Editing Autia (section)

====Republic of Nantes====
''Nantic nation, once core of the Empire, now faded and corrupt. Mostly Nantic humans, but with some fey in the south, and some fleshmolded creations in the north. Basically steampunk France, but insanely corrupt and decadent, also under invasion from all four fronts.''

General:

All that remains of a vast Empire that once spanned the northern half of the continent, the Republic of Nantes is on the verge of finally crumbling under the weight of expansion by the Kingdom of Yr and the Empire of Alkor to the east and west, raids from Fluffwood from the south, and atrocities committed by Fleshmolders in the north.

Although they remain famous for their magic and magi-tech, the elite of this nation have lost interest in the affairs of the lesser folk and are mostly on the payroll of Yr or Alkor. Few will mourn the loss of Nantes though, since the nation is notorious for snobbishness and arrogance.

People:

The inhabitants of Nantes are almost all Nantic humans except for border areas where more diverse factions are slowly taking over.

Religion:

Like most Nantic states, the Nantians are worshippers of a variant of the Nantic pantheon. For the Nantians, the main gods and their portfolios are as follows; Alcar (magic, Nantic racial supremacy, nostalgia), Gaelhalla (art, courtship, lust), Weir (farmers, homesteads), Wyrn (forests, fey creatures, hunters, seen by his followers as the true form of Weir), Gayin (forges, mines, industry), Shomdar (oceans, fishermen, not very popular these days due to association with Alkor and the fact that Nantes has almost no coast line left), Liik (guide to the afterlife, chief of valkyries), Grumm (beserkers, fighting fire with fire), and Vanille (protection of the weak).

Magic:

The Republic of Nantes follows the standard Nantic magic practices (which is not surprising since it helped develop most of them). One unusual outlier is the Mymen, who use a powerful, intuitive, variant of aether manipulation to conjure up all sorts of invisible objects. Most of them use their powers for entertainment, but some have become vigilantes.

Military:

The Nantian military is archaic and crumbling. The officer class is bloated with arrogant urban middle class academics who often ignore or alter orders as they come down the chain of command, while the common infantry is poorly paid, demoralized, and heavily reliant on conscription. The air force is almost non-existent, and the navy has essentially been abandoned, leaving just the army, which although surprisingly well supplied with flintlocks, cannons, and mortars, is often outclassed by the Iron Beasts and other monsters of Yr, the elite skirmishers of Fluffwood, the freaks of the north, and the better led and more numerous troops of Alkor. Aside from certain ceremonial units, the Nantians rarely wear armor, but their uniforms are generally quite fashionable, though nothing compared to what is worn by the nobility. Although Nantes has many magic users, they prefer to work for organizations that are higher paying and less dangerous than the military and its foundries.

History:

Once the core of the Nantic Empire, a peasant rebellion that killed off many of the oldest noble families allowed the various provinces of the Empire to separate into new nations, and caused most of the remaining nobles to flee to Belkan, Westphallica, Alkor, and Yr. A new nobility (though they don't officially call themselves nobles) was formed from those that profited from the peasant rebellion the most, and a republic was formed in order to share power between these new nobles. Unfortunately, both Alkor and Yr remain obsessed with the idea that retaking the core cities of Nantes is the first step in reestablishing the Nantic Empire (even if the capital of said Empire would remain in Alkor/Yr). As a result, Nantes has faced countless invasions from both Alkor and Yr, which has steadily eroded this once wealthy region. Due to this weakness, Nantes also faces raids from Fluffwood to the south, and the north is now ruled by pirates and deranged flesh molders.

Economy:

Despite all its problems, Nantes is still a fairly wealthy country, though unfortunately a large chunk of its magi-tech and conventional industrial base is geared towards supplying luxury goods to its remaining nobles. Most of the rest either makes goods for the middle class or supports the military, with the rural class and urban poor fighting over the scraps. Mines, farms, and lumber camps are still abundant in the center of the country, though many along the borders are abandoned due to constant raids. Although the lower classes know they are being taken advantage of, they know a revolt would provide an opening for conquest by either Alkor or Yr, both of whom are hated enemies. The upper class feels Nantes has been a lost cause for decades, and although many have already left, many of those still in the country would rather abuse their position for as long as they can before the inevitable flight into exile.