Politics - Saernis

​Knowledge and wisdom have always been the watchwords of Saernis. Were it not for the diligence of Saernis’ academies and scribes, most knowledge from before the Fall would likely have been lost forever. The capital of Saernis, Kunskaborg, is technically the oldest city on Terranis. It was originally Saernis City, the capital of the moon before the Fall, though during the Dragon War of the third century it was almost completely razed by the dragon god Dagorleth. Thankfully most of its archives and stored knowledge had been removed ahead of time. When the city was fully rebuilt almost twenty years later, it was renamed Kunskaborg.
 
Since then, it has become the center of Terranis’ academic world. The Royal Academy of Magic trains the finest mages in the world; even the Mages Guild of the Twinned Cities cannot match it. Unlocking knowledge of the past and discovering potentials of the future is something the people of Saernis excel at. This is by no means all they excel at, as Saernis’ temperate climate allows for ample farming and mining. Favorable locations for port cities along the Inner Sea gives Saernis a strong international trade as well.
 
Politically, Saernis is the only country to operate as a free-voting democracy. The country is ruled by a parliamentary-style body known as the riksdag. Although the members of the riksdag are freely elected by the people every five years, there are a number of families who have earned the right to permanently work for and advise the riksdag. Although these families are forbidden from actually being elected to the body, they still wield extensive influence. Perhaps unsurprisingly, these families often compete with each other behind the scenes to achieve their various goals. Some of the families own land outside of Kunskaborg, and thus tend to advocate for policy decisions that favor those parts of the country.
 
Socially, Saernis is perhaps also the most open in its attitudes. Very few things are outright (or only culturally) forbidden the way they are in other countries, and although Saernis draws extensive criticism for this at times, it also proves highly attractive to many seeking the freedom they need to pursue their ambitions. To that end, Saernis has the smallest presence of Ascenionists, but by far the largest concentration of Universalists on Terranis, the open-ended spirituality of that religion being a natural fit.        
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Currently Saernis is in a state of turmoil. In the last fifteen years, a growing state of unrest among the population has spread from outlying areas to the capital, to the point where parts of the population are all but in open rebellion. Although Saernis has fully mobilized its military to stabilize the situation, it has had to ask for assistance from Doramor, which has sent numerous brigades to assist. Although this has only further agitated the population in some quarters, who call the action from Doramor an unofficial invasion of the country, a semblance of peace has returned to the country while the insurrectionists are rooted out. A tense peace has largely settled over the land, although that may change at any time.

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