Escher

Timeline - Escherian History (WIP) Escher is a proud nation, technologically advanced and ruled by the balanced influences of their monarchs, King Heinrich and Queen Andrea, the Noble Assembly, and the Church of Kolif'rem, the god of Order and the Forge that has blessed Escher with the holy blue flame that burns eternally in its forges. The Escherian people are devoted citizens who love their monarchs and revere their god; the Noble Assembly is less popular, but most people point to individual nobles with bad reputations as the reason they dislike the Assembly, rather than the structure that the assembly as a whole represents. King Heinrich and Queen Andrea are widely considered wise and fair, and most Escherians believe that Kolif'rem is responsible for the nation's power and advanced technology, like the nation's interconnected steam-powered railroad system. Escherian dress is extravagant, with whimsical designs stitched together from expensive imported fabrics. However, Escherians believe in a strong demonstration of their faith through their appearance; they believe their bodies are a gift from Kolif'rem and refuse to alter them, including by cutting their hair. One effect of this is that outsiders in Escher are incredibly easy to recognize because they don't have the excessively long hair characteristic of Escherians. Although Escherians are not openly hostile to outsiders as a whole, they do tend to look down on them as the unfortunate denizens of a less advanced world. Escherian cities are efficient and practical. Most have a main train station at the city center, around which a lot of commerce is concentrated; and wide roads that can accommodate carriages for the wealthy and the nobility (both horse-drawn and steam powered), as well as steam-powered streetcars for lower-class Escherians. The nobility live in large castles on the city outskirts with sweeping grounds, while the newly-rich often live in highly vertical mansions near the city center. Escher is highly stratified based on class, with the church and nobility coexisting as a permanent upper class above artisans and merchants, who are themselves above everyday laborers and repairmen.