Joc the Gentle
The mythical founder of the Sugudan kingdom, Joc the Gentle, a valley shepherd, was gifted the knowledge of civilization by the council of heaven. Of all the men of the upper river, the gods chose the most brave, fit, humble and willing to institute government and create justice with the principles of the natural universe at his core.
The gods began the journey testing Jocs character, his willingness to apply knowledge, protect civilization, provide for the ill and to seek knowledge himself. First, the gods gave him the ability to build a mighty battleaxe, which Joc dutifully complied in creating. Easily adaptable to new information, the gods were pleased, and proceeded to try his sense of justice.
Joc made his regular migration - now with a cumbersome and needless battleaxe - and with his wife and children, moved west for the summer. On his trail, as sometimes happened and could not be prevented, a village raid was underway. The council of heaven thus gave every covert sign to Joc to defend the village, shaking the earth, moving the winds and changing the flow of the river Ammu. The observant Joc realized his gift of the battleaxe finally had purpose, and waiving his family to take the herd further in the distance, joined the battle. Joc was inexperienced, but had the strength to wield his axe, and with the favour of the gods, defended the villagers - through cunning display of his mighty weapon, he warded off the enemies of civilization.
The divine mandate concluded, Joc gave his battleaxe to the villagers for their future protection, and proceeded on his migration. The gods prepared Joc for his future. Coming to a bend in the river, which could be seen at the distance Joc travelled out from it, another village approached. The meagre details Joc had been granted through his visions from the gods at least encouraged him to visit each settlement he passed, perhaps to understand the purpose of humanity and the gods. So he again approached the town, this time bringing his family closer, and he proceeded to the town centre with some of his herds meat, which he intended to trade.
The sun was high, and Joc entered the marketplace, going to buyers of foodstuffs. After some haggling, he persuaded some generous buyer to take his surplus meat, when he encountered a moving regiment of the towns soldiers. They were a motley mosaic of skilled and unskilled levies, village boys who needed work, and Joc followed their actions to see if he need be weary of further raiders in his travels. He followed the assemblage out of town, when he was struck by the most powerful vision yet - the gods spoke into his mind, and told him precisely how to handle the fight which was about to commence - the raiders he had warded off from the previous settlement had not been satisfied, and desired the blood of this one.
The gods told him he would not have the power himself to overcome the raiders, but he could preserve the lives of the injured. Medicine, and the rule of preserving life, had been taught to the shepherd Joc, and with this final tool, as the battle waged, using basic clothe and the axes of the men, Joc amputated and recovered the injured as commanded.
The village boys won a pyrrhic victory, but Jocs compassion and diligence to his vision gained him town attention. The commander of the levies spoke with him, and without much persuasion, arranged to bring Joc to the town high priest and leader.
The tale varies from here, the most common interpretation of the remainder of the tale is that Joc met privately with the towns high priest, who had been a demigod in hiding, and he passed on the title of lord of the village to the enlightened Joc the Gentle. The demigod ascended then to heaven publicly, and Joc brought civilization to this first town, Balkh, expanding it into a city, allying with the villages and farms in the region, and beginning Sugudan history.