Oblivion Mod:Order of the Dragon/About the Gardens of Mephala

Book Information About the Gardens of Mephala
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About the Gardens of Mephala

A discussion of the bams in Mephala's realm

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Blessed be the Lord of the spiders, because his work is mighty and his omnipotence limitless.

In this book, we shall be concerned with the regions all the threads of the Lord's Great Plains as well as reports of them.

The reader is certainly familiar with the translation of the word "Bam" as well as its meaning, which reads not as desert but garden. In this respect, we speak in the popular language not of deserts but of gardens, even if they represent for the most part, in fact, a desert land.

Mephala's great desert plain is not a continuous stretch of land, but is divided into approximately four to six gardens (small deserts), with which we shall deal now in order, and the Er'renied Mountains and the coastal regions. The exact number of gardens is unknown, based on their location and their nature. However, in this book, we want to try to bring light into the darkness of the myths and get clarity.

Bam Adul
The Gentle Garden

Bam Adul extends to the southwest along the east bank of the Angashal and is bordered on the north by Bam Adan. It is climatically considered the most favorable of the four large sand plains, which stands out due to its sparseness. The general calmer climate of Bam Adul can tell us of many settlement attempts that were not able to establish a longer-term period. Whether this will be so in the future remains to be seen. Up to now, they move on the mountain-high dune ridges and only meet those left behind that avoided a return trip across the sea. Since this is primarily mercenaries, bush thieves and outcasts, Bam Adul's rough climate has less effect on them than on their population.

Bam Ukaltan
The Pure Garden

Bam Ukaltan is located in the heart of our familiar plain and extends over the Surazal up to the west coast. Whether one must call the coastal region of the Surazal Bam Ukaltan or Bam G'nur is unresolved. The pleasant climate, however, confirmed by oases and springs, depicts Bam Ukaltan as a civilized wilderness with several villages that up to now have stood up to weather, predators, and Dunmer. The near future will show whether another civilization emerges here, similar to the fabled city of Kathar, designed and expanded over the entire desert.

Bam G’nur
The Garden of Fire

Tormented by violent sand winds, Bam G'nur is a territory hostile to life that extends along the west coast to the Surazal, which forms the natural border between the Bam Na'dshit and Bam G'nur. In the east it terminates at the savannah area of Bam Adan, to the south Bam Ukaltan, and to the north comprises the western foothills of the Er'renied Mountains and is largely unknown. At least for us, because it belongs to the people of the Dunmer, who primarily view this desert as their territory.

Whether or not the mysterious city of Kathar really lies in the crater of a long extinct volcano is unknown - but the evidence speak for itself. Due to the strong Dunmer presence, sailors regrettably avoid the west coast and also try to avoid crossing the land mass, which also leads to the rare amount information which is available to us today. What is confirmed repeatedly in the narratives, however, may be mentioned here.

Bam G'nur consists mainly of flat salt-sand plains in the coastal region and the Mash Alan, isolated rock formations, similar to the Natak region. From wandering assassins and headhunters, at least, we know that the Bam G'nur is entirely inhabited. The myths, however, that Kathar is a town in style similar to the settlements from Morrowind, can be dismissed due to Bam G'nur's harsh climate. Rather, it must be assumed that the Dunmer have probably dug caves in the rugged rocks, where they endure the sandstorms most of the time and spend the remaining few hours of the day meeting their vital needs.

Bam Na'dshit
The Magical Garden

The smallest known desert, Bam Na'dshit extends west from Angashal to the coast region, south of Bam Ukaltan and along Bam G'nur. An interesting feature is certainly the large stone-carved statues of Mephala, which are carved into the shiny gold Natak Hills, which also range from Angashal to the west coast. The Bam Na'dshit today is unfortunately dominated largely by "the servants of Sand". Magically-talented descendants of the former civilization successfully competed with the Dunmer in the branched hill area and have now spawned their own form of civilization, which, however, cannot be compared with ours.

Bam Adan
The Flourishing Garden

In actual sense, Bam Adan is not a desert but a savannah area that runs along the east coast of Bam Adul up to the Er'renied mountain range. Chest-high grass and scattered trees are found here, with branching bush colonies and a richness of species not to be underestimated. In addition to the Er'renied Mountains, Bam Adan is the only real wood supplier on the plain. Many hunters or hikers roam in the Er'renied.

Bam Na’yr
The Silent Garden

The nature of the Bam Na'yr, lying on the back of the Er'renied chain, is still as unknown to us as Bam G'nur. From ships, sailors can report that the Bam Na'yr is not a dead land of jagged rocks, criss-crossed by fissues where not even xealb bushes grow, but a flourishing plane as described in the myths as overgrown with trees and shrubs the regions of Valenwood.

Nevertheless, it is considered in the superstitions of the resident Dunmer as "in'shat" - "prohibited" or "unclean" land.

Bam A’dshet
The White Garden

So far, the importance of the coastal region in the northeast is largely unresolved. On the one end, the country, referred to on the old maps (and thus in the vernacular) as Bam A'dshet, falls into the sea, and on the other, the sea at this point is as blue as any other place. Probably this enigmatic nature of the Bam A'dshet has played its part in ensuring that it occupies a special role in the myths.

Bam A'dshet belongs to the ruler of the white sands, also called Anaydayama, who assists Mephala's revenge in the form of a white shard storm on the mortals who anger the Spider Lord. Unfortunately, sources on such occurrences are extremely scarce. Certainly, we can say that the fog banks which envelop from time to time in Bam A'dshet are feared by sailors. Whether this has helped some of the myths surrounding Anaydayama and Bam A'dshet remains to be seen. Just to be complete, Bam A'dshet is also referred to in this work as a garden of Mephala.

The Er’renied Mountains

The Er'renied mountain range stretches across the north from east to west. The impressive river Ninuh-Ninum, the "Comes from stone - go to the stone", breaks out of a cliff and loses itself ultimately in the underground caves of Er'renied. Whether its bed has eaten itself into the rock in the course of the tides, or if a major outbreak created the chasm, is uncertain. The Er'renied itself, in the passable south, definitely bears a similar vegetation on its back as is to be found also in Bam Adan. Its origin is a bit controversial. On the one hand, a witness from Bam Na'yr reports of an existence before the outbreaks; on the other hand, the Dunmer claim that the Er'renied emerged with their outbreaks.