Eastara Plains

The lands of the Eastara Plains are a large stretch of land near the Black Swamp and The Stone Hills. Not as large of a stretch as Cerenalvae they are the second largest plains known. Mostly open fields of wheat and other crop they are home the The Plains People. A cross road for those traveling from the kingdom of Kalladorne to the marsh settlements of the Black Swamp they are several roads that lead through the region.

## The Plains People

The people of the Eastara Plains (known as plains people) are a group of tribal communities that live in small villages dotted across the Eastara Plains.

### **Culture**

The Plains People live simple lives. Comprised of mostly farmers and craftsman they take great pride in their work. Living in an almost completely flat land with wide open spaces their culture has evolved to fit their environment. Most plains people take personal space seriously. Finding it uncomfortable and even threatening to get to close to an individual they don't normally do well in larger cities. Getting close to people of authority is even more taboo and often the start of a fight.

Just because The Plains People tend to farm in smaller village communities however does not mean they are not skilled fighters. The most skilled and well know fighter of course being the legend Mattonte. In fact because of the abundance of resources the Eastara Plains are often raided by clans to the north and even from The Unseen Reach. In order to defend themselves The Plains People have become masters at area defense. Able to take on multiple opponents at once with their great swords this is extremely helpful when a village is overrun by superior numbers.

The culture of the Eastara Plains revolves heavily around storms. Their lives revolve around the rain and the weather. It is the rain that brings healthy bundles of food each Fall, and the storm that can ruin entire villages with it's quick moving winds and flooding.

#### **The Oncoming Storm**

The Plains People live in small clans spread out across the fast lands they inhabit. Most of the time these clans live beside each other in harmony. However each clan maintains their separate laws and hierarchy. Clans of course intermarry and trade openly but very rarely will they work together as whole units.

However once in a while there is a leader that arises from a clan to unite the entire plains in a singular cause. Whether this cause be to defeat a larger enemy or even at one point setting up more defensive landscapes at the edge of their territory this leader is given the title **The Oncoming Storm**

#### **Weapons**

The weapons of the Plains People have also adapted to the wide open spaces. The swords they wield are much larger than the average sword of surrounding cultures as they have the space to swing them. These weapons commonly referred to as Montantes are a traditional part of growing up on the Eastara Plains and every fighter worth their salt is judged on how skilled they are with the massive weapons. The Montante should stand to the shoulder of the wielder. With plains people being on average six foot tall the swords themselves can be massive to other cultures and even taller then some opponents.

When their Montante's fail or a more quiet approach is required The Plains People usually turn to large daggers known as Dirks.

With such wide open space and clear sight for miles The Plains People have become some of the best bowman in the world.

### **Known** **Military Tactics**

The Storm: This tactic is of course not isolated with The Plains People but they do have their own spin on the technique. In this tactic a clan or group of clans arm themselves with longbows. The word "Storm" is used as not only as a counter but also as an instruction. In the beginning of the maneuver the leader of the group shouts the word storm a set number of times. This number indicates to the archers how many arrows they will be firing in succession. Then after the number has been counted the next shout of storm has the archers pull knock their arrows, the next "Storm" is to draw back. Finally "Storm" is chanted three times in a row by all archers before they all release their arrows towards the targets.

Weeding The Fields: The Plains People are extremely skilled in horse riding. With such large grounds to cover they spend most of their lives on the backs of horses in order to reach neighboring clans for trade. This tactic requires a number of mounted warriors. The Plains People have specially designed war saddles. These saddles have notches behind the rider. In this tactic each rider directs their horse to run parallel with the rider to their right but a few steps behind so that the rider is directly in line with the notch in the saddle of the rider to their right. This causes a cascading line of Calvary. Each rider tries to keep the distance between them and the rider on their right the length of their Montante's reach. The Plains People then pull their Montantes and hold them straight in the air before letting the massive sword come down and rest inside the notch of the saddle to their right. This tactic is reproduced behind the cascading line but offset by one horse. The two lines then move as one threw enemy lines leaving them with a choice. They can stand their ground and loose their heads or duck and cower and not have enough time to move out of the way of the trampling horse behind the first line.

## The Lands

The Eastara plains are a wide stretching mass of land comprised mostly of flat farmlands with the occasional hill or mound dotting the area. This open plain experiences all seasons however do to the geographical layout winters can be extremely harsh mirroring but less harsh than The Frozen North or The Mount of Glacial Shard.

In the spring and summer the Eastara plains are abundant with food and resources. Crops grow very easily here and it's people very rarely go hungry.

The only natural disasters that the plains experience are tornadoes that from time to time rock the small villages. High winds and heavy storms are common in the region and at times the rivers can flood.

## Wildlife

The plains have an abundant of wildlife both predator and prey. The Plains People live off of a healthy diet of Flatland Stags, field snakes, various rodents, fox, and coyote. The region is well known for a special breed of falcon called the Flatland Falcon. Due to the Eastara Plains being some of the flattest lands in the world the Flatland Falcon has honed amazing eyesight that can see three times as far as any other known bird. It is for this reason that The Plains People use them in their hunts.