The Weald

Much like the north of Cyrodiil, the land south of the Heartlands retains a unique character of its own. Although many consider all land between the Kvetchi pass and Nibenay a single region – the West Weald –, any “proper” Wealdman (or Walder, as they refer to themselves) will tell you that it is not so. Truly, to an average denizen of one of the many isolated communities of the Weald, Skingrad is even more foreign than Bravil or Delodiil. One would think that being in the way of a trade route between Cyrod City and the southern city of Riverhold would connect the region to the Heartlands, yet the Wealdmen have not profited greatly from this connection; apart from certain communities by the Dimirius river, the region remained (and still remains) isolated. The few roads connect the region with the Heartlands and Nibenay, the old roads to Skingrad mostly lost to nature. But the main trade routes cutting through this decrepit region are those following the rivers; no wonder that the land receives little in the ways of economic development when merchants find little reason to set foot on land.
The isolation can be felt in language, too; while influenced by Heartlander tongues, Wealdmen speech is very difficult for outlanders to understand, and vice versa. It is believed by scholars that these tongues have diverged from the wider Heartland language group far back, and limited contact meant that the differences would only grow more difficult for outsiders to understand as time went on.
As any toothless Wealdman sitting outside his shabby dwelling with a cane in his hands will tell you, the Weald is as it is and has been and always will be – apart from the occasional traveler and Legion troop, nobody comes to the region and activity is mostly contained to isolated farmsteads. The few mines still being worked in net barely enough materials for the families of the miners to survive. It is no wonder, therefore, that many young men – fourth or fifth sons – decide to find fortune out in the world. Some settle down in the Heartlands where new farmers are always welcome; others join the Imperial Legion to travel the Empire. The last forts in the region, built a long time ago to defend the southern frontier against incursions from Valenwood and Elsweyr, have in most cases long been abandoned so the closest locations for enlistment likewise await downstream.