Tsardom of the Vaegirs

"The confederation of small kingdoms that is now the Tsardom of The Vaegirs came into being only over the last few decades. Made up of former imperial boomtowns that sprung up along the great rivers of the north, the local Vaegir leaders after their conquest began to grow wealthy, and attempted to forged marriage pacts with the native nordic peoples. Others instead hired sellswords to subdue their new neighbors. Under pressure from the Empire, they elected a prince to lead them in war, and eventually the Tsar became a hereditary office. But the idea of a monarchy has never sat easily with the independence-minded boyars, and the potential for rebellion always lurks under the surface of Vaegir politics."

The lands of the Vaegirs are both inhospital and desirable simulataneosly, and they occupy the snowy northernmost mountain territories of the continent of Calradia. The Vaegirs are Northmen from islands and frozen lands North of the continent of Calradia. For centuries they lived in poverty and warfare between each other for the scant resources of the northlands. When the light of Nazzareth faded, and rumours of the weakening of the empire spread North, things changed.
The process had already begin over the previous centuries, as Nordic traders and adventurers migrated from the northeast territories seeking land and wealth, and eventually formed diplomatic and marriage alliances with the native peoples of the region, merging the two cultures together into something new, with a violent, warlike, but also mercantile mentality.
A warlord among them, Halfdan Karloving, united the tribes into a single raiding fleet when the empire had clearly begun to wane, and sailed for Calradia. Quickly the Vaegir raid became an invasion. In the confusion of the fading light, the imperial governors and commanders of the Northern Imperial lands, most of whom were appointed to these positions from families on the imperial mainland fled South (more interested in retaining their family holdings in the main empire than protecting a frozen foreign land).

Demography and Population

The population of The Tsardom of the Vaegirs is divided by race as follows:

• 76% Human 19% Dwarven 2% Elvish 1% Gnomish 2% Halfling

Military

Heavily armoured infantry bearing thick shields to form a shieldwall is the core of Sturgian military, although cavalry and archer units are also employed prominently. As many Vaegir men and women still train from a young age to take part in raids, their infantry are some of the best on the continet. However, they have little concept of 'the greater good', and are more interested in looting than fighting. Thus, they can be effective but will lose cohesion easily.

Worship

The Vaegirs have become worshippers of Godric and the Pantheon of the God of Order since their landing in Calradia. However, they often worship them in their own ways, for example viewing Saint Alesia as a war goddess, or Saint Asera as the god of honour. Though these aspects aren't necessarily false, a worshipper of the same Saint in the Empire vs The Vaegir lands would likely be very different, and the others may even view each other has heretics, depending on the context of the conversation.

By the Axe and Hammer

Type

Geopolitical, Kingdom

Subsidiary Organizations

• House Togaroving

Related Traditions

• The Festival of the Winds

Controlled Territories

• Amprela
• Balgard
• Omor
• Sibir
• The Razor's Edge Mountains
• Varcheg
• Varnovapol

Neighboring Nations

• The Calradian Empire

Peace

Tsardom of the Vaegirs

50

The Kingdom of the Swadians

50

The Vaegirs occasionally hire Swadian mercenaries in their conflicts with the empire. Their heavy cavalry makes an excellent supplement to the Vaegir infantry shieldwall.

Open War

Tsardom of the Vaegirs

-60

the-calradian-empire-organizationthe-calradian-empire-organization-archived-1671303147

-60

The raiding fleets of the Vaegirs still harass the Northern coasts of the empire. Both sides would gladly conquer the other if they could, but the Sea of Tears makes an excellent boundary to invasion.

Frequent War

Tsardom of the Vaegirs

-60

The Battanian Confederacy

-60

The Battanians view Vaegir lands as belonging to them by ancestry, and the Vaegirs see the Battanians as a roadblock to their continued invasions of the Empire.
They frequently fight over ownership of the Kranirog peninsula.