Savian Empire

Structure

Despite having an Emperor and an Imperial family, both of whom wield a great deal of influence (especially the former), the Savian Empire has many democratic elements to it. Most importantly, while it does have a nobility of sorts, said ‘nobility’ is not, strictly speaking, the same as in other places.

First and foremost, public service is very important in the Savian Empire and, as such, an individual only holds a noble title if they perform a public service, most commonly either as administrators (from regions, to cities and even villages, i.e. like senators, mayors, etc.), through military service (although only officer ranks are considered a part of this Savian nobility) or as priests/priestesses of the Savian faith. These three institutions (politics, military and faith) are considered the three pillars of Savian society.
That isn’t to say that Savian society is magnanimous or utopian. The vast majority of people in such positions are wealthy land owners and/or traders who come from a long line of others who have held such positions, however it is possible for someone to rise to such a position without such a family history. This is, in fact, the very point of the system and one of the few things that Savinus will not abide substantial changes being made to as he himself rose from very humble beginnings.
This sense of ‘nobility’ is passed on to immediate family (spouses and children, sometimes even grandchildren) but no further and is not necessarily hereditary, as they must be voted into office.
All Savian titles are gender neutral (i.e. they apply to both men and women).
As a result of all this Savian ‘nobility’ is far more of a spectrum than in most cultures, especially as any sort of leadership rank within their military (which is massive) makes someone a noble as far as Savians are concerned.
Imperial and Political Ranks

Rank (Savian)	Common Equivalent	Details/Notes
Imperator	Emperor/Empress	A semi-elected position between the imperial family and senate (equally split, with Savinus as the decider when there is a tie) but they must be a closely related to the most recent Emperor or Savinus himself (within three ‘degres’ of relation to the former and/or children of the latter).
Heredes	Prince/Princess	A mass noun (i.e. for both individuals and groups) that refers to any member of the Imperial family. Because the new Imperator is not officially decided until after the current Imperator dies or steps down there is no Savian term for ‘Crown Prince’ or the like, with the most popular/likely candidates typically being called 'Favoured' instead.
Consul	President/Prime Minister	The leader of the elected senate and elected by the senate itself. Most Consuls have been Praetors but there is nothing that actually mandates that they must be and some of the most famous Consuls have been ‘mere’ Prefects. Consuls are the closest thing to a rival for the Emperor in the Savian Empire, although they’re more akin to a check on the Emperor’s power and popularity. An individual can serve as a Consul for a maximum of ten years (two five-year terms as a Consul)
Praetor	Duke	Regional rulers who administer/oversee large regions, typically defined as a single city and however many towns and village are within their spheres of influence. For example, there are twelve Praetors in Sanctuary with the regions defined as Central Patria, East Iarbamare Plains, East Patria, North Iarbamare Plains, North Occitor, North Orintor, North Patria, South Occitor, South Orintor, South Patria, West Iarbamare Plains and Zheldolin. Desacre, which is nominally considered a part of Central Patria, is the only Savian city which does not have a Praetor overseer, as it is administered by Savinus himself. They are mostly a supervisor, advisor and manager of sorts to all the Prefects within their region, however some of them have more specific responsibilities (such as any areas not considered a part of a Prefect’s purview). All Praetors are also Senators, but not all Senators are Praetors.
Senator	Minister	The one hundred highest ranked politicians (starting with Praetors), determined by the size/population of their administrative region. Because the Empire has been steadily growing the designated senators change at times, but only every decade or so at most, after a census is performed across the entire Empire.
Proxy	N/A	Proxies are the sole un-elected political rank, as they either administer a Senator’s region in their absence (as they spend most of their time in the capitol, in the actual senate) or serve as the Praetor’s voice in the senate (although this is less common than the other way around). As a result, they are often family members or close friends of the Senator in question. Senators are considered almost as responsible for the actions of their Proxies as the Proxy themselves, so it is not a position given out lightly because it can lead to disgrace and sometimes even criminal charges in dire circumstances. Because of this, anyone running for a position that would make them a Senator as well will find their entire family under particularly intense scrutiny. Although most such individuals run with a designated Proxy it is not a legal requirement, nor are they technically bound to use that person as a Proxy (though it will reflect very poorly on them to pull such a trick without good reason).
Prefect	Lord	Administrators of Individual settlements (cities, towns and villages). Prefects of cities are currently all Senators as well, however with the continued growth of the Savian Empire this may not always be the case. There is only one city with no Prefect: Desarce. This is because it is administered by Savinus himself, however most of the everyday administration is handled by a Proxy of his own.

Military Savian military ranks are shared across all of their legions (land, sea and air) with one sole exception: there is a rank shared by the naval and aerial legions which is equivalent to the ‘captain’ of a ship. This rank is supplementary, however, i.e. it is a rank that is added to their ‘normal’ military rank (see below for details).
The main distinctions between officer ranks and non-officer ranks (other than the former being effectively part of the nobility) are…

• Experience: Officers must have spent some time as non-officers, although the legal minimum is only two years (the minimum service time for a Savian soldier).
• Recommendation: Officers must have received recommendations by at least three officers of the rank above them. This is a little more complicated than it first appears as higher ranked officers count as more and more officers for this purpose. Simply put, for every additional rank ‘higher’ they are they count as an extra officer, so a recommendation from an officer at least three ranks higher than you means you don’t need any further recommendations.
• Skill: Officers must pass a test (or tests), depending on their legion, field of expertise and other factors.

Note that while a legion (how the Savian military is split up) is traditionally made up of roughly one thousand soldiers this is not always the case and although the Savians will eventually split a legion if it grows too large or merge it with another if it becomes too small they usually wait until an opportune time to do so. There’s no sense merging two legions that have completely different roles for example, so they’d rather just step up recruitment or transfer soldiers from similar legions than merge two or more legions with different expertise and/or roles.
Officer ranks are traditionally denoted visually by sashes however for practical reasons many incorporate a sash-like decoration to their armour or clothing instead to display their rank, so that it can’t snag on anything. In less formal settings, such as social events, it is seen as bad taste to not wear the proper sash however.

Rank	Sash	Details/Notes
Legate, Imperial	Gold and black striped	The highest possible military rank which usually means commanding two or more legions (with an ‘ordinary’ Legate overseeing each individual legion under them). The reason that they have striped gold and black sashes (rather than simply gold sashes) is because gold sashes are reserved for Savinus and the Emperor if/when either of them join a battlefield. Considered on par with Praetors and Senators, meaning that in certain circumstances they can simply over-rule local Prefects when it comes to military matters (though it’s rare for them to do so publicly).
Legate	Silver	The commander of an entire legion, overseeing all of the Centurions beneath them. Considered lesser than Praetors/Senators but greater than Prefects.
Tribune, Broad Band	Broad silver stripes on black	Second in command of a legion and the right-hand of their legion’s Legate. Personally selected by their Legate. Considered on par with city Prefects but greater than other Prefects.
Tribune, Narrow Band	Narrow silver stripes on black	Supplementary leaders and administrators working beneath the Legate and Broad Band Tribune to ensure the legion is run efficiently. Traditionally there are at least five Narrow Band Tribunes in a legion, but this can vary. Considered lesser than city Prefects but greater than other Prefects.
Centurion	Red	Commanders of groups of soldiers (the exact number varies greatly from legion to legion, and the soldiers being led) who ultimately answer to the Legate, although a Legate’s Tribunes are effectively treated as extensions of the Legate themselves when it comes to orders. Considered on par with town Prefects but greater than village Prefects.
Optio, Broad Band	Broad red stripes on black	Seconds to a Centurion and personally chosen by them. Considered on par with village Prefects.
Optio, Narrow Band	Narrow red stripes on black	Supplementary leaders and administrators to the Centurion, much as with Tribunes for Legates, although the exact number of them varies much more depending on the number of soldiers that the Centurion is commanding. Considered on par with village Prefects.
Magister	Gold lining along the sash's border	Commanders of a greatship, whether it be an air, land or sea ship. Magisters are traditionally either Centurions (for smaller ships) or Legates (for larger ships) although this can vary, especially with the Savian Empire experimenting greatly with different ship sizes and designs. For example, the Skybourne Island Sukaisa, which is effectively the largest airship in the world, has a Magister of the Imperial Legate rank in charge of its military duties due to its sheer size and scope of influence. They are usually only called Magister within the context of their ship (i.e. while on it or actively performing duties related to it) and in those instances they are also generally considered to outrank those who would normally be of an equal rank to them. Otherwise, Magisters are treated as/regarded by their other military title, although in practice they are typically afforded a little more respect than their non-Magister peers.

TBC...

Assets

The Savian Empire is the largest and richest empire in the world at the moment, and boasts a bevy of advanced magi-tech collectively known as machin, of which the most famous are the greatships. While they are not the only ones capable of making it, they have a monopoly on it, having been the ones who invented and proliferated it.

Demography and Population

Although the Savian Empire is widely touted as the first human Empire, it is not, as a rule, a xenophobic society although it does have xenophobic groups and individuals, most notably a strong anti-alfur sentiment. With that said, the majority of its population are human and the vast majority of its political officies are held by humans.

Territories

The Savian Empire controls most of central, western and southern Thiria, with its core being Patria, in central Thiria. It's south-eastern territories in particular are rather recent acquisitions, although generally stable since the peace agreement with the Clanlanders to the east.
It also controls a large number of Seabourne and Skybourne Isles, with the most (in)famous being Sukaisa, which has been augmented with machin to allow it to fly independently of the sky tides, turning it into a mobile military base and trading outpost through which the Savian Empire maintains a strong presence well away from its heartlands.

Unchained, Unbowed, Unbroken

Type

Geopolitical, Empire

Demonym

Savian

Leader

Savinus

Head of State

Savinus

Government System

Monarchy, Elective

Legislative Body

Senate

Official State Religion

Church of Savinus

Controlled Territories

• Desarce
• Dumina
• Fermon
• Krasnod
• Lanlos
• Meridburg
• Occison
• Orasfier
• Rubros
• Savin
• Savintell
• Subarce
• Sundher
• Terinarce

Notable Members

• Savinus
• Traian Desanguin