Nocturnus

Founded from the ruins of the city Vogal in northeastern Shadedale in winter of 1244 of the Sixth Era, Nocturnus is a sprawling city-state made up mostly of intelligent undead. Since its creation it has expanded to nearly four times the original size of Vogal and is home to approximately 500,000 inhabitants (not counting visiting merchants, adventurers, slaves and mindless undead servitors).

Though its mere existence is a point of vast contention and controversy amongst the living populace of Quesaloth, the city-state has enjoyed many years of peace and prosperity since its founding. Nocturnus has received the hesitant and begrudging blessing of several internationally recognized religious organizations and almost half of those who identify themselves as followers of the Davalonian Host have reluctantly stated their approval of its continued existence. Provided of course that the Nocturnians continue to adhere to their Laws of Undeath and remain stalwart in their comitment to peaceful relations with the living.

The Shadow Parliament
The ruling and legislative body of Nocturnus is the Shadow Parliament, a council of powerful and influential individuals elected to office in part by the Ravenlord and in part by the voting populace. The parliament is made up of six Grand Consulars (chosen by the Ravenlord) and sixty popularly elected Raven Consulars. The parliament convenes daily to discuss matters of civic and international importance. The Ravenlord infrequently joins them and holds the power of deciding vote in cases of an even-split disagreement. Outside of this role, the Ravenlord can also propose and veto legislation and he alone holds the power to dismiss a Grand Consular.

Grand Consulars likewise can propose the dismissal of the Ravenlord (the only motion which the Ravenlord hasn't the right to veto), but it requires at least a 5/1 vote amongst the Grand Consulars as well as a 50/10 vote amongs the Raven Consulars. The Parliament spends most of its time in smaller Parliamentary Committees made up of one Grand Consular and up to 30 Raven Consulars. These committees include but are not limited to Foreign Congress, Domestic and Foreign Trade, War and Domestic Judgment.

The Founding and Recent History
Founded in the winter of 1244 6e by a conjoined effort of Master Idon Gran of Cetarius (one of the heroes of Farplane Bastion) and the Vampire Baloro Migaram, Nocturnus was originally a project intended to curb the cycle of violence amongst the undead of Quesaloth. Migaram was the "Second Priest" of the Church of the Black Raven, which was later discovered to be the following of the recently ascended god Vecna.

The First Priest was a Vampire Ascendant called Suncry who led a bizarre and ultimately disasterous campaign called the Black Parade, preaching the evils of death and offering the "gift" of undeath to any who would follow him. Unfortunately, the methods he chose to employ were deceitful and most weren't entirely aware of what they were signing up for until it was too late. Suncry turned them into what he called "Necropolitans", sentient undead now known to most as Revenants.

The first Revenants created by the Black Parade were completely without memories of their past lives because Suncry maintained that in order to start a new life, one must be free of the pains of the previous one. Only a few thousand people were turned worldwide before the Black Parade was shut down by the soon-to-be heroes of Farplane Bastion in a large-scale battle that took place in Kamvershie, Astra deLunastra. The Church of the Black Raven wasn't heard from again until Vecna's final ascension to godhood just before the end of the Gnosian crisis.

This time their face was Baloro Migaram, a half-Elven Vampire from the Drachamist Principalities who claimed to be roughly a millenium old. He made reparations as best he could for the terrible mistake that was the Black Parade and promised his tenure as leader of Vecna's church would be a transformative period in the history of living-undead relations. He encouraged all sentient undead to follow him to his new city of Nocturnus, leaving the living of the world to their own devices. Many thousands followed him in those first years, seeking refuge from the constant fear of final death at the hands of crusaders.

Of course, thousands upon thousands refused the call, seeing Migaram as either a pathetic weakling or some kind of subversive tool of the living. It was widely believed amongst the undead that Migaram was trying to gather the undead to one place for purposes of eradication. Slowly but surely the country grew and has managed to remain through clever political manuevering, the signing of strategic alliances and a zero-tolerance policy towards those who break the so-called Laws of Undeath.

The Laws of Undeath
Citizenship in Nocturnus affords an undead creature a number of luxuries they might not otherwise enjoy. Chief among them is the ability to walk openly through many countries without being killed. Where once a Vampire might be slain on sight simply for being what he or she is, Nocturnus treats the deaths of one of its citizens the same as any other country might. Murder of an undead citizen of Nocturnus is now no more legal in many countries than murder of anyone else.

But the rights of Citizenship come at a price. The Laws of Undeath are few, but deadly serious. Baloro Migaram and Master Gran scribed the following edicts shortly after Nocturnus' declaration of sovereignty:

1. A Citizen of Nocturnus may under no circumstances- withholding defense of onesself from violent hostilities- feed on the blood, lifeforce, soul or flesh of an unwilling living person. Nor indeed do such violence to the animal property of such a person without prior agreement or negotiation.

2. A Citizen of Nocturnus capable of bringing a living mortal into a form of undeath may not do so- even if said mortal requests the transformation- without first receiving a Writ of Siring. Those Citizens who cannot properly feed without creating such spawn may only feed upon animals, and then they must adhere to the first Law's specifications regarding such animals.

3. A Citizen of Nocturnus must wear the heraldry of his nation in a location clearly visible at all times when traveling in foreign lands, even (and perhaps especially) when traveling through friendly nations.

4. A Citizen of Nocturnus capable of raising the corpses of the dead into servitude may not do so without the permission of the person to whom the corpse belonged or the consent of said person's family. Ownership of such corpses is legally transferable after being acquired from such a family, and so a commerce of serviceable parts and bodies may be established.

5. The conjuring or bringing of radiance- as defined as that 'divine' and searing energy or the sun whose rays carry it- is forbidden within the walls of Nocturnus except within the Daystar District within the Living Quarter. Many Citizens are harmed by this energy, and its mere presence will not be tolerated.

6. Like unto the fifth Law, divine symbols, idols and talismans which by their presence evoke or channel radiant energies are to be considered contraband. If not deposited at appropriate holding facilities for later reclamation upon entering Nocturnus' territories, these object will be remanded and destroyed.