City of Nisiar
The Illustrious City of the Arcane
Structure
Being a city operated by the arcane and those that can wield it, while still calling itself a republic, is a very hierarchical society. Magic comes first, above all other qualities. If one does not possess a talent for magic they are treated as lesser citizens, for the Nisiarans believe that all are capable of magic if they set their mind to it. The better one can wield magic, the higher one will climb in Nisiar.
Public Agenda
Nisiar seeks to develop magic to convert the rest of their desert into fertile land much like Laelon. Nisiar is still welcoming any and all magically talented refugees into their walls.
History
Nisiar borrows its name from the local desert elves that reside in the desert surrounding the great city. Long ago, during the age of the green sea, an elven population lead by a Nisiaran elf named Axilya found their way deep within the foreign desert territory. They would use the desert to avoid the Greenskin hordes, and in doing so, adapted to the hot desert sand and parched dry air. Their skin had darkened, and their bodies had adapted to hold water much longer than a normal elf.
The Nisiarans knew peace for a time, until the age of the green sea came to pass. Under the strict teachings of the Wanderer, the Nisiarans would maintain their ancient tradition of taking only what was necessary from the land, choosing to accept their new forms and thrive in the desert that became their home. Axilya would continue to lead the Nisiarans for another century, until some of the younger elves lead by the gifted Umeleth grew weary of the old ways. They spoke of a new way, of using magic to reform the harsh desert into something even more hospitable for other races. Umeleth spoke of all the magics they'd yet to understand, and how they could make a thriving metropolis if they set their mind to it. The younger elves believed they could create this utopia to attract more aspiring mages from all over Asterra, but Axilya and the Nisiaran druids would have none of it. Outraged, Umeleth and many other young elves departed deep into the desert to found their new city.
The Nisiarans who followed Umeleth abandoned the old teachings of the Wanderer and Anilvim, and turned instead to Zeitahl the Patron of Knowledge. At first the newly founded city was disregarded as a group of religious fanatics that had run wild in the desert, their city grew and prospered to the point where many outside of Acora had heard of it. It is not known if it was out of spite or respect for their ancestors, but they named the city Nisiar after their ancient tribe. By now, a hundred years after abandoning their people, the City Nisiarans(Known as Umelethians by the Nisiarans who chose to follow Axilya) had grown to be more human-like in appearance. They maintained their dark skin and sharp ears, but the film that covered their eyes was gone, and they could no longer thrive off of desert cacti to live like the Desert Nisiarans. They had built a great city that was protected from the elements and great monsters by a powerful arcane barrier. Due to Umeleth's leadership and talent for the arcane, she was elected as leader of the great city. Though her age old rivalry with Axilya was finally coming back to bite her.
Axilya, while now growing rather old for an Elf, saw the city as a threat to the desert. Nisiar stood now as a symbol of corruption in the eyes of the Desert Nisiarans(Axilians by the City Nisiarans) and had to be removed. At first Axilya tried through diplomacy to no avail. Then she tried threatening them with war, but the Umelethians seemed all too happy to welcome the idea of war. To the surprise of the Umelethians, Axilya's threats were anything but empty. Within the next month, every Axilian available was assembled and began the siege of Nisiar.
At first, Nisiar seemed like a lost cause. Axilya's forces breached the magical barrier protecting Nisiar and began storming the city. Great magical battles took place, the casualties primarily being on the Umelethian side. Soon, however, the Axilians realized just how far the Umelethians were willing to go to defend their city. Umeleth had found a particularly talented mage in the last few years and trained her in secret. The young mage, Krisqirelle, would come to be the most powerful wizard ever seen in Nisiar.
First every dead soldier on the field was raised as a powerful wight to defend the city, including those on the Axilian side. Then great hurricanes and earthquakes shook the foundation of the desert itself. After the tremendous display of power, Axilya was forced to flee alongside her companions and the city, while damaged, was saved. This would be the very magic that came to make the Laelonic people terrified of the power magic provided.
For the next hundred years, Axilya and Umeleth with her powerful Magus Krisqirelle would wage war on one another, causing a great number of catastrophes to rock the desert and surrounding areas to their core. In the final battle, both Axilya and Umeleth were slain, supposedly by one another's magics, but many other have a different theory. The final battle was fought deep within the greatest sand storm Nisiar had ever seen, many Laelonic and Axilian people believe it was caused by Krisqirelle's black magics, while the Umelethians believe it was divine intervention. Regardless, both leaders were killed in battle. Soon after, the Axilians and the Umelethians would have a begrudging peace and Krisqirelle would become the new Archmagus of Nisiar. As she became Archmagus she thanked a new patron for gifting her with latent magical power. Anilvim and Zeitahl would become the twin patrons of Nisiar, and worship of any other patron would be outlawed within city limits.
Krisqirelle's reign would not go unchallenged however, as soon after she became Archmage she would be challenged by a man who went on to unite all the Laelonic tribes into one kingdom. At first the Nisiarans laugehd at the idea of magicless humans coming and taking land from them, but soon enough Talbot and his men arrived at their borders, ready to take what little land outside the desert the Nisiarans possessed. For the first time since the split, both Nisiaran tribes would have to work together to defeat the Human King.
It is unknown how, be it by some patron or any number of otherworldly sources, but King Talbot stood alone against the magic of Krisqirelle. He lured her far away from her army and challenged her to single combat, to which she happily accepted. While many Laelonic people believe he did so for his deep hatred of magic, many more Nisiarans believe that the human king fancied the Archmagus, and her to him. In the end, neither side claimed victory over the other, but the Nisiarans gave the land King Talbot wanted to him and made peace with one another. Afterwards, King Talbot grew sicker and sicker, until he passed away. The Laelonic believe Krisqirelle cursed Talbot in their duel, making for poor relations between the two provinces who already did not get along.
To this day, Krisqirelle rules Nisiar as its Archmagus. Many have begun calling her the Avatar of Zeitahl himself, claiming that she possesses divine magical talent that is not possible for a mortal. While she claims no such thing, she has never publicly denounced the claims. Nisiar itself has become a sprawling city that could rival the prosperity of the great eastern city of man. Krisqirelle herself often calls upon the Klifhelm mercenaries to escort refugees from the Laelonic Witch Hunts to her lands. Unfortunately for many who seek entrance to the great city, any and all without magical talent are turned around at the gates. Those who cannot wield even the smallest bit of magic are seen as unworthy or too incompetent to be a part of their illustrious city.
Founding Date
132
Type
Geopolitical, Magocracy
Demonym
Nisiaran
Leader
Government System
Meritocracy
Power Structure
Feudal state
Economic System
Market economy
Official State Religion
Location
Official Languages
Neighboring Nations
Related Ethnicities
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