The Ashen Empire
From Vanathul Wiki
Description
The Ashen Empire was a relatively short lived empire located in and around modern Wahlminster, including the now inhospitable Linfield Badlands.
If there were any culture that can be said to be survivors of the Old Ornian culture, it would be the Ashen Empire. This is a truth with a few modifications however, as the ruling elite and the eponymous emperor were all from beyond the shores of the continent. They reintroduced a trace of the magic the scouring had eradicated, and reintroduced it to the continent.
The accounts that survive to the present describe these arriving magi as powerful in extraordinary ways, but also somewhat unhinged from reality. They spoke to unseen interlocutors and listening intently in silences at other times. These traits lessened in subsequent generations, but never truly vanished. Many theories try to interpret this behavior, with the most popular being them communing with beings beyond the material plane.
History
The Rise
The Ashen Empire was established shortly after the fall of Orn, by human survivors. They resettled the ruins of their now dead betters relatively quickly, starting the process of living yet again. The magic they relied on had been twisted and sundered, and the process was hard, but gradually they managed. Eventually thriving.
The Glory
The period deemed the glory of the Ashen Empire came about when a group of strangers arrived at their shores by boat. With them they brought strange texts and diagrams, as well as traditions and rituals that let them to produce simple magical effects. Desiring to recapture the greatness of their ancestors, these traditions were taken to heart, and the Obsidian Truth was conceived.
It is thought that these arrivals were emigrants from one or more of the islands of Tumanako, a theory that was shaky and unfounded for a long time. It was however renewed when modern expeditions told of commonalities in several customs - like dances, and at least one song a sailor said he had heard a version of before on a dock in Kingsport.
This little golden age of innovation and magical exploration lasted for some time.
The Fall
The fall of the Ashen Empire is commonly considered to have started with the first expedition of emigrants from the Mistwreath, but was hastened by the simultaneous return of the elves that had evacuated to the realms of the fey at the destruction of Orn. Both of these groups entered into conflict with the Ashen Empire, straining their resources and eating into their borders.
The response was The Linfield Event. It was a magical ritual originally intended to repel the encroaching elves and humans by force, but ended up being much more. The ritual entered a feedback loop, quickly slipping out of control of the magicians casting it. It finally detonated when it reached criticality, resulting in the Linfield Badlands. It was an act born out of desperation, frustration and anger, and scoured the once lush Linfield region of life. To this bell it remains a largely blasted wasteland. Little to no plant life grows, taking the bottom out of the ecosystem and leaving it barren.
The Linfield Event that occurred in 333 p.o. is a strong candidate, but there were no definitive death knell for the culture that remained after all the tribulations of the empire. From the end of the second century p.o. when envoys from Mistwreath first arrived, to the present, there was a steady decline of their identity as an independent people, with the occasional resurgence that failed to launch.
People and society
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Presently Wahlminster and its citizens are largely assimilated into the greater Mendarian culture. Many of them hold some sense of connection to a long lost common cultural heritage, but it mostly manifests as being reserved around outsiders and fantasizing about a romanticized past.
Values and taboos
During The Glory, there was a great focus on introspection and mental prowess. As the seat of the mind and soul, the body was maintained to aid in their esoteric endeavors.
A great interest was directed at the Ethereal and Astral Plane.
The theme of personal improvement was continued by the populace at large, and not only by the magically gifted. A person failing to engage in such endeavors - or that in other words were living a sinful life of sloth, greed, etc., was viewed with a sense of pity and annoyance.
Aesthetic
Their style was largely a focus on ornamentation rather than the garments themselves. A simple robe was a base, decorated with bangles, charms and other accessories was a favored style. Sometimes bearing actual magical enhancements, but mostly for decorations
Over time this evolved into more pragmatic clothing, as less and less effort was placed in the rituals of their ancestors. Their magical elements having been isolated and streamlined into more effective rites. Generations later, in our current time the style has developed further. Modern fabrics have replaced the simple robes, but the ornamentation persists to a degree. There is less desire for an overly modest outfit, often accentuating desirable physical features, or even exaggerating them
Behaviour
Mannerisms reported are reported to have been heavily ritualistic. Not to the extent that it disrupted their daily life, but when an activity allowed for a flourish of tradition and ritual, they would find some way of introduce it. Dances and songs passed down in secret in spite of Mistfaith persecution have probably deviated some over time, but can be found in the book A Heritage of Ash. Many of these feature nuggets of arcane lore for those able to interpret them properly, and they are thought to have served as useful tools for early training of gifted children.
Magic
Little in the form of high magic in the hands of the common people. What they had was concentrated in the leadership and clergy. It was used partly to improve the life of the citizens, but otherwise channeled towards delving into the ethereal and astral realms. Performing the magic was as with the rest of the empire defined by symbolism and rituals.
Heritage
As far as a heritage is concerned, the most noticable is the fairly strong wahlminster phenotype present in the region. It can be identified by its redish hair and often green eyes. It is also one of only a few sources of innate magical talents, even if it is relatively weak.
