The Povitz (Province) of Caedvin is home to many of the elder races within the
Velgan Empire, although the nonhumans do not rule or govern themselves, nor can they worship their ancestral deities nor carry out their cultural practices. The nonhuman peoples of Povitz, and most of the
Velgan Empire, are not free, instead they are serfs who must seek boyars permission to move or change profession.
Geography
Caedvin is dominated by thick and ancient forests which are only truly navigable to those who make their home in Caedvin. Rivers flow across the lands, although they are well suited to travellers as creatures haunt the waterways. In the east, across the Bloody Strait, is the
Kasari Dominion, south the Tugarin Range, west the Duchy of
Donieper and the
Imperial City of Oxengrad, and north Armada Bay.
Level of Autonomy
Caedvin is a Povitz (Province) of the
Velgan Empire, and is directly ruled by a noble representative of the Tsar known as an Imperial Boyar. The Boyar is responsible to the Tsar and has broad authority to rule as they please so long as they keep the peace. The
Velgan Empire’s tax collectors have a stranglehold over trade and common tax in the Povitz. The Povitz is subject to a process known as Velganisation of culture and language where practices and language are sought to be destroyed and replaced by Velgan ones; as such all official pledges, documents, and duties are carried out in the Velgan language.
Race Relations
The
Velgan Empire has remarkably and notoriously bad relations between races. The Elder Races have a long history of being opposed, abused, and conquered, a feature that is firmly still the case. Discrimination against nonhumans is entrenched in the legal system of the
Velgan Empire, as they are official second class citizens, who are restricted in terms of employment, ownership, and even where they are permitted to live. Additionally, nonhumans have fewer and worse legal recourses when a crime is committed against them by a
Human. The majority nonhuman provinces also face much greater taxes and restrictions against them.
Views on Arcane Magic
The
Velgan Empire believes that magic is an unpredictable risk, but its use is more than justified in service to the Tsar. The
Velgan Empire is a signature to the
Toc’vastil Accords, but only tacitly conforms to it, allowing various leniencies; providing
Bastille Mages prove their loyalty to the Tsar and Empire they are given more freedom that mages in virtually any other
Human kingdom save for
Aarelan, they are permitted to leave the
Arcane Bastille for pre approved amounts of time, and some are even freed from the confines of the
Arcane Bastille system itself. Mages who are not loyal can be subject to the same abuses seen in other kingdoms.
History
The peoples of Caedvin were once a colony of the Elventine, and they suffered during the Age of Conquest being subjugated and their way of life destroyed; throughout the Age of Conquest,
Age of Blood, and presently in the Age of Contempt, its people have suffered. During the Age of Contempt peoples of the region were conquered and forcibly incorporated into the
Velgan Empire as a Povitz as Caedvin - the elder race name for the largest forest within the region which is now known as the Forest of Broken Bows.
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