Emandine wood

Like many jungle wood types, Emandine is strong and resistant to water damage and most parasites. However, its most impressive quirk is its regenerative abilities. Indeed, while a plank of emandine wood won't suddently turn back into a tree, it is able to repair itself from scrapes and cracks. This regenerative ability lessens and eventualy dissapears with time, but it can be revived and/or accelerated by exposing the damaged area with emandine sap.

The tree from which the wood comes from can be found growing natively within the Nohlu hills of northern mahador, in what is now one of the Merchant Republic of Arba's most prized colony. However, Emandine Trees are also grown and cultivated throughout the northern Mahador and north-eastern mahador.

Emandine wood has a long and deep history with the local cultures, particularly with the Ak'aarans of northern Ayoxal, in northern Mahador. There, before the first proper city-states even had risen, their hunters already used it to make bows and spears, while the tree's sap was used as a healing ointement. As the network of Ak'aaran city-states formed and grew southwards, into southern Ayoxal, the use of emandine wood spread there as well.   Further to the west, the city-state of Nasser, at the time a colony of the Valcoren empire and later, the kingdom of Khrona, began cultivating emandine and sell the wood and sap as one of its most profitable export. This introduced the wood to Enaskia and Arros. Then around 800 years ago, the Esnian Empire arrived in the region and began traiding with the Ak'aaran city states for the wood, which they then used for their boats and later, Winged ships.   While the Esnian empire is long gone by now, the wood has never been more in demand, as a naval arms race is occuring in the Mahadorian sea, and numerous countries, the strongest of them being the Merchant Republic of Arba, seek to build bigger and stronger fleets.

Emandine wood is used for a variety of purpose. Bows, spears, Occomor Chariot and idol carvings are the wood's main uses in Mahador. The nobility of Arros and Enaskia has had a taste for emandine woodworks and furniture for centuries, along with those made of teak and mahogany. In the shipyards of both continents, emandine is used in the construction of the haul of sea-faring ships as well as for important piece of the internal structure of Winged ships.

In Ak'aaran territory, the tree is viewed as a representation of Xaakum, the local god of wildlife, hunters and war. An important coming of age ceremony exist in the Ak'aaran culture, which consists of young hunters crafting their own bows with emandine wood. Lastly, in many temples of the region, statues and idols of gods from their pantheon are sometimes carved in emandine wood.

The Nohlu hills of northern Mahador have suffered severe localised deforestation in the past few years at the hands of the Merchant Republic of Arba. The republic, which established a colony on the continent about 3 years ago, seeks to cut down all existing emandine trees and clear out the rest of the dense forests of the region so they can establish emandine tree farms. These farms are supposed to fulfill their need for the wood.

Since most of the small region in which Emandine trees are able to grow is owned by the Merchant Republic of Arba, they have a near-monopoly on the trade of the wood, and because they know how useful it is, they are more or less able to restrict its use by their enemies by simply charging them more than they do their allies. This has obviously bred a lot of resentement towards them, resentement with contributes to the high tensions on the Mahadorian sea.