Khanai
Kharankhui, the Capital City
01% Jantu
01% Humans
Overview
Endless ice-bound winters, kiln-hot summers, a history of exile and savagery, Khanai is not the first choice for a joyous visit, but its harsh layout possesses a spirit of adventure of the supernatural kind. There's much more to this vast Fae nation than blood-craving Goblins and blizzard-lost heroes of old. Welcome to the nation of the Yōsei.
Description
Steeped in stultifying ritual, this otherworldly, reclusive kingdom is home to beasts, bogies and other malevolent terrors.
Khanai is full of expansive geography to explore. To the north are a wide range of snow-capped mountains and cruel tundra. To the west are ice dams, flatlands and plains. Centrally, there is a vast expanse of volcanic structures, igneous in nature where a multitude of ore and minerals are harvested.
The climate in and around Khanai varies dramatically, but it typically has short summers and long, brutal and often unforgiving winters. To the far north there is a very short spans of month-long summer. A kingdom of duality, Khanai is a nation that exists everywhere and nowhere. Like most fae, the majority of the nation exists within the fae realm of Arethil, but a particular conglomerate of Yōsei maintain a physical extension of this kingdom within the Isles of Sheketh, seeking an heir apparent as the new Sovereign.
The realm is full of beasts, mythical plants, imbued minerals and water. Khanai has a long list of supernatural wonders that prowl the cold terrain, pass through the shadows of realms and venture into Arethil to wreak havoc on humanity in the mischievous way only fae could. Vegetation is mostly taiga, with a tundra belt on the northern fringe, and lush temperate forests to the south.
Much of the architecture found in Khanai has flavors of militant strength, the known opulence and splendor of fae royalty, and the dark, eerie artistry of the Yōsei. A world of stone and ice, cold and shadow, there's much to see from sweeping tile roofs, pavilions of black ice, grand halls of shadows and dark, dank catacombs filled with a bleak and sinister history.
Beneath the splendor of opulence and luxury from palaces and banquet halls, to bathhouses and brothels lies a curious political struggle between Yōsei factions seeking to control the Kingdom. A court of shadow rulers oversee the kingdom’s businesses, while courtesans and concubines trade love for secrets in and out of court.
Sovereigns typically serve for life or are dethroned under dire circumstances. They are the only ones who have the power to declare war, the power to pass a final law or veto it. While it has varied over history, the Sovereign may choose to command the military as its head. Beneath the Sovereign, serves the Imperator who oversees the entire military with a great deal of agency and power as a noble and military leader.
History
Due to the isolationist nature of Khanai, very little is known about its history. Like many like their kind, it's citizens are renowned throughout the world to be a source of misfortune, and are often blamed for natural disasters, freak accidents, night terrors and the source of fear itself. As such, the Yōsei have a long, complicated history surrounding superstition.Demographic
The Yōsei
Like the Jantu, they are more withdrawn, but they are not without their social graces and have been known to mingle within and outside the continent. They said to be unflawed and beautiful with almond-shaped eyes, high cheek bones
Like all fae, you must choose your words wisely. The Yōsei are bound by oaths, words and names, for all have power in equal measure. For this, the Yōsei are known to be silver-tongued and honeyed with their words. Be mindful of the information you give to them, for they will be quick to use your own words against you and are known for their half-truths and deception.
It is rumored that when a Fae King laid eyes upon a beautiful Elven Queen, he abandoned his throne and spirited her away so that no other could have her and the tribes and courts have been on the hunt for a suitable heir apparent. There is a legend that says that one who is not of the Yōsei that stumbles across Khanai is chosen by them for a reason, though many do not return. Regardless of their purpose, the Yōsei are considered one of the most alluring if not dangerous species in Khanai.
The Jantu
In the time before time when Man was young and beasts roamed free in the sky, the earth and the sea, Man and their greed sought to conquer. The First Lord, Kabir the Jackal led the war against beasts, driving them away. And so the kingdom of Mannar became. Kabir, mad in his ways, made a pact with a Wild Witch to protect his people with her magick. So consumed with power and greed the price was his humanity; The Wild Witch cursed Kabir and his people to become like the beasts they controlled and slaughtered. Kabir and his people were accursed, neither fully man, nor fully beast.
It is said that Kabir the Jackal had become a great, horned beast. In shirking his past life and humanity, he became Raz-Nogore, Lord of Jantu.
The Jantu have long since been regarded as a fearsome, conquering race. Despite their monstrous size and strange appearance of being half beast and half man—they are noted as being capable of sentient intelligence, self-awareness and speech and maintain the same liberties as other citizens in Khanai.
Humans
Born from failed civilizations, enslaved by the Jantu—much of the human cultural identity was lost over time as groups stumbled across the isolated nation.
The Jantu, fearful of the magick after their curse was afflicted, systematically culled mages and selectively bred those who were barren of the gift.
Points of Interest
The stronghold of the Yōsei is the infamous Sayan fortress A towering masterpiece of black ice that reaches high
References
This page has been seen 386 times.
-
-
Created by on
-