Map B.05 - Lower Yenisey

Sub-arctic region spanning from 77.22°N south to 62.96°N, encompassing the lower valley of the Yenisey River and it's mouth upon the Yenisey Gulf, part of Biyetia, lower Lungos Nad and the western edge of Nissi An, featuring the Tunguska Plateau. Samoyadia appears at the top north of the map.

Hexes are 20 miles in diameter. Total area depicted equals 403,095 sq.m.

Features

This sub-arctic expanse stretches across vast boreal forests, tundra and river valleys, shaped by permafrost and the extremes of the seasons. The lower Yenisey flows steadily to the gulf, a great, ice-bound channel in winter and a passage for trade and migration in the warmer months. Here dwell nomadic and semi-nomadic non-human peoples, moving with the herds, fishing the rivers and setting traps for fur-bearing beasts. Reindeer are their lifeblood, providing food, transport and trade, while the river serves as their highway to distant lands. Settlements remain few, their denizens hardened by the cold, bound to cycles of hunting, herding and barter with those who come north. The land offers little but what can be taken from it, and those who survive do so by wit, endurance and an understanding of its unyielding ways.

Tunguska Plateau

Rising in the heart of the sub-arctic wilderness, this vast and untamed land consists of rolling highlands, deep river valleys and dense boreal forests. Its surface is a rugged expanse of frost-shattered rock, permafrost-laden soil and vast stretches of larch, pine and spruce, where trees grow twisted and stunted by the brutal cold. In some places, the land is broken by deep ravines and fissures carved by ancient rivers, while elsewhere, broad expanses of bog and muskeg stretch toward the horizon, their shifting ground treacherous for those unfamiliar with its ways.

Through this forbidding landscape, the rivers carve winding paths, most notably the Lower Tunguska and its tributaries, their waters swelling in summer with melt from the highlands and freezing solid in the depths of winter. The region's climate is one of extremes — long, sunless winters of deep, wind-driven cold, where the land is locked beneath ice and snow, followed by short, riotous summers when the thaw releases the rivers and the air fills with the hum of insects and the cries of birds returning to breed.

Wildlife here is hardy and well-adapted. Reindeer move in great herds across the plateau, their migrations a lifeline to the nomadic peoples who follow them. Wolves, wolverines and lynxes stalk the forests, while bears emerge from their dens as the ice recedes. The rivers teem with fish, and in the brief summer, waterfowl gather in vast numbers on the marshes and lakes, making the plateau a place of sudden abundance before the cold closes in once more.

Few settlements mark the land, for it is a place of passage, where bands of Evenki, the old bugbear tribe and other reindeer herders range across the tundra, setting camps in the shelter of wooded valleys. Trade routes run along the rivers, connecting distant lands to the south and west, but beyond these watery roads, the plateau remains a place of solitude, vast and silent, where the land and sky meet in a great and unbroken emptiness.

Yenisey Basin

This consists of a sparsely populated sub-arctic wilderness where the river dominates the landscape. The Lower Yenisey carves a path through a a landscape of hills, highlands and river valleys flanking on either side as the river flows toward the Kara Sea. The terrain on both sides is uneven, shaped by ancient geological activity, permafrost processes and erosion from the river itself.

To the east of the Yenisey, the Tunguska Plateau dominates; to the west, a series of low hills and highlands rise above the floodplain, forming a transition zone between the Yenisey and the interior regions. These hills are heavily forested and interspersed with glacial moraines, rocky outcrops and muskegs. The valleys between them channel water from smaller rivers and streams, many of which remain frozen for much of the year.

The Yenisey River itself widens as it moves northward, its banks cut by erosion and shaped by the seasonal freeze-thaw cycle. Ice breakup in the spring can cause significant flooding, with ice floes scouring the surrounding terrain. The climate is subarctic, with long, harsh winters and short summers, during which the permafrost layer thaws just enough to allow for a burst of vegetation and wildlife activity.

Lungos Nad

This province is the northern frontier of the vast empire of Vostoch, a hobgoblin-dominated state, stretching across the rugged expanse of central Asia. The empire's heartlands lie south of the great Siberian forests, extending from the Altai Mountains in the west to the eastern shores of the great inland lakes and river basins that feed the largest waterways of the continent. It is bordered in the north by the vast boreal wilderness, where the Yenisey River and its tributaries carve deep, glacial valleys adjacent to the rolling Tunguska Plateau and the scattered highlands beyond.

Lungos Nad is a harsh and sparsely settled province, where the empire's influence is enforced through military outposts, fortified encampments and roving warbands. The hobgoblins here are hardened by the unforgiving climate, accustomed to long winters and the necessity of endurance. Settlements are few and primarily serve as strategic points along the river, supplying soldiers and housing the empire's northern administrators. Hunting, trapping and river trade sustain the inhabitants, though life remains dominated by the needs of the empire's war machine.

The province is a place of shifting control, where imperial forces maintain order along well-patrolled corridors but face continual challenges beyond their reach. Goblin raiders from the west, indifferent gnoll hunters and trappers in the north and the huge hobgoblins of the east all infringe upon the region, without truly threatening it. Skirmishes are common, as patrols disappear into the forest, and outposts are found abandoned, their fires cold and their warriors gone without a trace. Hobgoblin commanders view the province as both an opportunity and a test — those who can subdue and hold the frontier may find themselves elevated in the empire's ranks, while those who fail are swiftly replaced.

Despite its dangers, Lungos Nad is a land of wealth for those who can claim it. Furs, rare minerals and the resources of the deep forest flow southward, enriching those bold enough to exploit them. Warriors who prove themselves in the cold and darkness of the north gain prestige, and ambitious governors seek to expand the empire's hold further. But the land resists conquest — its people vanish into the trees, its beasts turn upon those who hunt them, and its winters claim even the strongest. Here, in the farthest reaches of Vostoch, only the ruthless endure.

Gilkask, far to the north, is the heart of Lungos Nad's seasonal migrations, a vast hunting and gathering encampment that swells with activity in late spring as hobgoblins from across the frontier converge. By mid-summer, its population reaches 6,700, with thousands of tents, hide shelters and temporary longhouses clustered around the hunting grounds, trading posts and communal gathering spaces. Warbands return from the east with pelts and dried meat, while trappers and foragers from the west bring rare furs, roots and medicinal plants. The encampment serves as a hub for exchanging goods, reinforcing alliances and preparing for the winter ahead. Its location in the uplands, near rich game trails and vital overland routes, makes it a crucial waypoint for the movement of people and supplies. By the end of September, the encampment empties rapidly, its inhabitants dispersing into the wilderness before the first heavy snows.

Garka is Lungos Nad's largest permanent settlement, built along the Yenisey River and home to 3,000 hobgoblins who rely on the waterway for trade, transport and sustenance. It is a market town. Unlike the shifting encampments of the frontier, Garka is a place of stability, featuring wooden longhouses, warehouses and a riverside fortress that oversees the empire's northernmost supply routes. The town serves as a critical waystation for boats and barges moving north in the summer, bringing grain, iron and other goods from the south while exporting furs, fish and lumber. Thick palisades and a standing garrison ensure that Garka remains well-defended, guarding against both raiders from the west and internal unrest. Life in Garka is defined by the rhythm of the river; in winter, when the Yenisey freezes, the town contracts inwards, with much of its population relying on stored supplies and ice-cut fishing to endure the long, dark months. It remains a center of imperial governance in the north, where officials enforce Vostoch's will, collect levies and organize expeditions into the frontier.