History of Huo

The History of Huo is large and diverse, usually seen more as a collective history of various subregions, though much of Huo shares common connections. The majority of recorded history comes from Northern Huo and the regions it has influenced. Countries such as Chiöq and Wadiin have written records from as far back as -16 CY (507 GA), and have some of the earliest recorded civilizations in world history. X

Prehistory

Human migration

Humans first migrated to Dun circa X CY, having migrated from Nkungu through the X Islands. They then spread northwards throughout the continent, and eventually onto neighboring Jarruunh.

Prehistoric Northern Huo

In Northern Huo, the largest people group was the Pre-Dun peoples. These peoples stretched from Wadiin to Shibun and were dominant along the northern coast. Little is attested or known about these people apart from loanwords that would proliferate throughout various Dun languages. The Pre-Dun peoples were believed to be largely sedentary costal peoples, who would rely on fishing and farming for much of their needs. Near the year -780 CY, the Dun peoples are believed to have began to migrate from their homeland in Central Huo. They would quickly sweep over nearly all of Northern Huo, displacing or assimilating the Pre-Dun peoples, and rapidly expanding and settling in former Pre-Dun settlements. These migrations hold common importance across many pre-Kunwidya religions on Huo, including in Chiöq, where the migrations lead to the founding of the mythical Xiaar state that begins the first year of the Great Age calendar. During this time, the Nttalka peoples would also migrate into Northern Huo, though they occupied less space than the Dun peoples. The Nttalka are believed to have inhabited much of Central Huo before being displaced.

Bronze Age

The Huo Bronze Age is estimated to have began circa 150 BCY, the introduction of bronze made large scale military warfare much more common in Huo. A large copper trade began to form bringing the material through Jarruunh to Northern Huo and from Southern Huo to the north. This time saw the rise of the first large scale states in Huo, such as the various Chiöq states in the West, and the rise of the Surwooq Empire in the East. The Surwooq were the first large scale empire in Huo history, rising to stretch along the Northeastern coast of Huo in -81 CY. The Surwooq Empire did not use writing during its existence, and its history is only known through the later accounts of Chiöq writer Ziüxaar Huisuaa. The Central Dun peoples would remain largely nomadic, wandering the large central deserts of Northern Huo, though some would expand into the jungles of the Southeast. Wadiin and Chiöq would see a rise of various small city states or small kingdoms, largely disunited and concentrated along the highly arable coastline. Trade was prominent along the northern coast of Huo and western Huo, while copper was plentiful within the various mountain ranges of northern Huo and eastern Jarruunh, tin proved difficult to obtain. Kingdoms were reliant on trade with peoples from southern Huo or from trade with peoples from the X islands for tin, leaving the bronze trade an ultimately unstable entity. Trade would be prosperous in the region until a large internal civil war caused the Surwooq Empire, as well as the bronze trade, to collapse in 132 CY. Central Dun nomads would also disrupt overland trade routes, leaving the region almost entirely without tin. During this time the various Chiöq states would see a growth in influence, making them one of the forefront powers of the region. The various Chiöq states would fight amongst each other for influence, eventually leading to Chiöq being divided among four major states: (list). These states would be locked in a cold war with each other until 328 CY, where the Suaagia Empire, armed with iron weaponry, would sweep over the deserts of Central Huo and invade Chiöq.

Antiquity

The rulers of the Suaagia would retain dominion over central Huo and Chiöq until 537 CY, following the Red Sand Rebellion. The Red Sand Rebellion would prove to be fatal to the Suaagia, as they could not sustain fighting the rebels in Chiöq as well as fend off the various Central Dun nomadic confederations and tribes. From the ashes would arise a patchwork of Chiöq states as the remaining members of the rebellion began to fight each other after the Suaagia were tamed. Chiöq once again fell to chaotic infighting, and famine, war, and disease were widespread. In Northeast Huo (something was happening). In the 620s CY, a popular movement of religious philosophy began to appear within Chiöq, with many philosophers arising and speculating on the nature of the world. The most influential of these philosophers would be X, who wrote a number of treatises on his thoughts of religion and the spirits. These philosophers would become extremely popular, establishing several schools throughout Chiöq and even abroad in Northeastern Huo, with thousands of students wishing to learn the mechanics of the world. The local nobility, fearing the new widespread popularity of the movement, would begin to shut down these schools, and even executed X in 636 CY. This mass oppression of the schools backfired and triggered popular revolts across the various Chiöq states. These rebellions would be lead by various members of the priest class, who took great interest in the writings of the philosophers. The various warrior-priests would begin to take over in various areas of Chiöq, and in areas they didn’t conquer, the local nobility allowed for them to have more political influence, for fear of more widespread revolt. By the 750s CY in Northwestern Huo, a militant priest class began to establish itself and influence the political hierarchies of Chiöq and elsewhere. The new priests would then institute a reform of the Chiöq religion based on the teachings of X. The large traditional pantheon would be replaced with just a pantheon of four major gods. The religion would also become more rigid and organized, and would solidify a caste system. This would increase the power of both the priest and noble class, who would continue to rule the various fragmented states in Chiöq. Chiöq would also gain a tradition of a militant priest class, with various schools establishing their own professional groups of warrior-priests or warrior-monks. By the 1000s CY, Chiöq had solidified into 9 major states, ruled by various kings or Chiärs. In 1372 CY, Guaadaq Chiizuaa would rise to unite all of the disparate areas of Chiöq. First conquering the core heartlands around the X river and the X coast, and then conquering the rest of the Chiöq states along the western coast. He would establish the Great Kingdom of Chiöq in 1389 CY, the first recorded unified Chiöq state. He would continue to conquer lands in various campaigns against Eastern Dun and Nttalka peoples before dying in 1430 CY. His successors would continue to rule vast swathes of land under Chiöq, but would begin to displease the nobility and priests. They would grant them more and more privileges until nearly all of the politics of the kingdom revolved around them. This would cause an era of decentralization in Chiöq where the nobles and priests would fight for control over the Great Chiär.