Domain of the Scaled Kingdom

The Scaled Kingdom is one of the many Domains linked to Solomon's Reach and is, like Malakain and Ulysses, a Domain unified under one central banner. The Scaled Kingdom is the name given to it by visiting Imperials who established the Relay path between the two Domains in the late Fourth Century Imperial (Known as the 50th year of the Fen-ven King). Then native name is the Kingdom of Xamora (in reference to the Royal Capital). The Scaled part of the Domain's name derives from the predominance of the Scaled Men (Sky men or Foltor Fures to themselves) living in the Domain to the Imperials. When the Relay became known to the Scaled Men, they haggled with the Imperials regarding control over their end of it. Empress Euphemia personally went to the Scaled Domain to ensure that the handover of the Relay would be smooth and pleasant on both sides. She also went to formally meet with the King of the Domain to help establish a positive diplomatic arrangement with the Scaled Kingdom. The Scaled Kingdom did get control of the Relay but did offer a concession. The Empire would gain the right to establish a full port of their own relatively close to the Relays which would act as both a main trade node and the official Imperial Embassy in the Kingdom. The Scaled Kingdom would be content with only a formal embassy building in Aeston as it was the Empire which risked charting the Transit route. This outpost would be called Laencaster. In the intervening years after this point, the Scaled Kingdom has maintained cordial if somewhat distant contact with the Empire (whose focus is thoroughly on the Scarlet Sea). The main focus of the Kingdom has been taking the technology of the locomotive to more thoroughly bind the Domain together and open stronger trade ties to the Empire. A secret initiative of the reigning king, the Oprua-nue King (son and successor to the Fen-ven King) is to try and chart a new Transit relay path from the Scaled Kingdom itself to try and expand the realm without needing to go through the Empire to do so. This initiative is called "The Path through the Mountains". The Kingdom was unified even before contact with the Empire was made. The ruling dynasty, the House of Vossogliu, has been in at least nominal power over the Domain for seven generations (approximately 470 years Imperial Reckoning). Like in Eleusynia, travel before the introduction of Imperial locomotives was a blend of tamed sky-beasts and balloon ships. Travel was dangerous but with the greater centralization of the Domain under the Vossogliu Kingdom, traveling around was much more reliable than could be found in Eleusynia. With the introduction of locomotives, travel became as safe, swift and consistent as can be found in Ascalon or (to a much lesser degree) Solomon's Reach.
Like all powers in the Ascalonian Constellation, great effort has been put in developing and improving locomotive designs, construction and equipment. In contrast to Imperial or Malakite designs, Scaled Kingdom locomotives are virtual works of art. This is due to their production chain. With the Kingdom being at peace (unlike their neighbor), there is no pressing need to mass produce vast numbers of reliable engines. As such, Scaled Kingdom designs can be both functional and artistic. While there is a fully functional engine yard in Xamora (the King's Forge), it is mostly to cater to visiting Imperial engines. The main engine yard of the Kingdom is in Polperro and is known simply as the Golden Engine Yard or even as the Polperro engine yard. Scaled Kingdom designs tend to be more expensive to make but are regarded as true competitors to Imperial engines in all respects, though generally a generation or two behind the most modern Imperial designs. This is a level of respect not granted to Eleusynian, Malakite or Ulyssean manufactured engines and a testament to the work of the Scaled Men. Scaled Kingdom designs are more akin to Velesian design than Astrakine (they take the bare minimum needed from Imperial designs and make the rest of the engine wholly their own). Though unlike any of the Eleusynian engine yards, the Scaled Kingdom yards have stopped taking Imperial designs for inspiration and are now working on wholly native engines.
While the Scaled Kingdom is home to 12 major and minor ports, their establishment does not follow the pattern of a main disk of major ports with minor ports above, below or otherwise scattered around the Domain. Xamora, the capital is not located at the heart of the Domain. Polperro was built there to centralize production and industry for the Kingdom. Rather, the ports of the Kingdom are divided into the Old Ports (the four older, richer and more influential settlements) and the five New Ports. The Old Ports consist of Xamora, Xultai, Xechunnai and Xeffar while the New Ports consist of Archucari, Polperro, Laencaster, Cannu and Xembassen.
Xamora is the great city of the Kingdom and the seat of the Vossogliu Monarchy. As mentioned before, Xamora is not the central port in location. But it retains its status as the political heart of the Kingdom and will for many years to come. Laencaster is an unusual port in that it is run as an outpost of the Imperial government directly in a foreign Domain rather than as a civilian port that happens to be dominated by Imperial citizenry and culture (an example of the latter is Craster Manor in Eleusynia). This is also a contrast to the Imperial Military run ports of the Scarlet Sea, Laencaster is a civilian port and is managed as such. Laencaster is known more formally as the Concession Port of Laencaster to the Scaled Men, as it was granted to the Empire as a form of payment for the many difficulties and losses taken to simply open the Transit Relay between Solomon's Reach and the Kingdom. The Laencaster Ambassador's Office maintains a local embassy in Xamora to maintain a quicker and more local presence in the King's Court but officially the Empire's embassy is based in Laencaster. Another part of the concession granted in Laencaster was the right to maintain an Imperial engine yard, known as the Vear & Clarke Co. Yard (the Vear & Clarke Company won the bid for exclusive right to produce Empire engines in the Scaled Kingdom). While most Scaled Men crews prefer to run a home built engine from Xamora or Polperro, there is an acknowledgement of the quality of engines the Empire makes and so a small number are bought over time or when the engine is thought to be better than Kingdom built engines. The other main duty of Laencaster, besides their diplomatic duties and export of locomotives and parts, is to assist in the maintenance of the Transit Relay. The precise construction and maintenance methods used by the Empire for the Transit Relays are something the Kingdom has no equivalent for and so the Empire supports the Kingdom in sustaining the link between the Kingdom and the wider Constellation.
In the traditions and practices of the Scaled Men, the King and Queen maintain separate courts. For the Queen, she is also in charge of the large nurseries and dens for the higher nobility of the realm. Scaled Men are egg layers, and have taken to establishing communal nests (grouping of individual family nests) in safe and secure locations. For the Royal Family and the high nobility of the realm, Xechunnai is that communal nest. Many commoner families will make a pilgrimage of sorts to establish their own nests in and around Xechunnai, such is its reputation as a safe haven for young Scaled Men. As such, the Queen is regarded as the Mother of the Kingdom, literally and metaphorically for many of her people. On the economic side, the Queen's Port offers a wide variety of books, poetry and literature for sale, as the Queens of recent history have taken to encouraging literary works to be made while one raises their young in safety.
Polperro is the beating heart of the Scaled Kingdom's industrial sector. One of the New Ports, the city was established shortly after the founding of Laencaster by order of the Oprua-nue King to more effectively concentrate the Kingdom's locomotive production and other industrial pursuits as the knowledge came in from the Empire. While the Golden Engine Yard is the major one in Polperro, a few of the noble factions maintain lesser engine yards for their own use (though these are much inferior most of the time compared to the Golden Yard). Besides the production of locomotives, Polperro exports ammunition, various firearms and metal based equipment made no where else in the Kingdom.
Cannu is a New Port near Laencaster. It foundations, a swathe of small settlements and homesteads, had existed for several generations prior to Imperial contact. Afterwards, the Fen-ven King invested a great deal of resources to transform the small settlements into a grand port that would be enticing to Imperial visitors and a sink of Imperial Sovereigns into the Kingdom. Cannu was the product of this effort. A glittering jewel that took advantage of the discovery of many sizeable veins of Soleum Gemstones (once believed to only be present in Eleusynia) granted this fledgling port an invaluable export product and a source of wealth that could be used to awe visitors of the might of the Kingdom. As a side operation, Cannu offers to visitors a wide array of services to help them navigate the Kingdom (both literally and socially), which has been invaluable to Imperial captains and crews unfamiliar to Scaled Men coustoms.
Xembassen is another New Port, this time located near the outer regions of the Kingdom. Xembassen grew out of an old Royal Garden that had fallen fallow over the generations. The region, known simply as Jeta's Gardens, is well known for its vibrant and delicious fruit and beautiful flowers. While the old Royal Garden structures had been abandoned, the region still saw people going there to gather food and plants. In time, a new settlement grew out of the old structure. When the Fen-ven King's Census came to determine the size of the port and how many people lived there, they accepted the local name of Xembassen for the new port. Xembassen is one of the quicker growing major settlements of the Kingdom for the importance of its food production and flower cultivation. What is not advertised to many, however are the side businesses. While many medical potions and remedies can be made from the flowers and other plants, poisons can also be made from other plants in Jeta's Gardens. The Second Prince of the Kingdom (the reigning Oprua-nue King's second son, and third child) is the main person in charge of regulated the production of both medicinal and poisonous products out of Xembassen. The port also exports cuttings and other products from a wide variety of plants cultivated or gathered from within the port and the wider Jeta's Gardens.
Xeffar is the third Old Port of the Kingdom, specifically a monastery. The faith of the Kingdom places high honor on monasticism and devotion of one's life to holy work. Xeffar expanded on top of an existing temple structure, the Temple of the Sky-born Silence. A common oath made by monks of Xeffar is one of being mute, in honor of their order's founder who had his tongue removed for refusing to end his proselytizing during the reign of a particularly ruthless secularist king from before the Vossogliu Dynasty. The monastery of Xeffar has flourished, particularly under the Vossoglius who have been strong patrons the many temples of the Domain. Xeffar's main export, besides high quality manuscripts, is the honey they gather from the many bees cultivated around the monastery. Most all of this trade is done in the Temple Annex, a separate structure on another asteroid linked to the Monastery proper by a sky-bridge. This way, trade and visitors can interact with Xeffar but they are kept out of the Monastery itself so as not to disrupt the holy work of the monks.
Xultai is the fourth and final Old Port, and the holiest place in the Scaled Kingdom. The port is built upon the place were an ancient prophet of the Gods, whose name has sadly been lost to time, built an old temple and is believed to have either died in or was buried at. Regardless of the exact answer, Xultai is holy to the Scaled Men, and is home to the Pyramid and Grand Temple of Xultai. It is here that the priesthood of the Kingdom is based in, trains new members at and stores the holiest of relics and scriptures in. With the ascent and consolidation of the Vossogliu Dynasty, the priesthood has seen a surge of influence, wealth and patronage that it hasn't seen in many, many generations before. The Golden Pyramid has been a traditional place of rest for many of the nobility over the centuries, though the Royal Family prefers to bury its members in the Royal Mausoleum outside of Xamora (some cadet branches of the Royal Line have buried individuals at Xultai per their request in the past though). Xultai is, besides being the holiest place in the Kingdom, also a sanctuary for any and all who seek the protection of the priesthood. It has been an tradition that anyone could seek refuge at the Holy Pyramid if they felt their life was in danger or they could not maintain a safe and secure home. Such people will be taken to the Grand Sanctuary, a now vast complex (essentially a city almost in and of itself) that is on its own asteroids but is still connected to Xultai proper. This keeps the Temple sections independent of the Sanctuary but keeps that section under the administrative watch of the priesthood. The main export of Xultai is the wide array of religious texts produced there. Furthermore, the priesthood has been the primary source of scribes in the Kingdom under the Vossogliu Dynasty and so most poets and writers of all stripes get their training at Xultai. The port is often were new writers will try to sell their books at first, since the literary culture of the port is so strong and prominent in comparison to other areas of the Kingdom.
Archucari is one of the more notable New Ports for its status as a great and well respected resort that is not directly funded by the Royal Family or the reigning King (or otherwise established by edict of the King). Archucari was first established as the private resort of the Fóssa family, a wealthy clan that gained much of their fortune from various copper and tin mines (bronze has been one of the more valuable metals of the Kingdom historically, often being used for weapons until contact and trade with Ascalon was established). The Fóssas would often allow other noble lines or wealthy individuals to access the resort in return for a sizeable entrance fee (typically some valuable item rather than just money). Over time, the port gained a reputation as being the best place for luxurious relaxation and more and more groups petitioned the Fóssa lords and ladies for access. Eventually, they simply opened the port up to any who could pay the requisite entrance fee (a high price, thus maintaining the exclusivity of the resort). While still out of reach for many commoners, the port has become a rousing success and major source of income for the Fóssas, particularly since Imperial sourced steel and iron (or natively sourced equivalents) have replaced bronze as the principal metal of the Kingdom. The port is a common haunt for creative artisans, artists, poets and the like seeking either relaxation or inspiration in the resort. The main export of Archucari is Sagenna spice, a red colored spice that possesses a unique and thoroughly delicious flavor that has seen it be used in many Scaled Men dishes. The spice has seen a noticeable spike in interest and purchases from Imperial captains seeking to sell the new spice back home in the Empire.

Type

Plane of Existence