Marilsan

Marilsan
Country Information
Capital:	Maril
Languages:	Marilsani, Common
Ethnic Groups:	Upper Class (The Rich, Merchant Lords, Council Members, etc..), Lower Class (The Poor, Servants, Field Workers, Miners, Shipbuilders, etc..) 99% Human, 1% "Other"
Religion:	Varying Sea and Ocean Deities
Government:	Constitutional Monarchy
Current Ruler:	Empress Torissa Deus
Population:	Large, Uncounted

The nation of Marilsan is located on the Inland Sea, to the west of Nahuatl. Marilsan is comprised of long stretches of coast, large river basins and flood plains. Her mostly-uncounted population consists mainly of emancipated lower classes that previously labored under a colonial heel.

For centuries, Marilsan endured being a divided vassal state to her neighbors, including the priest-kings of Nahuatl and Pentlander colonists. Roughly a century ago, Marilsan took advantage of her overlords' temporary weakness and fought a bloody reconquista to carve out its own sovereign territory. Since gaining independence, the realm has grown as a cultural and economic powerhouse.

History

Once a nation that financially, had almost completely existed on the exports of their multiple farming industries, Marilsan has expanded her economy to include the mining of copper, silver, and gold. Not to mention the incredible influx of foreign coin to hire her reputable trades and craftsman, as well as her huge dry docks where they build and sell ships to other foreign nations. This allows Marilsan to be a wealthy realm, and the surge of coin is not represented anywhere better then in the capitol of Maril.

In addition to this, the warm climate and favourable seasonal temperatures have also made Marilsan a popular tourist destination for traveling and vacationing dignitaries, nobles, merchants of foreign origins, which allows for an extra surplus of gold to flow into the capitol and her surrounding areas.

Geographical Features

Marilsan is composed of roughly 175,000 km2 of land which ranges from long stretches of coast, vast river basins and flood plains. There are vast orchards in the lower elevations, and vineyards dotting the higher countryside. Much of the outlying land is suited for farming, so most of the farming communities are spread far and wide, with miles between them.

The massive sea-carved coastline sports many large harbors and bays, which were capitalized on by ship builders and trading companies. Negro Luna Bahía (Black Moon Bay), the largest, Southern-facing bay on Marilsan, was picked to build their capitol of Maril.

The bays have both natural and artificial breakers, helping to protect their valuable coastlines from heavy, storm-tossed waves.

At the Western edge of the country, there is a vast forest at a midrange elevation, populated with conifers, and many broad-leafed trees. The Marilsani do their best to maintain a healthy forest as it both protects their western borders, as well as provides them with many of the raw materials that go into their massive shipbuilding trade.

Government and Politics

The Empress Torissa has ruled without question for the last thirty-five years, and her line before her began nearly five centuries ago with her ancestor Toledas Ameo Deus I, who through numerous civil wars instilled himself as Emperor Deus, believing himself to be the living incarnation of one of Marilsan’s many revered sea deities. Though over the centuries vast religious reforms have occurred within Marilsan’s borders, the Emperor or Empress is still regarded with a certain amount of deification, and is often referred to such in her title. Torissa, much like her mother before her (who helped to restructure the Navy) has set forward to instil as much change as she can in her beloved country, one of which includes the separation of religion from state, as well as the denial of her own deification.

In addition to the Empress, the government is run by a collection of ministers and statesmen who submit and pass most laws through a elected council body. Though considered to be an eclectic body of aged old men, the majority of the actual governing of Marilsan is controlled and wielded by the council.

Military

The Brigades

Though Marilsan is not known particularly well for her military might, the country does have a standing army of 100,000 men and women. Highly trained for tactical maneuvers, the Marilsani Brigade has been known to defeat larger forces with key precision and unit cohesion. The Brigade are all trained to use short swords in combination with their most notable asset, the halberd.

The Navy

The pride of every Marilsan native rests firmly planted in the nautical forces the country wields. Though impressive by any standard eighty years past, the previous reigning Empress completely restructured the Navy, both hierarchically and technologically. Her innovative ship designs helped push Marilsan forward as a front runner for nautical strength, speed, and power. In addition to the technological advances, new laws passed through council declared that all able-bodied men over the age of ten were drafted into the Navy to serve a minimum five year period (women were exempt from this law, though still free to volunteer if they so desired to serve) which insured that the manpower required to crew and sail Marilsan’s nearly three-thousand ship strong Navy was at all times at it’s highest compliment.

Religion

Though the steady influx of tourists from other lands has caused some minor temples and oracle basins to spring up across the landscape, the majority of religion in Marilsan is dedicated strongly to those deities who patron over agriculture and the sea. In particular, due to their large coastline, the sea deities are most highly revered. Many religious factions and cults have originated out of the fervour to properly worship the sea celestials in an attempt to curry favour and ward away bad luck and poor weather.

The most commonly spoken-of deity in Marilsan would be Nateela, or "La Marea Negro", which translated into the more common tongues means "The Black Tide".

Society and Peoples

The people of Marilsan, the Marilsani, are descended from a hardy breed of plains folk. No strangers to hard work they approach their tasks with a certain degree of enjoyment. Olive toned in complexion, their warm humid climate tends to produce a peak hours of work centralized around the highs and lows of the temperature through out the day, this can cause outsiders to regard the people of Marilsan as laidback or unhurried in most of their tasks. Traditionally a farming people, the past few centuries of reform have caused an explosion of cultural awakening in the quiet Marilsan people, taking them from a very rigid and buttoned down life-style to a far more exuberant fashion of living.

Language

The major language taught in Marilsan is Marilsani, and it's many dialects. Common is also fairly prominent, especially with regards to their economy and trade. As they begin to barter with more countries, they have slowly worked other languages into schools so that newer generations will be able to communicate and expand trade much more freely.