Suvin Empire

The Suvin Empire is one of the dominant forces in the world of Alvaranakha. It rules a large part of the continent Suvinnos, sharing it with its puppet allies the Poram and Hasttatha. The Suvin Empire is the primary beligerent in the Eternal War, fighting the Craitan Empire in their fight for dominance over the northwest of Alvaranakha and each other.

## Organization

The Suvin Empire is an absolute monarchy and a fascist oligarchic dictatorship, led by an Emperor at its head. Most of the power lies in the hands of twelve families, known as the Twelve Families.

The Emperor, usually revered as a living diety, holds absolute power in the Suvin Empire. The Twelve Families rule through the Senate of the Suvinne, a people's senate through which laws are passed, rewritten or rejected. However, the emperor holds the power to forcefully pass or veto any law that he pleases.

The senate is headed by the Speaker of the Senate, who is elected by the members of the senate every five years. The Speaker of the Senate leads all senate meetings and leads the legislative branch of government.

The army, perhaps the most important body of the Suvin Empire, is led by the Grand General, a position clad by one chosen by the emperor himself.

## History

The Suvin Empire was founded in the year 0 AB, at the start of its calendar. The empire was formed after a war of conquest known as the Conquest of Suvinnos, in which a kingdom led by the legendary king Vinarel conquered large parts of the continent of Suvinnos. While his conquests were very successful, Vinarel remained unable to conquer the Drosthan Kingdom. The Drosthan Kingdom, led by a king known to time as Rathael Drosthannas, defeated Vinarel and his armies, fracturing his empire.

After the fracture of Vinarel's empire, Rathael took on the mantle of conqueror and conquered Vinarel's fallen empire, establishing one empire for all Suvinne. He conquered the fallen kingdoms of Relleth, Valaria, Suun'avar, Elvia and Aeleron in the span of about 20 years, a decades long military campaign that drained most of the contents of the Drosthan coffers. However, with the spoils of his conquest, Rathael was able to consolidate his conquests and unify the Suvinne into one empire: the aptly named Suvin Empire. This empire would become a domineering force in the northeast of Alvaranakha for centuries and even millennia to come. Using the racial unity of his empire to his advantage, Rathael aimed to establish a single culture for his empire, casting away the old gods for a new pantheon, which so far consisted of him. Later on, five of his successors would complete that divine pantheon.

Most cultures were forced to recognize Rathael as a new god named Alvarekan (a name likely meaning "one world, one father"). And though this caused many rebellions across his new empire, with the spoils of his victories Alvarekan/Rathael was able to fund constant rebellion squashing in the Suvin Empire. He reigned for another thirty years after his conquests, consolidating his power and unifying his empire as one strong force. Not all things lasted, and Rathael would die at the age of seventy-four, having created one of the strongest empires known to mankind within a single lifetime. With his death, likely due to heart failure, he established the rules and rites of succession, based on his Drosthan homeland.

His second cousin-once-removed (i.e. his second cousin's son), first named Aeran, would become the second emperor of the Suvin Empire. As new emperor, he too, named himself god and forced his people to revere him. He would be known as Sen'natar (possibly meaning "son of time/eternity"). Sen'natar enforced his divine rule with not only an iron fist, but wit and intelligence. Creating lavish rituals and festivals to celebrate his and his uncle's legacy, the people were overjoyed to receive him as their new emperor. He became the great reformer, creating the senatorial body which would represent all corners and powers of the empire, while keeping his power afloat through political schemes and trickery, enacting a constitution that would indirectly give him absolute power. While some were keen enough to notice his schemes, none were powerful nor opinionated enough to do anything about his self-centred reforms. And thus, Sen'natar had fully consolidated the power that came with his position, and laid out the paths of all emperors to come. At the age of fifty-nine, he died from an unknown form of cancer, paving the way for the next emperor.

Lyranath, as he is commonly known, began as a general in Sen'natar's army, winning many skirmishes with the Proto-Poram to the east. His name was Athfar, and he would become possibly one of the most talented generals in the history of Alvarnakha, outshining even his predecessors in his military prowess. Indeed, he would be chosen as emperor by Sen'natar and soon began his conquest of the Proto-Poram peoples to the east, greatly expanding Suvin territory. What is most impressive, however, is how through weak supply lines and a badly fitting army he managed to conquer these steppe peoples. Through deals made with local warlords, he caused infighting among the many clans, leaving small pickings for him. In a mere ten years, he had taken half of these peoples' territories, and then formed a blood pact with the most powerful of all the warlords, Eshravan-Luvet, to protect his new conquests.

## Religion

The Suvin Empire's official state religion is Uniyakar, a polytheistic religion consisting of six gods, who are the deified versions of the Suvin Empire's first six emperors. These gods are:

* Alvarekan: deification of the first Suvin Emperor. Alvarekan in his mortal life was the one who formed the Suvin Empire. So, this god is known as the supreme father, ruler of all dieties and mortals.
* Sen'natar: deification of the second Suvin Emperor. Sen'natar was the great reformer, and thus in holy form he takes on the role as architect of the world and nature.
* Lyranath: deification of the third Suvin Emperor. Lyranath was the great conqueror, who unified all Suvin peoples. He thus stands for unification, war, wisdom and patriotism in Uniyakar.
* Vel'leth: deification of the fourth Suvin Emperor. Vel'leth was the burner of the forests, the one who burned the great forest of Verlanion. As god, he is known as the god of fire, destruction, chaos and disharmony.
* Vicann: deification of the fifth Suvin Emperor. Vicann was the seafarer, discoverer of every continent known to the Suvin. He is the one to have discovered Vicakhan, a mysterious continent in the southeast of Alvaranakha which was named after him. As god, he rules the heavens and seas and acts as judge for the dead.
* Arktha: deification of the sixth Suvin Emperor and the last of the gods. As emperor, Arktha harnessed the power of the sun to create the Hammer of Retribution. As god, he is known as the god of the sun, light, tranquility and spiritual awakening.