Let's start fleshing out the human societies of Makara.
If you'll look to Makara's map you'll notice that humans are concentrated on three different regions: north, west, east.
The northern region is what lies between the Selkie Empire and the Dwarven Republic. Given that the nations are fantasy counterparts of Rome and China respectively, its natural to make the nothern region a fantasy counterpart of the Middle East, complete with a Silk Road connecting the two nations.
With a vaguely dry and warm climate and a mountain range to create rain shadow, the area immediately to the west of the Dwarven Republic is a perfect place to put a desert. I've decided that the Dwarven Emperor-in-Exile doesn't hold his own nation, but is instead stays at the leisure of one of the rulers in that desert area, interfering with the local politics and gathering strength to take back his nation.
I like the idea of placing a river flowing through there where civilization can gather. Perhaps with a Mesoptamian feel, with city states dotting the river and a single large powerful city holding dominance over the others.
To the south of the river valley is a region bordering the elves, with only a series of hills separating them from the point-ears. Here is a militaristic and perhaps theocratic nation, united and strong to be able to fend off elven and selkie incursions. Let's give them a priest-king and call it the Caliphate.
The rest of the regions are hot dry plains, with lakes, streams, and oases dotting the area. Let's putting some nomads there, nomads that regulate the trade within the region and between the Selkie and Dwarf nations.
To the west we have a human region that is caught in the middle between the Selkies and the Orcs. Now, we need something there that is tough enough to weather invasions by both Mongol-Viking-Russians and the Roman Empire. I decided to put a Mesoamerican-ish nation there. Heart ripping Aztecs are terrifying enough to fend off other nations, right? Plus, heart ripping might have a qi-based purpose.
A friend of mine mentioned that the Incans had legends of mummified kings ruling the emprie from beyond, so why not give the Western Humans a pantheon of lich-god-kings ruling their nation, drawing qi energy from the hundreds of sapient sacrifices performed by their priests. That qi sustains their unlife and also gives them the ability to empower their warriors with incredible strength, at the cost of countless lives. Frightening and powerful, well enough that orcs and selkie alike stay away from their borders.
Finally, to the east, let's place our traditional European fantasy kingdoms. Knights, kings, princesses in peril, etc. There's plenty of room there for a multitude of nations, with perhaps three or four large major kingdoms and a dozen or two smaller kingdoms that swear fealty to the others.
I'm not quite sure what kingdoms I want to place on the east yet, but I like the idea of putting a Camelot-ish kingdom up to the northernmost portion of the region. An peaceful countryside defended by an order of Arthurian knights against the Celtic elves and Roman selkies.
Also, to the south, there's a small grouping of human-controlled islands. I like the idea of these being mist-covered mystical islands of mystery, with qi wizards holed in their tower, looking out upon the world.
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