Lung Wa

Lung Wa

(Nation)

Titles

Imperial Lung Wa
the Lung Wa Empire

Capital

Changdo

Ruler

The Eternal Emperor

Government

Divine monarchy

Adjective

Lung Wa

Languages

Tien

Religions

The Eternal Emperor

Source: Dragon Empires Gazetteer, pg(s). 17 (1E)
Tian Xia World Guide, pg(s). 12 (2E)

Imperial Lung Wa, or the Lung Wa Empire, was the third great empire of the Tian-Shu people. It ruled over much of the continent of Tian Xia from its founding in 6642 IC to its collapse in 7106 IC, leading to the continent's polities fragmenting into the Successor States.

History

Lung Wa was a province of the Shu Empire until its collapse, and was notorious even then for its corruption and tyranny. Lung Wa's first emperor Wuo Wu Zheng founded Imperial Lung Wa in 6642 IC with the union of ten of the sixteen kingdoms of Shu. From its foundation the empire embarked on various missions of conquest.

In 6751 IC,✝ Lung Wa was rocked by an invasion of ratfolk from the Darklands realm of Diguo-Dashu, the so called "Empire of the Rat". The ratfolk managed to conquer more than a dozen cities before Lung Wa's armies drove them back into the depths of Sekamina, sealing at least 20 entrances to the Darklands behind Diguo-Dashu's retreating forces. They were permanently pacified by the legendary sorceress Hao Jin, who transported the ratfolk army—and a spherical section of the surrounding underground depths 10 miles in diameter—into her personal demiplanar tapestry.

Lung Wa founded what would become the tengu nation of Kwanlai as a province in 6780 IC, but due to Lung Wa's lack of support, it soon effectively became a prison colony for its citizens.

Lung Wa also targeted Bachuan, an independent nation and important trading point between Lung Wa's inland provinces and Xidao, by chipping away at its independence for two centuries before annexing it in 6802 IC. Lung Wa renamed provincial Bachuan to Pen Wa, which suffered for centuries under greedy bureaucrats who drained the province of its resources.

In 6804 IC, Lung Wa also negotiated the peaceful surrender of its neighbour Hwanggot. Many Tian-Hwans joined rebel armies in protest, but despite its occupation and exploitation, Hwanggot appeared uninfluenced under occupation due in parts to Hwanggot's diplomatic and patient pride, and to its rural villages' strong collective bargaining power.

Over a century later, Lung Wa failed in its attempt to conquer Tang Mai, a disaster which indirectly resulted in the death of its emperor. However, in 6980 IC, Lung Wa tried again, initiating the Seven Year War, which eventually resulted in Tang Mai finally being overcome in 6987 IC.

Age of Succession

In 7106 IC, the death of Aroden caused global catastrophes that precipitated the implosion of Lung Wa, which split into sixteen Successor States.

Government

The empire was plagued with corruption and, to the eyes of the common people, the arbitrary whims of a bloated aristocracy. Its treatment of other nations and many non-human creatures, most notably tengu, was derided by many. Lung Wa was aware of how damaging this rampant corruption had become before its eventual fall. In its final few decades, Imperial Lung Wa established the Jinyiwei, a secret police force designed to root out and destroy the corruption gnawing at the heart of the empire.

References

For additional as-yet unincorporated sources about this subject, see the Meta page.