Talabecland

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Talabecland is located in the centre of The Empire[7b][12a].
The banner of Talabecland.
A common banner of Talabecland.

The Grand Duchy of Talabecland[1a][2] is a central province of The Empire being the homeland of the ancient Taleutens[3][4]. Its symbol is a crowned red eagle and its colours are red and yellow[5c]. The current Elector Count of Talabecland is Helmut Feuerbach[5b] but he's actually missing[8c].

The province is named after the Talabec, a sacred river of Taal, god of Nature and Wild Places[8f]. His cult is the most popular and important one among Talabeclanders. [need citation]

Heraldry

The two main colours used for Talabecland are red and yellow[6c][5c]. The banner of Talabecland has a crowned red eagle on a yellow background[5a]. This symbol is usually used to represent Myrmidia[need citation], but in Talabecland it represents the sharp eyes of Taal[need citation]. Other common devices on banners are skulls, antlered heads, and sacred tree of Taal[5c]. When Talabeclander regiments cross the River Talabec, they dip their banners in its waters, hoping to gain Taal's blessing. [5c][2]

Geography

The province is 1000km long from East to West and is the centre of the Empire. A major part of the Talabecland is the Great Forest in which dwell many dangers even if it is not as dangerous as the ones that lurk in the Drakwald or the Forest of Shadows. Meanwhile, the Great Forest still stays a place of mystery and fear and some feral ancient beasts hide in its darkest places. [1a]

The west tip of Talabeclands is a dangerous place with the Barren Hills renowned for being the refuge of mutants in numbers. [1a]

Bordered by both huge rivers of the Empire, the Stir[8f] and the Talabec, Talabecland only has one political border on the North East with Ostermark. [8a]

Economy

The main waterway of the province remains the Talabec river for the stream adjoins more great provinces than any other. This fact makes the Talabec one of the most important commercial riverways of the Empire. The second most important is the Stir river and where the two streams join the Reik, Talabecland authorities control the trade to and from the wealthier provinces of the Empire. This strategic location enables them to tax every merchant wanting to reach Altdorf, Nuln or Marienburg from the Eastern lands as they have to cross one of these rivers and hence pay the taxes[12b]. The third commercial axis of the province is the Old Forest road that links North and South. [1a]

History

Prehistory

Most people of Talabecland claim descent from the Taleuten tribe who were given the lands between the Stir and Talabec rivers by Sigmar. Whilst exploring the land, so legend has it, Krugar their chief discovered the Great Crater, declaring it was a gift from Taal and within which they built a great city first named Talahim[1a].

The old Empire

It seems that the former state that would became in time the province of Talabecland played a strong role the Sigmar's reign whilst keeping a considerable autonomy. [13a]. After Sigmar's passing, Talabecland's leader became an Elector and the province, as all others of the Empire, grew in strength while new towns were established and old ones became cities. Emperors came and went and Talabecland became more and more independent. [13b]

During this first millennium, Talabecland desired to expand to the East and increased pressure on the Ungol territory, a feral human tribe which lived on the country now named Kislev. [10e]. By 900 IC, Talabecland occupied the South of Kislev[10f]. In this slow decline of imperial authority, elected emperors became negligent and armies were poorly maintained so that the threats grew stronger. In 1111 the Black Death occurred and Talabecland, like the other provinces, was dramatically affected. Thousands of residents died due to lack of maintenance of sanitary equipment[8d].

The Age of Wars

After years and years of decline of imperial control, Electors claimed some official independence from this throne. Many towns knew uprisings and their authorities failed to maintain them. The electoral Council of 1152 IC ended in a stalemate and the grand Duke of Talabecland returned to his palace only to raise an army and invaded Stirland. This aggression was the beginning of 200 years of bitter civil wars and no emperor would wear the crown for longer than 10 years. [13b]

The Age of the Three Emperors

In 1360 IC, Ottilia I, Elector Countess of Talabecland declared herself Emperor[6b], declaring that the chosen candidate, the Elector Count of Stirland, an enemy of her homeland, had only been chosen due to bribery and corruption.[10a][6b] She consulted the Cult of Taal and also approached Ar-Ulric Krieger who was equally infuriated by the Imperial elections being controlled by the Cult of Sigmar, inviting him to move his seat of power to her city, claiming to have proof that Sigmar was not in fact a god. [9a][10a].

Ar-Ulric himself moved, declaring Sigmarites as heretics and Ottilia banned the cult from her lands. [13c], declared her Grand Province as independent and herself as the new Emperor[6b], being crowned by Ar-Ulric himself[need citation]. A large army was dispatched by her rival but she met it in the field with her own smaller army and defeated it at the Battle of the Talabec. She then withdrew to her own city, as the Empire descended into chaos[10a]. From this point, Talabecland became the refuge of all enemies of the Count of Stirland[6b].

Ottilia passed away but not before she gave her crown to her heirs while Emperors were still chosen in Nuln by the Sigmar's Cult[13c]. This era carried on 400 years and during this time of petty but deadly wars, Daemonologists and Necromancers increased in numbers and power all across the Empire. Secret Shrines for Chaos gods were built in hidden grooves, dark forests. 1979 IC saw the last election before the reunification. The infant countess Magritta of Marienburg was chosen as empress but even the Grand Theogonist refused to acknowledge this. The Elector Counts would not meet until a hundred years, their power declining year on year and more and more cities declared independence while burgomeisters recruited their own troops[6b]. In Talabecland, local emperors ruled anyway. [13c].

In 2010 IC began the so-called Vampire's wars although it seems that Talabecland managed to contain the undead menace of Vlad von Carstein. After he was defeated, Konrad von Carstein, his successor, led the evil force. This time, the self-anointed emperor of Talabheim joined his armies to the ones of the two others pretenders, the Count of Middenheim and the chosen one by Grand Theogonist[8e].

The New Empire

Around 2302 IC, while mutants and beastmen spread in forests and rumours of Chaos bands marching South from the Chaos wastelands went wild, the Emperor of Talabec remained deaf. Then, while anti-sigmar's cult subsided, messengers from Nuln came with word of good will and speeches proclaiming unity. The call was well received by men and women of the Talabecland and they rallied to the army of a young nobleman from Nuln named Magnus[13c].

It is said, though, that the things weren't so good in Talabheim where legends claim that the city led by the followers of Taal demanded Magnus leave when he presented himself with his formidable army. Then, it is said that the wolves from the Taalgrunhaar howled louder and louder and a great stag marked by a white hammer appeared in Taal's temple[10g]. The subsequent victory in Kislev of the coalition led by Magnus the Pious ended the division and civil wars era[13c].

Since then, Talabecland has remained a faithful Imperial province. After reign of Magnus, the Count of Stirland was again elected Emperor but his dynasty ended in disgrace in 2429 IC with the corruption and cowardice of Dieter IV who survived, although deprived from his title. He was welcomed with his family by the Cult of Ulric which had remained within the city since Ottilia's reign[13d].

This political victory was doubled as the Grand Duke of Talabecland showed he could rule against the will of the Sigmar's Cult plus, his former rival, the Von Krieglitz family from Stirland now desperately needed his appointment to recover his strength. This challenge to the Church of Sigmar and Altdorf would annoy the Grand Theogonist but the good will of Talabecland was needed by the new Reikland Emperors as they have to maintain contact with Kislev to prevent the next Chaos invasion. The road to Kislev only passes through Talabecland and is fiercely controlled by the Grand Duke[13d]

Present Day

In the early 2500's IC border wars take place between Stirland and Talabecland with Duke Jurgen von Brumderhack playing a prominent role. [11a]

Antoine von Carstein marched once more from Sylvania in 2505 IC, raising the dead from small villages at first then whole towns, their populations swelling the ranks of his army. An Army from across the Empire was assembled under the command of the Reiksmarshal of Talabecland, Wilhelm Hague to confront him once more, choosing making a stand at the fortified port of Stuttburg. [14]

In 2515 IC, Ostland was invaded by a large and ferocious force from the far north which caused Valmir von Raukov to requesting aid. In the absence of her husband, Countess Freya Feuerbach and her advisors dispatched a relief force under the leadership of Captain Otto von Brumderhack. However, they were ambushed by a great force of Beastmen in the Forest of Shadows and although they managed to defeat them, the army was shattered and few would be able to reinforce Ostland in its time of need. [11a]

Around 2520 IC, the Emperor Karl Franz came to Talabheim to quell the quarrel between the old rivals of Talabecland and Stirland. Helmut Feuerbach and the Graf of Stirland heard the Emperor and renewed civil war was avoided. [8g]

Religion

The people of Talabecland used to worship a deity named The Mother and erected stones circles to celebrate equinoxes as the Talastein carvings shows. These archaeological treasures were recovered by tomb robbers from the Kölsa hills and consisted of thirteen ancient stone slabs whose worn pictograms were translated by Teclis not long before he created the College of Jade. [10b]. They are still held in the Royal Academy of Talabecland although two slabs also hint at dark rituals involving human sacrifice and Daemons. [10d]

Talabecland is well known as the countryside of Taal[5c], the God of Nature and King of all gods[10d] and his cult has totally subsumed the cult of Rhya but the province's second most popular cult is that of Verena cult[10e]. A notable difference between Talabecland and other province is that the cultists of Taal and Rhya used to live both in city and wilderness, while elsewhere their presence is rarest in towns[10h]. Talabeclanders do not like so much the attempts of scholars to uncover their typical way to worship Taal deep into the woods. Indeed, freedom and privacy are very important matters in their way of thinking[1b]. Taal is the major god of the province and talabeclanders proclaim "DEUS TAAL" on their banners[6c] where reiklanders indicate the Sigmar's name.

The most active rite of the year in the Talabecland is the Run of the Antlers which happens every first week of the Summer-tide and is also called Stag Night. Performed in honour of Taal in every settlement in the province, this festival involves two groups of young men, their heads adorned with the largest set of antlers they can find who flee deep into the forest while the other chases them with weak bows and arrows with soft heads. These hunts happen each of the feast days which lasts a whole week. [10i].

A famous pilgrimage named the Soldier's pilgrimage cross the whole province, following the Talabec river from Atldorf to Talabheim then descending the o[[Od Dwarf Road] into Stirland until it reaches Black Fire Pass. The entire journey is punctuated with stops at various Sigmar's shrines[10j].

But the most famous pilgrimage in the Talabecland is the Pilgrimage of the Stones, carried out in the name of Taal and is renowned for being the shortest pilgrimage but the the most diffcult one in all Empire. [10k].

The powerful temple of Myrmidia in Talabheim is the home of the Knights of the Verdant Spear. [10l]

Known features

Towns

  • Bek: Located in the upper Talabec[1d], Bek is ruled by Josef Von Behring. It's a peaceful merchant town where dried fish and woodcraft from Great Forest are traded. [1b].
  • Lieske: Little settlement of the South of the province on the Old Forest road[1d], Lieske is home of the Taal's Bowers Inn. [1c]
  • Talabheim: Talabecland's capital, a semi-independent city-state and residence of its Elector Counts[6a][8a].
  • Priestlicheim: Little village near of the Barren hills, it is known for the Sigmar's temple "Hammer of Faith" and the brotherhood in here is dedicated to figuring out and destroying whatever curses this land. [1c]

Natural sites

Famous Battles

Military

  • Scarlet Guard: The personal guard of the Elector Count of Talabecland. [11]
  • Sons of Taal: A Pistoliers Regiment who recruit from the noble houses within Talabheim. [11a]
  • Three Thunders: Three Nuln-forged Great Mortars on the walls of Talabheim. [11a]
  • The Taalbaston Guard are the regiments that guard the crater wall. [11a]
    • Hammershields: Regiment of Swordsman. [11a]
  • Von Brumderhack's Linebreakers. [11a]

Gallery

The provinces & city-states of The Empire
Provinces Reikland - Middenland - Nordland - Ostland - Hochland - Talabecland - Ostermark - Stirland - Averland - Wissenland - The Moot
City-states Altdorf - Nuln - Middenheim - Talabheim
Lost provinces Drakwald - Solland - Westerland - Sylvania

Sources