[X] Seek retribution against the Lochanysh Kingdom for their transgressions.
The war against the Lochanysh Kingdom continues as the Arthwyd Empire joins the Forluc Kingdom and Colryd Confederation against the barbaric Lochanysh Kingdom. The war is less a single war and more several on and off wars as the both sides push at each other before withdrawing to remarshal their strength.
As much as the civilised people of the north hate to admit it, the war is going in favour of the barbarians. The Forluc Kingdom has lost thousands of men and has yet to retake the lands that the Lochanysh had conquered from them. Meanwhile the Colryd Confederation has found itself stalemated as they and their foes are unable to get the advantage over each other.
The Lochanysh Kingdom is at a disadvantage with lesser manpower and wealth than the Caermyr Union, but they have been making up for it in veteran warriors and experienced leadership. Prominently is Sythan Blar, a Lochanysh warrior who has risen to a position of leadership over the course of the fighting. The man is a natural at war, a talented individual who is an equal to the likes of Cadyl or Seryn.
But despite the successes of the Lochanysh Kingdom and their battle-hardened military, the tide finally turns when the Catclaws and Cateyes of the Arthwyd Empire arrive. The fighting is gruelling and slow, but the sacred warriors of Arthwyd Empire slowly advance, pushing ever further and reconquering two major Forluc settlements from the Lochanysh Kingdom.
Unfortunately for the Caermyr Union, that is where their successes end and the rest of the war goes in favour of the Lochanysh. The barbarians smash through the recently rallied Forluc defenders, halting any invasions in their infancy and pushing back the Forlucan soldiers. It is all that the Arthwydysh can do to stop themselves from being cut off and surrounded as the Lochanysh marcher deeper into the Forluc Kingdom, reaching as far as the Great Mountain and the edge of the Largest Lake.
The situation is even worse in the Colryd Confederation as it is nothing less than a total victory for the Lochanysh Kingdom. The barbarians systematically smash through the Colrydysh lines and overrun the defenders. Any attempts at mustering a defence are crushed before they get off the ground and within short order, half of the Colryd Confederation has fallen to the Lochanysh Kingdom.
The Arthwyd Empire and its indomitable military do not let the Lochanysh keep their victory. The sacred warriors of the Arthwyd Empire spread and systematically hunt down the Lochanysh invaders in the Forluc Kingdom. It takes the better part of two years, but it is a massacre for the barbarians as they are eliminated one by one until Sythan realises what is happening and withdraws the remaining Lochanysh forces.
As the Arthwydish military consolidates in the Forluc Kingdom, the Lochanysh are forced to lick their wounds. Despite their many victories, the Lochanysh are still losing the war. While Colryd Confederation and Forluc Kingdom have suffered greatly, the Lochanysh Kingdom is just inherently smaller than their northern neighbours and cannot sustain the same level of losses as the member states of the Caermyr Union.
Between the battles fought and the settlements raided, tens of thousands have died and perhaps as many as a hundred thousand lives have been claimed by the war. Yet even as the civilised states bear the bulk of this cost, they can afford to with their greater population and superior economies. The Lochanysh Kingdom may have defeated all, but the Arthwyd Empire, but it has expended its manpower reserves and it is on its last legs.
Realising the weaken state of their foes, the Arthwyd forces make a push attempt to retake the fallen Colrydysh lands. The Lochanysh Kingdom does not break before their might as while their warriors might be all they got left, but their final warriors are diehard veterans and their leader Sythan Blar is the greatest military mind alive.
The Arthwydysh find themselves repulsed, ejected from the conquered lands of the Colryd Confederation and forced to lick its wounds. The military of the Arthwyd Empire remains strong and unbroken, but it is beginning to show its wounds as the Lochanysh refuse to break before the might of the Caermyr Union.
While the Arthwydysh could break their foes with a forced push, a bloody and brutal campaign that could cost both sides dearly, but only one can afford, politics force their hand. The Lochanysh Kingdom is not the only neighbour of the Caermyr Union and the Caermyr Union is at its weakest since it was founded.
The Urthdysh Federation has no military while the Colryd Confederation only has the broken remnants of its militias. The Forluc Kingdom still has an army worth speaking about, but it will take a good generation or two before it restores its strength. The sacred warriors of the Arthwyd Empire alone remain as the military of the Caermyr Union and if they are broken by the Lochanysh, it would almost certainly invite invasion from other barbarians in the lowlands.
The Hamefordysh Republic, the Diondairysh Hierarchy and the Bruraysh Kingdom would never pass up the chance to cripple the Caermyr Union if they found it in a weak spot. They simply cannot pass up opportunity to turn the tables on the greatest alliance in the entire world.
And so, the Arthwydysh armies must be careful least the Caermyr Union win one war only to win itself fighting another three that it cannot wage.
***
While initially delayed by the outbreak of war and unexpected successes of the Lochanysh Kingdom, the completion of the great marketplace in Caermyr opened up a major change in how the world economy worked.
For the entirety of its existence, the internal economy of the Arthwyd Empire has worked differently to those of its neighbours and the rest of the world. The individual provided for the community and the community provided for the individuals that made it up. This communal unit was a unique feature compared to the familial units that everyone else used and the different social structures result in different economical structures forming.
In the Arthwyd Empire, everyone gave the produce of their labours to the community and in turn, the community would provide for everyone using what everyone had provided it with. It was the duty of the local priesthood to make sure that everyone got what they wanted and to decide what happened with the excess, either passing it up further along the government structure or distributing it back amongst the community as unnecessary goods.
No one needed to worry about being rich or well off. No one needed to worry about having enough food, having enough clothes and having a roof to sleep under. The community provided for all of that and everyone within the Arthwyd Empire had their basic needs provided for them by the community.
So when Princess Noemys of the Forluc Kingdom presented the idea of having standardised items that represented a unit of wealth as the trade within the city of Caermyr grew ever larger and more complex, the Arthwyd Empire didn't see the point.
Who needed this currency when the community provided for all and no one wanted for anything? But things were different within the other member states of the Caermyr Union. The idea of having something to represent their wealth appealed to the upper society of the Forluc Kingdom and to many leaders within the Colryd Confederation. The Daughters of Urthryn within the Urthdysh Federation also found the concept of current to be intriguing as a means of furthering their soft power and playing political games with each other.
There was further debate amongst those that supported Princess Noemys' idea of having currency being determined by the value of the materials that it is made out of and those that supported the Urthrynite Priesthood's idea of having the currency be unimportant on their own, but supported by a reserve of value materials that give representative value to the units of currency.
Furthermore, a third group emerged, those that wanted the disinterested Arthwydysh to be in charge of managing the currency and its value. The honest Arthwyd with their powerful goddesses could determine the value of the currency and manage creating it as they had no interest or desire to manipulate to their own ends while the divine backing would ensure that no one pulled any dishonest deeds.
While the debate went on for the better part of two decades, as the Caermyr-Lochanysh Wars began to enter their final stage, one of the three groups emerged triumph over the others.
How does the Caermyr Union adopt currency?
[] Currency that has units which are worth their material value.
[] Currency that is backed by a reserve of material value goods.
[] Currency that is backed by the word and goddesses of the Arthwyd Empire.
***
First of all, I am not an economic expert so while I think the options work for the setting, I am be horribly off-mark. Secondly, it is late so I'm not going to put much into this part as I want to post the update tonight before going to bed. That includes any proofreading.
Please point out any spelling or grammar mistakes that you spot. Please quote them in the thread and explain what you think is wrong so I know what you are referring to. Feel to ask questions for more details and information.
