Osmeni Empire
The Osmeni Empire (or "Osmeniarch", meaning "All of Osmen") rules across the entire continent of Osmen, as well as Skypiros and a large portion of Lelta. Known for its prosperity and powerful military force, it has gained much of its expansion through conquering other countries. One of the most well-preserved cultures from Pre-Ruination, the Osmeni empire is one of the most stable forces of the Second Age.
Governance
Osmen is ruled by the Ostell, a gender-neutral term for the emporer or empress. The Ostell has absolute power over the entirety of the empire. Beneath them are Stelmarks, a type of governor. These governor positions are often held by members of the royal family, or important aristocrats and lords from neighbouring areas. The Stelmarks work below the Ostell in completing governing tasks while remaining in-line of the Ostell's wishes and laws.
Lords, Kings or other lower figureheads of authority under the Osmeni Empire are generally allowed to govern their land and people as they see fit, so long as they do so within the confines of Osmeni law and while paying taxes to the Ostell.
Military
The Osmeni military is considered one of the strongest in the Known World. Comprised of paid soldiers from from both Osmen itself and the Empire's external territories, it is formidable in both size and skill. The formidable size of the military is thought to be in part due to the Osmeni Law of Force; a mandatory military cadetship program that encompasses all of the countries in the Continent of Osmen.
All boys are required to take part in the cadetship program between the ages of 14 and 16 years old, and are offered a position in the army at 16 years of age if they are suited. Conscription is not required, as the combination of the cadetship program and general strong military patriotism has led to a very high intake number.
The Osmeni military has relied heavily on its airforce since the invention of fluxfluid. It also boasts a strong navy. Most of its ground troops rely on mounted combat, as Osmen's size and great open fields lend well to fleetfooted ground troops.
History
There is fairly substantial evidence that the Osmeni Empire, existing much as it does today, was present in the First Age. While the lineage of the Ostell was destroyed during the The Ruination, the Return of the Ostell marked the official rebirth of the Empire in 2,390SA. Before the Resurgence, the continent of Osmen had a lot of small-scale conflicts over border disputes and a widespread imbalance of food and water. The Empire reformed when Letor Reltoran, an elder in the small was working in an osmenium mine, and fell, hitting his head on a node of the metal protruding from the stone. In his daze, he had a prophetic dream. He believed he was the chosen voice of Os- the ancient spirit beneath the stone. He believed that to save his people from war and famine, and accompanied by his brother Malliar, gathered men from his town for his quest. Armed with some of the best osmenium armour and weaponry in the land, they began their pilgrimage across the land to gather allies, to rebuild the Empire as it once was.
At first they were mostly laughed at, but as they gathered a few sceptical men their group, which grew into a somewhat impressive company of around fifty men. They began to adorn themselves in emerald green, the colour of the Osmeni Empire, and slowly gathered force over the next year.
By 2,390SA, they had established an army of nearly 2,000 men. Letor assigned Malliar as the General of his army, and the two commanded it passionately. Consisting of people of rokkai, human, orcish and elvish blood alike from towns across the continent, they had become a holy symbol of reunited Osmen, and grew in favour. Letor was crowned Emporer by his army and brother in 2,390SA, with his entire army remaining famously silent when asked if there were any objections to his promotion.
The first kingdom to submit to his rule was his home country of Ptelmi. A fractured, poor country with little resources outside of mining with a very small army to their name, they submitted to serve under the newly founded Empire without bloodshed. Three more Northern countries followed, before the Letor faced his first battle.
Though he didn't see his work completed in his lifetime, Letor's great, great grandson Mystor Reltoran saw the full unification of Osmen under the Osmeni Empire.
Religion
While worship of the gods is commonplace across all of the Osmeni Empire, the Return of the Ostell marked a defined increase in the worship of Osism, the worship of the great spirit of Osmen itself. Believed to be an ancient fey creature that dwells in a cavern beneath the centre of the continent, Os is often known to take the form of a lion-esque dragonoid creature, and sometimes shows herself to her followers in the form of a Rokkai. Osism asserts this fey being as a god in her own rights, and more importantly, claims that Os was the protective force that saved the Osmeni people, and the Osmeni Empire from complete annihilation in the The Ruination.
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