The Cathayans are the myriad subjects of Grand Cathay, an empire so vast and ancient that the kingdoms of the Old World seem to it a squabble of upstart children. Ruled by the immortal Dragon Emperor and his celestial children, the folk of Cathay dwell in a realm of walled cities, terraced fields and jade pagodas, bound together by a rigid harmony that has endured for uncounted centuries against every horror the north could hurl at it.
The armies of Grand Cathay reflect the order of their society, disciplined ranks of jade-armoured warriors and crossbowmen marching in perfect step, sustained by the harmonious magic of the Wind and Yang. Along the northern frontier stretches the Great Bastion, an immense wall garrisoned against the endless tides of Chaos that pour down from the wastes, a vigil the Cathayans have kept without pause since the world was young.
To the merchants and travellers of the west, Cathay is a land of fable, its silks and secrets carried along perilous caravan roads. Yet those who reach it find not a paradise but a stern and watchful civilisation, proud, inscrutable and utterly convinced of its own supremacy, holding the eastern half of the world against the dark through order, sorcery, and the unyielding will of its dragon-lords.
The bestiary continues
