Kandala

The kingdom is poor and famine-stricken, many of its residents are forced to take part in criminal activity in order to survive and provide for their families, which is given swift harsh punishment by officials if found out, not only to the one doing the crime, but their family will also be publicly disgraced and in times executed. Starved hollow bodies line the streets, children spend the day finding wild berries and insects to eat to quell their gnawing hunger whilst the privileged few who are in good standing with the king live lives of luxury.
All foreign imports are illegal and the people of the country are supposed to live on a weekly stipend of grain and a few other bits, the portion size of which is decided by the families job status, which is also decided by the officials of the kingdom.
The king himself is a cruel man who ignores his subjects suffering and enforces a strict regime of obedience and idol worship on his people. Speaking ill of him is punishable by death. His first son - Prince x - had tried to make his father see what his actions were doing. His father paid him no head and a few times his speaking out of turn had earned him serious beatings. Eventually, he decided to start a rebellion. He amassed many, but besides a few military officials that believed in his course, they were all weak and malnourished people. When he was betrayed by one of his supporters he was forced to flee the country with his people. Many died, but those that survived helped him to build a new settlement on an untouched patch of land they had found, making him their new king.

---

Inhabitants:

Humans (Kandalan )

---

Culture:

Festivals:

The presence - "The presence is a cultural festival, it's believed that during the week of the presence spirits of the dead return to the mortal plane to visit relatives and haunt their enemies. People welcome their family by lighting candles to guide their path. They also hang various talisman and perform rituals to keep vengeful spirits at bay."

The presence is the one if the only spiritual holidays that remain in Kandala due to it's superstitious nature. A traditional dance is used to ward off spirits and is the only time of year peasants are allowed within the kings land.

The people of Kandala generally don't have many material possessions, much less jewellery. So rather thank asking their ancestors to bless jewellery for infants, they often ask instead for a piece of fabric to be blessed in its place. The fabric is then sewn onto the child's clothing and reused as the child grows.

With such small dwellings, the people tend to have a shared alter with the rest of the people that live in their neighbourhood, paths of candles guide the spirits from the alter to the correct house. They then circle the house with the candles rather than having them inside their houses which are extremely flammable.

Most workers are allowed to leave work early during the presentation, but due to the social pressure to always be hard working citizens many continues as usual with their work hours to avoid being seen as lazy by their piers.

Fashion and dress:

-

Poor:

(Source:Unsplash.com (free use images))

Poor families clothing is usually homemade with the cheapest materials they can find, each person has three sets of clothes, two to alternate between while the others are being washed and one "fancy" set for special occasions such as the kings birthday.

Middle-class:

Middle-class people tend to splash out a large portion of their yearly wages on buying tailored clothes, they tend to have 4 sets, 3 to alternate between while washing the others and one outfit which they keep for special occasions which is made of finer material and has intricate stitching.

Noble:

(Source:pexels.com (free use images))

Nobles wear only tailored to fit clothing made of fine materials, they always keep themselves well dressed in eyecatching outfits unless in the presence of the king, where they tone it down so as not to out-dress him.

Royalty:

The finest handmade fabrics in the land are saved for the royal family's perfectly tailored clothes (as well as fine imports from outside countries), they also cover themselves in the finest jewels.

Age of adulthood:

15
At this age you are expected to either move into higher education or start working, that being said, mostly only Nobles are able to continue.

Age of consent/ marriage:

15
Marriages are often arranged by parents who want to exchange or share goods or space. Many parents will also try to arrange a marriage for their children with someone of a higher social standing so the entire family will be treated more favourably by local authorities and by their peers.
Many young couples will put off having children as it means fewer mouths to feed and more space in the home, however, they keep this hidden and must outwardly appear as though they are trying because having children and expanding the population is seen as their patriotic duty. Women who are unable to bear children are often looked down upon as if they have let not only their family but the whole country down.
Divorce is also legal, but is seen as shameful on both families, so many people will bare with turbulent or even abusive relationships to keep their families in an honourable position. If a couple is devoted, local societies will often try to intervene and keep the couple together, usually using some kind of persuasive line such as "You must pull together for your children."

Public use of magic:

magic may well be illegal in Kandala, peasants are forbidden to use it, doing so will land them in labour camps or even give them a death sentence. Higher up nobles are allowed to use it for small things, as are the military allowed to learn defensive magic, but only the king and his royal mage are allowed to learn any magic they wish, and even the royal mage must ask permission first. Truthfully magic frightens the king, he knows how powerful it can be and how easily it could overthrow him if users decided to go against him, thus banning it among the general public secured his place in power.

Gender equality:

Kandala has strict gender roles. Men are the head of the household and are expected to provide for the family, whilst women are expected to bare and raise the children as well as do all the household chores and cooking. As well as this they are also assigned work to do things such as make fabric and clean their local area.

Religion:

The king of Kandala wants all control of his people's thoughts and actions and as such outlawed the worship of any of the gods or study of religion. Even talking about it can land you jail and visitors to the country are no exception.

Age of schooling:

3

Accessibility to education:

Education is mandatory for all residents aged 4-14, "Free thinking" Subjects such as art, music and literature are banned, the only books being made available to students made for propaganda reasons. Dance is permitted, but only traditional dances that are to be used at national holidays and events.
Only the Higher classes have access to further education and are told which subject they will be studying.

Level of public literacy:

Other than the few self-taught, the lower class of the country are completely illiterate. The middle class have a slightly higher literary level, able to make and read short notes and other things required for their work. The higher classes/ Nobles are usually fully literate, but books from outside countries are forbidden.

Average salary:

Poor:
The poor families in Kandala make an average of 100 gold a year. For comparison, a single rabbit pelt from the market would cost 5 gold, a small dagger from the blacksmith 200.
Middle-class:
Middle-class families make around 600 gold a year. They tend to live modestly when out of the public eye and use most their excess to buy items that make them appear outwardly rich, such as clothes, furniture and expensive food for when they have people over.
Noble:
Noble families may well have endless finance, they make on average 6000 gold a year, and anything they can't buy they suck up to the king to get ahold of.

Dinning:

Poor:
Peasants don't have the money to buy ready-made food, a single loaf of bread can cost anywhere from 4 to 5 gold which is far out of their budget. Luckily they are still able to buy large 150kg bags of flour and other base ingredients for as little as 15 gold which they use to make their own bread. This seems a fairly good deal, but these cheap bags are usually mixed in with cheaper ground grains, dry crushed mud and even chalk to put up the weight. Fresh produce and meat are usually self-sourced from livestock or small vegetable patches they keep in their homes, they are only eaten on very special occasions. Most of their everyday food comes from foraging the nearby area for mushrooms, berries, insects or any edible plant they can find.
Middle-class:
The middle-class peoples have more money to spend on luxuries, but they still tend to make their own bread and other meals using a higher quality grade of flour and grain. They often have pickled vegetables and other luxuries in their houses just for show and when they have guests or it's a special occasion they will buy jams, wines and other luxury foods. When shopping many people will buy a ready-made sweet loaf with their flower, just to keep up the illusion that they can afford it, for this reason, the children of middle-class families love market day.
Noble:
Nobles live luxurious lives and regularly dine on pork, beef and other rich meats which are often supplied by the king, those in better favour receive the best foods. They also have cooks who live on-site who cook for them and make them deserts that the lower classes could only dream of tasting.
Royalty:
The royal family eat only the finest foods, each area has a seasonal supply tax where a portion of all harvest and produce go to the crown. Many noble families also dote on the king with gifts of meat and herbs which they had people find within their grounds.
The king has a huge weakness for sweat bread, a sugary, buttery bread usually filled with glazed fruits, berries and jams.

---

Economy:

Farming:

There are quite a few farms scattered around Kandala, but nowhere near enough to feed all of its people. Bad seasons often cause poor harvests and the so-called "botanical experts" that instruct the farmers on what to do don't help. Many believe they run on orders from the king to purposely ruin crops to keep the people weak and easy to control.

Export/Import:

The country is supposed to be totally self-sufficient, so outside exports are illegal. However, this law is mostly ignored, most poor families are only able to obtain luxuries from the surrounding countries and the rich won't live without the luxuries from the rest of the world, even the king himself has imported fabric, materials and entertainment.

Trade:

Farmer markets are held each week, selling food, goods and other necessities. There are also stalls that bribe to officials to look the other way while they sell foreign goods under the counter.

Medicine:

As magic is not allowed and very few people are medically trained, people rely on traditional herbal medicine to cure their ailments.

Transportation and Communication:

Most people stick to their neighbourhoods, only venturing out on market days. Some people own horses, but most people wait for the weekly carriage which takes people in groups to the farmers market for a few hours and then takes them home.
Along the border, people send specially trained hawks with orders for smuggled goods, they pay off the closest border guards to keep quiet, but have to be careful not to be seen by the others.

Natural Resources:

There are multiple mineral deposits and stone quarries scattered around the country, all owned by the crown and run by families that live nearby and pass down the trade, they send out a few people each week to get supplies.

---

Architecture:

Poor:

The poorer classes of Kandala mostly live in wattle and daub houses which they build and maintain themselves. The houses usually contain a central room where a hearth heats the building, a clay oven on top for preparing bread and other foods. A bedroom for the adults of the house and a bedroom for the children. Some bigger families build on extra smaller rooms at the expense of losing garden space. Most cooking is done outside on a clay oven

Middle class:

The middle class aren't much better off than the poor, though their houses tend to be better built with solid timber frames and second floors. They often have bits of cheap wooden furniture and more books and other literary entertainment lying around for use in their free time. The roofs are made of either clay tiles or thatch.

Nobles:

The nobles have much more advanced houses than the rest, they tend to live in manor houses made of stone with wood framework, they usually have expansive areas of land where they have small huts for their workers to live. Each noble household also has a special guest room that is only used in the event of the king paying them a visit, it is the most decorated and expensive room in the house.

Royalty:

The royal family live in a stone castle built on the highest point of the land. It has expansive land all around as well as woodland than is used as a hunting ground for the king and trees that block any view of the other towns or manors in the distance.

---

Relations:

Shibandoa : Shibandoa Is the closest country to Kandala, nestled to the south with just a small river separating them. Kandala doesn't really involve itself with any of the other countries, but it has various deals and arrangements with Shibandoa which they are more than happy to oblige to in exchange for peace.

Luonsuru : Luonsuru are enemy number one to Kandalan , they are usually referred to simply are "The traitors". Each year battle ships are sent out to attack, but their malnurished troups are no match for Luonsuru's defences and physically fit army. Though it's an attack the pubic are falsely told they are sent to defend fromLuonsuru's attacks to further villanise them.
Marvena : Marvena is a fairly small country East of Kandala, while the countries today have little to do with each other, they have a long history between them.

---

History:

Much of the counties history before @kingxxx has been buried to the public as a form of control, the king doesn't want any worship of passed historical "heroes", the only heroes the country need are the royals.