Imperium

**Imperium** is the primary location of Mega Campaign.

## Locations

* Ferrum
* Glacial Desert
* Rana
* Navalia
* Underdark
	+ Eraney Keep
	+ Mind Gorge
* Vila
	+ Crystal Palace
	+ Hall of Knowledge
	+ Mages for Ages

## History

*(Written by Dylan)*

Imperium has existed for almost 3 thousand years. Before Sionis, there was chaos. Bandits and barbarians ruled the countryside. Criminals pillaged different small towns, leaving those unprotected in squalor. But Sionis, seemingly coming from the heavens itself, came to Aarde in a time where he was needed most.

Born into the village of Vila, butted up against the great Mount Mons, Sionis’ family was that of average folk within the town proper. His father, Leopold, a large brawny man with dark black hair and brown eyes coupled with a great beard and deep voice, was an ex commander for the town militia. He was hard on Sionis, teaching him tactics used in militaries of old as well as educating him on math, literature, and different skills like alchemy and light smithing. His mother, Katia was a bright and caring person. Her golden brown hair and kind blue eyes taught Sionis how to be gentle to those he cares about and how to cook and repair his armor.

When Sionis turned 15, his father enlisted him in Vila’s militia to put the tactics and knowledge he had been taught to use. His physical traits lent him to less strenuous work and his blue eyes and dirty blond hair made him stick out from the others in Vila. Not being the heartiest of boys enlisting, Sionis scored the bottom of all of the endurance tests he had to take. Where he excelled however was as a tactician and leader. Sionis was able to give excellent direction to his fellow students, and often during skirmishes his dictation led to victory.

He was ultimately accepted into the militia as a junior commander of forces when the need arrives. One day during the cold November months, Vila was attacked by a group of goliaths. A battle with ultimate ramifications ensued. During the attack on Vila, Sionis commanded the militia forces present within the town to defend and push back their invaders.

A long and bloody conflict drew on for 3 days as there were constant attacks and counter attacks by both sides. In the end however, Sionis’ brilliant tactical knowledge gave the people of Vila the upper hand and the goliaths were repelled. In the wake of the attack however, the town had been burned to the ground and hundreds of people were slain, both soldier and civilian. Two of those people were Sionis’ own parents. Not having anyone else to fall back on, Sionis dedicated himself further to the militia and its leadership. He studied and studied and read countless books about military training, tactics, and historical battles from The Schism, Aarde’s last great war. For 2 years he studied, took control of Vila’s militia, and trained its men and women to become something new, something he called the Imperatores.

With Sionis small army of about 150 men and women, he planned to launch a counterattack against those who destroyed his home. Sionis and his Imperatores, armed with simple swords, shields, bows, marched for 5 days and nights to where Sionis had learned was where the goliaths could be found. Within the first 2 days, his army had reached the flatlands of Aarde, a large stretch of grassland that hosted most of the nomadic life in the area.

Within the next 3 days, Sionis tracked down the goliath’s camp and prepared for the assault. His army would then wage siege on the goliath camp. In a battle that lasted just 6 hours, Sionis and his men and women brutally slaughtered every single goliath man, woman, and child they found. In the aftermath, the grassy area covered in blood and gore, Sionis personally burned every hut and tent in the village and him and his army turned back home.

In the journey back, recovering from the recent battle, Sionis had a dream. In the dream he was sitting atop a golden throne and below him was a gathering of thousands of disciples who all cheered his name in unison. He wanted his dream to become a reality.

15 years later, Sionis would return to Vila, his previous home, in search of a capital for his new empire, Imperium. During the 15 year period, his army went from 150 men and women to 150,000 men and women who all joined him in conquering and securing Aarde against hostile threats. Sionis was their liberator, and now ruler. Also in that time frame he enslaved the Goliath people as further revenge for slaughtering his family and tasked thousands of them to carve out his castle from the side the Mons that touched his old home of Vila. Being older now, Sionis looked much more like his father. His surprisingly well kept hair blackened to a dark brown shade and his musculature had become more defined from years of war.

Within 2 years his castle was livable and he ruled from within, extracting taxes from all towns under his grasp as tribute for further protection. Taxes went to the military and they adopted more advanced weaponry has the ages progressed. 100 years after Imperium’s establishment, the Imperatores had become the most advanced fighting force in the realm, their staunch red and white armor signifying their years of war forged spirit and their curved swords made of white and gold steel signified their dominant position over others. Literature, posters, and even religious processions praising the emperor would soon start to pop up, creating a cult following of him.

500 years later and Sionis still remains in power, even through countless coups, rebellions, and failed assassination attempts, all of these pointing to his alleged god hood. Now, thousands of years later and Sionis still remains in power and his praise is ever present. Those who speak out against the emperor are silenced by a force known as the Exactors, who appear and disappear without a trace. Their red and black robes are only used for professional meetings, and final visits since they generally adopt common clothing while gathering information about possible heretics. The city of Vila booms with tens of thousands of denizens, paved streets of marble, and the homes of the utmost lavish built with expensive Blackstone and stained red woods. Sionis still remains in power, and a complex force of hundreds of bureaucrats and holy men exact Sionis’ will across the land, collecting taxes and singing his praise. Praise Sionis and may he reign for eternity.