Kahlahra

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Kahlahra
Country Information
Language: Little known
Ethnic Group: Various Tribes
Government: Nomadic



Kahlahra is the land of the Khalars -- the reason for the difference in spelling is uncertain, but there you have it. It lies to the north of Song Deep, which forms its border with the Kingdom of Arangoth.

History

Seventy or eighty years ago there was a major war between Arangoth and the Sherkhen (led by Helehkri), leading to an Arangothian victory -- the Sherkhen surrendered their most precious relic, the Siren Stone, as part of the spoils of war, and its current whereabouts are unknown -- it might have been transferred to the Vault of the Royal Church. In any event, the Sherkhen have continued to regard Arangoth with misgivings ever since the end of that war. More recently, a certain Siganth attempted to unite several Khalar tribes with the intent of attacking some one or the other neighboring peoples; however, this character seems to have faded back into obscurity.

Geographical Features

Kahlahra is bordered to the north by mountain ranges. Rashnad is to the east, Rondis, Assi, and Arangoth to the south, and Caern Rhia and Zul Kiras to the west.

Government and Politics

They have few wholly permanent cities (and these probably existed before they migrated into the region to begin with) and are largely nomadic, though they seem to follow no strict annual pattern of migration. Their law is unwritten, but centers upon the etiquette of the blood feud. There are some parts of the Kingdom of Arangoth which have small Khalar settlements.

Military

See On the Khalar Tribes

Religion

Nothing is known about the religions among the tribes.

Society and Peoples

There are a number of independent tribes among the Khalars, all of whom have long-standing feuds of one sort or another with all the others, leading to almost perpetual bloodshed. The tribe which has had the closest relations with Arangoth has been the Sherkhen, the tribe which inhabits the northern shores of Song Deep.

The Khalars are best known as horsemen -- or horsepeople, since the important jobs of tending and training horses are carried out by highly skilled Khalar horsegirls. A visitor should not be surprised to be given a prize colt as a parting gift -- and, indeed, Khalar horses fetch the highest prices throughout the known world, when they can be obtained at all.

On the Khalar Tribes

The following is an excerpt from a letter written by General Oryan Larkspin to Chancellor Arlok Darian during the Era of the Khalar War. It provides an enemy commander's perspective on the Khalar tribes and their methods of war.

“The Khalar tribes are one, so to speak, in their mode of life and in their organization, which is primitive and includes many peoples. Of these peoples, only the Sherkhen and the Khtarpan concern themselves with military organization, and this makes them stronger than the other Khalar peoples when it comes to pitched battles. The nation of the Sherkhen is very numerous and independent. They are not versatile or skilled in most human endeavors, nor have they trained themselves for anything else except to conduct themselves bravely against their enemies. The Khtarpan, for their part, are scoundrels, devious, and very experienced in military matters.

These nations have a monarchial form of government, and their rulers subject them to cruel punishments for their mistakes. Governed not by love but by fear, they steadfastly bear labors and hardships. They endure heat and cold, and the want of many necessities, since they are nomadic peoples. They are very superstitious, treacherous, foul, faithless, possessed by an insatiable desire for riches. They scorn their oath, do not observe agreements, and are not satisfied by gifts. Even before they accept the gift, they are making plans for treachery and betrayal of their agreements. They are clever at estimating suitable opportunities to do this and taking prompt advantage of them. They prefer to prevail over their enemies not so much by force as by deceit, surprise attacks, and cutting off supplies.

They are armed with mail, swords, bows, and lances. In combat most of them attack doubly armed; lances slung over their shoulders and holding bows in their hands, they make use of both as need requires. Not only do they wear armor themselves, but in addition the horses of their illustrious men are covered in front with iron or felt. They give special attention to the training of archery on horseback.

A vast herd of male and female horses follows them, both to provide nourishment and to give the impression of a huge army. They do not encamp within entrenchments, as do the Arangothians and the Rondissians, but until the day of the battle, spread about according to tribes and clans, they continuously graze their horses both summer and winter. They then take the horses they think necessary, hobbling them next to their tents, and guard them until it is time to form their battle line, which they begin to do under cover of night. They station their sentries at some distance, keeping them in contact with one another, so that it is not easy to catch them by a surprise attack.

In combat they do not, as do the Arangothians and Rondissians, form their battle line in three parts, but in several units of irregular size, all joined closely together to give the appearance of one long battle line. Separate from their main formation, they have an additional force which they can send out to ambush a careless adversary or hold in reserve to aid in a hard-pressed section. They keep their spare horses close behind their main line, and their baggage train to the right or left of the line about a mile or two away under a moderately sized guard. Frequently they tie the extra horses together to the rear of their battle line as a form of protection. They make the depth of their files indefinite depending on the circumstances, being inclined to make them deeper, and they make their front even and dense.

They prefer battles fought at long range, ambushes, encircling their adversaries, simulated retreats and sudden returns, and wedge-shaped formations, that is, in scattered groups. When they make their enemies take to flight, they put everything else aside, and are not content, as the Arangothians, the Rondissians, and other peoples, with pursuing them a reasonable distance and plundering their goods, but they do not let up at all until they have achieved the complete destruction of their enemies, and they employ every means to this end. If some of the enemy they are pursuing take refuge in a fortress, they make continual and thorough efforts to discover any shortage of necessities for horses or men. They then wear their enemies down by such shortages and get them to accept terms favorable to themselves. Their first demands are fairly light, and when the enemy has agreed to these they impose stricter terms.

They are hurt by a shortage of fodder which can result from the huge number of horses they bring with them. Also in the event of battle, when opposed by an infantry force in close formation, they stay on their horses and do not dismount, for they do not last long fighting on foot. They have been brought up on horseback, and owing to their lack of exercise they simply cannot walk about on their own feet. Level, unobstructed ground should be chosen, and a cavalry force should advance against them in a dense, unbroken mass to engage them in hand-to-hand fighting. Night attacks are also effective, with part of our force maintaining its formation whole the other lies in ambush. They are seriously hurt by defections and desertions. They are very fickle, avaricious and, composed of so many tribes as they are, they have no sense of kinship or unity with one another. If a few begin to desert and are well received, many more will follow.”

Language

Little is known about the languages within the Khalar tribes.