"Before all the other Gods, there are
Taal and Rhya, the Father and the Mother. Without their blessing and union,
there would be no world for us to live in."
—Carlott Edelbrecht, Priestess of the Cult
of Taal and Rhya
The Grand Duchy of Talabecland is a major
and founding Imperial Province that lies at the very central territories of the
Empire of Man. Talabecland is perhaps one of the largest of the Imperial
Provices, whose dominant features include their dominion over the River Stir
and the River Talabec, as well as claiming territory of nearly all the Great
Forest. Much of the province's trade flows along these rivers, as well as trade
that flows through to the north and south along the Great Forest Road.
When times are relatively tranquil, the
province is a thriving center of commerce and the many coaching inns that line
the roads of Talabecland are typically filled to capacity with merchants and
tradesmen of all kinds. In Talabecland lies the major fortress-city of
Heldenhame Keep, which is situated on several key trade routes. The capital of
Talabecland is Talabheim, a large city-state built inside a titanic meteorite
crater miles upon miles wide. The very province itself is named after Taal, the
God of the Wilderness and is considered the province patron God after Sigmar
himself.
Geography
"I’ve drunk fine wines with Emperors
and tasted the most potent beer of the King of Karaz-a-Karak, but I have never
encountered anything as strong as the home-brew thunder-water of the
Talabeclanders. My head still hurts!"
—A Bretonnian traveler
Stretching more than 700 miles from east to
west, Talabecland occupies the centre of the Empire, bordering on more Grand
Provinces than any other. Consequently, it has become a major transit route for
trade within the Empire, with traffic flowing up and down the River Stir and
the River Talabec, and north-south trade making extensive use of the Old Forest
Road from the town of Hermsdorf to the capital-city of Talabheim. The dominant
feature of Talabecland is the Great Forest, which stretches from end to end
along the province’s long axis.
Though less dangerous than the Forest of
Shadows or the Drakwald Forest, the Great Forest is nonetheless home to its
share of dangers and mysteries. Although there are isolated villages scattered
throughout the forest, and despite the Talabeclanders’ skill as woodsmen, the
interior of the Great Forest remains a fearful and mysterious place to many.
Deep within it lurk tribes of Beastmen and Greenskins left over from many
previous invasions, as well as maleficent things that have lived there since
the dawn of time. The west in particular, in the region around the Barren
Hills, is known for harbouring a large number of Mutants.
Many Talabeclanders make their living from
the woods in one way or another, either as foresters, charcoal burners, or
trappers. The woodlands themselves are of the same primordial forest that once
covered all of the Empire. Formed of oak, birch, and beech in the south, moving
towards darker evergreen pines in the north, the woods are pierced now and
again with the occasional clearing of fertile farmlands or rock outcropping. It
is in such places that the villages of the woodsfolk can be found. A central
spine of hills runs east to west in Talabecland, and cartographers divide them
into three distinct regions. Near the province of Ostermark are the Kölsa
Hills, which are largely uninhabited but known for harbouring eldritch stone
monuments atop many hills, apparently arranged like paths from hilltop to
hilltop? Occasionally, farmers that are clearing trees for land have discovered
earthworks and odd mounds formed in strange, suggestive shapes. Their purpose
is a mystery, but the hierarchy of the Cult of Taal and Rhya have claimed this
land as a cult preserve for their own research.
The Färlic Hills in the middle are home to
many clans of herdsmen who are also part-time bandits, preying on traffic along
the Old Forest Road. The Elector Counts of Talabecland, therefore, maintain a
large number of roadwardens along the road, and have even sent troops into the
hills to punish the raiders. The road itself is of patchy repair. In some
places, stone flagging and gravel form a smooth surface, whilst it others, it is
little better than a dirt path. Tollhouses, many abandoned now, are supposed to
raise coin for the upkeep of the road and the troops stationed there.
Many of these have been attacked and
destroyed by forest beasts, and there are few who are willing to transverse it.
Talabeclanders fear the eastern Barren Hills, a land they consider cursed. More
than 100 years ago, to hear country people tell it, the Chaos moon Morrslieb
spat upon the world, its spittle landing on what were then called the Green
Hills. Soon, most plants and animals within the area died. Those that did not
mutated in horrible ways, had to be destroyed by the Elector Count’s forces.
Today, the Barren Hills are shunned by all save a few, either treasure hunters
following rumours of lost gold or magical items, or those who think they are
protected from the curse.
Inhabitants
"You want to find your way through the
woods, boy, hire that Talabeclander there. No one knows the forest ways like
them."
—An innkeeper
Most of the inhabitants of Talabecland are
descendants of the Taleuten tribe, whom after years of wandering the Great
Forest,found the Great Crater, a huge bowl in the earth surrounded by a natural
wall. The wall itself was pierced by a tunnel. According to legend, Krugar, the
chiefian of the Taleutens decided this was a sign from Taal himself and ordered
the building of a great city within the crater. Known first as Taalahim, later
to become Talabheim, it soon became the largest city within the Empire's
eastern territories and is considered by many to be near impregnable.
A thickly forested place, Talabecland has a
reputation for barbarism and ignorance amongst the other provinces.The folk of
Talabecland ignore this nonsense, holding instead a private pride in their
forestcraft and practical skills. At their best, Talabeclanders are patient
woodsfolk, with a quiet intensity and honour. Reading, writing, and the
scholastic arts are respected, but held in second place to the lore of the
wilds. The men of Talabecland favour silence and deed over long speeches, but
their womenfolk have a soft side for a honeyed word. As a consequence, rakish
types, poets, and Reiklanders are viewed with firm suspicion throughout the
province—though in general Talabeclanders are more welcoming than their rural
Stirland cousins.
The role of the father is considered
especially important to the folk of the Great Woods. Even town-born men take
their sons to the woods during the summer and teach them how follow a trail,
light a fire, and catch a meal. This is considered a matter of practicality,
just like a Marienburger learning to swim. A lad without a father to patiently
teach him the ways of the wood and the bow is considered unlucky.
Talabeclanders, even their nobility, are unusually self-effacing. Their
histories tell tales of great deeds while downplaying the role of persons
involved. At the tournaments held every
two years at Küsel, Talabecland knights wear the provincial colours on their
shields, the only indication of their families being a small badge on their shoulders.
Tradition considers the glory won to belong to the people as a whole. The
Talabeclanders are also a religious people, revering all the gods of the
Empire, but holding special reverence for Taal and Rhya. Indeed, Taal’s
greatest temple is found in the small woods outside Talabheim in the Great
Crater.
Ulric is also popular, for although not
braggarts, Talabeclanders are known for their warlike ways. Talabheim itself
was the home of the cult for a while in the Second Millennium, when the
Ar-Ulric left Middenheim for Talabheim after a dispute with the local Elector
Count. At their worst, Talabeclanders can be argumentative, primitive, hard
drinking, and mean. And though they do not wear leaves, as others accuse them
of doing, Talabeclanders generally eschew elaborate clothes and prefer
practical garb that can stand up to rough handling. Talabeclander speech is
smooth with slurred-together words, though the cultured elites of Talabheim
prefer to speak “proper” Reikspiel. The rest of the Empire puts this curious
speech down to the well-known Talabec tradition of brewing “moonshine” liquor
in the woods.
Locations
of Importance
Talabheim - the fortress-capital of the
province, Talabheim lies within a massive crater miles wide, with fertile
farmlands lying within.
Bek - Chief town of the province ruled by
Count Josef von Behring that specializes in the export of dried fish, timber
and tollbooths.
Lieske - Site of the largest fortified
coaching inn in Talabecland outside the city of Talabheim itself. The inn is
also the main headquaters for the province's roadwardens.
Priestlicheim - A Sigmarite monastary that
lies within the outskirts of the Barren Hills. The monks that live there have
didicated themselves to the eradication of whatever curse lies within the Hills.
Official Name: Grand Duchy of Reikland
Ruler: Elector Count Helmut Feuerbach
Government: Feudal, with tight central
control
Capital: Talabheim
Chartered Towns: Küsel
Major Exports: salt pork and fish, timber,
religious icons
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