The Wildespan (Will-de-span)

The Wildespan is the land to the east of the Turspan Slightlands, a vast and untamed expanse inhabited by a nomadic people. This land, although rich and fully able to sustain agriculture, struggles to maintain large plants or settlements. The reason for this is for the same reason that the Wildespani people roam: Dragons. The Wildespan is the land of dragons, which dominate it. The great herbivorous ones devour any tree which dares rise higher than a couple of meters, and the dread carnivores descend upon and feast upon any creature that stays in one place for too long. Within its vast plains, high cliffs, and rolling hills, the greatest of beasts nest and raise their own young, fiercely defending their own. The greatest of these monsters are known as the titans of their respective lands and elements, for all must acquiesce to their strength or fall as sand before the waves of their steps.   Within the Wildespan, there are more places to live than just the ground. Unbound by the confines of stone and wood, the people of the Wildespan reside in tent, in flight, and on dragonback. They ride across the great expanse, trailed by beasts, birds, and the fish of the land. The great Zoephis runs through here, and there are those who dwell upon it and its tributaries, too. Within the air, the Wildespani ride on vehicles crafted from dragon and cloud and the aether itself, riding the winds wherever they may go. Often, they can end up so far from home that they're in another land entirely. There are those who dwell upon and ride alongside the dragons of the land as well, the largest settlements being atop the great shelled tortoise-like ones. The place where many Wildespani reunite to trade and share stories is the walking city of Gaermolt, which sits atop and within a titan of a tortoise of the same name, a being of unfathomable age and wisdom.   Despite their nomadic ways of life, the Wildespani are renowned for their literacy. Deep inside the root-rich lands of the deepest Wildespan and the mountains beyond, drawing and depictions have a funny way of coming to life. Thought to be the actions of mischievous little deities, the wandering peoples of the Wildespan instead place cultural and religious value upon the written word. There, literacy and calligraphy are highly valued forms of art and learning. Rather than depictive images and sculpture decorating their precious artifacts and homes, it is often calligraphy and non-depictive art, instead.   The script in question is rather efficient, with a single character representing a given adjective, noun, verb, or other meaning, which can be quite complex and require a trained hand to write well. The text is read top to bottom, left to right.   The long histories of the Wildespan and their mythology are preserved in writing within the Book of Lives, which details history, philosophy, life skills, and morality, in accordance with Wildespani tradition. Although there is no central government within the region, the constant mobility and interaction between different factions leads to its own sort of cultural exchange and homogeneity, such as when a new chapter is added to the book following a philosopher, historian, or magi's contribution.   To speak broadly of the book, its philosophical and spiritual teachings suggest that one should endeavor to live in harmony with one's surroundings, whatever they may be. It is thus vital to observe and seek to understand the world around, and to teach others of yourself as you learn. It also says that most living creatures in the world are equal in intelligence, even should communication not be shared. Thus, one should not partake of the flesh of another, unless that other seeks to partake of yours. It is for these teachings that the Wildespani come to comprise not just of ordinary folk, but of dragonkind, too.   There are two major offshoots of the Book of Lives: the Book of Futures, and the Book of Dreams.   The Book of Futures is carried by the Foretendites, a people who live within the most inhospitable Primal Strip, where the world's future is said to come into being. There, they craft prophecy and seek to understand the nature of the world. Owing to the harsh land, they are known to be kind to strangers and happy to trade with them, but sometimes overwhelmingly insistent on their stories and findings. The book of Futures is considered largely apocryphal by the majority of other Wildespani people on account of its multitude of past prophecies fell flat and its remarkably odd suggestions on how one should live, but it is never ignored, for some of the most important prophecies have indeed come to be true.   The Book of Dreams is born by the Miragi, a people much like other Wildespani, who live among them as nomads among nomads. The Miragi listen to and chronicle the dreams of others into the Book of Dreams, which they believe hold special value. Unlike other Wildespani, the Miragi also put a special value on the art of images, which is holy to them. Through these arts, they make manifest the dreams of those they come to love, and one to each person who has recently passed on. Though outsiders sometimes misjudge them to be a priest-like caste, the Miragi are a people unto themselves, with traditions beyond just magic and religion. The Miragi are also inventors, historians, and artists, and regularly meet in special ceremonies each year.   Each page of the book is traditionally written upon a specially treated scale from one of the countless dragons of the land, which is flattened, shaped, shaved, and then etched. The books are highly weather-resistant and durable as a result. Oxos, despite its sedentary nature, also partakes in the exchange of the Book of Lives, and the majority population of the city relies upon it for educational and spiritual guidance.   Owing to their way of life being perpetually exposed to the sun and the weather, the skin of most Wildespani is tough and dark, and their hair wind-whipped. The common tongue among Wildespani is Wildespani, although outsiders typically call it Draconic, for its tie to dragons.