The Dithian Inquisition

The endless fields and harsh, cold air of the northern parts of Ituin forge the hardy people of the Dithian Inquisition. The Dithian Inquisition, ruled by the powerful Dith family and the inquisitors, maintains a strong sense of tradition, religious devotion, and flattering displays of wealth and elegance. Though many of its citizens are treated fairly, the Inquisition employs strict rules and enforces them ruthlessly. Arcane magic is forbidden and any and all mages are hunted down and prosecuted. Some of these mages find themselves imprisoned for life while others are purged for their hearsay. Worship of heretical deities outside the ones allowed in the Inquisiton is also severely punished. Regardless, the people in the Dithian Inquisition feel safe as the loyal Inquisitors protect the citizens from bandits and barbarians. However, all Dithians feel nothing but hatred for the despotic Vertox Monarchy, the long-time enemy of the Dithian Inquisition.

Structure

The Dithian Inquisition is ruled by the Grand Inquisitor who has absolute power over the nation. Below them, status is determined directly by wealth.

Culture

Dithian lifestyle is ruled by three major things: faith, fortune, and family. The three F's guide both the Dithian people and its government. Faith is first and foremost, as it gives purpose to life itself. Faith provides structure and law, as well as a common idea to bond the people with. It is also this faith that makes it difficult for outsiders to find their way in Dithian society. Fortune is a close second, though many people consider it the first. Before its conversion to a theocracy, Dithia was a land of immaculate wealth and hedonism. Many aspects still linger, as the Inquisition is still the wealthiest nation in proportion to its size, and no amount of faith can ever fully eliminate greed. Family is third most essential to the Dithian way of life. Bloodlines are everything to Dithian nobility; many will marry into other families for the benefits they give to their kin. Some others wish to keep their bloodline pure of outside influence, and in some locales, intra-family marriage is not all that uncommon.

Public Agenda

The Dithian Inquisition is focused on uniting its people against the dangerous threat of the Vertox Monarchy. The heresy of sorcery practiced by the Vertox must be purged, as it is the root of all of Dithia's problems. The Inquisition must also ensure the flow of gold remains positive during the war, lest Dithia looses its standing as the wealthiest state in all of Veridia.

History

The Dithian Empire was in its early stages around 950 CE. At the time, it consisted of its current day capital, Novaria, and a handful of nearby settlements. Novaria's location on the sea combined with the rich gold mines in the mountains to the north allowed the nation to quickly amass wealth at a rate never before seen. Many neighboring states and barbarians willingly joined Novaria because of the promise of wealth. As for those that did not wish to join, Dithia created profitable trade routes to these states. By 985 CE, Baron Myron Dith of Novaria went all out on these states, pressuring them to join under his rule. But instead of using military force, he literally bought the cities from their leaders. With multiple cities under his rule, Myron Dith established himself as Emperor of most of northern Ituin, gaining even more access to the gold mines within the mountain. Unfortunately, injecting that much gold into the economy caused massive inflation. Gold became absolutely worthless as the price of basic goods like food and ale reached 10's and even 100's of gold. It appeared that the new Dithian Empire would fall as quickly as it rose as it entered into a dark age. In a desperate measure, Emperor Myron shut down all the gold mines to stop the inflation. He then sent all the former miners south across the river now called No Man's Divide. Led by Myron's eldest daughter, the miners established dozens of new settlements in the rich farmlands of southern Ituin, expanding the Empire once more. It would be another ten years before the dark age ended, and in that time, Emperor Myron called forth five priests from five different temples and declared that they would help guide the people through the dark times. Throwing around some more money (as worthless as it was at the time), these five religions constructed temples everywhere, establishing the Dithian pantheon, which is a subset of the grander pantheon of all Veridia. With a light to guide them and a new source of food, the dark age came to an end. Emperor Myron then succeeded his throne to his second eldest child, and his eldest child, his daughter Sofia Dith, married into the Vertox family, a family of powerful sorcerers which had grown to be the largest in the southern portions of the Empire. After 100 years, the scars of the depression still remained. The mines were reopened and gold is now is managed as to not cause another inflation. However, wealth was not redistributed equally. Many peasants still had little after they lost everything, while the rich were paid directly from the mints as well as taxes. They were fearful to distribute their wealth lest they cause another depression and their fortune became worthless again. To abate the starving masses, the leaders once again turned to the temples to unite the people. The only family that disagreed with this was House Vertox, which had become popular amongst the farmers of the south. At the time, a moderate plague was ravaging the south and the Vertox family sought to use their arcane powers to help the farmers stave off death. The Dithian churches, however, accused them of witchcraft and branded them heretics, claiming their vile sorcery was to blame for their past misfortunes. In a spectacular and horrific display of defiance, the matriarch of House Vertox conjured an army of undead from the graves of Novaria to pillage the churches and temples. House Vertox and the whole region south of No Man's Divide, split off from the Empire, establishing itself as the Vertox Monarchy. The Dithian Empire was fractured - the part of it that saved it from a dark age was now gone. No amount of gold would be able to convince the Vertox matriarch to re-join the Empire, so the only remaining option was to reclaim it by force. The Empire sent its soldiers and mercenaries into the south, but they were shamefully defeated by farmers and sorcerers who made up Vertox's new army. As the conflict escalated into war, the Dithian Empire used its massive wealth to conscript its people and hire mercenaries from all over to supplement its existing military. The nobility continued to push its faith agenda to ensure its people felt only hatred for these betrayers and all sorcerers like them! Unfortunately, they pushed it a bit too far, as the temples grew more powerful than even the Emperor. The temples began to persecute any magic user they could find, initially branding them as sorcerers, but escalating into imprisoning and even publicly executing them. The common folk of Dithia ate this up and became even more united against the Vertox and their mages than ever before. Years of war turned to decades, and decades into centuries, yet the Dithian faith was not shaken. With the complete support of the people, the temples and churches established themselves as an even higher power than the Emperor, and in the year 1390 CE, rebranded the Dithian Empire into the Dithian Inquisition.

Agriculture & Industry

The Dithian Inquisiton controls the vast mountain range in the northern portions of Ituin. These mountains provide precious and valuable metals such as silver, gold, and platinum, as well as useful materials like coal, iron, tin, and copper. Many of the large Dithian cities are built along the west coast and thus fishing is a major source of food and income as well.

Terminus ad Haeresim

Type

Geopolitical, Empire

Government System

Plutocracy

Power Structure

Federation

Economic System

Traditional

Judicial Body

The inquisitors serve as the judge, jury, and executioner of the Dithian Inquisition. Some crimes and common punishment include:

Theft - 30 day incarceration
Tax Evasion - Fine of twice the amount owed
Worship of Heretical Deities - Branded a heretic, a 6 month incarceration and reeducation, & 500 gp fine
Worship of fiendish/evil entities - Branded a heretic, 1 year incarceration and reeducation & 750 gp fine
Practice of arcane magic - Branded a sorcerer, 5 year correctional program, and public shaming, or burned at the stake
Use of arcane magic against others - Branded a sorcerer, 5 year incarceration plus 5 year correctional program, or burned at the stake
Practice of Witchcraft - Branded a witch, 5 year correctional program, or burned at the stake
Conspiring with the Vertox Monarchy - Branded a traitor, see Treason
Treason - Public execution, family name is smeared