Baahinta

Baahinta [Ba-Hint-uh], is a nation covering a small central region of the continent of San'Hai. It is bordered to the north and northwest by The Green, to the east and northeast by Picole, and to the south by Cyclopia. The western border of Baahinta is coastline to The Melting Sea. Daahsoon is the largest city in Baahinta and the nation's capital.

Baahinta is not an exceptionally developed country in terms of production of any kind, but they are one of the most powerful trade partners and coordinators in all of Kastacal. After the Calamity, Baahinta was a trade hub almost immediately due to its location on the Melting Sea, its central location on San'Hai, and the need for safer through-routes from Dustren toward Cyclopia and Zersch. The capital city of Daahsoon was founded in 377 AC when three neighboring trade villages: Daahri, Menasca, and Ventsur grew to touch one another's borders and a unification agreement was struck.

**GEOGRAPHY AND CLIMATE**

Baahinta is located on what can be considered a floodplain of the Melting Sea, although no floods have been recorded since the Calamity. It is almost entirely lowland planes with intermittent vegetation. Some areas of Baahinta are comprised of rolling hills and bushlands, but nearly all of it is conducive to settlement as seen by the plethora of small villages and hovels that are scattered through the region. While population is most dense in the main cities of Daahsoon and Bandargah, the outlying settlements are also well populated and can grow seasonally to rival Bandargah.

Baahinta lies in a very dynamic area in terms of climate. The summers are hot and very dry, while the winters are temperate and also dry. The spring and fall are very different, with spring seeing the rapid melt from Picole Peaks bringing low pressure and moisture in the form of an extended rainy season. The fall in Baahinta is much the same, the cooling temperatures bring moisture in from the Melting Sea that takes the form of consistent low clouds and occasional showers.

**GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS**

Baahinta is a counseled oligarchy with the head being a 7-seat council of trade Barons and Baronesses known as the Silent Seven with their seat of power in Daahsoon. As the name implies, the Silent Seven act as a silent leadership, distributing orders through appointees known as the Voice.

The Voice is an elevated and appointed position held by multiple people throughout Baahinta, but only one is active at any time as far as anyone knows. This active person is likely a native of the area of Baahinta they are active in, as evident in the fact that a Voice may be a woman active in Daahsoon for an evening address, and then a man in Bandargah the following morning. It is unknown how a Voice is activated or receives edicts from the Silent Seven, only that they convey the law and letter directly from them.

* A person elevated to The Voice can be easily identified by their gold robes with black accents and design. The high collar and wide open hood framing their bare face acts as almost an antithesis to the masks that are worn by the rest of the public.

Not much is known about the Silent Seven, other than they came to power in 699AC and have held power consistently since then. While it is possible that the current Silent Seven are the original members, it is unlikely. The more likely scenario is that as a member of the Seven leaves their seat for any reason, a new member is elevated from the elite of Daahsoon.

The structure of law is very loose in Baahinta, while there are edicts dictating that the Silent Seven are in control of every facet of the nation, other laws are essentially written on the spot as petitioners or lawyers are hired to "press charges" against defendants.

**ALLIANCES**

The Silent Seven, and by extension the whole of Baahinta have stading public political alliances with multiple nations due to their trade power and resources by proxy

* Zersch - The highest alliance of Baahinta, Zersch provides a steady flow of weapons and metalworks into Baahinta in exchange for trade and labor priority from all citizens regardless of status. In return Zersch has garaunteed that any future expansion efforts of Zersch will not infringe upon Baahinta's sovereignty.
* Jadekai - An alliance built strictly on trade, roughly 50% of all food production is sent to Baahinta to be distributed through their channels in exchange for processed lumber, tools, and weapons built from Cyclopian wood and access through Baahinta for Jade traders.
* East Landing - While Picole is not a unified country,Baahinta maintains a strong trade agreement with East Landing for fish and other coastal goods in return for metalworks from Zersch through Baahintan traders.

**ECONOMY**

As established, Baahinta has no self-contained internal means of economic expansion. The lands, while suitable for travel and settlement, are not readily set for farming, herding, mining, or any other form of material gain. However, Baahinta is considered an economic stronghold in San'hai, potentially even the whole of Kastacal, although the breadth of the nation's wealth is also unknown, it is assumed that they have vast stores of currency, treasures, and raw materials.

This economic power was gained through trade, from the onset of civilization after the Calamity. The early trade barons and baronesses controlled nearly all trade from the south up into Dustren as well as extending their influence into what is now known as the Fractured Independence. Forming early trade agreements with Zersch for forged metal goods, with the tribes of Cyclopia for raw wood from their giant trees, and even across the Melting Sea with Jadekai for stores of fresh and preserved foods has made all of the traders in Baahinta very wealthy with the Silent Seven being the pinnacle of wealth and notoriety.

The economy of Baahinta is also backed by a "shadow trade" of sorts. Surplus weapons, food, and wares are sold to black market traders as well and moved through the underground criminal networks to keep those power structures intact. The Silent Seven are almost assuredly aware of these dealings but turn a blind eye to them due to the massive profits that arise from the facilitation.

**DEMOGRAPHICS**

The demographics of Baahinta are mostly a mystery for two reasons:

1. Because of the massive amounts of inter and intraregional travel, settlement, and trade it is difficult to establish who is actually a permanent resident and who is just passing through.
2. As outlined below, the culture of Baahinta makes it difficult to distinguish differing races outside of glaring physical features such as size or extremities.

It is also difficult to distinguish people based on dialect or language because open conversations are rarely held for others to overhear. While person-to-person conversations about trade or business happen regularly, they are usually held in private, or in very low and hushed volumes as to maintain the cultural desire for privacy and anonymity.

**CULTURE**

Baahinta was established and populated in the early days after the Calamity by traders and rogues from all walks of life. Due to the way trade and business in Baahinta evolved, the need for anonymity quickly followed. This need established one of the core and defining features of Baahintan culture: the mask.

**MASKS**

Masks in Baahinta are an unspoken requirement for all people moving through or staying alike. With an exception made in some cases for diplomats, the only citizen not questioned about the absence of a mask is an active Voice of the Seven. For any other persons in Baahinta not wearing a mask, the general population will in most cases completely ignore the unmasked, while some will even become aggressive and remove them from establishments or in some cases send them to the borders of their settlement.

Travelers and temporary citizens are expected to accept the design of their mask as their name, Someone wearing a mask resembling a falcon will be called Falcon or bird in conversation, while someone wearing a mask resembling the head of a rose would be called Rose or Flower.

More long-term or permanent residents will have their most prominent ribbon marked with a name

**RIBBONS**

Because of the lack of communication between parties, ribbons are worn by more established citizens. They come in a variety of colors that denote a have, or willingness to do, or a need depending on if they are worn on the left or right side of the mask respectively. Scrolling and heraldry on the ribbons dictate how many transactions the bearer has completed for notable patrons in Baahinta. Each individual piece of heraldry is recognizable by other patrons and is consistent to discourage counterfeiting. The below order is from most common to least in the general population in any given area.

* Blue - General labor, this includes physical day-labor, clerical work, shopkeeping, etc.
	+ These ribbons CAN contain heraldry if something specific is being offered or searched for, such as a quill for clerical or bookkeeping, a glass for bartending, a hammer for construction, etc. If someone is offering general labor or has a wide skillset, the ribbon may be blank.
* Green - Traders
	+ These ribbons will contain heraldry dictating any trade specialization if they are not a general trader.
* Yellow - Specialized trade labor, this includes masonry, carpentry, armorer, smithing, grooming, etc.
	+ These ribbons also contain heraldry at the base denoting the type of specialized trade. An anvil for a smith or armorer, or a mallet and nail for a carpenter, etc.
* White - Entertainment such as dancers, instrumentalists, prostitutes, actors, etc.
	+ These ribbons are rarely marked with a specialization as the rest of the bearers accessories normally distinguish their trade.
* Brown - Law and legal services, this includes contract writers, real estate, lawyers, messengers, petitioners, etc.
* Silver - Skilled arms bearers including mercenaries, guards, adventurers, etc.
* Violet - Religious services including commencement/confirmation, funerals, confession, sanctification, etc.
* Black - The unmentionables, thievery, contraband, smuggling, etc
	+ While the connotation of the ribbon is for 'illegal' work in most of Kastacal, Baahinta bears very few of these "laws" unless the defendant has the money to pay petitioners to go before an acting Voice to request a trial.
	+ Heraldry denoting completion on these ribbons is sometimes hidden with special ink or stitching that can only be viewed by specific means.

**ENTERTAINMENT**

Entertainment in Baahinta is commonplace, like most other places in Kastacal, but works a bit differently. Spoken word or singing is very difficult in masks so is relatively unheard of in Baahinta. Instead, a form of music and dance evolved in Baahinta that is quite unique. Musical pieces can be completely rhythmic, but specialized performers can actually emulate the sounds of voices or even some words through the instruments themselves. Dancing evolved in much the same way. While traditional and exotic dancing does exist en masse in the settlements, specialized dancers perform a more interpretive dance that can tell a story, with the performer taking on specific roles that are clearly defined and dancing(acting) out the story portrayed.

Consumers of public entertainment show their appreciation of a piece by raising their hand, usually showing one or two fingers (though a whole hand is not uncommon either). To show extended appreciation a tip will be held up between the fingers clearly visible for the performer to come and collect.