The Imperium
Summary
From its very foundations, the Imperium existed as a political organ to service the needs of Imperious. Recognizing her inability to exist in multiple places at once, Imperious orchestrated an elaborate system of responsibility, delegating power to those in order of loyalty to her. Regardless of their own abilities, to challenge her officials was to threaten her, and Imperious responded with unilateral annihilation regardless of the offense. Thus, through the threat of overwhelming destruction, many were cowed into servitude. As the Imperium grew, those loyal to Imperious reaped many benefits, and raised fantastical armies in her name and on her behalf. This culminated in a snowball effect that soon made it nearly impossible for anyone to resist the Imperium's military expansionism. As a whole, only dragons were considered citizens, with the likes of the wokma, wyvern, and lindwurm brought in 'by proxy'. The rest were delegated to slavery, serving as menial laborers or constrained intellectuals. Despite this classification, the actual practices of slavery varied wildly from region to region. Some were absolutely no different from ordinary citizenship, while others were in utter squalor as their lands were strip mined. This brutality ended up affecting many races, most notably that of Humanity and the baarham, who would take the world stage later on. Though unable to resist the Imperium in the open, numerous subjugated member states and their organizations continued their defiance. Numerous raids, unceasing banditry, corrupt government procedures, and so on, plagued the Imperium from the start to the end. It is a testament to its single-minded purpose that despite these ordinarily crippling problems, it lumbered on, undaunted in achieving total planetary domination.Disbandment
Imperious vanished, and her disloyal underlings broke out in rebellion, thus marking the end of the Imperium.
Demography and Population
Military
In terms of military prowess, there was Imperious, and then the Imperium's various armies.
No single entity, save Aerintor, could challenge Imperious in single combat. Although many tried, the dragon's indescribable physical might brushed aside every other challenger. Even more ridiculous was her aptitude for destruction: entire armies couldn't stack up against her, whether with mundane or magical means. Whether this is due to her own strength, or the very underdeveloped nature of the world, is a hotly contested notion. Some argue that Imperious, if she resurfaced today, could 'easily be handled' because of the extreme advancements in technology. Indeed, dragon-killer metal didn't exist in her era until the very end when she vanished.
The Imperium's armies, as a whole, depended entirely on their local region. Ranging from simple militia to grand, ten-thousand plus soldiers, their purpose was entirely to insure stability and conquer new lands. The various regents responsible for the armies sometimes warred amongst themselves, seeking glory and riches alike. Nonetheless, although one or a few armies could be defeated, the whole of the Imperium proved an impossible wall. Nearby neighboring armies would soon flood in, attacking their victorious enemies, and quickly overwhelming the tired victors.
Religion
The Imperium had no official religion, nor bothered itself with policing the faith of its members. A cult of personality arose around Imperious herself, though the dragon herself notably never bothered with that either.
So long as due reverence was given to the dragons and its laws obeyed, anyone was free to worship as they pleased.
Agriculture & Industry
All wealth, material or immaterial, was funneled to the dragons and their rapacious greed. It was only a matter of necessity than anything else they relinquished gold or other valuables for internal or external trade. Overall, this left much of the Imperium's populace in a poor state, unable to afford much in spending or manufacturing power. This caused such an international problem that an enormous black market sprung up, effectively supplanting where a normal economy should've been.
The dragons often treated this as a fun past time to work on, giving them casus belli to intervene in their subjects even more. Many scholars often point to this as being one of the greatest sore points with the Imperium, and perhaps the root cause of many rebellions. In the later downfall of the Imperium, the hordes of dragons (living or dead) became popular raiding targets. Not all of them have been accounted for, either, making treasure hunting a popular pastime.
Education
In part due to its poor economic policies, the Imperium did little to foster intellectual growth across its body as a whole. The wokma enjoyed much themselves, becoming hoarders of arcane, practical, and esoteric knowledge. Very few were able to contest them on the matter, and to this day, the wokma have much knowledge no one else has come close to uncovering yet.
One notable achievement, however, was the implementation of a unified language and writing structure. Imperious despised not being able to communicate with others, and so poured much of her attention into insuring everyone was taught one language, and one alphabet. For the most part, this imperative is considered the single largest reason the vast majority of the world is able to communicate with each other.
Understandably, language drift has caused many to fracture over the years since the downfall of the Imperium. Aside from simple regional dialects, areas that survived with their cultural identity often returned to their old language(s). Nonetheless, thanks to the numerous translation tomes and other documentation, it is quite easy for most people to find common language ground in a matter of months, rather than years.
DISBANDED/DISSOLVED
Type
Geopolitical, Empire
Successor Organization
Training Level
Professional
Veterancy Level
Veteran
Government System
Dictatorship
Power Structure
Unitary state
Economic System
Mixed economy
Controlled Territories
Comments