First Rethari Empire

"'As we should enter unto this world, so we shall be taken from it... in fire!' -Emperor Olvedno Rethari at his death."The First Rethari Empire was a massive nation spanning most of Eidreath. It was founded by Emperor Olvedno Rethari and its founding is the basis of the similarly named Rethari Calender.

Government
The First Empire was ruled by a monarch decended from the Rethari Bloodline who would make choices for the empire based on what his or her advisors in that field proposed. This decision would then be sent down to each of the provinces, each led by a lord or lady, who would send their individual messengers to transmit the order to the citizens of the province. Most of the provinces were allowed to function independently, even inciting wars among them. Each lord or lady could institute their own system of law, government, and economy as long as it was regulated by an ambassador of the Emperor.

Economy
The Empire had a completely free economy, allowing anyone to sell or buy almost anything. A merchant could determine their own prices based on the rarity of the item and its value to them, and a buyer could barter with them to determine what was actually paid. After a purchase, a merchant would enter the information of the purchase into a document of some sort, and a tax collector would enter the area at a point in the week and collect 5 percent of the total income for the week given to the empire to pay for its protection and other empire wide affairs.

Illegal Goods
Every month, merchants would be searched for any goods deemed illegal by the government for a certain reason and if any were found, they would be taken and the owner of the goods forced to pay a fine or even be arrested depending on the item confiscated. This policy caused the rise of popularity of smuggling goods throughout the empire and some houses dating back to the time might still have undiscovered passages within.

Goods illegal in the empire were: most narcotics, unlicensed animal remains, humanoid remains, and the rare plant Elder's Blood, said to come from the first of the trees, Erhavri.

Military
Each of the Empire's provinces had their own militias which they utilized in combat against each other or an enemy of the Empire. The Empire itself had a slightly larger military consisting of people from any of the provinces who applied. Their application, when accepted, would be a binding oath into the service of the Emperor, and any in the Empire's military served for at least six winters before being released from service and sent back to their province.