Vale of Cakhtlan

"Cakhtlan Paizwét! - Cakhtlan never bows!"Vale of Cakhtlan is a theocratic satyr nation, native to Abexilas, that was established when nomadic Cakhts fled The Great Flood of The God of Depths in ancient times. Cakhtlan is located on the eastern continent of Cathramis, and is surrounded by allied satyr nations of Hodege, Cortland, Ertcof, and dwarvish Vamayruu.

Government
Cakhtlan is a theocracy, where the king is devoted to the God of Sanctum, and must follow its decrees. King's authority is divine and legitimized by the divine, so if the Gods go against the ruler, the monarch must abdicate the throne immediately. The King is supported by the Holy Assembly called Pakhil Eikh, of which each member follows a patron god.

Architects
One wing of the Advisory Chamber consists of the Architect Guild. Because of the importance of Architecture for Cakhtlan, Senior Builders are considered valuable enough they have some influence over the government's opinion.

Diplomats
Diplomats are important to existence of the Vale, so their presence in the Advisory Chambers is only natural.

Religion
Main article: Seneschals of Ponnoil"If shards are willing... - Ponnoil saying"Cakhtlan follows the religion of Ponnoil. Gods are created through their ideals, and people can empower their god through following it's ideals. The specific ideals that empower a specific god are referred to as that gods "Aspects".

As a theocracy, Cakhtlan is not tolerant of other religions. They won't outright kill non believers, or conduct crusades, but for someone to thrive on the mountain, they need to be a follower of Ponnoil.

Clothing
Cakhts lived in the mountains for generations, and so their traditional clothing reflects that. For their day-to-day clothes the goatkin use sheep wool, making thick shirts, pants, and skirts to protect against the cold. Wearing both pants and skirts at the same time is popular by both men and women, as they provide additional layers to keep warm despite freezing winds. Since Cakhts have horns, the shirts need to have buttons in front, as otherwise they would be nigh impossible to put on. For the same reason, cloaks were always quite popular for the ease of donning on and off. Hoods have to be personalised to each individual, for the place from which horns grow on goatkin is not consistent. For ease of putting the hood on, the side has a hole for horns, under which there is a buttonable part.

At first Cakhts had little access to dyes, and so their clothes were in shades of browns, blacks, reds, and greys. Fortunately, trade with Vamayruu and Ertcof brought in diverse palettes of colours which became incredibly popular. From the rich to the poor, everyone began implementing colourful patterns into their clothes. At first they were limited to geometrical shapes, but as Cakhts improved at embroidery and dyeing, they developed religious and natural imagery.

The method of putting on hoods got adapted into easily customisable helmets for the military. Previously they had to be custom-made, increasing the costs of equipping soldiers in case of war, but now mass-produced multi-piece helmets are a cheap staple of Cakht military.

In times of old, Cakhtlan only had access to colours such as red, white, and brown, making for dull clothing. Luckily farming flowers in hot spring gardens was successful allowing for locally made dyes of all colours. Blue dye was still the hardest to get, but friends from below the mountain, Vamayruu, brought lapis lazuli to the surface. Patterns on Cakht clothing is often geometrical, with squares and triangles being most popular. Other patterns include depictions of nature, such as flowers and animals, or religious symbols.

In the rich circles, the fashion tends to follow trends from friendly lowland nations, with elements of Cakht tradition such as leather bracers, corsets, or boots.

Horn Decorations
Horns may be decorated by tying ribbons, jewellery, or other colourful material around them. The more wealthy may polish their horns in a pattern, most commonly associated with the god they follow, their lineage, or whatever pretty pattern they would like.

Hooves and Legs
Hooves of Cakhts require no protection from rough surfaces, and so most Cakhts simply do not wear any hoofwear. Instead, each house has either a dedicated spot for washing hooves, or simply a bucket filled with water.

Some Cakhts choose to wear loose fabric with hardened leather on the soles, as some form of boots. This avoids dirtying the hooves and adds some protection.

Punishments
In Vale of Cakhtlan, one of the most severe punishments is exile. For a Cakht, the mountain is home. To be exiled, is to be not only cut off from one's homeland, but also one's family and gods. If a criminal's crime was a particularily dishonorable one, their horns are clipped off to not only mark them as an exile, but also to humiliate them and symbolise being rejected by the people. In case of an especially severe crime, the criminal will still be exiled from Cakhtlan, but in a more quick and severe method. The criminal is brought to a sheer cliff, their horns are clipped off, and then they are pushed off it to their near guaranteed death. To be pushed from the mountain is to be rejected by the gods, to have your horns clipped off is to be rejected by the people, making it the most dishonorable death.

Pre-launch and early days
The capital of Vale of Cakhtlan, Khalenies, was established on the 30th March 2024, the first day Abexilas was released, even before the land plugin was enabled. The nation itself was created on the 14th of January, in the preparation of the world launch, to iron out lore and government structure. Cakhtlan participated in pre-claiming of land with its neighbours, and had no issues with any land disputes. The Vale, under the diplomatic leadership of Neitla Alkhart, quickly begun conducting further diplomacy with their neighbours, and signed serveral Non-aggression Pacts and Mutual Defense Agreements, to secure its place on the continent of Cathramis.

In the month of April, The construction of Khalenies was the priority of the nation, where the Senior Builders such as Colin 'Wedtodal' the Short (Samuraig5), Yorcrou Dacniin (Sleepii), Calnayy Maike (Solar Panda), and Dahlia (Artandmushrooms) designed the schematics, resource collectors supplied the citizens with materials to build the capital, and Lanacran (mimek_) provided the necessary tools.