Soolia

Soolia, officially The High Kingdom of Soolia, is a kingdom located in western Eldham, on the continent of Onthukhan. The absolute monarchy consists of three constituent states, separated by the Soolianic Bay into two regions: Fjellgard's West Soolia and Holm's East Soolia. West Soolia shares land and maritime borders with Redoriv and the AWE, land borders with Ravenguard, through Marag, Far Harbor, and Geraria, and a maritime border with Falholt. East Soolia shares land and maritime borders with the AWE and Anglunia. The nation's capital is Rolk, its most populous city is Frihelm, and its main industrial center is New Victorialis.

Early history
The Soolians are a mountainous people who thrive off the many treasures found inside the mountains they inhabit, quickly plying trade with those around them. The Soolians were united by the great hero Bjorn during a period of instability and turmoil within the Soolian clans. Bjorn's last command before he died was to colonize and expand Soolian culture throughout the world of Eldham, their homeland. The Soolian clans followed their orders and started to spread, Rolk being the most prominent settlement so far. Soolian culture now dictates that every town or village must have a statue of the great hero.

Soolianic Congregation
The Soolianic Congregation is the predecessor to the High Kingdom of Soolia. It was an Oligarchic Committee with three people at its center, Block Fjell, Mason (unknown last name), Dice (unknown last name), and Mox Bloom. It was formed on May 30th, 2021, by Block and Mason, with Mox and Dice joining a little later. They rapidly expanded their country and population and founded three settlements: Rolk, Allium, and New Victorialis. They would go on to have good diplomatic relations with the countries around them and set the course for the Kingdom we have today.

The then recent war between Zamotz and Skjoldrbrodir, in which the Soolianic Congregation had participated in, had demoralized most of the population after their drastic losses, and many citizens lost their gearsets and valuable loot to the forces of the Eldham Entente. People were dissatisfied with how the government handled the situation and viewed their leaders with distrust. Block Fjell saw this as an opportunity to consolidate his power in the nation, and he took it. On October 14th, 2021, Block declared himself the High King of The High Kingdom of Soolia. This new nation was a constitutional monarchy under himself that he had hoped would help reinvigorate the population and restore order to the land. This would be the official end of the Soolianic Congregation as it would continue under a new flag and name.

The High Kingdom of Soolia succeeded the Soolianic Congregation when, on October 14th, 2021, Block declared himself the High King following the Zamotz-Skjoldrbrodir War. It became a Constitutional Monarchy under Block himself, and he had hoped that would help reinvigorate the population and restore order to the land.

Abydos Fjell
When the reign of Block ended, The High Kingdom of Soolia stagnated, and with the end of the “golden age of Allium,” it took a downward trend. Block's successor, Abydos Fjell, aka gbmc_, tried his best to recover the success that had happened during his predecessor’s reign or at least halt the declining path that the kingdom was on, but it was ultimately fruitless. His reign ended with him allegedly being killed in a hunt.

After Abydos Fjell’s alleged death, he had not declared an heir. Through a will that was produced, the heir would be Arthur “Mad”, aka yourfriendmad. Because the succession was unclear, a contender stepped up, King Dvusi Fjell. His argument was based upon the fact that all Arthur had to substantiate this claim was the words of a dead man and the fact that Dvusi was of the Fjell lineage. This went on for some days, splitting the Kingdom in two; those who supported Dvusi and those who supported Arthur. The matter was resolved when Block’s son, Gunnar, and his wife, Dreanki, adopted Arthur, thus ending the succession crisis.

High King Arthur “Mad” Fjell
True to his name, Arthur “Mad” Fjell’s reign was often described as mad. Early into his kingdomship, the former High King merged The High King of Soolia with the Second Empire of Plagatéa, a widely controversial decision within the kingdom. Outside of the realm, this decision angered many nations; the Ashtrokan-Wandenreich Empire saw the merger as Plagatéa annexing their territory, as they held claims to the province of Stone. This eventually led to war, and other nations who had grudges against Plagatéa saw this as a perfect chance to hinder the country. Shortly thereafter, Soolia had left the merge, becoming independent once more; however, the Ashtrokan-Wandenreich Empire saw this as an excellent opportunity to get the province of Stone under their control once more, as the decision to merge with Plagatéa had voided all defensive and military alliances. Since The High Kingdom of Soolia had just left the protection of Plagatéa, this was the most opportune time. High King Arthur antagonized them, which furthered the idea of war, which led to more reasons for the Empire to declare war against the Kingdom. The Ashtrokan-Wandenreich Empire declared an offensive war against the Soolians; however, few citizens of the Kingdom wanted to march to war. Before the first battle had been fought, the two had reached a compromise: The High Kingdom of Soolia was to hand over Stone and dethrone the High King, which they, in return, would cancel the declaration of war. The Kingdom agreed, which led to the current borders between The High Kingdom of Soolia and the Ashtrokan-Wandenreich Empire and the end of the reign of High King Arthur “Mad” Fjell.

After High King Arthur's reign, it was mutually agreed that an interim regency council needed to be set up to avoid another succession crisis, which worked. The Regency Council’s purpose was to stand in and act as a High King usually would and look for a suitable candidate for the throne. When they did find a new High King, it would then act as advisors to said High King, but also with the power to impeach if need be. Eventually, they settled on a man of the name Dennis Godd-Fjell, the son of Dvusi Godd-Fjell, to rule the nation.

High King Dennis Godd-Fjell
With High King Dennis’s reign, the nation was no longer in a downward trend; it had stabilized, and the collective nation started along the path to recovery, prosperity, and overall bettering itself. One of the first things he did was order the reconstruction of the nation’s capital, Rolk, as it had not seen any updates since its initial construction. The Kingdom has seen an increase in the number of its citizens, the towns are flourishing, and diplomacy has been re-established with the majority of its former allies. This rejuvenation is not only material, but also spiritual, as the Soolian faith is becoming more relevant and the visions of Deepcallers are returning.

The lands of The High Kingdom of Soolia used to be inhabited by gnomes that lived amongst the mountains. For the majority of the Kingdom’s existence, these gnomes were believed to be the progenitor of the Soolian race due to the abundance of archeological findings. The only discrepancy of this theory during this time was those of royal blood. The more pure the bloodline, the more discrepancies arose, with those of the Fjell family being the purest. This is further explored in the book The Soolian Paradox by Frodi Brekkholm. Relatively recently, archeological findings in Artemis of stone tablets that were written upon have depicted that the gnomes that were originally living in the Soolian lands were at war with a conquering people from the sea and had utterly lost. Whether the gnomes were forcefully displaced or killed off by the diseases these new people brought is unknown. This is corroborated by the discrepancies of the former theory, with the more pureblooded Soolians having increased lung capacity, cyan-like complexion, and increased strength. All of the Soolian High Kings have exhibited these features, with the exception of High King Arthur, as he was not originally of the Fjell family and had only been adopted into it to end the succession crises. It is then safe to say that Soolians are not entirely human but rather a type of mer-people. This would also explain the Kingdom’s maritime traditions and the common occupation of piracy.

The official state religion of the High Kingdom is called Soltrú. However, there is a lack of clarity around what the religion is other than this is what the Soolians believe in, as most of the information regarding it has been lost in time. However, this may change in the coming future, as there are reports of alleged Deepcallers awakening, who are Soolians who have a connection with the Abyssal Realm, which grants prophetic dreams, although the only official Deepcaller is High King Dennis. This gives hope that new information regarding the history of Soltrú and other religious practices will be known through these dreams.

Government
The current government is situated around the High King as the central authority, with the Royal Council directly underneath. The various positions in the government exist so the High King can delegate power to them, so he does not have to do everything.

The Royal Council is more of an advisory board for the High King, although they have the right to impeach the High King should he break the conditions outlined in the constitution. They are also in charge of large-scale, nationwide systems and projects and can also enact changes on the local scale within provinces if it is in the nation’s best interest.

The Regency Council is the Royal Council, with the difference of the High King being absent for any reason. This would give them the power of the High King, but everything needs to be discussed amongst the members and decided.

Dukes are elected by the High King to head a province. They have authority over their domain, and as such, they can commission projects, handle court cases that arise inside of their province, levy militias, and manage their province’s economics. They can also enact laws for the province, as long as they do not contradict the Kingdom’s laws.

Mayors lead their settlements, and the first one is always the original founder, and they can appoint their successor if they wish to move on. They make the rules of their respective settlement, as long as such rules do not contradict the laws of the Kingdom or the province. They can also propose laws for the province, but they must pass a majority vote from the Dukes.

Constituent States
Soolia is comprised of three Duchies: the Duchy of Fjellsgard, the Duchy of Holm, and the Archduchy of Midjor. While each of the constituents states are demarcated differently, they are centrally controlled in the capital of Rolk and does not have their own consitutions, with the exception of the Archduchy of Midjor, which has a semi-autonomous rule in regards to its internal organization granted by the High King.

Military
The Soolian Armed Forces is organized into the Marine Corps (Army) and the Royal Soolian Navy. The Marine Corps and the Royal Navy are controlled by repective supreme commanders appointed by the High King, with the current army position belonging to Prince Aravor Godd-Fjell and the current navy position belonging to Admiral Ernst Naktinmol von Malaksson-Douglas. In peacetime, the Soolian Armed Forces is commanded by a representative appointed directly the High King. In a state of war, the High King of Soolia would assume the role of the commander-in-chief of the Soolian Armed Forces. The role of the Soolian Armed Forces is described in the Soolian constitution to act not only as a shield for the nation but also as a sword against threats to the national security of Soolia.