Sethris

Sethris, officially the Republic of Sethris, (Sethrian: Plarändürta Sethris) is a country in northwestern Eldham, split between the continents of Katsura and Elastra. It is located along the Klevanor River, which is used for trade with nearby nations. Formed after the collapse of the Empire of Pavrhitsöth, it is the native land of many cultures and peoples, including Pavrhian humans, Vinvüri, Geksiri, and Koldëti. It is also home to many groups of immigrants, including from Ashai, Aristios, Illystra, and Anglunia, among other nations. Its capital is Avaris.
Sethris has an approximate population of 4 million. It is bordered by Ashai to the west, south, and east, and Serradeneu to the north. The western coastline faces the Ava Bay, part of the Katsuran Sea, while the eastern coastline borders the Sea of Onghäf. Gäles-Ifrik Gelärhisgir is the Kagnere of Sethris (President) with Ki'yerra Kya'lan'nek' as the Kjoneas (Vice-President).
Sethris is split into the provinces of Ava, Rhovania, Apëlkantse, Törnis, and Koldve. Sethris has long upheld a policy of neutrality and nonaggression and has had minimal border changes since it was founded. Regardless, it was a member of both the Northern Lights and the Constellation of the North. Its official language is Sethrian. Geksirari, Vinvürari and Koldëtari are recognized as historical cultural languages. Hrabian was recognized as a cultural minority language until Hrabia seceded. Other languages spoken by immigrant cultures include Yaszumatti, High Aristii, Qadakhi Pidgin, and Isklepish.
Economically, Sethris' major exports include fish, coal, sweet berries, wheat, and lumber. It also has large reserves of natural fresh water. Despite its low population density, it has a high level of development, high literacy rates, and high life expectancy.
== Etymology ==
The name Sethris in modern Sethrian translates to "steel harbour". This is borrowed from Old Sethrian seth rhis, with the same meaning. Originally, the word seth referred specifically to silver steel forged from the sap of silverwood trees, but it eventually came to mean regular steel after the practice of killing these trees was outlawed. Both root words are borrowed from Vinvürari, in which seth meant "silver". Rhis is from the Vinvürari word is; due to provection, the place name Avaar Is ("Sacred Bay") entered into Sethrian as Ava Rhis. This also became the name of Avaris, the capital.
== History ==
=== Early settlement ===
The first people to inhabit modern-day Sethris were the Vinvüri. They evolved in the area and archaeological evidence suggests they have been building camp-like settlements as early as 50000 years ago. Although originally living on the eastern coast, they eventually migrated to the western shore of the modern province of Ava. Once there, they had a population boom and constructed their first long-term settlements, which were eventually consolidated into a single city-state called Elesis about 5000 years ago. Around that time, the first Koldëti appeared within modern Sethrian borders. They were nomadic hunter-gatherers and therefore spread their territory throughout northern Sethris quickly. Although they rarely interacted with the Vinvüri, relations were calm.
Eventually, Geksiri landed on the eastern shoreline. A seafaring people, they established several port towns and forced the remaining Vinvüri inhabitants of the east back to Elesis. This angered the Vinvüri monarch, who promptly declared war on them and lost. 12000 Vinvüri were killed, 4000 more than the Geksiri side.
Meanwhile, the Koldëti had spread widely throughout Sethris, claiming significant land in the south and the islands in the surrounding sea. There had been significant cultural divergence between the Koldëti groups across Sethris, and it is considered that the separate Northern and Southern Tribes arose about 700 years ago. However, this is unofficial, as the split was a gradual process. The Northern Tribe was more amicable to agriculture and building permanent settlements, while the Southern Tribe were more traditionalist and nomadic. This led to some tension within the Koldëti race itself. The two cultures continued to diverge, eventually resulting in entirely different traditions and languages.
=== Human arrival ===
Humans first arrived in Sethris about 1000 years ago. Two distinct ethnic groups had colonized the area independently at around the same time: the Applernians, whose endonym is unknown, and the Pavrhians, who were probably from Valresh. It is theorized that they were banished from their homelands for acts of piracy. They were heavily armed and wiped out Koldëti clans near where they had come ashore. Both groups of humans expanded quickly and founded rival kingdoms.
These two kingdoms fought a series of bloody but inconsequential wars for several hundred years, resulting in very minor border changes. About 500 years ago, the Pavrhians sought a more diplomatic approach to warfare and gained the support of the Geksiri, who were clever craftsmen. Elesis also entered into an alliance with them, believing that the Pavrhians stood a better chance of victory due to their larger population and warlike culture. However, the Applernians took this as an act of war and invaded Elesis. Despite the Vinvüri monarch's pleas, the Pavrhian king deemed it a lost cause and refused to help. This caused a terrible crisis in Elesis and thousands of Vinvüri fled southwards. However, to the surprise of all involved, the Vinvüri managed to successfully defend Elesis and push the Applernians out.
Elesis quickly severed their alliance with the Pavrhians, but they had nonetheless inflicted an embarrassing defeat upon the Applernians, all but guaranteeing Pavrhian victory in the war. Applernian defenses at the northern front collapsed and the kingdom fell within the year. Following this, the Pavrhian king declared the formation of the Empire of Pavrhitsöth.
=== Pavrhian conquest period ===
With the fall of the Applernian kingdom, the Empire of Pavrhitsöth began a long and brutal process of suppression and assimilation of ethnic Applernians. The Applernian language was made illegal, and Applernians were forced to adopt the Pavrhian tongue.
The relations between the Koldëti and Pavrhitsöth were already tense due to years of mass killings of Koldëti during the Applernian-Pavrhian wars (both as collateral and intentionally), but the Emperor’s declaration of the Policy of Conquest pushed things to the breaking point. The Policy of Conquest deemed that the Empire of Pavrhitsöth had implicit claims on the bordering lands.
The Northern Koldëti shared the largest border with Pavrhitsöth and saw this as a direct threat, which it was. Pavrhitsöth initiated a massive invasion of Koldëti territory, hoping for them to be unprepared and disorganized, but the Southern Koldëti realized that they were under threat as well and so many Koldëti leaders came together in one village and agreed on terms to create the Koldëti Confederation in order to resist. With forces of both Northern and Southern Koldëti in the Confederation’s forces, Pavrhitsöth’s invasion was off to a rough beginning. Several attacks were repelled or unable to make significant advances.
These failures came to a climax at the Battle of Vindetsöth. Pavrhitsöth had constructed defensive fortifications, including a modestly sized fortress. They positioned archers on the battlements with their infantry on the ground in a shield wall as the Koldëti counterattack approached. Although the Pavrhians vastly outnumbered the Koldëti, the giants’ proportional strength made the odds more or less even. The Pavrhian infantry initially fared well, holding their own against the Koldëti advance, but this all fell apart when they were flanked by Southern Koldëti moose cavalry. The superior power of the giant men mounted on giant moose overcame them and they were massacred. The archers continued to take shots until the fortress was stormed. Very few Pavrhians were able to escape.
The southern theater of the war was progressing much more favorably for Pavrhitsöth, as the Pavrhian troops continued to advance across land occupied only by Vinvüri settlers and managed to capture several key strategic locations. They were even able to encircle and defeat many Koldëti forces, mainly due to the fact that their cavalry was occupied on the northern front, which was still in favor of the Koldëti.
Eventually, the Confederation's forces had nearly managed to encircle Litspavglän, the capital of Pavrhitsöth. However, some survivors of the Battle of Vindetsöth regrouped in Litspavglän to make a final stand. Inspired by the Koldëti moose cavalry, they formed the first dedicated cavalry regiment in Pavrhian history, the Elöbrökmuri. Despite being newly formed, the Elöbrökmuri managed to drive away the Koldëti on their white horses. This first ride of the Elöbrökmuri later attained almost mythical status in Pavrhian culture.
This defeat led to a turning point in the Confederation's success. Their defenses in the south failed and they were eventually defeated. Pavrhitsöth had won, but with staggering casualties and infrastructure damage, and they were forced to wait several decades before they could engage in military action again. However, they were given an opportunity when a meteorite shower struck Elesis, destroying several buildings and killing at least ten. As disastrous as that was, the real crisis only came when it was discovered that the core of the meteorites were made of an amethyst-like crystalline substance that possessed magical properties and were harmful to the silverwood trees that the Vinvüri worshiped.
Elesis did their best to conceal this information, fearing what the Pavrhians would do with it. However, inevitably, the Emperor of Pavrhitsöth obtained some of these crystals and discovered their latent power. He then threatened to attack the Great Silverwood - an enormous silverwood tree that is the central object of worship in the Orcaes Avaar religion - with amethyst power.
Cesaf, the king of Elesis, was very zealous and prioritized the Silverwood over all else, and so he reluctantly signed a document ceding control of Elesis to Pavrhitsöth in exchange for guaranteeing the safety of the Great Tree. Pavrhian troops executed Cesaf and the entire royal bloodline, but they did respect the treaty and left the Great Silverwood untouched. Vinvüri religious texts claim that the Emperor was planning to violate the treaty and destroy the tree regardless, but upon seeing its beauty changed his mind. However, this cannot be verified.
At last, the only independent sovereign state within the modern Sethrian borders was the Geksiri Republic, who had a good relationship with Pavrhitsöth due to decades of trade. Geksiri goods were seen as high-quality and exquisite, as the Geksiri were master artisans. This led to the word Geksi being used to refer to any object of expert manufacturing or high value. This word was eventually simplified to mean “great” or “fantastic” and is used in modern Sethrian as an interjection.
However, the Geksiri understood that from a military standpoint they were at an overwhelming disadvantage. Pavrhitsöth had them surrounded and severely outnumbered and any theoretical war would result in devastating defeat and destruction. Although they had good relations with Pavrhitsöth, they wanted to avoid bloodshed and so a council of Geksiri officials deemed it necessary to swear fealty to the Emperor of Pavrhitsöth. By about 311 years before the founding of the modern Republic, Pavrhitsöth had officially taken control of all land in Sethris.
=== Pavrhitsöth imperial period ===
Immediately following the Pavrhian conquest of the Koldëti Confederation, several resistance groups arose to attempt to overthrow Pavrhian rule. Most of these merged into a faction called the Uriv Army a few decades after the capitulation of the Geksiri Republic. The Uriv Army engaged in whatever they deemed necessary to win Koldëti independence, including banditry, assassinations, and raids on Pavrhian settlements both in and outside of traditional Koldëti territory.
Initially Pavrhitsöth attempted to ignore these actions and hoped they would decline over time, but after the Emperor survived an assassination attempt that was blamed on the Koldëti resistance, he declared war. He called on the Elöbrökmuri to defend the capital from further raids as well as to act as personal bodyguards, while standard soldiers were sent into Koldëti lands to find and dismantle the Uriv Army.
The Pavrhian military had the advantage of better numbers, equipment, and training, but the Uriv Army had learned the land they were fighting on like the back of their own hands. They ensured that the fight was as difficult as possible for the Pavrhian soldiers. Using guerilla strategies to their advantage, the Koldëti destroyed their enemies’ morale and picked off Pavrhitsöth’s soldiers slowly but surely. The Uriv Army’s regular raids on the capital failed due to the defense led by the Elöbrökmuri, but the attacking forces were exhausted and the Emperor eventually deemed that the war simply wasn’t worth the cost.
In a summit with the leader of the Uriv Army, they reached an agreement where Pavrhitsöth would withdraw its troops from Koldëti territory, prevent human settlement in the area, and guarantee that there would be no attempts to culturally assimilate the Koldëti people, while the Koldëti agreed to cease raids and violence and allow the Emperor to keep domain over their lands.
Several cultural advancements were made during this period; beginning with the conquest of Elesis, the Pavrhian language began taking influences from the Vinvüri tongue, including appropriating and heavily editing a version of the Vinvüri writing system, creating the first Sethrian runic alphabet. This was the first writing system used for the Sethrian language, beginning the transition from the unattested Proto-Pavrhian language to Old Sethrian, the linguistic ancestor of modern Sethrian.
Once tensions between the Koldëti and the Pavrhians died down, a man from Litspavglän named Ava-Töve Dafrëgir, a priest of the unorganized polytheistic Pavrhian faith, began a pilgrimage around Pavrhitsöth. As villages were quite isolated at this time, each had its own variations of Pavrhian traditions. He compiled different myths and legends about the gods of the Pavrhians into a book called Evëmülneta, which became quite influential in Pavrhitsöth, serving as the catalyst for the transformation of Pavrhian religion from an unstructured faith to a heavily organized one, now forming the modern-day religion of Lüetivyrn.
In Elesis, several religious sects of Vinvüri that practiced amethyst magic began to arise. A minority of these sects were bent upon destroying the Great Silverwood, and so the local government made up mostly of elected Vinvüri called on the Emperor for help. The Emperor formed the Silver Order to protect the Great Silverwood. However, this was not completely altruistic; he probably had an ulterior motive of seeking to use the turmoil as an opportunity to directly occupy Elesis.
The Vinvüri reaction to the presence of the Order was initially grateful but generally suspicious. The amethyst magic cults began to back off for a while, but with nothing to fight, the Order grew restless and began acting as brutal enforcers of the Emperor, beating any Vinvüri who came near the Great Silverwood even for a purpose as innocuous as praying. Once the amethyst magicians eventually returned, they began fighting destructive street battles with the Order that resulted in very little except property damage. Things got even worse once the Silver Order, steadfast in its mission to protect the Great Silverwood, realized that the sap of the silverwood trees were paradoxically effective against amethyst magic once smithed into an alloy with carbon steel. Unafraid to damage the lesser silverwoods, they destroyed the majority of the trees in Elesis during their time there and created armor and weapons for their war on amethyst magic, a war which would last over a century.
Eventually the Vinvüri had enough and their leaders declared that they would rather deal with amethyst magicians than the Order. The Emperor was not happy with this and gave orders to increase the intensity of the occupation even further, resulting in more destruction and more bloodshed. At last, Elesis was all but razed to the ground, leaving nothing but the Great Silverwood and the rubble of hundreds of homes.
The Geksiri were largely left untouched compared to the Vinvüri and Koldëti, and they kept up their positive trade relationship with the central government of the Empire. Even despite their ancient feud, several individual Geksiri went through the trouble of extracting Vinvüri from Elesis by boat during the Silver Order’s occupation and taking them back to Geksiri land. The city of Wintermoor (which was later incorporated into Avaris), built on traditional Geksiri territory, is populated by descendants of these Vinvüri refugees. However, not all Vinvüri were able to flee the Elesis area and were forced to survive the duration of the occupation. The Silver Order continued to live on the rubble of the city after it was almost completely destroyed. For unknown reasons, the Emperor still supported the occupation despite the lack of anything to occupy. Eventually, the Vinvüri realized that there was nothing left for them in Elesis, except for the now constantly guarded Great Silverwood, and the remaining occupants abandoned the city, leaving the tree behind. Every Vinvüri had fled by 200 years before the founding of the Republic. They built villages around Elesis but never within sight of it.
Due to the lengthy control of Sethris by Pavrhitsöth, Old Sethrian had become the lingua franca of all peoples in the Empire except for the Koldëti. As the Geksiri held contact with the humans the most often and were the most favorable to human rule, they were the first to adopt Old Sethrian as their cultural native language, and the Geksiri tongue died out soon after. During the occupation of Elesis, the Vinvüri language was oppressed by the Silver Order and speaking it in public could catch their attention, which any Vinvüri would rather avoid. This made the Vinvüri tongue go extinct except for use as a liturgical language. Applernian had long since disappeared and the ethnic Applernian identity had ceased to exist long before the occupation of Elesis, with the vast majority of Applernians completely assimilated into Pavrhian culture. This left only the Koldëti with their culture and language intact.
Pavrhitsöth continued to rule over the region uncontested for many decades, with only minor border changes due to wars with rival empires in the south and west, resulting in its borders being basically identical to the modern Republic of Sethris. However, the occupation of Elesis, as successful as it was at assimilating and demoralizing the Vinvüri, was very costly, and a series of succession crises after the death of the eighth Emperor of Pavrhitsöth, Gäles-Evir Jüvëles, led to widespread destabilization. A coup attempt by his youngest son, Ilfä-Tsulm, was supported by the standard Pavrhian military but opposed by the Elöbrökmuri and other elite forces. The coup was ultimately unsuccessful and Ilfä-Tsulm’s older brother ordered his execution.
Still, this resulted in a restless and divided Pavrhian population. The Geksiri were placable but extremely vigilant after the fate of Elesis, the Koldëti were mistrusting but isolated, and the Vinvüri would have been in full revolt if not for their exhaustion and the decline of their numbers. The new Emperor, to his credit, tried his best to recover, attempting to implement economic and government reforms that would have resulted in improved infrastructure while pulling funding away from the armed forces; these failed when the already disgruntled military staged riots in the capital. When the Elöbrökmuri tried to quell the violence, it became an all-out battle in the streets. The childless Emperor was suddenly killed after falling from the balcony of his castle and into the middle of the fight, being trampled by the horses of his own cavalry men.
Though the Elöbrökmuri eventually prevailed, this was the last nail in the coffin of Pavrhitsöth. Ilfä-Tsulm’s son claimed the throne, but was unable to even get to the palace to be crowned due to the Elöbrökmuri keeping him out of the capital. Seeing the writing on the walls, the Koldëti declared independence, and were not contested. As the Pavrhians fought a Civil War among themselves, the Geksiri seceded, and the Empire of Pavrhitsöth officially collapsed eighty years before modern Sethris was founded.
=== Pre-Republic period ===
After the collapse of Pavrhitsöth, its former territory fractured into several sovereign states. The Koldëti Confederation was briefly reformed before splitting along the lines between the Northern and Southern Tribes. The Geksiri Republic returned and continued functioning the way it had centuries earlier as if nothing had happened. The Pavrhian areas fractured into six different states, four of which were factions participating in the Civil War. The capital was controlled by a military dictatorship headed by the leader of the Elöbrökmuri, and although it only controlled a small amount of territory, it continued to go under the name of the Empire of Pavrhitsöth. Its main opponent was the Kingdom of Rhovania, ruled by the self-crowned son of Ilfä-Tsulm, who still claimed the imperial throne of Pavrhitsöth even after its collapse. Also involved in the Civil War were the Kingdom of Leveskapäg and the Kingdom of Rhovlavö. The kings of both of these claimed to be distant relatives of the imperial family. Choosing not to partake in the war were the Republic of Frosthia, who are considered to be the first democratic state in Sethris with any significant human population, and the Kingdom of Apëlkantse, which was the result of a brief period of Applernian nationalism in areas dominated by humans of Applernian descent after the collapse of Pavrhitsöth.
After four years, the Civil War was becoming a frozen conflict, with no clear end in sight. Soon, however, someone who would change the course of Sethrian history would arrive on the scene. Although Elesis was destroyed, its ruins and the surrounding Vinvüri villages were still controlled by the Elöbrökmuri’s Pavrhitsöth. The Silver Order had remained active guarding the Great Silverwood. They had recently been converted to Sagaism due to the influence of their new leader, and created a sect called Kalenzör’s Watchmen. They had built a massive fort called Watcher’s Keep off the coast of Elesis, within view of the Silverwood. In one of the many nearby villages, a young Vinvüri named Tsejaf Kalfël had been preaching democratic and separatist beliefs for a few years before the beginning of the Civil War, and with its start he and his followers returned to Elesis. They were the first Vinvüri to arrive there since it was destroyed, but they intended to rebuild and forge a democratic Vinvüri state, even if it meant they would have to face the Silver Order.
However, upon their arrival at Elesis, Tsejaf and the Silver Order’s leader, Daos, immediately hit it off and began an unlikely friendship. Daos agreed that Pavrhitsöth was a dying empire and he and the rest of the Order aided Tsejaf and his followers in overturning Pavrhian control in the region. He and Daos worked tirelessly for months to rebuild. However, Tsejaf deemed that the new city could not take the name of Elesis in order to pay respects to the city that had been destroyed, so it was renamed to Avaris. After their work was finished, they declared the formation of the Republic of Ava. Elections were held in Ava, which Tsejaf won in a landslide. He immediately got to work to spread democratic ideals to the rest of former Pavrhitsöth.
The Geksiri Republic agreed to join into a union with Ava after a referendum which passed by a slim margin, perhaps due to the influence of the Vinvüri refugees. Tsejaf then mediated at a summit between the Koldëti tribes in Avaris, during which he delivered a thirty-minute long speech containing a declaration of his dream of a republic spanning all of former Pavrhitsöth where every culture could live in unity with each other. The Koldëti chieftains were impressed but not swayed, at least until Daos reminded them that they would likely still have to go to war against the human kingdoms, after which both chieftains immediately joined the union.
The Civil War still had not reached any definitive conclusion, with only minor territorial changes. However, there was significant war exhaustion among the populace on all sides. The Republic of Ava, now spanning about half of former Pavrhitsöth, sent official letters to all the parties involved in the Civil War, ordering them to give up trying to reform the Empire or face war from another front. These warnings were ignored, and Ava launched offensives against the human kingdoms. A Koldëti general named Taucev Lavestru led attacks against Rhovania, which were successful at their goal of disrupting key supply lines and forcing Rhovania to take troops away from their front lines against Pavrhitsöth to defend against further raids. Sensing this weakness, the Elöbrökmuri began a massive assault and reached all the way to the Rhovanian capital with little resistance. However, a perfectly-timed attack led by Daos cut them off and isolated them. The Elöbrökmuri successfully deposed the king of Rhovania and secured their surrender, but were surrounded and captured by Taucev Lavestru’s Koldëti warriors.
After some short but ferocious skirmishes with the remainders of the enemy forces at the border, Daos and his armies managed to reach the capital of Pavrhitsöth. The Pavrhian citizens, devastated and exhausted by years of war, offered no resistance. With the capture and forced abdication of the Emperor, Pavrhitsöth was destroyed for the final time. There was some confusion on the name of what the new state would be. Tsejaf hoped for it to be something that could symbolize every race without more weight on one than the others. The working title was the Frost Federation, but this was quickly done away with as it was generally agreed that it was awful. In a referendum, the name decided upon was the Republic of Sethris. Frosthia, who had been dealing with the sudden appearance of Hrabians in the northern parts of their territory, joined shortly after the name was chosen due to shared democratic ideals, and, at last, Apëlkantse opted to enter after a series of unfortunate crises led to its continued existence being unsustainable, forming the modern borders of Sethris. This was only a few days after the widespread colonization of Eldham by settlers from Rathnir began.
The day of the formation of Sethris is celebrated annually on Vatekalta 1st, the first day of the Sethrian calendar.
=== Creation of the Government of Sethris ===
Tsejaf worked tirelessly for days and nights with the help of Daos and others who wished to help, now collectively referred to as the Fathers of Law, to draft a constitution for a new nation and determine how it would be led. Tsejaf, who had already been elected, christened his position Kagnere (similar in meaning to "president"), and wrote that it would be an elected position to fill the role of head of state and to enact laws, bills, and draft constitutional amendments. The original constitution put forward that the Kagnere would be aided by a council of advisors appointed by the Kagnere, called the Neire (or "high council"). The original Neire consisted of several of the Fathers of Law, including Daos, Taucev Lavestru, and Jirhev Halbör. Lesser in power to both the Kagnere and Neire were the General Assembly, which at this time elected four people to two large electoral divisions: Anjarhün, for areas north of Ava, and Gultarg, for Ava and everything south of it. These regions were distinguished from the Provinces, which originally consisted of Ava, Rhovania, Dvi-Eng, Törnis, and Ventsal.
After things were set in stone and the constitution was officially adopted, Tsejaf founded the Democratic Party of Sethris, a political organization that would go unopposed during Tsejaf's lifetime. Tsejaf believed in non-aggression and neutrality, and he continued to push for these beliefs for his whole life.
=== Early crises ===
==== Collapse of the United Empire and Neoz Crisis ====
Shortly before Apëlkantse joined the Republic, they had briefly joined the United Empire, a military dictatorship led by Asdar Neoz. The United Empire was defeated and destroyed by Uldarash, leaving the Applernians in the midst of a crisis. Once they realized the hope for an independent Applernian state was lost, they decided to join Sethris. They hoped joining the Republic would bring stability and help repair the damages Neoz and Uldarash had done to them. This left Neoz with a deep hatred of the Applernian people, and would cause many Sethrians to believe he had invasion plans to reclaim Apëlkantse . Many citizens prepared for war, unsure of what would be coming in the future as the new nation was faced with its first conflict. However, a crisis in Akratia, Neoz's home nation, would delay any plans he may have had, and the eventual fall of the nation would bring them to a grinding halt. War was narrowly avoided and Sethris was untouched. Although little diplomacy was done, this early crisis continues to inform Sethrian foreign policy. It is hypothesized that Sethrian non-expansionism was influenced by the incident, as a negative situation arose due to the acquisition of Apëlkantse.
==== Sethrian Market Coalition ====
Near the end of Tsejaf Kalfël's first term as Kagnere, war erupted between the Eldham Trade Company (ETC), a Bardonian state occupying the lands of the Batu Khanagate, and the economically influential nation of Drak Yamar. The ETC sought to become Eldham's sole economic superpower and dominate the Eldhamite market. Tsejaf and the leaders of fellow market nations such as Injah and Varn Torum realized that they were under threat as well while the ETC looked for more economic power and the economy of Sethris slowly grew. These nations formed a coalition to aid Batu and remove the influence of the ETC. The Market Coalition acted as a defense of Eldhamite markets against ETC aggression. Later, the Third Rathnir Coalition declared war on Bardonia, marking the beginning of a massive world war in Rathnir. The Market Coalition knew it had to take action. Tsejaf and Cygni Suberb of the Dirac Order spearheaded this group as they were both growing forces of the economy, and they would begin gathering new members to aid in the fight against Bardonia. At the height of the Market Coalition's power, Batu was able to declare independence from Bardonia and the ETC, and the Market Coalition disbanded before having to ever engage in war.
=== Membership of the Northern Lights ===
During the beginning of Tsejaf's second term, Sethris became a founding member of the Northern Lights alongside nations such as Varn Torum, Donfuer, and Gunjou. It was originally founded to protect the southern territory of Valesco from Iremith, who had threatened to invade, but continued to serve as a defensive alliance following the end of that crisis. However, tensions between the alliance and Valore began to take root.
==== Hussarias Crisis ====
As the tensions began to worsen, Tsejaf and Rad Kaijin were ambushed and attacked by soldiers from Hussarias during a diplomatic meeting. Although Tsejaf escaped, Kaijin was killed. Once Tsejaf told the Northern Lights of the incident, a general from Varn Torum entered Hussarian territory and ordered his troops to slaughter civilians there. This led Hussarias to declare a crusade on Sethris with the help of the Aristii Church of Voclari. Tsejaf began an effort to debunk misinformed claims spread by Hussarias, such as accusations of Sethrians wandering the lands to scout for the Northern Lights, and the general being a Sethrian rather than from Varn Torum. Within days, all war declarations and support for the crusade had immediately been withdrawn, as public opinion changed in favour of Sethris. The Sethrian diplomatic team began to aid in damages sustained by all involved in the conflict. 
==== Yaszuma Tensions ====
During Tsejaf's final term in office, relations between Varn Torum and Yaszuma became cold after their departure from the Northern Lights. When Yaszuma declared war on Varn Torum, Sethris initially took a neutral stance on the conflict, hoping for all to be resolved diplomatically. However, Tsejaf became aware of Yaszuma's plans for after the war and found them unsavory. He passed the information to the Neire council, his chief advisors, who decided that an aggressive stance on the war would need to be taken. Fortunately, tensions deescalated before more damage could be done, but the trust in the northwest of Eldham was deeply damaged due to the event, and the Northern Lights eventually collapsed.
Shortly following this, Tsejaf Kalfël died of natural causes. Having long served as Kagnere with very little serious opposition. He was buried near the Great Silverwood in Avaris, leaving one child behind.
=== Presidency of Böngo and Gorb ===
Tsejaf's death led to a power vacuum in Sethrian politics. The emergency elections were hastily planned and led to hectic struggles between political factions. Some parties involved in the struggle included the People's Party of Sethris, led by Evëlin-Töve Yvantsel, the Federalist Party, led by Ogóroнrb Päтyкović, and the Imperial Republic of Sethris (IRS), a successor to the Sethris Fascist Republic party. Due to the strange nature of the elections, the Neire allowed two people to hold the presidency. Böngo and his associate Gorb were both sworn in as Kagnere. Fearing rebellion by the IRS, they came to an agreement in which they would implement some of the group's ideas in exchange for the IRS ceasing their violent rhetoric against the current government. They also also promised to introduce modern ideas and improvements to infrastructure, healthcare, and education. However, their presidency was cut short when both Böngo and Gorb would mysteriously disappear from the nation entirely, leaving their ideas and those of the IRS to remain unimplemented.
=== Blizzard Coalition ===
Following the disappearance of Böngo and Gorb , there was once again a power vacuum in Sethris. Parties once again struggled for the presidency in an even more vitriolic fashion than before. This era is known as the Clash of the Parties. More new political parties emerged, such as the Guard Party, headed by Daos, the Breakthrough Party, headed by Ava-Likëmu Magrökmur, and the Sethris Militaristic Party, headed by Lites-Vanar Skorm. However, instead of pursuing the presidency, Daos chose to instead endorse Völd Kalfël, a descendant of Tsejaf's, in order to have a unifying figure as Kagnere to more effectively end the Clash of the Parties. Völd won decisively, and led for two terms before refusing to run again. Following that, more elections were held, in which Magrökmur was victorious by a slim margin. However, he formed a coalition government with Daos and Skorm. Magrökmur became Kagnere, while Daos and Skorm were left to share the position of Kjoneas (vice president). They became known as the Blizzard Coalition.
==== Glanra Breakdown ====
Not long after the election of Magrökmur and the ascension of the Blizzard Coalition, Skorm, a member of a sub-group within the Pavrhian ethnicity called the Glanraess, who are native to the town of Ystkalü, would declare independence from Sethris and form the nation of Glanra off the eastern coast. Skorm, despite being a member of the serving government, did not inform any officials or discuss terms of the declaration beforehand, enraging the Blizzard Coalition. Glanra also claimed the town of Rilleskia and Fort Zuka, an unnatural island built in the middle of the ocean. They were quickly denounced by the Sethrian government, who revealed records of theft and deceit in order to deny the Glanraess claims. Negotiations between the groups proved entirely unproductive as neither side was willing to compromise, and the threat of war began to seem inevitable. As Sethris prepared for a full-scale offensive operation, Kounsar, a close ally of Skorm, continued to refuse to back down and readied his people as well. As the negotiations continued, the two were offered to leave the land and join another nation far from Sethris. Kounsar finally gave in when he decided that the war effort was purposeless and abandoned Fort Zuka, though would ultimately betray the nation he was invited to their nation and fled to an unknown location in Eldham. They would continue to keep Ystkalü and Kaltaris, as they were the only two majority-Glanraess cities in Sethris. This became a point of contingency with the Sethrian government, as they did not trust Skorm and wanted the cities vacated. After a fierce debate, Kounsar would eventually agree to leave Kaltaris in exchange for being guaranteed his safety so long as he remained in exile outside of Sethris. Skorm had a dead-or-alive bounty put on his head. Many months passed without further incident. However, due to close proximity between the nations, the groups frequently continued to exchange messages. Skorm frequently contacted Magrökmur, Daos, and Völd, despite the latter's resignation from government. These interactions ranged from direct threats to asking for pardons. However, no pardon was ever issued, and Skorm remained within exile. Skorm's name later entered into the Sethrian language as a word meaning "traitor".
==== Vassal Glanra tensions ====
As Glanra gained power as a vassal of Heliosos, Skorm, now using the Heliosan name Skorm Von Voltaris, began to create propaganda against Sethris. Völd, seeing this, would return with his own, poking fun at Glanra for violating the terms of their earlier agreement. Skorm continued to take this further, however, and repeatedly posted propaganda to slander both Völd and Sethris with disinformation. Many Sethrians public officials joined together in debunking the claims. Glanra finally went silent after many days of these events, eventually fading into irrelevance.
==== Creation of the Antare ====
Following the Glanra crisis, Daos began to push for the creation of a royal family to serve as overseers for the smooth functioning of the nation. He wanted Völd to take the crown as a descendant of Tsejaf. Völd was hesitant but eventually Daos convinced him and he was crowned as Hasafi, part of the institution of the Antare (royal family). He married Rifu Irëstir, and together they founded the house of Kalfël-Irëstir. They had a son named Palfür. The Antare also serves as the head of faith for the Orcaes Avaar religion.
==== Akratian refugee crisis ====
Under the Blizzard Coalition administration, a group of Akratian citizens requested to gain asylum in the town of Zirbenburg and establish the city as a refugee foothold of their people after being separated from their homes in Rathnir. After the conflicts with Neoz in the early days of Sethris, however, they were not fully trusted by the Sethrian leadership, and their intentions were assumed to be malicious. However, it could not be proven, and they were allowed to settle in the town. Soon after, evidence was found that the Akratians had been planning to establish a much larger hold in Sethris to begin rebuilding an Akratian nation. From there, events spiraled out of control and ended with one Sethrian citizen being murdered in the streets of Zirbenburg and the Akratians being removed from the city. Despite the unsanctioned violence, the groups were able to separate without further conflict.
==== Further independence crises ====
During the Blizzard Coalition, several more groups were inspired by Glanra and Akratia and attempted to obtain independence or autonomy from the Republic of Sethris. These included Sendai, a town of foreign heritage who aimed to create a region called Sakura and gain Autonomous Region status. Sethris offered an agreement which would grant them the autonomy they sought. However, the terms were broken almost immediately and the newly formed Sakuran government began a campaign to attempt to gain further independence. The situation resolved once Atago, the leader of Sakura, continued to make poor decisions resulting in endless Sakuran infighting. This caused Sakura to collapse as its citizens fled Sethris.
This inspired a group of Vinvüri who had settled on the ruins of the Battle of Vindetsöth and founded a town called Winderburg. After repeated subtle attempts to gain independence, they gave up and their leader attempted to sell the town to a citizen of the Ashtrokan-Wandenreich Empire. Once this citizen discovered it was against the wishes of Sethris, they declined to make the purchase, leaving the leader of Winderburg defeated. In a last-ditch effort to spite the government, he destroyed much of the property within and around the town before leaving.
==== Völd and Rifu's death ====
Also during Magrökmur's tenure as Kagnere, the beloved Völd and Rifu Kalfël-Irëstir, Hasafi and Sadasi of Sethris respectively, both disappeared suddenly under mysterious circumstances, and were presumed dead. Palfür and his wife were both assumed to be guilty in the court of public opinion, and though evidence of their involvement was never found, they were afterwards seen as a disgrace to their family's legacy. This would forever change the life of their young son, Volkif.
==== End of the Blizzard Coalition ====
Following this, Magrökmur announced he did not intend to run for re-election. However, extremist political parties such as the IRS had dwindled in influence due to the policies enacted by Völd and the Blizzard Coalition during their campaigns, many of which were aimed at increasing political stability. This led to a more safe election cycle with more moderate politicians vying for the presidency. Most candidates were running as independents, as due to the Clash of the Parties public opinion on political parties in general had fallen. One such candidate was Vel-Mäst Atreiyen. Although young, Atreiyen had proved to be a capable businessman after founding the Sethris Times, which later proved to be one of the most prominent news outlets in Eldham, alongside Lev-Ifrik Gëlevëm. Atreiyen was generally met with positive reception, and was eventually elected as Kagnere. 
=== Atreiyen administration ===
Atreiyen's presidency marked the beginning of a new era in Sethrian politics. Atreiyen was well-known for his outgoing nature and befriended top diplomats and leaders in neighboring nations. Despite Sethris' reputation for being rather isolationist since the collapse of the Northern Lights, this allowed him to secure positive relations with several powerful Eldhamite countries. He also introduced military reform bills, expanded on existing infrastructure, and increased the power of the General Assembly, creating the Gëire, or Low Council. The purpose of the Gëire was to operate under the Neire as a democratically-elected assembly of the people to vote on and pass laws and bills. Atreiyen also appointed Gäles-Ifrik Gelärhisgir, a young Sethrian scholar (and a relative of his through adoption), as the Minister of Culture on the Neire council following the previous minister's retirement.
Although Atreiyen's presidency was well-received by the mainstream Sethrian populace, the Hrabian population in northern Sethris disliked him and became increasingly irritable during his presidency. Ogóroнrb Päтyкović, a Hrabian nationalist who had previously advocated for secession from the Republic, approached the government to request for an Autonomous Region to be created. Although the status of Autonomous Region was mentioned in the Sethrian constitution, such a region had never been implemented and Autonomous Region status had not been pursued by any group outside of Sakura, who failed to comply with the terms of their agreement. Atreiyen declined this but created a compromise in which Hrabia would be granted the status of Province and separated from Apëlkantse and Rhovania, which it was previously split between. Although Päтyкović was not content with this agreement, he accepted it for the time being.
Atreiyen prioritized diplomacy, and secured non-aggression pacts with several nations across Eldham during his tenure. However, he initially experienced difficulty in reaching an agreement with Ashai, Sethris' new neighbor created as the result of a union between Raiyuna, the successor state of Yaszuma, and Varn Torum. The leadership of Ashai was still hesitant to sign an agreement with Sethris due to the tensions between Yaszuma and the rest of the Northern Lights. Although the non-aggression pact was eventually signed after much deliberation, problems arose when Aristii-Sethrian philosopher and anti-imperialist Asmodeus Phronesis En Corgi attacked a road near Koozos, Ashai, with explosives and left threatening messages at the site. En Corgi immediately contacted Atreiyen and confessed to the attack. The mayor of Koozos also informed the Emperors of Ashai of the incident directly, and they in turn contacted Sethris for further information. Atreiyen informed them of En Corgi's involvement in the attack, and reassured them that he would be met with a suitable punishment. Fearing the incident would lead to Ashai pulling out from the non-agression pact, Atreiyen sentenced En Corgi to be deported and exiled from Sethris. This prevented a breakdown in relations between Ashai and Sethris, but left En Corgi wandering.
=== Gelärhisgir administration ===
==== First term ====
After several terms, Atreiyen announced he would not pursue re-election, leaving the future of leadership uncertain. However, Atreiyen's cousin Gäles-Ifrik Gelärhisgir, the Minister of Culture and a member of the Neire council, revealed he intended to run for Kagnere shortly afterwards. Gelärhisgir, who was already popular for his scholarly work, including the standardization of the Sethrian language, won the election in a landslide victory. Gelärhisgir quickly passed several constitutional amendments after entering office, reorganizing the justice system, updating the bill of rights, and recognizing minority languages like Koldëti and Hrabian. These changes were generally well-received. Gelärhisgir continued to focus funding towards education, which he valued strongly. He also valued democracy, and increased protections to it, including the banning of political parties that promoted openly violent anti-democratic rhetoric. However, such parties, like the IRS, had for the most part long since disbanded by the time of Gelärhisgir's presidency. Gelärhisgir formed his own party, the Ember Party of Sethris, based on the ideals of democracy, transparent government, equality, and education. Several prominent Sethrians joined the party, including Atreiyen, Hartöm-Sildifar Ykasfel (a close friend of Gelärhisgir's), and Lesmel Vemkvis.
==== Kannović scandal ====
Prior to the approaching elections, Onleóś Kannović, a Hrabian businessman, announced his intention to run for Kagnere. Atreiyen, now serving on the Neire and acting as an overseer for the elections, became suspicious of Kannović and publicly accused him of voter fraud during the voting process. Although Kannović did not comment, Päтyкović contacted Atreiyen and admitted to attempting to influence the election in Kannović's favor, hoping to take the blame and avoid Kannović facing repercussions. Ultimately, Kannović was not punished, but the fraudulent votes were discarded, resulting in his defeat.
However, Gelärhisgir went on to express distaste with the manner in which the incident was handled and questioned if Päтyкović's actions had, indeed, constituted voter fraud. Some of the Neire believed he was too charitable towards the Hrabians, but this did not prevent him from decrying Atreiyen's management of the scandal during a presidential address the following day.
==== Second term ====
Gelärhisgir's second term was marked by much less achievement than his first, and his popularity declined slightly. However, he managed to contact En Corgi and set a date for a trial to determine if he had, in fact, been guilty of the attack near Koozos; Atreiyen had exiled him without a trial, which would have been highly illegal under Gelärhisgir's legal amendments. Several witnesses were called, and En Corgi had admitted that he had committed the crime, but after the mayor of Koozos spoke to En Corgi he declared that he had forgiven En Corgi and would not pursue charges. Given this, En Corgi was pardoned and his exile ended prematurely, although he remained on probation and was prevented from owning weapons and running for public office for two further years.
During this term, however, reports began to emerge of incidents involving a strange black substance erupting from the depths of the underground. Hrabians asserted that it was the rot prophesied in their religion, the Children Of Ogór, while Gelärhisgir and his administration awaited further information. His hand would be forced into action after Volkif's wedding to his long-time romantic partner Tsisu Rikasfel, when the wedding guests exited the venue to discover the streets of Avaris completely covered in the black substance. Daos instructed the guests to return to Kalfël-Irëstir Manor and wait there while he and the military investigated to find if there was still danger. He returned a few hours later to inform them that the coast was clear and they should return home, and to tell Gelärhisgir to assemble the Elöbrökmuri for a special investigation of the Avaris sewers. The crowd then dispersed and returned home. However, Daos left Volkif a letter informing him that he intended to search the sewers the night before the investigation began to check for potential danger. He never returned, and his body was later found, resulting in the death of the last person who was present for the founding of Sethris. Lesmel Vemkvis succeeded him as Minister of the Military.
As the next elections came closer, Kannović announced he would run under his new Reform and Democracy (colloquially called Rubber Duck) Party. He spoke critically of the institutions of the Neire and Antare, calling them undemocratic. Gelärhisgir did little to dispute these claims, but was victorious regardless due to Kannović's prior campaign, which had made him unpopular.
==== Third term ====
Following the election, Gelärhisgir announced he would not run again due to stress caused by his political involvement. His popularity had dropped to its lowest point and he had defeated Kannović by only a slim margin. His final term in office was generally stable, if a bit unproductive.
Although little occurred during this term, there was at least one notable event: the death of Ogóroнrb Päтyкović. He was found dead in the streets following an altercation with an unknown assailant. Hrabians mourned his death and a funeral for him was held in Ogórogród. His successor as Premier, Pјoкr Anäsтyкović, stepped into his position shortly afterwards.
=== Succession ===
Gelärhisgir was followed by Hartöm-Sildifar Ykasfel and Lesmel Vemkvis, two Ember Party politicians, in that order. Both of their terms were similarly uneventful. Gelärhisgir remained Minister of Culture and a member of the Neire council during this time. During Lesmel's tenure, he could not continue to serve as Minister of the Military, so Hakávald Lavestru, a descendant of the Father of Law Taucev Lavestru, filled in for him. Following Lesmel's announcement of his intention to retire as Kagnere, he stepped back into his position and the new Ministry of Defense was created for Lavestru. Gelärhisgir, having had sufficient time to recover from his stress, announced his intention to run with Ykasfel as his Kjoneas.
=== Final presidential election ===
Shortly after Gelärhisgir announced his campaign, Anäsтyкović announced he would also be running, with Kannović as his Kjoneas. He used Kannović's campaign slogan, "Don't Stand for Sethriscide!", Sethriscide being defined as taking actions which endangered Sethris, a crime which he accused Atreiyen, Gelärhisgir, and other Sethrian politicians of. During a rally for Gelärhisgir in Avaris, Anäsтyкović began his own campaign nearby. This angered Gelärhisgir, who challenged him to a debate. The debate went on for several hours, covering several topics, the most important of which was the status of the Neire council. Anäsтyкović and other Hrabian politicians criticized it as undemocratic. Anäsтyкović said he would dismantle it and bar its members from running again. Gelärhisgir announced that he also intended to abolish the Neire.
=== Gelärhisgir's last presidency ===
==== Abolishment of the Neire ====
Gelärhisgir won the election by a slim margin. As the Gëire elections had failed due to insufficient candidates and the Neire could simply be fired by the Kagnere due to their status as merely advisors, Gelärhisgir was able to fire the Neire and attain status as the sole holder of power in the nation. He promptly passed constitutional amendments to remove the Neire and give their executive power to the Gëire. However, many of the former Neire all still wielded power as Ministers, which were left untouched.
==== Creation of the Elvëire ====
Following this, emergency elections for Gëire were held. The five victors were Anäsтyкović running under his new party, the Hrabian Bloc, Külar and Imyl'Xok Vemkvis, relatives of Lesmel Vemkvis, and two relative unknowns named Sjal Kasvel and Löva Rhesafel. As Gëire translates to "low council", Gelärhisgir suggested a new name be chosen, feeling "low council" no longer reflected the nature of the council. The name selected was Elvëire, meaning "great council".
==== Hrabian Autonomy ====
After many years, Hrabia finally obtained Autonomous Region Status under Gelärhisgir's campaign. This was largely due to Anäsтyкović's influence in the Elvëire council.
==== Emergence of Seabreeze ====
During this term, the town of Seabreeze in northern Sethris was newly founded by Zar-Ykar Trihjun, a military leader appointed by Lesmel Vemkvis. The town became quite isolated from the rest of Sethris due to its position in the Hrabian mountain range. Anäsтyкović reported that Trihjun was becoming dangerous. Lesmel revealed that Trihjun may have had ambitions to secede from Sethris, which sent the still-sensitive government into a panic.
==== The Ogórogród Incident ====
During a diplomatic meeting between some of the Sethrian government and Hrabia in Ogórogród, officials from Seabreeze, including Trihjun, approached them and demanded independence on the basis of wanting free reign for their business and market. They also threatened the involvement of nations such as Ashai and the Ashtrokan-Wandenreich Empire. Sethrian officials disputed these claims and argued against them. As the debate went on, Trihjun became impatient and attempted to attack Imyl'Xok Vemkvis, initiating a brief fight between the two sides. Hrabian officials arrested one of his right-hand men, later holding a trial for him, where he was executed. Losing motivation to fight, Trihjun retreated.
Seabreeze officials continued to deny that they were seeking independence after the incident. Trihjun himself attempted to play off the violence as comedic in nature. Following this, the Ministers took over due to the emergency powers given to them in the constitution. This often gave them the power to override the decisions made by the Elvëire, which frustrated some of them.
Upon hearing of the incident, Gelärhisgir demanded a meeting with Trihjun to clarify his intentions. The Ministers advised that it was best to declare war on Seabreeze immediately, a consensus that even Anäsтyкović, the most critical of the Elvëire, agreed with. Gelärhisgir was steadfast that the situation could be resolved peacefully, but allowed Volkif to deliver an ultimatum, were diplomacy to be unsuccessful.
==== Summit with Trihjun ====
Gelärhisgir and the rest of the government later met with Trihjun in the Avaris capitol building. Trihjun initially played dumb and denied seeking independence, claiming that the kill on sight orders placed on Gelärhisgir and Ykasfel were merely an effort to protect their own citizens following the Ogórogród Incident. However, this facade slowly dropped as Gelärhisgir continued to interrogate him. He eventually broke down into throwing insults at Gelärhisgir and other government officials, calling them such things as "smelly welly".
After several minutes of this, Volkif arrived, and, seeing the state of the situation, delivered the ultimatum. The ultimatum demanded that Trihjun and his supporters leave Seabreeze and Sethris or be invaded. Trihjun, now losing his carefree demeanor, left the capitol building to consider the terms.
==== Seabreeze crisis ====
Following the meeting, it soon became clear that Seabreeze would not comply with the ultimatum. Anäsтyкović reported that militarization of the area increased tenfold. In turn, the Sethrian government, led by the Ministers, began preparing for war. This began to frustrate the Elvëire even further. The Ministers also became unsatisfied with Gelärhisgir's handling of the conflict and his cautiousness.
Seabreeze continued to militarize. However, many of its citizens did not want war and begged the Sethrian government to resolve the conflict peacefully. War preparations continued, but they began to consider alternative options.
==== Gelärhisgir's Surprise Party coup & Hrabian Secession ====
On Gelärhisgir's twenty-fifth birthday, a faction of the ministers, led by Volkif and Lavestru, informed him of their intention to remove him from power and dissolve the Elvëire. They hoped to do so peacefully and keep Gelärhisgir in government. He did not resist, but went into self-imposed exile in the Rhovanian forest. The institution of Kagnere was dissolved, and replaced with a diarchy headed by Volkif and Lavestru. The Elvëire were removed from government, while the Ministers remained in power. Ykasfel, despite his affiliation with Gelärhisgir, also remained in power. Anäsтyкović, seeing the brief fragility of the government, used the opportunity to declare independence, and form the Hrabian Republic, which was not contested.
Volkif was later able to come to a peaceful agreement with Trihjun, and the war never began. Seabreeze left Sethrian territory. The government was further restructured, and elections were held to appoint new Ministers. Little changed, except a man named Kvirärvig-Prat Börkjelki filled Lavestru's previous role and a Geksiri named Hläpov Halbör filled Gelärhisgir's position as Minister of Culture.
=== Creation of SIGMA and the Great Serrukan War ===
Following the coup, the Sethrian government met in Avaris with delegates from Gunjou and Illystra. They agreed to sign a three-way defensive pact titled the Avaris treaty and founded the Sethris-Illystra-Gunjou Military Alliance (SIGMA). Shortly following this development, news reached Sethris that the AWE had stolen a sapling from the Great Silverwood and planted it in Woldex, one of their towns. Soon after, the AWE threatened the Kingdom of Eros, an ally of Ashai's (who had recently departed from CATO). Ashai declared war on them and a massive coalition joined the effort to combat the AWE. Early on, there were discussions within SIGMA to join the coalition due to the AWE's repeated offenses against Sethris and their general threatening presence. A vote to join the war passed quickly, and SIGMA declared full military support for Eros and their allies, ending Sethris' longstanding streak of neutrality.
During the Great Serrukan War, SIGMA troops, including Sethrian soldiers, were present at the Battle of Winterose and the Battle of Steigenbirge. Both battles were coalition successes.
== Politics ==
=== Government ===
Sethris is a republic with the Kagnere, or President, as the head of state. If the Kagnere were to die, disappear, or become incapable during their presidency, they would be replaced with their Kjoneas, or Vice President, although this role is rarely filled. Until Gelärhisgir's reforms, there was also a Neire, or High Council, which was comprised of appointed advisors who were to assist the Kagnere, as well as handle diplomacy, cultural affairs, and other things. There was also the Gëire, or Low Council, which comprised of elected officials meant to vote on and pass laws and bills. During Gelärhisgir's final presidency, these were reworked into the Ministries and Elvëire, respectively. There was also the Antare, or Royal Family, comprised of the descendants of Tsejaf Kalfël. The most recent Hasafi, or King, was Volkif Kalfël-Irëstir, and the most recent Sadasi, or Queen, was his wife Tsisu.
Following the coup, Gelärhisgir's reforms were removed and the government was reworked again. The Elvëire and Kagnere were abolished entirely, while new ministerial elections were held to fill the former Neire position. The heads of state became the diarchs, synonymous with the heads of the houses of Kalfël-Irëstir and Agvámir. The first diarchs were Volkif Kalfël-Irëstir and Hakávald Lavestru. The Constitution of Sethris was heavily modified, while the Bill of Rights remained largely the same, though all mentions of democracy and voting were removed. The nation continued to use the name "Republic of Sethris".
After the short absolute diarchal period the government gradually transitioned back to democracy with the Kagnere and Kjoneas being reintroduced. The presidential body and the diarchal body have a 50/50 say in decisions. The Neire is still comprised of the elected ministers re-introduced after the coup. 
=== Administrative divisions ===
Sethris is a unitary state divided into five Provinces: Ava, Rhovania, Törnis, Koldve, and Apëlkantse. Regions are also allowed to apply for Autonomous Region status in order to achieve self-governance, although only Hrabia has ever been able to achieve such status, and they seceded shortly afterwards. The Provinces serve little purpose and have never had provincial governments, despite efforts by some political factions.
=== Electoral Parties ===
==== Democratic Party of Sethris ====
The first political party of the nation, founded by Tsejaf Kalfël. Originally the nation's largest, its popularity dwindled following Tsejaf's death and it fell into obscurity once independent candidates became more popular. It promoted peace, freedom, prosperity, and representation for Sethrian citizens. It pushed for neutrality on international affairs and focus on internal function, such as activity and town development. Despite this, it also promoted trade and economic cooperation throughout the north of Eldham. It became the most influential party on both foreign and domestic policy for Sethris. 
==== Imperial Republic of Sethris ====
The Imperial Republic of Sethris (also known as the IRS), was the successor to the Sethris Fascist Republic, a short-lived Pavrhian ultranationalist party. It pushed for extreme reforms of the Sethrian government. It focused on economic issues, though many of their plans broke both the established Sethrian constitution and bill of rights. It also planned to invade bordering nations in order to increase national prestige. Early in the nation's history, its leader presented Tsejaf with an ultimatum to step down and cede leadership to the party, which was immediately declined. This caused the party to plan a violent coup, though this was stopped when Böngo and Gorb reached a compromise with them to implement some of their ideas. It lost much of its core membership and dissolved following the Clash of the Parties, and was eventually outlawed along with other anti-democratic parties during Gelärhisgir's first term.
==== People's Party of Sethris ====
The People's Party of Sethris, a Xeroist party led by Evëlin-Töve Yvantsel, pushed for bringing international attention to Sethris. They took strong stances on foreign policy matters and promised to increase trade, develop culture, and expand cities. They planned to make government direct and controlled heavily by the civilians of the nation. The name Neire was originally proposed by Yvantsel, who also pushed for national democratic centralism. The party's main goal was to modernize many government aspects of the nation, but potential members were often turned off by the Xeroist aspects of their campaign. The party never came to power, and eventually unofficially disbanded. It was later revived by Vinvüri businessman Külar Vemkvis, although the original policies of the party were entirely changed and it remained the same in name only.
==== Monarchist Party of Sethris ====
The Monarchist Party of Sethris, was the smallest political party in Sethrian history. They pushed for the Republic to be abolished and replaced with a monarchical system within the nation. They had little support due to their lack of further stances and the general dislike for monarchy following centuries of Pavrhian rule. 
==== Breakthrough Party ====
The Breakthrough Party, led by Ava-Likemu Magrökmur, was focused on developing economics within the nation. Parts of their campaign would include creating more jobs, domestic production, and economic freedom. It became very popular in Whiteridge, Magrökmur's hometown, one of the top exporters in Sethris.
==== Sethris Guard Party ====
The Sethris Guard Party, led by Daos, was a religious party, promoting mainly the Kalenzör's Watchmen sect of Sagaism. They to help the nation's population recover and planned to make Drako52 into a figurehead king of the nation with no particular powers.
==== Sethris Militaristic Party ====
The Sethris Militaristic Party, led by Lites-Vanar Skorm, had little development invested in their ideology but promised to invest in the Sethrian Armed Forces and expand Sethris by gaining more land and colonies. The party employed the use of exorbitant amounts of propaganda. They published twice as many advertisements as every other party combined, infamously flooding the streets of Avaris with signs prompting passersby to vote for Skorm.
==== Federalist Party of Sethris ====
Founded by Hrabian nationalist Ogóroнrb Päтyкović, the now defunct Federalist Party was a political party that aimed to reform Sethris into a federation of smaller autonomous states along ethnic lines. The party was disbanded after its Päтyкović decided it would not have enough non-Hrabian support to gain traction. 
==== Ember Party of Sethris ====
The Ember Party of Sethris (Sethrian: Nerkäkvada üt Sethris) was founded by Gäles-Ifrik Gelärhisgir shortly before his first term as Kagnere, promising amendments to the constitution, continuation of the policy of pacifism and non-interventionism Sethris had lived under since its beginning, and further protection of Sethrian democracy as well as a policy of government transparency. When Gelärhisgir was elected, the Ember Party became the first organized political party to hold power since the Blizzard Coalition. Gelärhisgir's constitutional amendments were successful, and he held further terms until he retired from politics. The party subsequently held power under Lesmel Vemkvis and Hartöm-Sildifar Ykasfel, and then Gelärhisgir again upon his return.
==== The Rubber Duck Party ====
The Reform and Democracy (or colloquially "Rubber Duck") Party, founded by Hrabian businessman Onlеós Кannović, was a political party that campaigned to fix the Sethrian demographic crisis, hold nationwide events, improve the Sethrian economy by providing incentives to local and international businesses, and improve Sethrian politics. It criticized previous administrations as "milquetoast", leading to tensions with the Ember Party. It lost popularity following the Кannović Scandal, during which its leader's affiliation with Hrabian separatist leader Ogóroнrb Päтyкović came to light, but Кannović himself remained involved in Sethrian politics.
=== Foreign Relations ===
==== The Northern Lights ====
During the the Neoz Scare, Sethris decided to join the Northern Lights, a military alliance in northwest Eldham. Sethris was already on good terms with many of the nations involved, such as Yaszuma and Varn Torum. Despite its early success, it fell into chaos following Yaszuma's exit. Yaszuma grew to be a threat to the alliance, though a peaceful solution was later reached. This led to the formation of the Constellation of the North.
==== The Constellation of the North ====
The Constellation of the North was the sucessor to the Northern Lights alliance, uniting the continent of Katsura. Sethris was among the founding nations, though due to its policy of neutrality, it rarely took action. After several internal crises, like the Glanra Breakdown, Sethris chose to focus on its own issues. The Constellation of the North eventually dissolved peacefully. 
==== SIGMA ====
Sethris has close relations with the nearby nations of Gunjou and Illystra. Shortly before the beginning of the Great Serrukan War, the three nations announced that they had signed a defensive pact called the Avaris Treaty, founding the Sethris-Illystra-Gunjou Military Alliance (SIGMA).
== Economy ==
=== Trade ===
Sethris uses the wider Eldhamite gold standard. It has trade agreements with surrounding nations, such as Sankai, Illystra, and Ashai. The nations main exports are fish, crops, stone, and coal. Salmon migrate up the Klevanor River yearly, and are hunted in Whiteridge every Spring. The main agricultural exports are berries, wheat, and potatoes, all of which are grown in Lipürhov, a town in Törnis. Also in Törnis is Tartarus, a massive quarry and mining operation owned by Sethvalir Co., which is the producer of the majority of Sethrian stone and coal. 
=== Notable corporations ===
==== The Sethris Times ====
The Sethris Times is a newspaper founded by Lev-Ifrik Gëlevëm and Vel-Mäst Atreiyen. The newspaper quickly gained popularity among the Sethrian population by reporting on local events. Soon after, Gäles-Ifrik Gelärhisgir was promoted to co-owner. Although they originally focused only on internal Sethrian news, an article on the collapse of Aristios launched them into worldwide acknowledgement. Controversy arose when Gëlevëm was removed as owner due to a series of violent remarks, but the newspaper continued publication. 
==== Vemkvis Industries ====
Owned and operated by the powerful Vemkvis family, Vemkvis Industries is known to manufacture everything from alcoholic beverages to weapons. Gelärhisgir repeatedly threatened to nationalize them during his presidency due to their questionable labor practices, but he was never able to, and under the current diarchy they were allowed to construct fortifications and weapons due to a contract with the government.
==== Sethvalir Co. ====
Sethvalir Co. is owned by Ava-Likëmu Magrökmur. They are partially owned by the Government of Sethris, and Magrökmur himself is serving as Minister of Production. They currently own Tartarus, previously a penal labor camp in Törnis, which they now use as a regular mining facility.
== Culture ==
=== Architecture ===
Sethrian architectural style is influenced by the climate and ecology of the region. Buildings are typically made of wood or stone. Stone is cobbled into large, angular bricks and pasted together using a special mortar made with mud and clay with modifications for maximum insulation against the cold. In cities influenced more by Vinvüri culture, grand, ornate designs are commonly painted onto walls, while human, Geksiri, and Koldëti-dominated regions are more prone to simpler decoration. Statues and monuments are constructed commonly by all cultures, especially ones depicting animals, warriors, and deities.
=== Races ===
==== Vinvüri ====
The Vinvüri are the most populous native race of Sethris and the second most populous race in general, after humans. They resemble humanoid foxes, typically with white or light grey fur. Compared to humans, they are short and slender in stature, standing at between 1.3 and 1.7 meters. They are long-lived, averaging a life expectancy of 110. A majority of the Vinvüri population resides in Avaris, although there are significant populations elsewhere in Sethris. Most Vinvüri follow the Orcaes Avaar religion. Historically, Vinvüri spoke the Vinvüri language, which is now extinct except for use as a liturgical language, and now most Vinvüri speak Sethrian.
==== Koldëti ====
The Koldëti arrived in Sethris shortly after the Vinvüri, with whom they had little contact until recently due to being geographically distant within Sethris; the Vinvüri lived in Elesis, a city-state where Avaris now lies, while the Koldëti lived, and still live, in the northwestern region of Sethris. They resemble humans, but are much larger at about 3.4-4.2 meters tall, and upon their heads they have antlers resembling those of deer or moose. These grow in at around age 15 or 16. They can live up to 600 years, although average life expectancy is much lower due to their warlike culture and religious sacrifices. Due to their stalwart resistance to human colonization, their ancestral language still survives and is in use to this day, although most Koldëti speak broken Sethrian as a second language. The Koldëti are divided into two tribes: the Northern and Southern Koldëti, which occupy the Northern and Southern halves of the Koldëti Territory in northwestern Sethris. The tribes are quite distinct from each other; the Northern Koldëti are paler and have slightly lighter hair, and are larger in stature and have bigger antlers, while the Southern Koldëti are of darker complexion and are slimmer. The two tribes speak distinct dialects of the Koldëtari language and don't interact often but typically get along well enough.
==== Geksiri ====
The final Sethrian-native race to arrive were the Geksiri. They resemble large and bipedal reptilians. They are taller than humans at 2-2.2 meters, but they tend to slouch. They are covered in scales, which are usually green, but other colourations include red, blue, black, and mixtures of those. They have elongated jaws with about 60 serrated teeth and hands with 3 claws, one of which is curved inwards and resembles an opposable thumb. They also have tails, which they use for balance. They are known to be great craftsman, tinkerers, artisans, seafarers, and merchants. Although they are not particularly physically strong they historically have been able to win battles through the use of strategy and advanced technology alone.
==== Humans ====
Although not recognized as native to Sethris, the historic cultural and political impact of the humans in Sethris is undeniable. Furthermore, they are the largest racial group in Sethris. The Sethrian language is descended from a language that was originally native to the Pavrhian humans, who are now the largest ethnicity of humans in Sethris. The humans arrived in two different migrations: first the Applernians arrived from the northwest, and then the Pavrhians from the east. The Pavrhians eventually dominated Sethris and founded the Empire of Pavrhitsöth, establishing themselves as the most powerful group in Sethris. After the collapse of Pavrhitsöth and the founding of the Republic of Sethris on the first Day of Frost, their power declined, but they continue to have great influence due to being the majority. Applernian humans are also present, although their numbers are few and they have largely been assimilated into Pavrhian culture, speaking Sethrian and following Lüetivyrn, the Pavrhian religion.
==== Hrabians ====
Hrabians are a race of green skinned humanoids who inhabit the region of Hrabia. Hrabians speak Hrabian, a Hrabo-Korolian language native to Hrabia. Hrabians are very distrustful of outsiders as a result of thousands of years of isolation, as the hollow mountain range separated them from mainland Sethris. Hrabians are only able to reproduce by marinating humanoids during a complex religious ritual. Although Hrabia seceded from Sethris, many Hrabians still reside in Sethrian-controlled regions near the border.
=== Religion ===
Freedom of religion is outlined as a core freedom in the Sethrian bill of rights, and as such there is no state religion. However, religious practice is still common in the nation. There are several religions native to Sethris, and many more that spread there through immigration. 
==== Lüetivyrn ====
The ethnic religion of Pavrhian humans, Lüetivyrn was founded from a conglomeration of various similar practices and versions of Pavrhian mythology during the reign of Pavrhitsöth. It is organized and polytheistic, with dozens of gods in its pantheon. The central god is Galres, a grizzled old blacksmith who spends his days making weapons at his forge in the Sun and only rests at night. Followers also believe that history is trapped in a cycle of the world being destroyed and rebuilt over and over, and that the coming calamity will be the final and most important one of all.
Members of the Glanraess subethnicity, who mainly live in Ystkalü, have a different version of the faith. Ava-Töve Dafrëgir, the prophet who originally created organized Lüetivyrn, was unable to reach the people living in Ystkalü due to the dangerous nature of the area at the time of his pilgrimage, and so they continued to practice their unorganized religion, and still do to this day. This is apparently what originally caused the divide between the Glanraess and most Pavrhians. Their religion is called Glanraess shamanism, and focuses more on the spiritual side of Pavrhian mythology. They construct large monuments, make sacrifices, and venerate the wisdom of the Sildifar gods, who play a much smaller role in mainstream Lüetivyrn. The religion was apparently influenced by that of the Koldëti.
==== Orcaes Avaar ====
Orcaes Avaar is the native faith of the Vinvüri. They worship the stars and the Great Silverwood in the center of Avaris. They believe that the world is divided into the Lands of Nature and the Lands of the Stars, which are inhabited by Nature Spirits and Star Spirits, respectively, and that a Nature Spirit named Dorsaf is responsible for murdering all other Nature Spirits; subsequently, the Council of the Stars sent down Elesmel to banish Dorsaf and repopulate the Lands of Nature with Star Spirits who volunteered to be made into mortals, called the Children of the Stars, who are believed to be the ancestors of modern Vinvüri.
==== Kelanzör's Watchmen ====
Kalenzor's Watchmen, or simply the Watchmen, is a religion that was founded by Daos and Evëlin-Töve Yvantsel. Both originally Sagaists, the two of them collaborated to create a sect with Solonist influences. After the religion was founded, Daos converted the Silver Order into their main clerical force after previously converting them to mainstream Sagaism. The is now based in Watcher's Keep, but have some followers across the nation, with towers in the towns of Zirbenberg and Whiteridge.
==== Solonism ====
Solonism was brought to Sethris by human immigrants shortly after the Republic was founded. The Sethrian branch of Solonism was mainly based in Zirbenberg, where there is still a Solonist temple. However, most Solonists emigrated from Sethris during the Blizzard Coalition and many who remained converted to Kalenzör's Watchmen following and abandoned their temples and settlements.
==== The Children of Ogór ====
The Children of Ogór, also known as the Picklist religion in Sethris because of their worship of sea pickles, is a monotheistic religion that teaches that the world is rotten, and will soon collapse. It is believed that in order to survive the imminent collapse, your mind and flesh must be preserved in brine, ultimately transforming the person being preserved into a Hrab. The process is described as immensely painful, or as pleasant, as the brine causes the participant to “molt” off their skin, revealing a Hrabian body beneath. They follow the word of a god called Ogór, and primarily operate out of the Grand Temple of Ogór in the city of Ogórogród. 
Category:Nations
Category:Eldham
Category:Sethris
__INDEX__
Category:Traveler's Era