Ornity
Demographics
Ornity holds an enormous sum of humans, some dragonborn, and a few full dragons. Everyone who isn't a noble is somehow affected by the Duumvirate War: widely spaced towns and cities are barely trading, and wealth tends to move toward Domin or various military centers. The south end of Ornity holds civilians from Ossifrey and Vacillia who are now trapped. Within the overstretched empire, some of these communities are tearing each other apart, while others are banding together.
Government
The hierarchy of Ornity, more than any other in Agrophon, values birthright. Power, money, and bloodlines tend to flow in the same direction, pumping up ancient nobilities and vestigial systems which refuse to be dissolved. This makes the government extremely complicated and difficult to define. Every noble builds their inner circle differently, and the value of public election varies from city to city, depending on whom it benefits. Ornit frontierfolk tend to support governors who do lots of building and little governing; a military background helps. But a new governor won't fit the mold unless they're connected, or easily cowed, by a network with a little more seniority.
Ornity's troubling streak of oligarchy is only worsened by their streak of theocracy, which allows certain people to wield power for centuries through deification. For the most powerful icons in Ornity, their time is never up, and neither term limits nor death can take anything from them. Ancient rulers live on as minor gods, instructing the people of Ornity through multiple ages. This has affected the way Ornits view the gods in general: the gods on their side are rulers to be admired, and the gods working against them are opponent rulers, advising the enemy.
Figurates
The major cities of Ornity, including those they conquer, have "figurates" constructed off the seat of power. These are council rooms seating stone effigies, which capture the faces and voices of Ornity's late governors. Supposedly they give advice to those who pray and discuss beneath their eyes. The statues are carefully designed and religiously guarded, especially in the older towns.Defences
Ornity's forces are tenacious and mobile. They're difficult to circumvent or outrun, and escaping them is a grueling war of attrition. Most of their forces belong to a type of legion called Eblisent, an even mix of hoplites and soldiers. They favor a close formation sealed up in shields and spears, with a few wizards speckled throughout. Their phalanx and use of counterspells makes them invincible from a distance.
Other legions are more elite, with expensive gear including full helmets which conceal their identities. This is to magnify the image of Ornity's military, since any helmetless person can claim to be an off-duty elite. These special legions are designed by the prefects appointed to lead them. For example, Loambosk's soldiers are distinguished by "aniseed helmets," light and unmistakably dragon-designed. The helmet's sharp design forms a garrison around the wearer's face, and its elaborate crest rebuffs flying opponents. Behind the face guard is a filter which protects against the poison that Loambosk uses. The filter is decorated with a beard of colorful tassels; every distinguished legion includes these kinds of luxurious materials in their armor.
Air and Sea
While their alliance with dragons is far from official, and neither sedge is willing to bear their flag, the Ornits have plenty of living siege engines in their ranks. Able to carry more firepower in flight than any manmade vehicle, these dragons have locked down the sky in Ornity and beyond. Since nobody can get far in the air, and most ships are sitting ducks under draconic patrols, Ornity never has to care about attacks by air or sea.History
Founded in 533, Ornity is one of the continent's youngest nations, behind only Hendecy and Carrithel. Once a cluster of disparate city-states approaching a critical mass, they consolidated, claiming the vast territories between them, hastily adapting to a competitive new world as Agrophon's civilizations began to bump elbows.
Starting the Duumvirate War
As soon as they determined their shared principles and the limits of their territory, they secured their position by developing a sense of national pride. They valued resourcefulness, self-sufficiency, and the strength to keep whatever they obtain, in order to feel safe and indomitable. This rhetoric was used in various ways to explain Ornity's choice to declare war. Ornity's narrative stated that they were being left behind. They explained how the rest of the continent was gradually phasing them out of conversation, and cheating them out of the position for which they worked so hard. Since everyone was two-faced when it came to Ornity, and used every moment of delay against them, Ornity had no choice but to fight back for survival and righteous revenge. The rest of the world has plenty of contrasting theories, but the most popular response to Ornity comes from Ethmer Alenda's famous condemnation.I used to respect the peoples of Ornity for their capacity to survive and prosper in any condition. And I apologize for mistaking your curse as a virtue. No matter how much land and wealth you have to stuff yourself, you're always a survivor, consumed by the notion that all of us are out to get you. That idea may feel natural to you. So why did someone need to teach it? Caius, your people are tormented, so poisoned by looking on your sour face that they see it plastered on everyone they meet. And I agree that they deserve better. But your solution is not to uplift your own people, but to make the whole world feel your gratuitous pain.
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