Nosroy

Nosroy, officially the Holy Nosroy Empire, is the largest empire in the world. The Holy Empire controls the region known as the Helspar Region, with the exception of Haekal and Harmor. Originally the Helspar Region was split between hundreds of feuding tribes, clans, and kingdoms. Dozens of religions, languages, and cultures led to unchecked strife in the region. It wasn't until the formation of a new cult, the Cult of Nosroy, that unification of the region became possible. A three hundred and fifty year long war of expansion and unification began when the Cult of Nosroy marched on the dominant kingdom of the Helspar Region, Kaar Har. When the war was over, Helspar was unified under the Patriarchs and the Cult of Nosroy. The new empire became known as the Holy Nosroy Empire. Since the unification of the Spartic peoples, the Holy Empire has expanded west, leading to the fall of the Thrak Empire. In recent history Nosroy has been locked in a cold war with the Midworld Alliance.

The Story of Nosroy

According to the Patriarchs and the Cult of Nosroy, Nosroy was the sudnog kogov, or the vessel of the many gods. The story of Nosroy dates back to the dark ages of the Helspar Region. During this dark age the Spartic peoples fought constantly over religion, language, and culture. The average man's life expectancy was just under thirty years old and the vast majority of women were considered slaves or property. The story of Nosroy, as it is told by the Patriarchs, begins with his conception. His mother was a fifteen year old slave who was sold to a warlord. This warlord used Nosroy's mother and then abandoned her when he found she was with child. She was broken, scared, and all alone. The story tells that during her darkest moment she prayed to the goddess of the damned women Inya for help. She asked Inya to not make her child a woman. She never wanted her flesh and blood to endure the pains she had experienced. As the story goes, Inya granted the young slave's wish. When the slave gave birth, the child was a male. In the last moments of her life the slave girl fed her son and thanked Inya.

After the death of the slave girl, the gods Voyn, Yustit, and Prikaz heard the cries of the young boy and came to see him. Together they made the boy clothing and brought him to Nesti, the god of the forest. Nesti named the boy Nos and raised him as his own son. When the boy reached the age of eleven the three gods returned and told him the story of his mother's death. After many years of mourning and meditation, Nos requested the three gods forge him a helmet, armor, and an ax. The gods refused and instead took him to Mudrost. Mudrost was one of the oldest gods and had watched the Spartic peoples for centuries. He had grown tired of the false prophets, warlords, and corrupt men of Helspar. He wanted to unify the Spartic peoples once and for all. So when Nos arrived with the three gods, Mudrost saw his chance to unify the people.

Mudrost's plan was to make Nos a symbol around which the people of Helspar could rally. To do this, Mudrost called together the many gods. After the pantheon of seventy-nine arrived, Mudrost introduced Nos. In his introduction, Mudrost introduced the boy as Nos the Eightieth, or Nosroy. This caused an uproar among the many gods. The Roy was prophesied to be "the end to the many." The old gods foretold of the reunification and the coming of the Roy prior to their shattering into the seventy-nine. The prophesy spoke of the rape and death of a child slave, the final request of a dying mother, the arrival of three watchers and a foster in the forest. Nos had fulfilled every single one of the prophesies, including the most important. "In a time of darkness, war, and bloodshed there will be born a child who will become a man without once shedding the blood of another or defiling the flesh of a woman. This man, the Roy, shall become the sudnog kogov and he shall become the end to the many."

After hearing the news the many gods attacked Nos, with the hopes that Mudrost was wrong, however, they quickly found themselves unable to attack the boy. It was as Mudrost has said, the boy was the Roy. According to the story, the mere thought of harming Nos made the gods violently ill and filled them with horrendous pain. After much discussion it was agreed that Nos was in fact the Roy and the end had arrived for the many. Each of the many said their final farewells to each other and shortly after they were bound to the vessel of the many, the sudnog kogov. Only the three, Inya, and Mudrost remained. They said their fond farewells to Nos and took one last look at Helspar before ceasing to exist and merging with Nosroy.

According the Patriarchs, Nosroy then went into the lands and unified the Spartic peoples under the Patriarchy, the Cult, and the Codes. Outside historians have drawn parallels to the story and several other regional myths native to the Helspar Region. Others have hypothesized that Nosroy was a warlord himself that created a cult around himself to bolster his power base and that the unification of the many gods is an allegory for his unification of the Spartic peoples. Whatever the case, the story of Nosroy is without a doubt one of the center pieces of the Holy Nosroy Empire.

The Nosroy Caste System

Ruling Castes:

Patriarchs (The Patriarchal High Council headed by the Grand Patriarchs)

Cultists (The Cult of Nosroy)

Nobles (The Generals and Military Officers of Nosroy)

Magistrates (The Magistrature of Order)

Castes:

Warriors (The Holy Imperial Army of Nosroy)

Forgers

Miners

Herders

Farmers

The Caste System of the Holy Nosroy Empire is a unique system that was formed by the Patriarchs and the Cult of Nosroy during the wars of unification that gave rise to the Empire. The Caste System found within the Code is said to have been handed down to Nos when he became the sudnog kogov. Essentially the Code is a set of laws that the old gods developed for mankind prior to their splitting. When the Cult of Nosroy unified the Spartic peoples, they instituted the Code immediately. Within the Code exists the Caste System of the Empire.

The Code states that the Castes are designed so that new souls experience the lower levels before reaching the upper levels, effectively making the souls of the rulers more wise, honest, and sympathetic than a new soul which could corrupt easily. According to the Cult of Nosroy, the loss of the Caste System after the shattering of the old gods allowed new souls the chance to become rulers, leading to corruption and the dark ages.

In practice, the system has allowed the Nosroy Empire to expand with relative ease. Each of the lower castes provides for the castes above them, while keeping just enough to survive. The Farmers provide food for the Herders, Miners, Forgers, Warriors, and Ruling Castes. The Magistrates maintain this system, while the other Ruling Castes maintain and expand the Empire. The combination of religious fervor and tradition revolving around the Code has given the Nosroy Empire a powerful base for expansion.