Koble

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"Kiptial City, where the streets are lined with gold and the buildings scrape against the sun."

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## Koble

### Motto

"With Valor's fist and Ardent's hand"

Koble is the northernmost kingdom of the Kippelian Empire. It contains the Empire’s capital, Kipital City, which is largely populated by Kippel’s most elite.  The rest of the kingdom is largely governed by crime families.  Koble is also regularly threatened by barbaric anti-state tribes who maintain the traditions of the Northern Badlands, which is what the land used to be called before it was reformed by the current emperor, High Lord Kip.

Even though High Lord Kip does reside within Kipital City, day-to-day governance of the kingdom is overseen by Governor Sarff Donnelley

## Geography

As the northernmost kingdom in the Empire, Koble is close to the equator and enjoys warm weather and plentiful resources as a result. It was previously a heavily wooded area, however much of the land has since been cleared out to make room for settlements. Koble has the highest population density out of the five kingdoms.

Kipital City stands in the center of lake Halo, a massive lake covering about a fifth of Koble’s territory. This makes it difficult to enter or leave Kipital City without a ferry ride. Lake Halo’s name stems from both its ringed shape and from how at dawn the sun will glitter off the lake's surface to resemble a radiant halo.

## Shite Roll

Koble is sometimes likened to a poorly cooked bread roll that is burnt and rough on the outside, but doughy and undercooked on the inside. This alludes to the distribution of wealth and the standard of living throughout the kingdom. The capital and the settlements around lake Halo comprise of pristine towering buildings, the Empire’s most affluent residents, and luxurious recreational facilities. In contrast the settlements further from Kipital City are run down overcrowded settlements ruled by various crime families.

## Capital Crime

In many of the more impoverished settlements in Koble, especially those near the Koble/Yamen border, all the taxing, law making, and law enforcement is done by various mafia families. These families are often competing with each other for resources with little regard for the effect it might have on the civilians just trying to get by. To add insult to injury, most of the mafia bosses don’t even have to see the effect they have on the unfortunate commoners, they conduct all their business via mail while enjoying luxuries of the wealthier settlements. In their stead they have trusted mafiosos carrying out business and then sending the boss’s share of the profit to their preferred bank.

### Kessel’s Bloc

One district within Koble is ruled by the people instead of the mafia. When he was young, Kessel the Hero led a small resistance against the mafia running his hometown and successfully pushed them out. The surrounding mob encroached on the territory after Kessel left his hometown, but the people managed to keep the mob's clutches away from a single neighborhood. This area is known as Kessel’s Bloc and functions like a small town, independent of the surrounding area. It serves as an inspiration to the people of the outer Koble settlements, and as a thorn in the mafia’s collective side.

## Highfalutin Halo Hemming Hamlets

The cities surrounding Lake Halo have cleaner streets and more luxurious amenities than any of the other settlements in the continent. This is afforded by the heavy taxes being levied on the other kingdoms, especially the kingdoms of Yamen and Tekk. The high standard of living granted in these settlements is enjoyed by the most wealthy and influential individuals in the Empire as well as visiting noblemen and ambassadors from other countries. The majority of residents in the wealthier areas of Koble are either Humans or Bullywugs, as their tradition of ambition and acquisition makes them well-suited for the vicious competition against other elite families.

This area is also well-guarded by the Gilded Rays, the oldest and most well-funded sect of knights of Valor. This is because their main headquarters is in the Kipital City.  The Gilded Rays that police these settlements are notorious for holding suspicious or unwanted individuals accountable for the most minor of infractions. A visitor dressed in rags is very likely to have his belongings searched for contraband, and can expect the maximum punishment if any is found.

### Kipital City

The towering buildings of the capital are referred to as sun scrapers, as they stretch so high they seem to be reaching towards The Valor himself. All the luxuries present in the surrounding settlements are trivial compared to Kipital City, where even the streets are gilded.

In addition to being the capital of the Empire, Kipital City is also the trade capital of the world. The gaudy architecture and displays of wealth are as much for visiting foreign traders as they are for the permanent residents.

Kipital City is one of the most densely populated settlements in Kippel, but despite this they pride themselves on their clean streets and high standards of hygiene.

Being home to the headquarters of the Gilded Rays, along with the prominent presence of Yugoloth bodyguards, makes the capital the most protected settlement in the Empire, rivaled only by Zagis.

## Haphazardly Hidden History

Koble is structured in a way that tries to make its visitors forget about the land’s barbaric past. But, much like the country's founder, its savage roots are plain to see if you are looking for them. The most blatantly obvious remnant is the crime families’ conflicts in the outer settlements, who’s constant warring over territory and resources is essentially unchanged from the tribal conflicts of the Badlands, just with a thin guise of civility. However even in the inner settlements and the capital itself the acquisitive culture of the Badlands still lives through the cutthroat business practices of competing aristocrats.

### Disparaged Dishonesty and Devilry

Another tradition carried over from their past, many Kobelians are very honest and open during their business dealings or confrontations with other families, despite the clear disadvantage it gives them in these situations. This mirrors the straight forwardness that Badlands tribes had when facing each other in open conflict.

In a similar vein, many Kobelians are openly adverse to magic. Many wealthier homes will still employ a magician’s services, but with open contempt. This is also carried over from the disdain Badlands tribesmen had for those who used magic as opposed to raw combative power.

## Forced Scarcity

Following his victory in the War of Unification, High Lord Kip actually pushed back Koble’s borders and gave territory over to Yamen. He now had control over both nations so he was not losing any territory overall and redrawing the border achieved two of Lord Kip’s personal goals. Firstly, it gave more land and resources to his now late wife Queen Melena who was put in charge of ruling Yamen. Secondly, Lord Kip wanted the capital kingdom to have an air of exclusivity and drastically reducing the territory accomplished just that.

## Yugoloth Central

The Yugoloth Conditional-Citizenship Contract (YCC) stipulates that the Empire is required to dedicate a certain amount of its federal budget to employing Yugoloths every year. Tekk and Yamen cannot afford to employ many Yugoloths because of the high taxes they pay the empire, on top of that they still hold a disdain against Yugoloths for their role in winning the war for Koble. And forcing Frossik to employ Yugoloths would violate the promises the Empire made to Frossik when convincing them to join. This makes Zagis and Koble responsible for employing the vast majority of Yugoloths. Zagis has no issue working alongside Yugoloths and regularly employs them for security and for escorting designated individuals across the Twisted Woods.

As the wealthiest kingdom and the head of the Empire, Koble employs even more Yugoloths than Zagis. However unlike Zagicians, Kobelians are disgusted by Yugoloths and treat them more like slaves than as employees.

## Sovereign Savages

Some of the most avid objectors of the Empire’s rule are from High Lord Kip’s own backyard. The northernmost regions of Koble hide tribes of anti-empire barbarians who seek to reclaim Koble and return the Badlands to the way it was. These tribes had joined with Kip during his unification of the Badlands, but have since split as he made decisions and instituted practices that went against tradition. These tribes are mainly made up of Humans and Bullywugs, are staunchly anti-magic, and despise Yugoloths. They also reject the Kippelian pantheon and worship the diverse gods of the Badlands, with each tribe having its own patron deity.