Wednesday, November 29, 2006

First Map (click on map to enlarge)




First Map
(The 81 Provinces of the Zekresh Empire)





On the first map:


On the first map, each province is identified with a big red square. Black lines mark province borders. Some province borders are not marked with black lines because an obvious natural obstacle forms the border such as a coastline, mountain range or river. Sometimes both sides of a river are part of the same province and in other cases, each side of the river is a separate province. The placement of the big red squares on the first map makes clear which rivers are province boundaries. If there is only one red square inside a set of borders, it is one province, regardless of whether a river runs through it. If there is a red square on each side of the river, it is two provinces. The red squares do not represent any feature on the land, they merely help clarify where all the provinces are. The Imperial City of Zekran is not marked on that map, but it is not considered a province or part of any province.

Small red dots are active volcanoes. They are often surrounded or partly surrounded with grey squares indicating mountainous terrain.



On all maps:

Dark grey masses indicate mountain ranges.

Light blue indicates water and can be lakes, rivers or seas depending on size and shape.

On some maps that have not yet been revealed, dark blue indicates deeper ocean waters.

Light grey marks lands that are part of the Zekresh Empire.

Black lines mark the borders of provinces and nations.

Green indicates lands that are not under imperial control.

Green dots in the sea are islands that are not under imperial control. If they are near a coast controlled by the Empire, the islands are claimed by the Empire, but not under actual Imperial control.

Some mountain valleys are also green or partly green even though they are in the middle of the Empire. This is not a mistake. The green lands are not under imperial control. In the case of mountain valleys, this is generally because they are relatively inaccessible. After there is a player for every province, new players may take the part of leaders of independent enclaves in the green mountain valleys or islands or as the leaders of barbarian tribes beyond the imperial borders.


Second Map (click on map to enlarge)




Second Map
(Zekresh Empire)

On the second map:

On the second map, the Imperial Capital City of Zekran is shown as a purple dot with a boundary around it marking the territory associated with it that is not considered part of any province. The Imperial City of Zekran is located at the northeastern end of the straits connecting the Eastern Sea with the Western Sea. Also on the second map, provincial capitals are marked with small red dots.

The small red dot outside the empire is an active volcano and this is the usual meaning of red dots on maps in Nations and Empires. However, there are no active volcanos in the Zekresh Empire so you can be sure that any red dot within the boundaries of the Empire marks the capital city of a province.



On all maps:

Dark grey masses indicate mountain ranges.

Light blue indicates water and can be lakes, rivers or seas depending on size and shape.

On some maps that have not yet been revealed, dark blue indicates deeper ocean waters.

Light grey marks lands that are part of the Zekresh Empire.

Black lines mark the borders of provinces and nations.

Green indicates lands that are not under imperial control.

Green dots in the sea are islands that are not under imperial control. If they are near a coast controlled by the Empire, the islands are claimed by the Empire, but not under actual Imperial control.

Some mountain valleys are also green or partly green even though they are in the middle of the Empire. This is not a mistake. The green lands are not under imperial control. In the case of mountain valleys, this is generally because they are relatively inaccessible. After there is a player for every province, new players may take the part of leaders of independent enclaves in the green mountain valleys or islands or as the leaders of barbarian tribes beyond the imperial borders.

Province Names

The numbers correspond to the numbers on this map.

..........Actual...........Province..................Origin of
..........Province.......Name........................Province
#........Name.............in English................Name
...................................................................
0........Zekran...........Zekran.....................Named for Zekryva who founded the
...................................................................city.

1........Frayethay ........Frayeth Land.......Named for Frayeth people who fled
...................................................................there from South Peninsula.

2........Slythia...............Viper Land...........Named for a tribe of wildmen.

3.......Nass Mysktia.....Hidden Bay........Named in Zekresh for a geographic
....................................................................feature.

4.......Kajakan Yost.....East Bear Land....Named in Zekresh for the Verron .....................................................................(bear) tribe of wildmen. Their .....................................................................territory became three
.....................................................................provinces.

5.......Kajakan Folon...West Bear Land...Named in Zekresh for the Verron
......................................................................(bear) tribe of wildmen. Their ......................................................................territory became three
......................................................................provinces.

6.......Kajakan Tros.....North Bear Land...Named in Zekresh for the Verron
......................................................................(bear) tribe of wildmen. Their ......................................................................territory became three
......................................................................provinces.

7.......Ferillyan..............Smoke Land..........Named for a tribe of wildmen.

8....Iluvan Shasif....Crying Moon Land...Named for a tribe of wildmen.

9.....Vumman...........Hummingbird Land...Named for a tribe of wildmen.

10.....Kaliskan............Stag Land................Named for a tribe of wildmen.

11.....Yormukan ..........Yormuk's Land......Named for Yormuk, a Zekresh
......................................................................warlord who conquered the
......................................................................wildmen there.

12.....Flitran..............Crab Land.................Named for a tribe of wildmen.

13.....Lastilan.............Fog Land.................Named for a tribe of wildmen.

14.....Shasan...............River Land..............Named in Zekresh for a tribe of
......................................................................wildmen.

15.....Yusha Fonan........Blue Jay Land.....Named for a tribe of wildmen.

16...Vinrat Troslot....Old North Frontier...At one time it was the frontier
.......................................................................of the Empire.

17..Vinrat Trosazh...New North Frontier..At one time it was the frontier
........................................................................of the Empire.

18.....Zurithani...............Wildman...............Named this in Zekresh when it
.......................................................................was beyond the Imperial frontier.

19.....Zurian................. Wilderness............Named this in Zekresh when it
.......................................................................was beyond the Imperial frontier.

20.....Kast.....................Fortress.................Named in Zekresh for the fortress of
......................................................................Kast Yvar.

21.....Uvinshakh Voint....Interior Peninsula.....Named because of its
...............................................................................geographic location.

22.....Tanan...................Otter Land............Named for a tribe of wildmen.

23.....Otlor..................Turtle Land.............Named for a tribe of wildmen.

24.....Vipathan...............Spider Land.........Named for a tribe of wildmen.

25.....Logoria................Cliff Land..............Named for a tribe of wildmen.

26.....Grogia..................Frog Land.............Named in Gavrinian for a tribe of
......................................................................wildmen.

27.....Lisal Koppa.........Clam Island..........Named for a tribe of wildmen.

28.....Groglinth...............Frogside.............Named in Gavrinian for an old
......................................................................settlement alongside the Frog River

29.....Ilania......................Ilania...................Named for the semi-mythical Prince
......................................................................Ilan.

30.....Ravelonia...........Ravelonia............. Named for Ravelon, the God of
.....................................................................Magic.

31.....Sishan...........Tide Land...................Named for a tribe of wildmen

32...Kikalan Tros....North Fire Land........Named for a tribe of wildmen, their
......................................................................territory became two provinces

33...Kikalan Inuva..South Fire Land........Named for a tribe of wildmen, their
......................................................................territory became two provinces

34.....Yenthitia...........Starfish Land..........Named for a tribe of wildmen

35.....Pilania................Green Land.............Named for a tribe of wildmen

36.....Lankar Tioka...Boat People Land....Named for a tribe of wildmen

37.....Corinweld...........Ravenwood...........Named in Gavrinian for a tribe of
......................................................................wildmen.

38.....Warnan.................Lion Land............Named for a tribe of wildmen

39.....Dronan..................Oak Land.............Named for a tribe of wildmen

40.....Ulawan...............Cloud Land............Named for a tribe of wildmen

41.....Lokotra.................Owl Land..............Named for a tribe of wildmen

42.....Fanezrit...........Sand Snake Land......Named for a tribe of wildmen

43.....Varlan..................Fox Land................Named for a tribe of wildmen

44.....Nyarlan..............Dog Land................Named for a tribe of wildmen

45.....Barylan...........Jackal Land................Named for a tribe of wildmen

46.....Ovam................Savannah.................Named in Zekresh because most of
......................................................................the land is dry Savannah land, the
......................................................................first such land the Zekresh settled.

47.....Ovam Vyex......Far Savannah............Named in Zekresh because most of
.......................................................................the land is dry Savannah land, the
.......................................................................second such land the Zekresh
.......................................................................settled.

48.....Vindaroyen......Nomad People..........Named for a tribe of wildmen

49.....Upinthen...........Rabbit Land.............Named for a tribe of wildmen

50.....Blib Showatan....Lake Showatan......Named after the large lake in the
........................................................................province. Showatan means "large"
........................................................................in the language of the local
........................................................................wildmen.

51.....Frangees...........Frangees...................Named for a tribe of wildmen. The
.......................................................................origin of their name is obscure.

52....Kopixer...........Scorpion Land.................Named for a tribe of wildmen

53.....Sligifteria...........Claymaker Land......Named for a tribe of wildmen

54...Tlom Yerula.....Stone People Land.....Named for a tribe of wildmen

55.....Zamarula......Magic People Land......Named for a tribe of wildmen

56...Vibika Ashak...Desert People Land...Named for a tribe of wildmen

57.....Jikerola...........Bat People Land.........Named for a tribe of wildmen

58..Grigna Zarula...Lizard People Land.....Named for a tribe of wildmen

59.....Uvinan...........Hinterland....................Named in Zekresh for its geographic
.......................................................................location relative to the Far Coast
.......................................................................settlement

60.....Olalga Vyex...........Far Coast.............Named in Zekresh for its geographic
.......................................................................location relative to Zekran.

61.....Silway Siliken......Fisher People Land....Named for a tribe of wildmen

62.....Esan...........Mouse Land....................Named for a tribe of wildmen
.......................................................................(slightly corrupted and with Zekresh
....................................................................... suffix)

63...Lolensturn...Round House People....Named for a tribe of wildmen (but the
.......................................................................name is corrupted and abbreviated)

64.....Thalaning...........Deep Forest...........Named for a tribe of wildmen

65.....Nassavix..............Bayside.................Named in Zekresh for its geographic
.......................................................................location

66.....Baaniferan...........Moose Land.........Named for a tribe of wildmen

67.....Trayavix...........Crossroad.................Named in Zekresh after the main city
.......................................................................which is at the crossroads of the
.......................................................................coast road and the river road.

68.....Shasa Falan...........Upriver................Named in Zekresh for its geographic
.......................................................................location

69.....Foerfen...........Wolf Land..................Named for a tribe of wildmen

70....Glantogran......Red Hand Land.........Named for a tribe of wildmen

71.....Aatan.......Mountain Goat Land.......Named for a tribe of wildmen

72.....Helmarie...........Headwaters...............Named in Trondan because two
.......................................................................major rivers originate here.

73.Lilash Huvenia.....River Monster Land...Named for a tribe of wildmen

74.....Ptaria.............Sparrow Land...............Named for a tribe of wildmen

75..Vinrat Inuvesh Lot....Old Southern Frontier.......At one time it was the
.........................................................................................frontier of the Empire

76...Kromostekan Azh.......New Settlement........Named for the Zekresh
.................................................................................settlement there.

77..Vinrat Inuvesh Azh....New Southern Frontier....It is the frontier of the
.........................................................................................Empire.

78.....Azh Zekran.........New Zekran.............Named after the Imperial Capital
.........................................................................City of Zekran

79.....Sarnyvan.........Sarnyva's Land..........Named after Sarnyva who led the
........................................................................expedition which founded the
........................................................................settlement.

80.....Falanalish...........O'er the Sea.............Named because of its geographic
........................................................................location.

81.....Kast Vyloresh...........Imperial Fort.....Named because it is the location of
.........................................................................the main Imperial fort and garrison
.........................................................................in the Overseas provinces.

Map of Provinces (click on map to enlarge)



Zekresh Empire Province Map
Scale: this map is a little over 12,000 Talong (6,000 km) on each side.



Province names are listed by province number here.

Explanations of the maps:

On all maps:

Dark grey masses indicate mountain ranges.

Light blue indicates water and can be lakes, rivers or seas depending on size and shape.

On some maps that have not yet been revealed, dark blue indicates deeper ocean waters.

Light grey marks lands that are part of the Zekresh Empire.

Black lines mark the borders of provinces and nations.

Green indicates lands that are not under imperial control.

Green dots in the sea are islands that are not under imperial control. If they are near a coast controlled by the Empire, the islands are claimed by the Empire, but not under actual Imperial control.

Some mountain valleys are also green or partly green even though they are in the middle of the Empire. This is not a mistake. The green lands are not under imperial control. In the case of mountain valleys, this is generally because they are relatively inaccessible. After there is a player for every province, new players may take the part of leaders of independent enclaves in the green mountain valleys or islands or as the leaders of barbarian tribes beyond the imperial borders.


On the province map above:

On the map above, each province is identified with a number. Black lines mark province borders. Some province borders are not marked with black lines because an obvious natural obstacle forms the border such as a coastline, mountain range or river. Sometimes both sides of a river are part of the same province and in other cases, each side of the river is a separate province. The placement of the province numbers on the map makes clear which rivers are province boundaries. If there is only one number, it is one province, regardless of whether a river runs through it. If there is a number on each side of the river, it is two provinces. Provincial capitals are marked with small red squares. The Imperial Capital City of Zekran is shown as a small purple square with a boundary around it marking the territory associated with it that is not considered part of any province. The Imperial City of Zekran is located at the northeastern end of the straits connecting the Eastern Sea with the Western Sea.

Small red dots outside the Zekresh Empire are active volcanoes. They are often surrounded or partly surrounded with grey squares indicating mountainous terrain. There are no active volcanoes inside the empire.

The province names are posted here.

Faction Map (click on map to enlarge)





The above map of the Empire shows the political alignment of each provincial government.


Orange = Reformist (13 provinces)
Purple = Loyalist (21 provinces)
Gray = Neutral (46 provinces)
Yellow = Separatist( 0 provinces)
Red = Province is in rebellion (1 province, Kopixer Province, #52)

Faction forums are here:
http://www.naegame.proboards.com


Please note that the leaders of the Loyalist and Reformist factions (Levorek Cledman and Rubanya Cledman, are both potential heirs to the throne. If the Emperor died, these same factions might battle each other for the succession to the throne. Because they have radically different ideas about how the Empire should be run, it would make a huge difference to the people which side wins.)

For more information on the factions and their leaders, please read the article on the Stavuk Vyloresh (Imperial Council) here.

Region Map (click on map to enlarge)


This is a map of the regions of the Zekresh Empire
(click on map to enlarge)

Region forums are here:
http://www.naegame.proboards.com


Regions are administrative units created by the imperial government which include a number of provinces. These regions have been slowly evolving into another level of government.

The Imperial decree issued by Emperor Cledman III which created the regions did not intend to create "regional governments". Provincial governments were intended to remain entirely autonomous from the regions. Regions exist because some parts of the central Imperial government have regional offices. The Imperial Postal Service, the Imperial Tax Service, the Imperial Army, the Imperial Navy and the Imperial Spy Service all maintain regional offices. Prior to Emperor Cledman III's decree, each of these organizations defined the regions differently. Now, they all use the same regions as can be seen on the region map. The Imperial government, always on guard against separatist threats, has been very careful to keep the regions virtually powerless and without central leadership. For example, Imperial Army units are only under the authority of the regional headquarters for administrative purposes such as promotions and supplies. Operational command of army units is in the hands of provincial commanders and the main Imperial Army command at Zekran. The regional generals do not have the authority to order army troops to move or fight. This is supposed to be true in the navy as well, but since naval units are stationed at naval bases which don't exist in most provinces, most of the ships are at the main regional navy bases. The regional admirals do not have operational command of the fleets in their regions, but the fleet commanders who do have such authority are all congregated at the regional navy bases.

Although the regions have no legal authority over any provincial Ulor, during the reign of Emperor Cledman VI, the Overseas Region created a new innovation. Because the Overseas Provinces were relatively new and there were no good roads connecting them, the provincial governments formed a "roads council" for the Overseas Region to coordinate road construction and maintenance. In recent years, this has been copied by all the other regions even though the need in the older regions is only for road maintenance. Each roads council includes the Ulor of every province in the region. Recently, roads councils have become a forum for discussion of cooperation between provincial governments on a wide variety of issues, not just roads. More than one Ulor has suggested changing the name from "roads council" to "regional council" and electing a chairman who would run a more powerful regional government. This idea has stalled because of fear of an adverse reaction from the Emperor.

Languages in Nations and Empires

There are well over a hundred languages spoken in the Zekresh Empire and countless more beyond its borders. They can be easily divided into language families and groups indicating common origins. Not all of the language families are connected to each other in any discernable way.

Although players need not actually learn to speak any of the languages found in Nations and Empires because translations in English (and other Earth languages) will be provided, extensive work has been done in developing the various languages of the Zekresh Empire and it does help add to the atmosphere of the game if players learn at least a few words of the languages their characters speak in the game.

Although in-character communications can always be in English, they will be presumed to be in the character's main language or other appropriate language for game purposes. A player may specify which language his communications to another character are supposed to be in even if they are actually in English or another Earth language.

In some cases, there may be players who do not speak English well or at all and their native Earth language may be presumed to represent communications in a specific non-Earth languages from the game. For example, suppose there are two groups of players. One group are in North America and speak English. Assume their characters speak Zekresh. Another group of players is in Portugal and Brazil and speak Portuguese and do not know English. Suppose their characters speak a language called Aldanese. It may be assumed that in-character communications by these two groups of players are in Zekresh if they are actually in English and in Aldanese if they are actually in Portuguese. If anyone posts a message in actual Zekresh, translation should be offered in English by the person posting the message, but need not be translated into Portuguese. Any message posted in actual Aldanese should include a translation into Portuguese, but need not be translated into English.

If a player speaks English and his character speaks BOTH Zekresh and Aldanese, he may demand from the game administrators (not the players) a translation of postings in Aldanese or Portuguese into English. This will be provided using automated translation software which admittedly is less than perfect, but which the game administrators believe will be adequate. Translation by expert human translators is available, but requires payment to the translator and is not provided free of charge along with other basic game features.