Dolontugiin Ideas

Traditions
+1 Diplomatic Reputation
+15% Manpower in True Faith provinces

The Seven BannersDolontugiin is at its core a military alliance. For centuries after the Day of Ashen Skies and the fall of the Khantaar cities, the Rukunai monasteries were more than content to stay isolated from the politics of the wider world. However, the rise of the Oinukhudi Cheqh’anate in the tenth century reshaped the political landscape of Gozengun, and the Rukunai found themselves a strategic location between the warring kingdoms of Oinukhudi and Guwamuud.\n\nSeeing the developments in the region, the most influential monasteries around the wastes decided to ensure their diplomatic significance by forming a defensive union: the Confederacy of Seven Banners, Dolontugiin. Although Guwamuud has long since fallen, the union has over the centuries proven to be a worthwhile endeavor and become a truly cohesive entity, traditionally ruling over much of the wastes north of the Hakuuruk Plateau.\n\nThe seven main monasteries are mostly independent under the confederacy, but they are required to contribute their men to the army of the Seven Banners. The High Officer of the Seven Banners is also the nominal ruler of Dolontugiin, taking care of martial and diplomatic matters in the stead of the monasteries.
+15% Land Force Limit Modifier

Weaving the WastesThe monasteries of Dolontugiin are scattered around the Facestealer-plagued wastes of Khaashalg, often making communication and trade within the confederacy difficult. Only the bravest or foolest dare to leave the security of the highlands to cross the deserts… or, of course, the Runsukhi.\n\nThe Runsukhi people descend from those Khantaar who chose not to abandon their homelands after the Day of Ashen Skies, instead staying in the now desolate lowlands of Khaashalg. Since then, they have lived nomadic lives in the wastes, having learnt how to deal with Facestealers on their journeys across the steppes. Despite their different lifestyles to their highland-dwelling Rukunai cousins, the Runsukhi still hold a reverence to the Levajaan monasteries and their clans often dwell within them for a few weeks before departing to the wastes once more, functioning as essential middlemen.\n\nDue to its unique structure, Dolontugiin is particularly reliant on the travels of the Runsukhi to keep the confederacy united, and has over the years developed a flourishing relationship with their clans, although some have recently risen up under the charismatic Abatai “the Black Scream” of Khezkhagak.
+15% Movement Speed

The Hidden HeartMore than a millenia ago, Khaashalg was a lush land, dotted with the grand city-states of the Khantaar civilization. However, the region was hit harshly by the Day of Ashen Skies: the skies turned black, the farmlands became sterile and hordes of Facestealer spirits overtook the countryside. Many of the Khantaar fled west to Yarikhoi or east to Shuvuushdi, but some preferred to simply find refuge in the highland Levajaan monasteries, becoming the ancestors of the Rukunai. Now, the once-proud cities of the Khantaar bear witness to the long history of the region, their empty shells hidden by the sands of time.\n\nThanks to its position as the foremost power north of Hakuuruk Plateau, Dolontugiin has long held the ancient heartlands of the Khantaar. Its monks take great pride in unearthing relics of lost power from the ruined cities in order to uncover and preserve the secrets of their forefathers.
+1 Yearly Prestige

The Ashen GeomancersAlthough communication is hampered by the harsh conditions of the regions they call home, the Khudi and Rukunai people have long interacted and traded with each other. Over the years, a light syncretism has taken hold along the highlands’ northern borders, most importantly bringing the Khudi art of geomancy to the attention of the monasteries.\n\nThe Ashen Geomancers are a group of Rukunai monks, scholars and mages based in the Monastery of Sandstone who combine mystical Khudi techniques and ancient Khantaar knowledge to ward off areas from the reach of the spirits rather than harmonize with the elements, as is the Un Khudai practice of geomancy. The services of the Ashen Geomancers are renowned throughout Khaashalg, and they have taken part in the construction of many Rukunai monasteries as well as safe strongholds in the spirit-infested wastes.
+15% Fort Defence

The Buried MonasteriesFor much of the Rukunai’s history, the ruins of the Khantaar cities were only accessible through perilous research expeditions, the thought of reclamation only a distant dream. In 1276, however, a breakthrough was made. The greatest breakthrough since the Day of Ashen Skies.\n\nWith the help of the Ashen Geomancers and Khaaz-Monks of the Blazing Claw from Cangji, a small section of the Khantaar city of Khunzengo was carved from the Facestealers and warded off, becoming the heart of a growing fortified settlement in the ruins of Khunzengo. Inspired by the success in Khunzengo, the Monastery of Paper decided to fund reclamation efforts in the city of Ulqukhon, which soon became a city in its own right once again.\n\nAlthough still in a state of constant siege by the Facestealers, the buried monasteries of Khunzengo and Ulqukhon have prospered under the jurisdiction of the Monastery of Wine and the Monastery of Paper and are considered by many to be the first glimmer of hope towards the restoration of the Golden Age of Khaashalg.
-10% Construction Cost

Order of the Golden MaskThe Order of the Golden Mask is a rare organization of Levajaan monks that exists outside of the boundaries of the highland monasteries, instead spending much of their time traveling with nomadic Runsukhi clans in the wastes. Taking their name from the glittering golden masks worn in emulation of the Death Sheperd, depicted as a being of pure light according to their beliefs, the monks of the Order of the Golden Mask act as keepers of tradition and order within the wastes. They are responsible for many of the magical barriers placed around the wastes that block unprepared travelers from entering Khaashalg, created so that none may carelessly die in the wastes and forbid their souls from returning to the Supreme Spirit.\n\nAlthough respected by the rest of the Levajaan priesthood, they are considered by many to be radical conservationists due to their rejection of reclamation efforts against Facestealers as well as their extreme plan to fully cut off the wastes from the rest of the world. One of their most controversial actions was their attack against the burgeoning settlement in Khunzengo, which they saw as a worthless effort which placed the fate of the world at risk.
+2 Tolerance of the True Faith

The Mirror of NothingnessWith the establishment of the buried monasteries, research into the ruins of the Khantaar cities was made much easier and many powerful relics were discovered. In 1536, a tremendous discovery was made in Ulqukhon: the Mirror of Nothingness.\n\nThe Mirror of Nothingness is an artifact with immense spirit-binding abilities taking the form of a round, reflective surface of cracked onyx. The Mirror can reflect faces normally only seen in the Spirit Plane, which are seemingly trying to escape from invisible fetters. When looking at the Mirror, pure dread takes over the observer alongside a sensation that one’s head is slowly being eaten from the inside, which is said to be the feeling of your spirit being sucked away.\n\nAlthough its magic couldn’t be replicated by the monks of Dolontugiin, the Mirror of Nothingness is an efficient weapon against Facestealers, as they appear to be irresistibly drawn towards the Mirror, which will absorb them due to their spiritual nature. Its discovery marked a turn in the history of Khaashalg, as the Levajaan priesthood finally accepted the idea of taking an offensive stance towards Facestealers, multiple monasteries joining the quest of Khezkhagak.
+10% Morale Damage

Ambition
+1 Missionaries