Chapter Three: Bury the Dead (Y300)
Now forty years since the great inception, a major problem was surfacing: the rain just was not coming anymore. For nearly a decade, the rainfall in the Mehureeoh region was pitifully small. Crops failed and populations shrank, some cultures were even wiped out due to a lack of storage for food. Those who knew the ways of pottery fared remarkably better.
Lapaz was hit hard. The population of the young civilization dwindled and the city of Labohka erupted into civil unrest. The majority of traders avoided the area,greatly lowering the amount of food Lapacites had coming in from foreign sources. Many Lapacites who worked in the mines and were traders that worked their way up and down the Mehur river saw a vulnerable neighbor in Kvtsimprvli Msiritsvarkhvarali and cashed in on the opportunity.
If Lapaz was in a bad situation, then Kvtsimprvli, who was even more isolated and dependent on good harvests, was due even more suffering. While the Mtskhat'ski leadership was obsessed with locating gems and stones in the mountains, the people starved and eventually bands of Lapacites, dealing with their own problems at home, decided to attack. After burning Smkhutskhediskhvavli to the ground, the rugged Lapacites set up their own state- separate from Lapaz- called Carta. Many of the Mtskhat'ski fled as refugees and set up a state called Timpr which was out of reach of Carta.
Down the coast, Incabra was faring well, due to their reliance on fish, not crops. Incabra inherited the trade traffic that Lapaz could no longer handle, and therefore, made a healthy profit. Their main trade partner, Ghask, also was thriving due to their mastery of pottery. The lack of food was a pain, but Ghask was able to retain their population pretty well. Latim prospered as a trade center in these times more than ever, since many traders were shipping fish and game in all directions to ailing nations.
Another state along the southern coast of the Blessed Lands, Firen, was doing exceptionally well. Firen continued to lead the way for the region technologically, demonstrated by the systemic ceremonial burial of mass amounts of Golbans following the genocide of Golba. The Ceremonial Burials, although completely irrelevant, were believed to be a source of good fortune and redemption that brought good health and favorable harvests to Firen while many other states suffered.
Speaking of the Genocide of Golba, Golba was another one of the vulnerable civilizations marked by faulty leadership, issues with barbarians, and crop failures. Skur, the rowdy young civilization rapidly evolving on one of the branches of the Golbari River. Skur quickly crushed all forces garrisoned at Old Golba, burned the city to the ground, and claimed the territory as theirs for future development.
Skur's northern neighbors each had very different trajectories. Ishkant struggled to grow since they were dealing with the issue of famine. The crops they had planted failed repeatedly, and when Skur went to war with Golba, all excess food was given to the Skuri troops instead of being shipped to Ishkant. Illdira fared a bit better since they were users of pottery, however they, too had their struggles.
Early in the twenty-year period, Illdira sent out scouts to explore the vast expanse of desert to their east in hopes of uncovering treasure, finding a contact, or maybe a new resource. The scouts found a contact, alright. Upon entering a strange barbarian-esque camp, all but one scout was slaughtered. The scout returned home badly wounded and deranged, unable to retell his account of the incident. Illdira was under the impression that the Draten barbarians to their east were responsible for the killing of the scouts (they actually were not). However, the Drateni were planning an assault on Illdira at the same time that Illdira was mobilizing its forces, resulting in a fight that was not quite as one-sided as the last war Draten was enveloped in. After a stalemate of about five years, Illdira gave way and Draten sacked several southern towns of Illdira. The forces were unable to establish a foothold, however, because the animals in the deserts were being hunted by other tribes and civilizations in greater numbers, triggered by the crop failures.
To the south, Butalia quietly raced ahead in technology, keeping pace with the intelligent Fireni. Butalia was also active on the scouting front, sending out scouts down the coast and into the desert, stumbling upon Haexar, a state of marauding traders on the coast south of Butalia. Since the Butaliaites stayed out of the conflicts around them, they were able to trade safely with Haexar and Firen.
Vozle was a bit more tame and did not suffer the same food issues as Mehureeoh- well at least not to the same degree. The exception was Mirysk, which mysteriously disappeared off the face of the map due to rumored food shortages. Ez Dera Thani scouts reported that some Miryskans set up an enclave across the Arnesti Moutnains, but Ez Dera Thani scouts have been known to fabricate.
Sauromavia was once again the strongest empire of the region, continuing to extend itself toward Herite and continuing to dictate trade. The Heritites did not seem to mind due to the cultural similarities. Up the coast, Ishalin was evolving into a similarly dominant power. They branched out and built relations with Kerchan and Veshelard and even sent out scouts do discover the unknown, meeting an interesting culture called Vrereg to their north. Not to be overlooked, Ndriakoro saw their state expand rapidly along the K'lish River. Veshelard began to envy the lands near Ndriakoro, since the other side of their borders was locked up by Ishalin.
Between Y280 and Y300, the Blessed Lands saw more death than it has ever. Crops failed left and right, wars raged on, and the existence of several states was ended. However, the dead were buried and the Blessed Lands moved on...