Nations of Ardia

The Palatine ‘Empire’

The Palatine empire is an ancient state stretching from the north coast of the continent, around the inner sea to the south desert, and from the west ocean to the frontier in the east. The palatinate is mostly a human state with the exception of the Yazu Province in the north west. An empire of ruins. It is clear that the empire is very old and everywhere on its lands there are ruins and outposts of the forefathers. Most cities are located in these ruins, some kept in good repair, others not so much. The different kings and princes struggle for the imperial crown through several means but mostly avoid open warfare, so subterfuge and intrigue are the main ways to gain power. The empire is currently organised in several regions, south, west, east, centre and the Yazu. Each region has more or less loyalty to the emperor. The dominant religion of the empire is the Cult of Solaire, which has considerable power within the empire. The empire is a classical example of Feudalism with nobles sharing power with the Cult controlling the state, the free citizens are the next step on the social ladder with the serfs being the lowest class. The western part of the empire is heavily influenced by the Western Trading guild, which to an extent, is challenging the emperor for authority. Through debt collection, money lending to nobles and kings and a near monopoly on trade they are the authority in the west. The Center of the empire is host to several highly militaristic kingdoms, the principality of Serte is famous for their disciplined and heavily armoured infantry, Cran for their highly skilled horsemen, Belatrix makes use of cheap but effective weapons, such as crossbows and pikes, to arm large numbers of militias, Dortalian bow men are famed for they accuracy and speed. The eastern empire used to be host to large productive kingdoms, the kingdom of Thorgar has disintegrated into multiple smaller petty states and in the south the old kingdoms fell to a Jelnan revolt that rejected the authority of the emperor. The south is host to prosperous kingdoms that are focused on trade, recently they have been threatened by raids from the people living in the south desert. The current emperor is Cristof the 6th de Adrumentum.

The Imperial Academy:

The Academy is in the capital city of the empire, Nueberg. An ancient organisation, it is a combination of university and bootcamp. The Academy is one of the few routes for people to climb the social hierarchy of the empire. Anybody as long as they pass an initial examination, prove that they are faithful and can pay the entry fee can attend classes and train for a year. The fee can be paid monthly and many work alongside their studies to be able to pay. At the end of the year there is an exam, which is catered to the students chosen specialisation and the classes they attended. They must also take an oath reaffirming their loyalty to Solaire and the Emperor. Depending on the classes the players take they will have different teachers which will also examine them at the end of the year.

The Imperial Dictate

The Imperial Dictate is a set of rules and laws set by the Diet and agreed upon and enforced by the emperor. The laws have been designed to restrict open warfare between the various vassals of the emperor in order to minimise loss of life (but mainly to protect the lord's land and property). All vassals must swear an oath of loyalty to Solaire and the Emperor, binding themselves to uphold the divine order and maintain peace within the Empire.

Prohibition of Open Warfare:

Vassals are strictly forbidden from engaging in open warfare against one another except with the explicit sanction of the Emperor and the Diet. The vassals are allowed a limited form of warfare called the War of Assassins. This war is mostly conducted through the Sicario Guild, which carries out assassination attempts. The guild is meant to be neutral in the politics of the empire but many of the large houses have bought branches in the guild. Violations of this law result in immediate forfeiture of titles and lands, with offenders deemed traitors to the Empire.

Authorization of the War of Assassins

Assassins must adhere to the following guidelines:

• Non-combatants (family members, clergy, civilians) are strictly off-limits.
• Collateral damage to property must be minimized, with compensation for damages paid by the instigator.
• Collateral damage to property must be minimized, with compensation for damages paid by the instigator.
• Targets may only include individuals directly tied to the dispute (e.g., the vassal, their heir, or key military commanders).

Failure to abide by these rules results in collective punishment of the offending vassal's household. The Emperor maintains a registry of approved assassins, known as the "Shadow Scroll," ensuring accountability and adherence to imperial standards. Unauthorized assassins are declared outlaws. Assassins are required to carry a royal writ of authorization when executing sanctioned strikes. Vassals are prohibited from seizing land belonging to another vassal as part of the War of Assassins. Disputes over land must be presented to the Diet for adjudication. Vassals instigating a War of Assassins must compensate the Empire with a portion of their wealth to cover administrative costs and damages. The Diet conducts an annual review of all vassals’ actions to ensure compliance with the Imperial Dictate. Vassals found in violation may face demotion or expulsion. Lands belonging to rebellious or traitorous vassals are placed under temporary stewardship of the Empire until a new, loyal lord can be appointed. The lands of an extinguished house would automatically revert to imperial control. This ensures that the Emperor can oversee the transition and prevent opportunistic vassals from seizing the territory unlawfully. The Emperor can appoint a steward, governor, noble house or priest of proper rank to manage the lands until a new noble family is selected to take possession if at all. The Diet and Emperor can jointly decide to reward a loyal vassal with the forfeited lands, particularly one who demonstrated exceptional service or support for the Empire. The victors of the War of Assassins will face scrutiny to ensure their actions adhered to the Imperial Dictate. If found guilty of excessive violence or collateral damage, they could face penalties or lose their claim to the lands.

The Imperial Diet

The Imperial Diet is an empire wide forum where the lords and kings of the empire convene to negotiate upon imperial matters. The emperor is technically under the authority of the Diet but often wise emperors will manage to get enough votes on their side through the consolidation of titles. To be a member of the diet it is necessary to not have any authority higher than that of the emperor called (immediacy), thus many lords in the empire seek to have vassals of their own to claim they're vote holding title in the diet and gain material support from other lords. Lords also form factions which are usually long lasting based on shared interest to steer the empire in a certain direction. These vote holding titles can be created by the emperor with a majority vote from the Diet. Once a title is created it is very unlikely that it will be rescinded even if the original territories that came with the title are long gone. Thus there are many titles of former lands that now have only a symbolic value, for example the Governorship of the Est and various kingdoms that existed on the east coast of the inner sea that have been lost in the civil war.