Zelistan

"Now, I’m sure you’ve heard of the many great devices our artificers have created over the years. The skyhoppers, the magicannons, powerful tools indeed. However, they all pale in comparison to our greatest weapon: knowledge."

— Excerpt from Grand Zultan Abdokhal Ozmyri’s welcoming speech to delegates from foreign lands

Zelistan, also known as the Land of Knowledge and the Land of Artifice, is a large nation located in the deserts of Velrona in the southern reaches of Zazriel. As one of the oldest nations on Haven, it has stood as a bastion of civilization for over two-and-a-half millennia, predating even the Westland Empire and Eastern Union. As such, they have been around to witness many major events.

Once nothing more than scattered tribes of nomads, the peoples of Zelistan have since come together to form one of the most powerful nations in history. Under the guidance of their god, the one they call Zeliroth, the nomad leader known as Zalfanim the Wise was able to unite the nomad tribes and form a mighty nation. It took at least twenty-five years, but once the final tribe was brought to heel, he stood as the one true ruler of the sands. Upon completing this monumentous task, Zeliroth was said to have vanished. However, before his departure, he had Zalfanim and his most trusted followers record all of his teachings. These teachings would later become the foundation for the Church of Zeliroth, which still preaches these teachings to this day.

Perhaps the most important of these teachings was that of progress. Indeed, Zelistan is easily the most technologically advanced nation in all of Zazriel, maybe even the entire world. From its great factories and workshops, the artificers work tirelessly to invent and build the greatest devices they can. While most of these often do not take off, those that do sometimes end up changing the course of history.

However, even with its military and technological might, Zelistan still remains under constant threat, from both the outside and inside. Its merchant fleets are often the target of pirate attacks, its technological secrets are always at risk of being stolen, and while rare, an artificer might turn rogue and use their technological prowess for evil. But despite all these threats, Zelistan has stood as a bastion against the ignorant and the malicious, and it will continue to stand as long as there are Zelistinians willing to defend it.

History

The history of Zelistan stretches back for millennia, being divided into multiple ages. Thanks to the tireless efforts of Zelistinian scholars, this history has been published and sent out across many different formats, popping up in many different nations.

Age of the Old Ways (??? YM to 400 YM)

Long ago, the deserts of southern Zazriel held no grand cities or technological marvels of any sort. It was nothing but a baked wasteland for miles around, only broken up by the occasional oasis or mountain range. While it remains unclear how the first inhabitants of Velrona arrived there, what is known is that they quickly realized that they would have to be strong in order to survive in this land. As such, they quickly formed into nomadic tribes, traveling the desert in large caravans. Standing settlements were few and far between, often being nothing more than a collection of tents that would pop up and vanish a week later. The only permanent ones were those established by an oasis, usually a trading post where different tribes could exchange wares.

In such a harsh climate, the nomads valued strength above all else, with the mightiest among them easily becoming the leaders of their tribes. Smaller groups were easily defeated or enslaved, with those that remained having to go into hiding to avoid this fate. One of these tribes, the Bezilins, lived near the mighty Orrunni River, which runs all the way from the mountains to the north to the sea in the southeast. Here they established a small trading post known in those days as Zanar. Thanks to the bounty of fish provided by the river, the Bezilins were able to trade their food for many other wares from tribes who came to trade, becoming quite wealthy in the process.

However, this period of prosperity was simply not meant to last. One of the larger tribes, the warlike Noghri, grew immensely jealous of the riches the Bezilins’ trading post had brought in. Sometime around 400 YM, the Noghri surrounded Zanar with a large army, threatening to burn it to the ground if the inhabitants did not leave. The Bezilin leaders pleaded with the Noghri, claiming that by uniting their tribes, they could become the mightiest force in Velrona. The Noghri chiefs simply laughed, forcing the Bezilins out of Zanar at spearpoint and telling them that any Bezilin found near Zanar would be killed.

Age of Exile (400 YM to 502 YM)

With their settlement now under Noghri control, the Bezilins were forced into hiding in order to avoid being destroyed or enslaved by a larger tribe. Their speciality was trade, not warfare, so they couldn’t muster a force large enough to take their old home back. They fled as far away as they could, eventually ending up in the mountains in the northern reaches of Velrona. It was far enough away from any tribe to prevent them from being invaded, but the Bezilins quickly found that their new home was far harsher than they ever could have expected.

For over a century, the Bezilins tried their best to make the most out of their new lives, living in the many caves that dotted the mountainside. While these dank holes provided shelter, many of them were home to vicious beasts that slew many of their kin. Starvation was also a constant issue, with the mountains being mostly devoid of anything edible. The meager scraps they were able to scrounge up were a far cry from the bountiful feasts of fish they used to have access to. Indeed, it seemed like the Bezilins were on a slow but steady path to extinction, their history lost to the ages as they died in their caves.

But the Bezilins were not content to simply lie down and accept their deaths. Most of them wanted to reclaim Zanar, to drive the Noghri invaders out and bask once more in the glory of their home. But the Noghri were many, far too many for them to take on alone. So they sent out envoys to other tribes in the hopes of convincing them to join their cause. The Noghri were strong, but even they couldn’t stand up to a combined force of several tribes. The Bezilin envoys left the mountains and met up with the leaders of multiple tribes, attempting to convince them to join them in defeating the Noghri.

However, despite their best efforts to win the favor of the other tribes, the Bezilin envoys found themselves laughed out of every meeting they arranged. The other tribes had no use for a tribe too weak to defend their homeland. Besides, they had nothing to offer after losing their homes. The Noghri had taken control of their old trading networks, becoming even richer than they once were. The most the Bezilins got were an offer to become slaves for another tribe. They returned to the mountains with nothing but bad news, the Bezilins convinced that their end had truly come.

Zalfanim’s Quest

One among them, a young man known as Zalfanim, still clung to hope that there would be a future for the Bezilins. He was raised on the stories of his tribe’s former glories, and he would do anything to lift his people out from their sorry existence. He tried his best to convince his fellows that there was still a chance for them, but they ignored him, believing that they had lost their only hope at salvation. He chastised them for their lack of action, heading deep into the mountains to think. He promised he would only return once he had come up with a plan so genius that his tribe would beg to be a part of it.

For weeks Zalfanim traveled through the treacherous mountain range, taking only what he could carry on his back. He slept in narrow cracks and crannies, foraged for mountain shrubs and hunted small cave creatures for food, and hid from the beasts that would’ve otherwise had him for a light snack. During his travels, Zalfanim searched for any source of inspiration he could find, but nothing came to fruition. He then decided that if nothing on the land could inspire him, then he would pry knowledge from the heavens themselves.

Zalfanim trekked towards the center of the range, where the tallest peaks were located. He climbed those treacherous slopes, dodging rockfalls and hungry desert hawks along the way. He only stopped once he reached the top of the tallest mountain, surveying all around him. The view was breathtaking, the desert extending for miles beneath Zalfanim’s gaze. But the endless sands held nothing for him, only the skies would give him the knowledge he needed.

Zalfanim stood there for hours, his mind desperately trying to come up with something, anything, that would be good enough to save his kin. But even after reaching the very top of the range, nothing had come, the empty night skies of the desert only serving to bolster Zalfanim’s rage. In his anger, he cursed the heavens, damning the tribes below for their barbaric ways. His voice was said to echo throughout the entire range that night, but none were around to hear it. Well, none save for one.

The Man in the Mountains

As Zalfanim laid there, exhausted from his journey up the mountain, it is said that he was found by a strange man. The man wore long, flowing robes with a hood that obscured his face. He carried with him a wooden staff inlaid with intricate golden patterns that seemed to glow in the night. Upon finding the young man, the stranger poked him awake with his staff, with Zalfanim panicking and almost falling off the mountain.

The stranger questioned him why he was all the way up there, and Zalfanim replied that he was here to search for knowledge on how to help his tribe. When the man asked if he was a Bezilin, Zalfanim was shocked. How could this man know of his origins? When asked how he knew that, the stranger simply asked Zalfanim to come with him. It was dark out, and nocturnal predators would surely make a meal of him unless he found cover. Zalfanim agreed, but he was still wary of this stranger.

The stranger guided Zalfanim into a hidden cave he had laid behind a rock, with the inside being far more furnished than the latter expected. He was given fresh water and food that was actually filling for once. After their meal, the duo resumed their chat. Zalfanim demanded to know how the stranger knew that he was a Bezilin. He simply replied that he’d been watching the tribe ever since they came into the mountains. Zalfanim was quite stunned, especially since this man sounded rather young.

Age of Unification (502 YM to 527 YM)

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Age of Prosperity (527 YM to 750 YM)

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Age of Expansion (750 YM to 1100 YM)

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Age of Divide (1100 YM to 1123 YM)

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Age of Rebuilding (1123 YM to 1500 YM)

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Age of Scouring (1500 YM to 1604 YM)

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Age of Stillness (1604 YM to 2000 YM)

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Age of Progress (2000 YM to 2500 YM)

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Age of Conflict (2500 YM to 3023 YM)

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Government

Zelistan is a large confederation of eleven different provinces working in unison for the greater good of the nation. At the top of the hierarchy is the Grand Zultan, who is the head of state and the commander-in-chief of the nation’s military. Despite being the nation’s top authority, Zelistan is simply too large for a single being to effectively rule, and so the Zultan must instead deliver his authority through the Administrators. The Administrators are the rulers of their respective provinces. They all have a certain degree of autonomy within their province, though they must still defer to the Zultan’s authority in most cases. The Zultan is also the Administrator of the province that they hail from.

Should the Grand Zultan die or otherwise be unfit to rule, then the Administrators will hold a vote amongst themselves and their respective councils. However, they are not allowed to vote for themselves, instead they must vote for whoever they think would be the better choice. Due to this, alliances are made and broken between the Administrators on a whim, each one vying for the throne. It is said that the web of lies and intrigue spun during this period becomes so thick that not even a spider could navigate through it.

Administrative Provinces

The provinces that make up Zelistan, formally dubbed the Adminstrative Provinces, include:

Zorthiol - TBA
Alteroka - TBA
Mohavori - TBA
Sahirel - TBA
Tigrathir - TBA
Garusora - TBA
Dethali - TBA
Noldrazi - TBA
Rolthir - TBA
Euphritori - TBA
Vyriphana - TBA

Geography

Zelistan is a vast desert nation that stretches for miles across all of Velrona, with the endless dunes comprising most of its territory. Those few plants that grow there are well-adapted to the scorching heat of the dunes, some of them even able to hide underground to avoid the worst of the heat. While much of this land is unsuitable for farming, Zelistan’s technological advancements have allowed for indoor farming to be done on a scale large enough to feed the populace.

The nation’s northern border is defined by the Kryzeil Mountains, a large stretch of peaks that divides Zelistan and its northern neighbor, the Verdant Grove. Very few passages exist in this range, and those that do have been converted into fortified border posts stationed at all times. The southern border is not so well defined, but the southeastern access to the sea is often considered to be Zelistan’s furthest border claim.

The southern regions of Zelistan are typically more level and flat, making traveling over them relatively easy. In the north, the terrain tends to be much more hilly and rocky, meaning land travel takes much longer than would be ideal. As such, skyhoppers are often used to get between distant settlements up north.

Colonies

Thanks to its status as a major power, it is only fitting that Zelistan would have colonial domains to its name. These colonies are usually founded on islands determined to have some strategic value, whether it be a deposit of some rare resource or due to its geographical location. Below is a list of some of Zelistan’s colonies.

New Zelistan - New Zelistan is Zelistan’s largest colony, being a fortified trading post on an island located between it and the Westland Empire. The island is comprised of an enormous shipyard surrounding a walled city, where the traders from both nations come to sell their wares. The Westland Empire usually provides raw materials and foodstuffs, while Zelistan provides them with high-tech weaponry and equipment.

Economy

Zelistan’s economy is largely mining and trade-based. The deserts of Velrona are studded with mines that workers toil tirelessly in to extract the precious metals from. Rare gemstones are also extracted sometimes, which often go on to become the centerpiece of some artificer’s creation or a noble’s fashion statement. Either way, there is a constant demand for material, one that the mines must be always ready to fulfill.

On the trading side, a Zelistinian trader must know how and where to secure the best trade deals. They often send agents (when they can afford them) to find out about the people they are trading with. Information such as who they are, what they want, and what they are willing to offer are all important things to know when trading. Armed with this knowledge, a Zelistinian trader can walk into a meeting and charm their way through the deal, ensuring that the process goes as smoothly as possible. So refined are their skills in trade that many nations often hire out positions to Zelistinian traders in their own trading endeavors.

In addition, Zelistan’s high regard for knowledge and teaching means that many noble families are willing to hire them as tutors for their children. Some of the greatest teachers in the world come from Zelistan, and they make large amounts of money from it. This also gives the tutor the chance to learn more about the wider world, an opportunity that few Zelistinians would willingly turn down.

Religion

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Society and Culture

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Foreign Relations

Thanks to trade being an important part of Zelistan’s economy, the nation has done its best to maintain a good relationship with other nations. However, this is far easier said than done, especially since many of the nations they deal with often hate each other.

Westland Empire

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Eastern Union

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Yurette

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Verdant Grove

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Military

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