The Tajir Sultanate
Spice, magic, and people of family
Demons and Genies
Demons are unfortunately inhabiting the sands of Tajir. Due to this, dedicated demon hunters travel the treacherous sands to slay the demonic menace. However, this also leads to many adventurers traveling to Tajir in hopes of proving themselves. These demons are primarily the old Pharaoh demons of the ruins of the Shezarkai Kingdoms, or perhaps the Djinn going mad with and rabid. Thus it falls to the orders of demon hunters of Tajir that regularly patrol the sands to vanquish demonic foes which become more active at night. It is for this reason that many hunters call upon Arrka, to watch as they slay the demons under his gaze. Some scholars believe genies to actually be some type of demon, and that the tajir people are demon worshippers, albeit rather indirectly. While this is by no means true, it is a fact that demons seemingly roam freely in the sands of Tajir, not requiring the ususal incursions and portals needed for them to manifest in other parts of the world.Alchemy
One aspect of Tajiran culture is the expansion of knowledge, for to know much is to better understand the blessing of Arrka. As such, many alchemists exist in the Tajiran lands, and many warriors use alchemical mixtures provided by Royal Alchemists to coat their weapons and shields in alchemical mixtures to better wage war against invaders and demons. They also have some of the greatest medicine in the world, developing the concept of the Humors, and using advanced remedies to better combat disease. Alchemical scientists pass down their profession from generation to generation, and any deviation from the "family business" is forbidden by the elders of the family. It is for this reason that Tajir is one of the most scientifically advanced nations in the world.Structure
The ultimate rulers are undoubtly the Djinn Gods. These diety like beings have staked their claim upon the lands among the city states and wilds for as long as time has existed. These are gods unlike many others, for they are physical beings, able to be talked to and even killed. However these gods are above the usual hustle and bustle of running nations, and so they laeve the ruling of the lands to the sultans and Caliphs that they "graciously" allow to rule in their stead. They do this so long as they can enjoy the fruits of rulership and godhood, living in palaces of pure decadence (not too dissimilar to the many noble houses of Nilush). For as far as the mortal world is concerned, the power of the Tajir Sultanate is in the Sultans, with the Grand SUltan being the most powerful and in charge of the capital city of Al Artacca. Under the Sultan/Sultana is the Sultans and Caliphs of the various city states. Even lower in the hierarchy of power are the local judges, known as Quadis. Despite their rank, they may have a profound effect on the lives of any man or woman. Qadis are arbitrators and average man mediators, or pronouncing judgment in virtually all civil and religious disputes. Only the Grand Caliph or the ruler the Qadis serve may override their decisions. These Qadis are chosen by the ruling bureaucracy.
Though each of the city states have a large amount of independence, every Tajiran knows that respect for authority and specifically the ulitmate power of the Grand Sultan are to be embraced fully. Even the desert nomads know that to have no respect for the Grand Sultan is to be little better then a barbarian, although some city dwellers view them as such already for some desert nomads take to raiding local caravans. Either way, so long as the Djinn gods are placated and Arrka is given his reverance, the land runs smoothly.
Culture
Tajir breeds strong souls, for they have to be to survive in this desert. The people of Tajir are divided into two groups, the nomads and the city-dwellers. While the nomdas dwell primarily in the high, romantic desert plateaus, the citizens for the most part inhabit the lowlands and coasts for it is cooler and wetter there, with frequent morning fogs and heavy but brief rains during the monsoon season. Life for the city-dwellers isn't driven by a desperate search for water and grass as it is for the noamds, though irrigation and wells are still required for farming, the people of the cities have easy access to water and other basic necessities the nomads covet so dearly. Nomads have bizarre customs to their city dwelling kin, however they are masters of desert survival and so many foreigners pay them to help lead them in the sands of Carall. Nomads typically travel from oasis to oasis, on camels or horses and navigate using the blessed stars. They also are rightly feared as raiders and bandits for the nomads regurarly raid in order to scavenge for supplies or to prove themselves in battle. Despite their rather strained relations with their city dwelling kin, they make up some of the most important caravans of trade between the city states, and act as the a sort of early warning system for any demonic incursion past the Tanuyla Mountains.
Family is a cornerstone of the Tajiran people. A man often lives in the same house as his father, and in the same community as his grandfather, It is also for this reason that home is a special thing for the people, the word "home" means to have roots and continuity- a safe and constant haven that helps give a person an identity almost as much as his or her own family. Even traders who wander the seas on voyages to far off lands for many years will pay tribute to their home town. Hospitality is also strong ideal for both the nomads and the city folk, with all believing an honorable person must be hospitable. City-dwellers make much of welcoming visitors at the city gates-even strangers. In practice however, individual city folk don't feel as great a sense of duty to be hospitable toward a stranger as they do toward a known guest. Often a townsperson may discharge his responsibility to be hospitable by directing someone he is unfamiliar with to the nearest mosque or hospice. Though the man has not been welcoming, the "town" has welcomed the stranger, and that is what truly counts. However, a known traveler is always welcomed with open arms. Guests who have been invited into a city dwellers house receive the same respectful treatment as an honored guest of the desert nomads. On the first eve of a guest's arrival, a great feast is laid out, often above the means of the host. If the guest remains on the second and third evenings, smaller meals ensue. The atmosphere is kept festive, the traveler tells of his or her journeys, and family members or hired minstrel provide further entertainment. On the third morning, the guest is expected to depart. The guest may leave gifts of some type if he or she is so inclined, but this is not required.
Tolerance is one aspect some of the ignorant might expect the Tajiran not to have. This is not the case. Hospitality is closely linked to a mans willingness to be tolerant. A guest need not share the same beliefs or the same blood, nor the even the same racial heritage of the host to be accepted and welcomed. A fellow Tajiran can count on several evenings of rather lively discourse but nothing worse. Tolerance does have its limits however. In general it extends to those who profess a belief in the words of Arrka, a belief in the authority of the Grand Sultana, and a belief in a god or gods regardless of type. Those who do not believe in some higher divinity are viewed with suspicion and perhaps even hostility. A lack of belief indicates that a person also lacks a moral anchor, and so unbelievers can expect to be turned away and denied hospitality, or even verbally and physically attacked by the righteous few. A wise unbeliever, it is said, keeps his or her philosophy private.
Assets
Tajir is one of the most wealthiest nations in the world. Its sultans and Djinn live in absolute luxury, with harems of beautiful men or women serving their every needs, in palaces of pure gold. Due to this wealth, the sultans wield massive resplendent armies, with some of the best training and technology in the world. Thankfully, instead of seeking to conquer the world, sultans are content to not cause unneeded trouble with the wider world, and simply wish to trade and occasionally battle other city states for more territory.
History
Before the Nameless Prophet, before time had a name, and before the stars had shined, the world was born in a chaotic mix of elements and spiritual energy of unkowable beings. These beings, although indirectly, formed the world, and became what are now known as the Djinn, or Genies. They birthed a mighty world, and though many scatterted across, the majority settled in the lands of Carall. They seeded the world with life, however they were locked away from properly enjoying the world as magic had not come into being. Thus the Ishtar Empire rose and stood for unkowable years, and then fell when the World Spear struck the world. This burst of magic let the Djinn inhabit the land fully, and so they rushed into the lands. After the Shezarkai Kingdom experinced the Sun death, and after it passed, the lands of Carall were sparesely inhabitted by nomadic groups of hunter gatherers. The Djinn found them beautiful, and their natural desire for all things to be beautiful led to them building cities admist the lands using their powers. The nomads were awe struck by this, and all they had to do was simply swear them as their gods and goddesses and they could live admist these cities. Many took this offer with grattitude, others however refused and returned to the sun blasted dunes, becoming the nomads groups that exist today.
The cities would grow prosperous, but war was soon to follow as the Djinn become jealous of their rivals treasures, and so they did war with one another. However, the Djinn saw it beneath them to rule directly, and so would begin the system of Sultans and Sultanas to rule their lands, retreating to their heavenly palaces to enjoy the riches of rulership. As far as mortals are concerned, the Sultans are the true power, and so man did war with man, and the cophers of gods and rulers were made bigger and bigger. However, disaster came as a sudden massive influx of demon pharohs from the ruins of Shezarkai invaded the lands. Though in-fighting was temporarily halted to band together to fight the pharohs, each victory cost a great price indeed. To make matters worse, soon after they had finally beaten the demons back, did the fires of the first crusade begin. Tajir had long since mastered the oceans, and this made them an easy target for the Church of the Flame to blame on pilgram and trade ships being raided. Tajir to this day claims its innocence, but in the end, the Crusaders from Ashenfeld would raid and pillage the lands brutually and utterly in the year 1100EC. When they left in 1103EC, the land was in ruins, and divided once again for a hundred years. However, a miracle came with the coming of the age of the nameless one.
The Nameless one, sometimes called the Nameless Prophet or just The Prophet, is perhaps the single most important figure in all of Tajiran legend. His name never revealed to anyone so as to avoid being bound and controlled by name magic (magic that requires the knowledge of the targets true name. Mostly used against demons in modern days but can be used against mortals under the right circumstances), he would travel the land for years in quiet contemplationg and see the horrors the world had to offer. However one day, he found an ancient buried Mosque hidden deep in a mountain pass, one that was not there the last time he passed by this exact mountain pass. The structure was beautiful despite the age of it, but at the central prayer room of it all, a beam of moonlight overcame the room and the Nameless Prophet. It was Arrka, The Djinn of Djinn, Genie of Genies, and Lord of the Moon who revelaed himself to the Prophet, having been freed by a mortal finally finding his prison, and he told him of his power. The prophet informed Arrka of what has happened in the lands of Tajirr, and he was enraged by it all. So it was that the Prophet vowed to bring about a new age of the land under the banner of the Moon Lord if he but give him the strength and compassion to do so. Arrka would accept and then burst out of the mountainpass and cry out with a shout heard by all the other Djinn that the coming of a new age was to begin.
The Djinn were both awestruck and terrified, but heedless of danger the Nameless One headed into the cities and preached for unity and of the Djinn of Djinns. It was hard for people to fathom a god of gods, someone in charge of the most powerful rulers in the lands, but what started as a small cult following turned into a sweeping tide of holy fervour. The ultimate show of this new age was when an invading army from Diosia would travel to Carall intent on conquest and pillage. The army was without number, but as they landed on the shorelines the Tajiran people watched in awe and horror as the Nameless One strode forth with but a walking stick and faced down the armies. It was then that he raised his hands up and Arrka came fourth, along with all the Djinn lords of the land as they unleashed their power and parted the armies of Diosia before the people, and then salughtering them with the full might of Djinn magic. After this battle, the Djinn returned to their heavenly palaces, but vowed loyalty to Arrka for he was a laid back and wise ruler, and the mortals of Tajir would worship the Djinn as they always have, but worship Arrka above all.
The next thousand years would be prosperous for Tajir, and even after a second crusade was called in 2339 by the Church of the Flame, it was utterly defeated and proved the spirt of Tajir would never again be cowed by ignorant outsiders and men of wicked greed. They even had to fight a war against blood knight armies from the now Deadlands and Crypt Kingdoms, which has spawned a vehement revulsion of vampires and vampire kind, ironic since one of Tajirs greatest defenders in that war was the vampiric clan of Siadu Almawt.
Now the Great Sultanate of Tajir is a proud nation. It has even been competing with The Empire of Catai in the spice trade, and many nations seek to improve relations with the Grand Sultana for more favorable trade deals. Despite this, the lands remain perilous indeed. Demons regularly seek to invade the Sultanate, and bandits stalk the trade lanes, and thanks to the destabilization of Ashenfeld, many tajiran people worry that some rouge provinces of Ashenfeld might seek to restart a new crusade into their lands. But the people of Tajir have weathered many storms before, and they will continue to do so, in the name of Arrka and the Djinn, and above all their families.
Demography and Population
Due to how many people regularly do trade with the Tajir, there is an untold amount of people inhabiting the lands of the Tajir Sultunate. From the exotic lamina and Genasi to just about anything one could think of. Genasi espically are an intresting people to the Tajir, for they are born of the gods themselves, and typically are either kept close by their Djinn parents or cast out as exiles.
Territories
The land of Tajir is the home and rule of the Great Sultunate, which is in Northern Carall. They have not expanded much past the Tanuyla Mountains, for not only does the Grand Desert prove to be a perilous location, but the mountains help keep the demonic incursions mostly contained and at bay, and to move past that would invite invasion.
Technological Level
Regurarly regarded as the most scientific nation of the world, it was Tajir which gave birth to modern medical theory and many of the other wonders of the world.
Religion
While Arrka is the god of Tajir, the people also worship the strange genie (also known as Djinn) creatures that inhabit the land. These are powerful elemental spirits that can be both chaotic and wild, and are capable of being powerful allies or terrible foes. The tajiran people pray to these spirits to appease them, and it is believed that these spirits are gods in their own right, but Arrka is the genie of genies, inhabiting the moon itself. As such due to the individualistic nature of the city states, while all tajiran people worship Arkka, different city states or nomad groups might worship different powerful genies as gods as well. The Djinn Cults are by far the most populous religion in the Sultanate, but the gods from the north are also worshipped openly as well, for there is no one true religion of the tajiran people. Of course, the Djinn love to rule the cities as god kings and queens, though prefer leaving the task of actually running the city state to their sultans.
Foreign Relations
Relations with the rest of the world are interesting to say the least. While the crusades have happened so very long ago, it has had a lasting impact on florigen relations. While many might see the Tajiran people as raiding slavers, the truth is a lot more complex then that. Thanks to the primacy in the world trade lanes has helped soften the foreign relations with many nations, however some nations like Diosia and the Deadlands they keep openly hostile, for some things can never be forgiven.
Another group they are on bad relations with are the Tincallis Tribes, nomadic scorpion people that prowl the Grand Desert and the edges of civilization as raiders and hunters. The desert nomads regularly fight bloody battles with the Tincalli which helps stem the tide of raiding these blood crazed scorpion people seem to love
Trade & Transport
Trade is the lifeblood of the wealthy city states. Tajiran trade freely with others, including outsiders. Tajiran merchants are not uncommon in the city's of other far off lands, even Catai has been known to have a few Tajiran merchants. It is also for this reason that a Tajir navigator is sought out by many a captain, for they are very skilled when it comes to navigating the seas. Due to the importance of trade, great care is taken to ensuring the safety of a Tajiran trade fleet, and there is a saying that a Tajiran trade ship will always arrive to port, even if its crew doesn't make it
"Unleash the fire of the blazing deserts!"
Type
Geopolitical, Kingdom
Demonym
Tajiran
Major Exports
High quality spices, smoke pipes, some of the finest quality coffe in the world, food, and other such trinkets
Major Imports
Rare spices, teas, silk, salt, certain meats, and root vegtables as the land is more suitable for wheat legumes, fruit trees, and coffee. Horses also fetch five times the price in Tajir then other areas of the world
Official State Religion
Location
Official Languages
Controlled Territories
Neighboring Nations
