Ezinco

Ezinco
Image	River Onzirro Painting Painting of the river Onzirro in Ezinco
League charter	612 ME
Location	Ezinco Location
Size	17,919 mi² (46,410 km²)
Country	League of Balúrail
Region	Balúrail
Capital and Largest City	Ezinco
Population	113,000

Introduction

Ezinco is a state on the west coast of the League of Balúrail, in the Western Lowlands. Its capital and largest city is Ezinco, a port on Tirrico Bay. With about 113,000 people, it is the least populous state of the League. Most of the state is swamp, and it is the wettest part of Balúrail.

Etymology

The state is named after its capital, which is named after its founder, the Tuzquão explorer Lezério Ezinco.

History

The swamps of Ezinco were among the last parts of the lowlands settled by the Tuzquão. The explorer Gir Onzirro, of Lourense, mapped the region from about 580 ME. In 598 ME Lezério Ezinco founded the city of Ezinco on Tirrico Bay. Settlement followed up the Minope River to Lake Arco, and Ezinco was chartered as a state in 612 ME. It was the fourth state of the League, and only Gurverde is newer.

Geography

Ezinco covers 17,919 mi² (46,410 km²) in the northwest of Balúrail. It borders the Mifajene Reservation to the north along the Ayellaye River, the Eimbuver to the east along the Mazar River, and Ivaiê to the south.

Most of the state is covered by two swamps. The Onzirro Swamp lies behind the coast in the west. It releases deadly gases, and the coast beside it is dangerous to approach. The Ginquil Swamp, much the larger of the two, covers the south and forms the border with Ivaiê. Between them runs the Leor Strip, a narrow band of fertile and relatively dry land that still floods often. Most of the people of Ezinco live on the strip, along the Minope River and on the shores of Lake Arco. The Fewe'yo Forest lies in the northeast.

Ezinco has three large lakes: Lake Arco, the largest, Lake Lebolur and Lake Onzirro. Two smaller lakes, Lake Chininque and Lake Corrembirim, lie in the north. The Onzirro River, the largest river in the state, flows west from Lake Onzirro through Lake Lebolur and the Onzirro Swamp to the sea, joined from the north by the Puderre and Asquer rivers. The Minope River flows west past Pitusse, through Lake Arco and past Zelhego to Tirrico Bay at the city of Ezinco.

The coast is deeply indented. Tirrico Bay is its main harbor; Chenso Bay and Selvazem Bay lie to the north, and the Puiro Islands lie offshore.

Climate

Ezinco has long, cold winters with extended freezing periods and short, warm summers. It has the most rainfall in the League of Balúrail and some of the highest in all of Dalel.

Flora and Fauna

Winter ferns and pine trees are the main flora in Ezinco. Numerous medicinal herbs and berries grow in the swamps, some with valuable properties.

Goverment and Politcs

Ezinco is led by a governor, who sits at the city of Ezinco. The League maintains two forts in the state: Fort Pone, a bay fort that overlooks and protects Tirrico Bay, and Fort Eneguarro, on the Minope near Pitusse.

Economy

Ezinco's economy rests on the swamps, which yield peat, medicinal herbs and berries. Logging and general trade are its other industries. The city of Ezinco is the state's port, and pilgrims to the House of Tahami often set out from it.

Demographics

Ezinco has about 113,000 inhabitants and is the least populous state in the League. More than two-fifths live in its five cities, and most of the rest in villages on the Leor Strip. Most of the state is uninhabited. Nearly all of the people are Tuzquão. Mifajene live dispersed across the state, with no villages of their own, and some live in its towns and cities.

Cities

Name	Tier	Population
Ezinco	Capital	30,000
Nerez	Small city	4,700
Pengusse	Small city	4,700
Zelhego	Small city	4,600
Pitusse	Small city	4,400

Transportation

Transportation in Ezinco is limited. There are no railways and no major roads, and the roads that exist are often flooded or washed out. Roads follow the Minope from Ezinco to Lake Arco and the Onzirro from Nerez to Pengusse. The city of Ezinco has a deepwater port, which connects the state with the rest of Balúrail and beyond.

Culture

Mavai is the main spiritual influence on the Tuzquão of Ezinco. The House of Tahami, the home of Tahami, the Ascendant Spirit of bogs and swamps, lies to the north on the Mifajene Reservation, and Ezinco is the usual starting point for pilgrims traveling to it.

Gallery

A painting of the Ginquil Swamp.
A postcard from Ezinco.