Category:Factions

The Black Council
"Life is not a right, it is earned". These are the words you will find inscribed on every shield owned by a black council soldier. All commoners living inside the boundaries of the black council believe that life is a wondrous gift they have been honored to receive, and that it's their duty not to muck it up! After seven transgressions, a "living one" is seized by the guards and brought in front of the black council, an ancient group of wizards who have ruled over their domains since time immemorial. It's unclear who these wizards are, if they even exist and what their powers are, for they are rarely seen. However, something that is known is that those brought in front of them for questioning never are the same afterwards. They then become the servant caste of the black council, mindless slaves with just enough intelligence to follow orders. They can be found serving the living almost everywhere in the black council, their presence taken for granted by them. This mindless caste is commonly called The Empty Men, and are used for all manual jobs reserved for slaves and servants in all other realms. They are often hoarded in mass by nobles in times of war, who arm them and send them charging against enemies. While completely incompetent, they serve as excellent cannon fodder to wear down enemy troops before the elite soldiers come in do wipe them out.

The Red Council
For centuries the Fyraxian empire ruled peacefully over its lands. The Fyraxian empire was ruled by a succession of emperors, but something changed. Each became more insane and foolish than the last, spreading chaos and disorder simply for the sake of it. None dared challenge him, and so the madness spread. Artists murdered peasants to paint with their blood, nobles melted their gold and tossed it into the rivers, and guards punished those who still had a scrap of order and sanity in their heads. For months the madness raged on, destroying the wonders and accomplishments of the Fyraxian empire. Then, order came! A group of generals and commanders united and created The Red Council, a military force bent on bringing back order and stability to the empire. In a gruelling military campaign the Red Council scourged the remains of the empire, murdering anyone who dared to spread the insanity. At the end of the campaign, law was restored. The leaders of the Red Council set up a republic to rule over this newly born state, deciding to use their power to prevent the madness from returning. The source of all the chaos was never found: was it simply a misplaced adoration of the emperor? Or was it something more sinister? No one knows...

Currently, The Red Council's main objective is to rebuild all that was lost, as their cities are still in ruins. The countryside is still filled with collapsing houses, decadent castles and scenes of gore, but The Red Council is working on demolishing these reminders of the past to make way for the future. This was a controversial decision, as some philosophers said they should remain where they were as a reminder of what had transpired, but they were immediately accused of being Madness-sympathizers and put to death.

Deepwood Ministry
The origins of the name "Deepwood Ministry" are unknown, as the terrain, in reality, is tundra. Very few places have many trees, or any large vegetation for that matter. The commoners have many stories on the meaning behind the name. The most popular belief is that the royal families have a stronghold hidden within one of the boreal forests in the region.

The life of a commoner in the Deepwood Ministry is filled with hardship, even more so than the other countries. Very few places are fit for farming, and as such most make their living off of hunting or learning a trade. On the far reaches of the country reside tribespeople, and although they swear allegiance to the nobility of the area, they rarely take part in the realm's affairs. Their lives are hard enough as it is, the cold forces them to live much of their life by the heat of a fire, and children born of winter are often killed rather than allowing them to freeze to death. Most people stay away from the far reaches because of the cold, and even more so because of the reports of the tribespeople's cannibalism, which is not confirmed.