Kingdom of Koura

The Kingdom of Koura was a vassal nation under the rule of Leveros, Lorent, and Lautine. Koura was founded following the fall of the Kingdom of Norvos. It is comprised of three cities on the western side of the continent Sørligste. The first King of the nation was the founder, Tios Norekva. The Second and Last leader of the nation was Shadow Norekva.

Towns
There were 4 towns in the Kingdom of Koura: Magna (the capital), Yamindor, Liberta and Fernandes

Magna
Magna was the capital of Koura, the city has a population of around 150, making it the 2nd most populated town in Lautine, only behind Lumaire. The city mainly consisted of Spruce housing, with some variation in certain builds, like the meeting hall and the metro station. Magna also had a museum. Magna had been a quickly expanding city, but after the annexation of Koura, the town stopped growing, and many fled as they didnt want to be ruled by the oppressive goverment of Lautine.

Laila
Laila is a small ruin to the north-west of the Laila Mountains. It was a prospering town years ago, and the regions original name was called Laila. The town was destroyed by several people, and it has since stood as a small ruin in Magna land

Yamindor
Yamindor was the largest city by size in Koura. With a population of 120, the town was 2nd most populous in the vassal, and now 3rd most populous in Lautine. The town has a very distinct style, consisting of walls of jungle and terracotta, with acacia rooves. The style isnt for everyone however, and many have stated that you either hate it or love it.The town is split into several districts, including Pantheria. There is also a large cave underneath the city, with many industrial farms, called Yami-cave. However, the city had the same fate as Magna, with many of the citizens fleeing to escape from the oppression put on them by the Lautine Goverment.

Pantheria
Pantheria was built in the south-western most tip of Yamindor, near the border with Liberta. The small district was intended to provide housing to groups affected by racism and discrimination, like the Pantheri race that the owner of the district, Shadow Norekva comes from.

Yami-cave
Yami-cave is a large cave system underneath Yamindor. The cave is split into 2 main sections, the Living district, and the Industrial district. The Living district was never constructed, but the industrial distrcit was. There are many farms in it, which produce goods like moss, sugar cane, bamboo, kelp, dripstone, crimson plants, warped plants and lava.

Liberta
Liberta was the farming town of Koura. The town is slightly larger than Magna in terms of size, but by population, the town pales in comparison, with a population of around 40. The town has an extensive farming operation, and provided lots of food for the kingdom. The style varies across the town, from desert architecture, to stone brick houses with acacia and deepslate accents. Liberta was most affected by the annexation of Koura, being renamed to Okel, having most of their people disposed, and given a tyrranical ruler who wanted to mold the town into what he believed it should be, without preserving any of the culture of the old town, such as the Hall of Lords.

Hall of Lords
The Hall of Lords is a large building within Liberta. The hall served as a place for the Lords of the region to meet. The hall is often considered to be the jewel of Koura in terms of architecture. However, after the annexation of Koura, the new leader of Liberta has torn down large sections of the building, taking the valuable gold in its walls, and in turn, erasing the cultural significance of the building.

Fernandes
Fernandes is the smallest town in Koura, with a population of less than 10. The town was meant to serve as the industrial town of Koura, providing several resources, such as lava, gunpowder and cactus. There is a large pit on an island in the Fernandes river, and this pit is used to fish for gunpowder.

Geography
Koura is located on West Sorligte, in a region known by the locals as The Desert of Tears. Cool winds blow into the region from the Sea of Jcon, the Omnicouase Sea, the Serpents and Di Italian't Bay's of the Rough sea, which tends to cool down the Desert of Tears, Leading to Savannah's being common around rivers, like the Kouran River, Magna River, Noirta River, Yami River and Fernandes River. The large amount of rivers in the region is where the region got one of its several names: Ziekam. These rivers are one of the most important features of the geography here, as it is why populations can even be sustained here. As the region has no coast, not much humidity can get into the region, and the Yamindor Mountains in the north block even more humidity, casting a large rain shadow across much of the region.

Mountains
The previously mentioned Yamindor Mountains are also important to the geography of the region, as they block lots of humidity from reaching the region. They also mark the Northern most reaches of the Region of Koura, being the one of the 2 places in the region where biome borders or rivers arent the regions boundaries. The other significant mountain range in the region is the Laila Mountains. They run in the Magna section of the region, and were used in the past to split Magna from Laila, a small town North-East of the mountains, which got destroyed in May/June 2022. A stand-alone Mountain in Eastern Yamindor named Yami-Mountain also exists, and is believed to be an extinct volcano, but no geological studies have been done to prove this.

Pre-Koura History
The Kingdom of Koura was founded on April 17th, 2023 following the collapse of the Kingdom of Norvos. Prior to this, Norvos had been a peaceful nation, with hopes to grow in wealth, power, and prosperity. At that time, they had control over the cities of Norvos, Port Leon, Yamindor, Liberta, Fernandes, and Magna. However, peaceful times cannot last forever as one of Norvos' neighboring countries, Leveros, began to eye the eastern cities. Prior to Norvos' existence, Leveros was the one who first laid claim to these lands. They founded the town of Port Leon and made it their capital. After a few conflicts, the old Norvosi people were exiled. They fled their homes and established the nation of Leveros. Years later, a group of people would claim independace from a nation called Lorentish Kingdom. These new people would call themselves the Kingdom of Norvos. Together with each other, their king, and their newfound freedom, they began to grow and expand. Leveros saw this and became infuriated. In Leveros' eyes, Port Leon and the other eastern cities belonged to them. So, a plan of action was made. They made an ultimatum. Leveros demanded control over the eastern cities or there would be war. Norvos, however, did not want to hand over the cities. Instead, they advocated for both sides getting what they wanted and offered diplomacy as a third option. However, despite Norvos' attempts, Leveros refused to negotiate. And with that, Norvos and Leveros were at war.

The Norvosi War
This war was short lived, to say the least. The first declaration of war was made on March 10th, 2023, around 12:50 PM. This made both sides spring into action as they geared up for the upcoming war. Norvos began to build defenses as Leveros gear up to invade. The Battle of Norvos would be the first and only battle in this war. After suffering a crippling defeat, Norvos announced that they would be disbanding as a nation. This was in part due to financial issues but also as an attempt for the western cities of Norvos to not be taken over by Leveros through war. The western cities, not wanting to be destroyed, offered Leveros a deal. They could rein over the western cities as long as the cities could nation. Leveros accepted this deal. This nation would later be named the Kingdom of Koura.

Early Koura
The first king of the Kingdom of Koura chosen as it was founded. Tios Norekva was the one to set up negotions and negotiated with the emperor of Leveros, Salen de Consau II. The deal that Tios made was as follows: The western cities of the late Kingdom of Norvos were to be spared if they joined Leveros as a vassal nation. Salen accepted these terms and spared the western cities. Once the news reached Tios, he announced the information to the people. This leadership that Tios had shown in negotiations and in securing a safe future for the western cities earned him the respect of the people. On April 17th, 2023, Tios Norekva was unanimously selected by the people to be the king of Koura.

From there, it was back to square one of starting a nation. A flag needed to be designed, leadership positions needed to be assigned, as well as a few other tasks. Razail White, a historian from Liberta, volunteered to write down the history of this new nation. A new political party was also formed shortly after the founding of Koura. Denizen's Alliance Party was founded by two people, ForeignLeaf and Zydv. Their goal is to make reforms within the government to make the lives of the people better. As of now, no further action has been made by this party but they don't seem to be in competition with King Tios.

Laws
The Kingdom of Koura is pretty independent as far as being a vassal nation goes. We are allowed to be independent when it comes to domestic policy and politics. We are allowed to have our own culture, government, and laws. However, when Leveros is handling foreign policies or going to war, we as a vassal nation are expected to help Leveros if it is called upon us. Other than that, as stated before, we are a mostly independent nation.

Culture
The Kingdom of Koura mainly follows the customs and the cultural practices of the Kingdom of Norvos. The king stands by the continued practice of religious freedom for the people and use of the Soumerian language. There has been a new tradition implemented that is practiced by a few. These people all share heritage and love for the fallen Kingdom of Norvos.

The Sorrowful Fall of Norvos
This event was celebrated on the 17th of every month. This memorial day remembers the men and women who bravely gave their lives for the sake of Norvos. While it may seem like their sacrifices were in vain, they paved the way for the Kingdom of Koura to be founded and ultimately save the western cities. Participants are to dawn clothing with the traditional Norvosian colors of red, yellow, and white. They will then gather in the city of Magna and recount the stories of the fallen kingdom. This allows for the dead and slain to not be forgotten and a new hope of one day building a New Norvos.

Vexillology
The flag of Koura embodies four distinct meanings:
 * The red symbolises the people of Koura.
 * The sun symbolises the desert that primarily makes up the physical geography of Koura.
 * The yellow band is dilleberatly reminasnt of the flag of Norvos, as it symbolises Koura's history.
 * There is additionally only a single band as opposed to two as it symbolises Norvos being torn apart, leaving a lasting impact on Koura's identity.

Annexation
The Kingdom of Koura was annexed on the 7/7/23. It was annexed after the Lorentish Empire (The nation Koura was under) merged with Leveros to form the now Luatine Imperium. It was annexed because the new Lautine Emperor, Salen, didnt see a point in keeping Koura as a vassal, or anything at all. Following Koura's annexation original town owners we're removed. However, the leaders of these towns decided it wasnt worth their time to do anything to try retrieve their towns, though Salen still believes that they planned a coup, which is why he removed the old owners from their towns. Kouras small population left or died, and now Koura is just a wasteland full of ghost cities. The Kouran Leaders and population will not forget the blatant racism and discrimination against Koura.