Astrellas

The Flag of Astrellas
Astrellas: land of the strong, the indomitable, and the powerful. Astrellas is a country that while once oppressed, is now one of the strongest countries in the world in terms of military might. Her people tend to be religious, but not superstitiously so. Astrellans tend to like order, a clear and precise code of law, and security for all of her citizens.

## Geography and climate

Astrellas is located on the western coast of central Anatole. It is a fairly rocky region comprised of large plateaus that divide low river valleys in the foothill region of the southern mountain range. Their coastal region is a lot less rocky and comprises mainly of flat plains, perfect for farming hardy crops. While the coastal regions do see a fair amount of rainfall, central Anatole can see some particularly dry summers.

Astrellas has a fairly diverse climate. The plateau region, for instance, is home to mild winters and can see hot and dry summers. This causes water shortages during the summer and floods in the region during the changing of seasons, but due to the deep valleys, most flooding does not affect crops and towns. The large amount of cliffs throughout central Astrellas does make the moving of resources tedious and time consuming.

The next climate region, the coastal region, being flat and oceanic, has an abundance of crop and livestock production. Their dry seasons do not typically last as long as central Astrellas, but can still sometimes fall victim to drought or fire. This area is not forested, but is home to many a short, hardy tree that dot the Astrellan landscape. Before the Astrellan expansion to the river that now separates Astrellas and Titania, Astrellas had a real shortage of lumber and building materials. Due to this a lot of towns and homes in central and coastal Astrellas are made of white stone or brick.

The final climate region is that of the aforementioned expanded territories. This region composed of densely forested, rolling hills. Tributaries running into the border river can be found throughout this region, making the region fairly fertile and temperate. This region has become ideal for villages and small cities due to the ample supply of water and lumber resources.

## Culture

Astrellans are a very resolute and traditional people. They have a long history of establishing their right to self govern against oppressors. As such, many Astrellans tend to be a little intense and extremely proud of their traditions. Their culture comes from a mixture of the various influences that history has had upon them such as the Elven confrontations and Yomrish occupations. This has lead to a colorful and rich culture with a history of art, literature, and philosophy.

Astrellan people tend to be very strict, but vibrant. Their literature and art trends towards the realistic, but can often contain humor. Morallessons from literature usually pertain to solving some injustice or protecting the people. An example of this is in *Duque Jordania* in which the kind duke of a province rescues his servants from a life of hardship that they would have endured in the hands of radicals. Moral lessons such as these are fairly common throughout the history of Astrellas. Other common themes include devotion to country and religion, loyalty, and the promotion of the nation over self.

Astrellans tend to view those in high positions very favorably. The common belief is that only those fit to do so, are called to lead. As such, corruption and misuse of money, the military, or funds are not tolerated within Astrellas. The law system has very concise laws on how to deal with criminals. These laws are often viewed as extreme in some cases, for they often call for either the enslavement or death of those who have committed certain crimes such as theft or damage of property. A large portion of their law has to do with slavery as well, often giving rules in which slaves are to be treated and the price in which they are worth.

Astrellan dress is colorful and flaunting, but not ridiculously so. It is not uncommon to see women in loose-skirt dresses and men wearing pants with pale colors and repeated patterns. The statues that grace most cities are usually militatry and nature and often depict images of Romulus. Antares was once a popular subject of sculptures, but in recent years this has severly lessened. Many of the previous statues have been destroyed or removed due to their unpopularity.

## Government

Astrellas is a Autocratic, Imperial Monarchy. Though this was not always the case, during the last civil war, the parliament was dissolved due to its' inefficiency and stagnation of the lgal process. During this time, all power was seeded to the king whom proceeded to remove the power that many minor nobles had. This, though unpopular with some, was veiwed as a reconquest of the government from unnecessary bureaucracy. In its' current form, the military, political, and judiciary processes are handled by the king.

Though without a parliament, the people are of crucial concern to the Astrellan government. The protection of the people and the ensuring of total peace has become the chief priority to the king. As such, military pressence, even in rural townships, have increased tremendously after the civil war. This ensures that the people not only feel safe, but that the military is always on duty. Though not the first to establish a standing military, the Astrellan method of training and deployment have become particularly envied among other nations.

The government of Astrellas has complete control over the economic process. Many guilds and private establishments have been dissolved into the government, allowing the king to streamline the process of the aquisition of raw materials and goods. Though highly criticized by Adurandie writers, this process has tended to work much better than the previous systems of taxation and guilds that tended to prey upon the civilians who lacked any power to fight them.