Short National Name(s): The Infinite Sun.
National Government Type: De Jure: Tri-Monarchy, De Facto: Absolute Monarchy. There are three 'kingdoms' (so to speak) that make up the Empire, the Kingdoms of Technochtitlan,Texcoco and Tlacopan. However the throne of Technochtitlan is where most of the Empire's power has resided and the other two kingdoms are little more than glorified vassal states to the Emperor of Technochtitlan. Said Emperor has supreme authority over the Empire, although, to grease the wheels of bureaucracy, power is delegated to local governors and nobles across the Empire.
Prevalent Sentient Species: Homo Sapiens
Important Cultural Information:
The first aspect of Infinite Sun culture that's worthy of note is how closely religion and culture are tied together. Celebrations and ceremonies are public events organized by the local priests and are more often than not religious in nature. However, not everything that transpires in these gatherings are related to the faith, displays of the Empire's culture such as public recitals of poetry from renowned poets and festivals filled with local music and cuisine also occur regularly, both as part of religious ceremony and indulgent celebration. The focus religion is not limited to these celebrations, though, many sculptors across the empire carve stone into statues, idols and totems of the Gods, in hopes that their displaying of these icons will garner the owners the respective God's blessing. The iconography of the Gods can be found imprinted and painted into the walls, windows and doors of structures whose function or purpose is relevant to said God's domain. The people of the Empire do not turn their backs from the temple shrines as they descend the temple steps, literally refusing to turn their backs on their inspiring and horrifying deities. The Empire itself wages war after war to bring more and more sacrifices and offerings to the alters of their blood-soaked temples. Indeed, if there is any certainty in the Empire of the Infinite Sun, it is that the Empire itself and it's faith cannot be spoken without speaking of the other. However, this being said, there are elements of the Empire's culture that one could consider 'secular' in one way or another. Firstly, it is important to remember that while poets, sculptors and the like make a good part of their living off religious celebration and articles of faith, they also make their livelihoods through secular means as things such as poems are held in high regard by the Empire's people and sculptors dedicated just as much grandiose time and effort to traditional calendars as they doe carvings of their Gods. Another secular institution is the class system, which, for the sake of simplicity, can be divided into four classes. The first is the noble class, which makes up roughly a fifth of the population, these individuals are usually descended from privileged lineages and are typically granted the best the Empire has to offer. Those of noble birth are given the best education, the highest standard of living and are the preferred choice for appointments to government positions. However, how high a nobleman my stand depends on the impression he has left in society as even the direct children of Emperors can be shoved into the position of lowly scribe and see the throne of their parent given to a distant cousin if they fail to prove themselves worthy successors. This brings a degree of meritocracy to the otherwise privileged lives of the nobles. The second class is the commoner class, a rather self-explanatory title, that makes up around three fifths of the Empire's people. Those of the common, otherwise known as non-noble, birth live modest lives as the backbone of society, from farmers to artisans, from soldiers to traders, the path of the commoner is one of varied servitude to the nobility and enjoying what pleasures they can find or purchase between their duties. The third class is the slave class, another straightforward title for the remaining tenth of the Empire's civilization. The slaves are considered the lowest class of society, as one usually becomes a slave due to unpaid debts, being a prisoner of war and other such things looked down upon by the nobles and commoners. Fortunately, it is also the only class one has the potential to escape, as slaves can earn their freedom through work and wealth. However, this is rarely the case and slaves usually find their only respite of their lives of grueling servitude to their owners is the material comforts that society still allows them to purchase at their own leisure and that their children will live free as those born by members of the slave class are considered members of the commoner class. The fourth class takes up an almost invisible sliver of the population, but are an important one nonetheless and are worthy of note through it, this is the merchant class. This class is possibly the only class earned completely through merit, as only the richest and most influential tradesmen are considered part of it. This class is held in high regard by even the nobility, for while it lacks any political power, the members of the merchant class exert their presence through their vast sums of wealth and control over the trade of the Empire. These class divisions usually emphasizing the familial heritage of the individual has also resulted in a culture of duty to one's family as much as to their religion and society, with entire families of familiar linage organized into great houses, known as Calpulli, under the guidance and wisdom of a familial chief. Like the merchants, while the Calpulli held no political power they held great sway over the personal lives of their family members compared to the government, such as the negotiation and arranging of marriages of family members, job opportunities provided by the chief and such as. Each Calpulli even manages it's own, small temple to it's own God to grant offerings in exchange for further blessings upon the Calpulli. Finally, there is the presence of the Empire's warrior culture, which developed due to the realities of worshipping Gods who demanded blood sacrifices and the Empire's decision to sate this demand by offering the blood of other civilizations. Firstly, service in the military is something members of all classes, except slaves, can partake in and it allows the promotion of commoner soldiers into positions usually reserved for nobles. While it isn't exactly an ideal example of class mobility, as most commanders are of the nobility, limiting opening for commoners and nobles who join the military are already eligible for branches of the military that commoners would have to work to enter, such as the Eagle and Jaguar Warriors, it gives commoners with a penchant for warfare a chance to raise their standing in society. Needless to say, the elite warriors of the Infinite Empire are held in high standing as they are the ones who gather sacrifices for their people's Gods, a duty that cannot be overstated in its importance to the people of the Infinite Sun and the warriors who bring the most sacrifices are highly rewarded. As such, a culture of proving oneself in battle for individual glory also exists within the military itself, as commoner soldiers seek to capture enough sacrifices to join the elite branches of the military and said elite branches are filled with warriors bent on improving their status within the Empire and in the eyes of the Gods. While this culture may impede grand strategy and tactics within the Empire, it creates a high level of individual initiate within commanders and soldiers of the Empire's armed forces. However, this small beacon of class mobility is only available for men within the Empire, which brings us to the topic of gender divisions within the Empire's culture. From birth, boys and girls would be taught life skills from the parents of their respective genders, the father would teach his sons and the mother her daughters. A boy's upbringing and girl's upbringing were mostly alike, men and women within the Empire were both expected to take up occupations and were roughly equal in job opportunities. The difference came when the divisions within the class and military systems came to relevance. Boys are all taught how to fight from their fathers and if they were of the nobility or of exceptionally wealthy merchants, they would be given more advanced training in war, reading, mathematics and such as. However, girls are not given these opportunities in their education, with a slight emphasis on domestic and household chores and maintenance instead. Needless to say, these opportunities grant men in society positions in military, governance and general leadership denied to women. As such, one can indeed call the Empire of the Infinite Sun a patriarchal society, one that shows no signs of changing any time soon.
Galactic Quadrant Location: Gamma Quadrant.
Factbook Link: Linky
