Tiefen
North of the Volgier League lays the feudal realm of Tiefen, a region in Northwest Galisea home to a loose association of Dwarven, Human, and Halfling polities unified by a common language and religion. The name is derived from a now-lost Old Volgier term, which the Tiefèn tongue evolved from. Being sparsely populated and isolated from the rest of the Known World, the collection of duchies, counties, and isolated settlements of the Tiefen people have only minimal political unity, with only their trust in the Ashevite religious guidance of the Obermagier of the Fire Temple of Brücter, keeping them together. This title, both civic and religious in nature, is currently held by Matthias Kühn, and is based in Brücter, the largest city in the region.
Culture
The people of Tiefen are made up of a blending of Volgier Dwarvish; Nordlich, Sudlich, and Din Halfling; and Fienań human cultures. Having come together over thousands of years, the residents of Tiefen formed a distinct culture from their ancestor, with many shared halfling-dwarven lineages as a notable result. Tiefen culture was shaped in it's formative years by the Ashevite way of life and ethos, and according to cultural lore, embraced Ashevitism as a means to balance the interests of three different mortal peoples living in a landlocked region and bounded by hostile polities in all directions.
During Volgier rule, the nobles of the non-Dwarves adopted varying aspects and amounts of Volgier practices, emulating their conquerors and currying favor in the process. Elements of pre-revolutionary Volgier culture are still strong amongst the aristocracy, including patriarchical structures and values, absolute rule by a male Sovereign, and the veneration of specific dieties. Tiefen culture favors performing arts, (Ashevite) religious study, and acts of charity, all of which contributed to the creation of the current status quo by providing sources of joy, hope, and life respectively in an isolated region.
History
Prehistoric Tiefen
The earliest mortal residents in the region are believed to be the Giants, whose unknown society left little more than runestones and the odd architectural monolithic marvel. Current mortal settlement began with the Nördlichean halflings and Volgier dwarves, with the halflings forming river fishing villages along the Obra and Efpösdt Rivers; and the dwarves establishing citadel-like settlements deep into the rock of the northern foothills of the now-eponymous Volgier Mountains.Ancient Times
Ashevite belief spread through Tiefen, as it bordered the outer provinces of the old Nimearan Kingdom. Humans moving due to the wars between the Nimearan Kingdom and Yulan-Tai Empire added to the ethnic makeup of Tiefen, as the Nimearan Kingdom facilitated the settlement of these refugees in not just it's lands, but aided the passage of those seeking to go further north, following the Prżyński River through the Volgier Mountains where they eventually made it to Tiefen. With the Construction of the Imperial Nimearan Capital in northern Gallaca, the Monarch of Nimeara was in a better position to administrate the expanded Kingdom. The Nimearan Kingdom began appointing Fire Keepers and financed a system of religious schools, libraries, and monasteries. Initially led by Nimearan Ashevite missionary priests and religious scholars, these local institutions nevertheless layed the foundation for an indigenous Tiefen Ashevite Priesthood and their future autonomy within the Ashevite religious world, as well as their strength compared to other Ashevite communities outside of Nimeara. The Zahesk, a compilation of Ashevite religious texts codified sometime between 50 to 150 years after the War of Frozen Scales claims that the Nimearan dynasty at the time was particularly devout, making it averse to offensive warfare and territorial expansion, electing instead to materially and spiritually support the good thoughts, good words, and good deeds of Ashevites outside of the Kingdom, eventually fostering a Nimearan-style priesthood in the region but never conquering or vassalising it. With the fall the Nimearan Kingdom to the Yulan-tai, Ashvetism lost it's privileges as the State Religion for a nonexistant state, were able to the Obermagier of Brücter, on continued to appoint Fire Keepers and provide guidance and oversight to the Fire Temples across Tiefen, without any guidance or influence from Stelara, although still acting on it's behalf, in theory.Middle Tiefen
After the War of Frozen Scales, Tiefen eventually fell under the domain of the Volgier Hansreik Dynasty, first through the vassalisation of the independent Volgier riges and settlements through marriage, treaty, or outright violence. With this foothold, subsequent Volgier Kings secured tributes from most of the Nördlich and Fienań tribes of the region as part of the "Nordënvolgenrige". These Kings left most religious, cultural, and day-to-day political affairs to their tributes and vassals, however Fire Keepers had to be approved by Volgier Court, and aspects of the Volgier legal code were "encouraged" to be adopted by tributaries. This resulted in a growth in corruption outside of Brücter and surviving monasteries or schools far enough away from any local lord, with many sacred fires allowed to die out, temples fall into decay, and Fire Keepers being appointed via nepotism or bribery of the local noble. After the revolution at the end of the Brother's War, the Volgier Diet abolished all royal titles and as a consequence, their estates and lands were released from any contracts or obligations to the former Kingdom. For Volgier Dwarves outside of the emergent republic, this meant a return to their independent lords. For Nördlich and Fienań tributaries, this meant inheriting Volgier-style legal systems and responsibility for military fortifications. Furthermore, many of the tribal chiefs had become wealthy under Volgier patronage, giving rise to the Chief-Kings of Tiefen.Modern Tiefen
The Obermagier of Brücter, now the wealthiest and largest single landowner in Tiefen, began aiding neighboring villages and towns as they struggled to manage disputes and solve problems before they could break into open conflicts. Many of these nearby settlements requested help restoring and running their Fire Temples, many of which had been left to decay under Volgier rule. Initially working in tandem with traditional tribal leadership, over time each Fire Keeper became viewed as a legal expert in handling the Volgier legal codes and supplanting the authority of the former Volgier nobility. In these regions without a strong local noble of their own, the collective Fire Temples directly under Brücter supervision became known as the Magieriges, or Keeper's Realms. Although Ashevitism does not require a public prayer space or priesthood to lead a congregation, it's practice by the Tiefen peasanty and merchant classes created an uniquely northern Ashevite reverence for the highest ranking religious official outside of Nimeara. As a result, the Brücter Fire Temple resumed appointing Ashevite priests across Tiefen. Not all of the aristocracy appreciated this, however. The emergent Nördlich and Fienań Chief-Kings, whose tribes had adopted many Volgier societal structures and ambitions. Behaving much like Volgier nobles, the tribal chiefs of the largest riges wanted control over the religious practice of their subjects. Rejecting what the Ashevite priesthood considered to be a poorly disguised attempt at warping the faith to serve uncreated Evil, suit their personal interests at the expense of the Ethical Creed. Several Volgier, Nördlich and Fienań secularist nobles banded together to demand they appoint the Fire Keepers within their realms. The ensuring war was resolved with a treaty that gives the Obermagier their current legal rights outside Magieriges and Free Cities. Most recently, the Matthias Kühn has been wielding the Obermagier's power within the Magieriges to promote the Ashevite practice of "good thoughts, words, and deeds", creating numerous social programs and welcoming foreign refugees. New settlements from refugees and other migratory peoples in search of new places to settle have been carved out of unused Magierige lands, creating new free cities. Some of the secular lords view this as an attempt at altering the balance of power towards Brücter, however they are powerless short of violence, to stop it.Demography and Population
No nationwide census exists, but it is estimated that less than 1.2 million people reside within Tiefen. It's largest city is Brücter, with roughly 15,000 residents. The next three largest cities are Körinsbirg (12,000), Pelgìrad (9,000), and Stürmgìrod (6,000). The rest of the population lives in small towns and villages of no more than a thousand, and mostly of 50-300 people.
Although overwhelmingly made up of peasants, only 3-5% of the population can be considered serfs, subject to any sort of lord by contract and bound to the land. Instead, most Tiefen peasants have the right to migrate, to own land, and are entitled to certain forms of judicial recourse in exchange for specific obligations toward their feudal lords. Above the peasant population are skilled tradesfolk, and above them a small martial warrior class. Akin to most feudal states, Tiefen nobility represent less than one in one hundred, but not in every Tiefen rige, where instead the Priesthood, representing a similarly small but marginally larger group, is at the apex of society.
Territories
The Tiefen lands are bounded in all directions by Galisean mountain ranges. Diagonally along the northeast by the Frostfell Mountains, in the west by the Jorgan Mountains, and to the south by the Volgier Mountains. The landmass that forms Tiefen is roughly 190,390 square kilometers in size, with many feudal boundaries, both internal and external, poorly defined or marked. An individual administrative region is called a rige, the Tiefen word for realm.
Military
As a patchwork of disunited smaller political groups, such as duchies, independent counties, free cities, religiously-run cities, and a few other administrative oddities, there is no singular, standing army of Tiefen, and being landlocked, fields no navy. The Obermagier of Brücter has, in times of internal strife or external threats to all Tiefens, command of knights from the largest noble realms.
Technological Level
Tiefen has been importing recent technologies and knowledge, mostly through its major cities such as Körinsbirg or Pelgìrad. Few of the general populace is literate, however most skilled craftspeople and artisans, along with the Ashevite Fire Keepers, are capable of reading secular and/or religious texts.
Religion
Tiefen is overwhelmingly Ashevite, having first encountered the religion as the ancient Nimearan Empire's borders reached the southernmost regions of Tiefen settlements. Through trade, Tiefen people adopted the Ashvetist faith, perhaps in part because of its common mythological background and familiar cosmology to the folk traditions of many Dwarven and Halfling settlements. Many ancient tribal practices and traditional faiths were preserved, creating a uniquely Tiefen form of Ashvetism. The Tiefen temples are organised by the Obermagier of Brücter, the highest Ashevite authority outside the Kingdom of Nimeara.
Migration in the last 100 or so years has also brought foreign faiths, such as Pandroi, into the region, although its practice is largely confined to major cities and trade outlets. Other faiths such as Ëlhyaea and folk traditions of Eriganese and Volgier origin are found as well, as most religions are tolerated by Ashevite philosophy.
Foreign Relations
Tiefen is too internally disorganised and decentralised that outward diplomatic relations are meager at best, with occasional reception and dispatching of ambassadors and emmisaries of foreign nations by the nobles of trade ports, or of particularly powerful Dukes or the Magnates of larger feudal realms. Poorly defended and isolated villages are sometimes raided by Jorgan slavers, but the dense forests and steep mountains make Tiefen a less appealing target overall.
Laws
A system of complex treaties, legal traditions, and contracts governs the Tiefenriges, as they're known collectively. There is no singular head or chief of a unified Tiefen State, however, the Obermagier of Brücter arguably has the most authority, rights, and responsibities, with spiritual authority across Tiefen and temporal authority in many towns, cities, and even duchies. Laws are different in each rige, which generally has absolute sovereignty within it's boundaries, although Magieriges are increasingly uniform in their legal codes.
In the independent cities and Magieriges (lands directly owned by a Fire Temple), the Obermagier of Brücter appoints the leadership of the Fire Temples. In Tiefen lands held by feudal lords, the Obermagier instead accredits a Fire Keeper nominated by the local sovereign. Tiefen is bordered by Jorgmark in the west, Volgier in the south, and Frostvellr in the northeast. They do not directly oversee the Fire Temples in riges ruled by a secular Nördlich, Volgier, or Fienań lord, however they do have the ability to refuse to accredit their nominees for positions in the priesthood within their riges, effectively rejecting their appointment and forcing a new nominee.
Agriculture & Industry
The bulk of economic activity is peasant farming, either on tribal lands or under a feudal contract. There is enough surplus food to sustain the urban populations and growing settlements in the Magieriges. Other industries, particularly mining and logging, sustain non-arable regions in the boreal forests and mountains that enclose Tiefen, producing resources that craftspeople, and the urban population depend on. The skilled trades have historically been limited to Brücter, Körinsbirg, and Pelgìrad, supported by the wealthier nobles or more influential temples.
Trade & Transport
Trade is not particularly developed, however Oscypek cheese is a Tiefèn food known in educated or well-travelled circles across Galisea, and thus Tiefen is a destination for foreign traders and the special export for Tiefèn traders. Otherwise, mining surplus, a meagre agricultural surplus, and local artisan goods are also available in most Tiefèn markets. Slavery is illegal, due to the strong cultural aversion stemming from it's religious prohibition in Ashevitism.
Infrastructure
Tiefen is predominantly rural, with poorly maintained roads constrained by geographic barriers such as rivers, dense forests, and mountains. One notable exception is the Great Steel Bridge, an ancient relic older than any known structures in the region, made through some long-lost construction method out of welded iron boulders and riveted steel beams, which spans almost three kilometers across dank wetlands. Runic engravings similar to known Giant runes mark every boulder.
Founding Date
1340 AS
Type
Political, Confederation
Capital
Government System
Theocracy
Power Structure
Confederation
Economic System
Traditional
Official State Religion
Location
Neighboring Nations
Non-aggression pact, trade agreements with some Tiefen realms & Volgier communes
The League Diet and the Obermagier of Brücter have signed an official non-aggression pact on behalf of all Volgier communes and Tiefen realms, respectively. Numerous trade agreements have been signed between specific communities in each country. Despite the non-agreesion pact, some Volgier communes have accused specific Tiefen lords of violating the terms of the agreement.
