Fervor
"The militant guards of Fervor keep a close eye on visitors, ensuring they do not step one toe out of line while visiting the enchanting lands of Fervor, the mountains and valleys of the gods themselves."
Structure
Fervor is a Republic run by an administrative system of military leaders and tacticians. Strict order is imposed by a ranking system developed by the members of The Hadanguard, the elite warriors who derive their lineage from the companions of the legendary founder hero Hadan the Warrior Goddess, who led their people to emancipation and liberty through a series of bloody battles towards a promised land.
Archon - One of three individuals who represent each class of fervorian. The Goldblood representative rules along with the aristocracy from their seat of power in Haden's Rest. (It is referred to by fervorians as Hadenrest, proper.) The Silverblood representative rules from their seat of power in Hero's Wake (It is referred to by fervorians as Herowake, proper.) The Copperblood representative rules from their seat of power in Amar's Port (It is referred to by fervorians as Amarport, proper.)
Hipparch - The administrative and military tactician forces made up of goldbloods and silverbloods. These commanders must undertake the trials and lessons taught by the Schools of Hadan and possess accreditation from all three schools. Hipparchs act as advisors, strategists, and politicians working for their associated Archon. These well traveled scholars and warriors record the histories and the stories of their people.
Citizens - The commonfolk of Fervor, made up of silverbloods from disgraced familys and copperbloods, who hold little authority and hold more of a indentured servitude role to wealthier familys. In Fervor, currency is law. The exchange of Fervors distinct currency system dictates societal progression.
Culture
Fervorian society is dictated by the exchange of its three core coins, large polished cylinders of silver, gold, and platinum. Families own coffers which contain stacks of these heavy, interlocking coins. A Draegis, Archae, and Genesii each weigh approximately 5 pounds of their respective materials, inlaid with various jewels and precious stones. Some more lavish and wealthy individuals vainly wear them about the neck in a leather cord. Each coin has a square carved through it which can be used to rope them together.
Goldbloods play aristocratic roles of nobility and structure, though it is truly the forces of The Hadanguard which runs things, goldblood nobles and court officials spend their days in luxury playing hedonistic games and participating in lavish festivals all throughout the day. Their homes are luxuriously built palace which dot the countryside of the Valley of the Winds. Many Hipparchs interplay roles between goldbloods and silverbloods, mediating disagreements and dishing out punishments on behalf of those who hold power over them. These issues are ultimately resolved by the Archons, who have orchestrated the events in play over the many storied centuries of Fervors internal strifes and civil wars, as well as their wars with the forces of the Xervanos Mountains mountains with the emergance of the subterranean Xervanosian race.
Silverbloods make up the bulk of fervorian society within her borders, acting as workers, soldiers, craftsmen, artisans, and various other roles within society. Silverbloods on some occasions have association with goldbloods, but only through servile roles. One silverblood teacher may tutor the son of a goldblood noble, but he lacks any claim to the goldblood lineage, which prevents them from moving up societally. His or her only hope may be the marriage to a goldblood noble, to produce a goldblood offspring and advance the family line by journeying through The Intrepedium. A well to do silverblood can also carve his way to prosperity through an intelligent accounting of his family coffers through trade with influential members of goldblood society. Silverbloods mostly occupy the cities of Amar's Port and Hero's Wake, where they share the city of the indentured masses of Copperbloods.
Within the borders of Fervor, Copperbloods have no rights, they are treated poorly and left in the alleys to waste away. They carry with them the curse of their ancestry to the traitor Obrinn the Furious Red River. Most of them live in squalor in city streets, often mistreated by their silverblood kin. For a copperblood to so much as look upon a goldblood invites execution by shattering. Shattering is the ultimate force that maintains order within the walls of Fervor.
Shattering is a form of public execution that each city has a hillside ampitheater dedicated to. The accused is shackled to two columns by their wrists and ankles and stands before the regional Archon who is armed with the legendary hammer, Hadan's Wrath. The two handed hammer Hadan the Warrior Goddess carried into battle. The accused is stripped of their finery and stands bare before the representing Archon and is given their last rites. The Archon swings the hammer through the torso of the condemned, shattering them. Their bleeding golden, silver, or copper blood is collected and minted into the famed coins. Copper blood is refined into pottery and kitchenware which adorns the households of goldblood families. The families of goldbloods who are executed this way quickly go into hiding, as to not be associated with their crimes. Other punishment for crimes includes the draining of a fervorians liquid metal blood which is melted down and minted for currency. Their lifeless body is filled with an essence derived from finely ground nura crysts, making their body a puppet for those controlling the binding magics.
Copperbloods often attempt to make their way out of Fervor for a better life amongst the humans and tokage beyond the southern mountains. In order to do this, they must make their way through the The Wall of Paxum or find some hidden passage out of Amar's Port.
Public Agenda
The Archons are an incredibly scrutinizing trio of leaders who work together or against each other to maintain the power struggles of their empire. They have no interest in expansion, but maintain the constant threat that if provoked, they would lead legions of mighty warriors to crush the fledging powers of humanity. They maintain trade with the outside world through thoroughly and vigilantly monitored trade networks.
Assets
History
Fervorian history is long and well documented by scholars from the Schools of Hadan. The many stories of their ancestral heroes are written in stone monoliths which adorn the halls of these schools. In the earliest days of the empire, the lowly and humble servant girl Hadan, broke free of her chains to her human overlords, beginning a rebellion that would lead thousands upon thousands of fervorians to join her cause. With her were her famed companions, Obrinn the Furious Red River, Paxum the Blinding Light, Akimotos the Knowledgeable Wise One, and Helos the Copperblood.
Hadan would carve out a region of the world for her people in what is today the Oversol Highlands, founding the city of Marblemarch. From here, thousands of fervorians would flock breaking free of their chains from the weakening human kingdoms, starting a new life for themselves. In one story, Paxum the Blinding Light is said to have had a dream of a land of vast mountains and lush valleys, foretold by Archaetos himself as a promised land for Hadan's people.
Hadan and her companions moved onwards, bringing her 40,000 people with them to found Haden's Rest. A utopian city dedicated to freeing any and all of their debts and burdens. From here Hadan sat upon her throne alongside her allies and close friends Paxum and Obrinn who served as the earliest foundations of The Hadanguard. This reign would go on peacefully for the next few centuries.
Following the events of The Sundering, Hadan's death is the source of various scholarly debates. Some accounts say she died peacefully in bed with her companions by her side, while others say she had been betrayed by one of the people she had trusted most, others still account of her having one of the wildest nights the kingdoms of Fervor had ever seen, resluting in death from intoxication or poison. It is alledged that her body lies deep within the tomb at the center of Haden's Rest, though this is also disputed. No humans are allowed within the palace grounds which house the tombs, and to enter is punishable by death.
Hadan's legacy lives on, as there are many many books and accounts of battles fought against mythical beasts which reside amongst the countrysides by legendary heroes who draw their ancestry from Hadan and her many companions, this lineage is a mark of pride for many a fervorian whose personal prowess is said to have been descended from these heroes. During the Era of Dusk, there are many accounts of heroic deeds and tales of expansionism into the western territories of Chillrend and the depths of the ancient ruins built by Fervorian hands ages ago.
However, following the turn of the age into the Era of Twilight, Fervor has been gripped by widespread civil wars between various interior factions, ruthless Archons compete for supremacy, bastardizing the lessons and morals taught by the Schools of Hadan in incredible bids for power. To the west, a strange and otherworldly new race of subterranean people threaten the existential presence of longstanding Fervorian law and order. Attacks on western settlements have become more frequent and the territory of The Intrepedium, a terrain inherent in the fervorian coupling practices and rebirthing process, is under threat.
Demography and Population
Population is strictly controlled by the Archons, whose Hipparchs enforce their will with absolute authority. Though some human travelers do travel their lands from time to time, under strict supervision, they hold no permanent residence and are allowed only a limited stay. Tokage are not allowed within their borders, as fervorian elites consider them to be beasts, not even sentient enough to have a conversation with.
Primarily Fervor is made up of Fervorians from the following social classes:
Goldblood - 10%
Silverblood - 30%
Copperblood - 60%
Territories
Fervor is a land to the northern temperate coasts of Ardras which frequently experiences periods of windy weather carving through the various valleys and mountain passes. It is guarded to the south by the Aegispeak Mountains, making it an incredibly defendable region. Fervorian guards patrol the mountain peaks, threatening any who encroach on their borders.
Fervor currently controls the following regions:
Aegispeak Mountains
Xervanos Mountains
The Wall of Paxum
Traveler's Ascent
The Intrepedium
Mt. Olympa
Mt. Heras
Mt. Zerus
Posidon Bay
Mt. Haden
Valley of the Winds
Silent Shores
Zenithar's Pass
Military
The Hadanguard is the military backbone of Fervorian society, whose rule is absolute. The are led by the Archons, three ruling figures that maintain balance between the goldbloods, silverbloods, and copperbloods, each ruling from their throne within the cities of Hero's Wake, Haden's Rest, and Amar's Port. In the earliest days of the kingdom, back during its rule by Hadan herself, the copperblood representative ruled from Marblemarch prior to The Sundering. In the centuries that followed, the copperblood Archon's rule would dwindle within Hadanguard as human populations began accumulating within the region. The throne of the copperblood Archon would be relocated to Amarport within the borders of Fervor, leaving Hadanguard to the machinations of the humans and fervorian copperbloods who inhabited it.
Technological Level
Fervorian technology surpasses that of Aristolian magitek, though the secrets to this magic is held in close secret by the ruling Archons. They incorporate the glyphs of the Hadan language into massive stoneworks and masonry. This little understood use of magic is likely the key to exploring the ruins of the Kingdom of First Men far into the snowy reaches of Chillrend.
Foreign Relations
Fervor is a landscape of vigilante warriors who pride themselves on their upholding of ideals such as peace, justice, and liberty. These ideals are fought over and discussed endlessly between philosopher kings, their hipparchs, and the various societal roles which interchange various ideas. Fervorian philosopher kings, the Archons, care very little for the affairs of men, as they are well aware of Aristolia's economic influence and its effect on the dwindling powers of Ardras.
Their isolationist stratocracy is viewed as cruel by outsiders, but the fervorians see it as necessary for societal order. Copperbloods sometimes escape the confines of the country to start new lives away from the squalor of the streets. Silverbloods may sometimes travel outside her borders on a task for their employer or in search of a personal goal, but only with special granted permissions. Goldbloods see little need to travel outside of Fervor, preferring the luxury of their hedonistic lifestyles.
Agriculture & Industry
Fervorians do not require food like Humans and Tokage do. They lack a digestive system, but they can apparently find an array of tastes within stone and precious gems. Silverblood miners work throughout the day mining rock, precious metals, and gemstones to provide for the luxurious tastes of the Goldbloods.
Fervorians are also well known for their beautifully crafted weaponry with ornate artistry set into porcelain inlaid hilts. Fervorian weaponsmithing and armor smithing is the stuff of legends, enviously sought after by the most ambitious of warriors and collectors alike. Every fervorian weapon is made by an esteemed master, the Archons expect no less than perfection from the ranks of The Hadanguard and so all of their weapons and armor are forged in sacred fires within the city of Haden's Rest.
Trade & Transport
Trade is strictly watched by legions of patrols and soldiers which maintain a vigilant eye on the main road through the hilled landscape. One soldier stands guard every several hundred yards, silently and stoicly posed on a raised platform. These Hoplites are tasked with ensuring that no contraband or non-approved trade goods are smuggled into or out of the empire. Hoplites will not hesitate to spear down a foreign merchant who breaches these ironclad laws. Slain merchants are discarded and their goods are forfiet, approved goods are sent to the Hipparchs for sorting and tributing to the regional Archon. Any illicit goods are discarded, though no one is sure where they go.
The city of Amar's Port maintains strict naval trade with Lithos and Oceos'lo'kai where these same rules are applied. Any merchant caught breaching these laws are killed on the spot; allowing the next merchant through customs to come through.
Education
The Schools of Hadan are three mountaintop academies dedicated to the virtues left behind by the legendary, Hadan the Warrior Goddess. These schools are responsible for the training of body and mind for fervorians, sculpting them into the elite warriors that they are famed for being. Here is where the philosopher kings of old practiced ancient fighting arts distinct of the fervorian people, however they also forged their minds through a series of debates about concepts such as existence, the nature of reality, and how to best live one's life. Many Archons and Hipparchs are graduates of these schools, and for the most part it is practically a requirement for holding such positions.
The Schools are founded on three core concepts of destruction, creation, and balance. The School of Creation - Path Archae focuses on the doings of good work, continuous progression, and growth, it is where the ambitious learn to pursue their goals. The School of Destruction - Path Draegis is where warriors train their bodies to ultimate fighting machines, perfecting stances and battle tactics while attuning and focusing one's inner rage. The School of Balance - Path Genesii is the third school which requires completion of the two prior schools, it is here where diplomats, politicians, administrators, and other people of civil service are born.
These Schools are seperately owned by the philosophers who have run them for centuries, though they are subject to the laws of the Archons, the deep respect for these schools and their ancient knowledge keeps most ruling Archons at bay. The schools also own the region of Posidon Bay for training purposes, various barracks and camps exist here for field training. A minor school atop Mt. Haden, the School of the Aspirant, provides preliminary training for humans interested in learning the ancient arts of the fervorian fighter.
Infrastructure
Fervor is made up of three beautifully built cities with a long history associated with their founding by Hadan the Warrior Goddess and her warrior companions. Each of these cities houses a palace from which the ruling Archon dictates their law, doing their best to apply the teachings of Hadan to leadership and rule. These cities house residencies, shops, inns, and various merchant stalls which sell a variety of luxury goods. The prices for these amenities is staggeringly high, so travelers must come prepared with a lot of gold for trade.
Small villages dot the hilly countryside, each of which are founded around an ancient statue of their patron hero, one of the many ancestral warriors who aided Hadan in her fight for freedom, and the clearing of the landscape from monstrous elements which allowed for permanent fervorian settlement. The villages house mostly silverblood and copperblood peoples, while goldbloods reside primarily within the cities. Every fervorian settlement is lavishly decorated with impressive architecture, artworks of beauty, and collosal statues.
Obey the Archons.
Fervor's isolationist archons rely on the natural mountain borders for their secure defense, they have had a longstanding empire lasting thousands of years.
Founding Date
7100
Type
Geopolitical, Stratocracy
Capital
Demonym
Fervorian
Leader Title
Government System
Stratocracy
Power Structure
Unitary state
Economic System
Command/Planned economy
Major Exports
Silver, copper, artifacts, nura crysts
Major Imports
Artifacts, gold, jewelry, oils
Legislative Body
Schools of Hadan
Judicial Body
The Archons
Executive Body
The Hadanguard
Official State Religion
Parent Organization
Subsidiary Organizations
Location
Official Languages
Neighboring Nations
Related Ethnicities
Non-Aggression Pact
Fervor and Aristolia trade, but under strict and vigilantely observed watch of the Fervorian officials in charge of customs and goods exchange.
Non-Aggression Pact
Lithosians and Aristolians are historically responsible for the oppression from which the Fervorian people escaped from, though they have little relations now.
Non-Aggression Pact
Fervorians do engage in trade with Oceos'lo'kaiians, but on a very strict and well regulated basis. The ancient warrior people have no patience for smuggling.
Unfriendly
Drylanders have little patience for the arrogance of Fervorians, and Fervorians consider the humble tokage as earth beneath their feet.