Recent History
Bar the introduction of trade between the various nations and the Centaurs, not a great deal has ultimately changed in the Heartlands for millennia. Seeing as the Heartlands are not a nation in the strict sense and are more a collection of interconnected tribes, their cultures are intertwined but not integrated, and so for the culture of each race in the Heartlands see their respective entry in the races section.
General Description
Most of the Heartlands are savannah and steppes, turning tropical as one heads outwards towards the ocean.
Ja’Pa
The city state of Ja'Pa, entirely enclosed within the boundaries of the Heartlands, embraces their Beastfolk neighbours with open arms, and the city had a reasonably large population of them living and working within its walls.
Fuk’Mar
Fuk'Mar, on the other hand, has gone out of its way to prevent anyone that isn't a Troll from getting in, even going as far as to attack them on sight, and for this reason the Beastfolk tend to stay away from the city-state as much as they possibly can. Fuk'Mar have attempted many times to steal land from the Beastfolk for their own ends in the Empire's name (despite the Empire not at all condoning such actions, and in fact Fuk'Mar barely being part of the Empire anymore anyway.)
Troll Empire and Bēti
The reason these two nations are entered in together is simple: the Beastfolk as a people view them both with the same relative ambivalence. They exist and the Beastfolk trade with them, and there is not all that much else to their relationship with the two merchant countries. With the Empire in particular however, many Beastfolk are wary, having heard of the Empire's power and worried about them attempting to grab their land, not helped by Fuk'Mari attempts to do just that.
Local Production
Mines producing Carnelian can be found throughout the region and are often exported or made into Jewellery. The region is also known for the production of Hide Armour.