Nok

The land of Nok lies in the northern foothills of the Izendi Highlands in Idiri, a plateau sandwiched between jungle-clad mountain country and the vast wastes of the Great Hazari Desert. Its position places it squarely between major regions of trade yet virtually guarantees its own isolation from major events and economies. Representatives of its peoples come together every three years to elect a putative chief for the territory, the Ka-Nok, but despite this there is no real centralized government in Nok, nor any major cities or towns. Society in the region is organized according to tribe and other kin-based units, which sometimes form small-scale alliances of marriage or defense but otherwise operate with great independence and self-reliance -- which is how its people like it.

Geography

Nok is a relatively temperate land of grassy plains and stony but not barren hills, prime country for both wild game and cattle. Forests drape the southern mountains of the region where the terrain rises steeply in the Highlands, but savannah, open plains, and scrubby wood- and shrubland dominate most of Nok. The heart of the plateau is flat or gently rolling and easy to traverse -- so long as one knows the land well enough not to become lost in the vast waving grasslands. The Little Thirsty Mountains that drop down towards the desert are far more challenging terrain, but picturesque with rocky knolls and vegetation-tangled ravines and springs. Like the Gilded Plain to the west, no major water sources or waterways exist in Nok, but small springs and seasonal watering holes provide sufficiently well for antelope and domesticated stock, as well as for the well-dispersed human population.

People

Collectively known as Anok, the inhabitants of Nok consist chiefly of people of Milombo heritage, along with a scattering of Tessouare residing in the arid mountains that form the plateau's northern edge. Most of the Anok, regardless of heritage, are a mix of hunters and pastoralists dwelling in small villages that may be either permanent or seasonal. Most Milombo keep cattle, which are central to their society and often to the spirituality as well. The Tessouare of the dry hills mostly raise goats and also tend groves of olive and niknok trees, selling the spicy and oddly shaped niknok nuts at markets in the desert below.

In the higher mountains in the south of Nok, populations of the simian Hanjama people are found, living in aerial villages built around the trunks and up in the canopies of the great forests spilling down from the highlands. The Anok Milombo hold their Hanjama neighbors in great affection and respect, honoring them for their wisdom and sometimes journeying to their villages for the sole purpose of consulting with one of their elders on affairs of particular gravity.