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Magistracy of Nirhamsa
Based upon the more northerly end of the Near Anhui when it first enters the lowlands. Pesh is on the western bank. Nirhamsa is a small nation boasting only one major city - Corbasal. Corbasal is an ancient site but most of the buildings are no more than a couple of hundred years old, having mainly been destroyed in the war of independence. The government is based upon a streamlined version of the Imperial Bureaucracy, with supreme power invested in the Grand Magister, leader of the Upper Council.
To the north and east of Nirhamsa are the Hills of Niranim, the foothills where the Three Sisters massif joins the Throne of Heaven mountains. Here the ground is convoluted, with steep sided valleys and narrow ridges. Most of the hills are covered with bamboo forest. Notable features of the hills are the high numbers of Vugs, the presence of Mountain Tlaxu, pandas, ancient ruins and jade.
The rich deposits of jade make Nirhamsa relatively rich although it is metal poor. The warriors of Nirhamsa use wooden weaponry like bo staves and jo sticks, or rely on unarmed combat.
As well as green jade there are also deposits of the dangerous but valuable red jade and the magical blue jade. The trade of blue jade is covertly watched by the Dark Sphere.
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The Empire of Splendour
Anhui States
Tlaxu
Plains of Pesh
Imperial Provinces
Places of Interest
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Red Jade Spirits
Red Jade is a rare mineral found in scattered locations throughout the Empire lands. It is prized for its rarity and its ability to store magical power, but has associated dangers.
Red Jade Spirits live in or near red jade - some say they inhabit the mineral itself, trapped within it. They are malevolent non-corporeal entities whose natural state is invisible, bodiless. They seek to possess victim, living in their bloodstream and can enter via cuts and similar wounds. Once "inside", they fight the victim's soul for possession of the body and if they win the possessed person is driven by a lust for blood-drinking.
When they physically manifest (by choice or magical coercion), red jade spirits resemble an exceptionally ugly human head (almost goblin-like) on a pair of savagely clawed bird legs.
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