The Tertius Empire
"Alas, your sentiments betray the narrowness of your view. The fate of Laëril and its inhabitants is of little concern next to the fate of the world." - Varis zos Galvus
The Tertian Empire is a major world power in the Veiled Realms. Operating out of the region of Terte, in the far north of the continent of Toercas, having sought to annex the realms beyond its borders for the past several decades. The key to the Empire's success is their advanced technology, specializing in magitek machinery and airships. Their magitek is powered by a substance called Ceruleum. The Imperials are mainly of the Tertian race, characterized by their inability to use magick in comparison to the world's other races.
Origins
Tertians have always felt abandonned by the gods. Inept in the use of the magic that allowed others to thrive, they struggled to defend their territory for centuries. Once living in the southern, warm reaches of Teorcas, they found themselves pushed north over time. Eventually they were forced to cross treacherous peaks which divided the north and south, leading to them settle in lands with long, bitter winters and short growing periods. Within the last 50 years however, the subsequent discovery of Ceruleum and its technological applications saw the Tertians soar into an unstoppable Empire. What even the tertians do not know however, is that the true reason for the sudden discovery of such a powerful tool was the fruits of the Court of the king in red, which intended on creating a powerful pillar they could rely upon if their plans within Laëril failed. Tedbaldus of the Ascendants, assuming the identity of a brilliant Legatus named Solus zos Galvus, brought about a technological revolution with the discovery of ceruleum. Solus established Tertius as a world power within a single generation with himself as its emperor. He began a campaign of conquering other nations with his magitek forces under the pretense of exterminating worship of the Veiled Pantheon while presenting the other races as barbarians.Structure
Tertians have a distinct naming convention different from those in Laëril. They consist of a given name, a middle name denoting rank, and a surname taken from their family. In the event multiple titles are possessed, an example being Zenos yae Galvus, who is both the crown prince (yae) and a legatus (van), the highest rank (yae) takes precedence. The middle name, being more of a title than a name, can be changed or removed as necessary, as seen in Emperor Varis zos Galvus, who was known as Varis yae Galvus prior to his ascension, and Fordola rem Lupis, who was referred to simply as Fordola Lupis following her capture. Defectors from the Empire will generally drop their middle name, such as Cid Garlond.
The ranks observed so far and their naming conventions:
Royalty:
- zos : The emperor.
- yae : Member of the royal family in the line of succession, the emperor's wife, and the emperor's mother.
- wir : Member of the royal family with no claim to the throne, such as female heirs and their spouses.
Military:
- van : Legatus or high legatus
- tol : Tribunus laticlavius, leader of tribunes, second in command to the legatus. Tribunus militum.
- sas : Tribunus angusticlavius, assumes command of a secondary unit if a legion is split. Praefectus castrorum, leader of a castrum and the highest rank attainable by a citizen of non-Tertian ancestry.
- rem : Primus pilus, commander of a legion's first cohort. Pilus prior, commander of remaining cohorts.
- quo : Primi ordines. Centurion, commander of a middle-sized unit of infantry.
- pyr : Optio, a Centurion's assistant. Tesserarius, maintains communication between officers and soldiers. Decurion, commander of a small unit of infantry.
- oen : Duplicarius, a veteran soldier. Legionarius, regular infantry primarily comprised of people of annexed territories seeking citizenship.
Specialists:
- nan : Primus architectus magiteci, chief imperial magitek engineer and Lord Provost of the Magitek Academy. Architectus magiteci, a magitek engineer.
- mal : Primus medicus, first medic. Praefectus medicorum, high commander of field medics. Praefectus architectorum, high commander of field engineers.
- lux : Chief medicus. Architectus ordinum, commander of a small unit of field engineers.
- kir : Senior medicus. Medicus veteranus, a veteran field medic. Architectus veteranus, a veteran field engineer.
- jen : Medicus or Architectus, a field engineer.
Public Officials:
- iyl : Dictator, a temporary leader appointed only in times of emergency. Princeps senatus, leader of the senate.
- het : Consul, highest elected official and mayor of imperial capital. Praetor, minister of law and second to the Consul. Tribunus plebis, remnant of the old republic, represent public citizens. Aedilis, minister of city planning. Quaestor, minister of state finances.
- goe : Censor, supervisor of public morality. Rector, ruler of an imperial province. Praeses, ruler of an imperial territory. Primus Frumentarius, commander of foreign and local operatives.
- fae : Praefectus, supervisor of civil servants. Vicarius, deputy to Rector. Senator.
- eir : Decemvir, member of the Decemviri, ten magistrates adjusting litigation, distributing public land, writing laws among other tasks. Auctor Palatinorum, head of imperial palace servants. Frumentarius, a local or foreign operative.
- dus : Eques, basic civil servants. Lictor, bodyguards and protectors of public peace. Notarius, Scrivener and record-keepers. Compulsor, tax collectors. Palatinus, imperial palace servants.
Citizens:
- cen : Civis fabrilis, artisans and other citizens working on manufacturing.
- bas : Civis mercatus, merchants and other citizens working on services. Civis fundamine, citizens working on collecting raw materials.
Non-citizens:
- aan : Peregrinus, slaves and people of annexed territories. Citizenship may be granted for a display of exceptional skill or serving in the military for 20 years or more.
- viator : Outcasts and enemies of Garlemald.
The general hierarchy of these ranks is in reverse alphabetical order, with the emperor (zos) at the top and slaves (aan) at the bottom. Outcasts of the empire serve as the notable exception, though, since they rank below slaves, even though alphabetically they would place above legati (van).
Military
The Tertian military is one of the most powerful in all of Aurora due to the Empire's technological progress.
The army is divided into fourteen large-scale units known as legions, each comprised of ten infantry battalions known as cohorts that are further broken down into three companies, or manipuli. Finally, a manipulus consists of two platoons, or centuriae. Individual soldiers tend to be defined by their role, such as hoplomachi (sword-and-shield fighters) or eques (spearmen).
While it is unknown how they recruit soldiers from inside the Empire, a good portion of the lower echelon imperial troops are conscripts from conquered areas, such as Lithorion Thalas. After the city-state's fall, many of its children are brainwashed into hating the gods, and become loyal servants of the Empire. Statements by prisoners of war have confirmed that these conscripts are recruited with the promise of citizenship in Terte. One advantage to this is that some of these recruits can use magical arts, something native Tertians are unable to do. To curb rebellion, the military never stations its conscripted recruits in their home provinces, sending them to other annexed territories instead.
The Empire uses magitek weaponry, out of which the Imperial Juggernaut is the most prominent, being used for both ground support and air battles due to its mobility and its powerful magitek cannon. The air forces are often backed by massive dreadnoughts. Despite their technological might, the Tertians do not hesitate to augment their military further by studying the ancients and recovering their relics, whose technology exceeded even their own.
Nos Sumus Manus, Nos Sumus Deus
Founding Date
2080th Year of the Ridge Calendar
Type
Geopolitical, Empire
Training Level
Professional
Veterancy Level
Experienced
Demonym
Tertians
Ruling Organization
Government System
Monarchy, Absolute
Power Structure
Unitary state
Economic System
Market economy
Currency
The Tertian Sanguinis, also known as the Tertian Bleed.
Location
Controlled Territories
Neighboring Nations
Manufactured Items
Related Species
Comments