[CHAR] The Fading Light of V'landriel (Closed for Soft Reboot)

[Slamurai]

Tokushima

Overview

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Tokushima (lit. Virtuous Island') is an island off the Kitagawa Shogunate's southern coast and a protectorate of the Yllendyr Empire. The island was originally the target of a military expedition to quell raids by pirates, and afterwards was granted to the Ito clan for its role in spearheading the offensive. It was settled by the Yamato, gradually supplanting the indigenous population. The Ito clan has ruled for centuries, formerly as daimyō, now as viceroys under the suzerainty of the Imperium. Yllendyr rule has resulted in widespread modernization of the island’s infrastructure and its military. It was the Imperium’s staging ground for its invasion of the Kitagawa Shogunate and continues to be an important asset to Imperial influence in the north.

Economy

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Following Tokushima’s industrial revolution in the wake of contact with the Yllendyr Imperium, textiles were the island’s first major export. Cotton and silk produced in rural home workshops became a cornerstone of the market and were in high demand abroad. Agricultural mills were increasingly becoming steam-powered, increasing their productivity. With the rise of steam power came a demand for coal, a major import of the island. Railways, modern roads and land reforms paved the way for modern development and improved infrastructure. Tokushima implemented new education systems based on that of the Yllendyr, sent thousands of young students to academies abroad and hired foreign professors to teach modern subjects, such as science, technology, mathematics and foreign languages.

Demographics

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The vast majority of Tokushima's human population is ethnic Yamato. The influx of Yamato peoples drove out most of the indigenous ogre population, which fled to other islands north of Tokushima (now the Fibor Dynasty). Minor tribes of humans also existed on the island and were integrated into wider Yamato culture. Yllendyr elves are commonplace on the island, most being military advisors, entrepreneurs and academics. Altogether, Tokushima's population numbers about 44.6 million inhabitants.

Culture

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Prior to the arrival of the Yllendyr, Tokushima was within the Kitagawa Shogunate’s political and cultural sphere. There is still an underlying belief in bushido among the population, despite a military model based on Yllendyr organization. Tokushima is no longer bound by a traditional class-based system, but the mentality still exists among the older, rural population, and former samurai families proudly reflect on their acclaim. As the country continues to modernize, a duality between traditional and contemporary mannerisms, dress and beliefs is commonplace.

Religious Beliefs

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Traditional Yamato religion, Kami-no-michi, is still the dominant belief in Tokushima, albeit with some alterations. The Shogun is not seen as a divine figure, a belief propagated by the Yllendyr after it took the country under its wing. The execution of the Shogun also did much to alter traditional perceptions. There is a growing atheist movement styled around Yllendyr nature reverence. Both religions involve ancestor worship, which has made the new movement palatable to some Yamato.

Location/Territories

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In maroon, south of the Shogunate and west of the Fibor Dynasty.

Climate

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Like the Fibor Isles, Tokushima is a temperate, forested country with distinct warm and cool seasons. The average annual temperature is moderate - about 37℉ to 60℉. Summers are warm and rainy, while the winter season is dry. Broadleaf, conifer and mixed tree ecoregions are present in Tokushima’s biome.

Military

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Because it is a protectorate, rather than a true vassal or client state, Tokushima maintains a standing military, modelled on the Yllendyr Army’s organization and equipment. Yllendyr personnel are a frequent sight be they military advisors or Imperial troops stationed on the island, working in tandem with Tokushima’s forces.

The Tokushiman Army is some 400,000 strong at present, with many of its soldiers hardened by Yllendyr’s attacks on the Kitagawa Shogunate. It is divided into twelve divisions, plus an elite Viceroy Guard division. Each division comprises two infantry brigades, with each brigade having two regiments, and those three battalions each. A division also maintains a cavalry regiment of three squadrons; an artillery regiment of two battalions, three batteries each; a battalion of engineers; and a telegraph company.

Tokushiman infantry conducting rifle drills

The standard infantry rifle of the Tokushiman Army is the Shimizu Type 60 rifle. It is a box-fed bolt-action repeating rifle, with an internal magazine capacity of five rounds. The rifle is chambered for the 6.5mm Shimizu cartridge. A carbine variant exists for cavalry, about twelve inches shorter than the standard rifle. In addition to the Type 60 carbine, cavalrymen carry sabres of roughly 33 inches, giving them the reach to attack infantry below.

The Tokushiman Navy is modelled after the Yllendyr Imperial Navy, with consideration to terms that limit the naval power of protectorates, vassals and client states. Tokushima has hired Yllendyr advisors to train its naval establishment, and likewise has sent students to learn at Yllendyr naval academies. This training has instilled Tokushima’s naval officers with capable gunnery and seamanship skills. As Yllendyr does not permit nations under its influence to maintain battleships, the backbone of Tokushima’s fleet is twelve protected cruisers. A number of corvettes and torpedo boats make up the remainder of the fleet. Tokushima also has a sizeable merchant cruiser fleet it can call on as auxiliary vessels.

Magic Prevalence/Usage and Elemental Alignment

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Tokushima’s original Yamato settlers brought their mind magic with them. It is used as a cultural art form, rather than a tool of war, but some schools practice a method of subterfuge with said magic.

History

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Tokushima was formerly inhabited by primitive tribes of ogres, orcs and their cousins, like the other islands southwest of Ookijima. Throughout the medieval era, these islands were staging grounds for pirates, who would harry the Azai Shogunate’s southern coast and disrupt the flow of trade. In 1693, the Azai decided they would no longer tolerate this. They sent an army led by the retainer Ito Kageharu to quell the raids. The next few years saw a series of naval actions against the pirate bands in the south, which would steamroll into a full-fledged invasion of the islands. What was intended to be a precise attack to halt piracy became a military expansion.

Tokushima was named after the expansion, and was granted to the Ito clan as a reward for its service. It was now an official province of the Shogunate. Yamato farmers were given incentives to leave the mainland and work Tokushima’s lands. Ookijima’s daimyōs kept on a long leash, however, and the shogun could not prevent civil war from breaking out when they reached their boiling point. As the Azai Shogunate’s power fractured, Tokushima became more and more independent from the mainland.

Tokushima came into its own as a power in the region when it defeated the neighboring Hog Dynasty. The Hog was forced to cede control of swathes of land to the Ito, and its defeat paved the way for the Fibor Dynasty to succeed it. With this victory, Tokushima drifted further from Ookijima’s political sphere, which was now under the reign of the Rokkaku Shogunate.

When the Rokkaku Shogunate collapsed, the Ito formally announced Tokushima’s independence. Without a standing army or central government, Tokushima’s move went uncontested. As the daimyōs warred on Ookijima, Tokushima turned its attention elsewhere, to the newly-established Fibor Dynasty and other continents.

The next few centuries saw changes in Tokushima’s political climate that would erode the power of the elite. Ito Takumi ascended to the head of the Ito clan and adopted a style of rule based on the enlightened absolutism movement of two years prior. Under Takumi, the power of Tokushiman nobility was diminished and peasants were granted stronger legal rights. He promoted the growth of commerce, establishment of cultural and educational institutions and religious tolerance.

Six decades later, abuses of power by Daimyō Ito Ryouichi lead to a peasant revolt. The cowardly Ryouichi abdicated, leaving his brother Nobu as daimyō. Nobu was in favor of peace, and he opened dialogue with the revolt’s leaders to seek an amenable solution. The talks resulted in the drafting of Tokushima’s first official constitution. While the Ito were allowed to maintain their rule, the nobility were virtually stripped of their former power. The peasantry gained representation at the local level and could hold local offices. The constitution also separated Tokushima’s executive and judicial branches into distinct entities.

The Yllendyr first made contact with Tokushima in 4825 YDC. The Yllendyr brought with them weapons and machines the Yamato had never seen before and Daimyō Ito Katashi was interested in their technology and culture. A relatively bloodless confrontation resulted in Tokushima accepting the status of an Imperial protectorate. The country was effectively independent and in-control of its internal affairs, but its foreign policy was to be controlled by the Yllendyr. Ito Katashi allowed the Yllendyr to undergo modernization efforts across Tokushima. In the Imperium, he saw a chance to expand Tokushima’s influence and increase its quality of life.

In 4832 YDC, the Imperium launched an invasion of Ookijima. Tokushima was to be the staging ground of the operation, and was ordered to lend military aid to the war effort. The attack forced Ookijima’s daimyōs to cooperate in an unparalleled level of unity, giving rise to the Kitagawa Shogunate. However, Yllendyr was undaunted. With superior military technology, tactics and manpower, the Shogunate fell.

The Yamato people were divided - those on the mainland harbored a resentment for the Yllendyr that persists to this day, while the Tokushimans readily accepted the Yllendyr and their modernization. Tokushiman public opinion weighed in favor of the Ookijima invasion. Many believed the attack was the first step in enlightening a backwards country that still clung to a shogun. When the Yllendyr executed the shogun in 4840, many felt it would herald progress.

As modernization efforts continued and Tokushiman soldiers returned victorious from Ookijima, the public lauded the Yllendyr and the Ito clan. The nation has generally held monarchist sympathies since. A unique cultural phenomenon has emerged, combining traditional Yamato aesthetics with modern Yllendyr values and mannerisms.

[Ahr Xanten]

Nation Name: The Confederacy of the Burnt Branch

Flag:



Type of Government: Hegemonic Tribal Confederacy

The Yutlao tribe rules with a light-touch from the capital, Aokki the largest city in the Confederacy, over the various other tribes and towns. News and proclamations travel slowly across these hostile lands and messages are regularly distorted by the staggeringly low literacy rates outside of the towns.

Head of Government: Speaker Acuru of the Yutlao Tribe

Summary:

The largest tribes of the Confederacy controls what would be considered towns by more advanced civilisation as their personal domains, with a plethora of tiny villages and hinterland farms being associated with each of the towns. The tribes then send or permanently keep a representative in the capital, Aokki, to ensure that their peoples' needs are met by the Confederacy.

The fractured natures and desires of the various representatives causes friction between the building blocks of the Confederacy, with pride and various feuds slow the processes of agreements and compromises to a glacial paces. One basic mechanism of the state though has always continued unhindered by these petty squabbles, the “Agrari” or “annual tithe” requires that each of the building blocks of the Confederacy, known as “Kroaz” provide either people as labourers on the building or maintenance of grand projects or for wars over a specified period of time, if this isn't possible or desirable then a payment of goods or food is accepted instead from the “Kroaz”.

A Kroaz is the largest scale political component the Confederacy and they consists of a single central town and an ever-shifting number of hinterlands villages that are under its protection and provide for the townsfolk. But a Kroaz isn't formed solely on the basis of territory, it is in fact much more focused on familial bloodlines and ethnic or tribal groups as Kroaz are formed by “Khoko” which are smaller political units comprised of a series of interrelated families and familial units which unite together for strength and cooperation. A khoko is usual rather limited in their scale or size and tend to stay within their kroaz. As such a kroaz is formed of between five to twelve ethnic groups which specialise in various trades or crafts.

As part of their traditions, each Khoko pays and maintains a temple to their respective gods which can be as elaborate or simple as the Khoko can afford, with the wealthiest having carved vast temple-complexes out of the swamp lands for themselves. Each and every Khoko though maintains a school-complex for their children with no standardised education system, sometimes inside the temples themselves or sometimes as separate entities. Here the next generations of the Khoko are taught: the basics of fighting, about their religions, and some of the languages of the Confederacy.

The only school not segregated by which Khoko you were born into is in the capital where any lizardfolk can attempt to join the “Yuknu”, the most prestigious school in the Confederacy. A students capable of entering is judged based on a punishing series of physical, social and mental trials. Those who manage to pass these trials enter the school become “Jothi” and are taught: law, linguistics, religion, music, art, fighting and how to be servants. Once they've survived their time in the Yuknu, the Jothi become indispensable for the Confederacy as they leave their training as strong and capable individuals who form a ruling elite which are usually sent back to their Kroaz to take high positions as rulers or state officials.

Under the careful guidance and watchful eyes of the Jothi, the Confederacy have gained a stability and sense of purpose that drives the Kroaz forwards towards large-scale projects. The two most common being the construction and maintenance of a crude road system, along with an ambitious food storage and distribution network that gathers food in times of plenty and distributes it back out during times of need. Besides these beneficial programs, the Jothi struggle to convince their representatives to help with other larger projects of state, no matter how revolutionary or innovative it may be.

Economy

Economy:

The Confederacy's economy is heavily based in agrarian farming or swamp fishing with villages pooling their resources together and selling their excesses to the larger town-based Khoko who don't have the space to farm for themselves. Most of the lizardfolk living in this lifestyle survive on simple subsistence agriculture supplemented by trading with the nearest towns quite happily. Those that live in the towns tend to work in one of the many small Khoko-run workshops that are in every town and produce much of the necessities of day-to-day life for both the agrarian and town based population.

Each Khoko-run workshop, called “Aetheqa”, are based around large numbers of individuals producing the same goods as everyone else in the Aetheqa in single building or small confined area. These Aetheqa can vary based on the Khoko which controls them, ranging from comfortable places where workers can sit around and communally weave or craft items while chatting, to enforced labour camps used to create massive quantities of items for profit.

Slaves are forced to do the most dangerous or laborious jobs, such as: quarrying, construction work, or logging projects with the occasional assistance from “Agrari” workers who volunteer to join the work crew. These jobs are difficult and have a shockingly high mortality rate for those that work there.

Despite extended pressure over time the Confederacy has failed to standardise its currency across their lands as such it has a fluctuating number of coins and tokens that are used to trade in the different areas each having different values making travel across the land challenging. This problem becomes even more pronounced when traders leave the towns and travel to the various villages as each individual village may not only have their own bartering method or system of currency but also their own language or dialect.

To ensure the sanity of long-distant traders there are counting houses called “Dalziz” in each of the Confederacy's towns which can convert currency and even offer basic banking services such as loans or deposits as well as providing translators for the many languages of the Confederacy. Even the Dalziz not standardised across the Confederacy and occasional disputes between them crop up over the validity of another's counting methods.

Main imports: Guns, Gunpowder, Iron, Steel
Exports: Lumber/Timber, Fish, Poisons, Translators, Cloth
Industries: Large-scale farming and fishing, Cottage-industry weaving and melee weapon-making
Technology level: 15th Century Aztec Empire (Pre-Spanish arrival). Large-scale organisation of the State. “Hegemonic” (indirect) rule over other tribes and states.

Primary Species: Lizardfolk

Lizardfolk are tall humanoid creatures that look like a cross between a powerfully built human and a bipedal lizard. They have clawed hands, a long tail, and a toothy jaw and are usually between six and seven feet (1.82 to 2.13 meters) tall and they have a muscular tail which is usually between three and four feet (0.91 to 1.21 meters) long. They have green, gray or brown scales that cover most of their bodies with the exception of smaller and softer scales that cover their bellies.

They have a natural affinity for swimming and this combined with their powerful tails and their extraordinary ability to hold their breaths for long periods of time makes them quite comfortable on land, in rivers or in lakes. They are biologically capable of swimming far out into oceans but tend not to stray from sight of the land because little useful is out at sea for them.

The species are omnivores with a noticeable preference for meat, with rumour suggesting specifically human meat. Though they will eat anything if it becomes necessary, to the point of having some eating habits during famines that they find normal, but other species find revolting such as culling the slave population and feasting on their bodies.

Secondary Species: Humans, Goblins

Population:

A population census hasn't yet been successfully completed by the Confederacy, but estimates vary from between fourteen and thirty one million inhabitants across the land. With the vast majority of the population being Lizardfolk and a small but noticeable minority of humans & goblins who inhabit the area as well.

Culture

Culture:

The Confederacy's society is surprisingly stratified between nobles and commoners, both of which are further divided into elaborate hierarchies of power based on social status, a Khoko's responsibilities, and power. Stronger Khoko would dominate weaker ones socially and extract tribute from the weaker which creates a further stratification based on how strong or weak your Khoko is. Lizardfolk also create hierarchies inside their Khoko based on their ties: of blood, ancestry, faith or skill against others in their Khoko and these bonds create a strong sense of group amongst the Confederacy as they each knows their place in society and try to outdo the others around them.

A tradition that dates back long into Lizardfolk history is that of mutual help and defence, as the swamps and jungles they live in are harsh environments that require constant cooperation to thrive in. This mutual cooperation was truly stretched to the limit during the Time of the Irzuco when all of the tribes came together to help their brethren and cousins. This war also spawned another central part of the Confederacy's culture, a strong distrust and fear of “outsiders”. While the concept of “Outsider” is very malleable and can change based on how well they know you, it helps to solidify the internal workings in favour of those who have lived and thrived alongside others in their Khoko and thus strengthening the Khoko.

Religious and Other Beliefs

Religious and Other Beliefs:

The Confederacy is quite relaxed about the religions of their population. The people of the Confederacy worship a dizzying array of gods and pantheons, with a towns streets full to bursting with: temples, shrines, and alters to a staggering array of figures creating a riot of colour and fervour for all to see as these pseudo-religions compete to try and attract new followers with the most showy displays.

As long as the people add “Srolzaxl”, the Patron God of the Yutlao Tribe, to their pantheon of deities they can worship whomever they wish. The Yutlao say that Srolzaxl fiercely grips domain over the passing of time and the rhythms of life in his claws, plucking those that don't worship him from the rhythms of existence and abundance to wander the lands of the lost forever.

Speaker Qathrit, the semi-mythical founder of the Confederacy, has also found a place amongst the religions of the Lizardfolk. A large minority of the tribes worship the Speaker as a divine figure and retell stories of his famous exploits and his skilled speeches around the campfires of the villages. Many of these stories have been inflated by time and repetitions. One story tells of how Speaker Qathrit lulled the jungle to sleep with only a few calming words so that his wife could sleep peacefully, not to be disturbed by the endless noises of the night time jungle when she was pregnant.

Where stories of Speaker Qathrit are told, those of Hadyar Khus the Feathered also rear their ugly head. Tales of Speaker Qathrit defeating the near-automatons of Hadyar Khus are replete in Lizardfolk culture and the tales both venerate Speaker Qathrit and teach valuable lessons to the younger audiences.

Location & Territories:

Location & Territories: See latest Map of the New World

The Burnt Branch Confederacy is location on the western side of the New World, in an area mostly composed of marshlands close to the west coast and steaming jungles further inland.

Aokki, the capital is a city of mudbrick and stones dotted with canals and giant temples the resides next to the only lake in the Confederacy, Lake Dizarsi which provides a bountiful quantity of fish and sea(lake?)foods. The other towns are: Ortaz, Uttass, Iqagus, Yigzi, Drixu, Allusk & Yacesk and are dotted around the Confederacy usually near rivers or water sources. The vast majority of the population live in either Aokki or one of other the towns.

Each of the towns is supported by a plentiful number of villages, which are smaller concerns with a handful of wooden shacks on poles to keep away from the regular flood waters or jungle predators. These villages consist of two or three extended family groups that eke out a their subsistence living from the lands and animals around them.

Climate: Temperate Marshlands & Tropical Forests

Military

Military:

As part of the “Agrari” each Kroaz can be required to raise large part of their populations for military service as a levy for the state. The number of lizardfolk who turn up is entirely decided by their respective Kroaz and the skill of the levied troops varies based on the training they received in their Kroaz's schooling. Generally these levied troops are significant in number, but very poor in skill and training. Armed with basic iron or steel melee weapons and negligible armour they pose little threat to a skilled or trained combatant, their strength however is in guerilla warfare specifically in the swamps and jungle in which they were born and raised.

Their natural affinity with watery environments and ambushing from high up in the trees allows them to inflict terrible damage to armies who don't know their lands as well as they do, but this leaves them ill suited to traditional line and musket warfare as they simple don't have the space to practice such things. As such the levies are usually only raised from a few Kroaz and only for a campaign or a single year and then they return home afterwards to their villages and lives to keep the population of the Confederacy stable.

Rather than specialise in a trade or a craft, a handful of Khoko in the Confederacy specialise in warfare itself. They train as small units from childhood to be incredibly skilled warriors who work as units of about one hundred lizardfolk at the will of their Kroaz or whoever pays them well enough. These Bhask-Khoko (or war-Khoko) have formed a warrior aristocracy amongst themselves and are dedicated to fighting and either capturing or killing as their entire livelihoods. Capturing an enemy in battle is a quick route to admiration for these warriors as whoever was captured can either be ransomed back or sold as slaves.

The final part of the Confederacy's war machine are the slaves who manage the logistics of a campaign army on behalf of their masters and carry the prerequisite supplies in vast convoys through the jungles. In particularly desperate situations the Bhask-Khoko may call upon these slaves to fight alongside them to try and tip the balance of a campaign or to preserve dwindling food supplies. In these desperate situations, the slaves are either used as bait to draw rash foes from advantageous positions or as waves of bodies that soak up ammunition that might endanger the more precious warriors.

Magic Prevalence & Usage and Elemental Alignment

Magic Prevalence & Usage and Elemental Alignment:

Magic, known as “Kher”, is only used by about a quarter of the population of the Confederacy who are known as “Kheras” or “Magicians/magic users” and the knowledge needed to successfully use it is kept as a well guarded secret by the few Khoko that study it.

The Lizardfolk are elementally aligned towards the concept of “Mind” and study this concept broadly across the Confederacy with the wielder being called “Kheras-Yuz” or “Mind magicians”. The kheras-yuz are most famous for their “Urzeri” network, a communication network that stretches across the Confederacy by using telepathic communication through blank masks worn by the kheras-yuz and forming a connection to another far off kheras-yuz who also is wearing such a mask. Anyone who speaks to one of these blank masked figures will have their facial features and words projected, or at least the recipient believes that they are, onto the distant blank mask and it even appears that the mask moves and speaks as they are despite the sender being many hundreds of miles away from them. The knowledge of this is tightly controlled by a few Khoko who relay message across the Confederacy for a high price.

On a more individual level kheras-yuz practice a more subtle form of mind magic. Fights between lizardfolk are stopped by kheras-yuz merely dampening the combatants anger to less deadly levels, construction plans or council suggestions are shown directly into the minds of those who would build or accept these plans, and unknown creatures are “read” to understand who they are and what they want. These practices are a known factor of life and are used regularly based on the level of skill the kheras-yuz possesses.

While not aligned to the concept, a single Khoko in the western city of Drixu focus on the element of Liquid as their speciality. These “Kheras-Acotlu” or “Liquid Magicians” have plenty of practice in the swamplands they inhabit and have even had limited success building an aqueduct system in their town to provide fresh water for their people.

History & Background Info

History & Background Info:

The western jungles and swamps of the New World have been inhabited by lizardfolk longer than any written record. As small isolated tribes they dotted the landscape that no civilised people would setting in for long and continued a savage lifestyle amongst the rich plethora of creatures which inhabited their swamps and jungles. It was in these simpler times that many myths and legends rose.

It wasn't until a creature, damned by the gods themselves, rose from the deepest of sinkholes did the Lizardfolk know true fear. It moved through the night with a cloak of darkness shrouding upon its shoulders and a veil of tears upon its face. It's presence was marked by entire tribes vanishing from their villages without a struggle, their food still cooking upon the fire. The only sign left by each of the vanished tribes was a single granite statue in the centre of the village which looked identical the tribes Speaker immobile and terrified.

The tribes became known as “The Departed” or “Irzuco” and as whole Kroaz vanished the remaining tribes gathered themselves together to find a solution. Scouts and hunters were sent across the land to discover the source of this disaster. Hundreds were lost.

Nearly five long years after the Irzuco first began to vanish a single wounded scout returned to Aokki telling stories of a corrupted Mind magician of incredible power who was the cause of this problem. They were called “Hadyar Khus the Feathered”, a creature who's gaze turned people to stone and whose hair were venomous snakes. They had unleashed terrible mind magics upon the tribes that had vanished, turning the tribes people into near-automaton like creatures with no will or soul of their own.

As this revelation spread throughout the lizardfolk lands so to did the slave armies of Hadyar Khus the Feathered as they began a campaign of devastation across the lands. Hordes of mindless lizardfolk who had once been cousins or friends slaughtered or captured anyone in their way and burnt the rest with soulless glassy-eyes.

It was in this time that the semi-mythical figure of Speaker Qathrit appeared to aid the tribes in the time of greatest need to aid and unified the tribes. Though they didn't put their differences aside at his requests, they understood that they needed to cooperate and band together to defeat Hadyar Khus.

The unification sparked a vicious civil war amongst the lizardfolk. Spirited guerilla raids were used by both sides to harass the other through the dangerous terrain and whole villages were slaughtered or captured in the war. Hadyar Khus' mindless forces regularly swept aside the Proto-Confederacies forces as they drove their way towards Lake Dizarsi and the city of Aokki but as they did the Kheras-Yuz were devising ways to undo Hadyar Khus' foul magics.

As the slave armies reached the outskirts of Aokki the Speaker unleashed his most deperate plan to survive. His forces set fire to the surrounding jungle. Rolling smoke clogged the battlefield and waves of forest creatures fled from the fires into the slave armies lines. Ferocious and savage lizardmen stalked through the smoke attacking the Irzuco who mindlessly defended Hadyar Khus.

The fighting was bloody with an entire generation of Lizardfolk dying upon the primitive weapons both sides wielded in brutal civil war. It is said that Hadyar Khus was defeated that day as the Kheras-Yuz stole his magic from his guards and poisoned weapons brought him low. As dawned rose the Battle of Lake Dizarsi had been won, but rumours spread of Hadyar Khus retreating to the sinkholes that spawned him. Speaker Qathrit stood up once more and spoke of how unity must be maintained to ensure their future survival. He spoke of the defeat of the foul Hadyar Khus and the misuses of kher and how it should be limited to prevent this happening once more.The tribes agreed to the Speakers plan, and the Confederacy of the Burnt Branch was formed.

A great deal of time has passed since that invasion and the lizardfolk culture moves slowly. They have dragged themselves from the Stone Age at a remarkable pace despite their constant infighting. Will it be enough to resist the wandering eyes of other empires?

[Grijs]

The Miranid Empire

Motto: IN RECTITUDE LIES SALVATION

The double-headed eagle was based on the eagle of Yllendir, whose colony the Miranids had come into contact with. Miran had adopted the double-headed eagle as coat of arms for his own aspiring empire; one to rival Yllendir.

Nation Sheet

Type of Government: Empire / Khanate
Head(s) of Government: Pir Miran Shaykh Gurkani, abroad known as Miran the Lame, because he walks with a limp.
Economy Exports: A lot of dairy, spices, carpets, cattle, animal pelts, mounts and in the mountainous regions minerals as quicksilver, lead and charcoal.
Economy Imports: From other lands little is imported other than weapons and spices. Though at times marauding warbands would make attempts to cross over into different lands to return with booty.

Primary Species:

Fararuals

Fararual Elves – If they can be considered Elves at all is up to debate. Within the Miranid Empire, they are a caste of clergy and magistrates. Fararuals are the fire kissed progeny of the Fire God, they are immune to burning and are naturally gifted fire sorcerers. For all their expertise however, they grow weak in the absence of sunlight and especially at night.
Historically the Fararuals built the first civilization in Transtulania with remnants of their Ziggurats and Fire Temples lining the steppes to this very day. They number few, and procreation is a great ordeal, for pregnancies take long, and miscarriages are all too common. This is because a Fararual womb is as a furnace, and a newborn spawn worthy of entering this world must literally pass a trial by fire before they may join their brethren among the living.
This excruciating breeding process ensures the potency of their offspring, at the very least.
The perpetually low birthrate of pureblood Fararuals and common miscarriages has for thousands of years opted male Fararuals to breed with humans, their slaves, which gave rise to the Üarim race.

When a Fararual dies, their bodies innate magical energies escape, causing the corpse to disintegrate to ashes.

Üarim

Üarim – Considered a race in their own right, they are technically humans of half or partial Fararual descent. Other cultures would consider them ‘halfbreeds’ or a ‘bastard race’, though the Üarim themselves certainly do not regard themselves as such. Rather as 'lesser Fararuals', for the pureblood Fararuals are regarded by them as a divine race of ancestors, venerated to the point of worship. To preserve their Fararual blood the Üarim breed only among themselves. They are physically more robust than humans, olive skinned, dark haired and with bright orange eyes resembling sundisks and somewhat pointed ears betraying their ancestry, they appear otherwise not too dissimilar from humans. They are famous beastmasters and huntsmen that have harnessed wildland spawn ranging from warhounds, warglar, golems, griffönlu and, most of all, the tremendous Oliphaunts; their trademark superweapon.
In sunlight is where they excel for it genuinely makes them stronger and fiercer warriors. Because of their Fararual ancestry they are also naturally resistant (but not immune) to burning.
The Üarim people originally comprised the armies of the Fararuals. Today, with the Fararuals slowly going extinct and taking on spiritual & ascetic roles in Transtulanian society, the Üarim became self-serving and under Miran Gurkani, rose to the top in their own bid of empire building, and accordingly form the core of the Miranid Empire’s leadership.
Temperamental, aggressive and innately expansionist (let’s just say they have fiery personalities); in the absence of powerful leaders or warlords, Üarim would go rogue to form marauding warbands.

Humans

Tzücomen – Full blooded humans, natives to the southern steppes of Transtulania. Throughout history they’ve been serfs and roaming herdsmen, and in ancient times the slaves of the Fararuals. They are distinguished from other humans by their swarthy complexion and artificially deformed cone-shaped skulls, achieved through ritual head binding. They have a long history of cooperation and kinship with the Üarim. Their warriors too fill the ranks of the Miranid army as auxiliaries. Militarily they have some uses as light cavalry and skirmishers, due to being lighter weight than their often bulkier Üarim cousins.

Arier Gardonians - Locals to Ariers Haven, they descend mostly of human refugees from Wulfram fleeing Strigoi domination many centuries ago. Ariers Haven was formed as bulwark against the Vampires and headquarters to all who seek to fight them, and liberate their kinsmen. To this end they have made very little progress, and the Arier Gardonians could do little more than serve as an Order of frontier guards ensuring no Strigoi heads further north. They did, however, grow to a significant regional mercantile power, and began hypocritically trading with nearby cities in Wulfram. With all their attention directed south, however, they were swiftly overwhelmed and annexed by the Miranids.

'Amreans'

Aarehan – Pastoral Amreans, nomadic tribal cousins of the denizens of Amrea. Men with fur such as the Amreans are deemed effeminate and weak in the lands of Transtulania. Having adopted the Üarim mentality since migrating outside of Amrea, the Aarehani are easily distinguished for shaving their animal parts religiously. Their would-be majestic foxtails are rendered ratlike appendages, earning them the pejorative nickname of ‘Ratmen’ to outsiders. The Higher Ranking Aarehan, such as their champions and ruling families, shave their tails only with the exception of the tip, giving them plumed ends as though that of lions. They also grow the hair on their heads to resemble manes, dignifying themselves Lion Men. They are further distinguished from their northern Amrean cousins by being much less groomed, having a darker tanned skin complexion and with their males sporting long Manchu mustaches. Today the Aarehani domain serves in Miran’s mighty army, either out of free will or coerced by force.

Gnolls

Gnülonlar – Sapient canines resembling hyenas walking on two legs. Other cultures would call them Gnolls, and they are natives of the sandy northern wastelands of Transtulania.
They are less intelligent than their equally savage human and Üarim neighbours. But while being driven by the most base of instincts and generally dimwitted, they are also capable of acts of shrewd cunning. They make for excellent ambushers and surveyors, and more so than any man can analyze weakness and opportune moments to strike. Because they are arid creatures, and smaller and generally weaker than men, they require less food to sustain themselves and breed rapidly. However as they are carnivores native to an arid dominion, food is sparse, and thus for ages now the Gnulonlar were locked in endless cycles of tribal warfare against each other where they kill and eat other Gnulonlar; this having the effect of a self-imposed population control. They rely on numbers and savagery and make for excellent shock infantry and skirmishers.

Unique specimen:

Efreets

Efreets - Holy and revered entities that live between worlds, Efreets only appear in the confines of religious sanctuaries and other holy sites such as temples. They are conjured from the ashes of dead Fararuals, based on the Fararual's innate magic still contained in those ashes. They are not spirits of the dead, but rather an afterglow, a memory, of the dead Fararual magically given form. They often serve as oracles, and their words are always very cryptic. The meaning behind which (if there are any) is entirely up to interpretation.

Golems

Golems - Beasts of animated Stone said to have come into being through an ancient curse. They are native to the rocky dunes and canyons in the west where they are spawned through wizardry. The Golems resemble gorillas, and are barely sapient, but do understand war. The Üarim beastmasters had long since tamed them and used them as an integral part of their wars.

Daywalkers

Üarim Daywalkers - Some Üarim communities that have served in Wulfram as mercenaries offered up some of their daughters as part of a sinister pact with their Strigoi overlord. Part of the pact involves the Üarim community keeping the offspring, with some of them being sent to Transtulania. Üarim Daywalkers can be told apart from regular Daywalkers by their grey skin color, and unlike regular Daywalkers have a good resistance against the sun. Because of a Daywalker’s famously super-human strengths, many Üarim daywalkers have risen to the top as warband leaders and champions.

Small minorities:
Strigoi - not subjects of the Empire, but considered a wildlife nuisance.
Gorgar - along the western rivers, also not subjects of the Empire.
Anhreinn Humans - in the Tementafel Twinstates

Literacy: The population, save for the Fararuals and high-standing Üarim, is almost completely illiterate.
Population: some 70 to 80 million total, the vast majority of which conquered peoples. The heartlands of Transtulania are compared to surrounding lands arid and sparsely populated. Most of the population live around rivers and in the recently annexed territories closest to Amrea and Wulfram.

Fararual Elves: 40.000. Pureblood Fararuals are a dying breed. Most of them live in the Holy City of Aranagh; the spiritual centre of the Miranid Empire.

Üarim: 28 million, the majority of the Miranids and rulers of the Empire’s western heartlands, namely the Fararu Luminescence (their ancestral place-of-origin) and the two Emirates.

Human Races:
Tzücomen: 13 million
Gardonians: 2 million
Anhreinn: 500

Aarehan: 1,5 million

Gnülonlar: 22 million

Golems: 80.000

Culture: Masculine and warlike. Every man is expected to be capable of martial prowess, archery and life in the saddle of whichever beast they have mastered, a tradition that echoes bygone ages. In addition to the people's rogue lifestyle, very few leaders have been able to assert control over the unruly masses. Üarim respect strength above all, for strength and confidence are the measure of a man.

Most of the population live a rural and nomadic lifestyle, and only some 2-5% of the population comprise of city dwellers. Most Üarim and certainly every Tzücoman, no matter how poor, herds cattle for sustenance and owns a steed.

Spicy food that burn your taste buds is a big deal in Transtulanian diet, and it is the spice trade (importation and exportation alike) what made Transtulanian cities wealthy. Chili and peppers Uarim people eat practically on a daily basis.

Religious and Other Beliefs: The Sun God (the same as Amrea's) and the Fire God; Axbak Kamen

According to ancient legend and oral tradition, many thousands of years ago Axbak Kamen was the first Emperor of the Fararuals that ruled an Empire spanning the southern half of the Continent. Upon death, the Fararuals believe his spirit ascended to Godhood, and in Transtulania he is revered as 'the Fire God, son of the Sun God'. Beyond this key difference, their religious practices are virtually the same as those of Amrea.

Location/Territories: Much of the present Miranid borders comprise a land referred to as Transtulania.

Map of the Miranid Empire

Climate: Very diverse, though overwhelmingly (sub-)tropical and arid.
From north to south:

In the Aarehani Principality; hills covered by tropical rainforests

In the Gnülonlar Badlands, Tementafel Twinstates and Fararu Luminescence; rocky arid flat wasteland

In the Emirate of Uar-ög and the Dunes of Kurtkoc; mountainous with many canyons

In the Tzücomen Beyliks and the Emirate of Ushji-Dash; grassy steppes and flat riverlands


Military:
There is a tremendous emphasis on war beasts in the Miranid Army, and it is their harnessing of beasts that has been their truly distinguishing strength.

Oliphaunts

Oliphaunts - great Elephants native to the southern Transtulanian plateau. Indomitable and titanic creatures, their steps are a prelude to devastation. Few have the skill to tame and harness their power, and among the Üarim the secret has been passed down to befriending these monsters. For over a thousand years they have been the Üarim superweapon.

Griffons

Griffönlu - Great beasts, vaguely reminiscent of horses combined with eagles; since ancient times the chief source of Üarim power. When their enemies were confined to the mortal coil of land, the luminescent army took to the skies. Today, with competitors also having a similar access to aerial combat, this boon had been somewhat negated.

Cavalry Skirmishers

Mounted archery - In this day that largely means rifles and fire-arms, though there are some (namely from the Tzücomen Beyliks) that still use old fashioned bow and arrow, and lances for charging.

Beyond that, the different races listed above give an insight to the purpose each race serves in the Miranid army, with Tzücomen and Gnülonlar being generally cheap levies and rank-fillers, the Golems as crude fantasy-tanks, and the Üarim as powerful professional soldiers.

Magic Prevalence/Usage:
Fire!
And conjuring tempests.

History/ Background Info:
Miranid History is linked to the warlord Miran Gurkani, whose history goes back only a few decades; prior to then it was a remote land always on the outskirts or part of another power's empire.
It is known that in ancient times, Transtulania was part of the Amrean Empire and the first Emperors are to this day revered in Transtulania and considered as their Emperors as well.

Miran was born Miran Shaykh, of lesser Üarim noble birth in a long line of Holy Defenders sworn to the Holy City of Aranagh, ruled by the Arch Luminescent, the King of the Fararuals.
He was a man strong in body and relentlessness in spirit, and though his career as a warrior painted for himself a font of a vicious brute and killer, he draws little enjoyment from his bloodsoaked deeds. His true passion is - (don't laugh!) - in writing poetry. In fact it was his writing that caused Miran from a young age to befriend the Luminescent’s Daughter; Mulk Khamun, who is more divine than mortal -- the most beautiful woman in all the world.

One day a High Priest of Kand known as the Hierophant had Mulk Khamun seized and brought to the monolithic city of Kand, of which Grand Temple he was Master of Rites, in a bid to sacrifice her to the Sun God. This was to reverse the decline of the dying race of the Fararuals. Only one of such potent divine lineage would make for an offer powerful enough to invoke the protection of the Gods.
Immediately Miran mustered his band of Holy Defenders and pursued the Hierophant to the gates of Kand. They prepared the investment on the City, however fortunately for Miran one of his friends was among the city guard, and helped smuggle him inside. At seeing the Holy Defender barging into his temple, the Hierophant mistakenly believed Kand had fallen, and he rushed into a hidden passage leading outside of the walls… Where Miran’s men easily captured the Hierophant. Later that month he was presented in chains before the Luminescent to answer for his crime against the royal family.
This feat accomplished, the Luminescent inquired what reward Miran desired most, to which the Holy Defender gave resolute response: the hand of Mulk Khamun, to whom his sword and heart was pledged. But this was not allowed, for his blood and birth was not pure. Instead he obtained land grants as compensation, with the grand title of ‘Gurkani; meaning ‘son in law’.
However Miran Gurkani disobeyed the Luminescent, and he and Mulk Khamun agreed to marry in secret.

Husayim the Grey, named so for his grey skin and Daywalker heritage, was another and mightier Holy Defender of Aranagh, and he witnessed their secret marriage. He was quick to inform the Luminescent of Miran and Mulk Khamun’s disobedience. The Arch Luminescent was outraged; to him this was the ultimate betrayal by disobeying the one thing he strictly forebade. As punishment Miran was stripped of his lands and titles and sent into exile into the deserts of the Gnülonlar, his survival left to the judgement of the Gods (this was considered merciful, for had it been anyone else the penalty would’ve surely been death then and there). All the while Mulk Khamun was placed under house arrest in the citadel of Quaraash.

Miran and a handful of Holy Defender defectors accompanying him, wandered into the wasteland. The absence of these defenders provided Husayim the opening he conspired to get, for he was a henchman of the Hierophant all the while, determined to enact his scheme to revive Fararual Power in Transtulania. Swiftly, Husayim the Grey assassinated the Luminescent and kidnapped his daughter from Quaraash back to Kand.

Immediately Miran and his band, accompanied by Gnülonlar auxiliaries that had joined them on the road, rode against Husayim in Kand. But they were too late, Mulk Khamun was cooked alive in ritual sacrifice committed to the Sun God.

In the subterranean halls of Kand, Miran defeated Husayim in single combat. During this battle, Husayim cleft Miran's foot, causing him to walk with a limp ever since. When at last Husayim relented to Miran's mercy, Miran showed none; in wrath he threw him to the Gnülonlar who ate him alive.
Then he retrieved the ashes of Mulk Khamun and interred them in the Holy Temple Axbak-Aranagh to be among her ancestors.

With both her and her father’s death, the Fararual Royal bloodline went extinct. In accordance to ancient Fararual prophecy, this is the prerequisite of apocalypse, the end of an era, and the beginning of a cycle of darkness. Was Husayim trying to restore the Fararuals to power, or was he an acolyte of Armageddon that superstitiously sought to bring about the downfall of the world?

It matters not, for one thing Miran agreed with him on; the final war is at hand. Most of the Emirs and chieftains of Transtulania regarded him as the successor of the last Luminescent. …He had made him a son in law (Gurkani) after all, even if that title had technically been revoked. But Miran avenged both the Luminescent and his daughter by capturing the Hierophant and killing Husayim the Grey.
Speaking of the Hierophant; he was still alive. And as a prominent sage of Transtulania, Miran begrudgingly turned to him for counsel. This he said:

‘’Conquer the world, and Mulk Khamun will be brought back from the ashes.’’

And Miran believed him. For at the very least, the thought of getting her back is a flame that keeps the aspiring conqueror to the path of conquest.
In Kand he was anointed the Sword of the Fire God, and received the Flaming Sword Zara-Thuster which he carries into battle on his relentless campaigns.

It was a hopeless quest, for how can a man actually conquer the world? Miran resigned himself to doom from the beginning when he accepted Zara-Thuster, but nevertheless he is resolute to carry out his given duty as Chosen One of the Fire God.

Over ten years have passed since then, and though there were other warlords, it was Miran who pulled firmest at the threads of fate to come out on top. Many atrocities had been committed: his armies of Üarim and Gnülonlar swept across the land, and with sword, scores of cannons, pillage and much fire the nations of Transtulania and the southern steppes were brought to heel. This became the foundation of a nascent Empire of the south, which has been dubbed the Miranid Empire – the subjects of Miran Shaykh Gurkani.

[Roby6Com]

Nation Name:
Governorate of Aurelia

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Flag:


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Type of Government:
Province of the Yllendir Empire, under elven government.

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Head(s) of Government:
Head of Council Vulre Pazana

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Economy: (Main imports, exports, industries, technology level, etc.)


City of Qubus, one of the industrial powerhouse centers of the aurelian province.

Courtesy to the Northern Range, the mountains that make up almost half of the province, Aurelia has hundreds of industrial centers scattered around, mining precious metals, building materials and even pumping the relatively new wonder resource called "Petroleum". These sacred mountains offer iron, bronze, brass, stone, gold and diamonds. The aurelian people have longe since mastered the art of terrace farms, with many such farms forming the unique landscape of the Uplands, the base of the Northern Range mountains. These farms are one of the reasons such a mountainous province such as Aurelia manages to maintain closely to 35,000,000 people. Stable food is both consumed province-wide, aswell as exported to the Empire.



Another considerate resource is wood from the numerous forrests of the Midlands, some of the Empire's finest ships, furniture and buildings being made from the famous aurelian wood.



And of course, Aurelia's southern coast, the Emerald Coast, is famed for it's sea food and cuisine, not to mention the numerous luxurious resources such as the purple color extracted from the squids and the pearls of the southern ocean or the more notorious gigantic Palmyra Mushrooms, whose hallucinating proprieties are used by the wealthy, especially during decadent parties.



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Primary Species:
Humans are the most populous, with a sizeable population of Dwarfs and Elfs.

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Population:
Around 52.000.000 of which 2,000,000 are Yllendir elves and 4,000,000 dwarves, with small pockets of other races here and there, but the bulk number of 46,000,000 is made of human aurelians.

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Culture:

The humans of Aurelia come in many diverse variations, from swarthier complexions in the south to more lighter ones in the North. Aurelia's human population has a long history peasantry. They take pride in living simple lives, with the most sacred thing being the rigid family structure where man is the leader of the household. Many aurelian families have up to 6 children, especially in the rural parts of the province, for they require additional help on their fields of work. Aurelians have the privilege of bearing a rich culture, with traditions, poetry and a code of duty. The key word is "kinsmanship". Because of the imperial administration, most rural humans are segregated from the elven presence, but time has proven that humans are quick to adopt the elven culture, especially in urban centers. Their traditional art and motifs often include straight lines, elaborate curves. Among the traditional decorative art of aurelians, the sun motif is the most common one to be found, for they have long since worshipped Ayleris, their cheif deity.
Aurelians take pride in their homeland, and even though scars of the Yllendirian conquest began to fade decades ago as new generations take the helm, there's still a strong disdain for elven presence, albeit secretive, passed down from parent to son among the human population.




Aurelia's dwarven population had lived for generations together with mankind in the Northern Range, but ever since the imperial conquest, most of the dwarven population has been cast away from their cave holdings nestled in the mountains, with many of their cities and outposts having been collapsed due to imperial orders. Only a handful of them remain nowdays to remind the glory of old times, some converted to mining slums, and even fewer managing to remain hidden from the elven knowledge, forever bound to retain the dwarven secrets and treasures.
Since their exodus, many have chosen to settle in cities, towns and villages across the entire province, either as local blacksmits, industrial slaves or same field of work as their human neighbours. Of interest is the fact that the human and dwarven relationship was good even before the Empire, the conquest serving only to solidify it.




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Religious and Other Beliefs:

The primary religion is the cult of Ayleris, who is often associated with the sun, however, many regions have their own unique way of worshipping him. Along with him, there's a small secondary pantheon of gods.

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Location/Territories:



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Climate:
Colder temperate climate in the Northern Range, with warmer temperate climate in the Midlands and a dry summer climate on the Emerald Coast, a location favourite for the rich on vacations.

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Military:
Being a province of Yllendir, the same principles apply here.

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Magic Prevalence/Usage and Elemental Alignment:
Magic prevalence is very low, as Aurelians shun it, but certain underground organisations actively practice what is called by the inhabitants "Black Magic".

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History/Background Info:

Since a good portion of the population of Aurelia are peasants, written documents are scarce, especially after the imperial conquest of Aurelia. The general consensus regarding the earliest Aurelian history, as imperial historians put it, is that the region of Aurelia has been a battle ground between western and eastern forces at many points in time, but as one Yllendirian scholar puts it: "Mankind of Aurelia is both an enigma and a miracle." referencing the fact that despite incursions from the outside, the human population has succesfuly maintained identity integrity and cultural cohesion. It is, however, known that aurelian cultural presence has definately been a part of the barbarian invasions into Yllendir, 1000 years ago.

The surviving records show the feudal foundation of the Aurelian province at the start of the Moonrise War, 288 years ago. There were dozen of petty states ruled by different lords. Out of all these lords, the most famous person of Aurelian history will rise. Aurelian the Great, the man who would come to conquer all the human states of Aurelia, founding the Aurelian Dynasty. Scholars have been unable to properly find the old name of the current province, lost in time, probably erased by force from the scribes of Aurelian.

The Aurelian Dynasty would last only a bit more than 200 years. Around 70 years ago, Yllendrian armies began their conquest of Aurelia, known as the Great Patriotic War in aurelian culture. The Northern Range campaign proved to be a bloody one, and because of this, it took the Empire just a bit more than five years to conquer the entire province, as once the Mountain Ranges fell, the Midlands and the Emerald Cosat were no match for the superiority of the elves.