Augkarate of Otheia

The Augkarate is a political entity in Northwestern Nomos. It extends over much of the region known as Otheia, as well as parts of Iraz and the Great Mistwood. It is comprised of several dozen states, which are near-independent in in many ways, only constrained by the rulings of the Augkara.

## Augkarate of Otheia

A map of the internal borders of the Augkarate, 371

### Inhabitants

Otheiae, Berlons, Khayovatu, Vasadlans, Rejerrans, Lemoszi, Lirei, Ariacans, Uthono, among other minorities

The Augkarate is the High Kingdom of the Otheiae, the people who inhabit Otheia. Created following the Glorious Revolution and the rise of the Mage Houses, the Augkarate is the system established to keep order among the numerous realms. It is headed by the Augkara, or High King, a leader elected from the body of the Karas, or kings, of each realm. The functioning of government depends upon the harmonious relations of the Augkara and the realms under his or her nominal control, though peace has often been disrupted, especially in more recent times.

### Name

The full title of the Augkarate is *Gadgteris Augkaraxem tota Otheiae un Brufi*, meaning *The Fair High Kingdom of the Nation of the Otheiae and the Mages*. It is known to the Talensi as th*e Augkarate* in short, or sometimes *Augkarate Otheia*.

### Banner

The banner used by the Augkarate of Otheia is a blank white banner. Often derisively called "The White Sheet" by enemies of the Augkarate, it is meant to symbolize the unity of the Realms of Otheia, the lack of any emblems or color indicating that none is superior, or more important than, another.

### History

As the Age of Kings came to a close, and the once-fair leaders of the Otheiae became the maniacal Warlords for which that period of history is named, the first of the Mages of Otheia had begun to practice their magic, assisted by the Arezians. Some of these mages would be corrupted by the power and influence they began to wield in the courts of the Warlords, and began to use their magic for detestible acts. These were done with the excuse that it was for "the advancement of the sciences and medicines". Thousands of people would be kidnapped, tortured, and would have experiments of the most gruesome variety conducted, including the mutation of their bodies via magical means, which was seen as particularly egregious by many of the other mages who declined to participate in the experiments of those maddened wizards.For over a century the Warlords would continue their petty conflicts, vying for power, influence and territory, using their people as pawns in their games. Seeking every advantage over their rivals, the Warlords would commission the mages; whom in return for their services, would be granted free reign to conduct experiments, often on endless live subjects, taken from captured towns and surrendered armies. The evil mages would, with the permission of their Warlord masters, do whatever they liked, all with the goal of advancing their sciences.

However, throughout all this time, resentment was brewing beneath the surface. The people of Otheia were disgusted and horrified by the atrocities committed by the Warlords and their armies, while the other mages, unassociated with those they had begun to title the "Darkmages", were driven away from their fellows due to their disregard for ethics. The Arezian Pentarchy, equally disgusted by the actions of those whom they had gifted with magic, caught wind of this resentment, and spurred on a revolt.

The Glorious Revolution, as it would come to be known, would be a popular uprising. Led by the Mages, the people would revolt against and destroy the Warlords, while the Mages would battle, and eventually deliminate, almost all Darkmages. The Arezians would provide support in the background, providing training to the allied mages and supplying weapons to the people, though they did not participate directly in the fighting. Following the overthrowing of the old governments, the Mages and Arezians decided that the people needed a new system of government, one which would encourage cooperation, and not warfare, between countries.

As such, the after the new Realms of the Mages were established, the Mages, encouraged by the Arezians, established a new elected title, that of "High King", which was to be elected from the number of the rulers of the Realms. The Augkara would intervene in disputes between Realms and would also be the office to conduct foreign relations, while the realms would otherwise control their own resources.

Thus, the current period would begin. Establishing the Augkarate, the Mages would guide Otheia down a new path, one of philosophy and learning, away from the dark age of the Warlords and toward the enlightenment the Mages had already achieved. This period is characterized by the Mage Houses and their righteous, yet petty, conflicts among one another, as well as their strict adherence to court ritual, which would spread to infect society at large with ceremony and pomp.

#### Pentarchy-Augkarate Conflict

The Pentarchy-Augkarate War was one of the most destructive conflicts in the history of Nomos. Lasting from 151 to 167, and fought primarily in eastern Otheia, an estimated one million Otheiae soldiers were killed in the conflict, as well as an additional million civilians killed by reprisals by the Arezians, in an attempted ethnic cleansing of the region. Three million died as well due to resultant famine. An estimated 18,500 Arezians were also killed in the conflict.

The roots of the conflict lay in the aftermath of the Glorious Revolution. The Otheiae, having overthrown the previous Warlords, and establishing the **Augkarate of Otheia**, invited the Arezians to send advisors to their courts, to help them in the building of their new nation, as well as in its management. However, over the course of more than a century, the Otheiae began to chafe under the presence of these long-lived advisors, who they saw as attempting to influence the policy and rulings of the Realms in the favor of the Arezian Pentarchy. These tensions increased as the original rulers, who had led the Revolution and invited the Arezians to the country, as well as their children, began to die off, being replaced by their more ambitious descendants.

The outbreak of the war is generally traced to 151, where tensions boiled over in the city of Estya, in the Realm of Easu. An Arezian official travelling through the city was murdered by a mob of attackers. The Arezians recalled all their subjects in the Augkarate to their isolated cities for their safety, many of whom fled to Arizan, a small Arezian exclave city in the bounds of Otheia. The Newcomer Realms of Otheia raised an army to besiege the city. In response, the Arezians raised an army of their own, and invaded the eastern portion of the Augkarate. When they heard of the fall of Arizan, their army changed its goal from the relieval of the city to the extermination of the Otheiae. Simultaneously, the Berlons were drawn into the war in the west of Otheia, putting further pressure on the Augkarate. The Arezians were defeated in a pyrrhic victory at the Battle of the Plains of Aselad in 162 by a combined force of all Otheiae armies in the Augkarate, and the war would officially end in 167 with the Treaty of Hihhill.

### Institutions

The Augkarate Otheia is not a centralized state, neither is it a nation-state. Instead, it is divided into dozens of Realms and Petty Realms, each ruled by a different ruler, known as a Kara. From the 200s, the Augkarate has been characterized by an uneasy coexistence with the princes of the local territories who were struggling to take power away from it. To a greater extent than other neighboring countries, the High Kings have been unable to gain much control over the lands that they formally rule. Instead, to secure their own position from the threat of being deposed, Augkaras have been forced to grant more and more autonomy to local rulers. This began in the immediate aftermath of the Pentarchy-Augkarate Conflict. Several Augkaras have attempted to reverse the trend, but these have been thwarted by the local rulers of the Realms.

#### Augkarate Courts

The Augkarate has a system of courts for settling disputes in a legal manner between states. The highest of these court circles is known as the Estyan Council, and the High Court. The High Court's composition was determined by both the Augkara and the subject Realms of the Augkarate. Within this court, the Augkara appoints the High Justice, always a highborn aristocrat, several divisional chief judges, and some of the other puisne judges.

The Estyan Council held standing over many judicial disputes of state, both in concurrence with the High Court and exclusively on their own. The High Court and lower Provisional Courts attended to breaches of the public peace, cases of arbitrary distraint or imprisonment, pleas which concerned the treasury, violations of the Augkara's decrees or the laws passed by the High Diet, disputes about property between immediate tenants of the Augkarate or the subjects of different rulers, and finally suits against immediate tenants of the Augkarate, with the exception of criminal charges and matters relating to Realms, which went to the Estyan Council. The Estyan Council even allowed the emperors the means to depose rulers who did not live up to expectations.

#### Circles

As part of the reforms of Aten Hipera of Hildor of Roral in 250, the Augkarate was divided into 12 circles of Realms and Petty Realms. These were regional groupings of the various Realms of the Augkarate for the purposes of defense, taxation, supervision of coining, peace-keeping, and public security. Each circle had its own parliament, known as a *Circle Diet*, and one or more directors (appointed by the Augkara), who coordinated the affairs of the circle.

#### Army

The *Army of the Augkarate Otheia* was created in 192. It should not be confused with the *Army of the Augkara*, the personal army of the Augkara, comprised chiefly of the Hundjlei forces.

Despite appearances to the contrary, the Army of the Augkarate Otheia did not constitute a permanent standing army that is always at the ready to fight for the Augkarate. Rather, that position was held by the Army of the Augkara. When there was danger, an Army of the Augkarate is mustered from among the Realms, in order to conduct a military campaign. In practice, the Augkarate troops often had local allegiances stronger than their loyalty to the Augkara, typically to their own Realm or ruling Mage House.

#### Administrative Centers

While in the early days of the Augkarate, it was ruled by a Travelling Court, in the modern day the Augkara's court has generally been located at the City of Hihhill, the principle city of the Highland Realm, and seat of the House of Roral, which has supplied most of the Augkaras throughout history. In the past, Augkaras would reside in local palaces scattered throughout the Realms under the Augkarate, and spend their time furnishing local legal matters, laws and administration. many Augkaras had a select few palaces they preferred, and would generally travel between these as opposed to all the varied palaces of the country. This practice ended in the mid 200s, when ther House of Roral chose Hihhill for the location of the permanent court of the High Kingdom,

A number of cities, however, remain as administrative locations. For example, the Estyan Council is headquartered at the city of Estya in the Realm of Easu, while the High Diet has resided variously at Rasek, Hihhill, Andaoi, among a half-dozen others, but presently has returned to Rasek.

The High Court was established in Hihhill, and has remained there since.

#### Mage Houses

Within the Augkarate are the Mage Houses. Each is an independent organization from the realms, and is comprised of dozens, if not hundreds, of magicians, battlemages, and spellswords, who are the nobles of Otheia. As magical ability is inherited and grows with each generation, these houses are among the most powerful organizations in the Augkarate. Indeed, it is they who rule the various realms, each house providing the Kara for one or more realms.

The most powerful house, by far, is the House of Roral, which controls multiple realms, and has held the title of Augkara for centuries, through public affirmation, bribery and, if necessary, military force. Other houses include the House of Rasek in the south, Asikl in the Borderlands, and Hadlil in the Highlands.

There are more than 30 Mage Houses in existence.

###### List of Mage Houses

The following is a list of Mage Houses. It is incomplete. You can help by expanding it.

* House of Roral
* House of Artsby
* House of Easu
* House of Hedend
* House of Hohan
* House of Arama
* House of Anesi
* House of Ites
* House of Kaxep
* House of Hass
* House of Eftim
* House of Hikarrsh
* House of Eashor
* House of Isend
* House of Rornak
* House of Mranest
* House of Namst
* House of Rasek
* House of Kaliti
* House of Kalikun
* House of Nomun
* House of Konistrat
* House of Koto
* House of Mamku
* House of Kolus
* House of Thitoe
* House of Matsuro
* House of Rast

#### Foreign Relations

The House of Roral has its own diplomats to represent its interests. The larger Realms, beginning around 290, also did the same. The Augkarate does not have its own dedicated ministry of foreign affairs and therefore the High Diet has no control over these diplomats; though occasionally the Diet criticizes them for their lack of loyalty to the nation.

Since Rasek has served as the site of the Diet, Berlby, Ariac and, in the late 300s, Lirei, had diplomatic representatives there. The Khayvatu also had envoys in Rasek. Rasek is the place where envoys met as it was where representatives of the Diet could be reached. Sometime in the recent past, the Rodarian Union placed diplomatic representatives there.

### Realms

The following is a list of Realms:

* Highland Realm
* Western Realm
* Realm of Easu
* Realm of Perin
* Realm of Artsby
* Realm of the Western Hitrokers
* Coastal Realm of Aslock
* Mountain Realm
* Grealm of Greater Hesand
* Realm of Sektora
* Realm of Fexet
* Realm of the Western Shore
* Realm of Simpok
* Realm of Eshor
* Realm of the Eastern Hitrokers
* Realm of Rasek
* Realm of Nednam
* Realm of Stempo
* Realm of South Dasdrile
* Realm of Easu
* Realm of the Rivers
* Realm of the Northern Shore
* Realm of Ataraxa
* Realm of Terota
* Realm of Sinsrox
* Northern Realm
* Realm of Ffost

#### Petty Realms

The following is a list of Petty Realms of the Augkarate:

* Steel Realm
* Petty Realm of Eflis
* Isend
* Haralast
* Lesser Hesand
* Petty Realm of Hikarrsh
* Pineland Realm
* Anikris
* Imna
* Otlixa
* Petty Realm of North Dasdrile
* Delest
* Aselad
* Hass
* Manexal
* Petty Realm of Kaxep
* Thurstei
* Realm of Kereda
* Petty Realm of Arno
* Asetra
* Upper Sest
* Realm of Sest
* Petty Realm of Enme
* Realm of Hedend