Vassagonia

Huge desert empire located in northern Magnamund, taking up most of the eastern coastal area between Sommerlund/Durenor and Dessi. Ruled by a sultan/king known as the Zakhan, the empire is held in a state of constant fear by his dreaded security forces, the Sharnazim. It has one of the most powerful armies in Magnamund, and sometimes fights alongside the Darklords, who enter into secret pacts with the Zakhan or use magic to influence him. Featured in a number of Lone Wolf books, it is the main setting for Lone Wolf 5: Shadow on the Sand, and for two of the Legends of Lone Wolf books (numbers 7 and 8). In Shadow on the Sand, Lone Wolf is sent as an ambassador to the realm, but treachery is afoot and he is attacked on arrival. Forced to escape the dungeons of the zakhan, Lone Wolf eventually discovers that the Book of the Magnakai - a Kai treasure containing the secrets of the higher Kai disciplines - is hidden in Vassagonia. After finding the book, he must battle the new Darklord leader, Haakon, to claim it. Other aspects of the story include the winged Itikar, giant birds used by the Vassagonian army, and the complex sewer system beneath Barrakeesh. The somewhat one-sided portrayal of Vassagonia given in this book is offset in the Legends novels, when good Vassagonian characters are incorporated into the story, and the zakhan is overthrown (though not, presumably, for good, since he appears in Lone Wolf book 9 which is set later). In Lone Wolf Book 9, the forces of Vassagonia, which are also attacking Cloeasia, Casiorn and other territories, converge with the Darklord forces in besieging the city of Tahou in the realm of Anari. Lone Wolf must defeat the Zakhan Kimah in one-to-one combat at the end of the book. The capital of Vassagonia is Barrakeesh. Other notable features include the Dry Main, a virtually impassable desert inhabited by nomad traders. The culture and imagery of the Vassagonian Empire seems to be based loosely on the Arab world in the Middle Ages, although the centralised sultanate is more reminiscent of empires from a later period.