Hepmonaland is home to many humans and nearly a score of nations and its people have had little exchange with the Flanaess. The Touv people avoid traveling the sea. The last Olman to traverse the seas were the men and women who fled to the Amedio Jungle a thousand years ago. The Suel who sailed here so long ago forgot their seagoing skills in their war for survival. Furthermore, the Scarlet Brotherhood’s presence on the Tilvanot closed off most northward traffic for the past millennium. The people of this land were an especially rare sight in the Flanaess for many years, until the Brotherhood unloaded boats of Olman and Hepmonaland Suel warriors.

Although the nations of Hepmonaland claim large areas for themselves, the nature of the jungle and grassy plain in such that it is easy for small groups to go unnoticed within the borders defined by a government. Thus, while the following counties consider themselves the rulers of certain lands, it is common for many small families or tribes to live within that country’s border and clam independence. These groups are normally mobile nomads, settling an area for no more than a month before moving on. Hepmonaland is a large place with many secrets, and there are certainly hundreds of hidden or forgotten tribes living on the jungle continent.

The Touv refer to Hepmonaland as Melavi, “the bountiful place.” The Olman and the yuan-ti call it Xamolatatl, “home of the people.” The Suel tribes call it Hepmonaland after the young explorer from House Schnai that first came to the jungle continent..

Settlements and Locations in Hepmonaland:

• Alocotla, Lands of
• Anatal, Lands of
• Byanbo, Lands of
• Cuhuetla, Lands of
• Fort Murma
• Ichamamna, Lands of
• Ikelan, Lands of
• Iyapo, Lands of
• Jolan, Lands of
• Kevot, Lands of
• Kundanol, Lands of
• Kundaxa, Lands of
• Lerga, Lands of
• Sharba, Lands of
• Sharbakal, Lands of
• Tolanok, Lands of
• Turashar
• Turazo
• Vay Nama, Lands of
• Xapatlapo, Lands of
• Xolapeqa, Lands of
• Zar, Lands of

Geography of Hepmonaland
Flora and Fauna of Hepmonaland
Languages of Hepmonaland
Calendar of Hepmonaland

Goods from Hepmonaland are much more common. Gems figurines, ivory, exotic flora and fauna, and rare woods all appear in the cities of the Flanaess, the mysterious origin of these items adding to their value. Moot Hepmonaland creatures have trouble adapting to the cooler and drier climates to the north, and so the lives of these plants are short.

Weather: Largely rainforest, Hepmonaland’s weather is about the same from week to week; precipitation falls for most of every day, with occasional periods of strong equatorial sunlight. Temperatures are warm to high, even in the winter months, and humidity is typically high, as well.

History: As in most places on Oerth, the first human occupants are lost to the mists of time. By two and a half thousand years ago, tribes of Touv wandered the savanna and lower jungles of Hepmonaland farming small plots and chasing herds of wild cattle. In the deeper jungles to the north, similarly uncivilized tribes of Olman warred with each other and built shrines to their gods, occasionally discovering or destroying a ruin their legends said had been built by a bat-like humanoid race that had left or been exterminated several hundred years before.

Over the next 400 years, the Olman learned to work stone and bronze and built great cities in the heart of the jungles – clearing the land around them for farming – and raised great temples to honor their deities. Four Olman city-states formed from the original tribes, and all delighted in warring on each other, chiming prisoners as live sacrifices. The northernmost nation, Xuxulieto, was broken by a combined effort of two of its neighbors, and its resources were divided up among the survivors; its capital was abandoned and soon overrun by humanoids.

Meanwhile, the Touv in the south lands collected into larger groups and formed permanent settlements. Though there were a few fights over land and cattle. the majority of the Touv worked amiably with their distant cousins. A charismatic tribal leader named Onatal convinced three of the larger tribes to combine into one, and the agglomerate tribe took great leaps in metallurgy, farming and herding. The remaining tribes quickly joined the large one, and Onatal proclaimed himself King of the Cities. The Kingdom of Kunda was born. The Kundali began to settle a larger and larger area, eventually encountering the martial Olman city-states to the north. Repulsed by the Olman use of human sacrifice and their worship of a serpent god – the primary Touv evil god was Meyulok, a serpent-deity – the Kundali declared war upon the Olman.

The unfamiliarity of the Kundali with the deep jungles hindered their war efforts at first, but in time they learned the ways of the jungle, and their advanced metalworking skills, especially the use of iron, gave them a serious advantage over the Olman. Furthermore, the war to the south did not stop the Olman states from fighting each other, this time about how to deal with the invaders and who should be responsible. The capture and conversion of two of the Olman city-states into yuan-ti communities wounded the Olman morale, and eventually many Olmani migrated to the north end of Hepmonaland and onto the Tilvanot peninsula and Olman Islands, with most settling in the Amedio jungle. The Kundali had little trouble sacking the remaining Oh cities, usually driving the survivors into the wilderness.

These survivors were later to discovered by Suel fleeing from the Rain of Colorless Fire. The fair refugees built their own cities in the northlands, normally keeping themselves separate from the other races, but in some cases merging with the Olman or Touv people they discovered. Over the subsequent years, the Suel adapted to their jungle environment and lost most of their original culture and history.

After fortifying its new northern borders, the Kundali returned to their previous existence of learning, herding, and building. However, agents of the Touv snake-god corrupted the prince of one of the cities and caused him to break from the Kingdom. Barely checked resentment burst forth in two other Kunda city-states, and they also seceded. Trouble within the capital prevented the king from acting, and his successor was unable to reunite the states. The Kingdom of Kunda lasted a little over 1200 years.

The snake-priests also destroyed one of the northern cities by a magical famine; even now, the land is cursed, and few willingly travel near it. The famine provided a distraction for the city-state of Ichamamna, which had long sought to take over the once Olman yuan-ti city of Xapatlapo. An army of Touv warriors stormed the Xapatlapo, but fell to traps and poison, while yuan-ti turned their friends and family into snake-men, as well.

The most remarkable thing to happen in recent years has been the arrival of fair-skinned visitors from across the sea. The severe storms and dangerous waters around Hepmonaland prevented the natives from developing watercraft beyond small coastline-hugging vessels, and so the arrival of humans from beyond what was considered an impassable barrier caused surprise. Reaction toward the strangers has been largely neutral or positive, with most local nations awaiting indications of the visitors’ intent.