God-kings

**God-kings** is the title given to a group of Bulwari magi that ruled the subcontinent from around 2800 BA to 1547 BA. The God-kings discovered the knowledge of genie-binding, and used it to take Bulwar from the Djinn, starting the first period of ancient Bulwar, the Age of God-kings.

After overthrowing the Djinn, the God-kings founded the first Bulwari city-states, acting as rulers, and in some cases, priests and representatives of the gods of the Bulwari Pantheon.

## Theories about their Origin

According to tradition, the first God-kings were servants of the Djinn that learnt Genie-binding from Brasan the Emancipator.

It is generally agreed that these first Genie-binders managed to disrupt to the point of inaction the Djinn Sultanates by binding the Sultans and several members of the upper echelons of Djinn society in a very short timespan. However scholars disagree if it was a simultaneous attack on all sultanates, a rebellion in one sultanate that expanded to the rest of Bulwar, or several independent instances of binding. Genie-binding seems to have originated in the Suran plain, but by 2700 BA, we find evidence of Genie-binders in Bahar and the Ayabnati islands, and by 2600 BA, we find mentions of a powerful God-king in the Gelkar lands.

According to Nuršin Gillu-gameš, after Brasan was killed for teaching Genie-binding to the Bulwari, there was a great revolt against the Djinn. This revolt (which he dubbed the Brasani revolt) caused the destruction of most of Bulwar, as well as the desertification of large parts of the region. As the humans acquired Wishblades and binded Djinn, making the remaining genies more aggressive in their use of the Wish, the destruction escalated. At the end of the revolt, the Genie-binders used Wish magic to restore the land. While this theory explains why none of the old Djinn cities survived to the Age of God-kings, due to the nature of Wish magic it is very difficult to find evidence to prove it, and most scholars don’t agree with it.

## Powers and abilities

The main ability of the God-kings was Genie-binding, that is, the ability to trap a genie in an object, and forcing them to enact wishes in exchange for freedom. The God-kings used these wishes in the crafting of Djinn relics (artifacts capable of using Wish magic), as the artifacts were more reliable and less dangerous than the Djinn.

The evidence shows that God-kings mostly used relics instead of casting spells, and taking into account the fact that hundreds of God-kings coexisted, make scholars believe that the majority of the God-kings weren’t mages, and that they used a form of Genie-binding that didn’t required magical skills.

Some God-kings also possessed Wishblades, weapons able to use the Wish in battle, making them the equivalent of battle-mages.

Despite their power, most battles between city-states were fought by armies, since the usage of the Wish could cause an escalation of power between the God-kings, ending in the destruction of entire regions.

## Decline

While at the beginning there were hundreds of God-kings, their number slowly declined for unknown reasons. Protection of their secrets, or even a devastating war are some of the theories being discussed by the scholars.

By the 16th century BA, the remaining God-kings of the Suran plain were defeated by nomadic invaders from the Forbidden Plains, who established the Empire of Karqašlu.

In some regions, it is believed that Genie-binding survived well into the Age of Monsters: Excavations of Ulmišbar shows that the city was still inhabited, and probably under the protection of a God-king in the 5th century BA, and according to some scholars, the mage Gelum-širharu of Gelkalis, one of Firanya's husbands in the myths, was a God-king, but the evidence in that case is purely speculative.

Traditionally, the disappearance of the God-kings was explained by the myth of Amussu, a God-king that wished to be the only able to use the Wish. This action made him immortal, but took away his voice. This caused (or coincided with) the invasion of Bulwar by nomads from the Serpent’s gift, ending the age of God-kings.

## Known God-kings

 Amussu, the Speaker of the Sky
 Ulmiš, the Eyes of the Moon
 Irsakar, the Fists of the Mountains
 Gašarhu, the Bull of Heaven
 Ninarzag, the Bringer of Death
 Šu-Zihmuram, the Thief of Faces
 Kudašagar
 Gelum-širharu