The Coastal Empire was founded by the Conqueror and initially consisted of just a handful of people. By the end of The Conquerors reign a decade later, it was one the only stable powers in the world, and easily the most dominant.
One Thousand years into the future, life has returned to normal for most people, and the world has a fresh new start. The Coastal Empire remains the worlds dominant superpower, but some say the Empire may now be in decline. Most old-world technologies have yet to be rediscovered. Others, while known to the empire's scientists and scholars, are strictly prohibited for the negative effect they had on the planet and it's people in the old world.
This rule made sense during the early days of the apocalypse, when war, climate disasters and social instability were a constant threat. But now, younger, more forward thinking nations are beginning to overtake The Empire's slow scientific advancements.
Sky ships, which had been in use for at least 20 years in other parts of the world, are only just now being introduced in the Empire, which still primarily relies on slow-moving seagoing vessels for trade.
Other nations, like the Intacians to the south are now turning to fossil fuels to fuel their rapid growth, while the empire still clings to it's decaying renewable energy sources from a millennia ago.
Only time will tell if The Coastal Empire can be pulled from it's slump and reassert itself as the worlds dominant superpower once again.