The Oda Empire of Hikaru
Keywords:
ODA-EMPIRE
Proper Name - Oda Empire
Informal Name - The Empire of Hikaru, Vapilas Realm, The Sakura Crown
History
Oda Nobuya, inherited the leadership of the small but tenacious Oda
clan following deaths of most of her family by war and assassination.
At only thirteen, she faced a series of blows including the deaths of
her parents and elder siblings. Her followers, whose stalwart ways
have been compared to the mountain dwarves, rallied to their girl
leader and so began a series of crafty ambushes and tactical
maneuvers which drove the Akoki from Oda province.
Civil war ensued as the Shogun (and de facto ruler) Akoki Caligra
sent daimyos and mustered his allies against the rebellion. He was
assisted by the foremost Kasimir strategists, Kazuma and heavy
cavlary under the command of Lord Nahkir. Hopes of an early Oda
victory were quelled when one of their armies fell to gargoyles
animated by the potent sorcery of Iliani The Black Knight of the
Akoki. The Akoki laid seige to Oda castle in return and swept across
much of the continent. Her final triumph came thanks to a combination
of personal courage and Vapilas loyalty, the determined pride that
they felt for their leader.
Nobuya herself has the characteristic politeness of a Hikaran,
together with their stubborn response to an insight or a slight.
Despite her gender she practices the traditional arts of the
sword, bow and spear, mastery of a horse, Vapilas culture and the tea
cerimony. Despite contact with members of several faiths, most
notably the companions of the goddess Kestia, Nobuyo does not
publically espouse a particular religion. She avoids large entourages
and tends to spend her time seeing to the needs of the Empire,
particularly the people of her own province who revere their ruler
for it.
Ruler(s)
Oda Nobuya, Empress of Hikaru
Government
Feudal Monarchy.
A single absolute ruler, the Emperor or Empress, claims suzerainty
over the lands and cities of Hikaru. The position is partly
inherited, since most of the great noble families claim descent from
the first Vapilas monarchs, although in practice military and
political strength determine who is in a place to claim and hold the
throne. The present ruler has enjoyed an unopposed reign since the
defeat of the greatest rival clan.
Beneath the supreme monarch are ranks of aristocracy, an inherited
system of noble clans and their retainers. These resemble the ruling
household in microcosm, indeed at rare tumultuous intervals the
imperial line may be broken and a different dynasty seizes the
throne. Each great lord (the term is used although clan can, rarely,
be ruled by a female head) controls their subjects and land closely,
as much a total ruler as the sovereign themselves.
Beneath the monarch and the nobles are further ranks of bureaucrats,
a warrior aristocracy and common clerks and guards who administer and
enforce their rule. These people rarely hold their own land, at most
a house and grounds, depending on their lord for their position and
in turn on the peasants to provide rice and other foods. This creates
a system where the workers are supervised closely by the middle
classes, who are tied to their masters, then through them to the
ultimate authority of the crown.
At stages in Hikaru's history, a weak emperor or empress falls has
fallen into the power of a noble faction. In such cases, harming or
replacing the ruler is unthinkable but the cunning minds of the
vapilas have come up with their own solution. The usurper is
"requested" to assist in governing the land as a kind of first
minister - the term used for this post is "Shogun". That position can
then turn into a hereditary title of its own, an arrangement that can
last generations or even centuries. The most well-known, indeed
infamous, holder of the post was Prince Akoki, a warlord who outlived
entire imperial dynasties.
Population
The population of the empire itself is almost entirely human, but
many of these are of the Vapilas strain. Although declining, this
human sub-race is genetically woven into the history of Hikaru and
the ancient curse of the goddess Kasim. They are very similar to
normal humans in most aspects, except that the whites of their eye
are never plain white, while they tend to be more athletic and
physically attractive. The aspects of the curse have contributed to a
small minority of half-breeds, most of these stemming from unions
between humans with elves or mrem.
A small proportion (perhaps even several percent in some areas) of
the population carries a rare condition or contagion. Vampirism, or
more commonly dhampiels, are most present in the old Akoki domain
while lycanthropy is not unknown in the wilder hills and forests of
the Oda territory.
The other races on the edges of the empire are far more insular in
their ways. But the dwarves, giants, draconians, kobolds and others
are not counted among the Empress' citizens, even if some have spread
to settle within her borders.
Languages
The main language spoken through the Empire is human Human. Hikaru
has its own dialect and a unique script quite unlike that used in
other lands. There are hundreds of semi-pictoral characters, enough
to bewilder almost anyone who has not learned them from childhood.
Confusingly there are several versions of the script, although only
the "Kanji" set is now in common use. But records from the ancient
empire can seldom be deciphered by anyone except the learned monks
and scholars who preserve them.
The second language of the Empire, common, is used as an alternative
in case of need, rather than for everyday use as it is in Dragondale
and other diverse areas. Even an excellent grasp of the common
language provokes disapproval from aristocrats and other traditional
Vapilas, since it marks the speaker as an outsider rather than
someone with respect for their own customs.
Other minority languages are used, although these tend to be
restricted to the enclaves where ethnic groups live and interact.
There is a sizeable dwarvern population in the western mountain
ranges, occupied in mining, metalwork and the other professions of
their race.