I am here to assert that the peoples populating the land of Lynn are none other than Necropolitans (a brand of skeletons mantaining all their intelligence from their previous lives and can be of any alignment, stats can be found in Libris Mortis). Their society is similar to an ancient oriental one-with a twist-their power structure consists of a dynasty that spans nearly a dozen generations of their people turned to undead. It is common knowledge that the people of Lynn had made a pact with some extraplanar power in exchange for a brand of immortality, and what they got was the secret of transforming one into a Necropolitan. Since then they have preserved the most worthy of each generation, only transforming their people after they have given birth to a number of children and proven their mental maturity. As a price for their pact was the overall control of the nation, and this control has since been passed between a number of hands in various bargains, creating some confusion for the people of Lynn.
The ancient Lynnians who made the bargain were not incompetent though, so there are certain restrictions on the authority that the current owner can exercise over the nation. The Lynnians have always adapted to their current owners while mantaining their integrity as a culture, and while used to having interlopers control their government they are not totally subserviant. The culture has recently been stabilized within the last passing owner, a devil, and is now in possession of an extraplanar organization known as the Combined Merchant's League. The Combined Merchant's League's interests span a number of planes, and they mainly deal in real estate, well, the buying and selling of nations all across the multiverse. They buy up a piece of land they think they can sell for a better price-the actual means of bargaining can vary, they deal with gold and gems but also spells, services, magic items, artifacts, creatures, souls, demiplanes, or simple favors like hiring adventurers or using their enforces to eliminate an age-old enemy of their seller.
My PC, Arch-Merchant Glu'boise is a particularly potent Mercane (LN Mercane Diviner 10/Loremaster 10/Epic Loremaster 15) who is a Minister of Foreign Relations for the guild and also the current (though temporary) owner of the Empire of Lynn. His job is to cultivate relations with Lynn's neighbors as well as to do his best to improve the overall worth of Lynn for the inevitable time that the ownership of the nation changes hands. He is caught in the Industrial Revolution and due to the planar sealing, has a limited amount of resources he can access from the Combined Merchant's League. He considers this situation a challenge that he can use to his advantage by proving his worth more to his Guild, possibly gaining another promotion up its ranks. However, he does have sympathy for the plight of the Empire of Lynn, but however far this sympathy will extend is unknown to even himself at this time. He likes to make personal overtures of diplomacy, although he thinks himself much more charismatic than he actually is...picture a used car salesman
One of his defining traits is the ten magical rings he wears, one on each finger (he has taken the Additional Magic Item slot feat eight times), the rings a symbol of the power he has in and the power of the Combined Merchant's Guild.
I would like to claim an extra Epic PL if allowed, this would be for his bodyguard/retainer, a devil-spawned Infernal known as Galathia.
Picture of an average Mercane below, for a more detailed description, see the ELH or the Manual of the Planes. The alignment of my faction would be Lawful Neutral and it would have the Undead trait.
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