Yosika

Lush forests with towering mountains in the background, rice fields stretching beyond the limits of one’s vision. Pagodas painted in vivid hues of red and gold to catch the dancing lights of the sunrise and sunset over their blessed lands. A land of frequent floods, earthquakes, and even the occasional volcanic explosion, Yosika seems inhospitable to most, but its people are a hardy and strong lot who love their land undeniably.
Home of the orcblooded, Yosika was once a land populated by roaming, bloody thirsty war hordes, until a legendary hero with the elements in his blood rose to power among the people and began converting them away from their life of aimless pursuit of slaughter.
While still a highly martial people, the orcblooded of Yosika have learned to hone their thirst for battle into a blade as sharp-edged as the slightly curved blades their bushi are known for carrying. They exercise restraint in all things, so as to deal a more devastating blow to their opponents when the moment is right. To the orcblooded, clan comes before self, and country comes before clan. Honor matters above all, and it is this priority which has lead to the collective society taking on the duty of protecting the realm from threats which were once precious to them.
Their warriors man the walls around Buratanda, and range into its often unpredictable landscape to track down and occasionally eliminate threats growing too large to be left to their own devices. Those sent to join this order, called the Gaido, are frequently given more of a chance to prove themselves more than their tattoos and criminal history than they would be elsewhere, though they are rarely ever truly accepted, the orcblooded of Yosika not accepting of other races and cultures.
Taxes are often severe in Yosika, collected from the lower castes by agents of their daimyo. Four castes segregate society with little ability to move up in caste, as well as strict roles split between masculine and feminine, though there is no dishonor in taking up a role not typically assigned to your gender. Some of Yosika’s most famous warriors and duelists have been women, and men have raised a household full of children.
The castes, called the four pillars of society, are known as the samurai (those who serve), the clergy (those who pray), bonge (those who work), and hinin (non people). Samurai rule over others, while serving the empire itself, clergy serve as spiritual leaders, bonge are farmers, artisans, and merchants, and hinin are often responsible for tasks considered “unclean” by other castes, such as handling dead bodies.
Yosika is the birthplace of most monk orders, as well as the only place in the world certain styles of fighting and magic can be studied. To be able to study the elemental forms so prized by moon druids, people must travel to Yosika and gain permission to study under one of the druid enclaves common in the area around and within Buratanda. Samurai are only trained in Yosika’s storied lands, and the monk traditions which focus upon the wielding of elements. This last specialization is a jealously guarded art, one which requires would-be students of it to prove themselves, as the path was developed by the very same genasi responsible for the orcblooded’s conversion.

Government System:  Eastern Feudalism
Races Makeup:

• 70% Full Blooded Orcs
• 25% Half Orcs
• 5% Misc

Pro: Unique fighting styles and weapons (samurai, moon druid), enlightenment pursuits in far-flung parts of the country
Con: Most non-orcs aren’t there by choice, cultural ethnocentrism