Editing Millennial King (section)

== Arran'ak ==

Arran'ak is the actual city-state supported by the undead.  It began as a mutual trade and defense pact among several villages, but its position was favorable to trade, so it became a minor economic power in the region.  This inspired jealousy on the parts of Arran'ak's neighbors, Florin and Guilder; they warred over it, and ended up slaughtering the entire royal family (except for Myrhan, who had been away studying magic during the invasion, and his sister, who had been raped by a Florinese count and then killed) in the process.  Myrhan avenged his family and fellow citizens by summoning an army of the dead (both those fallen in defense of Arran'ak, and the Florinese and Guilderian soldiers killed in the course of his campaign) and conquering both Florin and Guilder.

Presently, the nation is centered on the Spire, which is simultaneously the palace of the Millennial King and Dawn Queen, a resting place for the bodies of citizens who are not Risen, and one of several items rumored to be the Millennial King's phylactery.

=== Risen ===

The '''Risen''' are the legions of undead that labor in Arran'ak.  Most are incapable of independent thought, and are employed for menial, repetitive tasks, like mining, farming, and building, which leaves the citizens of Arran'ak free to pursue skilled trades.  Most citizens permit their bodies to be reanimated as Risen; after all, their King serves them after his death, so they feel obligated to do the same (and it's not as if they will need their bodies after they're dead).  Because flesh decays, Risen are reduced to skeletons before they are employed, though they wear bronze masks with a semblance of a face.  Some Risen wear a small trinket donated by their living relatives, as a sort of memorial to the person they once were.

Executed criminals and enemy casualties are reanimated as '''Conscripts''', and form the backbone of Arran'ak's military.  They are unadorned except for their bronze armor and porcelain masks, and are identically equipped (for their designated function), for the people of Arran'ak hold that all are equal in death.  Even their bodies are still treated with respect; after a Conscript is rendered unusable by damage or age, the remains are interred in the Spire and sanctified so that they cannot be reanimated.

Arran'ak's law enforcement and military are led by '''Sentinels''', living officers who direct the undead.  When they die, extra rituals are performed on their bodies to imbue them with a more advanced intelligence than most Risen.  Both living and undead Sentinels wear similarly-decorated armor, though the undead Sentinels always leave their helmets on.

The very finest Sentinels, both living and undead, form the '''Chronus Guard'''.  Under the command of Chronus himself, this elite force protects the Spire and serves as a covert intelligence agency and security service throughout the kingdom.  The training undergone by the Guard can literally be longer than a lifetime.

Those people who do not wish to become Risen are interred in the Spire.  This keeps their remains secure against unscrupulous necromancers, and also acts as a tremendous reserve of bodies to be Conscripted should the Millennial King deem it necessary.  Some citizens are so deeply opposed to the idea of their body even potentially being used by the King that they will have their bodies cremated rather than interred; this is not illegal, but is highly frowned upon.  The so-called "Cremationism" movement is most widespread among people who have no contact with the Risen, like artisans whose industries are not suitable for Risen to assist.  Some of the more extreme Cremationists will actually desecrate and destroy the Risen, thinking that they are freeing the souls of the Risen, though they are almost always mistaken in this, as extreme caution is taken in the reanimation ceremony that the soul is not trapped in the body.  Some suggest that the Cremationism movement is partly funded and manipulated by countries seeking to bring about Arran'ak's downfall; the Chronus Guard and Acolytes (see below) are vigorously investigating this possibility.

=== Acolytes ===

The Millennial King realized that, as his kingdom grew, he would not be able to manage the entirety of the Risen on his own, so he founded an order of Acolytes to tend them in his stead, and to ensure that necromancy performed in Arran'ak is held to rigorous standards of ethics and competence.  The Acolytes operate out of temples located in major cities and towns; these temples function as barracks for storage and maintenance of their region's Risen, hospitals for the region's living residents, and academies for necromancers-in-training.

Those with talent are offered the opportunity to become an '''Initiate''' at one of the kingdom's temples, where they will study the theory of necromancy, perform basic maintenance duties on the Risen stored at the adjoining barracks, and assist with lower-level ceremonies, like the reanimation of Conscripts or simple medical procedures.

After completing their studies, Initiates become '''Adepts''', and are apprenticed to '''Masters''' (who were once Adepts themselves).  Adepts and Masters specialize into one of several tracks.  The iconic specialization, that pursued by nearly half of all Acolytes, is that of the classic necromancer; Adepts and Masters on that path actually perform the rituals of reanimation to create Risen (the task of creating Conscripts is left to the Adepts, while laboring Risen are created by the Masters with their Adepts' assistance).  A similar proportion specialize in healing, using their knowledge of the human body to help the sick who visit their temples.  A few serve as magical law enforcement, investigating possible cases of unlicensed necromancy and assisting victims of such wicked or misguided individuals, or as diplomats to other nations, both to counter stereotypes about Arran'ak and to fight evil necromancers abroad.

The '''Sacrificed''' are, aside from the Millennial King himself, the most powerful necromancers in the nation.  They willingly sacrifice their afterlife to remain and serve their fellow citizens even after death, and the Millennial King takes a major role in selecting them, before personally performing the ritual to bind their souls to their bodies.  They advise the Millennial King and perform some of the most advanced rituals the kingdom requires, like creating Sentinels and releasing the souls of those unwillingly bound in undeath (like the victims of unscrupulous necromancers or the thankfully-rare botched reanimation).  All temples in the kingdom are headed by a Sacrificed, often one who graduated from it.