United Aldrian Duchies

United Aldrian Duchies
The UAD (United Aldrian Duchies) is a nation-state formed from the union of five smaller states after the Ten Years War, known by the Aldrians as the "War of Five Dukes." The nation is centered around the center of the continent, and expands southwards and in some portions westward to the coast. These lands are divided up administratively between the five duchies: Capital Duchy, The Duchy of Aldria, The Duchy of Baramyr, The Duchy of Aegys and The Duchy of Elsland.

Though in its conception seen as a weak union that couldn't stand the test of time, the UAD today is considered by some to be the most powerful economic and industrial force on the planet. Holding a population of over 91,000,000 and growing while being the source of the industrial revolution guarantees the UAD a strong and continually growing industrial sector, which is only further bolstered by large natural pools of resources such as coal, iron, natural gas, and gold. The UAD also benefited greatly as a result of The Grand Campaign and has massive amounts of open land that has yet to be settled in The Western Frontier.

Aldrian culture has evolved rapidly with the advent of industrialization and things such as fashion, architecture, literature, and even ways of speaking are vastly different from year to year. The economic boom has enabled the common man to be more connected to the world, and where 100 years ago an Aldrian family may hardly even understanding happenings two villages away, today they can listen to the radio and be up to date on events all around the world.

History
Aldrian history can be traced all the way back to the now mythical Helikan Dynasty, an empire forged by Alexios Helikan with its capital being in the temple city of Agnis Agorum, it was formed when Alexios united all Human tribes on the western side of the continent in 2130 BTI (-2130). This empire reached it's peak when in 1911 BTI they destroyed the Lanikos dynasty in Agni's Crusade, leading to a realm which stretched from the most eastern coasts of modern Esteria to the snowy taigas of modern Tsel territory. This dynasty slowed into stagnation over time though, and as territory was slowly lost to the Elves to the southwest and Dragonborn to the north the empire lost hold over its capacity to rule its outer territories. Local rulers were appointed to keep the situation stable and while this kept the empire intact those appointed were often of local culture and history. Due to this the cultural difference around the empire only grew in severity, and eventually, the emperor's court in Agnis Agorum allowed over 15 languages to be spoken in it.

The Shadow Empire, and the War of a Thousand Kingdoms
By 1666 BTI the empire had no real control over the hundreds of local rulers who saw control over things as large as entire realms to as small as a castle and the villages surrounding it. "The Shadow Empire" was a phrase used to refer to how the empire was now only a shadow that loomed in the distance with no real power, the emperor now only a figurehead with authority that hardly stretched outside the walls of his court. It was in this year that Sarias Helikan, the last Helikan emperor, died from illness at the age of 19 without leaving a legitimate heir. The crown was for a time handed over to Sarias's eldest brother Etrius, but this lasted for only a week before the uncle of Sarias and Etrius, a man named Vareide, rallied a levy of soldiers and marched on the court. This action, while successful, sparked outrage all across the empire. Archbishop Aryas II of Calica argued that Vareide lacked the divine will of Agni needed to rule over the dynasty, and raised his own levies as he declared himself not needing to answer to the call of a false emperor. Vareide marched an army to the Bishophoric of Calica and fought against Aryas's armies directly, but found himself decisively defeated. With this blow dealt to the empire's prestige, soon nearly every local ruler took to the example of Aryas and declared themselves free from the emperor's rule. Though the exact number of independent fiefs is unknown, some scholars declared there to be "over a thousand" of them. Though after this no one unified conflict occurred, the century of chaos that ensued was called the War of a Thousand Kingdoms.

Though these unstable times brought uncertain economics, more war, and a division in Humanity as a united force it brought a golden age in literature, music, and art. Hundreds of paintings, books, and sheets of music survived from this period and can still be widely accessed today. Local cultures flourished and soon over 50 languages were spoken by the various Human peoples that spanned across the continent. During this time there was also a change in human religion, while in previous eras Agni was the one true god, different groups began adding additional deities to their pantheons, creating true diversity in worship among Humanity.

The Rise of Heartland
Starting at around 985 BTI the previously insignificant city-state of Heartland began to increase in power and influence. Heartland was founded as a trade hub in the center of the Helikan Dynasty, and as such quickly became a large and wealthy city. However, once the empire shattered apart Heartland lost most of its significance. Immediately after the dynasty's fall the city was ruled over by a small oligarchy of wealthy merchants, but after the Spring Revolution of 1209 a single monarch ruled on the throne over the city. Beginning in approximately 1000 BTI the Barony of Heartland began expanding during a vague conflict simply known as the Elephant Wars. Not much is known about the wars aside from a few key details: Baron Eryl III of Heartland purchased two hundred elephants from Orcish nomads in the North to use for the war, Heartland was victorious and took vast amounts of territory, Halflings were used as spies to sabotage a city's food supplies during a siege.

By 798 BTI the now Duchy of Heartland was the dominant power in the center of Human lands, and Heartland was able to conquer vital trade nodes that allowed it to tax all merchants which traveled through its lands. Over time this spread the central Human language, and soon enough it was the language of commerce and became known as Common. This trend of growth and economic boom continued for many centuries, with the only armies able to threaten the Duchy being the Elven Empire to the southwest and the newly formed Dwarven Confederacy to the north.

The Eldritch Invasion
Though the Duchy of Heartland and the states surrounding it would fight in many conflicts for years to come, no invasion was greater than the "Invasion to Change History". Beginning in 3 BTI the appearance of strange aberrants began to appear all across the continent, beings which resembled no monster anyone had ever seen before. As years ticked on occasional appearance turned to full-on invasion, and in 1 BTI the world united, and the best warriors gathered into massive armies in order to face this threat. Though successful at first, the scale of the Eldritch Invasion was unimaginable, and as Autumn that year began monsters overran the city of Heartland, completely destroying it. Similar fates occurred many other cities, but the fight continued, and it seemed all was lost until the God of Magic, Alisyr, intervened directly. He passed all of the power he could into the legendary warrior Abegadaero and turned him into The First Sorcerer. In one fell swoop, the Sorcerer would

thrust the Eldritch armies back into the sea, and eventually back into their own realm. The invasion was over, but Heartland was destroyed.

Reforming a Legacy
The next millennia in the center of the continent was a vicious cycle of a dynasty taking hold of power, keeping onto it for a generation or two, then losing it. War became a constant state of the land, and the only industry that thrived was the mercenary business. Furthermore, without the overarcing power of Heartland the central provinces were prime targets for Orcish raiding parties and foreign invaders. During this time the central Humans lost territory to Elves, Dwarves, Dragonborn, Halflings, Orcs, and Gnomes alike, and is widely regarded as the region's dark age. Things never began to turn around until ~600 ATI, when a small dynasty known as the Hemway Dynasty founded the city of Aldria on the shores of Et'lyr after winning it from Wood Elven forces in a small series of conflicts. Though a humble city at first, within two centuries the city of Aldria would be at the seat of a powerful realm which was allowed to flourish by slowly taking over and intergrating smaller dynasties. By 1029 ATI the Hemway Dynasty founded the city of New Heartland and declared it their family's court. However, while the dynasty was able to keep control of the region for a long time, soon enough several of the realm's larger vassals broke off into independence, including the city of Aldria which was left to more distant family members.

A true and united force of central Humans never came until the 1400s ATI, when the Ten Years War/War of Five Dukes occured. This was a conflict fought against the Dwarven Confederacy, Sziallic Dynasty, and Tselchi Tribe over control of the northern Duchy of Elsland. In this conflict the five dukes, the major regional powers, joined forces and decisively defeated their enemies. After this a union between the five nations was signed, and the United Aldrian Duchies was officially formed in 1461 ATI.

Government
Aldrian government is an unusual mix of monarchism and republicanism, with lesser nobility which are voted by the people and sent to a council of nobles to counterbalance the five dukes, who are not elected and are given their titles due to their lineage. The Council of Dukes and Council of Nobles both have the ability to propose law, which if done must pass by a 50% majority by the council which did not propose it. Laws can apply at both the national and ducal level, and while the power of a single duchy is limited it still has relative autonomy.

Largest Cities
New Heartland, Capital Duchy, 6.5 million inhabitants.

Aldria, Duchy of Aldria, 2.9 million inhabitants

Farhem, Capital Duchy, 1.8 million inhabitants

Agnis Agorum, Duchy of Aegys, 820,000 inhabitants

Port Bossier, Duchy of Baramyr, 715,000 inhabitants

Wynton, Duchy of Elsland, 700,000 inhabitants

Population Makeup Statistics (Taken Before The Grand Campaign)
82% Human

11% Gnome

3% Halfling

2% High/Wood Elven

1% Dwarf

1% Other