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Celestial Empire of Szuhan

Summary

A mix of Polish-Lithuanian elective monarchy, Chinese dynastic imperialism and democratic monarchy, the Szuhan are a very spiritual and superstitious people who endured a century long age of warlords right after the Gates closed, eventually uniting into a peaceful empire where spiritual mysticism coexists with high tech science.

They worship Divine Dragons of Heavens who guide many aspects of life and society but are actually the ancient Dragon AI Matrixes from the colony ships, a secret few know about. Masters of culture, alchemy, construction and pseudo-Confucian thought, they have already started to colonize their home system right when the Gateways reopened.

Administration

The Celestial Empire of Szuhan follows an unorthodox hybrid of monarchy and democracy where the Celestial Throne is actually elected by representatives. Traditional cultural beliefs state that every single person has a portion of the Heavenly Winds within them (a blessed “soul” for simplicity’s sake) and thus voting is equal parts secular and spiritual. Szuhanese citizens will vote for a local lord to rule over them and represent them. These local lords then come together to vote on a liege lord who in turn gather to elect someone from the Imperial Household to the throne. This person is often a child of the previous ruler but sometimes is also a relative.

Upon taking the throne, the new Emperor (or Empress) undergoes a Dragon Trial where they communion with the Divine Dragons of Heaven (in reality the ancient Dragon AI Matrixes), where one of them may step forward, emphasizing their power and blessing. It’s often seen as an omen or prophecy of things to come depending on which colored dragon blesses the Emperor. There are 9 colors from which an Emperor is typically given: Jade, Azure, Vermillion, Pearl, Amethyst, Amber, Onyx, Iron and Gold with Golden Emperors being the rarest.

The current Emperor is Jyonlwa, the 5th Vermillion Emperor.

The original history of the Celestial Empire is not well known but it said to originate from the Yangtze, a Colony Ship launched from Earth that collided with the Wielki Smoki after an unknown error caused both to enter the same Gateway and crashing into each other over the then unnamed planet designated SZ-2-8N. Following such a disaster, the Gateways closed, leaving the two wrecked ships the lay on the planet. What this Great Calamity was the Cywilka Zhanaw, the Warlord Era, where in the absence of an organized government, small bands of people fought each other over dwindling resources, loosing great amounts of pre-crash knowledge and the advanced technology brought along by the colony ships.
It was Jadweila the Great who would rise from the near century-long Warlord Era and unite the entire world behind a single banner. Tianwaroz was “blessed by the Divine Dragons” and used this to conquer her foes and spread their influence. In reality, the Dragon AI Matrixes concluded Jadweila was the worthiest leader who had approached them and thus granted her access to all kinds of ship systems, hidden data banks and technology more advanced than what much of the other warlords had access too. Crowned as the 1st Golden Empress of Szuhan after 89 years the Great Calamity and closing of the Gateways, Jadweila is considered a cultural hero and founder of the modern empire. Whether or not Jadweila was fully aware of the true nature of the Divine Dragons is unknown.
Over 200 years have passed (accounting for minor time dilations)  with the Celestial Throne having passed through many hands. Through the wisdom of the Divine Dragons, the realm has become prosperous and peaceful, a far cry from the century of bloody warfare. Less than a century ago, space travel and colonization of the rest of the system began under Byatian, 2nd Azure Emperor, establishing footholds, stations and outposts on other worlds of the system however the sudden reopening has sidelined many colonization efforts and prompted a minor arms buildup as although Szuhan has finally found peace, they aren’t naive enough to think that everywhere else in the galaxy has as well.

There are roughly 3.1 billion people, all of whom are Humans and majority of which located on the homeworld of Szuhan Prime with 22 officially recognized subgroups/dialects of Szuhanese people.

Szuhan Prime is a temperate world with many fertile valleys, open planes and rolling hills. Its mountains are quite unique with many mountain ranges not being traditional wide pyramids but instead spire-like, often densely forested and shrouded by mist and fog giving an almost fantasy-like apperance.

The rest of the Szuhan System consists of 12 planets, only one is recognized as habitable (Szuhan Prime) and 3 are recognized as semi-habitable and have been the focus of recent colonization efforts: Kraj-guo, Byzlpanang and Hongzyor. A scattering of research stations and remote mining operations are also present among the other uninhabitable planets.

Society

Szuhanese culture is a hybrid of collectivist and individualist thought, emphasizing that one should know their place in the social order but that once finding their role, an individual would be best able to develop themselves and contribute to society. This is done by a test known as the Zorangiko or “Civic Examination”, hypothetically open to anyone who wishes to advance or change their role in society. There are many specialized versions of the Zorangiko but all are brought before the Divine Dragons whose omnipotence will illuminate the most beneficial role. Of course, this is actually the work of the high advanced AI matrixes whose personality program can make highly educated and effective guesses at where an individual is most likely to succeed. These tests are notoriously grueling, taking upwards of two or three days nonstop where participants are kept in special cells to prevent cheating.

This limited form of social mobility, gives way to entrenched families who have spent generations mastering a craft, passing on the business from parent to child. Similar to Zaibatsus from Old Earth, Szuhan’s economy is dominated by “Caizjas” of varying sizes, family trusts, cartels or cliques that have a main branch in one business and then subsidiary cadet branches operating in either the same industry to act as backup or different industry to diversify income.

However, many families are not so called “Caizja Clans” and instead are simple commoners, laypeople, and laborers. Although even then there are families that have become increasingly specialized over the years, and this is most common in military households or “Zolnijas” where every child is expected to either be a full time soldier or commander. Most commoners are free to travel between cities and villages should they please, but they must find jobs for which they are either qualified for or have been approved of by either ancestry or Civic Examination results.

This has created an emphasis on ancestry with every family possessing some form of record either as a physical scroll or a digital archive. Some noble families even claim lineage from various Old Earth families although none can truly tell if they are actually connected or have ever existed at all. The concept of family in Szuhan also transcends the people themselves as it is not always the husband who passes on the name. Most often it is simply the older partner who will pass on the name, regardless of gender. However, in cases where the eldest child of two families marry, they will instead for a combined surname and create a new family surname. While nobles are more likely to place value on a “pure” bloodline and family lineage, commoners are often more wowed by longer names, taking it as a sort of familiar pride that shows their own lineage in a way simple records cannot.

Szuhan follows less of a religion in a traditional sense and more of guiding principles known as Shrimyzli (sometimes mistranslated as “Shrimyzlism”.) Similar in concept to Confucianism of Old Earth, Shrimyzli preaches that everyone has a role in society and people are to know where they fit within society. Those who find their place are best able to full express their greatest potential in a hybrid of individualist and collectivistic thought. It preaches social harmony, duty to the group, exploration of the self and veneration of ancestors and Divine Dragons of Heaven.

There are nine Divine Dragons, each symbolized by a different color and representing a different domain or aspect: Jade, Azure, Vermillion, Pearl, Amethyst, Amber, Onyx, Iron and Gold. It is said that praying to them can grant boons and there are many rituals and mystic rites associated with them, many only known to the Seer Priests. Unbeknownst to all but a few, the Divine Dragons of Heaven are actually ancient Dragon AI Matrixes, brought by the original colonizers. After the Great Calamity, their true origins were forgotten but they were still high advanced, benevolent AI whose programing and desire to help the descendants of the colonists stayed true.

Technology as a whole is a strange mix of technology that is understood and that which is relegated to mysticism. Many are unaware of where ancient technology ends and magic ends, often coming off as the population being overall superstitious. However, many rituals are actually esoteric versions of actual scientific processes only with their original context lost and shrouded in rites. This is best seen in the art of Alchemy which utilizes actual principles of chemistry and material science but also rites such as requiring spells or chants to be recited over a boiling vat or exposed to a full moon.

The most ubiquitous invention of Szuhan is something known as “terracrete”, a composite ceramic material that has different grades. The most basic are used for simple pottery and building bricks while some of the highest grades are strong enough to be used as reinforced military building materials and even starship armor and hulls. The ability to “pour” a ship hull allows for very quick ship construction although they’re always reinforced with additional metal alloy plating.

Dragon Shrines are also critical components of Szuhan. To the average person, they are mystic conduits to the Divine Dragons while in reality, they are actually receivers for Dragon AI Matrixes. They can be found all over the place, from inside of homes to inside of starships, from well kept and ornate shrines in cities to semi-forgotten and overgrown shrines in the countryside. They also allow for communication across vast distances and even between planets and the new colonies.

Military

Otherwise known as the ground army, the Grand Garrison is primarily composed of android constructs made of Terracrete with the artificial constructs far out numbering the living soldiery. The most common tactic is to simply overwhelm enemies with waves of Terracrete constructs to let human elements navigate and preform their own tasks while the enemy is distracted. As such, Szuhanese strategy on a large scale is incredibly simple and predictable but their small unit tactics are well honed and much more formidable.

The standard Terracrete Warrior is cheap and easy to produce, equipped with high powered railguns and even melee weapons as their inability to feel pain makes them excellent at close quarters combat. Their AI is somewhat primitive but complex enough to process sensory data and take complex orders. This is combined with an otherwise very defensively focused doctrine in which attritional warfare heavily favors the Terracrete Warriors and their War Artisan controllers.

Human soldiers are organized into banners of varying ranks such as the Lesser Blue Banner of Gjora, the Black-lined Red Banner of  Songilwa and the Great Banner of Weikowzk. Its not uncommon for men and women to be levied, volunteered or drafted into the military despite their previous social role however little is expected of them. Instead, the military families are expected to train at all times in the art of war and battle as professional soldiers and commanders. However, Szuhanese society does not value the soldier as much as the commander so where other societies might have hold a caste of warriors like samurai or viking in high regard, the Szuhanese instead believe in the mastery of the commander, many of whom are prolific warrior-scholars who have a grasp on both war as a military doctrinal discipline and as an art form.

The closest to a venerated elite warrior caste would be the honored ranks of the Celestial Dragon Guards, a force that defies typical societal roles by allowing anyone of sufficient ability to join. They are the Wardens of the Imperial Estates, Hands of the Celestial Throne, Sentinels of Dragon Court and Bodyguards of the Imperial Household. However, due to the strict physical and mental requirements as well as a punishing training regime, often only nobles or military households who have trained to such levels are accepted as guards.

Also known as the "Sky Fleet", the Heavenly Fleet controls all of the space-borne assets of the Szuhanese military. Despite its lofty designation, they are actually pretty small and somewhat underwhelming as a prolonged period of peace in space has left the fleet pretty lackluster. Its weapons are all variations of either anti-asteroid weapons or industrial ship components such as beam cutters and plasma mining explosives while they're only protected by armor alloy plates and sturdy hull designs. In fact all but one of its ships are actually converted, heavily-armed civilian vessels who all find their origins in the Marcher Crisis when pirates became a major issue.

Ships of Szuhan

The GDZ-3 "Sparrow" Inter-Orbit Cutter is a small space craft made by Gdazank Shipyards. Unlike many ships, its designed specifically to allow for as efficent surface-to-orbit transport as possible making it idea for short range trips to space stations and moons. Some variations are equipped to act as luxury yachts for star-minded nobles or Caizja families while others have been used as either emergency response vehicles or stealthy espionage vessels.

The Muajarokz Type 91 "Longrunner" Star Liner is the most common ship in Szuhan space made by Muajarokz Spaceworks. It has a venerable service history having spent over 60 years in active service with a dozen variations and models. Highly customizable it is the star of Muajarokz Spaceworks being used for transport, system patrol, cargo hauler, research vessels and mining vessels thanks to the availability of several upgrade packages available.

The Muajarokz Type 109 "Carrack" Heavy Lifter is a specialty industrial and cargo hauler ship made by Muajarokz Spaceworks. Its huge hull is capable of housing provisions for months or tons of cargo. They are most commonly seen in the Chongkaw Asteroid Belt where miners break apart large asteroids and then have the Type 109 swallow the fragments so they may be broken down in a safe environment with plenty of access to high powered tools.

The GDZ-18 Sentinel Ship was originally designed as colonization and colony support ships by Muajarokz Spaceworks, many where pressed into military service during the Marcher Crisis when pirates became an issue during the reign of the 3rd Jade Emperor. Their armaments are all based on anti-asteroid weaponry, utilizing solid-slug railguns and ordinance pods filled with simple nuclear missiles in combat. However, they lack much in the way of defensive capabilities or even point-defense and rely entirely on up-armored hulls to protect themselves.

The Zenkra 01 Djong Warship is an experimental ship built by Clan Zenkra Star Drives, a company previously only known for its star fighters and single-pilot star ships, in close collaboration with the Imperial household. Djong, the 1st Iron Emperor received visions from the Divine Dragons of "malevolent shadows in the void" and would come up with designs and plans of a proper warship early into his reign. However it would be his successor Djong III, the 4th Onyx Emperor who would propel it into reality, partially as a political maneuver to counter rumors that he was a toothless leader. It possess first generation starship energy weapons, experimental void torpedoes and a compliment Zenkra S-22a Multipurpose Fighter-Bombers.

Only one exists in completion with two others in states of construction with the entire project having gone overbudget. Despite that, Muajarokz and Dazank are still very bitter about loosing the contract to what they believe to be an wholly unfit manufacturer that lacks both the resources, exprience and connection to create such a ship and have offered their own variants to be produced in their own respective shipyards.
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