Brak's World
A gazetteer of the peoples and places met upon the road to Khurdisan.

Ankhma Ra’s Eyrie:--the mountain stronghold of a sorcerous bandit that lies atop a mountain pass between Tazim’s realm and Kopt of the North. In a pool below the stronghold resides a monster called the Fangfish. (The Courts of the Conjurer)

Bemkah:--a kingdom of the civilized lands that lay adjacent to Kopt. (The Unspeakable Shrine)

Chambalor:--also known as the City of the Gold Chariots, Chambalor was a once fertile city-state that lay nearby the nations of Ringarim and Gat. That was generations ago. In Brak’s time the realm is no more and the city of Chambalor lies in ruins surrounded by an immense, red-sand wasteland. (The Unspeakable Shrine, Ghosts of Stone)

Circassia :--a mountainous area that lies north of and adjacent to the Dark Sea . Its inhabitants are the Circassians; a blue-eyed, light skinned people. (When the Idols Walked)

City of Two Bays, The:--a city-state ruled by Prince Rodar.  The inhabitants of the city are a dark skinned people. The city appears to lie between the port city of Mirka to the north and the realm of the Gords to the south. They worship two primary gods; an earth-mother named Ashtir and a cyclopean demon named Jaal the Leveler. The city is famed for its two gigantic statues of the two gods, as well as a shrine containing the holy artifact called the Sacred Lamb Fleece. (When the Idols Walked)

Dark Sea :--a large lead-colored expanse of water that lies to the south of the port of Mirka , and north of the nation of Gord. There is an extensive network of trade routes upon the sea. (When the Idols Walked)

Dark Veils:--an immense bank of clouds that sit above the sinkhole that the Shining River empties into. The priests of the Horned Lady consider it to be a holy place. (The Barge of Souls)

Dead Place, The:--a sandy, deserted wasteland valley that was home to a dinosaurian dragon. (Spell of the Dragon)

Gat:--a land that lays nearby the nations of Ringarim and Chambalor. The men of Gat are hairy, and make war on the nation of Phrixos, which lies to the south. (The Unspeakable Shrine, The Barge of Souls)

Gilgamarch:--a kingdom that lies many leagues west of the Mountains of Smoke. Brak has heard of it , but has never been there. It presumably lies to the south of the kingdom of Lord Magnus . The men of its army wear heavy leather helms and breastplates and wield scimitars. (The Mirror of Wizardry)

Gord:--a nation that lies along the southern reaches of the Dark Sea . The Gords are a race of short, squat men who worship a horned goat-god. They wear fur-trimmed leather armor and are not afraid to fight at night. They believe that they will someday rule the entire Dark Sea . (When the Idols Walked)

Great City , The:--an unnamed city of gilt-leafed onion domes and silvered spires, that lies leagues south of the Dark Veils. The city grows figs in groves around it. (The Barge of Souls)

Great Tyros:--the former capital of the maritime nation of Tyros. The green and purple spired city sank beneath the sea following an earthquake. Its haunted ruins reemerged shortly before Brak’s visit to the area. A great blue gem called the Sea-Stone could be found hanging in a place of honor behind the king’s throne. (The Girl in the Gem)

Hamur’s Palace:--a demon-haunted, deserted ruin that lies on a hilltop near the village of Yarah the Bull. Hamur of the Thousand Claws was once the hereditary lord of this province south of Samerind. Forty years of plundered treasure was reputed to lie within the ruins. (Devils in the Walls)

Hamur’s Province:--a principality that lies to the south of Samerind. It is most likely the province of the kingdom of Kopt . The province used to extend from a bit south of Samerind in the north to Prince Hamur’s palace and onward an equal distance to the south. (Devils in the Walls)

High steppes:--the region of the northlands that Brak hales from. This endless wasteland lies just to the north of the Ice-marches. The people of the High steppes put a high premium on horses; the slayer of a man’s horse is caught and quartered. (The Unspeakable Shrine, The Sorceress)

Ice-marches:--this craggy land is the northernmost of the civilized lands. The Ice-marches is not an actual country, but rather a collection of unconnected cities lying on the border of the barbarous lands to the north. The city of Kambda Kai is the defacto capital of the Ice-marches. The Ice-marches are home to the snow camel, a creature with cloven hoofs. ( The Unspeakable Shrine, Devils in the Walls)

Iram:--a city lying in the vicinity of the nation of Toct. It presumably lies within the nation of Tardam. (Flame-Face)

Jaffnia:--a city known for its exquisitely beautiful carpets. Its location is unknown. (When the Idols Walked)

Jonel’s village:--a small mountain hamlet that lies near the Dead Place . Jonel’s father was the headman of the village. (Spell of the Dragon)

Jovis:--an eastern kingdom near the Mountains of Smoke. (The Mark of the Demons)

Kambda Kai:--the most far north outpost of civilization. The city of Kambda Kai is the defacto capital of the Ice-marches. (The Unspeakable Shrine)

Khurdisan:--also called Khurdisan the Golden, this huge land is shaped like a sickle-moon and said to stretch from the Mountains of Smoke in the east to nearly as far west as the Pillars of Ebon. The nation is rich; “in the cities, gold clings to the buildings in little thin layers that you can scrape off”. The statues of the gods are made of pure gold. The inhabitants of Khurdisan have pale golden skin and it never gets cold there. (The Unspeakable Shrine, When the Idols Walked, The Mark of the Demons, Devils in the Walls, Brak in Chains, The Mirror of Wizardry)

Kopt:--also known as Southern Kopt , it is a kingdom of the civilized southlands that lay nearby the nation of Bemkah. The nation lies to the south of the Logol Wastes. (The Unspeakable Shrine, The Mark of the Demons)

Kopt of the North:--also known as Kopt, it is a sleepy principality that lies to the south of Tazim’s realm. A mountain range separates the two lands. Kopt is ruled by Prince Omer. South of Kopt lay several pleasant unnamed kingdoms. (The Courts of the Conjurer)

Lesser Tyros:--a small dilapidated port that became the capital of Tyros after the original city of Great Tyros sank beneath the waves of the sea during an earthquake. (The Girl in the Gem)

Logol:--a once powerful kingdom that used to rule the desert surrounding it. It exacted tribute from all the caravans that used to cross the waste. The nation ceased to exist nearly 100 years prior to Brak’s time. (The Mark of the Demons)

Logol Plateau:--a crumpled, barren gray hell of a place. North of the plateau are pleasant savannahs; to the south lies the desert of the Logol Waste. The plateau is actually worse than the desert in that there are no sources of water to be found upon it. (The Mark of the Demons)

Logol Waste:--also called the Desert of Logol , it is a wasteland of dun-colored dunes. The desert is dotted with ruins of old forts, pits of bubbling oil, and at least one northwest flowing river crosses the center of it. The Logol is most likely the largest desert in the civilized lands. There are certain times of the year that it is nearly impossible to cross, due to a vicious, roiling wind called the Skulwind. (The Mark of the Demons, Devils in the Walls)

Magians:--a cult that practiced their occult mysteries in the warm southern countries near the border of Khurdisan. (The Sorceress)

Magnus’ Realm:--also called the Worldbreaker’s kingdom, it is a large, warlike southern nation that lies atop the extensive plateau that lies west of the Mountains of Smoke. The unnamed capital of the realm lay at its center, surrounded by (usually) fertile plains. It is six day’s ride from the capital to the Mountains of Smoke. (Brak in Chains, The Mirror of Wizardry)

Manworm Pit:--lies in a cave high in the Mountains of the Four Winds; it contains a huge, slime-covered serpent called the Manworm. It has been alive for centuries and is the last of its race. (The Sorceress)

Megaro:--a small, southern town, possibly part of Kopt or Shend. It lays several days’ journey north of a huge forest infested with carnivorous witch-apple trees. (Ghoul’s Garden)

Mirka:--a little port city that lies at the northern end of the Dark Sea . It was sacked by the Gords. North of Mirka lays an inland wilderness. (When the Idols Walked)

Mountains of Smoke:--an unbelievably long, exceptionally high rampart of mist-shrouded mountains that was believed to guard the approaches to the world’s eastern rim and was the birthplace and home of the elder gods of the civilized lands to the west. A nomadic tribe of people called the Children of Smoke lived on the western side of the mountains. The people of the civilized lands speculated that wizards and adepts at the forbidden arts of magic lived on the eastern side. The reality is that wealthy mountain kingdoms lie east of the mountains, at least in the southern regions. (The Unspeakable Shrine, The Sorceress, The Mark of the Demons,  Brak in Chains, The Mirror of Wizardry)

Mountains of the Four Winds:--a lonely, mist-shrouded mountain range that lies several weeks ride south of Phrixos. The range contains several trails, one leading westward through the low peaks toward the western part of the known lands; the other leads southeast towards the Mountains of Smoke. (The Sorceress)

Nordica’s Castle:--built high on a mountain slope in the Mountains of the Four Winds, near Lord Strann’s realm. The castle is the lair of a sorceress named Nordica Fire-Hair.(The Sorceress)

Phrix:--the capital of the nation of Phrixos the Shining. (The Sorceress)

Phrixos:--also known as Phrixos the Shining, the realm is the delta of the Shining River ; a narrow, fertile land along both its shores. The capital of Phrixos is a city called Phrix. The people of Phrixos worship a goddess called the Horned Lady. Apparently tigers live in the northlands near Phrixos.(The Unspeakable Shrine, The Barge of Souls, The Sorceress)

Phryx:--a city-state that lies near the land of Phrixos . It is also possible that this is just a variant spelling of the city of Phrix . (The Unspeakable Shrine)

Pillarite:--a member of the tribe of people living, presumably, near the Pillars of Ebon. (The Sorceress)

Pillars of Ebon:--a place that lay in the extreme western end of the known world. (The Unspeakable Shrine, The Sorceress)

Port-of-Knives:--a trading city that lies on the coast of the Sea of Cham , in the region near the Mountains of the Four Winds. (The Sorceress)

Quran:--also known as the “Jewel City of Quran” and the “ Jewel City of the Logol Waste”. It squats in the middle of the Logol Wastes, a “city-kingdom of desert robbers older than time or sin”. The city boasts a number of gracefully intricate high towers. The belfries of these towers are adorned with red-metal bells. It is estimated that Quran is inhabited by some twenty to thirty thousand people. When the fighting men of Quran come of age, they have one eye gouged out and replaced with a ruby. (The Mark of the Demons, Devils in the Walls)

Ringarim:--a land that lies near Chambalor and Gat. (The Unspeakable Shrine)

Samerind:--the major city of the southern land of Kopt . Samerind is one terminus of the primary caravan route to the northlands. (The Mark of the Demons, Devils in the Walls)

Sea of Cham :--a large body of water that lies to the south of the Mountains of the Four Winds. The sea is prosperous, as traders from isles in the sea send caravans to the nations adjacent to it. (The Sorceress)

Shaitan:--presumably a reference to Hell. (The Courts of the Conjurer, The Girl in the Gem)

Shargan:--a country lying in the vicinity of the nation of Toct. (Flame-Face)

Shend:--a nation that lies far to the west of Lord Magnus’ realm. The land is renowned for its great wizards and sorceries. (Brak in Chains)

Shining River:--also known as Phrixos the Shining River and the River Phrixos, the river drains a large portion of the northlands, emptying at last into a large sinkhole called the Dark Veils. (The Barge of Souls)

Shrine of Yob-Haggoth:--this temple, with its huge statue of the evil god, lays in the Ice-marches nearly a league northeast of Kambda Kai. (The Unspeakable Shrine)

South, The:--a number of nations and city-states that lay in the warm regions southeast of the Mountains of Smoke. Brak apparently felt he needed to transverse this region to reach Khurdisan. A number of the kingdoms are wealthy, with vast stores of precious metals and priceless gems. It also appears that sorcery may be more tolerated than in the civilized realms, since the cult of Magians arose there. (The Sorceress, Brak in Chains, The Mirror of Wizardry)

Strann’s Realm:--a fairly prosperous realm that lies amid the Mountains of the Four Winds. It was ruled by a man named Strann of the Silver Balances. (The Sorceress)

Sulfur Fields, The:--an area adjacent to the City of Two Bays that acts as the city’s crematorium. (When the Idols Walked)

Tardam:--a country lying in the vicinity of the nation of Toct. (Flame-Face)

Tazim’s Realm:--an agricultural country that lies directly to the south of Toct and to the north of the principality of Kopt. The land is ruled by Tazim, Lord of the Tilling. (The Courts of the Conjurer)

Thanzid:--a realm that lies adjacent to both Tyros and Tobool. (The Unspeakable Shrine)

Thenngil:--a southern farming province, possibly part of Shend. It lies southeast of a huge forest infested with carnivorous witch-apple trees, 3 month’s ride from Hamur’s Province in Kopt. (Ghoul’s Garden)

Timbello:--a country of the west. It is the terminus of the major southern caravan route. You can buy anything in Timbello, including massive quantities of ivory and gems. (The Mark of the Demons)

Tobool:--the southernmost empire of the civilized lands; it lies adjacent to the realm of Thanzid. Beyond the country, to the south, lies the golden crescent of Khurdisan. Tobool lies far to the west of the Mountains of Smoke. The Yellow Emperors of Tobool rule the nation. Their people are olive-skinned with dark eyes. (The Unspeakable Shrine, The Mirror of Wizardry)

Toct:--the kingdom lays a month’s ride to the south of the Ice-marches. Ancient Toctish legends tell of a six-legged creature that haunts the land; the Doomdog. (The Unspeakable Shrine, Flame-Face)

Tyros:--a maritime nation that lies to the south of Kopt and adjacent to Thanzid and Tobool. An unnamed sea (presumably the Sea of Cham) lies west of the realm; a low, ragged mountain range lies to its immediate north. The original capital of the city-state is famed for having sunk beneath the waves of the sea, drowned by earthquakes. (The Unspeakable Shrine, The Girl in the Gem)

Uzhiram’s Mines:--lying in the kingdom of Toct, the mine used the forced labor of ten-thousand prisoners to quarry iron ore and other precious metals. (Flame-Face)

Vishnuzin:--a merchant city that lies nearby the dead wasteland of Chambalor. (Ghosts of Stone)

Yarah’s village:--a small town that is the remains of the seat of Hamur’s Province. Yarah the Bull is the elected governor of the village. (Devils in the Walls)