Thus, The Romans Conquered! (Or How They Became Saderans.) Part 1.
To understand the history of the Saderans, you first need to understand the history of the Italicans…
I. The Origins of Italica & the Italicans
The origins of the Italicans, was first documented in the secondary source known as the Valerid, an Italican epic poem about the origins of Italica and Italicans, written in ~100 A.S.C*, right in the middle of Italica's golden age.
In the Valerid, the main protagonist is Saderus Augustus Valerius, a Roman Patrician that hails from the Roman patrician family of gens Valeria (though modern historians are uncertain which branch of the Valeria, Valerius hails from.)
Similar to the Roman epic poem, the Aeneid, the Valerid tells us how Valerius and his group of Romans often struggled in finding a homeland**, facing and often fighting with adverse and strange beasts and tribes (strange according to the Romans,) before finally succeeding, with Valerius founding the city of Italica around ~140 A.S.C in the Western Plains of Falmart.
It was considered a land of promise- able to support vast lands for vast quantities of animals and crops***, with Valerius being the first elected Dux (or Duke) of Italica.
However, Valerius and the Italicans weren't the only sentient inhabitants of this beautiful and bountiful land. These people are known as demi-humans- the ancient inhabitants of this land, organized into primitive hunter-gather cultures & tribes, with their religion consisting of worshiping their ancestors, the spirits and the natural world.
While some demi-humans tribes were hospitable and open to trade with Valerius and the Italicans, other demi-human tribes were hostile (believing that the Italicans were encroaching in their territory,) but thanks to the Italicans' superior military (especially in terms of military organization & military technology,) the Italicans were able to defeat these tribes, either peacefully integrating the more hospitable demi-human tribes (though considered second-class citizens by the human Italicans,) while subjugating or exterminating the more hostile demi-human tribes.
With the integration (or the subjugation, or the extermination) of the demi-human tribes within the immediate sphere of influence of Italica, Valerius and the Italicans settled down, introducing Roman innovations and technologies new to the Falmartian Continent; Roman arches and aqueducts, Roman roads and highways, Roman concrete, etc.
When Valerius died in around ~120 A.S.C, he left Italica a city, one of bricks, stones and Roman concrete, with Italica entering a golden age, becoming a prosperous, influential and powerful city-state that under the subsequent elected Duxs of Italica, Italican explorers/settlers/traders exploring, settling and/or trading across the Falmartian Continent, setting up Italican cities and colonies like Alguna and Elbe, expanding Italica's sphere of influence on the Falmartian Continent, all while architects, artisans, philosophers and writers turn Italica a city of marble, filled with artworks and writings of great Italicans.
During this architectural, artistical, colonial, cultural and philosophical golden age, an unknown author of "supreme repute," writes the Valerid epic poem in the style of the Aeneid, telling the story of the city's founder.
However, Italica's golden age ended with the accession of a man known as Lucius Porcus (or Lucius the Pig) in around ~40 A.S.C. As the name suggests, he's derided by Italican historians as an incompetent hedonist, who alienated and angered many Italicans (especially demi-human Italicans,) both in Italica and in Italican colonies and settlements, with his policies benefiting himself and his bootlickers (though modern Italican historians begrudgingly admit that the policies regarding the centralization of Italica's bureaucracy, economy and military was needed.)
In around ~35 A.S.C, Lucius survived an attempted assassination, causing him to crackdown on "dissidents" (mostly Italica's demi-humans and his most outspoken political opponents,) leading to the political disillusionment by most of the elite of Italican society. Eventually, Lucius was successfully assassinated in around ~33 A.S.C by Italican senators of the moderate faction in the Italican Senate.
But it was too little, too late, as Italican city settlements begun breaking and seceding from Italica to form independent dukedoms, principalities and kingdoms (like the Dukedom of League Principality and the Kingdom of Elbe,) in what's latter referred to as "the Italican Anarchy," causing more than thirteen years of on-and-off military battles and skirmishes between loyalist Italicans, the separatist nations, and opportunist demi-human tribes (with demi-humans serving as auxiliary troops for either sides.)
Despite the Italicans' military superiority, the separatist nations won their independence in the decisive Battle of Potentia in around ~21 A.S.C, due to opportunistic demi-human tribes switching sides at the last moment, with the separatists forcing the betrayed and humiliated Italicans to sign a peace treaty with the separatist nations, recognizing the independence of these dukedoms, principalities and kingdoms.
The following years after the Battle of Potentia, Italica and Italicans would faced and suffered decline both economically and demographically, with the latter due to the Italican Anarchy, but as well as due to many groups of Italicans decided to emigrate to search for a better life. One of these groups was led by a man haling Italican nobility, and his name is Saderus Tiberius Valerius… and he's going to change Falmartian history… for better and for worse…
IA. Religion
Like their Roman ancestors, human Italicans initially prayed to, sacrificed to, and worshiped the Roman Pantheon; Jupiter, Juno, Minerva, Mars, Venus, etc. However, as older generations of Italicans depart and new generations of Italicans forget, the integrated demi-human Italicans introduce their own cultures and their religions to the Italicans, their own gods and goddesses.
And these gods and goddesses have apostles- people chosen by a god or by a goddess to become their champion. In return, they powerful demi-gods and demi-goddesses, capable of inhuman durability and vitality, incapable of death, and with the chance of becoming a god or goddess after a thousand years of service.
Thanks to apostles, more and more human Italicans begun worshiping the Falmartian Pantheon, and by the end of the Italican Anarchy, most human Italicans were worshiping the Falmartian Pantheon, much to the grumbling of Italican elders.
There are twelve major gods and goddesses of the Falmartian Pantheon, with one example being Hardy****, Goddess of the Underworld, though there are other major and minor gods and goddesses in the Falmartian Pantheon.
Like many polytheistic religions, you would offer up something as a sacrifice to a deity in the Falmartian Pantheon that's important to you and your life. For example, if you were a commander of an army, you would offer up a healthy bull as a sacrifice to Emroy. If you were a blacksmith, you would offer up some of your finest wares as a sacrifice to Duncan. Et Cetera, Et Cetera.
Footnotes
* Modern archaeologists, archivists and historians use the chronological system of A.S.C. (abbreviation of Ante Sadera Condita, literately translated to 'before Sadera was founded,') and P.S.C. (abbreviation of Post Sadera Condita, literately translated to 'after Sadera was founded,') for Falmartian continent.
** While the Valerid does explain where the Italicans (and therefore, the Saderans) originated, the Valerid doesn't explain where the Romans, the ancestors of the Italicans (and therefore, the Saderans) originated. And despite the best efforts of modern archaeologists, archivists and historians, the origins of these Romans are hotly debated and disputed. But one thing that modern archaeologists, archivists and historians agrees upon, is that the Romans (and therefore the Italicans and the Saderans,) weren't natives to the Falmartian Continent.
*** The Western Plains are considered the most fertile regions of the Falmartian Continent, similar to the plains of Ukraine.
**** The current depiction of Hardy is that she's a female human who becomes an apostle in around ~1,200 A.S.C. After a thousand years of service to unknown deity, she becomes the Goddess of the Underworld around ~200 A.S.C, being worshiped by demi-human tribes of the Western Plains by the time the Valerius founded Italica. The problem with that narrative is that the first Falmartian humans appeared around ~160 A.S.C - ~150 A.S.C, and Hardy is recorded to be older by over 1000 years. A theory that most modern archaeologists, archivists and historians believes, is that Hardy isn't human, and believes that Hardy was repackaged and depicted as a human goddess to appeal to human Italicans.
AN: Give or take, it's been eight months since I last updated. Sorry it's taken this long.