# Tlaukhu

The **Tlaukhu** is the political, cultural, and ceremonial heart of the **Aslan Hierarchy**. Commonly translated as “the Twenty-Nine” (though its composition may vary), it is an aristocratic structure composed of the most prestigious houses among Aslan clans. It is not a parliament, senate, or government in the human sense; it is an assembly of honor, precedence, and legitimacy.

Its authority does not stem from law, but from tradition. Although the Hierarchy includes tens of thousands of clans, only those formally recognized for their conquests, lineage, or cultural contributions may be part of the Tlaukhu.

### Function and Nature

The Tlaukhu does not issue commands to the Hierarchy. Rather, it defines what is honorable, what is desirable, what is correct. Its role is to maintain the balance of prestige, legitimize disputes, arrange high-level marriage alliances, and safeguard the values that define Aslan civilization.

Being part of the Tlaukhu does not grant direct power, but it confers influence, precedence, and moral authority. In many regions, the lineages of the Tlaukhu act as conflict arbitrators, colonial patrons, and referees of hereditary claims.

As of 1201, the composition of the Tlaukhu has shifted due to migrations, honor wars, and cross-border expansion. Nonetheless, its weight as the symbolic and gravitational center of the Hierarchy is unquestionable.

***

## The Tlaukhu in the Game

In **The Corporate Wars**, the Tlaukhu represents the symbolic apex of Aslan civilization: a moral reference point, not a direct actor.

Playable Aslan corporations do not arise from the Tlaukhu, but from minor clans or *Iloahktahe* —landless lineages or those out of ancestral favor— who seek to restore their prestige through expansion, colonization, and economic success.

These *Polities* act as extended arms of lost honor. If they triumph, they may be acknowledged by their original clans and, in rare cases, recommended for inclusion in the Tlaukhu.

The Aslan gameplay revolves around visible merit and recovered prestige. Nothing is given: everything must be conquered, earned, or demonstrated in the eyes of tradition.

Interacting with the Tlaukhu is not about signing contracts; it is about reaching a status the Tlaukhu itself cannot ignore.
