Suntij

**Suntij is a nation in maligon** arranged around a parliamentary democracy, famed for being the multicultural home of gourmet food

Liberty, Muchsqa and Haudoll

Suntij has benefited from many things in its history. Lake ko, the relative peace of the centuries before the last war and the open immigration policy put in place by the first thing parliament has made this democracy incredibly wealthy. With the influx of peoples seeking a safer better life, suntij found its fame and focus: food.

The fertile soils benefit from the minerals of the river McFae drawn down from the mountains. Domesticated grains and crops, fruit orchards and well fed livestock were quickly harnessed by the elves, the coalition of shorter lived races and closely guarded during the foundation of the maligon nations. Because of some clever bargaining, exports and alliances, the parliament of suntij managed to say on the good side of many key players in the centuries that followed. In the last war this included becoming protected ally of Kalev in the face of the ever expanding raggnloth.

The first real restaurants on the cogs were here, of permanent menus and permanent staff many around the grand tree. Flows of immigration brought regional dishes, and the ancient elven royalty of this region encouraged this creativity. Now thousands of years later all three cities are primarily attached to the industries of dining, food production and export, all though nearby Ceterat is the chief importer to Suntij of cattle and livestock.

The Parliament of Suntij sits in the capital of Muchsqua. The meetings of these ministers are known as the thing. Since its inception a decade after the treaty of Yalmiront, it has remained a simple two party system of social progressives called ‘the Leaves’ and fiscal conservatives known as ‘the Sticks.’ Currently the president minister is a young Teifling of the Leaves party called Clarion Jerriahmeh. Since of the first thing, the boarders have been open to all folks, meaning there is no primary culture that holds the seats of the democracy. The first minister of the Sticks is a dragonborn called Brennan Gesurborn. Muchsqua is home of the proud Suntij Academy, a private and paid culinary school that trains the court chefs of the continent and leads the fashions and tastes of all haute cuisine. The headmistress of the Suntij academy is a Firbolg called Leshon Axehanded who has written several books about the base sauces of all fine cooking. While being the head teacher of the academy is an honoured position, many have been murdered or found dead in suspicious circumstances.

Haudoll relies more heavily on the river Mcfae and lake Ko more than the others. Much of the city is built on canals that take the place of roads between the buildings. Because of the premium nature of real estate, many of the buildings hold two or three eateries stacked on top of each other. It is not uncommon for relationships between neighbour restaurateurs to be incredibly hostile, signage and boastful claims meaning the canals are clogged with incredibly ornate and elaborate advertisements. Haudoll also has a reputation for being a haven of organised crime, a large Gnoll crime family the Misawateeth owning many popular Bendattan style dumpling houses. The fish market at haudoll is cog renowned, and has become a slang colloquialism across Maligon for something with too many options.

Liberty is the largest city in Suntij, and was named Suntij by the elves. It was rechristened Liberty after the Raggnloth war against sixir, as a political statement by the Hobgoblin President minister Pep Crassfleg. The landmark most associate with liberty is the grand tree, a hybrid Yero and oak tree. The Grand tree was a common staging post for travellers taking the roads north or south of the continent, avoiding the Lum mountains through the pass of lake Ko. Blessed and magically enhanced by travellers as a symbol of journeys end or as luck as the start of a long travel north. Businesses set up around the tree, as it grew larger and larger, banks rising around the root crater of the 200 foot broadleaf. The first were humble shacks selling provisions, but then beautiful wooden constructions of established eateries began spreading further into the fields around. Since this, a culture has developed, one with laws enshrined by the parliament of Muchsqua. The fledging chefs rent a government subsidised shacks around the tree itself, with public benches making something that could be considered a food court. Food that can be eaten in one hand, kebabs, sandwiches, skewers, tacos and the like have become the most popular of these, but anything is possible if it pleases the changeable populace of adventurers and wanderers. When a shack is deemed worthy enough, it is brought before a council in Muchsqua to test the foodstuffs. If a positive is reached between the members of the Academy, ministers and other investors, it can be granted the option to rent a space in a municipal restaurant space in liberty or even the high end districts of Muchsqua. This career progression is the dream of hundreds thousands of chefs across the cog.

Most of the natural wildlife has been unfortunately cleared to make room for the expansive fields of livestock and grains. Field mice and crows are the most plentiful.