Dominanta

Dominanta was a hermit state established at the end of the 19th CFR. It was notable for building artificial islands in the middle of the Poltoh Ol lakes, a location that was kept secret for a long time, and waging guerilla war against the Dolysoh dynasty.

While its popularity and mythological status among the populations of the Laeooy Coast peoples was strong, the military and political influence of Dominanta has never been especially consequential.

Etymology

"Dominanta" is a translation from Old Hureed's "poltoh ol" which means "the dominant verse" or "the dominant chord". As the result, the lakes themselves became known as Poltoh Ol throughout Tarnaria.

Porteek briefly mentions Poltoh Ol in his treatise, but later historians began using the term "Dominanta" to refer to the state, while leaving Poltoh Ol to mean the lakes themselves. On many of the older toorian maps, however, Poltoh Ol usually means the state.

History

Meerō Dolysoh's "Orange Tulip" campaign resulted in a blow to the Hadeer people that essentially wiped out their whole civilization in a matter of just several months.

A number of families were able to escape Gor, one of the major Hadeer cities, and ventured west. First settling at the foot of the Lōsdoh mountain, they then abandoned the settlement and began emerging around different locations in Toor as a guerilla force, raiding locations under the Dolysoh dynasty rule. Dominanta's warriors were known for their light blue garments and heavy armor, as well as small attack groups.

As more became known about their origins and mission, the location of their state remained a much sought after secret.

The effectiveness of Dominanta's attacks, however, was low: their numbers were not high and their hermit kingdom did not seem to recruit citizens much. This might also explain why the Dolysohs were not particularly interested or perhaps even aware of Dominanta. There's no evidence that they were ever acknowledged by the royal court in Gaskal or later Chusoh.

About a century later, at the end of the 20th CFR, rumors began to spread that Dominanta built artificial islands in the middle of the lakes at the Lōsdoh mountain, to make it harder for armies to reach them.

Political mission

Dominanta was created with a singular mission in mind: to preserve the Hadeer culture and bring back the glory of the Hadeer civilization that they named "the Young Empire".

This mission splintered the Hadeer, because a large portion of the population felt that Dominanta is not representing them and their interests and that, in fact, Dominanta is co-opting Hadeer culture as a means to gain power and money. Some also argued that Gor was not as representative of the Hadeer as Brum was, the city that was captured by the Dolysohs prior.

There was also significant anonymity against Odom, the first official gole of Dominanta, whose bloodlines were not clear. A significant portion of the Hadeer considered the Jumpelee clan to be the true leaders and thus did not recognize Odom as the gole.

Nevertheless, Dominanta was able to find significant support for its cause, not only among the Hadeer, but also among the opponents of the Dolysohs - enough support to exist for two centuries.

Economy

Dominanta representatives were known for raising money across all of the Laeooy Coast for a potential war against the Dolysohs, creating Dominanta offices in many cities. They then entered the business of loaning funds with interest.

Some Dominanta troops were hired as mercenaries and bodyguards.

Decline

The peak of Dominanta's activity takes place throughout the 20th CFR. They have had significant financial influence in Jhet and Deeroh, with their bank operated out of Tirna. A number of nobles also purchased nobility titles in Dominanta in exchange for various services, usually of a military nature. Being a Dominanta noble also became somewhat of a status statement in Chusoh in the middle of the 20th century.

Dominanta's mentions sharply declines at the end of the 20th CFR, with only legends and rumors floating around Laeooy Coast. Dominanta's bank seemed to have been sold to a noble from Hohned at some point in the 1980s and was no longer operational at the dawn of the second revolution.

Gened and Agzor are said to have visited the islands of Poltoh Ol at some point, only to find ruins. The ultimate fate of the secretive state remains unknown.