Nesarian Empire

> "*There was a dream, Velu, a dream that was the Empire. A dream of all nations united under one banner, kneeling to the Gods, bringing peace to the war-torn and justice to the wicked. I will see this dream come true, or I will die trying.*"
> ― Emperor Athdus III
>
>

## Nesarian Empire / Nesariai Regatina

The Nesarian Empire highlighted in Elloris Purple, a colour strongly associated with the country

### Official Language(s)

Only Nesarian used in Imperial administration, numerous languages used in lower levels of administration

### Demonym

Imperial / Regatai

*Not to be confused with Nesaria.*

The **Nesarian Empire** (Nesarian: *Nesariai Regatina*), also referred to simply as the Empire or (erroneously) Inecuria, is a federal constitutional monarchy covering the entirety of the continent of Inecuria, which lies south-east of Asia and west of South America. As its official name is the Nesarian Empire, both words are proper nouns and are capitalised (not "Nesarian empire"). The Nesarian Empire is the second-largest country in the world by land area, at approximately 15.5 million km2. If all territorial waters are included, though, the Nesarian Empire covers the largest surface area of any country by a significant margin.

The Nesarian Empire was first formed in 58BC after the Republican War by Emperor Mathados IV, establishing a single monarchical state ruling over Nesaria. Nesaria and the Nesarian Empire were initially considered to be one and the same, but the distinction was drawn after the conquests of Emperor Athdus the Great, who brought approximately half of Inecuria under Imperial rule. The Empire always allowed its constituent nations significant autonomy since its inception, but the modern federal power structure of the Empire has its origins in the Congress of Onshi of 147-153 (1647-1653 INC), and the long-running debate over the power of the Imperial state was largely concluded with the Time of Troubles of 941-960 (2441-2460 INC).

The continent of Inecuria possesses highly distinct landscapes and peoples that were once thought to be mere myths and legends in most of the world. Most inhabitants of Europe and Asia who did not have direct contact with the continent or its people assumed the continent's bloody history of magic, mutants and demons to be fictional - or at least highly exaggerated - as late as the 19th century. However, the Imperial Civil War of 1839-60 (3339-3360 INC) proved to the outside world that such things were indeed real - though with utterly catastrophic results for the Inecurians. Inecuria has since become an object of immense curiosity for the rest of the world, and the continent has attracted numerous tourists from across the world since the late 20th century; as of the 2010s, Inecuria has become the world's leading tourist destination.

The Nesarian Empire boasts one of the world's most powerful economies. With a total GDP of approximately $21 trillion, the Imperial economy rivals that of the USA and European Union - but with a population over 701 million, its GDP per capita is relatively low by the standards of developed countries, at $29,957. The Empire ranks highly in metrics of income equality, but it has significant wealth inequality, largely because most of the wealthiest families are extremely ancient aristocratic dynasties.

The Empire was the first region of the world to undergo an industrial revolution, but various political and social issues throughout the centuries have stifled Imperial industrial development since the mid-19th century - as well as a simple lack of coal and oil. Though it lacks these key resources, Inecuria is relatively abundant in iron, copper and tin, and the continent hosts the world's largest uranium deposits. Large-scale uranium mining operations began under the reign of Emperor Adrion for use in both nuclear weapons and power plants; though originally this was a means to electrify the continent without having to rely on imported coal and oil, the Imperial fondness for nuclear power has since taken on a distinctly environmentalist flavour, and the negligible use of fossil fuels for energy generation has become a point of pride for Inecurians.

The Empire is often criticised abroad - particualrly in the west - for the undemocratic nature of its government. Although democracy is present to some extent in all local governments, the Imperial State - the federal governing body which rules the Empire as a whole - is completely undemocratic. The Emperor is not merely a ceremonial figurehead as in many other modern monarchies; he wields supreme executive, judicial and military power, and he holds legislative power alongside the Imperial Council, which consists of a mix of appointed, hereditary and clerical members. Surveys generally show, however, that the Inecurians themselves are mostly favourable - or, at least, indifferent - towards it; the general opinion is that the undemocratic nature of the Imperial State matters little when Imperial subjects are still able to vote on local issues that actually matter to them.

The key exception is certain minorities that the Imperial State is uncaring or hostile towards; though the undemocratic Imperial State is perceived to work for the benefit of the average Inecurian by its subjects, vulnerable minorities can never possess the political power to better their position under this system. In the 1930s and 40s, the minority most affected by this was the Urilians. In modern times, the minority that suffers the most from this system is the LGBT community and other communities adjacent to it. The highly conservative Empire is notoriously unwelcoming to this minority; it refuses to recognise homosexual marriages as valid, prohibits the spread of what it considers "corruptive propaganda", and considers transgenderism a mental illness. The Empire is additionally, in some respects, systematically discriminatory towards atheists; they are prohibited from some key offices, particularly those involved with the law, as the Imperial State considers the oaths of an atheist worthless.

Although the Empire's state religion is Elveta, in practice it is a highly tolerant state and always has been; as long as a religion follows the same basic moral tenets as Elveta, the Imperial State does not interfere with it. This means that all the mainstream religions of Inecuria have complete freedom, and most are even represented in the Imperial Council alongside Elvetan clergy - however, some religious minorities experience great difficulty spreading their message and opening new temples if their morals are considered to be incompatible with Elvetan teaching.

The Empire also continues to empower the Imperial Inquisition, an Elvetan holy order charged with rooting out "heresy, corruption and other evil deeds", which is often said to be the single most powerful institution of the Empire; it has the authority to arrest or execute anyone within Imperial borders, and answers only to the Emperor himself. However, the Inquisition's role has changed dramatically over time; it has not actually been in the business of enforcing Elvetan orthodoxy for well over a millennium, and the modern Inquisition mostly acts as auditors and specialist agents of the law. Historically, the Inquistion was best-known for its role in hunting demons and mutants, and its definition of "heresy" had shifted by the 3rd century AD from "Elvetan heterodoxy" to "demon-worship".

Like all aggressive imperialist powers, the Nesarian Empire has a long list of accusations of war crimes and human rights abuses, very few of which the Imperial state admits to, and fewer still it has actually apologised for. However, the international reputation of the Empire is generally more mild than other imperialist powers, largely due to its hardline approach to the total destruction of slavery and the strong degree of autonomous self-rule it granted to conquered nations. The latter policy was more a result of necessity than ideology, as Nesaria has never actually been capable of truly enforcing its rule over Inecuria or the overseas territories in Asia - meaning that the Imperial state requires the consent of the governed in order to function, forcing the state to be very careful to never come off as overbearing or tyrannical.

## Definition as an Empire

Although the Nesarian Empire itself translates *Regatina* as Empire and *Regatu* as Emperor - and is unlikely to change which translation it officially prefers, for the sake of consistency - these terms have been argued by both Inecurian and overseas academics to not necessarily be accurate to how the state functions, or how it is perceived by its subjects.

The dispute is partly about what the definition of an empire actually is. The Nesarian Empire certainly fits within the loosest definition of an empire - that is, a large state governed by a supreme Emperor, ruling over numerous territories and nations, which was created through conquest and annexation - but it generally falls short of more specific definitions.

The political organisation of the Nesarian Empire has never strongly resembled other states termed "empires"; the origins of what would eventually become constitutional federalism can be seen in the very first expansions beyond Nesaria itself, under the reign of Emperor Athdus the Great. Many historians have argued that Avemiri Simakha's marriage to Athdus shows that a tradition of voluntary participation in the Empire was present from the very beginning, even in territories conquered by military might.

Inecurians - both today, and in the past - have generally never considered Nesaria to be the Empire's metropole, despite the Empire bearing its name. Academics tend to agree that the economic benefits Nesaria received from the Empire were primarily due to trade links and not a result of wealth extraction from the peripheral territories - some historians even argue that the maintenance of the Empire has been a consistent drain on Nesaria, as it has always disproportionately contributed to the Imperial military machine without reaping the traditional rewards of war plunder.

Nesaria, and the Nesarian Empire as a whole, has generally always been considered by non-Nesarian Imperial subjects to be an enforcer rather than a dominator. This image was deliberately cultivated by the Imperial State, and is arguably the main factor as to why the Empire was first accepted by Inecurians and has continued to be accepted to this day. Although the Empire began with Athdus's conquests, the true essence of what the Nesarian Empire would become began in the wake of the War for the World; the Empire had not only won great favour for its leading role in protecting refugees and defeating the Cosmovores, but it solidified its reputation by providing financial assistance to the most devastated areas and supplying soldiers to maintain order in places where the state had completely collapsed.

Particularly under Empress Rixa, the Empire began to foster a reputation as a keeper of law and order which has lasted to the modern day, and its status as an outsider and a newcomer was believed to make it fair and impartial when dealing judgement; beyond the Empire's fervent and fanatical dedication to eradicating slavery and its lesser but still strong determination to end polygamy, it had no stake in the bitter ancient conflicts that continued to divide the continent.

The Nesarian concept of an "empire", both when the Empire was founded under Mathados IV and today, differs substantially from the European concept (which derives from the Romans), and the term *Regatina* has very different connotations to "empire". *Regatina*, in its most literal translation, means a state beyond or above a kingdom (a *Retina*), or a state that consists of many kingdoms uniting together as one; consequently, *Regatu*'s literal meaning is more akin to "King of Kings" than "Emperor". However, *Regatina* also has an implied ideology embedded within it; a notion of many peoples coming together as one, a state that transcends nations and races, ruling to enforce peace and justice over all.

*Regatina* is a term fundamentally inseparable from the Elvetan doctrine (later also adopted by Inecurian Christians) of the "war against the world", a belief that the only way to achieve peace on Earth is for one state to rule the world under the guidance of the gods, governing according to divine teachings. Though in practice such a state was primarily created through warfare, *Regatina* does not necessarily imply unification through conquest, only that there is unity under one state.

Considering the political structure of the Empire, the role of Nesaria within it and the language itself, scholars are increasingly arguing that the most accurate translation of *Regatina* is Commonwealth, despite the western (particularly American) association of "commonwealth" with "democratic republic". A minority argue for Federation, but this has a distinct word in Nesarian (*Betalvo*) which has never been used to refer to the state of the Nesarian Empire, so it is rejected by the mainstream consensus.

## Imperial Countries

The Imperial Countries are the countries that constitute the Nesarian Empire. Though only the term "Imperial Country" is used in an official capacity, they are also often referred to as "constituent countries" or "constituent nations". The map to the right is a simplified depiction of the borders of the Imperial Countries.

In the order they were integrated into the Empire, the Imperial Countries are as follows, with their colour on the map in brackets next to them (note that Asmocaria, Cisenila and Rulcaria were effectively all integrated simultaneously):

* Nesaria (Purple)
* Asmocaria / Asmukhar (Yellow)
* Cisenila / Kyçenil (Brown)
* Rulcaria / Rulkhar (Emerald Green)
* Onshi (Maroon)
* Epsilucia / Häpsiluuki (Blue)
* Avamorica / Walmóríce (Red)
* Saveria / Saferia (Light Blue)
* Calparnia / Chalparna (Burnt Umber)
* Calsunaria / Kalzuranur (Cream)
* Keloruela (Green)
* Roulonne (Gold)
* Escaria / Eske Karaa (Sky Blue)
* Kuateoha (Dark Grey)

## Greatest Extent

*See also: The Empire in Asia*

At its greatest extent (shown on the map), the Nesarian Empire ruled over not only the continent of Inecuria but the majority of Southeast Asia, which it acquired slowly but surely over several centuries. By the time the Imperial borders reached their greatest extent with the completion of the conquest of Chiang Mai (modern Thailand) in 1834, the Empire was the largest, most populous and arguably most powerful empire in the world, fielding a vast army and navy. However, the catastrophic Civil War of 1839-60 opened up an opportunity for rival colonial powers.

A British, French and Dutch coalition invaded in 1842 and, though the Nesarian Empire put up a respectable fight considering the circumstances, the situation was ultimately unwinnable and the Treaty of Singapore was signed in 1847, surrendering the majority of the Empire's Asian territories. The Empire was eventually completely shattered, losing all its overseas territories, by the Treaty of Haguun following the First World War.

The Treaties of Signapore and Haguun are to this day extremely sore topics throughout the Empire. The sentiment felt by every Inecurian, both then and now, was that these acts were an incomprehensibly cruel and evil betrayal of an Empire that had given over a hundred million lives to defend the world from demonic invasion during the Civil War; most Inecurians still feel that these acts are utterly unforgivable and hold spiteful grudges against the western powers, and the unfathomable rage of Inecuria was manifested in the fascism of Emperor Adrion.

Although the Nesarian Empire no longer possesses any of its colonial territories, its legacy lives on in both the culture and the population. Many ex-Imperial colonies contain substantial colonial populations (typically of ethnic Nesarians), particularly the small pacific islands, many of which are majority Nesarian. Aspects of Imperial architecture, cuisine, lifestyle and governance also live on in most of their colonies.

## Demographics

At the last census in 2018, the population of the Nesarian Empire was recorded as 701,988,793, making it the third most populated country in the world, behind India and ahead of the USA. A large portion of this population lives in several key cities, and much of the rest of the country is rural and sparsely populated. In order from most populous to least populous, the populations of each constituent country of the Empire (at the 2018 census) are as follows:

* Onshi - 93,448,210
* Kalzuranur - 90,800,724
* Nesaria - 80,604,307
	+ Nesaria Proper - 74,204,119
	+ Coastal Colonies - 6,400,188
* Chalparna - 64,210,760
* Avamorica - 59,400,271
* Roulonne - 58,985,238
* Asmukhar - 54,218,900
* Rulkhar - 53,907,628
* Epsilucia - 45,980,004
* Saveria - 24,240,556
* Keloruela - 22,145,671
* Kyçenil - 20,543,278
* Eske Karaa - 13,511,789
* Kuateoha - 10,991,457

## Politics

The Nesarian Empire is a federal constitutional monarchy which many scholars have described as being neo-feudal in nature due to its high degree of decentralisation and strong emphasis on hereditary aristocracy. It is the last remaining major state which is run in this manner, with a powerful monarch at the head and noble families below him. It is often criticised overseas for its archaic and undemocratic nature, but the government enjoys a significant amount of support from its people. Whether this reflects genuine popular satisfaction with the system or whether it is simply the result of a highly successful propaganda operation remains debated worldwide.

The Imperial constitution originated in a series of treaties and agreements concluded throughout the 2nd and 3rd centuries, and further reformed in the constitutional settlement of 922 and again in the late 10th and early 11th centuries, following the Time of Troubles. These were drawn together and codified into a single document (titled the Imperial Constitution) without substantial change by Emperor Jacras I following the Civil War, which was published in 1860, mere weeks before Jacras passed away.

### Government

The government of the Empire can be split into two parts; the Imperial Countries and the Imperial State. The Imperial Countries are autonomous "states" within the Empire, and the Imperial State is the overarching Imperial beauracracy - not to be confused with the Imperial Government, which is the political body that governs the Imperial State.

#### Imperial Countries

The Imperial Countries have significant autonomy over their own legislation, economic and social policies, internal system of governance and public services. Such a system is sometimes described as neo-feudal, because the Imperial State essentially allows the Imperial Countries to do whatever they wish as long as they contribute taxes, participate in the Emperor's wars and adhere to the Imperial Laws, pieces of legislation set by the Imperial Government which apply across the whole country. This is reflective of the Empire's origin of being a network of allies dominated by Nesaria which soon turned into *de facto* vassals.

Although there is diversity in the systems of government of the Imperial Countries, reflecting each nation's culture and political traditions, there are several key trends which can be identified in all or almost all of them. Chief among these is a cautious attitude to democracy; most Imperial Countries only permit democratic elections at the level of individual towns and cities, more often than not having their higher levels of government appointed or inherited. Another trait of government found in nearly all of the Imperial Countries is a strong emphasis on localism and decentralisation, with the central authority typically having an indirect role in governance.

#### Imperial Government

*For more information: Imperial Government*

The Imperial Government is the governing body of the Imperial State. In legislative affairs, it acts much like a bicameral body, with the Imperial Council acting as the lower house and the Emperor alone acting as the upper house. In executive, judicial and military affairs, the Imperial Council is merely advisory, as the Emperor wields supreme authority in these areas.

The Imperial Council is entirely undemocratic, a fact which has drawn criticism from liberals across the world. Most members are appointed, but there are also hereditary positions and representatives of all the Empire's major religions - though, perhaps unsurprisingly, Elvetans are considerably overrepresented. Although the majority of the Imperial populace is content with this system, it leaves no room for the betterment of key discriminated minorities such as atheists or the LGBT community.

### Law and Criminal Justice

*For more information: Imperial Law*

*See also: Ages of Consent*

Most matters of law and justice are handled by the Imperial Countries rather than the Imperial State, in a manner analogous to how most matters of law in the United States are handled by the states rather than the federal government.

However, there are nonetheless laws which the Imperial State considers to be of extreme importance, and which are enforced across the entire Empire in the same way. These are known as the Imperial Laws. The very first such law was the abolition of slavery across the Empire, passed by Emperor Athdus III.

#### Death Penalty

Imperial Law allows for the death penalty, but strictly controls which crimes can be punishable by execution. It allows (but does not obligate) for the death penalty for crimes classified as "atrocities", and obligates it for crimes classified as "gross atrocities". "Atrocities" covers such crimes as murder, sexual assault, conspiracy to frame an individual for a crime punishable by death, and distribution of "abominable" illegal pornography. "Gross atrocities" covers such crimes as rape, sexual assault of minors, and sexual activity with animals. To put it in more clear terms; "atrocities" *can* be punished by death, whereas "gross atrocities" *must* be punished by death.

There are other offences which are not explicitly permitted to be punishable by death by any Imperial Law, but are nonetheless allowed to be punished by execution through tradition and convention - and because the list of "atrocities" is not actually the definitive list of the *only* crimes that can be punished by death, but rather simply a list of crimes that can be punished by death. This chiefly refers to sacrilege; despite never being enshrined in Imperial Law as a crime punishable by death, most Inecurian countries - including Nesaria itself - punish sacrilege with death. Somewhat bafflingly, Imperial Law does define the offence of sacrilege despite not mentioning the appropriate punishment, since this is part of the text of an Imperial Law which *prohibits* the death penalty for apostasy and blasphemy, and contrasts blasphemy from sacrilege by defining blasphemy as offensive speech and sacrilege as the destruction or vandalisation of places or things considered sacred by an "established religion".

Imperial Law does not proscribe any specific method of execution, but the text of the law does obligate executioners to "deliver a swift death", and the law explicitly prohibits some methods of execution that are considered cruel, inhumane or unreliable. In contrast to other modern states which routinely practice execution such as the United States, the Nesarian Empire prohibits the use of lethal injections and the electric chair. Imperial Law also prohibits death by burning - something that remains irksome to fundamentalist Nakkalites to this day, since their religious law mandates death by burning for some egregious offences. Instead, Nakkalite states are required to kill the criminal first through humane means before burning their body.

Imperial Law dictates that if multiple options of execution are available, then the condemned is free to choose which method they wish - but the law does not actually obligate courts to have multiple options available. The vast majority of executions are carried out either by firing squad or decapitation, with the former being slightly more common. Imperial Law also enshrines the "right to die in combat", whereby those sentenced to death can volunteer for intentionally suicidal missions for the Imperial Army or Imperial Inquisition, allowing the criminal to die on their own terms. Under some circumstances, a judge may deem that if the condemned survives their suicidal mission, they may be acquitted of their sentence. In times of war and strife, this option is usually the most popular.

#### Rights

Many Imperial Laws regard the rights of citizens. Most of these rights are similar to other modern nations, but some of the more notable and interesting ones are detailed here.

Imperial Law protects the "right to combat", which permits two individuals to fight one another if they both agree to a fair fight. What determines a fair fight is up to the discretion of a judge if it comes to the courts, but several guidelines are given by the Imperial codes; the fight must be between two individuals who are of sound mind (meaning they are not under the influence of intoxicants and have no known mental illnesses that would impact their rationality), the fight must not harm individuals or property beyond those who agreed to the fight, the fight must not continue if a participant yields, and both participants must be using the same weapons or choose from the same set of weapons. The right to combat allows for fights to the death, but it must be agreed upon beforehand that the fight will be to the death. Perhaps most importantly, the right to combat enables a closely related topic in Imperial Law, the "conclusion by combat", whereby fair combat upon mutually agreed terms is considered a valid method of resolving civil legal disputes, and the result of the fight will be legally binding. It is important to note that this is only permissible in civil disputes between two private citizens, and cannot be done in criminal trials.

Another notable example of rights protected by Imperial Law would be access to firearms; the right to bear arms as well as the right to openly carry firearms (provided the carrier has their licence in possession) are enshrined in Imperial Law, and whilst some restrictions on firearms are dictated in Imperial Law, there are also a list of restrictions on firearms which Imperial Countries are *prohibited* from enforcing - i.e. such things are explicitly permitted by Imperial Law. It should be noted that the list of explicitly permitted types of firearms or modifications to them is not a comprehensive list of everything that is legal, rather a list of things which cannot be legislated against. Most of the content on this list arose from Imperial Countries attempting to restrict firearms in a manner which the Imperial Government disagreed with, or from the Imperial Government observing restrictions they disliked in foreign countries and pre-emptively legislating to prevent these restrictions. Examples from this list include handguns, high-capacity magazines (defined as magazines holding between 10 and 40 rounds), pistol grips, burst fire (but not fully automatic) mechanisms and bullets with a calibre up to 10 millimetres (roughly .40 inches). All of this is accompanied by another Imperial Law dictating that firearm safety must be taught in all schools from the age of 8 and reinforced once every two years. Firearm clubs are common in schools throughout the country.

All firearms must be registered, and most firearms require a licence to own, with an additional licence required to openly carry them. Whilst open carrying is permitted with a licence, concealed carrying is always prohibited. Handheld muzzle-loaders, as long as they do not have bayonets, do not require a licence to own and may be openly carried with a basic firearm licence rather than a full open carry licence. The addition of the word "handheld" was made in 1992 after a citizen successfully argued in court that he did not require a licence to own his muzzle-loading 6-pounder cannon.

### Citizenship

Citizens of the Nesarian Empire enjoy a number of rights and privileges that non-citizen visitors or residents do not. First and foremost, only citizens have the right of political participation; non-citizens cannot vote in any kind of election. Non-citizens also cannot acquire firearm licences, are not entitled to any form of state welfare, and only the first $20,000's worth of their medical costs are covered if they use state healthcare services, whereas citizens receive entirely taxpayer-funded healthcare. Non-citizens are also obviously barred from all government positions of high office, and are barred from certain key positions in state-owned or state-run companies.

Whilst some legal quirks surrounding the isle of Feronar means that its inhabitants are technically not, legally speaking, Imperial citizens, they are treated exactly the same as Imperial citizens and are *de facto* no different.

Citizenship can be acquired through four different means, which are somewhat poetically titled Integration, Duty, Service and Glory. These are:

* **Integration** - A non-citizen can acquire citizenship if they have lived within the Empire for 15 years and can pass a rigorous citizenship test which evaluates the applicant's knowledge not only of Imperial culture but also the national culture of the part of the Empire they live in. To pass the test, they must also have a working knowledge both of Nesarian and the local language of where they live. The wait period is reduced to 8 years if the non-citizen is married to a citizen. Non-citizens born in the Empire can also achieve citizenship through Integration by taking the citizenship test once they reach the age of 17.
* **Duty** - A non-citizen can acquire citizenship both for themselves and any immediate family who are Imperial residents by serving in any capacity in the Imperial Armed Forces for 3 years in combat roles or 4 years in non-combat roles. If a non-citizen dies as a result of their military service, their immediate family (if they live within the Empire) is automatically granted citizenship.
* **Service** - A non-citizen can acquire citizenship through civil service. Exactly how long this takes varies depending upon the manner of service; relatively unskilled labour such as construction or military production can take as long as 5 years, whereas train drivers serve for 4 years, and doctors only need to serve for 2. Again, like with Duty, the Service method of gaining citizenship also grants citizenship to any immediate family members who are Imperial residents. Most non-citizens who gain citizenship this way stay in their profession, as it tends to be very stable and secure work.
* **Glory** - A non-citizen can acquire citizenship by being gifted it by the Emperor, who has the right to grant citizenship to anyone he wishes. Since this is almost exclusively done in recognition of mighty deeds, this method is titled Glory.

## Economy

*Main page: Imperial Economy*

*See also: Imperial Transport Infrastructure*

The Nesarian Empire is widely recognised as one of the world's strongest economies. Not only does the country span a vast population across a landmass comparable in size to the entirety of Europe, but the country is generally well-developed, boasting world-renowned transport infrastructure and a diverse range of prosperous industries in the primary, secondary and tertiary sectors. The nature of the Empire's government, though often criticised for its authoritarian characteristics and lack of political freedoms (especially for certain minorities), does lend itself to stable long-term economic planning, which in turn has led to generally high confidence for investors and consumers alike.

However, this description cannot be applied evenly across the Empire. With a total GDP of approximately $21 trillion and a total population of over 701 million, the Empire's average GDP per capita is roughly $29,957 - but this is an average across all the countries of the Empire, and this figure is largely meaningless for analysing the Imperial economy. The level of development and wealth both between and within Imperial Countries is far from equal. For example, the average inhabitant of Saveria is much wealthier than the average inhabitant of Kuateoha, and the average inhabitant of the city of Onshi is much wealthier than someone from the rest of Onshitama.

Additionally, though the Empire as a whole has a highly diverse economy, individual Imperial Countries do not. This is partly merely an accident of geography and history, but is mostly due to the deliberate ancient Imperial policy of "national specialisation". Through taxes, tariffs, regulation and in some cases outright banning unwanted developments, the Empire has spent centuries curating the economies of its subject countries to be focussed around a few particular industries.

The motivation for national specialisation is threefold. Firstly, it is believed that specialising each country in a few specific fields that it is thought to be naturally suited to will result in higher-quality products due to the accumulation of expertise. Secondly, since national specialisation necessarily results in economies having particular strengths and weaknesses, each country is greatly incentivised to both trade with and invest in its neighbours, in order to profit from its strengths and make up for its weaknesses. This trade not only steadily enriches the countries that trade with each other, but produces a keen interest in constructing and maintaining high-quality transport infrastructure to make international trade as easy as possible.

The third motivation for national specialisation is the most controversial, but also likely the most significant reason why the policy was first implemented and why it has been sustained to the present day. The extent of international trade and cross-border economic integration that is required to sustain the economies of Inecuria under a system of national specialisation can only be made possible with the peace, order, uniform regulation and well-funded infrastructure that Imperial rule brings. In other words, national specialisation means that a country of the Empire rebelling and declaring independence would be economic suicide, resulting in extreme economic turbulence if not outright collapse. Eron Caleras, husband and co-ruler of Empress Rixa I, is often credited with devising and implementing an early form of the policy that would eventually become national specialisation, as part of his efforts to maintain and expand Imperial rule after recognising that sustaining Imperial rule through military might was completely impossible, and writing at length to convince his countrymen of this reality.

## Environment

*See also: Inecurian Industrial Revolution*

Inecuria is populated by civilisations which all generally have a strong moral interest in preserving the sanctity and wellbeing of the natural world, which some historians regard as a legacy of the ancient Annihilation. Industrialisation in Inecuria was met with environmentalist opposition almost from the beginning, which frequently resulted in civil strife or even open civil war; industry subsequently became tightly regulated, and the Empire put in place what are considered the world's first environmental protection laws. However, whilst this attitude has resulted in lower greenhouse gas emissions and a generally cleaner environment than other comparable developed countries, it has seriously hampered the Empire's industrial capacity for centuries, which proved to be a debilitating and ultimately self-defeating flaw in both World Wars despite an overwhelming manpower advantage.

Industrial development continues to be met with opposition in the modern day, but the rate of development has rapidly increased ever since the late 1970s, which was a consequence of deregulation arising from the Bloodless Revolution, technological developments reducing the exposure of industrial pollutants to the environment, and the proliferation of nuclear power in Inecuria which enabled heavy industry to be powered by a clean source of electricity.

### Nuclear Energy

Even before science had uncovered the truly disastrous environmental consequences of fossil fuels, the Imperial State had been seeking alternatives. Inecuria contains little oil, and only has major coal reserves in Chalparna, which were already understood to be running low by the 1920s. Raskev has noteworthy deposits of natural gas, but even with modern technology the marshes of Raskev provide a significant challenge to construction and industrial operations, and even at this early stage it was known that these deposits were too small to power the entire continent. The Empire had to rely on importing coal and oil from its overseas territories and from other countries, which was not only considered humiliating by the ruling classes but was also a clear security risk, as enemy fleets could easily compromise Inecuria's electricity generation by targeting the convoys carrying fuel - a fear which was completely vindicated by the experience of both world wars.

The discovery of the world's largest uranium deposit in Kalzuranur came just as nuclear power generation entered the world stage, and Emperor Adrion immediately invested resources into researching nuclear energy and mining uranium; though his main concern was exploiting nuclear energy to power industry, he also had an eye on the development of nuclear weapons. The first fully-functioning Imperial nuclear reactor began supplying electricity to the grid in 1956, six months before the Empire's first successful test of a nuclear bomb - a test that is widely regarded to have began the end of the Imperial War of Independence.

Nuclear power plants rapidly spread across Inecuria, each new reactor built faster and cheaper than the last due to accumulated experience. Though the driving force behind the rise of nuclear energy was concerns of national security, it was also marketed to the people with distinctly environmentalist messaging, praising the absence of "harmful fumes" and repeatedly stressing that the waste products could be easily contained and managed; Imperial propaganda proclaimed that nuclear power was the path to a brighter and cleaner future. Subsequently, nuclear power experiences negligible opposition within Inecuria.

The Nesarian Empire generates approximately 87% of its electricity through nuclear power with a total of 246 operational power plants, eclipsing the country with the second most nuclear plants - the USA - by 148. Nuclear power covers the entirety of Inecuria's base load, and a combination of wind, hydroelectric, natural gas and - increasingly - solar power plants provide a flexible power output to cover spikes in demand. There have been no operating coal power plants in Inecuria since 1996, and they have been explicitly banned by Imperial Law since 2012. The last oil power plant closed in 2008 as a consequence of the financial crisis, and whilst they remain legal, there is no impetus in the continent to construct a new one.

The network of Imperial nuclear power plants has operated continuously without a major incident since its inception. That is not to say without incident entirely, but all were successfully managed without releasing radioactive material into populated areas. The Qamshar accident of 1983 was the worst incident on record, resulting in the partial meltdown of reactor 4 at the Qamshar nuclear plant in Akkanur, northern Kalzuranur due to multiple mechanical failures in the water pumping system; however, all radioactive material was safely contained, and there has never been a complete meltdown of an Imperial nuclear reactor.

Spent nuclear fuel is stored in the Nesarian Borderlands, an unnatural hyper-arid wasteland completely devoid of multicellular life and with no recorded rainfall in history; high level waste can be deposited in facilities in the Borderlands with perfect confidence that it will never harm a living ecosystem. Low level waste is typically contained on-site at nuclear power plants, since it is relatively easy to render safe.

### Waste Management

How the Empire deals with its waste has its own page due to the complexity of the topic.

## Foreign Policy

The Nesarian Empire was highly active throughout the Cold War, acting as a third axis against the USA and USSR and supporting movements and forces abroad which fit its interests or its ideology. In comparison to the capitalist liberal democratic ideals upheld by the USA and the communist ideals upheld by the USSR, the Nesarian Empire espoused and supported reactionary and/or monarchist ideals, often with a theocratic flair. After all, throughout most of the Cold War, the Empire was headed by the self-confessed reactionary of Emperor Adrion I and the regime was nominally fascist (although the variant of fascism the Empire operated under, known as Nesarian Fascism, in truth bears very little resemblance to other fascist movements found abroad, and is perhaps more accurately described as nationalistic reactionary distributism).

The Nesarian Empire has become less interventionist overseas since the passing of Emperor Adrion, and relations with Russia have improved greatly, though the attitude towards the USA can hardly be described as friendly; anti-American sentiment remains strong amongst the people, and the Empire and USA still often clash in foreign policy matters, most aggressively over the question of Israel, which the USA strongly supports and the Empire denounces - which has won the Empire the respect and admiration of much of the Muslim world. This tension with the USA and friendliness towards Russia has produced mixed reactions in Europe, but on the official level the Empire and most European states have no qualms and they trade and interact as normal. The Nesarian Empire is also largely hostile towards the People's Republic of China, and they have never recognised it as a legitimate state.

The Empire's main modern day overseas engagements are chiefly in the Middle East. The Empire is involved in Syria (supporting the government of President Bashar Al-Assad), Yemen (supporting the Houthis against the Hadi-led government) and Afghanistan (supporting the Islamic Republic against the Taliban). The Empire has also sporadically lent military support to the government of Mexico in the ongoing Drug War throughout the late 20th century and 2000s, and there are doubtlessly other engagements Imperial forces are engaged in which are not disclosed to the public. The increasing anti-interventionist sentiment throughout the country has led to many high-level government officials and Imperial Councillors to call for Imperial foreign policy to be reconsidered, arguing it is not their job to fight the battles of others who live thousands of miles away.

## Maritime Borders

The peculiar shape and history of Inecuria means that the Nesarian Empire enjoys an unprecedented extent of control over its nearby waters. As a concession for the Empire having much of its territory taken away from it, in 1968 the neighbouring countries agreed to the Imperial Maritime Borders Extension, which was (somewhat begrudgingly) recognised by the United Nations in 1972. This extended the Empire's territorial waters from 12 to 30 miles and its exclusive economic zone (EEZ), except where it clashed with other pre-existing EEZ borders, from 200 to 400 miles. The treaty also fixed what had generally been regarded as an error where the interior of Titan's Rift, despite being enclosed on all sides by the Empire's legal borders, was not internationally recognised as part of the territorial waters of the Empire.

## Sports

Sports and sporting competitions have been a staple of Imperial culture for centuries, a tradition which has continued strong into the modern day, where sporting competitions are larger than ever.

The Empire runs internal competitions to determine which sportsmen will be part of the national team, and then sends off the national team to compete in various competitions. Such a system is official and regulated for the football, rugby, cricket and ice hockey teams, and other sports - though unofficial - usually follow the same model.

The Empire of course has several sports of its own making; Calecuda, Spiobela, Jousting and Armed Martial Arts (AMA). Spiobela and Jousting tend to not be very popular outside the Empire, but Calecuda has an established international following and AMA has a small but rapidly growing global presence.

Many sporting competitions happen at the same time during the Imperial Games, the most prestigious internal competition of the Empire which is usually the one that decides who goes into the national teams.

The Nesarian Empire also hosts many motorsport championships, having some of the most famous tracks and most prestigious tournaments in the world.

## Separatism

*See also: Imperial Identity*

Separatist sentiment naturally exists in every country in the Empire, but separatist groups have extremely limited popular support; separatist political parties in democratic systems have never won a single seat of office, and the largest separatist peaceful protest in Imperial history numbered just 2000 members. Perhaps the only country that truly does not have a separatist movement at all is Nesaria, since such a movement would be paradoxical, asking for Nesaria to separate from itself.

Whilst true separatism has an essentially negligible presence, a far more popular movement is changing the official name of the Empire to remove the label of "Nesarian" - a movement which is in fact ancient, and can be first traced back to the 3rd century AD - somewhat ironically, it was first proposed by Nesarians. The alternate names of United Empire (*Alvu Regatina*) and Inecurian Empire (*Inecuriai Regatina*) tend to be the most popular, but a notable third candidate is the Titanic Empire (*Agnarai Regatina* - the distinction from *Agnaru Regatina* is important, as *Agnarai* is "of the Titans" whereas *Agnaru* is "having the quality of a Titan"). This movement is most popular in Onshi, where surveys indicate over half the population is in favour of a name change.

With just over 1900 years of unification, the various countries of the Empire have grown close. While there was a deliberate attempt to retain the individuality of each nation of the Empire, there was also a deliberate attempt to unite them behind a common Imperial identity, the Empire operating with a policy that was at once both federalist and assimilationist. The Imperial people of course have significant differences between them, but they are united by shared core values and ideas, and to some extent shared traits. This is a key reason as to why support for independence is so low across the Empire, but the other main reason is that, being united for over 1900 years, the economies of the Imperial countries are closely integrated and interlinked, and separation would likely result in an economic catastrophe. This was proven in the interwar period, when the Treaty of Haguun split up the nations of the Empire and very few were able to avoid economic collapse.

## Flag

The Imperial Flag is a gold Rexada atop an Elloris Purple saltire on a white background. This is essentially the same as the flag of Nesaria, but with a Rexada instead of the Sun of Yacela.

* The saltire shape represents crossed swords, and the purple colour represents the monarchy and the Imperial state. These two symbols together represent the Emperor's dedication to defending the Empire and its people.
* The white background represents purity and truth.
* The Rexada is the national animal of Nesaria, and its nature represents the Empire as a whole; majestic, strong, intelligent and highly communal and co-operative.
* The gold colour of the Rexada is associated with divine power, the colour coming from the golden sun of King Yacela, the chief deity of the Elvetan pantheon.

The Imperial Flag has been flown by the Imperial state continuously for just under 1900 years, making it the oldest flag still in active use by a huge margin - the second oldest flag, that of Denmark, was adopted in 1625, making it just under 400 years old.

Originally, the Empire used the flag that is now the flag of Nesaria, before the current Imperial Flag was adopted by Emperor Athdus III a few years before his death in 137. Athdus came up with the idea together with his wife Avemiri, as they believed that if the other people of the Empire were forced to use the flag of the Nesarian people, they would always feel secondary to Nesaria and not part of a united Empire.