The Worldly Empire

History:

The Worldly Empire started about a century and a half ago, with the awakening of the Dragonborn, who seemingly appeared out of nowhere.  At the time, the Divine Empire had already broken apart after the shock of the Devas disappearing, and the individual Stewardships were desperately vying to maintain order.  Local warlords and despots were springing up all across the remains of the Divine Empire, and it looked as if the world would soon lapse into anarchy.

And then came the dragonborn, with their armies seemingly springing from the ground.  The stewards at first saw them as another little empire, but as their armies crushed all opposition, diplomats reached the stewards with an strange philosophy: Just rule and prosperity is--and should always be--the responsibility of mortals.

Within a decade, the dragonborn had nearly conquered the near entirety of Almakatha, the largest continent, and the location of Makatha, the capital of the Divine Empire.  As they consolidated their rule, the lands under their control began to prosper, and soon the nearby islands had revolted against their rulers and invited the dragonborn to rule over them.

Two decades after the dragonborn awoke, Makatha--under siege for ten years--surrendered to the dragonborn.  As the dragonborn entered the hallowed halls of the vanished Devas, they unfurled new banners, declaring themselves the Worldly Empire - an empire built by mortals for mortals, to bring peace and prosperity to all mortals.

In the years since that day, the Worldly Empire has become the preeminent power in the known world.  The situation has now almost, with the Stewardships holding true to the teachings of the Divine Empire in the outlying reaches of the known world, many island and archipelagos independent and fearing the Worldly Empire, and the Worldly Empire itself, still seeking to expand by diplomacy where possible, force when that fails, and by subterfuge when force is not an option.  The Worldly Empire's massive galleys ply the ocean, and the Empty Throne receives tribute from lands almost to the reaches of the known world.

Of particular note, 14 years ago a human trader brought back news of a fertile and verdant land on the northern continent.  Immediately the Worldly Empire diverted its fleets to find this land, and soon they found a lush green coast.  While to the East and to the West, icy tundra stretched to the horizon, warm air blew south from a massive mountain range to the north.  Claiming the land for the prosperity of mortals, the Worldly Empire set up an administration, and soon colonists, hungry for the free land, sailed north to this strange and wonderful place.

However, this windfall was not as it seemed.  As the colonists spread out and began to farm the land, they came under attack by what survivors described as a wild, vicious manner of elf.  As the Worldly Empire's legions set out to crush the attackers, they were set upon by the elves, this time riding massive, ravening predatory beasts, the likes of which existed nowhere else in the world.

But the legions rose the challenge, and in a horrific, bloody war, forced the elves and their creatures back beyond the mountains.  A unofficial cease-fire resulted - any elf found South of the mountains would be killed, but the Worldly Empire proclaimed that they had completed their task and protected their citizens, and did not so much as send patrols over the mountain.

Since then, the Worldly Empire has been doing what it does best - building and prospering.  The farms of the colonies are now become an indispensable part of the empire, and the colonists have grown rich.

Structure:

The Worldly Empire has no emperor.  Instead, the head of the empire is the Empty Throne, which represents all mortals of all races.  In more practical terms, the empire is run by an imperial senate, sworn to serve the Empty Throne.  Below that, each island or part of a continent is run by a governor, with considerable autonomy, as long as everything seems to be going well.

Relations:

As the rising power in the world, the Worldly Empire is viewed with suspicion by the other powers in the known world.  Most Stewardships that have not already merged with the Empire generally have some grievance against them, and many island states worry about being consumed by the Empire.  Most common people don't care that much about rule, as long as their lives aren't affected, and as such find the Empire just as good as the Stewardships, but generally not that different.  Dwarves view the Worldly Empire with suspicion, and tieflings generally resent the dragonborns' dominance, and the replacement of nobility with meritocracy.

Location:

The Worldly Empire is based in Almakatha, ruling from the city of Makatha, but rule much further than that continent.  All nearby islands and smaller continents have been conquered, but Stewardships and kingdoms farther from Almakatha have generally only come under imperial rule through their own consent (though not necessarily free consent).  Almakatha is southwest of the colonies.