Category:Turanian



TURANIAN "Eastward, Shevatas knew, the desert shaded into steppes stretching into the Hyrkanian kingdom of Turan, rising in barbaric splendor on the shores of the great inland sea."–Black Colossus Shining Turan is probably the wealthiest nation of the Hyborian Age save Vendhya. The Turanian Empire is built upon the foundation of a large Hyrkanian force that swept out of the east on their horses, swinging around the Vilayet and finding that great inland sea to their liking.

Their empire is vast, especially during the years of Conan’s reign in Aquilonia, extending west even to the borders of Zamora, Shumir in Shem and Stygia. Empire-building is a popular pastime for Turanian kings. Now ruled by King Yezdigerd, the Turanian Empire shows no sign of slowing its growth, although the Zuagirs, Kozaks and other races hinder its destiny of domination in the west.

Description
The Turanians are dark, tall and slender with naturally light-yellow skin that is darkened by the sun and wind to a deep brown. When it comes to hair/eye color Turanians mostly have brown, dark brown, black hair, and rarely light brown hair, most have black/dark brown eyes. The men wear moustaches, and beards are not uncommon.

Lemurians, having escaped their sinking homeland, have been enslaved in ages past. Thousands years later, they overthrow their masters, and slowly built a semi civilization, creating Hyrkanian tribes. The Turanian Empire is built upon the foundation of a large Hyrkanian force that swept out of the east on their horses, swinging around the Vilayet and finding that great inland sea to their liking. They conquered the indigenous aboriginal people that lived in the region of the Vilayet.

Clothing
Turanian males are typically bearded and wear turbans, sashes and loose-fitting trousers. The warriors wear gold-spired helmets, white silk shirts, sleeveless mail, baggy trousers and tiger-skin cloaks. One type of clothing is the talismanic shirt, which is a tunic or shirt decorated with holy images and symbols. Talismanic shirts are believed to offer good luck or even work as armor.

Turanian women are veiled. In more conservative circles, usually the upper classes, the women favor the khalat, a long costume that conceals the entire body.

Slaves, dancing girls and other performers usually wear little more than belted tunics or gömleks. Some wear little more than vests (or halter-tops) and slim belts with two strips of silk depending from the center in front and back. Most slaves in Turan are foreign, so they do not wear veils, although Turanian dancing girls do.

Behavior and Notable Oddities
Turanians believe their civilization is superior and that only by doing things their way can one advance in society. They teach particular protocols to be practiced in court, in the baths, in the street and in almost every aspect of their lives.

The Turanians are a proud people, pleased with the imperialism of their leaders and the wealth brought to them in tribute from subjugated people.

Slaves rise to become rulers and then may well fall down again, just to rise once more. Three attributes define the ruling class of Turanians: the Turanian must claim loyalty to the king and Turan, show knowledge of the culture, language and the Turanian Way and practice the worship of the Living Tarim and other Turanian gods. Without these attributes, a person is simply considered to be a subject of the Turanian Empire. These attributes can be gained – or lost – by virtually anyone.

Religion

 * Turanian Pantheon
 * Erlik
 * The Living Tarim
 * Yenegra (Ishtar)

Turanians worship the "Living Tarim" and Erlik. Erlik is a harsh god, who believes in the tempering of the soul through trials and deprivation. His tenets, as revealed by Tarim, forbid fornication, the consumption of alcohol and usury. However, even most of his priests ignore these precepts.

Followers of Erlik call any foreign god “Thutala” or his minion.

Turanians living near Koth or Shem have added Ishtar to their gods, calling her Yenagra. She has alabaster skin and is otherwise worshipped as the Kothic Ishtar, though a little more restrained in terms of worship.

Other Turanians still worship Ahriman and other bizarre deities, such as Ormazd, a bright god who battles the devil, Ahriman.

Government
Ruler: King Yezdigerd, also titled as 'Grand Sultan'

The top rung of the Turanian social ladder is the ruling class. The ruling class are effectively the slaves of the king, for their job is to enlarge, protect and exploit the resources of Turan in his name. The ruling class includes the clergy, the nobility, the administrators and the military.

Beneath the ruling class are three productive classes.

The first of these three are the farmers. Farmers comprise the majority of Turan’s citizens. The average farm is large enough for subsistence farming but since a portion of each crop must be sold to pay the taxes, a farmer’s wives often make crafts to supplement their income. Farms in Turan are rarely isolated entities. Usually farmers congregate into villages and all farm around the village.

The second of the three productive classes are the craftsmen. Craftsmen live in towns and sometimes in the cities. Typically, a town is known for its particular craft and the craftsmen of that town only produce that product. This allows for superior products and promotes the trade engine for which Turan is so famous.

The third of the three productive classes are the merchants. Merchants tend to be found in the cities and often specialize within the cities. Merchants who specialize in foreign trade tend to congregate in Aghrapur, while merchants who specialize in crop trading live in another city.

Outside of the basic social classes, there is one other social group – the slaves. Slaves are not considered part of the social structure of Turan although they are omnipresent.

Economy and Common Professions
Glittering Turan builds its wealth by trading goods from distant realms and exacting tribute from threatened peoples. Built along the gorgeous shores of the Vilayet Sea, most of Turan’s internal trade goes via ships protected by Turan’s purple-sailed war galleys. Mule trains haul goods along caravan trails into the interior and south of the Vilayet, connecting with routes from Iranistan, Vendhya and Khitai. Trade to the west crosses the Kharamun Desert to Zamboula, Turan’s caravan crossroads.

Piracy is common on Vilayet Sea.

Caravans are loaded with figs, grapes, olive oil, nuts, sesame, dates, barley, wheat, tobacco, coffee, tea, dried fruit, chestnuts, rice, sugar and spices. Trade in dried fruit, both domestic and international, is vital to Turan; dried fruit serves as a sweetener in most Hyborian age kingdoms due to the high price of cane sugar.

Trade goods for Turan also include human goods – slaves.

Common Professions:
 * merchant
 * farmer
 * crafter
 * noble
 * clergy
 * military career
 * sailor
 * pirate

Sex Roles and Marriage
Turanian society is patriarchal and patrilineal, and for the most part men hold higher positions than women. However, the women have far more freedom and power than women in other patriarchal cultures such as the hyborian kingdoms to the west. In Turan women enjoy power, influence, and economic opportunities and can be involved in the military and own businesses.

Slavery
Trade in human beings is far-reaching. Many Brythunians, Nemedians, Stygians, Shemites, Zamorians, Darfari and Kushites all find themselves on the slave blocks of Turan. Slaves not only perform labour the Turanians feel is beneath them but also work as spies for the Turanians and as pawns in their games of power and intrigue. The slave markets of Turan are described as ‘glutted’. Demand for slaves in Turan is high but the supply is so plentiful that slaves are not expensive. Turanians are regarded as harsh masters, though, and many slaves escape into the steppe, joining the Kozaki in order to lash back at their former overlords.

Influences
Architectural influences: Sassanid Empire, Persian empires.

Turanian cities are among the grandest of the Hyborian Age. The souks, open-air market places, are a feast for the senses. Colors and textures and sounds and smells and even tastes come from all directions. Scarlets, greens and turquoises smash headlong into shining silks and dingy cloths, which in turn are set off by the bright shine of precious metals and the dull glint of iron and polished woods. Great towers glitter in the sun and stand brightly against the moon. Minarets and spires decorated with arabesques and fantastic designs stand proudly over the great palaces of marble and gold as vast caravan trains move toward the bazaars with the goods from a thousand cities. The market is the central feature of Turanian urban areas and the most important commodities in the market are agricultural items.

More Information
RPGS:
 * Return to the Road of Kings (Turan, p 214-225)
 * Faith and Fervour (Lords of Hyrkania & Turan, p 51-52)