GEOGRAPHY Marauders of Gor, the ninth book of the Gorean series, deals with the lands and culture of Torvaldsland, a land in the northern latitudes of Gor. Torvaldsland is based on the Vikings and Norsemen of Earth's history, circa 700 to 1100 A.D. If the calendar of Torvaldsland is accurate, then the Voyages of Acquisition brought Vikings to Gor around 970 A.D. Torvaldsland is a general area on the Gorean map, almost like a large country. It is not simply a specific city or town. The area is generally considered to begin near the end of the northern forests and continue northwards up to frozen wastes. The skerry of Einar, by the Torvaldsmark, is thought to mark the boundary of the Torvaldsland and the southlands. The Torvaldsmark is a tall rune-stone (obelisk), like a needle pointing to the sky. Torvaldsland ends near the frozen sea areas, at the lands of the Red Hunters. The men of Torvaldsland though sometimes have different ideas concerning the boundaries of Torvaldsland. They like to claim that their boundary encompasses anywhere that their ships land. Their ships have been known to journey as far south as Schendi and Bazi and as far west as Tyros and Cos. In the legends of Torvaldsland, the founder and first Jarl, or ruler, of the land was Torvald. His ship was known as the Black Shark. The god Thor allegedly bestowed a special gift to Torvald in exchange for a gold ring. This gift was the Stream of Torvald. The Stream is actually a current in Thassa that moves eastward to the coast and then northward. It is similar to a wide river in the sea, several pasangs wide. The temperature of the water in this current is warmer than the surrounding water. This helps warm Torvaldsland and keep it from becoming a frigid wasteland. The warmer waters allow agriculture to occur and without it, Torvaldsland would not be the same. It would be more akin to the frozen wastes occupied by the Red Hunters. There are a few geographical areas specifically mentioned in the book. The Inlet of Green Cliffs and Inlet of Iron Walls are mentioned but not described. The Skerry of Vars is a bleak rock that stands about fifteen to twenty feet about the water. It is about one hundred feet Gorean square. Though it is a bit rough, it is generally flat. Thorstein Camp is a group of warriors located a bit north of Einar's Skerry. The Camp is built on an island in an inlet and is surrounded by a wooden palisade. The Camp's Jarl is Thorstein and he claims control of the land for about fifty pasangs around this area. The inlet was once called the Inlet of Parsit because of its bountiful fishing. Ax Glacier is considered the northern boundary of Torvaldsland. It lies in a valley between two mountain chains of the Hrimgar Mountains. The people of Ax Glacier are generally short, fat and dark-skinned. They also have an epicanthic fold to protect their eyes from the cold. They live by hunting and fishing as they have no farms and do not raise any animals. |