Ni-Shan

is the island nation where the goddess Jade established her favored style of martial arts. Its culture is similar to that of feudal Japan.

Traditionally, and since the beginning of time, the country was ruled by a hereditary emperor and his samurai general. Each province was ruled by a lesser lords who answered to the emperor, and had samurai of their own to enforce their will. The peasants of the land spend long days growing rice, raising livestock, or fishing.

As time progressed, the Guild of Shadows gained a foothold in the country and often aligned with the various criminal organizations that operate in the background all across Ni-Shan. The agents of the Guild of Shadows operate within the different organizations, usually unbeknownst to the leaders of those organizations. As the Guild is far more powerful than any other criminal group, they often guide the lesser groups along their desired path.

Tradition is the backbone of the island nation. Everything is routed in the way it has been done for generations. Parents teach their children respect, honor, and duty from a young age. These are the foundational principles that drive the society.

Alongside the longstanding tradition of the warrior and his blade, exists those skilled warriors who need no weapons. The monks and martial artists of the land tout a myriad different styles of unarmed combat, the most prominent being founded by the goddess herself (Kenchido). From this country, many nations of Terra learned and developed their own varied style of hand-to-hand combat.

For countless generations, Ni-Shan remained largely closed off to the other nations of the world. The occasional lost ship would limp into one of the ports along the southwestern coast after one powerful storm or another. However, two generations prior to the current emperor, it was decided the country couldn’t thrive or survive if it didn’t open its borders to commerce and new blood. This has allowed the island nation to grow and prosper in ways the ancestors could never have imagined.