Ashk'nar is the name given to the massive desert in southern Gallea, as well as the nation that occupies it. The nation is inhabited mainly by elves of Knaran blood, and some of Eneok blood. It was first stabilished as a nation in the year 1006 DE.
The nation's capital city is called Ghyer'kah, and it is a sprawling city home to most of the nation's population. It is ruled by the nobility of the Knaran clan. The Eneok clan also has a claim to the nobility seats, but they are smaller.
Ashk'nar is known for its military prowess, as well as their ability to live in the harshness of the desert. Both of these qualities are attributed to the god they worship, Weos, son of Oekhan. There is a temple built in his name in the heart of Ghyer'kah, where mortals may leave offerings. Weos is known to take mortal lovers quite frequently, which leads to the birth of demigods.
Demigods are an important part of the culture in Ashk'nar, some families even offer their daughters to Weos in hopes of giving birth to a demigod.
The people of Ashk'nar also value familial bonds, and some are known for going through great lengths to protect their kin. Their society is separated into many clans. Usually, an entire clan will live in one house or estate, with the more important clans having larger homes. Once someone marries into a different family, they will live into that family's estate.
It is not uncommon to see demigods among nobility, and there is somewhat of a caste system in place. All of the noble clans are involved in military in some way, whereas the commoner clans are limited to manual labor such as farming, crafiting, and the like. Only demigods are allowed to join the ranks of the army.
The nobility clans are usually larger than commoner clans. They'll also have priests within their ranks. In Ashk'nar there is no clear distinction between war and worship, and most priests are also soldiers. Worhsip to Weos typically involves blood sacrifice, and they'll either sacrifice the blood of outsiders, or even shed blood of their own. Commoners are limited to sacrificing animals, as they are not allowed to kill people under any circumstance.
It is very common to see internal disputes between the clans of nobility, and these disputes can be solved with a duel. The loser is then sacrificed to Weos in the name of the winning clan. Gaining favour with Weos is very sought after, especially by the Knaran clans.
Certain crimes such as murder or rape are punisheable by death, but the blood of criminals is never offered to Weos.
Eneok clans live in harmony with the Knarans, although many refuse to take part of the sacrifice of elves or humans. Because of this, they have less favour from Weos and as such even the noble clans are less powerful than the Knaran nobility. Demigods are present in Eneok clans, but usually as product of marriage between two demigods as opposed to being conceived by Weos himself.
In the year 664 DE, the Vien elves arrive in Gallea for the first time, lured by the promise of starting a new life in a new continent. They arrive in a desert area, which seems uninhabitable. However, they are able to survive with their travel supplies as well as any prey they are able to hunt in the desert.
Soon they encounter the god Weos, who makes his home in the desert, and they plea for help. Weos agrees to help them cultivate food in the desert, as long as they part some of that food with him. He uses his power to make the desert's land fertile, and the Vien are able to plant some of the crops they brought from Arofea. As they were now able to survive in the desert, many Vien choose to stay, as in this place they were free from any outside threats.
In the year 739 DE, this new society had split into three clans: Viekre, Eneok and Knaran. Out of the three, the Knarans were the most faithful to Weos, and thus were rewarded greatly. The Knarans viewed Weos as the father of their society, and the first demigod was born in their clan. They believed that the country could achieve greatness if the nation was comprised of demigods, they could build an army so powerful that it would lay waste to any trespassers coming into their territory.
Weos himself had grown arrogant, all the praise and offerings from the mortals would make him more and more powerful. The Knarans started to offer blood offerings, sometimes in the form of slain animals, but other times they'd slay elves and offer their bodies to the god.
Because of this, the Viekre clan started to dissent from the other two. They agreed that Weos' power was the reason why they'd been able to survive, but they didn't like how powerful the Knarans had grown. Wars were fought among the three houses, but the Knarans would win almost all battles, and the losers would be offered as sacrifices to Weos.
In the year 850 DE, the Viekre clan makes the decision to leave the the desert altogether. Their ranks had been weakened by all the internal conflict within Ghyer'kah, and so they had to quickly gather supplies for their small army and thus began their journey to the north of Gallea.
The two remaining clans would settle in an uneasy truce. The Eneok clan had also gained a lot of favour with Weos. Both clan leaders were demigods, as were a big part of their armies.
Eventually, in the year 1004 DE, the Knarans declare war on the Eneok clan, wishing to take over the entirety of the desert. They fought fiercely, and there were losses on both sides. Two years later, there was an agreement between the two clans, and the nation of Ashk'nar was named. The city of Ghyer'kah had the biggest temple to Weos, and so the capital was moved there.
During the Ishverian invasion in 2540 DE, the Knarans fought fiercely to defend their home, and victory was easily handed to them. The Ishverian army could not handle the harshness of the desert combined with the incredible strenght of Ashk'nar's demigod army. Many Ishverian soldiers were captured and forced to fight for the nobility's amusement, before being sacrificed to Weos.