Gilded Plain

The Gilded Plain is a broad corridor of prairie and savannah lying to the south of the Great Hazari Desert in Idiri. Spanning the central portion of Idiri, the plain supports a mix of farming and grazing and serves as a corridor for land-based trade routes between the northern and southern halves of the continent. Chief among these routes is the Gilded Road, which at its greatest extent connects the coastal cities of Niyone and Ulamba with Koumbasat.

Geography

The Gilded Plain is most dramatically bordered to its north by the Hazari Desert, and to its east by the forested mountain plateau of the Izendi Highlands. Its western margin is composed of grassy hills that rise gradually to create the rim around the slightly elevated bowl of the Cloud Kingdoms, and due south the Chaos Crag guards against the edge of the Desert of Fallen Stars. The plain extends southeast into the lands of the Niyone Confederation, channeling trade and traffic through this dry but still hospitable zone. The northern reaches of the plain contain fertile soils suitable to dryland agriculture, while to the south shallow and stonier soils limit farming but create good pasturage for livestock and wild game. No navigable waterways cross the plain, but a handful of streams furnish water on a largely seasonal basis. Both spring- and rain-fed ponds and lakes dot the grassland, providing watering holes for domestic stock and wildlife alike, as well as for the people that inhabit the region.

People

While not densely populated, the Gilded Plain supports a number of towns and villages that lie scattered across the open land. Most are simple tribal communities of farmers or pastoralists, but the largest towns are situated along the Gilded Road and play a vital role as waystations for travelers and merchant caravans. The only true city of the plains is Noura in the far north, through which the largest quantity of trade is funneled from all directions.

The local people of the Gilded Plain are chiefly of Xhalantu heritage in the south with a mix of Tessouare and Bissenke in the north. But being the primary corridor linking north and south Idiri, all the peoples of the continent find some representation among the region's scattered populace.