Mighty River Confederacy
The many singular peoples of the Mighty River Valley agreed some time ago to form a Confederacy, to negotiate trade and settle disputes between peoples without the resort of war - often destructive for all sides. When contact was made with the Council of Worlds, the Confederacy called the largest of its meetings in history, and the vote was decisive in favor of joining as a single unit. However, in recent years a few barons, made rich by interdimensional trade in pelts and coal, have slowly seized power over the Council seat.
Meeting locations rotate between the five portal cities (one for each major linguistic-cultural group) and a camp hosted in the lands of one of the clans of the loosely organized sixth nation, on a six-year cycle.
Structure
There is no single ruler. Instead, an upper ring of six elected officials, one from each of the major linguistic-cultural areas plus one for a loose coalition of 'miscellaneous' peoples, makes the final decisions when the lower ring, which consists of sixty elected officials, cannot decide. Each of the sixty officials of the lower ring is in turn advised by representatives sent from each clan of at least thirty people.
Public Agenda
The Confederacy nominally exists to settle disputes among its peoples, to act as an alternative to war, to serve as a platform for negotiating matters of state, to declare the laws of the commons, and other duties as needed. The Confederacy also votes upon the platform of the Valley's Council representative, supposedly to the benefit of all.
Assets
The Confederacy has no standing army. In extraordinary circumstances, the upper ring decides if military action is called for - and their decision must be unanimous - then sends requests for troops to the constituent peoples. If a clan declines the offer to participate, individuals from that clan who wish to fight are permitted to temporarily join other clans.
The Confederacy handles no money and levies no taxes, though there's been talk of changing that, mostly as a measure to force the coal barons to return their new found wealth to benefit the Valley rather than hoarding it for their own use.
History
The Confederacy was founded by the Peacemaker eight centuries ago. The Peacemaker's name and biographic details have been lost to history, and each group has a different story about and a different claim to them.
The Confederacy has only gone to war once in its august history, against a massive invasion of Void-beasts that threatened the entire land two centuries ago.
Seven decades ago, the Confederacy joined the Council of Worlds as a singular unit, after ten months of solid debate and the largest gathering of clans in recorded history. Opening the plane to outside trade brought in tremendous opportunity, but also growing inequality as a few barons discovered the interdimensional value of the Valley's natural resources and set to exploiting them.
Demography and Population
The total area of the plane is around 9.35 million square miles, with a population density averaging only 1.3 people per square mile, for a total of roughly 12.155 million people. Most people identify their participant cultures by languages spoken rather than by ethnic heritage. The largest linguistic-cultural group is the Shecha Takae, with one-fifth of the population. Tied with Shecha-eni are the lands of Meubabu, with another fifth of the population. Uhifiko is next, with sixteen percent of the population, then Ighadieri, with eight percent of the population. Jazhadir is last, with five percent of the population. The remaining thirty one percent of people are spread among hundreds of minor linguistic and cultural groups.
Shecha-eni, Meubabu, and Uhifiko share common cultural heritage, including an alphabet, while Ighadieri and Jazhadir are isolated from the others, having their own writing system and heritage.
Territories
The Confederacy represents all the peoples of the Mighty River Valley.
Religion
There are as many religions as there are peoples of the Valley, but the majority have common elements - few worship deities in the same way as many other religions. The deeds of the supernatural and divine are common folktales, but no temples exist and veneration is considered strange. Most of the religions are simply observations of everyday life under the threat of the Void Without - White Beasts, restless spirits, and curses of vengeance given life. The area is stereotyped as deeply superstitious, though, partially due to outsiders not taking warnings of the monsters in the night seriously.
Type
Political, Confederation
Alternative Names
The League of Peace
Government System
Democracy, Representative
Power Structure
Confederation
Economic System
Barter system
Location
Official Languages
Controlled Territories
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