Truklan

Truklan is one of western Aryth's Five Great Nations

Land

Truklan envelops much of the eastern area of western Aryth. The nation itself presses up against the Bloodbane Mountains, any many of the homes of the eastern most cities are carved right out of cliffsides. Truklan is relatively small, perhaps because of its limited nature, taking up a scant 500 square miles.

Population

Truklan is not only the smallest nation in terms of size, but also the smallest nation in terms of people. Barely a quarter million people reside in the boundaries of Truklan.

Culture

Truklan is a nation of rigid people. They are most famous for the militaristic mannerisms. In all of Aryth, it is Truklan that is known for honor and justice. When chaos threatens to envelop the lands, it is the armies of Truklan that march forward to put peace where it once was.

The Truklanese developed from a warring clan of people who lived near the easternmost parts of west Artyh, along the Bloodbane Mountains. It was during this time that legions of destructive magical monsters began to spill from the Bloodbane Mountains near Source. The Truklanese forged together in one clan to defeat the monsters, and the alliance stuck.

Truklan bases almost everything they do around retaining "honor," a code that evolved from the ways of the clans before them. They are against cruelty of any kind, and prefer peace over war any day. However, they are honed in such a way that if violence is the inevitable course of events, than Truklan will do everything they can to win.

Truklan casual garb for men is often nothing more than breeches and a jacket, though of a slightly more formal cut than most casual clothing. Women, however, are often times covered from head to toe with clothing, though it is often times thick sheets of sarha, which are cooler than most any textile. They wear thin sarha veils to cover the faces. This is not a show of subordination, just a the style of the people. Women are on equal standing as men in Truklan.

Government & Law

Truklan is still divided into divisions much like the clans of olden days, and each division watches for its own interests. The divisions are all united, however, under one chief commander, titled Premiere. The Premiere is in charge of keeping order among all the citizens of Truklan, and for deploying Truklan forces through Aryth. He has little power of the people themselves, but in military matters, his word is law. The Premiere is selected by the heads of the divisions.

For more domestic matters, an Ambassador of Trade is selected. The Ambassador actually deals with more political matters internationally, including trade. Truklan really doesn`t have much in the way of tradeable goods that are exclusive to the rest of the Web, so it is the Ambassador`s duty to make sure the people of Truklan don`t go without. The insistance of Truklan`s protection is often good enough to get Truklan goods that aren`t normally found there. There are also small ranches and such in Truklan for those who don`t care for military means.

Religion

The Religious breakdown of Truklan is as follows:

• Creationists: 2%
• Originists: 92%
• Finalists: 4%
• Other: 2%

Truklan is actually home to one of the most devout religious followings in all of Aryth. Most Truklanese are Originists, firmly believing that all things came from the mana, and all things return to mana. To them, death is not necessarily feared, but at times welcome.

Economy

As mentioned before, Truklan really has little to speak of in terms of trade. They offer protection to others, of course, and that is actually worth a surprising amount, though not nearly as much as cattle or fish would offer. For that reason, the Ambassador of Trade often looks into small trade, offering what little exclusive items Truklan can muster in return for equally exclusive items from other nations.

Military

Truklan is the only one of the Five Great Nations that really has its own military backing. Military matters actually comprise over 80% of Truklan`s working force. Their organization is really simple when compared to some of the more complex militaries of the Web of Worlds. The military is split into several division: Archer, Sword, Polearm, Shield. Each division, of course, carries out duties appropriate to the name of their division. Shield is almost always defensive, Archer is a long distance attack group, Polearm is a swift attack group that prefers horseback, and sword is common, well rounded infantry.

For each division, there is a number of rankings:

• Standard (member of unit)
• Upgrade (unit leader; units are comprised of ten men)
• Commander (leader of units; a unit of units is called a proceed; a proceed is made of ten units)
• Lord Commander (leader of a proceed: a unit of proceeds is called an army; an army is made of ten proceeds)
• General (A leader of all forces currently in battle. There is no name for a collection of armies, so more than one army gathered together is commonly referred to as a proceed army. This title is often left to the singular individual in charge of their particular division.)
• Lord General (Sometimes one leads not one army, but several armies. If ever a situation should arise that someone commands more forces than a General normally would, that person is upgraded to Lord General.)

There are also titles for an individual`s skill in a particular area:

• Sword (often referred to as `Blade`):

1. Molded
2. Forged
3. Sharpened
4. Master

• Polearm (often referred to as `Spear`):

1. Pieced
2. Balanced
3. Master

• Archer:

1. Shaft
2. Feathered
3. Strung
4. Master

• Shield:

1. Wood
2. Metal
3. Master

Naming one according to title can get messy. For instance, a John Doe in charge of a proceed in the shield division who was well versed in the use of their weapon would be titled Commander Metalshield John Doe. Of course, some titles are less appealing than others... Upgrade Shaftarcher John Doe or Standard Moldedblade John Doe don`t have a very nice ring to them.

For any one person to be raised to the skill of Master or rank of General, they must pass what has been called the Test of Tyme. In this test, a man or woman must submerge themselves into the Tyme River, also known as the River of What Might have Been. There, they will be confronted with what might have been and, for better or worse, they must accept the fate that they have now as their own.

This ritual is actually deadly, as one in every three people who attempt it fail, and either run away from Truklan or the Truklan army seeking happiness elsewhere, or, even more rarely, they go mad from looking back at their lost opportunities. These runaways are then titled jaded by the Truklan society. This process, however, has made steel men and women of those who pass the trials.

Climate

The weather in Truklan is very seasonal, with cold winters and hot summers. However, because of its location near Source and the Dasan Fjords, unexpected and sometimes violent weather can wreak havoc on Truklan.

People

• Premiere Ahrak Toasen

Ahrak is the current acting Premiere of Truklan. Ahrak is an unusual leader in that he was raised to his higher position at the age of 42 -- a ripe old age for a new leader for Aryth. However, he spent much of his younger years acting as a General, and he was more than suited to the task of Premiere.

As Premiere, Ahrak is largely unbiased towards the current anti-Glory Tower and modernization movement sweeping some of the nations of Aryth. He has made it Truklan policy not to intervene in the political affairs, and to only show up civil war should threaten to break out. He is extremely displeased with recent news that De` Terrance of Marabon has taken up arms against the Glory Tower.

• Trade Ambassador Joannas Toasen

Ahrak`s younger sister was actually "lucky" enough to be chosen as Truklan`s trade ambassador. Smart, shrewd, and deceptively persuasive, Joannas has done well to make sure Truklan is not without exports exclusive to other nations. Unlike her brother, however, Joannas is not biased towards the modernization of Aryth -- indeed, she is quite against it, seeing as how the modernization of Aryth means that Truklan`s standing would be threatened, if the people no longer needed their protection. Truklan`s lack of essential goods would also put the hurt on the dimension, since they would have nothing to offer the new economy.

Selected Major Cities

• Truklan
  • Pop: 250,000

When it comes to cities in Truklan, Truklan itself is it. The city has many different sections, but when it comes right down to it, all the sections meld into one large city. At the center of the city is the Truklan Fortress, the only true castle in all of Aryth, where resides the most important members of the Truklan military. To the east are some of the more residential sections, where many citizens carve their homes out of mountainsides, and to the west is more rural areas, where the would-be farmers and ranchers reside their trade.