Antyok

Antyok or Antyoq [ant-YOK, uhn-CHOK] is an island in the Natorn Archipelago, due east of Besoa. It was formerly an independent nation, the Principality of Antyok, but since 1086 ME, following the Bizoan War, it is now under Hartheran dominion.

Antyok is the fourth largest island in the Natorn Archipelago, 110 km north-south and 70 east-west, lying 160 km due east of Besoa. The two are separated by the Hornber Sea.

The island is volcanic and dominated by the most active volcano in the Civilised World, Mount Karmoqué. The native people call it the 'God Mountain', since it constantly rumbles and shakes the island. The northern half of the island is bleak and rocky, particularly around the slopes of the mountain which are rugged lava-fields, shattered into scree by earthquakes. The lower slopes are thick with virid vegetation, which thrives in the mineral-rich volcanic soil. Only the coastal fringes of the northwest are green, while the far north coast is blasted cliffs and steaming lava fields.

The northeastern region, in the shadow of the mountain, is the main refuge of the indigenous Ko-kway people, who were displaced from the rest of the island centuries ago by the island's Heronbaht colonists. It is a grim environment, cloud-covered and fed by sulphurous rivers.

The western coastline is dominated by a bay of deep water with precipitous volcanic cliffs. At its midpoint is a massive natural harbour, focus of the island's chief city, Terab. The city and its immediate hinterland are surrounded by a series of earthworks and fortifications of wood and stone, built to protect the city and farmlands from native raids. The walls follow natural ridges, enclosing an area of towns and farmland approximately 160 sq km.

East of Terab lies the fertile Hiseneb Valley. It is sheltered, well drained, and with its fertile volcanic soils it forms the richest farmland in the entire Natorn Archipelagoplugin-autotooltip__small plugin-autotooltip_bigNatorn Archipelago

The Natorn Archipelago, or the Natorn Isles [nah-TORN], is a chain of islands in the Natorn Sea. The islands are oceanic ridge running from the northeastern tip of Anásthias to the Anrel Isles. The ridge is an active geological fault, many of the islands being volcanic.Anásthias. Agriculture is an important industry, as Antyok exports large quantities of staple foodstuffs to many neighbouring isles, particularly cereal crops like emmer.

The south coast has a long sandy shoreline, with fishing villages and summer houses built by the old Heronbaht nobility, greatest of these being the royal Summer Palace of Minasûl. The southwestern hills of Egeb province are rich in iron and copper making it the island's main industrial centre, producing high quality iron and bronze ingots for export.

The island has been inhabited for countless millennia by a proto-Iskean people called the Ko-kway. They are very distantly related to the Junda people who founded modern Harthera. Ko-kway lineage is in fact much more ancient, for their ancestors have lived for countless millennia near the God Mountain.

The first settlers from the eccentric sea-faring Kingdom of Heronbar on Besoa arrived here long ago, around 400 BME. For a hundred years previous to that, ships had used the natural harbour at Terab as an excellent place to take on food and water during long voyages for fishing, trade and exploration. It quickly developed into a port and thriving town. Conflict with native tribes led the Heronbaht king to send his heir, the Prince, to maintain order, and in time all Crown Princes of Heronbar ruled Antyok before becoming King.

Antyok's port, and agriculture products from the well-tilled plains in its hinterland, gradually became central to the old kingdom's economy, and in the terrible years after the Battle of Four Kingdoms in 35 MEplugin-autotooltip__small plugin-autotooltip_bigModern Epoch (ME)

The Modern Calendar is a dating system acknowledged throughout the Civilised World. It numbers years from the Modern Epoch, abbreviated ME and BME (Before Modern Epoch). It is also called the Modern Era.

Calendar

This is in a series of articles about calendars and dating systems.OrorrHartheraHMOrorrHartheraOrorrOrorrHMHartheraHMHartheraOrorr, in which Heronbar's king was killed, the army destroyed and the homelands occupied, the surviving Royal Court relocated to Terab. They never returned.

The old Heronbaht currency was the Tane, or Hook, a short hooked silver rod. This curious currency was devised in Heronbar long ago, the hook being a means of hanging the metal in a balance, ensuring purity in transactions. Foreign gold and silver coins are generally accepted in Terab, but for practicality they are often melted down by local silversmiths.

At the start of the Bizoan War, the Hartheranplugin-autotooltip__small plugin-autotooltip_bigHarthera

The Hartheran Union, commonly named Harthera, is an imperialist maritime nation state dominating the northeast of Anásthias. It is one of the two great powers of the modern epoch, arguably the most technologically and militarily powerful nation in the world, only matched by the vast size and wealth of its neighbour, viridOrorrMEOrorrOrorrOrorrOrorr Navy secretly purchased warehouses in Terab, and smuggled in men and weapons discussed as sailors and trade goods. Spies formed an alliance with the Ko-kway by playing on their mutual Iskean heritage, and the Ko-kway's longstanding indignation at the usurpation of their land.

With a surprise attack within the city combined with an assault by Ko-Kway forces inland, the Hartherans managed to conquer the island with the Princely forces suffering heavy losses.

The island is now officially a Hartheran Protectorate administered on behalf of the Ko-Kway people, part of the Hartheran Union.

Following the liberation of the island of Besoa in 1114 there were uprisings by local opposition groups in the city of Teraq, but these were crushed by Hartheran forces.

Before the conquest, the government was led by the Prince of Antyok, a hereditary ruler descended from the ancient Kingdom of Heronbar. There was also a small class of landed aristocracy responsible for different parts of the island. However, in practice the day to day governance and the island's economy were largely managed by the city council of Terab, a body of 20-30 prominent merchants.

After the conquest, the Prince escaped into exile and the Hartherans executed the nobility and many senior council leaders, to appeal to the Ko-kway. The island is now administered by a Governor-Captain of the Hartheran Navy, in the name of a tribal council of Ko-kway elders who form a puppet government.