Value

What do the people of this culture value? Art, trade goods, religion, basic necessities for survival? No matter what it is, it is likely to impact the main characters at some point.

The jovial monks of the Murazuma shrine, loved to perform as they transported goods between the mountain villages of their parish. The plains of Mu were rich in grass with a permanent stream running through. The ranchers provided wool, meat and milk, this fed and clothed the land. The mines of Ra were rich in iron and gold, iron necessary for smiths, and gold trade with the rest of the world. Zu's forests are lush with stout lumber for tools and housing. Finally, the rice paddies around Ma provided grain for man and beast. The monks ensured peace between the four towns, and kept the goods flowing safely between them.

Here the thing that each town values is what the others can provide, no one town commands the terrain  necessary for all the goods. The monks understand the value and delicacy of this balance better than most, and strive to maintain peace.