Khand

Khand stretches between the southeastern flank of the Ephel Duath and the northwestern edge of the Ered Harmal. It occupies the semi-arid plateau bordering northeastern Harad and thus commands the great Khand Gap, the hundred mile wide pass facing southern Rhûn and eastern Mordor. Nûrad lies in the hills to the northeast.

Hot, dry, and windy, Khand is an unforgiving locale. Its flat, lowland areas afford few means for stable settlement. Scrub and desert abound throughout Lower Khand. Here, horse herders move their lightly-encumbered bands around a circuit of periodic shelters and encampments, their routes dictated by the location of springs, seasonal pools, and intermittent streams. The only permanent settlements lie along the broad, shallow Knife River, a tributary of the Harnen. Sturlurtsa Khand-the traditional capital of Lower Khand and the largest city between Umbar and the Talathrant-stands by the confluence of the rivers Knife (V. "Noz Peka") and Gold-horse (V. "Medlóshad Peka"). It is the home of the powerful Ûrpof and Oléna clans.

Upper Khand, which comprises the eastern and northern quarters of the region, enjoys a bit more rainfall and cooler temperatures. The more numerous tribes of the area are generally richer and more settled than their brethren to the west and south. Upper Khand's principal city, Ûbésêsh-ûta-Pavéter (V. "Refuge from the Flailing Wind"), stands only about 170 miles east and upstream from Sturlurtsa Khand; however, it receives twice the precipitation and a lot less heat than its larger and more important counterpart. The town is home to the Irbo clan.

Lâorkí is the sister city of Ûbésêsh-ûta-Pavéter and the second town of Upper Khand. The home of the Achef clan, it has produced most of the Variag kings. Ûvathar Achef, the greatest conquerer of the line, became the ninth of Sauron's accursed Ringwraiths.

Ûvathar (aka "Ûvatha") was born at the Caves of Ôlbamarl. The vast caverns wind up and down through a mountain spur located in the southeastern part of the Ephel Duath (S. "Shadow-fence"). They include two permanent towns and seven shrines. Here, the bones of many Kings are entombed (the Variag successors strip the meat from, and then eat, their fallen monarchs).

All seven of the Variag confederations speak Varadja and share a common culture rooted in an ages-old reverence for the horse. Superb riders and warriors, they are without peer as cavalry.