Marshatea

Marshatea, ca. 12 ALC

Mashatea, depicted on Luther's Map of the Orang Isle

### History

Founded circa 7,000 BLC by a company of orang hermits, many scholars speculate Marshatea was the first settlement outside of Shabamont, making it the second settlement in the Orang Isle since it's discovery. Protected by the thick swamplands and its proximity to the Great Marshes, the small village remained undiscovered and undeveloped for thousands of years, and was only recognized by Orang central government as a location by King Dumont in 424 BLC. In years after, the city established trade with the village in the market of various rare agricultural substances which only grew near or in the Great Marshes. Still, connection between Marshatea and the quickly developing orang civilization remained remote, the only correspondence with the outside world being with traders of other major cities. Some Orangs began to resent the village, and rumors spread that the inhabitants of Marshatea were in fact unnatural zealots, who worshipped dark gods. This lead to an attempted sacking of the village in 120 BLC, lead by a group of several dozen very angry orang peasants. After marching bravely into the misty forests however, the group was never seen, heard of or searched after for years.

This is, until Lamont's grand tour of the Orang lands in 50 BLC during which he visited the town. Therein, he discovered a wise, kind, and ancient populous with vast knowledge of the previously impassible Great Marshes. They also found the monkes who had 70 years earlier marched with the intent to burn the village, living in harmony with the rest of the village. With the use of their help and knowledge, Lamont established new roads and routes, and streamlined the harvest of valuable and once rare substances from the great marshes into main cities. Lamont offered integration and wealth to the orangs of Marshatea, but they refused, simply asking for the independence, solitude and protection from the rest of the isles that they had always enjoyed. Lamont obliged this wish, on the condition that he take with him one of orangs of Marshatea to teach the medicinal and cultural ways of his home village to the rest of the Isle. This was done, which lead to a new wave of better medicine and cultural development derived from the teachings of these mysterious, yet wise marsh dwellers.

Unfortunately, not even a people as humble and reclusive as the Orangs of Marshatea could survive the scouring of the Brood. In 200 ALC, brood forces lead by Vuldore the Scarred raided the Orang isle, wiping out every resisting settlement in their path and seizing the lands. After Orang resistance led by King Randi pushed the occupying Brood from the orang swamps in 202 ALC, the village was discovered abandoned and overgrown with strange golden flowers not native to any other part of the Isles. The blossom was named Beldoha, after the kind orang that had accompanied Lamont, and taught the isles the ways of Marshatea. To this day, none inhabit those lands.

### Geographics

Marshatea existed under the wide shade of Mount Gamba, the tallest mountain in the Isle, allowing for a plethora of rare and valuable funguses and plants to grow in its shadow, such as Ironmoss, Bongopads, and Purple Bananas. Moreover, the village's proximity to the Great Marshes in the heart of the Orang Isle was closer than any other settlement, making discovery of Marshatea a difficult and dangerous task, as travelers risked entering a hellish labyrinth of mist and fauna when in search. Such a location kept the village secret for thousands of years, and offered protection only the Brood were able to break.

### Demographics

The Orangs of Marshatea had hair of a notably greener hue than is common among other orangs of the isles. This is perhaps due to their need to blend in while traversing the perilous Great Marshes to find food and trading resources. Moreover, some dated scientific documents recorded during the time of Lamont's visit have their lifespan at least 300 years longer than the average orang, at 580 years, though life expectancy after the Brood Occupation decreased universally around the isles, putting the difference at about 350 years in contemporary times. As to their religious inclinations, they remained on the most part private, though a few documents suggest that they worshipped some sort of God of the Marsh, or in their speech, " ⧫︎♒︎♏︎ □︎■︎♏︎ ⬥︎♒︎□︎ ⬥︎♋︎●︎🙵⬧︎ ⧫︎♒︎❒︎□︎◆︎♑︎♒︎ ♑︎□︎●︎♎︎♏︎■︎ ♌︎□︎♑︎⬧︎ ". No other records of their worship exist. Over all, these Orangs seemed to take their time with all manner of things, wether that be speaking, brewing, thinking or any other manner of action, moving "as slow as the swamp sludge they lived in" according to a witness of their society. Their mannerisms, it may be well to note, are a stark contrast to the bustling lives of city dwellers and cosmopolitan apes. Post Brood Occupation, none of these beings have been seen, the last living Marshatea Orang, Beldoha, having died childless in Bongo City.