Valrath Dominion - Progress At All Costs

Progress at All Costs

The Valrath Dominion is a vast and ruthless nation ruled by a tyrannical aristocracy of immortal Vampire Lords. At its core, the Dominion is a rigid caste society, where the Vampire Lords and their demon legions stand above the masses, while the other conquered races are reduced to servitude beneath them. Bound by the belief that they are the superior race destined to shape the future of Elyrion, the Valrathians seek only to elevate the “worthy” through their gift of vampirism, while all others are treated as expendable. Fueled by this ideology, the Dominion has launched an unrelenting campaign of conquest, not only to expand its borders, but also to capture the ancient Primals. The Vampire Lords see the goal of securing the Primals as a crucial objective to overcome the spreading Blight and usher in a new golden age.

Origins

The origins of the Valrath Dominion come from the creation of the first vampires. Nearly three centuries ago, a group of scholars and alchemists set out on an expedition to find a cure for the strange sickness that would later come to be known as the Blight. Their search carried them deep into forbidden lands, where they discovered the corpse of the massive batlike Primal Demos. After unearthing its ancient fossil, the Valrathian researchers got to work in discovering its secrets.

Through experimentation, the scientists learned to extract and replicate the Primal’s cells, creating a synthetic blood serum that could change an organism's DNA. At first, this was hailed as a miracle, those who were injected with the concoction no longer succumbed to the Blight. In addition, they also gained immense physical strength, speed, heightened senses, enhanced affinity to aetheric magic, and cellular immortality. The founding team of scientists applied the transformations to themselves, becoming the first Vampire Lords and allowing them to choose loyal trustees who would ascend alongside them.

Yet this gift was also a curse. Those transformed soon developed side effects such as extreme sensitivity to light and an unquenchable thirst for blood, driving them into a violent frenzy. Terrified by this danger, the terrified citizens of Valrath first turned against the vampires, branding them as abominations. Kingdoms quickly declared extermination campaigns to kill on sight anyone suspected of being a vampire.

What followed was a brutal civil war that scarred nations and left millions dead. In the end, the vampires triumphed and they declared the birth of the Valrath Dominion. The self-declared houses of the Vampire Lords stand unchallenged to this day.

Society of Valrath

The Valrath Dominion is structured as a rigid caste system under the authority of the Noble Houses, each descended from the original Vampire Lords who first rose from the synthetic blood of Demos. These Houses command absolute power, presiding over the nation's politics, economy, and armies, while lower class workers are relegated into servitude. The rulers entice loyalty by providing the promise of ascension. Those deemed “worthy” may be granted a chance to ascend into vampirism, a privilege that is granted as both a reward and a test.

Progress and biological enhancement is the core value of Valrathian society. The Dominion’s scientists push the limits of ethics, seeking new ways to enhance their kind and harness the power of the Primals. Their most recent creation is the birth of an entirely new race, demons.

Demons are artificial creatures born through a grisly process of combining synthetic cells of the Primal Demos with the essence of the Blight. Subjects – typically prisoners, dissidents or the expendable – are injected with the concoction and exposed to the Blight inside a series of factory labs. The transformation kills the host in agony, only for the body to be warped and transformed into a new monstrous form. Each demon retains twisted echoes of their former physiology, becoming monstrous hybrids with enhanced strength.

The results of demonification vary based on dosage and the subject. Some demons are brutish beasts with little intelligence and are used as weapons of war through specially engineered harnesses and control devices. Others retain fragments of sentience, becoming elite military soldiers for the Dominion’s armies. While physically more resilient than vampires and resistant to sunlight, demons tend to be highly volatile, aggressive and dangerous even to their masters. In the eyes of the Vampire Lords, these costs are acceptable.

Military

The Valrath Dominion commands one of the most formidable military forces in Elyrion, fusing arcane science with their relentless innovation in genetic manipulation. Their war machine is not only built on conventional military equipment but also with their dark arcane magic that few nations can withstand.

At the heart of this arsenal are the Valrathian dreadnoughts – colossal flying battleships powered by aetheric reactors. These airships serve as transports for the dominion’s vast armies and heavy bombers, capable of leveling entire cities. Their looming silhouettes have become a symbol of terror across Elyrion, heralding the Dominion’s arrival before the battle begins. 

On the ground level, large battalions of vampire thralls and demon soldiers fight with fanatical vigor. Massive demonic juggernaut beasts are deployed alongside the troops to devastate fortifications and scatter enemy ranks. For their elite forces, the Dominion relies on their high born vampires, warriors of immense power who excel under the cover of night. These aristocrats lead the armies and wield powerful aetheric weapons. The presence of even a dozen of these vampires can turn the tide of battle, cutting down enemies with precision and super-human speed.

Only the Converted will Survive

Though desperate to conquer the surrounding nations through war, the Vampire Lords have come to understand that there are some forces more powerful than bloodshed. The free city of Vespera is an island of independent government and trade lying between Valrath and Concordia – a rival nation with opposing ideals.

The Vampire Lords seek to share their creation with the world through trade as well as conquest, and allowing Vespera to thrive as a self-governed city-state is their way of inviting diplomacy.

“The Blight spreads relentlessly… and the blood of Demos is the gift that will save us all.”