Ivannia
Introduction
Ivannia is a large bustling city floating above The Amorphous Fields. It is located near The Twisted Spire with the major cities of Hayrest to the north and Queslin to the west. Ivannia is the last remnant of the former Caelum Empire. The Ivannian's secrete themselves in their floating cities and besides their ambassadors have very little contact or dealings with the rest of the world.
Due to their limited interaction, not much is known about their total population. Estimates of their population size vary but typically fall between around 10,000 on the low end to approaching 1,000,000 on the high end. The Ivannians are known for their extensive use of floating numenera. Their cities float more than a mile from the ground, and all of its citizens can hover. Most people in Ivannia are rumored to live a life of ease and luxury.
History
The history of Ivannia begins hundreds of years ago with Caelum empire, a once sprawling empire which once included parts of The Steadfast and The Beyond. The Caelum empire was bordered to the north by the Gaian empire. Over time, internal tensions rose between different internal groups. The empires relationships with the Gaians disintegrated into all out war. With their societal structures crumbling and facing a determined military invasion, Caelum began to lose control of vast swaths of its former territory.
The war raged for over 40 years. The Gaian empire was forced to devote its entire economy into war production to match the more advanced troops of Caelum. Despite winning some engagements and holding out in some heavily fortified regions, the Caelum empire in the end could not stand against the numerical superiority of the Gaians. The Caelums retreated further and further back towards their capital city, Ivannia.
Finally, as they were pushed back to the Sere Marica and Navae Marica the ruling families convened with the best and brightest civil architects, engineers, aeon priests, and military advisors Caelum had to offer. This group chose to withdraw entirely into their floating capital city and heavily fortify it with their most advanced numenera constructs. Meanwhile, they altered the geography of The Amorphous Fields to their own defensive advantage. They also streamlined the government, eliminating the internal struggles and unified the people in the defense of their civilization.
Their bold plan worked, and the remnants of the Caelum empire survived. Under their new government they came to be known as Ivannia. The Gaian empire's advance was stopped cold in The Amorphous Fields. The Gaian's had exhausted their economy in the advance and now lacked the resources to rule effectively. Internal revolts tore the Gaian empire apart as many regions stopped paying taxes in order to grow food for their starving citizens. Today all that is left of the Gaian empire is the ruins near Ballarad.
Government Structure
Today, Ivannia is a large and bustling city ruled by a monarch in conjunction with the Ivannian Council. The monarch is the head of state and directly controls the military forces. He may speak for Ivannia and enter into treaties with others without consulting the council. On most other issues, the monarch meets with the council and they all vote on a course of action. In these meetings, the monarch casts 5 votes while each of the other 7 council members cast 1 vote apiece. In this way, the monarch typically dictates policy but may in fact be overridden by a unanimous council vote. The monarch additionally may remove a single council member but then must wait for the council to fill the vacancy before removing another council member.
The council initially consisted of the noble heads of various provinces in the empire, and several powerful guild leaders. Today they are a self-selecting governing body who rule Ivannia along with the monarch. There are 7 council members who each have a single vote in meetings. The council typically oversees internal issues in Ivannia which do not require the monarch's direct attention. The entire council may vote to remove a monarch if they feel that monarch is no longer acting in Ivannia's best interests. When the council appoints a monarch, they decide how long the term will be, ranging anywhere from a few months to lifetime appointment. Additionally, the council reviews the results of the aptitude tests performed by all Ivannians. The council then decides who to place into all government and military positions.
Just under the council and monarch are the ambassadors to the outside world. The ambassadors are responsible to represent Ivannia's interests and maintain peace. So long as they meet these responsibilities, each ambassador is given wide latitude to conduct their affairs as they see fit. Some ambassadors even have military units under their direct control in more unsettled parts of the world. While they may be called to give a report to the full council and monarch, each ambassador typically corresponds with only one of the council members.
Not much information is available about Ivannia's military. They definitely maintain a military and guard forces, but their exact number is a closely kept state secret. The troops are rumored to be well trained and equipped with powerful numenera. The military includes some guards posted at key government structures and at official entry ports of the city. The military answers solely to Ivannia's monarch and exists for the protection of Ivannia.
Society
Ivannian citizens mostly live a life of ease and indulgence. Each citizen is given a harness at an early age which enable them to hover at will. The harness integrates with the user's muscles and bones providing them total control over their weight. Due to this, shoes are optional and oftentimes are only used as a fashion accessory or by the military forces. There are no homeless in Ivannia, the government will provide anyone in need with a small single-roomed apartment and a basic food allotment. Ivannia's advanced hospitals are also open without charge to all Ivannian citizens.
Because of the high quality and ease of life available, many Ivannian's tend to be overweight and a bit lazy. However, although a basic subsistence is guaranteed, Ivannian's must have some source of income if they wish to purchase anything. Being descended from many of the lesser nobles, most people have inherited titles which they proudly use. These titles have no correlation to their function in society, they are simply ceremonial. Additionally, the people group according to their extended families or houses, with societal ranking depending to some extant on what house one is part of.
There are two classes of citizens within Ivannia: the ruling class and the general populace. The entire population undergoes aptitude testing the results of which are used to determine how they may best serve the city. Anyone who shows aptitude for leadership may be selected for government, although family background is also considered to a certain extant.
The age of inheritance is a major life event when an Ivannian turns 21. Prior to this, Ivannians are given a basic education as well as aptitude testing. The day their age of inheritance happens they are presented with several vocation choices based on their aptitude test results. Participation in any vocation is voluntary, but people may not choose a vocation in any level of government without permission of the ruling council. After their age of inheritance, Ivannians are given a more complete history of their city. Those who are given government positions are also then provided with advanced numenera and training.
There are several groups within Ivannian society. Some houses are industrious and hard working while others are content to be idle. A split off group of the Aeon Priests are present in Ivannia. Rather than serve the Amber Pope they instead swear fealty to Ivannia. The priests study and maintain Ivannia's gravity numenera devices.
External relationships
Ivannia generally distrusts anyone who is not an native-born citizen. The other civilizations would all desire to possess Ivannia's advanced numenera, and some groups would happily invade Ivannia if given a chance. As a result, Ivannia's government tries to protect itself and its numenera from outsiders. Ivannia's ambassadors act to keep a fragile peace and forestall any aggressive actions by outsiders.
Because of Ivannia's strict controls on its borders, most citizens never leave the city. Ambassadors and the military leave, and privileged or connected houses may occasionally leave with the oversight of the ruling council. Many people in the wider world may have heard of the floating city of Ivannia but they know very little about its people or customs.
Resources
Ivannia has access to advanced numenera and automated means of food production. Their gravity numenera enables their formidable city defenses as well as providing the basis of much of the Ivannian's life of ease. Many of the advanced abilities available to the ruling class appear magical to outsiders. Compared to most of the rest of the ninth world, Ivannian's live a life of ease and luxury. Beautiful clothing and intricate floating artwork are almost common place, especially among the ruling class.
Maps
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Ivannia
Map of Ivannia showing the different houses.
Type
Large city
Inhabitant Demonym
Ivannians
Related Reports (Primary)
Related Reports (Secondary)
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