Details
- Identity: A militaristic, authoritarian empire in Roh-ber’s northern highlands, revering Voryn (Trickery, Darkness) and Eclipsa (Entropy, Arcana). Ruled by a Dusk Emperor with firstborn son succession, it exploits Aether for conquest, creating a toxic, industrial landscape.
- Key Features: Polluting airships, Umbral Legion, and Void Nexus font. Focuses on industrial might and font exploitation.
- Aesthetic: Smog-choked citadels, necrotic airships, and iron spires.
Overview
- Identity: The Ravus Empire is a militaristic, authoritarian juggernaut in Roh-ber’s northern highlands, defined by iron-clad industrial sprawl and toxic pollution. Revering Voryn and Eclipsa, it exploits their Aether to fuel espionage, forbidden magic, and relentless conquest, overharvesting fonts to power its war machine. As the Triad’s primary antagonist, Ravus raids fonts like Myrath’s Tidewell, spreading Eclipsa’s entropic decay to destabilize enemies while aligning with Primal cults to amplify chaos. Its industrial excess creates a grim, smog-choked landscape, evoking dread and ambition.
- Geography: Jagged highlands shrouded in dark smog, with sprawling factory-cities, polluted caverns, and ash-covered peaks shaped by Voryn’s deceptive shadows and Eclipsa’s entropic voids. Key fonts include Voryn’s Umbral Veil (a shadowy industrial rift) and Eclipsa’s Void Nexus (a toxic vortex spewing necrotic fumes). Myrath’s rare rivers are choked with industrial runoff, corrupted by Eclipsa’s Aether into necrotic sludge.
- Population: Primarily humans, tieflings, and drow, with half-orcs and goblins, living in oppressive factory-cities and militarized outposts. Citizens are hardened, valuing loyalty and survival, skilled in Aetheric engineering, espionage, and warfare amidst toxic conditions.
Governance
- Structure: Ravus is ruled by the Dusk Emperor, an absolute monarch who serves as the final arbiter of all decisions, wielding unchallenged authority over military, industry, and Aether exploitation. Succession passes to the firstborn son, ensuring a dynastic line steeped in martial tradition. A Shadow Conclave of warlords, spymasters, and archmages advises the Emperor but submits to his will.
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Dusk Emperor’s Role: The Emperor commands Ravus’ war machine, oversees font raids, and drives industrial expansion, residing in the smog-wreathed capital, Vaelor. He wields a scepter infused with Voryn’s shadowy Aether and Eclipsa’s necrotic glow, symbolizing iron rule. Dissenters face execution or forced labor in toxic mines. The current Dusk Emperor is Malrik Vaelshade.
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Industrial Focus: Laws enforce loyalty, Aether overharvesting, and industrial output. Font raids and Eclipsa’s entropic rituals are state-sanctioned to weaken the Triad, with the Emperor personally approving campaigns to pollute Myrath’s rivers and seize resources, prioritizing power over environmental cost.
Major Cities
Religious Culture and Customs
Ravus views The Twelve’s Aether as fuel for domination, with Voryn and Eclipsa’s chaotic forces powering industrial rituals tied to the six Astral and Umbral Moons: - Voryn (Third Umbral Moon): Nightweaver Covens, secretive spies (e.g., drow, tieflings), perform shadow rituals in the Umbral Veil, weaving Aetheric illusions to mask industrial operations. Factories dim their lights during these rites, cloaking cities in shadow. - Eclipsa (Sixth Umbral Moon): Veilborn, forbidden mages, conduct entropic rituals in the Void Nexus, channeling Eclipsa’s Aether to power toxic machinery and unleash chaotic magic. These rituals, approved by the Emperor, pollute Myrath’s fonts with necrotic runoff. - Myrath’s Influence: Not worshipped, but Myrath’s scarce rivers are exploited as industrial conduits, corrupted by Eclipsa’s Aether into toxic sludge, requiring Triad purification to counter Ravus’ environmental devastation. - Other Deities: Ravus scorns Triad gods like Myrath, Thalyn, or Solara as weak, but the Emperor tolerates Veilborn rituals to fuel industry, risking internal corruption from Eclipsa’s unstable Aether.
Transportation
- Primary Mode: Ravus relies on massive, polluting airships forged from dark iron and Aether-infused scrap, powered by Voryn’s deceptive Aether and Eclipsa’s entropic energy. Necrotic boilers, spewing toxic smog, drive propulsion, with heavy balloons coated in Eclipsa’s starry ash providing lift, designed for intimidation and endurance.
- Mechanics: Nightweaver Covens channel Voryn’s Aether for cloaking, while Veilborn use Eclipsa’s Aether for speed. Toxic emissions risk crew health, reflecting the empire’s disregard for safety.
- Infrastructure: Smog-filled airship docks tower over factory-cities, with the Void Nexus as a central hub. Ground transport uses clanking, Aether-forged crawlers—tracked vehicles powered by necrotic engines—traversing ash-covered roads.
- Cultural Significance: Airships, etched with Voryn’s shadowy runes and Eclipsa’s starry decay, embody Ravus’ industrial might and toxic ambition, contrasting Sylvaris’ eco-friendly airships and Tidegate’s vibrant ships.
Military Might
- Structure: The Umbral Legion, directly commanded by the Dusk Emperor, comprises Nightweaver Covens (spies), Veilborn (arcane casters), and Duskblades (mechanized soldiers), focusing on conquest, font raids, and industrial warfare.
- Forces: Airships wield necrotic cannons (Eclipsa’s Aether), supported by Duskblades with Aether-forged rifles and heavy armor. Ground forces deploy toxic constructs, spewing poison clouds, built in polluted forges.
- Tactics: The Legion uses overwhelming airship barrages and mechanized assaults, with Voryn’s illusions masking movements and Eclipsa’s entropy disrupting enemy lines. The Emperor directs strikes on Myrath’s fonts to spread decay, clashing with Triad purification efforts.
- Strengths and Weaknesses: The Legion’s industrial firepower and relentless aggression make it a dire threat, but toxic Aether reliance risks internal decay, and the Emperor’s rigid control stifles adaptability, alienating potential allies.
- Soldiers: see Ravus Military for the Legion’s soldiers and their units, the Murders.
Role in Roh-ber
- Triad-Ravus War: Ravus is the Triad’s primary antagonist, raiding fonts like Myrath’s Tidewell to hoard Aether and pollute ecosystems, weakening Sylvaris, Aurumhold, and Tidegate. Its polluting airships challenge Tidegate’s naval dominance and Aurumhold’s trade routes, with the Emperor driving campaigns to dominate Roh-ber (see Triad-Ravus War).
- Conflicts: Ravus exploits Eclipsa’s Veilborn to corrupt fonts, spreading necrotic decay that counters Myrath’s purification efforts. Internal tensions arise between Nightweaver Covens’ secrecy and Veilborn’s reckless entropy, crushed by the Emperor’s iron rule.
- Culture: Oppressive and industrial, Ravus values loyalty and power. Factory-cities are hubs of toxic production, espionage, and military training, with citizens enduring harsh conditions to serve the Emperor. Ravus hoards Aether and resources, trading minimally to fuel its war machine.
- Aesthetic: Smog-choked citadels with jagged iron spires, cloaked in Voryn’s shadows and Eclipsa’s starry, toxic voids. Airships loom with necrotic boilers and rusting hulls, spewing ash, contrasting Tidegate’s radiant ports and Sylvaris’ bioluminescent jungles.
In the timeline
- After the First Shattering: Before the Shattering, Roh-ber was all one continental country. After it, the remnants grew into their own cultures and then into nations; the Ravus Empire, which is not part of the Triad, grew out of the ashes of the Shattering.
- Circa 6000: The Ravus Empire forms as a militaristic power in northern Roh-ber. Competition for aetheric dominance intensifies.
- Circa 6300: Ravus Empire strife.
- 6342: The Ravus Empire launches a campaign to conquer Roh-ber, aiming to control all aetheric fonts. Sylvaris, Aurumhold, and Tidegate unite as the Triad to resist (see Triad-Ravus War).
- 6352: A campaign hub.
In Sanctara
In Sanctara, the Ravus Empire targets coastal resources, harvesting Aetheric energy and Scales, exploiting the chaos to claim relics.
In Ezogashima
In Ezogashima, the Ravus Empire harvests Aetheric resources; recent Ravus incursions suggest a grand scheme on the horizon.
In Glacithar
In Glacithar, the Ravus Empire is harvesting Aetheric crystals and Scales, clashing with the Order.
Vehicles
Details to come
More lore is still being written.
