Khieram

Yuan-ti

Common

Elvish

Sororibus Pantheon

Fey Worship

16% Wolfborn

13% Lizardfolk

12% Kenku

11% Grung

9% Human

1% Dwarf

0.75% Elf

0.25% Gnome

Known as the **Land of A Thousand Gods**, Khieram is one of the oldest civilizations in the lands of Ireneus. The elves first documented the once isolated land, when they started expanding eastward. They described it as a dense, nearly uninhabited jungle, outlined with rivers and tributaries, the lands were dangerous, and the people savages. Contrary to this, however, the nation was already prosperous at the night, and its nine clans already united. but the once the nation opened up to the world, it soon became a major political power in the east.

## History

### Founding

The nation of Khieram is named after the Khieram river, which branches out of the Great River and flows eastward reaching the ocean to the east. The delta system from which the river meets the the sea created a fertile region that the early inhabitants of Khieram benefited from.

It was the elves of the north that first made contact with the people of Khieram. By this time, the different clans are already united under the tabaxi king, Emperor Shrivatsa Lhakarr.

### Nine Clans of Khieram

The legends say that the goddess Jaduga stepped down from the heavens, and promise to give the animals of the land intelligence above all the rest. The beasts raced towards her, and the first nine to arrive was the panther, the wolf, the crow, the frog, the tiger, the python, the crocodile, the naja, the gecko and the turtle. Jaduga gave these animals new life, granting each and every one a soul. Each animal represented the clans that soon rose among the jungle of Khieram.

* **The Panther Clan** (Tabaxi) - strong bodied cat-people who lives on top plateaus. Emperor Shrivatsa is part of the panther clan, thus the royal line belongs to their family.
* **The Tiger Clan** (Tabaxi) - Cat-people who live on vast tracks of flat lands.
* **The Wolf Clan** (Wolfborn) - furry wolf-people who lives in tight communities.
* **The Python Clan** (Yuan-Ti) - a clan of snake-people who lives inside caves.
* **The Naja Clan** (Yuan-Ti) - a clan of snake-people who lives on grassy meadows
* **The Gecko Clan** (Lizardfolk) - petite lizard-people living on trees
* **The Crocodile Clan** (Lizardfolk) - large, muscular lizard-people who lives floating houses
* **The Crow Clan** (Kenku) - flightless bird-people who lives on trees.
* **The Frog Clan** (Grung) - frog-like people who lives on swamps

The unification of the nine clans of Khieram is credited to Emperor Shrivatsa's father, who is said to be bestowed by Jaduga with the divine right to rule all over other clans of the lands. Meawhile, Emperor Shrivatsa opened up the nation's borders to its neighboring elves and brought numerous advances in Khieramese culture, economy and society.

## Location

The nation is situated in the Khieram river-delta region. The entire nation is covered by a nearly impassable jungle, and the only way through is via its river system.

The nation's capital and its biggest city is Hiel.

## Government

The Emperor of Khieram is the head of the imperial family and the head of the Nine Nations of Khieram. In the early days, the Emperor was guided by Divine Right, and held absolute power over the affairs of the nation, Eventually, that power waned, and the monarchy gave way to the rise of the *Rajhs*, or regents. Regents are appointed by the monarch, picked from a council of ministers voted by the people. Currently, the regents hold the true political power over the nation, pushing the Emperor as more of a ceremonial and religious symbol.

## Society

If Ad-Nilem is the cultural melting pot in the west, that title is held firmly by Khieram, and its capital city, Hiel. The land's dense jungle helped each of the clans of Khieram develop their own culture, each one stands out from each of the other clans. Eventually, with the elven influence pouring in, those different cultures mixed up together to form a more unique one.

The people of Khieram, and its various clans, have been in relative peace for a very long time. Minor disputes, over territory or such, have risen throughout the years, but none has threatened the established unity of the nine clans. Every clan is considered equal, and no clan is above the rest, despite the monarchy belonging to the Panther clan.

## Religion

Among many titles of the Khieram nation, the one they are really proud of is **The Lands of a Thousand Gods**. Although all of Khieramese believe in one goddess Jaduga, to be the mother of all people, they also acknowledge other deities in other devotions. The nation practices what it calls "Freedom of Worship", in that any individual is free to revere any deity they want, and any outside religion is welcome to establish their temples in the lands as long as they adhere to three rules:

1. No Demon worship
2. No humanoid sacrifice
3. No subversive teachings

There are 122 "accredited" forms of worship in the lands. All of these churches pay a certain amount of tax or levy to the government depending on the number of their followers.

## Notable People

* **Nong-Poi** - a half-elven monk who travelled to the west and joined the Godslayer Expedition for a short time.
* **Tora Fiskarr** - a tabaxi artificer who was taken in by The Stormbringer agents from the streets of Hiel.
* **Ynnuf** - a tiefling traveler who spent most of her time growing up in Khieram.