Kingdom of Ansibah

From the shores of the gold sea to the fiery isles of the dreaming sea lies the kingdom of Ansibah. Also
called the Twelve Thrones or the Kingdom of the Isles, it is a collection of twelve territories united under
a single ruler, currently the queen Saramen, locked in a trade war with Dir-Jal, occasionally escalating to
full-blown military conflict.

Organisation and Economy

Ansibah is named for its capital, a rich city sitting on the mouth of the Sea of Gold, controlling trade
between it and the Dreaming Sea. The Kingdom of the Isles is divided between twelve territories,
administrated and ruled by a bey. Some of the territories are vast, while others are no more than a few
islands lost out at sea. Each bey sets trade laws and taxes on the area she administrates, and gives a fifth
of her revenue to the queen of Ansibah. The queen rules for life, but the position is not hereditary: upon
her death, the twelve bey choose who amongst them will rule next. As such, the Twelve have had many
close brushes with civil war during their short history.

Ansibah is rich and has a powerful navy, in keeping with its origin as an alliance between pirate nations.
Nobles serve in the navy for a minimum of five years, and a number of them work as captains or
admirals for their whole life. However, the Twelve have a comparatively pitiful land army, relying on
mercenaries and badly trained conscripts for most of its defense.

The bank of Ansibah is a power unto itself all around the Gold Sea and even beyond, lending money to
the bey, the queen, city-states outside the Twelve, or even to the Guild. Some say the bank controls an
immense silver mine in the Mirror Mountains, others that it signed a pact with a fae, trading untold
riches for the souls of its debtors. Either way, goods from the all around the dreaming sea, Dir-Jal or the
pearly coast, along with a good quantity of salt, silver dinars and slaves end up passing through Ansibah,
comforting its position as the cultural capital of the region.

Religion and current events

Most of the people of Ansibah follow the Immaculate Lotus, but nobles and rich merchants usually
revere the holy ancestors of the nation, and build elaborate shrines to them in the privacy of their
homes. This open secret, along with the prevalence of shadowlands in the area, means that ghost-
blooded are a common sight. Most of the followers of the ancestors also fancy themselves patrons of
traditions and the arts, and those who can afford it try to have at least one full-time poet, sculptor or
painter in their employ. The Way of Inspiration, a small cult born in Baliad, even sees art as the highest
form of enlightenment.

Recently, ships flying the banner of the Kingdom of the Isles have started disappearing mysteriously out
at sea, and some whisper of strange pirates coming out of the wyld to take sailors back with them.