One country, one road
The Empire grew out of Xadagan, a state that broke away from Kania long ago and has been at war with it ever since. The capital is Nezebgrad, and at the head of it stands Great Mage Yasker — the man who in Game of Gods points Imperial heroes toward Ascension. Under the same banner as the Xadaganians stand the Orcs and the Arisen. That alliance was not built on mutual affection but on cold arithmetic: on their own, none of the three peoples would have survived the Cataclysm, let alone what came after it.
Imperial ideology is simple, and that is exactly why it holds. The individual answers to the collective, doubt is a defect, and victory is the only acceptable outcome. A Xadaganian does not think of himself as a villain — he sincerely believes his country is on the right road and that the leader knows where he is taking it. The whole Imperial look follows from that: factory chimneys and mana stations instead of groves, uniforms instead of robes, ranks instead of titles. Even faith here is a branch of the service. The Empire’s healers are Inquisitors and its Paladins are Avengers, and Imperial devotion works like political instruction in the ranks rather than prayer in a quiet chapel.
If the League wins you over with beauty and tradition, the Empire wins on function. Heavy metal, soot, straight lines, short orders. Players who take to that tone usually stop wanting to play the other side at all.
Xadagan — the backbone of the Empire
Humans. Black-haired, darker-skinned than Kanians, shorter and leaner — southern blood from the nomad tribes Xadagan was assembled out of. They live in large cities, they work for the war, and even a peacetime craftsman here is a soldier at heart.
In game, Xadagan is the Empire’s most versatile race: eight of the nine archetypes are open to it.
- Vanquisher — Warrior; heavy melee and the tank job.
- Avenger — Paladin; plate, shield, and the ability to soak a fight on the group’s behalf.
- Stalker — Scout; damage at range and stealth.
- Inquisitor — Healer; the Empire’s main healer.
- Specialist — Mage; elemental damage at range.
- Defiler — Summoner; summoned minions and magical damage.
- Mentalist — Psionicist; control and support.
- Agitator — Bard.
The only archetype Xadagan lacks is the Warden — nature magic is not an Imperial line of work. The Specialist comes with a story attached: after Yasker took power, teaching Imperials elemental and high magic was banned, so Xadaganian mages are pushed through a forced course instead, and the name says as much. If you have not settled on a group role yet and would rather not reroll later, a Xadaganian closes the question: every raid job is available to you.
Orcs — rage and pressure
The largest of the sentient peoples: the average Orc stands a head above a human. Book magic and fine crafts pass them by — what magic they have is the shamans’ older sort — but nobody knows war better. They live short and loud, they build a horde by raiding, and every Orc is his own master — which is why Orcs are permanently split into clans and bloodlines that squabble with each other about as much as with the enemy.
Five archetypes are open to an Orc:
- Brute — Warrior.
- Reaver — Paladin.
- Marauder — Scout.
- Shaman — Warden.
- Balladeer — Bard.
The Shaman matters more than its place on the list suggests: it is the only Warden in the entire Empire, and therefore the Empire’s only access to nature magic and to the hybrid heal-and-hit style. Everything else the Orcs bring is about melee pressure — close the gap, lean on the target, never let it breathe. That is what gets them invited to PvP.
The Arisen — the brain of the Empire
Officially they are the Arisen; among themselves they are the people of Zem. Thousands of years ago they were ordinary mortals chasing immortality; now most of each body is machinery and the faces are hidden behind masks. In the three centuries since they came back, the Zem went from slave labour in Xadaganian mines to full citizens who handed their country astral ships and mana stations. Xadaganians and Orcs make jokes at their expense, and would stand up for an Arisen without a second’s thought.
They get four archetypes, and all of them are about the head rather than the fist:
- Heretic — Healer; healing and keeping a group standing.
- Sorcerer — Mage; elemental damage at range.
- Savant — Summoner; keeps summoned minions out for the whole fight and heals well enough to drag a group out of trouble.
- Occultist — Psionicist; control, weakening the enemy and propping up your own side.
Warrior, Paladin, Scout, Warden and Bard are all closed to them — the Zem do not walk into melee on principle, and nature magic means nothing to a people who left their own bodies behind. Playing an Arisen means playing calculation and patience — and wearing the strangest look in the game while you do it.
Which to pick
| Race | Archetypes | Suits you if |
|---|
| Xadagan | 8 | you want a free hand with roles: tank, healer, damage, support |
| Orcs | 5 | you came here to fight — melee and PvP |
| Arisen | 4 | you want summons, control and an unusual look |
Remember that race decides more than your appearance: it decides which classes you can play, and you cannot change it afterwards. Work out what job you want in a group first, and pick a people second. The full breakdown of all nine archetypes, including how they differ in a fight, is on the classes page.
A word on the Bard. In the Empire it is played by Xadaganians (Agitators) and Orcs (Balladeers); the Arisen have no access to it. It is the ninth and youngest archetype in the game: Game of Gods brought it in, and the full write-up sits on the classes page.
Picked a side? Move on to getting started: it covers what to download and how to handle the first levels.
Updated: 08/19/2026