Do you mean "real" maps, as would be available to a Gloranthan? Or do you mean maps made by designers for game purposes? In either case, neither exists so far as I know.
>I have envisioned a permenant tent city for the Storm Kahns and
>support people.
The berserks who dwell around the block have precious few support people, and mostly persist by banditry, coercive trading, and gifts from the various clans, who are generally pleased to have the Storm Bulls all together in one place far away from their own locale.
>Does the good canal go all the way to the Block?
Sometimes. Depends on the weather. Much of the year almost all the Praxian "waterways" are dry. Usually the good canal is mushy, or at least muddy.
>is the base of the block surrounded by water?
No. Not even if the muddy good canal counts as "water". Most of the area around the bottom of the block is quite dry and hard.
Nick
>Of course, as a tea-drinking naval nation the Vormaini ought by
>rights to be dominating the oceans of the world...
Nils, evidently missing Nick's point
>They have a problem with that, considering that they share their
>sailing space with the East Islanders
Trust me. As soon as the Vorumai discover rum, sodomy, and the lash, the East Islanders will be toast.
THE EAST ISLANDS' COMBAT CAPACITY
With few exceptions, the people of the East Isles are
unskilled and unprepared for warfare on land. Most major battles
over the history of their seas have been at sea, naturally enough,
and they view the defense of their islands as primarily a naval
operation. Many islands have no armies at all, and if invaded could
produce only the local gendarmerie (if any), or possible some angry
armed civilians. Those islands that are commonly raided by sharkmen,
Vorumai pirates, or other dangers often boast a genuine militia,
whose use is more honored as a threat than as an actual battle
force. Generally, the advance of a couple hundred militiamen
produces the desired result -- a small force of raiders either
flees, or, if trapped, surrenders. Combat is rare.
The larger islands boast trained soldiers, whose main use is in boarding actions, plus some garrison duty -- as guards-cum-police to watch a naval base, for instance, and keep thieves from easily stealing goods.
The very most advanced islands know about armies, as they've read about their use in foreign lands. Some have even tried to field real armies. Most foreign observers agree that the Eastern Isles armies are pathetic by Genertelan standards.
Traditionally, when an island's fleet loses a decisive battle, the island itself normally gives up whatever was at stake. Wars of conquest are unusual in the East Isles, since each island's culture is so peculiar. Most clashes are over spheres of influence or mercantile matters. Racial enemies like the Vorumai or the sharkmen are different of course, but even they are primarily resisted (once the fleet has failed) by a process of passive resistance, which has historically been more or less a failure.
Nonetheless, the East Isles are no pushover. They are skilled diplomatically and have excellent magic. Their ships include the best in the world, and an invading enemy must take all this into account.
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