Jining

Jining is a world with only one large landmass and multiple inland seas, it’s climate much like that of earth and about twice as large as earth with 3 times its mass. The size of the world has caused humans to become relatively short and stout. During the age of strife, the world of Jining became a feudal world reverting to a level of technology equal to that of the early renaissance. The decline of technology was mostly the result of many wars spreading across the entire solar system after the storms began. The entire system was to serve as a giant military production facility, producing only war materials and barely anything else. Relying on imports for almost everything. Though the system already produced large quantities of weapons most of the facilities were still under development. This proved to be the systems saving grace as the wars that broke out over resources didn’t just destroy everything. Still most of the old technologies were completely destroyed during this period of war and almost all trace of it simply vanished over time. In the north ancient factories have vanished below the ice, in the city of Ninjing a single factory complex remains operational amongst dozens of ancient factories too damaged to function and here and there you can still see the tips of factory complexes buried beneath the soil. Ancient languages have been forgotten causing the few remaining texts describing technology to become unreadable.

# **Dynasties rise**

After about a millennium of constant war the first true nations emerged. From these nations came five dynasties the Han, Guangxi, Wu, Shun and Dali dynasties. Over time each of these dynasties started gaining more and more control over the world eventually splitting the world in five nations.

The Han ruled the south and was with the Shun dynasty the least advanced of the five. This was the result of the climate in the south causing many people to lead nomadic lifestyles to survive. This caused tensions between the Han and the three dynasties on the northern border of Han as many of the nomadic tribes that belonged to the Han often stepped across the border to raid and claim land as their own. Though this has caused many a conflict it has made the Han the most powerful dynasty, militarily speaking, whilst also the most territory.

The Shun dynasty is simply the weaker northern version of the Han dynasty. Due to a much colder climate much of the territory they own is effectively useless add to that a much lower population and southern neighbours with better defendable borders and you get a large but relatively weak nation. The weakest of all the dynasties and as a result of millennia of military incompetence, a laughing stock for the rest of the world.

Guangxi the second weakest of the dynasties has seen great prosperity in the last few centuries, being able to forge strong relations with Both Dali and Wu as it supports both sides of a war over the various Islands in the large sea between the two counties. Due to these great trade relations Guangxi has been able to defend its borders against the many raids from the northern and southern neighbours.

Due to the many natural defences on its border the Wu dynasty never has to worry much about threats from the south and the good relations with Guangxi the eastern border is very much secure. Only Dali is a real threat to the might of the Wu dynasty. The feeling of being threatened by their neighbour has driven them to war for over the millenia and slowly but surely taking islands from Dali and establishing naval superiority. Soon the Wu Dynasty shall reign supreme.

Dali being the oldest and most advanced of the dynasties they have maintained some ancient technology and had some success in maintaining it. This technology in nothing more than great artillery and a single factory to make munitions. These mighty engines of war are the only thing that have held the dynasty in power though. For since the birth of the Han dynasty they have been losing ground to them only their mighty forts and artillery stopping their advance. Even with constant pressure on the southern border Dali has been able to maintain their border for over 5000 years, the nobility has become complacent as a result though. Due to this complacency many nobles have stopped worrying about foreign invasion and started looking for ways to grow their power within the nation itself, this has started an age of internal conflict which will last for centuries. Over time this has weakened the nation and even as Wu is slowly gaining ground for the first time in centuries. The nobility keeps looking inward, either ignorant or uncaring of the danger their nation is in. Due to inbreeding many noble families are dying out, unable to produce offspring. As a result, internal conflicts continue to weaken the nation more and more. Dali is weakening itself to the point that even the shun dynasty sees an opportunity to break in from the north for the first time since the birth of the dynasty. Even with its military superiority Dali is on the verge of collapse and only the neighbours seem to have noticed.

# **Local traditions and cultural tendencies**

* Wu Dali and Guangxi have a fairly strict class system. This class system is built up out of the working class, the military class and the nobility. The working class contains essentially everyone who is not born a noble or hasn’t joined the military class. The military class contains trained soldiers who are picked from any members of the militia who show potential or are picked from those born into the class. Lastly the nobility contains people who have once had an ancestor who claimed a piece of land and had other people work for him there. Most nobles live in castles to show their power and protect themselves from others who might want their land. The nobles are still obligated to pay taxes to the ruling dynasty they serve and to keep the military class fed, well equipped and payed.
* The people of Jining have great respect for their elders especially their elder family members. This has resulted in most people seeing those who are older than them as their betters, at least those among the general populous will often think this way. This all has resulted in many people being fiercely loyal to older rulers and being quicker to blame younger rulers for their problems. Due to this it is almost unheard of for a noble to abdicate his seat as head of the family to one of his sons
* The people of Jining have had a hard work ethic since before they were severed from the rest of humanity and they will work under almost any circumstance with little to no complaints.
* Due to the chance of being randomly attacked by nomadic tribesmen or some noble who doesn’t like the one you serve many villages and cities will force the poor and homeless to become militiamen. It is also not unheard of that some orphans are adopted into the military class, if they show the ability to fight that is.
* The Mandate of Heaven, the right of a family to proclaim themselves the ruling dynasty of a certain territory. The only necessities that are required to proclaim the mandate of heaven are, the ability to protect the nobles under your rule from foreign threats, the loyalty of enough nobles that nobody can say your family is not a dynasty and the ability to maintain a certain amount of stability within your territory. In the case of Dali there is another thing that gives them the Mandate of Heaven, namely the factory producing ammunition for artillery and pieces to maintain artillery that is so far beyond anything anyone else has that nobody has the ability to really say no to them.