The Reanian Empire

'Then Godrick marveled the tree cut by the Sky before him. Rendered in twain, The grandest willow lay smoldering in front of him. Where most would see a tragedy, destruction of such a holy site, Godrick only saw opportunity. “This is how we Win” he explained smirking...’ - Upon this Willow Wall, Ricmaer Stagg

The Reanian Empire is the main Geopolitical power within the Reane region of Longreech. Forged by necessity during the Great Invasion by the The Eladrin Empire as the Albaen people fought for their freedoms against their “Knife-Eared Oppressors”.

Royalty

The Royal Family of the Empire of the Reane is the Seate family. The current leader of said family is the ruling Emperor Godrick XVI.

Structure

The Reanian Empire is ruled by an Emperor: Currently Emperor Godric XVI. It is an absolute monarchy at the top with nobles all swearing fealty to the crown. Below the Emperor is the Crown Prince who often acts as regent to the crown and also is head of the army. The Current Crown Prince is Crown Prince Wulfstan - The Eldest Son of Emperor Godric XVI. Below the Crown is a number of Earls who run most of the Counties or Earldoms of the Empire. Aside from the Earls, some areas of the Empire have different government forms, such as the Cullis Marshlands, which is a Prefecture run by the Lord Protector of the Marsh and Agranshire which is a theocratic parish run by an Archbishop.

Culture

For the breakdown of their majority culture: See [Albaen

Public Agenda

The Reanian Empire remain openly hostile towards the Eladrin Empire who seek to destroy it whilst remaining neutral or in tentative alliances with the other surrounding Kingdoms and Duchies. It has been unable to subjugate the Free City of Spiniaborough or the Duchy of Legierungsland despite its best diplomatic attempts due to those states economic and technological advancements respectively to the Empire.

Assets

Due to the Levy system the size of the Empires army fluctuates heavily. It is not as wealthy as its southern neighbor states nor the Elven empire. A lot of the localised economy works on a barter based system. That being said, with the Empires rapid advancement into the artisanal renaissance happening in the world around them,more and more gold begins to flow in as trade takes more prevalence.

History

Originally the region of Reane was home to many petty kings for hundreds of years who would band together to defend against Elven armies that looked to subjugate them. At one stage the Eladrin Empire had pushed the peoples of the Reane all the way to the Petty Kingdom of Seate. Seate used its naturally difficult terrain to fight a guerrilla style war against the Elves, where no pitched battles that did not favour the Albaen people were fought. This, combined with the weapons and armaments of war made from Steel Willows allowed the outnumber Seate to push the Elven invaders back.

The Early Years

After 70 years since the initial invasion of Seate, the people of the Reane had pushed the Elves back to the Cullis Marshland, 750 years of careful conquest undone in a tenth of the time. The final blows of this age of war came to pass at the Massacre of the Marshes. The Battle was a Pyrrhic victory for the Albaen people, with many deaths of peasant and noble alike including the King of Seate. But on the field of victory, the Reane Nobles swore fealty to Seates Heir, Godric who would become Godric I "Willowwall" - A great general who pioneered military tactics using Steel Willow weaponry and arms to great advantage. Godrick wasted no time in continuing the war pressing the remainder of his into Elven territory. He hoped to forge his new nation on victory. Instead he would only drown it in more blood. Godrick set about militarising the once petty kingdom of the Fen, dubbing it The Cullis Marshlands as it “Stood as a great gate to defending the Empire”. He personally designed Castle Cullis whilst campaigning into the Eladrin Empire, taking much of its design from the Elven keep of Noxodanis which was being constructed at the same time. Willowwall’s campaign would not last long however. The Emperor was killed in a forest ambush, perishing in much the same way that he and the people of Seate had used to push back the Elves. Godrick I was succeeded by his Eldest son Godrick II “The Bloody” So named for his bloody retribution of his fathers death. He later fell in battle and was succeeded by his second son Harhold I “The Elder”. Harhold the Elder is the only ruler of the Reanian Empire not to take the regnal name of Godrick, to honour his brother properly. It was under Harhold that many of the political and legal reforms of the empire took place. Whilst still actively at war with the Eladrin, he did not campaign for conquest, focusing more internally. Beyond these initial kings, the story became far more... predictable. The Empire would continue to seesaw on foreign policy with some Emperor being more martial and externally focused, others more stewardly and internally focused. The hatred of the elves never died however.

The Persecutions

Sprinkled between the Eladrin-Reanian conflicts, the Empire also saw much persecution and instability religiously. The Empire itself was not just made up of the Albaen culture. In fact its many forested regions were inhabited by the Drelt - a race of Fey worshiping humans who were hunted for their “alignment” with the Eladrin. In actuality there was a lot more of a grey area around their alignment; many of the Drelt people saw persecution beneath the Eladrin too thanks to the Eladrin hatred of humanity. The Drelts are forever a stubborn people however and have managed to survive in small pockets of the Reane today. That being said, they have lost control of much of their land, either by integration into the Empire or by systematic destruction. The Drelts now only exist independently in Spinnaborough. Another Culture vilified by the Empire is the Scheltz of Legierungsland. Whilst much closer culturally, the Scheltz were a puppet state of the Eladrin Empire which switched to the "Human" side during the push back from Seate. Already on thin ice, their unwillingness to join the Empire following the Elven defeat and their past treachery made for high tensions. This culminated in the The First Reanian-Scheltz War and The Second Reanian-Scheltz War. Today Legierungsland and the Reanian Empire are neutral, but the border is heavily guarded on the Scheltz side.

The Reane & The Church

The Reane and its relationship with The Church of Albae who resides as an independent enclave within the Empire and controls the worship of the Pantheon of Albae within the empire. The Church began to gain power right from the Empires inception as politically the Church existed before the Reane unified. Likewise, its is the role of the Church's King-Bishop to crown an Emperor of the Reane giving them great power within the Reanian court. Unlike the Reane, The Church cannot raise a levy and relies solely on volunteers. This fact though did not prevent conflict. In the year 1225, King-Bishop Auxilium called for the removal of Emperor Godrick IX "The Bastard" claiming his illegitimate heritage as impious in favor for young Harold Reave, a descendant of Godrick VIII on his mothers side. The conflict ended with the Church being defeated in battle, Harold Reaves castration and The Marriage of Godrick IX to Harold's sister Elfswitha.

Today

The Reanian Empire today stands as a dominant counter force to the mighty Eladrin Empire. The eternal stalemate at the border has seen peace for 20 years, but it hasn't been without conflict. The Empire actively attempts to assert hegemony over eastern Longreech, with political ties to the Kingdoms of the Nardethel and a recognition of the Idependance of Legierungsland and Spinnabough. However the age old enemies could wage war at any moment, as tensions will remain high until one, or both nations have been destroyed.

Demography and Population

The vast majority of the population of The Empire are peasants or Serfs. While not slaves these people are the poorest members of society and often are forced to live in certain areas to work certain jobs for a meager living wage and have to swear fealty to a local lord. They often work in farming, or labor jobs such as mining or lumberwork. Above Serfs are Freemen. Freemen are Serfs who no longer have fealty to a lord, either through wealth or circumstance. They tend to work the same jobs as Serfs but for better pay or they work in more managerial roles in the same industries. Freemen often handle much of the more skilled jobs in society like building laborers or they take up arms and join a Watch. Like the Freemen there are also Craftsmen. Craftsmen or Artisans are the skilled laborers of the Empire, often owning their own business and often being able to pay for formal education. These new made men were once few and far between in the Empire however due to the recent Renaissance they have become more and more common. Some craftsmen are organised by guilds or even sponsored by other nations but within the Empire currently, there are very few guilds. Above most of these are Thegns: local nobles who either own a castle or a town. They form the backbone of the army and received lands from the Earls or the King for good service. Below the crown are the earls, the ruling nobility. The earl was the crown's ‘right hand man’ in a shire. The position was not hereditary, but it became usual in the 10th century to choose earls from a few outstanding families.

Military

For the military of the Reanian Empire see Military of The Reanian Empire

Religion

Religion in the Reanian Empire is governed by The Church of Albae a semi-autonomous state that controls the relgious worship of the Pantheon of Albae. The religious demographic of the Empire is as follows:

Mythology & Lore

The King-who-could-have-been is the organized following of the "Hero" in the creation mythos of Elendor within The Empire. They believe that Seate was the location of the Heroes ascension as a God and that they are the true successors to the Hero. The underlining factor that remains a mystery within this religion is the true nature of who the Hero was. Their race, Gender and likeness has long been forgotten and by many who follow the more traditional pantheon, its even disputed if he existed.

Political Influence & Intrigue

There is often tension between the Emperor the Reanian Empire as the church owns independent land within the Empire and does not abide by its rules. In the past there has been clashes between the Emperors own Housecarls and Zealots of the Faith in the streets of the Capital - a self proclaimed holy order known as The Children of Them who aimed to overthrow the Monarchy and establish The Empire as a theocracy in Their name.

In their blessing

Founding Date

1007

Type

Geopolitical, Empire

Capital

Seate

Alternative Names

Reane, The Empire, Northmen

Predecessor Organization

The Petty Kingdoms of the Reane

Training Level

Levy

Veterancy Level

Experienced

Demonym

Reanian

Leader

Emperor Godric XVI

Leader Title

Emperor

Head of State

Emperor Godric XVI

Head of Government

Emperor Godric XVI

Government System

Monarchy, Absolute

Power Structure

Feudal state

Economic System

Mixed economy

Legislative Body

Empire-wide Laws are written by The Emperor and his Council of which he has full control. However, Locally Reeves and High Reeves can also implement laws for specific regions or counties

Judicial Body

Most major towns in the empire have two sides, one elected official in charge of Lore and a non-elected noble in charge of Order. Reeves, are elected by the landowning people of the area from the office of constables. The Reeve is in charge of the legal proceedings of the town and the upholding of the Laws, as well as the protection of learning. They are the sole Judge and Jury of the local land. Second to the Reeve is the Sargent. The Sargent is in charge of the Local Watch and the apprehension of criminals. Below the Sargent are the Constables and the Watch Commanders. Constables are in charge of collecting Taxes, Writing Reports and the administrative services of the court. Watch Commanders are in charge of the local town watch - the local police force. The other ruler is the Thagne. Thagnes are the local nobility and bannermen to the larger Nobles of the Province. Their position is affirmed by loyalty to said provincial ruler, Going against said ruler could see their land stripped from them at any time. The job of the Thagne is that of a military commander, they are to raise and maintain a group of Knights or Housecarls at all times. In times of war the Thagne can assume direct control of the entire running of the Burg, giving them final say on all matters should they wish.In times of War, The Thagne raises a militia known as a Levy, which joins them / their commanders and is sent to join the provincial Lords army. The Levy is a form of conscription and requires all men and women not in “Vital Work” and of able body to serve in the army.

Official State Religion

Pantheon of Albae

Parent Organization

The Reanian Empire

Subsidiary Organizations

Deities