The Rend

The Rend

In the northeast of the Yavinian plains is the Rend. It starts as a hilly plain and quickly develops into rugged, rocky shrublands. Most of its area is an uneven highland plateau, with deep river valleys, some of which are quite navigable.

The Climate is cloudy with frequent rain, and strong winds, especially in the highlands, however, the high altitude and terrain don't allow for the growth of large forests, instead making way for various brushes and shrubs, and small patches of woods in the valleys, where they are protected from the cold winds.

Flora and Fauna

Due to the terrain, Yavinian bison isn't found here, and instead, various types of wild goats, and the domesticated Rendish sheep are the most common grazers, being much better at dealing with the rocky and uneven landscape, and they are also better at digesting the tough plants and shrubs that grow here.
People are known to keep cows in the more northern parts of the Rend, which is flatter and more suitable for this form of livestock.

Besides sheep, there are also a variety of field mice, rabbits, and badgers found here, who take advantage of the terrain and vegetation to hide from predators, of which there are also many. Specifically in the form of griffins, which hunt these lands from their nests in the mountains, there are also ordinary birds of prey here, like the brown eagle, which sails the winds in search of prey. Besides aerial threats, these lands also have their share of land-based predators, such as the grey wolf, small amounts of mountain lions, as well as the humble fox.

Land

Despite the harsh climate, this land is actually very fertile, although it is difficult to farm here due to the uneven terrain. However, the Rendish have used plateau-based farming to overcome this struggle, and they are able to support a sizable population from just that and their sheep.

Minerals

Besides sheep, the Rend is also rich in many types of mineral deposits, namely Iron, Tin, and Copper, all of which are most valuable. They also have large deposits of lead, and smaller deposits of Jet, and precious metals, like gold, silver, and platinum.
Many of these deposits have already run dry, leaving the country specked with abandoned mineshafts, making excellent homes for boar spiders and vampires alike.

Culture and People

This terrain, and wealth in natural resources and farmland has allowed the Rendish to become a strong and independant people, and despite their relative isolation from the rest of the world, further strengthened by the waterfalls on the Rend River, barring them from easy trade with Westingham, they have managed to make a name for themselves as a wealthy and strong people.
Most of their metals stay within their own nations, and they use them to supply themselves with a wealth of weapons and armor, and most Rendish men, even humble farmers, will have at least a good sword somewhere.

Strategic Positioning

The Rend isn't a particularly important region to hold, as it guards nothing except the Orcs. There are no major trade routes here.
This is why the lowlander kingdom of Westingham has long been happy to leave this place alone, even if they have been invaded by these Rendish a number of times, and a good quarter of the Yavinian dynasties have been of Rendish origin, the most recent of which being only two dynasties ago.