NAME: Empire of Tralsytia; Tralsytian Empire; Tralsytia

FLAG/SYMBOL: lmao I can't draw for shit

LOCATION: https://imgur.com/a/BvYVfSU

GEOGRAPHY: Tralsytia consists of roughly four major geographic regions: the eastern mountains, the northern cold desert, the coasts and islands, and the southern forested highlands. The northern desert is very sparsely populated, with towns built around deposits of natural resources or geothermal plants being the only notable civilization. The mountains have substantial cavern systems, which were the birthplace of the tucha and continue to have significant tucha cities. The coasts and southern forests are the most heavily populated, most urbanized, and most economically important regions. Several large hydroelectric dams dot the main river in the southern forest.

BIOLOGY/ETHNICITY: While there significant populations humans, uroks, and other common people in Tralsytia, in particular in the cities of the southern highlands and the western islands, it's the tucha that are most populous sapient species in Tralsytia, and the one that's generally considered most iconically Tralsytian. The tucha are a gaunt, humanoid people with batlike characteristic: most notably retractable patagia under each arm, which can enable them to fly and glide as bats do. The tucha generally have lighter and thinner bones and less muscle mass than other humanoids, as a heavier structure would make flight impossible. They have extremely efficient respiratory and circulatory systems to cope with life at higher altitudes and the energy demands of flight. Like many species of bat they have excellent vision in low and dim light but poor vision in bright light, and can echolocate. The tucha are naturally nocturnal, although they can adapt to live diurnally as most humanoids do. They live about as long as humans and are similar to them in psychology and mental faculties.

HISTORY: Until about 80 years ago Tralsytia was a fairly decentralized feudal monarchy, with strong dukes and counts essentially running their fiefdoms as near-independent states. The monarchy, while having fairly little actual power, had significant political importance as a legitimizing factor for the rule of the aristocracy, who in constitutional theory all received their powers and territories from the monarch. While most of the nobility used their positions primarily to accrue wealth and power for themselves and their families, and living standards and civil liberties were relatively poor for the majority of the population, public order was maintained through the populace's respect for the monarch's right to rule.

When a fire at the main imperial palace complex during the crown prince's wedding caused the vast majority of the imperial family to perish, leaving only a few young children or distant relatives with tenuous claims to the throne alive, Tralsytia erupted into all-out civil war. Popular revolutions, feuding claimants, breakaway states, and the like clashed in a two-decade-long chaotic melee throughout the whole country. Eventually, however, after most of other the claimants to the throne had been killed and the people had grown weary of fighting, a grand-niece of the last reigning monarch – one who was still an infant when the civil war first broke out – married the eldest son of the then-strongest warlord in Tralsytia. This union of political legitimacy and practical power, combined with some terrifying displays of supernatural might (precursor tech stuff; will be wrote about in more detail in its own post) and promises of rebuilding and reform, crushed the last few militant holdouts and ended the civil war.

In the six decades since then Tralsytia has undergone a massive industrialization and infrastructure development programme, as the ambitious new co-monarchs sought to make up for lost time and remake Tralsytia into a world power befitting the style of 'empire'. The islands of the Tralsytian-Thalian Sea and the peninsula north of Thalia are recent additions to the Tralsytian Empire, which has been a cause of concern for some foreign observers.

SOCIETY: Tralsytia is a constitutional monarchy, albeit one where the monarchs retain a great deal of political power and legal authority. At the national level Tralsytia has a bicameral Parliament, with an upper Senate composed of hereditary nobles and crown appointees and a lower Legislative Assembly composed of representatives elected through mostly free and fair means. Feudalism and unfree peasantry have been formally abolished, although hereditary titles still exist and carry with them some residual rights and privileges. The nobility still own large tracts of private land, and have maintained their socio-economic status through ownership and management of corporations and a monopolization of many important public offices. Corruption is rife in all levels of government and business, despite concerted efforts from the monarchy and populist representatives to curb it.

The balance of political power is currently held by an odd alliance of monarchists and populist nationalists, both of whom oppose the corruption and abuses of the nobility and seek to revitalize the Tralsytia into a respected, prosperous, and developed nation. The nobility and a variety of regional and corporate interests serve as the main political opposition, although it is not uncommon for certain policies and interests to have support and opposition across the traditional political blocs. A major divide in Tralsytian society is between the rapidly growing professional class and the more poorer labourers and agricultural workers, as the former have seen their standard of living rapidly rise in recent decades while the latter have seen only marginal improvements. The imperial military has significant prestige and socio-political influence, as recent successful foreign conquests and a reputation for having put an end to decades of strife have bolstered their standing.

CULTURE: The tucha's unique physiology, most importantly their ability to fly, has greatly influenced Tralsytian architecture and city planning. While Tralsytian buildings and cities are generally navigable by foot, they are optimized for navigation by flight. Rooftops and balconies are common as auxiliary or primary entrances to buildings, and many buildings have large central halls spanning multiple floors to enable flight between floors. Along the eastern mountains are many of the oldest Tralsytian cities, carved right into the mountainsides and incorporating natural caverns. The tucha are commonly believed to have originated in the caverns of these mountains, and many ancient buildings, monuments, paintings, and other such examples of civilization support this notion.

As a cold nation with long coastlines, hearty seafood meals are a mainstay of the national cuisine. In the less populated northern region elk and other northern game is a substantial portion of the diet, and in the more populated south the river provides irrigation for substantial agriculture. Tralsytian dress is typically composed of layers, with only an insulated bodysuit being worn for any serious flying, and additional layers added on as the temperature and activities warrant, all the way to extremely thick and heavy torpor garb for resting and arming up. Fashion for most is similar to fashion in most other nations, while for the aristocracy and the upper bourgeoisie who imitate them is an extraordinarily elaborate and ornamented neo-feudal affair. The urban centres and the southern regions are fairly multiethnic, with substantial populations of non-tucha humanoids and generally good relations between them, while the rural and northern regions tend to be less diverse and more prone to considering the tucha as the "truest" Tralsytians.

OCCURRENCE OF MAGIC: Magic users are, depending on the power, skill, and speciality, seen as skilled tradespersons or educated professionals. Due to their cold climate, the ability to generate heat and flame through magic is a common magical ability amongst the tucha, and enabled them to expand outside of their sheltered caverns in an age before central heating. The ability to levitate objects is also fairly common, as it aids in flight and allows for things that can't reasonably be physically carried to nonetheless be moved through the air. Other forms of magical ability have become much more common in modern times, and training in common and useful magical skills is available at public educational institutions alongside programs in mundane sciences and trades.

MAJOR INDUSTRIES, IMPORTS, & EXPORTS:

• Major industries: Mining, logging, aerospace and defence, manufacturing, energy

• Notable imports: Consumer goods, foodstuffs, computers and electronics

• Notable exports: Uranium, various metals (e.g. copper, nickel, gold, etc.), lumber, weapons systems, automobiles and other vehicles, energy