Ordallia Dev Thread

[Schwerpunkt]

Gets its own thread because developing it is super-involved, involves lots of distinctly-not-English terms, and is just a big subject in general. on top of all of this, the Empire of Ordallia is prone to very lofty and grandiose titles.

Ordallia (Dhalin: al-Dhaliya) is the eastern neighbor of Ivalice, formally known as the Empire of Ordallia (al-Dhalin Seraskiera), successor state to the Kingdom of Ordallia (Shirazate al-Dhaliyus). The Empire of Ordallia dates back to the proclamation of Serasker Devanne I in Year -40, to commemorate the supposed finality of Zelamonia's incorporation into Ordallia.

Ordallia is broadly divided into six regions. The hotly-contested Zelamonia (az-Zarakiyan) on Ivalice's southeastern border, the imperial heartland of Ordallia Proper (al-Dhaliyus), the vast steppes of al-Ghwarziyan north of the heartland, the desert lands of al-Qarakhoriya, the vassal states of al-Awlatiyyah (the Altenian City States), and the distant lands of al-Masbiyyah and al-Wridiya (administered together and collectively known in the west as 'Rozarria').

Accordingly, the Emperor of Ordallia is also known as the Shiraz-i-Azam (Grand Governor) of al-Dhaliyus, Ghazi (Victor) of Zelamonia, Kagan (Overlord) of al-Ghwaziyan, Mujtahid-i-Azam (Grand Adjudicator) of al-Qarakhoriya, and Kapu-Aghasi (Grand Gatekeeper) of al-Masbiyyah and al-Wridiyah. Additionally, the Emperor holds numerous lesser titles (ranging from Shiraz (Governor) to Beylerbey (Lord of Lords)) that are often omitted on informal occasions. The Emperor is usually referred to simply as "al-Serasker" in the third person or "Serasker" in the second person for the sake of simplicity.

Immediately below the Emperor is the Vizier-i-Azam (Grand Vizier, roughly analogous to a Chancellor or Prime Minister), who runs the government and is appointed (or deposed) at the whim of the Emperor. The Grand Vizier himself then administers a cabinet of 7 officials: the Pasha-i-Azam (Grand General), Bostanji-i-Azam (Grand Gardener, responsible for the Serasker's household), Kapudan-i-Azam (Grand Admiral), Mufti-i-Azam (Grand Judge, responsible for legal issues), Khojagan-i-Azam (Grand Book Keeper, responsible for finances), Saremin-i-Azam (Grand Engineer, responsible for civil works projects), and Miralai-i-Azam (Grand Colonel, Commander of the Dhalizun Host).

The Pasha-i-Azam and Miralai-i-Azam share fairly similar roles: both command field armies. The Miralai-i-Azam commands the Dhalizun Host (the best fighting force in the entire empire), while the Pasha-i-Azam commands the Ghizkhazun, the Qwarezum, the Khoyunzun, and the Quban Hosts. In terms of sheer manpower, the Pasha-i-Azam commands upwards of seven times as many men as the Miralai-i-Azam, but his armies are scattered across most of the empire in garrison duties. Only the Ghizkhazun Host, in light of the ongoing war, was actually released from garrison duty to fight the Ivalicians.

Rough outline of the six territories.

Zelamonia (az-Zarakiyan) encompasses the various cities south of the Burstel Ruins and as far east as Vaseria. It is ruled by Voivode Aq Sulaym Pasha, who serves as a sort of colonial governor. Unlike other civilian governors, he also commands the Zarakizun Host, drafted from colonial settlers and loyal Zelamonians. Relative to the other Hosts, it is extremely under-strength and not fit for much beyond garrison duties and chasing down bandits.


Ordallia Proper (al-Dhaliyus) is located immediately north of Zelamonia, spanning as far north as Laqant and as far east as Qataniyah. Its capital, unsurprisingly, is Viura. It is administered directly by the Grand Vizier. Ordallia Proper is the beating heart of the Ordallian Empire and Viura is the seat of the single largest empire known to man.


al-Ghwarziyan (sometimes known as 'Ghwarzia' in Ivalice) is the vast territory north of al-Dhaliyus, spanning from Qalat al-Gharb in the west to Qalat al-Sharq in the distant east. al-Ghwarziyan stretches across most of Ordallia's northern coast and, aside from the desert, is the least densely populated area in the entire empire. Ghwarzia was the first major conquest of Ordallia and began some 400 years ago.


al-Qarakhoriya (sometimes known as 'Kharkhoria' or 'The Sand Wastes' in Ivalice)is the vast desert located roughly in the center of the Ordallian Empire. Sheltered on the north and south ends by mountains, it receives very little precipitation at any time of the year. It is home of the Kharkhorids, a savage collection of cannibal tribes that have found common cause with the Empire. The Kharkhorids are perhaps best known for their elaborate cities carved into the rock -- cities they then promptly abandon to move on to another lair. Kharkhoria is also known for its elephant and ivory trade.


al-Awlatiyyah (sometimes known as 'Altenia' in Ivalice) is located east of Zelamonia. Like Zelamonia, Altenia was crushed beneath the boot of the Ordallians. Initially conquered some 175 years ago, Altenia has since become a distinctly Ordallian land and has lost most of its cultural identity. It is Altenia's example that has so consistently spurred revolts against Ordallia in Zelamonia.


al-Masbiyyah wa al-Wridiyah (sometimes known as 'Rozarria' in Ivalice) is the eastern bastion of the Empire and, together with Ghwarzia, forms the eastern boundary of the Ordallian Empire. These lands, subjugated some 300 years ago, have since become mirrors of Ordallia Proper. Makiyyah and Halqayyah, the twin capitals of the two sub-provinces, are regarded as "the Eastern Viura." The two sub-provinces are divided by the Qatib Nahir, a river wide enough to "drown all of Sal Ghidos" at its mouth. [Edit: "wa" = "and." I dropped the English term in favor of consistency and to minimize confusion, because they sound like two provinces with "and" in English.]


Note: Rozarria, Altenia, and most of Kharkhoria do not appear on the map at all. This is just further detail to flesh out Ordallia. Additionally, Rozarria in the far east ties our Ordallia to the FF12 Ordallia more properly and helps explain why "Ordallia" suddenly becomes "Rozarria" in the east.


More coming later.




I'm turning Arabic
I think I'm turning Arabic,
I really think so

[Ilium]

Great work so far. Do we have a list of all the characters you have come up with for Ordalia? Which ones do you think might serve as NPC's for the beta?

[Schwerpunkt]

moar.

The Cabinet (al-Wazrah) is composed of the following NPCs. I've reordered it (slightly) to make a bit more sense. Also, I've modified the "translations" to be a bit more representative of what the role actually is.

Note that 'Pasha' just means 'Commander,' so any position that requires military authority (or would qualify for being an 'imperator' under Roman conventions) would have Pasha as part of its title.

For our purposes, I've greatly simplified Arabic names of the feudal era. Arabic names come in four forms: the ism (given name), laqab (cognomen, usually descriptive), nasab (the patronym), and nisbah (the surname). The nisbah and nasab basically serve the same purpose, so you typically won't see them together. Like Roman names, Arabic naming conventions got progressively more nuanced and complicated over time, but have since been truncated in practice in the modern era.

I'll make it even simpler: unless they're noble, they get a patronym. If they're noble, "ibn" doesn't show up and al-____ is their family. It gets a lot more complicated (like ala vs. Allah), but I don't see the point in making this the Arabic Name Simulator. And I'm not even touching the kunyah (which is like a reverse patronym). And there's also the fact that you can chain names together (like Antonio Banderas does in The 13th Warrior when he says "my name is Ahmed ibn Fahdlan ibn al-Abbas ibn Rashid ibn Hamad").

Transliterating Devanne into Arabic is a huge pain (partly because they don't even have a 'v' as far as I know. So I turned the v into b (Spanish treats them as the same exact pronunciation, and since there are Morisco themes, I just used that). I dropped the last vowel, since that's typically how you turn something into its feminine version (but not always), and just settled on Dhibann. Because Lennard is a lousy name (and also because "transliterating" it and changing one letter is stupid, I'm going to have Devanne V as the Emperor of Ordallia.

In cases of people having two names before we get to the patronym, you use both when referring to them. The Grand General here is "Abu Mustafa" in second person informal. Most Arabic names mean something (Abu means 'servant of,' I think), so you can't properly drop any.

Cabinet (al-Wazrah)
Vizier-i-Azam (Grand Vizier): Yazid al-Kartal Pasha
Pasha-i-Azam (Grand General): Abu Mustafa ibn Alfarsi Pasha
Kapudan-i-Azam (Grand Admiral): Hassan Nasr ibn Hassan Pasha
Mufti-i-Azam (Grand Justice): Wasil ibn Mishal
Khojagan-i-Azam (Grand Treasurer): Ala-ad-din ibn Hasayn
Bostanji-i-Azam (Grand Steward): Salih al-Amin
Miralai-i-Azam (Grand Colonel): Suad ibn Daud Pasha

Provinces and Governors (singular: Imarah, plural: Imarat)
az-Zarakiyan (Zelamonia): Voivode Aq Sulaym ibn Himas Pasha
al-Ghwarziyan (Ghwarzia): Emir Hamza ibn al-Yasa
al-Qarakhoriya (Kharkhoria): Emir Fakhri ibn Furat
al-Awlatiyyah (Altenia): Emir Haru ibn al-Kamil
al-Masbiyyah and al-Wridiyah (Rozarria): Emira Fiddah al-Samara (f)
al-Dhaliyus (Ordallia Proper): Serasker Dhibann Kaseem al-Demir (Emperor Devanne V)
al-Zalteniyyah (Zeltennia): Emira Khalida al-Zarqa (f)

Most of these guys don't need to really be fleshed out. The following, however, do:
Devanne V, Emperor of Ordallia
Aq Sulaym, Voivode of Zelamonia
Suad Pasha, Commander of the Dhalizun Host
Absi Najam Pasha, Commander of the Ghizkhazun Host
Hassan Nasr Pasha, Grand Admiral
Abu Mustafa Pasha, Grand General
Yazid al-Kartal, Grand Vizier
Khalida al-Zarqa (f), Governor of Occupied Zeltennia

Armies! Joy.
Dhalizun Host: The elite fighting force of Ordallia, the Dhalizun Host is both sizable and well equipped. It took the combined might of the Hokuten, Nanten, and Touten to effectively knock the Dhalizun out of the early part of the war. Presently, the Dhalizun out-classes either the Hokuten or Nanten, but can't effectively fight both at once.

The Dhalizun Host is comprised of a balanced force of medium infantry (Almshahi), heavy cavalry cavalry (Mutarrikahi), and crossbowmen (Alqawasi). In smaller scale battles, it relies upon a combination of samurai and archers, augmented by time mages and chemists, to defeat its knight-heavy opponents with a combination of debilitating status effects and ranged damage.

Ghizkhazun Host: The northern army, which in peacetime spends most of its time patrolling the vast steppes, is much smaller than the Dhalizun Host. Rather than relying upon large numbers of soldiers, it relies upon highly mobile cavalry and mounted infantry to out-maneuver and crush its enemies. While unable to defeat the Nanten or Hokuten in a direct fight, its ability to raid and harass the much less mobile knights of Ivalice is deadly.

In larger battles, the Ghizkhazun is reliant almost entirely upon medium cavalry (Alhasani) to take the battle to the enemy. In smaller battles, it relies upon chocobo-mounted lancers and mounted archers to defeat the enemy with vastly superior mobility. The Ghizkhazun typically do not utilize magi, as the time it takes to cast spells is considered too long to be tactically viable.



To-Do:
- Paragraph-long description of each city and location. (Just Zelamonia left)
- Flesh out Ordallian religion (particularly with regards to the Prophet King and Caliph), including the Khamja Schism.
- Flesh out ~8 NPCs

[Schwerpunkt]

Gorram post-eating proboards.

This post is strictly for Ordallia proper and Ghwarzia place descriptions. This includes everything north of the Burstel Ruins.

Fortresses
Qalat al-Gharb: Qalat al-Gharb (‘the Western Fort’) was constructed some 450 years ago as the conquest of Ghwarzia began. It is a mirror image of the 350-year-old Qalat al-Sharq (‘the Eastern Fort’), which sits on the exact opposite end of al-Ghwarziyan. Both forts are constructed of a plain yellow stone and organized in simple squares: square walls, square towers, square picket lines, square moats, and square buildings.

Qalat al-Wazir: Constructed of the same yellow stone as the twin fortresses, Qalat al-Wazir (‘the Vizier’s Fortress’) is some 50 years younger than Qalat al-Gharb. Following the acquisition of the Bayda, Ordallia required a staging ground north of the mountains for further excursions into the wide steppes. This fortress, paid for by a particularly patriotic Vizier whose name has been lost to history, helped catapult expeditions deep into al-Ghwarziyan.

Qalat Mazar: The ‘Grave Fort’ of Qalat Mazar was originally Mazariyyah, a place where those buried or lost at sea were remembered. While no bodies were buried here, it was nonetheless the only memorial most sailors and captains received. Some 250 years ago, however, the rise of the corsair group ‘Qasanbah’ prompted the militarization of Mazariyyah to protect Laqat. Following a lengthy campaign, which ultimately resulted in the elimination of the Qasanbah some 30 years later by Bey Hayreddin Pasha, the fort became a permanent naval base on the north coast. Qalat Mazar was constructed primarily of white stone.

Qalat Zabud: The ‘Zabud Citadel’ is named in honor of Colonel-General Zabud ibn Khalif, who was slain during the Siege of Burstel some 75 years prior to the outbreak of hostilities. The uproar caused by Colonel-General Zabud’s martyrdom fueled the construction of this monstrous fortress on the border with Ivalice, whose support of the Zelamonian insurgency was dubbed responsible for his death. The citadel was constructed primarily from a smoky volcanic stone – most of which was harvested from Burstel after the city was ruthlessly razed to the ground.

Cities
Laqant: The Bright City, Laqant, was constructed almost entirely of white stone. A sprawling port city responsible for most of Ordallia’s trade with cities as far-flung as Semitt and Warjilis prior to the war, Laqant is a city that prides itself on selling everything under the sun. It has the dubious distinction of being the only city in Ordallia where slave auctions take place – most slaves, primarily Ivalician or Zelamonian – are sold to to foreign traders in the Bright City, but some are kept for domestic service. Laqant is a city where spices are cheap and a man’s life is cheaper still.

Qataniyah: Originally Qalat Qatan (‘the Elephant Fort’), Qataniyah has since grown into a city in its own right. Originally erected to safeguard the few elephants that still roam the southern reaches of al-Qarakhoriya, Qataniyah’s commerce is based very heavily around the breeding, raising, and selling of elephants – as well as ivory, a commodity which is literally worth three times its weight in gold. Qataniyah is also notable for the draconian punishments handed out to poachers – the governors of the city pride themselves on developing increasing horrific and gruesome methods of execution for anyone caught poaching elephants.

Viura: Viura is known by many names: the City of Varoi, the City of Colors, and the City of the Prophet. Sitting at the fork of the Yussana Nahir (‘Blessed River’) and Khalisa Nahir (‘Purest River’), which form the enormous Khalfa Nahir (‘Caliph’s River’), the second largest river in all of Ordallia (second only to the Qatib Nahir in the east, a river large enough to swallow an entire city), Viura is the beating heart of the largest empire in the known world. Viura is proudly proclaimed by Ordallians to be the best of everything: the most beautiful, the richest, the largest, and the most terrifying. When Arsakh the Traveler arrived here from the far northeast, he claimed that the city must have been built for the gods themselves.

Such an enormous city, however, is extremely difficult to feed. It is only by virtue of the exceedingly productive Khalfa Nahir, which floods yearly to re-enrich the soil, and vast farmlands tilled by freemen and slaves alike, that the massive city is fed. Even the orchards east of the city, bearing fruit only the nobility can properly afford, cover an area greater than that of Lake Poescas.

The city is ringed in three distinct walls – repeatedly enlarged to safeguard the ever-increasing population, which has now exceeded the third wall and covered most of the surrounding countryside. The outermost wall, Jidar az-Zemurah (‘the Turquoise Wall’) is built entirely of a turquoise stone, extracted exclusively from a quarry in the northern mountains – the only known location for turquoise stone in the entire world. The third wall shelters much of the city’s population, though many live beyond the wall entirely. The middle wall, Jidar al-Djinni (‘the Djinni Wall’) is wrought entirely of a dull gray stone with every exposed piece of stone carved in the images and likeness of the Djinni of Ordallian religion. It is behind this second wall that most of the city’s great bazaars and noble estates are found. The innermost wall, Jidar al-Sharaf (‘the Shepherd’s Wall’), surrounds the Imperial Compound, which is itself large enough to qualify as a small city.

Opposite the city, and straddling both the north and south banks of the Khalfa Nahir, is the Imperial Arsenal (Tersane-i-Amire). The Imperial Arsenal, which is itself larger than many cities, produces some of the most advanced weaponry in all of Ordallia, including a variety of warships and numerous types of artillery for land and sea use. The Imperial Arsenal, by virtue of sheer size, is also responsible for most weapons of war used in the west, with the province of al-Masbiyyah and al-Wridiyah being responsible for weapons used on the eastern end of the empire. The Imperial Arsenal has produced every ship to have served in the Northern Fleet (and more than a few that have served in the Southern Fleet) for 200 years; the Southern Fleet’s production has shifted to al-Awlatiyyah to alleviate production bottlenecks.

Locations of Interest
al-Ghwarziyan: al-Ghwarziyan, the vast steppes of Ghwarzia, to the north and east of Qalat al-Wazir. While sea travel is often faster, the overland trade routes bringing spice from distance al-Masbiyyah and al-Wridiyah remain extremely popular. Today, Ghwarzia is the principal route by which spices and silks reach the west.

Bayda: The Bayda Sands have long served as an example of the price of pride to Ordallians. According to ancient lore, the Wizard of Bayda erected an enormous tower in the center of the Bayda Sands, then part of al-Ghwarziyan, and enslaved tens of thousands of Ordallians to facilitate construction. When the tower was complete, he then attempted to use it to gain entry into heaven. In response for his folly, and to repay the blood dead of thousands of slaves, the Caliph turned the wizard’s tower into a pillar of salt and sand. The tower collapsed and the wizard fell several hundred feet to his death. It is said that the base of a very large tower can still be found in the center of the wastes.

al-Munakarh: The Pass at al-Munakarh is the sole method of crossing into Ghwarzia without a lengthy journey around the mountains or a boat ride to Qalat al-Gharb. It is said that the pass was cut clear through the mountains by the Prophet King, who believed that it would prove instrumental in the conquest of the wild steppes.

al-Qantara: The Crossing at al-Qantara is an enormous arched bridge, large enough to both span the enormous Khalfa Nahir and permit the passage of all manner of warships under its arches. The bridge predates the Empire by some 800 years. Its exact builder is unknown, but conventional wisdom claims it was the Prophet King’s hand that laid the first stone.

Jayyan: The Jayyan Crossroads is a popular meeting point of caravans heading from Laqant to the south or from Zelamonia to the north. Typically, three or more caravans can be found in the vicinity at any time of the year, with more during the yearly flood period. With the touch-and-go nature of sea traffic from Laqant to Zelamonia, caravans have become even more common than they were in the past.

Dhalikar: The Dhalikar Garrison is the permanent home of the Dhalizun, the Drawn Sword of the Caliph. It is a military town with very little of note beyond its sheer size. Even while the Dhalizun is busy fighting in Zeltennia, Dhalikar is a hotbed of activity as wounded are shipped home and supplies are shipped back.

al-Ejaz: The Pass at al-Ejaz is a direct route from northern Zelamonia into southeastern Ordallia Proper. The Pass was the site of a bloody battle during the Kaldemarian Revolt, which saw the Kaldemarian Revolutionary Army smash itself to pieces against the Dhalizun outriders, who rushed to garrison the pass before the rebel army could march into Ordallia Proper. During the three day battle, both sides suffered casualty rates in excess of 80%, making it by far the bloodiest battle by percentage in all of Ordallia’s history. The sacrifice of the ‘Martyrs of the Barrier’ spurred the Dhalizun’s ruthless pursuit of the rebels from al-Ejaz to Vaseria, where they were finally pinned against the city walls and massacred.

Sand Wastes: The Sand Wastes of al-Qarakhoria is the geographic center of the Ordallian Empire, wedged by the southern provinces of Altenia and Rozarria and the northern province of Ghwarzia. It is primarily empty, though the southern edges of al-Qarakhoria are littered with the verdant oases that are frequently home to the rare elephants that the region is best known for. Further north, the nomadic Kharkhorids have carved their cities into the stone of the Rim Mountains, littering the region ancient and abandoned cities of stone. The Sand Wastes are also home to all manner of violent creatures, many of which are hunted aggressively by the merchant princes of Qataniyah to protect their lucrative elephant and ivory trade.

Qawasqar: The Ravines of Qawasqar is perhaps the most notable example of a Khakhorid city. It is estimated to be some 250 years old – the oldest of them all – and believed to have been carved by the mythic ‘King of Kharkhoria,’ a figure of Kharkhorid lore that is roughly analogous to the Prophet King, but occurring much later. The Kharkhorids themselves believe their mythical king was a reincarnation of the Prophet King, a belief that is widely regarded as outright heresy through much of the empire.

[Schwerpunkt]

Religion in Ordallia
Religion in Ordallia follows three basic patterns. The first is the state religion, known in Ordallia simply as al-Din (‘the religion’). This is formally known as Dhalin al-Din (‘the Ordallian Religion’) and more informally in the west as ‘Qazism,’ the etymology of which is uncertain. The second is Viuran Farism, a polytheistic religion with deep roots in the Light of Kiltia doctrine. The third is ‘Ahadith al-Rushid’ (‘Sayings of al-Rushid’), known more commonly as Rushiddian Theory in the west, is a relatively modern ‘re-examination’ of al-Din that is widely regarded as heresy or outright apostasy in Ordallia.

Ultimately, all three major schools of belief are derived from the Prophet-King (‘Malik Rasol’), a semi-mythic figure who lived some 800 years ago. According to legend, the Prophet-King was born in the city of Laqant, which today boasts the second largest temple in his honor. After gathering followers to himself, the Prophet-King seized control of Laqant and then began a war of conquest, sweeping across much of modern-day Ordallia Proper. It is said that, after conquering the realm, he planted a sword in the ground on the shores of the Yussana and Khalisa Nahiri, proclaiming that a city would be erected on that spot. This city would become Viura.

The Prophet-King’s descendents formed the az-Zaidi Dynasty. This dynasty ruled from the Prophet King until the death Varoi III some 200 years ago. At this point the Prophet-King’s bloodline continued through Varoi III’s daughter, giving raise to the Mirza Dynasty. The Emperor, therefore, can claim direct descent from the Prophet-King with a bloodline that reaches back nearly a thousand years.

Dhalin al-Din Principles
Five Principles (m’badi-ad-din) comprise the primary theory of al-Din. According to the M’etinqayyah (‘the adherents,’ sometimes simply ‘Meti’ in Ivalice), adherence to the Five Principles is an all-or-nothing prospect: either you adhere to all of them or you’re a heretic.

The First Principles: Obedience before the Caliph and his Prophet-King. This Principle, in effect, requires obedience of the Prophet-King’s Teachings (‘T’eayalayyam,’ often shortened to ‘Layam’). Accordingly, this Principle is the broadest of the Five Principles and most hotly-debated.

The Second Principle: Obedience before the Sharaf al-Dhalin (‘Ordallian Shepherd’), the ecclesiastic title of the reigning monarch of Ordallia. In practice, the Second Principle makes revolt against the Emperor to be apostasy, the penalty for which is almost invariably death. Accordingly, Ordallian history is filled with horrific punishments for rebels.

The Third Principle: Veneration of the Sayifi-ad-Din (‘Swords of the Religion’). The title Sayif-ad-Din is bestowed upon martyrs, triumphant generals, and notable warriors – it essentially requires that they be respected as cultural heroes for their contributions to the religion. As of the end of Fifty Years’ War, there are some seven hundred Sayifi-ad-Din.

The Fourth Principle: Daily prayer. It is customary for the faithful to be called to worship at dawn and dusk. Under religious law, exemptions are made for soldiers, infirm, and the elderly, who are instead required to pray as they are able (or when not on duty, in the case of soldiers).

The Fifth Principle: Charity. Under religious law, one fifth of every citizen’s income is forfeit for tax purposes. Additionally, citizens are expected to donate a further one tenth of their income, or their time, to charitable projects, which includes everything from providing clothing for the poor to public works projects.

Dhalin al-Din and non-Adherents
According to religious law, there are four types of non-Adherents, typically known as ‘Qalareen’ (‘non-believers’).

Apostates (‘Riddayeen’) are those who have deliberately turned away from al-Din. The punishment for apostasy is almost invariably execution. However, under religious law, the children of apostates do not bear the sins of their fathers and are not considered apostates – children of apostates, however, do not automatically inherit citizenship.

Heretics who obey the Prophet-King (‘Hasanayyah’) are often regarded as future converts. The most notable heretics in Ordallia are the Kharkhorids, who adhere to the Kharkhorid Heresy, which claims that the Prophet-King returned to serve as the semi-mythic ‘King of Kharkhoria.’ While regarded as heresy by the M’etinqayyah, the adherence of the Kharkhorids to the m’badi-ad-din classifies them as Hasanayyah. As they adhere to the Principles, they are merely restricted from holding high or religious office.

Heretics who resist the Prophet-King (‘Sayyah’) are either the descendents of apostates or foreigners who take up arms against the Empire. Unlike the Hasanayyah, the Sayyah reject in whole or in part the Five Principles. Under al-Din, these heretics are considered first and foremost to be targets for conversion. Should conversion fail, punishments up to and including slavery are employed. The Sayyah are forbidden from earning citizenship.

Non-believers who submit (Khalbayeen) are typically adherents of foreign religions, such as the Church of Glabados. They are obliged to adhere to the Second and Fifth Principles, but are otherwise permitted a degree of self-governance. Additionally, Khalbayeen are permitted to serve in garrison forces, earn citizenship, operate businesses, and are guaranteed equal protection under secular law, which provides exemption from religious law.

Miscellaneous Dhalin al-Din Terms
al-Maqadash: The holy war. Typically reserved for particularly important or large wars.
al-Mayed(i): Temple. Informally, al-Mayed can also refer to the ecclesiastic administration, embodied in the Emperor and his Hafiz.
Kahan: Priest.
Khattab: The priest responsible for reading the Hafiz’s sermons in public.
Hafiz: The Emperor’s principal religious adviser, who is forbidden from speaking to any secular officials. According to tradition, the Hafiz has memorized all of the Prophet-King’s writings.
Shamaz: A lay person recognized for exceptional service to the Temple. This title is typically reserved for war veterans, those who make significant donations to public work projects, and so forth.

Viuran Farism
Viuran Farism is, for all intents and purposes, very similar to the original Light of Kiltia doctrine, with one notable exception: it claims that the Prophet-King was in actuality the son of Faram. Superficially, Viuran Farism bears some marginal similarities with the Church of Glabados – such as the veneration of Ajora as a saint – but otherwise errs closer to a hybrid between Dhalin al-Din and the Light of Kiltia.

Practitioners of Viuran Farism are given special consideration as Hasanayyah, a status that they have benefited from for some 150 years. Hard-liners in Ordallia, however, still consider them Khalbayeen and many conservative elements of Ordallian society stringently object to the tacit acceptance of a polytheistic religion.

Viuran Farans are scattered across most of Ordallia, but the highest concentrations can be found in Zelamonia, where the continued veneration of Saint Ajora made conversion easier than acceptance of the m’badi-ad-din.

Averrianism
Averrianism, officially known as al-Nihafayyah (‘the aberration’) , is a school of thought developed by Amad ibn Rashid al-Riddaya, more commonly known in the west as Averro the Apostate. Averro’s theories called for a “rational evaluation” of the Prophet-King’s works and objected to the “byzantine methods” of the Temples. While his criticism of the Temple was originally well-received, Averro’s one-mad crusade against the Prophet-King’s teachings was met with direct opposition. While he managed to convert a number to his cause, he was ultimately arrested and executed on the orders of Emperor Dhibann I, who had grew tired of Averro’s constant demagoguery.

Following Averro’s execution, the Temple immediately issued a Marsawam (‘proscription’) against Averro’s teachings, naming him an Apostate and classifying all adherents to his ideas as Riddayeen. Following this proscription, Averro’s followers were forced to renounce their beliefs and return to the flock or face treatment as an apostate. While many submitted to the Church, and were welcomed back into the fold without punishment, others opted to adhere to Averro’s teachings.

The most notable adherent of Averro’s teachings was Khalid ibn Amad, Averro’s own son, who had ascended to high rank in the Khamja (‘left hand’) prior to the outbreak of religious turmoil. Following his father’s execution, Khalid took his own followers – which numbered a significant portion of the Khamja – and left for Ivalice, seeking refuge first in Zeltennia and later in Fovoham; the self-exile of the Khamja is known as the ‘Khamja Schism.’ While the Khamja were thoroughly mistrusted by Ivalician authorities, who did not buy the religious persecution angle, the Khamja’s willingness to fight on Ivalice’s behalf against Romanda was considered an adequate sign of loyalty.

[Schwerpunkt]

An IC travelogue of sorts.

A Study of Dhalin al-Din From the Eyes of an Outlander
Dictated by His Royal Majesty Hakon Johannson, Crown Prince of Romanda
Penned by Abu Mustafa al-Walid, Scribe of the Grand Vizier

We arrived, as well-to-do gentlemen are wont to do, by airship. We departed from the Royal Aerodrome some weeks ago and charted our path in a gentle arc, as if we were simply thrown from Romanda and poised to land somewhere in the vastness of Ordallia far in the east. We flew over the land of the cataclysm, which my scribe tells me was once an island kingdom of some sort, and flew down from the clouds to view the White City, Laqant, in the early morning light. I can see why sailors the world over sing their praises of it – after so long drifting quietly over the empty vastness of the East Sea, a horizon of white towers was certainly a welcome change of pace.

But unlike those sailors, we would not be stopping to pay visit to the White City’s legendary bazaars. We flew past the bustling city, which sat opposite the Qalat Mazar – a fortress of such rigidly utilitarian purpose that it seemed positively somber next to the bustling city of Laqant. Qalat Mazar, I am told, serves as a sort of ‘necrohol,’ to use the Ivalician phrase – or Dysholl, as we might call it. A fortress built entirely to honor those lost at sea strikes me as entirely unnecessary, but the Ordallians are nothing if not extravagant.

Putting our proverbial back to the white fortress and the white city, we traveled upriver. This river, easily the largest I have ever seen. My guide tells me that you could drown the entire city of Gariland in its mouth. I believe him; even high above it, the banks seem almost impossibly far apart. And as if to give mockery to my astonishment, we have to <i>climb</i> to avoid crashing directly into the largest bridge I have ever seen. This bridge, which they call al-Qantara, seems to have been built by the gods themselves. My guide says that the Prophet-King built it, but that means little to me – their Prophet-King seems to be the one to whom they attribute all things they cannot explain. I hear they even claim their Prophet-King cleaved a mountain in half so they could avoid sailing around it or somesuch nonsense.

Regardless of who built this absurdly large bridge, we continue further upriver. We fly near these twin mini-fortresses, crenellations lined with ballistae and archers, and my guide tells me that this is the Imperial Arsenal. They tell me that over half of all the swords forged in Ordallia come from here. I find the notion rather ridiculous; supplying a single forge in a single location with enough steel to outfit an army is nigh impossible. But my guide assures me that, in addition to this, they build ships of every type here. I am skeptical. Next they will tell me that the Prophet-King himself labors with hammer and saw.

After several hours more, where the river narrows to a slightly more believable width, we come to the fork in the proverbial road. One river comes down from the northern mountains; one comes up from the southern mountains. They flow together and, at their confluence, is a city that is large beyond my comprehension. They tell me that hundreds of thousands of souls call this city home; that it is the largest city in the known world by an order of magnitude. And here, looking down upon all the teeming myriads of Ordallia from my airship, I am almost inclined to believe them. I expect hyperbole from these easterners, but it seems hard to contradict what they tell me now. The rivers in all directions are lined with farms – further east, beyond the high walls of the city and its outlying towns, I see a forest the size of the Kronmork in Romanda. They tell me that this isn’t a forest – that it’s an orchard. An hour ago I might have believed this to be a poor translation; now, seeing the untold thousands of Ordallians moving about like so many ants, I can almost believe it.

We land some time later. The aerodrome itself is almost an affront to the pride of Romanda. We labored for months to erect the Royal Aerodrome – and this makes our labor look like a shoddy shed erected in haste to store a lumberjack’s old tools. The Royal Aerodrome can accommodate two airships; judging by how little space our ship takes up here, I suspect this monstrosity can accommodate the better part of a score. I remain skeptical; this must be a façade intended to impress upon me, and therefore my father, the fact that Romanda is the junior partner in this alliance. And I will not allow their parlor tricks to fool me.

Several hours later, I am given an audience with the Emperor himself. They call him Dhibann; I almost didn’t recognize the name and, had I met him in a bazaar, I would never have taken him to be Devanne V, Emperor of Ordallia, et al. He is an interesting sort; he has the same olive complexion as the rest of Ordallia – strange, given that he is supposed to be of the Aktaschid Dynasty – and the same raven-hued hair of these easterners, albeit turning the color of steel at his temples and chin. He wears a comically oversized hat and I, coming from a kingdom where the crown is little more than a steel circlet with silver filigree and one ruby the size of my thumb, almost laugh at it. The hat, on the whole, must be four times the size of his head. It is amazing he can even keep his posture; I would expect any head to hang heavily under such a burden.

On top of this, he wears these absurdly ornamental robes. I have seen plenty of Ivalician lords wear their robes in the colors of gold and precious stones, but I do not believe I have ever seen a man wear a robe inlaid with precious metals and stones. To say that his clothing is a king’s ransom would be to sell him short: there’s enough gold and sapphire in his robe to feed the Romandan Expeditionary Corps for a year. And that’s assuming they wanted to sprinkle gold on their bread.

My scribe eyes me, annoyed, as I dictate this to him. It would seem that Ordallia wished for a true account of my impressions, but only insofar as I scraped and fawned before their vaunted emperor. It would seem that mocking his extravagance and sense of style is a diplomatic faux pas. It would also seem that I do not care. But let it not be said that I am a less-than-gracious guest. I shall endeavor to refrain from mocking His Imperial Hatness in the future.

But I was discussing my audience. The bulk of it was spent going through the motions of byzantine courtly procedures. In Romanda, a man who wishes for an audience asks for one and, if it is granted, he may address the king directly. In Ordallia, a man who wishes for an audience must first submit a pedigree of birth, bribe a court scribe, duel a sand-walker, ceremonial recite half a saga, listen to some old minister prattle on, put up with scornful glares from some distinctly non-imperial fellow with a hat that suggests he’s compensating, and do a religious dance or two whilst standing on hot coals. This, of course, will allow you within a quarter of a mile of the Emperor, at which point you may speak to an intermediary, who will carry your message to the Emperor, who will perhaps not even deign to reply for some time. Meanwhile, through all of this, you are busy kneeling – if you’re not a visiting prince, in which case you merely stand in horribly uncomfortable open-toed shoes of some sort – and eventually, preferably sometime before the dying of the light, you receive a reply from the Emperor. This answer is often laconic, of course, because the Emperor does not waste words with mere mortals.

Fortunately for my patience and diplomatic relations, I was subsequently given a meeting with the ‘Grand Vizier’ – there are a lot of ‘grand’ titles being thrown about in this oversized city – who proves much more sociable than his Emperor who, he explains, is far too busy picking out new hats to speak with visiting princes. The Grand Vizier, to his credit, is quite the diplomatic fellow – he dresses well, but not “I wear gold instead of lace” well. He is an elderly gentleman, who seems to be able to recall details of battles and incidents without the need to consult any of his scribes – of whom there are many – and he does not even object to my consumption of wine. I was flatly told that alcohol was strictly forbidden under nearly all conditions, but that special permission had been granted for the consumption of a single bottle of wine for my visit. The gesture was exceedingly considerate, and so I welcomed the Grand Vizier to share in it. He seemed to be offended, but masked it well.

Other than this childish squabbling over alcohol – the wine was an above-average vintage, but I prefer my ale – the meeting was productive. We spoke at great length on cultural topics. He seemed utterly mystified by snow – the “white sand of Romanda” – and asked, repeatedly, if we could send some for his evaluation. I explained that snow melted, which disappointed him, but invited him to visit. He seemed pleased, but it is unlikely he will visit while still the Grand Vizier. And, traditionally, Grand Viziers serve until death. Usually by execution.

We also discussed the Khamja, which have been such a pain to our efforts in Fovoham. He informed me that the Khamja were once Ordallian – we suspected as much, given the clothing – and that they departed over a religious squabble. It strikes me as rather reckless to lose a group of ruthless assassins over something as petty as religious matters, but here in the east, religion holds an enormous sway over nearly every aspect of life. Even military posts are restricted on religious grounds, something that strikes me as more foolish than the nobility restrictions imposed in Ivalice.

After meeting with the Grand Vizier, I had the pleasure of meeting with the Grand General. Here was a military man through-and-through – he even had a gruesome scar down one side of his face, which he said he earned fighting the Zelamonians. I believe it; he carries himself as a military man. Unlike the other Grand-so-and-so, this fellow actually seemed to act like a soldier. He sat with a rigid posture and he wore a simple uniform – by Ordallian standards, which is only slightly ostentatious by Romandan standards. He did not, in fact, look like a artist with more dyes than sense had his way with him. I cannot say the same about his nautical counterpart, who dressed with more colors than I even knew existed.

The meetings completed, the tour of Ordallia continued. We ventured first to Dhalikar, southwest of Viura. Dhalikar is a sort of military town, built and maintained by the Dhalizun, the most storied Ordallian fighting force. Here was a town fairly akin to a Romandan military encampment: picket lines, sentries, outriders, scouts, messengers, and a distinct lack of civilians. There were a pair of caravans nearby, certainly, but they were situated well away from the walls. Security procedures here were good: I found myself impressed by Dhalizun standards, which are quite rigorous. Even with the bulk of the Host away stomping on the Nanten, the Dhalizun manage to exhibit an aura of control and authority that most armies can scarcely match. Their uniforms were a bit colorful by Romandan standards, but the colors were all earth tones – browns and greens, mostly.

I engaged in a friendly duel with two officers. Both wielded these bizarre curved swords – why on earth would you want a curved sword? I still can’t figure that one out. They fought very well and did not hold back – but then, neither did I. I can proudly say I bested them both, but it was quite a workout to do so. They then asked if I wished to duel a Kharkonid. I said “yes,” and they loosed the biggest man I’d ever seen. He must’ve been half again my height, wielding an axe that looked big enough to decapitate a horse in a single blow. It wasn’t terribly long before he disarmed me.

Other than the duels, the visit was relatively uneventful. They had a band there – apparently all their Hosts have bands for the purposes of issuing commands and such on a chaotic field – which played a few traditional Ordallian songs. They were varied: some were high tempo, as if for dancing, and others were slow, as if a dirge. The Ordallian instruments sounded odd, but I could appreciate the music as a whole. The extremely short lurs – which came in six or seven different varieties – seemed rather more practical for battlefield music.

After Dhalikar, we traveled to Qataniyah, the Court of Elephants. I had never seen an elephant before; even now I find them difficult to describe. They are like horses in that they have four legs and you can ride them, but that is about where the comparisons end. They are monstrously huge – even the enormous Kharkonid I met earlier could not mount one without aid of some sort of climbing tool. The top of their back, the highest point, must measure in excess of thirty hands. They have great, big feet – feet the size of a grown man’s rib cage. The entire beast must weigh in excess of nine hundred stone. Perhaps their oddest feature is that their heads have this elongated cylindrical mouth, which they maneuver about to pick the leaves off of trees – or do tricks, as some of these did, included a sort of juggling.

These creatures were, by and large, exceedingly docile. It is unsurprising they are not used in war – it does not seem that one is able to train them to harm a man. At least, not eagerly or willingly, whereas a chocobo will gladly run a man over. Or peck his eyes out.

I had the dubious pleasure of witnessing the fate of a captured poacher. Apparently, he had killed two elephants for their ivory – a bone-colored growth on the elephants’ heads that is, I am told, worth more than its weight in gold. In honor of my visit, they chose to inflict upon him the apocryphal Blood Eagle. Why people still think we do this is beyond me; the victim invariably loses consciousness long before you actually kill him. Regardless, they went through the motions. First they tied him to a table, face down, and made incisions on either side of his spine, just below shoulder level. They then took out small surgical hammers and methodically cracked four ribs on each side – and then, using tongs, broke and removed them. They had given the poor bastard some sort of stimulant and he was still conscious after they did this to all eight ribs. Next, the execution reached into the man’s back, grabbed his lungs, and ripped them out through the hole where his ribs had been. Stimulants or not, the sheer trauma inflicted by this promptly caused the man to lose consciousness and silence the screams. Apparently unsatisfied, they mounted him on a pike and placed him above the city gates, where he dripped blood and other bodily fluids down upon the walls.

Needless to say, poachers in the Sand Wastes are extremely uncommon in spite of the spectacular wealth elephant hides and ivory can bring on the market.

After visiting Qataniyah, we returned to Viura. Once again, upon returning, I was stuck by the staggering size of the place – three massive ring walls, the inner most of which was devoted exclusively to the Imperial Compound and the size of a small city in its own right, farms and orchards as far as the eye could see, and more people than I even knew could exist in one place. We then toured the city itself – we visited the Grand Bazaar, which had goods from as far off as the Orient – I purchased a curved sword of Orient make there – there must be something about extravagance and reckless spending that’s in the air around here, because I spent far more on that sword than I would like to admit.

We continued the tour. The myriad baubles of the Grand Bazaar behind us, we visited the al-Mayed-i-Azam, the Grand Temple, which they assure me should never be translated as simply the ‘Grand Temple’ because that somehow loses meaning. Regardless, the Grand Temple lived up to its name. I wasn’t aware it was even possible to build ceilings that high – high enough that you could stack two of their elephants on top of one another and still have room for a Kharkonid-sized rider carrying an average-sized man on his shoulders.

The walls of this place were covered in squiggles that I was later told was the handwriting of their Prophet-King. I have no idea how anyone would read a language wherein letters bleed together and words are written from right to left, but they apparently managed to do so. But I will say one thing for their writing: it certainly looks impressive. Impractical, yes, but still impressive. The priests here all wore plain black robes, embroidered with more writing in gold; the lettering on the robes seemed to increase on higher ranked priests, until the Khattab, who I am told is the man who reads the speeches written by the Hafiz – the Emperor’s personal priest, who naturally cannot speak to anyone who isn’t a priest – began to speak. There was more gold than black on that man’s robes. He also had a silly hat. These Ordallians like their silly hats.

This particular sermon was read in Romandan. Apparently this was planned out in advance and Romandan visitors were encouraged to attend to hear the words of the Prophet-King. May Thyrm have mercy on me, but I could not help but feel there was an innate appeal to what the Khattab said – that Dhalin al-Din, their religion, called for men to serve as they may, to give freely to those less well off, and to strive for personal greatness. But more than the words, this Khattab spoke with the zeal of a true believer, with the fire of a convert. If only one in a hundred men who believe in the Caliph-on-High half so fervently as this man does, it would quite readily explain why Ordallia has forged an empire grander by far than the Ydorans.

I spoke to a priest after the sermon. I asked him how, if there was only one god, so many gods had cropped up – our religion must have a hundred, with perhaps a dozen “chief” gods. The priest explained that there is only one god, that he is the Caliph, and that all the lesser gods we worship are in actuality the djinni, lesser beings that do the work of the Caliph. It is an interesting theory. I will give it more thought.

Finally, at the end of this sermon, we were ready to return home. The Emperor dispatched with us six young Ordallians: a diplomat, two priests, and three military officers, who would help train the Romandan Expeditionary Corps’ Pathfinders in Khamja doctrine and tactics.

I knew that my father repeatedly requested that we take no gifts home. The ambassador, however, stated clearly that guests are to be given gifts upon departure and that failing to do so would be a sin of some magnitude. He also said that, if we didn’t wish for the gifts, we should sell them and use the proceeds for something we did want, which would prove extremely useful for continuing the war. And so, when we departed, we took bars of gold, rolls of silk cloth, and an entire chest full of precious gemstones with us. A single visit to Viura had landed us gifts valued in excess of our yearly trade revenue.

By the time we stepped off the airship in Romanda, I found myself missing the east – a land where everything seemed impossibly large, impossibly rich, and impossibly beautiful. I returned to the taiga, ready to bolt my armor on, and found myself wishing dearly to see that foreign land again. With some of the money donated to us, I ordered a temple erected in honor of the distant Emperor. It was a drab thing – two stories high, seating for two dozen, two hearths to ward off the chill. But, in some small way, I believe it has brought the religion to our shores. And perhaps, just perhaps, more will join me for prayer at dawn and dusk.




Hakon Johannson,
Crown Prince of Romanda

[Schwerpunkt]

On the Subject of Magic and Martyrdom in Ordallia
As Writ by Mash’ewayad Khalid of the Khamja

At the request of the Grand Duke, I have set quill to paper to discuss two things. First, the role of magic in Ordallia. Second, the ‘martyr’ concept. And so I shall. But before I write on this subject, I believe it is necessary to stress one key fact: while Viura is a city large enough to make even proud Lesalia look like a ramshackle collection of hovels, while Viura is rich enough to beggar Warjilis and Sal Ghidos at the same time, and while Viura is the beating heart of the Ordallian Empire, it is but one cog in the grand machine of war and oppression that we call “Ordallia.” While this work shall focus heavily upon Viura, and therefore the Empire as a whole, it is important to recognize that Viura is not a perfect representation of the entire Empire.

Indeed, Viura’s culture changes rather significantly within a given decade. During my father’s time, being granted the honorific Mash’ewayad – ‘Warlock’ – was the greatest honor one of the magi could strive towards. Today, the title is taboo. In the span of a single generation, the magi went from welcome in every court in the Empire to men whose services you retained because you had to, not unlike assassins or thugs.

Now that I have sufficiently undermined my lord’s request in what is perhaps the most passive aggressive method in the history of man, I shall now endeavor to answer his questions.

To Ordallia, everything exists to serve the Prophet-King’s vision. As the Emperor is Mirza, a blood descendent of the Prophet-King, everything therefore exists to serve the Emperor. Millions toil because the Emperor wills it. Thousands die because the Emperor wills it. The conquered peoples pay special taxes and send their sons to fight because the Emperor wills it. The Dhalizun razes entire cities to the ground and puts tens of thousands to the sword because the Emperor wills it. The average serf lives, marries, has children, and dies because the Emperor wills it.

Perhaps there is no greater sign of how cheap life in Ordallia is than in vocabulary. The term “makbul” means “favored” – it is conferred upon those who please the Emperor in some way. The term “maktul” means “executed.” In Ordallia, life is separated by a single vowel.

We can, therefore, readily understand why martyrdom is valued. Under Ordallian religion, a soldier who sacrifices his life in the service of the Emperor is considered to have rendered upon him that which is the greatest gift he can possibly give – his immortal soul. And yet, the slave who is struck down with an arrow in the throat will never be a martyr, for his soul is not his to give. Ordallia is a land where sacrifice for the Emperor is praised, but only if you have the right blood and if you die in such a manner as is more convenient for the Empire. How many thousands of faceless martyrs have died to pacify Ghwarzia or Altenia? We will never know.

The magi exist to facilitate martyrdom. Priests bind lesser wounds so that they can send soldiers back into war – so that this time, instead of a laceration on the forearm, they might receive a spear through the lung. Warlocks wield black magicks like scythes, cutting down Nanten and Hokuten with glee – and if any Ordallians happen to be in the way, well, that’s just the price they pay to serve the Emperor. When the thaumaturgists blast the land with the channeled fury of the Djinni, any Ordallian unfortunate enough to be caught in the hellstorm is expected to quietly lay down and die. After all, are not the Djinni venerated in the Religion? They should be pleased to be slaughtered by beings so venerated.

When they’re not busy turning freemen and slaves alike into faceless martyrs, magi are often tasked with some of the more underhanded methods of intrigue. While I served in the Kham-Qayyah (which means ‘Left Hand,’ analogous to ‘under handed’ in Ivalician terminology), I was something of an editor: I would find the erroneous ‘makbul’ and I would correct the spelling, leaving them ‘maktul.’ My tenure amongst the Kham-Qayyah saw me take more lives with poison and enchanted knife than with fire and lightning on the field of battle.

Thus was our lot. We wielded our powers in the service of the Emperor. Our powers are destructive; we, therefore, were employed in destructive roles. Six lives was considered a slow month by Kham-Qayyah standards. And despite the fact that all of those lives were forfeit in the name of the Emperor, not one of them was ever remembered as a martyr. Nor were any of those of us who fell in battle.

In Ivalice, we value things such as gold and title. In Ordallia, neither of these matter. What matters is control. The Great Teacher rejected this theory, arguing that we should act to benefit the whole rather than the few. The Great Teacher sought to fight the darkness from the light – he has since joined the faceless maktul.

The Khamja shall not repeat his mistake.

[Schwerpunkt]

Names of Ivalician Places in Dhalin [Mostly for Reference]
Zeltennia -> al-Zalteniyyah
Limberry -> al-Lumbarriy
Lesalia -> al-Lez’aliyyah
Lionel -> al-Liu’nawl
Gallione -> al-Kal’iyawn
Fovoham -> al-Fabhohawm
Nelveska -> al-Nelbhaskyah

Apparently Ordallians pronounce “Lionel” with a drawl.

Zelamonian Cities in Dhalin
Burstel -> al-Bhurshtel
Istel -> al-Shtel
Yorenai -> al-Ghorenay
Vaseria -> al-Faseriyyah
Kaldemar -> al-Khaldameer

Full City Names
The Burstel Ruins
The Silver City of Istel
The Arcane City of Yorenai
The Mountain Dwelling of Kaldemar
The Port City of Vaseria

Zelamonian History in Extremely Broad Strokes
Zelamonia was, for much of its history, a cluster of squabbling city states. It was primarily by playing Ivalice and Ordallia off against one another that it managed for centuries to avoid being forced into one camp or the other. When not threatened by external aggression, which would unite the disparate Zelamonian factions faster than a vision from Saint Ajora, the Zelamonian city states squabbled and fought over everything imaginable: trade rights, piracy, banditry, who said what about whose mother.

Zelamonia is invaded and occupied by Ordallia some 100 years prior to the Fifty Years’ War. Ordallia and Ivalice butted heads over Zelamonia as a vassal state prior to this, but the Ordallian annexation is when events started to get hectic. For roughly a century, Ivalice would sponsor insurgencies, rebellions, assassinations, and general chaos in Zelamonia. Native Zelamonians would eagerly participate in these events. Zelamonians would attack Ordallian caravans and Ordallian governors, Ordallia would respond by hunting down and slaughtering Zelamonian rebels. This cycle was self-perpetuating and fed into itself for the better part of a century. This would lead to the Razing of Burstel 25 years after the occupation began.

After Burstel’s total destruction, wherein the furious Dhalizun went so far as to sow the fields with salt and drag the city’s trademark black stone away north to build a grand fortress, Zelamonia was cowed into submission for fifteen years. Fifteen years later, with the resumption of Ivalician support, Zelamonia revolts again. This time there mere presence of the Dhalizun at the gates of Istel led the rebels to surrender their ringleaders in return for a pardon. Zelamonia is again quelled for some time.

40 years prior to the Fifty Years’ War, Dhibann al-Mirza (Devanne I) proclaims the Empire of Ordallia. Simultaneously, Zelamonia is incorporated into the Empire as a full-fledged province rather than an occupied principality, as had been the case up until this point. Throughout his reign and the reign of his son, Zelamonia is quiet.

Upon the ascension of Dhibann ibn Dhibann ibn Dhibannn al-Mirza (Devanne III) to the throne, Denamda II of Ivalice begins funneling more resources into the Zelamonian insurgency. Five years later, Kaldemar revolts. The Emperor sends mediators to resolve the issue; they are killed and their heads sent back to the Emperor. He responds by sending the Dhalizun Host, which classes with the rebels three times – first in the Barrier Pass, then by besieging and sacking Kaldemar, and then by crushing the combined Istel-Yorenai rebel force in the field. Five years before the Fifty Years’ War breaks out, the Dhalizun has pacified Zelamonia once more.

During the Fifty Years’ War, Zelamonia was ‘liberated’ by Ivalice during the first few years of the war. The region changes hands several times as Ordallian forces based out of sympathetic Vaseria and nearby Altenia support the war effort. Additionally, after a century of occupation, the Ordallians had a great many sympathizers – and a great many converts, particularly Viuran Farans who were positively terrified of falling under the Church’s control – the very same tactics Ivalice employed so liberally against Ordallia would turn and bite them. Zelamonia became a chaotic battleground between all number of different factions. Dhalin ad-Din zealots, individual city garrisons trying to establish order, Ivalice-sponsored nobility, over-zealous Shrine Knights, and Vaserian militia with delusions of grandeur all clashed regularly with one another and with the “liberating” Ivalician host of the Touten.

Zelamonia continued to be a churning miasma of warfare for roughly three decades. After Romanda’s arrival and retreat, the Hokuten resolve to pacify the region so that Ivalice’s forces can focus on Ordallia. While the Nanten lay siege to Dhalikar and Qalat Zabud, the Hokuten marches into Zelamonia and, over the course of several years, manages to occupy all cities save for Vaseria – and, in the process, it ignites a holy war between Ivalice and Zelamonia that almost immediately overshadows the sectarian violence that came before.

Shortly after Zelamonia’s re-occupation, Romanda rejoins the war effort, landing in force near Yardrow City with the support of the Ordallian navy. Meanwhile, the Hokuten – now bogged down trying to garrison four cities and a region larger than Gallione – face a full assault from a highly-mobile cavalry force brought in from the far northern reaches of Ordallia. The combination of stress at home, insurgency in Zelamonia, and the Ghizkhazun Host break the Hokuten’s back in Zelamonia, forcing a full retreat. Zelamonia is subsequently reoccupied by Ordallian forces as the Dhalizun, Ghizkhazun, and Romandan armies all pressure the Hokuten, Nanten, and Touten.

Meanwhile, in Zelamonia, over a century of near-constant fighting has left the region simply exhausted. Due to this, and very large city garrisons, there would prove to be no further major rebellions.

[Schwerpunkt]

Glossary of Ordallian Terms (because there's so much)
Places & Polities
al-Awlatiyyah: Altenia, the province east of Zelamonia
al-Bhurshtel: Burstel
Dhalin: The Ordallian language
al-Dhaliya: "Ordallia"
al-Dhaliyus: The Province of Ordallia (also: Ordallia Proper, Ordallian Heartland)
al-Fabhohawm: Fovoham
al-Fabhohawiyus: Fovohamer
al-Faseriyyah: Vaseria
al-Faseriyyus: Vaserian
al-Ghorenay: Yorenai
al-Ghorenayus: Yorenaite
al-Ghwarziyan: Ghwarzia, the northern steppes
al-Ghwarziyus: Ghwarzian
al-Kal’iyawn: Gallione
al-Kal'iyus: Gallionean
al-Khaldameer: Kaldemar
al-Khaldameeriyus: Kaldemerian
Khalfa Nahir: Caliph's River
Khalisa Nahir: Purest River (tributary of Khalfa Nahir)
al-Lez’aliyyah: Lesalia
al-Lez'aliyyus: Lesalian
al-Liu’nawl: Lionel
al-Liu'nawiyus: Lioneler
al-Lumbarriy: Limberry
al-Lumbarriyus: Limberrean
al-Masbiyyah wa al-Wridiya: Rozarria, the easternmost province
al-Nelbhaskyah: Nelveska Island
al-Qarakhoriya: Kharkonia, the central desert
al-Qarakhoriyus: Kharkonid
Qatab Nahir: Rose River (river bisecting al-Masbiyyah and al-Wridiya)
Seraskiera: Empire
Shirazate: Kingdom
al-Shtel: Istel
al-Shteliyus: Istelite
Tersane-i-Amire: Imperial Arsenal
al-Wazrah: Cabinet
Yussana Nahir: Blessed River (tributary of Khalfa Nahir)
al-Zalteniyus: Zeltennian
al-Zalteniyyah: Zeltennia
az-Zarakiyan: Zelamonia
az-Zarakiyus: Zelamonian

Titles
Azab: Footman, Infantryman
Balukasi: Commandant (typically the commander of any Host but the Dhalizun)
Bey: Lord
Beylerbey: Lord of Lords
Bostanji-i-Azam: Grand Gardener
Caliph: God's Representative (see religious entry)
Cheleba: (Female) Socialite
Chelebi: (Male) Socialite
al-Djinn-Matsul: Djinn-Caller, Thaumaturgist
Emin: Servant
Emir: Prince
Emira: Princess
Ghazi: Victor
Jerrah: Surgeon, Doctor
Kagan: Overlord
Kapu-Agasi: Grand Steward
Kapudan-i-Azam: Grand Admiral
Kapuji: Gatekeeper
Kazi: Judge
Khojagan-i-Azam: Grand Treasurer
Kunani: Legislator
Makbul: The Favored
Maktul: The Executed
Mash'ewayad: Warlock
Miralai-i-Azam: Grand Colonel (also Colonel-General)
Mufti-i-Azam: Grand Judge
Mujtahid-i-Azam: Grand Adjudicator
Pasha: Commander, General
Pasha-i-Azam: Grand General
al-Rimal Wikar: The Sand Walker
Saremin-i-Azam: Grand Engineer
Seras: King
Sera: Queen.
Serasker: Emperor
Seraska: Empress
Sharaf al-Dhalin: Shepard of the Ordallians
Shiraz: Governor
Shiraz-i-Azam: Grand Governor
Spahi: Horseman
Subashi: Captain
Vizier-i-Azam: Grand Vizier
Voivide: Governor of Zelamonia
Zal: Shadow, honorific bestowed upon highly ranked members of the Kham-Qayyah and later Khamja

Religion
Ahadith al-Rushid: "The Sayings of al-Rushid," Rushiddian Theory. Better known as Rashid al-Riddaya in Ordallia. Phrase primarily used by the Khamja and other exiles.
Averrianism: School of thought propagated by Amad ibn Rashid al-Riddaya, known as Averro the Apostate in Ivalice. Averro's works are regarded as apostasy and heresy in Ordallia.
Caliph (Khalif, Khalfa): The divine incarnation of the Prophet-King.
Dhalin ad-Din: "Religion of the Ordallians," sometimes "Qazism" in Ivalice.
ad-Din: "The Religion," almost always in reference to the Dhalin ad-Din.
Djinn(i): Spirits of the Dhalin ad-Din.
Hafiz: The Emperor’s principal religious adviser, who is forbidden from speaking to any secular officials. According to tradition, the Hafiz has memorized all of the Prophet-King’s writings.
Hasanayyah: Heretics who submit to the Prophet-King's laws and are therefore permitted to be citizens; permitted a degree of self-governance.
Kahan: Priest.
Khalbayeen: Non-believers, atheists; permitted more self-governance than the Sayyah.
Kham-Qayyah: "Under-handed." An order of Assassins devoted to the Serasker. Defunct.
Khamja: "Left Hand." A faction of the Kham-Qayyah that fled Ordallia following Averro's execution.
Khamja Schism: The departure of the Khamja, an incident that fatally undermined the Kham-Qayyah.
Khattab: The preist responsible for reading the Hafiz's sermons in public.
M'badi-ad-Din: The Five Principles.
Malik Rasol: The Prophet-King.
al-Maqadash: "Holy War."
al-Mayedi: Temple. Informally, al-Mayed can also refer to the ecclesiastic administration, embodied in the Emperor and his Hafiz.
M’etinqayyah: "The Adherents," a term for followers of the Dhalin ad-Din; sometimes just 'Meti' in Ivalice.
Mirza: One who can trace his lineage to the Prophet-King through the matrilineal line.
al-Nihafayyah: "The Aberration," the phrase of choice used for referring to Averrianism.
Qalareen: Catch-all term for non-adherents of the Dhalin ad-Din.
Riddayeen: Apostates.
Saint Ajora: Denounced as a false prophet by the Prophet-King.
Sayifi-ad-Din: "Swords of the Religion," honorific for holy warriors and martyrs.
Sayyah: Heretics who resist the Prophet-King, forbidden from citizenship and usually persecuted.
Shamaz: A lay person recognized for exceptional service to the Temple. This title is typically reserved for war veterans, those who make significant donations to public work projects, and so forth.
Sharaf al-Dhalin: Religious title for the Emperor.
T’eayalayyam: The Prophet-King's Teachings, sometimes shortened to 'Layam.'
Viuran Faranism: Sect of Faranism originating from Viura; predates Dhalin ad-Din.
az-Zaidi: Dynasty of the Prophet-King.
Zayah: One who can trace his lineage to the Prophet-King through the patrilineal line; few remain.


Hosts (Armies): Dhalizun, Ghizkhazun, Qwarezum, Khoyunzun, and Quban Hosts

[Schwerpunkt]

I think that covers everything.

Let me know if anything is missing or any points aren't clear.

[Schwerpunkt]

Hosts and Fleets of Ordallia of Ordallia [Because this could use clarification.]
Dhalizun Host - The Dhalizun Host represents what is simultaneously the 'Home Guard' and elite military force of the empire. Much as Ordallia orbits around Viura, the Hosts orbit around the Dhalizun.

Ghizkhazun Host - The Ghizkhazun Host hails from the northern steppes. It is perhaps best known as the Host charged with defending the Qazz Highway, which stretches from Qalat al-Gharb to Qalat al-Sharq. The Ghizkhazun Host is also charged with ensuring order amongst the Bukharriyah, Abd, and Nalbina Emirates. Currently, the Ghizkhazun Host has been recalled to support the Dhalizun Host in the War of Ivalician Aggression.

Quban Host - The Quban Host is the newest host, raised to fill the gap created by the Ghizkhazun Host's redeployment. The Quban Host is primarily recruited from the Quban tribe, which dwells east and north of Qalat al-Sharq, and levies from the three emirates it is charged with defending.

Quarezum Host - The Quarezum Host is sometimes known as the West Rozarrian Host. It is largely responsible for pacifying the territory west of Qatib Nahir and garrisoning Altenia. It is the smallest host and largely subordinate to its larger neighbor.

Khoyunzun Host - The Khoyunzun is sometimes known as the East Rozarrian Host and is the second largest host in Ordallia after the Dhalizun. In addition to being responsible for the defense of Rozarria east of the Qatib Nahir, it is also responsible for pacifying the eastern and southern emirates of Yensa, Yensiyyah, and Giza. The Khoyunzun is also nominally responsible for the Kazikal and Korayyah Emirates, which are contested with the Jahara Sulatanate.

The Northern Fleet - The Northern Fleet operates out of Viura, Laqant, and Qalat Mazar. It is also operating out of Nelveska, which is nominally Ivalician territory. Despite suffering not-insignificant battle losses, the Northern Fleet remains the largest fleet in Ordallia. The Northern Fleet has been involved in numerous engagements with Ivalician fleets, ranging from the destruction of Limberry's fleet at the Battle of Nelveska to the screening action in support of the second Romandan expedition.

The Altenian Fleet - Sometimes called the 'Southern Fleet,' the Altenian Fleet is largely responsible for patrolling the waters of Altenia. With the acquisition of Zelamonia, and the negligible number of shipyards that came with it, the Altenian Fleet has also assumed responsibility for defending the Zelamonian Coast. While Ordallia was able to rapidly establish naval superiority in the north, the campaign in the south has been much more evenly balanced; the Altenian Fleet lacks the numbers of its northern counterpart and is unable to comprehensively defeat Ivalician fleets.

The Rozarrian Fleet - The Rozarrian Fleet is tasked primarily with safeguarding trade routes and, more importantly, ensuring Ordallian naval superiority vis-a-vis the Jahara Sultanate.

Auxiliary Forces - Auxiliary forces are typically raised from individual cities or from individual tribes, raised on either a temporary or permanent basis. To clarify and classify, Ordallian doctrine classifies their type by name. Troops raised to garrison a city are typically <City> Levy; troops raised to safeguard the countryside are usually <Region> Patrol; large forces raised by sub-national entities are typically referred to as <Tribe/Region> Guard; and troops raised on a temporary basis are known simply as conscripts.

Naming Conventions
When the 'the' article is used, 'Host' can be omitted. 'The Dhalizun' is acceptable shorthand for 'the Dhalizun Host.' The same convention applies to all other hosts. This convention does not apply to the fleets.



Stuff to do. Because I wasn't nearly as done as I thought.
- Slavery in Ordallia and the Emirates
- Zelamonian culture before and after occupation
- The Zelamonian Liberation Movement (ZLM)
- Modern Romanda-Ordallia relations

[Smash]

A small suggestion.


Clans as a way of life still remains in Ordallia. Where you and your band go to the bars/pubs to see if there's anything to take care of in the local community.

This is how small towns, many of the times disconnected and self-sustainable, get by without the aid of military guard or whatnot. 

(Not to mention the roleplay value)