Thesk The nation of Thesk was an oligarchy of around 850 , 000 people , inhabited by human s , gnome s , and orc s . The majority of its inhabitants were either merchants or farmers . The Golden Way , the main trade route to Kara - Tur , ran through Thesk , exposing it to a wide variety of cultures and making its people more tolerant than most Faerûnians . History . In eons past , the lands of Thesk were once part of the empire of Narfell , but little survived the Great Conflagration that destroyed that empire in - 150 DR . Thesk remained largely empty until Windyn Balindre pioneered the Golden Way trade route to Kara - Tur in 970 DR and immigrants from Impiltur began to settle the land . Balindre and these settlers founded the city of Telflamm in 926 DR . In 1177 DR Princess Delile Balindre declared Telflamm ( and thus all of Thesk ) independent from Impiltur . In 1086 DR , Thay invaded and captured the two southernmost cities of Thesk , Nethjet and Nethentir . Twenty - five years later , in 1110 DR , Thay again invaded , marching on the city of Phent , but this time the combined forces of Impiltur and Thesk defeat the Red Wizards of Thay . Relations between the two nations eventually cooled , and in 1351 DR , one of the first Thayan Enclaves was established in Telflamm . In 1360 DR , the Tuigan Horde , led by Horselord Yamun Khahan invaded Faerûn from the Hordelands in the east . To meet the threat , the people of the western heartlands , lead by King Azoun IV of Cormyr raised a great alliance made of troops from Cormyr , the Dalelands , Hillsfar , Raven ' s Bluff , Dwarves from the Earthfast Mountains , and others . Sembia provided funds to hire mercenaries , and Zhentil Keep contributed 1000 Orcs . The armies of the west totaled 28 , 000 against 100 , 000 Tuigan s . Despite the odds , the alliance defeated the invading horde on the Golden Way near Phsant . The eastern half of Thesk was in ruins , but with the Tuigan threat neutralized , trade with Kara - Tur could resume , and with it , the flow of money into the land . The Orcs decided to settle in the country , becoming " civilized " , and the people of Thesk grew to accept them . Seeing opportunity in a weakened Thesk , the Sharkjaw pirates descend on Telflamm in 1364 DR and make it their home port until the Shadowmasters managed to drive them out , leaving them unchallenged to expand their influence in the still recovering city . In the early fifteenth century , Tai Shing , a Shou hero , successfully drove the criminal gangs out of Phsant to became the First Council Lord of Phsant and then to be elected the first of Thesk . His death in 1453 DR has left Thesk a patchwork of nobles , merchants , and gangs . Navy and seafaring . Theskian vessels were after the goods they carry like " Spicesail " or " Timberhold " . Politics . Thesk was very wealthy and the wealthiest inhabitant of each settlement became the mayor . A council of mayors existed to govern the nation . Most outsiders thought of the city of Telflamm as the capital of Thesk , but in reality , the council that governed Thesk did not recognize any city as the capital . Geography . Thesk was located between the Plateau of Thay and the Forest of Lethyr and was largely uninhabited . It had a coastline on the eastern edge of the Sea of Fallen Stars , in what was known as the Easting Reach . Much of this coastline was rocky , but ports existed at Milvarune , Nyth , and Telflamm . Ashanath . Ashanath was an uninhabited area of Thesk . Despite its fertile lands , its lack of settlement was attributable to the seasonal tornadoes from which it suffers . Settlements . Telflamm was a large independent city - state and the largest settlement in Thesk . Its approximately 23 , 500 inhabitants apparently were under the rule of a " merchant prince " , though behind the scenes it was the Shadowmasters , a thieves guild , who ran the city . Other settlements of note include Phsant , the site where the Tuigan Horde was defeated and subsequently many members of the orc army settled , Milvarune , Phent , Tammar , and Nyth . Mountains . The Dragonjaw Mountains formed a natural border between Thesk in the north and Aglarond in the south . The Thesk Mountains occupied an area in central Thesk .