpent and his brother Zaltec. For a crime against his sister, Qotal retreated from Maztica for an age but returned in recent times.
It was 'discovered' by Amnian explorers led by one Captain-general Cordell and his Golden Legion in 1361 DR. Amn was quick to carve out its claim to the land for trade benefits, establishing the port city of Helmsport, and the church of Helm led the encroachment into the new land. The native peoples were devastated by foreign diseases and the ruthlessness of the invaders, and this, coupled with the difficulties encountered on Maztica backfiring against them, caused the church of Helm to come under heavy criticism. It has to be noted that Lantan also claimed some lands.
Maztica is divided into the nations of Nexal, Kultaka, Huacli, Kolan, Pezelac, and Payit. The region known as Far Payit neighbours Payit, both in the east around Helmsport. The native people of Maztica from Payit and Far Payit are known as Payits, whereas natives from the other nations are known as Mazticans. There are also the human races known as the Dog People and the Green Folk. Many monstrous races also live in Maztica, including wild halfling
s and Chacs—jaguar
spirits. In very old times, Couatl
came from Maztica to fight the Yuan-Ti of Chult.
Some scorpionfolk from Maztica found an Underdark passage to the Underdark
of Faerûn (http://enworld.cyberstreet.com/showthread.php?t=80656&page=2).
North of Maztica is the continent of Anchorome. South of it (and separated by a strait) lies an unknown continent very close to mythical sub-saharan Africa.
Maztica was detailed for 2nd Edition Dungeons & Dragons in the Maztica Campaign Set
by Douglas Niles
, and in the Forgotten Realms novels of the Maztica Trilogy—Ironhelm, Viperhand and Feathered Dragon—also by Douglas Niles.
Maztica was also the name of the elder goddess who embodied the land of Maztica. Killed by her own son Zaltec, she was the wife of dead Kukul, but unlike her husband, continues to live on in the continued existence of the continent.
In 4th edition, the Spellplague caused by Mystra
's death caused Abeir and Toril to briefly merge and then instantly rip apart again. As a result, Maztica is no longer a part of Toril, having been replaced with a continent called "Returned Abeir." Maztica likely continues to exist on Abeir without any interaction with Faerun or Toril.
campaign setting
for the Dungeons & Dragons
role-playing game
. Zakhara is a giant peninsula
of the same supercontinent
that hosts Faerûn
and Kara-Tur
on the planet Abeir-Toril. Zakhara is located east of Faerûn, and the closest Faerûnian lands to Zakhara are the Dambrath (by sea) and Var the Golden or arguably Konigheim (by land). Zakhara is mostly isolated from the rest of the world, as the peninsula is separated from the main mass by the World Pillar Mountains (also known as Wu Pi Te Shao in Kara-Tur
).
Waters around Zakhara are bountiful with pirates
and corsairs who charge traders tolls to cross "their" seas, such traders willingly pay these exorbitant fees as Zakhara's exotic trading goods tend to be well worth the price back in Faerûn. Occasionally the pirates decide to completely cut off Zakhara from Faerûn.
The land is full of secretive cities, unwelcoming to travellers, huge deserts, lush oases and powerful genies
who meddle in the affairs of humans frequently. The continent is ruled by a theocracy
headed by the Caliph
, and tales tell of demon-infested cities and godless sorcerers (like the genie-binding Sha'irs) wielding strange magic. Powerful magic and great warriors of every like are to be found in Zakhara.
Zakharites are firmly convinced they are more civilized than the rest of the world and treat "barbarians" accordingly.
The capital city of Zakhara is Huzuz, the "City of Delights".
.
, the “Roof of the World” is the largest mountain range in the fiction
al fantasy
world of Toril
and hence can be compared to real-world Himalaya. It is inhabited by evil Yak-men and separates Zakhara from the rest of the supercontinent
, much like Himalaya separated India
from the rest of Eurasia
on Earth.
The Yal-Tengri is free of ice for the six summer months of the year
The Endless Ice Sea is the name of the western Faerûn part of it. Somewhere there is Jhothûn, the long-forgotten capital of a mighty empire of Giants.
Fiction
Fiction is the form of any narrative or informative work that deals, in part or in whole, with information or events that are not factual, but rather, imaginary—that is, invented by the author. Although fiction describes a major branch of literary work, it may also refer to theatrical,...
al planet
Planet
A planet is a celestial body orbiting a star or stellar remnant that is massive enough to be rounded by its own gravity, is not massive enough to cause thermonuclear fusion, and has cleared its neighbouring region of planetesimals.The term planet is ancient, with ties to history, science,...
that makes up the Forgotten Realms
Forgotten Realms
The Forgotten Realms is a campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. Commonly referred to by players and game designers alike as "The Realms", it was created by game designer Ed Greenwood around 1967 as a setting for his childhood stories...
Dungeons & Dragons
Dungeons & Dragons
Dungeons & Dragons is a fantasy role-playing game originally designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson, and first published in 1974 by Tactical Studies Rules, Inc. . The game has been published by Wizards of the Coast since 1997...
campaign setting, as well as the Al-Qadim
Al-Qadim
Al-Qadim is an Arabian Nights-themed campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game. The setting was developed by Jeff Grubb for TSR, Inc., and was first released in 1992. Al-Qadim is set in the land of Zakhara, called the Land of Fate...
and Maztica campaign settings and the 1st edition version of the Oriental Adventures
Oriental Adventures
Oriental Adventures is the title shared by two hardback rulebooks published for different versions of the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy roleplaying game...
campaign setting.
The name is archaic, meaning "cradle of life." It consists of various continent
Continent
A continent is one of several very large landmasses on Earth. They are generally identified by convention rather than any strict criteria, with seven regions commonly regarded as continents—they are : Asia, Africa, North America, South America, Antarctica, Europe, and Australia.Plate tectonics is...
s and island
Island
An island or isle is any piece of sub-continental land that is surrounded by water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, cays or keys. An island in a river or lake may be called an eyot , or holm...
s, including Faerûn
Faerûn
Faerûn is a fictional subcontinent, the primary setting of the Dungeons & Dragons world of Forgotten Realms. It is described at a relatively high level in the Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting from Wizards of the Coast, and various locales and aspects are described in more detail by separate...
, Kara-Tur
Kara-Tur
Kara-Tur is a fantasy world created by David Cook in the Oriental Adventures rulebook for the First Edition Advanced Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game in 1986. Kara-Tur's cultures and peoples are fantasy analogues of medieval China, Korea, Japan, the Ryukyu Islands, Tibet, and other regions of...
, Zakhara, Maztica, Osse, Anchorome and Katashaka, a sub-Saharan-like continent south of Maztica, where humanity appeared.
Toril was the name of Jeff Grubb
Jeff Grubb
Jeff Grubb is an author and game designer. He has worked on a number of computer and role-playing games and has written a number of successful novels, short stories and comics...
's campaign world, and it was adopted as the name of the planet with the continent Faerûn when he and Ed Greenwood
Ed Greenwood
Ed Greenwood is a Canadian writer and editor who created the Forgotten Realms. He invented the Forgotten Realms as a child, as a fantasy world in which to set the stories he imagined, and later used this world as a campaign setting for his own personal Dungeons & Dragons playing group...
were designing the original Forgotten Realms Boxed Set
Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting
The Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting is a role-playing game sourcebook first published in 1987, detailing the Forgotten Realms setting, containing information on characters, locations, and history as well as setting-specific rules for use with the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game...
in 1987. Abeir- was added as a prefix so that the world's name was placed at the beginning of an alphabetical encyclopedia.
Forgotten Realms material for the fourth edition of Dungeons & Dragons "reveals" that the world was split into two in prehistory, divided between the primordials (Abeir) and the gods (Toril). Toril is the world that has been showcased so far. A cataclysm called the Spellplague has caused several parts of the two worlds to switch places, displacing portions of Faerûn and the entire continent of Maztica with regions of Abeir: Tymanther, Akanûl and Returned Abeir.
It is orbited by one moon
Moon
The Moon is Earth's only known natural satellite,There are a number of near-Earth asteroids including 3753 Cruithne that are co-orbital with Earth: their orbits bring them close to Earth for periods of time but then alter in the long term . These are quasi-satellites and not true moons. For more...
named Selûne
Sélune
The Sélune is a 91 km long river in the Manche department, Normandy, France, beginning near Saint-Cyr-du-Bailleul. It empties into the bay of Mont Saint-Michel near Avranches, close to the mouth of the Sée river. Other towns along the Sélune are Barenton, Saint-Hilaire-du-Harcouët and...
, and by a cluster of asteroids, known as the Tears of Selûne.
Anchorome
Anchorome is the equivalent of North AmericaNorth America
North America is a continent wholly within the Northern Hemisphere and almost wholly within the Western Hemisphere. It is also considered a northern subcontinent of the Americas...
, and as such could be translated as real-world's Vinland
Vinland
Vinland was the name given to an area of North America by the Norsemen, about the year 1000 CE.There is a consensus among scholars that the Vikings reached North America approximately five centuries prior to the voyages of Christopher Columbus...
from the Vikings. It is almost unexplored and is at the North of Maztica. Its best-known inhabitants are the Azuposi (a Pueblo
Pueblo
Pueblo is a term used to describe modern communities of Native Americans in the Southwestern United States of America. The first Spanish explorers of the Southwest used this term to describe the communities housed in apartment-like structures built of stone, adobe mud, and other local material...
-like people), as well as the defunct Esh Alakarans and the xenophobic Poscadar elves (Native American-style shamanic elves. They are so xenophobic they did not even speak with the ambassador from Evermeet
Evermeet
Evermeet is an island in the Forgotten Realms campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons game, located far west of the continent of Faerûn...
— this may have been inspired by the Skræling). There is also a sahuagin realm called Itzcali located in the sea nearby.
Long ago, Balduran, a sea captain who was the founder of Baldur's Gate
Baldur's Gate (city)
Baldur's Gate is a fictional city in the Forgotten Realms campaign setting of the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. It is a coastal city on the north bank of the river Chiontar, located in the Western Heartlands region of Faerûn...
, sailed to Anchorome and returned with a great wealth that was used to build the wall around the fledgling Baldur's Gate. It was revealed in the Baldur's Gate: Tales of the Sword Coast
Baldur's Gate: Tales of the Sword Coast
Baldur's Gate: Tales of the Sword Coast is a computer role-playing game in a high fantasy setting, developed by BioWare and published by Interplay in April 1999. Released as an expansion pack for Baldur's Gate from 1998, it adds about 20–30 hours of extra gameplay to the original game...
expansion that Balduran returned to Anchorome and retrieved a second hoard of treasure from the Native kingdoms. Unfortunately, when he attempted to take on a number of locals to replenish his crew he discovered they were infected with lycanthropy. The resulting battle shipwrecked Balduran on an island, which was later discovered by a Merchant Guild from Baldur's Gate and subsequently by the player who is sent to confirm the finding, where both the original crews' and the natives from Anchorome's descendants were locked in a bloody lycanthrope feud. The fate of Balduran himself was never clearly revealed.
After the discovery of Maztica by the mercenary captain Cordell, mercenaries from the Flaming Fist
Flaming Fist
The Flaming Fist is the largest and most powerful mercenary company of the fictional world known as the Forgotten Realms, in the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game.-Description:...
were sent to Anchorome. They built a keep, Fort Flame, in the shores of Balduran's bay (which is actually far below Balduran's resting place) but other than this it had been a complete disaster.
It is speculated that it is the land where the Creator Races
Creator Races
In the fictional Forgotten Realms setting, the intelligent species are classified into groups known as "races", which, in this context, generally refers to an intelligent species, such as humanity, elves or goblins...
known as the Aearee retreated a long time ago. It is rumored that several tribes of thri-kreen
Thri-kreen
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, the thri-kreen, or "mantis warriors", are an insect-like monstrous humanoid race. Thri-kreen are one of the primary player character races of the Dark Sun campaign setting, and have also appeared in the Spelljammer and Forgotten Realms campaign...
make their home in Anchorome's western regions.
Maztica
Maztica, called by its inhabitants The True World, is a fictional continent that parallels the AmericanAmericas
The Americas, or America , are lands in the Western hemisphere, also known as the New World. In English, the plural form the Americas is often used to refer to the landmasses of North America and South America with their associated islands and regions, while the singular form America is primarily...
continents in the time of their discovery by Christopher Columbus
Christopher Columbus
Christopher Columbus was an explorer, colonizer, and navigator, born in the Republic of Genoa, in northwestern Italy. Under the auspices of the Catholic Monarchs of Spain, he completed four voyages across the Atlantic Ocean that led to general European awareness of the American continents in the...
, more exactly Mesoamerica
Mesoamerica
Mesoamerica is a region and culture area in the Americas, extending approximately from central Mexico to Belize, Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Nicaragua, and Costa Rica, within which a number of pre-Columbian societies flourished before the Spanish colonization of the Americas in the 15th and...
, albeit confused with the whole “western lands” (like the Americas
Americas
The Americas, or America , are lands in the Western hemisphere, also known as the New World. In English, the plural form the Americas is often used to refer to the landmasses of North America and South America with their associated islands and regions, while the singular form America is primarily...
). The Maztica Campaign books provide a mythical setting where players can imagine their characters traveling for adventure. They describe a mythical civilization similar to the Aztec, Incan, Toltec, or Mayan cultures.
West from Faerûn
Faerûn
Faerûn is a fictional subcontinent, the primary setting of the Dungeons & Dragons world of Forgotten Realms. It is described at a relatively high level in the Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting from Wizards of the Coast, and various locales and aspects are described in more detail by separate...
, across the Sea of Swords, the Trackless Sea, and 'Tayola' the Eastern Ocean, Maztica is a land of jungle
Jungle
A Jungle is an area of land in the tropics overgrown with dense vegetation.The word jungle originates from the Sanskrit word jangala which referred to uncultivated land. Although the Sanskrit word refers to "dry land", it has been suggested that an Anglo-Indian interpretation led to its...
s and (to the Faerûnians) mystery. Early in its history it was a land fought over by the gods Qotal the Plumed Serpent and his brother Zaltec. For a crime against his sister, Qotal retreated from Maztica for an age but returned in recent times.
It was 'discovered' by Amnian explorers led by one Captain-general Cordell and his Golden Legion in 1361 DR. Amn was quick to carve out its claim to the land for trade benefits, establishing the port city of Helmsport, and the church of Helm led the encroachment into the new land. The native peoples were devastated by foreign diseases and the ruthlessness of the invaders, and this, coupled with the difficulties encountered on Maztica backfiring against them, caused the church of Helm to come under heavy criticism. It has to be noted that Lantan also claimed some lands.
Maztica is divided into the nations of Nexal, Kultaka, Huacli, Kolan, Pezelac, and Payit. The region known as Far Payit neighbours Payit, both in the east around Helmsport. The native people of Maztica from Payit and Far Payit are known as Payits, whereas natives from the other nations are known as Mazticans. There are also the human races known as the Dog People and the Green Folk. Many monstrous races also live in Maztica, including wild halfling
Halfling
Halfling is another name for J. R. R. Tolkien's Hobbit which can be a fictional race sometimes found in fantasy novels and games. In many settings, they are similar to humans except about half the size. Dungeons & Dragons began using the name halfling as an alternative to hobbit for legal reasons...
s and Chacs—jaguar
Jaguar
The jaguar is a big cat, a feline in the Panthera genus, and is the only Panthera species found in the Americas. The jaguar is the third-largest feline after the tiger and the lion, and the largest in the Western Hemisphere. The jaguar's present range extends from Southern United States and Mexico...
spirits. In very old times, Couatl
Couatl
In the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy roleplaying game, the couatl is a large serpentine creature, and in 3rd edition is considered a native outsider.-Publication history:...
came from Maztica to fight the Yuan-Ti of Chult.
Some scorpionfolk from Maztica found an Underdark passage to the Underdark
Underdark
The Underdark is a fictional setting which has appeared in Dungeons & Dragons role-playing campaigns and Dungeons & Dragons-based fiction books, including the Legend of Drizzt series by R. A. Salvatore...
of Faerûn (http://enworld.cyberstreet.com/showthread.php?t=80656&page=2).
North of Maztica is the continent of Anchorome. South of it (and separated by a strait) lies an unknown continent very close to mythical sub-saharan Africa.
Maztica was detailed for 2nd Edition Dungeons & Dragons in the Maztica Campaign Set
Maztica Campaign Set
Maztica Campaign Set is an accessory for the 2nd edition of the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game, published in 1991....
by Douglas Niles
Douglas Niles
Douglas Niles is a fantasy author and game designer. Niles was one of the creators of the Dragonlance world and the author of the first three Forgotten Realms novels, and the Top Secret S/I espionage role-playing game.-Early life:Niles was born in Brookfield, Wisconsin, a suburb of Milwaukee, and...
, and in the Forgotten Realms novels of the Maztica Trilogy—Ironhelm, Viperhand and Feathered Dragon—also by Douglas Niles.
Maztica was also the name of the elder goddess who embodied the land of Maztica. Killed by her own son Zaltec, she was the wife of dead Kukul, but unlike her husband, continues to live on in the continued existence of the continent.
In 4th edition, the Spellplague caused by Mystra
Mystra (goddess)
Mystra is a fictional goddess in the Forgotten Realms campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game.She is the Mistress of Magic and Mother of Mysteries who guides the Weave of magic that envelops the world. She tends to the weave constantly, making possible all the...
's death caused Abeir and Toril to briefly merge and then instantly rip apart again. As a result, Maztica is no longer a part of Toril, having been replaced with a continent called "Returned Abeir." Maztica likely continues to exist on Abeir without any interaction with Faerun or Toril.
Zakhara
Zakhara is a fictional realm styled after the themes and setting depicted in the Arabian Nights. The land is the setting of the Al-QadimAl-Qadim
Al-Qadim is an Arabian Nights-themed campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game. The setting was developed by Jeff Grubb for TSR, Inc., and was first released in 1992. Al-Qadim is set in the land of Zakhara, called the Land of Fate...
campaign setting
Campaign setting
A campaign setting is usually a fictional world which serves as a setting for a role-playing game or wargame campaign. A campaign is a series of individual adventures, and a campaign setting is the world in which such adventures and campaigns take place...
for the Dungeons & Dragons
Dungeons & Dragons
Dungeons & Dragons is a fantasy role-playing game originally designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson, and first published in 1974 by Tactical Studies Rules, Inc. . The game has been published by Wizards of the Coast since 1997...
role-playing game
Role-playing game
A role-playing game is a game in which players assume the roles of characters in a fictional setting. Players take responsibility for acting out these roles within a narrative, either through literal acting, or through a process of structured decision-making or character development...
. Zakhara is a giant peninsula
Peninsula
A peninsula is a piece of land that is bordered by water on three sides but connected to mainland. In many Germanic and Celtic languages and also in Baltic, Slavic and Hungarian, peninsulas are called "half-islands"....
of the same supercontinent
Supercontinent
In geology, a supercontinent is a landmass comprising more than one continental core, or craton. The assembly of cratons and accreted terranes that form Eurasia qualifies as a supercontinent today.-History:...
that hosts Faerûn
Faerûn
Faerûn is a fictional subcontinent, the primary setting of the Dungeons & Dragons world of Forgotten Realms. It is described at a relatively high level in the Forgotten Realms Campaign Setting from Wizards of the Coast, and various locales and aspects are described in more detail by separate...
and Kara-Tur
Kara-Tur
Kara-Tur is a fantasy world created by David Cook in the Oriental Adventures rulebook for the First Edition Advanced Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game in 1986. Kara-Tur's cultures and peoples are fantasy analogues of medieval China, Korea, Japan, the Ryukyu Islands, Tibet, and other regions of...
on the planet Abeir-Toril. Zakhara is located east of Faerûn, and the closest Faerûnian lands to Zakhara are the Dambrath (by sea) and Var the Golden or arguably Konigheim (by land). Zakhara is mostly isolated from the rest of the world, as the peninsula is separated from the main mass by the World Pillar Mountains (also known as Wu Pi Te Shao in Kara-Tur
Kara-Tur
Kara-Tur is a fantasy world created by David Cook in the Oriental Adventures rulebook for the First Edition Advanced Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game in 1986. Kara-Tur's cultures and peoples are fantasy analogues of medieval China, Korea, Japan, the Ryukyu Islands, Tibet, and other regions of...
).
Waters around Zakhara are bountiful with pirates
Piracy
Piracy is an act of robbery or criminal violence at sea. The term can include acts committed on land, in the air, or in other major bodies of water or on a shore. It does not normally include crimes committed against persons traveling on the same vessel as the perpetrator...
and corsairs who charge traders tolls to cross "their" seas, such traders willingly pay these exorbitant fees as Zakhara's exotic trading goods tend to be well worth the price back in Faerûn. Occasionally the pirates decide to completely cut off Zakhara from Faerûn.
The land is full of secretive cities, unwelcoming to travellers, huge deserts, lush oases and powerful genies
Genie (Dungeons & Dragons)
In the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game, genies are outsiders composed in part of the element of their native Elemental Planes.-Dungeons & Dragons :...
who meddle in the affairs of humans frequently. The continent is ruled by a theocracy
Theocracy
Theocracy is a form of organization in which the official policy is to be governed by immediate divine guidance or by officials who are regarded as divinely guided, or simply pursuant to the doctrine of a particular religious sect or religion....
headed by the Caliph
Caliph
The Caliph is the head of state in a Caliphate, and the title for the ruler of the Islamic Ummah, an Islamic community ruled by the Shari'ah. It is a transcribed version of the Arabic word which means "successor" or "representative"...
, and tales tell of demon-infested cities and godless sorcerers (like the genie-binding Sha'irs) wielding strange magic. Powerful magic and great warriors of every like are to be found in Zakhara.
Zakharites are firmly convinced they are more civilized than the rest of the world and treat "barbarians" accordingly.
The capital city of Zakhara is Huzuz, the "City of Delights".
Tears of Selûne
The Tears of Selûne are a pack of asteroids trailing Abeir-Toril's moon, SelûneSélune
The Sélune is a 91 km long river in the Manche department, Normandy, France, beginning near Saint-Cyr-du-Bailleul. It empties into the bay of Mont Saint-Michel near Avranches, close to the mouth of the Sée river. Other towns along the Sélune are Barenton, Saint-Hilaire-du-Harcouët and...
.
Wu Pi Te Shao
Known as the World Pillar Mountains in Faerûn or Wu Pi Te Shao in Kara-TurKara-Tur
Kara-Tur is a fantasy world created by David Cook in the Oriental Adventures rulebook for the First Edition Advanced Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game in 1986. Kara-Tur's cultures and peoples are fantasy analogues of medieval China, Korea, Japan, the Ryukyu Islands, Tibet, and other regions of...
, the “Roof of the World” is the largest mountain range in the fiction
Fiction
Fiction is the form of any narrative or informative work that deals, in part or in whole, with information or events that are not factual, but rather, imaginary—that is, invented by the author. Although fiction describes a major branch of literary work, it may also refer to theatrical,...
al fantasy
Fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common...
world of Toril
Toril
Toril, meaning bullpen in Spanish, can refer to:* Toril - a District in Metro Davao in The Philippines* Toril - a Barangay in Island Garden City of Samal, Metro Davao, The Philippines* Toril y Masegoso, a town in the province of Teruel, Aragón, Spain...
and hence can be compared to real-world Himalaya. It is inhabited by evil Yak-men and separates Zakhara from the rest of the supercontinent
Supercontinent
In geology, a supercontinent is a landmass comprising more than one continental core, or craton. The assembly of cratons and accreted terranes that form Eurasia qualifies as a supercontinent today.-History:...
, much like Himalaya separated India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
from the rest of Eurasia
Eurasia
Eurasia is a continent or supercontinent comprising the traditional continents of Europe and Asia ; covering about 52,990,000 km2 or about 10.6% of the Earth's surface located primarily in the eastern and northern hemispheres...
on Earth.
Yal-Tengri
Yal-Tengri (also known as The Great Ice Sea) is Toril's equivalent of the Arctic Ocean. It is barely known at all. In the ancient time, the major city on its shore was Winterkeep, it is now the trade city of Naupau, in Sossal. Far in the north of the sea is a small island dominated by a cathedral-like spire, inhabited by gnomes of Gond.The Yal-Tengri is free of ice for the six summer months of the year
The Endless Ice Sea is the name of the western Faerûn part of it. Somewhere there is Jhothûn, the long-forgotten capital of a mighty empire of Giants.
External links
Official material
- Frostburn
- Stormwrack
- Jhothûn
- The Horde (zip)