Military Run Empire

[MakBow]

What would that look like exactly?
I've been using a lot of my love for Warhammer40k in my side novel, since it will be a steampunk dystopian world where they hail the Iron-Blood Empire and the Golden Emperor of Humanity from the 3rd Epoch, where they make soldiers from the day they are born to awaken their talent for magic.

I won't lie, I'm not sure what that really looks like.
I'm really imaging the nazis from Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus, but I don't know.

 

[Hans.Trondheim]

What would that look like exactly?
I've been using a lot of my love for Warhammer40k in my side novel, since it will be a steampunk dystopian world where they hail the Iron-Blood Empire and the Golden Emperor of Humanity from the 3rd Epoch, where they make soldiers from the day they are born to awaken their talent for magic.

I won't lie, I'm not sure what that really looks like.
I'm really imaging the nazis from Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus, but I don't know.

You can start by reading Prussia's history. It's one of the best examples of an "army with a kingdom."

 

[Ai-chan]

What would that look like exactly?
I've been using a lot of my love for Warhammer40k in my side novel, since it will be a steampunk dystopian world where they hail the Iron-Blood Empire and the Golden Emperor of Humanity from the 3rd Epoch, where they make soldiers from the day they are born to awaken their talent for magic.

I won't lie, I'm not sure what that really looks like.
I'm really imaging the nazis from Wolfenstein II: The New Colossus, but I don't know.

Myanmar is one. North Korea is one. Plenty of korean dramas about North Korea. Thailand is basically monarchic democracy with regular military coup. Half the time they're a martial empire. The other half is democracy, until the democratically elected government gets couped again.

 

[BlueberrieCake]

Myanmar is one. North Korea is one. Plenty of korean dramas about North Korea. Thailand is basically monarchic democracy with regular military coup. Half the time they're a martial empire. The other half is democracy, until the democratically elected government gets couped again.

Yap, that's my country, No human rights, revolution are everywhere, no actual laws,etc..

 

[Hans.Trondheim]

Myanmar is one. North Korea is one. Plenty of korean dramas about North Korea. Thailand is basically monarchic democracy with regular military coup. Half the time they're a martial empire. The other half is democracy, until the democratically elected government gets couped again.

"Monarchical democracy"...until you say something bad about the king.

 

[Lmae]

Isn't that Naruto?
I picture it as a country that values strength and ability over everything else.
If you aren't born with something useful for military, you will be sent to work in the fields or the mines to die. Also you are easy picking for those people in power. They can do whatever they want with you because they are useful and you aren't.

On the flip side if you are a poor peasant who are born with a gift, special magical powers, intelligence, or anything that the powerful finds useful, you have a chance to be elevated from your lowly position. And then you get to be used as a tool of propaganda for the other lowly peasants to work harder. The only down side is getting backstabbed and framed by another greedy official, and you, your entire family, and your friends getting murdered.

 

[Snake99]

I like the empire in the 'They Are Billions' game

 

[Joyager2]

There are plenty of military juntas and dictatorships that you can look at for inspiration, but it can be easy to write a paper-thin, uninteresting regime where everyone who isn’t in the regime hates it. For some extra depth, I’d encourage you to also look at militarized societies (especially liberal democracies) where the military itself is not necessarily in charge, but is enormously influential economically, politically, and socially. Such societies typically have a robust private sector that is dedicated to military R&D, privilege service members in elections and the criminal justice system, and have an almost religious reverence to veterans. Such nations can serve as a good resource to explain how and why what would otherwise appear to be an unpopular political system remains in charge.

 

[Anonjohn20]

What would that look like exactly?

Look up the Japanese empire; during various eras the emperor was a puppet, and either the shogunate (generals) was in control or, for some time, the corrupt Buddhist temples had the most power. Spartan society was also like this.

You can also look up states where the government holds almost no power over the people, like Afghanistan or Papua New Guinea, where the government is so ineffective that everyone chose to live under local tribal/clan rule instead, and occasionally the tribes/clans will wage war against each other.