History

Centuries ago the planet was lush and full of life. A grand, united empire has brought peace and prosperity to the entire Basin, building up infrastructure, patronizing the arts and increasing the quality of life of all its inhabitants. However, it was not meant to last. A meteor impact hundreds of years ago changed all of this. The impact upset the plate tectonics and tilt of the planet and life became hard to sustain. Deserts crept in, flora and fauna fought for survival and had to adapt quickly to the fast changing environment. Human population drastically diminished, as the religious and superstitious alike rebelled against their failing god-king. Surely this cataclysm was brought on to punish those that offended them. The people that survived the civil war flocked together on small areas that contained living space, food and water. Over time, these places formed into independent communes that slowly build up population again. These city-states learn of each other's existence, and trade and information sharing becomes prevalent again.

[missing piece]

Nomads, known for their guerilla tactics in the desert, are ill equipped to fight walled cities and rarely attack City-States outright. In turn, the city-state armies are too rigid and cumbersome to fight effectively in the flowing desert.

Internal political power struggles and squabbling family members eventually lead to the fall of the empire. They feel that the High Archon is not acting in line with old traditions, and seek to overthrow him. Civil war ensues, breaking the Empire apart into several smaller states, each acting independently and mistrusting each other. Trade breaks down and the common people are heavily affected. Riots rise up in some states, throwing out their foreign invaders. Several Elegast leaders keep an iron grip over their population, imposing heavy punishments and ruling with fear.