Ulaan
National Symbol: Horse Archer
National Colors: Sky Blue and White
98% Human (Mongol/Chinese Ethnic Backgrounds)
2% Halfling
70% Shamanistic
20% Agnostic
10% Pantheon
(Meritocracy Dictatorship System of Government) The Taisan system of government is run by the Great Khan, which is a title more than it is a hereditary birthright. The Taisan are a nomadic society of tribal chieftains who value ability and merit above all else and are loyal to the most capable and most powerful warlord. The Khan’s rule is absolute and sets laws and national policy to which the chieftains enforce more locally within their tribes. Succession is determined through single combat challenges when the current Khan is either too old, too weak, or is unable to run the country.
Badlands: Hostile
Cenovia: Neutral
Commonwealth of Dail: Neutral
Eldarian Union: Neutral
Elven Triumvirate: Hostile
Empire of Grundar: Hostile
Golden Dwarves: Neutral
Grand Duchy of Montia: Neutral
Granelian Protectorate: Neutral
Hassarian Oligarchy: Neutral
Highlands: Hostile
Ichi Shogunate: Hostile
Idelan Republic: Neutral
Iron Dwarves: Neutral
Kingdom of Aldania: Hostile
Naga’s Landing: Hostile
Orc Horde: Hostile
Sahalan Sultanate: Neutral
Shaneier Elves: Hostile
Steel Dwarves: Neutral
The Dark Covenant: Hostile
Theocracy of Vespa: Hostile
Undying Lands: Hostile
Wolven Marches: Hostile
Currency is minted with a Horse Head icon on it
Gold (gp) is used to buy luxury goods and high-end services
Silver (sp) is used to buy common quality goods and skilled labor
Copper (cp) is used to buy basic supplies goods and food
Average costs
Basic Food items: 1-3 copper
Luxury Food items: 10-15 copper
Basic Drinks: 1-3 copper
Luxury Drinks: 5-10 copper
Basic clothing: 25-50 copper
Average clothing: 25-50 silver
Luxury/High End clothing: 10-15 gold
Basic Lodging (Common Inn): 5-10 silver per night
Comfortable Lodging (High End Inn): 20-25 silver per night
Luxury Lodging (Private room with bath): 50-100 silver per night
Opulent/Noble Lodging (Private suite with multiple rooms): 10-15 gold per night
Transportation (Rented wagon/carriage): 10-15 silver per km
Weapons and Armor: Use Item costs
Taisan architecture is best described as a mix of Mongol nomadic tents and ancient Chinese construction. Out on the open grasslands and steppes a vast majority of the villages and towns are large mobile yurt style tents that roam the countryside. In the few places where Taisan people have permanently settled such as in the capital it is distinctly more ancient Chinese. Timbered multi-story buildings with large, sweeping, overhanging roofs that have curved flying eaves are a hallmark. Towns and villages heavily use plaster and wood for building materials and it is often painted in bright colors.
Taisan clothing is both practical and elegant. Both males and females prefer to wear tunics and pants of loose-fitting silks or cottons. Usually fasted with wooden or jade toggles down one side. Their outfits are layered and intricately patterned with designs on them such as animals or characters that have symbolic meaning. In the higher society and more wealthy parts of the culture, women swap out the pants for long skirts and males wear distinctive hats to signify their rank and functions.
Typical Taisan cuisine includes primarily poultry, wheat, and vegetables, and seafood near the coasts. The most popular dishes all include some sort of noodle and are seasoned with heavy amounts of pepper to make the dish spicy. Drinks are usually tea leaf based, and alcohol favors wheat ales and dairy based spirits.
Music: Taisan music heavily favors drums and flutes. Most melodies are long drawn out pieces that speak to the vast open plains of their country. In lively times of festivals and seasonal events the music incorporates more uplifting tones. There is also a guttural form of throat singing that is extremely popular in Taisan culture and it is a unique sounding form as the singers can provide two or more pitches at the same time.
Literature: Out on the open steppes and plains literature is mostly non-existent as there is no need for it. Inside Taisan settlements calligraphy is highly valued so there is plentiful amounts of books, tomes, scrolls and other such literate on a wide variety of topics and subjects.
Entertainment/Theater: Out on the open plains and steppes, horse racing and tournaments are the main forms of entertainment in the Taisan Khanate. So are sporting events that showcase horsemanship such as archery contests on horseback. Inside their settlements gambling, strategic board games, and prostitution are the main forms of entertainment.
Taisan culture is medieval in nature and there is not much technology available in the country. It is not rejected and most Taisan citizens will spend the time to figure out how a gadget works when presented with it. Magic is also limited in that a vast majority of the country is simply too expansive to really cultivate any schooling in magical arts. Magic users are usually brought to the capital and serve as a sort of sequestered group of advisors and weapons at the Khan’s disposal.
In the vast sea of grass and steppes that the Taisan Khanate occupies, life can be both tranquil and harsh. With such a wide swath of territory, without much to offer in the way of resources, for ages it was only occupied by a race of centaur people. Sporadic and nomadic the centaurs roamed the lands as masters of the domain and mostly kept it untouched by the war between elves and dwarves since neither of those races had a presence in the steppes. However in the aftermath of the war, and the surge of human populations the centaurs would eventually meet their match. Taisan ancestors were at first nomads, who wandered into the centaur owned territory trying to lead peaceful lives. However this ended in tragedy as the centaurs would raid and destroy those initial migrations. In a measure of survival, the Taisan started to develop a warrior caste specifically geared towards addressing the threat of centaur devastation. This came in the form of highly skilled, highly mobile horse archers. This proved to be a dramatic change in the dynamic, and soon the hunted became the hunters. These human horse archers started banding together in larger and larger groups until a great horde of them could be assembled to sweep the plains of any and all centaurs they could find. A brutally efficient campaign that nearly wiped out the centaurs entirely. Once masters of the plains and steppes, the Taisan turned their attentions on building a civilization of their own. In the southern parts of their territory there is a thin band of forest that runs along the shorelines. Far from any other civilization on the continent, and somewhat shielded by the vast open plains and steppes to the north, The Taisan build a long road along the entire length of the south. This road allowed them to move from the west coast to the east coast with ease, and soon their fledgling nomadic culture became a truly thriving civilization. But the peace would not last. With the centaurs no longer as much of a threat, and civilized towns on the rise, the warrior caste turned on each other. A great number of civil wars and disputes over territory broke out and for years the Taisan were their own worst enemy. The mobile horse archer nature of their warriors made it incredibly difficult for leadership to hunt down their rivals, and it resulted in what everyone assumed would just be an endless cycle of raids. That all changed with the ascendence of the Khan. More than just a warrior, a man rose to power in the steppes who was both warrior and diplomat. He was able to unite many of the roving warbands under his banner, and created a system of governance that put a stop to many of the struggles. Valuing merit over hereditary titles, and outlawing land ownership to anyone except for himself he effectively eliminated the contentions that were plaguing his people. Governance is now given to whoever is most fit to lead in both martial and social affairs. This led to a renewed resurgence in prosperity and advancement for the Taisan. Which they have in turn aimed outward in expansionist ways. The Taisan are a growing population without as many resources as the other nations, and they know this. So acquiring more territory with those resources is one of the Khan’s highest priorities to this day. However his army is highly specialized in horse archery, which is not as effective in forests, which most of the continent is densely covered in so it has slowed the expansion significantly. The Taisan Khanate as it stands today, is a nation of proud warriors, dreaming of a glorious empire of prosperity and knowledge.