Shotzi

The largest Yojini state both in terms of population and the land held within its borders, Shotzi is the strongest military power of the east and an unchallenged power on the Yojini mainland. Originating in the year [XXX] from the Shotzi tribe along the Great Green River, the kingdom was formed in the aftermath of the tribe's establishment as a trade mediator between neighboring peoples, eventually leading to Shotzi's vassalization of increasingly larger amounts of territory along branches of the river further south.
Shotzi's foundations as a trade state remain to this day, supporting the empire's infrastructure as it imports goods from the eastern island nations and northern plains nations of Yojin into Khaddish and Eletherosi states across the middling plains.
Though in a current era of peace, the empire is still in the process of relocating its soldiers to their original homes following a massive venture north for their use in the Yojini Steppe War. Though primarily fought through a series of proxy conflicts among steppe tribes pledged to either inland Shotzi or the offshore nation of Nasukara, native soldiers had been summoned to police cities along the Green River – particularly the empire's capitol of Baichang – as a fall-back plan. The Steppe War ended in favor of Shotzi, however, and only a fraction of the soldiers remained in the north to facilitate the establishment of the tribal vassal states in Tsaiguemo, Dao, and Wajuwan.

Structure

Empress

Měiféng Song Méi Poqin is the current emperor (Dì 帝) of Shotzi and the fourteenth ruler of the Poqin dynasty.

Imperial Counselor

by facezero‌

Hektor Redmund, often known by the native name Hóngwǔ (洪武) – or, less favorably, Lǎowài (老外) – is the current holder of the imperial title Zǎixiàng (宰相). Roughly translated to "Grand Counselor", this title was formerly bestowed upon rulers and governors of the smaller Shotzi tribe, nation, and kingdom, but was eventually overtaken by Dì in official usage. Redmund was appointed with this title by the empress, theoretically giving him greater governmental powers than anyone else in the nation aside from herself. It is primarily honorific, though, and Redmund serves more frequently as an advisor to the empress than in any official political role of governance.
Born in the kingdom of Andras, Hektor Redmund served as a Knight of the King's First under King Bryant Andrasson before and during the Andrasi Civil War. Many of the King's First who remained loyal to House Andrasson began working directly with many of the noble lords pledged beneath them, and Redmund in particular garnered a reputation for his tactical wit. This reputation was sullied, however, after a contract was made with Khabrayadhi pirates when the war had taken a turn for the worse. Said pirates shipped in stolen cargo from Eshkaft – specifically, an unofficial 'regiment' of Dhaeva untrained in battle and meant to serve as slave soldiers – which were unleashed on the battlefield during a clash with Cispiusian forces. A few were felled before the opposing soldiers knew what they were dealing with, but the remainder quickly became bloodlusted at the prodding of Redmund's soldiers. The battle quickly turned for the worse as the dhaeva cut through men on both sides of the field, eventually causing each army to route. Still enraged, the many undead followed signs of life to Karral, the town which Redmund had been seeking to hold in the first place, and slaughtered through countless civilians before the Andrasi Loyalists were able to mount a proper force to expel them, resulting in the now-infamous Redmarket Massacre.
Redmund was sentenced to death for this, but had fled long before said judgement had been passed, seeking refuge in the east. Precisely how he traveled as far as Shotzi is unknown, but his obvious skills in managing armies quickly ingratiated him to the young and inexperienced Poqin empress.

Military

by Evgeniy Petlya

Shotzi's armies are kept high-funded and well-supplied, with nearly any major city hosting a substantial presence of imperial soldiers funded directly by the crown itself and forgoing the more traditional state of feudal holds. Lords residing in any city may still raise levies from among the peasantry, should they wish, but such an act is rarely necessary within a city's walls due to the extreme levels of protection offered by the all-encompassing arm of the crown. Outside of Baichang, distribution of and supply to imperial soldiers is handled by the ruler of any given prefectures, and more direct appointment within a city is handled by the local magistrate, also appointed by the imperial court.
The armor donned by Shotzian soldiers is almost overly-elaborate in form, and seems to come from a direct attempt to showcase the empire's wealth. This serves as a pleasant sign for any nearby traders and a warning for any would-be thieves. Traders, both internationally and domestically, seem more fond of the presence of these soldiers than much of the locals – any minor resistance or offence given to the crown can be immediately met with severe opposition, but the roads and inner-cities are perhaps some of the safest places for non-noble folk to live and travel across any lands in the world.
Much like their armor, the equipment which the Shotzian armies carry into battle and on patrol are of extreme high-quality, though the plethora of gunpowder weaponry they carry has been the cause for some worry among weary kingdoms across the globe. The top-down approach applied to the military hierarchy of Shotzi has seemingly also been applied to their royal smithies – whereas most kingdoms are so willing to keep firearms out of the reach of the peasant classes that such weapons are only licensed to be forged by those in direct contract with the crown or similar powers, Shotzi has licensed a great number of smithies across its various cities with the designs and approval to craft powder-based weapons. Still outlawed to any not in the noble classes or in direct service to Shotzi's armies, this still leaves a great many of their forces equipped with riflery, smaller handguns, and the occasional personal handheld cannon.
Formerly restricted to linemen regiments kept on retainer for times of war, the lengthy Steppe War in the north saw a complete overhaul enacted across the Shotzian military's equipment and the adoption of these smithies licensed by the royal council. The move has garnered much disfavor from kingdoms both near and far who fear that such liberties could lead to an inordinate amount of powerful firearms falling into the hands of the peasant class, though the nearly exponential growth in power of the Poqin dynasty's imperial army due to these very measures means that such disputes seemingly cannot be settled on the threat of violence alone.

Type

Geopolitical, Empire

Alternative Names

Kingdom of the Poqin Dynasty

Demonym

Shotzian

Government System

Monarchy, Absolute

Power Structure

Feudal state

Economic System

Market economy

Official Languages

• Kiungin Wá | Kiunese〔Yue Chinese/Cantonese〕
• Rénmínhuà | Shotzian〔Guānhuà/Mandarin〕

Neighboring Nations

• Asadal
• Sakchay
• Xingparkang