Terren is vast and mighty empire, yet it is extremely young and has yet to truly carve out a niche for itself within the wider world. Thus, Emperor Luka has desired to expand Terren's diplomatic and mercantile relations. In order to accomplish this, he has formed the Terren Diplomatic Korps. These brave and adventurous Terrens are tasked with spreading out over the world and demonstrating wonders of Terren science and culture to the world while also brining foreign wonders back home. There are three major types of diplomats, the Tide Seekers, The Men-at-Court, and the Caravan Masters. The vast majority of the Diplomats and Ambassadors found within the Diplomatic Korps are nobles of new or minor houses who seek greater power and prestige. While most ambitious nobles venture to the Imperial Colonies to expand their power other find the alure of adventure and diplomacy to be irresistible. The character of these adventurers is wildly different. The interests and personalities of these men and women can be incredibly varied and despite what one might assume the diplomats of the Diplomatic Korps are far more than just ambassadors. They can be anything from merchants, pirates, explorers, and warriors. The Terren Diplomatic Korps is incredibly decentralized and each of their agents is given incredible amounts of authority to act on Terrens behalf, although Lord Chief Ambassador Soiman Mistblade does try to keep some level of control over the fiercely independent Terren Diplomats. In order to ensure that those who become diplomats are qualified each diplomat is issued an Ambassadorial Warrant. In order to gain these Warrants a prospective diplomat must have either served with an existing diplomat and earned their approval, or they may be issued an Ambassadorial Warrant from Emperor Luka himself. Another humorous fact about the members of the Diplomatic Korps is that they tend to dress in extraordinarily extravagant cloths, which has earned them the amusing nickname of "Drip-lomats" a nickname which many of them have leaned into.

Listed below is a more detailed explanation of each of the diplomatic branches.

Caravan Masters	Men-at-Court	Tide Seekers
The Caravan Masters are seekers of adventure and wealth. They create massive caravans laden with trade goods and the wonders of imperial technology and setout in long expeditions to explore and trade. During the caravans travels the Caravan Master will meet with various local peoples and lords and trade with them. During these trades the Caravan Master will attempt to influence hearts and minds to be more amiable to imperial interests. Due to the fact that these caravans are often laden with vast amounts of valuables, the Caravan Masters will hire retinues of Imperial State Troops, Realm Troops, and even local mercenaries to accompany them and provide protections from raiders, bandits, and worse.	The Terren Men-at-Court are comprised of the individuals one would expect from a branch of a diplomatic office. These men and women are each skilled ambassadors whose charm and wit allow them to integrate within the higher authorities of other nations. The Men-at-Court work tirelessly on developing and maintaining alliances with friendly nations, mitigating the wrath of enemy nations, and manipulating neutral powers into positions beneficial to Terren. The Men-at-Court can skillfully manipulate and influence the relations between any number of nations by all manner of means from flattery, seduction, bribery and blackmail. The Men-at-Court are also brilliant spies and espionage agents, feeding information back home.	The Tide Seekers are generally former captains or higher ranking officers of the imperial Navy who retired for military service to become members of the Terren Diplomatic Korps. They are given a ship and crew and are set forth to sail and explore the vast oceans of the world. These men and women are struck with immense amounts of Wanderlust and are always seeking new experiences, and hoping to discover new lands. Tide Seekers can have a variety of different motivations and personalities, some acting as eager adventurers and explorers, others as colonialists, and some are little better than state sanctioned pirates. The Tide Seekers are often the first to make contact with new civilizations, and it is their responsibility to inform the rest of the empire, so that Men-at-Court and Caravan Masters can be dispatched for diplomacy and trade.

Imperial Embassies

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The first step of the empire's diplomatic process after the Caravan Masters or Tide Seekers have established contact is the creation of an imperial embassy. This is a large and complex building with a large number of Men-at-Court staffing it. Embassies exist in the capital cities of pretty much every allied nation, and even occasionally can be found in the capitals of rival nations. The embassy is considered by the empire to be part of sovereign Terren soil, And that within embassy grounds imperial law holds sway.

Attacking or interfering with the operations of an imperial embassy is considered to be an act of war on the entire Terren Dominion. The embassies are often protected by a large number of Quaestors, And a battalion or two of state troops to ensure that anyone who wants to attack the embassy is forced to think twice. Heroes and mercenaries of foreign powers often are drawn to the embassy as well seeking work and as such many colorful characters can also be found within an embassy making an attack even more ill-advised.

Embassies are overseen by a singular powerful ambassador who represents imperial interests in that country and who is personally assigned by the emperor to his position. The ambassador is in charge of all imperial diplomatic relationships within that country and is responsible for maintaining contact with all of the diplomatic branches. All Caravan Masters, Men-at-Court and Tide Seekers must report to the assigned ambassador, despite their general level of independence when it comes to pursuing their own diplomatic projects and interests

Embassies fulfill a variety of roles within the broader context of Terren foreign relations. These are some of the biggest roles they play.

• Immigration: Anyone who wishes to become part of the Terren empire must enter into the imperial embassy and begin the long process of gaining imperial citizenship. This process includes converting to one of Terrens religions, renouncing your current citizenship and pledging an oath of loyalty to the emperor.

• Diplomatic Talks:Unfortunately the emperor and major members of the imperial government cannot be everywhere at once and as such embassies play a vital role in the day-to-day diplomatic operations being held in foreign nations, and it is Imperial Ambassadors and Men-at-Court who work their magic upon friend and foe alike to bring about Terrens diplomatic aims.

• Protection of Citizens: The embassy is responsible for monitoring all Terren citizens in a foreign nation, both to ensure their safety, and to ensure they do not pose a threat to the host country by committing crimes or terrorism. Some criminals will attempt to flee the Terren Dominion, and embassies assist the Police Korps in hunting them down in whatever country they take refuge in.

• Networking and Information: Imperial embassies are responsible for creating and maintaining networks of spies and informants who feed important cultural, economic, technological, and military developments to the embassy, who in turn report back to the Hoftag. These networks can be open or secrets, but they are present in every nation in which an embassy is found.

• Cultural Exchange: The embassy is a center of Terrenic culture, and Men-at-Court spend a lot of time facilitating the exchange of culture and ideas to the benefit of both parties.
  

Imperial Diplomatic Districts

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Embassies do a lot, but they are doing single buildings located in the capital city of a foreign power, and the scale and scope is pretty limited. While embassies are sovereign imperial territory they are also meant to be easily established and easy to move. However in the nations which have the closest relationships with the Terren Dominion an embassy is often insufficient for all of the diplomatic efforts that are desirable to be conducted. In order to facilitate even closer diplomatic relationships, the sovereign host country will seed grant the Terren Dominion a piece of territory, usually on the outskirts of the capital or a major city, in which will be established a special diplomatic district. These districts are settlements which are entirely dedicated to promoting closer diplomatic relations with the host country. These districts are essentially mini cities which are overseen and governed by the imperial ambassador. The districts are closed off and secured with large walls and garrisoned by battalions of state troops, who are not only responsible for protecting the district but also for assisting in the defense of a host settlement should it ever come under assault.

Here is an overview of the typical Imperial Diplomatic District:

Each part of the district holds a different purpose and fulfils a different distinct diplomatic function. Here are the key features and locations, and what purpose they serve.

Ambassadors Palace: The Ambassadors Palace is a grand building where the ambassador in charge lives, and where the district is administered from. Many parties and lavish events are also held here.

Central Embassy Complex: The Central Embassy Complex is where the embassy proper is located. The embassy still fulfils the exact same functions as they do in non-imperial districts.

Mercantile Center: The Mercantile Center contains representatives of every imperial guild (except for the Fighters and Black Guild) and is where most economic and mercantile deals are struck, and where trade deals are negotiated.

Fighters Guild Outpost: The Fighters Guild Outpost is where foreign nationals can request the assistance of Imperial Heroes in the matters where regular forces are insufficient and these exceptional individuals' skills are needed.

Embassy Acadamy: The Embassy Acadamy is where the children of Terren Diplomatic staff can attend school and get an education, as well as a place where academic documents and techniques can be exchanged and tested out.

Embassy Residential Area: The Embassy Residential Area is where the Men-at-Court and their families live and work during their stay in the district.

Cultural Exchange Center: The Cultural Exchange Center is a luxurious place with restaurants, resorts and other places where diplomats and foreign officials can relax, exchange culture, and make deals in a comfortable environment.

Military Coordination Center: The Military Coordination Center is where war coordination is organized, allied military operations are planned out, and joint military operations are conducted. Military Coordination Center also allows for military units to be exchanged between Terren and their allies, leading to companies and battalions of Terren soldiers serving in the armed forces of their allies and vice versa.

Dock and Shipyards: The Dock and Shipyards are the primary jumping off and return point for the Tide Seekers, as well as a key supply point for the district. The Imperial Diplomatic District is generally self-sustaining and is primarily supplied by Tide Seekers who are much more likely to venture off the sea lanes on which regular imperial trade is conducted. The Tide Seekers will go forth sell their wares, collect supplies, deliver said supplies to the district, have their ships repaired and repeat the process all over again.