Empire of Magnolion

The Empire of Magnolion is an imperial state located on the Magnolionese Isles to the east of Latveria. Priding itself on its strong economy, Magnolion holds a place as one of the most influential nations on all of Albion.

History
Over ten thousand years ago, the Goddess of the Sun had a child with a human male. This child, a true demigod, became the leader of a small group of people who made their home on what would later come to be known as the Magnolionese Isles. As this demigod's lineage continued and the population of the isles grew, settlements grew into towns, which grew into cities, and which in turn eventually congealed into a larger collective, the Empire of Magnolion. As civilization became more advanced, however, changes began to stir in Magnolionese society. With the decreasing importance of the Emperor due in part to changing times and in part to the dilution of the imperial lineage, power shifted hands from the Emperor to a number of wealthy financial magnate families known as zaibatsu. These zaibatsu used their considerable economic sway to influence the further course of Magnolionese development, turning the country from a true empire to a plutocratic oligarchy hiding behind an ostensible empire.

Military
The Magnolionese military is of considerable size and might, consisting of a heavily regimented, class-based system of elite equestrian samurai (riding horses and employing polearms in addition to the standard long and short swords), kisha (mounted archers), and samurai footsoldiers and infantry archers. Below them are the ashigaru, low-class footsoldiers employed en masse by the samurai classes to bolster their armies.

The Magnolionese government engages in a sort of military exchange program, wherein military regiments are hired out to other countries as auxiliary troops for a fee.