Brimhearth (BRIM-haarth)
Structure
Brimhearth is ruled by a devil holding the title of Chancellor (which raises the devil to Archdevil status if they do not hold it already) determined by a characteristically bloody revolving door of trial-by-combat, advised by an elected mortal-- the contract of taking up the office of Advisor to the Chancellor includes a clause that prevents the Chancellor from causing them physical harm, which is binding for a devil, though the cruelest and cleverest of Chancellors have found ways to circumvent this measure.
The states within Brimhearth are each run by a similarly structured archdevil-mortal pair, though they may be elected, appointed by the Chancellor, or determined by contest on a case-by-case basis.
Culture
As the culture of Brimhearth stems in equal measure from the draconian lawful-aligned devils and the ever-hospitable halflings, the people of Brimhearth tend to follow a counterintuitive set of ideals where kindness, generosity, and hospitality are paramount, and it is socially (and in most cases legally) acceptable or even expected to punish those who fail to comply with those ideals. Given the cruel and tricksy nature of devils, and the fact that ideas of what those ideals look like vary greatly, this fosters a culture wherein people play a convoluted social dance. Treating people with outward courtesy, seeding in small jabs to bait inappropriate behaviors from enemies to justify harming them, to an outsider the codes of courtesy in Brimhearth are most times near-indecipherable. Outright lying is considered unacceptable, though misleading is almost a requirement in day-to-day life; and to break a promise is of the highest taboo, though one needs only to follow the letter of their word, not the spirit.
History
When the world Shattered, the Nine Hells collided with a sizeable piece of the prime material plane, a vast plain of rolling hills home to a sprawling halfling nation. Over time, the nation now known as Brimhearth laid claim to a fragment made of the elemental plane of fire and the Shadowfell, as well as acquiring a small but notable Celestial diaspora, and in growing to its current size and making a name for itself with its technological prowess, has become a respectable power on a worldwide scale and one of, if not the largest extant planes.
Religion
The people of Brimhearth largely come from two religious backgrounds: the Halfling pantheon and the Infernal pantheon, which are not mutually exclusive. Both consist of mythologized heroes of legend involved in the founding of Brimhearth during and after the Shatter, with deities exemplifying virtues aligning with the history and ideals of Brimhearth and the two cultures that largely founded it, the halflings leaning toward community, the devils toward order, but both pantheons valuing some aspect of trickery and cunning. The nation has a diverse spread of cultures, so these are far from the only religions practiced, but those are the big two.
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