The Andaran Empire
The largest human nation in the known world, and the largest nation on the continent. The Andaran Empire is a theocratic caste-based feudal monarchy that spans the northwestern third of the continent, as well as the eastern third of the continent of Palatria. It is bordered to the east by the Kingdom of Rhodania and the Kingdom of the Dellians, and bordered to the south by the Kingdom of Montrosa. It is bordered to the west by the Sunset Sea. The Empire's capital is the city of Andarad, formerly known as Orlessia. Its current ruler is Emperor Magnus Magnusson VI. From its origins following the death of Andaros, the empire has sought to unite humanity under its power.
The Andaran Empire has been defined by a rigid caste system since the early days of its founding, with mages revered as scions of the gods themselves. The caste system organizes virtually every aspect of Imperial life, creating a top to bottom hierarchy of mages, warriors, scholars, laborers, and slaves. From the moment of birth, every Imperial knows their place within the greater plan towards the long war of continental unification.
Founding and Origins
The Andaran Empire was founded by a faction of Andaros's children known as the Ascendants. Following the Orlessian Civil War known as the Great Schism, Andaros' eldest son Emrik was crowned King of Orlessia by his followers. As the dozens of tribes who were defeated by Emrik's allies fled eastward, a massive restructuring was undertaken to reconstitute the Kingdom of Orlessia and the fragmented tribes who had sworn themselves to the new king's rule. Andaros had been worshipped as a living god following his conquests, and thanks to his own ego he had made little effort to discourage such worship. Cyrus, often derided as 'the secondborn' to his brother Emrik, was a leading supporter of these Andaran cults. Under the secondborn's leadership, the disparate Andaran cults were unified into an organized religion, and expanded their worship of Andaros to the worship of his children and his closest allies as well. If Andaros was a god, then surely those who shared in his conquests and accomplishments were worthy of such reverance as well.
The early years of the Andaran Empire's founding saw the Kingdom of Orlessia transformed into an oppressive, theocratic monolith. Although Emrik sat the throne, he had grown melancholic and emotionally absent in the years following the civil war, enabling Cyrus to pursue his ambitions in empire-building. With the flight of the Orlessian aristocracy, Cyrus and his siblings were left to build a new hierarchy from the tribes who had allied with them.
The Great Houses
The Andaran Empire is a hereditary feudal empire, and although the throne is typically passed from sovereign to child within the same house, all of the Great Houses hold a legal claim to the throne on the basis of power alone. The reigning sovereign sits in a precarious position - any sign of weakness may be exploited and used to challenge for the throne, and the sovereign is obliged to answer these challenges, either personally or with a chosen champion. The great houses are each descended from one of the ascendants, specifically from the children of Andaros himself, so that their members and scions all hold the blood of the Liberator himself in their veins. There have been emperors who have reigned for only a matter of days, and others whose houses have reigned in dynastic fashion for decades.
Today there are eight great houses that remain, with some having died out over the centuries. Each of these great houses reigns over portion of the Empire, with numerous cadet houses and vassal houses beneath them. The house that holds the throne is typically given the city of Andarad as their personal fief as well, for the duration of their reign, though each house holds estates within the empire's capital city.
The Andaran Empire has been defined by a rigid caste system since the early days of its founding, with mages revered as scions of the gods themselves. The caste system organizes virtually every aspect of Imperial life, creating a top to bottom hierarchy of mages, warriors, scholars, laborers, and slaves. From the moment of birth, every Imperial knows their place within the greater plan towards the long war of continental unification.
Founding and Origins
The Andaran Empire was founded by a faction of Andaros's children known as the Ascendants. Following the Orlessian Civil War known as the Great Schism, Andaros' eldest son Emrik was crowned King of Orlessia by his followers. As the dozens of tribes who were defeated by Emrik's allies fled eastward, a massive restructuring was undertaken to reconstitute the Kingdom of Orlessia and the fragmented tribes who had sworn themselves to the new king's rule. Andaros had been worshipped as a living god following his conquests, and thanks to his own ego he had made little effort to discourage such worship. Cyrus, often derided as 'the secondborn' to his brother Emrik, was a leading supporter of these Andaran cults. Under the secondborn's leadership, the disparate Andaran cults were unified into an organized religion, and expanded their worship of Andaros to the worship of his children and his closest allies as well. If Andaros was a god, then surely those who shared in his conquests and accomplishments were worthy of such reverance as well.
The early years of the Andaran Empire's founding saw the Kingdom of Orlessia transformed into an oppressive, theocratic monolith. Although Emrik sat the throne, he had grown melancholic and emotionally absent in the years following the civil war, enabling Cyrus to pursue his ambitions in empire-building. With the flight of the Orlessian aristocracy, Cyrus and his siblings were left to build a new hierarchy from the tribes who had allied with them.
The Great Houses
The Andaran Empire is a hereditary feudal empire, and although the throne is typically passed from sovereign to child within the same house, all of the Great Houses hold a legal claim to the throne on the basis of power alone. The reigning sovereign sits in a precarious position - any sign of weakness may be exploited and used to challenge for the throne, and the sovereign is obliged to answer these challenges, either personally or with a chosen champion. The great houses are each descended from one of the ascendants, specifically from the children of Andaros himself, so that their members and scions all hold the blood of the Liberator himself in their veins. There have been emperors who have reigned for only a matter of days, and others whose houses have reigned in dynastic fashion for decades.
Today there are eight great houses that remain, with some having died out over the centuries. Each of these great houses reigns over portion of the Empire, with numerous cadet houses and vassal houses beneath them. The house that holds the throne is typically given the city of Andarad as their personal fief as well, for the duration of their reign, though each house holds estates within the empire's capital city.
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