Britannian Empire: Although the military campaign in the MEF remains the headline of the day, at several points this year events on the battlefield have taken a back-page to ecological worries. A particularly vicious hurricane season along the Caribbean islands as well as tropical storms along the Pacific coastal regions have precipitated a drop in Inter-Area trade as well as necessitated an increased budget to deal with the damage incurred. The emperor has pledged some several millions pounds of his personal treasury to ensure the continued operation of all Britannian Imperial Services, with several notable nobles following suit. Still, experts say that it will require some time before business returns to its usual efficiency.
Mother Nature can always throw a wrench in the plans. The storm that caused the increased cost for our farming project (to become more self sustaining on food) must have been catastrophic. Especially as both costs of America were hit heavily.
I hope Cornelia is planning for General Winter.
The surge in storms has also slowed the war effort, though not as much as some would have feared. Princess Cornelia's efforts, in particular, have cut a swath through the ancient lands of Mesopotamia, using the broad and open terrain to her favor as she drove northward. Although intensely disheartening for the citizens of the MEF, it should be noted that the primary threat of Cornelia's advance is not in the land it occupies or the forces she defeats, but in the fact that the lines of garrisoned forces she leaves behind will effectively cut the MEF in twain between the two capitals of the region: Tehran and Constantinople.
Good, good. Britannia controlled area is expanding and becoming more secure. That means it should be easier to get the ancient site.
In the Arabian Sea, though, the MEF appears to have set its sights on a do-or-die series of battles to determine the fate of the Arabian Peninsula even as Britannian forces creep closer to the total encirclement of the region, which would cut off the financial hub of Riyadh. In large part, the empire is successful in their efforts, though what is being called the First Battle of Abu Dhabi ends in catastrophic defeat for Britannia, a lose capitalized on only with the influx of a new fleet and reinforcements from Area 9 following the results of the International Conference on Indonesia. With the larger commitment of forces, the Second Battle of Abu Dhabi results in victory for Britannia and seizure of a large part of the western coast of the Arabian Sea.
MEF won. Then Lelouch opened the Indonesian waters to Britannia Navy. MEF lost again. I'm starting to wonder if someone there screamed something like "Damn that meddling princeling!!!" when they heard about the results of the conference.
Lastly, and perhaps most significantly, Guinevere de Britannia has announced a pregnancy by way of one of her many lovers. Declining to comment on the biological father, the princess has garnered a swarm of media attention and speculation as several of her beaus have fought duels both between each other and against traditionalists who have offered slights against the princess' character given the birth will doubtlessly take place out of wedlock. The entire affair has done much to advance Guinevere's campaign for legitimacy as an imperial heiress in the face of the Crown Prince's lack of progeny.
At least one Personal Action won't be fighting for our limited spots next year. I doubt Guinevere will want to start working with us now.
Imperial Areas: Beyond the unfortunate storms which plague the Areas closest to the homeland, of specific news to the Areas is the reopening of the Suez Canal. Despite a number of setbacks and the belated leak of a terrorist attack two years previous, Governor Clovis presided over a reopening ceremony where he broke with tradition in allowing a Portuguese freighter through before Britannian traffic. Political theorists have noted the act, as well as his overtures to the EU, as steps towards a deescalation of tensions, though others have pointed towards Britannia's ancient friendship with Portugal as the driving force. Only time will tell.
With some theories floating around I was expecting that a rebel called Zero rose up in Clovis Area and assassinated him while claiming that Clovis was using the parties as a cover for psionic agents brainwashing the elites to sell out the Area to Britannia. I'm glad it is only Clovis trying to follow our lead and deescalate tensions.
Europa United: Much like the Empire, the Atlantic storm systems which ravage the Caribbean this year negatively impact several port cities with unusually heavy rains and harsh winds along the coast, turning into heavy snowstorms later in the year. The Council of Ten has, in a step similar to the Britannian Emperor, set aside a portion of his own income for relief purposes and called upon many politicians to do the same. By all accounts, though, the less expansive infrastructure of the EU will require less intensive repairs in the coming year and will likely rebound faster.
At least their space program will be somewhat delayed due to the need to focus on rebuilding.
Rus Republic: Elections this year have returned a mandate for the President of the Rus Republic as well as his legislative allies, allowing him to break the deadlock and continue with his agenda. Experts believe that, should this truly mark the end of any substantive political resistance to the current administration, it will be only a matter of a few years before the Rus Republic truly and fully separates from the EU at large.
The Rus Republic slides more towards the embrace of Cthulhu. The madmen have control of the asylum.
Speculation on the sudden and rapid turn around in the polls lay the blame squarely at the feet of Princess Cornelia's drive northward towards the Caucasus Mountains. Her arrival at the southern shores of the Black Sea in December of this year seemed to be the fulfillment of the president's prophecy that armed conflict will soon come to his nation's doorstep. Only the timely intervention of Greater Armenia seems to have prevented outright conflict between the private military of the princess and Republic soldiers, resulting in a rushed occupation of now-former MEF territory on the coast of the Black Sea and cementing Greater Armenia's status as a buffer between the conflict in the MEF and the Rus homeland. Armenia, for its part, has assured the MEF that, in the event of a reconquest of the border region, it will return all lands 'held in trust' back to a legitimate Federation government.
And they don't realize what is coming for them. Unless Cornelia really messed up her rolls we just gave her a big boost to her plans. And she only had to give the Armenians some territory from their traditional enemy.
Euro-Britannia: Following the recent trend of bucking its traditionally subordinate political role to Britannia proper, Euro-Britannia engaged in a number of diplomatic and economic exchanges with various countries at the summit called to discuss the 'Tunguska Impact Event.' Despite Prince Lelouch vi Britannia stealing the spotlight and giving the sub-empire a black eye, the conference was largely a success behind the scenes, promising a prosperous future for Euro-Britannia in the coming years.
While I am happy with the result of our choices we might have thrown a bigger wrench in EB plans if we tried other groups. Of course then we most likely would have to deal with EB sending assassins to our little island.
Chinese Federation & Indonesian Confederation [SPECIAL EVENT]: Possibly the event of greatest impact to the global political stage this year, the Indonesia Conference shattered norms and preconceptions in countless ways. Repercussions will doubtless reverberate through international relations for years as the superstates of the world come to terms with the power of the piratical rogue states of Australia, the existence of Psionic Super Soldiers, and the realigning of the local political strata.
The man of the hour, Lelouch vi Britannia, has been credited with both stopping the destabilization of the region and negotiating a return to a stable status quo between the IC and the CF. European detractors of the new treaty point to the obviously self-serving nature of the agreement on the Prince's part, specifically the concessions towards his personal claims on Australia which remain largely unrecognized in the international community. Other nations have given token protests at the allowances given Britannian fleets, but are largely relieved in the face of greater security of some of the busiest international trade lanes in the world. The Chinese Federation itself has released a statement broadly thanking all those who stood together in the face of resisting the hostile and unrelenting attack, specifically praising the brave garrison soldiers who lost their lives.
The existence of Psionic Super Soldiers will be a problem but it seems the public response is positive. Even the Chinese are thanking us.
Middle Eastern Federation: With the one significant military victory largely proving to be pyrrhic in nature, the MEF has depleted a large portion of its primary army and remaining naval forces and is likely to move towards an even more defensive stance in the coming years. Of significant concerns to onlookers is whether or not the MEF will be able to maintain cohesion in light of Cornelia's move to physically divide the region. Her conquest of Baghdad, recorded and photographed with a symbolic passage through the restored Gate of Ishtar in the ancient ruins of Babylon as well as Bab al-Wastani in the center of the modern city, have cut an important lifeline between the two historically disparate areas of Persia and Anatolia. Only time will tell if the MEF is now able to continue presenting a united front to their invader.
MEF on the defensive is good for us. Hope this lasts.
Ethiopian Empire: In an effort to secure its holdings on the Arabian Peninsula, Ethiopia has undertaken a reorganization of its military branches in order to properly expand. The project appears to be going well in its first stages, with local recruits from the conquered region giving a significant boost to their public relations efforts. Although their attempts to mediate the Indonesian Conference later in the year are, ultimately, something of a black mark on their reputation given the near-disaster it turns into, the success of the conference overall in spite of the lack of Ethiopian military presence to guard delegates allows them to retreat from the Chinese Federation's sphere of influence with good grace.
A decent year for Ethiopia. Our help with the refuges next year should help with some ruffled feathers.
Japan: The Sumeragi Zaibatsu makes headlines several times throughout the latter part of the year, extending beneficial ties to a number of companies in Indonesia as well as to Prince Lelouch vi Britannia himself, acquiring a large share of the valuable sakuradite he now has license to import from the Chinese client state of Indonesia. The release of this information has done much to both stabilize and drive up sakuradite prices, as the reserve material which funds much of the island nation's economic growth becomes a more sure investment. A host of other, smaller agreements under a more national aegis to further regulate the availability of a now-larger sakuradite reserve follow, all to Japan's benefit. The sole dark spot in an otherwise bright forecast for the nation are the hints of internal discontent following the suggested transition of the position of Prime Minister to a hereditary appointment. Rumor has it that in response to the suggestion factions nominally backing Kururugi Genbu have begun investigating other routes to power
This was a surprise. I'm thinking Sumeragi used us. The sakuradite trade seems to only be a pretext to break with Kururugi with a decent reason. And what is Genbu planning?
East & West African Unions: The superstates of Africa this year mount a military response to the violence of the previous one. The crackdown against anti-psionic rioting does much to restore the peace in the region, even if it is a fradile one. Analysits report that while the presence of peace-keeping units has largely been positive, there is still a long way to go before the situation is fully under control. Refugees still mass at the borders of neighboring Britannia and Ethiopia with many trying their fortunes in the anarchic regions of the southern Sahara in response to continued threat to life and limb by locals.
The problems there seem to be winding down but we should still be able to grab some decent psionic refuges next turn.
Although you don't know the exact details... or many details at all, really, seriously concerning information has been coming out of what agents you are in contact with within the Chinese Federation. The High Eunuchs within the capital have apparently closed ranks, locking down any and all information. Given Xingke's blacklisting as a fugitive, the overall political upset that the conference was, and the deposing of the reigning clique, all signs point to something very out of the ordinary in the highest ranks of the Federation's government. Worryingly, Kaguya reports her lines of communication with the young Empress have shut down as well. You worry that this bodes ill.
Ouch. And the public response was so hopeful. Now I am starting to wonder if we will recreate Charles courting of Anastasia. We need to get Jeager on the Gawain. I think the walking WMD will be needed.
Word from Pendragon is that Guinevere is... more than slightly aggravated with your upstaging her, even if it was only briefly. It's probably for the best that, given what's happened, you didn't take her up on her offers in the previous years. Regardless, though, her hold on friendly media outlets has ensured that she maintains a solid share of the daily news so you probably haven't engendered more of a grudge than she already had against you for being a half-commoner in the first place.
Not so bad when reactions come. As I said before we won't be playing both sides in this Game of Thrones.
Your forces have managed seize the lion's share of arms and armor from the battle with the New Heaven forces. The men who bore them into battle, though, largely died rather than be taken prisoner. Of the thousands of psionic soldiers who fought in Indonesia that day, only four surrendered. Most who attempted were evidently put down by their fellows rather than allow the heresy of giving up to occur. The only reason so many survived to turn themselves over to you is that, astoundingly, one of the psionic casters decided the battle was lost. Due to the political turmoil, you manage to secure the survivors largely uncontested, though your forces are not sure that they managed to do so unobserved. It is somewhat likely that at least one other faction knows you absconded with these individuals. With the chaos of the battle as well, it is simply impossible to account for all of the armors and weapons which should be present as well. Some will end up in others' hands by virtue of the raw numbers involved.
I just hope we can keep the prisoners with others knowing we have them. I am not looking forward to next turn Intrigue choices. We might be able to trade them to OSI for something in the worst case.
Japan, being a country that you have invested quite a bit of time and effort to understand, is undergoing some political turmoil. It seems as though Kururugi Genbu, fresh off the latest bout of elections the previous year, has decided to put forth measures to make his office hereditary. The Sumeragi, normally close relations and supports of the Kururugi political apparatus have broken ranks over the decision. You aren't entirely sure why, mind you, but this fits the overall narrative concerning Kaguya's broken engagement. You don't know her former intended's opinions on the matter of the engagement, but his father the Prime Minister, is reported to be very unhappy over the entire debacle, to the point where the man is considering formally censuring the Sumeragi Zaibatsu. You aren't sure how to turn this infighting to your advantage yet, though.
Is everything blowing up in the background. Who set off the political fireworks.
Right. It was us.
