TANGOR (Empire of)
Location: Continent of Skothar, Swanamutu region, east of Akuba.
Area: Approx. 463,320 sq. mi. (1,200,000 sq. km.).
Population: 1,600,000 (90% Tangors, 9% Rathasians).
Languages: Tangor (Mawuru, Uberian, Tangor Men, and Zambulan dialects).
Coinage: Any coinage accepted, barter common outside the cities. Official coinage: tang (gp), zab (sp), ras (cp).
Taxes: Varies from province to province; generally around 5 to 15% of total income in money, services and food, depending also on family rank; taxes collected generally during local religious festivities. Part is used by the state for ceremonies, road maintenance, army budget and other state-controlled activities.
Government Type: Confederated empire.
Industries: Agriculture (bananas, coconuts, cacao, manioca, peanuts), crafts.
Important Figures: Kouffour III (King of Tangor, Emperor of the Tangors), Afef (Royal Princess), Oshadogan (General of the Tangor Army).
Climate and Terrain: Tangor's climate is sub-tropical. The region sits at the threshold from temperate forest to the first hints of jungle. Agriculture is not particularly popular among the population, and the productive activities concentrate on goat farming in stretches of land that have been deforested. Goat milk and goat meat is the most common food, supplemented by bananas and other tropical fruits that grow near the villages of the area. Winter is short (about a couple of months) and rather rainy, the temperature ranging from 10 to 15°C; autumn and spring are long, warm (20 to 30°C) and vary much from year to year. Summers are hot and generally are made up of a rainy month with a couple of dry months immediately before autumn. During the summer, temperatures may reach 35°C, and the humidity is incredible.
Flora and Fauna: The animals encountered here may be jaguars, baboons, apes, crocodiles and alligators, and many, many species of insects and snakes of different degrees of poison strength. Flora includes the typical jungle trees, but near the mountains and westward toward Tangor pine trees may be easily encountered.
Further Reading: The Southern Skothar Gazetteer by Giulio Caroletti.
Description by Erakliton.
The Tangor Empire is the most important kingdom of western Swanamutu. Not only is its population much larger than that of all surrounding nations, but its history has greatly influenced the past of the region, and the empire casts its shadow over all of western Swanamutu. The empire is a strong political entity; like any typical Tangor state, it is formed as a confederation of several provinces, each of them divided in clans, led by the elders, members of the aristocratic families. The provinces are each ruled by a governor appointed by the central emperor, who is also Governor of the Province of Tangor. Apart from the emperor, all other governors are supported by a Council of Elders, formed by one representative of each clan of Tangor.
The Tangors are a proud race of black-skinned men, with a civilised culture that may seem odd to foreigners. They are extremely good in craftsmanship of all sorts, are humorous and merry, but are also very superstitious ("pious," they say), afraid of taboos and worshiping a myriad of spirits present in Nature, in addition to several Immortals that form the Tangor Pantheon. Tangors set much prize in fighting: they practice several violent sports, and competitions are fierce between a city or village and its neighbours. They don't love city life, preferring to live in towns of medium size, and only the capitals of the provinces, where the bureaucratic, mercantile and political activities take place, have a population of more than 10,000. The Tangors are fond of strangers, but are very quick to take offence (especially regarding religious matters). Although they call other races "barbarians," they respect other cultures and are very interested in Minaeans, with whom they trade exotic fruits and other trading goods (both Minaeans and Tangors view each other's production as "exotic" and are willing to pay big sums for them, thus the trade is satisfactory to both). Tangors do not like travelling, and are completely helpless at sea. This is the main reason why there is so little information about them in Alphatia and Brun.
The current Tangor foreign policy is to avoid meddling with the affairs of other kingdoms, waiting for the right time to gain control of all western Swanamutu. They consider Durhan a nation of rebels, and Ekleke a taboo city, while they are indifferent to goblinoids in general, although the empire's borders often face troubles with the most obnoxious tribes.
The provinces of the Tangor Empire are:
Beòl
Population: 244,000 (99% Tangors).
The Province of Beòl is one of the most ancient. Beòl was once a small independent kingdom conquered by the rising Empire of Tangor around BC 167 by Queen Makala. Beòl is not a very important territory. It is not densely populated, nor has it any site of relevance, except for the capital city of Matobe, where the local university trains a small number of excellent magicians, skilled in the arts of animalism (a school of animal-friendly and jungle-dwelling mage-druids).
Kilijaro
Population: 220,000 (99% Tangors).
Kilijaro is the northern mountainous region of the empire, and hosts the fiercest humans (and the most skilled fighters) of the empire. The Kilijaros are goblin-hunters, and revere the Immortal Kala [maybe Halav? Ed.] the Goblinslayer. They have a paranoid fear of open water, and will never travel by sea.
Mawuru
Population: 273,000 (95% Tangors).
The first province that will be encountered when travelling from Minaea to the Empire of Tangor is Mawuru. The Mawurus are among the proudest Tangors of the empire. They believe in their importance as an outpost of the empire toward the barbarian lands of Minaea, and hate fiercely all the Tangors that live on the Tarystian Coast, most of all the city-state of Akuba. The capital of Mawuru is Tompso.
Rathasia
Population: 170,000 (90% Rathasians).
Rathasia was once an independent kingdom, but now it is but a province of the empire. The Rathasians are fervent supporters of the Tangors, and they are proud to belong to this powerful nation. They mostly believe in the right of the empire to reunite all the black-skinned humans and hopefully to clear the Swanamutu lands of the humanoid presence.
Tangor
Population: 351,000 (97% Tangors).
The Province of Tangor is located at the centre of the empire. The province starts north from the capital city of Tangor and goes south, forming the shape of a regular triangle. The province is ruled directly by the emperor. The region's agriculture is productive, although the climate is very wet due to the presence of the river N'goro. Another important settlement of the province is the city of Bawube, the most important port of the western Swanamutu area, where a consistent Minaean community is present.
Ubu
Population: 163,000 (90% Tangors).
Occupying the southeastern part of the empire, Ubu is a quiet land settled by Tangors. The people of Ubu are considered the most shy and most industrious of the empire. The few sailors found in the empire come from this province, especially from the city of Dzibouti, the second most important port of the empire. Dzibouti has a frontier city feel, because it is almost the only city in Tangor where both Minaeans and the eastern folk may be found. Travelling eastwards, the land gives way to the jungles of Lleweryn.
Zambul
Population: 179,000 (98% Tangors).
Zambul is an eastern province which
stretches all along the borders with Cymru and Durhan. Once, when Rathasia was an independent
kingdom, it held all the northern part of Zambul, but after the conquest of
Rathasia by the Tangors, this region was assigned to the Zambulans to avoid
contacts with the Duchy of Cymru (at the time settled by a population akin to
the Rathasians). The conquest of Cymru
by the hivebroods has resulted in the birth of a mercantile society known as
the Ant, which in the following centuries has risen to prominence in the
region.