Falassian Empire

The Falassian Empire is the geographically largest political entity in Lyvernus. It is named for its capital city, Falas.

Description
The Falassian Empire occupies much of northern central Lyvernus. Its borders extend north to the coast of the Archbay of Lyvernus and south to Lake Faicia and the Elfgroves of Malino'dan. It is bounded by the Cyvirian Wood and the Spine of the World to the west and the Black Wilds to the east, where it also shares a border with Osman. Wars of conquest have altered the bounds of the empire over the years. Its acquisition of Quadroad from Malino'dan in the west and Blackpool from Osman in the east were both relatively recent. The Falassian Empire once ruled over the Duchy of Villane as a vassal state after Villane's expansionist ambitions against the Empire failed. However, this arrangement was ended by Emperor Karseidon II.

The empire's seat of government is in Falas, although most settlements within the Empire have their own local governments and rules, such as Port Valor's viscount and the mayors of Vila's Watch and Cowersby. It is ruled by the emperor, as well as the Falassian council, who are elected to their seats by the people. These elections seem to be centered on the actual city of Falas, with the rest of the empire having less influence over their large-scale governance. Members of the council are required to be from the Falassian Empire originally to be eligible for their position. A chancellor, appointed by the council, serves as a liaison between the council and the emperor and holds a fair amount of political power themself. The council makes many decisions about the laws of the empire, such as the punishments for various crimes. Members of the council are also able to push through military campaigns without the approval of the emperor. However, in all cases, the emperor possesses a unilateral veto power, allowing them to override any of the council's decisions. In spite of this, the council holds much sway and the imperial veto only seems to apply within a certain timeframe, as several council decisions that were strongly opposed by sitting emperors have been upheld over the years. The current emperor is Eurystheos XIV and the current chancellor is Horus Fornathrius. The imperial court includes the emperor, the chancellor, members of the council, and a variety of other ambassadors and nobles. Other figures include the Imperial Mageguard, one of the most powerful mages in the Empire who serves as the emperor's personal bodyguard, and the captain of the Drakeguard, the emperor's personal forces. These positions are currently filled by Kain Thessos and Diol Wyrmspine respectively.

The Falassian Empire is known for its military might. The most recent attempt by another power to expand into Falassian territory was repelled by the sheer numbers of the Falassian military, despite their disadvantage with the terrain. It is not unheard of for foot soldiers to rise high within Falassian society with sufficient merit, as happened with Diol Wyrmspine and Keld Norre.

History
The Falassian Empire of today was founded in the aftermath of the Draconic Conflagrations. Its first ruler was Emperor Lyvernia, one of the heroes who brought the Conflagrations to an end. Lyvernia and her adventuring companions also dealt with a demonic encroachment in Alethustria from servants of Alzrius. Possibly as a result of her leadership, the artifacts used to reseal Alzrius, known as the Abyssal Crests, were gathered in Falas under her protection. Lyvernia's descendants continue to rule the empire to this day. As a result of Lyvernia's background, dragon-hunting is a popular pursuit of glory-seeking Falassian adventurers, at least within the capital. A general distrust of dragons is widespread throughout the Empire, as well as the rest of the continent, due to the repercussions of the Draconic Conflagrations. Sadly, dragonborn within the Empire often face prejudice as a result.

In more recent history, forces within the Falassian council have pushed for the Empire to expand its borders. Around 568, Chancellor Horus Fornathrius pushed for the annexation of Quadroad from the Western Elfgroves in order to better control the roads for trade purposes. The resulting battle ended in Falassian victory, making the reputation of Diol Wyrmspine who was later appointed as captain of the Drakeguard. Roughly a decade later, Falassian forces fended off an attempt by Villane to expand their territory toward Falas. As a result, Villane was forced to become a vassal state of the Empire and the council installed a new duke, Errol Mountainfall, who would normalize trade relations between the two countries. The then-emperor, Karseidon II, opposed these attempts at expansion, as well as the installation of a dictator in Villane. He ended the Duchy of Villane's status as a vassal state and vetoed further efforts by Fornathrius to bring Cemouth and Northrune into the Empire. In 588, Karseidon II returned the Abyssal Crests to the groups that originally created them, as a safety precaution. While the nature of the Crests wasn't known to most of the recipients, the return of the items fostered good relations between Falas and some potential allies. However, soon after the Crests were dispersed, Karseidon was assassinated, apparently by a Pale Cloak assassin known as the Pale Rose. The details of his death were withheld from the general public, and the Drakeguard investigation, led by Diol Wyrmspine, turned up little evidence. The Imperial Mageguard at the time, Damien Wright, left Falas in disgrace as a result of their failure to protect the emperor. Karseidon's teenage daughter, Eurystheos XIV, succeeded him. She was initially a weak ruler, allowing Fornathrius and the council's Minister of War, Keld Norre to resume their expansionist agenda by annexing Blackpool via a war with Seaton. However, Eurystheos continued her father's non-expansionist policies and began to veto the council's efforts. As her reign continued, troubles began to plague the Falassian Empire, such as the return of chromatic dragons to Lyvernus and the re-emergence of a cult worshiping Alzrius. Eurystheos deployed some of the Falassian military to assist Port Valor in their struggles with the orcs of the Fireaxe Clan. While the Falassian forces appeared to claim victory, a contingent of the Fireaxe Clan survived the onslaught and carried out the Devastation of Port Valor. They unleashed an anti-magic life field, rending the souls of most of those within the town from their bodies. Any survivors found by the Fireaxe Clan were captured and either tortured or killed. Additionally, suddenly untended cooking fires spread out of control, causing much structural damage to the town. However, the Fireaxe Clan was routed by a group of adventurers who managed to send word to Eurystheos. Eurystheos, Kain, and some members of the Drakeguard teleported to Port Valor to provide what aid they could. Rebuilding efforts, funded by the Empire, as well as an effort by clerics to preserve the bodies of the dead while their souls were recovered, began almost immediately