The Free City of Novgomir is the largest city within the Velgan Empire and is oft referred to as its second city, behind the capital of the Empire Maskeva. Above all Novgomir is a mercantile city, being home to an extensive port, where merchants and sailors from across the known world trade with, and an expansive banking and speculation systems.
Geography
The Free City of Novgomir is little more than the City of Novgomir itself and the surrounding lands which sustain it. The City sits at the mouth of the Velnieper River, in the north of the Velgan Empire.
Level of Autonomy
The Free City of Novgomir, enjoys special status within the Velgan Empire, due to the vast revenues that the City is able to draw in. The city is subject to Velganisation, but given its roots the dominant language and culture were already Velgan. The City is ruled by a City Council made up of guilds and boyars, and has avoided direct rule from the Tsar Imperial Boyars. The Tsar’s tax collectors also have no authority within Novgomir, with the City collecting its own tax and paying the Tsar tribute.
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
Novgomir was created at the end of the Age of Blood and the dawn of Age of Contempt. Given its location the city and willingness to relax port taxes allowed the city to grow as a beacon of trade. Growing so wealth made Novgomir a target for the Tsar of Maskeva, who brought the city to siege. Rather than flight or hold out the City negotiated its incorporation into the Velgan Empire as a Free City with certain rights, in return for providing the Empire and Tsar with great deals of wealth.
Since joining the Velgan Empire Novgomir’s wealth has greatly increased as trade from the rest of the Velgan Empire has been funnelled through Novgomir, enriching its guilds, boyars, and the Tsars.
Religion
The official state religion of the Velgan Empire is the Ebon Flame , a sect of worship to the Radiant Lady , it is the popular religion within the Empire, and the only one that can be legally worshipped. The dogma of the Ebon Flame is based upon a hatred of the nonhumans, as well as the belief that the Radiant Lady is the only true faith. The Ebon Flame believe that those who are born with magic or learn its arts are cursed, but can be redeemed through devout faith and service to the country.
Despite the illegality, there are other deities and faiths worshipped within the Velgan Empire, some of these are the Seldarine is the most popular pantheon among forest gnomes and elves, and the Morndinsamman among dwarves and rock gnomes. Likewise the Draconic Pantheon are favoured among the draconic races.
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