Faction- The Celestial Empire

The Celestial Empire
Languages: Imperial, Northern, Southern, Minos, Cttrach, Lizardtalk, Nezumi, Common
This empire has been ruled by 15 seperate dynasties over 2,000 years. It is believed that in the origins of man came from the Kingdom of Heaven, the first capital of the Celestial Empire. After centuries of strife, the disparate clans finally conglomerated into one nation under the command of an absolute monarch. However, his power is more ceremonial than actual. The armies of the land remain under the control of feudal warlords, each competing against each other. The Empire is actually a collection of vassal and protectorate states that all have allegiance to the Celestial Throne.

The economy is primarily feudal and agricultural, with most people serving as peasants under the feudal warlords. Some vassal states have more freedom then others, however the Emperor does not care as long as taxes are paid and feudal obligations are maintained. A strong warrior culture is evident as this is the best path to rise the ranks- anyone can devote his life to the Celestial Army, and with luck, earn a title of royalty or a position in the bureaucracy. In times of war, peasant levies are brought to training.

As part of their feudal obligations, many peasants know how to fight. However, the more combatative vassals keep thier citizens busy with constant fighting in order to forestall revolution. A long anti-revolutionary culture has been instilled into the Celestial Empire, as many centuries ago the people banded toghether to fight off the newly arrived threat of the Neogi.

The Celestial Emporer is basically a good person, but he reigns over a kingdom through feudal law; naturally a flawed system. The current Tienshi dynasty has angelic blood running through the royal line, which has lead to their clamant. The sitting Emperor is Tienshi Yin, 10th son of Tienshi Qi who turned back the Neogi invaders.

The Long family has long been a thorn in the Celestial Emperor's side, now constantly vying for supremacy. They secretly plan a coup with their dragon advisors to overthrow the current state and bring all the disparate vassals into line with the aid of blood and magic. It is their belief a centralized state in the charge of a benevolent king rather than at the mercy of cruel warlords, will the Celestial Empire prosper.

Dragons: Dragons are the power behind the Celestial throne. With a flight of dragons at it's beck and call, the Emperor maintains control over his disparate nobles. The Emperor maintains a caste of humanoids for his bodyguard, however his advisory cabinet and regional governors consist mostly of dragons. The most well known is Consular Fongfua, an ancient gold dragon that serves as personal advisor to the Emperor.

History: The dragons that currently serve in the Emperor's court are believed to be the first ones to have ever evolved. Dragons only mate once a life time, and can have a lifespan over over 100,000 years. The Dragons have watched the humans since their sapient development 40,000 years ago. They quickly came to realize that though humans were short lived and stupid, they could acquire power tremendously fast; especially that of magic. After 2,000 years of open conflict, the dragons finally asceded to human dominance and agreed to rule in cooperation. Only a few hundred dragons have been born since the beginning of the species, making fighting the numerous and powerful humans a dangerous prospect.

Emperor Yin has a friendly association with the dragons, the Tienshi dynasty having joined the Draconic Council in fighting off the Neogi invaders. The Long family derives it's power from cultivating a long tradition of dragonslayers and powerful wizards- Simply enough, the Council fears what such a powerful legacy could do. This is in addition to compelling arguments regarding the unity of the provinces, and the rising threat of the new Neogi.