Imperium Arcanae

**Religions** | -

Despite having no Battery access in its borders, and only governing a small part of the continent, the Imperium Arcanae is a great nation. With a council of wizards chosen by the people continuously steering the country towards a brighter future, maintaining the integrity of their floating cities, and constantly pushing to improve the quality of life for their people, the Imperium Arcanae prospers like never before. However, although the Imperium Arcanae has only ever seen peace, current situations threaten to shatter this, foreign forces wishing to tear down the Arcanian banner and fly their own in the capital. . . Making it only a matter of time until war will test the nation’s resolve.

# History

The Imperium Arcanae was founded in 121 CF by the School’s Council - A convocation of skilled wizards who each possessed mastery in one arcane school. Hailing from different countries, they came together as outcasts, pariahs, and dissenters. Nevertheless, they sought to make a nation where laws were fair, where one’s life was determined not by their birth but by their deeds. Thus, they first founded the city Nova Stella, present near the continent’s southwestern shore, attracting arcanists and people seeking greener pastures. In time, it grew larger, before eventually making smaller settlements in the vicinity - And at that time, the Imperium Arcanae was born.

## Skyroads’ Construction

The nation quickly began flourishing due to cooperation between the School’s Council, though the nation’s overabundance of mountains made expanding to accommodate the growing population difficult. After much agonizing for a solution, the council eventually managed to find a way to populate this heightened terrain - Though it required the assistance of the magical population.

Constructing many arcane monoliths over the country on the nation’s leylines and supplying them with even more arcane energy themselves was a project that took three years to complete. But once linked and activated, their true purpose became clear - they erected magical fields above the country that allowed one to fly, making them able to reach any location, even high up in the mountains.

With this convenience that anyone could use, living up high now became feasible to even the common folk. Now, the nation had a far easier time rendering the hard-to-access places habitable to live, quickly constructing towns and cities over the rest of the nation’s mass. Settlements were erected that floated in the air, and the capital of Nova Stella was converted into a flying megalopolis that could traverse the country at will - Making it one of the most significant acts of magical ingenuity mankind has ever seen.

## Fall of the Third Council

Although every School’s Council has managed to work together for a better cause, the ideological differences between the third iteration of the council formed in 181 CF were too significant to work. This was mainly due to Valenia and Petinia Vestinus, sisters, and the new seat holders for Enchantment and Necromancy. Their election as part of the council was incredibly controversial, as allegations were that the former utilized their magic to garner votes for themselves - Though proof of this was only found after this incident was resolved.

Statements were made that the Imperium Arcanae couldn’t prosper any longer by staying within its own border, pushing for an invasion of surrounding countries, and other controversial proposals as a nationwide ban of technology. These statements were swiftly rejected by the other four members, citing that seeking conflict was against the wishes of the founders of the country. Refusing to take no for an answer, they decided to do something that had never transpired before - And that was to overrule the others by exerting force, occupying the city of Nova Stella with an army of undead and their mind-controlled followers.

After a month of turbulent fighting, the sisters Vestinus were hardpressed to continue the conflict, unable to withstand the continuous assault of the rest of the nation trying to reclaim their ground. Being at wit’s end, the two had seemingly admitted defeat in this battle, fleeing the city of Nova Stella amid the conflict and disappearing. And although peace returned soon after that to the Imperium Arcanae, it wasn’t the last of the warmongering twins.

Fifty years after the conflict, the peaceful nation of Kha Dhen, present north of the continent was subjected to a similar insurrection. The non-intervention stance of the Imperium saw them not meddling in this conflict, leading to it being successful due to no outside interference. However, it turned out this was orchestrated by none other than the Vestinus twins, having been gifted more powers by aligning themselves with infernal forces. Reshaping the nation under their tyrannical rule and renaming it to Velouve, it has been a continuous thorn in the Imperium Arcanae due to the sister’s unending grudge - Especially now that after many years of underhanded diplomacy, it shares a border with the Imperium.

## Recent Conflict

In the current years, the country of the Imperium Arcanae is no longer a stranger to conflict as it once was. With the Cassian Federacy its recent knack for expansion having reached its border, Velouve never ceasing to threaten the nation, and the current council having the most problems ever since the third, it seems like the peaceful years it had will soon be over. As a result, the nation has been spending more on the military budget than it ever has to protect against the coming storm, aiming to keep itself and its citizens safe.

The current conflict seems to be transpiring in the town called Veteris Lapis, on the northern border of the Imperium, right next to the Cassian Federacy and Velouve. Recent archeological findings have shown a wealth of undiscovered technological ruins under it, causing both nations to covet the ground, either to destroy it or to use it for themselves. Due to this find, the region is crawling with many military units from each country,  causing tensions to continuously rise every day.

# Geography

The Imperium Arcanae is vested in a region where sprawling green plains filled with lush flowers are rarely found, most of the area consisting of mountainous peaks. It even has the tallest mountain of the entire continent within its borders named Apex Mons, with some communities littered all around its heights. Although usually, these areas would prove uninhabitable, the construction of the Skyroads coupled with climate regulation make traversing towards them and vesting towns in there no problem at all.

Out of the Skyroads,  there are quite some tunnels inside these mountains leading to large networks. These often connect to Niederstadt, the subterranean center of trade and pathway to what lays deeper, though some also house communities of other underground civilizations that can’t adjust to the surface.

# Places of Interest

## Skyroads

Not visiting the Skyroads is nearly impossible due to it being the primary way of getting around in the Imperium, but that doesn’t make it any less grand. People sometimes visit purely because they wish to experience what flying feels like, which is ubiquitous for any citizen, though it can prove to be an extraordinary experience for any outsider. The Caelum Eques - A elite guard unit trained in airborne combat - patrol it at all times to keep every citizen traversing the net safely. Yet, due to the expansive nature of the network, some parts of it are less defended, making way for bandits to use it to rob any unsuspecting floating traveler.

## Academia Arcanae

Vested in the capital city of Nova Stella, the Academia Arcanae is the most prestigious magical institute in the entirety of Morisia. Appearing as a large, sprawling castle that floats above even the city itself, its grandiose appearance is only topped by the immense skill the upper echelon of mages possess, wishing to teach their arts to the younger generations so they can perfect them further. It doesn’t have a headmaster but is governed by the same Council that rules the nation, some notably invested members even teaching classes. It accepts any aspiring mage within its many halls, as long as they try to perfect the art of the arcane and use it for good causes. Yet, the competitive nature of the school in which one’s rank is purely dependant on personal skill causes some unruly students to forget their oath and bully others out of the curriculum, simply because it makes them look better in comparison.

## Apex Mons

The grand mountain found within the heart of the Imperium is a marvel of natural beauty, the immense heights its peak has breaching far past the clouds. Yet, it’s still not the tallest mountain to grace the world of Morisia. Almost every part of it is easily scalable due to the existence of the Skyroads, causing several settlements to litter its heights, yet some parts, including the very tip, are unable to be traversed. This is due to magical fluctuations in the atmosphere, causing some magic to simply fail at times, forcing people to climb it the old-fashioned way. These parts are usually inhabited by magical beasts of all kinds, often dangerous and not scared to feast on sentient lives. Lately, it seems like something dangerous has made its home on the tip, as hikers who wish to head to the top simply disappear - Coupled with mysterious hailstorms enveloping the immediate area of the mountain in increasing volume, causing the environmental magics put in place to keep the inhabitants safe to fail.

# Government

The Council that rules the Imperium Arcanae - Which, unlike the nation’s other fancy names, is simply referred to as ‘The Council’ while specifying its iteration - is chosen by the people themselves. Consisting of people with arcane knowledge who specialize in a different school, they try to rule the nation as one cohesive unit. Every twenty years, a new election takes place to replace all difficult council members at once, with several backups appointed if any members choose to leave or die before their term is up. Currently, the council’s on its 36th iteration, though it’s proving quite a rocky formation. Every current member’s wildly different ideology causes frequent clashes in opinions, leading to almost no action being undertaken, despite the threat of imminent war the nation is facing. Although the Council hadn’t broken up before their terms were up in 37 iterations, many citizens worry that it finally might topple, leaving the nations enemies to strike when it’s most vulnerable - Without any leadership to guide them.

# Inhabitants

The nation of the Imperium Arcanae is a varied one, with numerous races within its borders. Yet, one thing that most inhabitants from the lands of the Imperium Arcanae share have is the nation’s enemies a slight touch of magic - The leylines the nation’s build on granting every citizen a little touch of the arcane. Every month, citizens are asked to donate a little bit of their magic towards the arcane reserves that power the Skyroads, making the nation’s most prominent wonder quite literally powered by the people.

## Elves

The majority of the country’s residents seem to be elves, as their long life span appears to predominantly give them an extra edge when learning things, absorbing a large amount of matter in the extensive timeframe they’re alive. Five of the First Council that created the Imperium were also elves, causing many of the same kind to flock to the country and start a family there, though more immigrants of different races heading towards the Imperium over time diversified the population.