Tyltho

Structure

United under a single structure of power, Tyltho and the surrounding settlements on the island of Volkaya operate under the authority of the Lord Protector. An elected position that holds the authority of a dictator, the Lord Protector is a position that holds power either until death or retirement. Their authority has next to no checks or balances, and in Tyltho their word is law. The only challenges to the power of the Lord Protector are the election process itself and the Seven Laws.
The Lord Protector is an elected position, though it is an indirect vote separated from the common people of Tyltho. Each district in the city of Tyltho, and each settlement across Volkaya, holds a common election where the citizens elect their Custodian, an official who rules over their respective community. All these Custodians come together in Tyltho's Seabreeze Hall to elect a Lord Protector from among their ranks. Custodians, like the Lord Protector, rule until death or until they retire.
The key limits on the power of the Lord Protector and Custodians both are The Seven Laws, a code of Laws established by the first Lord Protector of Tyltho to prevent any future Lord Protector from becoming a tyrant. The Seven Laws dictate the Lord Protectors inability to change the process of selecting future Lord Protectors and Custodians, outlaws any restrictions of the voting rights of the people, forbids any changes to the Seven Laws, and more. These Laws have kept Tyltho free of would be tyrants for hundreds of years.

Culture

The Volkayan people are a ambitious and industrious, people, having risen up from the hardships of their island home. Though in their early years they struggled to make a life for themselves on the rocky shores and in the stoney soils of Volkaya, it was through cooperation with one another and a communal mindset that allowed them to rise up from villages striving for survival into a proper city-state.
The modern Volkayan mindset is one of living life to the fullest and working hard to improve one's life, and the lives of those in one's community. A love of festivals and holidays permeates the culture, as when every day is one of hard work, those days that can be taken off to celebrate and spend time with friends and family are cherished all the more. These festivals often involve open-air stalls for food and games set up in the streets, as well gladiatorial games.

Assets

Tyltho's most well known asset is its strategic location, on an island situated between the east and west of Eyria. This position allows the city a strong position in facilitating trade between eastern and western city states, allowing them to reap in large amounts of money purely from the goods of other nations. Compounded onto that are Tyltho's own exports, mainly including salt and cotton, which together have made the nation quite wealthy. 
The soil of Volkaya is not particularly rich or fertile, and as such the types of crops that can be cultivated on the island is limited. Potatoes, squash, and beans are the main staple crops of the nation, and their main sources of meat come from fish as well as domesticated birds like turkeys kept by ranchers on the island.
The Volkayan military is not particularly notable, boasting a volunteer army mainly tasked with guarding the city if Tyltho and its settlements. Being an island nation, Tyltho has invested more into its naval defenses, including a large fleet of well armed ships as well as defensive outposts on all of the islands beaches and harbors.

History

The Island of Volkaya is no stranger is settlers from the mainland, and had for many years been a host to villages and settlements from many scattered peoples and races. It was ultimately the invasion of a large host of monsters from beneath the waves that brought the people together. When a great horde of monsters from the deep came to the island looking for gold, meat, and slaves, they ultimately reached the settlement of Tyltho. The small costal village was decently well defended, and the woman in command of those defenses turned the tide of the Conflict.
Cecilia Arinvari had sent out a plea for aid for the other settlements of Volkaya, requesting them to send their forces to Tyltho to stand as one. Cecilia would lure the monsters into a trap, and the reinforcing armies would land the finishing blow. When the battle finally began the monsters attacked, charging the walls to try to scale them or tear them down. Once the monsters had bunched against the walls, Cecilia's sappers collapsed several tunnels to make deep moat around the outside of the walls, trapping half the enemy forces. Now unable to reinforce their back line, the militaries of the other settlements attacked and wiped out the rear line. The remaining monsters trapped against the walls either fled into the sea or were cut down in the attempt. The day was won, and in the wake of this battle, the Treaty of Troubled Waters was signed. 
In the years following, Cecilia united the people of the island and soon united its people into a proper city state, with many abandoning their ruined settlements for Tyltho, and those whose settlements remained untouched pledging their support. Cecilia was elected as the first Lord Protector, and she lead the nation with a steady hand for the remainder of her life.
Generations since Volkaya united under the banner of Tyltho, its strategic position has given it a key role in cross-continental trade. This has allowed it to flourish as a city and a nation, and through the guidance of Lord Protectors both capable and incompetent, Tyltho's spirit remains strong.

Type

Geopolitical, City-state

Alternative Names

The City of the Seas

Demonym

Volkayan

Government System

Despotism

Power Structure

Confederation

Economic System

Market economy