Xassatim (Kah-sah-teem)

Once home to the Saffarid dynasty, the Kara-Khanids, the Ghaznavids, the Ghurid dynasty, the Khwarazmian dynasty, the Ilkhans, the Nasrids, the Kasranids, the Khorshidis, Hazaraspids, Muzzaffarids, Kartids, Karamanids, Khaljis, the House of Ganesha, Ilyas Shadis, and others (!) this place is located in Persia, Bengal, and a strip of land above the Himalayas, pretty much. It hugs the area occupied by Kachatar (basically, Delhi and the Punjab) and Soorajan (based on Gujarat). It has become a hub of innovation along with Kachatar, but it has as special edge in that it was one of the lands originally influenced by the conquests of Alexander the Great and the Islamic Golden Age.

Demographics

Currently: Xassati (Persian), Central Altaian Turkmen (based on Turkmenistan and Tajikistan), Bengalis, Kurds (Kurdish people), Balochs, and Arabs. Mixed population of Zoroastrians and Muslims with a minority of followers in the Church of the Sacred Flame and Jewish people (Gaylmitsa is right next door to this empire and they're very welcoming to both).

Government

A Shah at the helm, his brothers and cousins ruling neighboring territories and answering to their oldest brother. Advisors and ambassadors from all regions are welcome, though, to come and speak with the Shah with permission.

Industry & Trade

The bulk of the empire's wealth comes from its metal mining industry first and its produce sales second - particularly, all the tea coming out of Bengal! The metal mining includes gold, iron, tin, aluminum, and copper. The tea is both green and black, while other plants such as cotton, nuts, fruits, veggies, and herbal remedies are mostly exported to Kachatar for processing before being sent into the wide world.

History

Innovation started in the early 2000s ETKM, but there was a huge jump in productivity around 4300 and onward. The physicist Chahel al Dahhak (4323-4407), called Gelasius by the West, was studying the works of the ancients when he came across old writings about gravity, heliocentrism, and calculus and brought science forward in a big way through his analysis of these texts. He discovered that the atmosphere had particles in it that worked at the will of certain humans to bend, lift, and shape things that should not reasonably be able to float or bend, basically discovering magic (not inventing it, mind you. He discovered others' ways of doing it). He invented a telescope and analyzed the color prism. The name dahhak (or dauk) was made the new word for a unit of measurement for force soon afterward. The scientist Avira, daughter of Shuhrat, invented a universal joint for machines in 4356. Cem Nathpagi invented the first commercially used steam pump in 4378. A man named Zayn who was working for the Shah invented a seed drill in 4381. Yahya Kass invented a tuning fork in 4391. Cem Fajr patented the first atmospheric steam engine (4392) and the first fire extinguisher (4402). Alharith Farzaneh invented the "irisala machine" which sends "irisals" (hint: based on the telegraph) in 4454, which soon spread everywhere. The flush toilet was invented - or rather re-invented, given the history of the Indus River valley - in 4455. Bunyamin Otakash invented a self-winding clock in 4463, and Bunyamin Kota built a steam roller for steel production (remember, this area is known for its steel) in 4463 also. Yosef Braman invented the safety lock in 4464. Bunyamin Sharma discovered gas lighting in 4472. Mina Nathpali discovered a way to make electromagnets in 4505. Shashimani Nathpali (sister of Mina) invented a microphone in 4507. The irisala was improved in the 4507-4509 period. The first pneumatic tire was invented in 4525. The first dishwasher was invented here in 4530.

Geography

Mostly steppe and desert. It's between the Himalayas, which notoriously are hard to cross with an elephant and have few animals that live there (but because they're the only ones living there, they thrive there) and the Steppe that begins the expanse of magically separated Tuaiscirt Anam, which is the home of the Fomorians at present and formerly the regular Empyreans and nymphs.

Founding Date

4340

Type

National Territory

Included Locations

• Tooran, Xassatim