![[aserai 4.png|]]
# Aserai Sultanate
Confederacy and Legalistic Pseudo-Monarchy. Strong Practitioners of Trade, Medicine, and Horsemanship - Legalistic, and Genealogically-Centered Nationalists - Collectively Called [[Banu-Asera]] or "the sons of [[Asera]]" - Amassing Wealth by Strong-Arming Traveling Caravans by Controlling the Nahasa's Few Water Sources - Originally a Client Kingdom of the Empire, Fighting Amongst Themselves, Today They've Formed a Confederacy - Some Claim Dynastic Inheritance to the Empire's Throne. **Ruling Sultan,** [[Unqid]] [[Banu-Hulyan]]
# Culture
![[-_0004s_0004_ui_fullbackgrounds_2-copy-36 1.png|inlR|150]]"The Aserai are the principal inhabitants of the Nahasa, the Bronze Desert, in the south of [[Calradia-Conti.]]. To the outsider it would appear a desolate place, fields of dunes broken by gravel plains and volcanic outcrops. But there is water underground, trapped in depressions or beneath the wadis where the occasional flash flood rumbles by, and in these oases people have settled. They are divided into dozens of clans and sub-clans, each with its elaborate genealogy, but are collectively known as the [[Banu-Asera]], the sons of [[Asera]]. Their sense of nationhood, such as it is, comes from tracing their lineage to this legendary patriarch. Their wealth and power, which is considerable, comes from controlling the isolated water-sources that allow caravans from distant lands to cross the desert." [<font color="#2DC26B"> — Bannerlord / Modules / SandBoxCore / ModuleData / <font color="#4bacc6">spcultures.XML</font></font>]
**The legendary Queen [[Eshora]]**, it is said, **punished the jinn** who were harassing her people by imprisoning them in one of the caves above [[Qasira]], carving the **mystical eight-pointed star** into the rock **to seal them in**. She sentenced them to haul water from the depths of the earth, feeding the springs that gush forth from the rocks and which for centuries have irrigated the date gardens of [[Qasira]] and its surrounding villages. [<font color="#2DC26B"> — Bannerlord.XML</font>]
"The [[Aserai]] (or [[Banu-Asera]]), three tribes who all trace their lineage to the ancient patriarch Asur (or [[Asera]]), were nomads who were established as a client kingdom to guard the Empire's south, essentially being paid to protect caravans instead of raid them. As [[Calradian-Empire]] contracts they have made themselves independent, and indeed have pressed claims of marriage to the [[Imperial]] throne itself." [<font color="#2DC26B"> — Bannerlord / Modules / SandBox / ModuleData / <font color="#4bacc6">spclans.XML</font></font>]
"**Founded in 923** when the [[Calradian-Empire]] recognized Thalas al-[[Asera]], a chief of the southern tribes, as king of the lands between the Baetoric Sea and the great desert. Includes farmers in the lands near the sea, the nomadic Bedouin of the wastes and oasis dwellers in the far south." [<font color="#2DC26B"> — Bannerlord / Modules / SandBox/ <font color="#4bacc6">wolrd_lore_strings.XML</font></font>]
[[Asaios]] on [[Principality-of-Sturgia]] and the [[Vakken]] being similar to the Aserai and the Bedouin. (<font color="#00b050">See page</font> [[10]].)
> From time to time I caught a glimpse of fires burning in the woods off the trail. Villagers told me these were 'the [[Forest-People]]', who call themselves the [[Vakken]], burning down a swathe of woods and sowing their crops. They say that the cleared land gives great yields at first, and a [[Vakken]] must work less than a [[Sturgian]] to feed himself and his family. But it is quickly exhausted, and so the [[Vakken]] must move about from place to place. [[Istiana]]'s man [[Arto]] in [[Sibir]], himself half-[[Vakken]], told me a bit about his people. **No one could say whether they came to this land first, or the Sturgians.** For as long as anyone could remember, he says, the two people have intermingled. Sometimes they trade, sometimes they fight, **much in the same way the [[Aserai-Sultanate]] live side-by-side with the Bedouin of the desert**.
(From: [[the-Hyena]]) For more info, <font color="#00b050">see</font> [[Poems]].
> [...] the song of **Kais and Layali**.
("Istar" is an Aserai metric of weight - [[the-Engineer]].)
> [...] to throw a five-istar ball.
# Kingdom
![[-_0004s_0003_ui_fullbackgrounds_2-copy-32.png|inlR|150]]"The [[Calradian-Empire]] always preferred not to send its legions into the army-devouring wastes of the Nahasa. Instead, it projected its power into this borderland by cultivating client rulers among the clans, who competed in an endless dance of power. Those clans that could secure a hold on the oases won an [[Imperial]] subsidy to protect passing caravans and grew rich. Those who could not were pushed into the desert, left to raise goats and raid caravans until they could plot a comeback. Today, with the waning of [[Calradian-Empire]], the [[Aserai-Sultanate]] have agreed to form a confederacy under a sultan chosen from richest of the clans, the [[Banu-Hulyan]]. But everyone knows that the dance has only temporarily been stopped, and at the right moment it will begin again." [<font color="#2DC26B"> — Bannerlord / Modules / SandBox / ModuleData / <font color="#4bacc6">spkingdoms.XML</font></font>]
# Leader
"The current Sultan of Aserai is [[Unqid]]. He wears his authority lightly, preferring to charm rather than to coerce, always deferring to the laws of the [[Banu-Asera]] in his judgments. But there are some who say that [[Unqid]] is remiss in his duty to administer justice, allowing the wealthiest clans - such as his own - to use bribes and clever legal arguments to oppress the others." [<font color="#2DC26B"> — Bannerlord / Modules / SandBox / ModuleData / <font color="#4bacc6">heroes.XML</font></font>]
# Summary
![[-_0004s_0002_ui_fullbackgrounds_2-copy-9 1.png|inlR|150]]"Aserai are the inhabitants of the Nahasa desert, a mixture of nomadic Bedouin and settled oasis farmers. They are famous for their horsemanship and their knowledge of the learning of many lands, especially medicine, gained from lying on some of the continent's most lucrative trade routes. Each clan is fiercely proud of its lineage and often jealous of the others, but when united by a charismatic leader, they become a major force in the south." [<font color="#2DC26B"> — Bannerlord / Modules / StoryMode / ModuleData / <font color="#4bacc6">module_strings.XML</font></font>]
# Clans
"Clans represent major extensive families, or in some cases, family-like organizations. A kingdom is usually made up of several clans who hold fiefs and lead its troops. A clan will have a ruler, and when that ruler dies, the clan's leadership and titles will pass to his or her heir. Clans are nominally bound by blood ties, but marriage will result in one of the spouses (usually the wife) joining the other's clan, and sometimes clans will adopt members." [<font color="#2DC26B"> — Bannerlord / Modules / SandBox / ModuleData / <font color="#4bacc6">concepts.XML</font></font>]
**Aserai own zero ==Iron Mines==**
**Aserai own zero ==Lumber Yards==**
| 6232 | TIER 6 | [[Banu-Hulyan]]<br><br>The Ruling Clan and the Wealthiest - Legalistic but Somewhat Oppressive - Mercantile with Close Ties to the [[Ghilman]] |  | [[Quyaz]]<br>[[Sanala]]<br>Tubilis Castle | ![[__0036_banner - 2024-08-31T163512.062.jpg\|150]] |
| ---------------------------------------------------------------- | ------ | :----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------: | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- | ------------------------------------------------- | --------------------------------------------------- |
| 6395 **Owns 3 of 9 ==Stud Farms==** | TIER 5 | [[Banu-Qild]]<br><br>War-Minded Honorable Clan - Harsh Ascetics - Killed [[Nimr]], Now Enemies with [[Banu-Sarran]] |  | [[Hubyar]] <br>Sahel Castle<br>Shibal Zumr Castle | ![[__0034_banner - 2024-08-31T163539.708.jpg]] |
| 7560 **Owns 1 of 9 ==Stud Farms==** | TIER 4 | [[Banu-Sarran]]<br><br>Ancient Lineage but Only Recently Returned to the Nahasa - Distant Relatives of [[Banu-Hulyan]] - Enemies Turned Allies / Clients - Openly Prideful "Upstarts" - Aggressive Poets with Ties to the [[Jawwal]] - They've Sworn Vengeance over [[Nimr]] on the [[Banu-Qild]], Specifically [[Tais]] |  | [[Husn Fulq]]<br>[[Razih]]<br>Medeni Castle | ![[__0035_banner - 2024-08-31T163526.211.jpg]] |
| 3612 **Owns 1 of 9 ==Stud Farms==** | TIER 4 | [[Banu-Qaraz]]<br><br>Politically Ambitious and Calculating - Lieutenant akin to "Attack Dog" - Formerly [[Imperial]] clan [[Carasios]] |  | [[Iyakis]] Jamayeh Castle | ![[__0033_banner - 2024-08-31T163549.677.jpg]] |
| 2372 | TIER 4 | [[Banu-Atij]]<br><br>Abrasive but Benevolent Clan - Heiress, Zuad, is Warrior Lieutenant |  | [[Qasira]] | ![[__0031_banner - 2024-08-31T163614.976.jpg]] |
| 3317 **Owns 1 of 9 ==Stud Farms==** | TIER 3 | [[Banu-Arbas]]<br><br>Mild and Good-Natured Clan but Ukhai, the Lieutenant, is Easily Swayed |  | [[Askar]] | ![[__0032_banner - 2024-08-31T163604.198.jpg]] |
| 2623 **Monopoly on ==Silver==** & **Owns 1 of 9 ==Stud Farms==** | TIER 3 | [[Banu-Sarmal]]<br><br>Competent and Daring Warlords - Typically Cunning |  | Ain Baliq Castle<br>Uqba Castle | ![[__0030_banner - 2024-08-31T163625.695.jpg]] |
| 2719 **Owns 2 of 9 ==Stud Farms==** | TIER 2 | [[Banu-Ruwaid]]<br><br>Dominating Clan - Aqar Leads by Fear and Force of Personality - Potential Lieutenant is Egalitarian and Possible Acquaintance of [[Nimr]] |  | Barihal Castle | ![[__0028_banner - 2024-08-31T163654.749.jpg]] |
| 692 | TIER 1 | [[Banu-Habbab]]<br><br>Gallant and Merciful Clan |  | Tamnuh Castle | ![[__0029_banner - 2024-08-31T163639.867.jpg]] |
| Approximate Wealth = 35,522 | | | | | |
| | | [[Banu-Asera]] | ![[unknown character.png]] | | ![[unknown character.png]] |
| | | [[Banu-Qaram]]<br><br>Some Undistinguished Bloodline from the [[Banu-Qild]] | ![[unknown character.png]] | | ![[unknown character.png]] |
# Settlements & Minor Clans
| ![[__0000_as-cast.png\|150]] | [[Quyaz]] [[Husn Fulq]] [[Iyakis]] [[Razih]] [[Hubyar]] [[Sanala]] [[Askar]] [[Qasira]] | ![[__0071_banner - 2024-08-31T162315.597 1.jpg\|150]] | [[Ghilman]]<br>Tier 4<br>[[Darshia-Cnty.]] Mercenaries |
| :--------------------------: | :-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------: | :---------------------------------------------------: | :----------------------------------------------: |
| ![[as caste 2.png\|150]] | [[Aserai Castles List]] | ![[__0086_banner - 2024-08-31T162121.497 1.jpg]] | [[Beni-Zilal]]<br>Tier 4<br>Outlaws / Mafia |
| ![[__0001_as-vil.png\|150]] | [[Aserai Villages List]] | ![[__0067_banner - 2024-08-31T162520.355 1.jpg]] | [[Jawwal]]<br>Tier 4<br>Nomadic Outlaws |
# Companions
| 'Lath' [[of-the-Wastes]]<br>'Prince of the Wastelands, Lord of Solitude, and Master of Emptiness' | 'Sabila' [[the-Spicevendor]]<br>Unlucky Merchant - Caravanner for Hire | [[the-Wanderer-(Asuri)]]<br> Daughter of Wealthy Clan - Left Home due to Blood Feuds |
| :-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------: | :--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------: | :---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------: |
| [[the-Scholar-(Asuri)]]<br> Son of Slave - Studied Under Judge, Chose Medicine - Surgeon for Hire | [[the-Falcon]]<br>Distant Relative of [[Banu-Qild]] - Looking for Glory - [[Banu-Qaram]] | [[the-Golden]]<br> "I am [[the-Golden]], son of Aytham. Whose the son of Thamuq. Whose the son of Munbilas. Whose the son of Numayn. Whose the son of ...]" |
| [[the-Swordsman]]<br>Honorable Mercenary | [[the-Hyena]]<br>Contemptuous Killer - Thug for Hire | [[the-Prince]]<br> Man Whom a Guard Captain Tried to Corrupt - Had to Skip Town with Family After |
| [[the-Leopardess]]<br>Former Pickpocket and Street Urchin - Looking for Hire - Former [[Jawwal]] | - | [[the-Engineer]]<br>Studied to be a Judge - Ended up as an Engineer - Former [[Ghilman]] |
# Troops
| ==Source== | Shock Aserai Infantry |
| ------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------ | ----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- |
| [<font color="#2DC26B"> — Bannerlord / Modules / Native / ModuleData / <font color="#4bacc6">multiplayer_strings.XML</font></font>] | Aserai guards are selected from the tallest and strongest members of the tribe. Their impressive physiques are useful both for wielding their huge two handed axes and to lay fear into the hearts of their enemies. Guards are agile shocktroopers that are very good against shield wielding infantry but weak against enemy archers. |
| Light Aserai Infantry | Light Ranged Aserai |
| Life is harsh in the Nahasa, so a child of the tribe is expected to learn how to fight well. These tribal warriors are cheap but effective troops that can perform different roles with proper equipment selection and hold their own against many of the better armed enemy soldiers. | With their considerably lighter armor, the Aserai came to rely on their ranged troops a lot. And these skilled archers are the backbone of their armies. They are so good at what they do, that it is the Aserai archers who set the standard for the other cultures' archers to follow. |
| Aserai Skirmisher | Light Aserai Cavalry |
| In the Aserai tribes, throwing javelins is a sport that every child enjoys. Best of these children grow to become the agile skirmishers. Aside from their large shields, they are very lightly armored. So they can move around quickly on the battlefield to flank their enemies and deal tremendous damage from their backs. | Some tribes live even deeper in the deserts where there is no hope for survival without their loyal mounts because of the vast distances. These people of the tribes are natural riders who are literally born on the saddle. [[Jawwal]] are the fastest riders in [[Calradia-Conti.]] and they are very good at hit and run tactics. |
| Heavy Ranged Aserai | Heavy Aserai Cavalry |
| Aserai veterans are among the oldest and most experienced of the fighters of the tribe. Raid, battle and siege have given them ample opportunity to learn both the skills to survive and to loot good weapons and armor. They both deadly archers and also dangerous melee combatants that they are now. | The very term Mamluke means 'property'. The Aserai nobility want professional soldiers who have no familial ties and nothing else to do but hone their fighting skills, be it riding, lance, bow or the sword. Mamluke is the ultimate ironclad soldier of the Aserai. Depending on the need, they will be steamrollers, horse archers or flankers, easily. |
# Dev Diaries
![[Pasted image 20240529150529.png|inlC|150]]
### [Dev Blog 03/05/18](https://www.taleworlds.com/en/Games/Bannerlord/Blog/58)
> For the Aserai we decided to go with a warm color to represent their homelands: the Nahasa desert of southern [[Calradia-Conti.]]. We looked at a few different options in the orange-yellow range before deciding to go with a deep, almost golden yellow. For the design, we took inspiration from Islamic decorative arts and interiors, going through many different iterations before settling on a cup and horns design, which was heavily influenced by Mamluk blazons.
![[Pasted image 20240529150510.png|inlC]]
### [Dev Blog 11/01/18](https://www.taleworlds.com/en/Games/Bannerlord/Blog/41)
> Greetings warriors of [[Calradia-Conti.]]!
>
> To the south of the [[Imperial]] heartland lies the Nahasa, the Bronze Desert, ringed by mountains, hammered by the sun. A traveler coming over the passes from greener lands would first see fields of dunes broken by gravel plains and volcanic outcrops, shimmering under the heat haze. But there is water to be found underground, trapped in depressions or beneath the wadis where the occasional flash flood rumbles by. And in these oases people have settled. They are divided into dozens of clans and sub-clans, each with its elaborate genealogy, but are collectively known as the [[Banu-Asera]] or the Aserai after the legendary patriarch [[Asera]], whom they all claim as an ancestor.
>
> The Empire even at its heights preferred not to send its legions into the army-devouring wastes. Instead, it projected its power into the Nahasa by cultivating clients and allies among the clans, who competed in an endless dance of power. Those clans that could secure a hold on the oases won an [[Imperial]] subsidy to protect passing caravans and grew rich. Those who could not were pushed into the desert, left to raise goats and camels and raid caravans until they could plot a comeback. Today, with the waning of [[Calradian-Empire]] offering new opportunities and new risks, the Aserai have agreed to form a confederacy under a sultan chosen from richest of the clans, the [[Banu-Hulyan]]. But everyone knows that the dance has only temporarily been stopped, and at the right moment it will begin again.
>
> The Aserai are based on the Arab tribes just before the great Islamic conquests of the seventh century, which created a diverse tri-continental caliphate whose scale and institutions don't really fit Bannerlord's political system. In the centuries before, the Arabs formed a series of confederations and kingdoms inside and on the margins of the Arabian and Syrian deserts. Many think of the entire Middle East as arid wastes, even though most of the more famous battles, especially during the Crusades, were fought in coastal Mediterranean regions or the highland steppe of Anatolia. The Arab heartland however really is mostly desert. Our landscapes reflect the harsh beauty of dunes, craggy mountains, and oases, along with the less glamorous stretches of wasteland in between, like scrubland and dry wadis.
>
> Historians have left vivid portraits of the chieftains, kings, and occasional ruling queens of Palmyra, Kinda, Hirah, and other principalities of the deserts. Some were morally complex characters, managing their domains with a mixture of cajoling, threats, bribes, skullduggery, bravery, and shameless nepotism. The Aserai sultan, [[Unqid]], is cut from this mold. Their task was not made easier by warrior-poets like Imru al-Qais, Antara, and Tarafa. These untamable mavericks wrote lyric verses about the transitory nature of human experience, their memories of liasons with their beloved in a now-deserted campsite slowly erased by wind and flood, then used it to segue into a string of boasts about the battles they won and the steeds they've ridden. We're using Bannerlord's new events system to create a backstory of grudges and feuds that will test an aspiring sultan's ability to placate and lead.
>
> Mideastern armies are popularly associated with horse archers, but in fact those only became prevalent about two centuries after the founding of Islam with the influx of Turks. The Arabs fought with short sword, long spear, and foot bow. Warriors prided themselves on their flexibility, fighting as light mounted lancers or heavy foot, in formed ranks or as individual champions. Javelins, a favorite weapon of the Berbers, made their appearance in Islamic armies fairly early, and we have the Aserai use them as well. All in all it's a mix of good troops, pretty well balanced across cavalry and infantry. The Arabs were famously proud of their horses, and the Aserai breeds - produced by pastures in Aserai lands - will have unique characteristics. Middle Eastern warriors wore a mix of armors, often under richly embroidered textiles. Bannerlord's physics model gives us new options in bringing the pageantry of these armies to life, with banners, horsetails and robes fluttering in the desert breeze.
>
> The Aserai, like all Bannerlord cultures, will have minor factions. The [[Jawwal]] are Bedouin nomads, like those who plagued caliphs, sultans and kings throughout Islamic history. And though our reference point is late antiquity and the very early medieval era, we've also introduced some institutions that thrived under the caliphs. The [[Ghilman]], a brotherhood of slave-warriors, represent the forerunners to the Mamluks who fought for and later came to dominate the caliphate. Aserai towns meanwhile will be dominated by the back-alley mafias who feature in tales of urban Middle Eastern life, from The Thousand and One Nights to the novels of Naguib Mahfouz. The desert of the south will be hard to rule and dangerous to traverse, but the other realms ignore it at their peril, lest it suddenly throw forth a host capable of bringing empires to their knees.
![[aserai desc in digital companion.png|inlC|500]]