The Nubagian Empire.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
Population; 80 million humans.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
Land control; roughly 1.8 million MI², half of the continent of Nubagia.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
Location; 6800 miles off the coast of Equestria in the North Celestial sea.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
Government; autocracy empire.
_______________________________________________________________________________________
Diplomatic relationships:
(It should be noted that these statutes only apply to the central government and not the Order of the Scion, more on them below.)

Nations that are neutral with limited trading: Equestria, Griffinstone; Changeling Kingdom, Yakyakistan.

Dragon Lands; neutral no trading.

Minotaur Labyrinthian Republic; hostile.

Zebrica; hostile.

Diamond Dogs; hostile.

_______________________________________________________________________________________
Magic:

Unlike most races, Humans have a different time accessing their magic. The exact reason for this is unknown but for centuries humans have relayed on carving runes directly into their skin, allowing the rune to tap into their reservoir of magic. While crude by the standard of other species this method allows human’s magic to be unfilled, giving even the most basic of spells far more potency, than say, a unicorn’s spell. The trade off for this is that it takes them far longer to recover between each spell cast.

The only other known method for humans to cast magic is to be one of the very few born with the ability known of “chanting”. Chanting allows the human to repeat a phrase or lyric to have the same effect of standard runes. However, Chanters are very rare, it’s said that less than ten are alive at anyone time.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Culture:
Most the he population live near the center of the Empire with the borders made up of forts and poorer villages. Many humans still carry some beliefs from the tribal days but most adhere to the Order in some way, and, while not as fanatical as the scions, believe that humans should govern over the other races.

Nubagian Empire is also home to a small non-human population, such as: Zebra, and Diamond Dogs, both descended from prisoners taken in verse wars. As well as Centaurs who immigrated from their homeland after it was subjugated by the Empire. They serve as a lower working class within empire and while are not treated quite as equals with humans, non-humans are far from the slaves that Zebrica claims them to be.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Backstory:
Before unification humans were a tribal society, having as many as several hundred smaller tribes. It’s hard to get an exact number as there are very few surviving records of this time pierced. Human calendars do not date that far back but by the pony calendar it would be year 600 B.E. Around when pony where still in tribes of their own.

The era came to an end when the first emperor, Garvent Itarius, lead his and the surrounding tribes in an effort to unify the other tribes. I say unify but in truth Emperor Garvent lead a nearly ten year war of conquest, absorbing nearly every tribe into what is now known today as the Nubagian Empire. The only tribe not absorbed in this manner were the Ituke tribe, more on them later.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Factions:

The High Eight:
The High Eight the top eight noble houses that act as the emperor's personal advisers. They are descended from the first eight tribe that joined with the first emperor.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Ituke tribe:
Among all the tribes of that era the Ituke tribe stood out from the rest, for they mastered what no one else could—wyvern riding. (Note: Wyverns should not be confused with their cousin species the dragon. Wyverns are not sapient, and unlike dragons they do not keep growing.) During the conquest of the tribes First Emperor Garvent faced a dilemma, if he send his army to crush this one tribe he would undoubtedly take heavy losses. In doing so it would force him to halt his campaign while he rebuilt his force, giving the other tribes time to unite against him. This he could not allow. What followed is what humans today refer to as the Ituke Treaty. The Ituke would became an empire within an empire, subjected to only the most basic laws of the Empire. The Ituke in turn would provide the Empire with a steady stream of wyvern riders for the emperor’s army.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Order of the Scion:
The order was formed during a time ponies refer to as The Reign of Chaos, when Discord overthrew the Equestrian princesses and spread his chaos through the world. While Equestria faced the worst of it Nubagia didn’t go unscaved. During this time the Empire had been growing weak due to it’s own corruption, but when the chaos hit most forms of government collapsed overnight. Many humans were reduced to simple gibbering mad man. It was in this landscape that the Order arose. The Order’s goal has been the same since the time of it’s founding: to eradicate chaos and establish order. (Note: Human’s “order” is not the same as the Equestria’s harmony. While similar in some aspects it is far more geared towards human dominion over equality.)

How a Scion is made and how they protect themselves from the effects of chaos is a closely guarded secret. From the outside Scions appear to be mages that excel at both magic and physical combat, but to compare scions to mages is to compare dragons to wyverns. One of the things that sets Scions apart from your standard mage is the fact that scions are essentially immortal. Apart from falling in combat, there is no known way to kill a Scion. But this immortality doesn’t come without it’s drawbacks. The method they use to become immortal leaves them sterile. It is believed that becoming a scion is closely tied with their immortality. This would explain why no immortals outside of the Order are ever seen.

Due to the events of the War of Joffrey the Mad (more on that below) The Order was reduced to no more than one thousand members at any one time, however the Order holds a standing army of one hundred thousand neophyte: those that seek to become scions themselves.

For a lack of a better term, The Order of Scions is independent from the central government. While the Emperor can impose restrictions, such as reduced numbers, he can not actually order the Scions as one would a soldier. In modern times both groups are careful not to step on the toes of each other, neither side wants a civil war when their borders are constantly threatened.

While the Order has been historically a great defense for the Empire they have been just as much a hindrance to them. As late Emperor Nimrod said,

“Fear us for we have Scions, pity us for they have no collar.”

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
War:

Night War:
One of the earlier accomplishments in the Empire's history. During the two years the Equestria’s civil war raged, when Nightmare Moon blocked out the sun, many across the Empire feared for the lack of food. It was not very well known at the time that the magic from the moon would keep plants alive in the absence of sunlight.

Crown Princess Cynthia, looking to make a name for herself as something other than the second in line for the throne, took command of the military forces. With a force of eighty thousand strong, the approval of 6 of the High Eight, and, to the surprise of many, a small detachment of Scions she marched into the heart of the Diamond Dog’s land, or what is now known as the Eastern Hills within the Empire. The Diamond Dogs were caught off guard by the size this attack, and the few forces they could muster were swept aside. It took the Diamond Dogs nearly a week to fully regroup and begin their counterattack, but by that time they barely held on to a fourth of their kingdom.

The war officially came to an end a year later. The Diamond Dogs had managed to take back half of their territory, but the heavy losses they sustained during the war and fortification along the now expanded border meant that trying to reclaim their remaining territory would have been an act in futility. Some sources claimed that with reinforcements Crown Princess Cynthia would have been able to subjugate the Dogs once and for all, but the Emperor did not want to send more troops to what he viewed as a minor war. Regardless, Cynthia had achieved her goal of securing the dogs vast supply of wheat reserves, while at the same time expanding the Empire.
Other sources say that until the sun rose in the sky once more meat was plentiful, so long as one didn’t ask where it came from.

As for the Diamond Dogs, many fled the continent to one of their sister kingdoms. Those that remained have become a thorn in the Empire side. The Night Hill hounds, as they have come to call themselves in modern day, try endlessly to retake their lost land, as yet the Eastern Hills border has held for the last thousand years.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
War of Joffrey the Mad:
In the year 180 C.R, or 1412 by the human calendar, is when the “war” officially started. Emperor Joffrey demanded the Ituke tribe hand over a wyverns. Scholars have quoted him saying

“I’ve never tasted wyverns before, so why should a bunch of savages enjoy something when their Emperor has not.”

Naturally, the Ituke tribe refused. It was rare for a non-tribe member to ride a wyvern, let alone eat one. Once word of the refusal reached Joffrey he immentently ordered one of his lord generals to send the full might of the Empire to destroy the Ituke tribe. Thankfully, the Lord General refused such an order. It was only thanks to the loyalty of those under him that saved his life when Joffrey ordered his execution for treason. Seeing as not a single one of his order where going to be followed Joffrey banished him from the Empire. This order, however, the Lord General and his men obeyed.

Over the next month Emperor Joffrey began executing or banishing anyone that wasn’t fanatically loyal to him under the gise of treason. The High Eight fled long before Joffrey was able to pass judgment on them. By the end of the first month the capital city was little more than a ghost town with only Joffrey and his ten thousand bodyguards.

In actuality it wasn’t a “war” but a single decisive battle. The Scions declared Empire Joffrey tainted by chaos and put an end to his reign. The full might of the Order of Scions came down on the capital city like the fury of a god. At the time they were 300 strong, the thinking of the time was for the Order to slowly recruit and search for the best candidates possible. After all, nothing could threaten the Order’s existence; that thinking changed after this battle, as did many things. By the time the battle was over much of the capital was destroyed, Joffrey’s army numbered only a few hundred and were in full rout from the city. The Scions had been reduced to just ten, but Empire Joffrey was dead. The names of those ten have been forgotten to time; in modern times they are simple known as The Ten.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Minotaur war:
Minotaurs and humans have long been enemies of one another, since early tribal days when the two made first contact. It’s hard to say why the two hate each other, both races have many similarities, but that may be why they do.

The latest war between the two, and the one many claim is still unresolved, was the underground war over the city of Kyanja. Traditionally, Minotaurs, Diamond Dogs, and various other minor races have laid claim to the subterranean as their own. During the events of the Night War the minotaurs took the opportunity to claim much of the Diamond Dogs subterranean territory, blurring the lines on what was considered Empire territory and what was Minotaur.

In the year 950 C.R the Empire began its first expansion into the underground. Kyanja city started out as a simple mining town but by the end of the war it would become a fortress to rival any. Minotaur’s claimed the humans were stealing their territory and demanded the humans cease all expansion into the underground and hand over the city. The Empire responded in kind.

One thing that has always made minotaurs difficult to fight is their magic that allows them to manipulate stone as if it was clay. The minotaur military doctrine is quite a simple one, but an effective one: expand, take, reinforce, repeat. Once the minotaurs take a piece of land their magic allows them to quickly fortify the area long before the enemy can launch a counterattack. As was the case when the minotaur’s over ran the defense of Kyanja.

The empire launched a two pronged attack, one attacked Kyanja while the other attack the minotaur mainland. After months of siege the minotaur’s supplies began running low. With no reinforcements coming, due to the battles on the mainland, the minotaurs knew where would die there. Rather than wait for starvation they charged from the gate in one last attack. They were killed to the last.

Due to internal politics within the Labyrinthian Republic they quickly called for an armistices after Kyanja was lost to them. The Emperor agreed, seeing this as a chance to shore up the defenses of the underground. As of yet the armistice has held, but for how much longer that will remain is unknown.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Zebrica invasion:

“One does not need to ask if the zebras will attack, one only needs to check their watch.” —Knight-Captain Phrixus. Commander of the Burtka guard force at Burtki Island.

Burtki island is located six miles off the coast of the Nubagia mainland. On its surface Burtki is a rather unremarkable island, no natural resource to speak of, and only large enough for a few forts. But what makes the island so interesting to others is the layline that runs directly through the island. Laylines are what so many call “veins of the planet,” they are spots that can tap directly into the limitless magic of the planet, that is, if one can harness the magic. Sadly for humans, due to the way their magic works, they can not. But other races, such as zebras can.

Zebra magic is best known for it’s alchemy potions that can mending broken bones within seconds or dissolving stone walls, like water on sand. But their most powerful form of magic is the summoning magic. For zebras, summon beast are both weapons for the kingdom and status symbols within their society: the more powerful the summon beast a zebra can bind to them the higher their social standing. But even when dozens of zebras pour their magic into a single summoning spell the result is often only a beast of average power. This is why the Zebra kingdom so badly wants Burtki island. It is theorised that with unlimited magical power poured into the summoning spell one could summon a god.

Since the time the Burtki guard formed the island as come close to falling three time. The last time it happened was in the year 980 C.R. The zebras had destroyed six of the eight fort that dot the island, alone with eight thousand of the guard force. The zebra used their lesser beast to pin down the remaining guard forces. Thousands of beast ranging from giant tortoises and snakes to six armed monkeys with scythe-like tails, charged the guard’s line. Meanwhile the zebras focused their energy into a summoning spell, drewing in a much magic from the layline as possible.

It was only thanks to the Ituke reinforcements that Knight-Captain Phrixus and this guard were able to cut through beast and stop the summoning spell, but despite their best efforts something was still summoned. It was not the god humans feared it would be, but it was still a beast greater than any they had faced before. If the lesser beast were ranked one and two this beast was a rank five. It’s lower body was like that of a six legged centaur, it’s torso held four arms on each side and in the center of it’s chest was an open mouth. What passed for a head on this creature was no more than a ball wrapped with eyes, and It was nearly twenty meters tall.

Unbound to a zebra the beast attacked everything in sight, it’s massive claws cutting grooves into the ground. The zebra’s were in a full retreat, and used the creature as cover to fall back to their ships. They had little interest in the beast if they could not bent it to their will. Wyverns squadrons poured fire on the beast but it seemed to little do against it. Knight-Captain Phrixus took charge and with a small group lead the creature away from the main army. They pushed their mounts to the limit just to keep ahead of the rampaging beast.

They reached one of the fallen forts by sunrise. The group with Phrixus turned back to face the creature, giving their lives to buy the Knight-Captain what little time he needed. While much of the fort had been destroyed in the assault by the zebras the siege equipment had not. Single handedly Phrixus loaded a ballista, as the beast stalked closer. It seemed as if every one of the beast’s eyes stared directly at him. The Creature rose one arm into the air, intend to crush Phrixus and the ballista with him. Phrixus fired and pierced the beast through the head. It’s corpse shook the ground as it made impact. And with that the zebra invasion came to an end.

____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The Razing of Fillydelphia:
In the year 970 C.R a Nubagian ship docked at the Fillydelphia port. It was not loaded with spices and trade goods of normal, but with ten scions and ten thousand neophyte. Neither the Nubagia government nor Equestria saw the attack coming. In the early hours of the morning the scions and their neophyte underlings attacked. Apart from a single guard station most of Fillydelphia’s defense came in the form of local law enforcement. When the attack began the police did their best to stop them, but those who train to stop purse snatchers are of little threat to a scion.

The royal guard station numbered just five hundred and it was clear to them that they would stand no chance against this force. They divided themselves into two groups. The first saw to the evacuation of the citizens while a smaller group would delay the humans for as long as they could. By collapsing buildings, setting off improvised explosives, and even ambushing smaller groups of humans. In the end they only delayed the humans by a few hours, but in those hours thousands of lives were saved.

By nightfall the city was lost. It is said that the flames that engulfed the city could be seen from the farthest point in Equestria. The first and second Royal Guard Divisions arrived when the flames reached their prime in the sky. Leading them was then Captain of the Guard Tactal. Tactal’s orders were to retake the city and save any pony that remained in the city. While many made it out many thousands more did not.

In spite of his orders Guard Captain Tactal ordered this army to take up position in the mountains in between Fillydelphia and Baltimare. Tactal reasoned that due to Baltimare’s location and dense population it would most likely be the next target. This decision, however, would seal the fate of Fillydelphia. Tactal knew what the scions were capable of and was never one to underestimate a foe. When later asked why he chose to disregard orders he was quoted as saying.

“Millions of lives rest on my orders. What are a few thousands next to that.”

As predicted, the Human forces marched south for Baltimare at first light. Throughout the night Tactal had the guard entrench canons with in the mountain cliffs. They let the humans pass until they were nearly out of firing range, but when the bulk of the army reached the midway point the cannons opened fire. Despite the advantage the battle lasted for three hour. Hundreds of ponies died as the scions unleash their destructive magic on the mountain, doing their best to destroy the cannon emplacements. The neophyte forces were quickly surrounded and outnumbered by the ponies. The ponies slowly began closing the circle even as cannon fire rained down. The neophytes were cut down one after another until only the ten scions remained.

Tired and blooded, the scions stood back to back. Normally, protocol dictates that an offer to surrender is to be given, but among the records of the battle no such offer was given. The scions made their last stand, each picked a point in the surrounding army and charged. Humans always love to spread propaganda about their mighty scions and Tactal did not wish to test these rumors himself. He had lost far too many that day. At his word a barrier entrapped the scions, with his next word cannon fire poured into the barrier.

Diplomatic relations between the Empire and Equestria were nearly destroyed if not for the Emperor himself personally going to Equestria to give his sincere apologies. While some within the empire saw this as an act of weakness other saw it as the political move it was, After all, Equestria had grown to be one of the Empire’s biggest trading partners. It would be several years before Equestria would openly trade with the Empire again, and even today relations are not as they once were.

The Order of Scion later disavowed the attack as a rogue faction. The Grandmaster stated,

“The Order of Scion does not seek the destruction of Equestria at this time. It is a shame that so many neophytes were lost, but take ease in knowing they died in fulfillment of the Order. And perhaps through their devotion to the Order they showed the ponies something to aspire too.”

Scions or anyone affiliated with them were banned from the country, unless they received permission from both the Nubagian Emperor and at least one Equestrian princess, as well requiring they have an escort of no less than six royal guards at all times.

There are unconfirmed reports that before scion’s ship arrived in Fillydelphia ten new Scion had already been created, raising the question of just how much of a rogue faction it truly was.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________________

This took way too long for me to make I tried not to go to detail heavy since I was covering such a large span of time. Eventually, I plan to write a story with this civilization so I may tweak some details when I do, but over all this is what they are like.

5788604 Now that was awesome, I really like this Empire.

From reading this, I can only imagine that these factions look so different from one another;

The Nubagian Empire

The Ituke Tribe

The Order of Scion

5790155 Thanks, it's not as detailed as I was going to make it, but I wanted to get it up before I lost internet. That Scion picture is pretty close to how I imagined them. Where did you find those pictures?

For factions that come from the same country those three are about as different you can get.

5790201 I found them on Google and with a bit of look around, I chose my favours or for this case, the ones that fitted your empire in my eyes

The first one is found here

The second ere

And the third mere