Cities of the Jaguarlords

“Jaguarlord” is an Old-World nickname for the plutocratic merchant princes who rule the tabaxi states of northern Austrolaria. These states are small, dense, and heavily urbanized, with many of them being closer to city states than traditional “kingdoms”. The tabaxi kingdoms are predominantly commercial states who thrive on their far-reaching trade connections and valuable resource exports. The merchant classes have immense power in these societies, with wealthy traders often rising to rival the power of the kings.
Some of these kingdoms are millennia old, with a few rivaling even the ancient cities of the lizardmen for sheer antiquity. Most of the truly ancient Tabaxi cities were destroyed during the Age of Crisis, however. The current crop of kingdoms in the region have mostly grown up organically over the course of the past few centuries as the region has gradually become more densely populated. They have spent much of this time warring with the Lizard Empire and its various successor states.
The ruling Jaguarlords may be kings in title, but they are far from the semi-divine god kings of lizard civilization. The fierce individualism of tabaxi society precludes any sort of absolute rule. Instead, most of the tabaxi kings are constitutional monarchs. Their rule is constrained by a variety of law codes, constitutions, parliaments, and public assemblies designed to prevent royal overreach. As in most merchant societies, money counts for more than blood in tabaxi politics. Jaguarlords frequently win their crowns through wealth rather than inheritance. Hereditary lines of succession are not strictly followed in Tabaxi royal courts. Heirs are more often hand-picked from among leading citizens based on merit (and usually bribery).

Type

Alliance, Cultural