Sthalafar

Capital: Lagramant’s Port

Ruler: Weel Toldo Lagramant XIV, Captain of the Land

Government: Hereditary Limited Monarchy

Primary Races: Halfling, Hill Dwarf

Primary Language: Imperial Common

Regional Bonus: Curiouser and Curiouser - The people of Sthalafar are the children of the last adventurers of Faengleis, the remnants of the dreams of discovery, and those memories of new horizons have turned inward to new vistas of study and academia, granting you a +2 to Concentration and Knowledge [Engineering].

Regional Feat:Intense Focus

Description

Sthalafar is a pastoral nation, with an agrarian economy that flourishes in the warm, mild weather and the fertile soil of its low hills and shallow valleys.  Though dominated by halflings who have for the most part given up their lives on the sea, it also has a large hill dwarf population, being one of the few places to find them outside the company of their mountain dwarf brethren as the loamy soil is poorly suited for the deep caverns they usually favor.

The countryside shows the history of its discovery by Weel Toldo Lagramant XIV, filled with such unimaginative landmarks as Long River, Twisty River, Short River, Deep Lake, Shallow Lake, Round Bay, Sortof Mountain, the Hill Lands, the Flat Plains, and innumerable other examples of a man whose knack for naming belied his love of travel.  That love attracted many like-minded explorers, but in the generations since its founding, the people of Sthalafar have stopped exploring the land and started exploring the world.  Their interest in the sciences have brought many interesting discoveries in recent decades, including the trebuchet siege engine, improvements to road construction, and a number of alchemical concoctions.

There is also a thriving merchant economy, with much demand for both the quinoa and corn that Sthalafari farmers produce in abundance as well as the innovations that come from their workshops.  Their fleet is small given the country's growing size, but it is operated with a remarkable combination of dwarven efficiency and halfling skill that even theMalakutesailors have taken note of.

History

Faengleis’s last and least-imaginative explorer, the original Weel Toldo Lagramant XIV led a halfling exploration that finally mapped the last uncharted shores of the High Wall in Tower Age 1078, before damage finally left their ship helpless in the currents.  They traveled for almost a month more, fearful of landing in the inhospitable Forests of the Folded Earth where the wild elves dwelt.  Finally, passing through the rarely-traveled southern waters, he promptly named them Lagramant’s Sea and directed his starving crew to land upon a great island connected to the High Wall that they had earlier charted in their explorations.

In time, more halflings came, as did dwarven settlers fearful of the threat posed by the illithid.  Inevitably came the gnomes as well, whose presence the two groups living in proximity always creates.  They have grown comfortable in their little, isolated nation, though there is a small but powerful caste of merchants who canvass the world for new products and ideas to bring back to their homeland.

Foreign Relations

Sthalafar is the only nation with any real trade presence for the clans in southernFyrall, which means they are a supplier of hardwoods rivaled only by theCircle States, who are also one of their primary competitors on the open seas.  The Malakute are also keeping an eye on the growing presence of Sthalafari ships on the open seas, though the two nations are on good terms diplomatically.