Kingdom of Rhudaria
Overview:
Rhudaria is a totalitarian, expansionist kingdom to the west of the Empire, since 737 in a personal union with the Holmgardian Emperor. Founded as a splinter state of the Empire after the War of the Three Emperors, it has since become a unique nation home to both Holmgardian colonists and native Tuloshi. Its culture is famously dour, fostering a sense of fatalism and paranoia that permeates every level of Rhudarian society. Economically, the kingdom is mainly agricultural, consisting of vast expanses of golden wheat fields interrupted by steppe. Countless oppressed serfs toil in the fields for their knightly masters, who serve the Rhudarian state as elite heavy cavalry known as kuzars. Nowhere in the world are the smallfolk so downtrodden, or the rights of the nobility as absolute.
Culture
Rhudarian culture is permeated by a sense of fatalism and a fear of betrayal. Rhudarians believe that humans are naturally sinful and treacherous, and that betrayal is inevitable. As such, their culture is isolationist and untrusting of outsiders. Their culture also discourages displays of wealth, so their public buildings and churches tend to be simple and utilitarian looking.
Recently, Lornish culture has become fashionable among the ruling elite. This has caused literacy to become more popular, and several notable works of poetry and literature have been made in Rhudaria. Other highlights of their culture include rich regional dishes such as a spicy beet stew called borash and dumplings, and a propensity for lavish dances. Rhudarian-specific holy days are non-existent, as the Rhudarian Church considers such things to be frivolous. The closest custom to a holy day in Rhudaria are military parades and tournaments, which are mandatory for the populace to attend. Most Holmgardians also celebrate the Great Blot as well with marches, flagellation, repetitive chants, and long sermons. However, the Tuloshi majority celebrate a wide variety of festivals and venerate many local deities, often frowned upon by the central government. Ethnic Divisions: Ethnically, Rhudaria is highly stratified. Though only 25% of the population is Holmgardian, they retain an absolute grip on power, with the Tuloshi majority being relegated to serfdom. Centuries ago, the lands now making up Rhudaria were home to diverse cultures of dusk elves, high elves, half elves, and Vistani, but after centuries of tyrannical oppression, most of these peoples have fled elsewhere. To control this society, the Holmgardian elite is almost entirely devoted to war. Lower class citizens become well-drilled men-at-arms, whereas noblemen are expected to serve as heavy cavalry.
Recently, Lornish culture has become fashionable among the ruling elite. This has caused literacy to become more popular, and several notable works of poetry and literature have been made in Rhudaria. Other highlights of their culture include rich regional dishes such as a spicy beet stew called borash and dumplings, and a propensity for lavish dances. Rhudarian-specific holy days are non-existent, as the Rhudarian Church considers such things to be frivolous. The closest custom to a holy day in Rhudaria are military parades and tournaments, which are mandatory for the populace to attend. Most Holmgardians also celebrate the Great Blot as well with marches, flagellation, repetitive chants, and long sermons. However, the Tuloshi majority celebrate a wide variety of festivals and venerate many local deities, often frowned upon by the central government. Ethnic Divisions: Ethnically, Rhudaria is highly stratified. Though only 25% of the population is Holmgardian, they retain an absolute grip on power, with the Tuloshi majority being relegated to serfdom. Centuries ago, the lands now making up Rhudaria were home to diverse cultures of dusk elves, high elves, half elves, and Vistani, but after centuries of tyrannical oppression, most of these peoples have fled elsewhere. To control this society, the Holmgardian elite is almost entirely devoted to war. Lower class citizens become well-drilled men-at-arms, whereas noblemen are expected to serve as heavy cavalry.
Public Agenda
The Rhudarian central government is paranoid and expects betrayal from every corner. To this end, they have expanded to the natural limits of their borders, and have a policy of orchestrating rebellions in other countries. Their greatest enemies are their former comrades in the Holmgardian Empire, and the king fantasizes about the day he will seize the Mithril throne.
Rhudaria's only ally is the small state of Lornham. Decades ago, Rhudaria tried to invade, but was thoroughly thrashed. Since then, relations between the two nations have changed from enemies to uneasy allies. Lornham benefits by having a strong military ally, while Rhudaria has advanced greatly from Lornish learning and technology.
Rhudaria's only ally is the small state of Lornham. Decades ago, Rhudaria tried to invade, but was thoroughly thrashed. Since then, relations between the two nations have changed from enemies to uneasy allies. Lornham benefits by having a strong military ally, while Rhudaria has advanced greatly from Lornish learning and technology.
Assets
Karlerov
The capital of Rhudaria, Karlerov, is unusual as capitals go. Essentially an oversized military encampment of about 10,000 administrators and soldiers, Karlerov is a square grid of similarly sized stone buildings surrounded by tall stone walls, at the center of which is an imposing and austere concentric castle. Water is provided via underground well delved from the nearby river Dun, though the city itself is separated by the river by about a quarter mile, to prevent attack by water. Surrounding the city are numerous tourney grounds, arenas, and military camps, where Rhudaria's trains against threats from within and for the day it will oneday reclaim their country's birthright.
Mariengrad
The largest city in Rhudaria is an old Tuloshi town built on a hundred small, swampy islands at the mouth of the Dun river. Originally, Mariengrad was founded by a pompous Tuloshi king, who thought to carve out a glorious city out of swampland, and so built the entire city out of heavy stone blocks, against the recommendations of his advisors and the local fisherman. Within a generation, the stone buildings had began to sink, and so Mariengrad is constantly being rebuilt in rickety wood. Nicknamed the "Crooked City", Mariengrad is surrounded by sunken and sinking structures. Without an effective way to dispose waste, the water surrounding Mariengrad is filthy and fresh water is transported by aqueduct. Despite its rather unsavoury reputation, Mariengrad counts itself as among the richest cities in Erden, for it is Rhudaria's principle harbour. It is also a famously liberal one by Rhudarian standards, ruled by the elected Council of Burgomeisters, to the chagrin of the Rhudarian government. Due to the laxity of its laws, it is said that "All's fair in Mariengrad."
Rasna
The picturesque Tuloshi city of Rasna is situated on a series of chalky cliffs and terraces overlooking the Sea of Halcyon. Unusually, most of the city is carved out of a cliff face, many of its dwellings dating back to the 3rd era. Goods from its small port ascend the cliffs using a complex series of mule-powered lifts. The surrounding countryside, meanwhile, is known for its rolling vineyards, some of the finest in the whole kingdom. Long ago, Rasna also derived a brisk trade from the dwarven colony of Mznchuleft, though this has long dried up.
History
The land now known as Rhudaria was once home to a plethora of Balok-speaking peoples. The term for the land was "Heiarovka", meaning "the Many-Towned Land". Some of the petty kingdoms include the kingdom of Tulosh and Old Barovia, which are long defunct. The land was slowly conquered by Holmgard in the 3rd - 4th centuries, but always retained a unique identity.
The present Rhudarian state was founded by one of the spurned Holmgardian successors, Rhuduar I. After his defeat in the War of the Three Emperors , he withdrew through the Barrowmere valley to the Western hinterlands of the Empire, founding a new capital at the military encampment now known as Karlerov. He spent the following decades consolidating his territory and filling the land with Holmgardian settlers at the expense of the local populace. Since then, Rhudaria has developed a totalitarian society where the peasants are oppressed more than any other nation.
The century or so of Rhudarian history has mainly been dominated by border conflicts with its neighbors, religious schisms, and dynastic conflicts. Between 651 - 678, Rhudaria waged a brutal thirty year war against the Sciaran elfhold. Under High King Karlod Graelingard, vast swathes of forest were torched and hundreds of villages destroyed in a war of attrition. Yet the Sciaran elves fought back savagely, inflicting terrible losses with guerilla attacks, ambushes, and assassination. The war ended in a stalemate, with a border region now known as the Blackmarch serving as a no man's land - a devastated hellscape of mud, ruins, and burned forest.
In 681, a High Priest of Tyr, Magnus, was proclaimed in Karlerov: a direct challenge to High Priest Gorthaur in Holmgard. What followed was a flurry of edicts and messages, the so called War of Skalds, which culminated in the second religious schism in Tyrian history. The Western Tyrian Cult was proclaimed, a severe version of the faith that advocated for complete ascetism.
The turn of the 8th century was dominated by renewed conflict with Holmgard, as Rurik Graelingard attempted to seize lands in the north, near the region of Dunharrow and the Barrowmark. Several border skirmishes were fought, drawing in thousands of acolytes from the Order of Kelemvor.
Recent events
Recent events have proven tumultuous for Rhudaria. Fekre's Pox, a plague which swept through Erden in the late 720s, was especially devastating, killing a quarter of the populace. Then, with the return of the Calabim, Rhudaria was faced with a massive invasion. Calabim armies invaded from Lornham and Barovia, augmenting their ranks with hundreds of thousands of undead plague victims. Finally, King Hakarn was slain in battle, plunging the realm into total chaos.
It was only with the arrival of the Holmgardian army under Emperor Ragnar Graelingard that the Calabim were driven back, conveniently after the Rhudarians had already been scattered. Faced with the choice of annexation by the Calabim or the Holmgardians, Rhudaria was re-incorporated into the Holmgardian Empire in a personal union.
Demography and Population
5,000,000
We will reclaim our birthright.
by Wacław Pawliszak
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