Shandir Woods

The Shandir Woods are a state of the Northeastern coniferous forests, whose inhabitants broke away from the Republic of Halta long ago due to religious and political differences.

The Shandir Woods honour the standard Haltan pantheon, but the highest deity is Yesryk, God of Raptors and Arboreal Hunting. The Shandir Woods is very much Yesryk’s personal domain: its ruling royal family, a far more traditional institution than that of Halta, are descended from a frequently reinvigorated line of Yesryk’s Godblooded, its priesthood is open only to hawk Beastmen, its population is dominated by hawk godbloods, hawk beastmen, and ata-hawks, as well as humans with hawk companions who have come to love their birds above all things. The humans who reside in the Shandir Woods are subordinate to the hawk-beings dominating the land, and the common Haltan pairing of human with Tree Pard companion for military scout duty occurs in Shandir with hawk and human companion. Yesryk's own sanctum is located atop a tall redwood in the north of the country.

Relations with Halta are generally good, though there is some resentment in Halta that Shandir drains away nearly all of the Republic's (very useful) hawk beings. Likewise there are disputes with Ascending Spruce, a hawk-centric society being little different than a human-centric one to ata-beasts outside the favoured type. Skirmishes have occurred in the past between Shandir and its neighbours, and the country is quite militant... its capital of Kettleflock was once part of Ascending Spruce many centuries ago, but was seized in a particularly violent period, its treetop manse transformed into Shandir's royal palace. Shandir Woods is bordered to the south by the Gossamer Stockade, and while the River of Golden Branches provides a natural boundary, the two powers regularly assert claim and counter-claim over the Goldwood which lies just east of both territories.