Kingdom of Casteria

A Ramerian Successor State established mere weeks after Grand Vailia, its main rival. While their military is clearly not up to scratch, the fortifications along the Casterian-Vailian border and the religious fervor of its defenders has kept Vailia from full-on invading yet.

A Brief Overview

The Kingdom of Casteria is a very religious nation, drawing a lot of faithful people to settle within its borders through extensive sponsorships of monastic orders and temples. Believing all races to be created by the gods, all are welcome there as long as they don't turn to the New Republic.
Their leader is the former High Inquisitor Aurelius Dominus I, who proclaimed himself a king on Eolas' behalf, and strongly integrated the Order of the Radiant Dawn in the new government.
Aurelius issued the guidelines for all government officials, explicitly forbidding them to exploit others or discriminate against certain races, to not draw the wrath of the gods.
They are a close ally to the Darcozzi Order and receive military guidance from them.
They have already lost a fortress on St. Waidwen's Folly to Grand Vailia, their superior navy preventing the Kingdom from establishing proper supply trains to the island.

Founding

When the Godhammer was blown up, Aurelius, the leader of the Inquisitors of the Order of the Radiant Dawn, strongly condemned this action. 35 days after Grand Vailia started its expansion, on the 26th of , he stormed the imperial palace of Jadralo and proclaimed himself a King in Eolas' graces.
He then used the Order Knights and Paladins to conquer much of the surrounding area, focusing on cutting off Vailia's rapid expansion during The Independence Wars. When the buffer-states between Casteria and Vailia got their independence in the Month of , Casteria offered them protection from its rival. By now, these border states are well-integrated within it, and even though they still hold considerable autonomy, they swore allegiance to Aurelius.

Culture

Casterian culture is strongly influenced by religion and adherence to the Divine Laws. Humility is an important trait for them and arrogance is seen as a sign of weakness. This has clearly developed as a counter-culture to the Vailian ways, both looking down on the other and considering their norms frivolous.
This religious fervour created a strong anti-underworld sentiment: many people refuse to talk to devils and it is strictly illegal to as much as talk with demons. The soul - an item misplaced by many a Vailian - is considered the most important possession, only meant for the gods to take.

Architecture

In an attempt to be closer to the Gods, Casterian buildings are as high as possible and the higher class tends to live on the upper floors with their servants or less wealthy people living in the lower ones.
Since stone is prone to collapsing when built too high, only the lower floors are usually made out of it, with the higher ones being timber painted in whitewash.
Even though colourful paint is hard to come by and the main supplicant would be Vailia, Casterians still love to have murals - mostly of Gods and mythical heroes - within their houses and castles.

Diplomatic Relations

Casteria forbids its merchants from trading with the New Republic, yet still honours the old Treaty of Roses, the peace treaty between Cylia and the devils. The general populace still regards the devils with uncouth suspicion and oftentimes refuses to interact with them, a fact the devils seem to be strangely content with.
They are allied to the Darcozzi Order, their brothers in faith, and actively seek closer cooperation with them. The Order of the Radiant Dawn, the ecclesial branch of the Casterian Government, was already closely cooperating with the Dracozzi during the time of the Ramerian Empire, making them natural allies.
It is engaged in a deadly border conflict with Grand Vailia, initiated by Vailia in the hopes of taking over the entire island down the line. There has been no fighting on the mainland yet, as per a previously established truce, but the troop movements of the aggressor suggest that they are poised to strike.

Military

Navy

The Casterian Navy is tiny, since almost no Ramerian vessels weighed anchor there when Casteria declared independence, and they don't have sufficient merchants (or influence over them) either to draft ships of war from them.
Since most of their budget since their establishment was spent on rebuilding the civilian sector, only few ships have been commissioned since then.

Army

Their army is rather large compared to its population, yet still inferior to their main rival's. The standing portion of it is very small and mainly made up of noble knights and paladins in the service of the Radiant Dawn and other ecclesial orders.
These more experienced veterans have been training peasants since their independence, but their budget was greatly increased in wake of Vailia's attack on St. Waidwen's Folly. Their current plan of defence is to rely heavily on local militias to defend their local communities in case of a full-scale invasion.