OVERVIEW AND HISTORY:

The current Avalonian Empire is a turbulent place, a country on the rise. Technological wonders have been increasing for nearly a century, and along with the rise in the Avalonian economy and the growing empire overseas, Avalon has grown to consider itself a superpower.

At the height of the Roman empire, Avalon was peopled by diverse clans of tribesmen called the Celts. The Celts were fierce warriors, but lacking in technology, and the Romans overran them. King Arthur's father, Uther Pendragon, was a Roman in the company of the Imperator Ambrosius, and the name by which he ruled was given to him entirely by his subjects: Pendragon, for the wyvern on his standard, and Uther, meaning "terrible."

With the rise of Arthur to power, all this changed. Arthur soon used all the force in his possession to prove to his people that the country now had
a strong ruler. He established the Round Table to give marauding knights a sense of order and responsibility, and chose to have tournaments rather than wars, to keep the young men out of trouble.

As the centuries followed, Avalon was involved in many wars, especially with its near neighbor, France. There were also a variety of civil wars, during which power shifted to other Houses, most notably the Stuarts, but in the late 17th century Oliver Cromwell and the Commonwealth had Charles Stuart beheaded, and after the fall of the Commonwealth, the Pendragons returned to power.

Avalon began its empire-building in the late 15th century, sending out exploration parties, and when new land was discovered, following the
explorers with colonists. At present there are Avalonian colonies in Australia, South-East Asia, Southern Africa and the Caribbean, and Avalon
wields great influence in India and China, and expects a certain amount of power in Japan now that trade has been opened in that country.

Despite certain revolutions, and the rise and fall of other countries in Western Europe, Avalon remains a superpower. Its economy is the strongest
in the world, it is an incredibly rich country and its military is quite formidable, especially the Knights and the navy.

Ruler: Victoria Pendragon I, Queen of Avalon
Government type: constitutional monarchy
Capital: London
Currency: British pound
Natural resources: coal, petroleum, natural gas, tin, limestone, iron ore, salt, clay, chalk, gypsum, lead, silica, arable land top

SOCIETY:

This century might very well be considered the era of the middle class. While the Queen still rules in name and wields a good deal of
influence with her people, and the Parliament makes most laws, the middle class grows and flourishes as the nobility declines and breeds itself down. The merchants have all the money, and money means power in this technological age. The lower class is still well beneath all the rest in
status, and they subsist with barely anything, working factories, living in houses that are nearly falling down, and dying young. The popular myth
persists that poverty is God's punishment for some kind of mistake, and no one would be that miserable without being evil himself.

Slavery is not uncommon in the colonies, although it does not exist in Avalon herself.

Avalon is currently enjoying something of a golden age of prosperity, relatively low unemployment and high wage earning. Because of this,
advances in science, technology and art continue to be made, and there appears to be little discontent, save in the areas of Northern Ireland and
such places where the freedoms are a bit more restricted and religions collide.  top

MILITARY:

There are four branches of the Avalonian military: The Army, the Royal Navy, the Air Force and the Knights of the Round Table. Avalon has had a
history of many wars, and its precarious position as world leader in economy and in influence leads to much military paranoia. Because of this, the Avalonian military is kept in very good condition, especially their Navy, which they believe to be the foremost such institution in the world.

The Knights of the Round Table are unusual as groups of Knights go, for they owe their authority entirely to the government of Avalon, not to any God or order. In point of fact, a sticky matter in the past has been that the oath the Knights swear is to the King, not to the constitutional government of Avalon. Many supporters of the Parliamentary system wish to change this, feeling that the Knights of the Round Table are much too powerful a force, and might some day be used to return Avalon to the dark days of absolute monarchy.   top

GOVERNMENT:

Executive branch: Chief of State: Queen Alexandrina Victoria (since 1837); Heir Apparent Prince Edward.
Head of government: Prime Minister Viscount Palmerston (Henry John Temple), a Liberal.

Legislative branch: bicameral Parliament comprised of House of Lords and House of Commons, which was recently instated to give a more equal voice to the common people.

Judicial branch: House of Lords; Supreme Courts of England and Wales (comprising the Courts of Appeal, the High Courts of Justice, and the Crown Courts); Scotland's Court of Session and Court of the Justiciary.

Legal system: common law tradition with early Roman and modern continental influences; no judicial review of Acts of Parliament. top

MAGIC:

The magic of Avalon is still the magic of Merlin and Nynaeve and the Lords and Ladies of the Lake. That magic, termed Wizardry, is mostly illusions, although dangerous illusions, because they are illusions that affect not only the sight, but other senses as well. The most powerful illusions affect all senses at once, and so cannot be distinguished from the real. Wizardry is neither profoundly structured, nor very commonly studied. It is something that is believed to travel in the blood, the right and talent of those in whom the blood of legends is strong. There are very
very few who practice it, and they practice in secret, for fear of being branded witches and warlocks. Most do not even pass their skills on to successors.

Trivial: Minor illusions, working on only one sense (A brief image, scent, or sound).

Minor: Illusions lasting for ten to fifteen minutes or playing on two senses at the same time (a speaking hologram, illusory food with taste)

Moderate: Illusions with no time limit, or playing on three senses at once. (Indefinite changed appearance, seeming to be someone else, phantoms or poltergeists)

Superior: Involves a great area or complex number of people (An illusion spread over an entire castle or working on a great crowd)

Legendary: Works on all senses at once, causes another to believe themselves physically altered (Make someone sleep for thousands of years, polymorph, even cause death)  top  Back to Magical Arts List

RELIGION:

The official religion of Avalon is that of the Avalonian Church, which was established by Henry VIII in the mid 1500s. Since its inception
there have been many movements within that church, most notably the rise of the Puritans and the Commonwealth in the 17th and 18th centuries.

While the Church of Avalon is the most dominant religion of the country, other Christian religions such as Roman Catholicism and other forms of
Protestantism are not uncommon. In this new technological age, while religion is still a subject of discord and some persecution in Avalon,
holding different beliefs than the crown is becoming more and more acceptable.  top

ROYAL FAMILY:

Avalon is currently ruled by Victoria Pendragon. She became Queen in 1837 at the age of eighteen. She is married to Prince Albert of
Saxe-Coburg-Gotha and has nine children: Edward (born 1841), Alfred (born 1844), Arthur (born 1853), Victoria (born 1840), Alice (born 1843), Helena (born 1846), Louise (born 1848) Leopold (born 1853) and Beatrice (born 1857).

Despite the decline in the power of the monarchy, Victoria has shown that a monarch of strong will, character and decided views can wield an enormous amount of power, especially in such imperialistic times. She is the force of an age.  top

ECONOMY: