The Doramin Empire

Geography

The Doramin Empire occupies the regions sometimes collectively referred to as the Westlands, which stretch from the western shore of the Central Sea across to the Thiafar Ocean. The is in turn divided into two regions known as Thiaretz and Yamater. Thiaretz consists of rocky highlands scored by numerous river valleys, rich in metals of various sorts but especially iron, copper, and gold. To the west, the mountains rise until they fall into the Thiafar Ocean in shear cliffs. There are a few small fishing villages on the western coast, but nothing of note has been discovered in the Thiafar Ocean. To the east, Thiaretz gives way to the fertile lowland plains of Yamater. These plains contain rich farms, producing meat, grain, wood, and fruit alike. To the south, the Southern Straits separate the Westlands from the territories of the Achu tribes, while to the north the border with the Northlands of the Carnish tribes is much more fluid.

The people of the Westlands are of Dusein ethnicity, marked by tanned skin and narrower eyes, with predominately black hair.

The capital of the Doramin Empire is the city of Doram, which sits near the boundary between Thiaretz and Yamater, on the shore of the Akaiwa river. The second city of the Empire is Dorafar, which sits at the mouth of the Akaiwa and is the center of trade with other realms. While the Empire has many other cities, these two stand head and shoulders above all others.

The flag of the Doramin Empire is a golden phoenix on a crimson field.

History

The history of the Doramin Empire dates back to the legendary Arthur Bonaesh. Reliable historical data on this figure is scarce, but what is known is that Arthur Bonaesh in some way won the favor of the Sun God, Aeshdan, who bestowed a tiny sliver of his own divine essence on Arthur and his descendants. Between his own heroism and divine favour, Arthur was made the ruler of Doram, and his descendants soon began pushing out their influence, uniting the western villages and city-states under the phoenix banner. More recently, the Empire has begun to push northwards out of the westlands, subjugating some of the Carnish tribes.

Arthur's descendants are referred to as the sangreal, or "divine blood", and are marked by hair the color of burnished copper. Those of the direct imperial line (Emperor, Prince, and children of the same) inherit the full sangreal and have entirely copper hair, while all others inherit a fraction of the full power and have only part of their hair copper in proportion. The primary power of the sangreal is to manipulate elemental fire, with power and control being dependent on the portion of the blessing inherited. There are also rumors that those who possess the full or near-full sangreal have access to more metaphysical and mystical blessings, but this has yet to be fully defined.