Created by Ar, the Margin of Desolation is a barren strip of soil that
girds (encircles) the borders of Ar For several days, to the sound of the caravan bells, we made
our way through the Margin of Desolation, that wild, barren
strip of soil with which the Empire of Ar had girded its
borders. Now, in the distance, we could hear the muffled
roar of the mighty Vosk.
Tarnsman
The Margin of Desolation stretched from the borders of Ar north to the
Vosk river The great margin of desolation which once flanked Ar on the north,
just south of the Vosk, has not been maintained.
Slave Girl
The Margin of Desolation is a thousand pasangs deep The great margin of desolation which once flanked Ar on the north,
just south of the Vosk, has not been maintained. It was a long wall of
wilderness, an empty, unpopulated, desertlike area without water and
beneficient vegetation a thousand pasangs deep.
Slave Girl
It takes several days by caravan to cross the Margin of Desolation For several days, to the sound of the caravan bells, we made
our way through the Margin of Desolation...
Tarnsman
Creation of the Margin of Desolation
A long wall of wilderness
Empty unpopulated desertlike area without water and vegeation
Wells had been poisoned, fields burned and salted to prevent armies marching
from the north The great margin of desolation which once flanked Ar on the north,
just south of the Vosk, has not been maintained. It was a long wall of
wilderness, an empty, unpopulated, desertlike area without water and
beneficient vegetation a thousand pasangs deep. Wells were poisoned and
fields burned and salted to prevent the approach of armies from the
north.
Slave Girl
Margin of Desolation was created as a military defense.
The major route south from traffic on the Vosk river is the Viktel Aria
Ar controls the camps and posts along the Viktel Aria Most of the major towns on the Vosk are on the northern bank. This is
undoubtedly because of a one-time policy of Ar to maintain a margin of
desolation to the north, one stretching to the river, across which is
would be difficult for an invader to bring an army. The major route
south was then, as it is now, the Viktel Aria, which by means of its
camps and posts, Ar then controlled. Thus, supposedly, Ar could move
north with ease, but it would be difficult for other forces to move
south, unless challenging Ar for the Viktel Aria.
Renegades
Allowed to flourish
Under Marlenus, the Margin of Desolation was not maintained (kept poisoned
and burned)
The margin of
desolation however, has not been maintained for years. Its military
significance declined with the development of large-scale tarn transport,
capable of supplying troops in the field. Too, as Ar’s population
increased she began to move northward. Indeed, her interests in the
Vosk Basin are well known. In the past few years, particularly under
the governance of Marlenus of Ar, the policies of Ar have tended to
be expansionistic. Accordingly, it seems clear that in time the
strategists of Ar came to view the margin of desolation less as a
rampart than a barrier.
Renegades
New wells have been dug
Peasants have moved to the area
It was stocked with game and wild bosk
The area is still called the Margin of Desolation though Now, however, in the last years, it has become green. New wells
have been dug, peasants have moved into it. This, said to be a plan
to bring more arable land under cultivation, is generally viewed as
being an opening of this territory to large-scale military passage. It
is even being stocked with game and wild bosk. It retains now of its
old character only its name, the Margin of Desolation.
Slave Girl
The Margin of Desolation
