To an outside observer, the provinces of the Lion share such similarity with one another that it can be difficult to tell when one has crossed from eastern to western lands. A thousand years of land management and troop drill means little in the way of true wilderness still exists. However, the Lion do not dislike this sameness; the similar structure of their provinces means each feels like home. And where there are differences between provinces, these are the result of historical traditions dating back to the very founding of the clan, recorded assiduously in the records of the Ikoma.
One thing all Lion territories share is their immense size. This is fortunate for the Clan of Akodo since they have the single largest population of any Great Clan, and the Matsuare the largest family by a significant margin. Thus, the Lion require a massive supply of food. The central provinces belong to the Kitsu, protected by the territories of the bushi families. The agricultural productivity in these lands is astronomical, and the Lion claim the pious nature of the Kitsu is the cause. (Of course, it probably also helps that these provinces are largely spared from the constant troop movements in other regions.) The endless rolling plains have nearly all been transformed into rice paddies or fields of buckwheat and barley. There are no major mountains or forests, few major waterways, and the weather is temperate with frequent rainfall.
The western Lion provinces are flatter and more open than those of the central domains, but show somewhat more physical diversity; the foothills of the Spine of the World Mountains and the strange peak that is Lookout Mountain break up the monotony of an endless sea of grass, while the Three Sides River and its subsidiary branches allow for rapid transport of goods. Most of these lands are still used for farming, but the regions which border closely on Unicorn lands are set aside for grazing and pastures, home to the Matsu family’s Ikeda vassal family and the Ikoma Wardens.
The eastern Akodo lands are hilly in comparison to the rest of Lion territory, but flat when compared to the Empire as a whole. Farming here focuses on supplementary items, rice paddies being the exception rather than the rule. In addition, the only significant forest within the Lion lands is found here, and the Akodo oversee it carefully. Most of the eastern provinces share a dangerous border with the Crane and thus significant amounts of territory here are left unexploited, reserved for troop movement and training.
The southernmost lands of the Lion belong to the Matsu, who have domesticated every square inch of their territory. This region possesses some outward semblance of wilderness, but to a keen eye the cultivated truth shines through. Farming takes place in even the most infertile regions, for Matsu bellies are plentiful. The Matsu border with the Spine of the World Mountains is home to the clan’s one major economic asset – the richest veins of copper in the Empire. Since this metal is quite versatile and used widely across Rokugan, it grants the Matsu some leeway in trade and makes it easier for them to import the food they need to supplement their domestic production.
Lion lands are not known for their variety of flora or fauna, but there is more to the open plains than grass. Small shrubs, stout trees, and a dizzying array of flowers sprout across the land thanks to regular rainfall and temperate climate. In the plains, herd animals such as deer, horses, and oxen are at least moderately plentiful, and this region is also home to wild lions – predators which would be hunted elsewhere, but here are tolerated (and occasionally domesticated) as the physical symbols of the clan. Near the waterways and at the edges of the Spine of the World Mountains, the animal and plant life becomes more abundant and varied; wild cougars, wolves, and bears prey on goats, stags, and various small game.