Records of travellers tell of the thousand, thousand footsoldiers of the Emperor, the mystic brotherhoods of Monks who can kill you with a touch of their hand, and the strange monkey warriors living high in the Mountains of Heaven. Many strange creatures are said to live in the land of Cathay, from serpentine dragons to gigantic living stone dogs which guard the temples of the multitudinous gods of Cathay.

They also bring tales of jade cities and high temples where mystics probe the movements of the heavenly bodies and the positions of the stars, of the scholars who inscribe every word ever uttered by their divine Emperor. They bring exotic spices and finest silks, gleaming gold, luxurious porcelain vases and all manner of strange and wonderful items from the Kingdom of the Dragon, glimpses of the mysterious glory of the distant and rich orient. The travellers that return from Cathay tell tales of great golden pagodas and the inexhaustible armies of the eastern despots. Only one caravan out of ten makes the trip safely. But the road is far from safe: roving bandits, steppe nomads, and the vast Hobgoblin hordes of Hobgobla-Khan who rule the steppes are an ever-present threat, and one that cannot be taken too lightly. The lure of the Silk Road is great to the merchant houses of Tilea and the Burgomeisters of the Empire, as well as the traders of Araby.

It runs through the untamed steppes until its destination, the fabled land of Cathay. Only a single path travels to the east, known as the Silk Road. Past the Worlds Edge Mountains and across the Great Skull Lands, on the other side of the Mountains of Mourn and the vast steppes, begin the uncharted lands.

4.6 The Southern Provinces and the Mountains of Heaven.

4.1 The Northern Provinces and The Great Bastion.

Kings of winter total war