Category | Valleys |
Continent | Brucrumus |
Region | Ice Cap, Cinazan |
Map | Eylami Valley |
Eylami is a long forested and hilly valley that begins at the slopes of Fjorvir's central glacial expanse. Going south, it cuts into the central reaches of Melvad where it ends near Izagûnê. The valley has towering evergreens with the most dominant timber being Faryon.
... with bases of twenty to thirty feet in diameter and branches strong enough to support the weight of a large earth giant, making them a noble and mighty gift from Silvanus to us mere mortals. The giants of Eylami build their stockades out of mature faryon trees, with the ancient ones either to hard to cut with local tools or reserved for use in a chieftain's hall. This timber makes these bastions as formidable as that of most stone fortresses. You would think that such a place would be wrecked with fire, but it takes decades for Faryon to dry out, so it is no good for burning, yet quite resistant to flaming oil or a wall of fire.
- Ararthand, the Nature Protectorate of Cinazan, excerpt from his book - "Forests of Cinazan"
Among Eylami's tall hills, deep ravines, and towering faryon canopies are earth giant camps, stockades, and fortresses. These giants, descendants of those that settled in Izen'nâth in the Dawn Era, have lived in this area for thousands of years. During the reign of Aslauthroa, their large population had to be controlled by military governors and their ruts had to be limited to keep the population in check. After this empire broke apart, the earth giant population went through cycles of famine. This was caused by their unchecked population growth and over-hunting. For several centuries, these periods of starvation occurred one or two times every decade. During these periods of famine, wars over hunting grounds was common. This also led to them raiding adjacent territories for food. One of their favored areas to hunt outside of Eylami became the plains of Âruk. As a result of the plentiful game of this plain, the Hakkhild and other tribes, decided to move to the other side of the Dargirth and took to living in the northern reaches of Ânul.
When the Khazarkar Empire pushed west across Cinazan and built up their great cities along Sahânzar, they took it upon themselves to keep the troublesome earth giant population in-check. The giants and the Khazarkars have only allied once. In the Cinazan Front, a number of giant tribes and hundreds of mercenary giants fought alongside the Khazarkar Empire. Their reasoning for joining what is traditionally their foes varied, but largely fell into one of three things - shaman influence on the urgings of their god Geb, lure of gold from recruiters offering twice the normal pay, or allying to fight a greater threat.
One of the most desired things that comes out of Eylami is a very durable type of cotton called Svatir. Cloaks, robes and other clothing made with it can last for decades longer than regular cotton.