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6 years ago ::
Jun 15, 2007 - 3:26PM
#1
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Date Joined:
Dec 11, 2006
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I have changed the intent of this thread, and it is now intended for folks wanting to run a campaign in this region.This is the second edition of my Utter east Map - I'm currently working on a newer one based on lore provided by BadCatMan. Anyhow, this second one is much closer to the canon map, and also includes several locales I found on an old edition of the Faerûn map. Some of the stuff you see to the east is from the various Kara-Tur maps (all canon), and Utaqa is from the Zakhara map. Utter EastTake your pick, but the second one is more detailed and closer to canon. It also has the names of most of the Yehimal ranges on it, and leaves room for the mysterious Fifth 'Mystical Kingdom' either to the south of Konigheim or in the mountains somewhere. Whichever one people prefer, I will add the Map Key and compass rose and use that one for hosting at CK (which is where I host all of my completed maps, not the works-in-progress).
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6 years ago ::
Jun 16, 2007 - 12:09PM
#2
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Date Joined:
Jul 27, 2005
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Very beautiful nice job  Do you plan to create a VERY hi-res version of them ? They could benefit from it, especially the Hordelands map
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6 years ago ::
Jun 16, 2007 - 12:18PM
#3
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Date Joined:
Jul 15, 2005
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Nice work, bud.
You continue to prove you can put down quite some drawing stuff, like the ones for the wailing Dwarf, remember?
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6 years ago ::
Jun 16, 2007 - 2:01PM
#4
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Date Joined:
Dec 11, 2006
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Thank You, Francius.
@Lavekkia - Lol, that is the High-Res version!
You should have seen my original. At the time I thought it was great, but it looks like utter cr@p compared to my newer ones. A lot of the Hordelands map was done on my original low-res, and I tried to re-do everything latter by going over it. However, some areas, like the mountains to the east of Semphar, are still mostly low-Res.
I just wanted to get a workable copy out there for now so folks will stay interested in these regions. I do plan on revisting all of the Mountain Ranges sometime down the road and dressing them up.
I found out the hard way that switching between image types in Photoshop dropped a lot of resolution, so they kept degrading until I relized what was happening. By the time I get the rest of Kara-Tur complete, the Hordelands Map will be redone as well. In the Utter east map, the only section I thought needed help was the water, which is still low-Res (sorry).
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6 years ago ::
Jun 28, 2007 - 10:15AM
#5
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Date Joined:
Dec 11, 2006
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I have a question about this region for the few folks who seem to know about.
Is there any date, or even an approximation, of WHEN the Ffolk and Northmen landed in the Utter East? Its kind of crucial to something I'm doing.
---- Thanks
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6 years ago ::
Jun 28, 2007 - 1:22PM
#6
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Date Joined:
Jul 23, 2003
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I don't have my books handy, but check the Mar entry in the other human ethnic group section of Races of Faerun. If it's not there, it's probably only in a line somewhere in the Double Diamond books or Faces of Deception, as I doubt it's in the old Dragon article with the 2E stats for the Faces of the Deception characters.
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6 years ago ::
Jul 03, 2007 - 7:35PM
#7
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Date Joined:
Mar 10, 2005
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There's nothing about them or the area in Races Of Faerun.  I've been playing the old Blood & Magic game, to discover more about the Utter East. Sad, I know, but the game has a quaint charm. And there aren't any insta-win cheats. I've been recording the story details and lore, and I'll post these when I'm done. Hopefully there'll be pictures if I can work out how to PrintScreen the old DOS game. Anyway, it's given me some ideas on that question of when they arrived. Some dates: Ancient times - Ulgarth settled by Imaskari, falls into barbarism when the empire fell. ( Shining South 2e) 83 DR - Barbarians from Ulgarth begin raiding Durpar, and keep at it until 1002 DR. ( Shining South 3e) 202 DR - Ulgarth barbarians nearly wiped out by Mulhorand. ( Shining South 2e) 348 DR - Ulgarth settled by Mulhorandi outlaws. ( Shining South 2e) 1002 DR - Peace between Ulgarth and Durpar. ( Shining South 3e) Okay, so these barbarians were wiped out, yet kept raiding for another 800 years until civilised Ulgarth took control or blocked their access to Durpar. Of course, they could have just recovered, but it makes me think something else was going on. Could they be new set of barbarians? 648 DR to 657 DR - The Bloodforge Wars of the Utter East ( Grand History thanks to Blessed Brian James :D ) The first campaign of the game starts with the barbarians of the "north lands" invading Doegan. These are very Germanic barbarians, with names like Rathgar - clearly the Illuskan Northmen from the Moonshaes. They wear lots of armour and big beards, odd for a hot equatorial climate (the game supports this in Doegan with rocky deserts and swamps). I'm not sure which north lands are referred to though. Perhaps it refers to Faerun's north, in which case this could be when the Northmen arrived. But most likely it refers to the barbarian lands directly north of Doegan, as most of the other Moonshae-an peoples are well entrenched into area. And the game generally seems to have so little to do with the rest of the Realms. These barbarian lands are geographically the same as those that plague Ulgarth. But prior to 202 DR the people there should be Imaskari-descended. During the Bloodforge Wars they are clearly Northmen. Art in the 2e Shining South shows half-naked desert-adapted barbarians, but with classic cone-helms and beards of the Viking image. They must be the same Northmen, now adapted to the hot environment. So by my theory, somewhere between 202 DR and 648 DR, the Northmen arrived, and some took to living in the now-mostly-uninhabited desert lands between Ulgarth and Doegan. They still maintain standard dress by the mid-600s. How long until they stopped being stubborn about heavy armour and adapt? My guess is the Northmen arrived in the desert around 1 to 3 generations before, but it's tricky to say with magic being a factor. This could change if I discover more in the game. It might be more efficient to scour Moonshaes lore and see if any large numbers of people ever went missing some time. EDIT: On the other hand, these Northmen barbarians could have simply relocated there after 202 from somewhere else in the Utter East with cooler weather.
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6 years ago ::
Jul 03, 2007 - 9:24PM
#8
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Date Joined:
Mar 15, 2001
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Excellent research BadCatMan. I have Blood & Magic on my PC but never made it far into the game.
Brian R. James
Freelance Game Designer
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6 years ago ::
Jul 04, 2007 - 1:26AM
#9
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Date Joined:
Dec 11, 2006
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It doesn't seem like you've gleened much info from the game itself - all of that information came from source materials. The Ulgarth barbarians are not neccessarily the same as the barbarians IN Ulgarth. I get the idea that there was always some 'less civilized' groups in this area, who continued to raid even after the Imaskari took control. I think of it as Rome vs Scottland - Rome claimed all of Briton, but couldn't keep the Highlanders from raiding towns in the lowlands. This region is perfect for that scenario. Mulhorand might have thought it wiped them out, but they probably just retreated back into the mountains, licking their wounds. Like Orcs, a few generations later and they're ready to raid again. The fact that the Mar people seem to have been easily supressed by the Ffolk/Norhtmen indicates that people of the Five Kingdoms were not of the same racial stock as the early Ulgarth, who were VERY warlike and would have given the Northmen a hard time. In fact, I think the Muhjein Culture of the Shining South was originally the same as the Mar, but raiders from the south (Zakharan nomads) continually mixed with these peoples and formed a new ethnic group, the Durpari. The Mujein were the original 'tribute states' and possibly slaves of the Imaskari. The Mulan were the slaves that came later, who mixed with the Imaskari. Interesting linguistic parralels there, and throw in the language of Al-Qadim is Midani, and a nearby race of Half-Elves called the Maviddi, and you can come up with all sorts of possibilities. Lots of 'M's going around. And lets not forget the flying ship, Blue Diamond, that came from the Utter East in Uktar of 1357.  Isn't it funny how there is nothing in the Moonshaes material about a sizeable group departing, especially one composed of Ffolk and Northmen working together... until recently they have been enemies for centuries. 
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6 years ago ::
Jul 04, 2007 - 3:00AM
#10
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Date Joined:
Mar 10, 2005
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Well, I'm only halfway through the first campaign. It's only been three levels, so far. It has been useful, not directly and explicitly, but by examining artwork and the contexts of the tales, I believe I can extract a lot of interesting info about the Utter East. It's told me where the invaders of Doegan came from and what they looked like and a name, all clearly indicating their origins and scale of their history. Give it time. For example, the old kings of Doegan appear to have been non-evil necromancers: the sign on the king's throne is an ankh, which I've always understood to be a symbol of life. This probably filtered down from the Mulhorandi. I'm envisioning a society that uses necromancy to extend life and honours death, or something like that. Here's some stuff from the cutscenes so far (yeah, it's in erratic bad poetry): Howl Of Vengeance:“In the realm of Doegan, a terrible siege shook the throne. An invader seized the land for his own. As the king of Doegan slipped into death’s fold, he faced the man who would take his crown – Rathgar the Raider, scourge of north lands. He stripped the bounty of Doegan to appease his suffering clans. But the king was no willing victim. With his final breath, he uttered this vengeful curse: “For so long as you rule, a curse upon you. The dead will arise, to ensure your demise.” ” Rathgar The Raider: “This stalwart leader braves any danger to serve his people.” “For months, Rathgar ignored the king’s curse, until a criminal’s words unsettled his court. Grudkern the grave robber was the source of this trouble. His tales infected his castle with dread. Tales of the marching dead. A howling army that gathered to wreak vengeance upon the invaders. Rathgar vowed to investigate these matters. If they were lies, then Grudkern would die. But if they were truth…” “The evil host was driven from the capital. The crypts were put to the torch. Rathgar pardoned the grave robber, and in gratitude, Grudkern named the leader of the foul enemy – Aelric the Avenger. His army rallied in the Serpent Valley, where only heroes dared to tread.” “Aelric retreated to an ancient keep. Rathgar and his men followed. The grim leaders prepared for their final conquest. One to fulfil a curse, the other to put it to rest.” “Rathgar The Raider returned in victory to administer the throne of Doegan. His kin settled and prospered in this new land, with no further threat from vengeful hands.” Aelric The Avenger: "This vengeful mage vows to fulfil the curse and to reclaim his land from the invaders." “The princess of Doegan escaped the invaders and sought a way to fulfil the king’s curse. Her quest led to an ancient keep within a forgotten city. There, she met Aelric, heir to a legacy of great mages. He would not serve for glory or wages. Yet Aelric vowed to protect the princess and wreak vengeance upon her pursuers.” Of course, it's not said that Aelric was killed or anything in the Rathgar campaign, so it should still possible to stitch the two histories together to make a consistent account when I'm done. I didn't put a lot of stock into the Blue Diamond reference - it's clearly a Halruuan skyship, and lots of distant locales changed after the 1e CS. FR Adventures even refers to Kara-Tur as the Utter East. They don't necessarily have to have been working together. There's very little to know about Utter East history. I think the Bloodforge Wars themselves stand as evidence that it wasn't peaceful coexistence.
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