The Impereich

Government Type:

Monarchy

Current Monarch:

Theodric the IV or Theodric the Younger

Geography:

The kingdom of Impereich is based between the Spine of Ara’niel and the Black Mountains in the west. A land of limited but healthy soil and sparse but thick forestland, the country covers significant amount of land, which it claims through the use of several key river ports. It also claims a wide number of mountain mining colonies which act as a barriers against threats from the south and north.

Climate:

Temperate except in the most southern part of the kingdom where the more arid mountains of the Spine are located.

Economy:

Impereich has one of the stronger economies in Ara’niel. Impereich cities are beholden to many practical craftsmen, blacksmiths, stone masons and woodcrafter. Goods created in Impereich are shipped throughout Aran’niel using the many rivers within the kingdoms borders. The nation has a considerable amount of raw materials at its disposal. It can draw upon both mining colonies in the Black Mountains and the Spine, as well as lumbermills in the many forests of the land. Few crops are exported out of the nation as nearly all are consumed by the people themselves.

Culture:

Impereich's culture is one that prides independence, personal honor, and personal strength above all else. Respect is to be earned, not given, and the children of the land are taught never to depend too much on others. These types of beliefs would seem to contradict the existence of a strong unified Impereich. But the counter balance to those belief are the strong oaths binding each of the lands people to the central power of the Wolf Throne. Sworn by every tribesman at the age of fourteen, the oaths represent the unified spirit of the pack. Each must be strong, but only together can one survive. As such ones national duty is to hospitality and charity to ones fellow countrymen. But the taking of such alms is often regarded as humiliating. To be a beggar in Impereich is to be utterly scorned, even by those who fill your cup with coin.

Significant Settlements:

Khanrigard:

The seat of power for all Impereich kings and home to the ancient Wolf Throne. The capital of Impereich stands resolutely on the center of the Great Snake River, its great gates facing the Spine. Khanrigard is both a large metropolis and a fortress city. The city's walls were once, in ages long past, considered impregnable. They are now merely a faint shadow of their former glory. Their perceived invincibility shattered after the Great Invasion. The city is still recovering from that era, and even two centuries after the fact, many ruins and charred buildings can be found both in and around the city's remaining walls. But only historians would think to compare the famed walls of Khanrigard to their previous glory. And few today would speak of the mighty walls of this age with anything thing less than wonder. Khanrigard is also the productive heart of the nation and is present to more practical workshops and craftsmen than perhaps anywhere else on the mainland.

Beobachter:

A stout fortress guarding one of the only known passages going south through the Spine. A tall square keep dominants the fortress, staring out over two rings, of thick twenty foot stone walls. Armored men can be seen patrolling the keep at all times in constant watch of the valley. When not at a constant vigil the men spend their time training in spartan courtyards or relaxing in the long narrow barracks built into the walls of the fortress. The keep has yet to witness anything remotely capable of justifying the size and cost of its garrison but it is maintained at a constant ready as dictated by Impereich law. Fearful tales of another Great Invasion continues to haunt the kings of Impereich. None wish to be responsible for allowing another such catastrophe to occur uncontested. Still the fort has proven some use in acting as a barrier against those few barbarians and wild men that occasionally wander north from the southern wastelands.

Stadin:

A bullish settlement nestled at the base of the Black Mountains that serves as center point for the various mining colonies scattered across the mountain range. The large town is hard and practical like the many miners and blacksmiths who inhabit it. A steady cloud of smoke covers most areas of the settlement where men work day and night to craft the hard worn ore taken from the stubborn metal veins of the mountain. The city does have one unique piece of beauty to call its own. Having been built around one of the only surviving settlements from the Great Invasion, it is home to some of the most and best kept architecture from before the Great Invasion, which houses much of the cities wealthy individuals and the town's lord. The chief responsibility of the city’s lord is to ensure the quick and efficient transportation of the vast majority of ore from the mountain range that cannot be processed in Stadin downriver to Khanrigard.

Pelam:

A productive port located along the Great Snake River south of Khanrigard. It is the proverbial gate for all of the Impereich's manufactured goods and ores heading east. Conversely, it's the primary port for all imports heading west into the nation. The city's prime location has let it grow into the second largest settlement in Impereich and it hosts several markets to which a wide range of wares are sold. The city's current rulers are often viewed as the most progressive in the nation with a heavy emphasis on developing the city into a modern metropolis. However, this has led to some tribes to accuse the city of being corrupted by foreign influences like the Conclave and Eadhalion. Tall walls surround the city proper and the lord of the city has men studiously patrol the many villages and farming communities surrounding the city – in order to ensure little room for excuse come tax season. A permanent collection of mercenaries took root in the city after the Trodden War, and the area has grown a reputation for possessing a seedier underbelly. The city also plays host to the only Conclave embassy in Impereich.

I do like it. I'm going to put of "Nation Flavor" today, so look into it before you move this into accepted territory. That isn't to say this isn't accepted as-is, though, just that you might get an idea.

Would like City/fort/etc. map location information, or at least more detailed descriptions of where they are so we can put them on the map.

https://2img.net/r/ihimizer/img30/183/arannielimperatorcities.png

The circle farthest to the north is Telia. The circle farthest to the west is Pelam. The circle farthest to the south is Militis. The one circle that has not yet been mentioned and is sort of located between them all is Imperia.

Like the added lore there Crom, very interesting stuff.

Renamed some stuff and reworked Pelam if anyone noticed. I had originally planned on Imperator being a romanesque nation with major manufacturing bases around Imperia. But the more I wrote the more germanic and barbaric I felt they needed to be. There is still some industrialization at Khanrigard left over from the Great Invasion. These massive ancient factories provide a major advantage to the Impereich over its enemies. We've finally starting seeing some new manufacturing bases being built around Pelam which represents a more new-age approach to the Impereich but still fairly sporadic. The rest of the nation is still fairly barbaric relying more on indepedence than central planning like in Eadhalion. The contrast between the oaths to the Wolf Throne - which the people take very seriously- and the serious lack of oversight by the crowns authority on any area outside of Beobachter and Khanrigard is a major new theme for the nation. Also removed the bit about religion in the culture and put the focus on the national duty to a stronger nation.

I like it Crom, I like the Germanic brutal vibe I get off of it, and I'm curious to see what rp we can get out of it.

Speaking of I've got a few ideas kicking around, but my schedule is still all bogged down at the moment, I'll get on it by wednesday, just... don't go anywhere until then.