Saltu

Saltu, is a country that runs along the west of Enthas and east of Acerbus. There is a large presence of people of both counties due to the mounting tension between the two counties and that Saltu is the most direct method of land based travel to the other country.

Geography
Saltu is in the thick of the woods, with a moderate forests in the north and. Some parts in the south can get downright jungle like, though doesn't fully get there. It has many mountains with three passes through the two large ranges.

Environment
The weather can tend to be very wild, wind and thunder storms are both fairly common. This is in part due to the high concentrate of magic.

Plant Life
The most commonly farmed plants would be berries, river grown plants, and WIP

Society
The culture of Saltu values history, community, and survival despite the odds being against them. As such there is a lot of pride over their historians, warriors, and home makers and general encouragement towards those.

The clusters of people that there are tend to live separated from each other, occasionally coming together during times of great celebration or great trouble. Despite this there is a feeling of community that most residents of Saltu say they feel. The High Tribes do meet more frequently to make sure that the country is running smoothly.

The tribes are divided between the High Tribes which founded Saltu and protected it from Lolth and new tribes which formed afterwards. The High tribes are seen as the leaders as Saltu and form any sort of unified efforts Saltu puts forth, though non high tribes are welcome to help but not obliged to.

Recently (A month and a half ago) all of the High Tribes have lost their leaders. Some tribes have elected new leaders while others have focused on attempting to find their leader and other yet went into anarchy. The new tribes have retained their leaders who now are trying to band together as they realize something terrible is on the horizon of Saltu and it's defenders are weakened.

Tribes
Listed in order of their founding.


 * Children 0f Autumdosa: A tribe of Golith who protect the Autumdosa Slopes from anything that would threaten it. The first High Tribe.
 * The Imi: A tribe made up of mostly celestial individuals that serves the good aligned gods as best as they can. High Tribe
 * The Antediluvians: A tribe made of the old races, Teifling, Assmair, and the Fey with one family of Nephillum. They try to keep the old ways alive. High Tribe.
 * The Eturnalists: A tribe made of High elves and fayfolk which embrace the ways of the fae on the material plane. High Tribe.
 * The Deserters: A tribe made of drow who descend from those that deserted Lolth's army against Acerbus and fled to Saltu. High Tribe.
 * Guardians of the Light: A tribe made up of those who left their original homes to devote themselves to holding back the blight. They have forts all along the border to Acerbus. Honorary High Tribe (Created after the Belighting but made to directly oppose it so was risen to the rank of High Tribe.)
 * Aquaim Ari: A sea living tribe made of the aquatic races interested enough in the landfolk to stay close to shore. Their name translates to People of the Water. New Tribe
 * Serpents Kin: A tribe of Yuan-ti that have embraced their natural roots and have turned to the drudtic crafts. They are invested about the land they live on. New Tribe
 * Hell's Angels: A tribe made of fallen Assmairs and Teiflings who have rejected their heritage. The fight to keep the affairs of other planes off of the material plane. New Tribe
 * le Clan de l'Étoile Vert (the Clan of the Green Star): A tribe of Goblins that left Acerbus to have the religious freedom to worship the peaceful aspect of Bargrivyek, according to their stories they were guided to Saltu by a green star sent by Bargrivyek. Due to being from Southeast Acerbus they are french. New Tribe.
 * Tinker's Haven: A tribe made of scientists that banded together after having to stop their research in other places. Notable for fighting during The Encroach. New Tribe
 * The Ash Clan: A tribe made up of a band of humans banished from Enthas due to their plans of revolt, they have remained close to their original home and still have interest in the ongoings of it. It welcomes all with no questions. New Tribe.
 * The Children of the Faithful (Formerly): A group of outcasts from Enthas exiled due to false idol worship. The later found The White Pearl and left, becoming a nomadic group frequently in the Red Reef area.

Crime & Law
Crime is rare thanks to the tight knit comunities of the tribes which does not leave a lot of room for crime to occur as everybody gets their needs tended too. When outsiders attempt to do harm or steal they are banished by the nearest tribe. In cases where Saltu natives commit an action harmful to their tribe they are generally banished.

Only The Guardians of The Light has laws and is the only group to practice executions. Their laws are mostly about the behavior of their members and what is allowed to be done near the forts to avoid the magic keeping Saltu safe from failing, such as banning wild mages from casting in the area and banning anti-magic effects from being cast. Only crimes that threaten the safety of Saltu as a whole is given the death plenty and the offender is given a chance to defend themself in front of the commanding officers of The Guardians. They are not provided any aid however.

Economy
Saltu does not issue it's own money and does not have any sort of bank. Coins are used many when dealing with outsiders or the New Tribes, in all other circumstances trade for items or favors is the standard.

As such there are no taxes and no standardized practices for merchants. Traders are expected to play fair and if they don't will be shunned by the communities.

Trade is done with the settlements close to the borders of furs, rarer plants, and magical services in return for grain and other foods hard to grow in Saltu.

History
Before The Oblivion Saltu was a gathering place for those not accepted elsewhere or who had formed tight knit communities.

During The Oblivion they gained a neighbor in the newly formed Acerbus, made up of those who had finally had enough of Lolth's rule in Umbra. However Lolth did not take this kindly and began to blight the land in an effort to scare her former followers into returning to Umbra. The four tribes of Saltu banded togther to fight against this as it threatened their lands as well, and the people of Acerbus deserved to be free. They gained a fifth tribe made up of those deserting Lolth and Umbra that were not welcomed by Acerbus. In the end most of the western side of the continent was blighted but the spread was able to be halted with the combined powers of the residents of Acerbus and Saltu. The border of Acerbus was then formed where the land was blighted and the people of Saltu formed a sixth tribe, The Guardians of the Light, with the purpose of keeping the blight from ever spreading again. Monuments were built to help with that effort and act as forts for the Guardians.

They did lose a lot of land as a result of this all, the lands of Acerbus used to be theirs, however they did not want to risk the wrath of Lolth so moved their tribes closer together away from the blighted land.

In 53 AO they welcomed a new neighbor in the form of Enthas, built on the rubble of many smaller human, halfling, and elven nations and settlements ruined during The Oblivion then brought to near war as recovery efforts started. Their relationship was peaceful but not all that close at this time, as the tribe leaders were still preoccupied with Acerbus and Enthas did not raise any concern for the moment.

In 126 AO the Aquaim Ari came to the shores of Saltu wishing to reconnect with the world above after The Oblivion. They were welcomed as the first New Tribe, given lesser responsibly as it was not considered their burden to bear. This set a precedent for all new tribes since then.

Next came the Serpents Kin in 549 AO, their origins were unclear but their passion for the land was alongside their overall friendly nature. For that they were accepted.

After them was the Hell's Angels, in 666 AO there had been major conflict in the Celestial and Infernal planes which drove out the residents with ties to the Material plane. They banded together wishing to keep the affairs of the other planes from following them. With nowhere else to go they were welcomed as a new tribe.

in 1425 AO le Clan de l'Étoile Vert followed a green star sent by their god, fleeing persecution in Acerbus as the followed the peaceful aspect of Bargrivyek. Like the others they were welcomed.

In 2305 AO Tinker's Haven was founded by a collective of researchers and scientists either scared of persecution or who had been forced to stop their studies elsewhere. They offered advancements that the residents of Saltu welcomed readily.

In 2812 AO The Ash Clan was banished from Enthas and found refuge in Saltu and later was given the status of a tribe thanks to keeping an eye on the movements of Enthas in and out of the country in the north.

Lastly The Children of the Faithful who were banished from Enthas in 2901 AO were given tribe status however twenty years later left Saltu aboard a ship and became a traveling circus. However they would be welcomed back.

Over many years The Antediluvians and The Order of The Luxon have been slowly rebuilding the magic of Dunamancy from what the Nephilim left behind. This was aided by the ruins of Laments Frame, the greatest invention of dunamancy ever made, it's magic seeped into the land around The Scarred Lands and has even drawn some of The Luxons attention to the area. Rumors of these things have drawn the attention of Enthas and Acerbus in their searches for magical secrets.

Enthas has became the more hostile of the two as it's ruling family and council have descended into power hunger and corruption. This came to a head in 2976 AO when The Encroach started, where Enthas attempted to take some of Saltu's land so they could search for these secrets. They were driven out but not without scarring the land (The Scarred Lands & The Last Push).

In February of 2996 AO The Scarred Massacre occurred.

Trivia

 * Saltu was inspired by the following.
 * Saltu has a high population of leveled characters thanks to it's small communities, high population of magic users, and the dangers present in living in Saltu.
 * Saltu has a high population of leveled characters thanks to it's small communities, high population of magic users, and the dangers present in living in Saltu.