Exalted Dominion of Thumos

An ancient and proud nation of religion and tradition.

A sprawling empire, situated along the southern coast of the mysterious continent Kharsk, the Exalted Dominion of Thumos is the oldest continuously existing human civilization in the known world. Dating it's origin all the way back to the War of Sundering, Thumos was founded by Sol, a former White Pantheon God of the Sun, who had sown and nourished the seed of what has become a sprawling and powerful empire, rivaling those of the Second Era. Thumos is a nation centered around the ideals of tradition and order.
A distinct part of the populace are slaves (commonly referred to as the Sunless), used ruthlessly for both infrastructural and military purposes. A difference sets them apart from most other countries which abide slavery, that is the fact that slaves within the Dominion are strictly state-owned. Furthermore, slavery is only permitted as a response to a crime comitted against a Decree, made by the Emperor. In this arrangement, the person committing a crime will be forced to slave away the damage caused by their transgression before being allowed to return to society.
Above them stand the ordinary citizens, organized into castes depending on status as well as the sizable bureaucratic apparatus of the state. Viziers present the top of the bureaucracy, answering directly to the God-Emperor. Each of the Viziers rules over a province, many of which are nations that were once independent before joining the Dominion. Some joined out of their free will, others were conquered by force.
The legions of the Dominion are known as the Legions of the Sun. Each of the legions is led by a Dominus, who is the highest point of authority for these legions after the God-Emperor, save for the First Legion, known as the Thousand Suns of Thumos. This legion of elite soldiers answers directly to Sol and warrants respect among its allies and invokes terror in its enemies.
The God-King is effectively the superior and absolute authority of Thumos, but with an important detail: all people who've become the God-King were the same person, or rather the same soul. Sol's divine soul has been transferring from body to body upon the death of his previous Divine Host. The new Host is always the oldest living son of the previous Host, assuming no other male heir has been designated as a Host via the means of a special ritual, conducted by elite priests of the Solean faith. If no sons remain, the oldest living daughter will instead become the host. It should be pointed out that this has only happened once in the Dominion's long history and most records of this early period are muddled at best. If there are no descendants of the living host, the soul of the God-Emperor will instead seek out a seemingly random believer of the Solean faith, whose body it will take over.

Structure

The sunborn God-Emperor presents the center of power within Thumos, bowing to no one. Below him are the Viziers, who direct both the bureaucracy as well as the ordinary populace in accordance with the Emperor's wish, two of whom are designated as Grand Viziers, standing above and organizing the remaining Viziers. They also rule the Dominion during times of interregnum. Below them are the praefects, who are in charge of regional administration and underneath them, vast numbers of common folk and slaves work hard in order to shape the world in their Emperor's wish, many of them being devoted to the point of fanaticism.

Public Agenda

Sol had a simple motivation in mind while creating this civilization with his exclusive cult at it's center. He too saw the destruction of the Sundering, but instead of bowing to the pact and agreeing to withdraw all direct influence from the Mortal Plane, he recognized that there is a more efficient way in which mortals can achieve ultimate protection from the gods: if there is only one god remaining. As such, the Dominion wages eternal holy war against the Principality of Londe and other followers of the White Pantheon, as well as the followers of any other deity. Their goal is not to destroy the infidels, but rather to show them the error of their ways and eventually convert them to the one true faith.

Assets

During it's unification of the northern half of Kharsk, the Dominion has amassed wealth beyond measure. Controlling the entire economy with a ruthlessly efficient bureaucratic contraption, the God-Emperor's coffers overflow with gold and other valuables. More and more silver and gold flows into Thumos from it's beneficial trade routes with the Tabaxi and the Trade Princes.

History

A ruthless god, trapped within the body of a mortal, Sol was sentenced to live out the rest of his days stuck in the body of a mortal, as punishment for attempting oppose the enactment of the the Pact of Tranquility. He was sent down in the body of a human onto the sandy continent of Kharsk. The gods had hoped that he would understand better the need for protection the mortals had if he had become like one himself.
However, Sol retained both his memory and his divine soul when he was sent down among the tribesmen. Utilizing these advantages, he quickly ascended to a leader’s position in the tribe that took him in, the Thuu’mos tribe. He quickly went on to unify the tribes through a combination of shrewd diplomacy and force. Upon gathering enough warriors under his banner, he challenged the most powerful nation of northern Kharsk, the Kingdom of Londe. Many of his advisers disagreed with the notion, but Sol was intrigued by the Spire, an ancient tower built by a first-era civilization, which was supposedly standing in the capital city of Londe.
His victory was swift and allowed him to transform the feudal society that was in place into a potent despotic empire, founded on religious belief in his own person. The members of the once noble houses of Londe were hunted down and executed as they posed a potential threat to Sol's plans. Many of the nobles chose to escape through the desert, founding the Principality on the southern shores of Kharsk.
Within the capital of Londe, Sol ascended the Spire. The contraption within it managed to unlock some more of Sol's power, allowing him to exert more of his godly powers without the risk of destroying himself. After this, Sol formulated a plan to seize more of this ancient technology in hopes it would restore his former power.

Stand with the Sun.

Type

Geopolitical, Empire

Alternative Names

Thumos, the Dominion

Demonym

Thumosians

Subsidiary Organizations

• The Kingdom of Ashtar

Controlled Territories

• The Town of Halset