Essential Details
Name of Realm: Nekhur | Also often known as
Kishar | Officially it is
Nise Matati Kisitti Qatiya (
People of the Land Which I Conquered), which is usually shortened to
Ne Kur (
This land) |
Twenty-Second Dynasty of NekhurRulers: The
Ensi of Eatar is the Hegemon of the realm, bearing suzerainty over the myriad of kings and satraps ruling over Nekhur. He alone bears the title of
Lugal and is said to bear
Anûtu,
heavenly power. As such in theory he is divinely ordained and possesses absolute power. Inside of the realm he is usually known as the
Tyrant of Nekhur, a translation from his native language by the Koinon, while outside he is often referred to as the Emperor. The current Emperor is
Sadyhattes IV.
In practice the Tyrant has lost much of his power to the
Ati, which roughly translates to Regent. The
House of Onetor (
Onetorids) expanded the position from that of a minor palace official into a hereditary viziership. The day-to-day running of the realm is largely handled by the
Ati. The current Ati is
MnesusOutside of Kishar, the various satraps and kings tend to rule their realms autonomously with little oversight from the capital. Garrisons tend to remind them of their loyalties, though the imbalance of power between court and governors has been a constant conflict in the history of the various dynasties.
Cultures and Races: Nekhur is a cosmopolitan society comprising a variety of peoples, religions and customs. Extensive interaction between these peoples has not created a unified nation, even after thousands of years, but has spread various ideas and practices between the groups. Many of the groups exhibit extensive bilingualism, especially of groups neighbouring others, but also commonly of the lingua franca, Kisharite.
The
Kisharites are the preeminent nation within Nekhur, boasting an ancient history and claiming among the oldest cities in the world. They speak a language unlike any other, an isolate which has persisted through the ages. The Kisharites are known for their slightly darker complexions, and in the past both sexes would sport shaven heads, though in modern times they have largely adopted Talassan customs. Many of their ancient rituals and customs have also been discarded or forgotten, though it is not uncommon for them to have persist in rural communities unaffected by urban fancies. They have an unstable hierarchy between men and women, having one been a matriarchal society but over the years having adopted some Talassan customs, ending female ownership of property and attendance in the official priesthoods.
The
Talassans are one of the largest minority groups in Nekhur, and despite their ancestors having arrived thousands of years ago with the people of the Koinon, they are sometimes still regarded as foreign by the other groups, and even themselves. They share a similar language and history with the people of the Koinon, but diverged both politically and linguistically a long time ago after coming under the influence and then rule of Nekhur. Their appearances vary greatly, a result of extensive intermingling and waves of migration, but they often sport a tanned complexion and possess the genes for lighter hairs and eyes, though these are somewhat rare. Their preference for hair style varies from city to city, but it is often braided and well-kept. Youths are rarely bearded, though it is expected for elders to be so. Men are predominant in their societies, with women possessing few political and economic rights in most cities, though there are a few exceptional cities.
The
Amerites,
Irimaeans, and the
Kharites are a group of linguistically separate but culturally similar peoples to the west and north of Kishar. Their languages are isolates, like Kishar, but through extensive contact and borrowings they have formed a linguistic and cultural area, though each peoples remains separate. The Amerites range from Anshun to Hamash, and were once considered great competitors to the Kisharites, and from their ranks have spawned several dynasties. The Irimaeans are further west, from Sukkalmah to Kashi, though they also seem to be related to the
Madian peoples of Karkemish and Washukanni, who share a language and many customs. The Kharites are more spread out than the other two, but much of their population is centred in Awan. In terms of customs the groups are similar to each other and the Kisharites, though unlike the latter they have resisted Talassan influence and keep to the old ways.
To the south-east of those groups are the people of the Koinon under the rule of the Nekhur. They are known as
Khloraeans, speaking the same language as the people of the Koinon and reflecting a variety of dialects, indicating the mainland was colonised in waves by the various cities of the islands of the modern Koinon. For some of their cities it was contentedness with the rule of Nekhur, and the autonomy they received, that led them to remain a part of the empire, whereas for others it was through conquest and garrison. Even now they remain a sore point between relations with the Koinon. Culturally they are very similar to their Koinon cousins, though they have been influenced by, and influenced greatly, Nekhur culture, especially Talassan.
In the west, the
Adrymes are a coastal and seafaring people, ranging from Arad in the east, to Aqhat in the south, Tamruz in the west and Kabar in the north. In more ancient times they vied for control of the oceans; the sea and control of trade having been vital for their city-states and short-lived empires. The movement of the Talassans in the west saw many of their greatest cities subjugated and burned, and they remained largely under Talassan rule until the expansion of the Sixth Dynasty into their territory, and have been intertwined with Nekhur since. They share a similar complexion with the Kisharites and other native peoples of Minilar, though culturally and linguistically they are very distinct. While rejecting overt Talassan customs, their centuries of rule did see a great deal of cultural interaction and influence.
The
Kham, of the Khamad and Khamwaith, are a nation composed of numerous tribal entities and federations, interwoven into feuding kingdoms, city-states, and nomadic groups. Many of the richer cities and kingdoms of the Kham are located in the Khamad, and the Kham of this region are easily distinguishable from their ‘less civilised’ kin in the inhospitable Khamwaith.
In the south-east, residing in the mountains of Ajarwar are the
Ajakir peoples. A proud people divided between numerous clans, noted for their martial skill and strict codes of honour. Though different in origin and ethnicity, the
hill-men of
Balor and
Kasavar, share many of the traditions and customs of their neighbours.
Among the
Southrons of note are the
Elves of Reyla, an ancient silver-clad people residing upon the coasts of Orel Lyarn. Near them the
Imbrines and
Tervainians are new additions to Nekhur. They share many commonalities with other Southrons, being a people bound to a feudal and rural system. To the west, the
Seherans have long been known as avid sailors and merchants, reclaiming what land they can from the coast and subsisting inland in the many marshes and bogs.
Religion: Religions in Nekhur are largely intertwined with their ethnic groups, most lacking any universalist message and lacking any degree of rapid syncretisation between the different gods and pantheons. Several Millennia of contact and a shared nation has however blended some of the mythologies, with gods and stories being shared and adopted between different religions and peoples.
The
Kisharite Pantheon is a largely uncodified and difficult religion, being understood by its practitioners through daily and weekly rituals to satisfy emotional and all too violent gods. The Kisharites believe their gods physically make their home in their greatest temples, and each Kisharite city is usually a patron to one such god. The mightiest of the pantheon,
Belrim, is often characterised as a golden bull, a mercurial war god who is paired with Eanna, the goddess of the sun. The god of the underworld,
Babili, has grown in popularity since the Tenth dynasty, due to his temperate nature, disinterest in heavenly and earthly politics, and his perception as a wealth-bringer and peace-maker.
The
Ten Thousand of Talassa are the myriad of gods and spirits worshipped and venerated by the Talassans. There are considered to be far more than ten thousand, as many are local household, village, town and city gods who lack widespread worship. The national figures vary from the major Arinna, goddess of the moon, prophecy and fortune, to the minor Sarrma, god of commercial oaths. The greatest of their pantheon is
Tiwass, a storm god and protector of solemn oaths, displaying a variety of attributes and presiding over various realms due to cannibalisation of, and syncretisation with, other deities over the years.
The Amerites, Irimaeans, and the Kharites each have their own pantheons and rituals, though they are superficially very similar to the Kisharite pantheon and rituals. The Khoreaeans tend towards the same cults and beliefs as their Koinon cousins, albeit tending to reject the cult of
Drakina due to the ill-repute of the serpent in Nekhur. They have also adopted or identified Talassan deities and rituals as their own, and their has been considerable influence between the two groups.
Drumaism, the religion of the Adrymes, is a dualistic religion with henotheistic aspects. The goddess
'Ila is considered to be an omnipotent deity, having over millennia taken on all aspects from a formerly rich and diverse aspects, having started herself as a goddess of love, wisdom and just violence. Her (sometimes) adversary is the great serpent
Lotan, who due to his mercurial nature is sometimes a co-creator and guide of humanity, but in others a violent and wrathful destroyer. Despite 'Ila's omnipotence, Lotan is considered to be a fellow being outside the rules of creation and is therefore outside of her purview. The Cult of 'Ila has spread throughout Nekhur and she has either supplanted or become identified with goddesses similar to her original role in other pantheons.
History: Pre-dynastic period[/b]
Nekhur prides itself on hosting the earliest civilisation in the world, though whether that claim is factually correct is yet to be proven. Technological advancements led to the first cities and towns thousands of years before the Pre-dynastic period, but it would not be until this period that they began leaving records of their wars, short-lived empires, culture and religion. Relatively little of this period is known, even in Kishar, being eclipsed by later periods and oft forgotten.
First and Second dynasties The First dynasty arose from the city of Unur, at the time the primate city of the region, when it conquered neighbouring cities and established a proto-empire in Kishar. The First dynasty was relatively short, being supplanted by the Second dynasty only three generations into their rule. The Second dynasty contended with multiple rebellions and had an uneasy time keeping control of the empire they had inherited, eventually being reduced to ruling Unur.
Third dynasty The Third dynasty, the Dynasty of Shelal, conquered Unur in and would go on to reconquer the territories lost by the Second dynasty and under Ayar-Ilum they would expand outside of Kishar. Under Mannum-Ki-Iliya they would reach their apex and collect tribute from over a hundred kings and cities. Severe droughts and raids from the Amerites ended their empire abruptly and shattered Kishar back into a myriad of warring city-states.
First Intermediate PeriodThe First Intermediate period saw the ancient cities of Kishar engage in internecine warfare for much of the period, allowing newer cities to flourish as they tended to avoid the devastation wrought by short-lived empires.
Fourth to Early Seventh dynasties The Fourth dynasty, the Dynasty of Shinar, were the scions of one such 'new city', and used their newfound power to begin constructing a network of alliances and vassals which allowed them to dominate Kishar. It was through them that later dynasties were able to expand rapidly, as they undertook massive irrigation and palisade projects which brought prosperity and security to Kishar. Their reliance on Amerite mercenaries would prove their undoing as they were abruptly replaced by the Fifth dynasty. The Fifth dynasty is considered by the records to have been tyrannical barbarians, and after two generations they were replaced by the Sixth dynasty.
The Sixth dynasty benefited greatly from the work of the Fourth dynasty, able to centralise the state and Shinar eclipsed all other cities. Under Zimudar II they conquered Adrymia, which had been under Talassan subjugation, and became the greatest power on Minilar. In unclear circumstances they were replaced by the Seventh dynasty. The rulers of the Early Seventh are regarded as capable, but they were undermined by a series of ecological disasters which led to frequent invasions, droughts and famines, and the eventual collapse of Zimudar's empire.
Later Seventh to Ninth dynasties | Second Intermediate PeriodThe collapse of the Early Seventh led to a power vacuum which was filled by three competing dynasties. The Later Seventh, of dubious relation to the Early Seventh but ruling from Shinar and the Kishar heartland, the Eighth dynasty, a Kharite dynasty ruling from Kashi to Shushun, and the Ninth dynasty, ruling a rump state around Hamash. The Ninth dynasty, also Kharite, would eventually prevail over the other two, but their victory would be short-lived due to a Kisharite rebellion.
Tenth dynastyThe Tenth dynasty would arise from a rebellion, and it would be through war that it forged its everlasting fame. Its initial kings sought to emulate the splendour of the Sixth dynasty, expanding it far beyond Kishar across the vastness of Minilar. It was under this dynasty that Nekhur truly began to form as an entity. By the reign of Ur-Nammu near the end of the dynasty it had reached its peak, encompassing most of Northern Minilar and the surrounding islands, and gaining tribute from dozens of neighbouring kingdoms.
Ur-Nammu would lead the empire to its doom, continuing the conquests of his ancestors and inadvertently helping form the Koinon. His attempts to take their great island led to disaster. The death of the dynasty's dragon, their greatest weapon and the reason for their rapid conquests and consolidation, their vast fleet and Ur-Nammu himself. The empire soon fell into a civil war between his sons and collapsed under multiple rebellions and invasions. Though the period was bloody and rarely knew peace, it is considered by Nekhurans to have been their golden age.
Third Intermediate PeriodThe Third Intermediate period featured a variety of proto-dynasties rising and falling, none coming close to even unifying Kishar. Outside influence, largely that of the Koinon, kept them in check lest a more terrible successor to the Tenth arise. In this period the Talassan cities began to become more politically involved with each other and Kishar, forming a myriad of petty kingdoms. The Koinon also began to colonise further inland, previously having been limited to a series of minor city-states.
Eleventh to Seventeenth dynastiesOut of the chaos emerged more chaos, a series of short-lived non-Kisharite dynasties able to keep a tenuous hold on the conquests of the brief Irimaean Eleventh dynasty. They ruled ever-shifting borders, but largely centred around the Kisharite homelands, as well as that of the Amerites, Irimaeans and Kharites. At times they managed to expand their influence into the surrounding Talassan realms, but only briefly and never with the energy to annex or integrate any new territories. Under a series of factors the Seventeenth dynasty came to a close as it collapsed and Kishar reverted back to its city-state default.
Fourth Intermediate PeriodThe Fourth Intermediate period was largely caused by the influx of Koinon mercenaries, who emboldened by the collapse of the Eighteenth dynasty, set themselves up as petty kings. Few of them established lasting dynasties, being toppled by rebellions, mutinies by their kin, or ousted by Talassan monarchs seeking to influence Kishar. This period is not remembered fondly in Kisharite histories, being a period of chaos and devastation.
Eighteenth to Twenty-First dynastiesThe Eighteenth dynasty began the return of native Kisharite power, reestablishing Kishar as a realm and through the dynasties expanding ever outwards. For the first time in over a millennia the Koinon was pushed back and lost control of the Khoraean cities. These dynasties were even able to conquer the Adrymes and their colonies on Aea, rebuilding the fleets to rival their ancient foes. Almost all of the Talassan kingdoms were subjugated, forced to pay tribute and soldiers to Nekhur. Their failure was not conquering the powerful and stubborn Talassan kingdom of Myrrha.
Twenty-Second dynastyThe Telipinid Dynasty of Myrrha under the ambitious King Mursili II conquered the Twenty-First dynasty and established themselves as the new legitimate rulers of Nekhur. It would not be until the reign of Zidanta I, his grandson, that the last remnants of the Twenty-First dynasty were eradicated and the ancient city of Eatar established as their new capital. The Telipinids represented the first Talassan dynasty to rule Nekhur, and they sought dominion over Minilar, both as the inheritors of Nekhur and the glory of the Tenth dynasty, and as the warlike Talassans who had claimed vast swathes of Northern Minilar as their own.
From 895 to the present the Telipinids reconquered lands lost centuries ago, and even annexed and integrate many of the Talassan kingdoms. Over time their conquests slowed and stopped as the empire ground to a halt, successors eager to consolidate and enjoy what their predecessors had worked hard to achieve. Now under them and the current Tyrant Sadyhattes IV a stagnation has fallen over Nekhur, with a slew of houses and families seeking to supplant the Telipinids and establish their own rule over the empire.
Assets
Notable Cities: Eatar - The Queen of Cities, proclaimed to be among the most ancient and noble polis in the world. From the Tenth dynasty onwards it has been the centre of Nekhuran civilisation, and even under the Twenty-Second dynasty in the shadow of times past it still dwarfs many of its closest rivals. A vast and cosmopolitan capital, peoples from all over Nekhur and merchants worldwide gather in its streets and forums, colossal manses contrasting with endless slums and temples to every god known reach far into the heavens.
Myrrha - The home of the Telipinid dynasty, also known as
Talassa-in-the-West, Myrrha is a great Talassan city of considerable age and prestige. The Myyrhans are known for their stubborn and warlike nature, having been the first to subjugate the Adrymes, the only Talassans to retain their independence from Nekhur, and to have produced one of Nekhur's greatest, and most recent, dynasties. The city itself resembles a fusion of Khoreaean and Talassan architecture, a grand capital bereft of reigning monarchs for centuries, dwelling upon Lake Koralissa as it has for millennia.
Shushun - While Eatar may be the Queen of Cities, Shushun is the oldest and was a significant metropolis before the former had even been settled. Once home to countless Amerite kingdoms, Shushun was eventually integrated into Nekhur and new life was breathed into its perennial pyramids. While it has lost a great deal of political significance, its Great Temple of Babili has given it a newfound importance and rule of Shushun is a necessity for proving mastery over Nekhur.
Salatiwara - Myrrha's great rival and the greatest of the Talassan cities, sometimes known as
Talassa-in-the-East. Salatiwara has been a centre of Talassan civilisation since their arrival to Minilar, having survived the ages despite numerous sackings and destruction. While it no longer possesses the political clout or hegemony over other Talassan states, it holds the original Temple of Tiwass, its patron god, and is therefore a religiously significant city which any aspiring ruler of the Talassans would do well to acquire.
Economy: The centre of Nekhur’s economy is Kishar, where the majority of the population and urban centres are located. Kishar is the most agriculturally developed and dense region, benefiting from millennia of irrigation projects to enhance the natural fertility of the region.
The slow weakening of the Twenty-Second Dynasty’s hold over the empire, combined with their withdrawal from direct management of the economy, has allowed the merchant-class to become the main driving factor behind the economy. The invention of paper money has revolutionised Kishar, though it has yet to be full dispersed across the empire.
Population: The last census recorded 21,650,000 Households, roughly equating to about 110 million people.
Military
Command: Ati - As the de facto ruler of Nekhur, Mnesus in his role as the Ati has (theoretically) full discretion over the military and military decisions.
Master of the Gate - The commander of the Palatial guard and a high-ranking officer during periods of war. In most dynasties, including the current one, a role reserved for eunuchs.
Generals - Nekhur employs a central school in which military leaders are trained. Though designed to ensure merit over birth, the selection process has left it open to rigging by aristocratic families.
Governors and Kings - The various governors and kings of the empire are expected to render military service in times of war, both offering levies and either themselves or generals from their personal retinues.
Strength: The Nasaru are an ancient heavily-armed infantry unit performing the dual roles of an imperial guard and standing army. Their task is mainly to secure any breakthroughs and to enter battles at crucial stages, acting as the veteran backbone of the army. In the days of the Tenth Dynasty they are recorded as numbering 50,000, but as of the Twenty-Second dynasty they number around 10,000.
The Grand Army of Nekhur is a vast standing force consisting of semi-professional soldiers, divided between those held in reserve for future campaigns, those serving in garrisons, and those currently on campaign. The increasing militarisation of Nekhur has seen the army become greatly inflated, with almost 3/4s of the treasury being spent on maintaining it. It consists of 900,000 soldiers, of which a ninth are serving in garrisons, a third is on active duty in the south, and the rest are in reserve. It is comprised of both conscripts and volunteers, the former largely being Kisharites, who make up the majority of forces, and the latter largely from the subjugated peoples of the empire.
The rest of Nekhur's army is irregular levies. The military relationship between Eatar and its subjects is known as
Kataru (Alliance), which decrees that the subject states will provide a number of Sidru, depending on their size, wealth and the agreement re-negotiated upon the accession of each Tyrant. The number of men in a Sidru has fluctuated over the years, but under the Twenty-Second dynasty it is set at around 360. The exact composition of a Sidru is left to the state providing it, but most follow the Talassan system, of 180 rural and 'fresh' levies, 120 citizen-soldiers, and 60 professional and veteran warriors, often mercenaries. Non-standard Sidrus tend to be cavalry, archers and skirmishers, Bilrimidu, and full units of mercenaries hired by richer states.
Diplomatic Relations
Interests: tbd
Rivals: tbd