Atrian League

This is the song of the Atrian League:

''In the shrouded mists of time, there were many things believed to be true. There was a time when good men of sound mind believed in life beyond death, of the immutability of the universe and that there are mysteries which cannot be solved. There was a time when the natural order of the world was thrown askew in the misguided premise of ‘equality’ and following the well-intentioned beliefs of deluded ancients with out-moded ideas. Then the time for such things came to an end and a new order in the world was formed.''

''A new order was formed based upon enlightened self-interest, unequivocal logic and undiluted reason. A new way of being was formed out of clear-eyed thought and provable fact, sweeping away the old myths and legends. A new day dawned, melting away the old. Thus, the Atrian League sprang forth from the sea.''

Overview
The Atrian League is a loose confederation of city-states and island ‘nations’ scattered throughout the Atrian Archipelago that have banded together out of common values, historical similarity and military necessity to form the greatest trading sea-power on Világ. Pulsing with the vitality of a young people, the Atrian League has risen to prominence only within the last two centuries or so.

Originally a client state of the Republic, the League has emerged from a culture steeped in mysteries and ritual to quickly throw off the mental and physical chains of the past. They have collectively moved forward, actively discarding remnants of the old ways and voraciously embracing new modes of thought, even to the detriment of the whole (for the age of an idea or thing does not innately constitute or reflect its quality).

That does not mean that the League has severed all ties to their cultural ancestors, however, for trade is the lifeblood of the League and the Republic is the largest, richest and most stable (as well as one of the closest) economy in Világ.

Values


The simplest and broadest statement of Atrian beliefs would be that they are a rejection of Republican values. Whereas the Republic is an ancient culture self-absorbed with its rituals and customs and is keenly concerned with the past and with equality, the a common belief in the league is that stones sink and cream floats – when left to nature, the best succeed and the worst fail and that is how it should be.

Economic Situation
Perhaps one of the most obvious traits to the external observer, the Atrian League is a rabidly capitalistic state which values both the accumulation of wealth as well as the ostentatious display of it. What most outsiders never notice, however, is how this sort of conspicuous consumption, along with the strong acquisition element which is the flip side, organically fuels the economic engine of the League.

Culture


The artisans of the Atrian League are known throughout Világ as some of the most talented and refined of workers. With an eye for detail and an aesthetic which borders upon fanatacism, it is never a matter of an Atrian just 'doing something', for everything is done with beauty and grace. There are those, however, who consider some of the more enlightened approaches that the League takes as overly libertine, crossing the line into perversity.

Political Situation
Whereas Az-Emberek bases its leadership on a popularity contest and the Jade Kingdom allows blood to rule, the Atrian League is a meritocracy where anyone with sufficient skill and ability may rise to the highest political stations. Well, at least that is what anyone, from a deck-swabbing slave to the Archon of Pharae will tell you. In truth, politics is all about money, power and who you know. Still, power, money and postiion are things can be changed. Word has it that the Archon of Delos started life as a metic and my servant Telemachus swears he was once a great general.

The Atrian League at War


As freedom-loving individualists, the Atrian League has never held conquest of foreign lands as an objective. Therefore, their military, such as it is, focuses itself upon defensive warfare and the elimination of ‘unwholesome competition’, as pirates are referred to. It comes as no huge surprise, then, that the focus of the Atrian League is upon its navy. With fleets of triremes and hundreds of men to row them, coastal defense and protection of trade lanes is easily handled.