The Serpent Kingdoms
Far to the east and south of Europa, south of the Celestial Empire, stands the great Serpent Kingdoms hidden deep in the tropical rainforests of the Serpentlands. A collective of city-states allied under the rule of a grand emperor, the Serpent Kingdoms are home to the world’s largest populations of yuan-ti. Indeed, it is these lands that, according to modern archaeologists, are thought to be the ancestral homeland of those mysterious and intelligent peoples.
Structure
The Serpent Kingdoms have a very lawful and orderly society. The many kingdoms and empires that existed before the modern day government kept to a caste system that had been established centuries ago (for about 800 - 900 years or so). It was divided into five official castes, with outlaws and prisoners seen as part of an even lower caste (Pariahshad). The castes (in order of greatest to least) were: Tikaan (Priests and judges), Viishak (aristocrats), Maha Tsao (warriors), Asuai (merchants and tradesman), and Lin’tsaa (commoners). While the caste system was officially discarded in the early 1800’s, the cultural perceptions of people as they had been formerly categorized in the caste system still remain, even if under the law everyone is allegedly equal.
The Kingdoms themselves are a myriad of city-states, each ruled by a monarch and a legislative body. The monarchs of each city state gather twice each year (once in the dry season and once in the wet season) and discuss matters that concern all the kingdoms as a collective. They all answer to a Grand Emperor (or empress) who is chosen from one of the existing monarchs; a prospective Grand Emperor must pass a number of ritualistic trials of might, wisdom, and cunning before being accepted as Grand Emperor. The current reigning Grand Emperor is Grand Empress Mai Minh Xiao, a stoic yuan-ti woman with strong principles and a piercing gaze.
The legislative body of a city-state is an elected group of 21 individuals chosen to represent districts and/or political ideologies. They vote on local issues and their proposed laws are ratified or vetoed by the local monarch. Legislators serve terms of 4 years, and may be reelected once. A local monarch is typically selected from the aristocracy by the Temple of Barasios and serves for 10 years. At the end of those 10 years, they are reevaluated on terms of personal character and executive integrity by the local legislation to see if they are fit to serve another 10 years. No monarch may serve more than 20 years. These term limits are set in place to prevent political corruption from proliferating. Most legislators and monarchs are of yuan-ti heritage, though in the last 50 years, more and more non-yuan-ti are being elected for public office.
The judicial system operates on a national level, known as the Order of the National Bar. If a case is to be presented to court in one city state, then at least one of the judges on a panel of five must be one who claims citizenship of that specific city-state; all other judges may be from any city-state. The laws of the Serpent Kingdoms are (as many may find), intricate and sometimes complicated; as such, many citizens enter the legal professions.
In matters of defense, each city-state contributes soldiers to the national armed forces. The branches of the military are Army (the Khang-Zel Jungle-Fighters), Navy (Wu-Tao Riverwardens), and the Mageslayers (Mahaj-ourai). Military service is compulsory for all citizens of yuan-ti heritage ages 20 through age 60, though non-yuan-ti citizens are allowed to voluntarily enlist. Yuan-ti citizens not actively serving in the armed forces are expected to attend military boot camp for two consecutive weeks out of the year. Compulsory military service is waived for citizens with disabilities, a pre existing obligation to caring for elderly family members, and for those who have entered a life of total religious service, such as cloistered priests and ascetic monks.
Crime and Punishment
The legal system in the Serpent Kingdoms is as strict as it is complicated. As corporal punishment was outlawed in 1833, penalties for crimes primarily consist of rehabilitation, community service, and imprisonment (which is reserved for the more serious crimes). Non-naturalized citizen foreigners that engage in criminal activity risk immediate expulsion from the country (depending on the severity of the crime). However, all citizens--even non-citizen undead--are guaranteed legal representation in the court of law. Law enforcement agencies exist on the city-state and national level and handle the investigation and suppression of most crimes. In 1867, an additional law enforcement agency called The Watchers was established with the express purpose of ensuring that politicians, law enforcement officers, and people in the legal profession are adhering to the laws they are supposed to uphold. The Watchers, while unpopular with the law enforcement agencies that they themselves police, have significantly reduced corruption in police and political circles. Members of The Watchers swear a magically binding oath to uphold their duties and to never fall to corruption, lest legal and divine punishment rain down upon them. Most members of The Watchers are paladins of Barasios.Culture
Culturally, the people of the Serpent Kingdoms are generally lawfully-minded, have solid ideas and opinions regarding identity and society, and are proud of their ancestral traditions. Most family homes in the various city-states have a ‘remembrance room’ in them, a room dedicated to leaving offerings to and burning candles for dead ancestors and respected family members. National holidays are celebrated openly and are always colorful, vibrant affairs. Religion and faith is very important to the people here, as it is seen as essential for a functional society to properly operate. Theater and opera are popular entertainment, and are readily made available for all citizens to enjoy. Sports such as martial arts tournaments, hhan-shyu (a game similar to team tennis), and more recently rugby are very popular in the country. There is not much use of eletech in the Serpent Kingdoms, mostly because the use of arcane and magical technology is still very prevalent in their society.
Educational institutions are partially funded by the Taithni Dao (the church of Athesne) and partially by the government. As such, access to educational institutions is free and open to everyone, including foreigners. While access into advanced educational programs may be restricted simply on grounds of availability and class size, ensuring that every person living in the Serpentlands at least receives a general education is made a priority.
Students hoping to enter the legal profession to become barristers (or the much sought-after position of judges) invariably enroll in educational institutions overseen by the B’naso Dao (the church of Barasios). Entry into these schools is highly competitive due to the number of applicants across the country, and as such there is often a waiting list and strict entry requirements. Getting a career in law is seen as moving up in the social hierarchy of Serpent Kingdom society.
The population of the Serpent Kingdoms is as varied as the rest of the modern world, though the overwhelming majority of the population is of yuan-ti heritage. The Lihan-yi people, a yuan-ti related ethnic minority that possess humanoid upper torsos but long snake bodies in place of legs, form the second largest heritage in the country. For the most part, foreigners are not treated unequally, with the exception of those who are members of the undead, who are required to register with the government and are not allowed to own property. Foreigners are expected to conform to the rules of propriety within society, pay taxes, and follow the law. Foreigners may gain full citizenship by filling out the proper paperwork and documentation at the courthouse within the domain of the city-state they live in or near.
History
The history of the Serpent Kingdoms comes from rough and chaotic beginnings. The vast tropical rainforests that cover the expanse of the Serpentlands have long been fought over by many nations over the centuries. Prior to the rise of the modern day empires, the Serpentlands had been in a cycle of occupation and revolution, overthrowing the rule of one foreign empire only to be conquered by a different power. It was not until 1055, when the natives rallied behind a yuan-ti tikaan named Vritri the Golden-Eyed and finally formed a strong and resilient alliance between the many city states that dotted the jungles of the Serpentlands. It was believed that Vritri had celestial blood herself, and through her leadership the people of the land were able to force the foreign empire out of their jungles and form an empire of their own, which they named the Shhan Empire. Ruling through supreme divine right, it was this new government that saw the creation of the Serpentlands’ caste system as a way of organizing the people so that their new empire would not so easily fall under the rule of foreign invaders again. The Shhan Empire ruled for many centuries, the role of emperor/empress/emperatrix being passed via inheritance; 6 distinct dynastic lines ruled the Shhan Empire before its eventual revolution and transition into the Serpent Kingdoms in the year 1807, with the final empress being Ranshu the Prosperous.
In 1781, civil unrest was stirring. Corruption and government mismanagement had long been plaguing the Shhan Empire after centuries of dynastic rule, secret plots and machinations, and politicking by those who sought to claim the empire’s Emerald Throne. The people of the Shhan Empire were lawful-minded individuals, though, so outright revolution was seen as improper and anathema. As such, a grassroots political movement started in the provinces and rural city-states. They called for reform, for better representation in government, and for a cleanup of corruption. This political party gained traction and support from local governments and eventually from the priesthood of Barasios; the support of the Oath Binder’s church created significant leverage for the revolution and, in time, forced the imperial throne to the negotiating table. In 1807, after many years of negotiation, the system of government had fully transitioned from the Shhan Empire to the Serpent Kingdoms.
Religion
The main gods officially recognized by the Serpent Kingdoms at a national level are:
Akmon - known in the local tongue as Taiyang Wang (the Sun King he is depicted as a human with serpent eyes carrying a shining trident that glows as bright as the noonday sun.
Barasios - known in the local tongue as B’naso the Oath Binder; he is depicted as a six-armed yuan-ti man wielding a scroll, quill, scepter, and goblet
Athesne - known in the local tongue as Taithni the Font of Enlightenment; she is depicted as a yuan-ti woman carrying many books in her many hands. Her snake fangs are bared, as a nonverbal gesture of openness among yuan-ti that suggests she is waiting to teach all who are willing to learn
Other gods that are of a more lawful bent such as Eriu and Rhemnys are also worshiped, but not as widely as the three above. Worship of chaotic gods such as Gorath and Eosphorus or utterly malign gods like Tanith are banned.
The Serpent Kingdoms hold that the Rule of Law is paramount for keeping an orderly, prosperous society. Through the purview of Akmon as the god of nobility, the structure of society is kept orderly, even without the caste system. It teaches that everyone has a place and a duty to each other; some such as legislators and judges have more important duties to uphold in society than the duties of the commoner, but by no means does this lessen the importance of the jobs that the common folk hold, for without the common folk there would be neither food nor crafts nor trade.
Through the purview of Barasios, law and order is created, upheld, and defended. The laws of the land are intricate, but it is reasoned that a just society requires laws and structure, for without it--or without enough of it--society itself will collapse into lawlessness and leave the people of the Serpent Kingdoms vulnerable to foreign influence and predations.
Through the purview of Athesne, knowledge is spread and used to better serve the common good. Education creates a lawful population, and when one is allowed to learn and understand the world around them, they are able to uphold their duties to society with the perspective and clear comprehension that only a thorough education can offer.
"This is a statue of B'naso, my homeland's depiction of the god Barasios, to whom we observe first and foremost in our Kingdoms. The Oath Binder holds the Rule of Law in his coils, and through him we uphold the Rule of Law among our society. This sculpture was expertly crafted by the esteemed yuan-ti artisan Yao Ban Shen in 1796 for the Azshanai family in the Serpent Kingdoms during the reign of Queen Ranshu the Prosperous. After the head of the Azshanai household passed away and the family's wealth became strained due to an ongoing political feud, it was sold to private collectors in 1872 and purchased by my family not long after." - Li Shan, yuan-ti antiques merchant
Type
Geopolitical, Country
Capital
Head of State
Government System
Monarchy, Constitutional
Major Exports
Alchemical goods and reagents, precious metals and gemstones, medicinal remedies and ingredients, silk, simple magic items
Neighboring Nations
Imperial Bureaucracy Location
Southeast Asia (Vietnam, Thailand, Cambodia, Myanmar, northern Indonesia) Languages
Yuan-Ti, Tortish