Nation of Luan

"The Nation Mapped by War"

The Nation of Luan (NoL), located within the north-west corner of Terbia, was founded by Lady Liliane de Luan (Allard) and is currently under the rule of King Kade de Luan (Rivett).

!-[WIP]-!

## Structure

### Basic Overview

Luan has always had a monarchist rule, dating all the way back to around 800 A.D. At present, Luan is run by King Kade, who is the ruler of the nation. He is aided by his advisory council (set up by the Queen before him) that supports, encourages, or discourages the ruler's actions. It is a group of people selected by the monarchs to help them, however, they must receive public support. Furthermore, their rather vigorous and cruel military training regimes, dating all the way back to its founding years, have built for a strong army to protect the vast yet generous lands it is built upon.

### The Monarch

This is the person that rules the nation - often being seen as having absolute rule. Whilst this is not entirely wrong, it is not entirely correct either. Now, with the addition of the advisory council, monarchs make decisions through the help of the council, who also take advice from the public. Therefore, the public has a large part in what decisions are made in Luan.

The monarch was also decided on a hereditary basis - it was passed through family generations, handed down to the first born child regardless of gender. However, if the monarch were to die with no heir, it would be passed to their second-in-command, which most monarchs were advised to have. For example, in King Kade's case, it is his bestfriend (and head of the advisory council) Sebastian Richter, as Kade currently has no heir. This has not happened yet in the history of Luan, though. Monarchs also have the option to step down from their rule early, which many of the past rulers have taken the option to do so. This way, their heir begins their rule before they age too much. If they do not wish to make this choice, the crown will eventually be passed down upon their death. Queen Angelique, for example, had planned to pass down the crown early to Kade, however she did not have the chance due to her assassination.

Furthermore, when the monarch takes over, their official surname is replaced by 'de Luan' to represent their nation. King Kade was formerly known as Kaden Rivett. His mother was formerly known was Angelique Rivett. When they were passed the crown, their official name became Kade de Luan, and Angelique de Luan respectively.

At present, King Kade de Luan is the monarch in rule of the NoL.

### Advisory Council

Queen Angelique de Luan, the mother of King Kade, set up the advisory council to prevent any future monarchs from becoming as cruel and unforgiving as previous monarchs had been. The advisory council would be selected by the monarch, but had to receive public approval before confirmation. The group size could range between 5-10 people, and they could support or veto the monarch's decisions (but only in extreme cases). If all of the council came together to oppose a monarch's decision, the monarch would have to step down or risk a battle between them and the council, or even an overthrowing.

At present, Sebastian Richter is head of the advisory council after receiving blessing from the prior Queen.

### Knights of Castellea

A special section of the military, the Knights of Castellea date all the way back to the beginning, though they went by a different name. The knights specific role is to guard the capital - Castellea - where the highest concentration of people are, but most importantly where the monarch usually resides. These knights also handle minor crimes over the whole of Luan, like theft, abuse, and more. The Grand Master (leader) of the knights is passed down based on recommendation - the existing Grand Master must recommend and chose their successor, which they typically mentor themselves.

At present, Princess Mia Rivett is the Grand Master of the Knights of Castellea.

### Military

Luan's military is one of the largest and strongest of its kind, as its rigorous training regime has been implemented to shape people into fearless soldiers. There are many different sections of the Luanian Military, however, they all act under a single General who is placed based on skill and experience. The military handles the more extreme, nation-threatening situations, such as wars, invasions, or even mass riots (which there had been few of in the past). This is by far the largest group within the Luanian structure, consisting of hundreds of thousands of people serving one nation. These people are branched out into various groups, the smallest of which being the King's Soldiers, primarily overseen by General Bianchi.

At present, Lord Lorenzo Bianchi is the General of the Luanian Military.

## History

### Earlier History

The Nation of Luan (NoL), founded by Lady Liliane, had always been a strict militant nation since its creation. The crown was passed down through generations, giving absolute power to those who inherited it. The royal family were taught to follow strict regimes, and received extensive military training in order to pulverise any invaders or enemies. It was one of the greatest nations of its kind, and whilst the Luanians prospered in materials, they suffered in life.

Most households were fully trained for war, as Luan placed great importance on military strength, and many were subject to cruel torture from the Kings and Queens that inherited the crown.

Lady Liliane had created Luan with peace and prosperity in mind, but she died brutally in battle with a neighbouring nation that is no longer standing at present day. Marceline - Liliane's daughter - began this strict militant scheme in order to act out revenge on this nation over her mother's untimely death, and thus began the centuries of battle and blood for the Luanians.

### Recent History

In most recent times, the NoL has seen great recovery after the wounds that scarred its nation. King Anthoine II, the grandfather of King Kade, was the last of the militant rulers. He was cruel, unforgiving, and basked in torturing other nations. When he died in battle, the crown was passed to his seventeen-year-old daughter, Queen Angelique. In an attempt to never leave the country in such turmoil and despair again, she began her reforms of Luan, shaping it into the peaceful nation it is today. In her 21 years of reign, she implemented a number of policies, councils and more to ensure peace and prosperity for all - such as the addition of the advisory council.

However, when Queen Angelique reached the age of 38, she was assassinated - on Kade's birthday, May 26th. He was 20 at the time, and at present (aged 22), he hopes to continue to restore the nation to the peaceful one that Lady Lucille (and now his mother) had set in their minds, and to continue his mother's legacy of hope and prosperity whilst battling his guilt and lust for revenge.

## Events

### March of Honour

Following Queen Angelique's death, the people came together to create one of Luan's greatest annual events of history - the March of Honour. Taking place on the anniversary of Angelique's death, the march paves its way through the streets of Castellea, singing songs of praise and commemoration for the late Queen. The bells of the cathedral are rung, Luanian flags are waved, and the overall spirit of joy shrouds the city. Smaller marches occur in other cities of Luan, but the March of Honour is by far the greatest among them. Its final destination is before the balcony of the Allardian Castle - the royal abode at the heart of its capital - where the people await a speech from the monarch in celebration of Angelique. Following the royal speech, the crowds often part their ways, however, some branch out into smaller parades and chant their love for the Queen until the darks of night fall upon the nation. It is a wide belief that this event will continue for decades to come, even after King Kade's time, though in much smaller masses.

## Towns and Cities

### Castellea

Mostly recognised due to its surrounding castle, Castellea is the capital city of Luan. Situated on mountainous plains, the city is guarded by stone walls dating back to Lady Lucille's time and is known for its grandeur and beauty.

### Panemont

One of the towns most early established, Panemont sits at the top of a mountain sitting on the land of a meander. It was established by Queen Marceline during the building of her military and was once used as a fort against other nations as the meander proved useful in defending 3 sides, but now it is a small farming town. It is widely recognised that Panemont was one of Queen Angelique's favourite towns due to its calming atmosphere and loving community and more and more people hope to move to the small village each day.

It runs largely on its grand harvests, and the generous caves that it is built upon.

### Volline

Volline is a city just slightly north to the agricultural town of Panemont and is home to the nation's first cathedral. Run on a similar basis of farms and generous caves, Volline was originally created as an armory base during Luan's militant era, primarily used under the reign of Queen Marceline and her succesor - her son - Félix, who also aided in the building of the Grande Cathédrale. Most of the monarchs following Félix focused on Panemont due to its advantageous meander and surrounding mountains, however, Volline always stood as a secondary base of operations during wars and invasions. Nowadays, Volline is a prosperous nation focused on trade and mining in order to profit from its great caves, and has noted itself within Luan as a city due to its landmark, the Grande Cathédrale, and its ever growing population chasing its scenic views and calming lifestyle.

### Terrafari

Whilst being classed as eastern Luan, Terrafari is situated close to the centre section of the nation. Often referred to as the "Land of Business", or the "Terra d'Affari" (in which its name was originated upon creation during wartime), this expansive city is the hub for trade and business with other nations. It contains the vital embassies needed for trade deals and is the centre for imports and exports where people go to sell their produce. As the business capital of Luan, it is one of the richest cities with a fairly dense population of people wishing to export abroad. It is greatly contrasting its eastern neighbours of Volline and Panemont - tranquil, comforting locations - with its bustling, on-the-go lifestyle and its all-day busy foot traffic throughout the city.

## Inspiration

Luan is largely influenced by Southern and Western Europe - countries such as France, Italy, Spain, Germany, Greece and more often are referenced to through city/town names, or the names of people. For example, the royal family mostly consists of people with french names, like Anthoine and Angelique. Although, this is not the case for Kade and Mia, though the "why" will become clearer later in the story.

Castellea is also derivative from castle in both the spanish ("castillo") and italian ("castello") language, as the city is surrounded by castle walls (and therefore influenced by castles). Panemont, in contrast, has a slightly more complex name design. It was taken from the french word for mountain - "montagne" - and plains, and was combined. Though, plains was broken down slightly to 'plan', then to 'pan', and then was combined to create Panemont. Volline is also taken from french translations - "colline" for hill, and "ville" for city. Since Panemont and Volline were of very similar locations and trade, they share similar name origins.