C is for Chéne Hó

Excerpted from the Gazetteer for the Northwest Frontier Map Set,

by Thomas Thompson and MAR Barker

Chéne Hó is a province and city in North Western Tsolyánu, south of the Átkolel Heights (see the letter "A" post from the two days ago.) It is described as having several walls, each inner wall higher than the last. How many walls is not stated. The Governor's Palace, major government buildings and the temples are within the innermost ring, as are the clanhouses of highest status clans and merchants. The other rings hold the clanhouses of the lesser clans, the markets and shops, descending in status towards the outer ring. The Foreigner's Quarter is located in the outer ring. While Tsolyánu in general tends to be hot, the climate in  Chéne Hó is "temperate", with only the summer months becoming very hot. I remember Professor Barker once describing it as somewhat like Montana...

Source: http://mamtapatel.wordpress.com/montana/

I take that to mean rolling hills and grasslands similar to the picture above. The only significant mountains however would be the Átkolel Heights and the low Chákan mountains to the Southwest. 

A is for the Átkolel Heights

The Átkolel Heights

Located in the North Western corner of Tsolyánu, the Átkolel Heights, are the most distinctive geographic feature of the area. The heights are the the remains of the cone of a gigantic volcano, dormant eons past. They are surrounded by steep cliffs on eastern, western and southern sides while in the north the feature slopes gently down to the surrounding landscape. The caldera of the volcano is now a lush valley with forests and lakes. The cliffs are largely inaccessible but for a cleft on the southern face known as Júmre's Ladder, a series of ledges that provide access of a sorts.

Note that the map scan is from the original Swords and Glory map, by MAR Barker, published by Gamescience in the early 1980's.

J is for Júmre's Ladder

The Átkolel Heights in north-western Tsolyánu are right on the border with Yán Kór. When the war started the Yán Koryáni seized the heights and advanced south around them on either flank only to be halted by hastily raised Tsolyáni forces. A stalemate occurred as both sides gathered their forces. When the Tsolyáni counter-attacked they found it necessary to take the heights to prevent the Yán Koryáni leaving a sizeable force in their rear.

The Átkolel Heights are the eroded cone of an ancient volcano of massive proportions. The caldera is a wooded area with a large lake surrounded by peaks that were the eroded sides of the volcano. The heights are easily accessible from the north, but from the east, south and west are surrounded by steep cliffs. The only access is a feature known as Júmre's Ladder; this is a narrow cleft about ten paces wide that ascends the cliffs from the south. The "ladder" is a series of rough terraces that resemble giant steps; each is about fifty paces deep and five or six feet high. The sides of the cleft are steep cliffs. The climb is long and arduous, made more difficult by the fact that the Yán Koryáni controlled the top third of the "ladder". Several attempts to force the passage failed before the heights were finally recaptured.