SAYAZN

An old, crumbling gunpowder empire. Relies heavily on massed musket ranks to make up for the weakness of the common soldier. Lords frequently squabble amongst themselves. Led by the eldery Sayaznshah.



Sayazn has a long-standing rivalry with Gashajin. There is still unfinished business after the gashajin war, where peace was never officially signed.

Sayazn's disorganised, sword-wielding armies were later reformed under a general from the city of davishim, modelling them on the nearby republic of kasthind. This allowed them to win a short war against khaldim in which they retook several towns, but created a large number of disbanded soldiers. Some openly rebel and ravage the countryside, attempting to cripple the sayaznshah's power, but most travel the land, either getting involved in elaborate duels, or grumbling their outcast state.



SAYAZNID PROVINCES

A loose conglomeration of lesser vassals owning lands on Sayazn's periphery. Ranges from monasteries perched high in Kharisir's mountain ranges, to forested castles and steppes. A buffer between Sayazn and her many enemies.



GASHAJIN

A breakaway province that emerged to Kharisir's isolated west during the protracted Gashajin War. Ruled by ruthless lords of nomadic heritage, they are distracted by the Qara Shay who currently occupy the desert to their north.

The Gashajin pose the greatest threat to Sayazn: although their armies retain the old sayaznid structure, their weaponary and armour is far superior.



Gashajin is known colloquially as "gazermatshakk", literally "moneymaker castle" or "the industrial nation". Pioneers of the dark satanic mill, and inventors of a machine which could mass produce chain-mail at astounding rates, they were well positioned in the iron-rich thaaysir deserts to challenge sayazn.

Gashajin drafts thousands of men to its vast armies, but suffers from the same disorganisation that plagued sayazn before its military reform. Its many lords often struggle to control what is essentially a conscript army.

However, the readily available stashes of chainmail armour make a gashajin army truly formidable in close-quarters. The charge of their cataphracts open the battle, disrupting formations until the main body of pikes and muskets arrives.

The black walls of cities in the thaaysir desert are a hub of technological innovation. The invention of the textile spinner has made its growing merchant class very rich indeed. However, "useless" technologic breakthroughs go largely unnoticed. Mathematics, chemistry and biology are pursuits reserved for the noble lady or the innocent courtesan.



ISHTAR and Allies

Ishtari traders from beyond the seas are a common sight in Kharisir, but only during the instability of the Gashajin war were they able to gain a foothold along the coast, albeit in the form of fractured states.

Gunpowder and muskets, along with all the new industry in kharisir, are a completely alien phenomenon to them. The average Ishtari soldier still feels most comfortable with a sturdy Taxus Longbow, and a heavy Kopis to hand to cut down foes, although there are those among them who have taken to musketry and seek to challenge their new neighbours.



Ishtar has a long history, being the oldest surviving kingdom in Kharisir. The main continent inhabited by the ishtar is known as zeldanisir, or "the land to the left". Its inhabitants belonged to a collection of warlike city-states who were united in a series of bloody wars. The king's hold on power is weak -- instead of hereditary lords which he can control, ishtari society praises individual prowess on the battlefield, often with a particular weapon. As a result, most of his vassals are incompetent in strategy but fierce in combat.

Droughts in zeldansir are the bane of the agrarian society. A wave of settlers leaves the land every summer in search of greener pastures. Two breakaway states have emerged on the mainland as a result. The large gunpowder empires view them as an ever present threat, but the desperate situation of the fledgling ishtar states, coupled with their ability to negotiate, mean that they are a constant presence in the back and forth of politics.

Most swords in even the most modernised of states are based on the single-edged ishtar sashud, which replaced the old double-edged swords which used to dominate combat. However, such a design is falling out of favour, as muskets become effective enough to negate the need for a sidearm.



KASTHIND

Once the great second city of Sayazn, now an independent city state with only nominal ties to the Sayaznshah. It is unique in that, with their nobility long buried, military promotion is decided by merit - at least in theory.



Kasthind calls itself a republic, but the name is all that remains of it. Councillors in the state of kasthind are elected, but their behaviour more accurately reflects an old aristocracy.

Their capital city is the largest port in kharisir, and is bustling with goods from other continents. Unlike most other states, the majority of citizens in kasthind live in large urban centres. This forces them to rely on neighbouring Ishtar for their supply of food, forcing them into a permanent agreement with the state.

The military in kasthind is not at its full strength. Still burning with republican spirit, most citizens do not take conscription lightly. As a result, they can never stand up to neighbouring sayazn in a protracted conflict, instead relying on their good relations with ishtar and gathan to deter disadvantageous war.



GATHAN

"Gathan" is a term, oftentimes derogatory, that refers to the horsebound nomadic tribes scattered on the edges of kharisir. Historically, when threatened by Sayazn, their leaders unite under a single banner.

The Gathani Tribes breed the best horses in kharisir, and learn to loose arrows from horseback at a very young age. Their widespread nature makes them a threat to every lord.



MINOR FACTIONS

Khaldim: a city state in the mountains that still holds out against sayazn. It is ruled by the defiant Queen Shastavi and her five advisors.



Sengahid: a collection of isolated monasteries dotted across kharisir. They tend to avoid conflict with the secular kingdoms, but will condemn their aggressive actions and call for spiritual war against them.